Another great video from Matt Johnson (C'99, Mask and Wig, Phi Kappa Sigma) ...and on this Thanksgiving Day, he wants to teach you how to do the newest dance craze, The Turkey Jerky!

Matt edited this "Apple Sisters" video together and is also the announcer in it as well!  (you can actually see Matt in his other viral sensation as "Mike Schwartz" HERE)

Happy Thanksgiving everyone and remember to turkey jerk!



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The more I do this site, the more and more stories come from Penn's talented and ambitious Class of 1999.

Sheri Miller (C'99, English/Poetry Major) just released her new music video for her song "Waste My Breath", featuring 30 girls lip-syncing lyrics to the song.  It was filmed in NYC on Prince Street in Soho and South Street Seaport. Sheri is the one on guitar.

Sheri has got a great voice!  She's like Sheryl Crow meets KT Tunstall meets Fiona Apple.  Check it out in the video above!

Sheri's road in music started as an undergrad at Penn.  While still an English Major undergrad, singing in a local blues bands and writing songs secretly in her bedroom, an incredible coincidence happened to Sheri. She began dreaming of a Casio Keyboard over many months, to help her write songs in her bedroom, instead of walking 20 minutes to the jazz piano practice room downtown. One dreamy Sunday morning, after an especially vivid keyboard dream, Sheri took an alternate scenic path to the library, down Locust Walk, instead of her usual straight path on Walnut Street.  She passed by a 1-day church sale. To her amazement, she saw and bought the exact same buzzing Casio keyboard she had dreamt of the night before, for $20. This “gentle push” and “tiny miracle” naturally opened Sheri to writing songs on her new keyboard everyday, awakening her artistry.

Sheri further polished her artistry and songwriting voice by playing famous venues in New York, Nashville and LA like Rockwood Music Hall, The Canal Room, Joe’s Pub, Bowery Ballroom, Bluebird Café, World Café Live, and Hotel Cafe.

Upon releasing her critically-acclaimed debut EP, "Mantra", Sheri was asked to join a 4-part vocal harmony group, which signed to Sony Records in Nashville.  Since leaving the group, Sheri has opened a sold-out show for Shawn Mullins, headlined a show at The Canal Room, wrote with legendary writer J.D. Souther of The Eagles, Marcus Hummon, Kim Richey, Lauren Christy of The Matrix, as well as other Grammy-Award winning songwriters. Sheri is now deep in the process of writing of songs for her next full-length record.

Get Sheri's album "Mantra" HERE



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Other Penn musicians here

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Tune into Good Morning America on Friday morning as John Legend (C'99, Counterparts) performs for GMA's Summer Concert Series live from New York's Central Park.  (If you miss it, check back here for video.)

UPDATE:
Check out videos from his performance below! (they talk about and show clips from the speech John gave at Penn's commencement a few weeks ago)

On a related note, the Penn Club of Los Angeles will be kicking off their Fall '09 events with a John Legend Concert on September 1 at the Greek Theater!

PennClubLA, WhartonSoCal, and SCRAB have secured a large block of seats for their clubs and are in the process of organizing a club reception. Please save the date if you would like to join.  Club tickets will go on sale next week HERE.

Please note that this is not a private concert and there unfortunately won't be a meet and greet with John. ...But perhaps if you hold up Penn signs you'll probably get a shout out from him!

Watch John Legend inspire everyone at this year's (2009) Penn Commencement HERE

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Another case of Penn alumni (lawyers) with other careers!

Former college roommates (in photo to left: l to r:) Jessica Bohrer, (C'99 (technically graduated in '98), SDT) and Rebecca Richards (C'99, Theta) were inspired by vintage pieces handed down from their mothers and grandmothers and fell in love with the idea of taking something old and making it new. After a few months of brainstorming, their company Dalla Nonna (which translates from italian to "from the grandmother") was born!

Just a day after their ten-year reunion weekend a couple of weeks ago, Jessica and Rebecca launched the first collection of their jewelry line on Dalla Nonna: the calendar necklace.  Per Jess:

"Dalla Nonna’s signature piece, the calendar necklace, exemplifies dalla nonna’s blend of tradition and trend. derived from an old tie pin of jess’ grandpa howard, each piece is executed in 14k yellow, white or rose gold or sterling silver, and accented with a sapphire in a color chosen by the wearer to commemorate a date of her choosing (could be a birthday, graduation, anniversary, mother's day (may 10th!), birth of a child or any other important date).  With its sleek and modern design, the calendar necklace is a subtle statement piece that allows the wearer to hold a date that is close to her heart even closer still. The calendar necklace is the perfect way to mark a birthday, bat mitzvah, engagement or wedding and a great way to congratulate a graduate!"

