Van Halen officially announced they’ve had to postpone 31 dates on their upcoming 2012 North American tour. The dates affected begin July 7th in Connecticut and end with the September 25th concert in Milwaukee. The group hasn’t said why they need to put off these dates, and there isn’t any official confirmation on when the rescheduled dates will be revealed.
2012 Van Halen tour dates that haven’t been changed:
5/19 St. Paul, Minn., Xcel Energy Center
5/22 Kansas City, Mo., Sprint Center
5/24 Denver, Colo., Pepsi Center
5/27 Las Vegas, Nev., MGM Grand Garden Arena
6/1 Los Angeles, Calif., Staples Center
6/3 Oakland, Calif., Oracle Arena
6/5 San Jose, Calif., HP Pavilion
6/12 Anaheim, Calif, Honda Center
6/14 San Diego, Calif – Viejas Arena
6/16 Phoenix, Ariz., US Airways Center
6/20 Dallas, Texas, American Airlines Center
6/22 San Antonio, Texas, AT&T Center
6/24 Houston, Texas, Toyota Center
6/26 New Orleans, La., New Orleans Arena
The postponed tour dates:
7/7 Uncasville, Ct., Mohegan Sun Arena
7/9 Hampton, Va., Hampton Coliseum
7/11 Philadelphia, Pa., Wells Fargo Center
7/13 East Rutherford, N.J., Izod Center
7/15 Baltimore, Md., 1st Mariner Arena
7/17 Rochester N.Y., Blue Cross Arena
7/19 Detroit, Mich., Joe Louis Arena
7/21 London, Ontario, John Labatt Centre
7/24 Toledo, Ohio, Huntington Center
7/26 Grand Rapids, Mich., Van Andel Arena
7/28 Cleveland, Ohio, Quicken Loans Arena
7/31 Fort Wayne, Ind., Allen County Memorial Coliseum
8/2 Columbus, Ohio, Schottenstein Center
8/4 Knoxville, Tenn., Thompson-Boiling Arena
8/6 Memphis, Tenn., FedEx Forum
8/8 Birmingham, Ala., BJCC Arena
8/10 Greenville, S.C., BI-LO Center
8/12 Cincinnati, Ohio, US Bank Arena
8/21 Spokane, Wash., Spokane Arena
8/23 Portland, Ore., Rose Garden
8/25 Sacramento, Calif.,Power Balance Pavilion
8/28 Fresno, Calif., Save Mart Center
8/30 Reno, Nev., Reno Events Center
9/4 Salt Lake City, Utah — EnergySolutions Arena
9/8 Albuquerque, N.M., Tingley Coliseum
9/11 El Paso, Texas, Don Haskins Center
9/13 Austin, Texas, Frank Erwin Center
9/15 Oklahoma City, Okla., Chesapeake Energy Arena
9/17 Wichita, Kan. – Intrust Bank Arena
9/21 Moline, Ill., Iwireless Center
9/25 Milwaukee, Wis., Bradley Center
Click to View the Photo GalleryYou know, I can’t wait to see the outtakes from this film… Anyway, the international trailer for Magic Mike (aka ‘that male stripper movie’) is here featuring more guys dancing, more shirtless hunks, and humor. Directed by Steven Soderbergh, Magic Mike is sort of based on Channing Tatum’s experiences as a male dancer. Can’t wait.
Magic Mike hits theaters on June 29, 2012. In addition to Tatum, the men showing off their bodies include Alex Pettyfer, Matthew McConaughey, Joe Manganiello, and Matt Bomer.
Who cares about the plot, but here it is anyway:
Set in the world of male strippers, Magic Mike follows Mike (Tatum) as he takes a young dancer called The Kid (Pettyfer) under his wing and schools him in the fine arts of partying, picking up women, and making easy money.
“Just because you’re paranoid, that doesn’t mean they’re not out to kill you,” says Reese (Jim Caviezel) to Dr. Turing (guest star Amy Acker), his and Finch’s latest person of interest while their being hunted by both corrupt cops and the FBI in the season one finale of the hit CBS drama thriller Person of Interest.
