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      The Golden Globes’ Biggest Winner May Be the Group That Hands Them Out

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }Awards SeasonNetflix’s First Winner?Our Best Movie PicksStream Top Oscar ContendersOscar-Winning DocumentariesAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyThe Golden Globes’ Biggest Winner May Be the Group That Hands Them OutMembers of the tax-exempt Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which puts on the ceremony, are courted by stars and studios, and sometimes paid.A Golden Globe win can boost careers, jack up box office earnings and foreshadow an Academy Award.Credit…Frazer Harrison/Getty ImagesCara Buckley and Feb. 23, 2021Updated 4:32 p.m. ETThe Hollywood Foreign Press Association has been widely viewed as colorful, generally harmless, perhaps venal and not necessarily journalistically productive. But because the group puts on the Golden Globes, courting the favor of its members — there are only 87 — has become a ritualized Tinseltown pursuit.Celebrities send them handwritten holiday cards. Studios put them up at five-star hotels. Champagne, pricey wine, signed art, cashmere blankets, slippers, record players, cakes, headphones and speakers are among the gifts that have arrived at their doorsteps, recipients say.The suitors — studios, production companies, strategists and publicists — are all chasing the same thing: members’ votes. Every one counts. A Golden Globe nomination, and certainly a win, is a publicity boon that can boost careers, jack up box office earnings and foreshadow an Academy Award.Boozy, irreverent and generally jolly good fun, the Globes are the third most-watched awards show after the Grammys and the much more staid Academy Awards. The show occupies a curious place in the entertainment industry. Mocking the Globes, and their occasionally off-the-wall nominations and picks, as irrelevant has become an annual blood sport in the Hollywood press, which covers them anyway, and the association’s members, many of whom work for obscure outlets, are regularly painted as doddering, out of touch and faintly corrupt.“The Golden Globes are to the Oscars what Kim Kardashian is to Kate Middleton,” Ricky Gervais, who has hosted them multiple times, said at the ceremony in 2012. “Bit louder. Bit trashier. Bit drunker. And more easily bought, allegedly. Nothing’s been proved.”But on the eve of the Feb. 28 show, a recent lawsuit and a series of interviews and financial records are providing a more unsparing look at the group, which does not publicly list its roster, admits very few applicants, and, despite being a media association, has some members who say they are fearful of speaking to the press. The group is also coming under increased scrutiny from news organizations, including The Los Angeles Times, which recently delved into their finances; one of its findings, that the group has no Black members, made headlines.Kjersti Flaa, a Norwegian reporter, sued when the Hollywood Foreign Press Association denied her entry. Most of her lawsuit was thrown out, but she recently amended it.Credit…Rozette Rago for The New York TimesThe latest re-examination began last year when Kjersti Flaa, a Norwegian reporter who has thrice been denied admittance to the group, and whose romantic partner is a member, sued the organization, saying that it acted as a monopoly, hogging prized interviews even though relatively few of its members actively worked as journalists. Studios went along to ingratiate themselves, she said, because of the value of the members’ votes.“It’s very obvious who’s important for the studios and who’s not,” Flaa said in an interview. “And the thing is, no one has said anything about this before. It’s just been accepted.”Members are territorial and loath to welcome competitors, she alleged, lobbying each other to accept or deny entry to new applicants, with little consideration for journalistic merits. Flaa pointed to a fracas involving a Russian member who in 2015 was accused of demanding that a Ukranian applicant not write for any Russian outlets and hand over her extra Golden Globes tickets — and guarantee her promise in a notarized letter — in exchange for being considered for admission.Flaa said outsiders had a nickname for the association: “The cartel.”The association would not comment specifically on the 2015 incident, but Gregory Goeckner, the organization’s chief operating officer and general counsel, said that such actions were prohibited, and that in 2018 its board approved a policy confirming any such letters as “void and unenforceable.” Goeckner also described Flaa’s allegations as “salacious,” and said it was studios, not the association, that made decisions about press access.A judge threw out the majority of Flaa’s suit, but she has recently amended it, and another journalist who also has been denied entry to the association has joined her complaint.Several current and former association members said Flaa’s accounts of the inner machinations were accurate, but requested anonymity because they said they feared retaliation from the group.The Hollywood Foreign Press Association was born in the ’40s, when foreign correspondents covering Hollywood banded together to gain access to movie stars. The Globes recognize movies and television, and is chockablock with stars, with nary a snoozy category — no sound editing prize here. As the awards industry complex mushroomed — it’s now a near year-round enterprise shaped by strategists and closely tracked by reporters — members’ relative power grew too.The association, which is sitting on millions of dollars in cash, is planning to upgrade its West Hollywood headquarters.Credit…Barry King/Alamy Stock PhotoAfter the show was picked up by television, it became a golden goose. In 2018, NBC agreed to pay $60 million a year for broadcast rights, about triple the previous licensing fee. While the Academy Awards and the Emmys have lost millions of viewers in recent years, the Golden Globes audience has held steady at 18 million to 20 million, which is why NBC was willing to fork up.