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 | [none] | Aug 5, '11 12:51 PM
for everyone |
'We were a big 'Smurfs' household. We had the glasses and the sheets and the whole thing,' 'Glee' star Jayma Mays admits.
By Jocelyn Vena 
"The Smurfs"
Photo: Sony Pictures "The Smurfs" took "Cowboys & Aliens" for a ride at the box office over the weekend when the two blockbusters tied for the top spot. And the movie's cast recently chatted with MTV News and recalled some of their favorite memories from the vintage "Smurfs" cartoon. "We were a big 'Smurfs' household," "Glee" star Jayma Mays explained. "We had the glasses and the sheets and the whole thing. We didn't have the figurines that some people collect, but my mom loved 'The Smurfs,' so she would make me watch." Co-star Hank Azaria also has a backstory with the lovable cartoon. "I was highly familiar with Gargamel and 'The Smurfs,' being an animation fan, even though I was technically too old for 'Smurfs,' " he recalled. "When they came to America, I watched them anyway 'cause I'm immature," he joked. "I always wanted to improve on Gargamel," he continued. "I always felt he was too one- note and borderline annoying and wanted to make him funny and more amusing and a little scarier in other moments. I ended up using a voice very similar to the cartoon, but I thought he could be more three-dimensional and sarcastic and laid-back, and mostly I was curious as to why he was married to a cat." Neil Patrick Harris said he enjoyed the cartoon back in the day, and recalled his favorite moments shooting the 3-D, part CGI/part live action flick. "Hank's great. My favorite elements of Hank being in the movie was that since we didn't really have scenes together, it was my days off," he jokingly explained. "So when it was Hank-heavy scenes, [Jayma] and I were like, 'Woohoo!' "For me, I really liked filming around New York," he continued. "I'm mostly a West Coast guy, and I've always been a fan of the city and I think the film is a wonderful homage and love letter of New York. So to be able to film in New York ... you don't get that opportunity." Check out everything we've got on "The Smurfs." For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com. Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1668203/smurfs-cast-cartoon-original.jhtml Anna Faris Anna Friel Anna Kournikova Anna Paquin AnnaLynne McCord 'I have not been approached to fill in for Robert Plant on the Zeppelin tour, but that isn't to say I won't be,' singer says.
By Chris Harris 
Chris Cornell
Photo: MTV News Former Soundgarden and Audioslave frontman Chris Cornell has spoken out for the first time about rumors that he's been asked to fill in for Robert Plant on a proposed Led Zeppelin reunion tour. The trek would feature original guitarist Jimmy Page, original bassist John Paul Jones and Jason Bonham taking over on drums for his late father, John Bonham. Cornell has been mentioned — along with Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, former Van Halen frontman Sammy Hagar, White Stripes mastermind Jack White and Alter Bridge's Myles Kennedy — as a potential Plant fill-in. Plant has already said that he wouldn't take part in the tour. "I have not been approached so far to fill in for Robert Plant on the upcoming Zeppelin tour, but that isn't to say I won't be," Cornell told MTV News. "I've heard that from about 200 people now, and it might be one of those situations where it's just an online rumor or it might be true. But if you see anyone from Led Zeppelin around, let me know. I think I should actually fill in for Jimmy Page on the Robert Plant/ Alison Krauss tour." Cornell's denial comes just a day after Aerosmith guitarist Brad Whitford confirmed reports that frontman Steven Tyler recently met with Zeppelin for an impromptu jam session. "They did it for fun," Whitford said during an appearance on the syndicated show "Todd N Tyler Radio Empire." "I actually think Jimmy wanted Steven to come over and play a little bit because I think he was trying to light a fire under Robert." Rumors of a Zeppelin reunion tour have abounded since the iconic band played a single reunion set last year at London's O2 Arena. Twisted Sister frontman Dee Snider added fuel to the fire last month when he revealed that the group was thinking of touring, with or without Plant. According to Snider, the rest of the band told Plant, " 'We're all rehearsed, we're ready to go. Here's a gazillion dollars on the table. If