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Shirley MacLaine: Judi Dench Stole My Hair

Roger Friedman
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If we gave royal citations in this country. the word Dame would go before Shirley MacLaine. So Dame MacLaine gave a very humorous toast yesterday to “Nine” director Rob Marshall at Cecconi’s on Melrose.

“No thanks to Judi Dench, who stole my part, and my hair!” MacLaine proclaimed to an invited crowd of 20 or so Marshall fans.

Maybe MacLaine had had a sip of the sponsor drink, Sin, which is an energizer. Everyone got a gift bag with Sin and its companion, Serenity, a calmer-downer for the afternoon.

Among the guests: Frances Fisher, Salome Jens, Bob Balaban, Susie Blakeley, Michael Keaton and Annette O’Toole, Candy Clark, famed record producer Richard Perry who’s been dating Jane Fonda since last summer.

“Are the two of you getting married?” MacLaine asked Perry over lunch. This reporter interjected: “Shirley MacLaine, you are the queen of not being married.”

Dame Shirley shot back: “I was married for 35 years. I stayed married so I couldn’t marry anyone else!”

MacLaine also said she’d consider bringing her one-woman show back to Broadway, but she doesn’t want to do eight shows a week, and she doesn’t want to go east of Fifth Avenue. Otherwise, it’s a done deal!

And don’t be surprised if “Nine” makes a resurgence in the awards categories. Even though the sophisticated musical has had trouble selling tickets, Hollywood loves it. The actors love it. The Screen Actors Guild membership gave it a best ensemble nomination for a reason. The “Nine” performers are much admired by their colleagues!

Lindsay Lohan Is Alive and Well, Thanks

Roger Friedman
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Lindsay Lohan? She’s alive and well, thanks. And not getting into any trouble. Right now.

I ran into Lindsay last night at the New York Times annual soiree at the Chateau Marmont penthouse. She came with mom Dina and sister Ali, who’s grown about a foot since’I saw her last.

Lindsay was in fine form, as were all the Lohans. Hotel owner Andre Balazs, hobbling around on a cane (he broke his toe, he said, kicking furniture) escorted them around a crowd that seemed like all of Hollywood crammed into one room.

Among the notables: Jane Fonda and Richard Perry, Jane’s actor son Troy Garity and his beautiful wife Simone, Woody Harrelson, Ben Foster, Katie Holmes and Tom Cruise, Anna Kendrick from “Up in the Air,” Adam Lambert of “American Idol” fame, Richard Kind, Bob and Ava Shaye, Marisa Tomei, all of Meryl Streep’s kids, the “Precious” gang, Chloe Sevigny, Ryan Kavanagh, Harvey Weinstein, “Basterds”’Quentin Tarantino and Eli Roth, Lawrence Bender, Diane Kruger, BJ Novak, Christoph Waltz, Emily Blunt and John Krasinski, Jeff Bridges, Laura Bickford, Nick Jarecki, Zoe Saldana (not blue’but beautiful),’ producer Celine Rattray (who’s going to work for Peter Guber), as well as the Times’ Lynn Hirschberg, who plans the party each year.

And just FYI: Paul McCartney’s in town. He’s making the rounds because his song from “Everybody’s Fine” — “I Want to Come Home” — is nominated for a bunch of awards. When Sir Paul’s present, everything gets a little more hectic! Also, Sir Paul is hard at work on his animated feature, “High in the Clouds,” for Bob Shaye and Michael Lynne’s Unique Pictures.

As for Lindsay: She was sipping soda, looked great, was clear as a bell. Maybe 2010 will be the year of La Lohan. Fingers crossed.

Conan Exit: Bloggers’ Numbers Wrong

Roger Friedman
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One blogger insists it’s $40 million. Another says $30 million.

“They are each wrong,” an insider tells me about Conan O’Brien’s settlement with NBC. “And nothing is signed. There is still no agreement.”

But there will be some announcement today, Saturday, about O’Brien’s divorce from NBC. The true number will never be disclosed no matter who insists they have it right. “It’s going to remain confidential,” observes my source. “Also, it’s going to include deals for the staff.” Many of them will return to New York. NBC is going to be paying a lot of relocating fees. Again.

As I reported from the beginning, O’Brien had a lot of support inside NBC from the New York side. Sources confirmed for me that Lorne Michaels, who’s had his own spats with the network over the last 35 years, went to the mat for Conan. Michaels, like a lot of people, thought Conan got a raw deal.

