Results tagged “boygeorge”

"You thought I was gone, didn't you?" That was the opening line on last night's SNL as Amy Poehler proved reports wrong that she would be leaving the show following the delivery of her baby and the end of the election season. Seeing a svelte Poehler in the cold open as new Secretary of State Clinton as well as back in her Weekend Update chair was a welcome sight after the show had a rough last outing with previous host Tim McGraw.

After Boy George's visa was denied he spoke out on the problem that could put a glitch in his touring plans. The U.S. State Dept. also told their side of the story, and in the end The Man won. A press release sent out this morning stated that his tour, which included a special concert for the New York Department of Sanitation workers and families this summer, was canceled as a result of the problem. George stated, “I was really hoping that the issue would be resolved and that some kind soul at the US Visa Office would realize that if the police in the UK placed no restrictions on my movements, that should have been good enough for them. I am very sorry that I will not see all my American fans this year, but I wish them a happy and healthy Fourth of July. I include the Visa Office in those good wishes and realize they are doing a very difficult job and I just got unlucky.” Those wishing to see him in the U.S. will have to wait until Winter 2009!

This morning Boy George visited the Today show the only way he could: via satellite. He spoke to Meredith Viera about his visa denial in an upbeat tone, noting, "I got so much love from the people of New York every day, people were so supportive. I was getting honks, and people coming out of manholes going, ‘Go on, George!’ I was surprised by how much affection I received. Everyone talks about it being a humiliating experience. I didn’t feel humiliated. I thought it was a really good experience.” He added that if the tour doesn't happen now, "it will happen in the new year.”

The US State Department was forced to address a hot topic yesterday during a press briefing about Iran, Afghanistan and Albania when a hard hitting question was spouted about...Boy George? Spokesman Tom Casey nearly spit out his drink when asked about the singer being denied a visa. After regaining his composure he stated, "I’d simply note that there often are difficulties for individuals who either are currently subject to criminal charges or otherwise may have criminal records." When the reporter noted it was tragic, Casey countered with a knowing, "Do you really want to hurt him?" Then it was back to business. Watch the video here.

Boy George, scheduled for a U.S. tour this summer, including a stop at NYC's Dept. of Sanitation picnic, has been denied a visa. He told Papermag: "I'm pretty devastated because I am so excited about this forthcoming tour and having my visa application denied seems unfair after I swept the streets of New York spotless. I committed a crime and I happily paid the consequences and I should be allowed to move on and get on with what I do best and that is performing and making people dance and cry!" Maybe the DoS can relocate their picnic to Hyde Park.

Two years after pleading guilty to falsely calling in a break-in and donning an orange Department of Sanitation vest while sweeping the streets of Chinatown (as part of his community service duty), Boy George has announced he'll play a private show for the NYC Department of Sanitation workers later this summer. From the press release:

Boy George will help celebrate New York City’s Department of Sanitation Family Day this summer! George will be playing a free concert as a big thank you for the kindness shown to him by the DSNY. On August 17th he will play all his Culture Club hits and more for a crowd of over 5,000 NYC Sanitation workers and their families at DSNY Family Day.

Alycia Lane, the Philadelphia newswoman who punched a female NYPD police officer, was relieved after appearing at Manhattan Criminal Court today. The Manhattan DA's office basically dismissed her case, for an "adjournment in contemplation of dismissal."

In exchange for guilty pleas on a number of charges including assault of a fan, assault of his chauffer, driving with a suspended license and DUI, rap star Busta Rhymes avoided jail time and was sentenced yesterday to 10 days of community service. Sadly, we’ll be denied the publicity circus that swirled around Boy George and Naomi Campbell during their very public community services; Rhymes will have the privilege of choosing his own method of service at a “private, court-approved location.” (Will there be an after-party?) He’ll also pay fines and court costs amounting to – yes this figure you're about to read is correct – $1,510.

