Author: Sam

The Press Tour’ Fashion Book on Sale

The Press Tour’ Fashion Book on Sale

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, The Hollywood Reporter may receive an affiliate commission. Even with the end of awards season, The Barbie marketing machine marches on. Margot Robbie and THR Power Stylist Andrew Mukamal are now New York Times bestselling authors, as their new book, Barbie: The World Tour, has landed on the chart — and you can score it on sale right now. Marked down to 40 percent off at Amazon for a limited time, the book (Rizzoli) comes on the heels of Ryan Gosling’s bedazzled “I’m Just Ken” performance at the Oscars. It features the Barbie star and executive producer’s whirlwind press tour looks, including outfits that didn’t make it to the pink carpets when the publicity was cut short by the writers and actors strikes. (The film itself is streaming on Max.) Robbie and Mukamal teamed with prominent fashion photographer Craig McDean to showcase her Mattel doll-inspired looks. The 160-page tome also includes rare images from Mattel’s archives, designer sketches, Polaroid photos …

Ministers aid seafarers caught in Baltimore bridge crisis

Ministers aid seafarers caught in Baltimore bridge crisis

(RNS) — Day in and day out, ministers to seafarers spend their times on the docks of Baltimore, delivering Bibles, magazines and a friendly face during a ship’s usually brief time in the busy port. But, with the collapse Tuesday (March 26) of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, the mission of two ministries has shifted to longer-term aid for the crews of the Dali ship that struck the bridge and seven other large vessels stuck in the port for the foreseeable future. The leader of one of the ministries, the Rev. Joshua Messick, said he will be advocating for the rights of those crew members, including that they have adequate provisions and that their shore leave is not restricted. “My primary focus will be on caring for those seafarers who cannot continue their journeys,” said Messick, an Episcopal priest and executive director of Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center. “Just making sure they have everything that they are supposed to have and everything that they need to make their extended stay here as pleasant as possible.” Andy …

New ‘human flourishing’ survey links frequent religious practice to life satisfaction

New ‘human flourishing’ survey links frequent religious practice to life satisfaction

(RNS) — Announcing the results of a new Global Flourishing Study, a consortium of scholars and pollsters led by Gallup said that they found links between religiosity and people’s satisfaction with their lives. The study, a joint project of Harvard and Baylor universities, Gallup and the Center for Open Science, aims to uncover what influences “human flourishing,” which is defined by measures of happiness, character and virtue and social relationships, among other values. According to the group’s research, attending a religious service regularly positively affects flourishing. “We’re not shocked at that because there’s a lot of other research that indicates that faith is important to human flourishing, but it may come as a surprise to people that religion would be an important thing,” said Byron R. Johnson, director of Baylor University’s Institute for Studies of Religion. Earlier studies have shown that religion could help young people struggling with mental health issues, but also that being involved in a congregation could influence the level of happiness.  RELATED: Believers and doers: A faith-focused approach to social innovation …

8-year-old girl survives South Africa bridge bus crash that killed 45

8-year-old girl survives South Africa bridge bus crash that killed 45

A transit accident in South Africa killed 45 people after a bus hit and plunged over the barriers of a bridge into a ravine, where it caught on fire, the nation’s transport department said Thursday. The only survivor was an 8-year-old girl, authorities said. Footage of the scene broadcast by local news channel eNCA shows a charred, mangled bus at the bottom of a rocky ditch in a mountainous area near Mokopane, South Africa. Journalist Heidi Giokos from the outlet posted aerial footage showing the suspended section of the R518 road. The bus fell about 50 meters after going through the railing. The cause of the crash is under investigation, said South Africa’s Transport Minister, Sindisiwe Chikunga. “Some bodies were burned beyond recognition,” the Department of Transport and Community Safety of Limpopo said in a statement. Others were trapped inside the bus debris, while some were scattered around the rocky crash scene, the Department added. The 8-year-old survivor was brought to a nearby hospital. Another woman died after she was airlifted from the crash scene, …

Meta to end Facebook News tab in US and Australia

Meta to end Facebook News tab in US and Australia

Meta will be sunsetting Facebook News in early April for users in the US and Australia as the platform further deemphasizes news and politics. The feature was shut down in the UK, France and Germany last year. Launched in 2019, the News tab curated headlines from national and international news organizations, as well as smaller, local publications. Meta says users will still be able to view links to news articles, and news organizations will still be able to post and promote their stories and websites, as any other individual or organization can on Facebook. The change comes as Meta tries to scale back news and political content on its platforms following years of criticism about how it handles misinformation and whether it contributes to political polarization. “This change does not impact posts from accounts people choose to follow; it impacts what the system recommends, and people can control if they want more,” said Dani Lever, a Meta spokesperson. “This announcement expands on years of work on how we approach and treat political content based on …

