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Hillary Clinton Beats Donald Trump in Hardcover Book Sales, And He Got a $5 Mil Advance

Roger Friedman
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Hillary Clinton Beats Donald Trump in Hardcover Book Sales, And He Got a $5 Mil Advance

The contest between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump is over. Clinton is the winner.

According to Nielsen BookScan, Clinton’s “Hard Choices” has sold 270,000 copies since publication on June 1, 2014.

Trump’s “Crippled America” has sold 239,000 copies since its publication last November 2015.

These are each the last hardcover books by both presidential candidates, and each book has run its sales cycle in hardcover.

What’s interesting is that sources tell me Trump was paid a $5 million advance for his book, and it has not earned back that money.

More surprising: When Trump’s book was retitled and reissued in paperback on July 1st, it was a bust. “Great Again” has sold 16,275 copies in trade (oversize) paperback.

“Crippled America” was published by Simon & Schuster’s little known right wing political imprint. I’m told that the staff there wasn’t too keen on it, and thought the $5 million was way out of line. But CBS’s Les Moonves, who oversees S&S, thought it would work given that Trump was running for president.

“Les okayed the advance and guaranteed he wouldn’t hold it against them if it didn’t,” says a source. “Crippled America” has not nearly as well as Trump’s nearly 30 year old “Art of the Deal,” his first book, which was about him getting the better of business associates. That seems to be much more interesting to readers than Trump’s ideas about the presidency. Hmmm…

chart courtesy of SoundScan/BookScan

Amy Schumer Cancels NY Book Event Tonight, Producer Says “First Time Happened to Us in Over 1500 Events”

Roger Friedman
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0
Amy Schumer Cancels NY Book Event Tonight, Producer Says “First Time Happened to Us in Over 1500 Events”

It’s Amy Schumer Day at Showbiz411. I never had so many items about her all at once. Now, after this brouhaha with her writer over rape comments, and anti-fur people attacking her, and announcing that her show is on indefinite hiatus, Amy has cancelled an event to promote her book tonight in New York. Tickets were $51.

Hudson Union says:

“We were just contacted that amy schumer fell very ill tonight, and that she is really sick and as result the event is canceled on Thursday August 18. We will see if she will provide a reschedule date when she is better. This is the first time this has ever happened to us in over 1,500 events. We hope Amy Schumer makes a quick recovery.”

PS I Have no idea what Hudson Union is, but guess what? Louise Mensch, Murdoch henchwoman who runs the Heat Street website for News Corp (don’t go to Heatstreet.com unless you want a piercing) is their Director Emerita. Lots of military people on their board. Maybe Amy got a bad vibe. I sure did!

End of Eras: Gawker.com, The McLaughlin Group, and Inside Amy Schumer

Roger Friedman
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End of Eras: Gawker.com, The McLaughlin Group, and Inside Amy Schumer

How will the culture survive?

Already this morning we learned that the fifth season of “Inside Amy Schumer” will not be coming any time soon.

Now, it’s announced that Gawker.com will cease operations next week. Univision bought all the Gawker sites this week for $135 million. But they’re shuttering the main site because, well, obviously, they didn’t want a snark a thon and the lawsuits and complaints that come with it.

Finally, with the sad death of John McLaughlin, his TV show comes to an end. No more “McLaughlin Report.” It was all about him, wasn’t it? In the last few years the show wasn’t so good, but when it first started, the “McLaughlin Report” was pretty riveting. Thirty four years is a long run, and pretty cool considering McLaughlin was 55 when he started it.

All things must pass, as George Harrison said.

Here’s the other John McLaughlin, still very much alive at 74

UPDATE: Amy Schumer Says Comedy Central Show Is On Hold “For Foreseeable Future”

Roger Friedman
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UPDATE: Amy Schumer Says Comedy Central Show Is On Hold “For Foreseeable Future”

Amy Schumer’s “Inside Amy Schumer” is on indefinite hold. Schumer says the show is not cancelled, but “Doing Standup and focusing on writing more for the next year at least. We are slated for a season 5 but not in the foreseeable future.”

Amy_Schumer_(@amyschumer)_Twitter_-_2016-08-18_10.40.06

“Inside Amy Schumer” May Be Over As Schumer Tweets: “We aren’t making the show anymore”

Roger Friedman
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“Inside Amy Schumer” May Be Over As Schumer Tweets: “We aren’t making the show anymore”

Is “Inside Amy Schumer” over? It sort of seems like maybe yeah. Even though Comedy Central renewed “IAS” for a fifth season, Schumer just Tweeted this in response to writer Kurt Metzger not being on staff anymore: “we aren’t making the show anymore. There are no writers for it.”


Whoa. Amy, what?

Schumer has been involved some controversy online about Metzger, who apparently Tweeted some stupid things himself about rape. Amy disavowed him, fans wrote and asked if he’d been fired, and Amy replied Metzger didn’t work for her because the show is over.

That’s news to us.

Anyway, Schumer has a new hit book out called “The Girl with the Lower Back Tattoo,” and will make lots of movies. But we loved her show! She is such a talent. Stay tuned…

Donald Trump’s Books Are Not Selling, No One’s Paying to Read What He Has to Say

Roger Friedman
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Donald Trump’s Books Are Not Selling, No One’s Paying to Read What He Has to Say

Donald Trump has crowds– huge crowds, he says– at all his rallies. People are waiting outside to get in, he’s so popular.

