Bill Vaughan's TASTY CLIPS

When producers were looking to cast a medical examiner for CSI-NY, HILL HARPER got the call. This son of physicians is no stranger to playing doctor having done so on his own CBS series City of Angels, and on The Sopranos actually punking Tony. Tasty Clips asked the actor (whose credits include Get on the Bus; He Got Game; Beloved; and the indie favorite Love, Sex and Eating the Bones) what differentiated the Gotham spin-off from the others in the successful forensic franchise. "If you watch our show, it's a little darker and more gruesome than the other shows," said Harper. "It has the gravitas of the city, because out of Vegas, Miami and New York, obviously [ours] is the heaviest city. That's just the way it is."

You are both actor and narrator in HBO's Lackawanna Blues. Is this film saying that desegregation just hasn't been as great as folks first thought? "Well, I don't think it's going that far. I think it's much more myopic. It's basically saying that there was a world, that unfortunately because of desegregation will never ever be seen again. When it was there, it was glorious. You had black barbers, pharmacists, businesses and restaurants. You had a community that was forced by society to take care of itself and each other. I think there's a sadness or mourning of something that passed. It's just like when someone passes away. You mourn their passing and their legacy, but you don't necessarily have to take the next step and say because they passed the world is a worse place or life is ruined. You celebrate their existence and try to learn the lessons. We should support black businesses today. There should be people taking care of each other in our community. We've gotten much more dispirit, so we don't. But there was a time we did. And just because there's no Jim Crow law, doesn't mean we can't do the same thing."

In fact, you show a lot support in a number of investments like your L.A. restaurant The Lodge and the International House in Louisiana. "It's the only major hotel in New Orleans that has a percentage black ownership in a town that's 75% black. That's a difficult pill to swallow. I read a sobering statistic that said in today's society, a dollar that comes into the Jewish community is on average recycled through thirteen hands before it leaves the community. On an average with a dollar that comes through the African-American community, it goes through one hand. To me it's about wealth building in the community and recycling dollars. I put my money where my mouth was. I put my money in my community."

You've been very fortunate to get a lot of work. What high level role did you go for that someone else got? "Oh, It almost killed me. There's a role in 8 Mile, that Mekhi Phifer played that he and I both screen tested for. I went to Detroit and auditioned with Eminem for two days and we did all these scenes together. First of all, I knew the movie was going to be extremely successful. I thought it was going to be kind of like the Saturday Night Fever for this generation, and in fact it turned out to be that in its own way. I thought I could do so much with that character. It didn't go that way and I was crushed. I'm not going to try to sugar coat it. But at the end of the day, I love Mekhi. He's such a good guy. What's for him is for him and what's for me is for me. That role was not for me. Rejection is a big part of this business. Even Tom Hanks and Tom Cruise and Denzel Washington experience rejection. No matter what level you get to in this career it's part of the job description. It's actually the hardest part about being an actor, by far."

What do you think of Samuel L. Jackson turning down a chance to work with one of his favorite directors because 50 Cent was to star? "That stance that Sam Jackson is taking, and I told him this the last time I saw him, is one of the greatest stances that I've seen because he's helping true actors get more jobs. If you look at a film like Coach Carter, if Sam hadn't taken that stance that whole team or at least half of that team would've been rappers. Chingy would've been on that team. Nelly and Usher would've been the point guards. But instead, this opportunity [went] to all these young great actors who people have never really seen before in a lot of different things. And the movie's better and made more money because [of that]." But you were willing to work in 8 Mile. "I'm not in the place in my career where I can say that yet, because they're not offering me the leads in films. I have to go audition. That can't be my fight. I have no problem working with Eminem or 50 Cent or whoever, because to me it's about the project and character. It's less so about who I'm working with."

You've made two films (The Visit, and the upcoming Constellation) with a man who like you was once named one of People Magazine's Sexiest Men Alive, Billy Dee Williams. "Billy Dee is such an amazing man and he does not get the credit he deserves for opening the door for so many of us. It's funny, I look back and see Sidney Poitier getting all these lifetime achievement awards and all this credit. People lifting up Sidney or Diahann Carroll and Ruby Dee, and all these individuals deserve to be lauded. But Billy Dee Williams! My God, he needs to be given a lifetime achievement award. He's like Clint Eastwood on the African-American side."

