Hollywood Mom Blog | Archive | Hollywood Happenings

Happy 4th of July!

Posted on04. Jul, 2010 by Editor Tracy Bobbitt.

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Fireworks from the Santa Monica Beach Club – thank you to Heidi S. for sending the picture and getting the party started! More photos to come of our day-long celebration. Close friends are flying in this afternoon, then we’re rushing off to a BBQ & Pool Party at noon, and plan to watch more fireworks tonight.

Where ever you are, we at HMB hope you have a wonderful, festive and safe fourth of July.

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HMB Exclusive: “Bachelorette” Reality Stars, Trista and Ryan Sutter, Would Support Acting Careers for Tots Max & Blakesley

Posted on02. Jun, 2010 by Editor Tracy Bobbitt.

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Hollywood Mom Blog recently caught up with Trista and Ryan Sutter (of The Bachelorette, Season 1) at their home while hosting a Healthy Baby Home Party and asked them a few questions about their own healthy babies, Max, 2 and Blakesley, 1. They hosted a Healthy Baby Home Party to share their views on the importance of keeping a green home when you have young children and how to keep kids safe from toxic chemicals that are found in many common household products.

Ryan and Trista Sutter help their 2-year-old son Max “color” a letter to legislators showing their family’s support for Seventh Generation’s Million Baby Crawl campaign and the need for toxic chemical reform.

HMB: Do you have any plans to have your kids pursue acting or any kind of performing such as reality tv, commercials or movies?

Trista: As parents, we only want our kids to be happy. Neither Ryan nor myself are actors, but if our kids would like to pursue that career, we will be their biggest cheerleaders!

HMB: Would you ever consider doing a reality show in which your kids are featured?

Trista: We have had numerous requests to film a reality show about our family life over the years…including those that would feature our children, even their births. Although we never say never, we do not feel that having cameras in our home 24/7 would be the right decision for our family at the present time.

Bachelorette Season 1 alum, Trista & Ryan Sutter, recently hosted a Healthy Baby Home Party at her home in Colorado to educate family & friends about keeping children safe from toxins in common household products.

Event sponsor Seventh Generation gave away the Sutter family’s favorite green products during the party including disinfecting wipes and diapers. If you’d like to host your own Healthy Baby Home Party, please visit www.HealthyBabyHomeParty.com.

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Thanks to Baby2Baby, Hollywood Moms Can Make Spring Cleaning Charitable

Posted on18. May, 2010 by Editor Tracy Bobbitt.

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If you’re in the midst of spring cleaning, wondering what to do with the clothes, blankets and baby gear your young kids have outgrown, you may want to do what Modern Family’s Julie Bowen did last week – give to Baby2Baby, a charity that supplies Los Angeles families in need with essential baby gear and clothing. It’s an easy way to clean house, recycle and help your local community. Baby2Baby.org accepts both new and gently used clothing and baby gear for children 0-4 years old as well as monetary donations.

Moms Marnie Owens (pictured far left) and Karis Jagger (yes, she’s related to Mick) started Baby2Baby in 2006 when they wanted to pass on items their kids had outgrown, but couldn’t find an organization that accepted baby goods specifically. Now their organization gives to more than 30 local community-based organizations.

Baby2Baby just kicked off their Spring Fundraising Drive with the help of inspiring Hollywood Mom and Baby2Baby board member, Julie Bowen, (Claire on Modern Family) who just celebrated her twin sons’ first birthday last week by hosting a Baby2Baby fundraiser at The Coop.

Fundraisers and open houses are an important component of what Baby2Baby does. Once a month, their 12 partner organizations send in donation request forms for clothing and gear that their clients need. Baby2Baby pulls together the requested items from inventory and often purchases essentials that are in great demand such as strollers, cribs and car seats. On the third Wednesday of the month, the organizations come to Baby2Baby to pick up their items.

It is important that donations do not remain on their shelves, but find their way to the Los Angeles families that need them. For this reason, Baby2Baby hosts “open houses.” Additional organizations are invited to our space to collect excess inventory items for their clients. These items generally include clothing, toys and books. Pretty awesome isn’t it? We hope this inspires you clean out your closets and give back!

