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From the Archives: David Bouley’s Thanksgiving 1994 Menu
Fashion

From the Archives: David Bouley’s Thanksgiving 1994 Menu

by jummy84
written by jummy84

“Haute for the Holidays,” by Jeffrey Steingarten, was originally published in the November 1994 issue of Vogue.

For more of the best from Vogue’s archive, sign up for our Nostalgia newsletter here.

Today we celebrate the two hundredth anniversary of the most famous turkey in Franco American culinary history. I refer, of course, to the bird shot in October 1794 in the wilds of Connecticut by the great French gastronome and magistrate Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin. For three years Brillat-Savarin had taken refuge from the French Revolution in an America of Edenic plenty, of sweet corn, squash, persimmons, and pumpkins, of lobsters and oysters and inexhaustible game—venison and turkeys, quail and geese, canvasback ducks and passenger pigeons, whose flocks covered the rivers and darkened the autumn skies.

“While I was in Hartford, in Connecticut, I had the good luck to kill a wild turkey,” he writes in his immortal Physiology of Taste (M.F.K. Fisher’s translation). “This deed deserves to go down in history, and I shall recount it all the more eagerly since I myself am its hero.” He and a friend, Mr. King, rode out from Hartford on two hired nags and by nightfall arrived for dinner at their host’s farm, five leagues—15 or 20 miles—away. Brillat-Savarin, Mr. King, and their host dined on stewed goose, a handsome piece of corned beef, a magnificent leg of mutton, and root vegetables of all kinds. At each end of the table were enormous jugs of excellent cider, and their host had four fine and radiantly healthy daughters, aged 16 to 20, whom Brillat-Savarin admired at every turn.

The next morning, Brillat-Savarin and Mr. King set out for the hunt. “I found myself for the first time in my life in virgin forest, where the sound of the axe had never been heard.” He wandered about with delight. “First of all we killed some of those pretty little grey partridges which are so plump and so tender. Then we knocked down six or seven grey squirrels, highly thought of in [America]; and finally our lucky start led us into the midst of a flock of wild turkeys.” As the turkeys rose into the sky, Mr. King fired first, missing entirely and scattering the rest. But one laggard turkey, lazier than the others, took flight just ten paces from Brillat-Savarin. “I fired at it through a break in the woods, and it fell, stone dead.” Mr. King claimed to have hit a turkey too, but even his dog, leading them deep into boundless woods and impenetrable thickets, could not find it. Hopelessly lost, they were finally rescued by the silvery voices of their host’s young daughters.

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David Gotlib: An Eponymous Cufflinks Brand Founded by a Seasoned Diamantaire
Fashion

David Gotlib: An Eponymous Cufflinks Brand Founded by a Seasoned Diamantaire

by jummy84
written by jummy84


Brand Bio is Fashionista’s guide to the best independent fashion and beauty brands — a resource for retailers, job seekers, B2B companies and consumers alike. If you’d like your brand to be featured, fill out this form. David GotlibHeadquarters: New York, NY and Antwerp, BelgiumE-commerce: …

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10 David Gray Songs You Need to Hear (That Aren't "Babylon") » PopMatters
Music

10 David Gray Songs You Need to Hear (That Aren’t “Babylon”) » PopMatters

by jummy84
written by jummy84

David Gray made his musical name at the turn of the 21st century, but it would not be until halfway through its first decade that he released his true masterpiece. 1999’s White Ladder put Gray on the global map, fueled by the success of lead single “Babylon”. On that album and its successor, A New Day at Midnight, Gray pursues an electronic-inflected style of folk – “folktronica”, as one neologism has it – that lends him aesthetic uniqueness, bridging the old-fashioned guy-with-a-guitar setup and the new kinds of production and instrumentation available in a changing technological landscape.

After breaking into the international mainstream, however, Gray would not stick to folktronica. As 2005’s Life in Slow Motion attests, his music blossomed with organic instrumentation and fuller arrangements, in contrast to the intimate bedroom sound that makes White Ladder endearing still. Life in Slow Motion, now re-released in deluxe digital and vinyl editions that include demos and B-sides, testifies that for whatever Gray was able to get out of a spare recording setup, he knew how to take advantage of a full studio setup and a whole series of accoutrements, including brass string sections on the likes of “Alibi” and the haunting title track. The sonic canvas is as expansive as the arctic environs on the cover art.

Six albums have followed Life in Slow Motion, bringing the tally to 13 for Gray’s career. With the new edition of that LP as exigence, PopMatters looks back on Gray’s artistic output, delving deep into his catalogue to highlight ten songs that, in various ways, illustrate the many facets of his songwriting that culminate on Life in Slow Motion.

No songs from the much-lauded White Ladder appear here, intentionally. “Babylon” and its siblings, like “Sail Away” and “This Year’s Love”, still feature at any concert of Gray’s, and more ink, physical and digital, has been spilled about them than anything else in his discography. This article prefers the deep cut over the smash single, and Gray is one of those artists who shine most brightly on the songs that were never meant for radio’s circulation. The singles featured below dropped after the days when radio charts reigned supreme, but in a different musical reality, they still deserved to shoot to number one.

