Folk singer Peter Yarrow has been accused in a new lawsuit of raping an underage girl in a Manhattan hotel room in 1969.
The accusations were lodged against Yarrow, the founding member of legendary ’60s trio Peter, Paul and Mary, in a Wednesday Manhattan Supreme Court suit that was brought under the Child Victims Act.
Before the alleged rape, Yarrow met his accuser, who was a fan of his music, several times at his band’s performances, the suit says.
He then “took an interest in her,” acting what in what the minor thought was “paternal way,” according to the suit.
But the suit alleges that in actuality the folk icon was “grooming” her.
She eventually ran away from her Minnesota home and met Yarrow at a Lower East Side hotel, where he allegedly raped her, the suit says.
The following day, Yarrow bought the minor a plane ticket to Minnesota and told her to leave, the suit alleges.
The accuser “has been suffering the effects of Yarrow’s rape ever since,” according to the suit.
She is seeking compensatory and punitive damages.
Yarrow has a past criminal conviction of “taking indecent liberties” with a 14-year-old girl in a Washington, DC, hotel room in 1970.
Messages seeking comment from Yarrow and his accuser’s lawyers were not immediately returned.
The soon-to-launch network just announced a slew of programming coming in the near future, including hotly anticipated movies like “Mission: Impossible 7” and the sequel to “A Quiet Place,” along with TV shows like “Younger” and “Frasier.”
The projects were name-dropped during ViacomCBS’ three-hour investor presentation Wednesday ahead of its Paramount+ streaming service launch on March 4.
Some films will hit streaming in as little as a month after the big screen, including “A Quiet Place Part 2,” which premieres in theaters Sept. 17 and on Paramount+ on Nov. 1; “Mission: Impossible 7,” set for Nov. 19 in theaters but Jan. 3, 2022, on streaming; and “Top Gun: Maverick,” which premieres in theaters July 2. Other films like “Paw Patrol: The Movie” will follow suit.
New installments of “Paranormal Activity” and “Pet Sematary” will hit the streaming platform, as well as the Arie Posin-directed film “The In Between” starring Joey King and Kyle Allen.
In addition, MGM movies, including the James Bond film “No Time To Die,” will arrive on Paramount+ when they hit streaming.
Notably for TV, Kelsey Grammer will return as Dr. Frasier Crane for the “Frasier” reboot teased in recent months.
“Having spent over 20 years of my creative life on the Paramount lot, both producing shows and performing in several, I’d like to congratulate Paramount+ on its entry into the streaming world,” Grammer, 66, said in a statement. “I gleefully anticipate sharing the next chapter in the continuing journey of Dr. Frasier Crane.”
There are also several TV series in the works, from iconic movies like “Love Story,” “Fatal Attraction,” “Flashdance,” “The Italian Job” and “The Parallax View,” all of which are in development. Previously announced shows include “Grease: Rise of the Pink Ladies” and “The Offer” about “The Godfather” producer Al Ruddy. The role was originally set to be played by Armie Hammer, but he exited the series.
Nostalgia is really kicking in with other reboots of classic MTV and VH1 shows like “Road Rules,” “Behind the Music,” “Yo! MTV Raps” and “Unplugged.”
Other MTV shows including “Inside Amy Schumer” specials, “The Weekly Show With Trevor Noah,” “Workaholics,” “Reno 911!” and “Beavis and Butt-Head” will join the streaming platform, too.
“Beavis and Butt-Head” won’t be the only cartoon characters, either. Much more kid-friendly projects like “Avatar: The Last Airbender” and “The Legend of Korra” will also be available.
The animated “Star Trek: Prodigy” will find a home on Paramount+ this year.Nickelodeon
“Halo” is moving from Showtime to Paramount+, Deadline reported, but will still be produced by Showtime. “RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars” will also move from VH1 to Paramount+, and the drag legend will additionally kick off an international drag competition, “Queen of the Universe.”
In more otherworldly matters, the latest “Star Trek” series — the animated “Star Trek: Prodigy” — will find a home on Paramount+ this year. And on the more down-to-Earth side, “60 Minutes+” will premiere longer segments starting March 4.
