Clippers owner Donald Sterling sat down with Anderson Cooper for an interview. If we didn’t get it before, we do now. Sterling is officially the most disgusting person in the U.S. Maybe he has a lot of competition, but the media exposure following the tapes and the NBA ruling gives him an edge. This is a reprehensible and irredeemable person who should just keep his mouth shut for good. How he got this far in life is beyond comprehension.
Clippers: Donald Sterling Is the Most Disgusting Person in the US, Officially
Tiger Woods’ Ex Wife Elin Wasn’t So Dumb After All: Watch Her Accept College Degree
When Tiger Woods’ many affairs were revealed, no one thought much of his wife, Elin Nordegren. She seemed like the usual dumb blonde trophy wife. But that’s the problem when we underestimate people who don’t rush to give interviews. Elin, 34, graduated from Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida this weekend. She was chosen by the school to address her class at the graduation because was so impressive. Here’s her speech. Tiger Woods didn’t deserve her. She starts by quoting Carl Jung. And yes, she makes a few jokes about her divorce. Good for her.
“X Men” Press Conference: No Mention at all of Director Bryan Singer
It’s “X Men: Days of Future Past” weekend in New York. That means press junket, screening, press conference. The report from today’s press conference is that director Bryan Singer has been erased entirely from the proceedings. There was not only no appearance by him, but no mention of his name. According to my sources, there was no mention of a director at all.
Singer, of course, recused himself from all press doings after lawsuits were filed against him last month alleging sexual misbehavior with underage boys. Singer denies the charges. But his participation in the promotion of “Days of Future Past” would have distracted everyone.
Still, it’s a little weird that no one even refers to him. Did the movie direct itself?
One other thing: I am told by people who saw the film that when the X Men travel back in time, Richard Nixon is regarded as a “good guy.” I don’t know what that means, but it can’t be good.
We’ll have a more official report later from the “X Men” junket…
“Spider Man” Trounced by “Neighbors” and Shirtless Zac Efron
Well, pushing Zac Efron shirtless did the trick for Seth Rogen’s “Neighbors.” The comedy trounced “The Amazing Spider Man 2,” taking in a whopping $19.6 million on Friday night vs. $10.1 million for Spidey. Holy moley, Peter Parker! “Neighbors” could make $50 million plus for the weekend– a big number for a comedy. Universal marketing can congratulate itself on a fine job. Promotion for “Neighbors” has been relentless. These people have been everywhere. There isn’t a person between the ages of 14 and 29 who hasn’t seen or heard about Efron’s abs. They’re the 2014 equivalent of Betty Grable’s legs. (Look her up, kids.) More to come…
Cannes Exclusive : “DSK” Movie “Welcome to NY” Eyeing Surprise Midnight Screening
EXCLUSIVE: Director Abel Ferrara is such an indie director that boxofficemojo.com doesn’t even index him by name. His most successful movie might be “The Bad Lieutenant.” It made $2 million in 1992. Most people probably don’t know who he is.
But that’s all about to change. The word from France is that Ferrara’s “DSK” movie, “Welcome to New York,” will get a surprise screening, probably a midnight show, on May 16th. That’s because Wild Bunch lets “Welcome to New York” loose all over Europe on May 17th.
Just a couple of days earlier, on May 14th, Wild Bunch is releasing “Welcome” on Video on Demand and the internet all over France. They decided to bypass theaters and go straight out to as many people as possible as quickly as they could. It’s a very clever idea. (IFC Films will release it in the U.S.)
Famed French actor Gerard Depardieu and 2014 Golden Globe winner Jacqueline Bisset star in “Welcome to New York,” a thinly disguised version of the real life story of former IMF director Dominique Straus-Kahn and his journalist wife Anne Sinclair. DSK, as he is known, was accused of sexually assaulting a hotel maid in New York in mid May 2011, exactly three years ago. He was prevented from leaving New York while his fate was decided. The result was an international scandal. His wealthy wife stood by him until they returned to France, and then dumped him.
In Ferrara’s film, Depardieu plays a professor named Devereaux married to a wealthy woman who fuels his political ambitions. He winds up in a New York hotel room, and we know the rest.
