Mick Jagger remembers L’Wren Scott on her birthday. She committed suicide on March 17, 2014. I think it’s LOL that Johnny Pigozzi got a photo credit as large as the rest of the message. Billing is everything, I’m sure someone once said.
Remembering L'Wren on her birthday
Photo by Jean Pigozzi pic.twitter.com/oqJWEhIZCJ
— Mick Jagger (@MickJagger) April 28, 2015
Nice to see that ABC Daytime is still a reasonable place: three of the four main acting prizes on Sunday night’s Daytime Emmys went to ABC’s “General Hospital.” So what did ABC do? They refused to allow Anthony Geary, Maura West and Chad Duell appear on CBS’s “The Talk” special devoted to the soaps yesterday. Why? ABC’s “The View” is losing viewers to “The Talk.” Really, this is what goes on in daytime television. “Tootsie” and “Soapdish” were mild when you think about it.
“General Hospital” should have won for Best Writing and for Best Daytime Drama. Somehow it keeps missing the mark. There was a tie for Best Soap– “Days of our Lives,” which is psychedelically bad, and “The Young and the Restless,” which is sort of like a slow moving virus, each won. “The Bold and the Beautiful,” a show about hair extensions and incest, won Best Writing and Best Directing.
There isn’t much actual good acting on soaps. We know that. The best actors were on the New York soaps, which don’t exist anymore. Some of those actors went west and got jobs. One of them was Maura West, who was on “As the World Turns” for a long time and won two Emmys. She won Best Actress again on Sunday for “General Hospital,” where she slinks around like a combination of Jean Harlow and Carole Lombard. I met Maura West for two seconds last September in Toronto. Her son was in “Boychoir,” the Dustin Hoffman movie recently dumped by its distributor. She seemed like a lot of fun. Congrats to her. Next year, if her character miraculously outlives cancer, she’ll have competition from Gina Tognoni on “The Young and the Restless.” She’s worth watching at all times.
I watched the Daytime Emmys on DVR and fast forwarded as much as possible. (On Sunday night it conflicted with “Mad Men” and the Mariah Carey single launch.) What a nutty show. Has Tyra Banks had a total face lift? Do all the outfits come from Kohl’s? Can’t they raise the mics when tall people win?
I discovered that Charo is still alive! She’s only 69 years old. (I thought, yeah, she was long gone, along with Topo Gigio.) This means she was a wise and prescient 21 when she married band leader Xavier Cugat in 1966. He was 66. (He was literally born on the first day of the 20th century. Cool.) Cugat, a real life Ricky Ricardo, died 14 years later and must have left young Charo in good shape financially. Charo has been famous her entire life and she still has a good figure. I’m not sure what she was doing on this show. But hey, why not?
Betty White got the Lifetime Achievement Award. She is now 93 and pretty much cogent and mobile. God bless her. She’s a total invention of television, literally, having started on the tube in 1949.
Men are pretty much like furniture on soap operas. They just move around the women, who generally lead the stories. The men are usually like Kevin Kline in “Soapdish.” They get killed off, they come back even if they’re decapitated. On Sunday night Anthony Geary, who’s been on soaps for 40 years, won another Emmy. He plays Luke of the famous (from the 80s) Luke and Laura. Laura is frozen somewhere. Geary just keeps on going. It’s quite an achievement. He’s played every story you can imagine. And it never gets old.
My hat is off to all these people. They all keep straight faces. I just hope this isn’t the stuff they’ve been watching on Mars all this time.
Frances Bean Cobain made a rare public appearance last week at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood for Brett Morgen’s compelling and haunting documentary, about France’s late father, “Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck.” The film shows this week in New York and L.A., and on HBO on May 4th.
Cobain, lead singer of Nirvana, famously killed himself in 1994 when Frances, his only child, was only 20 months old. At the Egyptian, Frances, a visual artist, took the stage in a Goth outfit–to the director’s surprise– after Morgen spoke to the audience. She eloquently told the crowd that, “When I first met Brett, I told him to do what he was going to do as a filmmaker, but to keep it honest. That trust and respect is priceless. This was a serious labor of love for him; it’s been eight years. That’s why I wanted to come up here. I thought I’d only see it once, but I’ve seen in six times. There are extremely dark parts, but this does provide Nirvana fans all over the world, about who he was without the romanticism. I didn’t know Kurt, but I feel he would have been proud of this film.”
At the after party I asked Morgen how he approached this weighty subject and all that goes with it.
