Legendary Nollywood actor and model, Richard Mofe Damijo and his wife Jumobi Abike Mofe Damijo ( Née Adegbesan) celebrated their 18th wedding anniversary yesterday, 28 December, 2018. The couple got married in 2000, after three years of being together.
RMD and his wife, whom he fondly calls Abike, are currently vacationing in the United States of America, where they are also visiting their children – Tega and Mena.
Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode (middle); Executive Secretary, MTN Foundation, Ms. Nonny Ugboma (2nd right); Producer, Oba Esugbayi: The Play, Mr. Joseph Edgar (2ndleft); General manager, Consumer Marketing, MTN, Mr. Wole Rawa (2nd left) and On Air Personality, Mr. Olisa Adibua (left) during the Stage Play at the Muson Centre, Onikan, on Sunday, December 23, 2018.
…Says Govt Investment In Sector Has Positively Engaged Youth
Lagos State Governor, Mr Akinwunmi Ambode on Sunday evening reiterated the commitment of his administration to continue to play up the arts and entertainment industry to grow the economy and positively engage the youth, saying the sector remains a veritable platform to improve the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of the State and Nigeria.
Speaking at the performance of a stage play – Oba Esugbayi, held at the Muson Centre in Onikan, Lagos, Governor Ambode said since inception of his administration, conscious efforts had been made to invest in the arts and entertainment sector in view of its strategic importance to the country if the potentials were properly harnessed.
While describing the sector as the future of the State, the Governor said the investment so far made was geared towards using the industry as a springboard to plan for the burgeoning youth population in the State.
“Obviously, I am a lover of arts and as a government; we have invested so much in culture, entertainment and so on. The real GDP of Lagos is in entertainment and arts because that is where the future is.
“The population dynamics of Lagos is like 65 percent below the age of 35 and you have to start to find somewhere to actually fill in that gap to grow the GDP of Lagos and that is why we have decided that we would promote a lot of things in arts, culture and entertainment and that is just the right way to go,” Governor Ambode said.
The Governor, who also commended the creativity and versatility of the cast and production crew of the stage play in coming up with a wonderful show, assured that he would continue to support the sector whether in government or out of government.
“I just want to say that I have enjoyed myself thoroughly and this is one of the Christmas gifts to me. Sitting down here and watching for one and half hours, you know that there is a big future for this country and for everybody that has actually taken part in this stage play, I say God bless you.
“When I see younger people and the sense of creativity around them and the energy, it brings that sense of hope in this country and whatever support I can give in and out of government, I will do it without hesitation,” he said.
In a related development, speaking at a Christmas Carol Service of the Bethesda Home for the Blind, Governor Ambode who was appointed a life patron of the school, commended the management of the institution for their selfless service in taking care of the special students, just as he assured them of continuous support.
“All of you are very dear to my heart; I have natural love for all of you and so I will use my resources whether private or official to support this place. I want to assure that we would use our network to pull other well-meaning Nigerians within the next six to 12 months to transform the place,” the Governor said.
Sex and the City 3 isn’t happening—but apparently the swirling chatter about it still is. And it turns out that had the SATC trilogy gone forth with more cosmos and Islamophobia, a very major character was slated to die. According to Season 5 of journalist and Vanity Fair contributor James Andrew Miller’s , which deep-dives into how the Hollywood success story started, the would-be third Sex and the Citymovie would have brought the death of—drumroll—Mr. Big, aka John Preston, played by the inimitable Chris Noth, who was slated to die of a heart attack in the shower.
Ironically enough, Noth tells the podcast that he was no fan of the first and second film adaptations (same here)—“I just hate the cornball shit . . . I thought they were sentimental as hell,” he said. But Noth had heard good things about the script for the hypothetical third installment: “I heard it was really a superior script.”
The dramatic plot twist was yet another reason Kim Cattrall declined to sign on for Sex and the City 3, according to Miller’s sources. “People close to Kim believe the script for the movie didn’t have a lot to offer the character of Samantha,” Miller says on Origins, adding that Big’s death early in the film made “the remainder of the movie more about how Carrie recovers from Big’s death than about the relationship between the four women.” So it was all about Carrie—again? Color me utterly unsurprised. (Can we even imagine how insufferable Carrie’s widow couture would have been?)
Of course, money also played a role in the untimely end of SATC 3. Miller reports that Cattrall wasn’t satisfied with the salary proposal for the franchise’s four famed ladies, which proposed that each of them—Cattrall, Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, and Kristin Davis—be paid $1 million up front, and share back-end revenues with showrunner Michael Patrick King. “We negotiated in good faith. We wanted Kim to be there. Michael and I worked all summer. I had many, many, many conversations with her manager where I was told, ‘She’d love to hear from you.’ I emailed her. I tried to reach out to her and say, like, ‘We want you [to be] part of this . . . I hope when you read this script you’ll see the beauty, the joy, the heartbreak in it that I see,’ ” Parker told Miller. “We did negotiate through the process, and ultimately the studio said, ‘We can’t meet those asks of hers. We’re not able to do it . . . the economics don’t make sense for us.’ So, then, it’s over, but that’s not a character assassination—that’s just the way business works.” Cattrall declined comment, claiming she’s said her piece on the would-be movie.
