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TV: Kathie Lee Gifford Surprise Exit from Today Show 3rd Hour After NBC Cuts Megyn Kelly Loose

Roger Friedman
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TV: Kathie Lee Gifford Surprise Exit from Today Show 3rd Hour After NBC Cuts Megyn Kelly Loose

Just a couple of weeks after NBC had to dismantle the Megyn Kelly part of the Today show, comes another shock. Kathie Lee Gifford is leaving the third hour at 10am, with Hoda Kotb, in April 2019.

Kathie Lee says she’s leaving to pursue other projects. But that’s bull. The main obstacle is money. She wanted more, they didn’t want to pay up.

The Hoda-Kathie Lee hour has been a bright spot in the NBC mid morning programming. But Megyn Kelly’s show dragged down its ratings.

Then Hoda moved to the main Today show, which meant NBC had to find a new partner for Kathie Lee. That hasn’t worked out so well. Jenna Bush Hager is one of the worst personalities on TV. And it’s not clear that Kathie Lee would partner well with anyone else at this point.

My guess is that Hoda is off the 10am hour too beginning in April. Today will have to recast that whole hour.

As for Kathie Lee, she currently has a book out with a fake rabbi, a Jew for Jesus. I’m sure NBC isn’t so happy about Gifford’s bible thumping. Long memories will recall that when that issue came up at ABC when Kathie Lee was with Regis the end came pretty fast there, too.

I like Kathie Lee personally. But she may have overplayed her hand. Let’s hope she doesn’t plot another Broadway show. Her last one was a spectacular failure.

Ratings: Kardashians End Their Season on a Low Note, Drop 37% from Beginning of Season to Just 851K Viewers

Roger Friedman
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Ratings: Kardashians End Their Season on a Low Note, Drop 37% from Beginning of Season to Just 851K Viewers

The Kardashians can’t keep up with themselves.

Their season finale pulled in just 851,000 viewers on Sunday night– a steep drop of 37% from the season premiere of 1.3 million.

They pulled out all the stops, too, throwing in Kanye’s problems, and Kim’s efforts to get a woman released from jail.

But the overall trend for the K’s on E! is down, down, down. The week before only produced 941,000 viewers.

When they return, if they return, the K’s will be looking at fewer than 1 million viewers and a decline to around 500,000.

All good things come to an end. And even bad things. At least for now, we get a break.

The top cable show on Sunday night was a Hallmark Hall of Fame Christmas movie, with 3.4 million viewers. The K’s were beaten soundly at 9pm by “Alaska: The Last Frontier” with 1,990,000.

Music in New Clint Eastwood Movie Has a Historic Tie to Cyrano de Bergerac Author’s Wife

Roger Friedman
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Music in New Clint Eastwood Movie Has a Historic Tie to Cyrano de Bergerac Author’s Wife

The release of Clint Eastwood’s movie “The Mule” on Friday will tie together the entire fall season! This is called something– closure? a 180? a 360?

Anyway, featured prominently in The Mule is a great 1969 song, the “More Today Than Yesterday.” The song was written by Pat Upton and takes its title from a famous poem by Rosemonde Gérard.

Never heard of Ros? She was the wife of poet and playwriter Edmond Rostand, who wrote “Cyrano de Bergerac.” Her poem was called — is called — “L’éternelle chanson” aka “The Eternal Song.” The famous lines are For, you see, each day I love you more/Today more than yesterday and less than tomorrow.”

How does that tie up the fall season? Rostand and Ros were featured characters in the best Broadway play of the fall season, “Bernhardt/Hamlet” by Theresa Rebeck, starring Janet McTeer as Sarah Bernhardt. The famed actress of the turn of the 20th century had an affair with Rostand. Rosemond confronts her about it in the play. It’s noted that she’s famous for this couplet, and the poem.

As for “More Today than Yesterday,” Clint’s character in “The Mule” loves it, and it’s used in its original and various forms. Upton was the leader of the group the Spiral Starecase. They had one album, and the one hit. But it’s lasted 50 years! And there’s no stopping it now! Oldies stations, cue it up!

