News & Politics - Entertainment News #8 ~ Everything Has Beauty, But Not Everyone Sees It - Page 6

**sunnykerr** · 04-30-2014, 04:55 PM

I don't know very many people looking forward to this, so I think I'm gonna wind up seeing it like the last trilogy: with my brother.

**sunnykerr** · 05-05-2014, 04:53 PM

Quote:

'Broken' metal clamp involved in circus acrobat fall

Investigators are focused on a metal clamp as the potential cause of a collapsed circus apparatus which left two acrobats in critical condition.

Eight female acrobats plummeted up to 12m (40ft) when the scaffolding structure holding them fell in the US state of Rhode Island on Sunday.

The performers, from the US, Brazil, Bulgaria and Ukraine, were in the middle of a hair-hanging high-wire act.

The clamp was the only faulty equipment identified so far.

Federal safety investigators have not yet determined why it snapped, and have not officially labelled it the cause of the accident.

"We don't know if it was metal fatigue, if it wasn't properly positioned or something else," Providence Public Safety Commissioner Steven Pare told US media.

The steel clip - found in three pieces on the ground - was reportedly one of several pieces at the top of the apparatus which suspended performers in the air.

'Crashing down'

Acrobats Dayana Costa and Julissa Segrera have injuries said to include a pierced liver and neck fractures.

"The injuries fortunately don't appear to be life-threatening," Nicole Feld, executive vice-president of Ringling Bros and Barnum and Bailey parent company Feld Entertainment, told a local television station.

"A lot of them were awake, talking, communicating with us."

According to the circus website, the eight performers, known as "hairialists", feature in a "larger-than-life act... spinning, hanging from hoops, and rolling down wrapped silks all while being suspended 35ft in the air by their hair alone".

The collapse occurred during an act in which the eight performers hanged from their hair "like a human chandelier", according to the circus.

"It just went crashing down... Everyone was freaking out. We heard this huge clatter and then we just heard the girls scream," witness Sydney Bragg, 14, told the Associated Press news agency.

Further performances were cancelled on Sunday and Monday as the circus worked with federal and local officials.

"We want to make sure all of our performers are safe," Stephen Payne, a spokesman for Feld Entertainment, said.

"An accident like this is unprecedented involving this number of performers," he added.

Broken necks might not be "life-threatening," but they're certainly threatening to one's quality of life.

I understand the corporate lawyers want to ensure that lawsuits are nipped in the bud as much as possible.

But, come on now. These are pretty severe injuries.

Barstool Prophet · 05-05-2014, 11:16 PM

I wonder if this guy can move his arms and legs?

**sunnykerr** · 05-06-2014, 07:28 PM

Which guy?

Barstool Prophet · 05-09-2014, 12:56 AM

The one with a neck fracture.

**sunnykerr** · 05-10-2014, 10:16 AM

Ah, so sorry. The acrobats who fell here are all women, so I think my brain broke a little and wouldn't allow me to understand what you were saying.

And I don't know if they can move their arms and legs.

In other news, Chris Brown will stay in jail an extra 131 days.

Good.

**sunnykerr** · 05-12-2014, 07:42 PM

Quote:

Austria wins Eurovision Song Contest

Austrian drag act Conchita Wurst has been crowned the winner of the 59th annual Eurovision Song Contest held in Denmark's capital, Copenhagen.

The singer, whose real name is Tom Neuwirth, won with the song Rise Like a Phoenix, collecting 290 points.

The Netherlands finished second with 238 points, with Sweden in third place with 218 points.

The UK's Molly Smitten-Downes came 17th, with 40 points for her song Children of the Universe.

It is the first time Austria has won the contest since 1966, and only the second time the country has competed in the final in the past 10 years as it either did not participate or qualify.

Wurst had been the second favourite to win behind Sweden going in to the competition, with many predicting the act could be too divisive among voters.

However she was the clear winner, with her victory announced after 34 of the 37 countries had submitted their scores.

