ok ... so this is a completely random post - it has zero relation with anything to do with entertainment but i couldn't pass on tossing up these pictures i took myself last friday! i happen to work across the street from grauman's chinese theatre - michael jackson's walk of fame star happens to be right out front - i was snapping pictures of people gathering to pay their respects ... my buddy jesse noticed this truck heading east on hollywood blvd - in the back of it was all this nasty looking meat, chicken and seafood scraps! we were all SHOCKED after seeing the pictures up close! the really scary part is - you'd never have known what the truck was carrying unless you were looking down from above like i happened to be - there was no cover on the stench it plus it was pretty hot outside - this gross truck just looks like one big ass health code violation - it literally made me sick to my stomach! could you imagine the truck had an accident and all those scraps spilled all over the street?!? it's beyond disgusting - and witnessing it definitely made me think about where my meat comes from (has anyone seen food inc. yet?) check out the pictures below - only if you can bear it - this is by far the most unglamorous thing i've ever seen on the blvd! that's saying a lot - trust me - there are many moments that lack glamour here in hollywood on a daily basis - i've seen some crazy shit go down in and around my neighborhood! popbytes over & out for now ... xoxo
oh my word! i would NOT want this poorly executed and scary-looking wax figure of marilyn monroe (or any other for that matter) in my apartment - i couldn't sleep at night - waxy doppelgängers always give me a case of the creeps - i can't imagine who would want to buy such a thing! however now's your big chance if waxwork figures happen to float your boat - the hollywood wax museum is auctioning off a bunch of pieces from their celebrity collection (starting may 1st) a portion of the proceeds will be donated to help preserve the infamous 'walk of fame' (i visited the museum once - it's just around the corner from my place) they haven't announced their shutting down yet but i think it's probably inevitable with the wax industry leader madame tussauds moving into the neighborhood right down the block (opening this summer - next to grauman's chinese theatre) after being around since 1965 - it will be sad to see the hollywood landmark close but it's pretty rundown & dusty these days - it'll soon be time to close the doors! popbytes over & out for tonight ... xoxo
PS you have to get a look at kate winslet's waxy twin - i couldn't tell who it was until i looked at the picture's caption - she looks more like kathy griffin! it's an awful rendition of her (along with james dean and elton john - in fact they're all quite terrible!)
oh my gosh! i seriously cannot believe i almost passed up the chance to see mariah carey play a live free mini-concert over at the babylon courtyard located in the hollywood & highland complex (a mere two minute walk from my apartment) i knew it would be a crazy scene but thankfully my very dear friend elana (holla!) reserved a nice spot for me at koji's sushi restaurant which gave me a perfect view of the mariah festivities! (some people waited all day long - i showed up at 7:45pm) she sounded spectacular (the acoustics happen to be quite decent in the courtyard) and looked super fierce (her performance is being featured on jimmy kimmel tonight) besides some tracks from her latest kick-ass album E=MC2 (which i'm still way obsessed with and will for sure land in my top ten albums of the year list...not to mention the fact that girlfriend will once again get a few grammy nods for her latest effort) she also sang two songs off of the emancipation of mimi - 'we belong together' & 'shake it off' - oh my word - i was in total mariah heaven tonight! i can't wait to catch her upcoming tour - i don't know what it is about ms. carey that draws me to her (certainly not her questionable style, cheesy disposition, and shady marriages) but i swear i'm a 'lamb' for life! (that's how mariah refers to her devoted fans) popbytes over & out for tonight...xxoo
oh good evening boys & girls! i'm thrilled today is drawing to a close - it was just one of those ugh days - and thank heavens tomorrow is friday (i'm doing something pretty cool tomorrow afternoon which i'll be filling you all in on soon!) anyways as i was leaving work tonight i noticed something was going down on hollywood blvd but i couldn't quite tell what it was - now i know and i don't think beyonce would be pleased about it...right next to the grauman's chinese theatre a brand new $55 million dollar madame tussauds wax museum is being built (i've kept a close eye on its progress since i work right across the street - it's due to open next spring) and tonight was the official announcement with LA mayor antonio villaraigosa overseeing the ceremony where two new wax figures were unveiled - beyonce and jamie foxx - i do love ms. knowles (who has been keeping a low profile lately) but her waxy doppelganger is awful - the hair looks so cheap - i don't like her armpit pose at all - it's just all around wrong - somebody must agree with me?!?
