People talk 3/8/04

Metropolitan Opera honors longtime supporting tenor

NEW YORK -- He's sung more performances than any solo artist in Metropolitan Opera history, most of them supporting roles that don't merit a solo bow. But on Saturday night, tenor Charles Anthony had the entire house applauding just for him. The Met honored Anthony during the first-act intermission of Puccini's "Tosca," a performance that also marked the start of Luciano Pavarotti's farewell engagement with the company. From his debut on March 6, 1954, in Mussorgsky's "Boris Godunov," Anthony has sung every single season at the Met -- 2,882 performances of 110 roles in all. Joseph Volpe, the Met's general manager, praised Anthony as a gifted artist and warm human being who gave sage advice and comfort to generations of his colleagues. "It's no exaggeration to say that Charlie Anthony is the soul of the Metropolitan Opera," Volpe said.

De Niro celebrates lower Manhatten's rejuvenation

NEW YORK -- The third Tribeca Film Festival will screen 150 works on topics ranging from South African democracy to misery in a Brazilian prison, while celebrating lower Manhattan's rebirth after the terror attacks, actor Robert De Niro said.

"We felt we needed something to heal our neighborhood and our city," said De Niro, who co-founded the annual event in his lower Manhattan neighborhood.

This year's festival offers features, documentaries, shorts and major-studio premieres that last year drew 350,000 spectators who spent $47 million in the city. The festival will be held the first two weekends in May.

"There's a real sense of renewal and growth downtown," De Niro said at a news conference Friday at Silvercup Studios East in Queens, where he's shooting a new movie. It's also where the TV show "Sex & the City" was filmed.

Former manager is no angel about his scene in upcoming film

LOS ANGELES -- NBC cut the final scene in its upcoming movie about the making of the popular television series "Charlie's Angels" after Farrah Fawcett's former manager complained. Jay Bernstein threatened legal action if the scene was not removed, claiming it impugned his character and harmed his ability to make deals. NBC spokesman Bob Meyer said the network was aware of Bernstein's complaint, but the ending was altered for artistic reasons. Bernstein was pleased with the outcome. "I didn't want any money, I just wanted them to remove the scene," he said Thursday. The scene showed a paunchy, Hawaiian-shirted version of Bernstein on Hollywood Boulevard hustling a blonde in his search for the next Farrah.

Gooding wins award for controversial role in 'Radio'

LOS ANGELES -- Receiving the NAACP's Image award for his portrayal of James Robert "Radio" Kennedy was particularly sweet for Cuba Gooding Jr., who was stung by criticism that his portrayal of the mentally disabled man was too negative. "I'm proud of the performance because the man's mannerisms were very indicative of the character that I portrayed," Gooding said after receiving the best actor in a motion picture award Saturday night. "A lot of the situations in the movie came from actual events," he said. "Sometimes the truth is hard to watch but it's my job to bring the truth to the screen." Kennedy became an inspiration first for the football team at T.L. Hanna High School and then the entire community.

Bush's brother Neil remarries after messy divorce

HOUSTON -- Presidential brother Neil Bush, who divorced his wife of 23 years in a messy split last year, has married woman who once volunteered for former first lady Barbara Bush. Bush, 48, married Maria Andrews on Saturday in Houston in the mansion of longtime Bush family friends Rania and Jamal Daniel, the Houston Chronicle reported Sunday. The couple became engaged in December after Bush proposed in a French chateau. About 150 guests joined the newlyweds after a small family ceremony that included former President George H.W. Bush and Barbara Bush. President Bush and Florida Gov. Jeb Bush did not attend. Maria Andrews' ex-husband, Robert Andrews, has filed a defamation lawsuit against Bush's ex-wife, Sharon, contending she spread a rumor that Neil Bush fathered 3-year-old Thomas Alexander Andrews.

-- From wire reports