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USA Today
8 hours ago
- Entertainment
- USA Today
Alice Cooper on reuniting with band after 50 years, new memoir and teaching Bible study
The hotel room is a combination of drab green and beige, but Alice Cooper is a vision in black. Sitting regally on a couch in his quarters while on tour in Germany, Cooper smiles often. His long black hair is combed back and his over-ear headphones on, fitting for the radio pro that he is in addition to his 50-plus-year career in music as a pioneering shock rocker. Cooper is eager to talk about 'The Revenge of Alice Cooper,' the first new album in more than five decades from The Alice Cooper Group. Yes, for the uninitiated, those early '70s anthems of rebellion – 'School's Out,' 'I'm Eighteen,' 'Billion Dollar Babies' among them – are the work of the Group: Cooper (initially using his real name, Vincent Furnier); guitarist Michael Bruce; bassist Dennis Dunaway; drummer Neal Smith and guitarist Glen Buxton. But the end of The Alice Cooper Group with 1973's 'Muscle of Love' album and the beginning of Alice Cooper, who legally changed his name as a solo star, just two years later with 'Welcome to My Nightmare,' blurred the distinction. Now, the original band is back with 'The Revenge of Alice Cooper,' 14 heavy-hitting songs including 'Black Mamba,' 'Wild Ones' and 'Up All Night,' that snarl and thunder far beyond expectations for guys approaching 80. Even Buxton, who died in 1997, lives on through a technological assist on the track, 'What Happened To You.' The engaging Cooper, 77 – on tour now and again this fall with Judas Priest – reminisced about playing with his old friends, shared some details about his upcoming memoir and expressed his appreciation about this year's induction into the Radio Hall of Fame. More: Surprise! Johnny Depp joins Alice Cooper for Ozzy Osbourne tribute Question: So for what, exactly, is The Alice Cooper Group seeking revenge? Alice Cooper: We were always the underdogs. The press said this band will last for one year, they're great onstage but not good musicians. Then we had all these platinum albums. There is no stage involved there. So they had to admit, we have to put up with these guys … The revenge is that 50 years later we do an album and none of us knew what this was going to be and it turned out we made a really good 1975-type record. We didn't break up with bad blood. We didn't divorce. We just separated and were best friends and my career went on and on and they all made money when I released an album and the back catalog sold (laughs). Did you record the album the old-fashioned way, with everyone in the same room at the same time? Yes. Why not show out the band? When we got together, it just jelled. The whole album is dedicated to Glen. He was everyone's favorite guy. And then we had (The Doors guitarist) Robby Krieger on 'Black Mamba.' He was the perfect guy for that song. And our (other guitarist) Gyasi Heus, who said he learned from Glen, he just killed it. How did you get Glen's guitar solo on 'What Happened To You'? Dennis Dunaway, who is my oldest friend, never threw anything away. He had tapes of us rehearsing in our parents' living room when we were 15 and also tapes of us writing songs that never quite made it. We took a Glen guitar part and isolated it and wrote a song around it so we could have him on the album. With technology now you can do that. I forgot how much fun it was to work with the original band, how funny they were. I was shocked at how well Neal and Dennis played. They played every bit as well as back in the day. Congrats on the nomination for the Radio Hall of Fame. Did you ever think you'd parlay a career as a rock star into a side gig as a broadcaster ('Alice's Attic' is syndicated around the country)? Radio has always been part of my life. Dick Clark once asked me 23 years ago if I had a radio show what would it be … and I said I would take it back to 1968 when DJs played what they want to play. He said, let's see if it works. And 22 years later, it's still working! (Cooper relaunched his original 'Nights with Alice Cooper' as 'Alice's Attic' in 2024.) More: My Chemical Romance announce 2025 tour with Alice Cooper, Devo: Tickets, dates, more You play a lot of classic rock bands on "Alice's Attic" (The Doors, Styx, Aerosmith, Led Zeppelin). Do you worry about the existence of rock bands in the future? We were in the golden age. If a label wanted you, you got signed for 15 albums and they would support your band until you could pay them back. Young bands don't have that support so I can understand how a young band can't survive right now. But the good point is, when we started, rock(ers) were the kids not invited to the party, the outsiders. Now it's getting back to that and young bands are in garages and playing clubs and guitar-driven rock 'n' roll. It's been a minute since your 2007 book 'Golf Addict' came out. Would you do a sequel? It's being written right now, more the classic story about who I am, how I became Alice, all the things about my family and coming from a Christian background. I was the prodigal son and went as far away as you could. Now I occasionally teach Bible study Wednesday mornings in Phoenix. Everything about me and the band was about coming out of the ashes and somehow winning even when you weren't expected to.
