‘Kong’ outmuscles ‘Logan’ at box office

‘Kong’ outmuscles ‘Logan’ at box office

LOS ANGELES

It was a battle of the beasts at the box office this weekend, and King Kong emerged as the definitive victor over Wolverine.

According to studio estimates Sunday, “Kong: Skull Island” amassed $61 million in its first weekend in theaters, surpassing expectations and easily beating out “Logan,” which is now in its second weekend.

Fox’s “Logan” took second place, down around 58 percent from its first weekend with $37.9 million. The R-rated pic, which sees Hugh Jackman reprising his role as the X-Men character Wolverine, has earned $152.7 million in total.

In third place, “Get Out,” the buzzy horror film directed by Jordan Peele, added $21.1 million, pushing its sum to $111 million in just three weeks.

Rounding out the top five were “The Shack,” $10.1 million, fourth place; and “The LEGO Batman Movie,” $7.8 million, fifth place.

‘SNL’ skewers Ivanka

NEW YORK

The biting humor of “Saturday Night Live” took aim at another Trump over the weekend – first daughter Ivanka.

The long-standing comedy show skewered President Donald Trump’s elder daughter with a faux perfume ad, starring actress Scarlett Johansson. The name of the perfume? Complicit.

It was the first time Johansson portrayed Ivanka Trump.

Ivanka Trump was a popular surrogate for her father on the campaign trail. She stepped away from executive roles at her self-named lifestyle brand and with the family business to move her young family to Washington, D.C., when Trump took office.

For now, just her husband, Jared Kushner, has an official position, but Ivanka Trump has been an active presence at White House meetings and has been advocating for several issues, including for new child care policies. The extent of her influence over her father behind the scenes has been the subject of intense speculation.

Sledge sister dies at 60

NEW YORK

Joni Sledge, who with her sisters recorded the enduring dance anthem “We Are Family,” has died, the band’s representative said Saturday.

She was 60.

Sledge was found dead in her home by a friend in Phoenix, Ariz., on Friday, the band’s publicist, Biff Warren, said. A cause of death has not been determined. He said she had not been ill.

Sledge and her sisters Debbie, Kim and Kathy formed the Sister Sledge in 1971 in Philadelphia, their hometown, but struggled for years before success came. they met Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers of the hit group Chic, and their breakout soon came. The pair wrote and produced their album “We Are Family,” and soon the women had their first major hit with disco jam “The Greatest Dancer,” which became a top 10 hit in May 1979.

Associated Press