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Cynthia Erivo Opens Up About Her Queerness: ‘The More Yourself You Are, The Better Understanding Starts to Happen'
There was a time when could glide around town on her Razor scooter in peace. 'Don't laugh!' she quips as she reminisces about those halcyon days while sitting in a cozy loft above a cavernous Los Angeles studio. 'I've been doing it for years!' Whether maneuvering New York's busy streets or transporting her from her L.A. home to a nearby studio to record voice-over work, Erivo's reliable kick scooter was once her preferred mode of transit. But even a decade ago, she was warned that her hobby wasn't sustainable with the life she was building. '[Director] John Doyle said to me, 'Cynthia, you're not going to be able to do that for very long,' ' she recalls. 'And I was like, 'But why? I'm good! It's fine!' ' More from Billboard Cynthia Erivo: Photos From the Billboard Cover Shoot The Roots Apologize to Fans After First Day of 2025 Roots Picnic Marred By Long Lines: 'Safety Will Always Be Our Number 1 Priority' Rod Stewart Postpones Las Vegas Colosseum Residency Gig Due to Unspecified Illness His prediction ultimately came true. In the years since making her 2015 Broadway debut in Doyle's production of The Color Purple, Erivo has transformed from buzzy theater ingenue to certified, capital 'S' star by practically every metric. At just 38, the multihyphenate is already nearly an EGOT (she's only missing her Oscar, despite three nominations); has starred in prestige TV series like The Outsider, Genius and Poker Face; paid tribute to musical legends at the Kennedy Center; and, most recently, scooped up that third Oscar nom with Wicked, the highest-grossing musical adaptation in film history. Along the way, Erivo hasn't lost sight of what matters to her, using the star power she has accrued for good. When she publicly came out as queer in 2022, she cited the importance of helping 'some young Black queer actress somewhere' feel less alone in the industry. At the top of 2025, she took home GLAAD's prestigious Stephen F. Kolzak Award for her continuing commitment to promoting visibility for the LGBTQ+ community. And in June, she'll bring her talents to the massive WorldPride celebrations in Washington, D.C., making sure that everyone hears her voice — including politicians aiming to strip her community's rights. For her latest endeavor, though, Erivo decided to take the same energy she puts into both her community and others' projects and turn it inward. She didn't take to the stage or the screen, but rather the studio, looking to reinvigorate her solo music career — and the result is her revelatory second album, I Forgive You, out June 6 through Verve and Republic Records. Back in September 2021, Erivo released Ch. 1 Vs. 1, her debut LP of adult contemporary tracks where she aimed — and, reflecting today, thinks she failed — to provide a soundtrack to her life up until that point. 'It never quite felt like it was mine,' she says. She recounts working with a group of 'lovely' producers and writers who provided plenty of new ideas and sounds — yet the project itself underutilized her own vocal dexterity. 'It didn't feel like it was one uniform story.' So when she began thinking about her next album, she started from scratch. On the advice of Wicked co-star Ariana Grande, Erivo met with Republic Records co-president/COO Wendy Goldstein to discuss her strengths and figure out a path forward. What could Erivo do that nobody else could? 'Everything fell into place really fast from there,' Goldstein recalls of their first meeting. The answer was simple: Erivo's greatest asset is and always has been her protean voice, an instrument that belies her diminutive frame and lets her craft entire worlds of intricate harmonies. Her mother has said she first heard her daughter sing beautifully at a mere 18 months old, though Erivo has since said she first recognized her own innate talent around the ripe old age of 11. Following a brief stint studying music psychology at the University of East London, she dropped out, later enrolling at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London (where she now serves as vice president). After graduating in 2010 and spending three years performing around the United Kingdom, Erivo landed a breakthrough role in the off-West End production of The Color Purple in 2013. 'Anyone who saw her in that performance knew pretty quickly that she was just a generational talent,' says Jessica Morgulis, Erivo's longtime manager who began working with her a year before The Color Purple transferred to Broadway in 2015. 'In all my days of going to the theater, I've never seen the entire audience leap out of their seats mid-song in applause.' So when it came to creating her own music, Goldstein asked why Erivo wasn't leaning into her biggest strength. 