BOBBY'S BIG bLOG
Check back regularly to see what Bobby has to say!
Help Spread the Gospel according to Bobby.
Tell your friends!
VIEW THE ARCHIVES!
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | NEW FORMAT
I've gone interactive and searchable. Depending on your computer, you may have to scroll right to see fresh blogs. It took me awhile to figure that out m'self. Let me know what you think. Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | COME HELL OR HIGH WATER
Lord have mercy, what a week. The floods of Hurricane Katrina brought to the surface the harsh fact that American entered a new century with the same old problems of class and race -- the haves and have-nots. If George W. Bush and the head of FEMA aren't busy pitching a new reality series to Fox TV called "So You Think You Can Evacuate," then maybe W can star his mother in a revival of the sitcom "That's My Mama." I guess you heard what she said to an NPR reporter while touring the Astrodome in Houston after it had been filled with Hurricane Katrina survivors. If you didn't, here's the best part: "...so many of the people in the arena here, you know, were underprivileged anyway, so this -- this is working very well for them." Yes, she said that, with her man-on-the-Quaker Oats box-lookin' self. The former first lady said that to NPR yet NBC censored rapper Kanye West for criticizing her son for his lack of presidential compassion towards Black folks. On to another network. I think tonight Barbara Walters interviews Colin Powell on "20/20." The commercial has a clip of Babs asking, "Do you think a Black man will ever be president in this country?" I sure wish Colin said, "Barbara...let me ask you this -- do you think a Black man will ever be the head of any of the original three networks, like ABC?" I'd like to hear her answer on that. Then I'd like to hear her say, "Next week my guests will be Ralph Fiennes, Jake Gyllenhaal and Renee Zellweger." But that's just me. Enjoy your weekend. Say prayers of remembrance this Sunday. Sign the guestbook -- and bearhugz to you all. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | Noo Yawk City |
| ENTRY: | CELEBRITY SIGHTINGS
Yesterday, while going to and returning from a job interview in my neighborhood, I hit a triple play in star sightings. On a residential sidestreet, I passed by Ethan Hawke and his dog. Ethan's got two Oscar® nominations to his credit and he still dresses like he's in a Seattle grunge band. Later, on the avenue around lunchtime, I was crossing a busy street and almost bumped the shoulder of a lady headed in the opposite direction. I almost said, " 'scuse me," when I realized that the lady in the big shades was Calista Flockhart. Next to her was Harrison Ford. There they were in casual attire just taking a noontime stroll. Ford is in his early 60s and still a hunk. He looks damn good. As for Calista, she really needs to eat something. When she wears black, she looks just like an x-ray. I love my neighborhood. I pray I get a job soon so I can afford to keep living in it. By the way...do any of you fashionistas know where I can purchase T-shirts, handbags or buttons that say "Impeach Bush"? I checked Banana Republic, but they don't have any. Sign the guestbook and have a great day. BearHugz. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | Manhattan |
| ENTRY: | WAKE UP, AMERICA
I used to say that W was so stupid that dinosaurs could point to the size of his brain and laugh at it. Now I think he's more dangerous than stupid. Bush responded to the death of Conservative Supreme Court Justice Rehnquist faster than he responded to a disaster that left thousands of black people homeless, left dead bodies on the streets and floating in the floodwaters unattended...a disaster that left the dying unattended, the living without food and water and a disaster that forced innocent children into situations of sheer horror, such as being raped after having been separated from family or having to survive in a dark building with more gangmember gunfire than sanitation. One million survivors are homeless. Now W says that he personally will conduct an investigation to see what went wrong with the hurricane response. I'm sorry, but isn't Daddy running the damn house? He's the most vacation-taking president I can remember America having had in decades. He was on vacation in Texas. He didn't even make a sympathy statement from the ranch the day after Hurricane Katrina. He was too busy dodging anti-war protestors. He did nothing and said nothing for more than a day. How can that man live with himself? How can he and his cronies call themselves Christians? And another thing...President Clinton, like many other married male politicians on Capitol Hill, had an affair. For that, Conservatives practically wanted to burn him as a witch. He was impeached. Was his secret affair with one consenting woman a more serious crime against the nation than Bush's lack of attention and compassion to minorities and poor whites in the wake of Hurricane Katrina? Count the homeless. Count the unburied dead. Count the children who were raped. It's time to wake up, America. The emperor is naked and he really owes this country an apology. That's this American's opinion. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | GO, WEST!
Rapper Kanye West, a young man who seems intent on making a good spiritual contribution to the entertainment industry, was censored last night live on NBC during its all-star telethon for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. He didn't use any foul language. He said, "George Bush does not care about black people" and he criticized how the images of us minorities are presented in the media. If you saw the current edition of Bill Maher's "Real Time" on HBO, Bill brought up that very same thing. He showed one press photo of Black people with grocery items that were described as "looted" while another photo of white people with grocery items had the words "found bread." If you've read my blogs before, you know how I feel about racial images in broadcasting. I've had my battles over them in local TV newsrooms for ten years in this town. That's why I left news for entertainment. About Kanye's comments on NBC, let's look at a bit of the Peacock Network's history. In the first 50 years of "Today" -- from 1952 to 2002 -- that morning news program hired only two African-American on-air talents -- Bryant Gumble and Al Roker. Two in half a century. As for programming, "Friends," "Mad About You," "Seinfeld," and even "Will & Grace" -- shows about hip young adults in Manhattan -- did not debut with any Black regular or semi-regular castmember. It was as if we didn't exist in New York City. There's not even a Black member of NBC's "Queer Eye" team. What's up with that? Don't we gay Black men know anything about upscale stores and good grooming? But NBC productions does give us "Being Bobby Brown." When I worked for WNBC's weekend local morning news show, my Caucasian producer boss rejected my opportunities to interview Ossie Davis & Ruby Dee, Pam Grier and Patti LaBelle. But she booked Pia Zadora for 8 minutes live in the studio with one of the anchors. The producer told me that the stars I was offered were "...not our audience." During those same years, NBC was the subject of a major New York Daily News article on Oct. 15th, 1993. Here are excerpts from the article, which I kept: "...an NBC producer called a Somali warlord 'an educated jungle bunny' during a news meeting. Black NBC employees exploded with indignation yesterday after learning of Jeff G___'s remark about Mohamed Farrah Aidid." " 'It hurts because every time they mention AIDS or welfare or unwed mothers on the news, they always show black faces,' one of the employees said. 'This situation shows just how deep the insensitivity runs.' " ...G____, an executive producer of NBC's Nightly News with Tom Brokaw, admitted yesterday that he made the remark, but said that he was 'using a phrase that exists in many people's minds in the Unites States.' ....G___ said of Aidid: 'He's an educated jungle bunny and the rest of the jungle bunnies are not like this at all. They're illiterate.' " The man's last name is in the article but I chose not to print it. By the way, he was not fired. He left NBC because he got a better offer from another network. I believe he is still involved in network news today. As for Kanye West saying what he did where he did as he burned the peacock's feathers, some might say "Hey...payback's a bitch." What do you think? Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BRivers |
| Reporting in from: | The East Coast |
| ENTRY: | ...AND ANOTHER THING
Do you think if Hurricane Katrina had hit the predominantly rich Caucasians of Malibu, The Hamptons or Palm Beach that our president would have remained on vacation while thousands were homeless and without water, electricity and sanitation? Can we all just think about that? And didn't it seem like dirt poor black and dirt poor white folks looting bottled water and baby food would've suffered a more swift and severe punishment than any of the guys involved in the EnRon scandal? And don't we see proof that our leader -- who gives tax breaks to the rich -- has been more focused on declaring war in Iraq than he ever was in declaring a war on poverty in America? Is he just passive aggressive when dealing with the poor and with people of color or is Bush himself a weapon of mass destruction? Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | New York City |
| ENTRY: | IF I WAS PRESIDENT...
...I would have cut my vacation short the day after Hurricane Katrina hit and all those thousands and thousands of evacuees had filled the Superdome. Also, I would NOT have made the press wait until I got my little White House posse together and we assembled in the rose garden to make a statement. I would've had something to say as I'd stepped off Air Force One to deal with the crisis. What the hell does he do at that ranch in Crawford, Texas? We could all see how disastrous that storm was in the live coverage on national newscasts. What was W. watching? DVDs of "Hee-Haw" and the "Police Academy" movies? All of us here in New York know that we didn't hear squat from the president right after the absolute evil and horror of Sept. 11th started. If you saw Michael Moore's "Fahrenheit 9/11," you'll see that the president was pre-occupied with a personal appearance while Lucifer laughed. When the tsunami hit Sri Lanka during last year's Christmas season, it took him a couple of days before he addressed that. Another natural disaster as devastating as the tsunami hits New Orleans and he's still sittin' up on the ranch. If he was on "The Apprentice," wouldn't he be fired? And he's the top public official in the country! I'm just waiting for him to say that Hurricane Katrina was one of those weapons of mass destruction that he was talking about or that God brought it on because of gay marriage. Maybe I'm just being too sensitive. But, if I was president, as soon as I saw that storm damage, I'd have put down my beer, my bag of barbecue chips, called Condoleezza and said "Leezy, girl, I gots to get back to work. Pronto. I need you to TiVo 'So You Think You Can Dance' for me then call Congress and tell 'em that Daddy's comin' home early." But that's just me. How do feel about it? Sign the guestbook...and a good, safe weekend. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | TV "TODAY"
Harry Connick Jr, a very sweet man and a son of New Orleans, is back in his homestate to help with the relief in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. He'll also be part of a benefit concert. He talked to Katie Couric on "Today" this morning. She told him to "hang in there." Bless her heart. She's reporting on the destruction, death, devastation, poverty and sudden homelessness caused by the natural disaster down South -- and she's wearing the sweetest pair of diamond earrings, twinkling in the studio light. Just as shiny as her lip gloss. Well...I don't have a lot o' money, but Harry was very kind to me back in the VH1 days before he became famous and so were some of the folks of New Orleans each time I visited there. I'm giving what I can to the Red Cross. Things are going to be very tough in the Big Easy for the rest of this year. Let's keep those folks in our prayers and let's remind our loved ones where we are that they are loved ones while we can. Big Hugz to ya. Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | ...AND HOW WAS YOUR DAY?
So I went to a little Spanish place around the corner to have a quick, quiet lunch. I was one of only three customers in the joint. I was sitting at the window, watching the pedestrians go about their business on 7th avenue when, all of sudden, one of them decided to butt into mine. A tall, scraggly-haired blonde clutching a purse and a couple of shopping bags walked into the restaurant and headed over to my table. "Excuse me. Didn't you used to work on WNBC on the weekend morning show?" I looked her over to make sure she wasn't armed before I answered, "Yes." After I answered, she sat down at my table. This is exactly why some stars travel with bodyguards. She said, "You don't recognize me, do you?" I left WNBC in January 1995. I was too hot and too hungry to fake it politely. I just said, "No." She continued. "I worked in the control room." I was rarely in the control room because I was usually in front of the camera. I said, "I'm sorry. I still don't recognize you. What's your name?" She replied, "Well...it was Julio. Back then, when I worked in the control room, I was a man. And I wasn't a blonde." After a pause, I said "Maybe that's why I didn't recognize you." Right then, my lunch came. She stayed at the table and asked one more question -- "So, listen, do you know anybody who's hiring in town? Any TV station?" I honestly said, "Nope. I certainly do not. I've been out of work since July of last year. I can't even take your card and call you if I hear of anything because I'm trying to hear of something for myself." I told her that Food Network dropped Top 5 last summer and the repeats don't bring me any residuals. Her jaw dropped down to her size 12 pumps. She suddenly got very awkward and embarrassed. Gathering up her bags, she gave a flutterly "I'm..I'm very sorry about interrupting your lunch. Good luck." And then she quickly scooted off, leaving me to eat in peace. The truth shall set you free. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | APOCALYPSE NOW
Kathie Lee Gifford, the former smalltown beauty queen who turned herself into the Evita of daytime television, is returning to TV. She'll be a correspondent on the entertainment news program "The Insider." Kathie Lee Gifford. Once again, I think Faye Dunaway as Joan Crawford said it best in the movie MOMMIE DEAREST: "Why, Christina?!?!? Whyyyyyyyy?!?!?!?!?! A reporter!!!!!" Enjoy your day. Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | Manhattan |
| ENTRY: | LUNCH DATE
I get to eat on Tuesday! A very witty and polite literary agent is taking me to lunch. One of his clients has a book of memoirs that is still on the NY Times Bestseller List and it's being turned into a film. I've submitted some autographical essays to magazines over the last couple of years. No response. In the spring, a lit agent from a smaller company met with me and said that memoirs don't sell. (He was wearing an ascot and he split the check.) But I see memoirs all over the front tables at Barnes & Noble. Even X-rated movie stars have written their stories. Jenna Jameson's "How To Make Love Like A Porn Star" seems to be popular. I want to ask the other agent about that at lunch on Tuesday. I'd love to get published. I could easily do a rewrite and retitle my stuff "How To Make Love Like A Priest" or "Onan the Barbarian." Wish me luck. Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BRivers |
| Reporting in from: | MovieLand |
| ENTRY: | ReView: SUNSET BOULEVARD
This is for my young acting classmates at TVI Studios, especially in Dani Super's wonderful class. There's a lot of brilliant stuff in movies made before you were born. Many of those movies should be watched and studied if you're serious about acting, writing and directing for the big screen. If you get Turner Classic Movies, one such classic airs tonight -- SUNSET BOULEVARD. You've all heard the famous last line "Alright, Mr DeMille, I'm ready for my closeup." Trust me, you need to see the two hours leading up to that line. Just because the movie was released in 1950 doesn't mean it doesn't echo any of today's trends and behavior, especially in show business. A rich former superstar makes outrageous fashion statements while living in a huge house with a chimp. Think Michael Jackson. She's also out of touch with reality. Again, think Michael Jackson. A struggling writer can't get respect and work. He wants to write meaningful, intelligent screenplays but the studio executives want quick-to-shoot comedies. Think THE DUKES OF HAZZARD. Star and writer connect and collide on a project. She wants so much control over everything they do that she's ready to kill. Andrew Lloyd Weber turned this into a Broadway musical. I saw it. Didn't like it. It didn't have the juice of the original. The movie is twisted, surprising, a bit nasty yet also sympathetic and very witty. Besides, it should've been grand opera with someone like the late Maria Callas as Norma Desmond, the mad star. Gloria Swanson, who was a superstar in the silent era, played Norma and gave a ferocious performance that still holds up today. Notice how specific she is in choices of gesture and voice. She moves like a predatory jungle creature. Her voice is grand and overly theatrical. William Holden, also excellent, gives a perfect example of keeping tone, proximity and dynamics in mind in the first ten minutes. Two tough guys come to repossess his car. Notice how the writer gives a performance. He keeps his voice low and acts cool, but he's really scared. He hustles them into leaving and that sets up the main theme of the movie. It's about opportunists in Hollywood. The Hustle. He needs a place to hide his car. He needs a job. Norma needs to be a red carpet star again. She needs a lover. Max needs to direct, instead of just drive, another vehicle. He's the butler/chauffeur -- a former director-turned-Dr. Frankenstein with a leather fetish. Just listen to him describe an office he once had on a movie lot. Director Billy Wilder shows us the dynamics of the characters with camerawork that is more revealing and awesome than some we see in new films today. When Joe wakes up in the Desmond estate, he hears an organ playing and storms angrily into the living room. Max is playing the organ. Notice the size of his hands in relation to Joe standing in the background. The hustling writer looks like a puppet in relation to Norma's servant. After the New Year's Eve party sequence, Norma is sunning in the backyard. She calls for Max. She looks like a giant monster giving orders to a shrunken man. It's all foreshadowing. Last week, a friend asked me why I don't give soundbites in some of those VH1 specials about 80s music videos or other topics. I told her that I've repeatedly pitched myself to VH1 and MTV Networks for years. I get no response, even though I was a network on-air employee from 1987-'90. But just like Paramount, those networks are under the Viacom umbrella. Maybe once you've worked for the company, you just can't go back again. The last time I rented SUNSET BOULEVARD, I laughed. Joe, Norma and Max all had work histories with Paramount and tried, with obstacles, to return. I also listened to the movie's DVD commentary. Here's something that was not said but it's a motif I notice -- the story opens with cars speeding towards the camera. Police on their way to a Hollywood homicide shortly after dawn. As they are in LA, cars are very important in the screenplay. Each of the three main characters is literally driven to some point of irrationality because of an automobile. Joe's is being taken away, Norma's is wanted by her old studio and Max, the once-famous silent film director, is now a chauffeur. That story couldn't happen here in New York City with mass transit. Only in Hollywood, kids. Only in Hollywood. One last thing -- I did a one-hour interview of Cameron Crowe when he was promoting ALMOST FAMOUS, that Oscar-winning beauty of a movie he wrote and directed in 2000. We had a studio audience with lots of NYU students. One asked Cameron if he had tips for aspiring screenwriters on dialogue, rhythm, and character development. His answer -- "Watch the films of Billy Wilder." SUNSET BOULEVARD is one of them...and one of his best. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | The Big Apple |
| ENTRY: | TV TALK
The TBS reality series "Loser Leaves Town" will not be aired originally as planned. The series had two feuding neighbors and the loser actually had to move away. I wish I'd been a winner on the original version of that show -- and I lived right next door to the White House. My buddy, Nubian Goddess and CBS Sunday Morning essay contributor Nancy Giles, took me out for a bite to eat this week. After din-din, we took a stroll through Chelsea and she asked me to point out what kind of guy I'm attracted to. It wasn't easy. There was plenty of beefcake out, but most of it was walking tiny little canines. When a big hairy dude has obviously spent years pumping himself up to look like The Terminator and then he's seen in public attached to a froo-froo dog small enough to be hurled like a discus, it kind of ruins the whole effect. But that's just me. Nancy is not the only buddy who's asked me that. So, for all of you who want to know, watch ABC tonight. The network is showing THE MEXICAN, starring Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts. Not a great movie, but the best part is James Gandolfini in a comic supporting role as a gay hitman. When I saw him in that, he had my hormones spinning like they were in those giant teacups at DisneyLand. I'd love to work with James Gandolfini. In fact, I was at a party for HBO and met the top producer of THE SOPRANOS. A very charming and friendly man. As we chatted, I pitched myself to play a semi-regular member of Tony's mob. My character would be a gay hitman and part-time choreographer named Muscles Marinara. The producer listened and then said he'd get back to me. That was three years ago. I'm sure he just misplaced my card. Oh, no. I never wrote anything down. What if he takes my idea and casts Judd Nelson instead. Damn! Well...that's showbiz for ya. Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | WHAT'S THE SCORE?
This afternoon, I was listening to WNYC FM, our NPR radio station here in New York City. The show "Soundstage" was devoted to memories of movie music scores. The host opened the show with Judy Garland singing "Over the Rainbow" from THE WIZARD OF OZ soundtrack. Listeners were asked to call in and talk about their favorite movie tunes. The most popular films mentioned were PRETTY IN PINK, NEW JACK CITY, PURPLE RAIN and DIRTY DANCING. Nothing before 1986. Then one caller phoned in and said that he didn't know the name of the movie but the song he loved was called "On The Street Where You Live." The NPR host didn't know the name of the movie either. Not a Z-Morning Zoo FM rock radio host, mind you, but a host on NPR did not know the legendary score from MY FAIR LADY. To me, this is another sign of the approaching apocalypse -- like dogs walking backwards and Ryan Seacrest getting a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. "If happy little bluebirds fly beyond the rainbow...why, oh why, can't I?" Enjoy your weekend. Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | Roberto Rios |
| Reporting in from: | Nueva York |
| ENTRY: | DOING GOD'S WORK
Dr. Phil needs to have TV evangelist/gangsta Pat Robertson on his syndicated Psych 101 show so he can sit Pat down and say "What the hell were you thinkin' ?!?!" I guess you've heard that the Conservative Christian and hardcore Bush campaigner called for the US to assassinate the President of Venezuela. That news made me dash to pull out my old Baltimore Cathechism from Catholic school. I wanted to look for the fine print in the Ten Commandments that obviously I'd been missing all these years -- "#5: THOU SHALT NOT KILL (unless it's for Jesus)." In the past on his TV show, "The 700 Club," Robertson has denounced feminists, gays, the United Nations, and even DisneyLand. OK. He's on cable, which is not regulated by the FCC. OK. Everybody from black rappers to white salesmen for the Rock of Ages, like Robertson, claims an American right to freedom of speech. Fine. But, with rights, come responsibilities. Also, did anyone ever tell Pat that the last person you want to piss off on national television is a South American political boss? He could hire some drug lord posse member to cut yo' wrinkly ass up so pretty, you'd look like a bow on a West Hollywood Easter basket. After making media headlines with his comment, Robertson said that he was misinterpreted. In the original inflammatory statement, he said "We have the ability to take him out." Robertson later said that to "take him out" could refer to kidnapping. Yeah, right, Pat. It could also refer to dinner and a movie followed by a nightcap at your place with the attractive leftist Latin American leader. Now THAT I'd like to see covered on "The 700 Club." TV evangelism in the 21st Century. Lord have mercy. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | The East Coast |
| ENTRY: | ON FILM: BROCK PETERS
Actor Brock Peters passed away. He gave a deathless performance onscreen in a work of art called TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD. If you have never seen that film, run out and rent the DVD or VHS. It's flawless and, like THE ACCIDENTAL TOURIST, one of the few films based on a celebrated novel that is very faithful to the book. Peters played Tom Robinson, the Black man being defended in court by Atticus Finch, famously played by Gregory Peck. When Harper Lee wrote the novel, she based the Robinson trial on the real-life murder of Emmett Till in Mississippi. Till was tortured, beaten beyond recognition and shot by a group of white men in 1955. His crime? Whistling at a white woman. Till was only 14 years old. Men were charged with the crime, but just like in TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, there was an all-white jury. Till's killing sparked the civil rights movement. A documentary on the Till case is currently playing in downtown Manhattan at the Film Forum now until Aug. 30th. The newspaper reviews were excellent but it's not getting much mention by the TV press. For more info on THE UNTOLD STORY OF EMMETT LOUIS TILL, log onto www.filmforum.org. If you are or know a schoolteacher, you've got to check this out. One of my dream jobs would be teaching the literature of film. I had a class like that in college and loved it. There's a curriculum for teachers called The Story of Movies. I think it's targeted for grades 8-12. This new scholastic program introduces students to classic cinema and the cultural significance of film. What thrills me about it is that, not only are kids introduced to the art of films past, they'll also be inspired to read the source material if the movie is based on a book or short story. The first three films are TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, THE DAY THE EARTH STOOD STILL and MR. SMITH GOES TO WASHINGTON. A Southern racial drama, a sci-fi thriller and a heartwarming Jimmy Stewart classic -- what do they have in common? The viewpoint of kids is important in the narrative of all three. Turner Classic Movies is running a short feature on this cinema course. Let me tell ya, it gave me hope for the world to see middle schoolers in New Jersey enthusiastically discuss details they noticed in TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD -- Peck's body language, camera angles, the lighting. Fabulous! I visited the website for the first time on Monday. There was Brock Peters right next to Gregory Peck. Check that one out at www.storyofmovies.org. In 1962, when that classic was released, some of today's young stars hadn't even been born. My late partner, Richard, hadn't even been born. Old School Hollywood gave us some solid choices for entertainment. Ten Top Flicks that came out in 1962 were TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD, CAPE FEAR (also starring Gregory Peck), THE DAYS OF WINE AND ROSES, LAWRENCE OF ARABIA, THE MIRACLE WORKER, LOLITA, THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE, WHATEVER HAPPENED TO BABY JANE?, LONG DAY'S JOURNEY INTO NIGHT and THE MUSIC MAN. Now it's 2005. Filmmaking has better technology and more freedom. Stars get millions of bucks per movie, way more than Old School Hollywood stars ever did. Can you name five films that you've paid to see so far this year that were excellent, entertaining and worth your box office dollars? Just curious. List your pics in the guestbook. |
| Name: | Rivers |
| Reporting in from: | Manhattan |
| ENTRY: | COVER GIRL JENNIFER ANISTON
Have you all seen the current issue of Vanity Fair? Remember when Brad & Jen were The Pitts? The soon-to-be-ex-Mrs. Brad Pitt is the cover girl right next to this quote: "Am I lonely? Upset? Confused? Yes. But I'm a tough cookie." Oh, lord. If I had a syndicated talkshow called "Honey, Shut the Hell Up," she'd be my first guest. If Jennifer Aniston had to live for one month in Compton, California on a schoolteacher's income, get to work in a used car, live on the same block with the kinds of people you never saw on the first five seasons of "Friends" (namely Blacks and Hispanics) and could only afford to get her hair done in the 'hood by LaKeesha at the Weave Only Just Begun Beauty Salon, she'd be screaming like Fay Wray in "King Kong." Tough cookie? Please. Don't get me started. One last thing -- read the entry under this one about the foreign film bio based on a transvestite kickboxer from Thailand. My friend and Muhammed Ali fan, Louise, came up with a great ad slogan for the movie's USA distribution: "Float like M. Butterfly, sting like a bee." Brilliant! It's sad when my fabulous readers can send email comments that are way funnier than any episode of "Joey" that I've seen so far on NBC. You all totally rock. Big Hugs. |
| Name: | Bobby R |
| Reporting in from: | Manhattan |
| ENTRY: | I GET A KICK OUT OF YOU
"Beautiful Boxer" is scheduled to make its premiere in Great Britain. Made in Asia, the film is a biography of Nong Toom -- Thailand's famous transvestite kickboxer. (I'm not making this up, y' know.) Toom wore make-up in the ring and hoped to win enough money so that he could get a sex change operation. If I had plenty of money, I'd fly to the UK just to see it. Eventually, "Beautiful Boxer" will come to the United States and may undergo a name change. Distributors are currently deciding between "Flower Drum Schlong" and "The World of Suzie's Wang." More info on the film can be read by going into my links and clicking onto bbcnews. If you're coming to the New York City area and really want to see some ethnic kickboxing, head down to Christopher Street late one Saturday night and just try stealing a Puerto Rican drag queen's purse. Bam! |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | LOVE/DRUGS
On Friday, in a Los Angeles court, rock singer Courtney Love tearfully admitted that she's been doing drugs even though she'd been telling the press that she was clean. Color me surprised. The woman's had a scary weight loss, she can hardly speak, her face is a wreck, plus she looks like her hair and make-up have been done by Helen Keller. The judge ordered her into rehab. She'll be fine. Today's entertainment addict is tomorrow's reality show superstar on Bravo. If I was a producer, I'd work out a deal where she becomes the nanny on "Being Bobby Brown." Couldn't you just see Courtney Love trying to make grits for Whitney Huston's kids? Now THAT'S entertainment. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | COLLEGE OF JOURNALISM
CBS brass seems to have found a way to make kids save their butts for free and then run to Starbucks to get them coffee. They gave interns -- college kids working for no pay -- the summer "assignment" to develop ideas for a new CBS Evening News format and then present their ideas to highly-paid top network news executives. One VP was quoted as saying the assignment "...was done for the interns education." Yeah, right. Did she also promise them 40 acres and a mule like former slaves were promised after the Civil War? Let's hit the Bobbo Time Machine: Back in the 80s, when I was working in Milwaukee, I knew a guy named Ray Solley who was interviewing for a producer spot on Johnny Carson's "Tonight" show. He did eventually get the job. However, one show producer gave him this "assignment" -- if Johnny was interviewing Brooke Shields, what three questions would you give him? Ray submitted what he felt were three original questions that would've worked well coming from Carson. He was right. To his surprise, Shields was a guest later that week and he heard Carson ask a question from his "assignment." The producer who gave him that assignment was the one who booked Shields to be on the program. A few years ago, I got called personally by a very popular network TV personality who wanted to produce a film review and interview show. He wanted to discuss doing a pilot. I was contacted and so was Alison Bailes, an excellent host on the IFC cable channel. Talking about current and classic movies is my passion and the thought of co-hosting with her was quite tasty. She and I were both surprised when we got to the star's production office a week later for the meeting. He was not there. He was in Utah. Instead, we were invited into an office where his somewhat cheesey manager and an assistant greeted us. The assistant was holding a steno pad. The manager said, "If you had a weekly film-related show, what kind of segments would you put on it? What kind of ideas do you have?" Alison and I nudged each other. We had ideas, but we weren't giving them out for free to those two. My point is this -- if those interns really want an education, they'd take a break from the journalism department, go over to the law school and check into how to copyright their good ideas before presenting them. Trust me on this...if an executive hears a good idea from a less-than-minimum wage person and thinks to himself, "Hey..I shoulda thought of that one myself," at some future date he will tell his boss that he did. Any babyboomer who grew up watching Larry Tate rip off ideas from Samantha on "Bewitched" knows this to be true. Comments? Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | TGIF
Whatta week! I have a meeting this morning with the executives overseeing the commercial project I'm doing next month. They're in from Utah. More on that later. Early this week, I took a major step towards sanity. The Actors' Fund here in NYC has a great deal called the Work Program. It guides entertainment industry professionals who can't find showbiz work into a new life and work arena. All this year, I've been contacting local and network TV shops here in the city to utilize my talent not just as a perfomer but as a writer, proofreader, researcher, associate producer and segment producer. No luck. I'm not signed with a commercial agent who can send me to commercial auditions. So the Actors' Fund helps you take your skills and use them where some company will actually appreciate them. It may not be in showbiz, but it'll bring in a paycheck. I begin working with a career counselor as soon as I wrap up the commercial shoot next month. If you plan on calling me Sunday night during the finale of HBO's "Six Feet Under," plan on getting the answering machine. I loved the acting on that series. You just know the end will be chock full of surprises. I just wish the theatrical movies we get would be as intelligent and well-acted as series episodes we get on HBO. Oh! One more thing before I get ready for my meeting -- if you scroll down to COME FLY WITH ME, you'll read my blind item entry about a certain star. The clues are in the item -- Oscar winner and "they didn't like her...they really, really didn't like her." She didn't win special places in the heart of that flight crew. There. That should do it. Have a fab weekend. Hugs/Kisses. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | MAKE ROOM FOR DIDDY
Most of his casual wear that you can buy has his name "Sean John" on it. We knew him as "Puff Daddy" and "Puffy" and then "P Diddy." This week on the Today Show, a morning news program, the millionaire rap music star made the announcement that he now wants to be called just "Diddy." That's fine by me. Lord knows that after his movie performance in "Monster's Ball" and his "A Raisin in the Sun" Broadway debut, he couldn't be called "Actor." In movie franchise news, I guess you heard that Pierce Brosnan got 86'd from the 007 role. Now the guessing game begins -- who will be the new James Bond? Talk about durability! That role has been a plum part for decades. Way back in the day, when the super-agent books were new, an actor from Hollywood's Classic Era named John Payne wanted to play him. On my VH1 talkshow in 1989, Mel Gibson was a guest for the entire half-hour. He confirmed that he turned down the role of James Bond several times before it went to Brosnan. (I often put that clip on demo tapes.) He felt that the character was too violent and that the franchise had gotten boring. Yep..he said that on the air. Then Mel went on to give us four LETHAL WEAPON movies and make Savior Tartare in THE PASSION OF THE CHRIST. I still feel that Sean Connery was untouchable as 007. He was like the perfect martini. If I was casting the part, I'd call in handsome Brit actor Clive Owen, who was in the movie CLOSER with Julia Roberts, and another hot Brit actor named Daniel Craig. He starred this year in a totally fun crime thriller that no one saw called LAYER CAKE. When it comes out on DVD, it's worth a rental. Not only is Craig an excellent actor, he looks a bit like Steve McQueen sometimes. Yum. As for me, nothing came of the LA meeting. I had a hunch that would be the case. I do have one solid week of commercial work here in Manhattan starting Sept 19th. Thank heaven. In the meantime, I'm still working hard to get some more work and studying to become better. If I say so m'self, I was damn good this week in acting class. In a dramatic scene, I had to play a cop. A heterosexual cop. Not Angie Dickinson on "Police Woman"...more like Dennis Franz on "NYPD Blue." My teacher said that she would've contacted me to return for a callback if I had done what I did at a first audition. Now if I could just get some first auditions! Keep the faith. Big kiss, baby. Be cool. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | COME FLY WITH ME
My totally cool cousin is a veteran flight attendant for Continental Airlines. He recently told me that some of his co-worker buddies were not exactly star-struck when a certain Oscar®-winner boarded for a flight in first class. They said that she didn't have a very friendly vibe when she took her seat. Not only that, she handed the attendant several pre-autographed publicity photos of herself so she wouldn't be bothered for autographs during the trip. The flight attendant took the pics into the galley section and had a short discussion with the attendants. He politely returned to the star, handed her all of the autographed photos back and said with a smile, "Thank you but we won't be needing them." Her face must have cracked. My opinion? Never act like a diva to people who can hook you up with an oxygen mask and push open the exit door. Yep..I heard they didn't like her -- they really, really didn't like her. Have a good day. Mind your manners. Sign the guestbook. Pretty please. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | LADY MADONNA
Madonna, who turned 47 today, broke a couple of ribs at her country estate outside of London when she fell off a horse. I knew she was a top. I just knew it. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | SHOWBIZ NEWS
In development for Touchstone Television is a futuristic political drama project to be written by Ben Affleck. Back in the 90s, Affleck won an Oscar for co-writing GOOD WILL HUNTING. He didn't write another screen play. Instead, he concentrated on being a film star. The title of the TV project is RESISTANCE. My sources tell me that the title was inspired by the feelings American filmgoers apparently have had to see the last ten movies starring Ben Affleck. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | ONLY IN NEW YORK
What a weekend! Saturday all of us here in New York City felt like we were in a sci-fi flick in which aliens were controlling the climate. Not only was it 99 degrees, but the humidity was so intense that when you inhaled, your nostrils stuck together. Yesterday was slightly better and then we got some heavy thunderstorms. During the rain, late in the afternoon, I got called by a pollster from the New York City Dept. of Health. I agreed to be polled and it was confidential. One section was about sexual health. "From the following sexual orientations, which one do you consider yourself to be?" He read them, and I answered. Then came, "In the last twelve months, how many sexual partners have you had." I replied, "One." He said, "Of the following sexual practices, which did you and your partner engage in?" He read the practices. There was a long pause. He said, "Sir..shall I read them again?" I said, "No, thank you. It's just that...it happened so many months ago, I'm just trying to remember what we did. By the way, you've called more than he has since we got together." I'd never heard anyone conducting a phone survey chuckle before. Only in New York. Aren't you surprised that I'm not dating? I am. I think I'm sweet. Well..it's Monday, the beginning of a new work week. There's a break in the weather -- and I think there's gonna be a break in my luck. Yep...I think if I keep the faith, there's gonna be a cool breeze in my career situation. Have a good day, my friends. Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | Bobby O'Rivers |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | Dear Diary,
I got some showbiz scoop from my friend Louise. Irish-born Liam Neeson, a very gifted actor, has been cast to play Abraham Lincoln in a biographical film to be directed by Steven Spielberg. I remember seeing the old movies on TV about Honest Abe when I was a kid. Those classics starred Henry Fonda and Raymond Massey. I even remember a TV drama starring Jason Robards as President Lincoln. When he did the Gettysburg Address sequence, it was like a master class in brilliant acting. Now Liam Neeson has been signed to take on the role. I guess there's just no good American actor who could do it. Tom Hanks would be too Tom Hanks. Sean Penn is too short. Jack Nicholson is too old. Jamie Foxx is too Black. Tom Cruise rejected the part because Lincoln never wore RayBans. That leaves Irish-born Liam Neeson. For years his nickname was "The Railsplitter," but not for the same boring reason that Lincoln's was. Maybe that's how he got the audition. I wonder if Spielberg will address the historical opinion that Lincoln might have been gay. Personally, I don't believe it. Just because he was articulate, always made a fashion statement, wore a goatee, loved the theatre, respected Black folks and had a dumpy little wife doesn't mean........uh, well...let me think about that for a bit. Gee...do you think people will pay to see a movie about America's 16th Leader of the Land? Will they sit through a story about the USA in the 1860s when it prided itself on Christian freedom from foreign tyranny yet denied equality to and killed some of its own citizens solely because of their color? Will filmgoers find interest in an old story about a good country tearing itself apart because of Red States vs Blue States? Will Charlize Theron skip the cosmetics again and play Mrs. Lincoln? These are things I'm sure that Mr. Spielberg is asking himself. I like him. I really like Mr. Neeson. In fact, I'd like to meet Mr. Neeson and tell him that in person. But he'd probably bring me up on charges. Anyway...I wish the director and star the best of luck with the biopic. The working title is: THE CIVIL WAR OF THE WORLDS. That's all for now. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | Dear Diary,
Thank God it's Friday. On the front page of today's New York Times is a photo of Condoleezza Rice in between Donald Rumsfeld and President Bush on a country road in Texas. I'd have withdrawn all the money out of my IRA account and given it to that sistah if she had worn a T-shirt that read "I'm With Stupid." But I understand that she's got to keep it real for our national security. By the way, what's the deal with the two z's in her first name? Isn't one enough? It looks like a typing mistake, but let me tell ya...that first name sure is fun watch people try to say after they've had six Cosmopolitans. I just giggle for days -- but that's just me. More later. |
| Name: | Robert Rivers |
| Reporting in from: | Los Angeles |
| ENTRY: | BURN, BABY, BURN!
Those are words The Rivers Family, among others, heard many years ago. This week marks the 40th anniversary of the Watts Riots in Los Angeles. I'm sure that because of my breezy on-air personality that many folks (usually Caucasian TV executives) think I had a childhood like The Huxtable kids on THE COSBY SHOW. Log onto www.LATimes.com. Look for the black & white pic of the riots. That was taken in our 'hood, our community. We lived in what was declared a curfew area. My little sister, Betsy, and I walked up to the corner of our cul-de-sac street and watched a single file line of National Guard trucks roll into the area. It looked like something in a sci-fi movie. No other traffic was on the usually busy Central Avenue except for armed guards heading in to quell a riot. I was just a youngster, but I'd already been greatly impressed by film and TV. My parents watched Jack Parr and Johnny Carson. That was the kind of work I wanted to grow up and do. A week before the riots erupted, one of the local stations had gotten a camera to use in its helicopter. The ads boasted that the skycam would bring better coverage of LA rush hour traffic. Unexpectedly, it became an unblinking eye on the riot, affecting the way Black people were seen and perceived. If there's one thing that has driven my career here in New York City, it's been the fight for recognition and equality. Seriously. In seven years of local news of the 90s, I continuously fought bosses for upward mobility. Sure, I can be funny. I wrote and performed some funny stuff. But comedy is not easy. Ask any actor or sitcom writer. I worked hard and was told I wouldn't be moving up. Conflicts arose when I wanted to show my skills as an interviewer, writer, segment producer and present features on Black history, the AIDS crisis, financial equality for women in the workplace and minorities in the fine arts. I had serious words at one channel when a white producer said, "You're here to just be funny." I didn't stand for that. if truth be told, I left two news programs because there was a major color barrier that I could not break through. I still feel it today. Much of that fire in my heart burns because of where I grew up. Many folks didn't even now that Black people existed in Southern California before the Watts riots. When you thought of LA, you thought of Hollywood, the beaches, DisneyLand and surfers. South Central LA got no attention. In the Catholic and public schools I attended, we Black and Hispanic kids were programmed to study hard. Education would be our ticket up the ladder of success. Education would get us noticed and bring attention to our community. Years after the riots, when I was at summer camp, white kids who lived in places like Redondo Beach and Brentwood -- quite a ways away from Watts -- told me that their dads wanted to pack belongings into the family car and drive to safety because of riot coverage they saw on KTTV news. There was no need for that. We can run fast...but not that fast. An area that was ignored suddenly got incendiary national attention. Those TV images defined an entire community. That's when I learned the absolute power of television. We lived on East 124th Street. It was a working class block in a working class community. On our block there were Blacks, Mexicans, Filipinos and Caucasians. That kind of diversity had not been reflected in TV whenever anything was done on South Central LA. The people next door to us had a pool. Not a plastic pool, but a cement one with a diving board in their back yard. The people next to them had a living room that I loved. It looked like The Petries' living room on "The Dick Van Dyke Show." In years to come, America wouldn't think homes like that existed in South Central LA. They'd only think of a home like the one on "Sanford & Son." LA, despite its sunny image, had a long dark history of racial tension and bigotry. The Watts Riots brought it tragically into the light. New stereotypes arose from the fires and had to be put out. We youngsters were taught to study harder. Make a positive impact. My positive impact would be in TV, where images wrong or right could be created in an instant. Films were my passion. I'd break the color barrier of hardly any Black & Latino movie critics and film historians seen regulary on national TV. I'd break the color barrier of very few of us getting network weeknight entertainment talkshows or hosting something like "The Price Is Right." I've had a good career. It hasn't always been easy. In my Milwaukee years, I had to deal with anonymous letters and voicemail messages with the words "nigger" or "faggot." Just because I was an entertainment reporter who happened to be Black and gay. In dealing with execs who considered themselves liberal, I had to fight for equal pay and advancement. And, oddly, I've heard from only white male producers that I come off "too intelligent." I guess, to them, intelligence was not a minority trait that could get one hired. I still love this business. I feel I'm still fighting for attention and equality -- despite a good education and proven veteran skills as performer, producer,writer and researcher. I'm so angry that I have been unemployed all this year but I have to keep fighting. We Blacks, Hispanics, Asians have to fight harder. We don't often get the same opportunities and the same strong representation as someone like Carson Daly gets. Sad, but true. Because of that, I've taken work that I didn't really want but had to take to pay the bills. With that work, I paid my bills -- and some other people's bills too. Last week I met with a young, Caucasian news magazine show producer in LA. The meeting had been set up for two weeks prior to my arrival. He'd never read my resumé or watched my demo tape before I got there. He knew nothing of my history, my skills, my talents. It was not the first time that's happened when I've met with a white news producer. I was invisible to him, like Watts was invisible until 40 years ago this week. That same day, I drove through some of my old neighborhood with my cousin. Economic apartheid was still evident. I talked to smart, solid residents who weren't getting the opportunities they deserved. We hated ourselves for wondering if being good and studying hard were really worth it after all. Look at the riots. It was wrong to burn shit down, but the ones who did got attention. When that exec in LA said, "You were on VH1?", "You're on Food Network?", "You're a writer?", I felt like burning shit down. The more things change, the more things stay the same. Thanks for your attention. Sincerely. (If this entry made an impact on you, share it with anyone you may know in the media -- whether it's a free local neighborhood newspaper or a TV network. Maybe it'll inspire them to take on a topic that needs discussion nowadays.) |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | Noo Yawk |
| ENTRY: | ON BROADWAY
Am I one of the few people old enough to remember the Radio Free Europe commercials on TV in the 1960s? Euro teens getting a Soviet groove on when a radio DJ announced, "Next...'On Brrroadvay'!" Those were the days. I guess you've heard what's really going to be on Broadway soon. Harvey Fierstein, a longtime buddy, has a very dear paternal quality about him. That's what shines in his performance as Tevye in FIDDLER ON THE ROOF, currently in revival. He doesn't have the overpowering machismo of Topol, the actor who did the movie version or the vocal brilliance of Zero Mostel, whom you can hear on the original cast CD, but it's great to see Harve get a chance to stretch his actor's muscles in a character part. When I saw it, Andrea Martin played his poor dairy farmer wife, Golda. She was excellent. She understood the social times, the customs, her environment, the years of the marriage and its dynamics. Those two were the best things in the revival. The daughters were played by young actresses who looked like they came out of the IKEA catalogue. Pretty, willowy blondes with button noses playing poor Jewish girls on a Ukranian farm in the early 1900s. Oy. Well...I'm sure you've all heard the news that Rosie O'Donnell will soon join the cast as Golda. This means Broadway audiences will soon see Harvey Fierstein and Rosie O'Donnell in bed onstage singing, "Do You Love Me?" And Conservatives say that same-sex marriages can't work. Ha! That'll show 'em. This brave new world in Broadway casting has opened the door for these upcoming vehicles: DRIVING MISS DAISY: THE MUSICAL, starring Carol Channing and Wayne Brady. Rap star R Kelly was originally signed, being a big fan of the movie. However he wanted to take his favorite scene -- the chauffeur getting out of the car to pee -- and make that a big musical number. Producers freaked out and replaced him. Besides the DAISY re-do, also in the planning stages are revivals of THE DIARY OF ANNE FRANK starring Paris Hilton plus the "Queer Eye" team in a Rodgers & Hammerstein classic newly-retitled OKLAHOMO! A few years ago, I was at a party packed with theatre types. I said, "Why doesn't someone just greenlight a Broadway revival of HELLO, DOLLY starring Bette Midler? She can actually sing and dance." But does anyone ever listen to me with my Old School ideas? No! And so it goes. Take care. Stay cool. Play safe. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | Broadway |
| ENTRY: | GRAND HOTEL
I booked myself a whole week of acting work. It won't be on the big screen or small screen or on a stage. It's more like an in-house week-long industry promotion for a major hotel chain. The contracts were signed yesterday. The week of Sept. 19th will probably feel like Christmas to me -- five days of definite work right here in New York City. Plus, I'll get to use some of the skills I've learned in my acting classes. One more thing. Here's the difference between news and entertainment in my career -- that exec I met with in LA last week oversees a syndicated magazine news show. Our appointment had been scheduled for two weeks. He never read my resumé, Googled my name, searched me in www.imdb.com for a couple of quick showbiz facts or watched my demo. That has happened to me several times in meeting with producers of news programs. In my last meeting with the execs involved with the entertainment promotion for the hotel chain, they started with "We LOVED your demo tape!" All those particular news folks in my past can kiss my entire black ass. Show biz folks have got it goin' on. Hopefully this booking will lead to some others. I deserve 'em. Don't ya think? |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | BROADCAST NEWS
Heaven bless Peter Jennings. He became quite a sharp journalist back in the day when news was more substantial. I think actor William Hurt may have studied the Jennings on-camera style when he was crafting his excellent performance in 1987's BROADCAST NEWS. If you've never seen that movie, you need to rent it. It's a classic. James L. Brooks, who wrote and directed it, was one of my all-time favorite guests back in my VH1 years. If I had a show like "Inside the Actor's Studio," I'd book him as a guest to talk about the state of TV news today. When that movie came out, there was still a definite line between news and entertainment but the line was eroding. One aspect of TV journalism that Brooks accurately skewered was that TV reporters were making themselves stars of the news features. Some, like the character Hurt played, weren't even initially seasoned enough to be anchors but they were telegenic. Brooks took some heat about that from network newspeople. I specifically remember Jane Pauley on "Today" saying that BROADCAST NEWS wasn't quite realistic. Yeah, right. About 1990, when new management took over VH1, it decided that viewers didn't want to see veejays anymore. We knew our contracts wouldn't be renewed. In our veejay family, the first one to land a new gig was a young lady who did the least amount of work taping her segments. They were pretty much one-takers consisting of stuff like "Up next...George Michael sings 'Father Figure'. He used to be half of Wham. I think he's cute. This is VH1." She also had her own interview show called "Soap Dish" because she was a big fan of daytime dramas and loved interviewing soap opera stars. Especially the cute guys. She got to work one morning and announced proudly that she had a job waiting for her after VH1. She'd be a news anchor somewhere in Pennsylvania. This was like a scene in the James L. Brooks sitcom creation, "The Mary Tyler Moore Show." That announcement made all of our jaws hit the floor like cartoon anvils. One of the other veejays politely but bluntly said to her, "You don't even read a daily newspaper or watch the news. How could those executives possibly hire you to report the news on live TV?" The gorgeous, young blonde flipped her hair back with a Meg Ryan smile and replied, "They'll tell me what I need to know." Today, she is an anchor on the Fox News Network on cable and her VH1 years are not included in her online bio whatsoever. As Walter Cronkite used to say, "...and that's the way it is." Keep cool. Have a good day. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | New York City |
| ENTRY: | LOCAL APPEARANCE
Good Saturday morning to you. Pardon my vanity, but I'm appearing on our local PBS station tonight for its pledge drive. On Ch. 13, between 6:30 and 8pm, I'll be helping to present "Judy Garland: Duets" -- segments from her CBS variety show back in the 60s. I don't get paid for this, but I do get a free totebag, unlimited snacks in the greenroom and some live TV exposure. After the show, I'm going to hook up with my posse, pile into the SUV and go straight-bashing in Brooklyn. My posse members are comedian Mario Cantone, Nathan Lane, Charles Nelson Reilly, k.d. lang, RuPaul, Little Richard, any living man who was married to Liza Minnelli and Carson from "Queer Eye." So if you straight dudes across the bridge see a vehicle rolling up in your 'hood tonight blasting "Vogue" by Madonna from the CD speakers and packed with thugs wearing paisley bandanas and T-shirts that read "Free Katie Holmes," you'd better flee. Enjoy your day. Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | New York City |
| ENTRY: | MOMMIE QUEEREST
I vividly remember the morning of this day way back in 1962. I was a little boy, standing in the kitchen of our house on East 124th Street off Central Avenue in L.A. The radio was on the window ledge above the kitchen sink that sunny morning, turned to station KFWB. A newscaster announced that screen star Marilyn Monroe had been found dead. My parents stopped what they were doing, turned and faced the radio. Dad dashed out and got the L.A. Times to read the rest of the story. All these years later, Marilyn Monroe is still making headlines. Log onto www.latimes.com and there she is -- a feature story on the front page with some new revelations from her sessions with her therapist. She read Shakespeare, she read James Joyce, she had sex with Joan Crawford. Yes, you read that correctly. Marilyn Monroe, whom I could've gone straight for, had a Lesbyterian Service with Mommie Dearest. Details are in the article. How would Crawford feel about the news making today's paper? Oh...I think Faye Dunaway said it best in a movie: "Why, Christina? WHYYYY?!?!?!" No wonder Marilyn was in therapy. Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | MUST-SEE DVD
The clerks at my local indie video/dvd store are great. The owner is a middle-aged classic film geek, as am I, and the young slacker dudes who look like they've all gotten callbacks for roles in a Steven Soderbergh movie also dig cinema. The young hipsters turn me on to DVDs like the cult comedy NAPOLEON DYNAMITE and the very endearing bittersweet coming-of-age love story GARDEN STATE, written and directed by SCRUBS star Zach Braff. He's got the gift. We also talk about the classics. One of the guys put THE CLOCK on in the store and said out loud about Judy Garland, "She's so damn good in this." He'd only seen her in THE WIZARD OF OZ when he was a kid and his parents rented the vhs. I gave him the info about THE CLOCK being her first drama. Another time, they put on SUNSET BOULEVARD. The 20something clerks were rivetted to it. Three of us got into a discussion about Billy Wilder's classic and I told them that the auto motif is really interesting in that movie. Three characters are literally driven to a point of irrationality because of a car in Hollywood -- Joe, the writer, is fleeing guys out to reposses his car. Norma returns to Paramount clueless to the fact that her old studio wants to use her vintage car and not her. Max, a top director in the silent film era and the man who made her a star, has now been reduced to being her chauffeur. I guess you can tell that I love hanging out in my video store. Those guys also turned me on to documentaries like BUSH'S BRAIN and SUPER SIZE ME. Last week I went in and Ryan said, "Hey Bobby, you've gotta see this new DVD set that came out. It's what TV journalism should be today." He's in his early 20s and he was referring to the classic CBS Edward R. Murrow SEE IT NOW shows. Ryan is right. It is what journalism should be today. I rented a couple. Ryan and I both agreed that Murrow's HARVEST OF SHAME should be aired in one hour of primetime now. It still holds up and it proves the power of what real broadcast journalism is and how it can impact social change. You really should check that out. If you live here in the Tri-State area, your jaw will drop at the abject poverty just a few miles away from Princeton. The year was 1960. Migrant farmers were poor and being financially abused. Within the story of those farmers picking fruit but not being able to feed their own families is a vivid look at the nastiness of bigotry. It could have been 1860. Black people had to use restrooms marked "Colored," they were still denied the rights to vote and to get an education, and they worked in the fields for white people who felt that segregation was un-Christian. Ryan commented that we weren't seeing handsome anchors and pretty blondes toss to short features in which soundbites from The President to ordinary people were no longer than 2 or 3 sentences. Murrow's journalism let people talk. Tough questions were asked. Research was done. It's really a work of art and it's under one hour -- HARVEST OF SHAME, part of the Edward R. Murrow DVD set. By the way, Murrow got CBS to air that documentary on Thanksgiving night back in 1960 to really make an impact on hearts and minds. Also, check out GARDEN STATE. Before Mike Nichols in CLOSER, Zach Braff was the first director to really figure out what to do with Natalie Portman. I'd seen her in the STAR WARS movies and I thought she was as stiff as a board. I didn't get why she was popular. Braff gives her just the right balance of Gen X quirkiness to make her embraceable instead of annoying. She's wonderful in that movie. Weather-wise, it's as steamy as Hell's Kitchen again today, but I am soooooo glad to be back in Manhattan. Keep cool, enjoy your weekend and sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | NYC |
| ENTRY: | WORD ON THE STREET
I'm walking down 22nd Street in Manhattan's Chelsea section. A man and a woman are sitting on the stoop in front of a brownstone. As I passed them, I overheard the woman say "She was doing so much housework so fast that you didn't even notice she only had one arm." I love this city. |
| Name: | Bobby Rivers, Actor/Writer |
| Reporting in from: | New York City |
| ENTRY: | L.A. STORY
One of my all-time favorite Hollywood classics is THE BAND WAGON, a 4-star musical comedy starring my all-time favorite performer, Fred Astaire. In the opening, we see that he's an insecure middle-aged film star whose stardom has dimmed. He's on his way from L.A. to NYC to discuss playing the lead in a new Broadway musical. His first meeting with the highbrow director is a bit bumpy and he declares, "Remember, I'm just an entertainer." That's how I see myself. For six months now, I've been studying at TVI Actors Studio here in Manhattan. My teachers totally understand the "That's Entertainment" aspect of what we do. They teach us to remember that. They also teach us to do our homework before auditions and meetings and to be punctual. That's New York City. Late last night, I returned home from my trip to L.A. Whatta trip! My wonderful cousin, a flight attendant, hooked me up with a free ticket. I had to fly "stand-by", which means you may get bumped if the flight gets filled with paying customers and you may not fly direct. So...I had to leave New York City to fly out of Newark to Houston (where my cousin met me)... fly Houston to Orange County and then we drove down to L.A. On the day of my 2p meeting in Burbank came the call that the exec wanted to change it to 4:00, then 4:30, then 6:00. Keep in mind that I'm in L.A. for just a day, with my cousin helping me navigate through all this in a rental car and we were staying at a friend's apartment in West Hollywood which meant having to go to his workplace to get the keys because it was a weekday. This changing of times was making me crazy. Because it was nearly noon and the meeting had been pushed back to 6pm, we visited relatives I'd not seen in years and the short trip became a very deep sentimental journey. We had to cut it short to give ourselves time to get the keys to the friend's apartment and relax a bit before the meeting. Cousin Alonzo and I went to grab a quick lunch at El Cholo on Western Avenue. We're in the car, full and a bit bedraggled at 2:45 when I get a message asking if I could meet at 3:30 instead. I said, "3:45 is better." We had to break ass to get the apartment keys and get to the apartment where I could change clothes and he could log onto MapQuest for the directions to the Burbank office from West Hollywood. We made it right on time. I expected the executive to be a middle-aged dude in a suit. He was about 30, dresssed in khaki pants and a short-sleeved summer shirt. Two minutes into the meeting, I could tell that he knew hardly anything about me. He didn't know I'm seen on Food Network. He didn't know I'd been on VH1 and had a weeknight talkshow. I know this because he said, "You were a VH1 veejay?" followed by "How long were you on VH1?" and "You knew Rosie O'Donnell?" which all came before "You did local news in New York City?" In the two weeks since our meeting was scheduled, the poor dear apparently didn't have time to read my resume or log onto imdb.com and type in my name for a few quick facts. In short, he didn't do what we students are taught to do at TVI Actors Studio. But, I got the meeting -- not for any particular project. It was like a very short blind date without food -- "So...tell me about yourself. Where are you from?" A meet & greet, if you will. Now it's time to move on to the next thing. I connected with a TV producer in Burbank, I reconnected with family in L.A. and now I'm back in New York City and proud to be "..just an entertainer." One last thing -- if you get Sirius Satellite Radio, I'm on with Frank DeCaro tomorrow (Friday) afternoon at 1:10pm. I'll be on time because this is Noo Yawk City dammit. Big hugs. Sign the guestbook. |
| Name: | BobbyR |
| Reporting in from: | New York City |
| ENTRY: | GO WEST, YOUNG MAN
OK...so I may not be what showbiz calls *young*. A couple of days ago in a Chelsea cardshop, I overheard one guy say to another, "I'm old. I'll be 32 this weekend." I wanted to whip around and say, "Oh, girl, you need to get a grip. Just get a big ol' grip." I may not be young, but I'm going west for an adventure. I am nervous, happy, scared, excited about the meeting I have coming up on Tuesday. Tomorrow I leave for L.A. and I'm counting my blessings. All this year, I haven't been able to book a meeting with an exec here in town for a local TV or radio job. I'm still seeking a new commercial agent. My last local audition was on Valentine's Day. But within the last two weeks, the executive in charge of talent development for Telepictures Productions (the company that gives us "Ellen" and "The Bachelor") has scheduled a meeting with me for this Tuesday afternoon. I've got a stand-by ticket to L.A. on Continental. My cousin is meeting me in California and already the trip is taking on a bit of a Lucy & Ethel quality. The Telepictures meeting could last 3 minutes. It could last 30. I might get a job offer. I might not. Whatever happens...I've been noticed. My work, talent and experience have been noticed. Not by an executive here in New York City but by an exec 3000 miles away. It's a good feeling. Whatever happens..I'm just gonna enjoy the ride. Sign the guestbook and wish me a bon voyage. |