1+ hour, 8+ min ago (241+ words) Zootopia 2" had a roaring, record-setting opening at the box office. The animal city sequel from the Walt Disney Company brought in $96 million in North America over the weekend, earned $156 million over the five-day Thanksgiving frame, and scored a staggering $556 million globally since its Wednesday opening, according to studio estimates Sunday. That made it the highest international opening ever for an animated movie, the fourth highest global debut of any kind, and the top international opener of 2025. Wicked: For Good" stayed aloft in its second weekend for Universal Pictures, earning another $62.8 million domestically over the weekend for a North American total of $270.4 million. The second half of the Wicked" saga has brought in $393 million internationally. The pair of sequels combined to make the Thanksgiving weekend a glimmering exception to an otherwise dark year at movie theaters. Zootopia 2" arrives almost a decade…...

4+ hour, 19+ min ago (210+ words) The painting was recently found in a private townhouse in Paris. It depicts the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. It was part of a French collection and was initially thought to be from one of the many Rubens workshops that existed at the time. The artwork was rarely valued at more than 10,000 euros ($11,500). Nils B'ttner, an expert known for his research on Rubens, explained before the auction that the master often painted crucifictions but rarely depicted "the crucified Christ as a dead body on the cross." "So this is the one and only painting showing blood and water coming out of the side wound of Christ, and this is something that Rubens only painted once." The Osenat auction house said the painting's authenticity and provenance were confirmed after scientific analysis. It said microscopic examination of the paint layers revealed not only…...

1+ day, 2+ hour ago (85+ words) British playwright Tom Stoppard, who won an Academy Award for the screenplay for 1998s "Shakespeare In Love" has died In a statement Saturday, United Agents said Stoppard died "peacefully" at his home in Dorset in southern England, surrounded by his family. "He will be remembered for his works, for their brilliance and humanity, and for his wit, his irreverence, his generosity of spirit and his profound love of the English language," they said. "It was an honor to work with Tom and to know him."...

1+ day, 2+ hour ago (894+ words) In a statement Saturday, United Agents said Stoppard died "peacefully" at his home in Dorset in southern England, surrounded by his family. "He will be remembered for his works, for their brilliance and humanity, and for his wit, his irreverence, his generosity of spirit and his profound love of the English language," they said. "It was an honor to work with Tom and to know him." The Czech-born Stoppard was often hailed as the greatest British playwright of his generation and was garlanded with honors, including a shelf full of theater gongs. His brain-teasing plays ranged across Shakespeare, science, philosophy and the historic tragedies of the 20th century. Five of them won Tony Awards for best play: "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" in 1968; "Travesties" in 1976; "The Real Thing" in 1984; "The Coast of Utopia" in 2007; and "Leopoldstadt" in 2023. Stoppard biographer Hermione Lee…...

1+ day, 2+ hour ago (1032+ words) In a statement Saturday, United Agents said the Czech-born Stoppard " often hailed as the greatest British playwright of his generation " died "peacefully" at his home in Dorset in southwest England, surrounded by his family. "He will be remembered for his works, for their brilliance and humanity, and for his wit, his irreverence, his generosity of spirit and his profound love of the English language," they said. "It was an honor to work with Tom and to know him." Rolling Stones front man Mick Jagger was among those paying tribute, calling Stoppard "a giant of the English theater, both highly intellectual and very funny in all his plays and scripts. "He had a dazzling wit and loved classical and popular music alike which often featured in his huge body of work," said Jagger, who produced the 2001 film "Enigma," with a screenplay…...

1+ day, 3+ hour ago (852+ words) But the song's vocal phrasing, melodic shape and stylistic DNA came from someone who does exist: Grammy-nominated country artist Blanco Brown, a Black music artist who has worked with Britney Spears, Childish Gambino and Rihanna. And he had no idea. "I didn't even know about the song until people hit me up about it," said Brown, whose 2019 country rap hit "The Git Up" helped usher in a new, hybrid era of country crossover. He didn't learn about the chart-topping AI track until his phone was flooded with messages from friends. The moment is the latest example of how generative AI is upending the music industry, giving anyone the ability to instantly create seemingly new songs by typing prompts into a chat window, often using models trained on real artists' voices and styles without their knowledge. Brown said he wasn't notified…...

1+ day, 11+ hour ago (992+ words) Elias Gomez, a Hamilton resident known as the Cuban Cowboy, recently made national headlines for his debut on NBC's "The Voice." He has received support from fans locally as well as from those across the globe. "Thank you for believing in everything that I'm doing," Gomez said. "Thank you to everyone who has been genuine about it, and they genuinely want to be in my life. It has made a huge difference." His goals are to continue to play out and to live a legacy. He draws inspiration for songwriting on his own life experiences. "If we talk about dreams, I would love to see myself playing at a stadium and being able to share my story with more people, and bring something fresh," he said. During a blind audition on the Oct. 7 episode, Gomez performed "Lonely Teardrops" by Jackie…...

2+ day, 3+ hour ago (900+ words) David Payne wants to be a rock "n" roll preservationist. In some ways, he already is one. For two years, he"s been the shopkeep and apprentice at Encore Instrument Repair in Dayton under owner and lead technician Jeff Newell. Payne recaps amplifiers, changes guitar pickups and strings, rewires and cleans keyboards. He helps maintain vintage equipment; he does preserve the tools of the trade. But Payne also preserves things that weren"t meant for rock "n" roll, co-opted for rock "n" roll purposes. Take the near-bygone era phone handset, for instance. He pries the plastic apart, at the expense of a potential break or a scuffed edge, and reveals the simple innards: a transmitter, a receiver and some wires linking the two. He knew from his interest in wires and tubes and electronics that any speaker wired backwards is…...

2+ day, 3+ hour ago (231+ words) Stray Kids pledged 1 million Hong Kong dollars ($129,000) through World Vision Hong Kong for temporary housing and other support for affected children and residents. "We were all very heavy-hearted upon hearing the unfortunate news from Hong Kong," the group said. SM and JYP Entertainment, two of South Korea's biggest entertainment companies, donated a combined 3 million Hong Kong dollars ($385,000) for emergency relief and disaster recovery. Other K-pop groups that also pledged donations included boy bands Riize, EXO-CBX and KickFlip contributed 100,000 Hong Kong dollars ($12,900) through World Vision Hong Kong. Organizers of the MAMA AWARDS, an annual two-day K-pop awards ceremony scheduled for Friday and Saturday in Hong Kong, faced online criticism in South Korea for not canceling the event in light of the fire tragedy. South Korean entertainment company CJ E&M canceled both days" red carpet events but said the main ceremony…...

2+ day, 5+ hour ago (986+ words) Whether you prefer something naughty, like the animated movie "Grandma Got Ran Over By a Reindeer" or nice, like classics "The Sound of Music" and "Home Alone," streamers, cable and broadcast networks offer up festive choices in December. Highlights this year include music specials with Derek Hough and Jimmy Fallon, the Rockefeller Tree lighting hosted by Reba McEntire, Lacey Chabert's latest Hallmark Channel movie, NFL games and even cozy mysteries with a Christmas theme. Here are some highlights. " "Dancing with the Stars" judge Derek Hough hosts the annual "The Wonderful World of Disney: Holiday Spectacular" on ABC. Popular recording artists including Nicole Scherzinger, Gwen Stefani, Trisha Yearwood and Mariah the Scientist put their own spin on Christmas classics. Streams next day on Hulu and Disney+. " Reba McEntire hosts NBC's annual "Christmas in Rockefeller Center" which culminates in the lighting of…...