When “The Machine” indicates Dr. Turing, a psychologist who caters to the very rich and powerful, is going to be involved in a violent crime, Finch and Reese suspect that it might be one of her clients behind the hit trying to keep some secrets hidden. While saving Turing from the first hit team, Reese is noticed by the FBI using some of the same covert surveillance run by The Machine. Now the manhunt is on, with the FBI trying to get to Reese and take him alive while dirty cops try to kill both him and Turing. These dire circumstances force Finch away from his master keyboard and out into the world to try to help Reese, which makes him vulnerable to an even bigger and more menacing threat.
Suspenseful and taut, the Person of Interest season one finale (“Firewall”) is an engrossing, extremely original drama/thriller that will have the audience glued to their televisions, wondering how Reese, Finch, and Dr. Turing will ever escape certain doom. It’s a sharply written, well-acted series with an A-list cast led by Jim Caviezel, who is perfect in the role of Reese, the ex-CIA operative who still wants to make a difference in the world for the better. Caviezel’s icy delivery of his lines to the show’s villains is both intimidating and effective. He brings a deliberate and likable determination to the role.
Michael Emerson is wonderful as Finch, the rich computer genius who is the mastermind behind helping those in need and has developed a real semi-trusting partnership with Reese. His constant concern for those he and Reese are trying to help, and for his partner when he gets in a bit over his head, is the true soul of the show.
Person of Interest has a strong cloak-and-dagger feel and style to it, and there is a heightened sense of paranoia throughout every episode, with all the characters at different times being viewed by the hidden security covert cameras. The action in the series is first rate with shoot-outs and explosions almost matching the size and excitement seen on the big screen.
With a truly shocking cliffhanger ending and the fate of one of the main characters in question, Person of Interest season one is hands-down the best new series on television. Here’s to anxiously waiting for season two to debut.
The American Idol Final 3 Phillip Phillips, Jessica Sanchez and Josh Ledet. - Photo Credit: Michael Becker / FOX.As the American Idol judges keep telling us, this was the best final three in the series’ history. Joshua Ledet provided classy performances all season, Jessica Sanchez showed off her amazing pipes, and Phillip Phillips stayed true to the artist he wants to be. Ledet, Sanchez, and Phillips…who would make the final cut? Well, if you haven’t watched the May 17, 2012 episode, read no further – we’re about to say who was eliminated…
90 million votes were cast (a season high) and our American Idol season 11 finalists are Jessica Sanchez and Phillip Phillips. 16 San Diegan Sanchez and 21 year old Georgia native Phillips will be taking the stage to try and get your votes for one last time on Tuesday, May 22 (8:00-9:00 PM ET live/PT tape-delayed) on FOX. The two-hour season finale will take place the following night from 8-10:07pm.
Among the acts confirmed for the AI finale are Rihanna (currently on screen in Battleship), AI season 10 winner Scott McCreery, and a reunion of this season’s Top 12.
And if you’re ready for season 12, Fox announced auditions will take place this summer in Los Angeles, CA, on Thursday, June 7; Newark, NJ, on Saturday, June 23; and Chicago, IL, on Thursday, July 12.
Commenting on making it to the final two, Phillips said, “I’m just a normal guy who loves to play music. I just happened to get lucky and I’m so blessed by it. I’m so excited.
“Being in the position I’m in now is more than I could have ever asked for,” added Sanchez. “I’ve been looking forward to auditioning for American Idol ever since the first season. And now, the first season that I’m eligible, I’ve made it to the Top Two! It’s crazy what you can do when you put your mind and heart to it! I don’t know what could be better than this.”
Cameron Diaz stars as ‘Jules’ in ‘What to Expect When You’re Expecting’ (Photo credit: Melissa Moseley/Lionsgate Films)
I make poor decisions. Instead of thinking things out and really considering the consequences, I tend to go on impulse and hope things shake out in the end. Once again, I threw caution to the wind, and in this particular case, it was when choosing to watch and review What to Expect When You’re Expecting.
