Jackie Robinson Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Peter Debruge Chief Film Critic African American boxing champ Muhammad Ali famously refused to fight for his country, justifying himself with the oft-quoted quip, “No Viet Cong ever called me n—–.” That’s one-half of American history, and an important one. “Devotion” tells the other, presenting the story of a Black pilot so determined to defend — and die for, if need be — the United States that he was willing to endure institutional bigotry to become the Jackie Robinson of the skies: Jesse Brown, the first aviator of color to complete the Navy’s basic training program. A square but satisfying social justice drama set against the backdrop of the Korean War, “Devotion” impressed on the biggest screen possible at the Toronto Film Festival two months before its Nov. 23 theatrical release. Featuring elements of both “Green Book” and “Red Tails,” the film is more than just a stirring case of Black exceptionalism; it also celebrates the one white officer who had Brown’s back, Tom Hudner, treating the bond these two men formed as something exceptional unto itself. Director JD Dillard dazzles with see-it-in-Imax airborne sequences, but the meat of the film focuses on the friendship between Brown (“Da 5 Bloods” star Jonathan Majors) and his white wingman, played by Glen Powell, the “Hidden Figures” actor who most recently appeared in “Top Gun: Maverick.”

The Los Angeles Dodgers have officially announced that Shohei Ohtani has been signed to a 10-year contract with the team.

Fisherman, family, blue-collar life, debts that pile up, and crime all swirl together in the new drama, “Finestkind” from Oscar-winning writer/director Brian Helgeland, who won the Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay for “LA Confidential” in 1998. Helgeland’s done a ton since, writing the Oscar-winning “Mystic River” for Clint Eastwood, “Man on Fire” for Tony Scott, and directing the Jackie Robinson biopic “42,” “Legend” with Tom Hardy, and now, “Finestkind.” “Finestkind” stars Ben Foster, Toby Wallace, Tommy Lee Jones, and Jenna Ortega, and it’s a crime drama about a crew of fishermen who tread dangerous waters after their debts start piling up.

In the 24th weekly installment of the Deadline Strike Talk Podcast, host Billy Ray doesn’t seem too shaken by the surprise breakoff of talks between the studios and SAG-AFTRA.

As the Hollywood strikes stretched to Week 23, optimism is high that a deal between signatories and SAG-AFTRA is close and the town can go back to work. That enthusiasm could be felt with all the deal stories that Deadline broke this week, a clear signal of hope.

Black American culture as one of the most influential businessmen in entertainment. The Greensboro, North Carolina, native became a pillar in entertainment after moving to Los Angeles in the late 1960s.

One of the greatest pitchers in Los Angeles Dodgers history was honored Friday night at Dodger Stadium before the game.

Michael Nordine author There’s no shortage of great movies about baseball, but there is a severe lack of films about the Negro leagues. The fifth inning of Ken Burns’ expansive “Baseball” covers them with admirable reverence, but feature-length projects — whether narrative or documentary — are vanishingly rare. “The League” is therefore something close to required viewing for devotees of our national pastime just by virtue of its existence, so it comes as a relief that Sam Pollard’s documentary (exec produced by Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson) is also quite good on the merits. Given his résumé, that shouldn’t come as a surprise. Pollard’s prior work as director includes “MLK/FBI” and “Citizen Ashe,” and he’s also edited several Spike Lee joints; in addition to a Peabody Award and career achievement prize from the International Documentary Association, he shared an Oscar nomination with Lee for 1997’s “4 Little Girls” about the 16th Street Baptist Church bombing.

took to Twitter to imagine a moment from the show where the host asked a contestant about a random piece of trivia and the player’s response. “Jeopardy be like: Host: The 2nd Earl of Winchester wrote this 1887 symphony about the tributary to the 42nd-largest river in Obscuristan,” tweeted the historian. “Contestant: What is ‘Aksjducpïsudintal in A Minor?’ I’ll take History for $100.”“Host: Name a Black person who did anything,” continued the tweet “Contestant: [silence]” Since being posted, the now-viral tweet has been viewed nearly 958,000 times.