you don't do it, we're going out with this kid [Myles Kennedy].' " "And he can sing the sh-- out of Zeppelin," Snider added. "They're going to hope that Robert, at the last minute, will go, 'OK,' and step in." In a recent interview, Jones told BBC Radio Devon that a new singer was being sought to take over for Plant. "We are trying out a couple of singers," he said. "We want to do it. It's sounding great, and we want to get on and get out there." But Jones insists that he, Page and Bonham aren't interested in finding a Plant clone. "It's got to be right," he said. "There's no point in just finding another Robert. You could get that out of a tribute band, but we don't want to be our own tribute band. There would be a record and a tour, but everyone has to be onboard." Of course, even if Zeppelin were to approach him, Cornell might be too busy to take over vocals for the band. His upcoming Timbaland-produced solo LP, Scream, will be released within the next few months. Cornell told MTV News last month that some of his fans might consider Scream something of a departure, but he doesn't see it that way. "It makes me happy that there's this perception that I have a group of fans that I'm now sort of throwing a curve at and what their reaction will be," he said. "But I've been in this situation so many times already. When I put out [1999's] Euphoria Morning, my main goal was to create an album that sounded like nothing I'd done in Soundgarden, and I did that. I also had that with Temple of the Dog, where I showed up with songs that weren't necessarily riff-based. And then, of course, the pairing of me and members of Rage Against the Machine had everyone sort of speculating about what that would sound like. "It feels like I've done this so many times that when it's presented to me as being a departure, I feel that's a misconception," he added. "I feel like that's my theme at this point." Related Artists Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1598367/chris-cornell-debunks-led-zeppelin-rumors.jhtml Amanda Righetti Amanda Swisten Amber Arbucci Amber Brkich Amber Heard Pee-wee makes a plea from Comic-Con for singer to cameo in his Judd Apatow-produced film.
By Terri Schwartz, with reporting by Eric Ditzian 
Justin Bieber
Photo: Jamie McCarthy/ Getty Images SAN DIEGO — Beliebers are in luck, because Justin Bieber might be heading to the big screen once again soon, if Pee-wee Herman has his way. Turns out Herman, who has been working on a new film alongside producer Judd Apatow, has recently written the VMA nominee in as one of the celebrity cameos. The only problem? Bieber doesn't know yet. "I can't really tell [what the cameo is], but he makes an appearance toward the end of the film," Herman (actor Paul Reubens, but we definitely interviewed Pee-wee) told MTV News at San Diego Comic-Con. "He doesn't know about it yet, so if you're watching this, Justin!" That's not the only grade-A cameo Herman has written into the script. He has his eyes on lots of stars — and the White House. "There's a party scene in the film that I think will have a lot of the stars. We just wrote President Obama into them. We have an offer out to him," Herman unveiled. Will any other government officials be given a role in the movie? "Sarah Palin wasn't asked. I have to draw the line somewhere, and unfortunately that's where it was drawn. I'm sorry, Sarah, I'm sorry," he whispered. The script for the currently unnamed comedy is being looked at by Universal Studios at the moment, and Herman said he hoped filming could begin within the next couple of months. It only helps that he has Apatow in his court and that the director/producer has words of wisdom to pass on to Herman to make the best comedy he can. "He's given us the same advice over and over again, which is 'emotional arc,' " Herman explained. "He wants the character to go through an emotional arc and to come out on the other end arced. So that's what we're doing. We're adding an emotional arc. Emotional growth, so there's a change in Pee-wee Herman during this film. Pee-wee makes a change." For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com. Related Videos Related Artists Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1667789/justin-bieber-pee-wee-herman.jhtml AN AMERICAN TRILOGY AN EVENING PRAYER AND I LOVE YOU SO AND THE GRASS WON T PAY NO MIND ANGEL 'We were a big 'Smurfs' household. We had the glasses and the sheets and the whole thing,' 'Glee' star Jayma Mays admits.
