Lady Gaga Calls For Meeting With Obama After Bullied Teen's Suicide

Following the death of Jamey Rodemeyer, Gaga pledges to help make bullying a hate crime.

Lady Gaga was so shaken with the news about the death of 14-year-old Jamey Rodemeyer this weekend that she has called for President Obama to enact laws making bullying a hate crime.

Rodemeyer, who had posted an "It Gets Better" video in May about his long struggle with bullying at school, took his life on Sunday after what his parents said was years of taunting over his sexuality.
In his video, Rodemeyer cited Gaga as an inspiration, saying, "She makes me so happy. She lets me know that I was born this way. And that's my advice to you from her: You were born this way. All you have to do is hold your head up and you'll go far." The teen seems on the verge of tears when discussing Gaga's message and promising to keep on going despite the hate.
On Wednesday, Gaga expressed her sadness over Rodemeyer's death. "The past days I've spent reflecting, crying, and yelling," she tweeted. "I have so much anger. It is hard to feel love when cruelty takes someone's life." She went further, posting Rodemeyer's "Better" video, and insisting that bullying "must become illegal. It is a hate crime."
In fact, Gaga claimed in a subsequent tweet, she's so upset that she is planning to meet with President Obama on the matter.
"I will not stop fighting," she wrote. "This must end. Our generation has the power to end it. Trend it #MakeALawForJamey." A spokesperson for the White House could not confirm at press time if Gaga has officially set up a meeting with the president to discuss the issue.
MTV's ongoing "A Thin Line" project provides stories and resources for anyone who believes they are being cyberbullied or who is looking for ways to stop harassment by digital means.

1. Lady Gaga

   
   

1. Video: Reactions To Tyler Clementi's Death

Red Cafe 'Celebrating Women' In 'Fly Together' Video

Rick Ross and Ryan Leslie join RC on post-apocalyptic video set.

LOS ANGELES — Setting foot on the set of Red Café's music video for "Fly Together" on Tuesday night, you might have thought you were in the middle of a Hollywood blockbuster. The Colin Tilley-directed clip was set in what looked like an industrial wasteland meets an apocalyptic auto graveyard.

Red Café was joined on set by his "Fly Together" collaborators, Rick Ross and Ryan Leslie. The trio towered above the set on steel cargo containers as smoke billowed in the background and a demolished car dangled in the air.
"Oh, man, this set is crazy," Red told MTV News. "Shout-out to Colin Tilley. He's amazing as well, and his vision just came to life here on this set. [He] got me up here like I'm Evel Knievel or something on this. You know, I was very nervous up there."
While it was definitely an impressive spectacle, the Brooklyn MC focused more on the message when breaking down the video's treatment.
"The treatment is really just kinda celebrating women, showcasing their independence and they could be your equal, and that's something that I recognize in a lot of women and I just wanted to bring that to life, visually," RC said. "So it's really just showcasing that a woman can be independent and she could have her own thing going on."
As far as how the track came together, the Bad Boy/ Konvict Music rapper told MTV News it happened rather quickly.
"Me and Ryan Leslie put this record together in New York," he said. "I was just excited to work with Ryan. I think Ryan is a genius. We did two days in the studio. The first day we was just vibing, just to like, just try to connect and get each other's vibe. And the second day we went in there and we created this record and immediately I heard Ross' voice on there — I'm just a fan of what Ross do — and I reached out to him and played him the joint, and he loved it."

1. Red Café on the set of "Fly Together"

1. Video: On The Set: Red Café's 'Fly Together' Feat. Ryan Leslie And Rick Ross

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Nirvana Had 'No Regrets' About Nevermind

Our Nevermind You Never Knew 20th-anniversary coverage continues with part two of a three-part look back at Nirvana in their own words.

"Nevermind was definitely an album we wanted to make. ... We have no regrets, other than maybe the production was too slick."
That was Kurt Cobain in December 1993, after the initial impact of Nirvana's sophomore album had subsided, and the band was trying to slip effortlessly into the promotional cycle for its follow-up, In Utero.

Of course, it went about as well as you would expect. Such is often the case when a band attempts to move on from the shadow of a monolithic, moment-seizing record: It's difficult to talk about anything else.
When it was released, no one had any idea of what Nevermind would eventually become. In fact, in the Geffen offices, they were hoping it'd sell maybe 250,000 copies, and as such, shortages in record stores were common in the months following its release.
But, as you're probably aware by now, the album far exceeded initial expectations (it's since sold more than 30 million copies worldwide), and, in the 20 years since its release, Nevermind has gone on to become an album that not only lends itself to being mythologized, but deserves it as well.
And yet, the album didn't become a household name overnight. It slowly (almost methodically) ascended the charts, finally overtaking Michael Jackson's Dangerous atop the Billboard albums chart in January 1992. And when it did, it signified not only the changing of the guard, but a new era for music. It was a rare moment: A good band was also the most popular. And 20 years later, we're still marveling at that fact.
But, again, Nevermind lends itself to mythology. And with its 20th anniversary just around the corner, we suspect you'll be subject to no shortage of it. So rather than add another anecdote (or 10) to the pile, we figured it would be best to tell the story of Nirvana in the words of the people who knew it best: the band itself.
We've spent the past few weeks mining the MTV News archives to find our definitive Nirvana moments — not just the iconic interviews, but the behind-the-scenes nuggets that show the band as they truly were: funny, irreverent and just a little uncomfortable with their newfound fame (a fact they'd go to great lengths to prove with In Utero).
Earlier Monday (September 19), we published Nirvana's take on their early years, and now, we're going to give you their view on everything that happened in the year following the release of Nevermind.
Here, now, is a band at the epicenter of a true revolution, trying to make sense of everything that happens while, at the same time, attempting to remain true to the scene that birthed them. That struggle is just one of many reasons why, 20 years after they burst into the world, Nirvana remains one of the most fascinating rock bands of all time.

1. Nirvana's Kurt Cobain in 1993

   
   

1. Video: Nirvana: The Nevermind You Never Knew

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Oscar Host Eddie Murphy Will Commit '200' Percent

'He's a huge movie star. He has huge international appeal,' producer Brett Ratner tells us on Emmy Awards red carpet.

The American public may no longer be convinced about Eddie Murphy's enduring comedic gifts, based on the number of folks who purchased tickets to "Imagine That" and "Meet Dave." Even Eddie Murphy may no longer be convinced about Eddie Murphy's enduring comedic gifts. But one man with no such doubt is Brett Ratner, who is producing the 2012 Academy Awards and who has tapped Murphy to host.

"I think there's no question about it. He's the greatest," Ratner told us Sunday night at the Emmy Awards about Eddie taking on the gig and slaying the crowd. "My first idea was the show had to go in the direction of more comedy with a single host, and there's nobody better on that stage than Eddie Murphy."
"I grew up watching 'Raw' and 'Delirious' and being a big fan of him," Ratner added. "He's a huge movie star. He has huge international appeal. There's nobody better. He's a pro. The guy is a pro."
That's certainly true, even if it has been a couple of decades since Eddie's days as the foulmouthed king of the standup comedy world. Ratner, for his part, appears to be attempting to hit a sort of Eddie Murphy reset button, for years trying to kick-start another "Beverly Hills Cop" film and now coming out this fall with "Tower Heist," a flick that finds the comedian cussing and riffing like it's the '80s all over again. Perhaps for Murphy, in Ratner he trusts. Which is why, according to the filmmaker, Eddie took zero convincing to take on the Oscar gig.
"It's not the kind of job you want to convince anyone to do. They either want to do it or they don't," Ratner told us, adding that Eddie is going to commit more than 150 percent effort to the job. "200, not 150! 200!"

1. Eddie Murphy

1. Video: Brett Ratner Talks About Eddie Murphy Hosting The Oscars

Jane Lynch Focuses On The Funny As Emmys Host

Highlights of the 'Glee' star's hosting gig include big opening number and 'Entourage'-skewering joke.

Jane Lynch opened the 63rd Emmy Awards with an elaborate musical number that took her on a journey into the some of the biggest shows on television.

