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Category Archives: Entertainment News

Michael Madsen, ‘Reservoir Dogs’ and ‘Kill Bill’ star, dies at 67

Michael Madsen, ‘Reservoir Dogs’ and ‘Kill Bill’ star, dies at 67

By ANDREW DALTON and ITZEL LUNA Associated Press

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Michael Madsen, the actor best known for his coolly menacing, steely-eyed, often sadistic characters in the films of Quentin Tarantino including “Reservoir Dogs” and “Kill Bill: Vol. 2,” has died.

Madsen was found unresponsive in his home in Malibu, California, on Thursday morning and pronounced dead, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Watch Commander Christopher Jauregui said. He is believed to have died of natural causes and authorities do not suspect any foul play was involved. Madsen’s manager Ron Smith said cardiac arrest was the apparent cause. He was 67.

Madsen’s career spanned more than 300 credits stretching back to the early 1980s, many in low-budget and independent films. He often played low-level thugs, gangsters and shady cops in small roles. Tarantino would use that identity, but make him a main character.

His torture of a captured police officer in Tarantino’s 1992 directorial debut “Reservoir Dogs,” in which Madsen’s black-suited bank robber Vic “Mr. Blonde” Vega severs the man’s ear while dancing to Stealers Wheel’s “Stuck in the Middle with You” was an early career-defining moment for both director and actor.

Madsen told the Associated Press in 2012 that he hated having to do the scene, especially after the actor playing the officer, Kirk Baltz, ad-libbed a line where he begged for his life because he had children.

“I just said, ‘Oh my God,’ I couldn’t do it, I didn’t want to do it,” Madsen said. “Acting is such a humiliating profession.”

He would become a Tarantino regular. He had a small role as the cowboy-hatted desert dweller Budd, a member of the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad, in 2003’s “Kill Bill: Vol. 1,” then a starring role the following year in the sequel, in which he battles with Uma Thurman’s protagonist The Bride and buries her alive.

Madsen also appeared in Tarantino’s “The Hateful Eight” and “Once Upon a Time… In Hollywood.” He was an alternate choice to play the hit man role that revived John Travolta’s career in 1994’s “Pulp Fiction.” The character, Vincent Vega, is the brother of Madsen’s “Reservoir Dogs” robber in Tarantino’s cinematic universe.

His sister, Oscar-nominated “Sideways” actor Virginia Madsen, was among those paying him tribute on Thursday.

“He was thunder and velvet. Mischief wrapped in tenderness. A poet disguised as an outlaw. A father, a son, a brother—etched in contradiction, tempered by love that left its mark,” she said in a statement. “I’ll miss our inside jokes, the sudden laughter, the sound of him. I’ll miss the boy he was before the legend. I miss my big brother.”

His “Hateful Eight” co-star and fellow Tarantino favorite Walton Goggins celebrated him on Instagram.

“Michael Madsen… this man… this artist… this poet… this rascal…” Goggins wrote. “Aura like no one else. Ain’t enough words so I’ll just say this…. I love you buddy. A H8TER forever.”

James Woods, Madsen’s co-star in two films, wrote on X, “I was always touched by his sweet nature and generosity, the absolute opposite of the ‘tough guys’ he portrayed so brilliantly.”

Madsen was born in Chicago to a family of three children.

He performed on stage with the city’s Steppenwolf Theatre Company alongside actors including John Malkovich.

During a handprint ceremony at the TCL Chinese Theatre in November 2020, Madsen reflected on his first visit to Hollywood in the early 1980s.

“I got out and I walked around and I looked and I wondered if there were someday some way that that was going to be a part of me. And I didn’t know because I didn’t know what I was going to do at that point with myself,” he said. “I could have been a bricklayer. I could have been an architect. I could have been a garbage man. I could have been nothing. But I got lucky. I got lucky as an actor.”

His first film role of any significance was in the 1983 hacker thriller “WarGames” with Matthew Broderick. The following year he played pro baseball player Bump Bailey alongside Robert Redford in “The Natural.”

He spent much of the rest of the 1980s doing one-off guest roles on television dramas including “Miami Vice” and “Quantum Leap.”

