oc/tk role ship songs because brainrot
pip/megan: EVERYTHING BY FLOWER FACE except the ones aimed at abusers but JUPITER, SPIRACLE, CORNFLOWER BLUE, ISOBEL, SUGAR WATER sort of, BAD ASTROLOGY!! i want you, i don’t smoke, i will, come into the water - (all) Mitski, savior complex - phoebe bridgers, waiting room - phoebe bridgers, bus stop - graham coxon, sinner - the last dinner, OKAY I NEED TO STOP BUT THERES TONS I HAVE FEELINGS
aitken/hailee: just like heaven - the cure, teenage dirtbag - wheatus, your love - the outfield, maybe tonight - the knack, campus - vampire weekend, with a girl like you - the troggs, lovers rock - tv girl, sunday - the cranberries, science fiction - divinyls, (okay here’s the basic pop music are you ready? it’s not a lot.) broken - lovelytheband, a different kind of beautiful - alec benjamin, she’s so high - tal bachman
greg/alice: girl - jukebox the ghost, 1953 - the national parks, WYD now? - sadie jean, saturday sun - vance joy, heartbreak weather - niall horan, like or like like - miniature tigers, locksmith - sadie jean, fall in love alone - stacey ryan, shut up - greyson chance, bad habit - steve lacy, still into you - paramore, don’t take the money - bleachers, if you’re too shy let me know - the 1975, teenager in love - madison beer, adventure of a lifetime - coldplay
wirm/unnamed - p*rn star dancing - my darkest days, money honey, govt h**ker, G.U.Y. - (all) lady gaga, dirty little thing- adelitas way, something in your mouth - nickleback, yankee rose - david lee roth, smarty, be my daddy, be the boss, trash magic, jealous girl, west coast - (all) lana del rey, my sharona, lucinda, frustrated - (all) the knack, breakin dishes - rihanna, using you - mars argo
0 notes
REVIEW: "Peter and the Starcatcher" at GhostLit Rep
REVIEW: “Peter and the Starcatcher” at GhostLit Rep
View On WordPress
3 notes
·
View notes
Movie Review: “Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind”
“Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind” ends with a montage of the title subject singing the title song through the decades.
The sights and sounds are startling, as Lightfoot has gone through so many physical changes that he’s virtually unrecognizable in a number of the clips. He’s also the rare vocalist whose voice has gotten higher over the years.
Running 90 minutes and spanning virtually all of Lightfoot’s then-79 years - the film features an audio recording of the future superstar singing soprano in the church choir through to the almost-octogenarian, still smoking cigarettes, playing the famed Massey Hall before it closed for a major renovation in 2018 - “If You Could Read My Mind” paints a complete portrait of Canada’s favorite son, complete with a bunch of surprises.
One minor shocker - one that can be told without giving away too much - is the final version of “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” is the band’s first take with very few overdubs.
To help advance the story, the contemporary Lightfoot walks the Toronto streets he walked as a young hopeful, telling tales along the way. He sings the songs that made him a Canadian national hero and an American-radio perennial. He and his parents - the singer is a junior, another minor revelation - discuss his drive in an early-career interview. And his many fans - mostly, but not all, fellow Canadians - praise the man they call “Gord” for his ability as singer, songwriter and musician who reads and notates music fluently.
Rush’s Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson, the Guess Who’s Burton Cummings and Randy Bachman, Anne Murray, Sarah McLachlan, Steve Earle, Ian and Sylvia and - weirdly - Alec Baldwin are among the artists who marvel at his songs. Neil Young, Glen Campbell Johnny Cash, Peter, Paul and Mary and others sing them in archival clips and audio snippets.
Filmmakers Martha Kehoe and Joan Tosoni erred in not putting dates on historical footage, leaving viewers to guess when certain performances and interviews took place. And though the documentary mentions his struggles with - and ultimate abandonment of - alcohol, it also ignores health problems, including a stroke, that kept him off the road for long stretches.
Even with that, people who know Lightfoot only from the radio will come away with a deeper appreciation for the artist. And those who own everything he’s ever released will likewise learn a thing or two - or 10.
Lightfoot has regrets - he stopped playing “(That’s What You Get) For Loving Me” after becoming embarrassed by its chauvinism - and wishes he had better treated the women he loved. Ultimately though, Lightfoot - sitting at a desk and pondering his life story - thinks it’s been a pretty good ride overall.
After watching “If You Could Read My Mind,” it’s easy to see why.
Grade card: “Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind” - A-
9/1/20
5 notes
·
View notes
Struggle-La Lucha joined the historic Indigenous Peoples March in Washington, D.C., Jan 18 to support sovereignty and uplift the voices of #MMIWG2S - Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and 2-Spirits.
Read more here
Photos by Miranda Bachman and Alec Sommerfeld
7K notes
·
View notes
2021 MLB Mock Draft: High school shortstops, Vanderbilt arms among the top prospects
New Post has been published on https://tattlepress.com/mlb/2021-mlb-mock-draft-high-school-shortstops-vanderbilt-arms-among-the-top-prospects/
2021 MLB Mock Draft: High school shortstops, Vanderbilt arms among the top prospects
The MLB Draft is just over a week away, and unlike in past years, there is no slam dunk pick for No. 1.
In past years, it was just a question of how fast the Orioles could announce the pick of Oregon State catcher Adley Rutschman (2019) or whether the Tigers would start playing Arizona State hitter Spencer Torkelson at first base or third base (2020).
This year, there is a strong group of high school shortstops, a pair of exciting Vanderbilt pitchers and a few college bats that could generate some buzz anywhere in the top 10.
We’re taking our best shot at what the draft will look like when the commissioner reads the first-round picks on July 11.
MORE: Who is confirmed to swing in the Home Run Derby?
Here’s our latest projections for a 2021 MLB Draft first round.
1. Pirates — Marcelo Mayer, SS, Eastlake High (Chula Vista, Calif.)
The discussion around this draft has been that there is no consensus No. 1 pick as there has been in previous years, but the Pirates have been linked to Mayer for a long time. The high school shortstop has one of the best hit tools and some raw power that excites many scouts, especially when combined with his above-average defense at shortstop.
2. Rangers — Jordan Lawlar, SS, Jesuit Prep (Dallas)
The Rangers are going with the local product second overall here. Lawlar is perhaps a more dynamic talent than Mayer with his speed and power combination, but his hit tool and defense are behind the California product. A shortstop with tons of upside and a home just a few miles from Globe Life Park? It feels like a perfect fit for the rebuilding Rangers.
3. Tigers — Brady House, SS, Winder-Barrow (Ga.) High
Prep shortstops now round out the top three as the Tigers opt to go for the upside in House’s bat over the dynamic arms of Jack Leiter and Jackson Jobe. House might have to move off shortstop eventually to play third base as he is not the most agile, but his bat will play anywhere on the diamond. House and Spencer Torkelson could make for an enviable middle-of-the-order combination down the road.
4. Red Sox — Jack Leiter, RHP, Vanderbilt
The run on high school shortstops finally comes to an end at No. 4 with the Red Sox landing the son of former big leaguer Al Leiter. Vanderbilt’s ace has reportedly wanted to land in Boston and he’ll have the leverage himself down to the Red Sox as the top college arm. He’s so refined on the mound that he might not take long in the minors and could help the resurgent Red Sox earlier than many other prospects in this year’s draft.
5. Orioles — Sal Frelick, OF, Boston College
The Orioles might be tempted to take the best talent off the board left in catcher Henry Davis of Louisville, even with top catching prospect Adley Rutschman in their system, but Baltimore is saving money and taking the Boston College outfielder early. Baltimore made a similar move last year in reaching to take Arkansas outfielder Heston Kjerstad second overall, but this time instead of power upside, the Orioles go for Frelick and his hit/speed combination.
6. Diamondbacks — Henry Davis, C, Louisville
Arizona has been linked to other names like Kahlil Watson and Jackson Jobe, but if Davis is available here, the Diamondbacks would probably jump at the chance to take him. He’s a college catcher with a refined hit tool and plus power who should be able to stay at the position as he’s continued to improve behind the plate. Even if he can’t hold up there defensively, Davis offers plenty in the bat to make him worthy of a high pick.
7. Royals — Kumar Rocker, RHP, Vanderbilt
With recent high-round picks of Brady Singer, Jackson Kowar and Asa Lacy, the Royals have established they’re big on SEC pitching. It just so happens that a dynamic SEC hurler is available for them to take at this spot. Rocker was already coveted out of high school, and he’s gotten even better with improved command and refined secondary offerings. He might have the most upside of any of the college arms taken by Kansas City in recent years.
8. Rockies — Kahlil Watson, SS, Wake Forest (N.C.) High
Watson has generated a lot of buzz to go higher than No. 8 and could be a potential pick to go as high as No. 2 to the Rangers, but here, he’s falling to the Rockies. He has flown up prospect rankings of late due to his complete game, with the ability to hit for average and power, his speed and his slick defense at shortstop. The Rockies reportedly want a hitter, and they’d be more than happy with landing Watson.
9. Angels — Jackson Jobe, RHP, Heritage Hall High (Oklahoma City)
Another team very happy to land a high upside prep player, the Angels watch as Jobe falls to them at No. 9. Evaluators have said Jobe might have the most upside of any pitcher in this class — yes, even higher than the Vandy arms — with premium velocity and the best slider in the draft. Jobe has ace potential and the Angels would welcome the chance to work on developing him into that arm.
10. Mets — Matt McLain, SS, UCLA
The Mets have been linked to several college bats, as well as prep third baseman Colson Montgomery as a bonus-saving pick, but here they’ll take the top college infielder in this year’s class. McLain came into the 2021 year ranked much higher by evaluators, but got off to a slow start. He put it together near the end of the season and his plus hit tool, speed and the potential to add power could make him an enticing prospect.
11. Nationals — Ty Madden, RHP, Texas
The Nationals would love it for Jobe to fall to them, but it’s not happening in this mock. Instead, they’re going to draft the top college arm left in Texas’ Ty Madden. The right-hander has mid-90s velocity, a sharp slider and above-average control that makes him a refined pitching prospect and a pitcher many see as being a potential front-of-the-rotation starter.
12. Mariners — Colton Cowser, OF, Sam Houston
An outfield of Jarred Kelenic, Kyle Lewis and Taylor Trammell already sounds pretty good. Do the Mariners need more? Well, it’s always best to take the most talented player left and that’s the case with Cowser still on the board. Seattle wants a bat to draft, and Cowser offers one of the best college hit/speed combinations in this year’s class.
13. Phillies — Benny Montgomery, OF, Red Land High (Lewisberry, Pa.)
The Phillies have been consistently linked to the central Pennsylvania product, who might have the most upside of any player in the draft. The hit tool has drawn questions from scouts, but he’s one of the fastest players in the draft, offers tons of raw power and can play above-average defense in center field.
