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CNN Calls the Election for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris! Our Long National Nightmare Is Over! Trump Loses!

Roger Friedman
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CNN Calls the Election for Joe Biden and Kamala Harris! Our Long National Nightmare Is Over! Trump Loses!

CNN just called the election for Biden and Harris! Our long national nightmare is over! Trump has lost. Our four years of misery comes to an end.

It’s a beautiful moment for the world, where we’ve been mocked and laughed at for the last four years. Trump represented cruelty and stupidity. He advocated racism, misogyny, hatred, belittlement. He was the opposite of every American and human ideal. People have suffered, have died, been neglected by this idiot. And now he’s done.

Trump won’t go easily. We know that. But Biden has won Pennsylvania and gotten the electoral votes. He also won the popular vote by 4 million votes.

Trump is the one thing that he hates: a loser.

RIP Len Barry of the Dovells, Sang “The Bristol Stomp” and 1965 Mega-Hit “I 2 3 (It’s Easy, Like Taking Candy from a Baby)”

Roger Friedman
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0
RIP Len Barry of the Dovells, Sang “The Bristol Stomp” and 1965 Mega-Hit “I 2 3 (It’s Easy, Like Taking Candy from a Baby)”

Len Barry has died. The 78 year old pop star of the early to mid 60s is still heard on the radio singing his hits “1, 2, 3” and “The Bristol Stomp” with his group the Dovells.

It’s weird, too, because I just heard “1, 2, 3” on the car radio in the last few days, and was singing along to it (don’t worry, I was alone). What a great hit. According to Wikipedia, Motown sued Len and his two co-writers because they thought the song sounded like a Supremes B side. They got 15% of the royalties. But I’d say that five years later Motown stole it back for the Jackson 5.

Anyway, listen to that sax, played by Artie Kaplan. The personnel on the original recording included Vinnie Bell, Bobby Eli, and Sal Ditroia on guitars; Joe Macho on bass; Artie Butler on percussion; the soon to be famous Leon Huff on piano; Bill Tole and Roswell Rudd on trombones; Lee Morgan on trumpet; Fred Hubbard on clarinet; and Bobby Gregg on drums.

RIP Len, born Leonard Borisoff on June 12, 1942.

A notice posted on the Dovells’ Facebook page announced the death, but no cause or survivors.

“May Len Barry, of the Dovells, rest in peace. He passed away on Thursday, November 5th, 2020.
From Jerry Gross:
We lost one of our original members of the group The DOVELLS.. Our lead singer from 1960 thru 1963- Len Barry has gone on to Rock ‘n’ Roll heaven. In these trying times that we’re living in, with the politics and the virus, and now one more sad moment. Very few people know that we did two reunion shows in 1994 in Syracuse New York, and Hartford Connecticut. THIS IS A PICTURE OF WHEN LEN JOINED US ON STAGE TO DO THE “BRISTOL STOMP “.
We had a fabulous time both on stage, and in the car between the dates. Between Lenny and Mark, the comedy never stopped. It was the best of times.
Great being with him again after 31 years. RIP old friend. From all the remaining Dovells. Jerry, Arnie, Mike, and Mark.”

Review: David Fincher’s Beautiful, Engrossing “Mank” Is Exquisitely Crafted But For a Very Limited Audience

Roger Friedman
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Review: David Fincher’s Beautiful, Engrossing “Mank” Is Exquisitely Crafted But For a Very Limited Audience

The review embargo has lifted for “Mank,” a movie that Film Twitter wants so badly they can taste it. David Fincher directed it from his own later father’s screenplay, the story of fabled Hollywood screenwriter Herman Mankiewicz. “Mank,” as his frenemies called him, shared screen credit with director Orson Welles for what is considered the greatest film of all, “Citizen Kane.” How much of it did he write? Welles and Mankiewicz are still fighting about it to this day high above us.