As a 30+-year-old male who has no children (that I know of) and no real desire to make that reality come true, probably the only demographic less suited to watch this film are lying six feet underground. Based on the well-known instructional book of the same name, the screenwriters have carved out a few archetypal scenarios, made sure they cross paths in the least clever and increasingly frustrating fashion and relied on the casting department to fill those characters with well-known faces sure to excite the XX chromosome crowd.
There’s obviously no beating around the bush here, like morning sickness I think the best way to get through this is word-vomit out a review. The film plays out like Valentine’s Day or its sibling film New Year’s Eve. On the plus side, this is better than either of those movies, having five major story arcs rather than 17 or whatever the hell those had. It allowed for a decent amount of development, though it was still far too shallow to really explore any profound speed bumps along the way.
The acting is about what you’d expect. Considering my general loathing of Cameron Diaz and Jennifer Lopez, that my brain didn’t pop a blood vessel should be seen as high praise. Helping mitigate their efforts is a good supporting cast of comedians who generally ensure there’s not too long of a lull between jokes. The humor isn’t gut-busting but was pleasant overall (at least in my view, the screening audience ate it up like pickles and ice cream).
The obvious truth about the movie is that the title isn’t a lie. If you’ve seen the trailer, you’ll get what you expect you would. What to Expect When You’re Expecting will satiate its target demo and I’d have given it a passing grade for that fact if the screenwriting wasn’t so lazy (do all movies need multiple story arcs that criss-cross? NO, they don’t.). Hopefully, I’ll have learned my lesson and will think harder about whether a film like this needs me in the audience.
And that this is being released opposite Battleship, in the most obvious counter-programming of the summer season, is no surprise. If you’re a guy dating a girl who wants to see this, encourage her to make it a girls’ night out. You’ll both be happier.
GRADE: C-
What to Expect When You’re Expecting hits theaters on May 18, 2012 and is rated PG-13 for crude and sexual content, thematic elements and language.
Proof the public at large doesn’t care about any of those three fundamental filmmaking elements: Battleship.
Based on the board game many of us grew up cheating at as kids, the film takes the basic premise of naval warfare and applies it to one of the many alien invasion plots descending on theaters this summer. The script was so generic it could have been applied to any game even remotely associated with the military but seeing as Pearl Harbor, and the islands of Hawaii make for a great vacation spot, it’s understandable why the filmmakers didn’t utilize the Coast Guard and set this in Alaska. I mean, what’s the point of making a movie if you can’t figure out a way to put Brooklyn Decker in a bikini top and cut-off jean shorts? (Though I admit to understanding that motivation.)
In any case, laying out the plot is as simple as this: Humans make contact with another race. That was a bad idea. The aliens land in the ocean. They fight with the Navy. Explosions, screaming, and Rihanna are featured. Cue Star Wars: Episode IV ceremonial ending, wait for the audience to turn their brains cell phones back on.
There is an unsurprising boatload of flaws permeating through all 131 minutes of director Peter Berg’s not-so-subtle Navy recruitment video. Key ones include the aliens having key tactical and technological advantages that they do not use because although they’re here to bring the ruckus, they don’t fire unless fired upon (book smart, not street smart); letting a freak accident upon the aliens’ arrival handicap them in such as way as to give us humans a fighting chance; relying on one alien soldier to ensure the security of a key encampment; thinking a mothballed Navy ship can be brought back to service all while the sun rises twice in one morning; sticking with the notion that it’s okay to wait 30-45 minutes before we even get to some human vs. alien action (all that early character development sure was worth it).
I could go on and on but what’s the point? You’re either excited to see this because of the promise of explosions, screaming, and Rihanna or you’re rational enough to realize this can wait for free cable. I’ll admit to expecting (and hoping) for a far bigger catastrophe but despite being almost tolerable if you ignore all reason, Battleship is little more than proof that Taylor Kitsch is having a bad year.
