Sunday, September 30, 2012

Another Donnie Wahlberg TV appearance and Jordan Knight venue change

Just a quick update --


Donnie will be CBS This Morning on Wednesday October 3rd (Thanks @johnk055 for the update)

Jordan's Montreal show has moved from Metropolis to l'Astral.

The Boston Globe highlights NKOTB Book

The Boston Globe posted some snippets from the first few chapters of  “New Kids on the Block: Five Brothers and a Million Sisters” in the Sunday Boston Globe Magazine.

New Kids on the Block: Their early Boston days

From the new authorized biography come these scenes from the boy band’s start. It was a time of break dancing, goofing off, and dreaming big.

THE PATHS OF THE FOUR Dorchester boys who would become the New Kids on the Block — brothers Jon and Jordan Knight, Donnie Wahlberg, and Danny Wood — crossed at Roxbury’s Trotter Elementary School in the 1970s and early 1980s, although they were spread across different classes. (The fifth member, Joe McIntyre, was from Jamaica Plain.) Danny has fond memories of his time at Trotter. “Outside of school it was a very controversial time, because busing started when Donnie and I went into first grade. We were surrounded by chaos, but in school it was amazing. We didn’t feel all that. Everyone was open to being around everyone else.” For Donnie, being bused outside to Roxbury was a gift of sorts. “We lived in a racially diverse neighborhood, but on my street, it was mainly all white kids. In the white neighborhoods, we weren’t really allowed to dream. It wasn’t like, ‘I’m gonna be famous one day.’ That would get you punched in the face. But in school, it was OK to talk like that and think like that.”


MARLENE PUTMAN says of her son Jordan, “I remember him going downtown and around the corner with his cardboard and break dancing. He would go into the subways and sing when he was really young. There were times I was concerned for his safety, but he was so darn charmed, he just got around the city smoothly. He was a young teenager and thought he knew everything. But he was fine. And his sense of confidence just allowed me to relax.”


MEANWHILE, Donnie and Danny were busy building up a repertoire of their own. According to Donnie, “Me and Danny used to do rap performances and shows. I would write rap routines for Danny and me. In ninth grade, Danny and I used to go to the Catholic school dances every Friday night. We would be the two hip-hop guys, and they’d be like, ‘Where did these guys come from?’ In those neighborhoods, the guys didn’t dare do anything like that. That wasn’t cool. But me and Danny came in and turned the place upside down. There’d be a big circle, and we’d be break dancing in the middle of it, and all the girls loved us. One time my brother Paul was in culinary school. I saw his white double-breasted jacket and was like, ‘Yo! Can me and Danny borrow one of those each?’ And we made outfits. We had white gloves and the white culinary jackets.”


AS THE GUYS were immersed in high school, over in Roxbury, producer Larry Johnson — more widely known as Maurice Starr — had just been ousted from pop group New Edition and had turned his attention to other projects. One of his ideas was to work with a group of kids like New Edition, only this time he envisioned a white band. In an effort to identify just the right kids, Maurice called in talent agent Mary Alford, who was previously involved with R & B acts such as Rick James. In July 1984, then 14-year-old Donnie had caught the attention of Mary through his frequent performances around Dorchester. She persuaded him to audition for Maurice.


AFTER PERFORMING for Maurice, Donnie and his brother Mark were immediately asked to join, while Donnie’s two friends were dismissed. And, thus, the music group Nynuk (a meaningless name Maurice pulled out of thin air) was officially born. Though the Wahlberg brothers started taking singing lessons at the house of Soni Jonzun, one of Maurice’s brothers, and recording songs, it wasn’t exactly the most organized endeavor. Maurice slipped in and out of the picture. Donnie remembers: “We’d go every weekend to Maurice’s house, and he would never show up. [Maurice] was just out screwing around playing basketball.” In time, Mark started to drift away. Maurice and Donnie pressed forward, writing and recording songs. After laying down four tracks, one day Maurice turned to Donnie and said, “You gotta find some other guys now.” With this, Donnie began the process of rebuilding, using his schoolmates and neighborhood circle as a talent pool.


NYNUK HAD ONE of its first major lessons in dealing with adversity onstage while playing a show at the Franklin Park Kite Festival hosted by a local radio station. Thousands of rowdy fans packed the park as a series of bands played. In attendance that day, Donnie’s mom, Alma Wahlberg, remembers, “I almost had a heart attack. It was just a lot of people. A lot of people.”

As Nynuk came onstage, audience members started throwing some of the 45 records that had been handed out that day. “Somebody threw a record, and it cut Danny,” Alma says. “The bodyguards are grabbing the kids off the stage and making them go in the car. Donnie kept saying, ‘No! No! We’re here. We’re going on.’ ”

What compelled the band to get back onstage? Donnie says: “The records was flying. The security guards dragged us offstage, and the song kept playing. The crowd was laughing because the song kept playing and the voices were on the tape and we were singing. The mikes were on. There was, like, 10,000 people. But my classmate Cristin, who I’d been going to school with since first grade, was standing dead center in the front row looking at me. And Danny knew her, too. The minute they pulled me offstage, all I thought was ‘Cristin’s gonna tell everyone in school what happened. I can’t let this happen.’ And I ducked under the security guard and I ran back onstage, and I looked back and said, ‘Come on!’ and all the other guys came back onstage.”

Alma remembers watching the crowd turn around once the guys reemerged and continued performing. “They all started clapping and yelling for them. . . . As scared as I was, that was the right thing to do, and I knew it.”

