newsmakers

newsmakers

Yoko Ono bestows grant on Russian band

NEW YORK

Yoko Ono awarded the Russian punk band Pussy Riot this year’s LennonOno grant for peace.

Ono presented the award to Pyotr Verzilov, husband of Nadia Tolokonnikova — one of three imprisoned members of Pussy Riot sentenced in August to two years in prison for performing an irreverent song mocking Russian President Vladimir Putin inside Moscow’s main cathedral.

“It’s a terrible thing that all three girls have been jailed for not doing anything wrong. They were just standing for freedom of speech,” Ono said at a ceremony in New York City.

Verzilov thanked Ono, saying the grant increased international pressure on Russian authorities to release the women.

The LennonOno Grant for Peace is given every two years to honor Yoko Ono’s late husband John Lennon’s dedication to peace and human rights.

Denzel: Eastwood is still ‘my hero’

WASHINGTON

Clint Eastwood has taken a lot of barbs over his empty-chair routine at the Republican National Convention, but Denzel Washington still holds the film legend in high regard.

“I have the utmost respect for him as an actor and as a director,” Washington said. “He’s my hero.”

Although Washington supported Obama in 2008, he graciously declined to address an empty chair or do any “Eastwooding,” as it’s come to be known on the Internet. He calls himself an independent and said in this election, he isn’t committing to either side.

Washington was in the nation’s capital along with Olympic champion Michael Phelps and R&B singer Ashanti for an event sponsored by the Boys and Girls Club of America.

Rowling’s estate for sale for $3.7M

LONDON

J.K. Rowling’s former home can be yours — if you can conjure up $3.7 million.

The eight-bedroom Victorian house in Edinburgh belonging to the “Harry Potter” author is listed for sale on the website of real- estate agents Rettie.

It’s described as “an exceptional detached family house standing within a large yet discreet landscaped and walled garden” in one of the city’s most- exclusive areas.

Rowling lived there with her husband and three children while she wrote several volumes in her seven-book adventure series about the boy wizard. Rowling, whose books have sold 450 million copies, now owns another house in the city, as well as other properties in Scotland and London.

She is due to release her first book for adults, “The Casual Vacancy,” next week.

Travolta: Celebrities deserve privacy, too

LONDON

John Travolta says privacy laws should shield celebrities from the kind of exposure suffered by Kate Middleton.

Gossip magazines have published topless pictures of Prince William’s wife taken during a private vacation.

Travolta, who has faced unwelcome scrutiny of his own private life, told the BBC that it is the “worst time to be famous.”

“There is a right to privacy whether you’re famous or not famous, and I feel that anyone being invaded at that level is unfortunate, and there should be a law; no one would like that,” he said in an interview broadcast Friday.

Travolta plays a corrupt cop in Oliver Stone’s drug-war film “Savages,” which opens in Britain on Friday.

Winehouse box set due in November

LONDON

A four-disc box set of Amy Winehouse’s performances will be released in November, giving fans of the late soul-singer access to rarely seen footage and unique covers of her hits.

The Amy Winehouse Foundation said Friday that the collection, called “Amy Winehouse at the BBC,” will feature the singer’s earliest BBC Radio sessions, first TV performances and candid interviews.

The set, spread over three DVDs and one CD, will be released Nov. 12, and record royalties from the set will go to charity.

Winehouse, known for her beehive hairdo, died from alcohol poisoning July 23, 2011, at age 27.

Her debut, “Frank,” was a U.K. success, but her breakthrough came with 2007’s “Back to Black,” a multiplatinum effort that won her five Grammy Awards.

Vindicator wire services