Monday, January 13, 2025
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“Ghostbusters 3″: Director Reitman Says Next Generation Is Coming

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Who you gonna call? “Ghostbusters,” that’s who.

Director Ivan Reitman confirmed for me yesterday what Sigourney Weaver recently alluded to an interview for her movie, “Avatar.” Reitman says a script for “G3″ is being worked on now, and all signs point to some ghost-busting for 2010. The new story combines the original characters with new ones, including Sigourney’s kid with Bill Murray, Oscar.

Reitman’s telling comments to me came about during a lunch at the legendary ‘21 Club’ for his son, Jason, whose own movie, “Up in the Air,” is up in the awards stratosphere. Dad Ivan produced for son Jason, which led to an exchange of teary eyed speeches from the two guys. They each reminisced about how Jason was talked out of going to medical school by Dad.

“It was the first time a Jewish father ever told his son not to become a doctor,” Jason said. “I knew he was a storyteller,” Ivan recalled. And it’s a showbiz family: Jason’s beauteous twentysomething sister Catherine is a working actress with a lot of credits, just about ready to have her breakthough.

All this family love was expressed in front of a cool crowd, too, including “Up in the Air” costar Anna Kendrick, who’s getting a lot of awards for her work in the film, plus famed director Sidney Lumet who came with his award-winning screenwriter daughter Jenny (she wrote “Rachel Getting Married” is and working with Jason on a new film), Barry Levinson, Tony LoBianco, Tovah Feldshuh, Bob Balaban, Dan Abrams, Arianna Huffington, Jean Doumanian, Johnnie Planco, and Forbes magazine editor Tim Ferguson, who’s also the uncle of “Nine” and Black Eyed Peas star Stacey “Fergie” Ferguson.

“She never shied away from performing as kid,” said Uncle Tim.

And there was maybe a ‘21′ first: a Kosher meal served to Orthodox Jewish rapper and recording star Matisyahu, aka Matthew Miller of White Plains, New York. Producer Bonnie Timmerman is working on a film project with him, and brought the extremely tall performer with her. They may have to rename ‘21′ ‘ ‘18′.

P.S. Lumet ‘ director of so many classics from “Serpico” and “Prince of the City” to “Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead” ‘ has just finished the screenplay for his next film, called “Getting Out.” He’s got Russell Crowe in mind, he says, for the lead. Sidney Lumet and Russell Crowe is a combo everyone would love to see happen. Russell, give Sidney a call!

SAG Awards Are the Real Oscar Omens

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Here are the five SAG Award nominees for what they called Best Ensemble. This really means Best Picture: “Nine,” “The Hurt Locker,” “Precious.” “Inglourious Basterds,” and “An Education.”

The shock: “Up in the Air” is not in that group. The certain Oscar nominee thus becomes “Number 6″ for the Academy Awards. That’s okay since there are ten slots this year.

But what’s important to note is that the five chosen by SAG are where the minds of the Academy voters are right now. Of course, Academy nominations aren’t read until February 2nd. A lot could change in that time. But history notes that SAG and the Academy are quite similar in membership. And where SAG goes, the Academy is usually right behind it.

The group that should be most embarrassed by all this is the National Board of Review. Their exclusion of “Precious” has rendered them completely irrelevant. It has these SAG noms, and plenty more from the Critics Choice Awards and the Golden Globes.

Two SAG omissions: Daniel Day Lewis’s wonderful Guido from “Nine.” I think DDL may be getting shorted out because he just won for “There Will Be Blood.” And Marion Cotillard, for “Nine,” as well. She also just won, for “La Vie En Rose.” And Julianne Moore in Supporting for “A Single Man.” She’s a definite Oscar contender. I don’t know who she would knock out of the SAG list, but Moore’s “Charley” is one of the great creations on film in 2009.

Also: no love for the Coens’ “A Serious Man.” This is such a great cast, I was certain it would get Best Ensemble. There are tons of gems in that film, from Fred Melamed to Amy Landecker, Sari Lennick, and of course, Michael Stuhlbarg.

One note: Bob Balaban, the gifted character actor, picked up more nominations for the Lifetime film he directed, “Georgia O’Keefe.” He got a raft of Golden Globes, too. Balaban last year had tons of awards with the Doris Duke movie for HBO, “Bernard and Doris.” You may recall that it was Balaban who was the driving force behind Robert Altman’s award-winning “Gosford Park.” Bravo!