Donnie says: “In those times, when race relations were so tense in Boston, you couldn’t drop another white kid in Franklin Park at the Kite Festival and expect them to perform in front of 10,000 black people. They would’ve ran. We were like, ‘This is awesome.’ We loved it. We thrived on it. . . . Going back onstage was simply about us believing in ourselves and wanting to stand our ground.”


SOME OF THE BAND’S shows in the mid-’80s occurred at unlikely places, from retirement homes to a prison where one of Donnie’s brothers was incarcerated. The group was clever enough to adapt to each audience by pulling tricks out of its sleeves, such as tossing cigarettes to the inmates. “I just knew prisoners loved cigarettes, and I also figured it’s the only way we wouldn’t get humiliated,” Donnie says. “When we threw those packs of cigarettes out, that’s it. We were heroes. The whole prison was going crazy. Any movie you’ve seen with a prison or, like, Marilyn Monroe singing at the USO, it was like that. Except we were boys singing at a man’s prison.”


IN 1987, Danny, Donnie, and Jordan all worked summer jobs in downtown Boston. Donnie remembers: “Danny and me worked in the Shawmut Bank building, and Jordan worked right across the street in the mailroom in some other bank building. We’d take the subway into work in the morning, we’d meet for lunch, and then we’d probably go to Maurice’s house at night after that. From the summer of ’87 on, we were together all the time. We were with Maurice or we’d go ride around and play basketball together. We’d go try to pick up girls together. Everything we did all day was related to the group.”


“PLEASE DON’T GO GIRL” was released as the lead single to the group’s second album, Hangin’ Tough, on April 16, 1988. The song was distributed to black stations, utilizing the same marketing strategy put in place for the 1986 debut album, New Kids on the Block, which reflected the band’s new name.

In conjunction with the single, the band recorded a low-budget music video, which was released to BET (Black Entertainment Television). The video featured a very young-looking Joe, with the four other guys in tow, holding a yellow flower and imploring a significantly older woman not to leave him. The video was recorded on a frigid winter day, which is apparent by the group’s red faces. “It was downright freezing that day; it was really bad,” Jordan says. “That video was so whack. But you gotta start somewhere.” Maurice fronted the $9,000 needed to film the video — a lot of money for him to come up with.


ASK ALMOST ANY MEMBER of NKOTB about his standout memory of those earlier days, and he will cite the group’s first Apollo Theater appearance in the spring of 1988. Located in Harlem, the landmark theater attracted a primarily black audience that was infamous for being unforgiving, frequently driving performers offstage. Of the anticipation leading up to it, Donnie says: “We weren’t terrified that we were white and no one was going to like us because we were white. We kinda figured when these five white kids walk out onstage they’re gonna think we’ll sing like a barbershop quartet. Then we’d start dancing and going crazy. I think by that point, we were aware that it was an asset. But there in the Apollo Theater, it was like ‘We can’t fail. We can’t be booed. This could be the end of us.’ ”

Looking back on their performance of “Please Don’t Go Girl” and “The Right Stuff” that night, Jon says, “I think that was the scariest show I ever did. It was just nerve-racking.” Back then, before boy bands and crossover music, NKOTB was a novelty for the Apollo crowd. As a testament to the audience’s wonderment, Jon remembers that in the middle of the performance “they started shouting, ‘Go, white boys! Go, white boys!’ It was just like ‘What the hell is happening?’ ” Danny recalls that night as a big turning point: “The moment for me when I knew it was going to happen was when we did the Apollo and got a standing ovation. That was pretty big.”

Joe’s proud father, Tom McIntyre, remembers watching the boys perform that night. “I was there with my daughter Judy, and Alma and Marlene. We were the only Irish people there. There was a break, and I went downstairs and smoked my cigar. I said to myself as I was smoking my cigar, ‘Jesus, if these guys at Amrheins could see me now.’ . . . The Apollo is the first thing they did with any kind of notoriety. They knocked ’em dead. It was marvelous.”


ON THE EVENING OF JULY 19, 1988, the five guys (along with a slim road crew) gathered outside Maurice’s house, ready to board their bus and embark on their first national tour, as pop singer Tiffany’s opening act. While Jordan and Donnie had recently finished high school, Joe was still only 15 and in between his freshman and sophomore years. As the guys boarded the bus, a small group of family, friends, and “fans” bid them farewell. “I was crying,” Jordan says. “I think it was mainly over my girlfriend. All our friends were there, and they were hugging us. We were going off on tour. There were three girls waving us off — they were fans-slash-friends-slash-neighborhood girls.”

Tom McIntyre remembers seeing off his son and the other New Kids. “They left in a bus that would be lucky to get to Copley Square,” he says, “let alone wherever they were going.” Jon and Jordan’s mother, Marlene Putnam, recalls that night as a moment of stirrings that bigger things were afoot. “The boys went on the tour bus with care packages from the parents,” she says. “We were there to say goodbye, and the bus rode off. Off they went to become famous. They were going off, as far as we were concerned, to be an opening act for Tiffany. Wasn’t this great? But that was really their first big bus ride off into stardom.”

Boston Herald reviews NKOTB Book

The Boston Herald has posted a review/article about “New Kids on the Block: Five Brothers and a Million Sisters” in today's issue.

Bio chronicles rise, fall and rise of New Kids on the Block

There are fans, and then there are New Kids on the Block fans.

Allston-based author Nikki Van Noy chronicles the rise, fall and rebirth of the Boston-raised boy band and the support of their loyal followers in the authorized biography “New Kids on the Block: Five Brothers and a Million Sisters” -(Simon & Schuster; $25).

“You can’t have a New Kids story without the fans,” Van Noy told the Herald. “If you look at those articles from the ’80s and ’90s, there isn’t a story about the New Kids that doesn’t involve the fans.”

