As the game “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon” suggests, actor Kevin Bacon is well-known, and has been for a long time.

The “Footloose” and “Friday the 13th” actor, who has been in the business for well over 40 years and has two films out this week, “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” and “MaXXXine,” spoke with Vanity Fair for an interview published on Friday, in which he discussed his longtime status as a highly recognizable star, as well as how he recently tried to see how the other half lived.

Kevin Bacon | CNN Image

Kevin Bacon Wore A Disguise To Spend The Day Like A Normal Person And Discovered It ‘Sucked’

“I went to a special effects makeup artist, had consultations, and asked him to make me a prosthetic disguise,” Bacon told the newspaper.

Once dressed and undercover, he traveled to The Grove, one of Los Angeles’ most popular shopping districts, and was delighted to learn that “nobody recognized” him.

He was thrilled at first, but it quickly faded.

“People were shoving past me, which was not very pleasant. Nobody said, ‘I love you.’ “I had to wait in line to, I don’t know, buy a f—king coffee or whatever,” Bacon said slyly. “I thought, This sucks. I want to return to being famous.”

Bacon, recognized for his ability to play characters ranging from incredibly likable (as in “Tremors” or “Apollo 13”) to extremely evil (as in “Sleepers” or “The River Wild”), once again plays a villain in his two new films.

He told Vanity Fair that as an actor, he has never hesitated to take darker roles since, to him, “this is what an actor is.” I never worry about how others perceive me. Work is about taking on several identities and being a part of a larger story.”

Bacon | Variety Image

Kevin Bacon Wore A Disguise To Spend The Day Like A Normal Person And Discovered It ‘Sucked’

“I don’t need you to go to the movies and love me,” Bacon continued. “If you go to a movie like ‘MaXXXine’ or ‘Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F,’ and I die, and you jump up and cheer, I think, ‘Great. That was my gig. That’s all I wanted out of it.”

“MaXXXine” hits theaters on Friday. “Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F” is currently available on Netflix.

SOURCE – CNN

Los Angeles  — Jon Landau, an Oscar-winning producer who collaborated closely with director James Cameron on three of the most successful blockbusters of all time, “Titanic” and two “Avatar” films, died. He was 63.

Landau’s family announced his death on Saturday. No cause of death was specified.

Landau’s collaboration with Cameron resulted in three Oscar nominations and a best picture win for 1997’s “Titanic.” Together, the two have produced some of the most successful films in history, including “Avatar” and its sequel, “Avatar: The Way of Water.”

Jon Landau | AP News Image

Jon Landau, Oscar-Winning ‘Titanic’ And ‘Avatar’ Producer, Dies At 63

In a statement, Cameron mourned “a dear friend, and my closest collaborator of 31 years.” “A part of myself has been torn away,” Cameron said.

“His zany humor, personal magnetism, great generosity of spirit and fierce will have held the center of our Avatar universe for almost two decades,” he remarked. “His legacy is not just the films he produced, but the personal example he set — indomitable, caring, inclusive, tireless, insightful and utterly unique.”

Landau began his career as a production manager in the 1980s and worked his way up the ranks, eventually becoming a co-producer on “Honey I Shrunk the Kids” and “Dick Tracy.”

He became the producer of Cameron’s pricey epic on the notorious 1912 maritime disaster, “Titanic.” The wager paid off: “Titanic” became the first film to gross over $1 billion at the global box office and won 11 Oscars, including Best Picture.

“I can’t act and I can’t compose and I can’t do visual effects, so I guess that’s why I’m producing.” Landau said this when accepting the medal alongside Cameron.

Their collaboration continued, with Landau becoming a senior executive at Cameron’s Lightstorm Entertainment. In 2009, the couple witnessed “Avatar,” a sci-fi epic recorded and exhibited in theaters using breakthrough 3D technology, outperform the box-office triumph of “Titanic.” It remains the highest-grossing film of all time.

The sequel, “Avatar: The Way of Water,” ranks third.

“Your wisdom and support shaped so many of us in ways we will always be grateful for,” Zoe Saldaña, one of the stars of the “Avatar” franchise, wrote in an emotional tribute on Instagram. “Your legacy will continue to inspire us and guide us in our journey.”

Landau was a crucial figure in the “Avatar” franchise, which experienced repeated delays in publishing “The Way of Water.” Landau supported the sequel’s progress and Cameron’s ambitious ambitions to film numerous sequels simultaneously to keep the franchise going.

“A lot has changed, but a lot hasn’t,” Landau told The Associated Press in 2022, just months before the sequel’s debut. “One thing that has yet to change is why people turn to entertainment nowadays. They do it to escape, much like they did with the first ‘Avatar’ film.

“Jon was a visionary whose remarkable talent and passion brought some of cinema’s most memorable stories to life. His outstanding contributions to the film industry have left an unforgettable impression, and he will be much missed. In a statement, Disney Entertainment co-chairman Alan Bergman said, “He was an iconic and successful producer, but he was also an even better person and a true force of nature who inspired everyone around him.”

When he was 29, Landau was made executive vice president of feature films at 20th Century Fox, where he oversaw huge hits such as “Home Alone” and its sequel, as well as “Mrs. Doubtfire” and “True Lies,” where he first collaborated with Cameron.

Landau also helped bring the manga adaptation Alita: Battle Angel to the big screen in 2019. Cameron backed the project, but his “Avatar” commitments prevented him from directing it. Instead, Landau collaborated with filmmaker Robert Rodriguez to complete the picture.

Jon Landau | AP News Image

Jon Landau, Oscar-Winning ‘Titanic’ And ‘Avatar’ Producer, Dies At 63

Landau was born in New York on July 23, 1960, the son of film producers Ely and Edie Landau. The family relocated to Los Angeles in the 1970s, and Landau graduated from the University of Southern California’s film school.

Ely Landau died in 1993. Edie Landau, an Oscar-nominated producer of films like “Long Day’s Journey Into Night,” “Hopscotch,” and “The Deadly Game,” died in 2022.

Jon Landau is survived by his wife, Julie, who is nearly 40 years old; their two boys, Jamie and Jodie; and two sisters and one brother.

SOURCE – (AP)

Kris Jenner received some unpleasant news on the latest episode of “The Kardashians.”

In the episode, which is currently streaming, the matriarch of one of the world’s most famous families learns she will have surgery to remove an ovarian tumor.

Kris Jenner | CNBC Image

Kris Jenner Learns Her Ovaries Will Need To Be Removed Because Of Tumor On ‘The Kardashians’

Jenner discussed her health with her family, which included her boyfriend, Corey Gamble and children Kim, Khloé, and Kendall.

“I wanted to tell you something. “I went to the doctor and got my scan,” she remarked in the episode, crying. “They found – and this just makes me emotional – they found a cyst and a little tumor on my ovary.”

She went on, “Dr. A told me I needed to have my ovaries removed, and I’m sensitive about it because they came in useful with you guys. All of my children were conceived in my tummy and grew there. “So this is a very sacred place for me.”

The sisters contacted Kourtney Kardashian to get her involved in the conversation.

“I totally understand how my mom is feeling because I would feel the same way,” Kourtney later told reporters. “It’s your womanly power and it doesn’t mean that it’s taking away who she is or what she’s experienced, but I would feel this sentimental feeling of what it’s created.”

Jenner, who had previously undergone hip replacement surgery, appeared optimistic.

“Listen, if I can get through the hip replacement, I can get through this,” she told me. “I’m not nervous about being put to sleep. I’m not nervous about Dr. A; she’s the best doctor in the world. But then you go and do it, and it feels so real.”

She continued: “It’s a whole chapter that’s just closed.”

Jenner has six children, including her famous daughters.

Kris Jenner | Rolling Stone Image

Kris Jenner Learns Her Ovaries Will Need To Be Removed Because Of Tumor On ‘The Kardashians’

“I’ll be fine…”I’ve got you, folks. People frequently ask me what the finest job I’ve ever had is, and I’ve always responded, ‘Mom,'” Jenner continued, calling it “the biggest blessing in my life.”

It is unclear whether Jenner has had the procedure since the episode was taped. CNN has reached out to Jenner for comment.

“The Kardashians” airs new episodes on Hulu every Thursday.

SOURCE – CNN