‘Star Wars’ lands details emerge
“Star Wars” fans will soon be able to pilot the Millennium Falcon and face off against Kylo Ren in battle.
Disney on Saturday announced some details of the new “Star Wars: Galaxy’s Edge” lands, opening in 2019. It also announced that composer John Williams, creator of the classic “Star Wars” themes, is writing new music for the “Galaxy’s Edge” attractions, and shared a sneak preview.
The two signature attractions of the “lands” now under construction will be “Millennium Falcon: Smuggler’s Run,” in which guests can take the controls in three different roles, and “Star Wars: Rise of the Resistance,” offering an “epic battle” between the First Order and the Resistance.
The attractions are to open at Disneyland Resort in summer 2019 and at Walt Disney World Resort in the fall.
— Associated Press
Bieber, neighbor settle egging suit
Justin Bieber has agreed to settle a longrunning lawsuit filed by a former neighbor whose house the pop singer egged.
A document filed Friday shows the case has been resolved in its entirety. No details were given about the terms.
Jeffrey and Suzanne Schwartz filed a lawsuit in early 2015 that alleged they suffered emotional harm because of the egging and other actions by Bieber when he lived next door.
The 24-year-old pop singer has already served probation in a criminal plea deal after the 2013 incident, and paid $80,000 in restitution for the damage he caused.
The lawsuit alleged Bieber spit in Jeffrey Schwartz’s face and terrorized the family with loud parties, drug use and aggressive driving while living in a gated community in the celebrity enclave of Calabasas. It sought more than $25,000 in damages for assault and battery, trespassing and infliction of emotional distress claims.
Bieber’s attorneys argued that the restitution he already paid and the punishment he was given were sufficient, and that he did not owe more for emotional damages.
Messages left for attorneys from both sides were not immediately returned.
During an August hearing, Judge Elaine W. Mandel, who had taken over the case after three years, expressed skepticism at the plaintiffs’ claims. She grilled Jeffrey and Suzanne Schwartz’s attorney Brian J. Kim to explain what damages Bieber caused the plaintiffs, calling them “minimal.”
She also did not appear inclined to admit much of the evidence the plaintiffs want to introduce at trial, including dozens of media stories about Bieber’s misbehavior.
— Associated Press
Bail set for U.S. cinematographer
Prosecutors in Poland are seeking to have bail set for an Oscar-nominated American cinematographer after a court ordered his release from the jail where he was held for allegedly attacking paramedics.
A spokeswoman for prosecutors in the city of Bydgoszcz, Agnieszka Adamska-okonska, told Polish media Friday the prosecutors disagreed with the court’s decision to release Matthew Libatique without bail a day earlier.
Libatique was charged Wednesday with assaulting one of the paramedics who responded to a hotel where he was seen staggering.
He was in Poland as an honorary guest at the Camerimage international film festival. Libatique was nominated for an Academy Award for the 2010 film “Black Swan” and was the cinematographer for Bradley Cooper’s recent remake of “A Star is Born.”
The festival’s closing ceremony was Saturday evening.
— Associated Press
Man apologizes for shouting ‘Heil Hitler’
A man who yelled “Heil Hitler! Heil Trump!” at a theater performance of “Fiddler on the Roof” in Baltimore says he’s sorry for the outburst.
The Baltimore Sun reports that Anthony M. Derlunas II said in an interview with the newspaper that his comments were “beyond a mistake.”
The 58-year-old said he’d been drinking heavily before the show. Derlunas said the classic play set in a Jewish village in czarist Russia reminded him of President Donald Trump’s immigration policies, which prompted his outburst.
The comments sparked panic in the Hippodrome Theatre and a few dozen people began running for the exits. The scare came a few weeks after a gunman fatally shot 11 people inside a Pittsburgh synagogue.
— Associated Press