Hollywood pioneer Robert Redford dead at 89
Robert Redford, the Hollywood golden boy who became an Oscar-winning director, liberal activist and godfather for independent cinema under the name of one of his best-loved characters, died Tuesday at 89. Redford died “at his home at Sundance in the mountains of Utah — the place he loved, surrounded by those he loved,” publicist Cindi Berger said in a statement. No cause of death was provided. After rising to stardom in the 1960s, Redford was one of the biggest stars of the ’70s with such films as The Candidate, All the President’s Men and The Way We Were, capping that decade with the best director Oscar for 1980’s Ordinary People, which also won best picture in 1980. Joining us to discuss is Peter Rainer, film critic for LAist and the Christian Science Monitor, and Wade Major, film critic for LAist and CineGods.com and author of the “Hollywood Heretic” Substack.
With files from the Associated Press
Have we entered a soft labor market?
According to recent data, the U.S. job market added 911,000 fewer jobs than initially thought in the second quarter of the year. At the same time, the U.S. labor market has continued its months-long gradual slowdown into August with just 22,000 new jobs created — a marked decline from the past few years, which have seen soaring job creation numbers. The weak job numbers have helped lead the national unemployment rate to hit 4.3% last month, the highest rate since 2021. The real-life effects of this data are plain to see: job seekers are finding it extremely difficult to land a position, with some beginning to turn to opportunities with lower pay as well as outside their chosen field to make ends meet. So what might this indicate about the future outlook of the U.S. job market? And how has California’s labor market fared? Joining us this morning to discuss is a labor reporter for the Washington Post, Lauren Kaori Gurley. Also joining us is Christopher Thornberg, founding partner of Beacon Economics.
People are flocking to theaters to see films that came out 20-plus years ago. Why?
Nostalgia seems to be running the film box office these days. There’s a new sequel or prequel of a beloved movie or franchise releasing every week practically. But the real theater success story this year are the re-releases — films that are ten years old or so that get another limited theatrical run, typically for an anniversary. This year alone saw Pride & Prejudice (2005), Brokeback Mountain (2005), and Black Swan (2005) all celebrate their 20th anniversary with a limited theatrical rerelease. Star Wars and Lord of the Rings movies always seem to come back to theaters at least once every year. Rereleases help theaters fill screens and are a low-cost way for studios to gain at the box office. But why would audiences choose to pay 20 dollars to see a movie they can easily put on at home with no extra cost? Today on AirTalk, we talk about the success of film rereleases with Dawn Chmielewski, U.S. entertainment business correspondent for Reuters and Karie Bible, media analyst at Exhibitor Relations, Co. We also want to hear from you! Have you gone to the theater for a rerelease recently? Why? Give us a call at 866-893-5722 or email us at atcomments@laist.com.
UCLA football’s rocky start and the sweeping changes in college sports
UCLA fired head Football Coach and former Bruin star DeShaun Foster on Sunday, after their rough start to the season with a losing record of 0-3. This move effectively ends Foster's seven-month tenure, which began in February. UCLA Athletic Director Martin Jarmond said the choice to let Foster go was “in the best interest of the program.” This comes after the college football format has undergone sweeping changes, as player free agency through the NCAA transfer portal, lucrative name, image, and likeness (NIL) deals, and league realignments like the disbandment of the Pac-12 division, have raised questions about the sport’s stability amidst all this chaos. Joining us to discuss the Bruins' new directions and the transformation of college football is LA Times staff writer Ben Bolch. We also want to hear from you! What are your thoughts on the transformation of college football? Has it affected your level of interest in the sport? Give us a call at 866-893-5722 or email us at atcomments@laist.com.
College sports betting violations lead to a closer look at a growing problem
The NCAA is investigating potential violations of sports betting rules involving 13 former men’s basketball players who competed for six schools. Cases include athletes formerly associated with Eastern Michigan, Temple, Arizona State, New Orleans, North Carolina A&T and Mississippi Valley. The schools are not under investigation or at risk of being penalized. The violations include student-athletes betting on and against their own teams, sharing information with third parties for purposes of sports betting, manipulating scoring or outcomes and/or refusing to participate in the investigation. Joining us to discuss is David Purdum, staff writer for ESPN who covers the intersection between gambling and sports and Jonathan Cohen, senior program officer at the American Academy of Arts & Sciences. He is the author of Losing Big: America’s Reckless Bet on Sports Gambling.
With files from the Associated Press.
How close are we to having replacement body parts?
What happens when your car needs a new tire? Chances are, you head down to a tire center and have the crew there change it for you. But what happens when you need a new ear? Or leg? Or left part of your ribcage? Our bodies are in a constant state of decay, and for nearly all of human history, we've relied on human ingenuity to jerry-rig fixes for these things. But in the era of modern technology, surely we're getting close to having OEM-style replacement parts for our bodies, right? Right? That's the question that author Mary Roach tackles in her new book, Replaceable You: Adventures in Human Anatomy, and she joins AirTalk today to share her findings.
