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Golden Globes Show: Terrible Hosts, No Point of View, No Humor All Led to Very Bad Ratings and a Tepid Night

Roger Friedman
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Golden Globes Show: Terrible Hosts, No Point of View, No Humor All Led to Very Bad Ratings and a Tepid Night

Andy Samberg and Sandra Oh were random choices for hosts of the Golden Globes. The result was equally pedestrian. IN the Beverly Hills Hilton ballroom, black tie dressed guests roamed around looking for food– the dinner is removed before the show starts– while the hosts unfurled a tragically humorless opening bit that made no sense. It was forgettable as it was spoken.

The ratings reflect the basic strangeness of the night. This year 15.71 million people watched the show on average. The first hour boasted 19 million coming off the football game, but by the time the show ended there were just 12 million. That’s a disaster.

It’s not like the movies were ones no one had seen. “A Star is Born” has made $200 million. “Bohemian Rhapsody” has too, and a total of $750 million worldwide. Lady Gaga is a huge draw, and was presented first in the show.

But then the Globes’ antipathy toward “A Star is Born” and Gaga became apparent, and the ratings dropped commensurately. So did the interest in the room. Plus, after all the hoopla about “Black Panther” being nominated, the movie was forgotten on the show. So those fans tuned out, too.

And what was the point of view? The word “Trump” was never mentioned once. Two years ago, the Globes were on fire with political messages. Meryl Streep delivered a fiery speech. This  year, no one said a word. The closest we got was Christian Bale comparing Dick Cheney to Satan. NBC clearly asked the HFPA to tone it down this year rather than lose the big football audience that flooded into the first hour. But in the end, those people left anyway.

 

 

Exclusive: Famed Artist and Director Julian Schnabel Marries for a Third Time, to Interior Designer-Film Editor Louise Kugelberg

Roger Friedman
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Exclusive: Famed Artist and Director Julian Schnabel Marries for a Third Time, to Interior Designer-Film Editor Louise Kugelberg

On the Golden Globes red carpet yesterday afternoon, Julian Schnabel gave me some important personal news. This week he married for the third time, to interior designer and film editor Louise Kugelberg. He’s 67, she’s in her thirties. But they’ve been together for some time and seem happy. Congrats!

Schnabel is a famous painter, of course, and film director. His latest, “At Eternity’s Gate,” is a wonderful biopic of Vincent van Gogh. Kugelberg actually edited the film, her first effort, and co-wrote the screenplay.

Schnabel was previously married to Jacqueline Beaurang, with whom he has three children–Lola, Vito, and Stella– and Olatz López Garmendia, the mother of his twin sons, Olmo and Cy. He also has a 4 year old son with model May Anderson. Lola is a few years older than her new step mother but — you know– what the heck? I’ve talked to Louise a lot, and she’s great. Much happiness to both of them!

Golden Globes Resurrect Oscar Chances for “Green Book,” But Shock Snub Lady Gaga, “A Star is Born”

Roger Friedman
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Golden Globes Resurrect Oscar Chances for “Green Book,” But Shock Snub Lady Gaga, “A Star is Born”

The word going in last night was that the 90 member Hollywood Foreign Press Association didn’t like “A Star is Born.” And I guess that was true, since the HFPA– an eclectic group to say the least– pretty much snubbed the Bradley Cooper-directed film. Lady Gaga lost Best Actress to Glenn Close in “The Wife.” Cooper lost Best Actor and Best Director. Cooper’s screenplay lost as well.

But the Globes are rarely predictive of the Oscars. We’ll see more real signs next Sunday at the Critics Choice Awards. For the moment we have to live with the Globes choices, some of which made sense, some of which are off.

Frankly, I would have thought Lady Gaga would win the Globe and lose the Oscar to Glenn Close. Now it might be the other way around. But I do think Gaga is glad for the nomination and realizes that Close– who’s been waiting three decades for an award– may be having a moment at last.

The bigger surprise is that “Bohemian Rhapsody,” a movie with no director,  won the Globe for Best Picture-Drama. That’s certainly a first. And the Best Director, Alfonso Cuaron, didn’t direct the Best Picture, but just the Best Foreign Film. Go figure.

The main takeaway on the movie side is that “Green Book” is back in the race. The movie won Best Comedy, and screenplay. Mahershala Ali won Best Supporting Actor. I  do think “Green Book” is headed to Best Picture at the Oscars and that Viggo Mortensen still has a shot at Best Actor, along with Mahershala.

