See Amanda at Steve and Barry's

Think Fashion has a write up of Dear, and says it's already getting good reviews.

Amanda’s line hasn’t even launched yet and she’s already receiving rave reviews.

On Good Morning America, style icon Jane Buckingham announced her favorite picks for the upcoming school season. No doubt, Amanda’s new collection topped the list.

Amanda will be appearing at the Steve & Barrys store in Manhattan on August 16th to officially launch the line.

Amanda's hair had it easier

Theater Mania reported that Amanda had a little easier time with her 'do on Hairspray than some of her other co-stars:

Coiffure-wise, Bynes had it a little easier. "All the other women had wigs, but I only wore a hairpiece. But that means they had to curl and spray it, and I didn't like it when I heard all that sizzling. Plus, at the end of the day, all the other ladies got to return to their flowing, natural hair," says the poised young actress. "One day, Christopher Walken (who plays Wilbur Turnblad) told me I looked like a Playboy bunny he once knew. I didn't ask him any further."

Bynes enjoyed dressing up in looks popular two decades before they were born. "I actually asked very nicely if I could keep my wardrobe, and they told me 'no, this stuff is going to be in a museum someday," says Bynes. "I should've just stolen those pointy Keds I wanted."

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Life Story Magazine

Amanda is featured in the new Life Story, probably the one about Zac Efron since they ask about him.










Credit

Popcorn Interview

Amanda did an interview with UK website Popcorn. Here are some highlights.

A lot of actresses would maybe be more protective of their image and want to look good, but you don't seem to mind.

That is my image! When people see me dolled up for an event, they're like, you know, 'that's so different for you.' My image is being goofy and being silly and looking bad. I feel you've got to do what you've got to do, and for me it's more fun being goofy, and to play that part in a movie.

London's not new to you, is it? You spent some time here shooting What A Girl Wants about five years ago.

Yes, I had a great time here. I was 16, and I'm 21 now, so I was here at an important time in my life. I loved going to museums here, and going around shopping. And now I'm here again, but I don't have much time. I have to leave tomorrow and I'm in hotels all day, but I did have one day where I got to walk around a little bit. I love it here and I really want to come back and take some time to enjoy everything that London has to offer.

Read More.

"Hairspray" cast profiled in USA Today

Hairspray's talented young cast was featured on USA Today's web site, here's what they said about Amanda!






Article:

Amanda Bynes, 21

How you know her:

Nickelodeon's The Amanda Show (1999-02) and WB sitcom What I Like About You (2002-06). Films include Big Fat Liar (2002), She's the Man (2006).

Hairspray role:

Penny Pingleton, Tracy's sheltered, lollipop-licking best pal who's not afraid to defy racial barriers for true love.

How she describes Penny:

"Usually, I'm the confident, go-getter Tracy girl. To sit back and react to a scene and then become a woman at the end was a lot of fun."

How she handled all those lollipops:

"It was good for me, but bad for my dad, who is a retired dentist. The day my parents came to the set, I went through about 40 or 50. My dad asked, 'You're not actually eating them, are you?' I told him it's all part of the job."

How she liked her '60s outfits:

"I wore one shirt that was vintage. When I started sweating, it smelled like the '60s."

Worst bad-hair experience:

"When I was 15, I got a haircut from a famous hairstylist in L.A. She gave me a short shag. I'm a Jewish girl with curly hair. When it dried naturally, it was atrocious."

If she were to do another movie musical, which would she choose?

"I like Jersey Boys. There is a girl role, the one who falls for Frankie Valli."

What's next?

Film comedy Sydney White. "It's Snow White in college."

Shankman's take:

"She is like a young Lucille Ball."

Monday "Hairspray" box office estimates

Hairspray is holding up really well in the weekday estimates, where typically movies don't make as much money as during the weekend.

According to Box Office Mojo, it added another estimated 4,515,000 on Monday alone lifting it's total to nearly $32 million in 4 days. Now that's big, especially with such stiff summer competition!

"Hairspray" "most impressive" at weekend box office

Box Office Mojo reported that Hairspray came in at #3 for the weekend with $27.5 million dollars, making its debut higher than predictions and also making it the biggest opening for a musical ever!

This is a solid and strong opening for the movie which cost about $75 million to make. Adam Sandler's Chuck and Larry came in at #1, but all everyone is talking about is Hairspray!

Read the full report here.

Girls' Life Interview

Girls Life has a new interview with Amanda!

For some reason it won't let me paste exceprts, so you can read it here.

Crazy eye Bynes?

National Post wrote an article about Amanda. In it, she talked about meeting a friend of original Hairspray director John Waters.

In fact, the actress met director Bill Condon, a friend of Waters, after a recent screening. "And he said, 'I think you have the most John Waters-crazy in your eyes,' " she recalls. "And I was like, 'Thanks, I guess.'

