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Monday, January 31, 2011
Reader Mailbag: Winter Blues
What’s inside? Here are the questions answered in today’s reader mailbag, boiled down to five word summaries. Click on the number to jump straight down to the question. 1. Helping a rock bottom friend 2. Moving around the world 3. Easing a tax burden 4. Financial wedding propriety 5. Small claims court question 6. Deeply [...]
Workspace of the Week: Transparent office
This week?s Workspace of the Week is Louish's glass and not-glass office.
Like this site? Buy Erin Rooney Doland's Unclutter Your Life in One Week from Amazon.com today.
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School Defends Experiment to Separate Black Students for Academic Results
Filed under: News, Race and Civil Rights
I can't count how many times I have heard educators say without a bit of irony that black students were better off during segregation.
Not that separate and unequal part of that equation, but the cultural part, when black students were taught by black teachers and usually with an equal emphasis on historical black achievement and white achievement.
A school, McCaskey East High, in Lancaster, Penn., has decided to take that sentiment to heart, segregating students by gender and race.
The separation is only for a short period - six minutes each day and 20 minutes twice a month - but it has drawn criticism for raising the specter of racial segregation.
Administrators said the school noticed that black students were not performing as well as other students and that research had shown that same-race classes with strong same-race role models led to better academic results.
Research showed that grouping black students by gender with a strong role model could boost both academic achievement and self-esteem.
Some students, staff and parents were against the segregation, saying that it ran against everything the school stood for -- with so many students being from diverse backgrounds.
But administrators thought it was something worth trying.
In all segregated classes, mentors track their students' grades, test scores and attendance.
One such mentor is Michael Mitchell, who hopes to inspire his black male students during their short daily meetings, according to an article in the UK's Daily Mail.
Mitchell says he often quotes Rev. Martin Luther King Jr., who said:
"Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity."
Mitchell recently used the quote when he found that some of his students were failing gym.
Mitchell adds:
"They're all young. They're all strong. They're all athletic. But they're failing because they chose not to participate."
On the one hand, it's not a unique idea. There are religious schools, Jewish and Catholic, where students learn about their religious heritage daily and it complements their standard lessons.
There are also Jewish and Arabic colleges that offer the same thing, and while there are hundreds of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, there are very few secondary schools that overtly claim that they segregate their schools to focus on black culture.
My daughter goes to a public school in a predominantly black school district and has had only one black teacher in her six years in public school. Has she done well in school? Of course, but the year she had a black teacher, she was happier and she stayed after school to be with her teacher.
The teacher encouraged her outside of academics with things like keeping her room clean (which I was thankful for) and was interested in her outside of the classroom. In return, in the classroom, my daughter went above and beyond the call of duty and was excited every day about school.
One of the main issues with segregated schools was the aforementioned unequal issue (which is still a problem today). Students at black segregated schools received second-hand books and worked in crumbling buildings with teachers who had been to schools with the same conditions.
I doubt, though, that parents complained about teachers who demanded excellence AND taught in a culturally relevant environment. That's the ideal for most parents, even today. Does that fix the problem that black students may not be able to intermingle with other cultures?
No.
But it may alleviate the crisis of low black student achievement.
Ask Unclutterer: Accessible but clutter-free toy storage
Reader Patricia wants a place to store her grandchildren's toys in her small condo, but doesn't want to put them somewhere so out-of-the-way that she forgets she has them.
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Review: Bait and Switch
Every Sunday, The Simple Dollar reviews a personal finance or other book of interest. Also available is a complete list of the hundreds of book reviews that have appeared on The Simple Dollar over the years. One of my first book reviews on The Simple Dollar was of Barbara Ehrenreich’s Nickel and Dimed. In that [...]
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Readout of the meeting of the President and National Security Advisor with Indian National Security Advisor Menon
Release Time:
For Immediate Release
National Security Advisor Tom Donilon met yesterday with Indian National Security Advisor Shivshankar Menon at the White House to follow-up on the outcomes of President Obama and Indian Prime Minister Singh’s historic Summit in India in November 2010. Mr. Donilon and Mr. Menon discussed ways to advance our bilateral agenda over the coming year, including the implementation of initiatives launched during the Summit, as well as building new platforms for collaboration that fulfill the promise of our global strategic partnership. The two also had candid, in-depth discussions on regional and global issues of mutual concern.
The President joined the meeting and reaffirmed his commitment to building a true global, strategic partnership with India. The President relayed his priorities for the coming year, including advancing our bilateral economic relationship and making progress on nuclear security efforts.
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Spare Change: The King is Dead Edition
O, happy day! The FedEx man brought me a package this morning containing The King is Dead, the new record album from The Decemberists. The Decemberists are a Portland band, and have been my favorite group for several years. I love that they put their new music out on vinyl, so that I can listen [...]
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The tabula rasa method of uncluttering and organizing a room
When uncluttering and organizing a room using the tabula rasa method, you start by moving everything -- absolutely everything -- that isn't affixed to the walls, floor, or ceiling out of the room.
Like this site? Buy Erin Rooney Doland's Unclutter Your Life in One Week from Amazon.com today.
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Happy New Year from all of us here at Pandora
Hey, it's Tim from Pandora -
I'm writing to wish you a very Happy New Year from all of us here at Pandora! And what a year it was...
First, a heartfelt thanks to all of you for continuing to be such engaged listeners and such wonderful evangelists. In 2010 we doubled our audience to over 75 million people! And that was mostly thanks to continued word of mouth. For that we are deeply appreciative.
As always, interacting with listeners continues to be our greatest joy, and greatest source of feedback. You now send us over 25,000 emails every month. What an incredible fountain of information, constructive feedback, and validation that continues to be... and those thumbs! In 2010 alone, you thumbed over 3 billion songs (mostly thumbs-up... phew!).
Getting your stations right continues to be our obsession - and a work in progress. It's a (wonderfully) hard problem and something we continue to work on every day. Your feedback is invaluable to that effort.
I hope you've checked out one of the many new connected devices that now support Pandora. We're trying our best to make Pandora available everywhere you might want to use it. And that includes cars. 2011 will bring more options than ever to listen to Pandora on the road, beyond just plugging your smartphone into an auxiliary jack. Ford, GM, Mercedes-Benz, Mini and Toyota have all announced Pandora integration into their dashboards. There's no way to describe what it's like to have personalized radio in the car. You just have to try it.
Last, but not least, a shout-out to all the great new music from working artists everywhere. Keep your submissions coming. We're furiously adding music so listeners can keep discovering. The Music Genome Project surpassed 850,000 songs and is now rapidly becoming a more international collection.
So much more to say... but we've got the whole year ahead of us to talk :).
Please stay in touch, keep listening and I look forward to the music we're all going to enjoy in 2011.
As always, your feedback is most welcome.