This doesn’t eliminate “Roma” from the race. Netflix will now position “Roma” as the art movie that must win the Academy Award.

So what about “A Star is Born”? You could say that $200 million at the box office is its reward. Maybe it was too successful. Lady Gaga can still win the Oscar, I think. It depends on how much the Academy voters respond negatively to the HFPA choices.

On the TV side, the biggest surprise was Amy Adams losing Best Actress for “Sharp Objects” to Patricia Arquette in “Escape at Dannemora.” They are each great performances but the latter had the advantage of airing as the HFPA voted. I think it was that simple. Next September for the Emmy Awards it may be a different story.

PS Amy Adams, meanwhile, has a shot at Best Supporting Actress in a movie for “Vice.” Regina King won that award last night for” “If Beale Street Could Talk.” King, like Adams, has waited a long time for recognition. So many talents! They should all win something!

 

Exclusive: New Yorker’s Ken Auletta Writing Expose of Harvey Weinstein, Tried to Nail Him in 2002

Roger Friedman
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Exclusive: New Yorker’s Ken Auletta Writing Expose of Harvey Weinstein, Tried to Nail Him in 2002

The New Yorker’s highly regarded journalist Ken Auletta tried to nail movie mogul Harvey Weinstein in 2002. His article, “Beauty and the Beast,” was a valiant attempt to take Weinstein down before Miramax was clamped down by Disney and the Weinstein brothers started their own company.

Auletta, alas, was met with obstacles thrown by lawyers and publicists the closer he got to his target. He didn’t get everything in. Still, the article was pretty brutal, and full of juicy moments.

Now, Auletta is back. He’s writing his masterpiece, an expose of Weinstein that will most certainly circle back to “Beauty and the Beast” and then attempt to push forward through the revelations of the last 18 months. His publisher is Penguin Random House.

Auletta is in the early stages, interviewing as many people as he can who knew Weinstein or who interacted with him. It remains to be seen who and how many are willing to talk, on or off the record. But the writer is motivated certainly. That 2002 incident no doubt left him hungry to finish his story.

Weinstein, continues to fight for his life in the New York courts, where he faces a possible trial on five counts of sexual misconduct including rape. One count has been dismissed, and the 0thers remain unclear as to their strength.

Larry David on Hosting the Oscars Quotes Civil War General: “If nominated, I will not run; if elected, I will not serve”

Roger Friedman
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Larry David on Hosting the Oscars Quotes Civil War General: “If nominated, I will not run; if elected, I will not serve”

Larry David will not be hosting the Oscars. “No one asked me anyway,” he told me last night at Sean Penn’s annual Haiti fundraiser dinner and concert at the Wiltern Theater in Los Angeles.

Larry said, “I’ll give you my Sherman quote,” referring to the late great Civil War general William Tecumseh Sherman.  “If nominated, I will not run; if elected, I will not serve.”

No one I ran into at Penn’s renamed CORE Gala (which used to be called J/P HRO) wanted to host the Oscars– not Mike Myers, not Keegan Michael Key, not Jimmy Kimmel, who did it for two years in a row. “I think it was unusual they had me two years,” said Kimmel, who was busy talking to Michigan Senator Debbie Stabenow.

There were plenty of Hollywood types and government stars mixing and mingling, all waiting to hear Cat Stevens aka Yusuf, who was the secret performer scheduled for the night. Jamie Foxx was the evening’s emcee, and in the room were Mark Burnett and Roma Downey, Connie Britton, Allison Williams, Julia Roberts, Casey Affleck, Ben Stiller, Sara Gilbert, Linda Perry, Sarah Silverman, Michelle Yeoh, Rainn Wilson, as well as Maxine Waters, Ted Lieu, Tulsi Gabbard, and Eric Swalwell, Stacey Sher and Kerry Brown — plus of course CAA’s Bryan Lourd, who’s been steering CORE with Sean for 9 years.

Macy Gray also performed, and Sean’s son and daughter, Hopper and Dylan, helped celebrate their dad’s success.Unlike in past years, there was no sign of Madonna, or Pam Anderson, and none of Leonardo DiCaprio.

It was an impressive gathering– and equally impressive is that Sean’s commitment to Haiti remains unflagging some 9 years after the devastating earthquake reduced the country to rubble. Penn, however, probably doesn’t want to host the Oscars either.

