Friday, December 19, 2025
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Luminous Norah Jones Jazzes Up Montauk, Wows Hamptons Crowd at Annual Fundraiser for Historic Lighthouse

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Saturday night, the word from LA was the sensational “Jesus Christ Superstar” at the Hollywood Bowl. Everyone is still talking about Cynthia Erivo, Adam Lambert, and co rocking the house.

The East Coast was not to be outdone. We had jazz great Norah Jones outdoors in Montauk raising money for the south fork’s famous, historic light house.

The crowd was massive, drawing attention away from all other shenanigans in the Hamptons. Only in Montauk, kids, do you see a superstar performing up close.

Opening act was comedian, writer, and local Seth Herzog, who has a long resume that includes being the audience warm up comedian for “The Tonight Show with Jimmy Fallon.”

Herzog was pleased to be invited to a venue that met all of his criteria: one bathroom for hundreds, and a diverse crowd. He got to test his material on a sea of well groomed people now filling in the beach chairs perched on a slope beside the legendary lighthouse.

The part time Upper Westsider also wanted everyone to picture his NYC neighborhood: Bernie Sanders multiplied exponentially. Herzog nailed it, describing store signs in Montauk: the Fudge Shop, Sloppy Tuna—all you needed was to evoke sex, he nodded to the 110 foot phallus standing over the charity event.

And then there was Norah Jones, multiple Grammy winner, daughter of the late great Ravi Shankar.

Jones, in a green jacket, sequined tiger on her back, over dress and silver high heels, took the stage singing her signature “What Am I to You?” Accompanied by a first-rate band she introduced songs from her 2024 Grammy winning album, “Visions.” This being the very tip of Long Island, surrounded by ocean, she sang from “Queen of the Sea: “I Just Want to Dance,” slow moving and sexy, “Sunrise, Sunlight, ooh, ooh, ooh,” and “Come Away with Me.” At times on keyboards, and then on guitar, she’s a virtuoso musician, jazzy, and with Sasha Dobson providing additional vocals and guitar, the pair resonated girl power.

Dedicating her last bit to the ones leaving — there’s only one road in out of Montauk, one road baby –she sang Tom Waits’ “Long Way Home,” and saved one surprise for last: “Don’t Know Why,” complete with a shout out to Jesse Harris, its composer who waved to the crowd. The one road baby was a conga line of Norah Jones fans leading out of Montauk, or to the afterparty at Sole East.

“The Gilded Age” Finally a Watercooler Show, Number 1 on All of HBO, With a “Who Shot JR?” Penultimate Cliffhanger Episode

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“The Gilded Age” is finally a hit.

The breakthrough was Sunday night, when George Russell (Morgan Spector) was unexpectedly shot.

Shades of South Fork! “The Gilded Age” is now the number 1 show on all of HBO.

The shooter is unknown, and so it the person he works for. It’s likely one of George’s many enemies, like Clay, whose life was destroyed earlier in the episode during a failed business deal. When George gloated about Clay’s demise, Spector sounded just like Larry Hagman in “Dallas.”

Of course like JR, George will survive, and be more vicious than ever. Maybe the season ending cliffhanger this Sunday will keep fans salivating until Season 4 returns.

Show creator Julian Fellowes and his amazing partner in crime, Salli Richardson Whitfield, have amped up the drama and the humor this season. The episodes swing by, there’s no dwelling on deep moments. When Oscar’s lover died, we didn’t see Oscar being told. No, that was off screen. We were already on to the aftermath.

Many stories and actors stand out. Nathan Lane’s Ward McAllister is Truman Capote a century early. McAllister has been excommunicated from society for writing a scathing book, just Capote faced the same expulsion in 1975 when he published a chapter from his novel, “Answered Prayers,” in Esquire. He was dropped by the society women he wrote about, and the full novel didn’t see the light of day until 1986.

Will Lane return? Let’s hope so. But soon we’ll see him again in “Only Murders in the Building.”

Christine Baranski and Cynthia Nixon as the wealthy battling sisters are always top notch. This past week, Nixon levitated as Aunt Ada advised niece Marian (Louisa Jacobson, aka Streep) when she warned her against becoming a spinster. Aunt Ada is a gem.

There are so many Broadway stars in “Gilded Age,” it’s a little daunting but a lot of fun to watch them all in scenes. One of the best stories is about Peggy (Denee Benton) and her family including her mother, played by Audra McDonald. Lately, McDonald has been in scenes with Phylicia Rashad, who’s playing the scowling mother of Peggy’s possible future husband. This whole story could be spun off as its own series.

