Razzle Dazzle- Michael Riedel's book- Page 2

[tazber]

Posted: 10/7/15 at 12:15pm

But all those cool things PJ is talking about being in the book, who knows if they're true or made up?

 

He's just proven to be so quick to fabricate something for the sake of sales I don't trust anything he says.

 

So I'm gonna pass on this one. It's like the Wikipedia of Broadway. Sometimes it's true, sometimes it's not, but it's never acceptable as a legitimate source.

 

[newintown]

Posted: 10/7/15 at 12:27pm

Exactly - this has all been written about before, and by better writers and more reliable researchers. File this one under "Irrelevant" or "Redundant" (take your pick).

[Pootie2]

Posted: 10/7/15 at 12:34pm

tazber said: "So I'm gonna pass on this one. It's like the Wikipedia of Broadway. Sometimes it's true, sometimes it's not, but it's never acceptable as a legitimate source."

 

Be careful with that comparison. In 2005, Nature found that Wikipedia's accuracy was competitive against Britannica (which killed its print encyclopedia in 2012). Wikipedia should have proper citations at the bottom of any article that anyone can choose to check and cite as original sources; does Riedel even give that?

[tazber]

Posted: 10/7/15 at 12:36pm

Thanks for the correction Pootie.

 

 

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 10/7/15 at 12:42pm

newintown said: "Exactly - this has all been written about before, and by better writers and more reliable researchers. File this one under "Irrelevant" or "Redundant" (take your pick).

 

"
Exactly.  The chapter in Vanity Fair reads like he's just reading and paraphrasing the chapter I mentioned in Mandelbaum's Bennett book--oh and adding fabricated dialogue quotes.

 

[MarkBearSF]

Posted: 10/7/15 at 6:55pm

I'm sure one could get a more detailed view of the times and people covered in the book by researching and reading chapters from a dozen books.  For those who can cite those references, this retelling may not have much value. I'm sure there are no blockbuster revelations.

Personally, I had already read some of the stuff, but found it immensely helpful in putting many stories and bits and pieces together and providing brief bios of people I only knew by credits and name.

Updated On: 10/7/15 at 06:55 PM

[PalJoey]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 11:15am

 

Read more last night. Seriously, guys. It's a good book.

 

[newintown]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 11:41am

Spy magazine used to identify certain individuals as "the Publicists' Best Friend."

[PalJoey]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 11:51am

 

This anecdote, from page 263, is new to me and has the ring of absolute truth:

 

===

 

     Bob Fosse, in particular, envied the success of Dreamgirls.
     “How is that flop show of yours?” Fosse asked [Bernie] Jacobs at a party shortly after Dreamgirls opened.
     “Bobby, which flop show? I have so many of them,” Jacobs replied, laughing.
     “You know that piece of garbage Michael Bennett did.”
     “Piece of garbage that Michael Bennett did? Did you read Frank Rich’s review?”
     “I never read Frank Rich,” Fosse said.
     “Well, if you read Frank Rich you would know that the torch had passed from Jerome Robbins to Michael Bennett—and you didn’t get a chance to touch it on the way!”

 

 

[JMPlayer6]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 12:04pm

I have no intention of buying this book and supplementing Riedel's income. When I get more time, I'll get it from the library and read it for free --- maybe.

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 12:07pm

PalJoey said: " 

 

This anecdote, from page 263, is new to me and has the ring of absolute truth:

 

 

 

===

 

 

 

     Bob Fosse, in particular, envied the success of Dreamgirls.
     “How is that flop show of yours?” Fosse asked [Bernie] Jacobs at a party shortly after Dreamgirls opened.
     “Bobby, which flop show? I have so many of them,” Jacobs replied, laughing.
     “You know that piece of garbage Michael Bennett did.”
     “Piece of garbage that Michael Bennett did? Did you read Frank Rich’s review?”
     “I never read Frank Rich,” Fosse said.
     “Well, if you read Frank Rich you would know that the torch had passed from Jerome Robbins to Michael Bennett—and you didn’t get a chance to touch it on the way!”