Tim
Founder
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Let Rahm Emanuel Run for Mayor, Illinois High Court Rules
Filed under: News, Politics, President Obama
Ending days of suspense and speculation, the Illinois Supreme Court ruled that Rahm Emanuel can continue his bid for mayor of the nation's third largest city.
The ruling came in a 7-0 decision that was handed down late Thursday, paving the way for Emanuel to replace longtime Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley in a Feb. 22 election. The ruling came just in time for his name to be printed on the ballot for early voting, which begins Monday.
Emanuel is the leading contender, with double-digit poll numbers and a war chest of more than $10 million. He's running against city clerk Miguel del Valle, former Illinois state Sen. Carol Moseley Braun, Gery Chico, Patricia Van Pelt-Watkins and William Walls.
Thursday's 25-page Illinois Supreme Court decision overturned Monday's Appellate Court decision, which ruled that Emanuel did not meet residency requirements. The decision was based on his lawyers' argument that he was qualified to run under an area of the state's election code that grants residency status to servicemen and women who leave their home state to serve the country. They contended that he moved to Washington, D.C., to work as chief of staff for President Barack Obama, a federal position. The appellate court disagreed but was overturned by the Supreme Court.
Supreme Court justices argued that Emanuel was born in Chicago and, in December 1998, purchased a Chicago home (the Hermitage House), which he still owns. The candidate lived with his family in that home from 1998 through January 2009. He moved to work for the president.
Meanwhile, Emanuel paid property taxes on the Hermitage House, while continuing to hold an Illinois driver's license. He also listed the Hermitage House as his address on his personal checks and continued to vote with the Hermitage House as his registered voter's address. He paid income taxes, however, in 2009 and 2010 to both Washington, D.C., and Illinois, the court said.
"The preponderance of this evidence establishes that the candidate never formed an intention to terminate his residence in Chicago,'' the ruling says, "never formed an intention to establish is residence in Washington, D.C. , or any place other than Chicago, and never formed an intention to change his residence.''
Emanuel's campaign immediately sent out a celebratory text over the ruling: "The IL Supreme Court just ruled that Rahm will stay on the ballot. Thx for your support & let's get ready to vote!'' He also received a call from the president.
During earlier news conferences, he said: "I do believe the people of the city of Chicago deserve the right to make a decision on who they want to be their next mayor, which is everything I've contended since the very beginning. Fundamentally when a president asks you to serve the country as his chief of staff that counts as serving your country. I have no doubt that we will prevail in this effort."
The ruling ended nearly a week of back-and-forth court decisions. The appellate lobbed the first serve on Monday, saying Emanuel did not meet mandatory election residency requirements. His attorneys appealed the decision on Tuesday, arguing that he never lost residency. By late afternoon, the high court agreed to expedite the case, with justices deciding to only review legal briefs without conducting a hearing.
At least one of his competitors, Chico, applauded the decision, saying that Emanuel's residency drama has turned the election into a circus rather than a serious debate about the future of Chicago.
"Now that the Supreme Court has made their decision, the residents will choose their next mayor based on the candidates' track records and their vision for Chicago,'' Chico continued. "I remain the most qualified candidate to be the next mayor and take our city in a new direction. With less than 30 days to go until Election Day, there is no time to waste. Game on."
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John Barry: a life in clips
Film composer John Barry, who died yesterday aged 77, remains an inspiration to many. We look at some of his finest work, from Beat Girl to Bond
Already a successful band leader, with the John Barry Seven, the movie world was introduced to the composer when he provided the music to Beat Girl, a movie starring his friend Adam Faith. The result was the first soundtrack album to warrant a UK release, the launch of a five times Oscar-winning film career for Barry, one of the first examples of rock music being incorporated into film scores and, best of all, a killer, world-class opening title sequence.
Barry won two Oscars for his astounding work on Born Free, one for the soundtrack and the other for his collaboration with lyricist Don Black for the classic Matt Monro title song. Amazingly, this signature tune, a chart topper even in cover versions by Roger Williams and a surprisingly faithful Vic Reeves almost didn't make the final cut.
It's impossible to discuss Barry's legacy without mentioning his music for the James Bond films. Uncredited for his work on Dr No (the source of some controversy for years) Barry's music quickly became synonymous with Bond. When it was time for Connery to be replaced by George Lazenby, it was up to Barry to deliver a score that would reassure audiences that, despite appearances, as this Bond clearly wasn't "the other fella", it was still business as usual for 007. His score for On Her Majesty's Secret Service is perhaps his finest Bond work, how could this be anything other than a Bond film when it had music like this?
Back in the 60s and 70s, television made full use of artists and technicians from the film world. For the Roger Moore and Tony Curtis ITC series The Persuaders, Barry delivered one of his most memorable pieces. There's no feeling that this is a second-tier work; you hired Barry you got the full Barry experience. It's a testament to how he never went for the obvious; the show was a light a frothy romp concerning two bickering playboys getting into japes and scrapes across Europe, the theme music provides all the depth. It's an emotive slice of melancholia that manages to sound both wistfully nostalgic and adventurous.
Movies don't always turn out as expected. Barry was often associated with films that didn't perform as well as expected either financially or artistically. Films such as The Game of Death, King Kong, Somewhere in Time, The Specialist, The White Buffalo and many others. Whatever shortcomings these films suffered, Barry's work on them is seldom, if ever, criticised. On one occasion, though, enough was enough. Hired to deliver the score to what he was told would be a big budget Italian science-fiction film called Starcrash, the producers hid the low budget by having him score to grainy black-and-white footage. Less than pleased (to say the least) when he saw his great work accompanying Star Wars rip-off imagery, Barry re-orchestrated the score and reused it for Out of Africa, salvaging one of his best pieces and earning himself another Oscar in the process.
It's no big shock that a musician responsible for many memorable and catchy tunes would appeal to sample-hungry musicians. Fatboy Slim's Rockafeller Skank, Sneaker Pimps' 6 Underground, Chapterhouse's Mesmerise, House of Pain's Legend, Smoke City's Underwater Love and many others have ridden in on Barry's coat tails. My favourite bit of Barry sampling has to be the Beta Band's It's Not Too Beautiful, an appropriation of his sterling work for The Black Hole. When Barry's music comes tearing in it pushes everything else out. This isn't a sample to be built on or competed with, rather the song just fades away and admits defeat. The first time I heard this it took me completely by surprise, I thought something had broken in my brain.
As sad as his passing is, Barry has not left us without making his mark (to say the least). There are few composers, in any field of music, as immediately identifiable as Barry. There are, of course, many other noteworthy examples of his work; The Ipcress File, Mary Queen of Scots, Zulu, Dances With Wolves, Walkabout, Midnight Cowboy, The Lion in Winter, Chaplin. His soundtracks provided the backing to our lives as much as they did to the films he scored (no exaggeration), his music is everywhere and always will be.
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Are you sabotaging your uncluttering and organizing efforts?
There are hundreds of ways to sabotage your uncluttering and organizing efforts, and just one solution for all of them -- admit to yourself that you're sabotaging your success.
