SAN FRANCISCO - On his book promotion stopover here, former White House press secretary Scott McClellan was squired around by a "literary escort," a pleasant woman named Naomi who drives visiting authors to their speaking engagements in a blue convertible. There were no motorcades, no street closures, no Secret Service.
McClellan slept at a Marriott Hotel, a couple of notches down from the Beverly Wilshire where he, President Bush and the rest of the White House entourage stayed when in Southern California. Where he once spoke with the mighty White House seal behind him, McClellan addressed a crowd here in front of a humble fabric backdrop emblazoned with the words "Commonwealth Club."
It is a long way from the Oval Office, where McClellan once basked in the power of the president, to the book circuit, where he is delivering a sharp critique of that president. But a month after the explosive release of "What Happened: Inside the Bush White House and Washington's Culture of Deception," McClellan seems comfortable in his new role, polishing his one-liners about Dick Cheney, relishing largely sympathetic audiences and accepting his exile from certain ex-colleagues.
"There are a number of former colleagues that, they were friends before and they're friends today and will continue to be," McClellan said in an interview with The Associated Press. "I hope someday that others can step back from this and I can maybe renew some of those friendships. I don't know if that'll happen or not."
From the lectern, McClellan is looser and funnier than he was in the hot glare of the White House press room.
It probably helps that his book tour has taken him to such "blue" cities as Santa Monica, Calif., and Austin, Texas. In Seattle, a sold-out crowd of 850 gave him a standing ovation. In San Francisco, a liberal city Bush has never visited as president, McClellan was drowned out by applause as he said, "the war in Iraq was not absolutely necessary."
McClellan has incorporated some crowd-pleasing titles of books he imagines his former White House comrades writing:
_"I Upped Halliburton's Income ...," by Dick Cheney.
_"The Lies I Told, to Whom and Why," by Karl Rove.
_"Well, Paaaaaardon Me!" by Scooter Libby, convicted in the case of the leaked identity of a CIA operative, and perhaps hoping for a presidential pardon.
The jokes loosened up a crowd of 550 San Franciscans in the middle of a work day -- and appeared to crack up McClellan himself. Then he moved into the serious part of what has become his "stump speech," an overview of "What Happened."
The book accuses Bush of orchestrating a "political propaganda campaign to sell the war to the American people," trying to make the "WMD threat and the Iraqi connection to terrorism appear just a little more certain, a little less questionable than they were."
Reading at times from prepared notes, McClellan acknowledged, as he does in the book, that he was swept away by trust for the president and the intelligence he assumed top national-security aides must have had.
After reflecting for many months after leaving the White House, "I realized how badly misplaced my trust was," McClellan said.
McClellan is eager to answer critics who say he should have spoken up from inside the White House, where, the critics say, he might have had the chance to sway events, rather than after he had resigned in 2006. It took time to get perspective, for his ideas to marinate, he said.
It was not until July 2007 that he began to write the book, and he pushed his deadline back a couple times, finishing the manuscript in mid-April of this year.
"This is the truth as best I know it from my perspective," he told the audience here.
McClellan is a little fuzzy on certain questions of his future. Whom will he vote for, John McCain or Barack Obama? Not sure yet. Will he change parties, as he has done once before? Hasn't made up his mind.
How will he make a living, now that the president of the United States and so many other influential Republicans consider him a traitor?
He wants to change Washington's culture, and believes, based on the reception he says his book is getting, that the public hungers for that, too. Beyond that, he's not sure about work, though he's considering academia.
McClellan's book was No. 2 on The New York Times list of best sellers. With a relatively small $75,000 book advance, does he stand to make a lot of money?
"I have no idea," he said. "It's not the purpose of this book." McClellan said according to his contract, he will get a "small percentage" of sales after the publisher recoups its $75,000.
"I have no regrets about writing this book whatsoever," said McClellan, who serves on the advisory council of Apco Worldwide, a Washington D.C.-based public relations and issue-management company. But, he added, "I know it closed some doors to me; hopefully it will open some up new opportunities where I can continue to work on what I talk about in the book."
For the next few days, it's back on the road -- destination, Tallahassee, Fla.
And McClellan will travel alone. No pomp, no pageantry, no more Air Force One -- just literary escorts around town and commercial flights carrying him into an uncertain future.
___
Editors note: Scott Lindlaw covered the first four years of George W. Bush's presidency for The Associated Press.
Senin, 30 Juni 2008
"Basketball Diaries" Will Bounce Into 59E59 Theaters in Manhattan (Playbill)
Public performances will be presented July 15-27 at the venue on E. 59th Street in Manhattan.
According to production notes, "Matt Pelfrey adapts for the stage Jim Carrolls remarkable book of a key period in American culture. Set in New York City, starting in 1963, Jim is an all-star basketball player at an elite catholic school leading a double life - experimenting with drugs and getting hooked, hustling gay men to support a heroin addiction, and becoming a poet and a future rock singer. Carroll began writing his Basketball Diaries at the age of 12 in 1963. Influenced by the Cold War, the war in Vietnam, the race riots in New York City and New York Citys counter-culture movement, Basketball Diaries chronicles a turning point in American culture and is now considered a classic piece of literature."
The cast features Aaron Paternoster as Jim Carroll with Katherine Boynton, Deanna McGovern, Alex Pappas, Nick Paglino, John Porto, Mike Roche, Michael Shimkin, Arthur Solomon and Sam Whitten.
Two-time Drama Desk Award nominee Maruti Evans is the production designer. Original music and sound design are by Andrew Recinos. Fight choreography is by Josh Renfree.
The world premiere stage version of the book was commissioned by Godlight Theatre Company under an exclusive arrangement with the Betsy Lerner Agency.
Pelfrey (adaptation) is an award-winning, critically acclaimed playwright and teacher. His plays include An Impending Rupture of the Belly, Cockroach Nation, Terminus Americana, Honkies with Attitude, Gore Hounds, Drive Angry, FrEAk StORm, Jerry Springer is God, Monkey and A Feast of Famine.
The performance schedule is Tuesday-Saturday at 8:15 PM and Sunday at 3:15 PM and 7:15 PM. Single tickets are $18 ($12.60 for 59E59 Members) and are available by calling Ticket Central at (212) 279-4200 or online at www.ticketcentral.com. For more information visit www.59E59.org.
According to production notes, "Matt Pelfrey adapts for the stage Jim Carrolls remarkable book of a key period in American culture. Set in New York City, starting in 1963, Jim is an all-star basketball player at an elite catholic school leading a double life - experimenting with drugs and getting hooked, hustling gay men to support a heroin addiction, and becoming a poet and a future rock singer. Carroll began writing his Basketball Diaries at the age of 12 in 1963. Influenced by the Cold War, the war in Vietnam, the race riots in New York City and New York Citys counter-culture movement, Basketball Diaries chronicles a turning point in American culture and is now considered a classic piece of literature."
The cast features Aaron Paternoster as Jim Carroll with Katherine Boynton, Deanna McGovern, Alex Pappas, Nick Paglino, John Porto, Mike Roche, Michael Shimkin, Arthur Solomon and Sam Whitten.
Two-time Drama Desk Award nominee Maruti Evans is the production designer. Original music and sound design are by Andrew Recinos. Fight choreography is by Josh Renfree.
The world premiere stage version of the book was commissioned by Godlight Theatre Company under an exclusive arrangement with the Betsy Lerner Agency.
Pelfrey (adaptation) is an award-winning, critically acclaimed playwright and teacher. His plays include An Impending Rupture of the Belly, Cockroach Nation, Terminus Americana, Honkies with Attitude, Gore Hounds, Drive Angry, FrEAk StORm, Jerry Springer is God, Monkey and A Feast of Famine.
The performance schedule is Tuesday-Saturday at 8:15 PM and Sunday at 3:15 PM and 7:15 PM. Single tickets are $18 ($12.60 for 59E59 Members) and are available by calling Ticket Central at (212) 279-4200 or online at www.ticketcentral.com. For more information visit www.59E59.org.
Hollywood actors, studios head for labor limbo (Reuters)
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hollywood actors and studios held a final day of labor talks on Monday before their contract was due to expire, but the midnight deadline was expected to pass with neither a settlement nor a strike.
Barring a last-minute breakthrough, the two sides are headed for a new realm of uncertainty as of 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, when the contract covering movie and prime-time television work for 120,000 members of the Screen Actors Guild runs out.
The labor talks, which began in April, have hit some of the same stumbling blocks that led Hollywood writers to walk off the job months ago, including clashes over how union talent should be paid for work created for the Internet.
Both sides have accused the other of foot-dragging.
"Its pretty astounding that people dont seem to know whats going to happen, and Ive spoken to some of the negotiators," said Hillary Bibicoff, a partner with Los Angeles law firm Greenberg Glusker.
Film production by major studios has ground to a near halt in anticipation of a possible work stoppage, though SAG leaders have downplayed the likelihood of a walkout, which would require a 75 percent vote by SAG members and take weeks to organize.
"We have taken no steps to initiate a strike authorization vote," SAG President Alan Rosenberg said in a statement on Sunday. "Any talk about a strike or a management lockout at this point is simply a distraction."
SAG also has signed special waivers with over 300 independent producers allowing actors to continue working for those companies in the event of a strike. Production on many TV shows has plowed ahead as well.
A HOLLYWOOD LABOR CLIFFHANGER
Still, Mondays editions of Daily Variety and The Hollywood Reporter carried full-page studio ads saying a strike would be "harmful and unnecessary," citing 2.3 billion in lost wages from the 14-week writers strike that ended in February.
With little progress reported at the negotiating table over the weekend, it is unclear what will happen next.
SAG and the studios bargaining agent, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, could agree to formally extend the contract while they keep talking.
However, Hollywood insiders said SAG had yet to seek an extension as of midday on Monday, and the studios seemed disinclined to approve one -- a stance that would leave them free to present a "last, best and final" offer to SAG.
SAG leaders could then accept that offer, reject it or submit it to union members for a vote.
A rejection would allow the studios to impose terms of their final offer, and SAGs only recourse at that point, besides capitulation, would be a strike.
Many experts believe little of substance is likely to occur before July 8, when SAGs smaller sister union, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, tallies ballots in a ratification vote for its own tentative TV contract.
SAG has launched a campaign to persuade its 40,000 members who belong to both unions to vote "no" on AFTRAs pact, saying it is flawed and undermines SAGs position.
A "yes" vote, SAG argues, increases the odds it will need to resort to a strike. AFTRA claims a "no" vote makes a strike more probable because a better deal for actors cannot be achieved without a work stoppage.
The rival unions have enlisted various stars to support their cause. Tom Hanks is among those flying the flag for a "yes" vote, while Jack Nicholson has sided with SAG leadership, and George Clooney has declared that both sides are right.
The last time Hollywood actors staged a strike over their main film and TV contract was in 1980, a three-month walkout to establish terms for pay-TV and video cassette production.
(Additional reporting by Dean Goodman)
Reuters/Nielsen
Barring a last-minute breakthrough, the two sides are headed for a new realm of uncertainty as of 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, when the contract covering movie and prime-time television work for 120,000 members of the Screen Actors Guild runs out.
The labor talks, which began in April, have hit some of the same stumbling blocks that led Hollywood writers to walk off the job months ago, including clashes over how union talent should be paid for work created for the Internet.
Both sides have accused the other of foot-dragging.
"Its pretty astounding that people dont seem to know whats going to happen, and Ive spoken to some of the negotiators," said Hillary Bibicoff, a partner with Los Angeles law firm Greenberg Glusker.
Film production by major studios has ground to a near halt in anticipation of a possible work stoppage, though SAG leaders have downplayed the likelihood of a walkout, which would require a 75 percent vote by SAG members and take weeks to organize.
"We have taken no steps to initiate a strike authorization vote," SAG President Alan Rosenberg said in a statement on Sunday. "Any talk about a strike or a management lockout at this point is simply a distraction."
SAG also has signed special waivers with over 300 independent producers allowing actors to continue working for those companies in the event of a strike. Production on many TV shows has plowed ahead as well.
A HOLLYWOOD LABOR CLIFFHANGER
Still, Mondays editions of Daily Variety and The Hollywood Reporter carried full-page studio ads saying a strike would be "harmful and unnecessary," citing 2.3 billion in lost wages from the 14-week writers strike that ended in February.
With little progress reported at the negotiating table over the weekend, it is unclear what will happen next.
SAG and the studios bargaining agent, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, could agree to formally extend the contract while they keep talking.
However, Hollywood insiders said SAG had yet to seek an extension as of midday on Monday, and the studios seemed disinclined to approve one -- a stance that would leave them free to present a "last, best and final" offer to SAG.
SAG leaders could then accept that offer, reject it or submit it to union members for a vote.
A rejection would allow the studios to impose terms of their final offer, and SAGs only recourse at that point, besides capitulation, would be a strike.
Many experts believe little of substance is likely to occur before July 8, when SAGs smaller sister union, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, tallies ballots in a ratification vote for its own tentative TV contract.
SAG has launched a campaign to persuade its 40,000 members who belong to both unions to vote "no" on AFTRAs pact, saying it is flawed and undermines SAGs position.
A "yes" vote, SAG argues, increases the odds it will need to resort to a strike. AFTRA claims a "no" vote makes a strike more probable because a better deal for actors cannot be achieved without a work stoppage.
The rival unions have enlisted various stars to support their cause. Tom Hanks is among those flying the flag for a "yes" vote, while Jack Nicholson has sided with SAG leadership, and George Clooney has declared that both sides are right.