“When I went into this film, I figured that it would be all Kurt, that there wouldn’t be interviews with anybody else,” the director said. “I realized I couldn’t do that, with the exception of Rolling Stone’s David Fricke’s interview, which runs through the movie. But in all the others, he was too distant. I kind of freaked out. I called my line producer and said how much money did we spend already? Cause I wanted to give the money back, it was six and a half years into the project. I wanted to stop it. I didn’t think we could do the film the way I envisioned it. I never experienced this as a filmmaker. It was a really tough time, because I was so into it. I was at a loss, I didn’t know how to make the film. Then I started to talk to the people in his life and it all came together.“
I told him he looked surprised when he saw Frances come up to the podium.
Brett replied, “I had no idea that Frances wanted to speak. Frances agreed from the beginning that she would take one picture backstage at the premiere of the film. That was her only obligation. Since she saw the film, within 10 minutes she tweeted it out and has been completely supportive ever since. When I first met Frances she took my hand and said, “ I just met you, but I already know you more than I know my father.” This film has been cathartic and therapeutic for both Frances and [her mother] Courtney [Love], and the relationship between them even with Frances and her father.”
I asked him what the biggest surprise for him was as a filmmaker?
He answered, “I had no idea at any point in making this film that Kurt connected with as many people around the globe than he did. That has been absolutely humbling. It’s a pretty aggressive movie and I thought it would be polarizing. But the response has been beyond what I ever expected. You make a movie like ‘The Avengers,’ and the film opens and you high five each other and drink champagne. You can’t celebrate with this. There is a pall of sadness that hangs over it. I’ve spent four months traveling with this film and every time the movie is over, people are quiet. As a filmmaker, when the credits come up people are just stunned.”
May 17th: the final episode of my beloved “Mad Men” is titled “Person to Person.” The two episodes between now and then are called “Lost Horizon” and “The Milk and Honey Route.” (Maybe Don is opening an office in Israel.) Last night’s pivotal ep was called “Time and Life,” which referred to SCP leaving the Time Life building after all these years, and changes in the company’s– and personnel’s — time and life.
SPOILERS Bigger even than SCP being absorbed into McCann Erickson was Peggy’s admission to Stan that she had a baby and gave it up for adoption. Peggy and Pete also had a rare moment of connection. Will this be all we hear about that baby, who is now about 10 years old? Or will Matt Weiner do something else? Remember, in 1970, finding a baby or a biological parent was nearly impossible. So this may be the last word.
The five partners of SCP are going to McCann as top execs, but they’re not happy about it. This is the defeat of Sterling Cooper, as Pete says, “the only place I’ve ever worked.” Joan knows as a woman she will never be taken seriously by the chauvinistic executives who run the company. Lucky for her, wealthy Bruce Greenwood is coming to town. That marriage seems inevitable.
Roger worries that with the end of SCP the Sterling name will disappear. He reminds Don he only has a daughter, Margaret. What about his illegit son with Joan, little Kevin? Hmmmm…
Ken Cosgrove gets his revenge against Roger, refusing to bring Dow Chemical to an SCP West. This may have been his eye patch exit.
Ted is in love with an old girlfriend. He doesn’t say her name. Maybe it’s someone we know already. (Could be.) He ran into her on Third Avenue. Could it be Diana, the woman Don is searching for? Yes, Don is searching for “Di.” Could be short for death, or with Matt Weiner, “dayenu.”
And what of Don? His secretary reminds him that in two weeks he’ll have nowhere to live and no office. We know he has zero interest in going to McCann Erickson. Isn’t there a loop hole? Won’t he walk out of there with a bang? Stay tuned…
I told you last week that Mariah Carey’s new song “Infinity” would be a hit. Great music and clever lyrics drive this single. Mariah tells someone– is it Nick Cannon?– to close the door, lose the key, leave my heart on the mat for me…” She also reminds him that “you just lost the best you ever had” and “everything you own boy you still owe…” Ouch!
keep refreshing…
https://itunes.apple.com/us/artist/mariah-carey/id91853
MARIAH CAREY
INFINITY
why you mad
talking bout you mad
could it be
that you just lost the best you ever had
that’s yo bag
yep that’s too bad
show is over you ain’t gotta act
name hold weight like kilos
boy you actin so corny like fritos
wouldn’t have none of that without me tho
ain’t none of my business this tea tho
outta ammo
gotta reload
if life was a game you a free throw
s’nothing that you don’t already know
close the door
lose the key
leave my heart on the mat for me
i was yours
eternally
there’s an end to infinity
to infinity
how I say this
fact that you still exist
no disrespect
on second thought it truly, truly is
truthfully I’m thru with this
why are we still doing this
answer the phone like who is this
take your head and knock some sense
you no comprehend
ain’t no compliments
ain’t no being friends
ain’t no false pretense
ain’t no make amends
ain’t no come agains
that’s the story ain’t no happy ends
close the door
lose the key
leave my heart on the mat for me
i was yours
eternally
there’s an end to infinity
to infinity
is it lack of ice got you so cold
have you ever felt this on your own?
