IAWTV Awards-We Won!

Wow.  I just spent a whirlwind 36 hours criss-crossing the US to make it to the IAWTV Awards.  As I had mentioned during the nomination process, everything was an incredible surprise.  Thursday night was an even bigger surprise with 2 wins for Best Hosted Web Series (Taped) and for Best Host in a Taped Web Series.  I had not prepared a speech.  Seriously.  I just didn't think this was our year, so when I heard my name called, my knees buckled, and it took everything in me to climb three stairs to get to the stage.  I didn't remember a thing I said, so I went back and watched a replay of the live feed.  Okay, I sounded relatively coherent.  (See my section beginning at 1:47:11)

Team Web Files:  me, Perry Payne, Sandra Payne, Jenn Bobiwash

What was important to me was the show win.  Four out of five of The Web Files crew was in attendance, so it was a wonderful way to celebrate together.  Without the creative minds of Sandra Payne, Perry Payne, Jenn Bobiwash, and Melissa Anchondo, the show would have never happened.  It has been such an honor to work with them and perhaps you will see another episode in 2012.....stay tuned.  I had such a wonderful time in Vegas catching up with my web TV peers and enjoying the sunshine since I have been working in gray Detroit.  I just felt happy all day.  It was such a win for me to be there to attend the show, so the results of the show were more than I could ever ask for.  Thank you to everyone who made my day special, it means more to me than you will ever know.

Finally, a huge "Congratulations" to the IAWTV organization and the Awards Committee for putting on a show that the web community deserves.  I hope you all enjoyed a cocktail or two....you earned it!

 Being interviewed for CraveOnline.com

 One of my favorite photos of the night:  with Brian Rodda.

 I giggled when I saw someone in the forums was looking for a "wardrobe malfunction".  Silly rabbit, if you knew me better, you would know I tape everything down before I hit the red carpet. 

 I love these black and white shots by Kent Nichols.

 Always be photo bombing.  Me and the foxy Rick Fox with Misty Kingma.

 Tamara Krinsky (my buddy from Stagedoor Manor!), Mark Friedlander, me, and Kevin Winston. 

 My Red Carpet Report cohort, Misty Kingma.

Hamming it up on the blue carpet with Red Carpet Report's JD Piche. 

Team KB in full force at IAWTV Awards:  Melanie Marquez of M4PR was a red carpet ninja on Thursday night.  

I've interviewed her, now she's interviewed me.  Paula Rhodes takes over my role on the red carpet.  Nice work, lady! 

Photos courtesy of Mingle Media TV, Brenda White, Jenn Page, Kent Nichols, Indie Intertube, and Digital Hollywood.  They may not be used without my permission.  

Santa Catalina Film Festival

This is the week of last minute surprises.  Earlier in the week, I was asked to moderate a panel at the Digital Hollywood Content Summit sponsored by SAG New Media on "Commerce and Communication".  I had literally just stepped off of the plane from two weeks in NY, when I got the call.  Even though I was ready for a day off, I couldn't say "no" when SAG New Media called because the panel was on a strong topic and filled with people I know and respect.  While the panel was going on, I received a text asking if I could fill in and sit on a panel about  "Social Media Behaving Badly:  Campaigns That Miss The Mark" at the Santa Catalina Film Festival on Sunday.

The Digital Hollywood Content Summit Panel sponsored by SAG New Media.  

I haven't been to Catalina in about a decade, but it is a small scenic island off of the coast of Southern California.  You get to take a ferry in and most of the island is filled with golf carts versus cars.  It's charming and lovely, so I cannot wait to enjoy the day in Catalina and share the photos with you on Monday.  If you happen to be in the Southern California area and are looking for a great excursion for the weekend, check out the Santa Catalina Film Festival and the panel information here.

Thank you to Canyon Prince and Hayden Black for making my panel appearance at the film festival possible.  I appreciate it.

Pre-panel pose at Digital Hollywood with ElfQuest producers, Paula Rhodes and Stephanie Thorpe.

Now, share your big plans for the weekend!