 

 

 

 

 

"

The ring of truth perhaps but that made up dialogue is atrocious. Maybe this would have been better as a novelized version of events s - it seems to be what Riedel wants to write

[ggersten]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 12:24pm

PalJoey said: " 

 

This anecdote, from page 263, is new to me and has the ring of absolute truth:

 

 

 

===

 

 

 

     Bob Fosse, in particular, envied the success of Dreamgirls.
     “How is that flop show of yours?” Fosse asked [Bernie] Jacobs at a party shortly after Dreamgirls opened.
     “Bobby, which flop show? I have so many of them,” Jacobs replied, laughing.
     “You know that piece of garbage Michael Bennett did.”
     “Piece of garbage that Michael Bennett did? Did you read Frank Rich’s review?”
     “I never read Frank Rich,” Fosse said.
     “Well, if you read Frank Rich you would know that the torch had passed from Jerome Robbins to Michael Bennett—and you didn’t get a chance to touch it on the way!”

 

With all of the attention Wasson's book gives to Fosse's feelings about Bennett, I'm surprised that this anecdote doesn't show up in Wasson's book - if it had actually happened.  

 

 

 

"

 

[PalJoey]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 12:32pm

 

This one from pages 310-311 is riveting.

 

==

     Bennett’s fortieth birthday party and was still undergoing extensive retooling.
     Bennett, of course, had heard the gossip. When Tune entered 890 Broadway with a few friends from the show, Bennett took them by the hand and pulled them into the men’s room. He closed the door
and said, “All right now, darlings, here’s what’s happening. I’m coming in to help you. I’m going to save your show.”
     Tune recalled, “We didn’t ask him. And he was as high as a skunk.
     But most of us wouldn’t be where we were in show business without him, and he’s telling us, ‘Don’t worry. I’ll save you. I’ll pull this off for you.’ ”
     The next morning, Bennett showed up at the St. James Theatre with his own team to fix My One and Only. But his approach, his energy, his whole demeanor were off. He seemed bent on taking a show aiming to be effervescent and turning it into something dark and brutal. He was giving orders like a general, demanding that Paramount come up with another $300,000 for new sets, including a giant suitcase on which he wanted Twiggy to make her entrance. “We were getting bills for money we didn’t have,” said LeFrak.
    Bennett was working around the clock, keeping the cast in the theater until 2:00 a.m. drilling them in new and vulgar dance routines. He was running on booze and drugs. He stood on the stage, a vodka bottle in one hand, a bowl of cocaine in the other. Tune was so busy working on his performance—and helping Twiggy with hers (they were also having a fling)—that he didn’t realize what Bennett was doing to My One and Only.
     It took Mike Nichols to see that.
    Nichols took Tune aside and said Bennett “is not doing good work. He may not be doing it consciously, but subconsciously he is ruining your show.”
     Bennett had to go—but nobody wanted to tell him. “I couldn’t do it,” said Tune. “And Nichols said, ‘I can’t do it.’ ” In the end, it fell to Don Sherkow, a junior Paramount executive, to fire Broadway’s number
one director. He walked up to Bennett after a rehearsal one day and told him he was no longer wanted. Bennett put on his baseball cap and left the theater. He called Tune later and said, “Don’t worry about me. But please write to my team and thank them for their work.”
     Tune did. And then he threw out everything they had done.

 

 

[everythingtaboo]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 12:47pm

We can knock Riedel all we want, but fact of the matter is he's more often than not proven to be correct down the line. He may write with a flair that some people don't like, but the Post wouldn't keep him this long unless he's proven his credibility. (And yes, I'm aware of the irony of saying The Post and credibility in the same sentence.)

[PalJoey]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 12:53pm

ggersten says "With all of the attention Wasson's book gives to Fosse's feelings about Bennett, I'm surprised that this anecdote doesn't show up in Wasson's book"

 

Wasson didn't have intimate access to Bernie Jacobs the way Riedel did.

 

To the people saying "He's making it up" I know we all hate Michael Riedel--get over it! I knew some of the people in this book peripherally--enough to know what they sounded like when they spoke--and I'm telling you: This book has the ring of truth.

 

Read this story, from pages 303-304, and weep all over again with me, at the memory of boys ripping off their shirts--not to show off their abs but to have you bear witness to the purple lesions that were killing them. I was there. Bernie Jacobs was there. Michael Riedel was there.

===

 

     Auditions for Chess were held on the second floor of an old rehearsal studio in the West End. One day Bennett was climbing the stairs and suddenly couldn’t breathe. He struggled to the top of the stairs and collapsed. He knew something was wrong. He had noticed, before leaving for London, a purple spot on his right foot. He told friends— and himself—it was just a scab. But he’d also been losing weight. He flew back to New York and saw his doctor. The scab was Kaposi’s. Bennett had AIDS. He told his best friend, Bob Avian, first. Then he told Robin Wagner at 890 Broadway. “I have bad news,” he said. “You can’t tell anyone. I have Kaposi’s sarcoma.” Wagner knew that meant AIDS. He ran into the gym and broke down in tears.
     Bennett told Breglio over the phone late that night.
     The one person Bennett could not bring himself to tell was Bernie Jacobs. After his diagnosis, he fled, once again, to St. Barts. He called Jacobs from there and told him he was pulling out of Chess. He said he didn’t like working in London, he was unhappy with Elaine Paige, Tim Rice’s script wasn’t what he wanted—all sorts of excuses. Jacobs wasn’t buying it. When Bennett returned to New York, Jacobs pressured him to go back to London and the show. This time Bennett told Jacobs he had a heart condition and his doctor warned him against taking on the stress of a new musical. Jacobs still didn’t believe him. He called Breglio and demanded to know what was going on. But Breglio had given Bennett his word he wouldn’t say anything. “I told Bernie Michael wasn’t feeling well,” he said, “and Bernie went crazy.”
     Breglio told Bennett, “Michael, you can’t keep this up. This is crazy. You see this man all the time. How can you not tell him?”
     Bennett met Jacobs in his office above the Shubert Theatre. Jacobs was angry. “You can’t walk away from the show like this,” he said. “What is wrong with you?” Bennett stood up. “Come with me,” he said and led Jacobs to the men’s room. He closed the door and unbuttoned his shirt. He had Kaposi’s sarcoma scars all over his chest. Jacobs fell into his arms. They held each other and cried.

Updated On: 10/9/15 at 12:53 PM

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 12:59pm

I don't believe one thing about that "My One and Only". Twiggy and Tune having a "fling"? That's the most implausible thing I've ever read.

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 1:32pm

doodlenyc said: "I don't believe one thing about that "My One and Only". Twiggy and Tune having a "fling"? That's the most implausible thing I've ever read."

 

Why would you find that hard to believe? It happens. Look at Tony Perkins and Grover Dale. They were in a relationship for many years and they wound up marrying women and having children, Perkins with Berry Berenson and Dale with Anita Morris. Hell, Perkins had an affair with Victoria Principal on the set of The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean. 

 

 

 

 

Updated On: 10/9/15 at 01:32 PM

[CarlosAlberto]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 1:34pm

PalJoey said: "ggersten says "With all of the attention Wasson's book gives to Fosse's feelings about Bennett, I'm surprised that this anecdote doesn't show up in Wasson's book"

 

 

 

Wasson didn't have intimate access to Bernie Jacobs the way Riedel did.

 

To the people saying "He's making it up" I know we all hate Michael Riedel--get over it! I knew some of the people in this book peripherally--enough to know what they sounded like when they spoke--and I'm telling you: This book has the ring of truth.

