Although Halle Berry and Denzel Washington were noticeable absent from this year’s festivities, Black men and women brought their A game to the Red Carpet.

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Going into the 82nd Annual Academy Awards, I knew that we were probably going to have to play the game called “Can You Find the Black Folks?”. And because Halle and Denzel were among the missing and last year’s nominees (Taraji P. Henson and Viola Davis) weren’t there either, sisters in particular were in short supply. Thanks goodness  CCH Pounder and Zoe Saldana of “Avatar” were there along with all of the sisters from “Precious”. While Oprah and Forest Whitaker raised the percentage of black people that actually took the stage with their introductions of Gabourey Sidibe and Sandra Bullock in the Best Actress category. Anyway, besides “The Hurt Locker” taking Best Picture honors, there weren’t many surprises (at least when it came to who actually won awards). Read the full story

Besides Mo’Nique’s big win (the first of the night) and heartfelt acceptance speech, there was a scarcity of people of color crossing the stage at the 67th Annual Golden Globe Awards. In spite of the rain (which is not a black woman’s friend) brothers and sisters did brave the red carpet.

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We’re in week two of our countdown of stories that shaped the images of black women in popular culture. We’ve chosen a dozen stories (the good, the bad and the ridiculous) that captured our attention in 2009. Here’s the story that made our hot list today:

#4: A Precious Year (aka “The Fat Black Girl Wins: “Push” Takes Sundance” originally published January 26, 2009) Read the full story

As I mentioned yesterday, we’ll be talking about Awards for the next three months. Right about now having your name show up on a ballot almost trumps box office numbers (I said almost). Since Mo’Nique has already been named Best Supporting Actress by I think three (and counting) Critic’s Association none of us is surprised that she’s up in the mix for the Golden Globes. Still a ‘go girl’ has to be inserted right there. And I have a big Kool-Aid smile on because I’m overjoyed that Gabourey Sidibe’s work as Claireece “Precious” Jones has also been recognized. But while the movie itself was nominated for Best Motion Picture, Drama, it’s director Lee Daniels  was summarily shut out in the directing category. Read the full story

Okay ‘Awards Season’ is officially under way. The film critics have started naming their favorite films and performers. (This before all the top ten lists come out in the next few weeks) First up: The Los Angeles and Boston Film Critics who made their choices known this weekend.  From these a few frontrunners have emerged. One of them is “The Hurt Locker”  Kathryn Bigelow’s movie about an army bomb squad working in Iraq starring Jeremy Renner. (I will be taking their word for this one because I’ll be skipping it.) The second is…drumroll please…, Mo’Nique who plays one hellava mother in Lee Daniels “Precious”. In fact, the Boston critics cited the entire cast of “Precious” as the best ensemble (in a tie with the new “Star Trek”). If Mo’Nique wins over the Hollywood Foreign Press next with a Golden Globe nod then she’s got a strong chance for a run at Oscar.  Read the full story

So the much talked about film “Precious” finally opens in select cities today (then rolls out across the country over the next couple of weeks). I’m sure a lot of folks are probably saying finally because this flick has been hyped since January when it premiered at Sundance and blew those in attendance away. That is  certainly a long lead time but I’m here to say that the film definitely lives up to all the hype. Read the full story

The fashion spotlight is on comedienne, Mo’Nique. Yes, Mo has transformed herself into a fashion diva! Mo’Nique has become such a fashion trendsetter  that I can’t wait until 11 p.m., every weeknight to see what she’s wearing on her talk show. Along with her 40 pound weight loss, her fashion sense is clearly on another level. It has heads turning, especially mine. Read the full story

The surprise hit of Sundance, “Precious”, won’t hit theaters for two more months but this weekend it will premiere at the Toronto Film Festival. After that there’s no doubt that the buzz for this highly anticipated film from director Lee Daniels will just grow louder (and along with it Oscar buzz for Mo’Nique as the mother from Hell). Anyway, the Los Angeles Times has a great profile of Daniels which includes why he chooses stories that may make many feel uncomfortable. (Remember “Monster’s Ball” and “The Woodsman”, which starred Kevin Bacon as a pedophile?) Read the full story

BET had its day at the TCA (Television Critics Association) Fall Tour. Mo’Nique, one of the Queens of Comedy was on hand to hype her new talk show. Aligning herself to the network is a risky move but her other risky move, playing the unsympathetic mother in “Precious” has won her rave reviews and a special audience prize at Sundance.