The last time Hollywood actors staged a strike over their main film and TV contract was in 1980, a three-month walkout to establish terms for pay-TV and video cassette production.
(Additional reporting by Dean Goodman)
Reuters/Nielsen
"American Teenager" flunks first episode (Reuters)
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - "The Secret Life of the American Teenager," a new ABC Family effort from Brenda Hampton ("7th Heaven"), works feverishly to make an educational institution look like the equivalent of a Nevada brothel, but succeeds mostly in transforming high school to high camp.
Eschewing subtlety for overt exposition at every turn, "Secret Life" fairly screams, "This is a middle-aged adults fear-mongering perception of high school life circa 2008." And just in case we werent feeling quite old enough, it co-stars Molly Ringwald as the mother of our teenage protagonist. It debuts Tuesday on the cable channel.
An awkward cross between "7th Heaven" and "Greys Anatomy," it stars Shailene Woodley as Amy, your basic band geek who naturally becomes pregnant after her very first sexual experience -- this with the school stud, Ricky (Daren Kagasoff). Ricky carries his own dirty secret, because this is the age of abuse and dysfunction and everyone is driven by internal demons too numerous to even imagine.
This is how dumb Hampton seems to believe the audience is: She names the "good girl" cheerleader who holds fundraisers for her church Grace (Megan Park). And of course theres the horrible dichotomy suffered by Graces boyfriend Jack (Greg Finley), caught as he is between a rock (his faith) and a hard place (his groin) as Grace yammers on about their abstaining from sex for like eight more years. This seems like a particularly lousy idea when Adrian (Francia Raisa), the school slut, flutters her eyelashes and sways her hips in his direction. Doesnt seem like God has much of a prayer winning this one. The question is, does the nerdy Ben (Kenny Baumann) stand a chance courting Amy, whom he doesnt know is preggers?
The only thing missing here, really, is R.E.M.s "Everybody Hurts" backing it all to evoke the proper tragicomic mood. That should show up sometime around Episode 4 as the series uses Amys pregnancy as the centerpiece in a drama thats clearly more a painfully obvious, crudely-drawn cautionary tale than any sort of youth soap opera. It feeds into parental hysteria in ridiculously one-dimensional ways.
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
Eschewing subtlety for overt exposition at every turn, "Secret Life" fairly screams, "This is a middle-aged adults fear-mongering perception of high school life circa 2008." And just in case we werent feeling quite old enough, it co-stars Molly Ringwald as the mother of our teenage protagonist. It debuts Tuesday on the cable channel.
An awkward cross between "7th Heaven" and "Greys Anatomy," it stars Shailene Woodley as Amy, your basic band geek who naturally becomes pregnant after her very first sexual experience -- this with the school stud, Ricky (Daren Kagasoff). Ricky carries his own dirty secret, because this is the age of abuse and dysfunction and everyone is driven by internal demons too numerous to even imagine.
This is how dumb Hampton seems to believe the audience is: She names the "good girl" cheerleader who holds fundraisers for her church Grace (Megan Park). And of course theres the horrible dichotomy suffered by Graces boyfriend Jack (Greg Finley), caught as he is between a rock (his faith) and a hard place (his groin) as Grace yammers on about their abstaining from sex for like eight more years. This seems like a particularly lousy idea when Adrian (Francia Raisa), the school slut, flutters her eyelashes and sways her hips in his direction. Doesnt seem like God has much of a prayer winning this one. The question is, does the nerdy Ben (Kenny Baumann) stand a chance courting Amy, whom he doesnt know is preggers?
The only thing missing here, really, is R.E.M.s "Everybody Hurts" backing it all to evoke the proper tragicomic mood. That should show up sometime around Episode 4 as the series uses Amys pregnancy as the centerpiece in a drama thats clearly more a painfully obvious, crudely-drawn cautionary tale than any sort of youth soap opera. It feeds into parental hysteria in ridiculously one-dimensional ways.
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
Top 5 in entertainment (AP)
TELEVISION
1. NBA Finals, Game 6: Boston vs. L.A. Lakers.
2. "America's Got Talent," NBC.
3. "60 Minutes," CBS.
4. "Two and a Half Men," CBS.
5. "So You Think You Can Dance" (Thursday), Fox.
(From Nielsen Media Research)
FILM
1. "Wall-E," Disney.
2. "Wanted," Universal.
3. "Get Smart," Warner Bros.
4. "Kung Fu Panda," Paramount.
5. "The Incredible Hulk," Universal.
(From Media By Numbers LLC)
HOT FIVE
1. "I Kissed a Girl," Katy Perry. Capitol.
2. "Lollipop," Lil Wayne feat. Static Major. Cash Money/Universal Motown.
3. "Bleeding Love," Leona Lewis. SYCO/J/RMG. (Platinum)
4. "Take a Bow," Rihanna. SRP/Def Jam/IDJMG.
5. "Pocketful of Sunshine," Natasha Bedingfield. Phonogenic/Epic.
(From Billboard magazine)
ALBUMS
1. "Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends," Coldplay. Capitol.
2. "Tha Carter III," Lil Wayne. Cash Money/Universal Motown/UMRG.
3. "Camp Rock." Soundtrack. Walt Disney.
4. "NOW 28," Various artists. EMI/Sony BMG/Universal/Zomba/Capitol.
5. "Definition of Real," Plies. Big Gates/Slip-n-Slide/Atlantic/AG.
(From Billboard magazine)
CONCERT TOURS
1. Bon Jovi.
2. Kenny Chesney.
3. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band.
4. Jay-Z/Mary J. Blige.
5. Van Halen.
(From Pollstar)
VIDEO SALES
1. "Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird," Warner Home Video. (Gold)
2. "Yoga Conditioning for Athletes," Gaiam Video.
3. "Ancient Mysteries: Ancient Altered States," A&E Home Video.
4. "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (Special Edition)," Buena Vista Home Entertainment.
5. "Dragonball Z: Prelude to Terror: Volume 32," Bird Studio/Shueisha Toei Animation.
(From Billboard magazine)
VIDEO RENTALS
1. "Jumper," 20th Century Fox.
2. "The Bucket List," Warner Home Video.
3. "Witless Protection," Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
4. "The Eye," Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
5. "Semi-Pro," Warner Home Video.
(From Billboard magazine)
DVD SALES
1. "The Bucket List," Warner Home Video.
2. "Jumper," 20th Century Fox.
3. "National Treasure 2 : Book of Secrets," Buena Vista Home Entertainment.
4. "John Adams," Warner Home Video.
5. "The Other Boleyn Girl," Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
(From Billboard magazine)
1. NBA Finals, Game 6: Boston vs. L.A. Lakers.
2. "America's Got Talent," NBC.
3. "60 Minutes," CBS.
4. "Two and a Half Men," CBS.
5. "So You Think You Can Dance" (Thursday), Fox.
(From Nielsen Media Research)
FILM
1. "Wall-E," Disney.
2. "Wanted," Universal.
3. "Get Smart," Warner Bros.
4. "Kung Fu Panda," Paramount.
5. "The Incredible Hulk," Universal.
(From Media By Numbers LLC)
HOT FIVE
1. "I Kissed a Girl," Katy Perry. Capitol.
2. "Lollipop," Lil Wayne feat. Static Major. Cash Money/Universal Motown.
3. "Bleeding Love," Leona Lewis. SYCO/J/RMG. (Platinum)
4. "Take a Bow," Rihanna. SRP/Def Jam/IDJMG.
5. "Pocketful of Sunshine," Natasha Bedingfield. Phonogenic/Epic.
(From Billboard magazine)
ALBUMS
1. "Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends," Coldplay. Capitol.
2. "Tha Carter III," Lil Wayne. Cash Money/Universal Motown/UMRG.
3. "Camp Rock." Soundtrack. Walt Disney.
4. "NOW 28," Various artists. EMI/Sony BMG/Universal/Zomba/Capitol.
5. "Definition of Real," Plies. Big Gates/Slip-n-Slide/Atlantic/AG.
(From Billboard magazine)
CONCERT TOURS
1. Bon Jovi.
2. Kenny Chesney.
3. Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band.
4. Jay-Z/Mary J. Blige.
5. Van Halen.
(From Pollstar)
VIDEO SALES
1. "Sesame Street Presents: Follow That Bird," Warner Home Video. (Gold)
2. "Yoga Conditioning for Athletes," Gaiam Video.
3. "Ancient Mysteries: Ancient Altered States," A&E Home Video.
4. "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea (Special Edition)," Buena Vista Home Entertainment.
5. "Dragonball Z: Prelude to Terror: Volume 32," Bird Studio/Shueisha Toei Animation.
(From Billboard magazine)
VIDEO RENTALS
1. "Jumper," 20th Century Fox.
2. "The Bucket List," Warner Home Video.
3. "Witless Protection," Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
4. "The Eye," Lionsgate Home Entertainment.
5. "Semi-Pro," Warner Home Video.
(From Billboard magazine)
DVD SALES
1. "The Bucket List," Warner Home Video.
2. "Jumper," 20th Century Fox.
3. "National Treasure 2 : Book of Secrets," Buena Vista Home Entertainment.
4. "John Adams," Warner Home Video.
5. "The Other Boleyn Girl," Sony Pictures Home Entertainment.
(From Billboard magazine)
Bon Jovi to give free concert in NYC this summer (AP)
NEW YORK - Bon Jovi will perform free concert July 12 in Central Park.
It's billed as a prelude to the July 15 All-Star baseball game, which will highlight the final season at Yankee Stadium.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Jovi will help ensure it goes out in a blaze of glory, hopefully a blaze in late October at the World Series.
Bon Jovi's hits include "Livin' on a Prayer," "Bad Medicine" and "Blaze of Glory." Lead singer Jon Bon Jovi said playing Central Park is a dream come true.
___
On the Net:
http://www.bonjovi.com/bonjovi/
It's billed as a prelude to the July 15 All-Star baseball game, which will highlight the final season at Yankee Stadium.
Mayor Michael Bloomberg said Jovi will help ensure it goes out in a blaze of glory, hopefully a blaze in late October at the World Series.
Bon Jovi's hits include "Livin' on a Prayer," "Bad Medicine" and "Blaze of Glory." Lead singer Jon Bon Jovi said playing Central Park is a dream come true.
___
On the Net:
http://www.bonjovi.com/bonjovi/
Dr. Drew: Addicted celebs need more time in rehab (AP)
LOS ANGELES - Hollywood has a serious drug problem, and isn't committing the time it takes to fix it, according to Dr. Drew.
Not only are substances plentiful and socially acceptable in most celebrity circles, but stars who seek treatment often opt for abbreviated programs in exclusive environments, Drew Pinsky, host of radio's "Love Line" and VH1's "Celebrity Rehab," told The Associated Press.
Drew, who has studied what draws stars to drugs, presents his findings in the hourlong "VH1 News Presents: Dr. Drew's Celebrity Addiction Special," which airs Tuesday.
"Today, in the celebrity world, we're seeing an addiction epidemic," Pinsky said, adding that the disease of addiction is more deadly than cancer.
"If you had cancer, you would drop everything," he says. "You would take whatever time it needed to do the treatment and do what it takes to get out on the other side. Here's a disease that is more dangerous, and we can't get people to take three months."
These compound challenges give celebrity drug addicts a "bad prognosis," Pinsky told The Associated Press.
"I don't like treating celebrities," he said. "It's not a group I would seek out of a population I would necessarily treat as a separate goal because they're very, very difficult."
___
On the Net:
http://www.drdrew.com
http://www.vh1.com/shows/dyn/vh1_news_presents/136589/episode.jhtml
Not only are substances plentiful and socially acceptable in most celebrity circles, but stars who seek treatment often opt for abbreviated programs in exclusive environments, Drew Pinsky, host of radio's "Love Line" and VH1's "Celebrity Rehab," told The Associated Press.
Drew, who has studied what draws stars to drugs, presents his findings in the hourlong "VH1 News Presents: Dr. Drew's Celebrity Addiction Special," which airs Tuesday.
"Today, in the celebrity world, we're seeing an addiction epidemic," Pinsky said, adding that the disease of addiction is more deadly than cancer.
"If you had cancer, you would drop everything," he says. "You would take whatever time it needed to do the treatment and do what it takes to get out on the other side. Here's a disease that is more dangerous, and we can't get people to take three months."
These compound challenges give celebrity drug addicts a "bad prognosis," Pinsky told The Associated Press.
"I don't like treating celebrities," he said. "It's not a group I would seek out of a population I would necessarily treat as a separate goal because they're very, very difficult."
___
On the Net:
http://www.drdrew.com
http://www.vh1.com/shows/dyn/vh1_news_presents/136589/episode.jhtml
Britney house-hunting for bigger backyard, quiet (AP)
LOS ANGELES - Court records show Britney Spears is house-hunting -- preferably for something greener, quieter and with a bigger backyard.
Documents released Monday show that Spears seeks a house with a larger yard that's closer to parks and recreation areas for her children, Sean Preston and Jayden James. She also wants a "less trafficked" locale than her paparazzi-stalked Beverly Hills home, which she bought for nearly $7 million early last year.
Spears' father, James, requested the sale in mid-June, and a court commissioner agreed. James Spears is acting as his daughter's conservator following several incidents of erratic behavior by the 26-year-old singer.
The children's father, Kevin Federline, has custody.
