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Stephen Sondheim: Send in the Shrinks

Roger Friedman
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Stephen Sondheim: Send in the Shrinks

Stephen Sondheim has some serious mother issues. He didn’t like her, and she sure didn’t like him. At a tender age she dumped him with the neighbors–luckily, they were the Hammersteins. Oscar was a famous musical writer with Richard Rodgers. Years later, when she was receiving a pacemaker, mom wrote Stevie that he had been a mistake and an encumbrance. It’s no wonder that Sondheim, as he tells it, didn’t fall in love until he was 60. Presumably, mom was gone.

Well, all that aside, “Sondheim on Sondheim” which opened last night at Studio 54, is just great. It’s a musical revue of 80 year old Sondheim’s brilliant career as a songwriter. It’s also a live documentary– a first, I think–with the subject telling his life story in video clips from screens above a cast of singers that includes (the very hot) Vanessa Williams, Barbara Cook, and Tom Wopat. They, plus five more accomplished singers, get the cool task of performing some of Sondheim’s best and least well known numbers.

There are plenty of highlights including Cook, who’s a Broadway and cabaret legend at 82, getting in the penultimate word of the night with “Send in the Clowns.” It’s a gorgeous moment, but Cook has several including a duet of sorts with Williams when the former sings “Not a Day Goes By” in counterpoint to Williams’ “Losing My Mind.”

There are lots of other great moments, too, from all of Sondheim’s shows from “West Side Story” to favorites like “Follies” and “Company” to relative flops like “Bounce” and “Assassins.” My only disappointment was almost nothing from “Sweeney Todd.” I kept expecting cast member Matthew Scott to break into “Joanna.” But aside from Tom Wopat‘s excellent take on Sweeney’s “Epiphany,” there was nothing else.

“Sondheim on Sondheim” feels like a great summer hit. The music is just endlessly good; the show is kind of a respite from the outside world. The premiere certainly brought out the hardcore Broadway crowd: Brian Stokes Mitchell, Tovah Feldshuh, Amy Irving, Dana Ivey, Blythe Danner, and F. Murray Abraham, the only Best Actor Oscar winner (“Amadeus,” 1984) I can think of who never had a follow up hit or even critical success of any kind. Very, very strange.

PS No sign of the man himself. Sondheim was absent from the opening night activities. It’s hoped that he was home, writing new songs.

Chris Noth Confirms He’s Headed to Broadway

Roger Friedman
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Chris Noth Confirms He’s Headed to Broadway

Last night, “Sex and the City” star Chris Noth gave me the secret ending to the new movie, due at the end of May.

“We all die,” Noth cracked wise after stopping by Elaine’s for drinks with pals. He was wearing a gray and white track suit, and showed off pictures of his two year old son.

Actually, Noth did confirm for me that he’s planning to take Broadway by storm sometime this year. My pal in London, Baz Bamigboye, first broke the story in the Daily Mail that Noth would appear in a production of “Born Yesterday” with British actress Hayley Atwell.

Chris says the play will be directed by Broadway vet Doug Hughes. and will happen as soon it’s clear what his schedule is with hit TV series, “The Good Wife.” and other movies. “Born Yesterday” could be on the boards by the fall or in early spring 2011.

Meanwhile, Chris–one of the good guys–commutes back and forth to his native New York from Los Angeles, where he’s been living of late. The Elaine’s regular just missed famed writer and Paul Newman (and Hemingway) biographer A. E. Hotchner, as well as former Police Commissioner to the country (NYC, LA, Boston) Bill Bratton and TV personality/lawyer wife Rikki Kleiman, plus a bevy of Broadway heavyweights including Jimmy and Margo Nederlander. Noth did get to see legendary flack  Bobby Zarem, who’s visiting from Savannah, Georgia this week.

Any “Sex and the City 2” tidbits at all from Chris Noth? What about John Corbett, I asked? “Oh, his part was totally cut,” he replied with a grin. One thing he did concede: “This one is a much better movie than the first one.”

Carly Simon Ups the Ante in Starbucks Lawsuit

Roger Friedman
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Carly Simon Ups the Ante in Starbucks Lawsuit

Famed singer songwriter Carly Simon has still not been appeased by Starbucks or its owner, Howard Schultz. Her attorney, David Boies, has filed an amended complaint in Simon’s lawsuit against Starbucks asking for a jury trial.

