Astroworld Festival hits a high note - Chron

• 

  Thousands of people come to participate Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival at NRG Park on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2019, in Houston.

  Thousands of people come to participate Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival at NRG Park on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2019, in Houston.

  Photo: Yi-Chin Lee, Staff Photographer

Photo: Yi-Chin Lee, Staff Photographer

Image 1 of / 82

Caption

Close

Image 1 of 82

Thousands of people come to participate Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival at NRG Park on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2019, in Houston.

Thousands of people come to participate Travis Scott's Astroworld Festival at NRG Park on Saturday, Nov. 9, 2019, in Houston.

Photo: Yi-Chin Lee, Staff Photographer

Astroworld Festival hits a high note

1  /  82

Back to Gallery

Travis Scott knows how to put on a festival.

His second annual Astroworld Festival is a blueprint others should follow. Perfect time of year. A diverse, fresh lineup. A smart blend of local nostalgia and current culture.

THE FULL STORY: See more photos, video and get a recap of the Astroworld Festival

And he keeps people guessing. The lineup, a diverse mix of genres, dropped just before noon Friday and included shock rocker Marilyn Manson, Pharrell Williams and the Houston All Stars rap collective. That meant it was at the top of social media trends as a lead up to Saturday.

It was great to see two women, local breakout Megan Thee Stallion and Spanish singer Rosalía, breaking up the testosterone — even if they were both relegated to the smaller second stage. Last year’s inaugural fest was all men.

Tickets sold out in September, but more were released Friday. More than 50,000 people were expected to attend Saturday at NRG Park, across the street from the old Astroworld location.

Scott has frequently mentioned the iconic amusement park that entertained locals with roller coasters, a water park and an outdoor concert venue. He's named the festival, an album and tour after it and has used old Astroworld footage as a promotional tool.

Astroworld opened on June 1, 1968 and closed on Oct. 30, 2005. Buoyed by Scott's love for the park, Mayor Sylvester Turner has vowed to bring it back. He tweeted last month to expect an announcement before the end of the year.

Until then, Scott's extravaganza is a solid substitute. Aside from music, the daylong event featured carnival rides and games. Some opted for the funhouse, complete with warped mirrors and mazes. Others congregated at an old-school arcade that boasted skee ball, air hockey and a prize crane.

A large silver skull that resembled Scott welcomed fans once they entered the gates. It replaced last year’s gold Scott head. Lines for food and rides grew quickly. Several young men walked around with multiple bags of Astroworld merch, including hoodies and sweat pants.

This year’s edition was much more crowded much earlier. Some fans even lined up Friday night to be the first inside. The excited crowds initially overwhelmed staff, breaking through the gates and rushing toward the entrance. Three people suffered leg injuries during the stampede and were transported to Memorial Hermann Hospital, according to the Houston Fire Department.

The Houston Police tweeted Saturday that they were “working together to support Houston's biggest music festival” and were “collaborating closely with the festival to ensure the public safety of everyone attending the event.”

Fans raced between stages throughout the day to catch Migos, Pharrell Williams, Young Thug and Sheck Wes, who closed his expletive-filled set by telling fans to “keep following your dreams.” Each act was given 30 minutes with the exception of Scott, whose closing set was 75 minutes.

Even before the “Htown Hottie” took the stage, the crowd warmed up with chants of “Megan! Megan!” It’s no surprise. Megan Thee Stallion is one of the biggest new stars of the year, and her “hot girl summer” catchphrase became a national obsession. She was given a slightly later time slot when Gucci Mane was mysteriously dropped from the lineup.

Megan strutted onstage in a leopard bodysuit and a braid past her knees. She packed her set with a lot, from dancers to crowd participation. She brought several people onstage to join in the twerk-fest.

She was here last month for a headlining show at Revention Music Center, but this performance felt rawer and more aggressive. She has a bracing energy when she raps, leading the crowd through several songs, including “Realer,” “Simon Says” and “Hot Girl Summer.” Next year,

The Stallion deserves a nighttime slot on the main stage.

