Steve Wright underwent heart bypass before death and 'more ill than he let on'

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Longtime TCM host Ben Mankiewicz will be returning for more in-depth tête-à-têtes with noted filmmakers. Mankiewicz’s “Talking Pictures: A Movie Memories Podcast” has been renewed for Season 2 by TCM and Max. He announced the renewal on the Season 1 finale featuring guest Bill Hader, star, co-creator and director of HBO’s “Barry” and former “Saturday Night Live” cast member.

Jem Aswad Executive Editor, Music Spotify has provided further details on the record $9 billion it paid out to the music industry in 2023, which was first announced in January. For context, the company stated that the “amount has nearly tripled over the past six years, and represents a big part of the $48 billion-plus Spotify has paid since its founding.” Last March, the company said it pays out nearly 70% of every dollar it generates from music back to the industry, generating its music revenue from two sources: subscription fees from its Premium platform paying subscribers, and fees from advertisings on music on its Free tier.

Ed Meza @edmezavar Variety’s Series Mania Bulletin highlights breaking news at this year’s French TV festival: Paramount+ has announced the schedule and pricing for its international ad-supported Basic subscription offering and Premium plan, both set to begin this month in selected countries. The ad-supported Basic plan will be available in April in Canada and in June in Australia, priced at $6.99 in Canadian and Australian dollars.

Naman Ramachandran Prime Video has unveiled a 69-title 2024 slate of new and returning series and original and licensed films. The slate was revealed at a star-studded event in Mumbai on Tuesday hosted by Indian media personality Karan Johar. Amazon executives present at the event included Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios, Kelly Day, VP Prime Video International, ⁠James Farrell, VP, international originals, Gaurav Gandhi, VP, APAC and MENA, Sushant Sreeram, country director, India, Aparna Purohit, head of originals, India and Southeast Asia, Manish Menghani, director, content licensing, India, and Nikhil Madhok, head of Hindi-language, India.

Thania Garcia Reggaeton artist Feid and Mexican music pioneer Peso Pluma are in the lead as the most nominated artists at the Latin American Music Awards, Univision has revealed. They top the list with 12 nominations each followed by Bad Bunny and Grupo Frontera, with 11 nominations each. The awards show will be hosted by Latin pop phenom Thalia, along with presenter Alejandra Espinoza, and singer-songwriter and television personality Carlos Ponce.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer This year’s “Candy Crush All Stars” tournament is set to be the “world’s largest casual mobile gaming tournament in history” with a $1 million prize pot. Per “Candy Crush” maker King, “The stakes are higher than ever in this year’s All Stars tournament, with the prize pot quadrupling to $1M from last year.

James Bond has reportedly been offered to Aaron Taylor-Johnson.Following years of speculation surrounding who would portray the iconic secret agent, after Daniel Craig’s exit from the franchise in 2021, it has now been confirmed who is set to take on the prestigious role in the next instalment.Kick-Ass and Tenet star Taylor-Johnson has been selected to play the next Bond, with EON Productions having reportedly offered him the job.According to The Sun, a source has said: “Bond is Aaron’s job, should he wish to accept it. The formal offer is on the table and they are waiting to hear back.”The source continued: “As far as EON is concerned, Aaron is going to sign his contract in the coming days and they can start preparing for the big announcement.”Taylor-Johnson was just one of the actors being rumoured as possible 007s, with many hoping for Idris Elba to take the role, and Henry Cavill being a strong contender.Back in August, the Angus, Thongs And Perfect Snogging star spoke with Esquire about the possibility of the role, but his response remained vague: “I just focus on the things I can have in my hands right now.

Taylor Swift‘s fans in Los Angeles caused earthquake-like tremors when watching the singer perform live at the SoFi Stadium last summer.The ‘Midnights’ pop star played six concerts at the huge Inglewood venue in August 2023 as part of the North American leg of her ongoing ‘Eras Tour’.According to a new study from Caltech and UCLA researchers, the third night of Swift’s stint at the stadium (August 5) saw signals from the show register on seismic network stations within approximately 5.6 miles of the SoFi, and on “strong-motion sensors placed near and inside the stadium” (via the LA Times).The report – titled ‘Shake to the Beat: Exploring the Seismic Signals and Stadium Response of Concerts and Music Fans’ – said the researchers were able to identify “the seismic signature” of each track performed at the three-hour-plus gig.Additionally, it found that the seismic activity was most likely a result of the “dancing and jumping motions” of Swift’s LA crowd, rather than the beats and reverberations from the venue’s PA.Researchers calculated each song’s “radiated energy” in terms of its equal earthquake magnitude. The performance of Swift’s 2014 single ‘Shake It Off’ resulted in the “largest local magnitude of 0.851”, according to the study.The singer’s rendition of ‘Love Story’ resulted in a notable amplitude too (0.800).