The 288-page book, on sale Tuesday, weaves the voices of all five band members — Donnie Wahlberg, brothers Jordan and Jonathan Knight, Danny Wood and Joey McIntyre — with anecdotes from nearly 100 “Blockheads.”

Van Noy, 34, was among the throngs of adolescent girls pining for the band in the late ’80s.

“Seeing the fans come back in full force all those years later is a pretty crazy thing,” she said. “Talking to (band members) and watching them with the fans, it’s amazing how (in touch they are). They will sit there, and they know names of fans, have nicknames for fans.”

But don’t look for any sordid tales involving groupies in this book. Neither the guys or Van Noy go there.

Any hint of indiscretion is summed up in an anecdote from Jonathan Knight: “We’d get to go and play in a lot of amusement parks and stay in hotels. I think that was the equivalent of us going to college. That must be what going to college is like: getting drunk, and stupid, and sex. All that stuff we never experienced in college, we experienced on the road, just the five of us.”

Van Noy spent a year and half interviewing each guy one-on-one, as well as their parents.

“There wasn’t a publicist around. It was me and whatever guy I was talking to at the time. I can’t tell you how refreshingly open and honest they were. They blew everyone else I ever interviewed out of the water,” Van Noy said.

The book touches on dark topics, such as Jonathan Knight’s struggles with anxiety and depression and Jordan Knight’s battle with booze, but doesn’t linger there.

“What really struck me with them over and over again (is that) they are so hands-on,” Van Noy said. “They are in the minute details. That’s something a lot people don’t get about them. ... They are calling the shots. They are driving this and making decisions, and it’s a true representation of them.”

Friday, September 28, 2012

Watch Donnie Wahlberg on Rachael Ray

Here is the complete interview Donnie did on the Rachael Ray Show that aired today. Thanks to yikes77 for uploading!

Listen to Jordan Knight on CHUM FM

Jordan talked to Chum FM in Toronto this morning. In the interview he said he will be going to the "Back in the Day Bash" with Corey Hart at Masonic Temple tonight.

Update: Interview has been deleted, does anyone have it saved?

Watch Jordan Knight on News Talk 1010

Jordan did an interview with News Talk 1010.  Here is the video.

Update: Video has been deleted, does anyone have it saved?

Donnie Wahlberg interviewed by Glamour

Glamour recently interviewed Donnie and other cast members of Blue Bloods. Below is Donnie's interview. 

Glamour: The intensity and dynamic you bring to every scene as Detective Danny Reagan is incredible. How are you managing to balance everything in your life when taking on such a demanding role?

Donnie Wahlberg: I don’t know. I think every now and again, every actor thinks they can play any role, and the smart actors are honest enough to know that they can't. My entire body of work as an actor has prepared me for this role, and this is one of those times where everything was aligned perfectly and I was the right guy in the right place with the right resume with the right experience and the right passion for this gig. It may seem hard, and it may look hard, and I’m sure there are times when I’ve done 18-hour days in cold New York City where I’m like, ‘Damn, this is hard,’ but in all sincerity, it's really easy. And I don't mean that to make light of it, I just really think that this role was meant to be mine.

Glamour: The little boys that play your sons on the show (real life brothers Andrew and Tony Terraciano) are so cute and fine young actors. Do they get what a big deal it is to work opposite you, Tom, and Bridget?

Donnie: In some ways, they are really like the kids of the show. Tom is like their grandpa. He sort of makes jokes with them at the dinner table, but he doesn't have to take them home at the end of the day! [laughs] For me, they come rushing in when I come in the door, and I'm sort of like their surrogate dad. They hang out with my real son all the time. They adore each other. It's just really nice. The family dynamic on screen and off is really special. For Bridget and I, for example, we don't fight as much as we do on screen. [laughs] We are really, really close.

Glamour: So that brings me to my next question. If you were stranded on the side of the road at 3 a.m., which co-star would you call to come pick you up?

Donnie: I could call any of them and know they would come and get me, but I'd call Bridget because she'd come get me looking all glamorous! [laughs] Tom Selleck would come and get me on a horse! And I don' want to ride home on a horse!

NKOTB Reminders for September 28

It's kind of a busy day for New Kids, so here are some reminders....

Jordan will be doing an interview this morning on CHUM FM around 7:25AM this morning. Listen online here.

Donnie will be on Rachael Ray today. Check your local listings for time and channel.

The season premiere of Blue Bloods is tonight at 10/9c on CBS!

Remember to send your book preorder confirmations to nkotbpreorder@gmail.com by tonight. One random entry will get a chance to video chat with two of the New Kids!

Thursday, September 27, 2012

Listen to Jordan Knight on B101

Jordan did an interview with B101. He talks about Mark Wahlberg, his Canadian roots, his albums and more. 

Update: Interview has been deleted, does anyone have it saved?

Listen to Jordan Knight Interview on The Moose

Jordan did an interview with Moose 99.5. He talks about his solo tour, Jesse Labelle, the new NKOTB album, spending time in Canada and more.

Listen to the interview below.

Listen to Jordan Knight on 98 The Beach

Jordan Knight talks about future plans for the New Kids and his solo shows in an interview with 98 The Beach.

Update: Interview has been deleted, does anyone have it saved?

Wednesday, September 26, 2012

NKOTB News for September 26

New Kids are the topic of Mike Ryan's column on the Huffington Post.

The NKOTB book has had so many pre-orders that a second printing has been ordered already! By the way, there will be a Kindle version available as well (Amazon price is $11.99).

On Sale for Jordan's VIP Ottawa Dinner will be at 10am EST and Montreal Brunch will be at 11am EST this Saturday! The on-sale times for the others are coming next week.

