Elton John and the cast of ‘The Devil Wears Prada’; Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for The Devil Wears Prada, The Musical
A few days ago, Elton Johnattended a preview performance of his new musical, The Devil Wears Prada, which is currently playing in Chicago on its way to Broadway. On Instagram, Elton told the cast and crew, “You’ve created something truly wonderful!” But at least one review doesn’t agree with him.
In its review of the show, Variety writes that the show needs to “get meaner,” calling it “an overly respectful and frankly miscalculated approach to its source materials.” According to Variety, the show, based on the book by Lauren Weisberger and the hit movie starring Meryl Streep and Anne Hathaway, “provides some serviceable entertainment but needs a hefty dose of guilty, edgy fun to boost its mild pleasures.”
In Variety’s opinion, the show “just never lets loose,” and in particular doesn’t give us enough of Prada’s iconic boss-from-hell Miranda Priestly, who in the movie and book treats her assistant Andy so terribly that we’re rooting for her to get out from under her thumb.
And while Elton’s score and its “pleasing, peppy pop sound” has “its moments,” Variety reports, “There’s a lot of work needed to replace the sincere and fairly dull songs … with songs that express the naked ambition, social irresponsibility and joyful artifice of the fashion industry.”
Variety suggests that Elton and the rest of the creative team need to “set niceness aside, and channel their inner Miranda Priestlys.”
Of course, Elton has written numerous hit musicals — The Lion King, Billy Elliott and Aida — so it’s unlikely one middling review will make much of a difference to him, though The New York Times isn’t thrilled with the show either. The musical is playing at Chicago’s James M. Nederlander Theatre through August 21.
Lamont Dozier, one-third of the legendary Motown songwriting team of Holland-Dozier-Holland, has died, his son announced on Instagram Tuesday. He was 81.
Lamont Dozier Jr. posted a photo of himself with his famous father and wrote, “Rest in Heavenly Peace, Dad!” Details of his death are not known at this time.
Dozier and brothers Eddie Holland and BrianHolland joined Motown in 1962 and wrote more than 200 songs for the label’s acts, helping to create the “Motown Sound.” Dozier and Brian worked as musical arrangers and producers, while Eddie focused on lyrics and vocal production.
Together, the trio wrote 10 #1 hits, including The Supremes‘ “Where Did Our Love Go,” “You Can’t Hurry Love,” “Baby Love” and “Stop! In the Name of Love” and The Four Tops‘ “I Can’t Help Myself” and “Reach Out I’ll Be There.” They also penned classic hits for Martha & The Vandellas, The Miracles, Marvin Gaye and The Isley Brothers.
In 1988 and 1990, Holland-Dozier-Holland were inducted, respectively, into the Songwriters Hall of Fame and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.
The trio left Motown in 1968 to form the labels Invictus and Hot Wax. In 1973, Dozier left the trio, recording albums as a solo artist and penning songs for others. Some of his later co-writes included the Phil Collins‘ smash “Two Hearts,” Alison Moyet‘s “Invisible,” Debbie Gibson‘s “Anything Is Possible,” and “Without You” by Peabo Bryson and Regina Belle.
In a 2015 interview with The Guardian, Dozier explained why the songs the trio wrote were mostly empathetic toward women. “Women bought the records, to put it bluntly,” Dozier said. “They wanted music that talked about their feelings, but also … women raised me … I trusted women, and I still do.”
Fellow hitmaking songwriter of the ’60s Carole Kingtweeted, “Gerry [Goffin] & I respected Holland Dozier Holland over at Motown. Striving to keep up with them made us better songwriters. Rest In Peace and power Lamont Dozier.”
Serena Williams is gearing up to say goodbye to professional tennis after serving up inspiration to the sports world for more than two decades.
The 23-time Grand Slam winner penned a new personal essay for Vogue magazine that was revealed exclusively on Good Morning America Tuesday. Titled “The Hardest Thing,” she says farewell to the game in her own way and in her own words.
Williams said she hates the word retirement, writing: “The best word to describe what I’m up to is evolution. I’m here to tell you that I’m evolving away from tennis, toward other things that are important to me.”