14. Giants — Jordan Wicks, LHP, Kansas State
After Cowser and Frelick are off the board, San Francisco will probably be looking at Wicks as their pick. Far and away the best left-handed college pitcher in the draft, Wicks has perhaps the class’ best changeup and above-average command. He could be a quick riser in the minors given his advanced feel for pitching and well-rounded repertoire.
15. Brewers — Harry Ford, C, North Cobb High (Kennesaw, Ga.)
Ford is one of the most interesting players in the draft as a catcher with an above-average run tool and the ability to play any position on the field, including center field. The Brewers have been linked to Ford and would love to add the athletic backstop with the lightning fast bat to their farm system should he fall to them at No. 15.
16. Marlins — Will Taylor, OF, Dutch Fork High (Irmo, S.C.)
Reports have indicated it will take a lot to pry Taylor from a dual commitment to play football and baseball at Clemson in the 2021-22 school year, but here, Miami is going to count on being able to sign him away from the Tigers. He’s one of the most athletic players in this year’s draft with one of the best run tools and the ability to develop some more power with more development.
17. Reds — Bubba Chandler, RHP/SS, North Oconee High (Bogart, Ga.)
The Reds have loved picking dual-threat talents in previous years, with Michael Lorenzen showing off his prowess with the bat as a bonus to his pitching skills and Hunter Greene getting the chance to bat before focusing full-time on pitching. Cincinnati will try the experiment out again with Chandler here, looking to see if the tooled-out shortstop makes more of a statement with the bat or if his lights-out fastball/curveball combo forces the team to look more at his arm.
18. Cardinals — Will Bednar, RHP, Mississippi State
After a dazzling outing in the final game of the College World Series to help deliver his team the win, Bednar is certainly going to be continuing his rise up prospect rankings. The Cardinals have been linked to several college arms and Bednar with his plus command and standout array of pitches would fit the team’s desire in this draft nicely.
19. Blue Jays — Sam Bachman, RHP, Miami (Ohio)
Bachman’s slide down the board stops here. The Blue Jays have found success with hard-throwing college arms in the past like Nate Pearson and Alec Manoah, and they’ll jump on Bachman if he’s available in this spot. The Miami (Ohio) product already hits triple-digits and has one of the hardest fastballs in the draft. On top of that, he offers a wipeout slider and above-average changeup to give him a well-rounded repertoire.
20. Yankees — Gunnar Hoglund, RHP, Mississippi
Before he went down with Tommy John surgery, Hoglund was viewed as a possible front half of the first round talent. If the Yankees are willing to wait on him to come back from surgery, as they did with South Carolina hurler Clarke Schmidt back in 2017, who also underwent surgery before the draft, they could be getting a steal. His control is among the best in the draft and his repertoire is deep with a plus fastball and slider.
21. Cubs — Michael McGreevy, RHP, UC Santa Barbara
Chicago has also been linked with Florida outfielder Jud Fabian, a risky gamble on a player with upside, but here the Cubs are going the safe route with a pitcher that has drawn comps to fellow Gaucho Shane Bieber. McGreevy draws positive marks for his well above-average control and his fastball/slider combination that could see an increase in velocity with some more development in his 6-foot-4 frame.
22. White Sox — Colson Montgomery, 3B, Southridge High (Huntingburg, Ind.)
Some rumors have had Montgomery going higher in the draft as a chance for a team to cut a deal and save money for later, but he’s falling down to No. 22 here to the White Sox. Chicago has been linked to the 19-year-old slugging third baseman, who would give the farm system a big upside play as a potential middle-of-the-order bat.
23. Indians — Jud Fabian, OF, Florida
The Indians have shown a willingness in previous drafts to gamble on upside early over the higher floor players, and that’s what Fabian offers them. A tough 2021 dropped Fabian in rankings from potentially being the first college bat taken to possibly even a second-rounder, but he has tons of raw power and offers the speed needed to play all three outfield positions. If Cleveland can get him to click, it could be getting a steal late in the first.
24. Braves — Ky Bush, LHP, Saint Mary’s
Atlanta is seemingly linked to arms every year in the draft and have done well with several recent high picks like Mike Soroka and Max Fried having positive impacts on the team. Here, they’re taking the hard-throwing lefty from Saint Mary’s, Ky Bush. If the Braves want to speed him to the big leagues, he could be a weapon out of the bullpen quickly with his fastball/slider combination, or they could work him as a starter over time.
25. Athletics — Alex Mooney, SS, St. Mary’s Prep (Orchard Lake Village, Mich.)
Mooney has made quite a rise up prospect rankings with his quick swing and a well-rounded game at shortstop. Oakland has been linked to a number of different bats and Mooney could fit what the A’s are looking for as a player that offers some upside at an up-the-middle position while also providing a high enough floor as a player already displaying impressive tools.
26. Minnesota Twins — Adrian Del Castillo, C, Miami
Del Castillo was an early favorite among evaluators as a catcher with an exciting hit tool and some pop with the potential to stay behind the plate. Struggles in the 2021 campaign have taken him out of the conversation as the first catcher taken, but the Twins have been linked to him with the belief they could still tap into that potential and have a bat-first backstop.
27. San Diego Padres — Andrew Painter, RHP, Calvary Christian (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
The Padres have not shied away from taking tooled-out players early in the draft in the past, and they’ll nab one of the highest-upside pitchers in the class with Andrew Painter falling to them at No. 27. Painter has an explosive arm with three plus pitches and above-average control, and at 6-foot-7, there could be room for adding more velo. He could go much earlier than this spot when draft day comes.
28. Tampa Bay Rays — Trey Sweeney, SS, Eastern Illinois
In a short amount of time, Sweeney has improved his draft stock by showing off one of the best hit tools in college and some pop that could grow to be an average or better tool for him. The Rays have shown in the past they can do a lot with high floor batters and Sweeney fits that mold well. His defense at short isn’t great, but the bat would play in the outfield or at third base if needed.
29. Dodgers — Chase Petty, RHP, Mainland (Linwood, N.J.)
Few teams have the track record of successfully developing high upside prospects like the Dodgers, and they’re banking on getting the most out of Petty in this year’s class. Perhaps the owner of the best raw stuff of any high school pitcher, Petty throws in the upper-90s with a fastball in the triple-digits and can spin a plus slider and average to above-average changeup. Some teams have concerns over reliever risk, but here, Los Angeles sees front-of-the-rotation potential.
!function(f,b,e,v,n,t,s) if(f.fbq)return;n=f.fbq=function()n.callMethod? n.callMethod.apply(n,arguments):n.queue.push(arguments); if(!f._fbq)f._fbq=n;n.push=n;n.loaded=!0;n.version='2.0'; n.queue=[];t=b.createElement(e);t.async=!0; t.src=v;s=b.getElementsByTagName(e)[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(t,s)(window,document,'script', 'https://connect.facebook.net/en_US/fbevents.js'); fbq('init', 235247967118144); fbq('track', 'PageView');
Source link
0 notes
CANTLON: UCONN FINISHES WEEKEND WITH SWEEP OVER MIAMI (OH)
BY: Gerry Cantlon, Howlings
HARTFORD, CT - The UCONN Huskies battled hard and swept a weekend non-conference series over the visiting Miami (OH) Riverhawks with a 4-3 victory on Saturday at the XL Center before a small crowd of just 2,735.
The second period was devoid of real quality scoring chances by either team except for the first six minutes.
Miami came out with a fierce forecheck and pinned UCONN in their own end and they were able to tie the game at two.
The Redhawks Derek Daschke circled the net and found Monte Graham open in the slot and with traffic in front snapped his third goal past Tomas Vomacka at 1:10 and tied the game at two.
UCONN answered back just 1:04 later.
Zac Robbins broke in with Brian Rigali. Robbins fed Rigali, who's been snakebitten of late, who, from 30 feet out, whistled a wrist shot over the blocker of Ben Kraws to help the Huskies get back their lead at 3-2.
It was one of several turning points for the Huskies.
“It was the key to the game. They had just tied it up,” remarked UCONN head coach, Mike Cavanaugh. “They felt good about themselves coming back and scoring on that next shift got the momentum right back for us.”
Robbins says the play starts very early in the week. “It starts with practice on Monday. We really skate hard throughout the week and on Saturday we're ready for whatever comes at us. Day-in and day-out, I don’t do anything special. I just try to bring energy every single day, so good things are finally coming.”
Robbins has been a strong contributor to the team's turnaround the last month.
UCONN got some puck luck helped them extend the lead to two goals.
It started with a faceoff win on the power play by Jachym Kondelik and Wyatt Newpower taking the puck and feeding his defensive partner, Yan Kuznetsov at the blue line for a 55-foot blast.
The shot just sailed past the left post and hit the backboards. In his backswing, Kraws, while trying to stop the initial shot, caught the puck and put it into his own net at 5:48.
“We got lucky on the goal, but good things happen when you shoot the puck. We have been preaching that as of late, and that’s why we're scoring powerplay goals as of late.”
UCONN's improved late-game performance goes to the work of the team’s strength and conditioning coach Maureen Butler.
“I think we have a great strength and conditioning coach, Mo Butler, who does a phenomenal job with our guys. It just doesn’t start in September, but back in July. She has a good feel in keeping them in good shape conversing with us, how we should skate them on the ice. The reason we're in pretty good shape is primarily because of her.”
Miami kept chipping away. Just after a powerplay opportunity, they cashed in to narrow the gap back to one goal.
Karch Bachman was at the left point and made a perfect diagonal pass to Chase Pletzke, who in one motion on the right-wing, in one motion, put it back across the crease to John Sladic, who easily put in his second of the game and fourth goal of the season at 12:15.
The Huskies were able to handle the last push with the goalie pulled as Ben Freeman won a key late defensive zone draw to stifle the Redhawks.
The first half of the second period was a tight defensive battle with the best chance coming with a wide-open Rigali taking a Jordan Timmons pass from behind the net. Kraws stopped his first shot and his follow up a couple of whacks at the rebound trying to jam it past him at 6:38.
The second period was like a traffic jam with no room to maneuver.
The first opening UCONN took advantage.
Freeman made a good short pass to Robbins. He got Redhawks defenseman, Grant Frederic, turned around. Robbins scooted past him and cut across the net and slipped in his first of the season at 16:40.
For Robbins, who had battled back injuries over the past year, this was a sweet moment.
“I saw the defenseman had a bad gap. I yelled for the puck. Free made a great pass to me, and I was able to beat him wide and was able to get the puck and get it in.”
Cavanaugh was effusive about his sophomore winger.
“He was our Husky of the Week this week. We give out an award for someone who continually plays the right way not getting all the accolades he deserves. Zac been really solid and was really glad to see him rewarded with that goal tonight.”