Photo 2:  Courtesy of SAG New Media
Photo 3:  Courtesy of Stephanie Thorpe

Digital Hollywood Content Summit

Well, that was fast.  I was going to take a few days off after my 22 non-stop days of work, but I got a call (okay, a Tweet) from SAG New Media inviting me to moderate a panel for Digital Hollywood Content Summit today.  The talented panel includes producers, actors, and creators from the New Media space who are going to share their experiences on "Actors, Social Media, and Celebrity:  Communications and Commerce".  I know all four of the panelists on a personal and professional level and this will definitely be a good opportunity to learn from the movers and shakers in the industry.  All of the information for the Digital Hollywood Content Summit panel is here.

Hope to see you there!

On the panel, Paula Rhodes and Stephanie Thorpe. You may remember Paula (photo above) and Stephanie (photo below) from my Live streaming coverage of ElfQuest.  If you missed it, you can find the photos, panel, trailer, articles, and red carpet coverage here and here.

Wrapping up An Elf-filled Week

Ah, my post comes a bit late as I have a bit of an event week hangover.  Not a real hangover from delicious cocktails, but from a week filled with excitement and dreams. I don't know where to begin, so I will just bullet point all of the fun things that happened.

1.  I started the week with my official investment in the Broadway revival of Godspell coming in the 2011-2012 season.  You can read all about it here.

Photo courtesy of Nicholas Sayaan.  Me and Roni B.

2.  LA Premiere Shorts:  It was a blast supporting my pal, Roni B, in her film debut!  Her store was used as a part of the film, Brownie Points, so it was the perfect backdrop for the cute romantic comedy.

Photo courtesy of Robert Welkner, Coin-Op.TV.  Me with Richard and Wendy Pini

3.  ElfQuest:  I was thrilled to be asked by SAG New Media to host the live stream for the red carpet for the premiere of the ElfQuest fan trailer.  It was exciting to meet the creators of the original ElfQuest series,  Richard and Wendy Pini, but what made it even better was watching my friends, Stephanie Thorpe and Paula Rhodes, turn their dreams into reality.  There has been an incredible amount of press surrounding the fan trailer, so here are a few links to take a look at if you are an ElfQuest fan:

The Fan Trailer

Live Stream Red Carpet/Q&A

SAG New Media article

Mingle Media TV-photos

Robert Welkner/Coin-Op.tv-photos

Eddie Carrington AKA Brigwyn article

Interview with Stephanie Thorpe and Paula Rhodes:


4.  I love it when something I cover resonates with fans, so I was pleased to see that my interview with Chandler Massey at the GBK gifting suite was a hit with Days of Our Lives fans on AfterElton.com.  Check out the article here.

5.  Finally, many thanks to my friend, Leah Cevoli, for including me in her series, On the Road with Leah Cevoli. I make a little cameo at about 2:53 and yes, this cameo was done on the fly which means no hair and makeup!  You will see it does take a village to put me together.

Phew.  I think that is it for this weekend.  I have a crazy few weeks coming up with NAB, Toyota Long Beach Grand Prix, and our last Toyota Live run for the season.  I promise it won't be boring.  Have a great weekend and I will see you on Monday at Red Carpet Closet!

Elfquest: A Fan Imagining

Photo courtesy of RadNerd.

If you've never heard of Elfquest, you will soon.  Whether it is tonight's world premiere of Paula Rhodes and Stephanie Thorpe's 5-minute trailer or the possible Warner Brother's production brought to the big screen, this won't be the last time you hear about Wendy and Richard Pini's cult comic book classic.  Tonight, I have the opportunity to host the live stream of the red carpet and then moderate the Q&A after the premiere.  Please join me for all the excitement over at SAG New Media's Stickam page at 6:45PM PST.

Live Stream Link on Stickam.

About Elfquest.

About the Elfquest Fan Trailer.

Here's a sneak peak of tonight's premiere:

Top 5 Absurd Searches in February

I didn't have a chance to do this earlier in the month, but it is one of my favorite monthly posts.  What were people searching for at Red Carpet Closet in February?  Well, the usual absurd, wacky, and downright interesting searches were done all over the world wide web and they stopped here.  Thanks for coming by, your searches sure were unusual, and I will offer up a few links to help you find what you were looking for.