“Nine” Is Fine, But Daniel Day Lewis Won’t See It Again

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Rob Marshall’s exquisitely crafted movie musical, “Nine,” finally premiered in New York last night. It opens on Friday.

One person who saw it at the Ziegfeld premiere but won’t be coming back: star Daniel Day Lewis. “It was nerve-wracking” he said later of sitting through the premiere and watching the movie. What made him so nervous? He declined to say. But frankly, DDL makes a very convincing Guido Contini. He has nothing to worry about. And at the big party later at cavernous M2 in West Chelsea, DDL was accessible and fun. He posed for pictures with well wishers and entertained wife Rebecca Miller’s famous actress aunt, Joan Copeland, younger sister of the late Arthur Miller. DDL also got to meet legendary crooner Tony Bennett, who declared “Nine” a “masterpiece.”

Still: “That’s the one and only time I will do that,” Daniel told me, even though the audience loved him, loved “Nine,” and the ladies in it so much that they were applauding the musical numbers before they ended.

And in the audience were all the cast with the exception of Sophia Loren, who was working in Rome.

Penelope Cruz even brought boyfriend and rumored fiancee Javier Bardem, who was originally going to play Guido but backed out after his role in “No County for Old Men” exhausted him. Her favored director and pal Pedro Almodovar was also on hand.

Kate Hudson, looking like a million bucks and happier than ever without baseball star Alex Rodriguez, was accompanied by mom Goldie Hawn. When I mentioned to Goldie that Kate’s performance was reminiscent of her own on “Laugh In” back in the day, Goldie laughed and said: “The apple doesn’t fall far from the tree!”

Fergie ‘ Stacey Ferguson ‘ of the Black Eyed Peas brings down the house in “Nine” with the movie’s showstopper “Be Italian.” Each of her parents were there, as was husband Josh Duhamel. Fergie’s dad, who owns a vineyard in beautiful Santa Ynez, California ‘ “Sideways” country ‘ was very excited about the film. He said “Fergie’s been in three movies. In each one, she gets killed. So she calls me up and says, Guess what? I’m in a movie and I don’t get killed. But what does play? A prostitute!”

Fergie is so good in “Nine” that, you read it here first, she’s going to get offers to play Broadway in a musical. Forget those Black Eyed Peas and their monster hit, “I Gotta Feeling.” Once you hear her in “Nine,” it’s clear the world is her oyster.

I also like the fact that Fergie looked so elegant with dark hair and a beautiful white Marchesa gown. When I first met Fergie years ago she came to events in hip hop regalia, with an exposed flat midriff and teased blonde locks. Grown up and married, Fergie took the microphone last night at the M2 party, made a short funny speech and introduced the new video of her and Kate Hudson making the video for “Cinema Italiano,” the Best Song nominee from “Nine.” (It was written for the movie.) Fergie announced to the crowd, “I met all those amazing women with this movie, and we’re all friends now!”

And in the crowd, both at the Ziegfeld and M2 ‘ “Nine” director Rob Marshall, other cast members Dame Judi Dench (who took a lot of good natured ribbing from Harvey Weinstein during introductions at the Zeigfeld), Nicole Kidman (whose hubby Keith Urban played Nicole’s hometown Sydney last night), and Best Actress nominee Marion Cotillard ‘ with boyfriend Guillame Canet, as well as Oliver Stone, Tommy Tune (who directed the original “Nine” on Broadway), Tobey Maguire, the Olsen twins, pop star Madonna and daughter Lourdes, Donald and Melania Trump, Bob and Lynne Balaban, Emmanuelle Chriqui (from “Entourage”), Denise Rich, and Kimora Lee Simmons and Oscar nominee (from “In America” and “Amistad”) Djimon Hounsou.

“Nine” got 10 nominations from the Critics Choice Awards (airing January 15th) and the Golden Globes gave it five more (January 17th). When the Oscar nominations are announced on February 2nd, expect a raft more for DDL, Cotillard, Cruz, and Marshall, not to mention all those technical categories and Best Song. It’s the one big, grand, glamorous entertainment of this winter.

