Written by: Omar Amanat

Summary: Paparazzi are undoubtedly hated by the community, but they also pay an important role in modern culture.

The much-disdained paparazzi are some of the most inconsiderate and selfish individuals to ever work in the journalism industry. But, is it fair for the people to verbally assault them as much as they do?

The Term “Paparazzi”

Paparazzi was coined in the 1960 Federico Fellini film “La Dolce Vita”. One of the characters that appeared in the movie was named “Parazzo”, which by definition is an Italian word that’s used to describe the irritating buzzing sound made by a mosquito – the word in itself is pejorative.

Now, most of these photographers are stereotyped as being intrustive and physically aggressive to celebrities. You see it everywhere. As long as there is a celebrity spotting, there are bound to be dozens of paparazzi littering the streets. Why? Because people want to see the latest in their favorite movie and television stars.

Legitimate Paparazzi?

There are two types of photographers that cover today’s modern culture, red carpet photographers and paparazzi. The main disparity between the two is that red carpet photographers are credentialed and formally invited to shoot events. Paparazzi, on the other hand, aren’t invited and tend to follow celebrities wherever they are without consent. Another major difference between the two is red carpet photographers maintain a respectful distance as opposed to the intrusive nature of paparazzi – they don’t care what happens, as long as they get a story out of it.

The Role of Magazines

If people didn’t read magazines or didn’t care about celebrities, the paparazzi might not even have existed in the first place. But, in today’s culture that wants the latest tabloid on meltdowns, divorces, and other personal events, it’s undoubtedly a hit. If you asked any paparazzi, they’d tell you if you don’t like it, don’t read the magazines. In many cases this is true, but it doesn’t give them a pass to continue their reckless abandonment of dignity.

Article Written by : Fancy That Jewelry Design

If you’ve just begun planning your wedding, you certainly have your work cut out for you. But keeping in mind the result you’re working towards is an easy way of keeping it light-hearted and enjoyable.

One matter that’s probably at the top of your list is making the best choice of all the Los Angeles wedding venues available to you. There are plenty of banquet halls in Burbank that would be perfect for any occasion. But don’t let all these choices become daunting.

Start by thinking of any weddings you’ve been to in the area that you enjoyed. Those are always the best choices. While you might find the perfect location elsewhere, you never know how it will function on the big day. In these scenarios, ask for testimonials from people who celebrated their wedding there. If you can find independent testimonials online, these are always best.

Here is where the right wedding planner can make a world of difference. Ask for a recommendation from people you know and whose weddings you attended and enjoyed. The right wedding planner will usually have a long list of venues in or around Los Angeles that they can point you to. Best of all, once you select the place, they can be entrusted to handle the details.

Don’t let the process of finding the best venue for your wedding intimidate you. Start by asking for recommendations from friends and family and look for a wedding planner whose help you can enlist.

Maybe not many of us will be hitting the red carpet for a premiere any time soon, but there’s nothing wrong with borrowing some celeb hacks they use to look great when we have a special occasion of our own. With that in mind, here are some tricks to work into our routines.

#1 Layer Blush Sealed in with Your Hands
Apply a deeper blush on the apples of your cheeks to emphasize your bone structure. Go lightly when you blend it into the hollows, then press your fingertips and palms against your cheeks so you can “seal” it and finish it off.

#2 Bold Lipstick That Doesn’t Smudge
First, apply a waterproof concealer around your lips. Apply lipstick from the tube but use a lip brush to reach those tricky spots the stick can’t quite get at. Then use a coordinating pencil to line your Cupid’s bow and outer lip corners, and smooth any dry patches with lip balm.

#3 Soft, Smoky Eye
Use wet eye shadow as the liner. There should be no gap between the line and the lashes. Using liquid liner would make it look more intense and harder.  Without a line, the smoky eye would look soft. Dip a wet brush in the eye shadow and blend it inwardly right to your lashes. Take the hue in between your lashes so that there’s no gap. Use a dry, clean brush to blend it all together and make it look thicker.

#4 Do a Dirty Bun
Dirty locks have grit and better texture, making it easier to achieve this look. Pull your tresses back from the side, then tie them into a ponytail. Twist the ponytail into a chignon and secure it with bobby pins.

#5 Get Crafty
To minimize the impact on hairbands on your look when you’re going for elegance, braid your hair to the very end. Pinch the end then backcomb to keep it in place. It will get fuzzy, but your braid will not unravel. This style focuses on the shape and adds texture to your hair. Seal it with hair spray, then pin the plaits across your nape. You can also dab some wax on your fingertips to provide your braid with more grip while you’re weaving your hair.

#6 Rinse with Champagne
This is a trick that works for blondes to help highlights last longer. Start by combing champagne through damp hair, working it in well with your fingers. Also make sure to get that champagne on the roots of your hair—maybe an empty hairspray bottle can help. The champagne’s golden color will emphasize the same colors in your highlights. The sparkle and consistency of champagne will also give your hair shine and volume.

Read recent news release about Adore Cosmetics here.

Read Adore Cosmetics reviews online at Adore Cosmetics.

