Brady hangs with the boys

MSNBC anchor Rachel Maddow spoke at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival in Becket the other day, taking part in a PillowTalk with dance critic and scholar Suzanne Carbonneau. Maddow, who splits her time between the Berkshires and the Big Apple, had some encouraging words for arts institutions that are facing tough times. “You are, in [Jacob’s Pillow founder] Ted Shawn’s words, ‘preserving the way of life that we are supposedly fighting for, and it’s worth being proud of.’ ’’

The farewell to WBCN, held over the past four days and featuring many of the station’s signature voices from the past, reminded us why we used to listen. Everyone from Billy West and Bradley Jay to Albert O and Oedipus reminisced about the old days. (We’re guessing the suits at CBS Radio are even happier about the switch to sports after hearing Charles Laquidara talk about taking LSD and smoking pot.) Notably absent from the marathon sendoff was Peter Wolf, one of the station’s founding DJs in 1968. Wolf eventually left ’BCN to form the J. Geils Band but returned once a year to host an off-the-wall anniversary show. “We’d have a house party to celebrate the history of ’BCN,’’ Wolf said this week. “I felt the station had established itself as a great creative resource for the listener and the artist, and I still wanted to be part of it.’’ At some point, though, the feeling was not mutual, and Wolf wasn’t welcome to hijack the airwaves annually with his rock hijinks. “The powers in charge decided the station’s past was irrelevant. It bewildered me that there was no desire to celebrate the past that I thought was so rich.’’ The Wolfa Goofa was asked to take part in the farewell but declined. “For me to participate just felt hypocritical,’’ said the singer, whose radio is now tuned to WATD, WERS, and WMBR. “ ’BCN was an incredibly vibrant place with an incredible assortment of talented DJs. It’s just disappointing that there was no desire to celebrate that until now.’’

Even Joe Perry isn’t sure when Aerosmith might get back on stage. The guitarist told Billboard it’s unclear how long Steven Tyler will be sidelined by the broken shoulder suffered when the singer fell off the stage in South Dakota last week. The mishap was the latest setback for a band beset by illness and injury. Brad Whitford and Tom Hamilton have also missed dates on Aerosmith’s summer tour. “It hasn’t really felt like a tour,’’ Perry said. “It’s been such a stop-and-go thing. . . . Right now I don’t know what’s going to happen.’’ He’s hoping Tyler can recuperate enough to continue performing. “Stuff happens,’’ Perry said. “It’s just the odds. We had such a good run the last 25 years; I think we canceled two shows until, like, the last four years, and then it all started rolling in at once, what can you do?’’

Arlington-bred comedian Dane Cook has learned that joking about a “High School Musical’’ star’s nude-photo scandal isn’t cool, at least not on television. Cook, who was at the “Teen Choice Awards’’ the other night to present the “Choice Hottie’’ award to Megan Fox and Robert Pattinson, started his routine by saying to audience member Vanessa Hudgens, “Girl, you gots to keep your clothes [on]. Phones are for phone calls, girl.’’ The joke referred to a second batch of cellphone images of a nude Hudgens that surfaced on the Internet. Not surprisingly, Cook’s joke - and Hudgens’s nonplussed reaction to it - were edited out of the “Teen Choice Awards’’ before the program aired Monday night on Fox. Cook told Access Hollywood that he didn’t mean to offend. “Mostly I just wanted it to be funny.’’

Richie Havens, who performs at the Regent Theatre tonight as part of “Boston Celebrates Woodstock,’’ chatted with us recently - not about his music but about his movie career. The Woodstock folkster tells us he’s making a movie that he promises will be spiritual and uplifting, something that deals with astrology. “You’re going to be forced to look at yourself and say, ‘That is me.’ ’’ Sounds like it will make the hippies happy. Havens is no stranger to the cinema. The musician started his film career playing Othello in 1974’s “Catch My Soul.’’ He was on screen as recently as 2007, playing a small part in the Bob Dylan biopic “I’m Not There.’’ Havens says that of all of the actors who played Dylan in that movie, his favorite was Cate Blanchett, who was nominated for an Oscar for the role. “Cate was Mr. Dylan. She played that part - and I know him.’’

The jazz trio Bad Plus is the latest big-name act to stop by Berklee’s Summer Performance Program. Fresh off their gig at the Newport Jazz Festival, pianist Ethan Iverson, bassist Reid Anderson, and drummer Dave King treated students to a clinic at the Berklee Performance Center. Others who have taken part in the five-week program this summer include Melissa Ferrick, Wyclef Jean, and Billy Bragg.

The stars of Quentin Tarantino’s “Inglourious Basterds,’’ including Brad Pitt and Newton’s own Eli Roth and B.J. Novak, showed up for the film’s LA premiere. Novak, best known for his writing and role on “The Office,’’ was hanging at the after-party with French actress Melanie Laurent and “Office’’ cast mate Mindy Kaling.

Mike Giannattasio says he isn’t a stalker. He’s just a guy who makes sure he’s in the right place at the right time. The 19-year-old Suffolk University student, who’s from Tewksbury, has a growing collection of pictures of himself with famous people who are in town to make movies. This one, with Adam Sandler, was taken over the weekend in front of the Mandarin Oriental Hotel. Giannattasio said he got the shot by waiting outside of the hotel with his brother until Sandler returned to the Mandarin after having dinner at Abe & Louie’s. Giannattasio’s collection includes images of him posing with Mark Wahlberg, Eliza Dushku, Amy Smart, Rob Schneider, and Kevin James. Why does Giannattasio seek out these famous folks? “I just think it’s cool to meet them,’’ he told us. “It just goes to show that you don’t have to go to California to meet stars.’’ For the record, Giannattasio said the nicest celebrity he’s met is Wahlberg, who was happy to chat with a fan. Sandler was less enthused, as evidenced by his expression in this photo.

“American Idol’’ judges Simon Cowell, Randy Jackson, and Kara DioGuardi are due in Boston shortly - they’re interviewing aspirants at the State Room tomorrow and Friday - but their crew is here already. Yesterday, cameras showed up at Joe’s American Bar and Grill in Woburn to shoot footage of “Idol’’ hopeful Lisa Olivero, who’s a server there. Olivero, from Billerica, was shadowed by cameras while working during lunch yesterday. She had auditioned at Gillette Stadium in June and apparently impressed the right people.