The streamer will also air a true-crime anthology series, “American Tragedy,” according to Deadline, and Jeremy Renner will also star in the crime drama “Mayor of Kingstown,” per the Hollywood Reporter.
The seventh and final season of Darren Starr’s “Younger” — starring Hilary Duff and Sutton Foster — will include 12 episodes on the streaming platform.
In addition to new programming, a library of over 2,000 films and shows from networks like CBS, BET, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon, MTV and the Smithsonian Channel will be available after the launch.
All of these big releases are part of ViacomCBS’ plan to join a crowded streaming market, which many have relied on during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This is not your father’s Viacom, and it’s not my father’s either,” ViacomCBS chairwoman Shari Redstone said in a statement. “This is a ViacomCBS that’s been reimagined for a new kind of marketplace and a new kind of consumer.”
Child actor Mara Wilson is publicly commiserating with Britney Spears, whose legal and emotional woes were brought to light in a new documentary about the embattled pop star.
In an open letter published Tuesday, Wilson, who starred in a number of ’90s blockbusters, including “Mrs. Doubtfire” and “Matilda,” revealed that she’d largely avoided the limelight since childhood due to being “sexualized” by the industry — a decision she has discussed in past interviews. Since then Wilson, now 33, has remained a Hollywood spectator — and critic.
“Our culture builds these girls up just to destroy them,” Wilson said.
Wilson’s candid essay comes in the wake of the explosive “Framing Britney Spears” documentary that became so widely discussed, it even caught the attention of the singer’s ex, Justin Timberlake, who offered a public apology.
“Many moments of Ms. Spears’ life were familiar to me,” Wilson wrote. “We both had dolls made of us, had close friends and boyfriends sharing our secrets and had grown men commenting on our bodies.”
Despite having “never appeared in anything more revealing than a knee-length sundress,” Wilson claimed that she’d been “photoshopped into child pornography” before she reached 12. “Every time, I felt ashamed,” she said of the violations.
“This was all intentional: My parents thought I would be safer that way. But it didn’t work. People had been asking me, ‘Do you have a boyfriend?’ in interviews since I was 6. Reporters asked me who I thought the sexiest actor was and about Hugh Grant’s arrest for soliciting a prostitute,” she confessed.
“It was cute when 10-year-olds sent me letters saying they were in love with me,” Wilson continued. “It was not when 50-year-old men did”
“Hollywood has resolved to tackle harassment in the industry, but I was never sexually harassed on a film set. My sexual harassment always came at the hands of the media and the public,” she added.
“Framing Britney Spears,” which spurred Wilson to speak out once again, has quickly become one of the most buzzed-about programs streaming on Hulu and FX. The bombshell documentary prompted several celebrities to speak out in support of — and some such as Perez Hilton offering apologies to — Spears in the wake of the doc.
Spears also addressed it indirectly, tweeting: “Each person has their story and their take on other people’s stories!!!! We all have so many different bright beautiful lives.”
NBC has reportedly pulled an episode of the show “Nurses” after backlash from critics who said a scene was anti-Semitic.
The season finale, Deadline reported, was pulled from the network’s digital platforms as Jewish organizations criticized a scene in which an Orthodox Jewish character named Israel refuses a bone graft for his leg during a hospital stay.
“The graft, where does it come from?” the character asks before a medical pro explains the graft would be “harvested from a deceased donor” so that he would be able to “walk again.”
“A dead goyim leg … from an Arab, a woman,” the patient’s father says in the clip, to which a nurse responds: “Oh, God forbid, an Arab woman.”
The scene received criticism from national Jewish groups like the Simon Wiesenthal Center and StopAntisemitism.org.
“First @nbcsnl now @nbc ‘Nurses’ airs a viciously antisemitic episode filled with lies about Orthodox Jews,” the group tweeted. “‘A dead goyim leg … from an arab, a woman, G-d forbid an Arab women … Israel … without this next step you won’t walk again.’ Lies and libels lead to VIOLENCE!”
The scene involves an Orthodox Jewish character named Israel who is hospitalized refuses a bone graft for his leg.NBC
“The writers of this scene check all the boxes of ignorance and pernicious negative stereotypes right down to the name of the patient, Israel — payouts [sidelocks] and all,” the Simon Wiesenthal Center said in a statement. “In one scene, NBC has insulted and demonized religious Jews and Judaism.”
