newsmakers

newsmakers

Monument to recall jazz greats’ hotel

AKRON

A monument in Northeast Ohio will tell the story of a hotel that hosted jazz greats including Ella Fitzgerald, Louis Armstrong and Count Basie.

Akron’s Hotel Matthews closed in 1978 and was torn down in the early 1980s, decades after it welcomed black jazz entertainers who played at nearby nightclubs. A neighborhood historian says they couldn’t stay at other hotels because of racial prejudice.

The Akron Beacon Journal reports workers this week began clearing grass for the monument on property now owned by the city where the hotel once stood. Companies working on the $100,000 project are donating their services.

Chaz Bono ignores ‘Dancing’ controversy

LOS ANGELES

Chaz Bono isn’t thinking about the controversy surrounding his casting on “Dancing With the Stars.” He says he’s been flooded with fan support and is focused on the cha-cha.

Bono is the show’s first transgender contestant, and some viewers and conservative media groups have responded to his casting with hateful blog posts and calls for a boycott of the hit ABC show.

But at a Wednesday rehearsal in Los Angeles, the 42-year-old author and activist said he hasn’t looked at the negative posts on the network’s website and has received loads of support from fans on Twitter.

Vindicator wire services