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It's often hard to nail down just which of Oscar-winner Martin Scorsese's films is his absolute best. Some say it's GoodFellas, whose stars are still keeping busy in Hollywood today. One of the supporting players, the late Louis Eppolito — aka "Fat Andy" — would go on to star in other films after a career in real-life law enforcement. And as it turns out, he was convicted for having actual ties to the mob, making his GoodFellas appearance all the more ironic. His wild story is the inspiration for Mob Cops, out now, and MovieWeb recently caught up with Jeremy Luke, the actor who portrays Eppolito in Lionsgate's new film.

Luke recalled a scene from Mob Cops where he found himself utterly channeling Eppolito's moment of on-screen glory from an entirely separate gangster movie. "I was in the Chinese restaurant, I go, 'How you doing?' And I grabbed the glass — because this character,...

DirecTV is shifting into the Fast lane with a free, ad-supported TV streaming service — stocked with content that is… different from the premium video packages it offers.

The satellite TV and streaming company announced plans to launch MyFree DirecTV on Nov. 15 in the U.S. Initial programming in the dedicated Fast service is slated to include Fox Weather; reruns of A&e’s Louisiana-set reality show “Duck Dynasty”; SportsGrid, which provides live sports betting coverage, news and analysis; and Lionsgate’s MovieSphere Fast channel, whose recent titles have included the 2007 remake of “3:10 to Yuma,” “Ender’s Game” and “Wind River.”

Also in the mix are food and lifestyle network Tastemade, Fuse TV’s Latino network El Rey Rebel, PokerGo, Ebony TV and Nosey, which streams full episodes of daytime shows including “The Steve Wilkos Show,” “Maury,” “Jerry Springer” and “Sally Jessy Raphael.”

According to DirecTV, the Fast service will include linear and on-demand content,...

Growing up is tough, especially during your teenage years. Your teens are an era when no one understands you; everyone thinks you’re overreacting, and hormones rage inside your nether region like a mosh pit of questions and embarrassing blunders. I grew up in New York, so I know what walking the Bed-Stuy streets is like while hoping to discover who you are. In Comedy Central‘s Everybody Still Hates Chris trailer, we join Chris Rock for a hilarious look at his awkward teens and all the confusion that helped shape one of the most recognized comedians in the game.

Everybody Still Hates Chris will feature Chris Rock as “Adult Chris,” narrating stories inspired by his experience growing up as a skinny nerd in a large working-class family in Bed-Stuy, Brooklyn, during the late 1980s. Terry Crews (America’s Got Talent) will voice “Julius,” Chris’ father, who is a gentle giant...

Exclusive: Chris Rock’s animated series Everybody Still Hates Chris is lining up the stars.

The series, which is set to premiere on Comedy Central on September 25, has unveiled a swathe of guest stars including Ayo Edebiri, Sally Jessy Raphael and Busta Rhymes.

The Bear star, talk show host and rapper will be joined by the likes of Tisha Campbell, Sam Richardson and Bell Biv DeVoe members Ricky Bell, Michael L. Bivins, Ronald Boyd DeVoe Jr.

It’s a pretty long list: Jaylen Barron, Todd Bridges, Nicole Byer, Monét X Change, Eugene Cordero, Andy Daly, Loretta Devine, Earthquake, Ron Funches, Jaida Essence Hall, Jackée Harry, Phil Hendrie, Dave Herman, Thirstin’ Howl III, Rob Huebel, Gabriel “Fluffy” Iglesias, Phil Lamarr, Rack-Lo, Jessica Lowe, Vincent Martella, Laraine Newman, Gabrielle Nevaeh, Kevin Michael Richardson, Natasha Rothwell, Latrice Royale, Lindsey Stoddart, Cree Summer, Vanessa Vanjie and Jenny Yang.

Elsewhere, Paul Ben-Victor, Mike Estime, Antonio Fargas,...

For adults of a certain generation, daytime talk shows of the 1980s and 1990s represented all that was right with the world during a sick day home from school.

In an ideal scenario, your parents or caregivers would leave you to your own devices so you could veg out in front of the boob tube all day, munching on your favorite crap snacks and soaking in all the histrionic sensationalism this television genre had to offer. Spontaneous fist fights! Grotty-to-hottie makeovers! Baby daddy paternity tests! (Fun fact: I once attended a taping of Maury “You are not the father” Povich’s Maury in college, and the staff stuffed us with free pizza to entice us to stay through some reality star’s book promotion. Who said bread and circuses are ancient history?)