The rejuvenation of Robbins' play comes down to one word - health.
“I’m finally healthy. I’ve had back issues in the past that took a toll on me mentally, but now that I’m healthy, it's helped my game a lot.”
Miami’s Phil Knies had two chances. The first on the right-wing and then at the end of his shift both denied by Vomacka. Green smacked one out of the air but missed the shot to the short-side with about 20 seconds left in the period.
Despite a strong, effective first half of the game at the start, it was Miami that got the game’s first goal.
From the left point, Alec Capstick, with Ryan Savage in front screening Vomacka, saw his linemate John Sladic make a perfect deflection up high for his third goal of the year at 11:27.
The Huskies tied the game at one 5:10 later. Kondelik had a right-wing rush and took a backhanded shot that Kraws saw go over and past his left post. Kraws only got a piece of it. Payusov was right there to get a piece of the puck as it went over the goal line at 16:37.
“Kondy (Kondelik) made the play getting it to the net. We had been practicing all week getting pucks to the net.”
The line has been clicking of late.
“We really complement each other. We bring different skills" remarked Payusov. “Gatty (Gatcomb) is such a good skater. Kondy is such a good passer and shoots the puck quickly and it makes it hard to defend against us, and aIso it's fun to play when we're playing like this.”
UCONN had the shot advantage of 18-9 with Marc Gatcomb, getting a quality chance, but Payusov and Kondeilk combined for seven of the 18 shots on net.
NOTES:
The Huskies switched up and played in their blue/gray uniforms.
Several other Miami (OH) Redhawks have pro hockey lineage. Carter Johnson’s grandfather, Bob Leiter, played 447 NHL games with Boston, the California Golden Seals, Pittsburgh, and the Atlanta Flames. He ended his career with the WHA Calgary Cowboys. He also spent three years with the AHL Hershey Bears.
Grant Frederic’s older brother, Trent Frederic, plays with Providence (AHL).
The team also features a player from Tennessee and the Nashville Jr. Predators program in Andrew Sinard, who's a current Hawaii resident born in Arizona in Brian Hawkinson.
Read the full article
0 notes
Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind Directors Talk Epic and Intimate Musical Moments
https://ift.tt/eA8V8J
The documentary Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind, directed by Martha Kehoe and Joan Tosoni, is an intimate look at a prolific singer-songwriter who enriches and is enriched by the history of Canada. Most of the world knows Lightfoot as the singer with the recognizable baritone who put out hits like “Sundown,” “If You Could Read My Mind,” and “Early Mornin’ Rain.” But in his native country, he is a national treasure. Before international fame, in 1967, he actually wrote and performed a piece called “The Tale of Canada” for the country’s 100th anniversary. After worldwide renown, he mined contemporary local history with the “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.”
Lightfoot caught the performance bug early. He was five when he debuted his rendition of “I’m A Little Teapot” at St. Paul’s United Church Sunday School in Orillia. He would go on to study composition, do time as a singing drummer in jazz orchestras, Canadian Broadcast arranger, and session player, even recording with guitar legend Chet Atkins in Nashville in 1962 before moving into folk rock. Working for a time with the same manager as Bob Dylan, the two remained tight friends as they both played Greenwich Village clubs and the folk circuit. Lightfoot performed an acoustic set before Dylan took the stage to play electric for the first time, the documentary reminds us. They are unabashed fans of each other’s works.
Lightfoot rose up the charts with hits like “Carefree Highway,” “For Lovin’ Me,” and “Rainy Day People.” Besides Dylan, his songs were covered by Elvis Presley, Neil Young, Marty Robbins, Glen Campbell, Ann Murray, Harry Belafonte, Johnny Cash, Liza Minnelli and the Replacements. Frank Sinatra, however, passed on recording “If You Could Read My Mind” for being “too long,” according to the documentary. Lightfoot was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2012 and dropped his first full-length album in 16 years, Solo, on March 20.
Quite a few musicians and music enthusiasts are enthusiastic about Gordon Lightfoot, and the documentary lets artists like Sarah McLachlan, Geddy Lee and Gordon Alex Lifeson of Rush, and The Guess Who’s Randy Bachman explain what they learned coming up, and Ronnie Hawkins talk about the fun of it. Alec Baldwin talks to the fan side, comparing Lightfoot to more poetic singer-songwriters like Cat Stevens.
Martha Kehoe and Joan Tosoni, who co-directed Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind, spoke with Den of Geek about the epic songs and even more epic parties thrown by Canada’s favorite singer-songwriter.
Den of Geek: Is it federally mandated in Canada to be a Gordon Lightfoot fan?
Martha Kehoe: Gord is in a very singular position, and I think Murray McLachlan kind of points it out in the film when he says, “People were looking around going, ‘Where’s our music, and where’s the Canadians’ stuff?'” And then all of a sudden there it was. So it’s more just a situation that Gord was a very significant artist in Canada, and people were just fans of him from the get-go. He came along at a certain time and place, where Canadians were looking for something, and he just had the talent, and he had the charisma, and people just liked him. We were excited that there was someone that good from Canada.
Joan Tosoni: And also, he was very prolific. I mean, he was a hit-churning machine there for quite a few years.
Kehoe: Popping out records. He was very, very popular in Canada from the time of his first record, but Gord was never pleased with how those United Artists records performed, so that’s why his deal with Warner was such a big deal, and that’s when he started having the international hits. He felt like the United Artists label didn’t quite know how to promote him. He did a lot of soundtracks in those days.
Do most Canadians know Gordon Lightfoot the way Americans know, say, Bob Dylan?
Kehoe: It’s a very different relationship though. I think Bob Dylan inspires some awe. Gord inspires awe but if you see Gord downtown, people smile at him, people say, “Hey, Gord.” They feel a little closer to him, I would say, than people feel to Bob Dylan. Bob’s always been an enigma, and Gord, while being intensely private and so forth, has approachability for Canadians. Canadians feel like we know him a bit. I feel like Americans don’t feel as comfortable with Bob Dylan as Canadians would feel with Gord.
Tosoni: I agree. And Bob Dylan has maintained a kind of, how do I describe it? He’s deliberately maintained that distance.
Kehoe: He probably had to. The other thing is that Canadians, historically anyway, have been a little less intense than Americans. So even if you are a huge fan of somebody as a Canadian, you might not say hi to them if you saw them in a restaurant. I think everybody feels like Gord could be a friend of theirs, whereas you don’t necessarily feel that with Bob Dylan.
How did you approach Gordon Lightfoot about being in the documentary?
Tosoni: Well, we had been talking about it for years, but Gord felt he wasn’t ready. It was too soon for him. So when he was about 75, he said, “Okay, now it’s time. Let’s do it.” We did a preliminary shoot to make a promotion reel for funding, but it did take us five years to get the complete funding to do the film. So it was always in discussion, and we only went ahead when Gord felt he was ready.
So it wouldn’t have been made without his input?
Kehoe: Well, we didn’t even think of that. His input was a big part of it. We’ve done things about his career before, but we sought to make this a feature film. Gord’s had a lot of profiles done on him. He’s done tons of promotion, but he’d never done anything that felt like you’d really feel like you’d spent time with him. We wanted to do something that was intimate and really authentic to Gord somehow.
Tosoni: Gord has done so many interviews. But I think at this stage, he committed himself to maybe revealing more than he did in the standard interviews. He recognized the importance of a documentary that was going to be more in-depth and maybe have to reveal more of himself than he had before.
Kehoe: Although, honestly, when he first saw the film, his attitude… What did he say, Joanie? Was it jaw-boning?
Tosoni: Oh, yeah. “A little too much jaw-boning and not enough music.”
Kehoe: That was his thumbnail take on his first watching of the film.
Tosoni: We asked him when we had completed the film and before anyone had seen it, if he wanted to see it, because we were opening at the Hot Doc Film Festival in Toronto. And there was going to be a big audience of some VIPs, people in the film, et cetera. And we asked him if he wanted to see it. He said, “Nope. I’ll see it with everybody else.”
Since that time, he’s seen it with a few audiences, and he told me, “I really like the film now.” But if it had been up to him, it would have been all music and no talk.
Did the Second City skit “Gordon Lightfoot Sings Every Song Ever Written” come up in conversation?
Kehoe: We actually didn’t talk about that, but he would know all those SCTV guys, and he would’ve found that hilarious. He doesn’t mind being lampooned, especially now. I think he’s a lot less sensitive than he used to be when he was a younger man. He talks about that in the film, that as a Canadian, he always felt like he was a little bit awkward, that he had a little bit of hay in his hair compared to some of the slicker people he used to meet in the music industry. But he’s got a good sense of humor about himself.
Tosoni: Burton Cummings does a thing when he’s onstage: “Lightfoot singing “Maggie May” and Gord laughs at it. He’s okay with it.
While I was waiting for you to call, I was watching a video of Joni Mitchell jamming with Bob Dylan and Roger McGuinn at Gordon Lightfoot’s house. So I want to ask about his reputation as a terrific rock and roll party host.
Kehoe: Yeah. He had that big house in Rosedale for a long time, and it was sort of an unofficial headquarters for a group of people that hung out in Toronto. I say Gordon Lightfoot is kind of our Zelig or Forrest Gump. He’s met everyone. He’s been a part of every single scene in Canada. There’s never been a party in Canada that Gordon Lightfoot couldn’t get into, and that’s now and then. And he hosted a lot of them too.
He always had sort of an open door policy. Steve Earle told us a story about when he was in Toronto, and he’d been a fan of Gord’s. And they said, “Okay. Well, let us make a call.” And somebody just drove him to Gord’s door and let him off and said, “We’ll come and pick you up in a couple hours.” And Steve was like, “Oh, my God, what do I do now?” But they went in and played guitar for a couple hours.
Tosoni: And now whenever Steve plays in town, Gord goes and sits in the audience, this many years later.
Kehoe: Gord told us a little bit about Bob Dylan, because as we make the point in the film, Gord has been a lifelong fan of Bob Dylan and still rhapsodizes about his talent as a songwriter. Gordon’s tight with Ronnie Hawkins. So when Dylan used to come up to Toronto to rehearse with the band, Gord would’ve been in on that scene. He was on the New York scene with his manager there. He knew Joni Mitchell before she’d even had a hit song. He knew a lot of musicians, and he was a partier, and he loved to host parties. So yes, he was, and he used to have a lot of parties at the Continental Hyatt House as well in L.A.
Dylan is also famously a fan of Gordon’s, so were you surprised that such diverse musicians from Anne Murray to Rush would sing Gordon’s praises?
Tosoni: No, it wasn’t a surprise. We were aware. And in fact, one of our disappointments making the film was that we were shooting mostly in the summer. Once we got the go-ahead in May, we had to start getting interviews, and there were several people who were willing, Joan Baez being a major one. We would’ve loved to have had Joan Baez in the film, but she just was on a huge tour, and we just couldn’t get a date where she was available to do an interview. And so, we do know that he has a lot of other performers, with diverse backgrounds, that admire him.
