1. RING MY BELL--ANITA WARD
MUSIC/"ABBA CONCERT" SCHEDULED: Abba's songwriting team Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus are to take part in a concert featuring some of their biggest hits in London later this year. "Thank You For The Music... A Celebration Of The Music Of Abba" will be held in London's Hyde Park on September 13. The show will see guest vocalists performing songs from the Swedish band's back catalogue. "This must be the greatest honour that can be bestowed on any songwriter," said the duo in a statement. "We are absolutely delighted and we hope thousands of radio listeners will join us there." The line-up for the show is yet to be announced. Abba stopped recording in 1982, 2 years after their last tour in Japan. Since then, each member has pursued a solo career.
THEATRE/LEADS CAST FOR "PHANTOM" SEQUEL: Casting for the 2 lead roles in the "Phantom" sequel has been completed. Ramin Karimloo and Sierra Boggess, from "The Little Mermaid'," who have both starred in various incarnations of Andrew Lloyd Webber's "The Phantom of the Opera," will head the cast of the sequel to that international hit. The pair will star in both the London and Broadway productions of "Love Never Dies." In a statement, Lloyd Webber said, "I personally feel that what will now happen is that Sierra and Ramin will open in London early next year and then go to New York in the autumn of 2010. I think once the album comes out, hopefully before Christmas, a lot of singers will come out of the woodwork and we'll find new Christines and Phantoms for the other productions." 
The new US Airline, JETAMERICA, has announced a self-imposed 31 day delay of the launch of its 1st flights. The Airline was originally scheduled to take to the skies on July 13, but are now slated to takeoff on August 14. The Airline says the primary reason for the delay is unforeseen complications with landing and takeoff time slots at Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey. "The delay is not as unusual as it sounds," according to JetAmerica's Vice President of Operations. "Historically many of the world's most successful Airlines and charter services have had to delay their launches. In February, the FAA advised us that our operations at Newark could be accommodated," he said. "However, at about the same time JetAmerica started making national news. When JetAmerica announced 60000 website visitors. and sales in excess of 20000 seats, the FAA reclarified its policy telling JetAmerica we would need to obtain slots." JetAmerica was set to begin service on July 13 with 34 weekly flight segments. The Airline now says that it will start wtih 40 weekly flight segments on August 14.
The NTSB delivered its annual report to Congress this past week, detailing all of the activity across each of its disciplines in the past year. The Aviation section of the report notes 213 accident investigation launches last year, of which 7 were major investigations. There were also 18 requests for international assistance. The board issued 86 aviation related recommendations, and closed 27 investigations. Among the completed investigations was a February 18, 2007 incident in which an Embraer ERJ-170 regional jet, operated by SHUTTLE AMERICA, as DELTA CONNECTION Flight 6448, which was substantially damaged when it overran the end of runway 28 while landing at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, Cleveland, Ohio, during a snowstorm. The 74 people passengers and crew onboard were not injured. The Board determined that the probable cause of the accident was the failure of the flight crew to execute a missed approach when visual cues for the runway were not distinct and identifiable. Ongoing investigations include a June 4, 2007 accident in which a Cessna 550, operating as a medical transport flight, that crashed into the waters of Lake Michigan shortly after takeoff from General Mitchell International Airport, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. All 6 people onboard were fatally injured. There is also a July 31, 2008, accident involving a Hawker Beechcraft BAE 125-800A, which was destroyed when it impacted terrain during an attempted go-around at Owatonna Degner Regional Airport, in Owatonna, Minnesota. The nonscheduled domestic passenger flight was operating under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 135. All 8 people onboard the BAE 125, which is pictured above, sustained fatal injuries.
