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There was a time, long ago, when rocker Neil Young voiced support for Ronald Reagan.
Now he’s all in for Kamala Harris for president. On his website he calls Harris an “honest and forthright truth teller.”
Just a few weeks ago, Young gave Harris’s running mate permission to use his song, “Rockin’ in the Free World.”
It is true he once supported Reagan. He told MTV in 1990: “I was one of those who felt that some ideas he had were good ideas. He had one point that he was stressing in the first six months of his job that he thought the people in the communities and neighborhoods should pull together and try to do things on their own more than depending on government to do it for them.”
Young eventually became a sharp critic of George W. Bush, however. In 2006, he released a record called “Let’s Impeach the President.”
But times have changed, and Young — who’s been political for 50 years — has urged his fans to vote for Harris.
Except for Bill Murray — who wasn’t part of the original “SNL” cast — no member of the Not Ready for Prime Time Players has endorsed Jason Reitman’s “Saturday Night.”
The movie, now in wide release, has not taken off very well. But there’s hope a push this weekend may bring in audiences.
Now Dan Aykroyd has jumped into the fray, calling the movie a “masterpiece” and a possible “best picture.”
That leaves Chevy Chase, Jane Curtin, Laraine Newman, and Garrett Morris to say something.
Dan at least has done something nice for Reitman, who’s directed him in “Ghostbusters” just as his dad, Ivan Reitman, did so well 40 years ago.
Cracking a Head to applaud Jason Reitman’s triumphant SNL film. Wow! What a propulsive, engaging, funny, beautifully cast and acted, suspenseful, adventurous, music-filled ride. A perfect window into the creative process at its highest level. Pretty accurate too. I was there…
Last week, Lady Gaga dropped a new album called “Harlequin.” It was a companion to “Joker: Folie a Deux,” which was supposed to be a hit movie.
But “Joker 2,” as we call it, has been unmitigated disaster at the box office, literally shunned by all the fans of the original hit movie.
The result is that “Harlequin,” a beautifully sung jazz album with two new songs, is dead, too. Today it dropped to number 97 on iTunes after one week. Sales for its second week were nil, leaving the total at under 30,000 copies.
Gaga must be furious, and rightly so. She worked hard on “Harlequin,” which contains some of her best work ever. But with the movie in shambles, Universal Music hasn’t lifted a finger to promote the collection. It’s dead on the vine.
The only thing that could help “Harlequin” now is for the Grammys to revive it in the jazz categories. The Oscars were supposed to come in to play here, but with the movie gone, Gaga’s original songs probably won’t make the final 5 for Best Song.
All that work, down the drain. What a mess.
Maybe now we know why Gaga released her Bruno Mars duet, “Die with a Smile,” right before “Joker 2.” And she has a new single from her 7th album coming before the end of October. She knew that “Harlequin” was going to relegated to Lost Gem status.
There wasn’t a lot of interest last night in “The Apprentice.”
The film about Donald Trump’s early years, with Sebastian Stan starring and Jeremy Strong as Roy Cohn made just $150,000 last night.
There’s been a lot of publicity about this film, but that doesn’t seem to have translated into audience. Maybe the subject is just too unpleasant. The film shows Donald forcing himself sexually on first wife Ivana.
“The Apprentice” went into 1,750 theaters last night. A total of $150,000 is a disaster on almost any level. It means literally no one went to see it.
In Manhattan tonight, advance sales look a little better. So it may be that audience is slow to jump on “The Apprentice.” But it’s also not the most advantageous weekend to open a film. Tonight is Kol Nidre, the holiest night of the Jewish year, and tomorrow is Yom Kippur.
Democratic Vice Presidential candidate has posted a biting one line summary of he feels about Donald Trump and JD Vance.
“All Donald Trump and JD Vance know about manufacturing is how to manufacture bullshit.”
Coach Walz is direct, that’s for sure. He’s right: despite blowing smoke through the rust belt, neither Trump nor Vance has actually done anything to increase jobs, while under Biden and Harris unemployment has fallen.
Walz is outspoken, but I am surprised he went for such a direct hit. The cursing in these campaigns is becoming legendary.
Stevie Wonder, now in his impossible 60th year of a legendary career, returned to Madison Square Garden last night with a huge orchestra and a big smile on his face.
Only Stevie — blind since birth and now 73 years young — makes genius look so easy. He is one of a kind, something well beyond a superstar. Over two hours and twenty minutes, he knocked out 28 hits and could have easily doubled that.
Stevie’s catalog is one thing as it stretches from the early 60s with songs like “My Cherie Amour” and “Signed, Sealed, Delivered” through this landmark albums of the 70s with “Isn’t She Lovely,” “Sir Duke,” “Master Blaster Jammin,” and so on. There is no filler. It’s kind of remarkable because his unique blend of R&B, jazz, big band, pop just pours out of his head. And we are lucky for it.
The theme of this 11 date tour is “Sing Your Song: As We Fix Our Nation’s Broken Heart.” The show begins with Stevie, flanked his daughter Aisha (who sings back up with him), speaking to the audience about peace, love and the power of change. He sings a new song, “Can We Fix Our Nation’s Heart,” and then launches into a cavalcade of brilliantly composed pieces that have stood the test of time.
