NiteTalk: Showbiz Boss Jim Caruso Dishes to Niteside

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER
Showbiz boss Jim Caruso is the host of his own show, Cast Party, the Monday night soiree at Birdland, just steps away from the Broadway lights. But his involvement in the entertainment biz doesn't stop there. He toured with the legendary Liza Minnelli and performed at the President Clinton's first state dinner. He released a new studio album this month, which is currently in the top 100 Vocal Jazz albums on Amazon. Caruso gave a glimpse into his world when he sat down with Niteside this weekend. 

What was your favorite part of creating your latest album, "The Swing Set?"
Having it finished and in my very hands. (laughs) No, the choosing of the music was exciting. I've never done a studio recording before. I've done live CDs, so this was really a whole new experience. I wanted it to certainly have a jazz feel with the great American standards but some quirky songs too because I think that's what people, if they think of me at all, think of me doing. They think of me with kind of unique material and funny things, so we found some of those. ... It's kind of like what we do at Cast Party - it's a lot of friends entertaining each other at the piano and that's kind of the feeling I want on this album.

Let's talk about Cast Party. You've had some legendary guests, but who would you label as your favorite?
There have been some really historic moments there. The lyricist Betty Comden, from Comden and Green, made her last public appearance there I think. She came and she was all in black and diamonds and she still looked fantastic. She motioned to Billy Stritch, who was at the piano that night, and said 'Do you think it would be okay if I sang a song?' And of course we fainted. We got her right up and she sang a song called 'One Hundred Easy Ways to Lose a Man' from a show that she wrote with her partners. She remembered every word and she was hilarious and got every laugh. She died maybe within the next year. That was something I'll never forget. And of course every time Liza comes, it's pandemonium. People freak out and she sings her head off. That's a woman that can stop a room.

Is there anyone you'd like to come perform that hasn't yet?
I do have a short list of people that I'm desperate to get in to Cast Party. I could say that they are my heroes growing up - Dick Van Dyke, Carol Burnett - I just know they'd love it. I have a feeling that Ricky Martin would really be into it. He has show business in his blood. He gets it and loves it. Kathy Griffin is somebody that I know pretty well. She'd never come in but I know she would think it would be hilarious.

Tell me about working with Liza Minnelli.
Oh Liza Minnelli... I could talk about her forever. I was on the road for three years with Liza in the show that became 'Liza's at the Palace,' which won the Tony. Nobody has been kinder and more supportive of me and my career than that lady. She's extraordinary. If you have her as a friend, you've got a friend.

What's next for you?
We are doing a very special Cast Party at Town Hall on February 17. It's going to be a benefit for Broadway Cares. That's going to be crazy great. Billy Stritch and I are also going to do Cast Party in Los Angeles in March and that's one of my favorite things to do. I love taking Cast Party on the road and celebrating local talent, which can be Carol Channing or it can be a songwriter that you've never heard of that blows you away. That's really exciting to me to be able to celebrate fabulous talent and to get to know these shockingly talented people all over the country. It's like my own Ed Sullivan show.

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

Financial Expert: 2011 is the Year For Change

Author Ryan Mack during a discussion in Columbus Circle.

Photo by: Brooke Niemeyer

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER

Financial guru and author Ryan Mack says that even though this country is currently facing a bad economy, this is the year for everyone to take responsibility for their finances and make changes. 

"As far as I'm concerned, 2010 was the year that everybody was waiting on their ship to come in," Mack said during a discussion at the Borders in Columbus Circle last night. "But 2011 is the year we have got to swim out to it."

Mack released his new financial self-help book this month, "Living in the Village: Build Your Financial Future and Strengthen Your Community." He says it provides a road map on ways to have financial well being, but also strongly promotes activism.

"We provide the principles in the book," Mack said. "But a principle is only as good as the person who receives it and is able to implement it."

He adds, "I wrote this because I wanted to make sure that we all understand that we have a responsibility. I don't want to point the finger anymore. I'm tired of looking at other people and seeing what they're not doing. It's time to ask, 'what am I doing?'"

Greed is one of the problems Mack sites for the downward spiral of the economy, but says that if people work together to embrace change, there will be positive results. 

"If you mix greed with capitalism, then you've got some problems," Mack said. "But if you use love in a capitalistic system, you create jobs and a stronger economy."

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

Want to Learn About NYC? Avoid the Internet.

