“Birdman” has won the SAG Best Ensemble Award. The acting awards went to Eddie Redmayne, Julianne Moore, Patricia Arquette, and JK Simmons. Redmayne was the surprise, beating Michael Keaton for Best Actor. “Birdman” has now won the Golden Globe for drama, and the Producers Guild Award. The Alejando Inniritu directed dramedy had the edge for the Oscars. But “Boyhood” is still looming large. The TV Awards went to Downton Abbey, and Orange is the New Black, meaning the broadcast networks were shut out again. Only Viola Davis from ABC’s “How to Get Away with Murder” was a network winner.
Jerry Seinfeld’s “Comedians in Cars” wins PGA, So Does “Birdman”
This is a late posting but just in case you missed it: “Birdman” won the Producers Guild Award last night in L.A. I don’t know why. It all took place either in the St. James Theater on Broadway or on a sound stage. Maybe it was the flying. “Boyhood” was all about the producing– that Josh Sapan and Jonathan Sehring had the imagination and foresight over 12 years to make it.
Anyway: Jerry Seinfeld’s “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” won the digital award. Nice.
LIST OF 2015 PRODUCERS GUILD AWARD WINNERS
The 2015 Producers Guild nominated films and television programs are listed below in alphabetical order by category, along with producers. The producers’ names for each nominated production are listed in alphabetical order and are not necessarily the proper order of credits. The winners are indicated in bold and with an asterisk (*).
The theatrical motion picture winners are:
The Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures:
Ø Birdman (Fox Searchlight Pictures)
Producers: Alejandro G. Iñárritu, John Lesher, James W. Skotchdopole
The Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures:
Ø The LEGO Movie (Warner Bros. Pictures)
Producer: Dan Lin, p.g.a.
The Award for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Theatrical Motion Pictures:
Ø Life Itself (Magnolia Pictures)
Producers: Garrett Basch, Steve James, Zak Piper
The television winners are:
The David L. Wolper Award for Outstanding Producer of Long-Form Television:
The Long-Form Television category encompasses both movies of the week and mini-series.
Ø Fargo (FX)
Producers: Adam Bernstein, John Cameron, Ethan Coen, Joel Coen, Michael Frislev, Noah Hawley, Warren Littlefield, Chad Oakes, Kim Todd
The Norman Felton Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Drama:
Ø Breaking Bad (AMC)
Producers: Melissa Bernstein, Sam Catlin, Bryan Cranston, Vince Gilligan, Peter Gould, Mark Johnson, Stewart Lyons, Michelle MacLaren, George Mastras, Diane Mercer, Thomas Schnauz, Moira Walley-Beckett
The Danny Thomas Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television, Comedy:
Ø Orange Is The New Black (Netflix)
Producers: Mark A. Burley, Sara Hess, Jenji Kohan, Gary Lennon, Neri Tannenbaum, Michael Trim, Lisa I. Vinnecour
The Award for Outstanding Producer of Non-Fiction Television:
Ø COSMOS: A SpaceTime Odyssey (FOX/NatGeo)
Producers: Brannon Braga, Mitchell Cannold, Jason Clark, Ann Druyan, Livia Hanich, Steve Holtzman, Seth MacFarlane
The Award for Outstanding Producer of Competition Television:
Ø The Voice (NBC)
Producers: Stijn Bakkers, Mark Burnett, John De Mol, Chad Hines, Lee Metzger, Audrey Morrissey, Jim Roush, Kyra Thompson, Mike Yurchuk, Amanda Zucker
The Award for Outstanding Producer of Live Entertainment & Talk Television:
Ø The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon (NBC)
Producers: Rob Crabbe, Jamie Granet Bederman, Katie Hockmeyer, Jim Juvonen, Josh Lieb, Brian McDonald, Lorne Michaels, Gavin Purcell
The Award for Outstanding Sports Program:
Ø Real Sports With Bryant Gumbel (HBO)
The Award for Outstanding Children’s Program:
Ø Sesame Street (PBS)
The digital winner is:
The Award for Outstanding Digital Series:
Ø Comedians In Cars Getting Coffee (http://www.crackle.com/c/comedians-in-cars-getting-coffee)
Box Office: “American Sniper” Hits $200 Mil, Biggest of Eastwood’s Career
“American Sniper” is the biggest movie of Clint Eastwood’s long and storied career. The Bradley Cooper starrer hits $200 million today, far surpassing “Gran Torino” ($148 million). The movie based on the memoir of the late Navy SEAL Chris Kyle shows no signs of slowing down, either.
“Sniper” added $64 million in its second week of wide release. This is great news. I loved this movie, Eastwood and Cooper did a super job. “Sniper” has nothing to do with blue-red states, liberal or conservative. Eastwood is showing the effects of war. Kyle was no coward. He was a hero, and such a decent guy. He fought for his country. When his family beckoned him home, he returned and was a mentor. His death was a tragedy. Eastwood et al hit all those notes. Bravo.
