New url for Peach Buzz
Bookmark this new url for Peach Buzz.. We have moved to Wordpress!
Access Atlanta > Blog > Archives > 2007 > July
July 2007
Author’s latest is a tell-all on spouse, Ted
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In a jaw droppingly frank e-mail to five of his Florida State University graduate students, Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist Robert Olen Butler has disclosed that his 44-year-old spouse, “His Lovely Wife” novelist Elizabeth Dewberry, is leaving him for 68-year-old CNN founder Ted Turner.
“Rumors will soon be swirling around the department, so I want to tell the full and nuanced story,” Butler informed his colleagues.
After going into detail about his wife’s unfortunate childhood, Butler writes: “It is very common for a woman to be drawn to men who remind them of their childhood abusers. Ted is such a man, though fortunately, he is far from being abusive. From all that I can tell, he is kind to her, loyal, considerate and devoted to his family, and perhaps, therefore, he can redeem some things for her.”
Butler’s e-mail was posted on Tuesday on gawker.com.
He goes on to say that the “Break the Heart of Me” author “nearly died from an intestinal blockage in Argentina while on a trip with Ted” in March. The experience, Butler says, led her to officially end the couple’s 12-year marriage.
But wait. In the e-mail’s final passages, Butler seeks to completely re-define the phrase “full disclosure.”
He writes: “She will not be Ted’s only girlfriend. Ted is permanently and avowedly non-monogamous. But though he has several girlfriends, it is a very small number, and he does not take them up lightly and he gives them his absolute support when he does …”
(That sound you just heard was Jane Fonda vigorously nodding her head over in Poncey-Highland.)
In closing, Butler writes: “I wish her the best. I ask you not to think ill of her in any way. Elizabeth and I will now conduct ourselves as if this is public knowledge.”
When reached Tuesday, Butler was understandably distraught at the rude comments surrounding the Gawker.com posting.
“It’s just sneering and vicious,” Butler told us. “Elizabeth and I are hardly Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt. I suppose there’s interest in this because Ted Turner is involved. He’s a decent, loyal man. There’s a connection between them that’s quite profound. I love the woman. My first interest is in her happiness.”
In keeping with his long-standing policy of not commenting on his employer’s often, um, complex personal life, Turner rep. Phillip Evans graciously declined to discuss the matter when we rang Tuesday.
Gregory Henry, Dewberry’s publicist at Harcourt Publishers in New York forwarded our request for comment to the Tallahassee novelist.
Star 94 on Star’s disclosure
Star 94 morning man Steve McCoy admits that he “nearly spit a pepperoni off the fine pizza I was enjoying” while watching “Entertainment Tonight” Monday. The report focused on ex-“View” chat show host Star Jones Reynolds’ essay in the upcoming August issue of Glamour where she finally cops to having a gastric bypass procedure.
As Buzz enthusiasts will recall, Jones Reynolds memorably hung up on McCoy and co-host Vikki Locke when they gently inquired about rumors of her having the procedure last year. Later, she referred to McCoy in the New York Post as “the single rudest person who ever interviewed me.” McCoy and Locke then gleefully had the quote put on T-shirts and gave them away to listeners prior to the author’s “Shine” book-signing here.
Still, Jones Reynolds’ words speak best for themselves. And since we happened to get our hands on her full essay Tuesday, behold the following:
“It is a warm summer day in Manhattan, and I am trying to quiet myself enough to write the toughest document of my life and let go of the grandiose concept of ‘me’ long enough to just be real with myself,” she writes about the decision to go public.
“I was also terrified someone would have a tragic result after emulating me without making an informed decision with her doctor.”
We’re practically certain that the new Court TV host is commenting on her medical procedure there and not her marriage to New York banker Al Reynolds.
Usher: Wedding will happen
Atlanta pop star Usher Raymond provided details Tuesday to Usmagazine.com about his and fiancée Tameka Foster’s abruptly canceled nuptials at L.A. Reid’s house in the Hamptons last weekend. Usher insists the couple will make it down the aisle. “As of right now we don’t have a date but we will let you know when we do,” the singer told the mag. “Everybody’s fine. Tameka and the baby are fine.” The couple was snapped holding hands in New York Tuesday.
Not to belabor the semantics of Usher rep Patti Webster’s official statement from the weekend, but she did write “the wedding ceremony was canceled” as opposed to “postponed.”
At presstime Tuesday, we were still deliberating what to do with the couple’s fondue set.
Overscene
Pop diva and “Glitter” actress Mariah Carey dining at Geisha House at Atlantic Station. “Mimi” sat in an exclusive booth on the first floor as she noshed on tuna tataki sashimi with ponzu. She was with one of her girlfriends and one male friend. We’re told that the singer was “very polite to the staff and courteous to her onlooking fans.” Carey is said to be in town working with record producer Jermaine Dupri.
Celebrity birthdays
Blues musician Robert Cray is 54. Singer Joe Elliott of Def Leppard is 48. Rapper Chuck D of Public Enemy is 47. Rapper Coolio is 44. Singer Adam Duritz of Counting Crows is 43. Actress Tempestt Bledsoe (“The Cosby Show”) is 34.
Contributing: News services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
No apologies for ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ tears
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
While she ended up removed from the competition in last week’s episode of “Hell’s Kitchen,” former Waffle House short order cook Julia Williams earned the respect of the show’s swearing, insult-hurling chef Gordon Ramsay.
On air, the London chef even offered to pay for the Jonesboro resident to attend culinary school and invited her back to the stove on the Fox restaurant reality show next season.
“He gave me a big hug, and I hope he meant what he said [about culinary school],” Williams told Buzz. “I feel that I came away with my dignity intact. I never got thrown out of the kitchen. Gordon only ever yelled at you if you weren’t doing something right.”
Williams used her nine years on the front lines of the South’s smothered, covered and chunked chain to great effect on the show. Her menus and approaches proved popular with the diners who favored her simple but artful fare.
She told us she’s now running the kitchen at Ocean’s 66 Sports Cafe on Old National Highway in College Park. And among the specials? Her popular steak and shrimp entree that she winningly whipped up on the show.
“Just like on the show, it’s been a big seller on the menu,” Williams said. “The customers are also asking me about making the grilled chicken and cheese that we made on ‘Hell’s Kitchen.’ It doesn’t matter to me. If I have the ingredients in the kitchen, I’ll make it for you whether it’s on the menu or not.”
Williams says her often-weeping persona on the reality show was well-earned.
“I did cry a lot,” she conceded. “But everyone expresses themselves differently. And my frustration comes out in tears. I was just concerned that my family was gonna eventually see it, so I knew I had to act right.”
Fashionable surprise
Elton John AIDS Foundation-Atlanta board member Barron Segar tucked a surprise into the breast pocket of his designer suit jacket at last week’s Fashion Cares patron party. Segar rang us from the streets of New York to confirm that the EJAF, a longtime presenting sponsor at fashion retailer Jeffrey Kalinsky’s annual breast cancer and AIDS fund-raiser, is making an unprecedented donation to the evening this year — two very coveted tickets to Sir Elton’s annual Oscar night party in Los Angeles.
“We’ve never opened this up to the public like this before, and the response was pretty overwhelming,” Segar said.
Like tickets to the part-time Peachtree Road resident’s Las Vegas shows in past years, the tickets to the Oscar party are expected to fetch a large chunk for the charities. Fashion Cares 2007 is Aug. 27 at 55 Allen Plaza downtown. For details: www.jeffreyfashioncares.com.
Overscene
Spotted in the crowd at the two sold-out Indigo Girls shows at the Atlanta Botanical Garden in Midtown over the weekend: Weather Channel “The Climate Code” host Heidi Cullen and author and HGTV “Deserving Design” host Vern Yip. Stone Mountain songstress India Arie also turned out and went backstage to congratulate Emily Saliers and Amy Ray on their impressive 20-year musical anniversary.
On My iPod
“American Idol” Season 2 winner Ruben Studdard:
The singer was in town to promote a Boys & Girls Clubs of America event at the Georgia Aquarium in which American Express donated $500,000 to the Atlanta-based group. “[British soul singer] Amy Winehouse. That’s my favorite CD right now. [British pianist and singer] Jamie Cullum. Carl Thomas’ new album. Those are my three favorites right now.”
Uncoupling?
The circumstances surrounding Atlanta pop star Usher’s canceled weekend wedding to his pregnant former stylist remained murky Monday.
Essentially, no one in a position to know the details about the abruptly nixed nups at Antonio “L.A.” Reid’s Hamptons estate over the weekend was feeling chatty.
At least not on the record.
Still, in this brilliant age of celebrity blogging, a lack of confirmed facts did not slow a geyser of gossip being posted online pertaining to the 28-year-old potential groom and his potentially jilted bride Tameka Foster, 38.
PerezHilton.com, for example, breathlessly reported: “We’ve been flooded with e-mails from readers in Atlanta this morning! Local radio there is reporting that Usher’s been at an area hospital with Tameka Foster since yesterday. Apparently, she’s in pre-term labor.”
People.com, meanwhile, reported: ” ‘Usher’s mother [and former manager, Jonetta Patton] is against the wedding. That is one of the main obstacles,’ according to the source, who also said: ‘They only decided two weeks ago to have a wedding.”
Alas, the only official two sentences e-mailed to Buzz Central from Usher’s publicist Patti Webster were: “It was announced today that the wedding ceremony was canceled. No additional information will be given regarding the circumstances of the cancellation, but we hope the privacy of this matter will be respected.” Perhaps tellingly, Webster declined comment on whether her client and Foster were still a couple.
The New York Post reported that Atlantans Janet Jackson and Jermaine Dupri were among the invited celeb guests.
Celebrity birthdays
Actor Don Murray is 78. Actress Susan Flannery (“The Bold and the Beautiful”) is 64. Singer Gary Lewis of Gary Lewis and the Playboys is 62. Drummer Bill Berry (R.E.M.) is 49. Actor Wesley Snipes is 45. “Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling is 42. Actor Dean Cain (“Lois & Clark”) is 41. Actor B.J. Novak (“The Office”) is 28.
Contributing: Rodney Ho and news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Bell Bottoms still grooving
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Is Bell Bottoms closed?
That’s the question that seems to linger like garlic breath around town. No, folks, the Buckhead nightspot is still plugging away.
As a matter of fact, Buzz got a phone call last week from Richard King, one of the managers at Bell Bottoms, who was a tad dismayed about an article in the July 8 edition of the AJC about “the last tango for Buckhead party scene.”
Well, the whole Buckhead scene is, in fact, going through a nip-and-tuck, but, King says, “the article doesn’t even mention that Bell Bottoms is still open. It basically says there’s no nightlife left in Buckhead, except basically for East Andrews.”
King says the partygoers still come out Friday and Saturday nights to enjoy the ’70s and ’80s music — and that the mature clientele still love to “go back and relive the good times of growing up.”
When asked if they’ve been given any sort of deadline to close, he says, “the landlord says we’re fine.” But King admits anything can happen with the way things are going in the area.
But for now, King wants Atlantans to know Buckhead nightlife isn’t dead and buried — there’s still some glare left in those disco lights.
And the salsa is still swinging at Havana Club, too.
Julio Asenjo, a manager at the nightclub, says business has been hurting because of all the negative publicity surrounding Buckhead nightlife. But he, too, wants people to know that Havana Club is still going strong.
“What’s nice is the mix of people who come,” Asenjo says. “People don’t necessarily come here to pick anybody up, but to dance. That’s what’s expected.”
Asenjo notes that the club will be moving to another location in Buckhead, at 3112 Piedmont Road near Sambuca and Fogo de Chao at the end of August, but for now, the grooves are still pumping.
A show of support for ‘Ceremonies’
Buzz took in an absolutely wonderful production last week at the Balzar Theater called “Ceremonies in Dark Old Men,” featuring actor Glynn Turman and director Kenny Leon.
It’s a show, part of the National Black Arts Festival, about a family struggling to get ahead — by any means necessary, and recalls the broken dreams of “Raisin in the Sun,” the yearning of “The Old Settler” and jolly good humor of “Beverly Hills Cop.”
Sitting directly across the aisle were special guests LaTanya Richardson Jackson (Samuel L. Jackson’s wife) and Anna Maria Horsford (“The Shield,” “Amen,” “The Wayans Bros.”) They came from Los Angeles for the 10-day arts fest and wanted to check out Turman, whom Horsford went to school with in New York.
“It’s always good to come back to Atlanta,” Horsford says. “I come to the festival every year and wanted to support my friend Glynn. Hollywood is so isolated, and coming to this environment of openness and celebration is unbelievable. I love it.”
“Ceremonies in Dark Old Men” has been extended to Aug. 19. Go to www.truecolorstheatrecompany.com for details.
More Garcia goods heading to eBay
You know the old saying, “Everything but the kitchen sink”? Well, that’s going, too.
Henry Koltys, the man who bought musician Jerry Garcia’s house 10 years ago, is selling everything. Yes, including the kitchen sink.
Koltys sold the deceased Grateful Dead guitarist’s toilet and other fixtures last year and said Friday he was clearing out the last of his inventory. He’s offering the Jacuzzi, stereo speakers and several other items on eBay Aug. 12-19.
Overscene The original “Dreamgirls” Broadway star Sheryl Lee Ralph was seen noshing on crab legs at Pearl restaurant in Castleberry Hill. She was in town checking out former co-star Jennifer Holliday in the Fox production of the show.
Celebrity birthdays
Blues guitarist Buddy Guy is 71. Movie director Peter Bogdanovich is 68. Singer Paul Anka is 66. Jazz saxophonist David Sanborn is 62. Actor Arnold Schwarzenegger is 60. Actress Delta Burke is 51. Actress Lisa Kudrow (“Friends”) is 44. Actress Vivica A. Fox is 43. Actress Hilary Swank is 33. Actress Jaime Pressly (“My Name Is Earl,” “Not Another Teen Movie”) is 30.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Monica Pearson ready for reunion
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
While some folks tend to shy away from their high school reunions, WSB TV news anchor Monica Pearson is only too happy to attend hers Saturday afternoon at the Swan House in Buckhead.
Pearson e-mailed to inform us about the first southeastern reunion of alums from Presentation Academy, a 166-year-old, all-girls Catholic high school in Louisville, Ky. Pearson graduated from it in 1965.
In her e-mail, Pearson explained why the private school remains important to her: “My mom used to pawn her engagement ring to pay for my tuition every year so I would get a great education. … The ring my father gave her only was worn during the summer months.” Pearson tells us that only about 25 folks have sent R.S.V.P.s for the gathering. Reasons Pearson: “You have to start somewhere.”
CELEBRITY DOCKET
As if Michael Vick didn’t have enough trouble, he may have to fork over $63 billion — that’s billion, with a B — if one Jonathan Lee Riches prevails in court.
The aptly named Riches’ lawsuit against Vick, filed this week in U.S. District Court in Richmond, was handwritten. That’s because Riches is a guest of the Graybar Hotel in South Carolina (it’s not clear which town; his handwriting is a little hard to read). The lawsuit does not explain what landed Riches in the clink, but does spell out a number of dastardly allegations: That Vick supposedly stole Riches’ dogs for dogfighting purposes, opened credit cards in Riches’ name and stole his copyrighted property. (“Mr. Vick uses my name to sell T-shirts,” the suit alleges at one point.)
But wait. It gets worse. Or better, if you’re in this particular racket.