It's a tabloid Saturday jackpot as a Los Angeles County judge sentenced "celebrity" Paris Hilton to 45 days in jail. Superior Court Judge Michael Sauer agreed with prosecutors who felt that Hilton's driving with a suspended license (she was busted for DUI on September 7, 2006, ordered to go to alcohol education this past February, and then was pulled over yet again in late February) deserved jail and sentenced the infamous sometimes New Yorker to 45 days in jail. Both the Post and Daily News put her on their covers and detailed yesterday's hearing. From the News:

When a prosecutor asked if she read the license suspension notice that was mailed to her from the DMV, she replied, "I have people do that for me."

Continue reading "More Than One Night in Jail For Paris"

Let this be a lesson to all of you aspiring bad-tempered models! Before you try to throw a bedazzled cellphone at your hired help, realize that you might be sentenced to hard labor by a NYC judge! And by hard labor, we mean, "hard" for a bratty supermodel.

Naomi Campbell may be pleading down to a lesser charge in one of her assault cases. In the case of the March incident where Campbell allegedly beat her housekeeper with a cellphone, Campbell and the Manhattan DA's officer are looking into a plea deal that will satisfy both sides. Her lawyer hopes she'll get community service at an Upper East Side hospital, versus street cleaning in the Lower East Side, a la Boy George. Attorney David Breitbart told reporters:

"It's not that she's squeamish...I haven't even broached it with her...But in my mind, it's purely a security issue. I think it's dangerous, in all candor, to put a female of her celebrity in a public place, surrounded by hundreds of photographers. I have to assume that there are going to be people who say, 'Let's shoot her; let's stab her; let's mug her'... The media circus would far eclipse anything that happened to Boy George.

Spinners at SGoralnick's Most Well Documented Party Ever.

Breaking the law, breaking the law We -ist folks love us some crime, and no misdemeanor is too petty for a post on any of our sites. This week, join us for a rogues' gallery of miscreants major, minor, and alleged.

Ooh - Goggla on Flickr saw Boy George yesterday and took some pictures of him doing his community service. She writes:

Ah, I've waited 25 years to meet this man and here he was, picking up trash along my walking route to work. It was rather sad seeing him there with everyone on the sidewalk pointing and staring, but he looked to be in pretty good spirits.

Finally: Boy George has reported for his community service (after he falsely reported a robbery in his apartment) - sweeping streets in Chinatown and Little Italy. However, the paparazzi likes a celebrity in an orange Department of Sanitation vest, so they have followed him around, leaving him a bity crazy:

As he went about his duties, the singer was swarmed by reporters and photographers while he stood on the median of a Lower East Side Street. He used his broom to sweep dust and leaves into the lens of a video camera.

Continue reading "Boy George, Sweeper Chameleon"

Proving that being a celebrity doesn't give you a free pass all the time, Boy George was forced to do regular ol' community service, like raking leaves in a city park, versus his ideas of having a concert or showing people how to apply make-up. Boy George managed a pretty sweet plea deal for his possession of 13 bags of cocaine - a fine, drug rehab and the community service. Of course, he was arrested after calling the police to his apartment, falsely claiming he had been robbed, but details. Boy George didn't show up for an earlier hearing, which raised the ire of Judge Ferrara. And Ferrera's patience seemed to be wearing out, telling Boy George that he couldn't have special celebrity treatment (probably realizing that Taboo-style makeup wouldn't be a service to anyone) and said, "It's up to you whether [community service] will be an exercise in humiliation or in humility."

- And speaking of horrible accidents, a man was thrown from his car on the Henry Hudson - and then a car drove over him; police suspect his wife was speeding, causing the accident that threw him out

Hahahaha. When you're a rock star who gets arrested after, uh, falsely reporting a robbery only to have the police come and find coke in your apartment, and then you ask the judge to change the term of your sentence, don't you think you should show up to court to explain why you want that sentence changed? But not Boy George! Manhattan judge Anthony Ferrara issued a warrant for the Culture Club lead singer turned failed Broadway musical impressario for not showing up to a hearing. The AP reports that Boy George, ne George O'Dowd, "was to enter a drug program in England and do five days of community service in Manhattan. He was also supposed to pay a $1,000 fine and a $160 surcharge, and avoid arrest for any reason during the next six months." However, Boy George never paid his fine or went to arrange for his Manhattan community service. Judge Ferrara issued this smackdown to Boy George's lawyer, who did show up, "I put people in jail who don't pay fines. Why shouldn't I do that? I think it's important that Mr. O'Dowd be treated like any other defendant. He did absolutely nothing after walking out of that courtroom."

Looks like Boy George won't be behind bars for blowing rails after all, he will be raking up leaves and picking up trash however. The cocaine possession charges were dismissed yesterday, but the pop icon will still have to serve five days of community service on the charge of falsely reporting that his Centre Street apartment had been burglarized.

- And Lindsay Lohan's Confession of a Broken Heart must be in her diary that was found by people at Hiro

When we first reported the Boy George coke bust over the weekend, some of the facts didn't seem to add up. For one, it seems likely that Mr. O'Dowd has been snorting bouncing powder for many years-- so he didn't seem the type to bump a little of it, lose his shit, and call the police in a fit of drug paranoia. He must have had a reason for calling the police-- and today Page Six revealed what that reason was: he being rolled by a male hustler he had hired for the night.

Antony and the Johnsons will play their first NYC show since winning the UK's Mercury Music Prize last month. The past year has seen Antony rise from a relatively unknown eccentric NYC club performer to an international superstar. His headlining show at Carnegie Hall on Thursday, and his upcoming appearance on Letterman, are two signs of his well deserved success. Those attending the Carnegie show will also be treated to a rare opening set by vocalist Jimmy Scott, "the man whom Joseph Hooper, in a New York Times Magazine profile, called 'perhaps the most unjustly ignored American singer of the 20th century.' [Fantasy Jazz].

This one is priceless! According to the Daily News, last night Boy George and a friend were at his apartment in Nolita, snorting some cocaine. At 3:14am, he calls 911 to report a burglary in progress at his apartment. A fit of paranoia or just extremely bad luck? In any case, the cops show up a few minutes later, and discover no burglers. They do spot "13 bags of cocaine totaling more than an eighth of an ounce", and one androgenous pudgster "stoned out of his gourd." Arrests quickly ensue, and Boy George and his friend spend the rest of the night enjoying the hospitality of the NYPD. Boy (or is it George?) was sprung after a hearing this morning-- the case goes forward on December 19th.

Recently nominated for the the UK's Mercury Music Prize, NYC's Antony & The Johnsons released one of the most unique and captivating albums of 2005. "Antony , the ethereal voice of Antony and the Johnsons, sings like a Wim Wenders angel and—when necessary—can swear like a sailor" [Village Voice]. Last time Antony played Bowery Ballroom, he was joined on stage by Rufus Wainwright and Boy George, both of whom also appear on his album. CocoRosie, who also collaborate with Antony in studio & on stage, open the show at Town Hall on Thursday (tix still available)

As soon as Bright Eyes (and the Faint) are finished hogging Webster Hall this week, former Conor Oberst label mate Rilo Kiley take over for a two day run. Former child actress Jenny Lewis leads this band of safe OC-ready indie pop-rockers. For a taste of Rilo, download MP3s of their entire Coachella performance. Portastatic and The Brunettes open both shows on Thursday and Friday.

Happy Monday. Today's music post will only list tonight's shows. Check back tomorrow for the rest of the week's events.

Artwork by Jim Jarmusch, Nan Goldin, Anton Van Dalen and others up for bid; screenings and performances in community gardens; Charlie Parker tribute jazz festival; hip hop arts; readings; live music; parties; theatre; burlesque; art shows; films; Rooftop Rants; Beat poetry; Latino music and dance; Hebrew trivia; performance art; semi-nude live models in Tompkins Square Park; a Vomitorium; Wigstock with Boy George and RuPaul; and, of course, all things Allen Ginsberg.

Gruner + Jahr, in its breach-of-contract trial against Rosie O'Donnell over their successful-then-sour magazine collaboration, blame Boy George for making Rosie gay up her look and magazine.

The bitchiest NY theater critic in town, Michael Riedel at the Post, asks a panel of "four cranky New York drama critics" (no word if Riedel is one of them) what they are dreading this new theater season. Some priceless excerpts: