Winnipeg Free Press - October 15/09
BARRING a last-minute deal between Sony (who produces the long-running show) and veteran soap actor Eric Braeden, the actor’s days as Victor Newman on CBS’s The Young and the Restless are numbered. Braeden sat down with Entertainment Weekly’s Lynette Rice to talk about how it got to this point, if he can see himself appearing on another soap and how a deal isn’t real a deal in daytime TV.
“When I sign a three-year deal, I’m obligated to fulfil that deal,” Braeden explains. “The producers, however, can come to me after a half-year and say, ‘We’ve changed our minds.’ Where in the world of business does this kind of contract exist?
“Do I blame the people for wanting to squeeze as much out of us as they can? I do not. The question is, when do you squeeze too much?”
It’s expected the actor’s last appearance on the show will be Nov. 1 or 2.
Postsecret: Confessions on Life, Death, and God
SINCE 2004, Frank Warren’s group art project Postsecret has collected and displayed interesting, tragic, beautiful and heartbreaking postcards sent anonymously from people around the world. Along with the popular online site, Postsecret has toured art galleries (including the WAG) and turned out five books. The latest, Postsecret: Confessions on Life, Death, and God, is more than a revealing glimpse into feelings everyone can relate to — it firmly establishes Postsecret as one of the most important crowdsourced art projects of the last 20 years.
A few years ago, MySpace was ground zero for the entertainment industry to engage its audience. What you got were some flashy trailers, maybe a blog post from the star of the movie (or a convincing ghost writer) or a viral contest to generate traffic for the movie or TV show that was being promoted.
Although MySpace still delivers some of the multimedia promotion for Tinseltown, social-networking/micro-blogging tool Twitter is increasingly being used to connect with fans. Twitter’s real-time ability makes it another avenue to interact with viewers and to develop a character outside the framework of a show. It has also become the go-to tool for actors in Hollywood who want to increase their cool factor. You can almost hear agents telling their clients, “If Ashton and Demi are doing it, it must be worth it. I hear even Oprah is tweeting.”
If you’re sick of hearing about what @aplusk (Kutcher’s Twitter screen name) and @mrskutcher are up to, the Chicago Tribune has put together a comprehensive list of actors on the social-networking site. Even if you aren’t on Twitter, it can be an easy way to see what your favourite stars are writing about.
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition October 15, 2009 E3
