Entertainment category, Page 65
TV Q&A: What did Celina Pompeani-Mathison announce on ‘PTL’?
Q: What did Celina Pompeani-Mathison announce on “Pittsburgh Today Live” on Dec. 20? Is she retiring to be a mom? I wasn’t able to watch. — Karen, via email Rob: Yes, Pompeani-Mathison, who already pulled back on her duties after the birth of her first child, Sonny, in 2023, decided...
Burt, huge reptile who put croc in ‘Crocodile Dundee,’ dies
Burt, the huge crocodile that rose to fame with a cameo in the movie “Crocodile Dundee” and continued to impress visitors with his fiery temper and commanding presence, has died. Burt died over the weekend, the Crocosaurus Cove reptile aquarium in Darwin, Australia, said. He was at least 90 years...
Pittsburgh native will portray August Wilson in 1-night-only, 1-man show
Pittsburgh actor Wali Jamal is no stranger to a one-man show. On Monday, Jamal was in Downtown Pittsburgh portraying everyone’s favorite character this time of year and meeting with children as Santa Claus at the Heinz Hall Courtyard. In January, however, Jamal, 62, of Beltzhoover will take on a character...
John Mulaney back on Broadway in sweet ‘All In’ with some starry friends
NEW YORK — John Mulaney’s second trip to Broadway took little convincing. He didn’t even need to look at the script before signing on. “I was like, ‘OK, well, send it to me. I’ll read it.’ And they sent it to me. I didn’t read it. I just agreed immediately,”...
Bill Deasy talks new album, final Boxing Day show at closing Club Cafe
Bill Deasy has been a fixture in Pittsburgh music for more than 30 years, but according to the title of his new album, he’s still a “Work in Progress.” Released Dec. 3, the new project had Deasy venturing out of his comfort zone and working with some new faces. “It...
TV Talk: Netflix gifts subscribers with ‘Squid Game 2’Video
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. What better way to celebrate the holidays than a return to the bloody, violent arena for Netflix’s “Squid Game 2,” streaming Thursday? The second season of the streaming service’s surprise 2021 global hit finds season...
‘Sonic 3’ bests ‘Mufasa: The Lion King’ at the box office
NEW YORK — In the holiday season battle of big-budget family movies, Paramount Pictures’ “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” sped past the Walt Disney Co.’s “Mufasa: The Lion King” to take the top spot at the box office ahead of the lucrative Christmas corridor in theaters. “Sonic the Hedgehog 3” debuted...
Give the gift of stories with books by Pittsburgh-area authors
Curling up by the fireside with a good book is one of those wintertime idylls, and with Christmas just around the corner, why not help provide that experience for someone with the gift of a book? Here are several new books recently released by local authors. ‘The Catalysts,’...
Murryville artist among ‘Art of the State’ winners for 2nd time
A Murrysville artist has once again earned a spot in Pennsylvania’s “Art of the State” contest, and will have her work displayed in the state capitol. Patty Kennedy-Zafred, 72, of Murrysville took first place in the annual contest’s craft division in 2022, with a piece titled “American Portraits: Harvesting Hope,”...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: Dec. 20-22
The city is simply having a wonderful pre-holiday weekend, with some warm and cheerful events to get you in the spirit of the season. Experience music, movies and more with these ideas. Skate with Santa It’s going to be pretty chilly this weekend, which makes it the perfect opportunity to...
Veteran Fox News business anchor Neil Cavuto leaving after 28 years
Neil Cavuto, a business journalist at Fox News Channel whose weekday afternoon news show frequently annoyed President-elect Donald Trump and his supporters, left the network after 28 years following a final show on Thursday. A workhorse who had been with Fox since its inception in 1996, Cavuto also hosted programs...
TV Talk: Best TV series of 2024Video
There’s no way one person can watch every new scripted series each year, even in a post-PeakTV environment, so consider this list the best of the scripted shows I saw in 2024. Perhaps this list can steer you toward a program you’ve yet to watch. With broadcast TV in reruns...
‘Bluey’ is bound for the big screen with a feature film coming in 2027
NEW YORK — “Bluey” is heading to the big screen. The Walt Disney Co. and BBC Studios announced Tuesday that a film based on the hit Australian animated series will arrive in theaters in 2027. The movie will be written and directed by series creator Joe Brumm, with a voice...
TV Q&A: Will the Netflix Steelers game air locally?Video
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen answers reader questions weekly at TribLive.com in a column that also appears in the Sunday Tribune-Review. Q: Will the Steelers Christmas game be available to fans without Netflix? — Ed, via email Rob: Yes! Netflix’s deal for carrying NFL games on Christmas Day...
TV Talk: WTAE reporter Bob Mayo announces retirement
Applying the law of “things come in threes,” Tuesday’s announcement by longtime WTAE general assignment reporter Bob Mayo that he will retire Dec. 31 is appropriate as it’s the third significant on-air retirement from Pittsburgh TV stations this quarter, following the departures of KDKA-TV’s Jon Delano and WPXI’s David Johnson....
Concert promoters, hotels and lodging sites soon will have to disclose extra fees up front
The Federal Trade Commission on Tuesday said it will soon require hotels, vacation rental platforms and live event promoters to disclose any fees up front when they list prices. The FTC said consumers often see advertised prices for hotel rooms, short-term rentals, and tickets to sporting events and concerts only...
Trans-Siberian Orchestra drummer Jeff Plate on 25 years of touring and hard rock Christmas musicVideo
When Trans-Siberian Orchestra started touring theaters in 1999, they traveled with just one 24-foot box truck, filled with a couple dozen lights, a fog machine and a star curtain. “It was really more about, let’s put this thing on stage and see if this is going to work. Obviously it...
TV Talk: Classic Christmas commercials cater to viewers’ nostalgiaVideo
Whether or not they continue to air in 2024, Christmas-themed commercials that aired year after year are easily conjured in the minds of TV viewers. Whether it’s Santa Claus riding a Norelco razor through the snow, Peter coming home for a cup of Folgers or Hershey’s Kisses as bells, plenty...
Kinetic Theatre’s ‘Sherlock Carol’ is a witty seasonal melding of classic tales
“Moriarty was dead, to begin with.” That sentence would cause any lover of 19th-century British literature to do a double take. One half of the line mirrors the opening of Charles Dickens’ novella “A Christmas Carol,” while the rest evokes Professor James Moriarty, the greatest foe of Arthur Conan Doyle’s...
TV Talk: PBS’s ‘NOVA’ recounts Notre Dame discoveriesVideo
Trib Total Media TV writer Rob Owen offers a viewing tip for the coming week. It’s easy to take TV for granted. Its ubiquity, especially now with dozens of channels and streaming platforms, makes the medium so omnipresent and at times overwhelming with the number of choices that it’s easy...
Justin Timberlake proves his pop longevity at PPG Paints Arena
Justin Timberlake is about as known a pop commodity as you’ll find in 2024. He’s spent the vast majority of his life in the limelight, from his childhood “Mickey Mouse Club” days to years topping the charts with boy band NSYNC to finding stratospheric success after going solo. Such a...
The Smithereens drummer Dennis Diken discusses moving forward with guest vocalists after death of frontmanVideo
It’s been a little more than seven years since The Smithereens singer/guitarist Pat DiNizio died, but the power-pop band is still going with a little help from their friends on vocals. With a revolving group of lead singers, the New Jersey group known for songs like “A Girl Like You”...
Movie Review: ‘Kraven the Hunter’ is another misfire in the Spider-Man universeVideo
Kraven the Hunter can climb sheer walls like a gorilla, snatch fish out of streams like a bear and outrun deer. But there’s something this slab of human beef can’t do: Anchor a decent movie. Aaron Taylor-Johnson plays the titular hero in “Kraven the Hunter,” the sixth attempt in Sony’s...
TV Talk: David Johnson signs off; Heather Abraham going on medical leave
After a 40-year run, including more than 30 years as one of the nation’s longest duration anchor teams alongside Peggy Finnegan who retired in 2020, Channel 11 weekday evening news anchor David Johnson called it a career Friday during WPXI’s 6 p.m. newscast. Finnegan returned for Johnson’s farewell, appearing in...
Elton John calls marijuana legalization ‘greatest mistake of all time’
Elton John is no fan of the legalization of marijuana, calling it “one of the greatest mistakes of all time.” “I maintain that it’s addictive. It leads to other drugs. And when you’re stoned — and I’ve been stoned — you don’t think normally,” the legendary singer told Time in...
