Denise Truscello/Getty Images for Caesars Entertainment
Sting is the latest rock legend to cash in by selling the rights to his music.
MusicWeek reports that Sting has sold his entire songwriting catalog to Universal Music Publishing Group in a deal that’s worth a reported $250 million. The deal is for Sting’s solo songs, as well as songs by The Police, and includes hits like “Roxanne,” “Every Breath You Take,” “Fields of Gold,” “Every Little Thing She Does Is Magic,” “If I Ever Lose My Faith In You,” “Desert Rose,” “Message In a Bottle” and many more.
MusicWeek reports that the deal is similar to the one Bob Dylan made, in that it includes the rights to the publisher and the writer shares of the songs. It means Sting’s songs are now in the same place as his entire recorded music catalog: Universal Music Group.
In a statement, quoted by MusicWeek, Sting says, “It is absolutely essential to me that my career’s body of work have a home where it is valued and respected — not only to connect with longtime fans in new ways but also to introduce my songs to new audiences, musicians and generations.”
He adds, “Throughout my career, I have enjoyed a long and successful relationship with UMG as my label partner…so it felt natural to unite everything in one trusted home, as I return to the studio, ready for the next chapter.”
The estates of David Bowie, Bruce Springsteen and Paul Simon recently made similar deals regarding their catalogs.
With an Instagram post, Alec Baldwin says he’s returned to work in front of the camera for the first time since he fired the fatal shot that left a crew member dead, and the director injured on the set of the Western Rust.
“It’s strange to go back to work,” Baldwin admitted to the camera. “I haven’t worked since October 21st of last year, when this horrible thing happened on the set of this film and we had the accidental death of our cinematographer Halyna Hutchins.” He added, “I still find that hard to say.”
Baldwin didn’t note in the video the project on which he’s currently working.
An investigation is still underway as to how a live round ended up in the pistol that discharged on the set as Baldwin pointed it at Hutchins. The round fatally struck the 42-year-old cinematographer and injured 48-year-old director Joel Souza.
Baldwin insists the Colt pistol “went off” while in his hand, after he was assured it was “cold,” or empty.
Several lawsuits have already been filed against Baldwin and the other producers on the now-scuttled film, accusing them of cutting corners, leading to unsafe conditions on set.
Investigators say hundreds of rounds of ammunition were recovered from the movie’s New Mexico set, including “a mix” of blanks, inert “dummy” rounds, and live ammunition, which many experts say had no place being on set.
Incidentally, Baldwin’s post was followed by another in which he didn’t mention the shooting, and instead cheerfully recounted which TV shows he binges while traveling.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Wednesday announced the 12th Governors Awards, originally slated for January 15, is now set for March 25 at the Ray Dolby Ballroom at Hollywood & Highland in Hollywood. Honorary Awards at the scaled down event will be presented to Samuel L. Jackson, Elaine May and Liv Ullmann, and the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award will be presented to Danny Glover…
Steven Spielberg’s Oscar-nominated West Side Story will make its U.S. streaming debut on Disney+ and HBO Max on March 2, the streaming service announced on Tuesday. In addition, the ABC one-hour special Something’s Coming: West Side Story — A Special Edition of 20/20 is available to stream on Disney+ now. Spielberg’s adaptation of the classic stage musical has nabbed seven Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Supporting Actress for Ariana DeBose…
Deadline reports Adam Driver, Penélope Cruz and Shailene Woodley have boarded Heat director Michael Mann‘s biopic Ferrari, which chronicles personal and financial struggles ex-race car driver Enzo Ferrari faced on his way to becoming a racing mogul. Driver replaces Hugh Jackman in the title role, with Cruz playing Enzo’s wife, Laura, and Woodley will portraying Ferrari’s mistress, Lina Lardi. The plan is to start filming in May…
Squid Game is heading to the big screen for a two-night theater engagement in both New York and Los Angeles, according to Variety. Episodes one through four of the Korean-language thriller’s first season, which streams on Netflix, will be screened this coming Saturday and episodes five through nine the following Saturday, February 19, both at the Netflix-operated Paris Theater in New York, and the Netflix-operated Bay Theater in Los Angeles. The screenings will open with a new introduction featuring the show’s stars. The screenings are open to the admission-paying general public…
The trailer for the fifth and final season of FX’s series Better Things dropped on Wednesday. The series follows Pamela Adlon’s Sam Fox, “a single mother and working actor with no filter,” who raises her three daughters in Los Angeles, while also looks after her mother, “an English expat who lives across the street,” according to the show’s official publicity. Sam approaches all of those challenges “with fierce love, raw honesty and humor.” Better Things returns for its final season on February 28…
America Ferrera has been added to the cast of the upcoming Greta Gerwig-directed live-action Barbie movie, alongside Ryan Gosling as Ken and Margot Robbie as the titular doll, according to Deadline. There’s no word yet on who Ferrera will play, and plot details are being kept under wraps. Ferrera will next be seen alongside Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway in the Apple TV+ limited series We Crashed, debuting in March…
FX announced on Wednesday that Mayans M.C. will kick off its fourth season with two episodes airing back-to-back on April 19, according to Deadline. New episodes will stream the next day on Hulu. The Sons of Anarchy spinoff follows follows Ezekiel “EZ” Reyes — played by JD Pardo — a member of the Mayans M.C. charter on the Cali/Mexi border fresh out of prison, his brother Angel — portrayed by Clayton Cardenas — and the rest of the Santo Padre M.C., who face retaliation from other chapters after a failed attempt to align under one King. Meanwhile, EZ and Angel have grown distant from their father Felipe — played by Edward James Olmos — after a heart-wrenching betrayal. Danny Pino, Carla Baratta, Michael Irby, Raoul Max Trujillo, Richard Cabral, Emilio Rivera, Sarah Bolger, Frankie Loyal, Joseph Lucero and Vincent Vargas also star…
(LONDON) — Over 50 people will be questioned in connection with parties held during lockdowns in Downing Street, police said, as the criminal investigation into the conduct of Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his staff gathers pace.
The investigation into a number of events held in Downing Street by the prime minister’s staff while the country was under lockdown conditions throughout 2020 has dominated the headlines in the British media in recent weeks. The Metropolitan Police are investigating eight gatherings, and they are currently examining over 500 documents and 300 images provided to them by a separate, internal investigation led by the civil servant Sue Gray.
Johnson, according to reports in the British media, is expected to be among the more than 50 people being asked by the police to explain their participation in the events.
The prime minister’s office said he had not yet been contacted by the police.
The scandal has dominated the headlines in recent weeks, even as the prime minister has sought to take a strong line on Russia over Ukraine and offer reassurance to the U.K.’s European allies.
Over a dozen gatherings alleged to have broken social-distancing rules are believed to have taken place throughout 2020, including a Christmas event, two leaving parties for departing staff and a summer gathering in the Downing Street garden, where up to 100 staffers where invited to bring their own booze. All took place while the country was under varying degrees of restrictions.
The full findings of Gray’s report will not be published until after the police investigation has been concluded, but an update published on Jan. 31 accused the government of “failures of leadership and judgment” in relation to the gatherings.
“Some of the events should not have been allowed to take place,” Gray wrote. “Other events should not have been allowed to develop as they did … Against the backdrop of the pandemic, when the government was asking citizens to accept far-reaching restrictions on their lives, some of the behavior surrounding these gatherings is difficult to justify.”
The interim findings also notes that “the excessive consumption of alcohol is not appropriate in a professional workplace at any time.”
In response, the prime minister apologized and promised to overhaul the culture of his department. He has faced down growing calls for his resignation from opposition lawmakers and a few members of his own party.
Speaking to BBC radio on Thursday, the head of the Metropolitan Police, Cressida Dick, said that some of those questioned could end up being fined.
“Fifty people are being asked to account for what they are doing,” she said. “Some, not all, may end up with a fixed penalty notice and I recognise this has disgusted many members of the public.”
The prime minister’s office has refused to elaborate on questions of whether Johnson will resign if he is among those fined for attending the gatherings, as his future as leader of the country largely depends on whether he can maintain the support of lawmakers within his own Conservative Party.
In a speech to the Institute for Government, former Conservative Prime Minister John Major, in office from 1990 to 1997, accused Johnson of breaking the rules on Thursday.
“The prime minister and our present government not only challenge the law, but also seem to believe that they, and they alone, need not obey the rules, traditions, conventions – call them what you will – of public life,” he said. “The charge that there is one law for the government, and one for everyone else is politically deadly – and it has struck home.”
(WASHINGTON) — The prices Americans pay for a basket of goods and services continued to climb rapidly last month, according to new government data.
The consumer price index — a key measure of inflation — surged 7.5% over the last 12 months, the Labor Department said Thursday. This marks the largest 12-month increase since February 1982. The index surged 0.6% in January alone.
The so-called core index, or measure for all items except the more volatile food and energy indices, spiked 6% over the last 12 months. It was the largest 12-month change since August 1982.
Bob Saget, who was found dead in a Florida hotel room last month, died from head trauma, his family said in a statement on Wednesday.
“They have concluded that he accidentally hit the back of his head on something, thought nothing of it and went to sleep,” his family said in a statement obtained by ABC News. “No drugs or alcohol were involved.”
A police report revealed that Saget, 65, was found “unresponsive and not breathing” during a wellness check conducted January 9 after he failed to check out of his room the Ritz-Carlton in Orlando, Florida, and his family was unable to reach him.
Saget was discovered “in a supine [face upward] position on his bed. His left arm was across his chest while his right arm was resting on the bed. No signs of trauma were seen,” according to the report. He was already “cold to the touch, yellow and clammy.”
The chief medical examiner for Orange and Osceola counties had said a preliminary autopsy showed “no evidence of drug use or foul play.”
HIs family said they wanted Saget’s fans to hear the “final conclusions” from the authorities’ investigation “directly from us.”
“As we continue to mourn together, we ask everyone to remember the love and laughter that Bob brought to this world, and the lessons he taught us all: to be kind to everyone, to let the people you love know you love them, and to face difficult times with hugs and laughter,” his family said.
Snoop Dogg is now the proud owner of Death Row Records, the same label that launched his career three decades ago. He signed with the label in 1993 and dropped his debut album, Doggystyle, before later signing with various other labels, including Def Jam.
“I am thrilled and appreciative of the opportunity to acquire the iconic and culturally significant Death Row Records brand, which has immense untapped future value,” Snoop said in a statement. “It feels good to have ownership of the label I was part of at the beginning of my career and as one of the founding members.”
Death Row Records was founded in 1992 by Dr. Dre, Suge Knight, the D.O.C. and Dick Griffey. In addition to Snoop, the label was home to legendary rap icon Tupac Shakur during the 1990s. Ultimately, Death Row filed for bankruptcy in 2006 and bounced around from owner to owner a bit before landing at The Blackstone Group and MRNK Music Group.
(NEW YORK) — As the COVID-19 pandemic has swept the globe, more than 5.7 million people have died from the disease worldwide, including over 912,000 Americans, according to real-time data compiled by Johns Hopkins University’s Center for Systems Science and Engineering.
About 64.2% of the population in the United States is fully vaccinated against COVID-19, according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Here’s how the news is developing Thursday. All times Eastern:
Feb 10, 7:44 am
Prince Charles tests positive for COVID-19 again
Charles, Prince of Wales, tested positive for COVID-19 on Wednesday morning, according to a spokesperson for Clarence House, his official London residence.
The 73-year-old heir apparent to the British throne “is now self-isolating” and “is deeply disappointed not to be able to attend today’s events in Winchester and will look to reschedule his visit as soon as possible,” the spokesperson said.
It’s the second time that Charles has contracted COVID-19. He previously tested positive in March 2020, early on in the pandemic before vaccines were available, but he had mild symptoms.
Both the Prince of Wales and his wife, Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, are fully vaccinated against COVID-19, a Clarence House spokesperson has said.
The couple attended a British Asian Trust event at the British Museum in London on Wednesday night, along with hundreds of other guests, including several British politicians such as Chancellor Rishi Sunak, Home Secretary Priti Patel and Health Secretary Said Javid. Adar Poonawalla, CEO of the Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest manufacturer of vaccines, was also in attendance.
(LONDON) — Cases of Lassa fever have been identified in the United Kingdom for the first time in over a decade.
The U.K. Health Security Agency (UKHSA) confirmed in a press release Wednesday that two people have been diagnosed with Lassa fever in England, while a third “probable case” is under investigation.
All three cases are within the same family in the East of England and are linked to recent travel to West Africa, where the potentially deadly infectious disease is endemic.
“Cases of Lassa fever are rare in the U.K. and it does not spread easily between people. The overall risk to the public is very low,” Dr. Susan Hopkins, chief medical advisor at the UKHSA, said in a statement Wednesday. “We are contacting the individuals who have had close contact with the cases prior to confirmation of their infection, to provide appropriate assessment, support and advice.”
Hopkins noted that the UKHSA and the National Health Service (NHS) in England “have well established and robust infection control procedures for dealing with cases of imported infectious disease and these will be reinforced.”
Prior to these cases, there had been just eight cases of Lassa fever imported to the U.K. since 1980. The last two occurred in 2009. There was no evidence of onward transmission from any of these cases, according to the UKHSA.
Lassa fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic illness caused by Lassa virus. People usually become infected with Lassa virus through exposure to food or household items contaminated with urine or feces of infected rats that are present in parts of West Africa, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
The virus can also be spread through infected bodily fluids. People living in endemic areas of West Africa with high populations of rodents are most at risk. Imported cases rarely occur elsewhere in the world and such cases are almost exclusively people who work in endemic areas in high-risk occupations, like medical or other aid workers, according to the UKHSA.
Lassa fever is known to be endemic in Benin, Ghana, Guinea, Libera, Mali, Sierra Leone, Togo and Nigeria, but probably exists in other West African nations as well. It’s not easy to distinguish from other viral hemorrhagic fevers, such as Ebola virus disease and malaria, and clinical diagnoses are often difficult, especially early in the course of the disease, because the symptoms are so varied and non-specific, according to the WHO.
Symptoms are usually gradual, starting with fever, general weakness and malaise. Then, after a few days, headache, sore throat, muscle pain, chest pain, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, cough and abdominal pain may follow. Patients with severe cases may develop facial swelling, fluid in the lung cavity, bleeding from the mouth, nose, vagina or gastrointestinal tract and low blood pressure. Deafness occurs in 25% of recovered patients and in half of these cases, hearing returns partially after one to three months, according to the WHO.
About 80% of people who become infected with Lassa virus have no symptoms and one in five infections result in severe disease, where the virus affects several organs such as the liver, spleen and kidneys. The overall case-fatality rate is 1%, while case-fatality among patients hospitalized with severe cases is estimated at around 15%. Death usually occurs within 14 days in fatal cases. Diagnosis and prompt treatment are essential, according to the WHO.
Although severe illness can occur in some individuals, most people with Lassa fever will make a full recovery, according to the UKHSA.
One of the patients with a confirmed case has recovered, while the other will receive specialist care at the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, a London-based NHS foundation trust consisting of several hospitals and clinics. Meanwhile, the patient with the probable case is being treated at Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which runs two hospitals in Bedfordshire county in the East of England. The U.K. High Consequence Infectious Disease Network is engaged with the ongoing care of the infected individuals, according to the UKHSA.
“The Royal Free Hospital is a specialist centre for treating patients with viral hemorrhagic fevers, including Lassa fever,” Dr. Sir Michael Jacobs, consultant in infectious diseases at the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, said in a statement Wednesday. “Our secure unit is run by a highly-trained and experienced team of doctors, nurses, therapists and laboratory staff and is designed to ensure our staff can safely treat patients with these kind of infections.”
Helen H. Richardson/MediaNews Group/The Denver Post via Getty Images
(BOULDER, Colo.) — Nearly a year after a gunman opened fire at a King Soopers in Boulder, Colorado, killing 10 people, the grocery store has reopened.
A marching band helped mark Wednesday’s reopening — a joyful yet somber celebration attended by local officials and community members that honored the victims and paid tribute to the first responders of the March 22, 2021, mass shooting.
Instead of a ribbon-cutting, the manager of the Table Mesa King Soopers store and the city’s mayor tied a ribbon together to signal their strength.
“Just like the strength of this knot, we are strong,” King Soopers spokesperson Kelli McGannon told the crowd.
There was also a moment of silence for the workers, shoppers and Boulder police officer killed in the shooting: Denny Stong, 20; Neven Stanisic, 23; Rikki Olds, 25; Tralona Bartkowiak, 49; Suzanne Fountain, 59; Teri Leiker, 51; Officer Eric Talley, 51; Kevin Mahoney, 61; Lynn Murray, 62; and Jody Waters, 65.
King Soopers officials said they would also be installing a remembrance tree garden on the west side of the store, planting one tree for each victim.
The 10 trees will “remind us of the dark day, the day of evil that occurred here,” Colorado Gov. Jared Polis told the crowd, though he noted that the reopening marks a “turning point for the community to move forward.”
“Today is really a symbol of that perseverance. It’s the beginning of a new chapter,” the governor said. “I want to thank everybody whose hard work led to this occasion and wish everybody affected — family members, team members, shoppers — well in the journey of healing that we are all undertaking and for which today is a very important step.”
The store’s manager, Sheri Bosman, gave emotional remarks at the reopening.
“I’ve been looking forward to this day for a long time. We’ve come a long way in the past year,” she said, getting choked up.
“We were strong in the beginning. We continue to build our strength. We’re stronger than ever,” she continued. “My heart is thankful we are back together with our incredible Table Mesa associates and the South Boulder community.”
The redesign includes a new entry and higher ceilings with more lighting, as well as safety enhancements. The company hasn’t elaborated on those features because it is proprietary information and could pose a risk to share.
Local shoppers came by to support the workers and community and to lay flowers at the site.
“There’s been a lot of grieving and I feel the fact that the store’s open again will give everybody a chance to regroup and celebrate the fact that our spirit is strong,” Michelle Weiner-Davis, a family therapist who shops at the store, told Denver ABC affiliate KMGH-TV.
In the wake of the shooting, King Soopers committed a $1 million donation to the Colorado Healing Fund to help provide mental health services and other financial relief to survivors and others who have been traumatized by the event.
Mental health partners were also on site for the opening, Bosman said.
As the store reopens, the case against the alleged shooter is ongoing. Ahmad Al Aliwi Alissa, 22, faces 10 counts of first-degree murder, among other charges, in connection with the shooting. A possible motive has not been released.
In December, a judge ruled that he was incompetent to stand trial and the suspect was ordered to undergo further treatment in the state mental hospital. A hearing has been scheduled for March 15 to review his condition.
