SAG Elections - The Winner!
Melissa Gilbert
Actress Melissa Gilbert was elected president of the Screen Actors Guild, union officials said, defeating actress Valerie Harper in a fiercely contested race that could end up being contested over a flaw in thousands of ballots.
Gilbert, who played Laura Ingalls on the popular television series ``Little House on the Prairie,'' received 12,280 votes, union spokesman Greg Krizman said late Friday. Harper, who was wisecracking Rhoda Morgenstern on ``The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' and later ``Rhoda,'' received 10,692 votes.
Eugene Boggs finished third with 2,553 votes, Krizman said.
The election took place during a time of discord within the union's ranks, following a lengthy commercial actors' strike last year and a barely averted walkout by movie and TV actors earlier this year.
Many prominent actors sided with either Gilbert or Harper during the campaign.
Friday's results came just a day after SAG's election committee decided to defer a decision on whether to impound the ballots because of a missing signature line on nearly a third of them.
Nearly 24,000 ballots sent to SAG members in New York failed to include the signature line, which critics said could allow their validity to be challenged. The other 74,000 sent around the country include a line that states: ``Voter: Print and sign your name on the back of this envelope.''
Guild officials downplayed the effect of the flaw, saying in a written statement that each ballot envelope is already affixed with a printed member identity label that verifies its legitimacy.
``If somebody wants to bring a challenge they are free to do so. The constitution says they have to wait until after the election,'' Krizman said.
None of the candidates had raised serious objection to the flaw.
The trade paper Variety reported Thursday that Hollywood SAG member Gordon Drake planned to challenge the results.
``I respect the decision of the elections committee, but I will move forward with my challenge. The issue is credibility to the members. They need to know that the election is valid under the rules of the constitution and bylaws,'' Drake said.
SAG Elections - The Winner!
Make Up Your Own Caption
In The Chaos Household
Last Night's TV
Thankfully, no 'World Series', but Koresh, talk about a sucky night for TV!
Caught most of 'Ellen', mostly because it's like a car wreck in slow motion, sadly.
Mining the coffee at AA as being the best in town is rather shameless.
Although, several of my pals swear they met most of their best industry contacts in one
12 step program, or another.
Also read the 'tabs'....'Globe', 'Star' & 'The National Enquirer'
(all published by American Media, Inc) all have multiple photos supposedly 'outting'
Portia del Rossi from Ally McBeal.
'Globe' also has an article on Daryl Hannah's prosthetic finger tip - she lost the top
of her left index finger in a childhood accident.
My favorite piece in 'Star' compares the palms of Hitler & bin Laden. Other highlights include:
The attempted resurrection of the ghost of poor Chandra Levy (& by implication, Gary Condit); Tara Reid of 'American Pie' (and
also Carson Daly)-fame is now courting & sparking with Jenna's ex-beau Brandon Davis; and
also a story on the Bob Costas divorce.
In 'The National Enquirer', the ever-fabulous Mike Walker has 2 really interesting bits of
gossip. 1. - Anthony Edwards (Dr. Walker on 'ER') is going to buy the farm with a Fatal
Stroke (a tribute to Pigboy?) during February sweeps....and 2. - The Big Dog, himself, Bill
Clinton has signed to make his acting debut on 'CSI: Crime Scene Investigation' (on CBS)
where he plays the head of a law firm.
Tonight, 'World Series Baseball' continues on Faux. Wonder if they'll try to maximize the
advertisers investments & go for 7 games?
If you're fond of 'Citizen Baines', best get your fix tonight, and tape it for posterity...think
there's one episode left...
If you like really weird movies, AMC has 'Change Of Habit' with Elvis and Mary Tyler
Moore....who will 'Mary the Nun' dump? Jesus or Elvis...the mind boggles.
'Mad TV' on Faux celebrates its 150th episode with (scheduled) Drew Barrymore and
Penny Marshall.
Saturday Night Live is 'fresh', with John Goodman as host. Wonder if they'll
resurrect his wonderfully lethal Linda Tripp?
So, I'm sitting here, playing with this page, Letterman on in the background. Regis was filling
in for Biff at the map, and they're doing the 'Mailbag'....and then I heard the name of town I grew up in, back in PA.
Koresh! We're talking fewer than 4000 people. The kid from back there asked if he was a 'dork' (for
those who were there). Gonna have to call his mom & say she done good!
Anyone have any opinions?
Or reviews?
(See below for addresses)
As Promised
Bonus Page Link
Here are some MP3 files from BC
Third Attempt This Sunday
Emmy Awards
Actor Robert Downey, Jr.'s seat is reserved for Sunday's Emmy Awards ceremony at the Shubert Theatre Friday, Nov. 2, 2001. The show would be scaled down from the original gala, which was planned for Sept. 16 but was postponed due to the Sept. 11 attacks. The ceremony was called off a second time hours before broadcast time Oct. 7 because of the start of U.S.-British air attacks on Afghanistan.
Photo by Damian Dovarganes
Watch Your TV Guides - On BRAVO
'Bill Wymans Blues Odyssey'
Fred C.
Hey,
Saw a great blues show on Bravo last night, Bill Wymans Blues Odyssey,
MUST SEE TV, 2 hours. Some of the best interviews and sound clips I've seen.
~~ Fred
Thanks, Fred....will keep an eye open for it.
BartCop TV!
Visit the site at BC TV
The 'Vidiot' never seems to rest!
Every show on TV must be listed--days worth of reading there.
For an amazing variety of information on an awesome array of tv programs check out
BC TV!
'The Producer's' Has A New Bialystock
Nathan Lane Out Of Action
Nathan Lane, the Tony Award-winning star of "The Producers," appears to have developed
a polyp on his vocal chord and will be out of the hit show indefinitely, his
spokesman said yesterday.
News of Lane's ailment comes just one week after the producers of "The Producers" raised
their top ticket price to a staggering $480.
Selling those high-priced tickets now may be difficult, since it's hard to imagine people
shelling out $480 to see "The Producers" without Nathan Lane.
But Tom Viertel, one of the show's producers, said there were no plans to postpone the
ticket hike, which is scheduled to take effect later this month.
The $480 price tag will be applied to 50 so-called "premium" seats at every performance.
"It has always been a long-term plan," Viertel said. "Nathan is a significant part of
what makes the show exciting, but he wasn't going to stay forever. We believe that over
the long run, the show will be a huge hit without stars, just as it is with them."
He added that Lane's understudy, Brad Oscar - who was nominated for a Tony for his regular
role, as the Nazi playwright - "always gets a terrific reception" when he steps in for Lane.
Lane has been plagued by vocal problems since "The Producers" opened. He is on stage
for at least 75 percent of the show, and belts out many songs, including a show-stopping
11 o'clock number called "Betrayed."
His spokesman, Simon Halls, said, "Nathan is 44, he's done a lot of musicals and his
voice is ragged. His doctors don't want this to become a chronic condition, so they
have put him on complete vocal rest."
Asked if Lane might have to undergo surgery to remove the polyp, Halls said, "That's the
thing everybody is trying to avoid."
Nathan Lane Out Of 'The Producers', Indefinitely
Really Cool, Interesting Site
Track Your ISP's Wanderings
Two terms to look into TRACERT and Visual Route Shareware
" ...See for yourself if you are being watched by the perverts back east who have nothing
better to do with their time at their high paying jobs than to stick their sick, pathetic,
noses into the private affairs of law abiding citizens of this country... "
http://home.earthlink.net/~leslemke/kgb1.htm
More Of Mr. Modesty
Will Smith
Will Smith's ego continues to grow.
Just weeks after Playboy published an interview in which he promised to run for President and claimed he could beat up anyone who comes near him, comes another interview in the December issue of Premiere.
In the piece, Smith brags that his fitness training to play Muhammad Ali in "Ali" cranked up his sex life.
"Jada was lovin' it," Smith said about his wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith, who plays Ali's first wife, Sonji Roi, in the movie. "'Cause being in great shape — I mean, I am a sexual machine now. Raring to go every second of the day. I'm human Viagra. I am Will-agra."