Riches claims that Vick sold the pilfered pooches on eBay and used the proceeds to purchase missiles from the Iranian government, that he has “plead (sic) allegiance to Al-quaeda (sic)” and has subjected Riches to “microwave testing.”
Riches is demanding $63 billion “backed by gold and silver.” Should he prevail against Atlanta’s erstwhile sports hero, at least another hometown team will benefit: He wants the loot delivered by Atlanta-based UPS.
OVERSCENE
Pop star Jon Bon Jovi provided the entertainment at Cumulus Radio Atlanta’s private party Thursday at Park Tavern in Midtown. Hundreds of clients and business associates of 99X and Q100 attended the open bar, sushi-filled soiree. Opening the festivities: budding singer-songwriter Jon McLaughlin, whose single “Beautiful Disaster” continues to flirt with the charts. And yes, the single women in attendance were disappointed to find a wedding band on the handsome singer’s left hand.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Today: Cartoonist Jim Davis (“Garfield”) is 62. Actress Sally Struthers is 59. Actress Elizabeth Berkley (“Showgirls,” “Saved by the Bell”) is 35.
Sunday: Atlanta TV news icon Ray Moore is 85. Documentary maker Ken Burns is 54. Country singer Martina McBride is 41. Musician Danger Mouse of Gnarls Barkley is 30.
Contributing: Jennifer Brett, Sharon Gaus, Rodney Ho and news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
‘I have the best seat in the house’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Playing the smooth but sinister Curtis Taylor Jr. in the Theater of the Stars production of “Dreamgirls” at the Fox Theatre this week has resulted in some interesting close encounters on Peachtree Street for actor David Jennings.
“Folks are not at all shy about telling you what they think of you,” Jennings conceded to Buzz Thursday, laughing. “But that’s what’s really fun about playing a role like that.”
Earlier this year, Jennings was in town playing the decidedly nerdier Sgt. Eddie Souther in the premiere of “Sister Act: The Musical” at the Alliance Theatre. That’s where he first heard buzz that Theater of the Stars was thinking of assembling a new production of “Dreamgirls” complete with Jennifer Holliday in her Tony-winning signature role of Effie White (Holliday has hinted that this production may be her final one as Effie).
Jennings is alone on stage with Holliday at the end of Act One when she unleashes “And I Am Telling You I’m Not Going,” a number that has become a goose bump-inducing piece of Broadway history.
“I have the best seat in the house,” Jennings says. “There’s this flood of emotion that comes over you. It’s difficult not to get caught up in it. The history of the number and how powerful Jennifer’s performance is along with the audience response to it each night are all just incredibly special.”
So when Curtis high-tails it out of the scene midway through the number, does Jennings ever watch the rest from the wings?
“Are you kidding? Every night I’m standing there, along with every other cast member, member of the crew, the doorman, everybody.”
Jennings says he loves walking up to the Fox each night as well and observing the beautifully dressed audience members clustered around out front, all anticipating “event theater.”
“They have no clue who I am, but I love walking up and seeing them all dressed and hearing them talking about the show. It’s a timeless piece of theater for people. And I know they’re not coming to see me either! It’s incredible just to be a part of all that.”
“Dreamgirls” runs through Sunday. Call for tickets: 404-252-8960.
See Wendell Brock’s review. | Photos
BEAN: ‘COOKING’ IN COSTA RICA
Former Atlanta charitable fund-raiser and “Cooking For Mr. Right” author Mimi Bean couldn’t resist contacting us Thursday morning from her new home in Costa Rica prior to her scheduled luncheon. After all, how often does one get pressed into service to whip up luncheon for Costa Rican president and Nobel Peace Prize winner Oscar Arias Sanchez?
The lunch event was scheduled to announce improvements to roads in Tamarindo, a large tourist surfing area where Bean lives. Bean told us that Secret Service security types were dispatched to taste the food prior to the meal. “I added some Southern touches like a pulled pork BBQ appetizer,” Bean told us. Sanchez, along with 60 other invited guests, also dined on mahi mahi in an Asian chili soy sauce, white sangria cocktails and a coconut flan dessert made with Costa Rican rum-soaked strawberries.
BREADWINNER SCORES ON ‘TODAY’ SHOW
The ovens over at Breadwinner, the family-owned Atlanta gourmet goodie maker behind Papa Don’t Peach Bread, are likely fired up around the clock today. The bakery is basking in fresh orders coming in via a coveted mention on “Today” this week. During a segment Tuesday on the NBC morning show, Atlanta gift guru Robyn Spizman selected the company for a summer “hostess with the mostest” gift pick. The breads are now available for shipping nation-wide. “I had to pinch myself,” explains co-owner Katie Melkonian. While Buzz is thrilled that Breadwinner continues to gain national recognition, if Matt Lauer and Meredith Vieira get between us and our next loaf of Sweet Home Ala-Banana Bread, things are liable to turn very unpleasant.
SICK BAY
Etta James, who had to cancel her appearance Thursday night at Chastain as part of the B.B. King Blues Festival, has been hospitalized in Los Angeles.
The singer is listed in stable condition after being admitted for complications from abdominal surgery she had last month, her manager said.
The 69-year-old Grammy winner has had to cancel several upcoming tour dates, her manager, Lupe De Leon, said in an e-mail.
De Leon said the hospitalization was caused by “post-op complications” from her mid-June surgery. The complications and the nature of the surgery were not specified.
“If it had been left solely up to her, she would have checked herself out of the hospital and started the tour regardless of her delicate health,” De Leon said.
OVERSCENE
Former President Jimmy Carter logging some research hours in his own Carter Presidential Library this week in Poncey-Highland. Library reps. tell us that Carter is hard at work, poring over documents while researching a new book on his inimitable mother Miss Lillian, due out in 2008.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
TV producer Norman Lear is 85. Singer Bobbie Gentry is 63. Actress-director Betty Thomas (“Hill Street Blues”) is 59. Country guitarist Duncan Cameron of Sawyer Brown is 51. Actor Julian McMahon (“Nip/Tuck”) is 39. Comedian Maya Rudolph (“Saturday Night Live”) is 35. Singer Pete Yorn is 33.
Contributing: News services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
‘Nique and Newt?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
What do former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich and former Atlanta Hawk and basketball Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins have in common besides a fierce hook shot, you may ask? The unusual coupling will appear together at the Atlantic Station vendor marketplace at Thursday afternoon on 18th Street.
The pair are teaming up as part of the National Black Arts festival to raise awareness in the fight against diabetes. Gingrich’s Center for Health Transformation is a sponsor of the festival, including hosting a booth that is distributing info about the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of diabetes while offering free screenings.
Said Gingrich in a statement sent to Buzz: “Diabetes takes a tragic toll on Americans — and the toll is even greater among the African-American and Hispanic populations. We believe that having someone of Dominique’s stature work with us will help us accomplish two equally important goals: one, the prevention of diabetes and its complications and, two, the elimination of health disparities in America.”
Wilkins, meanwhile, was diagnosed with the disease seven years ago and works with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and other diabetes-related charities.
OVERSCENE
“American Idol” Taylor Hicks dining at Two Urban Licks on Tuesday night. We’re told the vocalist started out at the bar with appetizers and infused cocktails before proceeding with friends to a table where Hicks ordered tomato soup and the halibut. The evening ended with Hicks and seven friends playing bocce ball outside. Hicks was in town for a signing of his memoir, “Heart Full of Soul.”
HIGH FIVE
Television
Comcast On Demand programming selected by metro area customers the week of July 18-25:
1. “Wall to Wall” music video, Chris Brown, Music Choice
2. “Entourage,” “The Dream Team” (Episode No. 47), HBO
3. “My Super Ex-Girlfriend,” HBO
4. “Shawty” music video, Piles and T. Pain, Music Choice
5. “SpongeBob” “I Had an Accident” episode, Nickelodeon
— Comcast
Star 94 update
Star 94’s afternoon show starring Cindy Simmons and Ray Mariner will be on at least through 2011 after the pair signed a multi-year extension with the top 40 station. The two hosts, who gab about pop culture from 3 to 7 p.m. weekdays, started at Star in early 2003. Their agent Norm Schrutt told Buzz the contract does open the couple to moving to mornings if need be but he thinks that’s a “remote possibility” because the station is happy with them in the afternoons. Vikki Locke of the morning show has already said she plans to step down for health reasons at the end of the year.
Celebrity birthdays
Movie director Blake Edwards is 85. Singer Dobie Gray is 67. Singer Darlene Love is 66. Singer Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones is 64. Actress Helen Mirren is 62. Actor Kevin Spacey is 48. Actress Sandra Bullock is 43. Actor Jeremy Piven (“Entourage”) is 42. Actress Kate Beckinsale (“The Aviator,” “Pearl Harbor”) is 34. Drummer Dan Konopka of OK Go is 33.
Contributing: Rodney Ho, Sonia Murray and news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Relocation in the works for Fado Irish Pub
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
For Fado Irish Pub regulars in Buckhead who have been nervously hoisting their pints of Guinness while wondering where their next corned beef and cabbage boxty might come from as Buckhead Village continues to implode around them, here’s some settling news.
On Wednesday, during an exclusive chat with Buzz, Fado CEO Kieran McGill told us the 11-year-old business at 3035 Peachtree Road will relocate “about 50 yards” to “a slightly larger pub” space on Buckhead Avenue next to the Atlanta Fulton County Library by year’s end.
“We’re trying to organize things so we can move from our current location to the new one without a lot of disruption,” explained McGill. “It’s been a dilemma for us and for our regulars. If we had a preference, we’d have the new development built around us and we’d stay put. But we’re committed to working with [developer] Ben Carter on this.”
As most nightcrawlers are now aware, Carter has been busy buying up real estate in Buckhead Village in recent months as the area’s noisy nightlife has slowly dried up to make way for a future as a pedestrian-friendly Rodeo Drive-esque series of high-end retail, coffee shops and boutique hotels.
“We’re extremely pleased to be the only current business being worked into the new concept,” McGill said.
He hopes to retain 100 percent of Fado’s current staff as the new pub is built in Ireland and shipped and installed here later this year.
In the meantime, regulars can rest assured that next week’s 2007 Rugby World Cup games, the pub’s fantasy soccer league and this fall’s Octoberfest celebration will remain.
To receive e-mailed updates on Fado’s future, go to fadoirishpub.com and sign up for the pub’s newsletter.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Usher, fiancee to marry Saturday
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Atlanta R&B superstar Usher and his fiancee Tameka Foster will marry this Saturday at Island Def Jam Chairman Antonio “L.A.” Reid’s home in the Hamptons, Reid’s office confirmed Wednesday morning.
Usher announced he was engaged to his one-time stylist in March. And just last month he revealed that the two are expecting their first child together. (Click here for a photo gallery of the groom-to-be.)
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
A hometown thrill for star of ‘Hairspray’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
As he chatted up various media outlets across Atlanta Tuesday, “Hairspray” actor Elijah Kelley still hadn’t fully processed the film premiere his hometown of LaGrange threw for him over the weekend. The salute to the Troup High School grad who portrays Seaweed J. Stubbs in the hit movie musical attracted more than 5,000 locals to the festivities.
“I’m still trying to bask in the glow of it before I have to go back to Los Angeles and be all common again,” the 20-year-old joked to Buzz. “It was wild to see old classmates and all those girls I had crushes on turn out like that. I got a little choked up, to be honest. To me, having the approval of the people in LaGrange is way more important to me than what any critic might say. If your cousin or that particular girl tells you it was just OK, that would have hurt me deep.”
To research the role set in segregated early 1960s Baltimore, Kelley says he talked to aunts and uncles. They showed him photos from the era detailing signs which read: “Blacks Only” and “Whites Only.”
Explained Kelley: “I learned there were a lot of rebels out there determined to fight for integration. It was so exciting to portray a character like that. And kissing Amanda Bynes wasn’t the hardest thing in the world, either.”
Still, Kelley’s wardrobe, notably his trousers, was a bit constricting.
“Those tight pants were life-altering!” he says. “If I had been in them a couple more months, Mom would have had to look elsewhere for grandkids.”
And acting opposite John Travolta in drag?
“Oh, man. John is the coolest dude ever,” Kelley raved. “You would just get used to his Travolta-ness and then he would show up on set as a woman. But you just forgot it was him. I actually called him ‘ma’am’ once by accident. I guess that was my LaGrange upbringing coming out. But he was a very believable, curvaceous and voluptuous woman. And I gotta admit that I feel a little weird for saying that, too!”
Catching a scent at Zoo Atlanta
Constance Babbleon, our scribbling equivalent over at Zoo Atlanta slid us an advance peek of her latest Plains Tattle column due to be posted today at Zooatlanta.com. As you’ll recall, the fictional online scribe is providing zoo watchers a weekly update on the zoo’s new additions, the warthog couple Vern and Shirley and those ultra high-maintenance meerkats as they get settled into their new habitat. According to Constance, the boys and girls have begun living together. Sort of. Burbled Babbleon: “Big, FAT … SCOOP! It’s not girls’ day out Chez Meerkat anymore. The boys have moved in right next door to the girls, but they’re not sharing the same quarters yet. And get this: The girls know the boys are there, and the boys know the girls are there, but they can’t see each other yet. Rumor has it they can smell each other and that’s how they know (personally, I’d be horrified if I knew I had a new neighbor because I could smell him).” Personally, we love the disclaimer that is inserted beneath the column: “The views expressed by Ms. Babbleon are not intended to represent those of Zoo Atlanta’s keepers, curators or animals.”
Celebrity docket
Back in May at the Atlanta premiere of “Georgia Rule,” Buzz recalls nodding sagely as Jane Fonda addressed the ongoing personal problems of her talented co-star Lindsay Lohan, saying: “We all need to wrap our arms around her and just love her.” When the BuzzBerry began blowing up early Tuesday morning with reports of Lohan’s latest DUI/drug possession arrest, the thought occurred that perhaps we all should have hugged the troubled actress a little tighter.
Or, at the very least, hired her a car and driver.
Lohan was arrested early Tuesday when police booked her on suspicion of drunken driving and cocaine possession in Santa Monica, Calif.
Lohan attorney Blair Berk said her client had relapsed and was again receiving medical care. Lohan was released on $25,000 bail. A court date is scheduled for Aug. 24.
All day Tuesday, celebrity Web site TMZ.com owned the latest Lohan saga. Snarky celeb site Gawker.com described TMZ.com’s coverage with the headline: “Lindsay Lohan’s DUI Arrest Is TMZ.com’s 9/11.”
But our fave tribute had to be the instant video retrospective, “The Lindsay Lohan DUI Slideshow” posted on Youtube.com. Set to Chuck Mangione’s cheesy ’70s hit “Feels So Good,” the clip craftily combined images of Lohan’s latest mug shot, gossip site headlines and photos of “The Muppet Show” lab assistant Beaker.
As Defamer.com artfully phrased it: “The combination of Beaker’s joyous presence and Mangione’s soothing trumpet makes us think everything’s going to be OK.”
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“You’re adopted.” — “Gilmore Girls” creator Amy Sherman-Palladino joking to TV critics about the final two words she had written for her fictional alter ego Loralei Gilmore to deliver to her daughter Rory in the CW series finale. Sherman-Palladino left the show prior to its conclusion this year. This coming season, she’s overseeing the new sitcom she created for Fox, “The Return of Jezebel James.”
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actress Estelle Getty is 84. Actress Barbara Harris is 72. Supermodel Iman is 52. Actress Illeana Douglas is 42. Actor Matt LeBlanc (“Friends”) is 40. Actor D.B. Woodside (“24”) is 38. Actor Brad Renfro is 25.
Contributing: News services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Celebrity sites all over Lohan’s latest trouble
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Back in May at the Atlanta premiere of “Georgia Rule,” Buzz recalls nodding sagely as Jane Fonda addressed the ongoing personal problems of her talented co-star Lindsay Lohan, saying: “We all need to wrap our arms around her and just love her.”
When the BuzzBerry began blowing up early Tuesday morning with reports of Lohan’s latest DUI/drug possession arrest, the thought occurred that perhaps we all should have hugged the troubled actress a little tighter.
Or, at the very least, hired her a car and driver.
Lohan was arrested again early Tuesday when police booked her on suspicion of drunken driving and cocaine possession after a frightened woman dialed 911 to report being chased by Lohan’s SUV in Santa Monica, Calif.
Less than two weeks out of rehab, with another drunken-driving case pending, Lohan had a blood-alcohol level of between 0.12 and 0.13 percent when police found her about 1:30 a.m., Sgt. Shane Talbot said.
Lohan attorney Blair Berk said her client had relapsed and was again receiving medical care.
“Addiction is a terrible and vicious disease,” Berk said in a statement Tuesday.
Lohan was released on $25,000 bail. A court date is scheduled for Aug. 24.
All day Tuesday, celebrity Web site TMZ owned the latest Lohan saga. Snarky celeb site Gawker.com described TMZ’s coverage with the headline: “Lindsay Lohan’s Latest DUI Arrest is Tmz.com’s 9/11.”
But our fave tribute to the “Freaky Friday” thespian had to be the instant video retrospective, “The Lindsay Lohan DUI Slideshow” posted on YouTube. Set to 1970s instrumentalist Chuck Mangione’s cheesy hit “Feels So Good,” the clip craftily combined images of Lohan’s latest mugshot, the salacious gossip site headlines and various hilarious photos of “The Muppet Show” lab assistant Beaker.
As Defamer.com artfully phrased it: “The combination of Beaker’s joyous presence and Mangione’s soothing trumpet makes us think that everything’s going to be OK.”
— The Associated Press contributed to this story.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Beyonce visit includes Lenox stop at Nicole Miller’s
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Before her sold-out “Beyoncé Experience” tour stop at Philips Arena over the weekend, the pop star and “Dreamgirls” actress popped into Lenox Square mall for a bit of shopping.
On Thursday night, flanked by bodyguards, Beyoncé paid a visit to the Nicole Miller boutique. While the store never officially closed during her shopping spree, we’re told that the singer’s security detail effectively kept her screaming fans at a safe distance.
Beyoncé “went straight to” an elegant forest green and gold dress (priced at $410) and also snapped up two metallic belts. And no, she didn’t try on the dress before the purchase.
“Most people would, but she didn’t,” the clerk who waited on her told Buzz on Monday. Nicole Miller’s policy states that all sales are final, so no returns would be possible on the grabbed-up garment. “But I’m sure she’ll be more than happy with the dress.”
To pay for her purchases, the pop star promptly plunked down her black American Express card, according to store spokeswoman Edra Matthews. On her way out, we’re told the Houston-born singer waved to fans and drawled, “Thanks y’all!”
OVERSCENE
Things were no less interesting at Philips Arena on Saturday night when Atlanta-based country legend/Trumps Towers Atlanta interior designer Kenny Rogers shocked fans as he stepped out of the wings to accompany country crooner Tim McGraw for a cover of Rogers’ monster hit “She Believes in Me.” McGraw and wife Faith Hill co-headlined the capacity show. According to the country music fan message boards that were all abuzz on Monday, the concert was being filmed for a future project. Philips Arena reps we reached out to Monday did not immediately return our calls.
ON MY iPOD
Antwan “Big Boi” Patton, one half of rap duo OutKast and actor in the new big-screen comedy “Who’s Your Caddy?”:
“I just got the new Smashing Pumpkins, and I’ve been listening to Bob Marley lately,” the musician told Buzz. “The old Bob. Also, a playlist I started called Christmas Eve 2006 has like 80 songs on there, like a record I did with Chris Brown called ‘Hold Up,’ ‘Energy’ with Raheem DeVaughn — that’s ridiculous! My P. Diddy ‘Last Night’ remix. Rich Boy’s ‘And I Love You’. Along with my reggae and everything else. I listen to some of everything — oh yeah, and especially my Gucci Mane!”
PETA VEEP RECALLS B-52’S GOOD DEEDS
In addition to an obligatory appearance to flog Michael Vick outside the Falcons pre-training camp in Flowery Branch today, People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals senior vice president Dan Mathews also will spend some time tonight to praise some notable Georgians. Mathews will be at the Buckhead Borders at 7:30 to acquaint readers with his new book, “Committed: A Rabble Rouser’s Memoir.” We’re told that Mathews will discuss how former Athens residents and B-52’s members Fred Schneider and Kate Pierson helped to “put PETA on the pop culture radar.” Mathews will detail how he was once jailed with Pierson after they stormed Vogue editor Anna Wintour’s Manhattan office during an anti-fur protest (Mathews dishes that the cops even serenaded Pierson with a few bars of “Love Shack” as her mug shot was snapped). Mathews, meanwhile, credits Schneider (incidentally, our current fave celeb with access to our private cell number …) with irritating New England fishermen after using the band’s hit “Rock Lobster” in radio spots to dissuade folks from dining on the oversize underwater cockroaches. There was no immediate word whether Vick planned to protest outside Mathews’ in-store appearance.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Comedian Ruth Buzzi is 71. Actor Mark Goddard (“Lost in Space”) is 71. Comedian Gallagher is 61. Actor Robert Hays (“Airplane!”) is 60. Actor Michael Richards (“Seinfeld”) is 58. Actress Lynda Carter is 56. Director Gus Van Sant is 55. Actress-singer Jennifer Lopez is 39. Actress-singer Kristin Chenoweth is 37. TV personality Bindi Irwin (“Bindi: The Jungle Girl”) is 9.
Contributing: Sonia Murray and news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Music, mingling take center stage at Beyonce
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The spunky, prim women at Atlanta Peach magazine’s Ladies Night Out at the Beyonce concert Friday are a hoot. (Click here to see concert photos.)
High above the stage in a private, VIP suite at Philips Arena, the gals took in sandwiches, Patron, pastries, Patron, cheese bites — and did we mention Patron?
Yep, the booze was flowing and so was the energy from about 27 attendees, who were swooped up in limos at various points around town and treated to a fun night out.
Buzz adores all things adorable, and we found it in perky guest Joanne Chesler Gross, who told us as her 9-to-5 she’s “a professional volunteer.”
Huh?
We caught a couple of hints and realized Gross — well, let’s put it this way — she doesn’t have to worry about disconnect notices from Georgia Power any time soon. She spends her time volunteering for causes as if she were punching a clock.
You go, girl!
Another favorite moment came after speaking with Betty Harbourt of the Marketing Directors and she shared with us her favorite cocktail recipe. It’s called a Pimm’s Cup and takes Pimm’s No. 1 (a mystery blend of liquors that has a bitter, citrus flavor) and ginger ale. She takes it over ice and garnishes it with a cucumber.
All the ladies at the party were warm, friendly, and when the Patron really kicked in, quite lively.
Most everyone, from Delta reps to fashionistas to Louis Vuitton marketers, mingled and networked through Robin Thicke’s performance and perused the offerings from the Brown & Co. Jewelers display table. But once the main act hit the stage, it was all about Ms. Bouncy, er, Beyoncé, who sizzled.
What cocktail was the hands-down crowd fave among the ladies (and a few gents)? The Patron margarita: Blend in a shaker equal parts Patron Silver, Patron Citronage, orange and lime juices and sweet and sour mix. Shake well and pour over ice. Smooth, tart and dee-lish.
After a few of those, you’ll have a Peach Buzz for sure.
Singer’s mystery ballad dedication
R&B singer Robin Thicke didn’t say exactly what couple he was referring to when he opened for Beyoncé Friday night. But considering he and Atlanta superstar Usher are longtime friends. (Thicke even wrote and produced the singles “Can U Handle It?” and “Dot Com” for Usher.) And Usher’s fiancée Tameka Foster told Essence.com that her husband-to-be surprised her by having Thicke sing “Lost With You” when he proposed. Buzz had to wonder whether it was those two he dedicated the ballad “Angels” to. “They’re getting married soon,” Thicke said coyly from the Philips Arena stage. “Maybe I’ll get to sing this at their wedding. It’s about everlasting love. They know who they are.”
Lohan dance with ankle bracelet?
Lindsay Lohan is taking dance lessons in preparation for “Dare to Love Me,” a film about tango star Carlos Gardel, according to People.com.
The site says the film is set in 1920s Buenos Aires and centers on Gardel’s fascination and tragedy of dealing with a prostitute.
No word on what role Lohan will play, but she started lessons Friday, according to the site.
No word, too, on whether the alcohol-monitoring ankle bracelet she’s required to wear poses a challenge to her dance routines.
The film is scheduled for release next year.
It’s personal, and $50,000, to Big Boi
As of Sunday afternoon the crook or crooks who swiped P. Valentine’s entire jean collection Friday hadn’t been found. But they have a very rich, very vocal “investigator” on the crime. Antwan “Big Boi” Patton of OutKast went on V-103’s “Ryan Cameron Show” offering $50,000 to whoever calls the Edgewood Avenue store (404-521-3660) or Cameron (404-898-8900) with the name of the thief. Patton, you see, owns the boutique co-founded by wife Sherlita and Tracy Valentine. “It is not a good day when your wife calls and says, ‘Babe, they got us,’ ” Patton told Buzz. “So you know, I’ve got to see about this personally. You don’t even have to call the police folk. Just call me or Ryan and I’ll get this handled.”
MTV turns ‘Super Sweet’ here again
MTV’s “My Super Sweet 16” cameras turn to another privileged Atlantan on Monday night. This time around it’s MLK High School varsity cheerleader Malia Murray, whose parents are Ray Murray of Grammy-nominated production team Organized Noize, and Dee Dee Murray, general manager of Purple Ribbon Entertainment. The party was held at Park Central Events in Lithonia. The theme was “The World Is Mine.” Mychael Knight of “Project Runway” designed her dress. And newcomers Montana Da Mac, the Heizman Boyz and Yung Ralph performed. The “Sweet 16” episode is scheduled to air at 11 on Monday night.
Celebrity birthdays Radio personality Don Imus is 67. Actor Woody Harrelson is 46. Actor Eriq La Salle (“ER”) is 45. Guitarist Slash of Velvet Revolver (and Guns N’ Roses) is 42. Country singer Alison Krauss is 36. Actor-comedian Marlon Wayans (“The Wayans Brothers”) is 35. Singer Michelle Williams (Destiny’s Child) is 27. Actor Daniel Radcliffe (“Harry Potter” movies) is 18.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
7/21: Bonaduce bonanza
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Former “Partridge Family” wiseguy Danny Bonaduce, now 47, revels in the fact he’s a publicity whore, a man who will do anything for camera time, even if it has meant boxing (and beating) Barry Williams (Greg Brady) on a Fox reality show or better yet, revealing his problematic behavior on VH1’s “Breaking Bonaduce,” where he shot up steroids, went into jealousy fits and drank like a fish before hitting rehab.
And if you couldn’t get enough of him on TV, he’s at the Funny Farm this weekend ($27.50 at 770-817-HAHA), including two shows tonight at 8 and 10:30 p.m. The man, who currently co-hosts a syndicated radio show with Adam Carolla, does a standup-like show featuring slides and video clips accompaneid by his snarky commentary and stories. You may have heard the time he beat up a transvestite who he thought was a woman or seen him knock out the Brady, but it’s still fun to see him recount these stories live.
He opened his late show Friday by spying a woman with a camera phone and having her come on stage. He then stripped off his shirt and posed with her. Even without the ‘roids, he’s in good shape. Then he made fun of the Mike Vick flipping-off moment by flipping off another guy with a camera phone (all in good fun of course.)
As for Vick, “I’ve had more felony counts in one afternoon than this [expletive] has had in his whole life!” In fact, he noted that he graduated from a special actor-heavy high school with Michael Jackson and Christian Brando. “It’s ironic that I’m the one who has the best reputation!”
Bonaduce dealt with a possible drunk or simply off-kilter fan who kept yelling at him with grace and humor, even when she began singing “Come on, make me happy,” a twist on the “Partridge Family” theme. His retort was a bit too dirty for me to print here but it did include, “Even in your [expletive] condition, I’m that good.”
For good measure, he mocked Todd Bridges, Corey Feldman and Dustin Diamond. Oh, and his therapist’s bad Botox job. At the end, he places a dog collar on himself for a Q & A session he dubbed “cattle prod” and asked fans to shock him if he doesn’t answer a question honestly or in an entertaining enough fashion. The questioners were pretty good Friday night, including one sharp gal asking him about whether he has any STDs. He said he had VD in the ’70s but it was resolved. Good to know, eh?
Here he is after Friday’s late show hangin’ with the fans:
CREDITS: Rodney Ho
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
The 411 on the strip club Beyonce visited
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Was Buzz a little surprised that of all the places Beyonce Knowles could have visited in metro Atlanta, she chose Phase 1? Uh, yup.
Phase 1 nightclub had its heyday in the late ’90s. It sits atop a hill on Memorial Drive near I-285 and has a very low-key facade from the street. The parking lot is unpaved and when you step inside, there’s the dance floor to the right, where DJs Marcus and Gee use a banging sound system to spin hip-hop, R&B and reggae Wednesday through Sunday.
Head to the left and there’s a room with two pool tables, a long bar and a projector showing hip-hop videos. In the back there’s a patio with seating and a kitchen serving up wings and fries.
The space is dated, especially the bathrooms, but co-owner Angie Bellew, aka Angie B, believes Knowles’ visit could help spur new interest in the venue.
“I don’t care if she stayed only five minutes. I’m glad she just dropped by and sat on our stool,” said Bellew, who also co-owns the much more popular gay spot Tower II in Atlanta.
Bellew said Beyoncé probably left the scene early Thursday night because she was expecting a drag show at the club and got male dancers instead. “It probably was a bit much for her, and plus I’m sure she was tired,” Bellew said.
Buzz’s suggestion for spurring new interest in the club? Upgrade the space a bit, check on a rising star named DJ Chaoss, and greenlight an old-school night for the grown and sexy.
Info: Phase 1 nightclub, 4933 Memorial Drive, Stone Mountain, 404-296-4895, www.phase1tower2.com.
PET SITTING, BIGTIME
While most folks may see an elephant or two at the circus or the zoo, Inman Middle School rising eighth-grader Lily Zintak got to ride, feed and clean up after one in Thailand for nearly a week, courtesy of Nickelodeon.
On a “Nick News” special set to air Sunday at 8:30 p.m., the 13-year-old Atlantan was picked with five other middle school kids to learn about elephants at a sanctuary. Lily even got to preview the show — which was taped in the spring — ahead of time.
“I look like a crazy person,” she told Buzz. “My hair’s all over the place!” Her elephant, Pang La Wan, “was really laid-back and mature. I loved her. We had a big connection.”
Lily chewed sugar cane with Pang La Wan (breaking two brackets on her braces in the process.) She sampled local cuisine such as ant larva and fried mealworms (“tasted like french fries,” she noted.)
And Lily and her buds had to pick up gobs of elephant dung, something they dealt with better than the boys.
“We [girls] started a poop fight,” she said. “We killed the boys!”
