Culture Extravaganza !

Tis’ the season for film festivals, art shows, and all around cultural spectacular… If you’re in New York City or the boroughs, check out some of these events…

The 5th annual Art Off The Main (www.ArtOffTheMain.com ), the first art fair to exclusively showcase the paintings, sculpture, graphics and photography created by artists of African, Caribbean and Latin American ancestry, will host artist Bernard Stanley Hoyes among several other artists at the Metropolitan Pavilion North, 110 West 19th Street in Chelsea, New York City, October 2 through 5. An opening night benefit gala will be held Thursday, October 2 p.m. from 6 to 10:00 p.m.

Harry Belafonte, Ruby Dee and Melvin Van Peebles will be honored by the 350th Harlem Anniversary Celebrations/Black Documentary Collective (BDC) Film Festival on October 13th. This six day film festival will feature a tribute to the late Harlem-born activist and documentarian, St. Clair Bourne, which will showcase Bourne’s work, the Black Documentary Collective and other historic documentary and narrative films celebrating the African Diaspora. The October 10th through 13th screenings are free and open to the general public. The festival runs from Wednesday, October 8th through Monday, October 13th at Maysles Institute (343 Malcolm X Blvd-at 127th St-Harlem), Medgar Evers College (1650 Bedford Ave, Brooklyn) and the Harlem AMC/Magic Theatres (Frederick Douglass Blvd at 124th St).

November 21, 2008 The Melvin Van Peebles Foundation will host its major benefit, This Joint Is Jumpin’ at the Player’s Club. The proceeds of this benefit will support the Hue-Man Books for Kids Program and offer scholarships to rising college students interested in studying Science and Math in College. For more information and how you can support visit: www.melvinvanpeebles.org.

Getting Down & Dirty with New Paramour

During this lovely edition of Lil Alis Speaks… She tackles knowing when to give up the goods…

Dear Lil Alis,
I met this guy at a swank upscale lounge in downtown Manhattan. We instantly clicked and spent the whole night talking about travel, film, and art. He is completely my type – sexy and intellectual. My question is, since I really like him, how long should I wait before becoming intimate?

– Lustfully Longing in Long Island

Dear LL,

Keep it cool! Like my mother tells me…it all depends on what you want out of this. Whatever it is you are looking for (which actually sounds like something more meaningful than a romp in the hay), at the very least give it a month provided you’ve had substantial contact, enough dates, and enough communication to get to know this person. Let me tell you, men love the chase no matter what their pants scream. There are simple things you still may not know like where he REALLY works and where he REALLY lives and exactly how many children he REALLY has. There is nothing as disheartening as finding out some minimal shit was a lie after you’ve given up the goodies. On the other hand and in a perfect pink world, he may be honest and a potential something more… Either way, proceed with caution and have fun, out of the sack!

Lil Alis knows everything about everything from party planning to power shopping to good and bad boy issues, to how to appropriately dress for a winter wedding in the dead of night! She’s sharing her expertise with you on these pages! So feel free to email your questions to her at LilAlis@MartiniPink.com.

Click here for more priceless advice from Lil Alis.

Myss Moxie is Baaaaccckkkk!

Good Monday Lovelies! Myss Moxie is back and she’s going in! She has a lot of vital words for you on this week’s edition of Myss Moxie Presents… that I’m sure can help, assist, and inspire you as you move on out into this great big world on the start of this wonderful week… So whether it is job drama, man drama, girlfriend drama, or future outlook drama - you don’t need it! Moxie’s words will entertain and inspire so watch her You Tube show below… Also, make sure you comment her back with your favorite inspirational quotes… And check out Alicia Keys getting her moxie on!

Birthday Spotlight: Dame Julie Andrews

The hills are alive… with the sound of music. Actress extraordinaire and my former childhood nanny (through the television screen, of course) Julie Andrews celebrates her birthday on October 1. The award winning (as in Golden Globes, Emmys, Oscars, and Grammys galore!) actress and singer was born in England. She rose to fame from her roles in musicals “My Fair Lady” and musical films Mary Popkins, The Sound of Music, and Victor/Victoria. Later in her life, Andrews took roles in more contemporary movies like The Princess Diaries and Shrek.

Must See Movie: Miracle at St. Anna

Ladies, I’m going to have to insist that you go see Spike Lee’s new film, Miracle at St. Anna this weekend. Considering there are four fine Black men in it, it shouldn’t be a difficult decision. But that’s actually only the icing on the cake. St. Anna is truly the best film Spike Lee has ever directed, and this is coming from a sister who has studied, dissected, celebrated and even hated on his entire body of work.

I had the honor of seeing a special L.A. screening of the film this past Tuesday at an event sponsored by the NAACP and let me tell you, it was a momentous event. Mr. Spike Lee came out and spoke to us, which was a magical miracle in itself, and after the screening, the four fine brothers - Derek Luke, Laz Alonso, Michael Ealy and Omar Benson Miller sat and spoke with the audience.

Miracle at St. Anna is the story of four Black soldiers of the 92nd Infantry who were deployed to Italy to fight Hitler’s army during World War II. It’s about the patriotism of these “buffalo soldiers” who fought for their country despite being in a segregated army and still dealing with violent racism at home in America. The film unravels the mystery of why one of the men, a purple heart survivor of the war now living in NY, literally goes “postal” and shoots one of his customers to death at a NY Post Office.

