The TMI Tag

Hello everyone! So I decided to do the TMI Tag after I was inspired by the lovely Ariel Kaplan, who plays Imogen Willis on Neighbours. I thought it would be a great idea for you STARDUST readers to get to know me. I mean it's one thing for me to sit and write entertainment news articles on my computer but this adds a bit more of a personal touch to things. I answered these 50 questions in my Youtube video below! Hope you all like it and I didn't make a complete fool of myself (not usually hard for me to do lol!)

TMI Tag questions:
1) What are you wearing?
2) Ever been in love?
3) Ever had a terrible break up?
4)  How tall are you?
5) How much do you weigh?
6) Any tattoos?
7) Any piercings?
8) OTP?
9) Favourite show?
10) Favourite bands?
11) Something you miss?
12) Favourite song?
13) How old are you?
14) Zodiac sign?
15) Quality you look for in a partner?
16) Favourite quote?
17) Favourite actor?
18) Favourite color?
19) Loud music or soft?
20) Where do you go when you're sad?
21) How long does it take you to shower?
22) How long does it take you to get ready in the morning?
23) Ever been in a physical fight?
24) Turn on?
25) Turn off?
26) The reason I joined Youtube
27) Fears?
28) Last thing that made you cry?
29) Last time you said you loved someone?
30) Meaning behind your Youtube name?
31) Last book you read?
32) The book you're currently reading?
33) Last show you watched?
34) Last person you talked to?
35) The relationship between you and the last person you texted?
36) Favourite food?
37) Place you want to visit?
38) Last place you were?
39) Do you have a crush?
40) Last time you kissed someone?
41) Last time you were insulted?
42) Favourite flavour of sweet?
43) What instrument do you play?
44) Favourite piece of jewellery?
45) Last sport you played?
46) Last song you sang?
47) Favourite chat up line?
48) Have you ever used it?
49) Last time you hung out with someone?
50) Who should answer these questions next?

Catherine Hicks sticks by Stephen Collins

Photo from: Angela Parsons Pinterest account

Actress, Catherine Hicks, who played the role of Annie Camden on 7th Heaven for 11 years has supported her former on-screen husband, Stephen Collins, after leaked tapes of Collins allegedly confessing to sexually abusing underage girls emerged this week.

Hicks stood behind Collins in the wake of the accusations, when she talked to paparazzi yesterday. "I really have nothing to say, nothing to hide. I don't know anything. Stephen's a good guy in my opinion" she said. When asked if anyone on the 7th Heaven set had any suspicion about Collins, the 63-year-old actress was adamant. "No, gosh, no" Hicks said.

The audio recording of the confession was taped by Collins ex-wife, Faye Grant and leaked to US tabloid news site, TMZ. Grant made a secret recording of the confession during a therapy session with Collins. TMZ says that Collins was unaware that he was being taped, but under California law it is legal to make such a recording in order to gather evidence for a "violent felony" charge.

The New York Police Department is investigating the case, as two of the three alleged incidents took place in New York City. The third was allegedly in Los Angeles. Police spokesman, Stephen David says a complaint was filed in 2012 and accused Collins of forcing a then 14-year-old girl to commit a lewd act in 1972. David says the case remains open but no charges have been filed. "There is a formal complaint on file and the incident is being investigated by the Manhattan Special Victims Squad" the police department's statement said. The Los Angeles Police Department is also reviewing the audiotape, but a spokesman said they did not plan to open their own investigation. 

Faye Grant and Stephen Collins are currently going through what TMZ described as a "nasty and prolonged divorce". The fallout from the allegations has been swift, with reports by The Hollywood Reporter of Collins being dropped from the sequel to Seth MacFarlane's hugely popular film, Ted, which is set for release in the US on June 26 next year. The US actors union, SAG-AFTRA has also confirmed that Collins resigned from the body's national board and the US cable channel, UPTV, which airs re-runs of 7th Heaven has pulled the program from its schedule.     

Got any opinions or comments about this story? Feel free to leave them in the comment box below.
 

The Hot List: October 8,2014

So I'm trying something new with STARDUST. This will be the first week of The Hot List, where I will tell you guys the top ten songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, the top ten Australian iTunes music downloads and the top five movie box office results from both the USA and Australia for the week.

Billboard Hot 100
1) All About That Bass- Meghan Trainor
2) Shake It Off- Taylor Swift
3) Anaconda- Nicki Minaj
4) Black Widow- Iggy Azalea Featuring Rita Ora
5) Bang Bang- Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj
6) Stay With Me- Sam Smith
7) Habits (Stay High)- Tove Lo
8) Break Free- Ariana Grande Featuring Zedd
9) Don't Tell Em- Jeremih Featuring YG
10) Rather Be- Clean Bandit Featuring Jess Glynne

Top 10 iTunes Downloads
1)  All About That Bass- Meghan Trainor
2) Shake It Off- Taylor Swift
3) Live Louder- Nathaniel
4) New Thang- Redfoo
5) Bang Bang- Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj
6) Freaks- Timmy Trumpet and Savage
7) Jubel- Kilngande
8) Blame- Calvin Harris
9) Budapest- George Ezra
10) Ugly Heart- G.R.L

Top 5 Box Office Results (USA)
1) Gone Girl
2) Annabelle
3) The Equalizer
4) The Boxtrolls
5) The Maze Runner

Top 5 Box Office Results (Australia)
1) Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
2) Into The Storm
3) Guardians Of The Galaxy
4) The Hundred - Foot Journey
5) The Inbetweeners 2 

Information sourced from: Billboard , iTunes (Australia) and Box Office Mojo

Let me know if you guys like this idea of The Hot List. If you do I'll make it a weekly thing! As always please feel free to leave comments, suggestions etc. 

STARDUST weekly tidbits- October 5

Photo from: AT Celebrities Pinterest account

So it's been a few weeks since I've done one of these but nevertheless...Here's some of the latest entertainment news headlines from around the world this week...just in case you missed it!

Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher welcome baby daughter
Mila Kunis and Ashton Kutcher have welcomed their baby daughter into the world on Wednesday and they have now revealed the baby's name. Kutcher took to his website to introduce his daughter to the world. "Mila and I would like to welcome Wyatt Isabelle Kutcher to the world. May your life be filled with wonder, love, laughter, health, happiness, curiosity and privacy" he wrote. The That 70s Show actor then challenged readers to guess which of several baby photos is actually Wyatt. "Can you guess which one is ours, or does it really matter?" Kutcher asked.

Kim Kardashian denies reports that she left baby, North West at hotel
Kim Kardashian is firing back at reports that she forgot her daughter, North West inside a Paris hotel this week. The reality star was seen leaving the hotel and heading to a car, before going back inside the lobby and exiting again, this time with her daughter. "Heard on the radio today some story I forgot my daughter at our hotel as I'm leaving for the airport. Are you kidding me?!?!?! LOL. I went to the car to make sure the car seat was in because the day before we had a car seat issue" Kardashian tweeted.

The Veronicas are back on top again
Jessica and Lisa Origliasso of The Veronicas have managed to make a big comeback this year, with their new song, You Ruin Me, which hit No.1 on the ARIA charts this week. The Veronicas had three years where they were releasing no music, due to disputes with their record label Warner Music. The twins are now signed with Sony Music.The 29-year-old singers admit that You Ruin Me is very different to the pop tunes that people are used to hearing from them. "We didn't expect anything, we just kind of wanted to get it out there, but for so many people to connect to the song it's very validating" Lisa Origliasso told Sydney Confidential.

Charlie Sheen sued over dentist incident
A dental technician who says actor, Charlie Sheen punched her in the chest during an office visit is now suing him for assault and battery. Margarita Palestino filed the lawsuit on Friday in Los Angeles seeking unspecified damages from the former Two And A Half Men star. The lawsuit accuses Sheen of attacking her during a dental appointment on September 25th, including punching her in the chest and grabbing her bra. "Sheen had an adverse reaction to the combination of nitrous oxide and pain medication he was taking for a shoulder injury and that Sheen knocked over dental instruments, but other elements of the woman's story are not true" Sheen's publicist, Jeff Ballard said. Los Angeles police said that they have an active investigation into the incident but could not release further details.

Slash to play at NRL grand final
Legendary rock guitarist and former Guns 'N' Roses member, Slash is set to perform during the South Sydney Rabbitohs and the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs NRL grand final. The rock star learned the basics of NRL when he watched the Rabbitohs play the St George Illawarra Dragons in 2010. Slash will perform his new single, Bent To Fly from his album Slash featuring Myles Kennedy & The Conspirators. "For me, it is going to be such a great experience to be in that environment with that energy performing, even if it's just the one song it is going to be quite the experience" he said.

Got any opinions, thoughts and suggestions on this week's entertainment news headlines? If, so feel free to leave comments in the comment box below! 

Information compiled from: Entertainment Tonight, Access Hollywood and The Daily Telegraph      

20 years of the Kennedys on Neighbours!

Photo from: Neighbours Facebook page

Okay, so most people who have known me for a while will be aware that I am a massive fan of long-running Australian soap opera, Neighbours. I've been watching the show since I was eight years old back in 1996. Today is a very important occasion in the history of Neighbours so I can't let it slip by unnoticed. October 3rd, 2014 marks 20 years since the Kennedy family i.e. Alan Fletcher (Dr. Karl Kennedy), Jackie Woodburne (Susan Kennedy), Benji McNair (Malcolm Kennedy), Kym Valentine (Libby Kennedy) and Billy Kennedy (Jesse Spencer) (and, yes in case you were wondering that's the very same Jesse Spencer who played Dr. Chase on House) arrived on Ramsay Street!

The Kennedys are my favourite TV family and one of my all-time favourite Neighbours families. I loved the Scullys to! I have grown up watching the Kennedys on TV every weeknight at 6:30pm and I can't believe how fast the 20 years have gone! I think some of my favourite Kennedy moments over the past 20 years have been the Kennedys arrival on Neighbours back in 1994, the famous slap that Susan gave Karl after his affair with Sarah (Nicola Charles) in 1998 and Libby and Drew's wedding in 2001. I actually didn't see the Kennedys arrival on the street when it first aired on TV because I was only six at the time but I've seen it on DVD a few times since then. I always crack up at the part where Danni (Eliza Szonert) and Brett Stark (Brett Blewitt) help the Kennedys move the piano (at least I think it was a piano?) and they make a huge hole in the wall, much to Karl's dismay.
 

I would like to congratulate Benji McNair, Kym Valentine, Jesse Spencer and especially, Alan Fletcher and Jackie Woodburne, who of course are still kicking it on Neighbours as the legendary Dr. Karl and Susan Kennedy after 20 years on this amazing milestone. I'm pretty sure that Alan Fletcher and Kym Valentine will be reading this and possibly some other current members of the Neighbours cast and crew so thank you very much for giving me and so many other Neighbours fans 20 years of very fond memories.

If any other Neighbours fans are reading this what are your favourite Kennedy moments? Feel free to share them in the comment box below. I will leave you all with a special video tribute that I made in honour of this event. I hope you enjoy it! Happy 20th anniversary to the Kennedys and much love!

   

Parenthood farewell season kicks off

Photo from: Parenthood Facebook page

Hi guys! Yes, I know its been a few weeks in between blog posts but I had a medical emergency. It was the Jewish new year (Rosh Hashana) last week and I was cutting an apple, you know to eat my apple dipped in honey. I somehow managed to give myself a very nasty cut with the knife. Five hours of waiting in the emergency room at the hospital and a tetanus shot later I had my finger bandaged up. The bandages are still on at the moment and they come off on Sunday! Yay! So, in a nutshell it is extremely hard to type with one hand, which I am doing right now. That's the reason for the lack of blog posts. I'm trying to get everything back to normal as soon as possible though. 

I think I've bored everyone enough with my dramas so let's get straight into this. The sixth and final season of Parenthood premiered in the USA on September 25th. I'm in Sydney, Australia so unfortunately I didn't get to see the first episode of season six until a few days after the original air date. Parenthood's run in Australia has actually been very sporadic. The time slot changed so many times and it was always on late at night at about 9:30pm, as a result Parenthood has always been somewhat of an enigma on Australian television. I have always felt that if Channel 7 aired it a little earlier in the evening at about 8:30pm, and perhaps on another night not directly after Aussie family drama, Packed To The Rafters on a Tuesday it could've done well here. Parenthood has extremely loyal fans in Australia nonetheless, for those of us who do watch it. I have no idea when the sixth season will actually be airing in Australia so I'm watching it on American time (Thank goodness for internet streaming ay?)   

So the end of season five left us wondering whether Amber [Mae Whitman] was pregnant, Zeke [Craig T. Nelson] and Camille [Bonnie Bedelia] sold the Braverman family home, Adam [Peter Krause] and Kristina [Monica Potter] were about to open their new school so Max [Max Burkholder] could attend and we were left wondering what the future would hold for Joel [Sam Jaeger] and Julia [Erika Christensen]. I really enjoyed the first episode of season six! It seems like Julia is trying to move on with her life after her separation from Joel. It should be interesting to see where Sarah's [Lauren Graham] relationship with Hank [Ray Romano] goes this time around and it was so heart warming at the end to see Max try and attend Chambers Academy after Adam and Kristina had worked so hard to get it open in time.

If the first episode of the new season is anything to go by I think we will be in for a great final season. Parenthood is a show that has become very dear to my heart because the story lines are quite true to life. I am so glad that it's back for a sixth season and I will be sad to see it go. Do any of you watch Parenthood? If, so feel free to leave your thoughts in the comment box below!

My ALS Ice Bucket Challenge!

Photo from: Kim Kardashian's Facebook page

Hi everyone! I'm sure most of you have heard by now about the latest craze to take the world by storm. Yup! I'm talking about the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. For those of you who don't know what it is, it's a charity fundraiser in order to raise money for ALS disease. ALS stands for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis disease. It is a motor neuron disease similar to MS, which ultimately results in death. Medications are used to reduce the symptoms of ALS but currently there is no cure for the disease.

The ALS Association is raising money for medical research to find a cure for the disease so many people have taken the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge to help raise funds for the cause. How it works is that a person is nominated by someone or you can nominate yourself to participate, you pour a bucket of ice water over your head and then you nominate three other people to to do it. The rule is that you must be filmed while doing the challenge and you must share it on social media to create awareness for the disease. Participants are generally required to complete their challenge within 24 hours of being nominated, I did my challenge a few days after being nominated though because I figured as long as I do the challenge and donate to the charity it shouldn't matter when I do it. If you are nominated but do not complete the challenge you are required to donate $100 to The ALS Association but if the challenge is accepted you are only required to donate $10 to The ALS Association. 

Many high-profile celebrities including Kim Kardashian, Kate Hudson, Nicole Kidman, Gwyneth Paltrow, Matt Damon, John Travolta and Victoria Beckham have all participated in the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. That's not why I did it though. I actually think it's a great cause to find a cure for a very serious disease. I was nominated by my sister, Liat and I nominated two of my friends, Hannah and Lauren as well as Australian TV show host, Rove Mcmanus so let's hope they all accept their challenges haha! I am also going to donate to The ALS Association. Here's my ALS Ice Bucket Challenge video! Please excuse the profanities LOL! Don't forget to donate to the ALS Association at   http://www.alsa.org/ .

STARDUST weekly tidbits- September 13

Photo from: Miley Cyrus's Facebook page

Here's what's been making entertainment news headlines around the world this week...just in case you missed it!

Miley Cyrus goes topless to New York Fashion Week after-party
Miley Cyrus attended fashion designer, Alexander Wang's New York Fashion Week after-party this week, wearing nothing on top but ice-cream cone pasties. Cyrus's daring outfit included her sunglasses, which had rainbow pills decorated onto them. The 21-year-old singer posted a picture of herself at the party on Instagram with the caption, "Btw I don't have some weird rash. I got pink glitter rubbed all over me on the party bus. #Rave". The singer posted another picture from the party saying it was "the best night eva". Other celebrities such as Nicki Minaj and Kendall Jenner also made an appearance at the after-party.

The Kardashian clan hit Sydney
Reality TV star, Kim Kardashian arrived in Sydney on Thursday morning with her rapper husband, Kanye West and their 14-month-old daughter, North in tow. The trio touched down in Sydney in spectacular celebrity style, being taken away in a car, which took them straight to the Park Hyatt Hotel. Kanye West is performing tonight and Saturday night at Qantas Credit Union Arena in Sydney and then he will do another show in Brisbane on Monday. Kim Kardashian will be making her only public appearance at Parramatta Westfield tomorrow to promote the Kardashian Kollection.

Nicole Kidman's father dies after fall
In breaking entertainment news tonight, Nicole and Antonia Kidman's father has died. It is believed that Dr Antony Kidman was at his daughter, Antonia's house in Singapore when he fell and later passed away. Dr Kidman was a respected psychologist, aged in his 70s. He was the Director of the UTS Health Psychology Unit and Director of the Foundation For Life Sciences at Sydney's Royal North Shore Hospital. In June this year Nicole Kidman walked the red carpet with her father at the Swisse Celebrate Life Ball in Melbourne. Dr Kidman had a very close relationship with his daughters, Antonia and Nicole, as well as their families. "The family is in shock and is grieving over the tragic news Dr Anthony Kidman has passed away" Nicole Kidman's publicist, Wendy Day said. The Kidman family was last seen together in Sydney in January for Dr Kidman and his wife, Janelle's 50th wedding anniversary.

Joan Rivers gets her fabulous send off
Joan Rivers got the fabulous funeral she wanted this week, as close friends and family paid their respects in a ceremony held at the Temple Emanu-El synagogue in New York City. There was a red carpet inside and the New York City Gay Men's Chrous sang Hey Big Spender and That's Entertainment before the funeral began. Opening prayers were led by Rabbi Joshua Davidson. Margie Stern, Cindy Adams and Ms Rivers daughter, Melissa all spoke about the late comedian. Hugh Jackman was even there to perform a musical interlude. Many of Joan Rivers close friends attended the service including Kathy Griffin, Rosie O'Donnell, Howard Stern, Judge Judy Sheindlin, Donald Trump, Sarah Jessica Parker and Whoopi Goldberg. A large crowd of fans gathered outside the synagogue to pay their final respects to Joan Rivers.

Ashley Tisdale gets hitched
High School Musical star, Ashley Tisdale wed her musician fiance', Christopher French on September 8. The actress shared a picture on Instagram saying "Best day of my life! Introducing Mr. and Mrs. French". Tisdale's High School Musical co-star and bestie, Vanessa Hudgens was a bridesmaid at the wedding. The couple officially started dating in December 2012 and they got engaged in August 2013.

Information compiled from: The Daily Telegraph and Entertainment Tonight

Got any opinions or comments on any of the entertainment news headlines this week? If, so I'd love to hear about them! Feel free to leave any comments in the comment box below.         

Movie Review: Into The Storm

Photo from: Into The Storm Facebook page

Star Rating 3/5: ★★★

I went to see Into The Storm a couple of days ago. The film is directed by Steven Quale and stars Richard Armitage, Sarah Wayne Callies, Matt Walsh, Arlen Escarpeta and Jeremy Sumpter. In general I thought it was a good movie, although I did think it took a while for the action to start. The movie is an action/natural disaster film. Of course I will not be giving too much of the plot line away for people who haven't seen it yet, but the basic plot is that in the span of a single day, the town of Silverton is ravaged by an unprecedented onslaught of tornados. Each tornado is worse than the previous and the entire town is at the mercy of the erratic and deadly cyclones.

