Blog Archives
franklyHANK’s EXCLUSIVE: Toldja Anne Hathaway Was Gettin’ Hitched!
On Friday, I revealed on Windy City LIVE, EXCLUSIVELY mind you, that Anne Hathaway was getting hitched in Cali on Saturday in a super secret wedding to fiance’ Adam Shulman. And I was right! Whew! My source did not let me down and he (or she) is not dead to me as promised. You can get all the details on Huffington Post, but it was quite a small affair in Big Sur and the bride was wearing Valentino. Congrats! Now to find my next scoop. This celebrity stuff never ends.
Chicago Representin’ On “The Voice”
This week NBC’s “The Voice” launched it’s third season and, as always, there was some great talent, but two Chicagoans really stood out for me. On Tuesday, we met De’Borah, a Chicago Heights woman who embraced who true self at age 18 and was kicked out of her church choir for doing so. HER CHURCH CHOIR! Really, people? Where is the love? Well she got some love on “The Voice.” Check out her performance below. She is on Team Xtina (That’s Christina Aguilera’s team, for those up with the shorthand).
On Wednesday night, we met Julio Castillo. Julio is also from Chicago and the first contestant on “The Voice” to sing entirely in spanish and you can tell the judges loved it. La La La La La Bamba!!! He ended up on Team Blake. Check him out below.
I’ll be talking more about both of them Friday, September 14, 2012 on “Windy City LIVE,” 9AM on ABC7 Chicago.
Weekly Wrap up for June 17, 2012
LINDSAY’S LAUGHING
At least Lindsay Lohan can find some humor in her “dramatic” incident on Friday. To catch you up, when producers of her Liz Taylor movie for Lifetime tried to reach Linday at her hotel, she would not answer her phone. Lohan was said to be “unconscious” and paramedics were called. Yes, she was unconscious. It’s called sleep. Turns out Lilo was sleeping very hard after several long days of work and didn’t hear the phone ring. Oops. So Lindsay sent this Tweet out this weekend:
“Note to self.. After working 85hours in 4days, and being up all night shooting, be very aware that you might pass out from exhaustion &7 paramedics MIGHT show up @ your door…. Hopefully theyre cute. Otherwise it would be a real let down.”
NAUGHTY TRAILER FOR “MAGIC MIKE”
Channing Tatum’s stripper movie, “Magic Mike” has a naughty European trailer that is red hot! Ohhhh, baby! Check it out below…but be WARNED. THERE IS NUDITY in the clip. I know, makes you want to watch it even more. God bless, Matt Bomer. 
FYI.. Channing Tatum will be live on Windy City LIVE on Monday, June 18. Tune in to watch me salivate.
WHITNEY HOUSTON, DEATH & THE GRAMMYS
The Grammys have unveiled a fascinating new documentary on how they handled the news of Whitney Houston’s death and how they worked to create a tribute to her. It’s called: A Death In The Family: The Show Must Go One. You can watch it here on the Grammy Web site. The documentary not only features behind-the-scenes types talking about the tragedy, it also includes interviews with first time host LL Cool J who was battling the flu and singer Jennifer Hudson who would perform a touching tribute. It’s 28 minutes long, but worth a watch.
HEY A&F – CALL ME, MAYBE!
The latest “Call May Maybe” viral video features the hunky, sexy and oh so adorable men of Abercrombie & Fitch singing the Carly Rae Jepsen hit of the summer. Studs from A&F stores in London, Paris, and New York, among others are featured dancing shirtless. So all I got to say is, give me them digits. The phone is in my hand!
