Madonna has experienced a health scare and will postpone at least some of her Celebration world tour that was to kick off next month. The tour aimed to celebrate the 40th anniversary of her breakout single, Holiday, and was expected to follow her experimental, theatre-based Madame X shows in 2019 and 2020.
“I am excited to explore as many songs as possible in hopes to give my fans the show they have been waiting for,” Madonna said in the tour’s announcement video.
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The diva’s longtime manager Guy Oseary revealed that the global popstar has been admitted to hospital because of infection that was “serious” and led to “a several day stay in the ICU” adding that a full recovery is expected. “At this time we need to pause all commitments, which includes the tour,” he added. “We will share more details with you as soon as we have them, including a new start date for the tour and for rescheduled shows.”
As per media reports, she had been receiving treatment at a hospital in New York City. As of now, Madonna has reportedly been discharged from hospital and transported back to her New York home via private ambulance.
A number of celebs and friends, as well as fans, wished the diva a speedy recovery.
Some of the tweets following the news of her hospital admission read: “Madonna is the blueprint whose influence continues to carry through EVERY cycle of pop stars,” and “Yes, even your fave. The literal definition of ‘icon.’ Yet she’s been ridiculed and minimised from the start of her career. Glad she’s expected to fully recover. Show some respect.”
Variety/Getty Images/ Christopher Polk
The 64-year-old hitmaker received message from the likes of The Weekend, who wrote “Sending our prayers [heart emoji, prayer-hand emoji] @madonna,” and Kathy Griffin, who posted, “I don’t know what’s going on with Madonna, I don’t know, but I love her and want to defend her. I don’t like how people are already piling on and making fun of her being obviously quite ill, or collapsed. She’ll be fine, we don’t know anything yet. But I’m going to be honest, I think a lot of it is ageism and misogyny.”
A week ago, Madonna shared a series of images of herself showing her in rehearsals in a post captioned “The Calm Before The Storm.”
We wish Madonna a complete recovery.
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Chagas is a tropical parasitic disease caused by Trypanosoma cruzi. It is spread mostly by insects in the subfamily Triatominae, known as “kissing bugs.” This disease is also known as a silent killer because symptoms may appear even years after a person gets infected.
The issue with it is that not much is done for either prevention or treatment of it because it is mainly the poor people from low-income housing in rural or suburban areas who get infected at night while sleeping.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), in Mexico, Central America, and South America, approximately 8 million people–6 to 7 million worldwide as reported by the World Health Organization (WHO)– have Chagas disease, the majority unaware of their infection. About 12,000 people die of Chagas each year, killing “more people in Latin America than any other parasite disease, including malaria,” as reported by the Guardian.
Wikipedia Commons / Felipe Guhl
Emiliana Rodríguez, who is now a mother, remembers a horrific scene from her childhood when she witnessed a friend of hers dropping down dead on the field during a game. At the time, she had no idea what took her friend’s life, her family only told her it was a “monster” which comes out during the night.
“The fear usually came at night. Sometimes I didn’t sleep,” she said. “I was afraid of sleeping and not waking up.”
Ever since, she has been afraid of that monster and the disease it spread, Chagas. Some 27 years later, she escaped her home country of Bolivia and moved to Barcelona, but what she didn’t know was that she couldn’t escape the Chagas.
When she learned she was pregnant, doctors discovered she had the infection in her body and she wasn’t even aware of it. There was fear that it could affect her baby as well. “I was paralysed with shock and remembered all those stories my relatives told me about people suddenly dying,” she said, also recalling the death of her friend. “I thought, ‘What’s going to happen to my baby?’”
Luckily, Rodríguez underwent treatment to prevent the parasite from reaching her unborn child through vertical transmission. After her baby girl was born, she tested negative.
An acute Chagas disease infection with swelling of the right eye (Romaña’s sign) / Wikipedia Commons
Another case comes from Mexico and it involves Elvira Idalia Hernández Cuevas who had never heard of Chagas until her 18-year-old was diagnosed with the silent killer.
“I had never heard of Chagas so I started to research it on the internet,” Hernández said in an interview with the Guardian. “I was terrified when I saw it described as a silent killer. I didn’t know what to do or where to go.”