One description of the film, on the IMDB, reads: “Mr. Devereaux is a powerful man. A man who handles billions of dollars every day. A man who controls the economic fate of nations. A man driven by a frenzied and unbridled sexual hunger. A man who dreamed of saving the world and who cannot save himself. A terrified man. A lost man.”
I am told that the screening remains shrouded in secrecy because DSK’s lawyers are said to be sniffing around, looking for trouble. They haven’t seen the movie so far. But I guess they will on the 14th, on TV, the same day Cannes officially opens. Sacre bleu!
Other cast members include Drena DeNiro, stepdaughter of Robert DeNiro and daughter of Diahnne Abbott, as well as veteran actors Ronald Guttman and Paul Hipp.
NBA Scores: Turns LA Clippers Over to Richard Parsons, Former Time Warner Chairman
Stick a fork in Donald Sterling. There’s a new sheriff in town and his name is Richard Parsons. Dick Parsons, as we know him, is the former chairman of Time Warner, a guiding light of the Apollo Theater in Harlem, and owner of two cool restaurants on West 118th St. Now Adam Silver and the NBA have put him in charge of the Clippers while they sort out forcing Sterling to sell the team. Parsons is the perfect choice. He will restore confidence in the team, the league and the sport. Another good move by Silver.
Here’s the release:
NBA NAMES DICK PARSONS INTERIM CEO OF LOS ANGELES CLIPPERS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
The National Basketball Association has named former Citigroup chairman and former Time Warner chairman and CEO Dick Parsons the interim CEO of the Los Angeles Clippers, effective immediately, it was announced today by Commissioner Adam Silver. Parsons is currently a senior advisor at Providence Equity Partners and sits on the board of directors for the Commission on Presidential Debates.
“I believe the hiring of Dick Parsons will bring extraordinary leadership and immediate stability to the Clippers organization,” said Silver. “Dick’s credentials as a proven chief executive speak for themselves and I am extremely grateful he accepted this responsibility.”
“Like most Americans, I have been deeply troubled by the pain the Clippers’ team, fans and partners have endured,” said Parsons. “A lifelong fan of the NBA, I am firmly committed to the values and principles it is defending, and I completely support Adam’s leadership in navigating the challenges facing the team and the league. The Clippers are a resilient organization with a brilliant coach and equally talented and dedicated athletes and staff who have demonstrated great strength of character during a time of adversity. I am honored to be asked to work with them, build on their values and accomplishments, and help them open a new, inspiring era for their team.”
After attending the University of Hawaii, where he played basketball, Parsons earned a law degree from Albany Law School in 1971 and began his distinguished legal career as a staff lawyer for New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller. When Rockefeller was appointed Vice President of the United States, Parsons followed him to Washington, where he also worked closely with President Gerald Ford.
Parsons returned to New York in 1977 and became a partner and ultimately managing partner of the law firm of Patterson, Belknap, Webb & Tyler. In 1988, Parsons left his law firm to become president and then chairman and CEO of Dime Bancorp, Inc. Parsons began his long and distinguished career at Time Warner in 1995, joining as president and then becoming chairman and CEO from 2002 until 2008. In 2009, after retiring from Time Warner, he served as chairman of Citigroup until stepping down from that position in 2012.
Parsons’ extensive list of accomplishments also includes having served as a member of President Barack Obama’s economic advisory team.
“American Idol” : 900K Viewers Tune out from Wednedsay to Thursday
Last night’s “American Idol” results show scored such low ratings even I can’t believe it– a 1.6 in the key demo and just 7.07 million viewers. The demo was down from Wednesday’s 1.8 rating. But the total viewership is now threatening to sink below 7 million. This means around 900,000 people decamped from Wednesday to Thursday. What happened? Didn’t they want to know who was eliminated and who stayed? Crazy.