Like network TV soap operas and the “trashy novel” classics of the mid-20th century, tabloid talk shows...

Phil Donahue, the celebrated King of Daytime Talk who altered the direction of talk television as host of the syndicated “The Phil Donahue Show” and later the redubbed “Donahue” for nearly three decades, died Sunday evening (August 18) following a long and undisclosed illness. He was 88 and surrounded by family, including his wife of 44 years, the actor, producer, author and social activist Marlo Thomas.

From 1969 when his show was picked up for national syndication until leaving the air in 1996, Donahue presided as the unquestioned pioneer of a type of television discussion that for the first time incorporated studio audience interaction as an intrinsic part of the mix. That audience was predominantly packed with women whose opinions were taken seriously. Both “Phil Donahue” and “Donahue” were by design swathed in controversial, issue-driven topics. He was the first to give voice to gay rights activists, feminists and antiwar protestors as well as abortion rights advocates and opponents.

TV personalities are paying their respects to pioneering talk show host, Phil Donahue.

The late daytime television icon, who hosted more than 6,000 iterations of The Phil Donahue Show from 1967 until 1996, died on Sunday night at his New York City home after suffering from a long illness. He is survived by his wife of 44 years, Marlo Thomas, as well as four children from his previous marriage to Margaret Cooney. His youngest son, James, died in 2014.

Following the news of Donahue’s death, many who have followed his footsteps took to social media to celebrate his legacy.

“There wouldn’t have been an Oprah Show without Phil Donahue being the first to prove that daytime talk and women watching should be taken seriously. He was a pioneer. I’m glad I got to thank him for it. Rest in peace Phil,” wrote Oprah Winfrey.

Sally Jessy Raphael, who rose to fame in...

Legendary daytime talk show host Phil Donahue has passed away at the age of 88. Debuting in 1967 and going nationwide thanks to syndication in 1969, The Phil Donahue Show had a successful, 29 year run on television, eventually ending in 1996. Over the course of his career, Donahue was the recipient of 20 Emmy Awards, with 10 of those being specifically for his talk show, and the others being for Outstanding Talk Show Host.

Per Variety, Donahues passing was announced on the Today Show this morning, with a brief statement from his family released that said he died "peacefully" at his home in Manhattan on Sunday, August 18. The statement said he was surrounded by those he loved, including his wife of 44 years. You can read it in full below.

"Groundbreaking TV talk show journalist Phil Donahue died Sunday night at home surrounded by his wife of 44 years Marlo Thomas, his sister, his children, grandchildren and his beloved golden retriever Charlie.

Refresh for updates… Oprah Winfrey, Sally Jessy Raphael, Montel Williams and many more of Phil Donahue’s peers and friends today paid tribute to the late longtime daytime talk show.

“There wouldn’t have been an Oprah Show without Phil Donahue being the first to prove that daytime talk and women watching should be taken seriously,” she posted on Instagram (see it below). “He was a pioneer. I’m glad I got to thank him for it. Rest in peace Phil...

Phil Donahue, the pioneering daytime TV talk show host who welcomed audience participation and was willing to engage in any topic — from economic theory to adult diaper babies — died on Sunday at his New York City home, The New York Times reports. He was 88.

A representative for the family, Susan Arons, confirmed his death. An exact cause was not given, though the family did say he died after a long illness. Following the announcement, Donahue’s wife, actress Marlo Thomas, thanked friends for the “beautiful messages of love and support...

Oprah Winfrey is crediting Phil Donahue for blazing the trail that led to her own iconic talk show in the wake of the daytime legend’s death over the weekend.

“There wouldn’t have been an Oprah [Winfrey] Show without Phil Donahue,” Winfrey wrote on Instagram Monday, adding that Donahue was “the first to prove that daytime talk and women watching should be taken seriously. He was a pioneer. I’m glad I got to thank him for it. Rest in peace, Phil.”

More from TVLinePhil Donahue, Legendary Talk Show Host, Dead at 88Oprah to Examine Prescription Weight Loss Drug...

People.com has just reported that daytime talk show host icon Phil Donahue has passed away at the age of 88. In a statement provided by his family, they confirmed that Donahue had “died in his home surrounded by his family including his wife of 44 years — actress Marlo Thomas — as well as his sister, his children, grandchildren and his beloved golden retriever, Charlie.” The statement also confirmed that he had “passed away peacefully following a long illness.” The family also requests that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital or the Phil Donahue/Notre Dame Scholarship Fund.

