Cuban artists blocked from once-promising NFT trading sites

HAVANA – When everything seemed to be going wrong, Cuban multimedia artist Alejandro Pablo García Alarcón found a solution in what some might consider an unusual place: NFTs. Artists like him have been dealt multiple blows in recent years: The pandemic wreaked havoc on Cuba’s tourism sector, sending art sales plummeting. American sanctions, while not … Read more

Italy: Parliamentary inquest eyed for missing ‘Vatican Girl’

ROME – Opposition lawmakers in Italy are seeking a parliamentary commission of inquiry into three cold cases that have consumed the Italian public’s imagination for decades, including the 1983 disappearance of a 15-year-old that was highlighted in the Netflix documentary, “Vatican Girl.” The aim of the inquest, said Sen. Carlo Calenda, would be to pressure … Read more

Terry Hall, singer with ska icons The Specials, dies at 63

LONDON – Musician Terry Hall, who helped create of the defining sounds of post-punk Britain as lead singer of The Specials, has died. He was 63. The band announced late Monday that Hall had died after a brief illness. It called him “our beautiful friend, brother and one of the most brilliant singers, songwriters and … Read more

Harvey Weinstein found guilty of rape in Los Angeles trial

LOS ANGELES – After a month-long trial and nine days of deliberations, Los Angeles jurors on Monday found Harvey Weinstein guilty of the rape and sexual assault of just one of the four accusers he was charged with abusing. But the three guilty counts involving an Italian actor and model known at the trial as … Read more

Woman caught stealing Christmas presents from Robert De Niro’s home

NEW YORK – A suspected serial burglar was caught Monday while attempting to poach Christmas presents from actor Robert De Niro’s Manhattan home, police said. Officers had been tracking the real-life Grinch amid a string of recent robberies and saw her bust into “The Godfather” and “Goodfellas” star’s townhouse around 2:45 a.m. Monday, police said. … Read more

R. Kelly manager gets a year in prison for theater threat

NEW YORK – R. Kelly’s onetime manager was sentenced Monday to a year in federal prison for calling in a shooting threat that halted a screening of a damning documentary about the R&B star. The punishment won’t add to the time ex-manager Donnell Russell is already set to serve for a different effort to squelch … Read more