The second biggest movie of the week is “Paddington,” an incredibly charming family film that was already a hit around the world. Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Ben Whishaw and Nicole Kidman all star. “Paddington” marks a huge success for The Weinstein Company, and a real score for them in a new direction. (No Tarantino type humor here.)
Elsewhere, Jennifer Lopez scored $15 million for a piece of junk called “The Boy Next Door.” I doubt this movie will have legs, and they won’t be nearly as nice as JLO’s.
New York TV Legend Joe Franklin Dead at 88, Pioneered the Celebrity Talk Show
UPDATE: Confirmed, sadly.
EARLIER: There’s no confirmation yet, but it does seem from reports that New York TV legend Joe Franklin has died at age 88. Franklin pioneered the talk show, and had one on WOR TV in New York from 1962 to 1993. He was famous for having eclectic groups of people– like the current head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff as well as Steve Lawrence and Eydie Gorme– on the same couch. His show was famously parodied by Billy Crystal on Saturday Night Live. Born Joseph Fortgang, Joe’s nasal voice was a New York landmark. Twitter accounts from the Friars Club and Mark Simone have each confirmed Franklin’s death. It’s really the end of an era.
Johnny Depp Scores Lowest Wide Release Opening Since 1999: A Measly $4.1 Mil
SUNDAY UPDATE: “Morty” did only $4.1 mil, it was much less than the low number previously predicted. This movie is a huge money loser for someone, namely Lion’s Gate, which I guess can hide it under The Hunger Games or Twilight accounting.
EARLIER: “Mortdecai” is loosely translated into “10 deaths.” That’s an understatement. Johnny Depp’s terrible comedy marks his lowest wide release opening since 1999’s “Astronaut’s Wife”– that’s excluding limited releases of smaller non tentpole movies like “Finding Neverland” (a hit ultimately), “The Libertine” (a disaster), and “The Imaginarium of Dr. Parnassus” (a daffodil in the wind, box office wise).
“Morty” made $1.6 million on Friday night by estimates, and looks to score just $4.4 million for the weekend– and that’s being nice since snow will impede box office traffic tonight (Saturday) and possibly tomorrow.
David Koepp, a very talented, highly successful screenwriter and nice guy, directed this romp that co-stars Ewan McGregor and Gwyneth Paltrow. That’s three big stars who are now saddled with some of the worst reviews ever posted. Koepp doesn’t have a great track record as a director. It’s one thing to try a small indie film, but this kind of thing, at over $70 million? Maybe not such a good idea. Why doesn’t Johnny Depp work with name directors? This remains a mystery.
Anyway, “Morty” has suffered 12 deaths this weekend. More on the box office later…
Uma Thurman as Marilyn Munster in New Hit Fall Out Boy Single
The new single from Fall out Boy is called “Uma Thurman.” It’s about dancing like Uma Thurman in “Pulp Fiction.” Strangely, FOB has included as its hook the hook from The Munsters TV show, written by Jack Marshall. I hope Marshall or his estate is getting a healthy sampling fee. I don’t know why FOB used The Munsters music as the song Uma and John Travolta danced to Chuck Berry’s “C’est La Vie (You Never Can Tell).” But it’s hard to get a hit these days. Maybe when they make the video Uma can play Marilyn Munster.
Uma Thurman:
The Munsters Theme:
Uma Thurman dancing with John Travolta in “Pulp Fiction”;
Not a lot of pop songs are named for people. There was a “Barbra Streisand” disco song. And Madness had a song called “Michael Caine.” Chester French had a record called “Bebe Buell” and of course there was “Jackie Onassis.” If you know more, tweet me @Showbiz411.
Kevin Pollak is Killed off “Mom” But Sells Documentary About Comedy to DeNiro Company
One door closes, and a window opens. Or something. Anyway, Kevin Pollak’s had a funny week. The very gifted character actor was killed off Allison Janney’s CBS comedy “Mom” after a nice run as a recurring character.
But things aren’t so bad. Robert DeNiro and Jane Rosenthal’s Tribeca Films has agreed to distribute Pollak’s documentary about comedians called “Misery Loves Comedy.”
The film features interviews with 60 funny people including Tom Hanks, Jimmy Fallon, Amy Schumer, Judd Apatow, Jon Favreau, Lisa Kudrow, Larry David, Steve Coogan, Jim Gaffigan, and Whoopi Goldberg. Tribeca plans a spring 2015 release– meaning in just a few weeks.
This is just one of many announcements we’re going to get from Sundance, which is happening right now. I didn’t go to Sundance this year. Instead, when it snows tomorrow and the wind is howling in New York, I’m going to show a series of indie films on my big TV and eat a lot of slices of pizza quickly, standing up, in my lobby.
