Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
“I’m currently planning a trip home to Kauai,” said Vie En Rose founder Malea Rose. “I haven’t decided my New Year’s Eve plans. I’m a last-minute gal. But I’ll be traveling to the most beautiful places in Thailand in February to visit the set of [the third season of] ‘The White Lotus.’ I’m super excited!”
“I take brief road trips two to three times a month to work for Songwriting with Soldiers,” Maia Sharp said. “(It’s) an incredible organization that pairs a professional songwriter with veterans, active-duty service members, their family members … to turn their stories into songs.”
“Better Days” singer Jesse Palter says all her travels have taught her “that there’s a great big world outside of my little bubble, that there’s value in getting lost and that all roads lead back home.”
Born in Washington, D.C., and raised in Eagan, Minnesota, filmmaker Kulap Vilaysack traveled to Laos to search for her birth father. As a child, she hadn’t realized he even existed. She filmed her trip for her documentary, “Origin Story.” Vilaysack is also known for creating and executive producing the comedy series, “Bajillion Dollar Propertie$.”
Though Chelsey Crisp is a scene stealer for her portrayal of Honey on ABC’s “Fresh Off the Boat,” the actress says she often goes unrecognized when walking around with her husband, screenwriter Rhett Reese. “It takes hair and makeup a long time to turn me into Honey,” Crisp said, laughing. “I’m very pale, so they have to put a tan on me and make my hair very big. It really is a process, but it’s so much fun playing her.”
When Randall Park was a student at UCLA, he thought about pursuing a career in academia. Thanks partially to some creative writing classes — in which he wrote a part for himself in a student production — he decided to try acting instead. After playing a governor on “Veep” and North Korean dictator Kim Jung-Un in the controversial film, “The Interview,” Park landed the role of family patriarch Louis Huang on the ABC sitcom, “Fresh Off the Boat.” The third season premiere will air on Oct. 11.
Though Sterling K. Brown has been acting for 15 years, he earned “overnight sensation” status with his Emmy-winning performance as Chris Darden in the FX miniseries, “The People v. O.J. Simpson.” He returns to television in the new NBC series “This Is Us,” which premieres on Sept. 20. The actor also will appear in the films “Marshall” later this year, and, in 2017, M. Night Shyamalan’s “Split.”
After playing a lycanthrope on “True Blood,” Kelly Overton gets to hunt vampires in the title role of the new Syfy series, “Van Helsing” (which premiers on September 23). Based out of Pasadena, Calif., the actress has also started a jewelry brand called Benevolence LA, where the proceeds go toward charitable causes worldwide.
Surfer Alana Blanchard says the food in Sri Lanka was amazing: “We went to this town and went to this little restaurant that used to be a house and paid something like $2 for all-you-can-eat vegetables with spices. It was such a treat for me, because I’m vegan.”
Though she was born into rock royalty, Wendy Wilson says she never felt she deserved fame. That was reserved for her superstar father, Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys. But neither she nor her older sister, Carnie, could resist pursuing a career in music. As one third of the sing group Wilson Phillips, Wendy toured the world. The group’s latest effort is the DVD “Live From Infinity Hall,” which includes covers of such songs as “Monday Monday,” “California Dreamin’” and “Wouldn’t It Be Nice.” Wilson, 43, resides in California’s San Fernando Valley with her husband and four children.
Singer-actress Ashley Brown originated the title role of “Mary Poppins” on Broadway. She reprised the role in the national tour, receiving the 2010 Garland Award for that performance. Her television special “Ashley Brown in Concert: Call Me Irresponsible” also won a 2011 Telly Award. Brown is currently performing in Kern and Hammerstein’s musical “Show Boat” at the Lyric Opera of Chicago and “Speak Low,” her CD of American standards, is available now.
As a little girl, Shannon Lee grew up in Hong Kong and Los Angeles. The only surviving child of Bruce Lee — who would’ve celebrated his 71st birthday this year — Shannon is the CEO of Bruce Lee Enterprises and president of the board of directors for the Bruce Lee Foundation. Based out of L.A., the 42-year-old actress/singer/entrepreneur may be seen next in “I Am Bruce Lee,” a feature-length documentary that will soon air on Spike TV.
Many people know that Natalie Coughlin is a world champion swimmer. She has won 11 Olympic medals, three of them gold, and made history in the 2008 Summer Olympics when she became the first American female athlete in Olympic history to win six medals in one Olympics.
Linebacker Scott Fujita is a team captain for the Cleveland Browns and has played football for the New Orleans Saints, the Kansas City Chiefs and the Dallas Cowboys. But his home base is in Carmel Valley, Calif. “Basically, we chose a vacation destination as our permanent residence,” he says. Fujita, who cites National Geographic Traveler as one of his favorite magazines, loves exploring and shares some of his favorite spots.
Rock legend Todd Rundgren has been performing for more than 40 years. Best known for hits such as “Hello It’s Me,” “I Saw the Light” and “Bang the Drum All Day,” Rundgren is currently on tour. The 61-year-old Pennsylvania-born musician now resides in Hawaii. “I used to live in Upstate New York where we got incredibly bitter cold for weeks on end,” Rundgren says. “And I remember the winters from growing up in Pennsylvania. I have no desire to relive them.”