Saturday, March 23, 2024
EVENT UPDATE : INSPIRATION AWARDS FOR WOMEN... THE LANDMARK HOTEL LONDON.. FRIDAY MARCH 22ND 2024 ..
Joan made an appearance at The Inspiration Awards for Women last night where she was honoured with The Lifetime Achievement Award.. The event was held at The Landmark Hotel in Marleybone.
Wednesday, March 13, 2024
PRESS UPDATE : DAILY MAIL... MARCH 13TH 2024 ...
Joan & Percy with Tom Ford at Vanity Fair Party |
JOAN COLLINS: I'm an Oscars voter, but after an awards season of slim pickings, I have to ask: Why are so many new films dark and disturbing - whatever happened to glamour?..
From early January to mid-March, Hollywood turns all a-twitter. It’s awards season in La-La Land.
Covens of stylists fly in a selection of gowns for the ‘female actors’ (a term I still reject in favour of the gracious and feminine ‘actress’) and also for some of the more flamboyant ‘male actors’.
At the heels of the stylists come the make-up and hair experts, nail technicians and facialists. They arrive from New York, Paris and London and work feverishly to make their client the epitome of, if not glamour, then beauty and ‘trendiness’.
he most outrageously OTT outfits are fought over by certain starlets anxious to get their picture anywhere on the vast array of social media and internet platforms. Press reps are no longer obligatory in Hollywood, unless you want to grab an interview on the equally vast array of talk shows that proliferate on the airwaves. The performer is perfectly able to do well with a catchy appearance on Instagram or TikTok.
Things have changed so much in Hollywood since the advent of the web and social media. Audiences no longer flock to the cinemas, as they can easily see movies on their devices a few weeks later.
Consequently, the quality of the new films, in terms of pure entertainment value, has dropped and what is now offered are overly dark, disturbing, angst-driven movies with convoluted plots and quite ordinary-looking performers.
The pickings have been slim at this year’s awards season and I’m finding it hard to love any of them. There are some fine actors giving excellent performances — sadly in below-par features.
We arrived in LA the day before the first big awards show, the Golden Globes, which we watched on TV. Many gongs are bestowed for both TV and film.
It’s usually lots of fun as it’s held at the Beverly Hilton hotel and the booze flows freely. But, as usual, the tone of the evening is set by the host, and this year . . . oh dear, where did they find Mr Jo Koy, a so-called comedian of the ‘new wave’ (i.e. ‘woke’)?
He was about as funny as Sir Keir Starmer at Prime Minister’s Questions. Even the liberal audience groaned at the awfulness of his endless opening monologue. I longed for Bob Hope or Johnny Carson or even, ha ha, George Hamilton and me, who hosted in the 1980s. Come back, Ricky Gervais, all is forgiven!
Joan presenting at The Emmys with Taraji P Henson |
The next major event, which was rescheduled from its usual September slot due to the SAG-AFTRA (entertainment industry union) strikes, was the Emmys, which is for TV shows only. There are dozens of categories, so it usually runs for three hours or more.
This year, I was asked to present the award for Outstanding Limited or Anthology Series along with Taraji P. Henson, star of Empire.
In contrast to the Golden Globes, we were seated at a theatre, much like the Oscars. We could barely get a bottle of water — hence the backstage green room where drinks were available was quickly packed.
Taraji and I walked arm in arm on to the stage to the strains of the Dynasty theme.
To my amazement, the entire audience, which contained some very recognisable faces such as Jennifer Coolidge, Jeff Bridges, Jessica Chastain, Michael Shannon and Kieran Culkin, rose to its feet in a standing ovation!
‘What’s this?’ I muttered to my co-presenter.
‘They’re doing it for you, honey,’ said Taraji.
‘I think they like us,’ I whispered — shades of Sally Field.
‘No, it’s for you,’ she mouthed. Utter grace. Talk about ‘roar of the greasepaint and the smell of the crowd’ — the ovation brought tears to my eyes.
Hollywood is a tough town with a short memory, and I haven’t done much work in the U.S. since American Horror Story in 2018.
Like a good drama, however, the evening was full of personal highs and lows and did not begin quite as auspiciously.
Our driver was not informed of the correct route to the theatre, and when we ended up in the bowels of a parking lot we knew we were in the wrong place.
After we had toured the entirety of downtown LA, we eventually screeched up to the red carpet with minutes to spare.
‘I’m sorry, the red carpet is closed,’ chirruped a bored, official-looking female barely out of high school.
Fortunately, the ‘handler’ assigned to me turned up at that very moment and brushed her aside.
I arrived to be greeted by an animated Billy Bush, cousin of George ‘W’, who was a popular host of U.S. entertainment programme Access Hollywood. He’s infamous for being fired after a hot mic picked up Donald Trump boasting to him in 2005 of grabbing women ‘by the p***y’.
He immediately informed me that he was looking for a new wife and would I be interested? My husband Percy was not amused.
I was then informed by the head honcho that I had to rush to my seat as the television broadcast was starting.
The Peacock Theatre in Los Angeles is a massive structure which easily holds thousands of people. One must cover miles before arriving at your destination which, in my case, happened to be the first row. In Jimmy Choos, this is not a mean feat.
After my ‘turn’ on the stage, I suggested we go to the post-show party early to avoid the crush. ‘Oh, we’ve told the driver exactly how to get there — you won’t have the same problems,’ the organiser informed me.
My heart sank when I saw Jeff Bridges and a line of stars getting into their cars ahead of me, even though the broadcast had not ended.
We toured downtown LA in its entirety for a second time before finally alighting and running to the entrance — only to be told by an ancient guard: ‘This is the exit.’
Another yomp ensued to the real entrance, in which we were accosted with the chilling refrain ‘Hey, aren’t you Joan Collins?’ A slightly unhinged fan wanting a ‘selfie’ was duly informed that we were in a rush to get to the party.
‘Oh, no problem — I’ll take you, so you avoid the crush at the entrance!’ He led us on a vertiginous path through closed ramps and dizzying stairways that led to a kitchen where puzzled waiters and cooks demanded: ‘Hey, aren’t you Joan Collins?’
The party was in full swing with literally thousands of people I didn’t know, but every second step I was approached for another ‘selfie’.
We decided on a hasty retreat and retraced our steps. We arrived, winded, back at the ancient guard’s station — the exit.
No sooner had I opened a bottle of the plentiful supply of water on hand when I heard ‘Hey, aren’t you Joan Collins?’ for the umpteenth time.
I resigned myself to turning around and trying to offer my most gracious smile. It was fortunate that I did. It was Ted Sarandos, the head of Netflix.
He was a most charming man (rare in a studio boss) and I recounted our trials and tribulations, whereupon he said, ‘Don’t you worry, that won’t happen at my party’, to which we had been invited.
True to his word, the doors opened as if I was the most cherished of beings, and I was escorted to a VIP area where we were fed and watered and we danced, to the most danceable hits of the 1970s and 1980s spun by the DJ. It ended up being a wonderful night.
The following week, the big Oscars and BAFTA contenders started to show up on the new streaming apps which we members of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences must use to judge the entries.
This is a cumbersome process. Percy has to tee the films up for me, but even he can’t control the endless pauses which randomly occur while watching a movie one had no desire to see in the first place. It’s all in the hands of wifi.
Something else I miss at Oscars time is the slim little book that voters used to receive every year. It contained a complete list of every eligible movie and named the entire cast.
It was easy to vote because you just filled in a form, as opposed to having to remember the title of a movie or an actor and scroll down endlessly on your device to find the entry you’re looking for.
Again, it’s Percy to the rescue, but I’m sure I’ve missed many fine performances because it’s so much more complicated and time-consuming.
I was impressed by Annette Bening, playing long-distance swimmer Diana Nyad in the film Nyad, but not so by Poor Things, which was the hot favourite in the Best Picture and Best Actress (sorry, female actor) stakes.
Bottom-lining the plot of the latter, Emma Stone becomes a hooker in a Victorian brothel and spends a lot of time gyrating nude with a variety of elderly or repulsive-looking men.
In Nyad, the most gyrating that happens is when jellyfish attack Bening. But I must admit that Emma Stone shone, even if the movie was endless.
