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Billy Joel Returns Favor to McCartney at New Shea Stadium

Roger Friedman
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One year ago, Paul McCartney popped into the old Shea Stadium to say goodbye by joining Billy Joel on a couple of hits.

Last night Joel returned the favor and played keyboards on the Beatles’ “I Saw Her Standing There” as McCartney christened Citi Field with the first of three shows.

It wasn’t an easy night. Humidity was 100% and rain pelted down hard sometimes. Even McCartney and the band got wet. But it was well worth it. Among the crowd: Pierce Brosnan, Stanley Tucci, Susan Sarandon and Tim Robbins, restaurateur Drew Nieporent, country superstar Martina McBride with her husband and kids.

McCartney, now 67, simply rocked the house with the best show of 2009. He mixed Beatles songs with his own hits, and debuted some video from the upcoming Beatles “Rock Star” game due on September 9th.

As always, he makes it look easy, when it can’t possibly be. He runs from piano to bass guitar, singing impeccably and managing to tell some engaging stories about playing Shea with the Beatles in the 60s. He’s got tributes to John Lennon and George Harrison, including a medley he’s made of “A Day in the Life” with “Give Peace a Chance.” (He should finish the former, however; it’s a masterpiece.)

There’s plenty from his Wings era, but maybe not enough’just “My Love,” “Band on the Run,” “Jet,” “Mrs. Vandebilt,” and “Let Me Roll’ It.” McCartney doesn’t realize his fans want to hear “Too Many People,” “Another Day,” and even “Hi Hi Hi” or “Junior’s Farm.” What was impressive: “Sing the Changes” from his recent “Electric Fireman” album, sounded like it should be a radio hit. And I’d include “My Ever Present Past,” and “My Brave Face” over some other choices.

Still, McCartney remains a wonder. He’s at the top of his game again. He even dressed in a black suit and white shirt reminscent of the Beatles’ old early costumes. Nice touch.

Jackson Family Makes First Move On Michael’s Money

Roger Friedman
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The Jackson family is ready to object to Michael’s will.

Katherine Jackson has filed a motion (see attachedpicture 24 210x300 Jackson Family Makes First Move On Michaels Money) with the court that’s considered a first step’a test, if you will’to see if there’s a way to change Michael’s will.

The document asks the court if it’s possible to undo a “no contest” clause in the will’s unpublished trust amendments. In essence, Mrs. Jackson is trying to get a foot in the door or a seat at the table along with the executors Michael chose’John Branca and John McClain.

What the court could not know, as I’ve been told by family insiders, is that this is the work of Joseph Jackson and business partner Leonard Rowe. Sources say they are using Mrs. Jackson as a stalking horse to gain some say in how Michael’s money is spent.

The document doesn’t look too sound, though. For one thing, it opens with a prevarication: that Mrs. Jackson filed to be in charge of Michael’s estate on June 29th because they thought there was no will, and that he had died in “testate.”

But this column reported three days earlier that Michael’s longtime attorney, John Branca, had a will and would present it to the court. Branca was away on vacation and didn’t get back until the 29th. Sources say he showed the Jacksons the will that afternoon, then filed it with the court.

The Jacksons simply ignored the will’s existence when they filed that morning. Mrs. Jackson’s attorney is now calling Michael’s will “the purported will.” But the July 7, 2002 will signed by Michael Jackson is indeed his will. And no willing it away will change that.

Executors of Jackson Will Could Face Challenge

Roger Friedman
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Legal representatives for Katherine Jackson filed papers Friday to challenge John Branca, John McClain, and Joel Katz as executors of estate in Michael Jackson’s will. Developing…

Aimee Mann: The Mary Stuart of Pop Music

Roger Friedman
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Aimee Mann ”whose songs occupy a quarter of my Creative Zen X-Fi MP3 player ‘ took requests last night at the City Winery on Varick Street; apparently she’d done something like this for the last two nights. This was her third of three shows with just two keyboard players who double as percussionists and background singers. There was a drum kit on stage. I don’t know who it belonged to and it didn’t matter.Aimee Mann

Aimee Mann, who’s 48, looks like she hasn’t aged since her debut hit in 1985, “Voices Carry,” with her group ‘Til Tuesday. She’s still lanky and blonde, with a butterscotch voice and an uncanny ability to find hooks within hooks of gorgeous melodies coupled with savvy lyrics. She’s the spiritual daughter of Joni Mitchell and John Prine. You can’t decide if you want to hear her play the piano or the guitar more, sing a ballad or rock out.

