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Box Office: Arnold’s Terminator Stripping Magic Mike For Tepid July 4th Weekend

Roger Friedman
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All that press and marketing- so much, everywhere but “Magic Mike XXL” so far is not causing much of a commotion this July 4th weekend. So far, the beefcake backstory sequel is running 4th in the top 5.  It’s being beaten, slightly, by Arnold Schwarzenegger’s poorly reviewed “Terminator Genisys.” The top 2 movies remain “Jurassic World” and “Inside Out,” which are holdovers.

On Saturday morning, after three days of holiday release, “Magic Mike” is at $21.3 million. “Terminator” is at $26.3 million. If fireworks are rained out tonight, maybe something miraculous will happen. But right now $40 million is where each of these new entries is hoping to land by Monday morning. If not, there will be a lot of headlines that read “No Box Office Fireworks” for these films.

This is pretty much the last weekend for “Love and Mercy.” Roadkill Attractions will try and squeeze it up to a $10 million gross by leaving it in small out of the way theaters. They may not achieve such a lofty ambition. It’s a really good film. Shame.

Three Years After Whitney Houston Coffin Pic, Reports of Photo Being Shopped to Tabs of Bobbi Kristina’s Death Bed

Roger Friedman
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Three Years After Whitney Houston Coffin Pic, Reports of Photo Being Shopped to Tabs of Bobbi Kristina’s Death Bed

I’d like to say I can’t believe it, but I can. TMZ reports that a photo of Bobbi Kristina Brown on her death bed is being shopped to the tabs. They say it was taken by “an extended family member.”

Let’s recall that when Whitney Houston, Bobbi Kristina’s mother, lay in her open coffin, “an extended family member” sold a photograph of her lifeless body to the National Enquirer for $1 million. The woman who ran the funeral parlor told me who she thought had taken the picture, and what had gone on. I wrote that story in this space, and on Forbes.com. (The latter, a bunch of amateurs, have since deleted the article. But it exists around the ‘net.)

Are we seriously doing this again? Could it be a repeat of what went on in February 2012? Are the same people peddling the photo? And taking it? Is this what we can expect from Bobbi Kristina’s imminent funeral, too?

What is it with these two families? Do they really need money this badly? And do they have no shame whatsoever? We’ll find out soon, the minute that photo appears somewhere.

Disgusting.

Report: Taylor Swift’s Anti-Streaming Campaign Was Great for Her, But Streaming Otherwise Rules So Far in 2015

Roger Friedman
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Report: Taylor Swift’s Anti-Streaming Campaign Was Great for Her, But Streaming Otherwise Rules So Far in 2015

Taylor Swift kept her music off of streaming services, which turned out to be a great idea. At the the year’s mid point, Swift has sold the most CDs and digital downloads–1,328,000 CDs (incl downloads) and a whopping 6,834,000 digital tracks downloaded– in other words, owned by er fans. But Taylor had only 188,000 streams– and didn’t care. The actual sales were more important.

Nielsen monitors all music and video sales, and they say today that audio and video streaming was 92% so far in 2015. Audio alone was up 74%. Fans are not buying CDs or downloading, the result being a 10% loss in that department (except for Swift).

Look at it this way: Drake, who allows streaming, sold only 965,000 copies of his 2015 CD. He sold a total 1,927,00 CDs and digital tracks. His streaming number was 409 million. That means his tracks were streamed 409 million times. But that was part of subscription packages and who knows what he’s been paid. Taylor Swift, on the other hand, put that music into fans’ players one way or another.

Overall digital downloading for tracks was down 10%, while full albums were unchanged from last year. Physical CD sales were down 7%.

Vinyl is up, way up, which is so weird because I was happy to get rid of hundreds of albums when CDs really broke through in 1986. But kids want turntables and the records, which you can buy pretty reasonably at places like Urban Outfitters. Nielsen says vinyl sales now take up 9% of all physical sales. Listen, go for it, kids. Of course, the vinyl now is all this special stuff. When we had records, they warped and woofed, and scratched and jumped. Nilsson’s “Nilsson Schmilsson” on RCA Dynaflex barely stayed on the turntable. Vinyl was up 38%.

