Out Broadway star/voiceover artist Ken Page has died at age 70, media outlets noted. According to People, Between 1975 and 1999, Page also appeared on stage in productions like The Wiz, Guys and Dolls, Ain’t Misbehavin’, Cats—in which he originated the role of Old Deuteronomy—and It Ain’t Nothing But the Blues. He won the Drama Desk award for outstanding actor in a musical in 1978 for his performance in Ain’t Misbehavin’. Filmwise, Page is most fondly remembered as the voice of The Nightmare Before Christmas character Oogie Boogie; he was also in 1988’s Torch Song Trilogy and 1989’s All Dogs Go to Heaven.
Oscar winner Nicolas Cage as well as Oscar nominees Diane Warren, June Squibb, Colman Domingo and Marianne Jean-Baptiste are among the honorees at this year’s Newport Beach Film Festival Honors on Oct. 20 at the Balboa Bay Resort in Newport Beach, Variety noted. The honorees will be celebrated at a special brunch also celebrating Variety’s 10 Actors to Watch. Also, out actor Domingo (Rustin; Euphoria) will be honored during the 2024 Middleburg Film Festival, which will take place Oct. 17-20, according to IndieWire; director Steve McQueen as well as actresses Danielle Deadwyler, Zoe Saldana and Isabella Rossellini are also slated to be honored, among others.
NewFest: The New York Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, & Transgender Film Festival—the largest such festival in the country—will take place Oct. 10-22, per a press release. Showcasing more than 140 movies, the opening-night film will be A Nice Indian Boy, with Karan Soni, Jonathan Groff, Sunita Mani, Zarna Garg and Harish Patel; and the closing-night movie will be Emilia Perez, with Karla Sofía Gascón, Zoe Saldaña, Selena Gomez, Adriana Paz and Edgar Ramírez. Other highlights will include the New York Centerpiece showing of Liza: A Truly Terrific, Absolutely True Story, about Liza Minnelli; a 35th anniversary double-bill of Isaac Julien’s Looking For Langston (1989) and Marlon T. Riggs’ Tongues Untied (1989); and a 25th-anniversary screening of Lilly Wachowski and Lana Wachowski’s The Matrix (1999).
The Key West Film Festival announced the recipient of its ninth annual Golden Key for Excellence in Costume Design: Academy Award-nominated costume designer Danny Glicker (Milk), according to a press release. As part of the honor, Glicker will participate in a discussion of his work, to be moderated by Stephanie Zacharek of Time. Glicker’s most recent work can be seen in Jason Reitman’s Saturday Night, which is based on the true story of what happened behind the scenes in the 90 minutes leading up to the first broadcast of Saturday Night Live on Oct. 11, 1975. The Key West Film Festival is an annual celebration of film and filmmakers set to take place on Nov. 13-17.
More than 200 people gathered for the weekend-long events at the recent Appalachian Queer Film Festival, which marked its 10th year, West Virginia Public Broadcasting noted. The festival was held on the campus of Shepherd University, in Shepherdstown, West Virginia, and covered student shorts, documentaries and other genres that were shown at the Frank Arts Center.
Frank Marshall (The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart) is set to direct a documentary about fellow EGOT winner Barbra Streisand, according to IndieWire. The yet-untitled feature will include never-before-seen videos, audio recordings, and personal keepsakes from Streisand’s archives. The notoriously private Streisand released her eponymous memoir in 2023 and she received the SAG Life Achievement Award in 2024. “For years I’ve been thinking about the best way to share the vast amount of content I’ve been safely storing in my vault. These films, photos and music masters—many never seen or heard by the public—hold some of my most cherished memories,” Streisand said in a press statement.
Also, Barbra Streisand paid tribute to her late co-star Kris Kristofferson, who recently passed away at age 88, Deadline noted. “The first time I saw Kris performing at the Troubadour club in L.A. I knew he was something special,” she wrote on Instagram. “Barefoot and strumming his guitar, he seemed like the perfect choice for a script I was developing, which eventually became A Star Is Born.” (WCT note: The original A Star Is Born aired in 1937.) She continued, “My thoughts go to Kris’ wife, Lisa who I know supported him in every way possible.”