Documents released Monday show that Spears seeks a house with a larger yard that's closer to parks and recreation areas for her children, Sean Preston and Jayden James. She also wants a "less trafficked" locale than her paparazzi-stalked Beverly Hills home, which she bought for nearly $7 million early last year.
Spears' father, James, requested the sale in mid-June, and a court commissioner agreed. James Spears is acting as his daughter's conservator following several incidents of erratic behavior by the 26-year-old singer.
The children's father, Kevin Federline, has custody.
Pamela Anderson auctions car for PETA cause (AP)
LOS ANGELES - Pamela Anderson has auctioned her sporty 2000 Dodge Viper for $65,000 as a donation to animal-rights activists to run an anti-snake slaughter campaign.
Michael McGraw, a spokesman for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, said the group will use the cash to raise awareness about the cruel methods used to skin animals such as snakes and crocodiles, particularly in India.
According to PETA, these animals, whose exotic skins are popularly used in handbags and shoes, are often skinned alive, and suffer for hours or even days before dying.
Michael McGraw, a spokesman for People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, said the group will use the cash to raise awareness about the cruel methods used to skin animals such as snakes and crocodiles, particularly in India.
According to PETA, these animals, whose exotic skins are popularly used in handbags and shoes, are often skinned alive, and suffer for hours or even days before dying.
Fire at Madonna's childhood home called suspicious (AP)
ROCHESTER HILLS, Mich. - A weekend fire that destroyed a childhood home of Madonna has been deemed suspicious by arson investigators.
The Oakland County Sheriff's Arson Unit and the Rochester Hills Fire Department are investigating the Friday night blaze.
A passer-by had noticed flames coming out of the unoccupied house in the Detroit suburb of Rochester Hills and called the fire department.
Rochester Hills Fire Chief Ron Crowell told The Detroit News and Detroit Free Press the fire appears to have started in the living room area. He said it caused extensive smoke and fire damage throughout the two-story brick house.
The 49-year-old Madonna, known then as Madonna Louise Ciccone, spent some of her younger years as one of six siblings living in the home.
The Oakland County Sheriff's Arson Unit and the Rochester Hills Fire Department are investigating the Friday night blaze.
A passer-by had noticed flames coming out of the unoccupied house in the Detroit suburb of Rochester Hills and called the fire department.
Rochester Hills Fire Chief Ron Crowell told The Detroit News and Detroit Free Press the fire appears to have started in the living room area. He said it caused extensive smoke and fire damage throughout the two-story brick house.
The 49-year-old Madonna, known then as Madonna Louise Ciccone, spent some of her younger years as one of six siblings living in the home.
Older men on the beach: are they baiting beauties?
Now the fact that I take dance classes with Lisa Rinna will have no effect on this posting unless she reads it and tells Louis Van Amstel to '86 my ass from class!
Harry Hamlin has always been a personal favorite of mine. I mean Clash of the Titans is an all time favorite and only because not just because he was in a loin cloth for the entire film. What I am thankful for about Mr. Hamlin, is even though he has been moving into voice-over work since being voted off Season 3 of Dancing with the Stars, he hasn't gone the way of Jack Nicholson and THAT man's shirtless body. I mean I get it: Harry Hamlin is 56 freakin' years old. He must be so sick of hardcore working out (yes, Mario Lopez I'm talking to you. One day you too will get sick of working out unless you become like Jack LaLanne which is a horrifying thought in itself.), so at least we can see where everything is supposed to go on Harry, which gently reminds us of how sexy Harry is and was back in 1987 when he was named People Magazine's Sexiest Man Alive.
Now Liam Neeson, 56, here at "Club 55" (ironic) beach in Saint Tropez is another story.
Now I love me some Liam Neeson. High Spirits is like the best movie ever! (Oh and Schindler's List too!) But I think here is a lovely example that it's time to stop taking your shirt off my good Irishman. We've seen it already in The Big Man, The Good Mother, Husbands and Wives, Leap of Faith and frankly we saw all of it in Kinsey. In the words of Diana Summer and Barbra Streisand: Enough is Enough!
Talk about putting the HUGE in Hugh Jackman, NOW we're talking! Can you believe he'll be 40 this October! I'm sure this is still the body he had from the filming of 2009's X-Men Origins: Wolverine, but being on the beaches of St. Tropez (with his adopted son Oscar Maximillian) with that body, could change this gay boy from saying 'Oui-Oui' in the south of France to having his wee-wee go north in the south of his pants if you know what I mean.
?Jennifer Aniston becomes a John Mayer groupie? links
- On a weekend when Angelina Jolie’s Wanted blew away all expectations, Jennifer Aniston tried to counter with a famewhore tactic of her own: turning into John Mayer's groupie. Dignified. [Lainey Gossip]
- Who knew it? Sharon Stone is the alpha cougar [Dlisted]
- Mary-Kate Olsen Spencer Pratt Feud Started in High School [Fafarazzi]
- It’s About Time That Eddie Murphy Retire From the Movie Biz [Bossip]
- John C. Reilly's The Promotion is a strange little film; it's hard to know what to make of it [Pajiba]
- Lindsay Lohan's Pregnant Belly Is Fake, But That PDA Certainly Isn't [Defamer]
- Alicia Keys To Retire At 30 [I'm Not Obsessed]
- Jennifer Lopez Drums Up Some New Bikini Business [PopSugar]
- Courtney Love gets pushed around Malibu in a shopping cart. Of course [Celebslam]
- Juliette Lewis turned 35 this weekend, and decided to make this face [Webster's is my Bitch]
- Petra Nemcova Is The New Otto Catalogue Cover Girl. Am I the only one that doesn't think she's anything special to look at? [The Bastardly]
- Hannah Montana's candy looks delicious. This is really upsetting [The Blemish]
- Hugh Jackman. Bathing suit. Beach. 'Nuff said [Celebrity Baby Scoop]
- Lisa Rinna Brings Out Her Bikini for the 383,382 time (Site NSFW) [Drunken Stepfather]
- Paris Hilton Bikini Bottom-Boob. Gross [Yeeeah!]
- The Office Is Back: With Webisodes! Thank goodness I now have something useful to do this summer [Evil Beet]
- New York City has the most beautiful waterfalls [CityRag]
- Pierce Brosnan, Keely Shaye Smith, Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, Rita Wilson, Amanda Seyfiend and Colin Firth with mystery woman at the Mama Mia London premiere [In Case You Didn't Know]
- Sharon Osbourne's favorite pooch Minnie past away this weekend [Seriously? OMG! WTF?]
- Glastonbury, Trilbies, and More Crap That You Won’t Care About [Agent Bedhead]
- Jay-Z Is A Funny F**ker [Crazy Days and Nights]
- Anne Hathaway is a snitch. And I'm fine with that [WWTDD]
- Is Sarah Harding Too Thin? [The Skinny]
- Amy Winehouse is the definition of sexy [Derek Hail]
- Ruben Studdard Realizes He’s Married [Best Week Ever]
- DMX Still Having A Hard Time Obeying Laws [Mollygood]
- 41-Year Old Dara Torres Aims To Be Oldest Female Swimmer In Olympic History. That's pretty damn awesome [Jezebel]
- This photo of Robert Buckley made us realize we need to start watching Lipstick Jungle [Popbytes]
- First 'Quantum of Solace' Trailer [ShowHype]
Britney?s sons spend their first night with her since January
Britney Spears got a pretty big reward for all of the hard work she’s done straightening out her life. Last week it was reported that Britney was granted some overnight visits with her sons. This past Saturday Sean Preston and Jayden James spent the night at their mother’s home for the first time since she was hospitalized in January.
Britney Spears spent Saturday night with her boys at her Los Angeles home. It was the singer's first overnight visit with Sean Preston, 2 1/2, and Jayden James, 1 1/2, since she was hospitalized at L.A.'s Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in January. The boys were dropped off Saturday and picked up around 10 a.m. Sunday, according to a source.
"Britney was very upset after the kids left," the source tells Usmagazine.com. "She now does not know when she will get them next for an overnight. She complains it could be next week, or it could be three months."
Meanwhile, Spears and ex Kevin Federline — who was spotted partying in Miami over the weekend — are gearing up for a custody trial, set to begin August 25. Federline's attorney Mark Vincent Kaplan told E! that a mediation session last Thursday didn't result in a custody agreement. Federline is seeking sole physical and legal custody of sons Preston, 2 1/2, and Jayden, 1 1/2 and wants Spears to continue her current visitation terms. Said Kaplan, "If the existing arrangement was acceptable to both parties we wouldn't have to go to trial. But that didn't happen."
[From Us Weekly]
I can understand how her boys leaving could be very hard for Britney. I’m sure it would rip out any parent’s heart, but the fact that the overnight visitation is so up in the air must have made the whole experience very bittersweet. If she knew if/when she could count on having her sons again, it probably would have made it much easier.
It’s too bad Britney and K-Fed haven’t been able to come to an agreement in terms of custody yet. Though from my understanding, that’s something that is almost always in a state of flux, at least to some extent. As the boys grow and change their needs will as well. And hopefully over time Britney will grow more and more stable and be able to take a more active role in her son’s lives. It sounds like she made it through a tough experience, and hopefully will get to see a lot more of her boys soon.
Here’s Britney leaving SUR restaurant in L.A. on Friday night. Images thanks to WENN.
The Jackson family wants a reality show
Crazy ass Jackson family patriarch Joe Jackson has decided it’d be a really good idea to the Jackson 5 back together – with the additional drama of sisters LaToya and Janet thrown in. While rumors of a reunion have been floating around for decades, supposedly the family is pretty close to working out a deal with a production company.
They would all move into the Jackson family home in Encino, California. That’s right, not only do we have Jackson family singing, we have Jackson family midnight pillow fights. Or whatever the hell they do. Supposedly Michael has even agreed to be involved, though he’ll be the only one not moving into the house.
The family is hoping that because Michael and Janet are on board it will clinch the deal. "They feel the timing is right - because Michael is becoming professionally active again, and they believe fans are ready to find out what the family is doing," an insider told the Enquirer.
"The show will follow the lives of the brothers as they move back into the old Jackson family home in the L.A. suburb of Encino and live and perform together again."
Michael will continue living in his Las Vegas home but will be a big part of the show… The series will center on the at-times dysfunctional family dynamics of the brothers, Michael's eccentricity, and the flamboyant sisters, Janet and LaToya.
"Although Michael will stop in and oversee some of the recording with The Jacksons, he'll be doing most of his singing from his private studio in Las Vegas and then have the tapes transferred to where his brothers are laying down tracks in L.A.," explained the insider. Jermaine will run the show, but Michael has made it very clear that he wants the last say on the music." According to the insider, Jermaine is convinced the show will be a smash hit.
[From the National Enquirer, July 7th, 2008, print ed.]
What can possibly go wrong? Frankly, I think they should do it. By most accounts the Jackson family is so messed up that it can’t really get any worse. And only Janet has a bit of a career left. Michael’s going to have to rebuild everything from the ground up. So what have they got to lose? Respect? Already gone. Fame? Gone. Money? Gone. Well, mostly. They might as well see how long they can beat this dead horse.
Man assaulted by Amy Winehouse says he won?t file charges
It takes a big man to get knocked in the face by an 80 pound girl and keep his dignity. But that’s exactly the kind of man James Gostelow is. Gostelow was assaulted – and by that I mean viciously elbowed – by Amy Winehouse during her Saturday evening concert at the Glastonbury Festival. Gostelow says it was all a case of mistaken identity. A man behind him threw his hat at Amy’s beehive, and she thought it was James. Thus the mad elbowing. But let’s be fair here – the other guy was probably just throwing his hat in the air – or maybe he didn’t even touch it. Winehouse’s hive has a gravitational force all its own.
Mr Gostelow said the incident was a case of mistaken identity. "I saw a hat being thrown from behind me and it hit Amy's beehive. She looked down, saw me looking up, and her elbow went for me. She caught my forehead, then someone may have shouted something from the back, which is when she went in again."
Speaking after the incident, Glastonbury organiser Michael Eavis defended the star, saying she had appeared to lash out after being touched by a fan. Mr Gostelow, who did not see anyone touch the singer, said he was "shocked" rather than sore. He added that while he was "disappointed", he had no intention of making a complaint to police.
"At the end of the day it is all part of being at the front and being pushed by thousands of people. It is all part of the Glastonbury experience," he said. "I'm just pleased I got to see her. She did a great act. Not everyone can say they have been hit by Amy Winehouse. I just want to shake the person who threw the hat."
[From the BBC]
Talk about having a good attitude. It’s odd though, we’ve heard at least three different versions of what happened. The original explanation was that someone grabbed Amy’s boob. So then you think, “Well who could blame her?” Then it was that someone grabbed her hair. So again, you think “Well it’s probably instinct to react to someone grabbing you.” If you’re generous with excuses. Now it seems that someone threw a hat at or near Winehouse, and she just started beating on anyone who had the balls to make eye contact with her.
To look at the video, it doesn’t seem like anyone could get seriously injured. And she also appeared to be mildly (for Amy Winehouse) drunk. So I doubt she was able to put much force behind her elbowing/blows (depending on which story you believe). Nonetheless, everyone should keep in mind that if you’re willing to shell out a lot of cash for an Amy Winehouse concert, the odds are still 50/50 that she’ll show up, and about 60/40 that she’ll give you a beat down.