Kehoe: And also, I do feel for that generation of musicians, like the guys from Rush. As they say in the film, he was the first Canadian that got an international following and stayed in Canada. There’d been a few people before who had gone to the States and just disappeared into the United States entertainment world. Gord was the first one that stayed at home. So everybody like Rush and Anne Murray, they used him as an example like, “Hey, this guy has hits on the radio. He makes a lot of money touring, but he still lives in Toronto. You don’t have to go to the States to be successful as a musician.” So that’s another area where he really was kind of a role model for a lot of subsequent Canadian artists.
How did Alec Baldwin, who’s neither Canadian nor a musician, get involved?
Kehoe: We were looking for people that spoke to different aspects. And Alec had Gord on his podcast, and you could just tell from the podcast that he was a real fan. We reached out to a number of people, and Alec played a nice role for us. First of all, he’s a big star, so that’s helpful for your film, but he also is a very articulate music fan and knows a little about the industry. So he was able to speak about Gord as a fan, as someone who wasn’t Canadian, who didn’t have that historical pull. He didn’t grow up listening to his music. He was a fan because the songs that were coming on the radio, and we thought he did a rather nice job of articulating those points.
We decided early on we didn’t want to have a really didactic documentary, where we would have a narrator and it would be sort of all that. We wanted it to be very much a conversation, maintain an intimacy. Alec was able to put together a few different things we thought were important that we wanted to show the depth and the breadth of Gord’s fans.
Tosoni: And interestingly too, he said yes immediately. We contacted his people, and we got a positive response right away. It was a really great experience doing that interview with him.
Gordon Lightfoot just released his first new album in 15 years. Did the documentary push him into this or did you happen to catch it at the right time?
Tosoni: In the early 2000s, he had an aneurysm that nearly killed him, and he had just before that written songs. He claims that he forgot about them, and he discovered them in his archives. In his home, he discovered this treasure trove of songs that he’d forgotten about. So he thought, “I’m going to put them out, because they never got put out.” And then he was going to add orchestration to them and a band and everything like that. And he decided it was better just solo, so he brought out this new solo album of songs that he wrote 20-ish years ago.
You both had experience in live television, how is that similar to filming the concert experience?
Kehoe: We did very minimal filming. Joan had already directed a live concert in Massey with him around 2011. We had that, and we felt like that [2018] concert at Massey Hall was kind of special, because Gord played multiple dates in Massey Hall, every year for many years. So fans go to see him and there’s a very unique kind of mood that’s quite noticeable. It’s a give-and-take between the audience and Gord. People go there with their children, so the kids have the experience. It’s just a very special thing to be a part of. And Massey Hall is very closely associated with Gord. It was closing for renovations, and they had asked Gord to finish it out.
It’s sort of his second home, and we wanted to cover the experience of him being backstage and the vibe around him being at Massey Hall, so that’s how that was decided. But we didn’t do it with multi-camera and stuff like that, like we would do if we were doing a TV show. We were shooting single camera just to get a few important moments.
Tosoni: Yes, but many of the clips that you see in the film I directed or they were from programs that we had done in the past.
Did anything come out during the filming? Any of the topics surprise you? I was surprised by the Cathy Smith story, the John Belushi connection.
Kehoe: Well, we knew about that, because that was rather famous, and a rather infamous scandal. Again, when anything like that happens from somebody from Toronto, everyone knows about it. So we knew about that, and we’d been interested a long time in his relationship with Cathy Evelyn Smith. And so, we kind of knew that, and we knew it was something people might have forgotten. You wanted to have some exciting “Wow” moments in the film, so that certainly provided one. We found that little clip of her being interviewed, and that was quite an interesting clip, we thought.
I even saw a picture of him with Willie Nelson. Willie Nelson and Bob Dylan made a lot of duets. Why do you think Gordon wasn’t a celebrity collaborator?
Kehoe: I think Gord is just really a private type of guy, and he is quite a perfectionist, and then I think it makes him a little bit nervous performing with other people of a certain magnitude. I think that he likes to control his own sound a lot, and I think he would play with anybody informally and off-camera, anyone, because we know he does, and he has. But on-camera, he likes to be really in control of his own sound and his own performance. I don’t know, that’s just a guess.
Tosoni: Yeah, I agree, and not only on-camera, but in the studio. I think that it was indicated in the film, he was very controlling in the studio. He had control. He’s in charge. And as soon as you’re collaborating with somebody, you lose that control, and maybe he wasn’t comfortable with that.
Kehoe: That’s full-on speculation.
Lightfoot worked with the same musicians for years. You said he was sort of controlling, but do they function as a band? Do they input into arrangements, or were they just backing musicians?
Kehoe: I think they do have input into arrangements. I think it’s a little bit of a combination. A lot of artists use studio musicians and then put a band together to tour. Whereas Gord played with those guys for many years. He’s been with Rick for 50 years, and I feel like there is just a very known quantity. But when they talked about “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald,” they would’ve had some idea of what they were doing. But they all played along, and they used the first take as the song.
Tosoni: Gord also does arrangements, but I think he is open to input from his band, and particularly those he’s been with the longest. For example, he had Pee Wee Charles in his band for a few years, and I think Pee Wee had a certain freedom in the arrangements because of the instrument and because it was something new. I don’t know if that’s really true, but I think he’s collaborative. But again, Gord has a lot of control and hears everything in his mind, and he’s also a music writer, because he can write the score.
What does “The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald” mean to the people around Lake Superior? It only happened a year before he wrote it. Is it still legend?
Tosoni: He plays it at every concert. It’s certainly a favorite. And also, he came to know the families of the men who were lost in that shipwreck. He carried very much about them and even changed a lyric, one lyric about what caused the sinking was somebody left the hatch open. They found that wasn’t true, and he changed the lyrics so that wasn’t indicated, because he came to know those people. They would come to the concerts.
Kehoe: And he would go to memorials there too, so he’s been very much in touch with all the survivors of the Edmund Fitzgerald, and it’s very much on his mind now. It was one of the only things he spoke to us about, caring how things were represented in the film. He gave us total carte blanche in the film, but he wanted to make sure that the Edmund Fitzgerald details were as he knew them to be.
He also was a boater on the Great Lakes. Did the wreck change how he approached the lake?
Kehoe: I don’t think so, because I think that if you’re a sort of a leisure sailor in Canada, you’re not sailing in November. I think November is freighters-only on the lakes, because of those things. So I think what he had more than anything was a love of the lakes, a love of the islands there, and a love of that whole area. Gord also loved industry in a way that men of his generation really did. I think he’s very interested in all sorts of blue-collar walks of life, of guys that work on ships or miners, or the railroad. He just was fascinated with every aspect of that sort of thing. When he read that story of the Edmund Fitzgerald, I think Gordon’s a guy who sees poetry in things, and he sees epic-ness in the everyday. I think that he really felt that that was such a tragedy. As he says in the movie, if they’d made another 15 kilometers, they probably would’ve been safe. And I really think that he felt it was a tragedy that it deserved more notice. He wanted to write an epic poem for this tragedy and for these sailors.
Which documentary filmmakers influenced you?
Kehoe: When I was at film school, I met the Maisel Brothers. They came and talked. And obviously, the films that they made Grey Gardens and Give Me Shelter, that’s kind of ground zero. I’ve always said that one of my favorite films of all time is Nanook of the North, which was not really a documentary, but it had certain documentary elements. Ken Burns, there’s so many great documentary makers now.
Canada has also had a long history of documentary. And the CBC, which is the national broadcaster who was our broadcaster partner on this, has a real history of documentary, so that’s something as Canadians that we just grew up with. We used to watch docs when we were kids. I’d be remiss if I didn’t say the guy who is one of our executive producers. John Brunton, who owns Insight Productions, made a film for TV in 1980 about Canadian music, and that really influenced me.
Tosoni: And me too. We didn’t really even know each other at the time, Martha and I, but we both had a bit of the same experience of seeing that program. It was a series called Heart of Gold, based on the Neil Young song, but it was on the history of rock music in Canada, basically, pop and rock. And he had a hard time. People laughed at him when he said he wanted to make this film. And when we saw it on TV, I was calling my friends and saying, “You’ve got to watch this thing. If you miss part one, there’s two more parts. Watch it.”
As fate would have it, we did the second. It’s now a trilogy. Martha and I made Country Gold together, which was a three-hour series. And then Martha made Comedy Gold, which was on Canadian comedy.
He’s been covered by many artists. What are his favorite covers of his, and what are yours covers of his songs?
Kehoe: Sarah McLachlan covered “Song for a Winter’s Night,” and that’s really lovely. While I was researching this, I heard the Harry Belafonte version of that, and that was quite nice as well. Tony Rice is a bluegrass player, and he did a whole album of Gordon covers. And honestly, they’re all quite fantastic. Glen Campbell’s done some good ones. Anne Murray, her version of “Cotton Jenny” was kind of a hit in Canada. Obviously, Neil Young’s version of “Early Morning Rain.”
Tosoni: And we can’t forget Alison Krauss’ version of “Shadows.” And also the Tragically Hip version of “Black Day in July,” which is in the film because Gord Downie and the Tragically Hip are very, very beloved in Canada. Downie died a year or two ago, and when we were making the film actually. We used one that I loved in the film and that’s the Diana Krall and Sarah McLachlan cover of “If You Could Read My Mind.” I think it’s really beautiful. Gord says he’s never heard a cover he didn’t like.
It’s a shame Sinatra tossed “If You Could Read My Mind.”
Kehoe: Well, apparently, “You Are the Sunshine of My Life” hit the ground that night, same session, as well. So he was in good company of songs that were rejected out of hand.
The post Gordon Lightfoot: If You Could Read My Mind Directors Talk Epic and Intimate Musical Moments appeared first on Den of Geek.
from Den of Geek https://ift.tt/32qT8DI
0 notes
REVIEW: "Peter and the Starcatcher" at GhostLit Rep
REVIEW: “Peter and the Starcatcher” at GhostLit Rep
by Macey Levin
Peter and the Starcatcher, Rick Elice’s prequel to James Barrie’s Peter Pan, seems to be building a cult-like reputation. This raucous play is produced by the GhostLit Repertory Theatre Company at Great Barrington’s St. James Place. There are problems some of which are attributable to the venue.
St. James Place is a deconsecrated church and the main performance space is the…
View On WordPress
0 notes
HBO’s Final Season of ‘Silicon Valley’ Has Some Serious Points About Big Tech
(Bloomberg Opinion) –The sixth and final season of the HBO comedy show “Silicon Valley” — which concluded, sadly, on Sunday — begins with a speech.
