Naomi Judd, of Grammy-winning duo The Judds, dies at 76 - The Associated Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Naomi Judd, whose family harmonies with daughter Wynonna turned them into the Grammy-winning country stars The Judds, has died. She was 76.

Her daughters, Wynonna and Ashley, announced her death on Saturday in a statement provided to The Associated Press.

“Today we sisters experienced a tragedy. We lost our beautiful mother to the disease of mental illness,” the statement said. “We are shattered. We are navigating profound grief and know that as we loved her, she was loved by her public. We are in unknown territory.”

Naomi Judd died near Nashville, Tennessee, said a statement on behalf of her husband and fellow singer, Larry Strickland. It said no further details about her death would be released and asked for privacy as the family grieves.

The Judds were to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame on Sunday and they had just announced an arena tour to begin in the fall, their first tour together in over a decade.

The mother-daughter performers scored 14 No. 1 songs in a career that spanned nearly three decades. The red-headed duo combined the traditional Appalachian sounds of bluegrass with polished pop stylings, scoring hit after hit in the 1980s. Wynonna led the duo with her powerful vocals, while Naomi provided harmonies and stylish looks on stage.

They also made a return to awards shows when they performed at the CMT Music Awards earlier this month.

“Honored to have witnessed “Love Can Build a Bridge” just a few short weeks ago,” singer Maren Morris posted on Twitter on Saturday.

“This is heartbreaking news! Naomi Judd was one of the sweetest people I’ve ever known,” singer Travis Tritt posted on Twitter, noting that he had worked with Judd several times on screen and during performances.

“Country music lost a true legend…sing with the angels, Naomi!!! We’re all sending up prayers for the Judd family today,” singer Carrie Underwood wrote on Twitter.

After rising to the top of country music, they called it quits in 1991 after doctors diagnosed Naomi Judd with hepatitis C. Wynonna continued her solo career.

The Judds’ hits included “Love Can Build a Bridge” in 1990,“Mama He’s Crazy” in 1984, “Why Not Me” in 1984,“Turn It Loose” in 1988, “Girls Night Out” in 1985, “Rockin’ With the Rhythm of the Rain” in 1986 and “Grandpa” in 1986.

Born Diana Ellen Judd in Ashland, Kentucky, Naomi was working as a single mother and nurse in Nashville, when she and Wynonna started singing together professionally. Their unique harmonies, together with elements of acoustic music, bluegrass and blues, made them stand out in the genre at the time.

“We had a such a stamp of originality on what we were trying to do,” Naomi Judd told The AP after it was announced that they would be joining the Country Music Hall of Fame.

In an interview with the AP in March, Naomi Judd said she was already deep into preparation for the upcoming tour and was looking forward to the Hall of Fame induction.

“To have all the incredible opportunities that I’ve had, being reminded of all that just makes me very humbled and I just want to bask in the moment,” Judd said.

Wynonna Judd remarked that throughout their lives, their music had kept them together.

“Music is the bridge between mom and me, and it it bonds us together,” she told the AP. “Even in the not easy times.”

The Judds released six studio albums and an EP between 1984 and 1991 and won nine Country Music Association Awards and seven from the Academy of Country Music. They earned a total of five Grammy Awards together on hits like “Why Not Me” and “Give A Little Love,” and Naomi earned a sixth Grammy for writing “Love Can Build a Bridge.”

The Judds also performed at the halftime of the 1994 Super Bowl, along with Travis Tritt, Clint Black and Tanya Tucker.

The Judds sang about family, the belief in marriage and the virtue of fidelity. Because Naomi was so young looking, the two were mistaken for sisters early in their career. She was also known to prefer flashy stage outfits, full of sparkles and rhinestones, over casual boots and cowboy style clothing.

They first got attention singing on Ralph Emery’s morning show in early 1980, where the host named them the “Soap Sisters” because Naomi said she used to make her own soap.

After the success of “Mama He’s Crazy,” they won the Horizon Award at the 1984 CMA Awards. Naomi started her speech by saying “Slap the dog and spit in the fire!”

Naomi Judd was open about her health struggles, as well as severe depression and anxiety. In her memoir, “River of Time,” she described her diagnosis of hepatitis C, which she said she unknowingly contracted during her time as a nurse. She said that by 1995, her doctors had told her she was completely free of the virus.

In the memoir, she described feeling like she had lost her identity when she returned home after a 2010 reunion tour, isolating herself at her home and dealing with crippling panic attacks. She also said that she had been dealing with trauma from childhood sexual abuse. She was admitted to a psychiatric ward at a hospital and spent time in an outpatient treatment program.

Daughter Ashley Judd is an actor and humanitarian known for her roles in such movies as “Kiss the Girls,” ″Double Jeopardy” and “Heat.”

Strickland, who was a backup singer for Elvis Presley, was married to Naomi Judd for 32 years.

__

Follow Kristin M. Hall at https://twitter.com/kmhall

Adblock test (Why?)

Article From & Read More ( Naomi Judd, of Grammy-winning duo The Judds, dies at 76 - The Associated Press )
https://ift.tt/TpLOFuS
Entertainment

Bill Murray Speaks Out After ‘Being Mortal’ Set Complaint - Hollywood Reporter

Bill Murray is addressing the Being Mortal set complaint that led to the production suspension on the Aziz Ansari-directed film.

Speaking to CNBC on Saturday, the actor said there was a “difference of opinion” with a woman that he was working with that led to the complaint and production pause. “I did something I thought was funny, and it wasn’t taken that way,” he told the outlet.

