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Update: Call it Anna Wintour’s “Med” Ball: Jon Batiste Performed, Now He and Band Are Sick

Roger Friedman
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Update: Call it Anna Wintour’s “Med” Ball: Jon Batiste Performed, Now He and Band Are Sick

UPDATE THURSDAY NIGHT 11PM: Jon Batiste and his band performed at the Met Ball. Now they’ve tested positive for COVID. And so it begins. Batiste has had to cancel a Carnegie Hall date on Saturday night. Unclear if he’ll be on Monday’s Stephen Colbert showm

earlier:

I don’t want to say I told you so, but I told you so.

Guests who went to Saturday night’s White House Correspondent’s Dinner in Washington and the Inner Circle party in New York are reporting COVID positive tests in droves.

ABC’s JOnathan Karl was reported yesterday. Today, our pal Jada Yuan, the reporter who Tweeted out her fear of being in the Hilton ballroom, raised her hand, too. Jada Tweeted: “Welp. So I, too, got covid — and it sucks. It could have been the WHCD dinner I was covering or the surrounding events (also covering). Dinner had testing requirement, events did not. And now I’ll be missing a major international work trip I really wanted to do.”

Live from the dinner, she wrote: “This room is like a horror film. No exits. Literally getting trapped between tables. Fear of breathing near people but people are everywhere. Creeping sense that you’re the only one who know this is insane.”

Meanwhile several people who attended the press- heavy Inner Circle in New York on Saturday night have tested positive.

Next up will be guests from the celeb-heavy Met Ball, or what may become known as the Med Ball by tomorrow.

Rock Hall: Carly Simon, Dolly, Lionel, Eminem, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, Pat Benatar

Roger Friedman
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Rock Hall: Carly Simon, Dolly, Lionel, Eminem, Duran Duran, Eurythmics, Pat Benatar

The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Class of 2022 is better than could have been expected.

Carly Simon, Dolly Parton, Eminem, Lionel Richie, Duran Duran, the Eurythmics, and Pat Benatar are all in.

Heavy metal group Judas Priest got something called the Musical Excellent Award. But so did producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, who really deserve it.

Harry Belafonte, who just turned 95, and Elizabeth Cotten, got the Early Influence Award.

And the Ahmet Ertegun Award for executives in the biz went to famed lawyer Allen Grubman, Interscope and Beats headphones founder Jimmy Iovine, and R&B exec-slash-singer Sylvia Robinson.

Yes, there are names missing, like Dionne Warwick, but I think we’ll see them next year.

For Dolly Parton, well, it was quite a rollercoaster with her saying she would decline the award. Then magically the other day she said she’d accept it. And now she’s got it. Funny how that all worked out!

This year’s ceremony will be held on November 5th at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles and air later on HBO and HBO Max.

“SVU” Shocker: EP of NBC’s Long Running Hit Show Leaving After Year of “Law & Order” Upheaval

Roger Friedman
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“SVU” Shocker: EP of NBC’s Long Running Hit Show Leaving After Year of “Law & Order” Upheaval

This is a surprise.

Warren Leight, executive producer of “Law & Order SVU,” is leaving the show after a three year run. “SVU” is NBC’s 5th highest rated scripted show, and the ratings leader on Thursday nights sandwiched between the revived (and lukewarmly received) “Law & Order” classic and Chris Meloni’s flailing “Organized Crime.”

Leight returned three seasons ago after a break. He’d been with the series for five years, then left. During his absence, “SVU” went into a tailspin and was almost cancelled. But Leight revived the series. This is the 23rd season and it was thought he’d take it to its 25th.

But the whole Dick Wolf “Law & Order” situation has been a mess all season at other shows. “Organized Crime” trails in the ratings and depends on the Mariska Hargitay-starring franchise to stay alive. The “OC” executive producer Ilene Chaiken was let go a couple of months ago and replaced by Bryan Burroughs as the Meloni show’s ratings plummeted.

In February, Wolf revived the original “Law & Order” after failing to produced a show he promised NBC called “Law & Order: For the Defense,” That show simply never materialized after NBC cancelled the popular “Manifest” to make a “Law & Order” night out of Thursdays. For the first half of this season, with “For the Defense” on the air, NBC had to improvise until the revived “Law & Order” was ready.

The constant upheaval around crossover shows to bolster “Organized Crime” may have been what sent Leight to the doors. This week the 8pm show, “Law & Order,” announced that Hargitay would be crossing over to that show as well for their finale.

