Latino Pride Shines at ALMA Awards

In a lively display of achievement and support, Latinos from all walks of the entertainment industry dazzled on the red carpet at last night's ALMA Awards at the Santa Monica Civic Auditorium in Los Angeles.

As expected, co-host Eva Longoria outshone George López in a beautiful mermaid strapless dress with an exaggerated tail.  Starlets like Jessica Alba, Marcia Cross, Eva La Rue, Naya Rivera and Demi Lovato added to the night's glamour in floor length gowns.

Power couples Antonio Banderas and Melanie Griffith, Mario López and Courtney Laine Mazza and Maria Canals-Barrera and David Barrera flirted across the carpet alongside Benjamin Bratt, Sophia Milos, David Zayas and Tristan Wilds.

Despite the festive mood, the event, held on the eve of September 11th, spurred stars to recognize the bravery of first responders.  Actor/director Edward James Olmos, commented  "We must try to help all the people who are sick because they went first to try to help when the buildings collapsed. That is my big understanding of what ten years of remembering is all about."

While the night catered to the glitz and glam of entertainment, red carpet chatter turned political as producer, director and screenplay writer Gregory Nava, who received the evening's Outstanding Career Achievement Award for directing, commented on domestic immigration policy.  "The immigration situation has gotten much worse since 9-11. The attack against the undocumented is now an attack against all Latinos," said Nava, "This is an attack on all our culture. We have to know that this is what is happening and we have to fight against this because it is an injustice."

Nava, known for "El Norte" and "Selena," revealed that he finished the script to "Garden of Eden" which will examine our current immigration issues.

Danny Trejo, whose suit jacket was lined with embroidered daggers, rejoiced about what the evening meant to him. "I love being Latino in Los Angeles," said Trejo, "Right now is the time for Latinos. We have moved quite forward in the entertainment industry with people like Robert Rodríguez, Jessica Alba, Michelle Rodríguez that have really pushed us in the main stream. We are movie stars, for lack of a better word, but we are out there with all of them and I thank God for that."  

The ALMA Awards, which featured performances from Pitbull and Gloria Estefan, will air on Friday, September 16 from 8:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. EDT on NBC. The Alma Awards are given to Latino entertainers by the NCLR or National Council of La Raza who "promote positive portrayals of Latinos" in the entertainment industry.

If you can't wait a week to catch the show, here are the winners:

Favorite Movie
"A Better Life"

Favorite Movie Actor
Antonio Banderas
"You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger"

Favorite Movie Actress - Drama/Adventure
Jessica Alba
"Machete"

Favorite Movie Actress - Comedy/Musical
Alexa Vega
"From Prada to Nada"

Favorite TV Series
"Desperate Housewives"

Favorite TV Actor - Leading Role
Adam Rodriguez
"CSI: Miami"

Favorite TV Actress - Leading Role in a Drama
Cote de Pablo
"NCIS"

Favorite TV Actress - Leading Role in a Comedy
Demi Lovato
"Sonny With a Chance"

Favorite TV Actress - Supporting Role
Maria Canals-Barrera
"Wizards of Waverly Place"

Favorite TV Actor - Supporting Role
Rico Rodriguez
"Modern Family"


Favorite TV Reality, Variety, or
Comedy Personality or Act
George Lopez
"Lopez Tonight"

Favorite Male Music Artist
Pitbull

Favorite Female Music Artist
Naya Rivera

Outstanding Career Achievement- Documentarian
Raymond Telles

Outstanding Career Achievement -Writer
Cynthia Cidre

Outstanding Career Achievement -Director
Gregory Nava

Special Achievement
The Harvest

The 2011 PepsiCo ALMA
Adelante Award
AltaMed Health Services Corporation

Source Cindy Vanega

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Posted in 2011 ALMA Awards , ALMA Awards , antonio banderas , David Zayas , Demi Lovato , Eva Longoria , Jessic Alba , Marcia Cross , Melanie Griffith

Antonio Banderas is this year's Super Nova

You can never be too old, evidently, to receive an award that is soley dedicated to successful "youth." But you can be youthful enough in spirit to be honored. That's why Antonio Banderas is so special to Premios Juventud, one of the most relevant awards shows of Univision, the largest Spanish television network in US.

Held at the Bank United Center amid the stifling heat of the Miami sun, this year's awards ceremony honored the Latinos who make us move to their beating drum. And here's why Antonio is so important.

Nevermind that he's dealt with Mellanie Griffith happily since 1996. She's a handful all to herself, struggling with addiction throughout her life and having been married to stars Steven Bauer and Don Johnson before finding her soulmate in Antonio. Griffith is doing spectacularly, by the way, after another stint in rehab, apparently a success this go-around.

Last year's recipient of the Super Nova award, which honors career-long achievement, was Shakira. This year the award went to Antonio. And as he put it, you can't put a number on success, in whatever incarnation.

"Thank you very much, because being young has nothing to do with age," he said during his acceptance speech. "It's the desire to live."

Banderas took time after the show to talk to the media, and he was candid about his and Mellanie's health being sound; that it's very gratifying, albeit hard work, to work with fellow Spaniard and director Pedro Almodovar; and that his life revolves around making his relationship ever stronger amid the eye candy in Hollywood.

Source Rafael Abreu

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Posted in antonio banderas , AntonioBanderas , mellanie griffith , MellanieGriffith , premios juventud 2011 , PremiosJuventud2011

Antonio Banderas funds college scholarships

Malaga –  Antonio Banderas's Lagrimas y Favores (Tears and Favors) Foundation has donated 130,000 euros ($188,000) for college scholarships, aid for cancer victims, and to help people currently down and out from the economic crisis.

The actor endowed Monday his native Malaga with 75,000 euros ($108,000) in scholarships to enable students to take postgraduate courses at universities in the United States and Canada.

Accompanied by his wife, actress Melanie Griffith, he has also gave 25,000 euros ($36,000) to the Cancer Care Association, or Cudeca, and 30,000 euros ($43,000) to the Catholic charity Caritas.

"Too many people are calling on churches these days needing help, they need some kind of support because the situation is maybe a lot worse than we think," Banderas said.

"The whole world," he said, is in "a very tough, very deep crisis that is causing suffering to lot of people."

"We're not going to fix the problems of the whole world, but we have a great belief in the work the foundation is doing," the actor said.

Banderas said that these funds have been collected over a year through such events as the "Starlite" benefit gala held last summer in the nearby city of Marbella, with which the foundation of U.S. actress Eva Longoria also collaborated.

Banderas' Lagrimas y Favores Foundation is named after an Andalusian devotion to the Virgin Mary known as Our Lady of Tears and Favors.

Souce Fox News Latinos

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Posted in antonio banderas , celia cruz salsa latino , hispanic market , Lagrimas y Favores Foundation , latino , salsacircuit , toronto hispano

Our Most Unexpected Celeb Couplings

The recent news that Benicio del Toro was expecting a child with Kimberly Stewart (Rod Stewart’s daughter) had us all scratching our heads yesterday. Who even knew that they had ever met, much less become so intimately acquainted that they made a baby? But this isn’t the first time that a celeb couple has us all asking: What the heck is going on here?!

Here are five couples, some successful and some not, that shocked the world:

Lindsay Lohan and Wilmer Valderrama

How They Met: Wilmer is one of Hollywood’s most notorious Lothario’s and Lindsay Lohan is just notorious. So maybe it made more sense than we originally thought when they hooked up in May of 2004, but then again maybe not. The 17-year-old Freaky Friday starlet was barely legal when they began dating and they didn’t go public with their romance until her 18th birthday that July.

Current Relationship Status: Just four-months after going public (though they dated for nearly a year), their heavily documented relationship was over. We can’t say we were that surprised. Valderrama spoke out about his relationship with Lohan (and Mandy Moore and Jennifer Love Hewitt) in an infamous Howard Stern interview in 200

Kat von D & Jesse James

How They Met: Jesse James became America’s Most Hated Man when news broke that he’d cheated on Sandra Bullock (repeatedly) just days after her triumphant 2010 Oscar win. But apparently, that didn’t stop famed LA tattoo artist Kat Von D from falling for his charms and they two began dating in later that summer. After denying their romance for a few months, the couple finally came clean and have been photographed all around town since.

Current Relationship Status: Von D and James are currently engaged, and possibly already married. They are avid believers in Twitter PDA so it’s easy to keep tabs on this tattooed twosome.

Mariah Carey & Nick Cannon

How They Met: Nick Cannon fessed up to having a crush on the “Honey” singer long before they ever met, but it was on the set of Mariah’s music video for “Bye, Bye” that the sparks really began to fly. Less than two months later, Carey and Cannon married in an intimate ceremony at Mariah’s Eleuthura, Bahamas home on April 30, 2008—and we were just as shocked as everyone else when we broke the news!

Current Relationship Status: Married happily for three years and expecting their first set of babies, a matching set of boy & girl twins; this couple is going stronger than ever despite their apparent age and fame difference!

LeAnn Rimes & Eddie Cibrian

How They Met: LeAnn and Eddie met on the set of their made for television movie Northern Lights. Though both were married at the time, they couldn’t stop that feeling and soon found themselves embroiled in a cheating scandal when US Weekly magazine obtained video of them making out in a restaurant.

Current Relationship Status: Surprising everyone, us included, LeAnn and Eddie both divorced their significant others to start anew with each other. They are now engaged and plan on marrying sometime in 2011.

Melanie Griffith & Antonio Banderas

How They Met: The dashing Spanish actor and American Working Girl met on the set of the comedy Two Much in 1995. Though Griffith was still in an on-again-off-again relationship with Don Johnson, and Banderas was married to his first wife, he swept his leading off her feet and they were married a year later in May of 1996. Though Griffith has struggled with substance abuse many times over the course of their marriage, Banderas has always stood by her side.

Current Relationship Status: Still married and going strong, the couple has one daughter, Stella del Carmen Banderas Griffith. On his relationship, Banderas told Hello! magazine: “There were people who literally didn’t give us more than six months! But we love each other and above all we love our family. We’ve figured out how to get past obstacles - and some of them have been really tough ones.”

Source Mariela Rosario

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Posted in America’s Most Hated Man , antonio banderas , hollywood actress , hollywood stars , Jesse James , Kimberly Stewart , lindsay lohan , mariah carey , Mariah Carey pregnant nude

Our 10 Most Metrosexual Latinos!

A recent study by Univision found that Latino men use styling products, moisturizer, and fragrance twice as much as other men. Not to mention the American Society of Aesthetic Plastic Surgery’s recent report that male breast reduction is now one of the 5 most popular cosmetic procedures. But these findings are probably obvious to you: our men have always been into manscaping. Just ask Enrique Ramirez, self-described guy-brow expert and founder of Face to Face NYC. Here are our top 10 most impeccably groomed men:

 

Enrique Iglesias has perfected the optimal amount of facial stubble for that sexy rugged-yet-clean look, clearly knows how to wield the styling gel for a cool, tousled hairstyle, and cared enough to get the mole near his nose removed.

William Levy is the best Cuban thing since mojitos!” Ramirez exclaims. He makes sure to highlight his best assets: clean-shaven, chiseled jawline, soft lips, beautiful brows, and a flashy blue suit to show off his eyes.

"Besides meticulously shaping his moustache and soul patch, Romeo Santos has groomed his brows into perfect, masculine-looking arches," says Ramirez.

Although we’ll never fully forget the mullet Mario Lopez sported in Saved by the Bell, he is now flawless from head to toe. “The dude always has perfect skin, a perfect chin and perfect slicked back hair. He’s the envy of all men,” says Ramirez

Clearly Don Omar has some super thick eyebrows, but he’d never let them get into unibrow territory; the singer keeps them tweezed and smooth. He also keeps his hair juuust right, his skin clear, and his suits spiffy.

Despite being 50, Antonio Banderas hasn’t let up in the grooming department. He’s as clean-shaven as ever, with a full head of hair that’s meticulously gelled back.

Smooth, radiant skin, a sexy haircut and stylish fashion sense (check out that fabulous scarf!) make Rodrigo Santoro a shoe-in for this metrosexual list.

This slugger has all his bases covered. Alex Rodriguez keeps his skin clear and stubble-free (on his face and chest!), his brows groomed, even his nails impeccably manicured.

Yes, his head is shaved and smooth, his eyebrows combed, and his facial hair carefully trimmed, but what really puts him at the top of this list: the man is wearing an ascot. Could Pitbull look more dapper?!

He’s got the skinny tie, the matching pocket square, and a retro hair style. Bruno Mars is definitely high-fashion

Source: Kate Sandoval

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Posted in antonio banderas , bruno mars , Don Omar , Enrique Iglesias , fashionista , hispanic market , hispano , hunks , latino , meterosexual latinos , pitbull , Rodrigo Santoro , salsacircuit , William Levy