LONDON — Vanessa Redgrave was hailed at a Hollywood film academy tribute Sunday, praised as an actress and an activist by A-list friends including Ralph Fiennes, Meryl Streep and James Earl Jones.
More than 30 years after she shocked the Oscars ceremony with a fiercely political acceptance speech, Redgrave was the subject of an Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences retrospective — its first to an actor in Europe.
Additional Photos
“I love this woman. My wife understands,” said Jones, who is currently starring alongside Redgrave in “Driving Miss Daisy” on the London stage.
“I stand in profound admiration of her courage, both on and off the stage,” said Jones, who received an honorary Academy Award on Saturday — presented to him in front of a surprised matinee audience at Wyndham’s Theatre.
Redgrave’s bold artistic and political choices were a theme of the evening, hosted by playwright David Hare.
A member of a famous British acting dynasty that includes her father, sister, brother and two daughters, Redgrave has appeared in more than 100 films since her 1958 debut in “Behind the Mask.” She is also known for her humanitarian work as a UNICEF ambassador, and for decades of left-wing political activism.
The 74-year-old actress has been nominated for six Oscars and won for her supporting role as an anti-Nazi activist in 1977’s “Julia.”
Her victory led to one of the most startling moments in Oscar history. The Jewish Defense League had objected to her nomination and picketed the ceremony because Redgrave had narrated and helped fund a documentary, “The Palestinian,” which supported a Palestinian state.
In her acceptance speech, Redgrave praised the academy for not being intimidated by “a small bunch of Zionist hoodlums whose behavior is an insult to the stature of Jews all over the world and their great and heroic record of struggle against fascism and oppression.”
Gods smile on weekend release of ‘Immortals’
LOS ANGELES — The gods of ancient Greece have extended their rule to the weekend box office with a No. 1 debut for the action tale “Immortals.”
The story of Greek hero Theseus took in $32 million domestically, while Adam Sandler’s comedy “Jack and Jill” opened at No. 2 with $26 million, according to studio estimates Sunday.
The new movies bumped the animated hit “Puss in Boots” to the No. 3 spot after two weekends at the top. “Puss in Boots” earned $25.5 million, raising its domestic total to $108.8 million.
Director Clint Eastwood’s “J. Edgar,” a film biography starring Leonardo DiCaprio as longtime FBI boss J. Edgar Hoover, played in narrower release and opened at No. 5 with $11.5 million.
“Jack and Jill” got off to a solid start but came in on the low end for Sandler, whose comedies typically open in the $30 million to $40 million range. Still, it continues Sandler’s virtually unbroken string of strong openings.
Even the devil takes offense at Penn State
NEW YORK — On “Saturday Night Live,” even the devil was offended by the Penn State child sex abuse scandal.
“SNL” cast member Jason Sudeikis reprised his role as Satan, appearing with red horns and pitchfork. The devil was informed by “Weekend Update” host Seth Meyers of sex charges against a former defensive coordinator and allegations that university officials failed to report the abuse.
Even he was disturbed by the news. Addressing Penn State students who protested football coach Joe Paterno’s firing, the devil spoke directly into the camera, asking, “Do you know how bad that made you look?”
Disgusted by the scandal, the devil says, “Evil isn’t what it used to be.”
He pledged to quit and said he would return to his old job: customer service for a cable TV company.
Copy the Story Link
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.