Regional accident and serious incident investigations are handled much like major investigations; but, since they are typically smaller in scope, a single regional investigator usually conducts these investigation as investigator-in-charge. This investigator ensures the investigation includes all the relevant facts, conditions, and circumstances needed to determine the cause of the accident and identify any safety issues. The factual reports of the accidents/serious incidents are published on the NTSB’s website. A brief report, including the probable cause of the accident, is also available once the probable cause has been determined. A map in the report, pictured above, shows the most regional accident investigations started in Florida and California, with more than 12 in each state. The report also lists some of what the NTSB consider its significant achievements, among them that on July 16, 2008, the FAA issued its final rule on fuel tank inerting. This rule was the result of an NTSB recommendation aimed at eliminating fuel tank explosions in transport-category aircraft and had been on the NTSB’s Most Wanted List of Transportation Safety Improvements since 2002. 2 important NTSB Safety Alerts were also issued in 2008. 1 addressed how Pilots can prevent controlled flight into terrain when flying at night and the other reminding Pilots of the importance of activating leading edge deice boots at the 1st sign of icing. These alerts provided Pilots with information from recent investigations that they can use to prevent accidents.
Brazil's Civil Aviation Authority has issued a response to the French BEA preliminary report into the crash of AIR FRANCE Flight 447 on June 1. The report issued this past Thursday, stated that the A330 crashed straight down, and belly flopped into the Atlantic Ocean, after encountering thunderstorms over the Atlantic Ocean. All 228 passengers and crew onboard the aircraft were killed in the crash, which took place as the A330 was on Scheduled Service from Rio to Paris. Among other things, the report details the efforts of various Air Traffic Control Centers to determine what was going on with Flight 447. In its response, Brazil's Civil Aviation Authorityclarified that a flight plan WAS provided by the Airline to all relevant air traffic control centers along the flight path of Flight 447. The BEA had reported Dakar was not in possession of a flight plan. Brazil goes on to say, that at 1:33am, Flight 447 did forward an estimate of 2:20am for waypoint TASIL. The BEA states in their report that that estimate was not provided despite 3 repeated requests by Brazil's Atlantic control. The position estimates were immediately phoned to Dakar ATC, the receipt of the estimates were acknowledged by Dakar, which is in conflict with the BEA report. Brazil also says that Recife Control issued alert at 5:40am, while the BEA reports that an alert was issued by Brest Control Center at 8:15am. Brazil says the search for Flight 447 began shortly after the inquiry from Dakar about AF447s position at 4:40Zam. As the sun rose on June 1, Brazil says that a search aircraft was already in the air overflying the route of Flight 447. Brazil says that no ELT signals or distress calls were recorded.
YEMENIA CANCELS COMOROS SERVICE: YEMENIA AIRWAYS is canceling all its flights between Yemen and the Comoros Islands after this week's crash on the same route, the Airline said today. 1 more flight between Sanaa and Moroni is scheduled for tomorrow, but all flights on the route are canceled after that, Yemenia said. Yemenia Airways Flight 626, an Airbus 310, went down early Tuesday, carrying 142 passengers and 11 crew members. It originated in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, and went down just miles from Comoros' capital, Moroni. 1 person, a 12 year old girl, was the sole survivor of the crash. She is hospitalized in Paris, in stable condition. The A310 tried to land at the Airport in Moroni, then made a U-turn before it crashed, Comoros Vice President Idi Nadhoim said. French and US divers are helping to search for debris and bodies. The French military has detected a rescue beacon, but rescue workers say the wreckage is difficult to reach in deep waters. The plane's data recorders have yet to be found.
AIR FRANCE A320 ABORTS TAKEOFF: AIR FRANCE Flight 6136 was on Scheduled Domestic A320 Service from Paris to Toulouse, France, had to reject takeoff from Paris, yesterday, July 3. Flight 6136 had to reject its takeoff at high speed due to a reported failure of the left hand engine. The crew were able to stop the A320 on the runway, however the aircraft had to be towed back to the hanger. The aircraft has been removed from service for inspection and repair.