Those of you who grew up in the 90s probably caught the tail-end of his famous talk show Donahue, which he created and hosted as it evolved from the local series The Phil Donahue Show from Dayton, Ohio, in 1967 to the New York City institution, which concluded in...

Phil Donahue, whose “The Phil Donahue Show” created the blueprint for highly caffeinated, issues-based daytime TV talk shows in its nearly 30-year syndicated run, has died, his family confirmed to “The Today Show” on Monday. He was 88.

The pioneering “Phil Donahue Show” first aired in 1969, was renamed “Donahue” five years later and ran for 29 years. The host’s penchant for energetically moving among the studio audience, soliciting opinions with a microphone in hand, would inspire even wilder formats from more tabloid-focused imitators like Sally Jesse Raphael, Jerry Springer, Maury Povich and, yes, Oprah Winfrey, who credits Donahue as her inspiration.

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As his acolytes ratcheted up the circus atmosphere, Donahue’s frenetic, audience-participation style began to look downright civilized by comparison, and the show ended in 1996. But Donahue was much more than just a talk-show host and kept busy after...

Successful national talk show host Phil Donahue, who entertained, challenged and informed two generations of daytime television viewers, died on Sunday night following a long illness, Variety has confirmed. He was 88.

The news of his death was first announced Monday morning on the “Today” show. “Groundbreaking TV talk show journalist Phil Donahue died Sunday night at home surrounded by his wife of 44 years Marlo Thomas, his sister, his children, grandchildren and his beloved golden retriever Charlie,” his family said in a statement. “Donahue was 88 years old and passed away peacefully following a long illness.”

The pioneering, issue-oriented “The Phil Donahue Show” was picked up for national syndication in 1969, was redubbed “Donahue” in 1974 and eventually reached more than 200 stations across the country. It ran until 1996, when the daytime talkshow landscape had changed radically into a tabloid circus and competitors including Oprah Winfrey had drawn away his female viewership. While Donahue was...

Sally Jessy Raphael is best known for hosting The Sally Jessy Raphael Show, but she also was a big name in the 90s for other movies and shows she took part in. As photos surface of the iconic 90s TV show host, Sally Jessy Raphael, she is battling verification after being unrecognizable.

Sally Jessy Raphael Is Fighting For Her Identity

Recently, Sally Jessy Raphael has been facing a battle no 89-year-old wants to deal with. While she built a life of fame during the 90s, she is now fighting for her identity. As the host of Sally from 1983 to 2002, she was easily recognized in interviews and movies for many years to follow. Undeniably, she was addressing hard-hitting topics on TV before even the legend Oprah Winfrey took center stage. Bullying, abuse, religion, and even stolen identities weren’t off limits. But now, Sally is facing her own predicament.

Sally Jessy...

Talk show veteran Sally Jessy Raphael really wants that Instagram blue check mark but says the social media app won’t give it to her because they don’t know who she is. These days the 89-year-old star is not as instantly recognizable as she was in her TV heyday. And as of August 2, she had less than 600 followers on her Instagram @thesallyjessy. But still, she is a true TV icon, beloved by fans. “So, @Instagram doesn’t seem to want to give me my blue check – no matter what proof I send them!” the former talk show host wrote on Instagram on July 26. “And there’s a fake account called “realsallyjr” and that’s Not Me!” She continued, “Help me let instagram know, so we can fix this!” Raphael is best known for hosting The Sally Jessy Raphael Show, later titled Sally, a syndicated tabloid talk show that aired...

Beloved fitness icon Richard Simmons passed away just one day after his 76th birthday, leaving fans everywhere in mourning. Many have been expressing their sadness over the news on social media, but Simmons' family wants fans to focus on the joy the Sweatin' to the Oldies star brought to the world.

On the official X account for Simmons, a message was shared that was written by Richard's brother, Lenny Simmons. The message pointed out how Simmons spent decades trying his best to help as many other people as possible, and ideally, he should be remembered for how much he made the world a better place. With that said, Lenny also noted how the news was still shocking for the family, asking that fans continue to respect Simmons' grieving loved ones at this time.

So dont be sad. Celebrate his life!He was very excited about all of the upcoming ventures he was working on.

After Richard Simmons died one day following his 76th birthday, friends and fans are keeping his positive energy alive in social media tributes.

