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TikTok: Clock Ticks as Conde Nast Employees Threaten Anna Wintour’s Met Ball With Strike, Could Protest Glittery Gala Event

Roger Friedman
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TikTok: Clock Ticks as Conde Nast Employees Threaten Anna Wintour’s Met Ball With Strike, Could Protest Glittery Gala Event

Anna Wintour’s TikTok sponsored Met Ball is in trouble.

With a week to go before the spring Halloween party. Conde Nast’s unionized employees are threatening to upend the gala as they attempt to negotiate a contract and thwart more layoffs.

Wintour is the editorial director of Conde Nast, and editor in chief of Vogue. She’s also empress of the Met Ball. The evening will be sponsored this year by TikTok, the Chinese company ordered by Congress to divest itself or be banned in the US. I told in February what was going on.

Some Conde Nast publications have unions including The New Yorker and Wired. But the big ones, like Vogue, Vanity Fair, Glamour, etc did not until recently. They still do not have a contract as the company has had had serious rounds of layoffs and face more imminently.

The Conde Nast Union declares on its website:

“While Anna Wintour, Vogue editor in chief, mingles with fellow millionaires at the Met Gala, Condé Nast is refusing to settle a fair contract — and is trying to lay off nearly a hundred Condé Union members:

Tell Anna: Get serious

  • Pay Condé Nast workers fair wages
  • Stop replacing unit members with freelancers
  • Reach a deal with workers now!“

It’s hard to imagine but completely possible Wintour will have her Kardashians and other gross participants walking past Conde Nast protesters next Monday at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

That would be an embarrassing “first.”

The Union says: “The unionization of Condé Nast began in earnest in 2018, when editorial employees at The New Yorker began an organizing drive. They announced their union publicly in June of 2018 with nearly 90% of the staff supporting the effort. They were joined in March 2019 by colleagues at Ars Technica and Pitchfork, and in April 2020 by those at WIRED. All four publications were voluntarily recognized by Condé. Now the entire company is unionizing.”

The Met Ball is a notorious money loser, costing more than $5 million to stage even after donations and sponsors are counted in. The confluence of the TikTok scandal and the union issues is going to make for a compelling moment next Monday.

Barry Manilow, Melissa Manchester Celebrate 50 Years of Friendship with Clive Davis at Music Mogul’s Blowout Private Dinner

Roger Friedman
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Barry Manilow, Melissa Manchester Celebrate 50 Years of Friendship with Clive Davis at Music Mogul’s Blowout Private Dinner

EXCLUSIVE Tonight — Monday — music mogul Clive Davis will be honored at Carnegie Hall in support of the New York Pops. Davis is bringing a stunning A list group of performers who will rock the venerable venue like crazy.

So last night — Sunday — Davis welcomed about a hundred and fifty close pals to Brooklyn’s stunning River Cafe just to get everyone in the mood. I first visited the River Cafe 40 years ago, and nothing has changed. The food and the view are both five star. Congrats to owner Buzzy O’Keefe!

The room was bursting with A Listers. For instance: In 1974, Davis took over Bell Records and turned it into Arista Records. His first stars were Barry Manilow and Melissa Manchester. She had “Midnight Blue” and he had “Mandy.” They were happily reunited at the dinner — and will each perform tonight at Carnegie Hall.

Barry and Melissa were just the tip of the iceberg at the River Cafe, where a center table featured Nancy and Paul Pelosi, and Hakeem Jeffries with wife Kennisandra. Talk about power dining. But I can tell you the Pelosi’s were pretty excited to meet Barry.

Davis came down with a case of laryngitis. But that didn’t stop him from introducing the room to a variety of his special guests including legendary singer Art Garfunkel, famed hit Motown songwriter Valerie Simpson, tennis great John McEnroe and rock star wife Patty Smyth — who sat at the same table with another tennis superstar, Martina Navratilova.