“Falling Free” (from Flesh, 1994)

This hushed piece from David Gray’s early and pre-fame years sounds in every aspect like an artist coming into his voice. Consisting of nothing more than Gray and a piano, “Falling Free” signaled his aptitude for writing love songs. “We’re standing face-to-face / With the angel of grace / Don’t it just taste so pure?” he cries at the song’s climax, a rupture of emotion in a gentle ballad.

The juxtaposition of stark piano chords and Gray’s poignant lyrics marks an essential passing of a test for a young songwriter: how well can you paint a musical picture with the barest of ingredients? “Falling Free” gives us a protean version of the Gray that would blossom in the years to come: earnest without being cloying, emotionally direct, and lyrically rich.

“Late Night Radio” (from Sell, Sell, Sell, 1996)

Despite its title, Sell, Sell, Sell ended up being the record that preceded the one that sold copies in the millions. Still, “Late Night Radio” should have been as big a hit as “Babylon” was, perhaps even more so. The song tells a story familiar to the annals of rock ‘n’ roll – a small-town woman having her world expanded with a move to a big city – but does so with a catchy chord progression and an intriguing chorus metaphor (“She don’t mind the late-night radio”).

Gray peppers in imagery that adds vivacity to the familiar picture he conjures, as when he describes New York as “dark, dirty and stark / Burning with yellow wings.” When in the final verse he describes his protagonist as “alive with the sound”, the same feels true of him. 

“Flame Turns Blue” (from Lost Songs 95-98, 2000)

Of the songs written by David Gray that should make the mythical songwriter’s canon, the kind of song that anyone with a voice and a guitar would do well to know, “Flame Turns Blue” stands out as the best candidate. Gray regularly introduces the song onstage by explaining its backstory, which was written after a stolen tour bus incident during a US tour. However, “Flame Turns Blue” might be the most timeless thing he’s written; the particularity of his experience in writing the song translates into an expression of universality.

The final verse contains some of Gray’s finest lyrical poetry: “Through the lemon trees the diamonds of light / Break in splinters on the pages where I write.” Lost Songs is an interstitial moment in Gray’s career, compiling tracks written in the years leading up to White Ladder. “Flame Turns Blue” confirmed a year after that record’s release that the brilliance had been in the works for some time.

“Knowhere” (from A New Day at Midnight, 2002)

The deepest of deep cuts, “Knowhere” might not be on the radar of even the most enthusiastic Gray devotees. No live versions of the song exist on YouTube, and the archival website Setlist only logs three performances, all in 2002, the year of A New Day at Midnight’s release. This brooding electronic number captures the outer edge of Gray’s “folktronica” experimentation.

Unlike “Flame Turns Blue”, “Knowhere” doesn’t sound like the kind of song one could effectively capture with only a guitar or piano as an aid. The brooding opening image (“Slow voices speaking through a hurricane”) and skeptical chorus refrain (“I don’t know where I / I don’t know what I’m / Supposed to do now”) provoke a curious disquiet. One could call it a mood piece, albeit one with which it is easy to sing along.  

“Ain’t No Love” (from Life in Slow Motion, 2005)

Nestled in the midsection of Life in Slow Motion, an album that begins with orchestral bombast (“Alibi”) and concludes in a squall of distortion (“Disappearing World”), “Ain’t No Love” does not assert itself the way one might expect of a great song. The simple C-major chord progression and brief structure – which, unusually, concludes after just a single chorus, right as the music achieves liftoff – is downright spartan in contrast to the string-soaked lushness of “Alibi” or the gradual build of “Now and Always”.

Simplicity works to Gray’s advantage in this case. The delicate piano chords that augment the closing verse’s glistening imagery (“On winter trees the fruit of rain / Is hanging trembling on the branches / Like a thousand diamond buds”) are a respite amidst the dynamic volleys of Life in Slow Motion, a reminder that resting for a breather affords its own kind of power.

“Full Steam” (from Draw the Line, 2009)

Gray would do well to indulge in a duets record, considering the collaborations he’s put to tape over the years. “Full Steam” is the boldest of that small group, a rousing tune featuring Annie Lennox that, given its context of the Great Recession, feels like a renunciation of neoliberalism. “Forlorn, adrift, on seas of beige / In this, our golden age,” Gray and Lennox harmonize together, before admitting in the chorus: “Now you saw it coming / And I saw it coming / We all saw it coming / And we still bought it.”

Gray, of course, is hardly a polemicist, and “Full Steam” is no fiery manifesto. The reluctance in the lyrics to name specific political targets ultimately proves to be an asset. In many situations, Gray and Lennox remind us, the first step toward change often involves recognizing our own complicity. Barring that, we are “running full steam ahead” into destruction.

“Birds of the High Arctic” (from Mutineers, 2014)

Arriving after the more organically instrumented Draw the Line and the stripped-bare Foundling (2010), Mutineers hearkened back to the electronic textures of Gray’s years most centrally in the public spotlight. Yet there is a maturity there built from the more robust arrangements on Life in Slow Motion and Draw the Line, making Mutineers a unique point of synthesis. “Birds of the High Arctic” recalls the dramatic piano balladry of “Alibi” while washing it in layers of reverb.