Donation Drop-off Locations:

Baby2Baby

5522 West Pico Blvd. (east of Fairfax @ Sierra Bonita. Parking and entrance in rear lot via Sierra Bonita)

Los Angeles, CA 90019
Tel: 323-933-BABY (2229)
10:30 to 1 Mondays and Wednesdays

Pumpkinheads
11640 San Vicente Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90049
Tel: 310.207.6760
10 to 6 Monday-Saturday
10 to 5 Sunday

The Treehouse Social Club
426 South Robertson
Los Angeles, CA 90048
Tel: 310-288-3024
9 to 5 Monday – Friday (open until 8 PM on Wednesdays)
9 to Noon – Saturday

Your contributions to Baby2Baby will help the following organizations in the Los Angeles area:

1736 Family Crisis Center
Beyond Shelter
Jenesse Center
St. Anne’s
Kedren Community Health Center
Angel Interfaith Network
Spiritt Family Services
Asian Pacific Women’s Center
Westside Pregnancy Clinic
UCLA Health System
Los Angeles Unified School District
LAUSD-Hyde Park Program
CAST- LA
The Women’s Circle
Maternal and Child Health Access
DCFS
Asian Pacific Community Fund
Asian American Drug Abuse Program
Little Tokyo Service Center
Pacific Asian Counseling Services
UCLA ob/Gyn
LAUSD-Lincoln HS
The Community Development Center
Community’s ChildWestside Infant Family Network
Southgate Police Dept
Multicultural Counseling and Education Services
Home Safe-Vista del Mar
San Gabriel Valley Best Babies Collaborative
South Central Los Angeles Regional Center
Bienvenidos
The Children’s Bureau
Casa
Upward Bound House

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HMB Exclusive: Parenting Hollywood Style with Kathy Ireland, Ed Begley Jr., Tony Dovolani & the Original Celebrity Momager, Shirley Jones

Posted on18. May, 2010 by Editor Tracy Bobbitt.

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By Contributor Diana Marcketta

Celebrity parents gathered in Beverly Hills this past weekend in support of their friend and fellow celebrity parent, Kathy Ireland who hosted a Mother’s Day reception at Geary’s, a leading retailer of fine luxury gifts, in honor of the launch of her new jewelry line produced by Elan Luxury Collections. The collection includes diamond-studded hoops designed to hang straight without an uncomfortable swing effect, artful crucifixes [pictured on Kathy below], dinner rings and a variety of bangles and bridal items which provides Ireland’s customer with high quality items at a variety of price levels, which begin under $200 but expand to several thousand.

Among Ireland’s guests were the original real life and television momager, Shirley Jones, her husband Marty Ingels, Ed Begley Jr. with wife Rachelle, and Tony Dovolani of “Dancing with the Stars.” HMB Contributor Diana Marcketta had the opportunity to glean parenting tips from each of them, beginning with Shirley Jones who raised a pack of devilish Cassidy boys in the city of Angels. When it comes to parenting in the fast-moving world of Hollywood there are no easy answers, say several of entertainment’s leading moms and dads, but some solid, hard rules can be helpful.

The original Hollywood Mom, Shirley Jones (left), attends Kathy Ireland's celebrity-studded Mother's Day Event at upscale gift shop, Geary's of Beverly Hills. Photo: Diana Marcketta for HMB

Shirley Jones, the “television” mother of the 1970’s sitcom “The Partridge Family” and the real-life mom of three sons (former “Hardy Boys” teen idol Shaun Cassidy and brothers Ryan and Patrick) and one stepson (David Cassidy, former teen star of “The Patridge Family”), was in attendance with husband, comedian Marty Ingels.

Having grown up in a community of 800 in rural Pennsylvania, Jones, whose own decades-long acting career began on Broadway and then led directly to the silver screen in “South Pacific” and “Oklahoma,” says she worked diligently to instill the same kind of small-town values in her children. In fact, she took the role on “The Partridge Family” so she could be home with her children. The father of Jones’ children was the late Jack Cassidy – an highly-renowned actor who died in 1976. She divorced Cassidy in 1974, two years prior to his death, and later married Marty Ingels [pictured above].

