Posts Tagged ‘Angelina Jolie’

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The Mo’Kelly Report is an entertainment journal with a political slant; published at The Huffington Post and EURWEB.com. For the most recent posts of Mr. Mo’Kelly, visit http://mrmokelly.com.  Mr. Mo’Kelly can be reached at mrmokelly@gmail.com.

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Angelina Jolie

From EURWEB.com

The backlash over Angelina Jolie’s casting as African queen Cleopatra in an upcoming biopic is picking up steam.

It all started earlier this month when producer Scott Rudin announced he was developing the film “for and with Jolie” based on Stacy Schiff’s book “Cleopatra: A Life.” Schiff applauded the choice, telling USA Today, “Physically, she’s the perfect look.”

Needless to say, the casting is not sitting well among many African Americans, who have taken to Internet sites – including this one – to voice outrage over yet another white actress being chosen to play the Egyptian queen.

“I don’t care how full Angelina Jolie’s lips are, how many African children she adopts, or how bronzed her skin will become for the film,” Shirea Carroll wrote in an editorial for Essence.com. “I firmly believe this role should have gone to a black woman…What’s next? A biopic on Sojourner Truth played by Betty White?”

This isn’t the first time Jolie has found herself at the center of a debate about race in Hollywood. In 2007, she raised eyebrows within the African American community when she wore dark make-up to play the role of slain Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl’s wife Marian, who is partly of African descent. Pearl herself took to the press to defend Jolie, telling Time Magazine, “It is not about the color of your skin. It is about who you are.”

While experts can’t say with certainty what Cleopatra looked like, physically speaking, Jolie certainly doesn’t fit with the features historians now know she inhabited. In addition to the wrong skin color, Jolie is also thought to be too tall, too skinny and too striking to mirror the real Cleopatra.

Elizabeth Taylor as Cleopatra

“Sadly for those who seek the secret of her personal allure, the more we study Cleopatra’s surviving images, the less certain we may be of her [allegedly gorgeous] looks,” Susan Walker, a senior curator at the British Museum, told the British Sunday Times.

In fact, according to ABC News, Egyptologists insist that the legendary temptress, known for having used her beauty to seduce Roman Emperor Julius Caesar and general Mark Anthony, was actually “short, fat and plain.”

Elizabeth Taylor was the first to portray the famous queen on film in 1963′s “Cleopatra.”

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Post-Racial Hollywood?  One Big Cop-Out

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It’s funny, every year someone asks Mo’Kelly and every year he has to give the same answer multiple times.

“No, Mo’Kelly did not go to the __________ awards show.” Fill in the blank as you see fit. It’s a reasonable question, given my vocation and many years living and existing in the entertainment arena.

In fact, there were some years in which Mo’Kelly worked at the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, better known as the Grammy Awards. In other words, Mo’Kelly’s had more than had his fill and doesn’t ever really care to ever attend another awards show…except maybe the Oscars, to pick up his award for Best Original Screenplay…one day.

That said, Mo’Kelly was flipping channels Sunday evening and happened upon Ryan Seacrest getting summarily dissed and dismissed by actress Angelina Jolie on the Golden Globes’ red carpet. If you didn’t see the hilarious moment, Seacrest attempted four times (once on camera) to get Jolie’s attention on live television with four different questions.

Jolie stonewalled him each time.  Shut him down like Chernobyl.

For those who thought maybe she didn’t “hear” Seacrest, know that Seacrest was at certain points standing directly next to her in a space close enough to smell each other’s breath. It reminded Mo’Kelly of those embarrassing moments at the club when guys unsuccessfully try to strike up conversation with that gorgeous woman at the bar. Before you can get the one-syllable word “hi” out of your mouth, she looks you in the eye, frowns and turns her back before the soundwaves from your greeting can reach her. You look left and then right to see who else was watching…then bend over and pick up your face. THAT was Ryan Seacrest, except instead of only half the club witnessing, it was half the world watching Seacrest literally chase Jolie down the red carpet with microphone and cracked grill in hand. The video below only shows his first diss of four.

CUATRO!

In addition to his entertainment duties for the E! channel, Seacrest also hosts a morning show in Los Angeles, on 102.7 FM. Monday morning, he immediately took to the airwaves to lay into Jolie.

“I asked her four questions and she didn’t even answer me,” he complained. “I literally stood there and tried to ask a couple of questions. At one point I just kind of let the E! microphone sit in front of her for a second to see if she was going to acknowledge it, and she clearly wanted nothing to do with me or my question or my answer or any of it.”

When posed with the possibility that Jolie wasn’t in the “mood” to answer questions, Seacrest had this to say.

“Well then don’t go, (to the awards show).” Don’t go. Don’t go support your man (Brad Pitt). Don’t go.”

That’s strange. Seacrest as both a media AND entertainment personality should know better. As a radio/TV host, he should innately understand that there are some shows, some interviewers, some journalists to whom celebrities will not give interviews. And yes, it’s personal and yes, it’s their prerogative. Take The Mo’Kelly Report for example. Not everybody is a fan…and Mo’Kelly gets that, for obvious reasons.

