Pop Culture

She was the person, arguably, most associated with the Disco era. Donna Summer, known as the Queen of Disco, died today after battling cancer. She was 63.

A five-time Grammy Award winner, Summer had a string of hits including, Hot Stuff, Bad Girls, On the Radio, and No More Tears with Barbra Streisand. In the 1980s, Summer kept the music playing with She Works Hard for the Money and Unconditional Love, featuring Musical Youth.

WCBS-FM jock Joe Causi has been playing her tracks for years, dating back to his days at Disco 92/WKTU.

“[I'm] still in shock over the passing of Donna Summer,” Causi tells FishbowlNY. ”She was a ‘major’ part of my passion for dance music in the clubs and on the radio. Her music was magical, constantly reinventing herself with every album of music she has given us.”

Summer notched her first number one single in the U.S. with MacArthur Park in 1978. That same year, she got a starring role in the Disco flick Thank God It’s Friday, where she sang her signature, Last Dance.

“Artists like Madonna, Lady Gaga, and other pop superstars should pause for a moment and recollect on the originator,” Causi says.

Summer is survived by her husband, Brooklyn Dreams singer Bruce Sudano, three daughters, and four grandchildren.

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There was Julie, Kevin, Heather B., Norman, Andre, Becky and Eric, just seven strangers picked to live in a house and have their lives taped to find out what happens when people… You know the rest.

The Real World might be a household name now, but back in 1992, MTV wasn’t that enthusiastic about the concept. In fact, the show’s creator and executive producer says nobody in TV was.

“The people who were in charge of the networks had all come out of scripted television, and they just didn’t get it. They just didn’t understand it,” explained Jonathan Murray, founder of Bunim-Murray Productions, in mediabistro.com’s So What Do You Do? interview. “We would go to various places and people would ask us, ‘So basically what you do is all improv, right? You bring everyone together and you improv the shows? You have a script and you improv?’ There was just no understanding of how we did this.”

The man behind other hits like Road Rules, Bad Girls Club and Project Runway also gave tips on getting a job in reality TV and whether Kim Kardashian‘s 72-hour marriage was really a sham. ”Kim did not seek us out as to who she should marry, nor should she, ” he said.

Read the full interview.

They come from all walks of life. They are actors, musicians, world leaders, and sports figures–and that just scratches the surface. Time Magazine held its annual 100 Most Influential People in the World gala last night at the Time Warner Center at Columbus Circle.

While more than half of the honorees were unable to attend, there was still no shortage of stars lighting the red carpet.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was on the guest list, and although she failed to take the stroll, a Homeland Security officer complete with a sniffing dog canvassed the confines.

Pres. Barack Obama was chosen in the magazine’s Leaders category, along with the presumptive Republican nominee, Mitt Rommey. Both were, not surprisingly, no shows. Romney was winning primaries in the Northeast, while Obama was appearing on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” from North Carolina.

NBC’s Matt Lauer was listed among a group of Icons. Lauer recently signed a contract extension with the Today show at a reported $25 million per year.

FishbowlNY chatted with “Today” show third hour co-host Savannah Guthrie who praised her friend and colleague.

More video clips from the red carpet after the jump…

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Dick Clark, who launched American Bandstand, and decades later gave millions a New Year’s Eve alternative, died today of a massive heart attack in California at age 82. The man long considered an influential figure in the world of broadcasting and rock music, was nicknamed “America’s Oldest Teenager” for his perpetual and youthful, good looks.

Clark suffered a stroke in 2004 causing partial paralysis. His speech was also affected as noticed each year since in his New Year’s Rockin’ Eve broadcast from Times Square. In 2005, he was joined by American Idol host Ryan Seacrest, who did the heavy lifting.

Clark was a standout talent behind the camera as well. He was the chairman and chief executive of the production company that bears his name.

“He was the absolute best,” Norm N. Nite, former WCBS-FM air personality, tells FishbowlNY. “Nobody did it better than Dick Clark. What can you say about a guy you know for 40 years?”

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Isn’t it nice to know that even someone like James Lipton struggled to pay his bills while living in our fair city? Makes you feel good about spending a small salary to live in your own tiny apartment, no?

In mediabistro.com’s latest So What Do You  Do? interview, the host of Inside the Actor’s Studio talked about why he ditched law school for acting and studying under greats like Stella Adler and Harold Clurman of New York’s legendary Group Theatre.

“When I moved out to New York, I was going to go to continue my education in the law. That was always the intention; I was going to be a lawyer. But I had to work as well, you see, and so I looked around me and I saw that the [acting] track was pretty fast. And I thought that if I was going to work in New York as an actor I should study some of that at least. Otherwise, I’d be unemployed and I’d starve to death and terrible things would happen.”