There will be a showing of Blue Bloods this Friday night Wahlburgers with prizes and giveaways. It is limited to 100 people. For more information or to get tickets go here.

Jordan Knight interview with AOL

The KoolKiwis recently interviewed Jordan about his advice for new boy bands and dealing with alcoholism. 

With almost three decades in the boy band spotlight, Jordan Knight has surfed the highs and weathered the lows that come with being a global pop icon. But while his greatest piece of advice for the latest wave of boy bands is "just have fun" the singer knows all too well how fun can spin out of control. Having been in the shoes of hysteria-inducing, young pin-ups like The Wanted and One Direction, at an age where alcohol and drug temptations are at their heights, the New Kids on the Block singer believes it's up to band members to look out for each other.

"That's one of the great things about being in a band as opposed to a solo artist," he tells AOL Music Blog ahead of his upcoming solo tour. "For us it was good at that age because we had each other's backs. If one person started going crazy we'd pull them back. So what I would say to these new bands is watch out for your friends -- if they're getting too crazy be a good friend and pull them back to reality."

The 42-year-old singer/songwriter recently spent time with The Wanted at Hershey's MixTape Festival, where the young Brits joined NKOTB on-stage to perform "Glad You Came." The experience brought back memories of Jordan's days bursting onto the scene as a teen heartthrob.

"It's cool to see the new generation at it," he said. "It brings back the feelings I had when I started. Everything was fresh and new. You have the world at the palm of your hands. I get to relive that feeling through them.

"And it's great to see a British band come here and the girls love them because they have accents and they're British!"

While he believes it's just as difficult for today's "young whippersnappers" to navigate the music industry as it was for NKOTB, he says avenues like YouTube mean a lucky break can come cheaply and "at any moment."

Of course, with that moment comes a whole new world of fame and fortune. For NKOTB, their late '80 explosion saw them topping the charts, plastering bedroom walls around the world and spawning cartoons, merchandise and record sales earning $850 million in 1990 alone.

While the band weren't extravagant spenders, Jordan urges stars like Justin Bieber and One Direction -- who have come under fire for splashing out five-digit figures on cars for friends and girlfriends -- not to feel bad about wealth.

"A lot of people feel guilty and want to give money away to friends, family and everybody. It's a sudden surge of power and everyone wants a piece, but don't let it define you -- and don't feel guilty about having it. Just be responsible.

"And with everything else, just have fun. Be a boy until you need to be a man. Don't take it all too seriously... but don't throw it all away by getting too crazy."

Jordan's words may be drops in an ocean of advice today's chart-toppers have been showered with, but the Boston native has firsthand experience with how life can fall apart after reaching the heights of fame.

At 30 -- five years after NKOTB parted ways and shortly before the birth of his first son -- he stumbled into alcoholism while struggling to come to terms with adulthood.

"They say a person conflicted is a person addicted. And I was definitely conflicted... between growing up and being responsible, and staying irresponsible," he says.

"It started to become a real problem. I was drinking everyday. Alcohol makes you happy when you drink, but the rest of the time it ruins your life and makes you depressed. You become a slave to it and you stop being creative and thinking of other people. You become selfish."

Relationships were damaged and it was six years before a painfully-dreadful hangover saw him wake up one day and go cold turkey to save himself -- and his family.

"Most of the decision was because of my son. I didn't want him to see me in that state anymore. I said, 'No more. I can't do it. He's not going to see that growing up.'"

Attending a few AA classes, most of Jordan's recovery involved reading about addiction and surrounding himself with sober people.

"If you make a decision not to drink you have to deal with your life," he says. "You slowly get stronger and build emotional and mental muscles to live a good life. Those muscles get very weak when you have an addiction."

Six years sober, he says he will always be "recovering," but hasn't fallen back on the bottle. And while NKOTB's 2008 reunion and life back on the road may frequently corner him with old temptations, he has no desire to drink.

"When there's so much at stake it curbs your enthusiasm! I don't want anymore hangovers," he says. "I don't want to walk into the dressing room before a show and feel ashamed.

"I open mini-bars at hotels, grab water and don't even think about the beer right in front of my face now. I never thought I'd be able to do that.

"And I never thought hanging around people who are drinking would be possible. I used to look at people who didn't drink and think, 'It must be so boring.' Now I'm like, 'Thank God I don't drink!'

"But I don't think there's anything wrong with drinking -- as long as you can control it."

Looking back at almost 30 years in the limelight, he says sobriety has been the single biggest obstacle to getting to the "good and balanced" place he has reached personally and professionally.

With another NKOTB album in the works as well as further solo plans, he now has two sons, with wife of eight years Evelyn, to keep him busy when he's not working. Eldest, Dante, is now a teenager -- there are no girlfriends yet, "although I haven't checked his text messages lately!" -- while Eric, five, has inherited Jordan's passion for music.

"He loves listening to me play the "Beverly Hills Cop" theme song. It's so random! He pulls out the keyboard and goes, 'Daddy, play the song!'"

Asked about his proudest moment as a father he says everyday brings new milestones.

"Today Eric drew a bunch of pictures and put them on every single door in the house. It was so artistic and creative. To think, 'What made him put them on every door?' It's cool to see that.

"He doesn't have inhibitions. He feels free and happy and that makes me feel good."

While Eric may be too young to fully understand his dad's fame just yet, it's what he hopes his sons learn from his journey when they're older which today's boy bands can perhaps take most heed from.

"Hopefully they'll learn that you can be a normal person and still do this kind of stuff..." he says, pausing. "Hopefully I'm normal enough that they'll see that."

