Wilson Post Blogs

Dear Ken: Where have I seen the actress who played the kidnapped president’s daughter opposite Guy Pearce in “Lockout”?

That would be Maggie Grace, 28, a Worthington, Ohio, native, who co-starred in “Lost” as Shannon Rutherford and was Irina in “The Twilight Saga: Parts I and II.” Among her other films are “Taken,” “Knight and Day,” “The Jane Austen Book Club,” “The Fog” and “Malice in Wonderland.” Her TV movies include “Murder in Greenwich” and “Twelve Mile Road” and she was a guest on the TV shows “CSI: Miami,” “Cold Case,” “Oliver Beene” and Law & Order: SVU.” About her current flick, she says, “I like action movies, and like them to have a sort of self-conscious humor to them. And I really liked that our leading man has a sarcasm and wit about him, and he is kind of persnickety on the fly.”

Dear Ken: What has happened to Mayim Bialik, who starred in the 1990s sitcom “Blossom”?

Bialik, 36, who starred in that 1990-1995 TV series, also portrayed the young version of the Bette Midler character in the 1989 movie “Beaches.” She has since earned a Ph.D. in neuroscience, specializing in obsessive-compulsive disorder in adolescents with Prader-Willi syndrome, and returned to television as Amy Farrah Fowler in “The Big Bang Theory.” She recently appeared with Joey Lawrence in Old Navy TV commercial. The mother of two sons, 6 and 3, serves as the spokesperson for the Holistic Moms Network and just released a book, “Beyond the Sling: A Real-Life Guide to Raising Confident, Loving Children the Attachment Parenting Way.” “We need to live in a culture where people can be strong and be mothers! When a culture is so driven toward convenience, towards beauty, towards vanity, towards Me Time, towards martinis with your girlfriends. Who wouldn‘t feel like, ’Where did my life go and why am I changing diapers all day?’ When our culture doesn’t value it, we don’t,” says Bialik.

Dear Ken: What can you tell us about Henry Cavill, who will be the next Superman on film?

Cavill, who turns 29 May 5, will play Clark Kent/Superman in “Man of Steel,” set for release in June 2013. He is one of five sons born to a secretary and stockbroker on the island of Jersey in the Channel Islands between England and France. He starred as Charles Brandon on the TV series “The Tudors” from 2007 to 2010 and made his film debut in 2002’s “The Count of Monte Cristo.” Other movie credits include “Red Riding Hood,” “Hellraiser: Hellworld,” “Tristan & Isolde,” “Blood Creek,” “Immortals” and he will be in “The Cold Light of Day” this fall. Cavill was dubbed “the most unlucky man in Hollywood” after he supposedly lost the roles of Batman, an earlier Superman project, James Bond and the part of Edward in “Twilight,” plus his fans pushed him heavily for the role of Cedric Diggory in one of the “Harry Potter” films. For a fellow with such near-misses, he appears to be doing fine. He is engaged to British equestrian show jumper Ellen Whitaker.

Dear Ken: Share an update on Rae Dawn Chong, who starred in “Quest for Fire.”

Chong, 51, the daughter of comedian Tommy Chong, was born in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, and continues to work in film and on TV. She co-stars in the current film “Jeff, Who Lives at Home,” about two brothers in their 30s, one who lives in his parents’ basement and the other in the midst of a bad marriage. In the past five years, Chong appeared on “That’s so Raven” and in the TV movie “Deadly Skies.” Coming up for her is the TV movie “The Blood of Pegasus” and the feature film “Shiver.”

Dear Ken: I saw where country music star Taylor Swift was the voice of Audrey in “Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax.” Has she acted in any films? Who were some of the other actors who voiced characters in “The Lorax”?

Swift, 22, a native of Reading, Pa., was in a 2009 episode of “CSI: Crime Scene Investigation” and portrayed Felicia in the 2010 movie “Valentine’s Day.” Danny De Vito does the Lorax, while Zac Efron speaks for Ted and Betty White is Norma. Swift gave actor Efron guitar lessons, as he told the “Los Angeles Times,” “She’s a great teacher. In the past, everyone who has tried to teach me guitar starts with music theory and stuff like that. I tend to just doze off after a little while. She went straight into songs. She taught me, like, four chords, and I’m already playing all the good campfire songs.”

Dear Ken: Please tell me in what films or TV shows I have seen Rachel McAdams before she starred in “The Vow.”