I wondered if Emma had to be cajoled into doing this full-on nudity or if she did it voluntarily. I was reminded of when I was asked to go topless and I objected, but was persuaded by the argument that Jane Fonda and Glenda Jackson had done it.
Perhaps some young actress in the future who rebels against doing totally nude scenes will be told ‘Well, Emma Stone did it . . ’. It sets a precedent.
Joan with Blaine Trump at Clive Davis Grammy Party |
Then came the Grammys. We were invited to record producer Clive Davis’s pre-Grammy party at the Beverly Hilton. The same party which, in 2012, was rocked by the sudden death of Whitney Houston only hours before the start.
Many stars were in attendance, including Cher in a studded leather jacket who gave me a friendly ‘Hi!’.
Dionne Warwick saw me from her table and, most graciously, came over to chat.
The Grammys pays tribute to musical talent, and this year the line-up at this preview event featured some great acts from yesteryear, including Dionne and Gladys Knight. Tom Hanks gave a brilliant speech with his uniquely charming yet slightly sardonic delivery.
After the Grammys came the People’s Choice Awards, where Hollywood’s highest-paid actor Adam Sandler pretended to receive People Magazine’s Sexiest Man Alive award.
At the Screen Actors Guild Awards, many stars arrived in fancy dress which would not have been out of place at Jonathan Ross’s Halloween party.
The highlight for me was Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway and Emily Blunt stealing dialogue from their characters in The Devil Wears Prada to present an award — very funny.
At all of these awards shows, it was invariably Oppenheimer that won Best Picture and its star, Cillian Murphy, Best Actor.
Then, for light relief, came the Billboard Women in Music awards, at which busts and bare midriffs were much in evidence.
One woman on the ‘green’ carpet wore a black dress that bared a boob, which she covered coyly with her hand, presumably all evening. Boy, were her arms tired!
Joan attends the Chanel / Charles Finch Pre-Oscar Party |
One of the most coveted and exclusive invitations is the Chanel party thrown at the fabled Polo Lounge of the Beverly Hills hotel ahead of the Oscars.
Co-hosted by film producer Charles Finch, the party boasts dozens of heads of studios, producers, directors and a substantial smattering of stars.
We arrived on time at 7:30pm to see Oscar nominee Robert De Niro holding court at the bar. I loved watching all the players interact with each other as I sipped my cocktail. We chatted — partially in Italian, I might add — to Anjelica Huston’s brother Danny, and Matteo Garrone, the director of Best International Feature Film contender Io Capitano.
Then Elizabeth Chai Vasarhelyi and her husband Jimmy Chin, co-directors of Nyad (my favourite movie this year) asked to meet me and we formed a mutual admiration society, as I did with Alexander Payne, director of The Holdovers.
I was pleased to see Colman Domingo’s place card next to mine, as I admired his performances in Rustin and The Color Purple (not to mention his fashion sense).
Imagine my disappointment when executives of a major studio, tasked with getting him to commit to an upcoming role, changed the seating in order to flank him!
All’s well that ends well, as my dinner companion was the superbly knowledgeable Addison O’Dea, boyfriend of charming Minnie Driver.
Joan & Percy on Vanity Fair red carpet.. |
Next came the piece de resistance — the Vanity Fair Oscars viewing dinner party, held at the prestigious Wallis Annenberg Centre for the Performing Arts.
The U.S. daylight savings time change caused the event to begin an hour earlier, so it was still hot and sunny as we arrived at 3.30pm to do the usual rounds of interviews and photo calls.
We strolled down a winding corridor covered in red carpet which led into a cavernous, beautifully decorated room. An oval bar in the centre and a giant screen at one end, facing dozens of sofas and comfy armchairs, made it a viewers’ paradise.
We said ‘Hi’ to all the usual suspects — Jeff Goldblum in a gold shirt, Mad Men’s Jon Hamm dapper in a blue tux, and Sir Patrick Stewart with his vivacious wife, aptly named Sunny.
We watched half of the Oscars on a sofa then were called into an enormous dining room which seated 250 people on round tables and in booths covered in faux animal print.
I was delighted to have Tom Ford as my dinner partner, ever immaculate, while Percy, for the second time round, was sat next to a very animated Monica Lewinsky.
Over three-and-a-half hours, there were frankly no surprises — although I was happy that most of the technical awards went to fellow Brits!