Harvey’s Back � Even in the New York Times

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Harvey Weinstein is back ‘ even the New York Times said so yesterday. The story mentions the 10 Golden Globe nominations. But there were also about 25 from the Critics Choice Awards, which airs on VH-1 on January 15th and is the actual kick-off of awards season.

The Weinstein Company ‘ which should be renamed Miramax ‘ hey Disney, are you there? ‘ has four movies in the awards game: “Nine,” “Inglorious Basterds,” “A Single Man,” and “The Road.” Reports of the company’s demise were surely premature. But this is what happens in every movie company. The business is cyclical. Even so, let’s not forget that last year, “The Reader” picked up Best Actress for Kate Winslet and was nominated for Best Picture.

Next up for Weinstein Co: Michael Cera in “Youth in Revolt.” It’s from Bob Weinstein’s Dimension Pictures. And it’s going to be a huge post-Christmas comedy hit. The Times is right. The W’s are back on track. Meanwhile, all the other indies ‘ who tried so hard to copy the original Miramax playbook ‘ are gone. The fact that the W’s have survived is not just luck. They do know what they’re doing, after all.

Coming next for a big year: Focus Features. After a desultory 2009, they have a big 2010 planned. Indie films are still here!

Nicole Kidman: Sunday Rose Can Do Baby Sign Language

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59148132Nicole Kidman’s 18-month-old daughter, Sunday Rose, is not only walking and talking but using baby sign language.

“She’s picked it right up,” Nicole told me yesterday at the swellicious lunch for the cast of “Nine” at the super fantastic Michelin star rated Per Se restaurant overlooking Columbus Circle.

Kidman was joined at her table by Anna Wintour, director Ron Howard, Harry Connick, Jr. and wife Jill Goodacre, Ingrid Sischy and Sandy Brant, and movie financier Ryan Kavanagh.

But around the Per Se dining room, as a select few dined on chef’Thomas Keller’s delectable morsels, it was quite a scene. “Nine” stars Daniel Day Lewis, Marion Cotillard, Dame Judi Dench, and Kate Hudson were divided up to captain their tables. And the guests weren’t bad, ranging from “Nine” director Rob Marshall, his choreographer sister Kathleen, to Liz Smith to Larry King, Cynthia McFadden (who really should be on “Good Morning America”), plus Bob and Lynne Balaban, Joel Grey, Tommy Tune, TV’s Bill McCuddy, casting director Amanda Mackey, and so on. It was all A-list people eating A-list food and saying A-list things. Harvey Weinstein was thrilled. His movies picked up about 25 nominations from the Broadcast Critics, and several more from different critics groups. And this is what people had to say:

Daniel Day Lewis thinks Jeff Bridges should win the Oscar for “Crazy Heart.” “Everyone loves him,” DDL told me, “and he’s so good.” Judi Dench told me that DDL has changed “completely” since the time they did “Hamlet” together on stage in London and Daniel had a breakdown. “He’s remarkable now,” Dench said, then told me all about starring in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” this winter at the National Theatre in London. “It’s extremely sold out,” she informed me when I asked about tickets. She also said she was thrilled finally to meet Joel Grey, Broadway’s sort of unofficial mayor. “He was in Cabaret!” Dench exclaimed.

Kate Hudson is not bringing A Rod to the “Nine” premiere tonight, but her mom, Goldie Hawn, instead. “She’s at the hotel getting ready,” Kate said. Marion Cotillard told me she’s spending Christmas in Brittany seeing her 100-year-old grandmother. Then it’s off to Tanzania for a week with her boyfriend before journeying to Los Angeles for awards season. Kidman bragged not only about Sunday Rose but about her 17-year-old daughter Bella ‘ she’s 17 already! ‘ who wants to go to art school. “She’s incredibly talented,” Nicole told us over lunch. “She expresses herself through drawing.” Nicole also told me she’s still intent on playing Dusty Springfield in the movies, and has Michael Cunningham slaving away on a script.

When someone complimented her on the “Unusual Ways” number in “Nine,” Kidman crinkled her nose. “Really?” she said. “I get so nervous when I’m singing. And I can’t do it in public.”

