Writers Showbiz and Celebrity Breaking News

Robin Williams’ daughter, Zelda Williams, is slamming the use of artificial intelligence to recreate her late dad.“I am not an impartial voice in SAG’s fight against AI,” Zelda, 34, wrote via her Instagram Story on Sunday. “I’ve witnessed for YEARS how many people want to train these models to create/recreate actors who cannot consent, like Dad.”She added: “This isn’t theoretical, it is very very real.”“I’ve already heard AI used to get his ‘voice’ to say whatever people want and while I find it personally disturbing, the ramifications go far beyond my own feelings,” she went on.

Dancing with the Stars,” which was set to premiere its 32nd season on Tuesday, will be delayed due to the Writers Guild of America strike, ABC told USA TODAY.This news comes on the heels of one of the show’s contestants — former “Veep” star Matt Walsh — quick-stepping away from it in protest.“I am taking a pause from ‘Dancing with the Stars’ until an agreement is made with the WGA,” he said in a statement to Deadline. “I was excited to join the show and did so under the impression that it was not a WGA show and fell under a different agreement.”Other actors part of the SAG-AFTRA actors’ union, which joined the WGA strike in July, who are competing this season include “American Pie’s” Alyson Hannigan; Britney Spears’ sister Jamie Lynn; Barry Williams, aka Greg from “The Brady Bunch;” Mira Sorvino; “Vanderpump Rules'” star Ariana Madix and Xochitl Gomez, who starred in “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.”SAG-AFTRA has made it clear that it supports the actors in their TV dance floor endeavors.

Hollywood writer’s strike war rages on, Bill Maher just wants to get his check. The “Real Time with Bill Maher” host, 67, will return to HBO with his eponymous talk show without writers on Sept. 22.

striking Hollywood writers Tuesday night that they plan to meet with representatives for studios to discuss restarting negotiations after the first official communication between the two sides since the strike began three months ago.The Writers Guild of America sent an email to members saying that the head of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents major studios, streaming services and production companies in negotiations, requested a meeting on Friday to discuss the resumption of contract talks.“We’ll be back in communication with you sometime after the meeting with further information,” the email read. “As we’ve said before, be wary of rumors.

In an interview with TODAY at the 2023 Book Bonanza — the charitable festival she founded with her two sisters in 2018 — Hoover said she was shocked when she was told that Blake Lively had been cast as the female lead, Lily Bloom.“I didn’t believe it,” she told the outlet. But it was a good surprise. “I have been obsessed with Blake Lively since ‘Gossip Girl’ days — I’m just a huge fan of hers, and of course of her husband,” Hoover said.

Bloomberg News reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.Murphy is known for his creation of hits from “Glee” to “9-1-1” and “American Horror Story” and serial-killer series “Dahmer — Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story,” which became one of Netflix’s most-watched series of all time.He left Fox in 2018 to join Netflix in a five-year deal valued as high as $300 million to produce a new series and film exclusively for the online giant.Competition has been intensifying between streaming companies as they invest in original content and try to stand out in a crowded market and attract subscribers to their platforms.The TV show creator has been negotiating a new deal with Disney over the past year. Most of the details were ironed out before the writers’ strike began in May, the report added.The Hollywood Foreign Press Association, the group that votes on the Golden Globes, celebrated Murphy’s contributions to television with its fourth Carol Burnett Award earlier this year.

Deadline reported Wednesday that Steinberg’s family said he died March 15, but did not provide further details.The Post has contacted a rep for Steinberg for comment. “It’s a sad day when Norman Steinberg leaves us.

running from early March into April.The main attraction at the event, dubbed Kerouac @ 100, is certainly the original 120 foot “On The Road” scroll, the original manuscript Kerouac typed out while living on West 20th Street in Chelsea.“Jack changed his writing style for this new novel, which becomes ‘On the Road,’” explained Kerouac’s nephew, Jim Sampas, a music producer and the literary executor of Jack Kerouac’s estate. “He doesn’t want to stop to change sheets of paper in the typewriter and uses this teletype paper so he can write in a continuous flow.”On loan from Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay’s personal collection, the scroll is part of “Visions Of Kerouac,” an exhibit of artifacts co-curated with the UMass Lowell Kerouac Center (on display Mar.