Trans Golden Globe-winning and Emmy-nominated actress, singer and activist Michaela Jae released her debut album, 33, a press release announced. “I’ve always been very intrigued by ‘chosen ones,’ like Neo from The Matrix or Aang from Avatar: The Last Airbender,” she said. “Their arcs are so reminiscent of the divine stories in the Bible or in the Quran.” In conjunction, Jaé released an animated video for the album track “Wasting My Time” as well as the additional songs on the project.
At Yale University, Alison Bechdel talked about how she “became a lesbian cartoonist” in a lecture, Yale Daily News noted. “[My father] was gay, and I was gay, and he killed himself, and I became a lesbian cartoonist,” she revealed. “It was so clear that his death was a direct result of the sexual shame and secrecy he had to live with.” In her comics, Bechdel portrays queer life and politics in her works, most notably in her comic strip Dykes to Watch Out For, which gave rise to the “Bechdel Test”—a gauge of female representation in films based on the criteria that two women must have a conversation about a topic other than men. This semester, Bechdel is teaching two classes at Yale as a 2024 Chubb Fellow.
Actress/comedian Rebel Wilson married partner Ramona Agruma off the coast of Italy, USA Today noted. They shared the news on Instagram with a photo of the brides, both wearing white off-the-shoulder gowns featuring long trains, walking toward a dinghy. Wilson first revealed her relationship with Agruma during Pride Month in June 2022; by February 2023, Wilson confirmed that she and Agruma were engaged.
Former NCIS actress Pauley Perrette is done with acting and told Hello magazine that she is in a different place now, according to Deadline. She left the CBS military police procedural in 2018 and stopped acting after her sitcom Broke was canceled in 2020. Perrette said, “I’m not ungrateful for the benefits that it gave to me. But I’m a different person now and I want to be here for it—the good and the bad and the painful.” Perrette has been focused on producing documentaries, including 2023’s Studio One Forever, about a queer nightclub in West Hollywood, California.
The NHL’s Seattle Kraken announced the promotion of Justin Rogers to the role of head trainer—making him the first out gay man to hold such a position ever in the NHL, if not all of men’s pro sports in the country, according to Outsports. The team’s announcement highlighted how Rogers’ presence in professional hockey “continues to open doors for the LGBTQ+ community.” According to the release, the promotion was “based on his 10-plus years of experience in the field, including all three years of the Kraken’s existence.”
The LGBTQ+-inclusive show Chucky has been canceled after three seasons, Variety noted. The horror-comedy series aired on USA Network and Syfy. Season three aired in two parts—the first in October 2023 and the second between April and May 2024. “I’m heartbroken over the news that ‘Chucky’ won’t be coming back for a fourth season, but am so grateful for the killer three years we did have,” openly gay series creator Don Mancini said in a statement.
The Black Theatre United (BTU) Gala took place Sept. 30 in NYC’s Ziegfeld Ballroom, according to the organization’s website. Honorees included conductor, composer and music director Linda Twine, who received the 2024 Accountability Award; Meta Chief Diversity Officer Maxine Williams, who received the 2024 Advocacy Award; and 16-time Grammy-winning artist Alicia Keys, who was honored with the 2024 Aspire Award. Broadway legends Andre de Shields, Leslie Uggams, Stephanie Mills (who sang “Home”) and Renee Elise Goldsberry were among the performers. BTU founders include Norm Lewis, Vanessa Williams, LaChanze,Tamara Tunie, Brian Stokes Mitchell and Lillias White, among others.
