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health Julia Louis-Dreyfus Rita Moreno

Rita Moreno: ‘I try not to watch what I eat. I eat pretty much what I like’

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Last week we celebrated Rita Moreno turning 93 years young by covering the Mardi Gras-themed party she threw on the “Fat Saturday” before her December 11 birthday, which fell on a Wednesday this year. So what did Ms. Moreno do on the actual day of? Appear on Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ Wiser Than Me podcast! And what did the ladies talk about? How Rita is a “lucky little bitch,” (her words, not mine) who manages to eat whatever she wants without gaining weight and has similarly had nary a single skin cancer scare despite having been a serious suntanner earlier in life. “I was just born with fantastic genes,” she told Julia. Way to rub it in, Rita!! (I was going to say “way to rub salt in the wound,” but it just reminded me of more food she can probably eat without consequence.) Here’s more on this unfathomably fabulous creature and her fantastic genes:

“I try not to watch what I eat. I eat pretty much what I like. I am what my doctor calls ‘pre-diabetic,’ so I do have to be careful about sweets and stuff like that, but I’ve been that for years and I’m still good,” Moreno told Julia Louis-Dreyfus on the Dec. 11 episode of the Seinfeld alum’s Lemonada Media podcast, Wiser Than Me.

“So to hell with it,” Louis-Dreyfus replied.

“I’m just a lucky little bitch,” Moreno said, prompting the Veep alum to reply, “You really are.”

“I was just born with fantastic genes. I have really good skin for someone who is, you know, 93 today,” Moreno shared.

When Louis-Dreyfus brought up Moreno’s history of tanning, saying “I read you used to sit out in the sun and become like a piece of bacon…you haven’t had skin cancer?”

“Never, never, never,” Moreno said. “Isn’t that amazing? My mom did, she had little skin cancer things, but I never had a problem with my skin. It doesn’t mean I don’t have wrinkles.”

The accomplished dancer, who won an Academy Award for her work in the 1961 musical West Side Story, said these days, “I don’t work out at all.”

“My knees are shot to pieces from all the dancing. I mean, West Side Story,” she explained, adding that “the thing that really killed my knees was playing Norma Desmond in Sunset Boulevard.”

“I loved doing that show,” the actress previously told PEOPLE about the London production, which she starred in from September 1996 to October 1996. “I love every minute of it.” However, as she told Louis-Dreyfus, playing the fading movie star took a painful toll on her body.

“You know how she makes these incredible entrances down the steps? Well, in order to come down steps, you have to go up steps backstage, right? And that almost killed me,” Moreno shared. “That really ruined my knees. It’s ruined many knees.”

“So I don’t do things that call for knee work — and that’s almost everything,” she explained, saying that to stay fit, she walks her dog. “I can’t bend them very much,” Moreno said. “When and if I am asked to accept a wonderful award — which happens more now that I’m older and they’re saying, ‘Quick, before she kicks the bucket, let’s give her this award’ … I always have to say, ‘Am I going to go up steps to the stage to accept this award? Because, if so, then I really need some help.’”

When Louis-Dreyfus pointed out that she saw Moreno accept an award without help, the Broadway icon replied, “like, 40 men came over and practically lifted me.”

[From People]

Rita is such a gifted storyteller and conversationalist. I just love her. Sure, I’m dripping with hunger, I mean envy — or let’s face it, all of the seven deadly sins — over her winning the genetic lottery when it comes to eating. And sunbathing, which she really is super lucky never led to skin cancer. My grandmother was also of the generation who loved to sit out and cook in the sun, and she later had melanoma on her leg that my aunt described as “the size of a small country.” So please wear sunscreen! Only Rita Moreno could be so lucky as to beat those odds! But I guess the great leveler in life is our knees taking us down. Rita had me in stitches with the line, “Well, in order to come down steps, you have to go up steps backstage…” Like they say, what goes down must first go up, lol. I may not have just turned 93, but I too try to avoid things that call for knee work, and would greatly appreciate 40 men coming over to lift me up to my morning train each day.

Happy Birthday to Rita once again, you lucky little bitch.

