Producers Guild to Honor Rita Moreno with Stanley Kramer Award

Rita Moreno is earning yet another honor…

The Producers Guild will present the 90-year-old Puerto Rican actress, singer and dancer with the 2022 Stanley Kramer Award at the 33rd annual PGA Awards, set for March 19 at the Fairmont Century Plaza.

Rita MorenoThe honor goes to a production, producer or other individuals “whose achievement or contribution illuminates and raises public awareness of important social issues.”

Moreno, an EGOT winner, will join previous recipients including Jane Fonda as well as Get Out, Loving, Fruitvale Station, The Normal Heart, Bombshell, The Hunting Ground, An Inconvenient Truth and Hotel Rwanda.

Kramer’s work included such iconic films as Inherit the Wind, On the Beach, The Defiant Ones and Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.

“With grace, intelligence, charisma, and kindness, Rita Moreno made her mark in history as a brilliant entertainer and leveraged that star power to shepherd stories that tap into the human experience and represent people and communities we rarely see celebrated in film and TV,” PGA presidents Gail Berman and Lucy Fisher said Wednesday. “Beyond her on-screen contributions, she has used her unmistakable voice to hold a mirror to the prejudices and inequities that she so often experienced throughout her career. Her activism, strength, and artistic contributions set the precedent for how to be a changemaker in Hollywood, and it is our great honor to present Rita with the Stanley Kramer Award this year.”

Moreno most recently appeared and executive produced Steven Spielberg’s West Side Story after winning an Oscar for the original film, the latest in a seven-decade career that began with her Broadway debut at 13. She has appeared in more than 40 feature films and countless TV series including most recently Norman Lear’s remake of One Day at a Time. Her documentary Rita Moreno: Just a Girl Who Decided to Go For It had its world debut at Sundance Film Festival last year.

Moreno previously received the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President George W. Bush, the National Medal of Arts by President Barack Obama, the SAG Life Achievement Award, the Peabody Career Achievement Award and a Kennedy Center Honor.

“The last thing I ever dreamed of in my young life was being honored in any circumstance,” Moreno said. “That the Producers Guild of America has chosen to honor me not only for my work but for the principles I have tried to uphold and live by throughout my life is so gratifying. I am thrilled.”

Guillermo Díaz to Take Part in Virtual Benefit Reading of Larry Kramer’s “The Normal Heart”

It’s a new normal for Guillermo Díaz.

The 46-year-old Cuban-American actor is among the all-star cast for a virtual benefit reading of Larry Kramer’s The Normal Heart, which will be directed by Paris Barclay.

Guillermo Diaz

The May 8 reading, which aims to raise funds for ONE Archives Foundation and Invisible Histories Project, will include a special introduction by Martin Sheen.

Sterling K. Brown, Laverne Cox, Jeremy Pope and Jake Borelli are among the cast; Ryan O’Connell; Daniel Newman; Jay Hayden and Danielle Savr.

The reading, according to producers, will mark the first performance of Kramer’s Tony Award-winning play to be performed by a predominately BIPOC and LGBTQ cast.

“When I was approached by ONE Archives Foundation to direct a virtual reading of The Normal Heart, I knew it was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up,” said Barclay. “I lived in New York through the 1980s, saw the original production with Brad Davis, and have never forgotten the experience. And through today’s lens, the story of a marginalized people pushed to activism by the onslaught of an epidemic clearly was worth telling again.”

Funds raised from this event will support ONE Archives Foundation’s LGBTQ education initiatives, including K-12 lesson plans on HIV/AIDS, teacher trainings, youth engagement, and ONE Archives Foundation’s exhibitions.

The benefit also supports Invisible Histories Project’s efforts to preserve the legacy of HIV/AIDS and LGBTQ activists through archiving, inclusion training, exhibitions, and programs about Southern LGBTQ history.

The Normal Heart chronicles the early days of the HIV/AIDS crisis in New York City, based on Kramer’s cofounding the Gay Men’s Health Crisis in 1982.

The play premiered Off Broadway at New York’s Public Theater in 1985, and was staged on Broadway by director Joel Grey and starring Joe Mantello in 2011, winning a Tony Award for Best Revival of a Play. Ryan Murphy directed a 2014 film adaptation for HBO.

Tickets go on sale on April 8 here. The reading is scheduled for Saturday, May 8 at 5:00 pm ET.

Armisen to Present at This Year’s Creative Arts Emmy Awards

Fred Armisen is about to get creative

The 47-year-old half-Venezuelan American actor and former Saturday Night Live star, who received his first-ever Emmy nomination in an acting category this year, will be among the presenters at the 2014 Creative Arts Emmy Awards on August 16, according to the show’s executive producer Spike Jones Jr.