“It’s a big-tent network television show, and as such, invaluable to film campaigns hoping to contend for Oscar nominations and wins,” said Tony Angellotti, a publicist who runs awards campaigns, in an email. “And the H.F.P.A. track record for identifying worthy films is indisputable. That’s not nothing.”To be able to vote for a Globe, members must publish at least six times a year, and attend 25 of the association’s news conferences, where celebrities and newsmakers are invited to appear, several members confirmed. If members want to travel to film festivals on the association’s dime, they have to attend even more news conferences, according to a copy of the travel policies reviewed by The New York Times. The rules say they don’t have to produce any press clippings related to their travels if they take five or fewer trips.Because the organization is a nonprofit, the Hollywood Foreign Press Association is also tax-exempt. The filing from the tax year ending in June 2019 showed that the group was sitting on about $55 million in cash. It donated about $5 million to assorted causes, including $500,000 to the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press and $500,000 to the environmental site Inside Climate News.“The funding was enormously important,” David Sassoon, the founder and publisher of Inside Climate News, said in an email. “It solidified our finances and helped us get through the nightmares of 2020.”According to the tax filings, the tax-exempt nonprofit paid more than $3 million in salaries and other compensation to members and staff. The tax filing also showed $1.3 million in travel costs for that year; the association has said it typically pays the expenses of members who seek to travel to film festivals and the like.There is also compensation for performing duties that several members say used to be done for free. Being on the association’s TV Viewing Committee pays $1,000 a month, according to the treasurer’s report from the association’s January general meeting. Members of the Foreign Film Watching Committee pocket $3,465 apiece. Two dozen people sit on that committee, according to the minutes, which meant that the demands of watching international movies cost the association $83,160 in one month.The association also has an advisory committee, a history committee, a welfare committee, a travel committee, a film festival committee, a financial committee and an events committee — all of which come with stipends, according to the treasurer’s report.Some members said the number of paying committees has exploded in recent years, with members jockeying to nab multiple positions and loyalty rewarded with committee appointments. This has caused angst for some who want to see the association become less of a punchline around town. One member worried that the group will become overrun by members who draw most of their income from the organization and not from journalism.Ricky Gervais rolled out the red carpet at the Golden Globes last year.Credit…Christopher Polk/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank, via, Getty ImagesGoeckner said the association only remunerates members when they do extra work and basically serve as employees, doing tasks that would constitute paid staff work elsewhere. The compensation, he said, was “orders of magnitude less” than what similar organizations pay. And he noted that the group was “not a charity,” and that its accumulated capital was earmarked for a planned upgrade of its West Hollywood headquarters.Still, there is debate over how much of its earnings the association should keep to itself.Flaa’s lawyer, David Quinto, said that by virtue of its tax-exempt status, the association should be benefiting foreign arts journalists more broadly, not just the ones in the group. He said the association “believes it is above the law” and called its conduct “blatantly improper.”But Ofer Lion, a Los Angeles lawyer with expertise on tax-exempt organizations, said that mutual benefit corporations like the association need only benefit a common purpose of its members, and as a 501(c) (6) tax-exempt organization, must only ensure they in some way benefit their industry overall. Payments to members for their work for the organization are legal, he said, as long as they are considered reasonable.“There are some healthy numbers on there,” Lion said, after reviewing the organization’s tax return, “but not really beyond the pale.”The group’s stated mission is essentially to help bolster ties between the United States and foreign countries by covering its culture and entertainment industry. But it has continuously come under scrutiny when puzzling award decisions have been handed down, most infamously in 1982, when Pia Zadora was named best new star over Kathleen Turner and Elizabeth McGovern. It was later revealed that Zadora’s producer, who also happened to be her husband, had flown the group to Las Vegas before the vote. CBS, which had been airing the show, dropped its broadcast, and it would be years before it returned to network television.In 2014, a former association president published a memoir in which he suggested that his colleagues could be swayed by favor trading.The association has tried to rehabilitate its image in recent years. In 1999, it sent back $400 Coach watches given to members by a film company and asked members in 2016 to return part of the Tom Ford-branded fragrance gift sent to each of them from the producers of “Nocturnal Animals.”Nowadays, members aren’t supposed to accept gifts in excess of $125. (The group says it has adopted a “more robust” gift policy.) Still, they can be wooed. For some, there was little surprise when the frothy series “Emily in Paris” — which got decidedly mixed reviews from critics — picked up two Golden Globe nominations this year. In September 2019, dozens of association members flew to Paris to visit the “Emily” set and were put up by the Paramount Network at the five-star Peninsula hotel.And although there purportedly has been a wave of reforms, the group’s eclectic membership list has remained largely the same for years.A review of a 2020 roster shows that its members include Yola Czaderska-Hayek, a woman known as the “Polish First Lady of Hollywood”; Alexander Nevsky, a former Mr. Universe and bodybuilder who has starred in movies like “Moscow Heat”; and Judy Solomon, an organization veteran of more than 60 years who has drawn attention for her role as what The Daily Beast called “The Golden Globes Seating Arbiter,” a job of no small importance when it comes to seating celebrities at the ceremony without ruffling feathers.In statements provided to The New York Times, two longtime members of the organization expressed pride in the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and its work. One of the members, Meher Tatna, the current board chair, touted the group’s philanthropic initiatives, saying it received thank-you letters year-round.Czaderska-Hayek echoed that pride in a video posted on YouTube by the Polish government in 2010, but also noted that membership demands could be taxing.“It’s unbelievably hard work,” Czaderska-Hayek said, according to the video’s English subtitles. “We must see at least 300 U.S. films every year.”Alain Delaquérière and Kitty Bennett contributed research.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