if someone wanted to make my likeness out of wax - i would totally need to have final approval! i think beyonce needs to get on the horn with the madame of wax! having the museum on the block will be nice - before it was just an ugly parking lot - hollywood blvd has come so far since i've lived here - it's a lot less shady! popbytes over & out for now...xxoo
hey hey! this afternoon at work while sitting at my desk all of a sudden i hear the classic song sweet caroline blasting outside - as we all jumped to the window - there's legendary singer & songwriter neil diamond on the roof of the el capitan theatre with late-night talk show host jimmy kimmel who was decked out in a sequined vest with a white scarf - and serenading the growing crowd below - i'll have to tune-in tonight to see what all the roof action was about! tomorrow night mr. diamond will be mentoring the final five on american idol - i'm not a huge fan of mr. diamond's but he has written a number of great songs - a total american music icon! many thanks go out to my buddy aaron (full of conspiracy theories & lively conversation!) at work for snapping the pictures below since i was due at a meeting - and neil diamond on the roof next door was not a good excuse to skip! i love living & working right in hollywood - there's always something random going on! popbytes over & out for tonight...xxoo!
good evening! today was another crappy weather day here in los angeles - and around 2pm - it poured heavily for a few minutes - then all of a sudden the sun came out - i raced to the window at work - and there was a beautiful rainbow cast over hollywood blvd just as i suspected there might be! (i'm taking the colorful spectrum as a sign that it could be sunny here on sunday) luckily i was able to snap a few pictures before it vanished - plus i took more pics of the whole oscar set-up - the awards are less than 48 hours away! tonight i'm taking it easy while cooking up some of my delicious asparagus soup - and tomorrow i'm sleeping late! popbytes over & out for tonight...xxoo!
many thanks to my pal JAM who sent over this joint statement from a bunch of entertainment CEOs - which will hopefully signals the end of the writers' strike! i certainly pray it's all over - if it were to continue - television would start to seem bleaker than it already is! i've been feeling super uneasy about all this strike business (along with a looming recession!) i hope everyone is happy with the deal - so here's to people going back to work again - cheers! popbytes over & out for tonight...xxoo! (woo hoo...tomorrow is friday!)
PS i think i was reading too much into this statement - this is only an appeal to get talks going again! oh my word - this so needs to be resolved ASAP!
The agreement between the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television
Producers and the Directors Guild of America establishes an important precedent: Our industry's creative talent will now participate financially in every emerging area of new media. The agreement demonstrates beyond any doubt that our industry's producers are willing and able to work with the creators of entertainment content to establish fair and flexible rules for this fast-changing marketplace.
We hope that this agreement with DGA will signal the beginning of the end of this extremely difficult period for our industry. Today, we invite the Writers Guild of America to engage with us in a series of informal discussions similar to the productive process that led us to a deal with the DGA to determine whether there is a reasonable basis for returning to formal bargaining. We look forward to these discussions, and to the day when our entire industry gets back to work.
Peter Chernin Chairman and CEO The Fox Group Brad Grey Chairman & CEO Paramount Pictures Corp. Robert A. Iger President & CEO The Walt Disney Company Michael Lynton Chairman & CEO Sony Pictures Entertainment Barry M. Meyer Chairman & CEO Warner Bros. Leslie Moonves President & CEO CBS Corp. Harry Sloan Chairman & CEO MGM Jeff Zucker President & CEO NBC Universal
hey hey! ok so this past friday i called in sick to work - when i returned today - one very cool co-worker (who wants to remain anonymous) of mine came running up to me - going on about witnessing a minor fender bender on hollywood blvd (at the corner of orange - right next to hollywood's roosevelt hotel) it involved a white mercedes rear ending a silver VW bug (there wasn't a lot of damage but the mercedes symbol from the front grill was missing...) guess who was driving the mercedes? it was aaron carter - the messy younger & washed up brother of 'backstreet boy' nick carter! my pal was working a little late that night and spotted the incident and quickly snapped a few pictures which are posted below! they told me as the girls and mr. carter were exchanging 'important yet boring' details (no police were called to the scene - plus there wasn't a paparazzi in sight) they had no clue who he was and then aaron even broke into a few moments of singing for them - then finally a tourist (of course) recognized him (shame on them!)