At issue: Simon was signed to Starbucks’ Hear Music record label in 2007. She released an album of new material, called “This Kind of Love,” in April 2008 five days before Starbucks abruptly pulled the plug on Hear Music without telling Simon.

Hear Music had previously released a few albums by artists like Paul McCartney and Joni Mitchell. They had all been promoted in Starbucks stores and carried there on the shelves.

What’s interesting about this amended complaint is the revelation that Hear Music never had a written deal with Starbucks stores to carry its albums. They shared executives, but nothing else. That may be key in Simon’s case because she says she was enticed to sign with Hear Music because the execs promised her that she’d be highly touted by Starbucks as a result.

In fact, this lure sounds like it was based on an assumption but not by anything else. Starbucks, it’s alleged, was not required to help Hear Music. Only: Simon did not know that when she signed on. And by the time Starbucks abruptly shut down Hear Music, the label’s CDs–including Simon’s new release–were gone from the stores. The whole reason Simon had signed with Hear Music was because of the promise of Starbucks’ marketing power. And suddenly it was no more.

The new complaint also reveals that the Hear Music execs had no prior knowledge that Starbucks was cutting them off. The label’s chief, Ken Lombard, was actually removed from his office by security guards. (Maybe they were afraid he was going to steal a lot of cardboard cup holders as retribution.)

It boggles the mind why Howard Schultz continues to let this case with Simon fester. A jury trial, open to the public, cannot be good for the beleaguered coffee chain. Schultz — a cousin of sax expert Kenny G. — certainly is not doing his artist-friendly New Age like gestalt any favors.

Robin Hood Screens in NYC For First Time

Roger Friedman
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Robin Hood Screens in NYC For First Time

Ridley Scott‘s “Robin Hood” screened in New York last night for the first time. I’m told it was for an audience of junketeers and maybe some “real people” in a focus group.

The verdict? It works. This will be good news for Universal Pictures and Ron Meyer. This movie has cost so much to make that I’m told it might need to make as much as $500 million to earn out. (It cost at least $250 mil.) At that rate, Robin Hood will have to rob the rich (everyone at the box office) to help Universal stay solvent.

Don’t forget: it had many expensive lives before Scott and Crowe went to work on it. All those costs are charged to the film. For example, Brian Helgeland is credited with the screenplay. But Tom Stoppard did a polish on it. And Helgeland was preceded by others.

Another big expense: moving the press junket to Los Angeles and New York from London because of the Iceland volcano.

A decidedly subjective audience member does say that the there was much appropriate laughter during the screening. Russell Crowe and Cate Blanchett have good chemistry, they say, Oscar Isaac, as Prince John, got high marks as a breakout actor. Altogether: “Robin Hood” looks poised for a big opening following its premiere in Cannes on May 12th.

Ex Spy Valerie Plame Puts Rupert Murdoch On the Peace Train

Roger Friedman
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Ex Spy Valerie Plame Puts Rupert Murdoch On the Peace Train

Valerie Plame Wilson: you remember her. She was outed as an undercover CIA agent by now-deceased journalist Robert Novak. He’s in jail. Valerie was married (and still is) to diplomat Joseph Wilson, who was critical of Bush/Cheney. The reveal was said to be retribution against Wilson. This all happened in the beloved Cheney administration.

Now Plame has a lot going on. The Doug Liman directed film about her life, called “Fair Game,” will debut in Cannes next month. Expect a lot of heat.

Plame and Liman were guests last night at a screening of a new documentary about nuclear disarmament called “Countdown to Zero.” It’s directed by Lucy Walker and produced by Lawrence Bender, who’s mounting a massive online and college campus campaign akin to his “Inconvenient Truth.” This gang is going all out to spread the word about the scary realities of nuclear war.

www.takepart.com/zero

Plame was drafted into the cause because her specialty at the CIA was working on whether or not Iran had a nuclear weapon. Now hat’s ex-CIA, Plame can talk about the dangers of nuclear weapons, who has them, who’s trying to get them, and why it all has to stop now. She’s an effective speaker–it turns out she’s also a knockout–and communicates well on film and off.

During a Q&A after dinner at the Plaza Athenee dining room–in front of a room of media types and politicos–Plame introduced herself as “no longer the scandal girl.” She was “outed” in 2003. She’s finally been able to move on. “I’ve had a lot of time to get used to not being with the CIA,” she told me.