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      Late Night Blasts Ted Cruz’s Post-Cancún Photo Op

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }What to WatchBest Movies on NetflixBest of Disney PlusBest of Amazon PrimeBest Netflix DocumentariesNew on NetflixAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyBest of Late NightLate Night Blasts Ted Cruz’s Post-Cancún Photo Op“On Saturday, he posted photos of himself handing out bottled water with the hashtag ‘Texas strong.’ Sure, dude, we totally believe you,” Seth Meyers joked on Monday.Seth Meyers likened Senator Ted Cruz of Texas to a lazy husband lounging on the couch until his wife has unpacked all but the last bag of groceries.Credit…NBCFeb. 23, 2021, 2:21 a.m. ETWelcome to Best of Late Night, a rundown of the previous night’s highlights that lets you sleep — and lets us get paid to watch comedy. We’re all stuck at home at the moment, so here are the 50 best movies on Netflix right now.Too Little, Too LateMost late-night hosts were off last week when Senator Ted Cruz of Texas took his untimely trip to Cancún, Mexico, after a brutal winter storm that left millions of people in the state without power or water. With the photo ops the senator staged back in Texas this weekend, there was even more Cruz content to work with.“Ted Cruz is the husband who sits on his couch watching football all day, then sees his wife unloading a car full of groceries, waits until there’s one bag left in the trunk, then goes outside and says, ‘Oh, can I help?’” Seth Meyers joked on Monday.“So now Ted Cruz is doing damage control after his estúpido trip to Mexico. He lent a helping hoof to those in need this weekend, and, of course, posted about it.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“Then once he was shamed into coming back, Cruz tried to pretend he was actually interested in helping out. On Saturday, he posted photos of himself handing out bottled water with the hashtag ‘Texas strong.’ Sure, dude, we totally believe you.” — SETH MEYERS“Ted Cruz is like the friend who offers to help you move, but every time you see him, he’s just carrying the same box of pillows.” — JIMMY FALLON“People are also upset that Cruz tweeted those pictures himself. Even white people who only posted black squares on Instagram were like, ‘You gotta do more than that.’” — JIMMY FALLON“But Cruz tried to be helpful in other ways. Later, he showed Texans how to make frozen margs with the snow in their living rooms.” — JIMMY FALLON“Seriously, you know Cruz is having a rough 2021 when fueling a riot at the Capitol is nowhere near his biggest problem.” — JIMMY FALLON“Things are so bad for Cruz, he spent today thinking about the good old days, when people just thought he was the Zodiac Killer.” — JIMMY FALLON“Sorry, Cruz, this is not going to cut it, my man. See this right here? This is the politician version of coming home with flowers the day after Valentine’s Day. It’s not nothing, but your [expletive] is still sleeping on the couch.” — TREVOR NOAHThe Punchiest Punchlines (Empty Gestures Edition)“Like many of Ted Cruz’s attempts to mimic human behavior, this one was Ted on arrival.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“Only Ted Cruz would think he can repair his image by touching a maskless constituent two days after getting off an international flight.” — JIMMY KIMMEL“Also, we’re in a pandemic. Shaking hands, handing out water, serving food? Right now a Carnival Cruise is safer than a Ted Cruz.” — JIMMY FALLON“Yeah, it seemed like an OK gesture until everyone noticed the label on the bottle said ‘Ritz Carlton Cancún.’ A little souvenir.” — JIMMY FALLON“Yup, the photo op didn’t work out too well. Most people just drove away when he tried showing them his vacation photos.” — JIMMY FALLON“Actually, Cruz wanted to do more, but he had a parasailing lesson at 3, so.” — JIMMY FALLONThe Bits Worth WatchingJimmy Fallon suggested a few podcasts worth listening to, including Shaquille O’Neal reading love poems and the highly censored “Family Friendly True Crime Podcast.”What We’re Excited About on Tuesday NightThe singer Billie Eilish will chat with Stephen Colbert on Tuesday’s “Late Show.”Also, Check This OutCredit…Photo illustration by Bráulio AmadoAmy Poehler checks in before returning to (virtually) co-host the Golden Globes with Tina Fey this Sunday.AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

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      'Bachelor' Recap: Matt James Cries as One Woman Exits Following Hometown Week

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      ABC

      In a new episode of the long-running ABC dating series, the Bachelor meets the families of the remaining ladies, Michelle, Bri, Rachael and Serena, as they are flown in to the resort.