Although they're relatively new to the market, they've already been getting great press; Entertainment Weekly, the "Ellen DeGeneres Show", Daily Candy and Urban Baby have featured them in the past month!

See their collection HERE

Other great Website Wednesday posts

More posts about Penn alumni working together HERE



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Yesterday I shared with you video from the 2009 graduation from Penn President Amy Gutmann and Google's CEO Eric Schmidt.

Now, thanks to some of my twitter and facebook friends, check out Penn graduation speaker John Legend's (C'99) very inspirational speech. Below is an excerpt from his speech which is especially moving:

"I believe that you, as graduates of this prestigious institution, the College of Arts & Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania, have soul power. No matter what careers or hobbies you pursue after leaving here, do them with SOUL.

You are empowered to be great leaders. You are equipped--in your jobs, your hobbies, your relationships. You are equipped with the ability to think critically, to listen attentively, to navigate the gray areas, to read between the lines, to bear witness, and to lead in the pursuit of truth.

You have knowledge.

Knowledge is power.

And, as my late grandfather would say, or as the freedom fighters of the civil rights movement would SING, if you know the truth, the truth will set you free. The truth will set you free someday.

Class of 2009, your someday begins today."

My other John Legend posts (including performances at Penn this past year) HERE

Check out videos from this year and previous Penn graduations HERE



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Earlier this week, we saw videos from Laura Mac (C'89) who will be celebrating her 20th reunion this weekend.

Two more alumni of note (authors!) will be back on campus respectively celebrating their 25th and 10th reunions.

• Penn Alum and author Marie (Busterna) Lamba (C'84) will be back on campus this weekend celebrating her 25th reunion, as well as doing a book signing for her young adult novel WHAT I MEANT... this Saturday May 16th from 2-:4:30 pm at the Penn Bookstore (3601 Walnut Street)
  

WHAT I MEANT, which Publisher’s Weekly has called “an impressive debut,” is set in Doylestown and Philadelphia and is about a 15 year old girl, her mysterious guy, her Indian dad, her American mom, her evil aunt, and tons of drama and laughs.

Marie says she owes much of who she is today to her time at Penn. “I took tons of writing courses in college, and that, combined with my experiences as a student there, really helped shape me as a writer, and it influenced my novel as well.” The Philadelphia scenes in What I Meant… are drawn from her freshman year at Penn. “My teen character winds up stuck in Philly at night, completely lost and shook up. Kind of like me in my first year of college. I, too, was a small town girl who had a lot to learn about cities and about myself.”

Find out HERE how Marie got her start, got published and her advice to you on becoming an author!

Marie's website HERE

• 
  Rachel Skerritt (C'99, GSE '99) will also be doing a signing and discusion of her book WHEN THE LIGHTS GO DOWN at the Penn Bookstore on Saturday 5/1 at 3:30 pm.
  
  Read my post I did about Rachel HERE and learn how she leads a double life as a high school principal and novelist!
  
  What inspired Rachel to start writing? ...Which famous Penn alumni have been mentors to her? ...And what are her tips to YOU? The answers got me chuckling... Find out more here!
  
  

Other Penn authors HERE




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Last January I wrote a post on how Dave Baronoff (C'99, L'02, Mask and Wig) went from lawyer to producer for JJ Abrams.

I am happy to report that Dave is doing extremely well.  This year, not only was Dave the Associate Producer of THIS popular movie, and has appeared on the cover of Ad Age, but come this weekend, you'll see his name taking up the whole screen under the "Associate Producer" credit at the end of the new Star Trek film.

In an interview Dave did earlier this week with a Philly newspaper, Dave tells us why everyone's going to like Star trek:

'“I liked ‘Star Trek’ (growing up), but I was never obsessed with it,” says Baronoff, admitting he was more of a “Star Wars” guy. “What’s amazing about this process is I’ve been converted. What J.J. and the writers have done is to create a new way into the franchise and taken characters beloved by so many and found a way for the rest of us to connect with them.”'

On Monday night I was fortunate enough to see an advance screening of the new Star Trek movie and it was really great. If you like JJ Abrams other works including Cloverfield, "Fringe" (you'll see similar title treatments and special effects in the movie), "Lost" and "Alias", you'll also love this movie for its attention to contemporary story telling and character development. You'll also appreciate the clever incorporation of some of your favorite Star Trek classic lines. Be sure to check out the movie when it comes to theaters this Friday!

Read an interview Dave did earlier this week with a Philly newspaper HERE

Learn more about Dave and his journey in Hollywood
(great for anyone considering a career change or career in Hollywood)

On a related note, if you haven't seen the documentary Trekkies, you must see this to truly understand the Trekkie culture out there!  You'll be amazed!