Here’s Amy Winehouse returning to the clinic she is staying at to receive treatment for her drug addiction right after the Glastonbury Festival, WENN notes that “Amy appeared worse for wear, and looked somewhat disheveled compared to how healthy she looked leaving the clinic only a few hours before.” Images thanks to WENN.
Spamming Baby Borrowers show slammed by child welfare group
About three months ago we received so much comment spam for the now-failed E! reality shows "Pop Fiction" that I was compelled to write a story about it. In that case the spam was coming from a public relations firm that thought that a good way to generate interest in their client's shows was to make obnoxious comments full of grammatical errors and spelling mistakes on celebrity blogs. (Neither the public relations firm or E! responded to our multiple requests for comment.)
People for "Baby Borrowers" left over five spam comments here. They were under different names and all from the same IP address, which was easily traced to NBC Universal.
The comments weren't that obnoxious and there weren't that many of them so I just sent a warning message to the person's listed e-mail and asked them to cut it out. We got a few more but not many, and they were on the "always send to moderation" list at that point. NBC is a big advertiser of ours, which also influenced my decision not to call them on it. Here are the two samples I saved:
Baby Riot: What is Baby Borrowers? When is it on?
From Jamie Lynn Spears has a baby girl, Maddie Briann (update), 2008/06/24 at 5:45 PM
Left of Center: Baby Borrowers should be on every teen’s viewing list!
Baby Borrowers should be on every teen’s viewing list!
From Jamie Lynn Spears has a baby girl, Maddie Briann (update), 2008/06/23 at 10:17 PM
Given that people for this show spammed the blog, which creates unnecessary cleanup and generally just pisses me off, I'm more apt to report a negative story about it. A child welfare group says new reality show Baby Borrowers is unnecessarily stressful for babies. Infants as young as six months are separated from their parents for long stretches at a time and presumably overnight in order to teach teens that gee, it's hard to raise a child. Sounds like a fun concept except maybe they should go easy on the babies and only start with a few hours here and there and give them a warming up period to get to know the teens. But no, they have to stay with strangers for long periods of time or else it won't make for good television:
The show installs five young volunteer couples in different houses in Boise, Idaho, where they're stuck minding an infant, from six months to a year old, who's been dropped off at their door. Three days later, the couple swaps a baby for a toddler. They soon swap the toddler for a teen and then have to take care of a senior citizen. NBC.com describes the show: "When a real baby appears . . . the nervous, fumbling teens are in for three long, arduous days that make chilling out a distant memory. They must stick to rigid routines, handle the feeding chores, diaper duty and crying jags."
But nonprofit group Zero to Three claims it's a horrible idea and is now protesting the show, which premiered last week.
"We're concerned about the fact that these babies are being separated from their parents and placed with strangers," the group's spokesperson, Tom Salyers, told Page Six. "A large body of research says the attachments that are formed between the people who care for them are very important.
"On the first episode, the babies were separated for about 12 hours and were clearly in distress. Typically they will cry and cling and search for their parents, which they were doing. They should be with someone they've had the opportunity to get to know."
NBC has provided 24-hour nanny supervision for the families, and the babies' real parents are stationed next door with a video monitor. They are able to intervene and help out at any time.
An NBC rep said: "The producers of the show took all the necessary precautions to ensure the safety and welfare of the children participating in the series. The environment was carefully controlled, and the children were properly cared for at all times."
[From The NY Post]
It's unclear from that story whether the babies stay with the teens for three full days with just small breaks seeing their parents or whether they stay 12 hours one day, 12 hours another day, etc. This group isn't saying that babies shouldn't be cared by people other than their parents, just that it's important they get to know the people who care for them and have a long term relationship with them if possible. Of course babies are going to be upset when they go to a new daycare or get a new babysitter but you want to make the transition easy for them and not stress them out just to get a good scene.
I am lucky enough to work from home and was able to spend the first year with my son, with help from babysitters and neighbors, but now he goes to daycare. He's been to two different daycares as we recently moved and both recommend a warming-up period for younger kids where you only leave them an hour or two the first day and gradually go away for longer periods of time until they're used to the place and the new people.
It seems like with small infants they should have their well being in mind and to have given them time to get used to the new people. That would cost time and money, though, and these shows are all about exploiting even small babies for good television. It's a decent concept, but since they spammed us and are separating infants from their parents in order to create a TV show, I can't say I hope it's a big success. The pictures sure are cute and harmless-looking, though, but it's not like they're going to put up photos of crying babies on their website. Damn I fell for that spam, didn't I? NBC pays us, I should have left it up.
Here's a clip. I wouldn't want these idiots caring for my kid.
Thanks to NBC for these photos.
Heidi Montag wants to record a Christian album
Heidi Montag has the kind of delusional self-esteem that leads people to attempt to (unsuccessfully) take over nations. Just no sense of reality. Which means she’s perfect for reality television. Montag has had a delightfully failing music “career.” Which really is much too strong a word, even with the quotations marks. Her first single “Higher” was laughed right off the internet – as was the home-movie video that boyfriend Spencer Pratt filmed for it.
Despite being not just a failure but considered lower than K-Fed in terms of music credibility (and that’s one of the few positions under failure on the success ladder), Montag has decided she wants to put out a new album – a Christian album, no less. The best response I could think of was something Tina Fey’s character said on 30 Rock: "If reality TV has taught us anything it’s that you can't keep people with no shame down"
"I have been the most religious person since I was 2 years old. I always felt this crazy connection to God," says Montag, who identifies herself as "kind of non-denominational Baptist."
Montag — who just released her latest single "Fashion" and frequently reads the Bible — says she even wants to record a Christian album.
She adds that she once planned on devoting her life to God as a missionary in Africa. She and beau Spencer Pratt — who just attacked Mary-Kate Olsen after she said he had a bad temper in high school — will head there in August to "feed children and help build things."
Of [Lauren] Conrad's claim that Montag spread those sex tape rumors, Montag says: "God knows the truth in all of this, and at the end of the day, that is the only thing that matters. Jesus was persecuted, and I'm going to get persecuted, ya know?"
[From Us Weekly]
Heidi Montag says she’s the MOST religious person? Out of… who?? The other girls on The Hills? Or the whole world? Or ever? I mean, she is the most.
But you know, this all makes a lot of sense. Jesus was really into fashion. In fact He placed a pretty high level of importance on it in the Bible. I think it’s in the book of Chanel. Here’s the problem: Heidi Montag should not be recording any album. End of story. I’m pretty sure you can find that buried somewhere in the Bible if you look hard enough.
Here’s Heidi and Spencer – as well as Heidi performing with Tracy Morgan at the Boost Mobile Rock Corps at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Los Angeles on June 20th. Images thanks to WENN.
Guy Ritchie?s mom says he and Madonna are ?close and loving?
Guy Ritchie’s apparently anguished mother, Lady Amber Leighton, has felt the need to address all the tabloid reports that her son’s marriage to Madonna is essentially over. Lady Leighton says that the pair are not divorcing, and go through the normal ups and downs every marriage goes through. And she throws in some absolutely delightful British verbiage that I’m going to steal.
Maybe mother does know best. Despite persistent rumors that Madonna and Guy Ritchie are on the brink of divorce, Guy's mother, Lady Amber Leighton, says there's no divorce happening. "It is absolute rubbish, worse than that," she tells the U.K.'s Daily Mail. "Guy will be furious at me for talking to you, but I feel I can't just let these reports go unanswered, as they make me so angry and they are hurtful intrusions into their private lives."
Lady Leighton goes on to say that Madonna and Guy are like every other married couple out there. "Like other couples, they work at keeping their relationship happy and fresh and they are a close and loving couple who have a family to bring up." Guy and Madonna have been leading what appear to be separate lives, with Madonna planning her world tour in New York and Guy staying back in London, but his mother insists, "That is not a couple splitting up. I'll say it one more time, they are not getting divorced; the speculation is TT — that's total tosh."
[From In Touch]
I was half expecting Lady Leighton to break out with some “Pish posh applesauce” or something. I can’t blame her for being upset – it’s natural that a mother wouldn’t want the whole world speculating about her son.
The Sun reports that Guy has been holed up at singer Sting’s country estate. He was introduced to Madonna by Sting’s wife Trudie Styler. Guy and Trudie have been spotted at a few local pubs, with Guy apparently looking quite somber.
Guy was spotted boarding a flight from London to New York City – where Madonna and the couple’s three children currently are staying – without his wedding ring. There’s been some speculation that he’s going to make one last-ditch attempt to save the marriage – though Madonna’s still not wearing her ring either. Sad as it may be, something tells me there will probably be some sort of announcement in the next couple days.
Here’s Guy Ritchie – sans wedding ring - flying out from London to New York today; and Madonna (equally ringless) looking very sullen outside the Kabbalah center in New York yesterday. Images thanks to Splash.
Molly Ringwald talks teen pregnancy, says things haven?t changed
Molly Ringwald on Good Morning America this morning
80s sensation Molly Ringwald, 40, appeared on Good Morning American and Regis & Kelly this morning to talk about her new show on ABC Family "The Secret Life of The American Teenager," in which she plays a mom to two teenage daughters. Her 15 year-old daughter is pregnant on the show, and Ringwald discussed the recent teen pregnancy boom, particularly the case in Glouchester, MA where 17 girls in one school were pregnant that was initially blamed on a pregnancy pact. Ringwald herself played a pregnant high school senior in the 1998 1988 movie For Keeps.
I think [teenage pregnancy] always will [happen]. The best thing that you can do is just communicate with your kids. I hope this show kind of does that. It's not only about teenage pregnancy, it's an issue that's going on, and I think it's the kind of show that kids and parents can watch together.
[Transcribed from Molly Ringwald's appearance on Good Morning America, video above]
Ringwald has a four year-old daughter at home. She told Robin Roberts that things haven't changed that much since she starred in teen movies in the 80s and that the issues of teen pregnancy and drug use are still very relevant today.
They showed footage of Molly Ringwald on Good Morning America from 23 years ago when she was promoting The Breakfast Club. She covered her face and got red and when Robin asked her what she would tell her young self she said "I don't know, I think she's ok."
Molly said her family just moved to LA and that she started playing the ukulele as a hobby after seeing a girl named Julia Nunes play on Youtube. She also admitted to being an eBay addict.
Molly was also on Regis and Kelly and she said the show is a way to let everyone know she's no longer a teenager. Kelly said she still watches 16 Candles and The Breakfast club.
It's great to see Molly out in the spotlight again and you wonder what she was doing all this time. According to Wikipedia, she turned down Julia Roberts' role in Pretty Woman and Demi Moore's role in Ghost, a decision she's said she regrets. Her career floundered in the 1990s. She lived in France for four around that time, and did a few b-movies, and some television and stage performances. She appeared nude in the film Malicious in 1995, and on the ABC series "Townies" in 1996, which was canceled after one season. She has had several stage appearances in recent years in Cabaret, Enchanted April and Sweet Charity. She has been married to writer Panio Gianopoulos since 2007, and they have four year old daughter Mathilda together.
Molly Ringwald on Regis & Kelly, Part 1
Molly Ringwalk on Regis & Kelly, Part 2
Molly Ringwald is shown at the AFI Lifetime achievement award honouring Warren Beatty on 6/12/08.
Fox News shows extended footage of dead model Ruslana Korshunova?s body
In a segment on Fox News this morning with Geraldo Rivera they actually showed footage of 20 year-old supermodel Ruslana Korshunova's body on the pavement in front of her NY apartment. I'm not going to post it here, but I can't talk about without a link at least, so here's a link to that video - extreme warning.
At first it looks like they're only going to show the body bag, which is what CNN usually does and seems a bit morbid but not disrespectful. Instead they showed footage of her face with blood on it as seen underneath an emergency vehicle for over half a minute.
Geraldo says all sensational-like: "These are the last images of her broken body being lifted off the Manhattan sidewalk, where shocked and sickened witnesses watched her smash onto the concrete. This image stands in stark contrast to the fairtale images of the famous face, chestnut hair that made her modeling's next big thing."
Then they show her white face from underneath a car and the word "exclusive" flashes on the screen. Just because she was a model doesn't mean she deserves to have her death broadcast. Great "exclusive," Fox.
Korshunova is thought to have committed suicide by jumping from her seventh-story apartment. There were no signs of a struggle. She had just watched a movie with an ex boyfriend, who had dropped her off at her apartment. Her Facebook postings may suggest that she was depressed and struggling with a recent breakup, but her latest boyfriend says she seemed happy and he doesn't understand why she would take her own life. The coroner has ruled her death a suicide.
Tech majors to join hands against patent suits: report (Reuters)
(Reuters) - Information technology giants are teaming up in defense against potential patent-infringement lawsuits, the Wall Street Journal said on Sunday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The companies plan to buy up key intellectual property before it falls into the hands of parties that could use it against them, the paper said.
The papers sources said the companies, which include Verizon Communications Inc, Google Inc, Cisco Systems Inc, Hewlett-Packard Co and Ericsson, are believed to have a joined a group calling itself the Allied Security Trust.
The companies will pay roughly 250,000 to join the group and will each put about 5 million into escrow with the organization to go toward future patent purchases, the paper said.
Verizon, Cisco and Google did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment. HP and Ericsson could not be reached for comment.
(Reporting by Ajay Kamalakaran in Bangalore; Editing by Jennifer Tan)
The companies plan to buy up key intellectual property before it falls into the hands of parties that could use it against them, the paper said.
The papers sources said the companies, which include Verizon Communications Inc, Google Inc, Cisco Systems Inc, Hewlett-Packard Co and Ericsson, are believed to have a joined a group calling itself the Allied Security Trust.
