Movies/TV category, Page 184
Curtain set to go up on a host-less but drama-filled Oscars
NEW YORK — A winter of discontent for the Academy Awards will culminate Sunday in an Oscar ceremony that may lack a host but isn’t missing intrigue. The run-up to the 91st Academy Awards has been a series of missteps and backtracks by the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and...
U.S. Latinas rally around ‘Roma’ actress Yalitza Aparicio
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Yalitza Aparicio, the Oscar-nominated, first-time actress in “Roma,” is finding strong support among Mexican-American women who identify with her indigenous roots despite backlash she is receiving in Mexico. Some Mexican-American women say they are glad Aparicio’s high-profile role is challenging typical images of light-skinned Latinas in Spanish-language...
‘Crocodile Hunter’ Steve Irwin celebrated by Google Doodle
Google’s home page Friday featured the original Crocodile Hunter, Steve Irwin, cuddling a croc. The legendary Australian outdoorsman’s 57th birthday would have been Feb. 22, (it was also the date of National Wildlife Day this year) so it was doubly appropriate the search engine pay homage by showing the man...
‘Empire’ producers cut Jussie Smollett from season’s last episodes
CHICAGO — Actor Jussie Smollett’s character on “Empire” will be removed from the final two episodes of this season in the wake of his arrest on charges that he staged a racist, anti-gay attack on himself last month in downtown Chicago, producers of the Fox TV show announced Friday. The...
Here kitty, kitty! Row House Cinema to screen CatVideoFest
Row House Cinema will continue its tradition of putting adorable and hilarious cats on the big screen by hosting the 2019 CatVideoFest. The 70-minute cute kitty compilation will run March 10-21 in the theater at 4115 Butler St., Lawrenceville. A portion of proceeds from 70-minute program will go to local...
Review: Third ‘Dragon’ doesn’t fly as high as previous installmentsVideo
With an adorable (albeit fire-breathing) star and a formidable villain, the animated adventure “How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World” has a lot going for it. In this third installment of the series of films about Vikings and their dragons — based on books by Cressida Cowell — returning...
New Harry Potter roller coaster opening at Universal Orlando
ORLANDO, Fla. — Harry Potter fans should get ready to rev their engines. A new roller coaster modeled after the character Hagrid’s motorcycle will open at Universal Orlando Resort in June. The theme park resort said Thursday that Hagrid’s Magical Creatures Motorbike Adventure will take riders on a trip with...
Review: ‘Fighting With My Family’ is a cheeky, fun sports biopicVideo
The more globally famous the celebrity, the tougher audiences tend to be on a biopic. Unless it’s “Bohemian Rhapsody,” because, you know. All those hits. A different sort of hit-making and punishment-taking sets the tone in “Fighting With My Family,” based on a true story. It’s not a story, or...
At Academy Awards, race for best picture is too close to call
NEW YORK — On a year where one of the lead Oscar contenders is titled “The Favourite,” the 91st Academy Awards lack a clear front runner. Normally a fairly predictable process with one or two favorites, this year’s best picture race has been maddeningly unclear, almost devious in its contradictions....
‘Empire’ actor Jussie Smollett turns himself in to face charge
CHICAGO — Chicago police say “Empire” actor Jussie Smollett has turned himself in to face a charge of making a false police report when he said he was attacked in downtown Chicago by two men who hurled racist and anti-gay slurs and looped a rope around his neck. Police spokesman...
Harry Potter film festival in final year at Row House Cinema
“You can laugh, but people used to believe there were no such things as the Blibbering Humdinger or the Crumple-Horned Snorkack!” So said Luna Lovegood in “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.” Before the age of Harry Potter, people didn’t believe in horcruxes, boggarts or dementors, either. Row...
Brothers in Smollett case are bodybuilders, aspiring actors
CHICAGO — An attorney representing the brothers at the center of an investigation into the attack reported by Jussie Smollett said Wednesday that her clients “manned up” and testified in front of a grand jury, before prosecutors charged the “Empire” actor with filing a false police report. Gloria Schmidt spoke...
Latest Pixar short ‘Kitbull’ will warm your cold heart
Looking for a bit of “awww” in the midst of winter? Pixar’s latest entry in its SparkShorts program is “Kitbull,” a hand-drawn story about an unlikely friendship between a stray kitten and a pit bull. Directed by Rosana Sullivan, the heartwarming story opens on a black kitten whose cardboard box...
CNN hires GOP political operative to lead 2020 election coverage
From reactions on the internet, the newest hire from Cable News Network has made a big splash. The only problem is many believe CNN has gone to the deep end. Sarah Isgur, former spokeswoman and senior counsel at the Justice Department under Jeff Sessions, is said to be its new...
Oh, yeah — ‘The Dirt’ tells the story of Motley Crue
Nothing exemplifies the ’80s more than a hard-rockin’ hair band. And atop that hair-sprayed heap stood Motley Crue. With the tagline — “Their music made them famous. Their lives made them infamous.” — Netflix released the trailer for the biopic “The Dirt” today. It tells the true story of the...
Film Pittsburgh announced the lineup for the 26th annual JFilm Festival – 11 days of Jewish-themed films
Film Pittsburgh announced the lineup for the 26th annual JFilm Festival – 11 days of Jewish-themed films, guest speakers and visiting filmmakers. The festival returns to SouthSide Works Cinema this year with screenings from March 7-17. The lineup features 21 narrative and documentary films from 11 countries, all of which...
Gwyneth Paltrow reveals she’s retiring from Marvel universe
Gwyneth Paltrow was among the first characters in Marvel’s cinematic universe. As Pepper Potts in 2008’s “Iron Man,” Paltrow went from Tony Stark’s personal assistant to his love interest to the CEO of Stark Industries. She even took on super powers of her own in “Iron Man 3,” when she...
Several ‘Office’ cast members to appear at Steel City Con
Steel City Con is shaping up to be a reunion of “The Office.” So far, five cast members have announced they will appear at the Monroeville convention, including Leslie David Baker, Oscar Nunez, Kate Flannery, Creed Bratton and Brian Baumgartner, according to the convention’s Facebook page. Baker is known for...
Sony reveals new image of Tom Hanks as Mister Rogers
Sony Pictures tweeted a new photo of Tom Hanks as Mister Rogers from the upcoming movie “A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood.” The movie is directed by Marielle Heller — who also directed the Oscar-nominated “Can You Ever Forgive Me?” — and based on a relationship between Latrobe-native Fred Rogers...
First-ever ‘Jeopardy!” team contest draws top champions
CULVER CITY, Calif. — Glance around the “Jeopardy!” set during rehearsals for its first-ever team championship and it’s easy to be intimidated by the assembled brain power. There’s Brad Rutter, whose overall “Jeopardy!” haul, $4.3 million, is the most won on any game show. And Ken Jennings, a 74-game winner...
‘Alita’ leads a slow Presidents Day box office weekend
LOS ANGELES — The sci-fi fantasy “Alita: Battle Angel” topped the charts and beat out a number of newcomers including the meta romantic comedy “Isn’t It Romantic” and the horror sequel “Happy Death Day 2U” in its first weekend in theaters, but it is a victory with a few caveats....
‘Golden Girls’ themed cruise to launch in 2020
Gather your pals and confidants, a “Golden Girls” cruise is sailing in 2020. Seems Flip Phone Events is throwing a party and inviting everyone they know — and it’s a “Golden Girls” fan’s dream. The five-night Western Caribbean cruise — aboard the Celebrity Infinity — will set sail from —...
Trump says he found ‘real Collusion’ — on ‘Saturday Night Live’
President Donald Trump has gotten ahead of special counsel Robert Mueller III’s investigation, making one thing clear: There was collusion. Well, on “Saturday Night Live,” at least. In a Sunday morning tweetstorm, Trump blasted the previous night’s episode of “SNL,” which opened with Alec Baldwin portraying the commander-in-chief declaring a...
Don Cheadle sports political shirts as he hosts ‘SNL’
NEW YORK — Don Cheadle delivered some political messages along with jokes as he hosted “Saturday Night Live” for the first time. The actor sported a T-shirt that said “Protect Trans Kids” as he introduced musical guest Gary Clark Jr. And in closing Saturday’s show, Cheadle wore a jersey with...
Academy reverses plans, will air all awards live at Oscars
NEW YORK — Bowing to a backlash that had threatened to engulf an already blunder-plagued Academy Awards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Friday reversed its decision to present four awards during the commercial breaks of this year’s Oscar broadcast. All 24 categories will be shown live,...