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Catherine O'Hara Julia Louis-Dreyfus Tim Burton

Catherine O’Hara: Tim Burton bought us a tour of the Vatican as a wedding present

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The inimitable Catherine O’Hara just spoke with the consummate Julia Louis-Dreyfus on Julia’s Wiser than Me podcast, which got me wondering: have those two powerhouses ever worked together? My quick Google search yielded no results. How can this be?! It would be an improv for the ages! Catherine and Julia obviously discussed their shared comedic backgrounds, but Catherine also shared a sweet story about Tim Burton. While Tim wasn’t exactly a matchmaker, it was on his 1988 Beetlejuice set that actor Catherine met production designer Bo Welch, who is now her husband of 32 years. And now Catherine has revealed what the artistic auteur gave them as a wedding gift: a tour of the Vatican. That’s certainly different from your average kitchen appliance!

“Tim gave us an amazing wedding gift, which was a private tour at the Vatican,” O’Hara said, prompting Louis-Dreyfus, 63, to reply, “Yeah, only Tim Burton would give us a present like that.”

“Somebody had given [Burton] the gift, and he’d been blown away, so he passed it on, which is really wonderful and generous,” O’Hara continued. “So this lovely priest or cardinal took us all around the Vatican, and he was wild.”

She recalled how their tour guide took them “everywhere” — “including, I swear, the Pope’s closet.”

“He took us on the elevator that the Pope takes down to the St. Peter’s Basilica to his dead mass. He took us in this beautiful, little private museum full of, in glass cases, all the gifts given to the Vatican from all over the world,” O’Hara said. “And he let us open the case and take out crowns and pretend to be putting them in my husband’s backpack.”

The actress also told Louis-Dreyfus that she has Burton to thank for pushing her husband to finally ask her out when the three were on the set of 1988’s Beetlejuice. Burton directed the film, and O’Hara starred as Delia Deetz. Welch, 72, worked behind the scenes as a production designer.

“Tim Burton basically made him ask me out. Because I was grousing to Tim that this guy was talking to me every day, and never asking me out,” O’Hara told Louis-Dreyfus. “So Tim said, ‘Let me see what I can do.’ He did talk to him, and Bo begrudgingly asked me out. And now we’re still married, thank goodness.”

Back in August, the Schitt’s Creek star told PEOPLE that the day Welch invited her on a date was her favorite part of filming Beetlejuice. She recalled that he finally made the move when they were out shooting the exteriors of the iconic Beetlejuice house in Vermont.

“Bo came up to me that day and said, ‘Our department’s going to a swap meet. You want to come?’” she said.

[From People via AOL]

Oh, Bo, honey. That pick up line is so lame it kind of swings back around to being fabulous. And that was after Tim already gave him the nod that Catherine was interested! There’s so much to enjoy about this story. It tickles me that Catherine involved Tim Burton in getting Bo to make a move, like Tim wasn’t otherwise heavily preoccupied directing a movie. I love that the Vatican tour guide was like, “Si si, go ahead and pick up the priceless artifacts to make a funny picture, va bene.” But I think what I appreciate most is the detail that this was an experience that had been given to Tim, and he found it so powerful that he wanted to pass it on. For one thing, it’s another example of Tim being an endearing emotional monster. And on a personal note, it reminded me of my late father, who ardently preached that “you should always give a gift you’d like to receive yourself.”

And on that note, Catherine and Julia: would you please treat us by doing a series or movie together asap? Cause heavens to Betsy are we in desperate need of some laughter.

Note by Celebitchy: this story was written before the election was called

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Catherine O’Hara and Tim Burton are shown in 2012 at the Frankenweenie premiere. Credit: PacificCoastNews.com/Avalon. 2024 photos credit Getty, James Warren/Bang Showbiz/Avalon, Jeffrey Mayer/Avalon


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Julia Louis-Dreyfus politics

Julia Louis-Dreyfus: My Veep character is not like Kamala, she’s like another candidate

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As we’ve discussed, HBO’s political comedy Veep has seen an explosion in viewership (by 350%!) ever since President Joe Biden dropped out of the race and endorsed VP Kamala Harris as his successor. At first I was thrilled — it’s a wickedly brilliant show that reduces me to laughter (running the spectrum between howling and wheezing) in every episode, no matter how many times I’ve watched the whole series. I am a pro-laughter voter for my selection of entertainment. I am worried, though, that VP Harris is being compared to Veep’s Selina Meyer. As I said last month, Selina Meyer is a Trump-like candidate, NOT a parallel to Harris. Well, guess who just went on national television to say the same thing? None other than Selina Meyer herself, Julia Louis-Dreyfus! She stopped by The Late Show while Stephen Colbert is filming live in Chicago for the convention, and had some words to say:

Kamala Harris and Julia Louis-Dreyfus’ “Veep” character Selina Meyer were both female vice presidents, but the actor says that’s where their similarities end.

During an appearance on “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” live from the Democratic National Convention, Louis-Dreyfus discussed the spike in popularity “Veep” has experienced following President Joe Biden’s withdrawal from this year’s election and Harris’ announcement of her candidacy.

When Colbert brought up the fact that “Veep” viewership has increased by 350%, Louis-Dreyfus said, “It’s a great thing, I think?” Still, she felt the need to clarify that Meyer and Harris do not share the same personality traits.

“Let me explain to you, on ‘Veep’ I played a narcissistic, megalomaniac sociopath, and that is not Kamala Harris,” she said, adding: “It might be another candidate in the race.”

Colbert then asked which “Veep” character reminds Louis-Dreyfus the most of Donald Trump’s running mate JD Vance. “That would be Jonah Ryan,” she said, referring to Meyer’s White House liaison, played by Timothy Simons, who constantly clashes with members of her staff.

“I’m sure he’s made love to many couches,” Louis-Dreyfus quipped.

Despite “Veep” being a comedy, Colbert raised the fact that it dealt a lot with the harsh treatment of women in politics. Asked if she had a favorite scene that embodied this, Louis-Dreyfus pointed to a moment between Meyer and Matt Walsh’s Mike McLintock.

“He came to me with this speech, and the speech began ‘as a woman.’ And I looked at him and I said, ‘First of all, as a woman, I’m not going to start a speech with “as a woman,” because I can’t identify as a woman,’” Louis-Dreyfus recalled. “Men hate that and women who hate women hate that, which is most women.”

[From Variety]

Thanks for clearing that up, Julia, so can we please put the Kamala-Selina comparisons to bed now? And spend more time debating the comparisons between JD Vance and Jonah Ryan? On the one hand, yes, Jonah Ryan has undoubtedly had sex with a couch. Duh. But — and I truly can’t believe I’m saying this — to be fair to Jonah Ryan, JD Vance only wishes he had that charisma! Or that confidence! Jonah Ryan was wrong 99% of the time, but he acted with the conviction of being right 100% of the time. JD Vance, meanwhile, stumbles through his speeches, laughs like an alien testing out human behavior, and cannot competently walk a dog on a leash. Even his own dog. Julia actually got another great dig in at Vance this week: she didn’t just breeze into town for Colbert, but led a panel of all eight sitting women democratic governors on Wednesday. To start off the event, she noted that Vance would call the assembled women, “a coven of semi-menstruating witches.” No notes.

photos credit: William Wade/INSTARimages, IMAGO/Dave Starbuck/Avalon, IMAGO/mpi099/Avalon, Joy Scheller/Avalon and via Instagram

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Jerry Seinfeld Julia Louis-Dreyfus

Julia Louis-Dreyfus on the Seinfeld reunion: I don’t know what the hell Jerry’s talking about

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Last week we talked about Jerry Seinfeld hinting at a Seinfeld reunion during a standup show. Jerry seemed to suggest that some kind of show is in the works that will somehow address the 1998 series finale, which fans and critics were disappointed with. Setting the divisive finale aside, I suggested that the only viable path for this project was making it about Elaine Benes, because Julia Louis-Dreyfus is the classiest, most talented one of the bunch. Oh, and she also hasn’t made an ass of herself like her former costars in the intervening years. Well, Julia was at the London Film Festival this week to promote an indie film Tuesday (that’s the name of the film, not the date of the premiere, and don’t worry it’s all kosher — SAG-AFTRA gave the film a waiver) and of course she was asked about Jerry’s recent comments. She very succinctly responded: “I don’t know what the hell he’s talking about.” Nor do any of us, Julia.

Speaking on his standup tour in the US on Saturday, Jerry Seinfeld told a Boston audience he “has a little secret” about the show, whose 1998 finale was watched by 76 million viewers in the US when it first aired, but whose plot – the four friends go on trial for wisecracking when a man is mugged in front of them – proved divisive.

“Something is going to happen that has to do with that ending. It hasn’t happened yet,” Seinfeld said. “Just what you are thinking about, [co-creator] Larry [David] and I have also been thinking about. So, you’ll see.”

His words triggered heated speculation all week about what form such a show might take. Stars Jason Alexander and Michael Richards are yet to offer comment, but speaking to the Guardian on Wednesday, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who played Elaine Benes on the programme, which ran between 1989 and 1998, professed ignorance about any such endeavour.

“Yeah, I just saw [that news] last night,” she said. “And I don’t know what the hell he’s talking about.”

Of all the Seinfeld actors, Louis-Dreyfus is the one who appears to need such a return the least. As well as starring in subsequent hit TV shows such as Veep, the actor has won acclaim on the big screen, most notably for her roles in Nicole Holofcener’s cerebral and sensitive comedies Enough Said (2013) and You Hurt My Feelings (2023).

Her latest project further dramatically expands that range. Tuesday, a contemporary fairytale about grief, had its UK premiere at the Lonon film festival earlier this week, picking up considerable Oscar buzz for Louis-Dreyfus’s performance.

She plays a single mother in denial about the terminal illness of her teenage daughter, Tuesday played by Lola Petticrew. When the grim reaper arrives in the form of a massive, talking macaw, both women try to defer the inevitable by bargaining, battling – and vaping with – Death.

Critics praised Louis-Dreyfus as “a revelation” – particularly in sequences that see her unleashing a primordial energy unfamiliar to regular fans. “She’s a performer whose radiant ferocity has never been in doubt,” wrote the Hollywood Reporter, “but until now we haven’t [sic] seen all sides of the prism.”

[From The Guardian]

“Of all the Seinfeld actors, Louis-Dreyfus is the one who appears to need such a return the least.” This is such a quintessentially British, understated way of saying Julia has grown leaps and bounds past the rest of them. I stand by my earlier statement, if they don’t get Julia on board then it’s not worth watching. I’d rather see this new film next year, despite its grim premise, and experience the catharsis of Julia “unleashing a primordial energy.” Billed as a fantasy-drama, Tuesday kind of sounds like Yorgos Lanthimos – meets – Ingmar Bergman based on early reviews. Is it likely to make me howl with laughter like Veep? No (my notorious history of laughing at horror films notwithstanding). Will I still tune in to see Julia play chess against a tall, talking, macaw-embodied Death? Definitely.

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Cancer Julia Louis-Dreyfus

Julia Louis-Dreyfus on being told she had cancer: ‘all the tropes are true’

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Julia Louis-Dreyfus found out she had breast cancer one day after winning an Emmy, her sixth consecutive for playing Selina Meyer on Veep and eighth overall for acting. Julia announced her diagnosis in 2017, and is now Julia sharing more about the moment when she got the call that day six years ago. While appearing with journalist David Remnick at the 2023 New Yorker Festival last Friday, Julia spoke candidly about the way she responded to her doctor over the phone, and also described the powerful memory she said got her through the treatment that followed.

“I started laughing. Well, because the night before, I had won an Emmy. And so, I came downstairs and … the Emmy was there. It was like on the dining room table. I’m coming down to get coffee. My cell phone rings, and it’s my doctor saying, ‘Guess what, you have cancer,’” she recalled.

“And I’m like, ‘Huh? What?’ And so, it was a very bizarre juxtaposition,” she continued “And, of course, I did laugh, and then I became hysterical, crying, because I was terrified, as most people are, or as all people are if they get a diagnosis like that.”

She said she was fortunate to have her family rally around her as she began to navigate the unknown. “I have a very strong and supportive family, and for which I am eternally grateful, upon whom I relied — sisters, husband, my sons, my mother, my mothers, my stepmother, everybody,” she said.

Still, she continued, “I was deeply terrified because who wouldn’t be? I mean, all the tropes are true. You know, you get that call and it’s like, ‘What, me? No, no, no.’ I mean, you can’t imagine that something like that would happen to you.”

To get through her grueling chemotherapy sessions, Louis-Dreyfus told Remnick she focused on a memory of a particularly unnerving moment from her past to motivate her.

“I’ve said it before, but many, many years ago, I was on a boat with my husband. I was swimming in the water. He came to the bow of the boat and he said, ‘Jules, I don’t want you to panic, but there’s a shark in the water, so you need to come back.’ And I was far away from the boat,” she explained.

“And so, I just saw the ladder and I started swimming towards it, and I made the decision not to look around me at all. I was just going to stay looking at the ladder. And that very much applied to how I got through my cancer adventure — was sort of looking at the ladder. Just let’s get this done, let’s get there.”

[From People]

Ok, first of all, I hope her doctor didn’t actually say “Guess what, you have cancer,” but that’s just Julia’s way of highlighting the absurdity of going from Emmy win to breast cancer overnight. But I do appreciate the license she takes for storytelling purposes, because the way she recalls the moment is so vivid I felt like I could see each moment happening. The confusion to laughter to hysteria to tears (a trajectory you know she could act the sh*t out of, by the way). And while she mentioned speaking about the shark story before, it was new to me, and holy cow was that a powerful image. Again I find Julia’s language incredibly cinematic. It wasn’t her inclination to be public with her cancer diagnosis, but she’s given great comfort to others by sharing the many facets of her personal experience.

To end on a selfish note: I miss Veep so much. Julia said it was freeing to play Selina Meyer — it was also freeing to watch her! But I guess what I also miss is when it was just a funny show on Max (née HBO) and not, you know, our actual politicians.

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Photos credit: Faye’s Vision/Cover Images, MediaPunch/Backgrid and Getty

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Andrea Riseborough eva longoria Julia Louis-Dreyfus Nicole Kidman Oscars Rooney Mara

Nicole Kidman wore Armani to the 2023 Oscars: surprisingly great?

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Nicole Kidman only attended the Oscars as a presenter – she wasn’t in any of the nominated films or anything. I enjoy “presenter Nicole” – she comes out to have fun, and if you told me she took an edible or had a few shots before the Oscars carpet, I would believe you. Nicole wore Armani – this dress grew on me throughout the night and I ended up really liking it.

nicolegend! pic.twitter.com/Gp5f5P8RF9

— ℳári (@cakeblanchett_) March 12, 2023

Rooney Mara in Alexander McQueen. What an awful dress in general, and specifically on Rooney. This is one of my picks for worst dress. I’m so tired of her washed-out BS.

Andrea Riseborough in Alexander McQueen. Well, she was certainly part of the bridal trend!

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Julia Louis-Dreyfus in Lanvin. I haaaated this too. Julia is a lovely, petite woman – it shouldn’t be this hard to find something flattering?

Eva Longoria in Zuhair Murad. Eva has this thing where she always looks exactly the same no matter what she’s wearing or how she’s styled. While this is a different silhouette than she usually prefers, it looks… the same as everything else she wears.

Photos courtesy of Getty, Avalon Red.

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Brigitte Macron Emmanuel Macron Fashion Jennifer Garner Jill Biden Joe Biden Julia Louis-Dreyfus politics

Dr. Biden wore Oscar de la Renta to Thursday’s state dinner: stunning?

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I’ve been thankful every single day of the Biden administration because decency and diplomacy is back in the White House. But I’m always especially thankful whenever we get to see President Biden interacting with foreign leaders. French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte have been in Washington on a state visit this week. Last night was the big White House state dinner, and the photos are amazing. Macron and Biden treat each other with a great deal of respect, and the Bidens are wonderful hosts. They love throwing parties and, please, Dark Brandon is one of the best glad-handers in Washington.

Dr. Biden is being praised for reviving a White House tradition: First Ladies wearing Oscar de la Renta. For decades, FLOTUSs have turned to the house of de la Renta for their couture looks, and Dr. Biden did the same last night. Brigitte chose a French label – Louis Vuitton, a customized look (and LVMH founder Bernard Arnault was also a guest at the dinner). I think both women look pretty chic, although I would have loved to see Dr. Biden wear a more offbeat American designer. Jill has been great about that in her daytime events though, and you can tell that she loves fashion and she’s influenced by her daughter and granddaughters too.

Unlike the Trump years, actual celebrities want to mingle with the Bidens, so there was a nice mix of political figures, media figures, captains of industry and celebrities at the state dinner. Jennifer Garner was there with her daughter Violet. Julia Louis Dreyfus was there with her son Charlie (who is tall and handsome).

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Photos courtesy of Getty, Cover Images, Backgrid.