SEAN BELL’S FAMILY MEETS WITH PROSECUTORS November 20, 2008

 

Family members of Sean Bell had their first ever meeting with federal prosecutors Tuesday, nearly two years after Bell died in a hail of 50 bullets fired by undercover cops outside the Queens nightclub Kalua.      

        The officers who killed the unarmed father, set to get married the next day, were later cleared of state criminal charges.      

       “Justice was never served in this case,” family attorney Michael Hardy told WPIX.com. “We still want justice for Sean.”      

       The family has been pushing for the Justice department to bring civil rights charges against the officers. After their first meeting with federal prosecutors, the family now believes that it is possible.      

       In a statement, Rev. Al Sharpton said he believes today’s meeting is “a sign that the federal government has begun to seriously look into the egregious denial of the civil rights of Sean Bell, Joseph Guzman, and Trent Benefield.”

CONDO WORKERS PROTEST OWNER MAGIC JOHNSON November 20, 2008

 

A New York union is calling on Earvin “Magic” Johnson to offer better health benefits for its service workers employed at a luxury condominium he owns in downtown Brooklyn, reports Crain’s NY Business.      

      SEIU Local 32BJ, representing over 50,000 building service workers in New York, launched a Web site Monday to protest the former NBA basketball star’s use of non-union labor at a Brooklyn condominium building owned by his investment company.

 

       The online site NoMagicHealthCare.org calls attention to workers at One Hanson Place, which was reopened this year following renovations and offers individual condo units for up to $1 million.       

       Prior to One Hanson Place’s conversion, the cleaning and maintenance workers in the building were 32BJ members earning area standard wages and benefits. The dozen workers currently receive individual health care coverage and are paid the union rate of $18.94 for porters and concierges and $20.19 for handymen. But they are being asked to pay $300 per family member for coverage, a benefit unionized luxury residential building workers in the city get as part of their contract.

 

       The protesting union members plan to follow Johnson around with picket signs during his visit to New York this week as he makes various public appearances to promote a new book.        

       Meanwhile, Magic participated in a TSA (“Teen Service Announcement”) as an early and passionate supporter of @15, a new teen-led social change platform underwritten by Best Buy to give teens a voice and give them opportunities to direct the company’s philanthropy through the newly-created @15 Fund.

 

       “There were all sorts of chances and times that I could have gotten into trouble, but instead of turning right, I turned left,” Johnson says in his online TSA. “You should dream high, because I’m a big believer that if you don’t dream it, you can’t become it. Life passes you by so fast. So, enjoy the moment. Enjoy the time.”      

       In addition to serving as the chairman and chief executive officer of Magic Johnson Enterprises (MJE), Johnson is currently vice president and part owner of the Los Angeles Lakers. A version of the @15 TSA will begin airing during Lakers games within the next month.

CED’S F***ING PLAY OPENS ON BROADWAY November 20, 2008

 

The opening night of Ced the Entertainer’s new Broadway play “American Buffalo” was dripping with endless profanity – from the stage at Belasco Theatre on down to its employees.

 

      According to the New York Daily News, ushers gave the celeb-filled audience a taste of what was to come in the David Mamet play. One politely asked an audience member to “please take your f***ing seat.” The announcer asked, “We kindly request that you turn off your f***ing cell phones.”

 

       Jerry and Jessica Seinfeld, Kathleen Turner, former Sen. Bill Bradley and Newark Mayor Corey Booker were among the crowd battened down for the torrent of bad words.       

       “I will try to brace myself,” the Rev. Al Sharpton told the Daily News. “I have heard these words before, but this may be the first time I’ve heard it with my daughter, Dominique, present. So I will try to act like it is inappropriate.”      

       Spike Lee’s elegant wife, Tonya, predicted that her husband wasn’t going to hear anything he hasn’t said himself.       

       “He swears a lot,” she said. “But he can’t stand it if I do.”

 

       Cedric the Entertainer admitted Mamet’s impieties did infect his own speech. “All of us were cussing a lot more,” he said. “We were saying, ‘Bring that sh** over here! [Bleep] that [bleep]!’ Things that don’t even make sense.”      

       But, yesterday, he was trying to hold his tongue because, he said, “My mommy’s in town from St. Louis.”

ZAHARA AMONG ‘WORLD’S MOST POWERFUL TOTS’ November 20, 2008

 

Zahara Jolie-Pitt and David Banda have made Forbes magazine’s new World’s Most Powerful Tot list, which ranks the most influential children under the age of five.

 

       Zahara, the adopted Ethiopian daughter of Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt, appears at No. 3 after her younger sister Shiloh at No. 2 and Suri Cruise (the daughter of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes) at No. 1.       

       Banda, the adopted son of Madonna and her estranged husband Guy Ritchie, ranks No. 8. Sam Alexis Woods, the daughter of golf ace Tiger Woods, is No. 5.       

       The remaining Powerful Tots are as follows: 4. Pax Jolie-Pitt; 6. Cruz Beckham (daughter of Victoria and David Beckham); 7. Matilda Rose Ledger (daughter of actress Michelle Williams and the late Heath Ledger); 9. Sean Preston Federline (daughter of Britney Spears and Kevin Federline); 10. Sam Sheen (daughter of Charlie Sheen and ex-wife Denise Richards).

HENRY SIMMONS IN LIFETIME ORIGINAL FILM November 20, 2008

 

Actor Henry Simmons has been cast opposite Ed Begley Jr., Tyne Daly, Linda Emond, Joan Allen and Jeremy Irons in the Lifetime original biopic “Georgia O’Keeffe,” according to Variety.

 

      The film from Sony Pictures TV follows the 20-year love affair between the American artist (Allen) and photographer Alfred Stieglitz (Irons). Simmons portrays writer Jean Toomer, with whom she has an affair later in her life.

 

       Begley plays Alfred’s brother, Lee, a doctor who examines Georgia after she faints and years later when she suffers a breakdown. Daly is set as artist Mabel Dodge Stern, a friend of Georgia’s who lives in New Mexico. Emond plays Georgia’s friend Beck, with whom she travels on her life-changing trip to New Mexico.      

       Bob Balaban is directing the movie, set to premiere in third-quarter 2009.

DREAMGIRLS ANNOUNCES TOUR SCHEDULE November 20, 2008

 

The North American touring production of “Dreamgirls” will kick off at the Apollo Theater in November 2009 and remain there for about one month before touring internationally for 60 weeks.       

       The play will soon go into rehearsal for a 21-week engagement in Seoul, South Korea opening in February. The stateside version will be largely the same production, although the Seoul version will star Korean actors.       

       Robert Longbottom directs the new staging, with choreography by Shane Sparks. The Apollo run does not preclude a potential Broadway run, which remains up in the air and would not likely materialize before 2011.       

       The new production will also include “Listen,” a song sung by Beyonce in the 2006 film version.

 

      An open audition for actresses to play the tuner’s three lead female roles is set for Saturday at the Apollo.

PACMAN JONES FINISHES REHAB November 20, 2008

 

Suspended Dallas Cowboys cornerback Adam “Pacman” Jones is done with the inpatient portion of his NFL-ordered alcohol treatment and has returned to Texas, where he hopes to soon rejoin the team.

 

       Jones’ attorney, Worrick Robinson, said the player is handling personal matters while waiting for Commissioner Roger Goodell to determine if Jones will be reinstated and be able to play again this season or in the future.      

       “He’s using this time to focus on himself and focus on his priorities, which is to stay committed to the program he started,” Robinson told the Associated Press. “He’s re-establishing his life in Dallas with this program being a priority.”      

       Jones was suspended indefinitely last month for violating the league’s personal conduct policy. The commissioner said then that the suspension would be a minimum of four games and that he would evaluate the situation after that time. The fourth game was Sunday, and Jones took part in a program in the Boston area during the month while he wasn’t playing.      

       Robinson said there has “not been any timetable for when a decision will be made by the commissioner.”      

       Cowboys owner Jerry Jones said last week that he would welcome Adam Jones back to the team if he’s reinstated and didn’t expect it to be a distraction if the player returned.      

       “No, not if he’s adhering to the kind of things that he has to address,” the owner said. “He was a hard worker, hard practicer and certainly contributed positively to our team. So I don’t consider him a distraction.”

RICE APPOINTS KEN GRIFFEY JR. November 20, 2008

 

In her waning days in office, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Tuesday named major league baseball all-star Ken Griffey Jr. as a new public diplomacy envoy, a job that calls for travel abroad to help polish Washington’s image.

 

       Griffey joins Cal Ripken Jr, figure-skating champ Michelle Kwan and actress Fran Drescher as current diplomacy envoys. Rice said Griffey will take a trip to Panama in January in his new role.      

       “When Ken Griffey travels overseas, one of his greatest objectives will be to talk to young people and to spark their interest in America and in our culture,” Rice told a ceremony at the State Department.      

       She added: “I am so very proud that Ken Griffey, Jr., has stepped up to that task of helping us to share the story of America, the culture of America, and the values of America.”      

       Griffey, a 38-year-old outfielder, said he jumped at the chance to take up the role.      

       “I played in Japan for the Super Series and just watched how other countries go about their business in playing baseball,” Griffey said. “After a certain age, you pretty much set your ways. But we can reach out to young children about our culture and also about our pastime, which is baseball.”

‘LEGEND’ WRITER TO PEN NEW WILL SMITH FILM November 20, 2008

 

I Am Legend” co-writer Mark Protosevich is in early talks to pen the remake of “Old Boy,” which “Legend” star Will Smith is developing with director Steven Spielberg.

 

      As previously reported, DreamWorks is currently securing the remake rights to the 2003 Korean film about a man’s mysterious kidnapping, 15-year imprisonment and feverish quest for revenge upon being released.

 

       Protosevich has also written “Poseidon” and “The Cell,” and he worked on “Thor” for Marvel Studios. His screenplay for “Legend” helped the film earn $584 million in revenue worldwide.

 

       Smith, meanwhile, was in Miami recently for a charity screening of his latest film, “Seven Pounds,” in which he plays a man who does remarkable things for seven strangers. In keeping with the movie’s theme, Smith also donated 300 turkeys to the needy.       

       “Seven Pounds” arrives in theaters on Dec. 19.

JAMIE FOXX’S ‘SOLOIST’ NOW DUE IN APRIL November 20, 2008

 

Paramount and DreamWorks have agreed to release the Jamie Foxx-Robert Downey Jr. drama “The Soloist” on April 24 instead of March 13, reports Variety, marking the second time the project has been pushed back.

 

       DreamWorks was caught off guard last month when Paramount announced at the 11th hour it was moving the film’s release date from this year to March 13. The Joe Wright-directed movie had an original release date of Nov. 21.       

       In the April 24 slot, “Soloist” will open one week before the official start of the summer box office, which is primetime for movie-going.       

       Based on a series of articles by Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez, the film tells follows the dream of a homeless schizophrenic (Foxx) to play at Walt Disney Concert Hall.