newsmakers

newsmakers

Richie Havens tribute set at Woodstock site

BETHEL, N.Y.

The ashes of Richie Havens will be scattered across the site of the 1969 Woodstock Festival on the anniversary of the final day of the concert he opened with a nearly three-hour performance.

Bethel Woods Center for the Arts, the music venue built on the Woodstock site in New York’s Sullivan County, announced Tuesday that a musical tribute to the folk singer-guitarist will take place Aug. 18. That’s the 44th anniversary of the final day of the three-day concert that drew more than 400,000 people to Max Yasgur’s farm.

Havens died in April of a heart attack at age 72. He was Woodstock’s first performer after massive traffic jams kept the scheduled opening acts from showing up on time.

Incident prompts custody hearing

ATLANTA

A judge has scheduled an emergency custody hearing requested by Usher’s ex-wife after one of the pair’s sons got stuck in a pool drain at the singer’s Atlanta home.

A lawyer for Tameka Foster Raymond filed the request in Fulton County Superior Court on Tuesday, and Judge John J. Goger approved it the same day, scheduling a hearing for Friday. The court filing says the boy “suffered a near-death accident” while left unsupervised in a pool at the Grammy winner’s home Monday.

A lawyer who previously has represented Usher in the custody dispute did not immediately respond to an email seeking comment, and her office said she was scheduled to be in court all week.

Atlanta police have said 5-year-old Usher Raymond V fell to the bottom of the pool and became stuck in the drain Monday. A housekeeper tried unsuccessfully to free him. A contractor doing work at the home pulled the boy from the pool and performed CPR.

‘Maltese Falcon’ statuette on block

NEW YORK

A statuette featured in the 1941 movie “The Maltese Falcon” is being offered for sale at a New York City auction.

Bonhams says the black figurine is the highlight of a Nov. 25 auction. It did not provide a pre-sale estimate.

The statuette was the most important prop in the classic John Huston film, which starred Humphrey Bogart as a private eye. Bonhams says it’s etched with a Warner Bros. inventory number and is the only version known to have appeared in the movie.

Vindicator wire services