Golden Globes Poised for Ratings Victory Sunday Night with Little Competition to Block Them from Success

Roger Friedman
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Golden Globes Poised for Ratings Victory Sunday Night with Little Competition to Block Them from Success

The Golden Globes tomorrow night on NBC may break the recent curse for awards shows that have suffered in the ratings.

That’s because for once Sunday night football isn’t up against the Hollywood fest. There’s no real competition except for “NCIS” at 8pm on CBS.

Indeed, football may help the the Globes since NBC is airing the NFL playoff game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Chicago Bears at 4:30pm Eastern. The Eagles killed the Bears quickly the last time they met, so the Globes should start at 8pm sharp with a huge lead in from this game.

My TV expert  notes: “The media is going to go ballistic with the huge ratings for this year’s Golden Globes on NBC. But, there should be a real reason for what might be assumed to be a massive improvement in the ratings. The 2018 show got about 16-17 million viewers (forget the demos). This year’s show could easily/should easily be closer to 20 million. There is one real reason – the NFL Playoff game on Sunday afternoon. The secondary reason might be the dispute between Charter (cable0 and the Tribune Stations which are ‘dark.'”

So let’s see. The biggest beneficiary will be Globes co-host Andy Samberg. He’s promoting the transfer of his sitcom “Brooklyn Nine Nine” from Fox to NBC.

 

Clint Eastwood’s “The Mule” Hit $81 Mil This Weekend without Golden Globe Nominations or Any Accolades: How Will Oscar Voters React?

Roger Friedman
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Clint Eastwood’s “The Mule” Hit $81 Mil This Weekend without Golden Globe Nominations or Any Accolades: How Will Oscar Voters React?

The big white elephant in the room is actually a lively kicking donkey.

Clint Eastwood’s “The Mule” hit $81 million over the weekend without any Golden Globe nominations or any other accolades. “The Mule” was so late arriving in a pre-determined awards season that it was ineligible for just about everything.

In the case of the Globes, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association saw “The Mule” at literally the last minute. But like all the other groups, they were already victims of momentum. Movies that were hyped for awards consideration started screening last summer. Pretty much the last entry to get in was “Vice,” which was shown in November.

But now we come to the Globes with no mention of a movie that will likely cross the $100 million mark, has excellent reviews, and sports two Oscar worthy actor performances from Eastwood and Dianne Wiest. Plus, Eastwood should be considered as a director.

There’s no real campaigning for ‘The Mule,” which doesn’t help. This mirrors some other recent Eastwood movies like “Gran Torino” and “American Sniper,” which arrived late, made more than $100 million and bypassed awards season almost completely.

Part of it could be that Eastwood, who’s 88 years old, has four Oscars including Best Picture awards for “Unforgiven” and “Million Dollar Baby,” and just doesn’t want to be bothered. There’s also the problem that Warner Bros., Eastwood’s home for many decades, has all its attention focused on “A Star is Born” with Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper. (Ironically, Eastwood almost directed a different version of “A Star is Born” with Beyonce.)

But once tomorrow night’s Globes are over, and the dust has settled a bit– plus next Sunday’s Critics Choice Awards on the CW Network– it may be that the Academy takes a new look at “The Mule.” It should. Oscar voting runs from January 7th to the 14th with announcement on the 22nd. Wouldn’t it be swell if “The Mule” kicked up, unexpectedly?

 

Producers Guild Chooses Top 10 Including “Roma,” “Green Book,” “Black Panther,” “Blackkkklansman,” “Star is Born,” “Bohemian Rhapsody”

Roger Friedman
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Producers Guild Chooses Top 10 Including “Roma,” “Green Book,” “Black Panther,” “Blackkkklansman,” “Star is Born,” “Bohemian Rhapsody”

The 2019 Producers Guild Awards motion picture nominations are in, and they’re going to set the stage for the Oscar Best Picture nods. Not included is “First Man,” which I think now eliminates that film– a real tragedy. But the 10 films they chose are excellent, and all much deserving.

The Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures:

“Black Panther”

Producer: Kevin Feige

“BlacKkKlansman”

Producers: Sean McKittrick, Jason Blum, Raymond Mansfield, Jordan Peele, Spike Lee

“Bohemian Rhapsody”

Producer: Graham King

“Crazy Rich Asians”

Producers: Nina Jacobson & Brad Simpson, John Penotti

“The Favourite”

Producers: Ceci Dempsey, Ed Guiney, Lee Magiday, Yorgos Lanthimos

“Green Book”

Producers: Jim Burke, Charles B. Wessler, Brian Currie, Peter Farrelly, Nick Vallelonga


“A Quiet Place”

Producers: Michael Bay, Andrew Form, Brad Fuller

“Roma”

Producers: Gabriela Rodríguez, Alfonso Cuarón

“A Star Is Born”

Producers: Bill Gerber, Bradley Cooper, Lynette Howell Taylor

“Vice”

Producers: Dede Gardner, Jeremy Kleiner, Kevin Messick, Adam McKay

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Documentary Motion Pictures:

The PGA previously announced the nominations in this category on November 20, 2018. The nominees are listed below, along with eligible producers’ names.

