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UPDATE SEPTEMBER 26TH: “Perfect Illusion” is now number 40 and falling. What a strange turn of events. A new single should be forthcoming.
Sept 21: What the heck is Lady Gaga up to? The video for new single “Perfect Illusion,” debuted last night during Ryan Murphy’s “Scream Queens” on FOX. It’s a Perfect Confusion. The song, a kind of screed against maybe her former fiancee, already lacked a bridge and coherence. A video with a real narrative line and something witty– as Gaga is known for– might have helped. But the video, which heavily features producer Mark Ronson (famous for producing Amy Winehouse), is a screed unto itself. It’s Gaga rocking out– looking great, of course, and hot– in the desert, on the back of truck, using her microphone like a lasso. But why? What? Huh? The shaky camera is nausea inducing.
The result is that “Perfect Illusion” has made it back to number 38 on iTunes, which is the same as number 100. If you’re not in the top 20 with a new song, it doesn’t really matter. “Perfect Illusion” has not caught on with fans. Yes, it’s scored over 1 million views on You Tube, but again, if I had a nickel for each of those views…
I really hope the “Joanne” album on October 21st has more of a cohesive idea. I feel like Gaga the chanteuse has lost interest in Gaga the rock star, which is fine. At this point, having seen Gaga at Tony Bennett’s two birthday events, I think she should just make amazing pop and jazz albums. She’s an amazing singer. This kind of thing seems like a waste of effort. The new Lady Gaga has bigger fish to fry.
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s relationship began with a hit movie, “Mr. and Mrs. Smith.”
It ended with a flop, “By the Sea.”
If anyone should have been cast in “A Star is Born,” it was them.
Pitt was married to Jennifer Aniston when he shot “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” with Jolie. There were constant rumors of an affair. It was all denied up and down. But where there’s smoke, there’s fire. A source on set of “Smith” told me at the time that Pitt had started directing Jolie’s scenes, and that it was very uncomfortable.
Not long after, Pitt and Aniston filed for divorce. The publicity fueled “Mr. and Mrs. Smith” to a worldwide box office of $478 million.
Last year, Jolie directed Pitt in their only other movie together, “By the Sea.” Unwatchable by any standards, the overpriced screech fest of a couple who can’t get along brought in just $538,460 in the US. Abroad it scammed off around $2.8 million. It was a total loss of over $10 million, maybe more.
Now Pitt is rumored to have had an affair with Marion Cotillard on the set of “Allied.” It’s directed by Robert Zemeckis, and set for release from Paramount. This is the kind of old school publicity scandal that studios long for– will people come see it to figure out what went on? You bet they will. But if “Allied” isn’t a hit, Pitt and Cotillard won’t be celebrating together.
As for “By the Sea,” that should have been the warning. No couple puts themselves through that much sturm und drang unless they’re working out problems, or expressing existing ones. That movie was about anger. And today we have the results.
For almost 60 years, Liz Taylor’s affair with Eddie Fisher and his divorce from Debbie Reynolds has been considered the template, the gold standard, for all Hollywood scandals. Carrie Fisher has written books about it and performed Broadway shows. Nothing topped it. Debbie, the angel; Liz, the witch; Eddie the miscreant.
And now! Brad Pitt is said to be having an affair or something with Marion Cotillard. He’s married! She’s married! He has six children with Angelina Jolie– three adopted, three biological (and one that may be gender fluid). Angelina has had had cancer– cancer!– that spurred surgery to remove her breasts, take out her ovaries.
On top of that, both women have Oscars. Brad only has two nominations.
People will be talking about this for another 60 years. Carrie Fisher must be weeping. Her parents’ long run as the number 1 Hollywood scandal of all time is over.
And what about Maddox, Pax, Vivienne, Knox, Shiloh, et al? And what about the French chateau worth $35 million? And all that philanthropy?
And what about Jennifer Aniston? Did they have to sedate her this morning?
On a serious note: I went to London a couple of years ago for the premiere of “World War Z.” Brad, Angelina, some of the kids were there. Brad was so devoted, she was so happy. But you see, they are actors.
If you’re watching the excellent investigation of the Jon Benet Ramsey murder on CBS tonight, here’s a little “Six Degrees of…” scenario. There’s a way to tie former senator John Edwards and his scandal to this story.
How? Edwards’s marriage and career fell apart because of a woman named Rielle Hunter. She had an affair with Edwards and became pregnant with his child. The affair destroyed Edwards’ family and his presidential campaign.
