Celebrities at Wimbledon

I love it when two of my favorite things come together. In this case, they are celebrities and tennis.


Here is Oscar winner (love it!) Kate Winslet with presumably her bearded director husband Sam Mendes watching Roger Federer dominate as usual in Centre Court today beating Ivo Karlovic in straight sets to reach his 21st consecutive Grand Slam semifinals. I'd like to believe Winslet was cheering for Federer.

Winslet wasn't the only celebrity to appear at Wimbledon...

Two days ago, Ewan McGregor found himself on Centre Court watching a thrilling late-night match between Andy Murray and Stan Wawrinka. Now is it fair for him to look that good just watching tennis? I say no.

Academy Adds New Members

It's been a busy week for the Academy of Motion Pictures of Arts and Sciences more commonly known as AMPAS to us Oscar freaks. The AMPAS released a few press releases this week highlighting changes to its Academy Awards. They started with a bang, choosing to increase the Best Picture nominee list from 5 to 10. They followed that up by limiting the Best Original Song category and relegating special honorees to their own black-tie dinner.

I am not a fan of any of these decisions and I don't pretend to know why they even made them. I can hypothesize that the exclusion of critical and audience-favorites WALL•E and The Dark Knight last year coupled with decreasing ratings might have something to do with the decision to increase the Best Picture nominees. And it seems pretty evident that the other two decisions were made to shorten the infamously bloated ceremony. Then again I'm one of the few that wishes it were actually longer. Despite what a lot of people think, the length of a show is immaterial. It's all about entertainment. Two hours of crap is worse than five hours of awesome entertainment.

But neither here nor there. I actually made this entry to comment on the latest release from AMPAS. Today the Academy welcomed 134 new members. They will now have the power to vote for the Academy Awards. I'm jealous. You can view the complete list by clicking on that link to the full press release, but I wanted to comment on a couple of names.

Before I get talking about the actors, I just wanted to say how refreshingly known all of the actors are to me. Usually there would be a name (or a dozen) of someone who I've never seen or even heard of, but this year I know their filmography quite well.

Thank you for hosting: Hugh Jackman. They loved his hosting so much they welcomed him in. Couldn't say I disagree with them.

First time nominees from last year: Viola Davis, Anne Hathaway, Taraji P. Henson, Melissa Leo, and Michael Shannon. Very good choices here though I do hope they all get nominated again sometime soon.

Former nominees: Casey Afleck, Amy Ryan, and Michelle Williams. What took them so long? Oh well, at least they are members now. I'm especially happy with Michelle's inclusion. Looking forward to her second nomination whenever it comes.

Really should've nominated by now: Emily Blunt, James Franco, Emile Hirsch, and James McAvoy. I can name a film (sometimes two) for which these actors should've been nominated, but they're all still young (and scorchingly hot) so methinks it's only a matter of time.

Really REALLY should've been nominated by now: Brendan Gleeson, Jeffrey Wright, and Jane Lynch. How they've never been nominated is astounding. I'm especially tickled that Jane Lynch is now a member. She's fantastic.

Really funny in a WTF kind of way: Michael Cera, Seth Rogen, and Paul Rudd. Along with Jane Lynch, comedy made a big showing. But while I agree with Lynch and even Rudd's invitation, Rogen? Really? But even then I get it. But Michael Cera?! I can't even wrap my mind around that one.

And while they are not actors...

They still love Slumdog Millionaire: Anthony Dod Mantle, Danny Boyle, Chris Dickens, A.R. Rahman, and Christian Colson. Winning Best Picture catapulted these filmmakers to an invitation. But no room for Latika? I'm half-kidding.

Wimbledon: Quarterfinal Preview

There were no big upsets in the fourth round as all of the favorites moved on. Tommy Haas, Lleyton Hewitt, and Juan Carlos Ferrero were able to continue their dream runs while Roger Federer got through a French Open final rematch with Robin Soderling to reach his 21st consecutive Grand Slam quarterfinal. But the story of the day belonged to the the roof finally closing inon Centre Court and Andy Murray defeating Stan Wawrinka in the latest-match ever held in Wimbledon in 5 sets.

Quarterfinalists

Andy Roddick [6] vs. Lleyton Hewitt
Andy Murray [3] vs. Juan Carlos Ferrero
Novak Djokovic [4] vs. Tommy Haas [24]
Roger Federer [2] vs. Ivo Karlovic [22]

There are lots of juicy pairings with these final eight players. Former Grand Slam champions Roddick and Hewitt will try to outlast one another in hopes of retaining their previous peak forms. Djokovic and Haas will have a Halle rematch in which Haas won. Murray will have to derail Ferrero's best run at Wimbledon to keep his nation's hope alive. Finally, will Federer be able to withstand Karlovic lethal serve?