A judge ruled that the Netflix show Baby Reindeer did not live up to its billing as a “true story”—allowing the real-life “Martha” to pursue her defamation lawsuit, Variety reported. The woman, Fiona Harvey, alleged that the series, created by bisexual actor Richard Gadd, falsely implied that she sexually assaulted Gadd and gouged his eyes, and had been sent to prison for stalking him. In his defense, Gadd revealed that Harvey had stalked him for years when he worked at a London pub, would sometimes pinch his buttocks, and had sent him thousands of disturbing emails and voicemail messages. However, Judge Gary Klausner found that Martha’s behavior on the show is significantly worse than what Harvey is accused of in real life.
Ellen DeGeneres revealed she’s been diagnosed with osteoporosis, OCD and ADHD, The Independent noted. In her new Netflix comedy special, For Your Approval, the former talk-show host updated fans about her health issues. “I don’t even know how I’m standing up right now. I’m like a human sandcastle. I could disintegrate in the shower,” the comedian said. The Netflix special begins with DeGeneres standing in front of headlines, labeling her the “Queen of Mean” and a “villain”—going back to 2020, when allegations of toxic workplace allegations against The Ellen DeGeneres Show became media fodder.
Grammy winner and two-time Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee Stevie Nicks released the anthemic new single “The Lighthouse” via Warner Records, a press release noted. Nicks said, “I wrote this song a few months after Roe v. Wade was overturned. It seemed like overnight, people were saying ‘What can we, as a collective force, do about this…’ For me, it was to write a song. … That was September 6, 2022. I have been working on it ever since. I have often said to myself, ‘This may be the most important thing I ever do—to stand up for the women of the United States and their daughters and granddaughters, and the men that love them.’” Nicks, Sheryl Crow and Dave Cobb produced the song. The video is here.
Demi Lovato, Dua Lipa, The Roots, Julia Roberts, Roger Daltrey, Keith Urban and Jelly Roll are among the special guests who will take the stage to present, perform and honor this year’s Inductees at the The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Foundation’s Induction Ceremony on Oct. 19 at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, per a press release. Inductees include Mary J. Blige, Cher, Dave Matthews Band, Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Kool & the Gang, Ozzy Osbourne and A Tribe Called Quest; Alexis Korner, John Mayall and Big Mama Thornton for Musical Influence; and Jimmy Buffett, MC5, Dionne Warwick and Norman Whitfield for Musical Excellence. Suzanne De Passe will receive the Ahmet Ertegun Award.
Letters, a forthcoming book edited by Kate Edgar, contains more than 300 items from the late LGBTQ+ British physician/author Oliver Sacks, according to a listing from Knopf Books. According to the release, the 752-page book that will be out Nov. 5 reveals “Sacks’ passion for life and work, friendship and art, medicine and society, and the richness of his relationships with friends, family, and fellow intellectuals over the decades.” Sacks—who died in 2015 and whose books inspired the current TV series Brilliant Minds, starring Zachary Quinto—wrote many best-selling books, including The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat.
Songs by Adele, Bob Dylan, Green Day, R.E.M., Burna Boy, Rush and many others are currently unplayable on YouTube because of a legal dispute between the platform and the performing rights organization SESAC, Variety reported. Such blocks are legally complex and can involve other copyright holders (such as a live Green Day recording made by the U.K. broadcaster the BBC being currently available), although it may also reflect the sheer volume of videos that must be blocked. Also, certain songs performed by Beyonce, Nicki Minaj and other artists are also affected, presumably because they feature SESAC-affiliated songwriters. A similar dispute between Universal Music Group and TikTok went on for several months earlier this year before being resolved.
Vulture announced the initial lineup for its annual pop-culture extravaganza, Vulture Festival, which is returning for its 10th year on Nov. 16-17 in LA, per a press release. Some of the events will include a sneak peek of the Paramount+ series Landman, starring Billy Bob Thornton; The Skeleton Twins reunion with Kristen Wiig and Bill Hader; the presentation of the Roomy Award (for writers) to Abbott Elementary—with Quinta Brunson, co-showrunners Justin Halpern and Patrick Schumacker, and their fellow writers appearing for a discussion; a Henry Winkler acting class; and Max’s The Sex Lives of College Girls Pajama-Party Brunch.
