BITS AND PIECES 04/26 Part 3
AGC Queen
--Billy Bob Thornton must be keepin' his li'l hubba-hubba bride Angelina Jolie
happy as hell -- 'cause he sure is rackin' up the gifts! That gal just went out
and bought ol' Billy Bob a genuine black lacquer pool table that cost $10,000!
UH-HUH!!
--That rascally country singing legend George Jones STILL hasn't drunk himself
to death -- thank you, Lord! -- and listen here: George just bought a $1.2
million tour bus -- and the shower has gol-dang NEON FISH that light up and
blow bubbles when he turns on the water! Now that's COUNTRY!!
--Shopping at a health store, 20-year-old Christina Aguilera nearly fainted
when Brad Pitt strolled in! (Ohmigod, OHMIGAWD!) She rushed up, introduced
herself -- then mumbled that she LOVES his films . . . he is SO cute . . . and
(ohmigawd!) they share the SAME BIRTHDAY, December 18! As Christina chattered,
Brad got twitchy. And when she asked what he was doing on his birthday, he
sputtered, "I'm spending it with my wife . . . nice meeting you . . . !" -- and
hightailed outta there!
--Even though "Friends" cast mates had agreed to hang together and retire their
characters when the show folds, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer are breaking
ranks to launch their own spin-off -- "The Ross and Joey Show"! They're
panicked because their movie careers are zilch-o compared to Lisa Kudrow,
Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox and Matthew Perry! As LeBlanc and Schwimmer
huddled with producers, Cox and Kudrow were overheard summing up the friend-ly
consensus: "What a STUPID idea!"
STAR MAGAZINE...JANET CHARLTON...
--Will whoever stole David Arquette's bicycle please bring it back? He and wife
Courteney Cox are having enough problems as it is. Courteney couldn't resist
buying a vintage Schwinn bicycle with whitewall tires that caught her eye in an
L.A. shop window. She knew her husband would love it. It cost $3,000, and David
was touched by the gift because although she earns $750,000 a week on Friends,
Courteney is frugal. David had a blast tooling around on his new toy, but he
forgot to chain it up outside a coffee shop and someone stole it. He was so
upset he spent the day hunting for a replacement. He couldn't bear to tell
Courteney because they've had their ups and downs recently, and he didn't want
to make her feel bad. He never found another bike, so he softened the blow by
handing Courteney 100 roses before he told her the bad news.
ASSOCIATED PRESS...
--LONDON (AP) - Staff at a small English railway station unveiled a plaque to
mark the spot where Paul Simon wrote ``Homeward Bound.'' Maybe. Simon has said
he wrote the song, a homage to homesickness, at Widnes station in northwestern
England during a British tour in 1964. At the time the town had two stations,
only one of which remains in use, and officials are unsure which is the true
location. ``Although it is debatable whether Simon actually wrote `Homeward
Bound' at Widnes station, the plaque, I am sure, has returned to its spiritual
home,'' said Stephen Wainwright, a lecturer at nearby Warrington Collegiate
Institute. The plaque was unveiled Tuesday. Previous markers have been erected
at the station, but all were stolen. Warrington students raised funds to
install a plaque fastened to the station wall with secure fittings.
--Oprah is about to hit the road. Starting in June, talk-show queen Oprah
Winfrey, who also has her own magazine, O, will be making a series of stops on
her Live Your Best Life Tour. Cheryl Richardson, author of the best-selling
``Life Makeovers'''' and ``Take Time for Your Life,'' and a regular contributor
on ``The Oprah Winfrey Show (news - Y! TV),'' will be a special guest. The tour
includes stops in Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; Minneapolis; San Francisco; and
Baltimore. It features a one-day workshop with Winfrey. The $185 cost of the
workshop includes breakfast and lunch, according to her Web site,
www.Oprah.com. According to University of Illinois professor Juliet E.K.
Walker, Winfrey reflects ``the extent to which the celebrity as a phenomenon in
American life and culture has a voice as influential as other ideological,
societal, and political institutions in impacting the global economy (as well
as) transnational and cultural practices.'' ``Nobody can argue about the
tremendous positive impact (she's) had,'' said Lisa Gundry, a management
professor at DePaul University's Graduate School of Business. ``She has shown
how you can use your life - and she's used hers and her business - to symbolize
how to make things better.''
