Happier Than Ever by Billie Eilish: Second album by the American singer; follows her 2019 debut When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?; includes the singles ‘My Future’, ‘Therefore I Am’, ‘Your Power’, ‘Lost Cause’, and ‘NDA’.
Take the Sadness Out of Saturday Night by Bleachers: The indie pop act’s third record, the follow-up to 2017’s Gone Now; includes the single ‘Chinatown’ (featuring Bruce Springsteen).
* Movies
Jungle Cruise (starring Dwayne Johnson, Emily Blunt, Jack Whitehall, Édgar Ramírez) – fantasy adventure, based on Walt Disney’s theme park attraction; a riverboat captain (Johnson), a British scientist (Blunt), and her brother (Whitehall) go on a mission into a jungle to find a tree believed to possess healing powers.
Stillwater (starring Matt Damon, Abigail Breslin, Camille Cottin) – crime drama, loosely based on the story of Amanda Knox; a father (Damon) tries to clear his estranged daughter’s (Breslin) name after she is accused of murdering her friend in France.
Nine Days (starring Winston Duke, Zazie Beetz, Benedict Wong, Tony Hale, Bill Skarsgård) – supernatural drama; a reclusive man (Duke) interviews five unborn human souls to determine which one should be born.
Ride the Eagle (starring Jake Johnson, D’Arcy Carden, J.K. Simmons, Susan Sarandon) – comedy; a man (Johnson) has to complete an elaborate to-do list before he gets the inheritance left by his estranged mother (Sarandon).
Star
Lisa Valerie Kudrow
Born on 30th July 1963 in Los Angeles, U.S.
Received a Bachelor’s degree in Biology from Vassar College. Hoped to become an expert on headaches like her physician father.
Began her comedic career as a member of The Groundlings.
Tried out for Saturday Night Live in 1990, but was not hired; Julia Sweeney was chosen instead.
Had a recurring role as Ursula Buffay on the sitcom Mad About You, which led to her breakthrough role as Ursula’s twin Phoebe Buffay on the global hit sitcom Friends (1994 – 2004).
Has since gone on to star in television series including The Comeback (2005, 2014) and Web Therapy (2011 – 2015), as well as appeared in films like Romy and Michele’s High School Reunion (1997), The Opposite of Sex (1997), Analyze This (1999), and The Girl on the Train (2016).
Is a producer on the reality program Who Do You Think You Are (2010 – present).
Has been married to French advertising executive Michel Stern since 1995. They have a son, Julian (born in 1998).
Also born today: Diana Vickers, Yvonne Strahovski, Seth Avett, Jaime Pressly, Tom Green, Simon Baker, Terry Crews, Vivica A. Fox, Laurence Fishburne, Richard Linklater, Kate Bush, Arnold Schwarzenegger
Spotlight
Black Widow
Cast: Scarlett Johansson, Florence Pugh, David Harbour, O-T Fagbenle, Olga Kurylenko, William Hurt, Ray Winstone, Rachel Weisz
Director: Cate Shortland
Tagline: She’s done running from her past.
Action adventure; Natasha Romanoff (Johansson) confronts a dangerous conspiracy with ties to her past.
Is the 24th film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and the first film in Phase Four of the MCU.
Was delayed three times from an original May 2020 release date due to the COVID-19 pandemic.Had an estimated budget of around $200 million. Has grossed nearly $280 million worldwide as well as $60 million in Disney+ global revenue in its opening weekend.Has generated mostly positive reviews, earning praise, in particular, for Johansson and Pugh’s performances.
Score composed by Lorne Balfe.
Sets up Yelena Belova’s (Pugh) involvement in the Disney+ Hawkeye series.