But back to George. Fellowes really has made him a likeable JR Ewing, twirling his actual mustache as he dances on the graves of his enemies. Lately George has been staying at his club while fighting with his wife, Bertha, played by sudden HBO star Carrie Coon. So George’s enemy could be anyone, not just a business player but maybe someone he’s seen at club. The possibilities are endless.

So on we go to Sunday, and then a fourth season that should make “The Gilded Age” bigger than “The White Lotus.” Bravo!

Trump Media Truth Social Stock Hits Lowest Price Since April, Off More than 9 Bucks Since May 23: Investors Shun Sewage Fest

Prices are up and going up more.

Trump is prancing on the roof of the White House, high as a kite, ordering more tariffs and trying to destroy the rule of law.

The MAGAts are very happy.

Meanwhile, the price of Trump’s actual stock is dropping like a rock.

Trump Media, the stock for Truthsocial.com, hit its lowest point since April at $16.39.

On May 23rd, Trump Media had been run up to $25.72. It’s lost 8 bucks in value since then.

Truth Social is a garbage dump. It’s a sewage system for Trump to post inanities, hoping to deflect from his serious crimes and scandals.

Today’s targets included teenagers in Washington DC, and Gayle King. Trump thinks her CBS Mornings is “woke” and she should go somewhere else. Note to Donald: no one cares what you think about news or TV shows. It’s not your business. Zip it.

Legacy Pop Stars Face No Sales Despite Fans: Mariah Carey’s New Single, Richie Sambora’s Return Met with Indifference

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Mariah Carey is a superstar, no doubt about it.

But at 56 years old, she is unappealing to “record” buyers.

Her latest single, “Sugar Sweet,” came and went in a week.

Total sales including streaming were just 1,733 in paid downloads.

Streaming brings the total to 19,941 in sales.

The song was average, a throwaway, and had nothing new to offer anyone. It followed another flop, “Type Dangerous.”

None of this bodes well for Carey’s late September album release.

Mariah is not alone. Former Bon Jovi guitar slinger and singer Richie Sambora just dropped a single called “Born to Rock.” Luminate is reporting almost no sales, really, just 80 equivalent copies.

The video for “Born to Rock” has 12,000 views.

Madonna, once the Queen of Pop, is in a similar bind. A remix album called “Veronica Electronica,” is almost non existent. Madonna has sold 2,576 paid downloads of a total 3,709 including streaming.

It’s a good thing Madge was counting on paying her Con Ed bill with those receipts.

Of course, all these artists are wealthy and settled. So these releases are more like vanity projects. They could be more, I guess, if they made an effort to make an interesting record and market it with some flair. But these records — or whatever we should call them — are empty gestures in the end.

PS I liked Richie Sambora’s single, but no effort was put into it at all.

Woody Allen’s Birthday Letter to Jeffrey Epstein Wasn’t Exactly Complimentary: Called Him Count Dracula and Didn’t Like the Food

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The New York Times has a great report today on Jeffrey Epstein’s townhouse.

Among other things, they found the notes his dinner guests sent for inclusion in a 63rd birthday book.

Famed movie director Woody Allen and wife Soon Yi Previn were nearby neighbors, and sometimes invited to dinner parties along with other famous people in the area.

The Times found Woody’s birthday note calling Epstein Dracula, and complaining about the food.

After this letter was received, it’s hard to imagine the Allens were invited back. But Woody was also there to observe a character or possible adaptation into a movie, play, or story.

This reminds me of a time I went to look at a massive apartment on the Upper East Side in a new building. The only furniture in the many rooms was a ping pong table, and the guy who lived there invited us to play. We declined. It was David Lynch before David Lynch.

Here’s the letter from Woody. It’s a classic!

Pop Star Sam Smith’s Brooklyn Residency is Called “To Be Free,” But it Costs Up to $547 a Ticket for Standing Only

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Pop star Sam Smith is coming to Brooklyn this October.

His big hit was called “I’ll Stand By You.” Smith really means it, too. 

He’s doing 12 shows at the Warsaw club in Greenpoint, which has a capacity of 1,000.

All the tickets are General Admission. Standing room only, to put it bluntly. No sitting.

The show is called “To Be Free.” But don’t be misled. There’s nothing free about it.

Tickets are almost $600 including fees for balcony tickets at some shows. And that’s before secondary brokers like Stub Hub amp it up closer to the dates.

 

Watch Trailer: George Clooney Sends Himself Up and Looks Awards-Bound in Noah Baumbach’s New “Jay Kelly” with Adam Sandler

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Noah Baumbach’s “Jay Kelly” looks very, very good.

The new dramedy is a satire and “an adult coming of age story” starring George Clooney as a movie star at a cross roads. Laura Dern is his publicist and Adam Sandler is his agent.

