Madonna accepts her Grammy, in geisha drag, 1999. Hard to believe that I think of that moment as “the good old days!”
I am looking forward to some of the performances tonight! Madonna, the Carter’s, Paul and Ringo…and the clothes.I am in true political fatigue but I do agree about Snowden, he should be in jail. Anyone who has any expectation of privacy is dillusional. As for the rest, “I’ll think about it tomorrow”.
-
Thank you, Miss O’Hara! Geez, it’s three hours. Maybe somebody can grab an award from Taylor Swift, to liven up the night.
5:39 pm | January 26, 2014-
Does that mean you are hoping Kanye will be Kanye?? I will be thrilled if I don’t see Miley’s tongue anywhere! As for Taylor; she bought a beautiful oceanfront manse at Watch Hill in RI (my beloved home state) this past summer for $17 million. There was a great deal of “Sandy” damage to the seawall so she, yes I know her peeps, set to work with all the proper permits etc. to shore up said seawall. So the locals a screaming that she is altering the surf, yada, yada, privileged, pampered and all that. Turns out the real story is that she, yes I know her peeps were following the local codes to the letter and had actually spent the money to haul huge granite boulders that had slipped into the water over the course of many years to return the seawall to as close to the original as possible. So this song and dance from me means I give her a pass this year.
5:51 pm | January 26, 2014
-
I will be channel surfing as well. Moved yesterday to a new apartment that is much closer to the things and people that I love, but is so new that the management has not yet arranged for a snowplow to make its rounds. I gave directions to the pizza guy, but there is no way to get out. Should be an interesting evening.
-
Hi Mimi, hope the new digs are great. Just take the “baby it’s cold outside” lyrics to heart (except for the cigarette) and stay snug. I turned to TVGN for a minute, they are worse than the E people.
6:15 pm | January 26, 2014
Mimi, good luck on the new place! And the channel surfing. So annoying. I used to kind of relish it when I was younger. It was exciting. (Odd, the things one finds exciting.) The years have turned me into a big channel-surfer–very ADD– but I prefer to do it when I want, not have to.
Sometimes the old days of five or six channels has a nostalgic charm.
Katy Perry w Ryan Seacrest. She is quite appealing. Wearing a big 1960s Liz-like chignon, and a Valentino gown that is too playful for the hair. But I forgive because she’s funny and sweet.
-
Love Katy! She is wearing the dress that George (you hate him) Kostiopolous chose for her during the Pre-Red Carpet Show.
7:17 pm | January 26, 2014
I’m watching last weeks’ episode now, and will continue on. Grammys being taped upstairs. I already caught Madonna on the red carpet.
Well, it can’t be 1990 forever.
-
I have switched over as well. Miss Madonna, will hopefully see her later. I’m not loving this Downton story line…
8:28 pm | January 26, 2014
I am content. Despite a less-than-triumphant red carpet appearance (her son, David was adorable, however) Miss M. pulled it off in that number. It was a beautifully conceived set-piece. All involved worked well together, though I’m never going to “get” rap. But the song is only part-rap and then M provided “Open Your Heart,” which blended exquisitely with “Same Love.” (And the 33 marriages!)
I got a bit misty, I admit.
-
I thought Mafge and the performance was spot on. I don’t get rap either. The 33 weddings seemed to have everyone the camera found misty, me too. On to the Oscars.
12:41 am | January 27, 2014
Greetings Mr. Wow! I’m pretty sure Christie will run in the primaries but not so convinced he’ll get the nomination. As for Clinton – yeah – she has several things working against her: her gender, her age (she would be as old as Reagan was when he first ran, and a pretty big deal was made of his age), and the fact that she’s a Democrat and people are less and less satisfied with Obama’s performance.
Alas – I think in 2016 we will have yet another choice between the awful candidate and the crappy candidate…
Lila, we’ve had the choice between the awful and the crappy for way too long. And yes, Hillary is definitely too old at this point. And I’m already hearing Bill Clinton jokes again. Do we really want him as “First Gentleman” or whatever ridiculous title they come up with for a female president’s spouse?
Interesting that you sidestepped the brouhaha from Madonna a week ago. Had someone else used “the word” the frenzy would have grown viral. So you see, self interest takes the day. Cute that she brought the black kid to make a point. Hillary, now there’s a subject worthy of a good opera, a tragedy or comedy in equal doses.
-
Dear Delusional….didn’t sidestep anything. M is an idiot for her efforts to be in the mix. But that “black kid” is her child. Do I HAVE to say he is adopted? He appears to be quite composed and intelligent and charming. The effect of his terrible mother?
No one is more distressed than I am that M hangs on to being “relevant” But she has never been jailed, stopped for a DUI, has any drug or drink issues. She has never fallen down in public or made a fool of herself in any state other than sober. (That is, when she makes a fool of herself, we can’t blame it on substances!)I know her. She’s not one to be given advice. She’s also totally different in her everyday life than she is straining to be 2014 on the red carpet. She’s a good girl who is wrapped up in her her image and–apparently–doesn’t believe we’d love her as 55 year old icon. And that’s so young~!4:45 pm | January 27, 2014 -
Not being a big Grammys fan, I missed most of it until the big wedding part. That was lovely.
I’m addicted to Downton Abbey and watch the previous week’s episode without fail to enhance the anticipation for the new one. Love the snark match between Isobel and Violet.
