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Tag: The Sound of Music

  • Julie Andrews Opens Up About Why Her Marriage Was Successful

    Julie Andrews has worn many hats on both screen and stage over the course of a decades-long career, but one of the things she’s most proud of has nothing to do with her professional life; rather, it’s her 41-year marriage to director Blake Edwards.

    Edwards passed away in 2010, but Andrews recently opened up about their relationship and says that the pain never quite goes away from the loss.

    “It was a love story, it was. I’m still dealing with it. There are days when it’s perfectly wonderful and I am myself and then it’s suddenly – sock you in the middle of your gut and you think, ‘Ah God, I wish he were here’. But he is in a way, I think one carries that love always,” Andrews said.

    The Sound Of Music star says that the key to their long marriage was to not get ahead of themselves.

    “Success in our marriage was to take it one day at a time and so, lo and behold, 41 years later there we still were,” Andrews said.

    Andrews also recently sat down for an interview alongside her longtime friend and sometime co-star, Christopher Plummer, and talked about their time on the set of The Sound Of Music. Although the film initially received harsh reviews, it would become an enormous hit, the epitome of the musical that had fans singing its catchy songs for weeks after it was viewed. For Andrews, it was the start of a wonderful friendship.

    “He was such a hugely great actor that when he was cast in Sound of Music all I could think was, How will I ever live up to that? But we had a very good time. We never had a cross word, nothing,” Andrews said.

    Earlier this year, the classic film got a loving tribute when Lady Gaga took the stage at the Academy Awards to perform, blowing audiences away and very likely earning even more fans for the movie.

  • Lady Gaga Dominated Oscars Social Media Chatter

    The most talked-about moment of Sunday night’s Academy Awards wasn’t an actual award announcement – it was a musical performance.

    Lady Gaga’s unanimously-praised performance of a Sound of Music medley garnered the most social media chatter during the broadcast – both on Facebook and Twitter.

    According to Facebook, Lady Gaga’s The Sound of Music medley and Julie Andrews’ appearance onstage hit 214K People Per Minute (PPM) globally and 154K PPM in the US. It beat out other buzzed-about moments like The Imitation Game winning Best Adapted Screenplay, Eddie Redmayne winning Best Actor, and even Birdman‘s win for Best Picture.

    Post by Celebs on Facebook.

    And over on Twitter, Lady Gaga’s performance saw the biggest spike in Tweets per minute. @LadyGaga was also the most-mentioned celeb of the night.

    Check out her performance below. Was it your favorite part of last night’s Oscars?

  • Julie Andrews Surprises Fans, Thanks Lady Gaga at Oscars

    Julie Andrews not only made a surprise appearance at the 2015 Oscars on Sunday, she also thanked Lady Gaga for her beautiful performance of a medley of songs from The Sound of Music. Julie Andrews, of course, starred in The Sound of Music–50 years ago.

    Lady Gaga included popular songs from the 1965 film, including “Edelweiss,” “My Favorite Things” and “Sixteen Going on Seventeen.” And when she sang the title song from the film, Julie Andrews appeared on stage and gave her a big hug.

    “Dear Lady Gaga,” Andrews said. “Thank you for that wonderful tribute. It really warmed my heart. It’s hard to believe that 50 years have gone by since that joyous film was released.”

    “As for me–how lucky can a girl get?” she added.

    “I really put my heart into preparing it, and I’m really excited to entertain the nominees tonight,” Lady Gaga said prior to her performance. No one knew what she would be singing at the big event.

    Those who don’t realize how long Julie Andrews has been around will be hard pressed to believe she is 79 years old. She looked young, beautiful, and vivacious during her time on stage at the Oscars. She certainly didn’t look the part of a 79-year-old woman.

    What a wonderful surprise it was for viewers at home–and certainly for those in the audience at the 2015 Oscars, too–to have Julie Andrews take the stage following the incredible performance by Lady Gaga. It truly lent a magical touch to the already incredibly exciting evening.

    Lady Gaga has experienced some magic of her own recently, too. She became engaged to Chicago Fire hunk Taylor Kinney on Valentine’s Day. Do you suppose Julie Andrew offered her congratulations to Gaga–whose real name is Stefani Germanotta–following their on-stage meeting at the Oscars?

    A photo posted by @ladygaga on

  • Maria Von Trapp: The Last of “The Sound of Music” Children Dies at 99

    Maria von Trapp, the last remaining member of the original seven von Trapp children, died Tuesday night at 99 years old. Maria and her family’s story inspired one of the most famous musicals of all time: The Sound of Music. Her half-brother Johannes confirmed her death on Saturday.

    Maria outlived most of her siblings, which surprised many who knew the von Trapps. Growing up, she suffered from a severe disease and had a weak heart. Her mother, Agathe von Trapp, died from the scarlet fever in 1922. Maria also developed this disease, which resulted in her needing a home tutor. Maria Augusta-Kutschera von Trapp was hired to tutor Maria and her siblings. She eventually married their father, Georg von Trapp.

    Maria von Trapp was the third oldest child of Agathe and Georg, and the second eldest daughter. Her six siblings are Rupert, Agathe, Werner, Hedwig, Johanna, and Martina, and her three half-siblings are Johannes, Eleonore, and Rosemarie. When the family fled the Nazi-occupied Austria, they moved to the United States in 1938.

    Maria Augusta-Kutschera von Trapp introduced the world to the von Trapp family with her book entitled The Story of the Trapp Family Singers. This book inspired two German films along with The Sound of Music. The musical was revived and broadcasted on NBC in 2013; Carrie Underwood starred. Her performance received mixed reviews, and the von Trapp grandchildren controversially expressed dissatisfaction with her taking on the role made famous by Julie Andrews.

    Maria lived her final days in Stowe, Vermont. She never married and spent her life serving as a lay missionary in Papua, New Guinea.

    Her half-brother, and the youngest von Trapp, Johannes, said this upon his sister’s death:

    “Thank you for your thoughts. Maria had a wonderful life and while we will miss her, the memories of her will live on.”

    Many used Twitter to mourn her death and appreciate her legacy.

     

    Image via The Sound of Music, Facebook

  • NBC Plans a Peter Pan Live Production

    At the Television Critics Association winter press tour in Pasadena, Ca, NBC chairman Robert Greenblatt announced NBC’s plans for the upcoming television year. He revealed Parks and Recreation seventh season renewal, and unveiled two new miniseries. The eight episode miniseries, based on an Australian drama called The Slap, follows the repercussions of slapping a non-relative child. Their other mini-series, Emerald City, is a 10-episode reimaging of the Wizard of Oz. It follows a stubborn 20-Something Dorothy battling to gain control of Oz.

    Greenblatt’s biggest announcement was NBC’s plans for a live-musical production of Peter Pan. Carrie Underwood’s live-production of The Sound of Music drew 18.6 million viewers.  The network quickly announced plans to do another live production after those numbers were publicized. NBC decided to make the production Peter Pan because it has family appeal. Children and adults can get equal enjoyment out of watching it. Additionally, NBC has done live broadcasts of Peter Pan before. In 1955, they did the famous Mary Martin version, and then adapted it again in 1956 and 1960.

    Despite the huge ratings, NBC’s The Sound of Music received poor reviews. The network is likely to use caution with their casting decisions and rehearsals this time around.

    At the press conference, Greenblatt joked that he planned to cast Miley Cyrus as Peter. Joking aside,he firmly stated plans to have a male play the role of Peter, unlike their original version. He also ruled out Justin Bieber as a possible Pan. NBC will probably try to hire someone with enough name recognition to draw in a younger audience, but also ensure that they can sing and act to please critics.

    Peter Pan is a hot topic right now for the media. ABC’s series Once Upon a Time did an entire story arc this season revolving around Pan, and there is a Pan origin movie being released next year.

    Is this too much Pan for fans?

    NBC’s live-musical production of Peter Pan airs on December 4, nearly a year after The Sound of Music’s live production aired.

    Image Via Wikimedia Commons

  • Eleanor Parker, “Sound Of Music” Actress, Dies At Age 91

    There has been yet another day in the past week in Hollywood. Eleanor Parker is the latest Hollywood icon to pass away, dying at the age of 91.

    She was known to most people from her role in The Sound Of Music, a classic musical which shot her co-star Julie Andrews to fame.

    Parker died on December 9th due to complications with pneumonia, and her family friend Richard Gale reports that “She passed away peacefully, surrounded by her children at a medical facility near her home in Palm Springs.”

    She grew up in Cedarsville, Ohio, and had always wanted to be an actress, and when the family moved to Cleveland, she began taking acting lessons.

    Eleanor Parker was an actress who acted in films primarily during the 1950s, and received three Oscar nominations for roles during that time period.

    She received her first Oscar nomination for Caged, a 1950 film in which she played an inmate in a brutal prison. She was also nominated for Detective Story, in a role where she played Kirk Douglas’ wife, and for Interrupted Melody, portraying opera singer, one of the most challenging roles of her career.

    It has been a rough time for Hollywood recently, as big name stars such as Peter O’Toole and Joan Fontaine both died.

