Late Night with Jimmy Fallon

It became official Monday! Jimmy Fallon took the reigns from Conan O'Brien, because Conan was taking over The Tonight Show on account of Jay Leno's retirement. (I'll totally miss him!)

Jimmy answers what draws him to being a talk show host:
"With movies, you kind of work for six months, and then it takes another six months to release the movie, and then people go, 'That's not that good,'" Fallon said. "With live TV and 'Saturday Night Live,' it's immediate reaction. You find out if a joke stinks immediately. ... If it's funny, they'll laugh, and if not, you've got to go right to the next joke. It's immediate, and there's no chance of getting depressed and applying for 'Celebrity Rehab.' You've just got to get over it quicker -- you've still got a show to put on, and you've got to come back ready for the next joke."

Jimmy was obviously very nervous during his big debut, but his ratings were pretty high. I found this funny tidbit:

As Jimmy Fallon prepared to debut as host of NBC's "Late Night," he found his predecessor, Conan O'Brien, in his dressing room, still packing up.

"I'm about to start my first show," Fallon told him eagerly.

"Oh, is that tonight?" O'Brien replied. "I was gonna TiVo it, or something."

I missed the first show, but I caught it on Tuesday. Tina Fey was the first guest, and the two were very chummy. They shared some funny memories from their SNL times together, and Jimmy showed funny pictures of bad hair styles throughout their time together on "Weekend Update." There was a cute moment later when Jon Bon Jovi, the second guest, admitted the fantasies he had about Tina Fey, and she did a cute, awkward not-so-sexy "sexy dance" for laughs. During the dance, Jimmy averted his eyes uncomfortably and said something like, "No! She's like my sister!"

Jimmy was pretty funny on Late Night. He does have big shoes to fill, but I'm confident the show will get better.

Catch it every Monday to Friday at 12:37pm!
Conan should be starting The Tonight Show soon, which airs right before Late Night at 11:37pm.

Scallion Pancakes

I decided to make scallion pancakes for my husband and me. People call it the Chinese pizza although it is nothing like a pizza. It is a multi-layer pancake that is savory and full of scallions. I made four pancakes and a huge mess! I had flour and oil everywhere. So it wasn't worth all the effort to make so little and for only the two of us. So I suggest making a whole bunch for your family or when you have people over. Also, you need dipping sauce to eat scallion pancakes. You can either buy dumpling sauce already bottled or make your own. For the dipping sauce, you simply mix soy sauce, sugar, vinegar and sesame oil to fit your taste. The recipe below only makes four pancakes, so adjust accordingly.

Ingredients:
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup boiling water
1/2 cup sliced scallions
3 tablespoon sesame oil
1/4 cup canola oil
Salt and black pepper to taste

Directions:
1. In a bowl, sift flour. Slowly add boiled water in a steady stream while mixing with a wooden spoon. Use your hands to knead into a ball. Let dough ball relax (covered with damp cloth) for about 30 minutes.
2. On a floured surface, roll out dough into a thin rectangle. Make sure the surface is thoroughly floured, so the dough won't stick to it--otherwise, you'll have to start all over.
3. Brush on oil mixture, cover with scallion and season with salt and pepper.
4. Start at one end (lengthwise) and carefully roll dough like a sponge cake.
5. Cut into 4 equal pieces. Take one piece and twist 3 times (like wringing a towel). Make a spiral out of this -- like a snail's shell. Roll out and flatten to achieve a 5 to 6 inch pancake. Do this for each piece.
6. In a hot non-stick pan, coat with canola oil and pan sear both sides until golden brown. Cut into wedges and serve immediately with dipping sauce.

The Lonely Island's "Incredibad"

Ever heard of Andy Samberg? He's that guy in Hot Rod (that movie that you never saw because it looked so bad). He's also in SNL! He's most known for the music video he did with Justin Timberlake called "D%#k in a Box." I love that song! It's hilarious!

Well, Andy Samberg teamed up with his two best friends, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone, and created a comic group called The Lonely Island. They not only make movies (Hot Rod), they make music! They put together an album called Incredibad. This entire album is made up of hilariously griddy hip hop/rap songs, that are nonetheless, really catchy. Some of my favorites are "Lazy Sunday," "Like a Boss," and "Dream Girl."

Plenty of famous actors or singers are also featured in these songs. "I'm on a Boat" features T-Pain, "Sax Man" is entirely sung by Jack Black, and, believe it or not, Nathalie Portman has her own rap where she says plenty of foul, obnoxious things. But it's all a joke! Haha, she's not really like that. It's hilarious to imagine pretty, little Nathalie Portman saying things like, "When I was in Harvard I smoked weed everyday. I cheated every test and snorted all the yay." This is one of the only lines I could find that didn't have a curse in it.

So Incredibad is out in stores. There are hilarious YouTube videos for songs like: "J%$z in my Pants," "D&#k in a Box," "Space Olympics," "Lazy Sunday," "I'm on a Boat," and "We Like Sports."

From the titles, some of the songs may sound pretty gross, but they're actually really funny! I recommend this album to anyone with a gritty sense of humor!

This album obviously has crude language. Please keep it from the ears of children!

PS. It's my birthday today!

Penelope

I watched Penelope for the second time the other day. It was free on demand. I really like this movie, so much so that I am blogging for the second time today. I think all girls, once in their lifetime, felt ugly and thus can relate to this story in a way. Penelope is about a girl who happens to be cursed with a pig face, which really only includes a pig nose. The curse can only be lifted "if one of her own learns to love her." So her mother sets out to find a blueblood to marry her, and zaniness ensues. Max, played by James McAvoy, comes along and falls in love with Penelope for who she is and not what she looks like. You could tell that he was so conflicted, and it is heartbreaking to watch. So go watch this movie especially if you have Starz on demand (so you have no excuse for missing it). And for you girls, James McAvoy is such a heart throb. Sigh.

Restaurant Empire

I love computer games like Restaurant Empire. It's not too difficult and complicated. I grew up in a time when games were simpler--when Tetris was the big thing and when Mario could move only to the left or right. So I never got the hang of the games of today. However, I love games like Sims and Zoo Tycoon. And anything dealing with cooking is cool. So Restaurant Empire fits all of my criteria in a game. And it was only $6.99 at Target! In Restaurant Empire, you just follow the storyline and work at beating levels in the game. And each level is harder than the next but not that difficult that you'll be completely stuck. The premise of the game is basically what it is called--you have to build your own empire of restaurants, which includes managing restaurants and opening new ones. I was playing this game yesterday for more hours than I care to admit. My excuse is that my husband is out of town, and I have nothing to do. I guess I could have attempted to clean the house and do something productive. On second thought...yeah right.