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Dolly Parton Releases Sweeping Ballad in Tribute to her Late Husband

Dolly Parton Releases Sweeping Ballad in Tribute to her Late Husband
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Dolly Parton Releases Sweeping Ballad in Tribute to her Late Husband

Dolly Parton Releases Sweeping Ballad in Tribute to her Late Husband

Dolly Parton has released a breathtaking new ballad in tribute to her late husband, Carl Dean.
Dean, who was Parton’s devoted husband of nearly 60 years, died Monday. He avoided the spotlight and inspired her timeless hit “Jolene.” He was 82.
“I fell in love with Carl Dean when I was 18 years old. We have spent 60 precious and meaningful years together. Like all great love stories, they never end. They live on in memory and song," Parton wrote on Instagram Friday morning. "He will always be the star of my life story, and I dedicate this song to him.”
The song, titled “If You Hadn't Been There,” enters the pantheon of great, big-hearted Parton ballads. “If you hadn’t been there/Well, who would I be?” she sings. “You always see the best in me/You’re loving arms have cradled me.” The music swells and on the chorus, she's joined by a choir, her voice soaring.
At the end, she retreats back to a whisper for the song's titular line: “I wouldn't be here/If you hadn't been there.”
Parton met Dean outside the Wishy Washy Laundromat the day she moved to Nashville at age 18. They married two years later, on Memorial Day in 1966. Dean also inspired one of Parton's best-known songs, “Jolene,” after a flirty bank teller seemed to take innocent interest in her husband.
Parton and Dean kept strict privacy around their relationship for decades, Parton telling The Associated Press in 1984: “A lot of people say there’s no Carl Dean, that he’s just somebody I made up to keep other people off me.”

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Red Sea Film Festival Launches Mobile App Ahead of Fifth Edition

Red Sea International Film Festival logo
Red Sea International Film Festival logo
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Red Sea Film Festival Launches Mobile App Ahead of Fifth Edition

Red Sea International Film Festival logo
Red Sea International Film Festival logo

The Red Sea International Film Festival has unveiled its newly redesigned mobile app, offering a fully integrated digital experience that provides visitors with seamless access to all festival details ahead of its fifth edition, set to take place this December in the historic Al-Balad district of Jeddah.

The updated app enables users to explore the full film lineup, including screening schedules and synopses, browse panel discussions and special events, reserve tickets, and navigate festival venues through interactive maps.

The app is now available for download on the Apple App Store and Google Play, serving as an essential companion for festival-goers.

Entertainment

NBC's 'Stumble' Is a Mockumentary About a Cheer Team with Plenty of Tumbling Runs and Heart

This image released by NBC shows Kristin Chenoweth, left, and Monica Aldama in a scene from "Stumble." (Matt Miller/NBC via AP)
This image released by NBC shows Kristin Chenoweth, left, and Monica Aldama in a scene from "Stumble." (Matt Miller/NBC via AP)
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NBC's 'Stumble' Is a Mockumentary About a Cheer Team with Plenty of Tumbling Runs and Heart

This image released by NBC shows Kristin Chenoweth, left, and Monica Aldama in a scene from "Stumble." (Matt Miller/NBC via AP)
This image released by NBC shows Kristin Chenoweth, left, and Monica Aldama in a scene from "Stumble." (Matt Miller/NBC via AP)

Bodies go flying and tumbling in NBC's latest comedy series, "Stumble," a mocking but loving look at the competitive world of cheer from a brother-and-sister writing team.

Jeff and Liz Astrof have created a mockumentary about a ragtag group of recruits building a cheer team from scratch at a junior college in a tiny Oklahoma town with an unpronounceable name.

"Liz and I both love having heart, and we believe that if you have a really silly comedy like this, it has to be balanced by heart," says Jeff Astrof.

Jenn Lyon stars as a determined coach who needs to win one more trophy to be crowned the winningest coach in college cheer history. She finds herself in a gym with a dead opossum and some gnarly, would-be team candidates.

One has narcolepsy, one is a poached football star, a few are filthy dancers on TikTok, there's a 37-year-old rental car manager who technically never graduated, a felon with an ankle monitor and an 18-year-old with a messy home life. Even so, the creators promise one "cheer wow set piece" per episode.

"What’s so incredible is that these kids have never trusted anyone before or been trusted. Cheer is all about trust: Someone’s going to catch you, someone’s going to throw you in the air," says Liz Astrof. "It’s all about trust and all of them learning how to trust each other and trust themselves and be trusted."

NBC is building on its strong base of comedic mockumentaries — think "The Office,Parks and Recreation" and "The Paper" — with "Stumble," inspired by the 2020-22 Netflix docuseries "Cheer," which followed a Texas team preparing for a national cheerleading competition in Daytona Beach, Florida.