Ron Howard told us all about Ridley Scott’s “Robin Hood,” which he and Brian Grazer are producing. “As soon as we saw the first rushes, we knew we were all right,” Howard said. “Wait til you see Cate Blanchett.” Harry Connick heads out on tour in January, which wife Jill and his three daughters aren’t thrilled about. But Connick concurred with other performers I’ve asked about touring: “I love it,” he said. “Not so much about the fans, but about the music.”

And the lunch ‘ it didn’t end until 4pm, at which point Marion Cotillard just about fainted from jet lag, Nicole Kidman went off to do interviews and several people went home to nap or change and get ready for Ryan Kavanagh’s cozy dinner at the Pierre Hotel’s new lounge for his Relativity Media.

And how did that go? Well, the guests there included Tobey Maguire, Rachel Weisz, Matthew Modine, Michael Shannon, Robert Wuhl, the aforementioned Ron Howard, Julie Taylor, Elliott Goldenthal, producer Jean Doumanian, the Balabans again, director Stephen Daldry, etc. It was such a warm get together that the guests hung in there from eight til midnight. That’s when Kavanagh surprised everyone except his parents and exuberantly belted out ‘ quite professionally ‘ two numbers with the rock combo that had been playing all night ‘ doing credible homages to Jerry Lee Lewis, and the Rascals.

Peggy Siegal, who put the whole “Nine” day together, told me not to forget Patrick Pacheco’s quip about the whole thing: “No one’s ever seen so much foreplay before screening a movie.” So true; “Nine” premieres tonight to the best-fed crowd in movie history. The truth is: they would have liked it anyway.

Golden Globes: Julia Roberts Is This Year’s Brangelina

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The Golden Globes got one thing right this year: they chose the daughter of Alfre Woodard and Roderick Spencer to be Miss Golden Globes. That’s very nice.

roberts julia duplicity 250x300 Golden Globes: Julia Roberts Is This Years BrangelinaOne thing they got very wrong: choosing Julia Roberts as a comedic Best Actress nominee for “Duplicity.” Huh? This is where the Globes go wrong. They want their celebrities to appear on the show for which NBC pays them $6 million. Lacking Brad Pitt or Angelina Jolie, the Hollywood Foreign Press turned to Julia for its glamour content. Good luck with that! Up against two nominations for Meryl Streep, as well as Sandra Bullock and Marion Cotillard, Julia will not be making any speeches. That may be just as well since at Lincoln Center last spring Julia used the f-word several times to honor Tom Hanks.

A nice surprise in the Best Actor category: Tobey Maguire for “Brothers.” He got the slot vacated by Daniel Day Lewis, because his “Nine” nomination falls into Comedy/Musical with the Globes. At the Oscars, DDL will edge out Tobey and join Jeff Bridges, George Clooney, Colin Firth, and Morgan Freeman. Still, it’s nice to see Maguire score outside his “Spider-Man” world. And it’s nice to see Michael Stuhlbarg rewarded for his comic performance as “A Serious Man.” Otherwise, though, the Coen Brothers movie was lost on the HFPA. (I’m sure they had no idea what is was about.)

The same thing happened in the Best Actress category, where Emily Blunt got a slot for “Young Victoria.” At Oscar time, Meryl Streep will take that position with Helen Mirren, Carey Mulligan, and Gabourey Sidibe.

And oh yes: Sidibe was one of three noms for “Precious,” which is more than I thought the HFPA would give it. “Precious” is very American, and very much for the Oscars. The HFPA is mostly European, and probably didn’t get it. The screenplay nomination Geoffrey Fletcher should have received instead went to sci-fi movie “District 9.” Hello!

And maybe Sandra Bullock. Big boxoffice and admiration may equal a first ever Oscar nomination for Bullock for “The Blind Side.” It’s not a great dramatic role. But Bullock is wildly popular, and she was in two big hits this year, “The Blind Side” and “The Proposal.” She’s the HFPA’s Renee Zellweger for 2009. She won’t win anything, but everyone will be happy to see her.

One odd omission: Clint Eastwood’s “Invictus.” This is what it looks like. The HFPA nominated Clint for Best Director, and his actors Freeman and Matt Damon in their respective categories. But “Invictus” got cut out of Best Picture for “Avatar.” The James Cameron spectacle was thrown the bone of Best Picture even though it has nothing else in acting or writing. Cameron was nominated for Best Director and the vile end credit song was tossed in. But these are sops. “Avatar” is a presentation more than a movie. By the time Oscar voters get to it, the 3D blockbuster will have already earned its rewards in millions at the boxoffice.

