As promised, the latest in a series of new animated videos for songs on the Beatles‘ album Revolver has arrived: It’s for Paul McCartney‘s song “Here, There and Everywhere.”
In the video, the Beatles are seen in the recording studio listening to the song, and then we seen them at various locations throughout their career: arriving at a premiere, disembarking from a plane, hanging out in a hotel room in New York City, appearing on a TV show and riding in the back of a limo. Eventually, they end up back at Abbey Road studios. Throughout the clip, a dancing female figure is literally “here, there and everywhere,” providing the transitions from scene to scene.
The video’s producer, Richard Barnett of Trunk Animation, says the video depicts the Beatles “on tour as they face an ever-changing backdrop of cities, hotels, roads and gigs, with only each other to rely on.” Barnett says the dancing figure represents “inspiration and creative freedom.”
The new animated clip series, which also includes videos for “Taxman” and “I’m Only Sleeping,” were created to promote the deluxe reissue of Revolver that came out in October. It features new mixes of the original 1966 record, as well as a collection of outtakes and a four-song EP that includes the non-album tracks “Paperback Writer” and “Rain.”
Even if you’re one of the increasingly few who haven’t seen Netflix’s hit macabre dramedy Wednesday, you’ve probably already seen one of its most-talked-about scenes.
Footage of Jenna Ortegagetting down on the dance floor to The Cramps‘ “Goo Goo Muck” is everywhere on social media, but as she explains to NME, the viral dance was literally viral: The actress had COVID-19 when she performed it.
She tells the publication, “[I]t’s crazy because it was my first day with COVID so it was awful to film … I woke up and — it’s weird, I never get sick and when I do it’s not very bad [but] I had the body aches.”
She continues, “I felt like I’d been hit by a car and that a little goblin had been let loose in my throat and was scratching the walls of my esophagus. They were giving me medicine between takes because we were waiting on the positive result.”
The actress explained of the quirky dance itself, “I’d gotten the song about a week before, and I just pulled from whatever I could.”
Jenna reportedly cribbed moves from vintage footage of teens bopping during the New Wave craze, for one. “I choreographed that myself,” Ortega tells the publication. “I’m not a dancer, and I’m sure that’s obvious.”
Of the final result, she explained, “I asked to redo it, but we didn’t have time. I think I probably could have done it a bit better.”
Not sure how that could be: Apart from countless reposts and remixes from fans all over social media, Netflix’s official video of the dance has more than 10 million views on YouTube alone in less than two weeks.
Zoe Saldaña is the cover star for the latest issue of InStyle. In it, she reflects on the box office success of Avatar and her love for action films, among other things.
Avatar premiered in 2009 and has since gone on to become an Academy Award-winning film. Zoe, who plays Neytiriin the franchise, admits she didn’t imagine the film would be a big success.
“I had no idea Avatar was going to have the impact that it did on such a global scale,” she says. “Those things are unimaginable.”
“I had so much hope that it was going to be well received, because it just felt so special to me. This conversation around the environment has become a global social dilemma,” she continues. “And what I admire the most is that the younger generations are the ones that are guiding this narrative.”
Zoe also appears in the Guardian of the Galaxy films as the character Gamora, and has dabbled in different kinds of movies. Yet, she has a special love for action films.
“I love action movies. When I was a kid, that’s what I was watching, not princess things,” she explains. “My idol was Ellen Ripley [Sigourney Weaver’s character in Alien] and Sarah Connor [played by Linda Hamilton].”
When it comes to the films she chooses to work on, she says, “I join projects because I believe in the people behind them. When they’re magical and thoughtful, thought-provoking and collaborative, that’s what changes my life for the better.”
“It gives me experiences that raise me, that help me grow, that make me feel good about people,” she concludes.
The Flaming Lips have announced a 2023 North American tour.
The headlining outing, dubbed the An Evening With tour, will focus on the West Coast and runs from February 28 in Vancouver to March 9 in Santa Barbara, California.