TATARSTAN 737 DIVERTS OVER SMOKE: TATARSTAN Flight 9xx was on Scheduled International Boeing 737 Service from Kazan, Russia, to Antalya, Turkey, when it had to divert while enroute, yesterday, July 3. Flight 9xx, (the actual flight number is not known), with 150 passengers and 8 crew members onboard, declared an emergency due to smoke in the passenger cabin. The aircraft was diverted to Volgograd, Russia, where it landed without incident, about 1 hour after its initial departure from Kazan. Emergency Services, which met the aircraft, could find no initial cause of the smoke. According to Russian media reports, officials suspect that a passenger may have been smoking onboard. The Russian Government has launched an investigation into the incident.
ENGINE FORCES AIR INDIA A321 TO DIVERT: AIR INDIA Flight 466 was on Scheduled Domestic A321 Service from Kochi to Delhi, India, when it had to divert while enroute, yesterday, July 3. Flight 466, with 151 passengers and 6 crew members onboard, declared an emergency after 1 of its engines had to be shut down due to a technical fault. The A321 was diverted to Nagpur, India, where it landed without incident. The aircraft was removed from service for inspection and repairs.
MECHANICAL PROBLEMS FORCE AA767 TO DIVERT: AMERICAN AIRLINES Flight 78 was on Scheduled International Boeing 767 Service from Dallas/Ft Worth, Texas, to London Heathrow, when it had to divert while enroute, on Thursday, July 2. Flight 78 was inflight near Indianapolis, Indiana, when the crew reported problems with a generator. The crew requested diversion to Chicago OHare, where the 767 landed about 45 minutes later. Emergency Services met the aircraft and sprayed the main landing gear. According to a statement from AA, the tires of the left main landing gear blew on landing, and Emergency Services sprayed the gear to cool it down. The 767 was removed from service for a full inspection and repairs.
SMOKE FORCES US AIRWAYS 757 TO DIVERT: US AIRWAYS Flight 752 was on Scheduled International Boeing 757 Service from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Stockholm, Sweden, when it had to divert while enroute, on Thursday, July 2. Flight 752, with 172 passengers and crew onboard, was about 30 minutes into its flight, when the crew declared an emergency due to smoke in the cockpit. The aircraft was diverted to Hartford, CT, where it landed and was met by Emergency Services. Immediate inspection failed to find a cause for the smoke. The 757 was removed from service for a full inspection.
TIRES BLOW ON AVIACSA 737: AVIACSA Flight 230 was on Scheduled Domestic Boeing 737 Service from Tuxtla Gutierrez to Mexico City, Mexico, when it was damaged upon landing at Mexico City, on Thursday, July 2. Flight 230, with 48 passengers and 5 crew members onboard, blew both main left landing gear tires upon touchdown at Mexico City. The crew were able to stop the aircraft on the runway, however the 737 could not complete its taxi to the gate. The passengers were offloaded, and the aircraft towed off the taxiway. The aircraft was removed from service for inspection and repairs.
PROBLEM FORCES AF 777 RETURN: AIR FRANCE Flight 493 was on Scheduled International Boeing 777 Service from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, to Paris, France, when it had to make an emergency return to Santo Domingo, on Thursday, July 2. Flight 493, with 200 passengers and crew onboard, declared an emergency about 30 minutes into its flight, with the crew reporting problems with an engine. The 777 landed back at Santo Domingo without incident, and was removed from service for inspection and repairs. According to media reports, Air France staff in Santo Domingo reported that the incident was not caused by an engine problem, but by problems with the aircrafts air conditioning system.
TECH FAULT FORCES AF 747 RETURN: AIR FRANCE Flight 84 was on Scheduled International Boeing 747 Service from Paris, France, to San Francisco, California, when it had to make an emergency return to Paris, on Thursday, July 2. Flight 84 declared an emergency due to an unspecified technical fault. The 747 circled Northern France for 2 hours at 20000 feet, before landing back at Paris without incident. The aircraft was removed from service for inspection. Air France refused to comment to multiple media requests for information on the incident. An Air France spokesman said that the Airline may issue a statement on the incident, this coming Monday, July 6.
