Cuba Gooding Jr. will stand trial in New York for forcible touching and sexual abuse beginning October 18, a judge ruled Tuesday.
The charges stem from an alleged encounter with a woman at the Magic Hour Rooftop Bar and Lounge in the Moxy Times Square Hotel. A patron at that bar claims the actor groped her breast, an allegation Gooding denies.
Gooding was formally charged with misdemeanor forcible touching at the NYPD’s 25th Precinct in Harlem, New York, in 2019, and later indicted.
He pleaded not guilty to one misdemeanor count each of forcible touching and sexual abuse in the third degree.
Attorneys for the Jerry Maguire star had previously sought to dismiss the case, arguing that a video of his encounter with the woman in question shows that he didn’t grope her. A judge declined to dismiss the case.
It’s been a while since actor-singer Tyrese Gibson has been in the studio to make new music. Gibson, who reprises his role as Roman Pearce in the latest Fast & Furious installment, F9, says there’s a reason for that.
“My love for music doesn’t allow for me to do it as often as a lot of my supporters and fans want me to,” Gibson tells ABC Audio. “And, it’s like the Holy Grail, you know. I don’t touch it. I don’t play with it. I don’t sing unless I’m really coming from a real place.”
Gibson, whose last solo studio album was 2015’s Black Rose, says he knows that having the ability to pick and choose when he’ll make new music is a “luxury” that a “lot of people can’t afford.”
“So if you ain’t paying the bills, you got to pump an album out every year,” he continues. “You got to keep the relevancy, got to stay on the charts. You got to drop singles and videos and keep chasing that thing.”
Now as a successful film franchise and blockbuster star, Gibson says he doesn’t have to worry about those things anymore.
“Other than Jesus himself, my main source of income is movies,” he says. “And, it allows me to really get in the studio and do music when I’m able to sing from a real place. So whether it’s good, bad, challenging, or ugly — I sing from a real place.”
Gibson’s latest film project, F9, is currently in theaters nationwide.
Snoop Dogg expressed his gratitude to fans over the weekend, thanking them for their continued prayers for his mother, Beverly Tate, who fell ill last spring.
In May, the 49-year-old rapper asked fans to pray for his mother, but didn’t specify any details surrounding her health or the situation. Then Sunday, Snoop shared some positive news, posting a photo of his 70-year-old mom resting on a hospital bed while he and his siblings comfort her.
“Happy Sunday me and my brothers went to c mama today and she opened up her eyes to c us and let us know she still fighting,” he explained in the emotional caption. “God is good.”
“Thanks for all the prayers,” he concluded, adding, “1 day at a time.”
Snoop’s update attracted support from his famous friends, including Busta Rhymes, Queen Latifah, Jamie Foxx, Lizzo, Kenan Thompson and many others.
Snoop has yet to publicly disclose his mother’s ailment or condition.
Shortly after revealing his mother’s health struggles in May, Snoop shared in an Instagram video, “Gotta stay strong, gotta keep pushing on. They say God ain’t gon put nothing on you, you can’t handle. I’m being tested right now y’all. Make sure y’all pray for me and my family.”
Without the GOAT leading her team for the finals competition, USA Gymnastics took the silver medal at the Tokyo games, following Simone Biles‘ surprise withdrawal earlier today.
The athletes from Russia came out on top, beating the cumulative U.S. score by more than three points. Great Britain won bronze.
The U.S. women’s gymnastics team was seeking to bring home the gold for the third time in a row at the competition on Tuesday.
This was one of the strongest gymnastics teams the world has seen, led by all-time great Biles and uneven bars phenom Sunisa Lee. The team is rounded out by Jordan Chiles and Grace McCallum.
After a rare stumble on vault Tuesday, Biles withdrew for what USA Gymnastics called a “medical issue.” She went on to cheer on her teammates from the sidelines.
Following news of her withdrawal, Simone got praise online, including from fellow Olympic medal winner Adam Rippon. The former figure skater noted on Twitter, “I can’t imagine the pressure Simone has been feeling. Sending her SO much love. It easy to forget she’s still human. WE LOVE YOU.”
After a shaky Olympic debut on Monday, Biles Instagrammed, “It wasn’t an easy day or my best but I got through it. I truly do feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders at times. I know I brush it off and make it seem like pressure doesn’t affect me but damn sometimes it’s hard hahaha! The Olympics is no joke!”
