Month: July 2020

A body was found Monday at a Southern California lake during the search for “Glee” star Naya Rivera, authorities said.The body was discovered five days after the 33-year-old Rivera disappeared on Lake Piru, where her son was found July 8 alone a few hours later on a boat the two had rented, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office said.Authorities would not immediately say if the person found was Rivera, but said the day after she disappeared that they believed she drowned in the lake northwest of Los Angeles. A 2 p.m. press conference was scheduled.Search crews found the body floating in the northeast area of the lake and the county medical examiner was notified, authorities said.The lake an hour’s drive from Los Angeles was searched by dozens of divers working in waters with little visibility, with help above from helicopters, drones and all-terrain vehicles.Rivera played singing cheerleader Santana Lopez for six seasons on the Fox musical-comedy “Glee.” If she is declared dead, she will become the third major cast member from the show to die in their 30s.Cory Monteith, one of the show’s leads, died at 31 in 2013 from a toxic mix of alcohol and heroin.And co-star Mark Salling, who Rivera dated at one point, killed himself in 2018 at age 35 after pleading guilty to child pornography charges.Rivera had experience boating on the lake in Los Padres National Forest, authorities said.Surveillance video shows Rivera and her son, Josey Hollis Dorsey, leaving on the rented boat.When the boat failed to return, its vendor found the vessel drifting in the northern end of the lake late Wednesday afternoon with the boy asleep on board. He told investigators that he and his mother had been swimming and he got back into the boat but she didn’t, according to a sheriff’s office statement.The boy was wearing a life vest, and another life jacket was found in the boat along with Rivera’s purse and identification.Rivera is believed to have drowned “in what appears to be a tragic accident,” the statement said.The boy, Rivera’s son from her marriage to actor Ryan Dorsey, was safe and healthy and with family members, authorities said. The couple finalized their divorce in June 2018 after nearly four years of marriage.The most recent tweet on Rivera’s account, from July 7, read “just the two of us” along with a photo of her and her son. 
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The son of Lisa Marie Presley has died. He was 27.  Presley’s representative Roger Widynowski said in a statement Sunday to The Associated Press that she was “heartbroken” after learning about the death of her son Benjamin Keough. He is the grandson of the late Elvis Presley.  TMZ reports that Keough died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound Sunday in Calabasas, California.  “She is completely heartbroken, inconsolable and beyond devastated but trying to stay strong for her 11-year-old twins and her oldest daughter Riley,” Widynowski said in the statement. “She adored that boy. He was the love of her life.” Presley had Keough and actress Riley Keough, 31, with her former husband Danny Keough. She also had twins from another marriage.  Nancy Sinatra tweeted her condolences to Presley, writing, “I have known you since before your mama gave birth to you, never dreaming you would have pain like this in your life. I’m so very sorry.” 
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Kelly Preston, who played dramatic and comic foil to actors ranging from Tom Cruise in “Jerry Maguire” to Arnold Schwarzenegger in “Twins,” died Sunday, husband John Travolta said. She was 57. Travolta said in an Instagram post that his wife of 28 years died after a two-year battle with breast cancer.  “It is with a very heavy heart that I inform you that my beautiful wife Kelly has lost her two-year battle with breast cancer,” Travolta said. “She fought a courageous fight with the love and support of so many.” The couple had three children together. “Shocked by this sad news,” Maria Shriver said on Twitter. “Kelly was such a bright loving soul, a talented actress, and a loving mom and wife. My heart breaks for her family who have already known such sadness and grief.” Preston had a lengthy acting career in movies and television, starring opposite Kevin Costner in the 1999 film “For the Love of the Game.” In 2003, she starred in “What a Girl Wants” and as the mom in the live-action adaptation of “The Cat in the Hat.” The following year she appeared in the music video for Maroon 5’s “She Will Be Loved.” Russell Crowe tweeted that he met Preston “first in late ’92 I think,” adding, “In 1995 we auditioned together for Breaking Up, Salma Hayek got that gig.” Crowe said he hadn’t seen Preston much, “but when I did, she was always the same sparkly eyed gem.” She occasionally appeared in films with her husband, as they did in the box-office bomb “Battlefield Earth” in 2000. Preston and Travolta were married at a midnight ceremony in Paris in 1991 while the couple were expecting their first son, Jett. In January 2009, Jett Travolta, 16, died after a seizure at the family’s vacation home in the Bahamas. The death touched off a court case after an ambulance driver and his attorney were accused of trying to extort $25 million from the actors in exchange for not releasing sensitive information about their son’s death. Travolta testified during a criminal trial that ended in a mistrial and was prepared to testify a second time, but decided to stop pursuing the case and it was dismissed. He cited the severe strain the proceedings and his son’s death had caused the family.  Both Preston and Travolta returned to acting, with Preston’s first role back in the Nicholas Sparks adaptation, “The Last Song,” which starred Miley Cyrus and her future husband, Liam Hemsworth. They had two other children, daughter Ella Bleu in 2000 and son Benjamin in 2010. Ella wrote on Instagram Sunday: “I have never met anyone as courageous, strong, beautiful and loving as you. Anyone who is lucky enough to have known you or to have ever been in your presence will agree that you have a glow and a light that never ceases to shine and that makes anyone around you feel instantly happy.” Travolta and Preston met while filming 1988’s “The Experts.” They last starred together in the 2018 film “Gotti,”  with Travolta playing John Gotti and Preston playing the crime boss’s wife, Victoria.  “Kelly’s love and life will always be remembered,” Travolta said on Instagram. “I will be taking some time to be there for my children who have lost their mother, so forgive me in advance if you don’t hear from us for a while. But please know that I will feel your outpouring of love in the weeks and months ahead as we heal.” Preston’s death was first reported by People magazine. 
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Bollywood star and former Miss World Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and her eight-year-old daughter tested positive for the coronavirus, state officials confirmed Sunday. The news follows an announcement Saturday that her father-in-law Amitabh Bachchan and her husband Abhishek tested positive and were admitted to the hospital. Though Amitabh Bachchan, 77, was admitted to the hospital, he is reportedly stable with only mild symptoms, Rajesh Tope, minister of public health for the state of Maharashtra, said in a tweet Sunday. महानायक अमिताभ बच्चन व अभिषेक बच्चन यांची कोरोना टेस्ट पॉझिटिव्ह आल्याने ते मुंबई येथील नानावटी हॉस्पिटलमध्ये ऍडमिट आहेत. FILE – Bollywood actor Amitabh Bachchan waving to fans in Mumbai, India, Dec. 13, 2018.Legendary actor Bachchan, who has starred in over 200 of Indian films since the early 1970s, tweeted on Saturday that he had tested positive for the virus.  “Family and staff undergone tests , results awaited … All that have been in close proximity to me in the last 10 days are requested to please get themselves tested !” he wrote. T 3590 -I have tested CoviD positive .. shifted to Hospital .. hospital informing authorities .. family and staff undergone tests , results awaited ..All that have been in close proximity to me in the last 10 days are requested to please get themselves tested !— Amitabh Bachchan (@SrBachchan) July 11, 2020His son Abhishek tweeted a similar message shortly afterward. Earlier today both my father and I tested positive for COVID 19. Both of us having mild symptoms have been admitted to hospital. We have informed all the required authorities and our family and staff are all being tested. I request all to stay calm and not panic. Thank you. 🙏🏽— Abhishek Bachchan (@juniorbachchan) July 11, 2020Amitabh Bachchan has been a prominent figure in India’s campaign to stop the spread of the novel coronavirus, filming ads about wearing masks and appealing to citizens to stay home. Still, despite enforcing one of the most strict lockdowns in the world earlier this year, India’s case numbers of COVID-19 are rising.  Over 27,000 new cases have been reported in the past 24 hours, with over 500 new deaths.  With nearly 850,000 confirmed cases, India has the third highest rate of COVID-19 infections in the world, after Brazil and the United States.  
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