Go Away With … Sheila E.
In her new book, “The Beat of My Own Drum: A Memoir,” musician Sheila E. talks candidly about her rise to fame, her engagement to Prince and the backstory to how Lionel Richie ended up adopting her niece, Nicole.
Journalist, Author & Syndicated Columnist
In her new book, “The Beat of My Own Drum: A Memoir,” musician Sheila E. talks candidly about her rise to fame, her engagement to Prince and the backstory to how Lionel Richie ended up adopting her niece, Nicole.
Filmmaker and New York Times bestselling author Ransom Riggs is best known for his “Miss Peregrine” books. An avid traveler, Rigg says his ideal vacation is to “somewhere I’ve never been before, and preferably, someplace I can’t pronounce. Madagascar has been on my list for a long, long time. While I can pronounce the name of the country, just give its capital city, Antananarivo, a try.”
So, I was having a conversation with some people the other day about coincidences. And I started off my story like this: “Speaking of coincidences, I ran into someone from my hometown when I was climbing a glacier in New Zealand.” Yeah. I sounded obnoxious. Even by my standards.
“I got the travel bug quite early,” says “Suits” actress, Meghan Markle. “My earliest memories are of going to Mexico twice a year and Hawaii quite a few times. We never did conventional family trips like Disney World. Hawaii and Mexico were closer for us than going to Florida or the Caribbean.”
True story. A decade or so ago, when I was on the New Zealand set of “The Lord of the Rings,” someone accidentally spilled grape juice all over me, dousing my pants and turtleneck. There wasn’t enough time to go back to my hotel to change. So, they let me wear one of Liv Tyler’s outfits.
Naming her current CD “33 1/3” came easily for Shemekia Copeland. The title refers to her love of vinyl records, the number of revolutions an album makes per minute on a turntable and her age when the CD was released this past September. Having spent more than half her life in the music business, Copeland has performed with notable artists such as Buddy Guy, Mick Jagger and B.B. King, but says singing at the White House for President Obama and the first lady easily was one of her proudest moments.
Los Angeles-based actress Tracey Heggins knows how fortunate she is. Besides appearing in Common’s indie film “LUV,” the statuesque actress also plays Senna — one of the Amazonian vampires — in “The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2.” “It was so much fun shooting ‘Twilight’ in Squamish (which is halfway between Whistler and Vancouver, B.C.),” says Heggins. “It was a really amazing experience. Then we shot in Baton Rouge going up to New Orleans. There’s no city like New Orleans. We went into all these little voodoo stores, which were interesting. I love the French Quarter. They did a great job of making the French Quarter look like France. I remember when I was in France; I kept thinking how much it reminded me of New Orleans!”
After winning the gold medal in the decathlon at the 1976 Olympic Games in Montreal, Bruce Jenner figured he’d be recognizable for a few years before fading out of the public’s eyes. Little did he know that three decades later, he would be instantly recognizable to a new generation of fans who knew of him not only as an Olympian, but as Kim Kardashian’s stepfather.
Born in Canada, raised in New Zealand and now living in the United States, Daniel Gillies has roles on two current series. He co-stars as Dr. Joel Goran on “Saving Hope” and as Elijah — a character who has been killed and resurrected no less than four times — on “The Vampire Diaries.” The 36-year-old actor and his wife, actress Rachael Leigh Cook, reside in Los Angeles.
Elinor Donahue enjoyed television success playing Robert Young’s eldest daughter Betty Anderson (also known as “Princess”) in the 1950s series “Father Knows Best.” The actress had a slew of fans that wanted to emulate her beauty, grace and character, but for the most part they let her be.