lifestyle THURSDAY, DECEMBER 4, 2014

Music & Movies Comedian Bill Cosby accused in lawsuit of molesting girl in 1974

ill Cosby was sued on Tuesday by a satory and punitive damages. Cosby’s lawyer, woman alleging he molested her in 1974 Martin Singer, had no immediate comment on Bat the Playboy Mansion in Los Angeles the matter, his office said. when she was 15, in what is believed to be the first court case arising from a recent wave of sex- Discredited and defamatory ual misconduct accusations against the comedi- The suit came a day after Cosby resigned an. The five-page complaint, filed in Los Angeles from the board of trustees of Temple University, County Superior Court, charged that Cosby sex- his Philadelphia alma mater, amid a series of sex- ually abused plaintiff Judy Huth by putting his ual assault accusations lodged against the hand down her pants, and then “taking her hand comedian by more than a dozen women in in his hand and performing a sex act on himself recent weeks. None of those women is believed without her consent.” to have filed a lawsuit. Allegations that Cosby, Huth claims she and a female friend met and now 77, drugged and sexually assaulted a num- chatted with Cosby on the set of a movie they ber of young women decades ago gained saw was being filmed in a suburban Los Angeles renewed attention after standup comic Hannibal park, and that he invited them to his tennis club Buress called him a rapist during a performance OSN wins two prestigious the following Saturday. The suit also says the in October. One of Cosby’s accusers, Barbara girls told Cosby they were 15- and 16-years-old Bowman, wrote in a Washington Post op-ed last when he asked their ages. month that he sexually assaulted her on multi- awards at Broadcast Pro Arriving at the tennis club days later, the two ple occasions in 1985 when she was 17. girls played a drinking game with Cosby at his Cosby’s camp unwittingly intensified the suggestion, and he then led them to the Playboy scandal on by asking supporters to cre- Middle East Awards Mansion after they “had been served multiple ate viral online parodies, or “memes,” about him, alcoholic beverages.” Once at the mansion, the and were instead barraged with Internet satires Entertainer and Navy veteran Bill Cosby, ges- SN, the region’s leading pay-TV net- time. The Outstanding MENA OTT Initiative suit said, Cosby instructed the girls to lie about about the rape accusations. Cosby has not been tures as he listens to remarks during a work, has won two awards at a pres- recognises the region’s most acclaimed their ages if asked. It was there that the Huth charged. His lawyers have called the assault Veterans Day ceremony.—AP Otigious annual ceremony for the products and services that have been driv- said she emerged from a bathroom to find claims discredited and defamatory. In 2006, he industry. For the fourth year running, OSN ing the broadcast industry. Cosby on a bed, asking her to sit beside him settled for an undisclosed sum a lawsuit brought scooped top honours at the Broadcast Pro “We aim to connect, uplift and touch the before groping her. by another woman, Andrea Constand, who Middle East Awards, marking the company hearts of our audiences by investing in pre- “This traumatic incident, at such a tender age, claimed Cosby drugged and sexually assaulted as a leader in the region’s broadcast indus- mium, fresh and relevant content for our has caused psychological damage and mental her. NBC and Netflix recently canceled projects try. subscribers. With digital and mobile media anguish for the plaintiff that has caused her sig- with Cosby, and reruns of his top-rated sitcom, The first award this year was for OSN’s making fast inroads and the TV consump- nificant problems throughout her life,” the com- “The Cosby Show,” were pulled from cable chan- own Arabic production Mousameh Karim, tion habits and aspirations of the audience plaint said. The suit seeks unspecified compen- nel TV Land, all without explanation.—Reuters on OSN Ya Hala! HD, which won changing, responding to their needs is a ‘Outstanding TV Programme of the Year’. top priority at OSN. That’s why we launched The show, starring Arab superstar ‘Go by OSN’, our online TV service, which George Kordahi, is based on the theme of has the very best of content on an easy to reconnecting estranged family members use, easy to access format. The service has and friends, and has proven immensely become incredibly popular and we’re look- Oscar Isaac calls ‘Star Wars’ trailer mind-blowing popular among viewers. The second award ing to expand upon it and add more con- was for ‘Outstanding MENA OTT Initiative’ tent and features in the months to come,” scar Isaac is as wowed by the new “Star Wars: The for OSN’s online TV service, ‘Go by OSN’. said David Butorac, CEO of OSN. Force Awakens” trailer as are its fans. Isaac, one of Launched earlier this year, ‘Go