Worshippers in safety hats attend Notre-Dame's first mass since fire

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PARIS (Reuters) - A small congregation in white hard hats attended mass at Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris on Saturday, the first service since fire devastated the Gothic landmark two months ago.

The Archbishop of Paris Michel Aupetit leads the first mass in a side chapel two months to the day after a devastating fire engulfed the Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral, in Paris, France June 15, 2019. Karine Perret/Pool via REUTERS

Church leaders are keen to show life goes on at the cathedral as donations for rebuilding trickle in.

Less than 10% of the 850 million euros ($953 million) pledged by billionaires, business leaders and others has been received so far, the French government said.

The mass, which commemorates the cathedral’s consecration as a place of worship, was held in a side-chapel left undamaged by the April 15 fire, with attendance limited to about 30 people wearing protective headgear.

Priests in ceremonial garb of white robes and yellow stoles briefly parted with their hard hats during the communion.

“It is with much emotion that we are here to celebrate the consecration of the cathedral,” said Paris’s archbishop Michel Aupetit, who led the service.

“It is a message of hope and thanks to all those who were moved by what happened to this cathedral,” he added, acknowledging afterwards it was “a bit strange” to celebrate mass with a helmet.

The service was broadcast live on a religious TV channel that showed poignant images of the blue sky through the collapsed roof and the black rubble still clogging the building.

On Friday, France’s Culture Minister Franck Riester said the cathedral was still in a fragile state, especially the vault.

The blaze caused the roof and spire of the architectural masterpiece to collapse, triggering worldwide sadness.

Among those who promised to donate to the rebuilding effort were luxury goods tycoons Bernard Arnault and François-Henri Pinault.

“There could be people who promised to donate then in the end did not,” Riester told France 2 television, without giving further details. “But more importantly, and this is normal, the donations will be paid as restoration work progresses.”

President Emmanuel Macron has set a target of five years for restoring the cathedral, though Riester was more cautious.

“The president was right to give a target, an ambition,” he said. “But obviously what matters in the end is the quality of the work. So it does not mean that work will be totally finished in exactly five years.”

($1 = 0.8923 euros)

Editing by Helen Popper and Mike Harrison

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Worshippers in hard hats to attend Notre-Dame's first mass since fire

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PARIS (Reuters) - A small congregation wearing hard hats will attend mass at Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris on Saturday, the first service to be held since fire devastated the Gothic landmark two months ago.

FILE PHOTO: A picture shows bells gathered during preliminary work at the Notre-Dame Cathedral one month after it sustained major fire damage in Paris, France May 15, 2019. Philippe Lopez/Pool via REUTERS

Church leaders are keen to show life goes on at the cathedral as donations to help rebuild it trickle in. Less than 10% of the 850 million euros pledged by billionaires, business leaders and others has been received so far, the French government said.

Saturday’s mass, which commemorates the cathedral’s consecration as a place of worship, is due to be held at 1600 GMT in a side-chapel, with attendance limited to about 30 people who will wear the protective headgear for safety reasons.

“It is a nice symbol. A very small group of people will attend and one can understand why as there are still major safety issues,” Culture Minister Franck Riester told Europe 1 radio.

He told France 2 television on Friday the cathedral was still “in a fragile state, namely the vault, which has not yet been secured. It can still collapse”.

The April 15 blaze caused the roof and spire of the architectural masterpiece to collapse, triggering a worldwide outpouring of sadness as well as the multi-million-euro pledges for reconstruction work.

Among the high-profile people who promised to donate to the rebuilding effort were luxury goods tycoons Bernard Arnault and François-Henri Pinault.

“There could be people who promised to donate then in the end did not,” Riester said, without giving further details. “But more importantly, and this is normal, the donations will be paid as restoration work progresses.”

French President Emmanuel Macron has set a target of five years for restoring the cathedral, though Riester was more cautious.

“The president was right to give a target, an ambition. But obviously what matters in the end is the quality of the work,” he said. “So it does not mean that work will be totally finished in exactly five years.”

The archbishop of Paris, Michel Aupetit will lead Saturday’s service, which will be broadcast live on a religious TV channel.

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Ancient Afghan citadel collapses, cultural heritage sites at risk

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GHAZNI, Afghanistan (Reuters) - An ancient tower dating back 2,000 years in the historic Afghan city of Ghazni collapsed this week, local officials said, raising concerns about the vulnerability of the country’s cultural heritage and the government’s ability to protect them.

The old citadel known as Ghaznain Fort originally had 36 towers, but 14 of the towers had collapsed in recent years due to decades of war, heavy rain and neglect.

The fort is one of dozens of unique historic sites in Afghanistan - ranging from the pre-Islamic Buddhist center in the Bamyan valley to the 12th century minaret of Jam in a remote area of Ghor province - in urgent need of protection.

Officials in Ghazni, which nearly fell to the Taliban last year in some of the heaviest fighting seen in the war, said the tower collapsed on Tuesday following heavy rain. A short video posted on social media shows it crumbling but local residents say negligence also contributed to its collapse.

“The government paid no attention to the sites and didn’t build canals to divert flood water,” said Ghulam Sakhi, who lives near the citadel.

“We have warned the government about the dire condition of the citadel but no one visited,” Sakhi said.

Mahbubullah Rahmani, acting director of culture and information in Ghazni, said heavy rain and recent fighting had contributed to the tower’s collapse but said the government was working on a plan to protect the site from complete destruction.

He said a German archaeologist had worked at the site as recently as 2013.

Ghazni, a strategically vital center on the main highway between Kabul and southern Afghanistan and two hour drive from the capital, is home to a range of cultural and archeological artifacts, some of which date back to pre-Islamic period.

The province and its cultural heritage was officially declared as Asian Capital of Islamic Culture in 2013 by the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, a Morocco-based body created in 1981, supported by UNESCO.

The collapse of the tower in Ghazni follows concern over the condition of the 900-year-old Minaret of Jam, in Ghor, which has been on the UNESCO List of World Heritage Properties in Danger since 2002.

The Taliban during their austere regime from 1996-2001, before they were toppled by the U.S. and coalition force in late 2001, blew up two giant Buddha statues in central Bamiyan province, calling them idols.

Additional reporting by Hamid Shalizi in KABUL and Jalil Ahmad Rezayee in HERAT; Writing by Hamid Shalizi; Editing by Michael Perry

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'The Dead Don't Die' stars on the environment

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(Reuters) - Flesh-eating zombies terrorize a small town in Jim Jarmusch’s “The Dead Don’t Die”, a comedy horror in which polar fracking sets off strange reactions and raises the dead.

72nd Cannes Film Festival - Photocall for the film "The Dead Don't Die" in competition - Cannes, France, May 15, 2019. Cast members Bill Murray, Chloe Sevigny, Selena Gomez and Tilda Swinton pose. REUTERS/Stephane Mahe

Reuters spoke with Bill Murray and Chloe Sevigny, who portray police, and Tilda Swinton, who plays a mysterious funeral parlor worker, about the film’s albeit lighthearted environmentalism.

Below are edited excerpts.

TILDA SWINTON

Q: Why is environmentalism such a key theme here?

  A: “It’s the landscape of the film, it very often is in zombie films ... (they) are a very useful kind of Trojan Horse to talk about society’s relationship with itself and the environment. But I would say it’s whatever anybody sees in it and this is a landscape that really concerns Jim and all of us.”

Q: What do you do personally to be environmentally friendly?

A: “I would like to fly a great deal less. I think we should all fly less anyway for about a million different reasons and not only to do with the effect of it on our planet but also on our bodies.”

BILL MURRAY

Q: What do you do to be environmentally friendly?

A: “I’m no hero but I tried to give up plastic bottles about three or four years ago. I think I’ve had about four since the situation arose, I either had to take medicine or something like that ... I realized I was drinking probably 100 plastic bottles of water a month. I thought, well, that’s 1,200 a year, at least. And that’s one person. So I gave up and stopped it and I find that glass bottle water tastes better.”

CHLOE SEVIGNY

Q: As someone associated with fashion, what do you do for the environment?

A: “I try not to use any single-use plastic and not use the dryer, take quick showers. It’s all the little things that one can do one hopes will accumulate in some way.

“Flying is always one of the worst and that’s unfortunately unavoidable in my line of work but I do compost in Manhattan and buy mostly recycled clothes. I’m trying to just not consume as much as maybe I have in the past and just try and spread that word to especially young girls. I’m somewhat of a fashion icon and I try encourage people to buy vintage or buy slightly used.”

Reporting by Hanna Rantala; writing by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; editing by Jason Neely

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Founder of K-pop label YG resigns amid drugs and sex scandals

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SEOUL (Reuters) - Yang Hyun-suk, founder of South Korea’s YG Entertainment which manages top K-pop performers, stepped down on Friday from his duties as chief producer, in the aftermath of drug and sex scandals involving his artists.

In March, a member of YG’s boyband Big Bang quit showbiz over sex bribery accusations, prompting police investigations and the resignation of four K-pop stars including him.

Allegations subsequently surfaced of a network of pop stars, businessmen and cops having colluded and enabled tax evasion, bribery and prostitution, exposing the dark side of the glitzy industry.

“I have waited out in patience this situation in which shameless and humiliating words are being thoughtlessly spread as if it is the truth,” Yang, a former legendary K-pop star, said in a statement.

“But I don’t think I can hold it in any longer.”

Yang said he was stepping down to avoid further damage to the firm’s artists over the accusations. These involved prostitution mediation, tax evasion and cover-up of a drug scandal, all of which he has denied.

YG’s top shareholder, Yang, founded the K-pop management firm in 1996. His brother Yang Min-suk, the agency’s chief executive, also stepped down, according to a regulatory filing.

On Wednesday, the leader of another one of YG’s boy bands, iKON, also exited show business over media reports that he was attempting to buy illegal drugs. He publicly apologized for his act and quit the band.

YG Entertainment is one of the top K-Pop record labels behind groups BlackPink and Big Bang, but its shares have slumped for months, hit by the scandals.

Shares of YG Entertainment closed down 5.6% on Friday, falling for a third consecutive session, while its affiliate, YG Plus, lost nearly 6%.

Reporting by Sangmi Cha; Editing by Ju-min Park and Clarence Fernandez

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Leonard Cohen's love letters to Marianne fetch $876,000 at auction

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FILE PHOTO: Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen performs during the first night of the 47th Montreux Jazz Festival in Montreux, Switzerland on July 4, 2013. REUTERS/Valentin Flauraud/File Photo

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A collection of more than 50 love letters written by Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen to the woman who inspired “So Long, Marianne” has sold for $876,000, with many going for more than five times their pre-sale estimates, Christie’s auction house said on Thursday.

The archive of letters from Cohen to Marianne Ihlen chronicles their 1960s love affair and the blossoming of Cohen’s career from struggling poet to famous musician.

The top letter, in which Cohen wrote in December 1960 about being “alone with the vast dictionaries of language,” fetched $56,250 compared to an original high estimate of $10,000.

A 1964 letter, in which Cohen wrote “I am famous but empty,” went for $35,000, Christie’s said.

Cohen and the Norwegian-born Ihlen met on the Greek island of Hydra in 1960 and she became the inspiration for several of his best-known songs, including “Bird on a Wire,” “Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye,” and the 1967 track “So Long, Marianne.”

Ihlen died of leukemia in Oslo in July 2016 at age 81. Cohen, who was also suffering from leukemia, died in November 2016 at the age of 82.

The letters were sold by Ihlen’s family. The buyers were not revealed.

The top lot in the five-day online auction was an Italian bronze bell dating from the 15th or 16th century that hung in the Hydra home that Cohen and Ihlen once shared. It realized $81,250 compared to a pre-sale estimate of up to $12,000.

The bell is believed to have inspired the lines, “There is a crack, a crack in everything” in Cohen’s 1992 release “Anthem.”

Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Leslie Adler

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Cuba Gooding Jr. charged with groping woman in Manhattan bar

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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. was charged on Thursday with groping a woman at a Manhattan bar last weekend, New York City police said.

The “Jerry Maguire” actor faces one misdemeanor account of forcible touching in an incident on Sunday when an unidentified woman said Gooding touched her breasts.

Gooding, who denies the accusation, emerged in handcuffs after being charged at a New York police facility. He did not speak to reporters.

He was the latest Hollywood figure to be swept up in a sexual misconduct scandal that has roiled the entertainment industry in the last two years.

Gooding’s attorney, Mark J. Heller, said he was “completely confident that (Gooding) will be totally exonerated.” He told reporters that Gooding will enter a not guilty plea at an initial court appearance.

“There is not a scintilla of criminal culpability that can be attributed to Cuba Gooding Jr.,” Heller told reporters.

Heller said he was “shocked and horrified” that the case was being prosecuted after he presented police with security video from the bar that the attorney said showed no criminal behavior by Gooding.

Gooding, 51, won a supporting actor Oscar in 1997 for “Jerry Maguire” and had roles in “A Few Good Men,” “The Butler” and the television miniseries “The People v. O.J. Simpson.”

The actor, who is divorced, is one of dozens of men in politics, entertainment, sports and the business world who have been accused of sexual misconduct since allegations against movie producer Harvey Weinstein triggered the #MeToo movement.

Weinstein is to stand trial in New York later this year on charges of rape and forced oral sex involving two women. He has denied any non-consensual sex.

Former “House of Cards” actor Kevin Spacey in January pleaded not guilty to sexually assaulting an 18-year-old man at a Massachusetts bar two years ago, while singer R. Kelly was charged in Chicago with sexually assaulting three teens and a woman.

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Heller accused the woman who lodged the complaint against Gooding last weekend of seeking “simply to get their 15 minutes of fame” and said he hoped she would herself be prosecuted once Gooding’s case is resolved.

New York media reported on Thursday that another woman had come forward this week alleging inappropriate touching by Gooding in 2008.

Heller said Gooding had “no knowledge” of the alleged 2008 incident, which falls outside the statute of limitations for any potential charges.

Reporting by Jill Serjeant; editing by Leslie Adler, Susan Thomas and Richard Chang

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Cuba Gooding Jr. charged in Manhattan groping incident

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Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. arrives at New York City Police Department's (NYPD) Special Victims Division (SVU) in the Harlem neighbourhood in New York, U.S., June 13, 2019. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

(Reuters) - Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. was charged on Thursday with forcible touching after a woman accused him of groping her at a Manhattan bar last weekend, New York City police said.

The “Jerry Maguire” actor was charged after reporting to police on Thursday, the New York Police Department public affairs office said.

He faces one misdemeanor account of forcible touching in an incident that occurred on Sunday when an unidentified woman said Gooding touched her breasts at the bar.

Gooding’s attorney, Mark J. Heller, said he was “completely confident that (Gooding) will be totally exonerated.” He told reporters that Gooding will enter a not guilty plea at an initial court appearance.

“There is not a scintilla of criminal culpability that can be attributed to Cuba Gooding Jr.,” Heller said after the actor was charged.

Heller said he was “shocked and horrified” that the case was being prosecuted after he presented police with security video from the bar that the attorney said showed no criminal behavior by Gooding.

Gooding won the Academy Award for best supporting actor in 1997 for his portrayal of an athlete in the film “Jerry Maguire.” In 2016, he was nominated for an Emmy for playing O.J. Simpson in the miniseries “The People v. O.J. Simpson.”

New York media reported on Thursday that another woman had come forward this week alleging inappropriate behavior by the actor in 2008.

Heller said Gooding had “no knowledge” of the alleged 2008 incident, which falls outside the statute of limitations for any potential charges.

Reporting by Jill Serjeant; editing by Leslie Adler and Susan Thomas

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Cuba Gooding Jr. charged in Manhattan groping incident, police say

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Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. arrives at New York City Police Department's (NYPD) Special Victims Division (SVU) in the Harlem neighbourhood in New York, U.S., June 13, 2019. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

(Reuters) - Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. was charged on Thursday with forcible touching after a woman accused him of groping her at a Manhattan bar last weekend, New York City police said.

The “Jerry Maguire” actor was charged after reporting to police on Thursday, the New York Police Department public affairs office said.

He faces one misdemeanor account of forcible touching in an incident that occurred on Sunday.

Gooding has denied the accusation, which was made by an unidentified woman who said Gooding touched her breasts at the bar on Sunday night.

Gooding’s attorney said on Thursday, before the actor was charged, that security video from the bar showed no criminal conduct by Gooding.

Gooding won the Academy Award for best supporting actor in 1997 for his portrayal of an athlete in the film “Jerry Maguire.” In 2016, he was nominated for an Emmy for playing O.J. Simpson in the miniseries “The People v. O.J. Simpson.”

Reporting by Jill Serjeant; editing by Leslie Adler and Susan Thomas

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Robbie Williams takes stake in college, sings mentoring's praises

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LONDON (Reuters) - Pop singer Robbie Williams, a judge on Britain’s “The X Factor” television show last year, is taking a stake in a performing arts college as he looks to mentor more “jazz hand people” like him.

The singer of “Angels” and “Let Me Entertain You” will have a 20% stake in Liverpool’s LMA, which offers degrees in music, performing arts and games design.

Williams, who hails from Stoke-on-Trent, a city 56 miles (90 km) southeast of Liverpool, mentored a choir from LMA on “The X Factor” last year and said he really enjoyed the experience.

“I was looking into the eyes of all the students and I was like ‘They are me. That’s who I was and who I am’, you know, we sort of ‘jazz hand people’,” the 45-year-old singer told a news conference.

“It’s just that energy that I wanted more of and also I don’t mind saying I was surprised I was actually quite good at mentoring. It’s something that I want to carry on, in whatever capacity that is. I loved it.”

LMA’s plans include opening a new London campus next year.

Williams, a member of popular 1990s boyband Take That, will help drive LMA’s expansion in Britain and abroad.

“I’ll find out more as we go along. But I want to mentor. I want to be there. I want to find out how to teach ... I have a bit of experience in the business.”

Williams, whose wife Ayda Field was also a judge on “The X Factor” alongside series creator Simon Cowell, is working on an album and will not return to the show this year.

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“I’m going to be all over the place promoting that. We wanted it desperately to work with ‘The X Factor’ but it just wasn’t (to be),” he said.

“It’s a to-be-continued because myself and Simon are good friends, our family are good friends, the kids hang out all of the time and I think it’s just a pause on the relationship,” Williams said.

“This year I’ve got to go and promote my album to death. So that’s what I’ll be doing.”

Reporting by Hanna Rantala; writing by Marie-Louise Gumuchian; editing by Jason Neely

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Aston Martin built for James Bond heading to auction

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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A 1965 Aston Martin DB5 outfitted with special gadgets for James Bond, such as tire slashers, machine guns and a bulletproof shield, will go up for auction in August, the auction house announced on Wednesday.

The vehicle painted gray is expected to fetch between $4 million and $6 million, according to a statement from RM Sotheby’s.

The car was never seen in Bond films, but matches the one that “007” - the code number by which Bond was often known - drove in the movies “Goldfinger,” and “Thunderball.”

The vehicle was commissioned by filmmaker Eon Productions and used at promotional events for “Thunderball” in the United States, the auction house said.

It includes 13 modifications created for Bond, including a Browning .30 caliber machine gun in each fender, tire slashers mounted on its wheel hubs and a bulletproof rear screen that can be raised and lowered.

RM Sotheby’s said the Bond modifications had been “properly refurbished to function as originally built,” and has had three private owners over 50 years.

The auction will take place on Aug. 15 in Monterey, California.

Reporting by Lisa Richwine, editing by G Crosse

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Musicians lament reported loss of recordings in decade-old Universal fire

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LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Several big-name musicians voiced dismay on Wednesday that some of their recordings may have been among thousands of original masters that The New York Times Magazine reported were lost in the Universal Studios Hollywood backlot fire of 2008.

FILE PHOTO: A fire truck and firefighters are seen at Gate 2 of Universal Studios as smoke rises (background) from a fire that rages out of control at the backlot filled with movie sets in Universal City, California June 1, 2008. REUTERS/Fred Prouser/File Photo

The blaze, which gutted a popular “King Kong” attraction and a swath of the studio’s fabled outdoor lot, also destroyed nearly all the master recordings stored there in a Universal Music Group archive, a loss that has long gone undisclosed, the magazine reported on Tuesday.

Universal Music estimated in a confidential 2009 report that the loss encompassed about 500,000 song titles, the article said.

In a statement on Wednesday, the company called the incident “deeply unfortunate,” but said the Times story contained “numerous inaccuracies, misleading statements, contradictions and fundamental misunderstandings of the scope of the incident.”

The extent of the loss, documented in litigation and company records the article cited, was largely kept from the public eye through a concerted effort on the part of the music label, the magazine said.

Many of the artists whose own material was reported to have been destroyed expressed shock.

“Oh my Lord ... this makes me sick to my stomach,” singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow wrote on Twitter, posted with a link to the article. “And shame on those involved in the coverup.”

The rock band R.E.M said in a Twitter statement that concerned fans were making inquiries. “We are trying to get good information to find out what happened, and the effect on the band’s music, if any,” the group tweeted.

Original sound recordings of many of the greatest names in popular music since the 1940s - from Louis Armstrong and Judy Garland to Tom Petty and 50 Cent - are believed to have gone up in smoke in what the article described as “the biggest disaster in the history of the music business.”

Master recordings are typically owned and controlled by the music labels for the artists in their catalog. But they are seen as vital to musicians’ legacy as they are original, one-of-a-kind recordings considered the truest representation of sounds captured in the studio.

Masters are the source material for all reproductions, including re-releases and remixes, made for distribution, whether on digital medium or vinyl.

Universal Music Group, now owned by French media conglomerate Vivendi, said the fire “never affected the availability of the commercially released music nor impacted artists’ compensation.”

The New York Times article “ignores the tens of thousands of back catalog recordings that we have already issued in recent years, including master-quality, high-resolution, audiophile versions of many records that the story claims were ‘destroyed,’” Universal Music said.

Irving Azoff, manager for the group Steely Dan, said in a statement that the musicians had “been aware of ‘missing’ original Steely Dan tapes for a long time now.”

“We’ve never been given a plausible explanation,” Azoff said. “Maybe they burned up in the big fire. In any case, it’s certainly a lost treasure.”

Krist Novoselic, a founding member of the 1990s grunge band Nirvana, responded to a fan on Twitter asking whether the Times article meant that the masters for the group’s landmark “Nevermind” album were gone. He wrote: “I think they are gone forever.”

