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Oscars: Mark Rylance Only Second Steven Spielberg Actor to Win a Gold Statue

Roger Friedman
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Oscars: Mark Rylance Only Second Steven Spielberg Actor to Win a Gold Statue

British theater actor Mark Rylance surprised everyone including himself on Sunday night when he won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for “Bridge of Spies.”

Steven Spielberg literally jumped out of his chair when Rylance’s name was called. Spielberg directed “Bridge of Spies,” an extraordinarily good film and the latest on Spielberg’s long list of accomplishments. He’s the most successful director of our time, hands down.

But here’s a little trivia. Despite having three Oscars of his own, Spielberg has only directed one other actor to a winning Oscar. That was Daniel Day Lewis as Abraham Lincoln in “Lincoln,” three years ago. Until DDL, Spielberg cast members had only been nominated- like Liam Neeson and Ralph Fiennes in “Schindler’s List,” and Tom Hanks in “Saving Private Ryan.”

New “Ghostbusters” Trailer Gets Over 2 Million YouTube Views In One Day

Roger Friedman
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New “Ghostbusters” Trailer Gets Over 2 Million YouTube Views In One Day

 The new Paul Feig directed “Ghostbusters” trailer has gotten over 2 million views on YouTube since this morning. Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, and Kate McKinnon are the new Ghostbusters. Leslie Jones from “SNL” is their pal of some kind of one of those Hemsworths is their secretary. Bill Murray and Sigourney Weaver make some kind of cameos. This trailer shows a lot of the special effects already. So far, the movie looks like it did 30 years ago, which is kind of nice. This feels like a hit. Cross fingers.

 

 

Elvis Costello, Nile Rodgers Finally Get Into Songwriters Hall of Fame, Plus Marvin Gaye Breaks Rule

Roger Friedman
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Elvis Costello, Nile Rodgers Finally Get Into Songwriters Hall of Fame, Plus Marvin Gaye Breaks Rule

Elvis Costello and Nile Rodgers, who’ve been on the ballot since a Bush was president, are finally being inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. Good lord, our national crisis is finally over. The struggle to get them each in has gone on for years. I guess some members of the SHOF who knew Hoagy Carmichael finally dropped out of the voting. Welcome to 1982!

Marvin Gaye is also being inducted. Yes, you’re thinking Marvin Gaye? He died in 1984. Well, SHOF used to not allow posthumous inductions. So they’ve changed their charter. Maybe it’s because Marvin’s family prevailed in their “Blurred Lines” lawsuit. I guess a good question is how 30 years went by without Marvin in the Hall of Fame. He wrote dozens of hits and remains a huge influence. Anyway, now he’s in.

Tom Petty’s getting in. I guess once Sam Smith “borrowed” Petty’s “I Won’t Back Down” for his hit “Stay with Me,” everyone realized how good a songwriter Petty really was.

Chip Taylor, a big country songwriter with two crossover smashes including “Angel of the Morning” (for Merilee Rush, and then Juice Newton) and “Wild Thing” (for the Troggs), is also being inducted. He’s also been on the ballot since Y2K.

Rodgers is inducted with his late partner in Chic, Bernard Edwards. So you know the end of the SHOF dinner on June 9th will be everyone singing “We Are Family.” Now if we could only get these guys into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

There will be other awards announced later, cooked by committee and song publishers. They will be the Towering Song, the Johnny Mercer Award, and an award to a youngish writer. After a drought in that latter category, SHOF finally has some choices again with Charlie Puth, Meghan Trainor, etc. I’d give it to Shawn Mendes, frankly. The Mercer Award sort of circles back to a great songwriter who’s already an inductee. I’d give it t0 Carly Simon.

The Towering Song should go to the Nina Simone song “Feeling Good,” written by Anthony Newley and Leslie Briscusse in 1965. It’s a big Nina Simone year, and that song is on TV in commercials all the time.

Linda Ronstadt’s Classic “Blue Bayou” Is A Million Times Better Than Shrill “Voice” Performer

Roger Friedman
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Linda Ronstadt’s Classic “Blue Bayou” Is A Million Times Better Than Shrill “Voice” Performer

Really, kids. Listen to Linda Ronstadt sing Roy Orbison’s “Blue Bayou.” That shrill performance by a “Voice” contender makes my ears bleed. This is how it’s done. Good lord. Standards have really collapsed.

