In the hours before Adele appears at Radio City Music Hall, she has dropped her second single from “25.” The video for “When We Were Young” is below. And this one, like “Hello,” should go right to the top of the charts. Welcome to Adele week.
Sting Serenades A List Crowd at Hearst, Introduces Spectacular Art Book
Looking for the perfect art book as a Christmas gift for the millionaire in your life? Look no further than Sting’s coming folio with famed artist Stephen Hannock. Last night at the top of the Hearst Publications building, the pair showed off their collaboration for art collectors– named “The Last Ship” for the Tony Award nominated collection of songs that appeared in Sting’s musical of the same name earlier this year.
Hannock visited Sting’s hometown of Newcastle and came up with six or seven amazing woodcuts depicting the lost shipyard and environs of Wallsend, where Sting grew up, facing beautifully printed sheets of Sting’s lyrics. Thanks to Two Ponds Press they are producing just 75– that’s right, just 75– of these collectible tomes which will be ready by April 2016. But apparently you order them now from Two Ponds because as demand increases, so does the price.
To get the Hearsters excited– including Ellen Levine, the goddess of Hearst, and Glenda Bailey, editor in chief of Harper’s Bazaar– Sting sat in a chair on a small riser and performed three songs from the show — the haunting title track, the jaunty “Dead Man’s Boots,” and the beautifully melodic “The Night the Pugilist Learned How to Dance.” I’m told he had pre-show jitters– playing for 40 people– but you wouldn’t have known it when he took the stage.
Also in the audience: Ralph Schlosstein, CEO and husband of the US Ambassador to France, Jane Hartley, as well as trumpeter Chris Botti, famed artist Stephen Sumner (no relation to Sting aka Gordon Sumner, but husband to Bailey, btw), and Spotify creative global chief Richard Frankel. The limited edition would have sold out right away, but Two Ponds hasn’t started taking orders yet.
Hannock, by the way, is one of my favorite artists. His landscapes are so gorgeous, you could actually imagine leaving the city and living in one. His works are in the permanent collections of places like the Whitney Museum and Yale University Art Gallery. The landscapes are likened to the work of the Hudson River School painters such as Thomas Cole and Frederic Church. Among his collectors are Tom Brokaw and wife Meredith.
The “Last Ship” woodcuts are reminiscent of the great works of the WPA in the 1930s. The printing process– done in Western Massachusetts- is sort of remarkable. One of woodcuts in the collection went through a 27 color process!
A Hannock landscape:
PS Where was Sting’s famed wife, Trudie Styler? Directing her first film, “Freak Show,” starring Bette Midler, Abigail Breslin, and Alex Lawther.
James Taylor’s Up and Down Day November 24: Presidential Medal of Freedom and Carly Simon’s Memoir
James Taylor has seen fire and rain. But he hasn’t seen a day like November 24th ever. The great singer songwriter is receiving the Presidential Medal of Freedom that day, along with the likes of Stephen Sondheim, Itzhak Perlman, Steven Spielberg, and Barbra Streisand. That will be one hot ticket at the White House!
But it’s a mixed day. Because November 24th is also coincidentally publication date for Carly Simon’s extraordinary autobiography, “Boys in the Trees,” from Flatiron Press. Simon and Taylor, married from 1972 to 1983, were the most glamorous couple of the Classic Rock era, movie stars among peers like Joni Mitchell, Carole King, Paul Simon and Jackson Browne.
“Boys in the Trees” is hardly salacious, but it is very frank about Simon’s marriage to Taylor. Included are recollections of the infidelity and drugs that led to the break up after eleven years and two children. Simon is very loving toward Taylor but she is also quite candid about what went on behind closed doors. It’s a big part of “Boys in the Trees,” and not one that Taylor will be chatting about on November 24th with President Obama or the other awards recipients.
So brace yourselves– and get ready for a number of Carly Simon TV performances that week as well, on shows like “Stephen Colbert” and “Live with Kelly and Michael.”
“Memento” Remake News Stirs Anger: Worst Idea Yet Comes in Press Release
Christopher Nolan’s “Memento” is one of my favorite films of all time. It’s certainly a cult film with a hardcore following of loyalists. Ever since its release in 2000, the backwards told tale starring Guy Pearce, Joey Pantoliano, and Carrie-Anne Moss has again and again made dozens of all time and top 100 film lists.
So this afternoon’s press release that someone other than Nolan was going to remake “Memento” has stirred anger all over social media. AMBI Films, financed by the Bacardi family of Italy, apparently bought a film library that included “Memento.” Their first reaction? To remake a perfect film by an auteur who has since gone on to huge success with the “Dark Knight” movies, “Inception,” and “Interstellar.”