Broadway News: Hugh Jackman, Holly Knight’s “Battlefield,” “On the Town”
Some notes from Broadway: Holly Knight wrote Pat Benatar’s big hit “Love is a Battlefield.” She also wrote Tina Turner’s “Simply the Best” and “Better Be Good to Me” and at least two dozen more radio staples. So why not try a jukebox musical? “Battlefield,” directed by Dan Knechtges, will get a workshop reading in New York in mid- June. Greg Jackson and Erin Quinn Purcell wrote the book. Could this be a sequel of sorts to “Rock of Ages”? Could very well be…
Hugh Jackman’s coming back to Broadway this fall. The once and always Wolverine will segue from hosting the Tony Awards to rehearsing for a new straight play — no music– called “The River” and written by Jez Butterworth. He’s the author of the acclaimed “Jerusalem” and “Mojo,” which played last year in the West End as a revival and I wish would come to New York also.
“The River” co-stars newcomers (at least to Broadway) Laura Donnelly and Cush Jumbo. And it’s going to be in the smallish Circle in the Square theater, a theater in the round, so to speak. The crush for tickets will therefore be terrifying.
You’ve got to give Hugh Jackman credit. Like Daniel Radcliffe, he just keeps coming back every other season and trying interesting material. And of course, the fall season has become the time to do that…
…Here comes a revival of “On the Town.” The Comden-Green-Leonard Bernstein musical opens October 16th at the Lyric Theater. No cast yet, but let’s hope whoever’s singing “New York New York”– the Bronx is up and the Battery’s down-– is great. This means that “On the Town” will open week before Sting’s much anticipated “The Last Ship” on October 23rd. And a couple of weeks before Hugh Jackman. The fall season is suddenly getting crazy since we’ll also have James Earl Jones in “You Can’t Take it With You”…
Robin Hood Foundation: At Least a Dozen Execs Make Over $250K a Year Including Brother of Amazon Founder
This weekend it’s time for the annual Robin Hood Foundation gala. This is a dinner for multi-billionaires who donate large chunks of money, place humungous bids on auction items like a week on a remote island while being serenaded by the Rolling Stones. Stuff like that. The Foundation dispensed around $135 million a year to causes in the New York area in 2012
But it’s also good to work at the Robin Hood Foundation. It’s not like their executives are Mother Theresa. At least a dozen people on the staff earn more than $250,000 a year– a lot more. One of them is Mark Bezos, brother of Amazon founder and multibillionaire Jeff Bezos. He gets $371.000 a year according to the Robin Hood tax filing for 2012.
Mark Bezos is often written about because he’s a volunteer firefighter in Westchester County, New York. (He lives with his family in way upscale Scarsdale, far from the not exactly Sherwood Forest.) He may be the highest paid volunteer firefighter in the world. Mark Bezos is also on the board of the Bezos Family Foundation.
Bezos is not the highest paid Robin Hood exec. That distinction goes to David Saltzman– $646,406. Runners up are Michael Weinstein at $523,328; and Deborah Winshel, $502,377. The lowest salary among the dozen is $256,599.
Total salaries for Robin Hood come to $15 million.
Nice work, if you can get it.
Michael Jackson May Appear as Performing Hologram on TV Music Awards Show
EXCLUSIVE He isn’t dead five years, but Michael Jackson is coming back to perform on TV. I’m told that Jackson will appear on the Billboard Music Awards as a dancing, singing hologram to promote his new “Xscape” album. Sources say Jackson will appear “through an amazing new technology.” The show airs on May 18th. Is it exploitation or just something cool? Or ghoul?
The technology for this “once in a lifetime event” that was referred to in a press release this morning may be coming from a Japanese company in which Sony Music is an investor. There are already hologram music videos on YouTube. There’s also been speculation that soon holograms would be used by living performers. But dead ones? The possibility of seeing Elvis and all other deceased stars is a startling one at best.
Something similar was done with Tupac Shakur as a CGI kind of hologram at the Coachella Music Festival in 2012. But as far as I know, no one’s done that on TV.
Production staff associated with the Billboard Music Awards have been sworn to absolute secrecy– and say they haven’t been told very much at all. But an insider tells me that the description of Michael as a hologram “is not wrong.”
It’s unclear whether Jackson’s hologram or technological self would perform alone or interact with someone from his new album– like Justin Timberlake. Timberlake was grafted onto a 30 year old recording of Jackson singing a Paul Anka song on the new album. I guess anything is possible.
And how will Jackson’s family feel seeing their father, son, brother back on stage?
Here’s the Tupac ‘holgram’: