Thursday, December 18, 2025
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Labelle, Janet Jackson, Louis Armstrong, Jackson Browne, Nas Join Library of Congress National Registry of Recordings

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What a list of recordings! Also, a radio broadcast of the CBS soap “The Guiding Light,” from 1945, which went on to TV and ran until 2010. Wow. Odetta, Louis Armstrong, Marlo Thomas’s landmark “Free to Be…You and Me,” Roger Maris hitting his historic homerun, Jimmy Cliff, Janet Jackson, Labelle’s “Lady Marmalade”– it’s a great list !

National Recording Registry Selections for 2020

Edison’s “St. Louis tinfoil” recording (1878)
“Nikolina” — Hjalmar Peterson (1917) (single)
“Smyrneikos Balos” — Marika Papagika (1928) (single)
“When the Saints Go Marching In” — Louis Armstrong & his Orchestra (1938) (single)
Christmas Eve Broadcast–Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill (December 24, 1941)
“The Guiding Light” — Nov. 22, 1945
“Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues” — Odetta (1957) (album)
“Lord, Keep Me Day by Day” — Albertina Walker and the Caravans (1959) (single)
Roger Maris hits his 61st homerun (October 1, 1961)
“Aida” — Leontyne Price, et.al. (1962) (album)
“Once a Day” — Connie Smith (1964) (single)
“Born Under a Bad Sign” — Albert King (1967) (album)
“Free to Be…You & Me” — Marlo Thomas and Friends (1972) (album)
“The Harder They Come” — Jimmy Cliff (1972) (album)
“Lady Marmalade” — Labelle (1974) (single)
“Late for the Sky” — Jackson Browne (1974) (album)
“Bright Size Life” — Pat Metheny (1976) (album)
“The Rainbow Connection” — Kermit the Frog (1979) (single)
“Celebration” — Kool & the Gang (1980) (single)
“Richard Strauss: Four Last Songs” — Jessye Norman (1983) (album)
“Janet Jackson’s Rhythm Nation 1814” — Janet Jackson (1989) (album)
“Partners” — Flaco Jiménez (1992) (album)
“Somewhere Over the Rainbow”/”What A Wonderful World” — Israel Kamakawiwo’ole (1993) (single)
“Illmatic” — Nas (1994) (album)
“This American Life: The Giant Pool of Money” (May 9, 2008)

UPDATE Chrissy Teigen Exits Twitter, Says “I Am Honestly Deeply Bruised” After Trolls Take Advantage of her Good Nature

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THURSDAY UPDATE Chrissy is gone. She has deleted her account. She will be missed. She’s a vibrant, smart, fun person. She made Twitter a better place.

 

WEDNESDAY NIGHT 10PM Chrissy Teigen, model, writer, chef, mother, wife of John Legend, like a thousand things, says she’s leaving Twitter.

She wrote: “I’m just a sensitive shit, okay!? I don’t wanna be this way! I just am! But I love you guys and I cherish our time together, I truly do. I also hate you.”

Chrissy is having issues with trolls, the terrible people who live in basements, use fake names, and attack celebrities for no reason. She has such a good nature and an open heart, I feel bad. But social media is no place for anyone feeling sensitive. She may take some time off.

Oscars: “Nomadland” Will Win the Academy Award for Best Picture After PGA, Golden Globes, Despite Ambivalent Star

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I doubt Frances McDormand watched the Producers Guild Awards tonight. Her movie, “Nomadland,” won. “Nomadland” is set to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.

I told you last September when I first saw it that this would happen. “Nomadland” is a cut above, something special, an epic poem. It was so nice tonight to see Swankie, a character in the movie and a real person, introduce the film.

Director Chloe Zhao could quite possibly make history as Best Director, and pick up a prize for Editing, too. She should. This is a unique film.

And what about Frances McDormand? I thought she would win Best Actress. But she’s ambivalent, maybe even hostile toward winning a third Oscar. She’s more or less abdicated. A friend of hers told me weeks ago she’d be happy to see someone from the next generation win on April 25th.

The Oscars are a month from today. Voting begins April 15th. Who will win Best Actress? It’s a toss up.

