Entertainment category, Page 247
Pittsburgh’s Aris Paul Band wins national honor for best rock actVideo
Pittsburgh musician Aris Paul delved deep into family history for his song, “Better Man’s Shoes,” and ended up winning a national award for his band. The Aris Paul Band received best rock song honors in the recent Hollywood Music in Media Awards. “I had no expectations,” Paul said. “I was...
Pitt students find patterns for The Westmoreland’s new exhibitionVideo
In a first-ever collaboration, students from the University of Pittsburgh chose works for a new exhibition at The Westmoreland Museum of American Art. “Pattern Makers” will be on view beginning Sunday, when the Greensburg museum reopens to the public. The exhibition “tracks the presence and meanings of patterns across a...
Q&A: Billy Crystal on Oscars and ‘little powerhouse’ film
NEW YORK — After hosting the Oscars nine times, Billy Crystal wouldn’t necessarily rule out a tenth. But the 72-year-old actor would prefer some wider attention for his low-budget indie film, “Standing Up, Falling Down.” Perhaps even a longshot Academy Awards nomination. “If it happened, it would be unbelievable. I’m...
Oscar-winner, ‘Sound of Music’ star Christopher Plummer dies
NEW YORK — Christopher Plummer, the dashing award-winning actor who played Captain von Trapp in the film “The Sound of Music” and at 82 became the oldest Academy Award acting winner in history, has died. He was 91. Plummer died Friday morning at his home in Connecticut with his wife,...
Former flight attendant lands 7-figure deal for 2 novels
A onetime flight attendant who conjured fictional nightmares during breaks on cross country red-eyes has a seven-figure deal for two novels. The Simon & Schuster imprint Avid Reader Press announced Thursday that T.J. Newman’s first book, the thriller “Falling,” comes out in July. The narrative is a horror story —...
‘Ma Rainey,’ ‘Minari’ and Boseman lead SAG nominations
NEW YORK — Chadwick Boseman received two posthumous nominations from the 27th Screen Actors Guild Awards on Thursday, while the Korean American family drama “Minari” and Spike Lee’s Vietnam veteran drama “Da 5 Bloods” were among the nominees for best ensemble. The nominees, announced on Instagram Live, differed notably from...
Pittsburgh Opera’s ‘COVID fan tutte’ documents pandemic production
With most of the performing arts world shut down by the pandemic, Pittsburgh Opera went ahead with its October production of Mozart’s “Còsi fan tutte.” “Every time we would tell folks we were having the performance, they would ask, ‘How are you going to do it?’” said Chris Cox, the...
Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh plans safe, outdoor Valentine’s activities
Kids and their families can celebrate Valentine’s Day early with free, socially distanced, outdoor fun at the Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh in the North Side. Hearts in the Park, planned for 4-8 p.m. Feb. 13, will offer interactive outdoor exhibits and activities, along with drive-through elements. “While, sadly, our doors...
Bloomfield gallery Boxheart will feature artists from Lawrenceville, Uniontown
Working with clay during his first ceramics class at Corning Community College, just over the Pennsylvania border in New York, Travis Winters thought for the first time that art was something he could do long-term. “It opened up my eyes to what art was,” said Winters, 35, who now lives...
Hunter Biden’s memoir ‘Beautiful Things’ out in April
NEW YORK — Hunter Biden, son of President Joe Biden and an ongoing target for conservatives, has a memoir coming out April 6. The book is called “Beautiful Things” and will center on the younger Biden’s well publicized struggles with substance abuse, according to Gallery Books, an imprint of Simon...
TV Talk: 1st-time Western Pa. filmmaker enters ‘Red Woods’; CBS reboots ‘The Equalizer’Video
For his directorial feature film debut, Western Pennsylvania’s Nick Danko looked no further than his own backyard. Danko’s “Red Woods” is a found footage film in the vein of “The Blair Witch Project” (minus the shaky-camera effect) that follows an urban explorer group as they tromp through abandoned houses in...
Singer Morgan Wallen suspended from label after racial slur
Country star Morgan Wallen has been suspended indefinitely from his label after a video surfaced of him shouting a racial slur and radio stations have removed his music from their playlists. Big Loud Records said in a statement posted to social media on Wednesday that Wallen’s contract has been suspended...