He did not provide further detail on what exactly happened on set, but CNBC reported that Murray, who spoke about the incident during an on-camera interview with the business network at the Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholders meeting, “was optimistic” that production would restart and that the incident would be settled between him and the woman.

Related Stories

“As of now we are talking, and we are trying to make peace with each other,” the actor-comedian, who is also reportedly a Berkshire Hathaway shareholder, said. “We are both professionals. We like each others’ work. We like each other, I think, and if we can’t really get along and trust each other, there’s no point in going further working together or making the movie as well. It’s been quite an education for me.”

Murray said he’s been spending time since production was shut down thinking about what happened.

“The world is different than it was when I was a little kid. You know, what I always thought was funny as a little kid isn’t necessarily the same as what’s funny now,” he said. “Things change and the times change, so it’s important for me to figure it out. And I think the most important thing is that it’s best for the other person. I thought about it, and if it’s not best for the other person, doesn’t matter what happens for me.”

Murray stated that “what would make me the happiest” is if both he and the woman are able to “go back into work and…trust each other and work at the work that we’ve both spent a lot of time developing the skill of.”

As for his behavior and learning from his mistakes, Murray stated that “I think it’s a sad dog that can’t learn anymore.”

“That’s a really sad puppy that can’t learn anymore,” he continued. “I don’t want to be that sad dog, and I have no intention of it.”

The Hollywood Reporter confirmed on April 21 that Searchlight Pictures suspended production on Ansari’s feature directorial debut after there was a complaint of inappropriate behavior, filed the previous week, involving Murray. A source close to the Being Mortal production told THR that the director and his producing partner Youree Henley were working with the Disney-backed studio to figure out the next steps.

Searchlight is currently investigating the matter but told THR in a statement that they do not “comment on investigations.”

The film, based on the Atul Gawande nonfiction book Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End, also stars Ansari — who wrote the script — Seth Rogen and Keke Palmer.

Watch Murray’s CNBC interview below.

Adblock test (Why?)

Article From & Read More ( Bill Murray Speaks Out After ‘Being Mortal’ Set Complaint - Hollywood Reporter )
https://ift.tt/utMB70h
Entertainment

Bill Murray reflects on inappropriate behavior that led to the shutdown of his latest film - CNBC

Bill Murray is still reflecting on his inappropriate behavior, which led to a production shutdown on the Searchlight Pictures' film "Being Mortal" last week.

On Saturday, the actor told CNBC's Becky Quick that he had a "difference of opinion" with a woman he was working with on the film, saying, "I did something I thought was funny and it wasn't taken that way."

Murray said he has spent the last week thinking about the incident. He did not elaborate on what was said or to whom.

"As of now we are talking and we are trying to make peace with each other," Murray said in an interview during CNBC's exclusive streaming coverage of the Berkshire Hathaway annual shareholders meeting. "We are both professionals, we like each others' work, we like each other I think and if we can't really get along and trust each other there's no point in going further working together or making the movie as well. It's been quite an education for me."

"Being Mortal" is based on Atul Gawande's nonfiction book "Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End" and stars Murray alongside Aziz Ansari and Seth Rogan. The film was about halfway completed before production was halted. It is slated for release in 2023, but it is unclear if Murray will continue on with the project.

He said he was optimistic that "we are going to make peace" and that production will restart, but noted that he'll only do so if the woman involved in the incident is comfortable doing so.

"I think it's a sad dog that can't learn anymore," Murray said of learning from his mistakes. "That's a really sad puppy that can't learn anymore. I don't want to be that sad dog and I have no intention of it."

"What would make me the happiest would be to put my boots on and for both of us to go back into work and be able to trust each other and work at the work that we've both spent a lot of time developing the skill of," he said.

Adblock test (Why?)

Article From & Read More ( Bill Murray reflects on inappropriate behavior that led to the shutdown of his latest film - CNBC )
https://ift.tt/2vIfe5x
Entertainment

The Color of Care Documentary Interview - Yance Ford & Dr. Shah - Oprah Mag

It’s been two years since the pandemic and the murder of George Floyd made it impossible for many Americans to ignore the hold racism has on American institutions. The Covid-19 crisis unearthed deep inequities in the healthcare system—but widespread change has yet to come. To shine a light on these continuing issues, Oprah executive produced an eye-opening new documentary, The Color of Care.

The film, which premieres May 1 on the Smithsonian Channel, focuses on the stories of families who lost loved ones during the pandemic, including one that led Oprah to the project: “I read a story about Gary Fowler, a Black man who died in his home because no hospital would treat him despite his Covid-19 symptoms,” she says. “This film is my way of doing something, with the intention that the stories we share serve as both a warning and foster a deeper understanding of what changes need to take place to better serve us all.”

Oprah called on Oscar-nominated and Emmy-winning director Yance Ford to amplify these stories. Ford previously directed the true-crime documentary Strong Island, which tells the story of his brother William’s killing at the hands of a white man who was acquitted on the claim of self-defense. Ford tapped medical experts including Neel Shah, MD, chief medical officer at Maven Clinic and an assistant professor of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology at Harvard Medical School, to unravel how structural racism in the healthcare system can negatively impact health outcomes—and for some, be a death sentence.

Director Yance Ford at the premiere screening of The Color of Care.

Larry French//Getty Images

Both Ford and Dr. Shah spoke to us about their motivations for participating in the documentary, what it was like on set, and what they hope people will take away from The Color of Care.

The film sheds light on how the healthcare system works—and how it doesn’t.