 

 

Watch Deadpool aka Ryan Reynolds Hilarious Apology to Nickelback for Slag in Earlier Video with Fred Savage

Roger Friedman
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Watch Deadpool aka Ryan Reynolds Hilarious Apology to Nickelback for Slag in Earlier Video with Fred Savage

Ryan Reynolds’ “Deadpool” videos on social media continue to be hilarious. His post last night was an apology to god awful rock group Nickelback for a slag in an earlier video with “Wonder Years” star Fred Savage playing his “Princess Bride” character 30 years later. This is all to promote the re-release of “Deadpool 2” in a PG-13 version. Very, very clever, all of it.

Trump Rebuked: Jamal Khashoggi, the Capital Gazette, Maria Ressa, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo—are TIME’s Person of the Year 2018

Roger Friedman
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Trump Rebuked: Jamal Khashoggi, the Capital Gazette, Maria Ressa, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo—are TIME’s Person of the Year 2018

TIME Magazine rebuked Donald Trump and didn’t choose him as Person of the Year. The TIME editors, in light of Trump constantly calling the press “the enemy of the people,” chose slain, imprisoned, convicted journalists as their Person of the Year. They call them “The Guardians of Truth.” It’s a brilliant and sad choice. Trump has enabled the murders of journalists and this is the result. Read the whole story at www.time.com.

Alec Baldwin’s ABC Talk Show Was Lowest Rated Network Show of Saturday Night, Lost 400K More Viewers

Roger Friedman
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Alec Baldwin’s ABC Talk Show Was Lowest Rated Network Show of Saturday Night, Lost 400K More Viewers

Alec Baldwin’s talk show on ABC returned to the air on Saturday night.

Baldwin, banished from Sundays at 10pm after his arrest for allegedly punching someone over a parking spot, gave the hour over to Sarah Jessica Parker. I watched it, it was good. SJP is articulate and smart, so that helps.

But back on November 4th, Alec scored 1,469,000 viewers. On Sunday, he dropped to 1,053,000. More than 400,000 people left– for football, for “48 Hours” or a “Saturday Night Live” rerun, each of which had three times Alec’s number. Alec’s show was the lowest rated network show on Saturday night.

I guess ABC will just burn off what’s left of the series and call it a day.

SJP, by the way, noted that she’d been with Matthew Broderick for about 26 years, and plans on growing old with him. It was so lovely. I remember when they were dating in the early 90s and sang the Mary Tyler Moore theme song at a party. They always looked like the real thing. Bravo!

This is NOT a clip from that interview. But this one is from Jerry Seinfeld and SJP on “Comedians Getting Coffee in Cars.” I loved it. PS Why isn’t Jerry hosting the Oscars?

 

 

Broadcast Critics Nominations: 14 for “The Favourite,” 12 for “Black Panther,” 10 for “First Man” and “Mary Poppins”

Roger Friedman
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Broadcast Critics Nominations: 14 for “The Favourite,” 12 for “Black Panther,” 10 for “First Man” and “Mary Poppins”

The Critics Choice Awards from the Broadcast Critics have announced their nominations. (We vote in this group, which has a TV show on January 13th to announce the winners.) They are a good predictor of Oscars.

“First Man” has been resurrected– I am so thrilled. Damien Chazelle’s stunning work got 10 nominations. So did “Mary Poppins Returns.” “The Favourite” got 14 nominations. “Roma” got 8, and “Green Book” got 7.

Congrats to Diane Warren who received a nomination for Best Song for “I’ll Fight” from the doc “RBG.”  She’s up against a tough group including “Shallow” from “A Star is Born.” But she’ll fight! She’s ready for a win!