McAdams, 33, a native of London, Ontario, Canada, was a figure skater as a girl and switched to acting in her teen years. She made her TV debut in 2001 in an episode of the Disney Channel’s “The Famous Jett Jackson” and co-starred in “Slings and Arrows” from 2003 to 2005. She most recently gained fame as Irene Adler in the two Sherlock Holmes films, starring Robert Downey Jr. Her other movie credits include “The Hot Chick,” “Mean Girls,” “The Notebook,” “Wedding Crashers,” “The Family Stone,” “State of Play,” “Morning Glory” and “Midnight in Paris.” The environmentalist and daughter of a truck driver and a nurse worked for three summers at McDonald’s and loves to shop for vintage clothing.

Dear Ken: What happened to Eric Fleming, who played trail boss Gil Favor on “Rawhide”?

Fleming, born Edward Heddy in Santa Paula, Calif., enlisted in the U.S. Navy during WWII and served as a Seabee in a naval construction battalion. An accident at work injured his face, thus he had to undergo extensive plastic surgery. After the war, he studied acting and found work on Broadway, in film and on TV. He was making “High Jungle,” an adventure film in Peru in 1966, when his dugout canoe flipped and he was carried away by the strong current of the Huallaga River and drowned at the age of 41. He had planned to marry his fiancé two days later. Fleming was buried on the grounds of the University of Peru in Lima, Peru. Among his movie credits were “Fright,” “Queen of Outer Space,” “Curse of the Undead” and “The Glass Bottom Boat.”

Dear Ken: Is Michael B. Jordan, one of the young stars of the sci-fi thriller “Chronicle,” the son of basketball star Michael Jordan?

Michael Bakari Jordan, 25, is not related to the hoops superstar. Michael B, who was born in Santa Anna, Calif., and grew up in Newark, N.J., was discovered at 13 by Bill Cosby and had a recurring role as Michael in “Cosby.” Most TV viewers would know him best from three roles: quarterback Vince Howard on “Friday Night Lights,” teen drug dealer Wallace on “The Wire” and Reggie Montgomery on “All My Children.” The actor, who is also in the movie “Red Tails,” was a regular on TV’s “Parenthood” and a guest on such shows as “The Sopranos,” “CSI,” “Cold Case,” “Burn Notice, “Bones” and “House.” By the way, the young Jordan’s favorite NBA basketball player is Baron Davis of the New York Nicks.

Dear Ken: I seem to remember that big band leader Kay Kyser made a few movies. Would you know their titles?

Born James Kern Kyser in Rocky Mount, N.C., the music man was at his peak in the 1930s and 1940s. He was probably most famous for his 1939-1949 radio show “Kay Kyser’s Kollege of Musical Knowledge” that was a blend of quizzes and music. Calling himself “The Ol’ Perfessor,” he created such catchphrases as “Evenin’ folks, how y’all?”, “C’mon, chillun! Le’s dance!” and “That’s right—you’re wrong.” He made seven films between 1939 and 1944: “That’s Right—You’re Wrong,” “You’ll Find Out,” “Playmates,” “My Favorite Spy,” “Swing Fever,” “Around the World” and Carolina Blues.” Kyser died in 1985 of a heart attack at 80.

Dear Ken: What can you tell us about Nolan Gould, who plays Luke on “Modern Family”?

Gould, 13, turned pro at the ripe old age of 3 making TV commercials. His film credits include “Montana,” “Space Buddies,” “Monster Heroes” and “Friends With Benefits.” He also co-starred in the Hallmark TV movie “Sweet Nothings in My Ear” and will star in the upcoming TV movie “Ghoul.” The native of Columbus, Ga., also co-stars in the 2013 flick “The To Do List.”

Dear Ken: Please share some information on Melissa McCarthy, the star of “Mike & Molly.”

McCarthy, 41, was born in Plainfield, Ill., and grew up on a farm in a large, Irish-Catholic family. Before her current role, which won her an Emmy Award last year, she played Sookie St. James on “Gilmore Girls” and was in the movies “Bridesmaids,” “Life as We Know It,” “The Nines” and “The Back-up Plan.” She and her husband, actor Ben Falcone, have two daughters, ages 4 and 1. She will star later this year in the film “This Is Forty” and is slated to make two more movies, “ID Theft” and “Tammy.” The actress, who plays a schoolteacher on the show, says she often hears from fans about how the show seems to be about real people: “I get a lot of comments that they love, that, you know, that ‘I’m a teacher’ or ‘I have a sister that is a teacher. You look like a teacher. You dress like a teacher.’ I’ve always had a thing where I hate where somebody is talking about, ‘I can’t pay the rent.‘ I’m like, ‘You have a $3,000 handbag.’ We try to just stay real to the characters. They do such a great job . . . writing this kind of great little story and luckily we get to stay true to it.”

