Chaplin may not be your typical Broadway crowdpleaser, but it sure is pleasing to crowds!
Much darker - figuratively AND literally - than your typical fare on the Great White Way, Chaplin unflinchingly tells the tale of beloved screen icon Charlie Chaplin, the real Charlie Chaplin. Warts and all!
We love the show's honest depiction of the complex man. There was no whitewashing here! Though there is lots of razzle dazzle, albeit in muted tones - until the big finale when we finally get a pop of color and tears were streaming down our face.
Chaplin has been getting mixed reviews but lead Rob McClure has been getting universal acclaim for his take on the man behind The Tramp. Deservedly so! He brought a real intensity and a lot of emotion to his portrayal. He reminded us of Raul Esparza, and we say that as a compliment.
In many ways, the show reminds us a lot of Man Of La Mancha, a tale based on a pre-existing cannon about a man that was misunderstood by many.
Do we love Chaplin or the character he played? We really related and were touched a lot by the exploration of this topic and the character of Charlie. Self-reflection on many levels! Especially with the role of gossip icon Hedda Hopper playing an integral part in the show.
Hopper was expertly played by Jenn Colella, the show's other standout. She actually was so good and her character so important to the musical that we wish she would have been introduced towards the end of Act 1. It would have raised the stakes by a lot and given us a glimpse of what to look forward to in Act 2.
Dark shows don't often have long runs on Broadway, but they do become cult favorites. And we think Chaplin will easily be the favorite of many this season!
The staging/direction was great. The songs were above average. Though we do wish they had included Charlie's iconic "Smile". And we thoroughly enjoyed the show!
Other standouts were the dreamy Wayne Alan Wilcox as Chaplin's brother (who was wonderful - even though he could have been given at least one solo song!!!) and Erin Mackey as his 4th and final wife Oona. Christiane Noll as Charlie's mother was fine.
George Clooney is setting his sights high with his most recent charity endeavor.
The Academy Award nominated actor, along with film industry heavyweight Jeffrey Katzenberg, has launched a fundraiser to raise $350 million for Charlie Chaplin's Motion Picture & Television Fund, which provides health care for out of work and retired industry professionals.
Despite the staggeringly high goal, the project is going pretty well. They've already managed to rake in $200 million thanks to donations from megastars like Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg (and we're assuming Clooney and Katzenberg chipped in too). As far as the Descendants star is concerned, this cause is a no-brainer for anybody in showbiz, explaining:
"I was raised to believe that, as a community, we should be judged by how we take care of people who can’t take care of themselves. This is our community. This is our commitment."
How can anybody who has been successful in the entertainment industry say anything but yes to a guy like George?
We're happy to hear that some of the biggest celebs in Hollywood are gladly opening up their checkbooks to take care of the entertainers who have fallen on hard times.
Jessica Chastain was amongst the celebrities that came out on Tuesday night to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Charlie Chaplin receiving the Academy Honorary Award.
The Help actress completely redeemed herself from the night before by wearing a beautiful emerald green Elie Saab lace panel gown.
Jessica always looks amazing in green. She should wear it more often!
Judi Dench has reportedly filmed an AMAZEBALLS cameo for the upcoming installment of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, On Stranger Tides!
According to sources, the famed actress will portray a noblewoman who gets robbed by Captain Jack Sparrow in the film's opening chase sequence through London, a scene that's described as "Charlie Chaplin getting away from the Keystone Kops!"
The insider continues that Depp and Dench were in "fits of giggles" during production!
Ha! It sounds like these two had a blast working together!
Hopefully the scene will turn out as fun as it was making it!
And guess where this lost film from the famed comic Charlie Chaplin was found?
On eBay.
A man from England bought an olive green film canister listed as "an old film" for £3.20 and found the title Charlie Chaplin in Zepped inside.
Stories have circulated over the years claiming that a seven-minute film believed to be World War I propaganda had been lost, with a Russian film academic article reporting in 2006 that "the film has not survived."
Well it looks like the the film released in 1916 has survived and the lucky film collector will be making a pretty penny off his find with estimates of its value ranging from $2000 - $100,000.
Amanda Bynes had a run-in with the popo in the NYC on Thursday night, which resulted in her arrest AND subsequent taking to a psychiatric hospital!
Police showed up at the former child star's midtown apartment after receiving reports of a disorderly person. And that's when shit got crazy!
When the NYPD arrived at Bynes' pad on West 47th, street she threw a bong out the window, who know cuz it probably had crack "incense" in it and she didn't want law enforcement to find it.
Twitter-loving Amanda was arrested on a charge of reckless endangerment.
After her arrest, Bynes was taken to Roosevelt Hospital to undergo a psychiatric evaluation and then transferred to a Midtown police station to be processed.
Hopefully they send her BACK to the hospital and put her on a psychiatric hold!
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