First he starred in John Carter, a beloved sci-fi literary franchise turned into a muddled mess of a movie. Now he’s in this, a beloved board game turned into a muddled mess of a movie. I’m happy he’s getting paid because living with the knowledge that you’re front and center for both of these movies deserves a whole lot of cash … cash the public is better off keeping in their own pocket.
GRADE: C-
Battleship hits theaters on May 18, 2012 and is rated PG-13 for intense sequences of violence, action and destruction, and for language.
Lisa Marie Presley performed her new single, “You Ain’t Seen Nothin Yet,” off of her album Storm and Grace (released on May 15th) on the May 17th episode of American Idol. Presley sounded terrific and the song’s haunting lyrics stick with you after the final chords. Take a look at her official music video.
INSANE OR INSPIRED? (NEW ORIGINAL SERIES)
Premieres Friday, May 25 at 10PM
This new series features the most exciting videos from the Internet that celebrate the world of imagination, invention, and extreme experiences. Actors Amber Benson (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), Samm Levine (Freaks & Geeks), Brooke Hogan, Ralph Garman, as well as television personality Josh Gates, host of Syfy’s Destination Truth, join comedians Ben Gleib, Owen Benjamin, Jodi Miller, Elliot Chang, Jermaine Fowler, Adam Ray, Christiana Pazistky, KT Tatara and Janet Varney to provide their unique commentary on each of the clips. The result is a fast-paced hour-long countdown of hilarious viral videos.
JUNE
HAUNTED COLLECTOR (SEASON 2 PREMIERE)
Premieres Wednesday, June 6 at 9PM
Haunted Collector features eminent paranormal collector John Zaffis, who searches for objects that have become home to paranormal spirits and/or energy. Each week Zaffis and his family help someone who’s terrorized by something strange in their own home, using the latest technology to identify the source of the paranormal activity. On the season 2 premiere of Haunted Collector, the team heads to Warsaw, Kentucky, where a woman’s home is suffering hauntings, possibly from two steamboats which crashed in a fiery collision, killing more than 60 people in 1868. Next, they travel to Huron, Ohio, in a race against the clock to remove the dangerous energy from an abandoned silo, scheduled to be destroyed in 48 hours.
SCHOOL SPIRITS (NEW ORIGINAL SERIES)
Premieres Wednesday, June 20 at 10PM
From executive producer Mark Burnett, School Spirits travels to schools and universities all across the country to recount the true ghost stories experienced on these academic campuses. The stories will be told in first person narratives through the testimonials of real students, teachers, parents and staff that have encountered the paranormal activity, blended with bone-chilling cinematic reenactments to further bring the haunting experiences to life.
SATURDAY ORIGINAL MOVIES (ALL-NEW MOVIES)
Jersey Shore Shark Attack – Saturday, June 9 at 9PM – Led by an all-star cast of Tony Sirico, Paul Sorvino, Jack Scalia, Joey Fatone (‘N Sync), William Atherton and Vinny Guadagnino the movie unfolds during the July Fourth weekend at the Jersey Shore, where angry sharks are on a rampage, devouring residents, leaving it to the local Guidos to save the day. The movie also stars Jeremy Luke as The Complication, Melissa Molinaro as Nooki, Joey Russo as Donnie, Daniel Booko as Balzac, Audi Resendez as B.J., and Alex Mauriello as J-Moni.
Piranhaconda – Saturday, June 16 at 9PM – Part fish! Part snake! All killer! In B-movie icon Roger Corman’s latest, a hybrid creature – half piranha and half anaconda — attacks a movie crew on location near her nest when her egg is stolen. Now they must outrun and kill the deadly piranhaconda as well as stop the mad scientist who stole the egg – before they all become dinner. Stars Michael Madsen (Reservoir Dogs, Kill Bill: I & II) and Rachel Hunter (The Benchwarmers).
