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American Morning
90-Second Pop, Culture Watch
Aired August 14, 2003 - 07:51 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: It's called "90-Second Pop." If you haven't seen it, well, don't go anywhere. We are looking at three pop culture topics, spending 90 seconds on each.
And here are our fast-talking panelists. We have B.J. Sigesmund, entertainment reporter for "Newsweek," Thelma Adams, she is the film critic for "US Weekly," and Tom O'Neil, senior editor for "In Touch Weekly."
Panelists, good morning.
THELMA ADAMS, "US WEEKLY": Good morning.
B.J. SIGESMUND, "NEWSWEEK": Good morning.
TOM O'NEIL, "IN TOUCH WEEKLY": Good morning.
KAGAN: Let's roll up our sleeves and get right to it and pick on poor Kevin Costner.
And, Thelma, you are going to be up with this. He has done it again. He has done a Kevin Costner type of project where he does everything, even sweep the floors at night.
ADAMS: Oops.
KAGAN: Yes.
ADAMS: He's done it again. He produced, directs and stars in "Open Range," which is yet another western. And it's just so earnest, you know. And he's trying for realism, and that means in Kevin Costner's world that he shows his bald spot.
KAGAN: Oh, I liked it better when he showed his you know what in "Dances With Wolves." That would have been a better idea.
(CROSSTALK)
ADAMS: He doesn't do that. This is the problem: It looks beautiful. It's just so earnest and dull. You really want him as a star. He works as a star. That's why he continues to get movies. He was great in "Thirteen Days." He was great in "Untouchables" -- a long list -- "Bull Durham" are things he was great in. He's great in somebody else's hands. He has to learn he's an actor, not a thinker.
KAGAN: Ah! SIGESMUND: How long, though, does Kevin Costner need to disappear from the pop culture landscape for people to actually like him again? I mean, he has been gone for years, and he comes back with this one movie and everyone has got their, you know, knives out, ready to...
(CROSSTALK)
O'NEIL: I don't think that's the problem. I think the problem is he's one more of those studly stars in Hollywood, who, when he decided to direct, got an Oscar and an overblown reputation.
ADAMS: Right.
O'NEIL: Let's be honest. "The New York Times" was right, "Dances With Wolves" should have been called "plays with a cameras." It was not a great movie, and now that's all catching up to him.
KAGAN: OK, too much, too soon. We move on to our next 90- second topic, and that is Madonna, who has reinvented herself yet again -- this time as an author of children's books.
SIGESMUND: Right.
KAGAN: B.J.
SIGESMUND: "The English Roses" is the name of the book. She wrote it because she was reading books to her kids and she just couldn't find anything out there that really resonated for her.
ADAMS: Oh, this is so sad!
SIGESMUND: She didn't think there were any good children's books.
ADMAS: She didn't go to Barnes & Nobles!
(CROSSTALK)
SIGESMUND: I know. Right, right. So, she did write one. Actually she's going to write five altogether. The first one is coming out in a month.
KAGAN: But there is a twist with this book.
SIGESMUND: Well, the twist is that -- if this is what you're referring to -- that it's very influenced by the Kabbalah. And after seven years of hearing Madonna talk about the Kabbalah, we're going to finally see what she likes so much about it.
(CROSSTALK)
KAGAN: So, we're talking about a form of Jewish mysticism for people...
SIGESMUND: Right. KAGAN: ... who are not as in touch with that world.
ADAMS: Don't you think it's weird that they always talk about it's influenced by the Kabbalah, but they never say how or why?
SIGESMUND: Right, right.
ADAMS: You know, there is never, like, an example.
SIGESMUND: Well, now we're going to get one. I mean, I think 99.9 percent of this country has no idea what the Kabbalah is about, and a few more people than that are going to read the book and see -- you know, get a little hint of what the Kabbalah is talking about.
KAGAN: And like little followers -- little kiddie followers of the Kabbalah all around America.
SIGESMUND: Yes, yes.
ADAMS: Little kiddie mystics.
KAGAN: Exactly. It will be. And Madonna will have started the trend.
All right, moving on, we want to go to a place that nobody has heard before, and we've asked each of you to come up with a pop item that you're hearing it here first on AMERICAN MORNING. And, Tom, you're starting first with that.
O'NEIL: OK. I think it can be confirmed that the rumor that Nicole Kidman is in love is real. She has been rumored to be together with everybody from Q-Tip to Jude Law, but that Lenny Kravitz stuff looks real. She's been renting his apartment down in Tribeca (ph) for $40,000 a month. It looks like the landlord comes with the deal. She has been shopping with him at Bergdorf. They have been holding hands at Lot 66. They have been at P. Diddy's parties together. And this is the first time it looks like the real thing.