“Nomadland” Takes PGA Award, Plus “The Crown,” “Queen’s Gambit,” “Schitt’s Creek,” “RuPaul,” “Octopus,” John Oliver, “Hamilton”

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“Nomadland” wins the Producers Guild award. On to the Oscars!

keep refreshing…”The Crown” Best Drama…”Schitt’s Creek” wins Best Comedy…RuPaul’s Drag Race Best Game/Competition Show..Documentary: “My Octopus Teacher”…Animated: “Soul”…”Hamilton”…”The Queen’s Gambit”…

The PGA– not a golf group — is giving out its awards tonight. Interestingly, some of their nominees for best picture did not overlap with the Oscars. So we’ll see how they roll, often an indicator of the Academy Awards. The show is well produced EXCEPT they couldn’t spell Steven Yeun’s name right, nor Irrfan Khan…

Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures

  • Borat Subsequent Moviefilm” (Amazon Studios)
    Producers: Sacha Baron Cohen, Monica Levinson, Anthony Hines
  • Judas and the Black Messiah” (Warner Bros)
    Producers: Charles D. King, Ryan Coogler, Shaka King
  • Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” (Netflix)
    Producers: Denzel Washington, Todd Black
  • Mank” (Netflix)
    Producers: Ceán Chaffin, Eric Roth, Douglas Urbanski
  • Minari” (A24)
    Producer: Christina Oh
  • Nomadland” (Searchlight Pictures)
    Producers: Mollye Asher, Dan Janvey, Frances McDormand, Peter Spears, Chloé Zhao
  • One Night in Miami” (Amazon Studios)
    Producers: Jess Wu Calder, Keith Calder, Jody Klein
  • Promising Young Woman” (Focus Features)
    Producers: Josey McNamara, Ben Browning, Ashley Fox, Emerald Fennell
  • Sound of Metal” (Amazon Studios)
    Producers: Bert Hamelinck, Sacha Ben Harroche
  • The Trial of the Chicago 7” (Netflix)
    Producers: Marc Platt, Stuart Besser

Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures

  • The Croods: A New Age” (DreamWorks Animation)
    Producer: Mark Swift
  • Onward” (Pixar)
    Producer: Kori Rae
  • Over the Moon” (Netflix)
    Producers: Gennie Rim, Peilin Chou
  • “Soul” (Pixar)
    Producer: Dana Murray
  • Wolfwalkers” (Apple TV Plus/GKIDS)
  • Producers: Paul Young, Nora Twomey, Tomm Moore, Stéphan Roelants

Norman Felton Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television

  • Better Call Saul” (AMC) – Season 5
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • Bridgerton” – (Netflix) – Season 1
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • “The Crown” (Netflix) – Season 4
    Producers: Peter Morgan, Suzanne Mackie, Stephen Daldry, Andy Harries, Benjamin Caron, Matthew Byam Shaw, Robert Fox, Michael Casey, Andy Stebbing, Martin Harrison, Oona O’Beirn
  • The Mandalorian” (Disney Plus) – Season 2
    Producers: Jon Favreau, Dave Filoni, Kathleen Kennedy, Colin Wilson, Karen Gilchrist, John Bartnicki, Carrie Beck
  • Ozark” (Netflix) – Season 3
    Producers: Jason Bateman, Chris Mundy, Bill Dubuque, Mark Williams, Patrick Markey, John Shiban, Miki Johnson, Matthew Spiegel, Erin Mitchell, Martin Zimmerman, Peter Thorell

Danny Thomas Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television – Comedy

  • Curb Your Enthusiasm” (HBO) – Season 10
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • The Flight Attendant” (HBO Max) – Season 1
    Producers: Greg Berlanti, Kaley Cuoco, Steve Yockey, Meredith Lavender, Marcie Ullin, Sarah Schechter, Suzanne McCormack, Jess Meyer, Raymond Quinlan, Jennifer Lence, Erika Kennair
  • “Schitt’s Creek” (Pop TV) – Season 6
    Producers: Eugene Levy, Daniel Levy, Andrew Barnsley, Fred Levy, David West Read, Ben Feigin, Michael Short, Kurt Smeaton, Kosta Orfanidis
  • Ted Lasso” (Apple TV Plus) – Season 1
    Producers: Bill Lawrence, Jason Sudeikis, Jeff Ingold, Bill Wrubel, Liza Katzer, Jane Becker, Jamie Lee, Kip Kroeger, Brendan Hunt, Tina Pawlik, Joe Kelly
  • What We Do in the Shadows” (FX) – Season 2
    Producers: Jemaine Clement, Taika Waititi, Paul Simms, Scott Rudin, Garrett Basch, Eli Bush, Stefani Robinson, Sam Johnson, Marika Sawyer, Derek S. Rappaport