How's Spike Lee as a director? "Spike is fantastic. He really encourages actors to take risks and to create characters." He seems to have lost the golden touch of late. And surprisingly enough there seems to be a whole generation not familiar with his film work. "He loves basketball so I'll use a basketball analogy. He's like a pure shooter who's a streak shooter. Streak shooters can shoot really well, but what makes them, like Allen Iverson, is they just shoot. Whether they're making it or missing it. Spike is not holding on to his projects. He's been averaging at least one a year. He is by far the most prolific top level filmmaker in the world. For a second, Woody Allen was around that kind of pace, but certainly not even close any more."

Kobe Bryant is accused and loses endorsements, yet it seems like the biggest pitchman now is Snoop Dogg, who has basically admitted to doing some things and continuing to do so. It seems like a very strange standard is going on. "I think you're absolutely right. It's a crazy standard. The Snoop Dogg thing is a whole different thing. You talk about glamorization of images. And also Snoop only did bad things to black people. And somehow if you're black and you do bad things to black people that's kind of OK. As soon as you start doing bad things to other people, I think that it's deemed a little bit more harmful."

Look for things to heat up a bit this season on CBS' hit drama CSI. Seems characters Warrick Brown (Gary Dourdan) and Catherine Willows (Marg Helgenberger) will get busy beyond their forensic work, according to TV Guide. "Warrick has had ideas about her since their early days on the team," Dourdan said. "He's not blind, you know."

TC TV (EST) - MARCH - SA/19: SOMETIMES IN APRIL - 8 PM, HBO Premiere! For more info visit POLI-SIGH! W/23: SURVIVOR: PALAU - 8 PM, CBS; AMERICAN IDOL - 9 PM, Fox; TH/24: THE APPRENTICE - 9 PM, NBC; F/25: BERNIE MAC - 8 PM, Fox; BATTLESTAR GALACTICA - 10 PM, Sci Fi

Charlie Murphy, of Comedy Central’s Chappelle’s Show and who toiled for years as a bodyguard for his younger brother Eddie, is just warming up. Over the next few months, he has two movies coming out (King’s Ransom and Roll Bounce), is starting production on a DreamWorks comedy he co-wrote with Eddie (Death Do Us Part) and will begin a Clear Channel comedy tour in the summer.

CLIPPETTES: India.Arie (w/ from left: Hillary Duff, Amber Tamblyn, Marcus Allen & Vivica A. Fox) unveiled a startling new look (for her) at GM's annual "Ten" Fashion Show prior to the Oscars. OAN referred to it as "a sartorial leap.".....Among the actors signed up for pilots this season are Larenz Tate, Eriq LaSalle, Gabrielle Union, Harry J. Lennix, Sticky Fingaz, Regina King, Dondre Whitfield, Aisha Tyler, Regina Taylor, Dennis Haysbert, Bow Wow and Bill Bellamy.....Antoine Fuqua (Training Day) may direct Mel Gibson in his first major role since 2002's Signs.....Jackie Chan will play a bad guy next year in a new film which will force him to recreate Tokyo's Shinjuku district, because it would be very hard to shoot in the real place during the nighttime.....Good Day L.A. w/ Arthel Neville will end on Mar. 18.....Bobb'e J. Thompson, the real star of The Tracy Morgan Show, will portray Gary Coleman in NBC's Behind the Camera: The Unauthorized Story of 'Diff'rent Strokes'.....