Joan Didion was a novelist and journalist who won the National Book Award for Nonfiction for her 2005 book “The Year of Magical Thinking.”Didion got her start at Vogue magazine after winning their 1956 Prix de Paris essay contest. She began to rise as a notable young writer in the 1960s, with her first novel “Run, River” as well as articles for magazine including Life, Esquire, and the Saturday Evening Post.

Marie-Claire Blais was an acclaimed French-Canadian author known for books including “Une Saison Dans la Vie d’Emmanuel” (“A Season in the Life of Emmanuel”)Blais published her first novel when she was only 20, in 1959. “Le Belle Bête” (“The Beautiful Beast”) established her reputation as a writer, and she followed it with more than 50 other books over a long and celebrated career.

Robert Bly was a poet and writer best known for his 1990 book “Iron John: A Book About Men” and the mythopoetic men’s movement he helped launch.Bly’s “Iron John” was a book of nonfiction prose that explored how fairy tales can provide lessons for men. The book spent 62 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and inspired men to seek the ritual, connection, and sensitivity that their lives were lacking.

Ed Bullins was a playwright known for works including “The Taking of Miss Janie” and “In New England Winter.”Bullins began writing plays after being inspired by a performance of Amiri Baraka’s (1934–2014) 1964 play, “The Dutchman.” Like Baraka, Bullins became associated with the Black Arts Movement, which represented Black voices in the 1960s and ‘70s. Bullins became chief artist in residence at Black House, a San Francisco arts and community center founded by Eldridge Cleaver (1935–1998).

Bob Baker was a British writer for the Wallace and Gromit series as well as co-creator of the robotic dog K9 as a writer for “Doctor Who.”Baker began writing for “Doctor Who” in 1971 alongside his longtime writing partner, Dave Martin. The pair wrote for the era when Jon Pertwee and Tom Baker were the third and fourth Doctors.

Eloise Greenfield was a children’s author whose picture books told stories of Black lives and history.Greenfield published her first children’s book, “Bubbles,” in 1972, after years of rejections at a time when Black voices weren’t common in children’s literature. She went on to publish almost 50 children’s books, including prose, poetry, and biographies.

William F. Nolan was an author of sci-fi classics including “Logan’s Run,” which he co-wrote with George Clayton Johnson.Nolan was best known for “Logan’s Run,” a 1967 novel imagining a future in which humans face mandatory euthanasia at the age of 21.

Heidi Ferrer was a writer known for her work on TV shows including “Dawson’s Creek” and “Wasteland.”If someone you know exhibits warning signs of suicide, he or she should not be left alone. Call the U.S. National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 800-273-8255. The Lifeline provides free, confidential support for people in crisis or emotional distress, 24/7 year-round.

Lucinda Riley was a bestselling Irish author of historical fiction, known for her “The Seven Sisters” series and her 2019 No. 1 Sunday Times bestseller, “The Butterfly Room.”Riley was an actress in her young life before turning to writing after an illness interrupted her acting career.

Frank Jacobs was a longtime writer for Mad magazine, best known for his song parodies.Jacobs first joined Mad in 1957, when he first picked up a copy of Mad.

Beverly Cleary penned award-winning books for children and young adults including the popular “Ramona” series, notably the National Book Award-winning “Ramona and Her Mother” as well as “Ramona the Brave,” “Ramona Quimby, Age 8,” and “Ramona Forever.”Born Beverly Atlee Bunn April 12, 1916, in McMinnville, Oregon, in the heart of the Willamette Valley, Cleary initially didn’t seem destined for a career of writing beloved classics for young readers.

