President Joe Biden has honored acclaimed filmmakers, writers and others who have made their mark on American culture, awarding the prestigious National Medals of Arts and National Humanities Medals to 39 recipients.

The Democratic National Convention transformed what should have been the driest part of the evening — the roll call — into a party, featuring lively music and several celebrity appearances.

Eva Longoria has tackled another challenge, taking on a bilingual lead role in the Apple TV+ series “Land of Women.”.

This week’s new streaming entertainment releases include albums from Camila Cabello and Megan Thee Stallion, Amazon Prime has a documentary about Celine Dion dealing with a rare neurological disorder and Eva Longoria plays a woman whose life changes completely in “Land of Women.”.

Paul Mescal, Rita Moreno and Quentin Tarantino are getting awards at the annual Academy Museum Gala in October.

“Barbie” star America Ferrera has used her platform at a major Hollywood event to address the ongoing industry issue of Latino representation in film.

President Joe Biden and actor-director Eva Longoria have welcomed hundreds to the White House lawn to watch “Flamin' Hot,” a feel-good movie about the origin of the spicy Cheetos snack.

Democratic Party fundraisers are backing a $60 million purchase of Spanish-language radio stations in ten U.S. cities.

Robert De Niro was the honored guest at the 28th annual amfAR Gala Cannes, where one lucky guest won an auction to have lunch with the actor and a piece of his family history.

Chris Wallace, the most prominent personality lured to the since-shuttered CNN+ streaming service, will host an interview show on Sunday nights on the television network starting this fall.

The 44th annual Sundance Film Festival is back, and entirely online once more.

This week’s new entertainment releases include a new album of rootsy rock from John Mellencamp, the return of puppet friends from “Fraggle Rock” and a virtual Sundance Film Festival where all the selections can be streamed.

The Sundance Film Festival is returning to the Utah mountains in January armed with documentaries about Bill Cosby, Princess Diana, Kanye West and Lucille Ball as well as the directorial debuts of Eva Longoria, Tig Notaro and Jesse Eisenberg.

The over-the-top parties and star-studded shows surrounding Miami’s Art Basel wrapped up this weekend with performances by Rosalia, Lizzo, Cardi B and rocker Lenny Kravitz.

A couple decades ago, convincing investors that they could make money by helping underserved communities was a hard sell.

Health officials say the most common COVID-19 variant of concern circulating in Los Angeles County is now a variant that was discovered in the U.K. Previously, two California variants were dominant, but in the past week 53% of 40 specimens analyzed by a public health laboratory were the U.K. variant and none were California variants.

President Joe Biden and celebrities including Billy Crystal and Lin-Manuel Miranda are part of a TV special aimed at boosting COVID-19 vaccination rates.

Lady Gaga sings the national anthem during the 59th Presidential Inauguration at the U.S. Capitol for President-elect Joe Biden in Washington, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2021. And country star Garth Brooks, doffing his black cowboy hat, sang a soulful a capella rendition of “Amazing Grace,” his eyes closed for much of the song. While stars mostly eschewed Trump's inauguration four years ago, the A-list was back for Biden. Brooks was careful to call his decision to perform on Wednesday non-political, and in the spirit of unity. Alone with his guitar, The Boss sang his “Land of Hope and Dreams” in front of the Lincoln Memorial.

(AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)Like so much this past year, the inaugural celebration will be like no other: pared down, distanced, much of it virtual. But for actor Christopher Jackson — the original George Washington in Broadway's “Hamilton" — performing in a virtual “ball” is a way of participating in an essential rite of American democracy. Miranda will contribute a classical recitation, joining musicians like Bruce Springsteen, Katy Perry, John Legend, Demi Lovato, Foo Fighters, Justin Timberlake and Bon Jovi. The inaugural committee has made sure to blend this high-powered list with ordinary Americans and inspiring stories. And the “AAPI Inaugural Ball: Breaking Barriers” celebrated the Asian American and Pacific Islander communities with planned participants including actors Kal Penn, John Cho, Kumail Nanjiani and Chloe Bennet.

Iconic artists Lin-Manuel Miranda, Jon Bon Jovi and Bruce Springsteen are among the stars who will highlight a primetime virtual celebration televised Wednesday night following President-elect Joe Bidens inauguration. Biden’s inaugural committee announced the lineup Sunday for “Celebrating America,” a multinetwork broadcast that the committee bills as a mix of stars and everyday citizens. Musicians John Legend, Demi Lovato and Justin Timberlake, among others, will join Springsteen and Bon Jovi. The safeguards will remain in place leading up to President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on Wednesday. Fencing, boarded-up windows and lines of police and National Guard troops have transformed statehouse grounds ahead of expected demonstrations leading up to President-elect Joe Biden’s inauguration on Wednesday.

This cover image released by Columbia Records shows "Letter To You" by Bruce Springsteen. The album will be released on Oct. 23. (Columbia Records via AP)

(Columbia Records via AP)Here’s a collection curated by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists of what’s arriving on TV, streaming services and music platforms this week. Edgier than the (also great) Gwyneth Paltrow version, Anya Taylor-Joy takes on the role of the matchmaker extraordinaire this time. — Billie Eilish was on the road for just three days before she had to cancel her worldwide tour due to the coronavirus pandemic in March. But thankfully on Saturday the Grammy-winning star will host her first global livestream concert. “Essential Heroes: A Momento Latino Event” uses music, comedy, short documentaries and celebrity appearances to explore the Latino experience.