The "Glee" scene-stealer kicked off the pre-taped piece by meeting with the "President of Television," played gamely by "Star Trek" icon Leonard Nimoy. All of television secretly lives in one building, Nimoy explained, and Lynch decided to take a trip through several shows, including "Grey's Anatomy," "The Big Bang Theory" and "Parks and Recreation" while singing and dancing alongside stars like "American Idol" judge Randy Jackson, Andy Richter, Eric Dane and many more. "But they hardly let you sing on 'Glee,' " Nimoy joked. Lynch assured him she'd be lip-synching.
A highlight of the number was her visit to the world of "Mad Men," during which she informed the stars of the swinging '60s drama of some major changes ahead and even hit on Elisabeth Moss' character Peggy with a winking promise of same-sex marriage. The love-fest ended fast, however, when she let it slip in front of ad man Don Draper that in the future, people often fast-forward through commercials.
Lynch's Sue Sylvester even found herself on the receiving end of a slushy, something her "Glee" villain is more accustomed to dishing out than taking, before hitting the stage live accompanied by dancers. "Try doing that in triple Spanx," she deadpanned.
Her monologue was brief, just a few nods to the likes of Jon Hamm and "Boardwalk Empire" director Martin Scorsese, and one playful jab at TV legend Betty White, who Lynch joked was "the reason we start the show at 5 p.m."
She then introduced the Emmytones, a singing band of jokesters that included Zachary Levi, Cobie Smulders, Taraji P. Henson, Kate Flannery, Wilmer Valderrama and Joel McHale.
Lynch brought her signature playful-but-occasionally biting humor to the gig, but never ventured into the more cutting territory that garnered Ricky Gervais controversy at this year's Golden Globes -- except perhaps for a slight dig at Gervais himself. After a edit-heavy, pre-taped segment featuring the British "Office" star, Lynch said, "Poor little Ricky Gervais. Someone didn't get enough hugs from mommy and somehow it's Hollywood's fault."
Otherwise, the actress was all about keeping it funny. When Lynch lost to "Modern Family" star Julie Bowen in the Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series category, she joked about the sad-sack things she'd be doing if she didn't have to host the rest of the show and later referred to the ceremony as the " 'Modern Family' Awards."
Lynch also set her playful sights on New Jersey for a faux news story on the state's emergence as a force in television. Newsman Anderson Cooper introduced the investigative piece, with Lynch playing Donatella Albeghetti Mangiana D'Borgia, the woman behind the success of every Jersey-centric TV show, including "Jersey Shore." We even got a little backstory on our favorite "Shore" stars and learned that D'Borgia plucked young Nicole Polizzi from obscurity as a Harvard undergrad to create the superstar we now know as "Snooki."
"Watch out, Hollywood, 'cause Jersey is taking over," D'Borgia warned. (As if we didn't know that already.)
The hostess' best line of the night came at the expense of the bro-heavy cast of "Entourage." From the audience, Lynch introduced the guys, saying, "A lot of people are curious why I'm a lesbian. Ladies and gentlemen, the cast of 'Entourage.' "
Lynch closed the night simply, scolding viewers more interested in tweeting about the show than actually watching it and offering a sincere thank you as the credits rolled after "Modern Family" won Best Comedy Series.

1. Jane Lynch hosts the 2011 Emmys

   
   

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1. Video: 2011 Emmys Highlights
   
   

Sigourney Weaver Avatar 2 role confirmed

Sigourney Weaver's character fleshed out Avatar's environmental message

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Actress Sigourney Weaver says she will appear in the sequel to sci-fi film Avatar, despite her character dying in the first instalment.

"Don't worry, I will be back," she told US movie website Coming Soon.
Weaver played botanist Grace Augustine in the 3D epic, which took more than $2.7bn (£1.7bn) worldwide.
Her character was fatally wounded in a climactic battle, but the actress said director James Cameron had told her "no one ever dies in science fiction".
"He's told me the stories for the next two movies and I have to say that they're absolutely wonderful," she added.
"Now we just have to make them."
The original Avatar, which told the story of humans mining an alien planet for reserves of the improbably-named mineral Unobtanium, is the highest-grossing movie of all time.

Weaver previously worked with James Cameron on the hit movie Aliens

Director Cameron promised to turn the story into a trilogy if box office receipts reached $1bn (£633m).
Work on the scripts has begun but, as yet, there is no filming schedule.
When shooting commences, Avatar 2 and 3 will be made back-to-back, with months of post-production to create the computer-generated alien world of Pandora.
Speaking on the red carpet at the 2010 Oscars, Cameron admitted: "If I were to start Avatar 2 tomorrow, it would still be three years away".
He later confirmed that the first possible release date for the sequel was Christmas 2014.
"The boss, Jim Cameron, he's not just going to make it for the sake of it," actor Sam Worthington told Radio 1 Newsbeat last year.
"He always wants the challenge, he always wants to push the envelope and raise the bar and I think audiences will demand that of Avatar 2.
"When he finds the challenge that's when we go back to work."

Otakar Vavra dies aged 100

Vavra was criticised for co-operating with Czech communist rulers

Czech director and teacher Otakar Vavra, whose students included One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest director Milos Forman, has died in Prague aged 100.

Vavra directed more than 50 films from the 1930s onwards, including 12 during the Nazi occupation of his country.
Golden Queen, winner of top prize at the 1965 San Sebastian film festival, and 1967's Romance for Bugle, are considered to be among his best works.
In the 1950s he helped to set up Prague's Famu film school.
Forman, who won two best director Oscars - in 1976, for One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and in 1985, for Amadeus - was among his students there.
Vavra also taught Jiri Menzel who directed films including Closely Observed Trains, winner of the best foreign language film Oscar in 1968.
FAMU dean Pavel Jech hailed Vavra as "one of the most significant people in the history of Czech cinema and the teacher of the most important Czech film generation".
But Vavra's critics complained his films followed Communist ideology too closely.