Richard Hendricks, the chief executive officer of Pied Piper, the internet company he started five seasons earlier, is testifying before a Senate committee alongside executives from Facebook, Google, Amazon and, of course, Hooli, run by Hendricks’s archnemesis Gavin Belson. The hearing is about data privacy.
When it’s Hendricks’s turn to speak, he gets up from his seat on the panel and starts pacing (“I just think better on my feet”), grabbing a bulky microphone box so the senators can hear him. Thomas Middleditch, who plays Hendricks, is a master of physical comedy, and the image of him walking back and forth with a big microphone box under his arm is hilarious. But what he’s saying isn’t remotely comical:
These people up here — you want to rein them in. But you can’t. Facebook owns 80% of mobile social traffic. Google owns 92% of search. And Amazon Web Services is bigger than their next four competitors combined. … They track our every move. They monitor every moment in our lives. And they exploit our data for profit. You can ask them all the questions you want, but they’re not going to change. They don’t have to. These companies are kings and they rule over kingdoms far larger than any nation in human history. They won. We lost.
Read: Top tech predictions of 2020
For the previous five seasons, “Silicon Valley,” which was created by Mike Judge — the same man who gave us “Beavis and Butt-Head” and “Office Space” — had gleefully skewered the inanities and pretensions of the tech industry. Who can forget Judge’s eccentric venture capitalist Peter Gregory (said to be based on Peter Thiel) inspecting the sesame seeds on the burger buns arrayed on his desk (all bought from Burger King) and realizing that a shortage of said seeds was on the horizon — and that he could make a killing in the sesame seed market?
Or the time the pompous stoner Erlich Bachman, whose house is “incubating” Pied Piper, goes to a private dinner claiming to be a “pescapescatarian” — “one who eats solely fish who eat other fish” — and all the other tech execs decide they want to be pescapescatarians, too.
Or, in perhaps the single greatest line in the entire series, the ruthless, platitude-happy Belson, warning of a coming “datageddon,” tells his executives that Hooli’s compression algorithm has to beat Pied Piper’s. After all, he explains, “I don’t want to live in a world where someone else makes the world a better place better than we do.”
But as Hendricks’s speech suggests, this season felt a little different. Having mocked everything from companies that viewed revenue as a distraction to billionaires comparing their treatment to Holocaust victims, “Silicon Valley” seemed this season to turn its attention to more pressing matters. The short, seven-episode final season had its share of gags and funny lines, but it also seemed to me that Judge and his fellow showrunner, Alec Berg, wanted to point out not just what was inane and pretentious about tech culture but what was wrong with it.
In the second episode for instance, Hendricks finds out that a contractor is using an internet game he created to collect data from Pied Piper’s customers — something the CEO has vowed his company would never do. When he tries to get rid of the contractor by collecting some of the conversations he has taped, the man instead plays them for his board — who are impressed with his gaming software’s ability to mine data.
Read: Robots to Cut 200,000 U.S. Bank Jobs in Next Decade, Study Says
In the next episode, a sleazy billionaire offers Hendricks $1 billion for Pied Piper. Why? Because he wants to use it to sell data he will collect from the company’s customers. Hendricks turns him down, intent on creating a “new, democratic, decentralized internet” where the bad behavior of Big Tech “will be impossible.” That, he believes, is the only viable workaround to such problems as monopoly behavior and privacy violations. (The billionaire then buys the contractor’s gaming company.)
But the high point of the season comes in the fifth episode, when Belson, who has been tossed out of Hooli (Pied Piper bought it), realizes that he can create a new persona by promoting ethics in the tech industry. “Tethics,” he calls it. Pretty soon he has every tech titan in the valley signing on to his “tethics pledge” and contributing money that will allow Belson to build the “Belson Institute of Tethics.”
It turns out that every banal line in the tethics pledge was plagiarized from the mission statements of Applebee’s, Starbucks and other companies. Thus do Judge and Berg dispense with the hollow promises of Facebook and others to do better whenever they are called out on some new example of, well, untethical behavior. As Odie Henderson, a coder-turned-critic who recapped “Silicon Valley” for Vulture, put it recently, “Tech goodness is a naive fantasy.”
Needless to say, the crew at Pied Piper fail spectacularly in its attempt to create a new democratic internet. In the final episode, filmed partly as a documentary a decade in the future, Hendricks, now the Gavin Belson professor of ethics in technology at Stanford, is asked whether he thinks Pied Piper made the world a better place.
“I think we did OK,” he says wistfully. Judge and Berg, on the other hand, did better than that. For six too-brief seasons, they did indeed succeed in making the world a better place.
The post HBO’s Final Season of ‘Silicon Valley’ Has Some Serious Points About Big Tech appeared first on Businessliveme.com.
from WordPress https://ift.tt/2LLhH5k
via IFTTT
0 notes
Inside look at comedian T.J. Miller’s epic self-destruction
Cast member T.J. Miller attends the premiere for “The Emoji Movie” in Los Angeles, California, U.S., July 23, 2017. (Reuters)
Last summer, T.J. Miller joked in an interview that he wanted to occupy the “Lindsay Lohan train-wreck-but-not-quite” persona currently missing from Hollywood.
Looks like he’s hit his goal.
On April 9, the former “Silicon Valley” star was arrested after calling in a bogus bomb threat while traveling aboard an Amtrak train headed to NYC from Washington, DC.
According to the Department of Justice, Miller called 911 on March 18 stating that a female passenger had a “bomb in her bag.” A Miller insider said the comedian “genuinely believed that the bomb threat was true. That’s why he left his name and number.”
No explosives were found. An attendant in the first-class car told officials that Miller was intoxicated when he boarded the train and downed two glasses of wine and two double scotch-and-sodas while on board. Miller started a “hostile exchange” with a woman sitting a few rows away, according to court papers, after she rebuffed his flirtatious advances, and it is believed he called in the false bomb threat to retaliate. He was kicked off the train for drunken misconduct before the bomb squad arrived. (Miller was released on $100,000 bail and is now awaiting trial.)
It’s just the latest weird behavior that makes no sense for a star on the rise. In 2016, Miller was arrested for allegedly assaulting an Uber driver in Los Angeles over a disagreement about Donald Trump. The following year, he and his wife, artist and actress Kate Gorney, were kicked out of a casino in Monte Carlo. Seven months later, he went on a hateful tirade after a transgender acquaintance, Danielle Solzman, pointed out a transphobic joke on his Web site; Miller called Solzman a “weird, strange, terrible man,” among other insults.
The real reason T.J. Miller left ‘Silicon Valley’
And then there were the stories about him showing up drunk and high to the “Silicon Valley” set, which Miller has denied. Nonetheless, fans were shocked in May 2017 when he announced he was walking away from the buzzy HBO show — and his popular character, Erlich. Miller then publicly attacked show producers, stars and Hollywood execs in a series of scathing interviews, stating that he doesn’t like executive producer Alec Berg: “I don’t know how smart [Alec] is,” and that William Morris Endeavor honcho Ari Emanuel, “only cares about money, collecting chips.”
One common denominator in Miller’s escapades seems to be substance use.
“He has substance-abuse issues,” said a source close to Miller. “He has a good heart and is sort of a sad guy who does things that make you shake your head.”
(Miller’s representative had no comment on the allegations in this story.)
But sources also tell The Post that Miller loves to shock people.
“Basically he’s someone who embraces the contrarian perspective so tightly that he actually starves his career of the oxygen it needs,” said the source close to him. “It’s ridiculous.”
Now, as the 36-year-old comic faces up to five years in jail, friends and colleagues are wondering: Has Miller finally taken the joke too far?
In the beginning of his career, sources said, the actor’s outlandish antics worked in his favor.
Having grown up in Denver — one of two children of a lawyer father and psychologist mother — Miller graduated from George Washington University in 2003 and moved to Chicago, where he became an integral member of the city’s stand-up comedy scene.
“The more wild he was, the more his agents and managers applauded his behavior,” said Miller’s ex-girlfriend, comedian JC Coccoli, who cites the time he parachuted into “The Emoji Movie” premiere in Cannes last May as a prime example.
T.J. Miller and wife deny sexual assault allegations against him
Coccoli, who dated Miller in 2009 when the wacky stand-up comedian was just gaining traction in Hollywood, recalls him showing up at her magazine job in Los Angeles “hammered and really f – – ked up and in blue face,” straight from what he said was a Blue Man Group audition.
“He did a wild audition for ‘Yogi Bear’ [with a live bear from the Hollywood Animals ranch] and then got it,” Coccoli added. “So he was on this string of: ‘If I do really wild and crazy things, this is how I’m booking things.’ He was noticing a trend of what he could get away with.
“Agents loved it. They would never invite an artist like TJ to their wedding, but they wanted to make money off of him.”
Miller’s career was on a roll. In 2008 he made his film debut in “Cloverfield” and soon landed roles in movies including “She’s Out of My League” and the fourth “Transformers” flick, as well as a Comedy Central special.
But, colleagues said, you never knew what you were going to get with Miller.
Miller, pictured here in 2007, began his career as a stand-up comic. (Reuters)
“We always thought he was kind of doing a character,” said a former staff member of “Chelsea Lately,” the E! show hosted by Chelsea Handler on which Miller often appeared. “Did [it] ever feel like you were having a straight, real conversation with him? No. But … it was just what I accepted about T.J. He was very friendly and supportive and complimentary.”
Coccoli recalls a trip she and Miller took to what she terms his family’s “mansion” in Denver for his father’s annual Ferrari rally.
“We show up for this big dinner and there are name tags on the table,” said Coccoli. “My name is written in and another girl’s name is scratched out.” Coccoli recalls being humiliated that Miller had originally invited another date.
“It was almost a game to him,” she said of how Miller approached romantic relationships — and just about everything else in his life.
He even hired a bodyguard, she said, to get a rise out of people.
TJ Miller: I got kicked out of a casino in Monte Carlo
“It was performance art,” said the source close to Miller. “That’s a big part of who he is.”
According to Coccoli, Miller thrives on drama.
“He didn’t care if he was arrested or whatever. He just wants to constantly be creating and have no rules,” she said. “If he showed up late or didn’t show up at all or was a mess on set … he got off on that stuff.”
But while people like Coccoli could forgive Miller’s less serious offenses, his substance- abuse issues were becoming harder to ignore.
“He had cabinets filled with whip-its in his Hollywood apartment,” she said of the nitrous-oxide dispensers used to get a euphoric high. “There were no plates.
“This is a guy who would drink so much that he would fall asleep in my car in my garage and I would leave him there overnight because I couldn’t get him back in my bed,” said Coccoli.
Still, Miller’s career wasn’t suffering — at first.
“He would be up [on] three hours of sleep and go to audition and book it — nail it,” Coccoli recalled.