Monday, September 24, 2012

Pre-Order NKOTB Book and win a video chat with two of the New Kids and more!

If you pre-order "New Kids on the Block: Five Brothers and a Million Sisters" before 11:59 p.m. PST on Friday night and you email the verification of your pre-order to NKOTBpreorder@gmail.com you will be entered to win a video chat with two of the New Kids, plus a manuscript of the book signed by all five of the guys! If you have already pre-ordered it you are still eligible to win. 

You can also read chapter 1 of the book here!

Also, tomorrow (9/25) only, you can pre-order a copy of the book at BarnesandNoble.com for only $13.75.


Sunday, September 23, 2012

NKOTB News for September 23

Cast members from the TV show "Full House" reunited for an evening and they had some fun dancing and singing to New Kids on the Block songs. Andrea Barber tweeted "I just danced to three NKOTB songs in a row with @candacecbure and @JohnStamos. Life is complete!" and John Stamos posted a video of the girls singing to "Step by Step".

There are only 3 more days left to get Jonathan into first place in the Bille's Celeb Charity Challenge. If Jonathan wins then he will receive10,000 Euros to give to Amnesty International. If he wins, one random voter will also get a chance to meet Jonathan when he is presented the check for his charity. 

Jonathan was backstage at Midnight Red's show in Gramercy/NYC recently.  Here is a photo from their Facebook page.



According to a tweet from Jonathan ("JFK--->LAX + DWTS + KA = :)") it appears he went to LA to support Kirstie Alley on Dancing with the Stars All-Stars. Maybe we will be able to see Jonathan in the audience when it premieres tomorrow night at 8/7c on ABC.

Here is a still image of Donnie on the Rachael Ray Show (which airs this Friday).


VIP tickets for Jordan's shows in Canada are now on sale.

Here are some recent photos that Danny and Joey shared on Twitter:



Donnie Wahlberg talks about the Patriots and Celtics with the Boston Herald

Donnie Wahlberg was interviewed by the Boston Herald and he talked about sports teams in Boston. Here is the article:
Dorchester homey Donnie Wahlberg thinks despite the New England Patriots’ you-know-what-poor showing against the Arizona Cardinals last week, they’re bound for Super Bowl XLVII!

“I’ve learned the regular season doesn’t matter, it’s how you do in the playoffs,” said the “Blue Bloods” star. “Last year, they had an amazing regular season and petered out in the playoffs while the Giants played like crap all year and won the Super Bowl.”

And then there was that 16-0 regular season back in 2007-08 that we’d all rather forget.

“I’m not worried,” said Wahlberg, whose latest project with Jarrett Creative and his brother, Bob, is “Boston Metal,” a National Geographic reality TV show about a Brockton family of scrap metal dealers. “But the Patriots, being a young team, need to be overlooked again. They need to be the underdogs again like they were in 2001. That motivates them.”

As for handicapping the Celtics’ upcoming season, Wahlberg’s bullish because of the New Kids the Green picked up in the draft, although he would have preferred seeing Ray Allen back on the parquet instead of in Miami.

“It was tough to lose him, but he had to do what he had to do,” Donnie opined. “I think the young guys have the potential to be huge impact players.

“Now, don’t even think of asking me about the Red Sox,” he warned.

We wouldn’t dream of it.

Friday, September 21, 2012

NKOTB News for September 21

Boston Metal airs tonight on NatGeo and the Boston Herald mentioned it in today's Inside Track:
That the Morrissey family, a Brockton scrap metal-dealing brood, are kind of like the Wahlbergs of Dorchester. But Donnie Wahlberg, the executive producer of their new National Geographic Channel reality show “Boston Metal,” tells us “they fight better!” The “Blue Bloods” star said he met the scrappy clan through his brother, Bob, but at first he didn’t find their life compelling enough for reality TV. “After I got to know them, I couldn’t resist,” said the NKOTBer. The father and one of the sons are former mixed marital arts fighters, and daughter Kathleen doesn’t take any crap from the scrap peddlers. The show, which couldn’t compete with “Blue Bloods” of course, airs at 9 p.m. tonight.
GettyImages posted some new video clips and images from the set of Blue Bloods.


Donnie will be tweeting live during Blue Bloods next Friday.



Thursday, September 20, 2012

Joey McIntyre to guest star on pilot for Canadian TV drama 'Motive'

CTV in Canada is starting to film a new drama series called "Motive" in Vancouver this week and Joey McIntyre has been cast to be the a guest star in the first episode! The series set do debut in early 2013 on CTV.

Here is the synopsis of the show from Newswire.ca:
MOTIVE is an unconventional way to watch a crime unfold. Each episode begins by revealing to the audience, not only the victim, but the killer as well. The homicide detective then begins to piece together clues. How did they do it? How are the victim and killer connected? What’s the motive? As the mystery unfolds, the audience navigates the twisted and complicated maze of each murder and solves the puzzle alongside detective Angie Flynn and her team.

Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Information about Jordan Knight VIP tickets, brunches/dinners and more

Here is the lastest info about Jordan's shows in Canada from jordanknight.com.

Ooooooh Canada!!!
Thank You to all the fans for your continued support!!! Jordan Knight Live and "Still" Unfinished is getting closer and closer by the day!!

A couple of exciting announcements!!!
We want to welcome Jesse Labelle to the Live and "Still" Unfinished Show!! Jesse is an incredibly talented Canadian Singer/Songwriter and will be opening up for Jordan on ALL of the Upcoming Shows. 