Prediction: Your semifinalists will be Roddick, Murray, Haas, and Federer.

For the women, shockingly, the top four seeds are still in the tournament. Safina was able to keep her nerves in check to defeat former Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo while the Williams sisters lost a total of six games to move on. Two of those games were won by Ana Ivanovic who had to retire due to an inner leg injury leaving the court in tears. The fourth round also saw the end of American Melanie Oudin's Cinderella run.

Quarterfinalists

Dinara Safina [1] vs. Sabine Lisicki
Venus Williams [3] vs. Agnieszka Radwanska [11]
Elena Dementieva [4] vs. Francesca Schiavone
Serena Williams [2] vs. Victoria Azarenka [8]

If there's one player who can derail an all-Williams final, it would be Azarenka so Serena will have a lot to handle. Safina is actually the underdog in that match up while both Venus and Dementieva should be able to cruise their matches.

Prediction: Your semifinalists will be the top four seeds.

Wimbledon: Men's Second Week Preview

Radek Stepanek [23] vs. Lleyton Hewitt
Andy Roddick [6] vs. Tomas Berdych [20]
Andy Murray [3] vs. Stanislas Wawrinka [19]
Gilles Simon [8] vs. Juan Carlos Ferrero

Tommy Haas [24] vs. Igor Andreev [29]
Novak Djokovic [4] vs. Dudi Sela
Fernando Verdasco [7] vs. Ivo Karlovic [22]
Roger Federer [2] vs. Robin Soderling [13]

The marquee matchup of the fourth round will be a French Open final rematch between Roger Federer and Robin Soderling. It was in this same round where Soderling did the impossible, beat Rafael Nadal at the French. Can he topple the favorite once again? He did tell Federer that no man can beat him 11 straight times.

Both Andy's are to be seen as favorites in their respective matches and it is looking very good for them to meet one another in the semifinals.

There are also two veterans with a new lease in life to make it into this round. Tommy Haas backs up his resurging season by surviving yet another 5-set match to make it this far while Lleyton Hewitt takes full advantage of Nadal's absence by beating Juan Martin Del Potro to reach the second week.

Prediction: I'm going to keep my original predictions from the start of the tournament with Murray defeating Roddick and Federer defeating Haas in the semifinals en route to Federer getting his record-breaking 15th Grand Slam title.

Wimbledon: Women's Second Week Preview

Dinara Safina [1] vs. Amelie Mauresmo [17]
Caroline Wozniacki [9] vs. Sabine Lisicki
Venus Williams [3] vs. Ana Ivanovic [13]
Agnieszka Radwanska [11] vs. Melanie Oudin

Virginie Razzano [26] vs. Francesca Schiavone
Elena Dementieva [4] vs. Elena Vesnina
Victoria Azarenka [8] vs. Nadia Petrova [10]
Serena Williams [2] vs. Daniela Hantuchova

Going into the second week, all eyes are on the Williams sisters who were and still are the favorites to meet in the finals. The defending champion Venus will have to get through Ana Ivanovic while her sister Serena will meet up with Daniela Hantuchova as a rematch of their infamous match two years ago with Serena cramping on court.

Number one seed Dinara Safina has done well to reach this far, but this is admittedly her least favorite surface. She has to get through former Wimbledon champion Amelie Mauresmo if she wants to claim that maiden Slam title.

It'll be interesting to see how the battle of the Elenas turn out, but what will be more interesting to watch is how far Melanie Oudin can continue her Cinderella run at Wimbledon. Even if she is defeated by Agnieska Radwanska, it would have been a terrific tournament for her.

Prediction: I'm still betting on an all-Williams final, but their semifinal opponents which I initially predicted (Kuznetsova and Zvonareva) are out of the tournament. So instead I expect Venus to face Mauresmo while Dementieva will try to go up against Serena.

Wimbledon: Third Round Casualties

With the fourth round set to begin tomorrow, let's tally up the top 16 seeds from both draws who were not able to reach the business end of the tournament.


It was a bloody round, with 12 top 16 seeds going out. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (9) was the highest seed on the men's while French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova (5) top the women's seeds.

Another high seed Jelena Jankovic (6) was defeated by 17-year-old American Melanie Oudin. Oudin has played six matches, getting through the qualifiers and beating two seeded player. She is the first qualifier to reach the second week of Wimbledon in nearly a decade.

The other top seeds to fall were Vera Zvonareva (7), Fernando Gonzalez (10), Marin Cilic (11), Marion Bartoli (12), Nikolay Davydenko (12), Dominika Cibulkova (14), Flavia Pennetta (15), Tommy Robredo (15), and David Ferrer (16).

And isn't it ironic, dontcha think?

The last match at Center Court has finished for the first week of Wimbledon and shockingly the roof has gone unused. Oh sure, every night it's closed and every morning it's opened. But not one match has played under the multi-million dollar roof that was built to ensure matches would play even on the occassion of rain.

Yesterday, it seemd Roger Federer would have the first match under the roof, but the clouds dissipated. Similarly with threats of rain today, many thought Andy Murray would be have that honor, but the skies moved on and so did the clouds.

Will a whole fortnight go on without the roof being used? Well the latter half of next week forecasts some rain. So maybe it will be used after all.

SYTYCD: Top 16 Results

Tonight's show began with a Tabitha/Napoleon group number that were reminiscent of Havana Nights/Dirty Dancing. Nigel then spoke of the recent deaths of Ed McMahon, Farrah Fawcet, and Michael Jackson. It was gracefully handled I thought.

After a commercial break, it was back to business as Asuka/Vitolio, Karla/Jonathan, and shockingly Caitlin/Jason were put in the bottom three. Not the bottom three I would've picked, but not entirely surprising either.

A B-Boy crew full of young boys came out and thrilled the audience and enchanted Cat Deely. I actually thought it was kind of a hot mess, but it's the type of performance you can't really critique.

The bottom six dancers danced for their life and other than Caitlin, no one really impressed me. After a performance by the Veronicas, the judges pretty much agreed with me as Caitlin was the only one to get universal praise. They then pulled out the rug from under Asuka and Jonathan. I totally agree with their guy pick, but I would've sent bland Karla home instead for the girls.

Wimbledon: Second Round Seed Casualties

With nary a rain cloud in sight, the Wimbledon Championship continues to to roll on finishing up the second round today. Again most of the favorites on both sides are still alive, but there were still seeds that fell this round.


Most notable were Juan Martin Del Potro (5) who was defeated by former Wimbledon champion Lleyton Hewitt and Maria Sharapova (24) who lost in three sets to Gisela Dulko. The other seeds who fell were Jie Zheng (16), Rainer Schuettler (18), Alisa Kleybanova (27), and Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova (31).

Finally, Fabrice Santoro was also defeated. He is unseeded but since this is his last Wimbledon I thought he deserved a shout out.

SYTYCD: Top 16 Performances

This week the judges and I were in agreement for most of the night which was a complete 180 from last week. Tonight Toni Basil joined Nigel and Mary. On to the dancers...

Karla & Jonathan - They performed Hip Hop by Dave Sparks. I thought she danced great, but he looked like a white boy dancing hip hop badly. And the lack of chemistry is still there for me. The judges did not like it as well.

Asuka & Vitolio - Just one word to describe them and it is FIERCE. Seriously. Dancing a Mandy Moore Jazz number, they were just a joy to watch. The judges generally liked it.

Melissa & Ade - They were so hot I'm still fanning myself. Never having danced a Rumba, they just sizzled on the dance floor with chemistry to spare. The judges went insane over it and I couldn't agree more.

Janette & Brandon - I am not the biggest fan of this couple, but I got to admit that they were quite good dancing Hip Hop by Dave Sparks. The judges lavished them with praise, but this time it was deserved so no eye rolling from me.

Kayla & Kupono - They performaned a Viennese Waltz by Jean Marc. It was quite beautiful and elegant, but a bit forgettable. The judges came up with the same conclusion, but they did really like it.

Randi & Evan - I love Mia Michaels and I love this couple, but I'm not usually a fan of Mia's quirkier Contemporary routines and this performance didn't really change my mind. It was still beautifully dance and the judges quite liked it.

Caitlin & Jason - Jean Marc choreographed a Paso Doble for these two. And while I thought it was strong and was generally danced well, I was distratced. By the song, the costumes, and even some of the dance elements. The judges loved her and was a bit more critical of him.

Jeanine & Phillip - They danced a really fun Tyce Diorio Broadway routine. It was just okay, since I've seen better Broadway performances. I loved the feathers more than anything. The judges were quite lukewarm especially towards him.

Overall a good night. A better night at least compared to last week. I don't have an obsession yet like with a Pasha or a Benji from season's past. But Ade and Melisa keep warming up to me week after week. And I'm still rooting for Randi, Evan, and Jason as well.

Best of the Night: Melissa & Ade
Worst of the Night: Karla & Jonathan