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Vulture

Edited by Dan Kois & Lane Brown

March 25, 2008

Apropos of Nothing

3/25/08

6:00 PM

Columbia's Spring Fling Too Cool for School

All these kids are standing with their hands in their pockets.Photo illustration: Everett Bogue; Photos: Getty Images (Columbia), David Atlas / Retna (Grizzly Bear), iStockphoto (kids)

During the stereotypical undergrad experience that exists only in our imagination because we went to Nerd University, Spring Fling was two solid days of unabashedly jammin’, weed-fueled party time. Sophomore year we would get Ben Harper; junior year we'd get Mos Def; freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior years we'd get the Roots. Those times were characteristic of the whole college experience: a beautiful, sheltered period when we were free to spend days in the library following our muse no matter where in our MP3 collection it took us.

Then we went to work at a big-city magazine with a corporate imperative toward hipness, and now we hardly remember what things were like in the days when we could mention that we liked the Red Hot Chili Peppers without getting a dirty look from our boss, who only listens to Swedish electronica. Thus we were greatly disturbed to read that spring fling at Columbia University will not include Mos Def, Ben Harper, or even the two and a half stars of the Black Crowes. Columbia’s spring concert will, instead, feature Brooklyn indie titans Grizzly Bear and the National. Nothing against those bands … it’s just that they’re so cool and critically acclaimed. And if kids as young as 18 are starting to worry about that kind of thing now … then who’s going to come with us to see Pearl Jam at Bonnaroo this summer? —Ben Mathis-Lilley

Spring Concert Revealed: Grizzly Bear and The National [BWOG]

The Early-Evening News

3/25/08

5:45 PM

XM and Sirius: Hooray for Monopolies!

Courtesy of Hasbro

NOTE: Today’s Early Evening News is dedicated to our Daily Intelligencer sistren and their praise-worthy decision to begin appending the Law & Order "chung-chung" to random posts.

The satellite-radio system used to be made up of two separate yet equally important groups — XM and Sirius. Now, thank God, Americans will be able to listen to both out-of-market baseball and out-of-market football on the same gadget. This is their story. [NYT]

The Breeders are hosting a listening “party” for their new album on their Website tonight. It consists of a video taken several days ago at an actual listening party. Was this the plan all along … or did their listening-party planner listen in on the wrong party’s plans? [Breeder’s Digest]

The Smashing Pumpkins are suing former record label Virgin over use of their music in a Pepsi promotion. For Virgin, this news must seem like a Siamese … nightmare. [Pitchfork]

Fox’s Parker Posey vehicle, The Return of Jezebel James, gets yanked from the air owing to low ratings. We guess that's one Parker that won't be posing anymore. [PopWatch]

Defamer is attempting to lure John Hughes out of seclusion by collecting questions from avid fans. Our question: Is "Blaine" actually, in fact, a major appliance? Here's hoping that the John Hughes Challenge works, and that Hughes hasn't disappeared ... without a trace! [Defamer]

Wait, we did that wrong.

Right-Click

3/25/08

5:15 PM

The New Black Crowes Song Is Okay, Probably

Photo: WireImage

1. The Black Crowes, "Goodbye Daughters of the Revolution" The Black Crowes were on Leno Friday, and though we haven't seen the performance, we'd give it two and a half stars. [Culture Bully]

2. The Raconteurs, "Top Yourself"
We really appreciate all the effort that Jack White and iTunes put in to making sure this album leaked super-early. It sounds good! [Frequenze Indipendenti]

3. The Walkmen, "Passin' Through"
Leonard Cohen is about to go on his first tour in a zillion years, but this Walkmen cover recorded for Daytrotter sounds more like the original that the man himself will probably be able to manage. [Daytrotter]

Some Aussie band wants to stab you. »

The Take

3/25/08

5:00 PM

Dakota Fanning Apparently Not Too Young for Obsolescence

Photo: Getty Images

Yesterday MTV's Movie Blog raised a question we can honestly say we haven't thought of before: "Who's the Next Dakota Fanning?" And now that we've had time to think it over, we have a thoughtful, well-reasoned response: What? The child —yes, child — is 14. What's next, folks? You know, that baby was really realistic in Knocked Up. Who's the next Baby From Knocked Up ? (The one from Juno, obviously.)

The piece points to the movie Hounddog and its controversial rape scene as the beginning of the end for Fanning, and pits Little Miss Sunshine's Abigail Breslin and Sleepwalking's AnnaSophia Robb in a battle for, essentially, America's Next Top Dakota Fanning. So first of all, according to IMDb, Fanning has five movies in postproduction. Second of all, even if the starlet did disappear from the Hollywood scene (again, she's 14, so take "scene" as you will), we're giving credit to Amy Poehler's brilliant and hilarious The Dakota Fanning Show. Maybe the sophisticated little actress watched that and realized she needed a break and, you know, a childhood.

