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Emmanuelle Chriqui reminds us of the head cheerleader at our high school: pretty, perky, and, most annoying of all, nice. But the down-to-earth star has one thing that Cheery Cheersalot never did: actual talent. The Entourage star has already proven that she can hang with the boys. Now, two new projects give Chriqui a chance to show that she can keep up with kings of comedy (Adam Sandler in this month’s You Don’t Mess with the Zohan) and Oscar-winning thespians (Adrien Brody in the upcoming Cadillac Records). As if that weren’t enough, she’s trying her hand at directing as well. If we didn’t love her so much, we’d hate her.
[dl] Movies
Pretty, Funny
Don’t hate Emmanuelle Chriqui, star of Entourage and You Don’t Mess with the Zohan, because she’s beautiful. By Allison Winn Scotch
Emmanuelle Chriqui is raving -- truly raving -- about a recent Hollywood release. “It might have been the funniest thing I’ve ever seen,” she says. “Have you seen it?” The release in question? It’s not this year’s Oscar winner or a weekend blockbuster. No, it’s Sarah Silverman’s Jimmy Kimmel Live! ditty turned Internet sensation declaring her, ah, affection for one Matt Damon. Therein lies the appeal of Chriqui, a young actress who has been a regular on HBO’s Entourage and on “sexiest” lists in men’s magazines: She’s gorgeous but also down-to-earth. Nice, even. Maybe that’s because Chriqui (pronounced “Shree-key”) is from Canada, a nation renowned for its friendliness, and, for that matter, its comedians. This month, Chriqui gets to show her funny bone on film as she costars in You Don’t Mess with the Zohan alongside Adam Sandler.
So, let’s get this straight. In Zohan, Adam Sandler plays an Israeli soldier who becomes a hairdresser? Yes. Adam essentially fakes his own death to get out of Israel and pursue his real dream of becoming a hairdresser in New York City. His dream is to work for Paul Mitchell. He ends up getting a job at a Palestinian hair salon, which is my hair salon. I play a Palestinian. We become friends and, of course, fall in love. It’s kind of like West Side Story, but with Palestinians and Israelis.
I imagine it’s a pretty good time when you’re making a movie with Adam Sandler. His set is known in the industry as a place where you have the best time of your life. And it surpassed what everybody told me. But it was not just that -- there was so much amazing creative energy going on all day. You know, I found myself doing a scene with Adam and Judd Apatow, and I was like, Pinch me; is this real?
Tell us how you got in the business in the first place. I always knew that I wanted to be in something in the arts, even as a little, little girl. But my moment happened when I was seven years old. My friend’s dad ran the local theater company, and he asked me if I wanted to audition for a play, which I did. My first role ever was that of a baby ghost. I was hooked. That moment changed my life. I did theater for years and then went to a performing-arts high school that had just been built in the town of Unionville, Ontario, where I lived. I majored in theater and then started doing commercials in Toronto. I moved to L.A. in my early 20s.
You also did a lot of work in Vancouver-based TV productions on your way down to L.A. Does that mean there was no waitressing for you? I got my first movie role three months after I moved to L.A. So, no, I never had a second job there, because I went with a real résumé. I was lucky enough not to be flailing. That isn’t to say I didn’t have rainy days. I slept on friends’ couches and had to find friends to drive me to auditions because I didn’t have a car.
Now you’ve got a car and a recurring role as Sloan, Kevin Connolly’s girlfriend on Entourage. What’s it like being a girl on that set? Entourage is what it is. It’s a guy’s show. And here’s the thing: The show depicts something about Hollywood that is true. As sad as it is to depict women like the show does -- as big-boobed, no-brained women -- well, guess what? Hollywood actually has a lot of that.
Do you, then, worry about getting named to those “sexiest” lists? I mean, is it flattery or just plain sexism? Um, flattery. It’s an interesting thing, because our industry is so focused on how we look, whether we want it to be or not. You have to take the attention from the men’s magazines as flattery. I’m just glad I’m not on the “what is she wearing?” lists!