I saw the movie in Vmax so the sound quality was amazing. The sound was so powerful sometimes that I felt a rumbling under my chair. For me personally that is a positive thing because in an action film I think people do want a great cinematic sound as it makes you feel like you are actually part of the action.

As I mentioned I thought the movie was quite slow to start off with. For the first half an hour I was thinking "where's the storm already?" The film is a little less than an hour and a half long and I think that's usually quite short for an action film so I did expect the storm itself to come in a lot earlier than it did. If there was more action at the beginning of the film I would've given it a 3.5 star rating rather than a 3, because that's what really dragged the movie down for me. I went to see the movie with my friend so I asked her for her opinion on whether she thought the movie was slow to start because I wanted someone else's take on it and she agreed with me. Once the storm hit though the movie was action packed, dramatic and suspenseful. I was literally on the edge of my seat waiting to see what would happen next! 

For a movie about a storm one would expect a lot of special effects, right? Well, the special effects in this movie definitely delivered. There were a few fire scenes, which I thought were pretty impressive and they certainly fit in well with what was going on in the film. It was great to see Jeremy Sumpter in a film, because I haven't seen him in anything for a very long time, probably since Peter Pan in 2003. I enjoyed seeing him in a movie as an adult and in a very different role. I haven't heard of any of the other lead cast members before. To be quite honest I didn't think the acting in the film was that great. Don't get me wrong it wasn't terrible, but at the same time I wouldn't say it is anything to write home about either. The actors and actresses performances in the film were pretty mediocre. 

Overall, I actually did enjoy the movie because it turned out to be very action packed, suspenseful and dramatic, despite the slow start. If you like other natural disaster films like Twister and The Day After Tomorrow you will probably enjoy this one too.

                             Into The Storm official trailer courtesy of Warner Bros. Pictures
                
If any of you have also seen Into The Storm I'd love to know what you thought of it so feel free to leave your comments in the comment box below!                                                                                              

RIP to the lovely Ms Joan Rivers!

Photo from: E! Online's Pinterest account

Hollywood has lost another one of its legends! Bad news travels fast unfortunately so I'm sure that you all know by now that America's funny woman, Joan Rivers has died at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York today. Rivers was pronounced dead at 1:17pm New York time. Complications started when she stopped breathing during a routine endoscopy and was rushed to the hospital about a week ago on August 28.

Ms Rivers paved the way for many future female comedians, breaking the glass ceiling of late night television by becoming the first woman to host her own late night talk show, The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers. Joan Rivers has always had that trailblazing wit and humour, which has made audiences around the world love her. Nothing was ever off-topic with her, she talked about everything from jokes about her single daughter, Melissa to her own sex life.

Of course Rivers was famous for giving her hilarious commentary about her fellow celebrities in Hollywood. I don't think there is one celebrity in Hollywood who Ms Rivers didn't have a dig at. Her opinions may have seemed to harsh and controversial at times but she poked fun at everyone, and a lot of the time she was the butt of her own jokes. The comments were all in good fun and there was never any malicious intent in them. As Joan Rivers herself often said "I succeeded by saying what everyone else is thinking" and that's what she did. 

The world has lost so much laughter recently, first Robin Williams and now Joan Rivers. Joan Rivers death is such a great loss to the entertainment industry. No matter what people may say about her, she is a true stalwart of entertainment. I personally loved her and her humour because it was honest and clever. I loved her recent rant about the Gaza conflict. It was brilliant! There seems to be a great comedy lineup in the heavens at the moment with Robin Williams and Joan Rivers. I hope Ms Rivers keeps 'em laughing up there as much as she did here during her lifetime! RIP Joan Rivers you amazing lady! 

Do any of you have any favourite Joan Rivers moments or quotes? If, so I'd love to hear them so feel free to leave your comments in the comment box below. I will leave you with a recent appearance of Joan Rivers on The Late Show With David Letterman from July, 2014, which I thought was quite funny. 

                                          Video from: The Late Show With David Letterman Youtube channel