Did anyone watch 'West Wing'?
How about 'Enterprise'?
Watched 'Enterprise' here---seems pretty early in the series to use the
'hallucinogen' episode (especially if there are no really cool special effects,
or at least recreated scenes of 'Alice In Wonderland').
Only got bits & pieces of 'The West Wing', but, I know that, yes, Bartlett's
running for re-election (well, doh---otherwise there'd be no show---it'd be on
CBS, hidden on Saturday night, and called 'Citizen Baines'), and a woman
who 'knows' better misspoke.
CBS had 'Wolf Lake', which I didn't watch, but loved the title of the episode -
'Tastes Like Chicken' - growing up rurally, where hunting is a major sport, and
'only shoot what you're going to eat' is the operative phrase, I can honestly say
I've dined on most everything that lives in the woods, swamps, rivers, and sky of PA.
Early on, I realized that 'it tastes like chicken' is a phrase used with children,
simple folk, and city people - rather along the lines of 'it's only a cold sore',
or 'the check is in the mail'...
On the other hand, some of it DOES taste like chicken...
TONIGHT.....
CBS starts its newest 'Survivor' series, from Africa (but, remember, the tape
is really 'already in the can' and the determination of the 'winner' has already been established), then
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation, and The Agency.
NBC has Friends (the episode where Ross finds out he's Rachel's sperm donor), followed by
Inside Schwartz, Will & Grace, Just Shoot Me, and ER.
ABC is still doubling up episodes of Who's Line Is It Anyway?, with
the first episode being 'fresh', followed by a repeat, then Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?,
and PrimeTime Thursday.
The WB has Elimidate Deluxe (which is doing surprisingly well in the
ratings), and Charmed.
Faux is carrying baseball division playoffs.
AMC has an offbeat, but interesting Marilyn Monroe/Joseph Cotten movie
'Niagra'...some wonderful photography of Niagra Falls, in fabulous old Technicolor!
Has anyone seen 'Zoolander'?
Picking Up Where BC Left Off...
"Boondocks" (9 Oct 01)
"Hell Is For Gumshoes"
Michael Dare
Stand-Ups 'Stand Up' (Pt. 1)
'Stand Up For NY'
I'm here to give you permission to laugh," Mayor Giuliani told the grief-stricken
New Yorkers who packed Carnegie Hall Monday night. "If you don't, I'll have you arrested."
Hizzoner didn't need any handcuffs. Jerry Seinfeld, Bill Cosby, Chris Rock, Alan
King, Colin Quinn, George Wallace and Will Ferrell were enough of a riot squad.
Seinfeld said he and his "civic-minded" wife, Jessica, came up with the idea for
raising money for the Twin Towers Fund while baking cookies for their local
firehouse. Like the cookies, much of the humor at the Stand Up for New York
benefit was warm and comforting.
Wallace riffed about stuffing the Thanksgiving turkey. Cosby griped about being
nagged by his wife and tortured by his dentist.
Seinfeld said he, too, is "happily married" — "even though many of your annoying
celebrities make their own arrangements. First they get pregnant, then they
start dating."
But the reformed bachelor admitted Jessica sometimes "doesn't like the tone of
my voice." He also warned husbands about the dangers of playing the "Do You
Think I'm Fat Shell Game" or the lethal "Do You Think My Friend Is Pretty Roulette."
But Jerry couldn't entirely divorce himself from world events.
"I cannot tell you how happy I am that the g------ Emmys were not on" because of
Sunday's bombing of Afghanistan. He called the awards a "stupid" event so that
"attention-starved losers can all congratulate each other on having a job."
Quinn dove into life during wartime.
"The only aggravating thing is that everybody in New York has to be friendly
now," Quinn said. Another nuisance: "Every New Yorker has some story even if
they weren't there: 'You don't understand. I had to take the A train instead of
the 2 train!'
"We're being nice in this war," said Quinn. "We bomb them. Then we throw food at
them. It's like, 'I'm going to punch you in the face, but here's a roast beef sandwich.'"