By Jocelyn Vena
"The Smurfs"
Photo: Sony Pictures "The Smurfs" took "Cowboys & Aliens" for a ride at the box office over the weekend when the two blockbusters tied for the top spot. And the movie's cast recently chatted with MTV News and recalled some of their favorite memories from the vintage "Smurfs" cartoon. "We were a big 'Smurfs' household," "Glee" star Jayma Mays explained. "We had the glasses and the sheets and the whole thing. We didn't have the figurines that some people collect, but my mom loved 'The Smurfs,' so she would make me watch." Co-star Hank Azaria also has a backstory with the lovable cartoon. "I was highly familiar with Gargamel and 'The Smurfs,' being an animation fan, even though I was technically too old for 'Smurfs,' " he recalled. "When they came to America, I watched them anyway 'cause I'm immature," he joked. "I always wanted to improve on Gargamel," he continued. "I always felt he was too one- note and borderline annoying and wanted to make him funny and more amusing and a little scarier in other moments. I ended up using a voice very similar to the cartoon, but I thought he could be more three-dimensional and sarcastic and laid-back, and mostly I was curious as to why he was married to a cat." Neil Patrick Harris said he enjoyed the cartoon back in the day, and recalled his favorite moments shooting the 3-D, part CGI/part live action flick. "Hank's great. My favorite elements of Hank being in the movie was that since we didn't really have scenes together, it was my days off," he jokingly explained. "So when it was Hank-heavy scenes, [Jayma] and I were like, 'Woohoo!' "For me, I really liked filming around New York," he continued. "I'm mostly a West Coast guy, and I've always been a fan of the city and I think the film is a wonderful homage and love letter of New York. So to be able to film in New York ... you don't get that opportunity." Check out everything we've got on "The Smurfs." For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com. Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1668203/smurfs-cast-cartoon-original.jhtml BLUE CHRISTMAS BLUE EYES CRYING IN THE RAIN BLUE HAWAII BLUE MOON BLUE MOON OF KENTUCKY 'We were shocked to see this,' read the Jacksons' message; Durbin tweeted an apology on Thursday.
By Gil Kaufman 
James Durbin performs on "American Idol" on Wednesday
Photo: Michael Becker/ Fox Some people might argue that it's patently unfair to take rank amateurs, put them on the biggest show on TV and then expose them to potential worldwide ridicule every week. Because it's one thing to tune in to "American Idol" from your living room or play shows at the local wings joint, it's another thing entirely when you get up on that stage and open your mouth with tens of millions watching and listening. James Durbin learned this lesson the hard way this week when he made what he thought was an innocent crack about not setting himself on fire during his pyro-tastic cover of Elton John's "Saturday Night's Alright (For Fighting)" on Wednesday night. Asked by host Ryan Seacrest if he was worried about dancing around among the flames shooting up from the piano onstage, Durbin joked, "I have a lot of hairspray in my hair to keep it from jumping around — so much so, the one thing I was worried about was having a 'Pepsi moment.' " The seemingly innocent crack was a reference to the 1984 on-set accident in which late pop icon Michael Jackson was badly burned during the shooting of a Pepsi commercial by some wayward pyro effects. The serious burns he suffered in the incident allegedly led to his longtime addiction to pain medication and prescription drugs. The Jackson family was not amused by the quip and sent a statement to TMZ on Thursday. "We were shocked to see this. It's nothing to make light of and everybody should be focusing on who was responsible for Michael's death," read the statement. Family patriarch Joseph Jackson also was reportedly miffed that "Idol" producers did not cut the comment from the West Coast feed of the show. Durbin defended his slip-up in a tweet, which has since been scrubbed from the singer's official "Idol" Twitter feed, that explained, "For anyone talkin ... I said pepsi NOT MJ! I have no disrespect for Michael. I grew up singing his art. I guess youll take it how you want it." He later added, "Talkin about MJs passing is too soon. Making a reference to an incident 25 years ago..not too soon. The stab was at pepsi people." It's worth noting that Pepsi's bitter rival, Coca-Cola, is the main "Idol" sponsor, a fact that Seacrest reminded Durbin of in an awkward moment after the comment on the show. What did you think of James Durbin's "Pepsi" quip? Tell us in the comments. Related Artists Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1661097/jackson-family-james-durbin-american-idol.jhtml Camilla Belle Carla Campbell Carla Gugino Carmen Electra Carol Grow 'Me and my gay best friend just danced until 8 a.m.,' Ke$ha tells MTV News.