Kenneth T. Jackson speaking in Union Square.

Photo by: Brooke Niemeyer

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER
New York City is one of the most fascinating and culturally rich cities in the world. With all the details and history of this vibrant metropolis, Kenneth T. Jackson feels it is essential to have a compilation of credible information about the city for people to reference. So he helped create one, "The Encyclopedia of New York City."

Jackson edited the book's second edition, which was released last month.

"The Internet, whether it's Wikipedia or Google, has killed reference books around the country," Jackson said last night at the Barnes & Noble in Union Square. "Even the Encyclopedia Britannica is no longer in physical form. But with this, you can turn to any page and learn things you didn't know about New York City and know it's all true. You can't do that with the Internet."

The second edition has over 5,000 entries and 700 illustrations. Jackson says that even though it is called an encyclopedia, it should be on coffee tables in homes, not just on a shelf in a library.

"The idea is to reach a general public with this book," Jackson said. "Not just to reach a specialized library reference audience."

Jackson, who is also a professor at Columbia University, was part of the team that released the original edition of it in 1995. He says the editors saw that New York City has changed in many ways since then, from the World Trade Center no longer being a part of the city skyline to the implementing of the E-Z subway pass, all of which are reflected in the second edition.

"I think there's more information about one city between the two covers of this book than any book on any other city in the history of the world," Jackson said.

With all the information Jackson learned about New York City during his research, he says there was one thing that surprised him the most.

"I was surprised that New York was the oyster capital," Jackson said. "I found out that half of all oysters in the world are brought in from the New York Harbor. I think that's surprising."

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

'The New Yorker' Editor: "I Think Obama Will Be Re-Elected"

Editor of The New Yorker, David Remnick

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER
David Remnick, the editor of "The New Yorker," revealed his prediction of who will win the presidential election in 2012.

"I think that Obama will be re-elected," Remnick said during an event at the 92nd Street Y in the Upper East Side last night. "Right now, with nine percent unemployment, he still has a popularity rating of now high 40s and I don't see him losing."

He also listed a few candidates for the Republican nomination, but said he doesn't expect any of them to be able to beat Obama.

"I can't see Mitt Romney doing it," Remnick said. "And as many nightmares as I've had in my life, I can't see Sarah Palin either."

Remnick, who wrote the 2010 biography, "The Bridge: The Life and Rise of Barack Obama," said he doesn't find fault with Obama for not having any CEO's in his first cabinet.

"I have to say that the people who feel underrepresented in the economic policy-making of the United States do not seem, to me, to be investment bankers and CEO's," Remnick said. "I think those interests are pretty well taken care of. Those people were rescued."

"I think the people in America who are underrepresented, who are angry and who are suffering, are the unemployed, the people who are graduating from college and are taking on jobs that they never could have imagined, the people who had their houses foreclosed. I find this so-called rage among the CEO's and business class, who feel somehow ignored and betrayed, to be comical."

Remnick said the constant news cycle changed the media, but that there's no point in reflecting on a time when we didn't have it.

"You can't wish away technology," Remnick said. "There's crap on the Internet and there's very good things on there too. It just is what it is."

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

Fashion Guru Diane von Furstenberg: My Fans Are "Better Than Botox"

Fashion legend Diane von Furstenberg

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER
Fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, who is best known for the iconic wrap dress she designed in the 1970s, said that her loyal fans and clientele are the ones keeping her young.

"The older I get, the younger my fan base is and that's very flattering," von Furstenberg said at the 92nd Street Y last night. "It's better than Botox."

Von Furstenberg is keeping busy with designing, but has also been working on a new retrospective happening in Beijing this April called "Journey of a Dress."

"It's a retrospective of my work in fashion, but it's also art," von Furstenberg said. "There are four vignettes with clothes, clothes, clothes. They are the four sides of the woman that I've been: one is American Dream, another is Studio 54, the third is Luxe, and the fourth one is Working Girl."

She says she's in her "second career," which started after her re-launch of DVF in the late '90s.

"The first time around I did everything by instinct," von Furstenberg said. "Now I do everything by experience, but I know my instincts were right."

Even though her line has expanded past fashion and into handbags and luggage, don't expect her to branch into creating anything for men's wardrobes any time soon.

"My mission in life is really to empower women," she said, "and to make us confident and sexy with clothes."

