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Sad News: Cher Announces the Passing of Her Mother, Georgia Holt, at Age 96

Roger Friedman
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Sad News: Cher Announces the Passing of Her Mother, Georgia Holt, at Age 96

Sad to report, Cher has announced the passing of her mother, Georgia Holt, at age 96. Late tonight the singer tweeted: “Mom’s gone.”

Georgia Holt was married and divorced six times. She gave Cher a half sister in Georganne LaPiere. Show business was in this family’s blood. Holt has a career as a country singer and model. Georgeanne has also acted.

The closeness of mother and daughters was always emphasized since Cher became famous with Sonny Bono in the mid 1960s.

Rest in peace. Condolences to the family.

Mark Wahlberg-Mel Gibson “Father Stu Reborn” Bombs in PG-13 Re-release with $108K

Roger Friedman
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Mark Wahlberg-Mel Gibson “Father Stu Reborn” Bombs in PG-13 Re-release with $108K

No one wanted to see “Father Stu” back at Easter time. No one wants to see it now.

The original R related release of the Mark Wahlberg-Mel Gibson dramedy made around $20 million. It went away quickly.

Sony thought they’d re-cut it and send it out for the holidays. Now the studio estimates that in wide release, “Father Stu Reborn” will make just $108K this weekend. Even cutting it a PG-13 edition didn’t help. Now the cursing comes from the audience instead of the screen.

#RIP Father Stu. If anyone’s contemplating a TV series, just forget it.

Watch Live Telethon Now: Hollywood Retirement Home Raising $750K — A Little Less than the CEO’s Salary

Roger Friedman
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Watch Live Telethon Now: Hollywood Retirement Home Raising $750K — A Little Less than the CEO’s Salary

The Motion Picture and Television Fund is raising money right now live on KLTA Los Angeles. You can watch the telethon here. It’s a little like a Jerry Lewis Telethon or the Joe Franklin Show.

The telethon is trying to raise $750K, which is a little less than CEO Bob Beicher’s annual salary.

Dig it.

And read this.

Shhhh! Selena Gomez Is Set to Sing on “SNL” Tonight, Appearing with Steve Martin, Martin Short

Roger Friedman
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Shhhh! Selena Gomez Is Set to Sing on “SNL” Tonight, Appearing with Steve Martin, Martin Short

Shhh!

World is Selena Gomez is singing tonight on “SNL.” She’s joining her “Only Murders in the Building” co-stars Steve Martin and Martin Short, who are co-hosting. Brandi Carlile is the musical guest. Selena could be singing with her, or on her own. Maybe someone who goes to the dress rehearsal can send up a tip…showbiz411@gmail.com

Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson’s Younger Son, Truman, Makes Movie Acting Debut in “A Man Called Otto”

Roger Friedman
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Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson’s Younger Son, Truman, Makes Movie Acting Debut in “A Man Called Otto”

It’s no secret that two of Tom Hanks’s kids, Colin and Chet, are in the acting biz. Colin, especially, has a long list of credits. Chet’s had a more colorful life but he has a few credits and had some nice moments in “Greyhound.”

Now Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson’s youngest son, Truman, turns up a not so small role in Marc Forster’s “A Man Called Otto.” Tom plays Otto, a wily neighborhood curmudgeon, in this sweet character study. Truman, who has no acting experience, plays Otto in flashbacks. He has a natural charm and, of course, resembles his dad.

Prior to this, Truman Hanks has one credit as a glorified extra in Tom’s “News of the World.” But this time around, he’s a full character, and an important one. He acquits himself very well, and could easily have a career if he wants. After all, with Tom and Rita and Colin and Chet, it’s the family business.

“Otto” also boats a terrific spark plug of a performance from Mexican actress Mariana Treviño. We also need to see movies from director Marc Forster, who’s given us “Finding Neverland,” “Stranger than Fiction,” and “World War Z.”

“A Man Called Otto” doesn’t come out til the end of the month. There’s a review embargo, and most press haven’t seen it. I’d say the marketing strategy at Sony is unusual at best. But there are you are.

Awards: National Board of Review Tax Exempt 2019 Finances: $600K in Revenue, $300K in Salaries, $0 in Aid to Filmmakers

Roger Friedman
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Awards: National Board of Review Tax Exempt 2019 Finances: $600K in Revenue, $300K in Salaries, $0 in Aid to Filmmakers

EXCLUSIVE It’s the same old song.

This week we all received the National Board of Review’s winners of film prizes for 2022. The NBR is a fan based group that charges membership fees, then charges those members again to attend their annual gala. The whole thing is run by Annie Schulhof, who determines the winners of the prizes. David Laub, an executive with A24 Films, is on the board. This year, A24 got 7 citations for its films.

The finances of the NBR are always a question. Their most recent tax filing as a not for profit, 501 c(3), tells an interesting story. For 2019-20, with most of it falling in 2019, is alarming as usual.

Total revenue was $585,456. Total salaries came to $317,933. Net assets were listed as $556,323.

What did this not for profit entity distribute from their coffers? The answer is $0. Zero dollars. Nothing. Goose eggs. This was down from a mere $72,500 in 2018.

And still they claimed a loss of $48,044 from their one event, the annual gala at Cipriani 42nd St. where they charge studios for picking up the tables, and members to sit at them.

The NBR’s expenses including over $46,000 for rent, and $20,000 for advertising/promotion, office expenses, and “information technology” (that would be their mimeograph machine). The first listing– advertising/promotion– is ridiculous on its face since the studios use the NBR awards in their own ads. The NBR doesn’t promote itself.

It’s a scam. Nice work if you can get it. All this to have your picture taken with actors.

American Film Institute Snubs All Streaming Films for 2022 Best, Also Ignores Much Hyped “Whale”

Roger Friedman
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American Film Institute Snubs All Streaming Films for 2022 Best, Also Ignores Much Hyped “Whale”

Yesterday when I was traveling the American Film Institute announced its best films of the year.

And there was a big surprise: no choices from Netflix, Apple, Amazon, Hulu or any other streaming entity. Nada.

All 10 films, as well as special 11th, were from the major studios.

Also snubbed were several heavily hyped films that did come from the studios including “The Whale,” starring Brendan Fraser, and “Till” and “Bones and All.” (The former is from A24, the lattert two from MGM, now considered part of Amazon).

The lack of Netflix on the list is surprising because they spend millions on awards campaigns. But this year their only real prospect, Guillermo del Toro’s “Pinocchio,” was thought to be in the running.

The top 10 movies are: Avatar 2, Elvis, Everything Everywhere All at Once, The Fabelmans, Nope, She Said, Tar, Top Gun Maverick, The Woman King, and Women Talking. The special award went to The Banshees of Inisherin because it’s technically a foreign film but in the English language.

About half of these will make it to the final round of the Oscars: Elvis, The Fabelmans, She Said, Tar, and Top Gun. The others are up in the air. The AFI also rejected Black Panther Wakanda Forever, Empire of Light, and Armageddon Time as well as Amsterdam and Babylon.

The whole list feels right, although I would have swapped out something for “Till.” The story was important enough to be included.

The AFI also chose 10 TV series including The Bear, Severance, Hacks, The White Lotus, Pachinko, Mo, Somebody Somewhere, Reservation Dogs, and the final season of Better Call Saul. Two perennials were missing– Succession and The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel — because their most recent seasons were covered last year.

The snubbing of The Whale is most interesting. Originally this was the most overhyped movie of the season. Then when it finally started getting reviews, the numbers were not encouraging. It’s now at 67 on Rotten Tomatoes. Not only did the AFI dismiss it, but the National Bored of Review ignored it totally despite giving its studio, A24, seven nods because one of its execs is on their board. Even his insider participation didn’t help!

UPDATE: 5 Million Fans Watched Kelli Giddish’s “SVU” Exit While Show’s EP is Accused of Bullying and “Toxic Behavior”

Roger Friedman
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UPDATE: 5 Million Fans Watched Kelli Giddish’s “SVU” Exit While Show’s EP is Accused of Bullying and “Toxic Behavior”

SATURDAY NOON: Real numbers were higher– 4.98, we’ll call it 5 million. Now we’ll see next week how fans respond to Giddish being gone.

FRIDAY OVERNIGHT REPORT: Last night, 4.88 million people watched Kelli Giddish’s exit as Detective Rollins on “Law & Order SVU.” Giddish played Amanda Rollins for 12 seasons but was written out by Dick Wolf Productions when they couldn’t come to a salary resolution.

Wolf wanted to cut Giddish’s pay because she’s older and costs more as the show ages and needs a lower budget. The fans turned out for her happy ending — a wedding and a wave goodbye as Amanda goes off to teach at Fordham University. (Terrible idea but better than killing her off.)

Meantime, this season’s Executive Producer, David Graziano, replacing the popular Warren Leight, is in hot water. The 50 year old writer and produce has been accused by more than a dozen people who’ve worked with him over the years of being really mean to his underlings: mistreating staffers, having a hair trigger temper, and making inappropriate and demeaning comments toward women and minorities.

You would think this would have come out sooner, and Mariska Hargitay would say something. But these things are slow to percolate. Last March I told you about the showrunner from “The Good Fight” finally being sacked after years of abusing the staff.

Will Graziano stay? Will Rollins ever return? (Giddish will turn up on an episode of “Law & Order Organized Crime” later this season). Will all the popular actors let go by Dick Wolf over the last 25 years start their own show? Stay tuned!

Mariah Carey Dethroned as Queen of Christmas Pop as Brenda Lee Out-Streams Her with Classic 1958 Hit

Roger Friedman
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Mariah Carey Dethroned as Queen of Christmas Pop as Brenda Lee Out-Streams Her with Classic 1958 Hit

Who is the Queen of Christmas pop? Is it Mariah Carey?

Not exactly. On iTunes today, Mariah’s “All I Want for Christmas” is four notches higher than Brenda Lee’s classic “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.” Mariah’s at number 2, Brenda’s at number 6.

But in streaming, Brenda is number 1 on the charts leading Mariah significantly according to hitsdailydouble.com. Indeed, Brenda jumped 55% this week as opposed to Mariah’s increase of just 41%.

Brenda had 25.3 million streams versus Mariah’s 24.5 million. Bobby Helms’s “Jingle Bell Rock” is in third place.

Brenda’s turning 78 on Sunday and I’m sure she’s happy about the success of the record. She’s getting some money from sales and streaming, but not much. She didn’t write “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree,” Johnny Marks did. His estate gets all the money from radio play, Brenda gets nothing. That’s why MusicFirst’s performance royalty bill, heading to Congress, is so important. Imagine if Brenda had been paid for all that radio play. She’d really be rocking around that Christmas tree!

https://youtube.com/watch?v=4vn_I0-3WOk

Broadway: Audra McDonald Goes for Her 7th Tony Award in “Ohio State Murders” Drama, A List Crowd Cheers Opening Night

Roger Friedman
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Broadway: Audra McDonald Goes for Her 7th Tony Award in “Ohio State Murders” Drama, A List Crowd Cheers Opening Night

You know that Audra McDonald has six Tony Awards, she’s only 52 so more are coming. And tonight, the 7th was lined up with McDonald appearing in 91 year old Adrienne Kennedy‘s Broadway debut play. “Ohio State Murders.”

The biggest problem with “OSM” is that Kenny Leon directed it, and it’s the second play of this season — starting with “Top Dog/Underdog” — that will net him Tony attention. Leon is having a moment right now after a 30 year year. Who knows what else he has up his sleeve? Plus, his curtain call speeches are becoming legendary as well.

A wild A list crowd showed up at the newly named James Earl Jones Theater (formerly the Cort) which has been transformed into quite a lovely petit palais on West 48th St. I saw next to Tony Goldwyn and his daughter, ran into Rebecca Hall and husband Morgan Spector, LaTanya Richardson chastised me for not seeing “The Piano Lesson” yet, I also spotted Kelli O’Hara, and Molly Ringwald.

At the Champagne reception following McDonald’s breathtaking performance, her husband, WIll Swenson, popped over from his star turn as Neil Diamond in “A Beautiful Noise.” I was also happy to see my old friend, the great writer Joan Juliet Buck with another terrific writer, Allegra Huston (yes, she’s Anjelica’s talented sister) and their friend, the great gold medal Para- Olympian and actress Aimee Mullins (who’s also married to Rupert Friend and has a role in Wes Anderson’s next movie, and has a resume that includes many episodes of “Stranger Things”). Whew!

Why is this Adrienne Kennedy’s Broadway debut? She’s a highly regarded avant garde playwright whose work has been produced everywhere. But a commercial venture? This is it finally. Buck and Huston, and Mullins are all personal friends plus a lot of Kennedy’s family was present. She, they say, stayed home in Williamsburg, Virginia. “She was afraid she’s so excited she’d pass out,” the ladies told me. Well, she has a few months to get ready for the 2023 Tony Awards because “Ohio State Murders” will most certainly be nominated.

Audra McDonald, you also know, is a sensational singer. But the music she sings in “Ohio State Murders” is the song of Suzanne, a fictional representation of Kennedy. Sue is a visiting speaker at Ohio State, where she recalls that in 1952, as a student, one of her two children was murdered. (This is not Kennedy’s story.) The 75 minute presentation is dotted with a supporting cast of vast talents, including Bryce Pinkham, Mister Fitzgerald, Lizan Mitchell, and violinist Abigail Stephenson. But it’s McDonald’s show 98 percent of the time. She’s riveting, devastating, and mesmerizing. Her Suzanne is so commanding that when the play ends you want her to keep talking.

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