MUSIC/ ANDREW GOLD DIES AT 59: Andrew Gold, a singer, songwriter and versatile musician who had a Top 10 hit in 1977 with "Lonely Boy" and was a vital component of Linda Ronstadt's pop success in the 1970s as a member of her band, has died. He was 59. Gold died Friday in his sleep at his home in Encino, said his sister. He had cancer but had been responding well to treatment, she said. He played several instruments, did arrangements and sang on such Ronstadt albums as "Heart Like a Wheel" in 1974, "Prisoner in Disguise" in 1975 and "Hasten Down the Wind" in 1976. His versatility also made him a highly regarded session player for such folk-rock musicians as James Taylor, Carly Simon, Loudon Wainwright III and J.D. Souther as well as the producer of recordings by Stephen Bishop, Nicolette Larson and others. "Andrew was so enormously talented it almost seemed effortless," Ronstadt said in response to his death. "He was a real cornerstone of those early records". Gold launched a solo career in the mid-1970s while still with Ronstadt's band. "Lonely Boy" was a hit on his 2nd album, "What's Wrong With This Picture?" and the single "Thank You for Being a Friend" from 1978's "All This and Heaven Too" reached #25 on Billboard charts. That single also became the theme song for "The Golden Girls'. He recorded with English musician Graham Gouldman in the 1980s, then continued to write, record and work with a variety of artists. Gold also did commercial work and soundtracks, such as singing the theme to the NBC sitcom "Mad About You." His last release was 2008's "Copy Cat". He is survived by his family. A private funeral will be held with a public memorial to be held at a later date.
ART/ AUCTION TO FEATURE WARHOL'S DEBBIE HARRY: An Andy Warhol portrait of Blondie star Debbie Harry is expected to fetch up to £5.5 million when it is auctioned at Sotheby's in London later this month. The 1980 work will go under the hammer on June 29 as part of a 2 day auction of contemporary art. The event will also feature works from the collection of Dave Stewart, better known as one half of the Eurythmics. Among the 7 pieces up for grabs is an early spot painting by Damien Hirst dedicated to the British musician. According to Sotheby's, the Harry portrait is "the ultimate culmination of Warhol's exploration of our public fascination with female cultural icons". Made up of 5 silkscreened layers of ink over a colored acrylic ground, the portrait was made at the height of Blondie's international fame. Last month a Warhol self-portrait from the early 1960s fetched $38.4m at an auction in New York. Sixteen Jackies, a 1964 print featuring various images of former US first lady Jackie Kennedy, sold for just over $20m at a separate sale held the same week.
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's 1st novel, "The Narrative of John Smith," is to be published for the 1st time. The book, about a man's reflections on life after he finds himself confined to his room with gout, was written between 1883 and 1884. Conan Doyle, pictured left, sent it to a publisher but it was lost in the post and he then had to reconstruct it from memory. It was never finished. The first Sherlock Holmes novel, "A Study in Scarlet," was published 3 years later. It was announced today that The British Library is set to publish "The Narrative of John Smith" this autumn. The book has been part of the British Library's Conan Doyle collection since 2007 and realized it would make a good publishing project. The Arthur Conan Doyle Literary Estate gave their consent to the plan. A curator at the British Library said the novel is "loose in plot and characterization", as it was his 1st full-length effort, having written many successful short stories previously. The novel sees John Smith ruminate on topics including politics and religion and also features several conversations with his boarding house landlady, Mrs Rundle. "She is a Mrs Hudson in the making," the curator said, referring to Sherlock Holmes's landlady.
After stints at NBC and CBS, it was officially announced today that Katie Couric will make ABC the home of her new syndicated talk show. The project has become one of the industry's worst kept secrets, with much of the negotiating process played out in the media. After talks with NBC, CBS and Time Warner broke down in recent months, Couric turned to ABC, which is set to launch her daytime show in September 2012. “I’m very happy to be returning to the network where I began my career as a desk assistant in 1979," Couric said in a statement. ABC's 8 owned and operated stations have already cleared Couric's not yet titled show for the 3:00pm slot and will return the last hour to its affiliates in the hopes that they, too, will use it to pick up Couric's show. But what will be replaced from a daytime schedule that will include soap opera "General Hospital," local news and two new lifestyle shows "The Chew" and "The Revolution" remains unclear. Also up for debate is how CBS and NBC stations, which will be asked to carry the show in many markets, will feel about Couric's ABC news presence. Earlier, CBS had passed on the idea of a Couric show. They reportedly polled stations and many balked at the idea of scheduling Couric in place of other shows, including the #1 rated "Judge Judy," which was recently renewed thru 2015.
