Harvey Weinstein wanted all that jazz to himself when adapting the “Chicago” musical into an Oscar-winning film.
Goldie Hawn revealed during a Variety cover story that almost 15 years before Miramax’s “Chicago” won Best Picture in 2003, another adaptation was in the works starring herself and Madonna. Hawn was also set to produce. The original script was penned by Larry Gelbart and produced by Broadway veteran Marty Richards.
Weinstein announced in 1997, “It goes without saying that Roxie and Velma are two of the greatest roles ever written for musical actresses, and with Goldie, Madonna and the great Marty Richards on board, this promises to be one heck of a ride.”
Yet Weinstein later canceled the project and opted to go younger with the two female leads, according to Hawn.
“Harvey basically undermined me and Madonna,” Hawn said, noting that producer Weinstein allegedly commissioned a new script in which Hawn’s character was 23 years old.
Goldie Hawn revealed during a Variety cover story that almost 15 years before Miramax’s “Chicago” won Best Picture in 2003, another adaptation was in the works starring herself and Madonna. Hawn was also set to produce. The original script was penned by Larry Gelbart and produced by Broadway veteran Marty Richards.
Weinstein announced in 1997, “It goes without saying that Roxie and Velma are two of the greatest roles ever written for musical actresses, and with Goldie, Madonna and the great Marty Richards on board, this promises to be one heck of a ride.”
Yet Weinstein later canceled the project and opted to go younger with the two female leads, according to Hawn.
“Harvey basically undermined me and Madonna,” Hawn said, noting that producer Weinstein allegedly commissioned a new script in which Hawn’s character was 23 years old.
- 3/9/2023
- by Samantha Bergeson
- Indiewire
Perhaps this production of Sweeney Todd was just a little bit too realistic. A high school production of the play in New Zealand went seriously awry on Wednesday when two teenagers were hospitalized due to a mishap with a prop razor, according to Sky News. The incident occurred during the opening night of the production at Saint Kentigern College in Auckland, Sky News reports. During a throat-slitting scene in the play,the prop razor turned out to be not proppy enough, leading to the hospitalization of the teens. Also Read: Marty Richards, 'Chicago' and 'Sweeney Todd' Producer, Dies at 80 One of the 16 year.
- 4/7/2016
- by Tim Kenneally
- The Wrap
The roommate of the Saudi Arabian man, whose apartment was searched after the Boston Marathon bombings on April 15, is not a person of interest. Top CNN sources say he was just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Police have yet to identify the person or persons responsible for the Boston bombings on April 15. Police were reportedly questioning a man from Saudi Arabia, who was attending an English language school in the Boston area. Subsequently, he had been made not a suspect.
Saudi Arabian Suspect’s Roommate Speaks Out
The Saudi Embassy spokesman Jail Aljubeir says the Revere man is “more a witness than anything else.”
The man’s roommate reportedly opened the door to their apartment late on the night of the bombings and let police inside to conduct a search.
The unidentified roommate told the Boston Globe: “I don’t think he could do that.” He went...
Police have yet to identify the person or persons responsible for the Boston bombings on April 15. Police were reportedly questioning a man from Saudi Arabia, who was attending an English language school in the Boston area. Subsequently, he had been made not a suspect.
Saudi Arabian Suspect’s Roommate Speaks Out
The Saudi Embassy spokesman Jail Aljubeir says the Revere man is “more a witness than anything else.”
The man’s roommate reportedly opened the door to their apartment late on the night of the bombings and let police inside to conduct a search.
The unidentified roommate told the Boston Globe: “I don’t think he could do that.” He went...
- 4/16/2013
- by Chloe Melas
- HollywoodLife
A photo is circulating on the internet of an unidentified person walking on the roof of a nearby building, during the Boston bombings on April 15.
Who is that person on the roof during the two bombings? That’s the question on everyone’s mind.
Mysterious Person On Roof During Boston Bombings
Photos from the two bombings are circulating and there’s one in particular raising some eyebrows. A photo taken by Dan Lampariello, a spectator at the Boston Marathon, shows a person walking on the roof of a building as the bombs went off.
Reports claim that Boston police have been more strict about roof parties and access along the marathon route due to a 2011 accident. A 22-year-old fell through a skylight while watching the marathon from the top of a Brookline apartment.
Police Questioning Suspect
After the bombings, a 20-year-old man from Saudi Arabia was questioned by police. His...
Who is that person on the roof during the two bombings? That’s the question on everyone’s mind.
