Rihanna, Jon Hamm Helm Halloween ‘Saturday Night Live’ Episode
October 31, 2010
Singer re-teams with Andy Samberg's 'Shy Ronnie' for 'Ronnie & Clyde' skit.
By Mawuse Ziegbe
Jon Hamm hosts "SNL" on Oct. 31
Photo: NBC
This year's Halloween episode of "Saturday Night Live" went easy on the scares in favor of skits with a retro vibe. Jon Hamm, who hosted the same episode last year, mined his advertising executive alter ego from the midcentury drama "Mad Men," Don Draper, for laughs in his opening monologue. Leading an impromptu brainstorming session for product tag lines, Hamm suggested pushing diapers with the slogan, "Don't worry, little homie, we got your butt."
Musical guest Rihanna teamed up with Andy Samberg's timid alter ego Shy Ronnie once again for the digital short "Ronnie & Clyde," playing Prohibition-era bank robbers. Rihanna rocked a vampy, cropped suit jacket and fedora, busting up the joint as Clyde while Ronnie, awkwardly dressed in a flowing skirt and beret, bashfully hung by her side.
"Hands in the air, it's a stick up," she belted. "If you don't want to end up dead, you'll do anything Shy Ronnie says!" As a reserved robber, Ronnie is ineffective, mumbling his commands as the bank attendees look confused and Rihanna gets irritated. "No one in the back can hear you," she said. "Use your outside voice!" Rihanna tried to instill some confidence in her reticent partner and suggested he picture everyone naked. But then Ronnie got a little too excited and prompting Rihanna to proclaim, "Boner alert!" Rihanna ditched Ronnie after he shot himself in the foot, but having the floor to himself gave him a confidence boost, and he began to kick rhymes with gusto. "Ronnie, mother----er, and I'm back from the dead!" he spit, until Rihanna returned for more cash and a hunky hostage played by Hamm.
Hamm annoyed Bill Hader's Vincent Price as horny Senator John F. Kennedy, alongside Fred Armisen's randy impersonation of glitzy piano man Liberace, in a '60s Halloween special. Hamm also turned up in a skit about two bumbling '70s cops fighting crime with feathered hair.
The cast paid homage to the '80s sci-fi classic "Back to the Future" throughout the show, reenacting fake screen tests for the flick by some of the biggest stars of the era. Highlights included Jay Pharoah as an energetic Eddie Murphy, Kenan Thompson has a inarticulate Bill Cosby and Armisen as a brooding Prince.
Although Rihanna told MTV News on Thursday that she was "most looking forward to" acting in her digital short, the singer didn't short-change fans with her performances. She hit the stage first with hot pants, a crimson bra-top and wavy red locks for her flirty track "What's My Name?" The Barbadian-born diva gyrated and rocked some sultry moves on a set bathed in red light. She returned for "Only Girl in the World" in a completely red outfit with large bow tied in her hair. Throughout the song, Rihanna belted the chorus in a spotlight that obscured the rest of the band, giving the illusion that she was the only girl on the stage.
What did you think of this week's episode of "Saturday Night Live"? Let us know in the comments!
Related ArtistsKarina Smirnoff, Nelly, Joanna Garcia Reminisce On ‘When I Was 17′
October 31, 2010
Stars remember fake teeth and bad kisses on latest episode.
By Mawuse Ziegbe
Nelly on "When I Was 17"
Photo: MTV
Karina Smirnoff is known for her powerhouse ballroom moves on "Dancing With the Stars," but when she was younger, her wardrobe sometimes stole the spotlight on the dance floor.
As a teen, the Russian dancer made the rounds at local restaurants hungry for entertainment. On the latest episode of "When I Was 17," Smirnoff remembered a performance where she forgot to swap out her granny panties for full-coverage boy shorts.
"Every time I would do a turn, you could see these multicolored polka dot underwear. The audience went crazy, they're like screaming, clapping and I was thinking, 'Wow, they really like the dance ... this is cool,' " she recalled. One of Smirnoff's fellow dancers eventually let her know what the audience's reaction was really about. "But the other couple, the girl, pulled me aside, she goes like, 'Change your underwear. You're still in your underwear!' "
Like Smirnoff, St. Louis rapper Nelly also had a way of getting money when he was 17. Unlike Smirnoff, his income was based solely on luck.
"We used to shoot dice in the band room, in the bathroom. If there was a crap game, I was getting out of class to attend that crap game," he said. "This is how I got money for the new J's [Jordans] that was coming out; this is how I got my lunch money. This is how I ate."
