Entertainment category, Page 279
Obamas, Beyonce, Taylor Swift among those to deliver speeches during YouTube virtual ceremonyVideo
President Barack Obama said in a commencement speech Sunday that the nationwide protests following the recent deaths of unarmed black women and men including George Floyd were fueled from “decades worth of anguish, frustration, over unequal treatment and a failure to perform police practices.” Obama along with his wife, Michelle,...
JK Rowling’s tweets on transgender people spark outrage
LOS ANGELES — “Harry Potter” author J.K. Rowling is facing hefty backlash after she posted a series of tweets about transgender people. Rowling drew outrage Saturday on Twitter when she criticized an opinion piece from Devex that used the phrase ” people who menstruate.” “I’m sure there used to be...
Westmoreland Cultural Trust bringing back summer TGIS concerts
The Westmoreland Cultural Trust’s popular TGIS summer concert series will return on June 18, at a new location to accommodate social distancing protocols. Normally held in the courtyard of The Palace Theatre in downtown Greensburg, the concerts will move about 2 miles north to the Greensburg Garden and Civic Center,...
Abby Lee Miller issues apology amid ‘Dance Moms’ co-star’s claim of racist comments
Abby Lee Miller has apologized on social media for racially insensitive “words.” The former Penn Hills reality star put up a statement Thursday on Instagram. “I genuinely understand and deeply regret how my words have effected and hurt those around me in the past, particularly those in the Black...
Gabrielle Union files complaint against NBC, ‘America’s Got Talent’
Gabrielle Union filed a complaint Thursday with the state of California against NBC and the producers of “America’s Got Talent,” the latest move in a fight over her allegations that she was fired for objecting to an on-set environment that tolerated racism. The complaint filed with the Department of Fair...
CNN, Sesame Street to team up for town hall Saturday discussing racism
CNN and “Sesame Street” are joining forces to present a family-oriented town hall program that aims to address racism in America. According to CNN, the 60-minute special “Coming Together: Standing Up to Racism. A CNN/Sesame Street Town Hall for Kids and Families” will air Saturday at 10 a.m.. Big Bird...
Racist comments trigger another firing for Rochester, N.Y., radio duoVideo
Disclaimer: People in this story are quoted in their attempt to use an abbreviated version of a racial slur; they did not use the slur, itself. A Rochester, N.Y., radio duo with a history of bigoted on-air comments were fired Wednesday over an exchange in which they advocated for the...
Universal takes 1st steps reviving Orlando theme park bizVideo
ORLANDO, Fla. — With masks on their faces and temperature checks at entrances, Harry Potter fans and roller coaster lovers streamed back into Universal Orlando Resort this week in one of the first major steps toward reviving Florida’s theme park industry, which was left temporarily moribund by closures to stop...
Duchess of Sussex speaks out on racial divisions in U.S.Video
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex, has shared her sadness about racial divisions in the United States, telling students at her former high school that she felt moved to speak out because the life of George Floyd mattered. Meghan told graduates at Immaculate Heart High School in Los Angeles that she...
Jeannette gallery plans reopening, anniversary exhibition
You Are Here art center in Jeannette will reopen to visitors beginning June 12. Regular hours will be 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday-Saturday and noon-3 p.m. Sunday. “Printed Matters,” an exhibition of contemporary printmaking that was on display prior to the covid-19 shutdown, will continue in the gallery until June 27....
Review: New novel explores race, identity, belonging
A new novel explores the construct of race in the diverging lives of light-skinned black twins, one of whom transitions into a life as a white woman. “The Vanishing Half” by Brit Bennett is beautifully written, thought-provoking and immersive. It follows Desiree and Stella, who hail from the town of...
Cannes announces lineup for a festival canceled by covid
From an empty movie theater in Paris, organizers of the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday announced the films that would have played at there in May had it not been canceled by the pandemic. The selections were an exercise in what-might-have-been for Cannes, the premier international film festival that for...
AMC Theatres warns of ‘substantial doubt’ about its future
The AMC Theatres chain says it has “substantial doubt” it will be able to remain in business after closing all of its locations during the coronavirus pandemic. In the first quarter ending March 31, AMC reported revenue of $941.5 million, down from $1.2 billion in the same quarter last year....
