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Garth Brooks, Billy Joel, Boz Scaggs Set for Songwriter Hall of Fame Dinner

Roger Friedman
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The last time Billy Joel presented an award at the annual all star Songwriters Hall of Fame dinner, it was to Jimmy Webb. Billy sat at the piano and taught a master class on how Webb wrote “Wichita Lineman.” It was an extraordinary moment. God only knows what he;ll do on June 16th when he presents to Garth Brooks. Billy just signed on to the show, which is the hottest night of the year after Clive Davis‘s Grammy party. Other presenters and performers are going to include Ashford and Simpson, Sam Moore, Bill Medley, Boz Scaggs, Chrissie Hynde, Jimmy Jam Harris, Dwight Yoakam, Dominic Chianese, and Mrs. Brooks aka Trisha Yearwood.

This year’s inducteess besides Garth: Leon Russell, Billy Steinberg & Tom Kelly, John Bettis and Allen Toussaint. The Johnny Mercer Award will be presented to Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil, and the Towering Song is “It Was A Very Good Year,” to be accepted by composer and lyricist Ervin Drake. The Hal David Starlight Award will be presented to hip hopper Drake, who is no relation to the aforementioned Mr. Drake. The Howie Richmond Hitmaker Award recipient will be Chaka Khan, because she’s had hits by Prince, Ashford and Simpson, etc. The first-ever Visionary Leadership Award will be presented to beloved SHOF Chairman Emeritus Hal David, the famed lyricist who wrote dozens of smash hits with Burt Bacharach and others.

As usual, the concert is produced by Phil Ramone. Linda Moran, who’s turned the Songwriters Hall of Fame into a five star operation, presides. The show should be on TV, but everyone says that would ruin it. You have to be there to see it and to hear it.

Paul Simon Plays a Rare New York Club Date, with David Byrne as His Guest

Roger Friedman
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The solo Paul Simon, not the one from Simon & Garfunkel, is a different artist altogether. Last night he and his very tight band played a rare New York club date at Webster Hall, formerly the Ritz, in the East Village. Unlike most venues Paul Simon might play, Webster Hall has few seats. It was a new wave dance club in the early 1980s. Patrons stand, and stand. They are crammed onto the main floor like sardines.

And so they were last night, as Simon rocked and Zydeoc-ed, playing his most upbeat danceable music and mixing it with just a few powerful ballads and anthems like “Peace Like a River” and “The Sound of Silence”–the latter was the only one of two songs from the Simon & Garfunkel songbook. The other was “The Only Living Boy in New York,” a nod to the commercial now playing on TV.

Simon, unburdened by “Bridge Over Troubled Water” or “Mrs. Robinson,” instead delved into his solo catalog with a heavy emphasis on “Graceland” and “The Rhythm of the Saints.” You could tell this made him happy. He invited David Byrne on stage to perform the Talking Heads’ “Road to Nowhere” with Simon’s band, and then followed it up with Byrne swivel-hipping “You Can Call Me Al” into a Talking Heads style chant. On the face of it, the two musicians wouldn’t seem to have a lot in common. But Byrne had the Talking Heads performing African inspired music three or four years before Simon. Remember their “I Zimbra”? So it worked.

Elsewhere in the show, Simon combined Jimmy Cliff‘s “Vietnam” with his own “Mother and Child Reunion.” He turned “Kodachrome” to a singalong anthem. He took a rare shot at “Gone At Last”– a hit record he made with Phoebe Snow–and the band sneaked in riffs from the Four Tops‘ “Sugar Pie, Honey Bunch.” There was Simon’s lovely nod to George Harrison with “Here Comes the Sun” — shades of “Saturday Night Live” circa 1976–http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YVJgDTQZPbs.

Simon’s African and Brazilian periods were represented by “The Obvious Child,” “The Boy in the Bubble,” and the entire audience joining in on “Diamonds on the Soles of Her Shoes.” The songs from his latest album, “So Beautiful or So What,” actually quieted the audience and they listened. The album is headed to the Grammy Awards next winter. It’s a gem.

What a night! Another New York singer songwriter icon, Carole King, was spotted in the house with one of her daughters. Camera crews buzzed around, filming for a PBS special and for a 25th anniversary “Graceland” documentary. No one wanted to leave, least of all Simon. He came upstairs to the mezzanine, covered in sweat, and shook hands with every guest left up there. He told me that the small club atmosphere energized him. “You can feel the audience,” he said. He may still be there.

General Hospital’s Last Patient: Katie Couric, Who Takes Their Time Slot

Roger Friedman
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100

It’s curtains for “General Hospital.” ABC announced today that Katie Couric would get the soap’s 3pm time slot in September 2012. That means that the soap, which started airing in 1963, will join “All My Children” and “One Life to Live” on the scrap heap. Of course, “General Hospital” might get a mild reprieve if ABC’s other soap substitutes at 1 and 2 pm don’t pan out. But in the end, the destruction of ABC daytime dramas is now complete and sealed. It’s a mistake, of course, to have jettisoned decades of loyal viewership for the unknown, and all at the same time. But the party’s over. ABC made their Couric announcement at 1pm eastern, even though it was no surprise. There’s a lot of carping about former NBC chief Jeff Zucker as Katie’s exec producer, but frankly, this is what he does best. The show’s going to be a hit, even if it means “General Hospital” is sent to the morgue.

Billy Preston: Estate Still Not Settled of “The Fifth Beatle”

Roger Friedman
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The great Billy Preston died five years ago today at the age of 59. Believe it or not, Preston’s estate has never been settled. “The Fifth Beatle” has had his legacy held up in court by a confluence of unfortunate events: sisters to whom Preston was not close have tried to complicate the situation even though Billy didn’t want them to be part of it. Then there’s the matter of whether or not Preston authorized a filing for bankruptcy right before he went into a coma in November 2005.

The bankruptcy case–going on in Los Angeles–has had its own set of odd circumstances that surround Judge Theodore Albert. A motion was made by the Moore team, but denied, to have Albert recuse himself from the case. The reason? Prior to his appointment to the bench, attorney Albert had been sued for malpractice. The firm that represented him — Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith– is the same one he awarded the Preston case to. The Daily (Los Angeles law) Journal noted the conflict of interest. “From March to October 2006, as Albert was still a Lewis Brisbois client in the malpractice suit, the judge awarded the firm $127,000 in fees and expenses in the bankruptcy matter.” Since then, Judge Albert’s first legal clerk has gone on to work for the same firm.

Fighting the bankruptcy is Preston’s loyal last manager, Joyce Moore, wife of R&B legend Sam Moore. In the last few years, Preston– who had an intermittent substance abuse problem compounded by a replaced, non working kidney–relied on the Moores for friendship, advice, and bi-weekly trips for dialysis. The potential of a bankruptcy ruling has nearly bankrupted the Moores, whose own finances were tied up with Preston’s.

“Will It Go Round in Circles?” as Preston once sang. Will all that’s left be “Nothing from Nothing”? Quite possibly. And PS: in case you were wondering, Preston has never royalty from The Beatles, even though he was the only artist in history featured with them on a hit record–“Get Back,” from 1970, which was by “The Beatles with Billy Preston.”

Full disclosure: As I’ve written before, I knew Billy Preston quite well in the last few years of his life. The Moores are friends of mine. I can’t imagine that Preston would have wanted the Moores to go through this much grief while protecting his interests.

And there’s more: the bankruptcy trustee in the case, R. Todd Neilson, is a controversial participant. He’s become the sole bankruptcy trustee in Hollywood with varying results. Earlier this year, very quietly, his own firm–LECG– collapsed under financial pressure and was splintered off.  Almost no mention has been made in the financial press about this, that the bankruptcy trustee’s own firm essentially went bankrupt–they were $27 million in debt according to reports. But very quietly Neilson took his group away from LECG and moved upstairs in the same building to reunite with an old colleague–David Teece, who’d been fired from LECG in 2009.

TV Critics Pick Nominees for First Awards Show: Modern Family, Mad Men, Boardwalk

Roger Friedman
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Here are the nominees for the first Critics Choice Awards for television. The awards will be given out on June 20th. The show will air June 22nd on the Reelz Channel.  This is the same group that brings us the Critics Choice in January for movies. That show has evolved over the last few years into a big deal on VH-1. All the stars come, and the voters are legitimate critics. CBS would do well to adopt the Critics Choice Awards as its answer to the Golden Globes–they’d get the jump on all the other awards shows.

BEST DRAMA
Boardwalk Empire – HBO
Dexter – Showtime
Friday Night Lights – DirecTV
Fringe – FOX
Game of Thrones – HBO
The Good Wife – CBS
Justified – FX
The Killing – AMC
Mad Men – AMC
The Walking Dead – AMC

BEST ACTOR IN A DRAMA SERIES

Steve Buscemi – Boardwalk Empire – HBO
Kyle Chandler – Friday Night Lights – DirecTV
Michael C. Hall – Dexter – Showtime
Jon Hamm – Mad Men – AMC
William H. Macy – Shameless – Showtime
Timothy Olyphant – Justified – FX