Larry McMurtry was an author and screenwriter known for novels including “Lonesome Dove” and “The Last Picture Show” as well as his Oscar-winning adapted screenplay for “Brokeback Mountain.”This is a breaking news story.

Norton Juster was a children’s author known for his 1961 classic, “The Phantom Tollbooth.”Juster was working as an architect when he wrote his first children’s book, which became a beloved classic. “The Phantom Tollbooth” told the story of a bored young boy, Milo, who was thrown into adventures when a tollbooth appeared in his bedroom and turned out to be a portal to fantastical lands.

Lawrence Otis Graham was a lawyer and author whose examinations of race and privilege in America became best-sellers.Graham’s breakthrough as a writer came in 1992, when he published the article “Invisible Man” in New York magazine. It recounted Graham’s experience when, already a successful lawyer who had written several books, he took a job as a busboy at Connecticut’s exclusive Greenwich Country Club.

Margaret Maron was a mystery novelist known for books including her Sigrid Harald series.Maron began her writing career with a short story, “The Death of Me,” published in Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine. She began writing novels and published her first, “One Coffee With,” in 1981.

Lawrence Ferlinghetti was a poet who co-founded and owned the famed City Lights bookstore in San Francisco and championed Beat poets including Allen Ginsberg.Ferlinghetti, a native of New York, settled in San Francisco in 1951, just as the city was beginning to become a haven for iconoclasts. Soon after, in 1953, he co-founded City Lights along with Peter D.

pic.twitter.com/fIDoZdeyxt#ESSENCE is saddened to report the passing of famed author, Eric Jerome Dickey. Dickey was an ESSENCE and New York Times best-selling author best known for his novels about contemporary African-American life.

Betty Dodson was a sex educator known for teaching women how to masturbate via her workshops, books, and videos.Dodson began her career as a sex educator at the height of second-wave feminism by hosting consciousness-raising groups in her home, focusing on teaching women about their bodies and encouraging them to appreciate their own beauty.

Bette Greene was an author of children’s and young adult books including the 1973 National Book Award finalist “Summer of My German Soldier.”“Summer of My German Soldier” takes place in Arkansas during World War II, following a young Jewish girl as she develops a relationship with a German POW and hides him in her garage. Greene later said that the story was autobiographical.

Stanley Crouch was an author and cultural critic known for his jazz criticism as well as for his biography of Charlie Parker.Crouch was a jazz drummer in his youth, a founder of the combo Black Music Infinity.

Shanna Hogan was a New York Times bestselling author of true crime books including “Picture Perfect: The Jodi Arias Story.”Hogan published her first true crime book in 2011. “Dancing with Death: The True Story of a Glamorous Showgirl, Her Wealthy Husband, and a Horrifying Murder” told the story of the 2004 murder of art dealer Jay Orbin by his wife, Marjorie Orbin.

Carol Brock was a food writer who founded Les Dames d’ Escoffier, a professional organization for women in the culinary world.Brock became part of the culinary industry in the 1940s as a young writer for Good Housekeeping magazine. As she wrote there for 23 years, then moved on to Parents magazine and the New York Daily News, Brock discovered that the food and beverage industry was largely a boys’ club, particularly in fine dining groups like the storied Les Amis d’Escoffier Society.

Joanna Cole was a children’s author best known for her “The Magic School Bus” series.Cole published the first book in her Magic School Bus series, “At the Waterworks,” in 1986. Her words, along with illustrator Bruce Degen’s pictures, brought science to children in a fun and appealing way.

Jas Waters was a writer who worked on TV shows including “This Is Us” and “Kidding,” as well as writing a column for Vibe magazine.Waters grew up in Evanston, Illinois, where she was raised by her grandparents in a retirement home. She talked in interviews about her love for going to movies as a child and the way seeing a wide variety of movies informed her ability to write for the screen.