NIELSEN IN REHAB
Brigitte Nielsen, the tall blonde who starred in “Red Sonja,” “Rocky IV” and most recently “Flavor of Love,” has checked into rehab, her manager, Steven Tempone, told The Associated Press. He declined to say what the actress was being treated for or where she was staying. He also said he didn’t know when she checked in.
Nielsen, known for her heavy drinking on “Flavor” and on-screen romance with the hip-hop star she dubbed Foo-Fee, turned 44 last Sunday. She was married to Sylvester Stallone in the 1980s.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actress Patricia Elliott (“One Life to Live”) is 65. Actor Edward Herrmann (“Gilmore Girls”) is 64. Cartoonist Garry Trudeau (“Doonesbury”) is 59. Comedian-actor Robin Williams is 56. Comedian Jon Lovitz is 50. Actor Lance Guest (“Lou Grant”) is 47. Singer Emerson Hart of Tonic is 38. Country singer Paul Brandt is 35. Actor Josh Hartnett is 29. Reggae singer Damian Marley is 29. “American Idol” runner-up Blake Lewis is 26.
Contributing: Rodney Ho, Sonia Murray and news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Beyonce drops in on strip show in ATL
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
So what is R&B superstar Beyonce doing to prepare for her headlining concert Friday at Philips Arena?
Apparently, she’s checking out some skin — and it’s not that of her backup dancers. According to V-103 personality Miss Sophia, who hosts the weekly exotic male review at Phase 1 nightclub on Memorial Drive, Beyonce showed up Thursday night to check out the show.
“She was very pleasant and seemed to enjoyed herself,” reported Miss Sophia. “She said she wanted to get away from all of the business of what she had to do [Friday night at Philips Arena], and hang out and just chill.”
Miss Sophia said Beyonce arrived about 1 a.m. with her assistant and two of his friends — one of whom knows the “Frank and Wanda Morning Show” personality — and two bodyguards.
“When I introduced her I joked and said she was an impersonator. Then when she came on stage, people were like, ‘Uh uh, that’s the real Beyonce.’ And that’s when the phone started ringing and the club really started filling up … so she left about 1:45.”
Miss Sophia then went out to the singer’s van and talked some more. “She is as thin as ever. Kind of small in person. Really sweet personality. And was all smiles for the kids. Everybody enjoyed her.”
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Dining with royalty … perhaps
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“There’s something about a wedding in a castle,” Atlanta singer Dejie Johnson said.
That got our attention.
Through a friend of a friend, Johnson came to know John Habich, who exchanged vows with Andrew Solomon at Althorp, the ancestral home of Princess Diana’s family. The June 30 extravaganza drew an A-list crowd of about 300, and the ceremony has graced all the major social pages on both sides of the pond.
Solomon is the author of “The Noonday Demon: An Atlas of Depression,” and Habich is an editor at New York Newsday. Johnson sang the “The Folks Who Live On The Hill” for the couple at the dinner after the ceremony.
“It was after the fireworks and before the big band,” she said, adding the dinner lasted more than two hours and the menu featured lamb, duck and foie gras, not to mention “champagne by the gallon.”
Celebs she spotted included Uma Thurman, but she could merely guess about the presence of royalty.
“I heard one of the event planners say, ‘Harry’s got to get to the airport right now,’” Johnson reported. The ceremony was the day before the July 1 “Concert for Diana” at Wembley Stadium; Princes William and Harry both attended.
BONADUCE TALKS LIFE AT FUNNY FARM
Until 2005, Danny Bonaduce was still better known as that sarcastic red-headed kid on “The Partridge Family.” Then in 2005, VH1 aired “Breaking Bonaduce,” a reality show that aired his dirty laundry in ways seldom seen on “reality” TV: shooting up steroids, binge drinking, bipolar behavior, jealousy fits, just to name a few.
You’ll be able to see him talk about his wacked-out life tonight and tomorrow at the Funny Farm in Alpharetta.
After the VH1 show began airing, “I was so ashamed, I was afraid to leave my house,” Bonaduce told Buzz. “But people were incredibly nice to me. Some people said I helped them get sober.” Then he couldn’t help joking: “I’d say, ‘Wow! Too bad I’m drunk, else I’d feel better!”
Actually, he said he has cleaned up his act since the show, e.g. no more steroids and drinking. Unfortunately, he’s divorcing his wife, Gretchen, though he says the break-up is amicable.
“My ex-wife is treating me incredibly well,” he said. He’s now co-host of a syndicated morning talk-radio show with Adam Carolla that’s not heard in Atlanta and he’s working on another VH1 project he can’t detail yet. And he does stand-up.
“I’ll show slides and clips from ‘Breaking Bonaduce,’ ” he said. “They’ll be plenty of storytelling. It’s going to be Mark Twain on Ecstasy!”
And no, Bonaduce won’t be charging $100 like Andrew Dice Clay a couple weeks ago at the Punchline. It’s a more modest $27.50 (770-817-HAHA). Ironically, Bonaduce of all people calls Clay “a train wreck.”
AUTHOR KRISTIN GORE THE PICTURE OF CALM
In a Q&A in June in The New York Times Sunday mag, author Kristin Gore said she “can become a giant stress ball” at times. Not Wednesday evening. The daughter of former veep-turned filmmaker Al Gore was at the Margaret Mitchell House to sign and discuss her latest book, “Sammy’s House,” and seemed at ease. She’d toured Peggy Mitchell’s former digs earlier and spent some time chatting with staffers. Among those attending the Mitchell House event was former Congressman Buddy Darden.
AUTHOR CLEAGE TO READ AT GREENBRIAR
Atlanta author Pearl Cleage will be at the Greenbriar Mall Macy’s tomorrow but not to shop. The best-selling writer, whose literary fans include Oprah Winfrey, will be on hand as part of “Be One For The Books,” a partnership between Macy’s and “Reading Is Fundamental.” The event starts at 2 p.m.
in the children’s department. The first 50 children to arrive receive a free book. Cleage will read to young readers at 4 p.m. Her works include “What Looks Like Crazy On An Ordinary Day” (an Oprah’s Book Club pick), “I Wish I Had A Red Dress,” and “Some Things I Never Thought I’d Do.”
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“He has a right to make a living.” — the Rev. Al Sharpton, on dethroned radio host Don Imus. His comments, in a recent interview with The Associated Press, fuel speculation that Imus (booted off the dial after racist comments about the Rutgers University women’s basketball team) may return to the airwaves.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Rockabilly singer Sleepy LaBeef is 72. Actress Diana Rigg (“The Avengers”) is 69. Guitarist Carlos Santana is 60. Actress Donna Dixon (“Bosom Buddies”) is 50. Singer Chris Cornell (of of Soundgarden) is 43. Guitarist Stone Gossard of Pearl Jam is 41. Actor Reed Diamond (“Judging Amy,” “Homicide: Life on the Street”) is 40.
Contributing: Rodney Ho and news services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Vow renewal never looked so good
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
An absolutely divine wedding invitation came Wednesday afternoon and caused quite the stir (yes, there were jokes here of crashing the ceremony). So who’s getting married? Actually, Eric Snow of the Cleveland Cavaliers and his wife, De Shawn, are renewing their vows after 10 years of marriage.
The couple lives part-time in Alpharetta with their three boys between game seasons. They also run separate charity foundations and an Atlanta-based real estate company, EDJ Realty, LLC.
The invitation is an elegant cream and gold with “ESD” embossed on the front. It opens up to a glossy photo montage of the couple at the altar, at leisure and a shot of their wedding bands.
We here at Buzz want to say congratulations to the lovebirds, and thanks for helping build strong families through your work.
SUPERMODEL RAKES IN THE BIG BUCKS
Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bündchen, who earned $33 million in the past year, gets top honors as Forbes.com’s richest model.
Bündchen, 26, left Victoria’s Secret in May, but “has more contracts than any other model on the planet,” according to Forbes.com.
Coming in a distant second is Kate Moss, who earned $9 million, and Heidi Klum, host of Bravo’s “Project Runway,” comes in third with $8 million in earnings.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I don’t believe in accidents. I know for sure that everything in life happens to help us live.”
OPRAH WINFREY, commenting in the August issue of “O” on the death of her dog Gracie, who choked recently on a plastic ball.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Guitarist Brian May of Queen is 60. Actor Campbell Scott is 46. Actor Anthony Edwards (“ER”) is 45. Actress Clea Lewis (“Ellen”) is 42. Singer Urs Buhler of Il Divo is 36. Actor Jared Padalecki (“Supernatural,” “Gilmore Girls”) is 25.
Contributing: News services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Birthday bash pulls in some good numbers
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
No one can accuse former CNN personality and author Carolyn O’Neil of being less than upfront about her age. For her birthday party Monday night in Buckhead, the Atlanta registered dietitian even coordinated an eatery to go with her new age.
To celebrate, Clifford Pleau, the culinary director of Seasons 52, flew in from Orlando to whip up a 12-course tasting menu of, yes, light and nutritious fare for 14 of O’Neil’s family and friends. Included in the group: two of O’Neil’s “special best friends who’ve known me and wined and dined with me for over 15 years”: Rhonda Rowland, former CNN senior medical correspondent and the birthday gal’s ex-CNN officemate, and Gina Christman, publisher of Atlanta Homes and Lifestyles Magazine.
After nibbling their way through tastes of grilled shrimp with corn and tomatoes, seared tuna, cedar- planked salmon and lamb chops, flights of mini desserts arrived, glowing with birthday candles.
Not believing that O’Neil could actually be 52, the restaurant staff had lovingly placed number “32” stickers over the eatery’s wine glasses normally etched with “52” on each.
“I have friends who tell me, ‘Stop telling everybody your age!’ ” O’Neil told Buzz Tuesday, laughing. “Hey, as long as people are still asking to see my ID, I’m probably safe.”
Perhaps not coincidentally, O’Neil’s next book is titled “You’ve Got to Look Good to Lie About Your Age: Mother Nature’s Plan to Fool Father Time.” It’s due out next year.
OUR ATL ‘INVENTOR’
To promote tonight’s edition of “American Inventor” at 9 on ABC, Atlanta businesswoman and “Inventor” judge Sara Blakely gave an enlightening interview to TV Guide. When asked by reporter Joseph Hudak about the most ridiculous idea she’s seen thus far on the reality series, the Spanx footless support pantyhose founder said: “The guy that invented the wheel and wouldn’t believe us that the wheel’s been around for a while. He had to be escorted out.” And was Blakely unsettled being in such close proximity to someone so unhinged? Cracked Blakely: “I was sitting next to George Foreman, so, no, I was never nervous!”
SALA SOLD
After a dramatic loss of new chef Jeff Smedstad, Fifth Group (Ecco, La Tavola Trattoria, South City Kitchen, the Food Studio) announced this week that it has sold Sala, the authentic Mexican restaurant it has owned and operated in Virginia-Highland for the past five years. The buyer is John Polasky of Twelve Grapes, LLC, who also recently purchased Vine, located in the same shopping complex. “It’s bittersweet to let go of Sala,” said Robby Kukler, owner of Fifth Group. Kukler explained by phone that the staff at Sala would remain intact as part of the deal. Smedstad, who owned the acclaimed Los Sombreros in Scottsdale, Ariz., for 13 years, returned abruptly to the Southwest after only a few short months as Sala’s head honcho (and a huge marketing blitz rolled out by Fifth Group, including a giant billboard of the bandanna-ed chef above the restaurant). Polasky, who said by phone he has “no changes planned” for Sala, promises us that includes the margarita recipe. …
PARTY AT TED’S PAD
The invitations for next month’s downtown cocktail party officially bill it as “A Reception Honoring an American Hero.”
But shhh, it’s really a fund-raiser for Congressman John Lewis (D-Ga.). Unlike a lot of those usual hotel ballroom rubber chicken affairs, however, this political fund-raiser is being held at the “Turner Family Building Penthouse” on Luckie Street.
The top-floor residential space also serves as CNN founder Ted Turner’s bachelor pad when he’s in town. But instead of having to resort to our standard method (it involves binoculars and the roof of the Glenn Hotel across the way), monied supporters of Lewis can get an up-close look inside the penthouse (and if you’re talented, Ted’s famed sock drawer) for just a mere $1,000 each on Aug. 22.
ON MY iPOD & TiVo
Kelly Johnson, Atlanta Braves second baseman.
The 25-year-old Austin, Texas, native tells us he’s got HBO’s “Entourage” on his TiVo Season Pass. Among the 4,500 downloaded songs on his iPod? Tracks by Guns N’ Roses and “Shimmer” by Fuel.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Star Jones Reynolds makes dinner for her husband every night. She’s the wife. I’m the working woman.”
— The former “View” panelist, speaking in the third person to AP Radio News on why her upcoming Court TV show is to be called simply “Star Jones” when it debuts Aug. 20. The former prosecutor famously married Al Reynolds and began using her married name professionally in 2004. Court TV, part of Turner Broadcasting empire, is also undergoing a name change to truTV later this year.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Director Paul Verhoeven (“Basic Instinct,” “Showgirls”) is 69. Actor James Brolin is 67. Singer Martha Reeves of Martha and the Vandellas is 66. Country singer Ricky Skaggs is 53. Keyboardist John Hermann of Widespread Panic is 45. Actor Vin Diesel is 40. Actress Kristen Bell (“Veronica Mars”) is 27. Singer Ryan Cabrera is 25.
Contributing: Meridith Ford and news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Janet Jackson hops to Island
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
On Monday, Billboard Online confirmed what’s been rumored for a while now: Part-time Atlantan Janet Jackson is following the lead of her boyfriend Jermaine Dupri over to the Island Def Jam record company empire.
“She’s on Island, but it’s more or less L.A.’s [Def Jam CEO and former Atlantan Antonio Reid] project,” Dupri told the music industry publication. “I let him deal with that on a day-to-day basis. He’s going to A&R that project, too. Janet’s record is one that he’s wanted to do for a long time. He’s very passionate about it.”
Jackson and Dupri were both under contract to the Virgin label when the pair collaborated on last year’s Jackson disc “20 Y.O.” Even after doing a grass-roots promotional campaign for the album, which featured Jackson doing a rare series of small group interviews with journalists in various cities, the album never caught fire on the charts or on MTV.
Jackson’s exit from Virgin had been expected after a dissed-Dupri quit the company after “20 Y.O.’s” disappointing release. He now serves as Island Urban president.
As for the direction of the new album, Dupri tells Billboard: “I don’t really know what [Reid’s] got in mind. His past record isn’t shabby so I’m going to let him do what he’s going to do. I’m going to do [the new] Mariah [Carey album], and we’re going to make it seem like we’re in competition to see who’s going to have the biggest album of the year.”
Billboard reports there is currently no release date yet for the Jackson album.
It also reports that Dupri will release his autobiography, “Young, Rich and Dangerous: My Life in Music,” on Oct. 16 from Simon & Schuster. The book was written with Samantha Marshall.
For more on Dupri’s plans for Island Urban, see the full profile in this week’s issue of Billboard.
WE HEAR THAT …
Atlanta Falcons owner and Home Depot co-founder Arthur Blank surprised his charitable fund-raiser wife, Stephanie, with quite the 40th birthday present. The Blanks, along with 35 other couples, currently are enjoying a two-week African safari. While Buzz hasn’t as yet received the entire guest list of friends invited on the excursion, former Falcons quarterback and current Falcons board of directors member Steve Bartkowski and his wife, Sandee, are among the attendees.