Arachnoquake – Saturday, June 23 at 9PM – In Arachnoquake, starring Tracey Gold (Growing Pains), massive earthquakes unleash giant albino spiders. Freed from their ancient subterranean prison, the spiders go on a murderous rampage through New Orleans. Joining Gold will be Bug Hall (The Little Rascals), Ethan Phillips (Star Trek: Voyager) and Edward Furlong (Terminator 2: Judgment Day).
Bigfoot – Saturday, June 30 at 9PM – Television legends Danny Bonaduce (The Partridge Family) and Barry Williams (The Brady Bunch) star as life-long rivals battling over Bigfoot. Howard Hesseman (Head of the Class), Sherilyn Fenn (Twin Peaks), Andre Royo (The Wire) and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Alice Cooper (School’s Out) co-star in the movie, which is directed by Oscar and Emmy nominee Bruce Davison (X-Men).
JULY
DESTINATION TRUTH (SEASON 5 PREMIERE)
Premieres Tuesday, July 10 at 8PM
Season 5 opens with two special back-to-back episodes, as Josh Gates and his team lead viewers on a chase into one of the world’s biggest caves in the jungles of Vietnam to search for Bigfoot. Then, at the overwhelming request of fans, they’ll travel to Romania for a return visit to the haunted Hoia Bachu Forest, the site of their most terrifying investigation to date, and then explore the reportedly haunted Mayan ruins of Tikal in pursuit of a monster known as the Belize Goblin. They’ll also lead viewers into a remote Transylvanian village on a hunt for vampires and journey to Kazakhstan (a Destination Truth first) to search for the legendary Kazakh monster.
PARANORMAL HIGHWAY (NEW ORIGINAL SERIES)
Premieres Tuesday, July 10 at 10PM
Paranormal Highway puts the pedal to the metal as Jack Osbourne and his friend Dana Workman do their own first-person investigations of the most frightening claims of paranormal activity along America’s remote back roads. Fueled by eyewitness interviews and evidence collected by Jack’s state-of-the-art equipment, he and Dana will travel alone, self-documenting their harrowing face-to-face encounters with the paranormal.
EUREKA (SERIES FINALE)
Airs Monday, July 16 at 9PM
After five seasons, Syfy’s long-running original series comes to an end and the remarkable residents of Eureka say their goodbyes. During the thrilling final season, the town is reeling after the Astraeus and her crew mysteriously vanished just before their planned launch to Titan. As the town copes with the shocking personal changes caused by the Astraeus ordeal, they continue to uncover the truth about the forces behind the crew’s bizarre disappearance — with shocking results. Eureka stars Colin Ferguson (Sheriff Jack Carter) Salli Richardson-Whitfield (Allison Blake), Joe Morton (Henry Deacon), Erica Cerra (Jo Lupo), Neil Grayston (Douglas Fargo) and Niall Matter (Zane Donovan).
WAREHOUSE 13 (SEASON 4 PREMIERE)
Premieres Monday, July 23 at 9PM
Season 4 kicks off with the Warehouse Team still reeling from the shocking events of the climactic season three finale – the loss of Agent Steve Jinks (Aaron Ashmore), Mrs. Frederic (CCH Pounder), H.G. Wells (Jaime Murray) and the destruction of the Warehouse itself. Their only hope lies in racing to the other side of the Earth to hunt down an obscure artifact, which may or may not even exist – and if it does exist, what consequences will they face for using it? The most successful series in Syfy history, Warehouse 13 follows a team of government agents who work at a massive, top-secret storage facility in windswept South Dakota which houses every strange artifact, mysterious relic, fantastical object and preternatural souvenir ever collected by the U.S. government. The Warehouse’s caretaker Artie Nielsen (Saul Rubinek) charges Pete Lattimer (Eddie McClintock), Myka Bering (Joanne Kelly) and Claudia Donovan (Allison Scagliotti) with chasing down reports of supernatural and paranormal activity in search of new objects to cache at the Warehouse, as well as helping him to control the Warehouse itself. Sam Huntington (Being Human) will be among the star-studded array of season 4 guest stars.
