Entertainment category, Page 56
At the crossroads of news and opinion, ‘Morning Joe’ hosts grapple with aftermath of Trump meeting
One of the striking things about how furiously many people reacted to the news last week that MSNBC “Morning Joe” hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski met with President-Elect Donald Trump was how quaint their defenders sounded. “It is insane for critics to NOT think all of us in the...
Pentatonix kicks off holiday season with sparkle and joy at PPG Paints Arena
We will be inundated with holiday music for the next month. For some, the prospect may elicit groans — for others, there’s no more wonderful time of the year. Most of the music on the radio in the coming weeks will be older. In many ways, the nostalgic nature of...
‘Wicked’ and ‘Gladiator’ make gravity-defying theater debuts
NEW YORK — With a combined $270 million in worldwide ticket sales, “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” breathed fresh life into a box office that has struggled lately, leading to one of the busiest moviegoing weekends of the year. Jon M. Chu’s lavish big-budget musical “Wicked,” starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia...
Chuck Woolery, smooth-talking game show host of ‘Love Connection’ and ‘Scrabble,’ dies at 83
NEW YORK — Chuck Woolery, the affable, smooth-talking game show host of “Wheel of Fortune,” “Love Connection” and “Scrabble” who later became a right-wing podcaster, skewering liberals and accusing the government of lying about covid-19, has died. He was 83. Mark Young, Woolery’s podcast co-host and friend, said in an...
After years of limbo in LA, 836-pound Bahia Emerald may return to Brazil
LOS ANGELES — For more than 15 years, one of the world’s most famous gemstones — the 180,000-carat Bahia Emerald — has been held in Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department custody, its ultimate fate uncertain amid more than a decade of discord, disagreement and courtroom wrangling. Now, a federal judge...
Pittsburgh’s Punchline celebrates 20th anniversary of ‘Action’ album with hometown showVideo
In a full-circle moment, Punchline will celebrate the 20th anniversary of their “Action” album with a show at the Roxian Theatre on next Saturday, less than a mile from the band’s McKees Rocks practice space where the album was written. The veteran Pittsburgh pop-punk band’s show will feature the full...
Christmas TV movies are in their Taylor Swift era, with two Swift-inspired films airing this year
Two new Christmas TV movies have a Taylor Swift connection that her fans would have no problem decoding. “Christmas in the Spotlight” debuts Saturday on Lifetime. It stars Jessica Lord as the world’s biggest pop star and Laith Wallschleger as a pro football player, who meet and fall in love...
U.S. customs officers seize 3,000 counterfeit Gibson guitarsVideo
U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials on Saturday announced the largest seizure ever of counterfeit Gibson electric guitars. Working with U.S. Homeland Security and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, agents recently seized more than 3,000 counterfeit guitars at the Port of Los Angeles, the nation’s largest seaport complex. The...
Kendrick Lamar surprises with new album ‘GNX’
LOS ANGELES — Kendrick Lamar gave music listeners an early holiday present Friday with the surprise drop of a new album. The Grammy winner’s 12-track “GNX” is his first release since 2022’s “Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers” and his sixth studio album overall. It also comes just months after...
Posthumous Mac Miller album to be released in January
Pittsburgh native rapper Mac Miller will have official new music out in the New Year — more than six years after his tragic death. Miller’s estate revealed Wednesday that Miller’s project “Balloonerism” will be released Jan. 17. “Many of Malcolm’s fans are aware of ‘Balloonerism,’ a full-length album that Malcolm...
DirecTV calls off acquisition of rival Dish, possibly ending a yearslong pursuit
DirecTV is calling off its planned acquisition of rival Dish after the offer was rejected by bond holders at that company. The deal was reliant on Dish bond holders agreeing to trade in the debt they held for debt in the new company, a swap that would have cost them...
TV Talk: Netflix delivers Christmas Day Steelers game; new Tamburitzans special on WQED-TVVideo
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers local viewing tips for the holiday season. As the number of locally produced holiday specials continues to dwindle, Netflix enters the fray to gift Steelers fans nationwide by streaming the Steelers game (against the Chiefs) from Acrisure Stadium at 1 p.m. on...
Jay Leno visited Hempfield restaurant after fall
The show must go on. And, so too, must lunch. Celebrity talk show host Jay Leno reportedly visited Hempfield’s The Boulevard restaurant after injuring himself in a fall last week. The Boulevard owner Bobbi Lynn Frye in an email told TribLive Leno had lunch at the restaurant after his fall...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Nov. 22-24
This Saturday is Light Up Night, and just a few days later we’ll officially usher in the holiday season with Thanksgiving. It’s time to embrace the cheer — or not — with festivities around Pittsburgh this weekend. Here are five ideas for things to do. Phipps Holiday Magic Embark on...
Opus 2 Orchestra marks 70th anniversary with music from its founder
Next month, Evan Reichenfeld will continue a musical tradition that began in the late 1930s, when his great-grandfather Eugene emigrated to the United States from his native Hungary. Reichenfeld, 28, a middle school music teacher in the Woodland Hills School District, took over a few years ago as conductor for...
TV Talk: ‘The Pitt’ to premiere in January on Max
Max announced its Pittsburgh-set, Noah Wyle-starring medical drama “The Pitt” will premiere on the streaming service in January. That’s a little bit of a surprise given that the 15-episode first season won’t wrap production until February, suggesting, perhaps, that the first season will debut in two batches of episodes. Or,...
Jussie Smollett’s conviction in 2019 attack on himself is overturned
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The Illinois Supreme Court on Thursday overturned actor Jussie Smollett’s conviction on charges that he staged a racist and homophobic attack against himself in downtown Chicago in 2019 and lied to police. Smollett’s appeal argued that a special prosecutor should not have been allowed to intervene after...
Matteo Bocelli discusses blazing his path in pop music, his Ed Sheeran song and a new single ahead of Pittsburgh showVideo
With a father like the famous Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, it’s only natural for Matteo Bocelli to hear the comparisons. Yet, the younger Bocelli said it’s important that he forges his own identity, and he’s doing so in the pop music world. “Well, definitely identity is something I’ve always worked...
Has a waltz written by composer Frederic Chopin been discovered in an NYC museum?Video
NEW YORK — The brooding waltz was carefully composed on a sheet of music roughly the size of an index card. The brief, moody number also bore an intriguing name, written at the top in cursive: “Chopin.” A previously unknown work of music penned by the European master Frederic Chopin...
TV Talk: ‘Pradeeps’ stars visit Penguins game; more ‘Kingstown;’ ‘Man on the Inside,’ ‘Cruel Intentions’ debut
It’s been about a month since “The Pradeeps of Pittsburgh” premiered on Amazon’s Prime Video, and this weekend two of the show’s stars will be in town for an appearance at Saturday’s Penguins game against Utah Hockey Club (7 p.m. PPG Paints Arena). Ashwin Sakthivel, who plays Vinod, the garbage...
Chris Stapleton wins 4 CMA Awards, but Morgan Wallen gets entertainer of the year
Chris Stapleton took home four Country Music Association Awards and hardly left the stage on Wednesday night, while an absent Morgan Wallen was shut out all evening until taking the night’s biggest prize, entertainer of the year. Stapleton’s wins included song of the year and single of the year for...
TV Talk: KDKA-TV’s Jon Delano retires
After 30 years as KDKA-TV’s political analyst and 23 years as the station’s full-time money and politics editor, Jon Delano will retire from the station Dec. 1, with his last day on-air next Monday. “I have always said that you should retire when you’re at the top of your game,...
Duct-taped banana sells for $6.2 million at art auction
NEW YORK — A piece of conceptual art consisting of a simple banana, duct-taped to a wall, sold for $6.2 million at an auction in New York on Wednesday, with the winning bid coming from a prominent cryptocurrency entrepreneur. “Comedian,” by Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan, was a phenomenon when it...
Jay Leno injured after fall down hillside in Westmoreland County
Celebrity talk show host Jay Leno reportedly fell while trying to walk to a Hempfield restaurant last week, badly bruising his face and eye. The former “Tonight Show” host told “Inside Edition” he was staying at a Hampton Inn about 30 miles outside of Pittsburgh and he fell while walking...
‘MJ The Musical’ is a groovy tribute to the King of Pop at the Benedum Center
Michael Jackson was an innovator, an icon, a musical prodigy, a multitalented superstar and a controversial figure in the world of pop culture. It was only a matter of time until a Broadway musical about his life hit the stage. After a delay due to the covid-19 pandemic, “MJ The...
