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Every year without fail, “All I want for Christmas” produces a lot of income for Mariah Carey.
Her new records don’t sell, but “All I Want” is a perennial.
So are “Hero,” and “One Sweet Day,” which she sang with BoyzIIMen.
All those songs were written by Walter Afanasieff, her longtime collaborator and producer.
Afansieff was honored by the Songwriters Hall of Fame last night in New York. Guess who didn’t show up, forget about perform? Mariah Carey.
Maybe Mariah was upset because she was inducted into the SHOF in 2022, when a lot of people including this column pointed to Afanasieff as the true composer of her hits.
Or maybe she doesn’t like splitting royalties with him.
Mariah’s absence reminds me of when Madonna didn’t mention any of her collaborators when she was inducted into the SHOF. She also didn’t show up Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly, writers of “Like a Virgin,” when it was their turn.
Where could Mariah have been last night? She’s not on tour, and she’s not recording anything vital. She showed up recently at an event for the Gucci cruise line, but of course she was paid to sing — and not well — for the fashion company.
Walter deserved better. Instead, the SHOF was only able to come up with a singer named Shelea, who seems nice but no one knows.
Meantime, as we head into the fall and Christmas season, all Mariah will want is Afanasieff’s royalties.
Steven Spielberg inducted Taylor Swift into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. (See a clip from his speech and her 20 minute acceptance below.)
The two have never worked together. It was unclear how they knew each other.
Swift explained to the surprised audience: “A few months ago when the Songwriters Hall of Fame asked me about my heroes and the creatives who shaped my storytelling and who I might want to present this award to me, I said Steven’s name. And about an hour later to my absolute delight, I ended up on the phone with him and his legendarily effervescent wife, Kate Capshaw, who is here tonight. And he was telling me yes, absolutely he would be thrilled to be here.”
Spielberg is promoting “Disclosure Day,” so this was the highest profile thing he could do tonight.
It’s a lovely speech. Spielberg said: “Tonight is the recognition that while she wrote You Belong With Me in the most profound way, we belong to her.”
Newish act Sombr performed a couple of Swift’s songs during the ceremony at the Marriott Marquis Hotel.
Swift, however, did not perform, although she did perform two nights before at the Disney premiere in LA of “Toy Story 5.”
She said that she had blown out her voice screaming at the Knicks game on Wednesday night.
PS One of tonight’s honorees was Walter Afanasieff, who’s written or co-written several Mariah Carey hits including “All I Want for Christmas.” Carey was not present at the ceremony.
By now everyone has seen Taylor Swift and her buddies, the Haim sisters, jumping around and dancing at last night’s Knicks game.
Many wondered — including an announcer — why the sudden interest in the Knicks? In her life, Taylor has only been to three other Knicks games and only one at home.
Taylor was in the stands at MSG twice in October-November 2014 — a dozen years ago. The third game she went to was in Cleveland because fiancee Travis Kelce is such a fan of the Cavaliers.
I can tell you there was more going on last night than dancing to “Girls Just Want to Have Fun.” Taylor was actually checking out her wedding venue.
Yes, despite my personal doubts, I’m hearing from MSG that the wedding to Kelce is really taking place in this cavernous space. The Haims are bridesmaids. (They’re also singing tonight at the Songwriters Hall of Fame at the nearby Marriott Marquis Hotel.)
Swift had courtside seats last night, too, because obviously she has a deal with MSG. And this was a way to get a rare view from the floor seats, where the wedding will take place, rather than the stage, where she performs.
As others have pointed out, the Garden is not booked to the public from June 29th until after July 4th. The wedding will use the VIP entrance on 8th Avenue, not the one from the front. And using the stage that means there could be quite a show after the ceremony. Lucky for Taylor, Jack Antonoff and the Bleachers are free that day. So are the Dessner Brothers and The National.
At the Garden, by the way, I’m told all of the staff is now talking about the wedding constantly. The presumed date is Friday, July 3rd.
It’s good news and bad news for this year’s Tony Awards.
Ratings were the same as last year – 5 million viewers.
The difference is that this year there was no competition at all for the CBS special. No sports, no specials, nothing even on cable that could cause a distraction.
The actual number should have been closer to 8 million, say TV industry insiders.
The 5 million, same as 2025, at least held the increase from a low of 3.5 in 2024.
According to available data, the Tonys started strong, but audience started tuning out around 9 pm — when the “Cats: Jellicle Ball” number began.
This year’s show was a little different than in the past. New producers tried to shake things up by delivering the awards in a pedestrian process. The first award went to John Lithgow, Best Actor in a Play. From then on, there was no order to the prizes. The show didn’t build up at all, but careened around like a drunk playwright at Sardi’s.
Some say it might have been smarter to feature host Pink more in that first hour. Her performance with the cast of “Chicago,” which came as numbers were fading, was a highlight of the evening. But by then, viewership was way under 4 million.
Another problem was a general lack of mainstream celebrities. Bernadette Peters and Brian Stokes Mitchell were the most accessible Broadway names on stage. But why didn’t Daniel Radcliffe and Mariska Hargitay — each involved in the same one-actor show right now — present together? And why was Megan Thee Stallion so heavily promoted? A lot of it was strange. Why can’t the Tonys lure back big names like Bette Midler and Mandy Patinkin? And where’s Mr. Broadway himself, Hugh Jackman?
Well, it’s done now. Pink gets an A but the show could have used some more juice.
On Monday night, I ran into Amy Irving at the premiere of “Disclosure Day.”
Irving, star of beloved film, “Crossing Delancey,” was among the guests at the premiere of the film at the NY State Theater at Lincoln Center.
She’s also the first wife of director Steven Spielberg. They were married from 1985 to 1989 and share a son, Max.
Irving was accompanied by husband Kenneth Bowser. She even walked the red carpet and was photographed in a warm embrace with the director.
When we all fell into the lobby area, there was also matchbox twenty rocker Rob Thomas talking to former “Saturday Night Live” cast member Alex Moffat.
I asked Irving, who was photographed on the red carpet with Spielberg, how she liked the movie.
“I loved it,” she replied. And she’s a tough critic. She was with Spielberg during his heyday in the 80s.
Also on the guest list for “Disclosure Day” were Sting, and Shaggy, plus Patti Smith with Lenny Kaye, as well as actor Paul Dano, and a ton of people whose names we don’t know. They’re influencers, brought in by the studio as ringers. God bless them. The peanut gallery is alive and well!
Craig Melvin of the Today show introduced Spielberg and the cast including Emily Blunt, Colman Domingo, and Josh O’Connor. (Missing: Colin Firth.) That’s because the movie is from Universal, which owns NBC, network of that show. No sign of Al Roker, however.
Did Irving get into the non-party after party? Considering that the guests looked like “Sardines,” my guess is she skipped it!
On ESPN tonight, Spike Lee summed by the NBA finals after the Knicks scored a one point come from behind victory over the Spurs.
Spike told ESPN: “The cat’s in the bag, and the bag is in the river.”
More than 50 A list celebrities ponied up big bucks to be at the game tonight besides Spike. They included Taylor Swift, who cured the Knicks and MSG of Donald Trump’s evil spell from Monday night. Others included stalwarts Ben Stiller and Timothee Chalamet, Mariska Hargitay, Julianne Moore, and Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David.
The full list is below.
Go Knicks! What an insane and historic ending to any NBA game in history. And history will be ours on Saturday!
I actually stopped counting how many different editions of “The Boys of Dungeon Lane” for which I received offers.
There were LPs of all colors, all limited editions, plus some that came from small batches. Mind you, colored vinyl is not really playable, neither are picture discs.
But diehard fans of Paul McCartney want them all as collectibles. It’s the new craze.
Marketing people dealing with older rock stars are learning from Taylor Swift. She makes a bundle from bundles of vinyl also in all colors with different features.