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Vanessa Mizzone (C'99) stars in another funny short film about a single woman (played by Vanessa) who is surprised when mothers find her day unusually stimulating. This is a must-see for any woman out there who is trying to remember her life before kids!

Another one of my favorite Vanessa comedy shorts here!

Next Week:
Our Penn in Pictures series continue with videos of Jason Resnick (C'92) (Universal acquisitions) ...and Hollywood's insider answers to questions you'll want to know about!

Check out my other Funny Friday posts here!


Other Penn actors here

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In light of his new recently released Evolver album, John Legend (C'99, Counterparts) was interviewed by 2 different Penn alumni for 2 different mediums.

Last week, Penn alum and WPIX Entertainment Reporter Emily Frances interviewed John (see video above).  Emily filled me in on some John Legend tidbits that I didn't know:

• Legend is a musical prodigy. 
• He started playing the piano at the age of 4 and he started attending the University of Pennsylvania when he was only 16-years-old. 
• To fit in with the college crowd, he joined an acapella group (Counterparts). 
• Legend was the first in his family to attend college and after he graduated, he worked at Boston Consulting Group for 3 years in NY while he was trying to make it.
• He was an English major and lived in Butcher his freshman year. 

Then Jillian Ivey (C'06, Kelly Writer's House) sat down with John Legend earlier this month for the  Phillyist blog to talk with him about his new album.  In the interview, John talks about his new album and also talks about whether he'll be returning to Penn for the Counterparts 10th reunion this spring and why he loves Philly so much.  Check out her article here

Listen to Evolver tracks here

John Legend - Evolver - If You're Out There (remember when he performed this on campus HERE for the Obama Rally?)


John Legend - Evolver (album)


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"Some co-workers are a pain in the ass, but this one's a pain in the neck."

Enjoy "The Office Vampire", a funny Halloween video starring actress Vanessa Mizzone (C'99). (She's the office worker with short hair.)

Vanessa starred in another office related video earlier this year, which is not-safe-for-work... and awesome! Check it out here!

Check out my other Funny Friday posts here!


Other Penn actors here

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Since her days as an undergrad, it seems that Rachel Skerritt (C'99, GSE '99) likes to be involved in as much as possible.

This author ...and High School Principal(!) just published her third novel (her other books here) this year, entitled WHEN THE LIGHTS GO DOWN (Kensington - Dafina Books).

Rachel's books are contemporary fiction and per Rachel can be branded African American fiction, because most of the characters are African American, or as "chick lit," because the central characters are female.

Per Rachel,

"My books tend to address the age group of the main characters, and the issues that people of that particular age group face.  TRUTH BE TOLD is about coming of age on a college campus, very much inspired by my time at penn.  NO MORE LIES captures that time when you're out of school and living on your own and trying to figure yourself out.  WHEN THE LIGHTS GO DOWN focuses on folks who are turning thirty and making those major life decisions about career, family, and lifestyle.

Rachel tells me that she was originally C'99 but graduated a year early to spend the extra year getting a masters.) In addition to this she was involved in the following activites: Admissions Tour Guide, Service Learning through the Center for Commnunity Partnerships, Writer for The Vision (Penn's African American Student Newspaper), Graduate Advisor for DuBois College House, Writing Advisor in Writer's House )

What inspired Rachel to start writing? ...Which famous Penn alumni have been mentors to her? ...And what are her tips to YOU? The answers got me chuckling... Find out more here!

Click here to read a quick synopsis and the first chapter to WHEN THE LIGHTS GO DOWN ...+/-

ONCE YOU BECOME A VIP ... IT'S IMPOSSIBLE TO GO BACK.

Kahlila Bradford keeps a written record of all of the qualities she wants in her mate. With hundreds of items on her list and counting, it's no wonder that she's still single. Realizing that she could stand to cut loose a little, Kahli decides to leave Boston for a spell and spend a sizzling summer in Harlem - no lists and no limits.

Once in New York, Kahli meets the one man who can actually exceed her expectations. Darius Wilson is the hottest thing in R&B, with charisma to spare and a genuine interest in what Kahli thinks of his music. It isn't long before Kahli is dying to give him more than just her opinion, and she suddenly she is center stage at the side of a celebrity.

But autumn's arrival means returning home and getting back to reality. Now it's time for Kahli to ask herself some serious questions about how much she's willing to give up to keep living in the spotlight, and what's really important ... when the lights go down.


First Chapter:

Rachel Skerritt's (C'99) "When the Lights Go Down" Excerpt - Upload a Document to Scribd

Read this document on Scribd: Rachel Skerritt's (C'99) "When the Lights Go Down" Excerpt

Rachel's website here

Get WHEN THE LIGHTS GO DOWN

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