Like this site? Buy Erin Rooney Doland's Unclutter Your Life in One Week from Amazon.com today.
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Bruno Mars takes plea deal in cocaine case
Singer to avoid prison sentence by pleading guilty to drug possession, paying a fine and serving one year of probation
Four months after he was allegedly caught with cocaine, pop star Bruno Mars will reportedly plead guilty to drug possession charges, pay a fine and serve one year of probation. The American singer's debut album, Doo-Wops & Hooligans, is currently No 1 in the UK charts.
Mars, real name Peter Hernandez, has had an eventful six months. Despite scoring two international hit singles, Grenade and Just the Way You Are, seven Grammy nominations and co-writing Cee-Lo Green's Fuck You, the singer has been dogged by an outstanding drug charge from last September. On Friday, prosecutors confirmed a plea deal has been reached and the 25-year-old will avoid jail.
Mars was arrested on 19 September after a bathroom attendant at the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas told security he had seen someone with a bag of white powder. Police confronted the singer, asking him to "give over whatever narcotics he had", according to the official report. The singer then took 2.6g of cocaine "from his left-front jeans pocket". Officers claim Marsadmitted he had done a foolish thing and had "never used drugs before". Charged with felony drug possession, Mars faced up to four years in prison.
On Friday, Clark County district attorney David Roger told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that prosecutors had reached an agreement with Mars. The singer will pay $2,000 (�1,260), perform 200 hours of community service, attend drug counselling, and remain on probation for a year. If he violates any of the terms of this plea, he may go to prison.
Mars was due to appear in a Las Vegas court on 4 February, but this will be replaced by a new plea hearing. For the moment, he is back home after a brief European tour. "I wanna thank all my fans in the UK for making Doo-Wops & Hooligans #1 This week!" he tweeted. "I feel like Im Dreaming. Someone please Pinch my Arse!"
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Remarks by the President on the Situation in Egypt
Release Time:
For Immediate Release
Location:
State Dining Room
6:33 P.M. EST
THE PRESIDENT: Good evening, everybody. My administration has been closely monitoring the situation in Egypt, and I know that we will be learning more tomorrow when day breaks. As the situation continues to unfold, our first concern is preventing injury or loss of life. So I want to be very clear in calling upon the Egyptian authorities to refrain from any violence against peaceful protestors.
The people of Egypt have rights that are universal. That includes the right to peaceful assembly and association, the right to free speech, and the ability to determine their own destiny. These are human rights. And the United States will stand up for them everywhere.
I also call upon the Egyptian government to reverse the actions that they’ve taken to interfere with access to the Internet, to cell phone service and to social networks that do so much to connect people in the 21st century.
At the same time, those protesting in the streets have a responsibility to express themselves peacefully. Violence and destruction will not lead to the reforms that they seek.
Now, going forward, this moment of volatility has to be turned into a moment of promise. The United States has a close partnership with Egypt and we've cooperated on many issues, including working together to advance a more peaceful region. But we've also been clear that there must be reform -- political, social, and economic reforms that meet the aspirations of the Egyptian people.
In the absence of these reforms, grievances have built up over time. When President Mubarak addressed the Egyptian people tonight, he pledged a better democracy and greater economic opportunity. I just spoke to him after his speech and I told him he has a responsibility to give meaning to those words, to take concrete steps and actions that deliver on that promise.
Violence will not address the grievances of the Egyptian people. And suppressing ideas never succeeds in making them go away. What’s needed right now are concrete steps that advance the rights of the Egyptian people: a meaningful dialogue between the government and its citizens, and a path of political change that leads to a future of greater freedom and greater opportunity and justice for the Egyptian people.
Now, ultimately the future of Egypt will be determined by the Egyptian people. And I believe that the Egyptian people want the same things that we all want -- a better life for ourselves and our children, and a government that is fair and just and responsive. Put simply, the Egyptian people want a future that befits the heirs to a great and ancient civilization.
The United States always will be a partner in pursuit of that future. And we are committed to working with the Egyptian government and the Egyptian people -- all quarters -- to achieve it.
Around the world governments have an obligation to respond to their citizens. That's true here in the United States; that's true in Asia; it is true in Europe; it is true in Africa; and it’s certainly true in the Arab world, where a new generation of citizens has the right to be heard.
When I was in Cairo, shortly after I was elected President, I said that all governments must maintain power through consent, not coercion. That is the single standard by which the people of Egypt will achieve the future they deserve.
Surely there will be difficult days to come. But the United States will continue to stand up for the rights of the Egyptian people and work with their government in pursuit of a future that is more just, more free, and more hopeful.
Thank you very much.
END 6:38 P.M. EST
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Weekly Address: "America Will Win the Future by Out-Innovating, Out-Educating, and Out-Building Our Competitors"
WASHINGTON – In this week’s address, President Obama called Orion Energy Systems in Manitowoc, Wisconsin an example of how America can win the future by being the best place on Earth to do business. Orion was able to open with the help of small business loans and incentives that are creating demand for clean energy technologies. By sparking innovation and spurring new products and technologies, America will unleash the talent and ingenuity of American workers and businesses, which will lead to new, good jobs.
Remarks of President Barack Obama
Weekly Address
Manitowoc, Wisconsin
January 29, 2011
I’m speaking to you today from Manitowoc, Wisconsin, where I’m at an innovative company called Orion Energy Systems.
Just a few years ago, this was an empty warehouse. A major employer had shut down this factory, moved its operations abroad, and took a lot of jobs away from this town.
But today, as you can see behind me, this is a thriving enterprise once more. You are looking at a factory where 250 workers are building advanced clean energy systems – state-of-the-art technologies that use solar power and energy efficiency to save farms and businesses thousands of dollars on their utility bills.
I’m here because this business and others like it are showing us the way forward. And in the coming days, I’ll be shining a spotlight on innovators across America who are relying on new technologies to create new jobs and opportunities in new industries.
That’s what companies like Orion are doing. And that’s how America will win the future – by out-innovating, out-educating, and out-building our competitors. We’ll win the future by being the best place on Earth to do business. That is what we are called to do at this moment. And in my state of the union, I talked about how we get there.
It starts by making sure that every single child can get a good education and every American can afford college or career training. Because that’s what will help light the spark in the minds of innovators – and ensure that our people have the skills to work for innovative companies.
We also need to make sure that America can move goods and information as fast as any of our competitors, whether on the road or online. Because good infrastructure helps our businesses sell their products and services faster and cheaper.
We have to reform our government and cut wasteful spending, so that we eliminate what we don’t need to pay for the investments we need to grow, like education and medical research.
And as we can see here in Manitowoc, we need to ensure that we are promoting innovation – especially in promising areas like clean energy. This is going to be key to growing our economy and helping businesses create jobs. Orion, for example, was able to open with the help of small business loans and incentives that are creating demand for clean energy technologies like wind power and solar panels.
