R.I.P Tommy Ford from TV Show Martin dies at age 52
Martin Lawrence and other Hollywood stars are mourning the loss of their friend and fellow actor Tommy Ford, who died Wednesday at age 52.
Ford was best known for playing Tommy Strawn alongside Lawrence during all five seasons of "Martin," which aired on Fox from 1992 to 1997.
Following reports earlier in the day that Ford was on life support at an Atlanta hospital after suffering a ruptured aneurysm in his abdomen, his agent, Joy Pervis, confirmed to ABC News that he died Wednesday.
Ford"s family said in a statement, "It is with great sadness that we announce the untimely passing of our beloved Son, father, brother, husband, and friend Tommy Mykal Ford. On behalf of the family, we would like to thank everyone for their love, support and prayers. Funeral arrangements will be forthcoming. Please respect the privacy of the Ford family during our time of grief."
Lawrence initially responded to reports that Ford had been hospitalized, tweeting a photo of himself with Ford and writing, "Prayers up for my brother @BigTommyFord and his family."
Later, he paid tribute to his friend and cast mate on Instagram.
"Tommy was not only a great co star but he was a great man and friend," Lawrence wrote beside a photo of the two of them. "He always brought with him his spirituality a positive attitude and so much joy. I am sad the world lost a great talent and that I lost a wonderful friend. G*d bless him and his family."
Hours later, Lawrence posted another photo of Ford, writing, "My brother...we were friends way b4 the Martin show & I"m glad we were able to show true friendship on-screen. You brought a lot of love to the world and you will be greatly missed. G*d Bless to you and the family. Rest In Peace my brother."
He concluded with the hashtag, "#Brotherforlife."
Lawrence was joined by a chorus of other celebrities mourning Ford on social media, including Bill Bellamy, who worked with Ford for five seasons on TV One"s "Who"s Got Jokes."
"Pray for the Ford family during this sad time," Bellamy wrote on Instagram. "I will always remember Tommy"s laugh!" It always made everyone laugh."
Disney and Lucasfilm "s standalone Star Wars movie looks immense.
The Galactic spin-off was announced in February 2013 when Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger confirmed the development of two new movies from the franchise.
After the success of J.J. Abrams" Star Wars: The Force Awakens in 2015, many fans have been eager to see the latest project that will see The Theory of Everything star Felicity Jones join a band of rebels as they plot to take down the infamous Death Star.
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At the end of 2015 Mirror Online broke the very first pictures of the forthcoming Star Wars movie , but now we"ve had trailers, posters, teasers, cast confirmations and more.
Here"s what we know so far.
Who is directing Rogue One and when is it released?
Godzilla and Monsters director Gareth Edwards is helming the movie and it will be in cinemas on 16 December 2016.
Gareth Edwards to direct and Felicity Jones to star in standalone Star Wars movie
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Is there and official synopsis?
Yes.
From Lucasfilm comes the first of the Star Wars standalone films, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, an all-new epic adventure. In a time of conflict, a group of unlikely heroes band together on a mission to steal the plans to the Death Star, the Empires ultimate weapon of destruction. This key event in the Star Wars timeline brings together ordinary people who choose to do extraordinary things, and in doing so, become part of something greater than themselves.
The Rogue One castVIEW GALLERY Who are the stars?
Alongside Felicity Jones in the lead role, Rogue One: A Star Wars Story features, Diego Luna, Ben Mendelsohn, Donnie Yen, Mads Mikkelsen, Alan Tudyk, Riz Ahmed, with Jiang Wen and Forest Whitaker.
Jones plays a character called Jyn Erso.
Jones is Jyn
Kathleen Kennedy, Allison Shearmur and Simon Emanuel are producing, with John Knoll and Jason McGatlin serving as executive producers.
Kennedy is an executive producer on Star Wars: Episode VIII and VII: The Force Awakens. Her filmography also includes Schindlers List, Back to the Future and The Sixth Sense.
Kathleen Kennedy alongside US Director J.J. Abrams, British actress Daisy Ridley and British actor John Boyega pose with droid characters BB-8 and R2-D2 on the red carpetIs Darth Vader in the movie?
YES!
Vader appears at the very end of the second trailer.
Rogue One director Gareth Edwards has admitted to having a "nerdgasm" when filming with Darth Vader voiceover actor James Earl Jones.
There he is!
Jones voiced the Sith Lord in the original films, including 1977"s A New Hope, as well as 2005 prequel movie Revenge Of The Sith.
VIEW GALLERYMon Mothma is that you? Brilliant moment from the first trailer
Mon Mothma was in the first trailer.
She is an important political figure from the waning days of the Galactic Republic and is first to reveal all about Jones" new character.
Mothma - who is a native of Chandrila - was one of the founders of the Alliance to Restore the Republic, and the first Chief of State of the New Republic.
"On your own from the age of 15 - reckless, aggressive and undisciplined," Jones" character Jyn is told, before quipping: "This is a rebellion isn"t it... I rebel."
When did the Star Wars film start shooting?
Disney and Lucasfilm confirmed that filming began in summer last year, in London.
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The 10-second teaser landed ahead of the full trailer"s debut on Good Morning America and the Internet basically melted.
While the teaser didn"t give much away (or anything, really), the sound of screeching TIE fighters and blaster fire was enough to get Star Wars fans going.
First trailer
The first trailer was everything.
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What a rebelJust look at that weapon!
Showing the cast and the first look at the Death Star it was a real vision of what Disney had planned.
Speaking at Disney"s annual shareholder meeting earlier in the year, Disney CEO Bob Iger said, "Its our first original standalone Star Wars story. Its about a band of rebels who are plotting to steal the plans for the Death Star."
Explaining to the shareholders the film is set "right before the events in the very first Star Wars movie," Iger told the crowd "I cant wait for you to see it; its in theaters this December."
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Rogue One: A Star Wars Story Panel from Star Wars Celebration Europe 2016
Gwendoline Christie (Captain Phasma) leads a special discussion at Star Wars Celebration Europe 2016 with the cast and filmmakers behind Rogue One: A Star Wars Story, including John Knoll, Kiri Hart, Gareth Edwards and Felicity Jones.
The video also shows original artwork from the film (12mins) and what plans they have for the movie.
Is there ANY other Star Wars news confirmed?
Of course there is.
Alden Ehrenreich has been confirmed will play Han Solo in the upcoming Star Wars prequel.
Star Wars film scene with actors Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia Organa and Harrison Ford as Han SoloThe new Han
There were a lot of rumours about the lead role but at the Star Wars Celebration Europe, Disney finally told fans it would be Ehrenreich.
Alden - best known for playing Hobie Doyle in Hail Caesar! - allegedly won the part after impressing directors Chris Miller and Phil Lord.
Apparently, Ehrenreich was literally the first person to audition for the role out of more than 2,500 actors. He also screentested in the Millennium Falcon and with Chewbacca, too.
Filming begins in either late January or early February 2017.
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Isnt there another Star Wars film coming out in 2017?
Star Wars: Episode VIII is out on 26 May 2017.
Rian Johnson has been confirmed to write and direct that.
* Edwards Rogue One will be released on 16 December 2016
In light of Donald Trump"s supporters" calling for a repeal of the 19th Amendment the one passed in 1920 that granted women the right to vote let"s take a look at all the countries around the world where women are barred from voting.
No. 1: Vatican City.
No. 2: There is no No. 2.
There is one country on this entire planet that doesn"t allow women to vote, and a bunch of its men can"t vote either. The only elections held in Vatican City are for new popes, and voting is limited to cardinals.
Saudi Arabia held out until 2011, when King Abdullah granted women the right to vote and run for office in future elections. In 2015, they exercised that right and elected 21 female candidates into office.
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Still, just moments after FiveThirtyEight"s Nate Silver released a map that projected a Trump landslide if only men voted and a Clinton landslide if only women voted #repealthe19th was trending on Twitter.