ENGINE FAILS ON AIR ARABIA A320: AIR ARABIA Flight 522 was on Scheduled International A320 Service from Chittagong, Bangladesh, to Sharjah, UAE, when it had to divert while enroute, on Thursday, July 2. Flight 522, with 159 passengers and 8 crew members onboard, declared an emergency, with the crew reporting an engine had to be shut down for unspecified technical reasons. The A320 was diverted to Kolkata, India, where it landed without incident. The aircraft was removed from service for inspection and possible repairs.
ENGINE FAILS ON SA AIRLINK: SOUTH AFRICAN AIRLINK Flight 8663 was on Scheduled Domestic BAe146 Service from Cape Town to Nelspruit, South Africa, when it had to make an emergency return to Cape Town, on Thursday, July 2. Flight 8663 was on its initial climb, about 3 miles from the Cape Town Airport, when 1 of its engines failed with a loud bang and a jolt to the airframe. The crew declared an emergency and requested immediate return. Prior to landing, passengers were advised to assume the brace position. The aircraft landed without incident, and has been removed from service for inspection and repair. 
A VIRGIN ATLANTIC BOEING 747, ESCORTED BY THE ROYAL AIR FORCE RED ARROWS, PERFORMS A FLYOVER LONDON EARLIER THIS WEEK, TO CELEBRATE ITS 25TH ANNIVERSARY.
MUSIC/2009 SILVER CLEF AWARDS: Take That have won their 2nd coveted Silver Clef award, recognizing an 18-year chart career. The former boyband 1st received the prize in 1995, mere months before Robbie Williams quit. Take that, pictured at left, have now eclipsed the likes of Sir Paul McCartney and The Rolling Stones, who have only received the prize once. The trophy is awarded each year to raise funds for music therapy charity Nordoff-Robins. Other winners at this year's ceremony include Madness, who picked up the Icon award, and Queen, who were named Ambassadors of Rock. Beach Boys' frontman Brian Wilson attended the ceremony to collect a trophy for Best International Act. Dance act N-Dubz were given the Digital Award, recognising their success with downloads, ringtones and streaming video. Welsh rockers Stereophonics were named British Band of 2009, and La Roux were awarded Best Newcomer in the week they scored their 1st UK #1, with "Bulletproof."
MUSIC/JACKSON MEMORIAL SET: Tickets for the public memorial service for Michael Jackson in Los Angeles on Tuesday will be available via the internet. Details were announced by AEG Live, the star's promoter, which owns the Staples Center where the service will be held. 11000 free tickets are to be issued for the service. Only US residents can apply. Fans wishing to attend must register for their tickets and names will later be chosen at random. Another 6500 tickets will be issued for a simulcast of the service at the nearby Nokia theatre. It means a total of 17500 fans will be able to see the events free. Officials said that no funeral procession would take place and the memorial service would not be shown on big screens outside the venues. Free pool feeds will be made available to media organisations for broadcast, they said. A private family service is expected to be held prior to the public event. No other details of the service itself were revealed. Officials appealed to other fans to watch the memorial service from their own homes, amid fears that thousands of people without tickets could flood the area. 
Former Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin has anounced she will resign as governor of Alaska on July 26, and not run for re-election. Palin's term of office was due to end in 2010. Palin announced her decision in a statement from her home town of Wasilla, Alaska. "I'm taking my fight for what's right in a new direction," she said. Palin did not reveal what she intended to do after leaving office, and did not give an explicit reason for her decision not to run for re-election. "People who know me know that besides faith and family, nothing's more important to me than our beloved Alaska," Palin said. "Serving her people is the greatest honor I could imagine." The speculation is that Palin, who is very popular with the Republican Party base, the extreme right wing, will make a bid for the White House in 2012. A Republican source close to her political team said that it was a "calculation" she made that "it was time to move on." The governor's "book deal and other issues" were "causing a lot of friction" in her home state, the source said, adding that he believes she is "mapping out a path to 2012." Palin was once very popular in Alaska during the 1st few years of her governorship, but her approval ratings have dipped since her vice-presidential run. Although she polls highly with the extreme right wing, in the general US population, she has a higher negative rating. Her resignation means Alaska's Lieutenant Governor Sean Parnell will take over as state governor.
