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Oscars Will Toast Last 10 Years of Musicals–Jennifer Hudson, Tom Cruise, Meryl Streep Could Be Singing

Roger Friedman
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Oscars Will Toast Last 10 Years of Musicals–Jennifer Hudson, Tom Cruise, Meryl Streep Could Be Singing

UPDATE: The Academy just sent out a press release confirming the story. So nice. Everybody wins. It’s going to be a very good show. The tribute will be to Movie Musicals of the Last Decade– starting with “Chicago” and including “Hairspray,” “Mamma Mia,” “Enchanted,” and –hmmm??– the failed “Rock of Ages.” But also “Sweeney Todd,” “Dreamgirls,” etc. Could mean Jennifer Hudson, Johnny Depp, and even– yes– Tom Cruise. Why not? Bring him on! (What will they do about the “South Park” musicals? Fun!)

Earlier: I told you right at the start that with producers Neil Meron and Craig Zadan we’d be getting a big musical Oscars. The award winning producers of “Chicago” and “Hairspray” were chosen because of their strengths. They’ve already gotten Adele to sing “Skyfall”–and maybe more. Baz Bamigboye, writing in the UK Daily Mail Friday morning, reports that Meron and Zadan are planning a tribute to movie musicals.

They are said to want Meryl Streep and John Travolta (not sure why) plus Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway, nominated from this year’s “Les Miserables,” as well as their co-star Samantha Barks. “Les Miz” might not win the Oscar but it’s going to be featured heavily on that show.

http://tinyurl.com/azp3ysm

They’ve already got Rob Ashford to help them with the choreography. But there are plenty of others including Amy Adams, who’s a phenomenal singer. And why not re-stage the dance number from “Silver Linings Playbook” with Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence? Or the dancing from “The Artist” since Jean DuJardin is coming back to present Best Actress this year? The possibilities are endless!

“Star Wars” New Director, J.J. Abrams, Started Career with Harrison Ford and Steven Spielberg

Roger Friedman
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“Star Wars” New Director, J.J. Abrams, Started Career with Harrison Ford and Steven Spielberg

Wunderkind J.J. Abrams is the new director of “Star Wars.” It makes sense. One of his first big film assignments was writing “Regarding Henry,” starring Han Solo himself, Harrison Ford. So we know Ford will be in the mix. (I already know that Carrie Fisher is in, from sources close to the actress.) Even before “Regarding Henry,” Abrams worked for Steven Spielberg cataloging his archives.

So it all makes sense that the guy who brought us “Alias” and “Lost” and revived both “Mission: Impossible” and “Star Trek” would finally get a shot at the series that inspired him in the first place. But Abrams did tell Empire Magazine last month that he’d turned “Star Wars” down. A friend of his told me: “It wasn’t about the money. He doesn’t need any money. But he loves magic, and Star Wars was his first love.”

More to come, but it does seem like “Star Wars” is in good hands.

 

“Koch” Premiere Will Be a Reunion of Every New York Politician Living (and Dead)

Roger Friedman
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0
“Koch” Premiere Will Be a Reunion of Every New York Politician Living (and Dead)

This is going to be wild. I never write about movie premieres before they happen. But the one set for next week for “Koch,” the documentary about Ed Koch, is going to be a memorable one. Look at the list that follows. I hope someone films this. How can any of these people stay away? It’s too crazy. Each guest will get a rubber bat and a water pistol. Seriously. Two names I don’t see here: Rudy Giuliani and Mike Bloomberg. Also, no mention of Bess Meyerson. But still…Maybe they’ll crash…

2013 Mayoral candidates: Public Advocate Bill DeBlasio, Former MTA Chairman Joe Llohta, City Council Speaker Christine Quinn, Former NYC Controller Bill Thompson.

2013 Public Advocate candidates: City Councilwoman Letitia James, Reshma Saujani, State Senator Daniel Squadron.

2013 Controller candidate: Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer.

Appearing in the film: Rev. Calvin Butts, Koch Chief of Staff Diane Coffey, Former Bronx Borough President Freddy Ferrer, Koch senior adviser John LoCicero, Former State Controller Carl McCall.

Also attending: Former Park Commissioner Gordon Davis, Former Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum, Rep. Nita Lowey, Former MTA Lieutenant Governor Richard Ravitch.

Invited: Governor Andrew Cuomo, Former Mayor David Dinkins, Rep. Carolyn Maloney, Rep. Grace Meng, Former NYC Controller Harrison Goldin, Former Governor Mario Cuomo, Rep. Yvette Clark.

Barry Manilow Felled by Flu– Postpones Broadway Opening Tonight and All Weekend Shows

Roger Friedman
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Barry Manilow Felled by Flu– Postpones Broadway Opening Tonight and All Weekend Shows

Poor Barry Manilow. He’s missed the first two previews of his Broadway debut. And now he’s cancelled tonight’s opening and all the weekend shows. He’s got a bad case of the flu. It really knocked him out, apparently. And you know Barry does not have stage fright. He’s been sick as a dog for days. His last appearance as on “Katie.” Hmmm…Maybe that was it! Just kidding. A statement from the publicist: MANILOW ON BROADWAY will resume performances on Tuesday, January 29.  It turns out the only thing worse than hell and high water is bronchitis.  Barry is deeply sorry to disappoint his fans and is doing everything he can to ensure a speedy recovery.”

