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July 2008
Jill Scott may say ‘I do’ to Atlanta home
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Before her appearance with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Wednesday night at Chastain Park Amphitheatre, three-time Grammy Award winner Jill Scott had plenty to fill us in on.
Chief among them? She’s considering adding the adjective “Atlantan” to her résumé. You see, there’s an Atlanta-based fiancé in her life.
“Yes, I am engaged,” she cooed to us, referring to her intended, Lil John Roberts. “And there’s a wedding to be planned. Life is really good for me now, and we are enjoying each other.”
As for now, there’s no date set.
“We can’t,” she said. “He’s out rehearsing for the tour with Janet [Jackson] … But I’d do it tomorrow if I could. And I know he would. But you know, we want a wedding. I never had one. He’s never had one. And we want to be around family and friends and really do it — because this is it!
“I mean, right now, I’m glowing. John’s such a good guy. … And you know there’s been a little bit of an issue with the media saying, you know, ‘Jill jumped up and is marrying this drummer.’ This is a master percussionist we’re talking about here. I’m talking, at 15 years old he was playing with Wynton Marsalis. It’s not healthy, not nice, for your mate to be diminished. He’s an incredible musician. An incredible man.”
So how did he propose?
“You know, I have to keep some things for us,” the singer said. “But I will say he did it splendidly! So yeah, there is a possibility I could make Atlanta home. It’s definitely been in the discussion. … We haven’t set anything in stone; but we definitely want to have a place, after our honeymoon, where we can go home — together.”
Feeling ‘Wicked’?
Well, surrender, Dorothy. Get on a broom and zip over to the Fox Theatre this weekend.
On Saturday morning, “Wicked” fans will have an exclusive two-hour window to buy seats for the popular Broadway musical before they go on sale via Ticketmaster.
From 8 to 10 a.m., tickets will be available at the Fox Theatre box office at 660 Peachtree St. in Midtown. At 10 a.m., when the clock goes ding-dong, the masses can begin calling and clicking. (404-817-8700, ticketmaster.com).
Prices range from $31-$127.
Last time “Wicked” was in town, single tickets sold out in about two weeks. (Just to be clear: subscribers to the Broadway Across America-Atlanta and the new Atlanta Broadway Series at Cobb Energy Centre had first dibs on tickets for the upcoming show.)
The three-and-a half-week run of the popular “Wizard of Oz” backstory starts Oct. 8 and runs through Nov. 2. The local Broadway presenters planning Saturday’s special event promise prizes, raffles and food.
A hint of Atlanta ‘Housewives’
Late-night viewers got a 30-minute preview of the five women from the already-maligned Bravo spin-off reality show, “Real Housewives of Atlanta” Wednesday night on the network. Here’s a few choice quotes from the local cast.
NeNe Leakes: “I know the viewers are going to love, love, love the real housewives of Atlanta.”
Lisa Wu Hartwell: “We have a lot to offer. We have the music scene. We have the film scene. We have fashionistas. We have athletes. We have everything. It’s hot. It’s hot in Atlanta!”
Leakes: “Being in the South is totally different, just being in the South. The women in New York are wound a little tight. Orange County? They were fun. We’re funner.”
“More fun,” corrected DeShawn Snow.
The show officially starts Sept. 16.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actress Susan Flannery (“Bold and the Beautiful”) is 65. Drummer Bill Berry (R.E.M.) is 50. Actor Wesley Snipes is 46. “Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling is 43. Actor Dean Cain (“Lois and Clark”) is 42. Actor B.J. Novak (“The Office”) is 29.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“One of the reasons for taking the job was to learn a bit more about the South. I had been a great fan of Southern American literature, an enormous fan of Eudora Welty and Flannery O’Connor and William Faulkner. I was able to go to Milledgeville and have a look at Flannery O’Connor’s house. The thing about Southern hospitality is not a myth. People are incredibly warm and open and welcome you into their homes and try to give you a good time. So that’s made entry very easy. It’s been very hard not to have a good time.”
Author and Emory Distinguished Writer in Residence Salman Rushdie on 1690 WMLB-AM’s “Conversations with David Lewis.” The interview segments air at
9:20 a.m. and 1:20 and 5:20 p.m. today.
Contributing: Rodney Ho, Sonia Murray, Wendell Brock and news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
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Spanx CEO books resort for wedding
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Judging from the “save the date” cards currently landing in mailboxes around town, there’s nothing small about Spanx pantyhose founder Sara Blakely’s upcoming fall wedding to Marquis Jet co-founder Jesse Itzler.
And technically, a card wasn’t exactly mailed to Buzz Central. We temporarily liberated one from its rightful owner so Buzz readers would have the inside scoop.
For starters, it’s not exactly a card but rather a beautiful 12-page bound booklet with original art of the couple on a bike drawn by Florida artist Penny Young. And yes, the bride is wearing the product that has landed Blakely on Oprah Winfrey’s couch and into the realm of millionaire entrepreneurs.
There’s even a smiling photo of the couple on the envelope’s postage stamp. The price to mail each? $4.80.
Inside, prospective wedding guests are told: “Sara Blakely and Jesse Itzler are ecstatic to announce their wedding,” set for Oct. 18 in Boca Grande, Fla.
It seems the couple has rented an entire resort for the weekend and guests are encouraged to fly in Thursday and spend the weekend golfing, kayaking, fishing, brunching and, of course, observing the nuptials.
“A friend just called me to said ‘Your save the date card is a little like reading ‘The Catcher in the Rye!’ ” Blakely told Buzz, laughing. “We just wanted to create a special weekend for everyone to enjoy.”
The “At Last” sheet music on the cover also has a special meaning for the pair.
Explained Blakely: “He’s going to be 40 and I’m 37 so it really is at last.”
Blakely was a Marquis Jet client and friend of Itzler’s before the romance. When Itzler asked her out to a fundraiser at the Ritz-Carlton here, she hesitated about accepting.
“I remember thinking that if it didn’t go well, things could be potentially awkward between us afterward,” she recalled. “As it turned out, we’ve been almost inseparable ever since.”
And the secret to a successful relationship with two self-starter CEOs? Says Blakely: “He’s dynamic, he makes me laugh and most of all, we’ve made each other a priority in each other’s lives.”
SMITH, SKI TO TV
Finally, we can stop imagining what Wanda Smith’s facial expressions look like each morning while she’s making Frank Ski laugh on V103. Starting Aug. 18, the popular morning show is making the leap to CW-69.
Airing at 11 p.m., the 30-minute show will compile a “best of” of each day’s broadcast, complete with six HD cameras.
But won’t this mean the morning crew will now have to dress up? “I need an endorsement for some clothes!” cracked Smith. (Miss Sophia probably will want one, too …)
“I always dress up anyway,” Ski noted. “I’m always camera-ready.” He did say the HD cameras during tests reveal even bits of dust on his mustache so he says he’s going to have to make sure he’s immaculate when the show starts until it ends.
Tom Canedo, the general manager for the CW, said he thinks many viewers who watch his station listen to Ski and Smith. The city’s No. 2 radio morning show draws about 440,000 listeners a week.
‘BORROWERS’ FINALE
NBC’s “Baby Borrowers” stirred controversy because it featured parents giving up their babies and toddlers to teenagers they had never met.
Some critics said it would damage the kids psychologically. The two Dunwoody teens who took part in the show, which ends its six-episode run tonight at 9 disagree.
“It was literally safer than day care,” said Austin Trizzino, 19, a rising sophomore at Auburn University in Alabama. “Any given time, you had 10 people watching a single kid. There was an EMT there.”
Neither he nor his girlfriend during the show, Kelly Young, now 20 and a rising junior at Auburn, regretted taking part, even though Kelly went into the occasional emotional tizzy. She doesn’t even recall why she got mad the second time and started screaming at Austin in a tirade so over the top, E! comedy show “The Soup” mocked it last week.
“We were extremely stressed out,” Kelly said. “We had been questioning our relationship before we went on the show. During the interviews [with producers], we were kind of egged on.”
The show was taped in Idaho a year ago. Since then, Austin and Kelly broke up, got back together, then broke up again three weeks ago. They remain friends.
