In this episode of On The Flipside Aubrey visits with actress, comedienne and former Oakland Raiderette Anjelah Johnson on the set of her new movie “Our Family Wedding.” She speaks about her relationship with her on-screen sister America Ferrera and the rest of the star-studded cast which includes Forest Whitaker, Carlos Mencia, Regina King and Lance Gross.
Plus in this edition’s Sideline Distraction, we watch as the 2010 NFL Pro Bowl Cheerleaders spring into action at a beach-side “Battle of the Beauties.” See the ladies of the AFC go head to head with their NFC counterparts in beach volleyball, tug o’ war and flag football…they squeeze in some of their famous dance moves too!
The Ravens won’t have any problems fielding their 2010 cheerleading squad.
This weekend, more than 200 hopefuls came to Merritt Downtown Athletic Center to show their wares before a panel of judges with the intent of cheering on the Ravens next season.
By Sunday, it was a good mix of veterans trying to make the team again and newbies with dreams of becoming one of the 50 elite cheerleaders in Charm City.
“It’s been crazy, but a fun time,” said Lindsay, a Baltimore native that at 17 years old may be one of the youngest to ever to make the team. “The veterans have all been supportive, but I just need to bring a positive attitude and do well in my dance. It is definitely nervous, though.”
That nervousness spilled over to the veterans, as well, noted Dottie L.
Sammi Jo, whom made the team as a rookie in 2008, was slightly shaking before she had to perform “One Love” by David Guetta.
“You’re never guaranteed anything here,” she said. “But this is what we all train for, this is what I love to do. I just hope all the work I’ve done is enough.”
From Saturday to Sunday, the Ravens cut down around 100 prospects with the desire to enter the week with 70 members that will have a final interview with cheerleader coordinator Tina Galdieri.
From there, the Ravens will take a squad of approximately 60 cheerleaders – both male and female – to the 2010 campaign.
Galdieri believes that the Ravens’ cheerleader swimsuit calendar, which is heading into its third edition of publication, has boostered the awareness of Baltimore cheerleaders.
While typically only sending a group of 15-20 cheerleaders to a tropical locale, the Ravens will now send their entire squad this year.
“It definitely has done a lot,” Galdieri said of the calendar. “It’s our first time taking the whole squad, and a lot of people know that. It’s been a great thing for the tryouts, because we’ve gotten a high quality of girls. “For next year, I’m hoping we’re the talk of the town. It’s a work in progress, but we’re getting better.”
There are a few more rounds of tryouts, but it’s not going to be difficult for the Ravens to have a calendar-worthy squad moving forward. Stay tuned to BaltimoreRavens.com for your official unveiling of the 2010 Ravens Cheerleading Squad.
The Orlando Magic Dancers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Cheerleaders made a joint appearance at ESPN: The Weekend, last month. And the FOX Orlando TV affiliate has quite a few photos of the two squads.
You watch them perform at every Ravens home game. Now it’s your chance to become a Ravens cheerleader.
Ron Matz reports auditions will be held this weekend.
Ravens cheerleaders will tell you there’s nothing like hitting the field before 70,000 screaming fans at M&T Bank Stadium.
“I can’t even explain the feeling of running out of that tunnel on game day. It’s amazing. I live for that moment. We have the best seat in the house,” said Sammi Jo, cheerleader for two years.
That’s why 200 to 300 men and women will show up Saturday at the Merritt Downtown Athletic Club for cheerleader auditions.
“Saturday is the first day for tryouts at the Merritt Downtown Athletic Club. Registration starts at 9:30 a.m. We have about 200 people who come in and tryout — males and females — because we are the only co-ed stunt squad in the NFL. So, we encourage males, as well, to come out and try out for our team,” said Meaghan, Baltimore Ravens cheerleader for four years.
Practices are no walk in the park.