In the end, the West Coast studio people won out over the East Coast cogniscenti. And now, “you have to believe Comcast is going to get very involved,” says a source. It could well mean the end of Jeff Zucker, whose three-year contract could be bought out. What’s happened at NBC is chaos.

Still, just about everyone I spoke to is shocked by comments by NBC’s usually sanguine Dick Ebersol in the New York Times about Conan. Ebersol, another NBC lifer, took the company’s side and was pretty brutal to O’Brien on the record. “This was from the man who just announced NBC Sports was planning to lose $200 million on the Olympics,” crowed a critic to me last night. “That’s hilarious.”

Related: O’Brien’s NBC departure leaves bits behind

Clooney Telethon Story: Blog Fodder

Roger Friedman
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We told you yesterday morning exclusively about George Clooney’s Haiti telethon.

It’s almost laughable then how so many blogs simply lifted the story without credit. Chief among them was Sharon Waxman’s The Wrap. The blog loves to take stories that don’t belong to them.

This is a weird new form of non-journalism. After all, it was Clooney who told this reporter directly about the telethon at the “Up in the Air” dinner in New York. Waxman (and those who followed her lead) just ignored this.

Clooney, of course, I can also tell you (read this carefully Sharon) is getting all his “Oceans Eleven/Twelve/Thirteen” pals to join him starting with Brad Pitt and Matt Damon. Expect Wyclef Jean, who’s doing amazing work down in Haiti right now, to return for the telethon with his band including cousin Jerry Duplessis who’s with him in Port au Prince trying to help survivors.

Wyclef once had a bit hit called “Somebody Call 911.” Indeed. Now it’s “Text 501501″ with the word YELE. It will save lives.

How NBC Burned Not Just Conan But His Staff

Roger Friedman
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It’ s not just Conan O’Brien who gets the shaft in NBC’s late-night debacle. It’s his entire staff, too.

For four years the Conan staff knew their jobs in New York would end eventually, and they had to make the decision whether to move to Los Angeles.

They did, selling houses and uprooting kids from schools.

Now they’ll have to decide if they should stay or return. My guess is they will try and exit the West Coast and return to the real world. Hollywood, as usual, has turned out to be a fantasy.

“Conan spent most of last weekend with the families and staff,” an insider told me yesterday. “Reassuring them.”

Indeed, much of the negotiating going on between Team Conan and NBC is what to do about all these people.

The only member of the New York team who didn’t join the new show was bandleader Max Weinberg. He stayed with Bruce Springsteen, who went on tour. You can pretty much guess we’ll never see The Boss on “The Tonight Show” again in this lifetime. But of course, Bruce has always been a better fit on David Letterman.

The whole experience no doubt will put a chill through the staff of ABC’s “All My Children.” They were also forced to decide on a move to Los Angeles this winter. Everyone can learn a lesson from this experience: Never trust a network, despite a guarantee. In Hollywood, contracts mean very little.

Robert De Niro Loves Julianne Moore

Roger Friedman
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We all know Robert De Niro is man of few words. He does not give a lot of public endorsements.

But Thursday night in Hollywood, De Niro made a rare appearance at a party for Tom Ford’s “A Single Man” to support pal Julianne Moore. She’s nominated for best supporting actress at the Critics Choice and Golden Globe awards, and is on her way to an Oscar nomination.

De Niro came over to La Dolce Vita restaurant after a day of shooting “Little Fockers,” accompanied by another pal, Joe Pesci. His proclamation to Moore: “You gave one of the best performances I’ve ever seen. It was wonderful.” Moore, who is already a redhead, blushed a very deep red. De Niro could not stop gushing, which for him was quite a moment.

The “Single Man” party also boasted another famous redhead: Anne Hathaway, who accepted kudos for her own wonderful musical performance on “The Simpsons” on Sunday. Hathaway is poised for a big Broadway career if she wants one.

Some of the other guests at the swellish party included Jacqueline Bisset, Mary Kay Place, Colleen Camp, director George Hickenlooper, and of course, director Ford himself.

Today: More celebrating as the AFI includes “Single Man” in their lunch salute. And “Nine” star Marion Cotillard and director Rob Marshall get a special lunch at Cecconi restaurant. Each guest is getting a gift bag with two new soft drinks called “Sin” (how appropriate for “Nine”) and Serenity!