Tickets go on sale this Friday, December 9, at 10 a.m. local time. For the full list of dates and all ticket info, visit FlamingLips.com.
Along with the An Evening With tour, The Flaming Lips will be playing shows next year celebrating the 20th anniversary of their beloved 2002 album, Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots. Those dates take place in April and May in London, Washington, D.C., and Chicago, as well as at Atlanta’s Shaky Knees festival.
Meanwhile, a 20th anniversary reissue of Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots will be released April 14.
(PALM BEACH, Fla.) — A prominent adherent of the QAnon and “pizzagate” conspiracy theories posed for photos with former President Donald Trump at his Mar-a-Lago resort Tuesday night after speaking at an event hosted at the club, according to the photos and videos posted to social media.
The event came two weeks after Trump had dinner at Mar-a Lago with rapper Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, who recently spoke positively about Hitler, and far-right YouTuber Nick Fuentes, who the Department of Justice has labeled a white supremacist. The meeting sparked outrage despite Trump’s claim he did not know who Fuentes was.
Videos and photos posted to social media appear to show Liz Crokin, a prominent promoter of QAnon and pro-Trump conspiracies theories, speaking at an event at Mar-a-Lago and later posing for photos with Trump. In one photo, the duo make a “thumbs up” sign together.
According to social media posts, the event was billed as a fundraiser in support of a “documentary” on sex trafficking — one of the pillars of the QAnon conspiracy theory. The website for the film, which includes multiple falsehoods and claims of mass sex-trafficking in Hollywood, boasts that it is “Banned by YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and PayPal.”
Mar-a-Lago often hosts events for outside groups.
“You are incredible people, you are doing unbelievable work, and we just appreciate you being here and we hope you’re going to be back,” Trump said in remarks to the crowd, according to a video of his speech.
A representative for the Trump campaign did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment.
“Tonight I had the privilege and honor to speak at America’s Future fundraiser to combat child trafficking at Mar-A-Lago,” Crokin wrote in a social media post, claiming that while she was at Trump’s club she discussed “Pizzagate” — a viral conspiracy theory that falsely claims prominent Democrats were running a child-sex trafficking ring out of a pizza shop in Washington, D.C.
Crokin has expressed her belief in the conspiracy theory as recently as 2020. In an interview with Salon, she said the theory had not been debunked, according to the outlet.
Crokin was featured in the HBO Docuseries “Q: Into the Storm.” In a video, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene said she first was introduced to the conspiracy theory by Crokin.
According to a report on an another interview she gave, Crokin said of Trump that as president, Trump was “dismantling the deep state and one of his top priorities is to end sex trafficking.”
Crokin did not respond to ABC News’ request for comment on the event or whether she still believes in QAnon and “pizzagate” conspiracy theories.
In recent weeks, Trump’s newly announced 2024 campaign has been playing defense on multiple fronts. On Wednesday, Trump’s namesake real estate company was found guilty by a jury in New York of tax fraud. Last week, Trump on social media called for “termination” of “of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution” over false claims of election fraud.
Theo Wargo/Getty Images for The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame
Dave Grohl and Greg Kurstin played their previously reported Hanukkah Sessions concert in Los Angeles this week, and the intimate show apparently featured even more rock star power than initially announced.
According to Variety, among the guests who joined the Foo Fighters frontman and the producer onstage were Beck, Tenacious D‘s Jack Black and Yeah Yeah Yeahs frontwoman Karen O, as well as pop star Pink.
Grohl and Kurstin first launched Hanukkah Sessions in 2020 and covered eight different Jewish artists for each night of the holiday, and the series returned in 2021. The set list for the LA show, which marked the first live Hanukkah Sessions performance, continued that tradition with songs such as Rush‘s “The Spirit of Radio,” in honor of Geddy Lee‘s Jewish heritage, with vocals by Black.