aaron seemed quite content with the very small bit of attention - then my friend asked him to snap a picture and mr. carter obliged with a big ol' smile (he's practicing for his inevitable mugshot!) it all seems fishy to me - apparently he was flirting hardcore w/ the ladies - and what a convenient place to rear end someone! although his mini PR stunt most likely failed - i looked around the web and i've seen no mention of the fender bender - so i suppose this is a semi-exclusive post - not the most groundbreaking story but it's something right? popbytes over & out for tonight...xxoo!
hey y'all! i've got one last post before i head off to bed (i'm so super tired) earlier today i was sitting at my desk when all of a sudden everybody in my office heard a bunch of clamor growing louder by the minute outside - we all raced to the window and saw what seemed like thousands of people marching down hollywood blvd - it turned out to be a part of the writers' strike that will soon be heading into week #3 - i looked closely into the crowd and i spotted debra messing holding a strike sign (who i saw earlier in the day) and 'grey's anatomy' star sandra oh got up at the podium and gave an impassioned speech - i couldn't hear it but she was really into whatever she was saying - and people were cheering like mad! i for one totally support the writers guild of america - and i hope the two sides can come up with a compromise that keeps everyone happy - i really don't want to see this drag on - TV will be so bleak! (and movies will be backed up too!) popbytes over & out for tonight...xxoo!
good morning & happy friday! earlier this week i posted some pictures from the hancock movie shoot taking place on hollywood blvd with will smith & charlize theron - as of yesterday they were still filming this big action sequence with a smashed truck laid out on the ground - i'm not exactly sure what's going on in the scene but something causes total pandemonium on the blvd - they've filmed a lot of scenes of people running for their lives all over the street - my work pals aaron & erik even went downstairs and sneaked into one of the extras scene where they ran across the street (they're pictured below) when asked who they were - aaron said 'oh we're friends of peter's' (referring to director peter berg) and they were allowed to stay! as much as it has been fun having this film being worked on right outside my work building - it has also been a total pain in the ass - besides the traffic nightmare - just walking around has been annoying - being stopped here & there - asked to hold up for five minutes while they film a scene - and having to take various alternate paths to get around the whole set-up - i'm so ready for them to be done and move on! anyways hopefully when i head to work in a few minutes the blvd will be back to normal...however i will have to see this film when it comes out next july just to see how this sequence turned out! popbytes over & out for now...xxoo! (oh the blond lady below is ms. theron's stand in!)
good morning! so they've blocked off a big section of hollywood blvd for three days (starting yesterday) to film scenes for the upcoming will smith movie hancock which also stars charlize theron & jason bateman! before i left work last night i took a few pictures of the action going on outside the window - mr. smith was laying in a pile of street rubble and then proceeded to chase ms. theron around - both of them getting in some kind of argument - i know the film revolves around a down on his luck superhero (smith) who hires an image consultant (bateman) to improve his superhero standing but finds himself having an affair with his wife (theron) the film is directed by peter berg and is due for release next july...i wonder how it'll turn out? the project has been languishing in hollywood since '96 and had a number of directors attached to it before mr. berg took over...anyways as much as i love to see stuff like this - it's a total pain in the ass when the blvd is blocked off - which always causes traffic jams galore - oh good times! popbytes over & out for now...xxoo!
hey everybody! oh what a day it has been here on popbytes - my post the other day on those brazilian yogurt ads did very well - i even got linked off an article over on people.com which helped provide some extra traffic! anyways this afternoon i walked over to the hollywood wax museum along with a few pals from work for a fun break - i've passed by the museum a gazillion times but never went in...until today! (this month i'm celebrating my sixth year living here in los angeles - oh my word time does fly!) all houses o' wax are always on the creepy side - this one was no exception! founded in 1965 by spoony singh (he passed away last year) it was the first wax place dedicated to celebrities - the quality of the figures isn't the best (this was no madame tussauds) but i have to admit it was better than i thought and proved to be a fun & kooky time! below are a bunch of pictures including one of yours truly! (that's jude law w/ angelina jolie) right now i'm enjoying my friday evening - along with loving the thought of sleeping semi-late tomorrow! popbytes over & out for tonight - much love to all as always...xxoo!