What AMBI doesn’t understand is that you simply don’t do this. It didn’t work for “Psycho” or “The Heartbreak Kid,” for example. Certain classic films cannot and should not be remade. There’s no reason for it, and the public only rejects them twice as hard.
The library AMBI bought includes some interesting titles. First there are personal gems like “Begin Again,”The Ides of March,” “End of Watch,” “The Way Back,” Peter Landesman’s “Parkland,” and Ron Howard’s “Rush.”
But somehow Mel Gibson’s controversial “The Passion of Christ” and “Apocalypto” are in there, too, as well as Gibson in “What Women Want.”
Someone should tell these people to pour themselves a Bacardi and rethink this plan.
It’s ironic: “Memento” is about a man unable to form short term memories. But the movie going audience has a very good long term memory of “Memento.” They will not go for this, with Nolan excluded from the equation. And what decent director or actor will get involved?
National Enquirer Says Charlie Sheen has HIV, Actor to Make Announcement Tomorrow
Does Charlie Sheen have HIV? The National Enquirer and Radar Online say he does, and my sources there say the story is “solid.” “We nailed it,” says a source.
A couple of weeks ago Radar broke the story without using Sheen’s name. But the clues were easier to dissect than an episode of “Murder She Wrote.” Now American Media has gone full force with the story, publishing it on all their platforms.
Sheen has consequently declared that he will give Matt Lauer a special interview tomorrow morning on the Today show. He will make a “personal announcement.”
Sheen has lived an unabashed, unapologetic life of debauchery for years. It’s involved sex, drugs and rock and roll. Hookers, porn stars, circus animals– he’s advertised all of it.
In 2011, Sheen went completely off the rails, and caused a long running scandal when he left “Two and Half Men,” was fired, sued Warner Bros. and CBS, lost, went on a crazy tour that indicated a mental breakdown in which he “performed” at big venues like Radio City Music Hall. “Winning” and “Tiger Blood” became catchphrases. But Sheen was hardly winning anything.
He then made an un funny miserable TV series called “Anger Management,” now in syndication, and used solely as background noise.
What a disaster this all is: Sheen comes from a lovely family. His parents, Martin and Janet, are terrific people. His brother, Emilio Estevez, is a great guy. Charlie has five children– an older daughter, and two sons and two daughters under the age of 10.
Meantime, Sheen has not been seen much this year. After carrying on like crazy in public, Sheen has been press shy in 2015. He was photographed by accident on September 1st, and then almost not at all the whole year.
I will never forget interviewing Charlie and the cast of “Three Musketeers” in 1993. Charlie gave a young Chris O’Donnell a full description of “snuff” films. It was kind of shocking. But he was already in an alternate — and scary — universe.
Good luck to him.
Pop: Justin Bieber Beats One Direction in One Week Sales Race, But Adele is Coming
The weekend pop sales race among pop tarts One Direction and Justin Bieber is over. We’ll see numbers soon, but from iTunes the clear winner is Bieber’s “Purpose” at number 1. One Direction’s “Made in the AM” has remained steady at number 2.
The whole race for number 1 is moot, though, as Adele’s “25” is released on Friday. Expectations are for more than 1 million copies sold in the first week. Pre-orders may already be at that level. Plus Adele will be doing publicity all week, appearing at Radio City Music Hall tomorrow night and on “Saturday Night Live.”
As for Bieber vs. One Direction: the latter group has not drummed up much excitement for its singles, while Bieber has about a dozen individual tracks showing up on the iTunes chart. It’s definitely a marketing battle. Starting with the viral media plan for “What Do You Mean?” Bieber’s people have just played the whole thing right. Bieber also made a bunch of videos for the new songs.
One Direction may have the better album. But they’ve already said they’re taking a break. Their marketing is a lot more DIY, laid back. They have really one hit single, “Perfect,” at number 17. No one’s really worked the individual tracks. I’m surprised.
Anyway, this will only last until Friday. Then Adele will eat them all for breakfast.
Review: Bruce Willis Makes an Inauspicious Broadway Debut in “Misery,” or the new Les Mis
What happened to the great jive talkin’, smooth as silk Bruce Willis? Oh for the days when David Addison couldn’t shut up on “Moonlighting.” Or even when John McClain talked glib in “Die Hard.” I thought Bruce Willis’s propensity for yakking would turn his Paul Sheldon in the theatrical version of “Misery” into a wise cracker who wouldn’t be tied to a bed. I was wrong.