'When you hear Cynthia's voice, you're transfixed. I felt like we needed to lead with that,' Goldstein says. 'We spoke a lot about how to really highlight her vocals, using it as an instrument with stacking and layering to create beautiful production.' That, Erivo says, unlocked something for her. 'Wendy is a very singular human being who just gets it,' she says. 'It was the first time that everything became really clear. To have someone who understands who you are as a musician and a singer and an artist was just a new experience within this space for me as an artist.' The subsequent project, executive-produced by Erivo and her longtime collaborator, Will Wells, spans pop, soul, jazz, disco, gospel and more, with her voice front and center. But more importantly, after a career dedicated to portraying characters, I Forgive You is just Erivo, telling the world who she is. 'People see a very cookie-cutter version of me, and we do this thing with people where we isolate them or crystallize them in one space and go, 'She's just that,' ' she says. 'People don't know me as a musician in the way they're getting to know me now.' As Erivo arrives for our conversation, you'd never guess that she's coming off one of the biggest performances of her life. Less than 48 hours earlier, she was belting out her forthcoming ballad, 'Brick by Brick,' and Prince's 'Purple Rain' alongside maestro Gustavo Dudamel and the Los Angeles Philharmonic during a surprise appearance at the orchestra's Coachella set. 'I was so surprised at how vast that audience was,' she giddily admits. 'It was unbelievable.' Though Erivo remains humbly awestruck by the ensemble inviting her to perform for her biggest crowd to date, her own reputation has preceded her from the jump. 'I mean, for anyone who likes singers, all of our algorithms were just filled with endless bootlegs of her singing her f–king ass off,' all-star songwriter Justin Tranter says of her Tony Award-winning Broadway debut. But while the world was tuned into Erivo's jaw-dropping performances of The Color Purple's showstopper 'I'm Here,' she found herself focused on something else entirely while playing the character of Celie: her sexuality. 'I hadn't really ever explored [my queerness], I hadn't really ever discovered or understood or really learned about it,' she says. 'I was like, 'Oh, I get to play this woman who is exploring and learning about her own queerness at the same time as trying to discover what love is.' This sort of wonderful thing happened at the same time — I got to do the same for myself.' Erivo had been out to her close friends and family since her early twenties, but playing Celie for two years began to open the door to come out publicly, as fully embodying the experience of a queer woman eight times a week slowly made her more assured. 'It's like your feet finally hit the ground,' she explains. 'Even the work that I started doing, whether I'm on a set or in a studio, I just felt a lot more relaxed.' With that newfound sense of ease came a wave of projects. After closing out her run in The Color Purple, she booked her first film roles, in Drew Goddard's Bad Times at the El Royale and Steve McQueen's Widows, holding her own on-screen with stars like Viola Davis and Jeff Bridges. With her starring performance in 2021's Harriet, Erivo earned her first pair of Academy Award nominations (for best actress and best original song) — had she won, she would have become the youngest person ever to earn EGOT status. 'How lovely is that? To be in this position at this point in my career is one, a privilege — but two, a massive surprise,' Erivo says of her near EGOT. 'To be one of those people that's on the edge of even looking that in the face is quite wonderful.' Morgulis credits Erivo's sharp instincts, saying she's 'almost never wrong' when picking projects and pointing to her client's multiple viral performances at the Kennedy Center Honors, where Erivo has honored Dionne Warwick, Julie Andrews and Earth, Wind & Fire, as an example. 'Often, the producers of something like that will be leaning one way, because whoever it is you're paying homage to has some favorite song of theirs they want to hear,' she says. 'But Cynthia knows herself so well and will say, 'I know I can really give this individual the best performance from me if we do this other song.' And every time, she nails it.' Yet despite her many successes, Erivo says nothing could have prepared her for the cultural phenomenon that was Wicked. She knew the film would do well, but she never predicted it would break box-office records and earn a whopping 10 Oscar nominations. 'It's insane,' she says. 