Galifianakis, Funny or Die lead Webby winners; Chris Milk-directed clips recognized
By Jake Coyle, Entertainment Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --As a mock interview show host, Zach Galifianakis is accruing awards at the rate of a “60 Minutes” correspondent.
Galifianakis led the 15th annual Webby Awards on Tuesday with four awards for his Web series “Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis.” He won best Web personality/host, best comedy short and best online variety show. He won the latter in both the voter-chosen “People’s Voice” category and the proper Webby Award category.
The Webbys, which celebrate Internet achievement, are presented by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences, a group of 750 Web experts as well as other Internet professionals.
Galifianakis’ irreverent, sporadically released show, which appears on FunnyOrDie.com, is done in the style of a cable access show. Galifianakis, who was honored last year by the Webbys as best actor, belligerently and absurdly interviews celebrity guests.
Lisa Kudrow won two awards for her “Web Therapy” series. Arcade Fire’s innovative “The Wilderness Downtown” music video also won two awards, as did the interactive “Johnny Cash Project.” Both Web-based music videos were directed by Chris Milk (of @radical.media).
Justin Bieber took the People’s Voice award for best comedy video for his April Fool’s takeover of FunnyOrDie.com as “Bieber or Die.” The site’s home page was remade with clips featuring Bieber in famous viral videos.
The comedy site, co-founded by Will Ferrell and Adam McKay, earned a total of nine awards. That included the Webby for best humor site and a People’s Voice award for Jim Carrey’s performance as Ronald Reagan in the site’s star-packed “Presidential Reunion” video.
The app sensation “Angry Birds” was chosen for best game, for both the Webby and the People’s Voice award. The New Yorker’s website won the Webby for best magazine site and for best copy/writing. PBS’s iPad app was picked for best entertainment for a tablet. Conan O’Brien’s TeamCoco.com won the Webby for best celebrity or fan website.
The New York Times, which recently began charging readers for access to its site, won three awards in how-to, travel and mobile. NPR won for best news site and for best radio/podcasts. Pandora won for best music site.
A full list of winners is available here. Special recognition awards will be announced later.
The awards will be handed out in a ceremony in New York City on June 13. The Webbys are famous for their trademark brevity, with acceptance speeches limited to just five words.
Alec Baldwin Urges Judge To Stand By Dismissal Of Involuntary Manslaughter Case In “Rust” Shooting
Alec Baldwin urged a New Mexico judge on Friday to stand by her decision to skuttle his trial and dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge against the actor in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie.
State District Court Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed the case against Baldwin halfway through a trial in July based on the withholding of evidence by police and prosecutors from the defense in the 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film "Rust."
The charge against Baldwin was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it can't be revived once any appeals of the decision are exhausted.
Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey recently asked the judge to reconsider, arguing that there were insufficient facts and that Baldwin's due process rights had not been violated.
Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer on "Rust," was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal when it went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer โ but not the trigger โ and the revolver fired.
The case-ending evidence was ammunition that was brought into the sheriff's office in March by a man who said it could be related to Hutchins' killing. Prosecutors said they deemed the ammunition unrelated and unimportant, while Baldwin's lawyers alleged that they "buried" it and filed a successful motion to dismiss the case.
In her decision to dismiss the Baldwin case, Marlowe Sommer described "egregious discovery violations constituting misconduct" by law enforcement and prosecutors, as well as false testimony about physical evidence by a witness during the trial.
Defense counsel says that prosecutors tried to establish a link... Read More