Presley estate authorizes Elvis version of Mr. Potato Head
The Elvis Presley estate has signed a deal for Hasbro Inc. and PPW Toys to release an Elvis version of Mr. Potato Head.
Kevin Kern, a spokesman for Presley’s Graceland estate, told the Commercial Appeal the new toy is one of 15,000 Elvis-licensed products and is one the company is excited about.
The first of the Elvis potato heads will be released for Elvis Tribute Week in August. The toy will be in a jumpsuit. A second version — with the likeness dressed in black leather — will be on the market for Christmas.
—Associated Press
Sen. Dodd backs Peru’s art stance
Sen. Christopher Dodd (D-Conn.) says Inca artifacts removed from Machu Picchu nearly a century ago and held by Yale University belong to the people of Peru.
Dodd said Wednesday after returning from a trip to the South American nation that he will work with Yale and Peru to resolve their dispute amicably “and return the artifacts to their rightful owners.”
Peru has a lawsuit pending in federal court in Connecticut demanding Yale return artifacts taken by scholar Hiram Bingham III between 1911 and 1915.
Yale says it returned dozens of boxes of artifacts in 1921 and that Peru knew it would retain some.
—Associated Press
American gets Norwegian prize
American historian Natalie Zemon Davis accepted Norway’s $680,000 Holberg Prize on Wednesday for her narrative approach to history.
The awards committee said the 81-year-old Detroit native, who received the award in a ceremony in Bergen, won for her work showing “how particular events can be narrated and analyzed so as to reveal deeper historical tendencies and underlying patterns of thought and action.”
The Holberg Prize citation praised Davis as “one of the most creative historians writing today” whose work has inspired a generation of younger historians and promoted “cross-fertilization between disciplines.”
Davis, who is a leading scholar of early modern European history, is a professor at the University of Toronto and professor emerita at Princeton University, where she taught for many years.
—Associated Press
Latinos cast in new ‘Evita’
It’s been a high-profile year so far for pop star Ricky Martin. In March, the Puerto Rico-born singer officially came out of the closet as gay. The singer also is preparing for a tour that is scheduled to launch this fall.
Now comes word that Martin will be starring in a 2012 Broadway revival of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical “Evita.” Tony-winning producer Hal Luftig said in a phone interview from New York that Martin will play the role of Che in the Donmar Warehouse’s production, with Elena Roger in the title role.
Luftig added that he is committed to making a “true Latino production,” with Latino actors performing the major roles. Roger, who is from Argentina, made her English-language debut in the 2006 London staging of “Evita,” earning an Olivier Award nomination. Casting for the character of Juan Perón is currently underway.
Martin, whose most famous singles include “She Bangs” and “Livin’ La Vida Loca,” previously worked on Broadway in “ Les Miserables.” “Evita” was first produced on Broadway in 1979, with Patti LuPone in the title role and Mandy Patinkin in the role of Che.
—David Ng
‘Lacuna’ wins
for Kingsolver
American novelist Barbara Kingsolver took home the prestigious Orange Prize for Fiction on Wednesday with her sixth novel, “The Lacuna,” beating bookmakers’ favorite Hilary Mantel.
Kingsolver, who had not published a novel in nine years, said she was “stunned and thrilled” as she received the $45,000 prize — open to any novel by a woman published in English — at London’s Royal Festival Hall.
“The Lacuna” tells of the epic journey of a man who moved between the United States and Mexico amid revolution and war. It was up against five other novels, including Mantel’s Man Booker Prize-winning Tudor tale “Wolf Hall.”
—Associated Press
‘Ghost’ returning in Japanese
Paramount Pictures is bringing “Ghost” back to life with a Japanese version of the romance blockbuster, becoming the latest Hollywood studio to launch a local-language production as U.S. films stumble at Japan’s box offices.
“Ghost” was a smash hit in 1990 with its universal tale of a love that knows no boundaries such as real life and the after life. The new version, which Paramount is making with Nippon TV and distributor Shochiku, is set for release this autumn. It will star Japanese actress Nanako Matsushima in Demi Moore’s role and South Korean heartthrob Song Seung Heon in Patrick Swayze’s part.
—Reuters
