Crowding to see Patti

A large crowd gathered to see the incomparable Patti LaBelle, who was joined by Mayor Tom Menino, at the 25th annual Martin Luther King Celebration last night at the Citi Wang Theatre. The free event also featured performances by Andre Ward and Dre Robinson.

Kimya Dawson canceled her appearance at a packed house party in Jamaica Plain this week, and who can blame her. Turns out the fierce folkie, whose quirky tunes on the "Juno" soundtrack are winning raves, refused to play because there was no safe place for her child. Blogging about the experience yesterday, the former Moldy Peaches singer wrote: "The upstairs room they told us we could go to was disgusting and people were smoking weed in there. . . . I am sorry that some people are disappointed in me, but my baby is the most important thing in my life and her well-being has very top priority over any show and anyone's opinion of me." But Dawson's visit to Boston wasn't a total bust. Nearly 150 people had to be turned away Thursday from her in-store appearance at the Newbury Comics on Newbury Street.

Perhaps The Improper Bostonian should be called The Improper Buffaloan. In the new issue, the glossy mag, which bills itself as "metro Boston's gorgeous guide to entertainment and culture," has a column all about Boston drivers' dislike of driving in snow. The piece, written by Ezra Dyer, is accompanied by a couple of dramatic pictures of stranded autos and people pushing cars. Problem is, the pics were snapped seven years ago in Buffalo by a photographer who's been dead since 2001.

Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Paula Vogel , who'd been mentioned as a possible successor to Robert Woodruff at the American Repertory Theatre, is bound for Yale instead. Vogel, director of the playwriting program at Brown for 24 years, is the new chair of the playwriting department at Yale School of Drama. "My two decades of teaching have convinced me that we have one of the most exciting generations in playwriting now emerging," Vogel said in a statement, "and I'm looking forward to re-imagining as well as helping to remake American theater in the 21st century with younger artists and my colleagues at Yale." Meanwhile, the search goes on at the ART.

Ben Affleck wants very badly to be taken seriously as a director, and it looks like he's getting his wish. Variety has put together a list of 10 directors to watch, and our boy Ben is No. 1. The trade mag makes the case that Affleck's second act may be more impressive than his first, during which he won a screenplay Oscar for "Good Will Hunting" and starred in a slew of blockbusters. "Part genre pic, part politically charged melodrama, 'Gone Baby Gone' does not feel like the work of a novice," Variety's Matthew Ross writes of Affleck's directorial debut. Other up-and-coming directors include Daniel Barnz, Tony Gilroy, Seth Gordon, Nadine Labaki, Anna Melikyan, Cristian Mungiu, Jose Padilha, Alex Rivera, and Johan Renck.

We can't wait to get a glimpse of "Gone Country," the new CMT reality show with the questionable premise. The series, which debuts Friday, follows Bobby Brown and six other C-listers as they try to become the next big country superstar. This is Brown's second stab at reality TV. His first, Bravo's "Being Bobby Brown," was a train wreck and, mercifully, was canceled after one season. Joining the Roxbury-bred singer on the new show are Carnie Wilson, Dee Snider, Diana DeGarmo, Julio Iglesias Jr., Maureen McCormick, and Sisqó, all of whom get expert training from country crooner John Rich of Big & Rich. Brown declined our interview request yesterday.

One way to see the world is to make movies. While shooting "Jumper," director Doug Liman says he filmed actor Hayden Christensen (below) in more than a dozen countries. One of the last locations, he told MIT students this week, was last September in the surf near Gay Head on Martha's Vineyard. Liman said he and Christensen shot the scene themselves without any crew. Don't blink or you might miss it in the movie. The whole scene lasts about 7 seconds. The movie opens Feb. 14, but Liman has arranged a special free screening at MIT the night before.

With the writers strike, talented types like B.J. Novak have a lot of time on their hands. So what to do? Wednesday night, the Newton native, who writes and co-produces "The Office," will be at Northeastern's Blackman Auditorium, where he'll do what he does best: stand-up. Novak's appearance is being sponsored by the Kappa Sigma fraternity.

Names can be reached at names@globe.com or at 617-929-8253.

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