Many Americans are recalling an icon in the entertainment industry following the death of longtime African American TV producer and music show host Don Cornelius. The 75-year-old Cornelius, who had been in declining heath for years, died Wednesday, February 1 from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. The television pioneer had an amazing career...
Posts Tagged ‘ arts and entertainment ’
‘The Help’ Wins Big at SAG Awards
The Help , a movie about African American maids in the 1960s in (the U.S. state of) Mississippi was the big winner at Sunday's 18th annual Screen Actors Guild Awards. The film won best ensemble, best actress for Viola Davis and best supporting actress for Octavia Spencer. In accepting her award Davis said...
Five Leading Men Vie for Best Actor Oscar
The Academy Award nominations have confirmed the buzz about sure bets, but also added some surprises. In the category Best Actor in a Leading Role, some of the five nominees were expected to be in the mix. Others were upsets. In The Descendants, a bittersweet family drama directed by Alexander Payne, George Clooney...
‘Hugo’ Leads Oscar Race With 11 Nominations
The Academy Award nominations were announced this morning in Hollywood. Martin Scorsese's 3D adventure movie "Hugo," a fantasy tribute to French film pioneer George Melies, leads the list with 11 nominations, including one for Best Director, numerous technical categories and the most coveted of all, Best Picture of the Year. Actress and previous...
Sundance Film Short Explores Homosexuality in the Korean-American Community
The story behind the new short-film Dol (First Birthday) is packed with enough drama to be turned into a movie of its own. Dol was Korean-American filmmaker Andrew Ahn’s way of coming out to his parents. He wanted acceptance from his family. He got that and, in the process, had the movie accepted...
Rock Musician Struggles to Find Boundaries in Burma
As Burma's long time military dictatorship gradually opens, it is loosening censorship controls over media and the arts. Musicians in Rangoon are excited by their newfound freedom, but remain unsure of the new limits. The local punk music band Side Effect is dealing with the changes. The musician who calls himself Darko C...
Miranda Lambert Delivers Whole New Flair With ‘Four The Record’
Miranda Lambert says her new album, “Four The Record,” “pushes the limits” and builds on her previous releases with “a whole new flair.” The Country star kept a high profile throughout the past year by winning her first Grammy Award, taking home her second consecutive Country Music Association Female Vocalist of the Year...
‘Tarzan’ Chimpanzee Dies in Florida
Cheetah, the chimpanzee who starred in the Tarzan movies of the 1930s, has died. The Suncoast Primate Sanctuary in the southeastern state of Florida says Cheetah died Saturday of kidney failure. The sanctuary says Cheetah, who was 80 years old, made an impact on many children and adults throughout the years, and it...
Music Store Sets Beat for Austin Music Scene
Music thrives in Austin, Texas, where the industry brings in around $1 billion to the city every year. Musicians flood the city in droves and nearly every night there are live performances. Over the past three decades, one music store, Waterloo Records, has presided over the growing music scene. "I'm not a music...
Michael Jackson’s Doctor Sentenced to 4 Years in Prison
A judge in Los Angeles has sentenced Michael Jackson's personal physician to four years in prison for the 2009 death of the pop superstar. Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael Pastor Tuesday handed the sentence to Dr. Conrad Murray, who was convicted earlier this month of involuntary manslaughter in Jackson's death. Murray, however,...