Daniel Craig’s final Bond film hit cinemas – and we finally know (maybe) who his successor is.As reported by The Sun this morning, 33-year-old British actor Aaron Taylor-Johnson, has been offered the role, with 007 production company Eon expecting him to put pen to paper “in the coming days”. His first outing as cinema’s most famous spy is expected to start filming this year, after it was delayed by the Hollywood strikes that disrupted shooting schedules in 2023.“Bond is Aaron’s job, should he wish to accept it.

Game Of Thrones creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have shared why Barack Obama declined being in their upcoming Netflix series.The pair, who created the eight-part series 3 Body Problem, reportedly asked the former US President to appear in a cameo role.The series –which is based on Liu Cixin’s best-selling novel, The Three-Body Problem – is set during an alien invasion which threatens to wipe out humanity.

Spider-Man: Across The Spider-Verse losing out at the 2024 Oscars.The movie was nominated for Best Animated Feature at last Sunday’s awards, but lost to Hayao Miyazaki’s Studio Ghibli production, The Boy And The Heron.Following the ceremony, Moore, who voiced Miles Morales in the animated Marvel movies, tweeted the word “robbed”, seemingly in response to the result.*robbed— Shameik Moore (@shameikmoore) March 11, 2024After receiving backlash for the post, with some calling it “unprofessional” the 28-year-old followed up with a post which read: “Respect to the winner. It’s true, I’m definitely a sore loser, but we didn’t lose, Spider-Verse has impacted A LOT of lives.

Mel B has fuelled more rumours of a Spice Girls reunion, saying that fans can’t rule out a potential appearance at Glastonbury.The singer – also known as Scary Spice – has been dropping updates about what seems to be an upcoming reunion in recent weeks, hinting that the iconic ‘90s group have something planned for their 30th anniversary.Initially, many fans speculated that the members – Mel B, Mel C, Victoria Beckham, Emma Bunton and Geri Halliwell – would be coming together to fill the legends slot at Glastonbury this year. However, these hopes were soon dashed when the official line-up dropped last week, confirming that the mammoth slot has been filled by Shania Twain.Now, Scary Spice has coyly refuelled fan’s hopes and stated that people shouldn’t be so quick to dismiss the idea of a Glastonbury slot being on the cards.“You don’t know that we’re not doing Glastonbury,” she said during a new interview with Hits Radio Breakfast Show (via The International News).“We are talking about doing something together – I can’t say what it is ‘cos I always get into trouble,” she added.

Noel Gallagher once bought one of Peter Green’s Les Paul guitars, and intentionally removed the signature from it to get back at a rude employee.The late rock icon and Fleetwood Mac founder was the owner of countless high-profile guitars, including the famous ‘Greeny’ – which was later passed to Gary Moore, who handed it on to Metallica’s Kirk Hammett.However, that particular model was just one of a number of guitars that were sold after his death, and now The Coral guitarist Bill Ryder-Jones has revealed the story behind one that was modified by Oasis legend Noel Gallagher.Speaking with Guitar World, he recalled how he was given the Les Paul by Gallagher in 2006 when The Coral were recording an album in his studio, but was initially unaware of the rich history behind the model.Recalling how the Britpop icon got his hands on the guitar, Ryder-Jones recalled how Gallagher erased the Peter Green signature from the body out of spite of a rude shop owner.“He didn’t know who Noel was; he somehow had not heard of Oasis,” he explained. “But Noel saw one of the guitars at the top of the shelf, like behind the counter, and said, ‘Can I have a go with that Les Paul?’“And the guy behind the counter goes, ‘Erm, you do know that was Peter Green’s, and it’s signed by Peter Green, right?’ He reluctantly got it down and gave it to Noel.”From there, Gallagher, who was apparently irked by the shop owner’s attitude, decided to get back at him and “spat on his T-shirt and rubbed off the signature.”“He purposefully rubbed off Peter Green’s signature to make a point to the guy in the guitar shop,” Ryder-Jones continued.

450 Jewish creatives and professionals in Hollywood are denouncing “Zone of Interest” director Jonathan Glazer’s speech from the 2024 Oscars.In his speech, Glazer, 58, drew parallels between Nazi Germany and the ongoing conflict in Gaza.“We refute our Jewishness being hijacked for the purpose of drawing a moral equivalence between a Nazi regime that sought to exterminate a race of people, and an Israeli nation that seeks to avert its own extermination,” the open letter, which was obtained by The Post, read. “Every civilian death in Gaza is tragic.

that Bruno Mars owes the company $50 million in gambling debt.“We’re proud of our relationship with Bruno Mars, one of the world’s most thrilling and dynamic performers. From his shows at Dolby Live at Park MGM to the new Pinky Ring lounge at Bellagio, Bruno’s brand of entertainment attracts visitors from around the globe,” the company told the Post in a statement.“MGM and Bruno’s partnership is longstanding and rooted in mutual respect. Any speculation otherwise is completely false; he has no debt with MGM,” the statement continued.

Kate Middleton’s visit to a local farm shop should be enough to quell wild conspiracy theories about her health, according to Palace sources.A “happy, healthy, and relaxed” Princess of Wales, 42, joined her husband Prince William for a quick visit to a farm shop in Windsor over the weekend.Video footage and images of the royal obtained by The Sun emerged on Monday and showed the mom of three looking well as she and the Prince of Wales, 41, bought some fresh produce during the outing.While Kensington Palace has not yet commented on the footage, royal sources tell The Post that the sighting should provide enough comfort to quash ongoing conspiracy theories once and for all.Middleton looked “positive and healthy,” an insider exclusively told The Post, adding that the sighting “should hopefully be enough to put an end to the outside noise about her recovery.”Another Palace source told the Telegraph, “Finally everyone can calm down.”It comes as royal officials are reportedly accelerating plans for Middleton’s return to the royal fold now that she’s recovering well.“The teams are working round the clock to devise the Princess of Wales’s back-to-work plan after weeks of immense pressure,” a source told the Mirror of the Princess’s return.“They all know that the world will be watching after weeks of heightened speculation and often outlandish commentary on social media.”Since returning home from her two-week stint at the hospital, Middleton has remained largely out of the limelight, opting to recover in her home at Adelaide Cottage in Windsor.In her absence from public life, several conspiracy theories have taken root, which only intensified after she posted a heavily edited UK Mother’s Day image that received a “kill notice”

Abe Sylvia‘s new Apple TV+ series stars Oscar winner Allison Janney, Oscar winner Laura Dern, Oscar and nine-time Emmy Award nominee Kristen Wiig, and latin music icon Ricky Martin. But the true star of “Palm Royale” may just be the one and only Carol Burnett.

This June, a long-gestating remake of the 1994 Brandon Lee comic book film “The Crow” will finally be released following various false starts over the years with versions meant to star actors like Jack Huston and Jason Momoa. The Rupert Sanders-directed (“Ghost In The Shell”) version stars rising actor Bill Skarsgård (the spitting image of the original artwork from James O’Barr’s comic book) as a new take on the undead vigilante Eric Draven.

Reality star James Argent has admitted he "really struggled" on Valentine's Day after splitting from his 19 year old girlfriend. The 36 year old former TOWIE star even went as far as avoiding social media on the day of love as he knew it wouldn't 'make him feel great'. James split from Stella Turian, 19, back in November after a year of dating.

Fat Friends focuses on a slimming club in Headingley, Leeds, which is run by the formidable Carol (played by Janet Dibley). She tried to persuade the members of the group to follow the "super slimmers" diet to varying degrees of success.The show first aired on ITV and ran for four series and starred a number of famous faces including Ruth Jones, James Corden, Gaynor Faye and Alison Steadman. 19 years after the series came to an end, Fat Friends is now available to stream on Netflix with a new generation enjoying the drama.

Roman Hackett, star of The Only Way is Essex, has opened up on his fiery altercation with co-star Chloe Brockett, which saw glasses being thrown.The argument reportedly took place in September 2023 during filming for the hit ITVBe and ITV2 show, with Chloe and Roman partaking in a furious war of words before things got physical. Now, Roman, 22, has spoken out about the fight, as he accused Chloe, 23, of twisting his words and explained why he didn't press charges - saying she's lucky that he didn't. Chloe was reportedly suspended from TOWIE after her fight with Roman, which allegedly saw her throw one glass at him, as he responded by throwing one back, before she hurled three tumbler glasses at him.