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

Author Brad Meltzer: Bush 41 Helped With New Book

Author Brad Meltzer's new book was released this week.

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER
Presidential tradition dictates that an outgoing Commander-in-Chief leaves a letter for the incoming president, and the letter remains confidential between these leaders. But political author Brad Meltzer revealed last night that during research for his latest book, he received a copy of the message George H.W. Bush wrote to Bill Clinton.

"He sent this letter to me and told me that no one had ever seen this before," Meltzer said during a discussion at the Union Square Barnes & Noble. "I love that he trusted me with it."

The Brooklyn native's latest conspiracy novel, "The Inner Circle," was released yesterday. It's the story of a political archivist discovering secret stories and documents in the White House and solving political mysteries.

His discussion Tuesday night didn't just focus on politics. Meltzer, who also hosts "Brad Meltzer's Decoded" on the History Channel, also discussed how he feels the Facebook phenomenon is changing our culture.

"With Facebook, you are immediately confronted with your past," Meltzer said. "It's like someone is confronted with their own history and it makes you ask that question, which to me is the whole question of what the book is, is 'what has your life become?' I'm fascinated with that."

To answer that question, Meltzer said that even with all of his recognition he's had for his books and TV show, he has a different way of measuring success.

"No one is known in life for the famous things that they did," Meltzer said. "Thomas Jefferson never took credit for writing [The Declaration of Independence] while he was alive. IT wasn't until people read his obituary that they knew he was the author. That kind of humility, I think, is what makes a person. That is how I think you know when you have made it."

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

Author Rachel Machacek Hopes to Turn New Book Into a Movie

Rachel Machacek reads an excerpt from her new book.

Photo by: Brooke Niemeyer

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER
Author Rachel Machacek released her tome, "The Science of Single: One Woman's Grand Experiment in Modern Dating, Creating Chemistry, and Finding Love," this week and revealed last night that she is open to turning it into a movie.

"I have a friend in Los Angeles who is bugging me to turn this into a screen play," Machacek said last night at the Borders in Murray Hill. "I don't have any immediate plans, but I'd like to."

The book chronicles her dating experiences over a year and says she went on approximately 150 dates with around 60 different men during that time.

Machacek, 37, said her original idea for the book was to tell stories from dates where she implemented tips from romance self-help books, but her plans changed.

"I decided that was too boring," Machacek said. "Instead I decided to write about the science of the dating process" -- and this is where she got the title of her book.

Machacek lives in Washington D.C., a place she considers a "serious city," and says this doesn't make dating for an introvert easy. Because of this, she turned to technology, including online dating. She now says it's one of her preferred dating methods.

"It's the easiest way," Machacek said. "You just go online, click on people, put them in your shopping cart, you wink at them, or you hotlist them, or you flag them. It's just easy."


This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

Former White Zombie Bassist Sean Yseult: "I Just Started a New Band"

Sean Yseult speaking at the Tribeca Barnes & Noble.

Photo by: Brooke Niemeyer

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER

Sean Yseult, the former bassist for the 90’s heavy-metal band White Zombie, revealed last night that she is returning to music, but this time with another group.

“I just started a new band, with some very good friends, called Star and Dagger,” Yseult said last night. “It’s kind of been dubbed Anita Pallenberg fronting Black Sabbath. It’s heavy with these very beautiful vocals.”

Instead of touring with a band right now, Yseult is out promoting her book “I’m in the Band: Backstage Notes From the Chick in White Zombie.” While at the Tribeca Barnes & Noble last night, Yseult said that going through her old boxes of band and touring memorabilia a few years ago is what prompted her to put together the book.

“The photo albums I had were filled with backstage parties and the tour diaries I kept were the biggest surprise,” Yseult said. “These were written diligently each night before I fell asleep, even though half the time I was half-past drunk.

The book is a compilation of photos and ticket stubs, as well as anecdotes from her years with the band.

“Most of the things I do remember play back like a movie in my head,” Yseult said. “Like riding in the Ramones van from gig to gig while we were on tour together or getting busted in a New Orleans graveyard with Lux [Interior] and [Poison] Ivy of The Cramps.”

With all the musicians she’s worked (and partied) with, she says without a doubt her favorite is Pantera.

“Those guys were like my big brothers,” Yseult said. While you’re on stage, just constant pranks and offstage too. They made passing 23 hours a day [on tour] an art form.”

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

Kevin Spacey: New "Superman" Will be "Very Dark"

Actor and director Kevin Spacey

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER
Kevin Spacey, well known for his role as Lex Luther in "Superman Returns," revealed details about the next "Superman" film.

"To my knowledge, there is going to be another 'Superman' movie," Spacey said. "I think they have decided to reboot it and they are going very dark, from what I understand."

While he doesn't expect to play a role in that action film, he does have others in the works. An exclusive audience at the 92nd Street Y in the Upper East Side last night was privy to a screening of Spacey's latest film, "Casino Jack."

The drama is based on the alleged fraud scandal of Washington D.C. lobbyist Jack Abramoff, played by Spacey.

Spacey said that when he went to the prison to meet Abramoff for the first time, he wasn't concerned of being manipulated by the former lobbyist.

"I think he was so bitterly disappointed that Brad Pitt wasn't playing him," Spacey said. "So, seducing me wasn't a priority for him."

With Spacey's film credits ranging from the popular dramas "21" and "American Beauty" to the science-fiction film, "Moon," he says that no matter what role he's playing, he always finds a thrill in developing a character that audiences will become involved with and enjoy watching.

"One of the great pleasures of being an actor is that you're like a detective," Spacey said. "You've got all these clues about who the person is and you try to sift through them and create a film that is entertaining and fun."

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

"Unsilent Night": Boombox-Toting Parade-Goers Carol Through the Village

The procession began at Washington Square Park near the Christmas tree.

Photo by: Brooke Niemeyer

This was one of the most unique events I have attended and I am so glad I got the chance to cover it. We have all heard of groups Christmas caroling and singing their favorite seasonal songs. But how many of us have ever seen or even heard about groups serenading their city by caroling with instrumental music? That's exactly what this is and it was a really neat experience.

Phil Kline started this event in 1992 with a few friends and a song he composed and now thousands of people turn out with their boom boxes, iPods, and all other types of speakers to electronically carol around the Village - from Washington Square Park down to Thompkins Square Park.

If you ever are in New York (or any of the other cities participating in this event) I highly reccomend you go!

Check out my NBC photo gallery from the event.

Rivals Joy Behar, Bill O'Reilly Pal Around at White House Christmas Party

Co-hosts of 'The View' Barbara Walters and Joy Behar

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER
'Tis the season to bury the hatchet.

"The View" co-host Joy Behar said she and outspoken pundit Bill O'Reilly came face to face at President Obama's Christmas party at the White House last week and were able to move beyond their bitter back-and-forth stemming from O'Reilly's remarks about 9/11 that caused the daytime talk show host to walk off the set of her ABC show in October.

"I took a picture with him and I even gave him bunny ears," Behar said Sunday night during an appearance at the 92nd Street Y. "Let bygones be bygones."

During the Christmas party, she also lobbied Michelle Obama to get the commander in chief to make a cameo on the show.

"I said, 'Listen, he was on a show called 'Myth Busters' last week and now he needs to come on my show,'" Behar quipped. "She told me, 'I'll see what I can do.'"

Behar, 68, is best known for sitting alongside Barbara Walters, Whoopi Goldberg, Sherri Shepherd, and Elisabeth Hasselbeck as co-host on the daytime talk show "The View," a group she calls a "big family." She and Goldberg both walked off the set after the Fox News host said, "Muslims killed us on 9/11." The incident led to both sides trading barbs in the weeks to follow.

"Barbara didn't like it, but I did it anyway," Behar said of her walk out. "It was a complete impulse in a moment of rage."

She added: "They're my family and that's one of the reasons I'll never leave. It's fun mostly. I don't feel stressed about that job."

Aside from doing "The View," Behar started her own celebrity and news commentary show on CNN called "The Joy Behar Show." She says that if she could have any guest on her show, dead or alive, she would pick Jackie Kennedy.

"I probably could never get her on the show though," Behar said. "But Barbara could get her. You know her... she's relentless."

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

"30 Rock" Star Judah Friedlander: Tina Fey Is Always "Several Steps Ahead"

Judah Friedlander refers to himself as "the world champion."

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER
Judah Friedlander, who is best known for his role as Frank on the hit NBC series "30 Rock," revealed over the weekend that his favorite part of working on the show is interacting with the other actors and writers -- especially Tina Fey.

"Tina is great, and she she's so smart," Friedlander told Niteside. "She's such a clever writer and is always thinking several steps ahead. It's so nice to work on a project like '30 Rock' where they've thought ahead on just about everything."

Alec Baldwin is also someone Friedlander said he enjoys working with on the show, especially when they joke around on set.

"He's so much fun to hang out with and goof around with on the set," Friedlander said. "He's got great energy and great charisma and when you get to work with him, he brings out the best in you."

Friedlander, who did two stand-up comedy shows at Comix in the Meatpacking District Saturday night, also said that he personally designs all of the iconic trucker hats his character wears on the show.

"Some are jokes I've thought out in advance, others are jokes I've thought of last second and some are inspired by what's going on within the script," Friedlander said. "One to three times per season, [the writers] will write the hat and work it into the storyline and do some jokes with it, but pretty much it's me doing all of these."

He added, "I always try to make it add to the show and not to distract from it."

Friedlander recently released the book "How to Beat Up Anybody," which teaches readers how to fight foes such as ninjas and Bigfoot and even your very own shadow.

He often refers to himself as "The World Champion" and said he has an "extra dark black belt" in karate.

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

Victoria's Secret Model Selita Ebanks Scores New BET Show

The kind and glamourous Selita Ebanks.

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER
Victoria Secret fashion model Selita Ebanks revealed to Niteside recently what she has in store for the future.

"I'll be hosting a fashion show on BET," Ebanks said at a holiday benefit in Manhattan, where celebrities helped wrap over 2,000 toys for younger foster children.

Ebanks was mum on any further details of the show, but did share news of a book on female empowerment she is working on, which is due out next year.

"The book is real personal," Ebanks said. "It's little antidotes and things I've learned. It's not just about modeling. It's about being successful as a young woman."

This is Ebanks' seventh year as a Victoria's Secret Angel and she said she was "stoked" to watch the annual fashion show with her "Angel family."

While one of her favorite perks of modeling for Victoria's Secret is the free underwear, she says that being able to learn from the pros makes her job ideal.

"I have had the opportunity to work alongside Gisele [Bundchen] and Tyra [Banks]," Ebanks said. "I've worked with some of the most beautiful women in the world and they've taught me a lot. They're all my heroes."

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

Singer Jay Sean: I Am Prepared to Face My Digital Death

Singer Jay Sean faces a social media death.

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER

Singer Jay Sean detailed his plans to stage his death on social media last night. 

"I'm officially dying on social media," Sean told Niteside before performing at the New Yorkers for Children's 8th annual "Wrap to Rap" holiday gift-wrapping event at The Ainsworth in Manhattan Tuesday night.

"If we just tell them they're not allowed to get any tweets from us until they donate some money [to charity], we're not going to come back on Twitter."

Sean said that he and other celebs staging social media deaths -- Justin Timberlake, Lady Gaga, and Kim Kardashian, among them -- home that some of their combined 28 million Twitter followers will donate to the "Keep a Child Alive" charity, founded by Alicia Keys, who started this Digital Death Campaign. 

"I think it's an amazing tongue-and-cheek way to give everyone a nudge to do the right thing," Sean said.

Sean recently recorded the song "Every Part of Me" with British pop sensation Alesha Dixon, who he said he has wanted to work with for a long time.

"We have wanted to work together for ages," Sean said. "We got this smash of a song together and I'm super excited about it."

He also said they will be filming the music video for this song in New York City in about three weeks.

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.

Designer Zac Posen Reveals His Prediction for Fashion's Next Big Trend

Fashion designer Zac Posen.

Photo courtesy of Getty Images

By: BROOKE NIEMEYER

Designer Zac Posen revealed last night what he believes will be the next major fashion trend: homemade, vegetable-based dyes.

"I think people using their own dyes will become a trend," Posen told Niteside at the Wrap to Rap holiday gift-wrapping event at The Ainsworth in Manhattan Tuesday night. "I think people will find their own color and take cues from home decor, which is always interesting."

He added, "[Vegetable dyes] and other certain dyes are such a s trong influence on eco and these techniques are very useful and exciting."

Posen said he is currently working on his fall collection, finalizing patterns and fabrics. He said all the details aren't in place yet, but that he sees a definite theme among his pieces.

"I think there's a strong architectural and anatomical quality to them," Posen said. "We make clothing that always relates to the body and glamour and quality."

This story ran on NBCNewYork.com's NiteSide.