Producers of "The X Factor" officially announced tody that singer Nicole Scherzinger will be replacing Cheryl Cole on the judging panel of the upcoming Fox TV show. The statement did not explain the reason for the move or how producers would handle the sessions already shot with Cole on the judge's panel. Media reports say that Cole, pictured left, will not be on the panel because she lacked chemistry with the other judges, particularly Paula Abdul. "There was no spark. It was nobody's fault. It just didn't work," said one anonymous report, which also said that it was Simon Cowell who concluded that replacing Cole was necessary. Fremantle will reportedly still pay Cole the reported $1.5 million she was owed under her contract. Cole was originally announced on the show’s judging panel, which includes Cowell, Abdul and L.A. Reid, while Scherzinger was named co-host with Steve Jones. In their statement, producers said that Jones will now act as the sole host.
ABC's Emmy-winning comedy series "Modern Family" topped the nominations for the inaugural Critics' Choice Television Awards, announced this morning. The show, which was named best comedy series at September's Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony, was nominated in 6 Critics' Choice categories, including best comedy series. It also earned nominations from the Broadcast Television Journalists Association for cast members Ty Burrell, Ed O'Neill and Eric Stonestreet for best supporting actor in a comedy and Julie Bowen and Sofia Vergara for best supporting actress in a comedy. Emmy-nominated Jesse Tyler Ferguson was the only major cast member not nominated. Vying for best comedy honors with "Modern Family" will be another ABC series, "The Middle," along with CBS' "The Big Bang Theory," Fox's "Glee," FX's "Louie" and "Archer" and 4 NBC shows: "Community," "Parks and Recreation," "The Office" and "30 Rock". On the drama side, cable shows dominated the field. AMC has 3 series in contention: rookies "The Killing" and "The Walking Dead" along with veteran "Mad Men," a 3 time best drama Emmy winner. They will compete with HBO's "Boardwalk Empire" and "Game of Thrones," Showtime's "Dexter," FX's "Justified," DirecTV's "Friday Night Lights" and 2 broadcast nominees: Fox's "Fringe" and CBS' "The Good Wife". Overall, ABC earned the most nominations of any network, with a total of 16, followed by NBC with 12. AMC and FX led the cable networks, with 9 noms apiece. Full details on the nominations and the awards can be found on the awards website. The awards ceremony will be held on June 20 with Cat Deeley hosting, and will air on ReelzChannel on June 22. VH1 also will live stream the show on its website.
: "The Twilight Saga: Eclipse" led the winners at the MTV Movie Awards on Sunday night, earning a total of five Golden Popcorn trophies, including best movie. In addition, stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart took home the awards for best male and female performance, respectively, as well as best kiss. Pattinson also earned best fight honors for his duel with Bryce Dallas Howard. Meanwhile, young actress Chloe Grace Moretz was a double winner for her role in "Kick-Ass," being named best breakout star and biggest badass star. Tom Felton, who plays Draco Malfoy in the Harry Potter movies, was named best villain, while "Easy A" star Emma Stone received the award for best comedic performance. Elsewhere, Justin Bieber was rewarded for his feature film debut, the concert-biopic hybrid "Justin Bieber: Never Say Never," which earned him the trophy for best jawdropping moment. Ellen Page won for best scared-as-s--t performance for her role in "Inception". A new category was introduced this year for best line from a movie. That honor went to Alexys Nycole Sanchez for "Grown Ups": "I want to get chocolate wasted." Full details on the awards and all winners can be found on the MTV website.
The new musical "Once", based on the 2006 independent film about an Irish busker and a Czech musician who form a tentative collaboration and romance in Dublin, will get its premiere at Off-Broadway's New York Theatre Workshop rather than Broadway this fall. As previously posted, Irish playwright Enda Walsh ("Penelope" "Walworth Farce ") wrote the libretto, and songs have been penned by the films actor-musicians Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova. The songwriters co-wrote the picture's Oscar-winning Best Original Song, "Falling Slowly," which is expected to be part of the stage musical. A Broadway debut in fall 2011 was previously announced, but according to new reports, producers are now opting for a more modest launch, downtown, with an eye toward a Broadway move. The film version of "Once" was made for under $150,000, was shot in 17 days, and went on to gross over $10,000,000, becoming a critically acclaimed international smash. Songwriters Hansard and Irglova have toured the world, performing songs from the Grammy-nominated soundtrack.
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