On a more serious note, Smith says he has learned a lot about himself from portraying Ali. Taking his boasting to a level almost equal to the champ's, Smith claims they are twin souls.
"I think that, at our core, Ali and myself are very similar, in that we don't allow the complexity of individual situations to affect what we believe," says Smith.
"I guess the feeling that you are left with is the dichotomy of difficult simplicity, or complex simplicity, because the concepts that Muhammad Ali lived by are really basic and really simple, but really difficult to apply to your life."
The Ever-Modest Will Smith
Fun Link
A Virtual Tour
Not The White House
Harry's Mom Loved It!
JK Rowling
Seeing the film of her first Harry Potter book reduced author JK Rowling to tears -- she just loved it.
``I am enormously relieved,'' the author said after seeing ''Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone'' for the first time at a private screening.
And she gave full marks to 12-year-old child actor Daniel Radcliffe who plays the bespectacled boy wizard in one of the most eagerly awaited films of the year.
``I think Dan nailed it -- and I am really pleased, I just love his face. He has such an endearing face,'' she said.
Rowling said Columbus promised her two things, ``That he would remain as faithful to the book as he possibly could within the constraints of film and he promised me he would have an all-British cast. He kept both promises and so I was a happy woman.''
The novelist, a single mother who started writing the novels in an Edinburgh cafe after dropping her daughter off at school, has become a global publishing phenomenon -- the four books have sold more than 100 million copies in 46 languages.
That was why producer David Heyman breathed such a huge sigh of relief after she watched the film with him at a private screening Sunday at Warner Bros. in London.
Heyman told Reuters ``She came across the aisle, sat down and put her arms around me. Her eyes were tear-stained. She said 'I loved it. Thank you.'''
And then Rowling was swift to put out a statement to reporters spelling out her gut reaction to seeing up on the silver screen what has been inside her head for so long.
``What was most moving to me was to see certain scenes,'' she said, reflecting on the two-and-a-half-hour movie which receives its world premiere in London Sunday and will be released on Nov. 16.
``Admittedly I had been given a lot of input on how things looked. But they really do look as I'd imagined they would inside my head,'' Rowling said. ``From my point of view it is obviously wonderful.''
Columbus, talking to Reuters at a pre-premiere gathering for international reporters at a 15th century stately home north of London, said the opportunity to quiz the author and get into her imagination was invaluable while he was making the film.
``If I had been doing 'Dracula' I would have been great to interview Bram Stoker,'' the 43-year-old director said.
Rowling's first choice was to have larger-than-life British actor Robbie Coltrane playing the friendly giant Hagrid at the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.
``He was, I'd say, the top of my list in the dream cast,'' Rowling said. ``Robbie is just perfect for Hagrid.''
Harry's Mom Is Pleased
New!
In The Kitchen With BartCop & Friends
To check out 'Train Station Chicken', and more (like 'Cranberry Autumn Tea'),
In The Kitchen With BartCop
'United We Stand/What More Can I Give' Concert
Where Was Michael?
ABC had to hurriedly cut a Michael Jackson performance out of a concert special that
aired Thursday night at the singer's request, a spokesman said.
Jackson asked for his performance to be cut from the ``United We Stand'' concert special
because Jackson's own concert special is planned later this month on CBS.
Jackson was still to appear as one of several performers in an all-star finale at the
end of the show.
His own concert special, taped in New York in September, will air on CBS on Nov. 13.
CBS had suggested that Jackson's CBS special might have to be delayed if he had appeared
so recently in a competing network's show, according to The New York Times. The CBS special
was timed to be shortly after the release of Jackson's new album, ``Invincible,'' on Tuesday.
Michael Jackson, ABC & CBS
The Next USO Tour
Wayne Newton
Las Vegas lounge singer Wayne Newton joined President Bush at the White House Friday
to launch this year's USO holiday tour - a spirit-lifting deployment of entertainers
for American troops, "some of whom will be facing extreme danger in the months ahead," Bush said.