That’s why I’ve proposed a bigger tax credit for the research that companies do. And to give these companies the certainty of knowing there will be a market for what they sell, I’ve set this goal for America: by 2035, 80 percent of electricity should come from clean energy.
This is going to help spark innovation at businesses across America. This is going to spur new products and technologies. This is going to lead to good, new jobs. And that’s how we win the future – by unleashing the talent and ingenuity of American businesses and American workers in every corner of this country.
So to those who say that America’s best days are behind us, let them come here, to Manitowoc. Let them come to this once-shuttered factory that is now bustling with workers building new technologies for the world. Let them come here to see the incredible promise of our country.
This is the future. And it’s bright.
Thank you.
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Reader Mailbag: Discarded Post Ideas
What’s inside? Here are the questions answered in today’s reader mailbag, boiled down to five word summaries. Click on the number to jump straight down to the question. 1. Bank ignores me! 2. Gold digging or thinking ahead? 3. Encouraging others to think frugally 4. Why saving, not investing? 5. Budgeting software 6. Finding my [...]
Review: Bait and Switch
Every Sunday, The Simple Dollar reviews a personal finance or other book of interest. Also available is a complete list of the hundreds of book reviews that have appeared on The Simple Dollar over the years. One of my first book reviews on The Simple Dollar was of Barbara Ehrenreich’s Nickel and Dimed. In that [...]
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Live blog: The Golden Globes ? live! | Hadley Freeman
Catch up on all last night's awards action with Hadley Freeman
?�News: Firth crowned while Social Network cleans up
?�Peter Bradshaw's reaction
?�Gallery: quotes of the night
?�Gallery: Globes arrivals
?�Gallery: TV winners
?�Full list of winners
12.15am GMT: Greetings all, and welcome to the preview to tonight's Golden Globes liveblog. While I may not actually be on the red carpet in Los Angeles, I will be reporting to you live from my red sofa in New York. Truly, no expense is spared in the Guardian liveblog department. This is journalism in action, people! Suck on it, Woodward and Bernstein.
Oh, I do love the Golden Globes. So much more fun than the Oscars, because the nominees tend to be more what my cousin Catie calls "loosey goosey", or what I call "drunk". The usual explanation for this is that it's because there are so many more acting categories at the Globes than at the Oscars. Thus, at least half the nominees go there assuming they won't get the big nod later so they may as well get plastered tonight. Personally, I think it's because the Golden Globes are voted for by Hollywood's Foreign Press Association and the usually teetotal Californian celebrities use this as an excuse to get wasted. Getting drunk: it's so European, you know? Hopefully, someone will be as European as Jennifer Aniston was the other week at the People's Choice Awards.
A couple of drunk celebs would definitely be some compensation for the irritation that is Ricky Gervais, who will be hosting the proceedings with a guaranteed smirk.
So while we're waiting for smirking Ricky, let's discuss the nominees, looking at who should and shouldn't have been nominated, who should win and who probably will.
BEST PICTURE ? Drama
Black Swan, The Fighter, Inception, The King's Speech, The Social Network.
I'm going to own up from the beginning and say I haven't seen The Fighter, mainly because I have seen The Wrestler, 8 Mile and Rocky, and therefore assumed I didn't need to. Also, I have a medical condition that makes it impossible for me to gaze upon Mark Wahlberg without shouting, "I'm picking up GOOD vibrations! She's giving me EXcitations!" so for the sake of fellow cinemagoers, I abstained. Thus, all predictions and opinions expressed herein should be taken with that cavil.
My only real problem with this slew of nominees is that Inception was nominated and 127 Hours was not. Hopefully we won't be talking about Inception much this evening and the only thing that needs to be said about that snorefest (a movie about sleep that puts you to sleep ? brilliant! Content equals form!) was that South Park's parody of it was a billion times better than the movie, plagiarism issues aside.
Otherwise, The King's Speech, enjoyable though it is, is little more than a conventional genre film stuffed with some great actors. I would be very happy if Black Swan won but I reckon it will go to The Social Network. Fair enough, although I do think that film will look ridiculously dated in just a few years' time. If Hollywood really wanted to make a movie about a website that changed the world, surely they should have made one about Google. I'm not on Facebook and yet I manage to get by. But I literally cannot remember the last day when I did not use Google at some point.
BEST PICTURE ? Musical or comedy
Alice in Wonderland, Burlesque, The Kids are All Right, Red, The Tourist
If The Kids Are All Right doesn't win this one, I'm throwing my laptop out the window. The Tourist?! Are you freaking kidding me, Foreign Press Association? The obvious omission here is True Grit, which is not a great film; it's not even a great Coen brothers film. But it is a hell of a lot better than The Tourist, aka The Snorist. Oh, I am on fire tonight.
BEST ACTOR ? Drama
Jesse Eisenberg (The Social Network), Colin Firth (The King's Speech), James Franco (127 Hours), Ryan Gosling (Blue Valentine), Mark Wahlberg (The Fighter)
Well, it's got to be Colin, doesn't it? And fair enough, really, even if that nod would probably be as much for A Single Man as The King's Speech. He really is great in the latter, though, and without him that film would be nothing more than a bit of royalist propaganda.
James Franco may cause an upset, perhaps in compensation for 127 Hours' bewildering omission from Best Picture category, and also for his great performance this year in Howl. But I reckon the best of Franco is yet to come. The King's Speech is definitely Firth's bid for glory. Jesse Eisenberg would also be a pleasing winner, even if his recent interview with Conan O'Brien, in which he expanded at length about his addiction to adopting cats, suggested that his performance in The Social Network as a reclusive, socially awkward nerd did not tax his talent too greatly.
BEST ACTRESS ? Drama
Halle Berry (Frankie and Alice), Nicole Kidman (Rabbit Hole), Jennifer Lawrence (Winter's Bone), Natalie Portman (Black Swan), Michelle Williams (Blue Valentine)
Kidman? Oy vay. The critics love her, which is why she may ? unbelievably ? get an award tonight. But to quote Will Ferrell in Zoolander, I feel like I'm eating crazy pills here! The woman cannot act! She can't even move her face anymore these days!
I'd love to see Michelle Williams win, but she won't because she has an orgasm in Blue Valentine and, apparently, that's a bad thing. Natalie Portman will surely get it, and not just for her brilliant performance. She lost some weight for Black Swan, you see, and in Hollywood that in itself is worth international acclaim.
BEST ACTOR ? Musical or comedy
Johnny Depp (Alice in Wonderland), Johnny Depp (The Tourist), Paul Giametti (Barney's Version), Jake Gyllenhaal (Love and Other Drugs), Kevin Spacey (Casino Jack)
You know, there are some times in life when you feel like the world makes absolutely not a jot of sense. Looking at this list of nominees is one of those times. How on earth could Gyllenhaal be nominated for Disease Movie of the Week? Or Johnny Depp for The freaking Tourist? And most of all, why weren't Jeff Bridges or, in particular, Matt Damon for True Grit? Damon is really, really great in that film, giving a vanity-free, ego-free, genuinely funny performance, which is not something that can be said about pretty much anyone else on this list. So in conclusion, my reluctant vote goes to Paul Giametti, who is pretty good in Barney's Version, even if the film isn't, and, most of all, seems like a nice guy. Here, Paul, have an award.
