Comic actors Amy Schumer, Regina Hall and Wanda Sykes will host this year’s Academy Awards ceremony as producers try to attract new viewers after record-low ratings in 2021, Hollywood publication Variety and other media outlets reported on Monday.  The actors are finalizing details and an announcement will be made on Tuesday on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” Variety said. ABC, owned by Walt Disney Co, will broadcast the Oscars ceremony on March 27.  The film industry’s highest honors, which are handed out by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, …

U.S. first lady Jill Biden on Monday observed Valentine’s Day at the White House with displays of giant hearts on the North Lawn and valentines from local elementary school children inside the mansion.  The displays include a giant red heart inscribed with a Bible passage, 1 Corinthians 13:13, which says, “Three things will last forever — faith, hope and love — and the greatest of these is love.“  Additionally, hand-painted, wooden artwork in the shapes of the first family’s puppy, Commander, and cat, Willow, adorned either side of the giant …

For literature lovers in sanction-hit Iran, a new novel has long provided a brief respite from a grinding economic crisis triggered by international pressure imposed over Tehran’s contested nuclear programme. But now losing yourself in a good book is becoming harder, as cash-strapped publishers struggle because the price of paper is soaring. “If a 200-page novel sold for 400,000 rials ($1.60) last year, its price today is 1,000,000 rials ($4.10), most of which is the cost of production”, said Reza Hasheminejad, who runs the Ofoq publishing house. Iran does not …

Ivan Reitman, the influential filmmaker and producer behind many of the most beloved comedies of the late 20th century, from “Animal House” to “Ghostbusters,” has died. He was 75.  Reitman died peacefully in his sleep Saturday night at his home in Montecito, Calif., his family told The Associated Press.  “Our family is grieving the unexpected loss of a husband, father, and grandfather who taught us to always seek the magic in life,” children Jason Reitman, Catherine Reitman and Caroline Reitman said in a joint statement. “We take comfort that his …