What’s most surprising about Leight’s exit is that in his three years, “SVU” ratings have increased tremendously. While all network shows have declined, “SVU” went from Season 21’s average of 3.6 million total viewers to this season’s 4.5 million. Meantime, “Organized Crime”‘s average this season has been just 3.37 million. “SVU” was also handily beating competitor “Grey’s Anatomy” on ABC every week.

“SVU” fans will be sorry to see Leight go. He had a big following on social media, which built a community for the show’s hardcore viewers.

Leight kept it classy in a series of Tweets last night when “SVU” wrapped its 23rd season. (The bold facing is mine.) He wrote:

“The final day of shooting is always bittersweet. Today was a little more than that. As some of you have already figured out, I am stepping down at the end of #SVU23. The last two years of show running during a pandemic have been arduous, and I’ve decided to take a break.

It’s a privilege to work on #SVU, to write for @Mariska, @FINALLEVEL, @KelliGiddish, @PeterScanavino, @octaviopisano and all the former regulars and guest stars who come to our stage. It’s a joy to write with everyone @SVUWritersRoom, I’m especially grateful to @JulieMartinNY

And our on-set writer/producers @ItsAlwaysBreezy, @svubrendan and Bryan Goluboff. Speaking of producers, @Orsonb63, @ciliento and Ken Brown are the best in the business. Norberto somehow directed 5 eps this season, while shepherding 7 new-to-SVU directors thru their shoots.

At least once a week this year a brick came thru the window. This person quarantined, that location lost, another show fell behind and our guest star was no longer available. Each time casting, camera, design, wardrobe, locations, h/mu, props, drivers came up with a save

And when they didn’t, our editing room, led by the indefatigable genius, Arthur Forney did. Somehow the obstacles pulled us all closer together. The episodes stayed on track and seemed to get stronger the longer the season went on

It was an honor to work with this team, and I thank Dick Wolf, Peter Jankowski, @WolfEnt, and Lisa Katz, Pearlena Igbokwe, Erin Underhill and @NBCUniversal for their support and that privilege

Finally, I’d like to thank the fans. You’ve stayed loyal to the show, and vocal in your support and occasional dismay, for 23 years. No other show can say that, and so you know, EVERYBODY at #SVU is grateful to you for that commitment. You too are part of this team.”

Keith Richards on Seeing Ronnie Spector for the Last Time, and the Unreleased Music They Made Together

Roger Friedman
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Keith Richards on Seeing Ronnie Spector for the Last Time, and the Unreleased Music They Made Together

The late great Ronnie Spector has a newly revised version of her memoir, “Be My Baby,” published yesterday by Henry Holt. The book was out of print for years. But in the months before her death Ronnie went back through it, fixed it up, and added a postscript about her life post-Phil Spector.

Ronnie also added a new foreword by Keith Richards. They were friends since they first met in 1964 in what Keith recalls as a “dank” UK nightclub, where the Ronettes and Stones were on tour together. “It was love at first sight,” Keith recalls.

The friendship was meant to be for a lifetime. For the last 20 or more years, Keith and Patti Hansen, and Ronnie and husband Jonathan Greenfield lived near each other in western Connecticut. Keith says right before 9-11, Ronnie started coming over to record in his home studio. They recorded a cover of Ike and Tina Turner’s “It’s Gonna Work Out Fine.” They also did a duet called “Love Affair.” Keith writes, “Then came the bomb,” and that was it. He says he still has tracks he hopes to put out one day– I sure wish he would do it soon.

Keith says the last time he saw — and heard — Ronnie was in March 2020 right before the pandemic. He was in the dentists’ chair in New York and suddenly heard her singing “Be my little baby…”

“She was having her teeth done the same day and decided to surprise me with a serenade,” he says.

Tomorrow is Ronnie’s memorial service. I was honored to be invited but cannot attend because one of my nieces is graduating from college. I wish I could be there. Ronnie was unique, a sweetheart who survived the pioneering days of pop, to say the least. That voice, her voice! It never fails to cut through the noise, it’s so distinctive — not just the Ronettes hits, but all the records she made in the late 70s and early 80s like “Say Goodbye to Hollywood” with the E Street Band, and “Take Me Home Tonight” with Eddie Money. For me, I hear it, I’m gone. So raise a glass to Ronnie tomorrow. She will always be missed, but live on and on in our ears.

Andrew Lloyd Webber No Prince Charming as He Decides to Shut Down London “Cinderella” Without Telling Cast or Director

Roger Friedman
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Andrew Lloyd Webber No Prince Charming as He Decides to Shut Down London “Cinderella” Without Telling Cast or Director

If you think we have problems…

In London, Andrew Lloyd Webber who functions as a “composer” and “producer” is in hot water. His production of “Cinderella” in the West End will shutter on June 12th. Unfortunately, he forgot to tell the cast.