Jones recalls that the family originally moved to Beverly Hills because, at the time, the school district was one of the best in the country. What she didn’t anticipate was the peer pressure her sons would experience living in such an upscale community. Shirley immediately felt challenged by the material demands and expectations of her sons. “They would say, ‘That kid has a Rolls-Royce. Why can’t I have a Rolls-Royce?’” says Jones, “I said ‘You can have a car, but you have to pay half [and] I’ll pay half’,” said Jones. “Then I would tell them to go down to [local grocery stores] Von’s or Ralph’s and get a job boxing groceries. At least, they could do that to earn some money.”

With a houseful of boys – stepson David Cassidy, sons Shaun Cassidy, Patrick Cassidy and Ryan Cassidy – Jones endured her share of teen-age antics. “I had a list of rules for each of them written on yellow legal paper stuck to the refrigerator,” says Jones. “So that any time I was out-of-town, or working late, there was no doubt what the rules were. No girls spending the night,” says Jones of some of yellow, legal pad, written rules. “No screwing girls in the car parked in the garage.” And despite Jones’ pleas, each of them followed the family tradition, pursuing careers in show business.

“I begged Shaun not to go into show business. I pleaded with him to go to college,” says Jones of her oldest son. “But [into show business] he went, right after his brother David.” Ryan and Patrick are also involved in the entertainment industry. In fact, Jones was so vigilant in her pleas for her oldest to get a regular job, Shawn reminded her of it immediately following his very first performance at Madison Square Garden. While Jones waited with several family members in an alley way for her son following the performance, she recounts, “He pulled up next to me [in his limousine], rolled down the window, and said, ‘Now do you think I should be boxing groceries?’” says Jones. “[Then] he rolled up the window, and drove away.” Jones says the best advice she could give any parent is to be vigilant about knowing what’s going on in their children’s lives. “You have to stay on top of them,” says Jones.

Ed Begley & wife, Rachelle Carson at Kathy Ireland's Mothers Day Celebration at Geary's Beverly Hills. Photo: Diana Marcketta for HMB

TV actor and environmental activist Ed Begley Jr. and his wife Rachelle Carson, who star in Discovery’s Planet Green series, “Living with Ed,” share similar parenting views with Jones. “We try to spend as much time as possible together as a family,” Begley says of life with their 10-year-old daughter, Hayden Carson. “You can’t let life get in the way of being with your children. There’s always social networking. There’s always that email to send out. You know how it goes, ‘Just a minute, let me send this out,’ and then 10 minutes later, you’re still at the computer. You simply have to walk away and be really there with your child.”

Begley says he makes sure his schedule gives him lots of time at home with his family. “When I’m there, I’m really there with her,” Begley says of parenting Hayden. Begley and his wife monitor their daughter’s behavior, as well as her friends’ behavior. “You want to make sure your kid is hanging out with the right crowd,” says Begley.

Being active with your child is also an important part of being a parent today, says Begley. The distraction of television, the Internet and in some cases cell phones, makes children sedentary, says Begley. “Participate with them,” he suggests. “I’ll go riding bikes with [Hayden] or go swimming, or maybe it’s not a sport I’m into, but she’s into it. Just as long as they’re staying active and you’re staying active with them. I think that’s important.” Begley says because of he and his wife’s environmentalism, his daughter has also had the added benefit of experiencing a garden and understanding where food comes from.

“She’s not afraid of worms. She’s never afraid of worms in the garden, “ says Begley, who taught his daughter Hayden about worm’s role in the supplying needed nitrogen for the garden soil’s benefit. “She knows that food doesn’t come on the Safeway bus nor grown on the Von’s tree.”

Tony Dovolani at Kathy Ireland's Geary's Mother's DAy Event Photo: Diana Marcketta for HMB

Tony Dovolani of Dancing with The Stars and father of three says life moves in the fast lane in Hollywood, not just for adults but for kids as well. “There is a lot of peer pressure to having everything now,” says Dovolani, who lives in Connecticut with his wife and children when not shooting ABC’s hit dance show. “I don’t understand why they don’t want to experience life. Life is a wonderful experience. Experience life as it comes. It doesn’t all have to be now.”

He’s often shocked by teenage girls’ desire to have breast augmentations and lip-pumping injections, and to seek public attention. “Everyone seems to be publicity hungry even if they’re no one,” he says. “It used to be that fame and notoriety came because it was talent-based. Now people want to be famous for being famous and for blogging about nothing. That influences our children, our teenagers, in a negative way,” he says.