Mysterious Person On Roof During Boston Bombings
Photos from the two bombings are circulating and there’s one in particular raising some eyebrows. A photo taken by Dan Lampariello, a spectator at the Boston Marathon, shows a person walking on the roof of a building as the bombs went off.
Reports claim that Boston police have been more strict about roof parties and access along the marathon route due to a 2011 accident. A 22-year-old fell through a skylight while watching the marathon from the top of a Brookline apartment.
Police Questioning Suspect
After the bombings, a 20-year-old man from Saudi Arabia was questioned by police. His...
- 4/16/2013
- by Chloe Melas
- HollywoodLife
On April 8th, producer Marty Richards' feast of friends and loved ones gathered in celebration of his extremely accomplished life at The Edison Ballroom 240 West 47th Street where they were entertained by a star-studded retrospective of show-stopping numbers from Mr. Richards' acclaimed Broadway musicals including Chicago, On The Twentieth Century, The Life, Grand Hotel, Sweeney Todd, La Cage Aux Folles, Sweet Smell Of Success, The Will Rogers Follies and Chita Rivera The Dancer's Life.BroadwayWorld was there for the special celebration and you can check out highlights from inside the concert below...
- 4/16/2013
- by BroadwayWorld TV
- BroadwayWorld.com
On Monday evening, April 8th at the finale of Marty Richards' star-studded-sold-out Memorial to benefit his beloved New York Center For Children, which he co-founded with his wife Mary Lea Johnson Richards, Chita Rivera quieted the crowd to make an important announcement regarding the future of the American Theatre and the New York centric film and television's East Coast community. Dan Gallagher and Michael Milton, Mr. Richards' co-workers and right-hand visionaries for over fifteen years, have power-teamed with ProducerGeneral Manager, Cheryl Dennis, to form the new Producer Circle Co. with offices in Manhattan.
- 4/14/2013
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Last night, April 8th, producer Marty Richards' feast of friends and loved ones gathered in celebration of his extremely accomplished life at The Edison Ballroom 240 West 47th Street where they were entertained by a star-studded retrospective of show-stopping numbers from Mr. Richards' acclaimed Broadway musicals including Chicago, On The Twentieth Century, The Life, Grand Hotel, Sweeney Todd, La Cage Aux Folles, Sweet Smell Of Success, The Will Rogers Follies and Chita Rivera The Dancer's Life.BroadwayWorld was there for the special celebration and you can check out who was there to celebrate the legend below...
- 4/9/2013
- by Walter McBride
- BroadwayWorld.com
Last night, April 8th, producer Marty Richards' feast of friends and loved ones gathered in celebration of his extremely accomplished life at The Edison Ballroom 240 West 47th Street where they were entertained by a star-studded retrospective of show-stopping numbers from Mr. Richards' acclaimed Broadway musicals including Chicago, On The Twentieth Century, The Life, Grand Hotel, Sweeney Todd, La Cage Aux Folles, Sweet Smell Of Success, The Will Rogers Follies and Chita Rivera The Dancer's Life.BroadwayWorld was there for the special celebration and you can check out photos from inside the concert below...
- 4/9/2013
- by Walter McBride
- BroadwayWorld.com
At 630pm, tonight, April 8th producer Marty Richards' feast of friends and loved ones will gather in celebration of his extremely accomplished life at The Edison Ballroom 240 West 47th Street where they will be served a magnificent four-course dinner and be entertained by a star-studded retrospective of show-stopping numbers from Mr. Richards' acclaimed Broadway musicals including Chicago, On The Twentieth Century, The Life, Grand Hotel, Sweeney Todd, La Cage Aux Folles, Sweet Smell Of Success, The Will Rogers Follies and Chita Rivera The Dancer's Life.
- 4/8/2013
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
At 630pm, on Monday, April 8th producer Marty Richards' feast of friends and loved ones will gather in celebration of his extremely accomplished life at The Edison Ballroom 240 West 47th Street where they will be served a magnificent four-course dinner and be entertained by a star-studded retrospective of show-stopping numbers from Mr. Richards' acclaimed Broadway musicals including Chicago, On The Twentieth Century, The Life, Grand Hotel, Sweeney Todd, La Cage Aux Folles, Sweet Smell Of Success, The Will Rogers Follies and Chita Rivera The Dancer's Life.
- 3/30/2013
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Martin Richards — or “Marty,” as those in the theater community called him — died of cancer Monday in New York City. Richards won an Academy Award in 2003 for producing that year’s Best Picture, Chicago. The Oscar was the culmination of Richards’s decades-long battle to bring that Kander and Ebb musical to movie theaters; it began in 1975, when Richards produced the show’s original Broadway production.
- 11/27/2012
- by EW.com
- Huffington Post
Broadway will dim its lights Tuesday night in honor of producer Martin Richards, who died this week at age 80. Richards was the force behind such classic musicals as "La Cage aux Folles," "Sweeney Todd" and "Chicago." Although best known for his work on plays that were song and dance heavy, he also produced straight dramatic works such as the Pulitzer Prize winning "Crimes of the Heart." Also read: Marty Richards, 'Chicago' and 'Sweeney Todd' Producer, Dies at 80 In addition to his work on stage, Richards won an Oscar for producing the...
- 11/27/2012
- by Brent Lang
- The Wrap
Producer Martin Richards died on Monday at age 80. Best known for producing a number of Tony Award-winning musicals (including the original staging of Sweeny Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, which swept the 1979 Tonys) Richards was also on board for The Shining.
Acting on the stage at age 10, puberty hit and the acting gigs dried up. He began producing in the 1960s, starting with Bob Fosse's Chicago. In 1976, he founded the Producer Circle Co. with Mary Lea Johnson (who would marry him two years later, even though she knew he was gay) to help finance theater and movie projects. Stanley Kubrick's classic, The Shining was one of these productions.
In addition to a life on stage and screen, Richards was a noted philanthropist, funding causes that offer support to AIDS patients and abused children. ...
Acting on the stage at age 10, puberty hit and the acting gigs dried up. He began producing in the 1960s, starting with Bob Fosse's Chicago. In 1976, he founded the Producer Circle Co. with Mary Lea Johnson (who would marry him two years later, even though she knew he was gay) to help finance theater and movie projects. Stanley Kubrick's classic, The Shining was one of these productions.
In addition to a life on stage and screen, Richards was a noted philanthropist, funding causes that offer support to AIDS patients and abused children. ...
- 11/27/2012
- by Alyse Wax
- FEARnet
Martin Richards — or “Marty,” as those in the theater community called him — died of cancer Monday in New York City. Richards won an Academy Award in 2003 for producing that year’s Best Picture, Chicago. The Oscar was the culmination of Richards’s decades-long battle to bring that Kander and Ebb musical to movie theaters; it began in 1975, when Richards produced the show’s original Broadway production.
Of course, Chicago wasn’t Richards’s only project. The prolific stage producer — born Morton Richard Klein in the Bronx — was nominated for 10 Tony Awards throughout his career, winning for La Cage aux Folles...
Of course, Chicago wasn’t Richards’s only project. The prolific stage producer — born Morton Richard Klein in the Bronx — was nominated for 10 Tony Awards throughout his career, winning for La Cage aux Folles...
- 11/27/2012
- by Hillary Busis
- EW - Inside Movies
Marty Richards, producer and philanthropist, died yesterday at age 80. The New Yorker’s stage producing credits included Chicago, Sweeney Todd, La Cage aux Folles, and Crimes of the Heart. While Broadway was his stomping grounds over a 50 year career, Richards had a pretty good film resume as well. It includes winning Best Picture for the 2002 film Chicago, as well as The Boys From Brazil, Fort Apache, The Bronx, and the Stanley Kubrick-directed The Shining. Funeral services will be held later this week in New York for Richards, whose philanthropic efforts included the formation of Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS and Meals On Wheels. He also made possible the liver and kidney transplant unit at Nyu Medical Center.
- 11/27/2012
- by MIKE FLEMING JR.
- Deadline
Martin Richards, a Broadway and Hollywood showman whose own life was often as flamboyant and warmhearted as his many productions, died of cancer Monday at his Upper East Side New York home. He was 80. Winning the Best Picture Oscar for his movie musical Chicago at the 2003 Academy Awards - he had also produced the original Broadway version in 1975 - Richards had to hold back the tears as he recalled those he had worked with on the show, including the late legendary director-choreographer Bob Fosse and Richards's late producing partner and wife, Mary Lea Johnson, of the Johnson & Johnson pharmaceutical company family.
- 11/27/2012
- by Stephen M. Silverman
- PEOPLE.com
Marty Richards, the producer behind the Broadway productions of "Sweeney Todd" and "La Cage aux Folles," as well as the 2002 big-screen adaptation of "Chicago," died Monday, Playbill reports. He was 80. Richards, born Morton Richard Klein in the Bronx, started out as a performer, joining the cast of the 1944 musical comedy "Mexican Hayride" at 10 and performing as a nightclub singer while studying architecture at Nyu. Small television and movie parts followed, with Richards later working as a casting director for Fox and Paramount. Also read: Notable Celebrity Deaths of...
- 11/27/2012
- by Tim Kenneally
- The Wrap
Bay Street Theatre, Martin Richards and The Gilead Company present the World Premiere musical Big Maybelle Soul Of The Blues with Tony Award-winner Lillias White starring as legendary blues singer Maybelle Smith written and directed by Paul Levine. Michael Mitchell is the Musical Director Orchestrations are by Musical Supervisor Kenny Seymour. The show runs tomorrow, August 7 through Sunday, September 2. Scroll down for photos of White performing onstage at Bay Street...
- 8/6/2012
- by BWW News Desk
- BroadwayWorld.com
Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones turned party hosts on Tuesday night to throw a star-studded 80th birthday bash for producer Martin Richards.
The Chicago moviemaker is close pals with Douglas as his late wife Mary Lea Johnson was the actor's cousin, and the Wall Street star was on hand with Zeta-Jones to stage the New York bash.
Robert De Niro, Rob Marshall and Steve Guttenberg were among the guests, who were greeted by Douglas and his partner at the party at the Rubin Art Museum.
Broadway legend Chita Rivera led the tributes to Richards, while Lilias White entertained the crowd by singing At Last to the producer, according to Showbiz411.com.
The Chicago moviemaker is close pals with Douglas as his late wife Mary Lea Johnson was the actor's cousin, and the Wall Street star was on hand with Zeta-Jones to stage the New York bash.
Robert De Niro, Rob Marshall and Steve Guttenberg were among the guests, who were greeted by Douglas and his partner at the party at the Rubin Art Museum.
Broadway legend Chita Rivera led the tributes to Richards, while Lilias White entertained the crowd by singing At Last to the producer, according to Showbiz411.com.
- 1/18/2012
- WENN
Tom Cruise's movie hit Cocktail is set to be turned into a Broadway musical.
Creator Heywood Gould is marking the 20th anniversary of the film's release by turning his script into a New York stage show.
He has recruited Chicago producer Martin Richards to help write the music, and he has hinted he wants Cruise's wife Katie Holmes to reprise Elizabeth Shue's big screen role onstage.
Gould tells the New York Post, "I am writing it as we speak. Marty Richards is on board and he's working on the score.
"It's far too early to talk about casting. We haven't approached anybody yet, but yes I like Katie Holmes."...
Creator Heywood Gould is marking the 20th anniversary of the film's release by turning his script into a New York stage show.
He has recruited Chicago producer Martin Richards to help write the music, and he has hinted he wants Cruise's wife Katie Holmes to reprise Elizabeth Shue's big screen role onstage.
Gould tells the New York Post, "I am writing it as we speak. Marty Richards is on board and he's working on the score.
"It's far too early to talk about casting. We haven't approached anybody yet, but yes I like Katie Holmes."...
- 10/26/2009
- WENN
Chicago producer Martin Richards is suing Harvey Weinstein and Bob Weinstein, Miramax and Disney over unpaid profits from the 2002 hit musical. Richards claims he is owed a $25 million share of the movie's profits - but has been snubbed by Miramax moguls the Weinsteins who claim the movie made a loss. After waiting to give them the chance to resolve a dispute with Miramax's parent company, Richards has had enough and hired a lawyer to battle it out in court. He tells PageSix.com, "I waited long enough. I kept waiting until he got through his headaches with Disney. But Harvey got $100 million personally from Disney, and he owes me $25 million. I've been threatening. Now I'm doing. I'm suing the s**t out of him. His people said Chicago is $10 million in the red. I guess if I wait ten more years it'll be more like $36 million in the red. Not easy since the DVD income alone was $100 million, and the movie made almost $400 million, and he's still telling me it lost money? I'm going to demand a jury trial."...
- 6/30/2005
- WENN
IMDb.com, Inc. takes no responsibility for the content or accuracy of the above news articles, Tweets, or blog posts. This content is published for the entertainment of our users only. The news articles, Tweets, and blog posts do not represent IMDb's opinions nor can we guarantee that the reporting therein is completely factual. Please visit the source responsible for the item in question to report any concerns you may have regarding content or accuracy.