-
I did the same. Watched some red carpet, the Downton while recording the Grammies. Lived the 33 weddings and especially the genuinely warm emotion from those in attendance. Lots of tears being brushed away.
11:44 am | January 27, 2014 -
Dear Haunted One–OMG–I could watch and hour of Violet and Isobel going at it.
I must say, I find Isobel a compelling character. Not easy. At all. But almost always right. I’d like to be her. Only…with a better sense of humor.
7:45 pm | January 27, 2014
It’s nice to know I am not the only VHSer left in America. Thanks for the company, Mr. Wow.
Missed the Grammys. I could barely keep up – I had to watch the “60 Minutes” spot on Jay Leno, “Episodes”, “Downton Abbey” and “Sherlock”. (It’s a full life.)
-
Dear Dr. Sugar–it is a full life! I still get a lot of pleasure out of my–well, pleasures! I love “Sherlock.” And I kiss the feet of everybody on “Downton.” (I’m a big Lady Mary fan. There, I said it!)
7:50 pm | January 27, 2014
P.S. Mr. Wow, you’ve mentioned (several times) that you believe Hillary will never be president. I’d love to know your thoughts on this – i.e. why you think she can’t win.
-
She will be too old. A subject that was rampant even during McCain’s run (and he’s a man) Sorry, I just don’t want anybody that old in the White House. Man, woman, trans.
She is too enshrined and entitled. Really–there are NO other exciting Democratic possibilities? No? Then we’re much worse shape than the Republicans.
Her baggage is monumental. So tiresome to be dragged through all of it again. And then there’s Benghazi.
She’s a hawk. Obama has been more hawkish than his early blissed-out fans expected. (The drones) But I think Hillary is literally war-like. Oh, and by the way, I don’t hate the drones, tho I know I am supporting civilian deaths. How else to do these things? And if he hadn’t, he’d be accused of protecting the Muslim terrorists. Obama went to the brink w Syria and then turned it over to congress, and that kinda worked. (In an endless, bloody, Mid-East manner.) I fear Mrs. Clinton would go all the way.
Finally, we will have had two terms of Obama, Even those who don’t hate him–his own supporters–have found him weak. Maybe it’s not really his fault; he inherited a mess, there IS a race problem. But he’s been weak. Time for a change. I hate what that change will bring and what it represents but…that’s democracy. More or less.
6:33 pm | January 27, 2014
Just watched Madonna’s Grammy performance. My two observations (for what they’re worth):
First: Madonna’s face seems frozen.
Second: rapping is talking.
Did anyone else notice that during the Grammy “wedding” the control room kept quickly cutting away before two guys could kiss?
-
No I didn’t Daniel. I saw couples, gay, straight and all else being happy and many, not just Keith Urban, getting teary. Have seen replays throughout the day, cameras close in on a least 2 or 3 gay couples.
7:33 pm | January 27, 2014
I prefer old and smart to young and dumb.
(That applies to politics, not dating.)
-
-
Daniel! I stand corrected. I have seen and read many remarks about CBS pulling cameras away during the wedding. Looks like I was seeing what I wanted to see. Progress with a side of not so much? #happy no kiss. xo
10:23 am | January 29, 2014
Your cousin Sebastian, was he entertained by this concert?
Terrified of it.
Terrified, why?
I think he recognized some of the musicians.
Great quip by (late, great) costume designer Irene Sharaff in this week’s Entertainment Weekly: “Yes, you may enter Miss Dunaway’s dressing room, but first you must throw a raw steak in – to divert her attention.”
-
In the same vein re Bacall during the run of…anything: “I’m not goin’ out there till they feed her!”
I had my own astonishing experience w Bacall. In the immortal words of Madeleine Kahn: “It’s Twue! It’s Twue!”
11:13 pm | January 27, 2014 -
Deirdre,
Let’s take solace in the fact that the network actually aired the weddings.
(That would have been unheard of ten years ago.)
xoxo
D.
Okay–Bacall. I was having diner with my best friend, who is also a big PR rep. We were celebrating a new addition to the stable. The artists, some of his friends and various other were dining at the famous NYC Italian restaurant, Patsy’s.
-
That is why sometimes it is better to keep our illusions about the celebrities we are fond of or at least realize that just because someone is beautiful/handsome, talented, supposedly well bred and somewhat educated doesn’t mean they are nice, kind, courteous or decent.
6:01 pm | January 29, 2014 -
I wonder why nobody thought to put Lauren Bacall in the role of Helen Lawson?!
Bacall’s always seemed like a tough cookie to me, especially when she got older and clinging to her stardom, a bit like Lucy. Funny, I’ve never heard any stories like that about our girl ET and fans.3:00 pm | January 30, 2014 -
She has always drawn this little line in the sand between Lauren Bacall and Betty Bacall and when the camera stops rolling or the curtain drops, Lauren Bacall ceases to be. And Betty Bacall is not particularly “fan-friendly.” As quite a few have discovered through the years. She’s not the only one. But I’ll leave naming names to you. But I will add that Elizabeth Taylor had her “f**k off” moments as well when she was out being “simply” Elizabeth as if there was anything ever “simply” about her. But of course when she wasn’t particularly concerned about her weight most people didn’t know who she was. Or at least didn’t believe it. I’m glad I’m not famous. I just couldn’t put up with it.
11:19 pm | February 1, 2014-
Dear Baby…never in a million years would ET have behaved like that. Once I saw her shout, “God damn it, don’t you ever get enough?” at a mob of paparazzi in 1977. It was feter the opening night party for Liza Minnelli’s “The Act” and she (Taylor) had been mauled the entire evening.
But to just up and be rude and vulgar to somebody who simply glanced at her? At a non-threatening distance?
She might not have posed (tho she usually did) or she might not smile (tho she usually did) but she was too well-trained by MGM to let her emotions out in public. I’m sure like all of us she had her scarily bitchy moments behind closed doors. There is a tale of her making a amFAR staffer cry, late in game–that is well into her physical decline. He said that she appeared so shocked by his tears and probably contrite, that she stopped yelling and turned away. But tales like this about her are rarer than the jewels she wore.
2:43 pm | February 9, 2014-
She would never have pulled what Lauren Bacall pulled but she had her moments. Particularly in Washington when she was trying to be Elizabeth Warner and everyone wanted Elizabeth Taylor instead. I think as I look back what really killed the marriage was her realizing he wanted Elizabeth Taylor as well. She didn’t have the entourage back then or the security people to keep people at bay. I really think she loved him and really wanted to retire and enjoy just being someone’s wife finally. I guess the bottom line is she wasn’t really that lucky in love. I think all her husbands wanted Elizabeth Taylor. Including Mike Todd. I think she gave up and just assumed the role of Earth Mother.
Lauren Bacall did one of those “Evenings With” in Houston some time back and there was an after-party and I heard she left some with the impression that she really didn’t want to be there but was being paid to perform so she did. She was apparently the same in beginning when she was married to Humphrey Bogart. We expect a lot of the “stars” and she apparently has always felt that the only thing she needed to share was her performances. Not too many would last long without putting up with the fans but she has. A testament perhaps to her talent if not her personality. I do feel for your friend.
Elaine Kaufman would have told your friend the same before Bacall did had this happened in Elaine’s. She really didn’t want the tourists. Or the fans. The food wasn’t really “all that” and so by the third time you came in she figured you were just looking for some place to be alone. Either alone or with someone. If you made it back a third time. Some didn’t make it back a second time.
4:31 pm | February 9, 2014-
And speaking of Earth Mother…
https://scontent-a-iad.xx.fbcdn.net/hphotos-frc1/t1/p480x480/1003404_696064670445026_37233550_n.jpg
4:45 pm | February 9, 2014 -
-
Dear Baby…well of course he wanted “Elizabeth Taylor.” That’s who he met. With her jewels and her cleavage and a waistline and her FAME. That she just went wild and gained 15 pounds within two weeks of announcing her engagement to him was…not normal. (That, and her collapsing hysterically in the lobby of a Vienna hotel, during the shoot of “A Little Night Music.” After she learned of Burton’s marriage to Suzy Hunt. Only Chen’s deft management got ET back in her room and confiscated the one photo taken–ah, the good old days before the ubiquitous cell phone pix. Two days later she announced the coming Warner nuptials. “I love him 100%!” Really?)
I think there was some part of her that wanted retirement, but she tended to make a spectacle, and often intentionally. There was no retreat from fame. By then she enjoyed the attention, though she didn’t understand it. Later, in her AIDS work, she learned how to use it for a greater good.
However, the one man who didn’t meet “Elizabeth Taylor” was Larry Fortensky. I believe she thought she’d found a guy who’d–as the saying goes–seen her soul. There she was, fat again, rehabbing again, in a wheelchair again (fractured back) He was 20 years her junior and had very little interest in her “legend.” There were no cameras, no paparazzi, no glamour. Just two addicts, getting their shit together, together.
5:51 pm | February 9, 2014 -
I agree about Larry Fortensky. The problem was that instead of becoming Elizabeth Fortensky, hard to do given the perfume venture taking off, she then attempted to turn him into Mr. Elizabeth Taylor. There were all sorts of dynamics at play. I suspect for both of them. But I do think they both were “kindred spirits” if not “soul mates.” There were all sorts of stories about why she ended the marriage. I think the one most likely is the one most often told. She was getting older, her health was slipping, and he was still young and so she decided if you really love someone, you set them free. And she became Earth Grandmother…
6:58 pm | February 9, 2014
-
-
When Elizabeth died, I braced myself, waiting for horror stories to appear. I was pleasantly surprised to read anecdotes all over the country from non-show biz people about how ET was pleasant, polite, or surprisingly curious about THEM.
8:34 am | February 10, 2014-
-
Dear Rick…
She was, essentially, a very nice, good-humored and generous woman. She had her moments, and I was on the receiving end of one or two–I’m sure you’ve read my tale of interviewing her back in 1993. But horror stories are hard to come by. At the worst, you’ll get an anecdote of exasperation–her lateness, her sense of entitlement when it came to gifts and goodies (“I want that dress…no not that. The Valentino.”) And she could be somewhat dense at times, living in her lifelong cocoon. But considering she had never been denied anything, from childhood, that she emerged so nice and “real” in so many situations was a miracle.
12:06 pm | February 16, 2014
-
-
-
Walking around all day saying “Put your lips together and blow,” does tend to give one a headache.
Oy Vey, Patsy’s was Frank Sinatra’s favorite restaurants. I have been there many times, his daughter Nancy made us a party there.
Sorry about Bacall’s behavior.
-
Dear Rho–why are you sorry? Despite that–and all the other Bacall horror stories I’ve been privy to–I adore her on screen and stage. I don’t have to live with her, and I bet there’s some sad, twisted reason for this behavior.
Patsy’s remains superb. And I love Nancy.
6:39 pm | January 30, 2014-
I am sorry because Bacall is a nice Jewish lady from Brooklyn, maybe she isn’t so nice. I never met her.
Glad you like Nancy, she is a very good friend of mine.
9:21 am | January 31, 2014-
She’s a really lovely woman. AND she makes great music. I just wish she’d make more.
9:42 pm | February 3, 2014-
Yes she is. I think she may be making another CD. Wish I knew how to post photos here.
2:38 pm | February 4, 2014
-
-
-
-
-
It’s such a tragedy…he was an extraordinary actor. He will be greatly missed 🙁
11:26 am | February 3, 2014-
-
As an alcoholic, an addict, I feel empathy, but…three children left behind?
I met him, interviewed him twice–he was as nice, sweet and down to earth as every account has him. Really, a doll.
But I am having a hard time with the eulogies. Perhaps because of our new times, they are pervasive. I make my choice every time I drink–even one is too much. Because it inevitably leads to a second. He made his choice with one needle in his arm. And about 40 bags of heroin at hand.
I feel this about all addicts who throw their lives away–the famous, “glamorous” ones–MM, Judy, Janis, Jim, Jimmy…etc–and those passing away right now, whose deaths won’t spark a “huge search” for the source of their drug. (These are the people the cops snicker over–“one less drug addict.”)
I didn’t have a drink today. I hoisted a ginger ale for Philip. I hope I can do the same tomorrow.
RIP Mr Hoffman. You were so very merry that afternoon at the Algonquin. I’ll always remember you that way.
10:07 pm | February 3, 2014-
Yes, they do throw their lives away but is it really that simple? Why do so many, many talented, intelligent people with much to contribute and who have had great opportunities start in the first place? Is it the thrill, easy availability, just because they can? There are lots of the do-called average Joes too. I know this hoes back generations and there seems to be some genetic connection. Every time this happens , celebrity or not. I wonder. Is there dome way to help, do all these people feel invincible, desperate, depressed? As a teen and young adult, I worked very hard at trying to be a cabaret singer. Because protecting my voice was so important to me , I did not smoke, anything and didn’t drink either. I loved performing, still wish at times to take another shot. I have not stopped singing just reduced the audience and venues. I do not equate myself with any well known performer, I just wonder…So glad you toasted PSH with gingersle today, hope the same for tomorrow. xo
12:12 am | February 4, 2014 -
One of the things that may come out of the tragedy, already being discussed finally before this happened, is that he got hooked on pain killers first. The pain killers are the new “gateway drug” that leads to heroin. Works better, faster, and it’s cheaper. What isn’t being discussed is that doctors prescribe them with total disregard for the person’s previous problems with addiction. Which may be what happened here.
Worse are the doctors who decide to “wean” the patient off the pain killers and suddenly there are no more pain pills. So they hit the streets. And someone suggests they try heroin. So they do.
Dear Baby…and he began drinking again. My drinking will never lead me to heroin, but it has led me far enough–a lifetime on anti-viral meds is fairly terrible. These deaths always give me significant pause. As I reach for a drink. I don’t need the pause that refreshes, as the old ad-line went. I need the pause that is permanent. Doing pretty good right now. MR.W
8:39 am | February 7, 2014 -
The medical community has a lot to answer for. We as people need to stop looking for a quick fix.
10:33 am | February 7, 2014 -
Dear Baby–and he began drinking again. Now, my drinking will never lead me to heroin, but it has led me far enough–a lifetime on anti-viral meds is pretty extreme. One would have though THAT was enough. These celebrity deaths always give me pause–as I reach for another margarita. I don’t need the pause that refreshes, as the old ad-line went. I need the pause that is permanent. So far, right now, I am doing pretty good.
2:33 pm | February 9, 2014
-
-
-
Does anyone doubt that Cate Blanchett will take the Oscar this year? Or that the movie was good? Or that Woody Allen continues to expose our moral hypocrises? I can’t wait to see the squirming during the Oscar’s.
-
Nothing is a sealed deal, not even Miss Blanchett. But if she wins the only squirming will be at Mia Farrow’s coven.
I do not doubt what Dylan Farrow suffers and believes. I doubt how she got to believe it. But…I wasn’t there.
10:12 pm | February 3, 2014
Dierdre,
I think people start drugs, alcohol, cigarettes to numb pain. (It’s easier to take a substance than feel your feelings.) Suddenly, they (temporarily) feel better. After a while, the withdrawal symptoms become so horrific, it’s just too hard to quit. (In the end, of course, you quit or you die – there are no old junkies.)
-
Not to worry, Daniel. Thanks for your thoughts. I suppose I should be happy I have not felt that kind of pain . What I do feel is do very sad that others do.
8:54 am | February 4, 2014
Yes it’s true there are no old junkies, but why aren’t we as a society at least attempting to do more about the suppliers? Phillip Seymour Hoffman had to obtain his heroin somewhere. Millions of unknown people die of overdoses everywhere. Bothers me, this waste of life. Did he really think he would never have another good day? Do the others feel the same way?
-
It is so disheartening. Touches all walks of life. I think as human beings we need to do more for each other.
8:20 pm | February 5, 2014
Mimi,
Who knows why so many young, rich, talented, famous, powerful celebrities throw it all away. As J.K. Rowling would say, this is a matter for the department of mysteries…
D.
-
You are right, who knows. It would appear to me that ” young, rich, talented and powerful” is all that.
10:10 pm | February 5, 2014
Being rich and powerful does not necessarily bring peace and happiness. In fact, happiness has nothing to do with money or fame or any of that. Anyone can feel deep psychological pain and it drives people to some terrible extremes. We have no way of knowing what’s going on inside someone else. All we can do is be compassionate and hope the person finds a way out of the pain.
-
It’s not too different from being poor and powerless. You just attract more of the loser abusers. Also known as the “entourages” who usually lead you to ruin…
8:42 am | February 7, 2014 -
Yes I agree. But we don’t live in a perfect world, so the losers and abusers will always find each other. Mr Wow, please stick to the ginger ale.
-
Dear Mimi–thank you so much. I am giving it the old, um–grade school try. (Didn’t do college or high school!) But seriously–thanks!
2:44 pm | February 9, 2014
A divergence from the conversation – everyone please just go to kickstarter.com and look at Offer & Compromise – a movie that I think should be made – also Casey Abrams will be in NYC playing at The Iridium on Feb 20th and 21st –
we all need to support fun projects and fun people
Dear Mr. Wow and Miss Liz’s Best Ever Assistant – can you do some free PR for Casey???
-
-
-
Casey is back at the Iridium on Feb 20 & 21 – let me know if you want passes
10:52 am | February 14, 2014
-
-
Shirley Temple passed away, may she rest in peace. She was one of a kind.
-
Snug as a bug. Visiting family in IL, 7 miles fro Lake Michigan. It warmed up enough to snow again today. Hope all the East Coast crew is safe and warm. Missing the Eastern Time Zone!
1:44 pm | February 13, 2014
Got sunshine today in the Great Lakes region, though still quite cold. The forecast is for 30s and above starting Monday, maybe even up into the 40s by the end of next week. I’m digging the T-shirts and sandals out as we speak.
How’s everyone else?
-
It’s been FREEZING for the most part here in Upper MI ; )
Was -17 one morning… but usually around zero most mornings, a veritable heat wave!Keeps me focused on staying indoors and homework…
6:21 pm | February 15, 2014-
Down here in the Banana Belt of Michigan, we’ve been in the 20s the past couple days. Hope some of that moves north for you guys.
8:57 pm | February 15, 2014 -
-
-
-
Baby–the temperature’s rising, it isn’t surprising/I certainly can, can-can!
2:26 am | February 19, 2014
-
-
-
Happy Valentine’s Day Mr. Wow and B and the rest of our crew! xoxo
I’m doing well, Mr. W.
I hope you, B. (and all the Wow-ettes) are okay.
D.
-
Dear Doctor Sugar…
I’m glad to hear that. So with your good mood in mind– I can have my hair done and wear my pretty dresses from Paris–and a shitload of liquid eyeliner?
12:05 am | February 17, 2014
Mr. Wow,
I don’t comment often, but want you and all the ‘regulars’ to know how much I enjoy the columns and musings of all that participate… It’s such a great – but yet small and intimate group – that have gathered with a common thread, you!
I’ve followed you since the very beginning (WowOWow – 2009 when I was out of a job) and feel compelled to let you know (all these years later!) that I so appreciate what you choose to share with all of us. I LOVE your stories and the conversations that they initiate…
So, for some of the latest gossip – Shia La Beouf (did I get that right?) – thoughts? Copying (rather poorly) Joaquin Phoenix (and that female artist that I don’t recall) or nut case? I’m curious what you all think!
Lisa
-
Dear Lisa…welcome back! Now, Shia–I feel bad because I liked him early on (“The Greatest Game Ever Played”) and thought he’d be on to bigger things by now. That I find him attractive also plays into it. If he’s having a breakdown, I hope he seeks help. If he’s just being tiresome and “provocative”–at least be original.
I still find him attractive.
4:05 pm | February 16, 2014 -
Today I learned that when in Colorado it is not a good idea to say to people, “How’s your Aspen?”
“How’s Miss Catherine?”
“She had her hair done this morning. She’s wearing her own clothes.”
“I’ve never seen clothes like that girl’s got. From Paris!”
I didn’t mean to miss Valentine’s Day but did – for those who have the rings and the rest of us who keep hoping. Although honestly the flings weren’t so bad.
Oscar Voter Reveals Brutally Honest Ballot7:00 AM PST 2/26/2014 by Anonymous, as told to Scott Feinberg
One cranky member of the Academy’s directors branch talks THR’s Scott Feinberg through his picks: “‘Gravity’? I’ve seen better things at planetariums,” while Julia Roberts “was horrendous” and Meryl Streep gave “a bottom-drawer performance” in “August: Osage County.”
Illustration by: Iker Ayestaran
This story first appeared in the March 7 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. It is the first of five “brutally honest” Oscar ballots shared with THR by Academy members, one of which will post each day leading up to the Oscar ceremony on Sunday, March 2.
➻ BEST PICTUREVOTER PROFILE: This Oscar voter is a longtime member of the Academy’s 377-member directors branch.
Captain Phillips struck me as a slightly hokey, overacted, not particularly gripping action movie. Gravity pales in comparison with Cosmos, Neil deGrasse Tyson‘s recent 13-part reboot of Carl Sagan‘s famous TV series about the universe. Philomena, which I’ve wanted to call Philomania ever since the Golden Globes, was an effective tearjerker — I was moved by it — but that doesn’t make it a great film. Nebraska was skillfully done but limited by its limited ambitions and its overly measured pace. Her interested me because of my complete ignorance of everything in it — it was like sitting through a class that I wasn’t necessarily enjoying but that I knew was good for me. (And just because I fall asleep in a movie doesn’t necessarily mean I don’t admire and like it; I’ve actually occasionally fallen asleep in my own movies.) Dallas Buyers Club was very good, and I was engaged by it all the way through, but there were no real surprises in it. The Wolf of Wall Street has almost nothing to say, but I found it hysterically funny. Conversely, with 12 Years a Slave, you don’t even crack a smile, but it was interesting, admirable and well done; I must say, though, that contrary to what some have asserted, it’s not as if it required great courage to make that movie — maybe if you made it in Mississippi in 1930. As for American Hustle, its ambition is not overwhelming, but it takes an interesting subject and very interesting characters and delivers 100 percent on what could be done with it in a very engaging, entertaining, interesting and truthful way. I would not put it in the legendary masterpiece category, but it doesn’t fail on any level.
MY PICK: (1) American Hustle; (2) 12 Years a Slave; (3) The Wolf of Wall Street
➻ BEST DIRECTOR
David O. Russell, hands down. Steve McQueen made an admirable movie, but I don’t think it’s remotely as ambitious or good as his previous film, Shame. Wolf is like Casino andGoodFellas — fun, bubble-gum Scorsese. Payne — whatever. And Cuaron was part of a committee of technicians who made that movie, and I have seen things at the planetarium that were at least as impressive.
MY PICK: David O. Russell (American Hustle)
➻ BEST ACTOR
Ejiofor was good. DiCaprio has been better; this is a popcorn performance. McConaughey was very good; he’s really doing some great stuff now, and I would give it to him for True Detective. Dern is a great guy and a friend and is excellent in the movie, and if I were not as taken by Bale’s performance as I am, I would have voted for him. But Bale had a much juicier role — Dern’s role is very contained, whereas Bale is all over the place — so I had to go with him. It’s the role of a lifetime.
MY PICK: Christian Bale (American Hustle)
➻ BEST ACTRESS
Blanchett has to win this. Bullock is the weak link — she’s just OK. For Streep, whom I love, this is a bottom-drawer performance. Dench is a terrific actress, and she’s very good in this film. Adams I love. But you have to vote for who’s truly the best, and to me, Blanchett — whom I’m normally not that wild about, with the exception of Bandits — is that. She was just a revelation; she was just spectacular.
MY PICK: Cate Blanchett (Blue Jasmine)
➻ BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Everyone was at least very good, but Cooper was the best. I think this is the best he’s been in anything. If he wasn’t in the category, I’d probably end up voting for Jonah Hill, only because I found him so funny. Jared Leto was good and will win, but he’s getting tremendous points because of the person he’s playing more than the way he played it, which is as close to pandering as you can get.
MY PICK: Bradley Cooper (American Hustle)
➻ BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Lawrence and Hawkins are the two obvious best of the five. Hawkins had a difficult part — it’s not an attractive role, and she’s intentionally overshadowed constantly by Blanchett, but she registers strongly in each scene she’s in. Jennifer was even better — she has that extra level of excitement in every scene she’s in. She just dazzles; she’s always doing something original and bold and surprising and believable. June Squibb was fine. Julia Robertswas horrendous. And Lupita was very good, but a lot of the commotion over her is attributable to people’s tremendous empathy with and sympathy for the role she’s playing.
MY PICK: Jennifer Lawrence (American Hustle)
➻ BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY
12 Years a Slave wins easily. Wolf is enjoyable, and if you were giving awards for most fun, it probably would be the biggest winner this year, along with American Hustle, which is a much better movie overall. On the other hand, by that logic, Step Brothers would have won. Philomena is an earnest and emotionally effective tearjerker, but that doesn’t mean its script is great. Captain Phillips is one step above hokum. And Before Midnight is a travesty of ineptitude and dreadful writing, like the other two in that horrible trilogy — if I was sitting next to those people, I would run in the opposite direction.
MY PICK: 12 Years a Slave
➻ BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY
All five scripts are extremely good. Her is a worthy contender, and what it has over the others is that it’s completely original, but, even though I was impressed by the movie, I found myself nodding out periodically, so that meant I couldn’t put it on the same level as American Hustle and Blue Jasmine. I often choose personal friendship when I am torn between two almost equally good options, but in this case I’m friends with both David and Woody, so that doesn’t help. … I’m going for American Hustle because Woody has already been overwhelmingly rewarded. I feel very badly about the absurd bullshit that’s flying Woody’s way, but that can’t intrude one way or the other on voting. Both films have literally not a single dead spot in them.
MY PICK: American Hustle
➻ BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
I have seen none of them. I have no interest whatsoever. That ended when I was 6. My son dragged me to a few when he was 6; I would seat him and go outside and make phone calls.
MY PICK: I abstain.
➻ BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
I actually liked several of the movies, especially 20 Feet From Stardom, but I refuse to dignify the category by voting in it. Even with its new rules, the documentary category has about as much claim to legitimacy as the Bush-Gore presidential election. It’s an incestuous little club.
MY PICK: I abstain.
➻ BEST FOREIGN-LANGUAGE FILM
I immediately rule out Palestine for Omar because I saw it, and it’s a bunch of f—ing anti-Semitic swine. The Hunt was the best, by far — the performance, the writing, the boldness of the approach. The Great Beauty is unbelievably f—ing slow and dull; that’s another movie where you can sit there and pass out five times and miss nothing. I stopped Broken Circle Breakdown halfway and Cambodia’s after 20 minutes.
MY PICK: The Hunt
➻ BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY
There was some pretty impressive stuff in Gravity. I didn’t think any of the other movies were shot on the level of the really great films — Prisoners was excellent but a cut belowRoger Deakins‘ best work, such as Andrew Dominik‘s film and the Coen brothers’ films — but Gravity was.
MY PICK: Gravity
➻ BEST COSTUME DESIGN
American Hustle, unquestionably. Everything about the period is done not only accurately and believably but adds to the movie. I lived through that period, and it all rang true.
MY PICK: American Hustle
➻ BEST FILM EDITING
American Hustle is light years better than anything else. There is nothing but sharp cuts and rhythm in the movie — there is not a wasted frame. Captain Phillips is, to me, the chickenshit way of editing; it’s usually done because you’re terrified of boring the audience, so you keep cutting, and it actually becomes unbelievably tedious and headache-inducing, and it’s not the way the mind perceives reality, either. And 12 Years a Slave had about 15 to 20 minutes of sluggish, boring stuff that I would have ripped out.
MY PICK: American Hustle
➻ BEST MAKEUP AND HAIRSTYLING
To me, the only one is Dallas Buyers Club. It’s the most prominent thing about the movie. It works unbelievably. I was aware of it, and ordinarily when you say you’re aware of something it means it’s not working very well, but I was aware of it as something that was done very skillfully and believably. I was shocked to hear it had a $250 budget for makeup.
MY PICK: Dallas Buyers Club
➻ BEST ORIGINAL SCORE
I found all five scores inferior. Desplat has done a number of exceptionally good scores, butPhilomena is not one of them, so I’m not gonna vote for him this year.
MY PICK: I abstain.
➻ BEST ORIGINAL SONG
I didn’t vote because I regard all four songs as utterly inferior and not worth voting for. To dignify any of them with a vote is to suggest that they’re worthy of a nomination, and they’re not; they’re just bad songs. And, as for disqualifying the fifth nominee? The rules are so petty and stupid, these people should get a life — it’s embarrassing. They’re like sub-basement, quasi-Talmudic scholars.
MY PICK: I abstain.
➻ BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN
I would immediately eliminate 12 Years a Slave and Gravity. The other three would all be worthy winners — Gatsby, for instance, was not a good movie, but it still popped and came alive, especially in 3D — but I liked American Hustle the most overall so I voted for it. It was well-done and accurate, in terms of the period, and each set is done in a way that adds to the believability and the character of the scene.
MY PICK: American Hustle
➻ BEST SOUND EDITING
Most of the time, who knows what was recorded on the set, as opposed to what was added in post? I generally vote for the movie with the best overall sound in both sound categories.
MY PICK: Gravity
➻ BEST SOUND MIXING
Even though I thought Inside Llewyn Davis was an atrociously bad movie, the sound mixing was good. But the best sound mixing was for Gravity, by far. It had a very clean track.
MY PICK: Gravity
➻ BEST VISUAL EFFECTS
Four of them are completely without interest of any kind whatsoever on any level, andGravity‘s effects, in 3D, anyway, are terrific. So this isn’t even a contest.
MY PICK: Gravity
➻ BEST ANIMATED SHORT, BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT and BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT
I don’t watch the shorts. And, if I don’t know anybody who made one of them — a friend or an enemy — I just don’t vote, which was the case this year.
MY PICK: I abstain.
-
Dear Doctor Sugar—it’s Clint Eastwood, I’ve heard. But whomever it is, I tend to agree.
I’m a little more invested right now in Ukraine and another fucking snowstorm. More minor issues pique my attention–CNN’s biggest drama queen Don Lemmon, Rachel Maddow’s cheerfully expressed “obsession” with Chris Christie (Even Bill Maher looked at her with disappointment) and the scariness of the Republicans when they are in for another long ride, come 2016. It’ll be like the ancient Egyptians, hacking off the names and faces of previous Pharaohs when a new one took over–they are going to do everything possible to erase the reality of Barack Obama’s presidency.
I’m tired of thinking, which is why I loved “Pompeii” and “Non-Stop.”
But you, Dr. will likely be very happy Oscar night. Still–don’t be too surprised if Dench or Amy Adams beats Cate. Unlikely, but possible. I don’t want Cate to lose now, in the aftermath of Mia’s latest. (My apologies to those who believe her. I don’t. I do believe daughter Dylan because she believes it.)
12:33 pm | March 1, 2014
Mr. W.,
Watched a Cate movie called “Bandits” last night. She’s so funny – who knew? So, if you should ever need a laugh…
My best to you and B. and all the Wow-ettes on this Oscar-weekend.
