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Showing posts with label Eric Bana. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Eric Bana. Show all posts

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Michael Buble, Anna Nicole, The Who and Robin Hood

Michael Buble and his favourite actor Cary Elwes
  Crooner Michael Buble has announced via this week's Woman's Day that his favourite all-time movie and actor are The Princess Bride and star of the flick, Cary Elwes who also played Robin Hood in Mel Brooks' Robin Hood: Men in Tights.
By co-incidence Elwes was in Melbourne last week as a guest at the Comic Con convention along with Star Trek's William Shatner and George Takei and actress Shannen Doherty. Around 33,000 fans attended the convention.
The Shuttle's omnipresent spies also report that  Elwes was spotted at Melbourne's magnificent National Gallery of Victoria last Friday where he appeared absorbed in the works by Australia's first acclaimed artist George Washington Lambert.
Kit Lambert with Townshend & Daltrey
George Lambert's self portrait
As reported by the Shuttle last year, Cary Elwes is to direct a bio-pic on the life of the late rock manager Kit Lambert who discovered The Who and Jimi Hendrix amongst other music legends. Lambert led a dissolute but magnificent life before dying tragically in mysterious circumstances at the age of 43 in 1981. At his peak he owned a house in Belgravia and a palace in Venice where he wooed his neighbour, the art collector Peggy Guggenheim.
Kit was the grandson of George Washington Lambert  and the son of noted English classical composer Constant Lambert .
The Who perform at the closing concert for the London Olympics last year
George Lambert was appointed the official war artist for the WW1 Gallipoli campaign that is so etched into the Australian psyche and was accompanied on that venture by a young war correspondent Keith Murdoch, father of media baron Rupert Murdoch. Both were disturbed by the upper class British generals at Gallipoli who they considered dangerous and incompetent.
Agnes Bruckner stars as Anna Nicole
Kit Lambert was born into privilege and was privately educated and his classical education combined with a rock'n'roll lifestyle influenced The Who's music as exampled by the rock opera Tommy. Remaining Who members Peter Townshend and Roger Daltrey are enthusiastically backing the film about Lambert and it's rumored will be composing music for the film.  The Rolling Stones and The Who are the remaining 60's Supergroup and are still huge throughout the world. In 2010 The Who performed at the most watched event in TV history, the Superbowl and at the closing ceremony for the London Olympics last year in front of an estimated 750 million viewers worldwide. 
 As for Cary Elwes, he has several films to be released soon including one on the life of Anna Nicole and he has just produced a film about the famous meeting between Elvis Presley and president Richard Nixon in 1970. Nixon made Presley, who was high as a kite on drugs at the meeting, an Honorary Marshall. That movie is to be released by Aussie actor Eric Bana's production company.

Saturday, January 5, 2013

Kitsch Week in LA

Those social scribes still holding down a job on a tabloid will be heading for Sydney Airport on Monday for one of the best freebies in town- the annual gala week in Los Angeles known as G'Day USA.
It's a government sponsored promotional week where everything Oz gets shown around LA- local fashion designers, wine tastings, tourism events and err, a discussion on the carbon pricing.

The big do of the week is the LA Black Tie Gala dinner where a few Aussies who have done well in the USA get inducted into some sort of Hall of Fame- this year it's Paul Hogan and Rose Byrne and Qantas pilot John Travolta. Guests include usually every actor in LA that week - Guy Pearce, Naomi Watts, Eric Bana, Toni Collette and it wouldn't be a party without Olivia Newton John. Chef for the night is Curtis Stone.

But wait-there's more : also flying to Los Angeles is the World's Richest Woman and the Aussie version of Christina Onassis, Gina Rinehart and her daughter Ginia Rinehart who is the apple of her mum's eye.
Ryan Johnson  * Gina Rinehart  * Ginia Rinehart
Ginia will wed her long time boyfriend in LA- Ryan Johnson who is the son of the legendary Beach Boys' Bruce Johnson.
On the wedding guest list :  Canadian hamburger king Jack Cowin, John Singleton and Barnaby Joyce MP.  Not invited : Gina's estranged children Hope, Bianca and John.