by OSN’ Othe stars of the highly anticipated sequel, said the has evolved as one of the most-preferred trailer was “pretty mind-blowing” during an appearance at destinations for online TV in a short span of Monday night’s Gotham Independent Film Awards. “I shot (the film) this summer and it was one of the greatest expe- riences of my life,” the actor, who was nominated for a Gotham award for his role in “A Most Violent Year,” told The Associated Press. But when it came time to discuss the par- ticulars of his character, Isaac was not about to reveal any- thing - including rumors that he’s playing the son of Princess Leia and Han Solo. “That’s what you got from the trailer?” Isaac asked. “Hey, you run with that buddy. You take that and run with it.” When asked if he was Luke Skywalker’s son, he laughed. “I can’t say a word. What are you doing? I’m not going to tell you. I can’t say a word, man,” Isaac said. The official “Star Wars: The Force Awakens” has been viewed more than 10 million times since it debuted on Friday. The J.J. Abrams-directed film is set for In this Nov 06, 2014 file photo, Oscar Isaac arrives at 2014 AFI Fest - “A Most Violent release in December of 2015.—AP Year” event in Los Angeles.—AP

In this image released by Sony Pictures Classics, Julianne Moore appears in a scene from the film, “Still Alice.”—AP Julianne Moore is exquisite in ‘Alice’

hen we refer to an actor’s per- Alice tries to keep working, but that proves formance as breathtaking, we’re unrealistic. Also unrealistic: that loved ones, Wusually engaging in hyperbole. in such circumstances, would behave like Rarely if ever do we mean it actually affect- saints. Of course they don’t. Alice’s younger ed our ability to breathe. But during “Still daughter Lydia (an excellent Kristen Alice,” watching the vital, sharply intelligent Stewart), going through a self-indulgent woman played by Julianne Moore slowly phase, struggles to make room for her cede her mental faculties - and, most mother’s affliction. And John, as subtly por- painfully, her identity - to Alzheimer’s dis- trayed by Baldwin, has trouble balancing ease, I found myself frequently needing to his devotion to his wife with fears for the gulp in big breaths of air, merely to steel future - and his own career goals. But myself for the next scene. Of course this is though these two relationships are key, the partly due to the nature of the material. movie distinguishes itself from others There’s no way to tell a story about about Alzheimer’s by being, essentially, Alzheimer’s that isn’t ultimately devastat- about Alice’s relationship with Alice. It’s ing, and writer-directors Richard Glatzer about her fight to retain what she can of and Wash Westmoreland clearly have no herself - to remain the person that she Bokra The Film set to make its world intention of sugar-coating the cruelty of knows. this disease. A bitter twist, of course, is that Alice is a But as its title suggests, “Still Alice,” linguistics professor - an expert in commu- premiere at Dubai International Film Festival based on the novel by neuroscientist Lisa nicating. As her abilities fade, she agrees Genova, is about one woman, and thank- nonetheless to address a medical confer- okra The Film, a feature length documen- music and the arts to bring people together for Positive influence fully we have Moore, one of our most sensi- ence, and we’re so afraid to see her get up tary showcasing the evolution of the hit the betterment of mankind,” said Quincy Jones. “It is an honor for Bokra The Film to make its tive and nuanced actresses, in the role. She there, a trembling shadow of the confident Bcharity song and music video ‘Tomorrow- ‘Tomorrow-Bokra’, an Arabic re-adaptation of debut in my home of the UAE and at such an gives a warm, brave and shattering per- teacher she once was. But this scene -and Bokra’, and the broader impact of the arts on the Jones’ Grammy-award winning song ‘Tomorrow influential platform for the regional film industry. formance here - one that’s already earning the message she manages to impart - is lives of disadvantaged youth, is set to make its (A Better You, A Better Me)’, was released in It is my hope that by showcasing the positive accolades, and deserves many more before one of the film’s most powerful. There’s a world premiere at the Dubai International Film November 2011 debuting at number 1 on the influence music and film can have on disadvan- awards season ends. We first meet Alice, a behind-the-scenes element to the movie Festival (DIFF) on closing night, 17 December, charts and went on to become one of the fastest taged youth that more people will unite in the linguistics professor at Columbia, as she’s that makes it all the more poignant. In 2014 at the Madinat Souk Theatre in the Madinat selling Arab songs of all time viewed over 11 mil- power of the arts to truly make a difference,” said celebrating her 50th birthday with family. 