AP National Entertainment News

By RONALD BLUM Associated Press ST. LOUIS (AP) — Near the end of “This House,” a heart-wrenching opera given its world premiere last weekend, the matriarch Ida poignantly intones messages to her family on stage and to the audience. “History’s the only thing to survive,” soprano Adrienne Danrich sings before adding: “You may have left

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer NEW YORK (AP) — The magic created by the vocal blend of Holly Laessig and Jess Wolfe, collectively known as Lucius, has opened many doors for them in the music industry. Sometimes quite literally — like when they arrived at the home of Joni Mitchell, invited by Brandi Carlile

By JONATHAN LANDRUM Jr. AP Entertainment Writer INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — With a mic in hand, Bono belts out “Vertigo,” close enough to reach out and touch, as if you’re sharing the stage with him at the Beacon Theatre in New York. As he performs, the front row seat experience becomes deeply personal, with the

By HILLEL ITALIE AP National Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Former CIA director and Biden cabinet official William J. Burns is working on a book about his years leading the intelligence agency. Random House announced Tuesday that it would publish Burns’ “Diplomat Spy: A Memoir of Espionage in Revolutionary Times.” The release date is still

By ADITHI RAMAKRISHNAN AP Science Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Scientists have unlocked one of the solar system’s many secrets from an unexpected source: a planetarium show opening to the public on Monday. At the American Museum of Natural History last fall, experts were hard at work preparing “Encounters in the Milky Way,” a deep

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer Assigned to cover the Pentagon for the conservative outlet One America News Network, Gabrielle Cuccia didn’t pretend to be an unbiased reporter. She describes herself as “a MAGA girl” who is unapologetically defiant in her support of President Donald Trump. Yet days after publicly criticizing a Trump appointee, Defense

By JAMES POLLARD Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — MrBeast plans to turn the success of his Amazon Prime Video reality competition series into millions of dollars for charity. YouTube’s biggest creator is offering an exclusive weekend on the set of Beast Games Season 2 to the first 40 donors who make $100,000 gifts to

By JUAN A. LOZANO Associated Press HOUSTON (AP) — Jonathan Joss, a voice actor best known for his work on the animated television series “King of the Hill,” was fatally shot near his Texas home, authorities said Monday. Police were dispatched to a home in south San Antonio about 7 p.m. Sunday on a shooting

By ANDREW DALTON AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Comic and actor Marc Maron said Monday that he’s ending his popular and influential podcast “WTF with Marc Maron” after nearly 16 years. Maron said on a newly released episode that the last of the nearly 2,000 episodes he has hosted will be released later

By JOCELYN NOVECK AP National Writer Renée Victor, who voiced the no-nonsense, sandal-throwing Abuelita in Disney’s animated hit “Coco” and played the wisecracking Lupita on Showtime’s “Weeds,” has died. She was 86. Victor’s death was confirmed on Monday by a representative, Julie Smith, who said the actor had lymphoma for several years. She died Friday

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Pulp has returned with a new album, their first in 24 years. Who could’ve predicted that? Not even the band, it turns out. “It took us by surprise as well,” dynamic frontman Jarvis Cocker told The Associated Press. “Why not?” If there are casual Pulp

By MICHAEL R. SISAK and LARRY NEUMEISTER Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — A former personal assistant who accuses Sean “Diddy” Combs of rape testified Monday that she continued sending the hip-hop mogul loving messages for years after her job ended in 2017 because she was “brainwashed.” The woman, testifying under the pseudonym “Mia,” pushed

By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — When he was first asked to helm the Broadway hit musical “Death Becomes Her,” director and choreographer Christopher Gattelli loved it, but refused to work on the big, splashy opening number. It was just too delicious. “When they sent it to me, I was cooking

By GARY GERARD HAMILTON Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — When Old Dominion’s eighth group of the year victory broke the tie for consecutive wins at the Academy of Country Music Awards last month, it changed the record books — but not their perspective. “They’re certainly wonderful honors that we get, but that’s not in

By JULIA FRANKEL Associated Press JERUSALEM (AP) — Israeli soldiers on Monday barred journalists from entering villages in the West Bank on a planned tour organized by the directors of the Oscar-winning movie “No Other Land.” The directors of the film, which focuses on Israeli settler attacks on Palestinians in the Israeli-occupied territory, said they

By LINDSEY BAHR AP Film Writer “Lilo & Stich” and “Mission: Impossible—The Final Reckoning” dominated the box office charts again after fueling a record-breaking Memorial Day weekend. Theaters in the U.S. and Canada had several new films to offer this weekend as well, including Sony’s family friendly “Karate Kid: Legends” and the A24 horror movie

