Former Trump casino where stars played goes out with a bang
The former Trump Plaza casino was imploded after falling into such disrepair that chunks of the building began peeling off and crashing to the ground. “I got chills,” Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small said. AdOpened in 1984, when Trump was a real estate developer in his pre-politics days, Trump Plaza was for a time the most successful casino in Atlantic City. AdBut things began to sour for Trump Plaza when Donald Trump opened the nearby Trump Taj Mahal in 1990, with crushing debt loads that led the company to pour most of its resources — and cash — into the shiny new hotel and casino. Trump Plaza was the last of four Atlantic City casinos to close in 2014, victims of an oversaturated casino market both in the New Jersey city and in the larger northeast.
Hal Holbrook, prolific actor who played Twain, dies at 95
FILE - Actor Hal Holbrook appears during an interview in his New York apartment on Feb. 8, 1973. Holbrook died on Jan. 23 in Beverly Hills, California, his representative, Steve Rohr, told The Associated Press Tuesday. Holbrook died on Jan. 23 in Beverly Hills, California, his representative, Steve Rohr, told The Associated Press on Tuesday. Holbrook’s material is uproarious, his ability to hold an audience by acting is brilliant,” said The New York Times. AdWhen he wasn’t portraying Twain, Holbrook showed impressive versatility.
Sean Penn ups fight against COVID-19 with relief expansion
Actor Sean Penn, founder of Community Organized Relief Effort (CORE), is interviewed at a CORE coronavirus testing site at Crenshaw Christian Center, Friday, Aug. 21, 2020, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello)LOS ANGELES Sean Penn has expanded his fight against the coronavirus beyond his own expectations. The Oscar winners disaster relief organization CORE has gone from providing 6,500 tests in a couple weeks to administering more than 1.3 million within a five-month span. The organization, which started as an international relief group, had initially planned to operate testing sites in Los Angeles for three months. She thought CORE's virus testing would last only three months as a bridge until government-funded programs took over.
Spicoli to the rescue with 'Fast Times' virtual benefit
LOS ANGELES Spicoli is making a virtual return to Ridgemont High to raise money for a pair of non-profit groups. Sean Penn, a cast member in 1982's Fast Times at Ridgmont High," will be joined by Julia Roberts, Jennifer Aniston and other stars in a socially distanced reading of the film's script. Penn is handing the role of stoner Jeff Spicoli over to another actor, with details about who's playing what part to be unveiled at next week's event. None of those actors, nor Roberts or Aniston, appeared in the original film. It will be available on Facebook Live and TikTok via COREs Facebook page, www.facebook.com/CoreResponse.
Earl Cameron, pioneering British film actor, dies at 102
Cameron was cast in one of the starring roles in Pool of London, a 1951 crime noir movie that was the first British film to feature an interracial relationship. During the 1950s and 1960s, he supplemented his film work with frequent British TV roles, including two episodes of Doctor Who in 1966. Unless it was specified that this was a part for a Black actor, they would never consider a black actor for the part. I got mostly small parts, and that was extremely frustrating not just for me but for other Black actors. We had a very hard time getting worthwhile roles.In 1972, Cameron got to work alongside another Bahama-born actor who broke barriers for Black film actors.
'Into the Wild' bus removed from Alaska backcountry
In this photo released by the Alaska National Guard, Alaska Army National Guard soldiers use a CH-47 Chinook helicopter to removed an abandoned bus, popularized by the book and movie "Into the Wild," out of its location in the Alaska backcountry Thursday, June 18, 2020, as part of a training mission. Seth LaCount/Alaska National Guard via AP)JUNEAU, Alaska An abandoned bus in the Alaska backcountry, popularized by the book Into the Wild and movie of the same name, was removed Thursday, state officials said. The Alaska Army National Guard moved the bus as part of a training mission at no cost to the public or additional cost to the state, Feige said. The Alaska National Guard, in a release, said the bus was removed using a heavy-lift helicopter. The long-abandoned Fairbanks city bus became famous by the 1996 book Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, and a 2007 Sean Penn-directed movie of the same name.
'Into the Wild' bus removed from Alaska backcountry
In this photo released by the Alaska National Guard, Alaska Army National Guard soldiers use a CH-47 Chinook helicopter to removed an abandoned bus, popularized by the book and movie "Into the Wild," out of its location in the Alaska backcountry Thursday, June 18, 2020, as part of a training mission. Seth LaCount/Alaska National Guard via AP)JUNEAU, Alaska An abandoned bus in the Alaska backcountry, popularized by the book Into the Wild and movie of the same name, was removed Thursday, state officials said. The Alaska Army National Guard moved the bus as part of a training mission at no cost to the public or additional cost to the state, Feige said. The Alaska National Guard, in a release, said the bus was removed using a heavy-lift helicopter. The long-abandoned Fairbanks city bus became famous by the 1996 book Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, and a 2007 Sean Penn-directed movie of the same name.