Entertaining Posts

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Jackson tribute show goes on despite setbacks

LONDON | Thu Oct 6, 2011 6:41am EDT

LONDON (Reuters) - A Michael Jackson tribute concert will go ahead this weekend in Wales despite squabbling among the late singer's siblings, a backlash from fans, a headline act withdrawing at late notice and tickets still unsold.

Chris Hunt, head of Global Live Events which is staging the Saturday "Michael Forever" gig in Cardiff, admitted that preparations had been challenging, but blamed "misinformation" for some of the negative headlines.

"I've never been in a situation in my entire career like it where so many false rumors emerged as if from nowhere," Hunt told Reuters in a telephone interview.

He denied reports that the promoters had fallen out with Jackson's estate and said that any large family like that of the "King of Pop" was bound to have disagreements, particularly one that lived in the bright media glare.

"It's going to be a huge and spectacular event," Hunt said of the gig at the Millennium Stadium, where there will be room for over 60,000 people.

Taking part in the concert will be Jackson's brothers Marlon, Tito and Jackie and his sister La Toya, who will be performing live in public for the first time in nearly 20 years.

Also expected to be present are his mother Katherine, three children and several other close family members.

Brothers Jermaine and Randy, however, criticized the tribute because it coincided with the involuntary manslaughter trial in Los Angeles of Jackson's doctor. Janet Jackson has declined to take part citing the same reason.

The "Thriller" singer, one of the most successful yet troubled artists of the pop era, died in 2009 aged 50 while rehearsing for a series of comeback concerts.

Experts on the Jacksons said such rifts were common in the famous family, but would do nothing to enhance the standing of the tribute concert in the eyes of the public.

But Hunt played down their significance.

"If you can get any family of that size to agree about everything then it's a wonderful day. We've got nearly all the family here," he said.

"A couple of them decided they didn't want to do it and they cited a reason which, to my mind, and indeed to most of the rest of the family, has no logic to it whatever."

LINEUP HICCUPS, ANGRY FANS

Divisions in the family have not been the only hurdle for Hunt and his team.

In September, some fan websites protested over reports that ticket prices had been slashed in a 2-for-1 offer that did not apply to those already purchased.

A month earlier, a group of 35 fan clubs had lobbied for the concert to be canceled due to concerns ranging from confusion over charitable donations to its timing.

Hunt said a portion of the profits would go to two charities with links to Michael Jackson -- the AIDS Project Los Angeles and Prince's Trust -- as well as a trust fund for the singer's children.

"Not all the money goes there (to charity) because we have investors and they would like to get their money back, and if they get a little bit more than their money back they would be delighted," he explained.

"I don't think it's going to do beyond that."

Some commentators said that, despite contributions to charity, the Jackson family stood to benefit financially, a point some fans might find distasteful.

"This (concert) is something they could have done a little bit later when it (the trial) was over with or even before this started," Stacy Brown, a journalist and Michael Jackson biographer, told Reuters.

"This is not about charity. This is about lining the bank accounts of the Jackson family."

Hunt said he was "happy" with ticket sales, although he did not have precise numbers, and that they had picked up "hugely" in recent days.

Wednesday's announcement that the Black Eyed Peas were withdrawing had not dented demand for tickets, he added, although they were arguably the biggest act on the bill.

In addition to Jackson family members, the lineup includes Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Gladys Knight and Smokey Robinson, and among British stars appearing will be Leona Lewis, Alexandra Burke, JLS and Diversity.

Beyonce will appear in a video performance.

"This is a Jackson family evening," Hunt said. "I think it's easy to underestimate this. I think it will be a hugely emotional evening. Mrs Jackson and the children will be very visible."

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White, editing by Paul Casciato)

Wednesday, October 5, 2011

Jury hears Jackson sharing dream in slurred speech

By Alex Dobuzinskis

LOS ANGELES | Wed Oct 5, 2011 4:38pm EDT

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A recording of an apparently drugged Michael Jackson was played on Wednesday in the manslaughter trial of the singer's doctor, with the King of Pop saying he wanted to help kids because he "didn't have a childhood."

The May 2009 conversation between the singer and Dr. Conrad Murray, recorded on the physician's cellphone, marked one of the most dramatic moments in the week-old trial in Los Angeles.

Jackson's siblings Jermaine, Randy and Rebbie were among those in court listening to the recording. Jermaine Jackson wiped away tears with a tissue.

Michael Jackson is heard speaking slowly, in a low and at times incoherent voice, slurring his words.

"My performances will be up there helping my children and always be my dream," Jackson said. "I love them because I didn't have a childhood. I had no childhood. I feel their pain."

Prosecutors are seeking to prove through the tape that Murray knew the effects of the drugs they claim he was giving Jackson, well before the singer died in his care on June 25, 2009.

'I AM ASLEEP'

Murray is charged with involuntary manslaughter -- or criminal negligence -- in Jackson's death at his Los Angeles mansion from what medical examiners have said was an overdose of the powerful anesthetic propofol combined with sedatives.

The doctor has admitted giving Jackson propofol that day as a sleep aid. But his attorneys claim that Jackson gave himself an extra, fatal dose of propofol when Murray was out of the room.

At the end of the tape played on Wednesday, Jackson stops talking and Murray asks him, "You OK?" Then there is another pause and Jackson responds, "I am asleep."

The tape was made by Murray as Jackson prepared for a series of 50 planned comeback concert dates in London titled "This Is It."

"Elvis didn't do it. Beatles didn't do it. We have to be phenomenal," Jackson is heard saying. He goes on to say that he wants to use the profits from his shows to fund a children's hospital.

"Gonna have a movie theater, game room," Jackson said, in describing his dream hospital. "Children are depressed. The -- in those hospitals, no game room, no movie theater. They're sick because they're depressed. Their mind is depressing them."

Jackson said he felt God wanted him to pursue the project.

Murray has pleaded not guilty to involuntary manslaughter. He faces a maximum of four years in prison if convicted.

(Editing by Vicki Allen)

Oprah top paid woman entertainer, Gaga catches up

NEW YORK | Wed Oct 5, 2011 4:00pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Watch out Oprah, there's a savvy pop star and an ambitious real housewife nipping at your financial heels.

Oprah Winfrey remained the entertainment world's top woman earner, but Lady Gaga and Bethenny Frankel, one of the original housewives in the "Real Housewives of New York," are moving quickly up the ranks of the rich, according to Forbes.com.

Winfrey held on to the top spot with $290 million in earnings from May 2010 to May 2011 and an estimated net worth of $2.7 billion.

But Winfrey's daytime talk show, which she wrapped up in May, was her chief money earner and her newly launched cable network, OWN, has drawn paltry ratings since its January launch.

"The network has a long way to go before advertisers start paying the kind of rates Winfrey was charging for her syndicated show," said Forbes' Dorothy Pomerantz, who compiled the list by culling information from agents, managers, lawyers and others in the know.

Lady Gaga was a distant second with $90 million in gross earnings, followed by Frankel with $55 million. Frankel, who launched her own diet and lifestyle brand, sold her Skinnygirl Margarita cocktail mix for an estimated $100 million and has been expanding her brand, which will soon include food, supplements and a possible talk show.

Four women, model Gisele Bundchen, a singer Taylor Swift, talk show host Ellen DeGeneres and Judge Judy Sheindlin, each earned $45 million last year and tied for fourth place.

The entire list can be found at tinyurl.com/3mqr6f4

(Reporting by Chris Michaud; editing by Patricia Reaney)

Director Lars Von Trier vows public silence

LONDON | Wed Oct 5, 2011 1:40pm EDT

LONDON (Reuters) - Danish director Lars Von Trier said on Wednesday he faced charges for "possible violation" of French law that bans justifying war crimes after joking about Nazis and Hitler at the Cannes film festival in May.

In a statement, the controversial 55-year-old added that he would not make any more public statements or give interviews after police questioned him in Denmark on Wednesday in connection with charges made by the prosecution in Grasse, France.

"Due to these serious accusations I have realized that I do not possess the skills to express myself unequivocally and I have therefore decided from this day forth to refrain from all public statements and interviews," he said.

The award-winning director of films like "Breaking the Waves," "Dancer in the Dark" and "Antichrist" had been a favorite in Cannes before his remarks made during a press conference to promote his latest movie "Melancholia."

The apocalyptic vision of the end of the world was warmly received by critics, as was the performance of lead actress Kirsten Dunst. She went on to pick up the best actress prize at the closing ceremony.

Organizers at Cannes, where Von Trier had previously won the top Palme d'Or award, decided to ban him after he jokingly called himself a Nazi and Hitler sympathizer.

His remarks angered Jewish groups, but many festival goers said the punishment was unduly harsh on a director who was apparently speaking in jest and in English, not his first language.

Von Trier apologized, but the ban remained.

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White)

Rocker and romancer Rod Stewart to publish memoir

By Paul Thomasch

NEW YORK | Wed Oct 5, 2011 1:01pm EDT

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Rod Stewart, the raspy-voiced rocker, will publish his memoirs next year, promising to "hold nothing back" in detailing a career in which he sold more than a 100 million records, survived cancer and romanced a string of blond bombshells.

Stewart's book, which is yet to be titled but will be published worldwide by Random House, comes as he has toned down his rock and roll act, concentrating on remaking standards by everyone from Cole Porter to George Gershwin.

Due out in October 2012, the book follows renewed interest in rock autobiographies thanks to bestsellers by Aerosmith's Steven Tyler and The Rolling Stones' Keith Richards and an upcoming release by Neil Young.

Stewart, 66, rose to superstar fame with a string of hits, including "Maggie May," "Tonight's The Night," "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy," and "Some Guys Have All The Luck." Over his 50-year music career, he has had 31 top-10 singles in Britain and 16 top-10 singles in the United States.

"It is a funny old thing telling my life story but I truly intend to hold nothing back," Stewart said in a statement. "Forget skeletons in the closet; this one's going to be socks and knickers under the bed."

Born in North London, Stewart left school at 15 and had his start with The Ray Davies Quartet, which later become The Kinks, before his first big break in 1967 when he teamed up with the Jeff Beck Group, where he joined Jeff Beck of the Yardbirds and Ronnie Wood, who went on to join The Rolling Stones.

Stewart subsequently took his spiky, rooster-style hair and working class songs to a new London supergroup, Faces, joined by Wood. He struck it big with his 1971 with his mega-hit "Maggie May" on his solo "Every Picture Tells A Story" album.

From there, his career caught fire as he alternated solo work with tours and albums with the Faces, even as his personal life began making tabloid headlines.

Moving to the United States in the mid-seventies and concentrating on his solo career, Stewart began wearing new wave suits and cemented his reputation as a playboy, dating Swedish actress Britt Ekland, model Bebe Buell and Alana Hamilton, another model whom he eventually married.

Stewart and Hamilton had two children before divorcing in 1984. He had another child with Kelly Emberg, and then married supermodel Rachel Hunter in 1990. The couple, who had two children, divorced in 2006.

He finally married Penny Lancaster, yet another blond model, and fathered two more children.

Stewart once said Brigitte Bardot was the only woman he'd ever had a sexual fantasy about. "With me, looks come first, and she's everything a woman should be. She's blond and beautiful, she's got the most incredible legs, etc. etc. And she's French as well."

An inductee into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and recipient of the Commander of the Order of the British Empire, Stewart was diagnosed with thyroid cancer, threatening his life and his career. He underwent throat surgery in 2000, and since then has been an active fundraiser for cancer charities.

(Reporting by Paul Thomasch, editing by Mark Egan and Jill Serjeant)