“From what I understand, everyone had to provide documentation in regard to getting the necessary vaccinations for the trip,” the Bartkowskis’ son, Phil, told us. “As yet, I haven’t gotten a postcard or an e-mail from them. I’m hoping that means that they’re just having too much fun and not that they’ve all been eaten by a lion.”
We’re hoping to get all the details (and hopefully a snapshot or two) when the birthday gal returns home. In the interim, we’ll try to figure out how Arthur was able to get Stephanie fully vaccinated for a such a trip without her knowing about it.
WILDO THE WIZARD RETURNS
It’s always good copy for us whenever B98.5 FM’s “Kelly & Alpha” sidekick Will Gara has to pull overtime duty. At midnight Saturday morning, Gara will be at the Ansley Mall Kroger in his Wildo the Wizard outfit stocking up his B98.5-mobile with 25 copies of the hotly anticipated “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.” All night, like a summertime Santa, Gara will deliver copies of the hefty tome and breakfast to snoozing small fry who are selected as winners in the station’s contest. Listeners can sign up to win through Wednesday by going to www.B985.com. Two summers ago, Gara delivered 10 tomes but was out until 8 a.m., trekking across metro Atlanta. “We’re working on securing a GPS system which should help out a lot this time,” Gara told Buzz on Monday. Still, Gara reminds us, the contest is only open to children. Explained Gara: “Yeah, we had this one lady who called in to ask if I would visit her in my wizard outfit at three in the morning. We kinda had to decline that.”
HOMER TO GUEST ON LENO
Logic would dictate that trotting out the stars of the upcoming “The Simpsons Movie” for the obligatory couch time on late-night talk shows might be a tad difficult. However, Fox and producers of “The Tonight Show With Jay Leno” have apparently overcome the technical obstacles. On July 24, “The Tonight Show” will welcome animated father and Duff Beer quaffer Homer Simpson on the show to promote the flick during the opening minutes of the show.
Of his “Tonight” debut, Simpson told Buzz via a publicist: “I understand I’m doing a monologue, I hope it doesn’t involve talking.”
“The Simpsons Movie” debuts in theaters July 27.
STORK REPORT
It’s a boy!
On Monday, Georgia Gov. Sonny Perdue and first lady Mary Perdue announced the arrival of their seventh grandchild.
Perdue daughter Leigh Brown and husband Jim of Clarkesville have adopted a son, James “J” Philip Brown Jr. from Guatemala. He arrived in the United States with his new parents and proud new sisters, Sunni and Mary Kate, on July 10, and became a citizen upon arrival. The Perdues celebrated J’s first birthday on Saturday.
“Mary and I are excited to have another beautiful grandchild,” said Perdue. “We are blessed to have such a wonderful family and we are eager to share our love with its newest member.”
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
TV personality Art Linkletter is 95. Comedian Phyllis Diller is 90. Actor Donald Sutherland is 72. Actress-singer Diahann Carroll is 72. Singer Phoebe Snow is 55. Singer Regina Belle is 44. Actress Bitty Schram (“Monk”) is 39.
Contributing: News services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Seeking fame, chefs up with the chickens
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Please pack your knives and go … to Hard Rock Cafe. That’s what about 83 “Top Chef” wannabes did Sunday afternoon for the Bravo show’s first casting call for next season.
“I’ve been in line since 6 a.m.” said Pete Blumberg, who owns a personal chef business in Mechanicsville, Va., and was the first person in line on Peachtree Street.
Who was the second person? Ben Christopher of Sarasota, Fla.
Could it be that out-of-towners were showing up hot Atlanta chefs for possible spots among judges Tom Colicchio and Padma Lakshmi for Season 4 of the sizzling show? How could Virginia and Florida beat us out for the No. 1 and 2 spots in line?
Well, after the two interviews, Alex Friedman, owner of gastro pub P’cheen in Inman Park, finally appeared, heavy on the tattoos and charisma. Whew! Casting directors flipped through his application packet and quickly asked him to expand not on his amuse-bouche, but on his past drug charge (he said he was convicted when he was 20 years old of marijuana and Valium possession and put on probation). Uh oh!
But despite that little gravy stain, it seemed the directors really liked him. Friedman poured on the charm and got about a 15- minute interview, while the previous two, ahem, non-locals got in about five minutes. We’ll have to wait and see if Friedman — or any other of the hopefuls, for that matter — makes it to Round 2 here this week, which includes a camera test.
Buzz is positive the casting crew is aware of Atlanta’s cooking talent: This is, after all, the city where chef Colicchio chose to open his Midtown restaurant Craft next year.
Speaking of Hard Rock Cafe…
Hard Rock Cafe’s huge indoor renovation project includes revamped memorabilia scenes, modernized space and encased guitars. You’ll notice a cleaner, more airy look, with plenty of plasma screens around. The menu also went through a transformation.
Next up for the Peachtree Street restaurant, according to marketing manager Elise Roth Tedeschi? It’s renovating the outside — and that famed Cadillac over the front door will be replaced by a huge guitar.
Let’s play! You could’ve guessed what type of party it was when promoter Imari Havard welcomed guests to Play Date Atlanta on Saturday night with a Blow Pop lollipop firmly in hand. This is totally a compliment — the guy’s a big kid!
At the monthly event at Crowne Plaza Ravinia at Perimeter Center, hundreds of folks, from married couples to singles, young trendsetters to the young-at-heart, sip cocktails, nosh on munchies and listen to R&B and hip-hop. And play games — lots of games.
There’s Monopoly here, Scrabble there. Operation in one corner, Connect Four in another. Pac-Man and Mortal Kombat video games, billiards, spades and bid whist.
It was all there, and so was the fun and energy from a crowd in its 20s to mid-40s clearly enjoying the nostalgia.
“One thing I found out about Atlanta is people are looking for something different,” said a buff, youthful Havard, who started Play Date Atlanta in 2005. “The club scene’s gotten a little monotonous. There’s got to be an alternative.”
For next month’s event, check out http://www.playdateatl.com. Also, click here to see all the Play Date action in our photo gallery.
Local pop team down for the count
El Chupacabra, the trio of metro Atlantans who won $250,000 last year on the first edition of VH1’s guilty pleasure quiz show “The World Series of Pop Culture,” couldn’t repeat the magic in an episode that aired last week.
Chamblee resident Jodi Roth, 34, was taken down in a sense by Rocky Balboa. More specifically, during a key tiebreaker, she was stumped coming up with Rocky opponents after naming Ivan Drago from “Rocky IV.” Their opponents were Baltimore women under the team name Fragilay, which is how the dad in the classic 1983 film “A Christmas Story” mispronounced the word “fragile.”
“I haven’t seen all the Rocky films so I knew I was in trouble,” Roth told Buzz. “It was so sad to watch.” Her teammates were knocked out earlier: Mason Spencer lost in a round about Kevin Bacon flicks, and Alexandra Burris got tongue-tied over “Weird Al” Yankovic songs.
Nothing ugly about marriage
“Ugly Betty” star Rebecca Romijn married “Crossing Jordan” star Jerry O’Connell in a small ceremony at their home Saturday, according to Romijn’s representative.
Celebrity birthdays
Actor-singer Ruben Blades is 59. Drummer Stewart Copeland of the Police is 55. Actress Phoebe Cates is 44. Actor Will Ferrell (“Saturday Night Live”) is 40. Actor Corey Feldman is 36. Singer-guitarist Ed Kowalczyk of Live (LYV) is 36.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Candi Staton finds new life on U.K. music charts
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Soul legend Candi Staton is back on the charts once again.
Well, at least in Great Britain.
The “Young Hearts Run Free” singer has two new tracks on the hipster electronica duo Groove Armada’s latest album, “Soundboy Rock.” And one track, “Love Sweet Sound,” freshly remixed as a dance club anthem-in-waiting, is poised as the album’s next single.
Last year, Staton was gigging in London when Groove Armada co-founders Andy Cato and Tom Findlay turned up in the audience (the singer’s U.K. club appearances also have attracted members of the Rolling Stones and singer Joss Stone).
“I had no idea who those boys even were!” the Stone Mountain resident told Buzz on Friday, laughing. “Someone had to tell me that they’re these triple-platinum recording artists. They were so sweet to me.”
That sweetness extended to a co-songwriting credit for Staton on “Love” and another track titled “Paris.” Translation: royalty checks.
“Isn’t that amazing?” Staton asked. “After all these years, I’m learning. I’ve finally figured a few things out. Back in the day, you weren’t thinking about the business end of things. It was just: ‘Ooh, I get to sing with Bobby Womack!’ “
Back when she cut her first series of soul classics in Muscle Shoals, Ala., in the 1960s, men dominated the industry and Staton had little, if any, input.
Groove Armada sent a car for her in London and encouraged her to use her self-penned lyrics.
“It’s all turned around for me these days,” she said wistfully. “Kids are downloading me, both the new stuff and the old music. Us old school soul folks are now the teachers for a new generation who want to learn from us. Our lives are all about seasons. You can be hot in the summer but in the winter it was, ‘Candi who?!’ Finally for me, it’s spring again and I’m truly blessed.”
HIPSTER HIDEAWAY?
We might be officially too old to haunt Johnny’s Hideaway these days.
Brace yourself: the 28-year-old divorcee emporium on Roswell Road now has a MySpace page.
At myspace.com/johnnyshideaway, there’s a complete show schedule, oodles of pictures of youngish hipsters loving on each other and an info box that informs users, among other things, that the Hideaway now has Wi-Fi. Thankfully, they’re still playing Francis Albert Sinatra on the club’s Hi-Fi. According to its MySpace page, although the nightspot has now relaxed its dress code, standards remain. For example, its posted code states, in part: “No ripped or soiled jeans, no flip-flops [our personal fave] and no sweatshirts.”
Also, “gentlemen must remove their hats after 8 p.m.”
There was no immediate word if fedoras were exempt.
USHER GROWS UP, AND GETS DRESSED
Bad news for fans of Alpharetta pop singer Usher’s traditional state of dress, which, technically speaking, is a state of undress. The impending groom and father might just be growing up on us. In the August issue of Stuff magazine, the singer tells the glossy: “I used to be the guy who tore off his shirt during every show. Now I’m a little more comfortable in my skin, and I don’t have to show my chest or my stomach every time I take a picture.”
Still, the performer may have admiration for the guys who shuck their shirts at night. “As for the shirtless guy at the club, maybe he’s having fun,” he says in the issue. “But the real players, you don’t see them coming. That guy who’s in the back chilling, he’s the one who always leaves with the hottest chick. And that’s his reason for being out in the club anyway, right?”
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I think we need Uncle Chris to come in.”
— “Good Morning America” co-host Diane Sawyer, requesting assistance from news anchor Chris Cuomo during her live interview Friday with squirming Buford toddler Garron Penland and his mother, Kate. Last month, the small fry was ejected from an ExpressJet flight for making too much noise.
PEREZ HILTON LANDS OWN SHOW ON VH1
Perez Hilton, the online blogger who has us scribbler types who actually cracked a journalism textbook contemplating a new career at a car wash, had a big announcement on PerezHilton.com Friday. He’s landed “What Perez Sez,” his own show on VH1 this fall.
And since the blogger is far more articulate, we’ll let him explain it in an excerpt from his home page, complete with his punctuation: “Perez is coming to television!!!!! Perez is coming to television!!!!! Perez is coming to television!!!!! Perez is coming to television!!!!! Perez is coming to television!!!!! … Perez is going to be like the gay Barbara Walters of VH1! The show will be a fun, fresh way of looking at the wacky world of celebrities and interacting with them. It will be like PerezHilton.com come to life, but even juicier.” The series of one-hour specials will bow on the cable channel in September.
Goody.
That gives us plenty of time to prepare a syringe and purchase the necessary amounts of Drano and bleach.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Today: Director Ingmar Bergman is 89. Actor Matthew Fox (“Lost,” “Party of Five”) is 41. Musician Taboo of Black Eyed Peas is 32.
Sunday: Actor Philip Carey (“One Life To Live”) is 82. Actor Jan-Michael Vincent is 63. R&B singer Millie Jackson is 63. Singer Linda Ronstadt is 61. Actor Terry O’Quinn (“Lost”) is 55. Drummer Marky Ramone (The Ramones) is 51. Actor-director Forest Whitaker is 46. Actor Brian Austin Green (“Beverly Hills 90210”) is 34.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
On the Palm’s wall of fame — as a blonde
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
While her loyal Dave FM listeners have long considered her to be one, midday jock Mara Davis officially became a rock star Wednesday night.
Rodney Ho/AJC staff
That’s when her likeness was officially unveiled as a celebrity caricature on the bar wall at the Palm restaurant in Buckhead. The posh steak and lobster chain’s caricature tradition dates to the eatery’s first New York location in the 1920s.
There was just one minor glitch with Mara’s mug: It has blond hair.
“I have no idea how that happened!” Davis told Buzz, laughing. “The only thing I can think of is that we submitted a black-and-white photo for the artist to work from. It’s interesting being a blonde tonight!”
On hand to help Davis soak up the free booze flowing for the celebration: Palm general manager Willy Cellucci; Atlanta Peach editor Elizabeth Schulte Roth; Davis’ agent Norm Schrutt; Michael Kane, her husband and CNN Headline News producer and writer; Sandpiper boutique owner and pal Melissa Murdock; Pecan Pie Couture’s Clint Zeagler; Atlanta Falcons sideline reporter Nicole Watson; CBS 46 “Better Mornings” entertainment reporter Corinna Allen; Dave FM afternoon drive jock Sully; Dave FM marketing director Will Davis; and publicists Karen Canavan and Jamie Annarino.
We’re also pleased to report that attendees and newlyweds Dave FM morning gal Holly Firfer and her husband, Shawn Arnold, an Active Golf Solutions account exec and Atlanta musician, are still in the honeymoon phase as they approach their first anniversary.
How could we tell? For one thing, Arnold is still talking to his spouse after she accidentally backed over his golf clubs.
“I literally looked like one of those cartoon characters who slap their hands over the face when something bad happens,” Arnold told us. “But it’s cool. I just have to straighten out a few of the shafts. And I’m billing her.”
ON MY iPOD & TiVO
Kyle Davies, Atlanta Braves pitcher
On his TiVo, Davies routinely records “Lost” and “Grey’s Anatomy.” Of the 4,000 songs on his iPod, the Decatur native lists among his favorites “any Linkin Park song” and country artist Clay Walker.
UNCOUPLING UPDATE
Columbus native and Atlanta businesswoman Kim Porter is setting the record straight about her personal life. She wants to make one thing clear: She dumped Diddy.
“After 10 years, I have decided to end my on-again/off-again relationship with Sean “Diddy” Combs,” Porter says in a statement to syndicated entertainment TV show “The Insider.”
“In ending this relationship, I made a decision that was in the best interest of myself, Sean and our family. I look forward to moving on with my life and my career, and wish him prosperity, health and happiness in life and in love,” the 35-year-old model said. “We will remain friends and committed parents to our children.”
Porter and Combs have three children: a 9-year-old son, Christian, and 6-month-old twin daughters, D’Lila Star and Jessie James.
The 37-year-old rap mogul announced their split this week.
He has another son, Atlanta restaurant namesake Justin, 13, with ex-girlfriend Misa Hylton-Brim.
