Category: Entertainment

Mr. Mark OkrakuMantey, Deputy Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture has launched the 2023 Kwahu Easter paragliding festival at Odweanoma mountains at Atibie in Kwahu South Municipality.

At the ceremony, he said the paragliding was a major role for domestic and international tourism for Ghana.

He said in 2022, Ghana was adjudged the number one in tourism in West Africa and said President Nana Addo DankwaAkufo-Addo’s viable decision for the tourism industry contributed to the achievement.

He commended the participation of the private sectors in the tourism industry and said tourism was a marketing environment which everyone could benefit from. ‘ Tourism is no longer a facade, it’s a big business for profit so we should all get involved. The whole country will benefit from the equity if we play the game well.’

Paragliding is an aviation sport that is enjoyed by hundreds of people around the world.

The origin of paragliding has roots in the sport of parachuting. In Ghana, paragliding was initiated by the Ministry of Tourism in April 2005 during the annual Easter Festival in Kwahu Atibie. It was organized to coincide with the Easter festivities that year on the Odweanoma Mountains, with the exception of 2009.

The paragliding festival has been organized each year. As an aviation sport, the event is patronized by both local and international tourists during the Easter season.

Mr . Akwasi Agyeman, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Ghana Tourism Authority said the authority was determined about the domestic tourism promotion under the Ghana Tourism Development Project which was currently being administered by the Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture. Especially the ‘ Experience Ghana, Share Ghana ‘ campaign.

He said the campaign was to encourage the public to travel and experience Ghana through attractions, food, clothing, music and dance.

‘The public will also have the opportunity to experience Ghana with discounted tour packages and a chance to win prizes by sharing the activities they engage in through postings on all social media platforms’.

Mr. Seth Kwame Acheampong, Eastern Regional Minister said ‘ we cannot be talking about paragliding festival without showcasing our culture, as it is who we are as a people. The region is endeared with diverse natural resources and tourist sites.’ Among them are the rivers and lakes in the Kwahu AframPlains, the Kwahu mountain ranges, Bunso canopy walk, Atiwa Forest Reserve, the Digya Forest Reserve in the AframPlains, the Oda big tree, the Boti Water Falls, and AburiBotanical Garden.

He said ‘ it is our hope that as we continue to celebrate our conservation and preservation of our eco- system as a people, the youth should develop much interest in saying no to poaching, galamsey, and the wanton destruction of our forest reserves. Let us take conscious steps to imbibe in importance Our of youth the the rich vegetation cover which have been handed down to us by our ancestors.’ He expressed the hope that taking cognizance of the festival vitality and values would better equip the people to build a better eco-system to survive us and the generation yet to come.

There were seven pilots for the paragliding flight at this year’s Kwahu Easter festival and the patronage was encouraging.

Source: Ghana News Agency

A U.N.-led study released Monday shows a hole in the protective layer of ozone over Antarctica is on track to fully recover in about four decades, thanks to the global phasing out of nearly 99% of banned ozone-depleting substances.

The report, published every four years, was presented Monday at the 103rd Annual Meeting of the American Meteorological Society in Denver.

The report indicates that if current policies remain in place, the ozone layer is expected to recover to 1980 values — before the appearance of the ozone hole — by around 2066 over the Antarctic, by 2045 over the Arctic and by 2040 for the rest of the world. It shows the Antarctic ozone hole has been slowly improving in area and depth since the year 2000.

The scientific assessment monitors the progress of the Montreal Protocol, a global agreement reached in 1987 and put into place in 1989, intended to protect the Earth’s ozone layer by phasing out the chemicals that deplete it, often used as propellants in household products or in air conditioning.

In a statement, U.N. Environmental Program Ozone Secretariat Meg Seki said the ozone recovery data in this latest study is “fantastic news.”

“The impact the Montreal Protocol has had on climate change mitigation cannot be overstressed,” she said, calling the treaty “a true champion for the environment.”

The latest assessment has been made based on extensive studies, research and data compiled by experts from the U.N. World Meteorological Organization; the U.N. Environment Program; the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration; the U.S. space agency, NASA; and the European Commission.

Source: Voice of America

Rich Strike came off a blistering pace at odds of more than 80-1 to beat 19 blue-blooded opponents and produce one of the biggest upsets in history while capturing the 148th running of the Kentucky Derby on Saturday afternoon at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.

Rich Strike, who was only entered into the field on Friday when Ethereal Road was scratched, is trained by Eric Reed, and owned by RED TR-Racing. Sonny Leon, a journeyman jockey based in Ohio, rode Rich Strike and won his first Kentucky Derby in his first attempt.

Race-favorite Epicenter was second by a length, with Zandon third by another half-length.

Rich Strike had raced just seven times before the Derby, winning once and finishing third three times.

He found his way through the field after starting in the 21st and far outside post position and under the fastest opening quarter mile in race history.

Rich Strike was still far back under a very fast pace as the horses turned for home down the long Churchill Downs stretch but went to the rail to save ground. Leon moved out to get past a fading Messier and then returned to the rail to run down Epicenter and Zandon, who were eye to eye with the finish line in sight but could not hold off the winner.

The winner is the second longest shot to win the Derby after Donerail took the post at 91-1 odds to win the Run for the Roses in 1913.

Source: Voice of America

For the first time in two years, the Academy Awards are rolling out the red carpet at Los Angeles’ Dolby Theatre for what the film academy hopes will be a back-to-normal Oscars. Except for all the stuff that’s changed.

The telecast for the 94th Academy Awards will begin, as usual, at 8 p.m. EDT on ABC. But little else about how this year’s Oscars will get underway is traditional. An hour before the broadcast begins, attendees will assemble in the Dolby for the presentation of eight awards and acceptance speeches that will be edited into a broadcast that producer Will Packer has promised will be a tight three hours.

It’s one of many shifts, both slight and tectonic, around this year’s ceremony. After two years of pandemic — and a socially distanced 2021 edition with record-low ratings — the Academy Awards will try to recapture their exalted place in pop culture with a revamped telecast that’s expected to see a streaming service win best picture for the first time.

It won’t be easy. The film industry recovered significantly from the pandemic in 2021, but despite one of the biggest hits in years in “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” the rebound has been fitful. The global movie industry sold about half the tickets last year as it did two years ago, $21.3 billion in 2021 compared to $42.3 billion in 2019, according to the Motion Picture Association. Hollywood pushed more of its top films directly into homes than ever before; half of this year’s 10 best-picture nominees were streamed at or very near release. Even the film academy shifted entirely to a streaming platform for voters, rather than DVD screeners.

Then there are the challenges of commanding worldwide attention for a night of Hollywood self-congratulation after two years of pandemic and while Russia’s war ravages Ukraine. Packer has said the war in Ukraine will be respectfully acknowledged during the broadcast.

Netflix’s “The Power of the Dog,” Jane Campion’s gothic western, comes in with a leading 12 nominations and a good chance of snagging the top award. But all the momentum is with Sian Heder’s deaf family drama “CODA,” which, despite boasting just three nods, is considered the favorite. A win would be a triumph for Apple TV+, which acquired the movie out of the Sundance Film Festival last year and has spent big promoting it to academy members.

But expect the most awards on the night to go to “Dune,” Denis Villeneuve’s sweeping science fiction epic. It’s the odds-on-favorite to clean up in the technical categories.

After several years sans-host, the Oscars will turn to the trio of Amy Schumer, Wanda Sykes and Regina Hall to emcee the broadcast, which is also streaming on platforms including Hulu Live TV, YouTubeTV and on ABC.com with provider authentication. Producers have also lined up a star-studded group of performers including Billie Eilish and Beyoncé to sing nominated songs, while the “Encanto” cast will perform Lin-Manuel Miranda’s breakout hit “We Don’t Talk About Bruno.”

It will be a staggered start, with stars making their way into the Dolby at different times. ABC’s red carpet preshow will run 6:30 to 8 p.m., with the first hour of awards happening inside the theater between 7-8 p.m. News of those winners will spread first on social media and later be woven into the telecast. To accommodate the shift, the red carpet will also open an hour earlier than usual, at 4 p.m. Eastern.

The rejiggered approach, which has been deeply unpopular with some academy members, should make for some complicated red-carpet logistics. The academy, wanted to give each winner an uncompromised moment, is urging attendees to be in their seats by 7 p.m. Some stars, like “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” nominee Jessica Chastain, have said they won’t do red carpet interviews if it means missing the presentation of awards like best hair and makeup, for which the artists of “Tammy Faye” are nominated.

That’s one of the eight pre-show categories to be handed out during what producers are calling the “golden hour.” The others are: film editing, sound, original score, production design, live-action short, animated short and documentary short.

Earlier this month, more than 70 Oscar winners, including James Cameron, Kathleen Kennedy and Guillermo del Toro, warned that the change would turn some nominees into “second-class citizens.”

Behind the change is alarm over the Oscars fast-falling ratings. While drops have been common to all major network award shows, last year’s show attracted only about 10 million viewers, less than half of the 23.6 million the year before. A decade ago, it was closer to 40 million.

To help restore the Oscars’ position, some argued in the lead-up to this year’s awards that a blockbuster like “Spider-Man: No Way Home” should have been nominated for best picture. It’s up for just visual effects.

Instead, a wide gamut of films are in the hunt, ranging from the much-watched Netflix apocalyptic comedy “Don’t Look Up” and the roundly acclaimed three-hour Japanese drama “Drive My Car.”

One thing producers have promised: the night’s final award will be best picture. Last year’s show concluded awkwardly with the unexpected presentation of best actor to a not-present Anthony Hopkins.

Source: Voice of America

American actor William Hurt, known for much-loved films such as “The Big Chill” and “A History of Violence,” has died at age 71, US media reported Sunday.

Multiple outlets cited Hurt’s son, Will, who said in a statement: “It is with great sadness that the Hurt family mourns the passing of William Hurt, beloved father and Oscar winning actor, on March 13, 2022, one week before his 72nd birthday. He died peacefully, among family, of natural causes.”

The actor had been diagnosed with terminal prostate cancer in May 2018, but his son’s statement did not specify whether the disease contributed to Hurt’s passing.

Hurt built his reputation on his willingness to play quirky and unusual characters such as a Russian police officer in “Gorky Park” (1983), a wealthy and aloof husband in Woody Allen’s “Alice” (1990) and a man seeking to build a machine that would benefit blind people in “Until the End of the World” (1991).

His first film role was as an obsessed scientist in Ken Russell’s 1980 film “Altered States.” Appearing opposite Kathleen Turner in “Body Heat” in 1981 turned him into a sex symbol, and he won the best actor Oscar in 1985 for playing a gay prisoner in “Kiss of the Spider Woman.”

Hurt was also nominated for Oscars as a teacher of deaf students in “Children of a Lesser God” (1986) and as a slow-witted television anchorman in “Broadcast News” (1987).

For his second Academy Award, Hurt played a Philadelphia mobster in David Cronenberg’s “A History of Violence.” He appears in the film for only about 10 minutes, but he made a huge impact with critics, who praised his “creepy” and “funny” character.

In recent years, Hurt made himself known to younger moviegoers through his turn in the Marvel Cinematic Universe as Thaddeus Ross, a blustering general who was present on the day Bruce Banner became the Hulk.

In addition to “The Incredible Hulk,” Hurt’s character appeared in four Marvel films including “Captain America: Civil War,” “Avengers: Infinity War,” “Avengers: Endgame” and “Black Widow.”

Hurt was born March 20, 1950 in Washington, DC, but as his father was a U.S. diplomat, he traveled widely as a child.

After his parents divorced, his mother married Henry Luce III, the heir to the Time-Life empire, and moved to New York.

Hurt stayed close by, studying theology at Tufts University before enrolling at the renowned Juilliard School of performing arts in New York.

Despite his spreading fame, Hurt did not settle in Hollywood but set up his home in Oregon. In interviews, he had shown he was uneasy with stardom.

“I’m not comfortable with all this. I’m not comfortable with walking the red carpet in a tuxedo and seeing all the women with their boobs pushed up and all the men dressed as penguins,” he told one interviewer.

His private life, however, read like something straight out of Hollywood.

Hurt married aspiring actress Mary Beth Supinger after finishing his studies at Tufts and followed her to London to study drama. They divorced on their return to New York.

In the late 1980s, he was sued by a former live-in love, ballet dancer Sandra Jennings, who is the mother of one of his sons.

He had two other sons from another marriage and a daughter, Jeanne, from a relationship with French actress Sandrine Bonnaire.

Hurt spoke fluent French and was also an avid private pilot.

Source: Voice of America

It’s time again to celebrate Hollywood’s grandest ambitions and most daring risk takers.

No, I’m not talking about Jackass Forever.

On Tuesday morning, nominations for the 94th annual Academy Awards will be announced. Nominations are occurring a little later than usual. To make way for the Olympics, the Oscars are to be held March 27.

And for the second straight year, the Oscars will unfold during the pandemic. The industrial complex of parties, galas and little gold statuettes known as “awards season” has again gone largely virtual, sapping the season of some of its usual buzz. The Oscars’ typical opening act — the Golden Globes — were much reduced and untelevised this year.

But the Oscar nominations, which will be announced Tuesday beginning at 8:18 a.m. EST by presenters Tracee Ellis Ross and Leslie Jordan, will try to again seize the spotlight after a year of profound change for the industry and a still-unfolding recovery for movie theaters. Nominations will be broadcast live on Oscar.com, Oscars.org, the academy’s social media accounts and on ABC’s Good Morning America.

But those are far from the only headwinds facing the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. Last year’s Oscars, held in late April at an audience-less Union Station rather than the Oscars’ usual home, the Dolby Theatre, plummeted to an all-time low of 9.85 million viewers.

Can Tuesday’s slate of nominees stem the tide? Among the films expected to do well are Denis Villeneuve’s sci-fi epic Dune, Kenneth Branagh’s autobiographical coming-of-age tale Belfast and Jane Campion’s gothic western The Power of the Dog. Alas, Jackass Forever, the current no. 1 movie at the box office, will have to wait until next year.

Here are five questions heading into nominations.

Just how much will streamers dominate?

Streaming services have for years made inroads into the Oscars, but they may overwhelm this year’s best-picture field. After academy rule changes, 10 films will be nominated for best picture, and it’s possible that only a few of them will have opened traditionally in theaters. Netflix, which is still pursuing its first best-picture trophy, has three contenders in The Power of the Dog, Adam McKay’s apocalyptic comedy Don’t Look Up and Lin-Manuel Miranda’s musical adaptation Tick, Tick … Boom!

Apple has the deaf family drama CODA and Joel Coen’s Shakespeare adaptation The Tragedy of Macbeth. Amazon is represented with Aaron Sorkin’s Being the Ricardos.

Two films that premiered simultaneously in theaters and on HBO Max — Dune and the Will Smith-led King Richard — are in the hunt. That has made contenders like Paul Thomas Anderson’s Licorice Pizza (MGM, Focus Features) and Belfast (Focus) stand out as theater-first throwbacks.

Will the biggest box-office hits crash the party?

Given the waning audience for the Oscars and a tumultuous year for theaters, some would like to see as many crowd-pleasers represented Tuesday as possible. Could Spider-Man: No Way Home, the biggest hit of the pandemic with $749 million in domestic ticket sales and $1.77 billion globally, or Daniel Craig’s 007 swan song No Time to Die ($774 million worldwide) score a best picture nomination?

As much as the Oscars’ populism could use some pop, don’t count on either to join the 10 nominees. The segment of the academy most supportive of big-budget box-office success — producers — passed up the chance to do so in their highly predictive guild nominations. That

would likely leave Dune ($399 million worldwide) as the category’s biggest ticket seller. But there are also other metrics to measure today’s most popular movies. Don’t Look Up is Netflix’s second-most popular movie ever with some 359,790,000 hours watched, according to the company.

How international will the nominees be?

Two years after Bong Joon Ho’s Korean thriller Parasite won best picture, a group of acclaimed international films could vie in several top categories. While no film has the broad support that made Parasite the first non-English language film to win Hollywood’s top honor, Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s masterful three-hour Japanese drama Drive My Car could squeeze into best picture, best director or best screenplay.

Other films with strong support outside of the academy’s best international film category including Pedro Almodovar’s Parallel Mothers (look for Penélope Cruz in the uber-competitive best actress category), Asghar Farhadi’s A Hero, Joachim Trier’s The Worst Person in the World, Paolo Sorrentino’s The Hand of God and Jonas Poher Rasmussen’s animated Flee.

In expanding and diversifying its membership in recent years, the academy has grown more international — and enlarged the sway of overseas voters.

Will Kristen Stewart get in?

Kristen Stewart had once been widely expected to land her first Oscar nomination for her performance as Princess Diana in Pablo Larrain’s Spencer. But that film has proved divisive among critics and moviegoers, and Stewart’s once sturdy Oscar bid now appears far from certain.

The 31-year-old actor was looked over by the Screen Actors Guild and the BAFTAs. She could mount a comeback with the academy, but best actress is brutal this year. Among the favorites: Olivia Colman (The Lost Daughter), Lady Gaga (House of Gucci), Jennifer Hudson (Respect), Nicole Kidman (Being the Ricardos), Cruz, Jessica Chastain (The Eyes of Tammy Faye) and Alana Haim (Licorice Pizza).

If Stewart isn’t snubbed, someone — several someones — will be.

Will enough people watch?

This is probably the biggest question facing the Oscars this year, and it hovers over everything. Ratings for award shows all around have been declining for years, but the pandemic and the growth of streaming has accelerated the dismantling of Hollywood tradition.

This year, the academy has signaled that everything is on the table. Should Spider-Man star Tom Holland be called upon to emcee?

No details have yet been announced about the show, but the academy has said there will be a host for the first time since 2018.

Maybe Johnny Knoxville has a few tricks up his sleeve?

Source: Voice of America