There are some people who will never grant Mo’Kelly an interview and I’m ok with it and understand it.  Not everything is for everyone.

What Seacrest doesn’t tell you and consciously omits is that despite his “American-Idol” connotations, he is relatively well-known as an ass in Hollywood. In fact, Mo’Kelly used to work for him, so this is from both firsthand experience and interaction with celebrities he’s interviewed.

Angelina Jolie doesn’t “owe” anyone on the red carpet an interview. One can argue that her public profile is “better served” by accommodating as many television journalists as possible on such an occasion as the Golden Globes, but you can best believe when an actress of her visibility and caliber consciously ignores someone with the visibility of Ryan Seacrest, it’s personal.

And “personally,” Seacrest is known to be a jerk.

Going further, if you’ve ever spent any time around him or on his show productions, it was well-known how “unusual” it was for Seacrest to have ANY African-Americans in his employ, and don’t get it twisted, he inherited Mo’Kelly as an employee from a different show. He didn’t “hire” Mo’Kelly.

Maybe it was just “coincidence.” And maybe it was also “coincidence” how it was a widely and openly discussed issue…you know, the dearth of African-Americans and whether it was conscious in nature or purely “coincidental.” As they say, “coincidences happen.” Maybe there are fewer “coincidences” now on his present shows.

Maybe…

Not only that, from internal (and widely discussed) “alleged questionable comments” by Seacrest directly to Caucasians with African-American spouses, or significant others in his employ, to the program he presently executive produces, Momma’s Boy (which has received considerable criticism for featuring a race-baiting mother)…Seacrest is “questionable.”

And no, Mo’Kelly isn’t making another one of those underhanded comments about his sexuality…nope, just his mentality.  It’s questionable.  Very questionable.

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When Mo’Kelly writes the book…he’ll tell it all. This is FIRSTHAND knowledge. No, Mo’Kelly is NOT saying Ryan Seacrest dislikes African-Americans or is a closet racist. You will NEVER read anywhere Mo’Kelly saying that. Mo’Kelly IS saying that his jerk quotient is high with a number of “coincidental variables” along the way.

The entertainment community is very, very small with long memories. If “hypothetically,” “hypothetically” there were ever an untoward remark about Jolie, and/or say…her adopted African children; it would explain the public disdain and easily at that. In fact, it would be reasonable given Mo’Kelly’s personal knowledge of Seacrest.  It’s enough to make Mo’Kelly wonder out loud.

Wonder, wonder, wonder, wonder, wonder…(Can you hear me now?…good.)

While working for him, it wasn’t uncommon for Seacrest to “address you” through a third person, his assistant…although you were standing in directly in front of him. You know,…as if you weren’t there.

“Yeah, Claudine…tell Mo’Kelly we’re ready to start.”

“Uh, Ryan…hola hombre…Mo’Kelly is standing right in front of you fool.  (Waving hands) Over here guy. Claudine, it’s ok, Mo’Kelly’s ears work just fine.”

Maybe it was “only” Mo’Kelly who experienced that. Maybe my ethnicity was also just a “coincidence.”  Just wondering out loud folks.

Wonder, wonder, wonder, wonder, wonder…

Yes, one of many “coincidences.” Yes, many coincidences that will go into the “book” one day. Mo’Kelly has a great story about the day he had an African-American employee removed from his TV show set, because he/she SPOKE to Halle Berry’s PUBLICIST.

Not the actress, who wasn’t even within 300 feet…the PUBLICIST.

FIRSTHAND knowledge…and witness to this “coincidence.”

Again, Mo’Kelly is NOT saying Ryan Seacrest dislikes African-Americans or is a closet racist. You will NEVER read anywhere Mo’Kelly saying that. Mo’Kelly IS saying that his jerk quotient is high with a number of “coincidental variables” along the way.

But back to Jolie…

Remember, this is all “hypothetical.” Mo’Kelly doesn’t “know” the specific reasons behind the public diss of Seacrest, let’s be abundantly clear. But Mo’Kelly does know a thing or two about Seacrest.

The jerk quotient is high. The coincidences are…well, astounding.

If you’ve ever seen the clip of Seacrest’s cameo in the movie, Knocked Up, many erroneously would assume he’s “acting.” Actually, that’s EXACTLY how Seacrest is.

[vodpod id=Video.4403870&w=425&h=350&fv=]

So yes, one can only imagine the precipitating events which led up to Jolie dissing Seacrest. No such display on the world entertainment stage ever happens haphazardly. She knew the world was watching and knew clearly who she was not going to acknowledge on any level. The diss of Seacrest was real and revealing at the same time. It makes Mo’Kelly wonder out loud if it is another “coincidence.”

They do “happen” you know…especially when the jerk quotient is high.

Not hearsay…FIRSTHAND knowledge.

The Mo’Kelly Report is an entertainment journal with a political slant; published weekly at www.eurweb.com. It is meant to inform, infuse and incite meaningful discourse…as well as entertain. The Mo’Kelly Report is syndicated by Newstex and Blogburst. For more Mo’Kelly, http://www.MrMoKelly.com.

Morris W. O’Kelly can be reached at Mo@MrMoKelly.com and he welcomes all commentary.