By TIM REYNOLDS AP Basketball Writer Ernie Johnson could barely get the words out. The run of “Inside the NBA” on TNT came to an end on Saturday night after nearly four decades as a fixture of the league. The show will move to ESPN and ABC next season — and keep Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal,

INGLEWOOD, Calif. (AP) — Netflix flexed its Hollywood star power with a live event where it unveiled details about its upcoming slate of streaming offerings, including Lady Gaga being cast as a teacher on “Wednesday,” and release dates for the final episodes of hits “Squid Game” and “Stranger Things.” The streaming giant assembled actors including

VIENNA (AP) — Strauss’ “Blue Danube” waltz has finally made it into space, nearly a half-century after missing a ride on NASA’s twin Voyager spacecraft. The European Space Agency’s big radio antenna in Spain beamed the waltz into the cosmos Saturday. Operators aimed the dish at Voyager 1, the world’s most distant spacecraft more than

LONDON (AP) — A familiar face to “Doctor Who” fans is rejoining the long-running British sci-fi series as Ncuti Gatwa exits the lead role after two seasons. In Saturday’s season finale, Gatwa’s Time Lord regenerated and fans got a glimpse of Billie Piper, who played the character Rose Tyler for 35 episodes between 2005 and

HYDERABAD, India (AP) — Opal Suchata Chuangsri of Thailand was crowned Miss World on Saturday in India, where the international pageant was held this year. Chuangsri topped a field of 108 contestants in the contest held in India’s southern Hyderabad city. Hasset Dereje Admassu of Ethiopia was the first runner-up in the competition. Chuangsri received

By RONALD BLUM Associated Press NEW YORK (AP) — Domingo Hindoyan will succeed James Conlon as music director of the LA Opera and start a five-year contract on July 1, 2026. The appointment of the 45-year-old Venezuelan-Armenian, the husband of soprano Sonya Yoncheva, was announced Friday night. Conlon has been music director since 2006-07 and

Associated Press MEXICO CITY (AP) — The popular Mexican regional music band Grupo Firme announced on Friday that it was canceling a performance in a music festival in California over the weekend after the United States government suspended the musicians’ visas. It comes after the U.S. State Department has revoked visas of a number of

By ANDREW DALTON AP Entertainment Writer LOS ANGELES (AP) — Alf Clausen, the Emmy-winning composer whose music provided essential accompaniment for the animated antics of “The Simpsons” for 27 years, has died. His daughter Kaarin Clausen told The Associated Press that Alf Clausen died Thursday at his home in Los Angeles after struggling with Parkinson’s

BY ASHRAF KHALIL Associated Press WASHINGTON (AP) — One day before the kickoff concert for World Pride 2025 in the nation’s capital, headlining performer Shakira has abruptly canceled due to equipment difficulties. “We are deeply disappointed that unforeseen circumstances have forced the cancellation” of the concert, the Capital Pride Alliance, the main World Pride organizer,

By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Loretta Swit, who won two Emmy Awards playing Maj. Margaret Houlihan, the demanding head nurse of a behind-the-lines surgical unit during the Korean War on the pioneering hit TV series “M.A.S.H.,” has died. She was 87. Publicist Harlan Boll says Swit died Friday at her

By DAVID BAUDER AP Media Writer PBS filed suit Friday against President Donald Trump and other administration officials to block his order stripping federal funding from the 330-station public television system, three days after NPR did the same for its radio network. In its lawsuit, PBS relies on similar arguments, saying Trump was overstepping his

By MARK KENNEDY AP Entertainment Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Twenty-nine shows on Broadway got Tony Award nominations this season, but not all will walk away with a trophy — and the box office attention they usually bring. Here are some key things to know as Broadway’s biggest night approaches, including how to watch, who

By THOMAS ADAMSON, BISHR ELTONI and JILL LAWLESS Associated Press MARSEILLE, France (AP) — The lighthouse appeared overnight. Painted on a wall tucked away in a quiet Marseille street, its beam aligned perfectly with the real-life shadow of a metal post on the pavement. At its center, stenciled in crisp white, are the words: “I

By MARIA SHERMAN AP Music Writer NEW YORK (AP) — Taylor Swift has regained control over her entire body of work. In a lengthy note posted to her official website on Friday, Swift announced: “All of the music I’ve ever made now belongs to me.” The pop star said she purchased her catalog of recordings