Dovolani sincerely understands the concept of hard work. He came to the U.S. under political asylum when his family fled their home country of Kosovo. “We came here with nothing,” says Dovolani, whose father was formerly CEO of a large computer corporation in Kosovo. “But it was too dangerous for us to stay [in Kosovo]. We would not be alive today had we not come to the U.S., but we left everything behind to do that.”

Dovolani says he and his wife have long established a united front in parenting their children…even before his wife Lina became pregnant with their first child more than four years ago. “In our house, the parents are the parents,” he says. “The children do not make the decisions. We do. If we have a disagreement about how something is to be done, we don’t share that in front of the children. We discuss it alone. We share each other’s views. Then when we speak to the children, we speak to them as one.”

Tony learned his communication skills from his own family. “We never fight,” he says of his extended family. “We listen to each other’s views. We may not agree with each other. But instead of getting angry, my father will say, ‘Did you look at it this way?’ and then ask you to consider your opinion from another point of view.” Dovolani additionally shares that he and his wife rely on the comfort and support of extended family that live nearby in New York. But the most important relationship, Dovolani feels, in raising children is for parents to be supportive of one another. “It takes a team,” he says. Dovolani will soon appear on the TV talk show “The Doctors” to share his views about parenting.

Kathy Ireland Photo: Diana Marcketta for HMB

More About Kathy Ireland:

When former supermodel Kathy Ireland, now 47, ended her famous career at 27 or 28, she was anxious to begin her own business.

“I had tried all throughout my modeling career to start my own business, “ says Ireland, who is founder and owner of the brand Kathy Ireland Home and Kathy Ireland Jewelry, both part of the multi-product marketing site KathyIreland.com. “But I kept failing. I tried one business after the other, and it failed.”

“When I ended my [modeling] career, I could dedicate myself to the business,” says Ireland, whose first success in launching the Kathy Ireland brand came in the design of socks for women. “I was turned down time after time,” says Ireland. “They told me I was too dumb to do this, that this wasn’t the right product, that I didn’t know what I was doing, why did they need me, I heard everything. Then I hit my millionth sale in socks…a simple item that women need. Women bought it. I knew I had something.”

What Ireland found was that it was her connection with women, and her deep understanding of their needs as a working mother and wife herself that helped build her success, she says.

“KathyIreland.com is dedicated to finding solutions for the busy Mom,” says Ireland, who has more than 15,000 products to service her customer. “I listen to her, to my customer. She knows what she wants. She communicates to me what she wants, and I respond.”

Ireland reads through emails she receives daily from mothers like herself, who often manage a career, a family and marriage. She penned a book released in 2009, “Real Solutions for Busy Moms; Your Guide to Success and Sanity,” to provide guidance to a population of women whose daily schedules are often packed full of work, children and maintaining a home. “It is heroic for a woman to make it into a store,” says Ireland of most mothers’ busy schedules, “I want them to have a wonderful experience when they do.”

Ireland says she began her business career as a child growing up in Santa Barbara with her sister, Mary. The two would gather rocks, paint them and sell them at a price of 5 cents or 10 cents as paperweights or interesting sculpture pieces. Ireland says her sister made more money by selling her rocks at a higher price, but her own artfully painted rocks were more creatively designed with painted flowers and rainbows. For years, she says, her grandmother kept one of her painted rocks in her purse as a weapon should she be approached by unwanted strangers. “That taught me a lesson in quality,” says Ireland. “That people will hold onto things that are well-designed of a high quality.”

Her own jewelry line, produced by Elan Luxury Collections, includes diamond-studded hoops, ingeniously designed to hang straight without an uncomfortable swing effect, artful crucifixes, dinner rings and a variety of bangles and bridal items which provides Ireland’s customer with high quality items at a variety of price levels.

“At first, she, my customer, told me she wanted something that doesn’t have any fluff. Sometimes my customer tells me she needs a solution to traveling, and we find a solution for that. But now she’s ready for something more romantic with a little luxury, ” says Ireland. “We designed the jewelry line as a solution for people in love.”

Ireland says her days as an entrepreneur for KathyIreland.com vary. “Sometimes it’s about design, sometimes it’s about human resources, sometimes it’s about distribution,” says Ireland, who worked to discern her own strengths and weaknesses in building her business. “I have strengths. I know what they are. I have my weaknesses too. They are many. So I built a business family to support the areas I was weak in and now I feel we have a very strong network. I have a very strong, supportive business family.”