Rescuers have failed to find any of the remaining 152 passengers and crew from YEMENIA AIRWAYS Flight 626, the A310 that crashed in rough weather off Comoros in the early hours of Tuesday. American and French military aircraft continued to scour the crash site on to locate the wreckage, thought to be in waters up to 1600ft deep. Rescuers suspect many of the dead remained trapped inside the doomed plane and say the search effort should focus on finding the wreck. Flight 626 was on Scheduled International Service from Saana, Yemen, to Moroni, Comoros, when it went down off the coast of the Comoros. The A310 had abandoned its 1st approach to the Airport, and was apparently lining up for a 2nd approach when it went down without warning. The sole survivor of the crash, a 12 year old girl, spoke of her ordeal. Bahia Bakari told a French government minister that she felt something "like electricity" before the crash. "She says instructions were given to passengers and that then she felt something like electricity ... as if she had been a bit electrocuted," France's government minister for cooperation, Alain Joyandet, who flew back to Paris with Bahia yesterday, said. "And suddenly there was this big sound. She found herself in the water - and you know the rest." The girls statement that passengers were given instructions, leads investigators to believe the crew had warning that something was wrong with the aircraft.
French Investigators said they will continue searching for the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder from AIR FRANCE Flight 447 until July 10. The BEA made the annoucement yesterday, during a press conference where they gave their preliminary findings into the crash of the A330 on June 1, while on a flight from Rio to Paris. All 228 passengers and crew were killed when the aircraft went down in stormy weather over the Atlantic Ocean. The BEA said yesterday that the aircraft apparently went "straight down" and belly flopped into the water. The black boxes normally give out a signal, noting their location, for 30 days after an accident. The BEA said they will keep listening for a signal, until at least July 10. Air France said yesterday it was of "capital importance" to find the recorders, "which would enable the investigators to analyze the causes of the accident, whatever these may be. No effort must be spared in achieving this end." The mountainous ocean floor in the search area ranges from 3280 to 15091 feet, BEA officials have said in the past, making the search for the recorders, and the rest of the plane's debris, difficult. French submarines and sensitive U.S. military listening devices are being used in the search. Brazil called off the search for bodies on June 27, having found 51 of the 228 people who died. Investigators have also found more than 600 parts and structural components of the plane, along with luggage.
Indonesian aviation officials have announced that there were no survivors in the crash of an AVIASTAR MANDIRI Twin Otter 300 on Monday, June 29. The Aviastar Otter was on a Scheduled Cargo Service from Dekai to Wamena, in Papua, when all contact was lost with the aircraft as it approached Wamena. The aircraft had departed Dekai at 3:30pm, with 3 crew members onboard, for the 30 minute flight. Wamena ATC was in contact with the crew from 3:54pm to 4:00pm, after which time no further contact was established with the aircraft. After the Twin Otter failed to arrive, a search and rescue commenced. The wreckage was located on Wednesday, July 1, on a slope of Mount Kurima, in Tangma District, 9600 feet above sea level. From the air, the aircraft appeared to have impacted trees, in a nose down attitude. Bad weather has prevented search helicopters from landing at the site, however Airline officials have now confirmed that 3 bodies were seen from the air, and no sign of life was observed. Officials are attempting to reach the scene today. The same officials refused to speculate on the cause of the crash. The crash could not have come at a worse time for Indonesian Airlines. The European Commission banned Indonesian carriers from flying to Europe last year after a string of accidents involving them, and amid worries about the maintenance and safety records of Indonesian airlines. Indonesian regulators are meeting the EU officials next week to show them how they have tried to improve their safety records. There are hopes that the Europeans will lift the ban on 4 Airlines: AIRFAST INDONESIA, GARUDA INDONESIA, MANDALA AIRLINES, and PREMAIR.