I can’t help but wonder: Is this the final chapter of the Sex and the City 3 saga? Here’s hoping. Now back to your regularly scheduled Woke Charlotte reading.
Ed Sheeran has got plenty to celebrate this Christmas after becoming the top-earning musician ever.The Shape Of You hitmaker raked in a whopping £342.4 million in 2018, meaning he’s earned more more in one year than any other musician ever has.Ed, 27, beat his mate Taylor Swift as well as other huge US stars like Beyonce and Jay-Z to the top of the list.The stats, gathered by Pollstar , means Ed Sheeran pocketed an eye-watering weekly salary of £6.5 million.
Ed’s Divide tour also saw him earn more than any other performer has in the last 30 years, after he sold almost five million tickets across 53 cities and 94 shows.
His Multiply tour, in 2014/15, earned him £119m, meaning he’s already doubled his record with 50 shows still left to go in 2019.
Ed’s old pal Taylor Swift joined him on the list of 2018’s top earners in second place after making £244m.
Jay-Z and Beyonce shared the third spot after taking in £201m with their joint stadium tour.
Pink, Bruno Mars, Justin Timberlake, The Rolling Stones, Roger Waters and The Eagles also made the top 10 list.
It’s been a big year for Ed, who recently hinted that he’d secretly married his fiancée Cherry Seaborn.
In August, he smiled bashfully and gestured towards his ring finger when asked in an interview if they’d already tied the knot.
And low and behold, he was wearing a silver band on his ring finger.
Ed confirmed his engagement to long term girlfriend Cherry, 26, in January this year.
Announcing the news in a loved-up Instagram post, he wrote: “Got myself a fiancé just before new year. We are very happy and in love, and our cats are chuffed as well xx.”
(Mirror)
Cinema screening of ‘Lion Heart,’ the directorial debut of veteran actress, Genevieve Nnaji has been halted due to alleged industry gang-up.
Although the movie was purchased by Netflix in July, Nnaji’s team announced last Friday that its cinema screening would commence on Dec. 21.
Following that announcement, a viral statement from the ‘Lion Heart’s team alleged that the “powers that be” (distribution companies) have refused to show the movie in their cinemas.
The statement further claimed that one of the major distributors, who had agreed to show the movie, backed out of the deal after being “arm twisted”.
Reacting to the statement, Patrick Lee, chairman of the Cinema Exhibitors Association of Nigeria (CEAN) clarified the association’s position in a public statement.
He said that the Lionheart team did not adhere to the processes involved in exhibiting a film in cinemas in the country that’s why most of its members “rightly refused to take the movie.”
“We expect the movie to come from a licenced distributor, we expect the movie to be given adequate run time in the cinemas before it is officially released on other platforms.
“And also for our cinemas to be provided with adequate notice for the inclusion of the movie in an increasingly crowded calendar.
“It is clear from the approach taken by the Lionheart team that these processes were not adhered to and most of our members rightly refused to take the movie.
“It is also important to note that this movie had been signed up by Netflix months ago, thereby giving Genevieve’s team ample time to secure a spot on the calendar.
“An option they did not take until quite recently thereby ensuring the possibility of the movie not being shown by cinemas during their preferred date.
“Genevieve has starred and produced movies for cinema exhibition in the past so should be familiar with the way the industry works which is why this is a cause for concern for us in the cinema association.
“Finally it’s worth pointing out that other movies such as Chief Daddy, KOB and Merry Men had all been slated from early March this year.
“Mo Abudu, AY and Kemi Adetiba who are industry compatriots of Genevieve’s followed the right approach by scheduling early for cinema release.
“It’s not fair that they may now possibly have their screen times reduced because of the rushed inclusion of Lionheart in the cinemas.
“We at the cinema association are also not pleased about the attacks in the statement on some of our members and the sweeping generalisations the statement makes,” Lee said.
Lee added that the association expects to seek further clarification from its author before determining if further action needs to be taken.
It will be recalled that ‘Lion Heart’ had successful screenings at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) and Marakeuch, Morroco and will be available on Netflix in January, 2019.
Nigerian showbiz maestro and rights activist, Charles Oputa, popularly known as Charlyboy, has formally walked his American wife, Diane, down the aisle after 40 years of marriage.
The marriage produced three children.
Charlyboy and Diane exchanged marriage vows on Saturday evening at the Chapel of Sisters of Jesus the Redeemer Catholic Church in Gwarimpa, Abuja.
The low-keyed wedding was officiated by the outspoken Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Dioceses, Bishop Mathew Kukah, and had in attendance close friends and relatives of the couple, including the aged mother of Charlyboy.
The Archbishop of Abuja Catholic Diocese, Cardinal John Onaiyekan, was also in attendance among some other clergymen.
The couple exchanged the “I do” vows amidst cheers from the congregation.
They thereafter signed the marriage register.
Onaiyekan, in his exhortation, hailed the couple for staying together for over four decades.
He, however, urged them to be committed to their marriage vows by showing mutual love, understanding and respect for each other.
”I specially congratulate Charles and his wife for this Godly decision, and I pray God to keep them together.”
Charlyboy on the sidelines said that he and his wife decided to wed in church to honour his aged mother who had been ‘pleading that we do the right thing’.
He said that he got married as a teenager in 1974, and secured divorced after the union produced one child.
He noted that the Catholic Church observed a strict marital doctrine.
”This is not that kind of marriage with fanfare; I am doing it to please my aged mother and meet certain demands of the society.
Charlyboy and Lady Diane: now married after 40 years of cohabitation
”She has been pleading that we do the right thing, saying this is the woman I have been living with for 40 years.
”We have been following through with the process of annulment of my last marriage, and my former wife who has since remarried cooperated very well, and then in 2017, the marriage was formally annulled.
”My mother actually got the wife for me at the age of 19 because I was a little rascally with women as a young man; she thinks it would curb my sexual excesses,” he said.
Charlyboy, who is 67 years, has nine children from different women, and has 16 grandchildren.
He has, however, always regarded Diane as the mother of all his children.
Omorinmade, the first son of Afrobeat legend, Femi Kuti and his wife, Funke, graduated from Trinity College of Music, United Kingdom.
Made, as he is fondly called, bagged a Bachelor of Music (Honours) Composing from the prestigious institution, where his grandfather, the legendary Fela, was also an alumni.
The Kuti family is reputed as the pioneers of the Afrobeat music genre worldwide. They gained international prominence through the late legendary Afrobeat musician, Fela Anikuapo Kuti.
Femi Kuti announced on his page that his son Omorinmade Anikulapo Kuti is officially a graduate.
The proud dad shared a picture and wrote:
Very happy!!! Our son’s @madekuti graduation day!!! 🎉🎉🎉 @funkekut Congratulations my BOJ!!!@yeniakuti
Femi’s father, the legendary afrobeat superstar, Late Fela Anikulapo-Kuti, also attended Trinity College of Music, London.
Yeni Kuti, Femi’s sister also congratulated Made on her instagram page
”Congratulations!!!! @madekuti . Job well done. Trinity College. Fela’s alma mater. Now yours! We are so proud of you! Made your father proud. @femiakuti@funkekuti,” she wrote.
Also, Meade’s maternal grandmother, Laila St.Mathew Daniel, also congratulated him on her Instagram page:
“To God be the glory – Omorinmade – my first grandson – graduated yesterday from Trinity College with – Bachelor of Music (Honours) Composing – where his grandfather, the legendary Fela – is an Alumni! The College were proud to have him! 🌹🌹🌹🌹Congrats to both mother and father for a job well done and to God for answered prayers!……
First daughter, first grandchild – Ope oh! Baba mo dupe fun ore yi o!
Araye eba mi dupe oh!
____
#proudgranma @madekuti @funkekut
Femi Odugbemi, a renowned filmmaker, was one of the recipients of the Movie Rock of Fame Award at the Zuma Film Festival in Abuja.
Chidia Maduekwe, managing director, Nigeria Film Society, in his nomination letter to Odugbemi, said the lifetime achievement award is “to recognise and reward excellence and immeasurable contributions towards the growth of the film industry”.
Organised by Nigeria Film Corporation (NFC) as part of the film festival, other honourees include veteran actor Chika ‘Zebrudaya’ Okpala; former managing director of NFC, Hyginius Ekwuazi, actors Ali Nuhu and Yakub Ibn Mohammed.
Commenting on the award, Odugbemi urged young filmmakers to pursue artistic excellence in their work.
He said: “It is good to show all the glitz and glamour but if the essence of your story is lost, then you haven’t done a job.
“We need to find that untold stories that reflect our history and the magic of the African culture more, not cloning stories informed only by pecuniary gains. Our stories should not only entertain but also inform and inspire.
“Filmmaking is a powerful tool which most of us are yet to fully grasp. Nollywood can and should be the most powerful voice of the black race.”
The honour is the latest of many that Odugbemi has received in 2018 alone.
In June, the ‘Bariga Boys’ director and producer was named among the four Nigerians invited into the voting membership of the Oscar awards, also known as the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
He was subsequently appointed as the West African director of the MultiChoice Talent Factory Academy.
Odugbemi is a past president of the Independent Television Producers Association of Nigeria (ITPAN) and was the pioneer and three-time head judge of the Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards (AMVCA).
The filmmaker has also served as the jury head of the Uganda Film Festival for three consecutive years while he helms the popular iREP International Documentary Film Festival.
Odugbemi was a founding producer of ‘Tinsel’, and his current production ‘Battleground’ is one of the most-watched TV series on Africa Magic.
Joel ‘Tee’ Ajayi, the lead saxophonist for Fuji music king, King Wasiu Ayinde Marshall a.k.a. K1 de Ultimate, who went into coma two weeks ago, is dead.
It will be recalled that K1 lost his lead vocalist, ‘Dipo, two Sundays ago, the same day Joel reportedly fell into coma, for an undisclosed ailment.
