Back in the 90s I read a lot of Iyanla VanZant’s books. She had a way to talking to Black women that struck us as the heart of matters. Then she did that television show and the Iyanla I loved was gone, replaced by some corporatized host who seemed just as lost in the experience as I was. Well when I saw a preview of her new show,”Fix My Life” which will premiere tomorrow at 10 on OWN earlier this week (she stopped by the day job to give us a sneak peek) I was sure the Iyanla I…

Well it’s been a minute since we’ve seen Halle on the big screen. We know she’s had her hands full being a mom, breaking up with her child’s father, fighting for custody and finding love again. It seems, however, that she’s picked the right flick to make her comeback in. Her latest movie, “Cloud Atlas” got a prolonged standing ovation at the Toronto Film Festival this weekend, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Well if the cast and the directors are any indication, it’s at least going to be the most talked about movie this fall.

The movie co-stars Tom Hanks,…

We often bemoan the lack of work for Black actresses and that is often the case. That’s because juicy roles on either the big or small screen are just too few or far between. So when something good does happen it is cause for celebration. Such is the case with Salli Richardson-Whitfield. You may remember her as the vixen Angela in “Low Down Dirty Shame” but this sister has been working consistently ever since. Most recently she spent the past five years as Allison Blake, the female lead on the SyFy Channel’s “Eureka”. While we may not have been buzzing…

Earlier this week I heard a rumor that Mary J. Blige was being replaced in the starring role in the Nina Simone biopic with Zoë Saldaña and I thought ‘wow’ that’s a stretch. Folks are saying that MJB wasn’t up to the challenge but according to The Hollywood ReporterMary walked because of funding issues. But still why Zoë? Does she look like Nina? Not at all (but neither does MJB) Does she sing like Nina? Umm doubtful–can she sing at all? I finally realize that this all comes down to the box office gamble and apparently to some…

I have come to the conclusion that director Lee Daniels loves stirring up controversy. While his current film in production, “The Butler”, adapted from a true story about a Black man who served several Presidents, might be considered tame his next project will not be. Daniels is gearing up to take a look at an  alternative theory about the death of Civil Rights Leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Namely, that James Earl Ray is innocent. This is bound to make folks uncomfortable. According to vulture.com, Daniels is going to adapt one of the books written by attorney William Pepper…

I don’t know about you but for me certain events of the Olympic Games can have me riveted. Last night it was both swimming and gymnastics. While I love the whole fascination with Ryan Lochte (although I would much rather watch Cullen Jones) it’s Gabby Douglas’ gymnastic routines that nearly drove me to tears each time–and it’s just the preliminaries. I think it’s because the announcers just wouldn’t shut up. All of this made me root harder for Gabby because the announcers seemed to be looking for her to fail in every event. They kept saying stuff like “will Gabby’s…

There was a time that you had to be in the music or movie game for a more than a minute before you got signed to a beauty or fashion contract. But these since celebrities are still a hot commodity, brands are always on the hunt for the next big thing. Right now, it might just be Azealia Banks. According to The Hollywood Reporter the rapper has been signed as the latest face for T by Alexander Wang for his Fall 2012 campaign. I guess we should have known something was up when she accompanied Wang to the Met Gala….

When it comes to Michael Jackson’s Estate, the care of his children, and the reason for Katherine Jackson’s abrupt departure from Los Angeles, each day brings another outrageous claim. And as things escalate this whole saga becomes more and more like a poorly written soap opera. The problem is this stuff is all too real. Let’s see if I can follow all that has transpired. There’s the letter that many of the Jackson siblings signed claiming financial mismanagement of Michael Jackson’s estate, then Katherine Jackson leaves for a “vacation” without telling her grandchildren, a missing persons claim is filed, Paris…

When it comes to regularly scheduled programming on television, not one Black woman was nominated for an Emmy award. I am talking about the sisters who work week in and out of the various shows they’re on. Granted, there are not legions of them but they do exist, however, the work they do is not grabbing the attention of Emmy voters. Let’s start with this: Have they seem Regina King in “Southland”? Or Kerry’s turn as Olivia Pope in “Scandal”? Just asking. We know that critics were enamored of HBO’s “Girls” so it doesn’t come as a huge surprise that…

I guess it doesn’t matter how successful you are, reality television still holds some allure. Even Rihanna, yes Rihanna, is getting in on the act. Like Kelly Rowland, RiRi is testing out reality television in the United Kingdom. The Hollywood Reporter says that the Bajan beauty will executive produce and star in a “Project Runway”-like show called “Styled to Rock” which will air starting this fall.

From the look of it there doesn’t seem to be anything new about how this competition series will run. There’s the celebrity host cue Rihanna, the judges which include her stylist Lysa Cooper, designer…