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Animated Battle: “Minions” Makes More in Opening Weekend Than “Lightyear” Did in 3 Weeks

Roger Friedman
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Animated Battle: “Minions” Makes More in Opening Weekend Than “Lightyear” Did in 3 Weeks

The battle of the Summer 2022 animated films has been won.

Universal’s “Minions: The Rise of Gru” has stampeded Pixar’s “Lightyear.” We will never be the same!

In its opening weekend, “Minions” has made $108 million. In three days, it just “gru” and “gru” and “gru.”

That’s four million dollars more than “Lightyear” earned in three weeks.

Ouch!

“Minions” is eyeing a July 4th record opening for four days: $128 million. Who’d a thunk it?

“Lightyear” is a rare failure for Pixar, which made the mistake of creating a prequel with no attachment to the movies — the “Toy Story” series — it was prequelling.

Also, “Lightyear” is said to have cost $200 million to make. So unless it catches on with streaming or DVDs or the merchandise suddenly becomes collectible, the money is lost to the winds of time. Maybe Pixar can re-voice the whole thing with Tim Allen as a stunt. That’s the only way out.

Murdoch Divorce Updates: Rupert Fired Jerry by Email, Kids Did It, She Wants Support, Files in LA

Roger Friedman
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Murdoch Divorce Updates: Rupert Fired Jerry by Email, Kids Did It, She Wants Support, Files in LA

Finally a little news about the mysterious divorce between Rupert Murdoch and Jerry Hall.

The Blast reports that Jerry was fired from the marriage by email. She was told all further contact should be to his lawyer.

Hall has filed for divorce in Los Angeles, even though the couple was married in London. So that should make things interesting. Apparently Rupert bought her a Montana ranch spread during the marriage. She could be using that address.

In the filing, no prenup is mentioned. But as The Blast points out there has to be one. Billionaires don’t go into these things without them.

Did the kids interfere? Almost certainly Kendall, Shiv, Roman, and Connor– er Lachlan, Elisabeth, James and Prudence — wanted Jerry out, and certainly out of the estate pending Rupert’s inevitable death. He’s 91, and those kids don’t want Jerry at the funeral with a big black hat. So credit to them for accomplishing their mission. This is typical in these late-in-life marriages, we’ve seen it before with moguls who get younger partners close to the ages of their original kids.

Jerry Hall should do well, however, no matter what happens. After all, there’s always that book…

Chart Update: Drake Falls 66% in 2nd Week, BTS Drops Out of Top 10 With Little “Proof”

Roger Friedman
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Chart Update: Drake Falls 66% in 2nd Week, BTS Drops Out of Top 10 With Little “Proof”

As I said earlier in the week, sales for Drake’s “Honestly Nevermind” are not booming.

After a promising first week sales of 210,000, the second week has gone belly up. “Honestly” dropped 66% in its second run, selling just 72,000 copies. Yes, the individual tracks are streaming like crazy. But actual sales are meh.

Take nothing for granted on the charts these days. But the big number 1 again is Bad Bunny. He’s back at number 1, knocking off Drake after one single week.

This is the way of pop now. Hard sales are hard to come by. Take BTS’s “Proof.” With streaming. they’ve sold over 2 million copies. But the real numbers are trickier.

“Proof” has already fallen to number 13 on Luminate/Hits dailydouble.com. Last week’s sales were around 32K and half of those were paid downloads, CDs, and vinyl. But it’s not like the recent old days when BTS was booming. Their sales marketing generation may have finally aged out.

Motion Picture Academy: New Chief Bill Kramer Takes Over 3 Weeks Early, Oscars Brace for Positive Changes

Roger Friedman
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Motion Picture Academy: New Chief Bill Kramer Takes Over 3 Weeks Early, Oscars Brace for Positive Changes

Surprise! New Motion Picture Academy chief Bill Kramer is taking over today from Dawn Hudson. Kramer wasn’t supposed to take the reins until July 18th, but the Academy pulled the trigger today. They couldn’t wait anymore.

Kramer was running the new Academy museum, and did such a good job that he was invited to replace Hudson, who’d been in charge for 11 years.

The opportunities for Kramer to make positive changes are all clear and present. Very little in recent years has seemed anything but tortuous. All the fun has gone out of the Oscars starting with the way guests are treated at the show. Where once everyone got to mingle, now there is a huge divider between the guests and the stars on the red carpet. That divider has come to signify a metaphor for a lot of things going on at the Oscars.