 

Read this story, from pages 303-304, and weep all over again with me, at the memory of boys ripping off their shirts--not to show off their abs but to have you bear witness to the purple lesions that were killing them. I was there. Bernie Jacobs was there. Michael Riedel was there.

 

===

 

     Auditions for Chess were held on the second floor of an old rehearsal studio in the West End. One day Bennett was climbing the stairs and suddenly couldn’t breathe. He struggled to the top of the stairs and collapsed. He knew something was wrong. He had noticed, before leaving for London, a purple spot on his right foot. He told friends— and himself—it was just a scab. But he’d also been losing weight. He flew back to New York and saw his doctor. The scab was Kaposi’s. Bennett had AIDS. He told his best friend, Bob Avian, first. Then he told Robin Wagner at 890 Broadway. “I have bad news,” he said. “ can’t tell anyone. I have Kaposi’s sarcoma.” Wagner knew that meant AIDS. He ran into the gym and broke down in tears.
     Bennett told Breglio over the phone late that night.
     The one person Bennett could not bring himself to tell was Bernie Jacobs. After his diagnosis, he fled, once again, to St. Barts. He called Jacobs from there and told him he was pulling out of Chess. He said he didn’t like working in London, he was unhappy with Elaine Paige, Tim Rice’s script wasn’t what he wanted—all sorts of excuses. Jacobs wasn’t buying it. When Bennett returned to New York, Jacobs pressured him to go back to London and the show. This time Bennett told Jacobs he had a heart condition and his doctor warned him against taking on the stress of a new musical. Jacobs still didn’t believe him. He called Breglio and demanded to know what was going on. But Breglio had given Bennett his word he wouldn’t say anything. “I told Bernie Michael wasn’t feeling well,” he said, “and Bernie went crazy.”
     Breglio told Bennett, “Michael, you can’t keep this up. This is crazy. You see this man all the time. How can you not tell him?”
     Bennett met Jacobs in his office above the Shubert Theatre. Jacobs was angry. “You can’t walk away from the show like this,” he said. “What is wrong with you?” Bennett stood up. “Come with me,” he said and led Jacobs to the men’s room. He closed the door and unbuttoned his shirt. He had Kaposi’s sarcoma scars all over his chest. Jacobs fell into his arms. They held each other and cried."

 

This has left me numb...

 

 

[doodlenyc]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 2:05pm

I do find it hard to believe, sorry about it. Not of Tommy Tune.

[Kad]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 2:29pm

PJ- how, exactly, did Riedel research this?

[PalJoey]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 3:42pm

The Acknowledgments go on for 5 pages. It's usually the least interesting part of a book, but to the people on the board, these first few paragraphs might be of interest:

 

===

 

Acknowledgments

 

As with so much in life, timing—especially for a book like this—is everything. I was lucky enough to stumble on a story that could be put together from interviews with people who lived it. They had vivid, often hilarious, memories of Broadway and its personalities in the 1960s, ’70s, and ’80s. But enough time had gone by so that they could also be candid and reflective about some of the more painful parts of the story I have tried to tell. This book could not have been written without their help.

The first person I interviewed was Albert Poland. I spent several hours with him at his house in Dutchess County as he regaled me with tales of Gerald Schoenfeld, Bernard Jacobs, and the world of the Shubert Organization. Albert loved Bernie and Jerry, and they loved him. He understood what I was trying to accomplish with this book, and encouraged me throughout the reporting and writing. He read every chapter, providing thoughtful comments and correcting grievous errors. A writer could not have a better source or friend.

I have nearly twenty hours of interviews with Philip J. Smith, the chairman of the Shubert Organization. He was a participant in, or had a ringside seat at, almost every event that takes place in Razzle Dazzle. As Scott Rudin likes to say, “Phil Smith is the Tom Hagen of the Shuberts.” Phil remembers everything and tells it with flair. He is also a wise and generous friend. I hope this book gives him the credit he deserves for his part in saving the Shuberts and Broadway in the 1970s.

 

I had many fun lunches with James M. Nederlander, who like Phil Smith has an astonishing memory. He can tell you how much he paid, to the dime, for every theater he owns. I would also like to thank James L. Nederlander (Jimmy Jr.) and his wife, Margo, for their friendship and support.

Three other friends were great sources. Elizabeth I. McCann, also possessed of a sharp memory, poked fun at all the characters in this story, but never minimized their accomplishments. Emanuel Azenberg understood better than anyone the complex and often ridiculous rivalry between the Shuberts and the Nederlanders. And John Breglio, over the course of three long interviews, helped me grasp the brilliance, charisma, and tragedy of Michael Bennett.

I would also like to thank the following people for their time and their memories: John Barlow, Clive Barnes, Sidney Baumgarten, Joseph Berger, Ira Bernstein, Arthur Birsh, Don Black, Mark Bramble, Betty Buckley, Barry Burnett, David Clurman, Lawrence Cohen, Robert Cole, Nancy Coyne, Judy Craymer, Alan Eisenberg, Rick Elice, Josh Ellis, Dasha Epstein, Robert Fox, Merle Frimark, Jeremy Gerard, Bernard Gersten, Roberta Gratz, John Heilpern, Shirley Herz, William Ivey Long, Judy Jacksina, Betty Jacobs, Geoffrey Johnson, Robert Kamlot, Ed Koch, Herbert Kretzmer, Henry Krieger, Lionel Larner, Susan Lee, Francine LeFrak, Jerry Leichtling, William Liberman, Paul Libin, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Cameron Mackintosh, Richard Maltby Jr., Robert McDonald, Thomas Meehan, Alan Menken, Trevor Nunn, Elaine Paige, Harold Prince, Kathleen Raitt, Lee Roy Reams, Tim Rice, Arthur Rubin, Harvey Sabinson, Nick Scandalios, Peter Schneider, Richard Seff, Peter Shaffer, Michael Sovern, Herbert
Sturz, Joseph Traina, Tommy Tune, Norman Twain, Edward Foley, Vaughan, George Wachtel, Robin Wagner, Carl Weisbrod, Franklin Weissberg, Barry Weissler, Jon Wilner, and Bobby Zarem.

Updated On: 10/9/15 at 03:42 PM

[newintown]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 4:52pm

I'm getting the feeling that Joey is on someone's Social Media payroll again.

 

And that dialogue is more imaginary than Tinkerbell, and that prose is so pedestrian it's terrified of bikers.

Updated On: 10/9/15 at 04:52 PM

[PalJoey]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 5:46pm

 

Unlike yours, which is muddied with ill-fitting allusions to terrified transit riders.

What happened to your bitchery? It used to be so biting.

 

[EricMontreal22]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 6:00pm

I admit, my bias is largely based on the "And then he said... and then she replied, and then they hugged, and then he said..." writing style.  I know that's done to make it more interesting, but it makes it hard to read the more over the top stories as having happened (at least Riedel could write "According to..." and give an account of what that person said.)  Bennett was a mess when Me and My Girl was happening and I know he went to at least some rehearsals (as he was prone to do--ie the much corroborated story of him seeing SUNDAY and saying Dot's leaving had to be made clear by her carrying luggage,) but he rehearsed the cast night after night holding a bottle of vodka and a bowl of coke and Tune was just too focused on his performance to even really notice?  (I wouldn't have a doubt if he was drinking vodka secretively and leaving often to do a bump of coke, but c'mon...)

[morosco]

Posted: 10/9/15 at 6:03pm

"Another rumor had it that the Shuberts lobbied Con Edison to withhold the extra power allotment that the 46th Street Theatre needed to operate the sets for Nine."   -Razzle Dazzle

 

Huh?  The set for Nine never moved an inch.  No power was needed to "operate the sets" for Nine.  There was no automation needed for the Nine sets.