Owen Gleiberman Chief Film Critic “Sweetwater” is a biopic about Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton, the Black power forward who broke the color barrier of the NBA in 1950, three years after Jackie Robinson accomplished the same feat in baseball. It’s telling that Robinson remains one of the most celebrated heroes in sports history, while Clifton is still a somewhat obscure figure. (He was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2014, but still.) There’s a biting irony to that contrast. It relates to how the integration of basketball totally changed the game (the way it was played, the way the fans thought of it), even more than the integration of baseball changed baseball. “Sweetwater,” written and directed by Martin Guigui, is a straight-down-the-middle inspirational sports movie — and, one regrets to say, a kind of benign sketchbook version of the form. Yet it also tells the tale (or, at least, one slice of it) of the Harlem Globetrotters, the fabled team of barnstorming trickster prodigies who Clifton started off as a member of. There were several levels to the Globetrotters’ athletic magic, and the film captures how intricately tied it was to the way that Black players remade the game.

US Open-dominating Serena Williams to a baseball signed by not only Babe Ruth but Jackie Robinson, too, a jaw-dropping selection of sports equipment and apparel — each with an opening bid that makes season-ticket prices look like chump change — will hit the auction block at Sotheby’s starting Tuesday. The auction is Part II of Sotheby’s “Invictus” event, the first of which, running simultaneously, is dedicated solely to selling off Michael Jordan’s jersey from Game 1 of the 1998 NBA Finals — his last-ever season with the Chicago Bulls.

pic.twitter.com/FloR9dBhZj“He was the voice of the Dodgers, and so much more,” the team wrote. “He was their conscience, their poet laureate, capturing their beauty and chronicling their glory from Jackie Robinson to Sandy Koufax, Kirk Gibson to Clayton Kershaw.”Scully’s longevity is almost hard to process. He began calling Dodgers games in 1950, when the team was still in Brooklyn.

Jon Weisman Vin Scully, the longtime Dodgers play-by-play announcer considered by many to be the king of his profession, died Tuesday. He was 94.The Los Angeles Dodgers confirmed Scully’s death through its official social media.“He was the voice of the Dodgers, and so much more,” the organization wrote.

Denzel Washington surprised baseball fans when he took to home plate at Dodgers Stadium to pay tribute to the iconic Jackie Robinson, 75 years after the trailblazing athlete broke baseball's color barrier.On Tuesday, the Academy Award winner donned Robinson's number 42 jersey to kick off the big game by honoring the baseball icon's legacy. «Ebbets Field, Brooklyn, 1947,» Washington began, noting when Robinson broke baseball's color barrier with the then-Brooklyn Dodgers. «When Jackie Robinson stepped onto a Major League Baseball field for the first time, armed with supreme talent and unshakable character and wearing a Dodgers uniform, he changed the game of baseball and so much more.»Washington praised Robinson's activities both on the field and off, saying that he «challenged us to become better versions of ourselves.»«Business leader, family man, activist, Hall of Famer,» thePresidential Medal of Honor recipient continued.

Denzel Washington honoured a sports hero.

Major League Baseball hit another home run tonight.

Continuing its strong ties to the entertainment industry, Howard University will be the host of the new “Disney Storytellers Fund,” which will “create opportunities for historically underrepresented students to have future careers as storytellers and innovators in media and entertainment,” according to a joint release.

Wilson Chapman editorIn celebration of Juneteenth, AMC Theatres will present special screenings of “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “The Best Man” and other popular movies focusing on Black voices.From this Friday to Wednesday, select AMC locations will offer special screenings of “Judas and the Black Messiah,” “The Best Man,” “Just Mercy” and “42.” The screenings will be available to audiences at a discounted price of $5.Directed by Shaka King, “Judas and the Black Messiah” tells the story of Black Panther chairman Fred Hampton (Daniel Kaluuya, who won an Oscar for the role) and his murder by the FBI, after being betrayed by informant William O’Neal (Lakeith Stanfield). The film premiered last year to critical acclaim, and was nominated for six Oscars.

EXCLUSIVE: UTA has signed award-winning writer, director and producer Andre Gaines (After Jackie), as well as his production company Cinemation Studios, for worldwide representation in all areas. The agency will now look to help expand his business across film, television, podcasts and gaming, also working with him on several hosted programs based on popular brands.

He’s out of here. Major League Baseball has fined and suspended New York Yankees player Josh Donaldson for one game in the wake of his “disrespectful” comments toward Chicago White Sox star Tim Anderson.

Adam ChitwoodThe all-star cast of Steve Carell, Julianne Moore, Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone and young Joey King really make this movie. It is just the right amount of chaotic with some pretty sweet connections at the end. Cal Weaver (Carell) is floored when his wife of almost 25 years Emily (Moore) blurts out at dinner that she wants to get divorced.

gave birth to all 14 of her children naturally, which included two single births (Darian, 16, and Derek, 10), twins (Dallas and Denver, 9), quintuplets (Deonee, Daician, Daiten, Deniko and Dariz, 7), twins (Diez and Dior, 4) and triplets (Dawsyn, De'Aren and Dyver, 2).«My quintuplets doctor told me I was his first African-American patient to naturally conceive,» Karen revealed. «And I think he gave an odds of one in 32 million something around that.»The Las Vegas-based family thrive despite the obvious challenges.

football team, which included Jackie Robinson, Kenny Washington, and Woody Strode).———WHAT IF I ONLY WANT TO WATCH THE HALFTIME SHOW?The first half of a normal NFL game usually takes 90 minutes, but if there are a lot of running plays, it could be done in 1 hour, 10 minutes.With kickoff at 6:30 p.m. EST, it would probably be a good idea to tune in around 7:40 p.m. so you don't miss Dr.

football team, which included Jackie Robinson, Kenny Washington, and Woody Strode).———WHAT IF I ONLY WANT TO WATCH THE HALFTIME SHOW?The first half of a normal NFL game usually takes 90 minutes, but if there are a lot of running plays, it could be done in 1 hour, 10 minutes.With kickoff at 6:30 p.m. EST, it would probably be a good idea to tune in around 7:40 p.m. so you don't miss Dr.

Joe Biden on Friday to remove context from remarks that some could judge as racially insensitive.In Veterans Day comments made Thursday, Biden told an anecdote that referenced baseball player Satchel Paige, who had pitched in the Negro Leagues before Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier in Major League Baseball.On “Fox & Friends,” Rachel Campos Duffy said Biden was “facing backlash” for comments at Arlington National Cemetery.In his comments, Biden said he had “adopted the attitude of the

Rebecca Rubin Film and Media ReporterStanley Nelson has been set to direct a feature-length documentary on the life of Charlie Sifford, the first Black golfer to play on the PGA Tour.Sifford, who has been called the Jackie Robinson of golf, was instrumental in getting the biggest professional golf tournament in the U.S.

Celebrities honored Chadwick Boseman on social media Saturday as the world marked one year since the actor's death. Boseman, who played Black American icons Jackie Robinson and James Brown before inspiring audiences worldwide as the regal Black Panther in Marvel’s blockbuster movie franchise, died in 2020 at age 43 from cancer.

The late Chadwick Boseman will have a wing of his alma mater, Howard University, named after him. Howard University announced today that its college of fine arts, led by Dean Phylicia Rashad, will be renamed the Chadwick A.

UPDATED with more details: Howard University is renaming its College of Fine Arts after Chadwick Boseman, who attended the college before going on to become an A-list actor playing iconic roles including Black Panther, Thurgood Marshall, Jackie Robinson and James Brown.

Angelique Jackson Chadwick Boseman was best known to audiences for his work onscreen, playing iconic figures like Jackie Robinson, James Brown, Thurgood Marshall and the Black Panther. But offscreen, he was known as a proud Howard Bison.Howard University announced today that the newly re-established College of Fine Arts, led by Dean Phylicia Rashad, will be named for the late actor and distinguished alumnus.

Adam B.

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom. Earning the trophy for Best Performance by an Actor in a Motion Picture - Drama, he is also the first Black posthumous winner and the fourth Black actor to win the category, Variety noted.

Chadwick Boseman’s death in August, at the age of 43, shocked friends and colleagues who made recent films with him as much as it did fans around the world who mourned the passing of the actor who in a relatively short time played Black Panther, James Brown, Jackie Robinson and Thurgood Marshall.

Having been a high-profile filmmaker for four decades, Spike Lee has had his fair share of projects fall apart. Films like his biopics about James Brown, Joe Louis, and Jackie Robinson or even “Inside Man 2” were all floated around at various points in Lee’s career but ultimately never came together.

The families of Jackie Robinson and Martin Luther King Jr. are blasting Donald Trump and his reelection campaign for a new ad in which images of the two civil rights icons are shown.

Chadwick Boseman. Frazier will host an upcoming news special, featuring compelling and intimate footage of Boseman. Boseman died last Friday following a four-year private battle with colon cancer.