The Houston All Stars had a big mid-afternoon crowd throwing their H’s up and included Slim Thug, Paul Wall, Lil Flip, Trae Tha Truth and Bun B. Slim Thug thanked “the lil homie Travis Scott” for putting on the festival.

Maxo Kream, a newer name among the local legends, brought a rush of energy and prompted the crowd to form a mosh pit. He was dressed in Oilers blue and red to further push the Htown vibe.

joey.guerra@chron.com

twitter.com/joeyguerra

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/houston/article/astroworld-1110-14823208.php

2019-11-10 08:57:00Z
52780430550771

John Travolta Shares Rare Photo of Son Ben, 8, in Plane Cockpit: He's 'Taking My Place!' - msnNOW

John Travolta‘s son is ready for takeoff!

© Provided by Meredith Corporation John Travolta Shares Rare Photo of Son Ben, 8, in Plane Cockpit: He's 'Taking My Place!'

On Saturday, the Grease actor, 65, posted a rare photo of his 8-year-old son, Ben, looking ready to fly while sitting in the cockpit of an airplane and wearing a pilot’s cap.

In the image, Ben is seen hanging out in the pilot seat with a friend. Travolta noted in his Instagram caption that his son was pretend-flying his “first A380 @qantas flight.”

“My son Ben is taking my place!” Travolta added, referencing his own role as an ambassador for Qantas Airways.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories

The actor became a Qantas Ambassador n June 2002, according to the airline’s website, and was presented with his 747-400 “wings” after undergoing training with the airline in Sydney and Boeing in Seattle.

Replay Video

While Travolta does not typically put his kids, Ben and Ella Bleu, 19 — who he shares with wife Kelly Preston — in the spotlight, he opened up to PEOPLE this summer about some of their most recent interests.

Travolta said he couldn’t be prouder of his daughter, who decided to follow in the footsteps of her famous parents and pursue acting. She recently starred in The Poison Rose, a thriller that starred her father and Morgan Freeman.

© James Gourley/REX/Shutterstock James Gourley/REX/Shutterstock

“She is her own person. She is gracious, generous, poised, graceful and gorgeous. I don’t know how she came to be, and I don’t take any credit other than just adoring her,” said Travolta. “And maybe that’s a valid contribution.”

Meanwhile, he said his son Ben is also keeping busy with several hobbies of his own.

“He’s into gymnastics, tennis, fishing and the computer world, like all the kids,” added the actor.

Travolta also shared that he believes it’s important to let kids be able to speak their mind.

“I really do believe that children have rights. Just because they are little bodies doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t have a say-so,” he said. “I find when you consult them, they can come up with much better ideas than yours.”

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.msn.com/en-us/movies/celebrity/john-travolta-shares-rare-photo-of-son-ben-8-in-plane-cockpit-hes-taking-my-place/ar-BBWwkiJ

2019-11-10 05:40:00Z
CBMihwFodHRwczovL3d3dy5tc24uY29tL2VuLXVzL21vdmllcy9jZWxlYnJpdHkvam9obi10cmF2b2x0YS1zaGFyZXMtcmFyZS1waG90by1vZi1zb24tYmVuLTgtaW4tcGxhbmUtY29ja3BpdC1oZXMtdGFraW5nLW15LXBsYWNlL2FyLUJCV3draUrSAQA

Original 'Marlboro Man' Robert 'Bob' Norris has died - CNN

Robert 'Bob' Norris died in the care of Pikes Peak Hospice in Colorado Springs, Colorado, on Nov. 3, according to a statement released by Tee Cross Ranches, which he founded. Norris was 90.

"If any man could be described in three words, for Bob they would be 'the real deal.' His solid authenticity, whether astride a horse, sitting in a board room, mentoring a child or sharing a moment with a friend, was his personal and professional brand. No doubt it was these qualities -- along with his tall, ruggedly handsome, lanky good looks -- that landed him the unexpected role of the first 'Marlboro Man' on television," the statement on the ranch's website said.

