Jamie Foxx Got It Wrong in Reference to Hometown Paper

By: Brian Orloff When actor Jamie Foxx mentioned his hometown newspaper, The Terrell (Texas) Tribune, in accepting his Golden Globe on TV last night, he was wrong about one thing. He said that the paper that day had put him on the front page for the very first time. Not so, says Managing Editor Gayla Baker, who wrote the Sunday story.

"No, he's been on there several times," Baker told E&P with a laugh. "But he doesn't read our paper, I'm sure, every week. He wouldn't know."

Baker said the actor's mention -- even if possibly meant as a tweak -- and the national recognition was "neat." As she pointed out, nobody else at the ceremony "talked about their hometown newspaper," although she missed the mention herself.

Baker said that she has interviewed Foxx several times and closely followed his career. "In fact, one of the very first interviews I did for the Tribune was Jamie Foxx," she explained. "Probably the third interview I ever did as a reporter was with Jamie Foxx. It was when he was on 'In Living Color.'"

Baker became managing editor two years ago. Her staff has three reporters and a sports editor. But apart from the newspaper coverage, Baker said that Terrell, a small town, celebrates Foxx's accomplishments.

"Everybody in Terrell has [followed his career]," she said. "We all know what he's up to. We all watch his shows and watch his HBO comedy special. We watch his movies. As soon as they come out, we head to the theater. This is a small town ... Everybody in town is proud of him, whether you know him or not, we're just proud that he's from here."

And Baker said she doesn't expect the coverage to slow down, especially after Foxx's Golden Globe win for "Ray" and a hot Oscar race in the coming weeks.

"When his grandmother died, I did speak to his publicist and she said that she would make sure that I got an interview when he got his Oscar nomination -- which we're totally expecting, of course," Baker said. "Then, of course, we plan on doing another one whenever he wins the Oscar."