The issue is that just like Hernández, many other people are unaware of this disease and the blood-sucking bugs which cause it.
Chagas is named after Carlos Ribeiro Justiniano Chagas, a Brazilian physician and researcher who identified the human case in 1909. Over the past several decades, Chagas disease is known to be prevalent in Latin America, North America, Europe, Japan and Australia.
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Speaking of the disease and what doctors knew about it, Hernández said, “In Mexico, the authorities say that there aren’t many people affected by Chagas and that it’s under control, but that’s not the situation.
“Medical professionals don’t receive any training and mistake Chagas for other heart diseases. The majority don’t realize there is Chagas in Mexico.”
Unfortunately, it is neglected partly because “it’s a silent disease that stays hidden for so long in your body … because of the asymptomatic nature of the initial part of the infection,” as per Colin Forsyth, a research manager at the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative (DNDi).
Referencing the poor populations, Forsyth continued, “The people affected just don’t have the power to influence healthcare policy. There’s this confluence of biological and social issues that keep it hidden.”
However, as there are more and more cases worldwide, things may change, but likely not in the near future.
Professor David Moore, a consultant at the Hospital for Tropical Diseases in London, created the Chagas Hub, a UK-based facility with the primary goal of having “more people tested and treated, and to manage the risk of transmission, which in the UK is from mother to child,” he said.
This disease can only be treated with two medicines, benznidazole and nifurtimox, both of which have been on the market for half a decade but don’t seem to be much effective. Sadly, there are no funds for further research on which other drugs can be used to treat this silent killer.
At the moment, Rodríguez is doing all in her power to raise awareness about Chagas through a campaign by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health. “I’m fed up with so much silence,” Rodríguez says. “I want people to talk about Chagas, and to know about it. I want people to get tested and to get treatment.”
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The WHO established World Chagas Disease Day, which runs every year on April 14, the day in 1909 when Carlos discovered the first human case. WHO writes that “Global targets for 2030 and milestones are set out to prevent, control, eliminate and eradicate a diverse set of 20 diseases and disease groups.” This includes Chagas.
To prevent a possible infestation, the CDC recommends that you:
Seal cracks and gaps around windows, walls, roofs and doors
Remove wood, brush and rock piles near your house
Use screens on doors and windows and repair any holes or tears
Seal holes and cracks leading to the attic, to crawl spaces below the house and to the outside
Have pets sleep indoors, especially at night
Keep your house and any outdoor pet resting areas clean, in addition to periodically checking both areas for the presence of bugs.
In case you see this bug, you shouldn’t smash it. Instead, you should carefully place the bug in a container and fill the container with rubbing alcohol or freeze it in water which you will then bring to your local health department or a university laboratory for identification.
Have you ever heard of Chagas yourself?
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Actress Miriam Margolyes, best known for her roles in the 1993 film The Age of Innocence and as Professor Sprout in the Harry Potter franchise, posed for the June issue of Vogue magazine as part of its Pride Month celebrations.
She has been one of the many UK’s most prominent LGBTQ+ actors, musicians, politicians and athletes who took part at Vogue’s most recent issues where they spoke openly about their sexuality.
Others, alongside Miriam, have been actress Janelle Monáe, singer Rina Sawayama, The Last of Us’s Bella Ramsey, Doctor Who star Ncuti Gatwa and House of the Dragon’s Emma D’Arcy. Among the interviews there were people who are not celebrities as well, among them the first gay couple to get married in the UK in 2014 to the oldestperson to undergo gender reassignment surgery at 81.
Among the rest, Miriam told the magazine that she “never had any shame about being gay” and “wouldn’t want to be straight for anything,” adding: “I think gay people are very lucky because we are not conventional, we are a group slightly apart. It gives us an edge. We’re good artists, we’re good musicians.”
Asked what she thinks about the future of LGBTQ rights in the UK, she was honest in that she has little hope. “It’s not so much the gay part of things. I’m worried about all of it,” she said. “I just think England has become a s***-hole. And the government is at the heart of the s***. There’s been a moral slide in England into the deep pit of iniquity.”