What’s the tie in? Hunter wasn’t always named Rielle Hunter. She was born Lisa Druck. But then she got married to Alex Hunter. His father, Alex Hunter Sr., was the prosecutor who failed to find Jon Benet’s killer. Lisa/Rielle was married to Hunter Junior for 10 years, the same time during which her father in law was involved in the unsolved murder.
As Walt Disney said, it’s a small world after all.
The Emmy Awards were a lot of fun last night for a few people. They scored their lowest ratings ever– 11.2 million. Even Jimmy Kimmel’s mom was watching the Jon Benet Ramsey special on CBS between breaks.
Why so low? None of the shows or actors who won appear on broadcast TV. The Emmys are now in the same position as the Oscars– celebrating indie films, or shows, and ignoring the blockbusters. Many of the nominees and winners aren’t even on TV.
The biggest shows on TV get no Emmy love– “NCIS” and all its permutations, other procedurals, and so on. Those shows aren’t hip and rarely have the thespians, but they’re popular. Those actors are the ones people want to see on the Emmy show.
Instead, in comedy the two male actors who won– one plays a transsexual (“Transparent”) and other plays someone’s mother (“Baskets”). The former show is on the internet, the other is on F/X and I doubt most of the room last night even knew what “Baskets” was.
At least “Mr. Robot” is on the USA Network, part of basic cable. Rami Malek is so good– but why didn’t the Emmys have Christian Slater there to do something? He co-stars on the show and at least is known to the mass audience.
The HBO wins were solid; most everyone has HBO. “Veep” and “Game of Thrones” are incredibly popular. But a lot of went on last night, from a viewer’s perspective, was very clubby. It was the opposite of TV. The Emmys should be played for that guy who made the bouquet of TV Guide pages on “Seinfeld.” That’s the audience.
Bette Midler scored the best first day sales in Broadway history for her revival of “Hello, Dolly!”
The musical, also starring David Hyde Pierce, racked up $9,082,497 as tickets went on sale. Shubert Theatre presidents Bob Wankel and Phil Smith cried a little before pouring Champagne.
Jerry Zaks directs the revival, which opens on April 20th after previews begin March 15th.
Bette Midler was so happy she even Tweeted about it. I hope she knows she’ll be in that show a long time. Carol Channing didn’t miss a performance from 1964 to 1968. Pearl Bailey followed her, and Ethel Merman closed the show after seven years. It was revived briefly in the 1990s with Channing, who is now five thousand years old and will be there opening night.
PS The album from this show is going to be a big hit for whichever label was smart enough to snap it up!
attends HBO’s Official 2016 Emmy After Party at The Plaza at the Pacific Design Center on September 18, 2016 in Los Angeles, California.
HBO’s Emmy Party at the Pacific Design Center was its usual classy self, lots of tables filled with wine glasses and Emmys right beside each other. The “Game Of Thrones,” gang was obviously in full swing, after winning Best Dramatic series and more. But leave it to Amy Schumer –flanked by her loyal sister Kim Caramele and boyfriend Ben Hanisch–to also be at the center of the action.
Back on the red carpet, the E! Channel’s Guiliana Rancic had asked Amy who she was wearing. Amy replied, “I’m wearing Vivienne Westwood, Tom Ford shoes and an O.B. tampon!”
At the HBO gala– the annual gathering place for everyone who’s anyone in TV after the Emmys– Chris Rock told her that it was “hilarious!” Amy loudly proclaimed, “Ok, that’s it, I’m making a tampon joke every time I go out.”
Winner John Oliver then chimed in, “please do!”
“Game Of Thrones” stars Emilia Clarke and Nikolaj Coster Waldau happened to be at next table, looked up at her and cracked up. Kit Harington bought his parents as his dates, no ex-co star now girlfriend Rose Leslie in sight. They sat with Peter Dinklage as more of the GOT cast milled about. Bryan Cranston, nominated for his LBJ portrayal in “All The Way,” was nearby with his wife Robin Dearden and daughter Taylor, who are each actresses. I asked him if he would still play Trump, as he told me awhile ago. “Hell yeah, but still don’t want him to win though.”
