Photo Credit: Buzz Foto

A blast from the past: Kristen Stewart, who plays Joan Jett in “The Runaways” is pictured here with DJ Rodney Bingenheimer, (“The Mayor of Sunset Strip”) who helped make the all-girl band famous on his radio show, Rodney on the ROQ, back in 1975. In the movie, Rodney is played by an actor named Kier O’Donnell, and for those of you who know Rodney, we hear it’s a great imitation.

Things haven’t been going so great for Ryan Cabrera. He and Riley Keough dated for awhile and were living together when her career started to take off and his didn’t. (Ryan is managed by Joe Simpson.) Riley landed a starring role in “The Runaways” and she ended their relationship earlier this year. Ryan was heartbroken and moved out of the place they were sharing into an apartment. He put his LA house up for sale but we heard he couldn’t unload it and it went into foreclosure. He’s currently working on an album to be released in 2010. Hey, at least he escaped becoming a Scientologist.

Photo Credit: Buzz Foto

The countdown begins. A lot of people are eagerly anticipating the release of “The Runaways” next year. This was a revolutionary jailbait band in the drugged up 70’s – all the girls were 16 and under. Kristen Stewart is playing Joan Jett and she’s already drawn a lot of attention to the movie. The story is based on the book by bandmember Cherie Currie called “Neon Angel.” The photo above features the real Cherie Currie, who just turned 50, on her right is Dakota Fanning who plays Cherie in the movie and on her left is Riley Keough, who plays her sister Marie Currie.

Photo Credit: Splash News

Setsiders on “The Runaways” are perplexed by Joan Jett’s continuing presence on the set. The movie is based on bandmember Cherie Currie’s book “Neon Angel” and it’s actually about HER experiences, but she’s nowhere to be seen. Joan is always around and she’s “friendly and nice to everyone” but no one can figure out why she’s such a fixture on the set while the other original bandmembers are not. It’s a mystery. One observer asked “How much tutoring does Kirsten Stewart need?”

Photo Credit: Pacific Coast News

Elvis’s granddaughter Danielle Riley Keough, 20, (as she is now known) was modeling for awhile, but she recently got a big break and was cast in “The Runaways” with Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning. Dakota is playing band member Cherie Curry and Danielle plays her sister Marie. (Remember, Danielle was once stepdaughter to Michael Jackson!) It’ll be interesting to see if Danielle has any acting talent.

Photo Credit: Buzz Foto

The more you look at the 1977 Brad Elterman photo of Joan Jett, the easier it is to see why she cast Kristen Stewart to play herself in “The Runaways.” When the old photo was taken, Joan probably WAS a teenage runaway. She’s pictured on the corner of Hollywood and Highland, which has actually changed a lot more than SHE has. And those are some shoes she’s rockin.’

We love seeing Joan Jett and Kristen Stewart hanging out together as they prepare for “The Runaways.” Kristen is soaking up Joan’s personality and metamorphosizing into playing Joan in the movie. She was hand-picked by producer Jett and they’ve been spending a lot of time in a recording studio. Maybe Kristen will actually sing.

A lot of young actresses and singers were ACHING to land the role of Joan Jett in “The Runaways” as soon as the movie was announced. After auditioning many important faces, producer Joan Jett selected “Twilight” star Kristen Stewart. At first it seemed an odd choice, but since Kristen dyed her hair black and cut it in a shag, we’re starting to think she’ll be great. Click here to take a look at Joan’s biggest hit “I Love Rock N Roll.”

FLASHBACK: Our friend Brad Elterman shot this photo of Joan Jett back around 1977, after her mother kicked her out of the house. The Runaways bandmember moved into the Tropicana Motor Hotel in West Hollywood where all the rockstars stayed. Here she is chatting on the phone with her then-girlfriend Lisa, looking like a typical teenager.