Fred Armisen

Armisen, who earneda best supporting actor in a comedy nod for Portlandia, the IFC series filmed and set in Portland, joins a list of presenters that includes Jane Lynch, Morgan Freeman, Tony Goldwyn, Heidi Klum and much of the nominated cast of Orange Is the New Black.

Other presenters include Patrick Adams (Suits), Vince Gilligan (Breaking Bad), Tony Goldwyn (Scandal), Judy Greer (Archer), Jonathan Groff (The Normal Heart), Tim Gunn (Project Runway), Tony Hale (Veep), Allison Janney (MomMasters of Sex), Keegan Michael Key (Key and Peele), Natasha Lyonne (Orange Is the New Black), Joe Manganiello (True Blood), Joel McHale (The Soup; Community), Aisha Tyler (Archer), Matt Walsh (Veep), Matt Weiner (Mad Men) and Bellamy Young (Scandal).

This year’s awards show will take place a week and a day before the Primetime Emmy Awards. An edited version of the show will be broadcast on the FXM cable network.

The entire show will be streamed on Emmys.com from noon to 3 p.m. on Monday Aug. 25, just before the Primetime Emmy Awards.

Louis C.K. Collects Five Primetime Emmy Award Nominations

Louis C.K. is still a Primetime Emmy Awards darling…

Following a record-setting nine nominations last year, the 46-year-old Mexican American actor/comedian cleaned up once again during Thursday morning’s Emmy nominations.

Louis C.K.

Louis C.K., a four-time Emmy-winner, earned five nominations for the 66th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards, the most individual nominations of anyone, Latino and non-Latino, this year.

Louis C.K., the creator of FX’s dark comedy series Louie, is nominated for Actor in a Comedy for his laugh-inducing performance as the show’s title character.

His behind-the-scenes work on Louie has also resulted in nods in the Writing for a Comedy Series and Directing for a Comedy Series categories. Louis C.K., one of the executive producers onthe show, saw the series receive a Comedy Series nomination.

And last but certainly not least, Louis C.K. earned a nomination in the Guest Actor in a Comedy Series category for hosting an episode of Saturday Night Live earlier this year. The actor/comedian, a two-time SNL host, has earned Emmy love for both his hosting stints on the long-running NBC sketch comedy series.

But Louis C.K. isn’t the only Latino to receive multiple nominations…

Fred Armisen, a former Saturday Night Live cast member, earned a Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series nod for portraying various characters on his critically acclaimed IFC satirical sketch comedy series Portlandia.

The 47-year-old half-Venezuelan American actor, who created the series with co-star Carrie Brownstein, also earned a nod in the Writing for a Variety Series for hisbehind-the-scenes work on the series.

Helena Bonham Carter, a two-time Oscar nominee, has earned her third career Primetime Emmy nod. The 48-year-old part-Spanish actress earned her first nomination in 11 years in the Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie category for her portrayal of the late Elizabeth Taylor in the BBC/BBC America production Burton and Taylor.

Alfred Molina earned his first-ever Primetime Emmy Award nomination. The 61-year-old half-Spanish actor is nominated in the Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie category for his performance in HBO’s The Normal Heart.

Lin-Manuel Miranda, who earned his first-ever Daytime Emmy Award nod earlier this year, now has his first Primetime Emmy Award nomination.

The Tony Award– and Grammy-winning American composer, rapper, lyricist and actor picked up the nod in the Original Music and Lyrics category for penning the lyrics to “Bigger!,”a tune performed by Neil Patrick Harris at the 2013 Tony Awards.

The 66th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards will be held on Monday August 25, 2014 at the Nokia Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles, and will be broadcast live by NBC.

Here’s a look at the categories with Latino nominees.

Comedy series
“The Big Bang Theory” (CBS)
“Louie” (FX)
“Modern Family” (ABC)
“Orange Is the New Black” (Netflix)
“Silicon Valley” (HBO)
“Veep” (HBO)

Actor in a Comedy
Louis C.K (“Louie”)
Don Cheadle (“House of Lies”)
Ricky Gervais (“Derek”)
Matt LeBlanc (“Episodes”)
William H. Macy (“Shameless”)
Jim Parsons (“The Big Bang Theory”)

Writing for a Comedy Series
David Crane and Jeffrey Klarik (“Episodes”)
Louis C.K. (“Louie”)
Liz Friedman and Jenji Kohan (“Orange Is the New Black”)
Alec Berg (“Silicon Valley”)
Simon Blackwell, Tony Roche and Armando Iannucci (“Veep”)

Directing for a Comedy Series
Iain B. MacDonald (“Episodes”)
Paris Barclay (“Glee”)
Louis C.K. (“Louie”)
Gail Mancuso (“Modern Family”)
Jodie Foster (“Orange Is the New Black”)
Mike Judge (“Silicon Valley”)