The movie is expertly and smartly directed by Fincher, with gorgeous cinematography from Erik Messerschmidt. It’s all black and white with sensational richness of tone and much texture in every shot. The costumes, the whole production is top notch. You feel as though you’re in Sam Simeon, aka the Hearst Castle, as Mank inveigles himself into the lives of the people who will be represented in “Citizen Kane” starting with William Randolph Hearst (Charles Dance) and Marion Davies (Amanda Seyfried, guaranteed nominations and a NY Film Critics win for Best Supporting Actress).

Yes, we get to meet all these Hollywood heroes and villains of the time including an astounding performance by Arliss Howard as studio chief Louis B. Mayer (again, supporting nominations everywhere). Tom Pelphrey continues his at-last overnight sensation career (10 years in the making) as Mank’s actually talented screenwriter brother Joe; Joseph Cross is equally good as Charles Lederer; and I really liked Tuppence Middleton as Mank’s long suffering wife, Sarah, Lily Collins makes a fine foil as Mank’s secretary.

But it all rests on Gary Oldman, who creates this complex, if fairly unknown, historical figure. Oldman is always note perfect and he’s no different here. Mank’s ego, his drinking and excesses, his genius juxtaposed with his inability to comprehend normal manners, all of it Oldman gets on the nose. Mank is an unlikable guy and Oldman really conveys that, too.

But how much of this is just a tempest in a teapot? For film fans, cinephiles, and so on, this saga is like catnip. For the uninitiated, however, I don’t know how much of “Mank” will resonate.  A black friend of mine, who loves movies, asked me recently, “Who are all these people?” That’s a good question. Film reviewers take all this stuff about Kane, Welles, Hearst and co. for granted as canon. But for the general population, this is of limited interest. The screenplay doesn’t help. It just assumes the viewer knows this story and is happy to see it dramatized.

But that doesn’t diminish the achievements here. Still, I think “Mank” will benefit from being on Netflix and not competing for box office. It doesn’t need that pressure. It just needs to be enjoyed by its fans.

 

 

Johnny Depp Cut from New “Fantastic Beasts” Movie Following Trial Revelations, “Pirates of Caribbean” Next?

Roger Friedman
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Johnny Depp Cut from New “Fantastic Beasts” Movie Following Trial Revelations, “Pirates of Caribbean” Next?

Following the revelations from his libel trial scandal, Johnny Depp has been dismissed from the next “Fantastic Beasts” movie.

“Johnny Depp will depart the Fantastic Beasts franchise,” said the studio in a statement today. “We thank Johnny for his work on the films to date. Fantastic Beasts 3 is currently in production, and the role of Gellert Grindelwald will be recast. The film will debut in theaters worldwide in the summer of 2022.”

Depp was accused of wife beating and other sundry infractions during the long, public trial.

Now the question is, will Disney allow him to return to the “Pirates of the Caribbean” movies?  He was already on shaky ground, but the family friendly studio may not want Depp as their star after this colossal mess.

Deeply in debt after spending and losing hundreds of millions of dollars, Depp really needed “Fantastic Beasts 3.” But the production has enough trouble considering the anti-trans comments of author J.K. Rowling. With the movie business teetering, Warner Bros. is looking to cut their troubles, not look for more. They’re also fighting a scandal concerning Anne Hathaway’s character in “The Witches,” directed by Robert Zemeckis. Hathaway, without meaning harm in creating the character, has caught the ire of advocates for disabilities.

Hathaway’s Grand High Witch and her minions have three-fingered hands that resemble the real-life condition ectrodactyly, otherwise known as “split hand” in the film. This is a rare congenital disorder involving the deficiency or absence of one or more central digits of the hand or foot. Since Anne Hathaway is one of the kindest and nicest people on the planet, you can’t blame her. It’s the production’s fault.

Here’s Johnny Depp’s announcement on Instagram:


 

 

CBS Sitcom Ratings Crash as Allison Janney “Mom” Returns 25% Off Last Season Average without Co-star Anna Faris

Roger Friedman
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CBS Sitcom Ratings Crash as Allison Janney “Mom” Returns 25% Off Last Season Average without Co-star Anna Faris

Yikes.

“Mom” was back last night without Anna Faris, and the ratings were disastrous.