And there were more, more, more starss including another famed songwriter, Diane Warren, Republic Records chief Monte Lippman (celebrating Taylor Swift’s enormous debut week), five star chef Daniel Bouloud, plus “The Wiz” star Deborah Cox, Tony winner Adrienne Warren, Shoshanna Bean and Brandon Victor Dixon (of the Alicia Keys musical, “Hell’s Kitchen”) — you get the drift.

There was even what I would call a “society” table with Peggy Siegal, Denise Rich, Nikki Haskell, Blaine Trump, and Candy Spelling. New York 1 Theater correspondent Frank DiLella kept them all entertained, while WOR Radio’s Michael Riedel did the same for us including Broadway producers Fran and Barry Weissler, and Francine LeFrak and husband Rick Friedberg. I also ran into MSNBC’s Ari Melber — who made a video for my mom, his biggest fan — and the great Tamron Hall! Did I mention Don Lemon, like the Pelosi’s, lined up to meet Barry Manilow?

Good news, by the way, from Paul Pelosi. He was doffed the hat he was wearing after his hammer attack. “Paul,” I exclaimed, “your is back!” He replied: “It’s those Italian genes!” What a relief.

There’s a long list of performers tonight at Carnegie Hall besides many of these people including Dionne Warwick and Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds. Art Garfunkel has agreed to sing Clive’s favorite song, “Bridge Over Troubled Water.” Regulars quipped to newbies that they’ve been warned — a Clive Davis show is an experience they wlll never forget! So stay tuned. The show starts at 7pm. When will it end? Bring snacks!

That great photo of Barry and Melissa was taken by yours truly — c2024 Showbiz411.com.

Taylor Swift Acknowledges Record Breaking Sales of “Tortured Poets” Album: “Are You Even Serious?”

Roger Friedman
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Taylor Swift Acknowledges Record Breaking Sales of “Tortured Poets” Album: “Are You Even Serious?”

Even Taylor Swift is a little gobsmacked by the sales of her album.

As I reported on Friday, “The Tortured Poets Department” has sold 2.6 million copies. Of those, 1.9 million are hard sales of CDs, LPs, and downloads. The rest is from streaming.

“Poets” is the third highest debuting album of any week since 1990. Only Adele and NSync were higher.

Taylor Swift Legion of Fans Courted by “Fault in Our Stars” Author John Green on Eve of His New Movie: “I love…the fandom!”

Roger Friedman
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Taylor Swift Legion of Fans Courted by “Fault in Our Stars” Author John Green on Eve of His New Movie: “I love…the fandom!”

Got a new movie coming out? Need an audience? Just say you’re massive fan of Taylor Swift!

“The Fault in Our Stars” author John Green did just that this week. He’s got a movie coming on Max (HBOMax) on Friday, May 2nd called “Turtles All the Way Down.” It’s another YA weeper, and Green wants people to see it.

(I’m assuming it’s the story of Flo and Eddie, and “Happy Together.”)

Anyway, Green told his 4.4 million Twitter followers this week, apropos of nothing, the he loves Taylor Swift! And he’s not afraid to say it! (His Tweet is below.)

Green isn’t stupid. He needed a Swift endorsement. Instead, he endorsed Swift! “Turtles” took a circuitous route to the screen. Green needs ratings. Swift sold 2.6 million albums this past week. You do the math!

Green wisely wrote:
Every few years, thousands of people are surprised to learn that I am a fan of Taylor Swift.
1. I am a fan of Taylor Swift. I have been since I first heard Speak Now in 2010.
2. I love Taylor Swift’s music and lyrics. You don’t have to. But I get to.
3. I love the Taylor Swift fandom. Again, you don’t have to. But I get to.
4. Making your whole identity disliking something/someone is weird and a bit sad.
5. TTPD is excellent and I love listening to it. The writing is so, so good.
6. Gentle reminder that I delete almost all of my tweets after a few minutes.