1991 would bring a career boost with roles in “The Doors,” where he played a buddy of Val Kilmer’s Jim Morrison, and “Thelma and Louise” where he played the boyfriend of Susan Sarandon’s Louise.

Then would come “Reservoir Dogs.”

In 1995, he played a black ops mercenary in the sci-fi thriller “Species” and in 1997 he was third billed after Al Pacino and Johnny Depp as a member of a crew of gangsters in “Donnie Brasco.”

He occasionally played against type. In the 1993 family orca adventure “Free Willy” he was the foster father to the orphan protagonist.

Madsen would return to smaller roles but worked constantly in the final two decades of his career.

Madsen had six children. He had struggled in recent years after the 2022 death of one of his sons, Hudson.

“Losing a child is the hardest and most painful experience that can happen in this world,” Madsen said in an Instagram post last year.

He said the loss put a strain on his marriage to third wife, DeAnna Madsen. He was arrested on suspicion of domestic battery last year, but was not charged. He filed for divorce, but asked that the filing be dismissed just weeks later.

He had previously been arrested twice on suspicion of DUI, most recently in 2019, when he pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor.

“In the last two years Michael Madsen has been doing some incredible work with independent film including upcoming feature films ‘Resurrection Road,’ ‘Concessions and ’Cookbook for Southern Housewives,’ and was really looking forward to this next chapter in his life,” his managers Smith and Susan Ferris and publicist Liz Rodriguez said in a statement. “Michael was also preparing to release a new book called ‘Tears For My Father: Outlaw Thoughts and Poems’ currently being edited.”

The memoir includes a foreword from Tarantino.

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is denied bail after mixed verdict clears him of top charges in sex crimes case

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs is denied bail after mixed verdict clears him of top charges in sex crimes case

NEW YORK (AP) — A judge has declined to set Sean “Diddy” Combs free on bail to await sentencing in his sex crimes case. Combs was convicted Wednesday of federal prostitution-related offenses but acquitted of sex trafficking and racketeering charges. The 55-year-old Combs has been behind bars since his September arrest. He stands convicted of two counts of a crime that carries a maximum of 10 years in prison. But the jury cleared him of charges that could have put him behind bars for life. The judge will decide Combs’ punishment and suggested Oct. 3 as a sentencing date. A virtual hearing is set for Tuesday on the defense’s request for an earlier date.… Continue Reading

No verdict on first day of jury deliberations at Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ sex trafficking trial

No verdict on first day of jury deliberations at Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ sex trafficking trial

NEW YORK (AP) — Jury deliberations got underway in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ federal sex trafficking trial and quickly hit a snag. But, by end of day Monday, jurors indicated they were making progress weighing complex charges that could put the hip-hop mogul in prison for life. The first day of deliberations saw several notes from the jury and Combs and his supporters bowing their heads in prayer in the courtroom — but no verdict. The jury of eight men and four women are sifting through sometimes graphic and emotional testimony about the rap, fashion and reality TV impresario’s propensity for violence and his sexual predilections, including drug-fueled sex marathons dubbed “freak-offs.”… Continue Reading

Jury begins deliberating in Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ sex trafficking trial

Jury begins deliberating in Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs’ sex trafficking trial

NEW YORK (AP) — The jury has started deliberating in Sean “Diddy” Combs’ sex trafficking case. The panel of eight men and four women began their closed-door discussions Monday. They are weighing charges that could put the hip-hop mogul in prison for life. The 55-year-old Combs has pleaded not guilty. Jurors heard seven weeks of sometimes graphic and emotional testimony about Combs’ propensity for violence and his sexual predilections, including drug-fueled sex marathons dubbed “freak-offs” or “hotel nights.” Defense lawyers acknowledge that Combs could be violent but maintain that the sex acts were consensual.… Continue Reading

Fans criticize Beyoncé for shirt calling Native Americans ‘the enemies of peace’

Fans criticize Beyoncé for shirt calling Native Americans ‘the enemies of peace’