'And it's insane while it's happening, too.' Of all Wicked's achievements, none shocked Erivo as much as the soundtrack's immediate Billboard chart success. It bowed at No. 2 on the Billboard 200 (the highest debut for a film adaptation of a stage musical in the chart's history), ruled the Top Album Sales and Vinyl Albums charts, and landed seven songs on the Billboard Hot 100, with her own version of 'Defying Gravity' earning the highest position among them at No. 44. 'The cast was like, 'Oh, so it's just in the ether now? People are just listening to it on their way to work at this point?' ' Erivo recalls. 'It's really wonderful.' The second part of the duology, Wicked: For Good, will arrive in November, and Erivo warns fans unfamiliar with the source material that her viridescent heroine, Elphaba, enters much darker territory in the second act. 'She's able to access her rage more,' she says. 'The scent I wore changed. The makeup changed. Little shifts that bring you to a more mature version of who Elphaba becomes. And she is delicious in this next one.' The Wicked Witch of the West isn't the only one who has changed in between the two films' releases — with rave reviews and another Oscar nomination for her stellar performance in the first act, Erivo became a household name practically overnight. That transition has occasionally felt scary, especially when it comes to maintaining her personal privacy. 'I think there is an interesting thing that happens, where it's assumed that because you're in the public eye, everything is for everyone,' she explains. 'But being in the public eye does not stop you from being a human being — you just have eyes on you now. I am totally OK to share some of my life — whenever you see me on the stage, whenever you hear me sing, whenever you see me act, I am sharing. But that doesn't mean that everything gets to be yours. I should be able to keep something for myself.' That 'something' likely includes her visible, but never publicly confirmed (including for this story) relationship with lauded producer-writer Lena Waithe. 'You also wouldn't want me to share everything — nobody should have to, because then what's left?' she says with a half-smile. 'You can be grateful, but you can still have a boundary.' But thanks to the groundwork she has laid over the course of the last decade, Erivo says she doesn't feel flummoxed by her sudden stardom. 'I'm glad that I had those breakthroughs before — it's school for what might come, and it means that here and now, it doesn't feel like it's going to sweep me up,' she says. 'A lot of us fear that if this happens, you'll sort of lose yourself. But I still feel like myself.' There is a moment in 'Play the Woman,' an early, R&B-adjacent standout from I Forgive You, when Erivo taps an unexplored topic in her career thus far: unabashed desire. 'I could run these hands of mine down the map of your spine/Feel how your heat against my fingertips could make the blood in me rush,' she croons on the pre-chorus before blooming into her glossy head voice: 'Could you play the woman for me?/Go slow, 'cause I like what I see.' Erivo had long wanted to explore sensuality in her acting. But when the parts didn't materialize, she decided to take matters into her own hands. 'Honestly, you rarely get that opportunity as Black women anyway,' she says. 'So I was just like, 'Well, if I don't put it in my own music, I'll never get to put it anywhere else.' ' That ethos runs through I Forgive You, as Erivo breaks out of the boxes that the industry at large constructed around her ever-growing career while simultaneously giving voice to the parts of herself that she was once too scared to reveal in public. Whether she's providing a grooving rumination on self-doubt with 'Replay' or delivering an airy ballad about finally finding connection after years of trying on 'I Choose Love,' Erivo lays all her cards on the table. 'It wasn't scary to write because I really didn't know how else to write it. It had to come,' she explains. 'The scary thing was getting ready to share it. When something is personal, you hope that people understand that your humanity exists and they're not just listening to random stories that come from nowhere.' When going into their sessions with Erivo, Tranter was already well-aware that she had one of the best voices in the business. What they quickly discovered was just how adept a songwriter she was, too. 'She's a real visionary in that she knows what the f–k she's doing,' Tranter says. 'It's not even that I was surprised, it's just that the world doesn't know her that way. You don't know what to expect when someone like Cynthia hasn't been able to reveal all her talents yet.' That's a recurring theme in Erivo's career: One of the main hurdles she faced while working on her debut album was record executives who were unsure how to utilize her talents or market her. She recalls one telling her, 'You can sing everything, and we don't know what to do with you.' Her response? ' 'Why don't we just try everything, then?' ' she remembers. ' 'If I can do it, then why not try?' ' It's a refrain Morgulis returns to often. With her client's aspirations spreading across multiple fields of entertainment, the manager says that it's vital for her to help Erivo remain in control of the projects she's working on. 