• Thor: The Dark World for Marvel Live on Yahoo!

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    Yesterday was a good day.

    Yep, that’s an understatement!

    I was literally the first person on the red carpet for last night’s Thor: The Dark World North American premiere covering arrivals for Marvel Live on Yahoo! along with Ben Lyons and Tamara Krinsky. They just happen to be my two new favorite people. I only give bunny ears to people I like.

    The night was insane. It started with this: Fotor1105141833

    I know I just objectified Jaimie Alexander, who plays Lady Sif in the upcoming Thor: The Dark World, by saying “this”, but c’mon, wow! Jaimie pulled a Gwyneth Paltrow and looked amazing. I would know, I was right next to her and totally checked her out… in a completely professional, objective journalism sort of way. 😉

    Girl is in shape! Jaimie said she did a lot of martial arts training and pilates for Thor: TDW. I do pilates. Maybe I should start looking into martial arts training…

    Jaimie started the evening on an excellent note not only with taking her dress to the next level, but also by arriving 15 minutes EARLY!! That’s unheard of in Hollywood! Chris Hemsworth, the Mighty Avenger himself, arrived just 15 minutes after the red carpet officially opened. And he was only “late” because he was busy filming Jimmy Kimmel. Boy has some great excuses, just ask Jane Foster.

    Thor: The Dark World is an excellent movie. I was able to see it last week and it’s great to see our favorite characters in a post-Avengers world. It has a lot more nods to fans, but also has a great storyline/action for people that are just entering the Marvel Cinematic Universe. In The Avengers I had a moment where I was like, “Aw, hell no!” during the Battle of New York (I won’t give it away, but people can guess for themselves), and within the first 30 minutes of Thor: TDW I had that same reaction.

    If you’re going to see it this Friday November 8th, make sure you stay until the very end. There are 2 bonus scenes!

    In case you missed the action last night, here’s Marvel’s Thor: The Dark World on Marvel Live on Yahoo!

    You can catch me at these moments:

    1:13:22 remaining mark: Introduction and throw to Jane and Thor clip

    55:56 — Hemsworths are in the building!

    51:28 — Jeremy Renner has arrived and throw to Making of Thor: TDW Behind the Scenes Clip

    32:11 — Chris Hemsworth post-interview reaction and introduction to fashion recap.

    18:02 — Fan interview

    6:40 — Minutes away from introduction of cast. Note: this was on the loud speaker for EVERYONE to hear, hence why I was very careful with my words.

    5:30 — Introduction of the cast of Marvel’s Thor: The Dark World

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    My Favorite Moments LIVE on SOS Island

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    For the month of October, I was stranded on a deserted island in Puerto Rico hosting the survivalist game show series Samsung’s SOS Island: Survival of the Smartest. It is one of my favorite jobs to date.

    I put our contestants through the wringer, as well as myself. Not only did we have to battle the elements – 105 heat with 70% humidity and ravenous daytime mosquitoes- but we were also putting together a live show in the midst of an already tight shooting schedule… in the middle of nowhere! Luxuries like a teleprompter or multiple takes were left on the mainland.

    We shot a live stream every other day during our intense shooting schedule, usually with no rehearsal. I had no teleprompter and sometimes a barely functioning IFB (ear piece to hear the director). It was 45 minutes of pure adrenaline… and a lot of fun. Everyone involved in this project is supremely talented; they turned challenges into opportunities to shine. It was awesome to be around.

    For anyone who has had a challenge and has overcome it, you can understand why I am so proud of this show.

    Here are my favorite live episodes from Samsung’s SOS Island.

    This “Sur-Vine-Al” live stream is my favorite episode by far.
    At this time we were all a family and it really comes across on screen. I’ve literally watched it all the way through multiple times. Yes, that means I’ve spent hours of my life reliving something I’ve already done. And dammit, it’s worth it!

     

     

    I like to call this one “Andrea’s Island Party.”
    At the time, the contestants had been on the island for three days and were really starting to feel the realities of being on a deserted island. They were given three pieces of fruit- a banana, pineapple, and mango- and that’s it! So it was great to see their excitement amongst all the food. And I must say, Graham’s dish was by far the winner! Wow, he knows how to cook.
    7:45 –> Karen’s hilarious video
    22:00 –> We start the cooking!