Andrew Eccles/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images
Derek Hough has a full plate already — from judging Dancing with the Stars to starring on High School Musical: The Musical: The Series — but the professional dancer is adding yet another project to his roster: a Las Vegas residency titled Derek Hough: No Limit.
While the 36-year-old Emmy winner is no stranger to performing live, he credited his World of Dance co-star Jennifer Lopez for inspiring him further with a pep talk.
“She gave me some good advice. Her MO is hustle, right?” Hough told Entertainment Tonight. “It’s like, ‘Make sure you hustle. Make sure you keep people out there seeing the show and you’re working,'” said Hough, who is set to become the first artist to take over The Summit Showroom, located at Vegas’ Venetian Resort.
Hough said he’s continually inspired by Lopez’s work ethic, adding, “She’s great. She goes hard in her show. She goes hard in everything.”
He also said the door is open for Jennifer to join him during one of his shows, should she so choose. He also extended the invite to other people in his inner circle.
“I think I’m gonna leave a space in the show open for, you know, if I have Andy Grammer get up, or my sister [Julianne Hough], or Lindsey Stirling, or Ne-Yo,” he grinned, referencing past DWTS competitors. “There’s so many people I think that could be great on the show.”
As for what fans can expect when the curtain rises on September 22, the DWTS pro teased, “It’s gonna be a great show. Live music, I have a live band, incredible dancers… There’s a lot of pent-up energy that’s gonna be out there on that stage. I’m excited!”
Carrie Underwood has a new Gift to offer fans. The superstar singer is releasing a deluxe edition of her 2020 debut Christmas album, My Gift, on September 24.
My Gift (Special Edition)will include three new tracks: “Favorite Time of Year,” which was originally released in as an Amazon Original and featured in Ring’s holiday commercial; a cover of Michael W. Smith‘s “All is Well”; and a mashup of Carrie’s holiday original “Let There Peace” and hit song, “Something in the Water.”
“My Gift is an album I’ve wanted to make from the beginning of my career. It’s been such a blessing to share this special music and I’m excited to share even more with the release of My Gift (Special Edition),” Carrie says.
The trio of new songs join other holiday classics on the standard edition, including “O Holy Night,” “O Come, All Ye Faithful,” “The Little Drummer Boy,” which features an appearance from Carrie’s son, Isaiah, and more. Carrie also collaborated with John Legend on “Hallelujah.”
My Gift reached #1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums, Top Christian Albums and Top Holiday Albums charts following its release. It also peaked inside the top five on the all-genre Billboard 200.
My Gift (Special Edition) will also be available on vinyl on November 5.
Ed Sheeran is busy cooking up “something special” for the fans.
On Monday, the English singer-songwriter teased a short video to Instagram with the vague caption, “Was recording something special today.”
In the clip, Sheeran is dressed in a black tee and black jeans with a semi-circle of background singers, also dressed in black, behind him. Together they sing an a capella version of his song “Afterglow,” in what appears to be a church, as the sunlight shines through the stain-glassed windows behind them.
While Sheeran didn’t spill any other details about the project, the teaser comes on the heels of his single “Bad Habits” landing the number one spot on Billboard‘s Global 200 and Global Excl. U.S. charts.
“Bad Habits. One month at number one,” he celebrated on Twitter on July 23. “Thank you all for listening and supporting Ed’s new single.”
“Bad Habits” is the lead single off his upcoming fifth studio album. The title and the release date have yet to be announced.
LeVar Burton is kicking off his week-long tenure as the newest Jeopardy! guest host.
Taking the podium for the first time, Burton saluted former host, the late Alex Trebek. “As a longtime viewer of the show, I am thrilled to have the opportunity to guest host Jeopardy! And I’m proud to be here to honor Alex’s legacy,” Burton said. “I’m gonna do my best to ensure that these talented Jeopardy! contestants enjoy their moment here as well.”
Prior to his debut, Burton credited his fans for making his time on the show possible. Following Trebek’s passing, a Change.org petition was launched to have him take over the Jeopardy! reins. At last check, it had over 258,000 signatures.
In April, Jeopardy! show runners added Burton to their impressive roster of guest hosts, which included Mayim Bialik, Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, and Good Morning America hosts Robin Roberts and George Stephanopoulos, among others.
