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There will be a lot of Monday morning quarterbacks discussing the fate of James Gunn’s “The Suicide Squad.”
The second SS movie, and far better than the first, was a dud at the box office. Just $26 million opening weekend, over basi$100 million less than the original film.
The news is frustrating because people are missing a really fun film.
But confusion or boredom concerning the the title– almost the same as the original– may have played a part in the failure. Or fear of going to theaters in light of rising pandemic numbers again. Or basic dislike of the brand after the first one scored a huge opening but became derided over time.
Others will say the R rating kept kids away, it should have been a PG-13. A few snips would have remedied that, and Gunn could have had an R rated DVD release later.
And Warner Bros. doesn’t give numbers for HBO Max, where “TSS” was also playing.
Somehow I think this movie will grow as a cult film over time. But time is not what it has at the moment.
Sad news: terrific actress Markie Post has died after a long fight with cancer. She was 70 years old.
For almost two decades, Markie Post was a fixture on prime time TV, a welcome face on a series of TV series. She started on “CHiPs,” had a long run on “The Fall Guy,” followed by “Night Court,” and then “Hearts Afire.” Her signature was being plucky and sexy, playing characters who were tough on the outside with a soft heart inside.
Post’s three seasons on “Hearts Afire” with John Ritter and Billy Bob Thornton became indelible. The show was created by friends of Bill Clinton, Linda Bloodworth-Thomason and Harry Thomason. Markie also became a celebrity friend of the Clintons, which worked for her and against her. Still floating around on the internet are ridiculous rumors of an affair with Bill Clinton. But she was just a cheerleader and visible supporter.
Markie Post married her husband, Michael Ross, in 1982, and leaves two sons with him, plenty of friends and family who mourn her loss.
The duo called Sparks was never popular. I don’t know how they resurrected themselves this year with a documentary and this movie, “Annette,” directed by Leos Carax.
“Annette” is not a musical. It lacks music. It also lacks a plot, characters, or coherence. I don’t know how Spike Lee could have presided over a jury that would give Carax best director at Cannes. Spike is such a literal and concrete director. “Annette” would never pass muster to leave his editing room.
Is it stylized? I guess so. Not really. The frames look good, but they are of empty calories. “Annette,” you see, is a metaphor or an allegory or something. It’s a baby, but not real, a doll, like Chuckie, given birth to by Cotillard, who then dies. Driver’s character exploits Annette for profit in Hollywood. I think. Who knows?
It’s supposed to be an “opera.” It is not. Verdi, Pucci, and the rest of them are retching in heaven at the mere mention of that. Is it an opera within something else? I have no idea. Seriously. “Annette” is unwatchable. I can’t imagine what the actors thought as they were put through these paces.
As something experimental, if you’re on drugs at home, “Annette” might be fun to watch on Amazon Prime. Spending money in a theater? I beseech you not to do that unless you are financially independent and cannot find another way to spend your money. You’d be better off lighting it on fire.
And yes, Driver does sing while performing cunnilingus on Cotillard. He warbles right into her nether regions. It’s not objectionable or even interesting. If her vagina sang back to him, that would have been something. Alas, neither Sparks nor Carax is that inventive.
PS The whole Sparks is Back thing eludes me. According to Buzz Angle, they’ve sold 8,300 CDs and downloads so far in 2021, a total of 15K including streaming.
This is really sad and alarming. Dennis Dee Tee Thomas, a founder of Kool & the Gang, died in his sleep overnight. He was just 70. Last September, Ronald Kool Bell, another founder, also passed away, at age 68. Kool & the Gang was one of the finest R&B funk bands of all time. They were notable for being pop accessible with lots of hits. What a shame. Condolences to the Kool & the Gang family.
That’s Dee Tee kicking off “Hollywood Swinging.”
God bless.