good evening! so this morning there was a bunch of hoopla (aka traffic) in front of grauman's chinese theater on hollywood blvd when the united states postal service (gosh who doesn't love when the mail comes?!?) launched their new collection of star wars stamps in celebration of the series' 30th anniversary! there's fifteen in all (pictured below) and will be available for purchase starting on may 26th!
plus if you head over to usps jedi master you can vote for your favorite (time is ticking...less than sixty days left to cast your vote) the winning stamp will be made into its very own sheet! (i'm totally voting for yoda) this is only the second time in the post office's 256 years (damn that's a long ass time) where the public has been offered the chance to vote for a stamp (the first time was for the elvis presley stamp back in '92) i'll admit i'm not a fan of star wars at all but i'm such a sucker for a hot new stamp release! popbytes over & out for now...xxoo! (many thanks to my pals brent & tina who snapped the pictures from this morning)
good evening! this morning there was vanessa williamsgetting her star and then in the afternoon i spotted the gorgeous heidi klum filming something for what i assume is intended for german television - she wasn't talking to the camera in english so i really have no clue what was going on but i snapped some pictures anyway! it looked like some sorta outfit critiquing but i could be wrong! she looks great for just having another baby a few months ago - oh i simply can't wait until the next season of project runway kicks off - oh yes that's another favorite show of mine!
right now i'm getting ready for the amy winehouse concert tonight which i've got myself quite excited and pumped over - i can't wait! i'll try to do a quick post when i get home later tonight! popbytes over & out for now...xxoo!
hey boys & girls! I just snapped a few pictures while at lunch of l. ron hubbard's yearly scientology 'winter wonderland' set-up here in hollywood! unfortunately i missed 'santa xenu' since i've been avoiding the place like the plague at night when all the 'festivities' & 'stress tests' are taking place! (plus they're always filming - gosh those scientologists love to document things) the sign that says 'sorry we're closed' is hysterical!
i wonder if tom cruise and katie holmes have stopped by yet with baby suri? i don't want to slam any 'beliefs' (you know me - i'm all for whatever floats your boat) but i still find the 'religion' to be super creepy! (and yes a little silly) i bet there's a bunch of unsuspecting tourists who play right into their hands - first they have the kids pictures snapped and then are sent off with a copy of dianetics and their e-meter certificate! popbytes over & out for now - and don't say i didn't warn you about the 'wonderland' here on hollywood blvd! i don't need any of my readers turning into clams!
so this morning a bunch of victoria's secret models gathered for some kinda photoshoot in front of the grauman's chinese theater - right up in the first row of course we had the usual pretty lady suspects including adriana lima, gisele bundchen, karolina kurkova, alessandra ambrosio, izabel goulart, & selita ebank...i think i got all the names right - if someone knows these models well please correct me if i'm wrong! i love that picture where it looks like gisele and karolina are about to make out! all the boys in my office were leering like i've never seen before - too funny! popbytes over & out for now - xxoo!
hey kids! i'm finally settling down after a very long day that ended with a really fun (not) dentist appointment - oh good times! anyways i must say that the more i ponder graffiti artist banksy's stunt/hoax/prank/punk that he concoted with the paris hilton album over in the UK - the more i just love the whole concept & set-up! (read all the details of the scheme) what a great idea for a fun & smart poke at paris...and he actually pulled it off! gosh i'm so very impressed - kudos! so i was checking out his website and i noticed he's having an event very soon right here in hollywood (see the ad below) i definitely must check that out! the three day event called barely legal has surely peaked my interest - especially after hearing about his brilliant prankster plots! below is the video that accompanies his latest hit - good stuff! i doubt september '06 will be remembered by ms. hilton as a good month...tears...hoaxes...and now cuffs! popbytes over & out for now...xxoo!
so its like 1pm - and lady ellen degeneres is due on the blvd - johnny grant the honorary mayor is out front - the hollywood high marching band is playing (see pics below) - big coca cola float promos with like dancing girls and music - go by (passing out samples of C2 - im not sure how i feel about it - but i will say its better than diet - which for me would be like drinking gasoline - that crap tastes NASTY - if yr worried about calories - save em someplace else or dont drink soda - im sorry i so hate diet soda) - and soon ellen will be here - but then whammy - ellen is down a bit (im on the corner of orange and hollywood - the best corner - the main staple of hollywood - is hollywood blvd from orange to highland) so she ran a drop just down the street - passes the torch to some local athelete - and she jumps in a car and is off! johnny grant was ticked off! we had been waiting - and it was like over in a split second - and we didnt even get to see ellen! and then we hear at work - will ferrell was running with it for a bit - and apparently it was some big faux pas (brent look i used that term) for a celeb to pass to another celeb - so oh well - just another day in hood - sometimes suprisingly exciting - sometimes a disappointment - sometimes weird and odd - but alway hollywood is always up to SOMETHING! - speaking of which i think my fave marilyn monroe impersonator who was all preggers - maybe had her baby since she has been absent! so congrats if so!
