Entertainment
Late goals from Salah and Chiesa help Liverpool beat Bournemouth 4-2
LIVERPOOL: Liverpool fans were treated to a roller-coaster start to the season as late goals from Mo Salah and Federico Chiesa sealed a 4-2 win over Bournemouth at Anfield on Friday.
On a bittersweet evening charged with emotion after the July death of Liverpool forward Diogo Jota, newcomer Hugo Ekitike bagged a goal on his league debut to put the hosts ahead after 37 minutes and Cody Gakpo doubled the lead in the 49th.
But Antoine Semenyo, who was the target of racist abuse in the first half that led to a pause in the game, pulled one back for the visitors in the 64th minute and completed a double 12 minutes later to rock Liverpool and shock the home fans.
However, substitute Chiesa sent the Liverpool faithful away happy with an 88th-minute strike after goalkeeper Djordje Petrovic swatted away a ball into the box by Salah, who scored himself deep into added time to wrap up the three points.
Salah chased the ball past the defence before cutting inside and firing into the bottom corner with a goal that put the Egypt international joint-fourth with Andy Cole on the all-time Premier League scorers’ list with 187.
An emotional Salah pointed to the heavens and flapped two hands to mimic Jota’s shark goal celebration.
He headed for The Kop stand after the final whistle, and wiped away tears while applauding the fans who were singing Jota’s song to the tune of “Bad Moon Rising”.
The night started with an emotional minute’s silence for Jota and his brother Andre Silva, who died in a car crash. Fans fought back tears as they sang “You’ll Never Walk Alone”.
Ekitike, who has joined from Eintracht Frankfurt, was the most impressive of manager Arne Slot’s close-season signings in a spending spree topping 300 million pounds ($406.53 million).
“Obviously I think it was a good performance, I could do better,” said Ekitike — who held up two fingers in one hand, and made a zero with the other in a tribute to Liverpool’s Jota, who wore number 20 — after his goal.
“But the most important thing was winning, the mentality we showed. Obviously we wanted to win tonight for the people who came and for Diogo,” added the 23-year-old forward.
The game was halted for several minutes after Bournemouth’s Ghana international Semenyo reported the racist abuse.
“It’s totally unacceptable,” Bournemouth captain Adam Smith said. “Kind of in shock to be honest that it happened. In this day and age it shouldn’t be happening.
“I don’t know how Ant’s played on to be honest and come up with those goals … Something has to be done. We’ll support him in there and hopefully he’ll be ok.”
Entertainment
Taylor Swift, Travis Kelce wedding planning comes to life: Details
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce’s wedding planning has been going on in full swing – and is almost done ahead of their June 13 ceremony.
The 36-year-old pop superstar and the Kansas City Chiefs tight end, also 36, have both been actively involved in the preparations, and now they are about to make it all official.
While earlier reports suggested that the grand event would be taking place at the Eras Tour performer’s Rhode Island estate, insiders have now updated that the ceremony will be split between Swift’s mansion and a luxury resort nearby, Ocean House.
“The guest list grew, so the ceremony and private gatherings associated with the wedding [will be split between the venues]. Taylor always has a plan B and C for every scenario. They feel confident hosting it there. The entire area will be very private and guarded,” insiders told Us Weekly.
The sources near Swift divulged that the couple went over the guest list a few times and it came down to 150 people. While the wedding is not huge, it sure will be traditional.
The source told the outlet that the couple has still not sent out physical wedding invites but their friends and family all know the venue and the date.
Speaking of June 13, they said, “The wedding timeline is based on Travis’ offseason rhythm,” so that they’re able to enjoy their honeymoon without any hurry.
Swift’s dad Scott Swift will reportedly be “walking her down the aisle and all the classic touches, like the father-daughter and mother-son dances,” will be checked off the list, they added, “Taylor loves those emotional, meaningful moments, and Travis [is] on the same page.”
The Love Story hitmaker has already picked out the dress, and it is currently under final tailoring, and as for her bachelorette party, the Grammy winner “has already asked her close girlfriends, like Selena and Gigi, to sleep over at her Rhode Island home the night before the wedding.”
Although, the source maintained, both of their families have been fully supportive and hands-on with help wherever required, the couple have mostly been the ones making the calls.
The Swifts and Kelces have also been tight-lipped whenever asked about the details about the couple’s big day.
Entertainment
Brandy Norwood reveals truth about Wanya Morris relationship in new memoir
Brandy Norwood broke silence on one of the most haunting chapters of her life.
In her new memoir Phases, the singer recounted a late ’90s relationship with Boyz II Men’s Wanya Morris that began when she was just 16.
It is the time she says left scars that lasted decades.
In a week where Brandy received her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, the “Vocal Bible” also opened up about her past.
Her memoir Phases revisits her 2006 car accident, her feud with Monica, and, most strikingly, her teenage romance with Wanya Morris.
Brandy recalled sneaking around with Morris while touring with Boyz II Men, hiding the relationship from her parents and the public.
“I was in over my head,” she wrote.
She explained that the pair pretended to wait until her eighteenth birthday to avoid scandal.
She admitted she lost her virginity to Morris and endured comparisons to other singers including Mariah Carey before the relationship ended when Morris confessed to cheating.
“I believe he took advantage,” Brandy stated in the memoir.
Reflecting on the experience, she added, “The shame ends here. The silence ends here… I was a child. And he was an adult. And it’s time the world understood the difference.”
Morris previously claimed during a 2020 Instagram Live that he did not date Brandy until she was of age, even referencing her famous prom night with Kobe Bryant.
But Brandy’s account in Phases paints a far different picture, one she says was marked by “neon warning signs” she ignored at the time.
Entertainment
Who was Jessie Jones? ‘Most-produced female American playwright’ dies at 75
Jessie Jones, a television actress who reinvented herself as one of America’s most-produced female playwrights, has died at 75.
Her longtime friend and writing partner Jamie Wooten confirmed she passed away March 20 in Washington, D.C. after a long illness.
Jones is survived by her sisters, a brother-in-law, a niece and nephews, and by her close collaborator Wooten.
Jessie Jones’ popular sitcoms:
Jones built a career in front of the camera throughout the 1980s and ’90s, appearing in popular sitcoms such as Night Court, Newhart, Designing Women, Murphy Brown (where she played Betty Hooley), Who’s the Boss, Perfect Strangers, Grace Under Fire and Melrose Place.
Jessie Jones’ TV movies:
She also starred in TV movies including The Positively True Adventures of the Alleged Texas Cheerleader-Murdering Mom, Everybody’s Baby: The Rescue of Baby Jessica alongside Patty Duke and Beau Bridges, and the frequently aired Wife, Mother, Murderer.
Jessie Jones as playwright:
As her acting career wound down, Jones turned to writing.
She co-created the Off-Broadway Southern funeral comedy Dearly Departed, which became a staple for theater companies nationwide.
She later co-wrote the screenplay for Fox Searchlight’s Kingdom Come starring Whoopi Goldberg and LL Cool J.
Her most enduring legacy came through the Jones Hope Wooten partnership with Nicholas Hope and Jamie Wooten.
Together, they penned more than two dozen Southern-flavored comedies including The Sweet Delilah Swim Club, The Red Velvet Cake War, Christmas Belles and The Savannah Sipping Society.
Published by Concord Theatricals, their plays have been widely produced and translated into multiple languages.
Wooten described Jones as “the most-produced female American playwright.”
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