This item originally ran on February 19th.

Oscar voting has closed, so I can say this: Robert DeNiro can do anything. And so now, the nominee for “Silver Linings Playbook” is taking on his bravest project yet. He’s going to direct the Broadway musical of “A Bronx Tale,” the movie he directed in 1993. Chazz Palminteri, who wrote the original movie and acted in and the Broadway play (which he also wrote), is writing the book for the musical now. David Bryan of Bon Jovi, who won the Tony for “Memphis,” is writing the songs. (Expect a lot of doo wop– they should call Richard Perry.) Sergio Trujillo — of Jersey Boys and Addams Family fame– is working on the choreography.

I know all this because the one and only Tommy Mottola is producing the musical, and he told me all about it yesterday. (Mottola is in partnership with Broadway’s The Dodgers.) Tommy and I were talking about his own musical memoir, the autobiography called “Hitmaker” in book stores now. Mottola called me from Miami where he’s working on two more books–including one about the Latin culture and “the whole demographic.” Mottola is also working on a musical version of Curtis Mayfield’s “Superfly,” directed by Bill T. Jones– aimed for Broadway next winter. Curtis Mayfield is hot hot hot–first “Sparkle,” now “Superfly.”

Well, Tommy is a man for all seasons. And he’s reinventing himself as a Broadway tycoon, a new David Merrick. And let me tell you, he’s going to do it, too!

This item originally ran on February 25th.

For years and years LaToya Jackson tried to make money off of her famous brother Michael. Nothing worked, even though La Toya tried publishing books, making records, and appearances. She wrote critically of Michael, too. But now she’s figured out a way to get money from Michael even though he left her nothing in his estate. La Toya is the agent-manager for Michael’s 16 year old son Prince. She’s just cut a deal for him to be in the CW revival series of “Beverly Hills 90210.”

Maybe the trade papers don’t realize that Ja-Tail is LaToya’s company. She also cut the deal for him to be on “Entertainment Tonight.” So LaToya will now be taking commissions on Prince’s work. Soon will come deals for Paris. Michael didn’t want his kids to work as children. He famous resented losing his own childhood, and feared the same for his kids. But he’s dead, and his wishes apparently matter not at all to the Jacksons.

I am told there’s a proposal making the rounds once again for some kind of reality show featuring Jacksons which Ja-Tail is likely behind. It never ends.

Justin Bieber may be getting tired of being a sock puppet. His 19th birthday would be a wake up call if he could see past the trees in his forest made up of bodyguards and publicists. Bieber is on the road, touring in the UK, and he’s alone. He was alone on his 19th birthday. He sent out a sad little Tweet just before, reminding people– especially manager Scooter Braun– that it was his birthday was coming up–tweeting ittle reminders in case anyone in his camp back home had forgotten. Early in the day he wrote “Big night ahead…Gonna be fun tonight.” But this was the result after all that:

Worst birthday

— Justin Bieber (@justinbieber) March 2, 2013

 

 

How can you not feel bad for this kid? No family, no education, a teen life that’s been spent making money for other people. Now he turns 19, and his posse–lots of security–gets thrown out of a London club. By all accounts they wind up at McDonalds. Where’s the party? Where’s the mother? (She Tweeted a hello.) Where’s the manager, who’s made millions and millions? Braun is in LA. He Tweets:

Spoke to the kid and wished him happy bday. He is gonna go hard tonight and well deserved. @justinbieber enjoy your day! Happy 19th Bday!!

— Scooter Braun (@scooterbraun) March 1, 2013

When I saw that, I thought of Colonel Parker, who never left Elvis’s side. Brian Epstein, who went everywhere with the Beatles. Frank DiLeo with Michael Jackson. All the managers I’ve ever met on the road with their superstar clients. Troy Carter with Lady Gaga. Michael Lippman with Rob Thomas, matchbox twenty, etc. Kathy Schenker with Sting.  These managers stick like glue to their artists.

And Bieber is generating bundles of cash at a very young age. Leaving him alone, especially on a birthday, seems odd.  Bieber and Braun rarely seem to be in the same city together. Followers of Braun’s Twitter account go with him all over the world- skiing, at world seminars, raising money for his charity. The one Tweet he never seems to send out is: “Backstage with Justin Bieber.”

Braun is obviously successful– and busy now that he’s taken on a bunch of other pop acts including Tori Kelly. He also has a huge interest in his Pencils of Promise charity– which is to be applauded. Bieber travels with a childhood friend, Ryan Butler, and lots of people to protect him. But pictures from his birthday that came out in British papers were, again, sad. This scrawny little kid, trying to put on muscles, adding tattoos, wearing Ann Murray’s hair cut from 1978.  Is this a life? Something tells me that in five years we’re going to hear that he was alone, had no childhood, etc. It’s an old song, but Bieber’s going to singing it by 2019.

