The Accolades:
After decades of dissings, then surprised condescension at her success in the 1980s, then the
1990s of affected interest with the turn into occasional accolades and credit,
the excitement of this round’s interviewers is palpable. I’m chalking it up to
the inarguable facts of her career piling up and The Cher Show kids finally finding their asses in interviewing seats.
It’s truly extra-ordinary and Cher is responding with
her grown-up voice and is downright verbose in her responses.
One of my favorite pile-ups of accolades was from SoSoGay,
“Before Beyonce,
before Gaga. Before Rhianna and before Katy. Before Britney, Christina, Cyndi
and Celine. Before Whitney and Mariah, and before Madonna. Before colour
television, before the Vietnam War, before man walked on the moon. Before the
decimalized pound. Before everything, before time immemorial…There was Cher….this shimmering vestibule of unrelenting
fabulousness….her sparkling tsunami.”
Ed Brody, the author, tells me Burlesque was amazing and to get over myself. I laughed at that. I wish I could. But that’s the cross a scholar bears.
Here’s more overview of the love:
- A Cher fan said
she was coolest person ever since he can remember (Watch What Happens/Andy Cohen)
- Andy Cohen said as a kid he watched The Cher Show and “when she came down the
ramp, life, hope, goose bumps, gave me fairy dust, inspiration” came too. He said Cher
was putting to bed all the kids in America. (Watch What Happens/Andy Cohen)
- Anderson Cooper said he grew up adoring Cher—and
his mom (Gloria Vanderbilt) said Cher was her
fantasy daughter. Kelly Ripa is also a fan. One caller said he had to get high
to talk to Cher (Watch What Happens/Andy Cohen)
- Dan Taylor called her the female artist of rock
and roll, the iconic lady (WCBS).
- On Sirius/XM radio’s Studio54 channel, the hosts Marc Benecke and Myra Scheer were very
excited. (I just got a new car so have free XM for 3 months or something–whohoo!). In
their intro, they played “The Shoop Shoop Song,” “Believe,” Turn Back Time,” and
“Woman’s World” clips. On the Town Hall interview with Cher,
(the inaugural), Myra noted that she was Steve Rubell’s executive assistant at Studio 54 in New York City.
They called her major star, a guiding star, a role model with 250 world-wide
awards in music, TV and film, including a Golden Globe, an Oscar, an Emmy, a Grammy,
and a hit song in every decade “since 1910” Cher joked. At the first break,
they played “Take Me Home” (and noted the song was on the Studio 54 album). The next
break “Turn Back Time.” The next break “I Found Someone” (and here a salamander
crawled up our faux-bedrock wall and stopped to listen). The next break “Believe,” “Strong
Enough” next and during the final break “Women’s World.” Many of New York’s straight men asked questions
during this interview and I love how straight men in NYC love her. You don’t see this so much in LA and the Midwest.
Candidness: Cher seemed so much less guarded in her face, body, and with her words.
- The New
York Times said what they used to say about her in the 1980s, “In this age
of rigidly controlled star-bots, no topic seemed to be off-limits (except her
relationship status).”
- She appeared on The Today Show with Savannah Guthrie, (perky like Katie
Couric) and was so nice and comfortable in her PJs. After the interview,
Guthrie gushed about Cher to her co-anchors, calling Cher
an unassuming charmer. I was impressed how easily Guthrie could kid with her.
- On Z100, the DJ played “Does Cher Care” asking Cher irreverent questions about Paula Dean (Cher feels she’s not
misunderstood, just wrong), Sandra Bullock’s new movie trailer: is it
overexposed, will it be good? Is Cher even interested (Cher said it looks
cool), about the never-ending cupcake craze (Cher said it sucked to begin with and
prefers Hostess cupcakes), should Snowden be punished or kicked out of China/Russia?
(Cher said this was above her pay grade).
- Andy Cohen launched CherMaggedon with a plethora
of games, including Truth or Cher—the Truth
question being who her greatest lovers were (She said they’d all been
exceptional. Andy said “That’s a list!” and she answered, “Not a long list but a
good list.” He got her to admit Tom Cruise in the top 5 when prompted). In the
Dare, Andy Cohen quoted Moonstruck
and asked Cher to slap him while saying “Snap
out of it.” In another segment Gypsies Tramps and Tea, Andy Cohen asked for
Cher’s opinion on: Elvis (didn’t know him), Whitney (didn’t know her), Nick
Cage (he’s crazy but I love him), Meryl (my idol), Phil Spector (he’s crazy and
only paid me $25 for a year’s work), Michael Jackson (I have TMI!), Tom Cruise (He wasn’t
a scientologist then and they were hot and heavy for a minute), ever having a lesbian lover?
(who hasn’t). She said she stole a horse when I was 13 and took it to Santa Ana. If she could
meet anyone? She’d ask Jesus “Dude, what’s the deal?” Her favorite decade was the
80s (so much fun, could go naked swimming). On her bucket list? (I thought she said to build
Balobgese house but is that right??). Her best movie role was Moonstruck.
Does she have a boyfriend? (The moment anyone knows, you don’t have one; so she
keeps that on the low down now—that’s a great answer actually). For the Jackal of the Night: Cher picked Senator Ted Cruise because he’s an a-hole who
doesn’t like gays or foreigners. According to Andy, the show said “Cher” 29 times – which was a record.
- During Andy Cohen’s Aftershow, he asked her what
sent she would use for a scented candle (Uninhibited); she says she watches
CNN/MSNBC. Anderson Cooper made a surprise appearance and said Cher calls in all the time to help people but low key (that she did so
with Hurricane Katrina). They asked her about the Supreme Court decision on gay
marriage (about time, she said) and they tried to play Kiss, Marry, Shag with
her (with Quaid who she’d say she’d marry and Nicholson & Cage but she
never finished the list.) They ran a Hair Chertrospective at the end.
Cher was great fun through all these shenanigans.
The New Album:
- On Live Chat NY, Cher
said the video wouldn’t be released until September (which is very strange since
a video might have helped the single). Cher
said the newspaper wig was her wigmakers idea and kinda a nightmare. She said
her favorite songs on the album are “Lie to Me” (a Pink song), “My Love” (a
future single), Take It Like a Man” (a future single), and Dressed to Kill.”
She said she recorded “Woman’s World” in an hour (on Z100 she said the song sang itself) and
she co-wrote the song “Lovers Forever” which is actually old and was written for the movie
Interview with a Vampire. She said
the album has dance, rock and ballads and she hopes it will generate three videos.
- On Z100 Cher said recording is still scary and
tenuous and she is not Cher fan, that recording studios are not her favorite place to be, that she feels more confident
on stage (where I shine) because she feels she’s a good entertainer (vs. a singer).
- To Andy Cohen, Cher
said Lady Gaga didn’t like their duet but that she felt it was good. Cher said this was her best album and her best songs and she loved that she didn’t have to lower her keys.
- WCBS noted that this is her 26th
album. She said here it was very eclectic with dance, ballads, a country song, and
some funky banjo in one song and a U2-sounding 9/11 song called “Sirens.”
- On XM she talked about the writing of “Woman’s
World.” As she said in “Believe”-era interviews, there’s no overt personal connection to the song. She said the writer was a guy and
his idea was that women are strong and now demand their rights. (In this light,
I think the setup suffers from slight condescension, which isn’t the writer’s fault, but a generational interpretation, ex: we don’t need men to tell us this.) Myra said the song was
very “I Will Survive of the 21st Century.” (I thought that label should
have been applied to the song “Strong Enough” with its 1970s sound). Cher
said the song was like “Believe” in that she didn’t like the second verse,
which was too similar to “Believe.” Cher said
she won’t cry twice, which is why in “Believe” she added the more empowering line: “Maybe
I’m too good for you.” She wants to show that women are resilient. Myra said although Cher
didn’t write it, she owned it. Cher’s mom said
that about her The Voice performance.
Old Songs:
- On Live Chat NY, Cher
said she turned down “Turn Back Time” around 1000 times and then did the song
in an hour. She said her favorite song of her own is “Song for the Lonely.” The
interviewer said she loves “Baby Don’t Go”
and Cher said that was a great song and very definitive Sonny & Cher.
- On Z100 the DJ said Cher
has embraced change through the eras vs. musicians who say “this is the kind of
music I make” and aren’t flexible. Cher said
she gets bored and likes to try new ideas. Cher
said she can’t think of anybody my age who
is making records to get on the charts or anyone who performs onstage with no clothes.
(She’s so funny!) They talked about “Believe” and auto tune and the vocoder and pitch machines. I get confused during such tech talk.
- On WCBS, Cher
says she almost threw away “Believe” although she thought it was a “beautifully
constructed idea.” She talked about the first time she heard herself on the
radio, for her song “Baby Don’t Go.” They were at her mom’s house where their managers
were living (because they were all poor). They were in the living room listening
to KFWB and had all been calling on all their phones to the radio station to get it played. Cher said it was an out of body experience with everybody
screaming when the song came on. They said they all wanted to go to the Cadillac
dealership with bag full of money and buy a Cadillac.
- On XM, Cher
said she hasn’t a clue about her longevity in the business. She agreed with a
fan that she liked the “Walking in Memphis”
video and was the first to play Elvis. (Like originally? Like in 1971, which is
my theory that she’s been doing Elvis since then?)
General Music:
On Live Chat NY, Cher says she Pink, Adele, and Amy
Winehouse; On XM she said she still has her favorite go-to song (but said
it makes no sense) as Procol Harem’s “Whiter Shade of Pale.” SoSoGay reporter
mentioned that her song from Not.Com.merical, “With or Without You” taps into
that Procol Harem sound.
Movies & Broadway:
- According to Live Chat NY, Cher has no word on the
status of Drop Out or Bet and Flo, movies once listed on her IMDB page. For her
next movie, she seeks a non-glamorous role in an independent film. She says she
will never do Shakespeare.
- She also says she got her Silkwood offer on a Wednesday matinee of her Broadway show, Come Back to the 5 & Dime, and she liked
doing a play, found it comforting. (Live
Chat NY)
She said Broadway was not easy but you get an immediate reaction. (XM)
- According to Live Chat NY she’s still writing
for her Logo show.
- The DJ of Z100 told Cher
he used to watch Mask over and over with
his sister. On Z100 and XM, Cher said she was
sick during the offer to do Thelma &
Louise but that what belongs to you comes to you. She regrets not being able to do it but feels it
was meant to be “Sue’s” part.
- Andy Cohen during his Aftershow asked Cher if she keeps in touch with the Mermaids daughters, Winona Ryder and Christina Ricci. Cher says they grew up and she hasn’t seen them lately. She
said “Noni” went through a strange period but seems back on track and she
remembers sneaking Christina M&Ms during the shooting when directors
thought Christina was too chubby and banned them from her trailer. Cher
said she loved the family-feeling of movies and talking to the tech people. She said
she had a great time on Burlesque.
- On WCBS, Cher
retold the story about a crowd laughing at her name during the Silkwood preview (Nichols told her the
previews were out and she went to a Tom Cruise movie in Westwood to see it with
her sister and her manager, Billy Sammeth). She said it was organic laughter and therefore
pretty painful. At the eventual premiere the audience clapped at her name in
the credits.
- On XM, Cher
admitted not knowing how’s she’s persevered in a youth-oriented film industry. Myra calls her fearless. Cher said you evolve. Mark said she has communication
with audience. Cher said she is likable. She
said her most memorable moment was winning the Oscar. It was amazing to her since
it took so long to get an acting job. She said Robert Altman was such a rebel. Mike Nichols told her when he saw the Saturday matinee about the
character of Dolly that they couldn’t find anyone for the role before they found Cher and so they we were just gonna
write her out; Mike said, “She’s a lesbian, but really lovely.” A fan asked if
she would do more musicals? She said she wasn’t planning any but she enjoyed
singing in a film.
- One fan on XM commented on her sexy glamor and
sensitivity in movies from Moonstruck
to Jimmy Dean. Cher
joked that she could multitask. She said, I am who I am for better or worse, a
lot of worse. She said she likes play in her work and that sometimes she stops
doing it when she feels she has nothing to offer.
Twitter & Star
Fights:
- On Live Chat NY, Cher
admitted on Twitter it’s hard to read jokes and emotions, saying, “Words can’t
see a smile, can’t get emotions.” She said she tweets in the middle of the night
like a vampire. To Andy Cohen she says she’s good with Madonna.
- Andy Cohen asked her about Nicki Minaj throwing
shade on her. She said people come and go. Snap!
Exercise & Free
Time:
- On The
Today Show Cher says for free time, she sees friends, goes to the Bahamas,
paddle boards, goes hiking, or somewhere
like Nepal.
- On XM she talked about working out, working her
“ass off” now because when you’re older it gets harder. But she was always into
sports and running as kid, climbing trees. She had “so much energy.” Official exercise started for her during The Sonny
& Cher shows where she took a dance class during their lunch breaks.
She said you have to change it up to trick your body. The same exercise stops
working. Now she does yoga, pilates, weights and the trampoline to music, bouncing,
she says, makes her happy.
Outfits:
- In the New
York Times, Cher said her favorite dress
was the Oscar Snub Dress: “If you could have seen it up close. It was cashmere,
the beading was beautiful, they made earrings and the headdress was exquisite.
It was impeccable. It was beautifully done.” (And Cher
would know a headdress). She also stated “Camp is in the eye of the beholder.”
- On The
Today Show she said she doesn’t mind people hating what she wears.
- On Andy Cohen she wore space platforms shoes and
black and white geometric jacket and pants. Cher
scholar Robrt Pela noted that this outfit matched the back cover of Sonny & Cher’s In Case You’re In Love album.
She stated her that her favorite outfits where the Oscar dress, and her first
Indian “costume,” and the “Turn Back Time” outfit (Which one? The concert hole fit or the
video V fit?)
- On XM, a fan asked what her outfit inspirations
were. She said her first inspiration was Bob Mackie. She loved that her
friend said her hair on The Voice
looked like a chicken from the 4H club. She says she has a good humor about it. But she said the outfit
and wig didn’t translate on the show (I agree: too many cuts and closeups). Cher said art should provoke conversation, not that she
can say my hair was art, but she was going for Luxe Punk.
Concerts:
- On LiveChat NY, Cher talked about
her first live appearance in bowling alley and Sonny pushing her on stage. She
said about her Caesars shows: “They were
very staid.” (New York Times) and that
fans couldn’t afford the show so there was an older, low energy audience. She came
to understand “you don’t get to decide how they’re gonna enjoy it. They get to
decide.” She said on tour she saves her voice and doesn’t talk, lives like a
nun. She said in the 1960s people threw
rings on stage, in homage to the fact she had rings on every finger (I did not
know that.). She said “Song for the Lonely” is impossible to sing and she didn’t
tape Caesars show. (Live Chat NY)
- The New
York Times was with Cher at the Marquee
during a very long wig change. Manager Lindsay Scott was asked, “How much of
his life is spent waiting for Cher to change
her outfit and get trussed up?” “A good amount.”
- In the Marquee video itself, Cher
made a speech about when she was uncool and a has-been, “you guys have always
been there.” Cher watched some drag queens/impersonators
dance to a mix of her songs and she danced and sang along, smiling.
- On Z100 she said she might tour next year. The
DJ asked her about seeing all those cell phones now at shows. She said smart
phones weren’t around yet during her farewell tour years.
- During the Macy’s 4th of July
Spectacular, I loved the long hair and the pants. Is that chain mail back in
action? Mr. Cher Scholar made many positive remarks, (She looks cool here,
looks younger, like the big hoops, she looks great). The women in audience
really seem into it. Cher smiles a lot and
throws out sultry looks. She did lip sync but in the bootleg pre-tape, you can
hear her singing. She comments about dressing age-appropriate (not quite yet; age appropriate would be dressing like Helen Mirren above…can you believe they’re less than a year apart in age?). She talks about her choreographer, Doriana
Sanchez, and about getting free M&Ms vs Dr. Pepper backstage.
- Cher announced
she’ll be performing a Today Show
concert on September 23. The hosts said to “expect a legendary crowd.”
- Cher said her least
favorite song to do live is “Jessie James.” She talked about touring with sonny
in early 70s on the club circuit where they had to cook in our room but used
Chastity in act; She used to lead the orchestra. (Watch What Happens/Andy Cohen)
- On XM, Cher
said hearing her records again, she felt they sound better. For live shows you
need to speed them up because the audience needs excitement. She said singing
live is a crap shoot. She said sometimes her musical director Paul Mirkovich changes up arrangements. A fan asked if there was a drag queen better
than she was? She picked Elgin Kenna and called him a genius artist.
TV Shows:
- To Andy Cohen, she talked about Farrah Fawcett’s
appearance on The Sonny & Cher Comedy
Hour. “She had tits and I didn’t” so Farrah got all the crews attention.
She said one of her favorite things with
Sonny was the Raymond Burr blooper (long form) and on XM she said the blooper
was “so us.” She also agreed she loved her West Side Story performance. She
said there were 14 costume changes on her show with Sonny.
- On WCBS, she said her appearance on The Voice was awful and scary. Before
the show she told her mom she would either be the greatest reinvention of herself
or it would be “get thee to a nursing home.”
Family & Friends:
- Cher said her mom would be a guest judge on RuPaul’s Drag Race and Chaz was great
performing in “30 Minute Musical” (Live Chat NY), the episode spoofing Independence Day and Chas played the
president. (Watch What Happens/Andy Cohen)
- Cher said Sonny’s
funeral was very Italian with everybody cooking. “The only person not there was
Son.” Cher said they didn’t sing to Chaz at
bedtime, they read her stories. (Watch What
Happens/Andy Cohen)
- ON WCBS, Cher said her mom’s best advice was to never
litter and that Cher has never seen Chaz better
in his life.
- On XM someone asked for Cher’s
advice to new artists. Cher said entertainment
and fame are so different now, everyone has an immediate clothing line (I
wonder how Sonny would have operated in this era). Cher
said Sonny instilled in her the idea never to believe in a no. She said she should
have stopped years ago when all signs pointed to no, but like a bumper car she
keeps going, it’s in her family DNA. She said far more talented people don’t
make it. She hears friends saying older people should move over to give the
kids a shot, but the women in her family are not moving out of the way.
- On XM they asked her for her best personal and
professional decade. She said all decades have had their over parts and have
also spiked up. “They said I reinvented myself but it was untrue…I’m just me.”
She couldn’t decide on a best decade, saying the 1960s were the beginning, the
1970s had the TV show, the 1980s had the movies and was the best decade
personally.
- On WCBS Cher said she was still working with Children’s
Craniofacial Association.
- In The New
York Times, Cher said Robert Camilletti was
her easiest relationship and of her two husbands, Sonny she was most attached
too: “It wasn’t like anything before or after. And it wasn’t all roses. It was
very Russian roulette.”
- On XM she said her true love was Robert Camilletti and Ronnie Zimmerman was the one who could make her laugh so hard she cried.
- XM asked her for advice for parents. She said I’m on twitter with your
kids. She said it’s hard to stop telling your kids what to do but you need to think of them as people and cut
them some slack and do fun stuff with them. You’re not just there to boss them around. But teenagers
are crazy. You need to guide them more because you worry about them all the time. Her mom told her never
lie, litter, or talk back. But she learned to drive when she was 11 and her mother assures her she was
a mercurial child. “Chaz was an angel all the time. Elijah is like me.”
Her Character:
- Calls herself mercurial (Sirius/New York Times) and says
her worst habit is worrying too much (Live Chat NY). If she could go back in
time as superpower to meet an Egyptian whose name I couldn’t catch or to send the
paparazzi into space (Live Chat NY). She said her biggest obstacle is her up
and down moods and she works to stay in the center and not be over emotional
(WCBS).
- On XM she was asked if she would change anything
she’s done. “How long do we have,” she asked and then said the truth would be too
personal. She believes what belongs to you comes to you.
Plastic Surgery:
In the New York Times,
Cher admits her limited movie offers might be due to her wrinkle-free visage,
that her look might make it “hard to be anyone but Cher.”
She said this idea “didn’t feel very good. But it was true. I get that. I
understand that.” She was also asked about Chad Michaels allegedly having
surgery to look more like her: “If it doesn’t bother him, it doesn’t bother me.
I don’t feel creepy. I don’t.”
A Book:
To Andy Cohen, Cher admitted she once wrote “a half-assed book.” But before she write the bigger book, people have
to die off. She said she and friend, Paulie, talk about it all the time.
Shy Kid to Superstar:
My iPod shuffle served up the Sonny & Cher b-side “Hello”
during Cher’s big June/July press push. I was
taken by how far she’s come in her confidence.
We’ve also come to a point of critical mass in her career, where no one (including Cher herself) can pretend this is her first album, movie or project and dismiss or ignore all the preceeding history. I love it when she talks about experiencing showbiz over so long a period of time and, as you can see, all these interviews reflect the breadth of her work, from live shows to TV shows to music albums to being a fashion icon. It’s all here.