The Allison Janney sitcom dropped roughly 25% or more from last season’s average. The total was 4.8 million versus over 7 million for last season’s spring finale. Last season’s average was 6.3 million per show.

What’s even more humiliating is that “Mom” LOST over 200,00 from its lead-in, the not very good “B Positive,” a pilot for a new series. “Mom” is in its 8th season.

But the whole premise of “Mom” has been wrecked by the sudden loss of Faris, who exited the series last minute in August after signing on for the season. Now Janney has no child to be a Mom to, is happily married, and has a bunch of nice friends. But the mother-daughter scenario is over.

Whatever happened to Faris, I hope she’s alright. But she’s almost certainly doomed the show to cancellation.

And what did they do with Faris’s character? The episode began last night with Janney and her husband, played by William Fichtner, coming home after dropping her at Georgetown Law School. LOL. Preposterous? Not really when you think Tiffany Trump graduated from there. And that was preposterous enough!

Barry Gibb’s New Album Features Olivia Newton-John Duet Plus Sheryl Crow, Dolly Parton, Little Big Town, Country Stars

Roger Friedman
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Barry Gibb’s New Album Features Olivia Newton-John Duet Plus Sheryl Crow, Dolly Parton, Little Big Town, Country Stars

Barry Gibb is going to be in the news a lot soon. A documentary about the Bee Gees debuts on Showtime on December 12th, produced by Frank Marshall. I’m looking forward to seeing it some time.

Today comes the news of a new album of Bee Gees hits recorded by Barry with country and pop stars. For some reason it’s called “Greenfields” and it has a cover that must be changed immediately. It looks like something from a funeral home. I don’t know what the art department is thinking at Universal Music.

But the album itself looks terrific. The featured guest stars are Alison Krauss, Brandi Carlile, David Rawlings, Dolly Parton, Gillian Welch, Jason Isbell, Jay Buchanan, Keith Urban, Little Big Town, Miranda Lambert, Olivia Newton-John, Sheryl Crow and Tommy Emmanuel.

Olivia Newton-John? When she started her career, Olivia was a country artist. I’m not sure but I don’t think she’s sung in a long time. So that’s pretty cool.

The first track available is “Words of a Fool,” featuring Grammy Award-winning Jason Isbell. The album hits on January 8th. So there’s plenty of time to change that cover art!

Barry says in a press release: “From the first day we stepped into RCA Studios in Nashville (the very place where Elvis, Willie, Waylon, Roy, the Everly Brothers and so many other legends made their magic) the album took on a life of its own. I couldn’t be more grateful for the opportunity to work with Dave and all the artists who stopped by. They were all incredibly generous with their time and talent. They inspired me more than words can express. I feel deep down that Maurice and Robin would have loved this album for different reasons. I wish we could have all been together to do it…but I think we were.”

But what the heck is that cover? Is Barry dead? Is this his repast dinner? This has a zero coolness factor. It should be like an old country western poster with all the artists’ names. And Greenfields? That’s a title? How about “Country Fever”?

 

Here’s the tracklist:

 1. “I’ve Gotta Get A Message To You” with Keith Urban
  2. “Words of a Fool” with Jason Isbell
  3. “Run to Me” with Brandi Carlile
  4. “Too Much Heaven” with Alison Krauss
  5. “Lonely Days” with Little Big Town
  6. “Words” with Dolly Parton
  7. “Jive Talkin’” with Miranda Lambert, Jay Buchanan
  8. “How Deep Is Your Love” with Tommy Emanuel, Little Big Town
  9. “How Can You Mend A Broken Heart” with Sheryl Crow
  10. “To Love Somebody” with Jay Buchanan
  11. “Rest Your Love On Me” with Olivia Newton-John
  12. “Butterfly” with Gillian Welch, David Rawlings

The Great Bernie Kopell, of “Get Smart” and “Love Boat” Fame, Had a Cameo Tonight on CBS Comedy Pilot

Roger Friedman
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The Great Bernie Kopell, of “Get Smart” and “Love Boat” Fame, Had a Cameo Tonight on CBS Comedy Pilot

Oh my god.

