American painter and sculptor Jack Whitten has died at the age of 78, his gallery announced on Sunday.

The black artist was known for continually evolving over his five-decade career -- from painting to sculpture and from figurative to abstract.

Born in Bessemer, Alabama on December 5, 1939, he grew up in the segregationist south of the United States, where he was an activist in the civil rights struggle, before moving to New York in 1960.

His early work evoked the racism experienced by African Americans, but it was his abstract pieces that won greater renown in the art world, particularly in his later years.

Determined to constantly push his own limits, he left the brush to work with razor blades, Afro-combs or household squeegees.

"Delta Group II," which features in the Metropolitan Museum of New York collection, is one example.

"With a career grazing the 50-year mark, Jack Whitten is still making work that looks like no one else's, which is saying something, given the flood of abstract painting in New York in the past few years," the New York Times art critic Holland Cotter observed in 2013.

The Baltimore Museum of Art has dedicated a retrospective of his work, which will run from April 22 to July 29, before heading to the Metropolitan Museum of Art from September 6 to December 2.

Marc Payot, a partner and vice-president at Hauser & Wirth gallery where Whitten's work is displayed, said: "He was a remarkable man -- an artist of endless inventiveness, originality, and honesty, as well as a wonderful friend."

Source: AFP

Chinese music fans are bracing for a crackdown on hip hop after a rapper was apparently dropped from a popular singing programme, as reports emerged that the government had soured on the often-provocative genre.

Hip hop is a late arrival to China's cultural scene but homegrown artists have steadily gained fans, getting a major boost over the past year thanks to singing-contest reality programmes showcasing their talent.

But rappers have recently raised hackles with vulgar or edgy lyrics, and fans fear hip hop has become the latest target of an escalating crackdown on content deemed potentially threatening to the ruling Communist Party.

On Friday social media began circulating a government order apparently issued to Chinese broadcasters banning them from giving air time to "artists with tattoos, hip hop music" and other performers who are "in conflict with the party's core values and morals".

Popular portal Sina.com said the directive came from Gao Changli, a top official with the government agency that oversees the media. The order has not been officially released.

But a rapper known as GAI, who has nearly four million followers on China's Twitter-like Weibo platform, was suddenly absent from Friday's airing of the popular reality show "Singer".

GAI is now no longer featured as one of the contestants, prompting online speculation that he was a casualty of the new rules.

"This is a sign that hip hop will be banned," said one of many comments on Weibo.

- 'Cultural regression' -

"Although some of it is rubbish, hip hop itself is not wrong. Its core spirit is still positive... Hip hop has just emerged and now it is being rudely banned. Isn't this cultural regression?"

Other postings ridiculed the government's media watchdog agency.

"How many examples of fine culture and excellent works have had their value twisted by the hands of this idiotic agency? I'm ashamed of your behaviour," said one.

Chinese hip hop entered the national spotlight last year with the debut season of the wildly popular "The Rap of China", an internet-based reality-show rapping competition.

The show, which finished its first season in September, accumulated nearly three billion online "views".

But China's emerging hip hop subculture seemed destined to run afoul of the Communist Party, which has dramatically tightened its grip on free expression under President Xi Jinping.

In an ongoing crackdown on expression, the media, internet and the arts, vulgar or provocative content is out, while patriotic and "harmonious" content -- code for pro-party propaganda -- is in.

Last summer a rapper from the southwestern city of Chengdu known as "Fat Shady" drew attention with a song called "Stupid Foreigners", a profanity-laced rant against foreigners living in China.

Two weeks ago PG One, one of China's best-known rappers, apologised after he came under fire from official media. They highlighted lyrics from one of his songs in which he boasts obscenely about forcing himself on a woman and appears to promote drug use.

There is now rising online speculation over whether "The Rap of China" -- which vaulted several contestants to fame and helped them land recording contracts -- would be allowed back for a second season.

Predictions of the show's demise have been fuelled by reports that the latest instalment of a nationwide concert tour based on the programme was cancelled over the weekend in the central city of Wuhan, with organisers blaming unspecified "unavoidable factors".

Source: AFP

Black comedy crime story "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" could dominate at Sunday's Screen Actors Guild Awards, a bellwether for the Oscars.

The movie took four nods in three categories -- best ensemble cast, best lead actress (Frances McDormand), and best supporting actor (Woody Harrelson and Sam Rockwell).

Joining "Three Billboards" in the running for best cast -- the SAG's top award -- are romantic comedy "The Big Sick," racial satire "Get Out," offbeat dramedy "Lady Bird" and civil rights drama "Mudbound."

On the TV side, three series were tied at the top with four nominations each: HBO drama "Big Little Lies" and -- including the stunt team nominations -- Netflix sci-fi thriller "Stranger Things" and wrestling comedy "Glow."

SAG nominations are the second major announcement in Tinseltown's glittering awards season, which climaxes with the Academy Awards in March.

Guillermo del Toro's acclaimed 1960s-set fantasy romance "The Shape of Water" led the Golden Globe nominations with seven but picked up just two SAG nods.

"Three Billboards," starring McDormand as a mother seeking to avenge the rape and murder of her daughter, picked up six Globes nods and has been has a top Oscars contender since taking the influential audience award at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.

While far less flashy than the Globes, the SAG awards are seen as more of an indicator of Oscars glory.

Members represent some 1,200 of the roughly 6,000 voters for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

The awards were being closely watched this year as they come with Hollywood engulfed in the worst sexual misconduct scandal in its history.