Although Ireland, who gained notoriety for her appearances as the cover swimsuit model for Sports Illustrated is grateful for her modeling career, it’s business that has always been her passion. “When you have a passion for something, it’s not work,” she says.

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Julia Roberts Initial Rejection by Hollywood Bigwigs Serves as Inspiration For a New Generation of Actors

Posted on26. Apr, 2010 by Editor Tracy Bobbitt.

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Julia Roberts with niece Emma at the premiere of their film, "Valentine's Day"

International movie star Julia Roberts (and auntie to teen star Emma Roberts, pictured left) apparently struggled to be noticed by Hollywood agents when she was starting out as an actress because they labeled her “too trailer park.” The 41-year-old actress was first seen in “Mystic Pizza” and became a household name playing a prostitute in Pretty Woman, opposite Richard Gere.

“The Cult of Celebrity,” a tell-all book reveals that Roberts’ promising talent was lost on even Hollywood’s biggest talent bookers back in earlier years. Robert Attermann, VP and Managing Director of Abrams Artists Agency admits to Cult author Cooper Lawrence that the agency made the mistake of passing on Julia, as well a handful of other future stars. According to Attermann, “Julia Roberts came in years ago, and the commercial agent who met with her at the time said, ‘Nah, she’s too trailer park’. As a matter of fact, when we moved offices, we were going through old rejection files, and in there was Annette Bening, Robin Givens, Julia Roberts and a couple of others.”

Can you believe this? Arguably one of the strongest female actress at the box office over the last two decades and she was considered a “pass” by some of the top agents in the business. It just goes to show that internal fortitude and perseverance are key in this business. I hope this uplifting story inspires you and your child today and especially on those days when rejection comes calling.

“The Cult of Celebrity” by Cooper Lawrence addresses the phenomena of today’s preteens, teens and twenty-somethings aspiring to celebrity. Our culture more often than not emphasizes the external, the superficial and the importance of fame. As a result young people are increasingly more driven towards it as any humiliating reality television show (Jersey Shore, The Hills, My Sweet Sixteen) will prove. Some young people falsely believe celebrity status or being “discovered” is the magic fairy dust needed for “happily ever after.” Author Cooper Lawrence addresses the specific issue of young girls and celebrity and provides tips and hints for parents to provide positive parenting.

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iPop Red Carpet Interviews by ET Kids

Posted on19. Jan, 2010 by Editor Tracy Bobbitt.

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The iPOP concert and convention was held at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza on Saturday, January 9, 2010 in Century City, CA. The event is an annual acting, singing, modeling and dancing convention, led by a concert series for the attendees which benefits Make-A-Wish Foundation and Starlight Children’s Foundation families. The iPop! Convention concert featured performances by Anna Maria Perez de Tagle, Savvy & Mandy, Tiffany Giardina, Ariana Grande, Kimberly Locke, Christopher & Kyle Massey, & Benton Paul. Note to self: it’s time to brush up on teen performer trivia because most of these names aren’t ringing any bells.

What is iPOP? According to the official website, iPOP (International Presentation of Performers) is a modeling, acting, singing, and dancing convention that is held twice a year similar to an all inclusive huge casting call for young performers. iPOP gives up and coming performers the chance to audition their best acting material in front of the top casting directors, agents and managers. John Robert Powers Pleasanton’s IPOP! Team auditions are held only four times a year so they encourage hopefuls to stay updated on the audition dates.

If you have attended any iPop conventions in the past, I would love to hear your thoughts on it. Thanks!

*This information has not been verified by our team and this post is not an endorsement of this program.

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The Band From TV: Hollywood Hunks Rock for Charity, Sunday at the Canyon Club

Posted on23. Oct, 2009 by Editor Tracy Bobbitt.

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Want to spend Sunday simultaneously doing something charitable, educational, appetizing, satifying, rocking and oh so very Hollywood? There’s only one place it’s possible so read on. An event close to my heart is taking place this weekend which I hope all you hip Angelenos can attend. The Band from TV, which features TV Stars turned Rockers Greg Grunberg (Heroes), James Denton (Desperate Housewives), Jesse Spenser (House MD), Bob Guiney, Adrian Pasdar (Heroes)and Hugh Laurie (House MD), is performing live in concert at the Canyon Club in Agoura Hills, celebrating November as Epilepsy Awareness Month and the Official launch of www.TalkAboutIt.org.