IOL News
15-07-2025
- General
- IOL News
‘There shouldn't be a python here': Nick Evans stunned by snake discovery on Durban's M19
Nick Evans, a Durban snake catcher, with a python he rescued on the M19 near New Germany in Pinetown this week. Durban snake catcher Nick Evans rescued a three-metre python on the M19 near Pinetown. For Evans, what was unusual was that pythons are not usually found in these areas. Evan said he was contacted by the eThekwini Municipality about a large python hanging around a patch of bush next to the M19 near New Germany. "There's no pythons there, it will be a Black Mamba", Evans recalled telling the caller. He said there probably was a python population in the vicinity many, many decades ago, but they've since been wiped out. He said that while Mambas are also unusual, it was more likely. He said he followed them to the spot where they had seen the big snake. "When we arrived, I got out of my car, armed with my tongs, ready to catch the mamba. Then they pointed out the snake. I was shocked, it was a python." Evans said he put his thongs away and planned to grab its head, but the snake tried to escape into thicker bush. Evans said that with the help of his companion Joseph, they managed to catch the python. So, where did the python come from? "I don't believe it's an escaped pet. Southern African Pythons are a protected species, illegal to keep, and make terrible pets as they don't calm down. "Sometimes they're kept illegally in cruel conditions, not as pets, but for scamming reasons, but such snakes usually have injuries on their snouts from attempting to escape. He said there's an industrial area nearby. "Maybe, just maybe, it got into a truck somewhere, and got brought to the New Germany area." IOL News
The Citizen
15-07-2025
- General
- The Citizen
‘Bloody Hell!' – Where did it come from? Large python caught in KZN
The reptile will be released into the wild, where it will be safer. Snake rescuer Nick Evans did not expect to see a large python when he was contacted by the municipality after a snake was spotted next to the M19 in New Germany, KwaZulu-Natal, last week. Despite the municipality telling him it was a python, Evans said he went there expecting to find a Black Mamba, as 'there are no pythons there'. 'There probably was a python population in the vicinity many, many decades ago, but they've since been wiped out. Although it would be a little unusual to be a mamba too, just more likely,' Evans said. ALSO READ: Illegal side hustle gone wrong: Teens try to sell R20k python for R2k Apart from the New Germany Nature Reserve, the area nearby is an industrial zone, with no suitable hiding place for a python of that size. 'On Thursday, I followed them to the spot where they had been seeing the big snake. When we arrived, I got out of my car, armed with my tongs, ready to catch the mamba. Then they pointed out the snake. 'Bloody Hell!'- I was shocked, it was a python. I put my tongs back and walked into the bush, approaching the basking beast of a snake,' he added. 'Easy catch' What he initially thought would be an 'easy catch' turned into a tug of war match when the reptile was not trying to attack him, but to get away. 'I had to catch this snake; it had no future here. I grabbed the tail, but as it peed in my hands (as always), it was starting to slip out of my grip. Up stepped [ a colleague] Joseph. He came to help me and grabbed the tail end, just as I was losing it. Together, we pulled, and pulled, and I could feel us 'winning' the tug of war. I let go and moved forward to go for the head, which I quickly got. The wrestling match was over.' ALSO READ: Python on a plate: Slithering snakes as sustainable supper solution? The snake was around 3.5 metres. Evans said the python would be released at an undisclosed location, where it will continue to exist in nature uninterrupted. The Southern African python According to the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), the Southern African python, also known as a rock python or African rock python, is the largest snake in southern Africa. The males can weigh up to 44kg and reach lengths of up to 4.25m. The females can be even larger, weighing up to 55kg and reaching lengths of 5.0m. The reptiles can live for more than 27 years. The snakes control dassies and cane rats, especially in KwaZulu-Natal's sugarcane fields, according to SANBI. Southern African pythons are protected and vulnerable, and it is illegal to capture or kill them. READ NEXT: Python kills sniffer dog in Limpopo
