New England is saying goodbye to Tom Brady. The star quarterback is choosing Big Money and Warm Weather now that his contract is up. He’s going to Florida or Los Angeles. We knew this when he bought a mansion in Greenwich, Connecticut. His announcement came in a very special set of Tweets. In all likelihood he’ll play a couple more years, then segue into TV sportscasting.
Is it really necessary to have more than one version of Hitler’s “Mein Kampf” available for sale?
Amazon has finally agreed that the answer is no, and has dropped all but one from its site. The remaining version, translated in 1943, serves as a reminder of what a monster Hitler was. It’s for educational purposes, and in this version shows his lack of education and his crude racism. Ralph Manheim, a respected German translator, made his career by bringing the book into English.
The Guardian first reported that Amazon cleaned house after a number of Jewish groups and Holocaust historical scholars lobbied for the removal since the service started.
Barnes & Noble is a different story. The second most popular online book store currently offers around 18 other versions for sale on line as well as the Manheim version. That’s 18 versions! Is that necessary? Clearly, no. Why is anyone benefiting from the sale of these books? Indeed, why is Houghton Mifflin, the American publisher?
Former Barnes & Noble owners the Riggios were no brain scientists. But now the New York based hedge fund Elliott Management Corporation, which also owns Waterstones in the UK, has bought Barnes & Noble from the Riggios. Paul Singer runs the hedge fund, and if he’s not aware of the “Mein Kampf” situation, he is now. A number of the directors are Jewish, and I’ll bet they’ll take action once they hear this news. At a time when there is so much anti-Semitism, Singer and co. have a mandate to clean up the B&N inventory.
This is what we needed today! “Cats” has swept the Razzie Awards for Worst Picture, Director, Supporting Actor and other categories. Runner up was “Rambo: Last Blood.”
The Razzies also have a positive award, too. This year Eddie Murphy redeemed himself for “Dolemite is My Name.”
James Corden, who was so upset about “Cats” that he wouldn’t appear on stage at the big Lincoln Center premiere, has won Worst Supporting Actor for his role in the debacle. Rebel Wilson, who did come to the premiere but was incredibly rude to everyone, won Worst Supporting Actress.
40th Annual Golden Raspberry (Razzie®) Award “Winners”
WORST PICTURE
Cats
WORST ACTOR
John Travolta / The Fanatic & Trading Paint
WORST ACTRESS
Hilary Duff / The Haunting of Sharon Tate
WORST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Rebel Wilson / Cats
WORST SUPPORTING ACTOR
James Corden / Cats
WORST SCREEN COMBO
Any Two Half-Feline/Half-Human Hairballs / Cats
WORST SCREENPLAY
Cats / Screenplay by Lee Hall and Tom Hooper
WORST DIRECTOR
Tom Hooper / Cats
WORST REMAKE, RIP-OFF or SEQUEL
Rambo: Last Blood
WORST RECKLESS DISREGARD for HUMAN LIFE and PUBLIC PROPERTY
Rambo: Last Blood
RAZZIE® REDEEMER AWARD
Eddie Murphy / Dolemite Is My Name
AWARDS per PICTURE:
Cats = 6 (Worst Picture, Supporting Actress, Supporting Actor, Screen Combo, Director & Screenplay)
Rambo: Last Blood = 2 (Worst Remake, Rip-Off or Sequel & Reckless
Disregard for Human Life & Public Property)
The Fanatic = 1 (Worst Actor, John Travolta)
The Haunting of Sharon Tate = 1 (Worst Actress, Hilary Duff)
Dolemite Is My Name = 1 (Razzie® Redeemer, Eddie Murphy)
And that’s the way the Ball bounces.
Anna Wintour’s Met Gala is cancelled for May 4th, “postponed indefinitely.” Anna and her Gang will not be putting on their spring Halloween party.
There will no long trains, movie stars dressed clocks or aliens, no gold carpet, no way for Wintour to show her appreciation of the very low and the medium low.
The Met Museum is closed, anyway. The Ball also required the museum to pony up north of $4 million in expenses. They’re better off thinking of smarter ways to raise money for the fall.
Could the Ball come back in the fall? Sure, why? Mid-October? Hang a free appetizer on the museum’s front door, celebs will come dressed as their least favorite director, trust me.
