Is everyone going west in the final season of “Mad Men”? The new trailer for the first part of the last season certainly makes it seem like it. Don, Megan, Betty, Pete, and Roger are all seen in airports in bright sunshine. It looks like it was shot in a suburban LA airport, too, maybe Long Beach. It still looks like the 1960s there. The song playing is “Breakdown” by Alice Russell, a cool current white British soul singer. The lyrics include the phrase “unfamiliar journeys.” We do know that someone is supposed to go to L.A. from Sterling Cooper. A lot of shows go west in their final seasons– think “I Love Lucy.”
Real Housewives: Beverly Hills Show Might Add Faye Resnick, Infamous from OJ Simpson Case
I don’t write about the Real Housewives of anything. I’ve never seen one second of any of their shows and I’m now starting now. But Radar Online is reporting that the Beverly Hills show is considering adding 56 year old Faye Resnick to their lineup to juice up the story lines with tension. That should do it.
We are just two months away from the 20th anniversary of the murder of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman. It happened in June 1994. Hard to believe no? And that’s how we all met Faye Resnick. She cashed in on the murder of her so called “best friend” by publishing a ‘book’. The book detailed Faye’s supposed lesbian relationship with Nicole, their partying and drug taking.
Their other best friend was Kris Kardashian Jenner. You get the picture. They were not what we’d call the Mensa crowd.
Resnick was never a ‘housewife’ as far as I remember. Her back story, which I wrote about in New York magazine, was something out of a soap opera. She was Erica Kane, Alexis Carrington, and Anna Nicole Smith rolled into one. By 1994 she’d already been married three times. Number 2 was a guy named Fadi Halabi, with whom she has a daughter. When I wrote my story, Halabi was a fugitive on a 1983 narcotics possession charge. Number 3 was Paul Resnick, whose daughter told Faye was the worst of her dad’s five wives. In 1989,during that marriage, police were summoned to the Resnick home when Faye shot a gun into her TV set.
But the best part of her history involved a couple named Robert and Pearl Gibson. Resnick inveigled herself into their marriage with terrible results. The couple split, and Faye moved in with Pearl Gibson and her kids. She stayed for six months. until Pearl called the police and accused Faye of assaulting her. Resnick moved in the boyfriend Dr. Christian Reichardt, but they split when her drug problems got worse. That’s when she moved in with Nicole Simpson. She claimed to have bedded Nicole, got a $60,000 advance from a low rent publisher, and the rest is history. The last time I saw her was in the late 90s when she had glommed onto Kathy and Rick Hilton, Paris’s parents.
Would Faye Resnick bring drama to the “Real Housewives”? Undoubtedly. But it would be melo, not mellow, that’s for sure.
My original story — which I see over the years was picked over by web scavengers — still can be read at http://tinyurl.com/klv3zdz
Rolling Stones Keith, Ronnie, and Charlie: “We’re Pulling Together for Mick”
The other members of the Rolling Stones offered these quotes today about the death of L’Wren Scott and the cancellation of their Australian tour. Actually none of the quotes mention L’Wren at all. But they do promise to get back on tour as soon as possible. It’s only rock and roll. I admire their lack of artifice.
Keith Richards:
“No-one saw this coming…Mick’s always been my soul brother and we love him…we’re thick as thieves and we’re all feeling for the man…we really hate to disappoint our fans but we’ll see everyone really soon.”
Ronnie Wood:
“This is such terrible news and right now the important thing is that we are all pulling together to offer Mick our support and help him through this sad time. Without a doubt we intend to be back out on that stage as soon as we can”.
Charlie Watts:
“Needless to say we are all completely shocked but our first thought is to support Mick at this awful time. We intend to come back to Australia and New Zealand as soon as it proves possible.”
Charlie Sheen’s Watch Dealer BFF Sued by John Mayer Over Fake Rolexes
Remember Charlie Sheen’s big meltdown, #WINNING, and all that? The guy at his side all the time was his BFF then, Bob Maron. Maron is the watch dealer to the stars in Hollywood, selling them ridiculously high priced trinkets.
Well, singer-guitar player John Mayer is suing Maron. He alleges that among the $5 million worth of Rolex watches– yes, five million dollars worth of timepieces–he’s found that they all have fake parts.
Mayer discovered this, he says in a lawsuit filed yesterday, when he sent 7 of the watches to Rolex for cleaning and repairs. Rolex told him they were, essentially, counterfeits. Now he wants $656,000 back for the ones that weren’t kosher.
According to the complaint, Maron became a close buddy of Mayer’s, taking family trips with him and going on tour with him. His watch dealer.
Sound familiar? Maron was velcro’d to Charlie Sheen during his descent into madness a few years ago. He answered all calls, set up all deals, ran his Twitter accounts. When Sheen made his famous “broadcasts” from Live Stream, it was Maron calling the shots.
I am always surprised when I see clueless celebs letting certain people into their inner circles. You know it’s going to end badly. I’ve seen it with everyone from Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson to a lot of today’s biggest stars.