The budding MC was also into gold teeth but couldn't afford the genuine article. However, when he scored a big win he knew exactly where to spend his cash.
"I won that 120 bucks and I was like, 'I'm gonna get a real one now,' " he said. "So I went and I got a real one."
Similar to Nelly's obsession with gold fronts, "Reba" actress Joanna Garcia was dreaming of one thing when she was 17. The object of her desire was hunky fellow actor James Marsden.
"I was still on [Nickelodeon's] 'Are You Afraid of the Dark?' and doing other shows here and there," Garcia recalled. "I did a show called 'Second Noah,' which Jimmy Marsden was my first onscreen kiss. I was hired for the job, and I thought, 'Wow, this guy is dreamy.' "
However, the smooch ultimately wasn't the romantic occasion she had in mind.
"I think it was really embarrassing and weird for him because I was the age of his, like, little sister," she said. "My mom was there. It was the worst possible scenario you could ever imagine. I was terrified."
"When I Was 17" airs Saturdays at 11 a.m. on MTV
Related Videos Related PhotosNicki Minaj, Eminem Get Rowdy On ‘Roman’s Revenge’
October 31, 2010
MCs trade bars as their alter egos, Roman Zolanski and Slim Shady, on Minaj's Pink Friday cut.
By Mawuse Ziegbe
Nicki Minaj
Photo: Rachel Goldner/MTV News
Nicki Minaj and Eminem's alter egos, Roman Zolanski and Slim Shady, are not known for their restraint. On Minaj's much-buzzed about Pink Friday collabo with Em, "Roman's Revenge," both MCs demonstrate how bonkers they can get, trading outrageous bars packed with lyrical fury.
The track opens with ominous strings and the weighty knock of the drums and bass line, establishing the beat's dark, intense energy. Minaj kicks off the lyrical intensity with, "I am not Jasmine, I am Aladdin/ So far ahead, these bums is laggin'/ See me in that new thing, bums is gaggin,'/ I'm startin' to feel like a dungeon dragon."
The Young Money spitter continues, vanquishing haters with bars such as "I'm a bad bitch, I'm a cu--/ And I'll kick that ho, punt/ Forced trauma, blunt/ You play the back, bitch, I'm in the front." Minaj gruffly barks out the chorus, "Ruh, ruh, like a dungeon dragon," and then Shady joins in.
"You don't like it then peel off, bitch/ Every last woman on Earth I'll kill off, and I still wouldn't f--- you, slut/ So wipe the smile on your grill off/ I swear to God I'll piss a Happy Meal off," he spits, charging onto the track with more of the unsettling witticisms typical of his deranged, and sometimes violent, Shady persona. Em continues to bug out, calling life a "dumb, blonde white broad" who he eventually ties up and urinates on.
Minaj jumps back in with more incisive lyrics, including a few lines that could be construed as a dig at Brooklyn femcee Lil' Kim, who publicly took issue with the Young Money diva earlier this year.
"Word, that bitch mad 'cause I took the spot? Well, bitch, if you ain't sh------, then get off the pot/ Got some n----- out in Brooklyn that'll off your top," Minaj rhymes.
MTV News' Hottest MC takes his second verse to denounce critics of his comeback, spitting, "Yeah, look who's back again, bitch/ Keep actin' as if/ You have the same passion that I have." After proclaiming he's more "hungry" than rap foes who've "had gastric bypass," Em challenges haters to take some risks.
"Go take a flyin' leap of faith off a f------ balcony," he spits. "[Before] I shove a falcon wing up your fly ass."
Minaj closes the track by invoking Roman's horrified mother, a newly minted character the Young Money Barbie said would be introduced on Friday.
When Minaj revealed to MTV News during her "RapFix Live" interview that she, or more accurately, her rambunctious British alter ego, Roman, would be going bar-for-bar with one of hip-hop's legendary personas, fans knew the resulting track would be an instant must-hear. However, the lyricist said the collaboration took a while to come to fruition.
"We went out on a whim and put it in the air like, 'It'd be great if he would collaborate with us,' " Minaj said."I remember I kept talking about it, and I thought, 'It can't hurt.' I sent him one record, and he didn't love it. He didn't say, 'I don't love it'; he just said, 'Can you send me something that's a little more me?' I sent him an e-mail and thanked him for that, just having enough respect. Sometimes people don't respond. He had the respect, at least, to treat me like a peer."
What do you think of Nicki Minaj and Eminem's collabo, "Roman's Revenge"? Let us know in the comments!
Related Videos Related ArtistsIan Ziering And Wife Expecting Child
October 31, 2010
Former 'Beverly Hills, 90210' star will welcome baby girl next year.
By Mawuse Ziegbe
Erin Ludwig and Ian Ziering
Photo: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images
Former "Beverly Hills, 90210" star Ian Ziering is going from teen heartthrob to dear ol' dad. The actor and his wife, Erin, recently revealed they are going to welcome a baby girl next year.
"Erin and I are very excited to be parents. It's something we both have always wanted," Ziering, told People. "[Erin] is four-and-a-half months along, and we both are beyond excited."
Ziering and his wife got hitched in May after dating since last summer.
Last month when the calendar hit September 2, 2010 also known as "90210 Day," fans of the '90s teen soap — which has since been reincarnated as a high-school drama on The CW for a new generation of adolescents — celebrated the date by looking back on the show's legacy. Ziering wanted to take it a step further, telling People that he wanted to bring the original gang back together for a televised reunion.
"About six or seven months ago, I had my entire cast together," he said in September. "I wanted to put together a reunion special to run on this day and the CW dropped the ball." Ziering added, "There are so many fans out there [and] I thought it would be nice."
However, the day wasn't a total bust. Instead of reminiscing about the hit show and catching up with former co-stars such as Jennie Garth and fellow newlywed Brian Austin Green, Ziering said he spent the unique date honeymooning with his new bride.
"I'm enjoying an extended honeymoon with my wife, Erin, in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico," he said. "Being married, I don't know how to describe it. It's very comfortable when you find the right person. It all comes together beautifully."
Send your well-wishes to the family in the comments!
Nicki Minaj’s Pink Friday Track List Revealed
October 31, 2010
Kanye West, Drake, Eminem, Rihanna and Natasha Bedingfield make appearances on MC's debut LP.
By Mawuse Ziegbe
Nicki Minaj
Photo: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images
Young Money spitter Nicki Minaj has already revealed that her hotly-anticipated debut, Pink Friday, will feature a collabo with hip-hop heavyweight Eminem, as well as contributions from her colorful alter egos. However, the album's recently unveiled track list shows that the "Right Thru Me" hitmaker has corralled an A-list roster of features for her major-label maiden voyage.
"Blazin," a collaboration with "genius" MC Kanye West, appears on the track list for the deluxe version of Friday, which hit iTunes Saturday. Rihanna, who teamed up with Minaj for the Loud collaboration "Raining Men," returns the favor on the track "Fly." The will.i.am-assisted single "Check It Out" and "Moment 4 Life," featuring Minaj's labelmate and ex-Twitter husband Drake, also appear on the album. Perhaps one of the more surprising guests is British songstress Natasha Bedingfield, who lends her skills to "Last Chance."
Minaj, who gave MTV News a preview of the album's vibe with a freestyle during "RapFix Live" last week, has built her mainstream career by consistently knocking out powerhouse features for everyone from Trey Songz to Diddy. Even though she's ready to run the game with her solo work, the breakout femcee has maintained she's down to work with anyone who can contribute to an inventive collabo. While entertaining the idea of jumping on a track with fellow music original Lady Gaga, Minaj insisted she wouldn't pass up a partnership with potential.
"I'm inspired by her creativity," Minaj said during her recent "RapFix Live" interview. "The women in the game, I never say I would never work with them because, in fact, if there's an opportunity for me to work with them, and it's a way that we can kill the game and do something crazy, why would I turn that down?"
Here's the track list for Pink Friday, which is slated to hit stores November 22.
1. I'm The Best
2. Roman's Revenge (featuring Eminem)
3. Did It On 'Em
4. Right Thru Me
5. Fly (featuring Rihanna)
6. Save Me
7. Moment 4 Life (featuring Drake)
8. Check It Out (featuring will.i.am)
9. Blazin (featuring Kanye West)
10. Here I Am
11. Dear Old Nicki
12. Your Love
13. Last Chance (featuring Natasha Bedingfield)
14. Super Bass
15. Blow Ya Mind
16. Muny
17. Girls Fall Like Dominoes [Bonus Track]
What song you looking forward to hearing from Nicki Minaj's Pink Friday? Let us know in the comments!
Related Videos Related Artists‘Saw 3D’ Slashes Box-Office Competition
October 31, 2010
Horror film lands in theaters Halloween weekend with $22.5 million.
By Mawuse Ziegbe
A scene from "Saw 3D"
Photo: A Bigger Boat/Serendipity Productions/Twisted Pict
Moviegoers looked to "Saw 3D" for scares over the Halloween weekend. Featuring an appearance from Linkin Park's Chester Bennington, the latest installment in the fright series took the top spot at the box office, picking up roughly $22.5 million since opening Friday.
Theatergoers also filled seats to get spooked out by "Paranormal Activity 2," which took the second-place trophy. Fans plunked down $16.5 million to watch a household grapple with the unsettling bumps in the night of a haunted home. The weekend haul kicks the film's estimated, two-week gross to over $65 million.
The butt-kicking, hired-gun caper "Red" took third place. The firepower-packed, action flick — starring Bruce Willis, Helen Mirren, Morgan Freeman and John Malkovich as retired assassins back in the game for a final run-in with crooked CIA big wigs — raked in $10.8 million. The weekend figure bumps the film's total tally to around $58 million.
"Jackass 3D" continued to draw moviegoers with a penchant for pranks. The "Jackass" crew's latest stunt-driven romp took fourth place, pulling in an estimated $8.4 million. After three weekends on screens, the film's total haul has ballooned to a lofty figure: an estimated $101 million.
Clint Eastwood's latest turn in the director's chair, "Hereafter," finished the weekend in fifth place. The supernatural drama, which focuses on the lives of three people across the globe exploring their relationships with the afterlife, picked up $6.3 million. The film, which stars Matt Damon, Bryce Dallas Howard and Cécile de France, has made over $22 million since hitting theaters.
Check out everything we've got on "Saw 3D," "Paranormal Activity 2," and "Red."
For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com.
Ron Howard Says ‘Dilemma’ ‘Gay’ Joke Will Remain In Film
October 31, 2010
'I believe in sensitivity but not censorship,' director tells Los Angeles Times.
By Mawuse Ziegbe
Ron Howard
Photo: Dave Hogan/Getty Images
Despite the controversy stirred up by a "gay" joke in the trailer for the upcoming movie "The Dilemma," director Ron Howard has insisted the quip will stay in the film.
The drama began a few weeks ago when the flick's original preview, which features Vince Vaughn's character dubbing electric cars "gay" during a pitch meeting, landed on the Web and in theaters. The joke popped up around the same time a wave of suicides by teens who had been subjected to anti-gay harassment made headlines, and the line was later excised from the trailer.
While Howard said he understands why the joke was removed from the preview, he recently told the Los Angeles Times that the wisecrack will remain in the film.
" 'The Dilemma' is a comedy for grown-ups, not kids. It's true that the moment took on extra significance in light of some events that surrounded the release of the trailer and the studio made the decision to remove it from advertising, which I think was appropriate. I believe in sensitivity but not censorship," Howard wrote in a letter to the Times. "It is a slight moment in 'The Dilemma' meant to demonstrate an aspect of our lead character's personality, and we never expected it to represent our intentions or the point of view of the movie or those of us who made it."
Howard also explained that an aspect of Vaughn's character is his affinity for courting controversy and pushing boundaries.
"Our lead character of Ronny Valentine has a mouth that sometimes gets him into trouble and he definitely flirts with the line of what's okay to say," he said. "He tries to do what's right but sometimes falls short. Who can't relate to that? I am drawn to films that have a variety of characters with different points of view who clash, conflict and learn to live with each other. 'The Dilemma' is a story full of flawed characters whose lives are complicated by the things they say to and hide from each other. Ronny is far from perfect and he does and says some outrageous things along the way."
Vaughn has also defended the film's content in the wake of the teen suicides and subsequent public outcry.
"Let me add my voice of support to the people outraged by the bullying and persecution of people for their differences, whatever those differences may be," the actor said in a statement to E! News earlier this month. "Comedy and joking about our differences breaks tension and brings us together. Drawing divided lines over what we can and cannot joke about does exactly that; it divides us."
What do you think about the gay joke in "The Dilemma"? Let us know in the comments!
Kanye West Gets Old School On ‘The Joy’
October 30, 2010
Latest G.O.O.D. Friday joint features Jay-Z, Kid Cudi, Charlie Wilson and Curtis Mayfield sample.
By Mawuse Ziegbe
Kanye West
Photo: Kevin Winter/ Getty Images
Even though his fifth album, My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy, is just weeks away from landing on shelves, Kanye West is still cranking out gratis G.O.O.D. Music joints. Although cutting-edge spitters Kid Cudi and Jay-Z appear on the track, the Chicago MC's newest offering, "The Joy," is a nod to the past, featuring nude '70s vixen Pam Grier on the MP3 art, buttery production courtesy of beat kingpin Pete Rock, vocals from Charlie Wilson and a contribution from soul icon Curtis Mayfield.
