Culture
Bob McGrath, Original, Longtime Resident of ‘Sesame Street,’ Dies at 90
Bob McGrath, the Sing Along With Mitch tenor who portrayed the friendly music teacher Bob Johnson for more than four decades as an original castmember on Sesame Street, has died. He was 90. “Hello Facebook friends, the McGrath family has some sad news to share,” McGrath’s family posted on his Facebook page Sunday (Dec. 4). “Our father Bob McGrath passed away today. He died peacefully at home, surrounded by his family.” Born on a farm in Illinois, McGrath was one of the four non-Muppet castmembers when Sesame Street debuted on public television stations of Nov. 10, 1969. With no acting experience, producers always told him to be himself. Over the years, he sang dozens of the show’s signature tunes, including “Sing, Sing a Song” and “The People in Your Nei...
Kenan Thompson, Bowen Yang and Mikey Day on ‘Saturday Night Live’ Cast Overhaul: ‘You Just Keep Going’
Ahead of the premiere of Saturday Night Live season 48, the late night comedy show lost eight of its castmembers, the biggest cast overhaul in a generation. At the end of season 47 in May, Kate McKinnon, Aidy Bryant, Kyle Mooney and Pete Davidson signed off of the sketch series for the last time. Their departures were followed by Alex Moffat, Melissa Villaseñor and Aristotle Athari in the summer and, finally, Chris Redd in September. A few weeks before season 48 premiered in October, SNL shored up its ensemble with four new castmembers, who would join the show as featured players for the 2022-23 season: Marcello Hernandez, Molly Kearney, Michael Longfellow and Devon Walker. According to standout Bowen Yang, having the new castmemb...
‘George & Tammy’: How to Watch the Limited Series for Free Without Cable
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. George Jones and Tammy Wynette’s tumultuous love story is explored in the new miniseries George & Tammy, premiering on Showtime on Saturday (Dec. 4). Jessica Chastain stars as Wynette and Michael Shannon as Jones in the limited series, which is based on the book, The Three of Us: Growing Up With Tammy and George. Jessica Chastain and Michael Shannon Talk Playing Tammy Wynette and George Jones, Bouncy Castles… 12/02/2022 The lovebirds first met at a Nashville recording studio in 1968 and wed the following year. They went on to welcome a daughter before di...
‘George & Tammy’: How to Watch the Limited Series for Free Without Cable
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. George Jones and Tammy Wynette’s tumultuous love story is explored in the new miniseries George & Tammy, premiering on Showtime on Saturday (Dec. 4). Jessica Chastain stars as Wynette and Michael Shannon as Jones in the limited series, which is based on the book, The Three of Us: Growing Up With Tammy and George. Jessica Chastain and Michael Shannon Talk Playing Tammy Wynette and George Jones, Bouncy Castles… 12/02/2022 The lovebirds first met at a Nashville recording studio in 1968 and wed the following year. They went on to welcome a daughter before di...
SZA Is Worried About Bowen Yang in ‘SNL’ Promo Where He Calls Her ‘Scissors’
Bowen Yang just can’t get it straight in this week’s Saturday Night Live promo featuring SZA and host Keke Palmer. “Hi, I’m Keke Palmer and I’m hosting Saturday Night Live this week with musical guest SZA,” Nope star Palmer says in the first video bit. “And I’m Brown Yang and we’re gonna have such a… did i just say ‘Brown Yang?’,” an embarrassed Yang asks this week’s guests as they laugh nervously. “I can’t even read my own name. Sorry Guys! I am Bowen Young and we’re gonna… oh my God. Brown Yung! What’s happening right now?,” a melting down Yang stammers. “Are you okay Bowen?,” a concerned Palmer asks. He assures her he’s totally fine and repeats his first name as evidence, before inexplicably calling himself “Cohen Yang” and then insisting that he’s Bravo star Andy Cohen and then, once a...
Harp Talks ‘Masked Singer’ Season 8 Win: ‘I Was as Surprised as Anyone When I Made It Through Every Round’
It was a wild ride on season 8 of The Masked Singer, which once again served up its patented mix of non-singing celebs (William Shatner, Jeff Dunham, Mario Cantone, Daymond John, Jerry Springer, Le’Veon Bell, George Foreman, Chris Jericho, Adam Carolla, Linda Blair, Nikki Glaser), veteran pop and R&B singers (Chris Kirkpatrick, Montell Jordan, Gloria Gaynor, Kat Graham, George Clinton and Ray Parker Jr.), as well as some actors who’ve been known to carry a tune (Eric Idle, Brady Bunch trio Christopher Knight, Barry Williams and Mike Lookinland and Joey Lawrence). But in the end, when all the masks came off, it was seasonlong front-runner Harp who plucked her way to the winner’s circle with a commanding run that began on this season’s first episode when she turned P!nk’s “Perfect” into ...
