King of ‘The Road’: Jack Kerouac’s hometown fetes author’s 100th birthday

Singer and ex-One Direction member Liam Payne went viral on Sunday 27 March night when he debuted a bizarre new accent on the red carpet at Elton John AIDS Foundation's annual Academy Awards viewing party. Forgoing his well-known Wolverhampton accent for a seemingly Irish-American twang, he left viewers scratching their heads.

Samuel L. Jackson will return to Broadway next season after a 10-year absence with a revival of August Wilson’s Pulitzer Prize-winning drama The Piano Lesson, to be directed by LaTanya Richardson Jackson in her Broadway directorial debut.

Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey are bringing The Office to the stage!

EXCLUSIVE: Jenna Fischer and Angela Kinsey, co-stars of The Office and co-authors of the new book The Office BFFs: Tales of The Office from Two Best Friends Who Were There, will take the stage of New York City’s Town Hall on May 18 for their sole in-person book event.

EXCLUSIVE: Stephen Schneider (Broad City) has joined the cast of Paramount+’s upcoming esports series Players. The series hails from American Vandal co-creators Tony Yacenda and Dan Perrault, Funny or Die, Riot Games and CBS Studios.

Rita Moreno recently received the Stanley Kramer Award during the 33rd Producers Guild of America Awards. According to the trade association representing television producers, film producers, and New Media producers in the United States, the Stanley Kramer Award “honors a production, producer, or other individuals whose achievement or contribution illuminates and raises public awareness of important social issues.” During Moreno’s acceptance speech, the 90-year-old EGOT winner recalled the time she witnessed live when Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

The hosts with the most! With the Met Gala just weeks away, the Metropolitan Museum of Art has announced that Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Regina King and Lin-Manuel Miranda will be the co-chairs for the star-studded event, which will take place on May 2. 

The 2022 Met Gala returns to its traditional spot on the first Monday of May, and this year the hosts and co-chairs will reflect the strong Hollywood theme: Ryan Reynolds, Blake Lively, Regina King and Lin-Manuel Miranda have been named to the posts.

In America: An Anthology of Fashion. Every year, the glitzy affair—which provides the Costume Institute with its primary source of annual funding—welcomes a red carpet full of A-list actors, singers, designers, and models. At this year’s event, , , , and will host as the evening’s official co-chairs. Designer Tom Ford, head of Instagram Adam Mosseri, and Vogue’s Anna Wintour will continue their roles as the event’s honorary co-chairs.The 2022 theme and exhibition, , is part two of the Met’s thoughtful homage to our country’s history.

Jazz Tangcay Artisans EditorThe American Cinematheque has announced a “New Jack City” Special Screening Event on April 9 followed by a Q&A with director Mario Van Peebles.“New Jack City’ getting shut down in Westwood in 1991 is indicative of a confluence of violence against Black people on-screen and off-screen in real life. This is a legacy of film and television that actively continues to haunt us today,” said series co-curator Roya Rastegar.

EXCLUSIVE: Redbox Entertainment has signed North American rights to Verdi Productions’ action-crime film Johnny & Clyde, starring Avan Jogia (Zombieland: Double Tap), Ajani Russell (Betty), Tyson Ritter (Preacher) and Megan Fox (The Expendables 4).

Mirror singer and actor Anson Lo has joined the cast of Bizhan Tong’s upcoming action thriller Chungking Mansions. Billed as Hong Kong’s biggest zombie film ever, the Phoenix Waters Productions pic, in co-production with AMM Global and Salon Films Japan, has also added Hong Kong-Canadian actresses Selena Lee and Jeannie Chan, Korea’s Choi Si-Hun and Hong Kong actor Louis Cheung.

Jem Aswad Senior Music EditorThe family of legendary singer-songwriter Nat King Cole, one of the most important and influential musicians of the 20 th century, has entered into an agreement with Irving Azoff’s Iconic Artists Group to manage and expand his legacy to new generations, the company announced today.Details of the transaction were not disclosed, beyond the fact that it “encompasses a broad range of rights from Cole’s legendary career including his recorded music, publishing, television shows, and name and likeness.”In the decades before his 1965 death from lung cancer at the age of just 45, Cole scored more than 150 singles across Billboard’s pop, R&B, and country charts and has sold an estimated 50 million-plus records worldwide. While best known as a crooner, he was a formidable jazz musician as well, and is best known for classics like “The Very Thought of You,” “Straighten Up and Fly Right,” “Unforgettable,” “Nature Boy,” “Stardust,” “When I Fall In Love,” “Mona Lisa,” “L-O-V-E,” and the holiday staple, “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire).” As the announcement notes, Cole, who was born in Alabama in 1919, was subjected to all the barriers of the Jim Crow era, yet his success played no small role in advancing Black Americans’ presence in entertainment and public perception.

EXCLUSIVE: The cast of Christopher Nolan’s Oppenheimer continues to grow, with Harrison Gilbertson (Picnic at Hanging Rock) and Emily Dumont (Licorice Pizza) signing on for roles.