Results tagged “jeremypiven”

Someone slipped the 44-page ruling in the Jeremy Piven sushi saga to the Times, and it's a must-read for the Piven completist. You'll recall (because we wouldn't let you forget) that last December the Smokin' Aces star abruptly quit the Broadway production of Speed-the-Plow, claiming that excessive seafood consumption—not excessive partying—had left him exhausted with "dangerously high" mercury levels. But we never found out exactly what unfolded during the emotional, three-day arbitration hearing in June. Until now.

Just like he did in star said, “All we can ask for is our day in court. I was lucky enough to get it, and the truth prevailed. It’s a beautiful thing...I think our president has shown us, beautifully, that the high road is the road to take and so I’m going to take his lead on this."

Albany's in turmoil. The MTA's in fiscal crisis. Cheap lawn chairs clutter Broadway. But just in time to heal a troubled city, Jeremy Piven is back. You'll recall that last December the Smokin' Aces star abruptly quit the Broadway production of Speed-the-Plow, claiming that excessive seafood consumption—not excessive partying, shut up!—had left him exhausted with "dangerously high" mercury levels. The world—or at least, that tiny fraction of it that goes to theater—snorted derisively, but Piven stuck to his story, even going on Good Morning America to warn everyone about mercury. Producers of Speed-the-Plow, which made less money once the rubes learned a tee-vee star wasn't in it anymore, filed a complaint against Piven with the actors' union. At a grievance hearing in February, the five actors on the panel bought it (he cried!), while the five producers didn't, and thus here we are at arbitration, which is happening this week! Producers whisper to the Post that they'll nail Piven good this time by citing examples of his odd behavior at the theater, which included showing up late for his call time and even telling one backstage visitor, "I'm bored out of my mind."

The four stars in Yasmina Reza’s hit play God of Carnage have agreed to extend the production after taking a break for part of the summer. Performances will end after July 26th so James Gandolfini, Marcia Gay Harden, Hope Davis, and Jeff Daniels can fulfill other commitments, and resume on Sept. 8th, running through Nov. 15th. In an interview with the Times today, Daniels explained that "there were no ego trips, no outrageous demands. Just basic needs. We’re people that make plans, and we were making plans way back before we even started rehearsals." And in a nice little dig at Jeremy Piven's infamous withdrawal from Speed-the-Plow due to "mercury poisoning," Daniels added, "No one’s missed a show, and we’re eating fish." The brilliantly-performed one-act about two narcissistic Brooklyn couples fighting over their sons' playground tussle is up for a Tony against Dividing the Estate, reasons to be pretty, and 33 Variations, and both male and female cast members are competing against each other in the Best Actor and Best Actress categories. The award show will be broadcast on CBS Sunday night, hosted by Neil Patrick Harris.

Yes! The saga continues! After yesterday's grievance hearing ended in a split decision, we were all so worried that the legend of Jeremy Piven's mercury poisoning had at last reached its denouement. But aggrieved producers of the Broadway Speed-the-Plow revival still say Piven was lying when he claimed that elevated mercury levels forced him to quit the show. Now they've issued a statement announcing their intention to pursue the matter further, meaning a continued Piven-related diversion for all! The short press release states: "The grievance went as expected yesterday. The grievance committee (made up of League and Equity representatives) did not rule for either side and we will be filing for arbitration as provided by our contract." Your move, Ari!

They bought it! At a closed-door hearing yesterday in front of a committee comprised of union actors and producers' reps, Jeremy Piven was able to convince his fellow thespians that he had no choice but to quit Speed-the-Plow last December because of dangerously high mercury levels. The five actors on the panel all sided with the Runaway Jury star, while the five members of the Broadway league agreed with the show's producers, who say Piven faked mercury poisoning because he was bored and wanted to get back to sunny L.A.