Anyway, there's another Dakota Fanning right in the Fanning household. »

Apropos of Nothing

3/25/08

4:15 PM

Commenter Confirms: Aretha Franklin's Son Not a Great Rapper

Maybe not this bad, though.Courtesy of Jive

Yesterday we speculated that Kecalf Cunningham, Aretha Franklin's Christian-rapping son, may be even worse than most Christian rappers and rapping sons. We asked our readers to write in with some of his rhymes, vowing to record and post our own Christian raps if they didn't. It was a threat so terrifying that one commenter actually did check in to drop three pieces of Kecalf Cunningham science. So how were they?

Read more »

Backlash to the Backlash

3/25/08

3:45 PM

Is HBO on Its Way Back?

Sure, John From Cincinnati sucked. Sure, after we went crazy for the pilot of In Treatment, we never watched another episode, like everyone else except for those crazy fans the Times dug up. Sure, the only good shows left on HBO are Big Love and Flight of the Conchords, and we can't even agree about Flight of the Conchords. Sure, the network just dumped Carolyn Strauss, the programming exec most responsible for HBO's biggest hits. But is it possible that HBO, rather than being on its last legs, might actually be at the beginning of a revival? We think so!

Is Diary of a Manhattan Call Girl the Ur-HBO series? »

Art Candy

3/25/08

3:00 PM

Artist Lady Pink Redefines ‘Statuesque’

Lady Pink’s A Lovely Entrapment (2008). Courtesy of Ad Hoc Art

Lady Pink is perhaps best known for painting New York’s subways pink in the early eighties. Her lush new works, in which women are buildings (or even whole universes), make us wonder: If this country were to vote in its first woman president, would it also consider a redo on Lady Liberty — and let Lady Pink loose? Imagine! A hefty collection of Lady Pink's paintings on canvas and wood are on view at Ad Hoc Gallery in East Williamsburg through April 20, alongside similarly street-fierce works by Tokyo artist Aiko. The show will pull any waning feminist into line. —Emma Pearse

Beef

3/25/08

2:15 PM

How Fanboys (Sort Of) Saved ‘Fanboys’ From Harvey Weinstein

Courtesy of Weinstein Company

It's a situation eerily similar to the way the Rebellion achieved galactic victory by discovering that the Empire’s muffler ports had not been properly secured against proton torpedoes (stupid contractors). Star Wars–philes upset that Harvey Weinstein had reshot portions of the upcoming Star Wars–phile comedy Fanboys got the production giant to promise to release an unaltered version. Well, on DVD, anyway.

How did the fanboys (sort of) save Fanboys? By declaring an Internet-organized boycott of the Weinstein Company's Superhero Movie this weekend. Although that seems on the face of things the least threatening boycott ever — given the potentially meager audiences for Superhero Movie in the first place — it makes a certain kind of sense.

Read more »

Apropos of Nothing

3/25/08

1:30 PM

‘Scrubs’ Moving to ABC?

Courtesy of NBC … for now

E! Online's Watch With Kristin blog is reporting that Scrubs will move to ABC for the 2008–2009 season. The show's future has been in doubt for some time at NBC, and producers were looking for another home on the likelihood that the network wouldn't renew it. But more episodes are filming now, says Kristin, and "word around town is that ABC is inches away from closing the deal."

So first How I Met Your Mother turns into Scrubs, and now the actual Scrubs is getting another year. We guess we don't hate the show or anything — any program that ensures the continued employment of John C. McGinley can't be all bad — but seriously, if this winds up being the final nail in Cavemen's coffin, we're gonna be pissed. And if Steve McPherson really wanted to stick it to his rival, Ben Silverman, shouldn't he steal a show that Silverman actually likes?

Source: Definitely ABC for Scrubs [E!]

Earlier: ‘How I Met Your Mother’: Does It Feel Braffy in Here?

Quote Machine

3/25/08

12:45 PM

Pharrell's Metaphors Are Beyond Reproach

Photo: Getty Images

"It's almost like this big gorilla looking down at you. If he smacks you, he kills you. His fingers are the size of your body. That's kinda what we're doing in N.E.R.D." Pharrell Williams on N.E.R.D.'s new album [MTV]

"There was actually a period when I was trying — when I did Band Of Brothers. I thought, 'Surely this will dispel some of that thing.' But even after that one, I read a review or two that was like: 'It's Ross in the army!' I basically threw my hands up. I was like 'Okay, if you really think that's the same character, then either you're insane, or I'm just the worst actor that ever was.'" David Schwimmer on getting away from being Ross Geller [A.V. Club]

"Oh, they don't drink in the NFL. I was shocked to hear. I couldn't believe it. I was watching a Bud commercial at the time, I think." George Clooney on the NFL's refusal to allow Leatherheads to use the name of an old pro football team because there was drinking in the movie [AP via Yahoo]

"We are moving offices onto the Fox Studio Lot next week and we had to say goodbye to the offices that were our home for the past 3 years … not really that sad because, well, c'mon, it's just a frickin' building." —Prison Break writer Nick Santora on being picked up for a fourth season [MySpace]

"This is, quite simply, untrue." John Mayer, responding to the Post's claims that he "Googles himself every morning, and has been known to respond to online rumors just to clear the air" [JohnMayer.com]

Countdown

3/25/08

12:00 PM

Dammit, Scarlett Johansson's Album Might Be Good

Photo: WireImage

Uncut, a most likely credible culture magazine from the U.K., gives Scarlett Johansson’s Tom Waits covers album a track-by-track review today. None of the tracks are identified as “celebrity cash-in crap,” and in fact they sound like fun, drugged-out indie-wall-of-sound twists on the originals. We are even looking forward to hearing Johansson cover the pretty ballad "Who Are You?" as the album's closer.