Following the announcement, the Star Trek: The Next Generation alum tweeted, “THANK YOU… to all y’all for your passionate support! I am overjoyed, excited, and eager to be guest-hosting Jeopardy!, and will do my utmost best to live up to your faith you in me.”
Burton will hold down the fort until July 30. Following his tenure will be CNBC broadcaster David Farber, who will take charge through August 6. The final guest host is Fox Sportscaster Joe Buck, who will take over Jeopardy! until August 13.
A permanent replacement for Trebek, who died November 8 from pancreatic cancer, has not yet been announced.
(WASHINGTON) — Despite Republican opposition, the House select committee tasked with investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol holds its first hearing.
The panel will hear from law enforcement officers who defended the building, including Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn and Metropolitan Police Department officer Michael Fanone. They both lobbied lawmakers in May, alongside the family of fallen Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, to form a bipartisan, independent commission to investigate the attack — an effort Republicans blocked in the Senate.
The House voted to form the select committee to which Speaker Nancy Pelosi has appointed eight members — six Democrats and two Republicans, Reps. Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois, who broke from the GOP to vote in favor of creating the panel.
Here is how the news is developing. All times Eastern:
Jul 27, 9:53 am
Chairman: ‘This threat hasn’t gone away’
At the end of a video with never-before-seen footage of the attack, one rioter said they’ll be back, which Thompson said was a warning that “this threat hasn’t gone away” but “looms over our democracy like a dark cloud.”
Thompson closed his opening statement by saying while the attack was fueled by a “vile, vile lie,” his committee will be a beacon for uncovering the truth of that day.
“The rioters who tried to rob us of our democracy were propelled here by a lie. As Chairman of this Committee, I will not give that lie any fertile ground,” he said.
“We cannot allow ourselves to be undone by liars and cheaters. This is the United States of America,” he added.
Jul 27, 9:50 am
Chairman opens hearing with praise for officers, new video
Opening the hearing, Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said there’s “no place for politics or partisanship” in their investigation and praised the police officers for testifying for the panel.
“For appearing here, and more importantly, for your heroism on Jan. 6, you have the gratitude of this committee and this country. You held the line that day, and I can’t overstate what was on the line: our democracy. You held the line,” he said.
“We’re going to revisit some of those moments today, and it won’t be easy,” Thompson added. “But history will remember your names and your actions.”
Thompson proceeded to play video from Jan. 6 showing the officers defending the Capitol from a violent, pro-Trump mob, intermixed with their pleas to each other over their radios.
“Just describing that attack doesn’t come close to capturing what actually took place that day, so we’re going to see some of what our witnesses saw on Jan. 6,” he said.
Jul 27, 9:37 am
Hearing gets underway
The House select committee’s first hearing is underway.
Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., and Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., will each deliver opening statements ahead of testimony from four police officers who defended the Capitol on Jan. 6.
Cheney will speak in place of Republicans, whose ranking member would typically be given an opportunity to make opening remarks after the committee chair — but House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy pulled his members from the panel, leaving only Cheney and Rep. Adam Kinzinger, who took appointments from Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Tuesday’s hearing is expected to go two to three hours and will feature new video elements from the attack.
Jul 27, 9:35 am
Chairman: Subpoenas for Trump, Ivanka, McCarthy possible
Ahead of the hearing, Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., left the door open to subpoenas for the former president and those close to him on Jan. 6.
“Wherever the investigation leads us,” Thompson told ABC News Correspondent Kyra Phillips, when asked also about subpoenas for the House GOP leader and Ivanka Trump. “We will look at who made phone calls to the White House that day, we’ll look at whether or not there were any text messages, where there any emails — all of that is part of the investigation.”
Thompson said the August recess for the committee will include a lot of work and include conversations with Attorney General Merrick Garland and the White House.
“We are looking for a cooperative investigation, so whatever it takes to get that cooperation we plan to do,” he said.
Jul 27, 9:26 am
Why did the committee start with police officers?
Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., a member of the panel and chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, who briefed reporters on a call ahead of the hearing, said it was important to have the officers explain the brutality of what they confronted, with the help of video footage from that day.
Schiff said the officers can “put to rest some of the revisionist history, the effort to whitewash what took place and understand keenly the importance of getting to the truth about what led up to that insurrection and what happened thereafter.”
He added, “We didn’t want to compel anyone to testify that didn’t want to or didn’t feel that they could. A lot of those who were the most severely injured continue to struggle with the after-effects of that day, so we want to be sensitive to those concerns.”
