Arts & Culture Top Moments in the entertainment world
January 01, 2015
Shonassee Shaver
LAWT Contributing Writer
It was a big year for the entertainment world. From “12 Years a Slave” to Cartergate, there was not a dull moment in 2014. Below are a list noteworthy moments in entertainment.
It was a great year for Lupita Nyong’o. A graduate of Yale School of Drama got her debut in Steve McQueen’s “12 Years a Slave.” The fresh face ingénue took Hollywood by storm with her beauty, talent and flawless fashion sense.
She garnered praised for her role as Patsey, a slave who works alongside Solomon Northup at a Louisiana cotton plantation. Her performance earned her an Oscar for Best Supporting Actress in a motion picture. She will star in “Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awaken” next year and is the new face of Lancôme.
From a talented actress to the coolest comedian, Kevin Hart is well on his way to earning the title of the hardest working man in Hollywood. Hart continues to slay Tinseltown with box office hits. Hart kept busy with “Real Husbands of Hollywood,” “Ride Along,” “About Last Night,” “Think like a Man Too” and “Top Five.”
It was a scandalous year for the hit show “Scandal,” premiering two seasons (Season 3 and 4), making it a “must see” drama. America tuned in to watch Kerry Washington as Olivia Pope battle her personal and professional life as the “fixer.” The show got its dose of its own scandal when actor Columbus Short was arrested for felony battery after a bar brawl and for a domestic violence incident with estranged wife, Tanee McCall, Short recently admitted to struggling with a drug addiction due to his departure of the show.
Powerhouse Shonda Rhimes has certainly turned Hollywood on its head with not one, not two but three TV shows on ABC. Rhimes dominated primetime television with “Grey’s Anatomy,” “Scandal” and her newest drama “How to Get Away with Murder.” The shows’ popularity influenced ABC to program its entire Thursday primetime lineup with ShondaLand dramas “Grey’s Anatomy,” Scandal and How To Get Away With Murder as “Thank God It’s Thursday” or (“TGIT”). The Associated Press reported Rhimes reign of an entire night of network television “unmatched in TV history.”
While Rhimes’ empire of shows brought in ratings, Dave Chappelle returned to comedy world after quitting the “Chappelle’s Show” on Comedy Central in 2005 and dropping out of the public eye. This past summer he appeared on the “Late Show With David Letterman,” stating he never actually quit but was “seven years late for work.” The comedian also crashed the “Today” show by banging on the glass window and holding a sign promoting his comedy shows at Radio City Music Hall.
There were some highs and lows in the comedy world throughout the year. Tracy Morgan had a traffic collision with a Walmart truck driver in June. While riding in a limo bus after performing standup he and other passengers were struck by the driver. Morgan survived the incident with a broken leg and femur, broken nose, and several broken ribs. Unfortunately, the crash killed Morgan’s friend and collaborator, James McNair. Morgan is currently in treatment for traumatic brain injury, daily speech, cognitive, vocational and physical therapies. He can be seen in Chris Rock’s “Top Five.”
After an 8-year run as co-host on popular daytime talk show “The View,” Sherri Shepherd was let go. Her departure along with Jenny McCarthy sent the media into overdrive wondering who would replace the former co-hosts. Shepherd is keeping it going with her recurring role as Nikki on TV Land’s “Soul Man” in 2015. She starred in Broadway’s “Cinderella” as the wicked stepmother and stars in “Top Five.”
Fellow actress KeKe Palmer and Quvenzhané Wallis made history as the first Black actresses to play “Cinderella” on Broadway and Annie on screen. At 21, Palmer is first Black actress and youngest to star in the leading role as Cinderella. “It’s honestly one of those things that I can’t believe is really happening,” Palmer told AP. Not the only trailblazer, Wallis will star as the first Black actress to play the classic character Annie.
Power couple Beyoncé and Jay Z headlined their infamous “On the Run” tour this Summer. 
Their collaboration came after The Mrs. Carter Show World Tour and the Magna Carter World Tour. Staging as Bonnie & Clyde with a twist, they performed a collection of their all-time hits. The duo made $95,978,476 from June 25-Aug. 6 in 16 stadiums.
In May, Solange, Jay Z and Beyoncé made headlines for the elevator debacle, dubbed the “Cartergate.” On May 12, TMZ released security video footage of Solange physically attacking Jay-Z as well as being restrained by a security guard in an elevator at The Standard, High Line in Manhattan, following the 2014 Met Gala. The footage showed Jay-Z and Beyoncé as passive and Solange as combative. The video went viral immediately and suggested martial problems between Beyoncé and Jay Z. On November 16, Solange married music video director Alan Ferguson in New Orleans, Louisiana. Beyoncé and Jay Z attended the wedding.
In another “OMG” moment, Bill Cosby has been accused of a host sexual allegations. Last month, journalist Joan Tarshis, model Janice Dickinson, actress Louisa Moritz, Carla Ferrigno, Florida nurse Therese Serignese, Playboy playmates Victoria Valentino, Sarita Butterfield, actress Michelle Hurd, Judy Huth , model Beverly Johnson have publically accused Cosby of drugging, sexually assaulting and raping them. The controversy has tarnished his wholesome and traditional image. His 2011 honorary Chief Petty Officer award from the United States Navy was revoked due to the allegations. TV Land and Netflix pulled “The Cosby Show” off their programs. Despite the backlash, Whoopi Goldberg, Raven-Symoné and Jill Scott have defended the icon against the accusations.