ARAB TIMES, MONDAY, MAY 17, 2021 NEWS/FEATURES 13

People & Places

Tech

Antidote to bland life TikTok videos spice up ‘home cooking’

NEW YORK, May 16, (AP): From sourdough to feta pasta, much of the last year at home has been food- focused. And one driver of these delectable fads is the social media platform TikTok. Many people have embraced cooking during the pandemic, when they’ve been home, bored, looking to try something new. TikTok was ready to fi ll the gap as a foodie paradise, and has seen more than 15 billion food posts. “It’s my bedtime routine,” Lori Jackson, 54, of Lynn, Massachusetts, said of watching TikTok cook- ing videos. “I’ve taken ideas I’ve seen on there and made them.” One of the burgeoning Tik- Tok celebrity chefs is Harry Heal, a 26-year-old who lives in Dubai. Heal has a distinct baritone, an English accent, and has garnered about a million fol- lowers in the six months he’s been posting cooking videos. He isn’t a chef by trade, though he learned some cooking skills when working in the French Heal Alps as a teen. “From then on, I have been a huge cooking enthusiast and loved being in the kitch- en,” Heal said. His most viral video — 13.3 million views — is a Valentine’s Day dish with seared chicken breast, roasted garlic, sliced mushrooms and cream. Like This image released by Netflix shows Ewan McGregor in a scene from ‘,’ which premiered Friday. (AP) most TikTok videos, it’s set to music and has the feel of something professionally crafted. Tri Phan of Arlington, Virginia, has amassed 1.5 million followers since he began posting workout and healthy cooking videos in November. The 23-year- old, who is working on his master’s degree in data and business analytics at American University, often does two versions of his content, one in English and one in Vietnamese; about 60 percent of his followers are Docu focuses on fashion designer’s reinvention Vietnamese, he says. Learn “When I fi rst started, it was me wanting to share with the world Vietnamese cuisine, Vietnamese food,” McGregor back with force as Halston he said. “Now I want to take this TikTok further to re- ally help people learn to cook healthy meals that they NEW YORK, May 16, (AP): Imag- could eat and they could eat for the rest of their lives.” ine, if you will, a galaxy far, far away Phan’s love of cooking came despite being told by where the one-name fashion wonder celebrates its 100 years with his traditional mother to stay out of the kitchen. “My Halston dresses Obi-Wan Kenobi in mom never wanted the only boy in the family to be in something fabulous from the swinging the kitchen,” he said. ’70s. exhibit on Michele code-breaking “And because of that, I always wanted to cook.” Ewan McGregor can. Sort of. Now that he’s TikTok famous, he says his mother McGregor is in the unique position FLORENCE, Italy, May 16, (AP): of beauty,” Michele told reporters doesn’t quite grasp what that means. “She’s like, ‘Oh, This image released by ABC shows of being the sole person — on this Alessandro Michele has radically Thursday in Florence. good job, son. Very good. But your fi nance major, Caleb Kennedy performing on the planet anyway — who might care, shifted Gucci codes and chal- He said the campaign, featuring how’s that going?’” singing competition series ‘Ameri- considering his dual roles as the Jedi lenged fashion norms in his 6½ Hari Nef, Petra Collins and Dakota About one year ago — somewhere near the “Ti- can Idol,’ in Los Angeles that aired master and the fl amboyant designer, years as creative director of the Johnson walking through a field of ger King” phase of the pandemic - a whipped coffee May 9. Kennedy has dropped out of the latter the subject of a new Netfl ix brand founded by Guccio Gucci as wildflowers, proved conventional drink made the rounds on the internet, starting its viral the singing competition after a video miniseries and the former a Disney+ a travel bag company in Florence fashion world wisdom wrong by journey on TikTok. The drink originated in South Ko- circulated showing him sitting next to “Star Wars” installment that has the 100 years ago. creating “an absolutely up-to-date rea, where it’s called a dalgona coffee. All it required someone wearing what appears to be Scottish actor on set in Los Angeles. To mark the centenary, Michele female imagery.” was instant coffee, sugar and hot water to construct a a Ku Klux