David L. Wolper Award for Outstanding Producer of Limited Series Television

  • I May Destroy You” (HBO)
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • Normal People” (Hulu)
    Producers: Lenny Abrahamson, Sally Rooney, Ed Guiney, Andrew Lowe, Emma Norton, Anna Ferguson, Catherine Magee
  • “The Queen’s Gambit” (Netflix)
    Producers: William Horberg, Allan Scott, Scott Frank, Marcus Loges, Mick Aniceto
  • The Undoing” (HBO)
    Producers: Susanne Bier, David E. Kelley, Per Saari, Nicole Kidman, Bruna Papandrea, Stephen Garrett, Celia Costas, Deb Dyer
  • Unorthodox” (Netflix)
    Producers: Anna Winger, Henning Kamm, Alexa Karolinksi

Award for Outstanding Producer of Televised or Streamed Motion Pictures

  • Bad Education” (HBO)
    Producers: Fred Berger, Eddie Vaisman
  • Dolly Parton’s Christmas on the Square
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • Hamilton” (Disney Plus)
    Producers: Thomas Kail, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jeffrey Seller
  • Jane Goodall: The Hope
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • What the Constitution Means To Me
    Producers: eligibility determination pending

Award for Outstanding Producer of Non-Fiction Television

  • 60 Minutes” (CBS) – Season 53
    Producer: Bill Owens
  • “The Last Dance” (ESPN) – Season 1
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • Laurel Canyon” (EPIX)
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • McMillion$” (HBO) – Season 1
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • Tiger King: Murder, Mayhem and Madness” (Netflix)
    Producers: eligibility determination pending

Award for Outstanding Producer of Live Entertainment & Talk Television

  • 8:46 – Dave Chappelle (Special)” (Netflix)
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • The Daily Show with Trevor Noah” (Comedy Central) – Season 26
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” (HBO) – Season 7
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (CBS) – Season 6
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • Saturday Night Live” (NBC) – Season 46
    Producers: eligibility determination pending

Award for Outstanding Producer of Game & Competition Television

  • The Amazing Race” (CBS) – Season 32
    Producers: Jerry Bruckheimer, Bertram van Munster, Jonathan Littman, Elise Doganieri, Mark Vertullo, Phil Keoghan
  • The Masked Singer” (FOX) – Season 3, Season 4
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • Nailed It!” (Netflix) – Season 4
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • RuPaul’s Drag Race” ( (Season 12)
    Producers: eligibility determination pending
  • The Voice” (NBC) – Season 18, Season 19
    Producers: eligibility determination pending

Oscars Add Raft of Talent to This Year’s Show Including QuestLove as Musical Director, 4 Black Writers, and 2 Producers

The Oscars are getting an Oscar for diversity this year.

Producers Steven Soderbergh, Stacey Sher, and Jessie Collins have added a slate of writers and producers to their team, as well as named a musical and lighting director.

The bulk of this group is Black, which is no coincidence. After the Golden Globes race debacle, the Academy is being careful to emphasize inclusivity. It’s about time.

Named as musical director is Questlove, of the Roots and Jimmy Fallon’s Tonight show. Amir Thompson is his real name, and he just directed his first documentary, “Summer of Soul.”

The Academy named four Black writers, as well as director-screenwriter Richard LaGravenese, The writers are Mitchell Marchand, dream hampton, Rodney Barnes, and Amberia Allen.  Head weiter remains Jon Macks.

Dionne Harmon and Jeannae Rouzan-Clay join the production team.

Returning are David Rockwell as the production designer, and Robert Dickinson as lighting designer.

There’s no host for the Oscars this year. Raj Kapoor returns as co-producer. Glenn Weiss is running the show.

But the show is going to be hip and stylish, and different. And that’s a good thing!

 

 

 

“Bewitched” Will Finally Get a Real Movie Version: Who Should Play Samantha? Darrin? Endorra? Uncle Arthur? Dr. Bombay?

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“Bewitched,” the hit 60s TV comedy, is finally getting a real big screen movie.

In 2005, Nora Ephron had one of her few flops when she tried to make a “Bewitched” movie that made no sense and no one wanted to see. Nicole Kidman was great as Samantha, Will Ferrell would have been fine as Darrin etc but it was a meta-take and not the real thing.

So now Sony-Columbia Pictures has authorized a real “Bewitched” movie in which a young witch marries a mortal who is stunned to find his wife has super powers. If they stick to the story. it’s “Mad Men” time with Darrin in advertising. They should set it in the 60s, too, because cell phones and the internet will make harder to believe or accomplish.

So who should play Samantha, Darrin, Endorra, Uncle Arthur? Will the filmmakers switch Darrins in the middle of the movie? In the series, Dick Sargent replaced Dick York as Darrin without an explanation?

And who will play Dr. Bombay?  Aunt Clara? Larry Tate? Mrs. Kravitz? The mind boggles.

Let’s hope they get it right this time.  The actual show never played it campy, the audience brought that to it.  What we don’t need here is “The Prom” masquerading as “Bewitched.”

Now, please, Disney-Fox TV, “Dobie Gillis” with Pete Davidson as Maynard G. Krebs!

Lana Del Rey Projected to Outsell Justin Bieber in CDs and Downloads for “Real” Number 1

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Whoa stand back.

Lana DelRey is projected to outsell Justin Bieber this week and be the “real” number 1 on Friday.

Lana’s highly praised  “Chemtrails Over the Country Club” is set to sell around 54,000 copies in CDs and downloads. Bieber will sell only 27,000 in those formats.

Lana wins!

Bieber’s triumph is in streaming. Adding in those numbers, Bieber will total around 135,000. Lana should hit around 70,000. Bieber’s fans are just hitting the streaming buttons over and over. They don’t necessarily need to own a copy of “Justice.”

For Del Rey, “Chemtrails” may be her biggest album ever. At the same time, Bieber is struggling to sell singles. It will be interesting to see how his second week fares. Also, the singles that are selling are all with duet partners like Khalid. Hope they’re getting proper payment for their participation!

Numbers are from HitsDailyDouble and Buzz Angle.

Ratings for “Genius Aretha” 2nd Night Drop by Almost 50%, Series Wraps Tonight with Arista Hits Chapter

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The second night of “Genius: Aretha” was not as successful as the premiere.

Monday night numbers fell to 1.1 million total from 1.38 million on Sunday.

More frightening : the key demo number fell almost 50% from 2.1 to 1.1. That’s a steep drop in the number of people who watched ages 18 to 49. Those who left might have been the Cynthia Erivo fans who came in to hear her, then realized she wouldn’t be singing “Respect” or “Natural Woman.”

The series continues tonight at 9pm on Nat Geo for two hours. I will watch that last hour, which I haven’t seen yet. That has Aretha’s big Renaissance with Clive Davis and Arista Records. Fingers crossed, we’ll get some of those hits. I sure hope so! (I look forward to saying nice things around 11pm eastern).

 

Taylor Swift’s Next Gift for Scooter Braun: First Unreleased Single from An Old Album with Maren Morris On Background Vocals

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Taylor Swift is toying with Scooter Braun the way one of her cats plays with a rubber mouse.

She’s releasing a “From the Vault” single from her re-recorded album, “Fearless,” tomorrow night. The single “You All Over Me,” has background vocals from Maren Morris.

Taylor has re-recorded her “Fearless” album and included unreleased tracks, all in an effort to kill off the original version of the album which was sold to Scooter Braun and then to Shamrock Capital for $300 million.

The first “Fearless” redux single “Love Story” sold around 33,000 copies in downloads and around 400,000 copies including streaming. Taylor might release a couple more before she unleashes the whole album.

“Jeopardy!” Ratings Drop An Unusual 5% With Katie Couric, First “Outsider” to Guest Host

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Don’t blame Katie Couric. But in the first week she guest hosted “Jeopardy!” ratings dropped 5%.

Katie was an excellent host, but “Jeopardy!” fans are very particular. They don’t want an “outsider” subbing for Alex Trebek.

The fans welcomed Ken Jennings, the heir apparent, and even were nice to EP Mike Richards. But Katie may have been too much– a woman, and someone who has nothing to do with the history of the game.

“Jeopardy!” fell to 5.6 million viewers from 5.9 with Richards and 6.0 with Jennings.

Now, of course, the hardcore fans are protesting Dr. Oz’s guest stint with petitions and bad publicity. They say he’s a quack and should not be on the show. While Dr. Oz has had some questionable public situations, I’m sure he’s capable of hosting the show. Art Fleming, the show’s original host, was no Einstein.

I thought Katie gave the show a nice, cheerful demeanor, not as dour as usual.

Still to come before Jennings gets the job: quarterback Aaron Rodgers. But don’t worry, all these people have jobs and lives in other cities and have no illusions about hosting the show permanently.