Now the Rolling Stones are ramping up for “Foreign Tongues.” I’m not allowed to post a review until June 16th, but the album — produced by Andrew Watt, like McCartney’s — is stellar in every way. If the Grammys were real, they’d each be nominated for Album of the Year.
The Stones will have a hit, I predict, with the single, “Mr. Charm.”
“Foreign Tongues” is coming in a variety of limited editions. The Stones have partnered with Marvel and with FIFA.
The double Marvel LPs feature Spider Man, Wolverine, Captain America,The Hulk, and Thor!
The FiFA World Cup versions are actually pretty cool.
Me? I’m happy with black vinyl and a regular CD. But everyone else, enjoy! You can find them all at www.rollingstonesshop.com
Despite controversy around changes at the venerable “60 Minutes” news show, longtime correspondent Lesley Stahl, divine in shimmering red sequins, hosting the Literacy Partners dinner this week, stayed on message: fewer Americans than you think can read. Yes, viewers of the iconic “60 Minutes” program were mainly senior citizens, and yes, the controversy over firings vs. freedom of speech has driven up interest, but overall, the name Scott Pelley did not come up, nor did the name Bari Weiss. So much for truth to power.
As for politics, another message: readers tend to vote. So maybe that’s a sly nod to Stahl’s needing to address this issue in front of a crowd that included Sheila Nevins, Joni Evans, and some reporters from the NYTimes. The main name dropped was the one that mattered most, Literacy Partners founder Liz Smith—who did not suffer fools gladly, who did not take shit.
Beloved, the “natural blond” was evoked by every featured speaker, among them best-selling author Patricia Cornwell, awarded for Lifetime Achievement, Sherrie Westin, noted as “Champion of Literacy” for her work as President of Sesame Workshop, Sabastian Niles, awarded for Leadership in Literacy and Barbara Tober, a famed “publishing maven,” and editor-in-chief of BRIDES Magazine, honored recipient of the “Lizzie Award,” named for our dear Liz Smith. Presenters included Daphne Merkin, Perri Peltz, Lesley Stahl, and Mike Steib.
Several young people helped by this organization made impassioned speeches about how being able to read changed their lives, as diners supped on filet of beef. But if you think the biggest controversy is the co-opting of news media as in “60 Minutes,” maybe the more startling news is how threatening literacy must be in places where power wants complete control.
“What was Big Bird doing in Afghanistan?” asked Perri Peltz introducing Sherrie Westin. How do you know that a reading citizenry is a big threat: See Operation Big Bird, when the Taliban went after Sesame Street.
Literacy Partners hosted its 2026 Evening of Readings & Gala Dinner at Pier Sixty, Chelsea Piers, bringing together New York’s literary, philanthropic, civic and business leaders for a festive black-tie evening celebrating the power of literacy to change lives, which also marked the 40th anniversary of the gala, first held in 1986, by its founder, Liz Smith.
Last night’s event raised a stunning $1.3m to support life-changing literacy programs.
They really got their lifetime achievement awards right.
Eight time nominee Glenn Close, and three time nominee director Ridley Scott really deserve these awards.
Close, many feel, should have won for “The Wife” a few years ago. Scott could have won for any number of films but especially “The Martian.” They each have long lists of credits of the most top notch films in Academy history but for one reason another never won. They will get thunderous ovations at the Governors Awards dinner in November.
Congrats to both of them.
Also honored is Floyd Norman, animator with a 65 year career at Disney. In 1956, Norman became the studio’s first Black animator. His first Disney feature film was “Sleeping Beauty,” and he contributed to such classic feature films as “The Sword in the Stone,” “Mary Poppins,” “The Jungle Book” and “Robin Hood,” as well as the short films “Donald in Mathmagic Land,” “Goliath II” and “Winnie the Pooh and the Honey Tree.” Norman’s other notable film credits include “The Hunchback of Notre Dame,” “Mulan,” “Toy Story 2” and “Monsters, Inc.”
The Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award is going to prolific and popular producers Christine Vachon and Pamela Koffler. Vachon and Koffler founded the New York-based independent production company Killer Films in 1995. Together, they have produced a huge amount of the most respected independent films and championed such directors as Todd Haynes and Paul Schrader. They’ve given Julianne Moore a home to mix commercials films with experimental ones.
“The Last Ship” has docked at the Metropolitan Opera for just nine performances.
Sting’s Broadway musical, with a Tony nominated score, opened last night for nine performances in a triumphant return, its first since 2015. It’s not an opera, but it’s staged like one, with a breathtaking production worthy of any large scale offering at the famed venue. It’s so effective you actually think there’s a ship parked on stage.
“The Last Ship,” of course, is the rock star’s memoir of his childhood in Newcastle, England, under the shadow of the fading shipbuilding business. Wallsend, the neighborhood where he was born, struggles in a transition from a lifetime devoted to the production of sea worthy vessels to a new world.
Since we saw “The Last Ship” on Broadway, it’s been through some changes. Plot and characters have been tweaked, and even the music has been refreshed. Don’t worry, the great songs from the original production have survived, but there’s been some reworking and some new material as well so that the lives in a community desperately trying to hold on to its values is vividly brought to life.
The story is still about Gideon Fletcher, who returns to Wallsend after 17 years to discover he has a daughter, and that his difficult father has died. Meg, the fiery, independent girl he loved — and mother of said child — now owns the local pub.
Sting himself returns in the now-central character of Jackie White, the longtime foreman of the shipyard who’s fighting a potential closure as the final ship, the Utopia, must be completed. Labor vs. management takes a more prominent position vs. the Gideon-Meg relationship, and Jackie’s wife, Peg (a commanding Annette McLaughlin) emerges in a much more fleshed out role.
Of course, Sting is the chief attraction, with his tirelessly rich performance making Jackie a speaker for everyone in Wallsend. There’s nothing like Sting’s distinctive, soaring, butterscotch voice, which has aged like fine Italian wine he makes near Florence, Italy. He’s written a score that he’s sung and recorded solo as well as with this fine group of singers. The songs are lush and eminently hummable. Still at the top of my list are “What Say You, Meg?”, “The Night the Pugilist Learned How to Dance,” and the majestic title number — a show stopper of classic proportions — that you can’t get out of your head.
There’s some nifty valued added to this production with the appearance of reggae star, Shaggy, who often records and appears with Sting in pop circumstances. A charming presence, Shaggy also shows off a sugary theater voice no one expects unless you’ve heard his recording of Sinatra hits. He’s turned into a welcome Greek chorus of one. I have to single out another performer, Cassiopeia Berkeley-Agyepong, who plays a local politician with a classical voice that soars through the hall.
And then there’s the knockout production, from 59 Studio. A spectacular mix of video and physical installations make the stage brilliantly urgent. For a long time it feels like the majestic Utopia is parked on the Met stage in all its gleaming glory. There’s soldering syncopated to Rob Mathes’s lush orchestrations and sizzling lighting direction that becomes its own character.
After kind of a dreary Broadway season, we should thank Sting and co, for bringing “The Last Ship” to us on this scale, and in this hallowed theater. The show has already had a successful tour through Amsterdam, Paris, and Brisbane, and now we get a chance to revel in it ourselves.
Last night was the opening so, of course, the audience was filled with celebrities from Little Steven Van Zandt and wife Maureen, to famed Motown songwriter Valerie Simpson, actress Patricia Clarkson, Jane Seymour, Bob Odenkirk, Spike Lee, Michael Imperioli, Angela Bassett, Lena Hall, Gina Gershon, famed rock promoter Ron Delsener, and Sting’s two actress daughters Mickey and Kate Sumner.
There aren’t many tickets left for the remaining shows though the weekend, but if you can find one you’ll be luckier for it.