Metropolitan Police officer Michael Fanone, who was seen on video getting brutally attacked by rioters, told ABC News Congressional Correspondent Rachel Scott he plans to testify in uniform and won’t let politics surrounding the committee hinder the truth in his testimony.
Jul 27, 9:21 am
What to expect Tuesday
At Tuesday’s hearing, titled “The Law Enforcement Experience on January 6th,” the panel will hear from police officers who protected lawmakers from rioters during the assault on the Capitol and have them explain new video footage showing what they experienced that day.
Harrowing testimonies are expected from Capitol Police officers Harry Dunn and Aquilino Gonell and Michael Fanone and Daniel Hodges of the Metropolitan Police Department.
Chairman Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., and Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo., will each deliver opening statements ahead of testimony from the officers. The opening statements from police officers will each be roughly five minutes, though the committee won’t be enforcing the “5-minute rule” on members and witnesses as it typically does in major hearings. There will only be one round of questions.
The hearing is expected to go two to three hours and will feature new video elements from the attack, according to a congressional aide.
Jul 27, 8:53 am
Republicans blame Pelosi for alleged security lapse ahead of hearing
House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy, joined by other Republican leaders and the five GOP members he appointed to the committee, held a news conference at the Capitol about an hour before the first hearing was set to began to air grievances about Reps. Jim Banks and Jim Jordan being rejected by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
The group attempted to place blame for Jan. 6 on Pelosi.
“The American people deserve to know the truth that Nancy Pelosi bears responsibility as speaker of the House for the tragedy that occurred on Jan. 6,” said Rep. Elise Stefanik, who replaced Cheney in her No. 3 GOP leadership role earlier this year.
One reporter noted that Pelosi didn’t say the election was stolen or call her supporters to the Capitol, asking McCarthy, “So are you trying to cover up what the former president’s role was on Jan. 6?”
“Nothing, we’re not pre-determining any questions. We’d like to be on the committee to ask them,” he replied, before resuming his attacks on Pelosi and the Democratic-led committee.
Jul 27, 8:30 am
Rep. Liz Cheney on ABC’s Good Morning America says subpoenas possible for McCarthy, Trump
With hours until the first hearing kicks off, Rep. Liz Cheney — one of two Republicans serving on the select committee — shot back at fellow Republicans criticizing her role in the probe, saying, “This is absolutely not a game. This is deadly serious.”
”There are some in my party, including Leader McCarthy, who continue to act as though this is about partisan politics, I think it’s really sad. I think it’s a disgrace,” she told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos.
She also said subpoenas for House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy and even former President Donald Trump are possible.
“The committee will go wherever we need to go to get to the facts,” she said.
(WASHINGTON) — Despite heavy opposition from Republican leadership, the House select committee tasked with investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol is holding its first hearing on Tuesday at 9:30 a.m.
The panel will hear from law enforcement officers who defended the building, including Capitol Police officer Harry Dunn and Metropolitan Police Department officer Michael Fanone. They both lobbied lawmakers in May, alongside the family of fallen Capitol Police officer Brian Sicknick, to form a bipartisan, independent commission to investigate the attack — an effort Republicans blocked in the Senate.
The House voted to form a select committee to which Speaker Nancy Pelosi has appointed eight members — six Democrats and two Republicans, Reps. Liz Cheney of Wyoming and Adam Kinzinger of Illinois. They were the only House Republicans who broke from the GOP to vote in favor of creating the committee.
House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy pulled all five of his appointments after Pelosi vetoed two of them over statements they had made which she said would damage the credibility of the probe. McCarthy has attempted to dismiss the investigation as a “sham” and threatened punitive action on the Republicans who’ve agreed to serve with Democrats.
Jul 27, 8:37 am
Rep. Liz Cheney on ABC’s Good Morning America says subpoenas possible for McCarthy, Trump
With hours until the first hearing kicks off, Rep. Liz Cheney — one of two Republicans serving on the select committee — shot back at fellow Republicans criticizing her role in the probe, saying, “This is absolutely not a game. This is deadly serious.”
”There are some in my party, including Leader McCarthy, who continue to act as though this is about partisan politics, I think it’s really sad. I think it’s a disgrace,” she told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos.
She also said subpoenas for House GOP Leader Kevin McCarthy and even former President Donald Trump are possible.
“The committee will go wherever we need to go to get to the facts,” she said.