while you trying to play like you’re so grown
everything you own boy you still owe
close the door
lose the key
leave my heart on the mat for me
i was yours
eternally
there’s an end to infinity
to infinity
The Monty Pythons took Manhattan this weekend and received a rock star reception. The British comedy troupe attended the Tribeca Film Festival to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the their classic, “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” with a screening of the film and a Q&A moderated by HBO’s John Oliver that turned out as comic absurdist as their films.
The five surviving members of British comedy troupe – Eric Idle, Michael Palin, Terry Gilliam, John Cleese and Terry Jones (Graham Chapman died at age 46 in 1989 of cancer) – now septuagenarians, still have their comic mojo and behave like total goofballs.
The fun began Friday morning at press conference for the Pythons at the SVA Theater on West 23d street. Entering the stage, Idle blurted, “Oh well! We’re in the wrong fucking theater!” Cleese did a dramatic pratfall as he walked into the theater and landed on Palin’s lap where he sat for a good five minutes.
They continued to get silly and giddy as they riffed on the past, favorite sketches and their 2014 reunion shows at London’s vast 02 Arena. The preparation and staging of their performance at the 02, which featured reunion shows some of their most famous skits – like the dead parrot routine – is the subject of the documentary, “Monty Python – The Meaning of Life,” which screened this weekend along with “Life of Brian.” The documentary is a total high, and proves wit and curiosity don’t have to fad with age. The doc’s catch phrase is, “One down and five to go.”
The full house at the Beacon Theater clapped and howled at every comic vignette in the film, which was a total joy to watch on a large screen in a theater as beautiful as the Beacon. The movie holds up well after four decades. King Arthur (Chapman) and his men pretend to ride horses, while a servant smacks coconuts together to imitate horses galloping. The routine is still hilarious even after you’ve seen it a dozen times. And the bloody attack of the killer bunnies that forces King Arthur and his men to retreat is still hysterical. On the red carpet outside the Beacon, Idle assured me that “no bunnies were hurt, only actors.”
The Pythonesque silliness was in full swing on the red carpet where the septuagenarians horsed around with journalists and each other.
Asked about the blood and gore in their films and if anyone did it as well today Idle replied, “Al Gore. He does it the best.” Idle patted Jones’s head and murmured, “This is my twin. We were separated by birth … and rather badly.” He swaying slightly, “Also we should never have stopped for the beer.”
They look like they still have a blast performing together, so why stage these reunions every two years I asked Idle? “Every three months we’ve decided, “ Idle replied. “We’re going to take the bus on the road again, very soon.”
Asked about how being a Python helped his career, Gilliam noted, ““It taught me never to work with the other Pythons,” Gilliam said. “That was the most important thing in my career because they were obviously holding me back for all those years. Luckily once I got away from them my career shot up.”
At one point Cleese stuck his eye against a camera lens and peered at the cameraman on the other side, who tried to focus on his job but cracked up. Soon after that a publicist corralled all the Pythons to take them inside for the screening.
What followed the screening was less a Q&A than a Pythonesque free-for all, manic and magical. Behaving like rambunctious school children on a sugar high. Idle and Jones switched chairs. Cleese wandered around the stage and disappeared. Gilliam made fart noises into the microphone.
Off the bat Oliver asked the Pythons why they thought “The Holy Grail” lasted so well after four decades, “other than being f….g great?”
Palin replied, “Probably that’s the only reason… it’s just f….g great!”
When the film came out in New York they had an unusual advertising campaign Idle recalled. “We had a guy go down here in New York walking around as a knight.” He was tailed by someone who “clicked coconuts and held a banner that said ‘Come see Monty Python and the Holy Grail. The first 1000 customers will be given free coconuts,’” Idle said. “They all turned up!”
“For ‘Life of Brian’ did you give out free nails?” asked Oliver. “It was a free bris,” Idle replied.