      Feb 23, 2021
      AceShowbiz – “The Bachelor” returned with a brand new episode on Monday, February 22. The new outing featured Hometown Week, which was different from the ones in the previous seasons because the ladies’ families were flown in as the cast couldn’t leave the resort due to COVID-19.
      Matt first met Michelle’s families including her mom and dad. The pair enjoyed a bike ride before they entered a room with some of Michelle’s students appearing on a video screen virtually. The pair chatted with them for a while as they grilled Matt with various questions.
      It was later time to meet Michelle’s parents. Her father, Ephraim, thought that Michelle looked genuinely happy. During a chat, she also revealed to him that Matt had something she had been looking for. When her dad asked if she would say yes should Matt propose to her, Michelle nodded.
      Ephraim then sat down with Matt, asking Matt if he was in love with his daughter. Matt told him that he was falling for her. As for Michelle, she had a talk with her mother. The foursome then headed outside to play basketball. Later, Michelle opened up to Matt. She told Matt that while she was falling in love with Matt, she was also scared.
      The next date was between Matt and Rachael. As she reminded Matt that communication, honesty and trust were important to her, she drove him away after putting on a blindfold on him. It appeared that she drove him to an airstrip before jumping out of a plane. Matt was the first one to land and was worried when he saw Rachael having a hard fall. Fortunately, she was not heavily injured.
      The two then met Rachael’s family. Rachael told her mom that she was falling in love with Matt, adding that she could see herself having a future with him. She recounted how Matt comforted her after she landed badly earlier that day and that was what she wanted from a husband. She told her mom that she would say yes if Matt proposed to her.

        See also…

      Meanwhile, Matt chatted with Rachael’s father Darrell, who thought that an engagement and a marriage would be too quick and unrealistic. Later, Matt told Rachael that he didn’t ask her father for his blessing because he wasn’t ready yet, adding that he would call him when he was. That surprised Rachael.
      Later, Matt and Bri had a one-on-one date. They had a bumpy ride in a 4×4 before sitting down for a picnic. Bri told him that she didn’t have a conventional family but she wished it was enough for him. The two then met Bri’s mother, her baby sister and her best friend. Matt had a talk with Bri’s mom as he told her that he and Bri had a connection that was on different level compared to his with the other women.
      Bri’s mother than talked with Bri. Bri told her mom that she was falling for Matt and that she had a special connection with Matt. Her mom, meanwhile, said that she wanted to protect her but she knew that Bri had to make a commitment to herself. Later, Matt and Bri had a sit-down during which Bri expressed her feelings for him.
      The final date was between Matt and Serena. She brought a map of Canada with her and showed Matt where Markham was. The pair then met her family. Matt and Serena’s mother Rasna later had a talk. He told Rasna that he liked that Serena was smart and beautiful, while Serena’s sister Talia didn’t think Serena was smitten with Matt. Serena admitted that she was worried if she would regret getting engaged.
      She then opened up to her mom about her doubts. Her mom thought she was worried because her last relationship messed with her. Serena eventually realized that her past relationship wasn’t the sole reason of her doubts. She then told Matt that she didn’t think he was her person, much to Matt’s surprise. He was devastated and crying, though he wanted the best for her. He was afraid if the other three women would change her mind just like Serena.
      It was finally time for the Rose Ceremony. He gave the roses to the remaining ladies, Michelle, Rachael and Bri, and they all accepted the rose. The next episode will feature Fantasy Suites!

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      Fernando Hidalgo, Cuban-Born TV Host, Dies at 78