Well, this is what happens.

On tonight’s CBS pilot for “B Positive,” the great comedy legend Bernie Kopell had a cameo. I just happened to catch him in the final scene on a bus of old people. Bernie is 87 years young. He didn’t even get an “and” credit. Just lumped into the back credits.

Well, Bernie is a TV legend. He was on every great show of the 60s, starting with “Get Smart,” in which he played Siegfried, a wayward KAOS spy. He played Jerry, Ted Bessell’s best friend on “That Girl.” He’s in nine episodes of “Bewitched” playing different characters.

Of course, he’s probably best known to 80s TV audiences as Doctor Bricker from 250 episodes of the turgid “The Love Boat.”

So why isn’t he retired? I don’t know. He hasn’t missed a year of work, according to the imdb, ever. I didn’t know this by he’s been on “Mom,” and “Superstore,” and “Hawaii Five-O” in recent years. Maybe he just likes to work. Anyway, here’s to Bernie. I always wish the SAG Awards would honor actors like him and not the marquee stars. Bernie’s one of the people who make the TV industry an industry in Hollywood!

Disney Cancels Christmas Box Office, Moving “Death on the Nile” and Ryan Reynolds Film to Sometime, 2021

Roger Friedman
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Disney Cancels Christmas Box Office, Moving “Death on the Nile” and Ryan Reynolds Film to Sometime, 2021

Disney has cancelled Christmas. At the box office.

The Mouse House has moved Kenneth Branagh’s “Death on the Nile” and the Ryan Reynolds movie “Free Guy” to sometime in 2021. They were supposed to open on December 11th and 18th respectively.

This leaves only one big movie set for December 25th, “Wonder Woman 1984,” from Warner Bros. But that will be moved to 2021, as well.

The only other big release for December is Tom Hanks in “News of the World” from Universal. That will have to be moved, too. I can’t believe Tom Hanks will let two of his films– the first was “Greyhound”– be sent to streaming or into the abyss in the same year. His agents are too good for that.

Otherwise, the balance of November and December will have some Oscar fare, indie films, smaller releases like “Nomadland” and “One Night in Miami.”

The real victims are the owners of movie theaters. But it’s hoped if we get a Biden administration on January 20th they will bring relief for these businesses.

 

Donald Trump Press Conference Tonight: Lies About Every Aspect of Election, Blames Massive Conspiracy in Every City

Roger Friedman
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Donald Trump Press Conference Tonight: Lies About Every Aspect of Election, Blames Massive Conspiracy in Every City

Every single thing Donald Trump said at his press conference tonight was a lie except for maybe his own name.

Trump believes that any vote counted after polls closed on Tuesday are not valid. He says to his base, knowing this isn’t true, that all mail in votes counted after the polls close are invalid, that votes legally arriving in states where the law supports them, should not be counted. He lied about his “people” being able to watch the counting in the remaining states. And so on.

Trump is drowning in his own lies. In many case, he’s trying to invalidate votes that went his own way. He said this has been going on for 3 days. The election, in fact, ended less than 2 days ago. He’s out of his mind. Today all his lawsuits were rebuked in court. No court will stop the vote counting. That’s like saying in the 7th inning of a baseball game, we’re ahead, stop scoring.

Fox News is lying to its viewers. Nicholle Wallace called them out on MSNBC. Good for her. It’s time not only to fact check Trump, but fact check Fox News as well.

What’s really galling about this performance that Trump blamed an unspoken conspiracy in Detroit, Atlanta, Philadelphia, and Phoenix, as if every one in those cities organized his downfall. Randomly. He’s insane.

I couldn’t help but think of Richard Nixon in the summer of 1974, right before he was forced to resign the presidency. Alec Baldwin will have a field day with this speech on “SNL” this weekend.

Here’s the Washington Post fact check.

