Reuters Entertainment News Summary

09/18/2016 16:59

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

W.P. Kinsella, whose novel inspired 'Field of Dreams', dies at 81

Canadian author W.P. Kinsella, best known for his baseball novel "Shoeless Joe" which was adapted into the popular film "Field of Dreams," has died at the age of 81, his literary agent said on Friday. Canadian media said Kinsella ended his own life under the nation's medically assisted-dying law. Canada is one of the few nations where doctors can legally help sick people die.

Rolling Stones premiere Cuba concert documentary in Toronto

Keith Richards returned to the Toronto International Film Festival for a second straight year on Friday, joining band mate Ronnie Wood at the premiere of a documentary of their recent Latin America tour that culminated in an historic Cuban concert. The film 'The Rolling Stones Olé Olé Olé! : A Trip Across Latin America' goes behind the scenes with the veteran rock band as they play across the region for the first time in 10 years, chronicling their engagement with impassioned fans in a range of countries where their music was once banned or stifled.

Cyrus' comedic skills led Woody Allen to cast her as 'Crisis' leading lady

Miley Cyrus may be better known these days for her twerking dance moves and raunchy image, but veteran director Woody Allen's memory of her comic delivery as a child actress was what led him to cast her as his new leading lady. With more than 40 films under his belt, Allen, 80, is making his first foray into television with a six-part series for Amazon, entitled "Crisis in Six Scenes," in which Cyrus plays a woman named Lucy.

Pulitzer-winning playwright Edward Albee dies at 88 in New York: reports

Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Edward Albee, whose provocative and often brutal look at American life in works such as "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" earned him a reputation as one of the greatest American dramatists, died on Friday at his home in Montauk, New York, according to media reports. He was 88.

'La La Land' musical takes top prize at Toronto film festival

"La La Land," a musical tale of star-crossed lovers chasing their dreams in Hollywood, won the top prize at the Toronto International Film Festival on Sunday. The People's Choice Award, chosen by the votes of audience members, makes "La La Land" an early front-runner in the Oscar best picture race. Other recent winners of the Toronto prize have gone on to win the top Oscar, such as "Slumdog Millionaire," "The King's Speech" and "12 Years a Slave."

Bobbi Kristina Brown's former boyfriend held liable in wrongful death suit

A Georgia judge on Friday held Bobbi Kristina Brown's former boyfriend legally responsible for her 2015 death after he failed to show up for a hearing in a civil lawsuit, a lawyer for Brown's estate said. A jury will determine how much Nick Gordon, who has not been criminally charged, should pay for his role in the death of Brown, the only child of Grammy award-winning singers Bobby Brown and the late Whitney Houston.

Rise of Westeros' women keeps 'Game of Thrones' an Emmy front-runner

Subject to unspeakable violence at the hands of brutal men over the years, the women of Westeros came back with a vengeance in the latest season of HBO's "Game of Thrones" and strengthened the show's leading role in Sunday's Emmy awards. The popular medieval fantasy series enters the Primetime Emmys as the most-nominated show with 23 nods, including three in the supporting drama actress category and two in the supporting drama actor category.

Box Office: 'Blair Witch,' 'Bridget Jones's Baby' fall flat as 'Sully' soars

Some things aren't worth the wait. "Blair Witch" and "Bridget Jones's Baby," sequels to films that first hit theaters a generation ago, both stumbled in their debuts this weekend, earning a meager $9.7 million and $8.2 million, respectively. They were easily overpowered by "Sully," the Clint Eastwood drama about the s0-called "Miracle on the Hudson" emergency plane landing that features Tom Hanks as Capt. Chesley Sullenberger. The Warner Bros. release topped the domestic box office for a second consecutive weekend, earning $22 million and pushing its stateside total to $70.5 million.

O.J. Simpson drama set to sweep Emmys in big year for TV diversity

The dramatization of O.J. Simpson's sensational 1995 double murder trial looks set to sweep Sunday's Emmy Awards, crowning an extraordinary year for American television and actors of multiple ethnic hues. As television enjoys a golden era, with more than 400 scripted series on offer, people of color were nominated this year in every leading actor category for the first time in the 68-year history of the Primetime Emmys, the highest honors in television.

09/18/2016 16:59