"Joy" is centered around Mayfield's vocals from "The Makings of You," a cut from his 1970 debut Curtis. (Yeezy has turned to Mayfield's catalogue in the past, sampling "Move On Up" for West's Late Registration single "Touch The Sky.") West helms the first two verses, using his bars to reflect upon love making, child bearing and getting out of his own way.
"I never understood Planned Parenthood/ 'Cause I never met nobody plan to be a parent in the 'hood," 'Ye spits. "Taking refills of that Plan B pill/ Another shorty that won't make it to the family will."
West drops a few words for critics ready to attack his latest moves, saying, "Though the Jewelry's Egyptian, know the hunger's Ethiopian," and, "This beat deserves Hennessy, a bad bitch and a bag of weed, the Holy Trinity/ In the mirror where I see my only enemy."
Jay-Z follows up and indulges in some '70s nostalgia, spitting lines like, "This is my momma sh--/ I used to hear this through the walls in the 'hood when I was back on my pajama sh-- /Afros and marijuana sticks/ Seeds and the ganja had it popping like the sample that I'm rhyming with."
Kid Cudi keeps a low profile on the cut, adding a simple, positive mantra to the collabo and coolly reciting phrases like, "Keep your hands up" and "Don't let them take your fire."
The song languidly peters out as Rock adlibs, "Pete Rock, Kanye, Okay."
What do you think of Kanye West's latest G.O.O.D. Friday joint? Let us know in the comments!
Related ArtistsRihanna Teases ‘Saturday Night Live’ Skit
October 30, 2010
'I'm excited to perform, but definitely excited to do another digital short,' she tells MTV News.
By Jocelyn Vena, with reporting by Sway Calloway
Rihanna
Photo: Rachel Goldner/ MTV News
Last December, Rihanna appeared in an Emmy-nominated "Saturday Night Live" sketch. This week, the Loud singer will return to the "SNL" stage as the night's performer, and she promised that she will appear in another digital short.
"I'm excited, of course. We're gonna do a [sketch], definitely," she told MTV News on Thursday. "I was most looking forward to that, 'cause I really enjoyed it last time. I really enjoyed, like, the whole 'SNL' experience, so I'm excited to perform, but definitely excited to do another digital short."
For those not familiar with the sketch, Rihanna visited the school of Shy Ronnie (played by Andy Samberg) and sang the hook on Ronnie's rap song. She occasionally had to tell him, in song, to "speak up" or "I'll take it from here," because Ronnie barely gets above a whisper when he raps.
The video was just a glimpse into Rihanna's acting skills, which she will certainly display on the big screen in the upcoming "Battleship" movie. She told MTV News that her recent on-set experience has made her a better actor, which she hopes to show off Saturday night, live or in a pre-taped short.
"Acting classes as well as learning from the experience of acting and filming definitely will help, because that's all acting in those skits," she said. "So, definitely, it comes in handy."
Are you looking forward to seeing Rihanna's newfound acting skills on "SNL"? Let us know in the comments!
Related PhotosJon Stewart, Stephen Colbert Just Wanted Rally To Be ‘A Really Good Show’
October 30, 2010
'We do television shows for people who like them,' Stewart says at post-rally press conference.
By Tami Katzoff
Jon Stewart and Steven Colbert at the "Rally to Restore Sanity And/Or Fear" on Saturday
Photo: Win McNamee/Getty Images
WASHINGTON, D.C. — A few hours after gathering with an estimated 250,000 friends on the National Mall for the "Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear," Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert appeared at a press conference at the National Press Club.
The two Comedy Central personalities were clearly happy with the day's event and appreciative of those who helped make it happen.
"Our currency is not this town's currency," Stewart said. "We're not running for anything. We don't have a constituency. We do television shows for people who like them. ... And we wanted to do a really good show for people that took the time to come out and see us, and I feel like we accomplished it."
Stewart and Colbert were also genuinely moved by the audience's response. Colbert said that for him, "one of the greatest surprises was the joy of seeing the audience out there, how many people came." And Stewart sensed that the crowd "was so wonderfully supportive of everything that happened."
Though the tone of the press conference was generally light (Colbert mock-chided Arianna Huffington, who bussed in 10,000 people from New York to D.C., for not driving any of the 200 buses herself), there were some less-than-humorous moments as well. When asked about how the media might scrutinize the rally in the days ahead, Stewart said he just didn't care.
"We're proud of ourselves, we're proud of the show we did, and for us the success of it was the execution of the idea and the intention," Stewart said. "You can't control people's reaction to it."
Related Photos