By Jocelyn Vena 
Audrina Patridge
Photo: MTV News It's prom season, and that means high schoolers across this great land will be renting tuxes, buying fancy dresses and negotiating the details of their curfews with parents. So, before you take your pictures and get in your limos, we asked some Hollywood A-listers to recall their fondest prom memories. "I had a great prom," Ne-Yo told MTV News. "I didn't get to go with who I wanted to go with. I got my second choice, but my second choice turned out to be the one I was supposed to be there with, so it turned out good." Ke$ha, never one to say no to a party, had the best night of all her friends. "I went to prom with my gay best friend, and let me tell you, I had way more fun than anybody else at a prom with their boyfriends," she recalled. "Everybody else was, like, crying and drama and breaking up, and me and my gay best friend just danced until 8 a.m." "Hellcats" star Aly Michalka doesn't have a favorite prom memory — because she never went to prom. "I was homeschooled, so I don't even think we had a fake prom," she lamented. "Like, maybe we had a home-school prom and I wasn't invited?" While everything always seems to be in peril on "The Vampire Diaries," star Nina Dobrev had a less tumultuous night: "Having everyone get together and such a final celebration [is what I remember]." Romeo went big for his prom. "My senior prom, I remember I pulled up in my red Ferrari. I was feeling like James Bond," he said. "And it was one of the best nights of my life." "My favorite prom memory was probably going shopping for a dress, and our boyfriends at the time dressed up as 'Dumb & Dumber,' " Audrina Patridge laughed. "And so we were like, 'We can't dress up dorky ... we have to look good.' " Roots drummer ?uestlove made a big decision on the night of his prom: "June 2, 1989, was my very last haircut; prom haircut, totally butchered my hair. He butchered my hair, and I vowed never again to ever get in a barber chair, so I grew that Afro on my prom night." Adam Lambert said his prom date was a 10, so he definitely had a fun night. "I had a great prom. I had an awesome time," he said. "I went with one of my best friends in high school. Her name was Lauren, and she was really hot. She wore a really hot red dress, so I felt like I had arm candy." Share your prom memories in the comments below! Related Videos Related Artists Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1662981/celebrity-prom-memories.jhtml Adrianne Palicki Aisha Tyler Aki Ross Alecia Elliott Alessandra Ambrosio Glam rocker tackled the legendary 1970 Led Zeppelin song for 'American Idol' rock night.
By Gil Kaufman 
Adam Lambert performs "Whole Lotta Love" on "American Idol" on Tuesday
Photo: R. Mickshaw/Getty Images/ Fox Imagine a freight train speeding toward you at midnight. Or a rockslide barreling down a hill as you try to outrace it. That's the feeling of the ominous, chugging Jimmy Page riff that kicks off Led Zeppelin's 1970 Stonehenge of rock, "Whole Lotta Love." And that's before singer Robert Plant leans into one of the nastiest, ecstatic rock screams this side of the Who's "Won't Get Fooled Again." That's the song Adam Lambert chose to sing on "American Idol" rock night Tuesday (May 5), and, needless to say, it was a challenge that the eyeliner-loving Los Angeles stage veteran was more than up for, hitting a series of high notes and rock screams that would have made Plant proud. It was a risky maneuver that paid off for Lambert, who chose a tune that came in at #75 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time" in 2004. The legendary British rock act recorded the tribute to Chicago blues icon Willie Dixon during their second U.S. tour after working it out in their live show, including it on their 1969 classic album Led Zeppelin II. Like many of the songs Zeppelin performed early in their career, "Love" was a blues standard turned on its head with a heavy dose of crunching psychedelic guitar and thundering drums, courtesy of late drummer John Bonham. The song was based on a 1962 tune by another blues forefather, Muddy Waters, called "You Need Love," which was penned by Dixon. For Zeppelin's version, Plant customized the lyrics by adding some lyrical quotes from a few other songs Dixon wrote for Howlin' Wolf, "Back Door Man" and "Shake For Me," nailing the tricky vocal in a single take. It was also inspired by 1966's "You Need Loving" from the British rock group the Small Faces, for whom Zeppelin had great affection, but they also did not credit Dixon for his part in writing the original lyrics. The song became Zeppelin's first U.S. single and their only U.S. top 10 hit. Though their manager would not let them release singles in the U.K. because he thought it cannibalized album sales, the song was finally released as the band's only British single in 1997. Dixon sued Zeppelin over the song in 1985, claiming it borrowed too heavily from his "You Need Love," and Zeppelin reached an agreement with him, with Dixon using the money he received to set up a program that provided musical instruments for schools. A cornerstone of heavy rock, the tune -- which was the theme song for the long-running British countdown show "Top of the Pops" in the 1970s and '80s -- has been covered by dozens of artists over the years, from Tina Turner and Ben Harper to Prince, Slash, Leona Lewis, Train's Pat Monahan, the London Symphony Orchestra and Jane's Addiction. Get your "Idol" fix on MTV News' "American Idol" page, where you'll find all the latest news, interviews and opinions. Related Videos Related Photos Related Artists Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1610709/adam-lamberts-whole-lotta-love-story-behind-cover.jhtml BRINGING IT BACK BRITCHES BROWN EYED HANDSOME MAN BURNING LOVE BY AND BY Them Crooked Vultures make their debut with a post-Lollapalooza set.
By James Montgomery 
Dave Grohl (file)
Photo: Jewel Samad/AFP/Getty Images Officially, Lollapalooza ended Sunday night in Chicago's Grant Park, with dueling sets from the Killers and Jane's Addiction. Unofficially, it ended very early Monday morning, across town at venerable rock club the Metro, with a surprise show by Them Crooked Vultures. To the unfamiliar, the Vultures might seem like an odd choice to close out Lolla weekend ... until you realize that they're made up of Foo Fighters frontman/ former Nirvana drummer Dave Grohl, Queens of the Stone Age mastermind Josh Homme and Led Zeppelin legend John Paul Jones. And their gig at the Metro was their world premiere. According to some reports, the Vultures actually turned down Lollapalooza founder Perry Farrell's request to replace the Beastie Boys as headliners at the festival, opting to debut in front of some 1,100 super-psyched fans at the Metro, rather than 75,000 in Grant Park (tickets for the gig were announced via Foo Fighter/ QOTSA fan clubs). Meaning that, in a lot of ways, this was the most sought-after ticket in town. Taking the stage just after midnight, the Vultures — Grohl on drums (of course), Homme on guitar and vocals, Jones on bass and keys and frequent QOTSA contributor Alain Johannes on guitar — ripped through 12 songs in 80 minutes, all taken from their upcoming debut, which may or may not be called Never Deserved the Future, and may or may not be hitting stores on October 23 (early "promo" videos touting both those facts were revealed over the weekend to be hoaxes perpetrated by QOTSA fans). The songs, with appropriately Homme-ian titles like "Scumbag Blues," "Mind Eraser (No Chaser)," "Caligulove" and "Interlude w/Ludes," sounded pretty much how you'd expect, given the band's pedigree. They rocked, hard — Chicago Tribune critic Greg Kot described them as "fresh, invigorating and just plain nasty" — delving off into psychedelic, reverb-filled excursions and exploring proggy territory, "both of the old-school Yes variety, and the more modern Tool flavor," according to the Chicago Sun-Times' Jim DeRogatis. It's not known if Monday's Metro performance was a one-off event for the Vultures — there have been whispers of a full-blown tour, but a spokesperson for Homme had not responded to MTV News' request for comment at press time. Nor was it clear whether or not they'll have an album out in October. Early Monday, a Crooked Vultures Twitter account, which had previously posted links to the band's official-looking Web site and the Metro's online ticketing site — posted a link to what appears to be the group's first bit of official merchandise: a Deserve the Future T-shirt. Cost: $30. Related Videos Related Photos Related Artists Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1617950/dave-grohl-josh-homme-john-paul-jones-unveil-supergroup.jhtml Anna Paquin AnnaLynne McCord Anne Marie Kortright April Scott Arielle Kebbel |