The Academy cannot control what’s nominated. A lot of people now want “Top Gun Maverick:” to be nominated for Best Picture the same way they wanted “The Dark Knight” and “Spider Man: No Way Home” to be included. Kramer cannot control this, all he can do is try and make the Oscars special again.

To that end, he should try and get rid of the 10 Best Picture nominees. Five was a magic number. It signified exclusivity. In the business, no one cares about 10– the first five are an open secret, and the others are, “oh yeah.”

Kramer, no doubt, will restore the 8 categories that were eliminated from the main show this year. I’ve never seen such divisiveness. The thing is if you’re watching the Oscars, you’re in it for the night. Just let it rip! That’s the fun. Three hours, four hours, who cares? Just pack it with Big Stars and let them be funny. Woke-ness is killing all enjoyment of these shows.

Hopefully Kramer will get rid of the People’s Choice Award from this past year. It was embarrassing, knowing that giving “No Way Home” an award was the goal. What the Oscars should do is highlight the big box office movies in a clever way and include the people from them.

The 2023 Oscars will have to address the whole Will Smith-Chris Rock slap scandal. If the Academy could broker a peace between Smith and Rock, publicly, it would defuse months of tension leading up to the show. The slap was a huge mistake but it’s time to move on. Should Rock be next year’s host? Why not? The main thing is to have a host, and a producer who can focus on making a great show.

One positive note is that the choices for the Governor’s Awards this year are excellent. Michael J Fox getting the Jean Hershholt Award is brilliant. I hope they let him speak to a standing ovation. Diane Warren’s award after 13 noms– let’s have a medley of her hits. Peter Weir is such a great director. As long as Mel Gibson is kept out of it. a Weir Tribute would be outstanding.

It’s a clean slate for Bill Kramer. Happy New Year! And PS Please bring back the big standing gold Oscars (as seen above). They’re fluid and color blind! They’re gold! Pure gold!

Biden Restores Importance to Medal of Freedom, Announces 17 Recipients Including John McCain, Gabby Giffords, Denzel Washington, Simone Biles, Steve Jobs

Roger Friedman
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Biden Restores Importance to Medal of Freedom, Announces 17 Recipients Including John McCain, Gabby Giffords, Denzel Washington, Simone Biles, Steve Jobs

Joe Biden has restored the importance of the Presidential Medal of Freedom. Next Thursday he’s handing out 17 new medals to people who actually deserve it.

They include late Senator John McCain, former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, multiple Oscar and Tony winning actor Denzel Washington, Olympic athlete Simone Biles, and late Apple founder Steve Jobs.

Other honorees include former Sen. Alan Simpson (R-Wyo.), Sisters of Social Service member Simone Campbell, former University of Texas at Brownsville President Julieta García, former Vicar General of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America Alexander Karloutsos, Gold Star father Khizr Khan, civil rights attorney Fred Gray, Sandra Lindsay, a nurse who was the first American to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee founding member Diane Nash, brigadier general Wilma Vaught and civil rights advocate Raúl Yzaguirre.

During the prior administration, Donald Trump made a mockery of the process, giving out awards to top donors to his campaign as well as clowns like Jim Jordan.

Exclusive: Rudy Giuliani Doesn’t Like Leaks, But He Took One in His “Masked Singer” Costume

Roger Friedman
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Exclusive: Rudy Giuliani Doesn’t Like Leaks, But He Took One in His “Masked Singer” Costume

Rudy Giuliani flipped out this week after a supermarket worker patted him on the back and called him a “scumbag.” Giuliani made a Federal case of the whole thing, claiming if he weren’t so spy there might have been bodily damage.

What made Rudy so skittish about a little tap?

Well, I’m told by sources close to the Fox show “The Masked Singer,” that Rudy had reason to be concerned. He has a habit of “losing it.”

Last winter, Donald Trump’s henchman appeared on Fox TV’s “The Masked Singer” and caused a lot of hubbub. (The show aired in April.) Not only was the audience outraged, but so was judge Ken Jeong, who walked off the set when Rudy was revealed as the singer of “Bad to the Bone” underneath his costume.

Maybe Ken had reason to put up a stink. Apparently Rudy had already made a stink — literally. My sources say that Giuliani’s costume — a gigantic, heavy bird that popped up from a Jack in the Box — proved too much for him. “He peed himself in the costume,” says an insider.

