Highlights

September 2007 – Warner will publish Stephen Colbert’s first solo book (as yet untitled). He promises it will “change the world one factual error at a time,” much like his Comedy Central show, “The Colbert Report”.
[On The Big Screen]
5/18/07 – Amy Sedaris provides the voice of Cinderella in Shrek 3. She told me that “the SNL girls” play her wicked stepsisters, but I forgot to ask which pair she was referring to: Tina Fey and Rachel Dratch, or Amy Poehler and Maya Rudolph. The trio will be seen/heard in a baby shower scene, so I guess the ogre couple, Shrek and Fiona, will be having a green little bundle of joy. The film stars Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, Antonio Banderas, Rupert Everett, Julie Andrews, and John Cleese. They’ll all be joined by newcomers to the trilogy, including Regis Philbin and Justin Timberlake. Here’s the poorly punctuated and grammatically incorrect plot description from the IMDB:

When Fiona’s dad dies Shrek is supposed to take the crown but Shrek doesn’t want the responsibility. So Shrek, Fiona, Donkey and Puss look for a new king. And so far King Arthur is the best they got.
2006? – Stephen Colbert provides the voice of Ace in the Ambiguously Gay Duo movie.
[Check Your Local Bookseller…]

Fall 2006 – Warner Books releases I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence, “an entertaining guide to entertaining” by Amy Sedaris. The book has a scrapbook feel and includes recipes, complete meal plans, decorating suggestions, music choices, conversational ice-breakers, and hospitality tips to create the perfect evening at home. Read the full press release here, or you can just go ahead and order “I Like You: Hospitality Under the Influence” from Amazon.
[Check Your Local Newsstand]

Summer 2006 – Amy Sedaris appears on the cover of Venus magazine.

July 2006 – Amy Sedaris is featured in the latest issue of Interview magazine along with some great new Todd Oldham photos.
June/July 2006 – Amy Sedaris is featured on the last page of GIANT magazine. I found my copy at Barnes & Noble on 5/18. There are two different covers, one with “Lost” star Emilie de Ravin and one with Poseidon Adventure’s Jacinda Barrett.
June 2006 – Amy Sedaris is featured in a full-page interview in W magazine. I found my copy at Barnes & Noble on 5/18. Famed equestrian, Madonna, is on the cover. Don’t miss the beautiful photo of Amy by Eric Ogden in the Table of Contents section on page 20. It has the style of an Edward Hopper painting.
Watch the ”Strangers With Candy” trailer now!!![Strangers With Candy Movie Update]
{Click here for theater locations}

6/28/06 – The SWC movie is expected to be in New York and Los Angeles theaters on this date, according to my connections at ThinkFilm. It’ll then move on to the top ten markets (Boston, Chicago, DC, etc.) on July 7, the top 20 markets on July 14, and an even wider release on July 21, which will depend upon theater availability. The official movie website will relaunch in mid-May, and you can probably expect to see a trailer in theaters at around that time too. Watch the teaser trailer or the hilarious full-length trailer now!!! And there are more clips here. Thanks to Jess for this link.
Apparently, the news about the premiere is spreading quickly:

Officially, the reason given for the cancellation of the original Warner Independent distribution deal is that Warner balked over the failure of the film’s producers to secure copyright clearance for posters and other background props that can be seen on screen. Warner had just experienced a $17.5 million copyright lawsuit involving the movie version of The Dukes of Hazzard and presumably they wanted to avoid another costly court case. But if the executives really liked and had faith in the film they would have found a way to deal with the situation. Some sources claim that some of the Warner heads didn’t “get” the movie. Surprise, surprise. In their 2/6/06 issue, New York magazine reported that producers were “very close to striking a (distribution) deal with ThinkFilm.”

Update: 2/7/06 – The sources who originally divulged this exclusive information to me were officially vindicated in a “full” press release that I received from the movie’s producers and in a news item from The Hollywood Reporter, among other entertainment news reports. Read details of the official good news here!