A push, in other words, for the United States to become less progressive than Saudi Arabia a country ranked close to last in the World Economic Forum"s Gender Gap Index. (It came in 134th out of 145 countries ranked.)
It"s a little funny, mostly because it reminds me of the way my kids played "Go Fish" when they were, like, 5. As long as they were winning, the rules made perfect sense. As soon as they started to lose, the rules were stupid and unfair and should definitely, for sure, be changed.
It"s not as cute from grown-ups, but it"s also not that surprising.
The 19th Amendment isn"t the only one taking a beating this election. Trump and his supporters have called for a ban on Muslims entering the United States, which doesn"t square with the First Amendment"s protection against any law impeding the free exercise of religion.
The First Amendment also protects freedom of the press, which doesn"t line up so well with Trump"s numerous calls for tighter restrictions and "veto power" over the media.
Our Constitution frowns on jailing your political opponents too, something Trump promised to do if he"s elected.
Then again, he never pretended to be a constitutional scholar.
He has vowed repeatedly, however, to Make America Great Again, and rolling our legal protections back to the 19th century seems an odd place to start.
Particularly when the rest of the world continues to march forward.
hstevens@chicagotribune.com
Twitter @heidisteven13
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Auston Matthews 4th goal - Leafs vs Senators (10/12/16)
Auston Matthews celebrates on of his four goals.(Photo: Photo: Marc DesRosiers, USA TODAY Sports)
As America stands stunned at the dare I said it? deplorable state of affairs that passes for politics this year as the mud flies and the cesspool deepensI find myself feeling quite optimistic this morning.
Knowing that amazing things, impossible even, can happen.
This, because of a 19-year-old Scottsdale kid who stunned the hockey world and the rest of it as well last night.
Its astonishing enough that Auston Matthews of Scottsdale was the No. 1 pick of the 2016 NHL draft. I mean, come on the kid was raised in the desert and hes burning up theice?
More astonishing still: his debut performance last night when the rookie scored a measly FOUR goals.
One two three FOUR goals on six shots.
Lest you think its as easy as he made it look, Matthews is the first NHL player ever to score four goals in his first game.
Despite it, his team, the Toronto Maple Leafs lost 5-4 to Ottawa.
America, too, may lose in the aftermath of Nov. 8. Neither of our presidential choices is a prize in fact, the majority of the country dislikes them both. But one of them will be elected and isnt that enough to send you racing for the Xanax?
And yet a 19-year-old kid from Scottsdale showed the world last night that people can soarabove expectations, that they can do that which the laws of sports and geography and history say they should never be able to do.
It was chilly around Puget Sound Wednesday morning, with some areas dipping into the 40s. Seattle weather was a bit better, with temperatures in the low 50s.
On the positive side, KIRO 7 Meteorologist Nick Allard told Seattles Morning News that temperatures in most areas will be back to the mid- to upper-70s by the afternoon. But Allard wouldnt say whether this is the last week of 70-degree weather.
This tweet from Colleen OBrien probably says it best.
Temperatures are expected to hold in the 70s through Friday. Allard says people in western Washington should expect increasing showers Saturday, and scattered showers on Sunday.
Showers and cooler temperatures could continue into early next week, according to Allard.
As for the coming weeks, I guess well just have to wait and see. At least its been warm enough to melt that giant ice cube in Occidental Park.
The ice cube, which was placed by Olson Kundig as public art, is melting rapidly, according to University of Washington Atmospheric Sciences Professor Cliff Mass. By Monday night the ice cube was substantially diminished.
Seattle City Light employees work at a substation. (Credit: Seattle.gov)
Theres a storm coming. A big one. So big that Seattle weather guru Cliff Mass says it could match the most powerful storm in NW history the Big Blow, which hit exactly 54 years ago today.
My head is spinning with the action that may be occurring around here, the University of Washington professor of atmospheric scienceswrote in a blog post on Tuesday.
This morning, he followed up by calling attention to an amazing plume of moisture spreading across the Pacific and leading to Typhoon Songda. Never saw anything like this, he said.
The action is expected to start on Thursday, when a strong Pacific cyclone approaches the coast. That could whip up winds that gust up to 57 mph along the coast and over portions of Seattle.
Expect a lot of power failures, Mass said. Be prepared.
As the low-pressure system swirls eastward, Seattle could get a couple of inches of rain, whipped up by winds. Mass said Fridays storm could represent one of the strongest weather events of a typical weather season. But folks, this is just a warmup for the real action on Saturday, he added.
Thats when an even more powerfulcyclone, associated with the remnants of Typhoon Songda, is due to hit the Northwest. Computer models suggest that its strength could hit the same level as 1962s historic Columbus Day storm, with sustained winds in excess of60 mph.
Mass noted that the heart of the storm isnt currently projected to deal a direct hit toSeattle, but he also saidtheres some uncertainty to the models.
If the models are wrong, and the storms track heads further east, Puget Sound could get a very major hit with massive power outages and damage, he said. This is a very dangerous storm.
For what its worth, The Weather Channels Brian Doneganconcurs with that opinion. He sees the potential for destructive winds, flooding rain, huge waves and coastal flooding in Washington, Oregon and far northern California.
So what should you do about it?
Make sure you have an emergency preparedness kit that includes a working flashlight, a portable radio (remember those?), extra batteries, a manual can opener, and glow-in-the-dark light sticks or electric lanterns.The American Red Cross gives you the complete rundown on what the kit should contain.
The Red Cross also advises having up to a weeks worth of food and water on hand for emergencies, and keeping your cars gas tank full.
For communication, have a corded, wired phone available if you can. (Cordless phones wont work during a power outage.) Keep your mobile devices charged up, and top off any portable chargers as well. Be extra-vigilant about backing up computer files, just in case theres an extended outage.
You can be a good neighbor by clearing away leaves and other debris from storm drains in advance of the storm, and trimming back any tree branches on your property that might cause trouble if they were to break off. If the storm gets really wild, stay safe inside if you can and stay off the roads.
Seattle City Light has its own tips for reporting and dealing with power outages, as does Puget Sound Energy. PSE has a mobile app that can help you report and track outages, while City Light has a mobile-friendly website for doing the same.
For still more advice, including emergency checklists printed in 10 languages, check out the Take Winter by Storm website.
Amazon expands into subscription music...and meat?
Amazon is planning to launch itslong-rumored on-demand music service, which will compete with Spotify and Apple Music, by the beginning of next year, according to a source close to the situation. The company will also launch itsEcho-based music service, which will cost $5 a month, within the next few weeks, according to a source. That service will allow Echo owners to access Amazon"s music library on-demand just like the more expensive offering, but playback will be restricted to the smart assistant. Amazon has been working to get a deal done with the music labels for some time now, both services are being negotiated together but talks have dragged on for weeks.
The on-demand service may be called Amazon Music Unlimited, according to a report fromAFTVnews, which spotted the name and a logo (pictured above) in the code of Amazon"s new music app for the Fire TV. It will work much in the same way Spotify and Apple Music operate, $10 a month for complete access to a library of millions of songs. (The new music service won"t come with your Amazon Prime subscription, so get ready to shell out more money on top of that $99 a year subscription.)
(Photo Credit:AFTVnews.com)
The negotiations between Amazon and the music labels are far less contentious than the current (and nearly stagnant) talks with Spotify, with sources saying the deal is largely in place.Amazon, of course, would like to launch its on-demand service as soon as possible to take advantage of the holiday traffic, and that"s still a strong possibility."If [Amazon] wants to get the deals done they can get them done quickly," one source noted.
The big question now is whether Amazon can turn its upcoming streaming services into legit competitors with Spotify and Apple Music. Amazon has the user base and credit cards on file, but it"s coming into a new industry at the same time asPandora, another company with a dedicated group of users.With rumors of industry leaderSpotify acquiring SoundCloud to cement its foothold (a source says that deal isn"t as close as initial reports made it out to be, but it is on the table).
With Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Amazon all offering music streaming services, that leaves Facebook as the sole holdout of the big five tech companies. The next question is how long will that last?
