Longtime Presley drummer Fontana dies

Longtime Presley drummer Fontana dies

MEMPHIS, TENN.

D.J. Fontana, a rock ‘n’ roll pioneer who rose from strip joints in his native Shreveport, La., to the heights of musical history as Elvis Presley’s first and longtime drummer, has died at 87, his wife said Thursday.

Karen Fontana told The Associated Press that her husband died in his sleep in Nashville on Wednesday night. She said he’d been suffering complications from breaking his hip in 2016.

Presley’s former wife, Priscilla Presley, issued a statement calling Fontana “a tremendously talented musician and a wonderful man.”

Fontana, a member of the Rock Hall of Fame, was the last surviving member of Elvis’ original core of musicians. He met Presley and the others on the Louisiana Hayride, a popular and influential radio and TV country music program based in Shreveport.

Queen, Duchess Meghan make 1st joint appearance

LONDON

The former Meghan Markle made her first joint appearance with Queen Elizabeth II on Thursday, taking a special royal train to events in northwestern England.

The queen and the Duchess of Sussex, as Markle is now known, joined the rest of Britain in observing a minute of silence at midday to honor the victims of the Grenfell Tower fire on the anniversary of the deadly London blaze.

Aside from that somber moment, the day was filled with smiles and cheers as the 92-year-old monarch and 36-year-old former actress paired up.

Their first stop featured a performance by local schoolchildren in the town of Widnes, near Liverpool. It was followed by events including the unveiling of a plaque to officially open the Mersey Gateway Bridge.

‘Stranger Things’ star deletes Twitter account

LOS ANGELES

“Stranger Things” actress Millie Bobby Brown has deleted her Twitter account after users posted memes depicting her as homophobic. The memes featured photos of the 14-year-old with homophobic slurs.

It is not clear why she was targeted. The actress’ publicist did not respond to an email seeking comment Thursday.

Brown has been a supporter of LGBTQ rights and created a secondary Twitter account Milliestopshate last summer that remains active.

Associated Press