What does it mean? The music today is not something kids need to own in their hand. Given the choice of ordering the CD, or downloading the track into their players, kids would rather just stream it casually as part of an overall plan– like having HBO and watching movies or shows whenever you want.

The days of waiting to see album art, read lyrics, read the tech notes– that’s like having a Gramophone. I used to clutch new albums like they were deliveries of the Ten Commandments. But of course, that’s when music was good, lyrics weren’t X rated, and teeny bopper meant something negative. Now it’s all teeny bopper all the time. And the music is disposable.

It will be interesting to see what happens next. Swift clearly should win the Grammy for Album of the Year. But Justin Timberlake should have won two years, and was basically shut out. Swift’s letter to AppleMusic made the company change their policy, but she was in the catbird seat: her physical sales had peaked. She’d made her money. Everything else is gravy. And she’s the captain of her own gravy boat.

 

 

Vanessa Redgrave’s Grandson, Micheal Neeson, Joins Family Acting Dynasty

Roger Friedman
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Vanessa Redgrave’s Grandson, Micheal Neeson, Joins Family Acting Dynasty

The Redgraves do have a family business.

First there was Sir Michael Redgrave and his wife Rachel Kempson, each famous and revered British actors. Then there were the children– Vanessa, Lynn, and Corin. The granddaughters, Vanessa’s kids– Natasha (Richardson) and Joely (Richardson), joined the business next. Not to mention those girls’ father, Natasha’s late husband, director Tony Richardson.

Now there’s Micheal Neeson, son of Liam Neeson and the beloved, late Natasha. The 20 year old grandson of Vanessa Redgrave is going to make his acting debut playing Michael Collins, the Irish revolutionary. Liam Neeson, his dad, played the role in a movie named “Michael Collins” 19 years ago.

Micheal Neeson joins the Redgrave family dynasty now. It was only a month ago that he opened a fashion boutique in London’s SoHo neighborhood. He also gave interviews about going off the deep end when his mother tragically died. Neeson went to rehab and straightened himself out.

He immediately becomes a new character for the London press to hound into submission. I hope he’s ready.

Oh that weird way of spelling Michael as “Micheal”– it’s a variant, it’s hard to remember, but will make him stick out. It was very popular in the 1950s, not so much now.

Prince Takes His Music Catalog Off Of All Streaming Services Including Spotify and Apple Music

Roger Friedman
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Prince Takes His Music Catalog Off Of All Streaming Services Including Spotify and Apple Music

Prince took his entire music catalog off all streaming services this week. It looks like he tweeted his unhappiness with streaming on June 25th. (No one noticed?)He’d read an article on the Daily Beast that summed up Spotify’s relationship with the record labels. And then he yanked it all away.

Remember– this is the same Prince who changed his name to a symbol and fought with the old Warner Music Group over ownership of his masters and royalty payments. He re-recorded his whole catalog just to take it away from them. Prince is quite savvy about ownership rights in the music business. That’s how he’s maintained his independence.

click here for today’s headlines

Good for Prince. Tonight I tried to get the 3 month trial membership to AppleMusic. This would have required turning my entire music library over to them to be grilled as little dogs on the iTunes grill. I said no thanks.

Prince also released a cool new track on SoundCloud. Let’s enjoy that.

TV: “Nashville” is Casting for A Leading Man Rock Star Who Transitions to Country

Roger Friedman
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TV: “Nashville” is Casting for A Leading Man Rock Star Who Transitions to Country

“Nashville” is going to take page out of real life. I hear the ABC music soap is interested in the fact that Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler roamed away from his group this year and did some recording in the country music capital. To spice up the show, the “Nashville” producers are said to be looking for a young Tyler, a rock star age 20 to 40 who leaves his rock band (unlike Tyler, who’s still very much with Aerosmith) and looking for new musical adventures.

Here’s the description of Marcus Kane: Marcus receives an intriguing and unexpected offer from Rayna Jaymes
(Connie Britton) — she wants him to sign with Highway 65 and expand into country music. She believes that beneath
the screaming guitar licks and pyrotechnics, Marcus is a storyteller at heart, and no genre is friendlier to his creative truth than country. Marcus likes what he hears and signs with Highway 65 and as he and Rayna begin working
together, Marcus’s soulful artist side fully emerges — but as he realizes that Rayna’s fortunes are tied to his success, so does his demanding, controlling, narcissistic side. Refusing to respect boundaries, Marcus relishes in testing Rayna’s limits while they write, record, and release his first solo album.”