Chris Rock, who joined the other funnymen hanging out with former President Bill
Clinton after the show, admitted he was afraid of war: "I'm not a soldier. It's
not in me. I'm not even a crossing guard."
Rock said: "We should send a tough guy over there. Send [hip-hop mogul] Suge
Knight. Suge Knight will kick Bin Laden's butt and take all his publishing [rights]."
The evening raised almost $1.86 million for families of firemen and cops lost in
the tragedy.
NY Daily News Version
In The News
Bill Clinton
Former President Bill Clinton gestures as he speaks before the Greater Washington
Society of Association Executives, Distinguished Speakers Series at the Kennedy
Center in Washington, Tuesday, Oct. 9, 2001.
Photo by Steve Helber
Stand-Ups 'Stand Up' (Pt. 2)
'Stand Up For NY'
An appreciative New York audience packed Carnegie Hall on Monday for a comedy
benefit that included Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock and Bill Cosby.
Chris Rock has decided that America is safe once more for airline jokes.
"They're telling us you should fly again," he declared, aghast. "I'm not flying
unless they build a highway wide enough so they can roll the plane from here to L.A."
And safe, too, for little jibes at the efforts to end hunger in ravaged,
war-torn Afghanistan. "We call ourselves humanitarians?" he asked. "We're
dropping 50-pound sacks on 40-pound people!"
The appreciative New York audience that packed a Carnegie Hall benefit on Monday
night to hear Mr. Rock and an A-list lineup that also included Jerry Seinfeld
and Bill Cosby rolled with most of the comic punches, although some landed close
to nerves still raw from the events of Sept. 11. When Mr. Rock made fun of the
television networks' obsession with the descending Dow Jones average in the
hours after the attacks on the World Trade Center, a little gasp went up from
the well-heeled crowd, indicating, perhaps, that not everyone was ready to be
tickled by overly specific references to that day.
The event, "Stand Up for New York," was intended to fill charity coffers for
families of the attack victims. A cross section of the city's movers and
shakers, among them former President Bill Clinton and Donald Trump, paid
from $500 to $2,500 for three hours of topical comedy by a roster including
stand-up and sketch-comedy veterans like Alan King, Colin Quinn, Will Ferrell
and George Wallace. The city fire commissioner, Thomas Von Essen, was in the
audience, as were a few uniformed police officials and American Red Cross workers.
The benefit was also a kind of laboratory for the study of just how much New
York has recovered its sense of humor. In the days after the attacks, some had
wondered if and when a city renowned for wiseacres would begin to laugh again.
But as Mr. Seinfeld and company quickly established, the funnybone may be one of
the body's most resilient features.
The benefit sometimes took on the trappings of an old-style pep rally; the
audience erupted in applause at the slightest mention of American resolve,
whether drenched in silliness as when Mr. Ferrell dropped his pants to reveal
star-spangled drawers or dripping in sarcasm, as in the case of virtually
anything uttered by Mr. Rock. "Are you ready for war?" he intoned. "Shut up!
You're not ready for the Bronx!"
Some of the acts steered clear of the cataclysmic events. Mr. Seinfeld did about
35 minutes of what his celebrated television character might have called Classic
Jerry (sample topics: nose hair, tattoos and the idiocy of award shows). And
Mr. Cosby, wearing a sweatshirt emblazoned with "Hello Friend" in rainbow
colors, recounted in his avuncular trademark style a childhood of privation and
an adventure under the influence of Novocain in a dental office.
The irresistible power of current events was made plain at the start of the
evening when Mayor Rudolph W. Giuliani appeared on the bare stage of Carnegie
Hall and received what would prove to be the night's most thunderous reception.
"This is not normal: some of you should be booing me," the mayor said. "I'm here
to give you permission to laugh. And if you don't, I'll have you arrested."
From the crowd's responses, it appeared they had already given themselves
permission. Many of the things that made them laugh had to do with things that
made them nervous: Afghanistan. Islamic extremists. The war on terrorism. Even
the possibility that they faced danger just by being in the city.