Asked about preparations at their 2014 reunion show at the massive 02 Arena, Cleese mentioned Eddie Izzard saw the show 6 or 7 times. The Pythons messed up their sketches and when Izzard came backstage Cleese apologized. “The audiences have seen you doing the sketches correctly. It’s much more fun when you f…k it up,” Izzard said. “We f…d it up every night,” said Cleese.
Oliver read written questions from the audience, which turned out to be duds.
“There’s a question here from Stacy,” read Oliver. “Which Python will live the longest?”
“Which Python has the longest?” Idle pretended he didn’t hear the question correctly.
The audience laughed for five minutes.
Oliver read another question. “Which one of you is Michael Palin?” He looked up. “That’s a genuine question here.” He lambasted the audience for their “shit” questions.
Idle replied, “The answer is… me.”
Oliver read off a few more “shit” questions from the audience and then hustled off the stage to see if he could do better by going up the aisles. He didn’t succeed, but the Pythons riffed, played musical chairs, made farting noises.
Cleese got up and walked off stage. “He’s walking down Columbus Avenue, speaking into the microphone still,” said Oliver a few minutes after Cleese’s exit.
.
When Cleese returned he had an extra chair. The Pythons shifted positions on the stage again. Cleese shoved the whole top of the microphone into his mouth and nearly sat on Oliver’s lap, who deadpanned, “You’ve always had a fundamental, healthy disrespect for authority.”
Palin told the audience the “Ni” sounds the knights make in “The Holy Grail” are based on the sound his high school teacher made every time he located a book in the library. Some years later he ran into the teacher who asked if the noise the knights made in the film was inspired by his “ni” sounds in the library. “’No, not at all,’ I told him and he said, ‘What a pity. I loved them,’” said Palin.
Oliver brought up the rumors in the English tabloids that the Pythons don’t get along. “It’s almost as if people don’t understand how comedians talk to each other,” that they “take the shit out of each other out of respect,” said Oliver.
Idle replied, “That’s always been true of us.” He noted that when they were writing the script for “Life of Brian” in Barbados, one day at breakfast there were some black birds singing. “Michael, you said, ‘There’s some were some blackbirds singing. And he said, ‘Good morning, black bird.’ And I said, ‘Good morning white c…t!’” We always had a go at each other. It’s more healthy than saying, ‘I think you’re so lovely, I think you’re just adorable…you c-t.’”
After the laughing died down, a member of the audience asked if they ever discussed another ending for “The Holy Grail.” Palin replied, “There are about seven endings” already.
Idle added, “We could never do endings. My daughter hates me forever cause of that ending. She said, ‘Is that the ending?’ And I said, ‘Yeah, I wrote it.’ Her comment was, “That was shit!’
A woman in the audience asked if they could share their fondest memory of George Harrison.
“I think she’s trying to make you cry,” Oliver said.
Idle recalled meeting Harrison at the end of a screening with Terry Gilliam of “The Holy Grail” at the Directors Guild in Hollywood. “He suddenly showed up at the end, said, ”I’m Georgie, I really loved that. Do you want to go and have a reefer in the screening room?” He added, “We went off from there for two or three days I think.”
Harrison later put up five millions dollars of his own money to get “Life of Brian” made. He mortgaged his house. When Idle asked Harris why he would do that, Harrison replied, “Well, you now, I just wanted to see it.”
Idle’s Liverpool accent was spot on.
Another hand raised in the audience. “A question from an American blond John hasn’t married,” Idle cracked. Cleese has married and divorced three times, two of them Americans.
What comedy did they find funny today someone asked?
Idle and Jones said they liked “Silicon Valley” and “Veep.”
Someone else asked if there was anything in ‘The Holy Grail,” they wished they could change?
“The title,” Cleese cracked.
After a few more dud questions from the audience, Oliver scrambled back on stage for one final observation about the Pythons.
“Look, we’ve established there’s nothing less funny than sincerity but you’re the f…g greatest!”
Photo c2015 Showbiz411 by Paula Schwartz
President Barack Obama has a job waiting for him when he leaves the White House: comedy partner Keegan-Michael Key. The pair stole the White House Correspondents dinner last night as Key did his Luthor the Anger Translator character, interpreting Obama’s speech to cheers and applause. Key usually plays Luthor with his partner, Jordan Peele. And that was going to be the way they did it.
Key told me last night right after the show: “We were going to do it together. But then Jordan said, it will be better if you do it just with the president. So we practiced twice in the West Wing and got it right.” Where was Peele? “Watching at home,” Key told me in the Washington Hilton lobby as guests piled into cars after the show that also featured “Saturday Night Live” comedian Cecily Strong.