The scene first aired Feb. 9, according to The Hollywood Reporter, and was initially called out by the website Jew in the City.
NBC has not returned The Post’s request for comment.
First @nbcsnl now @nbc ‘Nurses’ airs a viciously antisemitic episode filled with lies about Orthodox Jews.
“A dead goyim leg … from an arab, a woman, G-d forbid an Arab women … Israel … without this next step you won’t walk again”.
However, an anonymous source from the network told Deadline that they have been contacted by several Jewish groups regarding the episode and “were keen to have conversations with them about the topic.” The Canadian series is produced by ICF Films and eOne in association with Corus Entertainment, according to Deadline, and was used by NBC “to fill a hole in a primetime lineup that had been derailed by the coronavirus pandemic.”
The NBC source also told the outlet it will not re-air the episode again, but footage still remains on Twitter.
The uproar over “Nurses” comes just days after NBC’s sketch show “Saturday Night Live” aired a “Weekend Update” skit about the COVID-19 vaccine that critics also dubbed anti-Semitic.
“Israel is reporting that they’ve vaccinated half of their population. I’m going to guess it’s the Jewish half,” Michael Che said in the joke.
This flick isn’t coming to movie theaters anytime soon, but it is coming to a field in Queens.
As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, “Coming 2 America” — the highly anticipated sequel to Eddie Murphy’s 1988 cult classic “Coming to America” — will not premiere in theaters. It instead will be released exclusively to Amazon Prime Video and, for one night only, will screen to 200 cars at Flushing Meadows Corona Park.
“‘Coming to America’ is the quintessential, iconic Queens film, and we are beyond thrilled to host one of the only screenings of its sequel, ‘Coming 2 America,’ right here in the film’s backyard,” said Queens Borough President Donovan Richards Jr. in a press release. The new film again stars Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall, as well as Tracy Morgan, Leslie Jones and Wesley Snipes.
The 6:30 p.m. March 5 screening coincides with the flick’s video release and will feature free food, Amazon Studios merch and an introduction by Richards. Tickets are free with RSVP but have already sold out.
Eddie Murphy in “Coming 2 America.”
Courtesy of Amazon Studios
Arsenio Hall and Eddie Murphy in “Coming 2 America.”
Courtesy of Amazon Studios
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The film kicks off the second season of programming for Queens Drive-In, a collaboration between nonprofit Rooftop Films and Queens’ Museum of the Moving Image and the New York Hall of Science. The drive-in, one of many that materialized amidst the ongoing pandemic, hosted more than 80 sold-out COVID-safe events last fall and summer, including a number of world premieres. (Indeed, amid a dearth of other safe live entertainment options, NYC’s drive-ins became the hottest ticket in town during the pandemic.)
Programming for this season currently extends through April and includes screenings of “The Muppets Take Manhattan,” “The Shining” and an assortment of themed double features, including “Thelma & Louise,” “Desperately Seeking Susan,” “Singin’ in the Rain” and “Magic Mike XXL.” Tickets start at $35 per car (which can contain up to five passengers), with discounts available for members of the affiliated organizations.
The Queens Drive-In has announced a second season of programming.
Andrew Kelly/REUTERS
From the Queens Drive-In’s first season of programming.
Maike Schulz
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Disney+ has announced a premiere date of June 11 for the “Loki” TV series starring Tom Hiddleston, 40.
It will be the third show in the Marvel Cinematic Universe — after the immensely popular “WandaVision” (starring Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany) and “The Falcon and the Winter Soldier” (premiering March 19, starring Sebastian Stan and Anthony Mackie from the “Captain America” films).
“Loki” will have six episodes, with a second season already on the way. Its plot will follow everyone’s favorite Marvel villain, and it will take place after the events of “Avengers: Endgame.”
But since Loki was killed by Thanos in “Avengers: Infinity War,” how can this be?
Luckily, superhero movies can get flexible about timelines (and death). It will follow an alternate version of Loki that escaped from the Avengers’ custody during their “time heist.” Owen Wilson will also appear in the show, which will be a thriller. It hasn’t been announced whether Loki’s brother Thor (Chris Hemsworth) will make a cameo.
