Recording Artist Mario and Terrence Howard go over a tune at a private fan dinner in Atlanta. (photo: Rick Diamond/WireImage.com)

Getting Wired for Election Day?

Barack Obama has gone on the record as saying that he's a huge fan of 'The Wire,' and a few of the show's cast members turned up at Elon University in North Carolina to say that the feeling is mutual. Besides throwing their support behind Obama, DeDe Lovejoy, Chad Coleman and Jamie Hector also urged students to help get out the vote — early if possible. "It's great if you vote, but you should be concerned if someone you know isn't voting, too," Hector said. "Early voting is a great opportunity and I hope that everyone is taking advantage of it." (photo: Frederick M. Brown/Getty Images)

[The Pendulum]

Kim Cattrall, Jerry Dixon and Mario Cantone at the opening night party for 'Romantic Poetry' Off-Broadway in New York City. (Photo by Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic)

If It Were True...

Stepping into the role of Sookie's best friend Tara at the last minute, Rutina Wesley had a lot to think about — moving, taking on her first TV role and playing opposite Anna Paquin. And then, of course, there are the vampire genre's superfans. But at least she doesn't have to face the actual challenges faced by the folks of Bontemps — vampire neighbors. "I think it would be a little crazy because that would just be one more thing I'd have to worry about, walking around at night, as a woman in this world," says Wesley when asked to imagine that scenario. "I think it would be really scary. I think the same would happen in America, as what happens with the people of the community that the show is about. People would freak out, they would lash out and there would be a race war, so to speak, if vampires appeared." (photo: Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic.com)

[MediaBlvd.com]

Screwed the Pooch

Apparently the English don't have such a great sense of humor when it comes to their best friends. When Ricky Gervais cracked a joke on London radio about giving his Labrador Botox injections, the news media jumped on the remark, reporting the story as fact. Gervais had to straighten things out on his official blog, writing: "I didn't. I haven't got a dog. I would never do anything to hurt or enhance the unconditional natural beauty of an animal. It was a joke. Retraction tomorrow." (photo: Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic.com)

[ShowBizSpy.com]

Paul Bettany and Sophie Okonedo attend the screening of 'The Secret Life of Bees' as part of the Times BFI 52nd London Film Festival. (photo: Jon Furniss/WireImage.com)

Another Bloody Sunday?

Playing Lafayette Reynolds — the drug dealing, Internet-porn producing, short-order cook and friend to Sookie — on 'True Blood' provides lots of challenges. For one, there were the notes on cranking up the Southernness — and the heat — on the show. "They turned off the air for one episode and burned us up in the studio, like, 'It needs more sweat.' It was literally a sweatshop." And then, of course, there's the nagging concern of how much longer he'll be around. "Certainly if they are willing to take out grandma, they are willing to take out anybody," says actor Nelsan Ellis. (photo: Michael Buckner/Getty Images)

[afterelton.com]

Déjà Vu

You'd have thought that when Shannyn Sossamon got discovered DJ-ing Gwyneth Paltrow's birthday party that would have been enough Horatio Alger for her. But the actress is signing on for more. Sossamon has taken a role in HBO's new pilot 'How to Make it in America.' The project about chasing the American dream comes out of Mark Wahlberg's shop and, according to exec-producer Rob Weiss, "is a fun ride through the downtown scene, examining the cross section of people and how they relate to the relevant subcultures in NYC." (photo: Jeffrey Mayer/WireImage.com)

[buddytv.com]

Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, Jada Pinkett-Smith and David Schwimmer at the LA premiere of 'Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa' in Westwood, California. (photo: Kevin Parry/WireImage.com)

Who's the Boss?

Gary Cole immortalized the oily boss as Bill Lumberg in 'Office Space' long before Ricky Gervais or Steve Carell started annoying their staff. The wingtip will be on the other foot, though, when Cole joins Miller Gold playing Andrew Klein, an old pal of Ari's. Cole appears in a three-episode arc of 'Entourage' this season, and will join the cast for season six. When asked if he'd accept the position we hope he said: "Um ... yeah, that would greaaat ...." (photo: Michael Bezjian/WireImage.com)

[HollywoodReporter.com]

Earth Girls Are Easy

How do you go from alien Messiah to teen heartthrob while still remaining as "meta" as a David Milch script? A clever nod to 'Dawson's Creek' doesn't hurt. When 'John From Cincinnati' star Austin Nichols' plays a movie producer on the CW's 'One Tree Hill,' the director working under him is none other than James Van der Beek, the original contemplative forehead to appear on the teen-y network. But the great mystery for Nichols' character Julian has less to do with the cosmos this time around. "I don't know why they're being so secretive about my love life on this show," he says, "but I'll tell you this: When I had my meeting with [series creator] Mark Schwann, I told him that I wanted them all! There are tons of beautiful women on this show, so hopefully Julian crosses paths with many of them. Julian has a voracious appetite." (photo: Jesse Grant/WireImage.com)

[SeattlePI.com]

Elisabeth Moss, Raul Esparza and Jeremy Piven pose at the opening night after party for 'Speed the Plow' in New York City. (photo: Bruce Glikas/FilmMagic.com)

Child's Play

If you've found it hard to reconcile the blond bombshell bedding down with vampires on 'True Blood' with the young woman who won an Oscar for 'The Piano,' then you've made Anna Paquin very happy. "I would be thrilled if people watched the whole ('True Blood') pilot and couldn't figure out who I was," she says. "My favorite actors are people you can't recognize when you're walking down the street. ... She's a completely different character than what I am used to playing." (photo: Michael Buckner/Getty Images)

[ScrippsNews.com]

Bland Ambition

HBO has optioned former Hollywood exec and writer Cindy Guidry's book 'The Last Single Woman in America' for a new series. In a recent interview, Guidry muses about the source of her solo status. It's not that she finds the opposite sex mysterious — there's only one thing about them that baffles her: "Their love for The Three Stooges." So her single-mindedness must spring from something else: "I do have a particular fondness for monochromatic men — sandy hair, tan skin, green or brown eyes. I find them very comforting to look at, which is weird since I hate Thanksgiving dinner specifically because it's all so beige. Maybe somewhere in there lies the answer to why I'm still single."

[ChicagoPride.com]