The effects of Tuesday’s terrorist attacks were felt throughout the entertainment industry in New York City and across the US. Out of respect for victims and their families, and amidst safety concerns, many events, including the Emmy Awards, Latin Grammys and New York Fashion Week, were cancelled.
The Academy of Arts and Sciences announced that the 2001 Emmy Awards, which had been scheduled for September 16 in Los Angeles, would be postponed.
“We are watching this national tragedy unfold on television with everyone else with the deepest sadness,” read a statement from the Academy. The organisation decided to cancel the event “out of respect to the victims, their families and fellow citizens”. No new date for the ceremony has been announced. Said Academy president Jim Chabin: “We will set no new date until we find out the extent of this tragedy and the national mourning that’s going to take place.”
The Second Annual Latin Grammy Awards ceremony, which was to feature host Christina Aguilera and performances by Destiny’s Child and Carlos Santana, was cancelled with no plans to reschedule. After the attacks, workers could be seen scrambling to dismantle the stages for the $4-million, star-studded event, which was due to be broadcast Tuesday night in the US and 120 other countries. “It’s over,” said show spokeswoman Barb Deeghan. “That’s it. It’s cancelled.”
New York Fashion Week was also brought to a halt and then cancelled soon after news of the attack broke. The event, featuring Spring 2002 collections, began last Friday. Though no new schedule has yet been decided, organisers say they are “looking into alternatives to assist the industry with shows and venues in New York City at the appropriate time.”
Coast to coast across the States, events from every sector of the entertainment world were postponed and cancelled as the tragic day progressed. Hollywood's big studios, from Warner Bros to Universal, shut down and sent staff home. The bright lights of Broadway were dark as all shows were closed, and the Toronto Film Festival in Canada cancelled Tuesday’s screenings. The celebrity-packed festival has included appearances by Helena Bonham Carter, Denzel Washington and Sir Anthony Hopkins.
Concerts affected around the US included a Janet Jackson performance in Florida and Madonna’s Drowned World show at the Staples Center in LA, both of which were called off.
“We’re in lock-down mode and on high security,” said a representative for the Madonna venue, who added that the pop star’s shows on Thursday and Friday were scheduled to go on as planned.
US film release schedules have also felt the impact of the horrific event. Saving Private Ryan star Edward Burns’s romantic comedy Sidewalks Of New York, scheduled for wide release in the US this month, has been delayed until late November, a decision probably initiated by the film’s title and light-hearted tone. The upcoming Arnold Schwarzenegger movie Collateral Damage, which stars Schwarzenegger as a fireman avenging the loss of his family in a terrorist bombing, may also be affected.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
