newsmakers

newsmakers

Lil Wayne’s skate park hits more snags

NEW ORLEANS

Grammy-winning rapper Lil Wayne’s skate-park project in the city’s rebuilding Lower 9th Ward is off to a bumpy start.

The building that houses the park didn’t pass a city electrical inspection and had to be rewired, and only a handful of children are able to skate at a time because of a shortage of staffing. Many days, the Trukstop skate park — named after the rapper’s skateboarding-inspired Trukfit clothing line — hasn’t been open at all.

“We really put the cart before the horse on this project, and right now we’re at a crossroads,” said Ward “Mack” McLendon, who manages the facility.

But, he said, “Everybody wants to make this work.”

McLendon says Lil Wayne dropped by the facility and skated with some kids while in town Super Bowl weekend.

The 30-year-old rapper, whose publicists did not return phone calls or emails for a comment, announced the park’s launch last September, along with corporate partners Mountain Dew and Glu Agency, a New York-based advertising firm. At the time, the park was supposed to be open to the public seven days a week beginning Oct. 1, 2012, but opening was delayed because the facility didn’t have enough staffing or insurance coverage.

Barry Manilow enjoys Broadway return

NEW YORK

It took a little while before Barry Manilow felt comfortable on Broadway.

The Man Who Makes the Whole World Sing is used to far bigger venues than the 1,710-seat St. James Theatre, one of the smaller theaters on the Great White Way.

“It’s a totally different feeling from the stage. I’m in their laps; they’re in my lap. It’s very, very intimate,” says Manilow. “This is like going to somebody’s house.”

His two-hour show — makeup dates have been added to “Manilow on Broadway” that now take the show into early March — includes all the hits, including “Could It Be Magic,” “Mandy,” “Copacabana” and “Can’t Smile Without You.”

Hugh Grant becomes father for 2nd time

LONDON

Hugh Grant says he has become a father for the second time.

The “Four Weddings and a Funeral” star, 52, used his Twitter account to announce Saturday: “Am thrilled my daughter now has a brother. Adore them both to an uncool degree.”

He said both children “have a fab mum” and: “To be crystal clear, I am the Daddy.”

The birth was confirmed by Grant’s publicist, Carrie Gordon.

Grant’s sometime girlfriend Tinglan Hong gave birth to the couple’s daughter in 2011.

Associated Press