"He couldn't stay for the show?" Mr. Quinn asked, after Mr. Giuliani left.
"Good. He's a target."
Mr. Quinn not only has some shared biography with Mr. Rock both are natives of
Brooklyn and alumni of "Saturday Night Live" but on Monday night he, like
Mr. Rock, showed a penchant for poking fun about the touchy subjects that
dominate discourse in New York and much of the rest of the world these days.
"It's the first politically correct war," he said of the mobilization that had
first been titled Operation Infinite Justice by the American authorities, and
was later renamed Operation Enduring Freedom in deference to Muslims who might
have been offended by the original title. "What's it called now," Mr. Quinn
asked, "Operation Regrettable Inevitability?"
Of the United States' mission to drop daily rations over Afghanistan, he said:
"We bomb them and then throw food at them. It's like you punch a guy in the face
and then say, `Here's a roast beef sandwich.' "
Mr. Quinn, too, had a few daggers ready for his fellow New Yorkers and the need
that some have shown to document how close they came to the catastrophe, no
matter how remote the possibility really was.
"Everybody has to tell the story," he said. " `You don't understand: if I had
taken the A train instead of the 2 train. . . .' " Or "You don't understand: if
I had decided to be an investment banker instead of running the Go-Karts
in Utica. . . .' "
The evening, particularly in the hands of Mr. Rock and Mr. Quinn, progressed as
a kind of satirical response to the endlessly solemn narrative of local and
network television. But other comics took a gentler tack, turning the jokes on
themselves. Mr. King, for instance, relied on jokes about his own dotage. "I
entertained the troops in the Spanish- American War," he explained. "I'm at an
age now where my prostate is larger than my ego."
Mr. Wallace chose the occasion to point out some of the absurdities of New York
life, reminding some in the audience of the enduring image of New Yorkers as
living in their own rarefied zone. Mr. Seinfeld, in his riffs on overblown
gourmet restaurants and the intricacies of the mating ritual, put an emphasis on
evergreen material, as if to tacitly suggest that life goes on.
Mr. Quinn, on the other hand, fed off the anxiety of this surreal moment in
history. Even the mournful gentility that seems to have settled on the city
irked him.
"The only aggravating thing is everyone in New York has to be friendly, and it
just doesn't work," Mr. Quinn said. "It still sounds like a threat. On an
elevator, a guy says, `Beautiful day today: right or wrong?' "
NY Times Version
In The News
Bert - bin Laden Connection
While the folks behind Sesame Street emphatically say no way, Ernie's longtime
partner did indeed pop up on posters with Osama bin Laden.
And unlike the picture of the Twin Towers tourist unaware of the jet plane
heading toward him, this is not a hoax.
Both the Associated Press and Reuters news services have confirmed that, yes,
that's the Muppet appearing in the background of a poster of bin Laden being
held up by a Bangladeshee at a recent protest against American military action
in Afghanistan.
Fans can spot the orange-nosed, yellow-skinned, punk-haired Muppet staring
menacingly just over the left shoulder of the large bin Laden image in the
middle of the poster.
"The poster's essentially a collage of images of Osama bin Laden and in the
poster...the superstar's in there: Bert," says Jack Stokes, spokesperson for
AP, who adds that the news service never doctors photos.
"This is a legitimate photograph. Our photographer was taking pictures of an
anti-American protest in Bangladesh," says Reuters spokeswoman Felicia Cosby.
"It is our policy not to alter visual images that are either still or moving."
The picture of Bert and bin Laden comes from a rally in the Bangladesh city of
Dacha and was put together by a demonstrator supporting the suspected terrorist
mastermind. Cosby says the photographer who snapped the photo does not hail from
the United States and "wanted to know who the furry creature [in the poster] was."
Faster than you can say "Where's Waldo," the photo has spread around the Web,
showing up at Dutch news site Tubantia and Sweden's biggest online news source,
aftonbladet.se, before being taken down.