Amy Grant has open heart surgery to fix heart condition
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — A publicist for Amy Grant says the contemporary Christian singer had open heart surgery on Wednesday to fix a heart condition she has had since birth. Doctors discovered Grant had a heart condition called partial anomalous pulmonary venous return (PAPVR) during a routine checkup. Velvet Kelm, her...
Run the Jewels release new album ‘RTJ4’ early
Run the Jewels have dropped “RTJ4” early. The hip hop duo, made up of Killer Mike and EL-P, announced Wednesday that the new album was released, two days prior to its original release date. “We hope it (the album) brings you some joy. Stay safe and hopeful out there and...
New season of ‘Dirty John’ explores scorned wife-turned-killer Betty BroderickVideo
“Dirty John” creator Alexandra Cunningham didn’t want to change the true story of Betty Broderick’s brutal 1989 murder of her ex-husband and his new wife. But her version tells the tale of what led her to that. The second season of the true crime anthology series, which premiered Tuesday on...
The Westmoreland to host virtual jazz concert
The Westmoreland Museum of American Art will share a recording of RML Jazz’s concert at Seton Hill University at 7 p.m. June 10. As spring comes to an end and with the official start of summer only a few weeks away, RML Jazz’s concert recording will pair with a curated...
Lea Michele apologizes for being ‘difficult’ on ‘Glee’ set
Former “Glee” star Lea Michele has apologized for being “unnecessarily difficult” on the set of the musical TV show after a co-star accused Michele of making her time there “a living hell.” Michele issued a statement saying that while she didn’t recall any incident or judged anyone by their background,...
Nickelodeon pauses programming in honor of George Floyd with ‘I can’t breathe’ messageVideo
Nickelodeon stopped its programming Monday evening for 8 minutes and 46 seconds while airing a black screen with a message that said “I can’t breathe” in an attempt to bring awareness to the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis a week before. Floyd, 46, was a black man who died...
Review: Witchy, wordy ‘Shirley’ thrillingly follows famed horror writerVideo
The first exchange in the brilliant, brutal “Shirley” is telling about what’s to come. A young woman, Rose (Odessa Young), finishes reading a short story (“The Lottery” by Shirley Jackson) and recounts the tale to her husband, Fred (Logan Lerman). “That’s creepy,” he observes. “It’s terrific,” she sighs. And so...
Lawrenceville’s Row House Cinema offering movie concession packs
Watch your favorite film at home, but stop at the theater first. Row House Cinema in Lawrenceville has created movie concession packs that people can pick up and take to their house and watch a flick. On Friday between 2 and 8 p.m., stop by for one of several options,...
Books on race and criminal justice top bestseller lists
As nationwide protests against racism and police violence continue, readers are seeking out books old and new on race and criminal justice. Robin Diangelo’s “White Fragility,” Michelle Alexander’s “The New Jim Crow” and Bryan Stevenson’s “Just Mercy” were among the works high on the bestseller lists Tuesday of Amazon.com and...
Mötley Crüe, Def Leppard, Poison and Joan Jett tour postponed
Fans will have to wait until next summer to see the Stadium Tour with Mötley Crüe, Def Leppard, Poison and Joan Jett and The Blackhearts. In a post on Monday afternoon signed by the bands, the tour has been officially postponed until the summer 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic....
Westmoreland Museum has new virtual programming for June
The Westmoreland Museum of American Art has announced its #MuseumFromHome offerings for June. The programs include a new virtual exhibition and other opportunities inspired by the “Complementary Exhibition to African American Art in the 20th Century” in the Greensburg museum’s Post 1950s Gallery. Programming available via the museum’s website includes:...
A superhero kid with autism shines in new PBS Kids’ seriesVideo
There’s a new crop of superheroes coming to our TV this summer but they may need a little seasoning. After all, they’re only in elementary school. The PBS Kids’ animated series “Hero Elementary” is set inside a grade school where a diverse group of four superhero students are learning to...