ALPHAS (SEASON 2 PREMIERE)
Premieres Monday, July 23 at 10PM
In Syfy’s action-packed hit drama series, an unlikely team of ordinary people with superhuman physical and mental abilities – known as Alphas – takes on mysterious cases the CIA, FBI and Pentagon are unable to solve and go head-to-head with criminal Alphas.
Season 2 picks up eight months after last year’s finale with the stage set for an explosive turn of events at the Binghamton facility (the Guantanamo of the Alpha world) that could have devastating, far-reaching consequences. Dr. Lee Rosen (Emmy Award-winner and Academy Award-nominee David Strathairn), having exposed the existence of Alphas to the unsuspecting public, finds himself discredited and imprisoned by a government desperate to cover up his revelation. The rest of the core team has disbanded and some, without Rosen’s guidance and care, have regressed to their old, destructive ways. They must now battle their individual demons in order to reunite and try to save their own.
Alphas also stars Malik Yoba, Warren Christie, Azita Ghanizada, Ryan Cartwright and Laura Mennell. Erin Way (Detroit 187, Private Practice) joins the cast this season as “Kat” a mysterious young loner whose Alpha ability allows her to pick up any skill at a glance. But while her skills are permanent, her personal memories are short-lived.
AUGUST
PARANORMAL WITNESS (SEASON 2 PREMIERE)
Premieres Wednesday, August 8 at 10PM
Using a mixture of intimate first-hand testimony, actual home video and gritty realistic drama, the hit series Paranormal Witness returns to transport viewers into a world turned upside-down by extraordinary, terrifying and sometimes life-threatening paranormal events.
FACE OFF (SEASON 3 PREMIERE)
Premieres Tuesday, August 21 at 9PM
Syfy’s hit competition reality series returns for season 3 with 12 aspiring special effects make-up artists and their unlimited imaginations, competing to create amazing works of living art. The eleven-episode season will feature some of the most difficult challenges ever attempted and high power special guest judges. It all culminates in one winner and one $100,000 grand prize that will launch a career. McKenzie Westmore returns as host. The second season finale became the most watched unscripted telecast in the channel’s nearly 20-year history, transforming 3.58 million total viewers, based on Live+7 data. This also established a Syfy original series record – for scripted and unscripted programs – for most Adults 18-34 viewers with 1.01 million.
Cinemax will be bringing back Femme Fatales for a 12 episode second season beginning on May 25th at 11pm. The hit anthology series features “powerful, sexy and dangerous women styled in the tradition of pulp stories, film noir and graphic novels.” The show tells stories inspired by Double Indemnity, Pulp Fiction, and the classic TV series, The Twilight Zone.
Guest stars include Vivica A. Fox, Jeff Fahey, Eric Roberts, Casper Van Dien, Antonio Sabato, Jr., Kyle Gass, Steve Railsback, Robert Picardo, and Nikki Griffin.
The Plot of the Season 2 Premiere:
“16 Minutes of Fame” is a sly murder mystery and satire on today’s popular reality series like Jersey Shore and Big Brother.
CBS Films has just debuted a new trailer for the romantic drama The Words, written and directed by Brian Klugman and Lee Sternthal. Set for a September 21, 2012 release, The Words stars Bradley Cooper, Jeremy Irons, Dennis Quaid, Olivia Wilde, and Zoë Saldana.
The Plot: The Words follows young writer Rory Jansen who finally achieves long sought after literary success after publishing the next great American novel. There’s only one catch – he didn’t write it. As the past comes back to haunt him and his literary star continues to rise, Jansen is forced to confront the steep price that must be paid for stealing another man’s work, and for placing ambition and success above life’s most fundamental three words.
Van Halen officially announced they’ve had to postpone 31 dates on their upcoming 2012 North American tour. The dates affected begin July 7th in Connecticut and end with the September 25th concert in Milwaukee. The group hasn’t said why they need to put off these dates, and there isn’t any official confirmation on when the rescheduled dates will be revealed.
