Army Archerd (Variety Magazine)
Manager Allen Sviridoff tells me Rosemary Clooney (news)’s family was touched by Bette Midler (news)’s admission she might withdraw from the Grammy race — in which she’s nominated for “Bette Midler Sings the Rosemary Clooney Songbook” against Clooney’s own nominated “The Last Concert.” However, I checked with Neil Portnow, president of the Recording Academy, who tells me voting closed Jan. 7. Rosie, you recall, was nominated eight times during her lifetime and never won.
But if Midler, or any of the other nominees (Tony Bennett (news), k.d. lang, Rod Stewart (news) or Barbra Streisand (news)), should win, they can always pay tribute to Rosie at the Staples Center ceremony. Ironically, Clooney’s album was recorded from her final concert in Hawaii — Midler hails from the Islands …
