Superman or supermensch?

The reason I pursued journalism in university is the same reason I always have a book on the go: I love a good story. 

Supermensch: The Legend of Shep Gordon, a documentary directed by Mike Myers (or Wayne), is THE go-to documentary for anyone who loves a good story because a) it tells a great story about b) a guy who probably has more stories to tell than anyone else in the world.

Shep Gordon, for those of you who haven't heard of him (like me, three days ago), is a legendary music manager, agent and producer who also happens to be friends with everyone in Hollywood... and His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama.   

In case you're wondering what a mensch is (like me, three days ago), it's a Yiddish word used to describe "a person of integrity and honour."

I was lucky enough to be turned on to Supermensch by a good friend of mine (previously mentioned here and here) the other night (you guessed it, three days ago). 

I want you to watch the trailer for the film, but more than that, I want you to watch Johnny Depp introducing the trailer for the film (because it includes the trailer and, frankly, Johnny Depp making a fool of himself).

According to the documentary, Gordon was pretty much a "nobody" when he first met Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison and Jimi Hendrix one night at a party at a Los Angeles motel. Hendrix asked Gordon what he did for a living and Gordon replied "nothing." Hendrix went on to ask him if he was Jewish. The answer was yes. This is what Hendrix said next: "You should be a manager," to which Gordon replied "who would I manage?" "Alice Cooper," said Hendrix.

So he did. And the rest, as they say, is history.

Gordon didn't much like Alice Cooper's music (even though they became lifelong BFF's) but he definitely knew, instinctively, how to make him famous.

BFF's then

 BFF's now

Live chicken + blood + Alice Cooper = famous.

Other than Alice, Gordon managed a long list of musicians including Pink Floyd (for nine days), Anne Murray, Blondie, Teddy Pendergrass, Luther Vandross and many, many more. In addition to his music management duties (more on these below), Gordon is credited with putting the business affairs of Groucho Marx in order, pro bono, producing Kiss of the Spider Woman, turning the chef into the celebrity chef (he also managed Roger Vergé, Wolfgang Puck, Emeril Lagasse and Paul Prudhomme) and kick-starting the Food Network.

My bae Anthony Bourdain even had something nice to say about him, which was, and I quote "before Gordon, chefs were not allowed to eat in the dining room because they were considered 'the help.'"

As for Gordon's music management duties, this is what he had to say about them: "The three most important things a manager does: get the money, always remember to get the money, never forget to always remember to get the money."

ka-ching!

    

Between two ferns

Contrary to what its title implies, this post is not another ode to nature.

It's an ode to Zach Galifianakis. 

Between Two Ferns is the name of an internet comedy series Galifianakis hosts on funnyordie.com, a "comedy video website that combines user-generated content with original, exclusive content." It's called Between Two Ferns because he basically interviews celebrities positioned between two ferns.

Like this.

Some of the funniest, and most popular, interviews Galifianakis has conducted (firmly nestled between two ferns) include ones with Jennifer Aniston and Tila Tequila, Sean Penn, Jon Stewart, Charlize Theron and, as pictured above, Steve Carell. He also interviewed Jon Hamm (ahem) among many others.

Who am I kidding. They're all hilarious!

The reason I decided to write about Galifianakis today, even though I think of this nearly every day and literally laugh out loud...

... is because I came across the coolest story about him and the lovely lady he took to The Hangover III premiere.

Her name is Mimi Haist and she is an 87-year-old woman who is now homeless but used to know Galifianakis when he was a down and out comic who laundered his clothes at the laundromat she volunteered at.

But back to Zach.

I first came across the little bundle of joy (who is often compared to a garden gnome) when I watched The Hangover (way, way, way after it came out) at home in Montreal with my beau.

You know those moments when you catch yourself being really happy. That was one of them.

Since then, I've been a fan of pretty much everything he does.

Including being a philanthrope instead of a misanthrope. 

Word.

Are you there Chelsea? It's me, Ursula

So I made - or rather, kindly asked - my beau to add the E! network to our (lengthy) list of channels so that I might be able to watch my new girl crush, Chelsea Handler, on a nightly basis. For those of you living in a cave (kidding), Chelsea (we're on a first-name basis now) hosts a half-hour, night-time entertainment show called Chelsea Lately and is the only woman, other than Joan Rivers, who has ever done so.

CL has become my touch point. In addition to watching it dare I say religiously I now also watch her half-hour... ummm... docu-drama (ha!) After Lately which airs, ironically enough, BEFORE Chelsea Lately on Monday nights.

Not satisfied with my daily Chelsea intake, I have also been known to read her books, listen to her radio interviews (with Howard Stern, for example) and watch her interviews, with David Letterman (the one where she infamously called him a small man), Oprah Winfrey and even Katie Couric.

Zach Galifianakis should definitely get her between two ferns if he hasn't already done so. 

I predict that Chelsea is going to give the usual night-time boys club a run for its money and take over for Jimmy Fallon, after he takes over for Jay Leno. Mark my words. 

Maybe. 

PS. Love the new vampy lipstick.

PPS. If you ever need another nugget, I'm available.

The wonderful world of Wes A.

I was lucky. When I was a university student, I had the great fortune of interviewing three then-unknown, rising stars: Owen C. Wilson, Luke Wilson and Wes Anderson. The occasion was the debut of their first feature film, Bottle Rocket. 
 

I remember it like it was yesterday. It was 1996. I was living on Queen Mary Road, in Montreal, and they were living in Los Angeles. Suddenly, in the middle of the afternoon my phone rang and I - obviously - picked up.

"Hello?" I said timidly. "Hi, it's Wes, and Owen, on speakerphone."

Holy %$@&!

As the interview went on, I realized I, or they, were onto something big. "None of the actors in this film are well-known," said Anderson, "but some will be eventually."

No %$@& Sherlock. 

Wes, Owen and Luke are now, over 20 years later, very well-known indeed. Since Bottle Rocket, Anderson has made Rushmore, The Royal Tenenbaums, The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The Darjeeling Limited, Hotel Chevalier, Fantastic Mr. Fox and The Grand Budapest Hotel, to be released in 2014. The Wilson brothers have joined him on many of these, in addition to starring in their very own feature films. And let's not forget dear Mr. Kumar Pallana.       

What made me think of this interview, conducted so many moons ago, was my recent viewing of Moonrise Kingdom. Another peek into Anderson's fascinating mind, the movie features many of the images and themes present in his other films: maps, hand-drawn pictures, old movie-making equipment and, of course, children/adults that never grow up.

"It's like Charlie Brown's world," said Anderson back in 1996. "They always wear the same clothes and you never see their parents." The more things change the more they stay the same because the same can be said about Moonrise Kingdom.

After watching Anderson's latest, I had an irrepressible urge to watch my all-time favourite: The Royal Tenenbaums. Though I've watched it countless times, it makes me laugh, and cry, every time.

By way of the Green Line bus remains my favourite scene in a movie - like ever - and for me, is a visual and audio representation of true love. Gwyneth Paltrow acts the %$@& out of it without saying a word while the breeze in her hair speaks volumes.

Pure poetry.