Jeremy Piven is expected to appear live and in person before an Actors' Equity grievance committee tomorrow in order to defend himself against producers of Speed-the-Plow who accuse him of faking mercury poisoning last December to escape his contractual obligation to the Broadway production. It was originally assumed that Piven's lawyers would plead his case, but the Posts's Michael Riedel says the hard-partying actor is expected to surface. Unless, as one producer quipped, he "has too much sushi on the plane from LA." Hey-oh! When he quit, Piven's physician claimed the mercury levels in the star's blood were "very elevated," and last month Piven agreed to a second blood test administered by a doctor hired by the producers. (The results of that test are not known.) If the grievance committee rules against Piven, he'll be forced to settle financially with the producers or risk expulsion from the stage union. And though there are five actors on the committee, the unnamed producer says that doesn't necessarily bode well for Piven: "I don't think many theater actors are in favor of what he's doing. They take jobs on Broadway very seriously, and he's a Hollywood actor, behaving like one."

Jeremy Piven sat down for his first interview since his sudden departure from Broadway play Speed-the-Plow last month, and despite widespread snickering that his "exhaustion" was really brought on by too much plowing-the-snow, the Entourage star is sticking to his mercury poisoning story. In the exclusive chat with Diane Sawyer, Piven maintains that illness caused by excessive seafood consumption brought him to his knees, and the condition deteriorated to the point where "that final Sunday, um, I had problems spatially, I was losing my balance and my memory. The lights were too bright, I couldn't get enough oxygen, I ended up passing out in my place when I got home... I'm a very clean person, I kind of grew up macropsychotic—macrobiotic, I call it macropsychotic." After brushing off rumors about his hard partying lifestyle ("If I had a glass of wine, it was too much"), Piven declares he hasn't had fish in five months, and wraps with a plug for ocean preservation website Blue Voice.

Tonight's the night William H. Macy takes over the role in Speed-the-Plow that hacktor Jeremy Piven abandoned so he could convalesce in Bangkok after a bout of "mercury poisoning" left him too "exhausted" to "perform" in the hit Broadway play. After weeks of silence, more of Piven's squirming (video) on the Golden Globes' red carpet has come to light today; speaking of Macy, Piven told the Post, "I know he'll be extraordinary in the role." No secret there; Macy is a Mamet expert. Here's the Scooby Doo in Where's My Mummy star's explanation to the Daily News:

What people don’t really know is that it’s a real illness and I am not a doctor, so I cannot identify specifically what brought me down.

Continue reading ""Be Nice To Me," Jeremy Piven Pleads"

Okay, one more Golden Globe video for the road. After weeks of silence about his abrupt departure from Broadway's Speed-the-Plow, actor Jeremy Piven was finally cornered on the red carpet last night and had no choice but to comment about his recent "mercury poisoning." Naturally, the question about his illness wasn't prompted by the "reporter" doing the interview (Tiki Barber), but by Piven's Entourage buddy Mark Wahlberg, who facetiously wondered if mercury poisoning is contagious. Piven did not seem too amused by the jape.

As expected, actor Jeremy Piven's abrupt departure from the Broadway revival of David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow is costing the show's investors a mint; they had expected to finally break even just when Piven quit due to "mercury poisoning." The box office take dropped 33% in the wake of his withdrawal, and the money guys are livid. One producer tells the Post, "We were so close to recouping, and then this jerk screwed it up." Even Piven's former cast mate Raul Esparza is lashing out, telling the audience during curtain call last Sunday: "Today was the first time I really enjoyed playing this show. I hope you weren't expecting a big TV star." Meanwhile, actor Fisher Stevens has surfaced to defend Piven, testifying that he suffered from mercury poisoning earlier this year while eating fish four or five times a week during production of documentary The Cove, about the slaughter of mercury-loaded dolphins.

In a world torn by war, with an economy in ruins, it's nice to know we've still got Jeremy Piven's antics to take our minds off things—his abrupt departure from the modestly successful Broadway revival of David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow has outraged the show's producers and cast members.Yesterday Piven's doctor, Carlon Colker, said he ordered Piven to withdraw from the production because of "elevated levels of mercury" in his blood, ostensibly caused by the hard-partying actor's penchant for sushi and Chinese herbs, which can contain heavy metals.

