Brandi Carlile @ The Beacon Theater

This weekend I had the joy of seeing the amazing singer-songwriter Brandi Carlile and her band perform at the Beacon Theater. At a time when we're exposed daily to the depravity of human beings, it's such a joy to see someone who exemplifies the the beauty they can also create.

What made this show was great wasn't just that Brandi Carlile sang her heart, performing at the top of her game. It's that, throughout the show, she repeatedly thanked the audience for coming, about how much she loved NYC, and how much she loves her band. She talked about her family (she's got a wife and two kids), she talked about her band, and she expressed her gratitude to all of the people who make it possible for her to be a music superstar. It was one of the most touching concerts I've been to, well, ever. 

She even asked the audience to shout-out "Bababooye!" How cool is she?

Interview: Lebeau of Le Blog

If you’re a pop culture junkie, then you probably have lots of varied, interesting, and odd questions about the movies, music, and TV you consume.

What happened to that great actress or actor? Was this movie a hit or a bomb? Did this movie win any big awards? Why was a sequel made to this – or not? Was this band a one-hit wonder?

That’s what makes Lebeau’s Le Blog so great – it’s a pop culture junkie’s dream, answering all these questions and lots, lots more. He takes popular culture and puts it into historical and social context, does deep dives into the careers of your favorite performers, and generally just has lots of fun telling us all about our favorite entertainment. His most popular feature is “What the Hell Happened to” where Lebeau reviews the ups and downs of the careers of actors and actresses that once burned bright, then dimmed. Another great one is “Nope Not a 1-Hit Wonder” which shows how impressive the careers of many so-called “one hit wonders” truly were.

It’s a fun, great blog and LeBeau was kind enough to answer Mr NYC’s questions about his blog and pop culture – and how #MeToo is changing both. He also tells us about some of his own personal favorite pop culture.

Briefly, tell us about Lebeau's Le Blog and what inspired its creation? Where did you get the cool name for it? 

I had been blogging for quite a while before I started Le Blog. It was something I fell into by accident. Even before I knew what a blog was, I maintained a website and contributed to other sites. Basically, it was an extension of my hobbies. I started my first blog to promote a project I was working on with some other guys. The project was my idea, but the blog wasn't. It was completely new territory for me at the time and I had no intention of continuing the blog after the project was over. That project caught the attention of a guy who was starting a comic book blog and he asked me to be a contributor. I said "why not?" and spent a few years writing about comic books for his site. As it turns out, the founder eventually left the blog and we contributors took it over. After I had my kids, my entertainment budget shrank ‘cause I had to pay for things like diapers and daycare. Comics books are an expensive hobby, but they have nothing on kids. Since I wasn't reading comic books any more, I really didn't have much to contribute to that site. So I thought about starting up my own blog to talk about my other interests. I played around with some names, but I really couldn't come up with anything I liked very much. I decided just to call it what it was. For readers who knew me from the sites I had contributed to, this was my blog. Part of that came from the fact I had no real plan for what the blog would be about. All I knew was that it was mine. If readers liked my writing, they could follow me over to Lebeau's Blog. I stuck the Le in the middle because I liked the sound of it. The repetition of the L's and B's just sounds funny to me. At the time, I had no intention of having contributor's so it made sense to me to stick my name on the thing. Looking back, the contributors have become such an important part of the site that I deemphasize "Lebeau". I really consider it to be "Le Blog" but I haven't completely dropped my name from the title because it is in the site's domain.

I love your features like "What Might Have Been", "Franchise Killers," and, of course, "What the Hell Happened?". How do you go about choosing what movies, franchises, and careers etc. to profile and how to compile them?

A lot of it is just a matter of what interests me. I figure if I find something interesting, there are other people out there who will share that interest. Late in the year, I start setting up a schedule for the next year. I go through and look at anniversaries of movies and that will inspire a lot of ideas. If a movie flopped five years ago, I'll leave myself a note that it might make a good Franchise Killer. But there also has to be a story. I need a hook or it's just another flop.

What are some of your favorite movies, franchises? Like any movie fan, my answer to that changes.

The movie I have probably watched more than any other is Jaws. I can watch the original Jaws over and over again even though I know it by heart. I'm not a big fan of sequels so I wouldn't say I am a fan of the Jaws franchise, but the original is something I keep going back to. Today, I don't think anything compares to Marvel's mega franchise. They are the envy of every other studio in town with good reason. Their success really can't be duplicated, but everyone is trying. I also have a fondness for the Bond franchise because it's the granddaddy of them all. Anyone who reads the site can see where my interests lie.

Who are some of your favorite actors/actresses?

Twenty years ago, I would have had an answer to this question. These days, movies are no longer star-driven like they used to be. There are actors and actresses I like, but no one who can sell me on a movie based on their name alone. I think any halfway decent actor can be good in the right role and the best actor can be awful if they are miscast. The best actors tend to be the supporting players whereas the movie stars get by on looks and charisma. With very few exceptions, I wish all of the WTHH subjects well. I am rooting for most of them to succeed with the exception of Steven Seagal.

