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Friday, Jul 25
Two Concerts, Six Blocks and Seven Million Viewers*
The two spaces are very different. Plaza vs. park. Intimacy vs. atmosphere.
Click continued for the full morning rundown, from a stop in the control room and Miley's dressing room, Meredith Vieira's take on the morning and a look at what you don't see on GMA... *Estimate: The final ratings will be released Thursday.
And it wasn't just the kids who were psyched for the performance. A Today staffer handing out Summer Concert Series fans had to yell, "No pushing," to a large crowd of parents. And the parents and kids weren't the only ones getting...feisty. A still photographer, who was one of about 25 members of the press, got angry at a woman holding a large cardboard sign. "Tell her to put it down," the photographer said to the woman's child. "She won't do it," said the daughter. "I'm going to throw rocks at her," said the photographer. Meanwhile, signs of Miley devotion bordering on child abuse were on full display. One sign read: "I pulled my first all-nighter at age 6 for you, Miley." At one point we spied medics attending to two young girls who were about to pass out. But back to the fun. The voice of Al Roker got the crowd pumped up around 7:45amET, instructing everyone to yell, "Hiya, Joe," to director Joe Michaels. Because of the close proximity to the studio and control room, we were able to make our way into the building at NBC. Senior broadcast producer Don Nash (filling in for EP Jim Bell who was on vacation before heading off to Beijing next week) and the rest of the control room was preparing for the concert, while Meredith Vieira, was talking with her guests from the previous segment backstage. "What a freakin' crazy day," she told us when asked about the mob outside. Stopping in Cyrus' dressing room, we overheard "Shut up," and "Take one with my sister," while photographers snapped pictures and handlers milled about. Before hitting the stage, the megastar did some pre-show harmonizing with her backup singers. We ran into senior producer Melissa Lonner, who handles concerts and other celebrity-related segments. "The crowd has been amazing," she said. "It's a once in a lifetime experience. It's the only place to get up close to the artist, more than any other stage. It allows the audience to get to know them." Back outside, NBC Universal CEO Jeff Zucker, who brought his kids, reflected on some of the past concerts with big turnouts (including New Kids on the Block and Bruce Springsteen), saying, "Everyone brings a different audience."
When we arrived at Bryant Park at 8:45, the mood was somber from the GMA set/stage. Diane Sawyer had just delivered the sad news of the death of Randy Pausch whom she'd profiled this past April. Robin Roberts then introduced Feist's next song, "I Feel It All," and the crowd began cheering loudly. The fans were a mix of young and old, male and female, some in Feist shirts and some inexplicably wearing rainbow feathered headbands (see picture above). After Feist closed the set, we talked with Tom Kelly, the stand-up comedian who warms up the crowd, bids them goodbye and keeps them entertained between commercials. "It's a beautiful atmosphere," said Kelly, who also has done warm-up for The View. "We get the best crowds, it's outside on a great summer day. This is a dream." Email This Post |
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