Allegations from harassment to rape have sparked the downfall of numerous powerful industry players, from movie mogul Harvey Weinstein to actors Kevin Spacey, Jeffrey Tambor and Louis C.K. to filmmaker Brett Ratner.

In the best actor category on the film side, Timothee Chalamet ("Call Me by Your Name") faces competition from James Franco ("The Disaster Artist"), Daniel Kaluuya ("Get Out"), Gary Oldman ("Darkest Hour") and Denzel Washington ("Roman J. Israel, Esq.").

For best actress, McDormand faces off against Judi Dench ("Victoria and Abdul"), Sally Hawkins ("The Shape of Water"), Margot Robbie ("I, Tonya") and Saoirse Ronan ("Lady Bird").

Women and inclusivity continued to dominate the awards season conversation Saturday at the Producers Guild Awards, where Guillermo del Toro's fantastical romance "The Shape of Water" won the top award and honorees like Jordan Peele and Ava DuVernay gave rousing speeches to the room of entertainment industry leaders.

The untelevised dinner and ceremony, held at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, Calif., is closely watched for its capacity to predict the eventual Oscar best picture winner, but this year the "awards race" seemed to be the secondary show to the more urgent questions facing the industry, including the crisis of representation and sexual misconduct.

The Producers Guild on Friday ratified guidelines for combating sexual harassment in the entertainment industry, and everyone from DuVernay to Universal Chair Donna Langley and television mogul Ryan Murphy made mention of the changing times and the work that still needs to be done."If we want more brilliant films like 'Get Out' ...we need to have many different perspectives including equal numbers of women, people of color, people of all faiths and sexual orientation involved in every stage of filmmaking," Langley said in accepting the Milestone Award — noting that she was only the third woman to do so.

It was not the only time "Get Out" got a special mention, despite not winning the top award. Peele also won the Stanley Kramer Award.

Del Toro was not present to accept the PGA's Darryl F. Zanuck Award for Outstanding Producer of Theatrical Motion Pictures, due to the health of his father.

His film was up against 10 others this year, including "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri," which won big at the Golden Globes earlier this month, "Lady Bird," ''Get Out," ''Dunkirk," ''The Post," ''Call Me By Your Name," ''The Big Sick," ''I, Tonya" ''Wonder Woman" and "Molly's Game" — many of which were represented by actors and directors in attendance like Timothee Chalamet, Christopher Nolan, Margot Robbie, Patty Jenkins and Greta Gerwig.

Other presenters included the likes of Tom Hanks, Reese Witherspoon, Mary J. Blige, Gwyneth Paltrow, Kerry Washington and Morgan Freeman in the ceremony that saw Disney and Pixar's "Coco" pick up best animated feature and Brett Morgen's Jane Goodall film "Jane" win best documentary.

In television, "The Handmaids Tale" picked up best drama series, "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" won best comedy series, "Last Week Tonight With John Oliver" won best TV variety series, "Black Mirror" for long-form TV, "Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath" for nonfiction television, "Sesame Street" for children's program and "Carpool Karaoke" for best short-form program.

The pre-announced honorees stole most of the show, however.

Norman Lear presented the Stanley Kramer Award to Peele invoking the award's namesake in speaking of "Get Out," which Lear proudly said he's seen three times.

Peele said he was proud to call Lear a friend.

"I want to say, you can use my body for your brain anytime," Peele laughed, before taking a more serious turn in his speech.

Peele likened the idea of "the sunken place" in the film to what is happening in the world right now, referencing Haiti, the water crisis in Flint, and President Donald Trump's criticisms of athletes for protesting on the field.

"What really scares me...is the silencing of voices," Peele said "'Get Out' is my protest against that."

Peele ended on a hopeful note, however.

"Finally unique voices are breaking through," he said. "Diverse and honest storytelling opens eyes and hearts. We can break out of the sunken place together."

"Selma" and "A Wrinkle in Time" director Ava DuVernay gave a similarly poignant speech in accepting the Visionary Award,

"It's an odd moment, you have a women's march and you have a country with a government shut down," DuVernay said. "We're in the midst of times that will be long remembered."

DuVernay said what is important is, "The way we work. The people we actually choose to see. That we choose to amplify in the moments where no one is looking.""Don't think of diversity as a good thing to do," she added. "Think of it as a must. An absolute must."

Like many awards shows in the midst of Me Too and Time's Up, even the men accepting awards devoted large portions of their time on stage to talk about extraordinary women in their lives.

"Wonder Woman" producer Charles Roven used his David O. Selznick Achievement Award acceptance speech to call out powerful women he's worked with, from his late wife Dawn Steel, to Langley, Sue Kroll, Amy Pascal and Jenkins, who he said "has reignited this industry."

"Glee" creator Ryan Murphy, who got the Norman Lear Achievement Award, said, "Women were always my champions and mentors for 20 years now and I believe that's because they deeply related to my struggle — what it's like to be an outsider." He has taken steps to ensure that women occupy at least half of the directing spots in his productions.

In the larger context of awards season "The Shape of Water's" win Saturday surprised some who expected "Three Billboards" to continue its ascendancy after the Globes. "The Shape of Water" is also up for two Screen Actors Guild Awards, which will be announced Sunday.

The Producers Guild's choice for top film has eight times in the last 10 years matched the eventual Academy Award best picture winner. Last year, its nominees predicted all 9 best picture nominees, although the PGA went to "La La Land" which lost out to "Moonlight" at the Academy Awards.

