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Angela Lansbury dies at 96

October 11, 2022 by WDNY Radio

British actress Angela Lansbury, whose career spanned seven decades and earned her an honorary Academy Award, has died. She was 96 years old.

Her family announced her passing in a statement on Tuesday.

“The children of Dame Angela Lansbury are sad to announce that their mother died peacefully in her sleep at home in Los Angeles at 1:30 AM today, Tuesday, October 11, 2022, just five days shy of her 97th birthday,” the statement reads. “In addition to her three children, Anthony, Deirdre and David, she is survived by three grandchildren, Peter, Katherine and Ian, plus five great-grandchildren and her brother, producer Edgar Lansbury. She was preceded [sic] in death by her husband of 53 years, Peter Shaw. A private family ceremony will be held at a date to be determined.”

Lansbury, born in 1925, was the daughter of Irish actress Moyna Macgill and British politician Edgar Lansbury. In fact, her paternal grandfather was George Lansbury, a founder of the United Kingdom’s Labour Party.

At age 9, Lansbury’s father died — a moment that she’s said in interviews shaped her life. The actress’s family then fled England in 1940 during World War II, moving to the United States, where she began her acting career.

After signing to MGM in 1942, Lansbury’s first acting gig was Gaslight in 1944, a role that earned her an Oscar nomination. The actress went on to earn two other Oscar nods for roles in The Picture of Dorian Gray in 1945 and The Manchurian Candidate in 1962. Lansbury was eventually awarded an honorary trophy in 2013.

Thanks to roles on both sides of the pond, Lansbury went on to amass five Tony Awards and six Golden Globes. She was also nominated 19 times for Emmy Awards. In 2014, she was made a dame by Queen Elizabeth II.

Lansbury is best known for her role as mystery writer Jessica Fletcher in the popular TV series Murder, She Wrote. Four years into the series, which started in 1984, Lansbury’s company Corymore Productions began to co-produce the series with Universal. Lansbury owned the series and became its executive producer during the show’s last four seasons. The show ended its run in 1996 after 12 seasons on TV.

Following her hit TV series, Lansbury made many appearances in films, such as voicing Mrs. Potts in the 1991 animated film Beauty and the Beast. She also appeared in the 2005 film Nanny McPhee and the 2011 film Mr. Popper’s Penguins. Lansbury also returned to Broadway in 2007 after a 23-year hiatus by starring in Deuce. Among her last roles before her death were the 2017 TV mini series Little Women and 2018’s Buttons, A New Musical Film.

‘Blade’, ‘Deadpool 3’, ‘Fantastic Four’ and more move for Marvel Studios

October 11, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Two-time Oscar winner Mahershala Ali may be ready to go as the vampire hunter, but his Blade reboot for Marvel Studios just got a cold splash of holy water.

Variety reports that as the movie was prepping to start shooting in November, Bassam Tariq stepped down as a director.

While the Disney-owned studio remains characteristically mum, the trade reports that the producers of the film plan to take their time finding a replacement. Blade was to debut in 2023, but will now debut Sept. 6, 2024.

But the trade reports other major projects are also on the move, including the just-announced Deadpool 3 starring Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman. That film has moved from Sept. 6, 2024, to Nov. 8, 2024; a new Fantastic Four film has shifted from Nov. 8, 2024, to Feb. 14, 2025; and Avengers: Secret Wars will now open May 1, 2026, instead of Nov. 7, 2025.

Disney is the parent company of ABC News.

Elton John books charity gig for LA museum, buys futuristic penthouse in Toronto

October 11, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Part-time Los Angeles resident Elton John will provide the entertainment for this year’s big charity event for the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, aka LACMA.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Elton will perform at LACMA’s Art + Film Gala November 5; Leonardo DiCaprio is the event’s co-chair. The money raised will help fund an initiative to make film more central to the museum’s programming. Elton will be in the neighborhood since his final U.S. tour dates are taking place November 17, 19 and 20 at Dodger Stadium.

In addition to having two homes in LA, Elton and his husband, David Furnish, also have homes in the U.K., the south of France and Atlanta, GA. Now, the real estate website Dirt reports the two have purchased a penthouse in a yet-to-be-completed futuristic complex in downtown Toronto, which will be their sixth home. The two-story condo is 2,400 square feet with three bedrooms and three bathrooms.

“David’s brothers and their wives and children are here. We spend a lot of the summer in Canada,” Elton told The Globe and Mail about their decision to purchase the home. David, who’s Canadian, added that their sons Elijah and Zachary “find Toronto dynamic.”

Warren Haynes’ 2022 Christmas Jam benefit concert to feature Gov’t Mule, Phil Lesh & more

October 11, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Ex-Allman Brothers Band guitarist Warren Haynes is bringing back his Christmas Jam benefit concert for the first time since 2018.

The 31st edition of the holiday event will take place in Haynes’ hometown of Asheville, North Carolina on Saturday, December 10 at Harrah’s Cherokee Center.

The lineup will feature Haynes’ current band Gov’t Mule, founding Grateful Dead bassist Phil Lesh‘s Phil Lesh & Friends collective, Brothers Osborne, Dinosaur Jr., Beth Hart and more.

The concert also will boast several special guests, including former Black Crowes guitarist Audley Freed and current Who touring violinist Katie Jacoby.

Besides playing with Gov’t Mule, Haynes will be performing as part of Phil Lesh & Friends, whose lineup will also feature guitarist John Scofield, keyboardist John Medeski and drummer John Molo.

Tickets for the 2022 Christmas Jam will go on sale to the public on Friday, October 21 at 10 a.m. ET, while pre-sale tickets and VIP and travel packages will be available starting this Friday, October 14 at 10 a.m. ET. Visit XmasJam.com for more info and to purchase tickets.

“I’m excited to finally bring back Christmas Jam and continue the tradition we’ve been building for over 30 years,” says Haynes. “It feels like the perfect time to return to celebrating this wonderful cause (and life in general) and to be helping the community in my beloved home of Asheville.”

He adds, “Looking forward to being together for an amazing night of music and holiday cheer.”

In addition to the main show, Xmas Jam by Day gigs will be held at select local venues.

The Christmas Jam concert will raise money for the Asheville Area Habitat for Humanity and for BeLoved Asheville, an organization that helps the local homeless population and other in-need people in the community.

Rapper Nelly gives jacket off his back to fan with disability

October 11, 2022 by WDNY Radio

St. Louis rapper Nelly took the jacket off his back to give it to an excited fan in a wheelchair at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina this past weekend.

In a short clip shared by the Charlotte Motor Speedway on Twitter, Nelly is seen removing the windbreaker and placing it across the body of 22-year-old Jacob Lemke. According to his sister, Lemke suffers from Lesch-Nyhan syndrome, a representative of the Charlotte Motorsport Speedway said.

“You make sure you hold it down, okay?” Nelly said while he and the fan interact. He then learned the fan would soon be celebrating a birthday on October 12. The rapper wished him a happy birthday and proceeded to walk away while thanking him.

The 47-year-old entertainer appeared as the Bank of America ROVAL 400 pre-race performer and driver announcer.

“I can’t wait to Rock the ROVAL and get fans revved up for an afternoon of NASCAR action,” Nelly said prior to the popular event and his scheduled 60-minute show. “We’re bringing the party to Charlotte Motor Speedway and it’s going to be big!”

People on social media say it was a selfless act of kindness from Nelly, one that garnered the now-viral video many likes, retweets and lots of positive comments aimed at him.

“This is why I have always loved @Nelly_Mo he’s so genuine and just made that guys day,” one user tweeted. “#Nascar really is family.”

“That’s pretty cool Nelly_Mo. Great to have people that care about others and not just about themselves,” another wrote.

Unheard archival Queen song featuring Freddie Mercury to be released Thursday

October 11, 2022 by WDNY Radio

This past June, Queen‘s Brian May and Roger Taylor revealed that a previously unheard archival track by the band featuring late frontman Freddie Mercury had been rediscovered and was being prepared for release.

Now, Queen has announced that the song, titled “Face It Alone,” will officially be released worldwide this Thursday, October 14 at 6:15 a.m. ET. The band has been teasing the song’s arrival with a series of social media posts that include snippets of the tune.

In addition, photos of billboards and posters promoting the tune that have appeared in cities around the world, including London, Toronto, Madrid and Mexico City, have been posted on Queen’s official website.

An official webpage for the song has also been launched; it features a countdown clock that expires on Thursday at 11:15 a.m. ET.

May and Taylor revealed details about “Face It Alone” during a BBC interview just before Queen + Adam Lambert performed at London’s Buckingham Palace to kick off the star-studded Party at the Palace concert celebrating Queen Elizabeth II‘s 70 years on the throne.

Taylor told BBC host Zoe Ball, “We [found] a little gem from Freddie that we’d kind of forgotten about,” adding that the track came from the sessions for Queen’s 1989 album The Miracle, which was the next-to-last record Mercury made with the band before his death from AIDS in 1991.

“It was kind of hiding in plain sight,” May told Ball. “We looked at it many times and thought, ‘Well, no, we can’t really rescue that.’ But in fact, we went in there again and our wonderful engineering team went, ‘OK, we can do this and this.'”

He added, “It’s like stitching bits together. But it’s beautiful. It’s a very touching piece from Freddie.”

At civil trial, Anthony Rapp draws parallels between Kevin Spacey in ‘American Beauty’, alleged underage assault

October 11, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Actor Anthony Rapp took the stand in a Manhattan courtroom Tuesday morning and compared one of Kevin Spacey‘s most famous roles to the real-life sexual advances he claims Spacey made on him when he was just 14.

According to Variety, Rapp said seeing Spacey’s American Beauty character obsessed with his daughter’s high school-aged friend in the film was “unpleasantly familiar” to him.

In 2017, the Star Trek: Discovery actor told Buzzfeed that he was at a party at Spacey’s New York City apartment in 1986 when an inebriated Spacey, then 26, picked him up, took him to a bed and pinned him down. The younger actor was able to escape.

Rapp filed a civil suit against Spacey in 2020, and is seeking up to $40 million in compensatory and punitive damages.

For their part, Spacey’s lawyers claim Rapp, who originated the role of Mark in Broadway’s RENT, is manufacturing the story because he’s jealous of Spacey’s career.

Two-time Oscar winner Spacey was fired from his Netflix series House of Cards after the Rapp allegations surfaced.

At the time, Spacey claimed not to remember Rapp’s encounter, but added, “But if I did behave then as he describes, I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior.”

Since then, other young men have come forward — including at least 20 at London’s famed Old Vic Theatre alone — accusing Spacey of acting inappropriately and worse.

Post Malone teams with ‘Magic: The Gathering’ for new card packs

October 11, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Post Malone is a proud Magic: The Gathering fan and has intensified his partnership with the fantasy trading card game.

Rolling Stone reports Post has teamed with the franchise ahead of its 30th anniversary to design new decks for an upcoming collaboration called Secret Lair x Post Malone. The packs will be part of the Secret Lair Drop series.

Post will help design two new sets of cards complete with curated new artwork. For those hoping to get their hands on one of these decks, act fast. These cards will only be around for a limited time, with preorders opening October 17.

Furthermore, Post is coming out with four new cards via the Secret Lair x Post Malone: Backstage Pass series. Each card will feature the singer as a card character, such as Post, Son of Rich — a variation of K’rrik, Son of Yawgmoth.

For these cards, Post handwrote the flavor text on each card and also worked with the designers to place his tattoos somewhere in the scenery.

The Grammy nominee previously partnered with Magic’s parent company, Wizards of the Coast, to reboot the trading card game’s play program.

Magic: The Gathering was released in 1993 and has since grown its global fan base to 50 million players.

Tia Mowry shares life update amid divorce, thanks fans for support

October 11, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Tia Mowry says she’s looking forward to a new chapter in her life.

Since announcing her divorce from Cory Hardrict, her husband of 14 years, she’s shared two posts on social media that show she’s loving her newfound self and is ready for the journey ahead.

“This chapter of my life is called ‘My Turn,'” the actress inscribed on a short video of herself smiling while sitting on the edge of the bed in a satin robe. The caption reads simply, “I am love. I am peace” along with a blue butterfly emoji.

The post is said to symbolize new beginnings for the Sister, Sister alum, but many fans were quick to notice the exchange she and Hardrict shared in the comment section of a similar post.

In a series of self-portraits posted to IG on Monday, Mowry sent a message of gratitude to those who’ve shown support amid news of the separation.

“The outpouring of love I received from you over the last week has been so encouraging and humbling. I’m so grateful to you all,” she wrote, adding “New Book, First Chapter to follow.”

Hardrict, 42, commented with a heart emoji, to which Mowry responded, “I love you.”

The recent social posts come just a week after Mowry announced she and Hardrict had “decided to go our separate ways.”

“These decisions are never easy, and not without sadness,” she wrote on Instagram. “We will maintain a friendship as we co-parent our beautiful children.”

According to multiple reports, Mowry cited “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for the split and is seeking joint physical and legal custody of their two children: Cree, 11, and Cairo, 4.

Luke Combs is “excited” to release “Going, Going, Gone” as his next single

October 11, 2022 by WDNY Radio

Luke Combs is “Going, Going, Gone” in his new single.

Following the success of “The Kind of Love We Make,” which became his 14th #1 hit last month, Luke has announced that fan-favorite “Going, Going, Gone” is his next single.

This serves as the third single off his latest chart-topping album, Growin’ Up, which debuted at #1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart and #2 on the all-genre Billboard 200 when it was released in June.

“Excited to let y’all know “Going, Going, Gone” will be my next single on country radio!” he shares alongside a video of him performing the song live.

“Love, love, love this song!!!” writes one fan, while another says, “great choice!! It’s my favorite.” Several fans commented that they think “Going” is the “best song on the album.”

Over the weekend, Luke made an appearance at Keith Urban‘s headlining show at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville to perform Keith’s hit “Raise ‘Em Up,” filling in for Keith’s original duet partner Eric Church, as well as his own song “When It Rains It Pours.”

The hitmaker is currently on his arena-headlining Middle of Somewhere Tour through December.

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