The show ‘ clocking in over two hours ‘ was breezy and fun as Mann let the sold-out audience guide her through their choices of over 90 songs by writing them on paper airplanes, and sailing them onto the stage. The result was a collection of favorite songs Mann hasn’t played a while in concert. (She had to keep a lyric book out on a music stand for reference, which was just fine).”I can stay all night,” she told the audience, and a massive cheer went up.

So we got “Calling it Quits,” “Save Me,” and “Build a Wall,” the three best songs from her “Magnolia’ soundtrack; the magnificent “Mr. Harris,” from Mann’s first solo album, and the laconic, beautiful, “Amateur”; her Elvis Costello collaboration, “Other End of the Telescope,”’ as well as “Voices Carry” and a dozen or so other gems including “You Could Make a Killing,” “Ray,” “Coming Up Close,” and “Can’t Get My Head Around You.”

Here’s the thing about Aimee Mann: she had it all with ‘Til Tuesday. Their third album, “Everything’s Different Now,” is a brilliant chronicle of a terrible breakup, a truly great theme album. But she had problems galore at Epic Records. She broke up the band, and went on her own. But more label problems ensued including one, Imago, that just vanished from underneath her.

Mann and manager Michael Haussman decided to start their own label, and work outside the system. They took control of their lives, but at the same left the music business proper. It was a gamble. The result was independence, but the cost was no longer being in the big picture. Mann’s solo albums consist of just her compositions; it’s one of the strongest pop catalogs ever. But instead of being Queen Elizabeth, she became Mary Stuart, always on the outside, and seeming like she’s causing trouble.

Mann’s latest album is badly named ‘ “@#%&*! Smilers.” Why? Who knows? It contains many exquisite, catchy songs including “Free way,” which would be played on the radio if radio still existed;’ and “Stranger into Starman,” a haunting track that begs to be in a movie. On stage she reproduces her complicated productions with ease. Her lyrics are bitter pills delivered in cream puffs. She also relates to the audience well since most of them are her fervent, dedicated fans just praying that this album of colossal successes will be the breakthrough. The main thing is, don’t miss her live whatever you do. One day it’s all going to happen. And then you can say, you were there. I don’t care how long we have to wait.

Jackson: Doctor Told Friend to “Keep Michael Warm”

Roger Friedman
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The police investigations into Michael Jackson’s two main doctors’skin doc Dr. Arnold Klein and heart doc Dr. Conrad Murray‘are narrowing. You can feel that something is about to happen. Meanwhile, more Jackson insiders are coming clean about what they saw and heard in Jackson’s rented Holmby Hills mansion in the few weeks leading up to his death.

One such insider, present constantly, disliked both doctors intensely. Dr. Murray, this source says, sent a message one day in the weeks preceding his death: “Keep Michael warm” after Jackson, the source says, “showed up shivering, cold as ice, and confused.”

Was this the result of anesthesia withdrawal? The person now believes it must have been. They say, “Michael was too thin, had an addiction, and had never healed mentally from the trial.’ Yes, of course I saw him interact with others. ‘His state of mind was never stable. ‘He was OCD, and paranoid. ‘His clarity was not consistent.”

But things changed in the last couple of weeks. Jackson, starting around Monday, June 21st, seemed like his old self. “He was the best he had ever been on the last two days,” says my source. What happened? When they inquired, another member of the household replied, “Klein’s outta town,” a reference to Jackson’s infamous dermatologist.

One more thing: ABC News produced pictures yesterday of Jackson’s legs, circa 2002, discolored and full of needle marks. There’s a picture of an injection gone wrong in one of Jackson’s ankles. That is more than likely the IV that broke in December 2002 when Jackson was supposed to testify in a trial. He said he had a spider bite. But my sources said then that there was no spider. It was an accident of self-injection.