According to reports from Deadline’s Baz Bamigboye and others, the cast and crew got the news via social media. Apparently, a new cast was coming in, and ALW decided it was too expensive to train them. So he pulled the plug.

According to Bambigboye, even the director didn’t know what was going on. A Brit, Laurence Connor was en route home from Australia when he got a message from Webber that “Cinderella” would close. When Conner landed in the UK he learned that this privileged information was all over the place. Everyone involved knew, and they were furious.

Now there are picketers from London theatre union Equity in front of the Gillian Lynne Theater.

Even with all this bad publicity, Webber plans to bring “Cinderella” to New York next February 2023 for a Tony run. Connor was actually here prior to the Aussie trip to start casting the Broadway version. The man who wrote “Memory” doesn’t think the Broadway press has one, I guess, but this debacle will certainly come up when he gets here.

If you’re asking yourself, isn’t there a famous Rodgers and Hammerstein “Cinderella,” well yes there is. But does that matter to ALW, author of some of the most, uh, music in theater history? No. He thinks we should forget “Do I Love You Because You’re Beautiful?” and “In My Own Little Corner” and Julie Andrews and all that. In 1965, the TV version, starring Leslie Ann Warren as Cinderella and Stuart Damon as Prince Charming (later the star of “General Hospital”) scored 42.5 million viewers. It was played eight times more in reruns over the next nine years.

But Andrew Lloyd Webber is no Prince Charming. Neither is he Rodgers nor Hammerstein. So keep an eye on this one. Should be a jolly good time when they all arrive in New York next winter.

Here’s Damon and Warren:

Paul McCartney Seems to Have Retired “Yesterday,” Hasn’t Performed It Since 2018

Roger Friedman
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Paul McCartney Seems to Have Retired “Yesterday,” Hasn’t Performed It Since 2018

I’m getting excited about Paul McCartney’s new tour. It just launched in Spokane, Washington, and comes to Giants Stadium on June 16th, two days before Paul’s 80th birthday.

Reports from the early shows are ecstatic, of course. Paul is playing lot of Beatles, Wings, and solo hits.

But one song he’s not playing is his most famous: “Yesterday.” It wasn’t included in his 2019 “Freshen Up” tour and hasn’t appeared in the new set lists. In fact, McCartney hasn’t played “Yesterday” since 2018. Even then, the famed mega hit was only heard 5 times.

Is Paul tired of “Yesterday”? He’s talked about it a lot in the recent documentaries. We all know the story of how he dreamed it, and thought it couldn’t be original. The first lyrics were “Scrambled eggs” until he wrote in the words we’ve all come to know so well.

Maybe by the time Paul’s “Get Back: tour hits the NY area he’ll relent and revive “Yesterday.” I sure hope so. It’s not long and doesn’t have a lot of instrumentation, for god’s sake. But to many, it’s the song that ‘made’ the Beatles.

Broadway Box Office Falls by $5 Mil Even With Tony-Buzzed Shows Opening Last Week

Roger Friedman
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Broadway Box Office Falls by $5 Mil Even With Tony-Buzzed Shows Opening Last Week

The final week of the Tony award season was not so good at the Broadway box office.

The total gross fell by $5 million, from $34 to $29 million despite a spate of new shows opening to qualify for the Tonys. (The eligibility date was actually moved by a week to May 6th.)

Also, the revival for “For Colored Girls” is closing early. Well received, the revival has not attracted an audience. Last week the play only sold 51% of its capacity.

Indeed, last week not one show played at 100% after several weeks of multiple entries hitting that mark. Even the Hugh Jackman “Music Man” dropped by $150,000 from the previous week. But that could be from Tony voters and other awards voters getting free tickets.

But older shows suddenly looked vulnerable. Powerhouse “Wicked” dropped by $800,000 to $1.196 million. Just two weeks ago, “Wicked” took in $2.3 million. Maybe someone cast a spell on them once the announcement of a two part movie was made.

Other struggling shows: “A Strange Loop,” “POTUS,” and “Paradise Square.” With 8,500 new COVID cases reported in NYC yesterday, we may be in for a tricky spring session on Broadway, where the requirement to show proof of vaccination is not mandatory anymore.

Here We Go: Kim Kardashian’s Seat Partner, ABC’s Jonathan Karl, Tests Positive for COVID from White House Dinner

Roger Friedman
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Here We Go: Kim Kardashian’s Seat Partner, ABC’s Jonathan Karl, Tests Positive for COVID from White House Dinner

POLITICO is reporting that the White House Correspondents Dinner COVID cases are starting to report in.

