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Robert M. Young, the adventurous director who called the shots for Edward James Olmos in The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez, Farrah Fawcett in Extremities and Tom Hulce and Ray Liotta in Dominick and Eugene, died Feb. 6, his son Andrew announced. He was 99.

After getting his start in educational and documentary films, Young also directed the 1969 Peabody-winning CBS telefilm J.T., written by Jane Wagner. Revolving around a Harlem youngster (Kevin Hooks) and an alley cat, it bowed on a Saturday afternoon and was repeated in primetime as the network preempted its most popular show, Gunsmoke.

Young also served as cinematographer, producer and co-writer with director Michael Roemer on the critically acclaimed drama Nothing But a Man (1964), featuring Ivan Dixon and jazz vocalist Abbey Lincoln as a struggling young Black couple in Alabama.

Young made his feature directorial debut with Short Eyes (1977), which starred Bruce Davison, José Pérez and several real-life prisoners...

Robert M. Young, whose 70-year career included independent and studio documentaries, narrative features, and episodes of Battlestar: Galactica, died Tuesday in Los Angeles at 99. His death was confirmed in a Facebook post by his son.

Two of his films have recently been added to the Library of Congress Film Registry. They include ¡Alambrista! (1977), a film about the life of an undocumented Mexican immigrant, which won the Camera d’Or for best first film at Cannes, and The Ballad of Gregorio Cortez, (1982), one of Young’s eight films with actor Edward James Olmos. Based on a true story that inspired a corrido, it tells of a man on the run after a confrontation with police.

Both films are also part of the Criterion Collection.

Those films represented a recurring theme of Young’s career, one which showed his interest in bringing social issues to wider attention.

“We lose important people all the time,...

Get in touch to send in cinephile news and discoveries. For daily updates follow us @NotebookMUBI.NEWSAnne Heche in Psycho.Anne Heche has died at the age of 53, one week after sustaining critical injuries in a car accident. At Vulture, Matt Zoller Seitz offers a tribute to her "elastic," unclassifiable talent over 35 years of screen roles.Best known for Half of a Yellow Sun, an adaptation of the Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie novel, Nigerian director and novelist Biyi Bandele died aged 54 last week. His second feature, Elesin Oba, The King’s Horseman, is set to premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival next month.In New York, the Downtown Community Television Center (Dctv) will open a documentary cinema in lower Manhattan's Chinatown district, screening first-run debuts and curated programs starting on September 22.Mid-century Italian screen icon Gina Lollobrigida has said she will run for the Sovereign and Popular Italy party (ISP...

Dorothy Wang gets asked all the time on Instagram why she wasn’t immediately cast on Bling Empire. But Wang’s fans finally got their wish when the billion-dollar heiress and businesswoman joined season 2 of Netflix’s Crazy Rich Asians-meets-reality TV series. The 34-year-old is no stranger to having cameras follow her life thanks to four seasons (2014-18) on Rich Kids of Beverly Hills. This time around Wang brings that past experience of weaving through the drama while the filming goes on. We caught up with the star about stepping back into the spotlight and keeping it real — even when it might ruffle a few feathers. What ultimately made you decide to sign on for Bling Empire? Dorothy Wang: I had my reservations. As outgoing as I am and like being on television, I also enjoy having a peaceful, calm life. Things get a little more chaotic on reality TV,...

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"Bling Empire" somehow managed to outdo itself with an even messier second season. From Anna Shay and Christine Chiu's ongoing feud to Chèrie Chan and Jessey Lee's shocking exit, just about everyone had their fair share of drama this season, including newcomer Dorothy Wang.

The TV personality and entrepreneur - who previously starred on E!'s "Rich Kids of Beverly Hills" from 2014 to 2016 - decided to join the Netflix series after seeing all the comments from people telling her she should be on it. "When the first season came out, there was a lot of feedback. Everyone said, 'Why isn't Dorothy on 'Bling Empire?' and not that I was convinced by everyone, but I'm a people pleaser," Wang tells Popsugar. "Everyone just wanted to see me appear on it, and it didn't seem like it was the worst thing to do."

Even...

One of these shows is not like the other! Dorothy Wang is the Bling Empire's newest addition, but she's no stranger to the reality star life—Dorothy starred in Rich Kids of Beverly Hills for four seasons from 2004 to 2006. In an exclusive E! News interview, she revealed the two casts are extremely different. "I think that we were a more dramatic bunch and were a little bit more hot-headed and more animated," Dorothy explained of Rich Kids. "I think with this [Bling Empire] group, everything's a little bit more behind the scenes, like, calculated and maneuvered and thought out." The reality star added that this may be due to the fact the cast, including Kevin...

HBO Max's Gossip Girl reboot is upping the ante from the original in drama, fashion, and now even music. On Thursday night, we got the first full trailer for the upcoming series, which premieres next month, and it's set to the perfect track. As the next generation of Manhattan's elite do all kinds of scandalous things around NYC, Frank Ocean's "Super Rich Kids" from his debut album Channel Orange plays in the background.

Needless to say, it's the perfect opening note (metaphorically and lyrically) for this new chapter of Gossip Girl. Not only do the lyrics perfectly describe all the privileged teens of the Upper East Side as Ocean sings, "Parents ain't around enough / Too many joy rides in daddy's Jaguar / Too many white lies and white lines / Super rich kids with nothing but loose ends," but it also includes a nice little connection to the original show.

Disney ’s The Proud Family revival has added a trio of actors to its cast with Billy Porter, Zachary Quinto and Ej Johnson set to play new characters.

The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder will pick up the story of its central character Penny Proud and also include her madcap family: parents Oscar and Trudy, twin siblings BeBe and CeCe, and her grandmother Suga Mama (and Puff!). Penny’s loyal crew Dijonay Jones, Lacienega Boulevardez and Zoey Howzer will also return for the series.

The newly-added trio will join original cast members Kyla Pratt, Tommy Davidson, Paula Jai Parker, JoMarie Payton, Cedric the Entertainer, Carlos Mencia, Maria Canals-Barrera, Alvaro Gutierrez, Karen Malina White, Soleil Moon Frye and Alisa Reyes.

The Proud Family: Louder and Prouder, which is currently in production for a 2022 launch on Disney , is executive-produced by Bruce W. Smith and Ralph Farquhar, both of whom led the original series.