Obama’s tux; Howard’s Globes; Blount’s blunts; Foxx pushes pit for First Dog; Snipes’ appeal; ‘Black & Sexy’ opens; Urban League tour December 8, 2008

 

Breaking news… Barack Obama has chosen his inauguration tuxedo. WWD reports that the President-elect is going with Hart Schaffner Marx, a Chicago-based men’s suit company that has been in existence since 1883 and is one of the first American companies to have unionized workers. Obama has been wearing Hart Schaffner Marx suits throughout his campaign.

 

      *Terrence Howard will join Elizabeth Banks and Rainn Wilson on Thursday (Dec. 11) to announce nominations for the 66th Annual Golden Globe Awards. The ceremony will take place Jan. 11 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, with a live NBC telecast airing at 8 p.m. (EST). Nominations will be announced in 25 categories and are part of the initial kick-off to the Hollywood awards season.

 

       *Former NBA player Corie Blount was charged in Ohio Thursday with picking up a package containing eleven pounds of marijuana. Police say they followed him from the pickup location to his home, where they found and confiscated approximately an additional 18 pounds of marijuana, $29,500 in cash and three guns, reports TMZ.com. The 11-year NBA veteran was charged with felony drug possession and has since been released on bond.

 

       *Jamie Foxx is weighing in on the national obsession with America’s soon-to-be First Dog.  “(I’m) trying to pick out Barack Obama’s Christmas puppy right now, so we’re working hard on that,” he told the AP at the annual Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting in New York last week. “I think I’m going to get him a pitbull, we just got to keep it street.” Foxx is also promoting the release of his third CD, “Intuition,” in stores Dec. 16. “I got the best of Timbaland, the best of Kanye (West), The-Dream, the best of Lil Wayne (and) the best of T.I.,” he said, naming the album’s top collaborators.

 

       *TMZ.com is reporting that lawyers for Wesley Snipes are making a last ditch effort to void his three-year prison sentence on tax charges by stating how he “quietly and without any attempt to garner publicity” helped martial arts experts train flight crews post 9/11, training which “helped thwart the notorious ’shoe bomb’ attack by terrorist Richard Reid.” The actor’s legal team is also claiming improper jury instruction and lack of pretrial hearing as grounds to throw out the sentence.

 

       *An official selection at the 2008 Sundance Film Festival and the AFI Film Festival, “A Good Day to be Black and Sexy” is a between-the-sheets peek at black sexuality depicted through interconnected stories unfolding over a single day in Los Angeles.  Each themed story is irreverent and unconventional, with sensual chapters entitled: “Reciprocity,” “Reprise,” “American Boyfriend,” “Her Man,” and “Tonight.” Directed by Dennis Dortch, the film is currently in theaters.

 

       *The National Urban League Economic Empowerment Tour: The Path to Empowerment will stop tomorrow (Dec 9) at the Marriott Marquis in Atlanta.  NUL President and CEO Marc H. Morial along with business and civic leaders throughout Atlanta are inviting the community to attend the career and resource fair and town hall meeting.  As the country battles tough economic conditions on both Main Street and Wall Street, come get valuable information on what you can do to survive this down turn on your street.

Michelle Obama’s backside; ‘American Gangster’ returns; Aretha on AMAs; Julian Bond steps down; Howard flirts; backtracking Baldwin; Sugar Hill lawsuit November 20, 2008

 

A black, female columnist at Salon.com has written an entire piece praising the derriere of Michelle Obama. “I’m a black woman who never thought I’d see a powerful, beautiful female with a body like mine in the White House. Then I saw Michelle Obama — and her booty!” writes Erin Aubry Kaplan “…Barack’s better half not only has stature but is statuesque. She has coruscating intelligence, beauty, style and — drumroll, please — a butt. (Yes, you read that right: I’m going to talk about the first lady’s butt.)” Continue reading here.   

 

 

        *R&B legend Aretha Franklin will present the first award of the night at the “2008 American Music Awards,” producer Larry Klein announced Wednesday. Also, Natasha Bedingfield will join Christina Aguilera, Beyonce, Mariah Carey, Coldplay, Miley Cyrus, New Kids On The Block, Jonas Brothers, Taylor Swift, Kanye West and many more performers (19 in total) at this year’s celebration. 

