BIZBASH CALL SHEET — #198 — Monday, 02.13.12
Compiled today by Chad Kaydo and Jana Schiowitz in New York
Feed the Sheet: [email protected]
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* INCOMING *
1. INSIDE THE GRAMMYS: From L.A. bureau chief Alesandra Dubin: After Whitney Houston's sudden death at the Beverly Hilton Saturday, the 54th annual Grammy awards had a reverential vibe last night. Before the show began at the Staples Center, executive producer Ken Ehrlich spoke about Houston to the assembled crowd, and prepared the audience for a tribute that would be respectful and appropriate but not overdone. LL Cool J, the show's first host in seven years, began with a prayer for the pop singer. And later, following the in memoriam video, Jennifer Hudson took the stage for a dramatic but spare tribute performance of “I Will Always Love You,” illuminated by a single spotlight.
Among the other memorable, non-funereal moments in the stadium: The venue lit up on cue during Coldplay's performance with signals sent wirelessly to bracelets distributed among the thousands of guests, dancing in their seats.
After the show, 5,000 guests headed across the way to the Los Angeles Convention Center, where the Recording Academy's official after-party, the Grammy Celebration produced by executive in charge of production and chief business development officer Branden Champan, kept the energy and blood sugar up with a lively Rio carnival theme and a Brazilian menu from Along Came Mary.
THE REVIEWS:
The New York Times: " the death of Ms. Houston, who was a previous generation’s big-voiced pop-soul queen before she became a self-destructive public spectacle, hung over the awards show.”
http://nyti.ms/wNndaT
The Hollywood Reporter on celebrating the late singer:
http://bit.ly/wrGJlU
The Guardian: The Grammys was a controversy-free zone:
http://bit.ly/ztilAu
The L.A. Times: "Unable to ignore the rise of electronic music, Grammy producers attempted to capture the immersive feel of dance music by staging the electronic segment in a tent outside Staples Center."
http://lat.ms/xX4vL4
E! Online grades the night, including performances by Adele and Jennifer Hudson and the evening's worst duets.
http://eonli.ne/xlixCR
MTV on Nicki Minaj's exorcism-inspired set and performance:
http://on.mtv.com/AimvHa
WHAT EVENT PROS THOUGHT: We asked some readers to give us their critiques of the show. Some highlights:
Javier Velarde, president and executive producer of Triton Productions in Miami: "The outdoor stage had great production with the Foo Fighters and Deadmau5, but all under a 'raw' tent? There's nothing worse than exposed tent beams and lighting trusses. It's a huge pet peeve of mine when people leave productionelements undressed."
Xan Guzik, producer and director of festivals at Jam Entertainment and Creative Services in Chicago: "Isn't this an award show—I recall only about eight awards being announced live. True, it's nice not to listen to a bunch of speeches, but it would be good to have a little more balance between the performances and the awards.”
Fernando Varela, producer for Mascioli Entertainment Corporation in Orlando: "While the myriad of technical options can sometimes seem like overkill, this year's Grammy awards struck a perfect balance creating beautiful visuals while maintaining an efficient use of the stage real estate."
Full reviews from seven producers:
http://bit.ly/wRHTOb
What did you think? Tell us: [email protected].
2. BURNING MAN TICKETS: This year, event organizers used a lottery instead of a first-come, first-served online ticketing system in hopes that the ticket distribution would be more equitable. The New York Times: "But organizers did not anticipate the deluge of more than 80,000 people who signed up for the lottery in January, far exceeding the number of available tickets. Selling tickets online makes it difficult to distinguish between veteran Burners, loathed scalpers and first-timers, known as birgins in the lingo of festivalgoers."
http://nyti.ms/xBI4L2
3. FACEBOOK DATA: Ad Age lists approaches for marketers to take to gain more data-driven value from the platform:
http://bit.ly/wFt3wo
4. BLUE IVY TRADEMARK: Could event planner Veronica Alexandra's Boston business Blue Ivy be affected by Jay-Z and Beyonce's pending application for a trademark on their daughter’s name? Attorney Vikki Ziegler tells CNBC.com: "If there are existing companies using the name, it may impede Beyonce and Jay-Z from using their child's name, but if the Trademark Office denies the application, they can amend it and change the descriptive use of their name—such as for different products—and even amend the name slightly to see if the trademark would be accepted."
http://bit.ly/wN5iuH
5. PEPSICO PANIC: Last week, the company announced that it would eliminate 100 agencies in order to spend between $500 and $600 million on advertising its brands. However, Pepsi did not plan to let the agencies know until this week. Ad Age: "That prompted widespread panic in adland as agencies scrambled to call brand managers. Some were told not to worry, but several others were in the dark."
http://bit.ly/xFq56V
* TWEETED *
New York Times fashion critic @CathyHorynNYT at the Alexander Wang show Saturday:
Wang has started, with shiny fabrics, lots of pants - but lighting is so bad in my area, you virtually see nuttin! Wow. Who planned this?
http://bit.ly/whezHN
* INSPIRATION MOMENT *
Style editor Lauren Matthews looks at five new entertaining and event books from the likes of Matthew Robbins, Amy Atlas, and Tori Spelling:
http://bit.ly/wNKxWr
* LOCAL NEWS *
ATLANTA: The Atlanta Airport Marriott recently completed renovations to its meeting and event spaces. Refreshed areas include the 9,928-square-foot grand ballroom with space for 1,200 people, 27 breakout rooms, and the 2,160-square foot Mercedes Room, which can hold 150 guests.
http://bit.ly/w9u1HT
BOSTON: The 32nd Cowen's Healthcare Conference is March 5-7 at the Boston Marriott Copley Place Hotel.
CHICAGO: Redmoon's "Spectacle Lunatique" March 17 takes place at new venue the Hudson. Also new this year: a collection of food trucks with offerings from Big Star, Hummingbird Kitchen, Tamale Spaceship, and more.
DENVER: In honor of Leap Day, the Four Seasons Hotel is offering all-inclusive meeting packages for events held in February, March, and April. Planners who reserve a meeting by February 29 will be entered to win a three-course meal in the private dining room at Edge Restaurant.
http://bit.ly/xRd1ZD
LAS VEGAS: Ted Sarandos, chief content officer of Netflix, and Gerhard Zeiler, C.E.O. of RTL Group, will speak at the NAB Show, the annual conference and expo for professionals who create, manage, and distribute entertainment across all media platforms. The show is April 14-19 at the Las Vegas Convention Center.
The Chamber of Commerce met for the annual "Preview Las Vegas" event to discuss the outlook for the city; the event included financial predictions for the upcoming year. KTNV: "The overall message was that the outlook is getting brighter as business and tourism leaders met near the Thomas & Mack Center."
http://bit.ly/w47SL8
LOS ANGELES: On Friday, Todd Hawkins and the Todd Group produced the "Suitcase Party" benefiting Children's Charities. The fund-raising event at the Van Nuys Airport summoned guests to bring their luggage, as winners of a drawing were whisked away for a vacation on the spot.
MIAMI/SOUTH FLORIDA: Social Media Week begins today and runs through Friday. Sessions like "Essential Strategies for Social Media Engagement" and "Real Time News and Social Media" will be held at the Adrienne Arsht Center this afternoon.
http://bit.ly/xCYh5C
The Coconut Grove Art Festival kicks off February 16. Cubavera, a Miami-based Latin lifestyle apparel company is sponsoring the festival with an event at the Hunter Gallery and Atrium with cigar rollers, portrait artists, a live painter, live Latin music, and giveaways. Sun Herald:
http://bit.ly/AurbZc
NEW YORK: Alpine Creative Group hosted a luncheon for 90 guests February 8 at the Harvard Club. Participating vendors included Sarah Merians Photography, and Ovando Floral Design and Event Design; Chef David Haviland of the Harvard Club designed a tasting menu. Guests received custom letterpress stationery in a red box in honor of Valentine's Day.
According to a study conducted by the Fordham University Graduate School of Business, Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week is estimated to generate nearly $40 million annual economic impact in Lincoln Square, with $6 million on hotels, nearly $7 million on retails, $9 million on restaurants, $12 million on venue rental and use, and several more million in spending by event producer IMG and other official sponsors.
http://bit.ly/ybjqiq
French hospitality company Accor announced the sale of the Novotel in Times Square. The hotel will receive a $115 million renovation. USA Today:
http://usat.ly/wDVxLy
Premiere Global Sports has hired Peter Rosenberger as vice president of the corporate division, where he will be responsible for creating and selling new branded sports and entertainment experiences for companies.
http://bit.ly/zCyE9N
ORLANDO: Legoland Florida will open several new attractions in the coming months. Starting in March, guests can play the latest Lego-based video games in kiosks and on iPads in the new Warner Brothers Game Zone. At the end of March, the Fresh From Florida Greenhouse will open, showcasing how Florida fruits and vegetables are grown and prepared for consumers. And on May 26, Legoland will open its new water park with a wave pool, slides, and a lazy river.
TORONTO: World MasterCard Fashion Week will run March 12-16 in David Pecaut Square. In collaboration with the Stephen Lewis Foundation, the third Dare to Wear Love gala fashion show will close the event. More than 25 Canadian designers will create clothing from African fabrics. A cocktail reception will be held before and after the show.
WASHINGTON: TBD.com published a day-in-the-life for BrandLinkDC duo Jayne Sandman and Barbara Martin, which took them from a morning kickboxing class and blowouts at a salon to client meetings and last-minute prep before their book launch party for Simon Doonan at the W Hotel. "There's always that moment before a party," said Martin, "when-even if you have 500 people on the RSVP list-you always have that split second of, what if no one comes?"
http://tbd.ly/AksyM8
Our coverage of Simon Doonan's book party:
http://bit.ly/x8mBGp
LivingSocial's new space, 918 F Street, opens this week. The venue has six floors including culinary and demonstration kitchens and spaces for dancing classes, workshops, and dinner.
YOUR NEWS: What are you doing? Tell us: [email protected].
With contributions from Jenny Berg in Chicago, Alesandra Dubin in Los Angeles, Mitra Sorrells in Orlando, Carla Warrilow in Toronto, and Jana Schiowitz and Anna Sekula in New York.
BizBash Call Sheet is the must-read daily digest of event industry news from BizBash.com.
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Subscribe: http://info.bizbash.com/callsheet.html