LOS ANGELES – Gloria Estefan, Alex Rodriguez and Eva Longoria will be among the participants in a monthlong online celebration of Latino contributions to television. It’s the first such event by Paley to coincide with Hispanic Heritage Month, which runs Sept. 15 to Oct. 15. Among the highlights of the event (all times Eastern):— “A Tribute to Hispanic Achievements on Television,” 8 p.m. Wednesday on Yahoo Entertainment. Estefan, Longoria, Edward James Olmos, Jimmy Smits and George Lopez are among those participating, with Soledad O’Brien as moderator. — “Telemundo’s ‘La Reina del Sur’: A Conversation with the Stars,” Oct. 2, Yahoo Entertainment and Yahoo en Español.

LOS ANGELES Kevin Hart will host the return of a popular telethon once spearheaded by the late Jerry Lewis to fight muscular dystrophy. The Muscular Dystrophy Association announced Wednesday that Hart will host the MDA Kevin Hart Kids Telethon. Hart said the telethons return is an incredible opportunity to bring back the work of Lewis, who helped make the Labor Day Muscular Dystrophy Association telethon a television tradition for decades. Lewis stepped down as host in 2011 and the association held its last telethon three years later. She hopes the telethon can continue to help raise awareness to therapies for muscular dystrophy and other related neuromuscular diseases.

The four-time Grammy winner isn't the only Biden playlist mainstay helping his campaign against President Donald Trump. Still, Biden has gone beyond celebrities in search of campaign surrogates. Stars generate candidate buzz, help with fundraising and can build campaign event crowds even for those online. His reelection campaign has been holding its own online events with top supporters nearly every night for months and says its online events average 2.6 million views per broadcast, though its headliners are often the presidents children. The Trump campaign has also seized on Biden's preferred venue for participating in online events, a basement studio in his Delaware home accusing the former vice president of hiding from voters.

Loughlin and Giannulli will have a chance to address U.S. District Judge Nathaniel Gorton when he decides whether to accept their unusual plea deals with prosecutors, which calls for Loughlin to serve two months in prison and Giannulli to serve five months. Under the plea deal, Giannulli has also agreed to pay a $250,000 fine and perform 250 hours of community service. Loughlin and Giannulli will appear before the Boston federal court judge during separate sentencing hearings held via videoconference because of the coronavirus pandemic. She and Giannulli fiercely fought the allegations for months, with their lawyers accusing prosecutors of withholding evidence that would exonerate them. They may also be concerned that saying the wrong thing could blow up their deal with prosecutors, lawyers say.

In this image from video, former Georgia House Democratic leader Stacey Abrams, center, and others, speak during the second night of the Democratic National Convention on Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2020. (Democratic National Convention via AP)Sustaining energy through four days of a political convention is never easy. On the second night of the Democratic National Convention, party leaders tried to blend its past with its future. Here are key takeaways from night two. But the 2020 Democratic convention is notable for the consistency of dire warnings about the other partys leader.

(Scott Olson/Pool via AP)NEW YORK After a night in which television struggled to keep up with the Democrats' virtual convention, networks were rewarded with the most traditional of political events a powerful speech. This will not be like any convention we have seen before, ever, CNNs Anderson Cooper said at the opening of his networks coverage. Segments spent on broadcast networks previewing speeches by Obama and Sanders seemed like time-wasters when there were other things to show. Wallace's colleague, Dana Perino, stumbled into an unfortunate word choice in an effort to convey enthusiasm for Obama's address. Four years ago, when Hillary Clinton was nominated, 25 million people tuned in to the first night.

Actress Natalie Portman and venture capitalist Kara Nortman lead a group that will bring an expansion National Women's Soccer League team to the Los Angeles area in 2022. Then she and Nortman met Becca Roux, the executive director of the U.S. Women's National Team Players Association. The women also reached out to a local supporters group that has been campaigning to bring a team to Los Angeles. The group is partnering with the LA84 Foundation, a nonprofit formed after the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics that promotes youth sports. The official name of the Los Angeles club, and where it will play, are expected to be announced later this year.

Cynthia Erivo, John David Washington, Eva Longoria, Zendaya and Awkwafina are among the 819 people who have been invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. If they accept, which most do, those in the new class will have voting privileges at this years Oscars. A handful of actors from this years best picture winner Parasite, including Jang Hye-Jin, Jo Yeo-Jeong, Park So-Dam and Lee Jung-Eun, were also invited to join. The Academy said that 49% of the new invitees are international and represent some 68 countries. It has since surpassed those goals and continues to infuse membership classes with both women and people from underrepresented communities.

(CNN) - Eva Longoria is taking on an interesting project. The actress has landed the directing job for "Flamin' Hot," a biopic about Richard Montanez, a Frito-Lay janitor and Mexican immigrant who created the spicy Flamin' Hot Cheetos snack and became famous within the food industry, reports Deadline. To her credit, Longoria was up against multiple directors for the job, but so impressed producers with her ideas that they chose her. She reportedly had an original take on Montanez disrupting the food industry with his crunchy treat. Cloud" and "October Sky," wrote the "Flamin'" script.