The companies will pay roughly 250,000 to join the group and will each put about 5 million into escrow with the organization to go toward future patent purchases, the paper said.
Verizon, Cisco and Google did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment. HP and Ericsson could not be reached for comment.
(Reporting by Ajay Kamalakaran in Bangalore; Editing by Jennifer Tan)
NBC orders more "Kath & Kim" (Reuters)
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - NBC has ordered seven additional episodes of "Kath & Kim," bringing the total order for the new series to 13 half-hours.
The pickup comes shortly after the mother-daughter comedy starring Molly Shannon and Selma Blair shot the first episode of its six-episode order. The show is scheduled to go back into production next month on the remaining segments.
"Kath & Kim," based on the hit Australian series, focuses on the dysfunctional relationship between Kath (Shannon), a cheerful, fortysomething divorcee, and her self-absorbed daughter, Kim (Blair).
It is slated to premiere October 9, in the plum Thursday 9:30 p.m. slot following "The Office."
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
The pickup comes shortly after the mother-daughter comedy starring Molly Shannon and Selma Blair shot the first episode of its six-episode order. The show is scheduled to go back into production next month on the remaining segments.
"Kath & Kim," based on the hit Australian series, focuses on the dysfunctional relationship between Kath (Shannon), a cheerful, fortysomething divorcee, and her self-absorbed daughter, Kim (Blair).
It is slated to premiere October 9, in the plum Thursday 9:30 p.m. slot following "The Office."
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
Wim Wenders will head Venice fest's jury (Reuters)
ROME (Hollywood Reporter) - German filmmaker Wim Wenders will head the jury at the 65th annual Venice Film Festival, which runs August 27-September 6.
The choice silences weeks of rumors that Meryl Streep was in line for the job. Wenders will preside over a jury that will pick a winner from a 22-film competition lineup that for each of the past two years was made up entirely of world premieres.
He first appeared at Venice in 1972 with "Die Angst des Tormanns beim Elfmeter" (The Goalkeepers Fear of the Penalty Kick), his first feature film. He won the Golden Lion in Venice a decade later for "Der Stand der Dinge" (The State of Things) and has since taken home two sidebar prizes from Venice.
Wenders received an Oscar nomination for his 1999 documentary "Buena Vista Social Club."
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
The choice silences weeks of rumors that Meryl Streep was in line for the job. Wenders will preside over a jury that will pick a winner from a 22-film competition lineup that for each of the past two years was made up entirely of world premieres.
He first appeared at Venice in 1972 with "Die Angst des Tormanns beim Elfmeter" (The Goalkeepers Fear of the Penalty Kick), his first feature film. He won the Golden Lion in Venice a decade later for "Der Stand der Dinge" (The State of Things) and has since taken home two sidebar prizes from Venice.
Wenders received an Oscar nomination for his 1999 documentary "Buena Vista Social Club."
Reuters/Hollywood Reporter
Hall, Statler Brothers join country Hall of Fame (AP)
NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Tom T. Hall and the Statler Brothers were formally inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame with a musical tribute.
Spokeswoman Tina Wright says the two-hour ceremony was held Sunday at the hall.
This year's two other inductees -- Emmylou Harris and Ernest "Pop" Stoneman -- were formally inducted in April.
Bobby Bare, Heather Berry & Tony Mabe and Michelle Nixon saluted Hall, while Reba McEntire, Daily & Vincent and Grandstaff honored the Statler Brothers.
Vince Gill, Amy Grant and the Jordanaires performed the traditional opening hymn.
Television and radio personality Ralph Emery presented Hall with his medal. Brenda Lee did the same for the Statler Brothers.
Both Hall and the Statlers performed during the ceremony.
____
On the Net:
http://www.countrymusichalloffame.com
Spokeswoman Tina Wright says the two-hour ceremony was held Sunday at the hall.
This year's two other inductees -- Emmylou Harris and Ernest "Pop" Stoneman -- were formally inducted in April.
Bobby Bare, Heather Berry & Tony Mabe and Michelle Nixon saluted Hall, while Reba McEntire, Daily & Vincent and Grandstaff honored the Statler Brothers.
Vince Gill, Amy Grant and the Jordanaires performed the traditional opening hymn.
Television and radio personality Ralph Emery presented Hall with his medal. Brenda Lee did the same for the Statler Brothers.
Both Hall and the Statlers performed during the ceremony.
____
On the Net:
http://www.countrymusichalloffame.com
Monday Movie Buzz: `WALL-E' revels in robot love (AP)
Though the feeling can't yet be reciprocated, Hollywood has a crush on robots.
"WALL-E," the Pixar blockbuster that opened to ecstatic reviews and $62.5 million at the box office this weekend, is a tale of robot love.
Our hero is a little pile of metal and circuitry in the mold of R2D2, and our heroine is a sleeker but less personable model. (In male-dominated Hollywood, apparently even robots are subject to gender roles.)
Writer-director Andrew Stanton has consistently spoken of his desire to make an emotional sci-fi movie. He clearly made his task difficult by trying to pull heartstrings with two metallic machines who can only bleep and blork.
"WALL-E" is only the latest film that seeks to humanize robots. As an audience, we are meant to sit in dark theaters looking up at the big screen and FEEL for the oppressed digital beings of the future. Audiences are more than happy to be swept away by something as artful as "WALL-E," but there's a notable disconnect between its premise and its emotional force.
They're ROBOTS!
Hollywood has a great fetish for humanizing an artificial intelligence we haven't yet invented. On the big screen, it's a given that as soon as AI is created, we're going to be downright nasty to those poor lil' robots?
It would not be a stretch to say that filmmakers seem more concerned with the emotions and freedoms of thus-far nonexistent machines than most currently oppressed humans. (Don't hold your breath for an animated blockbuster about Zimbabwe.)
But this is not heartlessness by Hollywood; it's a fascinating obsession that says much about the Dream Factory.
We have seen Will Smith release the imprisoned robot masses in "I, Robot." ("I don't want my toaster or my vacuum cleaner appearing emotional," Smith jokes before his character's conversion.)
In "Blade Runner," Harrison Ford hunts "replicants" (humanoid robots) before doubting the cause -- and whether he, too, might be a replicant.
The "Terminator" movies are based on the fear of a future taken over by robots, but we eventually begin to root for the Terminator, played by our most robotic of actors, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
WALL-E's inspiration, R2D2 (whose sound engineer Ben Burtt also does WALL-E's "voice"), and his sidekick C-3PO were what bound "Star Wars" together. The common thread throughout George Lucas' saga, they outlive everyone.
Visions of the threat of robots is a parallel, darker tradition in Hollywood dating back the "false Maria" of Fritz Lang's 1926 masterpiece "Metropolis." Arguably the greatest film in this vein is Stanley Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey" -- a movie obviously referenced in "WALL-E."
But more than anyone, Kubrick also examined the future ethics of artificial intelligence, and more importantly, what it means for an audience to sympathize with a robotic hero. It was Steven Spielberg who followed through on Kubrick's unfinished plans for 2001's "A.I.," in which the tantalizingly cute robot, played by Haley Joel Osment, attempts to become "real."
In "WALL-E," we similarly follow a robot hero who wins us over with his endurance through solitude. The unlikely spark of love energizes WALL-E, whose bincocular-like eyes are slanted in a perpetual droop that we can't help but respond to with a collective "Aw."
In many of these films, robots are a metaphor for what we don't understand and therefore label "inhuman." In 1999's terrific "The Iron Giant" (directed by Brad Bird, who went on to become a Pixar man, helming "The Incredibles" and "Ratatouille"), the lovable lug of the title is the victim of Cold War-era paranoia.
But "WALL-E" and other robot-friendly films are chiefly about technology and coming to terms with it. WALL-E collects the debris of human ingenuity -- an iPod, a Rubik's cube -- reveling in its achievements.
In the movie, the audacity of technology -- namely WALL-E -- might even save a complacent human race. But the film isn't blindly supportive of machines. For the overweight and lazy humans of "WALL-E" to be awakened, one character will also have to defeat a very HAL-like device.
It should come as no surprise that Hollywood has such a penchant for humanizing robots. Movies have always been a medium whose advance is paced by technology. The creation of the moving image was an invention in the 19th century, and cinema progressed with the advent of sound recording in the `20s, color motion pictures later and -- recently -- digital filmmaking. Pixar, itself, is built on advances in computer generated animation.
Love movies, love robots.
"WALL-E," the Pixar blockbuster that opened to ecstatic reviews and $62.5 million at the box office this weekend, is a tale of robot love.
Our hero is a little pile of metal and circuitry in the mold of R2D2, and our heroine is a sleeker but less personable model. (In male-dominated Hollywood, apparently even robots are subject to gender roles.)
Writer-director Andrew Stanton has consistently spoken of his desire to make an emotional sci-fi movie. He clearly made his task difficult by trying to pull heartstrings with two metallic machines who can only bleep and blork.
"WALL-E" is only the latest film that seeks to humanize robots. As an audience, we are meant to sit in dark theaters looking up at the big screen and FEEL for the oppressed digital beings of the future. Audiences are more than happy to be swept away by something as artful as "WALL-E," but there's a notable disconnect between its premise and its emotional force.
They're ROBOTS!
Hollywood has a great fetish for humanizing an artificial intelligence we haven't yet invented. On the big screen, it's a given that as soon as AI is created, we're going to be downright nasty to those poor lil' robots?
It would not be a stretch to say that filmmakers seem more concerned with the emotions and freedoms of thus-far nonexistent machines than most currently oppressed humans. (Don't hold your breath for an animated blockbuster about Zimbabwe.)
But this is not heartlessness by Hollywood; it's a fascinating obsession that says much about the Dream Factory.
We have seen Will Smith release the imprisoned robot masses in "I, Robot." ("I don't want my toaster or my vacuum cleaner appearing emotional," Smith jokes before his character's conversion.)
In "Blade Runner," Harrison Ford hunts "replicants" (humanoid robots) before doubting the cause -- and whether he, too, might be a replicant.
The "Terminator" movies are based on the fear of a future taken over by robots, but we eventually begin to root for the Terminator, played by our most robotic of actors, Arnold Schwarzenegger.
WALL-E's inspiration, R2D2 (whose sound engineer Ben Burtt also does WALL-E's "voice"), and his sidekick C-3PO were what bound "Star Wars" together. The common thread throughout George Lucas' saga, they outlive everyone.
Visions of the threat of robots is a parallel, darker tradition in Hollywood dating back the "false Maria" of Fritz Lang's 1926 masterpiece "Metropolis." Arguably the greatest film in this vein is Stanley Kubrick's "2001: A Space Odyssey" -- a movie obviously referenced in "WALL-E."
But more than anyone, Kubrick also examined the future ethics of artificial intelligence, and more importantly, what it means for an audience to sympathize with a robotic hero. It was Steven Spielberg who followed through on Kubrick's unfinished plans for 2001's "A.I.," in which the tantalizingly cute robot, played by Haley Joel Osment, attempts to become "real."
In "WALL-E," we similarly follow a robot hero who wins us over with his endurance through solitude. The unlikely spark of love energizes WALL-E, whose bincocular-like eyes are slanted in a perpetual droop that we can't help but respond to with a collective "Aw."
In many of these films, robots are a metaphor for what we don't understand and therefore label "inhuman." In 1999's terrific "The Iron Giant" (directed by Brad Bird, who went on to become a Pixar man, helming "The Incredibles" and "Ratatouille"), the lovable lug of the title is the victim of Cold War-era paranoia.
But "WALL-E" and other robot-friendly films are chiefly about technology and coming to terms with it. WALL-E collects the debris of human ingenuity -- an iPod, a Rubik's cube -- reveling in its achievements.
In the movie, the audacity of technology -- namely WALL-E -- might even save a complacent human race. But the film isn't blindly supportive of machines. For the overweight and lazy humans of "WALL-E" to be awakened, one character will also have to defeat a very HAL-like device.
It should come as no surprise that Hollywood has such a penchant for humanizing robots. Movies have always been a medium whose advance is paced by technology. The creation of the moving image was an invention in the 19th century, and cinema progressed with the advent of sound recording in the `20s, color motion pictures later and -- recently -- digital filmmaking. Pixar, itself, is built on advances in computer generated animation.
Love movies, love robots.
SAG leader calls strike talk 'a distraction' (AP)
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Leaders of the Screen Actors Guild and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers are striking a conciliatory note as a deadline for contract expiration looms.
"We have taken no steps to initiate a strike authorization vote by the members of Screen Actors Guild," Union President Alan Rosenberg said in a statement Sunday. "Any talk about a strike or a management lockout at this point is simply a distraction."
The AMPTP has taken out an advertisement in trade publications calling a strike "harmful and unnecessary." Citing $2.8 billion in lost wages, the ad says, "We've completed four equitable and forward-thinking labor agreements. Let's get the fifth done."
The ad is scheduled to run in Monday's editions of Variety and Hollywood Reporter.
The contract runs out at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.
Anxiety has been growing in Hollywood that actors might walk off the job or studios could lock out performers on the heels of a Writers Guild of America strike that devastated production from November through February.
SAG leaders have been fighting a deal reached between producers and another actors union, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. Vote results among that union's 70,000 members are due July 8.
AFTRA and the 120,000-member SAG have 44,000 members in common. SAG leaders are urging its members in AFTRA to vote against the deal, saying they can strike a better bargain with producers if the contract is defeated.
SAG has said it is willing to continue talks with producers after its own contract expires.
"The Screen Actors Guild national negotiating committee is coming to the bargaining table every day in good faith to negotiate a fair contract for actors," Rosenberg said.
"We have taken no steps to initiate a strike authorization vote by the members of Screen Actors Guild," Union President Alan Rosenberg said in a statement Sunday. "Any talk about a strike or a management lockout at this point is simply a distraction."
The AMPTP has taken out an advertisement in trade publications calling a strike "harmful and unnecessary." Citing $2.8 billion in lost wages, the ad says, "We've completed four equitable and forward-thinking labor agreements. Let's get the fifth done."
The ad is scheduled to run in Monday's editions of Variety and Hollywood Reporter.
The contract runs out at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.
Anxiety has been growing in Hollywood that actors might walk off the job or studios could lock out performers on the heels of a Writers Guild of America strike that devastated production from November through February.
SAG leaders have been fighting a deal reached between producers and another actors union, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. Vote results among that union's 70,000 members are due July 8.
AFTRA and the 120,000-member SAG have 44,000 members in common. SAG leaders are urging its members in AFTRA to vote against the deal, saying they can strike a better bargain with producers if the contract is defeated.
SAG has said it is willing to continue talks with producers after its own contract expires.
"The Screen Actors Guild national negotiating committee is coming to the bargaining table every day in good faith to negotiate a fair contract for actors," Rosenberg said.
Minggu, 29 Juni 2008
Heppner trying on Siegfried in Aix-en-Provence (AP)
AIX-EN-PROVENCE, France - When tenor Ben Heppner wanted to try the grueling role of Tristan for the first time back in 1997, he chose a spot that he described as "off the beaten path."
Those first performances in Seattle were a huge success, and he has gone on to portray the hero of Richard Wagner's "Tristan und Isolde" in opera houses around the world.
So when Heppner decided to take on another Wagnerian role notorious for its difficulty -- the title character in "Siegfried" -- he didn't do it in New York, Vienna or Paris, but at the annual summer festival in this town in southern France.
His performance at Saturday night's premiere was in some respects a triumph and in others a work in progress.
For sheer visceral excitement, nothing beats the sound of Heppner's lean, muscular high notes cutting through the orchestra at full volume -- and this orchestra was the Berlin Philharmonic, one of the finest in the world. The freshness and vigor of his declaration of love to Bruennhilde near the end of Act 3, "Sei mein, sei mein, sei mein!" ("Be mine!") resonated through the Grand Theatre de Provence with thrilling clarity and punch.
That this came at the end of a long night -- three acts, each lasting more than an hour, with his character rarely off stage -- made it even more remarkable.
Heppner showed his newness to the part a few times: too much eye contact with the conductor early on, one or two missed entrances, a bit of holding back in the sword-forging scene. In Act 3 there were a few rough patches in the middle register when he had to sing softly, the only hint of vocal fatigue.
It's ironic that Wagner wrote the role of his young superhero with such strenuous vocal demands that it can be sung only by a tenor whose voice has fully matured, typically in early middle age. Heppner, a 52-year-old Canadian with a bulky physique, is not going to make anyone think he's a teenager, but he runs about the stage energetically and assumes a wide-eyed innocence that helps make him believable.
He's aided by costume designer Thibault Vancraenenbroeck, who has dressed him casually in a plaid work shirt hanging loosely over a green undershirt. This contrasts with the more formal trench coats worn by most of the other male characters.
Heppner is coming in, as is his character, midway through a new staging of Wagner's four-part "Ring" cycle in a production by Stephane Braunschweig that's conducted by Sir Simon Rattle. It's being introduced one opera per summer at Aix and then shared with the Salzburg Festival.
"Siegfried" continues Braunschwieg's concept of interpreting Wagner's epic music drama as a dream, though exactly whose dream isn't always clear. As the curtain rises, Bruennhilde is stretched out asleep across three red upholstered chairs, where we left her at the conclusion of the previous opera, "Die Walkuere." The magic fire that protects her from all but the bravest hero is visible in flames projected on the rear and side walls of the set.
The chairs are the same ones on which Wotan was dozing when he first appeared during the initial opera, "Das Rheingold."
Bruennhilde disappears before the action begins, but her brief appearance suggests that she dreams all that is about to unfold of Siegfried's adventures as a young man. If that's true, then do Siegfried and Bruennhilde really unite at the final curtain, or is that her imagination as well?
Sets are minimal, dominated by giant walls that shift position depending on the scene. The forest of Act 2 is just a stand of trees with bare branches at the rear, but a rich shade of green washes over the stage when Siegfried muses about the beauty of nature. (His mother, Sieglinde, makes an unscripted appearance in this scene as her sings of his loneliness.)
The cast supporting Heppner is first-rate. As Bruennhilde, the Swedish soprano Katarina Dalayman sings with great warmth and vibrancy, and the high Cs that are such a crucial ingredient of this role peal forth with uncommon brilliance.
A fine singing actor in the role of Mime, the conniving dwarf who has raised the orphaned Siegfried, always threatens to steal the show for the first two acts. German tenor Burkhard Ulrich is definitely in their ranks. The tall, angular Ulrich, with his spectacles and bald head, looks more like a mad scientist than a cringing dwarf. Vocally he captures every detail of the tricky, high-lying part, including a maniacal cackle.
As the Wanderer (Wotan, king of the gods, in human disguise), Sir Willard White shapes his lines with nobility and beautiful tone. The Jamaican-born bass-baritone occasionally gets overpowered by the thick orchestrations in Act 3, but he anchors the production with his dignified, world-weary presence.
Dale Duesing, an American bass-baritone, has a voice that's frayed on top, but he makes up for that with his fierce presence as Alberich, Mime's brother; German bass Alfred Reiter sings the lines of the dragon Fafner with aplomb; Swedish contralto Anna Larsson displays an impressive range and velvety voice as Erda, the earth goddess, and German soprano Mojca Erdmann sings sweetly as the forest bird.
Under Rattle's spirited guidance, the Berlin players revel in the vast variety of colors in the score, creating shimmering, delicate textures for the forest scene and outbursts of thunderous intensity for the climactic moments in Act 3.
Heppner is due to reprise the role of Siegfried in the final "Ring" opera, "Goetterdaemmerung," at next summer's Aix festival, with performances of the complete cycle to follow.
By waiting until relatively late in his career to take on these roles, Heppner can probably expect to perform them for only a decade or so before time and nature take their toll. Opera lovers will count themselves lucky to hear him for however long he can sustain the golden sound he brings to this magnificent music.
( 1/2This version CORRECTS Tristan to Siegfried in headline. 3/4)
Those first performances in Seattle were a huge success, and he has gone on to portray the hero of Richard Wagner's "Tristan und Isolde" in opera houses around the world.
So when Heppner decided to take on another Wagnerian role notorious for its difficulty -- the title character in "Siegfried" -- he didn't do it in New York, Vienna or Paris, but at the annual summer festival in this town in southern France.
His performance at Saturday night's premiere was in some respects a triumph and in others a work in progress.
For sheer visceral excitement, nothing beats the sound of Heppner's lean, muscular high notes cutting through the orchestra at full volume -- and this orchestra was the Berlin Philharmonic, one of the finest in the world. The freshness and vigor of his declaration of love to Bruennhilde near the end of Act 3, "Sei mein, sei mein, sei mein!" ("Be mine!") resonated through the Grand Theatre de Provence with thrilling clarity and punch.
That this came at the end of a long night -- three acts, each lasting more than an hour, with his character rarely off stage -- made it even more remarkable.
Heppner showed his newness to the part a few times: too much eye contact with the conductor early on, one or two missed entrances, a bit of holding back in the sword-forging scene. In Act 3 there were a few rough patches in the middle register when he had to sing softly, the only hint of vocal fatigue.
It's ironic that Wagner wrote the role of his young superhero with such strenuous vocal demands that it can be sung only by a tenor whose voice has fully matured, typically in early middle age. Heppner, a 52-year-old Canadian with a bulky physique, is not going to make anyone think he's a teenager, but he runs about the stage energetically and assumes a wide-eyed innocence that helps make him believable.
He's aided by costume designer Thibault Vancraenenbroeck, who has dressed him casually in a plaid work shirt hanging loosely over a green undershirt. This contrasts with the more formal trench coats worn by most of the other male characters.
Heppner is coming in, as is his character, midway through a new staging of Wagner's four-part "Ring" cycle in a production by Stephane Braunschweig that's conducted by Sir Simon Rattle. It's being introduced one opera per summer at Aix and then shared with the Salzburg Festival.
"Siegfried" continues Braunschwieg's concept of interpreting Wagner's epic music drama as a dream, though exactly whose dream isn't always clear. As the curtain rises, Bruennhilde is stretched out asleep across three red upholstered chairs, where we left her at the conclusion of the previous opera, "Die Walkuere." The magic fire that protects her from all but the bravest hero is visible in flames projected on the rear and side walls of the set.
The chairs are the same ones on which Wotan was dozing when he first appeared during the initial opera, "Das Rheingold."
Bruennhilde disappears before the action begins, but her brief appearance suggests that she dreams all that is about to unfold of Siegfried's adventures as a young man. If that's true, then do Siegfried and Bruennhilde really unite at the final curtain, or is that her imagination as well?
Sets are minimal, dominated by giant walls that shift position depending on the scene. The forest of Act 2 is just a stand of trees with bare branches at the rear, but a rich shade of green washes over the stage when Siegfried muses about the beauty of nature. (His mother, Sieglinde, makes an unscripted appearance in this scene as her sings of his loneliness.)
The cast supporting Heppner is first-rate. As Bruennhilde, the Swedish soprano Katarina Dalayman sings with great warmth and vibrancy, and the high Cs that are such a crucial ingredient of this role peal forth with uncommon brilliance.
A fine singing actor in the role of Mime, the conniving dwarf who has raised the orphaned Siegfried, always threatens to steal the show for the first two acts. German tenor Burkhard Ulrich is definitely in their ranks. The tall, angular Ulrich, with his spectacles and bald head, looks more like a mad scientist than a cringing dwarf. Vocally he captures every detail of the tricky, high-lying part, including a maniacal cackle.
As the Wanderer (Wotan, king of the gods, in human disguise), Sir Willard White shapes his lines with nobility and beautiful tone. The Jamaican-born bass-baritone occasionally gets overpowered by the thick orchestrations in Act 3, but he anchors the production with his dignified, world-weary presence.
Dale Duesing, an American bass-baritone, has a voice that's frayed on top, but he makes up for that with his fierce presence as Alberich, Mime's brother; German bass Alfred Reiter sings the lines of the dragon Fafner with aplomb; Swedish contralto Anna Larsson displays an impressive range and velvety voice as Erda, the earth goddess, and German soprano Mojca Erdmann sings sweetly as the forest bird.
Under Rattle's spirited guidance, the Berlin players revel in the vast variety of colors in the score, creating shimmering, delicate textures for the forest scene and outbursts of thunderous intensity for the climactic moments in Act 3.
Heppner is due to reprise the role of Siegfried in the final "Ring" opera, "Goetterdaemmerung," at next summer's Aix festival, with performances of the complete cycle to follow.
By waiting until relatively late in his career to take on these roles, Heppner can probably expect to perform them for only a decade or so before time and nature take their toll. Opera lovers will count themselves lucky to hear him for however long he can sustain the golden sound he brings to this magnificent music.
( 1/2This version CORRECTS Tristan to Siegfried in headline. 3/4)
Will Smith's school insists it's not Scientologist (AP)
LOS ANGELES - Will Smith's soon-to-open private school is not a Scientology facility, as some reports have suggested, the academy's director said.
Smith and his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, have founded the New Village Academy, scheduled to open in September.
The school will use instructional methods developed by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard called study technology. And a few teachers belong to the church.
But the couple say they are not Scientologists, and the academy's director insists the facility has no religious affiliation.
"We are a secular school, and just like all nonreligious independent schools, faculty and staff do not promote their own religions at school or pass on the beliefs of their particular faith to children," New Village Academy director Jacqueline Olivier told the Los Angeles Times.
Oliver said some of the school's staffers are Scientologists, Muslim, Christian or Jewish.
In addition to reading and math, the school offers classes on yoga, robotics and etiquette.
Smith and his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, have founded the New Village Academy, scheduled to open in September.
The school will use instructional methods developed by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard called study technology. And a few teachers belong to the church.
But the couple say they are not Scientologists, and the academy's director insists the facility has no religious affiliation.
"We are a secular school, and just like all nonreligious independent schools, faculty and staff do not promote their own religions at school or pass on the beliefs of their particular faith to children," New Village Academy director Jacqueline Olivier told the Los Angeles Times.
Oliver said some of the school's staffers are Scientologists, Muslim, Christian or Jewish.
In addition to reading and math, the school offers classes on yoga, robotics and etiquette.
Winehouse strikes back at Glastonbury reveler (AP)
LONDON (AP) -- Amy Winehouse was packing a punch at the Glastonbury music festival. After taking the stage Saturday, the troubled singer climbed down into the pit and scuffled briefly with a reveler.
It was unclear what sparked the altercation but witnesses say a fan tried to grab Winehouse.
Winehouse sang for about an hour in front of an estimated crowd of 80,000.
She shocked fans last week by performing at a special birthday concert for Nelson Mandela.
