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Hollywood “Sex Men” Case: Former Friend of Michael Egan Insists He’s Lying

Roger Friedman
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Hollywood “Sex Men” Case: Former Friend of Michael Egan Insists He’s Lying

Chris Turcotte is in his early 30s. He lives near Providence, Rhode Island and works for a self-described witch (she’s Wiccan) who runs a business distributing sex toys. But in 1999, Turcotte was an aspiring teen star in Hollywood who was best buddies with another teen wannabe star, Michael Egan Jr.

Egan is now suing four prominent Hollywood executives for sex abuse when he was a teen.Today Egan’s lawyer says he’s passed a liar detector test. And Singer has asked his lawyer Marty Singer to file for a dismissal of all charges.

Now on the eve of the premiere of “X Men: Days of Future Past,” Turcotte tells me Egan is lying.

Egan’s cases against Bryan Singer, Garth Ancier, David Neumann, and Gary Goddard were weakened this week when this was revealed: Egan, deposed in 2003 for an earlier case, testified that Neumann never touched him.

Turcotte isn’t surprised. He told me last week in a series of phone calls he was convinced Egan was making up stories of being abused by the men when he was underage. He has a theory, too: Turcotte told me that he thinks Egan may have filed the lawsuits as a preemptory move because he was afraid of what he’d said in interviews for a still unreleased documentary.

The film, by Amy Berg, supposedly traces the history of parties for underage teens especially boys, in Hollywood. Turcotte told me “Mike told Amy all kinds of stuff about those guys. Then I think he worried there would be legal trouble from them. So he went after them first.”

Turcotte says the clue that connects Egan to Berg is in Egan’s own words. “Amy’s company is called Disarming Pictures,” says Turcotte. “In Mike’s statement he talked about ‘disarming the pedophiles.’ That’s not a coincidence.”

Turcotte is from Rhode Island. But he says when he expressed a desire to be a teen actor, his mother packed him up and the family moved to Los Angeles. He went to San Fernando Professional School, where he — like Egan– met Scott Shackley. Scott’s older brother Chad was living in an estate with Marc Collins-Rector, where they threw parties for young people. Girls, nicknamed “Fish,” were allowed into the big parties but not the private ones. Boys were the target guests.

Turcotte says Egan was at least 16 if anything happened. “Mike’s lying about doing drugs over having [underage] sex with any of the defendants,” Turcotte says. He adds that Bryan Singer, especially, was very careful about getting I.D. from anyone he was interested in.

Stay tuned…

Cannes: John Travolta, Kelly Preston Promote Controversial Billionaires’ Caribbean Paradise

Roger Friedman
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Cannes: John Travolta, Kelly Preston Promote Controversial Billionaires’ Caribbean Paradise

Last night in Cannes: John Travolta and Kelly Preston were flown in to host a high priced event promoting an environmentally controversial project. The couple were brought to Cannes to shill for a proposed billionaires’ paradise in Belize, an island in the Caribbean. Puerto Azul is under attack in Belize by just about every local group because it threatens protected and historical sites in Belize.

Puerto Azul, according to reports, could very negatively impact the Blue Hole, a World Heritage site in Belize that some believe could be named the 8th Wonder of the World. In 2012, the Great Blue Hole was cited by the Discovery Channel as number one on its list of “The 10 Most Amazing Places on Earth”.

The Travoltas have long been used as spokespeople by last night’s promote Oscar Generale (he’s a person), who puts together these events. Some of the other celebrities who attended last night– Heidi Klum, Adrien Brody, Rosario Dawson– may have thought the flashy gathering at the very very posh St. George villa in Cannes was for charity.

Alas, the event was to raise money for the massive enterprise under attack in Belize. The main investor is “business man” Domenico Giannini. He’s really just a real estate developer who’s been clever enough to use celebrities as his pitch men and women.

The Puerto Azul development in Belize would be a radical addition to the island. It would include an exclusive resort, hotel, golf, villas and spa, on Northern Two Caye (960 acres) and Sandbore Caye (10 acres), suitable to accommodate 1,000 guests and 2,000 employees. The plans call for an underwater lab, shopping centers, restaurants and bars, a golf club house, spa, airstrip and marina.

Tonight the Travoltas head to another celebrity appearance at the annual amFAR dinner in Antibes, where millions are spent. Rain and thunderstorms currently threaten the event.

 

Michael Jackson Album Hits Number 1 in a Squeaker Win

Roger Friedman
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Michael Jackson Album Hits Number 1 in a Squeaker Win

Michael Jackson fans really came through for their beloved star. The “Xscape” album beat the new release from the Black Keys and took the number 1 spot for last week. Jackson sold around 570 more albums than the Black Keys with a total of 161,909 sales (that’s physical CDs and digital downloads).

That number isn’t very high, but overall CD and digital sales are way down anyway as opposed to streaming. Nevertheless “Xscape” sales are not strong, certainly nothing like any number of contemporary and or living artists.

Did the hologram help? It doesn’t seem like it. As I wrote yesterday there was no sales bounce from the Billboard awards. But give Michael his due. He’s number 1 for his debut week. We’ll see if he can hold off Coldplay’s new album this week.