Clooney, Pitt, Cheadle: $1 Mil to Haiti

Roger Friedman
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Not on Our Watch– the charity formed by George Clooney, Don Cheadle, Brad Pitt, producer Jerry Weintraub, and David Pressman–has directed $1 million to aid for Haiti.

The money is going to Partners in Health, a group that already has emergency medical efforts underway in Haiti.

PIH is sending 30 surgeons to Haiti, as well as medical supplies.

Not on Our Watch was originally created to help the people of Darfur.

Conan Exit Deal Imminent

Roger Friedman
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Sources tell me that Conan O’Brien’s deal to exit NBC is “very close” to being signed. “The lawyers are almost finished,” the source says.

The deal would likely allow O’Brien to finish his stint on “The Tonight Show” next Friday. After that, O’Brien will be free to negotiate a deal elsewhere. Although a deal with Fox remains a question mark, another source close to the situation did concede, “Kevin Reilly loves Conan.”

Contrary to fevered reports, no agreements have been signed.

Stay tuned.

Clint, Meryl Skip National Board: Is it a Message?

Roger Friedman
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The National Board of Review tried like crazy to get the stars to their annual gala Tuesday night. To do it, they gave Clint Eastwood his annual award and tossed Meryl Streep a bone with a “Best Ensemble” prize for “It’s Complicated.”’They could have given her Best Actress for “Julie & Julia.” But instead that went to Carey Mulligan for “An Education.”

Well, the NBR’s old tricks failed them. Eastwood, maybe wising up to the yucky nature of this group, sent a video message and skipped the proceedings. Meryl backed out at the last minute. With the big guns gone, the NBR was left with George Clooney and company for “Up in the Air.”

Otherwise, the NBR was stuck with a shortage of star power. On the Wire Image website, you can tell what was going on, too: they resorted to including pictures of NBR president Annie Schulhof, who’s desperate to be a celebrity. Well, she got her wish.

According to New York Magazine’s report, the evening was more or less a roast of George Clooney, but not as good as the New York Film Critics Circle awards the night before. The Times report indicated a lackluster response to the whole proceeding. They chose to interview J.J. Abrams but didn’t ask him anything about “Lost.” He’s right, though, when he says that “Star Trek” won’t be a Best Picture nominee.

Maybe this is the beginning of the end for the NBR. Their only real usefulness in the past was being first with awards that the studios could advertise for the holidays. But since the other awards shows have jumped in and are now earlier with their announcements, and more accurate, NBR may finally be on the ropes.

Rockin’ It: Kathie Lee and Hoda, Bebe Buell Downtown

Roger Friedman
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Yes, they host the 10 a.m. hour of “Today.” But Kathie Lee Gifford and Hoda Kodb are good pals off screen, too. Yesterday they held court at lunchtime at Michael’s before heading to a Wednesday matinee of David Mamet’s “Race.”

“I don’t know if we’re going to like it,” Kathie Lee told me. “But we’ve seen everything else!”

Kathie Lee also took a lot of good natured ribbing about how much Sandra Bullock looks like her in “The Blind Side.” “We did a split screen!” Kathie Lee said. “It’s true.”

Meanwhile, around the room Michael’s percolated as it does on a Wednesday. Joe Armstrong had a table with Sharon Hoge, Richard Clurman, and a bunch of friends, all of whom were chatting up Huffington Post blogger Jill Brooke. Barry Diller had the corner table. ABC Nightline’s Cynthia McFadden popped in. Art dealer Barbara Guggenheim had a foursome ‘ her hubby, LA attorney Bert Fields, is in town on a secret mission. Also on the scene: Cosmo’s Kate White, and a full complement of publishing and media types. Recession, what recession?

But the whole room was focused on one thing: Harold Ford, Jr. of Tennesee, working the room, meeting and greeting. The former US congressman from the south wants to be the next senator from New York state– so much so that he would have been kissing babies if Michael’s had had any!

…Meantime, downtown last night the magnificent Bebe Buell rocked the Hiro Ballroom with her band for WornFree (www.wornfree.com) a new line of old rock T shirts. Very cool…Bebe’s album, “Sugar,” is a hit with the gang at 101.9 FM here in New York, especially “Air Kisses for the Masses”…

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