The performance came just after she was hospitalized. Her father says she developed emphysema from smoking cigarettes and crack cocaine, although her spokeswoman has said Winehouse only has pre-emphysema symptoms.
It was unclear what sparked the altercation but witnesses say a fan tried to grab Winehouse.
Winehouse sang for about an hour in front of an estimated crowd of 80,000.
She shocked fans last week by performing at a special birthday concert for Nelson Mandela.
The performance came just after she was hospitalized. Her father says she developed emphysema from smoking cigarettes and crack cocaine, although her spokeswoman has said Winehouse only has pre-emphysema symptoms.
SAG leader calls strike talk `a distraction' (AP)
LOS ANGELES - The leader of the Screen Actors Guild said Sunday the union remains committed to negotiating a new deal with Hollywood producers as contract expiration looms and is not calling for a strike.
Anxiety has been growing in Hollywood that actors might walk off the job or that studios could lock out performers on the heels of the Writers Guild of America strike that devastated production from November through February.
The SAG contract runs out at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.
"We have taken no steps to initiate a strike authorization vote by the members of Screen Actors Guild," union president Alan Rosenberg said in a statement Sunday. "Any talk about a strike or a management lockout at this point is simply a distraction."
SAG leaders have been fighting a deal reached between producers and another actors union, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. Results of voting by that 70,000-member union are due July 8.
AFTRA and the 120,000-member SAG have 44,000 members in common. SAG leaders are urging their members who also are in AFTRA to vote against the deal, saying they can strike a better bargain with producers if the contract is defeated.
SAG has said it is willing to continue talks with producers after its own contract expires.
Anxiety has been growing in Hollywood that actors might walk off the job or that studios could lock out performers on the heels of the Writers Guild of America strike that devastated production from November through February.
The SAG contract runs out at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday.
"We have taken no steps to initiate a strike authorization vote by the members of Screen Actors Guild," union president Alan Rosenberg said in a statement Sunday. "Any talk about a strike or a management lockout at this point is simply a distraction."
SAG leaders have been fighting a deal reached between producers and another actors union, the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. Results of voting by that 70,000-member union are due July 8.
AFTRA and the 120,000-member SAG have 44,000 members in common. SAG leaders are urging their members who also are in AFTRA to vote against the deal, saying they can strike a better bargain with producers if the contract is defeated.
SAG has said it is willing to continue talks with producers after its own contract expires.
Political focus helps make MSNBC more competitive (AP)
NEW YORK - Phil Griffin, the NBC News executive who oversees MSNBC, is a coiled mass of energy who needs little provocation to do battle. Now he's got something to fight for.
MSNBC is a player in the cable news competition in a way it hasn't been before. The surge in viewership created by the presidential campaign has benefited MSNBC more than Fox News Channel or CNN, and Griffin is pushing to consolidate those gains.
Round-the-clock political talk is planned for the Democratic and Republican national conventions later this summer. Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann will be the prime-time ringmasters working on outdoor sets in St. Paul and Denver, as opposed to booths in the convention halls. Joe Scarborough's "Morning Joe" will likely originate from a diner.
Brian Williams, Tom Brokaw, David Gregory and Andrea Mitchell -- the kind of NBC News star power that once kept MSNBC at arm's length -- will all play prominent roles.
MSNBC is competing hard in the sloganeering game, too. While CNN claims "the best political team on television" and Fox is "America's election headquarters," MSNBC is the "place for politics."
MSNBC specifically targets new viewers to cable news, in the 25-to-54-year-old demographic most attractive to advertisers. Fox and CNN have wider leads when all viewers are counted, but MSNBC is competitive among the younger viewers.
During the first three weeks of June, MSNBC's prime-time weeknight audience was up 85 percent over last year within that group, according to Nielsen Media Research. CNN was up 29 percent and Fox was down 1 percent during the same period. MSNBC was within striking distance, fewer than 10,000 viewers on average, of second-place CNN.
Advertisers have taken notice of MSNBC's gains, said Andy Donchin, an analyst for the media buying firm Carat USA.
"They're not at CNN and Fox's level yet," Donchin said. "But I think they've made greater inroads. They've gotten their act together a bit and found a formula that works for them."
For the first time, MSNBC has everyone at NBC News behind the network and believing in it, Griffin said. That's partly explained by the simple move of MSNBC's studios from Secaucus, N.J., to NBC's headquarters at Rockefeller Center in New York.
The late Tim Russert played a key role in signaling an acceptance of MSNBC by starting to make more appearances there a year or two ago, Griffin said. That wasn't necessarily a priority at NBC News during years when MSNBC seemed without a direction.
"There was a sensibility here that 30 Rock was the major leagues," he said. "Cable is fine but it was sort of kids playing in Secaucus. I think everyone knows that MSNBC is a player and a platform for NBC News editorially and financially."
Management erred in years past by trying to be all things to all people, he said. Now MSNBC is "a little smarter, a little edgier, a little more honest."
And maybe a little more liberal. Griffin resists the idea that MSNBC is positioning itself as the go-to network for the left, in much the same way as Fox is the network of choice for many conservatives. Still, its breakout show is hosted by the virulently anti-administration Olbermann, who's made no secret of his admiration for Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama.
CNN plays to that image with an advertising campaign that portrays itself as the "independent thinker."
"The difference I see in MSNBC is that it used to cling to the idea of `just the facts, ma'am' for all of its broadcasts," said veteran news executive Richard Wald, now a Columbia University professor. "Now it's gotten into much more edge and a much more aggressive kind of talk rather than reporting."
That hasn't been a completely smooth transition. Hillary Clinton's campaign was not happy with Matthews and Olbermann for some of their commentary, and the White House delivered a broadside against Olbermann. The old-school Brokaw has also pushed back against Olbermann on the air for some remarks he thought went too far.
It's a sensible business decision, Wald said. He compared cable television today to radio in the years after television took over. To survive, radio stations needed to appeal to different niches of the listenership.
"The problem is that it narrows the possibility of understanding something," he said. "What you lose as you become niche-ified, if that's a word, is serendipity. You can watch one of these programs and never be surprised by something that you didn't know before."
Another concern: Nov. 5, 2008.
This election will end. That will be a problem for all of the cable news networks heavily covering the campaign, but more so for an organization promising 20 hours of live political coverage each day during the conventions (plus four hours of repeats in the middle of the night).
Griffin said there will still be a great deal of interest as a new administration takes over government.
He also sees a difference between now and past big news events that caused a bump in viewership that ended when the story ended. MSNBC's strong June ratings, during a relative lull in the campaign, proves his point, he said.
"We have a loyal audience," he said. "We never had a loyal audience."
___
On the Net:
http://www.msnbc.com/
___
EDITOR'S NOTE -- David Bauder can be reached at dbauder"at"ap.org
MSNBC is a player in the cable news competition in a way it hasn't been before. The surge in viewership created by the presidential campaign has benefited MSNBC more than Fox News Channel or CNN, and Griffin is pushing to consolidate those gains.
Round-the-clock political talk is planned for the Democratic and Republican national conventions later this summer. Chris Matthews and Keith Olbermann will be the prime-time ringmasters working on outdoor sets in St. Paul and Denver, as opposed to booths in the convention halls. Joe Scarborough's "Morning Joe" will likely originate from a diner.
Brian Williams, Tom Brokaw, David Gregory and Andrea Mitchell -- the kind of NBC News star power that once kept MSNBC at arm's length -- will all play prominent roles.
MSNBC is competing hard in the sloganeering game, too. While CNN claims "the best political team on television" and Fox is "America's election headquarters," MSNBC is the "place for politics."
MSNBC specifically targets new viewers to cable news, in the 25-to-54-year-old demographic most attractive to advertisers. Fox and CNN have wider leads when all viewers are counted, but MSNBC is competitive among the younger viewers.
During the first three weeks of June, MSNBC's prime-time weeknight audience was up 85 percent over last year within that group, according to Nielsen Media Research. CNN was up 29 percent and Fox was down 1 percent during the same period. MSNBC was within striking distance, fewer than 10,000 viewers on average, of second-place CNN.
Advertisers have taken notice of MSNBC's gains, said Andy Donchin, an analyst for the media buying firm Carat USA.
"They're not at CNN and Fox's level yet," Donchin said. "But I think they've made greater inroads. They've gotten their act together a bit and found a formula that works for them."
For the first time, MSNBC has everyone at NBC News behind the network and believing in it, Griffin said. That's partly explained by the simple move of MSNBC's studios from Secaucus, N.J., to NBC's headquarters at Rockefeller Center in New York.
The late Tim Russert played a key role in signaling an acceptance of MSNBC by starting to make more appearances there a year or two ago, Griffin said. That wasn't necessarily a priority at NBC News during years when MSNBC seemed without a direction.
"There was a sensibility here that 30 Rock was the major leagues," he said. "Cable is fine but it was sort of kids playing in Secaucus. I think everyone knows that MSNBC is a player and a platform for NBC News editorially and financially."
Management erred in years past by trying to be all things to all people, he said. Now MSNBC is "a little smarter, a little edgier, a little more honest."
And maybe a little more liberal. Griffin resists the idea that MSNBC is positioning itself as the go-to network for the left, in much the same way as Fox is the network of choice for many conservatives. Still, its breakout show is hosted by the virulently anti-administration Olbermann, who's made no secret of his admiration for Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama.
CNN plays to that image with an advertising campaign that portrays itself as the "independent thinker."
"The difference I see in MSNBC is that it used to cling to the idea of `just the facts, ma'am' for all of its broadcasts," said veteran news executive Richard Wald, now a Columbia University professor. "Now it's gotten into much more edge and a much more aggressive kind of talk rather than reporting."
That hasn't been a completely smooth transition. Hillary Clinton's campaign was not happy with Matthews and Olbermann for some of their commentary, and the White House delivered a broadside against Olbermann. The old-school Brokaw has also pushed back against Olbermann on the air for some remarks he thought went too far.
It's a sensible business decision, Wald said. He compared cable television today to radio in the years after television took over. To survive, radio stations needed to appeal to different niches of the listenership.
"The problem is that it narrows the possibility of understanding something," he said. "What you lose as you become niche-ified, if that's a word, is serendipity. You can watch one of these programs and never be surprised by something that you didn't know before."
Another concern: Nov. 5, 2008.
This election will end. That will be a problem for all of the cable news networks heavily covering the campaign, but more so for an organization promising 20 hours of live political coverage each day during the conventions (plus four hours of repeats in the middle of the night).
Griffin said there will still be a great deal of interest as a new administration takes over government.
He also sees a difference between now and past big news events that caused a bump in viewership that ended when the story ended. MSNBC's strong June ratings, during a relative lull in the campaign, proves his point, he said.
"We have a loyal audience," he said. "We never had a loyal audience."
___
On the Net:
http://www.msnbc.com/
___
EDITOR'S NOTE -- David Bauder can be reached at dbauder"at"ap.org
'WALL-E,' 'Wanted' team up as $100 million duo (AP)
LOS ANGELES - A lonely little robot made millions of friends during the weekend -- and even outgunned Angelina Jolie.
"WALL-E," the Pixar Animation tale of a robot toiling away on a long-abandoned Earth, debuted as the No. 1 movie with $62.5 million in ticket sales, with Jolie's assassin thriller "Wanted" opening in second place with $51.1 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The two movies combined to keep Hollywood on a roll. The top 12 movies took in $179.2 million, up 22 percent from the same weekend last year, when Pixar's "Ratouille" opened with $47 million.
It was the fifth straight weekend that revenues climbed. Revenues for the summer season that began May 2 are up 6 percent over last year's record pace, according to box-office tracker Media By Numbers.
The sour economy and high gas prices may be helping to fuel Hollywood's boom, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Media By Numbers. Movies tend to thrive when times are tough because they are relatively cheap compared to sports events, concerts and other outings.
"Audiences are obviously gravitating toward the movies as their first choice for entertainment," Dergarabedian said. "It doesn't take that much gas to get to the local multiplex. That might have a little something to do with this, as well."
The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, the Warner Bros. comedy "Get Smart," slipped to third place with $20 million, raising its total to $77.3 million.
"WALL-E" maintains the perfect track record of Pixar, the Walt Disney unit that has made nine films, all of them critical and commercial successes, including "Cars," "Monsters, Inc." and the "Toy Story" flicks. "Finding Nemo" and "The Incredibles" put up the biggest opening-weekend numbers among Pixar movies, both pulling in just over $70 million.
Set centuries in the future, "WALL-E" is the story of a rickety, walking trash compactor that humans left running after abandoning the over-polluted planet.
The movie overcame a dialogue challenge -- the two main robot characters barely speak, beyond each other's names -- using wildly inventive visuals and sound effects to propel much of the story.
Like other Pixar films, "WALL-E" packed in family crowds, as well as adults without children.
"The real secret is they're not children's movies. They're movies for everybody. Children absolutely adore them, but parents enjoy them on a different level," said Mark Zoradi, president of Disney's motion-picture group. "You can't be nine-for-nine like Pixar is without that."
The G-rated "WALL-E" was complemented by Jolie's R-rated "Wanted," which distributor Universal originally planned to release back in March. The studio decided the movie was too good to release at a slower moviegoing time and moved it to summer on a weekend when competition for a violent action tale would be light.
"We knew `WALL-E' would be huge, but it's not the same audience as `Wanted,'" said Nikki Rocco, head of distribution for Universal.
"Wanted" stars Jolie as a member of a secret society of assassins whose new recruit (James McAvoy) is trained to use his superhuman abilities to take out a rogue killer.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. "WALL-E," $62.5 million.