The demonstrator apparently found the image of Bert and bin Laden on one of the
many "Bert Is Evil" Websites.
Thanks to the imagination (and PhotoShop abilities) of some twisted Netizens,
"Evil Bert" is pictured with some of the most nefarious figures in history
including, Hitler, the KKK, the Unabomber and Jeffrey Dahmer. The original
"Bert Is Evil" site developed a cult following, and several Webmasters created
knockoffs, adding new images, among them, the bin Laden picture.
Dino Ignacio, the first to digitally pair Bert with evildoers as a lark, denies
any affiliation with the Bert-bin Laden image.
"I am as shocked to see it as we all are," Ignacio says. "I haven't updated the
site 'Bert Is Evil' since 1998 after it won the Webby awards...I am assuming
someone in Bangladesh found the image on the Internet and found it amusing and
decided to put it on a poster collage of bin Laden. I don't think it's a hoax. I
think its a freaky example of reality imitating art."
Ignacio isn't the only one shocked. Sesame Street producers aren't finding the
Bert-bin Laden pictures very funny.
"Sesame Street has always stood for mutual respect and understanding," read a
statement from the Children's Television Workshop. "We're outraged that our
characters would be used in this unfortunate and distasteful manner. The people
responsible for this should be ashamed of themselves."
Bert - bin Laden Connection?
3rd Time Is The Charm?
The Emmy Awards
Organizers of the twice-canceled Emmy Awards, television's highest honors, said
Wednesday the show will go on -- probably next month, possibly at a military
base or a hotel ballroom without an audience.
Officials of the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, which sponsors the
Emmys, discussed their options during the day with CBS brass and Emmy executive
producer Don Mischer, academy officials told Reuters.
Emmy organizers have said millions of dollars were at stake for CBS and the
academy in the decision to postpone the awards.
CBS had paid $3 million for broadcast rights and stood to earn hundreds of
thousands of dollars for each of some 40 minutes of commercial air time during
the three-hour telecast.
Price said it appeared likely the awards would now be presented sometime in
November, with a number of options under consideration, including the
possibility of broadcasting a pre-taped show from a hotel ballroom without a
live audience.
More Emmy's
BartCop TV!
Visit the site at BC TV
The 'Vidiot' never seems to rest!
Every show on TV must be listed--days worth of reading there.
For an amazing variety of information on an astounding array of tv programs check out
BC TV!
Sentencing Day
Paula Poundstone
Paula Poundstone can't resume her comedy career until she completes 180 days in
an alcohol rehabilitation center, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Defense attorney Steven Cron argued that she should be allowed to return for
limited appearances, but Superior Court Judge Bernard Kamins said the
comedian - who pleaded no contest Sept. 12 to child endangerment - would benefit
from focusing on her problems.
Poundstone, 41, has already served 125 days in rehabilitation, for which she
volunteered even before her plea, and has received good progress reports.
"I note she has a very unique sense of humor," the judge said. "I don't think
that's going to go away."
The judge also placed Poundstone on five years' probation and ordered her to
perform 200 hours of community service, pay a $1,000 fine and restitution
including child therapy costs, attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings and a child
abuse program, receive a year of counseling and undergo random drug and alcohol testing.
The comedian was also barred from ever taking in foster children again.
Poundstone's relationship to the children involved in the case and the alleged
actions that led to the charges were never publicly released.
The defense attorney said Poundstone's adopted children have visited her several
times a week during rehabilitation.
The judge noted that while Poundstone must not drink alcohol or be in places
where it is sold, including bars and liquor stores, she would be allowed to
perform in nightclubs.
Paula Poundstone
Disney News
Bad News For 'Bob Patterson'
ABC's Tuesday, once the network's dominant night, is crumbling around its soft
center this season -- with schedule changes imminent after an even weaker
performance from ``Bob Patterson'' in its second try.