Ricki Lake, Sally Jessy Raphael and Pauly Shore were among those who shared their memories of the late fitness guru in some heartfelt statements after Simmons died on Friday.

“My heart is broken with the loss of this super special human. May he Rip,” wrote Lake on X with a photo of the two of them and Maria Menounos. “I loved him so so much.”

Raphael shared a throwback photo of the “Weight Saint” on her long-running talk show. “I am completely devastated at the loss of @theweightsaint… we’ve done so many shows together, shared so many laughs & hugs, and I considered him a dear friend who changed so many lives over the years,” she wrote.

As he develops an unauthorized biopic of Simmons, Shore paid...

Richard Simmons sadly passed away at 76, a fitness icon known for Sweating to the Oldies tapes and his positive mindset towards helping others. Simmons bravely battled skin cancer and maintained his trademark cheerful outlook, inspiring others with his journey and positive energy. Fans and celebrities paid tribute to the star on social media, including Pauly Shore, who recently portrayed him in a short film.

Richard Simmons, celebrity fitness guru, has sadly passed away at the age of 76. News of the death of the iconic host of Sweating to the Oldies's came courtesy of TMZ, who reported that the star was discovered unconscious at his home following a fall in his bathroom. Simmons turned 76 just a day before his death, and spoke with Fox News about his mindset at his age, revealing that he would spend his birthday doing what he enjoyed doing every day: helping people. His full quote can...

Whenever the future is depicted in movies, it is generally a dark, depressing dystopian future where something happens in our present that sets forth the collapse of our society. Even Disney is not immune to showing us a future where Earth is no longer inhabitable (the beloved Wall-e). But occasionally, a movie shows a future that doesn’t look so bad—one with self-lacing shoes, 19 Jaws movies and flying cars. Of course, if we are being technical, this movie is also in the past. It’s time for us to hop in our DeLorean, generate the necessary 1.21 Jigowatts and travel to the futuristic world of October 21, 2015, as we take a look at what Back to the Future Part II got right and wrong about the future of technology… from eight years ago!

Coming off the success of the original Back to The Future, writer/ director Robert Zemeckis and writer Bob Gale and Producer Steven Spielberg,...

Mob narratives seldom place women front and center, unless it’s in a flat-out comedy or campy TV movies like “Mafia Princess” and “Bella Mafia.” No stranger to the genre as an actress, Jennifer Esposito attempts to balance that ledger with her debut as writer-director, “Fresh Kills.”

This solid drama centers on a family not unlike “The Sopranos,” but with its patriarch mostly pushed to the background. The focus here is on wives and daughters, who must turn a blind eye to criminal doings from which they both benefit and suffer the consequences. Originally a Tribeca premiere, “Fresh Kills” has been traveling the festival circuit and should prove a viable item for streaming platforms and broadcasters.

After a framing sequence that fast-forwards to a later moment of crisis, we meet the Larussos in 1987 as they’re moving on up to a “better life” from their old Brooklyn one, taking over...

Vice TV has set the premiere date and released the trailer for “Dark Side of Comedy” Season 2, its “Dark Side” spinoff series that explores the behind-the-scenes stories of iconic comedians.

Season 2 subjects include Robin Williams, Sam Kinison, Joan Rivers, Carlos Mencia, Phil Hartman, Tracy Morgan, the sitcom “Family Matters,” Ellen DeGeneres, Norm MacDonald and Gilda Radner.

“Dark Side of Comedy” Season 2 is narrated by Dave Foley with commentators including Pauly Shore, Marc Maron, Tiffany Haddish, Pamela Aldon, Sally Jesse Raphael, Mike Binder and Rolanda Watts.

In the Season 2 trailer, Binder says Williams was “running with a lot of really scary figures — and Robin himself was kind of a scary figure for a while.” Haddish says Rivers “was a hustler,” and describes her as “mean as hell.” And Watts describes an experience where DeGeneres “sat there as if we weren’t even there.”

Per Vice TV’s description for the new installment: “‘Dark Side of Comedy,...

If you had polled the opening night audience of The Beautician and the Beast back in 1997, few moviegoers would have predicted that Fran Drescher — let alone President Drescher — would someday draw praise for a fiery, televised speech about the plight of the American worker and the dangers of intelligent machines.

It’s a scenario that even a dystopian edition of Mad Libs would have deemed too random.