I’m told the actor has to be a real singer, and a good one, who plays guitar and has a strong musical background. He may be in 10 episodes all together.

If I were the producers, I’d make a call to Steve Kazee, who won the Tony Award for the musical “Once.” But no one asked me.

Exclusive: American Sniper Screenplay Writer to Make Directing Debut for Dreamworks

Roger Friedman
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Exclusive: American Sniper Screenplay Writer to Make Directing Debut for Dreamworks

EXCLUSIVE Big news: “American Sniper” screenwriter Jason Hall will direct his first movie for Steven Spielberg and Dreamworks. “Thank You for Your Service” is described thusly: “follows three U.S. soldiers returning from Iraq who struggle to integrate into family and civilian life, coping with her horrific memory of a war that threatens to destroy them. long after they left the battlefield.”
HALL_JASON2
Hall wrote the screenplay from the bestseller by David Finkel published in October 2013. There were rumors that Spielberg would direct the movie. But after reading Hall’s screenplay, Spielberg suggested Hall do it himself. Spielberg would likely be executive producer, although I’m told no production credits have been assigned yet.

Hall’s screenplay of Chris Kyle’s “American Sniper” was nominated for many awards and much lauded.

Justin Bieber Says He’s Even Deeper in with Cult-Like Australian Church

Roger Friedman
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Justin Bieber Says He’s Even Deeper in with Cult-Like Australian Church

Justin Bieber just spent 5 days in Australia with Hillsong church. He took Stephen Baldwin’s daughter Hailey with him, and sang the church’s praises. Bieber is short several cards of a full deck and not exactly a member of Mensa. Maybe he’ll join this cult in the making and be their Tom Cruise or John Travolta. It just goes on and on.

I wrote about all this last fall. Scooter Braun should pay attention. These people want Bieb’s money.

From November 11, 2014
You cannot make this up. Justin Bieber, not exactly the brightest bulb in any lamp, is a follower of a sketchy Virginia man who calls himself a pastor and runs a church every Sunday at the Manhattan Center on West 34th St. Carl Lentz portrays himself as the Punk Pastor, and says he’s Pentacostal. His latest iteration is called Hillsong NYC church. But what his American, Canadian followers– and Bieber– may not know is Hillsong NYC is a branch of Hillsong Australia. That organization is considered by many in that country to be a cult.

Hillsong’s founder, Frank Houston, had to resign in 2000 after confessing to having molesting a 7 year old boy in 1969. He was never prosecuted, and the case haunts Hillsong and the Houstons, and now Lentz to this day. Even though Frank Houston is now dead. the story isn’t over. A recent hearing in Australia revealed that Frank’s son Brian, who now runs Hillsong. trivialized the incident and let his father continue to preach as part of their church, albeit surreptitiously. http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11339319 He is also accused of trying to bribe the victim.

Bieber’s pastor, Carl Lentz, only became involved with Hillsong four years ago. In the video above, he explains how he hooked up with the Houstons– that’s Frank Houston’s grandson Joel with Lentz in the video, looking like Jay from “Silent Bob and Jay.” These two are supposed to be religious leaders; they are Justin Bieber’s spiritual guides. Joel has been running Hillsong NYC with Lentz since 2010.

Before he hooked up with the Houstons, Lentz operated Cal Lentz Ministries out of Washington state. The IRS recently revoked the 501 c 3 status of that outfit after Carl Lentz Ministries failed to file tax returns for three years. Lentz runs Hillsong in New York as a straight ahead business with no tax free standing. He’s registered Hillsong out of his father’s law office in Virginia, but hasn’t filed any paperwork. There is no transparency at all.

The connection between Lentz and the Houstons, and the history of Houston’s father, finally came to a boiling point in October in New York at a Madison Square Garden conference of Hillsong followers. Not only was Frank Houston’s molestation case examined, but also multiple scandals about finances at Hillsong and the cult’s attitude toward homosexuality. Brian Houston’s sidestepping has caused a lot of controversy among the followers.

