Happy Birthday Annie Parisse

Annie Parisse (“Alexandra Borgia”, Law & Order) was born Anne Marie Cancelmi on July 31, 1976. She was on Law & Order from 2005 – 2006 when she quit the show, and her character met a horrific death.

She was born in Anchorage, Alaska, the daughter of Louis Cancelmi and Annette Cancelmi. She attended Fordham University in New York City. She is also the sister of actor Louis Cancelmi, who married Elisabeth Waterston, the daughter of Law & Order's Sam Waterston in October 2006.

Before joining Law & Order, she was on the CBS soap opera “As the World Turns” as Julia Lindsey Snyder and was later nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award for Outstanding Younger Actress in a Drama Series in 2001. She’s also been on the big screen, with a role in the movie National Treasure, and a supporting role in the 2005 film Monster-in-Law.

Happy birthday Annie!

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Law & Order CI’s Alicia Witt Plays Joe’s Pub

OK, this topic sounds like it’s a joke but it’s not. Alicia Witt (Nola Falacci, Law & Order Criminal Intent) is a talented pianist and she’s had a few serious gigs, including one tonight. She spoke with WWD about her musical career, below.

Photo By: Lester Cohen/WireImage
Alicia Witt's Pub Gig

By Vanessa Lawrence
Posted Monday July 28, 2008

Unless you were hanging out at the Beverly Wilshire hotel circa 1991, you probably don’t know Alicia Witt is an accomplished classically trained pianist. The flame-tressed actress is usually recognized for her roles in films like “Mr. Holland’s Opus,” “Two Weeks Notice” and, most recently, a stint on “Law & Order: Criminal Intent.” But before the Worchester, Mass., native made it in Hollywood, she was tickling the ivories in the Los Angeles hotel at age 16 for guests like George Burns and Kenny Rogers. Now, the actress is writing and performing her own “pop, folk, alternative” songs at venues in L.A., Philadelphia and New York.

Tonight, she will take the stage at Joe’s Pub with a full band, including frequent collaborator Jeff Fiorello. Witt, 32, chatted with WWD about the competitive pianist circuit, her current influences and big tippers.

WWD: Why this new live-performance streak?

Alicia Witt: It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. I’ve been writing songs since I was 18.…This actually got jump-started on my birthday [Aug. 21] last year. They have this live blues jam night at the Cutting Room [owned by “Law & Order” co-star Chris Noth] and I just decided to show up. I thought it would be a nice way to start my birthday. At midnight, I took the stage and sang “Bewitched, Bothered and Bewildered.” I ended up meeting some people who, for whatever reason, had this feeling that we should do some music together.

WWD: Who are some of your inspirations?

A.W.: Both Paul Simon and Elton John are definitely influences of mine. They’re obviously both piano-driven musicians. And some others are Billy Joel, Fiona Apple and Rufus Wainwright.

WWD: You were seven when you started playing the piano. How did you first get into it?

A.W.: My parents knew I was into music and they felt that I should be taking piano lessons, but they couldn’t really afford a piano. We were lucky to end up getting a Baldwin piano lent to us. I played, like, four hours a day and I started entering classical piano competitions and actually went on several national ones. It was something I took really seriously.

WWD: And then when you moved to L.A. at 16 to pursue acting, you were supporting yourself as a pianist.

A.W.: It was basically the same sort of idea as somebody who has moved to L.A. to be an actor and waits tables.

WWD: Except a bit more glamorous…

A.W.: It didn’t feel glamorous, but it was certainly a lot more free because I didn’t have to focus on anything, like remembering people’s drink orders and being polite. I could just get lost in my own world. I’d been playing in restaurants since I was 10 to help pay for piano lessons, so I actually had a big repertoire by then of all sorts of standards, big band songs, jazz numbers and show tunes.

WWD: Any popular requests?

A.W.: There were people who would get really drunk and start doing sing-alongs and get escorted out of the place. There was one guy who kept giving me $100 bills to play Elvis songs. I thought that was great until the host came up and said, “You’ve played five Elvis songs in a row and not everyone here is giving $100 bills. You have to stop with the Elvis.” But I made $500 bucks that night.