Greg Grunberg, whose eldest son Jake suffers from seizure disorder, created the charitable organization Talk About It in an effort to educate the world about epilepsy and to end the stigma associated with Epilepsy and Seizure Disorders. I can tell you from personal experience that Greg is a real life hero. Before we ever met, Greg extended himself, shared his knowledge of seizure disorder and opened his heart to me and my family when we needed it most and I can guarantee you, our family is just one of many he’s done this for and we will be forever grateful to him and his family.

The Band from TV’s proceeds go entirely to charity and the ticket prices have been reduced to a very affordable $39 (plus ticketmaster charges). The show is this Sunday, October 25, 2009 at 7:30 p.m., at the renown Canyon Club, owned by our dear friends Lance and Caryn Sterling. Come for dinner before the show (the filet mignon done medium rare is a family favorite and Lance’s *secret* sauce is a must) and your party will receive priority seating. Dinner is served form 5:30 to 7:00 p.m. but isn’t included in the cost of the ticket. Order tickets online at http://tinyurl.com/yzuq9oc or at the Canyon Club Box Office.’

Below is a clip of the band (with front person Teri Hatcher) from their performance on American Idol Gives Back. Enjoy!

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Plan A Baby: The Exclusive Hollywood Event for Modern Moms & Moms-To-Be!

Posted on14. Oct, 2009 by Editor Tracy Bobbitt.

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WHAT: Plan A Baby is an exclusive, one-day event to celebrate and pamper new and expectant moms as they browse through a carefully chosen collection of the latest in high-end baby products, services and educational materials for the modern mom will be available to peruse and purchase. Plan A recognizes that modern mothers are hip, sophisticated, style-savvy women with an eye for quality and good design.

WHEN: Sunday, October 18, 2009 | 11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.

WHERE: Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel – 7000 Hollywood Boulevard, LA 90028

SPONSORS: Fit Pregnancy, The Cradle, Hot Moms Club

Celebrities Include: Nanny Stella from Nanny 911 will be raffling off a free home visit consultation at The Help Company booth, Jessica Capshaw, Sarah Jane Morris and Ali Landry with more to be announced

PROGRAM:Products & services for discerning tastes, including:
Tiny Prints, Giggle, Rosie Pope Maternity, teutonia, Sprout Baby, Episencial, Bel Bambini, Oeuf, aden + anais, Bel Bambini, Bonpoint, Cloud b, Orbit Baby, Osea Skin Care, Pomme Bebe, Prince Lionheart, The Help Company, Thompson & Spring and Your Baby Can Read on health and well-being issues, including:
The Baby Planners and Dr. JJ Levenstein.

Silent auction benefiting our non-profit partner Healthy Child Healthy Woman with Informal modeling by Rosie Pope Maternity, Spa treatments, fabulous gift bags and more!

EXHIBITS: The best brands in categories such as maternity, baby & toddler fashion, furniture, spa and skincare, fitness, childcare, organic foods, toys, photographic services, breast feeding support, strollers, appliances, stationery, Light bites and tasty treats.

TICKETS:Available online for $35 or on site the day of for $45
Expert speakers will share their knowledge on important topics such as health, well-being, sleep and nutrition, with opportunities for mothers to ask questions and seek advice.

Plan A will be a social and relaxing afternoon for mothers to meet, mingle and connect while reveling in the celebration of motherhood. It’s an exclusive, grown-up play day for moms and moms-to-be to discover, and remember, how much excitement this special time offers. Only here can mothers be indulged, inspired, get the gear and be in the know – all at once!

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Hollywood Life: Left Coast presents Artist, Vitner & Hollywood Mom: Lisa Semler

Posted on08. Oct, 2009 by Editor Tracy Bobbitt.

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Please join us at the Left Coast Wine Bar & Gallery on Friday, October 9, 2009 from 6-9 p.m. to view the paintings of Malibu artist Lisa Semler accompanied by select samplings of Malibu Family Wine’s own Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and more.

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Spotlight is on ShowBiz Expo® West Oct. 17, 2009 at L.A. Convention Center

Posted on01. Oct, 2009 by Editor Tracy Bobbitt.

