by W.G. Dunlop Agence France Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) –A video of a boy tearfully talking about being bullied at school has gone viral and prompted an outpouring of support from Hollywood celebrities, music stars, athletes and others. Keaton Jones’ mother posted the video Friday on Facebook, writing that her son asked to make it after he had her pick him up from school because he was afraid to go to lunch. It has […]
Entertainment – International
After near decade, Beyonce back on top of US song chart
NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Beyonce, with little argument one of the top stars in pop music, Monday ended an unlikely drought — nine years since she had a number-one US song. Beyonce hit the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart for her new duet with Ed Sheeran on a remix of the English songwriter’s “Perfect,” a tender guitar ballad. The song sold 181,000 digital downloads in the week through Thursday on the […]
‘Coco,’ a charmer from the Land of the Dead, lives on
LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — The Disney-Pixar animated comedy “Coco” showed serious staying power this weekend in North American theaters, holding to the top spot for its third week running while taking in an estimated $18.3 million, industry website Exhibitor Relations reported. The colorful film tells the story of Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), a young Mexican who longs to become a musician despite his family’s unrelenting ban on music. He stumbles into the Land of […]
The hype reawakens: ‘Star Wars’ stages ‘Last Jedi’ premiere
by Frankie Taggart Agence France-Presse LOS ANGELES, United States (AFP) — The trailers have dropped, the frantic media tours have concluded and the phony war is over: “Star Wars: The Last Jedi” finally begins the real battle Saturday at its glittering world premiere. Hotter than one of Yoda’s root leaf curries, the movie is expected to cash in on 12 months of relentless hype with one of the biggest domestic opening weekends ever. A galaxy […]
HBO announces second season of hit drama ‘Big Little Lies’
NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — American cable network HBO has announced a second season of the series “Big Little Lies,” with A-listers Nicole Kidman and Reese Witherspoon both set to return to executive produce and star in the Emmy-winning show. Based on Liane Moriarty’s bestselling novel, “Big Little Lies” was initially broadcast as a mini-series, and was not intended to run beyond seven episodes shown at the start of 2017. It was a major […]
Batman ‘geek’ spends time between the US Senate and Gotham City
by Leo Mouren Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — This Batman mega fan calls himself “a bit of a geek,” but everyone else calls him senator — as in US Senator Patrick Leahy, a veteran Democratic lawmaker. The 77-year-old Leahy is such a fan of the Caped Crusader that he has made cameo appearances in five Batman movies, including “Batman Forever” (1995), Christopher Nolan’s “Dark Knight” (2008), and most recently in “Batman vs Superman” […]
JK Rowling defends Depp casting after fan backlash
LONDON, United States (AFP) — British author J. K. Rowling has said she is “genuinely happy” with Johnny Depp’s casting in the upcoming “Fantastic Beasts” film after fans called for his replacement over domestic abuse allegations. The US actor, who plays villain Gellert Grindelwald in the Harry Potter spin-off, had been accused of physical abuse by his former wife Amber Heard during divorce proceedings. But actress Heard withdrew the allegations last year when the pair […]
Geoffrey Rush sues paper in Australia for ‘inappropriate behavior’ claim
MELBOURNE, Australia (AFP) — Academy award-winning actor Geoffrey Rush Friday filed defamation proceedings against a News Corp newspaper in Australia over a story claiming he engaged in “inappropriate behavior” at a Sydney theater. The 66-year-old denied any wrongdoing after Sydney’s Daily Telegraph ran a front-page story last month reporting that the Sydney Theater Company received a complaint about him when he was working with them. The veteran Australian star launched action in the Federal Court […]
After Weinstein scandal, powerful men fall like dominoes
by Shahzad Abdul Agence France-Presse WASHINGTON, United States (AFP) — Democratic Senator Al Franken on Thursday became the latest in a succession of famous American men felled by allegations of sexual harassment or misconduct in the wake of the Harvey Weinstein scandal. Here are some of the key figures from the worlds of entertainment, politics and the media. ENTERTAINMENT: Harvey Weinstein Harvey Weinstein was until a few months ago a king of Hollywood whose golden […]
Latest posthumous Hendrix album features 10 new tracks
NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Jimi Hendrix’s estate on Thursday announced a posthumous album from the guitar legend featuring 10 previously unreleased tracks, some recorded months before his death in 1970. “Both Sides of the Sky,” which will come out on March 9, is intended to be the last in a trilogy of albums of restored Hendrix material following releases in 2010 and 2013 that entered Top 10 charts in several countries. The latest […]
Time names sexual abuse ‘silence breakers’ as Person of the Year
by Catherine Triomphe Agence France-Presse NEW YORK, United States (AFP) — Time magazine named as Person of the Year Wednesday “the silence breakers” who triggered a national reckoning by revealing the pervasiveness of sexual harassment, assault and abuse in US life. President Donald Trump was runner-up in the prestigious ranking, ahead of his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping. Time designated as “silence breakers” the individuals, mostly women, who came forward this year to publicly expose patterns […]
Five things you never knew about Johnny Hallyday
by Fiachra Gibbons Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP0 — He was an enormous star in France, but Johnny Hallyday, the “French Elvis,” whose death was announced by his wife Laeticia Wednesday, was almost unknown in the English-speaking world. Here are five key things to know about the biggest rock star you have probably never heard of: He wasn’t called Johnny Johnny Hallyday was born Jean-Philippe Smet in Paris in 1943, but as he said himself, […]