”Strangers With Candy”: The Complete Series DVD

6/27/06 – “Strangers With Candy”: The Complete Series on DVD is made available by Paramount. Pre-order it from amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, or DVDPlanet. According to TVShowsOnDVD.com, the 6-disc collection’s bonus features will include director’s cuts of several episodes, 20 minutes of deleted scenes, audio commentaries, and more. Hopefully the bonus features that were included on the original DVD releases of the series’ three seasons (commentary, bloopers, Museum of Television and Radio interview) will be retained in addition to the new features. I’ll post any updates as soon as I learn anything new.
[On The Tube]

6/21/06 – Amy Sedaris returns to “The Late Show with David Letterman”.
[Strangers With Candy Sneak Preview Screenings]

6/28/06 – Los Angeles, CA: The Strangers With Candy movie will be shown at the Rigler Theatre @ the Egyptian beginning at 7:30pm. There will also be a post-screening reception hosted by Absolut. Go here for more information.
6/27/06 – Los Angeles, CA: The movie will be shown at the ArcLight Cinema and will be followed by a Q&A session with Amy Sedaris.
6/22/06 – San Francisco, CA: The Strangers With Candy movie will be presented by Frameline and it will be followed by a not-to-be-missed Jerri Blank look-alike contest. The event will take place at the CinéArts @ the Empire, the Festival’s new venue just through the MUNI tunnel from the Castro Theatre.
6/17/06 – Seattle, WA: The Seattle International Film Festival will have a gala screening of the Strangers With Candy movie at the Neptune Theater starting at 7:00pm.
6/16/06 – New York, NY: According to the Museum of the Moving Image, Amy Sedaris and Paul Dinello will participate in a discussion after a screening of the Strangers With Candy movie at the ImaginAsian Theater, 239 East 59th Street, Manhattan. Tickets are $18 for the general public and $12 for Museum members. Call 718-784-4520 for tickets or more information.

6/9/06 – Las Vegas, NV: The CineVegas Film Festival has announced it will open its eighth edition with Strangers With Candy. The festival, which takes place at the Palms Casino Resort and Brenden Theaters, runs until June 17.
6/1/06 – New York, NY: The Strangers With Candy movie will be the opening night film at NewFest (New York’s Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Film Festival), weeks before its official theatrical release. It’ll start at 8:00pm at the AMC Loews 34th St. Theater 13. Tickets are $50.
[Public Appearances]

6/8/06 – According to indieWIRE, Amy Sedaris and Paul Dinello will be appearing at the Apple Store in SoHo (103 Prince Street, NY) to talk about the Strangers With Candy movie. They’ll discuss the development of the film, adapting a TV show for the big screen, and their creative process. The event will be moderated by NewFest Director Basil Tsiokos.
6/3/06 – Stephen Colbert gives a commencement address and receives an honorary degree from Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois.

5/20/06 – Amy Sedaris is heading down my way to Washington, DC, for Book Expo America:
8:00AM – 9:30 AM SATURDAY BOOK & AUTHOR BREAKFAST (Ballroom A) – SPE2
Saturday morning will feature Barack Obama, author of The Audacity of Hope (Crown Publishing Group); Amy Sedaris, author of I Like You (Warner Books); and John Updike, author of Terrorist (Alfred A. Knopf). Marie Arana, author of Cellophane (Dial Press) is your host. Admission $30 – Session Code SPE2
The Book Expo America event will be covered on C-SPAN2 starting at 8:00am.

May 2006 – Time Magazine held an event to honor some of the famous folks who were named to its list of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. Stephen Colbert and his lovely wife Evie were stopped on the red carpet so Stephen could chat with “EXTRA” correspondent AJ Calloway. Watch a clip here.
May 2006 – Buy the Amy Sedaris Pastry Pouch, designed by Amy exclusively for fred flare! It’s a coin purse or your new fave sunglass case. Or you can fill it with lentils, stick in the freezer & then take out to sooth black ‘n blues. With embroidered note from Amy. A portion of proceeds go to the House Rabbit Society. About 4”x7”.