"It’s an underdog story," says Jeff Astrof. "What we loved about the documentary ‘Cheer’ was that these kids had really rough lives. We love that part of it."

The show — which debuts Friday on NBC and is available to stream the next day on Peacock — also features as a recurring guest star Kristin Chenoweth, the 4-foot-11 Broadway star, as assistant coach Tammy Istiny (read that name again), and former "Saturday Night Live" player Taran Killam as a football coach and husband of our cheer coach.

The pilot is all about gathering the team. The following episodes are about how to navigate them to Daytona from out the METH Conference (you read that right). "I'm so excited about this season. We've got a great group of kids and one middle-aged man," coach tells the media. They'll have to overcome ego, injuries and infighting for a chance at the title.

"Stumble" marks the first time Jeff and Liz Astrof have created a show together. Speaking to them is like talking to a comfortable comedy duo, each cracking the other up with another joke.

"We always bring out the best in each other, and it’s always good when we’re together in the room and have each other’s back," says Liz Astrof. "We would talk 17,000 times a day anyway, but it would usually be complaining about our jobs."

"This cuts that out," says her brother.

Jeff Astrof’s credit include "The New Adventures of Old Christine,Grounded for Life,Trial & Error" and "Ground Floor." His sister's credits include "Not Dead Yet,Last Man Standing,2 Broke Girls" and "The Conners."

When asked what are the hallmarks of their familial sense of humor, he immediately deadpans: "Trauma." Liz builds on that: "Trauma plus time, and the more time goes by, the funnier we are."

They both admit to being outgoing A-type personalities — who each married more introverted people — and whose sense of comedy didn't always come from a happy place.

"People are like, ‘Wow, you must have had a really funny household.’ And I was like, ‘That’s not how you make two sitcom writers,’" says Jeff Astrof. Adds his sister, with a laugh: "That’s not how you become funny."

Entertainment

Saudi Film Commission Announces Opening of Virtual Production Platform in Collaboration with Sony and Pixomondo 

JAX Film Studios is a fully integrated, high-end production center, housing two 1,500-square-meter soundstages, a VIP lounge, a modern cinema screening room, and fully equipped production offices and prep spaces. (SPA)
JAX Film Studios is a fully integrated, high-end production center, housing two 1,500-square-meter soundstages, a VIP lounge, a modern cinema screening room, and fully equipped production offices and prep spaces. (SPA)
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Saudi Film Commission Announces Opening of Virtual Production Platform in Collaboration with Sony and Pixomondo 

JAX Film Studios is a fully integrated, high-end production center, housing two 1,500-square-meter soundstages, a VIP lounge, a modern cinema screening room, and fully equipped production offices and prep spaces. (SPA)
JAX Film Studios is a fully integrated, high-end production center, housing two 1,500-square-meter soundstages, a VIP lounge, a modern cinema screening room, and fully equipped production offices and prep spaces. (SPA)

Saudi Arabia’s Film Commission announced on Tuesday the opening of an advanced virtual production platform at JAX Film Studios, the latest cinematic production facility in the capital, Riyadh, marking a pivotal step in developing the Kingdom’s film industry infrastructure.

The platform was designed in collaboration with Pixomondo, a specialist in visual effects and virtual production, and built with Sony’s latest VERONA Crystal LED technology, making the virtual studio ready to host the most ambitious film productions.

The platform comprises 2,720 Sony VERONA Crystal LED panels with a 2.3 mm pixel pitch and stage dimensions of 23 meters wide, 27.5 meters deep and 10 meters high. It features advanced integration of camera tracking, real-time processing, and in-camera VFX, enabling high-fidelity, photoreal simulation that meets the demands of major Hollywood productions.

JAX Film Studios is a fully integrated, high-end production center, housing two 1,500-square-meter soundstages, a VIP lounge, a modern cinema screening room, and fully equipped production offices and prep spaces, providing filmmakers with an end-to-end work environment under one roof.

CEO of the Film Commission Abdullah bin Nasser Al-Qahtani said: “JAX Film Studios is a milestone in the trajectory of Saudi filmmaking. Investing in world-class virtual production infrastructure is a strategic step toward building a globally competitive film industry and reflects the commission’s commitment to empowering filmmakers with the technologies, facilities and partnerships that support their creativity and output at the highest levels.”

General Manager of Sector Development and Investment Attraction at the commission Abduljalil Alnasser emphasized that the project represents a qualitative leap in the regional production landscape, noting that the integration of Sony and Pixomondo expertise and the technologies used at JAX Film Studios provide a production environment to global standards, from pixel precision to the highest levels of technical integration.

With its strategic location in Riyadh, JAX Film Studios offers filmmakers direct access to luxury hotels, the international airport, and a growing ecosystem of production services and talent in the Kingdom, making it a preferred destination for local and international productions.