NEWSMAKERS

NEWSMAKERS

The J. Geils Band founder dies at age 71

GROTON, Mass.

Musician J. Geils, founder of The J. Geils Band known for such peppy early 80s pop hits as “Love Stinks,” “Freeze Frame” and “Centerfold,” has died in his Massachusetts home at 71.

Groton police said officers responded to Geils’ home about 4 p.m. Tuesday for a well-being check and found him unresponsive.

He was pronounced dead at the scene.

“A preliminary investigation indicates that Geils died of natural causes,” police said in a statement.

The J. Geils Band was founded in 1967 in Worcester, Mass., while Geils, whose full name was John Warren Geils Jr., was studying at Worcester Polytechnic Institute.

Bandmates included Danny Klein, Richard Salwitz, Stephen Jo Bladd, Peter Wolf and Seth Justman.

Advertisers are fleeing O’Reilly; viewers aren’t

NEW YORK

Advertisers are fleeing Bill O’Reilly’s “no spin zone” on Fox News Channel, but “The O’Reilly Factor” averaged 3.71 million viewers over five nights last week, the Nielsen company said Tuesday. That’s up 12 percent from the 3.31 million viewers he averaged the week before and up 28 percent compared with the same week in 2016.

For the week of April 3-9, the top 10 shows, their networks and viewerships: NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship: Gonzaga vs. North Carolina, CBS, 23.01 million; “NCAA Pre-Game,” CBS, 14.08 million; “NCIS,” CBS, 13.83 million; “The Big Bang Theory,” CBS, 12.6 million; “60 Minutes,” CBS, 11.64 million; “Bull,” CBS, 11.1 million; “Dancing With the Stars,” ABC, 10.47 million; “The Voice” (Monday), NBC, 10.04 million; “Blue Bloods,” CBS, 9.77 million; “The Voice” (Tuesday), NBC, 9.52 million.

Associated Press