More from TVLineWatch SAG President Fran Drescher's Fiery, Instantly Iconic Speech Calling for First Actors' Strike in 43 YearsPerformer of the Week: Kaley CuocoIndebted Cancelled at NBC

Yet that’s exactly what happened on Thursday when Drescher,...

Robert Evans claims to have told Francis Ford Coppola, after an initial private screening of The Godfather, “You shot a saga, but you turned in a trailer.” Unfortunately, Jennifer Esposito’s directorial debut Fresh Kills suffers the same fate, cramming a series’ worth of material into a sweeping feature film. In Fresh Kills, Staten Island, a beautiful suburb that stands just across the water from the city and not far from the infamous landfill, the Larusso family is about living the good life and moving to safety. Patriarch Joe (Domenick Lombardozzi) and wife Francine (Esposito) attempt to shield their daughters Rose and Connie from the family business. There are always little tells, and on moving day the girls discover a box of white powder in the moving van––leading Joe to discipline a foot soldier who later turns up dead.

Like Meadow Soprano before her, Connie (played in later passages...

On April 27, 2023, former Cincinnati mayor and longtime talk show host Jerry Springer passed away. He was 79. The man led a long and textured life with many acts. As a boy, he fled England as it was being bombed by the Nazis. He came to the United States and began studying law, eventually becoming a Doctor of Jurisprudence. He was a campaign adviser for John F. Kennedy, and practiced law in Cincinnati. In 1971, he sat on the Cincinnati city council, but was infamously kicked off in 1974 for a sex scandal. Springer had been candid about the scandal over the following years, and even laughed at himself a little bit for using a personal check to pay a sex worker.

This didn't stymie his career, and he became the mayor of Cincinnati in 1978. It wouldn't be until 1991 that Springer, having accrued some broadcasting experience, would become a talk show host. "Jerry Springer" began innocently enough,...

In 2015, Jerry Springer spoke with TV Guide Magazine to toast 25 years of The Jerry Springer Show. The anniversary, which came three years before the series concluded and eight years before the death of Springer, made way for some fun reflections for the host who started with the syndicated daytime talk show when it premiered in 1991, continuing through until its ending in 2018. Below, hear what Springer cited as his best “worst” moments on the series. Jerry Springer was working as a Cincinnati news anchor in 1990 when his TV station’s owner (which also produced Donahue and Sally Jessy Raphael) recruited him to host a new daytime talk show. “There was no expectation that it would last at all,” Springer recalls. “My first contract was six weeks.” At the beginning, The Jerry Springer Show emulated Donahue and tackled serious subjects. But the success of Ricki Lake in 1993 convinced Springer and his producers...

Sherri Shepherd will debut her own talk show next week. It’s a job she’s been preparing for her entire life — long before she was a co-host on “The View.”

“It’s something that I used to dream about when I was a little girl. I would line up my Teddy bears with my Barbie dolls and I have a toilet paper roll and I would put them on chairs,” Shepherd tells Variety. Growing up, Shepherd would watch “The Phil Donahue Show” and Dinah Shore’s syndicated daytime talker with her grandmother. Later in life, she looked at Oprah and Sally Jessy Raphael as chat show inspirations. Now, she’s hoping to have a similar effect on her own viewers.

“It is so important that people see a representation of themselves. I didn’t get to see a lot of Black women on TV growing up,” says Shepherd, who...

As a historically marginalized group, LGBTQ people must excavate the past in order to find evidence of their existence. But when flying under the radar is a means of survival in a society determined to erase you, stories of queer life are often difficult to find. Every once in awhile, a long lost family member is hiding in plain sight — but it is up to us to reach out and claim them as our own. In the case of Billy Tipton, a successful American jazz musician active from the mid-1930s to ’50s, a familiar tune echoes across decades.

Directed by Aisling Chin-Yee and Chase Joynt, “No Ordinary Man” employs a feast of trans masculine performers to embody and engage with Tipton’s story. Working from a narrative script to a film that may never see the light of day, the filmmakers audition various actors for the role of Billy Tipton.

By Glenn Dunks

When we look back at our 2020 times stuck indoors for endless hours, I wonder what people will remember. Among the much more high profile television series and surprise album drops, I suspect one title many will find themselves reaching for in their memories is Mucho Mucho Amor: The Legend of Walter Mercado. I have to admit to being entirely oblivious to the focus of Cristina Costantini and Kareem Tabsch's documentary except a well-timed ‘appearance’ on RuPaul’s Drag Race just a week before the film premiered on Netflix. Unless I caught him on an episode of Sally Jessy Raphael, I guess.