Norris, who was "never a smoker," was featured in the commercials for 14 years, according to the statement. He abandoned the advertising campaign when Norris "felt he was setting a poor example for his children," the statement added.

Norris was a member of the board of trustees for the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, also known as the Cowboy Hall of Fame, the ranch's website said.

CNN's Shawn Nottingham contributed to this report.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.cnn.com/2019/11/09/us/robert-norris-marlboro-man-death-trnd/index.html

2019-11-10 03:25:00Z
CAIiEK01bTFC0VsKxL3RVWTi2bUqGQgEKhAIACoHCAowocv1CjCSptoCMIrUpgU

Penelope Disick, 7, Piggybacks Brother Reign, 4, As Kourtney Escapes To Kanye’s Wyoming Ranch — Pics - Hollybaby

Kourtney Kardashian was enjoying a weekend in the country at Kanye West’s $14 million Wyoming ranch!

Kourtney Kardashian, 40, escaped the hustle and bustle of Los Angeles for a low key family weekend. The mom-of-three shared the cutest family photos and videos as they took in the relaxing scenery in Wyoming — including a hilarious video of her 7-year-old daughter Penelope Disick giving her little brother Reign, 4, a piggy back! Sweet Reign was all smiles as he rocked a beanie that read “Tuff Crowd” while stylish P — who also goes by the nickname Poosh — ran as fast as she could in her stylish cowboy boots! 9-year-old Mason also appeared to be having a blast as he ran through a field with a white hoodie. “We have everything we need 🙏🏼,” Kourtney captioned the family memories.

The reality star and her kids were bundled up for the chilly temperatures, which are in the 50 degree range during the day. Kourt was cute and cozy in short olive puffer jacket, matching pants, and beige hiking boots as she held a sleepy Reign in her arms. Other images show the gorgeous scenery on the sprawling property, including a breathtaking sunrise, a trip to the horse barn, and a super-fun ride on an ATV four-wheeler! The endless fields looked like an absolute dream, and the kids were taking full advantage of their nature-filled getaway!

The 9,000-acre property — which is called Monster Lake Ranch — was purchased by Kourtney’s brother-in-law Kanye West for $14 million back in September. Kanye technically owns 4,500 acres of the land, located just out of Cody, which features eight-lodging units, two freshwater lakes, a restaurant, and, of course, horse barns. The family property seems to be put to good use already, as Kim Kardashian, 39, shared photos of her getaway there with daughters North, 6, and Chicago, 1 back on Sept. 14. Kanye, who is also a fan of visiting Jackson Hole, was also using the space to put the finishing touches on his upcoming Jesus Is King album.

Given Kourtney’s passion for holistic wellness, travel and all things nature — as documented on her lifestyle site Poosh — we aren’t surprised to see her kicking back at the stunning ranch!

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://hollywoodlife.com/2019/11/09/kourtney-kardashian-wyoming-vacation-kids-see-cute-pics/

2019-11-10 04:24:00Z
52780431174726

Woody Allen Settles $68 Million Suit Against Amazon - Variety

Woody Allen has settled his breach of contract lawsuit against Amazon, which canceled a four-picture deal with the filmmaker amid the #MeToo movement.

Allen’s attorneys and lawyers for Amazon filed a joint notice dismissing the case on Friday night. Terms of the settlement were not disclosed.

Allen filed suit in February, alleging that Amazon had unilaterally backed out of the deal due to a “25-year-old baseless allegation.” Allen’s daughter, Dylan Farrow, has long alleged that he raped her when she was seven years old, and Allen has long denied the charge.

Allen claimed that Amazon was fully aware of that controversy when it entered the contract, and that the streamer owed him $68 million in minimum guarantee payments.