Even with a light rain falling, and the lateness of the hour– well past 11pm– it was well worth the short trip from the Washington Hilton to the French ambassador’s house last night for the Vanity Fair-Bloomberg WHCD after party.
After a few dreary hours in the Hilton, and the long sweep through the night that seemed to feature just B list TV stars, Vanity Fair’s Graydon Carter and former mayor Mike Bloomberg hosted the kind of swellish party Carter is known for in Hollywood. Movie star and maybe Tony nominee Bradley Cooper chatted up miscellaneous politicians, while Jane Fonda was overwhelmed with admirers. Katie Couric held court in the living room, with actor Timothy Hutton sitting on an opposite couch and all kinds of familar faces listening in. Ivanka Trump and husband Jared Stern (publisher of the New York Observer) got a good listen.
And in every corner you could see interesting chats going on: Lawrence O’Donnell, from MSNBC, sneaked out of that network’s party and was leaned up against the party talking with “Selma” director Ava Duvernay. Musician John Legend and his beautiful model wife Chrissy Teigen danced and smooched, then took photos with Nancy Pelosi and her husband, Paul. A gaggle of actresses– Connie Britton, Carla Gugino, Constance Zimmer– flocked by to join the Couric party where Lucy Lui was already ensconced. Ashley Judd was nearby.
In the front hall, I chatted with Lorne Michaels about the “Saturday Night Live” 40th anniversary when finally Cecily Strong arrived. She laughed about President Obama calling her “Sicily” asked her boss if she’d done alright. “You were wonderful,” Michaels told her. Ronan Farrow, son of Mia Farrow and Woody Allen and not Frank Sinatra, who is now dying his hair Clairol blonde, embraced her jovially before Strong moved on to get some food and drink. Farrow posed for pics with Laverne Cox of “Orange is the New Black.”
Around the rooms: Tesla inventor Elon Musk told us about his announcement about home batteries coming this Thursday; former NY police commish Ray Kelly and wife Veronica represented New York beautifully. (I’ll support him if he wants to run for mayor, and so will you!)
Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson told me he really wants to play baseball this season with the Texas Rangers. Well, he’s only 26! “I can’t believe how young he looks,” Ava Duvernay exclaimed.
Strangest sighting: actress Sophia Bush, from television, all dressed up and looking great despite news that her former boyfriend, Google exec Dan Fredinburg, had died in the Nepal earthquake while climbing Mt. Everest. Before the party she’d written on Instagram: “Please remember that our time on this Earth is not guaranteed. Please tell those you love that you do. Right now. This very minute.”
photo c2015 Showbiz411
It’s been a couple of years, but I’m back in Washington DC for the White House Correspondents dinner and the inevitable parties. After reports from Friday night’s disappointing efforts by Time & People, and The New Yorker, all eyes were on Tammy Haddad and friends’ annual garden brunch in Georgetown. It didn’t disappoint.
Despite unusually cold and blustery weather, the Beall Washington House was outfitted for stars and their cars. Haddad, Larry King’s former producer, is the doyenne of WHCD, partnering up with other influencers for this impossible to get ticket. You can’t report on the party directly but there’s plenty of color to go around. And it was one of those elegant moments where the chit chat was better than news.
Right off the bat we spotted Katie Couric and her husband John Molner. Gayle King, check. But then there was Bill Plante, the CBS eminence grise journalist, White House correspondent, the real thing.
And then came the stars: Tim Daly, Alfre Woodard, Carla Gugino, Norman Reedus from “The Walking Dead,” among them. “House of Cards” stars Constance Zimmer and Michael Kelly were treated like royalty. So was Timothy Simons from “Veep.”After all they’re playing people in the room! Brit star Jason Isaacs also commanded attention, as did Jesse Tyler Ferguson, from “Modern Family,” wearing blue pin striped seersucker.
Crossing paths like ships in the dusk: “War Horse” star Jeremy Irvine, and NSync star J.C. Chasez. The latter told me he’s just finished a movie I’ve written about called “One Shot,” a musical produced by and starring Topher Grace with a high powered cast. “Taye Diggs is doing something he’s never done before,” J.C. says. “He’s going to blow you away.”
Will there be an NSync reunion? Unlikely, says J.C. Chasez for the foreseeable future. Has he seen the Justin Timberlake-Jessica Biel baby? “Justin sent pictures and we’ve been texting back and forth,” says Chasez.