Ice Cube will step in Cary Grant's shoes for the remake of Mr. Blandings Builds His Dream House.....Billboard reports that Starbucks, which partnered in the success of Ray Charles' Grammy Award-sweeping Genius Loves Company, will next focus on a Herbie Hancock duets disc. Look for Sting, Annie Lennox, John Mayer, Carlos Santana and others on the CD to arrive Sept. 13.....Steven Seagal is turning his hand to producing Asian pictures, kicking off with Dragon Squad, a Cantonese/English-lingo saga of a battle between Interpol agents and gangsters in Hong Kong starring Sammo Hung and Michael Biehn.....The 2005 Atlanta Underground Awards treated the near capacity crowd at The Abbey to a night of good food, great networking and live performances. Joi opened the show for a house that had Bone Crusher, Big Rube, Trina Broussard, boxer Vernon Forrest, Slick N Rose, The Outlaws, Griff, Dres The Beatnik and Mami Chula from Hot 107.9 in attendance.....Ying Yang Twins have officially started their 2nd TVT album which will be titled U.S.A. (UNITED STATE OF ATLANTA). The disc will feature production from YYT co-creator DJ Smurf, Lil Jon, Three Six Mafia, Timbaland, Mannie Fresh & KLC.; with contributions from Anthony Hamilton, Floetry and others.....That production of Julius Caesar opening on Broadway next month with Denzel Washington as Brutus will feature a nude Caesar and is set in the ruins of Rome about 30 years in the future, right after "the great Oil Wars," reports Page Six. "It's a bombed out cityscape with lootings and violence, like Baghdad after the invasions.".....Aretha Franklin is negotiating to play R&B record shop owner Motormouth Maybelle alongside rumored co-stars Billy Crystal and John Travolta in the film version of the Broadway musical Hairspray.....Add Vicki Winans, Keith "Wonderboy" Johnson, and KC & The Sunshine Band to the already impressive line-up for this year's 3 Rivers Music Festival (Apr. 22-24) in S.C......T.D. Jakes' inspiring film Woman Thou Art Loosed is now available on DVD.....Rapper Eve will bring the true-life story of HIV-positive lesbian talkshow producer Conscious to life via a Showtime biopic.....Eric Jerome Dickey's Friends and Lovers, lovingly recreated for the stage by producers Gary Guidry and JeCaryous Johnson continues to bowl over audiences with its all-star cast of Leon (who gets off a good joke about his Five Heartbeats role), Monica Calhoun, Miguel Nunez, Mel Jackson, and Trina "Sister Cantaloupe" Jeffries. The show is headed to NJ, CT, GA, & MD, among other markets. Click above link for more info.....Though the inaugural Vibe Music Festival announced it will launch in Atlanta on the same weekend as the city's venerable Music Midtown (6/10-12), the latter's producers are not worried with their strong Clear Channel backing and their hiring of Jermaine Dupri's dad Michael Mauldin to handle the bookings. Jermaine will produce and perform on the urban stage.

Halle Berry accepted her Worst Actress Razzie for Catwoman with these words: “I want to thank Warner Brothers for casting me in this piece of shit,” she said as she dragged her agent on stage and warned him “next time read the script first.” It has come out that one of the intros for her that Oscar host Chris Rock did not use was: ''This actress has lost more men than the Iraqi Army...''

To Hotel Rwanda star and Best Actor nominee Don Cheadle, this year's Oscars had to be better than the last time he attended the awards, when he had to pay for his tickets. Walking up the red carpet, he recalled to the NY Daily News, "I was stuck between Cher and Jack Nicholson. The paparazzi were going crazy over Jack and Cher. People were shoving us. Someone stepped on my wife, Brigid's, dress and ripped it. All of a sudden, one lone paparazzo looked at me and said, 'Mr. Cheadle! Mr. Cheadle!' I turned and smiled. He said, 'Get out of the [bleeping] way!'"

