Chick Corea, a towering jazz pianist with a staggering 23 Grammy Awards who pushed the boundaries of the genre and worked alongside Miles Davis and Herbie Hancock, has died. He was 79.Corea died Tuesday of a rare form of cancer, his team posted on his website. His death was confirmed by Corea’s web and marketing manager, Dan Muse.On his Facebook page, Corea left a message to his fans: “I want to thank all of those along my journey who have helped keep the music fires burning bright. It is my hope that those who have an inkling to play, write, perform or otherwise, do so. If not for yourself then for the rest of us. It’s not only that the world needs more artists, it’s also just a lot of fun.”A prolific artist with dozens of albums, Corea in 1968 replaced Herbie Hancock in Miles Davis’ group, playing on the landmark albums “In a Silent Way” and “Bitches Brew.”Wide varietyHe formed his own avant-garde group, Circle, and then founded Return to Forever. He worked on many other projects, including duos with Hancock and vibraphonist Gary Burton. He recorded and performed classical music, standards, solo originals, Latin jazz and tributes to …

The president of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics organizing committee reportedly will resign after making sexist remarks about women that were disclosed to media.   Japan’s Kyodo news agency and other news outlets, citing unnamed sources, reported Thursday that Yoshiro Mori would step down on Friday after concluding he could not let the ensuing controversy continue.   A committee spokesman declined to comment on the reports.   The former prime minister reportedly said at an Olympics board of trustees meeting on Feb. 3 that “board meetings with lots of women take longer” because “if one member raises her hand to speak, others might think they need to talk, too.”   Mori retracted his comments and apologized the next day, saying he would not resign.   His remarks, which were leaked to a Japanese newspaper, sparked public debate in the country about gender equality.   The 83-year-old’s reported pending resignation has fueled concerns over the feasibility of holding the games later this year.     More than 80% of the Japanese public believe the games should be canceled or postponed, according to recent polls.   A meeting of the organizing committee executive board is planned for Friday.     In an interview …

The Oscars ceremony, delayed until April 25 due to the coronavirus pandemic that has rocked the entire film industry, will be broadcast live from “multiple sites,” including Hollywood, the Academy announced on Wednesday.Despite the COVID-19 epidemic, which still places restrictions on the Los Angeles area, “the Academy is determined to present an Oscar ceremony like no other, while emphasizing the public health and safety of all the participants,” said a spokesperson for the Academy of Cinema Arts and Sciences, which presents the prestigious golden statuettes.”To create the live performance that our global audience wants to see while adapting to the constraints of the pandemic, the ceremony will be broadcast live from multiple venues, including the iconic Dolby Theater” which traditionally hosts the Oscars in the heart of Hollywood, according to the statement sent to AFP.The Academy has not given more details at this stage on the ceremony or the distribution of sites for this 93rd edition, the culmination of a season of film awards upset by the health crisis, between closure of cinemas and postponement of many big productions.This is not the first time that the Oscars ceremony has been held simultaneously in several locations. In the 1950s, the broadcast …

Jay-Z, Foo Fighters, Tina Turner and Iron Maiden lead this year’s nominees to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, a female-heavy list of 16 acts that includes for the first time The Go-Go’s, Mary J. Blige and Dionne Warwick. Artists are eligible for a nomination 25 years after the release of their first official recording. There are two newly eligible acts in Jay-Z and Foo Fighters while artists nominated for the first time include Blige, The Go-Go’s, Iron Maiden, Warwick and Afrobeat pioneer Fela Kuti. Several candidates are looking for a second spot in the hall. Turner would be inducted for a second time, having gone to the hall as part of Ike & Tina Turner in 1991. Nominee Carole King is already in the hall as a songwriter and she would go in again this time as a performer. Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl is already in the hall as a member of Nirvana. If elected, King and Turner would become the second and third female artists inducted twice, following Stevie Nicks’ 2019 election; she was also in as a member of Fleetwood Mac.   “This remarkable ballot reflects the diversity and depth of the artists and music …

