RIP Lena Horne

Lena Horne

Was so so sad to hear the news of Lena Horne, the legendary actress/singer/dancer, had died at the age of 92.

Not many people know about Lena Horne, but you may have recognised her name from Halle Berry's famous speech when she accepted her Oscar award being the first Black woman to win the Best Actress category.

"This moment is for Dorothy Dandridge, Lena Horne, Diahann Carroll...It's for every nameless, faceless woman of colour who now has a chance because this door tonight has been opened."

And that's exactly what these women did. Opened the door to Black women in Hollywood, the media and on the big screen.

 

A pioneer among African American performers, Lena had both the talent and beauty to crack the race barrier in Hollywood in the 1940s.  Born in Brooklyn, New York in 1917, by the age of 16 she was singing in the famous Cotton Club.  She became the first African American performer to sign a long-term contract with a major Hollywood studio, MGM, and starred in popular musicals but what made her most popular was her role in Stormy Weathers.  

 

Lena's musical career flourished but her movie career stagnated.  She had minor roles in films such as Boogie-Woogie Dream and Words and Music but did little to advance her film career mainly bceause of racist attitudes of the time.  Even during the height of her film careers she was often denied rooms at hotels she performed in because they would not let Blacks stay there.

 

Several of the scenes she shot for MGM were cut out when they were shown in the South as most theatres there refused to show any films that featured Black actors/actresses in anything other than subservient roles to white people. 

By the 1960s, Lena was one of the most visable celebrities in the civil rights movement, joining 250,000 people in the 1963 march in Washington when Martin Luther King gave his "I have a Dream" speech.  She also spoke at a rally that same year with another civl rights leader, Medgar Evers, just days before his assassination.

 

These were several of the obstacles that Lena Horne (and others) faced during these times.  Yet she still managed to continue with a successful career spanning six decades.  She was one of the most respected, talented and beautiful performers of all time.

RIP Lena Horne. ♥

 

Brittany Murphy Found Dead

When I heard Hollywood actress Brittany Murphy died on Thursday (through Twitter of all sources!) I was shocked. I haven't seen the actress in anything since Sin City so hearing she had died was just awful.

What's worse is the way she died...at 32, she was found unconcious in her bathroom of a suspected heart attack.  At 32??? Hmmmmmm something doesn't sound right if...

According to reports, ten different types of medication were found on Brittany's bedside table by a police officer. Her husband, British film director Simon Moniack was also questionned about his wife's death. Strangely, he initially refused a post-mortem test (which was over-ruled by the coroner), but yet a few days later agreed to do an interview with celeb magazine People.

 Brittany & her husband

He revealed Brittany suffered from a heart murmur, which causes fatigue, dizziness and irregular heartbeats. 

Uh huh..sure she did...

He also did an interview on American television only hours after Britanny was pronounced dead.  Her husband has been labelled a "con-artist" by some media outlets after stories have emerged of him being in debt, doing credit card fraud and troubles with visa violations (hence the reason he married Britanny). Doesn't sound good does it?

And im sure there are more revealations to come. Whilst I do not always believe everything that I read in the media, that old saying seems to come in mind..."no smoke without fire."

Brittany in Clueless (centre)

But minus the drama, I'd rather remember Brittany as the incredible actress she was.  She starred in Eight Mile with Eminem but most famously Clueless as Tay, the sweet, niave friend of Cher and Dionne the two Valley girls her character tried so hard to impress.  Sadly, Britanny was buried in the same memorial park as Michael Jackson. 

Makes you wonder whose next to go in Hollyweird?

