Author: LATimes

Early on in “Super Mario Bros. Wonder,” nemesis Bowser, up to no good in a new kingdom, transforms himself into a heavy metal-loving sentient castle. Mario and Co. need to come to the rescue. But before the run-and-jump platforming action begins, a little yellow flower has a message for Team Mario: “I believe in youuu!” it says in a chirpy, sing-songy voice. The statement arrives like a hug. And there will be more. Throughout the game, flowers cheer us on, sometimes commenting existentially on the scenery, and sometimes just saying, “Way to go!” before the screen erupts in a giant…

Before they became an international punchline, Milli Vanilli was one of the biggest pop acts of the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. Their North American debut album, “Girl You Know It’s True,” featured a distinct blend of R&B, rap and dance music, produced three No. 1 singles and sold more than 6 million copies in the US alone. With their striking looks and distinctive style — long braids, Spandex and broad-shouldered blazers — the duo of Fabrice Morvan and Rob Pilatus were telegenic stars tailor-made for the MTV era.The problem, as the world eventually learned, was that they didn’t sing…

“Bridgerton” actor Ruby Barker says shooting the Netflix series caused her mental health to deterioriate, leading to two psychotic breaks. The actor, who starred as Lady Marina Crane in Netflix’s wildly successful Regency-era romance series, called out the streamer and Shondaland for their lack of support. Barker said that during the filming, she was “deteriorating.” And a week after shooting the first season of the show, she was hospitalized, she said, but it was “really, really covered up and kept on the down-low because the show was going to be coming out.”Barker’s Lady Crane was a major character in the…

My favorite Britney Spears karaoke song is “Till the World Ends.” But this is not about me.This is about the ultimate Britney Spears karaoke power rankings. The single most definitive, conclusive and indisputable Britney Spears karaoke power rankings of all time, until someone else makes another ultimate Britney Spears karaoke power rankings.Why are Britney karaoke power rankings essential? If you aren’t singing karaoke to Britney Spears — especially now, with her much-anticipated memoir “The Woman in Me” finally in print — what are you singing karaoke to? Britney karaoke about confidence: confidence in your skin, confidence in your desirability and…

An L.A. County judge dismissed a lawsuit challenging L.A.’s “mansion tax” on Tuesday, marking the end of a months-long legal challenge from the luxury real estate community that looked to declare the measure unconstitutional.The transfer tax known as Measure ULA was passed in November and took effect April 1, bringing a 4% charge on all residential and commercial real estate sales in the city above $5 million and a 5.5% charge on sales above $10 million, pumping millions into housing and homelessness-prevention efforts.Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge Barbara Scheper issued a tentative ruling dismissing the challenge on Monday after…

Waffles and a party — that’s how Ciara and Russell Wilson.The Denver Broncos quarterback gave his R&B singer wife the 38th birthday bash of her dreams when he rented out an entire Waffle House, a favorite spot of hers, to celebrate this past Thursday. “I am the happiest girl in the world,” Ciara cooed in an Instagram video documenting the evening. Clips of the “One, Two Step” singer walking through a balloon-adorned entrance and making a wish on a pile of donuts show her wearing the same wide smile.The video also featured Ciara’s growing baby bump, which Wilson joked was…

John Legend has had enough of social media’s collective smart mouth. “I used to be on social media a lot more than I am now. I generally post more on Instagram and some on TikTok, but I kind of stopped posting on Twitter,” Legend told Yahoo Life, adding that X (formerly known as Twitter) has become “a little too toxic.” “After a while, having that much transparency between you and your audience — not just coming from you, but also coming to you — all the incoming [discourse], it was just a lot. After a while, I was just like,…

When Squid Game: The Trials opens in Los Angeles this December, the immersive experience will have two lofty goals. One, to reflect the tense themes of the hit Korean series in what is essentially designed to be a fun day or night out. And two, to ensure that at least one of the show’s subject matters isn’t present: exploitation. Crippling debt, financial desperation and a general lack of prospects in all aspects of life were at the heart of Netflix’s global sensation “Squid Game.” A mix of hopelessness, vulnerability and class warfare led the show’s participants to take part in…

She is a 66-year-old self-proclaimed all-American Jewish lesbian folk singer and cardboard cobbler, a queer punk icon who forged her feminist voice before most riot grrrls were born.“Queercore was a dream for me because it was what I wanted when I was 20,” Phranc says, looking over five decades of notebooks, fliers, tour lanyards and promotional items created by Island Records to promote her first major-label release in 1989. Some of Phranc’s foundations surround her, including a paper sculpture memorializing the Slash magazine T-shirt that Phranc wore in the 1970s, and the drawings she made as a teenager working at…

The central cast of “Friends” is mourning one of its own as stars Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc and David Schwimmer broke their silence on co-star Matthew Perry’s death. “We are all so utterly devastated by the loss of Matthew. We were more than just cast mates. We are a family,” they said in a shared statement to The Times on Monday. “There is so much to say, but right now we’re going to take a moment to grieve and process this unfathomable loss.”The statement continued: “In time we will say more, as and when we are…