Tag: Oscar

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Hollywood, Broadway & More!

Keith’s Theatre, 3/2/25, special Oscar edition

(Move over Hopper, Parsons & St. Johns, there’s a new witch around)

I noticed it’s (yawn) Oscar Night in Hollywood.  Except for footage from Emilia Pérez, which I eviscerated several weeks ago, I’ve only found the time to peruse the trailers.

Speaking of Emilia Pérez, I understand that several old posts from Karla Sofía Gascón have suddenly surfaced.  That things could get so political and catty! Perish the thought.  Such behind-the-scenes scuffles by those clamoring for fame just makes my stomach churn…  

Such posts could thwart Miss Gascón’s chances for whisking the coveted Oscar off into the netherworld.  What surprises me most is that la señorita Gascón posted anything controversial in the first place, surely knowing the posts could reappear at the most inopportune moment. 

Which has apparently happened…

I’ve noticed of late that a plethora of influencers are feigning “outrage” that a biological male should ever be permitted to compete for best actress.

Seems to me we’re dealing with the art of illusion.  If someone’s truly convincing, perhaps they should be allowed to carry it to the extreme…

Besides, la señorita Gascón now identifies as female, and that should count for something, shouldn’t it?  Yes, she’s either “transexual” or “transgender/trans” (depending on which circles you travel in).  You see, words are being parsed these days in trans-world, as well as among gay men and Lesbians, where many resist using the term “queer.”  I perfectly understand since the notion of being “trans” or “queer” seems almost religious or cult-like these days.

Don’t cha think?

Enough of my opinions, let’s move on to who’ll win in the major categories! Who, oh, who will cart home those delectable little Oscars?

Anyone nominated should consider it an honor (obligatory lip service).  Having said that, let me add that it’s certainly no picnic when you’re stuck with a lousy script and director (ad-lib). 

I predict the Best Supporting Actor award will go to Kieran Culkin for his performance in A Real Pain.  Best Supporting Actress will be Zoe Saldaña for Emilia Pérez.  Karla Sofía Gascón won’t win for her role, and the ever-political Academy will have to toss something Emilia Pérez’s way.

Best Actor & Best Actress categories are decidedly more of a challenge. The former award will likely go to Adrien Brody, for his role in The Brutalist, and I believe the latter award will go for Fernanda Torres’ performance in I’m Still Here. 

Finally, we come to Best Picture category.  A wild guess…I’m Still Here.  Guess we’ll find out later today! As they say in the craft, break a leg. 

Until next time…

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Hollywood, Broadway & More! Miscellaneous Social Media

Keith’s Theatre, 1 /31/25

(Move over Hedda Hopper, Louella Parsons & Adela Rogers St. Johns)

Where, oh where is dear Miss Hedda when you need her most? We don’t miss the hideous millinery, but Keith’s Theatre sure misses her smarts.  She could’ve stopped the release of “Emilia Pérez,” with just one phone call.  So could Louella Parsons & even Adela Rogers St. Johns, as they both had a direct line to Hearst at San Simeon.  But alas, it’s 2025, which brings us to the cause célèbre at the moment, “Emilia Pérez.”

Best Picture, indeed!

I almost always keep my vicious mouth shut where Hollywood is concerned but when I was subjected to several snippets of this musical, well…the film was just screaming for a movie critic, so here goes…

                What in God’s name were you all thinking? Had I been charged with production; this idea would never have progressed past the planning stage.

Let’s see if I’ve got this straight, (70-year-old relic that I am):  a Mexican cartel kingpin decides it’s time to say bye-bye to Mr. Peepee and hello to Ms. V-jay-jay.  The entire thing is then scripted, set to atonic music, then subsequently, perish-the-thought, committed to celluloid!  

Oh, I almost forgot, someone had the bright idea to cast a transexual in the leading role, then nominate Miss Thing for best actress, thinking that’ll somehow redeem this horrendous mess. 

Piffle…

                Suffering through several minutes of this debacle was almost more than I could stomach, cannot fathom how anyone could endure the entire film, and furthermore, I’m amazed the cast could even keep a straight face while shooting.  I would’ve ended up spreadeagled on the floor, in spasmodic laughter.

Forget about potential paychecks, I’d say toodles & do triple-shifts at McDonald’s to pay my rent, thank you very much.  It clearly isn’t furthering the craft…oh wait a minute, there is no more craft! 

Don’t cha think?

Spending a lot of time these days browsing YouTube (the 21st century answer to NBC, ABC & CBS) and love the wit and wisdom of one Blaire White of The Blaire White Project.  Her reaction to selected Tik-Tok videos is especially luscious.

While we’re on the subject, what about the transexual that started it all, Christine Jorgensen? We certainly can’t forget this multi-talented lady who both acted and sang.  Her voice was soft and sultry, her nightclub acts were très chic, and don’t forget her summer stock performances as Madame Rosepettle in Arthur Kopit’s “Oh Dad, Poor Dad, Mamma’s Hung You in the Closet and I’m Feelin’ So Sad.”

Handsome Brad Polumbo has recently appeared on Sky News in Australia on several occasions.  What a catch for someone! You rule, Brad!

                Jon Voight, perennially handsome & a fine actor in many films, is apparently inside the presidential circle.  Oh-so-painfully recalled the 1970 best picture Oscar win for “Midnight Cowboy,” since I was just 16, and remember all too well its initial “X” rating that was later downgraded to “R.”  It didn’t matter, though, since I couldn’t get in then and didn’t until ’72, when I turned 18.  The infamous “X” rating was all the result of one racy (at the time) scene in the men’s room with a male hustler which didn’t surprise me much, and I ended up hustling myself a few years later.  It was simply a matter of fate, or possibly God’s will?

Oh, blessèd memories of my boyhood in the 50s where endless scraps of film ended up on the cutting room floor…who could forget the censorship of the Eisenhower era? Guess we can thank the 1960s “hippie effect” for reversing that trend (yes, I was one of “those hippies”). 

Too bad the subsequent “hippie” liberation got completely out of hand, exponentially, which brings us to the present moment!

Don’t cha think, or don’t cha? Until next time…