We have an article coming out Friday in "In Touch Weekly" that you can read all about it. But you've got to wonder, she is the epitome of elegance and class. And let's be honest, Lenny is the opposite.
KAGAN: Yes.
ADAMS: I don't -- I'm skeptical. The fact that she is paying $40,000 a month to rent his apartment, first, does not sound like love to me.
O'NEIL: But that's how they met. Actually that was the common...
KAGAN: But a good point from a lady's perspective. You know, those Hollywood women, they like the rockers. That is the hot thing.
ADAMS: That's the thing. Gwyneth, Winona... KAGAN: Yes.
ADAMS: ... everybody now.
KAGAN: What do you have for your pop item, Thelma?
ADAMS: Well, it's the doldrums of movies. We know this -- "Open Range." Coming up is a little moving called "Thirteen" about what it's really like to be a 13-year-old in L.A. And I think people are going to talk about it because it shows all of these 13-year-olds doing these things that adults do. You know, they're taking drugs, they're piecing their body, they're doing like, you know, abhorrent sex. And what's weird is...
KAGAN: For the record, I was a 13-year-old in L.A., and I didn't do any of that.
ADAMS: I know, exactly!
KAGAN: It wasn't nearly that interesting.
ADAMS: I mean, I think that's what makes it controversial. I think that's what makes it exploitative, is that people are going to go, oh, my God! Are kids really like that? The fact is, no, they're not. This is really, like, adults showing the worst case and getting freaked out.
KAGAN: OK. And, B.J., you get the last item here.
SIGESMUND: Yes. Well, I'm going to talk about some other kids in L.A. that are very -- they're going to be very hot, I think -- that is the stars of "The OC," the new show on FOX that is basically a "90210" for the 2000s. This is a show that has teen sex, it has, you know, all sorts of drug use, it has all sorts of crazy behavior. But it sort of plays with the genre, too, of this, you know, juvenile delinquent enters a suburban family in "The OC" and instead of being an adversary with the brother in the family, he becomes very good friends with him.
KAGAN: Yes, and...
SIGESMUND: And they show a lot of the class conflict in "The OC," which is something that, you know, you never saw on "90210."
KAGAN: And we'll be watching for it.
SIGESMUND: So, I think it's going to pick up.
KAGAN: Thank you for the tips. Panelists, we appreciate all of the insight this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
Aired August 14, 2003 - 07:51 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: It's called "90-Second Pop." If you haven't seen it, well, don't go anywhere. We are looking at three pop culture topics, spending 90 seconds on each.
And here are our fast-talking panelists. We have B.J. Sigesmund, entertainment reporter for "Newsweek," Thelma Adams, she is the film critic for "US Weekly," and Tom O'Neil, senior editor for "In Touch Weekly."
Panelists, good morning.
THELMA ADAMS, "US WEEKLY": Good morning.
B.J. SIGESMUND, "NEWSWEEK": Good morning.
TOM O'NEIL, "IN TOUCH WEEKLY": Good morning.
KAGAN: Let's roll up our sleeves and get right to it and pick on poor Kevin Costner.
And, Thelma, you are going to be up with this. He has done it again. He has done a Kevin Costner type of project where he does everything, even sweep the floors at night.
ADAMS: Oops.
KAGAN: Yes.
ADAMS: He's done it again. He produced, directs and stars in "Open Range," which is yet another western. And it's just so earnest, you know. And he's trying for realism, and that means in Kevin Costner's world that he shows his bald spot.
KAGAN: Oh, I liked it better when he showed his you know what in "Dances With Wolves." That would have been a better idea.
(CROSSTALK)
ADAMS: He doesn't do that. This is the problem: It looks beautiful. It's just so earnest and dull. You really want him as a star. He works as a star. That's why he continues to get movies. He was great in "Thirteen Days." He was great in "Untouchables" -- a long list -- "Bull Durham" are things he was great in. He's great in somebody else's hands. He has to learn he's an actor, not a thinker.
KAGAN: Ah! SIGESMUND: How long, though, does Kevin Costner need to disappear from the pop culture landscape for people to actually like him again? I mean, he has been gone for years, and he comes back with this one movie and everyone has got their, you know, knives out, ready to...
(CROSSTALK)
O'NEIL: I don't think that's the problem. I think the problem is he's one more of those studly stars in Hollywood, who, when he decided to direct, got an Oscar and an overblown reputation.
ADAMS: Right.
O'NEIL: Let's be honest. "The New York Times" was right, "Dances With Wolves" should have been called "plays with a cameras." It was not a great movie, and now that's all catching up to him.
