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Memoir from John Mulaney’s Ex, Artist Anna Marie Tendler, Jumps to Top of Amazon Upon Announcement

Roger Friedman
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Memoir from John Mulaney’s Ex, Artist Anna Marie Tendler, Jumps to Top of Amazon Upon Announcement

Anna Marie Tendler — John Mulaney fans know her name. She’s the wife he had when he lost his mind, became so addicted to drugs he required an intervention, and divorced when he had an affair with Olivia Munn.

Prior to that Mulaney portrayed their six year marriage as one of great happiness.

Now Tender’s written a memoir coming in August from Simon & Schuster. Announced this afternoon, pre-orders have already taken it to number 27 on amazon.

The book is called Men Have Called Her Crazy.

It’s unclear how much she can write about Mulaney and the marriage now that they’re divorced. But S&S wouldn’t have taken it without some juice in those pages. And telling her own truth is something she can’t be denied, even if she just refers to him as “my ex.” Everyone will know who it is.

Mulaney has a sharp, fast mind. He’s a great comic, and verbally gifted. Through the marriage, the audience related to him. When it blew up, it was so crazy that he was in the news for weeks. Then he turned the whole saga into material for his act.

Needless to say, if Tendler’s book is informative, she’ll have a big hit.

And listen, Mulaney went on to wed Munn, who was pregnant and they seem to be happy. Everyone gets what they want in the end! Not bad!

Mystery: Who Sent Out a Memo from the VA Banning Famed VJ Kissing Photo? Rescinded Order Said Iconic Picture Depicted “Non Consensual Behavior”

Roger Friedman
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Mystery: Who Sent Out a Memo from the VA Banning Famed VJ Kissing Photo? Rescinded Order Said Iconic Picture Depicted “Non Consensual Behavior”

There’s a mystery at the Department of Veteran Affairs.

A memo was sent out on February 29th banning the use of a famous photograph at all department buildings. It was real, I am told by sources. But this morning, when I queried, the memo was rescinded.

You can see it below.

The brouhaha was over famed photographer Alfred Eisenstadt’s took a picture of a couple kidding on V-J when World War II was declared over.

The legendary photo, appeared on the cover of Life Magazine in 1945 and went on to become iconic.

The VA memo said they cancelled the photo because it displays a “non consensual act,” according to a memo being circulated on line from the VA. Anyone with questions is told to contact Lelia Jackson, Director of the Assault and Protection Office. The letter is signed by RimaAnn Nelson, Assistant Under Secretary for Operations.

Of course, no one answers the phone at the VA so this could be a hoax. But it’s also possibly true, which would be a sign of the times and the way we think about images and actions of the past. Exuberant, spur of the moment celebrating should clearly not have been allowed, even in 1945.

And though you might think this is the height of wokeness, the woman in the photo actually objected to what is depicted. Reported in the Washington Post in 2019, “It wasn’t my choice to be kissed,” she told one interviewer. “The guy just came over and grabbed!” Another reporter asked what she was thinking at that moment. “I hope I can breathe,” she said in local news footage since removed from the Internet: “I mean somebody much bigger than you and much stronger, where you’ve lost control of yourself, I’m not sure that makes you happy.”

But her son said after her death that his mother did not view it that way.

But now the VA says the photo will continue to be displayed. What’s going on at the VA? Because this memo was real until it was recalled.

Oscarheimer Show Adds Steven Spielberg, Sally Field, Jessica Lange to List of Sunday’s Presenters

Roger Friedman
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Oscarheimer Show Adds Steven Spielberg, Sally Field, Jessica Lange to List of Sunday’s Presenters

The Oscarheimers have added a last list of presenters for Sunday’s show. Most of these people will be giving Oscars to “Oppenheimer,” which is pitched to win six or seven statues. The show starts at 7pm on ABC.