1. "Joan Rivers, Gay Swiffer":  Yes, after the SAG Awards, Joan Rivers did call someone a "gay swiffer".  That someone would be Angie Harmon.  Now, don't ever double cross Angie's fans.  They are called "twangles" and they have a lot of bite.  They love their Angie!  Read more about the "gay swiffer".

2. "Is Sandeep Parikh single?": I think my site is turning into a dating service since some of you were wondering about Charlie Bodin and Paula Rhodes of A Good Knight's Quest a few months ago. Well, I don't know if Sandeep is dating someone.  Let's ask....Sandeep, pipe in here!  If you want to know more about Sandeep Parikh, here is my interview with him about The Legend of Neil.  UPDATE:  Yep, he's single.  Ladies, line on up!

3. "Tuned out after Oscars F-bomb":  Okay, I understand, The 83rd Annual Academy Awards weren't the Oscars of your dreams.  Did the Melissa Leo F-bomb make you tune out?  The hosts?  The predictability of the show/awards?  Well, spice it up and read my behind the scenes take from the interview room at the show.

4.  "Where did Olga Kay get her gun dress?":  I love Olga Kay fans.  Each month they search for something new about their favorite YouTube star:  "Something serious in Olga Kay's life right now", "Olga Kay sneakers", "How tall is Olga Kay?".  Olga is awesome, learn more about her from my interview with her here.   We have an answer: BETSEY JOHNSON.  Thanks, Olga!

5. "Will the Oscars bleachers seats be cold this weekend?":  Geez, let me look into my crystal ball or direct you to The Weather Channel.  It was cold on the red carpet this year, so I hope you bundled up!  See my red carpet interviews from the Oscars or find out how you can register for the bleachers seat lottery for 2012.

Keep those searches coming because I already know March is going to be a good one with key words like "Is there a Mary Poppins bathroom at Disneyland?"  See you tomorrow at Red Carpet Closet!

January Wrap-Up

View from the back of Angie Harmon's Monique Lhuillier dress. Photo from Go Fug Yourself.

I don't think I ever gave much thought to Angie Harmon, but apparently, many others do.  In fact, she has her own fan club on Twitter called the Twangels.  I am not making this stuff up, kids.  They came out in full force emailing me, commenting on the blog, and Tweeting me about how I was wrong about the dress.  I figured the two final judges on fashion, Go Fug Yourself and Joan Rivers from E!'s Fashion Police, would be the final word as to whether I was completely wrong or whether my comments had a bit of validity to them.  Joan called the dress a "gay Swiffer" and the Fug Girls?  Well, they said it was "Fug, not Fab".  The bottom line, it's just an opinion and I really think Angie felt beautiful because she was beaming in all of her red carpet photos.  At the end of the day, that's all that really matters, isn't it?

Now that we have reached the end of the month.  Here are the absurd searches that drew many readers to Red Carpet Closet.  I love these because some are so wacky and I always wonder how Google's algorithm determines that they should stop here.

1.  "Sandra Bullock Botox Golden Globes":  Okay, I didn't write about Sandra's Botox at the Golden Globes, yet HUNDREDS of you were sent here to read about it.  I did write about Jennifer Lopez's Botox which left her frozen in time and unable to move.  Does Sandy do Botox?  Yep.  Does it look unnatural?  Nope.  Remember the next time you are at the dermatologist, "a little dab will do ya".  Don't over-Botox, ladies, it gives you butter face.  You can find the Golden Globes article here. 

2.  "Are Charlie Bodin and Paula Rhodes a couple?":  I can answer this one.  Yes.  And they are engaged.  It's like my blog became Tiger Beat magazine.  I love it.   See their work in A Good Knight's Quest.  Check out my interview with them here.

3.  "Dad is Carpet Cleaning":  Hmmm, you stumped me on this one.  I don't ever offer cleaning tips because it is one of my least favorite things to do.   So, I hope you enjoyed my blog while you helped your dad clean the carpet.  To balance out my least favorite thing, this is my favorite event that I covered from the month of January:  The Academy Award Nominations.