In other ratings news, the WB's two-hour debut of ``Gilmore Girls'' got off to a
fast start Tuesday, while CBS continued to roll on the night with its drama
lineup. New comedies on Fox (``Undeclared'') and NBC (``Scrubs'') also held up nicely.
While nothing was official late Wednesday, industry insiders expect ABC to pull
sophomore sitcom ``What About Joan'' from its 8:30 p.m. Tuesday slot
immediately, as the network attempts to find a way to pump new ratings blood
into the night. ``Bob,'' now airing at 9, is expected to get a few more weeks at
bat, but probably in a less challenging 8:30 p.m. slot.
ABC also is likely to pull ``The Mole II'' from Fridays at 8, relaunching it on
a new night either immediately or later this season. The network probably will
announce a new schedule Thursday.
In addition, ABC execs have postponed the launch of a Saturday night franchise
of James Bond pics until midseason. The network had planned to launch the
package Oct. 6, but decided now wasn't the time to devote marketing muscle to an
unimportant night.
Fox also is tinkering with its schedule, announcing that Wednesday comedies
``Titus'' and the new ``Bernie Mac Show'' -- set to premiere next month -- will
swap slots. ``Bernie'' moves up to 9 p.m., with ``Titus'' now at 9:30.
ABC fell to fourth in adults 18-49 on Tuesday with its worst in-season score on
record (3.3/8). The network finished third on Tuesday last week (4.0/10), second
on premiere Tuesday (5.6/14) and first for all of last season (5.3/14).
While the whole night needs repair, the glaring weakness is in the two-hour
comedy block's center. Jason Alexander's ``Bob Patterson'' (6.92 million,
2.9/7 in 18-49) plunged 33% in 18-49 from its weak premiere, finishing 9 shares
behind NBC's ``Frasier'' (15.10 million, 6.5/16).
``Bob'' dropped to sixth in adults 18-34 (2.1/6) and to fourth in total
viewers -- behind the WB's ``Gilmore Girls.'' Not that ``Bob'' got much help, as
8:30 comedy ``What About Joan'' (6.72 million, 2.5/6 in 18-49) ran fifth in the demo.
With little support, new drama ``Philly'' (8.85 million, 3.8/10) is also
struggling at 10, falling well behind ``Judging Amy'' (which drew its largest
audience since December) and fading to an 18-49 rating that's below every
episode of ``NYPD Blue'' and ``Once and Again'' to air there the last two seasons.
ABC's small rays of hope come from vets ``Dharma & Greg'' (8.54 million, 3.4/9),
which was up slightly week-to-week but still a soft third place at 8, and 9:30's
``Spin City'' (7.73 million, 3.4/8), which improved upon its ``Bob'' lead-in
by 17% in 18-49 but remained fourth.
Fox's ``Love Cruise'' (6.29 million, 3.4/8) continues to sail off with modest
marks heading into next week's finale.
Tuesday's tussle between the WB ands UPN was a close battle at 8 before ``Gilmore
Girls'' put the night in the WB's win column by easily topping UPN's ``Roswell.''
``Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' (5.58 million, 2.6/7 in 18-49) fell by 32% from its
week-earlier premiere, and dropped more than 25% below what it delivered in its
second episode last season on the WB. At 9, ``Roswell'' (3.87 million, 1.7/4),
another WB transfer, held 65% of its ``Buffy'' 18-49 lead-in.
Second-year drama ``Gilmore,'' meanwhile, surged to best-ever numbers in viewers
(6.55 million), adults 18-49 (2.6/6), adults 18-34 (2.7/8) and other demos. It
was the No. 1 show of the night among females 12-34 (5.2/14).
ABC Tuesday Night Collapsing
New! Updated!
BartCop Astrology
Check it out at BC Astrology.
"Guitar Greats" is still on hiatus, but, this week, it's a look at 'The Birth of
Aviation', and a relevant USA horoscope courtesy of Marc Penfield.
Very interesting reading!
'Welcome To LA'
Mike Walker
Mike Walker is the National Enquirer's longtime Hollywood columnist. He divides
time between the tabloid's Boca Raton headquarters and his apartment in Los Angeles.
Like all involved with American Media, the parent group which owns the Enquirer,
he needed to be checked for anthrax, since nobody knows precisely how or when
this contaminant made its way to their home base. Mike had been to the office in
person. He'd personally carted material from there across country. He had
additional items in L.A. which they'd sent him.
When he first heard news of the outbreak he was on the West Coast. He rushed to
phone the area's premier hospital for an urgent appointment. Cedars of Lebanon
informed him, "We can maybe work you in on the 23rd." The 23rd?! This phone call
was Saturday the 6th. Nonplused, Walker's people demanded an appointment that
very day. Result? The annoyed medical staffers hung up. When Walker's people
called back nobody answered the extension and they were put into voice-mail hell.
Obviously, the movie colony doesn't consider an influx of anthrax important. It's
important only is if there's an exit of botox.
Mike Walker
Divorce News
Eminem & Kim
A judge in Michigan has officially granted Eminem's divorce, closing the book on
the tumultuous on-again off-again marriage between the trash-talking rapper
(otherwise known as Marshall Bruce Mathers III) and his lyrically scalded
sweetie, Kim Mathers.
In addition to ponying up $1,000 a week in child support (or $52,000 a year),
Macomb County Circuit Judge Donald G. Miller on Friday also ordered Em and his
ex to share custody of their 5-year-old daughter.
Despite a stormy marriage--during which Mathers rhymed about murdering his other
half in the song "Kim"--the divorce was actually settled amicably.
The couple, who met and fell in love in high school, tied the knot in 1999. Em
filed for divorce just 14 months later.
A two-month stab at reconciliation ended last March, with the missus filing for
divorce a second time. The two were able to make nice long enough to hammer out
a deal over the custody of their daughter.
Marshall Mathers A Free Man
New!
In The Kitchen With BartCop & Friends
Don't worry about the HTML, just send text, or rich text, or a Word document, photos, video, whatever you have, and Michele will take care of the rest. Don't hesitate to write with any questions you may have and bring on the recipes!
To check out 'Train Station Chicken', and more (like 'Cranberry Autumn Tea'),
In The Kitchen With BartCop
TV News
'Larry Sanders'
TV stations in the top markets have begun sealing deals to air repeats of
HBO comedy ``The Larry Sanders Show.''
``Sanders'' reruns will begin airing on TV stations during weekends in fall 2002,
coinciding with Monday-Friday play on cable's Bravo, which bought rights to the
showbiz satire last year. ``Sanders'' star Garry Shandling created and executive
produced the occasionally ribald show, which won 56 Emmys during its HBO run.
Among stations that have picked up ``Sanders'' are ABC-owned KABC Los Angeles
and WLS Chicago. Each weekend, stations can air two episodes that can run as an
hour block or as two separate half-hours.
Larry/Garry
I love this show!
Remember Stem-Cell Research?
Christopher Reeve
There was a time recently when many believed that George W. Bush's presidency
might be defined by his handling of the controversial issues surrounding
stem-cell research.
Then came Sept. 11 and a change in national priorities. Now, with billions of
dollars needed to fight a war, rebuild a city and care for broken families, you
won't find too many people still talking about stem cells.
Christopher Reeve, on the other hand, hasn't stopped talking about it.
The paralyzed actor-director, who spent his summer making an eloquent case for
increased federal funding, is in Washington today to receive a $2 million
government check from Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson. The
money will enable Reeve to launch the Christopher and Dana Reeve Paralysis
Resource Center, in Springfield, N.J. The PRC, which is being developed by
Reeve's Paralysis Foundation, will serve as an information clearinghouse for
disabled people and their families.