The Beatles Are Coming! Restored “Let it Be” Screening May Be Last Chance Reunion for Fabled Group Extended Family

Roger Friedman
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The Beatles Are Coming! Restored “Let it Be” Screening May Be Last Chance Reunion for Fabled Group Extended Family

Fans of The Beatles will never “let it be.”

Tomorrow night, the movie of that name – restored with added footage — will be screened in New York. Disney Plus starts airing it at the end of the week on their streaming platform. (A Los Angeles screening is planned for later in the week.)

Who’s coming to this last round up? Paul McCartney might be in town. His exhibition of photographs opens later this week at the Brooklyn Museum.

Ringo Starr has just dropped “Crooked Boy,” an excellent EP written and produced by Linda Perry. His tour doesn’t start for a month, so maybe he’d come into New York.

No word yet on Olivia or Dhani Harrison, or Sean Ono Lennon. Yoko Ono is not going out much these days, which is no surprise at age 91. She can watch it at home!

Peter Jackson restored the film made by Michael Lindsay Hogg, which was a hit in 1970 but then not seen for years. (It floated around the internet.) Jackson used all of L-H’s footage to make his “Get Back” series a few years ago, which expanded on the original film. Lindsay-Hogg will be on hand for the screening and Q&A afterwards. Hopefully someone will tape the event and put it on YouTube.

Box Office: It’s Zendaya’s World as “Challengers” Scores $15 Mil Weekend, “Dune Two” Approaches $280 Mil

Roger Friedman
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Box Office: It’s Zendaya’s World as “Challengers” Scores $15 Mil Weekend, “Dune Two” Approaches $280 Mil

The biggest movie star right now is Zendaya.

The 27 year old actress from Oakland, California stars in the number 1 movie of the weekend, and the movie that’s made the most money.

Zendaya Coleman leads “Challengers,” which had a $15 million weekend and came in at number 1.

She’s also one of the main players in “Dune Two,” now nearing $280 million and maybe heading to $300 million if Warner’s just lets it sit in theaters.

Aside from Zendaya movies, the box office is a tepid place and getting worse. “Challengers” is number 1 but it has a $55 million price tag. So the future is not that bright unless there’s a sudden wave.

The number 2 movie is “Unsung Hero,” a Christian film that made $7.5 million in its first weekend. Critics panned it, but the usual suspects are driving ticket sales.

Elsewhere, desperate for product, studios have re-released “Alien,” “The Mummy,” and “Shrek 2” to theaters.

What is everyone talking about, however? “Baby Reindeer,” an uncomfortable series on Netflix about a British comedian bartender who was groomed and raped by a mentor, has a trans woman girlfriend, and is being stalked by an overweight sociopath. Oy.

One month to go before Netflix puts “Hit Man” into theaters for two weeks. Can we last that long?

White House Dinner (Watch Video) Light on Celebs as Stars Hit AFI Salute to Nicole Kidman in Hollywood

Roger Friedman
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White House Dinner (Watch Video) Light on Celebs as Stars Hit AFI Salute to Nicole Kidman in Hollywood

The stars were out tonight in Hollywood, but not so much in Washington DC.

The White House Correspondents Dinner used to be an A list event during the Obama Administration. But the Trump era and the pandemic almost wiped the whole thing out.

Tonight as Colin Jost was the star, he brought along his wife, Scarlett Johansson. She gave the Washington Hilton ballroom a jolt of top tier celebrity, but otherwise it was slim pickings.

The celebs who stopped by the red carpet included people like Chris Pine (looking like Colonel Sanders), Andrew McCarthy, Rufus Sewell, Questlove, and Rosario Dawson. The biggest star was Jon Hamm, who skipped the carpet but was seen on CSPAN leaving the ballroom.

So where were all the stars tonight? At the AFI dinner for Nicole Kidman in Hollywood. Nicole’s husband, Keith Urban, was front and center. So were many of her best friends like Naomi Watts and Reese Witherspoon, Miles Teller, Cynthia Erivo, Morgan Freeman, Lily Rabe and Hamish Linklater, Michelle Pfeiffer and David E. Kelly, Aaron Sorkin, and in a rare appearance, a shockingly white haired Mike Myers. Missing: Hugh Jackman, and Russell Crowe.