Miriam has been an advocate for the LGBTQ community ever since she came out of the closet and shared with the world that she is a lesbian. This happened back in 1966 when homosexuality was illegal in Britain, thus her move was considered bold and very brave by people from the community who felt the same. In the Vogue interview, she spoke of those times and said, “I never had any shame about being gay or anything really. I knew it wasn’t criminal because it was me. I couldn’t be criminal.”
In her book This Much Is True, the actress revealed that her mother passed away shortly after Miriam revealed she was gay. This loss caused immense pain at Miriam who harbored guilt for many years. “I always believed that my coming out in some way caused it,” she wrote. “I had caused the person I loved most in the world a pain she could not bear. It was a horrendous time and I was very unhappy. I knew I couldn’t change what I was; I should not have told them.”
The award-winning actress posed for a photo for which she wore her grey tresses styled in a bun and sported eye-catching make up adding a deep rouge lip.
Miriam making her British Vogue debut in July 2023 “Pride & Joy” issue!
Speaking about her body image, Miriam admitted that she has struggled with insecurities, but is determined to embrace her form regardless.
“I think my face is kind and warm and open and smiley,” she said. “But I hate my body. I hate big t**s [and I have] a drooping belly, little twisted legs. I’m not thrilled with that. But you just make the best of it. You have to. You do the best you can.”
She commented: “It’s a strong position if you’re not afraid to be who you are.
“We’re all so insecure. People are frightened such a lot of the time and what I’ve always tried to do… (is) make people feel good about themselves.”
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65-year-old actor Julian Sands who pivoted from the romantic lead in A Room With a View and played in films such as Warlock was confirmed dead Tuesday after being reported missing near after going on a hike at the snow-covered mountains of Southern California on Jan. 13.
Sands was an avid mountaineer. In a 2020 interview with The Guardian, when he was asked when he was happiest, he answered: “Close to a mountain summit on a glorious cold morning.” On the day he went missing, he had gone hiking alone in the Baldy Bowl area of the San Gabriel Mountains, about 50 miles northeast of Los Angeles, which is a popular location for hikers and mountain lovers.
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Following the report that he had gone missing, a search was conducted. Unfortunately, the search was concluded Saturday, after five months. He was searched for with helicopters and drones but the crews were severely hampered by wintry conditions that lasted through spring. He was only discovered when hikers stumbled upon remains of a human which then turned out to be Sands’.
The exact reason for his passing has not been determined yet. “The manner of death is still under investigation, pending further test results,” the San Bernardino County Sheriff’s Department said in a statement, per BBC. “We would like to extend our gratitude to all the volunteers that worked tirelessly to try to locate Mr Sands.”
View of Mount Baldy in California (Shuttershock)
According to the BBC, the actor’s family had already accepted that Sands was deceased, though this news will no doubt give them closure.
“We continue to hold Julian in our hearts with bright memories of him as a wonderful father, husband, explorer, lover of the natural world and the arts, and as an original and collaborative performer,” the family said in a statement.
“I have come to terms with the fact he’s gone and for me that’s how I’ve dealt with it,” his brother Nick Sands said, saying he had already said his “goodbyes.”
In a statement shared with the Los Angeles Times, Sands’ manager, Sarah Jackson, said the actor “was a great friend and client.”
“He chose interesting projects that mattered to him and was adored by everyone who worked with him,” Jackson said. “He was a passionate climber, and we draw [consolation] from knowing that he passed in a place he loved, doing what he loved. We are filled with the most beautiful memories.”
Sands’ films include Arachnophobia, Naked Lunch, Warlock, Ocean’s 13, Warlock, The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and Leaving Las Vegas. On TV, he had recurring roles on 24 and Smallville.
“I didn’t want to be a Hollywood actor,” he told The Guardian in 2018, saying he wanted to challenge himself as an actor. “I was looking for something exotic, things that took me out of myself…I think I found myself a little boring.”
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Although he wasn’t an A-list actor, he earned respect and appreciation both from his fans and the critics. “He was always good, always gallant and dignified,” said former New York Times film critic Janet Maslin. “I don’t remember a false move from him.”
We are so very sorry for this loss. May he rest in peace.