4.  "Detroit Auto Show Carpet":  So many of you want the remnants of the auto show carpets from Detroit.  Believe it or not, the display companies DO sell off the carpet because they only use it for the run of the two week show.  I am not going to give out the names of the display companies since they will be bombarded with calls.  However, a word to the wise, this is the dirtiest carpet you could ever buy.  Over 700,000 attendees walked on your carpet and dragged in germs, salt, snow, and dirt from outside.  Is that the kind of carpet you want in your home?  See highlights from my time in Detroit at NAIAS 2011.

5.  "Olga Kay Sneakers":  I guess this has become the monthly "Ask an Olga Kay Question Center".  One month, her fans were worried about her.  I checked in on Olga and she is doing great!  The next month, they wanted to know how tall she was.  I asked her, she's 5'1".  Now you want to know what type of sneakers she wears.  Sigh, I'll go ask.  Check back later for the response.  In the meantime, check out my interview with her.  

Thanks for making January such a great month here at Red Carpet Closet. I know a lot of you stopped by for red carpet/awards show coverage.  I hope you come back in February because there will be an entire week of wall to wall Oscar coverage.  Yes, I will be there LIVE on February 27th.....and I am so excited!

                

Behind the Scenes of A Good Knight's Quest

Not sure what is going on here! Me and the boys of A Good Knight's Quest....Craig Frank, Brett Register, and Charlie Bodin.

What a fun KNIGHT this was! Oh, I am punny today. Seriously, the red carpet was a blast and I enjoyed hearing about everyone's geeky hobbies. One thing I found interesting was that many of the women mentioned their computers and their use of the internet as geeky. I actually find that quite normal.....or maybe I am a huge geek and I am just in denial. The end of the episode features a terrific montage put together by Sandra and Perry Payne highlighting Brady Brim-DeForest's fencing skills (I was impaled), Michael Tohl's nunchucks, and the engineering brain power of Ariel Lazarus. Needless to say, I learned a lot about my fellow web series peers that night.

It was also a fun night because the Streamy nominations had been announced earlier in the day. Many of the nominees were in attendance, so it was nice to personally congratulate everyone. There was an electricity in the air, so I know that is going to be carried over to the 2nd Annual Streamy Awards on April 11th and also the Craft Awards on April 7th.

Me, Shira Lazar, and The Web Files makeup artist, Melissa Anchondo.........

Now, if you watched this episode, you know we renamed it The Craig Frank Show. Craig and Brett Register are turning out to be quite the prolific web series producers, actors, and creators. Craig has made an appearance in at least three Web Files episodes, so he may just take over the show by the end of 2010. It is exciting to see what Brett and Craig are up to as they have become quite the comedy team whether it is The Crew, Craig and the Werewolf, or A Good Knight's Quest. Their series, this time around, came as a result of a win at The Escapist's 2009 Film Festival which helped fund the 24 episodes of the series. So you can see while they are creating web series at an impressive rate, they are also taking advantage of the tools out there to take them to the next level.

Me, Paula Rhodes, Angie Cole, Cathy Baron, and Jessica Rose...........

While many of you know Craig and Brett, don't forget about the 5'2" and Under Club! These ladies are "small, but mighty" and they are forces to be reckoned with. Mark my words, you will be hearing more from Producer/Actress Paula Rhodes, Cathy Baron, and Angie Cole (She arrived late, so we missed her on the red carpet. We'll get her next time.) I was lucky enough to join them for a photo on the red carpet. I miss the cutoff by an inch, so I made Jessica Rose balance out the tiny ones. It's rare that I ever feel tall, so I appreciate the petite ladies for making me look long-legged that night.

Finally, the talented Cathy Baron allowed me to borrow some of her creations from her jewelry line, CB Designs. I wore a couple of amazing rings and a bracelet designed with a Steampunk inspiration. Here's a great clip from the red carpet featuring some of Cathy's designs. Go visit her site, you are going to love it....and tell her KB sent you!

If you haven't seen our A Good Knight's Quest episode, what are you waiting for? Head on over to check it out: A Good Knight's Quest.

Photos 1, 2, and 4 courtesy of Mark Burmeister.