Anovelista.com: Halle Berry

Halle Berry

Love, Marriage and Pride at the Movies

Spring is looking good for movies - at least as far as I'm concerned. Aside from Dreamgirls, I haven't exactly been racing to the movie theater lately.

Chris Rock has a new film coming out called I Think I Love My Wife. It's about an investment banker that is bored with his marriage - in part, because his wife (Gina Torres) is caught up in her career and with their children - so he passes the time fantasizing about other women. He has no intention of actually cheating (they never do, right?) until an old pal (Kerry Washington) shows up. The film is also a remake of the 1972 French film Chloe in the Afternoon, the last of the Six Moral Tales by Eric Rohmer.

I haven't seen Gina Torres in anything other than Cleopatra 2525 (Yes, I am one of about 3 people in the world that has not seen each installment of The Matrix), so I can't wait to see her here. Oh, and congrats to Gina and her husband Laurence Fishburne on their impending arrival.

I am also happy to see Kerry Washington in what looks like another good movie for her. She's had some very good, pivotal roles lately. I can't wait to see her get a truly breakout role. And, Mr. Chris Rock. I'm always rooting for Chris. I've met him twice (a long time ago) and I was always struck at what a quiet guy he is. Last summer, I saw him walking down the street one night with some takeout in his hand. I guess he was going home. Still got that quiet vibe from him.

Also, I'm glad to see that he doesn't think he loves his wife, he just loves his wife.

* I'm a big Mira Nair fan, so I will definitely be in the theater next weekend to see her latest film, The Namesake, an adaption of Jhumpa Lahiri's wonderful novel. Lahiri won a Pulitzer Prize for her amazing story collection, Interpreters of Maladies and The Namesake is nearly as good. Also, check out The Namesake blog hosted by the film's star, Kal Penn. He has come a long way from Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, bless his heart. And he's from Jersey!

* I'm also looking forward to Terrence Howard's latest film, Pride, which will open on March 23. Bernie Mac and Kimberly Elise also star in the film. Terrence plays a Philadelphia coach that founded a black swim team in one of the city's roughest neighborhoods. Evan Ross, son of Diana is also in the film. I think he is a really good kid. I met him about a year or two ago at a show featuring his big sister Rhonda Ross Kendrick. I couldn't believe how nice and mature he was (he had to be 16 or so at the time.) You know how it is, teenagers tend to give you one word answers when their eyes aren't glazing over. Not so with young Mr. Ross. He was really a gentleman. I'm expecting good things from him in the future.

* Halle Berry and Bruce Willis's Perfect Strangers is finally coming out on April 13th. I feel like I've been hearing about this for a while, so I hope it's good. Speaking of Halle movies, where is Nappily Ever After Miss Berry? And Composition in Black and White? That's what I want to see. I really hope both films are truly in the pipeline. Oh, and by the way, if Alicia Keys doesn't work out as Philippa Schuyler, perhaps Jurnee Smollett can take over the role? I haven't seen her since Eve's Bayou and yet, I am still convinced that there is an Oscar somewhere with her name on it.

Love and (Black) Marriage

* Uptown and Down by Jennifer Anglade Dahlberg. Trouble in the Harlem Paradise of a chic Manhattan magazine editor and her record label owner husband.

* Jump at the Sun by Kim McLarin. Yes, I featured this in my Valentine's post, but it happens to fit here. A black stay-at-home mom seems to regret her decision to leave her promising academic career behind.

* Couples in the 2008 Race via Newsweek. The Obamas vs. The Clintons.

* Michelle Obama: Reluctant Political Spouse? Not really.

* Diane Patrick lends her voice, personal touch via The Boston Globe. A June 2006 profile from the campaign trail on the woman who is now Massachusett's first African-American First Lady, Diane Patrick.

* Michelle Fenty Enjoying Life As D.C.'s First Lady via NBC4 in D.C. Michelle Fenty says that everytime someone calls her 'first lady' she has to chuckle.

* Why Did I Get Married? Janet Jackson, Jill Scott and Sharon Leal (Dreamgirls) will star in Tyler Perry's next film. Should be interesting.

55 Secret Street

* Merry Christmas, Darling.

* Lovely & Amazing.

Posted by Nichelle Gainer on Sunday, March 04, 2007 in Diane Patrick, Halle Berry, Michelle Fenty, Michelle Obama | Permalink | Comments (4) | TrackBack (0)

My Brain In A Pink Leather Notebook

Welcome to the new and hopefully improved Anovelista.com!

I decided to move from my Blogger address because I was so bored with it and I figured that I needed a fresh start. The inspiration for the new version of my blog came from the little pink leather notebook that I use to jot down ideas and thoughts. I am never without it and it happens to be one of the first things I blogged about at 55 Secret Street.

A few brief updates for readers from the old Anovelista blog (which will remain since I don't know how to transfer the archives yet).

The book about my aunt, Margaret Tynes, is in the homestretch and I've finally gotten back to my novel (you know, the one I'm not talking about yet...). Since I'm not in school this semester, I'm going to use the "extra" time to get back into the groove of it. Maya Angelou once noted how she wanted to finish one of the books that she was writing "so these people can get out of my house." "These people" were the characters in her book and, believe me, I know exactly what she's talking about.

While I will write longer posts from time to time, for the most part, I'm going to stick with a set format - an opener and links to articles, websites and other things that I find interesting.

So, here we go!

Dream Covergirl - Jennifer Hudson will be on the March covers of Vogue and Essence. She was photographed for Vogue by Annie Leibovitz at the Apollo Theater as part of a seven-page essay, but landed the cover after snagging the Golden Globe last month. Andre Leon Talley has also been dressing her. Talk about blessed!

Since 1993, only five black women have appeared on the cover of American Vogue:

* Kiara Kabukuru (July 1997) You may recognize the Ugandan born Kiara from the book Face Forward by the late great makeup artist Kevin Aucoin. She and Amber Valleta split the cover. Her Vogue cover made the news because it was such a rarity. The previous black cover model before this? Naomi Campbell in June 1993.

* Oprah Winfrey (October 1998) Oprah made the cover after she became a billionaire - and lost twenty pounds. She was also the beneficiary of positively amazing makeup artistry by the fabulous British Jamaican makeup genius Pat McGrath. Thandie Newton and Kimberly Elise were featured inside with her as part of the promotion for the film version of Beloved.

* Halle Berry (December 2002) after she won the Oscar for Monster's Ball. Great shots inside of her with Pierce Brosnan for their James Bond movie Die Another Day.

* Liya Kebede (May 2005) Unquestionably the black model of the moment - and the first black model to get a coveted Estee Lauder contract. Born in Ethiopia, she is also a Goodwill Ambassador for the World Health Organization.

UPDATE 2/13/2007: Some pointed out that I forgot one more celebrity black covergirl for Vogue - Olympian Marion Jones in January 2001. How could I forget that one? I totally remember my jaw dropping when I saw it.

May I point out one thing though? In the magazine world, there are "slow" cover months - January, July and August especially. If you'll notice, the issues are noticeably thinner in these months (because of lower ad pages).

That said, consider it progress when you see a black celebrity on a cover with huge ad pages - especially September through December thanks to ads for the holiday season.

Watch and Listen

* Barack Obama has finally announced that he is running for president and he'd like you to meet his wife Michelle. Of course, now that he's officially in, the gloves are coming all the way off. Don't blow it Barack!