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Meloni and Florek on “The Middle Show”

OK, I have never heard of The Middle Show. I still don't quite know what it is. But I stumbled on three videos where this show featured various cast members from Law & Order SVU. One of the three videos is below, and it includes Dann Florek (Capt. Cragen) and Chris Meloni (Elliot Stabler).

There are two other videos available on You Tube, one with Richard Belzer and the other with Ice-T and his wife, Coco. Unfortunately, their language prohibits me from embedding these videos here. But, if you really want to see them, you can find them if you search YouTube for “Middle Show SVU.”




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Angie Harmon at Vanity Fair Party

Angie Harmon (Law & Order, “Abbie Carmichael") was in attendance at the Vanity Fair party, hosted by Louis Vuitton, that took place on July 23 in Beverly Hills, California. Here are two pictures of Angie from the event.




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Ice-T Filming In Manhattan

Ice-T was spotted rifling through the trash, er, I mean filming an episode of Law & Order SVU in Manhattan on July 21. Here are some pictures! (Note Richard Belzer in the backrgound of one of the photos, probably feeling embarassed.)

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Alana De La Garza Gets ALMA Nomination

Congratulations to Alana De La Garza, who has been nominated for an ALMA Award, in the category of “outstanding supporting actress in a drama” for her role as Connie Rubirosa on NBC’s Law & Order.

The ALMA Awards were created in 1995 by the National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest national Latino civil rights and advocacy organization in the U.S., as part of its strategy to promote fair, accurate, and balanced portrayals of Latinos in the entertainment industry. The name "ALMA" is Spanish for "spirit" or "soul,” which represents the determined spirit of the Latino people in an effort to reflect the spirit as well as the scope of the awards program. The awards show will tape on August 17, and air on ABC on September 12 at 8:00 PM ET.


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Elisabeth Rohm Attends DesignCare Benefit

Elisabeth Rohm (Law & Order, "Serena Southerlyn") was spotted at the DesignCare benefit in Malibu, California, which was for the HollyRod Foundation. The HollyRod Foundation is dedicated to providing medical, physical and emotional support to those suffering with debilitating life circumstances, especially Parkinson’s disease.

Here are some pics of the lovely Elisabeth!

Please note: I am sorry, but the photos are no longer available.

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Vincent D’Onofrio Film Scheduled for Toronto Film Festival

Vincent D’Onofrio will be appearing in the film “The Narrows”, which is scheduled for release at the Toronto International Film Festival, being held September 4-13, 2008.

Based on Tim McLoughlin's novel "Heart of the Old Country", Brooklyn-born Mike Manadoro (Kevin Zegers), is a 19 year old whose photography portfolio wins him a partial scholarship to NYU. His job doesn't earn him enough to make up for the rest of tuition. His father Vinny, (Vincent D’Onofrio) is a retired sanitation worker on disability, and he won’t help Mike's attempts for financial aid out of pride. This drives Mike to work for a local mob boss to get the money he needs. Trying to balance his education, his work, and his personal life, problems ensue, complete with murder. It was directed by Francois Velle.


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Dennis Farina Get Probation

An update on Dennis Farina’s (Detective Joe Fontana, Law & Order) gun charge previously reported on this blog ( here and here): Associated Press reports he was sentenced to two years probation plus a fine. I guess he won’t be “authorized” to own a gun for a while.

Here’s the story:

Dennis Farina receives 2 years of probation for carrying gun into Los Angeles airport

By Associated Press
6:21 PM CDT, July 17, 2008
LOS ANGELES (AP)

Dennis Farina may be able to carry a gun on-screen, but he won't be able to own one in California for several months.

The actor's attorney pleaded no contest on Thursday to a misdemeanor charge of bringing a weapon into a secure area at Los Angeles International Airport. A court commissioner sentenced him to up to two years of probation and ordered him to pay $1,991 in fines, said Los Angeles City Attorney spokesman Frank Mateljan.

While on probation, Farina cannot own or carry a gun, Mateljan said.

A former policeman, Farina was arrested May 11 for having a .22 caliber semiautomatic handgun in his briefcase. He promptly apologized after his release, saying he forgot he had the gun in his baggage.

Farina, 64, did not appear in court Thursday.

Farina has appeared in numerous TV shows and movies, including a three-year stint on "Law & Order" as detective Joe Fontana.

Other charges of carrying a concealed weapon and carrying a loaded firearm were dismissed.


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Chris Meloni Directs and Stars in “Dirty Movie”

OK, that headline got your attention. And it’s for real. Here’s the press release from Business Wire on a movie in which Law & Order SVU's Chris Meloni will both direct AND star. It’s not quite the dirty movie one would expect, though!

National Lampoon to Release Jokes Comedy Feature "National Lampoon's Dirty Movie"
Tuesday July 15, 9:30 am ET


LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--National Lampoon, Inc. (AMEX:NLN - News), the most widely recognized brand in comedy, announced today that it would release and distribute the feature film, “National Lampoon’s Dirty Movie.” The film was written by Alan Donnes and Tanner Colby and directed by Chris Meloni and Jerry Daigle. The film was developed and produced in conjunction with National Lampoon.


Alan Donnes, who produced the new National Lampoon Radio Hour, produced “Dirty Movie” along with Jerry Daigle and Chris Meloni. Meloni stars as an outrageous, low budget movie producer, who has a plan to make the greatest comedy movie ever. Joining him are Robert Klein as the head of the comedy company behind the movie, and Mario Cantone as the director with a vision. Also in the cast are Adam Ferrara, John Scurti of “Rescue Me,” and Cyndi Lauper. Former Heavyweight Champion Larry Holmes makes a surprise cameo.

"I've been a fan of National Lampoon for as long as I can remember and had a blast creating the Radio Hour. Having the opportunity to write and produce ‘Dirty Movie’ was very rewarding for us and the talent we groomed with the Radio Hour,” stated Donnes. “‘Dirty Movie’ is very funny, in large part due to the comic vision and energy of Chris Meloni. Fans of ‘Law and Order: SVU’ will be surprised at how hysterically funny he can be. The cast is amazing and if all movies are as fun to make as this one, I plan on making a lot more. We had a blast."


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Law & Order’s Under-Appreciated George Dzundza

George Dzundza (Law & Order, Sgt. Max Greevey) has a birthday coming up on July 19. He was part of the initial cast of Law & Order, but as the earlier episodes of the show are often aired in the wee hours of the morning on TNT, many viewers don’t get a chance to see him in action. Personally, next to Lennie Briscoe (Jerry Orbach), Max Greevey could very well be the only other person on the show who epitomized the typical New York City detective.

George Dzundza (pronounced "ZUHN-za") was born on July 19, 1945, in Rosenheim, Germany. His father was Ukrainian, and his mother was Polish. His parents were forced into factory labor by the Nazis, and as a result, he spent the first few years of his life in displaced persons camps with his parents and one brother. The family immigrated to the United States in 1956. He attended St. John's University, where he studied speech and theater arts. He is a naturalized U.S. citizen.

George has a varied acting resume, appearing in both television and movies. His first role was in 1974 for an episode of the series “Kung Fu”. He also appeared on TV shows Starsky and Hutch, The Waltons, and The Streets Of San Francisco before landing a role in the movie “The Deer Hunter,” a film that won 5 Oscars.

Logan (Noth), Greevey (Dzundza), Stone (Michael Moriarty), Robinette (Richard Brooks)

George has appeared in movies and TV shows almost too numerous to mention here, playing a huge range of characters. One that he was perfectly suited for was Law & Order’s Max Greevey, a role he originated on the pilot episode “Everybody’s Favorite Bagman.” (A note here about the pilot. "Everybody's Favorite Bagman" is the pilot episode, filmed in 1988, but it was shown as the sixth episode in the series' first year. This episode has a slightly different look to it, especially in the original version of the credits.) Max was Irish-American and a strict Catholic, and sometimes his faith came in conflict with his job and his partner, also of Irish heritage and Catholic, Mike Logan (Chris Noth). Much to the horror or fans, Max Greevey was shot, execution-style, outside his home, in full view of his wife, to silence him from testifying in a corruption case. This ocurred in the first episode of the second season, titled “Confession,” and Dzundza did not actually appear in this episode.