The Super Bowl champion Tampa Bay Buccaneers are celebrating their victory Wednesday with a boat parade amid continued concern over the coronavirus pandemic. The parade will be held on the Hillsborough River near downtown Tampa. Mayor Jane Castor is again emphasizing that people attending the parade must wear masks outdoors and observe social distancing rules. After Tampa Bay’s 31-9 win over the Kansas City Chiefs in Sunday’s title game, throngs of people gathered in the city’s entertainment districts. Many were seen maskless despite the ordinances requiring them. Brian Ford, chief operating officer of the Buccaneers, said in video announcement that fans should heed the rules as they celebrate the team’s victory. “It’s essential we do it the right way,” Ford said. “We want to do our part to ensure it’s done in a safe and responsible manner.” The boat parade is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. Wednesday. …

Deep into this pandemic winter, it can be hard to remember what a refuge gardens were last spring and summer. In those frightening early days of COVID-19, victory gardens and household vegetable plots sprang up all over. Seed companies reported shortages. Hardware stores saw a run on garden tools. Millions found comfort, release and a sense of safety outdoors with their hands in the dirt. That feels like a long time ago. We dreaded this winter, and we weren’t wrong: January was the deadliest month yet from the virus. Political violence shook Americans’ sense of security and shared purpose. Businesses and household incomes are struggling. And the human interactions that might help us process all this anxiety and grief are discouraged. Yet the garden is still there, hunkering down too. And it can still help. Even in winter, it can provide solace, inspiration and perspective. Fresh air. And an assurance that spring is coming. “From December to March, there are for many of us three gardens — the garden outdoors, the garden of pots and bowls in the house, and the garden of the mind’s eye,” Katherine S. White, an editor and writer at The New Yorker and an avid …

As the world grappled with COVID-19, a recession and a racial reckoning, the ultrawealthy gave to a broader set of causes than ever before — bestowing multimillion-dollar gifts on food pantries, historically Black colleges and universities and organizations that serve the poor and the homeless, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s annual rankings of the 50 Americans who gave the most to charity last year.Another cause that got outsize attention from billionaire philanthropists: climate change. Jeff Bezos topped the list by donating $10 billion to launch the Bezos Earth Fund. Bezos, who last week announced he was stepping down as Amazon CEO to devote more time to philanthropy and other projects, also contributed $100 million to Feeding America, the organization that supplies more than 200 food banks.FILE – In this March 4, 2018, file photo, then-MacKenzie Bezos arrives at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in Beverly Hills, Calif. MacKenzie Scott is one of the 50 Americans who gave the most to charity in 2020.No. 2 on the list was Bezos’s ex-wife, MacKenzie Scott, who gave $5.7 billion in 2020 by asking community leaders to help identify 512 organizations for seven- and eight-figure gifts, including food banks, human-service organizations, and racial-justice …

As the world grappled with COVID-19, a recession and a racial reckoning, the ultrawealthy gave to a broader set of causes than ever before — bestowing multimillion-dollar gifts on food pantries, historically Black colleges and universities and organizations that serve the poor and the homeless, according to the Chronicle of Philanthropy’s annual rankings of the 50 Americans who gave the most to charity last year.Another cause that got outsize attention from billionaire philanthropists: climate change. Jeff Bezos topped the list by donating $10 billion to launch the Bezos Earth Fund. Bezos, who last week announced he was stepping down as Amazon CEO to devote more time to philanthropy and other projects, also contributed $100 million to Feeding America, the organization that supplies more than 200 food banks.FILE – In this March 4, 2018, file photo, then-MacKenzie Bezos arrives at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in Beverly Hills, Calif. MacKenzie Scott is one of the 50 Americans who gave the most to charity in 2020.No. 2 on the list was Bezos’s ex-wife, MacKenzie Scott, who gave $5.7 billion in 2020 by asking community leaders to help identify 512 organizations for seven- and eight-figure gifts, including food banks, human-service organizations, and racial-justice …

