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Garth Brooks to perform at Joe Biden inauguration
He’s got friends in high places.
Crossover country star Garth Brooks will perform at Joe Biden’s inauguration Wednesday. The “Friends in Low Places” singer announced his decision on Monday.
“This is not a political statement,” Brooks said in a statement. “This is statement of unity."
Brooks said Wednesday’s performance gives ...Read more
Stevie Wonder pens letter to MLK, seeks federal 'Truth Commission' to address inequality
Stevie Wonder said Monday he is calling on the incoming presidential administration to launch a “Truth Commission” to examine racial injustice.
In what he called “An Open Letter to Dr. King” — released on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a tradition Wonder helped establish — the iconic music star said he is “physically sick” by the �...Read more

Fox News launches new opinion show with Bartiromo, Gowdy and Pavlich among the hosts
Fox News has lined up six rotating hosts for its new 7 p.m. opinion program aimed at feeding the appetite of conservative viewers in the hour.
The new show, called "Fox News Primetime," was to launch Monday with "Fox & Friends" morning show co-host Brian Kilmeade, as previously announced. The Times has learned that other names lined up to helm ...Read more

Tom Payne's path to 'Prodigal Son'
NEW YORK – British actor Tom Payne was just about to quit acting when the zombie apocalypse saved him.
“I had two months’ rent in my bank account, my work visa was about to run out, and I had a tax bill for $30,000 that I couldn’t pay,” he says.
“When that was all coming to a head, ‘The Walking Dead’ came along," he says. "I ...Read more
Kid Rock marks 50th birthday, vows likely farewell tour, raises $200K for pandemic fund
DETROIT — The party was a little more intimate than the king-sized concert he threw in Detroit a decade ago.
But there was a big dose of goodwill as the Kid Rock marked his 50th birthday Sunday night during an online event, raising about $200,000 for a fund supporting restaurants and bars imperiled by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Streaming live ...Read more
Rachel Uchitel hoped to leave the word 'mistress' behind. It hasn't gone as planned
This wasn't how Rachel Uchitel wanted it to go. After a decade, she'd decided at last to talk about her affair with Tiger Woods so the public might characterize her as something other than a mistress. Maybe they'd stop writing "homewrecker" in the comments of her Instagram photos. Or just understand that she's a human who's made mistakes and "...Read more
Sterling K. Brown to narrate Lincoln documentary
Sterling K. Brown is lending his voice to a timely documentary series.
The St. Louis native and star of NBC's "This Is Us" is the narrator of "Lincoln: Divided We Stand," beginning next month on CNN.
Through interviews and re-creations, along with photos, letters and artifacts, the six-part series explores the political career and personal ...Read more

Dave Simonett and friends find More Light as live music remains dark
It began because of writer's block, and thanks to the pandemic it hasn't yet ended.
That's how Dave Simonett explained the rather odd existence of his latest side project, an improvisational drone band that now goes by the name More Light.
The Trampled by Turtles frontman was in a bit of a creative rut in the fall of 2019 when he booked a day ...Read more

If America won't face history’s traumas, 'Dickinson' will. Just not like you expect
There’s no handbook that explains how to stay focused while working from home on a key project, during a pandemic, two days after an insurrection at the U.S. Capitol.
But Alena Smith managed the best she could.
Just before the return of “Dickinson,” Apple TV+'s quirky and audacious coming-of-age tale featuring 19th century poet Emily ...Read more
Album reviews: Barry Gibb & Friends, The Avalanches, Zephaniah Ohora
Barry Gibb & Friends
"Greenfields: The Gibb Brothers’ Songbook, Vol. 1"
(Capitol ** 1/2)
As late 1960s hit-makers, the Bee Gees specialized in heartbreaking harmony singing. As 1970s disco superstars, they soared heavenward on Barry Gibb’s falsetto. The recent "The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" documentary on HBO is a ...Read more

What the heck is going on in 'WandaVision'? These comic book storylines might explain
In the final moments of "WandaVision's" second episode, Wanda turns to Vision and asks, "Is this really happening?"
It's almost as if she's channeling the audience.
Ever since the earliest footage of the Disney+ series was released, fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe have been keen on solving the mystery behind how and why Wanda Maximoff (...Read more

Could TV writers help curb the pandemic? This group thinks so
Neal Baer has experience changing audiences’ opinions.
The pediatrician turned TV writer wove public health storylines into shows like “ER” as part of a campaign to popularize the use of designated drivers to reduce drunk driving. Now, he and others in Hollywood have enlisted medical experts to help them convince viewers to mask up and ...Read more

'It was the only ending for me': The finale of 'Promising Young Woman' explained
The feature debut from writer-director Emerald Fennell, "Promising Young Woman" seems designed to spur on uncomfortable post-movie conversations and think pieces as it continually destabilizes audiences. With a dazzling and electrifying lead performance by Carey Mulligan, the story follows a young woman named Cassandra who is traumatized by the ...Read more

President Voldemort? In protest and without fanfare, Stephen Colbert has stopped saying Trump's name
When the chaotic tenure of Donald Trump as president of the United States ends on Wednesday (according to custom, law and belief), what will also pass is a small, intriguing, almost silent protest against him that’s been carried out over the public airwaves.
Since the week after the November 3 presidential election, CBS “Late Show” host ...Read more

My friendship — and last phone call — with Joanne Rogers, widow of Mister Rogers
LOS ANGELES — I somehow sensed the conversation would be our last. It wasn't that she sounded any different. Her voice was sunny and clear. But at the end of that October phone call, she told me: "Never forget: I love you."
She said it again an hour later in a text message, after thanking me for a book recommendation: "never-forget-love."
...Read more

Hundreds in publishing sign letter objecting to book deals for the Trump administration
More than 250 authors, editors, agents, professors and others in the American literary community signed an open letter last week opposing any publisher that signs book deals with President Donald Trump or members of his administration.
Former DC Comics president Paul Levitz, journalist Sarah Weinman and "Little Fires Everywhere" author Celeste ...Read more

'Make the dream exist.' How L.A.'s Amanda Gorman became Biden's inauguration poet
LOS ANGELES — Like most of us, Amanda Gorman has been cooped up in her West Los Angeles apartment binge-watching "The Great British Baking Show" because of the pandemic. Unlike most of us, she got some very exciting news recently via Zoom: She'd been handpicked to read a poem at President-elect Joe Biden's inauguration.
The incoming first ...Read more

Who is Olivia Rodrigo? 5 things to know about the viral 'Drivers License' star
Super fans of Olivia Rodrigo have long been manifesting her "world domination" on social media. And last week, they got their wish.
The actress and teen songwriting phenom's runaway hit of a debut single, "Drivers License," has been shattering streaming records left and right since its buzzy release two weeks ago. In a recent interview with ...Read more

Movies we're looking forward to in early 2021
Get your popcorn ready: Big movies are coming soon.
With so many films delayed last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, even more big titles than usual are on the horizon in 2021.
Here are movies to look forward to between now and March.
“One Night in Miami”
This movie features a knockout group of icons: Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Jim ...Read more

Lin-Manuel Miranda, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, more join Biden inauguration special
Joe Biden’s inauguration special gets more star-studded by the day.
The TV special, replacing the president-elect’s inauguration night balls, added a who’s who of celebrities to the prime-time program Sunday, including “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda, who will “recite a classic work,” according to the inauguration committee....Read more
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Popular Stories
- Movies we're looking forward to in early 2021
- 'It was the only ending for me': The finale of 'Promising Young Woman' explained
- What the heck is going on in 'WandaVision'? These comic book storylines might explain
- Tom Payne's path to 'Prodigal Son'
- My friendship — and last phone call — with Joanne Rogers, widow of Mister Rogers