Well for goodness sakes, look who's headed to New York for Rosie O'Donnell's show . . . it's four Anderson Township kids.
Turns out the lads - Patrick Helwig, and Jake, Zack and Steve Snyder, ages 9 to 14 - are a group called Backbeat - Beatles imitators and right good at it.
So good that when they opened for the Beatles tribute group 1964 last summer, they blew '64 away so completely that the group asked them to open a February show for them.
So good that when dads - Steve Helwig and Steve Snyder - sent a video to Rosie's show, a talent coordinator booked them instantly. So good that there's a chance they'll do Letterman in February when the world celebrates the 35th anniversary of the Beatles appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show.
So how do a bunch of kids get hooked on a nearly 40-year-old band? Seems they were listening to the Hansons one day when Snyder popped in a Beatles CD because they were the Hansons of his generation.
The kids loved it enough to listen and start imitating. Backbeat has been together six months. They tape Rosie Dec. 8 for a Dec. 14 air date.
HEARD AROUND TOWN:
"You mean this house isn't the show? It ought to be."
That from one of the guests Saturday at a party Melody Sawyer Richardson gave for Lady Victoria Leatham. Lady Victoria is the current resident of Burghley House, centerpiece of the show British Elegance: Decorative Arts from Burghley House at the Art Museum through Jan. 17. She was here for a round of parties celebrating the opening.
Such as the one Richardson threw for 175 artsy types and members of the local chapter of the Colonial Dames. The group operates 88 historic properties.
Meaning they're into restoration, and that was all the hot buzz - the restoration of Richardson's turn-of-the-century Hyde Park home, from the third floor servants' quarters (now guest rooms), through all 13 bathrooms, right down to the lower level ballroom with its inlaid hardwood floors.
Even Lady Victoria was impressed, especially by the 27-foot picture window in the kitchen and the restored pipe organ (28 ranks, 1,633 pipes) in the living room.
Guests - arts patron David Herriman, who kept saying "go see this; go see that"; artsy photographer Tom Schiff, designer Dale Lamson, David and Ellie Lazarus, Christ Church music director Ernie Hoffman, who played the organ - made a point of doing two things: Touring the house and visiting with Lady Victoria, who made a point of talking to everyone she could get to.
CHILI ROCK:
And this for folk who get off on 1.) star sightings and 2.) Barenaked Ladies.
Watch Skyline.
Turns out the Ladies are fascinated by the Skyline Chili concept. It's unclear whether they've tried it, but they talk about it from stage.
At a concert two years ago in Oxford, for example, they talked about eating it over ice cream, wondered why there was chocolate in it and compared it to dessert.
Fast forward: The Ladies are in town for a concert today (sold out) at the Crown. Knowing their, uh, attraction, Erica McDonnell, wife of Skyline CEO Kevin McDonnell, called Ladies' agent and issued invitations: a tour of Skyline's commissary; dinner at Skyline; backstage catering; deliveries to the hotel.
Well, yes, the Ladies responded. They'll do something, but won't be sure what until later this afternoon. They also invited the McDonnell family backstage to meet and do a photo op.
Psst! appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. Have an item to report? Call Jim Knippenberg at 768-8513; fax: 768-8330.
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