And both Austin and Kelly agree: no kids anytime soon for either of them. “I learned I was a lot more patient than I expected,” Austin said. “But I also learned I like being young and having the freedom to sleep eight straight hours.”
SICK BAY
Dunwoody High grad Ryan Seacrest is recovering from a shark bite after a weekend beach trip. But he’s telling his KIIS-FM listeners that it wasn’t exactly a “Jaws”-type event.
“The American Idol” host compared finding a shark’s tooth on his person to finding a splinter.
Said Seacrest: “I need to take an Advil!”
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.
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Carter helps Willie Nelson on harmonica
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Since we missed the Willie Nelson/B.B. King show at Chastain over the weekend, we’re thrilled that attendee Jeff Carter was gracious enough to send along a snapshot (below) from the gig. His dad — former President Jimmy Carter, a longtime fan and friend of the country legend, contributed some harmonica to Nelson’s set, much to the delight of the crowd.
For Sunday night’s show, Carter, who’s also an accomplished woodworker, author and Nobel Peace Prize winner from Plains, decided to change things up a bit for his latest guest stint with Nelson. Normally, we’re told that he’s inclined to contribute vocals on “Amazing Grace” or “Georgia on My Mind.”
Explained Jeff Carter via e-mail: “The harmonica playing is a first as far as I know. A Renaissance man!”
ROCKING THE KITCHEN
A replacement had to be quickly summoned for Saturday’s cooking class after MetroFresh chef Bryan Kraatz’s day and night jobs collided. You see, Kraatz is also the lead singer in Atlanta band Dear Enemy. Thankfully, MetroFresh owner Mitchell Anderson knows his way around the kitchen. When the restaurant’s cooking class participants showed up, the title of the class had changed from “Cook Like a Rock Star” to “Cook Like a Second-Rate Has-Been TV Star.” In other words, Anderson, who once paid the bills acting on “Doogie Howser, MD,” has a sense of humor.
In addition to teaching the recipe for the Midtown restaurant’s popular white grape gazpacho, Anderson also demonstrated a handy technique for removing mango pits. But as he expertly separated eggs, Anderson cited an unlikely cooking teacher. “I actually learned how to do this from watching that cooking scene with Meryl Streep in ‘The Hours.’ “
By the end of the three-hour session, our classmate and Buzz designer Nancy Clanton was so inspired she leaned over and whispered: “I may stop storing my shoes in the oven now.”
WALKER: STILL AN ATLANTAN
This just in: Singer-songwriter-producer Butch Walker is thankfully not an ex-Atlantan. Yes, the former Marvelous 3 frontman maintains a home on the West Coast (he lost many of his belongings in last year’s California wildfires). But Walker e-mailed us Monday to clarify things after an item appeared here last week.
Writes Walker: “Atlanta is very much home. My reason for living [in California] half the year is no different than any job transfer because I make a good living out there. And the change of scenery makes me miss Atlanta more when I come back to it.”
Walker’s latest song is even titled “Atlanta.” He says the powerful ballad is about “knowing the difference between going back and going home.”
He said it was the first thing he felt like writing after the fires and why he feels like Atlanta is always home. “Some places you go ‘back’ to. There’s one place you go ‘home’ to, and I never want to confuse the two. Thanks for understanding.”
SICK BAY
Kelsey Grammer, who had a heart attack last month, was hospitalized in New York after feeling faint.
The actor’s publicist, Stan Rosenfield, says Grammer checked himself into an undisclosed hospital over the weekend as a precaution.
The publicist says it’s possible Grammer’s medication led to his symptoms. At the time, the actor was in town to promote his new film, “Swing Vote.” The “Live with Regis and Kelly” show said Grammer, 53, canceled his Tuesday morning appearance.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Singer-bassist Geddy Lee of Rush is 55. Documentary maker Ken Burns is 55. Country singer Martina McBride is 42. Actor Josh Radnor (“How I Met Your Mother”) is 34. Musician Danger Mouse of Gnarls Barkley is 31. Actress Allison Mack (“Smallville”) is 26.
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.
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Tyler Perry reaches movie deal with studio
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The relentless entertainment juggernaut that is Atlanta’s Tyler Perry looks like he’ll be staying every bit as relentless for the next few years. He’s signed a new movie distribution deal with Lionsgate, the studio that he has made hundreds of millions of dollars for (and a few for himself), according to the Hollywood Reporter.
The deal covers three movies after the two that are already in the works with Perry and Lionsgate. “The Family That Preys” is a drama (including an interracial romance) that was shot in metro Atlanta earlier this year, with Alfre Woodard, Kathy Bates, Sanaa Lathan, Rockmond Dunbar and Perry in a non-Madea role. It’s set for release Sept. 12, and the trailer is up on Perry’s Web site, www.tylerperry.com.
After that comes “Madea Goes to Jail,” one of the last of his plays where Perry appeared live onstage at the Fox Theatre, and which is definitely not a drama. It’s set for spring 2009.
The TV series “House of Payne” and Tyler Perry Studios are chugging along just fine as well.
FINDING RIGHT GIFT FOR RICH 18-YEAR-OLD
What do you buy an 18-year-old who can already afford to buy out the Gucci store? (Or at least that’s what it looked like at the most recent BET Awards). Well, MTV viewers will find out as the cameras are in town Monday to shoot rapper Soulja Boy’s 18th birthday party. Buzz caught up with local music power Michael “Mr. Collipark” Crooms before his discovery’s big day and asked what he was getting the record-breakinging iTunes artist. “You know, you kind of have to be careful about the material things,” said Crooms, sounding like the husband and father he is. “That’s kind of unhealthy. Plus he’s got everything — he’s got a Hummer. He’s living good; on the road all of the time. So I’m just going to try and make sure he has a good time at his party. I mean, it’ll be on MTV. We hired somebody to really do it right [MVD Inc.] out of New York. Because if it were really up to me, the party would be at my house.”
Instead, the celebration hosted by V-103’s Greg Street will be at an undisclosed mansion in Conyers — “so far out I was trying to call the person I was following [to the location], to curse him out, but my phone wasn’t working out there,” Crooms said with a laugh.
And ummmm, again, what is he getting Soulja Boy? “Well he’s not getting ready to get a Lamborghini from me, I can tell you that. He asked me for something a while back. He probably forgot he even asked. And the funny thing is, he could buy it for himself — easy. I guess maybe he couldn’t see himself doing it. So I probably will. Obviously, I haven’t gotten his present yet.”
FILM WITH ATLANTA TIES WINS BIG
“Delgo,” an animated fantasy movie with the voices of Jennifer Love Hewitt, the late Anne Bancroft, Val Kilmer, Eric Idle, Lou Gossett Jr., Kelly Ripa, Burt Reynolds and Freddie Prinze Jr., has won the Best Animated Feature Award at the Anima Mundi Film Festival in Brazil. And why is that in Buzz? Because the movie was made by Fathom Studios right here in Atlanta. No word yet on a release date; that’s coming, say the Fathom folks.
LUCINDA WILLIAMS FEELS THE HEAT
Atlanta’s heat and technical problems took Lucinda Williams’ “Joy” Friday night while performing at the Atlanta Botanical Garden. Three songs into her concert, the Grammy-winning folk-rock singer halted the show because of glaring stagelights.
“It’s not a [expletive] light show,” she announced into her microphone, directing technical crew to remove the heat light, err, spotlight from her face. Concertgoers filling the garden’s Great Lawn didn’t seem to mind her mood, even when several songs later she stopped the show again because of the sound system, this time announcing she was “as sober as a [expletive] judge” and that she’d have to hold a free concert to make up for what she felt was a lackluster performance. (Buzz is pretty sure she’s kidding about that free show.)
Williams later rallied, ending the show with a rousing “Get Right With God,” and drawing laughter from the crowd when she said Southerners have more soul than the rest of the country. They’d have to, she said, to deal with Atlanta’s heat.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actor Darryl Hickman is 77. Keyboardist Rick Wright of Pink Floyd is 65. Cartoonist Jim Davis (“Garfield”) is 63. Actress Linda Kelsey (“Lou Grant”) is 62. Actress Sally Struthers is 60. Actress Georgia Engel is 60. Drummer Simon Kirke of Bad Company is 59. Guitarist Steve Morse of Deep Purple is 54. Actor Michael Hayden (“Murder One”) is 45. Actress Elizabeth Berkley (“Showgirls,” “Saved by the Bell”) is 36. Singer Afroman is 34. Drummer Todd Anderson of Heartland is 33. Singer Jacoby Shaddix of Papa Roach is 32.
Contributing: Katie Leslie, 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.
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Finally, no ATL rain delay for Tony Bennett
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The candelabras were lit and the potato salad was being passed but for Tony Bennett, a certain something was missing from his Chastain Park Amphitheatre gig Thursday night.
“This is the first time I’ve ever played here that it hasn’t rained!” the 81-year-old crooner told the crowd. Exactly how bad is Bennett’s thunderstorm track record? Well, it’s a wonder that Ticketmaster hasn’t modified the copy on Bennett’s Chastain tickets to read: “Coolers, Carry-Ins, Canoes Permitted.” In short, if he did a week of dates here, the drought would be over.
Robb D. Cohen/robbsphotos.com
More photos from Tony Bennett’s show.
“Once we had a philharmonic orchestra [the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra] up here with me,” the singer, classily clad in a cream jacket, blue dress shirt with matching tie, told the crowd. “It was raining like hell. The instruments were getting damaged. Finally, I said, ‘OK guys, go home.’ And the audience stayed. I did the show with just my quartet. Ever since, I just bring my quartet to Atlanta!”
Poppa Buzz, who for years has been relegated to umbrella duty as we scribble at Bennett gigs, improvised by holding a penlight for Buzz Thursday night.
The dry and appreciative Chastain crowd was uncharacteristically silent during the living legend’s 80-minute set of standards, including “They All Laughed,” “Maybe This Time,” “Speak Low,” “Cold, Cold Heart,” “Sing You Sinners,” “But Beautiful,” and “The Best Is Yet to Come.”
The singer, who still has plenty of belting ability, performed “The Way You Look Tonight” with just guitar and locust accompaniment. And the veteran performer who referred to himself and old pal Rosemary Clooney as “the very first ‘American Idols,’ ” retains a sense of humor as well.
Singing “kiss the good life goodbye,” the final refrain from one of his biggest hits, the New York City resident cracked to the crowd: “I should have dedicated that to former [New York] Governor [Eliot] Spitzer!”
BRINGING BACK THE HOTNESS
E. Lynn Harris has been away from Atlanta teaching writing and being a “cheer coach” at the University of Arkansas, and after nine New York Times’ best-selling novels with prominent gay and bisexual characters, he has turned the spotlight on a straight (and celibate?!) college football star. But don’t think he’s turned away from his first audience — or his part-time hometown. Harris is already back to his usual steaminess, he told a capacity crowd at Outwrite Books. ” ‘Basketball Jones,’ his follow-up to his latest book “Just Too Good to Be True,” is already in the can. “I wrote it in 60 days,” Harris said. “It’ll be out in January. Of course it’s set in Atlanta … And it is hot!”
Speaking of heat, Harris kept the question-and-answer period to a minimum at Outwrite because of the overflow crowd in the relatively small store. “You know how things get when all of us are together,” he joked. “And we’re not in church.”
JOY, BUT NO PAIN
The many recording artists (Joi, Truth Hurts, Algebra), retailers (J Warren of Rockit, Darryl “D-Nice” Harris of Moods Music), radio folks (Jerry “Smokin” B) and really important industry types (CJ Jimerson, Freddy Luster, Richard Dunn, J Warren) are still talking about rare music happening that occurred at Sugar Hill downtown Thursday night.
Longtime R&B favorite — and part-time Atlanta resident — Frankie Beverly joined relative upstart Dwele Thursday during his near-capacity stop in town to promote Dwele’s latest CD, “Sketches of a Man.”
Turns out, Dwele was on a bill in Texas with Beverly earlier this week, and they just happened to meet up again in an Atlanta hotel. Dwele’s folks invited Beverly’s folks over to the Underground Atlanta nightspot. And next thing you know, there Beverly was on stage, singing his and Maze’s classic soul single “Joy and Pain.”
“That was a lot of fun,” Beverly said afterward, backstage. “And really, that kind of thing is not unusual for me. Oh — and for all of those panting ladies in the Sugar Hill audience, yes Buzz did ask how the bare-armed Beverly remains so, well, cut. And he told us, the Total Gym. “I keep it with me on the road.”
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Today: Movie director Blake Edwards is 86. Singer Mick Jagger of the Rolling Stones is 65. Actress Helen Mirren is 63. Actor Jeremy Piven (“Entourage”) is 43.
Sunday: TV producer Norman Lear is 86. Actor Julian McMahon (“Nip/Tuck”) is 40. Comedian Maya Rudolph (“Saturday Night Live”) is 36. Singer Pete Yorn is 34.
SICK BAY
Singer Connie Francis is being treated at Long Island Jewish Medical Center in New York, where she was hospitalized after falling ill earlier this week.
Her agent, Mike Church, says the 69-year-old singer had been scheduled to perform Wednesday night with Neil Sedaka at The Capital One Bank Theatre at Westbury. Instead, she was taken to the hospital with dangerously high blood pressure. Church says that although she is “doing well,” doctors decided she should remain in the hospital for observation for at least another day.
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.
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Steve & Vikki loved even by competition
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
More than 300 well-wishers turned up Wednesday night at the luxurious Aqua Midtown condo complex to welcome veteran Atlanta morning radio team Steve McCoy and Vikki Locke back to the city’s airwaves.
The invitation-only poolside soiree was thrown by Atlanta magazine and featured several famous friends of the B98.5 FM duo. Atlanta Falcon Brian Finneran, who’s also a carpooling pop, toasted the DJs, saying, “In this city, all you have to do is say your names and people just light up. It’ll be refreshing to drive my kids to school again next month and have the radio on without worrying about what’s coming out of it.”
Spanx footless pantyhose founder Sara Blakely also praised the pair, noting that years before her now multimillion dollar Atlanta business took off, she was a guest on their show. “You gave me a chance and I’ll always remember that,” Blakely said. “For me, what makes Atlanta Atlanta is the Steve and Vikki show.”
And perhaps the classiest guest of the evening? V-103 morning man Frank Ski, who competes for ratings with the duo on the morning airwaves but was only too happy to raise a glass to McCoy and Locke.
Said Ski: “When I first came to Atlanta my only goal was to be as loved as Steve and Vikki. You make Atlanta a better place.”
A touched McCoy replied: “We look up to you, too, Frank.”
Added Locke with a laugh: “But we’d still love to kick your [posterior] in the ratings. Also, I would like to thank Frank for buying me one of these beautiful condos here tonight.”
McCoy’s wife, Linda, told us she’s thrilled that her husband once again has somewhere to go in the morning.
“It’s been a really interesting year for us,” she said. “We became grandparents, we became semiretired and we celebrated a high school graduation. But we decided that retirement isn’t everything you hear about. I’m glad life has settled down for us.”
Security guards gracefully swiped their access cards in the elevators to transport guests to the posh 18th-floor penthouse overlooking Midtown. A high-end whiskey tasting and a gorgeous view awaited attendees.
McCoy and Locke were also given special keepsakes to take home — artfully crafted edible busts of themselves made out of cake and icing from Highland Bakery.
McCoy was last seen helping Linda and his icing-coated head into their Saab convertible shortly after dusk. The bumper sticker on the back of the car?
“I [Heart] S&V,” natch.
DON’T TELL ANYONE …
Well, we probably shouldn’t be spilling this but as it turns out, Buzz is really lousy at keeping secrets. While no advertising has as yet gone out on this, we hear that tickets will go on sale at 10 a.m. today via Ticketmaster for a very intimate Aug. 11 show featuring Atlanta’s own Grammy winners Gnarls Barkley at the Variety Playhouse in Little Five Points. Yes, Cee-Lo and DJ Danger Mouse will be playing selections from the pop R&B duo’s latest album, “The Odd Couple” and, we’re willing to bet, a little trophy-taking song called “Crazy” as well.
Since Gnarls Barkley routinely sells out much larger venues like the Tabernacle, we rang Variety Playhouse’s Brad Syna for some scoop.
“They just called us and we said yes,” Syna said laughing. “I think they were looking for something a little under the radar. I wish I could tell you some magical story but there isn’t one. But I can tell you that we’re incredibly excited about the show.”
And we won’t say a word.
CELEBRITY DOCKET
DMX rapped for reporters outside a Phoenix courtroom after pleading not guilty to felony charges of theft and identity theft. Then he plugged his new album.
Authorities allege the 37-year-old rapper gave the name “Troy Jones” and an incorrect Social Security number to a Scottsdale, Ariz., hospital in April to avoid paying $7,500 in medical expenses. Following a hearing on Thursday, DMX, whose real name is Earl Simmons, rapped: “If you ever fall down, get back up.”
The theft and identity theft charges come after months of trouble for Simmons, who also faces multiple charges of drug possession and cruelty to animals in Maricopa County. He’s due in court Aug. 12.
Plus side? DMX did not charge a cover Thursday.
HIGH FIVE
Television
The top On Demand programs for the week of July 14-20, 2008, as determined by Comcast customers in metro Atlanta:
1. “Take a Bow,” Rihanna, music video, Music Choice
2. “SpongeBob: The Splinter,” Nickelodeon
3. “Family Guy: And the Wiener is …” TBS
4. “Lil Wayne, “A Milli,” Music Video, Music Choice
5. “The Fantasia Barrino Story: Life is Not a Fairy Tale,” Lifetime
— Courtesy: Rentrak’s OnDemand Essentials
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I would ask you to respect my privacy in the matter.”
“The Dark Knight” star Christian Bale to reporters in Spain Thursday after they began asking nosy questions about the actor’s alleged assault on his mother and sister this week in London. Achieving privacy could be tricky at the moment since the actor is on a multicountry media trek to promote the summer blockbuster.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actress Barbara Harris is 73. Supermodel Iman is 53. Cartoonist Ray Billingsley (“Curtis”) is 51. Guitarist Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth is 50. Actress Illeana Douglas is 43. Actor Matt LeBlanc (“Friends”) is 41. Actor D.B. Woodside (“24”) is 39. Actor James Lafferty (“One Tree Hill”) is 23.
Contributing: News services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
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Smith’s wild night: Pink visits, tree falls
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Even as the folks at Smith’s Olde Bar were sorting through the tangle of borrowed extension cords Wednesday, rock fans couldn’t stop talking about Monday’s wild night at the Midtown rock club.
For starters, pop star and former Atlantan Pink was sitting at the bar. Ex-Atlantan and current A-list rock producer and Pink songwriter Butch Walker was in the house. Former 99X midday fixture Steve Craig was hanging at the club, attending his final Atlanta show before joining his former and future boss Leslie Fram at his new gig at WRXP-FM in New York.
Los Angeles Americana singer-songwriter — and current Pink boy toy — Jim Bianco was opening for former Refreshments frontman Roger Clyne, who was headlining with his band, the Peacemakers.
“Judging from how they were staring at each other while Jim was playing his set, it looked like it was only Pink and him in the entire room,” Smith’s Olde Bar bartender Brittany Burdett told Buzz Wednesday. “It was electric.”
The “Get the Party Started” gal got up to contribute backing vocals to Bianco’s current single, “Sing” as Walker playfully played percussion on Bianco’s guitar.
Then, during Clyne’s set, a tree landed on some power lines outside.
“It was 300 sweaty people packed into a shoebox,” said Burdett. “We were running extension cords and borrowing power from the Atlanta Room and Cowtipper’s. It was crazy.”
Clyne then grabbed the band’s bottle of tequila from backstage and the Peacemakers banged through a six-song set acoustically as fans sang along until power could be restored to the amps and a few lights. The air-conditioning? Not so much.
Still, some patrons didn’t seem to mind the heat. In addition to swigging from the tequila bottle being passed around and a few bottles of Newcastle Ale, Pink entertained herself in a darkened corner with Bianco.
“Nobody could even get to Jim to talk to him since they were in a corner making out,” said Burdett. “It was cute.”
On Wednesday, Smith’s managers were intent on coming up with a strategy to battle such future calamities.
Said Burdett: “We’re thinking of calling it the ‘Oh [expletive]!]’ box.
RAZOR-FREE FRIDAYS!
Georgia Commissioner of Agriculture Tommy Irvin isn’t forgetting about the state’s drought problem. Starting this Friday, Irvin is encouraging all Department of Agriculture employees to forgo using a razor.
“We’ve had Casual Fridays … now we’re instituting a Razor-Free Friday to help with water conservation efforts,” Irvin said via a release. “Every little bit helps, and I want to encourage everybody to conserve water in any way they can during this drought.”
In response to our obvious follow-up question Wednesday, rep Tyler Adams told Buzz: “We certainly wouldn’t want to leave women out so, yes, it’s open to both men and women. But we’re not going to check.”
A ‘GOLDEN’ MEMORY
The death of Estelle Getty this week reminded Buzz of an anecdote from long, long ago. She was here in 1987, when “Golden Girls” was a huge hit on TV, to do a cooking demonstration at Pittypat’s Porch downtown. She was staying, as visiting celebs frequently do, at the Ritz-Carlton Buckhead, and had breakfast with the AJC to talk about “Golden Girls.”
But she was utterly unfamiliar with Atlanta. So she asked us whether she was missing the point of some obscure affront she had never heard before. In her room, she had found a complimentary fruit basket. And on that fruit basket was a tag.
“It said, ‘Welcome to the Ritz-Carlton — Buckhead!” she said, but she inflected “Buckhead” with an actressy swirl of nastiness, as if it was some hideous insult.
She was utterly sincere. We explained that no, the Ritz-Carlton was not insulting her.
Getty died Tuesday at age 84.
OVERSCENE
Rock god Carlos Santana catching a game and a banana split at ESPN Zone in Buckhead.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“I’ve never been into dope. I smoked two joints in my life and ate the furniture in the hotel room.”
Veteran Hollywood actress Shirley MacLaine, hawking her new paperback “Sage-ing While Age-ing” on “Extra” Wednesday night.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Actress Lynda Carter is 57. Director Gus Van Sant is 56. Actress-singer Jennifer Lopez is 40. Actress-singer Kristin Chenoweth is 38. TV personality Bindi Irwin (“Bindi: The Jungle Girl”) is 10.
Contributing: Phil Kloer and news services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
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Kid Rock avoids jail in battery case
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Nine months after his Waffle House arrest in DeKalb County on battery charges, hick-hopper Kid Rock has pleaded no contest to one count of battery in DeKalb County State Court, putting the whole covered-and-smothered saga behind him.
The performer legally known as Robert J. Ritchie was sentenced to 12 months of probation, six hours of anger management counseling and 80 hours of community service. The musician was fined $1,000 plus $300 in court costs. Four other counts of battery were dropped.
Last October, the performer, his band members and crew were eating at a Buford Highway Waffle House after a sold-out show at the Tabernacle downtown when the group got into an altercation with fellow diner Harlem DeJon Akins.
Ritchie and company made national headlines after being processed at the DeKalb County Jail. His smiling mug shot ended up on “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” MTV and various other media outlets.
In March, the rapper rocker returned to Georgia to sign autographs and meet fans at a Gwinnett County Waffle House as a fund-raiser for Nicholas House. The media and fan frenzy raised more than $12,000.
Said Mr. Rock at the time: “I came back to do something nice for Atlanta. I just wanted to give something back.”
But after taking a look at the Waffle House surveillance tape supplied to Buzz Central on Tuesday, Rock was probably right to plead out. On the four video recordings, shot from various angles inside and outside the eatery, Rock and company are seen wailing on Akins at his table before the fight is taken outside. More blows are exchanged as Akins is chased around the parking lot and finally a plate glass window is shattered. There was no audio on the tape.
DeKalb County Solicitor-General Robert James Jr. told us Tuesday the video footage of the fight, along with a descriptive 911 call by an eyewitness, would likely have been key pieces of evidence if the case had proceeded to trial.
“We got a conviction,” James told us. “I was hoping for some jail time for Mr. Ritchie. But that’s not my call to make. As far as I’m concerned, Mr. Ritchie and his associates’ conduct was reprehensive and unacceptable.”
The DeKalb County district attorney’s office is still investigating the case against Akins.
Fans shouldn’t expect to see Kid Rock picking up any local litter as part of his community service.
DeKalb County solicitor-general public information officer Artealia Gilliard said Tuesday the Michigan native may well ask to have his community service transferred to his place of residence.
TY BACK IN TOWN
Former Grant Park resident and Atlanta native Ty Pennington, known as the whirling dervish on the set of ABC’s hit show “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition,” is now hawking a new drug to control his attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Pennington came into Atlanta on Tuesday to introduce the drug Vyvanse as a paid spokesman.
“It works for me,” he told us. “Now I can finish a thought, finish a sentence.”
He said he grew up without medication and had trouble focusing.
“My mom was studying child psychology when I was a kid, and she asked for the worst child in the class to observe. That ended up being me!” he said. “While she watched, I probably jumped on my desk, swung from the blinders and set a small fire in the back of the room. Let’s just say I was a bit of a distraction.”
Pennington, started on meds in college.
“I have the best job in the world,” Pennington said of his life now. “What other show can I be creative as an artist and change someone’s life, too?”
SIPS OF SUGARLAND
Decatur’s Eddie’s Attic, where Sugarland’s Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush met, celebrated the release of the superstar country duo’s new CD this week without them. And if the turnout for the listening party for the deluxe, fan edition of “Love On The Inside” is any indication, the duo may very well give teen juggernaut Miley Cyrus a run for her first-week sales money. The intimate venue was packed Monday night with a heavily female crowd clamoring for Sugarland posters, stickers and pens and a special $6.50 Sugarland drink (made with Absolut Kurant and homemade lemon simple syrup).
The act was preparing for appearances Tuesday on “Good Morning America” and “The View.” The duo sent a video greeting, however. But they missed hearing heart-tugging comments from Eddie’s Attic owner Eddie Owen, who recalled seeing Nettles’ star start to rise. “There wasn’t a prouder person in America than me,” he said. And when Owen rang Nettles to tell her that, she asked who was on the line, and he replied: “I’m just a fan.”
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Radio personality Don Imus is 68. Actor Woody Harrelson is 47. Actor Eriq Lasalle (“ER”) is 46. Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman is 41. Country singer Alison Krauss is 37. Actor Omar Epps is 35. Singer Michelle Williams (Destiny’s Child) is 28. Actor Daniel Radcliffe (“Harry Potter” movies) is 19.
CELEBRITY DOCKET
“The Dark Knight” actor Christian Bale on Tuesday denied allegations of assault made by his mother and sister, hours after he was arrested, questioned by London police and released.
The 34-year-old actor spent four hours at a police station but was not charged and was released on bail. British media reported that Bale’s mother and sister complained he had assaulted them at the Dorchester Hotel in London on Sunday night, a day before the European premiere of “The Dark Knight.”
Bale’s London-based law firm, Schillings, issued a statement denying that an assault took place.
“Christian Bale attended a London police station today on a voluntary basis,” the statement read. Bale denies the allegation and “cooperated throughout.”
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.
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Woodfire Grill’s Tuohy headed back west
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
After an impressive 22-year run as one of Atlanta’s most innovative and beloved chefs, Woodfire Grill chef/owner Michael Tuohy is returning to the left coast.
Louie Favorite / lfavorite@ajc.com
This fall, the San Francisco native and his wife, Patti, will move home where Tuohy is due to join the Joie de Vivre Hospitality Group, a San Francisco based boutique hotel brand, along with the Rubicon Development Group in Sacramento, to launch a new farm-to-table restaurant called Grange.
According to Tuohy’s blog, “Grange will be located at the new Citizen Hotel, located one block from the state capitol in Sacramento. We hope to open before the end of the year.”
Tuohy tells Buzz that he’s in the process of selling Woodfire Grill and hopes to stay on as an adviser “indefinitely.”
“I’m up for a new challenge but I’m going to miss Atlanta,” says Tuohy. “We’ve had such a wonderful clientele and staff over the years. And the relationships with the farmers have been very special to me.”
As the city’s foodies well know, Tuohy was an early champion of organic farming and creating healthful farm-to-table cuisine.
“For me, it was never a concept,” Tuohy explained Monday. “It was a lifestyle and a belief. It’s gratifying that those ideas are becoming more mainstream.”
The chef first established a name for himself when he was hired in 1986 to transform Chef’s Cafe into an irresistible taste of California wine country for Atlantans.
Thankfully, Tuohy will be at the stove for his Cheshire Bridge Road eatery’s annual tomato dinner set for July 30. His final night in the kitchen is planned to coincide with Woodfire’s sixth anniversary dinner Aug. 12.
Atlanta diners will be able to chart the chef’s updates via his always informative blog, www.michaeltuohy.typepad.com.
OVERSCENE
Morehouse grad and actor Samuel L. Jackson dining at Canoe with wife and Atlanta native LaTanya Richardson and family. Executive Chef Carvel Grant Gould visited with the Jackson party and brought out samplings of her rabbit dish.
STORK REPORT
It’s a boy!
Shaun’s owner Shaun Doty reports to Buzz that his chef Lance Gummere and wife Gracie are the proud parents of Ryland Bergeron Gummere. The newborn weighed in at 5 pounds, 14 ounces. Mommy and baby are doing well.
LENO OUT NEXT MAY
Conan O’Brien will take over the “Tonight” show next June — and what happens to Jay Leno after that is anybody’s guess.
Leno’s last show will be May 29, and O’Brien will start the following Monday, June 1, NBC executives told a Television Critics Association meeting on Monday.
NBC is angling to keep Leno but the late-night king has indicated he’s ready to jump ship. Eager NBC competitors, including other networks and syndicators, are prepared to help him make the leap.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Game show host Alex Trebek is 68. Singer George Clinton is 67. Singer-actor Bobby Sherman is 65. Singer Estelle Bennett of The Ronettes is 64. Actor Danny Glover is 61. Actor-comedian-director Albert Brooks is 61. Singer Emily Saliers of the Indigo Girls is 45. Singer Rufus Wainwright is 35. Actress Franka Potente (“The Bourne Identity”) is 34.
Contributing: Rachel Tobin Ramos and news services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
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Sweet praise for Sugarland in magazine
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Entertainment Weekly, which seldom delves into country music, did a four-page spread on Atlanta’s Sugarland for its July 25 edition in advance of the duo’s third album “Love on the Inside.” The magazine audaciously dubbed them “the most exciting country since the Dixie Chicks.”
The story points out where Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush first met (Decatur’s Eddie’s Attic) and how Bush bought his first cowboy hat on eBay for $9.98 in 2003 after signing with Mercury Nashville. It also quotes Brian Philips, now VP at CMT but formerly the program director at Atlanta’s 99X: “I think they’re bigger than country.” And Nettles shooed off rumors of her going solo: “Who’s to say Kristian couldn’t have a time when he wants to go solo?”
Laughing on stage
Smyrna-based renowned children’s group, Laughing Pizza, featured on the “Today” show and winner of several Parents Choice awards, will perform — for free — at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Decatur Book Festival Presented by DeKalb Medical.
The popular trio — mom, dad and daughter — sing pop-rock songs about family and food. They will perform at noon Aug. 30 on the children’s stage in Decatur.
Other events for kids include a Madeline children’s parade and appearances from notable children’s and young adult authors including Toni Diterlizzi, Cheryl Klein and Doreen Cronin. For more information about the book festival, go to www.decaturbookfestival.com.
Brenda’s back
Brenda Walsh is all grown up and returning to her old ZIP code — Beverly Hills, 90210 — this fall.
But cast members of the new CW spinoff, “90210,” are speculating whether Shannen Doherty will be equally mature when she reprises her role as Walsh.
“I have heard some of the stories,” “90210” star AnnaLynne McCord said of the sometimes volatile relationship between Doherty and co-star Jennie Garth on the original series, “Beverly Hills, 90210,” which aired from 1990 to 2000.
Garth is returning to her role as Kelly Taylor, now a school guidance counselor, on “90210.” Another of the original stars, Tori Spelling, whose late father, Aaron Spelling, created the series, is also in the new show’s cast, reprising her role as Donna Martin.
In the new series, which premieres Sept. 2, Doherty’s Walsh is now a famous theater director invited back to West Beverly Hills High School to stage a musical, CW announced Saturday in, of course, Beverly Hills.
Chuck and Bob
“Hobnobbing with Bob” was what Chuck Leavell, keyboardist for the Rolling Stones and Georgia’s favorite tree farmer, and his wife, Rose Lane, were doing Saturday night.
They got stuck in traffic as they traveled from their 2,500-acre Twiggs County farm, Charlane, to Atlanta. But they still made it on time Saturday to visit with former National Public Radio anchor Bob Edwards at the Aflac-sponsored VIP party before Edwards’ speech at the Atlanta Press Club and Society of Professional Journalists awards gala, held at the Commerce Club.
The musician and the radio announcer struck up a friendship after Edwards interviewed Leavell for more than an hour in NPR’s studios in 2003. Later, Leavell was one of Edwards’ first guests after the velvet-voiced radio anchor moved to XM Satellite Radio.
“I’m a huge fan of Bob’s,” said Leavell. “He was so well-prepared for the interview.”
After his short speech (which he said he hadn’t prepared in advance), Edwards was asked the “real” reason for leaving NPR after 24 and a half years.
“I left NPR because they were not saying nice things about me,” was the answer. In his trademark smooth voice, he added that none of those people are still there, and one was fired.
During the speech, he said he’s writing a book that has elements of “intrigue, smears, lies, hush money and a spy.” When Buzz confirmed later it was his autobiography, he leaked the working title: “A Voice in the Box.”
Birthdays
Actor Paul Burke (“Dynasty,” “Naked City”) is 82. Actress Patricia Elliott (“One Life To Live”) is 66. Singer Yusuf Islam (Cat Stevens) is 60. Cartoonist Garry Trudeau (“Doonesbury”) is 60. Comedian-actor Robin Williams is 57. Singer-guitarist Eric Bazilian of The Hooters is 55. Comedian Jon Lovitz is 51. Actor Lance Guest (“Lou Grant”) is 48. “American Idol” runner-up Blake Lewis is 27.
On my iPod: Rainn Wilson, Emmy nominee as Dwight on “The Office.”
He loves indie rock.
“Wilco and Radiohead are my two favorite bands,” he told Buzz while in town to promote his new movie “The Rocker,” due out next month. The Buzz caught up with him at Criminal Records in Little 5.
“Josh Ritter: “The Historical Conquests of Josh Ritter.” “I think he’s the real deal.”
Other picks include The National: “Boxer,” Rogue Wave, Band of Horses: “Cease to Begin” and The Raconteurs new CD: “Consolers of the Lonely.”
Contributing: Rachel Ramos, Rodney Ho, Phil Kloer and news services.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
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Singer Angie Stone demonstrates her versatility
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
If you don’t catch recent Atlanta transplant Angie Stone performing Saturday at the Andrew and Walter Young Family YMCA at 2220 Campbellton Road, it might be a while before you hear the Grammy nominee sing.
The multitalented vocalist who has transitioned from ’80s rap group (Sequence) to R&B group (Vertical Hold) to solo soul power is branching out into other mediums as well.
“The book I’m writing with Sherri McGhee is in full throttle,” Stone told Buzz. “I’ve struck a deal with Ashley Stewart, so I should have jeans and shirts in there soon. I just shot a movie called ‘Pastor Brown’ [in Atlanta], and am about to do another one with my friend Idris Elba and Tasha Smith. TV’s coming along too; I’m doing some work on ‘Lincoln Heights’. And of course [her latest CD] ‘The Art of Love & War’ is still in stores, doing great. But at some point, yeah, I’m going to have to find some time to get back in the lab soon, and work on some new material. Focus on music again.”
Stone’s free appearance from 1 to 5 p.m. is part of the Fearless African-Americans Connected and Empowered (FACE) Diabetes Awareness campaign.
CRUISING DOWN KATZ
Buzz only imagines what it would be like to turn into the AJC building at Buzz Way, but until that magical moment, we’ll just have to live through local legal power Joel Katz. On Monday a quarter-mile stretch of Northside Drive between West Paces Ferry and Moores Mill Roads — that includes the Greenberg Traurig law firm where Katz serves as chairman — will officially become Joel Katz Parkway. The ceremony will take place in front of the Forum at 3290 Northside Parkway at 10 a.m. And state Sen. Jeff Mullis — who proposed the renaming, along with Georgia Music Hall of Fame inductee Dr. Bobbie Bailey — is scheduled to be on hand.
“Atlanta has been my home for more than 35 years,” Katz said in a statement. “It is where I built my career, and to be recognized in this manner is overwhelming.”
While we’re on the topic of Greenberg Traurig attorneys, Katz’s co-worker Rob Finan will be one of the industry heavyweights at a panel Sunday at Eddie’s Attic called “What You Need To Know To Succeed In The Music Business.” (Our first tip? Hire Joel Katz as Willie Nelson, Jimmy Buffett, Dallas Austin and the late James Brown did.) Joining Finan will be the Lowery Music Group’s publisher Butch Lowery; Rhythm & Soul/ASCAP’s Tremayne Anchrum; songwriter and director of UGA’s Music Business Program, Bruce Burch; and moderator and panel series founder Jennie Walker. The event starts at 4 p.m. at 515-B North McDonough St. in Decatur. It’s $15 for ASCAP and GMIA members, and UGA and GSU music business students. $20 for others. For more information go to www.gmia.org or www.eddiesattic.com.
OVERSCENE
• Actor Chad L. Coleman, who played Dennis “Cutty” Wise on the HBO series “The Wire” — at the Woodruff Arts Center minutes before the screening of former AJC business writer Lois Eric Elie’s documentary, “Faubourg Tremé: The Untold Story of Black New Orleans.” (Perhaps he was also celebrating the writing Emmy nod the now-defunct series received Thursday as well).
• Star 94 general manager Mark Kanov celebrated his retirement at the Mansion in Buckhead with 250 friends and family Thursday night after a whopping 40 years at the station. Among the attendees were the entire on-air staff including the Morning Mess, Cindy and Ray, mid-day guy Tripp West and night-time DJ Darik Kristopher. Former 94Q morning host Gary McKee (now retired) stopped by, along with veteran former Star 94 jock Tommy Sullivan, ex-99Xer Jimmy Baron and “Better Mornings” reporter Corinna Allen. Not surprisingly, Steve McCoy and Vikki Locke, who became the station’s signature stars during Kanov’s tenure, were not spotted in the crowd. After all, Kanov and his employer unsuccessfully sued the pair this year for breach of contract. The morning team is now heard on B98.5 FM.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Saturday: Guitarist Brian May of Queen is 61. Drummer Jason McGerr of Death Cab For Cutie is 34. Actor Jared Padalecki (“Supernatural”) is 26.
Sunday: Actress Diana Rigg (“The Avengers”) is 70. Guitarist Carlos Santana is 61. Singer Chris Cornell of Audioslave and of Soundgarden is 44. Actor Josh Holloway (“Lost”) is 39. Singer Elliott Yamin (“American Idol”) is 30. Dancer-country singer Julianne Hough (“Dancing with the Stars”) is 20.
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
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Fans buy into singer’s way with words
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
On his first full-length album, New York-based singer-songwriter Jay Brannan takes humorous aim at a certain omnipresent TV show that on Thursday was nominated for multiple Emmys.
“Am I suicidal or am I hungry?” Brannan wistfully wonders on the track. ” ‘American Idol’ get the hell off my TV.”
“It’s more a song about being frustrated in my life by a job that I was sick of and a general feeling of being lost,” Brannan told Buzz prior to his gig Friday night at Vinyl in Midtown. “When I got to the chorus, ‘American Idol’ was just something annoying me. It’s a karaoke contest. There’s no artistry attached to it at all. It makes me sad.”
Brannan, who first got noticed as an actor in director John Cameron Mitchell’s 2006 comic drama “Short Bus,” might actually be the anti- “American Idol.” Using just his MySpace page, his Blogspot account and YouTube, Brannan has built a loyal, even fanatical international following (total strangers offer to cook for him on MySpace) with zero assistance from the corporate music biz.
The emotionally charged, wry, quirky works on his new lo-fi album (which, alas, can’t be referred to in a family newspaper) has critics calling him a male Joni Mitchell.
Not unexpectedly, Brannan has another comparison: ” ‘The Little Mermaid’ on crack.”
For his first full-length international tour, Brannan has taken a leave from a proofreading job and is existing largely on gig money and
T-shirt and CD sales.
“And I have a very high credit limit!” he cracked.
But the 20-something singer is finding fame a bit weird when it comes to dating.
On his new song “At First Sight,” he writes: “You like the guy on your iPod, not the guy in your bed. After the fan mail, came anthrax. Now you wish I were dead.”
“Yeah, I kinda write out of anger and frustration and pain,” Brannan said with a laugh. “My problem is that they just disappear. What’s wrong with saying, ‘I’m just not interested?’ But those experiences are good to have in the middle of the night in my apartment when I’m writing or making my videos. It’s an intimacy that everyone can relate to.”
Brannan will perform at 9 Friday night at Vinyl in Midtown. Tickets: $12.
NAKED AT THE NET
Solely in the interest of Buzz readers, we spent our lunch hour Thursday doing some, er, research with a certain men’s magazine. Or as our more sedate newsroom neighbor, the Social Butterfly, said with a shudder: “Please tell me you’re not flipping through a Playboy over there!”
More specifically, the August issue, featuring “Love, Ashley,” the nude pictorial of tennis pro and Rossville native Ashley Harkleroad. The 61st-ranked player in the world first set the sexy stage for her Playboy debut back in 2001 when a 16-year-old Harkleroad hit the U.S. Open in form-fitting, skin-baring, eyebrow-raising blue Lycra.
“People put expectations on me because of the way I look,” Harkleroad, 23, tells Playboy. “But you can’t think about what people say. You just have to do your thing.
Harkleroad’s “thing” includes two tattoos, lacy undergarments and potentially the skimpiest tennis skirt ever manufactured.
Of her bod, Harkleroad tells the mag: “I’m a little more muscular than some girls, but that’s who I am. You don’t have to be waif-thin and have huge boobs to be sexy.”
At deadline Thursday, Buzz, meanwhile, was experiencing multiple muscle spasms while trying to replicate Harkleroad’s gravity-defying upside-down chair pose on page 108 …
DISH FROM DWIGHT
Rainn Wilson, who plays Dwight Schrute on NBC’s “The Office,” was in Atlanta Thursday when the Emmy Award nominations were announced and he found that, once again, he was up for best supporting actor.
“My quote unquote response,” Wilson said, practically marinating in irony, “is that I’m thrilled to be nominated. I’m very excited to go back to the Emmys this year. The food was terrific.”
Wilson lost last year to Jeremy Piven of “Entourage.”
“His time will come!” Wilson hissed with mock menace.
Wilson was in Atlanta Wednesday night and Thursday doing promotions for his upcoming comedy “The Rocker,” in which he plays a washed-up heavy metal drummer who gets an unlikely second shot at fame thanks to a YouTube video. A sharp music buff with a thorough knowledge of indie rock, he swung by Criminal Records in Little Five Points, where he bought “The Watchmen” graphic novel and “Stay Positive,” the new CD by The Hold Steady.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Orchestras and choirs love it. They don’t often get to wear miners helmets and do doo-wop.”
Monty Python’s Eric Idle on his latest musical, “Not the Messiah” — based on the comedy troupe’s classic “Life of Brian” — which features a 104-piece orchestra and a leaf blower.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Director Paul Verhoeven (“Showgirls”) is 70. Singer Martha Reeves of Martha and the Vandellas is 67. Country singer Ricky Skaggs is 54. Keyboardist John Hermann of Widespread Panic is 46. Actor Vin Diesel is 41. Drummer Tony Fagenson of Eve 6 is 30. Actress Kristen Bell (“Veronica Mars”) is 28. Singer Ryan Cabrera is 26. Actor Chace Crawford (“Gossip Girl”) is 23.
Contributing: Phil Kloer and news services
If you have a tip, call 404-526-2749. Or fax 404-526-5509. Or e-mail: buzz@ajc.com.
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The latest scoop on Elton John’s career
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Next week, Peachtree Road resident Elton John is set to celebrate a career milestone. The singer-songwriter will perform for the first time in Vermont.
With the tour date, John becomes one of the few performers to have gigged in all 50 states.
To mark the occasion, Vermont-based Ben & Jerry’s has created a special ice cream flavor, the aptly titled Goodbye Yellow Brickle Road and will be donating all profits from sales to the pianist’s pet charity, Elton John AIDS Foundation.
Ben & Jerry’s is offering a very limited batch of the stuff this week and next and at the concert on July 21.
“We think he saved the best for last,” says Jerry Greenfield, co-founder of Ben & Jerry’s. “There was only one way we could truly honor Sir Elton, and this monumental occasion, in true Ben & Jerry’s fashion.”
Yellow Brickle Road is humbly described by B&J as “an outrageous symphony of decadent chocolate ice cream, peanut butter cookie dough, butter brickle and white chocolate chunks.”
According to Greenfield, “We were trying to compose a flavor befitting of the energy, creativity and outrageous nature of the artist. We feel pretty good about the final combination we came up with and with having the Rocket Man’s seal of approval.”
“I can’t think of a more fun way to celebrate playing my 50th state, Vermont, than having Ben & Jerry’s create a special ice cream with all of my favorite flavors and ingredients,” said Sir Elton via a statement. “I’m especially pleased that they will be donating the proceeds to the Elton John AIDS Foundation.”
According to EltonJohn.com, the flavor was designed “after earlier meetings between both camps helped indicate Elton’s wish for something containing chocolate and peanut butter.”
Next week, B&J’s retail Vermont Scoop Shops will play Sir Elton’s music on the sound system and air the DVD from his 60th birthday concert at Madison Square Garden.
Regrettably, we’re told that sequins will not replace the more traditional industry standard of sprinkles as a topping for Yellow Brickle Road.
OVERSCENE
Singer N’Dambi sitting in with the house band and enjoying some sea bass and peach cobbler at Café Circa. The one-time background singer for Erykah Badu also gave a surprise performance at Moods Music in Little Five Points this week. She was in town rehearsing with Atlanta-based Stax legend William Bell before their week of shows in Finland and the Netherlands, which start today. And apparently N’Dambi found a fan in Atlanta City Councilman Caesar Mitchell, as he got her “Little Lost Girls Blues” and “Tunin’ Up & Cosignin’ ” CDs signed in between her cobbler bites.
WOOD IN REHAB
Rolling Stones guitarist Ronnie Wood entered a rehabilitation facility Wednesday for help with alcoholism.
“Following Ronnie’s continued battle with alcohol he has entered a period of rehab,” a spokeswoman said. “His close family and friends say he is seeking help and look forward to his recovery.”
Wood, 61, has fought a long battle with alcoholism during his rock ‘n’ roll career, which started in the 1960s when he played with the band The Faces.
His spokeswoman didn’t release any details about the treatment he will receive or the clinic that he entered.
The guitarist had seemed to be in good health in recent years. He has developed a strong second career as an artist, selling his paintings at some of London’s respected art galleries.
But he has been the focus of feverish recent UK newspaper reports about his resuming drinking.
SICK BAY
Singer Natalie Cole has been diagnosed with hepatitis C, her publicist said in a statement Wednesday.
The statement said the disease was revealed during a routine examination and was likely caused by her drug use years ago.
“I’ve been so fortunate to have learned so much from my past experiences,” said Cole. “I am embraced by the love and support of my family and friends.”
Her physician at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, Dr. Graham Woolf, said Cole has had a “terrific response to her medication and is now virus negative.”
“This gives her an increased chance of cure,” he said. Woolf said Cole is recovering from side effects of the medicine she’s taking, including fatigue, muscle aches and dehydration.
Cole, 58, is the daughter of Nat King Cole and the niece of Atlanta Grammy nominee Freddy Cole.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
TV personality Art Linkletter is 96. Comedian Phyllis Diller is 91. Actor Donald Sutherland is 73. Actress-singer Diahann Carroll is 73. Guitarist Spencer Davis of the Spencer Davis Group is 66. Actor Andre Royo (“The Wire”) is 40. Actress Bitty Schram (“Monk”) is 40. Country singer Luke Bryan is 32.
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.
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Christie’s to auction Brown belongings
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The cape is getting closer. This week, South Carolina Court of Appeals Judge Jasper Cureton ruled that a New York auction of late soul singer James Brown’s belongings in New York can go forward as planned Thursday.
Christie’s auction house will oversee the auction of 320 items for sale, including a red jumpsuit and, yes, a blue satin cape. For many fans, the highlight of a James Brown show was the moment when an exhausted Godfather would be draped in one of his signature capes and led off the stage at the end of a show. Invariably, the singer would shake off the cape and delight screaming fans by returning to the microphone for one last encore. Originally, a lock of the Godfather of Soul’s hair was also planned to be auctioned this week, but apparently those plans have now changed.
The singer’s former business managers, Buddy Dallas and Alfred Bradley, had argued the auction should be stopped. They claimed the court should not have been able to appoint new trustees to handle Brown’s estate.
Augusta’s favorite son died of heart failure at age 73 on Christmas Day 2006 in Atlanta.
NEXT GENERATION LIKES TO FLY SOLO
Atlanta’s youthful Motown of the South has still managed to be around long enough to see a second generation of contemporary R&B acts come around. More specifically, a solo generation of acts.
Marvin “Slim” Scandrick of multimillion-selling quartet 112 — named after the now-closed Atlanta club where the group once auditioned for Sean “Diddy” Combs — is the latest to join this group. The most prominent vocalist on such 112 hits as “Only You,” “Cupid” and “Peaches & Cream” has a new, building single titled “So Fly” and a video with its featured Atlanta rappers — Yung Joc and Shawty Lo — fresh in the can.
“I’m kind of, sort of, reintroducing myself to people — even though I’ve been doing this for 12 years,” the Grammy winner said. “Being in a group — a real strong group such as 112 — we wanted to push the brand. We wanted the brand to be a household name — to the point where we really didn’t care whether you knew our names or not. We wanted to be when you said ‘112,’ still say ‘112,’ you say, ‘Oh they’re hot!’
“So with this album coming out, ‘Loves Crazy’ [due in stores Sept. 9], it’s like, ‘Hello, my name is Slim; and this is my take on love.’ ”
Scandrick was quick to add that everything was fine with fellow 112 members Q, Mike and Daron. “As a matter of fact, in about three hours we’re going to rehearse for a show in Providence. … We’ve worked too hard, the brand is too big and we’re too much like brothers to stop 112. Everybody’s just trying to individually express themselves right now.”
Q and Daron are also working on solo projects. The twins from fellow Atlanta R&B quartet Jagged Edge were also recording their own album. The Scott sisters in local multimillion-selling group Xscape, meanwhile, have ventured out individually, as has Kandi — a songwriter, as well, who recently was in the studio with Ciara.
Rozonda “Chilli” Thomas of TLC who’s had her sights on a solo bow for some time, and after a stint with Akon, is now reportedly near a deal with Koch.
OVERSCENE
Atlanta Falcons rookie quarterback Matt Ryan hasn’t played a single game here yet, but Buzz reader Jennifer Dollar is already a fan. In an e-mail to Buzz Central on Tuesday, Dollar tells us the 23-year-old spent about 90 minutes sitting with her and her husband at the Kenny Chesney show Sunday night at Turner Field.
“He was such a great guy,” reports Dollar. “He was dancing and singing and was a real gentleman. He posed for numerous photos once fans began to realize who he was. It is so nice to see that our Atlanta Falcons have made a classy choice to lead our team.”
One potential definition of “classy”: Ryan apparently doesn’t possess a fervent need to fling his middle digits at fans and worse, probably has an embarrassing absence of felony dogfighting convictions on his résumé.
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
Drummer Stewart Copeland of the Police is 56. Actor Will Ferrell (“Saturday Night Live”) is 41. Actor Corey Feldman is 37. Singer-guitarist Ed Kowalczyk of Live is 37. Actress AnnaLynne McCord (“Nip/Tuck”) is 21. Actor Mark Indelicato (“Ugly Betty”) is 14.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“These gentlemen and these ladies have never seen the Philadelphia side of me.”
Atlanta Mayor Shirley “Bring It!” Franklin addressing the screaming protesters as herzzoner oversaw the closing of Fire Station 7 on Monday. The Philadelphia native then descended from the podium for a more intimate face-to-face conversation.
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.
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Young ‘Swing Vote’ actress tastes a few local favorites
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
“Swing Vote” actress Madeline Carroll immediately ingratiated herself with the local media Monday.
For starters, she’s adorable and 12. Plus, at the conclusion of each interview, she hugged each of the media folks covering her, including B98.5 FM’s Steve McCoy and Vikki Locke, “Atlanta and Company” co-host Tom Sullivan, “Good Day Atlanta” road warrior Mark Hyman and “Better Mornings” reporter Corinna Allen.
Between interviews, the pint-size thespian had a rather un-divalike lunch request — a 12-piece box of nuggets, fries and a sweet tea from Chick-fil-A.
Madeline plays Kevin Costner’s daughter in the political comedy opening Aug. 1. Costner, his wife Christine and son Cayden arrived in town with Madeline and her mom Sunday. The families got the exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of the Georgia Aquarium (Madeline loved the whale sharks) before the entire party hit the Varsity in Midtown for a quick dinner.
And yes, the supper venue was also Madeline’s idea.
We’re told Costner ordered a chili burger while Madeline enjoyed a hamburger and the Varsity’s famous onion rings.
After members of another dining family approached the actor at the fast-food fixture and told him admiringly, “You look just like Kevin Costner!” he happily posed for pictures with the fans.
One potential downside to Madeline’s trip to Atlanta? Even though it’s technically summer, a school tutor was waiting for her when she arrived in town.
She hugged her temporary teacher anyway.
A NIGHT WITH PARIS
Atlanta, lock up your Chihuahuas. Hotel heiress and reality television tart Paris Hilton is headed this way. “The Simple Life” simpleton and her Good Charlotte rocker boyfriend Benji Madden are booked as the celebrity guests Aug. 2 at Pure Atlanta nightclub on Clairmont Road. Essentially, Hilton is now a rentable nightclub guest who will no doubt cause much neck strain in Pure’s plush Blue Room, Gold Room and Red Room VIP areas.
Madden is scheduled to do a live DJ at the club.
Want to get within spitting distance?
It’ll cost you. According to the club’s Web site, advance tickets just to get in the door are $20. The top-tier package for tables on either side of Hilton in the Gold Room where the sometime model is scheduled to hang will run from $1,500 to $3,000. Lower priced tickets that guarantee admission, open bar and access to all VIP areas are $150. Eighty dollars will get you inside and VIP access.
But the package most preferred by Buzz? The $100 deal, which guarantees admission and an open bar all night with absolutely zero promise of VIP access…
For more info: www.pureatlanta.net or 404-886-3467.
BIG WEEK FOR HILSON
This is election week to some, “Energy” week for Keri Hilson.
Atlanta record producer Polow Da Don shot us an e-mail alerting fans of the budding singer-songwriter that Hilson would be co-hosting “106 & Park” Monday — known as “Takeover of Nas” Day at BET.
(Part-time Atlantan Nas’ latest CD hits stores today, and Hilson is featured on the rapper’s first single, “Hero,” produced by Da Don).
On the show, Hilson also debuted the video for her first single, “Energy” — from her upcoming CD “In A Perfect World…”.
On Wednesday, Timbaland — who shares production and record label credits with Da Don on Hilson’s debut — will join her on MTV’s “TRL,” where she will also unveil “Energy.”
GOLDBERG GOING TO ‘XANADU’
Whoopi Goldberg is going back to Broadway.
Goldberg, a co-host on ABC’s “The View,” announced on the air Monday that