Variety On the Town

New Line's Literary Lunch

As multiplexes start bulging with holiday blockbuster hopefuls, New Line sought to highlight the literary pedigree of its entrant in the B.O. derby, "The Golden Compass," at a lunch Monday at Gotham's Four Seasons Restaurant.

Charlie Rose and Nora Ephron hosted the Peggy Segal-curated event, which honored Philip Pullman for his series of "His Dark Materials" books, which New Line is hoping will succeed "Lord of the Rings" in the franchise annals.  New Line co-topper Michael Lynne knew he was addressing a savvy crowd heavy with film and book biz notables, so his welcoming remarks acknowledged that the project is attracting both good and not-so-good buzz.  "But no one has seen the movie yet," he said, "so it's all projection at this point."

"Well, I have seen the movie, and it is really good," gently corrected Bob Shaye, Lynne's partner. "We hope we have done honor to your work, Philip." (D. Hayes)

Murakami's Culture Shock

Those who scoff at L.A.'s lack of culture should have seen the turnout at the MOCA on Sunday for the Murakami opening. The swank gala was packed with familiar faces from all spectrums of the art world. In the realm of fashion, there was the evening's honoree Marc Jacobs who collaborated with Murakami on the latest designs for Louis Vuitton (the fashion house now has a shop in the exhibition). In the world of music, Kanye West performed a five song set that had the artsy crowd ever so slightly shaking their hips. Brian Grazer was on hand to represent Hollywood's power players while Serena Williams brought a touch of the sports world. And sure, cynics may suggest that guests were merely there to see West's performance, gawk at the celebrities — Ellen DeGeneres, Portia DeRossi, Christina Ricci, Rachel Griffiths — and indulge in the free flowing champagne, but we prefer to think they were there for the art.  And if not, well at least they now know how to get to the MOCA. (M. McNiece)

Eastwood's Family 'Ties'

It looked like a Mystic River reunion Tuesday night in L.A. as Clint Eastwood strolled down the red carpet alongside Kevin Bacon and Marcia Gay Harden for the preem of "Rails & Ties", which marks his daughter Alison Eastwood's directorial debut. "Being at a premiere and going to the film festivals is icing on the cake, but at the end of the day, I always look back at the cake," Alison Eastwood explained.

Bacon has worked with both Clint and Alison and said of the two, "I'd say the biggest difference between Clint and his daughter is simply the female point of view," he says.  "Whether it's communicating to actors or trying to convey a particular message to the world."

When asked whether or not Dirty Harry gave her any fatherly advice, Eastwood laughed. "Yeah. He just said to surround yourself with good people and set yourself up for success. Not very Dirty Harry but still wise." (S. Oldham)

'Mommie' Lives On

It was a herd of leading ladies paying tribute to one of their own. At the Off-Broadway preem of Charles Busch’s "Die Mommie Die!" the opening-night aud at New World Stages was chockablock with legit actresses who had either appeared in Busch’s other plays or co-starred with him or simply enjoyed his talent: Anna Deavere Smith, Sutton Foster, Julie Halston, Michele Lee, Kate Mulgrew, Joan Rivers, Marian Seldes and Karen Ziemba. Busch had preemed his Gothic-thriller spoof “Mommie!” in 1999 for L.A. audiences, but held off from bringing it to hometown turf.
“I didn’t take it seriously as a play,” he opines. There was a 2003 movie version, and then he did an Actor’s Fund perf last year. “It went well and I thought, Well,  maybe….” (R. Hofler)

An 'Overwhelming' opening

“We don’t need something else that says, ‘the Tutsis are good, the Hutus are bad,’” said “The Overwhelming” playwright JT Rogers (pictured with his wife) at the Broadway opening on Tuesday.

The play, which follows a family of naïve Americans through the country in the time leading up the the Rwandan genocide, opened at the Roundabout’s Laura Pels Theater last night.
Rogers said that he had read 15,000 pages of research for his historically meticulous play, and had memorized the maps of Kigali as it was in 1994. “I hope that people go home and ask questions about what happened,” said the playwright.
Rogers and his actors, including James Rebhorn and Linda Powell, hobnobbed with guests like Lauren Bacall and Jefferson Mays at the Millennium Hotel after the show. (S. Thielman)

Lauren Bacall Steals the Show

Several leading ladies were honored Monday night at the Four Seasons Hotel during the Elle Magazine Women in Hollywood Awards dinner — Scarlett Johansson, Kate Bosworth, Jennifer Connelly, Diane Lane, Amy Adams — but it was Lauren Bacall who stole the show. Bacall received a standing ovation upon accepting her award and immediately had the crowd laughing when she began by saying, "I am very thrilled to be here because it proves that I am still breathing." Bacall continued with a story of mistaken identity. "I was in Sur La Table the other day and there was a man staring at me and I said, 'do you want something?' and he said, 'Well, you are Katharine Hepburn aren't you?'" On a more serious note, Bacall thanked her daughter and fellow honorees, before ending her speech the same way it began "I just can't believe it myself that I am actually upright."  (M. McNiece)

Carrie and Princess Leia's Worlds Collide

While auditioning for the role of Sue Snell in Brian De Palma’s 1976 horror pic, “Carrie,” Amy Irving revealed that she was simultaneously auditioning for the role of Princess Leia. “It was like a cattle call to meet George Lucas for “Star Wars” and Brian De Palma for “Carrie,” Irving said during a Q&A following a screening of “Carrie” as part of The Academy’s Monday Nights with Oscar series. “They had every kid in town going to the office (they shared) where the two of them were sitting there deciding who gets which part.” De Palma said joint casting with Lucas was like killing two birds with one stone.  “George and I were looking for young people for (“Carrie” and “Star Wars”). We had kids auditioning from all around the world. With so many people we thought lets do this together.” (A. Morfoot)

A Tasteful Tea with Ang Lee

What better time to discuss sex and politics with Ang Lee than over afternoon tea? Speaking to On the Town Tuesday at an intimate Focus Features tea party at Tea’s Tea Garden & Herbal Emporium, the helmer bared his inspirations for the pungent scenes in “Lust, Caution.”

“People mix sex and politics together metaphorically.  Eileen Chang, who wrote the short story of ‘Lust, Caution’  said that the ultimate relationship between man and woman is that of the occupier and the occupied,” explained Lee, “In her own life story, Chang’s one true love dumped her while working as a high official in the occupied Chinese government.  In some ways, she felt that the collaborated government was like a prostitute to the Japanese." (A. D’Alessandro)

'Gone' Keeps Auds Talking

The many moral dilemmas facing the characters in "Gone Baby Gone" had everyone buzzing at the preem after-party at the Napa Valley Grill in Westwood on Monday. Ben Affleck, who makes his directorial debut with the project, says that was exactly his goal. "I wanted a film that people would talk about when they left the theater rather than just digest it and have it be forgotten," he said. Miramax topper Daniel Battsek echoed the sentiment. "I think one of the film's real strengths is that you come out and you have a point of view and you want to discuss it with people." Pic's star Casey Affleck also chimed in on the subject saying, "People sort of walk away from this film asking themselves would they have done the same thing and what is right and wrong." (M. McNiece)

Jeff Garlin Serves Up Laughs

Not even Jeff Garlin could curb the enthusiasm of the crowd at Busby's East on Sunday where the HBO show's exec producer and thesp was on hand for the Jewish Federation hosted event. Following a screening of Sunday's episode, Garlin took part in a Q&A session, which quickly turned to talk about “Curb’s” creator and star Larry David. “Everyone busts Larry up,” said Garlin. “When you watch the show our little secret is to watch how quickly when someone says something, we cut to Larry and see how quickly we have to cut away from Larry because he laughs a lot.” Garlin seemed to enjoy the Q&A before he had to rush off to host his Sunday night comedy show “Jeff Garlin’s Combo Platter” at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in Hollywood. “I’ve already seen this episode probably five times," he said. "But I love seeing it with an audience because that’s rare.”          (J. Marks)

The 'Road' to 'Reservation'

"I guess the highest praise I can give to both Random House and Focus is that their money was there and they weren’t,” “Reservation Road" helmer Terry George said prior to the Gotham premiere on Thursday night. “Road,” an adaptation of the John Burnham Schwartz novel, is the first project under Focus' partnership with Random House.

“It never occurred to me that my publisher would be an integral part of making a movie out of one of my novels,” Burnham Schwartz said about the film, which stars Jennifer Connelly and Joaquin Phoenix. “It’s kind of like having your big, brawny cousin come in and support you in every way.”

Before heading over to the after-party at Brasserie Ruhlmann, Burnham Schwartz said ever since he saw the first cut of the film, he realized that he is now part of “a weird, freakishly small clubhouse of people who have written novels and then screenplays of their novels and have gone on to see those books and screenplays made into a film they not only love but believe in.” (A. Morfoot)

Stars Serve Up Laughs

Retired tennis pro Andre Agassi served up aces with an eclectic mix of entertainers and sports stars for the 12th annual Grand Slam for Children benefit concert at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on Saturday. Event, which included a live auction and dinner, scored $9.1 million for at-risk youth in Las Vegas. Prior to kicking off the concert, Tony Bennett said, “I love what I do. This doesn’t feel like work to me.” When asked if long-time friend Jerry Seinfeld would perform with him, George Wallace quipped, “He can’t handle me.” (B. Scherzer)

Tyler Perry Questions Marriage

Before the premiere of  “Why Did I Get Married”, a confident Tyler Perry addressed the aud saying, “everybody in the rest of the country has loved it and I’m hoping it’s the same here in L.A.” An awkward silence followed from the typically jaded Hollywood crowd, but Perry quickly laughed it off. Helmer-actor Perry also gave props to Lionsgate for giving him creative free rein in his opening remarks. “They’re such a great company to work for,” he said, “because they never give you notes. Anything that’s up on that screen, good or bad, is all on me.” Also at Thursday's preem at the Cinerama Dome was, pic’s star Janet Jackson, Lionsgate prexy Michael Paseornek, music producer L.A. Reid and athletes Barry Bonds and Magic Johnson. (B. Perry)

Jessica Simpson's Religious Experience

Volunteering for Operation Smile was like a religious experience for Jessica Simpson who cried, prayed and sung on stage, before a crowd of industry insiders and philanthropists, including Mark Burnett, Roma Downey and John Salley at Operation Smile's 25th Anniversary Gala at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Friday. While on stage, Simpson invited the audience to bow their heads and pray with her, after which she sang "Amazing Grace." "The Lord makes me want to sing," she exclaimed. Simpson revised the last verse of the religious hymn with "I was blind but Bill (as in William P. Magee Jr., the surgeon who founded the org) made me see." Reacting to chuckles, Simpson added, "Some of you might think it's a little cheesy but it's so true."  Later, Salley got laughs when he poked a little fun at Simpson's perf saying, "I want to say something before the teleprompter. I want to sing 'Amazing Grace.' I have a rendition too." (E. Bertet)

A Brush of Controversy

"They are unhappy with the film, "My Kid Could Paint That" helmer Amir Bar-Lev admitted after a Gotham screening of the doc last week.  "They" are the parents of the film’s subject matter, Marla Olmstead, a four year-old artist who won international attention for her abstract paintings —only to be "debunked" months later when doubts were cast on the phenom. In the film, Bar-Lev examines these doubts and tries to determine if Marla’s artwork is partially her parents doing.

"They are doing 'Nightline' this week, making their first big public rebuttal," Bar-Lev said. Despite the publicity the Olmstead’s rebuttal may drum up, the helmer is not happy about it. "It’s not worth the interpersonal drama. These people were friends of mine. Being involved in a he-said she-said controversy is not something I savor."

Sony Pictures Classics picked up the doc at Sundance in January for an estimated $1.8 million. "Of course this has been on some levels what every independent documentary filmmaker dreams of," Bar-Lev said. "But having said that, the reality is even when you are getting documentary gold, it doesn’t feel like anything to celebrate. But I stand by the work and I have to tell things as I see them."  (A. Morfoot)

Jack's Movie Memories

Wearing a lime green shirt and his trademark sunglasses, Jack Nicholson was on hand to introduce "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" Wednesday night at the Target presents AFI's 40th Anniversary celebration. Nicholson amused the crowd with some anecdotes from the set.  “The first time we shot the basketball game, Danny DeVito took the ball and threw it against the fence where the camera was. I couldn’t stop laughing," he said. “I also improvised a lot during this period,” Nicholson recalled, saying that the scene in which his character reenacts the boxscore of a baseball game was heavily improvised.

And though the film was based on Ken Kesey's critically acclaimed novel, "The studio didn’t put up the money until they saw a couple of days worth of dailies. They were in once they saw it, but that’s the business part of it." (J. Sneider)

Owen Wilson Steps Out for 'Darjeeling'

Wes Anderson's "Darjeeling Limited" made a stop at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater on Thursday for the pic's L.A. premiere. Making his first public appearance for the film, was Owen Wilson whom Anderson introduced on stage as "my best friend" adding "I have made every movie with him and hope to never make a movie without him." Also in attendance was pic's Jason Schwartzman, Adrien Brody, Angelica Huston and producer Roman Coppola. The evening began with a screening of Anderson's short film "Hotel Chevalier," (a prologue to "Darjeeling") which stars Schwartzman and Natalie Portman.

Lucas Talks About Makin' Wookie

At the Target Presents AFI’s 40th Anniversary screening of "Star Wars" on Wednesday at the Arclight, the original Jedi master George Lucas was on hand to introduce the film. Flanked by stormtroopers, the helmer entered the theater to thunderous applause and took a place at the podium to talk about the challenges of bringing “Star Wars” to the bigscreen.

"We were out in Tunisia, and it was very, very cold. I was there for 10 days and I was four days behind. Out of nowhere a storm swept in and knocked down all of our sets." recalled Lucas. "That day was one I'll always remember because that was probably the most fun we had.”

Lucas also explained that the secret to the film's longevity was the script, not the effects. "When the movie came out, everyone said, 'Oh, that's fantastic. It's all about the special effects.' That has nothing to do with it. It really does have to do about a story, the psychological underpinnings and the fun characters. After ‘Star Wars,’ there was about a hundred special effects movies that were boring as hell. Even today, they don't seem to get it." Before concluding, Lucas added. "I have given you the secret," he said. "Go make good movies."                      (E. Maxwell)

Silverman Serves Up Seconds

It was Silvermania at Hollywood's Velvet Margarita on Thursday night as Comedy Central celebrated the second season of "The Sarah Silverman Program." The raunchy comedian yukked it up on the black carpet while defending the network's decision to promote the show by creating a profile for her character on the Jewish dating website JDate. "Don't judge it. Everyone's on JDate. That's how Jimmy (Kimmel) and I met."

Inside, the club was outfitted with religious candles and paintings depicting Silverman as the Virgin Mary, reinforcing the fact that  Silverman doesn't concern herself with being politically correct. "No, not if it makes me giggle. I'm not mean. I don't think of myself as mean. I think we comics are, well, powerless. I don't know. No comment!"

And as for the new season? "I don't want to give anything away, but there's definitely a lot of juiciness in every episode." Does that include the rumor that Angelina Jolie has expressed interested in appearing on the show? "What happened was she met us on the lot where we write. She was just magical and she intimated that she would be open to doing something, so who knows? You'll just have to watch and see." (J. Sneider and S. Oldham)

Eva Mendes Plays the Waiting Game

If one word could be used to describe the making of "We Own the Night," it would be “perseverance.” At the Variety screening series on Thursday, director James Gray shared his difficulties in casting the cop drama. "I never once had an actor say, 'Yes, I want to do your movie.'" said the helmer. "I was in New York researching the movie and saw a cheesy talkshow that Eva [Mendes] was on. She was obviously a thousand times brighter than the person interviewing her," said Gray. "We sent her the script. And we got the answer: 'NO!'"

The lovely Eva was on hand at the screening to explain her decision at time. "A year goes by, and he's relentless. It's amazing," said the thesp. "Then I heard he might offer it to another actress that shall remain nameless, and suddenly I'm like, 'What?'"  Luckily for Gray, his persistence paid off and Mendes finally hoped on board.  (E. Maxwell)

On The Town Photo Gallery Nicole Fiscella, Jessica Szohr, Blake Lively and Nan Zhang attend the "Gossip Girl" •View Photo Gallery • All Variety Photo Galleries

Wes Anderson's Extra Help

"Darjeeling Limited" helmer Wes Anderson told On the Town Friday night at the pix Gotham preem that despite filming "Darjeeling" in India, his previous film, "The Life Aquatic" was much more difficult to produce than this one. One easy aspect of filming 'Darjeeling' was hiring the extras. "Often we would find people at a train station and would say 'we will give you this amount of money if you can be back at 10:00am tomorrow and they would just stay. They would say 'Ok. We are not moving from here.'" Joining Anderson at the preem, which also marked the opening night of the 45th New York Film Festival was pic’s Angelica Huston, Jason Schwartzman and Bill Murray as well as guests Jessica Lange, Willem Dafoe, Tilda Swinton and Milos Forman. (A. Morfoot)

Arquette Makes A Splash

It was all about dunking at the fundraiser for EB Medical Research Foundation hosted by Courteney Cox and David Arquette on the Santa Monica pier on Saturday. Since its launch three years ago, the fundraiser has expanded tremendously with the support of Cox and Arquette, along with their entourage, including Kate Beckinsale, Patricia Arquette, David Spade, Catherine Keener, Jeanne Tripplehorn, Adam Sandler and Balthazar Getty. "My friend Balthazar is here and is willing to get in the dunk tank for me," said Arquette. "For me, that's support." Patricia Arquette, who came with her daughter, was eager to show her brother some love in the dunk tank. "I'm fearless," claimed Arquette with a big smile. "I'm going to dunk my brother. Oh yeah, he's going to get dunked really soon." (E.Bertet)