T.J. Miller played Erlich Bachman on HBO’s “Silicon Valley.” (HBO)
But things caught up with Miller as he landed more work, including roles in “How to Train Your Dragon 2,” “Big Hero 6” and “Office Christmas Party.” A couple years into “Silicon Valley,” insiders said, he was burning the candle at both ends.
“He screwed himself a little bit with the show,” said the source close to the comedian. “He would do stand-up too late the night before, and then would have to shoot the next day and would be hungover and/or exhausted and then be a total a – – hole.
“He’s a hard-working guy who wants to do everything, and then ended up undercutting himself with his own behavior. And that’s the tragedy. He’s a guy who is unnecessarily making his life more difficult.”
Top honchos began to take notice — and worry.
“He thinks drinking and comedy are intricately connected,” one HBO exec told The Post. “It was funny at first when this wacky guy was sneaking gin onto a set. Until it wasn’t funny anymore. He couldn’t stay in character, couldn’t remember lines, fell asleep. It was just costing HBO too much money.”
One day, an insider said, Miller just didn’t show up to set. “You could tell things were deteriorating,” said a “Silicon Valley” writer, who added that producers were wary of building Miller a three-season arc in case he quit at any moment.
Miller told the Hollywood Reporter in March that “I’m not high when I work because it gets in the way of the comedy. I also am not a guy who’s blackout-drunk, bumping into things on set… . What was occurring [on the set of ‘Silicon Valley’] was I was out doing stand-up all the time, even if it meant I only got three hours of sleep. So, the thing I have a problem with? It’s pushing myself to do too much.”
T.J. Miller wants to fill the void left by Lindsay Lohan
Part of the issue, noted one comedy-club booker, is that it seems like Miller feels compelled to live up to the wild-man reputation he has created for himself. “If you think about it, 99 percent of his humor’s based on booze. He drinks onstage during stand-up sets, he’s even made a bunch of short films about being drunk — one of them was called ‘Successful Alcoholics.’ ”
When Miller shot a commercial teasing his gig hosting the 2016 Critics Choice Awards, he based it around a drinking game, “so he got to shoot with a glass in his hand at a bar for an hour,” said a source who worked for A&E Networks (which aired the show). “I don’t think it was water.”
With the Uber incident, Miller was arrested in December 2016 after a physical altercation with driver Wilson Deon Thomas III. According to TMZ, Thomas claims Miller became violent after an argument regarding President Trump and struck Thomas on his head and shoulder while he was driving. Thomas also claimed that Miller was inhaling nitrous oxide out of whip-its throughout the ride and even called his assistant to bring him more when he ran out. (A settlement was eventually reached between Miller and Thomas.)
Some close to Miller wonder whether Kate Gorney — his wife of three years — is facilitating the bad behavior.
In May 2017, the two were kicked out of a casino in Monte Carlo while Miller was at the Cannes Film Festival promoting “The Emoji Movie.”
“[The casino] told us to get the hell out of there and they felt we were acting a little bit ‘aggressive!’ ” Miller told Page Six at the time.
“I would just say that [Kate’s] not always going to do the best thing for him,” said the source close to Miller. “I think she cares. She’s not a bad person but there’s a part of her that’s a little bit wanting to have more visibility.”
T.J. Miller busted for ‘drunk’ bomb threat on Amtrak train
Someone who knows the couple told The Post, “[Kate] doesn’t know how to deal with him but loves him very much. She has made [concerned] middle-of-the-night calls to friends. Their life has just been turned upside down by his behavior.”
T.J. MIller and Kate Gorney married on September 6, 2015. (Reuters)
Miller and Gorney, who dated in college, were again embroiled in controversy last December when a woman told the Daily Beast of alleged sexual abuse by Miller while he was an undergrad at George Washington, including him choking and shaking her and punching her in the mouth during sex. Another time, she said, Miller penetrated her with a beer bottle without her consent. Her housemate and friends corroborated the account.
Miller and his wife issued a joint statement, writing that the accuser was jealous and “became fixated on our relationship” in college and was “using the current [#MeToo] climate to bandwagon.”
The same day the Daily Beast article was published, Miller’s Comedy Central series, “The Gorburger Show,” was canceled after only one season. Also, Mucinex — for which the comedian had been a spokesman since 2014 — dropped him.
Fellow comedians are genuinely concerned about Miller.
“There are some people at the Comedy Cellar who said he drinks too much, and they are worried about him,” said comedian Artie Lange, who has infamously battled drug and alcohol addictions.
“It’s hard. My issue with showbiz [is that] it enabled me,” said Lange. “It’s flattering and also enabling. I hope that doesn’t happen to him.”
Insiders don’t think it’s too late for Miller — who is in “Deadpool 2,” out May 18 — to turn things around.
“People genuinely like the guy and think he’s funny, but he also unnecessarily antagonizes,” said the source close to him.
The comedy-club booker even has an idea for Miller’s future: “Maybe he’ll do rehab humor for his comeback.”
This article originally appeared in the New York Post.
On Our Radar
Lauer caught on tape
TMZ
from All Of Beer http://allofbeer.com/inside-look-at-comedian-t-j-millers-epic-self-destruction/
from All of Beer https://allofbeercom.tumblr.com/post/180697219227
0 notes
TRUMP OUT OF BALTIMORE rally and protest, September 12, 2019.
Hundreds of protesters gathered yesterday, September 12, anticipating the arrival of Trump, to say no to racism, white supremacy, bigotry, war, and climate change. We defended the rights of immigrants and workers.
Speakers included Rev. CD Witherspoon, CJ Witherspoon, Andre Powell from Peoples Power Assembly, Abraham Tena from CASA in Action, Emilia Duno from ICE Out of Baltimore, Miranda Bachman from Youth Against War and Racism, Meg from Extinction Rebellion Baltimore, Wooki from Communities United, Rafiki Morris from Maryland Council of Elders/All-African People's Revolutionary Party (AAPRP)/Communities United, Maria Celleri from ICE Out of Baltimore,Renee Washington from Peoples Power Assembly, Lars Bertling from Youth Against War and Racism, Ian Schlakman from Maryland Green Party, Richard Ochs from Baltimore Peace Action, Alec Summerfield from Prisoners Solidarity Committee, Sharon Black from Socialist Unity Party - Baltimore/Peoples Power Assembly/Struggle - La Lucha for Socialism, and Max from Unite Here Local 7 who works at the Marriott Waterfront Hotel where the House Republican retreat is taking place.
Thank you to everybody who contributed to this album by sending in photos. Send your photos and videos to
[email protected] to be featured in this album.
#TrumpOutofBaltimore #RacistTrump #TrumpIsARat #ICEOutofBaltimore
Photos by Miranda Etel and Bruce Emmerling
32 notes
·
View notes
Inside look at comedian T.J. Miller’s epic self-destruction
Cast member T.J. Miller attends the premiere for “The Emoji Movie” in Los Angeles, California, U.S., July 23, 2017. (Reuters)
Last summer, T.J. Miller joked in an interview that he wanted to occupy the “Lindsay Lohan train-wreck-but-not-quite” persona currently missing from Hollywood.
Looks like he’s hit his goal.
On April 9, the former “Silicon Valley” star was arrested after calling in a bogus bomb threat while traveling aboard an Amtrak train headed to NYC from Washington, DC.
According to the Department of Justice, Miller called 911 on March 18 stating that a female passenger had a “bomb in her bag.” A Miller insider said the comedian “genuinely believed that the bomb threat was true. That’s why he left his name and number.”
No explosives were found. An attendant in the first-class car told officials that Miller was intoxicated when he boarded the train and downed two glasses of wine and two double scotch-and-sodas while on board. Miller started a “hostile exchange” with a woman sitting a few rows away, according to court papers, after she rebuffed his flirtatious advances, and it is believed he called in the false bomb threat to retaliate. He was kicked off the train for drunken misconduct before the bomb squad arrived. (Miller was released on $100,000 bail and is now awaiting trial.)
It’s just the latest weird behavior that makes no sense for a star on the rise. In 2016, Miller was arrested for allegedly assaulting an Uber driver in Los Angeles over a disagreement about Donald Trump. The following year, he and his wife, artist and actress Kate Gorney, were kicked out of a casino in Monte Carlo. Seven months later, he went on a hateful tirade after a transgender acquaintance, Danielle Solzman, pointed out a transphobic joke on his Web site; Miller called Solzman a “weird, strange, terrible man,” among other insults.
The real reason T.J. Miller left ‘Silicon Valley’
And then there were the stories about him showing up drunk and high to the “Silicon Valley” set, which Miller has denied. Nonetheless, fans were shocked in May 2017 when he announced he was walking away from the buzzy HBO show — and his popular character, Erlich. Miller then publicly attacked show producers, stars and Hollywood execs in a series of scathing interviews, stating that he doesn’t like executive producer Alec Berg: “I don’t know how smart [Alec] is,” and that William Morris Endeavor honcho Ari Emanuel, “only cares about money, collecting chips.”
One common denominator in Miller’s escapades seems to be substance use.
“He has substance-abuse issues,” said a source close to Miller. “He has a good heart and is sort of a sad guy who does things that make you shake your head.”
(Miller’s representative had no comment on the allegations in this story.)
But sources also tell The Post that Miller loves to shock people.
“Basically he’s someone who embraces the contrarian perspective so tightly that he actually starves his career of the oxygen it needs,” said the source close to him. “It’s ridiculous.”
Now, as the 36-year-old comic faces up to five years in jail, friends and colleagues are wondering: Has Miller finally taken the joke too far?
In the beginning of his career, sources said, the actor’s outlandish antics worked in his favor.
Having grown up in Denver — one of two children of a lawyer father and psychologist mother — Miller graduated from George Washington University in 2003 and moved to Chicago, where he became an integral member of the city’s stand-up comedy scene.
“The more wild he was, the more his agents and managers applauded his behavior,” said Miller’s ex-girlfriend, comedian JC Coccoli, who cites the time he parachuted into “The Emoji Movie” premiere in Cannes last May as a prime example.
T.J. Miller and wife deny sexual assault allegations against him
Coccoli, who dated Miller in 2009 when the wacky stand-up comedian was just gaining traction in Hollywood, recalls him showing up at her magazine job in Los Angeles “hammered and really f – – ked up and in blue face,” straight from what he said was a Blue Man Group audition.
“He did a wild audition for ‘Yogi Bear’ [with a live bear from the Hollywood Animals ranch] and then got it,” Coccoli added. “So he was on this string of: ‘If I do really wild and crazy things, this is how I’m booking things.’ He was noticing a trend of what he could get away with.
“Agents loved it. They would never invite an artist like TJ to their wedding, but they wanted to make money off of him.”
Miller’s career was on a roll. In 2008 he made his film debut in “Cloverfield” and soon landed roles in movies including “She’s Out of My League” and the fourth “Transformers” flick, as well as a Comedy Central special.