Guest Actor in a Comedy Series
Bob Newhart (“The Big Bang Theory”)
Nathan Lane (“Modern Family”)
Steve Buscemi (“Portlandia”)
Jimmy Fallon (“Saturday Night Live”)
Louis C.K. (“Saturday Night Live”)
Gary Cole (“Veep”)

Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Andre Braugher (“Brooklyn Nine-Nine”)
Adam Driver (“Girls”)
Jesse Tyler Ferguson (“Modern Family”)
Ty Burrell (“Modern Family”)
Fred Armisen (“Portlandia”)
Tony Hale (“Veep”)

Writing for a variety series
“The Colbert Report” (Comedy Central)
“Inside Amy Schumer” (Comedy Central)
“Key & Peele” (Comedy Central)
“Portlandia” (IFC) 
[Fred Armisen]
“The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon” (NBC)

Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie
Jessica Lange (“American Horror Story: Coven”)
Sarah Paulson (“American Horror Story: Coven”)
Helena Bonham Carter (“Burton and Taylor”)
Minnie Driver (“Return to Zero”)
Kristen Wiig (“The Spoils of Babylon”)
Cicely Tyson (“The Trip to Bountiful”)

Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie
Colin Hanks (“Fargo”)
Jim Parsons (“The Normal Heart”)
Joe Mantello (“The Normal Heart”)
Alfred Molina (“The Normal Heart”)
Matt Bomer (“The Normal Heart”)
Martin Freeman (“Sherlock: His Last Vow”)

Original Music and Lyrics
“No Trouble” from “A Christmas Carol — The Concert”
“Les Mis” from “Key & Peele”
“Home for the Holiday (Twin Bed)” from “Saturday Night Live”
“Merroway Cove” from “Sofia the First: The Floating Palace”
“Day Is Gone” from “Sons Of Anarchy”
“Bigger!” from “67th Tony Awards” [Lin-Manuel Miranda, lyrics]

Directing for a miniseries, movie or a dramatic special
Alfonso Gomez-Rejon (“American Horror Story: Coven”)
Adam Bernstein (“Fargo”)
Colin Bucksey (“Fargo”)
Stephen Frears (“Muhammad Ali’s Greatest Fight”)
Ryan Murphy (“The Normal Heart”)
Nick Hurran (“Sherlock: His Last Vow”)

Cinematography for a Miniseries or Movie
“Fargo” (Dana Gonzales)
“Fargo” (Matt Lloyd)
“Fleming: The Man Who Would Be Bond”
“Killing Kennedy”
“The Normal Heart”
“Sherlock: His Last Vow”

Costumes for a Series
“Boardwalk Empire”
“Downton Abbey”
“Game of Thrones”
“Mad Men”
“Once Upon a Time” [Eduardo Castro]

Outstanding Cinematography For Reality Programming
Project Runway (Lifetime) [Gus Dominguez, Director of Photography]

First Trailer Released for Molina’s HBO Telefilm “The Normal Heart,” Starring Mark Ruffalo and Julia Roberts

Alfred Molina’s latest project has plenty of heart

HBO has released the official trailer for The Normal Heart, the telefilm adaptation of Larry Kramer’s play premiered off-Broadway, featuring an all-star cast that includes the 60-year-old half-Spanish actor.

Alfred Molina in The Normal Heart

“To win a war, you have to start one,” announces the trailer for the film, which is directed by Glee co-creator Ryan Murphy and scripted by Kramer.

Along with Molina, who portrays Ben Weeks, the telefilm also stars Mark Ruffalo, Matt Bomer, Taylor Kitsch, Jim Parsons and Julia Roberts.

Set in NYC during the onset of the HIV/AIDS crisis of the early ’80s, The Normal Heart follows gay activists and their allies in the medical community as they try to expose the truth about the burgeoning epidemic.

Even though the telefilm doesn’t premiere until May 25 on the premium channel, HBO already is looking into a sequel.

Molina to Star in El Rey Network’s New Drama “Matador”

Alfred Molina has landed a new gol

The 60-year-old half-Spanish actor has joined the cast of El Rey Network’s upcoming drama series Matador.

Alfred Molina

Created by Bob Orci and Alex Kurtzman, the series chronicles the unlikely rise of Antonio “Matador” Bravo (portrayed by Gabriel Luna), a popular soccer star who in reality uses his sports career as a cover for his job as a skilled covert operative executing missions for a little known branch of the CIA.

Luna’s character is described as the “Latino take on James Bond.”

Molina will portray Andres Galan, owner of the ascendant LA Riot franchise.

Molina recently wrapped the feature Love Is Strange, which is slated for release later this year. He also appears in HBO’s The Normal Heart.

Molina most recently starred in TNT’s short-lived medical drama Monday Mornings.