Florida Sentinel Bulletin

Keyboardist George Duke, one of the pioneers of the jazz-fusion movement that merged jazz, rock and funk in the late 1960s and 1970s, died Monday in Los Angeles, where he was being treated for chronic lymphocytic leukemia, his record label announced. He was 67.

The Northern California native was one of the leading forces in bringing jazz and rock together, genres that not only were typically separate in the 1950s and early ‘60s, but whose proponents often were philosophically at odds. Duke found the common ground between the styles.

In a career stretching over five decades, Duke collaborated with a wide range of musicians, among them Frank Zappa, Miles Davis, Barry Manilow, Dizzy Gillespie, Al Jarreau, Don Ellis, Cannonball Adderley, Nancy Wilson and Joe Williams.

Isaacs will be the first African-American in 86-year history of Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science

The NAACP congratulates Cheryl Boone Isaacs, who was named the President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Tuesday.

The Academy, which produces the annual Oscar ceremony, has not had a female president since 1983, and has never had an African-American president in its 86-year history. “We recognize the election of Cheryl Boone Isaacs as an historic moment in Hollywood,” stated Benjamin Todd Jealous, President and CEO of the NAACP.

Isaacs has led a distinguished career as a marketing and publicity consultant, previously working at New Line Cinema and Paramount Pictures. At the Academy, she previously served as First Vice President, and has served in every other office within the organization. Her role will include selecting a host for the Oscars telecast.

In July of this year, the Academy sought to expand racial and ethnic diversity among its voting members by inviting 276 new members from various backgrounds. The Academy also hired former NAACP Hollywood Bureau Executive Director Vicangelo Bulluck as Managing Director of Outreach and Strategic Initiatives, to help foster inclusion and diversity.

ATLANTA — Authorities say the son of Grammy-winning R&B singer Usher nearly drowned in an Atlanta pool.

Atlanta police spokesman Carlos Campos said in a report Tuesday that the 5-year-old boy fell to the bottom of pool and became stuck in the drain. Campos says it happened Monday afternoon behind a home in downtown Atlanta.

Campos says the housekeeper tried to get to the boy, but was unable to pull him from the drain. The boy was eventually pulled from the pool, and given CPR by a man who was working at the home as an audio-visual subcontractor. Campos says the boy was “conscious, breathing and alert” when firefighters arrived.

Oprah Winfrey has donned an O-shaped wig for the September issue of her O magazine, which will focus on all aspects of hair.

On the hair-raising cover, the media maven wears an orange dress and 3½-pound wig created by stylist and reality star, Kim Kimble, who has worked on “The Voice” and done Beyonce’s hair. “Just revealed this new cover of O, The Oprah Magazine — one of my faves ever,” Winfrey wrote on her Facebook page Monday, posting a pic of herself on the cover.

“Let’s talk about HAIR! Love this cover so much, I’m making it my new profile pic! The issue, dubbed “An O Extravaganza,” will go through all aspects of hair “with a fine-tooth comb” and will be “exploring why hair has such a hold on us, how to change it, dye it, lose it, buzz it, and grow it out, and everything you need to make yours the best it can be,” USA Today reports.

September 2013 issue hits newsstands Aug. 13.

Denzel Washington is so entrenched on Hollywood’s A-list that he arguably can have any role he wants. And he has proven notoriously picky.

Washington passed on a chance to star in the seventh installment of the blockbuster, Fast & Furious franchise.

The specific role that the Academy Award winner was being considered for has not been revealed, but according to producers someone “important” will ultimately take the part.

The 2 Guns star has infamously walked away from great leading roles in films that became critical and commercial successes.

Washington himself admitted regretting  his decisions not to star in Seven (1995) and Michael Clayton (2007), parts that went to Brad Pitt and George Clooney respectively.

Whitney Houston’s daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown and the late singer’s mother, Cissy Houston, haven’t been on the best terms lately.

Ever since Houston’s book “Remembering Whitney” was published in January, Brown has been keeping her distance from her grandmother, calling the book (which details Whitney’s drug abuse, problems with ex-husband Bobby Brown and gay relationship rumors) “disrespectful.”

Now, Houston is trying to mend fences, though in a very public way. She released an open letter to the press on last Wednesday, addressed to “Krissi,” and addressed the 20-year-old’s engagement to Nick Gordon.

Celebrities, activists, artists and media descended upon Bridgehampton, New York last Saturday July 28 to help raise more than $1.5 million — and counting — for Danny and Russell Simmons’ fourteenth annual Art For Life Benefit.

The event, held at the Fairview Farms estate in East Hampton, helped to raise money for the Rush Philanthropic Arts Foundation, which provides arts education opportunities for inner-city youth.

Guests included Michael Strahan, Nicole Murphy, Anthony Anderson, Rev. Al Sharpton, Star Jones, Angela Simmons and more. Youthful new faces such as Skylar Diggins, Olivia Culpo, Nana Meriwether, Melanie Fiona and Tahira Jose were also seen on the scene to bring attention to the importance of promoting culture among our youth.

Niles Rodgers, the music legend behind Chic and bass player on the smash hit song “Get Lucky,” has another happy tune to sing.

On Twitter, he has revealed that he “all clear” after years of battling prostate cancer.

The 60-year-old artist was diagnosed with the disease in 2010. But according to tweets published on his account July 29th, a London check-up provided Rodgers with good news.

Instead of showing gross internal video I’ll show my doctor’s fly examination room. I’M ALL CLEAR AGAIN!

EDDIE MURPHY

Eddie Murphy’s iconic Beverly Hills Cop may be skipping the small screen and heading straight to the theaters.

According to Deadline.com, Paramount has decided to back Murphy’s return as Axel Foley in Beverly Hills Cop IV, which would be written by Josh Appelbaum and Andre Nemec. The two were also the screenwriters behind big-name movies like Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol and the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles remake.