Tom Cruise: Golden Globes for Life

Tuesday, June 19, 2007

By Roger Friedman

Tom Cruise: Golden Globes for Life

Tom Cruise may have reached control freak nirvana this week. He's also set for Golden Globe nominations for whatever he does in the future.

The reason? Dan Snyder, owner of the Washington Redskins, has bought Dick Clark Productions for $175 million. The companyproduces the Golden GlobesNBC telecast with the controversial and mysterious HollywoodForeign Press Association every year. Its contract with the HFPA runsthrough 2011. The company and the HFPA split an annual fee from NBC ofbetween $5 and $8million.

The HFPA, registered as a charitable foundation, then gives about $1million to various charities and lavishes the rest of the tax-freemoney on itself fortravel, salaries and "research."

Last year, Snyder entered into a deal with Cruise and producing partner Paula Wagner to fund their movie production company afterCruise/Wagner lost its deal with Paramount Pictures.

You may recall Cruise and wife, Katie Holmes, making publicityappearances at a Redskins game and at Six Flags Great Adventure - whichSnyder also owns -with the timed dexterity of a political candidate.Since the 80-memberHFPA has a proven track record of being influenced in its voting everyyear, the fix isin, as they say, for Cruise's Golden Globe nomination this December forhis role in Robert Redford's "Lions for Lambs." The movie is producedby Cruise/Wagner for United Artists.

Cruise also could get an American MusicAward special honor, since Dick Clark Productions owns that showas well. But we won't have to fear his hosting "New Year's Rockin'Eve." That show was held back by Clark when he sold the companyseveral years ago.