Gray sounds like he set up microphones in the frigid landscape on the cover of Life in Slow Motion. The song ascends to a pained moment of revelation: “Baby say that it isn’t true / You were never there and it wasn’t you.” Lyrically, he indulges one of his beloved topics, avian life, equating a now-departed presence to a speck with wings on a whiteout sky. 

“Hall of Mirrors” (from Gold in a Brass Age, 2019)

Gold in a Brass Age is, in many ways, the logical aesthetic follow-up to White Ladder and A New Day at Midnight, in its embrace of electronic textures. Still, it could only have been written by a songwriter who expanded his horizons in the way Gray did after the early 2000s. The jittery “Hall of Mirrors” proves illustrative in this regard: chiming guitars intertwine with spastic programmed drums and layered vocals, coming to glorious fruition with a hymnal of an outro: “Baby when that oh-too-solid ground / Comes a-risin’ up, hey don’t look down now,” Gray chants, his voice a choir in miniature. New-school in sound but old-school in feeling, “Hall of Mirrors” is, as its name suggests, a showcase of Gray’s artistry. (Read the author’s interview with Gray about this album for PopMatters here.)

“Accumulates” (from Skellig, 2021)

A simple hammered-on guitar lick defines David Gray’s biggest hit in “Babylon”, so it’s unsurprising that a reprisal of that technique works brilliantly on “Accumulates”. Like the rest of the tunes on Skellig, “Accumulates” captures Gray at his most elemental, with voice and guitar doing the heavy lifting, adornments minimal at most. The origin of the album’s name, taken from remote islands off the coast of Ireland, informs the meditative isolation that characterizes “Accumulates”, whose post-2020 release felt all the more apt, given the containment experienced by Gray’s listeners worldwide.

He dances around the subject of the song; “Well it grips / And it grins / It cavorts / and it gyrates,” he sings, never giving the “it” a proper noun. The repetitive hammered guitar note and lyrically hypnotic quality of “Accumulates” suggest the image of someone trying their best, on their own, to think their way to identifying a force they sense but cannot name. Who among us hasn’t been there?

“Plus and Minus” (from Dear Life, 2025)

Now over 30 years into a musical life, David Gray continues to add gems to his songwriting trove. “Plus and Minus”, the first single from his latest LP Dear Life, ranks with the likes of “Sail Away” and “Please Forgive Me.” A mercurial duet with a young UK singer named Talia Ray, “Plus and Minus” deploys a perfectly placed modulation in the prechorus that includes a poetic phrase that could be describing the trials of creativity, or of the pursuit of love: “For the fire that gets lit / And the flame that regrets it.”

The electronic drum track and repetitive Euro dance-style piano chords that anchor the song evoke Gray’s 1990s roots. However, the cumulative effect is contemporary, a testament to an artist who can adapt to the times while still sounding like himself. “This whole routine is getting old,” Gray sings in unison with Rae, an ironic statement for an artist like himself.

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Paramount, David Ellison Haven't Censored 'South Park,' Creator Says
TV & Streaming

Paramount, David Ellison Haven’t Censored ‘South Park,’ Creator Says

by jummy84
written by jummy84

When South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone locked in a reported $1.5 billion five-year deal with Paramount at the eleventh hour before their Season 27 premiere, the comedy duo were looking to assert their agency in an environment that would soon be upended by new parent company Skydance and CEO David Ellison. The result? A scathing debut aimed at President Donald Trump — whose approval was, ahem, paramount to the completion of the merger. Since that inaugural episode in late July, a steady stream of blistering satirical installments has not let up on the POTUS and key White House officials, from VP JD Vance to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem.

In a new interview with the New York Times, Stone explained of the decision to mock the GOP leader: “We just had to show our independence somehow.”

The scribe added that although audiences may assume some level of censorship behind the scenes — especially in a hostile media environment where Paramount’s CBS canceled The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (defended by top brass as a purely financially motivated decision, the timing of which came after the host went after his home network) — that isn’t the case.

“I know with the Colbert thing and all the Trump stuff, people think certain things, but they’re letting us do whatever we want, to their credit,” Stone said of the lack of pushback. (In turn, Colbert has praised South Park for its censure of Trump, calling the show’s deepfaked PSA video of a naked Trump “an important message of hope for our times.”)

Naturally, the White House was seething over the matter, with Assistant Press Secretary Taylor Rogers telling Deadline post-premiere: “This show hasn’t been relevant for over 20 years and is hanging on by a thread with uninspired ideas in a desperate attempt for attention. President Trump has delivered on more promises in just six months than any other president in our country’s history – and no fourth-rate show can derail President Trump’s hot streak.”

Unfortunately for Trump and his administration, however, the relentless deluge of jokes has led to a ratings bump and renaissance of sorts for the long-running animated show.

It’s a winning formula that Parker and Stone will be sticking by for the time being.

“There’s no getting away from this,” Parker told the Times. “It’s like the government is just in your face everywhere you look. Whether it’s the actual government or whether it is all the podcasters and the TikToks and the YouTubes and all of that, and it’s just all political and political because it’s more than political. It’s pop culture.”