Wednesday, August 31, 2011

Eric Bana at YOTS-Interview with John Cleese

Father Chris Riley & Eric Bana
Youth Off The Streets held their 20th Year anniversary black tie Gold Dinner on Saturday at the Hilton Hotel. YOTS, for short is the brainchild of Catholic priest Father Chris Riley who has been beavering away now for two decades assisting homeless, disadvantaged and abused youth.

Riley has some high profile supporters including Murdoch Books publisher Matt Hanbury and it's special ambassador is actor Eric Bana.

Among the guests were Premier Barry O'Farrell, patrons Sir William and Lady Helen Deane, TV host David Koch and wife Libby, Sony Music heavy Denis Handlin and actress Paula Duncan. Entertainment was provided by Diesel and Mahalia Barnes.


Bana has been back in Australia for two months, and plans to stay on with wife Rebecca and children Klaus and Sophie, reducing his film work to one project a year. The thriller film Hanna in which he stars is currently showing in Sydney and he has two more due for release-By Virtue Fall and Blackbird.

Sen. Concetta Fierravanti-Wells
   and Premier Barry O'Farrell

Sir William & Lady Deane
 Let's hope Sony's Handlin took notice of some of the ladies who work for YOTS. They read the interview with young singer Jack Vidgen who said he wished to participate and help YOTS out and they are excited.
 Sony signed Vidgen after his Australia's Got Talent win and his debut CD, Yes I Am is going gangbusters.




From 702 ABC Sydney :
John Cleese & Richard Glover (ABC Radio 702)
Comedy legend John Cleese is in town for the Just for Laughs comedy festival at the Sydney Opera House. Richard Glover caught up with John to talk Fawlty Towers, Monty Python and how he feels about political and social changes in the UK.
 Go to The Drive Show website here to listen to Glover's excellent interview with Cleese.

Go to the Sydney Opera House website here to book tickets for Just For Laughs which is hosted by John Cleese and features Martin Short, Dylan Moran, Demetri Martin, Russell Howard, Margaret Cho, Louis C.K and more.

Thursday, August 18, 2011

Is Lincoln Heading For Hollywood?

Rumours are circulating that good looking actor Lincoln Lewis could be headed for Hollywood and a star role in a new US TV series.
Lincoln Lewis

Lincoln, the son of former Australian rugby league great Wally Lewis has a number of appearances coming up on Oz TV including the new Underbelly Razor series that begins next Sunday evening on the Nine network and which is sure to receive high ratings.

Lincoln joined his co-stars in the drama Slide  ( screened on Fox8.) last week for a dinner in the Graceland's Room in Surry Hills Winery to celebrate the new series launch.

Slide is about a bunch of teens making their way into adulthood-something Lincoln has had some experience with, when he and his former co-star from Home and Away Jodi Gordon were involved in a bizarre episode in 2009 with police being called to a harbour-side house with claims of bikie members breaking in to attack the pair. Whatever happened that night, it's probably just added to Lewis's mystique especially after it became public knowledge that he and a 'starlet'; had made a saucy film together.

And on the subject of Jodi- she and fiancee  Braith Anasta attended last Thursday's Myer parade at the Carriageworks, cuddling in the first row throughout the parade.


Lincoln & Slide co-stars :Gracie Gilbert* Ben Schumann
Adele Perovic*Emily Iris Robins*
Jodi has just finished filming the tele-movie Blood Brothers with Lisa McClune. Gordon plays  the wife of the real-life 'perfect murderer' Jeffrey Gilham, jailed for the 1993 killings of his parents and brother.

Lincoln has also completed the film Bait which stars another Hollywood ex-pat Julian McMahon, the son of the late much loved social figure Lady Sonia McMahon.