Mariah Carey May Get Her Biggest New Hit from George Michael

Roger Friedman
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Mariah Carey May Get Her Biggest New Hit from George Michael

Mariah Carey’s new album, “The Elusive Chanteuse,” is streaming on iTunes Radio (if you can figure it out let me know). The album is officially released on May 27 th but reviews are coming in. Carey has surprised everyone again, and put together a hot collection of new songs that should send her right to the top of the charts. Good for her!

All the songs are original but one. And that one, called “One More Try,” is going to be a huge hit both on radio and in concert. And it was written and recorded by George Michael in 1985. “One More Try” has over 9 million views on You Tube. But I think Carey’s version is superior, much more gospel and R&B.

I can’t feature Carey’s track yet. Here’s George’s:

 

Legendary Beauty Actress Sophia Loren, Almost 80: “I Was Never Considered Photogenic”

Roger Friedman
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Legendary Beauty Actress Sophia Loren, Almost 80: “I Was Never Considered Photogenic”

Cannes: The great Sophia Loren gave a 90 minute interview today disguised as a “master class.” She told the audience at the Salle Bunuel in the Palais des Festivals “I was never beautiful. I was never considered photogenic.” When one audience member asked if it was important to be beautiful as well as talented in order to be successful, she quickly said “No.” All this coming from maybe the most gorgeous actress ever on the silver screen

The master class, or whatever it was, was set for 4:45pm. Nearly two hours before that, people started lining up in the overheated hallways. Security guards were unprepared for what turned into an onslaught. The whole scene looked like people trying to see The Beatles, not a nearly 80 year old Italian actress.

The Q&A following the interview and nearly as disorganized. And Loren, very cutely, kept slipping from French to Italian and back again, making the translator crazy. She could have spoken in English of course. But that would have been too easy.

At the mention of her great lover and co-star Marcello Mastroianni, Loren, actually teared up, cried a little and had to stop for a second. Of her great movies, she said that in “Arabesque” she “didn’t understand one thing.” She said, of the thriller which co-starred Gregory Peck, “I never knew what I was doing.”

Loren said she agreed to be in the movie musical “Nine” in 2009 to act with Daniel Day-Lewis. She played his mother. “He’s the greatest actor in the world today,” she said.

Loren wore a chic white pants suit studded with Swarovski crystals. She turns 80 this fall, but doesn’t look it or sound it. She said in order to succeed at anything you must be “obsessed”

“You have to be strong every single day,” she added.

Cannes: Anne Sinclair, Wife of DSK, Denounces Abel Ferrara Film

Roger Friedman
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Cannes: Anne Sinclair, Wife of DSK, Denounces Abel Ferrara Film

Anne Sinclair, now or soon to be the ex wife of disgraced French politician Dominique Strauss-Kahn, has denounced the Abel Ferrara film about the couple’s life shown here in Cannes and all over France on Saturday night.

Writing on The World Post, Sinclair calls “Welcome to New York” ‘disgusting.’ She’s correct about a lot of what she says, but she should also thank Jacqueline Bisset for portraying her with sensitivity and intelligence.

Sinclair is Paris editor of The Huffington Post, a partner of the World Post.

She writes:

I will leave it up to viewers and critics to judge this movie — if they ever want to see it. Many have already expressed boredom and other unflattering opinions about it.

I’m not used to expressing my personal feelings here, but as “Simone” is a character that is meant to represent me in Welcome to New York, I would simply like to say how disgusted I am.

I am disgusted with a movie that presents the exposure of Gérard Depardieu’s body as boldness, when it in fact only makes you retch. I am disgusted with the film’s pathetic and ridiculous dialogue, and the way Abel Ferrara represents women throughout the movie — it must illustrate his own drives.

Above all, I also feel disgusted with the so-called confrontation between the two main characters. The film’s writers and producers are only projecting their own fantasies about money and Jewish people.

References to my family during the war are truly degrading and defamatory. They’re the contrary to what really happened. My grandfather had to flee the Nazis. He was deprived of his French citizenship by the Vichy regime. My father joined Free France and fought until the Liberation. Saying anything else is nothing but slander.

I never thought I would have to defend their memories against such anti-Semitic attacks. They’re without a doubt motivated by the director’s own issues, and by the producer’s naked greed.

That being said, I won’t give Abel Ferrara and Vincent Maraval the pleasure of suing them. They already said they wanted — and expected — to be sued. I don’t attack filth. I despise it.

Ryan Gosling Impresses with First Film, “Lost River”

Roger Friedman
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Ryan Gosling Impresses with First Film, “Lost River”

There hasn’t been a bigger crowd anywhere in Cannes this year than the one for Ryan Gosling’s “Lost River.” Reminiscent of a  lot of indie films, “Lost River” nevertheless in an impressive debut as Gosling wrote the sort of post-apocalyptic script and directed it with a real eye. Cinematography is outstanding. Christina Hendricks of “Mad Men” fame is luminous and shows that she should be someone’s lead actress all the time. There’s very nice work from Ben Mendelsohn and Saorise Ronan and a little boy who steals the film. Gosling has certainly been influenced by his own director friend Nicholas Winding Refn. That’s not a bad thing at all.