Here’s the official obit:
On August 7,2021, Dennis Thomas (known as “Dee Tee”), beloved husband, father and a co-founder of Kool & the Gang, passed away peacefully in his sleep at the age of 70 in New Jersey.
Dennis was born on February 9, 1951, in Orlando, Florida. He was married to Phynjuar Saunders Thomas and was a long-time resident of Montclair, NJ.
An original member of Kool & the Gang, Dennis was known as the quintessential cool cat in the group, loved for his hip clothes and hats, and his laid-back demeanor. A huge personality while also an extremely private person, Dennis was the alto saxophone player, flutist, percussionist as well as master of ceremonies at the band’s shows. Dennis’ prologue featured on the groups 1971 hit, “Who’s Gonna Take the Weight” is legendary and an example of his showmanship. Dee Tee was the group’s wardrobe stylist who made sure they always looked fresh. In the band’s early days, Dennis also served as the “budget hawk”, carrying the group’s earnings in a paper bag in the bell of his horn.
Dubbed “the opening of America” by CNN, Kool & the Gang kicked off the 2021 season of the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles on the 4th of July. Sadly, this was Dennis’ farewell appearance with the band.
In 1964, seven teenage friends came together, brothers Ronald Bell and Robert “Kool” Bell, and friends Dennis Thomas, Spike Mickens, Ricky Westfield, George Brown, and Charles Smith, created a unique musical blend of jazz, soul and funk. At first calling themselves the Jazziacs, the band went through various name changes before settling on their famous moniker. Kool & the Gang officially launched in 1969 and are now true funk, soul, R&B and pop legends.
To date, the band has earned two GRAMMY® Awards, seven American Music Awards, 25 Top Ten R&B hits, nine Top Ten Pop hits and 31 gold and platinum albums. In addition, their bulletproof funk and jazzy arrangements made them the most sampled band of all time. Kool & the Gang’s music was also featured on the soundtracks of countless films including the classics Rocky, Saturday Night Fever and Pulp Fiction. From Nairobi to New York, Kool & the Gang continues to perform, longer than any R&B group in history.
In 2014, the band was honored with a Soul Train Lifetime Achievement Award; and in October 2015 they were honored to take their place as American musical icons with a star on The Hollywood Walk of Fame. They are also included in installations at both the National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, D.C. and the Grammy Museum in Newark, NJ. On March 24, 2021, Kool & the Gang’s timeless hit “Celebration” was inducted into the Library of Congress National Recording Registry, Class of 2020.
Recently, Dennis was featured on “Kool TV,” a series of animated shorts about the band members’ childhoods and career.
He is predeceased by his mother Elizabeth Lee Thomas, his sister Darlene Thomas and his daughters, Michelle Thomas and Tracy Jackson. Michelle Thomas was an actress on The Cosby Show, Family Matters and The Young and the Restless and passed away in 1998.
He is survived by his wife Phynjuar Saunders Thomas; daughter, Tuesday Rankin; sons, David Thomas and Devin Thomas; Aunt Mary “Duggie” Jones; sisters Doris Mai McClary and Elizabeth Thomas Ross; brother, Bill Mcleary; and a host of nieces, nephews and grandchildren.
In their piece today about where NY Governor Andrew Cuomo would live if he were expelled from the governor’s mansion, the NY Post has managed to make a huge mistake. I’m shocked.
They’ve confused former longtime Harvard economist Jeffrey Sachs with perennial Cuomo family pal Jeffrey Sachs, a dentist from Long Island who’s been involved in state government since Andrew became governor. He now has a firm called Sachs Policy Group. Back in the 90s, Jeff Sachs used to roll with Chris Cuomo when he was just starting out as a TV correspondent, and his then bff Leonardo DiCaprio. I wrote about them all in the original New York Observer back in 1999.
A simple look at Google would have revealed a 2011 New York Times article all about the latter Sachs, who hails from the Five Towns and whose popular nephew, Shawn, is partners with Ken Sunshine in the PR firm Sunshine Sachs that represents the vey same Leonardo DiCaprio, among others.
The Post says it called the real Dr. Sachs’s office at Columbia University, where he is director of the Center for Sustainable Deuvelopment, to ask if he was still friends with Cuomo and got no response. I’ll bet! They must have wondered what the heck was going on.
Also, neither Sachs spells his first name “Jeffery.”
Happy Birthday, Barack Obama. Turning 60, celebrating with hundreds of celebrities on his $12 million estate on tony Martha’s Vineyard. Mazel tov!
Already, Beyonce and Jay Z, Stephen Colbert, Eddie Vedder, and multitudes more are landing on the little island staying in youth hostels. I’m sure they’ll all be renting bikes or hiking up the party!
Some guests were disinvited, possibly, because the party posed a COVID threat. But I’ll tell you who did not get that call: donors to the Obama Foundation. They’ve given hundreds of millions of dollars. You can bet they’ll be right there in the backyard, asking for a tour of the mansion and trying to steal the handtowels.
The Obama Foundation has taken the place of the Clinton Foundation as a money maker and employer. Current net assets are listed at $430 million.In 2019, according to their Form 990 filing, revenue was $139 million, down from 2018’s $164 million.
Dig this: according to its Form 990 tax filing for 2019 the Obama Foundation paid $3.7 million to its top employees. That was $600,000 more than they doled out in grants to charitable groups.
Total salaries (including taxes and benefits, etc, the whole deal) came to — drum roll, please — over $24 million. That’s TWENTY FOUR MILLION DOLLARS. Nice work if you can get it!
The top guy, David Simas, was paid around $660,000. Right behind him was Robbin Cohen, with $600,000. About a dozen others split that $3.7 mil, all with six figure salaries.
Together they decided to donate $3.1 million to other groups. The lions share of it was $2 million to National Archives Assembly, which is digitizing all the materials from Obama’s 8 years in office for use in his eventual Chicago library commemorating his administration. The rest of it was divvied up to 13 organizations, none of whom received more than $150,000.
By contrast, the Clinton Foundation, the former behemoth ex-prez org, listed just $312 million in net assets for 2019, and revenue of 28.5 million. Their top guy, Kevin Thurm, only gets $400,000 a year.
Listen, I love Barack Obama. I voted for him twice. I hang on his every word. But this does seem… excessive, no? But I won’t bum him out on his birthday. Good luck with the party, sir!
The combined total of Thursday previews and last night’s premiere are a little disappointing for the raved about DC Comics film, “The Suicide Squad.”
The box office came in at just $12.5 million, meaning the weekend will total around $28 million. Compare that to “Black Widow” from a few weeks ago which had a $40 million opening.
New fears about COVID variants are making audiences more cautious about hitting the movie theaters. Luckily “The Suicide Squad” is on HBO Max, so people can see it there. But really good films like “Stillwater” and “The Green Knight” (don’t ask me, I haven’t seen it) which aren’t on streaming are suffering from small attendance.
One blockbuster that has fizzled is “Jungle Cruise,” which dropped 67% from last Friday and is heading into “Titanic” waters not in a good way with $54 million at the box office. And that one is available on streaming via Disney’s Premier Access.
Peter Marshall, beloved famed host of the original “Hollywood Squares,” is mourning hthe death of his son from COVID. Dave La Cock was 68 and lived in Hawaii. (La Cock is Marshall’s real last name.)
Marshall, 95, wrote on Twitter: “In loving memory of my free-spirited son, David, whom we just lost to COVID. He was joyful, beautiful, magnificent, giving, doting & talented. He made this a better world. He made our family’s lives sweeter. I urge you to get vaccinated-if not for yourself, for those you love.”
LaCock was a pineapple farmer, artist (painter), and a hippie in the best sense of the word from what I can tell. But according to a GoFundMe Page he was hit with COVID on June 30th and went into a rapid decline. On July 5th David was intubated and put on a ventilator. You can read the whole story here on that page.It’s unclear if LaCock was vaccinated. (Anyone with that info you’re welcome to email us at showbiz411@gmail.com.)
In loving memory of my free-spirited son, David, whom we just lost to COVID. He was joyful, beautiful, magnificent, giving, doting & talented. He made this a better world. He made our family’s lives sweeter. I urge you to get vaccinated-if not for yourself, for those you love. pic.twitter.com/rGTKfUGlSw
A couple of years ago, Peter Marshall came into New York from California to celebrate a documentary about “Dick van Dyke Show” actress Rose Marie at Sardi’s. I had the pleasure of meeting him there, and walking with through Shubert Alley afterwards. He was just the nicest guy, a real gentleman, and this must be a blow to him and his family. Condolences to all of them.
Back on July 5th, Global Citizen posted a help wanted ad on LinkedIn for a Director of Music Relations. They’re still looking.
Global Citizen is the sketchy “non profit” that gives no money to the hungry or poor but spends millions entertaining celebrities and paying their execs to put on rock concerts.
So it’s worrisome that they don’t have a Director of Music Relations just six weeks before another one of their phony baloney global concerts set for September 25th. Of course, not everyone trying to solve Global hunger wants to spend their time separating red M&Ms from blue M&Ms for rock stars. Maybe the irony isn’t lost on everyone.
Global Citizen founder Hugh Evans is earning at least $400,000 a year from the “non profit,” and he has 8 other top execs making six figure incomes including CEO Elizabeth Henshaw (over $400,000 also). Global Citizen also claimed on their Form 990 for 2019 that they paid $10 million for salaries that year. Couldn’t one of those people wrangle the Dom for their various performers?
So what are some of the qualifications for a person working to eradicate poverty and hunger? According to the posting:
7-10 years of experience working with high profile artists at live entertainment events and broadcast events
Must have a current network of relevant artists, managers, agents, publicists in the music industry
Proven track record of handling celebrities professionally and adhering to strict confidentiality and non-disclosure of information
You can feel empty stomachs just filling up right now on caviar, veggie platters, avocado toast, and chocolate mousse cups — all very popular in Somalia.
According to the ad, “In 2020 alone, Global Citizen’s artist relations team engaged over 250 artists and entertainers to support our various campaigns, broadcast programs and events.”
Check LinkedIn if you want to apply. September 25th is fast approaching, someone has to do this job!
And, oh yes, they’re also looking for a director of Business Development. Someone’s got to find the money to pay for all this!
ABC is promoting a big Whitney Houston special for next Wednesday labeled “Superstar.”
But I’m told the special is just recycled “20/2o” clips and new interviews with many people who didn’t really know the late singer. (Only Brandy and Narada Michael Walden would qualify as actual friends.)
Insiders tell me that ABC didn’t even contact Whitney’s family or estate to let them know they were reviving their old material. The family found out through the publicist of someone who was contacted for an interview.
Needless to say, the “Superstar” special isn’t sanctioned by the Houstons.
There have already been two major documentaries about Whitney. One, directed by Nick Broomfield, appeared on Showtime. Another, which played the Cannes Film Festival, was made by the family and leveled accusations of child molestation against a family member.
“Superstar” won’t include footage from those films but will set Whitney up as a tragic figure who appeared on ABC shows many times, including famous interviews with Diane Sawyer.
This won’t be the first insult next week for the Houston family. I’m told that the Aretha Franklin movie, “Respect,” excludes Whitney’s mother, Cissy, who was Aretha’s chief backup singer on all her big hits on Atlantic Records– the period covered by the movie. Cissy and her group, the Sweet Inspirations, not only sang on the records but toured with Aretha in the 60s. Cissy Houston sang back up for Aretha a few years ago when the Queen of Soul made her final appearance on David Letterman’s late night talk show.
