Monday, September 23, 2024
Donate
Home Blog Page 925

Diana Ross Gets Supremely Bad Treatment from TSA in New Orleans: “Was over the top! Makes me wanna cry! I am feeling violated- I still feel her hands between my legs!”

Roger Friedman
-
0
Diana Ross Gets Supremely Bad Treatment from TSA in New Orleans: “Was over the top! Makes me wanna cry! I am feeling violated- I still feel her hands between my legs!”

Diana Ross says she was “treated like shit” by the TSA in New Orleans this morning. On Twitter, she posted news that she’d been treated like royalty at the New Orleans jazz fest only to be “treated like shit” at the airport.

“OK so on one hand I’m treated like royalty in New Orleans and at the airport I was treated like shit…Let me be clear , Not the peiple or Delta BUT TSA , was over the top !! Makes me want to cry !!!….Its not what was done but how , I am feeling violated – I still feel her hands between my legs , front and back ( saying to me it her job ,) WOW!!really mixed emotions I always like to see the good things but not feeling good right now”

The spelling errors are likely due to Ross trying to type quickly as the incident was going on.

This is NOT a diva complaining. A lot of people can identify exactly with what happened here. I’m sure this will not be the last we hear about this incident! Shameful!

Last night, Ross had made a stunning appearance at the New Orleans Jazz Fest, winning rave reviews.

 

READ The Truth about the Met Ball aka the Met gala

“Game of Thones” Author George R. R. Martin Says There are Three HBO Prequels, Makes No Mention of Long- Postponed Final Book, Sort of Endorses Joe Biden

Roger Friedman
-
0
“Game of Thones” Author George R. R. Martin Says There are Three HBO Prequels, Makes No Mention of Long- Postponed Final Book, Sort of Endorses Joe Biden

There’s some “Game of Thrones” news as the HBO series approaches episode 4 of its final season.

Author George R. R. Martin said in a blog post on Saturday that there had been five prequel series in development. Only three of them are viable, and one is moving forward. It’s called “The Long Night.”

Martin writes: We have had five different GAME OF THRONES successor shows in development (I mislike the term “spinoffs”) at HBO, and three of them are still moving forward nicely. The one I am not supposed to call THE LONG NIGHT will be shooting later this year, and two other shows remain in the script stage, but are edging closer. What are they about? I cannot say. But maybe some of you should pick up a copy of FIRE & BLOOD and come up with your own theories.

Martin has some other observations but makes no comment about about “The Winds of Winter,” the book he’s never finished. The final chapter of the “Game of Thrones” saga was due a couple of years ago. Without it, the series’ producers had to write their own ending to the series, which is really very on the nose and textually not the same as prior seasons. If he ever finished “Winds” and it’s different than the series, fans won’t care. They’ll accept the book as the real story.

Martin also sort of endorses Joe Biden for president: Out in the real world, I was pleased that Joe Biden finally announced his candidacy for president. There are a lot of good Democrats running, maybe too many, and I’d probably vote for any one of them over the present blot upon the Oval Office. The main things I want in a nominee, however, are twofold: (1) someone who can beat Trump, and (2) someone who would actually be a good/ great president. Biden qualifies on both counts. Also, the speech he gave announcing his run was kickass… and so, so true. I wish him well.

Anna Wintour’s Met Ball Lost More and Cost More in 2017 Than In Any Year Previously, With Nearly $4 Mil Spent to Put on Vanity Evening

Roger Friedman
-
0
Anna Wintour’s Met Ball Lost More and Cost More in 2017 Than In Any Year Previously, With Nearly $4 Mil Spent to Put on Vanity Evening

Anna Wintour just keeps spending more and more money on the annual Met Ball. And the Met Ball numbers are trending down.

The Met Ball, of course, is supposed to be a big fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum of Art. Once a year they let Wintour invite in the Kardashians and various fashion world people to make a spectacle of themselves on the red carpet. Wintour rules the Met Ball from her Iron Throne. This year’s Ball takes place on May 6th. The theme is “Notes on Camp.” Not Notes from camp, like in the Berkshires. But it would be funny if people dressed that away.

For the 2017 ball, the theme was “Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garçons.” This is the last Met Ball for which numbers are available, and they took in a total of $12.2 million. That was significantly down from 2016, when the total was 13.5 million. It was more in the neighborhood of 2015, when the total was $12.6 million.

The Met Ball sits on the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s gross total for all fundraisers like a heavy weight. Overall, the Met lost $4.9 million on its fundraisers when you factor in the Met Ball. The previous year the loss $4.7 million. and and in 2015 it was $4.5 million. It also costs a lot more. The 2017 Met Ball had direct expenses of $3.9 million, which means food, travel, etc that wasn’t donated but charged to the Museum. That’s pretty Ball-sy.

The contributions to the Museum via the Met Ball are down as well. In 2016 they were $13.371 million. In 2017, they fell to $11.8 million. There are no available numbers yet for last year’s Ball.

It will be interesting to see if Wintour, who cannot be reined in, will cut costs this year.

National Enquirer Cover Story about Aretha Franklin “Exhumation” 100% Fake News But She Would Have Liked the Publicity

Roger Friedman
-
0
National Enquirer Cover Story about Aretha Franklin “Exhumation” 100% Fake News But She Would Have Liked the Publicity

The National Enquirer. I hope Jimmy Cohen’s Hudson News knows what they’ve gotten into.

The May 13th cover story claims that Aretha Franklin is being exhumed because she was possibly murdered. “There was no autopsy!” the headlines cry. The Enquirer also claims there’s been theft, and has a quote from Aretha’s boyfriend, Willie Wilkerson.

Well, there’s no exhumation. That’s ridiculous. Also no autopsy was required. Aretha wasn’t murdered. She died from pancreatic cancer. It’s absurd to say she was murdered. And offensive. She suffered from that cancer, and had excellent care from her family and friends. She would laugh if she saw this story. But I think she’d like the publicity! Aretha had a great sense of humor, to a point.

The whole story is offensive, frankly. Wilkerson never spoke to the Enquirer. Everything in that story is fabricated. Every word of it. There’s been no thievery of cash or belongings. Aretha’s estate has been calmly administered. There is no scandal. Someone offer proof of that, on the record.

Willie Wilkerson, by the way, was Aretha’s most loyal pal and employee, and is still grieving her death from last August. So are her relatives. But the Pulitzer Prize ceremony on May 28th will be a salve to that pain.

Meantime, Aretha’s long time friend and photographer, Linda Solomon, of Detroit, will be publishing a book of exclusive pics in October. “The Queen Next Door: Aretha Franklin, An Intimate Portrait” has a foreword by Burt Bacharach and an afterword by Sabrina Garrett Owens, Aretha’s niece and executor. On Monday I’ll show a couple of pictures from the collection. They are just wonderful. The book really is a tribute to the Queen of Soul. Linda, by the way, is sister of former Today show correspondent Jill Rappaport. They were great friends of Lady Soul.

But National Enquirer– they should get the National Book Award for Fiction. LOL. They must be “Daydreaming”!

PS The real thing– Aretha’s gospel doc, “Amazing Grace,” is on its way to $3 million at the box office. Audiences are going crazy for it.

Box Office: “Avengers: Endgame” Crosses $500 Mil US After 8 Days, $2 Billion Worldwide This Weekend, and No Sign of Letting Up

Roger Friedman
-
0
Box Office: “Avengers: Endgame” Crosses $500 Mil US After 8 Days, $2 Billion Worldwide This Weekend, and No Sign of Letting Up

It’s all about “Avengers” and their “Endgame.”

The Marvel mega pic crossed the $500 million mark in the US last night. It’s already well on its way to $600 million. After just 8 days!

Worldwide including the US, “Endgame” will be past the $2 billion mark on Sunday. Again, in just 8 days.

The march of the Avengers continues unimpeded. This week it will finish at number 1 again, with a slight dent from counter-programmed romcom “The Long Shot.” There are no blockbusters coming next week either except maybe “Pokemon: Detective Pikachu” which is a family film. This “Endgame” could go on a long time. The next really big releases are “John Wick 3,” and then “Aladdin.”

Check back tomorrow morning to see the whole “Endgame” damage.

Dynamic Broadway Producer, Heiress, Society Fixture Terry Allen Kramer Dies at Age 85, Backed Many Tony Award Winning Shows

Roger Friedman
-
0
Dynamic Broadway Producer, Heiress, Society Fixture Terry Allen Kramer Dies at Age 85, Backed Many Tony Award Winning Shows

It’s hard to believe Terry Allen Kramer is gone. She died in New York on Thursday at age 85, according to reports.

Terry was a dynamo. Armed with her father’s fortune from founding the investment firm Allen & Co., Terry put her money into Broadway and was a winner. She backed dozens of shows that received dozens of nominations, and won several, too, for the recent revival of “Hello, Dolly!” as well as “The Humans,” “Kinky Boots,” “La Cage aux Folles,” and Edward Albee’s “The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?”

With her gravely voice, sunburnt skin, and glittery formal skirts, Terry the epitome of old world glamour, fashion and fun. But she was also a tough broad, a real dame, and smart as a whip. She didn’t suffer fools gladly, but she really appreciated a good time. If she’d been a man, she would have been a Master of the Universe equal to her brothers or her father.

Her father, Charles Allen, started Allen & Co. in 1933. His son ran it, and now his nephew is the CEO. Allen & Co. stays out of the headlines, and runs like a stealth submarine. Their only PR comes from their annual summer meeting in Sun Valley, Idaho for billionaire chiefs of media companies. The gathering has become legendary.

Terry Allen was married three times, and she had three children. The Kramer came from her long marriage to investment banker Irwin Kramer, who worked for her father. The last years of her life she was married to Nick Simunek, who died in 2014. Nick’s death didn’t slow Terry down. She was the queen of Palm Beach society and a force to be reckoned with.

But she was also a great friend to so many people. Her honesty and authenticity made her disarming. Think of her as the good version of Cersei Lannister. She was a beneficent ruler. So much of Broadway history since the late 70s wouldn’t have happened without her. A lot of front line producers who needed her support must really be in mourning today. She will be sorely missed.

Terry’s story isn’t over, yet, either. Her Palm Beach estate, La Follia, went on the market last November for a whopping $135 million. With massive beach frontage, La Follia itself is 37,516 square feet! It was built in 1995, so it doesn’t have the history of Mar-a-Lago, but it’s 100 times more tasteful, a Tony-winning Terry Allen Kramer production.

Broadway Shocker: Eight Year Old Musical “Book of Mormon” in Trouble After Heyday Passes, Goes on Discount for First Time

Roger Friedman
-
0
Broadway Shocker: Eight Year Old Musical “Book of Mormon” in Trouble After Heyday Passes, Goes on Discount for First Time

Eight years ago, you couldn’t get a ticket to “The Book of Mormon” on Broadway. The show was sold out when it opened in March 2011, and continued that way for years. Tickets were routinely sold for $500 and up. I paid $250 for my crappy ticket opening week because the producer, Scott Rudin, refused to provide press seats. Why bother? “Mormon” was a runaway hit.

But those heady days appear to be over. Today, for the first time in memory, “The Book of Mormon” is being offered on a discount site, Stubhub.com, and not as a resale. For one night, May 11th, you can buy orchestra seats for just $99.

Things are worse than that. A quick random check of several dates through May, June, and July show that a lot of “Book of Mormon” seats are available at normal, if not discounted, prices. On June 22nd, almost the entire theater is unsold. I checked a random Tuesday in July, the 10th, on ticketmaster.com. Orchestra seats are available for $69.

It’s not like people are picking and choosing nights for “Book of Mormon” based on the cast. Even though the original cast boasted Josh Gad, Andrew Rannells, and Nikki M. James– who won awards and went on to big things– the current cast is composed of just Broadway regulars. (Talented regulars, I should add.)

For years, “Book of Mormon” was part of a trio of shows that included “The Lion King” and “Wicked” that were unstoppable at the box office. But now, while those shows continue to rake in $2 million a week, “Mormon” struggles to cross the $1 million mark. It’s missed it several times lately, which may be why Rudin is finally giving in to discount services.

There’s no question that “Book of Mormon” has made millions for everyone involved, paid back the investors, been a boon to “South Park” creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone. But it also may be true that everyone who wanted to see it, has. “The Lion King” and “Wicked” are family shows. “The Book of Mormon,” which sings about raping babies, is not. They may have finally exhausted their audience. It could be time for the curtain to come down and the movie version to arrive.

Meantime, if you’re coming to New York in August, don’t even worry about advance booking for “Mormon. On the 15th, the last night before New Yorkers leave town before Labor Day, just about the entire theater is available.

Zac Efron, Charming and Sinister in New Ted Bundy Film, Says Tom Hanks Told Him: “Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse”– But He Doesn’t Like to Admit It

Roger Friedman
-
0
Zac Efron, Charming and Sinister in New Ted Bundy Film, Says Tom Hanks Told Him: “Rehearse, rehearse, rehearse”– But He Doesn’t Like to Admit It

I learned a lot tonight about serial killer Ted Bundy, actor Zac Efron, and movie making in general.

Efron, who’s far been kind of a male pin up, gives a devastatingly charming and sinister perfomance as serial killer Ted Bundy in Joe Berlinger’s “Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil, and Vile” which hits Netflix now. Berlinger, an award winning documentary filmmaker, has done an excellent job not glamorizing Bundy but telling a different kind of story rather than a police procedural.

“EW” for short is told through the eyes of Bundy’s lover and fiancee, Liz Kendall, who couldn’t believe in her heart what horrors he’d committed but knew it enough in her head to turn in to the police. Lily Collins has Liz just right– mousey at first, naive, and then explosive when she realizes what she’s done. Watch her arc, it’s fascinating.

“EW” was screened last night at the Tribeca Film Festival with the cast present. We not only learned about the characters, but the actors, too. Efron, wearing a cloud of dyed blonde hair, could not describe for the audience his research for the part. So Collins took over and told the audience, “He won’t admit it, but he does a ton of prep.”

Efron shrugged, and seemed a little confused. But then he said something that I asked him about later. “Tom Hanks told me, Rehearse, rehease, rehearse.” When I asked him backstage, he said that was true.

“Tom did tell me that. And the fact is, I don’t like talking about how I approach a part. My preparation is private. I want to make it look easy, I don’t want you to know how I got there.” So bully for him. You can’t take your eyes off Efron as Bundy, he’s that good. A magician is not required to tell us the secret to his tricks. Efron is entitled to his privacy. But I think we’re going to see more and more serious roles from him.

Collins is just super as Liz. Her next roles are in “Les Miserables” and “Tolkein,” for which she’s already receiving raves.

Berlinger has given Netflix a gift with this movie. I’ll bet it scores huge views. Bundy never becomes sympathetic, don’t worried. But we get to see the gears turning in his head, all leading to his final scene with Collins in which the whole thing becomes an epiphany. Nicely done.

Elton John’s “Rocketman” Will Get Special Fandango Showing on May 18th, 2 Weeks Before It Opens

Roger Friedman
-
0
Elton John’s “Rocketman” Will Get Special Fandango Showing on May 18th, 2 Weeks Before It Opens

It’s not going to be such a long, long time before see Elton John’s “Rocketman.”

Paramount and Fandango have scheduled a special one night screening at 7pm on May 18th. It’s all over the country, and means that Paramount is so confident about the film they want to tease it to super Elton fans.

“We’re proud to team up with Paramount Pictures to host Early Access Screenings for ‘Rocketman,’” says Fandango President Paul Yanover. “Our first two Early Access Screenings generated great buzz for ‘How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World’ and ‘Shazam!’ We think Fandango VIP members and fans will be delighted to have the opportunity to see this highly-anticipated Elton John musical fantasy two weeks before its release date.”

Tickets are on sale now at Fandango.com.

Will Bono, DiCaprio, Pitt Attend Cannes amFAR This Year? Still No Report from Last Year, Org Shows $8 Mil Drop in Revenue 2016-17

Roger Friedman
-
0
Will Bono, DiCaprio, Pitt Attend Cannes amFAR This Year? Still No Report from Last Year, Org Shows $8 Mil Drop in Revenue 2016-17

Last year’s amFAR in Cannes gala was a disaster. The organization still has not reported how much money it made or lost from their auction and ticket sales. It was the first time ever that they didn’t trumpet the information immediately during or after the glittery evening at the Hotel duCap.

A source says, mockingly: “They’re still counting.”

This year, amFAR — which has lost its Hollywood appeal in the last couple of years — will count on Bono, Brad Pitt, and Leonardo DiCaprio — to come through for them. The premiere for their movie, “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood,” is two days before the amFAR dinner. amFAR also counts on no one asking questions, no one asking for a clear picture of what’s going on.

Ironically. amFAR still associates with odd people. Their so called global head of fundraising is still the very shady Milutin Gatsby (a made up name). DiCaprio, who has his own non-transparent foundation, got rid of Gatsby very quietly a few years ago.

The most recent financial filings available for amFAR are for 2016-17. On their Federal Form 990, amFAR reveals they were down $8 million in revenue from the previous year. Yet, salaries were up. CEO Kevin Frost pulled in almost $700,000 in salary and benefits that year. amFAR listed $6 million for salaries in 2016-2017, divided among a handful of executives.

The Cannes event is expensive to produce. It costs amFAR upwards of $5 million in direct expenses. In 2016, they paid the Hotel duCap almost $1 million to rent the place, $300K for food and beverages, another miscellaneous $3 million, and $3.7 million for entertainment that included performances by Katy Perry, The Village People, Sister Sledge, and The Bluebell Girls, and a fashion show curated by former Vogue editor Carine Roitfeld.

Maybe Bono et al will ask to see the financial records from last year. The event was sponsored by Moncler, Chopard, and Kiehl’s. You’d think they’d be interested about the finances from that night, too. On the amFAR website, the report for the 2018 gala is the only one that doesn’t say how much money was earned.

“They’ll still counting.”

1...924925926...2,128Page 925 of 2,128

Hollywood to the Hudson

Company

Trending

Categories

© Showbiz411.com