USA Today
12-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Dodgers will give away Kobe Bryant bobbleheads in a few weeks
The legacy and spirit of Kobe Bryant continues to live on five years after his tragic death in a helicopter crash. The Los Angeles Lakers legend will forever be admired and celebrated across the Southland, as well as across the nation, and he has admirers who play sports other than basketball. The Los Angeles Dodgers have lost seven games in a row, but they're still in first place in the National League West, and they still should have a real shot at repeating as World Series champions. In a few weeks, they will honor the memory of the "Black Mamba" with a special offering at Dodger Stadium. On Aug. 8, when they host the Toronto Blue Jays, they will be giving away bobbleheads with Bryant's likeness. The design of those bobbleheads has been unveiled. The Blue Jays are currently on top of the American League East with a 55-39 record and have won 11 of their last 12 games. That Aug. 8 contest will kick off a three-game series between Toronto and the Dodgers, and it will give fans the opportunity to watch five-time All-Star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. take on the boys in blue.
Khaleej Times
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Khaleej Times
Dr Osama Regaah wins ‘Outstanding UAE Author Excellence Award' at UAE's Next MasterMind Awards 2025
At the prestigious UAE's Next MasterMind Awards 2025, held at the elegant Al Habtoor Palace, Dubai, celebrating global business and corporate leaders, coaching leaders and authors. Among the night's most distinguished honourees was Dr Osama Regaah, who received the 'Outstanding UAE Author Excellence Award' for his novel Black Mamba. Dr Osama Regaah is recognised not only for his literary brilliance but also for his commanding influence as legal director. Dr Regaah was presented the award on stage by esteemed dignitaries: Dr Shaikha Almazrouei, co-founder of Cell Lab7; and Dr Nidal Abou Zaki, founder and managing director of Orient Planet Group (OPG) and secretary general of Lebanese Business Council of Dubai & Northern Emirates. This recognition marked a celebration not only of Dr Regaah's literary achievements but also of his broader intellectual influence across the Arab world and beyond. In his acceptance speech, Dr Osama Regaah shared: "To write is to preserve truth and to challenge silence. Literature and law are both languages of justice and I'm honoured to stand in service of both." At the awards ceremony, his critically acclaimed novel Black Mamba was spotlighted for its philosophical depth and psychological brilliance. Through vivid characters like Maqsoud, Samia, and the enigmatic Jaika, the novel explores the blurred lines between truth and illusion, love and power, earning attention from literary scholars and graduate researchers across the region. He is a celebrated literary figure whose novels and writings have been published across Jordan, Turkey, Morocco, Iran, and Sudan, with translations into Persian, Turkish, and Amharic. The UAE's Next MasterMind Awards, now in its 13 year, founded by Dr Mansoor Al Obeidli and Dr Navana Kundu, continues to be one of the most respected global platforms honouring excellence across 40 plus industries. The 2025 edition was marked by powerful keynote addresses, unmatched networking and recognitions that celebrated leadership rooted in authenticity, intellect, and global impact. Dr Osama's recognition as the Outstanding UAE Author is more than an award - it reflects his rare gift of uniting two powerful worlds: the clarity of law and the beauty of literature. His ability to inspire through both logic and language is a mark of true brilliance. His presence at the event reminded that real influence comes from the courage to use words, whether legal or literary, to shape thought, inspire change, and move society forward.
