PopHampton: New Neighbors and Horror Stars on the East End
Are you over Memorial Day yet? As we head toward summer, there’s a lot happening on the East End. You may end up having some famous new neighbors, so read on to see who you might run into this season…
Louis C.K. has bought a house on Shelter Island. Welcome, Mr. C.K.! For those not in the know, C.K. is a stand-up comic, actor, writer and producer whose biting humor has earned a legion of fans. He currently produces, writes and stars in Louie, a short-form comedy series on FX in which a fictionalized version of C.K. goes through various hijinks, with stand-up acts breaking up the self-contained stories. Much of the humor is centered on C.K. being divorced and raising his two daughters while trying to meet new women. While C.K. is mostly known for his comedy, he also had a featured role in Woody Allen’s Blue Jasmine as Al, a charming man who may not be as honest as he seems (no spoilers!). With C.K. moving to Shelter Island, he’ll no doubt find new material for his stand-up; just check out Sally Flynn’s Sheltered Islander column to see how wacky things get over there!
Say what you will about those krazy Kardashians (I promise I won’t do the “K” thing again…this week), but those ladies make for some fun TV. We may all claim to appreciate more sophisticated television shows that have meaning and cultural significance, but we occasionally need some lighthearted fluff to go along with our Breaking Bad and Mad Men. And while the Kardashians’ antics are all over the tabloids and internet gossip sites, they’re not nearly as dysfunctional as some of the other high-profile reality celebs like Paris Hilton and others. In fact, watching the various Kardashian series reveals that the family—however scripted the show may be—care about one another very much and deal with their First-World problems in interesting ways.
While Kim’s career and tortured love life are often the subject of Keeping Up With the Kardashians and its various spinoffs, the misadventures and side stories about her family are what make the family so interesting. There was one afternoon I heard my father yell at the TV as if his favorite Yankees player had just struck out, and when I looked at the screen, he was angry that Kourtney and her troublesome boyfriend Scott had gotten back together. My dad had apparently been hypnotized by one of E!’s Kardashian marathons, and in the course of one afternoon became invested in seeing the usually smart Kourtney make better relationship decisions. “What’s she doing, getting back together with that guy?” he scoffed.
I’ll admit to having been put under the Kardashian spell once or twice—I couldn’t stop laughing when Khloé took a hilariously ineffective self-defense course and told the camera that she now felt she could defend herself. Two seconds later, stepdad Bruce, playfully grabbed her and proved otherwise. Moments like these that show us their colorful personalities, and hopefully their stay in the Hamptons will produce equally fun moments.
Bay Street Theater’s summer season has started with the world premiere of Conviction, a drama about a family torn apart after a teacher is accused of something that ruins his life and career. Starring in this intense new play are Garret Dillahunt and Sarah Paulson, who have been in countless roles on the small screen and silver screen. For fans of gritty, shocking horror films, check out the 2009 remake of Wes Craven’s Last House on the Left, in which Dillahunt plays the main villain. It’s a very intense film and not for the squeamish or overly sensitive, but Dillahunt gives an uncompromising, frightening performance as a criminal who finds the tables turned on him after trying to get away with a heinous act of violence. Paulson’s also had her share of horror, having appeared in all three seasons of the FX anthology series American Horror Story. She’s particularly riveting as Lana, a woman wrongly admitted to a mental institution in the 1960s in the second season, American Horror Story: Asylum. You’ll be able to catch the talented actress in the next season, American Horror Story: Freak Show. No word on the character she’s playing. Conviction runs through June 15. Check out my full review here.
That’s all the pop culture we can handle for this week. Check out South O’ the Highway for for more on your favorite Hamptons celebrities, the Kardashians and more. Until next time!
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