But, colleagues said, you never knew what you were going to get with Miller.
Miller, pictured here in 2007, began his career as a stand-up comic. (Reuters)
“We always thought he was kind of doing a character,” said a former staff member of “Chelsea Lately,” the E! show hosted by Chelsea Handler on which Miller often appeared. “Did [it] ever feel like you were having a straight, real conversation with him? No. But . . . it was just what I accepted about T.J. He was very friendly and supportive and complimentary.”
Coccoli recalls a trip she and Miller took to what she terms his family’s “mansion” in Denver for his father’s annual Ferrari rally.
“We show up for this big dinner and there are name tags on the table,” said Coccoli. “My name is written in and another girl’s name is scratched out.” Coccoli recalls being humiliated that Miller had originally invited another date.
“It was almost a game to him,” she said of how Miller approached romantic relationships — and just about everything else in his life.
He even hired a bodyguard, she said, to get a rise out of people.
TJ Miller: I got kicked out of a casino in Monte Carlo
“It was performance art,” said the source close to Miller. “That’s a big part of who he is.”
According to Coccoli, Miller thrives on drama.
“He didn’t care if he was arrested or whatever. He just wants to constantly be creating and have no rules,” she said. “If he showed up late or didn’t show up at all or was a mess on set . . . he got off on that stuff.”
But while people like Coccoli could forgive Miller’s less serious offenses, his substance- abuse issues were becoming harder to ignore.
“He had cabinets filled with whip-its in his Hollywood apartment,” she said of the nitrous-oxide dispensers used to get a euphoric high. “There were no plates.
“This is a guy who would drink so much that he would fall asleep in my car in my garage and I would leave him there overnight because I couldn’t get him back in my bed,” said Coccoli.
Still, Miller’s career wasn’t suffering — at first.
“He would be up [on] three hours of sleep and go to audition and book it — nail it,” Coccoli recalled.
T.J. Miller played Erlich Bachman on HBO’s “Silicon Valley.” (HBO)
But things caught up with Miller as he landed more work, including roles in “How to Train Your Dragon 2,” “Big Hero 6” and “Office Christmas Party.” A couple years into “Silicon Valley,” insiders said, he was burning the candle at both ends.
“He screwed himself a little bit with the show,” said the source close to the comedian. “He would do stand-up too late the night before, and then would have to shoot the next day and would be hungover and/or exhausted and then be a total a – – hole.
“He’s a hard-working guy who wants to do everything, and then ended up undercutting himself with his own behavior. And that’s the tragedy. He’s a guy who is unnecessarily making his life more difficult.”
Top honchos began to take notice — and worry.
“He thinks drinking and comedy are intricately connected,” one HBO exec told The Post. “It was funny at first when this wacky guy was sneaking gin onto a set. Until it wasn’t funny anymore. He couldn’t stay in character, couldn’t remember lines, fell asleep. It was just costing HBO too much money.”
One day, an insider said, Miller just didn’t show up to set. “You could tell things were deteriorating,” said a “Silicon Valley” writer, who added that producers were wary of building Miller a three-season arc in case he quit at any moment.
Miller told the Hollywood Reporter in March that “I’m not high when I work because it gets in the way of the comedy. I also am not a guy who’s blackout-drunk, bumping into things on set. . . . What was occurring [on the set of ‘Silicon Valley’] was I was out doing stand-up all the time, even if it meant I only got three hours of sleep. So, the thing I have a problem with? It’s pushing myself to do too much.”
T.J. Miller wants to fill the void left by Lindsay Lohan
Part of the issue, noted one comedy-club booker, is that it seems like Miller feels compelled to live up to the wild-man reputation he has created for himself. “If you think about it, 99 percent of his humor’s based on booze. He drinks onstage during stand-up sets, he’s even made a bunch of short films about being drunk — one of them was called ‘Successful Alcoholics.’ ”
When Miller shot a commercial teasing his gig hosting the 2016 Critics Choice Awards, he based it around a drinking game, “so he got to shoot with a glass in his hand at a bar for an hour,” said a source who worked for A&E Networks (which aired the show). “I don’t think it was water.”
With the Uber incident, Miller was arrested in December 2016 after a physical altercation with driver Wilson Deon Thomas III. According to TMZ, Thomas claims Miller became violent after an argument regarding President Trump and struck Thomas on his head and shoulder while he was driving. Thomas also claimed that Miller was inhaling nitrous oxide out of whip-its throughout the ride and even called his assistant to bring him more when he ran out. (A settlement was eventually reached between Miller and Thomas.)
Some close to Miller wonder whether Kate Gorney — his wife of three years — is facilitating the bad behavior.
In May 2017, the two were kicked out of a casino in Monte Carlo while Miller was at the Cannes Film Festival promoting “The Emoji Movie.”
“[The casino] told us to get the hell out of there and they felt we were acting a little bit ‘aggressive!’ ” Miller told Page Six at the time.
“I would just say that [Kate’s] not always going to do the best thing for him,” said the source close to Miller. “I think she cares. She’s not a bad person but there’s a part of her that’s a little bit wanting to have more visibility.”
T.J. Miller busted for ‘drunk’ bomb threat on Amtrak train
Someone who knows the couple told The Post, “[Kate] doesn’t know how to deal with him but loves him very much. She has made [concerned] middle-of-the-night calls to friends. Their life has just been turned upside down by his behavior.”
T.J. MIller and Kate Gorney married on September 6, 2015. (Reuters)
Miller and Gorney, who dated in college, were again embroiled in controversy last December when a woman told the Daily Beast of alleged sexual abuse by Miller while he was an undergrad at George Washington, including him choking and shaking her and punching her in the mouth during sex. Another time, she said, Miller penetrated her with a beer bottle without her consent. Her housemate and friends corroborated the account.
Miller and his wife issued a joint statement, writing that the accuser was jealous and “became fixated on our relationship” in college and was “using the current [#MeToo] climate to bandwagon.”
The same day the Daily Beast article was published, Miller’s Comedy Central series, “The Gorburger Show,” was canceled after only one season. Also, Mucinex — for which the comedian had been a spokesman since 2014 — dropped him.
Fellow comedians are genuinely concerned about Miller.
“There are some people at the Comedy Cellar who said he drinks too much, and they are worried about him,” said comedian Artie Lange, who has infamously battled drug and alcohol addictions.
“It’s hard. My issue with showbiz [is that] it enabled me,” said Lange. “It’s flattering and also enabling. I hope that doesn’t happen to him.”
Insiders don’t think it’s too late for Miller — who is in “Deadpool 2,” out May 18 — to turn things around.
“People genuinely like the guy and think he’s funny, but he also unnecessarily antagonizes,” said the source close to him.
The comedy-club booker even has an idea for Miller’s future: “Maybe he’ll do rehab humor for his comeback.”
This article originally appeared in the New York Post.
On Our Radar
Lauer caught on tape
TMZ
from All Of Beer http://allofbeer.com/inside-look-at-comedian-t-j-millers-epic-self-destruction/
0 notes
Jimmy O. Yang on why he finds his 'Silicon Valley' role liberating, who he'd fight in Hollywood, and 'Crazy Rich Asians'
"Silicon Valley's" Jian-Yang has been a hit among fans and critics since his introduction, but saw an expanded role in season five of the HBO show.
Actor Jimmy O. Yang spoke with Business Insider about what he loves about the character, his newly published memoir about his immigrant experience, and an upcoming role in blockbuster "Crazy Rich Asians."
The character of Jian-Yang, played by Jimmy O. Yang, has been a fan favorite on HBO’s “Silicon Valley” since the start, but reached new heights as a delightful ruffian in season five.
Before this season, Jian-Yang had mostly existed as a comedic foil to TJ Miller’s blowhard Erlich Bachman character, but with Miller’s exit from the show, he got to take control of his own destiny. And boy did he.
“I think it turned out to be a blessing in disguise,” Yang said of Miller’s departure, as Jian-Yang became “more of a villain, not just a pain in the a-- to TJ, but to everyone else."
Yang, in real life, has had his own career ascent (by much less nefarious means). He's not only snagged roles in movies like the upcoming adaptation of “Crazy Rich Asians,” but also published a memoir on his experience immigrating to the United States at 13, and making it in Hollywood, which came out in March.
That path wasn’t easy, but Yang’s success has run counter to a maxim his dad loved to quote when he was growing up: “Pursuing your dreams is how you become homeless.” That hasn't been true for Yang — at least, not yet. And part of Yang's success in a tough business is certainly due to his charisma and casual hilariousness, which are evident as soon as you start talking to him.
Business Insider caught up with Yang in advance of the release of “Silicon Valley” season five on all digital platforms on June 11. We talked about what he loves about that “a------” character Jian-Yang, his ambitions and upcoming projects, and the casting director he’d be totally down to fight.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Nathan McAlone: What was the audition process like for you at the beginning of “Silicon Valley,” back before season one?
Jimmy O. Yang: The original audition for it was a few months before the show even got picked up. The original pilot was a totally different script and Jian-Yang was totally different, actually one of the main characters. He was described as a Taiwanese guy who cursed like a pirate. He was one of the main dudes. Then I never heard back from the auditions. I just moved on and then a few months later, I got another audition for the same part, but the show had already been shooting — I think this was episode three — and it had become a smaller part. But deep down I was hoping it would revert back to whatever the original character was, that they had big goals for this guy. I was just really happy to get that three-line part at first.
McAlone: When did you have an indication that his role was going to be expanded? Was that based on them liking your interpretation of the character?
Yang: I think it’s a little bit of that. They saw that I was able to work with the guys pretty well. They were starting to see the chemistry of me and TJ [Miller, who played Erlich Bachman]. But between season one and two, I had no idea whether I was even going to come back for the second season. There was this whole crazy thing that happened where I was offered to be a series regular on a Yahoo show — some streaming content. But the problem is there’s always exclusivity, especially with streaming services, so it was either I was going to do the Yahoo show and maybe not come back to “Silicon Valley,” or take a chance with “Silicon Valley” and not do the Yahoo show. And I took a chance with “Silicon Valley,” and luckily they believed in me enough and I became a series regular the second season.
McAlone: I have a hard time telling, but how much of the banter of the characters on the show is improvised versus heavily scripted?
Yang: I think it’s a few things. The scripts are written really brilliantly. It’s one of the best-written shows I think on TV right now. And they also let us improv for sure, especially scenes with me and TJ, we would come up with different ideas. We get one take that's of the script and everything else we can play around and have fun doing. And then the third part is [producers] Alec [Berg] or Mike [Judge] or Clay [Tarver], or somebody like that, is on set and will give us some alt lines as we are going, which helps also. There’s a three-part comedy dynamic that makes the show really work.
McAlone: Were you apprehensive going into this season without TJ at all, or were you ready to branch out from that dynamic that you guys had?