I liked the “Boob Song” on the Oscars last Sunday, but, I’m a guy, and it seemed okay to me. Then my friend Jane Fonda, who is smarter than me especially on these subjects, explained why it was wrong on her blog.  Fonda, who stole the Oscar show in a yellow Versace gown, didn’t look too happy by the time she and Michael Douglas– who costarred in the classic film “The China Syndrome”–  presented Best Director to Ang Lee. I could see she had other things on her mind. She wrote later about the Oscars:

“What I really didn’t like was the song and dance number about seeing actresses boobs. I agree with someone who said, if they want to stoop to that, why not list all the penises we’ve seen? Better yet, remember that this is a telecast seen around the world watched by families with their children and to many this is neither appropriate or funny. I also didn’t like the remark made about Quvenzhane and Clooney, or the stuff out of Ted’s mouth and all the comments about what women do to get thin for their dresses. Waaaay too much stuff about women and bodies, as though that’s what defines us.”

And it’s not like Jane isn’t fun or into subversive humor. But she’s right, and we–Seth MacFarlane and I–are wrong. Jane was recently on Piers Morgan explaining to a substitute host why it was important to protest Violence Against Women on Valentine’s Day. The host–a woman–wanted to know what Jane thought women should buy men for Valentine’s Day gifts. I couldn’t help thinking that Jane–who again, didn’t look so pleased–must have been wondering if any progress had been made since her character in “The China Syndrome”–some 30 or so years ago–wanted to do serious news instead of cover bake offs.

Our LEAH SYDNEY covered the Women in Film gathering over Oscar weekend. Women In Film is important because they’re always trying to raise awareness of the message Hollywood sends around the world about women. Last Sunday the message was– it’s’ funny to sing about boobs. In private, maybe, or at a comedy club. In front of a billion people, no.

Leah writes:

Oscar winner Octavia Spencer and producer Cathy Schulman co-hosted Women In Film 6th Annual Cocktail Party, sponsored by Perrier-Jouet, M.A.C. Cosmetics and MaxMara at Fig & Olive.  Spencer’s “The Help” co-stars Viola Davis and later Jessica Chastain came out in support. Octavia waxed poetic about Cathy and how hard she works for women’s betterment in Hollywood.  Spencer then told the VIP crowd that, “if it wasn’t for so many women paving the way for a funny looking black girl with crooked teeth from Montgomery Alabama, I wouldn’t be here. These visionaries made it possible for me.  Hey, I’m not Halle Berry.  I like the silver linings in life.  I’m a forward thinking person, I kind of have to be.”

WIF always attracts the A list in Hollywood and this year was no exception.  Jessica Chastain, along with her beau Gian Luca Passe de Preposulo, came towards the end of the event because she encountered a traffic snafu on Sunset Blvd.  Longtime supporter David O. Russell also stopped in and caught up with Daniel Radcliffe.  Nine- year old nominee Quvenzhane Wallis, Molly Sims, Jenna Elfman, Jared Harris, Gia Mantegna, Jackie Weaver, Kate Walsh, Lucy Alibar, Stacey Sher, Ilene Kahn Power, Molly Sims, Jenna Elfman and more A listers also attended.

Cathy told us: “According to as study commissioned by the organization, in the last 11 years, only 41 of 1,100 films have been directed by women. It’s actually a horrendously terrible statistic. ”

She later told the crowd “Kathryn Bigelow’s success should be the norm, not the exception.”

Valerie Bertinelli on the passing of Bonnie Franklin, who played her mother for nine seasons on “One Day at a Time”: “My heart is breaking. Bonnie has always been one of the most important women in my life and was a second mother to me. The years on “One Day At A Time” were some of the happiest of my life, and along with Pat and Mackenzie we were a family in every way. She taught me how to navigate this business and life itself with grace and humor, and to always be true to yourself. I will miss her terribly.”

Franklin passed away today at age 69 from pancreatic cancer. Franklin and Bertinelli bonded as mother and daughter because of Valerie’s age, and also because the show was full of turmoil backstage. MacKenzie Phillips had her drug addiction, and she came and went as the show went on.

Franklin was a favorite at CBS, says former network honcho Fred Rappoport. Norman Lear, as the story goes, saw Franklin on Broadway in the musical  “Applause” with Lauren Bacall. He literally plucked her out of the show made her the star of “One Day at a Time.”

“She was a wonderful person, talented, always classy and candid, great at CBS as part of the network family,” recalls Rappoport. “The show show was always creatively stronger when the stories were from Bonnie’s character’s perspective – not the kids and not Pat Harrington as Schneider the handyman.”

Franklin — who had a great voice — frequently appeared in CBS specials and on the Tony Awards. Her husband of 29 years, Marvin Minoff, died in 2009. He’d been a partner of actor Mike Farrell’s (from MASH), and of David Frost.