Anyone who claims to know anything about Hollywood should be able to tell you that one of the most important person in Hollywood city is not an actor but it’s honorary mayor - Johnny Grant.

Johnny Grant’s work in Tinseltown has earned him the honorary status having enthusiastically contributed to the Hollywood community and industry for over half a century. He is not important just because he’s Hollywood’s most recognized spokesmans but also because he’s served in various committees such as the Walk of Fame Selection Committee and the Hollywood Historic Trust. he’s penchant for turning the ordinary and the waning into something new and dynamic has also helped form and revitalize important Hollywood events such as the “Welcome Home Desert Storm” parade, where he is the creator and producer, the Hollywood Christmas Parade, formerly known as the dying Santa CLaus Lane Parade, and of course the Hollywood Centennial Celebration.

Prior to being the organizing legend and big wig that he has become he was a game show host, commentator, daytime host, news correspondent, and producer. He also has a very long list of honors and awards bestowed upon him including the following:

• Special Walk of Fame star complete with the Hollywood seal - 2000. This was placed at the entrance to the Kodak Theatre
• A hand-and-footprint ceremony in the forecourt of Mann’s Chinese Theatre - 1997
  Hollywood Walk of Fame star - 1980
• Los Angeles Area Governor’s Award - Academy of Television Arts & Sciences 1988
• The Order of California - State of California 1982
• Legion of Merit - 2000
• Legends of News Award - Los Angeles Press Club 1987
• Wrangler Award - Cowboy Hall of Fame 1982
• Bob Hope Combat Entertainer Award - International Korean War Veterans Association
• Combat Entertainer’s Badge (CEB) - 25th Infantry Division in Vietnam

Oscar winner Holly Hunter is now a star not just in name but also on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The multi-awarded actress who is best known for her work in the 1993 film “The Piano” was awarded the 2,363rd star in the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Holly Hunter shared the special moment with important people like Steven Spielberg, Ed Harris, Kate Capshaw, Billie Jean King and the two most important little people in her life - her cute twin sons.

Holly Hunter is definitely worthy of a star having won awards from everything from the New York Film Critics Circle to Berlin International Film Festival, and of course, the Academy Awards. Most of the awards she won is for two of the best films she’s done - Broadcast News (1987) and The Piano (1993).

Holly Hunter was definitely thrilled by the award calling saying that it is “an unbelievable honor.”

Having recently seen Speed Racer I now feel the need to write about two of my favorite writers/ producers/ directors. The Wachowski brothers, Andy and Larry, has a pretty good list of films both as writers and producers. Although they only have relatively few films between them (15 as writers, 9 as producers, and 8 as directors) you’ll be surprised at the number of awards they have earned, although I’d say that if you saw any of their films you shouldn’t be surprised at all. In fact so far they’ve already been nominated 9 times for various awards and won 6 out of the 5 nominations.

Films and video games done by the Wachowski Brothers include:

Speed Racer (2008) - writers, producers, and directors
V for Vendetta (2005) - writers, producers
The Matrix: Path of Neo (2005 - video game) - writers, directors
The Matrix Online (2005 - video game) - writers, directors
The Matrix Revolutions (2003) - writers, executive producers, and directors
Enter the Matrix (2003 - video game) - writers, directors
The Matrix Reloaded (2003) - writers, executive producers, and directors
The Animatrix (2003) - segment writers; producers
The Matrix (1999) - writers, producers, and directors
Bound (1996) - writers, executive producers, and directors
Assassins (1995) - writers

They are also producers of a film currently filming - Ninja Assassin.

The mark of the Wachowski brothers are one-of-a-kind surreal films that somehow feel familiar and believable. From machines taking over the world to race car drivers winning a fixed race the recurring theme is changing the world despite impossible odds. Hmmm. Sounds corny? Somehow the Wachowski brothers put it together to make it far from corny. Cool beans its another Wachowski film in the making!

Lots of visitors coming to Hollywood do so to catch a glimpse of their favorite stars. The great thing about the place is that anywhere you go the chances of being star struck is there.

If you want to spot some big stars but start feeling hungry from all the sightseeing you might as well visit restaurants that are the favorites of your favorite celebs including:

Spago Beverly Hills - The original Spago used to be located in west Hollywood but after Wolfgang Puck opened the Beverly Hills branch he had to let the first one go. If you want a sure shot at seeing big names this is the place to go especially during peak hours (7-9pm). The problem with the place though is that it is that you would need to book reservations days or even weeks in advance. Unless you’re a celeb or going out with one you also wouldn’t be able to get a table during the peak hours. Still the food is really excellent and at the very least you can say you’ve dined in the place where Sir Elton John, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Tom Cruise, Robin Williams, Sydney Poitier, Tom Hanks, and so many more have dined.

Formosa Cafe - Fancy a drink? This is the place to go. Actually the place offers a lot more than drinks and has an excellent full menu everynight. Formosa Cafe is really frequented by the celebs though mostly just for cocktails. The great thing about Formosa Cafe is that the prices are relatively reasonable and the ambiance will make you fill at ease. Big names that have been spotted there include Elvis, Marilyn Monroe, Clark Gable, James Dean, etc (although you surely wouldn’t see them coming again!). Among those alive and breathing big stars that have been seen there include Bono, Nicolas Cage, Britney Spears, Jodie Foster, Kevin Spacey, an more.

Remember this girl? Apparently with the Spitzer scandal dying she’s ready for a brand new one. Ashley Alexandra Dupre sued Girls Gone WIld for $10 million dollars last Monday for having “exploited” her image by using shots taken during spring break 2003. She was just 17 then. Dupre claims that being underage she can not be held liable for any contracts and anything made then is not legally binding.

Girls Gone Wild Founder, Joe Francis, on the other hand is very surprised at the lawsuit especially since he has a videotape of Dupre giving her consent. Prior to the lawsuit Joe Francis offered Dupre a $1 million dollar contract for a promotional tour but canceled when he found out that he already had the old spring break video, which was the one he used for the promo tour. Apparently Dupre wants a chunk of the money so she filed this lawsuit. According to Francis he is willing to discuss the offer again with Dupre if she wishes.

Miley Cyrus has apologized in advance for her sexy pictures that will be coming out in the June issue of Vanity Fair. The picture shown above was taken by Annie Leibovitz during a photo shoot that Billy Ray Cyrus, Miley’s dad, claims was “supposed to be artistic”. According Billy Ray he was with Miley during the shoot and didn’t intend for the photos to come out that way but “now seeing the photographs and reading the story, I [Billy Ray] feel so embarrassed”.

This is a blow to Miley Cyrus’ squeaky clean Hannah Montana image that she has been cultivating really hard, especially since the father-daughter duo is known for being set against Miley going the way previous Disney stars such as Britney Spears and Lindsay Lohan has.

Disney Channel of course stood for Miley saying that Vanity Fair “deliberately manipulated a 15-year-old”. Since her parents were on the set the whole day Vanity Fair of course rebuts this accusation by reminding the world that there were adults there whose job was to make sure that Miley wasn’t manipulated into anything.

How this will all pan out will depend on Hannah Montanas fans and their parents. Will this break their trust or will they stay loyal. One thing’s for sure Hannah Montana shouldn’t slip up in the near future if she wants to retain their confidence.

Wondering who the latest addition to the Walk of Fame is? No he isn’t an action star nor is he an even actor but he is indeed famous thanks to his previous stints as president and CEO of Paramount Pictures and then as the CEO of Disney. So who is he? Michael Eisner

As mentioned before he was the president and CEO of Paramount Pictures from 1976 to 1984 during which the studio churned out plenty of big hit movies and TV shows. According to Eisner though his golden charm during the Paramount days is really John Travolta because everything “John was associated with while I [Eisner] was at Paramount was a hit.” It is indeed true since it was during those days that the hits Grease and Saturday Night Fever came out.

Upon leaving Paramount Eisner then came to the aid of the then struggling Disney Productions and along with Frank Wells managed to revitalize the studio during the late 80s. During the 90s they then set out to expand the “Disney Kingdom” and established parks around the world (Hong Kong, Tokyo, etc) and took on plenty of new investments. However, in 2005 Eisner stepped down as CEO after shareholders went along with the revolt led by Roy Disney, son of Disney co-founder Roy O. Disney, and Stanley Gold.

Eisner kept himself busy after by founding the Torante Company, a private company that “invests in and incubates companies and opportunities in the media and entertainment space.” His charity foundation, the Eisner Foundation, is still very much active although it is his wife, Jane, that actually manages it as its president.

The Walk of Fame ceremony was attended by Mickey and Minnie mouse, John Travolta, and Bob Iger. It was held earlier this day.

Although I usually veer away from politics this year’s election is turning out to be an exciting one in terms of who’s supporting who. So far Barack Obama is proving to be the big Hollywood magnet with Hillary Clinton following and John McCain having just a few celebrity endorsers.

For those interested here are some of the endorsers for each candidate:

Big Names Behind Barack
Oprah Winfrey
Bruce Sprinsteen
George Clooney
Scarlett Johansson
Edward Norton
Larry David
Kal Penn
Jamie Foxx
Garry Shandling
Linda Ronstadt
Paul Newman
Will Smith
Geena Davis
Ellen Pompeo,
Isaiah Washington
Laurence Fishburne
Matt Damon
Emilio Esteves
Sharon Stone
Kareem Abdul Jabbar
Halle Berry
Charles Barkley
Ben Affleck
Sinbad (Yes this is the same Sinbad who blew open the lid when Sen Clinton “misspoke” about her Bosnia travel)
and so many more…

Celebrities for Clinton
Barbra Streisand
Ted Danson
America Ferrera
Magic Johnson
Tom Hanks
Billy Crystal
Bette Midler
Chevy Chase
Elizabeth Taylor
Martha Stewart
Michael Douglas
Heidi Fleiss
Melissa Etheridge
Janet Jackson
and of course hubby Bill Clinton

McCain Supporters
Heidi Montag
Sylvester Stallone
Andy Williams
Clint Eastwood
Jon Voight

Any serious Hollywood fan or student of film should watch this interview of pioneer internet author Don Wrege and Robert Carl Cohen. Cohen is the writer, producer, director, cameraman, and editor of MONDO HOLLYWOOD.

The Hollywood writers strike gets even more complicated as The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists breaks connections with its more powerful sister union, the Screen Actors Guild.

AFTRA’s board of directors voted Saturday to separately negotiate its upcoming prime-time television contract with the major studios — without SAG at the bargaining table.

While each group has its own list of grievances against each other — and agendas to pursue the big question is:

when will this strike be over, already???