The 55th annual Nashville Film Festival will showcase an array of vital films when it gets underway Thursday. The event continues through Sept. 25 at the Belcourt, Regal Green Hills, Franklin Theatre, and elsewhere. The impressive list includes 44 feature-length films and more than 150 overall productions. While, as would be expected, there are numerous great music-oriented films, there’s also a variety of titles in other areas. These include Titus Kaphar’s “Exhibiting Forgiveness,” a work that spotlights familial conflict and issues as a Black artist headed for success suddenly finds things unraveling due to an unexpected visit from his father,…
Author: Ron Wynn
Though it’s still summer and much of the nation is immersed in sweltering heat, studios and networks are already planning their holiday agendas. Last Friday, BET+ announced a premiere date for “Brewster’s Millions: Christmas,” a reimagining of the 1985 Richard Pryor film “Brewster’s Millions.” The holiday film stars China Anne McClain, Tequan Richmond, and Romeo Miller. As an added bonus, two of Pryor’s children, Richard Pryor Jr. and Rain Pryor, have roles in the film. Sierra McClain and Telma Hopkins also join the ensemble cast. This new edition is inspired by the original novel by George Barr McCutcheon. The film…
It has taken more than three decades, but there is now finally concrete news regarding an updated or rebooted version of the popular Black college-centered sitcom, “A Different World.” A new version of the series will be coming to Netflix, although exactly when is still not completely clear. But according to reports on Deadline and other entertainment sites, the program will pivot off an episode from the fifth season of the original titled, “When One Door Closes.” During that episode, characters Whitley Gilbert (Jasmine Guy) and Dwayne Wayne (Kadeem Hardison) discovered that they are pregnant. After Dwayne is offered a…
SportsView There’s no doubt that the world’s second most popular team sport has become basketball, ranking behind only what every other nation, except America, calls football (or futbol, though it’s known as soccer in the USA). It’s a game Americans assume our teams will always dominate, but the truth is the rest of the world doesn’t lag anywhere near as far behind as it did when the 1992 Dream Team helped launch the sport’s global explosion. While on the surface, the fact that America’s Olympic teams keep winning gold, a quick look behind the numbers will reveal just how much…
The NBA may not be in Nashville in terms of a team, but they will have a preseason presence in Music City. The New Orleans Pelicans will be practicing at Belmont University’s Crockett Center for Athletic Excellence from Oct. 1-6. It’s the Pelicans’ second time coming to town. They were at the Crockett Center for voluntary team activities months after the facility opened in May 2021. The Pelicans are also not the first team who’s taken advantage of the facility. Belmont has previously hosted the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Chicago Bulls. “We have enjoyed a great relationship with the Pelicans’…
No one takes preseason results all that seriously, but teams always prefer winning to losing. With the first game under new head coach Brian Callahan now in the win column, the Titans are generally encouraged about a lot of the possibilities they can see based on results from that 17-13 victory. While starter Will Levi only played a couple of series, the offense got two touchdowns during his stint. That’s the kind of production that they’re hoping to get, finishing drives and scoring seven points rather than settling for field goals. While new acquisitions running back Tony Pollard and wide…
Seldom have the rights deal to televise a sports league’s games gotten more coverage than the new NBA contract. It’s even competed for front page attention in sports sections with the Olympics, despite the fact that both NBA regular season and playoff ratings have been down the last couple of years. But it is still sports content, and that’s what every cable, satellite and streaming provider desperately seeks. It’s also content that can lure more customers. When the league recently announced it had signed a new 11-year, 76 billion dollar deal with ABC/ESPN, NBC/Peacock and Amazon, one major name was…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — The Nashville Sounds will celebrate and honor the legacy of the late Negro League star Henry Kimbro August 10 with special game activities and giveaways. Kimbo was a legendary Nashville star who excelled as a centerfielder for the Negro League team the Elite Giants, whose roots are local. He played 15 years and finished as the team leader in games (511), stolen bases (55) and runs batted in (264). Defensively, he led the league in games played five times, putouts three and assists twice. “I am very excited and humbled by it because my…
By Ron Wynn Guitarist/vocalist George Benson has made many celebrated projects throughout his career, but few have had the lengthy period between recording and release date as his latest. “Dreams Do come True: When George Benson Meets Robert Farnon” (Rhino) was finally issued Friday, despite the fact Benson actually recorded it back in 1989. The Benson/Farnon collaboration was envisioned as the ideal match of Benson’s superb vocals and guitar solos and Farnon’s masterful arrangements. The sessions featured Benson’s version of such standards as “Autumn Leaves,” “At Last,” and “My Romance,” as well as versions of the Beatles’ “Yesterday” and Leon…
By Ron Wynn NASHVILLE, TN — With the start of school only a few days away for Metro Nashville students, a popular and annual festival signals their return to the classrooms. It’s the 11th Love’s Health Start Festival on Aug. 3 at the Hadley Park Community gymnasium. The event begins at 9 a.m. and continues until 11:30 a.m. It’s a chance for school kids to have some fun, parents to enjoy it with them, and also to promote education and literacy, the principal reasons why Rep. Dr. Harold M. Love Jr. started it. There’s free food and refreshments, a variety…