Hillary Clinton Rock Show Tonight: Plenty of Seats Available to See Elton John, Katy Perry, Bill Clinton

Roger Friedman
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Hillary Clinton Rock Show Tonight: Plenty of Seats Available to See Elton John, Katy Perry, Bill Clinton

Tonight’s best entertainment bet: the I’m with Her concert to raise money for Hillary Clinton at Radio City Music Hall.

Secondary market ticket sellers have plenty of seats at good prices. Perfomers include Elton John, Katy Perry, Andra Day, and Bill Clinton.

Most of Radio City’s top mezzanine is empty according to three different re-sellers.There also seem to be quite a few seats in the rear orchestra.

Craiglist also has a number of ads for people wanting to dump tickets at the last minute.

It’s not a bad deal. And Sir Elton was on fire this past Sunday at his Oscar party, performing with his band like it was still 1975. He is still Captain Fantastic!

“Today Show” Insiders: Matt Lauer Likely to Leave When Contract is Up this Year

Roger Friedman
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“Today Show” Insiders: Matt Lauer Likely to Leave When Contract is Up this Year

A new presidential administration in 2017 may also bring a new “Today” show.

Insiders at NBC’s longest running show — maybe the longest running show ever — say Matt Lauer is likely to leave as co-host when his contract his up this year. “There’s no way he’s staying this time,” they say, confidently.

This comes as NBC News has just announced that Willie Geist is taking over “Sunday Today” in the next few weeks, and revamping it to be more like CBS’s “Sunday Morning.”

The theory is that Lauer will leave sometime after the November elections, and Geist will step in to his hosting shoes Monday through Friday. The “Sunday Today” gig is like a warm up for the big change come the end of the year.

READ TODAY’S OTHER HEADLINES CLICK HERE

I balked when I heard this, because Lauer signed a two year contract in June 2014 for $20 mil a year. This came after the 2012 public relations debacle with Ann Curry, which sent the ratings plummeting.

But Lauer and “Today” have risen in the ratings in the last year, and now beat “Good Morning America” in the key 18-49 demo. The two shows are also very close in total viewers. Lauer’s had a lot of good interviews, too, including one in which Charlie Sheen admitted to being HIV positive. If Lauer left “Today” now, it would be on a high note.

The funny part of this is that Josh Elliott, who came over from “GMA” two years ago– and was speculated to be Lauer’s successor– has departed for CBS. But he may have seen the writing on the wall as Geist is more than likely the home grown “Today” show future.

Lauer leaving “Today” doesn’t mean leaving NBC. He could easily do specials for “Dateline” and so on. But with all that money, he may actually want to live a life that doesn’t include getting up at 4am every day.

Katie Holmes’ Bi-Polar Movie Has Made Almost No Money in 17 Days’ Release

Roger Friedman
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Katie Holmes’ Bi-Polar Movie Has Made Almost No Money in 17 Days’ Release

It’s not fair to call “Touched with Fire” Katie Holmes’s movie. But she was signed to give Paul Dalio’s movie a marquee name. Katie could not have known what was coming. Roadside Attractions released the former “Mania Days” some 17 days ago. And its total take at the box office: $138,845. The movie had a decent but not great 68% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Dalio enlisted Spike Lee as executive producer, but even that didn’t help. Nice reviews handled the movie with care. But Roadside– er, Roadkill– is famous for suffocating its movies until they’re dead. This was no exception.

Who loses all the money spent on this? Luckily, Paul Dalio is the son of Ray Dalio, who runs Bridgewater Associates, a monster hedge fund in Connecticut. Actually, Bridgewater may be the biggest hedge fund in the world. Ray Dalio is said to be worth $15 billion. So five-or-ten million for an art film is a minor annoyance.

Roadkill’s next movie is Sally Field in the much liked “Hello My Name is Doris.” Michael Showalter directed it. I advise everyone involve to get their own publicists and do their own marketing. Or they, too, like “Touched with Fire,” will be heading to Netflix, VOD, and video kiosks in a Publix market.

Jimmy Carter Joins Bono As We Are Family Foundation Honoree

Roger Friedman
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Jimmy Carter Joins Bono As We Are Family Foundation Honoree

Former president Jimmy Carter has joined Bono as honoree for this April’s We Are Family Foundation gala.

The foundation, started by Nile Rodgers and Nancy Hunt right after September 11th 2001, throws their annual fundraiser on April 29th at the Hammerstein Ballroom in New York.

President Jimmy Carter will receive the distinguished Mattie J.T. Stepanek Peacemaker Award which honors a person who has made a significant contribution towards promoting a peaceful society.