Oscar nominations will be announced Tuesday in advance of the ceremony on March 4.

 Kim Kardashian and rapper Kanye West have called their third child Chicago, the reality star announced Friday, opening the floodgates to hefty doses of mockery and consternation on social media.

A former employee has accused Michael Douglas of sexual harassment and misconduct in her presence, charges the Oscar-winning Hollywood megastar has vehemently denied.

Douglas, 73, is the latest big-name celebrity accused of seamy behavior since a sexual harassment watershed began with the downfall of movie mogul Harvey Weinstein in 2017.

The actor -- Hollywood royalty as the son of actor Kirk Douglas -- "thought he was the king of the world and that he could humiliate me without any repercussion," writer Susan Braudy told NBC News in an interview.

Braudy has accused the double Oscar-winner of using sexually charged language and commenting on her body during the three years she worked at the actor's New York office of Stonebridge Productions in the 1980s.

Braudy said his abusive behavior culminated in 1989 during a work session in his apartment at the height of his career, after he starred in hit movies including "Wall Street" and "Fatal Attraction."

Douglas "slid down the floor, unbuckled his belt and put his hand inside his trousers and I could see what he was doing," Braudy told NBC.

She said he then "sort of began to fondle himself, and I was very scared."

Braudy, the author of two non-fiction books, said that she told several friends about the incident -- and they urged her to stay quiet.

"One of my friends said you better not tell people about him. People were frightened for me," she told NBC.

- 'Disgruntled' employee? -

Douglas got ahead of the allegations before they appeared in public, describing them to The Hollywood Reporter as "an unfortunate and complete fabrication."

The actor told celebrity website Deadline in a January 9 interview: "I can't believe that someone would cause someone else pain like this."

"Maybe she is disgruntled her career didn't go the way she hoped and she is holding this grudge," he said.

Douglas said that Braudy had never complained -- something she denied, even though she acknowledged never reporting the behavior to the police because she said she did not realize at the time that it could be considered criminal behavior.

Douglas's second wife, Catherine Zeta-Jones, whom he married in 2000, addressed the allegations in a guest appearance on ABC talk show "The View."

She said she supported "110 percent" the Time's Up and #MeToo movements against sexual misconduct.

"Michael came out with that preemptive statement. He was articulate, he said it from the heart, was honest, open and transparent. He now has to take the next step for where he goes from here," she said.

"It happened 30 years ago, it was 'B.C.' -- before Catherine," she added to laughs.

On Friday, the Producers Guild of America published guidelines designed to prevent sexual harassment cases in the movie industry.

"As producers, we provide key leadership in creating and sustaining work environments built on mutual respect, so it is our obligation to change our culture and eradicate this abuse," the PGA said in guidelines that went out to its 8,200 members.

Source: AFP

One suspects that Jackson wouldn't be too happy piling it on for a role, but he insists he would not only do it if the part required, but would enjoy it too.

"I'd have to go away so people didn't see me for a (while). I think I could pull it off... though it would kill me trying to come back from that," he says.

Jackson rose to fame with his record-shattering debut "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" -- one of the fastest selling albums in history that has shifted more than 30 million units. 

His movie career has included roles in Antoine Fuqua's boxing drama "Southpaw" alongside Jake Gyllenhaal and in "Spy," with Melissa McCarthy.  

Meanwhile his business empire has taken in footwear and apparel, fragrances, video games, publishing, vodka, health drinks, Casper mattresses and health supplements.

Estimated in 2015 to be worth $155 million, he filed for bankruptcy, telling a court his flashy lifestyle was a facade, with his expensive jewelry and cars rented.

Next up for the entertainer, as he rebuilds his fortune, is a sequel to his 2013 movie "Escape Plan," which will see him reunited with Sylvester Stallone.

Then in the summer comes the release of his long-awaited sixth studio album "Street King Immortal," originally planned to hit stores in 2011.

Like many busy stars who have interests in multiple businesses and entertainment projects, Jackson is often asked what he does to decompress and usually mentions the gym.

"How do I relax? I'm going to tell you the truth," he confides, going off script for once.

"I'm single and I've got a lot of good female friends."

"Den of Thieves" hits US theaters on Friday.

Woody Allen faced widening isolation Friday over allegations that he molested his daughter more than 25 years ago, after Colin Firth joined the list of actors saying he would not work with the director again.

Peter Mayle, who wrote the best-selling memoir "A Year In Provence", has died at the age of 78, his publishers announced.

Woody Allen, the director and four-time Oscar winner known for his comedies rife with neurotic characters, is in the crosshairs of America's sexual harassment watershed over decades-old claims that he molested his daughter.

French film legend Brigitte Bardot attacked the #MeToo movement Wednesday, claiming that actresses who complain of sexual harassment were just looking for publicity.

"The vast majority are being hypocritical and ridiculous," she told the French magazine Paris Match.

"Lots of actresses try to play the tease with producers to get a role. And then, so we will talk about them, they say they were harassed," declared the 83-year-old Bardot.

"I was never the victim of sexual harassment. And I found it charming when men told me that I was beautiful or I had a nice little backside," said the actress, who became a sex symbol overnight for "And God Created Woman" in 1956.

Her comments come a week after fellow French star Catherine Deneuve sparked a worldwide feminist backlash by defending men's right to "hit on" women.

She signed an open letter by 100 prominent women that claimed that #MeToo had become a puritanical "witch-hunt" which threatened sexual freedom.