what else is brewing - well joe schmo 2 was a stroke of brilliance last night - and west-kevina loved it - he will be posting soon on wb superstars - and all that wackiness! very soon! and i was able to get him a 'copy' of the new phish cd - undermind - and he loves it and will soon be in vermont in august to attend one of their last shows! go west-kevina!
and next week will be the debut of ms. skimmers who is going to lovingly donate weekly reviews of her new reality obsession (its great on bravo blow out - all i can say is that main guy is straight? you mean hes not gay? wait what? hes not gay? i told ms. skimmers today - honey if he were your boyfriend (she loves him) i would say oh ms. skimmers - your boyfriend is gay - sorry sweetie! anyways looking forward to her reviews!
here is here comment from last night okay, now everyone who knows me, knows that i do not watch reality shows...well until now...! has anyone seen that episode of jonathan anton called "blow...something?" it's on bravo...umm..yeah he's so hot, i had no idea he was straight until...he asked out that blonde for dinner, that lucky gal!...even under all that pressure and he only cried...once on tv! i can't wait to get my rear end in there and get my hair cut. what about the "who wants to be the next stuntman"? that was pretty interesting to...all except for that one gal..what was her name? (VIVIANA!) the one from south america...i think. the one who was 'overdramatic!' can someone please tell her to knock it off, ha! anyways...what is happening to me...i am actually falling in love with these reality shows!!!
and tonight my gals arrive - paris and nicole on the simple life 2 - i would so be their best friend if they would have me - popbytes out!
the oscar preps are in FULL SWING! the traffic has been horrendous - and the rain - oh the rain - i think it may rain on the oscars - i wonder when that last happened? im sure a long time ago - if ever! and it poured last night! we need the rain - but then come the floods - its whole crazy chain of reactions! im semi excited for the show on sunday - sounds like theron is a shoo-in and LORD OF RINGS will take best picture i think - and it should - pete jackson has done an amazing job on all three films - i couldnt even begin to imagine being in charge of all that - my eyes would be popping out of my head left and right - his next project is a remake of KING KONG - this time with naomi watts playing the fay wrey/jessica lange damsel in distress who has a monkey fall for her - and a LARGE monkey at that!
lisa-maries 14 yr old daighter is now a hot runway model - being featured right now in some D&G shows - shes hot - and yes boys only 14 - 4 yrs more yrs to go - i think grandddaddy would be proud -
some hot new DVD releases - including a box set of david lynch's masterpiece ERASERHEAD (god bless jack nance) - IN THE CUT is out with ms meg being all indie - dont know if i can bear it - THE MISSING with lee jones and blanchett - will check this one out - and WONDERLAND with sexy val kilmer and friends veteran lisa kudrow - only 3 more episodes left - thank god!
i plan to see THE PASSION this weekend - its crazy all the muss and fuss over this movie - sounds like it should be engrossing - but im not taking this seriously at all - for those of you who know me - religion is the bottom of my list of things to attend to in life - just be a good person and shut the fuck up!
new INDIGO GIRLS album ALL THAT WE LET IN - hit stores on tuesday - picked up my copy at music lovers paradise AMOEBA RECORDS on sunset and ivar - the girls never sounded better - and the disc includes a DVD of a live performance from dec at the famous BOTTOM LINE in NYC (where this lucky boy got to see JANIS IAN - if you dont know her you should) hope the girls swing by LA so i can see them for the 15th time - these girls rock and are amazing songwriters - and they actually NEVER write together - which is so interesting - but when the blend up on stage or in the studio - it is true music bliss!
on a sad note it looks like i DIDNT WIN tickets to see ms oprah on monday and now i find out julia roberts is a guest - i was shitting - but its ok - i will see the queen someday!