Yang: I was definitely sad when I found out TJ wasn't coming back because he was my partner on the show and we had such a good dynamic going. But I think it turned out to be a blessing in disguise, seeing Jian-Yang becoming more of a villain not just a pain in the a-- to TJ, but to everyone else.
McAlone: Did you do much research into what the Chinese tech scene was like this season, for that side-plot?
Yang: I visited a bunch of startups in the off-season last year, talked to VCs, toured campuses of different places. And one of the main questions I was asking them was, “What is the China market like?” I got a lot of good information, like hardware: their hardware game is way superior production-wise to ours. But their software is a lot of what the show has showed you so far: it’s a little bit like “new internet,” “the new new internet,” “the new facebook,” whatever. Just doing stuff for the Chinese market because of government restrictions.
McAlone: I know when you inhabit a character in a TV show for many seasons, you grow a certain fondness for them. Are there particular things you are going to miss about stepping into this role on a regular basis when the show ends?
Yang: I think there's something great about being a dick on screen. There are no consequences, which is awesome. I think a part of us kind of wants to do that. Because he’s so straightforward and he doesn't care about hurting people’s feelings. I wish I could be more like that in real life in the off-season. But it’s kind of liberating to inhabit that.
McAlone: I know a lot of people who just love your character, do people stop you on the street?
Yang: Yeah, they scream out random things. They say, “God d----- Jian-Yang,” or like “not now.” A lot of TJ Miller sayings. They’ll say, “Not hot dog.” I’m a very different person in real life. I think Jian-Yang is kind of a version of myself 15 years ago, when I first came to this country. Now I’m a lot more Americanized and I would like to think I'm a much nicer person than he is. I think. People are sometimes surprised that I'm not actually that guy.
McAlone: What do you think people find so funny about him? For me, his character is so much beyond an accent. What do people tell you resonates with them about the character?
Yang: You don't see it coming, which is half of what comedy is. He is this quiet, seemingly nice kid, but he is pretty diabolical. I think it was earned because early in the seasons Erlich just gave him so much s--- and was trying to bully him. But it became a “David versus Goliath” story where he kept getting the upper hand, which is I think why people like the character throughout the years. Especially going up with big personalities like Erlich's character and Gavin’s character. There's something fun about that.
McAlone: You wrote a memoir [titled “How to American: An Immigrant's Guide to Disappointing Your Parents”]. What initially made you want to write a book and what was the process like for you?
Yang: It was very nice. It was a lot about my immigrant story, coming to this country as an outsider and also making it in Hollywood as an outsider, and not really expecting to do this at all. I went to school for economics and especially in Asian culture it's not really a viable job for my family to be an artist. Like my dad would always say, “Pursuing your dreams is how you become homeless.” An old-school Chinese dude. I just thought there is not too much material that is just an honest, funny immigrant story. And for me it was really tough to pursue what I love, and it worked out to some degree, and I want to share the story. Hopefully other kids whose parents have that old-school mentality can relate to the story, other immigrants can relate to the story so they don't feel so weird about themselves. It was a really rewarding process.
McAlone: When you are an actor, you are making yourself vulnerable in very different ways than if you're writing a memoir. Were there any elements you were nervous to write about?
Yang: I made sure to give everybody props that were deserved — like everyone on “Silicon Valley.” But certain people that I ran into in the business … like what the f--- is his name, the guy who cast “Modern Family,” Jeff Greenberg or something. He was a real f------ a------. And I just told the story how it was. He just yelled at me when I was this really young actor, and for no f------ reason, whereas the other casting directors have been really cool and nice. No, not really nervous. If Jeff Greenberg wants to call me and confront me about it, I’ll fight him.
McAlone: You said you are are very different from your character on “Silicon Valley,” is there anyone else in the cast that you think people would be super surprised how they are in real life?
Yang: Oh, interesting. I say I'm a bit different. I think on the surface I’m a bit different, but deep down I might be a dick also. Who knows. Zach [Woods, who plays Jared] is the kindest, nicest, most intelligent guy. And in a way you can kind of see that in the show, even though he’s nothing like the Jared character. Everyone is kind of like that. It’s a very exaggerated version of yourself.
McAlone: You’re in the upcoming movie adaptation of “Crazy Rich Asians” [in theaters August 15], how did you get involved and what was shooting like?
Yang: Well, being one out of three Asian people on TV. [Laughs]. No, it’s a really cool project and it’s a really important project. It’s the first studio movie in 25 years, since “Joy Luck Club,” to feature a full Asian cast. So when I heard the movie was being made, I was really stoked and I called my managers and I said, “Guys I know I’m a character actor, but let me audition for the leading role, I think I can do it.” My managers were like, “I don't know, Jimmy. I don't know how to tell you this, but they're looking for a good-looking guy for the leading role.” I was like, “Whatever, I get it.” I ended up auditioning for this character, Bernard Tai, he’s kind of the worst. They are forced to hang out with him. He's a ladies man in a way, playboy, bad boy — very cool and fun for me to play.
McAlone: Were they instantly into you getting the role or did it take some convincing?
Yang: They took a chance I think, because Bernard was supposed to be fat, physically and personality wise this massive a------. But they know I can take this character to the next level, which is great for them to trust me on that.
McAlone: Now that you’re a known entity in Hollywood, with the success of “Silicon Valley” and other roles, and can maybe take a breath and see which direction you want to go in, what projects do you think you’ll gravitate toward?
Yang: A lot of more meaningful projects. You know something like “Patriots Day” that I did a few years ago, which is a drama, is very different than comedy. That was super rewarding. I want to do more of that and also my own writing. I have some scripts, I’m putting a couple of projects together with people I want to work with. I think that's the most exciting part, when you can hopefully create your own content and find the people that you love that you get to work with.
SEE ALSO: We got Gilfoyle's entire PowerPoint presentation explaining cryptocurrency from HBO's 'Silicon Valley,' and it's both useful and hilarious
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: This 19-year-old opened a restaurant with a $155 tasting menu
0 notes
Silicon Valley Season 5: Big New Pied Piper, Same Old Problems
New Post has been published on http://secondcovers.com/silicon-valley-season-5-big-new-pied-piper-same-old-problems/
Silicon Valley Season 5: Big New Pied Piper, Same Old Problems
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push();
The golden rule of sitcom storytelling structure, derived from the hero’s journey popularised by Joseph Campbell, is that characters should change over time, but not too much. Otherwise, the show might end. And that’s why at the start of Silicon Valley season 5 – premiering Sunday, March 25 on HBO in the US, and arriving Monday in India – the folks at Pied Piper are back where they’ve been before.
Now with ample funding at their disposal, after Richard’s (Thomas Middleditch) idea of a new, decentralised Internet accidentally turned into a working concept thanks to Gilfoyle (Martin Starr) hacking into a smart refrigerator, Pied Piper needs to scale. Dinesh (Kumail Nanjiani) and Gilfoyle, usually busy one-upping each other, are being extremely picky with new employees. And as always, Richard finds it hard to be the boss, be it controlling the other two or getting his coders to work together, which involves a lot of dogs.
Meanwhile, newly-reinstated Hooli CEO Gavin Belson (Matt Ross), having been rejected by Richard upon his return from the very short search-for-meaning in Tibet last season, is back to being his old self: constantly trying to undermine Pied Piper, and asserting his importance at Hooli and beyond. Early in the new Silicon Valley season, at a gala event inducting him into the Innovation Hall of Fame, he boasts about his achievements and says the ideal version of him was the man he already was.
The new season also has to tackle the absence of the other over-confident big character on the show: Erlich Bachman (T.J. Miller), who was last seen in a Tibetan den where Gavin left him heavily sedated. Miller left the show under far from ideal circumstances, and the path forward for Silicon Valley turns out to be a bigger role for his enemy Jian-Yang (Jimmy O. Yang), who slowly takes over the incubator, letting his Chinese friends take over the Pied Piper space. Yang’s more visible presence also becomes a platform for the show to talk about inclusion.
Jimmy O. Yang as Jian-Yang in a still from HBO’s Silicon Valley
Photo Credit: Ali Paige Goldstein/HBO
Silicon Valley Season 5 Trailer: Dogs, Bears Invade Pied Piper
Silicon Valley, like the real Silicon Valley, is largely filled with men – most of whom are white. One of the show’s most consistent criticisms has been its handling of Asian characters and leaning into xenophobic stereotypes, including making fun of Jian-Yang’s heavy accent and tying it into his obliviousness of what makes a good app last season. In the fifth season, the show seems to be taking a step forward.
When Richard voices his concerns about Jian-Yang possibly getting control of Erlich’s share in Pied Piper, his counsel Ron (Ben Feldman) and Jared (Zach Woods) wonder if Richard has a problem with Asians, and remain unconvinced even after he replies in the negative. Later in the same episode, when a character remarks that the Pied Piper office could use “a little bit more colour”, it’s clear that he’s referring to the show and the staff.
Shop On SecondCovers
Female characters are still very much at the periphery of Silicon Valley, though Nanjiani said earlier this week at PaleyFest that the show would delve into sexual harassment and gender inequality in the tech industry later in the season. The show’s executive producer Alec Burg added later that it’s a satire after all, which means “our job is to hold up a mirror to a real thing”. Women make up less than a third of the workforce at most tech companies, and much less in executive positions.
The fertile ground for Silicon Valley has always been in lampooning the eccentricities and absurdities of its titular industry – the status of owning a Tesla, the volatility of Bitcoin, and the fear of digital assistants always listening in are this season’s newest candidates – commenting on adjacent scenarios, such as how crowdsourcing anything is usually the worst possible idea, while showcasing the pettiness, arrested development, and juvenile behaviour of its main characters.
Zach Wood as Jared, and Thomas Middleditch as Richard in a still from HBO’s Silicon Valley
Photo Credit: Ali Paige Goldstein/HBO
And that remains the mainstay in season five. Richard’s best attempts to lead Pied Piper towards their new mission are repeatedly stymied by his own shortcomings or the actions of his friends – Jared seems like the only adult in the room, as always, and the show hints at an increase in profile for the character – and Gavin trying to give it to Richard simply means Richard does it to someone else, ensuring a vicious circle.
But nothing here, in Silicon Valley’s fifth year, resembles an overhaul of the functional base code. Though Miller was once considered a highlight, his character had run out of steam given his tangential attachment to Pied Piper, and neither the show nor the other characters miss him all that much. The writers ensure there’s enough happening in every episode to keep us occupied (and laughing), while slowly doling out minor upgrades that’ll hopefully have a worthwhile impact.
Of course, not too much. Otherwise, the show might end.
Silicon Valley starts Sunday, March 25 on HBO. In India, you can stream it on Hotstar the following Monday, or tune into Star World Premiere starting Saturday, March 31.
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push();
0 notes