2011, co-director Glatzer saw a doctor Jumeirah Hotel. lion times on You Tube. The charity single fea- director Ahmed Abdulqader on his debut fea- Chic and accomplished, she’s managed to about slurred speech and discovered he Presented by Global Gumbo Group (G3), tured 24 of the region’s top artists from 16 ture. work and travel and raise three adult kids in was suffering from ALS, or Lou Gehrig’s dis- directed by Emirati filmmaker Ahmed nations across the Middle East and North Africa “I have been close to the ‘Tomorrow-Bokra’ a beautiful home. She and her husband, ease. He directed the movie using a Abdulqader and co-produced by the multi singing with one voice for a better tomorrow, project since it was just an idea. To see what it John (Alec Baldwin), also an academic, live speech-to-text app on his iPad. Whereas Grammy Award winning music producer Quincy including Majida El-Roumi, Kadim Al-Saher, has achieved from the very beginning is incredi- in a lovely brownstone with a great kitchen. Alzheimer’s attacks the mind and ALS the Jones, Emirati social entrepreneur Badr Jafar and Marwan Khoury, Abdel Wahab, Tamer ble, and I knew when Badr asked my thoughts But one day, giving a lecture, Alice sud- body, both attack one’s sense of identity. As Emirati director Ali F Mostafa, the English and Hosny, Saber Rebai, Latifa, Fayez Al-Saeed and on producing a documentary about the impor- denly stops, mid-sentence. She can’t the directors express so well in “Still Alice,” Arabic documentary Bokra The Film will take many more. International superstar Akon also tance of art, that it was the ideal subject. It has remember a key word. She recovers nimbly with the help of Moore’s memorable per- viewers on a journey across the Middle East from lent his vocals to the track while Shakira, who is been an honor working with the talented debu- with a joke, but we shudder. Back home, formance, holding onto that identity is Morocco to Jordan with behind the scenes of Lebanese descent, recorded a special intro- tant Emirati filmmaker Ahmed Abdulqader, in taking her usual jog around campus, she what keeps us alive and vital and connect- footage of the song’s creative process and the duction to the music video. bringing Bokra The Film to its world premiere at gets lost. The camera blurs, along with the ed to the world. inspiring stories that demonstrate the power All proceeds from the song were donated to our beloved Dubai International Film Festival,” connections in her brain. We shudder “Still Alice,” a Sony Pictures Classics that the arts can play in the lives of disadvan- various charities and initiatives that were target- said Emirati director Ali F Mostafa. again. We know what’s coming. The meet- release, is rated PG-13 by the Motion taged youth and those in worn-torn nations. ed to towards the regions youth; with a special Held under the patronage Sheikh ing with the neurologist, for example, Picture Association of America “for mature focus on developing culture and arts. The bene- Mohammed Bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, UAE Vice where her memory lapses become clear. thematic material, and brief language Arab songs ficiaries included the World Food Program, Abu President & Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, Her first warning to her husband that including a sexual reference.” Running time: “I am enormously proud that the people of Dhabi Music and Arts Foundation and Save the and under the honorary chairmanship of Sheikh something’s wrong - he brusquely dismiss- 99 minutes. Three and a half stars out of the Middle East and North Africa so warmly Children’s innovative HEART program, which Ahmed bin Saeed Al-Maktoum, DIFF is the lead- es her worst fears, as many would to pro- four. MPAA definition of PG-13: Parents embraced the themes expressed in ‘Tomorrow - stands for Healing and Education through the ing film festival in the region. Since its inception tect themselves. The diagnosis of early strongly cautioned. Some material may be Bokra’ and I can think of no better place to pre- arts. The film highlights HEART following its in 2004, DIFF has established itself as an influen- onset Alzheimer’s. The devastating news inappropriate for children under 13.—AP miere the film of the making of this historic development into a program that gives children tial platform for Arab filmmakers and talent at an that her children might carry the gene. recording than the Dubai International Film an outlet for expression through art. To date international level, by spearheading the cinema Festival. As with the recording of the ‘Bokra’ song HEART has supported 33 schools, 90 teachers movement in the region. Mother’s affliction and music video, I know that Bokra The Film will and 4,000 children throughout Jordan and Time passes - too quickly, of course. continue to prove my belief in the power of Palestine.