It also inferred that women fondled on public transport should just get over it.

But Deneuve later distanced herself from some of the other signatories after one claimed that women can orgasm during rape.

- 'Distrustful of the human race' -

The 74-year-old went on to apologise to victims of sexual assault, saying there was "nothing good" about harassment.

Bardot, who ended her film career in 1973 so she could dedicate herself to her animal rights charity, has a long history of provoking feminists.

Yet she admitted to the magazine that she has not digested what happened to her when she was at the height of her fame in the 1960s, and her love life made international headlines.

"I still find it difficult to understand what happened to me," she said. "That uncontrollable time made me very distrustful of the human race."

Bardot said she "has almost no contact these days with the entertainment industry" other than phone calls from her old friends like veteran actor Alain Delon.

Instead she looks after her six cats, nine dogs and some 50 other animals at her farm and animal sanctuary near the French Riviera resort of Saint Tropez.

She said that when she is gone she wants to be known as the "animals' fairy godmother".

A supporter of the far-right National Front, Bardot said she prefers the late pope John Paul II to Pope Francis and prays to the Virgin Mary, which she calls "my little Virgin".

But she said that if she was reincarnated she would be like to be a "mustang, that wild and free horse of the American West".

Source: AFP

Reality star Kim Kardashian and her rapper husband Kanye West Tuesday announced the birth of their third child, a baby girl who was born via a surrogate.

"She is here! We're so in love," Kardashian, 37, wrote in a post on her website which she then shared with her 58.3 million Twitter followers.

In a brief message, she wrote that their "healthy, beautiful" daughter was born Monday at 12:47 AM local time, weighing 7.6 pounds (3.3 kilograms). The baby girl's name was not announced.

"We are incredibly grateful to our surrogate who made our dreams come true with the greatest gift one could give and to our wonderful doctors and nurses for their special care," said Kardashian.

"North and Saint are especially thrilled to welcome their baby sister," she added.

Kardashian and West married in May 2014, and already have two children: daughter North, 4, and 2-year-old son Saint.

The couple chose to use a surrogate as Kardashian suffered from placenta accreta -- a serious condition where the placenta becomes too deeply attached to the wall of the uterus -- during her second pregnancy, making a third pregnancy too risky, according to celebrity website TMZ.

TMZ also reported that the Wests paid $45,000 to the surrogate -- who was banned from smoking and taking drugs as well as taking hot baths, dying her hair and eating raw fish during the pregnancy.

Source: AFP

"Grey's Anatomy" star Ellen Pompeo has made a deal to appear in two more seasons of the highly popular show that will earn her $20 million per year, making her the highest-paid actress in a television drama.

Pompeo, who stars in the medical drama as Meredith Grey, told The Hollywood Reporter that she will earn $575,000 an episode for seasons 15 and 16, under a deal signed late last year.

She will also get a signing bonus and a percentage of the show's profits bringing her total earnings to over $20 million per year.

"I'm 48 now, so I've finally gotten to the place where I'm OK asking for what I deserve, which is something that comes only with age," Pompeo wrote in a first-person article for the industry magazine.

"I'm not necessarily perceived as successful, either, but a 24-year-old actress with a few big movies is, even though she's probably being paid shit — certainly less than her male co-star and probably with no backend," she added, weighing in on the heated issue of pay equality in Hollywood.

"If we're going to invoke change, that has to be part of it."

She also recounts a meeting with disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein: she says she went up to his room in New York, and an assistant was present.

"He didn't try anything on me," she notes, while adding that had he done so, she would have "picked up a vase and cracked him" over the head.

"My goal in that room was to charm him, as it is in most rooms like that. You think, 'Not only do I have to show that I'm a good actress, but that director also has to in some way fall in love with me and at least become enamored with me,'" she recounted.

"That never felt right or good to me."

ABC confirmed the agreement of two more seasons to AFP -- but would not comment on the figures.

First broadcast in 2005, the medical drama series -- set in a fictional Seattle hospital -- recently passed its 300th episode, and still enjoys high ratings.

"The show will go on as long as Ellen wants to do it," the show's creator Shonda Rhimes, also behind "Scandal," told the Reporter.

According to Forbes magazine, the best-paid television actress is Sofia Vergara of ABC's long-running comedy "Modern Family" -- earning $41.5 million per season -- followed by Kaley Cuoco, who is paid $26 million for her role in "The Big Bang Theory" on CBS.

Vergara earns more than double her male co-stars, while Cuoco is paid at the same level as hers, according to Forbes.

Source: AFP

Cranberries singer Dolores O'Riordan, who died suddenly in London  Monday at the age of 46, was about to record a version of her hit "Zombie" with the hard rock band Bad Wolves, the group said on Tuesday.

"We are shocked and saddened at the news of Dolores's passing, mere hours before she was to record vocals on our upcoming version of Zombie," the band said in a message on Facebook.

The band's singer Tommy Vext said: "We always felt the rawness and honesty she projected on stage and in her recordings was something to which all bands should aspire to, regardless of genre.

"When we heard she liked our version and wanted to sing on it, it was the greatest compliment a new band, or any band for that matter, could have received," he said.

Music producer Dan Waite, a friend of O'Riordan's, said she had left him a voice message shortly before her death "stating how much she loved the Bad Wolves' version of Zombie; she was looking forward to seeing me in the studio and recording vocals.

"She sounded full of life, was joking and excited to see me and my wife this week. The news of her passing is devastating," he said.

Police said they were called to a hotel in Park Lane in the centre of the British capital at 0905 GMT on Monday where a 46-year-old woman was found dead at the scene.

A police spokeswoman on Tuesday said the death was "not being treated as suspicious".

Source: AFP

Actor and comedian Aziz Ansari has acknowledged a sexual encounter with an anonymous accuser but insisted it was "completely consensual."

The accusations, published Sunday in online magazine Babe, were made by a 23-year-old photographer from Brooklyn, New York, named only as "Grace."

She said she met Ansari -- who recently won a Golden Globe for his performance in Netflix comedy 'Master of None' -- in September 2017 at the Emmy Awards after party, and they met for a dinner date in New York around a week later.

"Grace" said that after dinner, they went to Ansari's apartment where he made repeated aggressive advances towards her, despite her "verbal and non-verbal cues" indicating she did not want to have sex with him, Babe reported.

"I know I was physically giving off cues that I wasn't interested. I don't think that was noticed at all, or if it was, it was ignored," she told Babe.

"I believe that I was taken advantage of by Aziz. I was not listened to and ignored. It was by far the worst experience with a man I've ever had," she added.

In a statement Sunday, Ansari acknowledged the encounter with the woman to Babe.

"We went out to dinner, and afterwards we ended up engaging in sexual activity, which by all indications was completely consensual," he wrote.

"The next day, I got a text from her saying that although 'it may have seemed okay,' upon further reflection, she felt uncomfortable," he said.

"It was true that everything did seem okay to me, so when I heard that it was not the case for her, I was surprised and concerned."

Ansari added he responded privately to "Grace," and also expressed support for the movement of women speaking out against sexual misconduct -- sparked by allegations against Hollywood film mogul Harvey Weinstein -- describing it as "necessary and long overdue."

Ansari is best known for his roles as Tom Haverford in the sitcom 'Parks and Recreation' and Dev Shah in 'Master of None,' of which he is also a writer.

Source: AFP

Irish singer-songwriter Dolores O'Riordan, frontwoman of the multi-million selling rock band The Cranberries, died suddenly in London on Monday, aged 46, her publicist said.

"Irish and international singer Dolores O'Riordan has died suddenly in London today, family members are devastated," Lindsey Holmes said in a statement.

"The lead singer...was in London for a short recording session," she added. "No further details are available at this time."

A spokeswoman for London's Metropolitan police said officers are "dealing with a sudden death" after they were called to a hotel in Park Lane, in the centre of the British capital, at 0905 GMT this morning.

She did not confirm the identity of the person found.

"A woman in her mid-40s was pronounced dead at the scene," the spokeswoman said.

"At this early stage it is being treated as unexplained and enquiries continue," she added.

Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar was among the first to pay tributes, calling O’Riordan "the voice of a generation".

"For anyone who grew up in Ireland in the 1990s, the Cranberries were an iconic band, who captured all of the angst that came with your teenager years," he said in a statement.

"Her voice and her contribution to music will be remembered far beyond her native county for many years to come."

- Family 'very devastated' -

The London Hilton on Park Lane confirmed "with deep regret" that an unnamed guest had "sadly passed away" at its hotel.

"Team members acted swiftly to alert the Metropolitan Police and we are co-operating fully with their investigation," a spokeswoman said.

The Cranberries achieved international success in the 1990s with their debut album "Everyone Else is Doing it, So Why Can't We?", which included the hit single "Linger".

Follow-up album "No Need to Argue" went to number one in Australia, France and Germany, and number 6 in the United States.

The album also gave rise to politically-charged single "Zombie", an angry response to the deadly Northern Ireland conflict, which hit number one across Europe. The band sold around 40 million records worldwide.

O'Riordan, from Friarstown in the Irish county of Limerick, will be buried in Ireland, according to the parish priest in her home town.

James Walton, priest at Ballybricken and Bohermore parish, told Britain's Press Association her family "is very devastated and upset".

"Her family are still waiting for more details to come from London about her death," he said.

"The plan is for her to be buried here at home. When that will be will depend on when her body is released."

- 'Immense influence on rock' -

The Cranberries, formed in 1989 but went on a hiatus in 2003.

O'Riordon told AFP in a 2012 interview that "we were stuck in a rut. We just needed a break."

She headed to Canada, where she gave birth to her third child, but The Cranberries reformed in 2009 after getting together for a one-off show.

"At home I'm a house-keeper and a mum. The kids are, like, 'What's for dinner? Where are my clothes?'. On tour it's, like: 'room-service'," she said of the comeback.

She hit the headlines in 2014 after pleading guilty to assaulting three police officers and a flight attendant during a flight from New York to Ireland, and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder shortly afterwards.

The band was forced to cancel 14 concerts last year due to "medical reasons associated with a back problem" for O'Riordan.

The singer's last Facebook posting came shortly before Christmas.

"Hi All, Dolores here. Feeling good! I did my first bit of gigging in months at the weekend, performed a few songs at the Billboard annual staff holiday party in New York with the house band," it read.

"Really enjoyed it! Happy Christmas to all our fans!! Xo".

The band recently played in South America, with O'Riordan tweeting pictures of a show in Lima, Peru.

O'Riordan married Don Burton, former tour manager of Duran Duran, in 1994 but the couple, who had three children together, divorced in 2014.

British 1980s band Duran Duran posted on their official Twitter page that "we are crushed to hear the news about the passing of Dolores O'Riordan. Our thoughts go out to her family at this terrible time".

The Cranberries released their final album "Something Else" last year.

source: AFP

Celebrity sleuth website TMZ is reporting that former NBA defensive giant, Dennis Rodman, was arrested for DUI Saturday night  in Southern California.

According to the report, Rodman spent the night in lockup in Newport Beach after being pulled over for a traffic violation and failing a field sobriety test.

The New York Post is reporting that Rodman was released without bail Sunday morning after sobering up.The Worm spent 14 season in the NBA, including two with the Spurs, and is considered one of the best defensive players to play the game.In his later career he was known for outlandish behavior, both on and off the court, which first manifested when he was traded to the Spurs in 1993.

While a popular player with San Antonio fans, Rodman had few boosters within the Spurs organization itself.

Rodman recently said in an interview that coach Gregg Popovich and and the team did not really want him on the squad."The city kind of embraced me, but what's his name, Popovich, he hated me," Rodman said in an interview last year. "He hated my guts because I wasn't a bible guy. They looked at me like I was the devil."

Rodman was arrested for DUI once before, last century in 1999.

A Bollywood epic about a legendary Hindu queen will finally be released next week despite months of violent protests, Indian filmmakers have confirmed.

"Padmaavat" was initially due to hit screens in December. But producers Viacom18 Motion Pictures delayed the release following protests sparked by speculation that it would depict a romantic liaison between the queen and the 13th and 14th century Muslim ruler Alauddin Khilji.

Politicians had threatened to ban the film for distorting historical facts, even though historians say the queen, Padmavati, is a mythical character.

It will hit screens on January 25 after censors cleared it for release subject to five changes, the producers announced late Sunday.

Full-page advertisements appeared in Indian newspapers Monday saying the film portrayed the legendary queen "with utmost respect".

Film-makers say the movie is based on a work of fiction by a 16th-century Sufi poet, the epic entitled "Padmaavat".

The movie's title has been changed from "Padmavati" to "Padmaavat", possibly to reflect the fact it is based on the work.

The film first ran into opposition in January 2017 when protesters attacked director Sanjay Leela Bhansali and vandalised the set during filming in Rajasthan.

Protesters attacked another set near Mumbai in March, burning costumes and other props.

They stepped up demonstrations in November last year, including making a death threat against the lead actress Deepika Padukone and against the director Bhansali.

India's Hindi film industry churns out hundreds of movies every year but filmmakers often face intimidation from fringe groups.

Critics say the censorship board acts in an overzealous way, fuelling fears over creative freedom in the country.

Ministers in Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh have said the film will not be shown in those states.

The movie stars Shahid Kapoor as Maharawal Ratan Singh, the husband of Padmavati, and Ranveer Singh as Khilji who leads an invasion to try to capture the queen.

Salvador Meza has been making guitars since he was a boy, but his leathery hands have never had to churn them out as fast as now -- thanks to the hit movie "Coco."

Meza, 41, is one of many renowned guitar-makers in the Mexican town of Paracho, which has been producing artfully crafted guitars since the 18th century.

But the sleepy colonial town has never seen a boom like this -- all because of "Coco," this year's Golden Globe winner for best animated film and a box office smash that has grossed more than $500 million so far.

Set in Mexico, the movie tells the story of Miguel, a young boy who secretly longs to be a musician but is growing up in a family where music is forbidden.

Fate thrusts into his hands a white guitar incrusted with mother-of-pearl, topped with gold tuning pegs and a stylized black skull.

The skull, like the film itself, is a playful tribute to Mexico's Day of the Dead, a festival of colorful costumes, decorations and sweets during which, according to tradition, the dead come back to visit the living.

Director Lee Unkrich has called the film a "love letter to Mexico," and Mexico loves it back: it is the country's highest-grossing movie of all time.

The animators at Pixar, the studio behind the film, based Miguel's guitar on a real-life version made by an artisan from Paracho -- and demand for replicas now has the town's luthiers working in overdrive.

"I usually work out of my home with my wife and a friend. But now, I've had to call up my godmother, my nephew, my cousin," said Meza through the cloud of sawdust in his workshop.

"We're all going crazy over 'Coco!'"

Since "Coco" had its world premiere in Mexico on October 20, Meza says he has been sleeping three hours a night and has doubled his output from 50 guitars a week to 100.

Paracho, the "guitar capital of Mexico," makes nearly one million classical guitars a year, many exported to the United States.

 Typically, they are elegant and understated masterpieces of burnished brown wood.

At least, that was the case until the town caught what guitar shop owner Maria Eugenia Gomez calls "Coco fever."

Now, she says, she can't keep up with demand for the flashy white guitars.

"If I had 1,000 of them, I'd sell them all," said Gomez, 76.

- 'Straight out of a movie' -

The man behind the original "Coco" guitar is German Vazquez, a Paracho native who emigrated to the United States 25 years ago, slipping over the border to chase the American dream.

The state where Paracho is located, Michoacan, was until recent years swept by grisly violence unleashed by the Knights Templar drug cartel. It is among the states with the highest rates of emigration to the US.

After Vazquez crossed the border, he found work, eventually became a US citizen and finally managed to open his own guitar workshop in Los Angeles -- which is where Pixar found him.

Now 64, he reminisces with a hint of nostalgia about his trek across the desert a quarter-century ago.

"It was hard. You arrive with nothing but the clothes on your back, with no money, nothing but your desire to work," said Vazquez, a critic of US President Donald Trump's planned border wall.

He said he sees a little bit of young Miguel in his own life's story.

"He wants to be a musician, and he searches for a way to make it happen. He fights and fights until he achieves it. I think in that way I'm also like little Miguel... in love with guitars," he told AFP.

"My life is straight out of a movie."

source: AFP

Mark Wahlberg is donating his $1.5 million reshoot fee for 'All The Money in the World' to Time's Up.

There was a public outcry when it was revealed that Michelle Williams was paid just one per cent of her co-star Mark's fee for reshoots on the movie, after Kevin Spacey - who was originally playing billionaire J. Paul Getty was accused of sexual misconduct and replaced by Christopher Plummer.

Sir Ridley Scott asked the actors to come back to Europe over Thanksgiving weekend last November to reshoot the necessary scenes but while Michelle was paid just $80 a day for the extra work, amounting to less than $1,000, Wahlberg's team negotiated him a fee of $1.5 million.

Williams and Wahlberg are both represented by the William Morris Endeavor agency but she was reportedly not told about the deal they had struck for Wahlberg.

However, after news of the pay deal went public, Mark announced his plan to donate his fee to the Times Up campaign, which will provide legal support to those who have experienced sexual harassment, assault, or abuse in the workplace.

He said: ''Over the last few days my reshoot fee for All The Money in the World has become an important topic of conversation. I 100 per cent support the fight for fair pay and I'm donating the $1.5 million to the Time's Up Legal Fund in Michelle Williams' name.''

And WME has also pledged $500,000, saying in a statement: ''The current conversation is a reminder that those of us in a poition of influence have a responsibility to challenge inequities, including the gender wage gap. In recognition of the pay discrepancy on All The Money In The World reshoots, WME is donating an additional $500,000 to the Time's Up Legal Fund in Michelle Williams' name, following our $1 million pledge to the organization earlier this month. It's crucial that this conversation continues within our community and we are committed to being part of the solution.''

source: AFP

Ed Sheeran's latest best-selling album is up against four debut offerings at this year's Brit Awards, including one by breakthrough pop star Dua Lipa, who also dominated Saturday's nominations.

Singer-songwriter Sheeran, whose "Divide" was the fastest-selling album ever for a male solo artist in Britain, is nominated in the best solo artist and best album categories for the February 21 awards.

Meanwhile Dua Lipa, 22, has five nominations including best British female solo artist, where she will battle it out against 2015 winner Paloma Faith, rapper-poet Kate Tempest, Jessie Ware and Laura Marling.

Dua Lipa is also among four artists whose first full-length studio albums have been nominated. Grime star Stormzy, singer Rag'N'Bone Man and rapper J Hus join her and Sheeran for the best album prize.

In the solo male category, Sheeran faces former Oasis frontman Liam Gallagher, Stormzy, London rapper Loyle Carner and Rag'N'Bone Man.

The best British band nominees are Gorillaz, London Grammar, Royal Blood, Wolf Alice and The xx.

Singer-songwriter Sampha, who won the Mercury Prize last year, competes with Dua Lipa and rappers J Hus, Loyle Carner and Dave in the British breakthrough act category.

In the international categories, Foo Fighters, Haim, The Killers, LCD Soundsystem and Arcade Fire are up for best group.

Taylor Swift, Lorde, Bjork, Pink and Alicia Keys are up for best international female, while Childish Gambino, Beck, DJ Khaled, Drake and Kendrick Lamar are up for best international male.

The Brit Awards were last year dominated by David Bowie, who won two posthumous awards for best solo artist and best album for "Blackstar".

source: AFP

London luxury department store Harrods said Saturday it was taking down a statue of the late Princess Diana and her boyfriend Dodi Al Fayed and returning it to former owner Mohamed Al Fayed.

Al Fayed commissioned the bronze statue, which shows his son and Diana holding hands and releasing a bird, after they were killed in a Paris car crash in 1997.

It remained there after he sold Harrods to the investment arm of Qatar's sovereign wealth fund in 2010.

But the store's managing director, Michael Ward, said it was now time to return it, noting that Diana's sons Princes William and Harry were commissioning their own statue to their mother at Kensington Palace.

"We are very proud to have played our role in celebrating the lives of Diana, Princess of Wales, and Dodi Al Fayed at Harrods and to have welcomed people from around the world to visit the memorial for the past 20 years," he said.

"With the announcement of the new official memorial statue to Diana, Princess of Wales at Kensington Palace, we feel that the time is right to return this memorial to Mr Al Fayed and for the public to be invited to pay their respects at the palace."

Al Fayed has accused the royals of masterminding the death of Diana and his son, and as a result Harrods lost its royal warrant in 2000.

A spokesman for the Al Fayed family told The Times newspaper it was "grateful" to Qatar Holdings for preserving the memorial of the couple, adding: "It is now time to bring them home."

source: AFP

Chinese superheroes will soon be joining the pantheon of larger-than-life Marvel universe mainstays Spider-Man, Iron Man and the X-Men, a company official said as the comic book giant makes a major thrust into Asia.

As part of a push to grow its Asia fanbase, the Disney-owned franchise has released mobile games in China, opened "Marvel Stores" in South Korea and is searching for artistic talent in the Philippines, Marvel editor-in-chief C.B. Cebulski said.

"We have been making great strides especially in Asia. We try to hire more Asian creators, writers and artists to bring a piece of their culture to Marvel comics," he said in Manila where he visited a major university for fresh talent.

The comic giant plans to introduce two new Chinese superheroes: "Sword Master" and "Aero" who will be based in China, Cebulski added.

"They are going to be heavily based on Chinese culture and Chinese mythology but set in the modern world and they will interact with the other heroes (in the Marvel universe)," he said.

These new characters will be drawn in the 'manga' style of Japanese comics that is more popular in Asia, he added.

Cebulski, who has lived the last two years in Asia, serving as Marvel's vice president for the region, conceded that Marvel had not given Asian characters prominent positions in the past compared to mainstays like Captain America or the Hulk.

But this is changing, he said. "We want to have stories that are reflective of every culture."

There is huge fan expectation over Marvel's latest flagship movie -- Black Panther -- which will be released worldwide next month.

The film stars Chadwick Boseman playing Marvel's breakthrough black superhero T'Challa, a king of a fictional African nation who first featured in the company's comic books in the late 1960s.

Luke Cage, another popular black Marvel superhero, has also had a recent revival through a popular TV series on Netflix.

But Asian superheroes are still comparatively rare in the Marvel universe despite the franchise's growing popularity there.

In the Philippines, a former US colony, Marvel is already deeply ingrained in the nation's popular culture, said Cebulski.

Filipino illustrators in turn have also provided art for Marvel comics since the 1970s.

People from the Southeast Asian nation are now the third largest nationality of artists employed by Marvel, just behind Americans and Italians, Cebulski said.

Elvis fans shook up Sydney's Central station Thursday with hundreds rocking to his famous tunes ahead of a special train trip to outback Australia to celebrate the late entertainer's birthday.

Decked out in their glittering best, the fans were heading to Parkes -- a small town some 300 kilometres (190 miles) west of Sydney -- on the "Elvis Express" and "Blue Suede Express" trains to take part in a five-day festival.

"He's such an icon and he hasn't lost any of that magic that he used to have," avid Elvis Presley fan Julie Mellae -- who wore an orange wig, tiara and fishnet stockings for the special occasion -- told AFP.

"In fact, I think he's developed more, so this festival is like the biggest thing that happens in January. Everyone wants to be on the Elvis train and it's booked out years in advance."

Elvis impersonators belted out the legendary singer's biggest hits on a makeshift stage before the seven-hour train pilgrimage, swivelling their hips and blowing kisses to adorning admirers amid loud cheers.

The annual extravaganza, in its 26th year, is billed as the southern hemisphere's biggest tribute to the rock 'n' roll legend -- who died in 1977 -- and attracts thousands of die-hard fans.

Last year's event drew 25,000 people to Parkes, more than double the town's population, and generated millions of dollars for the local economy.

The town transforms into a vibrant tribute to The King, who would have been 83 this year, with a street parade and non-stop entertainment to keep visitors jiving.

"It's just everybody's in a good mood, everybody's happy, nobody's cranky," said David Ward-Smith, who was wearing a specially made "Elvis Festival" T-shirt with his friends on board the "Elvis Express".

"Up and down the streets (in Parkes), it's Elvis singers. Every 50 metres, it's somebody else trying hard. Everybody's just in party mode, it's a great little atmosphere. It's like the Olympics every year," he told AFP.

Parkes, a mining town with a population of more than 11,000, is famous for its radio telescope which played a pivotal role in bringing Neil Armstrong's 1969 moon landing to the world.

But the Elvis Festival, first held in 1993 to coincide with the singer's birthday on January 8, 1935, has since placed the town on the tourist map and also earned it the moniker of "Elvis Capital of Australia".

Source: AFP

Poland's Fryderyk Chopin Institute (NIFC) on Thursday said it would hold the first international competition where pianists will play the romantic composer's music on period instruments.

"The pianos of that era have a mechanism and tone that are very different from those offered by contemporary instruments," said Joanna Bokszczanin, who is organising the event in Warsaw on September 2-14.

Participants, who can sign up from next month, will have at their disposal 17 period pianos of brands like Broadwood, Buchholtz, Erard and Pleyel that were known to and used by Chopin.

They either belong to the NIFC or are borrowed from collectors.

The Warsaw-based NIFC has already been organising a regular Chopin piano competition every five years since 1927, whose winners often go on to play the greatest venues in the world.

Bokszczanin told AFP that the new contest is "the culmination of a lot of work accomplished already to remind the listener of the authentic sound of Frederic Chopin's music."

The NIFC also conducts research on the 19th-century Polish-French composer's work, in addition to documenting it and promoting it around the world.

Chopin was born in 1810 in Zelazowa Wola, near the Polish capital, to a French father and Polish mother.

He fled his homeland just before the 1830 uprising against the occupying forces of Tsarist Russia.

The prodigy lived in Vienna and then Paris, where he died aged 39 after years of poor health. His body is buried in Paris, while his heart rests in Warsaw's Holy Cross church.

Source: AFP

Singer Ricky Martin of "Livin' la Vida Loca" fame announced Wednesday he has married his partner of two years, Jwan Yosef.

"I'm a husband," the Puerto Rican singer told E! television without specifying the date of the wedding. "We're doing a heavy party in a couple of months."

The 46-year-old singer began going out in 2016 with Yosef, 33, a Syrian-born Swedish artist.

The couple announced their engagement in November and have been living in Los Angeles for the past few months.

"We exchanged vows, and we've swear [sic] everything, and we've signed all the papers that we needed to sign, prenups and everything," E! quoted Martin as saying.

Martin has won two Grammys and is one of Latin America's most popular entertainers.

Source: AFP