Entertainment category, Page 146
Maya Rudolph is new face of M&Ms after ‘indefinite pause’ on veteran spokescandies
Move over, Yellow, Red and Green: Maya Rudolph is replacing the iconic M&M’s “spokescandies” after the candy-coated chocolates brand inadvertently sparked backlash last year by changing its green mascot’s high-heeled boots to “polarizing” sneakers. The pivot comes ahead of the candy’s Feb. 12 Super Bowl LVII commercial and capitalizes on...
Rock band Kansas to play Pittsburgh during 50th anniversary tour
Classic rock band Kansas is returning to the town where it first made a name for itself to kick off its 50th anniversary tour on June 2 at the Benedum Center. It seems only fitting that Kansas is stopping at the Benedum as part of its “Another Fork in the...
Brooks & Dunn coming to Pittsburgh for ‘Reboot Tour’
Top-selling county music duo Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn are making a long-awaited return to Pittsburgh. On Monday morning, it was announced Brooks & Dunn will perform May 12 at PPG Paints Arena as part of their extended “Reboot Arena Tour.” Tickets go on sale at 10 a.m. Friday. Scotty...
Mourners bid farewell to Lisa Marie Presley, Elvis’ daughter
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Lisa Marie Presley, a singer, songwriter and the daughter of Elvis Presley, was remembered during a funeral service Sunday as a loving mother and an “old soul” who endured tragedy but persevered as a dedicated protector of her father’s legacy as a rock ‘n’ roll pioneer and...
Jeremy Renner says he broke 30-plus bones in snowplow mishap
LOS ANGELES — Actor Jeremy Renner says he broke more than 30 bones in a snowplow accident on New Year’s Day. Renner, 52, said earlier that he is recovering at home from what Nevada authorities say were serious chest injuries he suffered when he was run over by his 7-ton...
Here’s what to expect from upcoming Oscar nominations
NEW YORK — There were, admittedly, some notable distractions at last year’s ceremony, so you might have missed it: The old Oscar rules have gone out the window. A film, streamed by Apple TV+, won Hollywood’s top award without a penny of box office. But this year — plot twist!...
Coroner says actor Leslie Jordan died of natural causes
LOS ANGELES — Leslie Jordan, the actor whose wry Southern drawl and versatility made him a standout on TV series including “Will & Grace” and “American Horror Story,” died from natural causes and not from a car accident last year, the Los Angeles County coroner’s office has concluded. The 67-year-old...
Reunited Pantera playing Star Lake this summerVideo
The reunion of the surviving members of heavy metal pioneers Pantera has spawned a headlining tour, including a stop near Pittsburgh. Pantera will visit the Pavilion at Star Lake on July 28. They will be joined by opening act Lamb of God. Singer Philip Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown will...
David Crosby, whose voice soared with the Byrds and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, dies
LOS ANGELES — David Crosby, who helped found two supergroups that broadened and deepened the reach of rock music, and who, with his outspoken political pronouncements and famously outsized appetites came to symbolize the Woodstock generation’s exuberance and excesses, has died, according to a source close to the musician. Bedeviled...
Nominees for the 2023 British Academy Film AwardsVideo
LONDON — Nominees for the 2023 British Academy Film Awards, announced: Film — “All Quiet on the Western Front”; “The Banshees of Inisherin”; Elvis”; “Everything Everywhere All at Once”; “Tár”. British Film — “Aftersun”; “The Banshees of Inisherin”; “Brian and Charles”; “Empire of Light”; “Good Luck to You, Leo Grande”;...
After 2 virtual years, Sundance returns to the mountains
Randall Park made a pact with himself some years ago that he wouldn’t attend the Sundance Film Festival if he didn’t have a project there. But the “Fresh Off the Boat” star never imagined that his first time would be as a director and not as an actor. His adaptation...
‘All Quiet on the Western Front’ leads race for BAFTA awardsVideo
LONDON — Visceral German-language war drama “All Quiet on the Western Front” got a field-leading 14 nominations on Thursday for the British Academy Film Awards, with genre-bending comedies “The Banshees of Inisherin” and “Everything Everywhere All At Once” each nominated in 10 categories. “All Quiet,” an unflinching adaptation of a...
New photographs of Warsaw Ghetto found in family collection
WARSAW, Poland — Warsaw’s Jewish history museum on Wednesday presented a group of photographs taken in secret during the Warsaw Ghetto Uprising of 1943, some of which have never been seen before, that were recently discovered in a family collection. The POLIN Museum of the History of Polish Jews described...