Best Actress in a Drama Series
Connie Britton – Friday Night Lights – DirecTV
Mireille Enos – The Killing – AMC
Julianna Margulies – The Good Wife – CBS
Elisabeth Moss – Mad Men – AMC
Katey Sagal – Sons of Anarchy – FX
Anna Torv – Fringe – FOX

Best Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Alan Cumming – The Good Wife – CBS
Walton Goggins – Justified – FX
Shawn Hatosy – Southland – TNT
John Noble – Fringe – FOX
Michael Pitt – Boardwalk Empire – HBO
John Slattery – Mad Men – AMC

Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series
Michelle Forbes – The Killing – AMC
Christina Hendricks – Mad Men – AMC
Margo Martindale – Justified – FX
Kelly Macdonald – Boardwalk Empire – HBO
Archie Panjabi – The Good Wife – CBS
Chloë Sevigny – Big Love – HBO

Best Reality Series
Extreme Makeover: Home Edition – ABC
Hoarders – A&E
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills – Bravo
Sister Wives – TLC
Undercover Boss – CBS

Best Reality Series – Competition
The Amazing Race – CBS
American Idol – FOX
Dancing with the Stars – ABC
Project Runway – Lifetime
RuPaul’s Drag Race – Logo
Top Chef – Bravo

Best Reality Show Host
Tom Bergeron – Dancing with the Stars – ABC
Cat Deeley – So You Think You Can Dance – FOX
Ty Pennington – Extreme Makeover: Home Edition – ABC
Mike Rowe – Dirty Jobs – Discovery
Ryan Seacrest – American Idol – FOX

Best Talk Show
Chelsea Lately – E!
The Daily Show – Comedy Central
The Ellen DeGeneres Show – Warner Bros.
Jimmy Kimmel Live! – ABC
The Oprah Winfrey Show – Harpo

Best Comedy Series
Archer – FX
The Big Bang Theory – CBS
Community – NBC
Glee – FOX
Louie – FX
The Middle – ABC
Modern Family – ABC
The Office – NBC
Parks and Recreation – NBC
30 Rock – NBC

Best Actor in a Comedy Series
Alec Baldwin – 30 Rock – NBC
Steve Carell – The Office – NBC
Louis C.K. – Louie – FX
Charlie Day – It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia – FX
Joel McHale – Community – NBC
Jim Parsons – The Big Bang Theory – CBS

Best Actress in a Comedy Series
Courteney Cox – Cougar Town – ABC
Edie Falco – Nurse Jackie – Showtime
Tina Fey – 30 Rock – NBC
Patricia Heaton – The Middle – ABC
Martha Plimpton – Raising Hope – FOX
Amy Poehler – Parks and Recreation – NBC

Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series
Ty Burrell – Modern Family – ABC
Neil Patrick Harris – How I Met Your Mother – CBS
Nick Offerman – Parks and Recreation – NBC
Ed O’Neill – Modern Family – ABC
Danny Pudi – Community – NBC
Eric Stonestreet – Modern Family – ABC

Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series
Julie Bowen – Modern Family – ABC
Jane Krakowski – 30 Rock – NBC
Jane Lynch – Glee – FOX
Busy Philipps – Cougar Town – ABC
Eden Sher – The Middle – ABC
Sofía Vergara – Modern Family – ABC

Melanie Griffith’s Daughter Dakota: “Cherry 2000” Redux?

Roger Friedman
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1

Can it be? Next year is the 25th anniversary of one my favorite bad movies, “Cherry 2000.” This post-apocalyptic thriller starred a pre-“Working Girl” Melanie Griffith as a bounty hunter. She helps Sam, played by David Andrews, journey into a forbidden zone where model Cherry 2000 android wives are stored. Sam’s own model has died, or given out, and he wants the same one again. This is sort of like me trying to find another Motorola v9 Razr2 phone instead of getting a smart phone.

Anyway, producer Ed Pressman–one of the good guys in the movie business–is talking remake. And Melanie Griffith has suggested her daughter, Dakota Johnson, whose dad is Don Johnson, play her role. Dakota recently appeared in “The Social Network” as the girl who realizes she’s just slept with Sean Parker (Justin Timberlake). It’s not such a far fetched idea. Pressman is considering it, I’m told, and putting together some ideas for the remake including a director. Who directed the original? A guy named Steve De Jarnatt who went on to direct a lot of episodic TV but has no credits on the imdb since 2006. He published a short story in 2009 in “The Best American Short Stories.”

Katie Couric Announcement Coming Mid Day Today

Roger Friedman
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Katie Couric Announcement Coming Mid Day Today

Starting today, or thereabouts, ABC News is going to be overflowing with  female news stars. Barbara Walters and Diane Sawyer are going to be welcoming Katie Couric to their fold around mid day today.