Adore Cosmetics leverages the power of plant stem cells in select fruits to help skin cells regenerate, along with proven powerful ingredients like peptides and hyaluronic acid to help skin look glowing and youthful.

Article Written by : Fresh Boutique

In normal everyday life, few Americans get to experience adrenaline-fueled rushes of excitement and danger.

Some people find their excitement in riding rollercoasters, others in air sports like piloting a plane or jumping from one. Yet, these are hardly things that can be done often or even from the comfort of their own home.

This is where the world of the Action film comes in. In an Action film, the audience follows the hero on a journey of intensity, athleticism, and quick decision-making that allows them to beat the bad guy and save the day. The best of the genre features an actor whose great screen presence and charisma turns their character into an iconic figure and in turn, makes the actor an icon as well.

Here are the top four iconic action film heroes in their most iconic roles.

Bruce Willis in Die Hard as Officer John McClane. A regular-guy cop on leave to visit his family at Christmas suffers innumerable injuries and multiple foes in an effort to save many innocent lives, including his wife.

Arnold Schwarzenegger in The Terminator as the titular mechanical killing machine. A robot from the future with advanced technology and no empathy. This anti-hero seems to be an unstoppable force for evil.

Sylvester Stallone in Rocky as Rocky Balboa. Rocky is an underdog boxer who trains as hard as anyone could for his one chance to go up against the heavy-weight champion of the world.

Harrison Ford in Raiders of the Lost Arc as Indiana Jones. A slight-of-build archaeologist must out maneuver a Nazi horde to claim the supremely powerful Ark of the Covenant.

Article Written by : Signal Television

Beyoncé recently released her ‘visual album,’ “Lemonade” to huge amounts of critical praise. It’s received a lot of attention because of how candidly she deals with marital infidelity in the songs, and has garnered some controversy for her husband Jay-Z over his alleged affair with the mystery figure “Becky with the good hair.” All of this controversy has overshadowed the fact that the album is a remarkable achievement sonically, as well as a new career high-point for the already prolific Beyoncé.

Here are five facts you probably didn’t know about Beyoncé’s “Lemonade.”

1. In addition to holding the only executive producer credit on the album, Beyoncé is credited as either a writer or producer on every single track of “Lemonade.”

2. The album marks the first collaboration between Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar in the Black Lives Matter anthem “Freedom.” The track was produced by star hip-hop producer Just Blaze.

3. The song “Formation” contains a line about Bey carrying “hot sauce in my bag.” If you pay close attention to “Lemonade,” you’ll see that “hot sauce” is what she’s named her baseball bat.

4. The once-popular rapper Soulja Boy has a songwriting credit on the song “Hold Up,” because it shares lyrics in common with his hit, “Turn My Swag On.”

5. Keeping with the revolutionary theme of the album, the song “Don’t Hurt Yourself” features an excerpt from Malcolm X’s famous “Who Taught You to Hate Yourself?” speech.

Article Written by : Fashion News

1. Outkast, “Speakerboxx/The Love Below”

Released in 2003, “Speakerboxxx/The Love Below” was a groundbreaking exercise in genre-mashing. The double album’s first disc, “Speakerboxxx,” saw Big Boi continuing Outkast’s tradition of forward-thinking yet soothingly familiar hip-hop. Although Big Boi’s “The Way You Move” became a radio staple, it was Andre 3000’s “Hey Ya” that made a truly huge impact in musical culture. Featuring Andre 3000’s singing voice, this massive hit single was a perfect introduction to “The Love Below,” the set’s second disc. Directed by Andre 3000, “The Love Below” featured influences ranging from Prince and Parliament to British Invasion pop-rock. To date, the album has sold over 11 million units.

2. Eminem, “The Marshall Mathers LP”

With over 10.8 million albums sold, the release of this album in 2000 truly cemented Eminem’s place in popular culture.

3. Eminem, “The Eminem Show”

Eminem’s caustic, complex rapping shined brightly on this LP, which was released in 2002 and has sold over 10.3 million copies.

4. The Notorious B.I.G, “Life After Death”

Released posthumously in 1997, this album not only cemented Biggie’s central place in hip-hop history; it also proved a huge boon to the careers of Puff Daddy, Mase and Jay-Z, all of whom were featured prominently. The album has sold approximately 10.2 million copies.

5. MC Hammer, “Please Hammer, Don’t Hurt ‘Em”

With his clean lyrics, MC Hammer presented a style of rap that was broadly accessible to the U.S public. This is reflected in the fact that the artist’s 1990 collection has sold over 10 million records.

By Phin Upham

In the 1920s, a group of rural Protestants managed to pass legislation that banned the production, sale and distribution of liquor across the United States. The dry movement allowed for religious use of wine, but clamped down hard on illegal liquor sales and trafficking. The idea was to try and cure society of its ills with a bit of tough love, but ultimately the law would see repeal not long after its passage. It also gave birth to several important clubs.

300 Club

The 300 Club was one of the most well-known clubs in New York, and was raided several times by police. The emcee, who went by “Texas” Guinan, always managed to argue her way out of charges by claiming guests brought alcohol with them. George Gershwin often played impromptu piano there, and George Raft was discovered in that club.

