Acclaimed director Norman Jewison dies aged 97

Hank Bradford, head writer for “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson” and “The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers,” died Jan. 18 in Los Angeles, his family said. He was 88 and the cause was congestive heart failure.

Robert M. Young, whose 70-year career included independent and studio documentaries, narrative features, and episodes of Battlestar: Galactica, died Tuesday in Los Angeles at 99. His death was confirmed in a Facebook post by his son.

Christopher Nolan had a Shakespearian moment when he came to The Late Show. In a reverse of Marc Antony, he came to praise Robert Downey Jr., his Oppenheimer star, not to bury him.

Tom Johnson, who won two Emmy Awards for his comedy writing, died Jan.14 at his home in Los Angeles at 55. No cause of death has been established.

Michaela Zee Tom Johnson, a writer and comedian whose credits include “The Daily Show,” “Lopez Tonight” and “The Jeselnik Offensive,” died Jan. 14 in his Los Angeles home. He was 55.

Pat Saperstein Deputy Editor Rod Holcomb, an Emmy-winning TV director of “ER,” “Lost” and other series, died Wednesday in Los Angeles. He was 80. Holcomb was best known for directing both the pilot and the series finale of “ER,” winning an Emmy for that farewell episode in 2009.

Rod Holcomb, an Emmy-winning ER director who also helmed Battlestar Galactica, The Six Million Dollar Man, China Beach and dozens of other shows and was a longtime Directors Guild negotiating committee menber, has died. He was 80.

Angelina Jolie is the latest star to check out one of Los Angeles’ trendiest sushi restaurant!

Jaden Thompson David Beckwith, a longtime publicist known for representing Elvis Presley’s Graceland Museum, died Jan. 19 after experiencing sepsis following a hip replacement surgery. He was 67.

Fans of the Barbie movie have been left outraged and demanding 'justice' for its main actress after the nominations for the 2024 Oscars were announced today (January 23). The nominees for the 96th Academy Awards were revealed this afternoon, ahead of the ceremony taking place in Los Angeles in early March.

Luis Vasquez, the driving force behind post-punk/darkwave project the Soft Moon, died in Los Angeles early Friday at age 44, according to the L.A. County coroner.

Veteran talent agent Scott Manners, who most recently was partner at Artists & Representatives, passed today in Los Angeles after a brief battle with ALS. Manners, who was 68, died peacefully, surrounded by his family, the agency said.

“I didn’t really know much about the making of the song,” admits The Greatest Night in Pop director Bao Nguyen of 1985’s star-studded Ethiopian famine relief hit “We Are the World.” “You just make these assumptions about how things are made because it just happens. But when you think now of 46 great artists getting together to make that, it would be really impossible for that to happen now.”

Nancy Green-Keyes, a casting director, agent and film producer whose many credits include The Notebook and Rush Hour, died January 17 at UCLA Hospital in Santa Monica of acute respiratory failure following a brief illness. She was 68.

Variety Staff Follow Us on Twitter Known for “Chinatown,” “Rosemary’s Baby” and “The Pianist,” Roman Polanski is one of the most acclaimed directors in cinematic history. He is also a convicted child rapist who has faced several sexual assault allegations over the course of his career. In “Disgraced Genius,” the fifth episode of Variety and iHeart Podcasts’ true crime podcast “Variety Confidential,” host Tracy Pattin and co-host Matt Donnelly, Variety’s senior entertainment and media writer, examine Polanski’s downfall after decades of Hollywood reverence.

Footloose, has died, aged 78.Marta died on January 11 at her home in Los Angeles, her friend Chris Saint-Hilaire confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter. She had reportedly been treated for cancer in the months prior to her death.The New-Jersey born actor was best-known for playing the aunt of Kevin Bacon’s character (Ren) in the film, Lulu Warnicker.Marta was born on October 30, 1945 in Somerville, New Jersey and was the youngest of two daughters. She began her career on the teen dance programme The Lloyd Thaxton Show and later on episodes of Gidgit and The Monkees before an 18-episode stint on Love, American Style.Her cinematic breakthrough came after being cast in 1972’s Joe Kidd, which was directed by John Sturgess.

Actress Lynne Marta has sadly passed away age 78 following a battle with brain cancer. The American star, best known for starring in Footloose and ER, died in Los Angeles on 11 January, her friend Chris Saint-Hilaire told The Hollywood Reporter. Lynne's impressive career spanned four decades and she starred in films such as Joe Kidd and Footloose as well as TV shows including Love, American Style, Starsky & Hutch, Barnaby Jones, The F.B.I.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief The Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles and The India Center Foundation, two non-profit organizations working with South Asian film in the U.S., have agreed to merge. Already long-time collaborators, IFFLA and ICF will, among other things, work closely to incubate and launch an industry development program to showcase the next generation of South Asian talent to studios, funders and media executives. “We saw an opportunity to scale our work nationally as one of the leading supporters of emerging creative talent in the diaspora.

Valerie Wu Intern David E. Hoffman, TV writer, author and creator of Food Network shows such as “The Best Thing I Ever Ate,” died Jan. 3 at his home in West Hollywood.

Ruth Ashton Taylor, a pioneer as the first female television newscaster in Los Angeles and one of the first in the country, died Thursday in Northern California. She was 101.