D.
Academy Award Nominee
Oscars are Run ByOld ‘White Men’ Who Take Bribes
3/1/2014 2:19 PM PST BY TMZ STAFF
Breaking News
Oscar nominee Julie Delpy has some pretty HUGE BALLS for a chick … because the screenwriter just spanked the Academy hard — saying it’s just a bunch of crusty white dudes who take BRIBES for votes.
Delpy — who’s nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay for “Before Midnight” with Ethan Hawke — told So Film magazine via the Independent the awards are meaningless because voters are, “90% white men over 70 who need money.”
“They haven’t done anything in a long time,” Delpy continued … “You just need to give them two or three presents and they’re in your pocket. It doesn’t mean anything to me.”
The actress also roasted the Weinstein brothers claiming they killed the independent movie scene … and then dissed her own flicks, saying, “Every time I’ve become a part of the Hollywood mainstream, it’s been crap! Let’s be honest: 90% of movies made in Hollywood are crap.”
Guess no one ever told her not to bite the hand that feeds you … even if it’s old, white and (allegedly) corrupt.
First off–the above photo. I attended the Grammy Awards that year, and was pleased to see M perform an exciting, if unwieldy rendition of “Nothing Really Matters.” (She was wearing eight-inch platform shoes!) She then went on to collect one of three Grammys for her “Ray of Light” album. I was perhaps even more pleased to witness Ricky Martin perform the same night and instantly catapult to true stardom–he had been a sensation overseas, but many in the U.S. didn’t know him. It was one of those insane, screaming, “I can’t believe I’m seeing this!” moments. Five minutes of brilliant singing, swiveling and showmanship. When the entire audience rose in a roaring, genuinely felt standing ovation, I was goose-pimply all over!
Later in the evening, I did more screaming when I watched Madonna celebrate her win by dancing on a tabletop–literally (she was down to modest four-inch heels.)
Tonight, Madonna will be back performing at the Grammys. And I’m pissed. Once again it is a Sunday night packed with goodies, which means I will have to channel surf, or tape (I still use VHS!) or wait until late to watch certain other programming.
Do these networks have no appreciation for a gentleman of middle-years whose knees sometimes make funny noises–I can’t be running up and down stairs checking on VCRs! That was 1980s Mr.Wow. (I know, DVR. But it seems too complicated. Yeah, I know, like this isn’t!)
Anyway, though I have sadly come to the realization that Madonna will NOT take my advice and become a slinky Marlene Dietrich-type chanteuse, I still have a lively interest in her. A lot of it has to do with knowing her, and knowing she isn’t what she appears to be, or attempts so strenuously to convey. I’ll keep my fingers crossed. She is always a nervous wreck performing before an audience of her peers.
*****************************************************************
Off topic. I am reeling from the utter stupidity of Democrats recently. The piling on Chris Christie, especially from the shrieking monkeys at MSNBC, has assured his place on the Republican presidential ticket. And he’ll be there with a lot less tolerance for pretending to be “bi-partisan.” OF COURSE he knew about “bridge gate” and PROBABLY he knew about suggesting certain things to Hoboken’s mayor. I’m shocked. But the more the Left obsesses on the story and gleefully predicts his utter ruin, the more I think how quickly, how foolishly they have forgotten Bill Clinton.
Speaking of Clinton, more idiocy in the premature crowning of Hillary as the only, ultimate and inevitable candidate in 2016. We’ve been through all this before with a younger, but no less entitled Mrs. Clinton. And we got Obama. Mrs. Clinton will never be president, and she does her party and this country a disservice by allowing such talk to flourish. 2017 will see a Republican in the White House. Obamacare will be repealed…I fear for Roe vs.Wade…and just forget about gay marriage, Social Security and helping the needy. It will be at least four years of “tribulation” as the Book of Revelations says. But Democrats are gleefully rushing toward this.
Finally, I puked my breakfast (okay, a candy bar and a banana) when I heard Eric Holder announce he would agree to “discussions” with that slimy piece of work Edward Snowden. Maybe discuss which federal prison he’d like to spend the next full 30 years. (See, I’m not cruel. He’d be 60 when he got out. By then 60 will be the new 18!) I was not surprised by the extent of NSA surrevilance. Excuse me, I’ve watched the news, read, and remember when all this was put in place by Bush. I do not have an expectation of privacy these days. That’s too bad, perhaps. But it’s been true one way or another for a very long time, even before Bush. This is what governments do. Live off the grid if you don’t like it. “People everywhere just got to be free!” goes the old song. But we never are, really. Even if we all lived off the grid, a leader would emerge in our little community. And he (or she) would make “law.”
Snowden committed a major crime. He’s a thief. He stole material that had nothing to with the U.S. keeping too-close-for-comfort tabs on its citizens. We may well find ourselves suffering because of his hubris and naiveté bordering on a mental handicap. If Obama grants any sort of clemency or waives criminal charges, he is as weak as I truly believe him to be, but try not to think about. Too much.
Sigh!
I wonder what Madonna will wear? Nothing I’ll approve of, probably. She never listens. But, that’s how I like my girls–willful and not giving a damn.
No, I can’t even ruminate on Mike Huckabee. But again, keep him and his convoluted “libido” remark in the news. He’ll end up as Christie’s Veep.