Collecting her trophy on stage the singer said: "This night is dedicated to everyone who believes in a future of peace and freedom. You know who you are - we are unity and we are unstoppable."

Speaking backstage later, Wurst said she felt Europe had taken a stand by voting her the winner.

"I dream of a world where we don't have to talk about unnecessary things like sexuality, who you love. I felt like tonight Europe showed that we are a community of respect and tolerance," she said.

Smitten-Downes, who closed the performances, had been tipped to score highly with bookmakers placing her in the top five.

She received points from only nine countries: San Marino, Denmark, Malta, Iceland, Norway, Ireland, Spain, Belgium and Georgia.

Her result was still better than the UK's entry last year, when Bonnie Tyler finished 19th on the final scoreboard with 23 points.

The evening's events were overshadowed by the current events in Ukraine, with Russia's entry - The Tolmachevy Sisters - receiving boos from the audience during the results when countries including Azerbaijan awarded them the highest number of points.

When Russia's delegate appeared on screen to announce its votes - seven points of which were for Ukraine - more booing could be heard. Ukraine gave four points to Russia in return.

Russia ended the night in seventh place with 89 points, behind Ukraine with 113.

The Tolmachevy Sisters received points from 14 countries, compared with last year's Russian entrant who received votes from 27 countries.

The contest featured the usual mix of pop tunes and ballads, accompanied by spectacular stage performances.

Ukraine kicked off the show with a man in a giant hamster wheel, while Greece included a trampolinist and Poland offered a number of busty performers who suggestively churned butter and washed laundry on stage.

In total 26 countries performed at the B&W Hallerne arena for an expected television audience of more than 120 million fans.

Overnight UK ratings indicated an average 8.8 million people tuned in to watch the contest, peaking at 10.6 million at 23:00 BST during the results. Some 10.1 million watched Smitten-Downes' performance at 21:55.

Figures released on Sunday showed Eurovision generated 5.4 million tweets on social media, with a peak Twitter activity of 47,136 tweets per minute when Wurst's victory was announced.

The final scorecard can be found on the Eurovision website.

I don't follow Eurovision. Like, at all.

But when a bearded drag queen wins? That catches my attention.

She's still way better looking than I am. How depressing is that?

**sunnykerr** · 05-14-2014, 06:18 PM

Quote:

Scarlett Johansson case opens against French author

A court case has opened in France against author Gregoire Delacourt over claims that one of his characters defames US actress Scarlett Johansson.

Ms Johansson claims La premiere chose qu'on regarde (The First Thing We Look At) makes "fraudulent use of her name, fame and image" for commercial gain.

In addition to damages, she has sought an injunction to stop the book from being translated or adapted for cinema.

Mr Delacourt and his publisher have dismissed the allegations as "crazy".

Their lawyer called the legal action "totally scandalous".

"This is a literary, not commercial, approach," said Anne Veil. "She has not been used as a product. Gregory Delacourt is not a paparazzo, he's a writer."
'Defamatory'

The US star sued Mr Delacourt and his publisher JC Lattes last June, after the author described the heroine of his novel as Ms Johansson's "doppelganger".

The actress has demanded 50,000 euros (£41,000) in damages, with her lawyer, Vincent Toledano, arguing that the bestselling book also contained "defamatory claims about her private life".

It features amorous relationships that "never existed", he said, adding: "It does what the tabloids do, it says anything."

Judges at the tribunal in Paris are expected to issue their ruling in early July.

The work, which was published in March 2013, is centred on model Jeanine Foucamprez who bears a striking resemblance to Ms Johansson.

The first part of the novel is told through the eyes of a garage mechanic convinced that the famous film star has turned up on his doorstep.

But that illusion is quickly shattered and "for the rest of the novel no-one can be any doubt that it is about Jeanine Foucamprez", according to Emmanuelle Allibert, a spokeswoman for JC Lattes.

"We have never known anything like it," she said.

"It is all the more surprising for the fact that the novel is not even about Scarlett Johansson. It is about a woman who is Scarlet Johansson's double. This writ seems crazy to us."

Mr Delacourt is considered one of France's most successful modern writers.

I'll be interested to find out what happens with this case, because if people can't reference real-life people in works on fiction...

I mean, it's obviously not impossible to avoid doing that.

At the same time, it seems like a random limit to impose.

**sunnykerr** · 05-17-2014, 10:53 AM

Quote:

Judge won't nix Michael Jackson hologram performance

LAS VEGAS - A federal judge in Las Vegas has denied a patent holder's request to halt a performance by a Michael Jackson hologram scheduled for this weekend's Billboard Music Awards.

Judge Kent Dawson issued a ruling Friday saying there wasn't enough evidence to show the hologram would violate the company's patents.

The planned hologram wasn't shown in court, but it wasn't clear until the hearing whether rumours of its use during Sunday's show were true.

Lawyers for Michael Jackson's estate and show producers argued their technology is different than the kind produced by plaintiffs Hologram USA and Musion Das Hologram Ltd.

The plaintiffs' product digitally resurrected rapper Tupac Shakur in 2012 at the Coachella music festival. They argued theirs is the only known technology that can create such spectacles.

It's funny.

When they do something like this with Elvis or Frank Sinatra, I don't have much of a problem.

With Michael Jackson, though? All I can think of it "how creepy."

I think it's probably to do with the distance afforded by time, you know?

Elvis and Sinatra have been dead quite a long time now.

Barstool Prophet · 05-18-2014, 10:14 AM

Yeah I never really liked the issues surrounding the man. The accusations of child abuse etc.. I wish they would just leave him out of things and find someone else. I agree not enough time has passed.

**sunnykerr** · 05-18-2014, 10:49 AM

Yeah. the legal stuff surround Michael Jackson is not something I'm likely to forget.

Mostly, though, I'm really ready for him to be left alone, you know?

The man's dead.

Let's all leave him be.

Barstool Prophet · 05-18-2014, 11:00 AM

Yeah. I am like that. let him rest in peace.

**sunnykerr** · 05-19-2014, 05:24 PM

Quote:

US supreme court revives Raging Bull copyright lawsuit against MGM

Daughter of deceased screenwriter given second chance by court to fight movie studio for allegedly infringing copyright

The US supreme court on Monday gave the daughter of a deceased screenwriter a second chance to fight movie studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc for allegedly infringing on the copyright of an early screenplay for what became the iconic boxing movie Raging Bull.

The court held on a 6-3 vote that Paula Petrella, daughter of Frank Petrella, could pursue a second round of litigation against MGM over the copyright of a 1963 screenplay upon which she says the movie was based.

The 1980 movie, starring Robert DeNiro and directed by Martin Scorsese, told the story of champion boxer Jake LaMotta, nicknamed Raging Bull. The movie won two Academy Awards in 1981, including the best actor award for DeNiro.

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, a subsidiary of Twenty-First Century Fox Inc, is also a defendant in the case because it has the rights to distribute MGM movies on DVD.

The legal question was whether MGM can argue in its defense that Petrella, who sued in 2009, waited too long to assert her claim. Monday's ruling falls short of a knockout as it was only considering a preliminary issue. A lower court will hear the case on the merits.

Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg wrote on behalf of the court that the Copyright Act's bar on lawsuits more than three years after a claim arises did not bar the lawsuit because Petrella was alleging ongoing infringement. Petrella was only claiming damages for the three years prior to the filing of her lawsuit.

Ginsburg played down the impact of the lawsuit on MGM, noting that Petrella lawsuit "will put at risk only a fraction of the income MGM has earned."

Justice Stephen Breyer wrote a dissenting opinion, in which he was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Anthony Kennedy.

The Motion Picture Association of America and other industry groups backed MGM, saying a ruling for Petrella could discourage studios, publishers and distributors from reissuing old movies because unexpected copyright claims years after an original release could lead to years of litigation.

Groups representing authors, including Authors Guild Inc, filed court papers in support of Petrella.

Petrella, who inherited rights to the screenplay upon her father's death in 1981, sued when MGM was marketing the movie on DVD, including a new Blu-ray edition. MGM says it spent almost $8.5m on the re-release.

A federal district court judge in the Central District of California and the San Francisco-based ninth US circuit court of appeals both ruled in favor of MGM.

The case is Petrella v MGM, US supreme court, No 12-1315.

I'm not familiar with the case.

If there was copyright infringement... why has it taken her father's death to be revealed?

I don't understand.

**sunnykerr** · 05-22-2014, 06:12 PM

Quote:

New anti-gay remarks from 'Duck Dynasty' star emerge in video

NEW YORK - A&E has declined to comment on a new video of "Duck Dynasty" star Phil Robertson reviving past anti-gay remarks.

His comments are included in a sermon delivered at his church in West Monroe, Louisiana, on Easter Sunday. Robertson includes homosexuals with other groups such as thieves and adulterers as hell-bound sinners.

Robertson is the bearded patriarch of a clan that manufactures duck calls and became reality-TV stars. In December he set off a firestorm after GQ magazine quoted him linking homosexual behaviour to bestiality. He also made racist statements.

A&E suspended him for nine days. Robertson issued an apology.

The video was posted Thursday by RadarOnline. It was posted to YouTube by the Whites Ferry Road Church on April 21.

"Duck Dynasty" is scheduled to begin its sixth season on June 11.

Hardly surprising, I think.

It's not like anyone believed his apology was sincere or that he had changed his mind about his beliefs, and his belief in his right to air out those hateful beliefs.

As long as the show is one of A&E's most watched, I doubt there will ever be consequences for this man.

I happen to believe God is not a homophobe (not that anyone needs to believe that in order to not be a homophobe), so I do think he's in for a heck of surprise when he crosses over.

**sunnykerr** · 05-27-2014, 04:27 PM

Quote:

David Schwimmer helps solve New York knife crime case

The former Friends star provided security camera footage taken outside his apartment that helped identify the suspect in a case involving a transvestite prostitute and a knife-wielding robber

The actor David Schwimmer has helped New York police in their arrest of a man who allegedly attempted to rob and knife one of his neighbours.

Robert Rainey was charged with assault, criminal possession of a weapon and robbery, after he allegedly snuck into the man's apartment to steal a laptop. The neighbour was reportedly engaged with a transvestite prostitute he'd booked, but confronted the man on hearing him enter the apartment. The prostitute, who may have been an accomplice, used pepper spray on the client before running off; the man, defending himself with a knife, ended up having it turned on him during a fracas with the robber that spilled out into the street.

Schwimmer's security camera caught the end of the fight as it went outside, and assisted police in identifying the assailant. The actor handed over the tape, which may now be used in court.

The Friends actor was apparently an unpopular neighbour after years of construction work on his apartment, but one tenant told the New York Post: "He has turned out to be a decent neighbour, and I am glad to hear he helped the cops with that stabbing."

As well as playing Ross in 10 seasons of Friends, Schwimmer has recently voiced the giraffe Melman in the Madagascar animated movies, and will soon return to TV in Irreversible, a sitcom where he plays a fitfully successful writer with an eccentric young family. He has also turned his hand to directing, helming Run Fatboy Run with Simon Pegg and six episodes of Little Britain's US series, as well as theatre projects like Sabrina Mahfouz's monologue Dry Ice at London's Bush Theatre, and off-Broadway production Fault Lines.

In many ways, he just did what anyone else in his position would have/should have done.

But I've lived in a big city long enough that I'm still impressed when people do a good turn to one another (which is unfair, because big cities are also full of very kind, civic-minded people).

Anyway, kudos to him.


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