Patrick Stewart’s Shakespearean sonnet readings shine light during crisis
When the time comes to tell our grandkids about the pandemic of 2020, there will be no shortage of stories. It was scary. Everything shut down, and tens of thousands died. People were so panicked, you couldn’t find toilet paper or flour on store shelves. Schools closed. All you could...
Author urges gardeners to form 1 big ‘national park’
Imagine if all the back and front yards — and even patio container plants — across the country were seen as one magnificent patchwork quilt, a “Homegrown National Park.” Home gardeners would join forces to bring back a variety of native plants to protect and nurture struggling birds, bees and...
Pittsburgh creator makes 1st fluorescent, black-light comic bookVideo
Pittsburgh comic book creator Jim Rugg set out to make a book that would shine — literally. “Octobriana 1976” will be what he called the world’s first fluorescent, black-light comic book. Rugg, known for his work on “Street Angel,” “Afrodisiac” and “The PLAIN Janes,” based his comic on Octobriana, a...
New book: ‘Mister Rogers’ actor stayed in closet to remain on show
Francois Clemmons vividly recalls a come-to-Jesus meeting with Fred Rogers 52 years ago, as if it happened yesterday. Clemmons, who had spent a good portion of his life struggling with his sexuality, was coming into his own as a gay man. He was frequenting a gay club behind the Greyhound...
Naomi Campbell’s self-shot photo will grace cover of ESSENCE’s 50th anniversary editionVideo
ESSENCE magazine will have the honor of having the cover of its 50th Anniversary issue feature an icon who is gracefully hitting the half-century mark herself. Supermodel Naomi Campbell made history for the publication’s Special Collector’s Edition by producing her own portraits for the edition while she is in isolation...
Daniel Radcliffe, other celebs reading ‘Harry Potter’ on videoVideo
Harry Potter will be reading Harry Potter in a new video series announced Tuesday. Actor Daniel Radcliffe, who came to fame playing the young wizard, is reading the first chapter of “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone” on the Wizarding World website. It can also be found in audio format...
Author says prequel to ‘Twilight’ series will arrive Aug. 4
“The Midnight Sun” will finally appear. Stephenie Meyer’s long-awaited prequel to her “Twilight” series is coming out Aug. 4, the author announced Monday. “The Midnight Sun” is narrated from vampire Edward Cullen’s perspective. Meyer had kept her fans in suspense all weekend with a countdown clock on her site that...
Comics industry providing plenty of content during coronavirus shutdown
The long drought is broken. Diamond Comic Distributors, which delivers most comics to retailers in North America, announced April 28 on Twitter that it would resume full services on May 20. Diamond had previously announced in late March that it was halting all deliveries, which left comic shops with no...
Producer’s memoir talks life of hits, magic of Eddie Van Halen
In a life full of magical musical moments, few compare for Ted Templeman to the night he first saw Van Halen in a mostly empty Hollywood club. The elite record-maker and Warner Bros. record executive who had spent the decade producing albums for The Doobie Brothers, Van Morrison, Carly Simon...
Prince Harry records message for Thomas the Tank Engine
Prince Harry has recorded a special message to celebrate the 75th anniversary of children’s favorite Thomas the Tank Engine. The Duke of Sussex introduces a new program called “Thomas and Friends: The Royal Engine,” which has a storyline that includes Harry’s father and grandmother, Prince Charles and Queen Elizabeth II,...
Makers finding solace, joy in dangerous times
Their reasons may differ, but crafters agree: Makers gotta make. Those who create things by hand — who weld, weave, play in clay or paints — are pursuing their passions the best they can during the coronavirus pandemic. The creative arts are soothing, fill time, and keep our minds and...
Book, Zoom sessions take a new look at Henry Clay Frick
Coal and coke magnate Henry Clay Frick is the topic of two upcoming Zoom discussions hosted by the Fayette County Cultural Trust and author Cassandra Vivian. The discussions are planned for 11 a.m. April 28 and 4 p.m. April 30. Mt. Pleasant resident Vivian is the author of a new...
‘Hunger Games’ prequel in the works
It appears “Hunger Games” fans eager for more Panem action have the odds in their favor. A prequel to the franchise that took in almost $3 billion at the box office is officially in the works, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Author Suzanne Collins’ new book “The Ballad of Songbirds...