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Cathy Weed, a mom from Gwinnett County lost her life in a tragic manner after she stepped on an ant hill in her yard.
She was someone whom the entire community adored, a devoted mother who never missed any of her son’s baseball games, and an important pillar of the community, thus her loss left many heartbroken.
Tributes to Cathy were paid by those who knew her on the baseball field on which she cheered her son Gray who was a rising Sophomore and a member of the Mountain View High School Bears baseball team.
The tragedy happened after Cathy accidentally stepped on the ant hill. Sadly, she had had lethal allergy to fire ants and the reaction was so severe that she didn’t even have the time to get to her medication.
Her death was both sudden and immediate.
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Back in 2018, Cathy experienced something similar but managed to survive. She experienced allergic reaction to an ant bite but was rushed to the ER on time. Back then, she spoke of the importance of having EpiPen at hand in case some is allergic to something. It was during the time when there was shortage of EpiPens. Sadly, years later, the same allergic reaction ended up taking her life.
Cathy’s obituary highlighted how special of a person she was. It read that she was an “extraordinary individual who touched the lives of everyone she encountered. Her warm smile, kind heart, and unwavering compassion will forever be remembered.”
Jason Johnson, the coach of Cathy’s son’s team described her as a wonderful person who shared a very strong bond with her son. “His mom was everything to [Gary], and he was 100%, even more so to her.”
We are so very sorry for this tragic loss. Our thoughts and prayers go to the grieving family.
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Kurt Russel can brag with a career spanning 60 years. He had his acting debut back in 1963 when he landed a role in The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters, making him one of the lead actors of the 70s.
He and Goldie Hawn make one of the most adorable couples in Hollywood and prove the theory that celebrity relationships don’t last wrong.
They have been together for many years and both believe that the key to long lasting relationship is that they have never tied the knot.
“We have done just perfectly without marrying. I already feel devoted, and isn’t that what marriage is supposed to do?” Goldie told Woman’s Day in 2007. Kurt and Goldie first met on the set of The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band in 1966. Back then, however, it seemed there was no chemistry between them, probably because of the fact that Goldie was 21 and Kurt was still a teenager. From that movie on, both went on to have extremely successful careers.
Being in their 70s doesn’t stop Kurt and Goldie from leading pretty active lifestyle. In 2017 a source told Closer Weekly that Goldie had been super focused on her diet.
“She always says you’re as young as you feel, and she still feels like a 30-year-old. She’s healthy and vibrant and comfortable in her own skin,” the source said.
Another insider added: “[Goldie is] doubling down on working out. She’s never really just committing to one solid routine. Her big word is ‘diversity.’ Every day is different so she never gets bored of her workouts.”
Kurt is as active as she is, back some time ago, when he was to be inducted into the Oklahoma City-based Hall of Great Western Performers in October 2022, it was revealed he wouldn’t be able to attend due to “unforeseen medical issue.” In fact, he was planning on delaying the surgery, but doctors advised him otherwise.
As reported by the Oklahoman, the Christmas Chronicles’ star was going to have a hip surgery.
Around the same time, the actor experienced more health issues based on the photos of him showing him with cuts and sores under his lower lip that is said to be brought on by Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (PJS), which has been linked to intestinal Cancer.
According to Cancer.Net, “the lifetime risk of Cancer in those with PJS may be as high as 93 percent.” The sores are dangerous and require proper treatment as soon as possible since it is a precancerous lesion.
Other photos of him with messy bandages covering some of the cuts on his face made fans worried as they believed he was suffering from something even serious, but it turned out that the cuts and bruises were movie makeup for his role in Deepwater Horizon.
Kurt is a happy man with a family that loves him unconditionally.
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When they landed the roles of Olivia and John Walton in the long-running series Waltons, actors Ralph Waite and Michael Learned became one of the most famous and most beloved TV couples.
The series featured the life of the family, who had several kids and grandparents, and their struggles to overcome what the Great Depression had brought to the country and its people.
The series was a big breakthrough for both Learned and Waite who rose to stardom almost overnight.
The two came from similar backgrounds. They were both part of large families and were the oldest children. Although Learned was born in Washington D.C., she spent most of her childhood on a farm in Connecticut with her five younger sisters. When she turned eleven, she left America for Austria and attended the Arts Educational School, Tring, which is now the Tring Park School for the Performing Arts in Tring, Hertfordshire.