Variety also reports that the concert “certainly seemed” to be recorded and theorizes that it could be released as this year’s Hanukkah Sessions. The first night of Hanukkah is Sunday, December 18.
The concert also marked one of Grohl’s few live performances following the unexpected death of Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins in March. He previously made appearances at Paul McCartney‘s Glastonbury set and Joe Walsh‘s VetsAid concert, as well as during the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony alongside Lionel Richie. Grohl and Foo Fighters also held two giant tribute concerts to Hawkins in London and Los Angeles in September.
Stuart Cahill/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images
(WASHINGTON) — An investigation by the Justice Department’s top watchdog uncovered “serious” failures in the Bureau of Prison’s handling of the prison transfer of notorious mobster James “Whitey” Bulger prior to his murder in custody in 2018, a new report released Wednesday said.
Bulger was found dead in his prison cell just 12 hours after his arrival at the U.S. Penitentiary Hazelton in West Virginia after suffering brutal injuries to his head and face. Three inmates in the prison have been charged in connection with his murder and are awaiting trial.
The Justice Department’s inspector general mounted a separate investigation into how the agency handled Bulger’s transfer. While its report Wednesday said investigators did not find evidence of “malicious intent” or purposely improper behavior on the part of BOP officials, they identified numerous failures at multiple levels of the prison system as well as puzzling bureaucratic issues in how Bulger’s transfer was allowed to go through.
“In our view, no BOP inmate’s transfer, whether they are a notorious offender or a non-violent offender, should be handled like Bulger’s transfer was handled in this instance,” Inspector General Michael Horowitz said in a statement accompanying the release of the report.
Bulger was 89 years old and in a wheelchair at the time of his transfer from the high security federal prison at USP Coleman II in Florida to USP Hazelton, where he was immediately placed within the general population despite his notoriety as one of New England’s most sinister gangsters and previous history as an informant for the FBI.
Officials at USP Coleman began the process of seeking Bulger’s transfer in early 2018 after he reportedly issued a threat against a nurse at the facility, which led to his placement in a single cell in Coleman’s Special Housing Unit.
While Bulger was at the time designated as a ‘level 3’ medical care inmate due to his development of a heart condition while he was in federal custody, officials in BOP sought to downgrade his classification to make him eligible for placement at a higher number of other facilities, the report found.
Despite repeated efforts to reclassify Bulger as a ‘level 2’ medical care inmate, officials were instructed that Bulger’s health situation warranted him remaining at ‘level 3,’ the report said. But officials at Coleman seemingly ignored the recommendation and omitted other key information about Bulger’s health in their final transfer request before he was sent to Hazelton, a high-security level 2 care facility.
Investigators found that after Bulger’s transfer was approved, more than 100 employees at BOP received notifications and multiple inmates at Hazelton began sending communications about the transfer making clear they were aware he was due to arrive. Investigators said they were unable to determine which particular BOP employees at the prison were responsible for improperly disclosing news of Bulger’s transfer to inmates at Hazelton.
One alarming portion of the report found that a unit manager at Hazelton specifically requested Bulger be assigned to their unit even despite the fact that it housed another organized crime associate who would have familiarity with Bulger’s history. When interviewed by the inspector general’s office, the unit manager responded he was not a “gang expert” and was not aware of information “being discussed or put out” by others before Bulger arrived.
The inmate, Fotios Geas, was serving a life prison sentence on RICO charges and was associated with the Genovese Organized Crime Family and was one of the three individuals charged in Bulger’s death.
Investigators also found additional issues with how officials at Hazelton assessed the risk of harm Bulger faced from other inmates upon his transfer to the facility. According to the repot, BOP policy did not require Bulger to undergo a risk assessment by a BOP officer prior to his transfer which — if conducted, would have singled him out as likely ineligible for placement with the general population.
Bulger, who after 8 months in the single-cell Special Housing Unit at Coleman had reportedly started saying he had lost any will to live, also expressed a preference to be placed with the general population. Investigators also say he lied on an intake form that had asked whether he had ever been a member of a gang or if he provided cooperation to a law enforcement investigation.
Upon conclusion of their investigation the IG’s office made 11 recommendations to the Bureau of Prisons for improvements to their policies, all of which the agency accepted.
You may not know that Pink is Jewish, but she musically embraced her heritage earlier this week at a charity event featuring Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl and their mutual producer, Greg Kurstin.
During the pandemic, Grohl and Kurstin started the Hanukkah Sessions, an online video series of cover songs by Jewish artists — one for each of the eight nights of Hanukkah. This year’s edition was the first live version of the event, and it took place at L.A.’s tiny Largo club, a venue that only holds 250 people. As Varietyreports, director Judd Apatow presented the show as a benefit for the Anti-Defamation League.
According to Variety, Pink took the stage and proudly told the audience, “My name’s Alecia. I’m a Jew.” She then sang her first hit, “Get This Party Started” — using a lyric sheet to get through the song and still missing a few words. Considering she didn’t write that particular song, it’s forgivable.
Pink and Grohl performed together earlier this year at the star-studded tribute concert in LA that honored late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins. At that event, she sang Heart‘s “Barracuda,” backed up by Heart guitarist Nancy Wilson and Foo Fighters. She also joined Foo Fighters for their song “Pretender,” and sang Queen‘s “Somebody to Love” with Queen guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor.
The first night of Hanukkah is Sunday, December 18.
January 5 will mark the 50th anniversary of the release of Bruce Springsteen‘s debut album, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J., and to mark the occasion, a daylong symposium featuring some of the musicians who played on the record is being held at New Jersey’s Monmouth University.
The Bruce Springsteen Archives and Center for American Music at Monmouth is organizing the symposium, scheduled for Saturday, January 7. E Street Band bass player Garry Tallent, original E Street keyboardist David Sancious and original E Street drummer Vini Lopezare taking part in the event, along with Bruce’s former manager Mike Appel.
Panel discussions, interviews, a book signing, a performance of the album’s songs by local musicians and the debut of a mini documentary on the making of the album, featuring an exclusive interview with Springsteen, round out the event.
Ahead of the symposium, a free Zoom conversation about Greetings is taking place January 3 at 7:30 p.m. EST. David Sancious will be performing at The Count Basie Center for the Arts in Red Bank, New Jersey, on January 6.
In addition to Tallent, Lopez and Sancious, Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. featured the late Clarence Clemons, among other non-E Street Band musicians. The album includes some of Springsteen’s most popular early songs, including “Spirit In the Night,” “Blinded By the Light” and “Growin’ Up,” as well as fan favorites “For You” and “It’s Hard to Be a Saint in the City.”
Anne Heche was not high at the time of the fiery, fatal August crash that led to her death.
That’s according to the L.A. County Medical Examiner’s report about the Emmy winner that was obtained by ABC News.
The autopsy showed “no evidence of impairment” — meaning she was not under the influence of illegal drugs when her blue Mini Cooper slammed at high speed into an occupied home in Mar Vista, California on August 5.
The crash caused the car to burst into flames, setting the structure ablaze; the actress was trapped inside the burning vehicle, suffering smoke inhalation and thermal injuries that led to her death.
The autopsy revealed traces of benzoylecgonine, cocaine, fentanyl and cannabinoids in her system. However, the drugs weren’t consumed the day of the accident — and the fentanyl was administered for pain after she was admitted to the hospital.
The smoke inhalation deprived her brain of oxygen, leading to an unrecoverable “anoxic brain injury,” according to the report. Heche’s sternum was also fractured by the impact, and that injury, likely from the steering wheel, also “significantly contributed to her death.”
Heche was declared brain-dead on August 11 and subsequently taken off life support on Sunday, August 14, after some of her organs were harvested for donation.