Patrick Swayze

Patrick Swayze starring (in my opinion!) one of my favourite films, Ghost

Dirty Dancing star Patrick Swayze died last night losing his 20 month battle against cancer. He died peacefully surrounded by his family. Last night his publicist Annett Wolf released the following statement:- "Patrick Swayze passed away peacefully today with family at his side facing the challenges of his illness for the last 20 months." Though suffering with cancer, Patrick starred in TV drama The Beast and wrote an autobiography with his wife Lisa Niemi. Tributes have come flooding in from his co-stars and other celebrities including his biggest fan in the world one of my besties. As soon as I heard the news I thought of her :-( x Demi Moore tweeted, "Patrick you are loved by so many and your light will forever shine in all of our lives." Whoopi Goldberg: "Patrick was a really good man, a funny man and one to whom I owe much that I can't ever repay. I believe in Ghost's message, so he'll always be near." Rob Lowe: "Patrick lived a thousand lifetimes in one lifetime. He was an expert dancer, he wrote hit songs, he starred in hit movies, he was an amazing horseman. But the thing I will remember him most for was his amazing love affair with his wife Lisa." Lucia C: (my Sugababy and one his biggest fans like ever!) "RIP Patrick Swayze.Can't believe my lifelong dream is over!3.25am cut through me like a knife.You made me smile since I was a little girl - always could count on you to cheer me up.My tears for you know and always!" ♥ ♥ ♥ RIP Patrick x

The King of Pop Is Dead

One of my favourite pictures of Michael :-)

When news poured in that Michael Jackson had died on the 25th June 2009 - it seemed like the world can come to a standstill. New channels, radio stations and newspaper all dedicated hours of time and pages of space to the King of Pop. At one point, search engine Google had crashed as they thought they were being attacked by a virus. It was in fact millions of people trying to log on and find what had happened to Michael Jackson. The largest search engine in the world couldn't even take that level of searches. That is how much Michael Jackson's news had impacted the world. It is almost a month since the tragic news first surfaced, and yet new stories are still being heavily featured on Michael. On the verge of a comeback tour in London, Michael, died of a heart attack. He was only 50 years old. The star leaves three children, Michael Joseph Jackson Jr, Paris Michael Katherine Jackson and Prince Michael Jackson II. There are so many words to describe how I feel about the passing of Michael Jackson:- Sad, Confused, Devastated, Angry, Disappointed I feel Sad for his children, his family and his fans who truly appreciated his work, his talent and his great ability at being the greatest performer that ever lived. I feel Confused, because it is still not clear on the causes of his death. News reports say he was addicted to painkillers, others say a heart attack. Rumours, gossip and other tall stories are surfacing about Debbie Rowe, the woman who carried his children, the true identity of his children, the fortune of his estate and earnings etc etc. Does anyone wonder why I'm confused?! I feel Devastated at the fact that Michael Jackson, the King of Pop, died so tragically. I heard the first emergency call out made by his house assistant which was so disturbing..and then what made it worse was OK!magazine's decision to publicise an image of Michael Jackson being escorted to the hospital in an ambulance. It is a chilling picture of his last moments for the world to see - great shot - not. I feel Angry, at the news coverage of Michael Jackson. Some would say - why aren't you happy with all the positive reports and tributes? Well, where were the positive news stories before his death? Why does it have to take a death for the media to sympathise with the celebrity in question (two words Jade Goody?) It's so fustrating when writers, journalists and other people in media speak out at what a "amazing talented performer" Michael was. Where were they when he was constantly victimised by the press? These are the same industry insiders who labelled him Wacko Jacko and a Pedophile... And lastly I feel disappointed as if you remember a while back I posted a blog on my excitement about purchasing my ticket for Michael's "This is It" concert. The fact I will NEVER be able to see the greatest performer of all time perform is an awful feeling of disappointment. Why didn't I take my two year old self to Wembley in 1988 when he toured London then?! :-) So close yet so far...oh well thank God for Youtube who will forever capture the moments I didn't... So although I feel all these emotions, I am going to end this blog on a high and with a smile on my face as I look back on my memories of watching Michael Jackson videos for hours on end with my brother (the biggest fan I know after my bff Ade!) when we were younger.

Rest in Peace Michael - people can say what they want about you, but you were 100% original. You opened more doors for black people, you brought people of all races together and you were an inspiration to so many. Your true fans will always love you, miss you, and remember your Great Talent. There will never be another King of Pop.