Congrats to Nicole. Oscar winner and multiple nominee, Emmy winner, too. She’s been a force in Hollywood for three decades. She’s chosen a lot of daring scripts and made hugely entertaining movies. She’s also just pretty cool in real life.

Also congrats to Colin Jost. Doing stand up for the WHCD is one of the toughest assignments ever. He pulled it off with his usual cool and panache. His Staten Island jokes were the best!

(Picture) Justin Bieber — All Grown Up — Proves He Can Grow a Beard (Sort of)

Roger Friedman
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(Picture) Justin Bieber — All Grown Up — Proves He Can Grow a Beard (Sort of)

Justin Bieber has proven he can grow a beard.

Never hirsute in the past, young Justin has raised a scratchy growth on his face.

He posted pictures to Instagram, all with big smiles.

Maybe he’s on vacation from being on vacation. At least he’s happy.

Bieber hasn’t releaseda new album in three years. He also hasnt toured since canceling his lsdt tour because he had a form of Bells Palsy. Bieber also broke up with manager Scooter Braun.

But he does have a beard.

Two weeks ago, Justin posted a video with music by Mitski. Good song, sounds like John Lennon circa 1973

Jerry Seinfeld’s Pop Tarts Movie Drops on Netflix in 6 Days But No One’s Seen It Except Friends and Family

Roger Friedman
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Jerry Seinfeld’s Pop Tarts Movie Drops on Netflix in 6 Days But No One’s Seen It Except Friends and Family

“Unfrosted” is Jerry Seinfeld’s movie about the creation of the Pop Tart.

So far the comedy has gotten a ton of publicity. It drops on Netflix in just six days. But no one has seen it.

Seinfeld held a private screening this week for family and close friends. Co-star Christian Slater was there, and so was Matthew Broderick. Jessica Seinfeld posted pictures of a jolly time on Instagram.

But aside from those guests a few journalists doing interviews, “Unfrosted” is unseen.

Press links are going out on Monday, although it’s unclear when reviews can be published. The movie drops on Thursday night after midnight. Will it be a tasty snack? We don’t know.

Of course, there’s nothing wrong with Jerry making the rounds on talk shows and so on. He’s always funny. But whether “Unfrosted” turns out to be a deft satire or just a vanity project about an extremely not nutritional breakfast replacement remains unknown

Box Office: “Challengers” Not Making Expected Racquet With $4 Mil Friday As Audiences Ambivalent

Roger Friedman
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Box Office: “Challengers” Not Making Expected Racquet With $4 Mil Friday As Audiences Ambivalent

Where are all the Zendaya fans?

Where is the younger generation of movie goers who were supposed to be into fluid relationships?

Where are the tennis fans?

“Challengers” is the biggest film project shot in and about New Rochelle, New York since “The Dick van Dyke Show.” But audiences seem ambivalent.

“Challengers” made $4 million last night, after taking in $1.9 million on Thursday in previews. That equals a $6 million opening and a $14 million opening weekend.

Luca Guadagnino’s rom-drama cost $55 million! The Cinemascore is B+ and the Rotten Tomatoes audience score is just 75%, which equals a C. This is not the grand slam that was predicted for this sex filled, hang wringer.

Publicity has suggested a little three way action between Zendaya, Josh O’Connor, and Mike Faist’s characters. But once audiences got into theaters they might have been a little surprised about the relationship between the male characters. They have a major make out scene, not to mention a final scene that suggests they’re the ones who get together in the end.

Maybe audiences aren’t as 21st century as we thought. Young people liked conventional rom com “Anyone But You.” They’re going to love “Hit Man.”

Meantime, kudos to Variety’s Steve Gaydos who had a good alternative title for “Challengers” on Twitter: “Jules and Gym.”

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