Of course, we all know now that that didn’t happen.  Find out which ensemble cast will kick off Inside‘s 18th season and the legendary actor who refused to appear on the show in So What Do You  Do, James Lipton?

It’s been six weeks since America and the world lost one of its favorite singers–Whitney Houston. But it was a whole different loss for Cissy Houston, Whitney’s mother, and now she’s breaking her silence by giving WWOR/Channel 9 an exclusive interview.

Anchor Brenda Blackmon sat down with Houston Thursday evening at the New Hope Baptist Church in Newark where Whitney sang in the choir as a child, and others sang at her funeral. The interview airs tonight on the Ten O’Clock News.

And in that interview, Houston came out swinging when asked how the media handled coverage of her daughter’s death.

“The media is awful…they think they know everything…these people don’t know anything about her…the media doesn’t know what they are talking about…” She added, “They really chopped on her.”

Cissy Houston had a much different feeling when discussing Whitney.

“I’m very proud of my daughter. She accomplished a whole lot in the short time that she had here… she was a very wonderful person.”

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Although the entertainment and gossip site Young, Black and Fabulous is reeling in 15 million hits a month, it had its humble start as a simple site on Blogger.

Back in 2005, Natasha Eubanks noticed major online outlets weren’t discussing African-American celebrities, so the former law student decided to take matters into her own hands and launch her own site.

“I didn’t make a penny off of anything because I didn’t have any readers. I didn’t see any money until two years, and I only saw a few dollars even then,” the blogstress said in mediabistro.com’s So What Do You Do?. ”But I saw [Google AdSense], and I think that kind of sparked it in me. I was like, wait a minute. There’s an ad platform? What does that mean? You can make money just by writing what you think? That’s insanity.”

For more on how The YBF became the go-t0 source for Black Hollywood gossip, and Eubank’s personal advice for aspiring bloggers, read the full interview here.

Here’s a look at what FishbowlNY stories made the most buzz this week.

1. NY1′s Pat Kiernan (left) Auditions for Dream Job, Co-Hosting Live, March 6
2. Sue Simmons Out at WNBC After More Than Three Decades, March 7
3. Nick Cannon, Former NOW Morning Host, Battling Autoimmune Disease, March 5
4. O, The Oprah Magazine Has No Love for Stedman, March 8
5. WNYW’s Julie Chang Handicaps American Idol, March 7
6. Veteran Sports Anchor Len Berman Resurfaces at Channel 5, March 2

Keep up-to-date with the latest FishbowlNY news. Click here to sign-up for the FishbowlNY daily newsletter, bringing you our articles each afternoon directly to your inbox.



Whether showing that turbans can be chic or sending the paps into a tizzy just by entering Jay-Z and Beyonce‘s TriBeCa crib, June Ambrose often has the fashion world falling at her feet. And she single-handedly upgraded hip-hop’s street corner image with her innovative approach to music videos. (See this and this.)

In our Media Beat interview, Ambrose explained how she tapped into her West Indian roots for one of her most iconic looks: those shiny suits donned by Diddy and Mase in Notorious B.I.G‘s posthumous “Mo’ Money, Mo’ Problems” clip.

“I showed [Diddy] the red metallic and he said, ‘I am not wearing that.’ I had to make one red leather outfit and one metallic leather outfit and… I won!” the star of VH1′s Styled by June said.

“You have to go into this business very fearless, and you have to have integrity for what you do… I said to him, ‘You have to just trust me. I know that sounds wild, but I put my career on this moment. I’m telling you it will make a huge difference.’ Once he saw the first take and he looked at playback, he looked at me and said ‘okay.’ And that was the beginning of not only a great working relationship, but a great friendship.”

Part 2:June Ambrose on Her New VH1 Show, Styled by June
Part 3: June Ambrose on How to Become a Fashion Stylist
Bonus! June Ambrose on Her Trademark Turban

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We sat down with celebrity stylist June Ambrose for Media Beat recently to talk about her work as a celebrity stylist, how other fashionistas can break into the biz, and what to expect from her upcoming VH1 show, Styled By June.

The full interview airs Monday, March 5, but here’s a bonus clip where Ambrose tells how she came up with her trademark turban.

“People would tweet and say, ‘Oh, black women can’t pull off a turban. They end up looking like mammy dolls.’ Oh really?” Ambrose said. “I’ll show you how it’s done.”

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Watch the full interview with June Ambrose:
Part 1:June Ambrose on Styling Diddy, Jay-Z and Hip-Hop’s Most Iconic Videos
Part 2: June Ambrose on Her New VH1 Show, Styled by June
Part 3: June Ambrose on How to Become a Fashion Stylist