Hillary spurns Segel, Jack Black sings ‘Chad Gadya,’ Kazakhstan thanks Borat
Published May 1, 2012
NEW YORK (6NoBacon) — Jason Segel is one of the hottest actors in Hollywood with the success of “The Muppets” and “How I Met Your Mother” and his lead role in the movie “The Five Year Engagement.” But not everyone is jumping at the chance to work with him.
In a March interview with Us Weekly, Segel disclosed that he wants very much to work with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. “I just feel like she would be good at comedy,” he said. “I think you can feel it from a mile away.” He even had an idea for a film collaboration: “Forgetting Sarah Marshall 2: This Time It’s Personal.”
Unfortunately for Segel, Clinton respectfully declined. In a personal letter to the actor, she wrote: “I was delighted to read about your interest in sharing the big screen with me. As you can imagine, I am a little occupied at the moment, but perhaps someday I can help you forget Sarah Marshall … again. My only condition is that there be Muppets involved, and that is non-negotiable. In the meantime, you have my best wishes for continued success with your career.”
Madonna not bringing peace (concert) to Israel
Israeli Madonna fans hoping to enjoy two whole nights with the Queen of Pop are going to be disappointed to learn that due to production delays, she will only be performing one concert in Israel.
A few months ago Madonna had announced that she would perform twice, with the second show being billed as a “Concert for Peace.” The second show’s cancellation means there probably will be no peace for the masses of fans angling to get good spots for her sole appearance.
Sacha Baron Cohen helps Kazakhstan
The man behind “Borat” has changed his identity to promote his newest film “The Dictator.” Instead of spoofing a clueless Kazakh journalist, Sacha Baron Cohen now dresses up as Admiral General Aladeen of a fictional Middle Eastern country, the Republic of Wadiya. In the role, Baron Cohen has already spilled the fake ashes of Kim Jong Il all over Ryan Seacrest on the Academy Awards red carpet, and he didn’t disappoint when he showed up in costume to the Las Vegas CinemaCon last week.
“I thought I was going to be the only dictator here tonight,” Cohen said at CinemaCon. “So imagine my surprise when I found out Jeffrey Katzenberg would be here,” referring to the Dreamworks Animation CEO. In introducing himself, Cohen claimed to have starred in movies such as “The 14-Year-Old Virgin,” “When Harry Kidnapped Sally” and “Planet of the Rapes.”
Meanwhile, Baron Cohen’s earlier movie is still making an impact. His hit 2006 film “Borat,” which originally upset Kazakh officials, has turned out to be very helpful for Kazakhstan’s tourism industry. “With the release of this film, the number of visas issued by Kazakhstan grew tenfold,” the country’s foreign minister said recently as he thanked Baron Cohen.
Preemptive pan for new Adam Sandler film
“That’s My Boy,” the latest film by Adam Sandler, tells the story of a 13-year-old boy who impregnates his teacher and proves to be a dysfunctional father as an adult (Sandler plays the father, and Andy Samberg of “Saturday Night Live” plays the son).
The yet-to-be-released film has come under fire for making light of statutory rape. “Hollywood is becoming so dysfunctional that it can’t even produce humor without being crass and twisted,” said Dan Gainor, vice president of business and culture for the Media Research Center. “Since when did child molestation and rape become the stuff of humor?”
Max Greenfield’s ‘SNL’-themed bar mitzvah
Max Greenfield earned his reputation as one of TV’s funniest people for his role on the hit Fox sitcom “New Girl,” and it turns out he was into comedy at a young age. In a recent interview with Jimmy Kimmel, Greenfield said that his bar mitzvah party’s theme was “Saturday Night Live.” The party featured tables dedicated to cast members from the mid-1990s such as David Spade, Adam Sandler and Chris Farley.
Jack Black sings ‘Chad Gadya’
Musician and movie star Jack Black in a sitdown with Conan O’Brien this week talked about his recent efforts to get his kid into a good Jewish school. Black, who admits he is an atheist, felt he had to prove his Judaic bona fides during an interview with school administrators, so he brought out the big guns, singing “Chad Gadya” for them — a song he described to Conan as “very Black Sabbath,” with the Angel of Death and whatnot.
ScarJo: No pictures please!
Scarlett Johansson has suffered from the illicit use of her image, with nude pictures of her leaked on the Internet. So it’s not surprising that she would be annoyed by fans snapping photos of her when she’s out with family and friends.
“I’m constantly surprised by how rude people are,” she told New Review. “You’ll be having an intimate dinner with a friend and there’s somebody on the table behind with a camera phone pointing at your face. I think, I would never take a photo of someone without asking.”