The Independent ran an article focused on what it said were 17 acting careers ruined by a single role. Some of them include Faye Dunaway in Mommie Dearest; out actor Rupert Everett in The Next Best Thing, with Madonna; Greta Garbo in Two-Faced Woman; Elizabeth Berkley in Showgirls: Lea Thompson in Howard the Duck; Kelly Clarkson in From Justin to Kelly; and Brandon Routh in Superman Returns. “It blew my new career out of the water and turned my pubic hair white overnight,” Everett wrote in his 2004 memoir, Red Carpets and Other Banana Skins.
Speaking of Rupert Everett, the out British actor said that Gladiator II director Ridley Scott did not respond when Everett asked for a role in the film, Deadline reported. Everett told The Times of London he appeared in Ridley Scott’s 2023 epic Napoleon as the Duke of Wellington, and went on to phone him about a role in Scott’s big-budget sequel to his 2000 blockbuster Gladiator. According to Everett, Scott “said, ‘OK, I’ll see what I can do.’ And then nothing happened. … He’s doing another film and I’m hoping to get into that.”
In celebration of “The Last of Us Day” (Sept. 26), HBO released an official TLOU Day teaser and art by Greg Ruth for the second season of the HBO Original drama series The Last of Us, based on the acclaimed video game franchise, a press release noted. Following a record-breaking first season as the most-watched debut season of a series ever for HBO, the second season of the series will debut in 2025 on HBO and will be available to stream on Max. Returning cast members will include Pedro Pascal, Bella Ramsey, Gabriel Luna and Rutina Wesley; Kaitlyn Dever and Isabella Merced will be among those appearing next season.
Queer singer Chappell Roan canceled her appearance at the All Things Go festival—two days after she posted a video showing frustration with the public reaction to her choice to not endorse a presidential candidate, Variety noted. “I apologize to people who have been waiting to see me in NYC & DC this weekend at All Things Go, but I am unable to perform,” she wrote in a social media post. “Things have gotten overwhelming over the past few weeks and I am really feeling it.” Roan has spoken of the difficulties in coping with fame as her profile has risen dramatically over the past few months, particularly about stalkers and the demands of fans.
It turned out that Cooper Koch—who portrays Erik Menendez in Monsters: The Lyle and Erik Menendez Story—hugged the actual Menendez brothers when he and Kim Kardashian visited them in the Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility near San Diego, per Variety. (They were also accompanied by Kardashian’s mother, Kris Jenner, and sister, Khloé Kardashian.) Koch later said, “They’re such upstanding individuals. They’ve done so much work in their prison. Erik teaches meditation and speech classes, and they’re doing this Greenspace project to improve the prison grounds. It was just amazing.”
However, Monsters producer Ryan Murphy has no desire to meet with the Menendez brothers, according to a different Variety article. “The family’s response is predictable at best,” Murphy said. “I find it interesting because I would like specifics about what they think is shocking or not shocking. It’s not like we’re making any of this stuff up. It’s all been presented before.” Murphy also believes Monsters is “the best thing that has happened to the Menendez brothers in 30 years,” adding, “They are now being talked about by millions of people all over the world. There’s a documentary coming out in two weeks about them, also on Netflix.”
Evan Peters and Ryan Murphy are returning to FX together, with the network giving out a series order to the drama The Beauty, according to Variety. Ashton Kutcher, Anthony Ramos and out actor Jeremy Pope will also star in the show, which is based on the Image Comics series of the same name by Jeremy Haun and Jason A. Hurley. Peters and Murphy are frequent collaborators, with Peters having appeared in nine installments of Murphy’s FX series American Horror Story, while he also received a producer credit for a tenth. Peters also appeared in the first season of the FX series Pose, which Murphy also co-created; and starred in the Netflix series Dahmer—Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story, which Murphy co-created with Ian Brennan.