Luckily, Laurie Metcalf is there at the Broadhurst Theater as Annie Wilkes, Paul’s captor. Metcalf, an accomplished theater actress from Steppenwolf, known to TV audiences from “Roseanne,” is so exceptional that for a while, “Misery” seems like it might not be so bad. After all, Metcalf just fully inhabits the stage from the moment she arrives. So what if Bruce Willis is slow to catch up? You figure eventually it will all fall into place.
Unfortunately, William Goldman’s adaptation of his 1990 screenplay — directed by Rob Reiner and starring James Caan and Kathy Bates (she got an Oscar) — is too literal. The movie depended on close ups, of which there are none in the theater.
And sadly no one has told Bruce Willis what to do. The direction by Will Frears is less than what I expected. He lets Willis just sit there, or lie there, on stage, like a flounder. Sometimes he seems like he might be sleeping. Or just not interested. For quite a while, Metcalf works and works around him, hoping to get a reaction. But none are coming.
Of course, part of the problem is the play itself. As a movie “Misery” had its campy moments, and you could get away with them– and the unnatural violence– frame by frame. As a play, “Misery” just seems ridiculous, over the top, and in the end, pointless. Willis would have been better off playing Billy Flynn in “Chicago”– his daughter, Rumer, was just in that show–or as a character in “Something Rotten.” I know there’s a funny, madcap Bruce Willis lurking in there, somewhere.
No press was allowed at the opening night party Sunday night. Among the celebs in the audience were Rob Reiner, Tony Danza, Zachary Quinto and chef Tom Colicchio, according to the photo services. “Misery” is supposed to play until February 14th.
On the upside, this shows that Metcalf should be a lead in a real play, where can get a Tony. Judith Light did it. Metcalf is next. But “Misery” is not the vehicle for that.
On “Purpose”: “Where are U Now?” Belongs to Skrillex and Diplo, Not Justin Bieber
By now Justin Bieber fans have realized something: they can’t buy “Where Are U Now?” from Bieber as a single on iTunes. The rest of “Purpose” can be divvied and purchased as singles or as part of the album. “Where Are U Now” is album-only.
However, it can be singled out from producers Skrillex and Diplo. It’s available as a single from them through their album “Skrillex and Diplo Preseny Jack U.”
Whyzat, you ask? “Where Are U Now?” was a fluke. The producers took a simple ditty from Bieber and turned it into what became the template for the rest of “Purpose.” Even Bieber doesn’t sound sure in interviews how it happened. He sent it in, they created it, and boom– it was a hit. Now all of Bieber’s album is based on the Skrillex and Diplo format. They must be thrilled.
Here’s another Skrillex – Diplo cut featuring a real singer, Kiesza:
Box Office: “Spectre” $30 Mil Behind “Skyfall” But Still No Slouch, Brad-Angelina Ouch
James Bond “Spectre” hit $130 million this weekend, which is no slouch. Every studio would like that hit. Still, Bond 24 is running $30 mil behind “Skyfall.” Well, the latter movie was a phenom because it was excellent, and it had the Adele song. Can you imagine if Adele had the “Spectre” song right now as she was launching her new album? OMG as they say.
Alas, Sam Smith has the “Spectre” song. No one wants to hear it. Last night Smith appeared on “Saturday Night Live” to sing with Disclosure on one of their songs. He didn’t even promote “Writing’s on the Wall.” He also now sounds a lot like Michael McDonald. Maybe he can cover “What a Fool Believes” next or have a sing off with Jimmy Fallon, who imitates McDonald perfectly.
Meantime, Brad and Angelina scored just $95,000 on “By the Sea” at 10 theaters. Let’s just say crowds did not race to their cinemas to see the most famous couple in moviedom harangue each other in soft focus. I still say this movie has to be based on the famous song from “Sweeney Todd,” as seen here:
(Listen) Carly Simon’s Great New Song Accompanies Hot Literary Memoir of Rock in the 70s
Carly Simon’s great new song “I Can’t Thank You Enough” comes from her “Songs from the Trees” compilation, out next week from Rhino. It was written by Carly and son Ben Taylor. The CD accompanies her hot literary memoir of rock in the 70s, “Boys in the Trees,” out from Flatiron Press on November 24th. The book is a vivid account of Simon’s childhood, her teen years as she and sister Lucy were a singing duo in Greenwich Village, and her launch as the original Taylor-Katie-Adele circa 1970 with “That’s the Way I’ve Always Heard it Should Be.”
“Boys in the Trees” is written with refreshing honesty and candor, and in a structure quite like the most highly regarded celebrity memoirs by Lauren Bacall and Sidney Poitier.