Don McLean is taking his “American Pie” to Europe.
The singer/songwriter has booked a 35-date European tour for 2022, to mark the 50th anniversary of his signature song “American Pie.” Technically, the single turns 50 in October of this year, but of course, many artists aren’t returning to the road in full force until next year.
McLean’s overseas tour starts in the U.K. — Wales, to be specific — next September, and then moves on to the continent in early October, wrapping up in November of 2022 in Austria.
Last month, McLean received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame; he was introduced at the ceremony by his pal, “Weird Al” Yankovic.
Disney has declared Friday, November 12 Disney+ Day, and to celebrate, the streaming service announced it’s debuting content from its properties Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars, National Geographic, and Walt Disney Animation Studios.
Among the launches on November 12 will be the streaming debut of the latest Marvel Studios blockbuster Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings, as well as the hit Jungle Cruise starring Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson and Emily Blunt, and Disney+ Original movie Home Sweet Home Alone, based on the hit Home Alone series.
Also on the docket are a series of shorts called Olaf Presents, starring Frozen‘s favorite snowman retelling several classic Disney tales; the Oscar-winning shorts Feast and Paperman; and a new Simpsons short that pays tribute to Disney IP.
Disney+ will also debut a Star Wars special about the origins and legacy of bounty hunter and fan favorite Boba Fett, a new Marvel Studios special feature, new episodes of The World According to Jeff Goldblum from National Geographic, as well as special sneak peeks of upcoming shows and celebrity guest stars to help celebrate the occasion.
(WASHINGTON) — The first tests of Texas’ unprecedented and highly controversial scheme for enforcing a ban on nearly all abortions have come from two non-Texans — both former lawyers disbarred for alleged misconduct who are effectively inviting courts to invalidate the law on constitutional grounds.
Oscar Stilley, a former Arkansas attorney, brought one of the two civil suits filed Monday in Bexar County District Court against a San Antonio abortion doctor who publicly admitted to performing an unlawful procedure. Stilley is in custody of the Federal Bureau of Prisons on a 15-year sentence for tax evasion and conspiracy, according to the complaint posted on his personal website.
Felipe N. Gomez, an Illinois attorney, brought the other suit; he is currently suspended from the state’s bar over accusations of sending harassing and threatening emails, records show.
“In some ways the identity of these first plaintiffs highlights the absurdity of the law,” said Kate Shaw, Cardozo School of Law professor and ABC News legal contributor.
“No connection to the issue, no connection to the parties, no connection — as far as we can tell from the complaints — to Texas, at all. And yet, they may well have the ability, the way the law is drafted, to go to court and to have the courts actually hear their case,” she continued.
Gomez is a self-described “pro choice plaintiff,” according to the two-page complaint obtained by ABC affiliate KSAT, and explicitly asked the court to strike the law, SB8, down.
SB8 prohibits abortions after about 6 weeks of pregnancy in Texas and allows “any person, other than an officer or employee of state or local government,” to bring a civil suit against someone believed to have “aided or abetted” an unlawful abortion.
“The statute says that anybody can file a suit. That doesn’t mean that there’s not some state constitutional limitation on who could file a suit,” said Irving Gornstein, executive director of the Supreme Court Institute at Georgetown Law Center, “but this person seems to be somebody who has no objection to abortions, he just wants to earn a bounty.”
Stilley, who is seeking to claim a minimum $10,000 reward, and Gomez, who says he is not seeking any financial damages, both sued Dr. Alan Braid, an OB-GYN based in San Antonio, who publicly acknowledged in an op-ed on Sept. 6 that he had performed a first-trimester abortion in express violation of state law.
“I acted because I had a duty of care to this patient, as I do for all patients, and because she has a fundamental right to receive this care,” Braid wrote. “I fully understood that there could be legal consequences — but I wanted to make sure that Texas didn’t get away with its bid to prevent this blatantly unconstitutional law from being tested.”
The U.S. Supreme Court voted 5-4 on Sept. 1 to allow SB8 to take effect on procedural grounds, despite what the majority acknowledged as “serious questions” about constitutionality. The justices did not address those questions.
Legal experts said the new civil cases are now “vehicles” for state and federal courts to examine the substance of SB8 itself — the near total ban on abortions across the state — and ultimately suspend enforcement of the measure as in violation of longstanding Supreme Court precedent.
(NEW YORK ) — Officials have confirmed the body found over the weekend near Grand Teton National Park belongs to Gabby Petito, the 22-year-old woman who went missing while on a cross-country road trip with her boyfriend, the Teton County coroner said in a statement.
The initial determination is that she died by homicide, but the cause of death is pending final autopsy results, Teton County Coroner Dr. Brent Blue said.
Authorities had said a body “consistent with the description of” Petito was discovered in the Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming on Sunday. At the time, a full forensic identification hadn’t been completed and a cause of death was undetermined.
Petito’s parents reported her missing on Sept. 11 after not speaking with her for two weeks. Her boyfriend, Brian Laundrie, was named a person of interest by police last week.
Petito, originally from New York, had left from Florida with Laundrie in a van in July for their trip, which they documented on social media.
On Aug. 12, police in Moab, Utah, responded to an “incident” involving the couple, but “insufficient evidence existed to justify criminal charges,” Moab Police Department Chief Bret Edge said in a statement last week.
Petito was last seen leaving a hotel in Utah with Laundrie on Aug. 24. The next day, she spoke to her mother, Nichole Schmidt, informing her that their next stops would be Grand Teton and Yellowstone, Schmidt told ABC News, and that was the last time Schmidt talked to her.
On Friday, it was announced that Laundrie’s whereabouts were unknown. His family told police they had last seen him last Tuesday. They said he had a backpack and told them he was going to the Carlton Reserve north of Laundrie’s home in North Port, Florida, where he had gone for hikes before.
A search for Laundrie in Florida was paused Monday, with police saying they “currently believe we have exhausted all avenues in searching of the grounds there.” He has yet to be found.
FBI Denver Special Agent in Charge Michael Schneider said in a statement that Laundrie has been named a person of interest.
“The FBI and our partners remain dedicated to ensuring anyone responsible for or complicit in Ms. Petito’s death is held accountable for their actions,” he said in a statement.
(NEW YORK) — After Jacqui Webb was injured in the Boston Marathon bombing in 2013, she spent three weeks being treated for her injuries at Tufts Medical Center in Boston.
One of the nurses who treated Webb there was Nichole Casper, a registered nurse who at the time was working in the hospital’s trauma unit.
“It was a very anxiety-inducing situation, obviously,” Casper told “Good Morning America” of the days and weeks following the bombing near the finish line of the Boston Marathon, which killed three people and injured more than 200. “Then you meet all these people [being treated at the hospital], and even though they were so traumatized, they were so amazing.”
“Jacqui was always very gracious and very appreciative of all the care,” Casper said of Webb, with whom she lost touch once Webb was discharged from Tufts.
Both Webb, now 33, and her fiance, Paul Norden, were injured near the finish line of the marathon, which they’d attended as spectators to cheer on a friend running the race.
Norden lost his right leg in the bombing and, like Webb, suffered second- and third-degree burns and shrapnel injuries.
The couple, of Stoneham, Massachusetts, had long-term plans to have children together, but put those dreams on hold after the bombing, according to Webb.
“For the first year, pretty much all we did was recover,” she said. “And over the years we’ve both had additional surgeries for different marathon-related injuries, so that delayed it more.”
Brett Eldredge is opening up about a recent bout of anxiety he’s been struggling with.
The country star took to Instagram to share a photo of himself working out, alongside a lengthy caption detailing how he’s been battling anxiety as of late.
Brett, who has been open about living with anxiety in the past, reveals that it recently reemerged for several days, “out of nowhere,” with symptoms that included shortness of breath and feeling overwhelmed.
“Instead of hiding (like I once did), I stuck to the process, knowing I survived all the other times, and setbacks are common,” he explains. “I kept showing up to life and leaning into the things that give me strength and stability.” In the photo, he’s shown lifting weights.
“It passed and I feel even stronger than before. I took this photo in the middle of the setback to remind myself that even in the tough times, we can be strong as hell, and the storm will always pass if we face it,” he declares. He added the phrase “STAY IN THE FIGHT,” and concluded, “If you’re goin’ through it, hang in there, you will be surprised what you’re capable of.”
Brett recently announced that he’s releasing a new holiday album, Mr. Christmas, on October 22.
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Rihanna’s Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 3 Presented by Amazon Prime Video
Rihanna continues to build the excitement for her Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 3 fashion event, which promotes her Savage X Fenty line of lingerie.
RiRi dropped a trailer on Tuesday for Friday’s show, which will features performances by Nas, Daddy Yankee, BIA, Jazmine Sullivan, Ricky Martin, Normani, and Jade Novah. Normani also took part in last year’s show, which was held at the Los Angeles Convention Center, which featured appearances by Roddy Ricch, Miguel, Ella Mai and Mustard.
Over the weekend, the “Umbrella” singer posted on Instagram, “Waiting for Vol. 3 to drop knowing y’all ain’t ready.”
Erykah Badu will also appear on the show, along with renowned models Adriana Lima, Gigi Hadid, Irina Shayk and many more.
Savage X Fenty Show Vol. 3 will stream on Amazon Prime Video in more than 240 countries and territories worldwide beginning Friday, September 24.
Ten years ago today, it felt like the end of the world for R.E.M. fans, as the college radio favorites-turned-rock icons broke up for good.
On September 21, 2011, the group — down to a trio of Michael Stipe, Mike Mills and Peter Buck following the 1997 departure of Bill Berry —posted a message on their website, reading, “To our Fans and Friends: As R.E.M., and as lifelong friends and co-conspirators, we have decided to call it a day as a band.”
“We walk away with a great sense of gratitude, of finality, and of astonishment at all we have accomplished,” they added. “To anyone who ever felt touched by our music, our deepest thanks for listening.”
Mills wrote, “We’ve made this decision together, amicably and with each other’s best interests at heart. The time just feels right.”
Stipe added, “A wise man once said, ‘The skill in attending a party is knowing when it’s time to leave.’ We built something extraordinary together. We did this thing. And now we’re going to walk away from it.”
And Buck wrote, “Being a part of your lives has been an unbelievable gift. Thank you.”
To mark the anniversary, R.E.M has posted a playlist of songs called “Ten Years Onward,” described as “songs still as resonant today as they were on September 21, 2011.” It’s a collection of singles, deep cuts, demos, live tracks and rarities from across R.E.M.’s entire catalog.
On his Facebook page, the band’s manager, Bertis Downs, wrote, “Disbandment Day — a bittersweet day in memory. But a good decision by the guys. And thankfully the music and the people live on.”
Over their 31-year career, R.E.M. won three Grammys, sold 85 million albums worldwide and were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Slipknot has announced the inaugural Knotfest Finland.
The festival will take place August 12-13, 2022, in the Nordic country’s city of Turku. So far, the lineup includes Nightwish, Bring Me the Horizon and Arch Enemy, along with the Knot themselves.
Slipknot will be bringing Knotfest all around the world in 2022, including to Japan, Chile and Brazil. They’re also holding two U.S. Knotfests this year, taking place in their home state of Iowa September 25 and Los Angeles November 5.
There’s another Britney Spears documentary in the works.
On Tuesday, Netflix teased Britney vs Spears ahead of a promised full trailer premiere on Wednesday.
The 18-second clip begins with text that reads, “The following audio is a voicemail from Britney Spears to a lawyer on January 21st, 2009 at 12:29 a.m.”
We then hear Britney’s voice saying, “Hi, my name is Britney Spears, I called you earlier. I’m calling again because I wanted to make sure that during the process of eliminating the conservatorship.”
The Netflix doc comes after Hulu/FX’s documentary The New York Times Presents: Framing Britney Spears reignited the #FreeBritney movement back in February.