Right now, you’re working on a movie -- Cadillac Records, which costars Adrien Brody -- that requires you to be more covered up than, say, Maxim would. Yes. [The movie] is loosely based on the life of Muddy Waters and his relationship with Leonard Chess, who was a huge music producer. I play Leonard Chess’s wife. It is different from anything I’ve ever done. I play a very modest, conservative 1950s housewife who stands by her man in this dirty, dirty business no matter what. It’s the least vain character I’ve ever played. So, really, I think those men’s magazines will think twice after seeing this.
And you’ve even dipped your toes into directing. I directed a three-minute short starring [Golden State Warrior] Baron Davis for the IFC [Independent Film Channel] called Framed. I spent three days with Baron, went to his place in Las Vegas, and went all around L.A. In the short, we wanted to show his fans something they didn’t know about Baron, and it turns out that he is passionate about roller skating. So we did this ’70s-fabulous segment of him skating with his boom box in downtown L.A. At the end, I was, like, That’s it, I want to be a director.
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[dl] Books
Surreality Show
The Replacements’ former drummer has swapped his sticks for paintbrushes in his critically acclaimed second career. By Bob Mehr
Swinger
Tony Bennett did it. So did Rolling Stone Ron Wood. And they’re not
alone. Over the years, plenty of musicians have also worked in the
visual arts. But most haven’t given up their recording careers along
the way. Minneapolis native Chris Mars has. Mars, 47, was the longtime
drummer for 1980s pioneering alt-rock band the Replacements, but these
days, he is garnering serious critical respect and commercial success
in his flourishing second career as a painter.
Mars’s artistic
vision is an intensely personal one. Much of his work is inspired by
his childhood experiences with his older brother Joe, who was diagnosed
with severe schizophrenia as a teen. That’s partly why Mars specializes
in haunting oil-based portraits of societal misfits and the
marginalized, for which he draws on everything from the empathic images
of photographer Diane Arbus to the meticulous picturesques of Ivan
Albright. His work has earned him showings in museums and high-end
galleries everywhere from Los Angeles to Miami. A decade’s worth of
those striking surrealist works can now be found in Mars’s recently
published book, Tolerance: Chris Mars (Last Gasp, $40).
While
Mars has essentially retired from the stage, he’s kept a hand in music,
composing classical scores for a series of animated shorts he made
based on his artwork. But mostly, he paints. Mars spends an average of
12 hours a day working in his studio. “My love for painting is
something innate,” he says. “I’ve always done it, and as far as I can
see, I will continue to do it. I can’t not do it.”
What was your early exposure to art like? Was art something that you saw or experienced as a child or through your parents? Even before I could talk, I was drawn to visual art. Before I could read, I learned the letter p so I could head straight to paintings
in our encyclopedia collection. I’d study it. I already had a sense of
what I wanted to do, almost like I had done it before. From grade
school and beyond, visual art was the most natural form of expression
for me.
When you were with the Replacements and, later, working on your own decade-long solo music career, were you also painting?
I was always drawing. I’d doodle; I’d sneak away. I was most happy in
between tours, when I would do little else but draw. In the later
years, as the band began to morph away from its punk roots and things
felt like they were winding down, most nights I couldn’t wait to go
back to my hotel room, get away from everyone, and draw. The urge was
never absent. I always made some time.
Was there a turning point where you decided, “Okay, I’m a painter now and not a musician”?
For a long time, I didn’t feel I was ready to identify myself as a
visual artist. looking back now, it seems silly. I pretty much ate and
breathed it. I finally started to identify myself as a visual artist
after I realized what I wanted to say. It felt important. That, and the
accumulation of a sizable body of work.
Your
brother Joe’s battles with schizophrenia provide the inspiration for
much of your work. Is art a way to deal with his condition? My
impulse toward art was present prior to Joe’s issues or to my awareness
of them. post-Replacements, I really started to delve into drawing.
