Former Disney CEO Bob Iger Joins Thrive Capital as Partner

A former USF women’s basketball player from Wisconsin died by suicide after her fiancé called off their engagement.

Showtime Sports announced today that veteran journalist, host and sports broadcaster Rachel Nichols will join Showtime Basketball as both a host and producer, contributing to multiple platforms, programs and projects.“We are delighted to welcome Rachel Nichols to the SHOWTIME Basketball family,” said Brian Dailey, Senior Vice President, Sports Programming & Content, Showtime Networks Inc. “Rachel brings unmatched journalistic credibility, great familiarity with our roster and a work ethic that will take us to another level.”Nichols will contribute to SHOWTIME Basketball’s premium, award-winning storytelling as she bolsters a group that features Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, JR Smith and King of NBA Twitter Josiah Johnson.“I’ve been so fortunate to live my dream job alongside some of the best journalists in the business for more than 25 years, and this new development deal with SHOWTIME Sports gives me my most broad playing field yet,” Nichols said.

Janice Fournier is sharing new original music.

Rylan revealed he was "excited" on Monday's It Takes Two as he announced a new former Strictly Come Dancing pro joining him and co-host Janette Manrara on the BBC show. During the instalment, the presenter, 33, revealed that Choreography Corner was back and pro Joanne Clifton, who announced she was leaving Strictly in 2017, would be permanently hosting the segment now called Clifton's Choreography Corner.

The former Vicar of Rochdale was jailed after taking part in a blockade of an oil terminal. The Rev Mark Coleman was one of 56 Just Stop Oil protesters who were sent to prison after refusing to comply with court proceedings.

decorated as an Honorary Knight of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) by Queen Elizabeth II, who approved the award prior to her death.The honorary award given to recipients who are not U.K. citizens is the second-highest rank in the order and is designated for individuals who have made “a pre-eminent contribution in any field of activity,” per the Honours’ website.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Former Disney chairman-CEO Bob Iger and renowned film composer John Williams were selected for 2022 Honorary KBE laurels by Queen Elizabeth II, the U.K. government disclosed this week. The Honorary Knight Commander of the British Empire kudos for Iger and Williams were part of a number of honorary awards for foreign nationals that were approved for 2022 by the beloved monarch, who died Sept. 8 at age 96 after an historic reign. Iger was cited for “services to the UK/US relations,” presumably referring to his long run as a top Disney executive and the company’s notable presence in the global content business and U.K.-based film, TV and stage production. Williams, a five-time Oscar winner and an accomplished conductor, was cited for his many years of “services to film music.”

Former Canal+ CEO Rodolphe Belmer is taking charge of TF1.

Former UCLA basketball player Jalen Hill tragically died at the age of 22.

Jeanick Fournier captured the hearts (and ears!) of audiences when she was declared the winner of the 2022 season of “Canada’s Got Talent”; now, the Quebec-born singer is unveiling her major-label debut album.

EJ Panaligan editor The Los Angeles LGBT Center has announced the hire of Phillip Picardi as the organization’s chief marketing and communications officer. “I am so excited to be joining The Los Angeles LGBT Center at this urgent moment in our community’s history,” Picardi said in a statement Thursday morning. “After working for over a decade in the media, I know how powerful storytelling can be as a cultural salve. I’m thrilled to take the Center’s marketing and communications initiatives to new heights.” Picardi joins as a member of the Center’s executive team, working alongside newly-appointed CEO Joe Hollendoner, chief impact officers Terra Russell-Slavin and Sharon Brown, chief financial officer Ricardo DeLeon, chief development officer Saurabh Bajaj and chief health officer Dr. Ward Carpenter.

Anna Marie de la Fuente Spanish indie production shingle Nadie es Perfecto, producer of Alex de la Iglesia’s hit comedy “Perfectos Desconocidos,” has tapped former Netflix exec Juan Mayne to join the company as it revs up its slate with a slew of new projects. These include two pics in pre-production: “La navidad en sus manos,” in co-production with Bowfinger and Esto También Pasará, directed by Joaquín Mazón, starring Ernesto Sevilla and with a special collaboration from actor-filmmaker Santiago Segura, who has worked with de la Iglesia and Guillermo del Toro; and “Locomía,” directed by Kike Maillo, starring Jaime Lorente (“Money Heist,” “Elite”) and Alberto Ammann (“Lope,” “El silencio del cazador”).

With a bit more than a year left before Disney can buy out Comcast’s financial stake in Hulu, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts pushed back on Disney CEO Bob Chapek’s suggestion that Hulu’s value has declined amid public market skepticism about streaming.

Todd Spangler NY Digital Editor Disney+ was first launched three years ago with the “pretty absurd” low price point of $6.99 per month, CEO Bob Chapek admitted. Now the company is gearing up to raise prices again on the flagship streamer — but Disney+ still offers a better price/value equation than competitors, he said. “I think we’re way underpriced relative to the value we provide,” Chapek said, noting that the core Disney+ service without ads will continue to be priced below several competitors. The CEO was speaking Wednesday at Goldman Sachs’ Communacopia + Technology Conference 2022. Amid rising inflation, Disney has announced price increases coming in the fourth quarter of 2022 for Disney+ and Hulu, as well as a December launch for the ad-supported Disney+ tier in the U.S. Disney+ Basic, the name of the plan with ads, will launch Dec. 8 in the U.S. for $7.99/month. That’s the price of the current ad-free version of Disney+, which at that time will bump up to $10.99/month, a 38% increase, and will be known as Disney+ Premium.

EXCLUSIVE: UTA’s unscripted television department is getting a new agent.

Brent Lang Executive Editor By slashing prices, Mitch Lowe transformed MoviePass into a supernova.   The ticketing service, which had ambitions to become the Netflix of moviegoing, had languished for years until Lowe took the reins in 2017 as Helios and Matheson, an analytics firm, purchased a controlling stake. At the same time, Lowe announced that for a monthly fee of $9.95, users could now watch a movie-a-day in cinemas — less than the cost of a single ticket in major cities like New York and Los Angeles. It was an offer that was too good to refuse, pushing MoviePass to 2 million customers in roughly six months. But it was also a risky proposition, one that caused the company to burn through tens of millions of dollars and collapse in spectacular fashion just two years later.  

Former Stockport council leader Elise Wilson has announced she will not be standing for re-election next year. Coun Wilson, who still heads up the Labour group, plans to step down in May after completing nine years at the town hall - including three as leader of the council.

The ongoing R Kelly trial was dominated last week by the testimony of the star’s former business manager Derrel McDavid, who is a co-defendant in the case. He is accused of helping Kelly cover up the star’s sexual abuse of minors in the 2000s, but – he repeatedly insisted on the witness stand last week – at the time he genuinely believed that all of the musician’s various accusers were lying.For that claim to be credible, McDavid needed to convince jurors that he had never closely scrutinised the various sex tapes involving Kelly that were leaked and then retrieved during the 2000s, including the one that was at the centre of the musician’s 2008 trial.

Disney CEO Bob Chapek is opening up about ESPN as activist investor Daniel Loeb had been pressuring the company to spin off the sports network.