‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’ Star Angela Bassett Admits She Was ‘Gobsmacked’ After Losing Oscar Last Year Ahead of 2024 Oscars TONIGHT!

Hello World,

As a Christian, we are promised that all things (good and bad) work out for our good in the end, but I’m still salty that actress extraordinaire Angela Bassett didn’t win the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award last year for her role as the queen in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.”  However, I do feel somewhat pacified that the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences opted to give an Honorary Academy Award to Angela in January. She’s more than worthy as Angela’s career has established her as one of the most esteemed actors of our time.  Her breakthrough role as Tina Turner in “What’s Love Got to Do with It” earned her an Oscar nomination for Best Actress.  Her film credits include “Boyz N the Hood,” “Malcolm X,” “Waiting to Exhale,” “How Stella Got Her Groove Back,” “Music of the Heart,” “Sunshine State,” “Black Panther,” “Mission: Impossible – Fallout,” “Avengers: Endgame,” “Soul” and “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever,” in which her supporting performance earned her a second Oscar nomination.  Her television credits include “The Jacksons: An American Dream,” “The Rosa Parks Story,” “American Horror Story” and “9-1-1.” The Honorary Award, an Oscar statuette, is given “to honor extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the Academy.”

OWN: Oprah Winfrey Network recently premiered an all-new OWN Spotlight one-hour special featuring Oprah Winfrey in conversation with 2024 Honorary Academy Award Recipient, Angela Bassett, for a retrospective look at her incomparable career spanning four decades. In this OWN Spotlight, Oprah met with the legendary actress at The Academy Museum of Motion Pictures to discuss her recent, well-deserved honorary Academy Award  and how losing the Best Supporting Actress Academy Award last year felt as well.

On how she felt in the moment: It was, of course, a supreme disappointment. A supreme disappointment is human. So I thought, yes, I was disappointed. And I was. And I handled it like a human being.

On her viral facial face expression: I know a pastor who says technology’s different, people are the same.

On being gracious in the midst of a visible loss: For myself and for my children who were there with me.

Below is the entire clip in which Angela recounts what it was like last year when her name wasn’t announced as the winner…

Oprah and Angela also looked back on her illustrious career, from how she knew acting was her destiny to her blockbuster roles in both TV and film. Oprah reflected on the many highlights from her viral, uplifting acceptance speech and the impact of her legacy on future generations. They discussed the iconic women she’s portrayed through the years and what those characters have given to her. A devoted mother and wife, Angela shared moments from her journey of parenting with her husband, actor Courtney B. Vance and the dreams she has for her children.

Below is a clip of the full episode…

In looking for the good in this situation, what Oprah said to Angela following Angela revealing how she felt in the moment of “supreme disappointment” is something good… “And you know what’s interesting, that actually teaches your children more than anything you can ever say about what you’re supposed to do is how you behaved in that moment.” As Angela’s twins Bronwyn and Slater are headed to college next fall (I remember when it was announced that they were born), they will experience moments of triumph and disappointment, and it’s important to know how to respond to both.

Additionally, Angela and her family were recently featured on the cover of PEOPLE magazine in the article “How I Fought For My Dreams” and that feature may have not happened had it not been for her Oscar loss the year prior. We journalists live by the mantra “if it bleeds, it leads” so there’s that…

It was also a full circle moment as Angela, her husband Courtney Vance and their newborn twins were featured in the magazine back in 2006.

As a twin mom just two years into the journey, this full-circle moment gives me all of the feels…

I hope to be able to watch the Oscars later today (with toddlers,  TV time is not always guaranteed), but the top winner already took home the trophy in more ways than one…

Any thoughts?

What TikTok’s Reesa Teesa, 48 Oysters on a First Date and A First Date at The Cheesecake Factory Have in Common With My ‘Novel Destination Wedding’

GIVEAWAY Included In This Post!!!

Hello World,

Speaking of single black females, about a week ago, I watched the 50-something part viral TikTok series Who TF Did I Marry? over a two-day period. It was just that engaging. There were several things about the series that drew me into the drama. It mostly took place in metro Atlanta, Clayton County to be exact, where I lived for several years. Hilariously, Reesa Teesa referred to her lying ex-husband by the moniker Legion, which refers to being possessed by several demons in the Bible. She is a Christian and admitted that in hindsight, the Lord told her Legion was not her husband on her first date although she ignored the guidance she received on that first date. If you’re unfamiliar with this Reesa Teesa story, here’s an “An Extremely Thorough Guide to ‘Who TF Did I Marry’” by Danielle Cohen for The Cut.

Last week, a woman posting under the name Reesa Teesa started a 52-part TikTok yarn about her marriage to a man she called “a real pathological liar” and also “the United Nations of red flags.” Over the course of several days, she posted dozens of ten-minute videos unraveling how she ended up dating, marrying, and eventually divorcing a guy she claims lied about pretty much everything in his personal life. According to her account, the man — whom she’s calling Legion — relied on a convoluted network of fake phone calls, unverified paperwork, and pandemic-era logistical chaos to keep up his many charades.

But “Who TF Did I Marry?” is so much more than that — it is a prestige-television masterpiece, a chart-topping soap opera, a modern epic involving condiment HQ bureaucracy and two real-estate agents named Scott. (One of them may or may not be real.) To be clear, no one seems to have corroborated this woman’s story, so she is either a wildly good storyteller or a great candidate for the Nobel Prize in fiction. No matter; thousands of people have apparently taken ten hours of their precious lives to tune into her saga. Here is a drastically abbreviated version of what she claims happened. Strap in.

According to her videos, Reesa matched with this man on two different platforms, Facebook Dating and Hinge, though he apparently had used his full name on one and his nickname and different photos on another. (In retrospect, the first of many ominous signs.) Throughout the thread, she refers to him as Legion — as in the biblical man possessed by demons — which she says is the same name she uses to talk about him with people in her life these days. Because we are all now intimately acquainted with Teesa, we will be using that name here too.

To read the rest, click HERE. 

So after digesting this series, I thought back about two other TikTok viral sensations from a few months back:

Have y’all heard about the woman who refused to get out of the car on a first date because her date took her to The Cheesecake Factory? If not, check out this article about it HERE.  Or what about the woman who ate 48 oysters on first date and had to foot the bill after her date left without her realizing it? If not, check out that article about it HERE.

What do all three of these viral dating stories have in common with my first novel Destination Wedding? All four are about dating in Atlanta, which can be treacherous…And that, in part, is why I wrote Destination Wedding…See the synopsis below…

Three successful best friends in Atlanta believe they are thriving in the Black Mecca. Bossy bank executive Senalda breaks down men from business to bed no holds barred. Hip hop PR guru Jarena praises the Lord and pursues married men with equal persistence. Famous and infamous radio personality Mimi fights with her fans and for the love of her on-and-off-again boyfriend.

But when an ABC News Nightline report, “Single, Black, Female — and Plenty of Company,” asks why can’t a successful black woman find a man? The friends are suddenly hyper-aware of their inclusion in the sad statistic: 42% of black women who have never been married. Like the women in the report, they are career-driven, beautiful black women living in Atlanta who have everything — but a mate. They resolve to defy the statistic by marrying in a year and have it all by tackling their goal as a project with a vision board, monthly meetings, and more. Project Destination Wedding is born. A “happily married” best friend Whitney is a project consultant.

But as the deadline ticks closer, the women wonder if they can withstand another year of looking for love in the media-proclaimed no-man’s land of Atlanta. Senalda wrests a marriage proposal from the male version of herself, but the proposal comes simultaneously with a devastating secret. Jarena unleashes hell when her call to ministry coincides with dating her married college sweetheart. Mimi faces losing her career and jail time chasing her boyfriend and marries another man in the process. Whitney’s power couple profile plummets when her husband, a pornography addict, announces he would rather pursue photography than be an MD.

Inspired by an actual Nightline report, Destination Wedding charts four women’s journeys as they discover that love is not an experiment easily confined to a timetable.

I know that Destination Wedding is fiction, but trust and believe real-life stories are woven into the words…Here’s one reviewer’s opinion about Destination Wedding:

I can’t believe this is the author’s first book! The characters were well developed and she clearly did her research on mental health, sex addiction, marital statistics of black women, and Atlanta culture. Hoping to see it on Lifetime or BET as a movie!

If you’re interested in reading Destination Wedding, I will send a free copy to you if you name the city in Clayton County where Reesa Teesa lived with her ex-husband Legion. Reply to this post, and I will email you to get your mailing address.

Any thoughts?

 

 

 

Why Mo’Nique Is Wrong To STILL Be Seeking an Apology From Tyler Perry and Oprah Winfrey AND For How She Has Treated Her Son Publicly…

A Black History Month Post...

Hello World,

In the past, I had been a fan of  Mo’Nique for quite some time. I think she is a talented comedian AND actress. One of my favorite Mo’Nique movies is Phat Girlz, and  I wrote one of my favorite blog posts ever Why I Have A Dead Spiritual Mentor Like Mo’Nique Does In Hattie McDaniel… based on something she said. And she rightfully won an the Best Supporting Actress Award Oscar for the role of Mary in Precious in 2010! She was simply magnificent in that role. She didn’t play Mary. She embodied her…

And speaking of Precious, which came out in 2009, and since this is still Black History Month, I hope that somehow Mo’Nique sees this post and decides to relegate her feud with Tyler Perry and Oprah regarding Precious to black history where it belongs a whole 15 years after the fact! If you’re not familiar with the feud, the Daily Mail did a good job summarizing it in an article written by Carly Johnson …Here is the summary below…

Her feud with Winfrey and Perry dates back to 2009. She previously claimed that her refusal to promote their film Precious for ‘free’ as well as omitting Perry, Winfrey and director Lee Daniels from her 2010 Oscars speech resulted in her being ‘blacklisted.’

Mo’Nique is now claiming that she has audio of Perry confessing to her over the phone that he was the one who started the rumor that she’s ‘difficult to work with.’

She also alleged that Perry admitted he was ‘wrong’ and told her that he planned to vindicate her publicly after his 2016 film Boo hit theaters.

The reason why I’m referencing this feud is because earlier in the month, Mo’Nique sat down with Shannon Sharpe on his popular podcast Club Shay Shay and rehashed the entire feud as if she hasn’t been talking about it any time she can in any interview/conversation she can since 2009.  If you want to see the podcast conversation, it is below. (NOTE: If you’re offended by explicit language, please don’t partake in the conversation…)

And now she is not only mad at Tyler Perry and Oprah, she has added others including to her lengthy grievance list including fellow comedian D.L. Hughley and filmmaker Will Packer. The thing about Mo’Nique is that she is a compelling speaker (which is probably one of the reasons why she is a gifted comedian and actress), and if you’re not careful, you can find yourself siding with her against all of these people until you sit back and say to yourself: If she is the common denominator in all of these situations, how is it always not her fault particularly when other people aren’t saying similar things about these specific people?  Still, that being noted, some of these people may have wronged her but to collect this list of injustices like beads in a necklace she wears around her neck is only choking her at this point. Have you heard the statement, “Resentment is like drinking poison expecting the other person to die?” The vitriol with which she speaks about all of these people has clearly poisoned her and her perspective. Meanwhile, these people are living their lives like Mo’Nique doesn’t matter.

I also found it interesting that in all of these scenarios, she is not at fault for anything, according to her. In fact, the only accountability she had was when she mentioned her relationship with her eldest son. She told Unc aka Shannon Sharpe that when he was a child she was more interested in being famous than being his mother. Shortly after the podcast interview aired, her eldest son, whom I never heard speak about his relationship with his mother in public before, made a TikTok video about this mother and shared how the fractured relationship came to be. As you could expect, Mo’Nique and her husband whom she refers to as “Daddy” went on the defensive and called her son mentally ill AND now she is skewering him in her comedy routines!!! What mother does that to a son especially since she shared in the podcast interview that she hoped her relationship with her son could be repaired?

Sadly, unless Monique observes spiritual laws such as:

“Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven.” Luke 6:37

or

“So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 7:12

she will be in the exact same place 15 years from now…At the very least, if she wants forgiveness from her son, she needs to forgive others whom she thinks wronged her…

If God can forgive us for our sins and even allowed His son to die on the cross for them, how in the world can we justify not forgiving others no matter what has been done?

Mo’Nique, please let this mess be official black history after this month…If God is on your side, nobody can truly “blacklist” you…

Any thoughts?