‘The Masked Singer’ Sets ‘Christmas Sing-A-Long’ Special
It’s the time of year for giving, and The Masked Singer doing just that. As season eight of Fox’s quirky singing contest wraps, with Harp declared the champion, The Masked Singer announces a special Christmas extravaganza. The Masked Singer Christmas Sing-A-Long will air next week with new holiday-themed performances by Harp, Bride, The Lambs and Snowstorm, fun behind-the-scenes bloopers and celebrity shout-outs from across all seasons. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news The season proper of The Masked Singer came to its climax this Wednesday night (Nov. 30), with front-runner Harp declared the victor. The two-hour finale saw the judge’s favorite lock horns with the three-headed threat The Lambs. Despite finding perfect harmony on Chaka Kh...
‘The Voice’ Finds Its Final 8
Ten became eight on NBC’s The Voice, as one standout survived a nervous Instant Save. The Voice is nearing the pointy end of its 22nd season. After the remaining contestants performed Monday night (Nov. 28), America voted and the nail-biting stuff began. Fighting for their lives in the competition were Kim Cruse (Team Legend), Kique (Team Gwen) and Rowan Grace (Team Blake). Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news For their “last chance” to stay, Cruse performed “Brooks & Dunn’s “Believe;” Kique hit Leon Bridges’ “River;” and Rowan Grace tackled Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide.” Matters took a slight detour for Kique, the teenage Miami native who tested positive to COVID-19 at the end of last week and performed from isolation in a different location. Fol...
Mariah Carey Is Inviting You to Her Home for the Holidays: Here’s How Fans Can Book the Unforgettable Trip to New York City
All products and services featured are independently chosen by editors. However, Billboard may receive a commission on orders placed through its retail links, and the retailer may receive certain auditable data for accounting purposes. Mariah Carey is inviting you to her home for the holidays. The “Queen of Christmas” teamed with Booking.com to give two lucky fans a once-in-a-lifetime chance to experience New York City her way. Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Mariah’s Ultimate Holiday Experience will include a three-night stay in the Grande Luxe King room at The Plaza hotel, tickets to Carey’s upcoming holiday concert, dinner at her favorite restaurants including Nobu and Mr. Chow, a private tour of Top of the Rock at Rockefeller Center...
Bodie Shines With ‘Golden Hour’ Performance on ‘The Voice’
“Shine, it’s your golden hour.” Bodie knows what time it is, and he didn’t let the chance go slipping by. During Monday night’s (Nov. 28) Live Top 10 Performances on NBC’s The Voice, the California native performed a modern classic, JVKE’s 2022 release “Golden Hour.” The stirring number allowed Bodie to showcase his well of talents, from rapping to singing, with range and power notes. Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news Performing with a string quartet, the 29-year-old got coach Camila Cabello on her feet. Afterwards, Blake Shelton remarked that it “may be the hardest song” he’d heard someone attempt to perform on The Voice. “I was also thinking,” he continued, “this may be the greatest performance I’ve ever seen on this show.” He added, “You’re in...
21 interesting facts about Eswatini (Swaziland)
We share the most interesting facts about Eswatini collected on our brisk but beguiling sojourn into ‘Africa’s newest kingdom’. We had been in southern Africa for nearly three weeks by the time we arrived in Eswatini, our fourth country of the trip. Having spent two weeks driving around Namibia and exploring Etosha National Park, one of Africa’s great wildlife destinations, we thought we’d seen all the African wildlife we were going to see. What could 36 hours in Eswatini possibly show us that a 17-day Namibian safari did not? Well, rhinos for starters. Loads of them. We saw no less than 13 of these magnificent creatures during our fleeting foray into the kingdom. Atlas & Boots Two white rhinos in Eswatini We visited three premier game parks on a whistle-stop road trip. It wasn’t nearl...
20 interesting facts about Paraguay
The most interesting facts about Paraguay, from a double-sided national flag to the ‘Heart of South America’ American essayist P.J. O’Rourke once quipped that Paraguay was “nowhere and famous for nothing.” He then took a business trip there, fell in love with the country and promptly moved there. While we can’t say we felt the same striking attraction, we certainly appreciated Paraguay’s history and authenticity. The small and struggling country is a steamy subtropical land of remarkable contrasts with a tragic and torrid history filled with violence and loss. Despite our relatively short stay, we came across a wide range of interesting facts about Paraguay, the best of which we share below. Interesting facts about Paraguay 1. More than 80% of Paraguayans are ...
