Entertaining Posts: 03/31/11

Thursday, March 31, 2011

"Mad Men" to return for final three seasons

LOS ANGELES | Thu Mar 31, 2011 11:25pm EDT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - "Mad Men" will return to the air in early 2012 for a final three-season run, the creator of the ad-agency drama said on Thursday after announcing a resolution of tense contract negotiations.

Matt Weiner's lucrative new deal, which a source said was worth about $30 million over three years, was unveiled two days after cable channel AMC said the Emmy-winning show would not return this summer because of the talks impasse.

Even with the settlement, the fifth season will still not premiere until around March, since production has not yet begun and other shows have been slated in its place.

"These will be the last three seasons," Weiner told Hollywood news outlet Deadline.com, adding that he turned down a deal four or five times in the last few days.

Weiner had been at loggerheads with AMC and producer Lionsgate over three key issues: running time, budget and product placement.

Under a compromise, the season opener and finale will clock in at 47 minutes each, just as all the episodes did last season. The other 11 episodes will be 45 minutes each, although Weiner has the option to produce 47-minute versions for other platforms, such as digital downloads and DVDs.

Details on the show's budget were not specified, but the source said no cast cuts would be required unless Weiner wanted to kill off characters to fit in with his storyline. Speculation had run rampant in recent days that Weiner would be forced to reduce the payroll because of a tighter budget.

While Weiner will continue to have full creative control over the show, including the use of commercial products, AMC and Lionsgate will make it easier for advertisers to trumpet their involvement, the source said.

"Mad Men," revolving around the martini-swilling staff at a Madison Avenue agency in the turbulent 1960s, organically incorporates well known consumer products in its episodes.

Despite drawing tiny ratings for AMC, it is one of the most acclaimed shows on television and won the best drama Emmy for three consecutive years. Its fourth season, which ended last October, will be eligible for the Emmy Awards in September.

AMC is a unit of Cablevision Systems Corp. Lionsgate is a unit of Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. (Reporting by Dean Goodman: Editing by Chris Wilson)

Charlie Sheen tour could be a bust for scalpers

By Mitchell Peters

Thu Mar 31, 2011 5:47pm EDT

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - "Winning" or "Not Winning"?

That's the latest question surrounding Charlie Sheen's "My Violent Torpedo of Truth" 22-date North American tour, which begins April 2 at the Fox Theater in Detroit.

Over the past several weeks, numerous media outlets have reported that a handful of dates on Sheen's forthcoming trek sold out within minutes. But it turns out that some of those reported sellouts -- including the opening date at the approximately 5,000-capacity Fox Theater -- still have tickets available on Ticketmaster.

CNBC reported on its Web site that so-called "secondary ticketing" companies like StubHub, NoFeesTickets.com and Bargainseatsonline.com snatched up "a lot" of tickets to many of Sheen's forthcoming shows and are now selling them for less than face value, which could suggest that fan demand for the tour is being overestimated by the media reports. (It should be noted that some secondary tickets are on sale across multiple reselling sites, which makes it appear that there are more tickets in the market than there actually are.)

As of Thursday afternoon, StubHub appeared to have about 300 tickets available for the Detroit show alone. But this isn't all that shocking. In today's ticket-buying market, it's typical for secondary sellers to buy tickets in bulk for what they think will be hot-selling shows, whether it's Lady Gaga or U2. In the case of Sheen's tour, however, it seems that resellers may have misjudged the demand.

Nevertheless, this won't impact the money Sheen grosses from the performances -- and that's not to mention merchandise and other ancillary revenue the actor will earn during the tour. Even though fans didn't technically purchase some of the tickets through Ticketmaster, the tickets were still bought by another source, in this case secondary ticketers.

"A ticket sold is a ticket sold, whether it's from Ticketmaster, CharlieSheen.com or the box office," Sheen spokesman Larry Solters tells Billboard. "Where they go after that, frankly we don't know. We all know a re-seller will often post their tickets to multiple sites to promote their product. It might be on multiple sites for the same ticket."

Solters notes that Sheen's tour has sold close to 100,000 tickets with no paid advertising.

Esperanza Spalding brings Grammy-winning jazz to Europe

By Stephanie Nebehay

CULLY, Switzerland | Thu Mar 31, 2011 9:46am EDT

CULLY, Switzerland (Reuters) - American jazz bassist and singer Esperanza Spalding showcased her Grammy-winning talent for enthusiastic Swiss jazz lovers at the start of a European tour that will also take her to Italy, France, Britain and Spain.

Spalding was the surprise winner of the best new artist Grammy in February, beating favored Canadian contenders Drake and teenage sensation Justin Bieber. She was the first jazz artist to clinch the coveted prize.

The 26-year-old and her Chamber Music Society band played a 90-minute set at the annual Cully jazz festival on Wednesday night, where a sold-out crowd was enraptured.

The Wayne Shorter Quartet and Gilberto Gil also performed at the 29th edition this week in the picturesque village that lies among terraced vineyards, along Lake Geneva near Lausanne.

Spalding highlighted tracks from her third and latest album Chamber Music Society (2010), including "Little Fly," the crowd-pleasing ballad "Apple Blossom," and "Really Very Small."

The Portland, Oregon native arrived on stage and sat in the dark to the side in a large armchair, sipping red wine, as her six musicians played an instrumental introduction.

She then took off her jacket and picked up her bass to play "Little Fly." The set was bathed in red light for "Knowledge of Good + Evil."

Spalding, a composer whose phrasing and lyrics are unusual, is part Hispanic, African-American, and Native American. She sang mainly in English, but also Spanish and Brazilian-flavored Portuguese ("Inutil Paisagem" or "Useless Landscape").

"We are the Chamber Music Society. Merci beaucoup," she cooed into the microphone at the end of the program.

As midnight struck -- and with Swiss precision -- she then returned for a solo encore of jazz standard "Midnight Sun," a composition by Lionel Hampton made famous by Ella Fitzgerald.

(Editing by Paul Casciato)

French DJ David Guetta, Coke launch talent contest

By Bob Tourtellotte

LOS ANGELES | Thu Mar 31, 2011 8:31am EDT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - He launched his own dream career spinning records, and now David Guetta hopes to spin the dreams of aspiring DJs into their own reality through a contest he has cooked up with energy drink, burn.

The Grammy-winning music producer and DJ, who worked with the Black Eyed Peas on their smash hit "I Gotta Feeling," and the Coca-Cola Co, which makes burn, unveiled a promotional partnership on Thursday that includes both the competition and the making of a documentary movie about Guetta and his music.

"I've always wanted to, how can I say, give back the love a little bit to younger producers," the Parisian told Reuters. "I've been very, very blessed with success, and I want to help other people achieve this.

The documentary, which has yet to be titled, covers the 43-year-old's life from spinning records in French nightclubs in the 1980s and 1990s to producing records for top acts such as Akon and creating his own hit albums.

The film also will explore the recent history of the underground dance music scene, electronica, house tunes and the large festivals that are now a routine part of the industry.

"People from my generation and even younger know my history, but a lot of kids don't know the history of this music," he said.

Details of both the movie and the competition were scant at the time of the announcement. An official with Coca-Cola said a director will soon be hired, production will begin in April and the hope is to release the documentary in September.

Rules for the contest are expected to be posted in the near future on the energy drink's website, burn.com. The winner will get his or her big break spinning records at Guetta's dance parties on the tourist island Ibiza, off the coast of Spain.

Emmanuel Seuge, director of worldwide sports and entertainment marketing at Coca-Cola, called Guetta the perfect promotional match for burn, given his high-energy music, creativity and collaboration with other musicians.

"The way we talk about burn is that it is a brand which acts on its ambition, and that is the mode of David's life. That is what he has stood for," said Seuge.

Moreover, the energy drink is now sold in some 83 countries and Guetta has a global fan base.

In the past decade, as CD sales have tanked in the face of rising digital downloads of single records on the Web, musicians have turned to performing and promotional deals like the one between Guetta and burn to fill their bank accounts.

Guetta is not shy about saying that money -- for both he and burn -- is a big part of the collaboration, but he is quick to add it is not all about cash. And he points to the unusual nature of producing the film and the contest as being vastly different from simply creating a new song or jingle to burn.

"Of course there is the money for me. Of course, there is the money for Coca-Cola, but instead of doing just stupid publicity, we are trying to use some of the budget to do something positive and interesting," he said.

(Editing by Dean Goodman)