Frankie Valli plans Broadway debut
The Broadway smash Jersey Boys is about to get some tough competition — from an original Jersey Boy. Frankie Valli, whose falsetto fuels The Four Seasons’ music, on Wednesday announced plans to make his Broadway debut with seven concerts at the Broadway Theatre from Oct. 19- 27. Tickets go on sale Aug. 23. That will put him up against Jersey Boys, the behind- the- music musical about the doo- wop group. The musical, which opened in 2005 at the August Wilson Theatre, tells the story of the band — Valli, Bob Gaudio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi — and features 20 Four Seasons songs. Valli will sing the same songs at his show. France’s best- known actor, Gerard Depardieu, is facing legal action for allegedly punching a driver over a traffic incident involving his scooter in Paris. The apparently traumatized 63- year- old motorist claimed that the star reacted angrily after allegedly overtaking the car driver in Paris’ chic 6th arrondissement. The Smart car driver claimed that the actor blocked the road with his scooter and launched into a tirade of abuse. Depardieu, also 63, then hit the man before leaving the scene, according to police. The motorist filed an official complaint for assault with police, a source confirmed. Depardieu could face up to a year in prison if convicted, if prosecutors decide to proceed with charges. Depardieu later conceded he had overreacted. “I was on my scooter, there was a car that wasn’t paying attention and bang! There we are. It was more fear than actual harm,” he told RTL radio. “But my reaction was perhaps a little over the top because I was very scared.” He implied the man had pressed for charges because he was a film star. “Some people just see me and file a complaint,” he said, adding it was “the price of fame”. In 2009, Depardieu, a notorious drinker, was arrested for damaging a car parked near his home. Last summer he urinated in the aisle of a plane in full view of passengers, after he was stopped from using the lavatories during takeoff. Depardieu was forced to take a later flight.