The Bill Cosby/Harvey Weinstein, etc. revelations have certainly revealed a dark side to show business (even though many of us knew it was a sleazy business to begin with). Tell us your thoughts about it and how it's affected Lebeau's Le Blog? Has it affected your enjoyment of popular culture in general?

I think Weinstein himself was involved in several WTHH actress stories. I plan to spend time over the next year writing that into several articles now that it has been revealed. If you follow WTHH you know that the career span of your average actress is a lot shorter than it is for most actors. Partially, that's American sexism. Once an actress hits 40, the opportunities dry up. The #MeToo movement showed just how bad the problem is within the industry. All I can do is root for the good guys. I will support good projects and good people. I am disappointed in a lot of people who turned a blind eye to what was going on.

If I remember correctly, the actress Sean Young responded to your "What the Hell Happened" profile of her. Have you gotten a lot (or any other) responses from the people or fans that you profile? What's the some of the craziest feedback you've gotten, either from the industry or from fans?

Sean Young is the only actress who reached out directly regarding WTHH. We have had some interactions on Twitter. Mira Sorvino liked something I tweeted a while back. A reader named TMC has tweeted articles to other celebs some of whom objected to the mild profanity in the series title. I get that. We have had a few celebs drop by the site and comment on an article. Director Neil LaBute was downright chatty in the comments section of an old Movieline article. I have also had some people claiming to be friends of celebrities reach out to me. Someone offered to fly me out to Hollywood for a premiere if I would take down the WTHH article on an actor who apparently thought it was hurting his career. Another person claimed Val Kilmer knew about the site and was not amused. If that's true, my apologies to Mr. Kilmer and anyone else who takes offense. It's all meant to be in good fun.

Just curious: your blog has been viewed over 12.5 million times. Who makes up your (huge) fan base -- and have you ever given an interview before?

The majority of traffic on any given day is from Google searches. Most of them, sadly, do not stick around. I am always trying to build up a loyal base of readers. I try to make the place feel like a community as much as possible. I love it when people reach out. I want everyone to keep coming back. This is the first request I have had for an email interview. I did a guest spot on a podcast several years ago. I am not a very in-demand interview subject I guess.

What do you see as the future for Lebeau's Le Blog?

As you know, I recently moved the site to a self-hosted platform. This has been a whole new world for me. It's a grand experiment that will evolve over time. I have always tried new things and discarded what didn't work. I imagine I will keep on doing that. Some traditions will keep going, but change is the only constant. I am focusing on doing things to get readers more engaged. I think we're going to have a lot of fun.

Any last thoughts?

Thanks for reading. Hope you have as much fun blogging as I do. See ya around!

Thank's Lebeau!

Trump Lawyer Raid!

The Jails of NYC

One of the unofficial features of this blog is discovering the cities, big cities, that fall within the Big Apple.

NYCHA, the harbor, the airports, the parks, the public schools, etc., are all sprawling organizations that make up important, if unseen and unacknowledged, systems across our city.

This is most true of our city's jails.

Right now NYC is in the process of closing Riker's Island over the course of the next decade. One day, if all goes according to plan, that little rock off the coast of Astoria will be vacant -- and probably turned into luxury high-rises. 

The prisoners of Riker's are moving elsewhere and, surprisingly, there are lots of places for them to go. I was shocked to discover that there are approximately thirty-two jails within the five boroughs that house the city's criminals. This article gives provides more info about them as well as a multi-media map showing the location of each one. It's a fascinating look at this city within NYC that most us are lucky enough to (and hope we never will) visit. 

Trump Tower Fire

Read more about the victim of this fire who was trying to sell his apartment and wasn't able to give it away! The Trump name is toxic. And now its literally deadly. 

Rudy and Judi Getting Nasty

Former Mayor Rudy Giuliani is getting divorced from his wife and former mistress Judith Nathan. This is the same woman he was cheating on his previous wife with during the end of his mayoralty.

This is Rudy's third divorce. (Three strikes, I guess.)

This divorce is getting nasty since they're going to fight over assets. Amazingly, this famous couple didn't have a prenup! When Rudy left office at the end of 2001 he wasn't rich but, obviously, he earned millions during his return to the private sector. He also didn't marry this lady until 2002, right when the big bucks started rolling in, so it's stunning that he didn't get her to sign a prenup to protect his future earnings. 

Now, to quote Eddie Murphy in Raw, Judi is gonna "take half his shit!"

You would think that, after being divorced twice before, Rudy would've taken this precaution but I guess that, at the time, he was "in love" and thought "we'll be together forever" and so a prenup wasn't necessary.

