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Please Watch This Video: Is This Our America? Federal Agents Restraining a Man, Screaming in Agony, on the Washington Mall

Roger Friedman
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Please Watch This Video: Is This Our America? Federal Agents Restraining a Man, Screaming in Agony, on the Washington Mall

This happened today.

No one is stopping it. Is this America? Is this what you really want? I know there are sick people who will think Yes, get him. But if it happened to you or someone you knew, you wouldn’t feel that way.

I love the people on the sidewalk. They’re what we call “the good Germans.” They see nothing.

This is so disgusting, it makes my blood boil. We are letting thugs rule the country thanks to Donald Trump and his goon squad.

Forget about uneducated MAGA and those people. How about Democrats and independents who voted for Trump? How can you sleep?

Warning About Google AI: Report from Expert Sees Website Traffic for NY Times’ Wirecutter Is Dropping Fast as Google Kills The Internet

Roger Friedman
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Warning About Google AI: Report from Expert Sees Website Traffic for NY Times’ Wirecutter Is Dropping Fast as Google Kills The Internet

Internet sage Glenn Gabe has an alarming report on his site.

Traffic for the NY Times’ site Wirecutter has gone off the deep end.

Wirecutter is NY Times site that covers family stuff, electronics, home issues, etc. It’s the equivalent of what New York magazine was decades ago, all about helpful and cool stuff. There are lots of reviews of cell phones, vacuums, etc, plus practical things we need to keep going in this crazy world.

Gabe noticed that in the last month, Wirecutter — like every website — is spiraling out of control. Google, I surmise, is killing Wirecutter with AI. When someone searches for “best vacuum,” they’re getting Google’s AI answer. Previously they would have clicked on Wirecutter’s blue link.

But Google AI and all AI are ravaging websites, destroying the internet now no what kind of defense is put up. This is a frightening story and one that should be taken seriously because it’s happened to every website. If it can happen to the New York Times, it’s happening to you.

Here’s the link.

Cardi B’s New Single DOA as Atlantic Records, Despite “Ordinary” Hit, Lays Off 30 to 40 People Including 4 Main Promo Execs

Roger Friedman
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Cardi B’s New Single DOA as Atlantic Records, Despite “Ordinary” Hit, Lays Off 30 to 40 People Including 4 Main Promo Execs

Atlantic Records is in a hot mess.

Last week, four main promo execs were laid off. But they weren’t alone. I’m told the company was gutted with 30 to 40 laid off throughout the staff.

This really hurts because Atlantic has had one bright spot all year: Alex Warren’s song “Ordinary,” which has stuck in the top 3 on the charts for weeks and weeks.

But that’s it for Atlantic. A new blow is a single drop last Friday by rapper Cardi B. “Imaginary Playerz” has only gotten as high as number 15 on iTunes. It hasn’t registered at all on Apple’s Top 100 Streaming list, or on Spotify. The song largely samples an old Jay Z hit called “Imaginary Players.”

Prior to this single, another one, called “Outside,” has amassed just 21,400 downloads, plus streaming that takes it up to over 400,000. But that doesn’t bode well for Cardi B — whose second full album (first in 7 years since her debut) — is coming on September 19th.

Ten months ago, Atlantic already slashed a huge number of executives as it fell under the control of Elliot Grainge, whose father is the legendary Universal Music chief Lucien Grainge. Elliot and his team promised lots of hits, and so on, but so far none of that has come to pass.

Atlantic is part of the Warner Music Group, which has its own problems overall and promises of more layoffs throughout the corporation. Warner Records itself has had more luck breaking acts — with Sombr coming up this Friday — but is still living on legacy acts. Two weeks ago Warner Records laid off and reorganized in the face of shrinking sales.

But what can these companies do? Streaming has eaten downloading and CDs, the latter destroyed. Sales are minimal. Releases are few and far between, with no headlining making artists other than Taylor Swift.

But what

Carrie Coon, Mrs. Russell from “The Gilded Age,” Coming to Broadway This Fall in Her Real Husband’s Play (Tracy Letts)

Roger Friedman
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Carrie Coon, Mrs. Russell from “The Gilded Age,” Coming to Broadway This Fall in Her Real Husband’s Play (Tracy Letts)

When we last saw Bertha Russell, she was aghast that her husband left her.

That was on “The Gilded Age.”

Now Mrs. Russell’s portrayer, Carrie Coon, is coming to Broadway this fall. She’ll star in her award winning playwright husband’s “Bug.”

The husband, Tracy Letts, actor and writer, is best known for “August Osage County.”

By the time she gets to the Samuel G. Freedman Theater, Coon may have an Emmy for “The White Lotus.”

That’s quite a year!

“Bug” last played at Chicago’s Steppenwolf Theater in 2021.

The full cast of the 2021 production will reprise their performances on Broadway, including  Namir Smallwood, Randall Arney, Jennifer Engstrom and Steve Key.