ENGINE FAILS ON VENEZOLANA 737: VENEZOLANA RUTAS AEREAS DE VENEZUELA Flight 300 was on Scheduled International Boeing 737 Service from Maracaibo, Venezuela, to Aruba, when it had to make an emergency return to Maracaibo, yesterday, July 2. Flight 300, with 54 passengers and 4 crew members onboard, suffered an engine failure with a loud bang, on takeoff from Maracaibo. The crew declared an emergency and the 737 landed back at Maracaibo without incident. The aircraft was removed from service for inspection and repair.
SMOKE FORCES AIR ONE A320 RETURN: AIR ONE Flight 2970 was on Scheduled Domestic A320 Service from Milan to Palermo, Italy, when it had to make an emergency return to Milan, yesterday, July 2. Flight 2970 was about 20 minutes into its flight when smoke began to fill the passenger cabin. The crew declared an emergency and returned to Milan, where it landed without incident. The immediate cause of the smoke is not known. The A320 was removed from service for inspection and repair.
ELECTRICAL FAILURE ON LIVINGSTON A321: LIVINGSTON ENERGY FLIGHT Flight 236 was on Scheduled International A321 Service from Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, to Catania, Italy, when it had to divert while enroute, yesterday, July 2. Flight 236, with 117 passengers and crew onboard, declared an emergency while inflight due to an electrical failure. The A321 was diverted to Cairo, Egypt, where it landed without incident. The aircraft was removed from service for further inspection and repair.
LANDING GEAR FORCES AIR WISC CRJ RETURN: AIR WISCONSIN Flight 3940 was on Scheduled International CRJ200 Service from Montreal, Canada, to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on behalf of US AIRWAYS, when it had to make an emergency return to Montreal, on Wednesday, July 1. Flight 3940 declared an emergency shortly after takeoff, reporting unspecified problems with its landing gear. The aircraft circled for about an hour to burn off fuel, and then landed without incident back at Montreal. The aircraft was removed from service for inspection and possible repair.
AE ERJ IN EMERGENCY LANDING: AMERICAN EAGLE Flight 4034 was on Scheduled International ERJ145 Service from Chicago OHare to Montreal, Canada, when it had to make an emergency landing in Montreal, on Tuesday June 30. Flight 4034 declared an emergency while on approach to Montreal due to an unsafe gear indication. The crew abandoned their approach and went around. The ERJ landed without incident on its 2nd approach. The aircraft was removed from service for inspection of the landing gear.
CABIN AIR FORCES MERIDIANA MD82 RETURN: MERIDIANA Flight 633 was on Scheduled Domestic MD82 Service from Olbia to Bologna, Italy, when it had to make an emergency return to Oblia, on Sunday, June 28. Flight 633, with 160 passengers and crew onboard, was on its initial climb out of Olbia, when several passengers began to complain about shortness of breath. The crew checked the air conditioning system and cabin pressure, and both were normal. Complaints continued to escalate from the passengers, thus the crew returned to Olbia. In a statement, Meridiana said that a there may have been a problem with the temperature control causing the feeling of receiving insufficient air. The aircraft was inspected and serviced, and returned to service later the same day. 
MUSIC/JACKSON MEMORIAL MOVED TO TUESDAY: Michael Jackson's memorial service will now take place Tuesday morning in the Staples Center, the 20,000-seat coliseum in downtown Los Angeles where Jackson rehearsed his show the night before he died. Late yesterday afternoon, the Jackson family said they would not hold a public or private viewing of his body at Neverland Ranch, as had been reported. Late last evening, a federal law enforcement official said that the Drug Enforcement Administration had joined Jackson's death investigation, once again fanning speculation that drugs may have been involved in the pop icon's passing.