“When you see something that gives you the opportunity to expose the function of something as old as racial inequities in healthcare, it’s an opportunity to make a difference in our culture,” Ford says. He was excited to be part of a project that would uncover the systemic problems—but he also couldn’t say no to working on something with Ms. Winfrey herself. “Anyone who gets a call from Oprah Winfrey, who has been responsible for so much enlightening, meaningful, important content in our culture—that’s a day you’ll never forget."

Ford reached out to Dr. Shah just a few months into the pandemic. “At the time, I was a doctor on the front lines, but was also doing research into racial inequity in maternal health,” Dr. Shah says. While he was apprehensive about being on camera—and whether he was even the right expert having never firsthand experienced healthcare inequity—Ford convinced him.

Dr. Neel Shah gives medical commentary in The Color of Care.

Smithsonian Channel/Harpo Productions

“Dr. Shah is able to articulate a lot of things about medicine and the way the institution of medicine works in really accessible ways,” Ford says. This clear communication from many of the participants is what makes the film so impactful, according to Dr. Shah. “Part of its power is that it has an unflinching look at these families who were directly impacted, but it also has a number of people who occupy leadership positions in American medicine talking about what they were seeing in honest terms,” he says.

Progress means being willing to be uncomfortable.

For the families sharing their stories, empathy was the most important piece. “It’s always humbling when people are able to share their fond memories of a loved one they’ve lost because it brings that person back to life in a way that very few other things can,” Ford says.

“I want the next generation of doctors to be the end of health inequities.” —Yance Ford

On the other hand, getting to the bottom of injustice created distinctly difficult conversations, too. “The only way you get progress is by leaning into that kind of discomfort,” Dr. Shah says. “I’m a person of color, but I don’t have the complete sense of what it’s like to be one of the impacted families. Talking in frank terms about racism inside the institutions that I’m part of leading is uncomfortable, and I think that that’s what progress requires.” Still, Ford’s compassionate aura led to an open environment. “Somehow, despite all this injustice and these wrenching stories, he approached the entire thing with incredible empathy for everybody, which made me as comfortable as I could being frank and critical,” Dr. Shah says.

Real systemic change is possible.

Even amid such heavy subject matter, both Ford and Dr. Shah are optimistic. “I don’t think that people will leave the film demoralized,” says Dr. Shah. "I think the opposite. It lands on a rallying cry. The reason it works is because there’s such sharp moral clarity depicted.” Part of that clarity comes from acknowledging the collective instead of the individual. “When we think about institutions in our country, we tend to think about our individual interactions,” Ford explains. “But it’s not about finger-pointing or wanting to have villains or heroes. The doctors and other healthcare providers, they’re caught in the same system. If we can all together recognize and admit that the system exists and we’re functioning within it, we can all together try to figure out our way out of it.”

“The only way you get progress is by leaning into discomfort.” —Dr. Shah

Dr. Shah echoes a similar idea. “A bad system will beat a good person every time. When bad things happen, you think, Well, that was just not a good hospital. But this really shows a pattern that affects different people in communities across the country. The one [thing] they have in common is they’re people of color,” he says.

“I want the next generation of doctors to be the end of health inequities," says Ford. “There are all sorts of reasons for hope after watching this film. There are all sorts of reasons for action. As Oprah says, change is the only cure for this. It’s important to remember that.”

Watch The Color of Care on the Smithsonian Channel on May 1, 2022, at 8:00 PM EST/7:00 PM CST.

This content is imported from OpenWeb. You may be able to find the same content in another format, or you may be able to find more information, at their web site.

Adblock test (Why?)

Article From & Read More ( The Color of Care Documentary Interview - Yance Ford & Dr. Shah - Oprah Mag )
https://ift.tt/QNMeDCc
Entertainment

‘Bad Guys’ Leads Quiet Box Office Weekend Before ‘Dr. Strange 2’ Dominates The World - Deadline

After all the hallelujahs about the return of theatrical at CinemaCon this past week, the major studios skipped out on programming any new wide releases this weekend. All of this is resulting in a marketplace which is seeing an estimated $64M in total ticket sales, down 33% from last weekend. Ugh. In regards to when the majors will sit on the sidelines again this year, there’s June 3, and possibly Aug. 12 (Searchlight is holding the date for an untitled wide entry).

If it feels like a desert at the multiplex, get ready for the monsoon on Thursday night, with Disney/Marvel’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, which is expected to rain down anywhere from $150M-$200M. Tracking sees it at a minimum of $150M; it wouldn’t be shocking if the pic gets to $200M, but Disney doesn’t want to get over its skis. Already, Doctor Strange 2 is seeing the best presales of the year, higher than The Batman, with $42M. This is all the start of a very rich summer, and after the exuberant response of Top Gun: Maverick out of CinemaCon, Tom Cruise has to be in store for the biggest global and domestic opening of his career, overtaking War of the Worlds ($64.8M, his highest domestic) and The Mummy ($172.3M, the 3x Oscar nominee’s biggest worldwide debut).

As such, this weekend will see Universal/DreamWorks Animation’s The Bad Guys at No. 1 again in weekend 2, with $14.4M, -40%, for a ten-day total by tomorrow of $42.7M. With nothing else on the marquee, it wouldn’t be surprising after matinees today if this goes higher. And all the other family fare is holding on to their top spots, i.e. Paramount’s Sonic the Hedgehog 2 is eyeing a fourth weekend of $9.7M in 2nd, -38%, for a running total of $159.3M, and Warner Bros.’ Fantastic Beasts: The Secrets of Dumbledore, with an estimated $7.5M in weekend 3 in 3rd, -46%, with a running cume of $78.8M by EOD Sunday.

