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!)