LOS ANGELES (The Hollywood Reporter)
--HBO Films is hatching "All About Eggs," a telefilm based on the play by
writer-actress Sarah Stanley about three women grappling with pregnancy. The
project is being developed by Artists Production Group and Artists Television
Group. Producer Michael Steinberg ("There's Something About Mary") saw the play
when it was performed at the HBO Workspace theater two years ago and brought it
to APG president of production Cathy Schulman. Helen Childress ("Reality
Bites") is attached to write the HBO adaptation, while Daisy Mayer is on board
as director. Mayer, whose credits include 1998's "Woo" and 1995's "Party Girl,"
is at work on the Working Title Films comedy "The Guru of Sex" starring Heather
Graham and Marisa Tomei. We're thrilled to be in business with both Daisy Mayer
and Helen Childress," Schulman said. "They'll do a tremendous job on this funny
and heartwarming material about three women who share pregnancy through the
wonders of in vitro fertilization." Schulman said "Eggs" marks the first
collaboration between APG and the TV movie department of ATG, headed by Tom
Patricia. Maya Richards is the APG executive on the project. Ross Mark and Bob
Read, principals in ReBar Management and the former executive producers of the
HBO Workspace theater, also are producers on "Eggs" through their first-look
deal with HBO.
HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - Cable network Sci Fi is going to ``Mars'' with its
programming strategy for 2002. As part of its upfront programming presentation
to advertisers Wednesday night, Sci Fi said it will add Kim Stanley Robinson's
epic ``Red Mars'' and a futuristic adaptation of Charles Dickens' ``A Tale of
Two Cities'' to its 2002 event miniseries slate. ``Mars'' will be a four-hour
adaptation of bestselling trilogy ``Red Mars,'' ``Blue Mars'' and ``Green
Mars.'' Robinson will serve as a consultant. Sci Fi says it schedules more
original series in primetime than any other cable channel, and ``event''
miniseries represent a huge growth opportunity for the network, said Bonnie
Hammer, Sci Fi's executive VP/general manager. ``So many Sci Fi products are
sought after for theatrical releases, and oftentimes people involved are
waiting, as the project gets optioned, goes through script mode and then falls
through the cracks,'' she said. ``And we're right there waiting to catch them.
... These featurelike projects lend themselves to minis. That's when we can do
them justice.'' Sci Fi already is in development on several other longform
projects, including ``Firestarter: The Next Chapter,'' a four-hour sequel to
Stephen King's ``Firestarter''; ``Saint Sinner,'' from Clive Barker; a
``Babylon 5'' movie called ``The Legend of the Rangers''; and Steven
Spielberg's 20-hour miniseries with Sci Fi and DreamWorks, ``Taken.'' Plans for
2002 also include a one-hour special with mentalist Marc Salem called ``Mind
Games.''
LAUNCH....
--Johnny Cash and his longtime photographer, Jim Marshall, have filed a lawsuit
against the Urban Outfitters retail chain for the unauthorized use of Cash's
name and likeness on T-shirts sold at the stores. The complaint, which was
filed on Monday (April 23) in California civil court, specifically alleges
copyright infringement, false designation of origin, and misappropriation of
right and publicity. Marshall, who took the famous photo of Cash at San Quentin
prison in 1969, is the creator and copyright owner of several internationally
famous photos of Cash. The suit claims that Urban Outfitters poorly reproduced
Marshall's work without his or Cash's knowledge or consent, and profited from
the sale of said T-shirts. Cash and Marshall are seeking to halt reproduction
and sale of these garments, in addition to the defendant's profits, attorneys
fees, and punitive damages.
--Our Lady Peace bassist Duncan Coutts rejoined the band last week after
recovering from a potentially life-threatening illness. The real-life drama is
echoed in the sentiments of the band's latest single, "Life." The band even
shot the song's video at a critical time for Coutts. rummer Jeremy Taggart
told LAUNCH that learning about Coutts's ailment was frightening. "When we
first heard in January it was unbelievable. They thought there was a tumor in
his pancreas, and they didn't know whether it was malignant or benign. And you
know how bad that can be. So we had the feeling, 'Oh my God, this is terrible.'