Justin Bieber’s Religious Guru, Carl Lentz, Admits to Cheating on Wife as Reason for Hillsong Church Dismissal

Roger Friedman
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0
Justin Bieber’s Religious Guru, Carl Lentz, Admits to Cheating on Wife as Reason for Hillsong Church Dismissal

Justin Bieber’s religious guru, “pastor Carl Lentz, has fessed up about why he was fired from Hillsong Church. He cheated on his wife.

He writes on Instagram: “This failure is on me, and me alone and I take full responsibility for my actions. I now begin a journey of rebuilding trust with my wife, Laura and my children and taking real time to work on and heal my own life and seek out the help that I need. I am deeply sorry for breaking the trust of many people who we have loved serving and understand that this news can be very hard and confusing for people to hear and process.”

Lentz lived it up as “pastor” to a lot of really gullible celebrities including Bieber and Chris Pratt. He already had a shady business past when he got mixed up with Hillsong, went to Australia, and married his wife, Laura.

He writes:
“Our time at HillsongNYC has come to an end. This is a hard ending to what has been the most amazing, impacting and special chapter of our lives. Leading this church has been an honor in every sense of the word and it is impossible to articulate how much we have loved and will always love the amazing people in this church. When you accept the calling of being a pastor, you must live in such a way that it honors the mandate. That it honors the church, and that it honors God. When that does not happen, a change needs to be made and has been made in this case to ensure that standard is upheld.

Laura and I and our amazing children have given all that we have to serve and build this church and over the years I did not do an adequate job of protecting my own spirit, refilling my own soul and reaching out for the readily available help that is available. When you lead out of an empty place, you make choices that have real and painful consequences.

“I was unfaithful in my marriage, the most important relationship in my life and held accountable for that. This failure is on me, and me alone and I take full responsibility for my actions. I now begin a journey of rebuilding trust with my wife, Laura and my children and taking real time to work on and heal my own life and seek out the help that I need. I am deeply sorry for breaking the trust of many people who we have loved serving and understand that this news can be very hard and confusing for people to hear and process.

“I would have liked to say this with my voice, to you, in person because you are owed that. But that opportunity I will not have. So to those people, I pray you can forgive me and that over time I can live a life where trust is earned again. To our pastors Brian and Bobbie, thank you for allowing us to lead, allowing us to thrive and giving us room to have a voice that you have never stifled or tried to silence. Thank you for your grace and kindness especially in this season, as you have done so much to protect and love us through this. We, the Lentz family, don’t know what this next chapter will look like, but we will walk into it together very hopeful and grateful for the grace of God…”

View this post on Instagram

Our time at HillsongNYC has come to an end. This is a hard ending to what has been the most amazing, impacting and special chapter of our lives. Leading this church has been an honor in every sense of the word and it is impossible to articulate how much we have loved and will always love the amazing people in this church. When you accept the calling of being a pastor, you must live in such a way that it honors the mandate. That it honors the church, and that it honors God. When that does not happen, a change needs to be made and has been made in this case to ensure that standard is upheld. Laura and I and our amazing children have given all that we have to serve and build this church and over the years I did not do an adequate job of protecting my own spirit, refilling my own soul and reaching out for the readily available help that is available. When you lead out of an empty place, you make choices that have real and painful consequences. I was unfaithful in my marriage, the most important relationship in my life and held accountable for that. This failure is on me, and me alone and I take full responsibility for my actions. I now begin a journey of rebuilding trust with my wife, Laura and my children and taking real time to work on and heal my own life and seek out the help that I need. I am deeply sorry for breaking the trust of many people who we have loved serving and understand that this news can be very hard and confusing for people to hear and process. I would have liked to say this with my voice, to you, in person because you are owed that. But that opportunity I will not have. So to those people, I pray you can forgive me and that over time I can live a life where trust is earned again. To our pastors Brian and Bobbie, thank you for allowing us to lead, allowing us to thrive and giving us room to have a voice that you have never stifled or tried to silence. Thank you for your grace and kindness especially in this season, as you have done so much to protect and love us through this. We, the Lentz family, don’t know what this next chapter will look like, but we will walk into it together very hopeful and grateful for the grace of God..

A post shared by Carl Lentz (@carllentz) on

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