     

     

    Beach Party!
    Like the above episode, this live stream had a great concept around it. We were well into our second week on the island and everyone was missing home, so we had our contestants use their imagination and take random stuff on the beach and turn it into their creature comforts.
    22:00 –> Mert’s hilarious video on how he ordered pizza to the island!!
    29:00 –> Great laughs with the survivalists.
    32:00 –> The challenge starts. Make sure to check out Graham and Brittany’s “comforts,” they make me laugh to this day.

     

    Home!
    This was our final episode and they were in a great mood! But really, I like this episode for selfish reasons:
    1:30 –> The survivalists gave me a round of applause that made my heart soar.
    34:00 –> We all get a beer! I hadn’t had a sip of alcohol in a few weeks and let me tell you, Medalla hits the spot.

  • Hardwell: The Path to #1 DJ in the World

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    There is a new #1 in town!

    Hardwell has just surpassed the legendary Armin van Buuren, who has held the #1 spot for a record 5 times, from 2007-2010 and 2012, as the #1 DJ in the world, according to DJ Mag.

    Hardwell, pictured above with myself and Damian “The Voice of Ultra” Pinto backstage at Ultra Buenos Aires, has had an incredible year. At that show in February 2013, Hardwell told me in an interview that he was taking his career to the next level. He didn’t put it in terms of “#1 DJ in the world”, but he was definitely putting in an amount of time and effort into sets that is somewhat unheard of in the DJ world. In BA, with Ultra Miami still a month away, he had already clocked in weeks on his one hour set. Some DJ’s just wing it for festivals! For those new to the DJ scene, Ultra Miami is a very important festival for the DJ community as it sets the stage for the rest of the year.

    And what a stage Hardwell set.

    With his mainstage performance on Day 2 of the two weekend festival, we at UMF TV had our highlight! Swedish House Mafia also had their last performance as a group at Ultra Miami 2013, but for myself, and many fans out there, this set was clearly something special. The first 20 minutes will leave your mind blown. Consider yourself warned.

    I was on stage during that performance, and not even half way through the set, people were already starting to predict that this 25-year-old from the Netherlands would dethrone the seemingly invincible Armin van Buuren.

    As you can see in this interview after his set, Hardwell clearly knew he had accomplished what he set out to do. It was hard to contain the enthusiasm, myself included. Yes, somehow “mystery” was “history” in my head.

    Hardwell interview after UMF Miami 2013 set from Dis Guy on Vimeo.

    Hardwell was one of my first interviews when I came on board as the live stream host for UMF TV. I have always been impressed by his enthusiasm as well as his willingness to collaborate. Live streaming music festivals is slowly becoming the norm, but when we first came on the scene just in 2012, no one was really doing it. Many of the DJ’s/managers were extremely skeptical and actually refused access to interviews as well as streaming their sets. Hardwell was always very open to it.

    I have to think Hardwell’s attitude to embrace social media has only helped him, and help catapult him into the #1 spot. His set at Ultra Miami 2013 will go down as one of the best of all time, if not most definitely this year. And it was seen all around the world thanks to social media. He literally broke Twitter because 30% of Twitter’s bandwith was used for Hardwell after that set. This I heard directly from Robbert himself, who told me in disbelief about the email he received saying they were shutting his account down until the chatter quieted.

    Hardwell’s rise is a great lesson for many people, regardless of your profession. Not only does he have talent, but he went above and beyond in his work ethic this year, to outstanding results. He’s also embraced social media, seeing it as what it is, a great promotional tool, instead of being afraid of it. Obviously, music and internet have not had the best relationship in the past, but it’s 2013 and the internet is not going anywhere.

    Armin and Hardwell are consistently the two DJ’s who are most available, open, and easy to work with when it comes to live streaming and press coverage. The top guys are clearly on to something…

     

    Congratulations Hardwell on becoming the #1 DJ in the world!

     

    Photo credit: Alejandro Safdie

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    Behind the Scenes with Les Stroud

    Hello from Puerto Rico!!