The performances by all of these actors are stellar and the film is beautiful cinematically. Spike does a great job of weaving the story together in a suspenseful, lyrical fashion. You will be moved to tears, you will laugh your ass off, your heart will melt and it will definitely break. This is more than a war story, it’s a love story, its’ a story about the camaraderie and cultural differences between Italians and Black Americans and…it’s a story of betrayal.

Spike Lee shot this historically based film on location in Italy, and had difficulty getting financing for the project and eventually turned toward Italy for most of the financing, with Walt Disney Studios financing it domestically. Spike felt the story, based on the book of the same name written by James McBride, was an important one to tell because as he said, most films he grew up watching made it seem like Blacks never fought in the World Wars or any wars for our country. “We’ve always fought for our country. We’ve always been patriots. The first man to die during the American Revolution was a black man, Crispus Attucks, most people don’t know that, but it’s documented.”

Another unknown fact that was revealed in the film is the love that many Italians have for these Black American men. I spoke with Derek Luke after the film and asked him how it felt for him emotionally to play such a role. He said he was just amazed at how appreciated and honored black men were in Italy. “There would be monuments with great Italian heroes throughout the towns and right next to them would be a monument for one of the black soldiers,” Luke said.

My only complaint about the film is a complaint I regularly have with Spike’s work. He positions the women primarily as sexual entities and the woman’s story or contribution to “the cause” is rarely examined. But in the full scheme of things that can be overlooked. That’s my job as a director to represent for the ladies!

Miracle at St. Anna opens in theaters this Friday, September 26th, as in TODAY!!! and features cameos by some Spike Lee favorites, John Turturro and John Leguizamo, plus Kerry Washington makes a pivotal appearance.

You know the routine–get out there and see it during the first weekend. This film is not one to be missed. The buzz is ridiculous and the talks of Oscar are well-deserved.

Mariah Carey Cast in Creepy Drama

Last week we reported that Mariah Carey’s Tennessee film had been picked up. After making the rounds on the film festival circuit, the work, produced by Lee Daniels (Monster’s Ball), will be distributed by Vivendi Entertainment with an expected release date in December.The film follows two brothers on their way to find their father who has been diagnosed with leukemia. On the way, they meet Mariah’s character, an aspiring cornrow rocking singer fleeing from a controlling husband.

Well now it seems like Lee Daniels is intrigued with Mimi’s acting skills because she has been added to the cast of his other upcoming film Push… The movie is based on the G-d awful book of the same title, (I mean one read through and your soul will ache from the inside out) by Sapphire. Carey plays a social worker aiding an HIV positive woman who has been impregnated not once, but twice by her father… What did I say? Anyways, that’s the latest on Mrs. Carey movie magic.

Brown Betties Make Lemonade…

Brown Bettie front woman Peppur Chambers is up to her naughty tricks… as usual. The singing, dancing, and acting phenom behind the Los Angeles based brown girl monthly cabaret production is also the EIC of the Brown Betties Gazette (a new issue is live, just click on the link) and the force behind the forthcoming book Making Lemonade… Which brings me to a very critical point. Anyone who has made a move across country or half way across the street even… has often found out, things aren’t always glittery on the other side or vice versa. In Peppur’s account, a collaboration of short stories, she details, in the most contemporary and conventional means – via email of course, her self-proclaimed “bitter sweet tales from an actress being squeezed in LA.” Whether it is L.A., New York, Houston (hey, Beyonce has inspired the trek for some I’m sure) any path paving sister with a mind of her own and the strength of a lioness will appreciated these pieces. With that said, I have a treat for you my good ladies! Excerpts from Pep’s book are online at her I’m A Peppur Blogsite. Just click it already!

He Said, She Said: “Man & Wife”

From the internet to the small screen, perennial hype man Fat Man Scoop and his better half Shanda have taken their webisodes of “Man and Wife” to MTV. The married couple gained a following over the last year with their raw, unabashed and often comical yet educational discussions of sex and relationships – frequently ignited by the couples own goings on.

Starting on Monday, September 29 at 11:00 pm Scoop “sex” will get a little more interesting as hip-hop’s Grammy winning artist and his wife, HIV/AIDS counselor Shanda discuss sex, love and relationships in an informative and innovative format on the new late-night, stripped series, “Man and Wife” - this time on TV.

Jada Pinkett Smith Returns to TV

No rest for the weary. Jada Pinkett Smith is back on the small screen block. Mrs. Smith returns to TV starring in and executive producing a drama pilot for TNT called “Time Heals.” Jada plays the character Nancy Hawthorne, a strong, caring single mother who works as a director of nursing at Charlotte Mercy Hospital in North Carolina and routinely puts other people in pain ahead of herself. Sony TV is producing and Jada executive produces. An air date has yet to be released. In the meantime, you can check Jada in The Women, which is in theaters right now.

Designers for Change (The Obama Way)

Beyonce and her mother Tina Knowles have contributed to the Runway to Change launch by offering House of Dereon “Change” logo T-shirts. The shirts (pictured on the left), which feature curvaceous ladies campaigning for Barack Obama, join a long list of other celebrity designed promotional T’s. Nanette Lepore, Tory Burch, Russell Simmons, Pharrell Williams, Tracy Reese (pictured on the right), Vera Wang, Juicy Couture, Jay-Z, Marc Jacobs, and Rachel Roy have all contributed designs in the form of T-shirts, bags, or scarves for purchase on the official Barack Obama website. Beyonce’s HOD T-shirts are available in white, red, and blue at the price of $60.00. Go ahead and support in style!

And if you have not registered to vote, do it NOW! Time is running out and it is soooooo easy to do it… Just click on this link!

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