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Yesterday: Laurie Beechman Sings “Tomorrow” On Merv Griffin

I was a fan of the fabulous Laurie Beechman the first time I heard her featured vocal in the song “NYC” on the original cast recording of Annie. She played the “Star To Be” and sings the chorus at the key change in the song. As a teenager drawn to Broadway at a very young age, I think I played the song ten times in a row. I couldn’t get enough.

As most folks know, Laurie went on to create the role of the “Narrator” in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat on Broadway, and starred in Les Miserables (“Fantine”) and CATS (“Grizabella”).

My hubby Michael worked as her publicist for her two solo albums of Broadway songs back in the 90s, and was instrumental in her singing at the closing of President Clinton’s second inaugural where she brought down the house with her version of “You’ll Never Walk Alone.”

When I was performing in the Broadway revival of Hello, Dolly!, Laurie made a point to come and find me (collecting money for Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS) in the lobby of our theater. I went total “fan-boy”  as she approached me saying, “You’re Randy?” and I almost screamed “And you’re LAURIE BEECHMAN!” I calmed down a moment later and composed myself 🙂

Sadly, we lost Laurie way too early due to her battle with cancer. But she fought the good fight. Hard. So strenuously, in fact, that she returned to the Broadway cast of CATS even towards the end of her time with us.

I’ve never seen this clip before. It was recently posted on Facebook by Laurie’s nephew.

Although she didn’t sing “Tomorrow” in Annie, she sings the hell of out it here. The word “thrilling” doesn’t even begin to capture the magic her voice commanded.

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1st Video: Laurie Beechman sings Tomorrow.
Tonight I am sharing a project many years in the making. My Aunt Laurie Beechman remains in my memory as a majestic and vibrant singer. I loved her first as my Aunt Laurie, and in the summers I spent weeks with her and her husband, my Uncle Neil who built all the sets with his company Hudson Scenic. In the summer of 1996, after we got home from a day in the city, we listened to a message on the answering machine. It was the Broadway producer of Cats, asking her to come back and join the show, despite her cancer. She had given up on this call, because even with her health improving, Broadway had never cast anyone unless totally healthy and in perfect shape. Well, she bucked that trend. Why? Well, because she was the most incredible talent in the world. Here she is in 1982, the year she stared in Joseph.
Posted by Reid J. Cohen on Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Laurie’s nephew also posted this performance from the same appearance on Merv Griffin of Laurie singing from her Tony Award nominated performance in JOSEPH…

It’s all fantastic, but check that moment at the 2:50 mark.

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Untitled
This is the same night in 1982- This time Laurie Beechman sings “Pharaoh’s Song” to promote Andrew Loyd Webber’s Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat. Laurie was nominated for the Tony- Best Female Lead in a Musical.
Posted by Reid J. Cohen on Wednesday, February 10, 2016

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If Facebook ‘Likes’ Were Votes, Who Would Be Winning Presidential Primary?

The stats geniuses at FiveThirtyEight have published an interactive map showing which presidential primary candidates have the most Facebook likes in each county in the U.S.

From FiveThirtyEight:

If Facebook likes were votes, Bernie Sanders would be on pace to beat Hillary Clinton nationwide by a nearly 3-to-1 margin and Donald Trump to garner more support than Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio combined. Anything seems possible this year, but, still, be careful how you interpret these numbers: Facebook likes are not votes.

According to the Pew Research Center, 58 percent of American adults use Facebook. But this share is not a representative sample of the country — Facebook users are disproportionately young (although not as young as users of other social media networks), low-income and female. And the sample may be even more skewed because only some people on Facebook have liked a presidential candidate’s page and because those pages haven’t existed for the same amount of time.

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Out Music: Kenyth Mogan “It Was Love”

This Valentine’s Day finds out singer/songwriter Kenyth Mogan in a wistful mood with his new single, “It Was Love.”

Mogan talks on the inspiration for the song:

“It Was Love” is a very personal song for me.

I wrote the lyrics after finding a photo of me and my first boyfriend in high school. He passed a few years ago, and without even realizing it, all these memories and emotions came rushing back that I had to sit down and write. The lyrics just kind of poured out.

So much happens the first time you fall in love. Everything is new and exciting and in those moments, it’s perfect. But, things change and people grow apart, regardless of the promises we made. It’s no one’s fault. It just happens. I think a lot of people can relate too.

I previously wrote about Mogan last February when he shared his take on The Wizard of Oz and a Tin Man who couldn’t see love right in front of him.

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News Round-Up: February 12, 2016

Some news stories you may have missed:

• Aydian Dowling becomes first  transgender man to cover GT Magazine.

• Anti-gay Pastor David James Manning says he will barricade himself inside his church (with children) before he’ll allow the building to be auctioned off, despite owing over $1 million in back taxes/utilities.

• Remember when Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton told local officials they could simply refuse to follow the SCOTUS ruling on marriage equality? That move might have landed him in an ethics investigation.

•”Pharma Bro” Martin Shkreli owes over $4.6 million in back taxes. What a surprise (said no one…)

• GOP White House hopeful Sen. Ted Cruz says he will be a president for “everybody,” including atheists. How nice to articulate that…

• The Virginia state Senate has approved legislation that would allow government employees to refuse to conduct same-sex marriages.

• Sen. Ted Cruz parodies cult classic “Office Space” in over-the-top attack ad against Hillary Clinton (below).

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Dallas Morning News Endorses Hillary Clinton

The Dallas Morning News has endorsed former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the Texas Democratic primary:

Democrats should vote for her March 1. She’s a better choice than another long-shot liberal senator, her surging rival Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont.

A better choice not because he’s too liberal to win in November, though he is. She’s better because over her lifetime, Clinton has learned to temper her idealism without losing it.

She’s learned to advance her agenda even when it means letting others advance too. She’s cultivated allies.

Read the rest of the editorial here.

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President Obama To Ellen: “I’m So Proud Of You”

Stopping by ELLEN this afternoon, President Obama and Ellen DeGeneres talked on the evolution of LGBT rights, with the Queen of Talk becoming emotional about the President’s support.

Said DeGeneres, “I cannot tell you, or thank you enough, for what you’ve done for the gay community. So, thank you.”

President Obama responded in kind:

“It’s one of the things I’m proudest of because my whole political career has been based on the idea that we constantly want to include people and not exclude them. How do we bring more and more people into opportunity and success and feeling hopeful about their lives?”

“I will say, we were driving over here today — and I meant this. I said it to my staff — I said, as much as we’ve done with laws and ending ‘don’t ask, don’t tell,’ etc.. changing hearts and minds — I don’t think anybody has been more influential than you on that. I really mean that.

“You being willing to claim who you were – that suddenly empowers other people. And then suddenly, it’s your brother, it’s your uncle, it’s your best friend, it’s your coworkers. And then attitudes shift. And the law is followed, but it started with folks like you. I’m so proud of you.”

A photo posted by Pete Souza (@petesouza) on Feb 12, 2016 at 11:39am PST

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New Polling Indicates Tied Race Between Hillary Clinton And Bernie Sanders In Nevada

After a dearth of polling in Nevada,  a new poll taken of Democratic Nevada caucus-goers shows Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders in a tight race – 45%-45% – ahead of the February 20th caucuses.

However, it should be noted the survey was paid for by the very conservative Free Beacon; and some of the questions were clearly framed as “anti-Hillary” in nature, such a:

• Recently several news organizations have reported that the FBI could indict Hillary Clinton over her handling of her email server. How concerned are you that she could actually face such an indictment?

• Hillary Clinton supported the Wall Street bailout and big banks have given her over $1.6 million dollars in campaign contributions and speaking fees. Does this make you more or less likely to support her?

You see where this is going, right? So, I’d take the results with a grain of salt.

The poll was conducted by TargetPoint of 1,236 potential Nevada caucusgoers from Feb. 8-10, with a margin of error just under 3 percent.

See the results of the poll below.

(h/t Ralston Reports)

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Ryan Reynolds Covers PEOPLE Magazine As “Sexiest Dad Alive”

People Magazine names Ryan Reynolds “Sexiest Dad Alive!” as he extols his happiness with wife Blake Lively and their little girl, James.

Speaking to SiriusXM EW Radio, the Deadpool star said that he “can’t get enough” of having a daughter.

“If I could have nine daughters, I would be thrilled,” Reynolds said on Wednesday. “Really, like I genuinely would be.”

I’d be happy with just one Ryan Reynolds 🙂