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }The Coronavirus OutbreakliveLatest UpdatesMaps and CasesVaccine RolloutSee Your Local RiskNew Variants TrackerAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyThose We’ve LostFernando Hidalgo, Cuban-Born TV Host, Dies at 78For 14 years, “El Show de Fernando Hidalgo,” a racy variety show with a Cuban flair, was appointment viewing in Latino households across the United States.Fernando Hidalgo in Los Angeles last year. His Spanish-language variety show, “El Show de Fernando Hildago,” aired from 2000 to 2014.Credit…GP/Star Max, via GC ImagesFeb. 22, 2021Updated 3:22 p.m. ETThis obituary is part of a series about people who have died in the coronavirus pandemic. Read about others here.Every weeknight for 14 years, Fernando Hidalgo burst into the living rooms of Spanish-speaking households across the United States to lively Cuban fanfare, as dancers in colorful lingerie shimmied to bongos and trumpets and a theme song bearing his name.Broadcasting from a studio in Hialeah Gardens, Fla., just outside Miami, Mr. Hidalgo filled his show with interviews, monologues, skits with winking double entendres, scantily clad dancers who shocked abuelas and a generous helping of live Cuban music for nostalgic abuelos. At 7 p.m. or 11 p.m., “El Show de Fernando Hidalgo,” which aired on América TeVé and later on MegaTV, was appointment viewing in Latino households, particularly in South Florida, New York and Puerto Rico.Mr. Hidalgo produced and starred in an English-language film, “Ernesto’s Manifesto,” in 2019.Credit…Nereida DellanMr. Hidalgo died on Feb. 15 at Doctors Hospital in Coral Gables, Fla. He was 78. His death was confirmed by his son Marlon Corona, 28, who said the cause was complications of Covid-19.América TeVé said in a statement that Mr. Hidalgo showed an “enormous talent for interpreting the sensibilities of our community, as well as his impressive capacity for improvisation and thematic renewal.”Fernando Corona was born in Marianao, Cuba, on Sept. 18, 1942, to Robert Corona, a Cuban soldier who later owned a flower business, and Concepción (Hidalgo) Corona, a homemaker, his son said.He was an adolescent when he moved with his family from Cuba to Chicago, where he got a job reading poems about Cuba on the radio, said Nereida Dellan, his former wife.As he established himself as a performer and a broadcaster, Mr. Hidalgo took his mother’s maiden name as a stage name, Ms. Dellan said.His career took him to Puerto Rico and Venezuela and back to the United States as he acted in and hosted shows, including a situation comedy, “Cómo Ser Feliz en el Matrimonio,” or “How to Be Happily Married.” He also hosted a game show similar to “The Newlywed Game” called “Los Casados Felices,” or “The Happy Married Couples.”The Coronavirus Outbreak More

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      How Britain Is Reacting to ‘It’s a Sin’

