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Pop&Circumstance Blog: Flavors of the Week

By Blair Thill, blairthill, on January 27, 2010 12:47 AM

If pop culture were made of ice cream, here are the three flavors I’d be ordering this week:

Favorite casting of a 90s has-been: Freddie Prinze, Jr. in 24

As far as I knew, Freddie Prinze, Jr. and Sarah Michelle Gellar had decided to retire on their Scooby Doo royalties and raise their new daughter, Charlotte, in relative obscurity. That was before I caught wind of Freddie’s return to relevance as CTU operative Cole Ortiz on 24. Sure, the Jack Bauer brand isn’t as illustrious as it once was, but it’s still more of a cultural force than Freddie’s other option: I Still Know What You Did 10 Summers Ago. As Ortiz, Prinze can bring the same boy scout morals he exuded so well in the 90s to a grown-up, ass-kicking, counterterrorism agent. He’s the best coworker Jack’s had since Chase, Kim’s dearly departed CTU boyfriend. Here’s hoping Freddie doesn’t suffer the same gloomy fate and actually lives to see the light of Day 9.

Favorite spouse shout-out: Sandra Bullock at the SAG Awards

If you had told me a year ago that Sandra Bullock would be a 2010 Academy Award nominee, I would have laughed in your face. In fact, I believe Sandra herself would have laughed at the notion. It’s not that she lacks talent, but the 43-year-old actress said it best herself when interviewed about Blind Side Oscar Buzz: “Actors who do what I do don’t get Oscars.” How wrong we all were, Sandra. Because a Critic’s Choice, Golden Globe, and SAG Award later, you might just be the Oscar front-runner.

If she does win, I hope she follows the awards season trend of the awesome spouse shout-out. She surely adopted the trend Saturday night at the SAG Awards when thanking her husband, Monster Garage mogul Jesse James. The video has been taken off Youtube (curses to the Screen Actors Guild), so this is, verbatim, what the fabulously grounded Sandy said:

“And to my husband, Jesse, who works so hard all day, and you get dressed up in monkey suits, and you sit at a table with people you don’t know. [laughter] And I leave you there and then you come back with, like, Morgan Freeman’s email. I don’t know how you do it. [laughter] I love you so much, and you’re really hot. And… [laughter] I want you so much.”

Favorite Hope for Haiti performance: Justin Timberlake and Matt Morris “Hallelujah”

In the midst of tragedy, celebrities can show you what they’re really made of. Obviously the Hope for Haiti telethon had nothing to do with the stars that inhabited our screens, but that’s just it. It’s always refreshing to see our favorite celebrities lend their fame to something bigger than themselves – something that helps people in a tangible way.

There were a lot of inspiring musical performances in the George Clooney-organized event, but my favorite came from my #1 celebrity love Justin Timberlake. “Hallelujah” is an oft covered song, but JT and his new protege, Matt Morris, brought something soulful and new to the table for Haiti’s benefit. Buy the song on iTunes to donate to the Haiti relief fund. Here’s a tantalizing preview: