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Showbiz411 Scoops: Kabbalah, Madonna, Paula Abdul

Roger Friedman
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It’s Sunday night, and time to take stock of the week.

First: I told you last August that Paula Abdul would be a judge on Simon Cowell’s “X Factor.” It was known then, but this latest contract stuff was contrived for publicity. A lot is going into “X Factor.” Sony Music is counting on lots of hits from as yet undiscovered talent. That helped Paula when it came to her contract with CBS for her failed dance show. The reunion of Simon and Paula is the only real publicity hook for “X Factor.” When the show starts airing, get ready for lots of stories about Simon and Paula fighting, and no one getting along with host Steve Jones. It’s all a PT Barnum like machine, designed to stoke tabloid headlines. And the public falls for it more often than Charlie Brown reaches in vain for Lucy’s football.

Second: So nice that the L.A. Times acknowledges a grand jury investigation of the Kabbalah Center. I told you this three weeks ago. I’ve been writing about malfesance at Kabbalah for years, about the Raising Malawi fundraising and Madonna’s role as the group’s patsy. The IRS and grand jury will do well to look into the vast real estate holdings of the Centre, and into an explanation for how the Berg family lives if they don’t have earned income.

One explanation will be that as leaders of Kabbalah, they’re entitled to parish houses. That argument has been tested in the past, mostly with failure as a result. Soon Hollywood will be owned by Kabbalah and Scientology–sort of wall to wall cults in a real estate monopoly.  Only in Hollywood kids, only in Hollywood.

Mel Gibson Film Makes Scant $104K in Limited Release

Roger Friedman
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“The Beaver” is dead. No matter of life saving technique will revive cinema’s first and last hand puppet psychiatrist. Jodie Foster’s movie about a suicidal man, played by a man who’s already committed career suicide and a kind of personal Hari Kari, earned just $104,000 over three days at 22 theatres.

They were the kinds of theaters where depressed people might go. But they didn’t. They didn’t want to see an anti Semitic, Holocaust denying son of a neo Nazi, anti Pope essayist who threatened to harm his girlfriend and their baby–in a movie about a man who has no responsibility for his family, continually plots to off himself, has violent outbursts, and looks like he’s been sleeping on a park bench. Imagine that.

The movie got middling reviews but not enough, I hear, to bring Gibson to Cannes for an out of competition screening. Jodie Foster continues her tour as Joan of Arc, defending Gibson, the title of the movie, and the sullen tone of of the film she created. But if she comes to Cannes, she’ll be welcomed, even though she told our Q&A audience last week after the Lincoln Center screening, “I don’t care if the movie doesn’t make any money.”

Luckily, Summit Entertainment has made so much money on vampires that a mere beaver won’t get in their way.

Michael Jackson’s Father Coming to Cannes, Looking for $$$$

Roger Friedman
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In death, as in life, Michael Jackson cannot get away from his father. Joseph Jackson, the same man who brought a Michael Jackson imitator to the BET Awards four days after his superstar son died in 2009, is coming to the Cannes Film Festival. Why? He’s bringing his “Jackson Family Foundation” to the Playboy Manson, known in Cannes as the Villa Oxygene. This not exactly hot ticket is designed to raise money–for what, exactly, it’s unclear. (There’s no record I can locate on GuideStar of such a 501 c 3 registered charitable organization.)

But Jackson and the promoter, named Richard Nilsson, are obviously hoping no one cares. The date is Tuesday, May 17th, and the tickets range from $1,500 euros (for a VIP pass) to 150 euros each for a Jackson Family Pool Party and/or Jackson Family Night. http://www.richard-nilsson.com/jacksonfamilynight.html The websiite promises “bikini bunny servers”–and I don’t think they mean mainframes when they say servers.

Sources also tell me that Jackson arrives on May 15th. “He’s selling some movie idea, and maybe a biography,” Jackson is also reportedly asking for money for interviews.

Yikes. It’s a good thing Michael perfected the dance spin because he must be doing it in his Forest Lawn vault every day.

I wish I could attend this event, but the real business of Cannes will be at hand. Still, there’s nothing like a Joe Jackson press conference for a business or event that will never take place. I have fond memories of the one he called on September 7, 2001, the morning of Michael’s 30 th anniversary show at Madison Square Garden. Joe wanted us to know he was starting an online video service to sell clips of Michael and the Jackson 5. Or how about at that BET event, when he announced he was starting a new record company? Or better yet, what about the restaurant he started on Sunset Boulevard in his family’s name back in 2004? It closed before the menus had stains on them.