ABC’s Jonathan Karl, who got an award on Saturday night, saw two lines pop up on his little testing kit.

Guess who he was sitting next to? Why, “Marilyn Monroe of KMart,” aka Kim Kardashian.

Last night, Kimmy and bf Pete Davidson were in the thick of it at the Met Ball, which I told you would be a super spreader. So keep your eyes and ears open. Will Kim or Pete test positive? Even if they don’t, will they have transmitted the virus in the Temple of Dendur? Did they give it to Karl or vice versa?

The testing usually shows up 48 hours after the event. So the White House dinner folks will know by today or tomorrow. The Met Ball guests should start saying their prayers.

PS There were a stunning 8,563 reported cases yesterday in NYC.

PS Lady Gaga was NOT at the Met Ball, she was in Las Vegas working. Apparently, an old picture of her was used everywhere.

Review: “Dr. Strange” is Back in Another Suavely Made, Shiny Marvel Hit

Roger Friedman
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Review: “Dr. Strange” is Back in Another Suavely Made, Shiny Marvel Hit

SOME SPOILERS INCLUDED

You can almost bet on the idea that if I like a super hero or comic book movie, I’ll be in the minority.

So is it alright to say I really enjoyed “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness”? This is the second film to feature Benedict Cumberbatch as the wizard like super hero, but he’s been in other Marvel films aka the Marvel universe.

But when the Avengers’ story came to an end, Marvel invoked the “multi-verse” so that old characters could come in new stories from parallel time warps or something. I liken it to changing trains on the LIRR at Jamaica for one of several routes. I could be one Roger on the way to Far Rockaway, one going to Great Neck, and another Patchogue.

So Dr. Steven Strange has one life where he’s screwed up his relationship with Rachel McAdams to the point where he’s attending her wedding to someone else. Meantime, a teen girl he’s never seen before (charming newcomer Xochitl Gomez) drops in from another universe. She has the power to cross all multiverses– in other words, she can go from Great Neck to Patchogue without going back to Jamaica. Because of that the evil Scarlett Witch, aka Wanda from Wanda from Wanda Vision– Elisabeth Olsen — wants to grab her and take that power so she can rule the galaxies.

Meantime, presumably, regular people are on Earth going to CVS and Dairy Queen unaware of this misghegos in the skies.

There are Easter eggs galore and a ton of references to other movies. That’s what sends fans back to these things over and over. But “Doctor Strange 2” as I will call it also directed by Sam Raimi, who made the first three “Spider Man” movies with Tobey Maguire so enjoyable. He’s given this film a comic book feel, irreverent and jaunty, and meta enough to feel smart.

I digress here to say kudos to the production design team, everyone in special effects, the whole below the line crew which in the end credits look like walls of names. They hae topped all previous Marvel movies with their precise and innovative work. Martin Scorsese would not appreciate it, but did!

Back to the movie: Gomez’s character is named America, so a lot of proclamations made about her, especially toward the end, could be construed as thoughts about this country. Stan Lee would approve. Raimi has brought in cult actor Bruce Campbell from the director’s own “Evil Dead” series. Well played, gentlemen. Several Marvel characters turn up in an alternate universe to help Doctor Strange and none of it works out. Still, it’s a different universe so I’m not worried about them.

The big SPOILER is that John Krasinski appears as Dr. Reed Richards from the Fantastic Four. This would suggest that a new “FF4” movie is coming with Krasinski in the lead role. And why not? The audience let out a howl when they saw him. Another cameo is from Patrick Stewart as Professor Charles Xavier from “X Men.”

I never thought when Benedict Cumberbatch was starting out that this classical actor with Oscar aspirations would wind up in the Marvel universe as a comic book hero. But hey. Laurence Olivier might have gone in this very direction. Cumberbatch certainly classes up the joint. Elisabeth Olsen as Wanda continues to be as charming as ever. I was thrilled to see Hayley Atwell in her cameo, as well as Lashana Lynch. Michael Stuhlbarg is a gem as a new character in the series. As for Rachel McAdams, I want to see her in some great “real” movies, but she’s a pleasure as the gal Steven Strange can’t get out of his head.

Here We Go: Lady Gaga Debuts “Hold My Hand,” Bold Anthem from “Top Gun Maverick”

Roger Friedman
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Here We Go: Lady Gaga Debuts “Hold My Hand,” Bold Anthem from “Top Gun Maverick”

Lady Gaga has made an appropriately catchy, bold anthem like song for the movie “Top Gun Maverick.”

“Hold My Hand” should go ruight to the top of the charts tonight. It’s a hit, with a capital H.

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