“Guys do have to try out. Every year for the guys it’s like a stepping stone. You have to progress every year, keep your skills up and stay in shape. It’s more competitive every year,” said Henry, cheerleader for six years. “Practice includes about 30 minutes of cardio conditioning, run about three or four miles, do some calisthenics, then we practice for about two and a half more hours after that. You have to be in shape.”
All 60 spots are up for grabs, and even the veterans have to try out.
“The first day on Saturday we’ll make cuts, second day is Sunday and the finals. That’s when all the veterans come back and try out with the potential new rookies coming in. Then it’s a three week process after that, interviews, physicals and a practice round. We finally announce the team the beginning of April,” said Meaghan. “We have to come back every year and it’s not a guaranteed spot on the team. I think it’s harder because the rookies coming in are really fighting hard. We have to bring it every year.”
“We get one day on Saturday when we don’t have to try out with the rookies, but then we’re right in the mix on Sunday, ” said Sammi Jo.
Registration for the tryouts begins at 9:30 a.m. Saturday at the Merritt Downtown Athletic Club. For more information, just click here.
“True Beauty” will premiere on MONDAY, MAY 31 (10:02-11:00 p.m., ET) on ABC, following the regular time period premiere of “The Bachelorette”.
Executive producers Tyra Banks (“The Tyra Banks Show,” “America’s Next Top Model”) and Ashton Kutcher (executive producer of “Punk’d” and “Beauty and the Geek”) team up again to put their spin on beauty in Sin City. Five gorgeous females and five hot men will live together at Planet Hollywood Hotel while they compete (they think) to become the “Face of Vegas.” Unbeknownst to them, they’ll be deliberately challenged by moral situations to see if they really are kind, generous and compassionate and have what it takes to be truly beautiful inside and out.
The women contestants are Amy Schmoldt, a 22-year-old bartender from New Brunswick, New Jersey; Erika Othen, a 25-year-old singer/cocktail waitress from Long Island, New York; Liz Parada, a 31-year-old model from Hollywood, Florida; Michelle Mozek, a 21-year-old dancer from Dallas, Texas; and Regina Villano, a 22-year-old teen pageant queen from Tabernacle, New Jersey. The men are Craig Francyzk, a 29-year-old retail manager from Winnipeg, Canada; David Palmer, a 24-year-old DJ/astrologer from Huntington Beach, California; JD Scott a 26-year-old real estate agent from Los Angeles, California; Michael Allen, a 25-year-old actor/model from Miami, Florida; and Taylor Bills, a 24-year-old former professional athlete from Irvine, California.
The attractive contestants assume they’re being judged solely on their physical attributes when, in fact, the episodes will showcase two sides of each person, one that displays outer beauty as well as one that exhibits inner beauty. One person will be eliminated each week based on their behavior and how well they ranked in each challenge, as they’re evaluated and critiqued by the judges. At the end of eight episodes, one winner will be declared who has successfully demonstrated both inner and outer beauty. That winner will receive a $100,000 cash prize and a feature article in People magazine.
Students at Penn Beach School here celebrated Read Across America Week in a wacky way.
After the student body read 1,000 books in five days, they earned a special assembly Wednesday that included a visit from Philadelphia Eagles mascot Swoop and cheerleaders Monica and Ayva.
“This is all about reading,” Principal Mark Zoppina said to the kids. “The more books you read, the better readers you will become.”
Read Across America is a national initiative that celebrates Dr. Seuss’ birthday, which was on Tuesday, and promotes literacy among children.
Before the mystery readers came out, teachers asked the students who they thought might have come to read to them.
One student said Dr. Seuss; another said Lady Gaga. But they were all surprised when Swoop soared into the gymnasium.
Monica and Ayva read the Dr. Seuss book “Wacky Wednesday” to the student body. Students and teachers alike dressed the part of the book as many wore mismatched colors and crazy outfits.
Some had goofy wigs and hats, while others had funky hairstyles and flipped their clothes inside out.
“This was really great. We really didn’t expect this many students,” said Woleset. “The kids were all energized too and ready to have fun.”
Swoop was on hand to help the Eagles cheerleaders as they read through the book. Swoop acted out the pages while the students pointed out the wacky mistakes.