The “Veep” crowd is always fun and open. Julia Louis Dreyfus– who gave that emotional speech dedicated to her late father–was obviously more low key. She celebrated the show’s win for Best Comedy and her own for Lead Actress, but didn’t stay too long at the party. “Veep” nominee Tony Hale told me that another season of “Arrested Development,” on Netflix is still being talked about, that writer Mitchell Hurwitz still wants it to happen. Sam Richardson, who hilariously plays Richard Splett on the show, told me that besides “Veep,” he’s going to be on Comedy Central’s “Detroiters,” on which Keegan-Michael Key and Malcolm Jamal Warner will guest star.
Talented Keegan was there as well accepting congrats for his win for Best Variety Show. “Modern Family’s “ lovely Ariel Winter told me how “completely wonderful,” it was to work with Burt Reynolds, in director/writer Adam Rifkin’s much talked about upcoming film, the dark comedy “Dog Years.” She didn’t know Burt in the bad old days!
Around the room– John Travolta and Kelly Preston, each maintaining their hair, were photographed holding an Emmy John got for having a producer’s credit. Sterling K. Brown, the night’s most popular winner, beamed radiantly holding his (he beat Travolta) for Best Supporting Actor in “The People vs. OJ Simpson.”
Vice founder Shane Smith told me, “I just had two reporters arrested at a Trump rally, we’re still on his ass.” The music went on all night. Hipster Jaden Smith and casual Anne Heche were whooping it up on the dance floor, along with other energetic guests like Kerry Washington, Tony Goldwyn, Luke Hemsworth, Tracee Ellis Ross, Hank Azaria, Heidi Klum and Vito Schnabel, Minnie Driver, Emmy Rossum, and so many more. The HBO Emmy party is the equivalent of the Vanity Fair Oscar party. So Beyoncé, even though a seat was saved for you for your “Lemonade,” the HBO party, always the most sought after Emmy party year after year, went on just fine without you!
As you no doubt know, “The Good Wife” is coming back. Only, it will have a different title and start on CBS’s digital service– although I have to think that once their shows start failing CBS will put this on the air too.
Anyway, Christine Baranski returns as Diane, Cush Jumbo is Lucca, and Sarah Steele is Marissa Gold, daughter of Eli (which means we’ll see Alan Cumming as her father).
Now I’m told there are three new roles. Robert will be the name of the head of a Chicago African American law firm. He’s described as a combination of “Little Richard and Chris Rock.” I can’t even imagine what that means. He’s between 40 and 50 and the “life the of the party.”
Then there’s Maia, Diane’s 25 year old goddaughter who’s going to be a younger Julianna Margulies. Maia is the apple of Diane’s eye.
Maia’s dad, Edgar, will also be a recurring guest character. He’s the wealthiest, most successful financial adviser in Chicago. Diane wants his business.
It all sounds good as long it gets Christine Baranski an Emmy award.
So what should they call it? I say call it “The Good Life.” A nice play on “The Good Wife,” and also, please, even on their worst days Robert and Michelle King’s characters have the best lives in the world.
Nothing succeeds like success. On September 9th it was announced that Casey Affleck would direct his first feature, and now, ten days later, the film has a start date and a producer.
It doesn’t hurt that Affleck is very hot right now in “Manchester by the Sea,” heading into a big awards season and possible Oscar nod. Casey was previously nominated for “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford.”
“Light of My Life,” is set to go into pre-production now on November 9th. Teddy Schwarzman and Black Bear Productions are in to make the movie, a survival drama in which Casey and his fictional daughter are “hunted in a post-pandemic world.” I’m told they’re casting for a gifted 10 or 11 year old girl right now who will win our hearts, seem older than her years and not cloying.
Schwarzman is on a roll with “The Imitation Game” last year, and is coming soon with “Gold” starring Matthew McConaughey and “Suburbicon” with George Clooney.
As usual the In Memoriam section of the Emmy Awards was a big friggin’ mess.
Omitted were John McMartin, Marjorie Lord, and about half a dozen actual TV stars.
But the Emmys included Prince, David Bowie, Natalie Cole and Merle Haggard– music stars who belong in the Grammy In Memoriam. Ridiculous.
They also stretched to include Alan Rickman, who had no TV career at all and Gene Wilder, who had a very minuscule one. They belong at the Oscars. They were film stars.
Also missing from the Emmy In Memoriam: Beth Howland and Marvin Kaplan, each from the “Alice” TV show among others, and Jack Riley from “Newhart.”
I felt really bad for John McMartin– his imdb is a history of TV. And Marjorie Lord played Danny Thomas’s wife in a classic TV show. At least the Emmys didn’t forget Ann Morgan Guilbert. But, really. Prince?