FILM&TV: DR. SAYS CARRADINE NOT A SUICIDE: David Carradine did not commit suicide, said the doctor who oversaw a private autopsy on the actor. Carradine was found naked in a wardrobe with a cord around his neck and other parts of his body in Bangkok on June 4. Forensic pathologist Dr Michael Baden concluded that the "Kung Fu" star died from asphyxiation. The way the body was bound allowed him to rule out suicide. "He didn't die of natural causes, and he didn't die of suicidal causes. That leaves some kind of accidental death." Dr Baden, who fronts the TV series "Autopsy," was hired by Carradine's family to conduct a second autopsy, following the one handled by the Thai authorities. "The cause of death was asphyxiation, an inability to breathe, now why that happened is still what we're working on," Baden said. Dr Baden did not rule out the possibility that the star died of accidental autoerotic asphyxiation. Referring to the nature of the ligatures on Carradine's body, he said the actor's hands were above his head, and not behind his back as media reports had previously suggested. The medical examiner said he was awaiting more information from Thai police to rule out the possibility that Carradine was killed by someone else. The Thai police said on June 8 that the 1st autopsy, conducted by Thai officials, would not have results back for at least a month.
BOOKS/JUDGE BANS "RYE" BOOK: A US judge has banned publication of a book promoted as a sequel to JD Salinger's "The Catcher in the Rye". US District Judge Deborah Batts ruled yesterday, that Swedish author Fredrik Colting's novel too closely mirrored Mr Salinger's 1951 classic. Salinger, pictured at left, brought the lawsuit against Mr Colting, with his lawyers calling the book a "rip-off pure and simple". Colting claims his book, featuring a character based on Salinger's hero, is a literary commentary not a sequel. But Judge Batts, in her 37-page ruling issued in Manhattan, said the main character in Mr Colting's novel - Mr C - was "an infringement" on Mr Salinger's main character, Holden Caulfield. She said the Swedish author's claim that he also wrote the book to critically examine the character Holden Caulfield, was "problematic and lacking in credibility". She issued a preliminary injunction, indefinitely banning the publication, advertising or distribution of the book in the US. The book has already been published in the UK. Salinger, 90, who has health problems and has led a reclusive life, was not present.
THEATRE/"RAGTIME" RETURNS TO BROADWAY: "Ragtime," the Tony Award-winning musical that fans say got a too-short Broadway run after its 1998 launch, in the same season as "The Lion King," is coming back to Broadway. The producers of the show made the announcement yesterday. The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts' recent all-new and critically acclaimed production of Terrence McNally, Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty's "Ragtime," based on the E.L. Doctorow novel, featuring direction and choreography by Marcia Milgrom Dodge, will begin Broadway previews October 23 at the Neil Simon Theatre. Opening is November 15. Casting will be announced soon. Members of the Kennedy Center company will likely be offered their roles again. "Ragtime" originally opened on Broadway on January 18, 1998 at the Ford Center for the Performing Arts. The musical won 4 Tony Awards including Best Book, Original Score and Best Orchestrations. Audra McDonald won a Tony as Best Featured Actress in a Musical for playing Sarah. The original Broadway run played December 26, 1997-January 16, 2000. It played 27 previews and 834 performances. 
Fayette Pinkney, a soul singer best known as a member of the Three Degrees, died last Saturday, June 27th, from acute respiratory failure. She was 61. Pinkney, (pictured left), joined Shirley Porter and Linda Turner in the Three Degrees in the early '60s, when she was still in high school in Philadelphia. Managed by Richard Barrett, who produced the Chantels and Little Anthony and the Imperials, the group underwent a series of lineup changes with Pinkney remaining the only consistent member. The trio released several singles, including "Gee Baby (I'm Sorry)" and "Maybe," which found success on the Billboard R&B charts before signing with Philadelphia International Records in 1973. Under label owners Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, the Three Degrees provided the vocals for MFSB's "T.S.O.P. (The Sound of Philadelphia)," the theme song for the popular television show "Soul Train," which reached #1 on Billboard's Hot 100 charts. Their 1974 self-titled album would be their biggest seller, featuring the hit 'When Will I See You Again,' which peaked at #2. Pinkney left the group in 1976, and released a solo album, "One Degree," in 1979. While continuing to sing occasionally, she went back to school, earning a degree in psychology from Temple University and a Master's in human services from Lincoln University. She later worked as an education coordinator and a counselor. In a statement, Gamble and Huff called the trio "our Philly sound version of Motown's Supremes, but bigger and stronger and melodic." They continued, saying Pinkney "had a very strong and soulful voice. She will truly be missed by all of us as a member of one the world's greatest soulful female groups."
