My Link, My Fate, My Fortune... Chanel No. 5

Studio Exec visits the set of Darren Aronofsky's Noah
The New Yorker interviews screenwriter Melissa Matheson for the 30th anniversary of E.T. The Extra Terrestrial
Movie|Line first tease of Carrie. Hmmm, looks very BIG for such an intimate horror story
Yahoo on the internal wars for each character on Homeland. Such a good season 2 thus far, yes?
Nicks Flick Picks spends an evening with Joan Allen at the Chicago Film Festival 

Chanel No. 5 Joe Wright directs Brad Pitt as the first male spokesperson for Chanel No. 5. Joe is the new Baz. Discuss.
Acidemic suggests streaming Netflix options you might not have thought of that are Halloween appropriate.

Today's Very Best News
Tina Fey & Amy Poehler will co-host the Golden Globes. YES. But can they switch show duties with Seth MacFarlane please? Now I have to look forward to the Golden Globes even more than usual and I'd rather be THAT excited for Oscar.

Awwww
Barbra Streisand singing with her son Jason Gould this past week in Philly. The family that sings together...

Finally, for you readers who are also writers... Nail Your Novel has tips on how to prepare for National Novel- Writing Month. I tried to do this once (a sci-fi novel actually) and I liked the exercize but it's hard to do when you're also writing a daily blog. But if you've been stuck in your own writing, I highly recommend.

Anne Linkaway

big screen
People ANNE HATHAWAY JUST GOT MARRIED
/Film what to expect on the Prometheus BluRay
Playbill character actor Herbert Lom (The Pink Panther, Night and the City) dies at 94
In Contention shines a spotlight on AMPAS's best quality: their interest in film preservation. They're still trying to find the missing Oscar nominees from year's past. God speed, AMPAS, god speed.
The Envelope can Disney dominate  the Animated Film Race? I think so. I'm guessing that Frankenweenie wins. 
i09 original production art from Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)

small screen
In Our Words smart piece on gaycism and sitcoms -- just because you include a gay character, you shouldn't have carte blanche to indulge in every other form of bigotry.
Gawker what's going on with Christina Aguilera's vagina in her new video? 
Big Thoughts... enjoys Kelly Macdonald on Boardwalk Empire. I have to say that's my only regret in my lack of interest in the show. Love her in the movies whenever she pops up. 

must-see this newly uncovered video from behind the scenes on Mean Girls is a must-see: Amy Poehler, Tina Fey and Lindsay Lohan rehearsing the Kevin G rap.

!!!

politics
Salon has an interesting article about the right wing's problem with pop culture and lack of Hollywood supporters

stage
Gothamist an absolutely horrifying live theater development. Spider-Man is the gift that keeps up stinking up Broadway! 
Hollywood Reporter ANNE HATHAWAY DOING THE SONGS OF "CABARET"-- one night only in New York. (Oh to have enough money to attend benefit concerts!)

Top Ten: Emmy Wishes For Sunday Night

I wish...

10 ...for Martha Plimpton and Jane Krakowski, who weren't nominated for the awards on the big night this year, to get a moment on stage somehow. Love them. While we're at it maybe Jane could win on a write in vote for arguably her best 30 Rock season yet!

09 ... for Homeland to win Best Drama Series if it can't be Mad Men again.

08 ...for at least one La Pfeiffer reaction shot even though David E. Kelley isn't the Emmy powerhouse he used to be. I mean there has to be some silver lining to that wasted Best Actress nomination for Kathy Bates on his bland Harry's Law show. Love the Bates and hope she gets well soon but that show is not her finest hour! And to think of the person they had to snub to include her (Madeleine Stowe in Revenge!)

click for Dexter Action Figure07 ...for someone to mistakenly say "And the Emmy goes to Claire Danes for Temple Grandin" when she wins for Homeland because there's only a .00000001% chance that she won't. Just for the absurd showbiz hilarity of it all. Another prize for Temple!

06 ... for Benedict Cumberbatch to publicy amusingly air his grievances with the new network Sherlock Holmes show.

05 ... for the industry to make a surprise announcement that all shows that are but shadows of their former selves are immediately cancelled and no further episodes will air. Good riddance: Dexter, American Idol, Survivor, all Law & Order and CSI spinoffs, etcetera.

Modern Family may stay but it shall be barred from any further Best Comedy Series wins until it deserves them again.

04 ...for Amy Poehler to win Best Actress in a Comedy for Parks and Recreation. I realize this is never going to happen (Lena Dunham has this in the bag I think) but I've seen the competition and Poehler has created one of the most singular fascinating comic leads in sitcom history and, even better, she fine tunes it every year rather than coasting on auto-pilot (which many people do at this point in a series run)

03 ...speaking of singular performances. Merrit Wever for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. Can I get an amen? "Zoe" is such a funny inventive creation and she helps keep the comedy in the series even when it veers towards heavy drama. This season was particularly great for her with that frozen new expression Dr. Cruz caused, her hunt for a roommate "Wanted", her kimonos in the kitchen and her romantic confusion.

02 ...for Mad Men to finally win an acting Emmy.

click on image for gif source

Five years in and it's still the best show on television and the actors have nothing to do with that? Please! (I realize wishing for another Drama Series win is foolish at this point with Downton Abbey, Homeland and Game of Thrones all very real threats for a win.)