Set in a seedy Oklahoma motel room, Bug centers on the unlikely romance between a lonely waitress and a mysterious and paranoid drifter. The longer they talk, the more the waitress begins to adopt his neuroses. The work premiered at London’s Gate Theatre in 1996, with a revised version playing Off-Broadway’s Barrow Street Theatre in 2004, winning the Lucille Lortel and Obie Awards for Best Play. A movie adaptation was released in 2006 directed by William Friedkin, starring Ashley Judd, Michael Shannon, and Harry Connick, Jr.

This production will be notable for its acting and writing, and also its opening night. Almost all of “The Gilded Age” cast lives in New York. The Freedman theater is small, so you can imagine that red carpet!

Claim: Controversial Country Star Morgan Wallen Not Submitting 4 Million Selling “I’m the Problem” for Grammy Consideration

Roger Friedman
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Claim: Controversial Country Star Morgan Wallen Not Submitting 4 Million Selling “I’m the Problem” for Grammy Consideration

Morgan Wallen is certainly the outlier in popular music.

The country star sells millions and millions of streaming music but is not taken seriously by anyone.

His latest album, “I’m the Problem,” has steamed the equivalent of almost 4 million copies. Of course, less than 10% are actual sales. Maybe 250,000 in CDs, LPs, and and paid downloads. Otherwise, it’s all in the air.

Anyway, Wallen — according to hitsdailydouble.com — has not submitted “I’m the Problem” for Grammy consideration. The deadline is August 31st.

That means no Wallen on the Grammys next winter.

What’s the problem? Is he the problem?

The Grammys don’t care much for Wallen. He’s never gotten any Grammy nominations. He was accused of using the N word on a home video and only got his hand slapped. His punishment is to just keep making more money, money, money. Whatever mansion he lives in is lined with expensive beer bottles and gold records from the RIAA.

Year to date, according to Luminate, he’s sold a total of 6 million equivalent sales, with a total of 303,000 in physical sales.

The streaming is what his sales are all about, which means someone’s just hitting the play button on Spotify over and over.

But those physical sales — iTunes is always listing “I’m the Problem” in the top 10. In reality the album sold an actual 4,000 copies last week which demonstrates how anemic record sales really are.

So no Morgan, no cry at this year’s coming Grammys — which just clears the path for country artists who deserve the accolades.

Sticker Shock: Low Budget Looking “Happy Gilmore 2” Cost At Least $152 Million, Most Money Ever Spent on a New Jersey Production by Anyone

Roger Friedman
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Sticker Shock: Low Budget Looking “Happy Gilmore 2” Cost At Least $152 Million, Most Money Ever Spent on a New Jersey Production by Anyone

Maybe you’ve seen Adam Sandler’s “Happy Gilmore 2.”

For a couple of weeks it was the most watched film all over the world on Netflix. It spent four weeks in the Netflix top 10. It wasn’t great, but it was fan service for Sandler freaks who loved the original movie. There’s no harm in that.

Now, thanks a report from the State of New Jersey, we learn that “Happy Gilmore 2” — a comedy about golf with no special effects — cost at least $152 million. That’s the most any movie has ever spent in New Jersey.

“Happy Gilmore 2” got tax breaks, but also we don’t what they spent beyond shooting in New Jersey. Wow, that’s a lot of money. And it’s pretty high considering Sandler’s daughter and wife appeared in the film. (Daughter Sunny just wrapped a new movie for Netflix with Steve Buscemi and Max Greenfield in which the 16 year old is the central character. It’s her 21st screen credit.)

Here’s a report detailing where $152 million got spent. filmed in 31 municipalities and 9 counties across the state. They did not shoot in space or stage a “Gladiator” like fight.

According to the report:

“The exterior of the Gilmore home was filmed at a private home in Irvington and the interior was filmed at a private home in Belleville. New Jersey golf courses featured in the film included Beacon Hill Country Club in Atlantic Highlands, Fiddler’s Elbow in Bedminster, Forest Hill Field Club in Bloomfield, Closter Golf Center, Alpine County Club in Demarest, Farmview Golf Center in Hackettstown, Rockleigh Golf Course, Essex Golf Center in Roseland, and Montclair Golf Club in West Orange. New Jersey boasts over 330 golf courses in the state.”

As for the cast, besides Adam and Sunny, the few other main actors are Julie Bowen, Christopher McDonald, Benny Safdie and Haley Joel Osment — not exactly Scarlett Johansson, Timothee Chalamet, and Matt Damon in terms of deals. Otherwise, it’s stuffed with cameos from sports stars and celebrities like Bad Bunny who probably got scale and were all paid the same amount of money.

All in all, a strange story. But Netflix has deep pockets, and they’re also building a studio in New Jersey. So they probably think it was worth it to spend $152 million-plus on a movie that tops should have cost $50 mil.

CBS Settles for Five Years of Lesser Respected American Music Awards After Losing the Grammy Awards to ABC

Roger Friedman
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CBS Settles for Five Years of Lesser Respected American Music Awards After Losing the Grammy Awards to ABC

CBS has not a good year.