Klan hood. Kennedy, ad- “It would be much more comfort- has curated an exhibition in the Gu- “If fashion and the fashion mar- luscious-looking beverage resembling a soft-serve ice vanced into the Top 5, apologized for able,” he told The Associated Press cci Garden gallery, on Florence’s ket want to continue to have a cream cone. The hashtag #whippedcoffee has amassed the video on Twitter and Instagram on during a recent interview on Zoom. “It Piazza della Signoria, that under- stage, there needs to be some sort more than 2.3 billion views. Wednesday, saying ‘it displayed ac- would all be in cashmere, you know, lines some watershed moments in of movement. That campaign, in a There’s a lot of variety on “food TikTok.” You tions that were not meant to be taken none of that heavy blanket material his era. Those include an advertis- very gentle and very poetic way, can learn to perfect a hamburger or ferment kimchee, in that way.’ (AP) ing campaign for perfume featuring gave space and voice to a world of stuff.” a transgender model, an all-Black very different femininity,” Michele make old-fashioned Japanese candy or fry frog legs. “Halston” has generated some heat cast for the pre-Fall 2017 campaign said. The video-only platform lends itself to cooking for McGregor and director Daniel Mi- and a lipstick campaign featuring Likewise, Michele said the cast- demonstrations, said Crystal King, a social media pro- nahan, both among the series’ execu- everyday faces in all their imperfec- ing of only Black models in the fessor at Boston-based marketing software fi rm Hub- Variety tive producers with Ryan Murphy. tions. 2017 campaign was at the time a spot. Other social media platforms have multiple fea- Halston’s niece, Lesley Frowick, The exhibition will be reproduced breakthrough, noting that “things tures — lots of text or static photos — that can divide along with other relatives, bashed in seven cities, including Shanghai, have changed in a dizzying and a user’s attention. TikTok, however, “sucks people in LOS ANGELES: Prince Harry compared Minahan’s passion project Monday Tokyo, Sydney and Seoul. very fast way in the last year.” really easily,” she said. “The format is simple, easily his royal experience to being on “The Tru- as “frankly, garbage” and “inaccu- The 48-year-old designer cred- The pandemic year has been a understood and it connects people into a global under- man Show” and “living in a zoo.” rate,” having seen nothing more than ited CEO Marco Bizzarri, who year of collaborations, including standing of food really quickly.” The Duke of Sussex said during a a trailer. Frowick, by phone from Cali- tapped an unknown Michele from with North Face, and Ken Scott and The vast array of content is a leading attraction of Thursday episode of the “Armchair fornia, said the family and the Halston the Gucci design team to take over Doraemon. A tie-up with Balencia- food TikTok, fans say. Many people, like Julie Vick, Expert” podcast that he contemplated Archives were not consulted. as creative director in January ga will reach stores later this year. a 44-year-old writer and college instructor in the Den- quitting royal life on several occasions 2015, with allowing him leeway to Gucci revenues rose 20% to 2.16 ver area, look there for new ideas. while in his 20s. He spoke candidly with Project go beyond the usual schemes driv- million euros in the first quarter of “The videos are a little mesmerizing at times,” Vick host Dax Shepard about keeping his ing the luxury business model. 2021 compared with the same pe- relationship with Meghan a secret and Minahan told AP he spoke to “No one would have wanted, we riod last year, Women’s Wear Daily said. “I’ve liked watching the tortilla ones, where peo- Halston’s brother, Robert Frowick, in ple put four different ingredients in different sections dealing with the UK media scrutiny. can say it, a transexual in the world reported. Harry thought his life was like the the late ’90s while developing the pro- of a tortilla and then fold it up and cook it in a skillet.” 1998 Jim Carrey fi lm “The Truman ject. Robert Frowick died in 2007 and Although they’re generally not hands-on, TikTok’s Show.” The fi lm tells a story about his widow disputes her husband was had a stable of beautiful muses and A- and was one of his bevy of models short videos do create interest in cooking skills, says Truman Burbank’s life being televised consulted. list friends, including Elizabeth Tay- dubbed the Halstonettes. Geeti Gangle, co-owner of Create a Cook culinary through hidden cameras while encounter- “I think everyone’s entitled to their lor, (played by Krysta The series is full of Halston snorting school in Newton, Massachusetts. ing people who were hired actors. opinion. This is not a documentary. Rodriguez), , cocaine and Halston spending lavishly. “If we engage younger people in learning to cook, Harry said it was a heavy burden and It’s a dramatic series,” Minahan said. and . He had a penchant for decking out his they will start making food for themselves one day,” he struggled to deal with being a member “And the people who knew Halston By the era, Halston was a mirrored Olympic Tower atelier in fresh Gangle said. “And they might become interested in of the royal family. He feared that his and were around him who have seen it regular at , later designing orchids and fl ying in dinners from top learning the skills later on.” pregnant wife and son, Archie, would have responded really well to it.” costumes for the famed choreogra- New York restaurants to the retreat he The link between good nutrition and knowing how have to deal with the spotlight the same In addition, award-winning “Pose” pher . His bright, sen- rented from Warhol in Montauk. to cook has been well established. But until the pan- way his late mother, Princess Diana, had star Billy Porter, a fashion lover su- sual clothes, Minnelli has said, were The biopic, based on the 1991 book demic, cooking skills were on the decline for young to deal with the enormous attention. preme, has questioned casting straight In 1997, Diana died in a car crash at clothes that danced with you. “Simply Halston” by , people and not frequently taught in school. actors like McGregor in gay roles, not- also delves into his own reinvention, Camden Allard, a 21-year-old student in Seattle, the age of 36 in Paris while being pur- Aesthetic sued by paparazzi. ing gay actors rarely have equal access from poor boy in Indiana (his large has made several recipes from TikTok: bread recipes, to straight parts. Halston lost the use of his trade- family moved a lot) to elegant, black the feta tomato pasta that recently broke the internet, “I don’t want this job, I don’t want to be here, I don’t want to be doing “I felt that Ewan was the best person marked name in a business deal that turtleneck-clad workaholic with a trifl es, cinnamon rolls and the quarter quesadilla. for the job,” said Minahan, who is gay. made him rich but left him at the short fuse. “TikTok videos are great to watch because I am this. Look what it did to my mum,” the 36-year-old Harry said. “I just can’t imagine anyone else doing mercy of a series of corporate over- McGregor, as part of his prepara- able to get the overall information about a recipe — In a previous interview, Harry said the it. He was my No. 1 choice.” seers. Born Roy Halston Frowick in tion, learned to sew, whipping up like what it makes, the ingredients, how you cook it — royal family cut him off fi nancially at the For his part, McGregor — rushing Des Moines, Iowa, he died in 1990 botched baggy trousers with one pock- in about a minute,” he said. “I can quickly determine start of 2020 after he announced plans to from interview to interview to promote of AIDS-related complications at age et on the inside and one on the outside. if it’s something that I would be interested in doing.” step back from his roles. But he was able the series while slinging his lightsaber 57, having left behind his New York He also had tea with Minnelli, though Allard, who has been cooking for about eight years, to afford security for his family because once again — said word that Frowick world after his ouster from the com- he promised to keep the details private. said he enjoys making meals with his girlfriend and of the money his mother left behind. and another of Halston’s six nieces pany that bore his name. He fell into “I just wanted her to know that he family, and TikTok has made it easy for them to ex- Harry and Meghan’s departure from were unhappy “makes me sad.” the embrace of family in Northern was in safe hands with me,” McGregor pand their repertoire. royal duties began last year over what “We were so meticulous,” he said. California, where he died in a San said. “You know, there’s lots been “Quarantine has made life bland and repetitive with they described as the British media’s “Dan Minahan has been researching Francisco hospital. said about Halston over the years and us staying at home, and having new meals to try out has intrusions and racist attitudes toward the this, wanting to make this for more duchess. He criticized some American His decision to bring his aesthetic I wanted her to know that I respected added some excitement,” he said. “That has made mak- than 20 years, so it’s a shame.” to the masses included making clothes her love for him and I respected their ing dinners less of a chore and more an exciting thing.” media outlets but said they are an im- provement over the ones in the UK. Halston was a Midwesterner who for J.C. Penney and cranking out an friendship. I couldn’t imagine how Also: He feels more liberated after he and revolutionized his industry with com- onslaught of goods: luggage, carpet, deeply I felt her love for him until we his family moved to California. fortable deconstructed gowns, wash- uniforms for the Girl Scouts and Bran- had tea.” MIAMI: A 28-year-old woman who wanted to pro- able Ultraseude shirt dresses and a mote her Instagram page attempted to blend in with “Living here now I can actually lift iff Airways — and an unforgettable Rodriguez, known for her work on my head and actually feel different,” minimalist, clean approach that re- fi rst scent that came in a tear drop bot- stage and TV (she was Ana Vargas on students at a Miami-area high school, police said. defi ned American fashion starting in Last Monday’s stunt at American Senior High said Harry, who added he’s able to take tle designed by another member of his NBC’s “Smash”), did her own singing Audrey Francisquini Archie for bicycle rides. “You can walk the 1960s. He was known for making inner circle, . She became in “Halston.” She didn’t meet Minnelli School landed in jail, where around feeling a little bit more free.” she’s facing charges of burglary, interfering with a Jackie Kennedy’s blue inaugural pill- a jewelry designer for Tiffany & Co. and admits to nerves taking on the liv- (AP) box hat (he started as a milliner) and (thanks to an introduction by Halston) ing legend for Netfl ix. school function and resisting arrest without violence, ❑ ❑ ❑ records show. Francisquini started handing out pamphlets printed : Pervis Staples, whose tenor with her Instagram account after sneaking onto the voice complimented his father’s and sis- campus around 8:30 am Monday, police said. She ters’ in the legendary gospel group The had a black backpack and carried a skateboard as she Staple Singers, has died, a spokesman lowing when they began recording songs You Happy,” and “If You’re Ready walked through the hallways, recording herself. announced. He was 85. such as “So Soon,” “If I Could Hear My (Come Go With Me).” School security tracked her down as she was wan- Pervis Staples died May 6 at his home Mother Pray Again,” “Will the Circle Be However, Pervis’ last album with The dering the hallways while students were in classrooms, in Dolton, Illinois, according to Adam Unbroken,” and “Uncloudy Day” for Vee Staple Singers was their fi rst for Stax Ayers, a spokesman for Staples’ sister, Jay records in the 1950s. Records, “Soul Folks in Action” in 1968. an arrest report said. Francisquini told investigators The group gained fame in the 1960s The album featured new songs such as she was looking for the registration offi ce. Mavis Staples. The cause of death wasn’t given. by singing music that urged change on a “The Ghetto” and their interpretations of Investigators said she headed toward the registra- Pervis Staples sang gospel songs variety of social and religious issues. The tunes like Otis Redding’s “(Sittin’ On) tion offi ce, but did not enter. Instead she continued with his father, the guitar-playing Staple Singers gained a huge audience The Dock of the Bay” and The Band’s walking through the hallways, talking to students, Roebuck “Pops” Staples, and sisters with their fi rst No. 1 hit, “I’ll Take You “The Weight.” He went on to manage the news outlets reported. Mavis, Yvonne and Cleotha in Chicago There” in 1972 and followed with top 40 girl group The Emotions and operated a churches before gaining a national fol- hits “Respect Yourself,” “Heavy Makes Prince Harry Staples popular nightclub, Perv’s House. (AP)