Rapper Macklemore, known for his LGBTQ+ anthem “One Love,” released a lengthy statement apologizing for his words that resulted in him being dropped from a Las Vegas festival—while doubling down on his support for Palestine, USA Today noted. Macklemore (real name: Benjamin Hammond Haggerty) was removed from the performance lineup for the inaugural Neon City Festival in Las Vegas after he said “(expletive) America” during the “Palestine Will Live Forever” event in his hometown of Seattle. In part, he said, “The ‘Palestine Will Live Forever’ festival I performed at was rooted in peace, love and solidarity. Unfortunately, the historic event in my hometown that brought thousands of people together to raise awareness and money for the people of Palestine has become overshadowed by two words. I wish I had been in a better place with my grief and anger. But the truth is I’m not ok. I haven’t been.”
Gia Coppola’s film The Last Showgirl—which stars Pamela Anderson, Kiernan Shipka, Brenda Song, Billie Lourd, Dave Bautista and Jamie Lee Curtis—won the Special Jury Prize at the 2024 San Sebastián Film Festival in Spain, Deadline noted. “For the high quality of its acting, packed with truth and nuances, which with great subtlety and restraint, brings us closer to the feelings of a group of people who must confront a disappearing profession, a world that is coming to an end,” the jury’s verdict read. Anderson accepted the award.
The 27th-anniversary edition of the longest-running jazz-based Christmas tour—Dave Koz & Friends Christmas Tour 2024—will kick off on Nov. 29 (Black Friday) at Atlanta’s Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, a press release noted. Koz & Friends will perform timeless Christmas classics plus a Chanukah medley and hits from each artist’s respective catalogue.This year’s tour, which visits venues in 18 cities (including Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre) over a span of less than a month; reunites out saxophonist Koz with longtime musical partner, guitarist/singer Jonathan Butler; and features special guests including saxophonist Vincent Ingala, guitarist Adam Hawley and vocalist Rebecca Jade. Koz has accrued numerous honors, including nine Grammy nominations, 12 No. 1 albums on Billboard’s Current Contemporary Jazz Albums chart and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
JoJo Siwa recently appeared on the cover of Ladygunn magazine, although many fans were confused by her outfit, The Independent noted. Siwa was tagged in the publication’s Instagram post featuring her dressed in an all-gold sequined outfit, including a chest plate and a jock strap. While one user commented, “Her managers are making a clown out of her I actually feel bad for her,” another stated, “How about anyone can wear anything they f***ing want. How about that? Clothes have no gender. All of these comments prove how controlled people are by gender norms.”
Singer Sabrina Carpenter stirred controversy last year when her “Feather” video—a bloody romp filmed in a Brooklyn Catholic church—led to the dismissal of Monsignor Jamie Gigantiello, who allowed her to shoot the clip on location. But, according to Variety, there’s news that said controversy is connected to the indictment of New York City mayor Eric Adams, and may have aided in kickstarting the probe. Carpenter herself acknowledged the dust-up during a recent show at Madison Square Garden, saying, “Damn, what now? Should we talk about how I got the mayor indicted, or…”
Olivia Rodrigo announced a concert special to debut on Netflix on Oct. 29, per Variety. The streamer will air the “Vampire” singer’s performance from the Intuit Dome in Los Angeles, from her “Guts” world tour. Rodrigo’s “Guts” tour, in support of her second album of the same name, kicked off in February 2024 and runs until March 2025; supporting acts have included the Breeders, Remi Wolf and Chappell Roan.
Iconic musician Bruce Springsteen has endorsed Kamala Harris, calling Donald Trump “the most dangerous candidate for president in my lifetime,” Deadline noted. “Perhaps not since the Civil War has this great country felt as politically, spiritually and emotionally divided as it does at this moment,” Springsteen said in an Instagram video. “It doesn’t have to be this way.” Springsteen added that Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, “are committed to a vision of this country that respects and includes everyone, regardless of class, religion, race, your political point of view or sexual identity, and they want to grow the economy in a way that benefits all, not just a few like me. On top, that’s the vision of America I’ve been consistently writing about for 55 years.”
Sue Vertue—who produced Sherlock, the beloved BBC reimagining of Arthur Conan Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes detective stories—said the brand is likely to return, per Deadline. “We love that show and there is a future for it. One day. Maybe. If everyone wants to do it,” Vertue told Deadline at the Amazon Prime Video Trailblazers event in London. Sherlock co-creator and star Mark Gatiss raised hopes for a film earlier this year, telling Deadline: “We’d like to make a film, but trying to get everyone together is very difficult.” Benedict Cumberbatch starred in the series alongside Martin Freeman‘s John Watson; they were last together on screen in 2017, with their final mystery titled “The Final Problem.”
Dancing with the Stars (DWTS) judge Carrie Ann Inaba shared her reaction to the one-word response con artist Anna Delvey gave after her elimination from the show, per GMA. After Delvey and out partner Ezra Sosa (the first Latine dance pro to be featured on DWTS in more than a decade) were voted off, Delvey was asked what she would take away from the competition—with Delvey replying, “Nothing,” along with a laugh. “That was dismissive not only of the opportunity she was given, of her wonderful and supportive partner Ezra in his debut season, but also of all of us who work on the show-from the dancers to behind the scenes to the creative team,” Inaba said. “A little gratitude could have changed the narrative.” After the elimination, Sosa thanked Delvey on Instagram for her “hard work, determination, and resilience.”
Deadpool & Wolverine—starring Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman as their respective comic-book alter egos—became available for rent/purchase on digital platforms, such as Prime Video and Apple TV+, on Oct. 1, Variety noted. It will be released on 4K Blu-ray/DVD on Oct. 22. The digital and physical releases will feature dozens of bonus featurettes, including “Finding Madonna: Making the Oner,” in which director Shawn Levy and Reynolds break down the historic scene together; “Loose Ends: The Legacy Heroes,” which has the cast and crew go through the film’s many cameos; and, of course, a gag reel.
Up to 100 Prince fans visiting the music superstar’s hometown of Minneapolis will have a cool place to stay with a limited-edition Airbnb rental, according to a Billboard article. Although the white, two-story home with brown trim looks unassuming from the outside, the interior is a veritable Prince shrine. Upstairs, a big closet with paisley wallpaper and leopard-spotted floor displays iconic outfits worn by Prince behind glass and has other outfits available. The rentals are just $7 a night per person for up to four guests. The price is based on Prince’s favorite number and there will be a total of 25 nightly stays available from Oct. 26 to Dec. 14. In the home’s basement, guests can sleep in a replica of The Kid’s bedroom from the film Purple Rain, down to the lavender pillows on the bed and even a 1980s-style cassette player.
On What What Happens Live, Lance Bass recalled touring with Diddy, per Queerty. Bass told host Andy Cohen, “I never had time to go to a Diddy party. I forgot he had opened up on our last tour [NSYNC’s Celebrity Tour in 2002] until all this kind of came about [Diddy’s arrest on charges of sex trafficking and racketeering]. But, yeah, it’s kinda horrible. … I never kind of liked him. The very last show [on the tour], in Orlando, I overheard him talking to Justin [Timberlake] and being like, ‘You need to drop these F-ers. You need to go solo. You need to drop [them]. I was like, ‘I don’t like you anymore, Diddy.’ I’m like, ‘At my own show? What the hell!’ So I never liked him.”
Justin Baldwin had trouble with Blake Lively regarding the promotion of the film It Ends With Us—but now he’s encountering trouble of a different sort. According to Deadline, former NBA star Craig Hodges is locked in a fight with Baldoni’s Wayfarer production company over documentary rights. The former Chicago Bulls player—who won two NBA titles with Michael Jordan—has spent much of the past year trying to get the rights to the project back after Wayfarer shelved it last year. There are financial issues at play—but this latest fight also raises the question of race, and who should be allowed to tell the story of a Black man like Hodges. Baldoni and Wayfarer’s CEO Jamey Heath, who is Black, wanted someone other than British-Indian producer Jivi Singh to direct the documentary; however, Singh apparently shot footage for the movie and there is a rough cut of the film, which has now been caught up in the rights battle.