As for the press conference, dig this advisory: “We reserve the right to accept or refuse any registration request. No legal action may be taken in this regard.”

You cannot make this stuff up.

“Spider Man” Returns to Broadway Next Week With a Face Lift

Roger Friedman
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“Spider Man” Returns to Broadway Next Week With a Face Lift

“Spider Man: Turn off the Dark” returns to Broadway next Thursday, May 12th after a three week break. It still hasn’t opened officially and won’t until June 14th. Still, the “reviews” will come on Thursday of the “new” version of Julie Taymor’s show.

What will be different? There are said to be three new songs from Bono and The Edge. Gone completely are the “dancing shoes.” Much diminished is the role of Arachne, the fabled “Spider woman” character. Also gone are the Geek chorus. The whole Act 2 battle among six other villains is completely changed, I am told.  And: “There’re more of a romance between Peter and Mary Jane,” a source tells me.

Expanded: Patrick Page’s role as the Green Goblin. Page was the standout performer from Spider Man I.

 But much of “Turn off the Dark” is the same, just rearranged. It’s still Julie Taymor”s show, with her concepts, costumes, puppets, characters. The new songs, I am told, are still at the piano stage and haven’t been fully played. So far they sound “eh,” says a backstager. And the new choreographer, Chase Brock? “He’s not very good,” my source–who is impartial–reports. The entire production is scrambling to make the new advertised dates for preview and opening, however.

Bottom line: “It’s never not going to be Julie Taymor’s show. The question,” says my source, “is whether reviewers will see it as different or just more of the same.”

“Sparkle” Remake Will Reprise Curtis Mayfield Hits

Roger Friedman
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“Sparkle” Remake Will Reprise Curtis Mayfield Hits

“Sparkle,” a great but forgotten musical film from 1976, is getting a remake. Howard Rosenman and Joel Schumacher–they wrote the script for the original–are producing it, with husband/wife team Mara Brock Akil and director Salim Akil running the show. “Sparkle,” from Sony, preceded “Dreamgirls”–it was on screen before “Dreamgirls” made it to Broadway. Now with its remake, I’m told the film include several of the original songs Curtis Mayfield wrote for the 1976 movie including the hit “Giving Him Something He Can Feel.” Aretha Franklin sang all the songs from “Sparkle” and had a hit soundtrack album. The new producers are keen on Aretha participating again. My guess is they will also want either Jennifer Hudson or Beyonce to be included as well– even though they were each featured in the “Dreamgirls” movie. Making “Sparkle” is a gamble, especially with an all black cast. “Dreamgirls” turned out to be a harder sell than anyone thought. But Rosenman and Schumacher can pull it off, believe me. And there are lots of talented actols to take the parts originated by Lonette McKee, Irene Cara, Philip Michael Thomas and Dorian Harewood–like Montego Glover, Melinda Doolittle, Anthony Mackie, and Derek Luke–and that’s just for starters!

Paul McCartney, Congrats on Engagement to Nancy Shevell

Roger Friedman
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Paul McCartney, Congrats on Engagement to Nancy Shevell

It looks like Paul McCartney popped the question to Nancy Shevell, and they’re getting married. Shevell, who was married to New Yorker Bruce Blakeman (a failed Republican candidate for different positions) and has a teenage daughter, is terrific. I’ve gotten to know her a little bit over the last couple of years. Shevell, who’s 51 but looks ten years younger, has taken her time getting to be a Beatle girlfriend. Slowly but surely she’s adapted to being with an icon, and maybe the most famous rock and roll star in the world other than Mick Jagger. Good for Paul. After his long and happy marriage to Linda Eastman, McCartney tried a second marriage to Heather Mills. We all know how ill fated that was; I’ll never forget Mills telling me she knew no Beatles song but was a big fan of Colin Hay of Men at Work. Yikes! Shevell is more like Linda in many ways: from a good family, smart, and has her own money.They also each went to college in Arizona, which is pretty unusual. Nancy sits on the board of the New York Metropolitan Transit Authority and works for her family’s trucking company. Obla Di, Obla Da, life goes on. Congrats!

