Long Time No See

JUSTINE BATEMAN: LONG TIME NO SEE!

Anyone growing up in the 80’s fondly remembers the popular show Family Ties starring Michael J Fox. Justine Bateman starred as his petulant sister Mallory and the show made her a tabloid favorite. After the series ended in 1989 she drifted out of sight and later confessed that she suffered from anorexia and bulimia. She wasn’t kidding – we remember writing a story for Star magazine about her passing out in a rigorous exercise class – she claimed she hadn’t eaten that day. While her younger brother Jason Bateman developed a successful career, Justine occasionally guested on shows, but didn’t seem all that happy in show business. She got married and had two kids but most important- at the age of 50, she graduated from UCLA with a computer science degree. Yesterday she turned up at the United Voices anti-Trump rally in Beverly Hills.

Photo Credit: AKM-GSI

WILL & GRACE TEN YEARS LATER

At last – some good news! The Will & Grace show IS coming back – for real. (At least 10 episodes!) It must have been SOME job getting the whole cast as well as the very important creative team on the same page at the same time. NBC pulled it off by having everyone resume their contracted salaries and the good deals they had when the show went off the air ten years ago. The show aired for eight seasons and we think it jumped the shark when Debra Messing got pregnant and her skinny character Grace had to conceal the weight gain. Can’t WAIT to see Will, Grace, Jack, and Karen again ten years later and find out what they’re doing NOW!

Photo: NBC

OUT OF THE WAY! HERE COMES VAL KILMER!

Fans of Val Kilmer, 57, will be happy to see that the mysterious actor, who’s been out of sight for a long time, finally turned up at the W magazine Golden Globes party at Chateau Marmont, and he looks healthier. His physical condition has been a big issue and the fact that he’s a Christian Scientist made people wonder if he was getting medical attention. Val insists that he IS, and said he did not have throat cancer, but was suffering from a “swollen tongue.” And his neck is no longer wrapped up. At least he’s feeling well enough to party and after a two year absence onscreen, he has a few movies lined up for 2017.

Above, fans and paparazzi got very excited to see Val and mobbed him!)

Photo Credit: Pacific Coast News

NEIL SEDAKA IS STILL ON THE ROAD

Old school singer/songwriter Neil Sedaka popped into Craig’s for dinner and left with a doggie bag. The Breaking Up Is Hard to Do singer had a string of hits in the 60’s but feels The Beatles ruined his performing career by changing musical taste. He went on to great success as a songwriter with songs like Where the Boys Are. At 77, he still tours and performs in the US and around the world. In fact, he’s appearing at the Saban theater in Beverly Hills in January. We fondly remember his Scopitone video of Calendar Girl. Did you know he’s only 5’5” tall?

Photo Credit: AKM-GSI

NINA HAGEN: STILL CRAZY AFTER ALL THESE YEARS!

And that’s a GOOD thing. Nina Hagen celebrated the 45th anniversary of her eventful career in London and proved she‘s still got what it takes. The German born singer /songwriter was a huge underground favorite in the late 70’s and 80’s years of punk and new wave. (She earned the title “Godmother of Punk”) Her theatrical attire and extravagant – sometimes operatic- vocalizations made her infamous. We remember back in the 80’s, we had a yard sale with friends and were thrilled when Nina stopped by to shop! She picked out the most outrageous clothes she could find and we were happy to see our stuff have a second life with her.

Photo Credit: Pacific Coast News

WATCH OUT NEW YORK, HERE COMES BRENDA VACCARO!

What a treat! We ran into the adorable Brenda Vaccaro at a party and it brought back tons of memories. We’ve been writing about the Midnight Cowboy actress, whom you’ve seen in dozens of movies and even more TV shows, for DECADES! Since, in fact, she and Michael Douglas were a couple! She’s been married to her current husband, Guy Hector since the 80’s and no one thought it would last! Actually they are a good match and seem to have the same sense of humor. Brenda is just now packing up for a move to New York where she’s filming a Netflix psychological thriller series, Gypsy, with Naomi Watts and Billy Crudup. Naomi plays a psychotherapist who can’t resist getting involved in her patients’ lives. Brenda is a troubled patient. Watch for it early next year…

THERE’S SOMETHING STRANGE IN EVE’S NEIGHBORHOOD

Rapper Eve seems to be jumping on the Ghostbusters bandwagon in this trendy gas station style jumpsuit, as she walks her dog Hendrix in Soho. Just in case you’re planning to see the Ghostbusters movie this weekend, don’t let male reviewers scare you away. If you love those girls from SNL along with Melissa McCarthy, like we do, you’ll get a kick out of the movie IN SPITE OF the tedious special effects ghosts. The girls’ interaction is really funny and Melissa isn’t as vulgar as she usually is. They are all delightful, in fact, and we’d love to see them together in a non-Ghostbusters movie. But this is what we have now, and yes, it IS worth seeing because of Melissa, Leslie Jones, Kristen Wiig, and Kate McKinnon.
(By the way, Eve is currently touring with Gwen Stefani.)

Photo Credit: Pacific Coast News

HEY CHER! LONG TIME NO SEE!

Cher enjoys ice cream as she walks through the coastal town

It’s been awhile since we’ve laid eyes on Cher having a good time. After cancelling some concerts and personal appearances, she appears to be in very good health in St Tropez where she’s shopping with friends and took an ice cream break. (You don’t get to see Cher EATING very often, either!) Perhaps she went to Europe to escape the political situations here – Cher gets very emotionally involved and often disappointed.

Photo Credit: AKM-GSI

ELKE SOMMER TAKES HER DOG EVERYWHERE

If you’re a fan of those 1960’s romantic comedies, you must remember Elke Sommer, who was a major sex symbol in those days. As a matter of fact, the Berlin born Elke not only appeared in Playboy, but costarred with Rock Hudson, Paul Newman, Dean Martin, Peter Sellers etc. She also had some of the best blonde bouffant hairdos of the era. Yesterday Elke turned up at The Palm with her adorable pooch. Don’t know if she smuggled him in or what.

Photo Credit: Pacific Coast News

DANIEL DAY-LEWIS TAKES HIS SWEET TIME

Seems like forever since we’ve seen Daniel Day-Lewis , 58, – his last movie, Lincoln, earned him an Oscar, but that was four years ago. Daniel seems to be the opposite of Robert DeNiro, who makes as many movies as he can. Daniel is known for his long hiatuses between films and he likes to take his time researching scripts. Hence, he doesn’t work all that often. (We couldn’t find any future plans.) He was photographed running errands in New York and he’s quite a striking man.

Photo Credit: AKM-GSI