    Her career started to wind down during the 1960s, and the last memorable role that she was seen in was The Sound Of Music, which was released in 1965. In The Sound Of Music, Parker played the baroness who lost her husband, Christopher Plummer, to the joyful Maria, played by Julie Andrews.

    In addition to William Holden, an actor she had worked with, Dustin Hoffman, and several others, Eleanor Parker discovered at the Pasadena Playhouse after moving to California. She was cast in her first film at the age of 19, following her move to Pasadena, a role in They Died With Their Boots On, a film starring Errol Flynn.

    Throughout her career, Eleanor Parker was known as a character actress, and was nominated for roles that all showed her playing strong-willed women. While The Sound Of Music was her most famous, and well-known role, she had a lengthy career, and continued acting in TV movies until 1991.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Carrie Underwood Says We All Need Jesus

    Carrie Underwood Says We All Need Jesus

    Carrie Underwood had a short but sweet response to those who weren’t feeling her performance as Maria von Trapp in last week’s live broadcast of “The Sound Of Music”, and it’s gone viral.

    Underwood, a country star who made it big on “American Idol”, was an odd choice for many, including the real von Trapp family, who said they wanted another actress to portray Maria.

    “Carrie Underwood as Maria? Seriously?” Francoise von Trapp wrote in a blog post. “I mean, I have nothing against her personally – she’s an extremely talented country singer, but I’m pretty sure my father is repeatedly rolling over in his grave. Since the movie version of SOM won an Academy Award the year I was born, it’s always been easy to identify with Julie Andrews’ portrayal of my grandmother. It’s a little harder to envision Carrie that way. (But I do realize that’s what happens when Hollywood freezes time.) And while the girl can sing (although her voice lacks the Soprano purity of Julie Andrews) can she act? I’d like to know who else was in the running. Personally, I’d have put my money on Ann Hathaway, who in her upcoming role as Fantine in Les Miserable, proves that she can act and sing.”

    After the broadcast on December 5, the internet pretty much blew up with comments about Underwood’s acting, singing, costumes, and anything else viewers could think of. And although she received quite a few compliments, most headlines are focusing on the negativity. Underwood addressed it in a Twitter post

    Image: Wikimedia Commons

  • Audra McDonald Tops in Sound of Music Live Broadcast

    Audra McDonald is being credited with ‘saving’ the live broadcast of The Sound of Music on NBC Thursday night. Starring Carrie Underwood in the lead role as Maria (played by Julie Andrews in the film version), McDonald outshone Underwood. But then again, Carrie Underwood isn’t an actress.

    Audra McDonald has appeared on Broadway. In fact, the former Private Practice star (she played Dr. Naomi Bennett) is a Tony Award-winning actress. She shares the record for the biggest number of Tony Awards won with greats like Angela Lansbury and Julie Harris. It’s no wonder at all that she out-performed Carrie Underwood.

    Carrie Underwood’s vocals in The Sound of Music were amazing. However her acting abilities were noticeably stilted and made for a long evening for viewers. There was almost no chemistry at all between her and Stephen Moyer in his role as Captain von Trapp.

    Meanwhile Audra McDonald pulled off a flawless Mother Abbess, with both her acting skills and her vocals. She made seamless what Underwood left choppy–through no real fault of her own. It’s questionable as to why Carrie Underwood was even cast in a role like Maria in The Sound of Music. Yes, she has an incredible singing voice, but surely there are many more actresses with amazing vocals who could do both sides of such a role the justice it deserved.

    Audra McDonald had Twitter abuzz–even via big name celebrities.

    If you had a chance to catch The Sound of Music-Live! on NBC Thursday night, do you agree that Audra McDonald carried the show? Or do you think Carrie Underwood–with her big name draw–was enough in the role of Maria to take credit for being the highlight of the show?

    Image via Wikimedia

  • Von Trapp Family Didn’t Want Carrie Underwood, Either

    Carrie Underwood has taken a lot of hits for her starring role in the television remake of “The Sound Of Music”, and has even gotten death threats. Apparently the public didn’t take too kindly to the “American Idol” alum stepping into Julie Andrews’ shoes. But as it turns out, the real von Trapp family didn’t want her, either.

    “It’s just upsetting that this could potentially be the final broadcast of our story,” said Myles von Trapp Derbyshire, the great grandson of Maria von Trapp. “And although her voice is amazing, she doesn’t have acting experience…. It’s just the overall image, she’s a country star, she won ‘American Idol,’ she’s very public in kind of a tabloid way.”

    The family says they wanted Anne Hathaway to portray Maria, especially after her Oscar-winning turn in “Les Miserables”. Francoise von Trapp, Maria’s granddaughter, blogged about the musical–and the producers’ casting choice–recently, saying that although Underwood is a talented country singer, she just didn’t seem suited to the role.

    “Carrie Underwood as Maria? Seriously?” von Trapp wrote. “I mean, I have nothing against her personally – she’s an extremely talented country singer, but I’m pretty sure my father is repeatedly rolling over in his grave. Since the movie version of SOM won an Academy Award the year I was born, it’s always been easy to identify with Julie Andrews’ portrayal of my grandmother. It’s a little harder to envision Carrie that way. (But I do realize that’s what happens when Hollywood freezes time.) And while the girl can sing (although her voice lacks the Soprano purity of Julie Andrews) can she act? I’d like to know who else was in the running. Personally, I’d have put my money on Ann Hathaway, who in her upcoming role as Fantine in Les Miserable, proves that she can act and sing.”

    Some of the von Trapp family members were loathe to watch Underwood’s version, but Myles von Trapp Derbyshire said he would, if for no other reason than to be educated about it when the inevitable questions come today.

  • Carrie Underwood Receives Support From Julie Andrews

    Sure, you know and love the 1965 Hollywood movie musical classic, The Sound of Music, starring the legendary Julie Andrews. But now you get a chance to see the musical as it was meant to be, in its stage form, right from the comfort of your own couch.

    On December 5th, NBC will air the full-scale, blowout, elaborate Broadway inspired The Sound of Music Live! starring American Idol champion and country music superstar Carrie Underwood as Maria. The Tony winning, Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, implies just as the name suggests. It will come to you live, just like it would be if you were sitting at the Gershwin Theater on Broadway.

    Carrie Underwood has very little acting experience. However, after the tremendous pressure of having to perform for her life on American Idol every week and almost ten years of touring and selling out arenas, she seems more than seasoned for the role. However, not everyone agrees with that sentiment. She told Entertainment Weekly that she was getting hate tweets from Julie Andrews fans on Twitter.

    But guess who had her back? Julie Andrews herself supported Underwood and spoke about the difficulty of having to perform the musical live. “Fifty years later, it’s time somebody had another crack at it. I had the best time of my life doing it, and it did wonderful things for me. I think it’s great that it’s being done again, but doing it live must be so daunting for Carrie.”

    If you’re a fan of the HBO vampire drama True Blood, you will also want to check out the program. Stephen Moyer, aka Vampire Bill, will play Captain George Von Trapp. And if you’re worried that Moyer won’t live up to Christopher Plummer’s Von Trapp, you shouldn’t be. The British actor has seen his fair share of the stage. He performed in over three dozen musicals before falling in love with Sookie Stackhouse in Bon Temps.

    Image Via Facebook

  • Carrie Underwood: Broadcasts, Musicals, & CMA Awards

    Carrie Underwood has been a busy woman lately! With co-hosting “Good Morning America”, her upcoming move to New York for her starring role in “The Sound of Music”, and the announcement that she will be co-hosting the CMA Awards again this year, it seems as though we will be seeing a lot of the country music super-star in the upcoming months.

    Many may not know this about the former American Idol, but Carrie graduated from college with a degree in communications and journalism from Northeastern State University in Oklahoma. She tested the waters at becoming a news anchor by co-hosting Good Morning America. Carrie delivered the “Pop News” section of the show, and was flawless! Is Carrie thinking of making a career change? Check out the video to see for yourself.

    http://youtu.be/Gw3QUY1plS4

    Some other interesting “Carrie” news: Carrie has been cast for the role as Maria von Trapp in “The Sound of Music”. Julie Andrews first made this role famous in the original movie from 1965, and Carrie will be making the move to the “Big Apple” to try and fill Andrew’s shoes. The musical will be presented live on NBC December 5, 2013, for all to see.

    Speaking for everyone at NBC, we couldn’t be happier to have the gifted Carrie Underwood take up the mantle of the great Maria von Trapp. She was an iconic woman who will now be played by an iconic artist.
    NBC’s chairman Bob Greenblatt

    Last but not least…Carrie has agreed to co-host, alongside Brad Paisley, the CMA awards again this year, making it the sixth consecutive year for the duo. The President of the CMA Board of Directors made a statement saying, “Carrie and Brad are the consummate hosts. They have the respect of our industry, artistic credibility, critical acclaim, and a quick-witted, genuine rapport that makes them popular with our audience and the viewers at home. We are delighted to have them back as hosts for the sixth year.”