Daily Archives: September 20, 2011

After Monday night debut, TV critics mostly agree Kutcher ‘fit in’ pretty well on Charlie Sheen’s old CBS sitcom.
By Eric Ditzian

Jon Cryer and Ashton Kutcher on “Two and a Half Men”


Photo: CBS

In the end, not much had changed. After the tiger blood and the smack talk and the recasting and the months of speculation, the first episode of the new season of “Two and a Half Men” ended like so many had before: with a rich dude bedding two ladies while Jon Cryer’s Alan sobbed himself to sleep.

And that’s the real (and really kind of surprising) takeaway from Monday night’s premiere: nothing’s changed. Ashton Kutcher may have joined the cast, but the same collection of writers is still churning out jokes about threesomes, venereal diseases and flatulence. This sort of stuff, delivered in the guise of family-oriented primetime entertainment, either tickles your funny bone or it does not. Charlie Sheen’s absence, as strange as it is to say and as large as his character’s death loomed during the premiere, is almost beside the point.

And that made Kutcher’s job all the easier as he slipped seamlessly into the familiar sitcom yuks. The morning after, TV critics are largely in agreement: The guy did pretty well. He hasn’t remade the show in his own outsize image, but that surely was never creator Chuck Lorre’s intention. Instead, Kutcher’s debut assured the pop-culture universe that “Two and a Half Men” will continue to thrive (the premiere drew an astonishing 27.7 million viewers). Whether that’s a good thing or not, though, is a question on which not everyone agrees.

The Character
“Kutcher’s new character, Walden Schmidt, seems like a carefully drawn alternate universe caricature of Charlie Harper. Foremost that beard — something Charlie would never have had. The klutzy gentle persona. The utter cluelessness, about women or other people’s motives. He stumbles into good fortune without even knowing — his billion; the women at the bar who were charmed by his destitution and loyalty to his ex. Mostly, he appears loyal to one woman — the woman who ditched him (played a bit later by Judy Greer.)” — Verne Day, Newsday

The Comparison

“Kutcher’s performance was good, nearly as poker-faced fine as Sheen’s was. (Beware of the impending revisionism that Kutcher is superior to Sheen as a comic actor — Sheen really had a knack for this gig, and was a generous reactor to Cryer. Kutcher will probably prove just as skilled.)” — Ken Tucker, Entertainment Weekly

The Long-Term
“Is there as much humor to be mined from a goofy, well-endowed billionaire as there was from a not-as-wealthy jingle writer who seemed to satisfy women just as easily? Early indicators suggest no, seeing as the sitcom already and quickly played the ‘Look, He Accidentally Bedded Two Hotties At Once While Alan Lay Weeping and [BLEEP]ing’ card.” — Matt Webb Mitovich, TVLine.com

The Final Word
“Kutcher showed for years on ‘That ’70s Show’ that the multi-camera sitcom format is an arena he can thrive in, and he seemed fine in his half of the episode. He’s not going to transform ‘Men’ into a show I want to watch, but he fit in very well.” — Alan Sepinwall, HitFix.com

Did you catch Ashton’s “Two and a Half Men” debut? Tell us what you thought in the comments section!

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Singer says ‘it got bloody’ when he was attacked by a group of young men last month in New York City.
By Vaughn Trudeau Schoonmaker

Gavin DeGraw


Photo: MTV News

Getting ready for the release of his fourth studio album, Sweeter, singer Gavin DeGraw dropped by MTV News’ studios to discuss his excitement for the album, his upcoming tour with “American Idol” alum David Cook, and, of course, to give us the full story behind the unfortunate “incident” that landed the singer in the emergency room last month.

“I’m so excited about touring for this record,” Gavin said, bursting with excitement. “I think that the music on this record is going to make for a really exciting show.”

The always-smiling soul/rock singer of smash hits like “I Don’t Want to Be,” “Chariot” and “In Love With a Girl” is excited to bring together all of his music for one epic show when he hits the road with Cook this fall.

Judging by his hearty laughter and great enthusiasm for his new material, you’d never guess that the soulful rock singer had recently taken a severe beating by a group of unidentified men in New York City’s East Village late one summer night.

Gavin had a night off in New York City while touring with Maroon 5 and Train and decided to spend it with a few friends at the National Underground, a New York City bar he co-owns with his brother.

“I had a few drinks, and I put them in a cab,” Gavin recalled. “Typically, when I’m at that place, I’ll walk home afterwards. I walk a few blocks, and then I cross paths with some people who had something to say to me.

Gavin explained that is where details became hazy and “it got bloody.”

When the attackers fled, Gavin was left to get himself to the emergency room, but the misfortune didn’t end there.”

“I ended up having to go to the hospital in an ambulance,” Gavin said. “What they think is either I got hit by a cab or I went over and grabbed the handle of the cab to get in and this guy just saw some bloody dude trying to get into his car and hit the gas, which knocked me off into the sidewalk.”

Despite the terrible night, Gavin remains very positive about his relationship with his family, friends, fans and New York City itself.

“I happened to have a rough night in New York,” Gavin said in defense of the city that never sleeps. “But the whole night wasn’t rough. Actually for the most part, the night was amazing. I just had a rough couple of minutes at the end of it.”

Gavin likened the poor circumstances of that night to gambling. “If New York was a casino, the odds are pretty good. I’ve had thousands of great nights out in New York, and I lost at the roulette wheel one night, but I usually win big money.”

Gavin had a word of advice for people who know someone who finds him- or herself in similar circumstances: “If something does happen to a friend of theirs or a loved one, it does go a long way when you just even send a text message out to somebody. Just the distraction of having someone reach out to you is actually pleasant.”