Continuing to show proof that there’s an appetite for original fare at the box office is the amazing hold by A24’s Everything Everywhere All at Once, which is seeing $5.3M in weekend 6, dipping a great 2%, for a running total of $35.2M. This AGBO production is easily headed to $40M+. Forget that, some say $50M, which could mean it possibly topples A24’s highest-grossing movie of all-time, Uncut Gems ($50M).

Open Road is zigging to the major studio’s zagging, putting out their wide entry of Liam Neeson’s action movie, Memory, from director Martin Campbell, which is eyeing $3.1M at 2,555. While I’m sure exhibition is thankful for new product, what’s upsetting here is that in an improved marketplace, the feature is doing similar business to what other Neeson Open Road pics were doing when NYC and LA were closed during Covid, i.e. The Marksman ($3.1M) and Honest Thief ($4.1M).

Memory‘s top five markets yesterday, in a day that took $1.1M, were Los Angeles, New York, Phoenix, Dallas – Ft Worth and Chicago, with the day’s top-grossing cinema being the iPic Theater at Fulton Market in Manhattan.

Well, it’s all about home ancillaries and dudes for these Neeson cookie cutter action titles. Critics have had enough of the Neeson-with-a-gun pics at 29% Rotten, and those who decided to show up and sit in the dark and eat popcorn for close to two hours gave it 66% and a 49% on Comscore/Screen Engine’s PostTrak. Jeez.

Turnout was men at 51%, 84% over 25, and 46% over 45. Diversity demos were 49% Caucasian, 20% Hispanic and Latino, 20% Black, & 11% Asian/other. The most amount of money this pic is seeing came from West and Southeast. RelishMix says that social media awareness on Memory “are well under genre norms for action thrillers at 18.6M across Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok.”

Ahead of opening, the social media analytics corp said, “Chatter runs mixed, with expectations that are crystal clear — on any Neeson film with the assumption that someone will be kidnapped and that ‘we’ll bring them back’. The storyline and filmmaking components are incidental for these super fans, who also feel that Neeson would make for a perfect Batman with his voice, plus other chatter about his stockpile of burner phones. Super fans also put Neeson and Denzel Washington as ‘unironically the best action stars in recent time’. Fans are exposing the secret algorithm behind this film; Taken + Unknown=Memory… and, Memento ÷ Unknown = Memory.”

Focus Features’ Viking epic The Northman is seeing a second weekend that’s -51%, with $6M for a ten-day of $22.5M.

Also trying to fill the gap at the weekend is the Telugu language action drama Acharya, which is poised to earn an estimated $2M at 396 theaters in 117 markets. The pic did see some big numbers in NYC, Dallas, San Francisco, Atlanta, Houston, Seattle, Charlotte, and Baltimore. The Koratala Siva written and directed movie centers around a Naxalite-turned-social reformer who launches a fight against the Endowments Department over misappropriation of temple funds and donations.

Lionsgate’s Nic Cage satire Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent is looking at $3.6M in weekend 2, -49%, a 10-day of $13.1M for what appears to be a $20M final domestic gross when all is said and done.

Some thoughts coming away from this at CinemaCon: Despite the movie’s upsetting opening following its vibrant world premiere at SXSW, rival distributors who’ve handled similar product believe this movie stands to overindex in home entertainment, which is Cage’s bread and butter.

Even though Cage is arguably on an upswing, career-wise, post his critically acclaimed Pig, he has been in a funk at the box office for quite some time; his last live-action tentpole being 2007’s National Treasure: Book of Secrets ($220M domestic, $459M WW). Hence, the limited reach for this great, critically acclaimed (87% certified fresh) comedy, which stokes audiences who finally turn out for it. If Neeson did a self-parody comedy, we’d expect similar results.

Still, thumbs up to Lionsgate for putting this movie out theatrically, and not jettisoning it to PVOD or streaming. Why’s that? Odds are history will be on Unbearable Weight‘s side, and that it will turn into a cult classic in the same breath as This Is Spinal Tap ($4.7M domestic by 1984 standards) and The Big Lebowski ($18.2M in 1998 bucks). If this pic was a straight-to-home release, it wouldn’t have that resonance.

1.) The Bad Guys (Uni) 4,042 (+34) Theaters, Fri $3.7M (-54%), 3-day $14.4M (-40%)/Total $42.7M/Wk 2

2.) Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Par) 3,801 (-8) theaters, Fri $2.5M (-37%), 3-day $9.7M (-38%)/Total $159.3M/Wk 4

3.) Fantastic Beasts…Dumbledore(WB), 3,962 (-283) theaters, Fri $2.1M (-47%) 3-day $7.5M (-46%)/Total $78.8M/Wk 3

4.) The Northman (Foc) 3,234 (+50) theaters, Fri $1.8M (-64%), 3-day $6M (-51%)/Total $22.4M/Wk 2

5.) Everything Everywhere All at Once (A24) 2,213 (+80) theaters, Fri $1.56M (+1%)/3-day $5.3M (-2%)/Total $35.2M/Wk 6

6.) Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent (LG) 3,036 theaters, Fri $1.1M (-62%), 3-day $3.6M (-49%)/Total $13.1M/Wk 2

7.) The Lost City (Par) 2,595 (-233) theaters Fri. $1M (-21%), 3-day $3.5M (-19%)/Total $90.4M/ Wk 6

8.) Memory (Open Road) 2,555 theaters, Fri $1.1M, 3-day $3.1M/Wk 1

9.) Acharya (Prime Media) 396 theaters, Fri $832K, 3-day $2M/Wk 1

10.) Father Stu (Sony) 2,476 (-229) theaters, Fri $615K (-40%), 3-day $1.98M (-40%), Total $17.3M/Wk 3

Adblock test (Why?)

Article From & Read More ( ‘Bad Guys’ Leads Quiet Box Office Weekend Before ‘Dr. Strange 2’ Dominates The World - Deadline )
https://ift.tt/h61Ga4F
Entertainment

Gilded Glamour at the Met Gala: Costume ideas for celebrities going for historical accuracy. - Slate

“Gilded Glamour,” the dress code of the 2022 Met Gala, scheduled to take place on Monday, throws wide the doors of sartorial imagination. The reference is rather self-reflective, for one of the biggest and most exclusive fundraisers in the United States. The Gilded Age, the last thirty years or so of the nineteenth century, was characterized in the U.S. by the rise of great industrial and financial wealth for some, and increasing poverty for others. Everyday fashion for the elite was marked by excess. Electric and steam-powered looms enabled new textile varieties, synthetic dyes expanded popular color palates, and hats rose to ridiculous heights.

Kate Feering Strong photographed by Jose Maria Mora, 1883.  Public Domain/Ephemeral New York.

Although I suspect the stars of 2022 may interpret the dress code simply, as an invitation to get very, very fancy, their historical analogs—the rich people who attended balls and soirées in the late nineteenth century—dressed not just luxuriously, but oddly, with ample use of personality and humor. Think dead animals, precise copying of historical references, and the occasional flash of techno-wizardry. In case anyone with a ticket for Monday’s ball is still looking for inspiration, here are a few choice costume suggestions from balls of the era, plus one counterexample: a costume to avoid.

Miss Kate Feering Strong wore this heavily-taxidermied number to the premier New York City social event of the 1880s, Willie and Alva Vanderbilt’s 5^th Avenue fancy-dress ball, which doubled as a housewarming. (The railroad-baron Russells’ party in the season finale of HBO’s The Gilded Age is based on the Vanderbilt Ball—but, disappointingly, features zero cat heads.)

In 1883, Strong’s likeness was captured by the premier photographer of the elite, Jose Maria Mora, a dapper Cuban refugee hired to record the visual details of the party. The New York Times report on the party confirms that Strong’s headdress was indeed fashioned from a “stiffened white cat’s skin,” with a tail pendant trailing behind. The blue ribbon tied around Strong’s neck like a collar has printed on it, possibly in diamonds, “PUSS”—Strong’s nickname and the inspiration for her ball apparel.

Actress Lillian Russell in a very feathery hat, 1898. Library of Congress.

Mora almost certainly did not neglect to capture the full-length view of Strong’s costume, but I know of no surviving photograph recording the innovation of the skirt. According to the Times, “The overskirt was made entirely of white cats’ tails sewed on a dark background.” Did you ever see a skirt sewn together out of old neckties, faddish among thrift-shop devotees and Sassy Magazine subscribers, in the mid-1990s? Like that, but with cat tails.

If contemporary Gala designers like Moschino or Theophilio balk at incorporating cat parts into a design, accessorizing with most any portion of a bird would also be appropriate for the “Gilded Glamour” theme. Milliners included entire bodies of birds on towering ecosystems of hats in Great Britain and the U.S. during this period, while other designers fashioned earrings from hummingbird heads and beaks. However, many of the species whose feathers were preferred by Gilded Age gals, such as the snowy egret or great heron, are now protected by the 1918 U.S. Migratory Bird Treaty Act, passed in response to these turn-of-the-century hat bird massacres.

While Miss Strong’s feline fancy-dress choice was difficult to outshine at the Vanderbilt Ball, the hostess’s sister-in-law managed. Alice Claypoole Vanderbilt commissioned haute couture designer Charles Frederick Worth to create a gown inspired by the new craze: electricity. Thomas Alva Edison had just patented his light bulb the year before. This very gilded gown (you can see it in the image at the top of this page, or in color at this link) consists of golden satin overlaid on blue velvet, accented with shimmering lightning bolts and starbursts stitched in metallic beads, thread, tassels, and diamonds. Diamonds also covered the elaborate headdress. A hidden battery allowed Alice to illuminate the ensemble with the flick of a switch, a feat barely short of magic in 1883.

You might assume that kitschy-costume aficionado Katy Perry would be out of the running for this resplendent option. She already wore a lit-chandelier costume to the 2019 Met Gala, with its “Camp: Notes on Fashion” dress code, referencing Susan Sontag’s 1964 essay. But actually, doubling down would only increase the historical authenticity, as Gilded Age elite often repeated their greatest wardrobe hits, including costumes.

Ann Brice as Velasquez’ Infanta Margarita, 1897.

The 2022 Met Gala theme is “In America: An Anthology of Fashion.” But the spelling of the dress code, with its included “u,” evokes British and European influences. At “fancy-dress balls,” a common trope was to mimic apparel captured in renowned portraits of aristocrats of the past. For the 1897 Bradley-Martin Ball, considered “the last gasp” of the Gilded Age, the hosts claimed the event’s very short notice would stimulate the local economy, suffering amidst repeated economic upheavals blamed on volatile stock markets and irresponsible railroad investments. Despite the mere two weeks’ lead time, socialite Kate Brice managed to telegraph directives to the much-favored designer Charles Frederick Worth. Worth hurriedly copied the outfit worn by Philip IV’s daughter, the Infanta Margarita, in a 1656 painting by Diego Velasquez.

Note: when dressing from a painting, heed the warning in the 1938 gothic novel Rebecca, and be sure not to accidentally copy a costume once worn by your rich husband’s murdered first wife. How embarrassing!

James L. Breese as the Duc de Guise at the Bradley Martin Ball, 1897.  Public domain/Wikimedia Commons. 

Men of leisure costumed up quite as much as did the ladies. James L. Breese arrived at the Bradley-Martin Ball as a 17^th-century duke, in white corded silk embroidered with pearls and silver lace and a delicate French-heeled shoe. His sword, encased in a silk scabbard, was literally gilded. Breese boasted of his outfit’s strict authenticity, but reportage on male finery was more ambivalent by the end of the century, complimenting the staid uniforms of policemen acting as security at the ball over satin, pastel-colored brocade like Breese’s. The Times asserted that the costumed men were “more disguised than the women” and poked fun at the prominent men wearing tights and jewels: “In contrast with the men who were there to guard them, these interesting and powerful gentlemen looked rather small.” Ideas of power and manhood were changing at the turn of the century. In the 1890s, the virtues accorded to manliness—restraint and studied refinement—made way for the cultural attributes of masculinity, a new term indicating strength, virility, and a disdain for feminine pursuits, including costuming. The Gilded Age was a rare opportunity for post-French-Revolution men to preen like peacocks, but that window closed quickly.

If by 1897, fewer Louis XVIs showed up to dance with the inevitable Marie Antoinettes, the men who did come to fancy-dress balls still took masquerade to heart. Law clerk Richard Welling offers an excellent example of what not to wear today, also from the Bradley-Martin Ball. Welling, on the periphery of the upper echelon, confessed to his diary that anticipation of the event made his “[b]owels shake about.” But he persisted, convincing a Natural History Museum curator and Harvard professor to provide “an authoritative drawing” of the seventeenth-century Algonquin Chief Miantonomah for Welling’s mimicry.

Law clerk Richard Welling as Algonquin Chief Miantonomah, 1897, photo by Benjamin Falk.  Public domain.

For two weeks, Welling was preoccupied with details—an “Indian wig,” furs and robes, necklaces, and buckskin shirt, all fretted over quite earnestly, with admissions that he did “debate with myself whether I can carry it out.” Like pretty much all examples of cultural appropriation, Welling’s outfit underscored the Gilded Age delight in white conquest over minority groups. He featured a necklace comprised of deer teeth, bear claws, shells and beads, all objects purportedly exchanged between the chief and Welling’s own ancestor, who stole land from the Algonquins in Rhode Island. Dear celebs: Unless you are a member of the Algonquin tribe yourself, this is certainly one Gilded Age costume to strike off the list.

Of course, most Gilded Age Americans were not rich, and it wasn’t only the rich who loved a masquerade. New York City’s French Ball took place at auditoriums such as the Metropolitan Opera House and Madison Square Garden from 1866 to 1901, and was just one of the premier public events held around Mardi Gras season, as aspects of New Orleans’ great event caught on in other cities. According to historian Timothy Gilfoyle, the French Ball attracted thousands of ticketed participants, from “Wall Street businessmen to prostitutes and gay drag queens.” The Times called the event “vice’s carnival.” Popular costumes here tended to reveal more of their wearers than those on 5^th Avenue, including (per scandalized reports) a fairy whose costume was “principally a set of wings” and one ballerina with nothing on under her tutu. Reports of casual French Ball activities included tabletop can-can dancing.

TL:DR: Here are my suggestions for Met Gala goers who want to do something new, and historically accurate, this year: Do wear full tights, regardless of gender, unless you wish to let your balletic undercarriage breathe. Dress from famous portraits, but be certain not to imitate your date’s ex by mistake. Evoke recent technology, available only to the very rich (perhaps a rendition of Jeff Bezos’ ultra-phallic rocket?). Be sure any dead animal parts are properly treated, to avoid embarrassing odors, and that they do not belong to any protected species. When in doubt, consult Ardern Holt’s popular Fancy Dresses Described; or, what to wear to fancy-dress balls, updated regularly between 1879 and 1896 (after which point, most of high society snubbed the fancy-dress ball). And finally, even though the Gilded Age crowd fully embraced cultural appropriation, just don’t. There are limits in the pursuit of historical authenticity.

Adblock test (Why?)

Article From & Read More ( Gilded Glamour at the Met Gala: Costume ideas for celebrities going for historical accuracy. - Slate )
https://ift.tt/EfYIDoU
Entertainment

Andy Cohen Welcomes Second Child: 'I'm So Happy' - HuffPost

Andy Cohen is a father again.

The TV personality and producer announced the birth of his second child, a girl named Lucy Eve Cohen, on Friday.

Advertisement

“I’m so happy,” the “Watch What Happens Live!” host wrote on Instagram alongside a photograph of them together.

Lucy Eve weighed 8 pounds, 13 ounces, and arrived via surrogate.

Andy Cohen, right, announced the birth of his daughter, Lucy Eve, who will be a little sister to his son, Benjamin Allen, left.

via Associated Press

Cohen, 53, welcomed his first child, Benjamin Allen Cohen, also via surrogate in 2019. Benjamin Allen “can’t wait to meet” Lucy Eve, Cohen wrote.

“Thank you to my rock star surrogate (ALL surrogates are rockstars, by the way) and everyone who helped make this miracle happen,” he added.

Advertisement

Friends were thrilled with the news.

“Amazing! Congratulations! Welcome Lucy!!!!” CNN’s Anderson Cooper wrote in the comments. Actor Sarah Jessica Parker said “we are madly in love with you already.”

Related...

andy cohen

Andy Cohen Blasts 'Bully' Texas Gov. Greg Abbott Over Anti-Transgender Youth Order

Andy Cohen's Walk Of Fame Ceremony Coincides With Son's Third Birthday

Andy Cohen’s Coming Out Story

Adblock test (Why?)

Article From & Read More ( Andy Cohen Welcomes Second Child: 'I'm So Happy' - HuffPost )
https://ift.tt/V1yiRDu
Entertainment

Emotional Anna Wintour tears up at Andre Leon Talley's funeral - Page Six

Anna Wintour was brought to tears when she spoke at her friend and former colleague Andre Leon Talley’s funeral at Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem on Friday.

“She talked about their friendship,” a source who attended the service told Page Six. “But what took her over was when she told the story about Andre crossing the Atlantic to be with her when her mother died.” The source told us, “Her words were: ‘He crossed the Atlantic to be with me when my mother died,’ and that’s when she welled up.”

“It was very intentional as if she wanted everyone to see her emotions,” the source said –adding that Wintour made sure to look at attendees as she read. The Vogue icon did not wear her signature shades when she spoke, we hear.

Another source, who described the memorial as a “traditional Black homegoing celebration,” said Wintour “didn’t break down, but she had to pause after she started talking about her mother.”

Anna Wintour is seen resting her head with another guest at André Leon Talley’s Celebration of Life.

Getty Images for the Estate of A

Talley died in January at the age of 73.

Cindy Ord

The friends and colleagues were snapped together above in 1999.

Getty Images

“It was clear she was having a hard time getting through it. I don’t think she was expecting to cry, but she definitely got emotional. Her speech was definitely the most heartfelt,” they said.

Designer Marc Jacobs and supermodel Naomi Campbell also “cried a little” during their speeches, we’re told.

But Talley’s funeral wasn’t all tears, and it felt like a New York Fashion Week reunion. Sources told us Diane von Furstenberg organized the service and “it was literally like a fashion show,” the second source said.

Naomi Campbell arrives at André Leon Talley’s funeral.

Matthew McDermott

“There were four publicists at the door with iPads checking names. There were photographers, a big white vintage Rolls Royce that Naomi arrived and left in, and all of the fashion people were there,” they said.

Campbell “looked like a goddess” in a big white fur and hat, and said Talley would’ve wanted that during her speech, we’re told. The supermodel said of her late friend, “When we felt we couldn’t get through a door that was closed to us, he pushed it open for me and got me to do things I didn’t think I could.”

We hear that DVF said of Talley: “You had more class and elegance than anyone I’ve ever met. We laughed and sometimes fought, as you weren’t always easy,” which got laughs from his friends in the crowd.

Carolina Herrera said in remembrance, “You were the fashion historian of our time.”

“What took her over was when she told the story about Andre crossing the Atlantic to be with her when her mother died,” a source at the ceremony told Page Six.

Ron Galella Collection via Getty

Jacobs told the gathering, “This past month I’ve been rereading all of his wonderful letters and notes that I treasure… Letters he wrote on his oversized stationary and bold handwriting. When emails first arrived, his notes were filled with capitals and colorful emojis, he used all the symbols. He was my high priest of fashion.”

Singer Valerie Simpson spoke about how Talley loved to party at her Upper Westside restaurant, Sugar Bar, where he’d play the tambourine. She then played the piano and sang “Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing.”

Talley’s pastor, Rev. Calvin Butts, delivered the eulogy, and he had the congregation — including Harlem’s Bevy Smith — “feeling the spirit in church.”

“People were standing up and clapping and singing along to the gospel choir. It was a very Black baptist church experience,” the second source said.

Grace Coddington, Sandra Bernhard, Bethann Hardison, Kate Moss, Gayle King, Fashion Bomb editor Claire Sulmers, Kimora Lee Simmons, Dario Calmese and Native Son founder Emil Wilbekin were a few of the other mourners who packed the church.

A portrait of Talley at the late fashion icon’s longtime house of worship, The Abyssinian Baptist Church in Harlem.

Matthew McDermott

Talley died Jan. 18 at the age of 73. He joined Vogue in 1983 as fashion news director and eventually became the magazine’s first Black creative director and, later its editor-at-large.

“Amidst a lifetime of memories of Andre, I will never forget his kindness, his chivalry, and his friendship,” Wintour wrote in Vogue.

Adblock test (Why?)

Article From & Read More ( Emotional Anna Wintour tears up at Andre Leon Talley's funeral - Page Six )
https://ift.tt/xkmjH1L
Entertainment

Judge drops Blac Chyna's defamation claim against Kim Kardashian - Insider

• A judge dropped Blac Chyna's defamation claim against Kim Kardashian on Friday.
• A Los Angeles jury is still deliberating several other claims stemming from the two-week trial.
• Chyna's attorney and the judge engaged in a heated exchange early Friday.

A judge dropped Blac Chyna's defamation claim against Kim Kardashian on Friday morning following a heated exchange with Chyna's attorney in court.

A Los Angeles jury is still deliberating several other claims in the two-week trial that saw testimony from several members of the famous family and provided scores of sensational courtroom moments.

Chyna, whose legal name is Angela White, is seeking $100 million in damages from Kris Jenner, Kim Kardashian, Khloe Kardashian, and Kylie Jenner, alleging that they unfairly trash-talked her to E! executives five years ago following her split with Rob Kardashian, leading to the cancellation of her "Keeping Up With The Kardashians" spinoff series. The Kardashian-Jenners deny these allegations. 

The defamation claims against Kris, Khloe, and Kylie, as well as interference accusations against all four women were still being deliberated by the jury as of publication.

The first day of jury deliberations kicked off with a tense exchange between Chyna's attorney Lynne Ciani and presiding Judge Gregory W. Alarcon over instructions read to the jury on Thursday. Ciani said she wasn't given the opportunity to argue the jury instructions prior to their presentation. Alarcon fervently rejected her claims.

"I don't want to be responsible for your trial tactics," Alarcon told Ciani as he stormed out of the room, declaring a recess.

The court reporter had to interrupt the argument multiple times asking for the two not to speak over each other.

"I did my best," she said after Alarcron had left the courtroom.

The jury instructions included several text messages and emails from the defendants which Chyna's team spent the trial arguing were defamatory. The final instructions, however, did not include any text messages from Kim, leading Kardashian attorney Michael Rhodes to request on Thursday that the defamation suit against her be dropped.

Alarcon ultimately issued a direct verdict for the claims against Kim, arguing in a decision obtained by Insider that Chyna's team failed to establish a defamatory statement made by Kim and provided "no basis" to demonstrate that Kim played a "responsible part" in the publication of any defamatory statement.

As the decision came down, Ciani and Rhodes found themselves in a terse discussion.

"You're the liar," Ciani could be heard telling Rhodes.

A jury decision in the case is likely to come Friday. 

Adblock test (Why?)

Article From & Read More ( Judge drops Blac Chyna's defamation claim against Kim Kardashian - Insider )
https://ift.tt/aQoeZAs
Entertainment

Is your love life written in the stars? These zodiac signs get the most dates, have the most sex. - USA TODAY

Marvel gives us a glimpse at Professor X in new Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness footage - The A.V. Club

A hand that definitely belongs to Professor X...right?!

Screenshot: Marvel Studios

After that whole thing with Marvel Studios (and Andrew Garfield) trying its best to hide that Spider-Man: No Way Home would feature the three Spider-Men basically recreating the pointing meme, Marvel is back to teasing major cameos without officially confirming them.

On Thursday, a 10-second trailer for Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness dropped, published by Marvel Studios Canada. The clip teases the inclusion of Peggy Carter as Captain Carter. And there’s also another glimpse at Professor X, whose cameo had already been teased in a previous trailer .We don’t get to see Patrick Stewart’s face; instead we see Professor X resting his hand on his wheelchair—and this time, it’s just like the one from X-Men: The Animated Series.

Though Marvel eventually removed the teaser, CoveredGeekly uploaded it so you can still watch it.

Marvel is so strict with spoilers that director Sam Raimi told Fandango “I couldn’t promise you that Patrick Stewart’s in the picture. That’s all that Marvel will let me say.”

But Stewart seems less worried about confirming that yeah, it was his voice in the previous trailer.

He told CBR, “Well, I had my phone turned off as it happened, so I didn’t hear anything. It wasn’t until the next morning when I woke up and looked at my phone and found that I had been bombarded with responses and that my PR people had sent me reactions that they had detailed and passed onto me.”

He added, “I actually didn’t recognize my own voice, it sounded different. Whether I had a cold or something at the time, I don’t know. But I was astonished, and all they saw was the back of my shoulder, and I think my earlobe, nothing else. There would have been so many connections made. But, uh, it pleased me.”

Adblock test (Why?)

Article From & Read More ( Marvel gives us a glimpse at Professor X in new Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness footage - The A.V. Club )
https://ift.tt/4ql58sZ
Entertainment

Pete Davidson supports Kim Kardashian at court during Blac Chyna trial - Page Six

Pete Davidson was spotted at court on Thursday supporting girlfriend Kim Kardashian during the ongoing Blac Chyna defamation trial against her and her family.

A source confirmed to Page Six the “Saturday Night Live” star was present at the courthouse.

The source said the couple kissed in the hallway before proceeding into a secure room together.

Rolling Stone reporter, Nancy Dillon, was first to report the news.

During Thursday’s proceedings, a judge denied Chyna’s request to retake the stand, saying that the former reality star had enough time during her 11-hour testimony to raise any issues or concerns.

Later, during the closing arguments, Chyna’s lawyer, Lynne Ciani, accused the famous family of “gaslighting” the jurors with their alleged details of a December 2016 fight between Kim’s brother Rob Kardashian and Chyna.

Chyna sued Kim, Kris Jenner, Khloé Kardashian and Kylie Jenner for over $100 million, claiming they used their power and influence to cancel her now-defunct TV series, “Rob & Chyna.”

Kim and Davidson were spotted kissing and embracing outside the court room.

Getty Images

Kim took the stand on Tuesday and was grilled by Ciani about text messages she sent to Bunim-Murray producers about taking a break from filming in the wake of Rob and Chyna’s fight.

“Chyna will not be on our show. And it’s actually putting my brother in bad position because he ends up crying all day saying the only reason she [Chyna] showed up was because she was filming,” Kim wrote.

When asked about the messages, she shot back, “I can’t control the content of what they film, but this is our show — why would we film with her?”

Chyna sued Kim, along with other family members, for over $100 million.

MediaPunch / BACKGRID

When pushed about refusing to work if Chyna was on the show, Kim, 41, said, “They could film what they want. … We don’t have the power, as you have been insinuating. I was just expressing that I will be taking a break from filming to assess how I’m feeling. I will not go into work in a toxic environment. I can only control what I can do, which is to take a break.”

Friday marks the end of the second week of testimonies, but it appears Thursday was the first time Davidson, 28, came to court.

The pair have been dating since October after Kim appeared on “SNL.”

Adblock test (Why?)

Article From & Read More ( Pete Davidson supports Kim Kardashian at court during Blac Chyna trial - Page Six )
https://ift.tt/uNASLWJ
Entertainment