Amazon shelved the release of “A Rainy Day in New York” in 2018, and then canceled a deal for three more films. At the time, Amazon cited Allen’s “controversial comments” about the Weinstein scandal. In a motion to dismiss part of Allen’s suit, Amazon argued that Allen’s remarks on the scandal — in which he warned about a “witch-hunt atmosphere” — had made him a pariah in Hollywood.

“Scores of actors and actresses expressed profound regret for having worked with Allen in the past, and many declared publicly that they would never work with him in the future,” Amazon’s attorneys said. “Allen’s actions and their cascading consequences ensured that Amazon could never possibly receive the benefit of its four-picture agreement.”

Allen’s company, Gravier Productions, managed to get an international release for “A Rainy Day in New York” this fall, and it has so far grossed $11.5 million in theaters around the globe. It has not secured U.S. distribution.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://variety.com/2019/biz/news/woody-allen-amazon-settlement-1203399424/

2019-11-09 17:05:00Z
CAIiEL1z3-aq0IHpxzRj9qrQZCkqFwgEKg8IACoHCAowraj2AjC5-iIwzItb

'Wheel of Fortune' taping interrupted for Pat Sajak emergency surgery, Vanna White to host - NBC News

A taping of "Wheel of Fortune" was canceled Thursday after host Pat Sajak had to undergo emergency surgery for a blocked intestine, the show tweeted Friday afternoon.

The surgery was successful, the show said in the tweet.

Let our news meet your inbox. The news and stories that matters, delivered weekday mornings.

"He is resting comfortably and looking forward to getting back to work," representatives from "Wheel of Fortune" tweeted.

Vanna White stepped into the role of host to finish taping Friday.

Our taping on Thursday was canceled because host Pat Sajak underwent successful emergency surgery to correct a blocked intestine. He is resting comfortably and looking forward to getting back to work. Taping resumed today as scheduled and Vanna White has stepped in as host. pic.twitter.com/09zYOCE4hL

— Wheel of Fortune (@WheelofFortune) November 8, 2019

Wheel of Fortune is in its 37th season of syndication, according to CBS. Sajak and White have hosted the show together since its debut.

Sajak was in great spirits last week when he attended his longtime producer Harry Friedman's Hollywood Star of Fame ceremony.

He, along with White, spoke at the event, lauding Friedman for his accomplishments and posing for photos.

Sajak is one of the longest running television hosts in the United States. Another longtime TV host, Alex Trebek of "Jeopardy" has also recently had health issues. Trebek was diagnosed with stage 4 pancreatic cancer earlier this year.

Samantha Kubota

Samantha Kubota is a digital journalist and editor for TODAY.com.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.nbcnews.com/pop-culture/tv/wheel-fortune-taping-interrupted-pat-sajak-emergency-surgery-vanna-white-n1079231

2019-11-09 15:30:00Z
52780430720393

Roman Polanski Accused of 1975 Rape - The New York Times

PARIS — A French photographer has accused the director Roman Polanski of violently raping her in 1975 in his ski chalet in Switzerland when she was 18, the sixth woman to publicly accuse Mr. Polanski of sexually abusing her as a teenager.

The director, who is preparing to release a film on Wednesday dealing with themes of injustice, “firmly denied” the latest accusation, his lawyer said.

In a letter published online Friday by the French newspaper Le Parisien, the photographer, Valentine Monnier, 62, said she was breaking 44 years of silence after a recent interview by Mr. Polanski. In it, the director suggested that he was a victim of persecution, like the main subject of his new film, Alfred Dreyfus, a Jewish military officer wrongly convicted of treason in what remains France’s most notorious miscarriage of justice.

“Is it credible to hear somebody say, ‘I accuse’ when they have branded you and forbidden you, the victim, to accuse him?” Ms. Monnier said in an interview published by the same newspaper.

A lawyer for Mr. Polanski, Hervé Temime, said on Saturday: “For 45 years, these accusations have never been reported to judicial authorities. I strongly deplore their publication a few days before the release of his film.”

Ms. Monnier told Le Parisien that she went to Mr. Polanski’s chalet in Gstaad, Switzerland, in the winter of 1975 with friends, but had not known him personally. When the group went skiing, she said, he propositioned her in vulgar terms while they were seated together on a ski lift, and she declined.

Later that evening, after returning to the chalet from dinner, Mr. Polanski called her upstairs, she said. “Life had not yet trained me to be suspicious,” she told the paper. When Ms. Monnier arrived on the top landing, she continued, Mr. Polanski emerged naked and threw himself on her, striking her, tearing off her clothes and then raping her.

“I was totally shocked,” she told the paper. “I weighed 50 kilos. Polanski was small but muscular and at 42 was in the prime of his life. He got the upper hand in two minutes.”

She said she remembered fearing she would die. “I said to myself, this is Roman Polanski. He can’t take the risk that this would be known, so he will have to kill me.”

Mr. Polanski later apologized to her in tears, she said.

Ms. Monnier said she wanted to speak publicly in order to bring an end to “idolizing the guilty ones.”

Mr. Polanski has lived in France since 1978, when he fled the United States before sentencing after pleading guilty to having unlawful sex with a 13-year-old girl.

Because the statute of limitations for rape is 20 years in France, her accusation cannot lead to an investigation or prosecution. “I denounce this crime knowing that there can’t be any punishment, in an attempt to end exceptions, impunity,” she said in Le Parisien.

In an email to The New York Times on Saturday, Ms. Monnier declined to comment further.

Le Parisien, reported that it had spoken with members of Ms. Monnier’s entourage, including a close friend, family members and her then-boyfriend, who corroborated her story.

Mr. Polanski’s new film, known in English as “An Officer and a Spy,” is titled “J’Accuse” in French, after the famous open letter in which the writer Émile Zola accused the French establishment of anti-Semitism and deception over the jailing of Dreyfus.

In an interview published in August with a French writer discussing “An Officer and a Spy,” which is scheduled to be released in French theaters in the coming week, Mr. Polanski said: “There are moments of this story that I feel I’ve lived myself.

“Every season there’s a new accusation, a new absurd story from a woman I’ve never seen in my life and who accuses me of things that supposedly happened a half century ago.”

In 2017, a German former actress, Renate Langer, accused Mr. Polanski of raping her in 1972, when she was 15, also in his Gstaad chalet. Swiss prosecutors declined to pursue a rape investigation in that case, citing statute of limitations laws.

Mr. Polanski has also been accused of sexual abuse by the British actress Charlotte Lewis, who said in 2010 that the director abused her in 1983, when she was 16; and by a woman publicly identified only as Robin, who in 2017 said that he had “sexually victimized” her in 1973, when she was 16.

Also in 2017, an artist, Marianne Barnard, accused Mr. Polanski of molesting her in 1975, when she was 10. The director said at the time that he rejected the “unfounded allegations.”

He remains wanted in the United States over the case involving the 13-year-old, Samantha Geimer, but France does not extradite its citizens. Judges have denied multiple requests from the director to drop the decades-old case.

Feminist groups in France have regularly staged protests against Mr. Polanski, including outside a retrospective of his career at the prestigious Cinémathèque in October 2017.

Although Ms. Monnier first spoke t publicly on Friday, she had long made her story known to those close to her, she told Le Parisien. She said she also written about her accusation to France’s first lady, Brigitte Macron, to the culture minister and to the junior minister for gender equality, Marlène Schiappa, in 2018.

Ms. Schiappa, in turn, wrote a letter to Ms. Monnier in March of that year, which The New York Times has obtained.

In the letter, she praised Ms. Monnier for “breaking a 42-year-old silence,” and said she empathized with her pain, adding, “I understand your indignation.”

Liz Alderman reported from Paris, and Elian Peltier from London.

Let's block ads! (Why?)

https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/09/world/europe/roman-polanski-rape-france.html

2019-11-09 13:49:00Z
52780430802831