[CASTING UPDATE BELOW] Entourage star Jeremy Piven has gone from calling out sick to simply quitting his current gig on Broadway in David Mamet's Speed-the-Plow. Mamet tells Variety: "I talked to Jeremy on the phone, and he told me that he discovered that he had a very high level of mercury. So my understanding is that he is leaving show business to pursue a career as a thermometer." (Promises, promises.)

According to TMZ, actor Jeremy Piven (Entourage) has missed several recent performances of the Broadway revival of Speed-the-Plow due to an unspecified illness. No one knows what happened! Why, just last Saturday the Grosse Pointe Blank star was angrily stalling the show as audience members straggled in late! Now he'll be missing tonight's performance, too; his rep tells TMZ, "Jeremy has not been feeling well and the doctors have advised him that he should end his run in Speed-the-Plow immediately." But anyone with tickets shouldn't be too upset; the star of this revival is really Raúl Esparza, and the show will go on just fine with him and Elisabeth Moss. The show's publicist confirmed the illness but had no further details, adding only that (for now) the production is still scheduled to run through February 22nd.

Due to the Writer's Guild of America strike, Hollywood's party, the Golden Globes Awards were transformed from a boozy, fun dinner party to a press conference where presenters from entertainment programs like Extra! and E! News got to announce the winners. Yes, it was as painful as it sounded (Giuliana Rancic, it's not about you); many said they couldn't believe they were announcing the winners but said they would prefer it with the stars. Inside Edition's Jim Moret struck a classy note when he acknowledged the Hollywood Foreign Association (the organization that doles out the Golden Globes) President Jorge Camara.

How does one get banned from Nobu? After a rude comment to the manager on his way out of the restaurant he left a DVD of the first season of Entourage...AS A TIP. Allegedly an employee ran up the stairs and hurled it at him as he was leaving. The Daily News reports that Piven said through his rep: "I'm such a fan of Nobu and all of his restaurants. I had a great dinner at the Nobu in Aspen. As always, the meal was excellent and the service was great."

Baby, it's cold outside—go see a movie, why dontcha? Werewolves, comic books and hot girls who prowl the streets of Bucharest in high heel boots should be the stuff of great geek cinema. Unfortunately, strives to spoof every bloated popular movie that's come out lately. Of course punch line bombshell Carmen Electra is in it, but so is Kal Penn, Jennifer Coolidge and Crispin Glover of all people, so it could be fun for some chuckles.

After last year's mess of an awards show and this year's joke of nominations (where is love for Lauren Graham, Academy of Television Arts & Sciences?), we were going to swear off this year's Emmys. But then we realized Conan O'Brien was hosting, so we must watch and liveblog. And there's the hope of a good Steve Carrell bit, not to mention awkward reaction shots of Candy and Tori Spelling during the Aaron Spelling tribute.

This weekend is the weekend of movie déjà vu. You will be struck with the nagging feeling that all of the major films new to theaters seem oddly like something you've seen before. But repertory programming out in Brooklyn or in the West Village will provide a much needed shot of creativity to counter balance the same old, same old.

Good lord. It's not even five minutes into the Emmys and Gothamist (and friends Aaron Dobbs of out of focus and a Gothamist contributor, and Margaret Lyons, formerly of Chicagoist) is very very frightened. There is no reason why Taboo from the Black Eyed Peas should force Doris Roberts to dance with them. Doris needs to get the AARP to fight the fight with her. Welcome to Gothamist's attempt to liveblog the Emmys, until the show drains every single molecule of life from us, which we believe will happen in the 10PM hour.

Pop culture is really paying attention to those of larger dimensions and girth lately. We have had reality TV's take on this with The Biggest Loser, and a Gothamist fave Rescue Me has had a featured storyline between a fireman dating a largish gal, to the disdain and ribbing by his crew. Now off- Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre, we have that same actress (Ashlie Atkinson) in a similar role as one of the stars of the riveting new play Fat Pig by Neil LaBute (The Shape of Things, bash, The Mercy Seat).

Gothamist can always get a sense of what shows are crash & burning and which are just plain sizzling by an occasional perusal of the theater tickets for sale/wanted listings on the oh mighty list o Craig. A browse today tells us the following: