BAM Studios News

Chicago native David Pasquesi visited BAM Studios to record a new radio spot for Bayer CropScience soybean products.  The spot “The Simpler, The Better” was produced by Rhea & Kaiser.  In 2009, David was seen in the blockbuster film “Angels and Demons” with Tom Hanks  followed by “Year One” with Jack Black and Michael Cera.  When he’s not voicing spots, David can also be seen onstage.  He has running performances in New York and Chicago of  the two-man improvised show titled “TJ & Dave” with fellow actor TJ Jagadowski.

Visit http://www.tjanddave.com for more info.

Niecy Nash was at BAM Studios narrating the latest episode of “Clean House”.  The show is currently filming an episode in Chicago.  Niecy is the Host of the Style Network’s home makeover show, which has become the network’s #1 rated program. The American Women In Radio & Television honored Niecy with the 2007 Gracie Allen Award for Outstanding Program Host for her work on “Clean House.” In addition, Niecy stars as no-nonsense Officer Raineesha Williams on the hilarious Comedy Central hit, “Reno 911!,” a half-hour unscripted spoof of “Cops.” The show is so popular it was spun-off into a feature film, “Reno 911: Miami.”

For more information about the show visit: http://www.mystyle.com/mystyle/shows/cleanhouse/index.jsp

Actor and Chicago Native John Mahoney was at BAM Studios to record ADR for the upcoming film “Flipped”.  The movie was directed by Rob Reiner and produced by the super team of Ron Howard and Brian Grazer.  Based on the novel “Flipped” by Wendelin Van Draanen, the story involves two eighth graders who start to have feelings for each other despite being total opposites.  The cast includes Rebecca De Mornay, Penelope Ann Miller, Aidan Quinn, and Anthony Edwards as well.

John is currently taking a break from films to do stage projects. He can be seen in the production of “A Life” at Skokie’s Northlight Theater  in Spring 2010.

For more information about the movie visit: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0817177

Once again BAM Studios hosted contestants for Oprah’s Karaoke Challenge.  The final 3 singers spent the day rehearsing for their live performance on the show.  Vocal couch Kenn Hicks Skyped in from his home in New York to help prepare them for the big day.  Judging the performances this time will be David Foster, Diane Warren, and L.A. Reid.  Tune in to The Oprah Show on 11/12 to watch the live show and see behind the scene footage of BAM!

For more info visit: http://www.oprah.com/dated/oprahshow/oprahshow-20091112-karaoke-challenge-finals

Actor Vince Vaughn and Director Peter Billingsley were at BAM Studios to record commentary for the Blu-Ray release of the film “Couples Retreat”.  The two friends sat in the studio, sports commentator style, and talked for hours watching the movie.  Lights and cameras were also rolling for the duration so that the home viewer can watch them with Picture-in-Picture.

The movie, which was released October 9th, is about  four couples who settle into a tropical-island resort for a vacation. While one of the couples is there to work on the marriage, the others fail to realize that participation in the resort’s therapy sessions is not optional.  Recording Engineer Dave Leffel said he had way too much fun on this session!

For more information about the movie visit: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1078940/

Contestants for Oprah’s Karaoke Challenge were at BAM Studios for two days preparing for their live performance on the show. Vocal coach to-the-stars Kenn Hicks was on hand to help the contestants with singing and performance techniques. 8 semi-finalists were picked from thousands of videos submitted in the past several months. Judging the performances will be Billy Ray Cyrus, Gladys Knight, and Ashford & Simpson. Tune in to The Oprah Show on 11/05 to watch the live show and see behind the scene footage shot here at BAM!

For more info visit: http://www.oprah.com/dated/oprahshow/oprahshow-20091105-karaoke-challenge-1