What I discovered—and what I imagine is what will allow for fond remembrance of the movie once we are long out of isolation hubs—was something so very sweetly tender. A film that’s every bit as fabulous as the elaborate, bejewelled cloaks and...

A little momentum goes a long way in daytime.

After a long slump, the first-run syndication market has come back to life this year with several high-profile new talk shows headed for this year’s Natpe conference in Miami, which runs Jan. 21-23.

Nick Cannon is extending his multimedia endeavors into daytime. So is actor-entrepreneur Drew Barrymore. Judge Lauren Lake of MGM’s “Paternity Court” will come out from behind the bench to host a half-hour show that is a throwback to the classic conflict-resolution format employed by Phil Donahue, Sally Jessy Raphael and yack pack stalwarts of a different era.

The spring in the syndie biz’s step comes from a better-than-expected performance this fall of “The Kelly Clarkson Show,” a big bet by NBCUniversal Domestic TV on a talk-variety vehicle hosted by the pop superstar and coach on NBC’s “The Voice.” Since its debut in September, “Kelly...

Over his long career in international sales, Armando Nuñez Jr. has handled just about every kind of TV program, from game-changing primetime dramas, to daytime soaps, to trashy talk shows.

Some were big hits right out of the box, some were sleepers, and one show was so bad that a top foreign buyer left the screening room after 10 minutes to yell at the studio executives responsible for the pilot. Here Nuñez recalls some of his most memorable experiences in exporting television — and slices of American culture — around the world.

Moonlighting

Original network: ABC

Airdates: 1985-1989

Nuñez was not long out of Fordham University when he got a job working for ABC Video Enterprises, the network’s distribution arm. He was part of the team that sold the network’s smash romantic dramedy “Moonlighting,” which starred Cybill Shepherd and made a star of Bruce Willis. “It was a unique show,” Nuñez says.

3:10 Pm Pt -- According to the Lapd ... homicide detectives believe Blackstone's motive was her "frustration of being forced to provide Wendy long-term care, as well as the associated financial hardship." Jill Blackstone, a former producer on "Jerry Springer" and "Sally Jessy Raphael" -- has been arrested for murder in the death of her sister ... TMZ has learned. Blackstone's sister, Wendy, died in 2015 from a combination of carbon monoxide poisoning and Xanax. At the...

The '90s were a heyday for black sitcoms, but you wouldn't know it based on the reboots and revivals currently in development.

No one can blame A-lister Will Smith for ruling out a <em>Fresh Prince of Bel-Air</em> reunion or Jaleel White for his disinterest in donning Sally Jessy Raphael frames once more in a <em>Family Matters</em> comeback. But why aren't we reading about deals to bring groundbreaking, fondly remembered hits like <em>Martin</em>, <em>Living Single</em>, <em>A Different World</em>, <em>Sister, Sister</em> and countless other beloved black comedies back to the air? A few breakout stars — like Smith,...

1980: The Edge of Night's Raven took the witness stand.

1992: General Hospital's Robert said goodbye to Robin.

2009: Oltl's David found out Bo was his biological father.

2010: All My Children's Greenlee married David."Whoever wishes to foresee the future must consult the past; for human events ever resemble those of preceding times. This arises from the fact that they are produced by men who ever have been, and ever shall be, animated by the same passions, and thus they necessarily have the same results."

― Machiavelli

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1966: On Another World, Lee told Mike Bauer (Gary Pillar) she had come to depend too much...

Leonardo DiCaprio is paying tribute about the death of Darlene Cates, the best onscreen mom he ever worked with.

The Revenant star, who played Cates’ son in 1993’s What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, wrote on Facebook Tuesday, “Darlene was the best acting mom I ever had the privilege of working alongside.”

He added, “Her endearing personality and incredible talent will live on in the memories of those who knew her, and those who loved her work. My thoughts and prayers are with her family during this difficult time.”

The actress died Sunday morning in her sleep at the age of 69. Her sister,...

Actress Darlene Cates, who is best known for playing Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio's mother Bonnie Grape in the 1993 drama What's Eating Gilbert Grape?, passed away on Sunday at the age of 69. The actress' daughter Sherri Cates Morgan announced her mother's passing on Facebook yesterday, revealing that she died peacefully in her sleep. Here's what Sherri Cates Morgan had to say in a statement about her mother's death.