TLC's Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins has a new venture that has endeared her to chic parents. She and buyer for the stars Tara Rowntree (Demi Moore, Duchess of York) have opened Chase's Closet (713-630-2902), a high-end (yet, somehow affordable) children’s store located in the exclusive River Oaks neighborhood in Houston, Texas. On sale are such lines as D&G Junior, Rocky T, Ms. Blumarine, Moschino, Ralph Lauren Layette and shoes, The English Roses,Von Dutch Baby and much more including their exclusive Roca Wear baby stroller. The duo pride themselves on their fabulous gift department, featuring custom-made gift baskets that include complimentary gift wrapping, delivery and shipping. Celebs such as L. A. Reid, Queen Latifah, Brandy, Ananda Lewis, Diane Sawyer, Lara Spencer, Dallas Austin, Boris Kodjoe and Nicole Ari Parker have all benefited from their expertise. At a private trunk show, held at her house to raise funds for the volunteer group Hands On Atlanta, T-Boz (pictured with hit songwriter/Xscape member Kandi Burress and her daughter Riley) told Tasty Clips that the store came about from all the shopping she was doing for her daughter (who the store is named after). "I wanted to dress her like me," she said. "After looking at how full her closet was, [Tara and I] thought this could be a business." Atlanta would've also had a store by now, but a scouted posh area in Buckhead (Phipps Plaza - the old Kenneth Cole store) was not acceptable and a new development looks to be favored to carry the goods including T-Boz's first designer line, Grunge Girls and her specialty candles, Anela's Way (her daughter's middle name). Look for her with Chilli this June on the UPN reality talent search, R U The Girl. - Danielle Greene & John Crooms contributed to this report.

In a roundtable with Atlanta Journal-Constitution film critics, we find out that Andre 3000 of OutKast (and Be Cool) has not seen Ray; thought that The Aviator was "just OK;" is mad that The Notebook was slept on because "it's actually a classic;" and that he really liked Sideways. As for this year's Oscar winning Best Picture: "I haven't seen that one, but I thought there was so much around Million Dollar Baby. I thought, man, I've got to see that movie. And John Singleton (now directing Dre in Four Brothers) told me, "Man, you've got to go see this movie." And I said, "I know you're a filmmaker and I'm new to it, and I just want to know what did you like about Million Dollar Baby?" He said, "Because it was a great story. It was ordinary people in an extraordinary situation."

And now some of the results from that auction of memorabilia at Jazz at Lincoln Center Tasty Clips told you about a few weeks ago. The legendary Charlie Parker's alto sax went for $262,000 to an anonymous bidder. Pianist Thelonious Monk's notebook went for $70,800. An engraved 1930s vibraphone from Lionel Hampton sold for $50,000, while Dizzy Gillespie’s custom-made Martin trumpet fetched $26,000. An original arrangement for A Love Supreme written by sax great John Coltrane in pencil and blue ink was reported to spark a bidding frenzy. It sold for $129,500.

TC CDs: Be Cool (SDTK w/ Black Eyed Peas, Christina Milian, Commodores, James Brown & others)(TVT) Love the music and this disc, but so much is missing from the score, including Victor Taylor's contributions, that the label could be justified in releasing a Vol. II, if the movie's a hit. SOLOMON BURKE Make Do With What You Got (Sony); EL PUS Hoodlum Rock, Vol. 1 (Virgin); 50 CENT Massacre (Interscope); AMOS LEE (Blue Note); JENNIFER LOPEZ Rebirth (Sony) Tasty Clips had the opportunity to experience this release in the new Dual Disc format. If ever there was an artist made for this innovation of putting the CD on one side and a DVD with enhanced sound and videos on the other, the photogenic J-Lo's the one. The format was also a revelation with classic discs such as Miles Davis' Kind of Blue which features a documentary on the making of this landmark in jazz. JUDITH OWEN Lost and Found (w/ Cassandra Wilson & Keb' Mo')(Century of Progress); Robots (SDTK w/ Earth, Wind and Fire, Ricky Fante & others)(Virgin); MONTY ALEXANDER Live at Iridium (Telarc); JOAN ARMATRADING Lovers Speak (Prism); CARLTON BLOUNT From A Man's Point of View (33rd St.); LAYZIE BONE & BIZZIE BONE Bone Brothers (Koch); RAVI COLTRANE In Flux (Savoy Jazz); BO DIDDLEY Vamp (Universe); GHETTO MAFIA The Return of (Downsouth Ent.); DAVE HOLLAND Overtime (Sunnyside); DR. JOHN Desitively Bonnaroo (DBK Works); CHUCK LOEB When I'm With You (Shanachie); OMARION O (Epic); NEAL SCHON ionU (Favored Nations); SCRITTI POLITTI Early (Sanctuary)