Damn! Will we have to disavow our smug dismissal of the project?

Read more »

The Take

3/25/08

11:15 AM

‘Run, Fat Boy, Run’: Europeans Just Figuring Out Jogging

Courtesy of Picturehouse

In the new comedy Run, Fat Boy, Run, Simon Pegg plays a pot-bellied Brit who, in order to win the girl, promises to run. For 26.2 miles! In a row! As Ron Burgundy said circa 1977, "I believe it's jogging or yogging. It might be a soft J. I'm not sure, but apparently you just run for an extended period of time. It's supposed to be wild." It's also apparently still a source of bafflement and hilarity across the pond.

This summer the newly elected French president Nicolas Sarkozy's morning jogs had les bien-pensants in a lather. "Western civilization, in its best sense, was born with the promenade," a "leading intellectual" sniffed on French television in July. "Walking is a sensitive, spiritual act. Jogging is management of the body. The jogger says I am in control. It has nothing to do with meditation." Quelle vulgarité!

Jogger pegged with Mars bar! »

The Take

3/25/08

10:30 AM

‘How I Met Your Mother’: Does It Feel Braffy in Here?

Courtesy of CBS

So forget about Britney. She was fine! She was funny! She sort of sounded like she learned her lines phonetically, but there was absolutely nothing wrong with her! The real question is this: When did How I Met Your Mother turn into Scrubs?

Sarah Chalke — reportedly a last-minute replacement for Alicia Silverstone — was actually very good as the latest woman who may or may not be Your Mother. (She replaces last week's favorite, "Woman.") As a dermatologist single mom who feels a spark with Ted but can't bring herself to make a commitment, Chalke was pretty, charming, and sweet. But something about the episode — maybe the subpar, rushed-after-the-writers'-strike jokes, maybe Ted's really not-great hair, maybe Chalke's presence — made this whole episode feel … well … kind of Braffy. As if at any moment, Bob Saget's voice-over might be replaced by Zach Braff's, intoning great truths about friendship and love.

What about that two-minute date? »

News Reel

3/25/08

9:45 AM

MoMA's Glenn Lowry Bares All in Dubai

LowryPhoto: Getty Images

During his keynote address at the United Arab Emirates' Global Art Forum this weekend, Glenn Lowry, director of the Museum of Modern Art, threw caution — and local Muslim custom — to the wind. The high-toned think tank of architects (Rem Koolhaas), artists (A Wei Wei, Tony Cragg, Anish Kapoor, via video), and government leaders was held alongside the area’s first art fair, Art Dubai. (Think Art Basel Miami's beach parties, but with camels, silver trays of dates and $1.15-a-gallon gas.) In his talk on the history of MoMA, Lowry showed Cézanne's scantily clad bather and Picasso's classic Les Demoiselles d'Avignon, a Cubist take on five naked prostitutes. The dealers in the art fair rustled more uncomfortably than the white- and black-robed locals; after all, the dealers had skipped on bringing nudes, fearing censorship. Said Art Dubai director and London dealer John Martin, "I didn't want to get a call from a sheikh saying, 'My two wives and seven daughters don't like this.'" But, Martin noted, "That call never came."

So how did everyone respond? That could be the $550 million question. »

The Industry

3/25/08

9:00 AM

Feast Your Eyes on the New East High School Wildcats

Clockwise from top left: Prokop, Martin, McKenzie-Brown.Courtesy of mattprokop.tv, imdb.com, BBC

New Kids for HSM3: After an international casting search, Disney has finally found some new faces for High School Musical 3: Senior Year. First, there's Matt Prokop, who's appeared in Hannah Montana, and we're pretty sure was grown in a lab to be the perfect tween emo sensation. Joining him are Justin Martin (Young Simba in Broadway's The Lion King) and some lucky British girl named Jemma McKenzie-Brown. Don’t worry, Zac, they'll never replace you in our hearts. [HR]

Three Join Allen in Jail: Jeanne Tripplehorn, Sigourney Weaver, and Juno's J.K. Simmons have joined the growing cast of Tim Allen's ex-con comedy Crazy on the Outside. Don't you secretly wish that this could be an Eddie Murphy–style comedy with J.K. Simmons playing every character? Oh, um, we don't either — that would be ridiculous. [HR]

Moxie Sees Red: Moxie Pictures has acquired the rights to New York Times correspondent Anthony DePalma's book about Fidel Castro's prerevolution days. The Man Who Invented Fidel: Castro, Cuba, and Herbert Matthews of the New York 'Times' examines how a reporter's myth-making profiles of the man allowed him to rise to power. First order of business? Coming up with a longer title. [Variety]

What's the next musical from the Drowsy Chaperone guys? »

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