The kids saw doors that didn’t line up with houses, an old man with a beard in class, desks turned backward in the classroom, and doorways placed in the middle of the sidewalk.
“We wanted to give the kids a unique way to celebrate their hard work,” said first-grade teacher Maria Petro.
After the cheerleaders finished reading, all the students sang along to the Eagles fight song “Fly, Eagles, Fly.”
“Are there any Eagles fans out here today?” yelled Monica.
As students cheered, Swoop ran around the audience slapping hands and cheering along with the students. The cheerleaders danced as the student body sang the fight song.
“E-A-G-L-E-S Eagles,” they all yelled.
Part two of the assembly gave students and employees a chance to throw a pie in the face of Zoppina — a promise he made to the student body if they read 1,000 books. He stayed true to his word.
Three students and one employee got the chance to throw a pie in the face of Zoppina for their reading accomplishment.
The best throw came from Head Custodian John McCauley. He heaved a mighty toss at Zoppina that caused pie filling to fly everywhere.
“At least it tastes good,” said Zoppina.
It was clear form the assembly that many of the faculty, staff, and parents were proud of the kids for what they accomplished.
“The important thing here is that the kids read 1,000 books,” said Zoppina. “They earned this and the assembly was a lot of fun.”
The excitement was still seen on the students faces as they began to file out of the gymnasium smiling ear to ear.
“Keep up the great work and keep on reading,” said first-grade teacher Emily Sassi.
This isn’t from the Read Across America Event, but I did just happen to have a recent photo of Monica and Ayva together.
‘American Idol’ + ‘Real World’ = New Web series ‘If I Can Dream’
by Vlada Gelman Entertainment Weekly
3/2/2010
YouTube is littered with videos of people seeking stardom, so why not make a web series about them? That’s just what American Idol creator Simon Fuller has done with If I Can Dream, a reality Web series launching today that follows a quintet of aspiring artists live 24/7 on ificandream.com and in a weekly recap on Hulu [watch here].
The five hopefuls will live together in a spacious Los Angeles home outfitted with 60 cameras following their every move. Viewers will be able to engage with the artists in real time via Twitter, MySpace and blogs, and can select which camera feed they’d like to view. The contestants can even log on to their own computers and spy on their roommates down the hall.
Despite all of the cameras pointed at them — on a recent visit, PopWatch counted at least five in the living room alone and an average of 3 per bedroom — the Dream team say they aren’t nervous about living their day-to-day lives under the spotlight.
“There’s been times today where I’m like, ‘Oh, man, I’m on camera.’ I really have forgotten already,” said Amanda Phillips, a former NFL cheerleader from New York who hopes to become an actress/model.
“This is the worst place ever to play hide and seek,” joked Kara Killmer, an aspiring actress from Texas.
The group’s Ford Fiesta car is wired with cameras, as well, allowing viewers to follow the cast as they go on auditions and dates and generally sit in traffic, as most Angelenos are accustomed to doing; some will be dealing with the experience of navigating LA streets for the first time.
“I can’t wait to see them driving around, getting lost,” said producer Michael Herwick. “It’ll be hilarious.”
As part of the series, celebrity mentors will come in to help the hopefuls in their quest for the Hollywood dream. Singer/songwriter (and Miley Cyrus ex) Justin Gaston and actor Ben Elliott would freak if James Taylor walked through the door, while Phillips wants to meet Will Ferrell. Once they land a job and exit the house, a new aspiring artist will be chosen by viewers via MySpace auditions. But will the original hopefuls want to leave the plush digs?
“This isn’t reality TV. There’s no judges or voting off. There’s not a pot of money sitting at the end,” said Killmer. “The goal is to get a job that will allow us to get out of the house and to move on to a bigger career. This is just the first step.”
“True Beauty” will premiere on MONDAY, MAY 31 (10:02-11:00 p.m., ET) on ABC, following the regular time period premiere of “The Bachelorette”.