‘Handmaid’s Tale,’ Harry Potter on challenged books list
Stories with gay and transgender themes, a spoof inspired by the family rabbit of Vice President Mike Pence, and classics by J.K. Rowling and Margaret Atwood were among the books that received the most objections last year at schools and libraries. On Monday, the American Library Association released its annual...
Alex Trebek set to publish a memoir while fighting pancreatic cancer
Alex Trebek will soon share his life story with the world. Simon & Schuster announced on Tuesday that the publisher will release “The Answer Is…: Reflections on My Life,” a memoir by the beloved and longtime “Jeopardy!” host that will hit shelves July 21 — one day before his 80th...
‘Shifting America off its constitutional foundations’: Saint Vincent prof critiques progressivism in new bookVideo
The demise of Democratic presidential hopefuls Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren does not mean the end of progressivism in the political spectrum, said a Saint Vincent College professor who has written a new book analyzing the movement in the United States. “Even though both (U.S. Senators) Warren and Sanders have...
Loretta Lynn’s bond with Patsy Cline remains strong
Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn only knew each other a short time before Cline’s death at the age of 30, but the friendship formed between two trailblazers of country music is enough to fill a book. Lynn’s new memoir, “Me and Patsy: Kicking Up Dust,” which was released this week,...
A tip at Jamison Farm leads Pittsburgh writer to book on organic agriculture pioneer Louis Bromfield
For a man who wrote so many books — 34 in 33 years — not many books have been written about Louis Bromfield. Pittsburgh author Stephen Heyman is remedying that oversight with his new book, “The Planter of Modern Life: Louis Bromfield and the Seeds of a Food Revolution” (W.W....
Oprah Winfrey chooses ‘Hidden Valley Road’ for book clubVideo
Oprah Winfrey’s new book club pick is Robert Kolker’s “Hidden Valley Road,” an in-depth account of a 1950s family in which six of 12 children were diagnosed with schizophrenia. Winfrey says she will continue picking books during the coronavirus outbreak, and will seek new ways to engage readers. In announcing...
James Patterson sets up fund to help indie booksellers
James Patterson has a history of helping independent bookstores. The best-selling novelist has donated millions in recent years to booksellers, while also giving millions to schools and libraries and literacy programs. Now, with stores closed or closing nationwide because of the coronavirus outbreak, Patterson has launched a new initiative. On...
J.K. Rowling starts Harry Potter At Home for housebound families
J.K. Rowling is hoping a dash of Harry Potter will help families confined to their homes during the coronavirus pandemic. The author has launched an online initiative, harrypotterathome.com, which features quizzes, games and other activities. For the month of April, Rowling also has partnered with the audio publisher-distributor Audible and...
‘Strega Nona’ author Tomie dePaola is dead at age 85
CONCORD, New Hampshire — Tomie dePaola, the prolific children’s author and illustrator who delighted generations with tales of Strega Nona, the kindly and helpful old witch in Italy, died Monday at age 85. DePaola died at the Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon, New Hampshire, according to his literary agent, Doug...
Patrick Stewart, Josh Gad, other celebs read on social media during coronavirus shutdown
Some actors are turning to reading aloud to help fans pass the time as many stay at home and practice social distancing amid the coronavirus outbreak. On Saturday, Patrick Stewart, best known for his work as a Shakespearean actor, Capt. Jean-Luc Picard on “Star Trek: Next Generation” and as Professor...
Woody Allen has new publisher, memoir published Monday
Woody Allen’s memoir, dropped by its original publisher after widespread criticism, has found a new home. The 400-page book, still called “Apropos of Nothing,” was released Monday by Arcade Publishing. “The book is a candid and comprehensive personal account by Woody Allen of his life,” Arcade announced, “ranging from his...
Greensburg author, musician Karen Dietrich publishes ‘dark thriller’Video
Evelyn Gibson, the protagonist in Greensburg author Karen Dietrich’s novel “Girl at the Edge,” is a 16-year-old girl living in Florida with her loving, slightly unconventional family. “I’m into kind of dark stories, darker crime,” says Dietrich, 43. So the fact that Evelyn has always known her father was a...