I spoke to Carl Lentz’s father, Stephen Lentz, an attorney in Virginia Beach. He couldn’t have been nicer. Mr. Lentz explained that churches don’t have to file Form 990s, so nothing is amiss. He said he knew nothing about Hillsong Australia, and very graciously invited me to the Manhattan Center. Entrance to the services, which run all day long every Sunday, he says, is free. You donate what you want. But the Manhattan Center isn’t free. They charge $17,000 a day for the Grand Ballroom where the Hillsong services take place. Someone is paying for that, most likely Hillsong Australia.

Watch this video about Hillsong Australia:

Exclusive: Amy Winehouse Foundation in the United States Needs a Trip to Rehab

Roger Friedman
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Exclusive: Amy Winehouse Foundation in the United States Needs a Trip to Rehab

A documentary opens this Friday in the US about late singer Amy Winehouse. It’s getting great reviews from everyone except Amy’s father Mitch, who objects to his depiction. Amy died tragically on July 27, 2011 at age 27 from alcohol poisoning.

But Mitch has more problems than filmgoers not liking him. After Amy’s death he started a not for profit foundation in his daughter’s memory in the UK, then began one here. The UK version seems to be in good shape. But the US side is not so good. (The two organizations are separate, with Amy’s divorced parents Mitch and Janis involved in each one.)

According to the US group’s federal tax filing for 2013, they paid their director $10,000 more than they gave away. Consultant Julie Muraco– whose Upper West Side apartment is listed as the foundation’s address– was paid $80,000 in 2013-14. The Amy Winehouse Foundation donated $70,000 to two charities last year– $50,000 to the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music, and $20,000 to the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra.

There is a record of a donation the Brooklyn Conservatory– a donation of $25,000 on January 13, 2013. But it doesn’t jibe with what’s listed in the tax filing.

Muraco tells me the foundation would have given away more in 2013, but their own donations from their Gala came in late. She says her $80,000 salary as a consultant was really for two jobs. In the preceding year, 2012, the first year of the U.S. foundation. Muraco was only paid $52,000. But the Foundation only gave away $10,000 — again to the New Orleans Jazz Orchestra.

Total revenue for 2012 and 2013 was over $530,000.

On the social network side, the F0undation has just 243 followers. They’ve tweeted once in 2015, on April 9th, with the most recent Tweet before that in December of last year. There’s a little bit more activity on their Facebook page, but not very much. In the UK, that group has 27,700 followers and seems to conduct activities more suited to a Foundation.

Muraco says she’s working now on filing the 2014 tax forms, and that the mission statement for the Foundation is being changed.

The Amy Winehouse Foundation mission statement in the US reads: “The Amy Winehouse Foundation’s mission is supporting and empowering children and young adults in need through music therapy and music education and works to prevent the effects of drug and alcohol misuse on young people. We aim to support, inform and inspire vulnerable and disadvantaged young people to help them reach their full potential.”



 

 

NBC to Donald Trump: “You’re Fired” Over Racist Comments About Immigrants

Roger Friedman
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NBC to Donald Trump: “You’re Fired” Over Racist Comments About Immigrants

When Donald Trump is done with his presidential run he’ll have to find a new TV network. NBC has fired him over racist comments he’s made about immigrants. Here’s their statement:

At NBC, respect and dignity for all people are cornerstones of our values.
 
Due to the recent derogatory statements by Donald Trump regarding immigrants, NBCUniversal is ending its business relationship with Mr. Trump.
 
To that end, the annual Miss USA and Miss Universe Pageants, which are part of a joint venture between NBC and Trump, will no longer air on NBC .
                                                                                                                                                                        
In addition, as Mr. Trump has already indicated, he will not be participating in “The Apprentice” on NBC.

“Celebrity Apprentice” will continue at NBC without Trump in any capacity. A new host has to be chosen by Mark Burnett Productions.

Trump had said in a speech last week: “The U.S. has become a dumping ground for everybody else’s problems. When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.”

With the NBC decision, that pretty much finishes Trump as a network host of anything. If no one will carry his beauty pageants on TV, he’ll be forced to sell them too. What a mess.

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