Notes on Politics & Pop Culture: Palin & Feminism, 'HawthoRNe' Premieres, Fallon Mocks 'Twilight's' R-Pat Again

Palin & Feminism

I donned my protective gear as soon as I hit “send” and e-mailed my latest Pop Culture and Politics column to my editor at Mommy Tracked. The piece is about the anger expressed by liberal feminists over the fact that conservative women have said they want to call themselves feminists and cultivate a conservative version of feminism, as embodied by Palin’s reference to “Mama Grizzlies.”

Feel free to weigh in over on the site as I assert that having powerful women on the left AND the right running for and holding elected office while embracing the term “feminism” is a good thing for women.

Speaking of “Mama Grizzlies” . . . Republican Nikki Haley, who faced allegations of infidelity and a slur against her Indian-American background, won the South Carolina GOP runoff for the governor’s seat. She will face Democratic state Sen. Vincent Sheheen in the fall. If she won, she'd be her state’s first female governor.

HawthoRNe Season 2 Premiere

I was disappointed with the season two premiere of the TNT drama HawthoRNe starring Jada Pinkett Smith and Alias’ Michael Vartan. The first season was okay – it certainly was no Nurse Jackie – but this season’s premiere does not bode well for the quality of the second season. Not at all.

I reviewed the premiere at CliqueClack TV and expressed hope that episode two of season two will improve.

Jimmy Fallon Mocks R-Pat Again

Yeah, they’re goofy and Jimmy Fallon’s way too old for the role, but his “Robert Pattinson is Bothered” spoof videos (where Fallon pretends to be Twilight heartthrob Pattinson and climbs into a tree to vent about things that bother him) amuse me. This week, Fallon/Pattinson addressed why the World Cup is neither a cup nor representative of the world.



Speaking of Twilight, Jimmy Kimmel is having a Twilight/Eclipse special tonight. The new film premieres next week.

Image credit: TNT.

Robert Pattinson Doesn't Think He's a Good Actor

With only a few weeks to go before the June 30 premiere of the third installment of the Twilight saga, Eclipse, the media hype is starting to gear up in earnest. And ABC’s Nightline got into the act by interviewing Robert Pattinson, who stars in the Twilight films as the vampire Edward Cullen who's in love with the human, Bella Swan.

During the interview, Pattinson, who apparently doesn’t think he’s a very good actor, seemed pretty self-deprecating, low-key and almost shell-shocked by the fact that he’s considered a heartthrob and that loads of strangers want to chime in on his personal life, hence he tries to keep certain things -- like his love life -- private.

I found it interesting that, near the end of the interview, the 24-year-old joked about his “fears” about being too lucky all at once because, “If too many good things happen, then you’re gonna die at 30 and I didn’t want that to happen.” Hopefully he's not taking those James Dean comparisons too much to heart.

Yet Another 'Eclipse' Clip to Whet Twilight Fans' Appetites

As we get closer to the June 30 release date for the third film installment in the Twilight series -- Eclipse -- the Twilight PR machine is trying to amp up demand by releasing little tidbits from the movie, like this new one featuring Edward getting in Jacob's face after Jacob said he had kissed Bella. (*and all the tweens swoon*)

Edward was relatively restrained, considering, well, you know, that Jacob's a werewolf and Edward's a vampire. And, is it just me, or does Bella's dad look almost as pale as Edward?



I'm hoping Eclipse is better than New Moon, which I didn't enjoy as much as the original Twilight. Is that asking too much?

Latest Twilight 'Eclipse' Trailer Emphasizes Werewolf-on-Vampire Action

The latest Twilight saga trailer for the film Eclipse seems geared toward attracting a male audience.

The previous promo highlighted the Bella-Edward-Jacob love triangle, with Edward proclaiming to Bella, "I promise to love you for every moment forever," while he emphasized the consequences of becoming a vampire and outliving her friends and family. Meanwhile Jacob said, "You wouldn't have to change for me Bella. I'm in love with you. I want you to pick me instead of him."

As for the new trailer, I'm not a big fan of the fight scene stuff, and that's what comprises most of this promo, released via Oprah Winfrey's show, introduced by Dakota Fanning, who plays a vampire named Jane.



Here's the first, romantically-inclined Eclipse trailer which I like better:

Calling All 'Twilight' Fans: Trailer for 'Eclipse' Features Lots o' Jacob

My Twilight-obsessed daughter -- who's firmly in the Team Jacob camp -- will be thrilled that the trailer for the new installment in the Twilight saga, Eclipse, has just been released. (Film premieres June 30.)

Surprisingly, there's a lot less of R.Patt. than I thought there'd be, with much more emphasis on Taylor Lautner.