BEST ACTRESS ? Musical or comedy
Annette Bening (The Kids Are All Right), Anne Hathaway (Love and Other Drugs), Angelina Jolie (The Tourist), Julianne Moore (The Kids Are All Right), Emma Stone (Easy A)
OK, just looking at this list makes me cross. So to spare my blood pressure, I'll just say I'd be happy with either Julianne Moore or Annette Bening winning tonight, and I reckon it will be Bening.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Christian Bale (The Fighter), Michael Douglas (Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps), Andrew Garfield (The Social Network), Jeremy Renner (The Town), Geoffrey Rush (The King's Speech)
Well, the critics seem to think that Bale will get it and, as I said earlier, I can't really comment on that beyond a non-caring shrug. I think it's a real shame that Guy Pearce wasn't nominated for The King's Speech as the Nazi-appeasing, Wallis-obsessed prince, but maybe that upset some people's preferred image of the British royalty as glorious demi-gods too much. Justin Timberlake for The Social Network is also a sad omission, and he has been unjustly overlooked in a lot of the coverage of the movie.
I really hope that Michael Douglas doesn't win this. While I am very pleased he has recovered from cancer, he shouldn't get a Golden Globe for doing so, not least because that seems like a pretty patronising response to fighting a life-threatening illness, and Douglas is better than that and a better actor than he was in that movie. The voters may well disagree. I'd love Andrew Garfield to win it and not just because I have an inappropriate old lady crush on him. OK, that is totally why I want him to win it.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams (The Fighter), Helena Bonham Carter (The King's Speech), Mila Kunis (Black Swan), Melissa Leo (The Fighter), Jackie Weaver (Animal Kingdom)
Mila Kunis instead of Barbara Hershey for Black Swan? Poor choice, Foreign Press Association. Oh well, in the absence of Hershey and her Mommie Dearest routine, I'm rooting for Helena, and I reckon she'll get it. Her brittle performance in The King's Speech was great, and plus, she's kinda awesome.
BEST DIRECTOR
Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan), David Fincher (The Social Network), Tom Hooper (The King's Speech). Christopher Nolan (Inception), David O Russell (The Fighter)
Well, I'd prefer Aronofsky to get it as The Black Swan was a lot more imaginative and exciting than The Social Network, but Fincher may well get in there. It's probably between those two, and either would be acceptable. In terms of omissions, though, I'm not quite sure why Danny Boyle was left off here. Maybe they feel he had his fill from Slumdog Millionaire. Shame, because 127 Hours is not only a better film than Slumdog but it's a better film than many on this list.
BEST SCREENPLAY
127 Hours (Simon Beaufoy and Danny Boyle), Inception (Christopher Nolan), The Kids Are All Right (Lisa Cholodenko and Stuart Blumberg), The King's Speech (David Seidler), The Social Network (Aaron Sorkin)
It should and will be Sorkin, and that's all there is to say.
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Despicable Me, How To Train Your Dragon, The Illusionist, Tangled, Toy Story 3
Toy Story. Duh.
BEST FOREIGN FILM
Biutiful, The Concert, The Edge, I Am Love, In A Better World
I'm ashamed to say that, of these, I've seen only I Am Love, so I'll leave you guys to duke this out among you.
BEST ORIGINAL SONG
"Bound to You," Burlesque (performed by Christina Aguilera; written by Samuel Dixon, Christina Aguilera and Sia Furler)
"Coming Home," Country Strong (performed by Gwyneth Paltrow; written by Bob PiPiero, Tom Douglas, Hillary Lindsey, Troy Verges)
"I See the Light," Tangled (performed by Mandy Moore & Zachary Levi; written by Alan Menken & Glenn Slater)
"There's a Place For Us," The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader (performed by Carrie Underwood; written by Carrie Underwood, David Hodges, Hillary Lindsey)
"You Haven't Seen the Last of Me Yet," Burlesque (performed by Cher; written by Diane Warren)
Oh God, please not that Gwyneth song. I can't take Gwyneth with a guitar. Gwynnie, please, go back home and write some more newsletters about how you and your friends spend your days.
The one everyone is rooting for is, of course, You Haven't Seen the Last of Me, because everyone wants to hear Cher sing and see what Cher is wearing. Am I right or am I right?
BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
Inception (Hans Zimmer), The King's Speech (Alexander Desplat), The Social Network (Trent Reznor and Atticus Rose), Alice in Wonderland (Danny Elfman), 127 Hours (AR Rahman)
Tough one, actually. I always love an Elfman score, and I salute Danny Boyle's wisdom in continuing to work with AR Rahman after teaming up with him for Slumdog Millionaire. But my personal choice would be for Trent Reznor (duuuude!) and Atticus Rose's gloomy, tension-filled music for The Social Network. I bet they'll give it to Hans Zimmer for Inception, though.
BEST TV SERIES ? Drama
Boardwalk Empire, Dexter, The Good Wife, Mad Men, The Walking Dead
I'm not going to talk about Mad Men tonight because a Guardian journalist raving about Mad Men is like a French man wearing a beret ? too much of a clich� to stomach. So all I'll say is it surely will win, and deservedly so, though I'd be happy with The Good Wife, too.
BEST TV SERIES ? Musical or comedy
30 Rock, The Big Bang Theory, The Big C, Glee, Modern Family, Nurse Jackie
This is without a doubt Glee's year. Gleek out, people.
BEST ACTOR ? Drama
Steve Buscemi (Boardwalk Empire), Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad), Michael C Hall (Dexter), Jon Hamm (Mad Men), Hugh Laurie (House MD)
Look, I love Steve Buscemi as much as the next fan of weird-looking actors, but he should not win this. That show is lame and, good as Buscemi is, he has been better elsewhere. Anyway, this is all academic as Hamm is surely going to walk this one.
BEST ACTRESS ? Drama
Elisabeth Moss (Mad Men), Julianna Margulies (The Good Wife), Piper Perabo (Covert Affairs), Katey Sagal (Sons of Anarchy), Kyra Sedgwick (The Closer)
I love Elisabeth Moss ? well, I love her character on the show, anyway. The Scientologist Moss, perhaps, not so much. But this one will probably go to Margulies, as it should.
BEST ACTOR ? Musical or comedy
Alec Baldwin (30 Rock), Steve Carell (The Office), Thomas Jane (Hung). Matthew Morrison (Glee), Jim Parsons (The Big Bang Theory)
Baldwin just gets better and better in 30 Rock but I think they'll give this one to Matthew Morrison. Baldwin probably doesn't have any room left on his mantelpiece for another award, anyway.