After dinner we went out on to an enormous balcony and hung out with a make-up-less Pamela Anderson, accompanied by her son and an ebullient and always funny Isla Fisher.
We sat with Michael Douglas and said hello via FaceTime to Catherine Zeta-Jones, who had opted this year to stay at home (it was remarkable how many couples flew ‘solo’ this year.)
By the time it was 8:30pm I was exhausted and eager to leave, but we still had to wait 45 minutes for our car, which was stuck in the middle of a Palestinian flag-waving demo. Plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose as they say in La Belle France. Nothing ever changes — just like good ol’ Blighty.
Monday, March 11, 2024
EVENT UPDATE : VANITY FAIR OSCAR VIEWING PARTY... THE ANNENBERG CENTRE.. BEVERLY HILLS CALIFORNIA... MARCH 10TH 2024 ..
I love this super shot of Joan & Percy with Tom Ford relaxing at last nights Vanity Fair Oscar party held at The Anneberg Center...
Sunday, March 10, 2024
EVENT UPDATE : VANITY FAIR OSCAR PARTY .. THE WALLIS ANNENBERG CENTER ... BEVERLY HILLS ... MARCH 10TH 2024 ...
EVENT UPDATE : CHANEL & CHARLES FINCH PRE OSCAR DINNER ... THE POLO LOUNGE.. THE BEVERLY HILLS HOTEL.. MARCH 9TH 2024 ..
An event that Joan enjoys attending every Oscar season is Chanel and Charles Finch's Annual Pre-Oscar dinner held in The Polo Lounge of The Beverly Hills Hotel.. Also attending were Margot Robbie, Patrick Dempsey, Michael Keaton and Robert DeNiro..
EVENT ALERT : BRITISH CONSULATE GENERAL PRE-OSCAR PARTY .. BRITISH CONSULATE RESIDENCE .. LOS ANGELES.. MARCH 8TH 2024 ..
Wednesday, March 6, 2024
TV ALERT : THE RELUCTANT TRAVELER ... SEASON 2 EPISODE 3 .. MARCH 15TH 2024 ..
France: The Secrets of Saint-Tropez
Monday, February 19, 2024
EVENT UPDATE : BEHIND THE SHOULDER PADS BOOK EVENT .. ZIBBY'S BOOKSTORE SANTA MONICA .. FEBRUARY 17TH 2024 ..
Friday, February 9, 2024
EVENT ALERT ... THE HOLLYWOOD SHOW .. THE LOS ANGELES MARRIOTT BURBANK AIRPORT .. MARCH 2ND 2024 ...
Joan makes a welcome return to the very popular celebrity event The Hollywood Show in Los Angeles at The Los Angeles Marriott Burbank Airport on March 2nd from 11am till 5pm only.. You can book the show at the following link...
Sunday, February 4, 2024
EVENT UPDATE : CLIVE DAVIS PRE GRAMMY PARTY ... THE BEVERLY HILTON.. BEVERLY HILLS .. JANUARY 3RD 2024 ..
Joan & Blaine Trump |
Thursday, February 1, 2024
Wednesday, January 31, 2024
EVENT UPDATE : THE PRINCES TRUST USA LUNCHEON... THE MAYBOURNE BEVERLY HILLS... LOS ANGELES.. JANUARY 30TH 2024 ..
Joan with Victoria Gore, Pierce Brosnan, Margot McKinney, Nicholas Hoult, Jeremy Green & Stephen Fry |
As an Ambassador for The Prince's Trust Joan hosted a lunch for The Prince's Trust Los Angeles along with Pierce Brosnan at The Maybourne Hotel in Beverly Hills.. The event was in association with fine jeweller Margot McKinney..
Joan with Pierce Brosnan |
Monday, January 29, 2024
Wednesday, January 24, 2024
PRESS UPDATE : ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER ... JANUARY 24TH 2024 ..
Joan with friends Juliet Mills, Jane Seymour, Donna Mills, Stefanie Powers, Alana Stewart & Jerry Hall |
Joan Collins recalls dealing with
‘misogynist crap.’
But she’s living in the present.