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ShowBiz Expo West, a five-star event that brings everyone in show business together under one roof, is set for Saturday, October 17 at the Los Angeles Convention Center, in the Concourse Hall, from 10:00 a.m. – 7:30 p.m. Whether you’re a producer, studio executive, director, musician, filmmaker, performer, Hollywood Mom, designer, writer, stage manager, or anyone else involved in film, stage, fashion, live events, and concerts this event is for you. The Expo presents many networking opportunities including the exhibit hall, workshops/seminars, Designers’ Showcase, focus groups, round-table discussions, Film Festival, head shot displays for casting, live auditions for performers, movie reel showcase, original music showcase and more.

The ShowBiz Expo West Conference offers a variety of informative workshops and panels, which topics include breaking into voice over, getting good press for your production, careers in reality TV, secrets of successful screenwriting, production contracts, post-production – the process, getting your film distributed, how to get an agent in 30 days or less, TV pitch secrets, Q & A sessions with casting directors, film festivals, the world of cinematography and fundraising for productions. A very special Keynote Event will be announced soon.

Throughout the day, the ShowBiz Expo West Film Festival will screen short films from a variety of emerging filmmakers in a fully equipped theater adjacent to the exhibit hall. At ShowBiz Expo East, several films received distribution and funding interest. The exhibit floor opens at 10:00 a.m. and boasts a wide variety of exhibiting companies. Hollywood Production Center and 1010 Wilshire will feature their spacious, state of the art production and post production office spaces and accommodations with full service amenities.
Producing in New York City? eEmerge will offer their flexible, short term workspace solutions.

Education is foremost at ShowBiz Expo. AFI Conservatory, featuring leadership in educating the next generation of filmmakers and Cinema Arts Tech, a leading film school for producers, script supervisors, location managers, costumers and wardrobe supervisors, will have a presence on the floor.

Service companies exhibiting include international chauffeur service, ICS, 1-800-Book-A-Limo; 41 Sets, a full-service set production and dressing company; boutique camera rental house The Camera House; A-List Animals featuring trained animals for production; Baseline Studio Systems, the leading provider of film and TV data; Benay’s Birds and Animal Rental featuring birds and other trained animals for production; CineMagnetics Inc. digital replication and distribution: Premiere Transportation, America’s leading fleet of executive motor coaches featuring executive mobile dressing rooms; Sell Your TV Concept Now, Inc., a resource for television show creators and XERO World, an online showcase for new and emerging artists and their fans.

Filming locations represented include Air Hollywood, the leading airplane mock up studio; Fox Studio Production Services, a 50 acre + full-service rental studio and the City of Long Beach Office of Special Events and Filming showcasing their seaside city.

Attendees will meet the WhoozaKooza Crew promoting Cirque du Soleil’s KOOZA at ShowBiz Expo and have the opportunity to “get into the act” by posing for photos with the WhoozaKooza Crew for your chance to win a pair of tickets to KOOZA by Cirque du Soleil at the Santa Monica Pier. Of particular interest for our Disney fans, from 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Disney Theatrical Group and Telsey & Company will be holding casting calls for major Broadway musical productions. Audition details can be found on the ShowBiz Expo website.

New York based producer Zachary Lezberg recently acquired the ShowBiz Expo name and trademark. For the past two years, Lezberg has been producing successful twice-annual Film, Stage and ShowBiz Expo events in New York City. Plans are to expand ShowBiz Expo into a two-day event in March/April 2010 for NYC and LA respectively. The last time ShowBiz Expo was presented in Los Angeles was 2002. ShowBiz Expo West sponsors are eEmerge, Greenbear Technologies, Inc., Fox Studios, Variety, Bling Imaging, Printrunner, Hollywood Production Center, 1010 Wilshire, and Internet Video Magazine. For complete information, free ShowBiz Expo West exhibit floor registration or to register for the ShowBiz Expo West Conference, visit them on twitter @TheShowBizExpo or on the website: www.showbizexpo.com

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Hollywood Childrens Festival of the Arts at Paramount Studios

Posted on08. Aug, 2009 by Editor Tracy Bobbitt.

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The Hollywood Arts Council presents the 24th Annual Children’s Festival of the Arts on Sunday, August 9, 2009. The days activities begin at 12pm and conclude at 4:30pm. The festival is being held at Paramount Pictures Studio with ample free parking on the studio lot. The FESTIVAL IS FREE. For inquiries please contact emily@hollywoodartscouncil.org or visit the website.

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Contest: Disney on Ice presents Disneyland Adventure

Posted on24. Mar, 2009 by Hollywood Mom.

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UPDATE: We Have a Winner! HMB is contacting this family now and will post the winner’s comments soon! If this family does not reply within 24 hours, we will draw from the remaining names and post a new winner. Thanks to all for entering.

Hollywood Mom Blog’s ”Disney on Ice” contests over the holidays were so popular with the readership, we’ve brought them back. One lucky family will receive 4 complimentary ticket vouchers to the spectacular Disney Ice show, “Disneyland Adventure” at the Citizens Arena in Ontario, California, valid for varying show times between April 1 and 5, 2009.

Join your favorite Disney characters on a trip through the park and thrill to “Incredible” excitement when everybody’s favorite superhero family shows up to save the day!

To enter to win, simply post why you and your family would love to attend this show in the Hollywood Mom Blog’s comment section below. It’s that simple! The Winning Family will be drawn and notified, Saturday March 28, 2009. Good luck to all who enter!

Note to all entrants: vouchers are redeemable for specific ticket dates and showtimes and are not replaceable if lost or stolen. Hollywood Mom Blog is not affiliated with Disney on Ice or Feld Entertainment.

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“HSM on Ice” makes Winter Wishes come true!

Posted on05. Jan, 2009 by Hollywood Mom.

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I had to post this adorable photo of some very happy young ticket winners to the High School Musical on Ice performance at the Staples Center. Thank you to Disney and Feld Entertainment for their extreme generosity! The Hollywood Mom Blog was honored to host such a cool giveaway. Although our crazy holiday schedule didn’t allow my daughter Jordan and I to attend any of the performances ourselves, I received many emails of sincere thanks and reports that the show was spectacular.

“Thanks a million – we had the best time!” – P. Orcutt, the Staples Center Show, Los Angeles, CA

“I have to say thank thank thank you! We won tickets and went last week, and my girls have not stopped talking about it!!! You and your website rock!!! We can not thank you enough for making our Christmas…thank you, thank you, thank you.” – Jacqueline R, the Honda Center Show, Anaheim, CA

“Thanks Tracy! We went to the show in Anaheim & really enjoyed it! Thank you again for the tickets – it was a fun morning for us!” – Trish C., the Honda Center Show, Anaheim, CA

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More Free Tickets! High School Musical On Ice!

Posted on19. Dec, 2008 by Hollywood Mom.

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UPDATE: Congratulations to Winners: Pam C., Yolanda M., Jacqueline R., Trish C. and Sandy E. – You’re the Lucky Winners of free passes to the Disney teen extravaganza High School Musical on Ice! Thank you to all who entered and check back for our Crib Rock Couture giveaway! Have a wonderful time at the show and happy holidays to all.

Ho, Ho, Ho – it’s official – the Hollywood Mom completely believes in Santa Claus. The season of giving is well underway thanks to the wonderfully generous folks at Disney and Feld Entertainment who have allowed Hollywood Mom Blog to giveaway even more free passes to the huge Southern California hit, “High School Musical On Ice!” This time around the ice rink, Santa is showing some love for our neighbors down south as the winning passes are good for a number of performances at Long Beach Arena and the Honda Center of Anaheim!

HMB will award FIVE sets of 4 passes each, which winners can redeem for tickets to the shows at either location. Just like our last “HSM on Ice contest,” the entry rules are quick and painless.

Post below in the “reply to” section why you, your child star and the rest of the family would love to go – if you entered before, please feel free to enter again. Or as my HSM obsessed tween would say, “Get your head in the Game!”

Winners will be drawn and announced at noon on Saturday, December 19. Passes are good for the dates and show times as follows: Honda Center of Anaheim: Dec. 23 (7:30 pm), Dec. 25 (6:00pm), Dec. 26 (10:30am); Long Beach Arena: Jan. 2 (7:30 pm), Jan. 3 (12 pm, 3:30 pm) and Jan. 4 (12 pm, 3:30 pm, 7:30 pm)

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