:-) A x

Defoe's MC Brother Killed

Jermain Defoe

Footballer, Jermain Defoe's half-brother, Jade Defoe died on Friday after a daylight street attack in Walnut Gardens, East London. A post-mortem confirmed that Jade suffered serious head injuries. A 28 year old man has been arrested in connection with the death of Jade Defoe, and has been released on bail. Jade 26, also known as EscoBar, was an MC from Slew Dem Cru and appeared on Grime DVDs such as Lord of the Mics 2. More than 600 friends and fans joined a tribute page created on Facebook. Jermain Defoe was withdrawn from the Tottenham Hotspur game that lost 5-2 to Manchester United on Saturday. A spokesman for Tottenham Hotspurs said: "All at the club wish to extend their condolences to Jermain Defoe and his family following the death of his half-brother." Unfortunately not all the reports and statements were as sensitive. The Sun threw all sensitivity out of the window and released these details about Jermain and his family: "Jermain, also 26, and Jade had the same Father, crack addict Jimmy Defoe. He has three other sons, all by different mothers, but the half-brothers are said to be close." WTF??? Why is it necessary to release all of this negative information? Is it so important to release details that Jermain's father is a "Crack addict" and has three other sons by three different mothers??? The fact that the Sun has mentioned the brothers are close is also slightly strange. Are siblings not usually close? Especially when a tragedy such as this affects a family? Or is there an exception for those with crack head fathers - perhaps they don't share the same closeness as those without parents without an addiction? To say I'm shocked would be a lie because I don't expect anything less than a low-class trashy newspaper like the Sun to report on such nonsense. But that's where yours truly steps in, reporting straight facts minus the B.S..rant over! :-) I've added some clips of Jade doing what he does best. R.I.P EscoBar...

EscoBar

Throwback Track of the Week

Who Hearts HipHop Soul??

So... I was feeling in one of those "back in the day" moods and decided to turn to good old Jodeci to get me "feenin" (lol) their old skool tunes. As much as I loooooooove Day 26 (new album, Forever In A Day, is just too much - didn't think they could do one better than their debut album!) no one can touch K-Ci and JoJo's silky vocals. Diddy you done good! The first time I heard "Diary of a Mad Band" I was about seven, having had my older sister bless my innocent ears with HipHop Soul those songs have stayed with me since then, Feenin', My Heart Belongs To You, and All You Got..but their debut album, "Forever My Lady" really showed the world what talented soulful vocalists Jodeci were. And how could we forget Devante! - the original sweet boy!! :-) Ladies will never forget his cheesy actions: "accidentally" revealing torso shots and gazes into the camera by the Casanova of the group. So here is one of the most romantic love-story videos ever made. Enjoy Jodeci and thank Diddy for actually keeping a band long enough for a second album (you can tell I'm still pissed about Danity Kane can't you?!):-

Jodeci - Love U 4 Life

Oh and for good measure I'm adding in H-Town too. Yes its those twins!! Love love loooooooooooooove this tune a classic if there ever was one - they ultimately made "knocking boots" phrase mainstream! One of the funniest intros too - A member of the group is being interviewed by a Brummie reporter. How RANDOM is that?! I didn't even know Americans knew back then the UK had such diverse accents and H-Town go and add a girl from Birmingham. In the interview, she (stupidly) asks them asking what "Knocking Boots" meant. Oh dear, maybe they got one thing right...! Unfortunately the lead singer, Keven A. Conner also known as Dino was killed in a car accident in 2003. The remaining members of the band, his suriving twin brother Soloman "Shazam" and Darryl "G.I" still continue to tour as H-Town. R.I.P Dino x

H-Town Knocking Boots

Ozzie Bush Fires Turn Deadly

A fire truck in front a wall of flame at the Bunyip sate forest

Tonimbuk township in Victoria, Australia

Southern Australia is facing deadly bush fires, the worst in the country's history.

The death toll has reached 108 as entire towns in Victoria state are destroyed by temperature and winds which cause the fires to rise.

BBC news website reports that witnesses have described seeing "walls of flames four storeys high, trees exploding and the skies raining ash, as fires tore across 30,000 hectares (115 square miles) of forest, farmland and towns.

Australian police have said that the arsonists responsible for lighting the fires could be charged with murder.

For more information about the Australian bush fires visit www.bbc.co.uk/news