Tom Lenk, who starred as Andrew on Buffy the Vampire Slayer, will make his Broadway debut as Franz in the Tony-nominated musical Rock of Ages on Sept. 14. Lenk originated the supporting role, the son of a German developer who wants to demolish the Sunset Strip (including LA’s favorite rock club), in Los Angeles and Las Vegas productions. He phoned EW to give us the scoop and the often hilarious backstory.
• A UCLA theater grad with formal voice training, Lenk went to college with Rock of Ages‘ Tony-nominated director Kristin Hanggi. They’ve worked together before — on a production of Ann E. Wrecksick, an Annie spoof about bulimic orphans, in the basement of a Mexican restaurant in Silver Lake, Calif. the summer after his first season on Buffy. She knew he was also friends with Rock of Ages writer Chris D’Arienzo, and phoned Lenk to tell him that D’Arienzo had a role that might suit him. “In Ann E. Wrecksick, I had done a character of a German fashion designer. I’d also been doing this sketch for years about a German character who’s obsessed with Star Trek and Melrose Place, based on my time having been invited to appear as a random Buffy person at a Star Trek convention in Germany and a friend’s Hungarian husband who was obsessed with Melrose Place,” he says. “So they knew I did this German thing, and it happened to be perfect for the show.”
• Franz’s big moment, the song “Hit Me With Your Best Shot,” comes when he starts a relationship with Regina, who works in the Mayor’s office and protests his and his father’s plans. “I’m a little nervous. The way I performed it in LA and Vegas is not nearly as exhaustive as the version that’s happening now on stage. I would stand and sing, and then do some dancing. But now it’s dancing while I’m singing, so I have two weeks to become Beyoncé,” he says. (Thankfully, he’d already been taking dance classes at his gym and doing Silver Lake’s Sweaty Sundays, “an all-level ironic jazz dance class.”) He also has additional motivation: At the beginning of the song, he rips away his costume to reveal “a bedazzled onesie, so to speak.” If memory serves him well, that was actually his idea back when the show was being workshopped. “I think offhandedly, I was like, ‘Guys, this song is just missing something. What do you think if I ripped off my clothes to reveal a sparkling unitard?’ And the director was like yes and yes.’” To prepare for that moment, he’s hired a trainer, reinstating the “TWAT system” — “Tan it, Wax it, And Tone It ” — which he and the other Ann E. Wrecksick actors developed when they had to appear on stage in their underwear. “Here’s the thing: When we did Rock of Ages in LA [in 2006], I ripped off my clothes and it was funny and everyone had a good laugh,” he says. “I went to see the show last month in New York, and the guy ripped his clothes off to reveal a totally rockin’ bod. I was like, Ohmygod, you can be funny and arousing? If I’m gonna take my clothes off every day on stage for six months on Broadway, I might as well get a date out of it. So I’m gonna try to get some biceps and pectoral muscles by Sept. 14.”
READ FULL STORY »
I’m pretty sad, I’ll tell you what. After 13 seasons, on Sept. 13 at 8 p.m., Fox’s King of the Hill will air its last two episodes, 
Thousands gathered in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park late Saturday afternoon — despite an unseasonable chill in the air and a persistent, gloomy mist — to celebrate the late King of Pop’s 51st birthday. The five-hour-long festivities, organized by director/Brooklyn local Spike Lee (left), showed what two months of perspective can do: Fans have clearly gotten to acceptance, and perhaps to a sixth stage of grief, partying. It felt like a truly joyous (and endearingly amateurish) celebration of Michael Jackson’s enormous influence, with none of the disbelief and sadness and even soul-searching (what did his bizarre life say about us as a society?) that weighed on earlier commemorations. Toddlers decorated a black umbrella with puffy paint that spelled out “MJ Forever.” Electric Slide pockets erupted spontaneously throughout the crowd. Naturally, people sold things — homemade T-shirts (the things you can do with Photoshop!), framed pictures, sunglasses with Jackson’s birth and death years etched onto the side (why not?). And naturally, people dressed in, shall we say, homage to the star. (Sparkly socks? Nice. Guy in full Jackson regalia, including black suit, white glove, penny loafers, fedora, curls, white pancake makeup, and fake entourage with umbrella-holder? A little much.) Despite the oddities, however, the crowd remained almost eerily peaceful and patient and friendly, content simply to listen to Jackson tunes, dance together, and occasionally participate in sing-alongs and call-and-response as led by Lee and organizers from a bare-bones stage set-up. Aside from the self-appointed souvenir hawkers, there were no food and drink booths, no official vendors. “There’s nothing here except peace and love,” a fellow fan, Manhattanite Erin Carlson, marveled. And she was right, as hippie-ish as it sounds. It was nice to know that Jackson’s music is still bringing folks together, spreading joy despite the dark, sad parts of his life. Even on a rainy day in Brooklyn.
The early numbers are in and to absolutely no one’s surprise around here The Final Destination is murdering Michael Myers at the box office 
Well, for those who may have thought things would get boring in the Big Brother House after Lydia was evicted…not so much. Granted, the weekend was fairly mellow, although the wheeling and dealing was in full swing. Jeff made his play to backdoor Russell, believing Natalie and Kevin were being true to their word when they guaranteed Jeff they wouldn’t nominate him if he put Russell up. Again, not so much.