In her editor’s letter in Vogue, Wintour endorses Joe Biden. This is the only thing we agree on. She writes:
Like everyone else, I have been experiencing this COVID-19 crisis as a series of hurtling developments, where one never knows quite what each new day will bring. Through it all one fact, however, remains stubbornly unchanged: President Trump. I, like so many of us, have been appalled by how he has responded to the pandemic—the optimistic and fact-free assurances that all will be fine, the chaotic implementation of travel bans and claims about a “foreign virus,” the narcissistic ease with which he has passed blame to others, his dishonesty with the American people, and worst of all, his shocking lack of empathy and compassion for those who are suffering and fearful. Meanwhile, his administration has been unforgivably slow to provide testing, and to mobilize treatment to all who will need it. These weeks have been a reminder—as if we needed a reminder—that America must choose a new president.
The party is over.
With movie theaters in major cities shut, Universal Pictures has taken a drastic measure. They are putting their current releases online for streaming right now.
They include “Emma,” “The Hunt,” “The Invisible Man,” and the upcoming “Trolls World Tour.”
Once this door is opened, it will never be closed. Theater owners must be apoplectic and I don’t blame them.
The studio says this isn’t for the rest of the year, just for the time being while people are quarantined and theaters are closed. But once the audience gets used to this, it will be hard to go back.
Disney should be next with a trio of films they postponed and don’t have much box office potential anyway. They are “Antlers,” “The New Mutants,” and “Mulan.”
Once that happens, really, we are in a new world.
Superstars are just like us: Idris Elba has corona virus. He’s staying home and taking care of business. One day he may be James Bond, so he has to stay in tip top shape. Go rent his “Mandela” movie and see what a great actor he is. That’s better than sending flowers!~
This morning I tested positive for Covid 19. I feel ok, I have no symptoms so far but have been isolated since I found out about my possible exposure to the virus. Stay home people and be pragmatic. I will keep you updated on how I’m doing 👊🏾👊🏾 No panic. pic.twitter.com/Lg7HVMZglZ
— Idris Elba (@idriselba) March 16, 2020
Elton John — looking fit as a fiddle– is rescheduling all his shows from March 26th to May 2nd because of the corona virus. I’m really disappointed! I was going on April 6th. But this is what it must be. And Elton gets to spend time with his kids.
The health of my fans is of the upmost importantance to me, so I have made the decision to reschedule my upcoming #EltonFarewellTour shows between March 26th – May 2nd. pic.twitter.com/8iuPeB8oiN
— Elton John (@eltonofficial) March 16, 2020
Lady Gaga says in the latest issue of Paper magazine she’s collaborated with a fellow female pop star “who has similarly experienced immense trauma while in the public eye.”
Who is the mystery woman? Is it Kesha? Ariana? Selena? Sia? Rihanna? My guess is it’s Adele. A few months ago Gaga sent out a Tweet declaring she wished she could call her new album, Adele. Frankly, Adele is the only female superstar on Gaga’s level. Stick with me, kids.
According to paper, the song, which will be on Gaga’s “Chromatica” album due on April 10th, is “a monster of a dance tune, but its message is about submitting yourself to devastation (“It’s coming down on me, water like misery”) — a flawless dance floor crier as a “celebration of all the tears,” Gaga describes.
Gaga says of the mystery singer: “I sat with her and we talked about our lives. It’s two women having a conversation about how to keep going and how to be grateful for what you do.”
Stay tuned…
Well, that’s it. The party’s over.
New York is shutting down all restaurants (except for take out and delivery) and all movie theaters. This, though they’re keeping the bike lanes open. Good grief.
The movie theater shut down was inevitable given the situation. But it also means that all of entertainment is closed for at least two weeks. This is unprecedented.
Broadway was already on track to lose $100 million after closing all its theaters. The movie business? Well, this isn’t high season, thank goodness. And there are no big releases left for March or early April. Everything’s been moved out already.
The big winners are the streaming services. DisneyPlus has already scored by putting “Frozen 2” on their platform. “Star Wars:” The Rise of Skywalker” just went digital early. I’ll bet there will be some surprise announcements shortly. This would be a big moment for HBO or Netflix to stage some live showings in any genre.
The Cannes Film Festival? Seems like it’s not going to happen. It would be very hard to pull together at this point.
But restaurants? I know it has to be, for our own safety. But something tells me it’s DeBlasio getting back at hot spots that wouldn’t seat him.
Joe Biden said in a debate tonight on CNN that he will choose a woman to run for vice president on his ticket.
Pamela Anderson, did you hear that?
Seriously, Biden’s likely choices are among Kamala Harris, Elizabeth Warren, Amy Klobuchar, and maybe Stacy Abrams.
There’s also Hillary Clinton.
Some off the wall choices would be Oprah Winfrey, Taylor Swift, Cher, and Susan Lucci. Pamela Anderson probably thinks she’s eligible, but there are those who would disagree.
Whoever he comes up with, this is a big deal. Biden has made a headline out of the debate, and landed quite a few “punches” in the debate. Good for him.