BEST ACTRESS ? Musical or comedy
Toni Collette (United States of Tara), Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie), Tina Fey (30 Rock), Laura Linney (The Big C), Lea Michele (Glee)
At last ? a list of nominees I can totally get behind. No idea on this one, really. Fey, maybe? Or Linney? Either one would be acceptable.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR ? TV series, miniseries or made-for-TV movie
Scott Caan, (Hawaii Five-o), Chris Colfer (Glee), Chris Noth (The Good Wife), David Strathairn (Temple Grandin), Eric Stonestreet (Modern Family)
Maybe one day people will explain to me the appeal of Chris Noth because even after watching each episode of Sex and the City at least seven times, occasionally dipping into Law & Order and a recent addiction to The Good Wife, I do not get it. I like all of those shows (well, "like" might be a bit strong for Law & Order) not because of Noth but in spite of him. Anyway, Chris Colfer is adorable on Glee but my heart belongs to Eric Stonestreet on this one. He is just ace on Modern Family, which is, itself, ace.
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS ? TV series, miniseries or made-for-TV movie
Hope Davis (Special Relationship), Jane Lynch (Glee), Kelly Macdonald (Boardwalk Empire), Julia Stile (Dexter), Sofia Vergara (Modern Family)
Jane Lynch Jane Lynch Jane Lynch. Hey! Did I mention Jane Lynch? That woman deserves awards every day of the week and Sunday, too. Jane Lynch!
BEST ACTOR ? miniseries or made-for-TV movie
Idris Elba (Luther), Ian MacShane (Pillars of the Earth), Al Pacino (You Don't Know Jack) Dennis Quaid (The Special Relationship), Edgar Ramirez (Carlos)
I'm guessing they'll give it to Edgar Ramirez. But as this is a British newspaper website, one is duty bound to root for the British actor and, as I don't want to vote for Ian MacShane, I guess I'm Team Idris.
BEST ACTRESS - miniseries or made-for-TV movie
Hayley Atwell (Pillars of the Earth), Claire Danes (Temple Grandin), Judi Dench (Return to Cranford), Romola Garai (Emma), Jennifer Love Hewitt (The Client List)
Jesus, Mary and Joseph ? Jennifer Love Hewitt? For that piece of crap? That show was absolutely the nadir of Hewitt's career and, as all Hewittologists will appreciate, that really is saying something. This one is up in the air so I'll just randomly guess, er, Garai? Yeah, give it to Romola Garai.
Right, I'm going to make some popcorn now and so should you. Let's rejoin at 1am GMT, when hopefully there will be some famous people wearing expensive clothes on the red carpet that we can look at and discuss.
Right folks, so here we are on the red carpet, let's look at some clothes.
Oh mine eyes, mine eyes! What the HELL is January Jones wearing, a woman who is going to get a reputation for the worst red carpet dresser of all time. So, at the Emmys she wore a dress that looked like a Smurf had an accident on her.
Tonight, she is wearing some vomitous Versace dress that appears to be made out of red Band-Aids. "I'm not wearing this for nothing," she simpers to E!'s Ryan Seacrest. That sound you heard in the background was January's dignity dying.
OK, can someone explain to me how Kelly Osbourne has become E!'s red carpet fashion correspondent? Is there not an internal contradiction in there somewhere? E!, listen to me - Kelly may be wearing a peroxide bouffant these days but she is no Joan Rivers. Bring back Joan!
Ooh, it's starting! And here comes an incongruously slim Ricky Gervais. He appears to have been on Seth Rogen's diet and, like Seth, has lost his humour with his weight.
He's opening with a Charlie Sheen joke. Is that not basically the celebrity equivalent of opening with a mother-in-law joke?
Oh, now he's talking about the alleged bribery scandal, and made a joke about the amount of airbrushing on the Sex and the City 2 poster (prompting, pleasingly, laughs from Chris Noth, on whom the cameras were trained and ready). Some good jokes about the lameness of The Tourist, which got Ricky booed.
This is kinda like watching David Brent host an industry event in Slough.
ScarJo presenting first award for Best Actor. I do not approve of her dress (left). That is all I have to say for the moment.
AWARD! It's gone to Christian Bale, as was widely predicted. Bale is currently sporting a misguided combo of long hair and facial hair, aka the Charles Manson look (see below).
He also seems to be drunk. This is great.
Well, Katey Segal won for Sons of Anarchy, beating my favourites, Elisabeth Moss and Juliana Margulies. She gave a boring speech. Oh well.
At least this gave the camera time to pan away and look at the dresses. Let's discuss those now, shall we?
Well, Christina Aguilera appears to be wearing something from Karen Millen ("La Senza?" suggests my colleague, Janine Gibson). E! has the most amazing whizzbang graphic since the simulated crumbling paving stones I believe Newsnight did during the UK elections. It's called a 360 Glamcam and allegedly gives every view possible of an actress' outfit but is basically just a high tech way of getting some upskirt shots. Olivia Wilde, wearing what looked like a gold lampshade, happily obliged while Sofia Vergara from Modern Family obligingly stuck out what Kelly Osbourne referred to as "her bootie".
Julianne Moore and Kevin Spacey just presented the award for Best Actor in a Miniseries and, as I predicted, it went to Edgar Ramirez in Carlos. Meh. More importantly, Julianne, a word: when your hair is a lovely shade of red, don't wear a big pink sack for a dress. Glad to have cleared that up for you.
Good Lord, what the HELL has happened to Michelle Pfeiffer's face?! She seems to be presenting something but I can't see what because my eyes have been scarred by it.
Eva Longoria is now presenting an old guy who's apparently important - so important that he dies his white hair bright orange. This is a sign of being important, right, Rupert Murdoch?
AWARD! Steve Buscemi just won Best Actor in a Drama, a surprising upset, judging from the big cheer for Jon Hamm earlier. I am displeased by this win, for reasons discussed in my preview. But, hey, I like Buscemi. Did anyone ever see Trees Lounge, which Buscemi directed? That was good. I'm just going to pretend this award was for Trees Lounge. Or Fargo.
AWARD! Best TV Series Drama went to ... Boardwalk Empire! Jesus H Christ. Honestly, maybe if I just take some tape from a CCTV camera, stick Martin Scorcese's name at the beginning, I'll get a Golden Globe. This is ridiculous. People, listen to me, that show is booooring. I am now in a huff.
Andrew Garfield (left) is presenting a preview of The Social Network. Oh dear, he can't say the words "inspiringly written". Isn't being able to speak an important part of being an actor? At least he's handsome.
And now Alec Baldwin and J-Lo are presenting an award or, possibly, getting married, judging from the REVOLTING white dress J-Lo is wearing. Anyway, she attempts to do some humour - fail. He does some jokes - win. Give it up, Jen.