But no one is reading the paperback he published on July 12th, just over a month ago. “Great Again: How to Fix Crippled America,” is currently number 6,626 on Amazon. That’s the paperback, which sells for $10.30 bucks. The Kindle version, only $10.99, is number 18,000. That’s EIGHTEEN THOUSAND.

The hardcover — is doing a little better–it’s number 11,500. It had a different title, “Crippled America: How to Make America Great Again.” But it’s the same book in a new cover.

At least “The Art of the Deal,” which ghost writer Tony Schwartz has disavowed and is 30 years old, is a hit. It’s number 1,324. Not exactly flying off the shelves.

So we can surmise either that his followers don’t have enough money to read their hero’s words, or can’t read. See him for free, like a circus act? Why not? Trump calls himself an agent of change– but he’s not making change, that’s for sure. One wonders what a new book from him would be worth to publishers after the election.

Read the Foreword to Bruce Springsteen’s Autobiography Here: “This Is My Magic Trick”

Roger Friedman
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Read the Foreword to Bruce Springsteen’s Autobiography Here: “This Is My Magic Trick”

Bruce Springsteen has released the foreword to his autobiography, “Born to Run,” due next month. You think you know everything about Bruce, but you don’t. And I have to say, I listened to Bruce’s Sirius XM channel the other day in the car. They were playing a live show from April 25th. I think the order went from Jungleland to Thunder Road, Purple Rain to Born to Run to Dancing in the Dark, Rosalita, 10th Avenue Freezeout, something like that. It was absolutely glorious. I don’t know how he does it. Can’t wait to read this book!

The_Official_Bruce_Springsteen_Website_-_2016-08-17_14.05.18

Paul McCartney Gets Back to Capitol Records, Exits Concord, Taking His Solo Catalog

Roger Friedman
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Paul McCartney Gets Back to Capitol Records, Exits Concord, Taking His Solo Catalog

Paul McCartney is coming home.

The most successful rock star like, ever, is returning to Capitol Records after a long break– nine years. Back when Capitol was being tortured by Guy Hands, McCartney packed and up and took his catalog and all new recordings to Concord.

But now Capitol is parked at Universal Music with Steve Barnett, and all is well. Katy Perry is a hit, and there are plenty of others. The whole catalog, from “McCartney” through “Driving Rain,” along with box sets and greatest hits, goes to Capitol. They undoubtedly paid a handsome price for the collection.

McCartney is out touring like a mad man at age 74, and he’s definitely planning a new album sometime in the next few months. Universal will give him the proper platform. And of course, the Beatles are on Capitol.

You can read my original exclusive about McCartney leaving Capitol in 2007 here.

Movies: “Ben Hur” Remake Universally Panned, Set to Be Summer’s Biggest Flop with Possible $100 Mil Loss

Roger Friedman
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Movies: “Ben Hur” Remake Universally Panned, Set to Be Summer’s Biggest Flop with Possible $100 Mil Loss

The reviews are in and they are not good. The remake of “Ben Hur,” opening Friday, should be the biggest flop of the summer, if not the year. The movie is registering a poor 32% on Rotten Tomatoes among critics and bloggers. The number keeps dropping, too.

The big question will be why did Paramount greenlight a remake of the classic 1959 film with director Timur Bekmambetov?

read about Leonardo DiCaprio’s charitable foundation here

Trade reviews are terrible, and the onslaught of negatives on Rotten Tomatoes and Meta critic are is on its way.

The budget is listed officially at $100 million, but $150 million seems like a more reasonable number for what’s been spent. The only thing going for it is a lack of overpaid stars.

And that may be the problem. While Jack Huston and Toby Kebbell are fine actors, they’re not big names. “Ben Hur,” if it had to be done at all, needed a “Gladiator” like Russell Crowe to drive the chariot around the box office.

But why remake this at all? Why remake most of the remakes? Let them alone on Turner or AMC. New ideas are what’s needed. Hollywood just keeps going back and back to a well no one’s interested in.

I digress. “Ben Hur” may do well overseas, where no one will be the wiser. But in the U.S., unless people are desperate for air conditioning, it sounds like trouble is coming.

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Broadway Scoop Update: Al Pacino “God Looked Away” On Track After Secret West Coast Performances

Roger Friedman
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Broadway Scoop Update: Al Pacino “God Looked Away” On Track After Secret West Coast Performances

EXCLUSIVE I told you a few weeks ago that Al Pacino would play Tennessee Williams in “God Looked Away,” an autobiographical play by Dotson Rader headed for Broadway.

Well, just as I predicted, “God Looked Away” held its secret performances for backers and well wishers last weekend in Los Angeles. Judith Light co-starred, and Miles Villaneuva, currently on the CBS soap  “The Young and the Restless,” played Rader’s alter ego, named “Bobby,” lover of Williams the last 14 years of his life.

Now producers are looking for a New York theater and trying to decide if they can get going before the end of 2016, or enter into the Tony fray for spring 2017.

Villanueva told a soap opera blog: “Al is incredibly warm, sensitive, sincere, and so generous.  He is incredibly funny both as himself, and in the role that he is playing, and is insightful and creative. [He] was so encouraging, and he would give me positive feedback on certain things.  After we all did our first run-through you could see the excitement on Al’s face, and he said, ‘Can you just imagine what this would be like if we were running this for a few months?’  Our bond was offstage and on, and when you bond offstage, there is more depth on stage.”

Robert Allan Ackerman is directing. Thanks to Villanueva for providing a photo of the cast on his Facebook page.

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