 

      *BET’s “American Gangster” docu-series returns tonight at 10pm (E/P) with the spotlight on the first and most famous director of the FBI, J. Edgar Hoover. Positioned as an avowed and implacable enemy of Communism, Hoover was often at odds with left-leaning Black leaders throughout his reign, including Marcus Garvey and Paul Robeson. During the tumultuous ‘60s decade, Hoover went even further, undertaking a virtual counter-revolution against the civil rights movement – with particular venom directed at Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. – and ultimately enabling the Bureau to create COINTELPRO. 

 

       *Veteran civil rights activist Julian Bond will not seek another term as chairman of the NAACP’s national board, saying the time is right to “let a new generation of leaders” take over the century-old organization. Bond, 68, has served as chairman since 1998. He announced Tuesday that his current one-year chairman’s term, which expires in February, will be his last, although he plans to remain on the board. “This is a time for renewal. We have dynamic new leadership. The country has a new president in Barack Obama; the organization has a new CEO in Benjamin Jealous, and we’ll soon have a new chairman of the NAACP Board,” Bond said in a statement. “The NAACP and the country are in good hands.”

 

      *The New York Post is reporting that Terrence Howard couldn’t keep his hands off of French model Noemie Lenoir during Friday night’s opening of the Fontainebleau hotel in Miami. After Mariah Carey performed, the two were spotted at hotel lounge Blade. A source told Page Six: “Terrence saw Noemie in the crowd and started singing to her. He came to see her the next night at the Victoria’s Secret show, and they like each other a lot.”

 

       *Republican Stephen Baldwin is now backtracking on his threat to leave the United States if Barack Obama wins the presidency. “The liberal Democrats who didn’t get that I was joking need to lighten up,” the born-again Christian told Page Six. “Obama is obviously talented and intelligent, and I have great respect for the man. He’s got my full support, and I’m gonna be praying for him and his administration.”

 

       *Sugar Hill Gang co-founder Joey Robinson is being sued by ex-bandmates Michael (Wonder Mike) Wright and Guy (Master G) O’Brien on claims that he owes them royalties. Wright and O’Brien, who’ve been touring as the Original Sugar Hill Gang, performed last weekend on CNN’s “D.L. Hughley Breaks the News.” Robinson tells the New York Daily News of the touring group:  “It’s really a sham to confuse the public.” He says he’ll sue them for encroaching on his trademarks.

CELEBS FLOCK TO MIAMI FOR VICTORIA SECRET SHOW November 18, 2008

 

Terrence Howard, Lenny Kravitz and Sean “Diddy” Combs were among the celebs who flew down to Miami’s South Beach on Saturday for the annual Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show.

 

      The trio all scored front row seats to the runway extravaganza, which took place this year at the Fontainebleau Resort with a musical performance by Usher.

 

       Other famous faces in the audience included Paris Hilton, Kim Kardashian, Martha Stewart and John Stamos – all in the front row – and Aubrey O’Day, who sat in Row 5, according to E! Online.

 

       “At the official after party at LIV, Diddy, Terrence Howard and the VS models had their own VIP area on the stage, while all other stars in attendance had to settle for tables on the dance floor stocked with bottles of Belvedere,” E! Online reported.

 

       “Heidi Klum opted to avoid the packed club, instead heading to Blade with hubby Seal. The lovey dovey duo held hands and sipped champagne as they hung with Usher and Lenny Kravitz. And although A-Rod skipped the VS show, he made a late night appearance at Blade.”      

       Among the VS Angels strutting the runway were Heidi Klum, Alessandria Ambrosia, Miranda Kerr and Karolina Kurkova. The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show airs Dec. 3 on CBS.

TERRENCE HOWARD GRIEVES MOM’S PASSING November 18, 2008

 

Terrence Howard posted a message on his MySpace blog about mourning the death of his mother, who lost her battle with cancer in September.

 

        “I know that I have been quiet but I had a lot going on,” writes the 39-year-old actor. “But I am slowly pulling it together.”       

       The Oscar-nominated star of “Hustle & Flow” made an appearance Saturday at an FYE electronics store in Miami – “the furthest that I have gone from home since my mom’s funeral last month,” he writes.       

       “It’s weird that in your mind you separate all things into places and people you knew before your mom passed and the people you meet and places you go after mom passed,” he writes. “I wonder when that stops.” 

TERRENCE HOWARD SUED FOR ASSAULT October 27, 2008

 

When it rains, it pours for Terrence Howard. One week after learning through the trades that his “Iron Man 2″ role was given to Don Cheadle, the Oscar-nominated actor has been sued for alleged assault.