This expression was very therapeutic. It propelled me toward
self-examination. I started to think of why I was perpetually drawn to
the figures and themes that would present themselves. I think what
makes an artist’s voice or vision is that culmination of each life’s
unique experiences. For me, especially, it was those initial
environmental ones.
How does the world of visual art compare with the world of music?
I’ve noticed that in the music world, it might be harder to age with
grace. Often in music, the cycle of a career might be five, 10 years.
There’s a hunger for the youngest, latest, next new thing. While this
might be true in the art world to some extent, I think a career is
generally welcome to start later and to last longer.
In other
mediums, too, there is the idea that in these fields, people might even
create their best work as seniors, toward life’s end. and while there
are exceptions in music, of course -- Johnny Cash comes to mind -- I
think about the genius of Paul McCartney, who will always get the
loudest cheers for Beatles and Wings songs, no matter how great his
recent work might be. The pop-music biz is very youth-oriented. I think
the art world overall puts a greater value on life experience.
THE REPLACEMENTS PARTS
FROM THE GARAGE TO COLLEGE TO DISSOLUTION, THE REPLACEMENTS’ MUSIC LIVES ON. -- B.M.
The
Replacements are back -- well, sort of. The band’s entire catalog,
eight albums in all, is being released in remastered, expanded editions
by Rhino Records. The first batch of reissues, containing the group’s
four records for Minneapolis indie label Twin/Tone Records, came out
this spring, and the second set, chronicling the band’s major-label
years, is due to come out in the fall. here are some highlights to
watch for.
The Debut: Sorry Ma, Forgot to Take Out the Trash (1981)
It’s a bratty burst of pop-punk genius that signaled an auspicious
start for a basement band whose members were barely out of their teens.
The Classic: Let It Be (1984)
considered the group’s high watermark, this is college rock at its
finest. The band proved music could be brainy, feisty, and heartfelt,
all while keeping tongue firmly in cheek.
The Swan Song: All Shook Down
(1990) a gloomy affair, it found the band falling apart. The album went
on to serve as a touchstone for several dark roots-rock bands,
including Whiskeytown.
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Look! Up by the Naughty Chair. It’s Supernanny!
Jo Frost gets her hands dirty penning a new book about babies. By Sarah Wassner Flynn
Five
years ago, Jo Frost was just a busy British nanny tending her charges
throughout London. Today, nearly seven million viewers tune in each
week to watch the modern-day Mary Poppins swoop in to save out-of-
control households from self- destruction on ABC’s Supernanny.
Dishing out more sauciness than spoonfuls of sugar, the single
37-year-old Frost makes frequent use of the naughty chair but uses
plenty of positive praise, as well, to wrangle wild kids. Also a best-
selling author, Frost has written three books, including the
just-released Jo Frost’s Confident Baby Care. Here, she explains why she’ll never face a household she can’t handle.
How does a nanny from Southwest London end up with an American reality-TV show?
A production company was looking for a nanny with more than five years’
experience to help turn around chaotic households. So I went in and had
an interview and just offered my own practical advice. Next thing you
know, I get a call from the company, and they tell me that they want to
film me working with families. At the time, I was in the middle of a
very busy street, and I just screamed. I was that
excited. We started the show in the UK in 2004, and a year later, there
was a bidding war between networks for the U.S. version.
Your current season just ended, but ABC has renewed Supernanny through 2009, and the show is clearly a hit. Why do you think people like it so much?
Whether I’m working with toddlers or teenagers, there will always be
people out there who can relate to what the family is going through.
And hopefully, they’re taking the tools and techniques I’m offering and
are relating them to their own families. Of course, some people may
watch just to see the naughty children misbehaving, but there’s so much
more to my work than that.
Misbehaving?
That’s putting it mildly. We’ve seen kids curse, spit, and even punch
their parents. Have you ever dealt with a family that’s just too far
gone for your help? I come from a strong British work ethic. The phrase too much work
is a foreign term to me. Sure, I’ve seen some desperate and bizarre
situations, but I won’t turn my back on any household. I’ll get in
there as quickly as I can and really get my hands dirty to understand
why things are happening and how we can change it. We spend 200 hours
with each family over the course of two weeks, so there’s plenty of
time dedicated to making solid, positive changes. And being so
passionate about what I do, I’ll never give up.