Pittsburgh Opera’s free February livestreams offer timely themes
Pittsburgh Opera will offer two timely programs during February. Six resident artists will perform in “Songs from the Heart: A Valentine from Pittsburgh Opera,” streaming free at 5:30 p.m. Feb. 14 on the opera’s YouTube channel and Facebook page. Making for an even sweeter experience, viewers can order a five-piece...
The Weeknd coming to Pittsburgh in 2022 with ‘The After Hours Tour’ rescheduledVideo
The Weeknd is still coming to Pittsburgh, just not this year. The Canadian singer announced Wednesday new dates for “The After Hours Tour,” originally set to take place in 2020 and then rescheduled for 2021. The tour will now begin in January 2022, with a stop at PPG Paints Arena...
Jeff Goldblum’s vaccine photo post stirs confusion
With his particular flair, Jeff Goldblum shared a message on social media that he recently received the covid-19 vaccine. The 68-year-old actor, a native of West Homestead, shared a photo of himself wearing a plush robe, black athletic pants and leopard-print slippers. He also wore a mask. This was all...
Pittsburgh-filmed ‘Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom’ lands 2 Golden Globe nominations
NEW YORK — David Fincher’s vision of a bygone Hollywood “Mank” topped nominations to the 78th Golden Globe Awards on Wednesday with six nods, leading Netflix’s overall domination in a pandemic-marred movie year. The film about “Citizen Kane” co-writer Herman Mankiewicz, landed nominations for best film, drama; best actor for...
Things to do in Western Pa.: Feb. 3, 2021Video
Feeling down after Punxsutawney Phil predicted six more weeks of winter? Maybe what you need is a good laugh. You’re in luck. Arcade Comedy Theater has a reading of classic Black sitcoms, South West Communities Chamber of Commerce has a comedy date night and Rowhouse Cinema has its annual “Sweded”...
TV Q&A: Does CBS’s ‘S.W.A.T.’ have a Pittsburgh connection?
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: I was watching the fifth episode of the third season of CBS’s “S.W.A.T.” on Hulu recently. In one scene, actress Lina Esco wears a Beaver...
‘Silence of the Lambs’ house in Fayette County sells again
The sale of a Fayette County home made famous by its appearance in “The Silence of the Lambs” couldn’t have been more timely. The Perryopolis home — at 8 Circle St. — sold last week, just a few days shy of the 30th anniversary of the release of “The Silence...
Hal Holbrook, prolific actor who played Twain, dies at 95
NEW YORK — Hal Holbrook, the award-winning character actor who toured the world for more than 50 years as Mark Twain in a one-man show and uttered the immortal advice “Follow the money” in the classic political thriller “All the President’s Men,” has died. He was 95. Holbrook died on...
TV Talk: WPXI comes off DirecTV; WQED adds ‘Cartoon Academy’
In the latest retransmission battle, WPXI is no longer available to AT&T’s DirecTV and AT&T TV live streaming subscribers. AT&T and WPXI parent company Cox Media Group, owned by private equity firm Apollo Global Management, failed to come to terms on a new contract. The old contract expired at 2:59...
Prime Stage production celebrates early activist Sojourner Truth
Prime Stage Theatre will return to its roots with a livestream performance of “Sojourner,” with Delana Flowers portraying the 19th-century women’s suffrage and abolition activist in a Black History Month production. The theater group’s inaugural production 25 years ago was another play about Sojourner Truth. ”Sojourner” is by Richard LaMonte...
‘Saved by the Bell’ castmates share Dustin Diamond tributes
A writer and producer with Pittsburgh roots shared memories of actor Dustin Diamond, as several former “Saved by the Bell” co-stars posted tributes to actor after the news of his death. Diamond died Monday after a three-week fight with carcinoma, according to his representative. He was 44. “Dustin did not...
Artist Baron Batch selected as resident artist to new gallery in SouthSide Works
Artist Baron Batch will bring his works to life on Pittsburgh’s South Side. Batch has teamed with SomeraRoad, the ownership group redeveloping the SouthSide Works, to be the artist for “The Residency,” an initiative that features an interactive gallery with a focus on community programming. The gallery is expected to...
High school musical season is again up in the air as pandemic continuesVideo
To stage or not to stage, that is the question for area high schools as musical season approaches. As many productions fell prey last year to the pandemic, school personnel and students didn’t think they would be facing the same challenge this year. But they are. With gathering size and...