Bono will also be honored at the Gala and receive the We Are Family Foundation Humanitarian Award, which honors a person in the public eye who has made tremendous efforts and inroads into making the human condition better throughout the world.

To purchase tickets, or to make a contribution to the We Are Family Foundation, please visit wearefamilyfoundation.org. Contributions are fully tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.

And yes, there will be music. Nile Rodgers and CHIC are performing. And you know Bono and other guests will rock out with them!

Lady Gaga’s “Til it Happens to You” Takes off on Radio A Year Later

Roger Friedman
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Lady Gaga’s “Til it Happens to You” Takes off on Radio A Year Later

Lady Gaga gave the most impassioned performance on the Oscars, with her Diane Warren co-written “Til it Happens to You.” The date was February 28th– exactly one year since the documentary containing the song — “The Hunting Ground”– was released in theaters.

“The Hunting Ground” played in theaters through June and was shown on CNN in September. Despite the film’s praise and awards, and Lady Gaga’s fame, no effort was made to turn “Til it Happens to You” into a radio hit.

I wrote about in September, and still, alas, nothing happened.

Now, a year after release, “Til it Happens to You” is number 10 on iTunes. Even better: the single is zooming up the Adult Contemporary radio chart. Today it’s at number 14, up from 19, with more radio stations adding it every day. Lady Gaga’s stunning performance on the Oscars has driven sales and radio requests.

Still, “Til it Happens to You” might have actually won the Oscar if it had been released and promoted last year when it was issued. Oscar voters had trouble connecting it to the doc– which was not nominated for an Oscar– and they didn’t know it from the radio. How differently things might have gone.

Meantime, Sam Smith’s doorstop of a James Bond song, “Writing’s on the Wall,” which wasn’t a hit when it was released, continues to be a chart disappointment.

Oscars: What Goes on Off Stage While Everyone’s Watching the Show

Roger Friedman
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Oscars: What Goes on Off Stage While Everyone’s Watching the Show

So what really was going on during the Oscars yesterday and last night? Everyone has a different perspective but…

New and improved: on the red carpet the security guards told us they’d been asked to cool it from last year. The vibe was mellow once you got through security. Even with the Secret Service clamping down for Joe Biden, there was a very different atmosphere than in prior years. And most welcome.

At the entrance to the red carpet, we huddled with Mark Rylance, his wife and daughter. This was their first trip to the Oscars–Mark is one of the most famous stage actors in the world, and a superstar in the U.K. Here he is best known for his work on Broadway, in Shakespeare, in the play “Jerusalem,” and in the comedy “Boeing Boeing.”

I took a picture of him with Sylvester Stallone which would prove to be ominous. They each though Sly was winning Best Supporting Actor. The Rylances hung out at the entrance until Mark’s “Bridge of Spies” director Steven Spielberg and wife Kate Capshaw arrived so they could all walk together…They were joined by Joel and Ethan Coen, who gave “Bridge of Spies” script a polish and were also nominated for Oscars…

The order of how the awards are presented is known to us in the auditorium because it’s in our lovely souvenir book. This means that after the first segment, the bars usually fill up. This year there was free drinks and snacks– which ran out very quickly. After Best Supporting Actress knocked out Kate Winslet and Rooney Mara, they each made their way into the beautifully new appointed side bar (thanks Dolby theater for an amazing viewing screen and sensational Dolby sound).

With Rooney came her parents, Chris and Kathleen, who are also part of the New York Giants’ Mara family. Rooney has no interest in football whatsoever, but Chris is one of the reasons I’m glad his daughter is a famous actress. We talked sports for quite a while, and he reassured this NY Yankees and Giants fan that good seasons are coming. Whew!

Also stationed in the bar: the luminous K/Cates– Blanchett, as well as Winslet. (I really like Kate’s new husband, btw.) Eddie Redmayne and his pregnant wife Hannah, my old pals and neighbors Julianne Moore and Bart Freundlich, Sony Pictures Classic’s co-prez Michael Barker in a very punk custom made tux, and Harvey Weinstein and wife Georgina Chapman. Brad Grey reassured me that Paramount was in for a “very big 2017.”

Virtually unnoticed in the bar Amazon founder Jeff Bezos. He’s very low key, understated guy, and I think he’s nervous that I always spot him. But after all, half my life is spent on Amazon. Isn’t yours? I asked him if Amazon was going to buy the now floundering Lions Gate? He asked, very politely: “Should I? How much should I pay or it?”

I told him, I thought he could get it for a good price these days. Hey, you never know…

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