 

      Composer Andrew “Tex” Allen claims he was beaten up by Howard last winter while working together in Broadway’s Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, reports the New York Post. 

      The jazz pianist and brother of “Tin Roof” director, Debbie Allen, seeks $5 million in damages, according to the lawsuit.       

       He claims Howard stepped to him on Jan. 24 at about 2:30 p.m. as he was sitting at the piano inside of Walter Kerr Theatre.

      He said Howard punched him repeatedly in the face and head. The lawsuit does not state the reason for the alleged confrontation.

‘IRON MAN’ FIRING SHOCKS TERRENCE HOWARD October 21, 2008

Terrence Howard says he found out about Don Cheadle replacing him in the forthcoming “Iron Man” sequel the way everyone else did – by reading it in the trade magazines.

 

      The actor told NPR that he expected to play an expanded role in the sequel – especially since his character – which goes on to become the superhero War Machine – uttered the words “Next time” in the first film, sending comic book fans into a flurry of anticipation.

 

      But, Hollywood Reporter and Variety magazines reported last week that Howard would be replaced by Don Cheadle in the sequel.  Howard said it was the first time he had become aware that his contract was terminated.

 

       He explained to NPR: “It was the surprise of a lifetime. There was no explanation. [The contract] just…up and vanished. I read something in the trades implicating that it was about money or something, but apparently the contracts that we write and sign aren’t worth the paper that they’re printed on, sometimes. Promises aren’t kept, and good faith negotiations aren’t always held up.”

 

Prince rocks the roof; ?uestlove is an Obama ’surrogate’; Cheadle in – Howard out of Iron Man 2 October 14, 2008

MTV reports that despite the current economic crisis, folks are still willing to pay a premium for quality entertainment. Case in point: 500 fans of Prince shelled out $325 to see the enigmatic showman do his thing on the rooftop of the Hotel Gansevoort in Manhattan last Friday night. The King of Purple did 2-2 hour plus shows which celebrated the release of a new multimedia book, “21 Days,” that chronicles his 21-night run last year at the O2 arena in London.

 

      *Roots drummer Ahmir “?uestlove” Thompson has transformed himself into an active “surrogate” for the Obama campaign, making speeches and spinning records at block parties, posting flyers on both coasts and driving vanloads of volunteers, reports Rolling Stone. His activism fits with the mood of the Roots’ new album, “Rising Down,” with grooves fueled by global conflict and American cities in crisis. On the Roots’ current tour with Gym Class Heroes, he and rapper Travis McCoy are turning their joint after-parties into Obama “pow wows,” pushing registration in states where the deadline hasn’t yet passed.

 

      *Well this is a shocking development, to say the least. Don Cheadle will replace Terrence Howard as Robert Downey Jr’s best friend in “Iron Man 2,” the sequel to the superhero saga, says The Hollywood Reporter. The film’s production company, Marvel Studios had no comment, but sources close to the deal said negotiations with Howard fell through over financial differences, among other reasons.

 

 

Terrence Howard Loses His Mother September 27, 2008

Our prayers go out to Terrence Howard, whose mother succumbed to cancer.
“Terrence Howard’s mother, Anita Williams, has sadly passed away after a long battle with cancer,” a statement to People.com reads. “Terrence will take some time to privately grieve with his family. He appreciates everyone’s support during this difficult time.”

Terrence has been busy promoting his musical career lately. His debut album, entitled “Shine Through It”, was released Sept. 2.
He performed at a launch party for magazine Michigan Avenue in Chicago last weekend then attended an arts gala in New York on Tuesday. His upcoming movie, “Fighting,” is scheduled for a 2008 release.

TERRENCE HOWARD DISCUSSES STALKING SONG: Track on actor’s debut album about spying on wife after split August 26, 2008

Terrence Howard tells the New York Times that a song on his debut album, “Shine Through It,” is about the ways in which he stalked his ex-wife immediately following their split.

 

       “I wrote that song (“No. 1 Fan”) as a stalker,” said the actor. “It was raining, and I was sitting there in front of the house, watching her come home from a date after we were divorced.”

 

       “I was imagining what she did on this date, and watching her giving him a kiss. I went home and wrote this song,” he said.      

       Howard, whose album “Shine Through It” is due next month, was married to Lori McCommas for 14 years before divorcing in 2003. They remarried two years later, but have since separated. McCommas is the mother of his three children, Aubrey, Heaven and Hunter.

NEW VIDEO: TERRENCE HOWARD-”SANCTUARY” August 21, 2008