TASTY ‘TIPS’ FROM STEAK EXPERTS
When the owner of Inman Park’s Kevin Rathbun Steak popped by our table the other night, he brought along a tasty scoop. From 10 a.m. to noon July 21 , Rathbun will co-host with Steak Shapiro the latest edition of “Steak Tips,” 790/The Zone’s occasional food call-in show. “We answer questions about where to eat in other cities, grilling and marinade recipes and listen to callers’ pet peeves,” Rathbun dished.
And his favorite part?
“Oh, man, the peeves are great,” he said. “People in this town eat out a lot, and if you’re not bringing your A-game to the table, you won’t last long. It’s been terrific to have that direct communication with diners, too. You hear what’s on their mind, but you also get to explain a little bit about how things run from your end, too!”
By phone Wednesday night, Shapiro said he enjoys doing the show with his partner in red meat: “We’re essentially known as a sports station. But we’re also a lifestyle station and ‘Steak Tips’ is a great part of that.”
COUPLING
“Two and a Half Men”actor Charlie Sheen is engaged.
His bride-to-be is Brooke Mueller, a real estate investor, Sheen’s spokesman, Stan Rosenfield, said Thursday.
Rosenfield said Sheen, 41, proposed to Mueller, 29, during a recent trip to Costa Rica. He said the couple met in April 2006. Sheen has two daughters, Sam, 3, and Lola, 2, from his marriage to Denise Richards, a union that generated approximately 2.8 billion tabloid stories. They divorced last year.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actor Patrick Stewart is 67. Singer-guitarist Roger McGuinn of the Byrds is 65. Actor Harrison Ford is 65. Actor-comedian Cheech Marin is 61. Actress Didi Conn is 56. Director Cameron Crowe is 50.
Contributing: News services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Nipping online leaks and musical piracy
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here’s a new way to nip online leaks and musical piracy in the bud: release your album as soon as you’ve finished it.
That’s what Canadian band Stars is doing. An announcement on the Web site for the band’s record label, Arts & Crafts, notes that the master tapes for “In Our Bedroom After the War” were delivered on July 6. On July 10, the album was available for download ($9.99 at iTunes). The originally announced release date was Sept. 25, which remains the official street date for the physical CD and a double-vinyl album.
The announcement notes that this is the time the label would normally begin sending out advance copies to media outlets to help secure coverage around the release date, but “inevitably someone will leak the album.”
It continues, “Throughout this process, the most important people in this value chain, the fans, are given only two options — wait … to legally purchase the new album or choose from a variety of sources and download the album for free, at any time.”
Arts & Crafts and Stars aren’t going to make you wait anymore — or make you turn to a life of digital crime. “We hope you’ll choose to support the band, and choose to pay for their album,” the statement continues. “However we don’t think it’s fair you should have to wait until September 25th to do so.”
Could this quicker turnaround time be the wave of the future? That could depend on the success — or failure — of Stars’ model.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Setting the stage for controversy?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The folks at 7 Stages Theatre in Little Five Points were contemplating security measures Wednesday as word spread about the venue’s guest speaker this weekend prior to a performance of Howard Zinn’s play “Marx in Soho.”
In conjunction with a visit to the city, organizers at the Georgia Peace and Justice Coalition and the Atlanta International Action Center are bringing anti-war activist Cindy Sheehan to 7 Stages prior to Saturday night’s performance of the play that envisions Karl Marx “returning to Soho in New York City to clear his name.” Portions of the proceeds from the theater’s Friday and Saturday performances of “Soho” will go to the organizations, associate artistic director Melissa Foulger said.
Foulger told Buzz that the theater is “working on safety provisions” regarding Sheehan’s visit, given her status as a lightning rod for the Iraq war. Still, Buzz can’t help but fantasize about the potentially entertaining tussles that could occur outside the theater between Sheehan haters and the neighborhood’s trademark tatted-up counterculture residents.
ATLANTANS RETURN FOR ‘POP CULTURE’ 2
A year ago, an Atlanta trio pocketed $250,000 for having plenty of useless knowledge in the first VH1 “World Series of Pop Culture.”
The team called El Chupacabra will be back for more this season in an episode set to air tonight and taped this past spring in New York. Mason Spencer and Jodi Roth both used last year’s winnings to pay off debt while Alexandra Burris, now pregnant with twins, bought a new Honda Pilot.
With 15 other teams competing, “We knew going in that everybody would be gunning for us,” Roth told Buzz. But they had a fun time, commandeering a nearby karaoke bar in Manhattan a couple of nights in classic dork-like fashion.
VH1 sent Buzz the episode featuring El Chupacabra’s first-round appearance. We won’t spoil the results, but if you want to impress your friends, bone up on these topics: “Saturday Night Live” skits, “Weird Al” Yankovic parodies, actor names from “The Breakfast Club” and “Ocean’s Eleven,” Kevin Bacon flicks and most important, “Rocky” opponents.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actor-comedian Bill Cosby is 70. Singer Christine McVie of Fleetwood Mac is 64. Fitness guru Richard Simmons is 59. Actress Cheryl Ladd is 56. Gospel singer Sandi Patty is 51. Actor Topher Grace (“That ’70s Show”) is 29. Actress Michelle Rodriguez (“Lost”) is 29.
SICK BAY UPDATE
Opera legend Luciano Pavarotti is “fighting like a lion” against his pancreatic cancer and is reacting well to radiotherapy, his wife told an Italian newspaper.
“I can now say he is doing well,” Nicoletta Mantovani said in an interview published Wednesday in the Italian daily La Stampa.
The 71-year-old singer underwent surgery after doctors discovered a malignant pancreatic mass last year.
Contributing: Rodney Ho and news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Barbie Bandits garner air time for salon
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Clients clustered at Carter-Barnes Hair Artisans in Buckhead on Wednesday to dish on tony salon’s latest national advertisement.
On Tuesday night, ABC News anchor David Muir hosted the latest edition of “Primetime: Family Secrets,” featuring our very own Heather Johnston and Ashley Miller aka “The Barbie Bandits.” As you’ll recall, after the teen bank robbers knocked over an Acworth Bank of America last February, they turned up for lavish make-overs at Carter-Barnes.
For his report, Muir came to Atlanta, visited the shop and interviewed Johnston while ABC News camera folks shot exteriors of the salon. The network even aired the salon’s surveillance photos of the pair.
“This ongoing attention to the Barbie Bandits is truly amazing,” Carter-Barnes co-founder Carey Carter allowed Wednesday. “Ever since Peach Buzz broke this story, we have been on every major news show except ‘Nancy Grace,’ who, oddly, is from Atlanta. But I think you can see that she is not a Carter-Barnes customer.”
Prior to exposure on CNN, Fox News and ABC, the salon’s biggest claim to national fame had been mentions in the James Patterson thriller, “The Big Bad Wolf” and native Atlantan Anne Rivers Siddons’ tome, “Fault Lines.”
“Our employees are actually pretty proud as they talk about it today,” Carter told us. “I mean, getting described on an ABC News program as ‘one of Atlanta’s premier salons’ isn’t exactly a negative. We didn’t seek them out as customers. We were handed lemons and we ended up making some rather tasty lemonade. People are still coming back for more, aren’t they?”
Carter says that police have taken statements from some of his employees and the salon workers could be called as witnesses in the case. And if law enforcement officials determine the $200-plus the pair spent on highlights and haircuts is part of the stolen loot and want it returned?
“Are you kidding? ” Carter said. “Of course, we’ll return it. You can’t begin to put a price tag on the exposure we’ve received.”
As for when his more private and media-shy business partner Mitchell Barnes might emerge from underneath his work station, Carter cracked: “My best estimate would be Groundhog Day. And when he finds out I’ve been talking to you again, he’ll no doubt grimace.”
To view the webcast of Tuesday’s “Primetime: Family Secrets” go to abcnews.com.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Atlanta friend surprised at Diddy split
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Apparently, after a scant couple hundred sets of diaper changes, Atlanta restaurateur Sean “Diddy” Combs has thrown in the binky. Just months after Kim Porter, his Atlanta-based longtime girlfriend, gave birth to twin girls, Diddy announced Tuesday that the two have split up.
A publicist for the 37-year-old rap mogul confirmed that he and Porter are no longer together. On Dec. 21, Porter gave birth to daughters D’Lila Star and Jessie James.
The parting comes a few months after the two publicly proclaimed their love for one another in a cover story for Essence magazine, which detailed their turbulent history. In a radio interview with Q100 here last year, Diddy devoted significant airtime to discussing his deep affection for Porter.
“He was all about her,” Q100’s Jeff Dauler told us Tuesday of the in-studio chat. “During our interview, he even called her on the air and had her join in.”
Afterward, Dauler and his wife, Jessica, had the opportunity to spend the weekend in Diddy’s Hamptons home.
“Most of the pictures in the house were of him and his kids or her and the kids,” he recalled. “It felt like a typical family home. It definitely wasn’t a bachelor pad.”
In the Essence article, Diddy told the mag he was an “ex-player,” but he admitted that he wasn’t ready to marry Porter and even wondered, “Do you really think that God meant for a man to have just one wife?”
‘FUNNY’ AGAIN
There’s a piece of dialogue in the first act of “Turned Funny,” the Theatre in the Square production based on the memoir of our late colleague Celestine Sibley, that accurately describes the rather tenuous nature of stage actors working together. Essentially, after a production closes, company members rarely see each other again. When we spoke Tuesday to Sibley’s portrayer, Linda Stephens, she also noted the oddity of re-staging last year’s sold-out run this month with her same co-stars, Jill Jane Clements and Ric Reitz and the show’s original director Fred Chappell. “We were able to go back to a place of exploration and we’ve been able to deepen the work,” Stephens told us Tuesday. “As a result, Celestine is just deeper in me this year. It’s like going back and reading a good book again. The work resonates differently.”
While many of the beloved Southern columnist’s readers have noted Stephens’ uncanny channeling of the reporter’s posture and movements, the actress says she can’t take all the credit. “Sure, some of it’s me, but I also think Celestine has had a hand in us getting things right. And the audiences’ imaginations fill in the rest. People are seeing Celestine on that stage, not me. For me, that’s the magic of theater.”
“Turned Funny” runs through July 29. Tickets: 770-422-8369.
A BIT OF DISORDER AT ‘ORDER’ SCREENING
Appropriately, before we were allowed to partake of one the first Atlanta screenings of “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” Buzz was wanded Monday night at Atlantic Station. Alas, it was less like a wizard’s instrument and more like one of those airport screeners. We were quickly found in possession of a cellphone, the BuzzBerry and a metal spiral-bound reporter’s notebook. We relinquished two of the offending items to a film publicist. One other cellphone enthusiast was less cooperative. We witnessed the invitee having a humongous hissy fit over parting with his hunk of ringing metal and plastic. Inside, the latest two hours and 18 minutes of J.K. Rowling-inspired fictional child abuse was greeted with great excitement by the audience (seriously, Hogwarts must buy Bactine by the boatload). Our fave review overheard by a “Harry” fan on the way out: “I bought a large soda, but I stopped drinking it 10 minutes into the movie so I wouldn’t miss anything.”
HIGH FIVE
Top viewed Comcast on Demand selections made by metro area customers For the week of July 4 1. “First Cut Is the Deepest,” Episode 44, “Entourage,” HBO 2. “Tattoo,” Alliance music video, Music Choice 3. “Big Things Poppin’ ” T.I. (right) music video, Music Choice 4. “To the Tree House” episode, “Dora the Explorer,” Nickelodeon 5. “Lip Gloss,” Lil Mama music video, Music Choice Source: Comcast
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actress Brett Somers (“Match Game”) is 83. Actor Tab Hunter is 76. Actress Sela Ward is 51. Guitarist Richie Sambora of Bon Jovi is 48. Singer Suzanne Vega is 48. Actor Greg Grunberg (“Heroes”) is 41. Actor Justin Chambers (“Grey’s Anatomy”) is 37. Actor Michael Rosenbaum (“Smallville”) is 35. Rapper Lil’ Kim is 32. Rapper Lil’ Zane is 25.
Contributing: News services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
De la Renta to appear at AIDS benefit
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Fashionable fund-raiser Jeffrey Kalinsky and veteran co-chair Lila Hertz (pictured at right) have two new co-chairs, a new venue and a fashion designer icon lined up for the 15th annual Fashion Cares benefit for the Susan G. Komen for the Cure and Atlanta AIDS Partnership Fund. The event, booked for Aug. 27 at a “raw space” on the as yet-unoccupied 7th floor at 55 Allen Plaza downtown, will feature a guest appearance by fashion legend Oscar de la Renta. Hertz is overseeing this year’s event with two new co-chairs, Nannies + More founder Sacha Taylor, the wife of former Georgia Lt. Gov. Mark Taylor, and event planning guru Tony Brewer. According to its Web site, Taylor’s firm “specializes in the recruitment, placement and retention of experienced childcare professionals in private homes and estates.”
Hertz told us Monday that they selected the under-construction downtown venue near the Georgia Aquarium and French American Brasserie for the fashion show benefit because it’s “a very hot, exciting part of town.”
And no, Hertz does not mean that literally.
“We’ll have plenty of air conditioning!” she promised. Last year’s event, held in a massive white tent behind Phipps Plaza, became a challenge for organizers when an air-conditioning unit blew out and a downpour resulted in a small river for the fashionably attired attendees.
As Buzz readers will also recall, some within the city’s closely knit fund-raising community went slack-jawed late last year when veteran Fashion Cares co-chair Carey Carter sent a shocking certified resignation letter to Kalinsky at the Atlanta and New York fashion retailer’s Manhattan offices.
Hertz says the event’s continuity has not been compromised, however. “In fund-raising, people move on,” she explained. “But commitment to Fashion Cares continues. We’re very excited about this year’s event.” Tickets range from $500 for premium seating to a $250 ticket for the show and a pre-reception. For info: www.jeffreyfashioncares.com/atlanta.
URBAN CHIC ON TAP
Giving Fashion Cares a run for its fund-raising dollars and its designer dresses again this year is Urban Chic, set for Aug. 2 at Fever nightclub on Cheshire Bridge. This year’s co-chairs for the fashion fund-raiser include Richie Arpino Salon owner Richie Arpino, Goldwasser Signature Jewelry head Ken Goldwasser, Catwalk Productions owner Randi Layne, Blue Med Spa’s John Stupka and WXIA news anchor Karyn Greer. The fashion show event will benefit AID Atlanta. For $500, attendees will score a VIP package, including tickets to the patron party this Thursday night, a pre-show VIP cocktail reception, priority seating and a gift bag.
General admission tickets are $100. For info: www.aidatlanta.org or urbanchic@aidatlanta.org.
SHAKUR’S MOM OK AFTER N.C. HOME FIRE
Rapper Tupac Shakur’s mother, Afeni Shakur-Davis, is extending her gratitude and thanks after the part-time Atlantan’s North Carolina guest house caught fire last week. The founder of the Tupac Amaru Shakur Foundation and the Tupac Shakur Center for the Arts in Stone Mountain was in the main residence on the property at the time of the fire. Her rep, Versa Manos, assured us Monday that the late rapper’s mother is fine. About the dozens of firefighters who battled the blaze, Shakur-Davis said in a statement sent to Buzz: “We are truly blessed to have their vigilant and neighborly care.”
ON MY IPOD
Jeff Francoeur, Atlanta Braves right-fielder
You’ll find country artists among the 10,000 songs on his iPod, including George Strait’s “You’ll Be There.” Of his most recently downloaded tunes, Francoeur tells Buzz: “The last five were all Rodney Atkins songs but I don’t remember which.”
STORK REPORT: IT’S A GIRL!