Here's RuPaul's take on alleged porn aficionado Michael Jackson to the Village Voice's Michael Musto: "We the public have fed off of this man, this child, since he was five and we've never taken responsibility for what he's become. He's become addicted to the fame game and I think we addicted him. He's got to top himself. Who can top Michael Jackson? [meaningful pause] I don't even want to go there!" Ru fell apart laughing.
From Vernon Reid of the acclaimed black rock outfit Living Colour as reported by The NY Observer: "We’re part of a hidden history of rock ’n’ roll," Reid said as part of a N.Y.U. panel discussing the impact of Public Enemy's landmark album It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back. "The history you usually get doesn’t include the Isley Brothers; it doesn’t include World Is a Ghetto." Reid pointed out that rock outfits like Bad Brains and Fishbone were a vital inspiration to his own music, and he was quick to add that the pigeonholing of black musicians into hip-hop perpetuates ridiculous stereotypes. The guitarist related the story of a backstage confrontation with Alex Van Halen, right after brother Eddie (the talented one) and new VH front man Sammy Hagar paid tribute to Living Colour in the pages of Rolling Stone. The bumbling Van Halen brother told Reid that while Eddie was a big fan, he himself could not understand why an African-American man would want to wail on the guitar. "I just don’t get that shit," he reportedly said. Though Reid admitted that he was "feeling pretty ghetto," he chose to sagely put the other Van Halen in his place. "Why don’t you go ask your brother?" replied Reid. "He’s a real musician." Reid will next perform as part of The Yohimbe Bros. with DJ Logic and band at NYC's Blue Note on Apr. 8 & 9.

With her debut album 8 years ago, ALANA DAVIS was lauded as one of the top new artists by Rolling Stone, Good Morning America, and other media observers. Now the husky voiced singer is back with Surrender Dorothy, the 1st release on her own label, Tigress Records. "I do more than just sing," she told Tasty Clips. "[Being able to decide] who I want to play for, why, what venue, and who we're going to reach is exciting. I can't say I know for sure who's going to like it, but I put myself in front of everyone. I figure it's about being a force as opposed to being a star."

With your 1st hit, [a cover of Ani DiFranco's 24 Flavors], you became a sort of poster child for bi-raciality. Does your audience reflect that? "They do. My audience was like semi-bi-racial, no doubt. As a kid, I used to feel like an outsider. Nowadays, I'm not really an outsider anymore. I'm just one of a billion. I hope that other hybrids see me and know I'm one of their people."

I found some songs on your new album to actually be a bit unromantic. Where were your emotions when writing them? "They ran the gamut. That's what I try to do with a record. You have the whole spectrum. I don't want to just do one record of all hate or all love in life. That would be boring. I don't think there's a person in the world that doesn't have a problem. It reflects life. And you know the old analogy, if it doesn't kill you.... If I can go through one heartbreak and write it down in a way that makes one person not to have to go through quite that pain, that seems valuable to me."

You cut your signature mane. What happened? "You just get to a point where you want to change and you wonder if you can. I'm used to getting a compliment on my hair at least once a day. How silly is that? It's very easy to feel that your hair is your crowning glory. I personally feel life's too short to spend three hours in the morning getting ready to walk out on the runway of life. It's very liberating now to not have to deal with that."

You seem to be leaning more towards reggae music. "I'm all about groove. I love the bass. I've been in reggae forever. The genuine energy. The strong notes. The beautiful mistakes. Reggae has that. And not only that, but some of the most conscious lyrics. I need to be positive and real and about the oneness in particular. I need that. Right now, I need that a lot."