Newton, teen pop starlet Jessica Simpson, country singer Neal McCoy and comedian Rob
Schneider leave Nov. 12 for a weeklong Thanksgiving tour of overseas posts, some of
which house troops involved in the U.S. bombing of terrorist targets in Afghanistan.
The entertainers will perform in Budapest and Kosovo, and also on an aircraft carrier
that United Service Organization officials would not identify, citing security concerns.
Bob Hope, 98, was the USO celebrity frontman for almost all of its 60 years. In
October, Newton, 59, was named to take over organizing the USO's circle of entertainers.
At Friday's East Room ceremony, Newton said his new posting would be his legacy.
"When the history is finally written about me it might say a lot of things - and it
may be just, or it may not be kind - but it will have to admit that I loved my country
beyond all else and stood up when it counted," Newton said in a speech twice as
long as the president's.
Bush told Newton that, as he and his team make the rounds, they will find "young men
and women of the highest caliber, ... some of whom will be facing extreme danger in
the months to come, all of whom are proud to serve."
"For our troops abroad, the USO's touch of home will mean even more as we head toward
Thanksgiving and, eventually, the holiday seasons of the winter," Bush said. "And you
can tell them they are greatly needed where they are, and they're greatly missed back
home. And you can tell them the American people and the president are proud of their service."
Wayne Newton & The USO
Another Instance Of CBS' ''3rd Time The Charm''?
'The Agency
Having suffered real attacks of anthrax over the past weeks, is America now be ready
for a fictional assault?
CBS thinks it is, and the network said on Friday the on-again, off-again anthrax episode
of its CIA drama ``The Agency'' is on again -- now set for broadcast next week.
The episode about a fictitious anthrax threat against the nation's capital originally
was slated for broadcast on Oct. 11 but got bumped by President Bush's nationally
televised news conference that evening.
The segment was then moved to the following week but was shelved again over public anxiety
about the real-life anthrax scare unfolding in Florida, New York and Capitol Hill.
The show's publicist, Tracey Rabb, said CBS ultimately decided it was OK to go with the episode,
scheduling it for Nov. 8, next Thursday.
In the episode, filmed in August, the CIA discovers that perpetrators of an anthrax attack
in Belgium are planning to make Washington, D.C., their next target, sending agents
scrambling to foil the plot.
CBS Tries '3rd Time The Charm', Again
ABC Comedy Pilot
Danny DeVito
Danny DeVito is attached to direct an ABC comedy pilot about a very odd extended family.
The as-yet-untitled pilot will be written by Bill Oakley and Josh Weinstein
(''The Simpsons'') for DeVito's Sony-based Jersey Television.
The show will operate on many different levels, from satirical comedy a la ``The
Simpsons'' to broad, physical yuks.
``Notwithstanding the fact that they're the most eccentric family on their block,
they're also the most close-knit,'' said Landgraf.
The series is being targeted for fall 2002 but could end up on ABC as early as this
spring. Network executives bought the project in the room Thursday as soon as Oakley,
Weinstein and DeVito pitched it to them.
``They came up with this idea that's really right up my alley,'' DeVito said of the
project. ``It's sort of like a modern 'You Can't Take It With You,' with some really
great relationships. I'm really excited to do it.''
Danny DeVito & ABC
Spielberg Pulling A Lucas?
New Scenes For 'ET'
Steven Spielberg is pulling a George Lucas.
Just as his old pal Lucas went back and rejiggered Star Wars into a new special edition,
Spielberg has decided to give his 1982 classic E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial a digital makeover.
The restoration will include the addition of some never-before-seen footage, as well as
upgraded special effects and some slightly altered scenes, in honor of the little guy's
20th anniversary rerelease, set for next year. (Fans can get their first glimpse at the
revamped E.T. this weekend, as the film's teaser trailer is premiering in front of Monsters, Inc.)
Spielberg's biggest addition is a restored scene featuring the wrinkly bug-eyed alien and
his new best friend Elliot taking a bath. The filmmaker originally nixed the segment when
his crew couldn't get the animatronic E.T. puppet to work properly.