That
approach has certainly worked for the many families featured each week.
Do you keep tabs on them to make sure your changes are sticking?
Yes, I do. We e-mail back and forth, and so far, everything is working
out for them. What’s really lovely is that some of the families are
connected as well. I just heard from one of the ladies I worked with,
and she corresponds with five other families. They e-mail, trade notes,
and offer support. I call them my Supernanny
mums. I also make myself available for any questions or advice on my
website; [I can] either address them directly via e-mail or include
them in my monthly newsletter.
Speaking of advice, you offer a ton of it in your new book. Why the focus on babies?
I started my career looking after infants, and I learned so much about
them during that experience that I’ve always wanted to share. Plus,
there seems to be so much worry and anxiety among expecting parents.
They hear horror stories like, “Oh, you won’t sleep for months.” So I
wanted to somehow alleviate that unnecessary stress and remind them
that having a baby is a wonderful, emotional journey.
What’s the one nugget of knowledge all expecting parents should possess?
That you can’t expect your baby to be on a consistent sleep schedule
until he’s eating solids, which is usually at about six to eight
months. So many parents focus on getting their baby to sleep through
the night much too early. But I firmly believe there’s no way you can
expect to have a sound sleeper until he’s got food and milk in his
belly.
So, now that you’re a reality superstar, are there always people coming to you for tips?
Not so much for advice as for autographs and pictures. It seems to
happen in airports the most, probably because I’m always traveling to
different states. I’ve been to 39 for the show.
You don’t have any kids. Has all this baby talk made you the least bit lustful for a little one of your own?
Not yet. I’ll be 38 this year, and at this age, people tend to place
the biological clock upon you. But I’m quite happy with what I’m doing
for the moment. If I’m going to have kids, I will, but I don’t hear the
clock ticking.
The Kids Aren’t All Right
Not with TV nannies watching them, anyway. By John Ross
| TV SHOW | NANNY/MANNY | BELIEVABILITY RATING | The Nanny, a popular show about a woman who -- cue theme music -- “was
workin’ in a bridal shop in Flushing, Queens, ’til her boyfriend kicked
her out in one of those crushing scenes. What was she to do? Where was
she to go? She was out on her fanny. … That’s how she became the
nanny!”
| Fran Fine was played with an intentionally irritating voice and
laugh by Fran Drescher. | Six: Nothing really rings false about a single
woman who finds work as a nanny and falls for the man of the house --
except, that is, for those absurdly short skirts. | Family Affair was a 1960s show about a rich bachelor and his manservant
who suddenly found themselves with three children thrust into their
care.
| Mr. French, the manny, was played by Sebastian Cabot, the guy who
narrated Winnie the Pooh and Tigger Too! | Five: Why did a single guy
living in an apartment on Fifth Avenue need a full-time, live-in
British butler, anyway? | The Help, a short-lived ensemble show about a team of disloyal
servants, starred a cast better suited for a season of The Surreal
Life, including Tori Spelling, who played a dog walker.
| Anna, the
nanny, was played by Polish beauty Marika Dominczyk, best known
(really) for her marriage to former Felicity star Scott Foley. | Four: A
rich guy once told us, “Even if you have a nanny, you still have to
have a maid, because the nanny doesn’t clean.” We can buy the idea of
multiservant homes for the über-rich. But, come on, who’d dare to hire
a nanny as gorgeous as Dominczyk? | Charles in Charge was a series about a single college guy charged with
the care of a young boy and two teenage girls (one of whom in real life
would grow up to be on Baywatch).
| Charles was played by Charles
“Chachi” Arcola. No, wait -- that’s another character. The role was
actually played by Scott Baio before he was 46 and Pregnant. | One: Given
that Baio has been the subject of two reality shows that focus on his
noncommittal attitude toward marriage and fatherhood, he seems an
unlikely candidate to care for kids. |
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