MAD MEN Goes All GLEE With Its First iTunes Hit

The GLEE-ification of television continues this week with this surprise bit of entertainment news. During the season premiere of MAD MEN, Don's new French-Canadian wife did a little song and a lot of dance during the party scene.  The sooo 60s ditty "Zou Bisou Bisou" was sooo perfect for her and the party in general. So perfect that a YouTube version of the original was soaring past 100,000 hits by Monday. Thinking quickly, the show released actress Jessica Pare's version to iTunes where it instantly made it into the top 100 yesterday.

From the moment that party scene began with a gay boy from the band trying to adjust the lighting, I knew this was destined to be one of the most memorable scenes of this memorable series.  And now it's been semi-immortalized with the downloadable version of Megan's love song to Don (which of course didn't go over so well). I'm not sure if I'll actually download it myself, having already spent 23 bucks on my season pass for the show.  But it is j'adorable...as is Megan, who got a bit of nuance with this song and a kinky S/M scene late in the epic season opener.  Hopefully, there will be more musical numbers to come...and more Megan too.

My Glam Night At The GLAAD Media Awards

Last weekend, I attended the 23rd Annual GLAAD Media Awards at the Marriott Marquis ballroom in Times Square. It was a very glamorous evening with lots of stars on hand too. I got to chat with Megan Hilty and Bernadette Peters from SMASH as well as Cheyenne Jackson from 30 ROCK and Carson Kressley. Carson, as usual, was hysterical and ended up being a winner too, accepting the award for Best Reality TV Series for his turn on DANCING WITH THE STARS.

Here's my report on the event that posted yesterday on NEXT magazine's nightlife blog, The Nexus. Check it out. And donate to GLAAD too...they are a wonderful group that does a lot to counter discrimination against LGBT people in all forms of the media.

An Effort To Landmark The Rest of The West Village

The New York TIMES reported on a story of local interest to me over the weekend; a new push on a long-delayed effort to get landmark status for my neighborhood, which the TIMES refers to as the "South Village".  It's an area that is well known for it's local music/entertainment spots, like the Back Fence, Cafe Wha and the former Village Gate (now converted into a CVS)

It comes as a shock to most people that this section of the Village has not been landmarked.  Most of the West Village, west of 6th avenue, was covered by landmark status decades ago. But this section remains unprotected.  Lately, there has been a lot of development in the area, including reckless knockdowns and ugly additions, including a new plan by NYU to add 2 million sq feet of classroom space to the area.

The City government, however, doesn't feel this is an urgent situation. But, living here, I can say that things have been rapidly changing for the worse in the last five years and will only increase without any of the protections landmark status offers.  I hope that this latest effort meets success and that the unique qualities of this Village in the heart of Manhattan will be preserved.

The Sights And Sounds Of The NYC Subway

I found this cool little video over on my favorite subway blog, Second Avenue Sagas.  It's done by a freelance video editor based in Washington, Tim Sessler. It's a cool look at the sights and sounds unique to the subway system here in New York.  In DC, of course, things are much quieter in the sleek, soundproofed and sterile caverns of the Metro....which could explain this filmmaker's fascination with the MTA.  Enjoy!
   

Etch-A-Sketch Is Trending & Its Stock Rising

After an off-hand comment by a Romney campaign operative, Etch A Sketch is trending this week.

In yet another random sidebar of the Republican presidential race (which has played like one random sidebar after another) Etch A Sketch is now being talked about by the remaining candidates for the Repblican nomination.  The reference was to shaking the Romney campaign like an Etch A Sketch at the end of the primary race, and recalibrating Romney to be more conservative for the general election.

Whatever the meaning, it's done wonders for a toy that most people probably thought had gone the way of the Rubik's cube.  But no, Etch A Sketch lives and its stock yesterday doubled in price on Wall Street as reported on the WALL STREET JOURNAL's blog. So maybe Romney will inadvertently create some jobs as demand for the long-forgotten toy ramps up as the Republican primaries heat up.

Dinner & Great Theatre At THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF HEDDA GABLER

Last night, I was invited to a unique theatrical event.  The company Exit Pursued By A Bear (a reference to Shakespeare's A WINTER'S TALE) kicked off their second season with a production of Jeff Whitty's play THE FURTHER ADVENTURES OF HEDDA GABLER.  The play, starring Whitty in a transformative turn as the titular character, takes place in a nether world where fictional characters live on for eternity.  Gabler meets up with Mammy from GONE WITH THE WIND, played with heart and searing soul by Billy Porter, as well as a host of other notable characters who are too delicious to reveal as they all try to find their way out of immortality and into real life.

The play was wonderfully acted and sharply written, funny as well as thought provoking. But what was really so lovely about this production was the presentation, taking place in a converted industrial style loft on the far west side of Hells Kitchen with seating on raised platforms covered in cozy pillows and blankets.  It was theatre as a true communal experience as the audience numbered maybe 30 people and the actors were only a few feet away.  At intermission, a dinner of fresh baked beer bread and a vegetarian stew was served, along with wine, beer and soda that audience members had brought to share.

The whole experienced made me think of what it must have been like being in NYC during the experimental theatre scene as it blossomed in the late 60's and early 70's.  There were other theatre artists in the crowd and after the show, there was a nice hour or so of socializing over dessert as people discussed the play and got to meet and chat with the actors, some of whom were helping clean up from dinner!

If you're interested in something unusual and unusually well-done, I would encourage you to check out this show. The cost for tickets is a suggestion donation of $20, which is well worth it and helps support this new non-profit theatre. The show has been extended through the end of this month and limited tickets available on their website.

Lost Photos Of The Catskills Concord Hotel

I was on the Huffington Post recently and stumbled across this amazing shot of the Concord Hotel, one of the famed hotels of the Borchst Belt that prospered in the Catskills during the mid-20th century.  These are actually photos from a series of postcards that were sold at the hotel, recently discovered and collected by Jordan Smith.  They show a lost world of glamour and leisure--where Don Draper might have gone on vacation (if he was Jewish, that is). You can watch the full slide show here.

The Concord was abandoned in the mid-1980s and recently demolished to make way for a potential casino. Regardless of its future, there is no denying it had a gorgeous past. I get very nostalgic for this era when I see photos like this, even though it was well before my time.  There is a certain glamour to it all which remains appealing, some 50-odd years later.

NEWSWEEK Goes Retro With MAD MEN Issue

Ad Age reports today that a special issue of NEWSWEEK magazine will be styled like it was back in the 1960s to coincide with the premiere of MAD MEN on AMC this coming Sunday.  The idea for this supercool cross promotion came from Newsweek's newish editor Tina Brown, of course.

This special issue will be about the role of advertising in U.S. culture and will even feature some retro-styled ads as well.  However, one type of old school ad you won't see--no cigarettes, as those are no longer advertised in the magazine per Brown's edict. One other oddity this article in Ad Age mentions is that, during the MAD MEN era, women were not even allowed to be bylined writers for the magazine. They only worked in the background, doing copyediting and research, and it wasn't until a class-action lawsuit in the 70s that they were able to write articles.

As much as MAD MEN generates nostalgia for the style of the 60s, we can certainly be glad that some of the discriminatory details of the decade are long gone.

SPECIAL: Take A Ride On The Space Shuttle's Booster

Here's a video I noticed on FB the other day of a ride on the space shuttle, taken from the vantage of the solid rocket boosters that life the STS into orbit and then fall back down to earth.  It's one of the most incredible views of space travel I've seen. Not to mention the actual soundtrack too.  I never realized the solid rocket boosters really got so high, up to 28 miles exactly...their release is wild, like something EFX wizards concocted but it's actually real. Also, stick with this through to the end to the splash landing in the Atlantic.  Extraordinary!

The NYU HawkCam Is Back...As Are The Hawks

Last spring, a daytime web-cast drama originating from high on a ledge of NYU's Bobst Library about a family of red tail hawks caught the interest of thousands of people around the world.  Well, I am happy to report that HawkCam has been renewed for a new season and started broadcasting this week live on the web, 24 hours a day.

The second season has some new cast members too as Violet, the female hawk from last spring, died over the summer after a leg infection.  The newest hawk in the next has been named Rosie (on the right) by readers of the NY Times CityRoom Blog, which has been chronicling all the action in the nest.  And there are two eggs as well so a new baby hawk could be arriving come springtime!  They've also upgraded and repositioned the camera so that now you also get a lovely, live view of Washington Square Park and the memorial arch too.