JKVIP DAY!!!!!
Yes!!! JKVIPDAY is happening this Saturday September 22nd!! This will be the On-Sale for ALL 9 of the current Live and "Still" Unfinished Shows. VIP UPGRADE includes:
-Early entrance for the Live and "Still" Unfinished Pre-Soundcheck Party where you can hang out and see Jordan warm up on stage and sing a few songs before the Show!!
-One on One Picture with JK to be posted on www.jordanknight.com within 72 hours
-JK Trivia or Games
-All around good fun with JK
***Please note that ALL VIP TICKETS are sold as an UPGRADE to your existing Seat or GA Ticket. In order to gain entrance to VIP, you MUST have a General Admission or Assigned Seat Ticket!! Just a VIP Ticket will NOT get you into the Show. You need BOTH!!

JKVIPDAY On-Sale Times!!
Saturday September 22, 2012
10AM EDT: Centrepoint Theatre - Ottawa, ON
11AM EDT: The Guvernment - Toronto, ON
12PM EDT: Metropolis - Montreal, QC
1PM EDT / 2PM ADT: Casino Nova Scotia - Halifax, NS
2PM EDT / 3PM ADT: Capitol Theatre - Moncton, NB
3PM EDT / 1PM MDT: Citadel Theatre, Edmonton, AB
4pm EDT / 2PM MDT: MacEwan Ballroom - Calgary, AB
5PM EDT / 2PM PDT: Venue Live - Vancouver, BC
6pm EDT / 3pm PDT: McPherson Playhouse - Victoria, BC
Wishing everyone best of luck this Saturday with purchasing your VIP Upgrade Ticket!!!

BRUNCHES & DINNERS!!!
We are working hard on getting you all of the details for our upcoming Brunches and Dinners!! This will include Locations, Pricing, On-Sale Times and ALL other Info. Just know that most of the Brunches start around 10AM Local Time and Dinners start around 8PM Local Time. We will be sure to keep you posted just as soon as we are ready!!

MERCH:
We are working on some cool new items to have available for ALL of our Upcoming Shows.

PRESALE GOLD CIRCLE SEATS
We want to address some of the questions that have been sent to us regarding the Gold Circle Pre Sale. We understand that for our Pre Sale, Ticket Holders were unable to select a seat. While we know that can be frustrating, because of the arrangement with some of these venues, we felt it was more important for us to guarantee that we were able to sell Gold Circle seats to the fans directly before the Venues went on sale with their tickets. We also understand that some of the seats sold were not front row, but our Pre Sale was set up to guarantee we would have allotted Gold Circle Seats and because of the Venue arrangements, we were unable to take all of the inventory for just the first rows. The seats had to be divided up accordingly so that ALL FANS would get a fair shot at getting Tickets. We promise you that your seats and all seats or GA Tickets will be great and as always, the Show will be AMAZING!!!

We look forward to hopefully seeing as many of you as possible on Tour, and again we really appreciate ALL of your support for Jordan and the Live and "Still" Unfinished Shows!!!!
#ahf*ckyeah

Tuesday, September 18, 2012

NKOTB News for September 18

NKOTB released some more details about the 2013 cruise. Some highlights include:
  • A cruise DVD will be aired on the Lido deck and each cruise attendee will get a copy of the DVD!
  • The NKOTB concert will be indoors (in the ship's theater) and the day on Half Moon Cay will be "casual" with "no NKOTB event to line up for" but "NKOTB will be out there making sure nobody gets too crispy while having a blast with you".
  • A chance to win a day/night in the "VIP Sleepover Suite" near the New Kids rooms.
Donnie taped an episode of Rachael Ray today. The show will air on Friday, September 28!

It looks like Joey is planning on scheduling some solo shows soon! He wrote on Twitter "I'm working hard on the best Joe Show ever. And I'm counting on u guys to be there when it's out there!"

Mixtape Festival shared a video showing highlights from the Mixtape Festival weekend.

Monday, September 17, 2012

NKOTB News for September 17

Jordan's opening act for his Canadian tour will be Jesse Labelle.

Batting for Betty is raising money for Komen in honor of Danny's mom. They have an auction for Red Sox hat autographed by Donnie Wahlberg and a raffle with several prizes including a signed Celtics Adidas jacket by Danny Wood and more items autographed by Danny and other New Kids members. You can also sign up to play for Batting For Betty (on Sunday October 21, 2012 from 10am-3pm) here.

The New York Daily News thinks Boston Metal is worth watching.

Jonathan got a chance to hang out with Lance Bass in New York recently. He is a photo he shared.


Friday, September 14, 2012

NKOTB News for September 14

Here is a preview of "Boston Metal" which debuts on the National Geographic Channel on September 21.

BOSTON METAL - PREMIERES FRIDAY, 9/21 at 9P/8C on NAT GEO from Jarrett Creative Group on Vimeo.


According to this article from Boston.com, Donnie worked on the show with his brother Bob. Currently National Geographic plans to air only the pilot episode, but it could get picked up if it has a good response. Here is the article:
Reality TV could soon become wall-to-wall Wahlberg. That’s because in addition to the previously announced reality show Mark Wahlberg is making about the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, and the one Donnie Wahlberg is currently working on about the Boston Police Department, Bob Wahlberg has produced a pilot called “Boston Metal,” about a family-owned scrapyard in Brockton. (The first and so far only episode airs Friday at 9 p.m. on National Geographic Channel.) “We’re hoping, based on ratings and response, that it’ll be picked up,” Bob Wahlberg told us Friday. (Donnie is executive producer of “Boston Metal.”) The show follows the Morrissey family, owners of ECO Recycling Systems Inc. in the city of champions. What makes the show appealing, Wahlberg said, are the people: John Morrissey Sr. and John Morrissey Jr. are both former mixed-martial arts fighters, and the daughter has a knack for finding treasure in the trash. (Think “Storage Wars” or “American Pickers.”) “It’s a scrapyard so it brings in a different kind of character,” said Bob, who’s become something of a reality TV connoisseur while working on the show. “Most are super honest people, but some are trying to sneak something by. I think people will find it entertaining.”

The other TV series that Donnie is working on - "Boston Blue" - will premiere next year on TNT according to Club Metro. The show will follow the men and women of the Boston Police Department's gang unit.

The second season of Blue Bloods is now on DVD and Entertainment Tonight posted this video (which includes a short clip of Donnie) from the DVD's bonus features:

Update: Video has been deleted, does anyone have it saved?

In the mean time, Donnie is enjoying life whether he is riding in the car or jumping in the ocean:

Update: Videos have been deleted, does anyone have them saved?


Wednesday, September 12, 2012

NKOTB News for September 12

In case you missed the post earlier, Donnie has a new TV project in the works! Boston Metal will debut on the National Geographic Channel on September 21 at 9PM (Eastern). Check out their website here.


Here are the latest Twit Vids from Jonathan and Donnie:

Update: Videos have been deleted, does anyone have them saved?
This was Donnie's birthday cake at Mixtape Festival from Sweet Confections Cakes.


Pre-sales for the 2013 NKOTB Cruise are tomorrow.  Block Nation starts at noon EST and the pre-sale for past cruisers is at 1PM EST tomorrow   You will need the password that they emailed to you.

Check out this blog by yikes77, this blog from ktsummer, and Rose Tour's FAQ section for more details.

Have more questions about the New Kids cruise?  @nkotb will be answering some some questions on Twitter at 3PM PST today.


Donnie Wahlberg to produce new TV series 'Boston Metal'

Donnie Wahlberg will be the executive producer of a new show called "Boston Metal" on the National Geographic Channel. It debuts on Friday, September 21 at 9pm EST. The show is about a family who owns a scrap metal recycling yard.

Monday, September 10, 2012

2013 NKOTB cruise info

The wait is over! Here is the information for the upcoming 2013 NKOTB cruise!

Dates: May 18-22,

Ship: Carnival Victory

Destinations: Miami - Half Moon Cay - Nassau

Pre sale: September 13 (noon EST)

General sale: September 14 (noon EST)

Update: it's official - here is a video sent out by NKOTB!



For information on booking procedures, Click here.

Here is some additional info from the NKOTB mailing list:

Presale for Block Nation and past cruisers begins THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 13 @ NOON EST — you will receive an e-mail with instructions how to book shortly.

Public on sale begins FRIDAY SEPTEMBER 14, 2012 @ NOON EST.
TO BOOK YOUR CABIN*

*No guests under age 16 will be permitted to sail!

Sunday, September 9, 2012

NKOTB News for September 9

Joey McIntyre makes a brief appearance in this video raising awareness for Alzheimer's.


There are still 17 days to vote for Jonathan on the Bille Celebrity Challenge. He is currently in third place, but if we can get him to first place, he will win 10,000 Euros for Amnesty International. 

Here are a couple video clips of Donnie filming Blue Bloods on location in New York from vronik2001.

Update: Videos have been deleted, does anyone have them saved? 

Pink is the new blog posted an article about the upcoming book about the New Kids on the Block.

KoolKiwis had a chance to interview Jordan recently.  They posted on Twitter that Jordan is thinking about doing an international revamped solo tour next year, but in the mean time he is coaching hockey during his time off.

Wednesday, September 5, 2012

NKOTB News for September 5

Check out some new photos on Donnie on the set of Blue Blues from Zimbio.

Photo from Zimbio.com

Danny tweeted this photo saying "BH's helping fight breast cancer, we got some fundraising to do".



Monday, September 3, 2012

New MTV News video clip - NKOTB Want Some MTV VMA Love

MTV News posted another clip from the interview they did with NKOTB at Mixtape Festival. In this clip the members of New Kids on the Block mention want a Video Music Award nomination and for some reason Donnie and Joey kiss:)


Video courtesy of BlancoDiddy

Watch preview of Blue Bloods episode 'Family Business' (first episode of season 3)

Here is a preview clip of the third season premiere of Blue Bloods!  Jackie is kidnapped by a man that Danny had put in jail. It airs on September 28 on CBS!


Video courtesy of televisionpromos

Sunday, September 2, 2012

Donnie Wahlberg and Joey McIntyre in the studio

Donnie and Joey are in the studio to work on some new NKOTB music! Here are some tweets sent by Joey, Donnie and songwriter Gabe Lopez last night:

Yes-sirrie-Bob's-your-uncle, me and @donniewahlberg and the crew in the studio :) Good times. Thinking of you. #obv!
@DonnieWahlberg
Somehow ended up in SoCal, at this wacky recording studio, with @joeymcintyre & i am thinking its gonna turn out to be a productive night!
@gabelopezsongs:
Session with @brentpaschke, @joeymcintyre, @DonnieWahlberg and @drewryanscott for the @nkotb album. Yeah!!!!
@joeymcintyre and @DonnieWahlberg are a riot together. This is a blast!
@joeymcintyre is playing air racket ball with sound effects and I have tears from laughing.

Boston Globe: Fans vie for a spot on the Wahlburgers menu

Wahlburgers recently ran a contest in which fans could suggest ideas for a new type of burger to include on their menu for a month.  One of the finalists was a NKOTBurger, but a chicken sandwich was final the winner.  Here is the article from the Boston Globe.

Chef Paul Wahlberg sat at the head of the table in the café side of Wahlburgers, pristine white apron matching the sheet of paper covered in scribblings in front of him.

There was the recipe for “Stuffed Chili Dog Burger,” with hot dog, chili, and cheese nestled between two hamburger buns before being topped with sauerkraut, mustard, Sriracha sauce, and onion. Then there was “The Heart Stopper” — two beef patties, government cheese, bacon, onion rings, and the restaurant’s secret Wahl sauce.

Those were two of the 10 options the staff had picked out, culled from over 150 entries from as far away as Arizona and as close as Hingham for Wahlburgers’ first burger contest. The winner gets his or her burger on the menu for a month, some signed Wahlburgers goods, and — perhaps most important — bragging rights for eternity.

The strong response to the contest was a testament to the popularity of the restaurant, which has been a hit at its Hingham Shipyard location and in the realm of social media since opening last October. It also has become a perfect way to get to know customers better and stay relevant in their eyes, restaurant consultants say.

The Wahlburgers competition “is a prime example of knowing your customer and engaging your customer,” said KC O’Hara, a member of RealFood Consulting, with offices in Boston, New York, and San Francisco. “It’s not [necessarily about] developing something. It’s connecting . . . and that’s one of the most critical things that any good operator can do.”

Last week, judges selected by Wahlberg sat around him at the table, staring at the menu list. Their challenge was to first slim the list down to five recipes that the restaurant would actually cook. From there, the judges would taste-test for the winner.

Just from reading the semifinalists’ recipes, the panel already had favorites.

“The one I was looking at is the spicy burger. I’m going to lean a little more towards spice,” Wahlberg said, with his eye on a pepper jack and poblano blend.

Jim Caputo, chef of Wahlburgers’ sister restaurant Alma Nove, agreed it was a top choice, and also pointed out the South Shore burger for its originality. Meanwhile, Walburgers’ new chief executive officer, Rick Vanzura, leaned more toward the chicken option.

“I would do [this one]. It sounds good and we talked if chicken deserves a place on the menu. I think this is a chance to try it for a month and see what people think,” Vanzura said.

Paul’s mother, Alma Wahlberg, had different ideas.

“The ‘NKOTBurger,’ ” she said, named in honor of New Kids on the Block, the band that featured one of her nine children, Donnie. According to the description, the burger has ingredients that represent every color on the New Kids’ microphones.

Alma Wahlberg also liked the Italian Burger and the Heart Stopper. “The ingredients they have in them I actually really like,” she said.

Meanwhile, food writer Joan Wilder was up for trying anything.

“It’s just deliciousness [that I look for],” she said with a shrug. “I don’t know. I’ll tell you when I taste it.”

The panel picked four burgers with ease, but struggled on the last. After some debate, the judges decided to choose six burgers — a top five and a wild card, Paul Wahlberg joked.

As difficult as narrowing down the top six was, Wahlberg said narrowing down the top 10 proved more difficult than he expected.

“There was nothing that was totally out of the realm. No chocolate-covered veal patties or anything like that. People really put thought into it. There were no gag ones . . . people really put a lot of time and effort into what they were [submitting],” he said.

Two crucial factors were affordability and ease of preparation. Burgers calling for numerous steps were tossed out, or recipes calling for tricky ingredients, such as fish, wouldn’t be feasible due to the cost and difficulty in preserving freshness.

Wahlberg noted that one entry called for ground pork that needed to be marinated for two days before being ground. “It was just too many steps. Some things were inedible in terms of their size,” Wahlberg said. “What we were looking for was something with taste, something we can produce on a regular basis throughout the month, and something with pizzazz.”

Even though several entries just couldn’t be done in a restaurant atmosphere, Wahlburgers officials were impressed by the thought and time that went into creating the recipes.

“There were a few that really deserve an honorable mention because you can see how much love and passion went into it,” Vanzura said.

Not to mention the family aspect of many of the recipes, Caputo added.

“That was a big theme, too: ‘This is my family favorite.’ These people weren’t just coming up with things to get their name on the burger of the month. They were looking to spread an old family recipe,” Caputo said.

For that reason, recipes that won’t work on the cooking line may still be shared on the restaurant’s Facebook page. Applicants who came close to the final round will even be encouraged to resubmit, perhaps with minor tweaks.

Even as the burgers started coming off the grill — spicy, followed by chicken, with the Italian burger not too far behind — Wahlberg started tweaking things out loud. Maybe more sauce next time, a different pepper, perhaps putting all the toppings on the bottom of the burger so it hits your taste buds first.

The eventual goal is to do the contest monthly, he said.

The next round of the competition has already begun, and entries will again be narrowed down to a top few.

According to restaurant consultants, it’s a smart trend to start.

O’Hara noted that the social media presence of Wahlburgers, whose website is based on Facebook, helps connect the audience with the restaurant.

David Shinney, owner and chief executive officer of Boston-based DCS Associates LLC, Restaurant Consultants, agreed that incorporating the customer’s feedback is important, to a point.

“I think a restaurant like Wahlburgers has to listen to its customers, has to take whatever the customer has to say under advisement, but make the decision within the concept of the restaurant,” he said.

“Any restaurant that tries to do everything and please all customers is not going to make it. It’s too diverse an approach to the market. It has to have conceptual integrity. But anyone who doesn’t listen to customers is a fool.”

Along those lines, customer feedback will be crucial going forward, deciding if the first winner will make a return appearance on the menu, or possibly become a permanent item.

And despite all the difficulty in narrowing down the finalists, the winner was clear: The chicken sandwich by Jenn Tracy of Stoughton just couldn’t be beat.

The chicken “is my favorite,” Alma Wahlberg said. “I really do think it’s delicious.”

For the first time that afternoon, everyone agreed.