Howard Stern put it best: when guys fall in love, when they get all crazy about some "broad", they get a fever -- like Spock in Star Trek, when he enters the "pon farr" i.e. he gets so horny and crazy that's he willing to do anything, even kill Captain Kirk, in order to get "some poontang." 

So you get the aforementioned "poontang" -- yeah! -- and the years pass and then, all of a sudden, all your money, everything you worked for, is legally stolen from you. 

God Bless America.

Part of me feels sorry for Rudy but not really -- he must be such a nightmare that Judi probably deserves all the money she'll get. Then again, she's a homewrecker so ...

 

We're all artists!

Cogito ergo sum: "I think, therefore I am" - Rene Descartes 

In my most narcissistic moments I sometimes fancy myself an "artist". This blog is my "art" because it's my creation. Therefore I'm an "artist" because I created it and continue to do so. 

I'm not sanctimonious about it, however; I'm John Cusack in Bullets over Broadway shouting "I'm an artist!" But I am a creator and that, in my mind, gives me a shred of artistic pedigree. To me, that is the essence of art -- the act of creation, the act of making something exist which didn't before and wouldn't have otherwise. Whether it's something we look at or listen to or use (or even, and I'll get to this in a moment, feel), to create anything is to be artistic. 

Full stop ... in my humble, wanna-be-artistic opinion. 

That said, when you see great or moving art, in whatever format, you get overwhelmed by the notion that anything you might create is less than worthy, that so much other art is the work of hacks. And, as a hack myself, you stand in awe.

Right now there's an amazing exhibit in Brooklyn chronicling the work of NYC painters from 1985 to 1995 -- a look back at a time when the city and its social attitudes were changing. It was an era when the city was becoming more tolerant and less affordable. It was an exciting time to be an artist and also a time when they were becoming victims of their own excess. It was a time of community -- and AIDS. It was a time of opportunities and closing doors. It was a time of contradictions. This exhibit captures that mixed-up time lovingly and everyone should see it. You should see what they were creating at the time, fashioning an era that now lives lovingly in many people's memories. 

And people are still creating news things -- and they aren't always things that are visual or audible. Something they are ... tactile. 

Naturally, that gets us to sex. 

On Palm Sunday 2018, we were made familiar with a lady named Stormy Daniels. She is popularly known either a porn star or an adult film actress. Others call her a sex worker. But why not an artist? Everything about her is artistic. Her name is an act of creation -- it's not really Stormy, it's Stephanie Clifford, and for years she's been making adult films to much success. In fact, it led her to have an affair with the current President (and, as we saw from her interview, she's a much more honest, dignified, and decent person than he is). She's an artist, and a damn good one at that, and should be celebrated as such. Yes, her art isn't displayed in museums or in "polite society" but why can't people like her be recognized for the art they create and that, uh ... inspires lots of people? I admire her for that alone!

Yet society says we shouldn't admire her because of what she does -- or that we should condescend to her and call her just a "worker." Certainly, she works (hard, hahaha let's just get that out of the way) but how many people could do what Stormy does as well and as successfully and for as long as she has? She's an artist.

Again -- full Stop. 

Sadly, when it comes to sex, the people who "create" it best are either scorned or sidelined even though we consume their work en masse. But notice how, when you think of Stormy as an artist, it elevates her in your mind? It makes her work into an act of creation, not something nasty. And it gives her dignity, which she deserves. 

Talking about the erotic arts, I was fascinated to read about a mysterious man who apparently gives women great massages that end ... interestingly. Let's just leave it at that. Some might call him half a gigolo or a scummy guy or "whatevs" but, according to these testimonials, he's certainly an artist since he creates something for women that, uh, in many cases, didn't exist before (or for a very long time). That's creation ... in my worthless opinion. 

As a guy with a blog, or even a humble minor "artist", or just a hack, I stand in awe of all these varied, successful creators. And quite often it's the things we create that outlive us and make people remember us.

So I think we should amend Descartes -- "I create, therefore it is -- and I was."

NYC - Rich & Poor

The Real Housewives of NYC@10

Okay, it's starting to get to the point where, the more I do this blog, the older I feel. (Perhaps I should retire but that's for another time.)

Two weeks ago I wrote about the end of the eight-season TV show Portlandia -- and how I had blogged about it even before it premiered.

Next up, and even more appropriately: The Real Housewives of New York City. 

This show about a bunch of rich, blithering yentas is now one decade old -- and yes, I blogged about it at the time it premiered, back in 2008.

It has, for whatever reason, become the most popular and -- gasp! -- respected of the "Real Housewives" series. I don't know if its the characters or the NYC setting that's made it so perennial but it's endured, despite of its awfulness. 

I haven't seen it in years and the cast has changed many times over so I'm not an expect on these catty ladies' latest machinations but ... here's to the "Real Housewives of NYC!". In this era of Trump grotesqueness, this show is, after ten years, more relevant than ever. 

MLK in Washington Square Park