2. "Wanted," $51.1 million.
3. "Get Smart," $20 million.
4. "Kung Fu Panda," $11.7 million.
5. "The Incredible Hulk," $9.2 million.
6. "The Love Guru," $5.4 million.
7. "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," $5 million.
8. "The Happening," $3.9 million.
9. "Sex and the City," $3.8 million.
10. "You Don't Mess With the Zohan," $3.2 million.
___
On the Net:
http://www.mediabynumbers.com
___
Universal Pictures, Focus Features and Rogue Pictures are owned by NBC Universal, a unit of General Electric Co.; Sony Pictures, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; DreamWorks, Paramount and Paramount Vantage are divisions of Viacom Inc.; Disney's parent is The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is a division of The Walt Disney Co.; 20th Century Fox, Fox Searchlight Pictures and Fox Atomic are owned by News Corp.; Warner Bros., New Line, Warner Independent and Picturehouse are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a consortium of Providence Equity Partners, Texas Pacific Group, Sony Corp., Comcast Corp., DLJ Merchant Banking Partners and Quadrangle Group; Lionsgate is owned by Lionsgate Entertainment Corp.; IFC Films is owned by Rainbow Media Holdings, a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corp.
"WALL-E," the Pixar Animation tale of a robot toiling away on a long-abandoned Earth, debuted as the No. 1 movie with $62.5 million in ticket sales, with Jolie's assassin thriller "Wanted" opening in second place with $51.1 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The two movies combined to keep Hollywood on a roll. The top 12 movies took in $179.2 million, up 22 percent from the same weekend last year, when Pixar's "Ratouille" opened with $47 million.
It was the fifth straight weekend that revenues climbed. Revenues for the summer season that began May 2 are up 6 percent over last year's record pace, according to box-office tracker Media By Numbers.
The sour economy and high gas prices may be helping to fuel Hollywood's boom, said Paul Dergarabedian, president of Media By Numbers. Movies tend to thrive when times are tough because they are relatively cheap compared to sports events, concerts and other outings.
"Audiences are obviously gravitating toward the movies as their first choice for entertainment," Dergarabedian said. "It doesn't take that much gas to get to the local multiplex. That might have a little something to do with this, as well."
The previous weekend's No. 1 movie, the Warner Bros. comedy "Get Smart," slipped to third place with $20 million, raising its total to $77.3 million.
"WALL-E" maintains the perfect track record of Pixar, the Walt Disney unit that has made nine films, all of them critical and commercial successes, including "Cars," "Monsters, Inc." and the "Toy Story" flicks. "Finding Nemo" and "The Incredibles" put up the biggest opening-weekend numbers among Pixar movies, both pulling in just over $70 million.
Set centuries in the future, "WALL-E" is the story of a rickety, walking trash compactor that humans left running after abandoning the over-polluted planet.
The movie overcame a dialogue challenge -- the two main robot characters barely speak, beyond each other's names -- using wildly inventive visuals and sound effects to propel much of the story.
Like other Pixar films, "WALL-E" packed in family crowds, as well as adults without children.
"The real secret is they're not children's movies. They're movies for everybody. Children absolutely adore them, but parents enjoy them on a different level," said Mark Zoradi, president of Disney's motion-picture group. "You can't be nine-for-nine like Pixar is without that."
The G-rated "WALL-E" was complemented by Jolie's R-rated "Wanted," which distributor Universal originally planned to release back in March. The studio decided the movie was too good to release at a slower moviegoing time and moved it to summer on a weekend when competition for a violent action tale would be light.
"We knew `WALL-E' would be huge, but it's not the same audience as `Wanted,'" said Nikki Rocco, head of distribution for Universal.
"Wanted" stars Jolie as a member of a secret society of assassins whose new recruit (James McAvoy) is trained to use his superhuman abilities to take out a rogue killer.
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Media By Numbers LLC. Final figures will be released Monday.
1. "WALL-E," $62.5 million.
2. "Wanted," $51.1 million.
3. "Get Smart," $20 million.
4. "Kung Fu Panda," $11.7 million.
5. "The Incredible Hulk," $9.2 million.
6. "The Love Guru," $5.4 million.
7. "Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull," $5 million.
8. "The Happening," $3.9 million.
9. "Sex and the City," $3.8 million.
10. "You Don't Mess With the Zohan," $3.2 million.
___
On the Net:
http://www.mediabynumbers.com
___
Universal Pictures, Focus Features and Rogue Pictures are owned by NBC Universal, a unit of General Electric Co.; Sony Pictures, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; DreamWorks, Paramount and Paramount Vantage are divisions of Viacom Inc.; Disney's parent is The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is a division of The Walt Disney Co.; 20th Century Fox, Fox Searchlight Pictures and Fox Atomic are owned by News Corp.; Warner Bros., New Line, Warner Independent and Picturehouse are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a consortium of Providence Equity Partners, Texas Pacific Group, Sony Corp., Comcast Corp., DLJ Merchant Banking Partners and Quadrangle Group; Lionsgate is owned by Lionsgate Entertainment Corp.; IFC Films is owned by Rainbow Media Holdings, a subsidiary of Cablevision Systems Corp.
Guy and Madonna do have a prenup, might be trying to save marriage
This weekend it's all about chronicling attention whore Madonna's every move as she goes for some extra brainwashing to convince herself that leaving her husband is a good idea. The muscled-up pop star has been swamped by paparazzi and mildly interested bystanders as she predictably pops in and out of the Kabbalah center in New York, her children in tow and her husband of seven years back in London.
The Sun is reporting that Guy will soon join Madonna in New York and that he's going to try one last feeble attempt to save their marriage. Madonna has consulted with both of the attorneys who represented Paul McCartney in his high profile divorce from Heather Mills, and Guy has lawyered-up too. It is thought that Madonna will approach her divorce with the ambitious precision with which she handles her business ventures. She is said to be striving to keep the specifics quiet and to get it over quickly.
Madonna and Guy do have a prenup, claims The Sun, and that should help speed up their divorce with minimal details leaked to the public. They're not entirely committed to calling it off, though and may try to give their relationship one last shot:
GUY RITCHIE is flying to New York this weekend in a last-ditch bid to save his marriage to MADONNA.
The couple hope to get their relationship back on track for the sake of their children.
A source close to them said: “It is make or break time for Guy and Madonna.
“She is completely focused on rehearsals for her tour in America and can’t come back to London. They want to make the marriage work, but they are at a stalemate
“But at the moment they are both trying to rescue the situation. Em has shown a willingness to patch things up. But because almost all rehearsals for the tour are in New York rather than in London Guy thinks she’s not sacrificing much.
“He has now decided to fly out there this weekend to try to sort things out.”
If the couple cannot patch up their differences, the split will NOT be a court circus like that of Macca and Mucca. The Ritchies are determined to remain civil.
And, despite some reports, friends say they DO have a watertight pre-nuptial deal that will make any split more amicable.
The key issue is Madonna’s desire to live in New York with her children Lourdes, 11, Rocco, seven, and adopted David, two.
[From The Sun]
Madonna is preparing for her tour, which features 10 dates in Europe during an under one month period from August to September. She probably doesn't need to deal with a divorce along with the stress of touring, and they may put off splitting for that reason. Madonna's unwillingness to let up on her music career, her slavish devotion to the expensive Kabbalah cult, and the fact that she recently branched out into her husband's field of directing are some of the reasons cited for the breakdown of her marriage.
Whatever these two decide it's not going to be kept under wraps. Madonna blatantly uses controversy and sexuality to garner the spotlight for her every career move. She can't just turn off the press when it comes to her personal life - no matter how hard she tries not to watch.
Madonna and Guy are shown above in December, 2007 at a Revolver screening. Madonna and her kids are shown below in NY yesterday, thanks to WENN.
Rob Lowe?s nanny accuser is an unstable sex predator, say staff
Rob Lowe was sued for sexual harassment this spring by a nanny who worked for his family for seven years, returning once on her own volition. The nanny, Jessica Gibson, 24, is being represented by aggressive press-hungry celebrity attorney Gloria Allred. In a less than credible appearance on The Today Show, Gibson grinned guiltily and laughed inappropriately while Allred answered most of the questions, holding her hand and controlling the interview.
Allred managed to rustle up another nanny to file suit against the Lowes for sexual harassment, and in the press conference she held with the shaking, sobbing nanny Allred spoke the entire time, holding the poor woman by the shoulders. Allred actually covered the woman's mouth when she tried to speak.
While Jessica Gibson says Lowe exposed himself to her and groped her, the other nanny accuses his wife of creating a hostile work environment by openly discussing her sex life and occasionally walking around naked. Neither Gibson or the other nanny mentioned the supposed harassment to any of their superiors or lodged a complaint prior to filing these lawsuits.
Now Lowe's legal team has submitted three declarations to the court from various people who worked for his family which make it clear that Gibson is a less than credible witness. The most damning statement comes from her own sister.
Jessica Gibson's sister: She was doing it because the Lowes owed her money
Jamie Gibson Sprovieri worked as estate manager for the Lowes for four years, and indicated that her sister was hoping to settle the case for a hefty sum. Her statement claims that not only did her sister never tell her about the alleged harassment or even complain about Lowe prior to filing suit, but that she also told her that she wouldn't have sued if the Lowes would have paid her $200 they owed her.
In or about March, 2008, Jessica told me that she had sent the Lowes a demand with a complaint because she was alleging that Rob Lowe had been sexually harassing her. Jessica told me that she had made the demand through an attorney named John Richards and that she was asking for $1.5 million. Jessica said that she decided on $1.5 million because she had heard that another well-known actor had paid that amount to a woman who threatened to bring a sexual harassment claim against him. During the conversation described above, Jessica also told me that if the Lowes had just paid her the $200 that she said they owed her, none of this would have happened. I understood her comment to mean that she would not have made a demand against the Lowes for $1.5 million or accused Rob Lowe of sexual harassment if they would have just paid the $200.
This conversation was the first time that Jessica had ever said anything to me about Rob Lowe doing anything that she thought was inappropriate. In fact, she had never complained to him to me before this conversation.
[From PDF of Jamie Gibson's declaration available on TMZ.com]
Chef says Jessica Gibson hit on him relentlessly, was a sex predator
In another recently
filed declaration, a chef who worked for the Lowes in London says that Jessica was sexually inappropriate and acted like a "predator." The chef says he resisted her advances and told her multiple times that he had a girlfriend, but she wouldn't let up and even sang that stupid "Dontcha wish your girlfriend was hot like me" song right to his girlfriend's face. I observed from the first day that Jessica arrived in London that she had an overly flirtatious manner and appeared to be somewhat of a sexual predator. Within hours of her arrival, she had changed into hot pants and was laying on the kitchen floor with her legs open in a very suggestive manner. Her conduct made me feel uncomfortable because I felt it crossed personal boundaries especially considering that we had only known each other for a few hours
When my girlfriend was around, Jessica would be flirtatious with me and create the impression that something was going on between the two of us. On John Owen's birthday at Pizza in the Park she sang the lyrics to the Pussy Cat Doll's "Don't cha" to my girlfriend across the table while looking at her and then me.
[From PDF of James Maclear's declaration, available on TMZ.com]
48 year-old tennis instructor: I got some of that but she was crazy
And the most entertaining declaration comes from a 48 year-old tennis instructor who worked with the Lowe children when they lived in England.
He admitted he was having an affair with Jessica, but said he made it clear that he had a longterm girlfriend and wasn't about to leave her. The needy girl also sang "Dont cha" by the Pussycat Dolls in an unoriginal and desperate bid for his affection. He described another incident in which she took off her pants in the kitchen and wanted him to have sex with her when the boys she was supposed to be watching were in the house and apt to walk in. Jessica told me shortly after we first met that she was interested in me. I was flattered that a twenty-two year old woman would have such an interest in me. I was forty-eight at the time. I made it clear to Jessica that I was in a serious relationship and I would not break up with my girlfriend.
During the following few months that I knew Jessica, she was very forward with me and did not seem concerned with being discreet. For example, on one occasion in the evening when Matthew and John Owen and [sic] were running around in my employer's home, I walked into the kitchenette area. Jessica was standing in the kitchenette and had taken off her pants and underwear and invited me to have sex even though the boys were in the general area. I was shocked by her audacity. I told her that we could not do that and walked out of the room
It had become apparent that Jessica was struggling with the fact that I would not end the relationship with my girlfriend. Jessica was taking the relationship with me more seriously. For example, on one occasion, she started singing "don't you wish your girlfriend was hot like me," the lyrics to a popular song at the time, when I was around. She would also tell me that she loved me on a number of occasions.
[From PDF of Nigel Armstrong's declaration available on TMZ.com]
Of course the tennis instructor says that Gibson never gave him any indication that Rob Lowe was inappropriate with her in any way.
There are more semi-salacious legal documents related to the case on TMZ, including a declaration by Rob Lowe's wife Sheryl in which she says Jessica came to see her husband while wearing just a towel and tried twice to get him to put sunblock on her. There are also dumb text messages between Jessica and her boyfriend from earlier this year. She calls her employer Sheryl crazy and the boyfriend jokes that they should beat up the Lowes, steal their jewelry and escape to Mexico.
The Lowes are also suing Gibson, and say she is in violation of a confidentiality agreement and is lying. Their case just got a hell of a lot stronger.
Langganan:
Postingan (Atom)