Shortly after his stint on Law & Order, he starred in “The Butcher’s Wife” (a cute flick with Demi Moore and Jeff Daniels; George was the butcher), and later “Basic Instinct” in the role of detective partner to Michael Douglas. He’s also done the voice over for animated characters for the “Batman” and “Superman” series.

George also has the distinction of appearing in three television series where he was written out after the first season: "Law & Order, " "Jesse," and "Hack". Most recently, he’s appeared as Harold O’Malley on ABC’s “Grey’s Anatomy.”

Happy birthday to George! And while TNT seems to keep his episodes out of prime time, true Law & Order fans appreciate his contribution to the show.


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Milena Govich At “August” Film Screening

Milena Govich (Nina Cassady, Law & Order) was spotted at the Cinema Society’s screening of Josh Hartnett's new film, “August” on July 10. The viewing was at the Tribeca Grand, with an after party at the SoHo Grand Yard.


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Chris Meloni Spends The “Nights in Rodanthe”

Besides working on the new movie “The Stepfather,” Law & Order SVU's Chris Meloni will be starring in a movie with Richard Gere and Diane Lane titled “Nights in Rodanthe.” The scheduled release date is September 26, 2008.

Nights in Rodanthe is about a chance meeting, and later an affair, between a doctor (Gere) and an unhappy housewife (Lane) in the sleepy coastal North Carolina town of Rodanthe. (Translate: chick flick.) James Franco, Chris Meloni and Mae Whitman costar in this film, which was directed by Broadway director George C. Wolfe.

You can get more information at the Official Web Site for “Nights in Rodanthe,” and get few sneak peeks at Chris Meloni in the trailer below.


Trailer – Nights in Rodanthe




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Law & Order Stars Design Eco-Friendly Cosmetics

Both Angie Harmon (Law & Order) and Mariska Hargitay (Law & Order SVU) have designed natural beauty lipsticks for Cargo Cosmetics.

Here’s the story from the Columbia Tribune:

PRODUCT FIND: ECO-FRIENDLY MAKEUP
Caroline Dohack
Published Sunday, July 6, 2008
Finally, you can do something for the environment and look good doing it. Taking a new spin on “natural beauty,” Cargo Cosmetics Cargo Cosmetics has introduced its PlantLove collection, featuring 20 lipsticks — 11 designed by celebrities including Mariska Hargitay (“a sheer warm nude cream”) and Maria Menounos (“a sheer poppy red”) and nine inspired by “places of ecological beauty” such as Yellowstone (“a rich rose plum shimmer”) and Killarney (“a soft terracotta pink shimmer”).

Almost everything about these lipsticks is plant-based. They’re made from a botanical formula using orchid complex, meadowfoam seed oil, jojoba and shea butter. They contain no mineral oils or petroleum-based ingredients.

Even the packaging is eco-friendly. The lipstick case is made from a corn-based, compostable bio-plastic, and each lipstick comes in a seeded carton, which will grow wildflowers when you moisten it and plant it.

Cargo donates $2 from every lipstick sale to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital.


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Sam Waterston At Auction for Oceana: Part Two

After writing my blog post earlier this morning about Sam Waterston participating in the Oceana auction at Christie’s, some more information from the New Your Social Diary popped up. Here it is – enjoy the pictures!

Summer Lovin’: Oceana Auction Information


Oceana, the largest international organization focused solely on protecting the oceans, held a reception at Christie's where the auction house was also holding its Ocean Liner auction preview.

The event showcased a life preserver from R.M.S. Titanic, never before seen in public. It is the first preserver from the doomed ship ever to be offered for sale in North America and is one of only six known to be in existence. The night after this reception, the preserver was sold at auction at Christie’s for $68,500.

All proceeds from the Oceana event, sponsored by AIG Environmental and Nautica, benefited the marine conservation efforts of Oceana.