"We're sitting here 20 years later with computer graphics and the ability to make small,
subtle changes to E.T.'s performance," E.T. producer Kathleen Kennedy explains to USA
Today. "If his lips got caught or his eye looked the wrong way, we were able to go in and
make some subtle modifications."
Among the other subtle modifications, Spielberg improved the way E.T. voices his famous
line--"E.T. phone home"--by digitally matching the creature's lips to the words. The director
also lengthened the Halloween sequence and changed a scene where Elliot's mom (Dee Wallace)
forbids him to go trick-or-treating dressed as a terrorist. Instead, the mom now bars him
from going out dressed as a hippie.
That alteration was originally done for a television broadcast of E.T. more than a
decade ago, but the filmmakers decided the change was even more appropriate in light
of the September 11 terrorist attacks.
Purists might also cringe at the thought of Spielberg lopping off Elliot's infamous
"penis breath" insult to his brother.
"I think that was just a choice. He could've kept it in, but he opted not to," says
Marvin Levy, Spielberg's publicist.
There are also some not-so-subtle alterations. Perhaps the most controversial change,
says Levy, involves the government's men in black in pursuit of Elliot and E.T., who,
along with a group of friends, use their bikes to outmaneuver the agents. In the original,
the feds carried shotguns. Now, they wield walkie-talkies.
Levy says Spielberg always regretted having the guns in there and made the change
after considering their impact on children in today's culture.
The results have certainly been disconcerting for some movie buffs, who often accuse
studios and filmmakers of releasing "special editions" that forever alter the integrity
of the original films as a pretext to make more money at the box office.
"I understand all the reasons for doing it beyond the commercial motives," film critic
Leonard Maltin tells USA Today. "I understand, too, that an artist is never satisfied
with his own work. But I'm just old-fashioned enough to believe that when you finish
something, it makes a statement, whether artistically or in the commercial marketplace,
and you should stand by that statement."
In the meantime, cinephiles can take comfort in knowing that Kennedy and Universal Studios
Home Video have promised to release two different versions of E.T. on DVD next year--one
of the original, unaltered 1982 movie and another with the digital enhancements.
New Scenes For Re-Tooled Anniversary Edition Of 'ET'
First Official Theatrical Trailer
Star Wars - Episode 2
Clones, clones and more clones. And no Jar Jar Binks.
That's what diehard fans can expect from the first official theatrical trailer for
George Lucas' Star Wars: Episode II--Attack of the Clones, which unspools nationwide
in front of Monsters, Inc. beginning Friday.
Here's a quick rundown of the Jedi juice, the first scenes released from the upcoming prequel
due out next May.
As the gleaming green Lucasfilm logo fades to black, the 60-second trailer begins with
almost no sound, save the frightening mechanical breathing of Darth Vader as a series of
images flash by at light speed--a teenage Anakin Skywalker ( Hayden Christensen), Queen
and now Senator Amidala (Natalie Portman), Yoda, a desperate, light saber-wielding Obi-Wan
Kenobi (Ewan McGregor) and lots and lots of clone troopers.
"Overall, this is truly a teaser trailer and we really wanted to give...fans some fun
insight into what's happening in Episode II and leave them wanting something more,"
says Jim Ward, Lucasfilm's vice president of marketing.
Fans disappointed by The Phantom Menace may be heartened to know that there was
little sign of the infamous Jar Jar in the Attack of the Clones trailer.
Which may very well account for the mostly positive response from Star Wars geeks
who turned up at the earliest screenings of Monsters, Inc. on Friday in New York.
Many were satisfied so far by what they saw.
Since Lucas considers his space opera to be a family film, screening Clones ahead of the
Disney-Pixar 'toon makes perfect sense. But it has little to to with any cozy relationship
between Clones' distributor, 20th Century Fox, and Disney.
Because of Lucas' long relationship with Pixar head John Lasseter (Lucas originally owned
Pixar before selling the company to Apple Computer mastermind Steven Jobs) , the two companies
struck a deal that allowed Clones to be physically attached to prints of Monsters.
