NEW YORK – Rodney Dangerfield (search) talks old late-night, Fantasia's tears of joy and Gwyneth as Marlene Dietrich in today's Foxlight.
Rodney Dangerfield's new book confirms he's been on "The Tonight Show" 70 times. Johnny Carson loved him. And stood -- or should I say sat -- by him for years. But all those appearances on the old Dean Martin show? Dangerfield says even though Dean looks like he was sitting next to him, early TV special effects allowed him to do his act to an empty chair while Dean-o was thousands of miles away. No respect, indeed.
"American Idol" winner Fantasia Barrino (search) says she was crying from the moment she won until she got home and watched one movie that stopped the tears. Was it "A Star Is Born?" Nope, only a comedy could stop the tears. The movie? She told Fox News it was "Shrek." But here's the real question for her: Is she going to change Fantasia to a more show-business sounding name? OK, I'm kidding, but about this I'm deadly serious -- will Disney be able to monitor her use of the name "Fantasia"?
Finally, Gwyneth Paltrow (search) wants to be Marlene Dietrich. She's going to produce and star as the German screen siren. Is she sexy enough to be Dietrich? Hmmmm. Hope this bio-pic is a little more commercial than her last real-life portrayal, of Sylvia Plath.
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