BET “Lift Every Voice” Sunday gospel show host and Atlanta resident Gerald Henry is a daddy again. Henry and his wife, Terry, welcomed Bria Lyn Henry last week. She weighed in at 7 pounds, 12 ounces. Little Bria joins older siblings Baylor Leanne and Benjamin Jeremiah Henry.
OVERSCENE
Novelist Amy Tan dining with glass sculpture artist Dale Chilhuly and a party of 18 at South City Kitchen in Midtown.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Singer Mavis Staples is 68. Folk singer Arlo Guthrie is 60. Singer Neil Tennant of the Pet Shop Boys is 53. Banjo player Bela Fleck of Bela Fleck and the Flecktones is 49. Country singer Gary LeVox of Rascal Flatts is 37. Actor Adrian Grenier (“Entourage” ) is 31. Actor Thomas Ian Nicholas (“American Pie”) is 27. Singer Jessica Simpson is 27.
Contributing: News services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Clark Howard dishes about politics, beer and briefs
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Consumer advocate Clark Howard teased a late-night crowd Saturday during the “Lucky Yates Talk Show” with his drinking habits, his underwear preference and his political aspirations.
Rodney Ho/AJC Staff
Howard, who almost ran for mayor in 1997, said he is thinking about running for Atlanta mayor once Shirley Franklin’s two-term limit is up in 2009. He has also pondered becoming lieutenant governor.
“Come on!” Yates scoffed. “Aim higher! You’d get elected governor!”
Howard’s priorities as mayor if he were to run would include creating a special group of cops who only do traffic and safety, and streamlining city government and schools, which he thinks are less about serving the public and more a “jobs program.”
On a less serious note, Howard noted that he gets drunk after just two beers. (During the show, located at the Laughing Skull Lounge next to Midtown’s Vortex, he nursed a single Heineken followed by a Diet Coke.)
Then an audience member asked: boxers or briefs?
“Definitely briefs!” Howard said, because they’re cheaper. He said there’s an upcoming tax-free holiday in Florida, where he has a vacation home. There, he’ll be able to pick up nine briefs at Wal-Mart for just $6.84!
“Lord, help me!” his long-suffering wife Lane said from the second row.
BIDDING TONGUE & GROOVE ADIEU
Earlier in the night, Buzz checked in at Tongue & Groove for its final night in its current spot in Buckhead. The nightclub has lasted 13 years, an eternity in such a fickle business, and is moving a block up Peachtree Road this fall to make way for more upscale development.
Co-owner Michael Krohngold hugged old buddies who came by for an early friends-and-family party while hobbling with a cast on his right leg after a recent Jet-Ski accident. “That’s a rich folk’s accident,” cracked Tom Houck, a friend and longtime media observer in town. He was quick to add that Krohngold helped create ” a legendary place, a phenomenal bar.”
PHOTOS: Your Tongue & Groove photos
HOT DOG! PRO EATER’S AT IT AGAIN
Buzz caught up with Atlanta’s best competitive eater Dale Boone, who made his first appearance since 2004 at Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog competition July 4 at Coney Island in New York City. Out of 16 entrants, the charismatic, trash-talking Boone came in 11th, consuming a personal-best 25 hot dogs in 12 minutes.
But he was obliterated by Joey Chestnut, the celebrated Californian who ousted six-time champ Takeru Kobayashi. Chestnut ate a world-record 66 hot dogs, beating his own record of 59.5 a month earlier. Kobayashi, despite jaw problems, gobbled 63. Boone said the new generation is raising the bar and he’s picked up some pointers to improve his own performance. “You have to teach an old dog new tricks,” he told Buzz.
RANDOM BITS
Standup comic Andrew Dice Clay, who threw a few verbal grenades against Peach Buzz last week on 790/The Zone for mocking his $100 price tag at the Punchline July 3 and 4, ended up selling about 300 tickets out of a potential 540. Punchline co-owner Jamie Bendall said an off-the-cuff half-price sale Clay announced on the Zone Tuesday morning did not generate a significant bump in sales. “He was very gracious and easy to work with,” Bendall told Buzz… .
Lucky us! The producers of ABC’s upcoming sitcom “Cavemen,” based on the Geico insurance spokesmen, have set the show back in Atlanta. The original announcements earlier this year said the cavemen would live in “modern-day Atlanta,” but a pilot Buzz recently saw had them living in Norfolk, Va. A spokeswoman for the production company had no explanation for why the producers keep changing their minds… .
The multiple Live Earth concerts Saturday featured a few folks with local ties, including Georgia native Trisha Yearwood in D.C. and local rap star Ludacris and former Atlantan John Mayer in East Rutherford, N.J. Mayer joined the Police for the finale “Message in a Bottle.” …
Clay Aiken got into a tussle with a woman on a flight to Tulsa, Okla., Saturday and was held for questioning, then released, according to the Tulsa World.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actor Brian Dennehy is 69.. TV personality-turned-musician John Tesh is 55. Actor Jimmy Smits is 52. Actor Tom Hanks is 51. Actress Kelly McGillis (“Top Gun”) is 50. Singer Courtney Love is 43. Actor Fred Savage is 31.
BUZZ ROUNDUP
After seven months of just playing music in the mornings, rock station Project 9-6-1 has finally found a personality to helm that crucial drive time: “Giant” Brian Carothers, morning producer and sidekick at Philadelphia’s classic rock station WMGK-FM under John DeBella.
Station program director Chris Williams, in a text message to Buzz, wouldn’t say why he chose Carothers, a big, bald Pittsburgh native and standup comic. He also couldn’t pinpoint a start date, though Carothers will likely start next month.
Contributing: news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Bye for now; see you soon on Peachtree
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Buckhead nightclub aficionados shouldn’t shed too many tears for Tongue & Groove tonight as the 13-year-old nightspot throws its final party. Co-owner Michael Krohngold told Buzz Friday that he’s just inked a deal to transport Tongue & Groove down the street to 3089 Peachtree Road, the site of the old Sofas & Chairs location. “Tongue & Groove 2.0,” as Krohngold refers to it, will debut this fall. “We wanted Tongue & Groove to remain in Buckhead,” Krohngold told us. “We felt like we had carved out a niche here. [Tonight’s closing] would have been a lot sadder for us if this deal hadn’t come through this week.” As Buzz reported in June, Buckhead Village developer Ben Carter bought out the remaining eight years on Krohngold and business partner Scott Strumlauf’s lease. This fall, the area will be razed, with an eye toward turning the former nightlife zone into the “Rodeo Drive of the South” (as planners have dubbed it), with high-end shops, eateries and boutique hotels. Art Mix, the company headed by Krohngold’s wife, interior designer Patti Krohngold, will handle the new space’s design. As regulars and old employees gather tonight to toast the old Tongue one final time, Krohngold has a living, breathing reference point to the club’s legacy: the couple’s son, Morgan, was born a few weeks before Tongue & Groove’s debut in the fall of 1994. “Having a teenager puts it all into perspective for us,” Krohngold notes. “When we opened, we had to prop him up for the picture. Now he’s nearly as tall as I am!” Tongue & Groove’s closing festivities — open to the public — begin at 7.
Your Luckie day, and time to party
With a nod to its name (not to mention its prime downtown location across the street from the Georgia Aquarium), Luckie Food Lounge owner Mike Boles is throwing an opening bash for the restaurant/nightclub tonight (on 7/7/07, natch). We poked our head in Friday for an advance look-see. Boles, the former owner of Compound, has created a 350-seat retro-vibed space that’s equally welcoming to families looking for a post-aquarium nosh and hipster white-collar types in search of an after-work libation. Executive chef Alaska Dzameshie has included plenty of non-threatening American fare on the menu, like a freshly crafted pimento cheese and cracker starter, a fresh fish sandwich of the day (Friday’s catch was halibut) and an extensive sushi menu. The sushi bar area is accented by hanging flower light fixtures whose petal-shaped shades open magically when you sit beneath them. The eatery’s kids menu, meanwhile, arrives on blue View-Masters that small fry can click through to see pizza and burger options.
The highlight of lunch happened, however, when former MidCity Cuisine pastry chef Nicholas Crawford turned up tableside with samples of his new Luckie Lounge dessert menu, including a triple chocolate pyramid (accented with a pinch of chipotle powder) and a temperature-defying Nuts About Ya confection, combining frozen gelato, mousse and a crunchy crust. Strawberry rhubarb pot pie is also a featured item. “My mother grew [rhubarb] at our home in Northern California where I grew up,” Crawford explained. “It’s just always been around for me.” Oh, and the kid’s talents extend to skillfully operating the eatery’s impressive banks of televisions to tune in a requested breaking car chase on CNN. Luckie Food Lounge’s bash is open to the public starting at 10 p.m. Info: 404-525-LUCK (404-525-5825) or www.luckiefoodlounge.com.
Pizza-flavored ‘Ratatouille’
If you’re checking out Pixar’s latest crowd pleaser “Ratatouille” this weekend (or like us, snorting in your Sour Patch Kids a second time through it), fans of the computer animation company will want to keep an eye peeled for some inside gags. Watch for Pixar’s venerable Pizza Planet Truck, seen in the company’s first flick, 1995’s “Toy Story,” and “Finding Nemo,” among others. The truck makes a cameo as Remy, the flick’s rodent restaurant chef, is being chased through the streets of Paris. The studio’s “Incredibles” character Bomb Voyage, meanwhile, pops up twice, as a mime and as the focus of a front-page newspaper story. There was no word Friday on a forthcoming blooper reel.
OVERSCENE: OutKast’s Andre 3000 and a lady friend purchasing a Chastain-ready stylish Murval insulated bag with retractable handle from 4Bags at Pink Lemonade boutique in Buckhead. We’re told the meals-on-wheels tote retails for $50.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS: Today: Bandleader Doc Severinsen is 80. Drummer Ringo Starr is 67. Actor Billy Campbell (“The 4400”) is 48. Actress Jorja Fox (“C.S.I.”) is 39. Actor Troy Garity is 34. Sunday: Singer Steve Lawrence is 72. Actor Jeffrey Tambor (“Arrested Development”) is 63. Actor Kevin Bacon is 49. Singer Beck is 37. Actor Milo Ventimiglia (“Heroes” ) is 30. Guitarist Jamie Cook of Arctic Monkeys is 22.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
R.E.M. treating fans to taste of old, new
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Over in Dublin, Ireland, R.E.M. continues road-testing some tunes for the Athens-birthed act’s next album. Front man Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, bassist Mike Mills, touring guitarist Scott McCaughey and drummer Bill Rieflin’s public “rehearsals” at Olympia Theatre — a 19th-century music hall with a capacity of about 1300 — attracted sold-out lines of fans who have waited hours this week in miserable rain for day-of-show tickets.
Spin magazine reports that the band had flown in from Vancouver “where they’ve been working with producer Garret “Jacknife” Lee (U2, Snow Patrol, Bloc Party) on their follow-up to 2004’s “Around the Sun.” Following this week’s gigs, “the band will relocate to Grouse Lodge residential studios in the Irish midlands to finish the LP.”
Lead singer Stipe went as far as to apologize for wearing sneakers on stage, saying he wouldn’t do so at a “real” concert. Stipe sang while reading lyrics from a laptop set atop a steamer trunk onstage. Occasionally, he would scowl as he sang a verse. Sometimes he would rewrite the lyric on the fly and the band reworked previously performed sets as well.
The songs only have working titles so far, such as “Mr. Richards,” “Accelerate,” or “Until the Day Is Done.” Interspersed with the untested music, R.E.M. played some songs from their back catalog as “an olive branch” to fans, Stipe told the crowd.
But none were familiar hits. Instead, the band played rarely performed numbers such as “Harborcoat” from their 1984 release “Reckoning.”
But for a few hundred screaming fans, the rare songs added to the unique experience.
Locals in Dublin say that an R.E.M. concert at such a small venue is unheard of, particularly in a city where the band could sell out the local sports stadium. The old concert hall was packed full of die-hard followers marvelling at the sheer wonder of the moment. No one in the room was more than 30 yards or so from the stage.
We’re told that’s part of the reason the band came to Dublin, a band rep said after their July 4 concert. Dublin is familiar to R.E.M. and R.E.M. is familiar to Dublin. Dublin, however, allows the band to perform in a small venue without worrying about stepping on toes back home in Athens, excluding friends, or friends-of-friends.
A GROUP EFFORT TO BENEFIT CHARITY
In an unprecedented cooperative effort, virtually every major radio station in Atlanta will simultaneously raise money for the March of Dimes the morning of July 24. In an event dubbed “Breakfast for Babies,” each station will promote the charity event in their own special way using a common 1-800 number.
Many are currently finding breakfast spots to place their morning personalities. Star 94’s Tom Sullivan, for instance, will be at the White House restaurant that day collecting money.
“I think all of us put our individual agendas aside for the greater cause of the March of Dimes,” said Rick Caffey, general manager of V-103, WAOK-AM and Dave FM.
The only major metro station not on the press announcement is 680/The Fan. David Dickey, president and GM for the Fan, told Buzz Thursday the station will likely participate but needed more details.
RAY’S SET TO REOPEN
For Ray’s on the River enthusiasts who have been hankering for the eatery’s signature New Orleans barbecued shrimp and thick steaks, some appetizing news trickled into Buzz Central on Thursday. After a six-month renovation project, the longtime Sandy Springs eatery is set to reopen July 23. When the restaurant resumes operations this month, we’re told that diners can expect new water features at the restaurant’s interior and exterior entries, travertine flooring with mosaic accents, a temperature-controlled wood-clad wine wall, a dramatic liquor display at the back bar and custom iron chandeliers.
Oversize leather banquettes and vibrantly colored draperies will add a sense of intimacy. The restaurant overlooking the Chattahoochee River has also undergone extensive new landscaping outside.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“He was peaceful and kept to himself.” — Wrestler-turned-VH1 reality star Hulk Hogan in US Weekly on Chris Benoit, the WWE wrestler suspected of killing his wife and son before hanging himself last month.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Talk-show host Merv Griffin is 82. Actress-singer Della Reese is 76. Actor Ned Beatty is 70. Actor Burt Ward (“Batman”) is 61. Actor Sylvester Stallone is 61. Singer Nanci Griffith is 54. Rapper 50 Cent (right) is 31. Actresses Tia and Tamera Mowry (“Sister, Sister”) are 29.
Contributing: George Chidi, Rodney Ho and news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Elton upset guards made him walk
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Despite terrorist bombs becoming reality in Britain, Elton John apparently had a meltdown at Sunday’s Concert for Diana over a security matter.
As London’s Evening Standard put it days after the event that reached 500 million TV viewers, “As a member of rock ‘n’ roll royalty, Sir Elton John does not take kindly to being outranked. Not even by Princes William and Harry.”
The 60-year-old entertainer opened and closed the marathon concert at Wembley Stadium. But approaching the after-concert party at a nearby arena, site of the stars’ dressing rooms, his limo was stopped by police 50 feet from the VIP backstage entrance. Anticipating the young princes’ arrival, the area had been sealed off.
The part-time Atlantan threw one of his famous tantrums. Here’s the family-friendly version: “Don’t you know who I am?” he screamed at a policeman. “I’ve been working all day and I need to get to my dressing room.”
Police remained unimpressed. In his striped pants and extravagant tails, with a lily-motif on the sleeve, Sir Elton had to trudge by foot, like a commoner. According to the Evening Standard’s report, he eventually leapt from the car and pushed through the paparazzi, shouting, “Get out of my way!”