A number of media sources are reporting that Jamie Foxx is working on an upcoming CD for Clive Davis with Rich Harrison (responsible for Beyonce's Crazy in Love and Amerie's 1 Thing) producing. What Tasty Clips can tell you that they don't know is that the disc will make We Are The World look small. Jamie has a recording studio in his crib and in his quest to win a Grammy, every musically inclined guest of his popular parties was coerced to lay down a track or two. His next films are Stealth (July 29), and the Gulf War drama Jarhead (Nov.11). After that, he'll star with Colin Farrell in a cinematic re-do of the '80s TV show Miami Vice. Jamie says he also is in talks to play the male lead in Dreamgirls. One project that won't happen now is his taking the lead in the movie version of Marvel Comics tough guy Luke Cage. A soon as he won the Oscar, the producers started looking elsewhere.

According to ContactMusic: Actress Jennifer Beals would steer clear of Hollywood temptress Angelina Jolie if she was a real-life lesbian. The Flashdance icon admits she would marry her The L Word co-star Kelly Lynch if she was aroused by members of her own sex - but she would have no desire to get intimate with the Girl, Interrupted actress. Beals - who plays a lesbian in the hit TV show - says, 'She's the last person I'd marry, or anybody should think about marrying. I mean, come on."

Backstage at the Valentine Love Affair in Charlotte, Tasty Clips was celebrating the sold-out show at the Belk Theatre with headliners Will Downing and Gerald Albright, and ace promoter/birthday boy Michael Alexander. Opener Lalah Hathaway found she lost out on her Grammy bid that night, but was happy with moving 125 CD's in 10 minutes with a signing session between acts. Downing continues to get even more polished as a performer each outing to satisfy his many returning fans. He is currently laying tracks for a new disc to arrive this fall. Saxophonist Albright, who recently moved from L.A. to Denver, is one of many featured performers on one of the hot discs of the year: Devoted Spirits' Tribute to Earth, Wind and Fire (To be released on Mar. 22). This group of ex-EWF players Larry Dunn, Morris Pleasure and Sheldon Reynolds have crafted a loving homage with guests Norman Brown, Ricky Lawson, Sounds of Blackness, original EWF guitarist Johnny Graham, Ronnie Laws, Bobby Watson (Rufus), Teri Lynn Carrington, John Blackwell of Prince's NPG and Maurice White himself.

TASTY CLIPS SPORTS: Next year's host city for the NBA All-Star Weekend will be Houston, a prime spot as many of the NBA millionaires keep homes there. New Orleans and Miami have applied for the 2007 All-Star Game. The Big Easy is regarded as a favorite because everyone loves when the Super Bowl is held there, and there are questions about whether Miami can get the necessary convention space for the four-day event. Charlotte, which opens a new arena next season, will likely host the game in 2009. That should be enough time to build a couple more hotels. One place you need not look to having the All-Stars is Dallas. Mavericks owner Mark "The Benefactor" Cuban remains steadfast in his opinion that the huge event is undesirable because so many of his season-ticket holders would have no chance to attend the events.

Muhammed Ali was feted at a fundraiser dinner in Atlanta to raise funds for his center in Louisville, Kentucky. Tavis Smiley, who earlier in the day led his State of the Black Union forum, hosted the event which featured a mini-concert from Brian McKnight, and such eloquence from Cornel West that Ali, his Million Dollar Baby Laila Ali and many of those in the house which included Tom Joyner, Lennox Lewis, Rev. Al Sharpton, Andrew Young, Rev. Jesse Jackson and Henry Aaron were moved to tears. On the downside, the food was considered terrible; and there was an absence of political leaders and boxing dignitaries in the state, who by not being named here should raise eyebrows.
Stevie Wonder will join Tiger Woods and the Counting Crows for the Tiger Jam VIII benefit May 21 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas. Proceeds from the event go to the Tiger Woods Learning Center in Southern California, as well as local charities. Tickets go on sale Saturday through Ticketmaster. Tiger Jam raises about $1 million every year.
Sammy Sosa, who irked his Chicago Cubs teammates with his boom-box, will be relieved to know that his new Washington Nationals Manager Lee Mazzilli will allow his music after wins, with one caveat: "If I listen to your 50 Cent, then you should be able to listen to my Dean Martin."