Rapper Flo Rida awarded $82.6M for breach of contract case
MIAMI — Hip hop artist Flo Rida was awarded $82.6 million on Wednesday after a South Florida jury found that the makers of Celsius energy drinks breached a contract with the rapper and singer, and tried to hide money from him. Flo Rida, whose real name is Tramar Dillard, and...
Plastic as art? Entire grocery store created from discards
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — A grocery store featuring thousands of faux food items made entirely from discarded plastic bags opens Tuesday to the public, an artist’s non-edible creation calling attention to the dangers of plastic waste. The Plastic Bag Store is a custom-built public art installation and film experience designed...
On NBC’s ‘Today,’ Jenna Bush Hager is becoming book publishing’s best friend
Ever since the death of former First Lady Barbara Bush, her granddaughter Jenna Bush Hager has been desperate to find an unlikely family heirloom. “She had a needlepoint pillow that said, ‘Reading is sexy,’” the “Today with Hoda & Jenna” co-host recalled in a recent conversation at NBC’s studios in...
How ‘The Last of Us’ changed gaming, strained relationships and spawned an empire
Sony’s landmark 2013 game “The Last of Us” didn’t make it easy on players. But the difficulty curve was more emotional than technical, for the game delivered the zombie genre at its most heady, grief-stricken and intimate. How it started: Grim. Joel, a down-on-his-luck single dad, can’t catch a break....
Billie Eilish seeks restraining order against man who ‘professed his love’ for her
LOS ANGELES — Pop singer Billie Eilish has filed a request for a restraining order against the 39-year-old man accused of breaking into her parents’ Los Angeles home this month, court documents show. The order would protect herself, her parents and her brother, musician Finneas Baird O’Connell. Eilish, 21, said...
Review: Hacking, not shoe-leather, solves thriller ‘Missing’Video
June Allen’s mother has vanished during a romantic vacation with her boyfriend to Colombia when “Missing” starts gaining steam. The FBI are supposedly on it, with one special agent telling June: “The best thing you can do is wait by the phone.” Wait by the phone? You don’t know June...
Snoop Dogg, Gloria Estefan, Sade make it to Songwriters Hall
NEW YORK — Snoop Dogg, Gloria Estefan, Sade, Jeff Lynne, Glen Ballard, Teddy Riley and Liz Rose have been chosen to join the Songwriters Hall of Fame, a class that includes the writers of such varied hits as “Man In the Mirror,” “Drop It Like It’s Hot” and “Rhythm Is...
Madonna’s global ‘Celebration’ tour announces Pittsburgh dateVideo
Madonna will bring 40 years of her greatest hits to Pittsburgh as part of her “Madonna: The Celebration Tour.” The best-selling female solo touring artist of all time comes to PPG Paints Arena on Aug. 7. It will be her third stop in Pittsburgh, having performed at the Civic Arena...
Pittsburgh Opera debuts Handel’s ‘Ariodante’ in all-new production
Pittsburgh Opera will present the first-ever local performances of Handel’s Baroque opera, “Ariodante,” in an all-new production running Jan. 21-29 at Pittsburgh CAPA Theater. “Ariodante” also will be the debut with the company of costume designer Grace Kang and set designer Ningning Yang, both students at Carnegie Mellon University. “Almost...
TV Talk at TCA: How ‘Justified: City Primeval’ ended up back in Western Pa.Video
PASADENA, Calif. – FX’s “Justified” (2010-15) filmed its pilot episode in Western Pennsylvania back in 2009 before production on the subsequent episodes shifted to Southern California. For the sequel series, “Justified: City Primeval,” premiering on FX this summer, the show is set in Detroit and primarily filmed in Chicago with...
Pittsburgh Pop podcast: Talking filmed-in-Pittsburgh ‘Mayor of Kingstown,’ Steelers local ratings, ‘The Last of Us’
In this episode of the “Pittsburgh Pop” podcast, host Tim Benz and TV Talk columnist Rob Owen discuss Pittsburgh pop culture news of the moment, including filmed-in-Pittsburgh “Mayor of Kingstown” and star Jeremy Renner’s recovery and NFL local market ratings, including the Steelers in Pittsburgh. Owen discusses what it was...
Boris Johnson signs deal for memoir of turbulent premiership
LONDON — Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has signed a deal to write a memoir of his tumultuous time in office, which began with a vow to “get Brexit done” and ended in scandal and resignation. Publisher HarperCollins said Monday that the as-yet untitled book will be a prime...