Interestingly: in this crowd of liberal minded types were Rupert and Wendi Murdoch. Mrs. M. heartily congratulated Walker when the film finished. (I wonder if Murdoch will start pushing peace on Fox News. After all, James Baker is in the movie.)

Other guests included famed attorney David Boies (he argued for Al Gore in front of the Supreme Court), Sports Illustrated editor Terry McDonell; Queen Noor of Jordan; advisor to everyone David Gergen; CBS’s Bob Simon; media expert Gerry Byrne; veteran network journalist Bob Jamieson; writers Susan Brownmiller and Alix Kates Shulman; directors Bob and Leslie Zemeckis; and Participant Films’ Jeff Skoll, who underwrote the film.

:Countdown to Zero” will open July 9th in a limited run. It’s a terrific film, must-see viewing this summer. No one likes to think about nuclear weapons and war, but Walker makes the subject clear and fascinating. More on “Countdown” closer to release day.

CBS Will Replace “As the World Turns” With a Real Soap Opera

Roger Friedman
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CBS Will Replace “As the World Turns” With a Real Soap Opera

There’s much to say about CBS and Procter & Gamble canceling “As the World Turns.” It’s a slap at fans who’ve followed the show for 54 years. Through ups and downs, “As the World Turns” has always been the Cadillac of soaps.

Now comes word that CBS is going to shoot a pilot starring Julie Chen, wife of Les Moonves, that will be something like “The View.” If they like it, and you know they will, Julie and her girls will air at 2pm EST in place of “As the World Turns” starting next fall.

First of all, in all full disclosure, I know and like Julie Chen. She hosts “Big Brother” during the summer, and she’s a witty, fun, contributor to the CBS team. I don’t think anyone has anything against Julie Chen.

But it does look bad, doesn’t it? First there was Moonves’s (I also know him and like him) sneering disregard for “World Turns.” When I asked him about it one night, he told me that it was a closed chapter–“especially shows with single sponsors.” Procter & Gamble has been a cheap, whiny host to it soaps, whittling them down to nothing over the last 20 years. I’m sure dealing with them was no fun.

Chen doesn’t need this aggravation. Competing with “The View” is a non-starter. It’s like taking on “Regis and Kelly.” You’re not going to win. The TV audience smells a rip off. Like it or not, “The View” was  a unique idea. Trying to copy it is project that will only end in tears.

Meanwhile, over at “World Turns,” P&G and the producers are doing their damnedest to alienate what’s left of the audience. After an Emmy worth episode with alum Julianne Moore, the show is not doing much to feature favorite ex-players or tie up loose ends for the legacy fans. If I didn’t know better, I’d say P&G wants to make sure that by September 17th, no one is left with nostalgia–or blame for the corporate giant. They did it with “Guiding Light,” last year, reducing it to rubble. Very sad, and very lame.

Me, I switched from Crest to Colgate Total a long time ago.

Roy Orbison Day Is Friday (Growl)

Roger Friedman
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Roy Orbison Day Is Friday (Growl)

It’s hard to believe but one of the greats, Roy Orbison, the man with sunglasses and the growl (see “Oh, Pretty Woman”) has been gone for 22 years. On Friday, he would have turned 74.

Luckily, Roy left behind a devoted widow and three terrific sons who keep the flame burning. They’ve got all kinds of stuff planned to commemorate the day, most of which you can check out at www.royorbison.com.

Roy’s widow, Barbara, is a force of nature. Like Olivia Harrison, Barbara just keeps on making the right moves so that the public never forgets this great icon. On Friday, for example, she’s got the Hard Rock Cafe in Nashville hosting a benefit for Musicians On Call with a bunch of musicians like J.D. Souther and Rodney Crowell playing Roy’s music. Down in Texas, the Hard Rock cafes are also saluting Roy on Friday. Barbara is also releasing a new album, “Live in Las Vegas ’83,” with newly remastered performances by Roy from the Conga Room.

So light a candle for Roy Orbison on Friday. There was no one else like him, and he can’t be replaced. He was one of a kind.

Roy Orbison, \”Crying\” (Live)

“Men in Black 3-D” Set to Roll with Will Smith

Roger Friedman
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I guess it’s official, more or less.

