Negromancer News Bits and Bites from February 1st to 6th, 2021 - Update #21

by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"

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ENTERTAINMENT AND CULTURE NEWS:

MOVIES - From YahooEntertainment:   Kemp Powers talks about the two game-changing films in which is was involved, "One Night in Miami," which he wrote, based upon his play, and Pixar's "Soul," which he co-write.

AWARDS - From Variety:  The National Board of Review names Spike Lee's "Da 5 Bloods" (Netflix) the best film of 2020.   Variety also analyzes this year's awards.

SCANDAL - From Deadline:   Facing expulsion from SAG-AFTRA, the labor union that represents film and television actors, journalists, radio personalities, voice actors, etc., Donald Trump resigns from the union via a letter filled with his usual bluster.  SAG-AFTRA president Gabrielle Carteris and national executive director David White responded with two words: “Thank you.”

MOVIES - From RottenTomatoes:   15 Up-and-Coming Black Directors Set To Shape the Future of Hollywood

AWARDS - From Variety:   The 2021 Screen Actors Guild Awards nominations have been announced.  The winners will be announced April 4, 2021.

From Variety:  The late Chadwick Boseman makes history by becoming the first actor to get for SAG Awards nominations in a single year.

SPORTS - From BET:   Serena Williams Says People Cheered When She And Venus Williams Lost Tennis Matches

BLM - From YahooNews:  Timothy Loehmann, the incompetent cop who killed a black child named Tamir Rice, has been secretly playing semi-professional football in Cleveland for a team of first responders.  Loehmann is no longer a cop or first responder in Cleveland...

AWARDS - From Variety:  The 78th / 2021 Golden Globe Awards nominations have been announced.  The winners will be announced Sun., Feb. 28th, 2021.

From Deadline:  Time to talk about Golden Globes nomination snubs.

AWARDS - From Deadline:   At its third annual celebration of Black cinema, the Critics Choice Association honors the late Chadwick Boseman.

COVID-19 - From YahooLifestyle:   A British study says that the biggest spreaders of new cases of COVID-19 maybe the age group 35 to 49.

DISNEY - From Deadline:   The Walt Disney Company has signed a five year deal with "Black Panther" director Ryan Coogler and his company Proximity Media.  Coogler is working on a "Black Panther" sequel and will develop a TV series for Disney+ that will be set in Black Panther's kingdom, Wakanda.

TELEVISION - From TCM:  Two-time Academy Award nominee, actor John Garfield, is Turner Classic Movie's "Star of the Month" (his third time) for the month of February 2021.  Starting Tuesdays this month, TCM will present Garfield's films all day long.

MOVIES - From THR:   Oscar-winner John Legend and and his producing partner, Mike Jackson, talk about the state of black cinema.

STREAMING - From TheRinger:  Is There Such Thing As a Cult Movie in the Streaming Era?

BOX OFFICE - From Variety:   The winner of the 1/29 to 1/31/2021 weekend box office is "The Little Things" (starring Oscar winners Denzel Washington, Rami Malek, and Jared Leto), with an estimated take of 4.8 million dollars.

From Deadline:   Are Warner Bros.' film that are are released in both movie theaters and on HBO Max making money?

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POLITICS - From Jacobin:   Everything You Always Wanted to Know about QAnon But Were Too Weirded Out to Ask

BLM - From YahooNews:   Black Lives Matter movement nominated for 2021 Nobel Peace Prize

OBITS:

From Variety:   Canadian actor, Christopher Plummer, has died at the age of 91, Friday, February 5, 2021.  Movie audiences will likely best remember Plummer for his role as "Captain Georg von Trapp" in the 1965 film, "The Sound of Music."  Plummer was nominated for the Academy Award for "Best Supporting Actor three times and won for 2011's "Beginners."  He also won two Tony Awards and two Primetime Emmy Awards.  Plummer was most recently seen in the 2019 films, "Knives Out" and "The Last Full Measure."

From Variety:   Film, television, and stage actor, Hal Holbrook, died at the age of 95, Saturday, January 23, 2021.  Holbrook's personal assistant confirmed his death Mon., Feb. 1st.  Holbrook starred in films such as "All the President's Men" (1976), "Creepshow" (1982), and "Lincoln" (2012).  He earned a best supporting actor Oscar nomination for his performance in "Into the Wild" (2007).  Holbrook may be best known for his long-running one-man stage show, "Mark Twain Tonight!," for which he won a Tony Award.

From Variety:  Former child star, Dustin Diamond, has died at the age of 44, Monday, February 1, 2021.  He was best known for playing the character, "Samuel 'Screech' Powers" on the NBC TV series, "Saved by the Bell" (1989-93).  Diamond was a cast member of the Disney Channel series, "Good Morning, Miss Bliss," which spawned Saved by the Bell.  He went on to appear in the "Saved by the Bell" sequel series, "Saved by the Bell: The College Years" (1993-94) and "Saved by the Bell: The New Class" (1993-20000).

From Deadline:  Television and producer and executive, Jamie Tarses, has died at the age of 56, Monday, February 1, 2021.  She is remembered for being instrumental in the development of such NBC TV series as "Frasier" and "Friends."  Tarses became president of ABC Entertainment at the age of 32 in 1996, the first woman to hold such a position on an American broadcast network and one of the youngest ever.

From Deadline:   Television writer, producer, and actor, Marc Wilmore, has died at the age of 57, Saturday, January 30, 2021 from complications of COVID-19.  He was a writer on such TV series as "In Living Color," "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno," "The PJs," and "The Simpsons."  Most recently, Wilmore was a writer and executive producer on Netflix's animated series, "F is for Family."  Wilmore was the brother of television host and comic, Larry Wilmore.