“The Dawn Wall”

Producers: Josh Lowell, Peter Mortimer, Philipp Manderla

“Free Solo”

Producers: Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi, Jimmy Chin, Evan Hayes, Shannon Dill

“Hal”

Producers: Christine Beebe, Jonathan Lynch, Brian Morrow

“Into the Okavango”

Producer: Neil Gelinas

“RBG”

Producers: Betsy West, Julie Cohen

“Three Identical Strangers”

Producers: Becky Read, Grace Hughes-Hallett

“Won’t You Be My Neighbor?”

Producers: Morgan Neville, Nicholas Ma, Caryn Capotosto

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Animated Theatrical Motion Pictures:

“Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch”

Producers: Chris Meledandri, Janet Healy

“Incredibles 2”

Producers: John Walker, Nicole Grindle

“Isle of Dogs”

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

“Ralph Breaks the Internet”

Producer: Clark Spencer

“Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse”

Producers: Avi Arad, Phil Lord & Christopher Miller, Amy Pascal, Christina Steinberg

The television nominees are listed below in alphabetical order, along with eligible producers’ names.

The Norman Felton Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television – Drama:

“The Americans” (Season 6)

Producers: Joe Weisberg, Joel Fields, Chris Long, Graham Yost, Justin Falvey, Darryl Frank, Stephen Schiff, Mary Rae Thewlis, Tracey Scott Wilson, Peter Ackerman, Joshua Brand

“Better Call Saul” (Season 4)

Producers: Peter Gould, Vince Gilligan, Mark Johnson, Melissa Bernstein, Thomas Schnauz, Gennifer Hutchison, Nina Jack, Diane Mercer, Gordon Smith, Alison Tatlock, Ann Cherkis, Bob Odenkirk, Robin Sweet

“The Handmaid’s Tale” (Season 2)

Producers: Bruce Miller, Warren Littlefield, Elisabeth Moss, Daniel Wilson, Fran Sears, Mike Barker, Sheila Hockin, Eric Tuchman, Kira Snyder, Yahlin Chang, Frank Siracusa, John Weber, Joseph Boccia, Dorothy Fortenberry, Margaret Atwood, Ron Milbauer

“Ozark” (Season 2)

Producers: Jason Bateman, Chris Mundy, Bill Dubuque, Mark Williams, David Manson, Alyson Feltes, Ryan Farley, Patrick Markey, Matthew Spiegel, Erin Mitchell

“This Is Us” (Season 3)

Producers: Dan Fogelman, Isaac Aptaker, Elizabeth Berger, John Requa, Glenn Ficarra, Ken Olin, Charles Gogolak, Jess Rosenthal, Steve Beers, KJ Steinberg, Kevin Falls, Julia Brownell, Vera Herbert, Bekah Brunstetter, Shukree Hassan Tilghman, Cathy Mickel Gibson, Nick Pavonetti

The Danny Thomas Award for Outstanding Producer of Episodic Television – Comedy:

“Atlanta” (Season 2)

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

“Barry” (Season 1)

Producers: Alec Berg, Bill Hader, Aida Rodgers, Emily Heller, Liz Sarnoff

“GLOW” (Season 2)

Producers: Jenji Kohan, Liz Flahive, Carly Mensch, Tara Herrmann, Mark A. Burley, Nick Jones, Kim Rosenstock, Sascha Rothchild, Leanne Moore

“The Good Place” (Season 3)

Producers: Michael Schur, David Miner, Morgan Sackett, Drew Goddard, Josh Siegal, Dylan Morgan, Joe Mande, Megan Amram, David Hyman, Jen Statsky

“The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel” (Season 2)

Producers: Amy Sherman‐Palladino, Daniel Palladino, Dhana Rivera Gilbert, Sheila Lawrence

The David L. Wolper Award for Outstanding Producer of Limited Series Television:

“The Assassination of Gianni Versace: American Crime Story” (Season 2)

Producers: Ryan Murphy, Nina Jacobson, Brad Simpson, Alexis Martin Woodall, Tom Rob Smith, Daniel Minahan, Brad Falchuk, Scott Alexander, Larry Karaszewski, Chip Vucelich, Maggie Cohn, Eric Kovtun, Lou Eyrich, Eryn Krueger Mekash

“Escape at Dannemora”

Producers: Ben Stiller, Nicholas Weinstock, Michael De Luca, Bryan Zuriff, Brett Johnson, Michael Tolkin, Bill Carraro, Adam Brightman, Lisa M. Rowe

“Maniac”

Producers: Patrick Somerville, Cary Joji Fukunaga, Michael Sugar, Doug Wald, Jonah Hill, Emma Stone, Pal Kristiansen, Anne Kolbjørnsen, Espen Huseby, Carol Cuddy, Mauricio Katz, Caroline Williams, Ashley Zalta, Jessica Levin, Jon Mallard

“The Romanoffs”

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

“Sharp Objects”

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Streamed or Televised Motion Pictures:

“Fahrenheit 451”

Producers: Sarah Green, Ramin Bahrani, Michael B. Jordan, Alan Gasmer, Peter Jaysen, David Coatsworth

“King Lear”

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

“My Dinner with Hervé”

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

“Paterno”

Producers: Barry Levinson, Jason Sosnoff, Tom Fontana, Edward R. Pressman, Rick Nicita, Lindsay Sloane, Amy Herman

“Sense8: Together Until the End”

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Non-Fiction Television:

“30 for 30” (Season 9)

Producers: Connor Schell, John Dahl, Libby Geist, Erin Leyden, Adam Neuhaus, Jenna Anthony, Gentry Kirby, Marquis Daisy, Deirdre Fenton

“Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown” (Season 11, Season 12)

Producers: Anthony Bourdain, Christopher Collins, Lydia Tenaglia, Sandra Zweig

“Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath” (Season 3)

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

“Queer Eye” (Season 1, Season 2)

Producers: David Collins, Michael Williams, Rob Eric, Jennifer Lane, Jordana Hochman, Mark Bracero, Rachelle Mendez

“Wild Wild Country” (Season 1)

Producers: Mark Duplass, Jay Duplass, Josh Braun, Dan Braun, Juliana Lembi

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Live Entertainment & Talk Television:

“The Daily Show with Trevor Noah” (Season 24)

Producers: Trevor Noah, Steve Bodow, Jennifer Flanz, Jill Katz, Justin Melkmann, David Kibuuka, Zhubin Parang, Max Browning, Eric Davies, Pamela DePace, Ramin Hedayati, Elise Terrell, Dave Blog, Adam Chodikoff, Jimmy Donn, Jeff Gussow, Kira Klang Hopf, Allison MacDonald, Ryan Middleton

“Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” (Season 5)

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

“The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” (Season 4)

Producers: Stephen Colbert, Chris Licht, Tom Purcell, Jon Stewart, Barry Julien, Denise Rehrig, Tanya Michnevich Bracco, Paul Dinello, Matt Lappin, Opus Moreschi, Emily Gertler, Aaron Cohen, Michael Brumm, Paige Kendig, Jake Plunkett

“Real Time with Bill Maher” (Season 16)

Producers: Bill Maher, Scott Carter, Sheila Griffiths, Marc Gurvitz, Billy Martin, Dean E. Johnsen, Chris Kelly, Matt Wood

“Saturday Night Live” (Season 44)

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

The Award for Outstanding Producer of Game & Competition Television:

“The Amazing Race” (Season 30)

Producers: Jerry Bruckheimer, Bertram van Munster, Jonathan Littman, Elise Doganieri, Mark Vertullo

“America’s Got Talent” (Season 13)

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

“RuPaul’s Drag Race” (Season 10)

Producers: *Eligibility Determination Pending*

“Top Chef” (Season 15)

Producers: Dan Cutforth, Jane Lipsitz, Casey Kriley, Tom Colicchio, Padma Lakshmi, Doneen Arquines, Tara Siener, Justin Rae Barnes, Blake Davis, Wade Sheeler, Brian Fowler, Elida Carbajal Araiza, Zoe Jackson, Patrick Schmedeman, Diana Schmedeman

“The Voice” (Season 14, Season 15)

Producers: John de Mol, Mark Burnett, Audrey Morrissey, Stijn Bakkers, Chad Hines, Amanda Zucker, Kyra Thompson, Teddy Valenti, Carson Daly

The PGA does not vet the individual producers of short-form programs, sports programs, or children’s programs. The winning productions will be recognized at the official ceremony on January 19th.

The Award for Outstanding Short-Form Program:

“Biography: History, Herstory” (Season 1)

“Carpool Karaoke: The Series” (Season 2)

“Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” (Season 5)

“Her America: 50 Women, 50 States” (Season 1)

“Kevin Hart: What The Fit” (Season 1)

The Award for Outstanding Sports Program:

“Being Serena” (Season 1)

“E:60” (2018)

“Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Cleveland Browns” (Season 13)

“Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel” (Season 24)

“SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt” (Season 4)

The Award for Outstanding Children’s Program:

“Fuller House” (Season 4)

“PJ Masks” (Season 2)

“A Series of Unfortunate Events” (Season 2)

“Sesame Street” (Season 48)

“Teen Titans Go!” (Season 4)

Disaster: No “Upside” for Kevin Hart as Ellen DeGeneres Tries to Get Him Back Oscar Hosting Job

Roger Friedman
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Disaster: No “Upside” for Kevin Hart as Ellen DeGeneres Tries to Get Him Back Oscar Hosting Job

This week Kevin Hart should be doing one thing: promoting his abandoned and very good movie “The Upside” starring Bryan Cranston and Nicole Kidman. The Neil Burger directed Americanization of “The Intouchables” is really terrific, but it became collateral damage in the Weinstein Company bankruptcy.

Instead, Hart is now involved in a faux controversy over his ousting as host of this year’s Oscars. Ellen DeGeneres has caused an uproar, telling Hart on her show today that he should host the show, and that she’s called ‘The Academy’and told them so, and that they–whoever ‘they’ are– agree want him back.

WTF is going on here? Why is Ellen even involved in this? Who exactly did she call? And why? This is completely crazy. Since the news broke, the response has been incredibly negative. Hart never apologized for his homophobic jokes, and still hasn’t. As a comic he’s welcome to say whatever he wants, but as the Oscar host it just won’t fly until he apologizes.

As for Ellen, who is famously gay and bravely came out on her sitcom 20 years ago: how did she become the arbiter in this situation? Did Hart ask her to? Did The Academy? The Oscars have no host just seven weeks out. Is this an act of desperation?

Just our little Twitter poll is running decidedly against Hart. And meantime, this is not the kind of publicity that was needed for “The Upside.” There’s no upside here.

Broadway Record: “Hamilton” First Ever to Gross $4 Mil in One Week, Thanks to Kennedy Center Honors, Takes in $1 Mil More Than It Technically Can

Roger Friedman
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Broadway Record: “Hamilton” First Ever to Gross $4 Mil in One Week, Thanks to Kennedy Center Honors, Takes in $1 Mil More Than It Technically Can

Today I received dueling press releases for Broadway plays. Either “To Kill a Mockingbird” is the biggest grossing play of all time, or “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child” broke a record last week for the most money a play can take in during one week. The numbers were like $2 million something for each of them.

No press release came, though, about the actual record set last week. “Hamilton” topped $4 million in receipts in one week. Playing since July 2015, “Hamilton” has grown and grown as its top ticket price soared. But last week, and the week prior, that price went to $849. Yes, nine hundred dollars for one seat at the Tony, Pulitzer, whatever winning show, meaning like $1,900 for a couple to be in the room when it happens.

For “Hamilton” to have taken in over $4 million is likely a record. And the crazy thing is, technically its maximum take for the week should have been $3.3 million. But as the ticket price swelled, so did the room. Every seat would have been taken including wheelchair, standing room, rafters, boxes, people sitting in the bathrooms. The average price of a ticket sold last week was $375.

The funny thing is, the original Broadway cast is long gone. I don’t even know who’s in “Hamilton” at this point. It could be Mike Pence in a wig. (Actually the only “names” are Tony winner James Monroe Iglehart and Euan Morton.) But those tickets sold last week include advance sales (people who bought for the future). And my guess is the “Hamilton” publicity on the Kennedy Center Honors on December 26th on CBS pushed things over the edge.

“Hamilton” plus the two aforementioned plays and virtually everything else on The Great Neon Way totaled a whopping $57 million week for Broadway. It’s a high we won’t see again for some time, if ever.

And Lin Manuel Miranda, the creator of “Hamilton”? He’s about to put on 3 weeks of shows down in San Juan, with $10 tickets going to some number of locals, and expensive seats to help fund Puerto Rico arts programs.

 

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