Actress Mollie Sugden has died at the age of 86. The TV star, best known for playing Mrs Slocombe in long-running BBC sitcom "Are You Being Served?," died at the Royal Surrey Hospital after a long illness. The Yorkshire-born actress's twin sons were at her bedside when she died. David Croft, one of the writers of Are You Being Served?, remembered her as a "marvellous character" who would never turn down chances to make people laugh. "She would never refuse any sort of comedy situation. No matter how undignified it was, she would always go along with it. She was marvellously funny," he said. Actor Frank Thornton, who played Captain Peacock in the sitcom, said she was part of a very happy team. "We all enjoyed each other's company, which, if you're doing comedy, is rather necessary," he said. "You can't play comedy with people you dislike. Mollie, of course, was an excellent comedian." Sugden found early TV success with comedy series "Hugh and I" in 1962 and in "Coronation Street" as the gossiping Nellie Harvey. In 1972 came "Are You Being Served?" and the role she became best known for - the blue-rinsed Betty Slocombe, with her affectation of middle-class gentility and her outrageous use of the double-entendre. Sugden found new fame in the US where re-runs of "Are You Being Served?" transformed both Sugden and co-star John Inman into cult figures in the early 1990s. Sugden, who lived in Surrey, was married to fellow actor William Moore, best known for his role as Ronnie Corbett's father in sitcom "Sorry!". He died 9 years ago. Sugden is survived by her children. 
Karl Malden, a versatile Oscar-winning actor who built a 6 decade Hollywood career playing heroes and heavies, and, often, relatable ordinary men, died yesterday of natural causes. He was 97. He received his Academy Award for playing Mitch in the 1951 film “A Streetcar Named Desire,” a role he originated on Broadway. In a movie career that flourished in the 1950s and '60s, Malden played a variety of roles in more than 50 films, including the sympathetic priest in "On the Waterfront," the resentful husband in "Baby Doll," the warden in "Birdman of Alcatraz," the pioneer patriarch in "How the West Was Won," Madame Rose's suitor in "Gypsy," the card dealerin "The Cincinnati Kid" and Gen. Omar Bradley in "Patton."Malden was a longtime holdout on television roles until he agreed to play Lt. Mike Stone on the ABC police drama “The Streets of San Francisco," which also starred a young Michael Douglas. It ran from 1972 to 1977 and earned him 4 consecutive Emmy nominations. He won his sole Emmy for portraying a man who begins to suspect that his daughter was murdered by her husband in the fact-based 1984 miniseries "Fatal Vision." Malden is also known as a long time spokesman for American Express. His commercials ran for over 20 years. Malden is survived by his wife, children, and grandchildren.
A court in the Indian capital, Delhi, ruled today that homosexual intercourse between consenting adults is not a criminal act. The ruling overturns a 148-year-old colonial law which describes a same-sex relationship as an "unnatural offence". Homosexual acts were punishable by a 10-year prison sentence. Many people in India regard same-sex relationships as illegitimate. Rights groups have long argued that the law contravened human rights. Delhi's High Court ruled that the law outlawing homosexual acts was discriminatory and a "violation of fundamental rights". The court said that a statute in Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code, which defines homosexual acts as "carnal intercourse against the order of nature" and made them illegal, was an "antithesis of the right to equality". Gay rights activists all over the country welcomed the ruling and said it was "India's Stonewall".