When Cameroonian golf champion Issa Nlareb Amang lost his legs and most of his fingers to meningitis in 2018, many thought his life in the sport was over.  But, thanks to donors, he was able to get prosthetics that allowed him to return to the game and become the only disabled professional golfer in West Africa.   As a child,  Issa Nlareb Amang, now 30,  liked to play at his neighborhood golf course.      He quickly went from being a ball boy to a caddy, and then from playing golf to becoming a champion of Cameroon and West Africa.   Amang was the first African to gain entry to the ALPS Tour, a non-profit by Austria, France, Italy and Switzerland to improve young golf professionals’ tournament skills. But during a 2018 tournament in Egypt, Amang caught meningitis, an inflammation of brain and spinal cord membranes.   He went into a coma and, suffering from septic shock, had to have most of his fingers and both legs amputated.    Despite the traumatic loss, Amang says he has never given up.  He says it was very complicated to have prosthetics and to be standing, he says.  But it was possible because people put their hands together, says Amang, they have contributed.   Amang got prosthetic limbs thanks to golf federations and other donors and was able to get back on the golf course.    Pharmacist Aude Bahounoui, one of Amang’s donors, says that when Amang was sick, she had her doubts.  But as the golfer was abroad, he was sending photos to her, showing his training.  She says little by little she became confident that Amang was going to make …

Super Bowl 2021 in now history – and it also made history for a number of reasons. Maxim Moskalkov has the story.Camera:  Yuriy Zakrevskiy    …

The head of the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said Tuesday that the pilot of the helicopter that crashed and killed basketball superstar Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and seven others apparently violated federal safety standards by flying into clouds. The Sikorsky S-76B helicopter was taking the passengers to a youth basketball tournament amid heavy fog in January 2020 when it crashed into hilly terrain outside Los Angeles. NTSB Chairman Robert Sumwalt made the revelation at the beginning of a meeting to determine the likely cause of the crash. Pilots can experience “spatial disorientation” when they are unable to see the sky or landscape around them, NTSB investigator-in-charge Bill English said.  FILE – Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna are honored along with all of the other helicopter crash victims, in Miami Gardens, Fla., Feb. 2, 2020.The board said in June that Pilot Ara Zobayan told air traffic controllers the helicopter was climbing out of heavy clouds when it was, instead, descending immediately before crashing into a hillside near the town of Calabasas. Some attendees at the hearing traded blame for the crash. Bryant’s widow, Vanessa Bryant, faulted the pilot, while she and relatives of the other victims blamed the companies that owned and …

America’s latest first lady is breaking with tradition as the first presidential spouse to keep her job while in the White House.  Jill Biden, who has a doctorate in education, is an English professor at a community college near Washington.  “I think in particular, the fact that she is in a profession that is seen as a helping profession, that is seen as not innately a controversial profession, that she will be more accepted by the American people in continuing her professional life,” says Katherine Jellison, a professor of history at Ohio University. “Also, she’s in a traditionally female profession — teaching.”  Sorry, but your browser cannot support embedded video of this type, you can Jacqueline Kennedy poses during a tour of the White House East Room in Washington in 1962.Ever since she embraced historic preservation in the 1960s, every first lady has adopted at least one public service project.   Lady Bird Johnson was an environmentalist who pushed for the preservation of wildflowers and other native plants. Nancy Reagan encouraged children to “Just Say No” to drugs. Barbara Bush championed literacy for children and adults, while Michelle Obama promoted healthy eating by planting a White House vegetable garden. “Things that are related to women — children, health literacy, …

U.S. rhythm and blues singer Mary Wilson, who rose to fame as a member of the legendary female singing trio The Supremes in the 1960s, has died at the age of 76.   Her friend, publicist Jay Schwartz, said Wilson died suddenly Monday at her home in Las Vegas, Nevada.      Wilson founded The Supremes with Diana Ross and Florence Ballard while living in a public housing project in Detroit, Michigan in 1959.  The group signed with local R&B music label Motown Records two years later, but their first hit did not occur until 1964 with the classic chart-topping single “Where Did Our Love Go.”   The Supremes would go on to sing a record 12 number one hits, including such classics as “Baby Love,” “Come See About Me,” “Stop! In the Name of Love,” “I Hear a Symphony,” and “You Can’t Hurry Love.”  Their songs, numerous television appearances and live shows made them one of most popular musical acts of the 1960s,  and helped transform Motown Records into an iconic figure on the American cultural landscape.   Ballard was replaced by Cindy Birdsong in 1967, and Ross left the group in 1969 for a solo career, but Wilson …

The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board meets Tuesday to vote on a probable cause for the helicopter crash that killed basketball superstar Kobe Bryant, his daughter Gianna, and seven others in California last year. The NTSB has said there was no sign of mechanical failure on the helicopter, and that the crash is believed to be an accident. Board members Tuesday could give recommendations for how to prevent similar disasters in the future. The helicopter was taking the eight passengers to a youth basketball tournament amid heavy fog when it crashed into hilly terrain outside Los Angeles.  …

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers defeated the Kansas City Chiefs 31-9 Sunday to win a Super Bowl title and complete the National Football League’s season without any games being canceled amid the coronavirus pandemic.The usual spectacle surrounding one of the most watched television events of the year was toned down, and the site of the game was more subdued with only 25,000 fans in attendance and the rest of the seats filled with cardboard cutouts. Fans were absent from the seats closest to the field and were spaced apart. Those trying to buy food had to do so without using cash.Among those who did get to see the game in person were approximately 7,500 health care workers who were among the first in the United States to get COVID-19 vaccines.“I have to start by saluting all the health care workers here. They’re the real champions,” Buccaneers owner Joel Glazer said after the game.The events leading up to the game itself were mostly virtual, and access to locker rooms was more limited this year. And while Tampa Bay got the rare chance to play a Super Bowl in its home stadium, the Kansas City team delayed its travel until the day before …

Christopher Plummer, the dashing, award-winning actor who played Captain von Trapp in the film The Sound of Music and at 82 became the oldest Academy Award acting winner in history, has died. He was 91.Plummer died Friday morning at his home in Connecticut with his wife, Elaine Taylor, by his side, said Lou Pitt, his longtime friend and manager.Across more than 50 years in the industry, Plummer enjoyed varied roles. He was a sophisticated businessman in the film The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, the voice of the villain in 2009’s Up and a canny lawyer in Broadway’s Inherit the Wind. In 2019, he starred as a murdered mystery novelist in Rian Johnson’s whodunnit Knives Out.But it was his role as von Trapp, opposite Julie Andrews, that made him a star. He played an Austrian captain who must flee the country with his folk-singing family to escape service in the Nazi navy, a role he lamented was “humorless and one-dimensional.” Plummer spent the rest of his life referring to the film as “The Sound of Mucus” or “S&M.”‘Cardboard figure’”We tried so hard to put humor into it,” he told The Associated Press in 2007. “It was almost impossible. It was just agony to try …

Donald Trump has resigned from the Screen Actors Guild after the union threatened to expel him for his role in the Capitol riot in January.In a letter dated Thursday and addressed to SAG-AFTRA president Gabrielle Carteris, Trump said he was resigning from the union that he had been a member of since 1989. “I no longer wish to be associated with your union,” wrote Trump in a letter shared by the actors guild. “As such, this letter is to inform you of my immediate resignation from SAG-AFTRA. You have done nothing for me.”  The guild responded with a short statement: “Thank you.”  Last month, the SAG-AFTRA board voted that there was probable cause that Trump violated its guidelines for membership by his role in the Jan. 6 Capitol siege. Trump, the guild said, had sustained “a reckless campaign of misinformation aimed at discrediting and ultimately threatening the safety of journalists, many of whom are SAG-AFTRA members.” Trump’s case was to be weighed by a disciplinary committee. In his letter, the former president said he had no interest in such a hearing. “Who cares?” he wrote.”While I’m not familiar with your work, I’m very proud of my work on movies such as ‘Home Alone 2,’ ‘Zoolander’ and ‘Wall …

On frozen lakes and snow-covered fields in Canada’s wilds, magnificent geometric formations have suddenly appeared — the work of a retired headmaster stomping around in snowshoes to beat back pandemic blues. “I start with a shape — a hexagon, a square or a triangle — and draw lines through it or intersecting circles,” Kim Asmussen said in a telephone interview. The 62-year-old spends a lot of time tinkering with sketches in advance, he told AFP, “because once you’ve made a mark in the snow you can’t erase it. It’s not like drawing on a piece of paper. This undated family handout photo obtained Feb. 4, 2021, shows retired headmaster and artist Kim Asmussen in Schreiber, Ontario.”The biggest part,” he explained, “is just figuring out how we’re gonna go about walking it. You have to go back and forth quite a bit to pack the snow.” He started last year and has made 20 snowshoe artworks in and around the town of Schreiber, Ontario, about 1,200 kilometers (750 miles) northwest of Toronto on the shores of Lake Superior, which he photographs using drones and posts online. The largest measures about 400 meters long. Compass, rope, friends Asmussen said he uses drafting software to create designs and mapping tools …

An outcry by Hindu nationalists and criminal complaints for allegedly hurting Hindus’ religious sentiment has prompted the director of a new Amazon television political drama to delete scenes that allegedly mocked Hindi deities and a dialogue with derisive references to lower castes.The show, Tandav, released last month here, was widely expected to win many viewers as it boasted of some of the biggest names in Bollywood. But political analysts say the backlash against the TV series has again put the spotlight on a rising tide of Hindu nationalism in India.  “This signals a new political culture supportive of intolerance, of a hardline Hindu ideology which is endorsed by the ruling party,” said Niranjan Sahoo at the Observer Research Foundation in New Delhi, pointing out that members of the ruling right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party and Hindu groups were among those who filed police complaints, voiced strident objections and called for the show to be banned.A Bharatiya Janata Party supporter wearing mask rests on bike as she waits to take part in a protest against The Amazon Prime Video web series Tandav in Mumbai, India, Jan 19, 2021.The TV show is centered on a power-hungry politician bent on becoming India’s prime minister. The …

Pope Francis Thursday said his thoughts are with musicians and those who work in the music industry whose livelihood has been all but eliminated by restrictions imposed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.In a video message he delivered to an international conference on music, Pope Francis said he knows musicians have seen their lives and livelihoods “upset” by the pandemic and how their work, training and communities have suffered due to COVID-19-related restrictions.He also credited the “significant efforts” made by those musicians who have continued working through the pandemic through virtual or isolated performances. He said those are “valid efforts” not only for music in the church but in concert halls and other places, “music is a service of the community.”The pope said he hoped “this aspect of social life can also be reborn, that we return to singing, playing and enjoying music and singing together.” He said that music, whether through voice, instruments or written compositions, express the “harmony of the voice of God,” and the “symphony” of this universal brotherhood.As Pope, Francis has never showed particular passion for music, unlike his predecessor, Pope Benedict, who was passionate about classical music and continued to play the piano even …

After three years of negotiations with the late controversial art collector Douglas Latchford and his family, more than 100 Cambodian artifacts will be returned to Cambodia, according to the government.How Latchford, a British art collector and co-author of three books on Cambodian art and antiques, built his collection was a topic of art world speculation. He faced accusations of trafficking the artifacts to his homes in Bangkok and London. In November 2019, federal prosecutors in New York City charged Latchford with falsifying the provenance, invoices and shipping documents to transport valuable Khmer-era relics to private collections, museums and auction houses across the world.At the time, FILE – Cambodia’s famed Angkor Wat ancient Hindu temple complex stands in Siem Reap province, some 230 kilometers northwest of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, June 28, 2012.The first shipment of five artifacts is expected to arrive in late February or early March. Cambodian authorities anticipate these will include a 10th-century sandstone sculpture of Hindu deities Shiva and Skanda, a 12th-century sandstone sculpture of Prajnaparamita – a female deity worshipped during the Khmer Empire – and a bronze statue of a male deity from the late 11th century.Kriangsak said she didn’t anticipate the complexity of the lengthy …

American pop star Rihanna tweeted about ongoing farmers’ protests in India this week, sparking attention from other big names on social media and anger from the Indian government.   “Why aren’t we talking about this?!” Rihanna tweeted on Tuesday, with a link to a CNN article about ongoing protests.why aren’t we talking about this?! #FarmersProtesthttps://t.co/obmIlXhK9S— Rihanna (@rihanna) February 2, 2021The tweet, which has been liked more than a half-million times in the past day, sparked attention from climate activist Greta Thunberg and the niece of Vice President Kamala Harris.We stand in solidarity with the #FarmersProtest in India.https://t.co/tqvR0oHgo0— Greta Thunberg (@GretaThunberg) February 2, 2021″It’s no coincidence that the world’s oldest democracy was attacked not even a month ago, and as we speak, the most populous democracy is under assault. This is related. We ALL should be outraged by India’s internet shutdowns and paramilitary violence against farmer protesters,” Meena Harris tweeted.But its reception in India was mixed.   In a statement released Wednesday, India’s Ministry of External Affairs said that the issue was a domestic one and accused “vested interest groups” of mobilizing international support against India.   “Before rushing to comment on such matters, we would urge that the facts be …

Hollywood period drama “Mank” got a leading six nominations on Wednesday for the 2021 Golden Globe awards in film, while television shows “The Crown” and “The Mandalorian” will be among those competing for best series. Streaming service Netflix Inc dominated the nominations in both film, with 22 nods, and television (20) after a year in which the coronavirus pandemic prompted Hollywood studios to push back dozens of their film releases, and many movie theaters were closed for months. The contest for the Golden Globe best drama film awards will also include modern Great Recession-era story “Nomadland,” 1960s Vietnam War protest drama “The Trial of the Chicago 7,” #MeToo revenge story “Promising Young Woman and aging family drama “The Father.” Sacha Baron Cohen’s satire on former President Donald Trump’s America, “Borat Subsequent Moviefilm;” the film version of the hit Broadway musical “Hamilton;” LGBTQ musical “The Prom;” “Music” and time-loop comedy “Palm Springs” will compete in a separate category for musicals and comedies. The Golden Globe awards, which kick off a pandemic-era Hollywood awards season, are due to be handed out at a ceremony on Feb. 28, hosted by actors Tina Fey and Amy Poehler. The nominees and winners are selected by …

Whether anyone will be attending the Golden Globes in person remains uncertain and improbable. But nominations to the 78th Globes will be announced Wednesday, nevertheless. Hollywood’s strange and largely virtual awards season lacks the usual kind of buzz and red-carpet glamour that the Hollywood Foreign Press Association annually feasts on. More than perhaps any other award show, the Globes depend on a cavalcade of stars — something that won’t materialize when the awards are handed out February 28 in a ceremony hosted by Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.  Virtual announcementNominations will be announced virtually at 8:35 a.m. ET Wednesday by presenters Sarah Jessica Parker and Taraji P. Henson. They will reveal 12 categories on NBC’s “Today” show, with full nominees announced live on E! digital channels and the Golden Globes’ website. Without any in-person screenings or photo ops with stars, little is known about how the roughly 90-member press association — a notoriously unpredictable group, in normal times — is swaying this year. But one thing may be a lock: Netflix will land a whole lot of nominations. Several of the streaming service’s films — including Spike Lee’s “Da 5 Bloods,” David Fincher’ “Mank” and Aaron Sorkin’s “The Trial of the Chicago 7” — …