Dear Ken: What’s the latest on pop-country star Glen Campbell?

You probably know that last June he announced that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. Campbell, 75, whose career began more than 60 years ago as a 15-year-old guitar picker, has sold millions of records including such songs as “Gentle on My Mind,” “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” “Wichita Lineman,” “Galveston” and “Rhinestone Cowboy.” He is currently on his farewell tour which will go at least through the end of June. The Delight, Ark., native will receive a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award on this year’s show on Feb. 12. He says, “I have been blessed, I really have. I really have, I figured it out that I’m not that bright, but God gave me a break.” Last fall he released his final studio album, “Ghost on the Canvas,” which is loosely based on his life. On the video of the album’s title track, Campbell can be seen performing with three of his children: Ashley, Shannon and Cal. To watch, go to www.glencampbellmusic.com.

Dear Ken: Actor Cuba Gooding Jr., who spoke that great line, “Show me the money!” to Tom Cruise in “Jerry Maguire,” what’s he been doing lately?

Gooding, 44, who was born in The Bronx, N.Y., stars as pipe-smoking Major Emanuelle Stance in the current movie “Red Tails.” Coincidentally, he starred in the 1995 TV movie “The Tuskegee Airmen,” the exact subject of “Red Tails.” Last year, the actor starred in “Ticking Clock,” “The Hit List” and “Sacrifice.” He stars this summer in the thriller “One in the Chamber.” Of his current war film, on which filmmaker George Lucas spent $58 million of his own money to produce, Gooding says, “Visually, you really feel you’re in these cockpits. Some of the dog fights in this movie really feel like the same thing that we had in ‘Star Wars.’ I think the only difference is that all of the actors in the cockpits are black, except for the Nazis, the Germans trying to shoot them out of the sky.”

Jerry Lewis hopes to go ‘Nutty’ on Broadway

Dear Ken: We heard that “The Nutty Professor” is going to Broadway. If so, when will it premiere?

Jerry Lewis, who wrote, directed and starred in the original “Nutty Professor” in 1963, has been working on a Broadway musical version for a couple of years (with a score by Marvin Hamlisch). He would love to have it on the Great White Way before the end of this year. Born Joseph Levitch in Newark, N.J., Lewis, 85, has five sons, a daughter and a son that is deceased. As for remakes, John Travolta is interested in updating Lewis’s 1965  film “The Family Jewels.”

Dear Ken: What can you tell me about Anson Mount, who stars in the new AMC western series “Hell on Wheels”?

That is Anson Mount IV, 38, who was born in White Bluff, Tenn., and graduated from Dickson County High School, playing Cullen Bohannan on the series about building a new railroad across the West. The actor’s father was an original contributing editor to “Playboy” and his mom was a pro golfer. Mount IV graduated from the University of the South: Sewanee before earning a masters degree in acting at Columbia University. His TV credits include “Third Watch,” “Line of Fire,” “The Mountain” and “Conviction.” He worked in the movies “Crossroads,” “City by the Sea” and “Straw Dogs” and stars in April in the thriller “Safe.” Before “Hell on Wheels,” he played a lot of clean-cut characters, something he grew tired of. “I was bored. And I just decided to start going for roles that I wanted to play, not the ones they wanted to see me in. I moved back to New York and let my hair grow out a little bit. I was pursuing my interest in acting instead of what other people wanted me to do,” said Mount, whose great-great-great grandfather was a Confederate cavalry colonel in the Civil War.

Dear Ken: Before Christmas I saw Donna Reed again in “It’s a Wonderful Life.” She was wonderful herself in “The Donna Reed Show” TV series but what other movies did she make?

Reed, who was born Donna Mullenger in Denison, Iowa, and died of pancreatic cancer in 1986 at age 64, made 40 films and won a best supporting actress Oscar for her role in 1953’s “From Here to Eternity.” Among her other movie credits were “The Picture of Dorian Gray,” “They Were Expendable,” “Green Dolphin Street,” “Hangman’s Knot,” “The Caddy,” “The Last Time I Saw Paris,” “The Far Horizons,” “The Benny Goodman Story” and “Ransom!” The actress raised four children with the second of her three husbands.

Dear Ken: Who were the Boogaloos? My mom calls me and my sisters that sometimes, and we don’t know what she is talking about.

