October 9, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

STEPHANIE BRANCHU/NETFLIX(CHICAGO) — While most companies would be thrilled to be name-dropped in a popular Netflix seres, one Chicago pizzeria is feeling the exact opposite. 

In an episode of Netflix’s new series Emily in Paris, one of the characters refers to deep dish pizza — something the Windy City is known for — as a “quiche made of cement.”

In response, Emily, played by Lily Collins, says, “Oh no, you must have gone to Lou Malnati’s.”

Well, that didn’t sit quite well with the owner of the restaurant chain, Marc Malnati, and he issued a statement addressing the insult.   

“We’ve been serving Chicago’s favorite Deep Dish since 1971. When Netflix’s Emily in Paris writers chose to take a shot at Chicagoans and our pizza to try to get a laugh, it felt heartless and not humorous in the midst of COVID-19,” he said, according to the Chicago Tribune.

He added, “Malnati’s is always the first to participate in good-natured banter with pizza lovers from New York or California. However, it feels especially unkind to disparage anyone during these difficult times, given that most restaurants are struggling to hang on.”

In addition to responding to the diss, Malnati dished out a discount for fans of the pizza chain. Anyone who visits tastesofchicago.com and orders a four or six pizza pack by October 14 can use the code TCXCHISTRONG to get $5 off.

Emily in Paris hit Netflix on Friday and quickly made its way to the number one spot on the U.S. charts. It follows the story of Emily, a marketing executive, who jets off to France for an unexpected job opportunity that sees her as the American perspective at a French marketing agency. It’s available on the platform for streaming now. 

By Danielle Long
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

October 9, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Noam Galai/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — The Great White Way will remain dark for a while longer.

Broadway shows have been cancelled through May 30, 2021, due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The Broadway League announced on their website Friday that theaters are now offering refunds and exchanges for tickets purchased for any performances that had previously been scheduled up through that date.

“With nearly 97,000 workers who rely on Broadway for their livelihood and an annual economic impact of $14.8 billion to the city, our membership is committed to re-opening as soon as conditions permit us to do so,” Charlotte St. Martin, President of the Broadway League, said in a statement. “We are working tirelessly with multiple partners on sustaining the industry once we raise our curtains again.”

According to The League, dates for each returning and new Broadway show will be announced as individual productions determine the performance schedules for their respective shows.

Touring shows across North American are also affected. For more information, theater goers are directed to check their show or venue’s official website.

By Andrea Tuccillo
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

October 9, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Courtesy of HBO(NEW YORK) — The Sesame Street gang is teaming up for a special aimed at teaching kids how they can stand up to racism in a new special airing on HBO Max and PBS Kids.

The Power of We: A Sesame Street Special will feature Elmo and Abby Cadabby, who are joined by six-year-old Muppet Gabrielle and her cousin, eight-year-old Tamir, as they “learn how to become ‘upstanders’ to unfair treatment based on skin — or fur — color.”

Current and former Sesame Street human cast members, including Alan, Charlie, Chris and Gordon, will also appear in the special, alongside celebrity and musical guests Yara Shahidi, Christopher Jackson and Andra Day.

The Power of We will includes two new songs: “How Do You Know?” and “Listen, Act, Unite!” the latter written and performed by Jackson and featuring Day.

“Sesame Street has the ability to entertain children while explaining complex issues like no other program and equips families and caregivers with the support they need to have empathetic conversations,” said Kay Wilson Stallings, Executive Vice President of Creative and Production at Sesame Workshop in a statement on Thursday.

“We believe that this moment calls for a direct discussion about racism to help children grasp the issues and teach them that they are never too young to be ‘upstanders’ for themselves, one another, and their communities,” she adds.

In June, Sesame Street teamed up with CNN for a town hall to talk to kids about racism amid the ongoing Black Lives Matter protests in the wake of George Floyd’s killing.

The new special will stream both on HBO Max and PBS KIDS starting October 15 with repeats airing throughout the month and into November.

By George Costantino
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

October 9, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic(LOS ANGELES) — Halle Berry — no, not that one — is up for adoption.  A gorgeous gray and white shorthaired cat is currently waiting patiently at the Michigan Humane Society for her purrfect forever family to take her home.

However, it appears Ms. Berry won’t have to wait too much longer now that she has a little help from her actual namesake — the real Halle Berry!

The Michigan Humane Society first put the rescue kitty on the actress’ radar when tweeting Thursday, “This is Halle Berry. She will not tolerate any @halleberry as Catwoman slander.”

When visiting the feline’s adoption page, Halle Berry is described as a “sweet quiet girl looking for a calm home” who may need “a slow introduction” to children and dogs.  

“New situations can be scary for her,” the rescue society explained. “But once she settles in she loves attention!”

It also appears the kitty is a social butterfly, as she has befriended the shelter’s other available cats.

Once Halle Berry — the actress and animal lover — learned of the cute cat’s quest for a home, she immediately alerted her followers.

The Oscar winner retweeted the Michigan Humane Society and expressed her excitement using four red double exclamation emojis.

Paws crossed that Ms. Berry, the shelter cat, finds her furever family, soon!

By Megan Stone
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.

October 9, 2020 • No Comments • Entertainment News

ABC/Rick Rowell(LOS ANGELES) — Fans of the Marvel Cinematic Universe believe Natalie Portman let slip a major spoiler about the upcoming Thor: Love and Thunder movie.

The actress, who played astrophysicist Dr. Jane Foster in the first two films, will return for the franchise’s fourth installment where she is expected to pick up Mjolnir and transform into the next god of thunder.

However, during a recent interview with Fatherly, the Academy Award winner let slip that Jane has more than one bad guy to defeat.

“She’s going through cancer treatment and is a superhero on the side,” Portman disclosed, sending fans into a frenzy about what that could possibly mean for her character.

In the Mighty Thor comics, where Jane masquerades as a female Thor, the heroine is diagnosed with breast cancer shortly after tragically losing both her husband and son in a car accident.  

While she becomes worthy of wielding Mjolnir, it comes at a steep price.  Each time she transforms into Thor, the magic coursing through her veins purges all toxins — including the lifesaving chemotherapy treatments — from her body.  

Portman first joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2011 and starred in the first and second movies as the love interest of Chris Hemsworth’s Thor. 

Portman was not brought on for the franchise’s third installment, Thor: Ragnarok, and her absence was explained in the movie — that the astrophysicist and the god of thunder broke up after hitting too many bumps in the road.

It is unknown if the two’s spark will reignite in the fourth title.

Meanwhile, Tessa Thomspon is set to reprise her role as Valkyrie and teased at San Diego Comic-Con in 2019 that she is on the hunt to “find her queen.”

Thor: Love and Thunder, is slated to hit theaters February 11, 2022.

By Megan Stone
Copyright © 2020, ABC Audio. All rights reserved.