There’s been so much chaos with the Skydance merger, fighting in house at the News department, the settlement with Donald Trump, and so on.

Last fall — October 2024 — the network lost the deal for the Grammy Awards, which had been on CBS for 52 years. But they either didn’t understand the importance of the Grammys or didn’t care. So the Grammys moved to ABC.

CBS already a deal with Dick Clark Productions for the Golden Globes, considered the minor version of ABC’s Oscars. Now they’ve made a deal for five years of DCP’s American Music Awards, a much lesser music show that no one takes seriously and is usually a mess.

In May, the AMAs scored 4.9 million viewers on the day they aired. Then, counting streaming, YouTube clips, and broadcasts to Mars, CBS now says they reached a total of 10 million people also counting other Paramount networks. Whatever.

The reality is that CBS has the two minor awards shows. They still have the Tony Awards, which gives them some prestige. There’s a lot of trouble coming up with the Kennedy Center Honors. They still have no producer. They’re saddled with clown president Donald Trump as host. The honorees are terrible. And this is the last year on the contract between CBS and the Kennedy Center.

You could easily see Trump moving the Honors to NewsNation in 2026. It’s only to get worse.

The Tiffany network is fast becoming the Walmart network. What’s next, the People’s Choice Awards?

Broadway: Summer Struggles at Box Office with Fewer Tourists, Long Time Hit “Book of Mormon” Takes a Dive to Lowest Low Yet

Roger Friedman
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Broadway: Summer Struggles at Box Office with Fewer Tourists, Long Time Hit “Book of Mormon” Takes a Dive to Lowest Low Yet

It hasn’t been an easy summer on Broadway.

While Times Square is filled with thousands of people milling around taking pictures with Elmo, the theater district has struggled. Tourism is way down, particularly from Canada. International visitors may worry about being deported to Sudan, or threatened by ICE. Not fun.

Last week’s box office continued the overall decline to just $29.7 million. That’s $2 million less than the same week a year ago, and $2 million less than just last week.

Some shows are booming, while others are floundering.

One of the latter is “The Book of Mormon.” The irreverent South Park musical dropped by $160,000 from the previous week to an all time low of $724,726. That’s a stunning fall off for a show without stars.

“Book of Mormon” has been on the boards for well over a decade. The musical opened in March 2011, so fatigue set in a long time ago. Is the end near? If it is, they can’t say they didn’t have an amazing run.

As usual, the most empty theater prize goes to “Chicago,” the musical, now in its 400th year. They’re waiting for Mira Sorvino to come in and gin things up. She can do it!

Trump Wants to Take Control of Museums, Complains Learning About Slavery and the “Downtrodden” Is Too Negative

Roger Friedman
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Trump Wants to Take Control of Museums, Complains Learning About Slavery and the “Downtrodden” Is Too Negative

Donald Trump thinks that museums shouldn’t be talking about how bad slavery was, it’s a downer like discussing how “unaccomplished” the downtrodden were in some fuzzy long ago time.

Instead, he says in a Truth Social message, museums should be telling a different story because there’s “Nothing about Success, nothing about Brightness, nothing about the Future.”

Trump, who has never set foot in any museum, is now threatening America’s museums, intimating that he will force them to change to his will as he has law firms and universities. He has no idea what a museum’s function is — to teach history — and doesn’t care.

This is a distraction from Epstein, but also frightening because this is an extension of his fascism. He wants to control the press, education, and history, and reshape it in his bizarre and untruthful vision.

Will anyone stop him? He’s already directed one of his underlings to make changes at the Smithsonian so that it’s in accord with him for the nation’s 250th birthday in 2026.

His exact interest in “Slavery” should be of concern to every American. This is insanity.

The Beatles Tease 30TH Anniversary Anthology Collection November 21st with 4th Chapter, Video and Audio UPDATED W GOSSIP

Roger Friedman
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The Beatles Tease 30TH Anniversary Anthology Collection November 21st with 4th Chapter, Video and Audio UPDATED W GOSSIP

UPDATED SEE BELOW– Release date set for November 21st.

Once upon a time, the Beatles had their “Anthology” series.

There were three double CD albums that featured outtakes and songs never heard, different takes of hits.

Now it seems they’re teasing a fourth Anthology set because you know, Christmas is coming, and they’ve run out of albums to remix and repackage. Seriously, I love the Beatles and all their anniversary box sets. An Anthology 4 would be very welcome.

Seriously, it’s the 30th anniversary of the original albums. So why not add one and promote the whole series? Plus, new vinyl versions would also be a hit.

Is there any extra material left? Quite a lot, I think, judging by all the bootlegs floating around. And Apple would be smart to fix up the original set of albums and videos for a new generation. You Tube is filled with fan made versions of an Anthology 4 with all kinds of amateur remixes including one of the whole Band — somehow – playing on John Lennon’s “Grow Old With Me.”

So stay tuned…

unofficial, from YouTube

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