Here's more of what Amanda had to say:

I grew up doing musicals before I was ever on television. I did The Sound of Music and The Music Man, so when I found out they were doing Hairspray I wanted to be Penny because she is a great role with an arc.

Hairspray is a different species because it has a message; [it's] a period piece with an interracial relationship.

LA Confidential

The issue of LA Confidential, on stands now, has these great shot of Amanda!












I love the one of her in the white dress, and the one of her in the sunglasses. Sexy and beautiful!

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Q & A with Amanda

Interfaith Family did a great qurstion and answer with Amanda. Here are some highlights.

Your Sydney White director told me that he thought this film was a good step in your career--"that you are 'bringing your audience along.' Have you thought about the difficult transition from a teen star to an adult actress?

Everything I do is a transition, because I am growing-up. I am doing roles that are suitable for me now. I'm 21 and it is fitting that I am doing a role that puts me in college because if I was in school, now, I would be in college.

Joe Nussbaum tells me that your parents flew to the Sydney White set to celebrate your 21st birthday with you.
They wouldn't miss it for the world. To have their youngest turn 21 was a big deal. I have a 33-year-old brother and a 24-year-old sister.

Tell me about getting ready for being in a movie musical.

I trained really hard with a man named Eric Vitro, who is one of the best singing coaches in America. I got his name from my agent when I heard there were auditions for Hairspray. I used to do musical plays when I was younger but I haven't sung in a musical in 10 years so I hooked up with Eric and sang for about a month before I auditioned. I auditioned twice and got the part.

Is there a moment when you realized what a big star you are, similar to the moment musicians have the first time they hear their record on the radio?

When I was staying at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in New York a few years ago, they had a small list of favorite movies you could watch in the room. On this small list of "favorites" they listed What a Girl Wants--I called my mom--seeing a movie I had done appear on this list was really weird and cool. Also, people come up to me and quote me and kind of do my accent, as when I played a guy in She's the Man. That means a lot to me--I've sort of imitated Jim Carrey and Jack Black and Mike Myers--and then to have people doing me.

Well, if I may say this, you really do sparkle, yourself. You have an inner light that a lot of performers don't.

Thank you for saying that. My parents said you "don't want to lose your sparkle." So many people are dark and gloomy and horrible to be around. If I felt I was losing my happiness I would go to an island and figure out was going on in my life.

You seem to be part of the group of young performers who are never in the gossip pages. Did your family life have something to do with that?

Definitely. I was raised by strict parents. I wasn't allowed to go to the mall alone until I was around 16. I have really smart grounded parents who weren't nouveau riche. They really earned their money and they know the value of a dollar. They gave morals to me and I wouldn't want to do anything that would embarrass my parents.

Read the full interview here.

Much Music - Part 3

Much Music

Amanda, Zac, Nikki, and Elijah were on Much Music yesterday to promote Hairspray.

Much Music - Part 2

First picture: Toronto premiere

Hairspray premiered yesterday in Toronto!






More are sure to come. An article also accompanied the picture.

Teen star Bynes, who plays Penny, also admitted to having had "the most fantastic time in Toronto."

Internet gossip has frequently linked her romantically to Toronto performer Josh Feldman, who was a dancer in the ensemble of the show and with whom she has supposedly been involved for more than a year.

There have been photos of them on holiday displayed online, as well as other proof of their relationship, but when Bynes was asked about this, she surprisingly said: "I'm not dating anyone."

Interview with Amanda and Elijah

Amanda Bynes and Elijah Kelley sat down with Collider for a long interview full of great info. Here are some highlights.


Can each of you talk about getting involved with this movie?

Amanda Bynes: I feel like all of young Hollywood wanted to be in this movie so we were just blessed to be the ones who they felt were right for the role.

Elijah Kelley: My mortgage was due, that’s why I did this. I needed to pay my mortgage.

Amanda: I’ll speak for myself then.

Elijah: But, no, these are parts and opportunities that literally, when it hit the fan, everybody wanted a crack at this movie. They were really going for all the heavy hitters. With people like John Travolta and Michelle and Queen and all those guys, it was just a really amazing thing and to pass it up would be the most craziest thing you could do in your life.

Amanda, can you talk about creating that character? She’s just such a wonderful, innocent…

Elijah: Well, that’s what you say [laughter].

Amanda: It was funny. I talked to Adam [Shankman] about the fact that it was the most pulled back I’ve ever been in a movie because I’ve been a man in one and I’ve done Nickelodeon where I’ve been many characters; very goofy. So, for this movie, I had to sort of pull back and be kind of quiet and sort of be the observer which was actually kind of fun for me and different. This was the type of movie I want to be in which is a movie with the heavy hitters and the veterans who I hope to, one day, be like. So, for me, I just wanted to do my best. I was game every day to just be the best Penny I could be. And, a lot of times, when I do a role, I think, ‘what if someone else was playing this role?’ and, if I was watching it, ‘how would I do it better?’ So I’d kind of go in there and just do the best I could do. And, as far as the transition goes, it was kind of like me, in that she’s growing into a woman. I felt kind of shy at the beginning. It’s like all these people I don’t know and, in the end, you get kind of comfortable and speak your mind.

I wondered if you are sick of lollipops yet?

Amanda: I am. Those were the cherry kind. Now I like watermelon. So, I’m sick of cherry but I like watermelon. No, I’m sick of those too.

The movie portrays you two in an interracial relationship. Were you concerned about that?

Amanda: Not really. To us, that’s so not even an issue that’s real in our minds anymore. I know that some people may feel that way but, for me, I grew up on a show called “All That” which was a mix of Black and White people and we were just people. I had crush on and had a kiss with an African-American kid when I was eleven and, to me, I didn’t see it as anything other than the boy I liked. It wasn’t anything to me.

Elijah: Yeah and then we met back up later in life.

Amanda: Yeah, who knew that we’d work together again.

Are either of you Broadway fans or, since this movie, do you have a desire to do something on stage?

Amanda: I would love to, definitely.

Amanda, you’ve been working since you were very young. Do you set aside time every year to take a break or have you been driven to work since you were a kid?

Amanda: I’m definitely driven to work. I don’t know why. I guess it’s because you get a taste of this job and it’s sort of addictive and I get why people want to do it but, for me, it’s like I want to do movies that are cool like this. It’s very hard to find a Hairspray so I don’t take breaks so much as I don’t do them on purpose. I do it while I’m waiting for find a good project. Any time I’m not working, it’s not because I’m like ‘oh, I hate my job and I don’t want to do it’, it’s because I’m like I’m searching for the right movie.

Can both of you talk about staying grounded because we’ve seen other young people getting into problems. Is it certain people in your life or something that comes from within?

Elijah: I’m still afraid of my mother [laughter] so a lot of the things I’d consider doing if I saw her afterwards, it wouldn’t be….

Amanda: That’s exactly how I feel. It’s weird that you say that because I want to still do what I want to do. I don’t love listening to what people say I have to do but I don’t want my parents to be disappointed in me so, a lot of times, I really want them to be proud of me and I want to have their seal of approval. So, a lot of times, with things that I don’t do is because I have a family and also, I look at Will Smith. He did rap but he rapped about, like he didn’t drink and do drugs. What a good role model when that’s not as cool in the streets to do. I just think that’s very refreshing.

Elijah: I think we are both conscious that people are gonna look at us and look up to us for stuff. That’s something that comes along with the territory so we’re very conscious of it.

Amanda: And also, I think we’re very appreciative of our opportunities. For me, why would I ever throw that away by being a jerk? For us, we’re both focused and we want to have long, successful careers. Why would we want to throw that away by being jerks or going out too late?

There is more of this long interview here.

I love this interview, Amanda is so grounded and funny and down to earth. She's a good role model.

Quotes from the rainbow carpet

Amanda spoke to Sky Showbiz at the UK premiere of Hairspray and had this to say:

On John Travolta:

He's a really amazing guy - funny, talented and down to earth.

On Michelle Pfeiffer:

She's scary in this movie. You will definitely be scared of her - she’s very mean. But that’s her character.

On playing Penny:

I could be myself – it wasn’t like I had to be a mean girl or anything and I felt very comfortable in that role.

Teen Dream

Amanda is featured in Teen Dream. Here is the scan.






From what Amanda says, Sydney White sounds funny and like it could be a hit. Nikki's bit is quite sweet also.

Watch for Amanda

Amanda will be making tons of appearances as Hairspray inches closer to release.

July 12: So You Think You Can Dance: Adam Shankman (director) choreograph’s a Hairspray dance!

Amanda Bynes, Zac Efron, Nikki Blonsky and Elijah Kelley are scheduled to be in the audience.

July 14 & 15: Zac Efron and Amanda Bynes host Teen Nick

July 16: Zac Efron and Amanda Bynes host block of programs on MTV

July 18: Today Show: Zac Efron, Nikki Blonsky, Amanda Bynes and Elijah Kelley on “Today Show”

July 19: Hairspray cast (featuring, Michelle Pfeiffer, Allison Janney, Queen Latifah, Amanda Bynes and Nikki Blonsky) host the film, Shall We Dance on Lifetime.

July 23: The View: Amanda is interviewed!

July 27: Amanda Bynes on Jimmy Kimmel

I will post the dates on the calendar when I have time.

"Portrait" of Amanda

Amanda is on the cover of Portrait, a teen magazine that can only be found online.

She also came in at #17 in their Top 30 Under 30 celebrity list.

Read the interview at the site, which can be found here.