Is there room for all these ladies in one news division? Because until Couric’s afternoon talk show starts in September 2012, she’s going to be bunking with Walters and Sawyer. Right now, Walters relies on her role as executive producer and co-owner of “The View.” That show is pretty much all that’s left of ABC Daytime now that the soaps and Oprah are history. Sawyer, of course, has the evening news.

So where will Katie fit in? “Good Morning America”? It’s doubtful that Couric wants to get up at the crack of dawn to sit in for Robin Roberts on her days off. There’s always “This Week” with Christiane Amanpour, where Couric could appear as the presidential race starts to heat up. There’s “Nightline,” although Cynthia McFadden and crew seem to have that well in hand. “20/20” is a possibility, although Couric is not going to replace Elizabeth Vargas. So it will be interesting to see where Katie fits in during the 15 month ramp up to her own show. Details of her deal should break midday Monday at the latest since her CBS contract expired on Friday.

“X Men” is First Class, But Last in Series at Box Office

Roger Friedman
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“X Men” is First Class, But Last in Series at Box Office

Who knows why? “X Men: First Class” got terrific reviews and buzz. It has a cast of young, hot up and coming actors including Michael Fassbender and James McEvoy. The director, Matthew Vaughn, has turned into first class director after producing Guy Ritchie’s movies. But “First Class” is a bit of a disappointment this weekend at the box office. Even with a $21 million take so far, the Marvel comics adventure is projected to make around $51 million total this weekend. This is half of what the last “X Men” film made in 2006. Brett Ratner’s “Last Stand” broke records with a shocking $102.7 million in three days. The funny thing is, fanboys and girls didn’t much like the movie. But maybe because it was considered the end of a trilogy, “Last Stand” boomed. Obviously, most audiences liked it a lot. It was one of the few sequels to outrun its predecessor. “X2” had done $85 million on its opening weekend. “First Class” is supposed to be a set up for two more new installments. But if it lacks “legs” in the next couple of weeks, this class may never get the chance to graduate. Is Hugh Jackman the “x factor” after all in these movies? Time will tell.

John Edwards Indicted For Siphoning Election Money to Girlfriend/BabyMama

Roger Friedman
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If John Edwards hadn’t already been ruined by his affair with Rielle Hunter, this is it: today he was indicted by a federal grand jury for siphoning funds from his campaign to help keep Hunter, who was pregnant with his baby, a secret.There are six counts against him, including conspiracy, making false statements, and four counts of illegal campaign contributions. Unless Edwards takes a settlement, prosecutors should have no trouble making their case.

Edwards started his affair with Hunter (aka Lisa Druck) in 2006, pretended to break it off, and then she became pregnant. The story broke first in the National Enquirer, was brushed aside, and then returned in the fall of 2007 as Hunter grew with child. In January 2008, when it was really too late, Edwards–who’d known for months that he would have to pull out of the 2008 presidential campaign– finally acquiesced. The baby, Frances Quinn, was born at the end of February.

But it turned out that two of his majors donors were solicited for large amounts of money to help him keep this all quiet–the late Fred Baron and the nearly 100 year old socialist Bunny Mellon. The money was used to keep Edwards aide Andrew Young able to hide Hunter from the public. Young also lied about being the baby’s father. When the money ran out, Young and Hunter were cut loose. Young wrote a bestselling book telling the whole story. Hunter, who lived with her baby daughter for months with her friend Mimi Hockman, eventually cut a deal with Edwards and moved into a home near his in South Carolina. And now, with Edwards’ estranged wife, Elizabeth, dead from cancer, the former Senator has been indicted. Instant karma indeed.

Kristen Wiig Will Parlay “Bridesmaids” Success into Drama

Roger Friedman
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“Saturday Night Live” star Kristen Wiig is finally coming into her own. After appearing in many movies, and of course the late night TV show, Wiig has finally hit it big with “Bridesmaids.” The unassuming actress was almost astonished when I mentioned to her last night–over dinner at the St. Regis Hotel for the Museum of the Moving Image–that she’s a movie star. “That’s what you say,” Wiig laughed. But now that “Bridesmaids” has put her at the top of the box office, Wiig isn’t resting on her laurels. She’s producing a dramedy called “Imogene,” in which she’ll star. She told me financing is just coming together for the film, which will be directed by Shari Springer Berman and Robert Pulcini (“American Splendor”). The couple specializes in off beat characters–witness “American Splendor” and their recent “Cinema Verite” for HBO. The plan is to shoot the film this summer, while “SNL” is on hiatus. Then, with any luck, we’ll see her back on the comedy show this fall.

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