For some reason the doctor kept saying that he's 90 percent sure that it's not
cancerous, and we're like, they said it was like five and a half centimeters,
so we were like, man, this is unbelievable. This is terrible." Singer Raine
Maida added, "Tumors of the pancreas are usually 90 percent bad news, and
results are never good." Taggart told LAUNCH that Coutts was on the band's mind
when the band shot the video for "Life." "We actually filmed the 'Life' video,
and the next day Duncan went in for surgery, and we were like, 'This may be the
last time we're gonna see this guy.' He went in, and it turned out that it was
just enlarged and there was no tumor at all, so we were so relieved. And the
fact that the process of him getting back--originally he wasn't supposed to be
getting back until like May, but because it wasn't that bad of a surgery, they
took out his gallbladder, and he ended up being out for about six weeks. It's
so nice to have him back." Coutts said that it was nice to be back and thanked
all Our Lady Peace fans for their support. "It's nice to be back on the road,
and I can't tell you how good it feels to be back on tour."
--"I want people to know that we're still a notch above a garage band," John
Mellencamp says about his summer tour in support of his forthcoming release
Cuttin' Heads, which is due this summer. "No cars dropping down from the
ceiling, none of that shit. No, everything's gonna be black -- the whole stage
is gonna be black."
--Aerosmith, Shaggy, Nelly Furtado, O-Town, Pink, the Corrs and Jessica Simpson
are just a few of the acts expected to perform as part of New York radio
station Z100's annual concert, "Zootopia 2001", set for June 1st at the Nassau
Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
--Stone Temple Pilots have nearly completed their fifth full-length recording,
their first since 1999's No. 4. Shangri-La Dee Da will find its way to stores
on June 26th and by all accounts, longtime fans will be a little surprised when
they get their copy. Despite word from the band when sessions started up last
year, Shangri-La won't be a double album. There will however, be an abundance
of leftovers earmarked for import-version bonus tracks and b-sides, etc. STP
devotees will also remember the band had hoped to make No. 4 a two-disc set as
well, though their plan was derailed by singer Scott Weiland's 1999 drug bust
and subsequent stint behind bars.
--Robert Plant will return to the U.S. in May for his first North American
appearances since he toured with Jimmy Page in 1998 and his first solo dates
since 1993. The former Led Zeppelin frontman will be travelling with Strange
Sensation, a five-piece that features drummer Clive Deamer and John Baggott
(both worked previously with Portishead), guitarist Justin Adams (Sinead
O'Connor), bassist Charlie Jones (who worked with Plant throughout the
Nineties) and former Cure guitarist Porl Thompson.
--Nine Inch Nails, Missy Elliott, Moby and Outkast are among the latest acts to
sign on to the soundtrack for the highly anticipated summer flick Tomb Raider,
starring Angelina Jolie.
WALL OF SOUND...
--"Just because someone does a solo thing doesn't mean the band's ended,"
admonishes Mötley Crüe singer Vince Neil, who was in fact tossed out of the
band during 1992, which led to a two-album solo career until his return in
1997. He's now out on a solo tour of sorts, but this time he says it's just to
"have some fun" while Mötley Crüe takes a year off. "I was just bored," says
Neil, 40, who initially put together a band of friends for a Kentucky Derby
show and watched the idea snowball. "I'm playing stuff from my solo records,
Mötley Crüe songs, cover songs like [Iggy Pop's] 'Lust for Life' and '25 or 6
to 4,' the Chicago song. We just kind of do anything. But I promise you, the
band isn't breaking up because I want to do some solo dates."
ROLLING STONE...
--Blink-182 have picked a single for their forthcoming album, Take Off Your
Pants and Jacket, and are offering fans a sampling on their Web site. An
excerpt from the song, "The Rock Show" is currently streaming at
www.blink182.com, a couple weeks before its May 7th radio date and some six
weeks away from the June 12th release of Jacket.
REUTERS
--Filmmakers Joel and Ethan Coen have begun developing an untitled new project.
But the publicity-shy duo are still noodling with the plot and refuse to
divulge any details. The new film marks a reunion with veteran producer Ben
Barenholtz, who helped secure financing for the Coens' first feature, 1984's
``Blood Simple,'' before serving as executive producer of 1990's ``Miller's
Crossing'' and their 1991 Palme d'Or winner ``Barton Fink.'' He recently served
as an executive producer of Darren Aronofsky's ``Requiem for a Dream.'' The
Coens, last in theaters with 2000's ``O Brother, Where Art Thou?'', have a
first-look deal with Universal-owned Working Title. Their latest effort, the
crime drama ``The Man Who Wasn't There'' will be distributed by
Universal-affiliated USA Films following its Cannes premiere next month. Next
up for the Coens is ``To the White Sea,'' a feature starring Brad Pitt and
based on a James Dickey novel. It follows the journey home of an American pilot
shot down over Japan during World War II. A Hollywood work stoppage could stall
``Sea,'' currently set to be shot in Japan and Canada.
--Madonna will now play six concerts in Britain after all tickets for what was
to be her only British appearance sold out minutes after they went on sale
Thursday. The Material Girl will perform at London's Earl's Court on July 5, 7,
9, 10 and 12 in addition to her originally planned show at the venue on July 4,
American Independence day. Madonna fans camped out overnight to make sure they
got tickets for the singer's first public performance in Britain for seven
years. Promoters said all 16,000 tickets for the first show had sold out within
15 minutes. Ticket prices for the concerts range from 40 to 85 pounds,
prompting some music critics to say the singer was cashing in on her fans'
devotion. The 42-year-old superstar said earlier this month she would return to
the stage this summer for a 19-city world tour, her first since 1993's The
Girlie Show. The Drowned World Tour will be the most extravagant stage
spectacle of the singer's 17-year career, promoters SFX Entertainment said. She
will be performing material from her latest album ''Music,'' the ``Ray of
Light'' album as well as signature songs from earlier in her career. The tour
starts in Cologne, Germany on June 5 and ends in Los Angeles three months later
on September 9. Madonna gave a sneak preview to a select audience in London
earlier this year. The performance, attended by only 3,500 fans, mainly
celebrities and competition prize winners, attracted a record webcast audience
of nine million. Her current single ``What it feels like for a Girl'' is the
singer's 51st British top 10 single.
--LONDON - A painting by French impressionist Claude Monet which has not been
seen in public since 1895 went on show in London on Thursday. ``Haystacks, last
rays of the sun'' has been a missing link in Monet's ``Haystacks'' series, and
the auction house Sotheby's estimates it will sell on June 26 for between $7
million to $10 million. The painting has been known to scholars until now only
through an old black-and-white illustration. It is one of the earliest of the
23 ``Haystacks'' series, painted in Normandy between 1890 and 1891, and one of
only eight left in private hands. Of those eight, it is the only one not to
have been exhibited this century. Monet's friend Paul Gallimard bought it from
the artist the year after it was painted, and lent it for exhibition until
1895. It has not been seen in public since then, and has never left France
until now. The work passed from Gallimard to his son, who sold it to a private
collector in 1953. It has been put up for sale by one of the collector's
descendants. ``The chance to see this work for the first time is extremely
exciting for collectors and scholars interested in Monet's work,'' said Melanie
Clore of Sotheby's. ``The painting has a luminous vibrancy which makes it
particularly stunning,'' she added. Experts say the historical importance of
the ``Haystacks'' series, together with the painting's impeccable provenance,
could help it fetch a much higher price than its estimate. The most expensive
Monet ever to be sold was one of his waterlilies paintings, ``Bassin aux
nympheas et sentier au bord de l'eau,'' which fetched $33 million at auction in
1998. ``Haystacks, last rays of the sun,'' is painted in oil on canvas and
measures 29 inches by 34 inches.
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For more intriguing stories visit Jim Romenesko's www.obscurestore.com
Ron Turner
>when Brad Pitt strolled in! (Ohmigod, OHMIGAWD!) She rushed up, introduced
>herself -- then mumbled that she LOVES his films . . . he is SO cute . . .
>and
>(ohmigawd!) they share the SAME BIRTHDAY, December 18! As Christina
>chattered,
>Brad got twitchy. And when she asked what he was doing on his birthday, he
>sputtered, "I'm spending it with my wife . . . nice meeting you . . . !" --
>and
>hightailed outta there!
Anybody else notice how scary-looking Christina A's looked lately. Surprised
Brad Pitt didn't run in terror at first sight of her.
>HOLLYWOOD (Variety) - Cable network Sci Fi is going to ``Mars'' with its
>programming strategy for 2002. As part of its upfront programming
>presentation to advertisers Wednesday night, Sci Fi said it will add Kim
Stanley
>Robinson's epic ``Red Mars'' and a futuristic adaptation of Charles Dickens'
``A Tale of Two Cities'' to its 2002 event miniseries slate. ``Mars'' will be a
four-hour
>adaptation of bestselling trilogy ``Red Mars,'' ``Blue Mars'' and ``Green
>Mars.'' Robinson will serve as a consultant.
Yippie! Glad to see the "Mars" series picked up after it was dumped as a movie
franchise for being too hard to pull off.
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Reading "Real Life At The White House" by John Whitcomb