NEWSMAKERS

NEWSMAKERS

TBS network cancels Lopez’s talk show

NEW YORK

The TBS network is canceling George Lopez’s nightly talk show.

The network says tonight’s show will be the final one. “Lopez Tonight” is in its second season.

The comic gave up his 11 p.m. time slot to make room for Conan O’Brien, who joined TBS after leaving NBC’s “Tonight” show. The plan for TBS was to have a one-two punch of late-night shows that would particularly appeal to young viewers.

TBS says in a statement it was a “difficult decision.”

Alec Baldwin eyes NYC mayor’s office

NEW YORK

Alec Baldwin says he’s thinking of running for mayor of New York, but not until he learns more about the job.

The “30 Rock” actor tells The New York Times he’ll sit out the 2013 race but will consider running in a later election.

In a wide-ranging interview, the 53-year-old says he’s talking with two universities about enrolling in a master’s program in politics and government. He says he wants to better understand what the fiscal imperatives of the mayor’s job are.

He says running in 2013 is impossible because he’s obligated to complete the current season of “30 Rock.”

Baldwin says he plans to establish a permanent city residence before running. His legal residence is Amagansett, Long Island. He has owned a Manhattan apartment for two decades.

‘Twilight’ actor is arrested in Arizona

MESA, Ariz.

Authorities say an actor who plays a werewolf in the “Twilight” movie series has been arrested in Arizona on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office says 21-year-old Kiowa Gordon was arrested earlier this week in Mesa on an outstanding warrant.

The Arizona Republic reports Gordon is being held in lieu of $1,000 bond and has a court appearance scheduled Aug. 18.

Gordon plays wolf-pack member Embry Call in the “Twilight” movies.

According to court records, a warrant was issued for Gordon after he failed to appear following a Feb. 2010 guilty plea in Scottsdale Municipal Court to possession and use of drug paraphernalia and giving liquor to a minor/underage consumption. Gordon is being held on an additional $500 bond on those charges.

It could not be determined Wednesday if Gordon has an attorney.

The popular “Twilight” series involves a teenage girl caught in a love triangle between vampires and werewolves.

Aretha Franklin to sing at dedication

NEW YORK

When a young Aretha Franklin accompanied the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to churches in the early days of the civil rights movement, he usually made a special request for her to sing one song in particular: “Take My Hand, Precious Lord.”

On Aug. 28, when a memorial in his honor is dedicated on the National Mall in Washington, Franklin will again sing the song for her mentor and friend.

“I’m really looking forward to this moment. It’s going to be another great, great moment in American history, and in African-American history,” Franklin said in an interview Tuesday.

SDLqIt means as well, after so many years of traveling with him in the early ’60s at the advent of the civil-rights movement, that again, many years later, I would perform in his honor and in tribute to him, and I’m really looking forward to that moment and singing one of his favorite songs, his most requested song by me,” she said.

Franklin, 69, was one of the early supporters of the campaign to honor the civil-rights hero with a statue in the nation’s capital. She even headlined an all-star concert at Radio City Music Hall in New York City in 2007 to raise funds for the memorial, which has been years in the making.

Vindicator wire services