Emily Blunt, Cynthia Erivo, America Ferrera, Sally Field, Ryan Gosling, Ariana Grande, Ben Kingsley, Melissa McCarthy, Issa Rae, Tim Robbins, Steven Spielberg, Mary Steenburgen, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlize Theron, Christoph Waltz and Forest Whitaker have joined the list of Sunday’s Oscar presenters.

Previously announced Oscars presenters include Mahershala Ali, Bad Bunny, Nicolas Cage, Jamie Lee Curtis, Brendan Fraser, Chris Hemsworth, Dwayne Johnson, Michael Keaton, Regina King, Jessica Lange, Jennifer Lawrence, Matthew McConaughey, Kate McKinnon, Rita Moreno, John Mulaney, Lupita Nyong’o, Catherine O’Hara, Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer, Ke Huy Quan, Sam Rockwell, Octavia Spencer, Michelle Yeoh, Ramy Youssef and Zendaya.

The highlights of the show will be performances by Billie Eiiish, and by Ryan Gosling, each doing songs from “Barbie.”

Still unknown is who will perform during the “In Memoriam.” And who will be left out of the “In Memoriam.”

Lots of drama!

Justin Timberlake Readies Album Drop After Other “Older Acts” Releases frpm JLo, Green Day, Usher Bombed After First Flush

Roger Friedman
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Justin Timberlake Readies Album Drop After Other “Older Acts” Releases frpm JLo, Green Day, Usher Bombed After First Flush

It isn’t easy for older artists to sell albums anymore. I hope Justin Timberlake is aware of this.

Timberlake is releasing his new album, “Everything I Thought It Was,” on Thursday night. The track listing is peculiar. “Selfish,” a modest hit, is at the end of the album, not the start. The followup single, “Drown,” has not taken off like “Selfish.” One title, “Liar,” will spark gossip about Britney Spears. But will that be enough to give “Everything” legs?

Justin is at an age — 43 — where having sustained chart success may be impossible. The road to ruin is littered with good intentions.

For example:

Green Day, a big rock group, released “Saviors” two months ago. It has sold just 91,000 copies, two thirds of which were actual CDs and downloads.

And that’s a success story. Jennifer Lopez’s “This is Me…Now” has been out three weeks. CDs and downloads come to just 17,000. Add another 10,000 for streaming equivalent.

A good news story comes from Usher, who dropped his album, “Coming Home” on Super Bowl weekend and performed the half time show. He’s got just 56,000 in CDs and downloads, but enough streaming to him up to 300,000. But all his sales came with the Super Bowl. The album is dead now.

Maybe the best news in the geezer department is from the Rolling Stones. They released the critically acclaimed “Hackney Diamonds” last October. Total sales are reported at 566K, half of which comes from streaming. But the Stones are the World’s Greatest Rock and Roll Band, and the reviews for “Hackney Diamonds” were off the charts.

The question is, will Timberlake be able to stay on the charts after one week? He’s also facing some compeition on March 15th — Kacey Musgraves, who’s almost a decade younger, a country star, with Grammy Awards.

Stay tuned…this is going to get interesting…

The Beatles Were Not Impressed by Anna Wintour at Stella McCartney’s Paris Fashion Show

Roger Friedman
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The Beatles Were Not Impressed by Anna Wintour at Stella McCartney’s Paris Fashion Show

I’ve been loving all the footage and photos of Stella McCartney’s Paris fashion show.

Stella’s whole family showed up including Paul and wife Nancy, sister Mary, brother James.

Ringo Starr came with wife Barbara Bach, which was very touching because Paul and Ringo and all the extended Beatles family has never grown apart.

Two items of interest: in this video, Anna Wintour comes over and exchange salutations. But the Beatle group doesn’t seem very interested. She was not invited to sit with them.

Then there’s a picture of Paris Jackson plopped down between Paul and Ringo. She also did not sit with them or in the front row. But she got the picture. You can only imagine Paul’s thought balloon since Paris’s late father, Michael, screwed up his song publishing rights for decades and lived on borrowing money against the Lennon-McCartney catalog.