The actress and author's latest memoir, 'Behind the Shoulder Pads: Tales I Tell My Friends,' revisits difficult times, including an abortion, while not dwelling on them.
When Joan Collins walked on stage at the Emmy Awards this month, she wasn’t sure at first why the star-studded audience was on its feet.
“I was quite surprised to get the standing O,” says Collins, who was there with actress Taraji P. Henson to present the Emmy for best limited series. “In fact, Taraji said, when we walked on, ‘Oh, this is for you.’
“I said, ‘No, it’s not,’” she says. “And she said, ‘Yes.’ And then I realized they were playing the ‘Dynasty’ theme. So you know I was very honored and happy. It’s been exciting.”
Joan & Percy at 75th Emmy Awards |
And why wouldn’t the Emmy audience cheer for Collins, whose career spans more than seven decades?
She’s a star unlike almost any other around today, and that old-school glamour – a bejeweled blue gown matched with baby blue satin gloves? Please! – and her radiant beauty had viewers gaga for Dame Joan during the ceremony and the following days.
“Did the #Emmys teleport the 80s Joan Collins because that woman has not changed at all,” one wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter.
“Ageless. Timeless. Gorgeous,” wrote another. “Joan Collins is that pop culture icon who never grows old.”
Last fall, Collins published her 19th book, another memoir, this one titled “Behind the Shoulder Pads: Tales I Tell My Friends.” We’d reached out to chat with her even before her Emmy appearance, and this week found her at home in Los Angeles, where she and her husband Percy Gibson spend time away from London each winter.
“We usually come out here for the first three months of the year because the weather in Europe is pretty bad,” Collins says on a stormy Monday. “But it’s exactly the same as this now.”
“Behind the Shoulder Pads” is an entertaining, eye-opening, funny and at times heartwarming story of an old-fashioned star with an eternally youthful spirit. Collins says her goal is to find the joy in life each day, even when life knocks you down.
“I don’t think there’s anything I’m ashamed of,” she says, speaking of the new book in particular, but her whole life in general. “I think I make fun of myself a lot of the time. I mean, when you get swept out to sea in a Chinese junk in the middle of a storm” – as she describes in one chapter – “I think that’s quite funny.
“I have a kind of mantra, which is that every day I want to achieve something, writing or whatever it is. I want to enjoy it, whether it’s just my first cup of coffee And I want to learn something.
“I try to do that every day, and I really try to live life as fully as possible.”
In an interview edited for length and clarity, Collins talked about her life in Hollywood, both good and bad, the misogyny and sexual harassment she experienced, a personal trauma she’s seldom discussed until now, and more.
Q: If these are ‘Tales I Tell My Friends,’ why did you decide to share them with strangers now?
A: The thing is, I’m always writing. In England, I write a lot for the Spectator. And for Harper’s Bazaar and the Daily Mail. And I write diaries. The one that came before this (‘My Unapologetic Diaries”) did very well. So my agent said, ‘Why don’t you try to do another book?’
I said, ‘I’ve written so many memoirs,’ and he said, ‘Well, why don’t you do a collection of these incidents and funny things that happened to you in your lifetime? Talk about when you arrived in Hollywood.’ I said, ‘But I’ve already done that’ – this is Collins’ 19th book in more than 40 years – ‘everybody knows that.’
He said, ‘Everybody doesn’t know that. Everybody doesn’t know what it was in this 1950s paradise. Write a book.’
And to be perfectly honest with you, it was a paradise. I try to express that in the book. My Alice in Wonderland, little girl, goggly-eyed, ‘Wow, this is like the movies that I really enjoyed.’ So I started writing.
Q: That period of Hollywood in the ’50s is one of the most glamorous times, and you capture that. But there’s also a dark side to that.
A: Oh my gosh, yes. I did go into the things that young women, in all professions, not just in the acting profession, are expected to put up with. The most misogynist crap from men who just expect the girls to take it. This happened a lot to me, first, in my first film in England when I was 17.
I put this story in the book. I went to an older actress, and I told her about it. And she said something like, ‘That’s what this is like. If you don’t like it, you better get out.’ So I found ways to deal with it. Mostly laughing at men. That’s the biggest killer of a man who’s got the hots. It really is.
I would love to see this end, you know. The kind of thing that happened to a lot of women, when it all came up, when the #MeToo movement started a few years back. I certainly sympathize with them.
Q: The misogyny that you describe in the book, with some very well-known studio bosses or even some of your fellow actors, is appalling.
A: But you know, I pushed it to the back of my mind. I didn’t dwell on it. That’s one of my instincts
Q: What were the joys of being a young woman from England in sunny Hollywood in the ’50s and early ’60s?
A: You just said it. I mean, every day the sun shined it seemed like. The studio took care of everything. They found me a car. They found me a financial advisor, who actually ended up ripping me off later, something that’s happened to me many times in my life. They told me what to wear. But I didn’t mind all that because I’d come from England and my father was reasonably strict.
I was at the studio every day, which I was plunged into immediately after I arrived. I did ‘The Virgin Queen’ with Bette Davis, and I did ‘The Girl on the Red Velvet Swing’ two months later. Then I was loaned to MGM for ‘The Opposite Sex.’
And of course, there was fun. I was dating. I was in my 20s; you date, you try out different men and relationships. And you have as much fun as possible. We would go out to dinner, go to nightclubs, go dancing. Go to each other’s houses and play charades and play poker, or learn some new dance step. It was a carefree time, which is what your 20s should be, I might add.
Q: One of the most intense chapters, and one that got a lot of coverage when the book came out, is when you write about having an abortion when you were engaged to Warren Beatty. Is this the first time you’ve talked about that openly?
A: I think so. I’d think about it but I never expressed how I felt at the time. And I’m sure a lot of people will think I’m a heartless bitch. But I was only 26 then. I was so innocent and green. You know, we didn’t know, young girls. I was very protected by my parents, so I was very young for my age.
And I realized – I did confide in some of my girlfriends – and they all said, ‘This is the end of your career,’ you know, which was burgeoning. Whatever you do, it’s a stigma. It’s never a stigma on the man, of course. I mean, look what happened to Ingrid Bergman. So I just went ahead with it.
And he (Beatty) was complicit, he was fine with it. Well, we were both nervous. But we did it. And I got over it. Two days later, I pushed it to the back of my mind, which is how, one of the reasons, I think, that I survived.
Q: Was it difficult to revisit for the book?
A: No, it wasn’t difficult. It was no more difficult than (writing of) fighting off a predatory man who would take you to your hotel room and try to rape you. I’m not pulling punches here. That happened. Several times. You know, you’re making me think about it now, and well, I did when I was writing it.
But after I did, I’m not going to dwell on it. You know the world is in a very sad place today, and I want to try to enjoy it.
Q: Let’s shift to something lighter. When and how did you realize that your role as Alexis Carrington on ‘Dynasty’ was going to be more than another TV job, but in fact, perhaps the one you’re most often remembered for?
A: I think I realized it when I was driving down Sunset Boulevard and a carful of young kids stuck their heads out the windows and said, ‘Alexis! Alexis!’ I said, ‘Oh, hi, how are you? Do you like me?’ And they said, ‘No! We hate you!’ And then they all laughed and said we love you.
It was gradual, but it happened quickly. I think the Daily Mirror in England had it on the front page, with a picture saying something about ‘Sophisticated Joan about to oust JR,’ which was Larry Hagman (in ‘Dallas’). It happened in the first six months or so. It was very flattering.
Q: I saw a picture of you when you were 17 in your first film. When you think back to that how big did you dream that your life would be? And would you tell her anything today?
A: I don’t think back to that girl. She was totally different to the way I am now. And I never had dreams of anything. That’s an American thing. We did not dream.
I remember thinking that, well, at the turn of the century I’ll be an old lady in a wheelchair with a cane. This was in the ’50s, and we’d talk about what was going to happen in 50 years, you know, the millennium. And I said that I might not even be alive.
I never thought really too much about having children or anything. (Collins has three. A daughter and son with her second husband, actor-singer Anthony Newley, and a daughter with her third husband businessman Ron Kass.) Because I lived in the present. I still do.
What is it they say? Yesterday … oh my God, it’s something like, ‘Tomorrow’s a mystery, yesterday’s history, but today is a gift. That’s why they call it the present.’ Something like that. And it is.
I live in the present.