On his birthday, Brady takes the cake

Is Live Nation having trouble moving Paul McCartney tickets? Yesterday, the promoter released another batch of tix to Sir Paul’s two Fenway shows at the discounted price of $69. (The additional tickets, for seats in the right-field lower and upper grandstands, are the result of “production modifications,’’ according to a statement from Live Nation.) The promoter has also begun airing TV ads to hype the shows, something that was unnecessary in the case of the Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, and Phish, among other Fenway concerts. Some question whether the Red Sox could have done more to publicize the shows during home games the way the Mets did before McCartney’s sold-out gigs at Citi Field. (The Mets mercilessly teased the former Beatle’s shows on their big screen.) Perhaps Sir Paul’s opening act, MGMT, can save the day. The Brooklyn band, managed by Brookline’s own Mark Kates, are blowing up. They last played in Boston at the Paradise, but their debut LP “Oracular Spectacular’’ has since gone on to sell 1.5 million copies.

James Taylor is currently prepping for his sold-out Tanglewood shows with a series of well-received gigs in Europe. The singer is winning raves in France, Spain, and England, where a reviewer for the Sun likened Sweet Baby James to “a Geography teacher who keeps a guitar in his cupboard in the hope of some impromptu strumming.’’ Taylor will be in the Berkshires for shows Aug. 27-30, joined by Sheryl Crow, Yo-Yo Ma, John Williams, and the Boston Pops.

Marla Gibbs, who’s perhaps best known as Florence on “The Jeffersons,’’ didn’t get out much while in town for the Roxbury Film Festival. The actress was with her daughter, Angela, whose short film, “What Goes Around,’’ screened at the festival. (Gibbs has a cameo in her daughter’s film and shows up in the documentary, “Why We Laugh: Black Comedians on Black Comedy,’’ which also screened at the film fest.) Mother and daughter did manage to grab a meal at the Cheesecake Factory and a massage at the Colonnade, where they stayed. “That massage was one of the best parts of the trip,’’ said Gibbs.

Jerry Stiller was his usual funny self at the New York vs. Boston Comedy Smackdown at the Nantucket Comedy Festival. A longtime summer resident of the Rock, Stiller reminisced about the old days, when the Harbor House was awash in the smell of “ganja.’’ (It’s an upscale condo complex these days.) Spied outside the Jetties Beach tent was actor Kevin Spacey, looking semi-incognito in a fedora. So who’s funnier, the Big Apple or Boston? Judge Chris Matthews handed the title to the New Yorkers, but we’re told Bay Staters Walli Collins, Jackie Flynn, and Tom Cotter all killed.

Ken Burns is back with “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea,’’ a six-part documentary celebrating the country’s nearly 400 federally protected spaces. The series sets up camp on PBS on Sept. 27 and stays through Oct. 2. Burns, who lives in New Hampshire, told the Television Critics Association he’s hoping to do for the national parks what he did for battlefields after his PBS series “The Civil War.’’ (Visits to sites such as Gettysburg increased by as much as 300 percent after the series aired.) “We want the superintendents angry at us because of all the Popsicle wrappers they’ll have to clean up,’’ Burns said. “It’s a good problem to have.’’

Former “Baywatch’’ babe Traci Bingham stopped into Kings over the weekend. The Cambridge native, who was high school classmates with Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, brought a group of her girlfriends to the Back Bay bowling alley. The gals kicked back on the leather couches and sipped on Kings’ signature cocktail, “Big Ball for Two.’’

The Possible Dreams auction benefiting Martha’s Vineyard Community Services was held under sunny skies yesterday. Always a celeb-heavy affair, this year’s auction was dedicated to the memory of Walter Cronkite, who rarely missed the event during his many years on the Vineyard. As usual, the auction featured an array of excellent items, among them: a role in Peter Farrelly’s new comedy short starring Hugh Grant and Kate Winslet; a visit to “The Office’’ set and lunch with B.J. Novak and Mindy Kaling; dinner at Edgartown’s Atria restaurant with actress Mary Steenburgen, art collector Olga Hirshhorn, writer Rose Styron, producer Victoria Pearman, photographer Alison Shaw, and Tamara Buchwald; a round of golf with Vernon Jordan; and a sunset singalong on a schooner with Carly Simon and her son Ben Taylor.