Curb Your Enthusiasm’s Conan O’Brien Clearance Based on Hollywood Story

Curb Your Enthusiasm’s Conan O’Brien Clearance Based on Hollywood Story

[This story contains spoilers from season 12, episode eight of Curb Your Enthusiasm, “The Colostomy Bag.”] Conan O’Brien made his long-awaited cameo on the latest episode of Curb Your Enthusiasm. The talk show host — who is a close friend to creator-star Larry David in real life — appeared on the HBO comedy as a high-profile neighbor, someone TV Larry (played by the real David) felt he needed “clearance” in order to approach. For the final season’s eighth episode bit, Larry sought out his friend Richard Lewis (who also played a version of himself on the series) to help him get permission to approach the comedian but, due to the episode’s chain of events, clearance doesn’t come in time when Larry ends up needing a big favor. So Larry arrives, unannounced, at O’Brien’s home, begging for “emergency clearance” because his car died (Larry angered a valet, who unplugged his electric car) and he’s afraid that Susie Greene (Susie Essman) is going to uncover Larry and Jeff Greene’s (Jeff Garlin) latest scheme. “She’s going to kill …

Joe Lieberman’s religiously promiscuous campaign

Joe Lieberman’s religiously promiscuous campaign

(RNS) — It may not be true, as an old wag said, that all careers end badly, but Joe Lieberman’s didn’t end very well. Before his death on Wednesday (March 27), he was serving as founding chairman of the No Labels political organization, which is fixing to run someone for president this year without having so far identified a candidate, a policy agenda, a public list of funders or a persuasive rationale. Click the Lieberman video on the No Labels website and there’s a hand placing a needle on a scratchy LP of a crooner singing a 1950s-type song praising Joe over a campaign montage of the first Jewish American to run on a major-party presidential ticket. No Labels = Nostalgia. No doubt, Lieberman considered Al Gore’s nod to run for the vice presidency in 2000 to be his most thrilling moment in politics, and it is what will earn him a footnote in the history books. A trip down memory lane shows the choice was greeted with a warm round of patriotic applause — …

Amy Robach Reveals Her Blood Work Results After Delaying Tests Following Breast Cancer Battle

Amy Robach Reveals Her Blood Work Results After Delaying Tests Following Breast Cancer Battle

Amy Robach has reason to raise a glass and celebrate — she got her long-overdue blood work done and doctors gave her the all-clear and remains cancer-free. Robach and partner/co-host T.J. Holmes shared the momentous update on the latest episode of their Amy & T.J. podcast, in which the couple opened up about the experience of walking into the doctor’s office together, something she had been avoiding since February 2023. “It actually was remarkably quick and easy,” she said. “It’s so funny what you worry about and what you think about and then when it actually happens and do it, it’s so much easier than you were anticipating. It’s the anticipation that’s the toughest part.” Robach shared “it was awesome” to have Holmes by her side, especially because “I always have a little bit of a tough time going back into that building where I first got diagnosed.” The former Good Morning America host was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer after undergoing a routine mammogram live on the air in 2013. Prior to her recent blood work, Robach shared earlier …

Tracee Ellis Ross’ PATTERN Beauty Has a New Curling Iron — Here’s an Honest Review of the Hair Tool

Tracee Ellis Ross’ PATTERN Beauty Has a New Curling Iron — Here’s an Honest Review of the Hair Tool

Actress, producer and director Tracee Ellis Ross is a trendsetter in many ways, and one avenue where she’s blazing trails is in the hair care space as the founder of PATTERN Beauty.  Known for products that style, protect, enhance and love on curls of all shapes and sizes, PATTERN Beauty has branched into the hot hair tools sector, first with the launch of the blow dryer in 2023 and now with the introduction of a lux new curling iron.  Inspired by Tracee Ellis Ross’ days sitting in the stylist’s chair on set, the three barrel sizes are not only made to add curls to a style but are also meant to complement and bring uniformity to natural curl patterns.  The PATTERN Beauty curling iron is a marvel to look at. But of course, we wondered if it could back up the claims of how well it worked. So when the people at PATTERN Beauty asked us to try it, we jumped at the chance. Below, read our honest review of the new Interchangeable Curling Iron by PATTERN Beauty …

Pope Francis visits female penitentiary on Holy Thursday

Pope Francis visits female penitentiary on Holy Thursday

VATICAN CITY (RNS) — Pope Francis visited the female penitentiary of Rebibbia in Rome on Thursday (March 28) to celebrate the Holy Thursday ritual of feet washing, continuing the pontiff’s tradition of visiting marginalized groups on the Thursday before Easter. It’s the first time a pope has washed the feet of a group made up solely of women. The penitentiary is among the largest in Europe and houses 360 women and one child. The inmates have looked forward to the pope’s arrival with excitement, according to prison chaplain Don Andrea Carosella. “For them it’s a symbol of great attention, a symbol that shows that the pope thinks about them and is close to them,” Carosella told the news agency of the Italian bishops, SIR. “They need the kind of support that brings hope, a sign, caring, a gesture by someone who can help them have faith and courage to go forward,” Carosella said. “I think the pope’s visit offers inspiration for finding strength, finding courage.” The pope said Mass outside, in a large tent where …