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Song title became a Twitter trend following Rihanna’s announcement.
By Jocelyn Vena

Rihanna


Photo: Pascal Le Segretain/ Getty Images

Rihanna was looking for love and it seems she found it, on her next single at least. As she gears up for the release of her sixth album later this year, the Loud singer has released the name of her next single.

On Monday, Rihanna confirmed the name of the first single off her forthcoming album, tweeting, “NP: “WE FOUND LOVE.” Soon after she announced the name of the song, it became a Twitter trend, to which the singer responded, “We in dis bitch! … ‘We Found Love’ is trending WORLDWIDE…!”

A rep for the singer confirmed to Rapup.com that the Calvin Harris-produced song will hit radio on October 11. Harris toured with Rihanna on a leg of her Loud outing earlier this summer. “Calvin is the perfect fit for the Loud tour. He is going to bring something unique and fun for the fans,” Rihanna said at the time, according to JustJared.com.

Last week, Rihanna announced that her “GangstaR”-fied next album would be heavily influenced by club music, sharing on Twitter, “You KNOW how I been lovin Dubstep since Rated R.”

Collaborators for the forthcoming project began dishing details on the LP months ago. Back in July, producer Verse Simmonds, who worked on Rihanna’s reggae-infused hit “Man Down,” talked to MTV News’ Mixtape Daily about the album’s progress.

“From what I understand, she’s closing the album up now, and we did two records for her that she really, really loved, and I’m really excited about them as well,” Simmonds said. “They are records that we wrote and produced as the Jugganauts.” Simmonds admitted that he was “99.999 percent” sure that his Jugganauts’ contributions will make the final cut, adding that his tunes on the LP will not sound similar to “Man Down.”

But Rihanna isn’t keeping all the magic to herself. She’s also set to appear on Coldplay’s next album, Mylo Xyloto, on the track “Princess of China.” “Well, her bit on our record is my favorite bit … when the song came out, it sort of asked for her to be on it. And I think at this point, we have nothing to lose, and so we’ve been trying some new things and trying to break down the perceived boundaries between different types of music,” Chris Martin explained. “Because from where we’re sitting, it seems like you can try and sound any way you like nowadays. You don’t have to be in a rock box or a hip-hop box or a pop box, and I think it’s fun when you embrace that idea.”

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Policy requiring gay and lesbian service members to keep their orientation secret was officially repealed Tuesday.
By Gil Kaufman

Photo: Sandy Huffaker/Getty Images

It took a little longer than planned, but Tuesday (September 20) marks the official end of the U.S. military’s controversial “don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. The 1993 law that allowed gays and lesbians to serve in the armed forces as long as they kept their orientation secret officially went off the books as of 12:01 a.m. EDT, putting an end to a rule that drew fire from scores of gay activists and supporters over the years, including Lady Gaga and Katy Perry.

While some in Congress have said they oppose the ruling, CBS News reported that top leaders in the Pentagon have expressed confidence that the change will not undermine the military’s ability to recruit or fight wars and will not have a negative impact on troop morale. “The law is repealed,” the Army announced plainly in a statement, which included a reminder to soldiers to treat each other fairly and with respect.

The White House sent out an official tweet with the news as well, which read, “As of 12:01 a.m., the repeal of the discriminatory law known as ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ finally & formally takes effect.” As of last week, the Pentagon said 97 percent of the military had already undergone training under the new law and the armed services have been accepting applications from openly gay recruits for weeks.

Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton celebrated with a tweet early Tuesday morning, writing, “R.I.P. #DADT. And good riddance!”

Gaga, who arrived at the 2010 MTV VMAs with openly gay service members who had been discharged or left the military due to the policy, made viral videos and spoke at a September 2010 rally calling for the end of DADT, tweeted her emotional reaction to the repeal last year.

“Can’t hold back the tears+pride. We did it! Our voice was heard + today the Senate REPEALED DADT. A triumph for equality after 17 YEARS,” she wrote back on December 18 when the Senate voted to officially repeal the measure.

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Can the album that changed everything change it again? Bigger Than the Sound looks back.
By James Montgomery

Kurt Cobain


Photo: Frank Micelotta/Getty Images

Here’s an abbreviated list of everything that’s happened in my life in the 20 years since Nirvana‘s Nevermind was released: graduated middle school, started wearing thrift-store corduroys, got my learner’s permit, lost my virginity, got my driver’s license, got in several accidents, named All-County keeper in the Central Florida High School Lacrosse League (two times), graduated high school, started smoking clove cigarettes, had an ill-fated long-distance relationship and an even iller-fated run in a community-college film program, moved out to attend “real college,” spent six years doing anything but, slept on a futon in Burbank, attempted to use a 9/11 to reconnect with my ex-girlfriend, experienced shame from that attempt, moved to New York City, had dark times (aside from the Red Sox ’04 and ’07 World Series wins), met a girl, fell in love, got engaged in Reykjavik, got married in Dublin, recently discovered small black hairs growing on my earlobes.

Of course, reading back over all that, none of it makes me feel nearly as old as the fact that, on Saturday, Nevermind will officially turn 20. Because as a kid who was alive and kicking during that era when all of a sudden “Smells Like Teen Spirit” was everywhere and Nirvana were the biggest thing in the world (or at least the suburbs), I can tell you that it seemed impossible that this music would ever age; mostly because everything about it seemed so of the moment, so important, so young.

That was, in part, due to everything Kurt Cobain was (unwillingly) on his way to becoming: an outsider icon, a generational symbol, maybe even a musical messiah. Like I wrote a few years back, on the 15th anniversary of Cobain’s death, he represented truth and the honor that came with never compromising. He had made it on his terms, and he was going to lift us all up with him. That’s the kind of stuff you believe in when you’re too young to know better.

Mostly, it was because Nevermind ripped up the mainstream and instantaneously made everything else out there seem pass Continue reading →