I’m guessing your mom is a child of the ’70s and must be referring to “The Bugaloos,” a 1970-1972 Saturday morning TV show for kiddos. The series featured a musical quartet of four teens with British accents. The young actors had antennas and wings and could fly. Their characters were Harmony, a bumblebee; Joy, a butterfly; Courage, a ladybug; and I.Q., a grasshopper. They lived in Tranquility Forest and had an enemy in the jealous Benita Bizarre (Martha Raye). The show was produced by brothers Sid and Marty Krofft and ran for 17 episodes. Among those who tried out for the show was a young singer named Phil Collins, who now must be thankful he didn’t win a role.

Dear Ken: Please share some background on James McAvoy, who is the voice of Arthur in “Arthur Christmas.”

Scottish actor McAvoy, 32, grew up with his grandparents. His grandfather was a butcher, and McAvoy worked at a bakery as a teenager. He appeared in his first film at 15 and then studied at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. He was in an episode of “Band of Brothers” and then began working steadily in British films and TV shows. His film credits in the past seven years include “Wimbledon,” “The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe,” “The Last King of Scotland,” “Wanted,” “The Last Station” and “X-Men: First Class.” He was also the voice of Gnomeo in “Gnomeo & Juliet.”  He is married to actress Anne-Marie Duff and they have a young son. As for voicing Arthur, McAvoy says, “It was difficult to keep up such an unwavering enthusiasm and high levels of anxiety at the same time. He’s so nice. He’s unbearably nice. (Director) Sarah Smith’s note to me was, ‘Keep making him nicer! Smile more!’ I said, ‘Isn’t that going to get really annoying?’ So yes, that was quite difficult for me to make him so nice. But, I love Christmas. I never used to. I didn’t hate it, but I could take it or leave it. But, as I got to the age of 25 or 26, Christmas became quite a big deal, and I love it now. I love the food, and I love sharing time with people.”

Dear Ken: What has Dolly Parton been up to lately?

The country music superstar from Sevierville, Tenn., has a new album out, “Better Day,” and a music video of one of the singles from the album, “The Sacrifice,” is now running on TV. Parton says of her new single, “‘The Sacrifice’ is another song that is just so, totally, me. I think it’s so totally everybody that has a dream and desire to be successful, and in order to be successful we have to give up things that we’d rather not. But if we’re not willing to make that sacrifice, usually we don’t see those dreams come true.” The mastermind behind Dollywood is also in a new movie, “Joyful Noise,“ with Queen Latifah and Kris Kristofferson, that opens Jan. 13. The plot centers on an unlikely partnership between two strong-minded women who are forced to work together to save a small-town gospel choir after budget cuts threaten to shut them down. It features music, naturally, by Parton.

Dear Ken: Is the singer named Lobo, who had a hit song called “Me and You and a Dog Named Boo” in the 1970s, still performing?

That would be singer-songwriter Roland Kent LaVoie, aka Lobo, 68, who is semi-retired and living in Florida with his wife. “People don’t know me much or the way I look and that’s OK. To this day, most probably think I’m some group,” he said. Over a four-year period in the early 1970s, Lobo also had hits with his folk-country tunes “I’d Love You To Want Me,” “Where Were You When I Was Falling in Love” and “Don’t Expect Me To Be Your Friend.” As for “Me And You and a Dog Named Boo,” he really had a German shepherd named Boo. Lobo released his last album, “Out of Time,” in 2008.

Dear Ken: Whatever happened to the stars of “Laverne & Shirley”?

Well, Cindy Williams, 64, who played Shirley, will star as Mother Superior in “Nunset Boulevard: The Nunsense Hollywood Bowl Show,” which will go on a multi-city national tour next fall. She was most recently seen on Broadway in “The Drowsy Chaperone,” and the mother of two helped produced the Steve Martin “Father of the Bride” movies. She also just finished the play “The Odd Couple,” opposite Jo Anne Worley, and stars opposite John Heard in the romantic comedy, a film that has yet to be released. Penny Marshall, 69, who played Laverne, just announced she would be publishing her memoir, “My Mother Is Nuts,” next fall with Amazon Publishing. The director of such movie hits as “Big” and “A League of Their Own,” said she will share tales about her childhood and her relationship with her brother, Garry Marshall, who produced “Laverne & Shirley” and “Happy Days.” She likely will discuss her marriage to Rob Reiner and will talk about her battle with lung and brain cancer in 2009. “People have always asked me how I got from the Bronx to Hollywood, so I thought it was time to tell how it all happened. I have had many lives (not in the Shirley MacLaine sense) and you will hear about them all. . . . just don’t expect any recipes . . . I don't cook,” she wrote in a statement.  

Dear Ken: Our family favorite show is “The Closer,” and I have heard it will stop filming this year. We love to pick out who is guilty and watch the whole crew work together. How funny they are with looks, eye movements and comments between.