A T-shirt worn by Beyoncé during a Juneteenth performance on her Cowboy Carter tour has caused a wave of criticism for the Houston-born pop star. The T-shirt worn during a concert in Paris featured images of the Buffalo Soldiers, who belonged to Black U.S. Army units active during the late 1800s and early 1900s. On the back was a lengthy description of the soldiers that included “their antagonists were the enemies of peace, order and settlement: warring Indians, bandits, cattle thieves, murderous gunmen, bootleggers, trespassers, and Mexican revolutionaries.” Several Native influencers, performers, and academics took to social media this week to criticize Beyoncé or decry the shirt’s language as anti-Indigenous.… Continue Reading

China’s humanoid robots generate more soccer excitement than their human counterparts

China’s humanoid robots generate more soccer excitement than their human counterparts

BEIJING (AP) — Humanoid robots have captivated fans in Beijing with a fully autonomous soccer match powered by artificial intelligence. On Saturday, four teams of robots competed in a 3-on-3 tournament, marking a first in China and previewing the upcoming World Humanoid Robot Games. Organizers highlighted that the robots operated independently, using AI-driven strategies without human intervention. Equipped with advanced sensors, they navigated the field and even stood up after falling, though some needed assistance. Tsinghua University’s team won the final match, defeating China Agricultural University 5–3. The event reflects China’s push to develop AI-powered robots, using sports as a testing ground.… Continue Reading

Bill Moyers, the former White House press secretary turned acclaimed TV journalist, dead at 91

Bill Moyers, the former White House press secretary turned acclaimed TV journalist, dead at 91

NEW YORK (AP) — Bill Moyers, the former White House press secretary who became one of television’s most honored journalists, has died at 91. His career ranged from President Lyndon Johnson’s press secretary to newspaper publisher and senior news analyst at CBS News. But it was for public television that Moyers produced some of TV’s most intelligent and provocative programs. During hundreds of hours on PBS, he proved at home with subjects ranging from government corruption to modern dance, from drug addiction to media consolidation, from religion to environmental abuse. He called himself a “citizen journalist.”… Continue Reading

More refunds are being sent to Fortnite players ‘tricked’ into unwanted purchases. How you can apply

More refunds are being sent to Fortnite players ‘tricked’ into unwanted purchases. How you can apply

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The Federal Trade Commission is issuing more refunds to Fortnite players who it says were charged for unwanted purchases. The U.S. regulator says it’s sending more than 969,000 payments amounting to over $126 million this week. This is part of a $520 million settlement Epic Games agreed to in 2022, addressing complaints about deceptive practices and children’s privacy. The settlement included $245 million for customer refunds. Between this week’s payments and a first round of refunds in December, $198 million of that has been distributed. Eligible players who haven’t received compensation can still file claims until July 9.… Continue Reading

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs confirms he won’t testify and praises the trial judge for an ‘excellent job’

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs confirms he won’t testify and praises the trial judge for an ‘excellent job’

NEW YORK (AP) — Sean “Diddy” Combs has praised the judge at his sex trafficking trial as he confirmed he won’t be testifying. Combs told Judge Arun Subramanian that he’s doing an “excellent job” after the judge asked him Tuesday if he planned to testify. The question was posed after the government rested after calling 34 witnesses, capping a more than six-week-long presentation of evidence against the hip-hop maven. Later, the defense rested. Prosecutors have cited “freak offs” described by two ex-girlfriends of Combs’ as proof of sex trafficking and racketeering conspiracy. Defense lawyers say they were consensual sexual encounters consistent with the swingers lifestyle. Combs has pleaded not guilty.… Continue Reading

The largest digital camera ever built has released its first shots of the universe

The largest digital camera ever built has released its first shots of the universe

NEW YORK (AP) — The largest digital camera ever built has released its first shots of the universe. The Vera C. Rubin Observatory, located on a mountaintop in Chile, unveiled vibrant images Monday of colorful nebulas, stars and galaxies. Funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation and Department of Energy, the observatory will survey the southern sky for the next 10 years. The observatory hopes to track 20 billion galaxies and discover new asteroids and other celestial objects. The effort is named after astronomer Vera Rubin, who offered the first tantalizing evidence of a mysterious force called dark matter.… Continue Reading

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