"It's important to keep in mind that when the President said, 'Let's return to
normal,' we have to remember that normality for 54 million disabled Americans is
not the same as for everyone else," Reeve told me. "We have been assured that
the federal funding for the National Institutes of Health will not be diminished
because of Sept. 11, and we are very grateful for that." Reeve said scientists
are hard at work on the stem-cell lines that were approved by the President
Aug. 9 and Thompson has assured him that funding will not be rescinded because
of the crisis.
Christopher Reeve
Really Snarky Gossip
Madonna
Madonna would be the mother of 13 children if she hadn't had 11 abortions over
the years, according to "Goddess," an unauthorized biography by Barbara Victor
out next month from HarperCollins.
One abortion came right before Madonna met her hubby, Guy Ritchie. "She had a
pregnancy in between Lourdes and Rocco," Victor told PAGE SIX. "It was with a
British man," she added, refusing to name him until the book comes out. After
the 11th abortion, Madonna met Ritchie and pursued him relentlessly - calling
him every 20 minutes one night during a dinner party held by Sting's wife,
Trudie Styler.
Although Ritchie was "mesmerized" by Madonna in the beginning, "he had no
intention of being a one-woman man," Victor said. But when Madonna became
pregnant, Ritchie decided to settle down on his father, John Ritchie's advice.
"Guy initially stormed out of the house [when she told him she was pregnant] and
went to tell his father, whom he's quite close with," Victor said. "His father
told him, 'If this is your baby, you have to do the right thing [and support the baby].' "
Not that Ritchie's dad, or his mother, Lady Amber Leighton, approve of Madonna.
"Amber said that Guy got sucked up so quickly into Madonna's fantasy world that
he didn't know what hit him," one Ritchie family friend told Victor.
Another Ritchie pal added: "They believed that Madonna deliberately got
pregnant. This was not some teenage girl who didn't know how to use birth control!"
But, Victor - an investigative reporter who has covered the Middle East for U.S.
News & World Report, and whose research included interviews with Madonna's maternal
grandmother, father, siblings and ex-lovers - said that when Madonna and Ritchie
announced they were getting married, his well-to-do parents were "shocked."
"They always envisioned he would marry someone more proper. They looked down on
her because she is in show business, was 10 years older than him, and pregnant."
After the wedding, Ritchie's father is said to have warmed to Madonna because of
Rocco, but Lady Amber is still frosty.
Andrew Morton also has a bio of the queen of pop due out this year, but Victor
notes that she had exclusive access to Madonna's family.
Liz Rosenberg, who came out of her "early Madonna retirement" to defend her
ex-client's honor, said, "The abortion issue is completely untrue. That she
tricked Guy into marrying her is ridiculous. This is a love match, period. I
was at the wedding and everyone got along beautifully."
Despite the denials, a HarperCollins rep said Victor's book had been thoroughly
vetted by lawyers.
Madonna & Guy
First Person Diary
Ray Berry
Ray has temporarily (I hope), suspended 'Bush-Toons'. In its place, he has put
his daily diary of life in Manhattan since Tuesday.
Ray has great observational abilities, and a wonderful way with words.
To visit & read, www.bush-toons.com
In Memory
Dagmar
Dagmar, who parlayed her dumb blonde act into television fame in the early
1950s, died Tuesday at age 79.
Dagmar was born Virginia Ruth Egnor in Huntington, W.Va. She left Huntington in
the 1940s to visit an aunt in New York, where she became a fashion model and
eventually drifted into show business.
Her big break came in 1950 when the director of "Broadway Open House," a
late-night TV variety show on NBC, needed a statuesque blonde. Dagmar developed
a dumb blonde act that became so popular she received 2,000 fan letters a week.
In 1951, Alfred Eisenstadt took photographs of Dagmar that were featured in Life magazine.
Later, Dagmar starred briefly on her own television show, "Dagmar's Canteen,"
and appeared on "Hollywood Squares." She also recorded a duet with Frank Sinatra.
Dagmar played the nightclub circuit for several years before moving to Ceredo in
June 1996 to be near her family.
Dagmar
Still MISSING
Marc Chagall's "Study for 'Over Vitebsk'"