Oprah Fires the Head of Her OWN Network, At Last

Roger Friedman
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Oprah Fires the Head of Her OWN Network, At Last

It’s never a nice story when someone loses their job. But Christina Norman, head Oprah Winfrey’s OWN Network, probably had it coming. At MTV she was well known for never returning calls. I was a little surprised when Oprah put her in charge of OWN, but maybe she saw something no one else did. Maybe she never called Christina Norman at MTV. Anyway, Norman is out at OWN. Discovery’s Peter Ligouri is in. With the exception of Gayle King‘s show, OWN is a desert strewn with junk. Certainly after producing her own show for 25 years, Winfrey can bring more important, enlightened, and hip material to a whole cable network. Otherwise, she s just contributing more garbage to the heaps of it already existing — and coming soon thanks to the cancellation of soap operas in favor of cooking and makeover shows.

Madonna, Kabbalah Admit Government Investigations We Reported First

Roger Friedman
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Madonna, Kabbalah Admit Government Investigations We Reported First

The Kabbalah Centre of Los Angeles now admits that they’re being investigated the government. The Los Angeles Times is also reporting the grand jury investigation that this column reported first and exclusively. Both the LA Times and Associated Press are each reporting the lawsuit filed by Courtney Geddes against Kabbalah–again reported here first. The Kabbalah Centre insisted when I reported the grand jury story that there were no investigations and no grand jury. Recently I spoke with one of Madonna’s close associates, who defended Kabbalah and Madonna, and insisted also that there were no investigations. Now the Kabbalah Centre says it will “cooperate” with the investigations–it’s not like they have any choice. Madonna, by the way, donated 2,626,529 to the Kabbalah Centre in 2007, another $400,000 in 2008–separate from the $3.7 million that came from her celebrity fundraiser in New York, and another $2.5 million in 2009 to their combined causes–SFK, Raising Malawi, etc–all from her Ray of Light Foundation. And that may be exclusive of the total $11 million she earmarked the aborted school in Malawi.

http://tinyurl.com/4odfrct

Arthur Laurents, 93, Gave Us “West Side Story,” “Gypsy,” “The Way We Were”

Roger Friedman
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0
Arthur Laurents, 93, Gave Us “West Side Story,” “Gypsy,” “The Way We Were”

Everyone on Broadway thought Arthur Laurents would live to be 100. But he died Thursday night at 93 from complications of pneumonia. Two years ago, when “West Side Story” was in previews, I was talking to Arthur after a show when he suddenly darted up the aisle to give an actor notes. He was pretty spry. Laurents wrote the novels “The Way We Were” and “The Turning Point,” which each became hit movies. He wrote the books for two of the greatest musicals Broadway has even seen: “West Side Story” and “Gypsy.” That he brought the latter two back to Broadway back to back at ages 89 and 91 is even a more remarkable story. His career had only blossomed in the late 1950s after he recovered from being blacklisted. Most recently he got into some kind of quandary with Barbra Streisand over a film version of “Gypsy.” Who knows what will happen now? But Arthur Laurents leaves a long legacy and lots of good Broadway gossip behind, not to mention these extraordinary works. I’m sure Broadway will dim its lights on Friday night in his honor.

Didn’t Happen: Michael Jackson, Brando, Liz Taylor Road Trip

Roger Friedman
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Didn’t Happen: Michael Jackson, Brando, Liz Taylor Road Trip

Sorry, guys. The “road trip” Michael Jackson supposedly took after the World Trade Center tragedies never happened. Various outlets are suddenly reporting that Michael gathered up Liz Taylor and Marlon Brando on September 12, 2001 and escaped from New York on a cross- country adventure.

THIS DID NOT HAPPEN.

It’s a great urban myth, and it will probably live on forever now that it’s been published on the internet. But you know, at the time, Michael and Liz Taylor weren’t so close. He’d had to give her a piece of jewelry that cost over $600,000 so she would come to his Madison Square Garden shows. Michael also paid Brando one million dollars cash so he’d come to New York and deliver the most inane speech of all time on a couch in the middle of the stage.

So what did happen? Michael and his kids, the nanny, et al immediately decamped to their second home–that of Dominic and Connie Cascio in Franklin Lakes, New Jersey. And there they stayed, a family friend confirmed for me, for two weeks. Finally, Michael and party chartered a private plane from White Plains, New York to Burbank.

What happened to Brando and Taylor? I have no idea. But there was no “On the Road” for them. Brando weighed way too much to travel that distance by car. Taylor had way too many maladies. The Jackson family, I was told in 2001, went home on a private bus.

Where do people get these stories? And why are they reprinted over and over without any fact checking?

By the way, this was two years before Michael’s arrest for child molestation and conspiracy. During the entire period from 2003 through Michael’s acquittal in 2005, Taylor never said a word in public to defend Jackson. While Macaulay Culkin, Chris Tucker, and other friends testfied for Michael and went to bat for him, Taylor remained mum.

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