There are also stories, lots of them, because Stevie Wonder is funny. For a man who can’t see his audience, he’s more engaged with them than most performers. He introduces “For Once In My Life” invoking Tony Bennett, who sang it originally, and plays “Chapel of Love” for a couple in the audience who’ve just gotten engaged. (“That costs $100,000,” he jokes. “It’s all about the money!”)
On his famous collection of 70s albums, a lot of Stevie’s songs are long. But last night he cut them down to size very economically to the fit the time allotted. But look at that stage: five back up singers, six violinists, five horn players. This is no simple enterprise, but a great undertaking unlike anything else you will see today. His orchestra reminded me of Aretha Franklin’s during her last years of performing. This musicianship will soon be a thing of the past.
Stevie stays away from politics, kind of. The man who commandeered the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday is obviously a Kamala Harris supporter. But he keeps that to himself, just reminding the audience we must “move forward,” and that everyone deserves freedom of choice. A one of a kind, transformative experience.
The Critics Choice Awards are moving to the E! channel this January. Chelsea Handler is the host.
Critics Choice had been airing on the CW, but that channel is going through ownership changes. The E! channel is universally known, and where viewers look first anyway for awards shows.
Over the last few years, Critics Choice has become an important predictor of the Oscars. It’s a bellwether because the movies and TV shows are voted on by actual critics (including yours truly).
E! will also host a one hour red carpet show from 6 to 7pm Eastern on January 12th live from the Santa Monica Barker Hanger.
Last year’s big winner was “Oppenheimer.” This year, so far, there is no clear cut idea of a Best Picture. Many titles are in the mix, including “Maria,” “Emilia Perez,” “Conclave,” “The Brutalist,” “The Apprentice,” and a few others. But mystery remains.
The Kennedy family has announced the passing of their matriarch, Ethel Kennedy, at age 96.
What a life she had, and endured. It wasn’t easy. The assassination of her beloved husband, Senator Robert F Kennedy The loss of two children. Scandals in every decade that would knock a lesser person to the ground.
Ethel Kennedy never remarried after the murder of Bobby. Instead she turned to philanthropic work and made a life of it.
Condolences to her family and friends.
It is with our hearts full of love that we announce the passing of our mother, Ethel Kennedy. Please keep our mother in your hearts and prayers. pic.twitter.com/bdIQFsC0CS
My aunt, Ethel Kennedy passed this morning. What a life she led. What a huge family she created and leaves behind. I’m so glad I was able to laugh with her this summer, to share memories with her. She was a devoted sister-in-law to my mother, a one of a kind aunt to me and my… pic.twitter.com/u5ruoc4vye
“Saturday Nught Live” dropped back to Earth this past weekend ratings-wise.
The second episode of Season 50 was down 12% from the premiere with Jean Smart and Jelly Roll.
Numbers for comedian Nate Bergatze and the group Coldplay were 4.76 million, which isn’t bad for “SNL” but a drop off certainly from the previous week’s 5.39 million.
This week, Ariana Grande and Stevie Nicks — Stevie Nicks! — should send the numbers up again. Will they perform a duet? That would send the ratings soaring.
A couple of things missing from last week: James Austin Johnson did not do his Trump impression, which you would think would be in every episode until the election. That was a surprise. Also, the Please Don’t Destroy trio’s short film was MIA for the second week in a row. Are they coming back? No announcement has been made.
Stevie Nicks has a new single out. Also, at 76, she’s the oldest musician in years to take the “SNL” stage. The show has not given much attention to legacy artists at all in years with the exception of Paul Simon, Paul McCartney, and Bruce Springsteen. So this is quite a coup and a big deal. I hope it signals more actual rock stars coming to the “SNL” stage.
After a contentious social media war, the Broadway League has capitulated.
They will dim the lights at all theaters for Maggie Smith. Gavin Creel, and Adrian Bailey. No word yet on Ken Page.
The League says it will now re-evaluate their entire light dimming policy.
The dimming became an issue when they said that only some theaters would acknowledge the death of Tony winner and popular performer Creel. Fans were incensed. It didn’t help that Creel, who died at 48 after a quick illness, had once said he always hoped to meet up in the after life with all his castmates of “Hair!” at the Al Hirschfeld Theater.
Now the dimming of the lights of Broadway theatres in honor of Adrian Bailey will take place on Thursday, October 17, 2024. The dimming of the lights for Gavin Creel will take place on a date and time to be determined with his family.
Of course, any Tony winner or nominee of substance should be memorialized this way. Dimming is a matter of flipping a light switch for a minute or two. It’s not tough to do. But it’s also an acknowledgement of the Broadway community at large, and what makes it unique.
Smith is an international superstar with a huge theater resume. She was nominated three times for Tonys, and won in 1990 for “Lettice and Lovage” (still one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen). Creel’s resume includes a recent Tony for “Hello, Dolly!” Bailey appeared in 15 Broadway shows and had a huge following.