And who’s the star everyone wants to meet? Katie Couric tells me she can’t wait to shake hands with Gina Rodriguez, Golden Globe winning star of “Jane the Virgin.” Couric, who’s been doing great reports for Yahoo News and ABC, says, “She’s hot right now. Everyone is interested in her.”
And the countdown begins to the WHCD.
Linda Thompson Foster, Bruce Jenner’s second wife, knew from during their marriage that her husband “identified as a woman.” Thompson writes in The Huffington Post today that Jenner told her the whole story while they were married. They went to counseling and ultimately divorced because of it.
I’ve known Linda for many years and she’s always kept Jenner’s secret. Back in February I ran into her during Oscar week. When I asked if she knew what was going on, she said she had no idea. I don’t blame her for answering that way. She was being loyal to the father of her two sons.
As it turns out, she says that after her divorce, she told her sons, Brody and Brandon, the truth so they would understand their father. Linda writes that Bruce, who’d gone on to marry Kris Kardashian and have two daughters, was not an attentive father.
No birthday cards or phone calls, no “Merry Christmas,” no “Everything OK?” after the big Northridge earthquake. Brandon and Brody will never have those “Hallmark memories” of father-and-son moments. They were saddened by his lack of participation in their lives, and my heart ached for them. When Brandon asked me, “Mom, what kind of a father doesn’t come to his son’s graduation?” I meekly replied, “Honey, your dad may have been the world’s greatest athlete physically, but emotionally, you have to view him in a wheelchair. If he had emotional legs, he’d get up and walk to you, but he just doesn’t right now. Just try to understand him, love and forgive him.”
Thompson also possibly reveals the name Jenner has chosen for his life as a woman. It’s Heather. Around that time Bruce considered traveling out of the country, possibly to Denmark, to have the gender-confirmation surgery and then come back to the U.S. identifying as female. I asked Bruce, “What about the children?” He thought maybe he could reenter their lives as “Aunt Heather.”
Linda writes in her piece today exactly what just about everyone is thinking: even if you don’t understand all this at first, you do get the pain Jenner has lived with all his life. We finally understand why he had all that plastic surgery to make himself look different in the mirror. It wasn’t for the public, it was for him.
Linda doesn’t say who helped her write the essay (she obviously had a ghost writer), how much she was paid or how long she’d been working on it. But it’s an honest piece of writing, and to be commended.
McDreamy is dead. The story of Meredith Grey and Derek Shepherd is over. Almost all the original characters are gone after 11 seasons. Over the next four weeks, ABC will show five hours of “Greys,” in two double episodes and one single.
Next week’s double is called “She’s Leaving Home,” which indicates that Meredith (Ellen Pompeo) will pick up, leave Seattle, and find a warm home where it doesn’t rain all the time.
Two weeks later, in another double episode, called “You Are My Home,” she will likely return, realizing, like Dorothy, that there’s no place like home and she’ll stick around.
And really, who cares at this point? “Greys” according to tvbythenumbers.com, was likely for renewal. But that was before this firestorm. Without the main story, Shonda Rhimes would have to re-invent the show since she’s killed or dismissed most of the characters.
“Greys” pulls in average of 6 to 6.5 million viewers on a good week. It’s an old show, so the demo is down to around 1.7 to 1.9 for viewers 18-49. Plus, those 6 million are way down from last year’s season finale of over 8 million.
What happens now will determine whether the show can go on without Dempsey. Last night’s ratings will be over the moon, no doubt. But will fans watch those last five hours? You can bet ABC will be using next week’s big double show to determine its fate.
As for Dempsey, Rhimes must really hate him. His final show was with not one member of the cast except, briefly, Pompeo. It was all with guest actors. Meredith didn’t even kiss her husband goodbye– not a peck on the cheek. It was just, here’s your halo, what’s your hurry? I loved it when she said, “We’ll be alright without you.” There was none of that “We need you, stay…” Nothing. It was all, “Where are the papers? Let me sign them. He dissed the executive producer. Buh bye.”
EW.com, which got the scoop that Derek was dead and released it too soon, didn’t write much of anything beyond that. They know which side of the breathing tube they’re on. But in the interview with Dempsey he said he took nothing from the set. The episode was shot April 9 in Seattle, far from the cast and Hollywood.
Dempsey says he has a couple of projects cooking. But all that’s listed on the imdb is a dreadful looking movie with North Korean enthusiast Dennis Rodman. It does seem like the decision to kill him happened not that long ago. Negotiations to stay clearly fell through.
And now, will fans accept a new life for their heroine, Meredith Grey? Doubtful. If the show is renewed, one last season would seem in the cards.