Jodi at Myer







Braith & Jodi


Our source says McMahon's US agent was particularly taken by Lincoln's boyish good looks and charm and typical laid back Aussie style that has translated so well Stateside with actors like Russell Crowe , Hugh Jackman and Eric Bana and believes he is perfect for American audiences. To date the Shuttle still hasn't had a call back from Lewis's agent.
                                                  











Here's a clip from Home &Away that shows off Lincoln's perfect pecs that would look right at home in Malibu:

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Jack Vidgen Joins Eric Bana & A Murdoch

Getty


YOTS patron Eric B
Having picked up a prize of $250,000 with his spectacular win in the latest Australia's Got Talent, 14 year old Jack Vidgen has been revealing how he plans to spend some of the money.

A new Audi is on the cards- for Mum ( Jack has 2 more years to go before he gets his P plates) but Jack also wants to donate to charity with has heart set on Youth Of The Streets, YOTS the charity started and run by Catholic priest Father Chris Riley . YOTS provides services to assist homeless and disadvantaged, abused and neglected youth.

And Jack joins some high profile names- actor Eric Bana is the charities patron and publisher Matt Handbury, nephew of Rupert Murdoch has been a patron of YOTS for decades. Handbury donated a farm to YOTS in NSW to be used as a rural retreat for deprived city kids.

Vidgen is working on his first album having been signed by Sony and the song he wowed audiences with, Yes I Am is now available on iTunes here.

For more about Youth Of The Streets go to their website here.

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Cate Blanchett Attends Sydney Film Festival




A freezing Sydney winter night and lots of bare legged girls shaking in the cold wind for their art. The show must go on. The Sydney Film Festival opened at the State Theatre with the espionage thriller Hanna starring Saorise Ronan, Cate Blanchett and Eric Bana

Ronan plays a 16 year old assassin who sets out to bump off Blanchett who plays a cold eyed , orange haired spy and Blanchett tries to do likewise to Ronan..

Actor Matt Day & wife Kirsty Thomason
Meanwhile in downtown Surry Hills The Seagull opened at the Belvoir Street Theatre with Judy Davis , David Wenham,Emily Barclay and Bille Brown. Needless to say, a cast like that received a rousing reception and almost a standing ovation.

Maia Thomas* Katherine Hicks * Michelle Vergara Moore * Anya Beyersdorf who star in Black & White & Sex
The notoriously media shy Davis skipped out the stage door-she refused to give interviews for the play while the rest of the cast joined first nighters for champagne and smoked salmon in the foyer.

Film director Gillian Armstrong and daughter Billy


Zoo Lim
actress Sylvia Colloco and husband Richard Roxburgh at The Seagull
Fox Studios boss Kim Williams
Sigrid Thornton & Tom Burstall
Festival director Clare Stuart

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Aussie Actors Nominated For Golden Globe Awards

Geoffrey Rush : The King's Speech
3 stalwarts of the Australian film industry are up for Critics' Choice Awards-Nicole Kidman, Jackie Weaver and Geoffrey Rush  but the surprise choice is young teen actor  Kodi Smit-McPhee who excelled in the independent hit  Romulus My Father in 2007.

Kidman will be competing with Natalie Portman and Annette Bening in the Best Actress category for her performance in Rabbit Hole while Geoffrey Rush is sure to win for his terrific performance as the Australian speech therapist Lionel Logue who tutored a stuttering King George IV on how to handle public speaking.

Colin Firth who played the King has been nominated as Best Actor. The King's Speech has  Golden Globe and Oscar winner written all over it.

Jackie Weaver who cleaned up at the Australian Film Industry Awards ( AFI) for her role as the tough talking matriarch of a crime family in Animal Kingdom has been nominated for Best Supporting Actress (another certain Oscar nominee).

14 year old Kodi Smit-McPhee who may walk away with an award as the Best New Young Actor / Actress for his part in Let Me In will compete with his co-star Chloe Grace Moretz  for the same gong.

Kodi won an AFI award for Romulus playing the son of an Italian immigrant (Eric Bana).
For the full list of awards go to the Critic's Choice website.

An interview with Chloe & Kodi at the Sitges Festival: