Reuters Entertainment News Summary
Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.
Virus brings Cannes Festival 'stepladder gang' down to earth
In a normal year, Joseph Morpelli would be getting ready to plant his stepladder opposite the Cannes Festival venue so he and his fellow diehard fans can get a glimpse of celebrities walking down the red carpet. This year, coronavirus has forced the indefinite postponement of the film festival and left Morpelli - leading member of the so-called 'stepladder gang' of ardent autograph-hunters and amateur paparazzi - to ruminate over what he's missing.
'Seinfeld' star Jerry Stiller dies aged 92, son Ben pays tribute
Jerry Stiller, who played two of American television's most cantankerous fathers on the sitcoms "Seinfeld" and "The King of Queens," has died aged 92, his son Ben Stiller said on Twitter on Monday. "I'm sad to say that my father, Jerry Stiller, passed away from natural causes," wrote Ben, a Hollywood comedian who appeared with his father in "Zoolander" and other movies.
All masks, no fireworks: Shanghai Disneyland in muted reopening after coronavirus closedown
Thousands of visitors streamed into Shanghai Disneyland on Monday for the first time in three months as the Chinese park became the first reopened by Walt Disney Co after the coronavirus pandemic brought the Magic Kingdom to a standstill. While Mickey Mouse joined familiar Disney characters welcoming the crowds, the Shanghai experience will not be as it was: Instead of parades and fireworks, there are mandatory masks, temperature screenings and social distancing for visitors and employees.
Delayed 'Friends' reunion holding out for live audience over remote event
Fans may have to wait until the fall for the "Friends" reunion special as HBO Max executives are holding out hopes of filming it before a live audience rather than shooting the much-anticipated get together remotely with stars under quarantine. Robert Greenblatt, chairman of WarnerMedia Entertainment, which is launching the HBO Max streaming service on May 27, said on Monday he thought it was worth waiting until the one-off unscripted show could be filmed in a traditional way.
Kurt Cobain's 'Unplugged' guitar has $1 million auction estimate
Kurt Cobain's cardigan sold for a record $334,000 last year. Now the acoustic guitar the punk rocker played for Nirvana's "MTV Unplugged" session, just five months before his death, is expected to fetch around $1 million at auction in June. Julien's Auctions said on Monday the 1959 Martin D-18E guitar that Cobain played for the 1993 live taping is going up for sale, The guitar comes with battered case, whose storage compartment contains a small suede bag where the musician is said to have stashed the heroin he was addicted to in his final years.
Japanese author Murakami to DJ 'Stay Home' radio special as virus shutdown continues
Haruki Murakami, one of Japan's most acclaimed novelists, will host a radio special to try to lift the nation's spirits as a state of emergency over the novel coronavirus lingers. Murakami, whose breakout novel "Norwegian Wood" debuted in 1987, will play favorite songs and welcome listener comments during a "Stay Home Special," the name evoking a plea from Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike for residents to avoid going out.