El Fey

The El Fey was a high-class club that acted as a front for selling liquor. The club was fueled by Canadian liquor, brought in the trunks of cabs owned by Larry Fay. Fay had made a name for himself running booze, but “went straight” after he’d made a half million on the black market.

21 Club

When most people think about prohibition clubs, they probably envision the 21 Club. While the premises was raided several times, the owners were never caught in the act of selling liquor. The club used levers, and a sophisticated system of chutes, to dump bottles into the sewers so no one in the club would be caught handling bottles.

About the Author: Phin Uphamis an investor at a family office/ hedgefund, where he focuses on special situation illiquid investing. Before this position, Phin Upham was working at Morgan Stanley in the Media and Telecom group. You may contact Phin on his Phin Upham website or Twitter page.

If you’re a small business or store looking to attract new customers, consider advertising through radio.

If you’re a small company that’s looking to reach new customers, your best bet is to use one of the most original mediums of all time, the radio. One of the biggest advantages that you’ll have advertising through radio is that thousands of people are going to hear your commercial while making their commute to work.

Building a Solid Reputation

Steve Doctrow, Executive Vice President of Rogers & Cowan, explains that most radio listening takes place in the car. With the proper marketing strategies, you can define your selling proposition in an efficient way. Publicity is one of the prime factors in a successful company with advertising being the main way to improve a company’s image and build a reputation around them.

For example, one of the reasons why you hear so many advertisements for car dealerships on the radio is because their business is somewhat limited to the local market. Therefore, radio becomes the preferred medium to get their message across.

Investing in Local Market Advertising is More Cost-Efficient

Consider allocating a good chunk of your budget to radio for these reasons. Local advertising doesn’t require you to invest as much capital as it would for national advertisements. It would only make sense if you were a brick-and-mortar location to utilize radio’s local market targeting influence to attract your clientele. Also, consider the fact that radio will only continue to evolve with the times and will embrace new technology as it rolls in. This means, new applications or software designed to maximize radio’s capabilities will only mean bigger and better things for advertising.

By Phin Upham

Marilyn Monroe was one of Hollywood’s most iconic figures, and few people had the intimate knowledge of her life that George Barris possesses. He shot the last photo of her before her death, a shoot that took place on Santa Monica Beach.

Barris, who was born in New York City in 1922, had worked his way up to become the most sought after photographer during the 1960s stars and starlets. Barris had a lifelong interest in photography, which he put to use in a professional capacity first for the Army. His photography captured General Dwight D. Eisenhower, and provided a glimpse into the war effort for those watching from home.

After the War, he made his living as a freelancer who found work primarily in Hollywood. Elizabeth Taylor, Marlon Brando, Charlie Chaplin, Frank Sinatra, Clark Gable and more posed for Barris’ trained eye.

Barris shot Marilyn Monroe on multiple occasions, the first time being on the set for the 1954 movie The Seven Year Itch. The next time the two met was on Santa Monica Beach in 1962, and then again in the Hollywood Hills. That final set, which would come to be known as “The Last Photos” marked the last time Marilyn Monroe was captured on film.

Rumors persist that Barris and Monroe were close, and Barris has given several interviews discussing the mysterious circumstances of Marilyn Monroe’s death. According to Barris, it was no accident.

Barris remembers Monroe as being “one of a kind”, and was recently part of an exhibition of memorabilia and photography focused on Marilyn Monroe.

About the Author: Phin Upham is an investor at a family office/ hedgefund, where he focuses on special situation illiquid investing. Before this position, Phin Upham was working at Morgan Stanley in the Media and Telecom group. You may contact Phin on his Phin Upham website or LinkedIn page.

Written by: Charles Matthau

Summary: Scoring the film adds body to it, so choose a good composer.

There are a few stand out composers in the filmmaking scene who most people think of when they think about movie scores. People like John Williams, Danny Elfman or Hans Zimmer are the names that come to mind when one thinks of great movie scores, but every film has a soundtrack to it and those three names aren’t making everything. Finding a composer for your film isn’t as difficult as you might think.

Be Involved

Directors should want to get hands-on with nearly every aspect of the project. It’s important to know when to let people do their work, but do actively have ideas for what you want your film to sound like. Before you meet anyone, be prepared with sound clips that illustrate emotion. Particular songs work too. Any kind of point of reference that helps you better describe your film, its emotion and the underlying themes.

Listen to Music

Invest in mp3s, CDs, vinyl or however else you decide to store your music. Just buy something you can listen to and digest it. Be prepared to write to music, drive with a different album on. Make note of artists you like, especially indie artists. Jot down particular songs and compile a good sized track list.

Watch the Film

You won’t know how your track list meshes with your movie until you actually sit down and watch it. The tracks that speak to you should guide you to the composers you should call. Explain your situation, be honest, build rapport and set a budget. Those are the keys to finding a composer.

Bio: Charles Matthau prides himself on a passion for storytelling. The Charles Matthau Company produced and directed the adaptation of Truman Capote’s “The Grass Harp.”