PIZZA PARADISO
Who knew that pizza could be certifiable? Fritti, the Inman Park restaurant, has just been awarded certification by the Verace Pizza Napolentana — a worldwide organization of pizzerias, that decides who does and doesn’t serve true Neapolitan pizza. It is one of only 18 pie slingers in America to have met all the guidelines — including a wood-burning oven and special “Tipo 00” flour among other acceptable ingredients. It is the only such designated restaurant in the Southeast. Scores of restaurants in Italy carry the designation, as do 23 in Japan.
BIG-SCREEN BUFFALOES
Spike Lee was in Rome, Italy, to announce his latest movie project, highlighting the contribution of black American soldiers in the struggle against the Nazis in Italy during World War II.
“We have black people who are fighting for democracy who at the same time are classified as second-class citizens,” the 50-year-old filmmaker said. “That is why I’d like to do a film to show how these brave black men, despite all the hardship they were going through, still pushed that aside and fought for the greater good.”
Based on the novel “Miracle at St. Anna” by James McBride, the movie will tell the story of the Army’s all-black 92nd “Buffalo Soldier” Division, which is trapped behind enemy lines in a village in Tuscany in 1944. Shooting is expected to start early next year. Budget: $45 million.
GLASS CEILING?
With a few exceptions, men still wield the baton as orchestral conductors across the country. But increasingly, it’s women CEOs who are calling the shots — and pulling down whopping salaries.
Among U.S. orchestral executives, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra president and CEO Allison Vulgamore ranked sixth, earning $443,812 in compensation, according to the ASO’s IRS form 990 for the 2004-05 season, the most recent available. Two other top earners were women: the Los Angeles Philharmonic’s Deborah Borda ranked first at $1,325,542; Chicago Symphony CEO Deborah Card was seventh at $423,300.
ASO music director Robert Spano’s 2004-05 salary seemed modest at $494,547 — especially when compared to New York Philharmonic’s champion fat-cat Lorin Maazel, who brought home $2,638,940.
“The Atlanta Symphony’s CEO/music director comparison is closer to parity than its peer orchestras in Cincinnati, Dallas and Minnesota,” says Drew Mc-
Manus, who tracks classical-music management issues on his Adaptistration blog. “That might help account for [the ASO’s] sound financial health: the conductor isn’t eating up the budget and the front office is carrying a lot of the load, and getting paid for it.”
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actress Shirley Knight is 71. Musician Robbie Robertson is 64. Singer Huey Lewis is 57. Singer Marc Cohn is 48. Actress Edie Falco (“The Sopranos”) is 44. Actress Kathryn Erbe (“Law and Order: Criminal Intent”) is 42. Rapper RZA is 38. Singer Joe is 34. Rapper Bizarre of D12 is 31. Singer Jason Wade of Lifehouse is 27.
Contributing: John Kessler and news services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Carter Center serves up tall Fourth tales
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Family cookouts, grilled hot dogs, a lazy summer afternoon — that’s how most people spend their Fourth of July. But the Carter Center is offering a different way to celebrate the nation’s holiday.
Want to hear how “The Star-Spangled Banner” almost didn’t happen? How about the true story on the origins of the mysterious ink blot on the Declaration of Independence? A group of professional storytellers will gather at the Carter Center at 2 p.m. today to fill in those blanks for an event it’s calling “A Flag-Flying Tale-Tellin’ 4th of July.”
When Buzz contacted Audrey Galex, a DeKalb County storyteller, about the ink blot story, she wouldn’t betray her storyteller’s instincts.
“I’m not going to tell you the whole thing,” she said. “It would give it away.”
She would leave some cryptic clues, though. The ink-blot story involves a stable, dung and some unlikely characters who “made the ultimate sacrifice for the country,” she said.
Galex is a member of the Southern Order of Storytellers, an Atlanta-based group of professional tall-talers who put on events throughout Georgia during the year. She said she didn’t have to go to school to learn how to tell stories.
“I went to school at my grandmother’s kitchen table,” she said.
Feriel Feldman, the group’s president, will emcee the event. She did give Buzz a preview of the story behind the national anthem’s creation, but she was still discreet.
Feldman did reveal something about the anthem that may shock those who’ll sing the anthem today.
She said our venerable national anthem is actually based on the melody of a British bar song.
“Can you imagine?” she said. “It’s so complicated and difficult to sing. Those British.”
SMELL THE BLESSINGS
Debra B. Morton doesn’t place messages in a bottle. She puts blessings in them.
Morton, the wife of Bishop Paul Morton, pastor of the Greater St. Stephen Full Gospel Baptist Church in Decatur, is introducing a new fragrance. God, she said, inspired her.
“I was riding down Peachtree, and I heard in my ear, ‘blessings in the bottle,’ ” Morton said.
Morton, the wife, said she is the first pastor to create and market a fragrance. But there’s hardly any item left that hasn’t been packaged or sold by pastors and Christian retailers.
The televangelist Bishop T.D. Jakes has produced a Grammy-Award winning CD, a stage play and a line of books. New Birth Missionary Church in Lithonia, the largest church in Georgia with 25,000 members, produced its own credit card. Christian retailers routinely produce T-shirts, licence plates, wrist bands and coffee mugs. It was only a matter of time that some pastor would market a fragrance.
Morton said she also was inspired by the aftermath of Katrina. She co-pastored a New Orleans megachurch with her husband that was destroyed by the hurricane. The couple relocated to Atlanta, and she began playing around with the idea of a fragrance that would inspire people.
“The message I’m saying [with this perfume] is that in the midst of all this calamity from the past and still facing us, there are blessings still around us,” she said. “Blessings aren’t just what money can buy. I realized that when I escaped Katrina with my husband.”
Morton’s blessing will cost $69 per bottle. She said she’s negotiating with boutiques for distribution. It can be purchased, however, at blessingsinabottleonline.com by the end of this week, she said.
NEED A LAUGH?
Speaking of fragrances, one hilarious Web site said it’s time “to wake up and smell the lawyers.” At power-of-attorneys.com/StupidLawsuit.htm, people can go and look up some of the most frivolous lawsuits ever recorded.
Most people have heard of the man who recently lost a $54 million lawsuit against a dry cleaner for losing his pants. But Reid Kanely, a Philadelphia Inquirer reporter, who wrote about the stupid lawsuit said there have been plenty of others that are just as outrageous.
Buzz’s favorite: the man who sued a beer company because, despite what their advertising claimed, his luck with the ladies didn’t change after he drank their beer.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actress Gloria Stuart is 97. Conductor Mitch Miller is 96. Actress Eva Marie Saint is 83. Actress Gina Lollobrigida is 80. Playwright Neil Simon is 80. Singer Bill Withers is 69. Actress Karolyn Grimes (Zuzu in “It’s A Wonderful Life”) is 67. TV talk show host Geraldo Rivera (below) is 64. Percussionist Ralph Johnson of Earth, Wind and Fire is 56. Singer John Waite is 52.
Contributing: News services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Punchline’s charging a C-note to see who?!
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Hickory dickory dock. Would shelling out $100 to see Andrew Dice Clay be too much of a shock?
That’s not exactly how this foul-mouthed, politically incorrect standup comic’s joke goes, but $100 is how much the Punchline is asking today and Wednesday to see him, more than even Jerry Seinfeld charged at the Fox Theatre last year.
You might remember that Clay was once relevant — in 1989, when he sold 6,500 seats at the Omni. But his star fell fast. By 1993, he was doing a shot at the Roxy, which seats about 1,000. He has since more or less disappeared, save for a VH1 reality show earlier this year chronicling his attempt at a comeback.
Attempting to justify the $100 price tag, Punchline co-owner Chris DiPetta said, “You get to be 20 feet from him, or 2 feet from him, not 300 feet. He wanted to do something in a very intimate setting and charge monster money for it.” The price, he noted, was “Dice’s choice, not ours.”
In fact, DiPetta said he doesn’t think the Punchline has ever charged that much for a comic in its 25-year history.
Clay has sold out in other cities at that price, DiPetta said, but because the Punchline show is during the holidays, there are plenty of tickets available. (To sell out, Clay needs to sell 540 tickets over two shows.) In fact, the club is often dark around July Fourth because people would rather be outside at family barbecues or checking out fireworks. “I’ve known him for 25 years,” DiPetta said. “He’s always been a great comic. I’m as curious as anybody how this will turn out.”
Clay still books 3,000-seat theaters, especially in the Northeast, but he hasn’t done a show in Atlanta in several years.
Rival Funny Farm manager Marshall Chiles, who saw Clay at the Omni back in the day, said when he heard the price, he said, “That’s whack! But then I thought about it. His core group will pay that. Now, are they in town July Fourth?”
Off the cuff, Clay, on 790/The Zone’s “Mayhem in the AM” Tuesday morning, offered half-price seats to people who called the Punchline by 3 p.m.
5 DAYS WITH R.E.M.
As the band prepares its latest album, Athens-based R.E.M. has been holding a five-day “working” rehearsal in Dublin, Ireland, open to fans. According to blogger John Madden, who saw one of the rehearsals, “the band has gone to great pains to remind people that it’s a rehearsal, and therefore not actually a show. They have even projected the words ‘This Is Not a Show’ on the backdrop, and Michael Stipe says so every couple of songs.” He said guests included Bono and the Edge from U2, plus staffers from the band’s Athens office. The band played mostly new songs but included a few older, lesser-known cuts such as “Letter Never Sent” and “These Days.” More details are available on the band’s Web site, www.remhq.com.
CLUB’S SWAN SONG
The final day for Buckhead Village’s best-known nightclub, Tongue & Groove, is Saturday as development continues to turn the area into what developers hope to be Atlanta’s answer to Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, Calif. The club is planning a special private friends-and-family party from 7 to 9 p.m. for old-timers to stop by and say goodbye. Then it’s party as usual from 9 until closing, with admission ranging from $10 to $20. Co-owner Michael Krohngold told Buzz he hopes he’ll be able to announce a new location for the club in the Buckhead vicinity by Saturday.
And for those still seeking a nightcap in Buckhead Village, two veteran bars are sticking around for the time being: Irish pub Fado and Park Bench.
RANDOM BITS
When ABC announced this year that it was filming a pilot television comedy based on the Geico cavemen, the original news reports said the setting would be modern-day Atlanta. But Buzz recently viewed the not terribly funny pilot and discovered the producers moved the cavemen to Norfolk, Va. An ABC spokeswoman had no explanation for the shift. Maybe they just wanted an ocean view …
Ruben Studdard is doing a full 75-minute show gratis before the fireworks Wednesday at Centennial Olympic Park. His manager, Cedric Evans, told Buzz the Season 2 “American Idol” winner is maintaining his diet/exercise regimen he began last year at Duke University and is down about 105 pounds from his peak.
HIGH FIVE
TV Guide’s top cult shows of all time:
1. “Star Trek”
2. “The X-Files”
3. “Buffy the Vampire Slayer”
4. “Farscape”
5. “Lost”
— TVGuide.com
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Talk show host Montel Williams is 51. Country singer Aaron Tippin is 49. Synthesizer player Vince Clarke of Erasure is 47. Actor Tom Cruise is 45. Actor Thomas Gibson (below, “Criminal Minds”) is 45.
Contributing: News services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
A lot of time behind wheel could pay off
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
For Jessi Kissinger, a 22-year-old Bruster’s ice cream shop employee from Alpharetta, sitting in a vehicle in center court at North Point Mall for a month as a radio station stunt is no big deal. She can handle the lack of books, Internet access and cellphones. Plus, she might win a 2007 Mercury Mariner.
But the overnight rat-a-tat-tat of jackhammers from workers renovating a nearby Gap store has left her badly sleep-deprived. And sleeping pills made her hallucinate.
Rodney Ho / AJC
“I thought a water bottle looked like the Virgin Mary at one point,” she told Buzz on Day 19.
Kissinger is one of five contestants left competing for the Mariner, courtesy of Star 94, which held similar contests in 1997 and 2002.
The wafer-thin Kissinger has also chosen to quit smoking and gain weight. Yes, gain weight. At 5 feet, 1 inch, she is now at 95 pounds, up from 88, thanks to a steady diet of doughnuts, crackers and candy bars.
She’s gotten used to answering the same questions from curious passers-by. How long are their breaks? (Answer: Ten minutes every three hours.) Do they shower? (The mall restrooms don’t have showers, so they use lots of baby wipes.) Doesn’t she have a job? (Kissinger says her Bruster’s bosses have been extremely kind.)
Then a middle-aged woman with a young daughter asked a question Kissinger hadn’t heard before while Buzz was in earshot: “Are you horny?”
Before Kissinger could come up with a witty reply, the woman turned and walked away.
Fellow contestant Evony Butler, an FNB teller and single mother from McDonough, badly needs a new car. (Her 1990 Toyota Previa has 256,000 miles on it, no air conditioning, no radio and occasionally emits smoke.) But Jason Bettis, a 19-year-old Chattahoochee Tech student and free-lance photographer with time on his hands, said he’s doing this for fun and that, if he wins the car, he’ll sell it and give the money to charity.
And how about this for cold? Bettis’ girlfriend of three years dumped him a week into the contest, two days before his birthday.
Two contestants will be voted off by the public this morning, another will be ousted July 9, and the winner will be picked by random drawing July 13. The value of the prize? $21,370, which the winner must pay taxes on.
RAMSEY HOLDING KIMMER’S AUDIENCE
Consumer advocate and syndicated talk show host Dave Ramsey celebrated his 15th anniversary on radio last week, though he’s been on the air in Atlanta for only three years, starting at 920/WGKA-AM. About six months ago, he took over Kim “The Kimmer” Peterson’s former slot on struggling 640/WGST-AM, and so far the early results show he’s at least holding the Kimmer’s numbers.
“WGST has been a huge feather in our cap,” said Ramsey, who is on 345 stations nationwide. “It’s very important for us to establish a strong foothold here and assist in turning things around.”
Ramsey, who works out of Nashville and can be heard from 3 to 7 p.m., knows this is Clark Howard country: “If I can take a sliver off of his sandal, I’ll be in good shape.”
He’ll be in town for a “Money Makeover” event Nov. 8 at Gwinnett Arena.
BROTHERS GIVE NEW LIFE TO OLD JUNK
A couple of Canadian dudes spent several days last November trolling the streets of Atlanta and Decatur searching for junk. (In fact, Buzz caught them in the act.)
But Steve and Jim Kelly had a reason: They were taping six episodes of their HGTV show “Junk Brothers.”
They took items such as a beat-up barbecue grill and a sad-looking bed frame and transformed them into something (they hope) the owners would like to keep in their homes instead of leaving on the curb.
“It’s a shame to see so many things get tossed in a landfill when they have potential to be saved,” Jim told Buzz. The barbecue grill actually had some sentimental value (the family’s late father used it all the time), and they were thrilled to see it back, he said.
The first Atlanta show is to air at 11 p.m. Wednesday.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actor Ron Silver (“The West Wing,” “Veronica’s Closet”) is 61. Writer-actor Larry David (right, “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Seinfeld”) is 60. Model-actress Jerry Hall is 51. Singer Michelle Branch is 24. Actress Ashley Tisdale (“High School Musical”) is 22. Actress Lindsay Lohan is 21.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“They get me to the point where I don’t care anymore… . They beat me down. Well, I’m a warrior.”
Paula Abdul, on her new Bravo reality show “Hey Paula,” talking about the media’s portrayal of her
Contributing: news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
Permalink | |
Services »