The Bold & The Beautiful & The Democrats: Soap Names Character After Major Obama Fundraiser
“The Bold and the Beautiful” is a CBS soap opera without a political thought in its head. It’s all about fashionistas in L.A. who sleep with each other. But it’s also owned and run by Brad Bell, son of soap pioneers Lee Phillip Bell and the late great William Bell. Brad’s wife, Colleen, is a big time Obama bundler and Democratic Party fundraiser who was recently made US Ambassador to Hungary.
In the Hollywood circuit of fundraising, the Bells are tight with another couple: Netflix chief Ted Sarandos and his wife Nicole Avant. And now, as I’ve learned, Nicole Avant is a character on “The Bold and the Beautiful.” How do you like that? The soap has introduced a beautiful young black woman with exactly that name as the sister of an existing Avant. Yes, the Avant family has already been living in the “B&B” world.
The faux Nicole Avant has a lot to live up to: the real Nicole Avant is the former US Ambassador to the Bahamas. She’s raised millions for Obama and the Democrats. She’s also one of the nicest people in Tinseltown.
Real Nicole is also the daughter of very popular legendary record biz force Clarence Avant. Among Clarence’s many achievements was the founding of the short lived and briefly successful Sussex Records in the early 1970s. Sussex had many hits with Bill Withers (Ain’t No Sunshine, Lovely Day, etc), Dennis Coffey (Scorpio), and Gallery (Nice to Be with You).
Will fake Nicole and her sister suddenly have a father named Clarence, who’s in the music business? Stay tuned. On a soap, anything can happen!
UPDATE Johnny Depp’s “Mortdecai” Gets 38 Negative Reviews, 3 Positive– Is He Still a Movie Star?
updated Friday 11:15am
“Mortdecai” has 38 negative reviews, and 3 positive, on Rotten Tomatoes. Meanwhile both “Strange Magic” and “The Boy Next Door” are hovering around an astoundingly low 13%. This may be the worst weekend ever for new movies. Go see the 8 Oscar nominated films. Or go see Al Pacino in “The Humbling,” a great movie that was killed by its distributor.
updated Thursday night
“Mortdecai” is at 5% now on Rotten Tomatoes. Lions Gate should claim North Korea really hates it, and put this latest Johnny Depp flop on VOD right now. What has happened to Johnny Depp? “The Lone Ranger” was a spectacular failure. “Transcendence”,” released since The Long Ranger, made only $23 million. “The Tourist” with Angelina Jolie was so bad no on speaks of it without laughing.
Other than the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies, Johnny has been out of his depp. “Mortdecai” will face a brutal Friday. All they can do is hope for a blizzard on Saturday and blame the weather. But is Depp really a movie star? Without “Pirates” what would his career be?
Meanwhile, Jennifer Lopez’s “Boy Next Door” isn’t doing much better at 19% on Rotten Tomatoes. This calamity may have one more week than “Morty.”
And Disney’s “Strange Magic” has terrible reviews. But kids and families could keep it afloat over the weekend.
Lance Armstrong’s Former Charity, Livestrong, Is in a Financial Free Fall Since the Scandal
It was two years ago this week that Lance Armstrong admitted to Oprah Winfrey that his “mythic story” was “one big lie.” That moment, combined with a documentary by Alex Gibney, put an end to Lance Armstrong’s life as a celebrity. The not-7 time Tour de France winner was disgraced in public and had to leave the Lance Armstrong Foundation. It was renamed LiveStrong. And from the looks of it, the foundation isn’t living strong at all.
The foundation’s Form 990 for 2013 tells a sad story. Total revenue fell from $38 million in 2012 to $23 million in 2013. And while total expenses fell by about $6.5 million, LiveStrong claimed they were $8 million in the hole for 2013. The prior year, their loss was only $132,350.
Because of this, LiveStrong’s grant giving fell by $3 million — from a little over $9 mil to $6 mil. But their total salaries stayed about the same, dropping just about $500,000. So while their donees suffered, at least the Live Strong staff kept going strong.
Indeed, President and CEO Doug Ulman still drew a total of just over $400,000 in 2013. Nine executives besides Ulman took home six figure paychecks. The highest paid was one Morgan Binswanger, VP of External Affairs, at $208K.
How times have changed since Armstrong left. When the disgraced former athlete was an international star, in 2009, LiveStrong received $41 million in grants and contributions from the public and other institutions. In 2013, the number had dwindled to $15 million. Their total assets also fell from $112 million to $103 million.
Armstrong was forced to resign from the foundation, and his name was taken off of it. He hasn’t been erased completely. But in his bio under “Our Founder,” no mention is made whatsoever of Armstrong’s career or cycling. His entire scandalous history no longer exists. It simply says Lance Armstrong is a “father, cancer survivor, advocate and philanthropist.”