The real stand-ups who helped punch up Bradley Cooper’s comedy-drama β€˜Is This Thing On?’

The real stand-ups who helped punch up Bradley Cooper’s comedy-drama β€˜Is This Thing On?’

It was abundantly clear to actor-director Bradley Cooper that if β€œIs This Thing On?,” his comedy-drama set in New York’s stand-up scene, lacked authenticity, the film would fail. With the iconic Comedy Cellar at its heart, he found the key to unlocking that β€” by casting several of the real-life comedians who regularly take the…

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‘South Park’ creators clash with performers at their Casa Bonita restaurant

‘South Park’ creators clash with performers at their Casa Bonita restaurant

β€œSouth Park” creators Matt Stone and Trey Parker, who this summer landed one of the richest TV deals ever, are being called Scrooges by performers at their Casa Bonita restaurant near Denver. In late October, the performers, including the famed cliff divers, went on a three-day strike, citing unsafe working conditions and stalled negotiations over…

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Scorer Daniel Blumberg on how he brought ‘The Testament of Ann Lee’ to life

Scorer Daniel Blumberg on how he brought ‘The Testament of Ann Lee’ to life

If the Shakers have a lasting cultural legacy, it is their music β€” most famously β€œSimple Gifts,” the uplifting spiritual Aaron Copland immortalized in his ballet β€œAppalachian Spring.” It stands to reason, then, that a film about Ann Lee, the founding β€œmother” of this 18th century celibate Christian sect, would be a musical. But this…

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