By essentially making Clones part of Monsters, the companies took advantage of a loophole in the
guidelines of the Motion Picture Association of America and were able to bypass any possible
objections from the two films' respective distributors, 20th Century Fox and Disney. The end
result is that the Star Wars trailer gets shown more often and in more theaters.
The decision also stands in stark contrast to the way Lucasfilm initially marketed Phantom Menace,
whose teasers first played ahead of more adult-oriented fare like Meet Joe Black and The Siege.
"Obviously there's history between the two companies," says Ward. "George has high regard for John
Lasseter and his team. Monsters is clearly a great family film as is Star Wars."
A longer, two-minute Clones trailer is rumored to premiere before Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's
Stone when that movie hits theaters on November 9. However, Lucasfilm reps refused to comment on
any future trailers.
Send In The Clones
Auction News
Tolkien Collection
A comprehensive collection of proof copies, first editions and letters by author J.R.R. Tolkien
comes under the hammer later this month, auction house Christie's said on Friday.
The archive, which chronicles the development of Tolkien's best-selling fantasy ``The Lord of
the Rings,'' is expected to fetch up to $51,270, Christie's said in a statement.
The documents, which will be auctioned in London on November 16, are from the collection
of Tolkien's friend George Sayer.
In one letter Tolkien thanks Sayer for his ``great kindness and generous support and help
in the matter of the L.R. (Lord of the Rings) in the dark days of doubt...
``You were extremely kind to me at a low ebb. And I believed your praise, somehow more
than anyone else's,'' he wrote.
Over the past century Tolkien's epic adventure trilogy about hobbits, trolls, elves and
wizards has enthralled more than 100 million readers worldwide. The legend will be brought
to life on the big screen when the $300 million film is released on December 19.
Other notable works for sale at Christie's inaugural 20th Century Book Sale include a signed
limited edition copy of T.S. Eliot's ``The Waste Land,'' estimated to fetch 1,000-1,500 pounds,
and an inscribed copy of D.H. Lawrence's collection of poems ``Amores,'' which could fetch 5,000-7,000 pounds.
A copy of psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud's ``Die Traumdeutung'' (The Interpretation of Dreams),
said to have influenced figures as diverse as author James Joyce and artist Salvador Dali,
is expected to fetch 9,000 pounds, while a group of six letters from Albert Einstein to his
sons could sell for up to 6,000 pounds, Christie's said.
Tolkien Collection To Auction
New! Updated!
BartCop Astrology
Check it out at BC Astrology.
This week, the official BartCop Astrologer has provided two charts.
One who's talent (and hearing, as well), is on loan from his god, and for contrast, an American visionary,
national treasure, and real-life role model, Helen Keller.
Very interesting reading!
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Liberal Radio
Erin Hart
Yes, there is some (not much) liberal (i.e. non-hate based) radio still out there.
Join Erin Hart regular times 9 p. to 1 a. (PST) Saturday and Sunday nights.
The battles at home and abroad continue: are we losing the battle of word and images in the war on terrorism?
What about those of you who have lost your jobs to the war on terror?
What do you think of Bush pushing such a disastrous tax break/refund aimed mainly at the wealthy and corporations disguised as economic stimulus? Will the Senate stop the House and the President?
I want federal workers checking my bags at the airport, how about you?
And the threat at home, just what are you afraid will be attacked?
And on a lighter note--will the Randy and the Diamondbacks prevail against those Damn Yankees?
The Erin Hart Show begins at 9 pm (pst) Saturday and Sunday on www.710kiro.com.
That's 9 pm to 1 am Saturday and Sunday.
Listen online, and join in the chatroom.
We usually have a pretty good time.
Federal Investigators & Your Rights
If An Agent Knocks
If An Agent Knocks
Pink Slips At Walt Disney World
The Latest Round
If you've been to Walt Disney World in the past decade, you may have caught Mark Lainer
playing a character in the Indiana Jones show. Or he may have made you laugh in one of
the improvisational sketches at Pleasure Island.
Until two weeks ago, Lainer was an actor at the theme park.
Now he is a casualty of some of the toughest economic times Disney World faced in decades.