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }What to WatchBest Movies on NetflixBest of Disney PlusBest of Amazon PrimeBest Netflix DocumentariesNew on NetflixAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyHow Britain Is Reacting to ‘It’s a Sin’The show, which aired last month in the U.K., has broken a viewing record and revived conversations about how the country handled the AIDS crisis in the 1980s.From left, Omari Douglas, Lydia West, David Carlyle, Calum Scott Howells and Nathaniel Curtis in “It’s a Sin.”Credit… Ben Blackall/HBO MaxFeb. 22, 2021Updated 12:39 p.m. ETLONDON — In what may be a perfect formula for helping a well-made TV show go viral, all five episodes of “It’s a Sin” arrived on a British streaming service in late January, on the Friday before a snowy weekend, during a national lockdown.Since becoming available on HBO Max on Thursday, viewers in the U.S. have been binge watching the show, but in Britain, the show has dominated national conversations over recent weeks.The drama, created by Russell T Davies, tells the story of a group of friends navigating gay life in 1980s London, as AIDS moves from a whispered American illness to a defining aspect of their young lives. Episodes aired weekly on television on Channel 4, and the show broke records for the channel’s accompanying streaming service, with 16 million streams.Below is a roundup of how people in Britain have been reacting to “It’s a Sin,” including sharing their own experiences of the AIDS crisis, improving understanding of the H.I.V. treatments available today and lamenting the epidemic’s absence from school curriculums. This piece contains some spoilers.A critical successDavies has had a long and celebrated career in British television, including the relaunch of “Doctor Who” and making other hit L.G.B.T.Q. shows like “Queer as Folk” and “Cucumber.”“It’s a Sin” earned numerous five star reviews from British critics, along with praise for Davies’s writing. In The Telegraph, Anita Singh noted that he makes viewers “care about these characters from the first minute we see them,” adding that “as in so much of his work, he switches seamlessly between tragedy and humor.”In the show, activists stage a “die in” in London to protest the government’s handling of the AIDS crisis.Credit…Ben Blackall/HBO MaxWriting in The Times of London, Hugo Rifkind said, “It is a drama that could only have been made once stories of gay love and gay lives had become an uncontroversial fixture of mainstream popular culture, and it’s obviously thanks in large part to Davies that they have.”There was also praise for the actors’ performances, and how relatable many of the characters felt. In the TV magazine Radio Times, David Craig saw himself in multiple characters.“I remember feeling the same timidity as Colin (Callum Scott Howells) when I first attempted to explore my sexuality,” he wrote. “Likewise, I can recall making fraught phone calls home while still closeted, unable to discuss that which was truly weighing on my mind, similar to Ritchie (Olly Alexander).”Discussions of H.I.V. today“It’s a Sin” has also sparked a renewed public focus on H.I.V. prevention and treatment. The Terrence Higgins Trust, an H.I.V. and sexual health charity, said it had seen a huge boost in donations through its website, a boost to the number of H.I.V. tests requested at the start of H.I.V. Testing Week and a 30 percent increase in calls to its help line.“It’s genuinely been phenomenal,” Ian Green, the chief executive of the charity, said in a telephone interview. “It’s rekindled the narrative around H.I.V. in the United Kingdom.”On the popular daytime show “This Morning” a couple of weeks ago, Dr. Ranj, one of the show’s contributors, took an H.I.V. test live on air. Nathaniel J. Hall, who plays Donald in “It’s a Sin,” talked about living with H.I.V. on the chat show Lorraine. “I’m on medication and my viral load is what is known as undetectable,” he said. “That means I can’t transmit the virus on, so my partner, Sean, remains H.I.V. negative.”After concerns were raised that the drama could lead to misconceptions around contemporary H.I.V. treatments, Channel 4 now advises viewers after each episode on where to find further information.A celebration of ‘Jills’“It’s a Sin” has also sparked praise for the allies of people affected by the disease: friends who visit people in hospital when their families failed to turn up, march in protest and campaign on behalf of H.I.V.-positive people.The character of Jill (Lydia West) embodies these loyal friends, and is loosely based on a real woman, Jill Nalder, who lived in London in the ’80s and is a friend of Davies. On the show, Nalder plays the character of Jill’s mother. Remembering the period in the Metro newspaper, she wrote: “The L.G.B.T.Q. community ought to be remembered as trailblazers because not only were they fighting for their lives, they were medical guinea pigs — sometimes taking 30 pills a day just to survive.”Jill (Lydia West), right, is a loyal friend to Ritchie (Olly Alexander) throughout the years. Credit… Ben Blackall/HBO Max“If you are a gay man, I hope you have a Jill,” wrote Guy Pewsey in Grazia.However, some viewers have been frustrated at the lack of representation of women affected by AIDS in the show. Lizbeth Farooqi, a fictional Muslim lawyer played by Seyan Sarvan, is one example, but is a relatively minor character. “It infuriates me that a lot of coverage of the show has concentrated Jill as the avatar of good womanhood and being this lovely, soft, supportive person,” Lisa Power, a co-founder of the British L.G.B.T.Q. charity Stonewall, told The Guardian. “I want to hear more about the stroppy lesbian solicitor, who most people have not even managed to read as a lesbian.”Institutionalized stigmaThe drama also touches on legislation around the L.G.B.T.Q. community in Britain at the time. In particular, the consequences of Section 28, a 1988 law introduced by Margaret Thatcher’s Conservative government banning teaching that promoted the “acceptability of homosexuality as a pretended family relationship.”In one scene, Ash (Nathaniel Curtis) is asked to check a school library’s books to make sure they comply with the law, only to find that they did. “I looked at all the vast halls of literature and culture and science and art,” he said. “There is nothing.”Section 28 was repealed in 2003, but some say its consequences are still being felt in Britain today. Speaking to The Telegraph, Howells, who plays Colin, lamented that the AIDS crisis was not taught in schools. “Why? How? How can this thing happen, literally kill millions of people, and yet they can’t even implement it in education?” he asked.Some people have also drawn parallels between the stigma that gay, lesbian and bisexual people received in the 1980s and the experience of trans people in Britain today. On Twitter Michael Cashman, another of Stonewall’s co-founders, wrote that some lesbian, gay and bisexual people who lived through that period “are now visiting the same stigmatization, misrepresentation and dehumanization of trans people particularly trans women.”The power of ‘La’During the first episode of the show, Ritchie steps in front of a crowd at a house party, dressed in drag, to sing just one syllable: “La!”“Is that it?” someone in the crowd shouts back. His friends react in hysterics. From that point onward, the characters say “La!” as a greeting and a goodbye. Speaking to “It’s a Sin: After Hours,” an accompanying Channel 4 show, Davies said that “La” was a joke among his friends when he was growing up in Swansea.Philip Normal, a London artist, decided to make and sell a T-shirt emblazoned with the word, with proceeds going to the Terrence Higgins Trust. “For me, it really underpins the love the characters have in the show and the respect and love that I’ve experienced in the L.G.B.T. community when I moved to London as a young gay man,” he said in a telephone interview.He said he had now raised £200,000 for the charity, adding: “I didn’t think it was going to take off! I thought I would sell, like five.”AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More

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      'RHOA': Kenya Moore Claims She Heard Sex Noises Amid StripperGate

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      Instagram

      Kenya grills everyone if they heard similar noises after Cynthia Bailey’s wild bachelorette party and concludes that it must have been Porsha Williams and Tanya Sam who hooked up with a male stripper.

      Feb 22, 2021
      AceShowbiz – The Sunday, February 21 episode of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” chronicled Cynthia Bailey’s wild bachelorette party that saw the ladies enjoying a raunchy performance by male stripper Michael “B.O.L.O THE ENTERTAINER” Bolwaire. Porsha Williams appeared to get carried away as she threw some dollar bills his way.
      Not stopping there, she was also seen rubbing her backside up against his erect penis. Everyone shared the sentiment as they begged him to stay and party with them even after the cameras stopped rolling.
      After the crew left the house, the Housewives excitedly covered every camera that they saw so that they could go as wild as they wanted to. However, they missed one camera that was put outside as it captured some of what happened inside the house. The male stripper could be seen doing some wild dancing on newbie Drew Sidora, while Porsha was making out with LaToya Ali.

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      The night continued but Kenya Moore, Cynthia and a few others decided to call it a night and go to bed earlier while some others still enjoyed the party. Around 6 A.M. the next morning, Kenya woke up and said that she heard sex noises coming from Porsha’s second bedroom. B.O.L.O. apparently stayed the night as he was seen leaving the house later.
      Kenya then grilled everyone if they also heard what she heard. After examining everyone’s answers, she concluded that it must have been Porsha and Tanya Sam who hooked up with the stripper. Kenya, however, didn’t specifically name any names in the episode.
      In an interview with Entertainment Tonight in December 2020, Kenya made the same claims. “I heard a lot — and other people heard a lot, very specific things. Very specific things and very specific voices,” so she shared.
      Kenya revealed that she found it unfair “that people will call that pot-stirring” as she argued, “We are a cast, and we are in a cast house, and if something happens like that in a cast house while you are working, then it should be discussed. You can’t do that at McDonald’s! You can’t go in the bathroom at McDonald’s and have sex with someone and think it’s OK because hey, you know, you were in the closet. No. You’re at work.”

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      Woody Allen and Soon-Yi Previn Condemn HBO's 'Allen v. Farrow' as a 'Hatchet Job'

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      In the first episode of the four-part docuseries, Mia’s daughter Dylan Farrow details the allegations of incest that she leveled against Woody, claiming that the filmmaker groomed her from a young age.

      Feb 22, 2021
      AceShowbiz – Woody Allen and his wife Soon-Yi Previn have responded to HBO’s docuseries “Allen v. Farrow” that explores his notorious relationship with ex-wife Mia Farrow. Following the release of the first episode of the docuseries on Sunday, February 21, Woody and Soon-Yi released a joint statement, denying sexual molestation claims made against the Oscar-winning auteur.
      “These documentarians had no interest in the truth. Instead, they spent years surreptitiously collaborating with the Farrows and their enablers to put together a hatchet job riddled with falsehoods,” the statement read. “Woody and Soon-Yi were approached less than two months ago and given only a matter of days ‘to respond.’ Of course, they declined to do so.”
      The statement continued, “As has been known for decades, these allegations are categorically false. Multiple agencies investigated them at the time and found that, whatever Dylan Farrow may have been led to believe, absolutely no abuse had ever taken place. It is sadly unsurprising that the network to air this is HBO – which has a standing production deal and business relationship with Ronan Farrow. While this shoddy hit piece may gain attention, it does not change the facts.”

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      In the first episode of the four-part docuseries, Mia’s daughter Dylan detailed the allegations of incest that she leveled against Woody. The episode further elaborated the claims that Woody, who was Mia’s partner during Dylan’s young childhood, groomed her since she was young.
      “Allen v. Farrow” is also set to offer intimate home-movie footage, court documents, police evidence, revelatory videotape and never-before-heard audio tapes. Hailing from Oscar-nominated documentarians Kirby Dick and Amy Ziering, it also features exclusive, in-depth interviews on the matter with Mia Farrow, Dylan Farrow, Ronan Farrow, family friend Carly Simon, prosecutor Frank Maco, relatives, investigators, experts and other firsthand eyewitnesses.
      Producing the project were Impact Partners, Chicago Media Project and Jane Doe Films Production for HBO Documentary Films. Meanwhile, Dick, Ziering, Dan Cogan, Tara Lynda Guber, Artemis Rising Foundation, Maiken Baird, Ian Darling, Steve Cohen & Paula Froehle, The Lozen Foundation, Debbie L. McLeod, Jenny Raskin and Geralyn White Dreyfous served as executive producers.

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      What’s on TV This Week: ‘Mr. Soul!’ and the Golden Globes