I’m told the look on Rudy’s face when the huge bird mask was taken off was relief because he’d already relieved himself. “He was very difficult to work with and seemed out of it most of the time,” says a source.

To be fair, Rudy did have prostate cancer 22 years ago. So maybe that pat on the back really worried Giuliani with good reason. Being out in public is full of surprises. For example: the night after he announced his diagnosis, I discovered him on an extra-marital date with his now divorced third wife.

PS Outside of New York you may not know this, but Rudy’s son, Andrew, was walloped this week in the Republican primary for Governor.

Box Office: “Minions” Returns Very Animated with Whopping $10.75 Mil Previews

Roger Friedman
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Box Office: “Minions” Returns Very Animated with Whopping $10.75 Mil Previews

“Minions: The Rise of Gru” has launched with a whopping $10.75 million preview night.

For animated film buffs that’s more than twice what “Buzz Lightyear” made a couple of weeks ago.

This is the sixth “Minions” movie. The first was “Despicable Me,” the Donald Trump biopic, back in 2010.

Universal Pictures and Illumination should be thrilled. They’re going to have the biggest family hit since before the pandemic. Expectations are for an $85 million four day weekend.

Kids, parents of young kids, enjoy!

UPDATED Louis CK Has A New Movie and Critics Hate it, Sounds Worse Than “I Love You, Daddy”

Roger Friedman
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UPDATED Louis CK Has A New Movie and Critics Hate it, Sounds Worse Than “I Love You, Daddy”

I don’t how many people have seen Louis CK’s movie, “I Love You Daddy.” It was utter garbage, only available to critics and recalled before it opened because of the comedian’s MeToo accusations. Chloe Grace Moretz may have bought up all the copies available so no one can see it.

Now comes “Fourth of July,” directed by but not starring CK. And the critics who’ve seen it have panned it except for one (and I won’t get into that). So far it’s at 33% on Rotten Tomatoes but that number will drop if other reviewers get to see it.

UPDATE: It’s down to 22% and falling.

The two trades, Variety and the Hollywood Reporter, have panned it. So has the New York Times. Again, the only positive review is from the Wall Street Journal, where Joe Morgenstern has returned and been replaced by something not good.

“Fourth of July” is getting a limited, curated release in theaters that will take it, which are few and far between. The only theater playing it after its premiere tonight at the Beacon Theater is the Village on Second Avenue and 12th St. For a week.

FYI: Help Wanted Signs Posted in Windows of New York’s Hottest New Restaurant

Roger Friedman
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FYI: Help Wanted Signs Posted in Windows of New York’s Hottest New Restaurant

I’ve lived a long time but I’ve never seen anything like this.

In the windows of New York’s hottest new restaurant, Avra in Rockefeller Center, there are massively big Help Wanted signs in the windows.

This is the place that had a big gala opening a couple of weeks ago. Even Mayor Swagger, Eric Adams, stopped by for free hors d’ouevres.

It’s a sign of the economy that a glamorous eatery in the heart of midtown is desperate for help. Usually you’d see such a sign in McDonald’s or at Haagen Dazs.

When I called, the young woman who answered the phone said it was true, Avra is looking for people in all capacities.

With inflation at a 40 year high, gas prices out the window, groceries costing at least 25% more, you’d think Avra would be using waiting lists to hire new employees. Something has clearly gone wrong in this economy.

And PS you can’t work “remote” for a restaurant. You have to get up, get dressed, and go on in there.

Adele Posts Pics from Hyde Park Rehearsal, Looks Like She’s Going Ahead with Shows Friday, Saturday

Roger Friedman
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Adele Posts Pics from Hyde Park Rehearsal, Looks Like She’s Going Ahead with Shows Friday, Saturday

Go easy on her.

Adele is actually going through with her two shows in London’s Hyde Park.

The first one is tomorrow, the second one is Saturday. The audience will be 65,000 people each night.

There are five different opening acts on each night.

But Adele has posted pictures to Instagram indicating that she’s rehearsing, and going through with it. So far. Remember, last winter she cancelled 26 shows in Las Vegas without thinking twice. The ticket holders are still looking for their money,

If Adele backs out she will cause a rupture in atmosphere. She will be rolling in the deep, whatever that means. My guess is she does a 90 minute set. After five openers, that will be enough of a main course for everyone.

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