Cannes: Edward Norton Confuses Chivas for Dewars in Toast, And He’s Sober

Roger Friedman
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Cannes: Edward Norton Confuses Chivas for Dewars in Toast, And He’s Sober

The whirlwind that is Cannes featured a top notch elegant dinner on Friday night: Charles Finch’s annual celebration at the Eden Roc at the Hotel du Cap. Oscar winning director Alfonso Cuaron was honored, as was FilmAid, a great organization that brings film to third world countries. Actor Edward Norton got in the quote of the night when talking about FilmAid: “Scratch an actor, and you’ll find an actress. Scratch a director, and you’ll find two actresses!”

The rest of the night the A list crowd kept expanding on those lines. They included rock star Bryan Ferry, Naomi Watts, Julian Schnabel, Harvey Weinstein, Gael Garcia Bernal, Leah Seydoux, Sony Pictures Classics’ Michael Barker and Tom Bernard, and award winning writer Christopher Hampton, author of “Dangerous Liaisons” among others.

Norton, sober as a judge, thanked Dewars for sponsoring the night. Unfortunately the sponsor was Chivas Regal. That may be the best plug of all. After that, Chivas’ name was never forgotten!

I spent a great part of the evening talking to Paul McGuiness, the manager who created U2 with the group. Last year, he transitioned out of management, selling his company to U2 and handing the reins to Guy Oseary. After 35 years, Paul tells me he wants to go back to his first love: producing films and plays. He’s half owner of a theater in Dublin. My guess is we’ll be hearing his name soon attached to big projects.

PS Bryan Ferry told me he’s playing New York’s Beacon Theater this October. Why isn’t Roxy Music in the Rock Hall of Fame already? One of that idiotic group’s hugest scandals!

Michael Jackson Hologram Gets No Sales Bounce, But Fans Rediscover Grace Jones “Slave to the Rhythm”

Roger Friedman
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Michael Jackson Hologram Gets No Sales Bounce, But Fans Rediscover Grace Jones “Slave to the Rhythm”

Music fans have not responded well to Michael Jackson’s hologram 3D whatever it was visit from the grave on Sunday’s Billboard Music awards.

Jackson’s “Xscape” album is finding favor only on amazon.com, where it’s number 2 this morning in CD sales. But the album is number 5 in digital sales on amazon, and the single “Slave to the Rhythm” is way down the charts.

On iTunes, which is a better bellwether, “Xscape” is number 5. “Slave,” the song that was showcased on the awards, is in the 40s. The Justin Timberlake duet on “Love Never Felt So Good” is in the 20s.

Apparently, the gimmick of Jackson re-animated didn’t have the effect Jackson’s estate was hoping for. The core Jackson fans may be buying multiples of the CD on amazon to keep it afloat chartwise, but in the digital world the larger music audience did not rush to their devices.

And some may be mixing it up with Grace Jones’s 1985 hit “Slave to the Rhythm.” On amazon, the more popular search for a song with that title is Jones’s, not Jackson’s.

 

Cannes: Huge Ovation for “Foxcatcher” with Steve Carell, Now on Oscar Fast Track

Roger Friedman
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Cannes: Huge Ovation for “Foxcatcher” with Steve Carell, Now on Oscar Fast Track

It’s not like Steve Carell hasn’t been good in things other than “The Office.” He’s had very nice performances in “Little Miss Sunshine” and “The Way Way Back,” even “Date Night.” But he plays psychopath John DuPont III in Bennett Miller’s “Foxcatcher” so brilliantly that he’s destined for an Oscar nomination.

Carell’s will be one of many for “Foxcatcher,” which doesn’t open until November. In the meantime, it’s the only film to open at Cannes this year with robust applause at the press screening, calls of “Bravo!” at the press conference, and a 20 minute standing ovation tonight in the Lumiere theater at the Palais.

The audience really went wild for “Foxcatcher” tonight and with good reason. First of all, Cannes has been bereft of really good films. Second, “Foxcatcher” is the real thing. If only Tommy Lee Jones had re-conceptualized “The Homesman” from a novel into a movie. Oh what could have been…

Carell is blown away. He look stunned all day. At the party at the Baoli Beach club on the Croisette, Carell genuinely was having trouble taking it all in. How did he make the transition from comedy to this heavy role? “They– the producers, Bennett Miller– just had this idea I’d be right for it. They called me up. That was that.”

Cannes has been a blur. “I’m standing in a lot of places not knowing what to do,” he told me. “I’m trying to remember specific moments. But it’s all happening so fast.”

The whole cast came to the party, including Channing Tatum and Mark Ruffalo, as well as Jessica Chastain, Sofia Coppola, Willem Dafoe, and Oscar winning director of “The Artist” Michel Hazanavicius. On Wednesday, he premieres “The Search,” shot last year in Georgia (Russia) which filled in for Chechnya. Everyone is begging to see the film early, he told me. Only Harvey Weinstein, who turned “The Artist” into Oscar gold, may have the inside track.

 

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