With the arrival of Windows 8 we've seen a number of manufacturers pushing out hybrid designs that combine the portability of a tablet with the full-featured experience of a laptop. But more recently a new category appears to be emerging, one that's essentially a different take on the same basic… … Read More
MOCAD Renovation: Plan For Detroit Art Museum Wins Architectural Review Award (PHOTO)
Get ready for an all-new MOCAD. The contemporary art museum in the Midtown neighborhood of Detroit will be getting a series of renovations, and a rendering of the new face of the building released by architect firm Rice+Lipka has us pretty excited for the real deal.
Courtesy Rice+Lipka Architects
The design won the Architectural Review’s 2013 Future Project award in the “Old and New” category.
Best R&B Album: Robert Glasper Experiment Wins At 2013 Grammys
The 55th Annual Grammy Awards took place on Sunday and the Robert Glasper Experiment nabbed the award for Best R&B Album. The albums up for the award were Robert Glasper Experiment’s “Black Radio,” Anthony Hamilton’s “Back to Love,” R. Kelly’s “Write Me Back,” Tamia’s “Beautiful Surprise,” and Tyrese’s “Open Invitation.”
The Robert Glasper Experiment was also up for Best R&B Performance for “Gonna Be Alright (F.T.B.),” while Anthony Hamilton was up for Best R&B Song for “Pray for Me,” and Tamia was up for Best R&B Song for “Beautiful Surprise.”
The Grammys have introduced a new category this year, Best Urban Contemporary Album. The inaugural nominees were Chris Brown’s “Fortune,” Miguel’s “Kaleidoscope Dream,” and Frank Ocean’s “Channel Orange.”
Oscar nominees earn recognition at private luncheon
When it first kicked off in 1982, only a few stars showed up to the mid-day event meant to honor them. But within about 10 years, the luncheon has picked up steam; last year, the event set a new record: 150 of the 188 nominees arrived, with 18 of the 20 actor nominees in attendance, Variety reports. (Even Deadline hails the invite-only event as “unquestionably one of the highlights of any awards season”). This year, about 140 attendees showed up.
Though the event is mostly just a “feel-good , ‘everyone’s still a winner’ ” pat on the back for nominees, awards strategists took the opportunity to gauge Oscar reactions in Q&A sessions, as ballots go out on Friday for the final vote. The stars who generated the most buzz at the insider event were “Beasts of the Southern Wild’s” 9 year-old best actress nominee Quvenzhane Wallis, “Argo’s” Ben Affleck (who has been shut out of the best director category although his film is a front-runner for best picture) and ”Life of Pi” special visual effects nominee Bill Westenhofer.
What the Hagel hearings mean
He’s been battered by big-money conservative groups looking to derail his bid for secretary of defense. Critics say he wants to end America’s nuclear program. They claim he’s anti-Israel and soft on Iran. So you can expect intense questioning — if only for theatrical effect — about all of the above (and undoubtedly then some) as Chuck Hagel faces his Senate confirmation hearings today.
You can be sure of one other thing: Hagel’s military service in Vietnam will be mentioned — and praised. It’s likely, however, to be in a separate and distinct category, unrelated to the pointed questions about current issues like defense priorities, his beliefs on the use of force abroad, or the Defense Department’s role in counterterrorism operations. You can also be sure of this: no senator will ask Chuck Hagel about his presence during the machine-gunning of an orphanage in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta or the lessons he might have drawn from that incident.
Sundance-Endorsed Films Nab 13 Oscar Nods, Dominate Documentary Category
The Oscar nominations are in, and although some members of Hollywood are feeling the biting chill of the Academy’s cold shoulder (cough, Ben Affleck and Kathryn Bigelow, cough), there are certainly more than a few institutions who have cause to celebrate. One among them — the Sundance Film Festival.The morning’s announcement’s included 13 nods for Sundance-endorsed films, including last year’s bayou-inspired drama, “Beasts of the Southern Wild.” The movie, which premiered at the Utah-based festival in 2012, received four nominations in total including Best Picture, Best Director (Benh Zeitlin), Best Adapted Screenplay and Best Actress in a Leading Role (Quvenzhané Wallis).The Sundance emblem was most visible in the Best Documentary Feature category, however. “How to Survive a Plague,” a powerful portrait of AIDS activists coalescing to fight for their lives, and “The Invisible Man,” a story of two gay Palestinians seeking refuge in Tel Aviv, are both award contenders with roots in Sundance’s 2012 Documentary Film Program. Two other documentaries, “5 Broken Cameras” and “Searching for Sugar Man” hit the circuit in 2012, while the final selection, “The Gatekeepers,” will run at the festival this year.Read More…
More on The Oscars
“Lincoln” and “Zero Dark Thirty” earn WGA nominations for outstanding screenwriting
LOS ANGELES (AP) — “Lincoln” and “Zero Dark Thirty” are adding to their front-runner status for Hollywood’s awards season.The two dramas earned nominations from the Writers Guild on Friday for outstanding screen writing.”Lincoln” is up for adapted screenplay, along with “Argo,” “Silver Linings Playbook,” “Life of Pi” and “The Perks of Being a Wallflower.”"Zero Dark Thirty” was nominated for original screenplay, along with “Flight,” “Looper,” “The Master” and “Moonrise Kingdom.”In the documentary category, “The Central Park Five,” “The Invisible War,” “Mea Maxima Culpa, “West of Memphis,” “We Are Legion: The Story of the Hacktivists,” and “Searching for Sugar Man” earned nominations.Winners will be announced during simultaneous ceremonies in New York and Los Angeles on Feb. 17.Continue Reading… … Read More