More than 140 attended and received a private tour of the Christie’s Ocean Liner preview, learning the history of each item. Bettina Alonso, the head of Oceana’s New York office and Vice President of Global Development, Law & Order star and Oceana board member Sam Waterston, as well as Oceana Senior Vice President and Chief Scientist Mike Hirshfield also spoke to the guests.

Oceana’s work continues to grow in importance as worldwide overfishing, habitat destruction, pollution and global climate change deplete the oceans. Scientists have projected that if current trends in human activity continue all commercially fished species could collapse by the middle of this century.

Mike Hirschfield told the guests that “The exhibit at Christie’s is about the ocean surface. Oceana’s purpose is to find out what is going on under the ocean’s surface and do something about it.”

(I caught a fish, it was THIS BIG!)

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Sam Waterston At Auction for Oceana

Photo by Melissa Rosenberg

Ecorazzi.com reports that Law & Order’s Sam Waterston – who is also on the board of Oceana – was part of an auction at Christie’s on June 24. Here’s the story from Ecorazzi, with a very nice photo of Sam.

Oceana at Christie’s Ocean Liner Auction
Last night at Christies Auction House in NYC, Oceana hosted it annual “Love for the Oceans” cocktail reception. One of the evenings speakers was Actor Sam Waterston. Sam joined Oceana’s board this year spoke a few words to the packed room about protecting our oceans. Michael Hirshfield, Chief Scientist for Oceana also spoke a few words how they are helping to protect bluefin tuna from becoming extinct. The evening showcased many interesting pieces related to the oceans. My most favorite piece was a life jacket from the Titanic — on display for the first time to the public. The evenings main sponsors were Nautica and AIG Environmental.


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Chris Noth: Mr. Big, Literally

OK, sometimes I just can’t help myself. When I saw this picture yesterday, the first thing I thought of is, I wondered if it was Tara Wilson or Chris Noth (Mike Logan, Law & Order Criminal Intent) who had baby Orion, since Noth seemed to be carrying some “pregnancy” weight. The second thing I thought is that he looks like he’s been eating too many of the donuts at One Police Plaza. The third thing I thought was to share the picture with everyone else.

Here’s Chris, Tara Wilson, and baby Orion in Malibu, California. I guess I won’t be "California Dreamin" about a svelte “Mr. Big” anymore!


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Criminal Intent July Birthdays: Erbe and Nicholson

July brings two birthdays for the Law & Order Criminal Intent female detectives, Julianne Nicholson (Detective Megan Wheeler) and Kathryn Erbe (Detective Alexandra Eames).

Julianne Nicholson was born on July 1, 1971 and raised in Medford, Massachusetts. She is the oldest of four siblings. She graduated from Arlington Catholic High School, and afterwards modeled in New York for six months. After quitting modeling for about a year. She went back to modeling, this time in Paris, for another 5 months. She later attended Hunter College in New York two years, and had witnessing jobs. She left school and decided to go into acting. She married her current husband, British actor Jonathan Cake, in 2004, and she left Law & Order Criminal Intent to give birth to a son, Ignatius, in 2007.

She’s had several movie and TV roles prior to Criminal Intent. Law & Order fans may recall Julianne in the short lived Dick Wolf show “Conviction.” For some reason, every time I see Julianne, I think of the made for TV Stephen King mini-series, “Storm of the Century” where she went, well, a little nutty. But she was great in it.

Kathryn Erbe was born on July 5, 1966, in Newton, Massachusetts. . Her mother, Elsbeth Magnarelli, was a vice president of a Boston management firm; her father, Dr. Richard Erbe, is a research geneticist. She graduated from New York University in 1989, but while she was still studying there, she got a role on the sitcom “Chicken Soup.” She later appeared in many other TV shows and movies, such as “What About Bob” and HBO’s “ Oz.”

Kathryn also left Law & Order Criminal Intent for a short while to have a baby in October of 2003. (There must be something in that “Major Coffee!”
We’re glad to have them on Criminal Intent. Happy Birthday to both!


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