Oscar Gold: “Zero Dark Thirty” Director Kathryn Bigelow on Cover of Time

Roger Friedman
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0
Oscar Gold: “Zero Dark Thirty” Director Kathryn Bigelow on Cover of Time

This is like hitting Oscar gold with one sweep: “Zero Dark Thirty” director Kathryn Bigelow has made the cover of Time. Pretty cool. No personal stuff, just all about the film and little of her history. (So still no mention of what the status is of her relationship with screenwriter Mark Boal. Oh well, this isn’t People, after all!) Old friend Willem Dafoe tells writer Jessica Winter:

“Kathryn then is the same Kathryn now,” Dafoe says. “She’s attracted to something instinctively, and then she researches it, and her research becomes an adventure. In the late ’70s there was a lot of interest in rockabilly and appreciation of ’50s outlaw culture, so she would go to clubs to scout people for their look and style, and worry about coaxing a performance out of them later. She was so interested in the slang and the idiom and the ritual of that world, which wasn’t really of her own experience. And she’s still interested in learning the language and rituals of hidden worlds. Just look at her titles–Hurt Locker, Zero Dark Thirty. It’s like coded language and she’s cracking the code.” (Zero Dark Thirty’s title is a tweak of “oh-dark-thirty,” a military term for half past midnight.)

It’s over at www.time.com

New Coen Brothers’ Film “Inside Llewyn Davis” With Oscar Isaac, John Goodman (Trailer)

Roger Friedman
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0

“Inside Llewyn Davis” is the new Coen Brothers’ movie. It has no distributor yet, although their last few films have been with Focus/Universal. The film takes place circa 1960 in Greenwich Village, the folk scene. Oscar Isaac, Carey Mulligan, and John Goodman star. If this film isn’t great, I will be very disappointed. But I do think it already that Barton Fink feeling to it. Trailer:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lajRQtj3gs

 

Scientology Sued Over Never-Opened ‘Money Pit’ $100 Million Building in Florida

Roger Friedman
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4
Scientology Sued Over Never-Opened ‘Money Pit’ $100 Million Building in Florida

In the end Scientology will be taken down over money. Interesting, huh? A wealthy couple from Irvine, California are suing the Church of Scientology and its leader David Miscavige for fraud. Long time members of the cult, Luis and Rocio Garcia filed in federal court in Tampa, Florida. They say they’ve invested in something Scientology calls the “Super Power Building” in Clearwater, Florida that was begun in 1998 and has never opened. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Super_Power_Building

The Garcias have found a high powered Tampa attorney, Theodore Babbitt, who’s already held a press conference down there and started up a P.R. machine.

The story– with a video you should watch– appears in today’s Tampa Tribune. http://www.tampabay.com/news/scientology/couples-lawsuit-accuses-church-of-scientology-of-fraud-deception/1271893

Scientology, of course, denies all the accusations. But the lawsuit comes at a propitious moment, as Lawrence Wright’s book, “Going Clear,” is a bestseller and sheds new light on the religious cult that has been accused of all kinds of things from fraud to brainwashing to torture. All of the last year has been a bad time for Scientology. Paul Thomas Anderson’s movie “The Master” depicted a fictitious version of the cult’s founder, L. Ron Hubbard and his Cause– a cult that walked and talked like Scientology.

The group was hurt earlier last year when Tom Cruise’s wife, actress Katie Holmes, managed to “escape” from their marriage to New York. Holmes managed to get the quickest Hollywood divorce ever– it took two weeks and Cruise signed on the dotted line. But during those two weeks, Scientology was blamed for the break up. Ex Scientologists came out of the woodwork. Cruise, it’s thought, acquiesced quickly rather than expose the group to more investigation.

Another book, due shortly, is from Miscavige’s niece, Jenna Miscavige Hill, who publicly left the organization and has since been very vocal about its inner workings.

This week, Kim Masters, one of my favorite colleagues in the Hollywood press, wrote a great piece about her own experiences dealing with Scientology. http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/tom-cruise-scientology-why-media-414256.

I’ve had my own encounters with this scary group– that’s for another time. For now, the Garcias, they say, are just the beginning as Babbitt courageously takes on more cases down in Tampa.

 

 

SAG Ballots Due Back Tomorrow: Best Ensemble Winner Could Determine Oscar

Roger Friedman
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1
SAG Ballots Due Back Tomorrow: Best Ensemble Winner Could Determine Oscar

The Screen Actors Guild Awards ballots are due back by 3pm Eastern time/12noon Pacific on Friday (tomorrow). The show airs on Sunday night. Believe it or not, the SAG Awards can be the best indicators of the Oscar winners. In recent years, Best Ensemble Winners “The King’s Speech.,” “No Country for Old Men,” and “Slumdog Millionaire” went on to win Best Picture at the Oscars. But at SAG, “The Hurt Locker” lost to “Inglorious Basterds,” “The Artist” lost to “The Help.”