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      #masthead-section-label, #masthead-bar-one { display: none }What to WatchBest Movies on NetflixBest of Disney PlusBest of Amazon PrimeBest Netflix DocumentariesNew on NetflixAdvertisementContinue reading the main storySupported byContinue reading the main storyWhat’s on TV This Week: ‘Mr. Soul!’ and the Golden GlobesA documentary on the pioneering variety show “Soul!” is on PBS. And the Golden Globes air on NBC from both coasts.A scene from the documentary “Mr. Soul!”Credit…Shoes in the Bed ProductionsFeb. 22, 2021, 1:00 a.m. ETBetween network, cable and streaming, the modern television landscape is a vast one. Here are some of the shows, specials and movies coming to TV this week, Feb. 22-28. Details and times are subject to change.MondayINDEPENDENT LENS: ‘MR. SOUL!’ (2020) 10 p.m. on PBS (check local listings). A documentary about the variety show “Soul!” which aired on PBS from 1968 to ’73. “Soul!” was created and hosted by theater producer Ellis Haizlip, and produced by a Black, women-led crew. In a New York Times interview, Felipe Luciano, who worked on the production team, explained, “‘Soul!’ gave viewers the first genuine sense of the expansiveness of Black culture.” This documentary, directed by Melissa Haizlip, the niece of the show’s creator, features Sidney Poitier, Blair Underwood and Patti LaBelle.AMERICAN GREED 8 p.m. on CNBC. This documentary series about scams reaches its season finale by exploring the world of social media scammers and crowdfunding. One of the schemes in the episode involves Katelyn McClure and her boyfriend Mark D’Amico, who made headlines for setting up a misleading GoFundMe campaign in 2017 along with Johnny Bobbitt, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran the couple claimed they were trying to help.TuesdayTHE BOURNE IDENTITY (2002) 8 p.m. on AMC. Matt Damon stars as Jason Bourne, a man suffering from amnesia and rescued by a fishing boat. He can’t recall details of his life, including his own name. Bourne begins to remember some, and realizes that he can speak French and German. He’s also an expert in hand-to-hand combat, which comes in handy once he begins to outrun authorities targeting him. “Mr. Damon at first seems too moody and cerebral to be an action hero, but he grasps Bourne’s predicament perfectly, and takes it seriously enough to make the film’s improbable conceit seem more interesting than it might otherwise have been,” A.O. Scott wrote in his review for The Times.WednesdayZac Efron, left, and Hugh Jackman in “The Greatest Showman.”Credit…Niko Tavernise/20th Century FoxTHE GREATEST SHOWMAN (2017) 7:40 p.m. on FXM. P.T. Barnum is a name synonymous with the long-running circus bearing his name. The circus took its final bow in 2017, but audiences can still experience it through “The Greatest Showman,” which introduces audiences to the man behind the show. The film is a rag-to-riches tale, starting in Barnum’s childhood as a penniless orphan full of ideas and imagination. He is drawn to wax museums, then live performance. “‘Showman’ has the ingredients of a splashy good time, since it has the perfect star in Hugh Jackman, the most charismatic Broadway leading man of his generation,” Jason Zinoman wrote in his review for The Times.A SOLDIER’S STORY (1984) 10 p.m. on TCM. Set during World War II, this Academy Award-nominated film, based on a play by Charles Fuller, takes place on an all-Black Louisiana military base. When a sergeant is murdered, his death is investigated by Capt. Richard Davenport, a lawyer and one of the few highly ranked Black officers in the entire United States military. As the captain investigates the tensions between Black soldiers and the white officers who run combat basic training are revealed. The original stage work, “A Soldier’s Play,” belatedly debuted on Broadway last year; in an interview at the time, Fuller explained why he chose World War II for a setting. “Whenever you think about World War II and World War I, you think about white people,” he said. “Aren’t we worth some kind of interest — all those deaths of Africans, African-Americans, Black people from all over the world?”ThursdayCharlize Theron in “Snow White and the Huntsman.”Credit…Alex Bailey/Universal PicturesSNOW WHITE AND THE HUNTSMAN (2012) 8 p.m. on HBO. This retelling of the Snow White tale features Kristen Stewart in the title role and Charlize Theron as the queen, Ravenna. The film is a departure from the 1937 Disney version, with a much-darker approach. “Though it is an ambitious — at times mesmerizing — application of the latest cinematic technology, the movie tries to recapture some of the menace of the stories that used to be told to scare children rather than console them,” A.O. Scott wrote in his review for The Times. “Its mythic-medieval landscapes are heavily shadowed and austere, and its flights of magic are summoned from a zone of barely suppressed rage and dangerous power.”FridayMISS CONGENIALITY (2000) 7 p.m. on Bravo. Gracie Hart (Sandra Bullock), an F.B.I. agent, realizes a major terrorist’s next target is a Miss United States pageant. Since there are no other female agents, Hart is asked to go undercover and take part in the pageant to help prevent the attack. She’s a far cry from the traditional candidate, though. “The problem of course,” A.O. Scott wrote in his review for The Times, “is that in spite of her name, she’s spectacularly graceless, utterly lacking in the poised femininity that the pageant celebrates.”SaturdayCHARIOTS OF FIRE (1981) 5:45 p.m. on TCM. The two men in this tale, set during the 1924 Olympic Games in Paris, are sprinters representing Britain. But their similarities end there. One, Harold Abrahams, is the son of a Lithuanian Jew and works to navigate where exactly he fits in as part of British society. (Being athletic gives him an advantage.) The other, Eric Liddell, was born in China to Christian missionaries and sees running as a platform for him to spread the word of God.SundayTina Fey, left, and Amy Poehler hosting the Golden Globe Awards in 2015. The pair will return to host this year’s ceremony on Sunday.Credit…Paul Drinkwater/NBC, via Associated PressTHE 78TH ANNUAL GOLDEN GLOBE AWARDS 8 p.m. on NBC. The Golden Globes will be broadcast from both coasts. Tina Fey will host a portion from the Rainbow Room in New York, and Amy Poehler will host from the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles. The nominees for best drama include “The Father,” “Mank,” “Nomadland,” “Promising Young Woman” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7.” Netflix leads with 42 nominations, including for series like “The Queen’s Gambit,” “Ozark” and “The Crown.”AdvertisementContinue reading the main story More