The Korea Herald

Wes Anderson premiere to kick off Berlin fest

FilmFeb 6, 2014

BERLIN (AFP) ― The world premiere of Wes Anderson’s keenly awaited caper “The Grand Budapest Hotel” will open the 64th Berlin film festival Thursday as it joins the race for the top prize, the Golden Bear.The high-profile opening movie with an all-star cast led by British actor Ralph Fiennes marks a coup for the Berlinale, Europe’s first major cinema showcase of the year.The 11-day festival will screen more than 400 productions from around the world in its various sections before a jury led by U
‘American Idol’ star Aiken launches Congress bid

MusicFeb 6, 2014

WASHINGTON (AFP) ― “American Idol” runner-up Clay Aiken declared Wednesday he is running for Congress, putting his singing career on hold as he aims to unseat a Republican from her North Carolina district.Aiken said he would run as a Democrat against two-term congresswoman Renee Ellmers because he believes she is voting against her constituents’ interests in the House of Representatives.“This is what’s wrong with Washington,” Aiken said in a nearly five-minute video, where he highlighted his upb
At 30, Lim seeks change, balance

MusicFeb 5, 2014

Lim Dong-hyek was called a “prodigy pianist” in his teen years, an “idol star in classical music” and a “Chopin specialist” in his 20s. He wouldn’t have chosen any of these labels, if he’d had a choice. Now turning 30, Lim wants to show his true colors as a pianist, nothing more and nothing less. “People tend to think of me as a poser who boasts flamboyant techniques and transcription skills, but I am not,” he said in a telephone interview Tuesday from New York. “I like to play pieces that are e
Houston gets U.S. premiere of Holocaust opera

MusicFeb 5, 2014

HOUSTON (AP) ― It’s the darkest of operas, a powerful and unrelentingly grim work that dares to grapple with the horrors of the Holocaust through a musical descent into the hell that was Auschwitz. The opera is “The Passenger,” and its composer was Mieczyslaw Weinberg, a Polish Jew who as a young man fled to the Soviet Union to escape the Nazis ― the only member of his family to survive. He completed the opera in 1968 and considered it his most important work. Yet for political reasons it had ne
Pharrell to perform on Oscar’s telecast

MusicFeb 5, 2014

LOS ANGELES (AP) ― Pharrell Williams will perform at the Academy Awards. Oscar producers said Tuesday the producer-performer will sing his nominated song “Happy.” There was no word on whether his Grammy Award-stealing hat would make an appearance. Williams wrote “Happy” for “Despicable Me 2.” It’s nominated for original song along with U2’s “Ordinary Love” from “Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom,” “Let It Go” by Idina Menzel from “Frozen” and Karen O’s “The Moon Song” from “Her.” The 40-year-old Wil
U2 freebie rakes in $3m to fight AIDS

MusicFeb 5, 2014

LOS ANGELES (AFP) ― Rock group U2’s new single “Invisible” raised more than $3 million for the fight against AIDS during the 36 hours it was available for free on iTunes, it was revealed Tuesday.It scored more than 1 million downloads in the hour after it premiered in a Bank of America commercial during Sunday’s Super Bowl, then picked up 2 million more until the free offer ended Monday midnight.With the second-biggest bank in the United States pledging one dollar for every download, “Invisible”
Kim Jang-hoon, Crayon Pop team up for Korea Firefighters Project

MusicFeb 5, 2014

Ballad rock singer and big-time philanthropist Kim Jang-hoon, who has been dubbed the nation’s “Donation Angel,” has finally unveiled his latest charity project after more than a decade in the making. “Back in 2002 I had hurt my shoulder and while I was at the hospital getting treatment there was a man sitting next to me; the man was a firefighter,” said Kim at a press conference held at the Press Center in Seoul on Wednesday. “He told me that despite the difficult situations they face, they are
SM group to release sophomore album ‘Breath’ next week

MusicFeb 5, 2014

SM Entertainment’s ballad project group SM The Ballad will release its sophomore album “Breath” next week, the nation’s top entertainment agency said Tuesday.Prior to the album’s formal release next Thursday, three songs, including the title track, will be unveiled one by one, starting on Monday, the company said. “Breath” will feature the collaborative efforts of eight singers from SM boy and girl groups: Jonghyun from SHINee, Max Changmin from TVXQ, Krystal from f(x), Zhoumi from Super Junior-
In NYC, Pussy Riot slams conditions in Russia

MusicFeb 5, 2014

NEW YORK (AP) ― Americans who will be at the Winter Olympics should look beyond the facilities created for the games and take a hard look at the host country itself, two members of the Russian protest punk band Pussy Riot said Tuesday. Maria Alekhina and Nadezhda Tolokonnikova made their first public appearance in the United States, arriving to take part in Amnesty International’s “Bringing Human Rights Home” concert on Wednesday in Brooklyn, where they will be introduced by Madonna. The women w
Movies bring princesses to life on silver screen

FilmFeb 4, 2014

‘Diana’ and ‘Grace of Monaco’explore private lives of royals
Muti to stay at Chicago Symphony Orchestra until 2020

MusicFeb 4, 2014

CHICAGO (AFP) ― Italian conductor Riccardo Muti said Monday he will extend his tenure as the musical director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra through 2020.The famous maestro from Naples has thrilled audiences in Chicago since his arrival in 2010.“Chicago is my home away from home, and I am very glad it will continue to be so,” Muti said in a statement. “The people here are very special, and their support of this fine orchestra is essential to its future.”Muti, 72, praised the orchestra’s “extr
Scottish rockers Mogwai to light up Seoul this month

MusicFeb 4, 2014

With nearly two decades in the rock music scene, the members of the Glasgow-based post-rock band Mogwai have made a return with their first album in three years and will be performing live in Seoul. The band recently released its eighth studio album, “Rave Tapes,” last month and in its first week, the 10-track album landed at No. 10 on the U.K. Album Charts and No. 2 on the Scottish Album Charts. To follow up their latest release, Mogwai has embarked on a worldwide tour that will bring them to K
Actor’s death spotlights heroin epidemic

FilmFeb 4, 2014

NEW YORK (AFP) ― The shocking death of Oscar-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman from a suspected drug overdose has spotlighted a growing epidemic of heroin use across the United States, officials warn.Hoffman, a 46-year-old father of three who was considered one of the finest character actors of his generation, was found lying on his apartment bathroom floor with a needle still stuck in his arm.Empty and full bags of heroin were found in the apartment and while the autopsy will confirm the pre
Super Bowl sets record for TV viewers

TelevisionFeb 4, 2014

LOS ANGELES (AFP) ― Seattle’s 43-8 blowout of Denver in Super Bowl 48 offered little in the way of suspense, but 111.5 million viewers made it the most-watched television event in U.S. history.Ratings released by the Fox network on Monday showed Sunday’s game also set a record for the most-streamed online sports event, while a whopping 25.3 million related tweets composed by 5.6 million authors were logged before, during and after the contest.The viewership for the Seahawks’ lopsided victory ecl
Substance abuse took toll on celebrities

EntertainmentFeb 4, 2014

Since the death of Philip Seymour Hoffman, an American actor who most recently starred in the “Hunger Games” series, other stars who passed away due to drug or alcohol abuse have attracted the media spotlight once more. From left: Cory Monteith, Amy Winehouse, Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Heath Ledger (Wikimedia)1. Cory Monteith, 31, (May 11, 1982 - July 13, 2013)Monteith, a Canadian actor who starred in TV series “Glee,” was found dead in a Toronto hotel room after a heart attack caused by