Reporting by Lisa Richwine and Steve Gorman in Los Angeles; Editing by Leslie Adler

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Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. to turn himself in after groping allegation: NBC

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NEW YORK (Reuters) - Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. intends to turn himself in to New York City police after a woman accused him of groping her at a Manhattan bar over the weekend, NBC News reported on Wednesday, citing Gooding’s representative.

The Oscar-wining actor plans to present himself to the NYPD’s sex crimes unit on Thursday, according to NBC News.

The woman, who has not been identified, alleged that Gooding touched her breasts at the bar on Sunday night, the network said, citing law enforcement sources.

In a video posted on TMZ.com, Gooding denied that he had groped anyone. The actor said he went to a bar, talked and took pictures with people, and left.

“I trust the system,” he said as he walked through Los Angeles International Airport, adding that there was a tape “that shows what really happened.”

Asked if “there was any groping involved,” Gooding said “no, nothing.” He also said “absolutely not” when asked if he was guilty.

Attorneys for Gooding did not immediately respond to requests for comment or confirmation.

FILE PHOTO: Cuba Gooding Jr. attends the 69th annual DGA Awards in Beverly Hills, California, U.S., February 4, 2017. REUTERS/Phil McCarten

NYPD spokeswoman Detective Sophia Mason said she had seen the news report, but had no information on it.

Asked about the reported allegation on Monday, NYPD spokesman Detective Martin Brown said, “We don’t really have anything official to say about it other than that there’s been an allegation and that it is currently under investigation.”

Gooding won the Academy Award for best supporting actor in 1997 for his portrayal of an athlete in the film “Jerry Maguire.” In 2016, he was nominated for an Emmy for playing O.J. Simpson in the miniseries “The People v. O.J. Simpson.”

Reporting by Peter Szekely and Lisa Richwine; Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe and Bill Rigby

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Britain's BBC gets green light to enhance iPlayer

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LONDON (Reuters) - Britain’s media regulator has given the BBC provisional permission to change its popular iPlayer on-demand platform from a 30-day catch-up service to one where programs are available for 12 months or longer.

Ofcom said the changes would help the BBC stay relevant in the face of changing viewing habits and deliver value to the public, which funds the broadcaster by paying an annual license fee of 154.50 pounds ($196) per household.

It said the changes would pose challenges for other public service broadcasters’ video-on-demand services, and would therefore need to be subject to conditions to mitigate against risks to fair competition.

The BBC launched iPlayer in 2007, offering programs for seven days after broadcast. The viewing window was extended to 30 days in 2014.

Ofcom said it was inviting other views before publishing a final decision by August.

Reporting by Paul Sandle; editing by Stephen Addison

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Comedian Jon Stewart assails Congress for ignoring 9/11 first responders fund

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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Jon Stewart, the popular former host of the late-night comedy program The Daily Show, criticized members of Congress for not attending a hearing on Tuesday on renewing funding for a program that provides health care to first responders who were sickened responding to the Sept. 11 attacks.

“Sick and dying, they brought themselves down here to speak and no one,” Stewart said, pointing to a mostly empty dais. “Shameful, it’s an embarrassment to the country and a stain on this institution. You should be ashamed of yourselves for those who aren’t here but you won’t be because accountability doesn’t appear to be something that occurs in this chamber.”

Stewart was testifying before the Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties about a renewal of the 9/11 first responders health care fund. Most of the panel’s 14 members were not in attendance.

“Where are they? It would be one thing if their callous indifference and rank hypocrisy was benign, but it’s not,” Stewart said. “Their indifference cost these men and women their most valuable commodity, time, one thing they’re running out of.”

The fund, originally approved for five years in 2010, provides medical treatment for emergency responders sickened by toxic dust inhaled at the World Trade Center site in New York in the days following the attack.

Republicans had balked at the price of the original legislation and as a compromise at the time, Democrats agreed to authorize the fund only for five years and cover the cost with an excise tax. That has set up a fight every five years to get Congress to renew the program.

Stewart criticized Congress for continuing to require the fund be renewed every five years - pointing to the panel’s top Republican, Representative Mike Johnson, for saying that Congress has to balance other emergencies as well.

“I’m pretty sure what’s going to happen five years from now, more of these men and women are going to get sick and they are going to die and I am awfully tired of hearing that it’s a 9/11 New York issue,” Stewart said. “Al-Qaeda didn’t shout death to Tribeca.”

Reporting by Ginger Gibson; Editing by Dan Grebler

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Singer Steve Lawrence, of 'Steve and Eydie' duo, says he has Alzheimer's

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FILE PHOTO: Singers Steve Lawrence and Edyie Gorme pose as they arrive at " An Evening with Larry Gelbart" July 11 at The Museum of Television & Radio in Beverly Hills. Gelbart was honored at the musuem for his contributions to the medium of television, which include writing credits on " The Bob Hope Show," " M*A*S*H," and " Caesar's Hour./File Photo

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Steve Lawrence, the 1960s-era singer and comedian who performed at nightclubs and on television with his wife Eydie Gorme, said on Tuesday he has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease.

In a letter released by his publicist, the 83-year-old Lawrence said the disease was in its early stages and he was “being treated with medications under the supervision of some of the finest doctors in the field.”

“Fortunately, they have managed to slow down this horrific process,” he said.

Lawrence married Gorme in 1957 and together they became a staple on American late-night and variety television programs. Their playful husband-and-wife banter was a distinctive element of their performances over the decades.

“We Got Us,” the first album from the duo that came to be known as Steve & Eydie, won a Grammy in 1960. Gorme died in 2013.

Lawrence said he was “living my life, going out in public and trying to spend as much time as possible with my family and friends while I am still able to engage and enjoy.”

“I ask for your prayers, your good wishes and implore you to find the joy every day, because what I feel is gratitude, love and hope — nothing more and nothing less, and I hope you can find the same,” he added.

Reporting by Lisa Richwine in Los Angeles; Editing by Matthew Lewis

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Samoa bans 'Rocketman' over gay scenes: media

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FILE PHOTO: Cast member Taron Egerton attends the UK premiere of the Elton John biopic 'Rocketman' in London, Britain, May 20, 2019. REUTERS/Simon Dawson/File Photo

SYDNEY (Reuters) - Samoa has banned “Rocketman”, the movie-musical based on the life of British musician Elton John, over its depiction of homosexuality, the South Pacific island’s censor has said.

The film was banned last week because it clashed with Samoa’s “culture and our Christian beliefs”, the censor, Leiataua Niuapu Faaui, told the Samoa Observer newspaper on Monday.

About 97 percent of Samoa’s nearly 200,000 people are Christians and sodomy is a crime in the island nation.

“Rocketman” starring Taron Egerton, tracks Elton John’s first steps in the music business, from his piano playing as a child to his explosion onto the U.S. scene and its drug and alcohol-fueled party world.

Scenes involving gay sex and drug taking were cut from a screening in Russia, drawing criticism from John and the film’s makers.

The movie, which has won warm reviews, began its worldwide rollout late in May.

“Unfortunately due to censoring issues we have had to cancel ‘Rocketman’,” Apollo Cinemas, in the Samoan capital Apia, said on its Facebook page.

Reporting by Tom Westbrook; editing by Darren Schuettler

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U.S. appeals court to revisit Led Zeppelin 'Stairway' decision

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(Reuters) - A U.S. appeals court decided on Monday to review its recent decision regarding whether Led Zeppelin stole the opening guitar riff for its 1971 anthem “Stairway to Heaven,” but the plaintiff’s lawyer still expects a retrial to go forward.

FILE PHOTO - Members of British rock band Led Zeppelin (L-R) bass player John Paul Jones, lead singer Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page and drummer Jason Bonham, who replaces the band's original drummer his father John Bonham, arrive for the premiere of their film "Celebration Day", in New York October 9, 2012. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri

The rock band, lead singer Robert Plant and guitarist Jimmy Page had been accused of copyright infringement for stealing the riff from “Taurus,” a song written in 1967 by the guitarist Randy Wolfe of the lesser-known band Spirit.

A jury in Los Angeles ruled in favor of Led Zeppelin in June 2016, but the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled 3-0 last September that errors by the trial judge required a new trial.

Francis Malofiy, a lawyer for the trustee representing Wolfe’s estate, said the 11-judge appeals court panel that will reconsider the case under Monday’s order will focus on whether to broaden copyright protection for “Taurus.”

He said the three-judge panel erred in deciding that a sheet music “deposit copy” of “Taurus,” rather than sound recordings by Spirit, defined the scope of what could be copyrighted under the federal 1909 Copyright Act.

“It deals with an iconic song that defined a generation,” said Malofiy, a lawyer at Francis Alexander. He said the trustee, Michael Skidmore, will get a new trial “no matter what.”

A lawyer for Led Zeppelin had no immediate comment.

Led Zeppelin had sought a broader rehearing by the appeals court. Malofiy said the court never asked him to respond, as would be required under its rules before granting the band’s request.

The lawsuit is among the music industry’s most closely watched copyright cases, potentially exposing Plant and Page to millions of dollars of damages. Wolfe drowned in 1997.

The case is Skidmore v Led Zeppelin et al, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 16-56057.

Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Editing by Dan Grebler

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Woodstock 50 loses NY site for anniversary music festival

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(Reuters) - The troubled Woodstock 50 music festival on Monday lost the site of a planned anniversary event in August, the latest setback for the weekend marking the famed 1969 “peace and music” festival, but organizers said they were pursuing a new location.

The Aug. 16-19 festival was to have taken place at the Watkins Glen motor racing venue in upstate New York with a line-up including Jay-Z and Miley Cyrus.

On Monday, Watkins Glen said in a statement it had “terminated the site license for Woodstock pursuant to provisions of the contract. As such, (it) will not be hosting the Woodstock 50 Festival,” the site owners said in a statement.

Watkins Glen did not say why it had decided to pull out.

Gregory Peck, one of the organizers of Woodstock 50, said the team behind the festival was “in discussions with another venue” to host the event and looked “forward to sharing the new location when tickets go on sale in the coming weeks.”

Woodstock 50 is backed by the co-producer of the original 1969 Woodstock festival, which was billed as “three days of peace and music” and is regarded as one of the pivotal moments in music history.

The anniversary festival was thrown into chaos in April after the lead Japanese investors abruptly pulled out. It has been plagued with other problems, including obtaining permits and arranging security and sanitation.

Tickets for the festival, expected to attract about 60,000 people, have not gone on sale.

Organizers said last month they had obtained new funding and expressed confidence that the show would go on.

Woodstock 50 announced in March that more than 80 musical acts, including 1969 festival veterans John Fogerty, Canned Heat and Santana, would take part. Some 100,000 fans, including campers, were originally expected to attend, but that number was later reduced to 60,000.

The nonprofit Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, the current owner of the field where the 1969 Woodstock festival took place, has also scaled back plans for a three-day anniversary event. It said in February it will instead host separate concerts by Ringo Starr, Santana and the Doobie Brothers.

Watkins Glen has a larger crowd capacity and is some 150 miles (240 km) distant from Bethel and about 250 miles (400 km) north of New York City.

Reporting by Jill Serjeant; editing by Tom Brown, Cynthia Osterman and Dan Grebler

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More U.S. millennials subscribe to video games than traditional pay TV: survey

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NEW YORK (Reuters) - More American millennials now subscribe to a video game service than to a traditional paid television service, according to a survey on Monday, as consumers favor new forms of entertainment that are shifting the broader media landscape.

FILE PHOTO: A woman plays a game on her cell phone while lying on the grass in Madrid, Spain, July 4, 2017. REUTERS/Juan Medina

About 53% of people born between 1983 and 1996 now pay for gaming services, versus 51% who pay for television, according to a survey from the accounting and professional services firm Deloitte.

That is compared with Deloitte’s survey last year, in which paid subscriptions among millennials were 44% for video games and 52% for television.

Paid television through cable, satellite or fiber - for instance Comcast Corp’s Xfinity, Dish Network Corp or AT&T Inc’s U-verse TV - has been challenged by changing viewer habits, particularly the rise of direct-to-consumer streaming services.

At the same time, video games and e-sports have soared in popularity, giving rise to an industry of competitive professional and amateur games watched in person and online by fans, alongside more casual gaming on mobile phones.

Players can subscribe to games like World of Warcraft from Activision Blizzard Inc. Riot Games Inc, a unit of Tencent Holdings Ltd , is working on a streaming mobile version of its hit League of Legends desktop game.

Electronic Arts Inc offers subscriptions to its games - which include FIFA 18, Madden NFL 19, The Sims 4, Star Wars Battlefront II and more - for Microsoft Corp’s Xbox and Sony Corp’s PlayStation.

In March, Alphabet Inc’s Google unveiled Stadia, its new browser-based video game streaming service to launch this year through its cloud technology.

The same month, Apple Inc also introduced a new digital video game subscription service called Apple Arcade.

Kevin Westcott, who leads Deloitte’s U.S. telecom, media and entertainment practice, said increased game consumption comes as more people fill their spare time playing on mobile devices instead of reading and other activities.

Gaming can provide social ties and communities of fans and players.

“Gaming companies have also been developing more compelling content and interaction with their consumers,” Westcott said in an email.

Deloitte’s 13th annual digital media trends survey was fielded by an independent research firm from December 2018 to February 2019 online among 2,003 U.S. consumers.

(The story removes typographical error in paragraph 3.)

Reporting by Hilary Russ; Additional reporting by Helen Coster; Editing by Lisa Shumaker

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