Diversity: To the whitewashed, mega-conservative übermensch of modern-day, the very word goes to seems into the brain like red kryptonite, depleting one’s functionality like spider venom. But there’s an elephant in the room. Last year, the Screen Actors Guild found that the percentage of black film and television roles had reduced from a menial 14.8 percent in 2007 to staggering13.3 percent the 2008. It unanimous: Hollywood still has a problem in the age of the Obama Administration.

A lot of the criticisms have been of NBC in particular, who will air Undercovers—a tongue and cheek espionage thriller—with a African-American man and a black Britannia woman as the sitcom’s protagonists. Even U.S. Rep. Maxine Waters, D-Calif., claimed the network tried to bribe her with gifts and other material items in an effort to bat an eye at the autocracies in a House of Representatives committee meeting amidst the 111th Congress. This is echoed by a 2008 report conducted by the NAACP that noted a plunge in black actors on the TV primetime circuit by three of the four powerhouse studio networks between the 2003-04 broadcast seasons to the 2006-07 broadcast seasons.

J.J. Abrams, renowned for his recent reboot of the Star Trek franchise directed the spy drama pilot that has talking heads raving and the pen-toting National Association of Black Journalists critique happy. With competitors NCIS, CSI, Law & Order and every other high profile machine gun legal dramas making headlines, this show lands a collateral sucker punch every time. We’re sure to see brilliance with this show.

Starring Soul Food actor Boris Kodjoe and Shakespearean starlet Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Undercovers premiers debuts Wednesday, September 22 on NBC.

Oprah Winfrey To Receive Kennedy Center Honors

Halloween is this weekend, and I want to know if you are prepared for some nightmares? It would not be the spooky holiday that it is, if people did not find ways to scare themselves and scream at the top of their lungs or weep silently in a corner. There are plenty of ways to get the job done. Visit a haunted house, walk through a creepy corn maze or ride on a frightening hayride. But, let us not forget the tried-and-true scary movie.  There’s the slasher flick, the classic childhood monsters, the creepy children, the gore, the psychological thriller and the supernatural.

No clue on which movies to rent from blockbuster, netflix or redbox for Halloween? No worries, we have compiled a list of horror movies to help inspire nightmares. These are guaranteed to get your hairs to stand-on-end, to get you to scream and hide behind your hands, to look underneath your bed before bedtime, and to plug in that old cartoon character nightlight.

Slasher

• Halloween (1978), Halloween (2007) and H2 (2009)

• A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984) and Sleepaway Camp (1983)

• Friday the 13th (1980) and Friday the 13th (2009)

• Psycho (1960) and American Psycho (2000)

• My Bloody Valentine 3D (2009) and Prom Night (1980)

• The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974) and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)

• Scream (1996) and I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)

Monsters (Werewolves, Witches, Zombies, Vampires, Aliens)

• American Werewolf in London (1981) and Ginger Snaps (2000)

• Nosferatu (1922) and Hellraiser (1987)

• Dawn of the Dead (1978), Dawn of the Dead (2004) and 28 Days Later (2002)

• Night of the Living Dead (1968) and The Evil Dead (1981)

• The Blair Witch Project (1999) and The Howling (1981)

• Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1956), Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978) and Pet Sematary (1989)

• Pumpkinhead (1988) and Candyman (1992)

• Puppetmaster (1989) and Child’s Play (1988)

Creepy Kids

• The Omen (1976) and Rosemary’s Baby (1968)

• The Exorcist (1973) and The Ring (2002)

• Silent Hill (2006)

Gore

• Saw (2004) and Hostel (2005)

• Suspiria (1977), The Hills Have Eyes (1977) and The Hills Have Eyes (2006)

• Creepshow (1982)

Psychological

• Silence of the Lambs (1991) and Jacob’s Ladder (1990)

Supernatural

• Poltergeist (1982) and Amityville Horror (1979)

• The Shining (1980) and The Grudge (2004)/ Ju-On (2002)

• The Changeling (1980) and The Orphanage (2007)

• Darkness (2002) and Tales from the Hood (1995)

James L. Nederlander, producer of the pending musical and head of the eponymous organization that owns nine Broadway theaters, recently got confirmation that the rights for making Thriller were acquired. The production is set to feature songs from the album (which also featured fan favorites “Billie Jean,” “Beat It,” and “P.Y.T.”), as well as Jackson’s 1979 Off the Wall. No director, casting or other details have been announced, but it’s been reported that Jackson will have a part in the remake of the typical “girl-meets-boy, they-fall-in-love, boy-turns-into-werewolf” stage story.

-Danielle Cheesman

Going triple platinum, winning a Grammy, conquering the video world with her ultra-smooth dance moves—Ciara is living the dream. But is she really ready to have it all?

21-year-old Ciara Princess Harris wasn’t even born when the video clip for Michael Jackson’s classic “Beat It” first kicked in the doors of MTV like Martin Luther King, Jr.’s soulful dream. But that hasn’t stopped the upstart singer from accepting the King of Pop as a personal icon.

“I am pretty sure any new artist you talk to will say they’re inspired by Michael Jackson,” Ciara gushes. Sitting in the semi-darkness of an SUV, zooming toward the Big E Fairgrounds in Springfield, Massachusetts, her voice is as breathy as the night air. “There was something about his passion and energy. The impact he made on music is truly amazing. When I see him performing on video, well, as an artist, he’s special to me.”

Like a funky phantom haunting today’s best playlists, the Ghost of Michael Jackson Past hovers over pop as though Thriller was released just yesterday. As someone who witnessed firsthand the stand-on-your-seat spectacle that was Michael, whenever I see Ciara and her contemporaries I’m instantly reminded of his rhythmic contribution. From the soft-shoe stepping of Justin Timberlake and Usher to the flamboyant wardrobes of Beyoncé and Ashanti to the youthful enthusiasm of Chris Brown and Ne-Yo, no matter how wacko Jacko became in the 20-plus years since he moonwalked onto the brain of popular culture, his influence on the new millennium is undeniable. Not only can traces of the Thriller aesthetic be seen in Ciara’s debut video, “Goodies,” and her latest for “Get Up,” but also pieces of his wild style can be seen in the kooky gloves she wears or the way the five-foot-seven-and-a-half-inch beauty boogies through almost every performance as if the man were watching her every move.

Ciara’s at the fairgrounds to perform a 45-minute set of her best material, and thunderous applause welcomes her. Her excited teenage fans (most of whom have waited hours for their “first come, first served” seats) rowdily cheer for their superhero clad in black. Rocking a belt with a large C on the buckle and platinum bracelets dangling from her wrists, she soars like a pop-locking nightingale across the stage. “Y’all so crazy right now!” Ciara screams during the encore of “Get Up.” “I haven’t seen folks act like this since Destiny’s Child performed here a few years ago,” says an excited, middle-aged white father standing behind me.