Media Morsels 12.9.11

• Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
  A new class has been named to the Rock Hall. On April 14, 2012, Guns N' Roses, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Beastie Boys and others will be inducted. The ceremony will take place in Cleveland, Ohio, home to the Hall of Fame Museum. In early May, HBO will air the ceremony, which always includes not-to-be-missed performances from the inductees and the artists honoring them. As the announcement in Rolling Stone notes, GN'R made it into the Hall in their first year of eligibility.
  



• Kennedy Center Honors
  The 2011 Kennedy Center Honors were presented this weekend. Honored this year were Barbara Cook, Meryl Streep, Neil Diamond, Sonny Rollins and Yo-Yo Ma. (To quote Donna Moss, "Yo-Yo Ma rules!") Playbill.com has an account of the theatre luminaries (like Patti LuPone and Sutton Foster!) who came out to perform in Cook's honor, and Broadwayworld.com has lots of photos: rehearsal arrivals; red carpet arrivals (I want Audra McDonald's dress!); special presentation; and honorees on the red carpet. Make sure to tune into CBS on December 27 at 9pm when the gala performances will be televised.



• The Five Year Engagement
  Jason Segel (The Muppets) and this frequent collaborator, Nick Stoller, have teamed up again for The Five Year Engagement. Stoller also directs directs the funny film that stars Segel and Emily Blunt as Tom and Violet, a couple who, once engaged, keeps having to put off their wedding. You can visit tomandviolet.com to stay up to date on the wedding festivities. And watch the trailer below:
  

• "Best Of" Year End Lists
  
  It's December so several media outlets are putting out their Best Of lists. (Mind you that these lists reflect the calendar year, not, for example, the theatre season.) I'll present mine later this month. Here are some of the lists released this week:
• New York magazine: Top 10 Theatre (including The Book of Mormon, Jerusalem, Arcaida, and School for Lies); special theatre categories, like Star of the Year (Nina Arianda, a revelation in Venus in Fur); Top 10 TV (including The Good Wife and Community); the Year in Books; Top 10 Art (including the incredible De Kooning exhibit at the MoMA); and Top 10 Movies (plus an Oscar racing form).



• NPR's 50 Favorites Albums, including The Book of Mormon's Original Broadway Cast Recording



• Rolling Stone names its: 50 Best Albums (including Wasting Light at number 20); 50 Best Singles (including Foo Fighters' "These Days" from Wasting Light (at the Foo show at MSG, Dave Grohl said this was the song he's most proud of writing)); and the Best Movies (including Moneyball at number 4 and Drive at number 1)



• Paste magazine names its 20 Best TV Characters of the year; it's a good list that includes some of my favorites, like Abed from Community, George Christopher from Bored to Death and Gloria from Modern Family.



• Time released its Top 10 of Everything of 2011 lists. Here's the main page, from which you can toggle to several categories, including plays & musicals and three movie categories. Categories and highlights:



• Best Movie Performances, including Brad Pitt in Moneyball; and Michael Fassbender for Shame (which I plan to see later this month)



• Best Plays and Musicals, including War Horse; The Normal Heart; The Book of Mormon; and Anything Goes



• Best TV Series, including Parks and Recreation; Community (especially its "Remedial Chaos Theory" episode); and The Good Wife
  



• Make some NOISE
  Check out the new single from actor and activist Gavin Creel:
  

• Dig This
• Martin Scorsese was feted by the Broadcast Film Critics Association this week when they honored him with the Music and Film Award. Scorsese is the second person to receive the honor; Quentin Tarantino was the first.



• On a Clear Day's Harry Connick, Jr., calls his co-star, the incredible Jessie Meuller, a "super freak"—in a good way! (The revival opens Sunday; check in then for my review, and, in the meantime, read my review of the Vineyard Theatre's lab production.)



• Aaron Tveit, that dreamy multi-talented star of the dearly departed Catch Me if You Can, will play Enjolras in the upcoming film of Les Mis.



• The Book of Mormon will play a three-month stint in Los Angeles as part of the show's first national tour next year. Look for it September 5-November 25, 2012.



• Watch this week's episode of Community (first video) and then Save Community! (second video)