Rocker Dave Grohl, Actor Martin Short Join NY Love Rocks All Star Line Up This Week

Roger Friedman
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Rocker Dave Grohl, Actor Martin Short Join NY Love Rocks All Star Line Up This Week

Rocker Dave Grohl and Emmy nominated actor Martin Short have signed on for this week’s all star Love Rocks concert at the Beacon Theater.

Love Rocks has been going strong now for 8 years, raising $30 million so far for New York’s favorite charity, God’s Love We Deliver. They’ve provided 3 million meals to New Yorkers living with illnesses.

It’s always full of A list performers, and this year is no exception.

Already announced: The Black Keys, Hozier, Nile Rodgers, Tom Morello, Don Felder, Bettye Lavette, Joss Stone, Allison Russell, Emily King, Marcus King, Lucius, Larkin Poe, Trombone Shorty, Luke Spiller (The Struts), Quinn Sullivan, and New York Yankees great Bernie Williams.

SNL’s Will Lee is the bandleader. The outstanding house band will include Steve Gadd (James Taylor, Paul Simon), Shawn Pelton (Saturday Night Live), Larry Campbell (Levon Helm, Bob Dylan), Eric Krasno (Soulive, Phil Lesh & Friends),Pedrito Martinez (Bruce Springsteen, Sting, Camila Cabello), Jeff Babko (Jimmy Kimmel Live), Michael Bearden (Lady Gaga) and a six-piece horn section. Ken Dashow of Q104.3 Radio will also serve as the evening’s “voice of god.”  

Martin Short joins Conan O’Brien, Tracy Morgan and Jim Gaffigan, as a presenter.

Love Rocks is produced by John Varvators, Greg Williamson, and Nicole Rechter.

Are there tickets left? There might be a few. There’s also a livestream. Fans in NYC and elsewhere can experience this memorable night of music by signing up at loverocksnyc.com to access a livestream link to the concert via  Veeps.com.  Veeps All Access subscribers can tune in for free or fans can purchase an individual show ticket for $20 while also helping support the organization as $20 = 2 Meals for New Yorkers living with severe and chronic illness.  Additional seats are also being released today and fans can purchase through www.ticketmaster.com.

Richard Lewis Gets a Memorial Card at the Start of Tonight’s “Curb,” Best Episode of Season

Roger Friedman
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Richard Lewis Gets a Memorial Card at the Start of Tonight’s “Curb,” Best Episode of Season

The late Richard Lewis gets a memorial card at the beginning of tonight’s episode “Curb Your Enthusiasm.”

It’s a touching gesture to Lewis, who died this past week. He’s still appearing in “Curb” episodes despite looking gravely ill.

But what’s come out since Lewis’s death is the deep affection and friendship between Lewis and Larry David. Lewis loved being on the show no matter his medical condition.

The good news is that tonight’s episode, “Fish Stuck,” is classic “Curb,” the best episode of the season so far. They should have started with this one.

Tony winner Sean Hayes plays a gay lawyer who takes on Larry’s Atlanta arrest for giving water to a waiting voter. Larry interferes with Hayes’ and his husband (Dan Levy)’s naming of their potential child. It’s priceless. At the same time, Larry comes up with a way to get rid of Irma (Tracey Ullman) at last, so he can date Sienna Miller. A subplot involves Vince Vaughn discovering his new girlfriend works at the Disney store, and is not an executive at Disney.

Lewis appears and there’s more discussion of his will. His part here is mostly him bantering with Larry, which we now appreciate in a whole new way. There’s also another anti-Asian themed story, which at this point has become annoying.

But overall, “Fish Stuck” is a return to form. And Richard Lewis is celebrated. Five more episodes to go.

The Hottest Unsigned Music Act Anywhere is Ray Bull, Based in Brooklyn, Of Course, And Waiting for a Label Deal

Roger Friedman
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The Hottest Unsigned Music Act Anywhere is Ray Bull, Based in Brooklyn, Of Course, And Waiting for a Label Deal

Only kids have heard of Ray Bull. Maybe.

The duo– Tucker Elkins and Aaron Graham — are artists who live in Bushwick, Brooklyn. They’ve made a full length digital record and an EP, both of which are on Spotify.

In order, this is what happened to bring them here: Victoria Shaffer, the daughter of Paul Shaffer, heard their song “the New Thing Dies” online and mentioned it to her mother, Cathy Vasapoli, who was a famous talent booker in New York TV in the 70s and 80s. She fell in love with the song, too. (She knows a hit when she hears one.)

Cathy tried to find Ray Bull, but came up with nothing. So she asked me to find them, if I liked them, too. It took a while, it was frustrating, but I found Tucker Elkins at last.

He was a bit surprised when I reached out. He and Graham are former artists. He explained the name Ray Bull was a fake one Graham used to get his work into art exhibitions. They are not signed to a label but they do have a manager and a lawyer. They’ve been courted a little by labels, but they’re in the courtship stage.

Of course, they have a YouTube channel.

Here’s the video for “The New Thing Dies,” which sounds like a lot of things no one can put their finger on. It’s just incredibly catchy. The song has echoes of the 80s, and 2000s. When I told Tucker I heard a little Orchestral Manouevers in the Dark, he didn’t know who there were. Oh well. There are also bits of other things we like, including Tears for Fears and Talking Heads. Press mix on the Cuisinart.

Ray Bull has April dates in Boston, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Washington. Manhattan may yet be in their future.

“SNL” with Shane Gillis, 21 Savage was Not a A Hit: 10th Highest Show of Season

Roger Friedman
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“SNL” with Shane Gillis, 21 Savage was Not a A Hit: 10th Highest Show of Season

Getting “SNL” ratings has been a struggle this season.

After a couple of weeks in, NBC stopped releasing linear numbers for the network broadcast show. They just announced a total that couldn’t be verified including streaming on Peacock.

So it’s instructive to learn that last week’s show — with Shane Gillis hosting and 21 Savage as musical guest — was a dud.

Total viewers came to just 3.99 million, placing the episode at 10th so far of the season. The only good news was that nearly a million of those people were aged 18-25. Adults didn’t tune in.

The lack of transparency about the ratings may be because they just haven’t been great. According to LateNighter.com, the Emma Stone hosted show on December 2nd was also low rated.

Last night’s show was pretty good, with a surprisingly enjoyable Sydney Sweeney hosting and a sublime Kacey Musgraves as musical guest. Sweeney’s “Anyone But You” co-star Glen Powell even pitched in. The best indication that people tuned in is that Kacey’s songs that she performed each went top 20 on iTunes.

The only dud in the bunch of sketches was the cold open. Like last week, it seemed short and had no punch. Is this a new strategy? It’s not working.

“Weekend Update” continues to save the show. But the cast still seems a little adrift. I love Ego Nwodim, and Marcello Hernandez has taken off. But there’s a sense of authority missing. There’s no real leading man or woman (or anything else).

Box Office: “Dune Two” Racks Up $81 Million Opening Weekend, Bob Marley Only Other Hit

Roger Friedman
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Box Office: “Dune Two” Racks Up $81 Million Opening Weekend, Bob Marley Only Other Hit

The box office was all about “Dune Two” this weekend and not much else.

The sequel to the 2021 version of the Frank Herbert sci fi novel brought in $81 million from Thursday to Sunday. That’s a lot of sandworms.

Warner Bros. can only be thrilled as “Dune Two” is a blockbuster and sets the stage for a third and final edition that will even go higher.

“Dune Two” was the only thing anyone cared about this weekend, although both “Bob Marley One Love” and Hillary swank’s “Ordinary Angels” did well enough considering the environment.

Otherwise, the box office is fairly weak and has been since the holidays. All of these other films made over the weekend what they should have made each day of the weekend.

The fact is, most people are watching movies at home. Streaming has severely and permanently injured in person viewing. It’s a shame. There are a few Oscar nominated films still in theaters, but the audience is tiny. We are living in the Upside Down, for sure.

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