KAGAN: OK, too much, too soon. We move on to our next 90- second topic, and that is Madonna, who has reinvented herself yet again -- this time as an author of children's books.
SIGESMUND: Right.
KAGAN: B.J.
SIGESMUND: "The English Roses" is the name of the book. She wrote it because she was reading books to her kids and she just couldn't find anything out there that really resonated for her.
ADAMS: Oh, this is so sad!
SIGESMUND: She didn't think there were any good children's books.
ADMAS: She didn't go to Barnes & Nobles!
(CROSSTALK)
SIGESMUND: I know. Right, right. So, she did write one. Actually she's going to write five altogether. The first one is coming out in a month.
KAGAN: But there is a twist with this book.
SIGESMUND: Well, the twist is that -- if this is what you're referring to -- that it's very influenced by the Kabbalah. And after seven years of hearing Madonna talk about the Kabbalah, we're going to finally see what she likes so much about it.
(CROSSTALK)
KAGAN: So, we're talking about a form of Jewish mysticism for people...
SIGESMUND: Right. KAGAN: ... who are not as in touch with that world.
ADAMS: Don't you think it's weird that they always talk about it's influenced by the Kabbalah, but they never say how or why?
SIGESMUND: Right, right.
ADAMS: You know, there is never, like, an example.
SIGESMUND: Well, now we're going to get one. I mean, I think 99.9 percent of this country has no idea what the Kabbalah is about, and a few more people than that are going to read the book and see -- you know, get a little hint of what the Kabbalah is talking about.
KAGAN: And like little followers -- little kiddie followers of the Kabbalah all around America.
SIGESMUND: Yes, yes.
ADAMS: Little kiddie mystics.
KAGAN: Exactly. It will be. And Madonna will have started the trend.
All right, moving on, we want to go to a place that nobody has heard before, and we've asked each of you to come up with a pop item that you're hearing it here first on AMERICAN MORNING. And, Tom, you're starting first with that.
O'NEIL: OK. I think it can be confirmed that the rumor that Nicole Kidman is in love is real. She has been rumored to be together with everybody from Q-Tip to Jude Law, but that Lenny Kravitz stuff looks real. She's been renting his apartment down in Tribeca (ph) for $40,000 a month. It looks like the landlord comes with the deal. She has been shopping with him at Bergdorf. They have been holding hands at Lot 66. They have been at P. Diddy's parties together. And this is the first time it looks like the real thing.
We have an article coming out Friday in "In Touch Weekly" that you can read all about it. But you've got to wonder, she is the epitome of elegance and class. And let's be honest, Lenny is the opposite.
KAGAN: Yes.
ADAMS: I don't -- I'm skeptical. The fact that she is paying $40,000 a month to rent his apartment, first, does not sound like love to me.
O'NEIL: But that's how they met. Actually that was the common...
KAGAN: But a good point from a lady's perspective. You know, those Hollywood women, they like the rockers. That is the hot thing.
ADAMS: That's the thing. Gwyneth, Winona... KAGAN: Yes.
ADAMS: ... everybody now.
KAGAN: What do you have for your pop item, Thelma?
ADAMS: Well, it's the doldrums of movies. We know this -- "Open Range." Coming up is a little moving called "Thirteen" about what it's really like to be a 13-year-old in L.A. And I think people are going to talk about it because it shows all of these 13-year-olds doing these things that adults do. You know, they're taking drugs, they're piecing their body, they're doing like, you know, abhorrent sex. And what's weird is...
KAGAN: For the record, I was a 13-year-old in L.A., and I didn't do any of that.
ADAMS: I know, exactly!
KAGAN: It wasn't nearly that interesting.
ADAMS: I mean, I think that's what makes it controversial. I think that's what makes it exploitative, is that people are going to go, oh, my God! Are kids really like that? The fact is, no, they're not. This is really, like, adults showing the worst case and getting freaked out.
KAGAN: OK. And, B.J., you get the last item here.
SIGESMUND: Yes. Well, I'm going to talk about some other kids in L.A. that are very -- they're going to be very hot, I think -- that is the stars of "The OC," the new show on FOX that is basically a "90210" for the 2000s. This is a show that has teen sex, it has, you know, all sorts of drug use, it has all sorts of crazy behavior. But it sort of plays with the genre, too, of this, you know, juvenile delinquent enters a suburban family in "The OC" and instead of being an adversary with the brother in the family, he becomes very good friends with him.
KAGAN: Yes, and...
SIGESMUND: And they show a lot of the class conflict in "The OC," which is something that, you know, you never saw on "90210."
KAGAN: And we'll be watching for it.
SIGESMUND: So, I think it's going to pick up.
KAGAN: Thank you for the tips. Panelists, we appreciate all of the insight this morning.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