"It is with a bitter-sweet heart that we share that our precious wife, mother, and Gaga, Darlene Guthrie Cates, was called Home, somewhat unexpectedly, peacefully in her sleep Sunday morning, March 26th. We take comfort in knowing that she is no longer in pain and is in the arms of our Heavenly Father, breaking away only to dance with our Savior, Jesus. (Dancing was something she talked about loving to do "back in the day"! For those who have already sent your love,...

Darlene Cates, the actress who played the housebound mother in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, has died. Cates’ daughter announced her death on Facebook earlier today, saying the actress went “peacefully in her sleep” on Sunday morning. She was 69.

Cates’ breakout role in Grape came after she appeared on an episode of Sally Jessy Raphael titled “Too Heavy To Leave Their House.” On the show, Cates talked about how being morbidly obese impacted her livelihood, openly discussing how a pelvic infection caused her to gain 150 pounds. Gilbert Grape author and screenwriter Peter Hedges caught Cates on the show, and knew she’d be perfect for the role of the mostly housebound Bonnie Grape.

As Cates later told the Dallas Morning News, she thought the role would help her both address her own insecurities—she once said she had a fantasy about being “able to go to the mall ...

Darlene Cates, best remembered as the actress who played Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio‘s obese, housebound mother in the 1993 film What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, died in her sleep on Sunday morning at age 69.

In 1994, the actress — whose weight at one point shot up to nearly 600 pounds — opened up to People about her longtime struggles with obesity and how overcoming her self-consciousness unexpectedly led to the launch of her Hollywood career.

“Stop putting things off until you’re skinny!” urges Darlene Cates with hard-won conviction.

Six years ago, weighing nearly 600 lbs. and weakened by chronic illness, she was so...

Darlene Cates, who starred as Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio‘s obese, housebound mother in 1993’s What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, died in her sleep on Sunday morning. She was 69.

The actress will appear posthumously in the upcoming comedy Billboard, following a lifelong struggle with weight that once saw her balloon to 550 lbs.— a struggle that actually launched her film career in the first place.

Gilbert Grape author and screenwriter Peter Hedges discovered the Texas native after seeing a tape of her on a 1985 episode of Sally Jessy Raphael titled “Too Heavy to Leave Their House.” On the show, Cates...

Darlene Cates, the mother in “What’s Eating Gilbert Grape,” has died. She was 69. Her daughter Sheri Cates Morgan shared the news last night on Facebook, writing: “It is with a bitter-sweet heart that we share that our precious wife, mother, and Gaga, Darlene Guthrie Cates, was called Home, somewhat unexpectedly, peacefully in her sleep Sunday morning, March 26th.” Here’s the full social media post: Also Read: WWE Legend Jim Ross' Wife Dies After Vespa Accident Darlene Cates was discovered by “Gilbert Grape” screenwriter Peter Hedges, who saw her on the “Sally Jessy Raphael” show. Her episodes was titled,...

What’s Eating Gilbert Grape star Darlene Cates has died.

The actress died Sunday morning in her sleep. She was 69.

Cates sister, Sheri Cates Morgan, shared the news on Facebook.

“It is with a bitter-sweet heart that we share that our precious wife, mother, and Gaga, Darlene Guthrie Cates, was called Home, somewhat unexpectedly, peacefully in her sleep Sunday morning, March 26th,” she wrote.

Cates famously played Johnny Depp and Leonardo DiCaprio‘s obese, housebound mother in the iconic film.

Gilbert Grape author and screenwriter Peter Hedges discovered Cates after seeing a tape of the actress on a 1985 episode of...

Today is venturing away from the present and into the past. Today, NBC announced the morning show will launch a new series, Where Are They Now: Talk Show Titans, on February 13th.The program "will check in with five 90’s talk titans to see what they’ve been up to since their time on the daytime airwaves." Subjects include Sally Jessy Raphael, Montel Williams, Jerry Springer, Maury Povich, and Geraldo Rivera.Read More…...

As the (seemingly endless) search for Kelly Ripa‘s permanent Live co-host continues, a surprising new name is being thrown into the ring: Billy Bush.

VideosMatt Lauer Confirms Billy Bush’s Today Ouster on Air — Watch

During an appearance on Wednesday’s Watch What Happens Live, host Andy Cohen presented Ripa with a colorful list of potential co-hosts — ranging from Sally Jesse Raphael to the Kardashians — and she seemed open to all of them, including disgraced news anchor Bush.

