Opening In NYC: Clinton, The Musical

Via press release:

If President William Jefferson Clinton behaved like two different people—one moment noble, the next naughty—that’s because he was! Clinton The Musical explores the two very different sides of the 42nd President of the United States: “WJ,” (Tom Galantich) the wholesome, intelligent one, and “Billy,” (Duke Lafoon) the randy, charming one. With Hillary (Rodham) Clinton (Kerry Butler) at their side, the two will handle issues from The White House to Whitewater, the sax to the sex, social security to social climbers, and in the process make history. Maybe. You cannot miss this “Hillary-ous” new musical and outrageous double Bill! The cast features Tony Award nominee Kerry Butler as Hillary (Rodham) Clinton, Tom Galantich (Tail! Spin!, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) as WJ Clinton and Duke Lafoon (MONICA! The Musical, A Wonderful Life) as Billy Clinton, Emmy Award winner Judy Gold as Eleanor Roosevelt, John Treacy Egan (Nice Work If You Can Get It, Sister Act) as Newt Gingrich, Veronica J. Kuehn (Mamma Mia!, Avenue Q) as Monica Lewinsky. 

Previews begin March 25th at New World Stages.

Bette Midler - Waterfalls

Via the Advocate:

Bette Midler is paying tribute to some of the greatest harmonies performed by girl groups in music history with her upcoming collection of covers It’s the Girls. The album, available November 4 from Warner Bros. records, features 15 classic tracks by legendary ladies including the Ronettes, the Supremes, TLC, and the Chiffons, among others.

TLC's critically-raved original spent seven week atop the Billboard pop singles chart in 1995. Bette includes their reference to HIV ("three letters took him to his final resting place"), but coupled with this rather funereal arrangement, that sort of doom somehow feels less fitting nearly 20 years later. She does sound as great as always.

Monica Lewinsky Joins Twitter

New Yorkers Line Up For Pop-Up Central Perk Cafe On Friends 20th Anniversary

This week marks the 20th anniversary of the premiere of Friends and at this writing hundreds are lined up in the West Village to enter a pop-up version of the show's Central Perk coffee house where they can sip from those "stupid big cups which, I'm sorry, might as well have nipples on them." Lots of Friends memorabilia is on hand including the original Central Perk couch, a box of Smelly Cat kitty litter, and the porn video Buffay The Vampire Layer. The only human memorabilia on site is Gunther. Poor Gunther.

#1 On This Day In 1990

Minneapolis!

The 1990s In Photos

Buzzfeed has 50 more.

#1 Twenty Years Ago Today

Neil Young probably never envisioned having a #1 dance chart hit, but two years after its initial 1990 UK release, America met a pre-Sarah Cracknell Saint Etienne via their cover.

#1 Twenty Years Ago This Month

One of the most clever melanges of pop sampling ever.

Ten Worst Songs Of The 1990s

According to Rolling Stone readers.

Not The Mama

Dinosaurs debuted 20 years ago today.

The sitcom lasted for four seasons and 65 episodes (58 episodes aired during the first run; the remaining aired in syndication) before ultimately ending with the extinction of dinosaurs. (Inevitable, we suppose.) While 'Dinosaurs' was a sitcom, the show broke the mold by not having a studio audience or a laugh track. Brought to life by a cast of experienced Henson puppeteers and seasoned voice actors, 'Dinosaurs' is heralded as one of the most ambitious sitcoms ever.

Talk about a guilty pleasure.

Sophie B. Hawkins To Headline GOProud/Breitbart Party At CPAC

Andrew Breitbart's promised "Super Gay 80s CPAC Party" for GOProud will actually be headlined by openly bisexual 90s two-hit wonder Sophie B. Hawkins. (Depeche Mode and New Order must have been unavailable.) Hawkins is best known for her 1992 hit Damn, I Wish I Was Your Lover, an appropriate metaphor for all that begging GOProud makes for Tea Party love. Via press release:

“The Big Party will celebrate GOProud and the growth of a conservative movement that is focused on getting the government out of people’s lives,” said Jimmy LaSalvia, Executive Director of GOProud. “We are thrilled to have Andrew Breitbart join us in putting together what will be the party of the CPAC weekend.” “This party will highlight the story the main stream media has missed in the weeks leading up to CPAC, namely that the vast majority of the conservative movement is united and welcomes GOProud and any other conservative into the fold,” said Andrew Breitbart, a member of GOProud’s Advisory Council. “The truth is that it is liberals in America who are bent on dividing people, on forcing people into ideological boxes based merely on their race, religion, sex or sexual orientation.”

Adding to the oddity of Hawkins' CPAC selection is that she was an ardent supporter of Hillary Clinton, even to the point of rerecording her above-cited trademark hit in support of Clinton's 2008 presidential bid.

Pitchfork's Top 20 Singles Of The '90s

The Stranger points us to Pitchfork Magazine's top 20 tracks of the 1990's. The only entry I'd agree with is Mazzy Star, but then again I've never even heard of half of this list. The full Top 200 list and Pitchfork's reasoning on each can be found here.

Flashback: David Mixner And Bill Clinton On DADT & DOMA

(Via - JMG reader Noah)