Behind The Scenes with Rosie O’Donnell
Photo By: Dan Barbossa
On Windy City LIVE today, we were very lucky to have Rosie O’Donnell as our special guest for the hour. But it didn’t start off so smoothly. Rosie was caught in traffic. Chicago traffic is a nightmare and Rosie learned that the hard way this morning. As show time approached, Rosie was no where in sight. Thankfully, she is a prolific Twitterer. She started tweeting us updates. “Oy in traffic – 6 mins says opera rap star driver Khary Laurent.” Followed by, “cutting it close -fear not I am camera ready in an odd orange frock…”
So we had to formulate a back-up plan. We had this elaborate open planned. We put together a great skit on tape that culminated in Mark DeCarlo running into the studio and cue-ing a singer to begin. The singer joins the chorus (The Chicago Red Line) and the song ends with Rosie walking on stage. Well, no Rosie, no song, so we had the hosts vamp a little. The show begins and I’m waiting in the lobby for Rosie. Producer David Plummer is waiting outside. News crews are gathered hoping to get a sound bite with Rosie (who just landed an exclusive sit down with Patty Blagojevitch). There was no way that was happening. We had to get her in studio. We had a microphone waiting. All we needed was Rosie…
Viola vs. Meryl. Who Gets Best Actress? Tonight Holds A Big Clue.
UPDATE: Viola Davis wins Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor In A Leading Role at the SAG Awards. Meryl Streep led the standing ovation!
It’s probably the award being talked up the most. Will Viola Davis win Best Actress (officially known as Actress in a Leading role) at the Oscars for her role in “The Help” or will Meryl Streep win for her role in “The Iron Lady?” There are a few schools of thought. Some say Viola’s role is the strongest and an incredible break though and the Academy will reward her for that. Some say Meryl Streep is a legend (and she is) and she hasn’t scored an Oscar since 1983 for “Sophie’s Choice” and she is long over due for another. This is her 17th nomination after all.
So what’s the franklyHANK school of thought? And the answer is. Hell if I know! But here is what I do know. In the Academy Awards, you vote for your category, meaning actors vote for actors, directors vote for directors, etc. Except everyone in the Academy votes for the top categories. The biggest voting block at the Academy Awards are actors — actors who belong to the Screen Actors Guild, the actors union. Tonight on TBS and TNT at 7pm CT is the Screen Actors Guild Awards or SAG for short. Many of the film actors who will be voting for tonight’s awards will be voting for the Oscars and the outcome is likely the same… not always, but the SAG Awards are said to be a good indicator. So… whomever wins tonight for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor In A Leading Role could very well be dusting off a spot for Oscar in her home.
If I had to guess, I would say, “Ms. Davis meet Oscar!”
I’ll be discussing the SAG Awards tomorrow on Windy City LIVE. Be sure to tune in to the 84th Academy Awards on Sunday, February 26th at 6pm on ABC (ABC7 in Chicago). And don’t forget to check out Oscars.com for everything you need to know for Oscars Sunday!! And Windy City LIVE fans, Paige and Plummer will soon be revealing their Oscar picks! Stay tuned.
Oprah, My Oprah! How I Will Miss Thee!
Sigh. Today marks the final episode of “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” I’m used to being gruff and opinionated and brash and witchy with a “B.” But when it comes to my O, I can be none of those. Yes, I am an Oprah-file. I love her show, her style, her sensibility, her honesty. She has done so much for so many.
Forget about the trips to Australia. Forget about the audience getting cars. Forget about her favorite things. At her core, Oprah Winfrey has been a teacher. She has taught us important lessons in life. She taught us to be true to ourselves. She has schooled millions with her show and literally schooled more than 64,000 by paying for their educations with her Angel network. Sitting in the audience at the United Center for Oprah’s third and second to last shows and watching video montage after video montage, I realized just what an influence she has had in the lives of millions.
Everyone knows Oprah is a billionaire. Everyone knows she is the most powerful woman in media. But when you watch her show, Oprah is your neighbor, your teacher, your mentor, your shrink, your friend. My friend is moving. Instead of seeing her everyday, I will only see her once a week and on a channel that I have to look up b/c I have no clue where to find it on my cable (Channel 220, I think).