 

FILM NOMINATIONS FOR THE 24TH ANNUAL CRITICS’ CHOICE AWARDS
BEST PICTURE
Black Panther
BlacKkKlansman
The Favourite
First Man
Green Book
If Beale Street Could Talk
Mary Poppins Returns
Roma
A Star Is Born
Vice
BEST ACTOR
Christian Bale – Vice
Bradley Cooper – A Star Is Born
Willem Dafoe – At Eternity’s Gate
Ryan Gosling – First Man
Ethan Hawke – First Reformed
Rami Malek – Bohemian Rhapsody
Viggo Mortensen – Green Book
BEST ACTRESS
Yalitza Aparicio – Roma
Emily Blunt – Mary Poppins Returns
Glenn Close – The Wife
Toni Collette – Hereditary
Olivia Colman – The Favourite
Lady Gaga – A Star Is Born
Melissa McCarthy – Can You Ever Forgive Me?
BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Mahershala Ali – Green Book
Timothée Chalamet – Beautiful Boy
Adam Driver – BlacKkKlansman
Sam Elliott – A Star Is Born
Richard E. Grant – Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Michael B. Jordan – Black Panther
BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Amy Adams – Vice
Claire Foy – First Man
Nicole Kidman – Boy Erased
Regina King – If Beale Street Could Talk
Emma Stone – The Favourite
Rachel Weisz – The Favourite
BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS
Elsie Fisher – Eighth Grade
Thomasin McKenzie – Leave No Trace
Ed Oxenbould – Wildlife
Millicent Simmonds – A Quiet Place
Amandla Stenberg – The Hate U Give
Sunny Suljic – Mid90s
BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE
Black Panther
Crazy Rich Asians
The Favourite
Vice
Widows
BEST DIRECTOR
Damien Chazelle – First Man
Bradley Cooper – A Star Is Born
Alfonso Cuarón – Roma
Peter Farrelly – Green Book
Yorgos Lanthimos – The Favourite
Spike Lee – BlacKkKlansman
Adam McKay – Vice
BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
Bo Burnham – Eighth Grade
Alfonso Cuarón – Roma
Deborah Davis and Tony McNamara – The Favourite
Adam McKay – Vice
Paul Schrader – First Reformed
Nick Vallelonga, Brian Hayes Currie, Peter Farrelly – Green Book
Bryan Woods, Scott Beck, John Krasinski – A Quiet Place
BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
Ryan Coogler, Joe Robert Cole – Black Panther
Nicole Holofcener, Jeff Whitty – Can You Ever Forgive Me?
Barry Jenkins – If Beale Street Could Talk
Eric Roth and Bradley Cooper & Will Fetters – A Star Is Born
Josh Singer – First Man
Charlie Wachtel & David Rabinowitz and Kevin Willmott & Spike Lee – BlacKkKlansman
BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
Alfonso Cuarón – Roma
James Laxton – If Beale Street Could Talk
Matthew Libatique – A Star Is Born
Rachel Morrison – Black Panther
Robbie Ryan – The Favourite
Linus Sandgren – First Man
BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
Hannah Beachler, Jay Hart – Black Panther
Eugenio Caballero, Barbara Enriquez – Roma
Nelson Coates, Andrew Baseman – Crazy Rich Asians
Fiona Crombie, Alice Felton – The Favourite
Nathan Crowley, Kathy Lucas – First Man
John Myhre, Gordon Sim – Mary Poppins Returns
BEST EDITING
Jay Cassidy – A Star Is Born
Hank Corwin – Vice
Tom Cross – First Man
Alfonso Cuarón, Adam Gough – Roma
Yorgos Mavropsaridis – The Favourite
Joe Walker – Widows
BEST COSTUME DESIGN
Alexandra Byrne – Mary Queen of Scots
Ruth Carter – Black Panther
Julian Day – Bohemian Rhapsody
Sandy Powell – The Favourite
Sandy Powell – Mary Poppins Returns
BEST HAIR AND MAKEUP
Black Panther
Bohemian Rhapsody
The Favourite
Mary Queen of Scots
Suspiria
Vice
BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Avengers: Infinity War
Black Panther
First Man
Mary Poppins Returns
Mission: Impossible – Fallout
Ready Player One
BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
The Grinch
Incredibles 2
Isle of Dogs
Mirai
Ralph Breaks the Internet
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
BEST ACTION MOVIE
Avengers: Infinity War
Black Panther
Deadpool 2
Mission: Impossible – Fallout
Ready Player One
Widows
BEST COMEDY
Crazy Rich Asians
Deadpool 2
The Death of Stalin
The Favourite
Game Night
Sorry to Bother You
BEST ACTOR IN A COMEDY
Christian Bale – Vice
Jason Bateman – Game Night
Viggo Mortensen – Green Book
John C. Reilly – Stan & Ollie
Ryan Reynolds – Deadpool 2
Lakeith Stanfield – Sorry to Bother You
BEST ACTRESS IN A COMEDY
Emily Blunt – Mary Poppins Returns
Olivia Colman – The Favourite
Elsie Fisher – Eighth Grade
Rachel McAdams – Game Night
Charlize Theron – Tully
Constance Wu – Crazy Rich Asians
BEST SCI-FI OR HORROR MOVIE
Annihilation
Halloween
Hereditary
A Quiet Place
Suspiria
BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
Burning
Capernaum
Cold War
Roma
Shoplifters
BEST SONG
All the Stars – Black Panther
Girl in the Movies – Dumplin’
I’ll Fight – RBG
The Place Where Lost Things Go – Mary Poppins Returns
Shallow – A Star Is Born
Trip a Little Light Fantastic – Mary Poppins Returns
BEST SCORE
Kris Bowers – Green Book
Nicholas Britell – If Beale Street Could Talk
Alexandre Desplat – Isle of Dogs
Ludwig Göransson – Black Panther
Justin Hurwitz – First Man
Marc Shaiman – Mary Poppins Returns

