February 22, 2016: MTV Movie Awards Will Take Place Outdoors, Can Chris Rock Save the #OscarsSoWhite Show?, "Ferris Fest" to Celebrate 30th Anniversary of Classic Film

1. MTV MOVIE AWARDS WILL TAKE PLACE OUTDOORS: For this year’s milestone MTV Movie Awards, the network has chosen two hosts, Dwayne Johnson and Kevin Hart. The show will feature several innovations, including an unusual choice of venue as well as a new promotion strategy that asks fans to contribute to the campaign that will air on the network’s live streams on Facebook Live, Periscope, Meerkat, YouKnow, and YouTube. Variety: “This year’s MTV Movie Awards, which marks the 25th anniversary for the award show, will be pre-taped live-style across the Warner Bros. backlot the day before the broadcast on April 9, taking place outdoors across multiple locations, unlike most award shows, which air from a singular theater.” http://bit.ly/1RhYhQA

2. CAN CHRIS ROCK SAVE THE #OSCARSSOWHITE SHOW?: Hoping to overcome the bad publicity and public outrage at the lack of diversity at the Oscars—as well as stop falling ratings—the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is hoping second-time host Chris Rock will bring in viewers to the broadcast on Sunday. The New York Times: “The ratings numbers are of paramount concern to the academy, which derives the largest part of its income from the awards ceremony. Last year the audience fell 15 percent, to about 37.3 million viewers. At the same time, ABC has been raising prices for its ads; they now cost an average of $1.9 million to $2 million for a 30-second spot, up as much as 11 percent from a year ago, according to a report released by Kantar Media last week. … The academy receives roughly $110 million annually from the show, including fees related to ABC’s domestic broadcast, separate income from distribution around the world, and other Oscar-related revenue. Assuring financial stability for the awards has become more critical for the academy, which last year sold about $350 million in bonds to support a new movie museum.” http://nyti.ms/1UhIG6d

3. "FERRIS FEST" TO CELEBRATE 30TH ANNIVERSARY OF CLASSIC FILM: Fans of the classic film Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, in which Matthew Broderick plays hooky from school with his two best friends, will mark its 30th anniversary with a number of events May 20-22 in Chicago. Chicago Tribune: “There’s also a planned re-staging of the ‘Twist and Shout’ parade float trip (if you don’t know what that is, you’ve already read too much of this). There will be also bus tours re-tracing Bueller’s travels and offering a chance, the promoters tout, 'to sit in the exact seats' he and his pals sat in at Wrigley Field (the Cubs will be playing the Giants in San Francisco that weekend). There will be a screening of the movie at the John and Nancy Hughes Theater in Lake Forest, and appearances by some of the film’s actors.” http://trib.in/1mOJMZJ

* LOCAL NEWS *

ATLANTA:  The electronic dance music-focused Imagine Music Festival will add camping to its 2016 event, which will take place August 26-28. Atlanta Business Chronicle: http://bit.ly/21eqFrC

AUSTIN:  Austin Fashion Week will take place April 15-23. The event will feature runway shows at JW Marriott Austin, a brunch at the Driskill hotel, and a variety of soirees hosted by boutiques, galleries, salons, and retailers around the city.

BOSTON:  Asian restaurant Empire will host the New England Food Show's official after-party, the Toast, on March 13. The event will feature a cocktail competition with greater Boston area mixologists crafting drinks using Jägermeister.

CHICAGO:  The Pitchfork Music Festival, slated for July 15-17 in Union Park, has announced its lineup. Headliners include Sufjan Stevens, Beach House, FKA Twigs, Brian Wilson, and Carly Rae Jepsen. Pitchfork: http://bit.ly/1oxqYQz

Chicago will host Barrel Night on Thursday at Montgomery Club in River North. The magazine's inaugural whiskey tasting and industry event will be produced by Tower Events Group. ChicagoNow: http://bit.ly/1ota2tG

LAS VEGAS:  The Madden Community Championship will take place March 4-5. The e-sports and gaming event will have a kickoff competition at Downtown Underground lounge at Downtown Grand Hotel & Casino on March 4 and events the following day at the GameWorks eSports facility.

The inaugural Electronic Music Awards & Foundation will take place April 14 at the SLS Hotel and will air on Fox on April 23. Festival of the Year nominees are Creamfields in Daresbury, England; Electric Daisy Carnival in Las Vegas; Sonar in Barcelona; the BPM Festival in Playa del Carmen, Mexico; and Ultra Music Festival in Miami.

T-Mobile Arena, which will open in April, has partnered with Levy Restaurants and mixologist Tony Abou-Ganim for its food and cocktail offerings. Options include Ferraro's Pizza Forte, cocktails with customized ice cubes, a Goose Island Bar, and customized menus for suite owners.

LOS ANGELES:  The production team for the 88th Oscars telecast—which airs live from the Dolby Theatre on Sunday on ABC—includes Glenn Weiss as director, Michael Seligman as supervising producer, Fatima Robinson as choreographer, Billy Kimball as head writer, and Derek McLane as production designer.

Deadline's the Contenders announced it will host its first event for Emmy voters on April 10 at the DGA Theater. http://bit.ly/1LxEZlP

James Wroblewski has been appointed general manager of W Los Angeles—West Beverly Hills.

Local event listings from the new Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/losangeles

MIAMI/SOUTH FLORIDA:  Jardin, a seasonal restaurant from chefs Jordan Lerman and Stephanie Cohen, will open in downtown West Palm Beach in April. The restaurant will seat about 150 guests and will have two outdoor areas: a covered patio in front and a landscaped courtyard in the back.

NEW YORK:  The 11th annual Coffee & Tea Festival NYC will take place March 19-20 at Brooklyn Expo Center. The event will feature more than 70 exhibitors, coffee and tea seminars, and a Latte Art Throwdown sponsored by Café Grumpy.

The new hotel 11 Howard, from real estate mogul Aby Rosen’s RFR Holding, is slated to open April 1. The 221-room, art-filled hotel in SoHo will include a 14-person meeting space called the Creative Studio, a bar called the Blond, and a cozy library space.

The Diamond Horseshoe, the basement space at the Paramount Hotel, will become a private event space operated by LDV Hospitality. The 6,000-square-foot space formerly was home to the show Queen of the Night.

Local event listings from the new Masterplanner: http://www.masterplanneronline.com/newyork

ORLANDO/CENTRAL FLORIDA:  Walt Disney World's Hollywood Studios park will debut a Star Wars stage show in April and a fireworks and pyrotechnics spectacular this summer. Associated Press: http://apne.ws/213zwje

PHILADELPHIA:  The Fairmount Arts Crawl will take place May 5. The event will feature more than 70 exhibits from 30 businesses in the neighborhood, as well as live music, dancing, and kids' activities.

SAN FRANCISCO:  BottleRock Napa Valley, which will take place May 27-29 at Napa Expo, has announced its food, wine, and beer lineup, with vendors including Morimoto, Bouchon Bakery, Jam Cellars, Del Dotto Vineyards, and Lagunitas Brewery. Stevie Wonder, Florence & the Machine, and Red Hot Chili Peppers are slated to headline the event.

TORONTO:  The second annual WayHome music festival will take place July 22-24 at Burl's Creek Event Grounds. Headliners include LCD Soundsystem, Arcade Fire, Major Lazer, Haim, and the Killers.

WASHINGTON, D.C.:  For this month’s Iowa Caucus, Hargrove created the media services space in the atrium at Capitol Square in Des Moines. The space included creating work space for about 2,000 members of the media, and the company also installed and managed the IT and power services and built a stage set.

The Washington premiere of House of Cards will take place tonight at the National Portrait Gallery.

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With contributions from Jenny Berg in Chicago, Alesandra Dubin in Los Angeles, Mitra Sorrells in Orlando, and Beth Kormanik, Michele Laufik, Jill Menze, Anna Sekula, and Ian Zelaya in New York.

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