The former #1-ranked women’s tennis player and four-time Olympic gold medalist said there is “no happiness in this topic for me,” but that she wants to focus on family and her business investment empire. Williams explained that she doesn’t feel she can do that while also playing tennis.
“But these days, if I have to choose between building my tennis résumé and building my family, I choose the latter … In the last year, [husband] Alexis [Ohanian] and I have been trying to have another child, and we recently got some information from my doctor that put my mind at ease and made me feel that whenever we’re ready, we can add to our family. I definitely don’t want to be pregnant again as an athlete. I need to be two feet into tennis or two feet out,” Williams wrote.
Although this is the closest Serena’s come to a possible retirement, it’s not the end for the champ just yet. Williams recently scored her first tournament singles win in over a year at the WTA National Bank Open in Toronto and plans to play in the U.S. Open in New York City.
Laura Prepon, Emily Tarver in “Orange Is the New Black” — Netflix/JoJo Whilden
(NOTE LANGUAGE, CONTENT)While sex and sexual discussions on TV are nothing new, the sex-friendly site Roam analyzed some of the most popular shows in history to see how the act is portrayed, talked about and even joked about — all to see which shows are moving the needle forward in a positive way.
To that end, Roam’s experts scrubbed through some 10 million lines of dialogue culled from 40 different shows, ranging from The Office to Orange is the New Black, and made some interesting finds.
For example, the long-running Always Sunny in Philadelphia topped the others with some 231 mentions of sex, just one above How I Met Your Mother. Sex and the City clocked in at a comparatively chaste 173, good enough for third place, topping Friends (149). OITNB rounded off the top 5 with 94.
That said, there was a quality element, too. For example, Roam’s experts judged each mention on inclusivity and whether contraception or consent was mentioned. There’s “room for improvement,” the site’s experts say.
Sex and the City “was considered really progressive for its time,” the site’s expert says, noting, “Much like the other series we’ve covered [it] is a product of its time and … the conversation around sex and sexuality has changed a lot since it was on the air.”
In other words, in many ways it doesn’t hold up compared to today’s sensibilities. That said, it did get credit for leading the way in bringing female pleasure to the forefront.
OITNB was hailed with bringing LGBTQ issues to the mainstream, both in terms of same-sex relationships and bringing issues like transphobia to TV.
Taika Waititi, the Oscar-winning Jojo Rabbit writer-director whose Thor: Love and Thunder is now playing in theaters, has reportedly wed his recording artist fiancée, Rita Ora.
The U.K. tabloid The Sun reports the pair tied the knot in an “intimate” ceremony two months after their purported engagement, and the recording artist is hyphenating her last name to reflect it.
A source tells the paper the event was small but “super special for everyone there. Their nearest and dearest can see how madly in love they are.”
The source continues, “Despite living in the spotlight, Rita is determined to keep the relationship as private as possible and didn’t want to make a big song and dance about the wedding,” but that said they’re also planning, “A big, showbiz-style bash” to celebrate the good news.
If true, this is the second marriage for Waititi, 46, and the first for 31-year-old Ora.
Despite the pair not shy about packing on the PDA, they’ve been less forthcoming when it comes to their relationship: Waititi recently cut off a news program’s interview about Lightyear when he was asked if a wedding was in the offing.
(WASHINGTON) — Since news broke that the FBI searched former President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate on Monday, a growing number of Republicans have spoken out against the raid.
House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., took to Twitter, posting a statement that read in part: “I’ve seen enough.”
“The Department of Justice has reached an intolerable state of weaponized politicization,” McCarthy continued. “When Republicans take back the House, we will conduct immediate oversight of this department, follow the facts, and leave no stone unturned.”
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., took it a step further, tweeting: “DEFUND THE FBI!”
A Twitter account for Republican members of the House Judiciary Committee run by Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, tweeted: “This is what happens in third world countries. Not the United States.” Another tweet read: “If they can do it to a former President, imagine what they can do to you.”
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said in a series of tweets that “launching such an investigation of a former President this close to an election is beyond problematic.”
“We’re 100 days away from midterm elections. President Trump is likely going to run again in 2024,” Graham tweeted. “No one is above the law. The law must be above politics.”
Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., who chairs the National Republican Senatorial Committee, called the raid “incredibly concerning.”
“We need answers NOW,” Scott tweeted. “The FBI must explain what they were doing today & why.”
Several Republican senators used the raid to further criticize President Joe Biden’s sweeping climate, health care and tax bill, which Senate Democrats passed on Sunday and which includes nearly $80 billion in funding for the Internal Revenue Service. For instance, Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., tweeted: “After todays raid on Mar A Lago what do you think the left plans to use those 87,000 new IRS agents for?”
Other Republicans, including potential 2024 presidential candidates, continued to attack the Justice Department and the FBI.
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis tweeted that the raid “is another escalation in the weaponization of federal agencies,” then said: “Banana Republic.”
Former Secretary of State and ex-CIA Director Mike Pompeo said executing a search warrant against a former president “is dangerous.”
“The apparent political weaponization of DOJ/FBI is shameful,” Pompeo tweeted. “I served on Benghazi Com where we proved Hilliary possessed classified info. We didn’t raid her home.”
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Tx., called the raid “unprecedented.”
Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna McDaniel also released a statement, asserting — without evidence — that the search was an attempt by Democrats to “weaponize the bureaucracy against Republicans.”
“Countless times we have examples of Democrats flouting the law and abusing power with no recourse. Democrats continually weaponize the bureaucracy against Republicans,” McDaniel said. “This raid is outrageous. This abuse of power must stop and the only way to do that is to elect Republicans in November.”
Multiple sources confirmed to ABC News that Trump’s residence in Palm Beach was raided by FBI agents on Monday, starting around 10 a.m. local time. The former president was not there at the time.
Sources said the search of Mar-a-Lago was related to the 15 boxes of documents that Trump took there when he departed the White House, some of which the National Archives has said were marked classified. In January, Trump handed over the documents to the National Archives, and his attorneys said they were searching for any more records they may have.
The former president issued a statement Monday evening, saying Mar-a-Lago “is currently under siege, raided, and occupied by a large group of FBI agents.” He added: “They even broke into my safe!”
Later Monday, during a planned tele-rally with Sarah Palin ahead of her upcoming special election in Alaska, Trump didn’t specifically mention the raid but appeared to briefly reference it when saying: “Another day in paradise. This is a strange day.”
Law enforcement sources told ABC News that the FBI’s activities at Trump’s compound are court-authorized.
The Justice Department and FBI declined to comment.
A senior official briefed on Monday’s events told ABC News that the Secret Service was notified by the FBI a short time before agents arrived that they would be coming. The Secret Service validated the search warrant and facilitated entry into the residence, in accordance with a court order, the official said. Secret Service agents were not involved in the search.
The Secret Service declined to comment.
A Biden administration official told ABC News that the White House received no advanced notice of the raid.
The White House has otherwise referred requests for comment on the investigation to the Justice Department.
ABC News contributor and former federal prosecutor Kan Nawaday said the raid is “extraordinary” but not “that surprising.”
“I don’t think we’ve ever seen this,” Nawaday told ABC News Live Prime on Monday night. “At the same time, to me, it doesn’t seem that surprising, given all the evidence that the Jan. 6 committee has set forth about possible crimes relating to [the Capitol riot].”
“I think the indication is that it’s moving forward. They are taking active action and following the leads and following the evidence,” he added. “It’s only a matter of time, in my view, that they’re going to work up the chain to other potential targets.”
Tom Cruise will team up with his Top Gun: Maverick producer Christopher McQuarrie for a trio of upcoming projects, according to Deadline. One is an original song and dance-style musical they’ll create as a star vehicle for Cruise, another film with “franchise potential” and the third centering around Les Grossman, the gruff studio executive Cruise played in the 2008 movie comedy Tropic Thunder. In the meantime, the duo continues to work on Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part Two, set to come out June 28, 2024…
Stranger Things and Free Guy‘s Joe Keery, New Girl‘s Lamorne Morris and Never Have I Ever’s Richa Moorjani have been added to the cast of Fargo‘s upcoming fifth installment, joining previously announced stars Juno Temple, Jon Hamm and Jennifer Jason Leigh. The FX limited series “has traveled through decades, cities and families, and the fifth installment will be no different, according to FX, which adds the fifth installment will be “Set in 2019,” and asks, “when is a kidnapping not a kidnapping, and what if your wife isn’t yours?”…
Deadline reports Zazie Beetz is in talks to reprise her role as Sophie Dumond in Joker: Folie à Deux, the sequel to director Todd Phillips’ follow-up to the 2019 blockbuster Joker, starring Joaquin Phoenix as Batman’s titular foe. Lady Gaga recently confirmed on Instagram that she will star in the film, hinting that she’ll play Joker’s girlfriend and partner in crime, Harley Quinn. The movie, rumored to be a musical, is set to start shooting in December and hit theaters on Oct. 4, 2024…
(NEW YORK) — Last week monkeypox was declared a public health emergency in the U.S. and now with more than 8,900 confirmed cases of monkeypox, thousands of Americans are struggling with a defining feature of the condition, skin lesions.
The classic skin lesions of monkeypox start with a pimple-like lesion that can look like pus-filled bumps (pustules) with redness around them. After that, the rash goes through phases, including pustules progressing to blisters that eventually scab over.
Unfortunately, the skin lesions can leave an unwanted lasting change on the skin.
Dermatologists say monkeypox lesions should be covered in their active phase, as skin lesions are contagious until the rash has fully healed. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said lesions are no longer contagious when the scabs have fallen off and a fresh layer of skin has formed.
Monkeypox lesions inevitably will scab over — and while that is a step in the right direction in terms of the infection, the sores underneath can scar.
What can monkeypox scarring look like?
Once healed, monkeypox lesions can sometimes result in scarring and discoloration, which may be long-lasting or even permanent.
“In some cases, patients may develop depressed or atrophic scars that may resemble those seen following chickenpox infection or with severe acne,” Dr. Trisha Dasgupta, a board-certified dermatologist at Dermatology of Philadelphia, told ABC News.
Monkeypox lesions may also heal with either dark discoloration or lightening of skin color.
“These scars can have varying appearances as well as degrees of severity,” Dasgupta said.
Experts said lesions on the face, while concerning, often heal better than lesions on other parts of the body.
Dermatologists caution that some patients develop scars that can be firm, itchy, and even painful.
How can you minimize monkeypox scarring?
One of the best ways to manage a scar is to prevent a scar with good wound care during the healing process.
“The best way to prevent scarring is to take good care of your skin. Nowadays, we believe healing under moist conditions is better than just letting a scab dry out and become hard,” Dr. Christine Ko, professor of dermatology at Yale University, told ABC News.
Experts describe wound healing as a cascade of events. Scientists who study wound healing at a cellular level describe skin cells that leapfrog over each other in a wound bed — and the skin cells have a much easier time doing this if the wound bed is moist compared to a dry, open wound.
Though scarring from healed monkeypox lesions may not be entirely preventable, there are steps you can take to decrease the risk of scarring, including gentle skin care.
Dermatologists said while the spots can be itchy and irritated, it is important to avoid picking, scratching, or scrubbing monkeypox lesions.
“Consider using a gentle, fragrance-free, dye-free soap or cleanser to avoid any additional irritation when cleansing the area daily,” Dr. Shoshana Grossman, a board-certified dermatologist at Dermatology of Philadelphia, told ABC News.
Sun protection:
“Sun protection is one of the simplest and most effective ways to maximize the appearance of scars after monkeypox lesions have healed,” Grossman said.
Dermatologists recommend a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30 to lower the chance of darkening of the skin.
“Sun protection can be important to minimize scarring, especially in patients who have darker skin tones because scars can become quite dark in those patients and using some sun protection might help prevent that,” Ko said.
Topical Treatments:
For fully healed areas, using chemical exfoliants such as alpha-hydroxy acids and topical retinoids can be helpful to lower the chance of some types of scarring by increasing skin cell turnover and by stimulating the growth of healthy collagen.
“The limiting factor with these treatments is tolerability in terms of dryness or irritation; they should not be used on active lesions. The key with using these topical treatments is to start slowly — only a couple of times a week to start, building up gradually to nightly use,” Grossman said.
How to avoid complications that can increase chance of monkeypox scarring
Monkeypox infections are caused by a virus. Sometimes as these viral lesions heal, other infections, including bacterial infections, can arise on top of the original viral infection.
“Preventing a superimposed bacterial infection in areas of existing or healing monkeypox is also crucial in preventing scarring. A good way to prevent a bacterial infection is by introducing an anti-bacterial wash into your shower routine a few times per week.” Grossman said.
Monkeypox scars that are bothersome or symptomatic can be treated with a variety of approaches, including:
Time: Most scars improve on their own with time, especially with good sun protection. It can take six to 12 months for full scar maturation. This is especially true for hyperpigmented scars, which can take many months to fade.
“Ideally, a scar will look closer to the normal skin color around it within four to five weeks, but it can sometimes take longer for scars to remodel and settle, even up to a year,” Ko said.
Silicone containing scar gels: Medical-grade silicone scar gels and sheets may be a good option for scars that are thick or at risk of becoming thick.
“Silicone-based products can create a protective barrier over scars which increases hydration and helps stop excess collagen build up in the skin,” Dasgupta said.
Steroid injections: For thicker, hypertrophic scars or keloids, a steroid medication can be directly injected into the problem areas.
“The goal of the steroid is to calm down any residual inflammation and flatten any raised areas. While systemic steroids such as pills, intravenous or intramuscular injections can have unwanted internal side effects, intralesional steroids remain localized to the skin and are very well tolerated,” Grossman said.
Surgical procedures: Surgically removing a bothersome scar may be the most effective method of treating a scar.
Scars in the skin are sometimes caused by strands of collagen under the skin pulling down on the surface of the skin — often described as stakes of a tent pulling down on the skin. A specific type of minimally invasive procedure called a subcision can help break apart these band-like scars to allow for a smoother appearance on the skin’s surface.
Microneedling is another minimally-invasive procedure in which many tiny needles are used to puncture the affected skin.
“These controlled micro-injuries to the skin help to encourage tissue remodeling by mimicking the skin’s natural healing process,” Grossman said.
Lasers: Depending on the location of the scar and skin type of the patient, lasers can be used to help improve the appearance of scars that are white or lighter in appearance than the surrounding skin. Lasers have to be carefully used in darker skin types and fractionated lasers are a specific laser approach that decreases downtime after lasers and can be safer in patients with darker skin tones.
(NEW YORK) — The same month the U.S. Supreme Court issued its landmark ruling overturning Roe v. Wade, a couple in Kansas, thousands of miles away from Washington, D.C., faced their own abortion decision.
Breanna O’Brien said she was 20 weeks pregnant with her first child in June and in the process of decorating the nursery when she and her husband Kyle received a devastating diagnosis.
The O’Briens said doctors told them the fetus had Xeroderma pigmentosum group D (XPD) and Trichothiodystrophy (TTD), two rare and severe genetic conditions that they said can cause significant disability and a shortened life span.
“I thought what is this, like it doesn’t make sense,” Breanna O’Brien told ABC News’ Rachel Scott. “You’re talking about one in a million and it just happens to be our baby and it’s our first baby, our first pregnancy, an incredibly wanted baby.”
The O’Briens said they spoke with genetic counselors and parents of children with TTD and XPD before making the decision to terminate the pregnancy.
“The more we learned about it, I could not put my baby through that,” Breanna O’Brien said. “It’s a cruel disease and it’s really horrible.”
“It would not be a normal life and the quality of life would be so low that I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy,” Kyle O’Brien added.
The O’Briens, who described themselves as devout Catholics, said they struggled with their church’s teachings on abortion and their own experience.
“Being a Catholic, there’s a serious sense of Catholic guilt and that you’re going to hell for making this decision,” said Breanna O’Brien. “And I would rather go to hell than have my baby live in a prison for three short years.”
However, once they made what Breanna O’Brien called the “best decision” for their baby, the couple said they learned they would not be able to access abortion care in their home state of Kansas.
Kansas permits abortions up to 22 weeks of pregnancy, and has additional regulations that include requirements for counseling, parental consent for minors and a waiting period.
Breanna O’Brien said she was not able to access abortion care in Kansas before 22 weeks, so she had to travel two states away, to Illinois, to have an abortion.
“It was preposterous that we had to go to an out-of-state clinic, that’s not at a hospital, to get the care we need,” she said, adding that the clinic she went to served people from 22 different states.
The Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark 1973 ruling on abortion rights, gave power back to states to decide abortion access.
In the weeks since the court’s ruling, at least 15 states have ceased nearly all abortion services.
Nearly all of the states surrounding Kansas — including Oklahoma, Missouri and Arkansas — have issued near-total abortion bans since the Supreme Court’s decision. Kansas has so far kept its law allowing abortion care before 22 weeks of pregnancy.
On Aug. 2, voters in Kansas voted on an abortion-related amendment in the first state-level test on abortion access since the Supreme Court’s ruling.
In an election that saw record turnout, voters rejected an amendment to remove the right to abortion from the state’s constitution. Had the amendment passed, it would have given the state’s GOP-controlled legislature the power to pass new abortion restrictions.
The O’Briens said that while they are still mourning the loss of their unborn child, they wanted to share their story as they see abortion access impacted across the country.
“You have your beliefs and you can make that choice when you have it, but we have the freedom here to make the best choice for our son,” said Kyle O’Brien. “You don’t think it can happen and you don’t think you’d ever exercise the freedom until you need it.”
Photography by Keith Getter (all rights reserved)/Getty Images
(SEOUL, South Korea) — Heavy rain with thunder and lightning has battered South Korea’s central areas for two straight days, causing damage, injuries and deaths.
Ten people have died and seven more have been reported missing in the heavy rain in the last two days, according to South Korea’s Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters. A family of three living in a semi-basement apartment died when their home flooded, in Gwanak-gu, Seoul, officials said.
The heaviest-ever rainfall since South Korea began tracking precipitation data has flooded subway stations and submerged roads and homes.
Korea Meteorological Administration said the rainfall was a result of a strong collision between dry cold air coming from the North and hot humid air from the South.
Thousands of vehicles were submerged in Seoul on Monday night, forcing drivers to abandon their cars on the flooded road to get home. Muddy water brimmed over the river onto the streets and into the vehicles. Public sewers overflowed, not being able to hold the amount of rain that poured fast and hard.
“It rained 140 millimeters (5.5 inches) Monday night in the Dongjak district, Seoul, in just one hour. Seoul city’s annual precipitation is 1,400 millimeters (55 inches), which means that in just one hour, one-tenth of Seoul city’s yearly rainfall poured in just one part of the city in a very short period,” Lee Young-joo, professor of fire prevention science at the University of Seoul, told ABC News.
Hundreds of people living in mountainous areas in Seoul were evacuated to prevent damage from landslides Monday night. Civil service workers relocated residents living in lower-level homes and near mountains to temporary shelters. The heavy rain that poured after 6 p.m. Monday was especially harsh on people commuting from work to their homes.
“When I got off work, water was up to my knees and children were struggling to wade through the flooded water,” Seoul citizen Dong-Ug Yoon told ABC News about his difficult commute home. “The subway station was full of dirt. The shopkeeper of the underground convenience store was visibly emotional, trying to hold off the water gushing from the station stairs into her store.”
Gangnam district, well known for its posh streets and office buildings, was hit aggressively by the rain due to its topographical traits. The Gangnam subway station area is known to be 30 feet lower than the neighboring subway stations, making it more vulnerable to heavy rain and flood.
“Cars and buses were submerged in the flood so I had to park my car on a relatively safe side of the road and walk home. It took almost two hours trying to find roads that weren’t underwater yet,” Yewon Lee, an organist living in Seoul, told ABC News. “When I returned early this morning, I found other vehicles that floated down and collapsed into my car.”
The Seoul Metropolitan Government repaired the drainage facility in Gangnam after the area flooded from heavy rain in 2010.
Lee, the professor, said at the amount of rain that poured since Monday was way over the scale a reasonable drainage system could handle.
President Yoon Suk-yeol ordered officials during an emergency meeting Tuesday to “respond all-out with a sense of alertness.” He ordered officials to put in place preemptive entry restrictions in areas prone to landslides and flooding and for swiftly communicating the measures to the public.