Director Barry Sonnenfeld tells me that “Men in Black 3-D” is ready to roll. Will Smith has signed on, Tommy Lee Jones is in, and a script is awaited.

Yes. I did say 3D. “Men in Black 3” will be in 3D. Sonnenfeld says it is so. Why not? Everything else is, and this is one movie that might be cool in the process.

Sonnenfeld told me he’d get me a neuralizer–that’s the cigar holder like gizmo that erases memories–but he couldn’t promise it would work! (I love that thing.)

Nevertheless, you can bet Sony is juiced to get this puppy moving since “Spider Man 4” fell apart. They are in desperate need of a blockbuster for next Memorial Day May 2011. And “Men in Black” is like money in the bank.

I ran into Sonnenfeld, by the way, at Vanity Fair’s annual outdoor cocktail soiree at the New York State Supreme Court building. This is the party that launches the Tribeca Film Festival. Graydon Carter greeted each guest as they climbed the massive stairs to th e portico. Right behind him were Robert DeNiro and Grace Hightower, Jane Rosenthal and Craig Hatkoff, and everyone who’s anyone in town.

That list included Jerry and Jessica Seinfeld, Chazz and Gia Palminteri, Brian Williams, Patricia Clarkson. Google chief Eric Schmidt, Charlie Rose and Amanda Burden, Rob and Marisol Thomas, John McEnroe, Harvey Keitel, Ronald Perelman, Diane von Furstenberg and Barry Diller, Griffin Dunne, Ed Burns and Christy Turlington, Queen Noor of Jordan, Andre Balazs, Andrew McCarthy, John Leguizamo, Veronica Webb, Police Commissioner Ray Kelly, Mayor Mike Bloomberg, city councilwoman Christine Quinn, Drew and Ann Nieporent, and Oscar winning “Precious” screenwriter Geoffrey Fletcher.

Yes. just another night, Vanity Fair style! Later we ran into Uma Thurman having dinner at Carter’s Waverly Inn, while Graydon himself was said to have taken a gang up to (his) Monkey Bar.

And PS: here’s a little gossip from John McEnroe, Wife Patty Smythe, a great rocker before she settled down with John to raise six children, is in Nashville recording her first album in 20 years! Remember “The Warrior?” http://tinyurl.com/y49cdae

Michael Jackson Cirque Deal May Launch Reality Show

Roger Friedman
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Michael Jackson‘s estate has made a deal with Cirque du Soleil, much as I predicted on November 11, 2009: http://tinyurl.com/y5rolc5

But the Cirque du Soleil deal is going to have many branches, from what I’m told. The feeling now is that the shows will use three choreographers. Two will be well known. A third may be selected from a reality show competition that would also yield dancers.

“Michael was always looking for new talent,” says an insider. “We would find it through a reality show.”

The Cirque deal will be a bonanza for Jackson’s estate. But it’s got to be a blow to AEG Live’s Randy Phillips and director/choreographer Kenny Ortega. They put together the “This is It” show and movie. But from the beginning, I am told, executors John Branca and John McClain were taken with the Cirque gestalt. Plus, as one observer put it, “AEG would have to get sponsors. Cirque du Soleil just writes the check.”

The Cirque shows, by the way, will feature holograms, 3D gizmos, and a futuristic theater that has moving seats. Michael would have loved it.

AmFAR Really Wants Sharon Stone Back Next Year

Roger Friedman
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AmFAR Really Wants Sharon Stone Back Next Year

Kevin Frost, the CEO of amFAR, sent me a statement this morning regarding Sharon Stone.

He says: “Although Sharon won’t be with us this year because of her shooting schedule, we at amfAR hope she will join us again next year.  Everyone recognizes the extraordinary passion and dedication she brings to our cause and how that has contributed to the phenomenal success of Cinema Against AIDS.”

An amFAR publicist says I should note that Stone has not been with the group “since the beginning” and that Stone is not actually credited with raising $290 million. Rather, amFAR has raised a total of $300 million since its inception. Also, Stone has taped a video message that will be played at this year’s Cinema Against AIDS.

Despite Stone’s absence, Cinema Against AIDS will no doubt be a big hit again this year. And in the end, raising money for AIDS research is more important than any one person or celebrity–something with which I think everyone can agree.

PS Stone’s publicist says she’s shooting a movie in Belgium, which I believe is right next door to France. Maybe Stone will surprise everyone and make a cameo in Cannes!

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