November 19th, 2008

Hugh Jackman was named People magazine’s “Sexiest Man Alive 2008.” The magazine has been dubbing Hollywood’s hottest hunks since 1985 when Mel Gibson paved the way. 

Jackman now joins the ranks of George Clooney, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt and Denzel Washington, to name a few.

On the talk show circuit as of late, Jackman’s been promoting his newest film, Australia, a romantic epic starring another hot Aussie, Nicole Kidman.

Jackman, best known as Wolverine in the X-Men films, had tough competition this year: “Bond. James Bond” Daniel Craig (no argument there), Mad Men’s Jon Hamm (didn’t see this one coming, but okay), and (gulp!) High School Musical’s Zac Efron (obviously a joke…is he even shaving yet?).

“Saturday Night Live” had the presidential election to thank for garnering its highest ratings in years – even hitting 14 million viewers, the highest amount since 1994, when Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin appeared. Plus, it’s hard to say if the 33-year-old comedy show made a bigger star out of Palin or if the election made a bigger star out of her uncanny impersonator, Tina Fey.

But now that the election is over and the great Amy Poehler has left the show, will “Saturday Night Live” fizzle out or will it manage to stay in the spotlight as Palin has?

“Role Models” star Paul Rudd hosted Saturday’s first post-election episode and delivered a mediocre performance. Although he said what we all were thinking in his monologue when he joked about how much of a bummer it is to host “SNL” after the election is over similar to how the technical awards at the Oscars are a letdown compared to the big acting awards.

He turned out to be kind of right about the show being a letdown. The show was alright but not as funny as recent episodes. Americans voted for Barack Obama, but the show would have been better off if McCain won because Fey’s Palin impression is much funnier than Jason Sudeikis’ Joe Biden. The absence of Poehler was also well-noticed, and Abby Elliot and Michaela Watkins looked more like extras than the two newly hired comediennes.

Just as Palin overshadowed Republican presidential candidate John McCain, Justin Timberlake outshined Rudd when he popped up in a few scene-stealing moments. He did a two-minute, one-man version of how he would host the show complete with his Barry Gibb impersonation and his um… male anatomy music video with Andy Samberg, and he also danced in a leotard and high heels in a skit as musical guest Beyoncé’s back-up dancer.

The latter skit was just one of “SNL’s” many gay skits (think the French kissing family, Rudd and Samberg painting each other in the nude, Snagglepuss and two New Jersey guys proclaiming their love for each other) in perhaps a commentary on California’s Proposition 8 banning gay marriage thereby proving that even though the election is over, “SNL” is still the go-to-place for political satire and commentary.

Q-tip’s second solo effort to be released on a major label (his 2002 effort was shelved because of label difficulties), is aptly titled “The Renaissance.” It is, indeed, a rebirth of sorts for this legendary rap artist who hails from Queens, NY and doesn’t go by the initials LL.

Q-tip is one of the more important emcees of modern times, lead rapper for the legendary A Tribe Called Quest, who disbanded in 1998. Q-tip released a solo album the year following Tribe’s breakup called “Amplified;” it was largely dismissed by critics who bemoaned the album’s sheer pop sensibilities. Q-tip’s massive club hit, “Vivrant Thing” was the album’s first single. Hard to believe its been a decade since “Vivrant Thing,” but it has.

So flash forward ten full years and we get “The Renaissance.” It’s the kind of album LL Cool J wishes he could make and, probably, wishes it would have come in the prime of his career.

“The Renaissance” fits nicely next to Tribe’s 3 90’s masterworks, “People’s Instinctive Travels…”, “Low End Theory,” and “Midnight Marauders.” Q-tip is in top form rapping over a fusion of jazz and up tempo funk (sometimes all in one track); the highlight of the album is Good Thang, which features the barebones approach that made early hip hop great.

Here it is just Q-tip, some keyboards and an electric guitar riff, combining to make hip hop heaven. The duet with Norah Jones, “Life is Better,” is equally great and makes one wonder ‘what if?’ these two got together for an entire album…oh, the possibilities. “The Renaissance” leaves one yearning for more.

Maybe it’s the newness of it all, or maybe he really is that interesting. In any event, President-elect Barack Obama gave his first post-election in-depth interview to 60 Minutes’ Steve Kroft. And the verdict is in: the man can definitely pull in a crowd!

The episode, which aired just yesterday, with the President-elect and future first lady boasted an estimated 24.5 million viewers – more than any episode of any prime-time show this entire season – and the largest viewing audience for 60 Minutes in nearly ten years…Now if he can only keep up this trend during the State of the Union Address (a real yawner!) we’ll know he’s the real deal.