Debbie Allen’s all-black, Broadway production of the Tennessee Williams play (turned classic Paul Newman/Elizabeth Taylor movie), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, finally has a cast. LL Cool J was mentioned months ago as a contender for the role of Brick, an injured ex-football player who won’t have sex with his wife, but, thankfully, that’s not happening.
Terrence “T.P.” Howard has been given the roll (ha! get it?). Although I’m not his biggest fan, at least he has Broadway-caliber acting chops. Other confirmed cast members are Phylicia Rashad, Giancarlo Esposito and James Earl Jones. The lead female role will either go to Anika Noni Rose or Kerry Washington. I’m sure you know who I’m rooting for. []
Ahmad Rashad, former husband of Claire Huxtable, I mean Phylicia Rashad, got married to Sale Johnson, the ex-wife of Johnson & Johnson heir and NY Jets owner Woody Johnson, in a glitzy NYC ceremony yesterday.
[The two wed] in front of a crowd of friends including Princess Yasmin Aga Khan, NBA Commissioner David Stern, Donald Trump, Martha and Carl Lindner and Derek Jeter. “It was going to be a birthday party for him,” Sale told us. “Then it turned into a party to celebrate his being inducted into the Football Hall of Fame, and finally he said, ‘Let’s just get married.’
Clearly I’m having trouble separating The Cosby Show from reality, but I doubt this woman holds a candle to Phylicia Rashad. On the other hand, as much money as I’m sure Phylicia has, this woman probably has more.
Or maybe they’re just really in love.[]
Broadway just got a little blacker. Well, maybe not black enough. As further proof that entertainers have a definite affinity for the Illinois senator, some of NYC’s famous stage actors will be on hand for a special performance called “Barack On Broadway.” Seriously.
From the press release:
During this special evening, billed BARACK ON BROADWAY, Obama will speak and a constellation of Broadway stars will perform, including Christine Ebersole, Marcia Gay Harden, Ruben Santiago Hudson, Kristen Johnson, Phylicia Rashad, Jeffrey Wright, and the Broadway Inspirational Voices. The event will be Directed by multi-Tony Award winner, George C. Wolfe, and feature readings from the works of some of America’s greatest playwrights, compiled by John Lahr, Marsha Norman and Jack Viertel. Senator Obama’s words will, of course, be his own.
Barack Obama now has the approval of both Oprah Winfrey and Claire Huxtable. Could a black man really ask for anything more?
Oh, right. The presidential nomination.
This weird couple is everywhere. I can’t tell if I will eventually get used to Tameka and Usher, the duo, or if I will be forever mystified by their seemingly happy union. They brought their big, mismatched smiles to the Tony Awards last night, where Usher presented and Fantasia performed. Check out some more pictures from the awards below.
Claire Huxtable is definitely not the type of person to show up late to awards dinners or not show at all.
The woman who played her? A different story. According to Page Six, Phylicia Rashad is getting a reputation for untimely entrances in NYC. My opinion? She’s Phylicia Rashad, she’s allowed to operate on her own clock.
In other Cosby Show news, Tempestt Bledsoe is back on the saddle with a supporting role in an Oxygen romantic comedy called Husband For Hire. Hey, you’ve got to (re)start somewhere!
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