Seen: Steven Wright, Pauly D & More
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Wry comedy superstar Steven Wright hit Newport last Friday as part of the Newport Yachting Center’s Summer Comedy Series. New England isn’t unfamiliar to Wright, as he was raised in Burlington, MA, attended Emerson College, and got his start doing comedy at The Comedy Connection in Boston. His trademark monotone voice and deadpan delivery earned him an Oscar, a Grammy nomination, and the first ever spot in the Boston Comedy Hall of Fame. His philosophical yet irrational one-liners were a hit with the crowd of about 900 comedy lovers, who gave him a standing ovation after his 90-minute show. Then, it was out on the town with friends at Buskers Pub after the show, and overnight at the Newport Marriott...
Also spotted in Newport this weekend, at the famed Newport Music Festival, none other than Billy Joel. The classical fare was certainly a change of pace from the rocking Joel did with Paul McCartney for an encore performance of "Saw Her Standing There" at the Beatle's sold-out show at Yankee Stadium earlier this month...
Sharp-eyed Seen spies spotted none other than RI's own Pauly D in the 401 this week, dining at the Cheesecake Factory at the Providence Place Mall. He enjoyed the Thai Chicken pasta, and although he may act a little wild on TV, he was just another pleasant, water-drinking, well-tipping patron. Meanwhile, the bad-boy we launched to the Jersey Shore just gets hotter and hotter. We reported yesterday that he joins none other than bad girl Britney Spears on tour in August, but he's also picking up some award nominations. First, he was chosen as a contender in the America’s Best DJ competition. One hundred mix-masters were chosen, and although the nomination of Pauly last year caused some controversy (some of the other DJs only thought he made it because of his reality star status), this year he’s in it to win it. His other nomination
is for Best Male Reality TV Star on the Teen Choice Awards 2011. Among others, he’s up against Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino (pictured with Pauly here in Florence), his housemate on Jersey Shore, but hopefully if one of them wins it won’t come to blows between the two...GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST
Speaking of late shows, indie dance punk duo Matt & Kim appeared as the featured musical guests on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon on Tuesday night. Matt Johnson plays the keyboards and sings and Kim Schifino, who grew up in East Providence (and was the state cross country champ in high school), plays the drums. After Jimmy spoke with actor Steve Carell and comedian Marc Maron, Matt & Kim played the latest single from their most recent album Sidewalks, called “Block After Block.” This was the group’s second performance on primetime TV (they were on Jimmy Kimmel Live two years ago), although they’re no strangers to the spotlight, having had their music featured on numerous television shows, video games, and commercials. They now live in New York and the last time Kim performed in Rhode Island was when they played a show at The Met in Pawtucket last fall; hopefully they’ll come back again soon…
Another Providence musician also had a big week. Hip-hop artist Sage Francis headlined the 2011 Underground Music Showcase in Denver this past weekend, which featured over 325 performances on 25 stages. Francis, known to some as a “forefather of indie-hop” spun his poetical and socially relevant lyrics on Friday night on the main stage. He has a unique style that fuses hip-hop with indie rock, and he’s worked with such big rock names as Chris Walla from Death Cab for Cutie. He’s also involved in the spoken word movement, and he was on the Providence Poetry Slam national slam teams multiple times (it’s called “The House that Sage Francis Built” by many). Francis still lives in Providence, so don’t be surprised if you see him in an MC battle or hip-hop event around town…
And get ready, Rhode Island. Megawatt superstar Bill Cosby will be in the house in early August, when he hosts a gala fundraiser for the Newport Festivals Foundation, the new non-profit that oversees the Newport Folk and Jazz Festivals. Cosby is a lifelong jazz fan, so it's a perfect match...
Seen someone famous in the 401? Make yourself famous. Report it to Seen at [email protected]. Brownie points (and photo credits) for photographs.