    I’m here in PR right now for an awesome new survivalist game show called Samsung’s SOS Island: Survival of the Smartest. Eight contestants are marooned on a deserted island and, taking a cue from Survivorman’s Les Stroud, they must survive on the island all while documenting their experiences in real time via their Samsung Galaxy S4 Zoom smart phones and Samsung NX cameras. Oh, and the winner gets their own private island!!! That pretty much has to be the coolest grand prize for a game show. Yes, I think it’s a sexier than just straight up cash, even if it is a million dollars.

    This past week the 16 Survivalists have been training with Les, all of which have been livestreamed and can be viewed here. On Friday, Les and I had the chance to get together as the eight finalists were chosen and he handed me the reigns for the start of the competition. Bootcamp is over. Now it’s time to put Les’ training to the test: no food, no shelter, no AC, not even any toilet trees. That toothbrush is going to feel like heaven for our finalists after a few weeks on the island. And in the video above, you see why I have a vested interest in our contestants’ hygiene.

    I was only with Les for a few hours, but I had a great time working with him. You would think he is super intense like he is in his show, and while he’s really passionate about teaching our survivalists, he is also really laid back and has an excellent sense of humor. If you don’t know who he is, check him out on The Discovery and Science Channel; what he does is incredible.

    The behind the scenes video above was taken by Graham Hughes, one of the eight Survivalists. The still shots below are courtesy of SOS Island.

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    Les Stroud and I talking to the eight finalists.

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    Explaining to the Survivalists about the challenges ahead.

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    Les training the Survivalists shortly before the elimination.

  • 7 Myths of a Juice Cleanse

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    Myth: They’re Kind of Expensive

    Truth: They’re REALLY expensive

    Three days cost me over $165. And I was told that was cheap! Do you know how many steaks I could eat with $165? More than my now shrunk-ified tummy could handle.

     

    Myth: You’ll Have Diarrhea

    Truth: It’s Much Worse

    It hurts to type this. Do you know what Sharting is? I now know what it is. I. am. so. very. ashamed.

     

    Myth: Mmm, They Taste Good!

    Truth: Have You Ever Tried Chlorophyll H2O?

    Oh, you haven’t had the pleasure? Please, do look at the diagram below:

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    Myth: The First Day is the Hardest

    Truth: It’s an Even Tie!

    Sure, the first day hurt the most as my stomach was shrinking itself.. and screaming while at it. I have to give the little guy some credit, he’s a howler! Then, everything starts to hurt: my brain for trying to think without carbs, my bladder for constantly being filled to the max, and my soul for being so weak compared to all these other LA girls who make starving look so easy.

     

    Fotor0918132832Myth: You’re Skin Will Glow

    Truth: Your Skin Will Glow… Around that Giant Zit in the Middle of your Face

    The whole point of this social experiment is to purge your body of all the harmful toxins that have accumulated over the years. Since your skin is your body’s largest organ, the toxins purge not just through your bladder, but also through your skin, causing you to look gorgeous break out. You do end up having beautiful skin and very white eyes, but there are a few “bumps” in the road.

    Translation: It’s like having a facial, except you don’t get any of the gooey moisturizer, heated-to-perfection towels, extra neck message or relaxing East Asian music that you get at a spa. I could eat that gooey moisturizer right now.

     

     

    Myth: You’ll Be Happy You Did It

    Truth: You Will Be the Skinniest Pregnant Person

    Sure, I was skinny. But you know what else I was? I was pregnant- minus the fetus- and exhibiting symptoms of what normally would be caused by hormonal changes without the intellectual ability to actually articulate my anger/frustration/irritability. I went to the bathroom approximately every 20 minutes. And yes, that included 4 times during a movie while on a date. I don’t suggest going on dates during a cleanse.

     

    Myth: “By day five, you’ll have more energy than you ever thought possible. You’ll crave broccoli instead of bread. Your clothes will fit more loosely. Your skin will glow.” — Lauren Conrad

    Truth: Only if your name is Lauren Conrad.

    Ahh, if only life were as easy as it seemed on The Hills. #LAGirlProblems

     

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