Even by Hollywood standards, the majesty and misery of Judy Garland’s short life were extreme, marked by operatic intensity and an epic series of (mostly) public peaks and valleys. The Judy Garland story arc remains the…
Year: 2015
Blog posts
A List of Songs Stephen Sondheim Wishes He Wrote Himself (At Least in Part), Volume 1
This most interesting list of songs Broadway legend Stephen Sondheim wishes he wrote himself (at least in part), originally appeared in the New York Times Magazine in 2000 and was a fascinating sidebar to a…
Donna Summer, “Dim All the Lights”: My Personal Memories of One of the All-Time Great Singers
May 17th is the anniversary of Donna Summer’s death, which came as a shock to her fans around the world having kept her illness a secret to even those she regarded as close friends. Though her…
Music For Dusting, the 1970s: A Gay Man’s Guide
In the early-1970s, my parents split up and my mom quickly reinvented herself as an Alice Doesn’t Live Here Anymore-style feminist. No longer satisfied with the limitations of 1950s-era definitions of women’s sex roles, my mother…
86-Year-Old Ingenue Mae West Sold Poland Spring Water
Mae West was a true show business original. Her pre-code Paramount films like She Done Him Wrong and I’m No Angel are still first rate comedies that reveal a rich comic mind and ridiculously…
Stevie Nicks on Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
“Had Tom Petty called me up on e day and said, ‘If you want to leave Fleetwood Mac to be in the Heartbreakers, there’s a place for you,’ I might very well have done…
Farrah Fawcett Skateboarding in 1976
Perhaps the coolest thing about these four pictures of Farrah Fawcett skateboarding has little to do with her fantastic all-American looks. Yes, of course, the iconic Farrah Fawcett hairstyle is in fine form and…
Opening Reel: The 9th Annual Dallas International Film Festival
All New Yorkers know that leaving town often is one of the only things that ostensibly keeps us sane—a head scratcher that in and of itself might set off a light bulb for anyone who…
David Munk on the Red Carpet…Stargayzing with David Munk
Andy Warhol famously said, “In the future, everybody will be famous for fifteen minutes.” But even with the proliferation of reality TV and instant Internet superstars, the truth is that most people won’t even…
For Passover, “Don Rickles'” White Lasagna in Eating With the Stars:
When the Jewish Celebrity Cookbook asked comic legend Don Rickles for a recipe, he replied, “Sorry no recipe or anecdote. Make one up and say it’s mine.” His response strains credulity, as anyone even…
Ally Sheedy and Me: Best Friends for a Day, by Elisa Casas
Ally Sheedy was an original “brat-packer” and starred in the wildly influential and successful mid-1980s films, “The Breakfast Club,” “St. Elmo’s Fire” and “War Games.” By 1989, her career had taken a nosedive. She…
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