That’s right: “The Help” and Viola Davis won at SAG last year. Then “The Artist” and Meryl Streep went on to win Oscars. Sometime in the two weeks after SAG, “The Help” lost steam.

This year, I got lucky and called the Best Ensemble nominees early on. http://www.showbiz411.com/2012/12/08/oscar-redux-zero-dark-thirty-is-turning-into-social-network-of-2012. 

They are: “Argo,” “Silver Linings Playbook,” “Les Miserables,” “Lincoln,” and “Best Exotic Marigold Hotel.”

Which of these will win SAG? “Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” won’t– it’s not nominated for the Oscar and has no momentum. Too bad. But I guess the actors were all in the UK or busy and not much has gone into an effort.

There’s talk that “Argo” — based on its Golden Globe and Critics Choice wins– could do the trick. I don’t think so. You don’t think of those people together. Rather, they are each little pods working toward a goal. “Argo” might still win the Oscar just to give Ben Affleck some compensation for being snubbed in the Best Director category. But here, no. I do think the ending of “Argo” should win an award, however.

“Les Miz” has turned into the Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway, and everyone else. Again, it’s different groups of characters — many ensembles working toward a whole. Sacha Baron Cohen and Helena Bonham Carter, for example, are their own ensemble. So are the freedom fighters led by Eddie Redmayne. But it’s not one group all together, and that may quash it at SAG. I am still humming “One Day More” however, which is very annoying.

“Lincoln” — a strong choice, frankly. The only deterrent might be that Daniel Day Lewis is the clear leader of the show as Honest Abe. I loved all the one level down supporting players, the various representatives and senators who came and went through Tommy Lee Jones’s office, and the gang of influencers like James Spader and Jackie Earle Haley. And every time I see the film I watch Gloria Reuben and wonder what her character is thinking. I’ve made up a whole backstory for her.

“Silver Linings Playbook”— is my choice for this award, if only that director David O. Russell, following the original novel, turns the Solitano family into the equivalent of a football team. There’s some kind of great synchronicity between how that family (and their friends) operate, and how a football team — the thing with which the family is obsessed–become mutual metaphors. The family’s betting on the team, and we’re betting on the family. And then you have the whole football team idea transferring itself to the dance contest.

Stay tuned…

Whitney Houston’s Mother, Cissy, Publishes Book But Claims to Know Nothing

Roger Friedman
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3
Whitney Houston’s Mother, Cissy, Publishes Book But Claims to Know Nothing

I’m just going by a story in People magazine this evening. Cissy Houston, the singer, mother of Whitney, has written a book (“Remembering Whitney”) that’s going to be published two weeks before the first anniversary of her daughter’s death. For years this woman saw her daughter doing drugs. And both of her sons had drug problems. Her cousin, Dee Dee Warwick, sister of Dionne, a fine singer and a beautiful person, had substance abuse problems, suffered for years and died a tragic death much too early.

All of this was around Cissy Houston for decades. And now she says she didn’t know what was going on and couldn’t do anything about it. This seems a little far-fetched. On top of that, in People, Cissy says she doesn’t know if Whitney had a romantic relationship with Robyn Crawford, and that she didn’t like having Robyn around. This also suggests that Cissy was an ostrich of the first order. Crawford was probably the last good influence on Whitney until she was “replaced” by Bobby Brown as a confidante and soul mate.

If the rest of Cissy Houston’s book, due on January 29th, is this clueless, then truly these words have more impact than ever: “Houston, we have a problem.” It does seem that, as in the case with Michael Jackson, the family became so financially reliant on the superstar that they simply stopped questioning anything for fear of being shut out. And the result was a death on February 11, 2012 that still remains shocking.

Give Beyonce a Break: Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir Also Had Recorded Help for Inauguration

Roger Friedman
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Give Beyonce a Break: Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir Also Had Recorded Help for Inauguration

Beyonce is getting dragged over the coals for singing with a guide track at the Inaugural swearing in. But listen, kids, she was not lip synching. The pre-tapes are done by all live shows just in case something goes wrong. Today I spoke with the pastor from the Brooklyn Tabernacle and guess what?

The choir–300 strong– had help during their number from their CD. “It’s impossible to get 300 voices blended in the wind and cold like that,” says Pastor Jim about his amazing group. “They sang live, but they had some help from a track.”

Who didn’t have a pre-record? Pastor Jim’s wonderful soloist, Alicia Olatuja. Also, James Taylor and Kelly Clarkson. But “The Star Spangled Banner” is notoriously tough, and Beyonce wasn’t wrong to have a guide track. You can hear her singing live at the beginning of the song, too. Alicia, by the way, comes from St. Louis, home of great singers like the late Fontella Bass.

Pastor Jim says, “She’s been getting calls from the media all the time since Monday.”

Meanwhile, local Brooklynites and New Yorkers of all kinds are invited to come over at 3pm this Sunday to hear Alicia and the whole Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir perform “The Battle Hymn of the Republic” live, with no recordings, and indoors where it’s nice and warm. The Tabernacle is very easy to find, just over the Brooklyn Bridge or Manhattan Bridge, on Smith Street in Flatbush.

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