For the Golden Globes, it’s not a bad mix. Maybe the tide is turning…

Procter & Gamble: A Disgraceful End for “As the World Turns”

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Procter &’ Gamble’s exit from soap operas will be disgraceful and cheap if executive producer Chris Goutman’s comments are correct.

In a new interview with TV Guide, Goutman ‘ who ten years ago was the hatchet man for P&G when they ended “Another World” ‘ describes what’s to come between now and the 55-year-old show’s end in September. He indicates that with the end in sight, current (and enervating) plot lines will continue, no plans in particular will be made to write a grand ending or include return cameos by popular actors from the show’s history.

This is exactly what P&G did to “Guiding Light” when it went off the air this past September. The final week included not one clip from the show’s 60-year history on television. The end was handled in a cheap and disrespectful way.

The idea ‘ and this has to have come from some kind of management consultant ‘ is to drive away viewers and make sure they’re not nostaglic for the show when it ends. In other words, just kill it, and move on.

Ironically, this spring marks the 50th anniversary on the show of two of its actors, Don Hastings and Eileen Fulton. A third, Helen Wagner, is still on the show at age 92. She spoke its first words in 1956. Wagner appeared on air just last week and looked great. The worry now is that nothing will be done to observe these anniversaries on the air.

“As the World Turns” is taping scenes now for January and February. Here’s what I would do, like today: put on the brakes. Make a plan for the show’s final 90 days. Golden Globe nominee Julianne Moore, who got her start on the show in the 80s, expressed a fondness for it on “The View” recently. Ask her and other famous alumni like Marisa Tomei and Meg Ryan back to reprise their former roles during a big send off. Bring back Larry Bryggman, the great theater actor who was on the show for 30 years. Give Fulton, Hastings and other long time actors a chance to wrap up their stories with dignity. Otherwise, Procter & Gamble risks the enmity of its fans well after the last episode of “As the world Turns” has been aired.

Rock Hall to Induct Geffen: We Told You 4 Months Ago

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I told you on August 14th that David Geffen would be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

It was announced officially today.

Also: the Hollies, Genesis, Iggy Pop and the Stooges, Jimmy Cliff and ABBA.

Because the prospect of this show on March 15th is so dreadful, and because the Hall of Fame has embarrassingly passed over the Brill Building era until now, the Foundation is also inducting a gang of songwriters the same night: the recently deceased Ellie Greenwich and Jeff Barry; Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil; Jesse Stone, Mort Shuman and Otis Blackwell.

Jann Wenner waited 25 years to induct these writers ‘ all of whom are already in the much more respected Songwriters Hall of Fame. He can do it now because Phil Spector’s in jail for life and can’t complain that he actually wrote “You Lost That Lovin’ Feeling.” He didn’t.

By putting in the writers, and Geffen, there’s at least the hope of a decent show at the Waldorf. Otherwise, the night would have consisted of “Waterloo,” “Follow You Follow Me,” “Bus Stop,” and “The Harder They Come.” Oh yes, the latter is reggae, but what the heck: the Hall of Fame has nothing to do with rock and roll.

Meantime, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Museum is shutting down its New York annex on January 6th after a year of operation. What happened? The Foundation has $14 million in the bank. They just threw an extravagant week of parties and concerts at Madison Square Garden, took in millions at the Garden boxoffice, got paid more by HBO, and laid out even more so that all the performers had their expenses paid at the posh London Hotel on West 54th St.

Yet, their one mission ‘ to operate museums ‘ can’t be fulfilled properly in New York.

Mamma mia!

Whitney, Mariah, Kate, Cameron — PMK Has Plenty of Clients, Thanks

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It’s not as bad as previously thought.

Last week’s splintering of the PMK-HBH PR brand in Hollywood was a surprise. The HBH left, and took with it some of the PMK. Then PMK announced it was merging with Bragman Nyman Cafarelli — aka BNC — and all hell broke loose.

But PMK — which stands for long-gone partnership Pickwick Maslansky Koenigsberg — is regrouping with BNC. They’ll be fine, led by Cindi Berger, Michael Nyman and a lot of talented people. Change is hard — and 2009 has been wild, hasn’t it?