Additionally, Disney+ said “Star Wars: The Bad Batch” will premiere May 4, “High School Musical: The Musical: The Series” Season 2 will premiere May 14 and “Monsters Inc” spinoff “Monsters at Work” will premiere July 2.
“Loki” will premiere June 11 on Disney+ and air in weekly installments.
Tom Holland, star of Marvel Studios’ web-slinging franchise, revealed on Wednesday the real title of the next, much-anticipated film sequel: “Spider-Man: No Way Home.” He made the announcement in a cheeky video on social media that implied director Jon Watts did not trust Holland to keep the actual title a secret.
On Tuesday, the 24-year-old action hero and co-stars Jacob Batalon (who plays Ned Leeds) and Zendaya (MJ) had each suggested that other titles were the real title, including “Spider-Man: Home-Wrecker,” “Spider-Man: Home Slice” and “Spider-Man: Phone Home.”
But those were fake news, apparently provided by Watts as a ruse.
“He gave us a fake name again,” Holland tells Batalon and Zendaya, both also 24, in Wednesday’s reveal, which shows them walking and talking outside of Watts’ Atlanta office, adding, “I don’t understand why he keeps doing this.”
That’s when Batalon sums up the problem. “I think it’s pretty obvious: You spoil things,” he tells a seemingly insulted Holland, as the video zooms in on a dry-erase board listing discarded titles scrawled around the real one.
The new film — expected to be released in December, potential COVID-19 disruptions notwithstanding — will be the third installment in the series, which includes 2019’s “Spider-Man: Far From Home” and 2017’s “Spider-Man: Homecoming.” Holland’s iteration of the web-slinger also appeared in the “Avengers” franchise movies “Infinity War” (2018) and “Endgame” (2019).
Matt Groening has emerged from the cartoonists lair — virtually, at least.
“The Simpsons” creator, 67, granted a rare interview to the BBC on Tuesday, where he candidly discussed his personal conclusions regarding the show’s recent controversies concerning race and representation.
The legendary show has been much criticized for its decision to cast white actors to voice characters of color when the show debuted some 31 years ago.
“Times change,” Groening told the BBC, “but I actually didn’t have a problem with the way we were doing it. All of our actors play dozens of characters each, it was never designed to exclude anyone.”
However, actor Hank Azaria, who voiced the Kwik-E-Mart shopkeeper Apu since 1989, stepped down amid public outcry last year to make way for an as-yet undetermined actor of South Asian origin. Earlier this week it was announced that the role of Dr. Hibbert, once voiced by Harry Shearer, was given to actor Kevin Michael Richardson (“Family Guy”).
The production was initially defensive, with Groening responding in 2018 that he was “proud” of the show, and a victim of a “culture where people love to pretend they’re offended.”
Actor Hank Azaria, who voiced the Kwik-E-Mart shopkeeper Apu since 1989, stepped down from the role in 2020.Getty Images/Everett Collection
Groening’s opinion has since softened in favor of a more inclusive stance.
“We’re not going out of our way to comfort bigots,” he told the BBC. “On the other hand, if you do any kind of gesture and people perceive a weakness, you’ll be criticized.”
“I absolutely agree with that. And we’re trying to make it better,” he added. “Bigotry and racism are still an incredible problem, and it’s good to finally go for more equality and representation.”
The show announced in February that the role of Dr. Hibbert, once Harry Shearer’s (left), will be voiced by actor Kevin Michael Richardson (“Family Guy”) going forward.Getty Images/Everett Collection
He also discussed an entirely different sort of controversy: his feud with the transportation enthusiast organization the Monorail Society, which includes 14,000 members from around the globe. It’s been said that “The Simpsons” Episode 12 of Season 4, titled “Marge vs. the Monorail,” is the reason why more city dwellers aren’t hitching rides on monorails. Had the iconic musical episode — which saw Marge save Springfield from a scamming monorail developer — never aired, the monorail would be taken more seriously today, according to society members.
“I don’t know what to say, I’m sorry,” he joked. “That’s a by-product of our viciousness.”
The animator shows no signs of slowing down. His latest project, “Disenchantment,” a comedy-fantasy cartoon starring Abbi Jacobson, Eric André and Nat Faxon, is in its third season on Netflix.