Something Fishy: Jeremy Piven Poisoned by Emmy Awards

Roger Friedman
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Jeremy PivenHe’s won the Emmy for Best Supporting Actor in a Comedy for three years in a row, and was nominated for it four years ago. But Jeremy Piven has been snubbed this year for his work in “Entourage” as Ari Gold.

Is it because the real Ari Gold ‘ Ari Emanuel ‘ staged a coup and took over the William Morris Agency? Unlikely reason.

More likely: Piven’s whole “mercury poisoning” incident on Broadway this past winter has seeped into other realms of his career.

Piven famously left the Broadway play “Speed-the-Plow” in the middle of its run, claiming he couldn’t go on because he’d eaten too much fish. His decision caused a huge uproar in the theater world. His co-stars turned on him, and so did the press. New actors had to be rushed into the show as substitutes. Piven narrowly got out of trouble in front of an Actors Equity committee.

His character and performance on “Entourage” were so popular, though, that it seemed like the whole incident would be compartmentalized in people’s minds. Maybe not. Piven won the Emmy for playing Ari in 2006, 07, and 08, He was nominated but lost in his first year, 2005. This year, even with an expanded number of nominees: nothing. Instead, Kevin Dillon, who’s brilliant as Johnny Drama in the series, proved more alluring bait.

Prayers for ‘Angela’s Ashes’ Author

Roger Friedman
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Sad news: Malachy McCourt, the bon vivant actor brother of “Angela’s Ashes” author Frank McCourt, issued a dire statement yesterday. Frank is “gravely ill,” suffering from meningitis complications after having skin cancer. He is not expected to make it.

Frank McCourt, I was surprised to learn, is 78 years old. The former school teacher has always seemed youthful and vibrant. So this news is heartbreaking, indeed. Frank and his wonderful wife, Ellen, have been pals for a long time, regulars on the New York literary and film circuit. It’s always been a joy to hang out with them.

So please, send an extra prayer to the McCourts. “Ashes” remains one of the great memoirs of all time, and Frank’s other writing, including his books, “Tis,” and “Teacher Man,” leave indelible impressions of a life well lived. We’re thinking of you, Frank!

Justin Timberlake Motherloves an Emmy Nom

Roger Friedman
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Andy Samberg may have mixed feelings today. The “Saturday Night Live” star partners with pop star Justin Timberlake on very funny short films on the show. Samberg conceives and co-writes them. But it’s Timberlake who got an Emmy nomination today for their work on the hilarious “Motherlover.”

Justin isn’t the only “SNL” actor with an Emmy nomination. Amy Poehler and Kristin Wiig each picked up citations for Best Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series. Poehler was nominated last year. This marks a new incursion into the Emmys by “SNL,” which used to not be ready for prime time.

It’s not completely unprecedented however: back in the 1970s, Gilda Radner, Jane Curtin, John Belushi and Dan Aykroyd all got acting nominations. The amazing Radner won — it was a category called Outstanding Single Performance’in 1978.

For Justin, it’s a tip of the hat. He’s been a hit as a comedy star on “SNL,” proving to be an excellent mimic and game for anything. He could revive variety TV as a host if he wanted to, and some network — probably HBO — should persuade him to stop trying dramatic movie roles and do this instead. He’s a winner.

Jackson’s Friend: He Went to Dr. Klein’s “To Sleep”

Roger Friedman
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One of the biggest mysteries of the Michael Jackson case is how Dr. Conrad Murray found his way into Michael’s life.

Randy Phillips, head of AEG Live, has said repeatedly to me and to others that Jackson simply told him to hire Murray and pay him $150,000 a month. On the face of it, Murray was a cardiologist with offices in Las Vegas, San Diego, and Houston. He seemed OK. Phillips told me, “This is who Michael wanted.”

Did Michael have his own arrangements with Dr. Murray? This is still unknown.

But Murray, unbeknownst to the Jackson camp, was awash in personal debt. He was also not board certified.

A Jackson insider/employee recalls that Murray simply appeared on the scene this year, in 2009, and not in 2006, as his lawyer has claimed. Jackson spent 2006 in Bahrain, France, and Ireland. He could not have met Murray then.

“We were told he was one of the top 10 doctors,” says the source, “and that he had knowledge of mental issues. I asked again, ‘Is he a psychologist?’ I was told no, but he was great.”

The doctor, according to my source, sent out a message to the Jackson camp not to interfere with him. “I was told the doctor said not to placate Michael…tough love. This made me more irate. The mixed messages were insane. I begged [people on the inside]. I said, ‘Michael has lost 15 pounds since May!’ People thought they had it under control. They didn’t.”

This friend of Michael’s continued: “Everyone ‘thought they had it under control. There was too much at stake to think it wasn’t.’We just kept on going, hoping we could get the show up in London. Michael told me he wasn’t able to sleep. (my signal he was looking for’ drugs). He said his mind didn’t stop creating.

“I called Alberto (the security guard who eventually called 911) and told him to keep a close watch on’ Michael because I was concerned.’ I asked Alberto how often they were taking him to see [Arnold] Klein. He said two to three times a week.

“My suspicion is he was going there to ’sleep.’ Michael cannot sleep after performances.’ His adrenalin is so high, it takes him about 24 hours to relax. He rehearsed harder than ever…I think he really wanted to get this together and wanted to sleep to be able to do it again on Thursday. His heart was so weakened by his weight loss, his mental state and his physical exertion…it finally broke. And whoever was on watch failed him.

“I think both doctors contributed to his final demise.’ But it was’ years of anguish that drove him to finding ways to escape the pain.”

Michael Jackson’s Overlooked Local Doctor

Roger Friedman
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While the Los Angeles Police Department is focused on Michael Jackson’s principal doctors ‘ Conrad Murray and Arnold Klein ‘‘there are others worth investigating.

I’ve told you already about Dr. Neil Ratner of Woodstock, New York. He was the anesthesiologist who traveled with Jackson in the 90s.

Now I’m told there’s another doctor closer to Michael geographically: Dr. Stuart Finkelstein of Cerritos, California. Ironically, Dr. Finkelstein lists himself as an addiction specialist. When I tried to talk to him last week, he read me a statement and got off the phone. Finkelstein has gotten a lot of publicity for working with Britney Spears and Robert Downey Jr., among others. One article referred to him as “the rock and roll doctor.”

But sources who were close to Michael Jackson have lots of stories of Dr. Finkelstein traveling with the pop star in the mid-1990s on tour in places like Bangkok.

According to one observer, Dr. Finkelstein would supply Michael with the drugs he wanted, then tape the “antidote” to what he’d given him to the singer’s headboard.

“I refused to take part in any of it,” says this longtime Jacko friend. “I was asked to transport ‘patches’ to Bangkok during the ‘Dangerous’ tour. I refused. When I arrived the doctor found me and said it was’ good thing I didn’t because it was syringes and liquid opiates and I would have been hanged in Thailand for bringing them in without being a doctor.”

This source continues: “Michael was addicted, he was tortured in life. The doctors would ‘balance’ his drugs, just enough, so he could PERFORM and make his benefactors rich…Other doctors were just aboard for the celebrity ride. The exciting Michael Jackson ride would end, if the supply would dry up…I threatened doctors, but new ones would appear.”

The source of these quotes asks to remain anonymous. But the person is very much part of Michael’s inner circle. One day “they” may tell the whole story of who did what to him.

Meanwhile, last night’s ABC interview with Joseph Jackson was the lamest of all. In all the PR and flackery, no mention was made of Joe Jackson’s illegitimate child, the two times Katherine Jackson filed for divorce, the daughter-in-law who died in the Jackson swimming pool, or this Jackson family value: how Jermaine stole Randy’s wife and kids from him. Someone should interview Margaret Maldonado Jackson, Jermaine’s second wife, for the real perspective on the Jackson family. Ouch!

But one thing was clear: the Jacksons have not failed to exploit Michael’s death or earn money from it. His casket remains without a permanent home and Michael has only been dead for less than three weeks. What a family.

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