The new PMK-BNC has plenty of star clients in case you were worried: Cameron Diaz, Kate Hudson, Jessica Alba, Eva Mendes, Glenn Close, Emma Thompson, Amy Poehler, Brooke Shields, Barbara Walters, Billy Crystal, Sarah Silverman, Goldie Hawn, Miley Cyrus, Kristin Chenoweth, Tracy Morgan, Jimmy Kimmel, Neil Patrick Harris, Will Arnett, Zach Braff, Colin Farrell, Jay Baruchel, Rainn Wilson and, of course, Rosie O’Donnell.

They also boast a big music department with will.i.am of the Black Eyed Peas, Shakira, Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Seal, Dixie Chicks, Harry Connick Jr., John Legend, Shakira, Eric Clapton, Jessica Simpson and Tom Petty.

The company still handles the Tonys, the Emmys, Academy of Country Music Awards and various other awards shows. Their corporate clients include Mark Burnett’s reality empire, Shonda Rimes (creator of “Grey’s Anatomy”), Bill Lawrence of “Scrubs,” Sony Television, USA Network, plus these brands: T-Mobile, Nintendo, Samsung, American Express, Beiersdorf, Audi, Amazon.com, Target, Hasbro, Netflix, MAC Cosmetics.

So here comes the new PMK — post Pat Kingsley and Lois Smith and all ready for a new decade. And really — if Cindi Berger got Shakira on the cover of the Economist — and she did! — anything is possible.

Catherine Zeta-Jones Wows Broadway

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59145066A few seasons ago Catherine Zeta-Jones won an Oscar for singing and dancing in “Chicago,” the movie. Some people thought it was a trick of editing.

Now, starring in Stephen Sondheim’s “A Little Night Music” on Broadway, Mrs. Michael Douglas cements her place as a stage star. It was no trick. She’s the real thing.

Last night, the culmination of Trevor Nunn’s extraordinary two-and-a-half hour revival was CZ-J’s stunning rendition of “Send in the Clowns.” It’s perhaps Sondheim’s best known and maybe best ever song, and Zeta-Jones performance was spot on. From the first line of the song ‘ “Isn’t it rich/Aren’t we a pair?” ‘ it was clear she had “it.” The audience in the tiny Walter Kerr Theater ‘ which included Lauren Bacall, Hugh Jackman, Kathleen Turner, Nik Ashford and Valerie Simpson, Harvey Weinstein, and, of course, Michael Douglas ‘went wild.

(I like Hugh Jackman ‘‘he came upstairs to the mezzanine bar to get sodas for himself and wife Debra Lee at intermission ‘ and waited in line in a narrow space to do it.)

And the numerous charms of “A Little Night Music” don’t all belong to Zeta-Jones. Angela Lansbury has been doing a victory lap on Broadway this year, winning a Tony last spring for “Blithe Spirit.” She returns to Sondheim (remember, she was the original, award-winning Mrs. Lovett from “Sweeney Todd”) triumphantly in “Night Music” as the curmudgeonly grandmother and, of course, steals the show. (It’s not so easy; her character is in wheelchair.) The show also features two tremendous male leads: Alexander Hanson, from the London production, and Aaron Lazar, plus the strongest cast of singers on Broadway in featured roles.

Over at Tavern on the Green later ‘ at what may be the final theatre premiere party at the real Tavern thanks to the city and general greed ‘ Zeta-Jones made an entrance suitable for her new station as Queen of Broadway. As befitting a Queen, her rude publicist just about knocked my kidney stone out of place elbowing me out of the way. But CZ-J was charming as ever, accepting kudos and flowers from husband Michael Douglas. Sondheim ‘ without whom none of this is possible ‘ made a brief appearance before scooting out of the spotlight.

As for Oscar-winning actor/producer Douglas, he did tell me some good news: his very good movie, “Solitary Man,” has been picked up by Overture Films and will be released on May 2nd, two weeks after “Wall Street 2.” It’s going to be a Michael Douglas spring. In the meantime, it’s a CZ-J winter as Douglas’s wife is signed to “Night Music” through July. This means no family Christmas outing to Bermuda ‘ where Douglas’s mom is from and where he often vacations. “We’ll just stay here, and do a little skiing,” Michael told me. It doesn’t sound so bad!