Oscar-winning 'Cool Hand Luke' actor George Kennedy dies at 91: media

(Reuters) - U.S. actor George Kennedy, who won an Academy Award for playing a hulking chain gang convict who pummels Paul Newman in the 1967 film "Cool Hand Luke" and later earned laughs in the "Naked Gun" comedy films, has died, media outlets reported on Monday. He was 91.

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Yoko Ono released from New York hospital, recovering from flu: spokesman

(Reuters) - Yoko Ono, the artist and widow of the late Beatle John Lennon, has been released from a New York City hospital after seeking treatment for the flu, her spokesman said on Saturday.

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At Oscars, VP Joe Biden and Lady Gaga spotlight sexual assault

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Vice President Joe Biden made a special appearance at the Oscars ceremony on Sunday to advocate for victims of sexual assault and introduced a powerful performance by Lady Gaga that featured survivors of sexual abuse.

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Suge Knight to face August 1 trial on hit-and-run murder charge: report

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Rap mogul Marion "Suge" Knight will stand trial on Aug. 1 for murder charges stemming from a fatal hit-and-run in Los Angeles, a judge ordered on Friday, according to a local media report.

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Ahead of Oscars, composer Morricone honored with Walk of Fame star

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Italian film composer Ennio Morricone, nominated for an Oscar this year for his work on "The Hateful Eight," was awarded a star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame on Friday, honoring his diverse career spanning decades.

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Elvis Presley's 'Dr. Nick' dies at age 88 -Memphis funeral home

(Reuters) - George Nichopoulos, known as "Dr. Nick" as he dispensed thousands of doses of prescription drugs to Elvis Presley in the final decade of the rock star's life, has died at the age of 88, a Memphis, Tennessee, funeral home said.

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Meryl Streep clarifies 'We're all Africans' remark

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Oscar-winning actress Meryl Streep on Thursday said her "We're all Africans" comment was taken out of context, writing in the Huffington Post about the controversy she sparked up amid Hollywood's ongoing diversity debate.

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David Bowie wins posthumous BRIT 'Icon' award

LONDON (Reuters) - The late visionary British rock star David Bowie was honored with a posthumous "Icon" award at the BRITs music ceremony in London on Wednesday night, just over a month after his death.

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Adele wins British album of the year at BRIT Awards for '25'

LONDON (Reuters) - Adele was handed the award for the British album of the year at the 2016 BRIT award ceremony in London on Wednesday night for "25", the fourth accolade of the night for the singer.

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Oscars host Chris Rock faces tricky balancing act of humor and diversity

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Hosting the Oscars is seen as the ultimate honor in show business but no one has a trickier task of balancing humor, diversity politics and celebrating movies on Sunday than Chris Rock.

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Philippine bishop tells Catholics to boycott Madonna concert

MANILA (Reuters) - A Roman Catholic bishop in the Philippines on Wednesday urged the faithful to stay away from American pop singer Madonna's two-night concert in Manila, calling her music "suggestive" and her clothes "vulgar".

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Ex-'Top Gear' host Clarkson settles lawsuit with producer he hit

LONDON (Reuters) - Jeremy Clarkson, the former host of the BBC's hugely popular "Top Gear" motoring show, apologized and settled a lawsuit on Wednesday with the member of the production team he physically attacked in an incident which cost him his job.

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Sportscaster Erin Andrews' lawyer blames hotel in stalking case

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (Reuters) - Attorneys for sportscaster Erin Andrews said on Tuesday a Marriott hotel was negligent in enabling a guest to shoot a nude video of her that went viral on the Internet, while the Tennessee hotel put the blame entirely on the stalker.

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Producer Dr. Luke accuses Kesha supporters of 'trial by Twitter'

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Pop star Kesha's former music producer on Monday said allegations that he had raped the singer were lies, and hit back at a "trial by Twitter" backed by some of music's biggest names over Kesha's bid to extricate herself from a recording contract.

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Iranian media outlets add to bounty for killing Britain's Rushdie

ANKARA (Reuters) - Iranian state-run media outlets have added $600,000 to a bounty for the killing of British author Salman Rushdie imposed in 1989 over the publishing of his book "The Satanic Verses".

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Cosby's wife to face questioning in suit by alleged victims

BOSTON (Reuters) - Bill Cosby's wife of a half-century was set on Monday to face questioning by lawyers for seven women who accused the comedian of sex assault and sued him for defamation after a federal judge rejected her bid to avoid a deposition.

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Former Miss New Jersey dies a week after car crash

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A former Miss New Jersey pageant winner who worked as a television news anchor has died from injuries sustained in a car crash a week ago, her family said in a Facebook post on Monday.

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Private funeral service held for Harper Lee in Alabama home town

(Reuters) - Author Harper Lee, who led a mostly quiet life after the publication of her 1960 classic of American literature "To Kill a Mockingbird," was laid to rest on Saturday following a private memorial service at a church in her Alabama home town, her attorney said.

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