Her reasoning? Why, she’d love to get to the bottom of what really happened during Bush’s infamous Access Hollywood...

Back in the ’80s and ’90s, Sally Jessy Raphael was one of the biggest stars of daytime talk, with “The Sally Jessy Raphael Show” eventually cancelled in 2002 after an impressive 19-year run. Looking back, however, Raphael now admits she was unhappy with the increasingly trashy direction her show took in its final years as producers […]...

Sally Jessy Raphael has some regrets about the way her long-running syndicated talk show, Sally, ended. Now 81, Raphael appears on Oprah Winfrey's show, Oprah: Where Are They Now?, and talks about how she would have changed the direction in which the show went prior to its 2002 cancellation. With other talk shows like Jerry Springer's and Maury Povich's coming up in the ratings due to their shock value, producers on Sally chose to cover those types of stories instead of hard news and human interest ones. "The last years of doing those Maury Povich/Jerry Spring shows? I hated them," she says. "I was betrayed by some of the producers into doing that. Come to think of it, I should have fought...

Sally Jessy Raphael spent nearly two decades on air as host of the syndicated talk show Sally. But the 81-year-old says she “hated” working on her show during its last years — and blames her producers to driving her into the tabloid subject matter so often associated with Maury Povich and Jerry Springer.

Raphael talked candidly in an exclusive clip from Saturday’s Oprah: Where Are They Now? about the end of her show — which was cancelled in 2002.

Raphael was the first female to host an audience-participation, issue-drive talk show — predating Oprah by nearly three years.

The show began in...

It feels like at least some of the vitriol surrounding Paul Feig’s Ghostbusters is starting to die down, now that the movie’s actually out. (That, or we’ve finally learned to stop sticking our hands in the woodchipper and going on Reddit.) Still, the lingering spirit of all these childhoods being ruined could probably use a little exorcism, courtesy of someone whose childhood was actually defined by the 1984 original: Harold Ramis’ daughter, Violet Ramis Stiel.

Splitsider has just posed a new essay from Ramis Stiel, one part tribute to her father—who died in 2014—and one part reminder not to take Ghostbusters so damn seriously. She walks the reader through her own history with the franchise—including her outrage at seeing her dad be replaced by “some blonde guy in Sally Jesse Raphael glasses” in The Real Ghostbusters cartoon—while also emphasizing his warmth and openness ...

Sally Jessy Raphael, she may not be. But ultra-hyphenated model-recording artist-author-entrepreneur-tabloid favorite Amber Rose is getting her own weekly talk show on VH1.

Produced by Dr. Phil and Jay McGraw’s Stage 29 Productions, the chatfest — set to premiere this summer, per our sister site Deadline — will feature the occasional actress (Selfie, Black-ish) pulling from her cell phone contacts to interview her famous friends about everything from race and relationships to pop culture and parenting.

Because c’mon, really — what mom doesn’t see a little bit of herself in Wiz Khalifa’s ex?

Rose — as well as her partner,...

Principal photography began earlier this year on The Conjuring 2 with James Wan once again at the helm, following the record breaking success of The Conjuring. The supernatural thriller brings to the screen another real case from the files of the renowned demonologist Ed and Lorraine Warren. Reprising his role as Ed Warren, both he and Lorraine find themselves in one of their most terrifying paranormal investigations.

They travel to north London to help a single mother raising four childrenalone in a house plagued by malicious spirits. This home also goes by the name ofEnfield. Shooting in a studio out in Valencia, California, we find Patrick Wilson trekking down into the home basement which is covered in waste deep water while the home has lost power during a storm. Making his way through the the soaked basement, he is confronted by a spirit. Here is what Patrick Wilson had to...

The women of The Conjuring 2, Vera Farmiga, reprises her role as Lorraine Warren and new to the film is Frances O'Connor, the single mother of two who lives in Enfield. In today's scene we find Ed Warren in the basement of Enfield, which is flooded with water. He has come down looking for Frances who has seen a spirit submerged in water and which has apparently bitten her arm. While all this is going on, above them is the kitchen where supernatural events are taken place. When the basement door slams shut, we see Lorraine (Vera) on the other end shouting for Ed, trying to find a way out. Here is what Vera and Frances has to say about their time on set.

Vera how's being back to The Conjuring, and with Patrick Wilson?

Vera Farmiga: I’m very, very happy. I knew it was gonna be a...