When she was cast for the role which helped her make a name for herself, Learned was 33 years old.
Waite on the other hand spent his childhood in White Plains, New York. Following high school, he joined the Marines after which he attended college.
When it came to their personal lives, they were far from the lives they played on screen.
Learned was married three times in her life. She first tied the knot when she was just 17 and married Canadian-American actor Peter Donat, with whom she had three boys. She then moved on and married two more times before she finally found the love of her life, her current partner, John Doherty.
At the time they started filming Waltons, Learned experienced problems with alcohol addiction, but her on-screen husband helped her overcome her issues. “I was drinking heavily when the show started, and Ralph saved my life. Really,” she said.
During breaks while filming she used to go to the local restaurants where she would drink, arriving back on set inebriated. It was Waite who spoke to her about her issues openly and made her realize that she needed to break the habit of drinking. Learned spent some time at her ex-husband’s cottage on the California coast to become sober.
Waite, just like Learned, was married three times before he found his bliss. However, although they both found love, there were always rumors surrounding their relationship.
Following Waite’s passing in 2019, Learned opened up about what the fans always suspected and admitted that she and Waite were deeply in love but never gave it a try for the sake of the series which turned them into stars. They were aware that if their relationship failed, things could have turned messy.
“We had a deep love for each other that we would have ruined if we had taken that extra step, and we didn’t,” Learned said.
“We never did, we thought about it, but we didn’t. And I think that’s why we became a spiritual husband and wife if you will, and I miss him terribly. His wife is a very good friend. But what Ralph and I had was something that came across on screen.”
They chose the series which entertained millions of fans over the years over their love for one another.
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Besides being a famous musician who has spent his entire life giving his fans plenty of memorable moments with his music and performances, Donny Osmond is also a father and a grandfather of 12.
Donny and his wife of many years, Debra Glan, welcomed five sons together, Don, Jeremy, Brandon, Christopher, and Joshua.
Today, Don has four kids with his wife Jessica, Jeremy has three children with Melissa, Brandon and his wife Shelby also have four kids, and Christopher has one baby with his wife Alta. As of Donny’s youngest son, he and his wife tied the knot in 2020 but decided to spend some years on their own before becoming parents.
Donny and Debra became grandparents for the first time in 2005, when Jeremy and Melissa welcomed son Dylan. This was a joyous moment for the Osmond family who tend to spend as much time together as possible.
Donny, who is super busy performing and making music, still finds the time to spend with his grandchildren.
In 2012, Osmond appeared on “The Talk” for a ‘Father’s Day Special’, and his eldest son Don made a surprise appearance alongside him to deliver some wonderful news. He told Donny that he was about to become a father for the first time. Don said, “I wasn’t the first to make you a grandfather, but Jessica and I have your fifth grandbaby.” Donny received the news with plenty of emotions and started crying. Later on, he even revealed why he got so emotional. “They’ve been trying for a long, long, long time, I’m very happy for them and I’m pretty happy myself too!”
Further, Donny said that his son and daughter-in-law had been experiencing fertility issues, but they were able to overcome them, and today, they share four beautiful children together.
“We officially have a dozen! Debbie and I are so excited that our 12th grand baby was born two weeks ago. Don and Jessi welcomed Christian, their 4th son, on Tuesday, December 29, 2020 and we are already in love,” Donny wrote on Instagram.
His grandchildren are involved in plenty of activities, and that includes sports and arts, and Donny is always by their side to support their dreams. One time, he flew home just to see one of his grandchildren play a football match. After the win, he expressed his satisfaction and said how proud he was.
When his other grandson had a basketball match, Donny went to see him and went to LA to continue his residency right after that.
Donny once tweeted that another of his grandchildren was a talented artists whose work has been displayed at the National Museum of History in Washington, DC.
When his first granddaughter was born, Donny was over the moon. “She has the most lovable personality and always makes sure that everyone has a friend. I’m so lucky to have this little girl in my life. In fact, I often refer to her as my sweet little princess,” he later wrote.