Lainer and more than 100 other actors were laid off two weeks ago.
Lainer no longer goes to work each day to perform improv, play the character ``Six Bits''
in the Hoop-Dee-Doo show, or act the role of a movie director in the Indiana Jones Epic
Stunt Spectacular Show.
Instead, he grew a beard, sleeps in late, works the phones to drum up some acting and
writing jobs from conventions, and plans for a move to Los Angeles with his wife and
cats early next year. Lainer, who also directs, has been back to Disney to fill some
substitute roles but finds that former colleagues treat him ``like someone died.''
Since February, Disney has laid off more than 180 of the 430 actors who once worked
full-time at the theme park resort, or about 40 percent of its Actors Equity performers,
according to Lainer. Disney spokesman Bob Jimenez disputed that number as too high but
would not say what the actual figure was.
During the latest round, the actors were given the option of working a service job in the
park, in merchandising or custodial, but most refused. Lainer said such jobs pay only a
third to half of his $22-an-hour wage as an actor.
Other Disney workers are also feeling the pinch. Most of Disney World's 15,000 part-time
workers have had their hours eliminated. Hourly workers have had their workweek cut back,
and salaried workers were given the option of scaling back their hours.
Lainer had worked at Disney World for more than a decade before he was told to report to
the ``Song and Dance'' conference room at the entertainment offices at the Disney-MGM
Studios theme park two weeks ago.
Executives in suits arrived and told Lainer and his colleagues that the Indiana Jones
show was going to be cut from two casts to one. Instead of eight shows a day, there would be five.
Lainer was given a check worth several thousands of dollars consisting of two-weeks' notice pay,
four weeks of severance pay and pay for vacation and sick days not taken. They asked him to turn
in his company ID and pass, and they had an escort follow him to his locker to grab his personal
items. The escort walked him to the exit.
``He was kind of making sure that I left, and I left,'' Lainer said.
It was a sour end to Lainer's tenure at Disney, where in the past he had given improv workshops
to the top Disney executives who now had decided to cut his job.
Disney Lays Off Actors
What A Long Strange Feud It's Been
More On The Garcia Estate
Jerry Garcia's life was one long love-in, but his dearest ones have been brawling bitterly since the day he died.
Feuding over everything from Cherry Garcia ice- cream profits to his custom guitars for six years now, relatives of the Grateful Dead frontman will face each other again in court Wednesday.
Garcia was 53 when he died unexpectedly in August 1995, while in rehab. On one side of the estate battle is his widow, Deborah Koons Garcia, who is now entitled to one-third of the $10 million in cash and $4.6 million in annual royalties from his music, art, an action figure — even neckties and Birkenstock sandals, according to the L.A. Times.
Opposing her have been Garcia's five girls: Sunshine (the biological daughter of Ken Kesey and Carolyn [Mountain Girl] Adams), Heather, Annabelle, Theresa and Keelin (the daughter of a young Deadhead), and his brother, Clifford.
One ferocious feud took place the day Garcia's ashes were to be scattered over the Pacific. Koons Garcia wouldn't let Adams, the musician's second wife, into the boat. Friends say Koons Garcia also stopped Adams' alimony, and allegedly discontinued payments on a Toyota 4-Runner Garcia bought Theresa as a graduation gift. The widow's lawyer said she had to do belt-tightening or there'd be no estate left.
Garcia's bandmates even fought over several of his guitars: Garcia wanted them returned to their maker, a homeless man-turned-artisan, but the Dead claims the instruments were "communal."
Lawyers aren't optimistic about next week's showdown in Marin County Superior Court. "I think there are so many things on the table that the court will find it impossible to sort [it all] out at this time," says Max Gutierrez Jr., who represents Koons Garcia.
Small wonder. Included are the claims of a roadie who said he deserved money for "baby-sitting" Garcia while he was tripping.
The Jerry Garcia Estate
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Still Really Like This One....
"Boondocks" (9 Oct 01)
Gonna let it ride for awhile.
Still MISSING
Marc Chagall's "Study for 'Over Vitebsk'"