Back when all that was happening I wrote a story about Maron making money off of, all people, Gandhi. http://www.showbiz411.com/2011/03/08/charlie-sheen-best-friendadvisor-made-money-off-of-gandhi
Mayer’s complaint notes that Maron has always held himself out as a graduate of Harvard University and of UCLA Law School.
Maybe Charlie Sheen should have all the watches Maron sold him checked out too.
NY Times: L’Wren Scott Was Set to Close Design Business Today
Designer and stylist L’Wren Scott was set to close her design business today. That was probably what instigated her shocking suicide on Monday morning. Cathy Horyn, the departing New York Times fashion editor, reveals this today at the end of a lovely send off to her friend in the paper of record. She writes that rumors of a parting between Scott and Mick Jagger are “rubbish.”
But Horyn does shed some light on Scott’s constant financial problems, as well as why she decided to forgo her fall fashion show last month. Horyn writes: “She was with friends on Sunday night, and, yes, they were deeply concerned about her, but, no, they didn’t think she would do something so desperate. Not L’Wren.”
Well she did, and it’s going to remain a mystery. That’s the story with most suicides. We’re going to debate this one back and forth for some time. This made me think of a great guy, Peter Lopez, a wonderful music attorney and family man in Los Angeles. He was married to actress Catherine Bach. Everyone respected him. But no one knew what was going on in his head when he killed himself four years ago. There is still no answer. Suicide is brutal on the survivors and friends in that way. Same thing for director Tony Scott. We’re never going to know what happened.
“Game of Thrones”: NY Philharmonic Plays Theme Song at Star Studded Premiere
“Game of Thrones” is back on April 6th for its fourth season, same night as the premiere of my favorite show, “Veep,” both on HBO. Last night spent the big bucks on “Game of Thrones” with a truly lavish premiere at Lincoln Center and in Avery Fisher Hall. They hired the New York Philharmonic orchestra to come on stage and play the series’ theme music and some of its score before Episode 1 was screened. The show’s composer, Ramin Djawadi, got to conduct. This is a big deal.
The screening was followed by a swanky dinner at the American Museum of Natural History, under the suspended whale. Some of the guests included director Joel Coen with his Oscar winning wife Frances McDormand, and son Pedro; double Oscar winner Sally Field accompanied actor Charles Dance, who stars in “Game of Thones, plus Oscar winning writer director Terry George (“Hotel Rwanda”) was there along with many members of the huge cast including Emilia Clarke, Peter Dinklage, a tattooed Lena Headey, and British superstar veteran actress Diana Rigg, aka Emma Peel from every boy’s fantasy circa 1966 in the real “Avengers.” One of our favorite young actors, Evan Jongkeit, came with girlfriend Zosia Mamet from “Girls.”
HBO dressed up the Lincoln Center plaza with white tents for the red carpet, and a large menacing looking dragon. Dragons are very big in “Game of Thrones.” As the ever cute, adorable Emilia Clarke explained, “My character gave birth to them, now they live under her bed. It’s a long story.” Emilia is filming the new “Terminator” movie during her break before returning to “Thrones” in July.
What happens in “Game of Thrones”? A lot of people get stabbed to death and there will be blood. Definitely a lot of blood. A lot of threats are made. Peter Dinklage, who plays Tyrion Lannister, manages to meet every challenge despite the odds of annihilation by several terrible means. Peter has come a long way since his big 2003 debut in “The Station Agent.” He’s the linchpin in this group of medieval maniacs.
I ran into Amanda Peet. Her husband, David Benioff, is one of the creators of “Game of Thrones.” Amanda, always in demand as an actress, just had a great run with her first play “The Commons of Pensacola” here in New York. She told me she’s working on a new one and she, at least, a native New Yorker, was sympathetic to my complaints about drivers in Los Angeles. Next time, I’m hiring one of those flying dragons to take me around!
PS Tonight don’t forget to check out HBO’s terrific “Doll & Em.” I forgot to mention this, but some of Episode 6 takes place in the famed J.Sheeky restaurant in London. The restaurant’s equally famed front of house guy, John Andrews, has a speaking part. He’s terrific!
Mick Jagger Statement on L’Wren Scott: “I Will Never Forget Her”
Mick Jagger has posted this statement on his website about L’Wren Scott:
I am still struggling to understand how my lover and best friend could end her life in this tragic way.
We spent many wonderful years together and had made a great life for ourselves.
She had great presence and her talent was much admired, not least by me.
I have been touched by the tributes that people have paid to her, and also the personal messages of support that I have received.
