I first stumbled across Ain't It Cool News a few years ago when I was researching a couple of U.K. university admissions tests — the BMAT and the LNAT. Unfortunately, I had my acronyms wrong. So instead of finding information about the BioMedical Admissions Test, I learned about the Butt-Numb-a-Thon, an annual 24-hour film festival/birthday party for Ain't It Cool's Harry Knowles. Since then, I've been a casual reader of Ain't It Cool News — a movie-geek site maintained mostly by and for male movie-geeks.

The site is a great source of movie news, rumors and gossip, and I usually find something interesting when I check it out every week or so. Today, I stumbled across the unexpected — an interview with Loretta Devine.

Loretta Devine is not a typical interview subject for a fanboy site. In fact, the interviewer, Capone, opens with this acknowledgment:

“Now before you start freaking out on me, I'm well aware that Loretta Devine might seem like a strange choice for an interview subject on this site, but quite frankly I don't care. I love this woman to death, and I'm not afraid to throw you guys a curve ball every once and a while. There is something about Devine's presence in a film or TV show that just makes me feel good about life. She's a solid acting talent, she can sing like an angel, and just about one of the sweetest people you could ever meet.”

And I agree with Capone. (Although I don't actually know if she's sweet in person. But I'll bet she is.)

Loretta Devine is one of those actresses you may or may not know by name, but you've definitely seen her somewhere. And probably a whole lot of somewheres. She's rarely the lead, but she has a prolific film, TV and stage résumé. Probably her best known role is Glo in the movie Waiting to Exhale. … continue reading

I may finally be too old for a stocking, but there’s one holiday tradition I continue to love, and that’s the airing of classic musicals on television. For a long time now, I’ve been of the opinion that lesbians need to reclaim musicals from gay men — not least because there is such a plethora of gorgeous, talented women in film musical history.

While a list of all my favorite female performances would probably take all day, here in chronological order are ten that I’m hoping to see over the vacation:

1. Ginger Rogers in Shall We Dance (1937)

I love all the Ginger Rogers/Fred Astaire collaborations, so it’s hard to select just one.

But Shall We Dance has one of my favorite Ginger Rogers moments, as the camera dwells in close-up on her listening face as Fred Astaire sings "They Can’t Take That Away From Me." While the song is beautiful, it’s Ginger’s subtly despairing response that really strikes at the heart. (She would go on to win an Oscar for Best Actress, for the non-musical film Kitty Foyle, in 1940).

2. Rosemary Clooney in White Christmas (1954)

This very, very silly seasonal musical is mostly notable for the gay undertones brought by Danny Kaye’s performance (no, really — watch it again). … continue reading

As one of the celebrities spreading their scents worldwide, Beyoncé launched the Emporio Armani Diamonds fragrance back in August.

Described as "a gourmand floral, featuring top notes of lychee and raspberry; middle notes of rose, freesia and lily of the valley, and a base of vetiver, cedar wood, patchouli and vanilla," this airborne toxic event scent should be available everywhere this month. Fine. Some people like perfume — to each her own. It just makes me sneeze. (And I prefer the natural fragrance of female skin anyway ... but that's another subject. Ahem.)

What interests me more than the perfume is the video advertising spot, featuring Beyoncé singing "Diamonds Are a Girl's Best Friend."

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I just read the best diva-related news I've come across in a long time. The original Dreamgirls — Sheryl Lee Ralph, Loretta Devine and Jennifer Holliday — will reunite for the 17th Annual DIVAS Simply Singing! benefit on Oct. 6 at the Wilshire Ebell Theatre in Los Angeles.

Right now I'm checking airfares to Los Angeles.

And here they were in 1981.

The AOL Black Voices Blog has all of the details, but the basics are that Sheryl Lee Ralph — the original Deena (think Beyonce in the movie) in the Broadway production of Dreamgirls — founded the Diva Foundation in 1990 and established DIVAS Simply Singing! to honor the friends she had lost to AIDS/HIV. This year's show will benefit the Women Alive Coalition and establish DIVAS as "the longest consecutive running musical AIDS benefit in Los Angeles." … continue reading

I love it when my favorite things intersect — like, say, when Heart appears on The L Word, or '80s stars sing a Dreamgirls song. It always surprises and delights me. But I've never been more surprised than I am by the notion of stars of The Sopranos appearing on Sesame Street. They'll drop by for a holiday special, as will Jennifer Hudson, Sheryl Crow and Alicia Keys. Celebrities will help Elmo count down the days to Christmas.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Tony Sirico (Paulie Walnuts) and Steve Schirripa (Bobby Baccalieri) "will shed their tough-guy image from their years on Sopranos in a skit in which they will play Bert and Ernie with guidance from the real Muppets." … continue reading

Yesterday I saw a lot of headlines about the BET Awards. I skimmed a few stories, noted the winners and glanced at a few blog posts, but I refused to really absorb any of it. I wanted to wait and see it for myself. I finally watched the show last night, and I'm glad I saw it without any preconceived notions. I was able to let the Jennifer Holliday-Jennifer Hudson duet of "And I Am Telling You I'm Not Going" wash over me and give me goosebumps. And did it ever! I think I had an aural orgasm. (An aurgasm?)

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Anika Noni Rose, probably best known as Lorrell in Dreamgirls, has signed on to costar with Jill Scott in The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency.

The film is an adaptation of the novel of the same name by Alexander McCall Smith. Jill Scott will play Precious Ramotswe, the owner of an all-female detective agency in Botswana. Rose will play Grace Matsuki, Precious' assistant. Uh, Precious and Grace? Hmm. Those aren't exactly kick-ass detective names. If you've read the book, fill me in — is this going to be any good?

The Hollywood Reporter says it's likely that a TV series will follow the movie. I can't help but get excited about the prospect of Rose and Scott playing detectives on TV. Sounds a lot better than the Nancy Drew movie, unless we're talking about bad machine's version. … continue reading

Dreamgirls will be released on DVD on Tuesday. This news is enough to make me drop my pants like Jimmy Early does in the movie (and I suspect I'd get an equally horrified response). I also find myself pondering the whole musical-to-movie phenomenon. For Dreamgirls and Chicago, the transition was smooth indeed: Both films are critically acclaimed and popular with audiences. Whether Mamma Mia! will fare quite so well remains to be seen (cross your fingers, Meryl Streep).

Lately there's a growing trend in the other direction: Movies are being turned into musicals. Legally Blonde opened Sunday to mixed reviews, and in late May, Xanadu will begin previews. And the musical version of 9 to 5 is proceeding apace, with a staged reading planned for June. (Hairspray is a horse of a different, confusing color, having gone from film to Broadway and back again.)

Here's one screen-to-stage transition that makes perfect sense: Showgirls. As she reveals in the new issue of The Advocate (in which she is highlighted as someone wtih a "Big Gay Following"), Gina Gershon has thought about turning Showgirls into a musical.

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