The great Emily Mortimer co-wrote the screenplay with Baumbach. There are about two dozen name actors in the cast including filmmaker Greta Gerwig, who’s also married to Baumbach.

This trailer should make everyone excited for Clooney and Baumbach, and Sandler — who was so good in Baumbach’s “Meyerowitz Stories” — to hit awards gold this season.

Incendiary “South Park” Is Back Tomorrow Night, with More on Trump-Satan Romance, ICE Raids, and Abortion (Teaser)

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“South Park” is back tomorrow night with a new, incendiary episode.

After the first episode of this new season 27, almost 7 million people were counted as viewers.

Donald Trump himself has remained silent after episode 1 showed off his teeny penis, portrayed him as a fat slob expiring in desert, and having a fling with Satan.

Trump and Satan are now a couple in the new teaser, and ICE raids are on the menu in the episode called “Got a Nut,” in which Mr. Mackay loses his job and desperately tries to find a new way to make a living.

The teaser is just the tip of the iceberg for the Comedy Central-Paramount Plus. Matt Stone and Trey Parker are pushing the envelope with their new $1.5 billion contract.

Viva “South Park”!

Marge Simpson aka the Great Julie Kavner Narrates James L. Brooks’s First Feature Film in 15 Years

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James L. Brooks is back.

No one has a resume like Brooks, creator of “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and “Taxi,” director of “Broadcast News,” “Terms of Endearment,” “As Good As it Gets,” “Spanglish.”

Brooks also created The “Tracey Ullman Show,” from which “The Simpsons” sprang.

Now he’s got “Ella McCay,” featuring an all-star cast including the similarly named Emma Mackey, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jack Lowden, Kumail Nanjiani, Ayo Edebiri, Spike Fearn, Rebecca Hall, Becky Ann Baker, Joey Brooks with Albert Brooks and Woody Harrelson.

The great Julie Kavner appears on screen and is the film’s narrator. She has been the voice of Marge Simpson for 36 years, but the comedy legend is beloved from the “Mary Tyler Moore” spin off, “Rhoda,” as the main character’s sister, Brenda.

Kavner was part of Woody Allen’s repertory company for a while, appearing in “Radio Days,” “Hannah and Her Sisters,” “Alice,” “Shadows and Fog,” “New York Stories,” “Deconstructing Harry,” and the TV production of “Don’t Drink the Water.”

She also starred in Nora Ephron’s lost gem, “This is My Life,” a kind of early “Mrs. Maisel” story written by Meg Wolitzer, and worth a look on streaming.

It’s so good to see Kavner back on screen, and Brooks — who’s 85! — back in the director’s chair. Maybe everything will be okay, after all.

Law & Disorder: “SVU” and “Organized Crime” are Now a Metaverse That Will Reunite Benson and Stabler Again

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Hold on, because there are a lot of changes coming to “SVU” and “Organized Crime” in September.

Call it “Law & Disorder.”

First: “Organized Crime,” the Chris Meloni drama that never found its footing on NBC, was sent to Peacock last spring.

Now, NBC is going to show all those episodes on NBC not in the summer but right after “SVU” at 10pm as if they were new. So if you don’t have Peacock, or thought “OC” was cancelled, it’s back.

As they used to say on NBC, if you never saw it, it’s new to you!

With the return of “OC” (because a promised show never materialized), Chris Meloni is coming back to “SVU” as Elliot Stabler in the continuing platonic romance with Mariska Hargitay’s Olivia Benson. These people are 60 years old and for 30 years have never consummated their relationship. Not even a real kiss. They will be doing this an old age home one day!

Two actors from “SVU’s” almost 30 year old history are coming back, too. Dean Winters — who’s made a fortune doing insurance commercials — and BD Wong, who was once a Broadway star, are returning to their old roles.

Also, Kelli Giddish — who was knocked to recurring status after 12 seasons — is coming back as a regular as Rollins. Octavio Pisano, whose character was sent off to greener pastures at the end of last season, is back nevertheless in the season premiere.

Where have these characters been? Frozen in time, apparently. Benson will thaw them out. Listen, the reruns are so ubiquitous that time has no meaning on “SVU.” It’s all become a metaverse!

It also looks like maybe Dann Florek will make a cameo as Captain Cragen.

So NBC has returned producer Dick Wolf to his Thursday kingdom. He’ll kic off the season with a three way “Law & Order” crossover on September 25th.

What will happen to “Organized Crime” after last spring’s episodes run out? Hard to say. Meloni just signed to star in an HBO series, so it may be a while before “Organized Crime” returns again. Or if ever. Or maybe this is Wolf’s way of just reintegrating him onto “SVU.”

Check your Wonder Ball for more information!