Entertainment category, Page 258
TV Q&A: Will ‘It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown’ air this year?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: Do you think ABC will actually skip showing “It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown” this year? — Jackson via Twitter Rob: I didn’t think that...
Photo altered to Ice Cube, 50 Cent in ‘Trump 2020’ hats
An altered photo of rappers Ice Cube and 50 Cent in hats that appear to show support for President Donald Trump circulated widely on social media Tuesday, fueled in part by a tweet by Eric Trump. “Two great, courageous Americans,” Trump’s son tweeted. He removed the tweet with a photo...
Film Pittsburgh Fall Festival goes online, as executive director nears 2 decades at helm
Kathryn Spitz Cohan began her tenure at what is now Film Pittsburgh just after the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The executive director enters her 20th season amid another life-changing time – the covid-19 pandemic. Film Pittsburgh screens independent films from around the world, for themed festivals, and holds...
Review: Cary Grant bio a perceptive look at captivating star
Self-trained English actor Archie Leach pulled off the role of a lifetime: becoming Hollywood legend Cary Grant. Why the child of a broken family hid behind the silver screen’s definition of easy charm and handsome masculinity is another story entirely. In “Cary Grant: A Brilliant Disguise,” the most entertaining and...
Glenn Close to receive honorary AARP Purpose Prize award
Glenn Close will receive an honorary AARP award for her work with a charity that brings awareness to mental illness. AARP announced Tuesday that Close will be the first to receive an honorary Purpose Prize Award during a virtual ceremony on Dec. 3. The Oscar-winning actress will be recognized for...
Jeff Bridges says he has lymphoma, cites good prognosis
LOS ANGELES — Jeff Bridges says he is being treated for lymphoma and his prognosis is good. The 70-year-old actor channeled his The Dude character from “The Big Lebowski” in a statement on social media about the diagnosis Monday evening. He said he understands the disease is serious. He expressed...
Jeffrey Toobin suspended by the New Yorker, steps away from CNN
NEW YORK — Author-commentator Jeffrey Toobin has been suspended by the New Yorker and is stepping away from his job as CNN’s senior legal analyst pending what the cable network is calling a “personal matter.” Vice reported earlier Monday that Toobin had exposed himself during a Zoom meeting with staffers...
TV Talk: Netflix debuts trailer for Pittsburgh-filmed ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’
Netflix released the trailer for “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom,” its adaptation of the August Wilson play that was filmed in Pittsburgh in the summer of 2019. The movie arrives on Netflix on Dec. 18. “Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom” stars Viola Davis as blues singer Ma Rainey during a recording session...
Disney+ adds new content warning for racist depictions in classic films
Classic movies that feature racist stereotypes and other problematic elements now include a new content warning on Disney+. When viewers choose to play movies such as “Dumbo,” “Aladdin,” “Peter Pan,” “The Aristocats” and “Swiss Family Robinson” on the Disney streaming service, a written disclosure about its “negative depictions and/or mistreatment...
Guitars played, partly designed by Eddie Van Halen go to auction
Two guitars owned, played and partly designed by the late Eddie Van Halen will be going up for auction. A 2004 EVH Charvel Art Series electric guitar and a customized electric guitar Van Halen built at his home studio with his guitar tech Matt Bruck and given to a friend...
TV Talk: ‘The Conners’ feel the effects of the pandemic in new season
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. ^ After the “Roseanne” revival imploded following star Roseanne Barr’s racist tweet, there was every reason to fear its sequel series, “The Conners,” would simply be a ratings grab. But as its third season premieres...
TV Talk: Jim Carrey’s Joe Biden pulls a Mister Rogers on ‘SNL’Video
It’s been a busy week for Latrobe native Fred Rogers in the pop-culture zeitgeist, beginning with social media reactions to a tweet Thursday night, which in turn inspired a scene in the cold open sketch on NBC’s “Saturday Night Live.” It all started Thursday night during dueling town halls between...
Pittsburgh Symphony, Comcast play sweet music together
Hear the sounds of the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra throughout the city — from your home. Comcast will offer “Front Row: The PSO Virtual Experience” On Demand for Xfinity customers in Pittsburgh and throughout Southwestern Pennsylvania. The first of five episodes, “Our Love for Pittsburgh” premieres at 7:30 p.m. Monday. “The...
Stephen King’s thriller ‘Mr. Mercedes’ gets another chance
NEW YORK — One of Stephen King’s most creepy and tense stories was hiding in plain sight. “Mr. Mercedes” started life in 2017 as a broadcast offering on the AT&T-owned, DirecTV-exclusive Audience Network, only to be left marooned with an uncertain future after the obscure channel was shut down. The...
‘Jagged Little Pill’ leads Tony Awards nominations with 15
NEW YORK — The sobering musical “Jagged Little Pill,” which plumbs Alanis Morissette’s 1995 breakthrough album to tell a story of an American family spiraling out of control, earned a leading 15 Tony Award nominations Thursday, as the Broadway community took the first steps to celebrate a pandemic-shortened season that...
Rudolph and his nose-so-bright into auction will take flight
Rudolph and his still-shiny nose are getting a new home, and it’s bound to be a lot nicer than the Island of Misfit Toys. The soaring reindeer and Santa Claus figures who starred in in the perennially beloved stop-motion animation Christmas special “Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer” are going up...
Post Malone owns Billboard Awards, John Legend shines onstage
NEW YORK — Walking into the show with 16 nominations, Post Malone won nine honors at the 2020 Billboard Music Awards, where John Legend gave a heartfelt performance that was dedicated to his wife. With his voice aching as he sang passionately from the piano, Legend told viewers “this is...
TV Talk: ‘Supermarket Sweep’ returns on ABC
Game show “Supermarket Sweep” has been a TV staple with versions popping up in the 1960s, 1990s, early 2000s and now again in 2020 as ABC resurrects the franchise at 8 p.m. Sunday with new host Leslie Jones (“Saturday Night Live”). The ‘90s version of the show gained cachet with...
Stage Right plans outdoor, circus sideshow-inspired ‘Rocky Horror Show Live’
Get ready to do the time warp again. Stage Right Theatre Company will stage “The Rocky Horror Show Live” under a big top tent on Oct. 23-24 and 30-31. There will be a few pandemic-driven changes to the company’s long-running Halloween season production, including the outdoor venue, said director and...
Freshen up your fall reading list with 6 new paperbacks
The leaves are turning, the air is crisper, the bookstores are open … and you need a new paperback, don’t you? Here are six freshly minted ones for fall reading. “No Stopping Us Now: The Adventures of Older Women in American History” by Gail Collins (Little, Brown, $18.99). Collins, a...
TV Q&A: How did Hallmark Channel make Christmas movies in a pandemic?
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions every Wednesday at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: How does Hallmark Channel make about 40 new Christmas movies during a pandemic? Were some movies made prior to March 2020? - Elaine via email...
‘Two and a Half Men’ star Conchata Ferrell dies at 77
LOS ANGELES — Conchata Ferrell, who became known for her role as Berta the housekeeper on TV’s “Two and a Half Men” after a long career as a character actor on stage and in movies, including “Mystic Pizza” and “Network,” has died. She was 77. Ferrell died Monday at Sherman...
TV Talk: Disney Channel hosts chat with Pittsburgh group’s co-founders
Two local teens will be featured in a recurring Disney Channel segment, “Kudos and Kudon’ts,” for their creation of the Pittsburgh organization Black, Young & Educated. Disney Channel’s Ariel Martin and Trevor Tordjman (“Zombies 2”) chat with B.Y.E. co-founders Nicholas Anglin and Treasure Palmer in the two-minute segment, which also...
Steelers, Penguins fan Steve Byrne drops Pittsburgh references into directorial film debut
It’s natural for any filmmaker, right? You’re a week away from your first written and directed big-screen release. You’re worrying about how the premiere will be staged. You have press lined up all week. You’re coordinating with producers, actors and family. Above all else, though, one thing is weighing on...
Westmoreland Symphony’s virtual season opener features ‘the other Bach’Video
Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra’s virtual concert season opens Oct. 24 with “Back to Bach,” streaming live at 7:30 p.m. from the stage of Greensburg’s The Palace Theatre. The Bach listed in the program is not Johann Sebastian, but rather Carl Philipp Emanuel, son of the renowned composer and also a musician...
