Month: June 2017

Three-time Oscar winner Daniel Day-Lewis is retiring from acting, his spokeswoman said on Tuesday, ending a storied movie career that includes performances in “Lincoln” and “Gangs of New York.”

Day-Lewis, 60, the only man to have won three best actor Oscars, gave no reason for his decision, calling it private.

“Daniel Day-Lewis will no longer be working as an actor,” his publicist, Leslee Dart, said in a statement. “He is immensely grateful to all of his collaborators and audiences over the many years.”

The statement said there would be no further comment.

He has one more movie in the works — “Phantom Thread,” which is set in London’s 1950s fashion world and is due to be released in December.

Day-Lewis, who was born in Britain and holds dual Anglo-Irish citizenship, won his third best actor Oscar in 2013 for playing U.S. President Abraham Lincoln in “Lincoln.”

His win made him the first man to be awarded three best actor Oscars in the history of the Academy Awards.

He previously won Academy Awards for his roles as a paraplegic Irish writer in “My Left Foot” (1989) and a greedy early 20th-century oil baron in “There Will Be Blood” (2007).

The tall, intellectual actor keeps a low-key profile and is known for choosing his roles carefully and taking long breaks between films.

In the late 1990s, he took time off from acting to work as an apprentice shoe-maker in Italy. After his 2013 Oscar win for “Lincoln,” London’s Sunday Times reported that he planned to take a sabbatical at his farm in Ireland.

Day-Lewis is known for his meticulous preparation. For “Lincoln,” he spent months researching Lincoln’s political and personal life and before shooting began he was texting his screen wife, Sally Field, in 19th century vernacular.

“For My Left Foot,” he spent weeks living in a wheelchair, and while shooting “Gangs of New York” he was known for sharpening knives between takes to capture the menace of his character Bill “The Butcher” Cutting.

Day-Lewis has three children and is married to writer and director Rebecca Miller.
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Tony Bennett, the beloved and durable interpreter of American standards whose chart-topping career spans seven decades, has been honored with this year’s Gershwin Prize for Popular Song.

The Library of Congress announced the award Tuesday. The lifetime achievement award named for the duo of George and Ira Gershwin was created by Congress to honor singers and songwriters who entertain, inform and inspire. Past recipients include Paul McCartney, Willie Nelson, Smokey Robinson and Stevie Wonder.

Bennett, 90, gained his first pop success in the early 1950s with a string of singles for Columbia Records, including “Because of You” and “Rags to Riches.” His 24 Top 40 hits included his signature song, “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” (1962), which won two Grammy awards.

Bennett enjoyed a career revival in the 1990s and became popular with younger audiences in part because of an appearance on “MTV Unplugged.” He continued recording and touring constantly, and in 2014, his collaboration with Lady Gaga, “Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga: Cheek to Cheek,” debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard charts.

“His staying power is a testament to the enduring appeal of the Great American Songbook the Gershwins helped write, and his ability to collaborate with new generations of music icons has been a gift to music lovers of all ages,” Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden said in a statement.

Bennett recalled that one of his earliest recordings was “Fascinating Rhythm,” a song by the Gershwins.

“To be receiving an award named in their honor is one of the greatest thrills of my career, and I am deeply appreciative to the Library of Congress to be named this year’s recipient,” Bennett said in a statement.

Born Anthony Thomas Benedetto in Queens, New York, in 1926, Bennett served in World War II, where he fought in the Battle of the Bulge and participated in the liberation of a concentration camp. He marched with the Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr. to support civil rights and has performed for 11 U.S. presidents.

He is also an accomplished painter whose work has been exhibited at galleries around the world.

Bennett is scheduled to accept the award in Washington in November.
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Tony DiCicco, one of the most popular figures and leaders in women’s soccer history in the United States, died late Monday at age 68.

U.S. Soccer President Sunil Gulati said DiCicco was “one of the most influential coaches in U.S. Soccer history.” His teams posted a 103-8-8 record from 1994 to 1999, making him the winningest coach in U.S. Soccer history and the only coach to win more than 100 games.

DiCicco led the U.S. women to their first Olympic gold medal at the 1996 games in Atlanta. That victory changed the American public’s view of women’s soccer, and of women’s sports in general, and set the stage for the Women’s World Cup hosted in the U.S. in 1999.

The American women advanced through a series of high-pressure matches to wind up in the World Cup final in front of more than 90,000 fans at the Rose Bowl in southern California — the largest crowd ever to watch a women’s sporting event.

The U.S. team defeated China in a penalty kick shootout that the U.S. Soccer Federation said “altered the course of women’s soccer in America and the world.”

‘One of the true legends’

“Tony is one of the true legends of women’s soccer in the United States, and the game would not be where it is today without his dedication and visionary work,” federation CEO Dan Flynn said. “We’ve lost a great man, but we all know that the impact he had at the beginning of our women’s national team program will be felt for generations to come.”

DiCicco was a star soccer player in his own right at the university level, for the U.S. national team and as a professional in the American Soccer League. He also played a leading role when women’s professional soccer play began in the U.S. in 2001, and he was elected to the National Soccer Hall of Fame in 2012.

He leaves a wife and four sons. The family did not release a cause of death.
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Refugees are taking over restaurant kitchens in 13 European cities during the  Refugee Food Festival, which coincides with World Refugee Day on June 20.

For two weeks, restaurant kitchens will occupied by refugee chefs from countries such as Syria, Afghanistan, Eritrea and others.

One popular and award-winning eatery in the center of the Belgian capital, Brussels, has been taken over by Syrian cook Abdell Baset.

On his first day in the restaurant’s kitchen, he is preparing a typical Syrian dish, and one of his favorites.

“It’s called Molokia. It’s with vegetables and coriander and garlic. And at the end, we put chicken on it, and we serve it with rice,” he said.

Customer Jolien Potemans came to eat especially because of the food festival.

“I think the perception of refugees in Europe is very bad at the moment, and also in Belgium,” she said. “And I think that’s why it’s very important to support events like these where refugees actually prepare meals, and this is my way to show my support to them.”

Baset left war-torn Syria in 2015. He had worked most of his life in the food industry. But when he heard that soon he would be conscripted for the Syrian army, he decided to flee. Just like millions of other Syrians, he fled to Europe in search of safety.

Baset says his passion for cooking will help him build a new life in Europe, as it brings people together.

“When it comes to cooking like now when I was cooking and I went to the people they were eating,” he said. “And I ask them, and they ask me about my life, how it was in Syria. So I think it’s a very nice opportunity to come together and share our points of views.”

Yannick Van Aeken, a well-known Belgian chef and owner of the restaurant where Abdel Baset is cooking today, believes the influences of foreign cooks can only improve the already high standards of the Belgian restaurant scene.

“It’s always nice to see different influences, and ingredients and the way they’re cooking from different parts of the world,” he said. “And then everybody can learn a little bit more about their traditions, and their culture of the countries that they come from.”

The food festival started as a citizens’ initiative in Paris and is backed by the United Nations Refugee Agency.

Marine Mandrila, one of the co-founders from the Paris food festival in 2016, wanted the project to change the negative perception of refugees.

“We saw we had to do something about all the negative images that are conveyed with the arrival of refugees,” Mandrila said. “And we thought that sometimes we forget that they are humans like all of us with skills and talents and a huge cultural background. And we believe food is an amazing tool to connect people.”

The hope is that the refugee cooks will find employment in the food industry, while also increasing cultural exchanges.

Eighty refugee chefs in 13 European cities are cooking in 84 kitchens until the end of this month. Next year, the Refugee Food Festival is expected to expand to include Canada and the United States.
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The Refugee Food Festival is taking place in 13 European cities, marking World Refugee Day on June 20. For two weeks, restaurants are being taken over by refugee chefs from countries such as Syria, Afghanistan, Eritrea and others. Marthe van der Wolf reports for VOA from Brussels.
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U.S. actor Jack Black has some big comedic shoes to fill in his forthcoming project, which sees him take the lead role in “Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle,” a star-studded reboot of the hit 1995 comedy that starred the late Robin Williams.

Black said that he only watched the original film after being cast in the follow-up. He described Williams as a “genius” who was “at the peak of his powers” in the movie.

The original “Jumanji” saw Williams play a man who escapes from captivity inside a magical jungle-themed board game. The new film sees that premise reversed, with the lead characters journeying into the game’s fantastical world.

“In this one we actually travel with the characters into the jungle and it’s gorgeous and treacherous and exciting,” Black told Reuters.

In another twist away from the original, which saw Williams’ character enter the game as a child and emerge as an adult, this film sees child characters transform into adults when they get pulled into the game.

Black and co-star Nick Jonas were promoting the film at Cine Europe 2017, an annual cinema convention held in Barcelona.

In addition to Black and Jonas the film features screen muscleman Dwanye “The Rock” Johnson, and comedian Kevin Hart.

“Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle” is due out in cinemas in December.
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