According to the Utica OD, “A Utica resident is a key figure in an Oscar-nominated documentary about civilian protest in one of the world’s most repressive nations. In September 2007, U Gawsita led fellow monks and tens of thousands of Burmese residents through Rangoon in Myanmar (formerly Burma), in opposition to the country’s longstanding military regime.”

The protest was captured on film and that footage was eventually used in the documentary Burma VJ, which has been nominated for an Academy Award.

You can read the full story here. The Oscars air on ABC March 7.

February 2, 2010 — New Hartford resident Michael Philip will appear on NBC comedy 30 Rock in February.

The episode was shot January 19 and features Philip as a prospective love interest for Tina Fey’s character, Liz Lemon.

“I catch her attention in the doctor’s office and she hopes to make (her current love interest) feel uncomfortable,” Philip said.

A Toronto, Canada native, Philip travels back and forth between New Hartford and New York City weekly to juggle his marriage, family and career. Normally he chooses guest appearances over featured roles on shows, but he said he couldn’t turn down 30 Rock, and he was glad he didn’t.

“It was kind of funny,” he said. “Tina Fey — she’s adorable. The directors and everyone there seem to have a good time. It’s a loose atmosphere. Also, there’s not as much pressure because it’s not shot in front of a live audience. So you’re not in front of 300 people. It’s a lot less stressful.”

30 Rock is shot in Silver Cup Studios in Long Island City, where other television shows like HBO’s hit series the Sopranos was shot, Philip said. The episode took five days to shoot.

Philip, 46, has guest-starred in several television programs, including sitcoms Married With Children, Will & Grace and Frasier. He also appeared in television dramas Charmed, Angel, and VIP; and guest starred in the soap opera, the Bold and the Beautiful.

Philip even hosted the 1998 science fiction television program Welcome to Paradox.

He was also in the 2009 action sci-fi thriller movie Surrogates, with Bruce Willis, where he played a uniformed police officer.

Of his job he said he wouldn’t trade it for any other.

“It’s a good time,” he said. “I cant complain. I mean, you get to hang around some cool people. And really, it’s all about meeting new people. You never know whats going to happen.”

It’s pilot season, Philip said, and he hopes to try to get another show on his resume.

“There’s a lot going on and I just picked up a new agent,” he said. “There’s a ton of new things happening.”
Philip lived in Los Angeles for about 25 years, where he met his wife, New Hartford native, Claudia. She was an aspiring actress. Now she is going back to school to try a new career in nursing, and with their two children, Isabella and Juliana, the couple moved back to the area.

“She was from here and we just kept ending up here,” he said. “I audition here (New York City) for work, and go home on the weekends.”

The 30 Rock episode is scheduled to appear some time in February. The show airs every Thursday at 9:30 p.m.

Guy Fieri did a segment on Utica Greens today on Guy’s Big Bite. He showed how to make the local favorite and nicknamed escarole, which is used in the dish, as “turning greens” for the Turning Stone Casino.

If you’ve caught the new Ray Romano series, Men of a Certain Age on TNT, you may have been surprised to see a little piece of upstate NY in the opening credits. If you watch closely, you can see that the beer they are toasting with is none other than Utica Club!

An upstate NY rape and murder case that has been open since 1985 will get nationwide attention soon when the case is profiled on “America’s Most Wanted.” The case of 16-year-old Kimberly Simon, whose bruised and partially nude body was found in Whitesboro in September 1985, was thought to be closed when Marcy resident Steven Barnes was convicted of her murder in 1989. But Barnes was released from prison last year after DNA tests exonerated him, prompting investigators to reopen the case. According to the OD, “A crew from the show will visit the Utica area to interview those involved with the case, and re-enactments may be filmed on location here or in a studio, depending on the show’s needs.”

Here’s a fun fact, or at least a fact, about Utica’s history in pop culture. In the very first episode of Matlock, the victim, a news anchor, is buried in her hometown of Utica, NY.

This is just one in a long line of mentions of Utica on television. Another notable mention was on Jenny McCarthy’s short-lived sitcom, Jenny. Her character had just moved to L.A. from Utica.

This morning on The Today Show, while Al Roker was mingling with the crowd, he came across a girl celebrating her Sweet 16. When he asked her name and where she was from, she responded, “Marina from Utica, NY”, and then proceeded to shriek and scream in a pitch that only teen girls are capable of. In response to her screaming, Al said, “A little Genny Cream Ale for breakfast.” Was Al trying to reference Saranac but got his Ales wrong?

According to The OD, Utica’s going Bollywood:

Ilion filmmaker Michael Patrei will film a Bollywood-type dance number using local residents for a scene in his feature-length comedy, “Falling Frames.”

The scene is open to any who wish to participate in the filming at 1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 4, in the parking lot across from the Tramontane Café, 1105 Lincoln Ave.

Those not participating in the filming, which will take all day, will be asked not to observe the filming, Patrei said.

Participants should expect Bollywood-style choreography, but shouldn’t be put off if they’re rhythmically challenged, he said.

“Anyone can be in it,” Patrei said. “When we go through the run-through, I’m going to rearrange people so that the people who are getting the dance moves will be in the front.”

Patrei welcomes all people in whatever they want to wear, but would love to see various groups and teams dressed in their uniforms.

“A different eclectic group of people really would work,” Patrei said. “The movie really is surreal, so it lends itself to that sort of zaniness.”

The film follows an actor who kidnaps the director of the film he’s a part of in order to force him to write a happy ending. After a few twists and turns, the film builds to the Bollywood dance number, Patrei said.

Most of the film has been shot locally – Utica, Ilion and Clinton — and is expected to be completed and submitted to film festivals early next year, Patrei said.

Patrei’s most recent film, “Ballou,” received national acclaim and attention by telling the story of a Washington, D.C., marching band seen as a beacon of hope in a high school riddled with violence and crime.

Patrei’s currently working on a documentary that recounts the history of Ilion, his hometown.
Visit www.ilionfilmcompany.com or www.balloumovie.com for information.

SNL had some fun with Utica on Thursday night during a skit with “Governor David Paterson”. In the sketch, Paterson (played by Fred Armisen) was asked by Seth Meyers whether or not he had a chance to win if he ran for Governor against other hopefuls like Cuomo and Guilianni. He responded, “Those cologn-soaked, city-slickers are never going to connect with the gumbys in upstate NY. I dare Andrew Cuomo to show his pretty face in Utica, the locals will just hide in their caves and through boulders at him.”

Last week, several celebrities were seen on the Mohawk Valley.

First, emmy-winning actress Glenn Close took time to chat with fans at Mitsuba in New Hartford. Close was in town to bring her daughter back to school at Hamilton College. One fan told the OD, “Mostly everybody in the restaurant did recognize her. There was a young boy that actually walked up to her and asked her if she was the actress.” The Damages star will return to Clinton in May for her daughter’s  graduation.

There were also rumors that Michael Jordan was at the Lava Nightclub in the Turning Stone last on Sunday night. According to several sources, the NBA great was in town to watch Tiger Woods play in the Notah Begay III Foundation Challenge.

Rounding out the sightings, a source told us they spotted Jamie Foxx at the Wal-Mart in Herkimer!

Have you seen any celebs in upstate NY? Let us know in a comment below!