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Everything to Know About David Thornton – Hollywood Life
Hollywood

Everything to Know About David Thornton – Hollywood Life

by jummy84
written by jummy84




View gallery

Cyndi Lauper MusiCares' 2022 Person of the Year, Arrivals, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA - 01 Apr 2022
Cyndi Lauper, Declyn Lauper, Dex. Cyndi Lauper and her son Declyn Lauper pose backstage at the 8th Annual "Home for the Holidays" benefit concert at the Beacon Theatre, in New York Cyndi Lauper's 8th Annual Home for the Holidays Benefit Concert - Press Room, New York, USA - 08 Dec 2018
Declyn Lauper Thornton, Cyndi Lauper 2021 MTV Video Music Awards, Arrivals, New York, USA - 12 Sep 2021
Image Credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for RRHOF

Cyndi Lauper once famously sang, “What’s good enough for you is good enough for me.” And for more than three decades, what’s been good enough for the “Girls Just Want to Have Fun” legend is the unwavering love she’s shared with her husband, David Thornton. The couple met on the set of the 1991 film Off and Running, married later that year, and have been together ever since — celebrating over 30 years of marriage and raising their son, Declyn Wallace Thornton Lauper, along the way.

Recently, Cyndi celebrated one of the biggest moments of her career — her 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame induction— and David was right there by her side to cheer her on. The longtime couple walked the red carpet together at the Peacock Theater in Los Angeles, where Cyndi delivered a show-stopping performance alongside Avril Lavigne, Salt-N-Pepa, and RAYE.

Cyndi and David (Mediapunch/Shutterstock)

While Cyndi’s songs have always celebrated independence, individuality, and self-expression, her lasting marriage proves that love and creative freedom can coexist beautifully. Here’s everything to know about her husband David below.

Cyndi Lauper’s Husband Is David Thornton

Since 1991, Cyndi Lauper has been married to David Thornton. David is an actor who was born in South Carolina on June 12, 1953, according to his IMDB profile. He’s best known for his roles in Home Alone 3, John Q, and Here and There. He was born ten days before Cyndi was born, as if he were fated to wind up her dearly beloved.

Over the years, David has continued acting in both TV and film. His recent projects include the 2023 thriller God Is a Bullet, directed by Nick Cassavetes and starring Jamie Foxx, as well as previous roles in Darcy (2020) and Homeland (2017), where he played George Pallis.

He Met Cyndi In 1991

Cyndi and David Thorton met on the set of the 1991 film Off and Running. Cyndi starred in the comedy-mystery, but as she told The Independent in 1992, the film came at a low point in her life. “I’d been having a terrible time,” she said. “I’d split with Dave Wolff – who used to be my manager as well as my boyfriend – after six and a half years. I’d moved out of the place we shared and was living in a hotel room.”

Cyndi said she “got really depressed” and had found herself in a “no-win masochistic situation with this man who wasn’t particularly good-looking.” After it ended, she felt “ugly, dull and a mess. I was convinced I was through as an artist.” She took the role in Off and Running as “a vacation from myself, a way to get lost in work and forget who I was. Then I met David, and everything changed.”

Cyndi and David in 1995 (Shutterstock)

David was “really shy with me during rehearsals,” said Cyndi. David told The Independent that he and Cyndi “didn’t communicate much on set at first. I was worried that if we became friendly and liked each other, it might affect the scenes we do together, which are fairly angry and violent.” One evening, Cyndi invited David to dinner with her and her assistant. “There wasn’t an immediate buzz, but we laughed a lot,” he said. “And the great thing is that she’s not a bit starry, so the first thing that happened was a real friendship began to develop.

“I began to send him teasing notes – it’s what I do when I kinda like someone. I wrote that he was a wimp because he didn’t do as many press-ups as me. At night, we used to walk on the beach after dinner. The moon was always out on the water, and one night I said: ‘I wish I was a kite flying over the waves,’ and he said: ‘Why not be a wave?’ I thought, ‘Oh my God, this man is a poet.’”

They Married After A Short Courtship

The couple kept it professional while working together. After the film wrapped, they fell into marriage. “Two weeks after we’d really gotten together, he was talking about marriage. I mean, marriage,” Lauper told The Independent. She said she consulted her “make-up lady” for advice, and her beautician noted that she married her husband after two weeks and never regretted it. “When the film was finished, we spent a month alone together at Cape Cod. We could stand each other, so we decided to go ahead and marry,” said Cyndi. The couple married in November 1991 and have been together ever since.

“I proposed to her in Los Angeles, and I had several rings I thought would be right for her,” David told The Independent. “One was an 1840s crystal which had belonged to a Hindu princess. Cyndi believes in reincarnation and the past, so I thought that might be right. There was an antique Roman ring with the stamp of Eros and finally an English regard ring with a curve of different gems across the finger. That was the one she chose. She made me go on one knee before she would accept me.”

Cyndi & David Welcomed A Child In 1997

Though Cyndi and David tied the knot after dating for a few weeks, they took their time before starting a family. In 1997, they had a son named Declyn “Dex” Thornton. Cyndi remembered a time when her son gave her grief for cursing on live tv. “He said, ‘What Dad always says that if you don’t curse when it’s not important, you won’t curse when it is,’” Cyndi explained to Closer Weekly in 2018. “And I was thinking, “F–k yeah.’ No, I’m kidding, no, no, I’m thinking, ‘I know, Dex. I know, it was a long day, you know.’ It’s hard to be me.”

Cyndi’s family was featured on her short-lived WeTV show.

They’ve Worked Hard On Their Marriage

“All I can say is that he is my best friend, he’s wildly creative, and I just wanted to share my whole life with him,” Cyndi told Closer Weekly. “I heard George Harrison‘s wife say once that the secret [to marriage] is to stay married and work it out.”

Months after they married, Cyndi and David got blunt and honest about each other. “Sure, there are things I don’t like about David,” she told The Independent. “Number one, he doesn’t like TV and always shuts it off. And two, he likes to debate. I come from a Sicilian family, and we yell all the time. … With David, we’ll be talking, and he’ll suddenly say: ‘I’m getting angry . . .’ That means we’re going to have a debate. But those are just little things.”

Cyndi and David in 2012 (David Fisher/Shutterstock)

“Like any newly married couple, we’re having to learn about each other,” added David. “One of the things I love about Cyndi being so expressive is that it makes me more comfortable about being emotionally demonstrative. But she’s also volatile and temperamental, and I’m not so comfortable with that. When I hear the decibels going up, I usually say: ‘I don’t want to play that game.’ I fear getting into a rage because I’m a slow burner, but when I get angry, there’s a real white heat.”

However, they’ve learned to cool things off and make their marriage thrive. It’s been going strong for three decades with no signs of slowing down. Seems it’s good enough, after all.

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David Letterman Gets Poignant Inducting Warren Zevon Into Rock Hall
TV & Streaming

David Letterman Gets Poignant Inducting Warren Zevon Into Rock Hall

by jummy84
written by jummy84

David Letterman, who in 2002 hosted Warren Zevon‘s final television appearance before his death, paid tribute to his friend Saturday night with a lengthy induction speech at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame that lasted several times as long as the musical salute by the Killers that followed. The former late-night host mixed werewolf jokes with a recollection of breaking down in tears at the end of his final encounter with Zevon.

Letterman told the story of having Zevon on his program shortly after the rocker was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer and given only months to live. It was there that Zevon issued his famous “Enjoy every sandwich” advice, and Letterman spoke of following the singer-songwriter to his dressing room. There, he said, Zevon handed him the electric guitar he had used in his many appearances on the show, saying, “Take care of this for me.” “I know what’s supposed to happen now,” Letterman said, “and sure as hell, it did happen. I started to sob uncontrollably.”

Letterman stood beside the guitar in question and said, “For 22 years, I have taken care of the guitar. … By God, tonight it’s going back to work.” To Dave Keuning, lead guitarist of the Killers, he said, “It’s all yours, sir.” And at that point, it was left to the Killers — with special guest Waddy Wachtel, who played guitar on most of Zevon’s most famous records — to close the tribute out with their version of one of the honoree’s signature songs, “Lawyers, Guns and Money.”

It was only a one-song tribute, and his most famous song, “Werewolves of London,” did not factor into it — save for a couple of “Ah-oooh!” phrasings that Brandon Flowers worked in near the end of “Lawyers” as a semi-subtle interpolation.

Read the entire text of Letterman’s speech, following:

“I’m Dave ‘They Call Me the Breeze’ Letterman. I mean, honest to God. How cool is this, folks? How can you not feel a little let down after Salt-N-Pepa? I don’t blame you. Let’s wrap the show up and go home. Now, I can’t tell you how much fun this is for me, one, to just be out of the house, but two, to be here. And I want to thank the people who invited me to be part of this, to represent Warren Zevon, to represent his family, and to represent the people who love Warren’s music.Thank you very much for that.

“About a week ago, I talked to Warren’s son, Jordan, and I said, ‘Jordan, first of all, I’m honored beyond belief to be part of this, and thank you again. Are there things you would like me to mention that particular night?’ And Jordan said, ‘Yes. There are three things I want you to mention: When Warren was a kid he studied with Igor Stravinsky, the classical composer.’ ‘Okay,’ I said, ‘I’ll do that.’ I said, ‘By the way, when I was a kid, I had a paper route,’ and we kept going. He said, ‘Also, I want you to mention Stumpy the gangster.’ I said, ‘Okay, got it. Stumpy the Gangster.’ He said, ‘Next, I want you to mention Bev the Mormon.’ ‘Okay. Stumpy the gangster, Bev the Mormon. Got that.’ And I said, ‘By the way, Jordan, those are my two favorite songs.’ He said, ‘Those were his parents, dumbass.’

“Oh, by the way, Igor Stravinsky is still waiting for his nomination.

“I first knew of Warren Zevon’s music when there was an article in Rolling Stone, a big front-page feature on Warren Zevon. It was called ‘The Crack Up and Resurrection of Warren Zevon.’ That was the title of the article of the story; the subtitle was ‘How he saved himself from a coward’s death.’ Well, then, by God, this got my attention, and so I read the article because I enjoyed the man’s music, and at one point in the article we realized that Warren is having some trouble with addiction. He’s tortured. He has emotional difficulties and he’s addicted and he’s struggling, and we all know that these stories sometimes don’t end well. It turned out at one point, he got very drunk, took a gun and started shooting up his own record albums. Now, at the time I had been a TV weatherman, so this was completely out of my league of experience. But because of that, Warren was able to struggle through with the help of his family, with the help of his friends, and he did save his own life. And I just wonder, is it more difficult to save your own life or save the life of somebody else? Or is that equal? But by God, the fact that Warren existed through this, tortured as he was, and saved his own life, to me, listening to the man’s music, I found it to be even more valuable.

“When I then got to know Warren in person. I used to have a TV show on NBC. Hands if you remember NBC. Warren would be a guest on the program and he often would fill in for our musical director, Paul Shaffer. And it was a delight for me to have these two around, listening to Warren and talking to and getting to know Warren. And I was taken by an album that Warren had done in the ‘70s. It was called ‘Stand in the Fire.’ It was recorded at the Roxy on Sunset Blvd., and it was a live album, and the energy of that album would come off the record in those days and jump on you and knock you down. It was amazing. And I was talking to Warren on the show about that album and I said, ‘Warren, that was so great, “Stand in the Fire.” The music on that live album, I couldn’t get enough of that. It was tremendously dynamic.’ Warren looked at me and he said, ‘Well, you know, honestly, Dave, when it comes to the ‘70s, there’s really not much I can remember,’ kind of explaining his struggle. But then the music that we listened to, Warren playing with our band… and forgive me for this, but being right there in that studio, it was my own version of ‘20 Feet From Stardom.’ It was delightful,

“You know, in music, many pretend, but Warren is a poet leaving few of life’s vagaries unaddressed. Warren’s music is dense with historic illusion, love and sadness, tinted with unexpected whimsy. Delivered with third-rail voltage rock ‘n’ roll, or sweet, heartbreaking, lush, symphonic melodies, either version of the man’s music is classic.

“Rock ‘n’ roll… Ask any of Warren’s peers — Bruce Springsteen, Don Henley, Jackson Browne, Bob Dylan. Hell, ask Igor Stravinsky. Warren Zevon is in my Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, actually his own wing.

“I had an idea; you’re gonna have to bear with me on this. I am so consumed with the work of Warren Zevon that when I was coming over here tonight in the Way-mo, I decided I better make a list of Warren Zevon songs and explain some of these to this audience… And keep in mind, thank you, I’m not a musicologist, I’m not the professor of rock. I’m just Dave. Are you ready for this? Here we go. Now this is not a complete list. And I’ve divided ’em into three categories.

“The first category: Warren Zevon, global and personal strife. ‘Roland, the Headless Thompson Gunner’ — we all know that this is about a Norwegian mercenary and Patty Hearst. We know ‘Excitable Boy’ — this is about a boy who gets very excited about pot roast. ‘I’ll Sleep When I’m Dead’ — and boy, if this doesn’t get you in the Hall of Fame, stop trying.

“Category number two: love songs. ‘Mutineer.’ Oh my God, this makes people cry. ‘Reconsider Me.’ This also makes people cry. ‘Searching for a Heart.’ Whenever I listen to this song, it’s always like the first time I’ve heard it and then I start to cry.

“Okay, the third category of Warren Zevon songs: Songs about werewolves. That’s right. This is about a werewolf in London, and I don’t know if this is a true story, but there you have it.”

A tribute reel followed that featured Bruce Springsteen, Jackson Browne, Don Henley and Jorge Calderon, among other friends and contemporaries, talking about Zevon’s impact, interspersed with performance clips that included Linda Ronstadt doing one of her many covers of his work. Then Letterman returned.

David Letterman speaks onstage during the 2025 Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony at Peacock Theater on November 8, 2025 in Los Angeles, California.

Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for RRH

“The thing about ‘Enjoy every sandwich’ — you know that that’s easy, but it’s deeply meaningful. And there’s not a person in this room who hasn’t considered that, but nobody can hang on to that on a daily basis. But by God, isn’t that true of life around the planet? Enjoy every sandwich.

“I have a joke here I want to try: Oh my God, I’m surrounded by Killers and they’ve captured Waddy Wachtel. Oh, brother.

“So that night, with Warren on the show, that was 22 years ago, the last time I saw Warren after the show, Warren goes up to his dressing room and I follow Warren to the dressing room myself. And I’ve been warned never to follow people to the dressing room, but I go up to Warren and we’re in the dressing room and he’s changed his clothes and he’s taking his stuff and he’s putting it away. And he’s got a guitar there that he’s used every time he’s appeared on our show. And as we’re chatting, he picks up the guitar and he puts it in the guitar case. And then he flips up those two little guitar clippies on a guitar case. How long do I need to do this? He closes the guitar case, he hands it to me and he says, ‘Take care of this for me.’ So in my head, I think I’ve seen this movie. I know what’s supposed to happen now, and sure as hell, it did happen. I started to sob uncontrollably. Warren and I hugged and I said, ‘Warren, I just love your music.’

“So for 22 years, I have taken care of the guitar. This is the guitar right here… You know, in a way I’m glad the guitar gets a bigger reaction than the ‘I’m surrounded by Killers’ joke. This is the guitar, and by God, um, tonight it’s going back to work. Dave [Keuning, lead guitarist of the Killers], it’s all yours, sir. So now to put Warren right in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, it’s gonna be the Killers. Congratulations, Warren. Thank you for everything. Enjoy every sandwich”

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Frank Darabont Teases David Harbour Scene
TV & Streaming

Frank Darabont Teases David Harbour Scene

by jummy84
written by jummy84

The Shawshank Redemption director Frank Darabont gave a glimpse into his favorite scene he shot for Stranger Things Season 5 at the Volume 1 Los Angeles red carpet premiere.

Darabont, who came out of retirement to direct on the Netflix series after connecting with creators Matt and Ross Duffer, helmed Episode 3, “The Turnbow Trap” and Episode 5, “Shock Jock.”

“There was a couple of things with David Harbour’s character where I wanted to crank up the heat a little bit. There’s a great scene, my favorite scene out of all of them that I shot where Harbour is interrogating Alex Breaux[’s character],” the director told Deadline. “I thought, ‘These guys are two alpha dogs,’ and I really wanted to see them butting heads more.”

The Duffer brothers supported Darabont’s vision when he asked to intensify the scene.

“It was such a thrill. It’s definitely one of my favorite scenes,” Darabont continued. “I’m such a fan of both of those actors. I’m a fan of all these actors. I loved working with them. What a group of stone cold professional, incredibly pleasurable people to work with.”

RELATED: ‘Stranger Things’ 5 World Premiere Photos: Millie Bobby Brown, David Harbour & More Attend

When asked if he bonded with the Duffers over Stephen King or Shawshank, the director also teased an easter egg to look out for that references his early filmmaking career.

“There’s actually a fun little easter egg that they suggested,” he said. “There’s a little clip of one of my very, very early movies that you’ll see, a little moment or two of my very first screen credit.”

After getting lunch with Matt and Ross Duffer, the brothers called Darabont up and asked if he’d like to come direct an episode, which he did not see coming. It then turned into two, and the director said it was a “giddy thrill” to contribute in a big way to the final season, making him feel like a kid again.

RELATED: Everything We Know About ‘Stranger Things’ Season 5 So Far

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Millie Bobby Brown feels 'lucky' to have David Harbour
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Millie Bobby Brown feels ‘lucky’ to have David Harbour

by jummy84
written by jummy84

Millie Bobby Brown feels “so lucky” to have David Harbour in her life.

Millie Bobby Brown and David Harbour at the Stranger Things

The 21-year-old actress reunited with the 50-year-old star at the Los Angeles premiere of the fifth and final season of Stranger Things on Thursday (06.11.25) night, and despite a recent report in the Mail on Sunday newspaper that she had filed a “harassment and bullying claim” against her co-star before filming began last year, they appeared in good spirits as they embraced on the red carpet together.

Millie told Extra of reuniting with David: “It’s been amazing. We’re so lucky to have each other. The show is means so much to the both of us and to everyone here.

“This is like been the last 10 years of our lives. So, we’ve dedicated a lot of it and we’re so excited to see that come to screen.”

The British actress – who recently adopted a baby girl with husband Jake Bongiovi – was just 10 years old when she started working on Stranger Things and she reflected on how a “lot” has changed in her life since then.

She said: “I’ve been living every day like it’s the first day on set and maybe that’s what’s made me hold on to every moment for dear life. But a lot has changed, you know. A lot has changed.”

Meanwhile, David – who plays Jim Hopper – insisted he “adores” Millie and believes he and the Stranger Things cast will work together again in the future.

He told Entertainment Tonight: “I adore her, I’ve been proud to watch all of them grow up to become such great artists.

“I doubt it’ll be the last time we’ll work together… This particular family and project has been so special and we’ve gotten to know each other so deeply, you rarely get to do this in this business.”

Meanwhile, show co-creator Ross Duffer refused to get into personal onset matters” but the cast and crew are all “family”.

Asked about the reports of a feud, he told The Hollywood Reporter: “Nothing matters more than just having a set where everyone feels safe and happy.”

And executive producer Shawn Levy insisted they have all worked hard to create a “respectful workplace”.

He said: “You have to create a respectful workplace where everyone feels comfortable and safe, and so we did everything to build that environment. And we’re proud of the fact that we did so.

“I’ve read a bunch of stories and they range from wildly inaccurate to… there’s so much noise around it. But the truth is that we view this crew and this cast as family, and so we treat each other with respect, and that’s always been bedrock.”




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Duffer Brothers Respond to Millie Bobby Brown, David Harbour Claims
TV & Streaming

Duffer Brothers Respond to Millie Bobby Brown, David Harbour Claims

by jummy84
written by jummy84

A Stranger Things final season press tour junket has been underway since Monday, but there’s one topic Netflix doesn’t want raised: A viral report alleging star Millie Bobby Brown accused co-star David Harbour of on-set bullying.

Despite the alleged report, Brown and Harbour were all smiles as they posed together at the season five world premiere in Los Angeles Thursday evening.

When asked about the bullying claims on the red carpet, co-creator Ross Duffer told The Hollywood Reporter while standing next to his brother Matt Duffer, “Obviously, you understand I can’t get into personal onset matters, but I will say we’ve been doing this for 10 years with this cast, and at this point they’re family and we deeply care about them. So, you know, nothing matters more than just having a set where everyone feels safe and happy.”

Also at the premiere, THR asked Stranger Things director and executive producer Shawn Levy how production handles a bullying complaint on set and “makes sure everyone feels safe and respected.”

“At the end of the day, that’s the job,” Levy replied. “You have to create a respectful workplace where everyone feels comfortable and safe, and so we did everything to build that environment. And we’re proud of the fact that we did so.”

He continued, “I’ve read a bunch of stories and they range from wildly inaccurate to… there’s so much noise around it. But the truth is that we view this crew and this cast as family, and so we treat each other with respect, and that’s always been bedrock.”

Neither Netflix nor representatives for Brown and Harbour had replied to queries about the report, which was first posted by UK tabloid The Daily Mail on Saturday, heading into Thursday night’s L.A. premiere of the fifth and final season of the mega-hit series.

The story said the 21-year-old Brown filed a harassment and bullying claim against the 50-year-old Thunderbolts* star before filming began on season five and that there were “pages of pages” of allegations. The claims were not specified, but no sexual impropriety was reportedly alleged. Netflix reportedly investigated the claims “for months.” Also, as a result, Brown was accompanied by a personal representative while on set for the final season. The show wrapped filming in December.

The claims come at a peak awkward moment for the streamer, just as a massive marketing campaign is ramping up for the show’s highly anticipated (and very expensive) fifth and final season.

In the show, the duo have a tender and at times acrimonious father-daughter relationship, with Brown playing the super-powered orphan Eleven and Harbour portraying the gruff small town police chief Jim Hopper.

In 2021, Harbour spoke out about his feelings about his co-star. “Millie and I have always had sort of a special relationship because I knew her when she was so young,” Harbour said on the That Scene with Dan Patrick podcast. “I knew her before any of this big fame hit … I have a real protective feeling for her. I have a real, like, worry. I worry about her and the fame and all that she has to struggle with.”

Brown has previously spoken out about the issue of bullying. In March, she posted an Instagram video while promoting her Netflix movie The Electric State and pushed back on trolls who criticized her appearance online.

“I started in this industry when I was 10 years old,” she said, according to Today. “I grew up in front of the world, and for some reason, people can’t seem to grow with me. Instead, they act like I’m supposed to stay frozen in time, like I should still look the way I did on Stranger Things season one. And because I don’t, I’m now a target.”

Brown read off a few headlines and then continued: “This isn’t journalism. This is bullying. The fact that adult writers are spending their time dissecting my face, my body, my choices, is disturbing. And the fact that some of these articles are written by women makes it even worse. I refuse to apologize for growing up. I refuse to make myself smaller to fit the unrealistic expectations of people who can’t handle seeing a girl become a woman. I will not be shamed for how I look, how I dress or how I present myself … Let’s do better.”

The final season of Stranger Things is rolling out in a three-part holiday-timed release, with the first four episodes in Part 1 releasing on Nov. 26. Part 2’s episodes then release on Dec. 25, with the feature-length series finale hitting both the streaming and select theaters on Dec. 31.

Tiffany Taylor contributed to this report.

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Victoria Beckham will 'forever cherish' seeing husband David Beckham receive knighthood
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Victoria Beckham will ‘forever cherish’ seeing husband David Beckham receive knighthood

by jummy84
written by jummy84

Victoria Beckham will “forever cherish” the day her husband Sir David Beckham received a knighthood.

Victoria Beckham will ‘forever cherish’ seeing husband David Beckham receiving knighthood

The 50-year-old former England football captain was knighted by King Charles during an investiture ceremony at Windsor Castle on Tuesday (04.11.25) for his “services to sport and charity”.

Victoria, 51, was in attendance to support her significant other, and praised him as “the same kind, humble, hardworking man” she met 30 years ago.

She wrote on Instagram: “David, from the moment I met you 28 years ago, you’ve always been so proud to represent your country. Whether on or off the pitch, no one loves England or respects our Royal Family more, so to see you honoured by The King today is something I’ll forever cherish.

“You’ve achieved so much, and yet you’re still the same kind, humble, hardworking man I met nearly 30 years ago, as well as the most amazing husband and father.”

Victoria admitted she has “never felt prouder” of David – who she married in 1999 and has sons Brooklyn, 26, Romeo, 23, Cruz, 20, and daughter Harper, 14, with – than she did on the day he was knighted.

She added: “I’ve never felt prouder than I do today. Sir @davidbeckham, we all love you so much xxx (sic)”

The ceremony was also a special moment for Victoria’s fashion brand, because David wore the first bespoke menswear piece designed by her label, a custom charcoal-grey morning suit, to receive the honour.

And the suit had a royal seal of approval.

Afterwards, the former Manchester United player said of the king: “He was quite impressed with my suit.

“He’s kind of the most elegantly dressed man that I know, so he inspired quite a few of my looks over the years, and he definitely inspired this look.”

Speaking about his outfit’s design process, he said: “It was something that my wife made me.

“I looked at old pictures of him when he was quite young in morning suits and I was like, ‘OK, that’s what I want to wear,’ so I gave it to my wife and she did it.”




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