01 ...to watch Julianne Moore finally win something on a massive glitzy awards show (Best Actress in a Movie or Miniseries, for Game Change... here's my full write-up). That one televised prize (Best Actress Far From Heaven, at the Spirit Awards) is an embarrassingly meager haul for an actor of her caliber.

Which of my wishes do you co-sign? errr... co-wish? Feel free to add your own as well. We'll live blog Sunday night. 

Link Book

Timothy Brayton took up the challenge and filled out our "Summer Report Card" (see previous posts right before this one). Well done, good sir
A Blogwork Orange is currently holding a Paul Thomas Anderson Appreciation Month
I Need My Fix Amy Poehler and Will Arnett are calling it quits *sniffle* 
MNPP JA tells us about a movie we haven't heard of called Blues for Willadean. Character Actress Bonanza! Dale Dickey in Daisy Dukes.
IndieWire The pilot for Revolution is available to watch. Have anyone of you watched this "all the powers gone out!" sci-fi tv pilot yet?
"Chloe" is back! Rejoice. This time Drew Droege is "Reading" 

The New Yorker has a lengthy profile on the Wachowski siblings prior to Cloud Atlas's release who, as you undoubtedly know, don't often get lengthy profiles since they're rather reclusive. Lana Wackowski, formerly "Larry" gets plenty of time and...
Gawker has a response and takes issues with the way Lana's "gender situation" is handled.
"Digger" by Ursula Vernon, a "very peculiar epic" starring a wombat and a dead god, just won the Hugo Award for best graphic story...
Hugo Awards things you've heard of like Doctor Who and Game of Thrones won the dramatic presentation prizes (aka film & television)
fuck the imperialist system "Tom Marvolo Riddle" Wow, I'm actually linking to something Harry Potter again. Something three months old even but it amuses

Vulture The CW is developing a Wonder Woman origins TV show titled Amazon. Ohmygod but I'm sick of origin stories. The dirty secret of them is even though we all know all these stories already Hollywood likes them because they can cast youngies.
Movie|Line Lana Del Rey writing a screenplay. Movies as happy place? We can relate. 
MNPP It's Daniel Radcliffe and Max Minghella for the film adaptation of Joe Hill's Horns 
Incidental Comics "Sketchbooks of the Pros". Hee
Empire Renée Zellweger is going to direct and act in a comedy called 4 ½ minutes. Johnny Knoxville leads the cast as a comedian who looks after the Zeéeeee's child.

Eeeep! Downton Abbey Season 3 Tease. 

 Very short but enough to remind that we love this show in all its soapy glory. People crying, kissing, arriving, looking worried, hostile or just deeply in love? Yes, please.

Monologue: "My name is Charlene. What are you wearing?"

Time for our Monday Monologue...

Missi, Uggie and Jean DujardinOne of the unexpected joys of this year's edition of Endless Awards Season has been the presence of the very funny, very talented Missi Pyle. She's kind of blink and you'll miss her as "Constance" the 'Lina Lamont' silent star archetype in The Artist. But she's been everywhere at the events. That's oddly appropriate given that she always seems to be blink and you'll miss her in movies but she makes the best of it. Often when I see her in that big ball of joy that is the cast and crew of The Artist (winning makes the joy part a lot easier) I think back to my favorite moment in her filmography to date.

She was the comedy MVP of the oft-delayed and then underseen and weirdly trashed Spring Breakdown (2009) which is much funnier than it gets credit for. Her MVP status says a lot since the three leads Amy Poehler, Parker Posey, and Rachel Dratch have been known to wring laughs from even the weakest material. Somehow Pyle steals the show out from under them.

Pyle plays Charlene a Spring Break junkie well past age appropriateness for the Endless Summer cruising and bingeing. She takes this trio of new girls under her drunken wing.

After a particularly booze-fueled night she stumbles home with her new friend Gayle (Amy Poehler) and goes all weepy pontificating drunk. 

Every spring this place she flares up like a cold sore and I'm back for more, you know? The kids and the sex and the booze. And you think it'll go on forever but it's like one of those videos, you know, of a fireplace that you put on your TV.

And, like, no matter how close you get to the screen it's never going to warm you up."

Suddenly then, she's all nonsequitor.

Her moods tilt and slide around like formerly coherent thoughts sloshing around in alcoholic waves.

I just wanted to be a stylist to the stars.

[Suddenly high pitched] 'You think so?' 

Oh hello there fine fella! Who is this?

She veers towards... a tree.

"Oh honey, that's a tree," Gayle tries to stop her but Charlene is already making her move. 

[To the tree] My name is Charlene. What are you wearing?

[Glancing to the side. Suddenly crying] I love him!

 
[To Gayle] Don't touch me. Please touch me. Thank you.

Let's just stay here for awhile.

Pyle keeps this comic train hilarious, frisky and sharp even as it jumps right off the tracks careening towards its next blackout: Crying jags, weird bursts of horniness, pickled blood stream, and yet she's weirdly touching.

It's comic magic.

It's hot mess tragic. 

Her name is Charlene. I love her!