Olivia Munn finds little

support from ‘Predator’ peers

TORONTO (AP) — Actress Olivia Munn says she has found little support from some of her “Predator” co-stars and director after a Los Angeles Times report revealed that Twentieth Century Fox had removed a scene that featured a man who is a registered sex offender. Munn alerted the studio to Steven Wilder Striegel’s status and the scene was cut within 24 hours.

In a round of press at the Toronto International Film Festival on Saturday, Munn described feeling lonely and isolated in the wake of the report. Munn told Vanity Fair that she has not heard from director Shane Black, who apologized in a statement for casting his friend.

Some of her cast mates also backed out of interviews with her, according to The Hollywood Reporter. One of her co-stars, Keegan-Michael Key, was never booked to do that interview as he departed the festival early for the Jewish new year holiday. His publicist says Sunday that he reached out to Munn privately last week to express his admiration for her.

The initial article was published hours before the TIFF premiere of “The Predator.”

Music, math collide on New Mexico PBS educational

program

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — New Mexico PBS has partnered with the Santa Fe Institute and the Santa Fe Symphony Orchestra to produce an hour-long educational program.

The Santa Fe New Mexican reports the program, The Majesty of Music and Math, which premiered Thursday night, explores the mathematical concepts behind music.

New Mexico PBS General Manager and CEO Franz Joachim says he wanted to create a multimedia tool for math teachers to help build interest and maybe boost scores, as New Mexico students consistently rank at the bottom in math proficiency nationwide.

Joachim says New Mexico PBS worked with the Santa Fe Institute and the local orchestra on the three-year project to create something even a “science geek” like him could learn from.

Stand Up To Cancer raises best-ever $123 million in pledges

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Stand Up To Cancer says its sixth celebrity-filled telethon was its most successful yet.

The organization said Sunday that the fundraiser received more than $123 million in pledges from the U.S. and Canada.

Matt Damon, Tracee Ellis Ross, Jon Hamm and Winona Ryder were among the stars participating in Friday’s telecast. Musical performers included Stevie Wonder, Little Big Town and Charlie Wilson, a cancer survivor.

Wonder paid tribute to Aretha Franklin, who died last month of pancreatic cancer, with a medley including “What the World Needs Now is Love” and “Love’s in Need of Love Today.”

Bradley Cooper, whose father died of lung cancer, was co-executive producer of the telethon, which was carried commercial-free by major broadcast networks and cable channels in the U.S. and Canada and on streaming platforms.

Cooper said Stand Up To Cancer scientists are giving patients new hope they can become long-term survivors.

The telecast included three patients who have benefited from research funded by the group, including a former Marine Corps pilot with melanoma that spread to his brain and a retired school teacher with pancreatic cancer.

Stand Up To Cancer, a division of the philanthropic Entertainment Industry Foundation, was established in 2008 by media and entertainment leaders to accelerate research and get new therapies to patients quickly.

Among other achievements, it’s funded research that has contributed to federal approval of five new cancer treatments, including for breast, ovarian, pancreatic and some difficult-to-treat leukemias, the group said.

Before the telecast, Stand Up To Cancer said Thursday said it has raised more $480 million to fund innovative research.

Others who took part in the event included organization co-founder Katie Couric, Mahershala Ali, Keith Urban, Josh Brolin, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ken Jeong, Matthew McConaughey, John Oliver, Marlon Wayans and Keanu Reeves.

A replay of the show is available online at https://standuptocancer.org/su2c-show .

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Online:

http://www.StandUpToCancer.org