I will never forget her,
Mick
Death of L’Wren Scott Affects Mick Jagger, Stones Family As Daughter Cancels Fashion Show
The death of L’Wren Scott is affecting not just Mick Jagger but his whole family and the Stones family. Daughter Georgia May Jagger has pulled out of a fashion show in Melbourne, Australia this week following the tragic news. Georgia and her siblings–the children of Jerry Hall–thought of Scott if not as a stepmother as someone as they were very close to. Even Mick’s ex wife Bianca Jagger sent out a Tweet last night and another this morning:
"Appalled at the sexist reporting, lack of compassion and lack of respect for L’Wren’s accomplishments by most world media. #everydaysexism"
— Bianca Jagger (@BiancaJagger) March 18, 2014
Heartbroken to learn of the loss of the lovely and talented L'Wren Scott. My thoughts and prayers are with her family. May she rest in peace
— Bianca Jagger (@BiancaJagger) March 17, 2014
UPDATE: Rolling Stones Cancel Australia-New Zealand Tour Completely After Death of L’Wren Scott
UPDATE TUESDAY 2:14PM: The Stones have canceled their entire tour.
From the band’s manager:
The postponed shows are:
Perth Arena – 19 March – postponed
Adelaide Oval – 22 March – postponed
Sydney Allphones Arena – 25 March – postponed
Melbourne Rod Laver Arena – 28 March – postponed
Macedon Ranges Hanging Rock – 30 March – postponed
Brisbane Entertainment Centre – 2 April – postponed
Auckland Mt Smart Stadium – 5 April – postponed
Australia/New Zealand promoters ask ticket holders to please hold on to their tickets until further notice. A new schedule of dates is presently being worked on and will be advised as soon as possible. Information will be made available via rollingstones.com and frontiertouring.com as soon as available.
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EARLIER The Rolling Stones have canceled their first show on their Australian tour– and more are likely to come in light of the tragic death of L’Wren Scott, Mick Jagger’s girlfriend. The Stones were about to launch a sold out six date tour in Australia and New Zealand, much anticipated. But Jagger must be completely knocked out with grief after Scott’s suicide yesterday. He issued one statement saying he was “shocked and devastated.” But what else could he say at the moment when he heard it? The Australia tour is likely to be cancelled now as Jagger will have to come back to the U.S. for Scott’s funeral.
Reports from Australia say the tour is likely to be cancelled and that promoter Frontiers West is trying to rebook the dates.
Scott’s death is only now just resonating through the celebrity world. For one thing, she was a completely successful stylist well before she started dating Jagger. But by 2006, well into the Jagger relationship, Scott started her own clothing business. The business never broke wide– it was all tied up in pieces for celebrity friends. Now it’s been revealed that she is in at least $6 million worth of debt. The sad truth seems to be that she couldn’t bring herself to ask for help from Jagger or her friends.
HBO Scores an Off Beat Hit with Emily Mortimer in “Doll & Em”
HBO keeps looking for a half hour hit with grand gestures. Will “Sex and the City” or “Entourage” ever be replicated? “Veep” is the nearest thing they have to that kind of perfection.
On Wednesday, the cable network will debut a show they didn’t make, brought in from Sky TV in London but set mostly in Hollywood. The six episode series is called “Doll & Em,” produced by actor Alessandro Nivola, co-written by and co-starring his actress wife Emily Mortimer with her childhood best friend Dolly Wells. It falls like a blessing from the sky.
The premise is that the fictional Emily and Dolly are also best friends. Like real life Mortimer, Em is a British successful actress living in New York. Just as she goes to Hollywood to make a movie, Em’s best friend Dolly breaks up with her boyfriend in London. So Em invites Doll to come with her and be her assistant.
“Doll & Em” is a comedy, but it’s also quite dark and gets quite dramatic in places. There are plenty of knowing laughs, too, about the inside workings of Hollywood and of the actors’ life. But it’s more grounded than just that as Dolly starts to become Emily. It’s “All About Eve” with a major twist. It’s also very subtly and skillfully textured. The women are best friends. But there are complicated layers to the friendship. Those layers are peeled back very cleverly by Mortimer and Wells. We watched the six episodes back to back last night at a screening. But it will be worth the wait to go week by week, believe me.
We know Emily Mortimer from Woody Allen’s “Match Point” and Aaron Sorkin’s “The Newsroom” among other projects. Wells is known in London but this will bring her to a new audience. They are smart, funny, attractive. You start out thinking this is an update on “Absolutely Fabulous” but then you realize– everyone is sober, and serious.”Doll & Em” is all about nuance.
Frankly, the people involved could have made “Doll &Em” as a two hour indie film, gone to Sundance, etc and it would have been a big hit. It’s that good. But it is episodic. Scruffy New York native Azazel Jacobs, who wrote the scripts with Mortimer and Wells, told me: “I felt freed from having to make transitions that would have been forced.” He definitely sees the potential for a second six episode series. Viewers will want it, too.
Last night’s screening brought a very cool crowd: Maggie Gyllenhaal and Peter Sarsgaard, Mark Ruffalo, and Mykhail Baryshnikov were among the guests. Oscar Isaac arrived, having just wrapped — literally Sunday night– J.C. Chandor’s new film with Chastain and Nivola himself, who played the deliciously slimy D.A. this past season in “American Hustle.”
Not at the screening, but look for hilarious cameos in “Doll & Em” from Susan Sarandon, John Cusack and Andy Garcia.
PS Emily told me the third and final season of “The Newsroom” begins in a few days. And no, she has not seen a script, and has no idea what this season’s story will be.