AWARD! Best original song goes to Cher's song! But - nooooo! That's not Cher getting up on stage - is it? Well, could be, anything's possible with Cher's plastic surgeon these days. No, it's definitely not, it's Diane Warren. OK, fair enough, she did write the song. But I cannot lie - this was something of a disappointing result, all things considered.
AWARD! The Social Network just won for best original score, as I wanted but did not predict. Go Trent Reznor! Nine Inch Nails fans all around the world are almost cheered up by the news. But then immediately sink back down into their usual collective depression.
Oh my God, the Biebermeister is presenting an award! Oh my gawwwwd!!!!!! His hair is wet! Is this the new Bieber barnet! Oh my gawdddddddd!!!!
Aptly, he is presenting the award for Best Animated Feature (insert joke about him being too young to see anything else, ho ho ho).
AWARD! Toy Story 3! As predicted! And deserved. Ahhh, Bieber brings so much happiness to the world, doesn't he?
Ricky has taken off his jacket. He is wearing a waistcoat. He looks like an extra from Back to the Future III. or maybe True Grit, if we're going for relevancy.
Robert Downey Jr is presenting an award and is wearing tinted spectacles bringing to mind the line from Curb Your Enthusiasm: "Only two types of people wear sunglasses inside - blind people and asses."
Angelina Jolie appears to be sitting in Brad Pitt's lap. Yes, yes, we know you guys have soooo much sex, get over it.
Robert seems to be making some kind of 'joke' about how he wishes he could sleep with all the actresses nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy or Musical. Wow, so he's like this when he's sober? Or has he taken so many drugs that he's permanently a jerk? Debate amongst yourselves.
AWARD! Annette Bening got it. Yay! As predicted and deserved. Warren is giving her a kiss. Yay Annette! A pleasing outcome.
Annette giving a very worthy speech, so worthy she has to wear her worthy spectacles. God, this is boring - maybe playing that humourless, worthy Joni Mitchell fan in the film wasn't much of a stretch for her, after all.
Ooh, cutaway shot to P Diddy! That was awesome. And incongruous.
Sylvester Stallone is presenting a clip of The Fighter (ooh yes, I see what he did there.) As I've already said, I haven't seen this film due to my Mark Wahlbergitis. So all I'll say is that Sylvester appears to be turning into his mother, Jackie.
Geoffrey Rush and Tilda Swinton presenting the award for best actor in a miniseries. Geoffrey Rush, for reasons that I suspect will remain opaque, is wearing a trilby.
AWARD! Went to Pacino. Meh. Shoulda been Idris.
Al Pacino giving a rambling speech. My God, Pacino, eh? The older he gets, the more he looks like a caricature of Al Pacino. Anyway, that wasn't nearly as interesting as it would have been if Idris or Lovejoy won.
AWARD! Best Actress for miniseries or made-for-TV movie - Claire Danes. Well, I am not a Danes fan so I'm not overly excited. But then, this was not a category I cared about much anyway so I guess I'll survive.
Zac Efron is presenting a clip of The Kids Are All Right and he is providing further proof that child actors rarely age well. They invariably look like old kids as opposed to youthful grown ups (eg Mickey Rooney, Leo DiCaprio.)
Tina Fey and Steve Carell are presenting an award for best screenplay and are being pleasing and funny. I quite like Tina's navy dress.
AWARD! Aaron Sorkin got it for The Social Network, as predicted and deserved. Here's hoping Sorkin makes some nasty comments about Sarah Palin, as he is prone to do.
Ah yes, there he goes, saying that the people at the ceremony have proven to his daughter that "elite" is not a bad word. That was a Palin dig, you know.
AWARD! Jane Lynch just won Best Supporting Actress in a TV series! Yay! "I am nothing if not falsely humble," Jane says. Oh, I do love her. And yes, we all know that she was brilliant in Best in Show and 40 Year Old Virgin but why doesn't anyone ever mention Role Models? My God, she was funny in that. Go Jane Lynch! Best speech so far and most deserving winner.
Ricky says the Twilight kids are presenting for best foreign film "the category that no one in America cares about." And seeing as - as I've already admitted - I have only seen one of those films, I guess I prove his point.
AWARD! Went to In A Bette World, and I'm sure it's great.
Anyway, Kristen Stewart's dress was kinda amazing.
Ooh, it's Helen Mirren! She's presenting a clip of The King's Speech - yes, again, we can see what they're doing here. Anyway, Helen's lovely.
Good LORD! It's Vanessa Williams and Blair Underwood, presenting an award for best actress in a comedy or musical. Now, I said 'Vanessa Williams', but judging from her mutilated face it is actually a Botoxed wax statuette, possibly of Cleopatra.
AWARD! Laura Linney for The Big C. Well, that's nice - Linney is great. Personally, I'd quibble whether a show about cancer really qualifies as a comedy but then seeing as The Tourist allegedly does, I guess the Foreign Press Association have a different kind of sense of humour than me.
Good LORD it's Jane Fonda, looking - well, looking scary but amazing with it. Fonda's there "for my friend Cher." Of course she is.
Cut away to Christina Aguilera and when I say "Aguilera" I mean "Aguilera's breasts."
AWARD! Good Lord - Jim parsons from The Big Bang Theory beat ALEC FRICKING BALDWIN? Matthew Morrison from Glee looks a bit naffed off, as well he might. Hugh Laurie just leaned over to his wife and visibly whispered "Who is that?" Best moment of that award.
Wow, it's Jeremy irons presenting Best Supporting Actress in a film and he looks like, well, he looks like Claus von Bulow, to be honest.
AWARD! Melissa Leo for The Fighter. Time to get more popcorn.
Matt Damon is presenting a lifetime achievement to Robert De Niro. Damon's doing some schtick about how he'd never heard of De Niro before he was in The Good Shepherd. De Niro doesn't look like he's enjoying this schtick so much.
Now they're showing clips from De Niro's career, in the years when he wasn't just in Meet the Fockers. Wow, those were the days.
Big standing ovation for De Niro. "And I loved you in The Fighter," he says to Damon. Which was funny. Almost as funny as the montage of clips they showed from De Niro's career ended in 2001 and didn't include anything in the Focker franchise, an omission De Niro amusingly makes reference to in his speech.
Apparently, this lifetime achievement is called a Cecil B DeMille award in Golden Globesland.
Oh my God, De Niro's actually complaining about all of his movies that were left out of his montage. Stanley and Iris? Frankenstein? No no, Bobby, the point of this award is to make us FORGET those films. Don't you get it?
Scary Megan Fox is on stage doing something. I appreciate that the international consensus is that she is the most beautiful woman in the world but I think she looks like Angelina Jolie's avatar. Anyway, she's presenting a clip of The Tourist, one of the worst reviewed films of the year and yet repeatedly nominated tonight. For shame, Golden Globes.
AWARD! David Fincher got Best Director for The Social Network. Personally, my second choice in this category but, you know what? I'll allow this one. David Fincher, I benevolently grant you permission to accept this award.
Colin Firth looks bored, James Franco looks a little stoned. I'm sure he's not, I hasten to add.
The fabulous Jimmy Fallon and the terribly dressed January Jones are presenting the award for Best TV Series - Musical or Comedy.
And as predicted, it's gone to Glee when it should have gone to 30 Rock. Inevitable, really.
The guy from Glee just gave a shout out to public ("state" in the UK) school teachers which I think was a rebuttal to Robert De Niro's earlier comment about how he works to keep his kids in private schools.
Anyway, that's as close to controversy as we're likely to get tonight.
Alicia Keys, for no obvious reason, is presenting the clip for Black Swan. God, she's annoying, isn't she? What is it about Alicia Keys that is so irritating? Oh yeah, it's her music. That's what's so annoying.
Halle Berry presenting award for Best Actor in Musical or Comedy.
AWARD! Despite Johnny Depp's double nod it went - as predicted and desired - to Paul Giametti. That's nice. I like Giametti, even though I wasn't mad about the film. Giametti gives a shout out to the actresses in the film, "a trifecta of hotties."
Is it wrong that I liked that? He ends by saluting "the great nation of Canada." As I said, the Globes is all about getting drunk.
Joseph Gordon Levitt is presenting a boring clip of boring Inception. Levitt claims that the movie "did something new." Well, it put me to sleep and, as a frequent insomniac, I guess that was something new.
Jeff Bridges now presenting Best Actress in a Drama. God please don't let it be Kidman God please God please no.
AWARD! Natalie Portman, no surprise. Big snog from her husband, the choreographer who is, hilariously, named Benjamin Millepied. I'm sorry, but isn't that the kind of name Dickens would give to a choreographer - "Mr Thousandfeet."
Portman looks lovely in her pink maternity dress. Bad speech, though -
She thanks her fiance, Benjamin, for "helping me to continue this creation of creating new life." She then announces that Benjamin "totally wants to sleep with me!" and proceeds to make possibly the worst laugh I have ever heard. How delightfully unexpected.
AWARD! For Best Film - Comedy or Musical: The Kids Are All Right! Well, thank God, frankly, or, as promised this laptop would have been out the window. And then where would this liveblog be?
The producer hogged the entire speech and poor Lisa Cholodenko - who directed and wrote the film - didn't get a word in edgeways! I am annoyed on her behalf.
Wow, I am NOT liking Sandra Bullock's new hair. She looks like Pocafrickinghonts! Anyway, she's presenting Best Actor - Drama. Go Colin/Jesse/James!
AWARD! Yay, it's Colin Firth, as predicted and deserved! Wow, it's like Britain itself won the award, isn't it, British media? The British are coming, etc etc. Well, the Briton is coming, anyway.
I bet Hugh Grant is weeping into his whiskey now. Well, he should be.
Oh look, it's Michael Douglas, presenting something. The main point here is clearly Douglas himself and he duly gets a standing ovation.
"There has to be an easier way to get a standing ovation," he says. Well played, Michael Douglas. How can anyone not love Mr Romancing the Stone, right?
AWARD! Best film - The Social Network, as predicted and semi-deserved. I preferred Black Swan but The Social Network will definitely do. And I love how they play Trent Reznor's music every time The Social Network gets something. Best thing about the film, in my opinion.
Well, that's it for tonight everyone. No real surprises in the film sections, quite a few surprises in the TV category.
All in all, The Social Network was the big winner tonight and I'm betting that the Oscars will pretty much copy the Golden Globes.
OK, I'm going to bed now where I'll probably dream about January Jones' dress, Sandra Bullock's hair and Andrew Garfield's inability to speak. It's a living.
Thanks for joining and come back tomorrow night for the liveblog of Piers Morgan's CNN debut. The glamour never ends round here.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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When celebrities offer drugs to other celebrities
Cameron Diaz says she bought cannabis from Snoop Dogg at school, but who else has shared their stash with a fellow star?
Cameron Diaz's recent claim that she bought cannabis from Snoop Dogg at school hasn't just put an indelible stain on Snoop's otherwise flawless reputation ? it has uncovered the seedy world of celebrities encouraging fellow celebrities to take drugs. Some notorious couplings are listed below, but can you spot the odd one out?
Bob Dylan & the Beatles
In August 1964, Bob Dylan sat the Beatles down and made them smoke marijuana for the first time. "We were smoking dope, drinking wine and generally being rock'n'rollers. It was party time," John Lennon later recalled. In summary, the world has Dylan to thank for Yellow Submarine. We owe him a great debt.
Elvis Presley & Cybill Shepherd
In a 2009 interview with Access Hollywood, Cybill Shepherd claimed that her brief relationship with Elvis Presley ended because he offered her drugs. "Once, when it was time to go to bed, he said to me, 'Take these pills.' I flushed them down the toilet," she said. Three years later, he was dead. Two decades later, she made a rubbish sitcom. Draw your own conclusions.
Brad Pitt & Quentin Tarantino
Tarantino claims that, during an Inglourious Basterds production meeting, Brad Pitt pulled out "a brick of hash" and shared it with him. Which, if nothing else, might explain why Pitt settled on such a ridiculous accent for the film.
Tricky & Samantha Cameron
In her wild and rebellious days as a student, Samantha Cameron may have played a few games of pool with notorious pothead rapper Tricky and, yes, people around them may have been smoking joints and wolfing down mushrooms at the time, but that doesn't mean that she actually ingested any drugs herself. So this is the odd one out. You know, probably.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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Presidential Nominations Sent to the Senate
Release Time:
For Immediate Release
NOMINATIONS SENT TO THE SENATE:
Katharine G. Abraham, of Iowa, to be a Member of the Council of Economic Advisers, vice Christina Duckworth Romer, resigned.
David S. Cohen, of Maryland, to be Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Crimes, vice Stuart Levey, resigning.
Heather A. Higginbottom, of the District of Columbia, to be Deputy Director of the Office of Management and Budget, vice Robert L. Nabors, resigned.
Donald B. Verrilli, Jr., of the District of Columbia, to be Solicitor General of the United States, vice Elena Kagan, resigned.
leslie nielsen jd salinger l\'il wayne emma watson janet jackson
Betty White: 2011 SAG Awards Winner
Certainly one of the most experienced actresses in attendance, Betty White was on-hand for the 17th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards in Los Angeles on Sunday (January 30).
The "Golden Girls" star looked to be having a fabulous time as she mingled with fellow attendees with a big smile on her face at the Shrine Exposition Center venue.
During the show, Miss White was honored for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Comedy Series while beating out Jane Lynch, Sofia Vergara, Tina Fey and Edie Falco.
White was also up for the Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Comedy Series along with her "Hot In Cleveland" co-stars, though they ended up losing out to "Modern Family".
Quite the busy lady, Betty was among the slated presenters - joining fellow trophy passer-outers including Eva Longroia, Mila Kunis and Natalie Portman.
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