Kanye West Wants to Shut Down Soho Street After Christmas for Sneakers Launch: Community Board Vote Tonight

Roger Friedman
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Kanye West Wants to Shut Down Soho Street After Christmas for Sneakers Launch: Community Board Vote Tonight

Do you care if Kanye West shuts down Greene Street in Soho the weekend after Christmas? If the answer is YES, then head on down to 32 Waverly Place tonight at 6:30pm. That’s when Community Board number 2 will hear an application from Adidas for a two day product launch so the world can appreciate new, expensive sneakers.

Kanye — who was publicly chastised for being on his phone during “The Cher Show” opening night — wants to take over Greene Street between Prince and Spring on December 28th and December 29th for his Yeezy Boost 350 Static V2 sneakers. Their starting price is $220 but the hope– that is, Kanye’s hope– is that people will pay two or three times that because he only makes 5,000 pairs. Instead of “lock her up” the chant on the sidewalk should be “lace it up!”

Apparently there’s an Adidas Originals Store at 115 Spring Street, which is where the purchases will be made. Soho is so changed from what it used to be, the idea of an Adidas store in the center of it is heartbreaking. What’s worse is lines of people snaking around Spring and Greene waiting to buy overpriced footwear. I’ve never seen another human wearing Yeezy’s. I think people collect them and put them away. (amirite?) We did with this with Swatch watches in the late 80s. They’re worth nothing now. Good luck.

CB2 recently denied pop-up stores for Cartier and for MAC Cosmetics. So Kanye may have to re-think this plan.

UPDATE: Roseanne Barr’s Return to Stand Up Comedy Tour Next May Adds Dates, Doesn’t Sell Tickets

Roger Friedman
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UPDATE: Roseanne Barr’s Return to Stand Up Comedy Tour Next May Adds Dates, Doesn’t Sell Tickets

I told you a few weeks ago that Roseanne Barr had scheduled her first stand up comedy date of 2019 for May 17th in Elkhart, Indiana at the Lerner Theater. When I first reported the news, some tickets had sold, most were available, especially in the mezz, loge and balcony. As of tonight, Sunday December 9th, not much has changed. I’ve reprinted the orchestra map for your convenience.

Roseanne has since added two more dates. On May 2nd she’s set for the Duke Energy Center in Raleigh, North Carolina. All of those seats are available so far. Get ’em while they’re hot!

For May 16th, Roseanne has added another show in Indiana– in Fort Wayne, at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum. Tickets don’t seem to have gone on sale yet. Maybe the box office will open soon. The best seats will be 50 bucks. Hey, I’d go see her for fifty bucks!

 

 

Review: Bruce Springsteen’s Transplendent Broadway Show Comes to Netflix Sunday December 16th

Roger Friedman
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Review: Bruce Springsteen’s Transplendent Broadway Show Comes to Netflix Sunday December 16th

I went to see Bruce Springsteen’s Broadway show the night after it opened in October 2017. The show closes after making $113 million, this Saturday December 15th. On Friday, Sony/Columbia releases the CD. On Sunday the 16th, Netflix releases the video version to their service. It’s the same as the show I saw, so here’s my original review.

from October 2017: Bruce Springsteen is just like us and then again, not at all.

He’s like us: he struggles with his childhood, has father issues, and admits to stretching the truth at times. In this way, he is disarming as hell. That makes his Broadway show– for which people seem to have paid thousands of dollars– transcendent. And transplendent. And kind of magnificent.

bruce and patti 1He’s not like us at all: he is a master showman, a gifted musician, a writer of fiction worthy of his own Nobel prize. Yes, you know all these songs he plays, reworks, re-imagines, and redefines during his two unbroken hours on stage. But now, without the E Street Band, a wall of sound and eighteen thousand people singing along, we are hearing the lyrics. And they are quite amazing. Bruce is a great writer.

Bruce is a fiction writer. How he disarms the audience is to admit that the experiences of his songs are not necessarily his– they are made up, projected, cooked and digested from observations. His hometown? “I live [a couple of miles] from my hometown,” he admits. All the cars from songs like “Racing in the Street” or “Born to Run”? At least at the time he wrote them he did not drive, he had not driven a block. He didn’t have a drivers license the first he and his band drove across the country.

He does admit at the start of the show in one his many monologues– “I have never held a job.” But of course, he has: he’s the last of the great poets. I remember when Bruce first came on the scene with “Greetings from Asbury Park,” he was maybe the new or next Dylan. People didn’t like that. There were a few maybe new Dylans in the mid 70s before “Blood on the Tracks” re-established the Master. And people were wary of Springsteen. Then came “Born to Run.” And the rest was chaos.

Now, with a stage book that’s very shaped and the songs stripped down and devoid of their popular ornamentation, you can see Springsteen was the next Dylan. He was also the next Springsteen. Unlike Dylan, he had nothing really to rebel against. He came from the singer songwriter era. But he had echoes of R&B, and a joyful looseness that James Taylor and Jackson Browne lacked. Bruce was rarely somber. He was telling stories. Or as he says in this show, he was tell us his story and our story. (His story includes wife Patti Scialfa, who has two lovely duets with the father of her children. She’s value added on this ticket.)

Sometimes he is somber. A highlight of this show is “The Rising,” written about 9-11. His face is different when he sings it. That’s when he transcends a night with a rocker on Broadway. Equally moving is “Land of Hope and Dreams,” toward the end, segued into from the rousing “Dancing in the Dark.” Because you see, like Steven Spielberg who admitted to being a patriot in his documentary, Springsteen is one, too. That’s always his bigger picture.

Oh yes: “Born in the USA” is quite brilliantly a blues number. And Bruce does talk about the “mess” we’re in now. But he touches lightly enough on politics. And the ticket prices? I asked around. If you told everyone they could stay and see the show again right away for $500, I think most would have remained.

In my audience: Senator Cory Booker, Chazz Palminteri (his show “A Bronx Tale” is playing across the street), director Paul Schrader and actress wife Mary Beth Hurt, rock manager Ken Levitan, and Charles “Chip” Esten — star of “Nashville” — with his wife Patty.

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