“Doing ‘Disenchantment’ is about the most fun I ever have. I get to work with some of the funniest, smartest people around and play with them and tell stories. It’s just a blast,” he said.
“13 Going on 30” stars Jennifer Garner and Mark Ruffalo have reunited on the set of their new movie.
Ruffalo, 53, posted a pic with his co-star on Twitter on Tuesday. “Reconnecting with an old pal. Anyone know where we can get Razzles in Canada?” he wrote, referencing the popular candy from the 2004 romantic comedy.
Garner, 48, posted the same photo on Instagram, writing, “Wishing dust worked! And I got a perfect day with my old pal.”
The real star of “13 Going on 30,” Judy Greer, was notably missing from the photo.
Ruffalo and Garner are currently in Vancouver filming “The Adam Project,” according to People.
In the movie, 13 remains their lucky number: “The Adam Project” stars Ryan Reynolds, 44, who has to go back in time to when he was 13 years old to get help from his teen self, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Garner and Ruffalo play Reynolds’ parents. The movie also stars Zoe Saldana as Reynolds’ adult wife, and Catherine Keener as the villain. It’s unclear when the Netflix project will premiere.
Although fans have been “shipping” (speculating that two friends are in a relationship) Ruffalo and Garner for years, the movies are the only chance to see them as a couple.
“The Avengers” star has been married to actress Sunrise Coigney since 2000. Although Garner was married to Ben Affleck from 2005 to 2018, she was linked to businessman John Miller until August of last year.
“Allen v. Farrow,” the four-part HBO documentary chronicling the doomed relationship and contentious custody battle between Woody Allen and Mia Farrow, is causing legal trouble in its own right — over copyrights. Skyhorse Publishing, which released Allen’s latest book, “Apropos of Nothing,” is threatening to sue the makers of the buzzy and controversial docuseries for sampling bits from the famous director’s audiobook.
Allen, 85, did not participate in the show, which premiered February 21 and delves into accusations that the “Manhattan” director may have molested his then-7-year-old daughter, Dylan.
“Neither the producers nor HBO ever approached Skyhorse to request permission to use excerpts from the audiobook,” Tony Lyons, president of Skyhorse, told the Los Angeles Times. “[W]e believe that its unauthorized use of the audiobook is clear, willful infringement under existing legal precedent . . . We will take the legal action we deem necessary to redress our and Woody Allen’s rights in his intellectual property,” the statement went on.
Woody Allen and the book cover for his memoir published by Skyhorse, “Apropos of Nothing.”APA still from “Allen v. Farrow.” Mia Farrow and daughter Dylan are interviewed extensively in the docuseries. Modern family: An old vacation snap shows members of the Farrow/Allen/Previn family. Globe Photos/mediapunch/Shutters
The imprint likewise complained that it weren’t sufficiently warned that the memoir would be sampled, saying, “Skyhorse received information second hand only at the very end of last week.”
Skyhorse’s legal argument boils down to the idea of fair use, or “a legal doctrine that promotes freedom of expression by permitting the unlicensed use of copyright-protected works in certain circumstances,” according to the US Copyright Office. The makers of the doc say they were exercising their right to “legally” use “limited audio excerpts,” according to a statement sent to the Hollywood Reporter.
Woody Allen and his wife, Soon-Yi Previn, were recently spotted leaving their New York City home. Elder Ordonez / SplashNews.com
The publishing house shot back that fair usage would need to be granted by a court, taking into account the “purpose” and “market impact” of the quoted materials.
Allen — the mastermind behind movies “Annie Hall,” “Blue Jasmine” and “Midnight in Paris” — also recently slammed the series, calling it a “hatchet job” in a joint statement with his wife, Soon-Yi Previn, 50, who is also one of Mia’s adopted children. “Multiple agencies investigated them at the time and found that, whatever Dylan Farrow may have been led to believe, absolutely no abuse had ever taken place,” said the statement.
The memoir itself was also a point of controversy last year: It was dropped by Hachette Book Group in March 2020 following a walkout by employees and a damning Twitter thread sent out by Allen’s son, Ronan Farrow.