'That conversation of not putting her in a box and, importantly, not allowing others to put her in a box, is happening on every single level of her team,' Morgulis says. 'That act alone kind of sends a message to the industry of who she is and what direction she's going in.' And recently, Erivo has applied that philosophy to discussing her identity. After coming out publicly on the cover of British Vogue in 2022, she assumed a rare position in the entertainment business as a Black queer woman in the public eye, and it's a platform she takes seriously. Her decision to come out, Erivo says, had less to do with her own sense of self-actualization and more to do with the deep sense of care she feels toward her community. 'I think I was actively looking for those who were encouraged to be more themselves,' she says. 'I can't change a person's opinion of me; if they want to feel some way, there is nothing I can do about that. But I was so excited about being able to at least be one more face where someone could say, 'Oh, my God, she did it and can still do it. She's still creating, she's still making. So maybe I can also do the same.' ' In hindsight, Erivo says she didn't feel any trepidation about her decision to come out and didn't notice any significant change in the roles she booked or the feedback she received for her performances. 'Maybe I'm naive and wasn't paying attention to it, because I'm sure there was [pushback],' she confesses. The one notable exception came in early 2025, when the Hollywood Bowl announced that Erivo would star in the titular role of its upcoming three-night production of Jesus Christ Superstar. A predictable wave of conservative outrage followed at the thought of a Black queer woman portraying Jesus Christ, accusing the actress and the production itself of 'blasphemy.' Erivo can't help but laugh. 'Why not?' she chuckles with a shrug, before adding that most of those comments don't seem to understand the critical lens of the Andrew Lloyd Webber musical. 'You can't please everyone. It is legitimately a three-day performance at the Hollywood Bowl where I get to sing my face off. So hopefully they will come and realize, 'Oh, it's a musical, the gayest place on Earth.' ' It's easy for Erivo to dismiss a vocal minority decrying the mere announcement of her casting in a limited-run performance; it becomes much harder when the conversation turns to politics. Like many, she has watched in horror as the Trump administration has attempted to strip the rights of and federal protections for queer and trans people across the country through a flurry of executive orders. Erivo doesn't pretend to have all of the answers. 'I'm trying to be a person you can get positive things from, because that is the only way you can balance this stuff,' she says with a sigh. But when she looks at something like the current administration's 'anti-woke' takeover of the Kennedy Center — the place where she has delivered some of her most iconic performances to date — she can't help but feel a sense of dread. 'I don't know who gains what from that. I hope that it comes back,' she says. 'It's really sad to have to watch this happen to it. The Kennedy Center is supposed to be a space of creativity and art and music for everyone.' Yet Erivo refuses to let that dread rule her actions. It's part of why, during Pride Month, she will perform a headlining set at the closing concert for WorldPride in Washington, D.C., alongside Doechii. 'I want to encourage people to not decide to just tuck away and start hiding and not being themselves anymore, because that is exactly what they want,' she says. 'The more yourself you are, the more you are in front of people who don't necessarily understand, the better understanding starts to happen.' Tranter points to that sentiment as a perfect example of why Erivo has become such a powerful voice in the entertainment industry. 'Cynthia being Black and queer, and being one of the most famous people alive in this moment while our community is dealing with what we are dealing with, is no mistake,' they say. 'For someone as talented as her to be a beacon for young Black queer people all over the world, to be in the most successful movie and releasing a gorgeous, poetic album in this moment is no accident.' It's apparent that Erivo holds herself to an incredibly high standard. As Morgulis rattles off the singer's schedule for the next few months — wrapping up filming on the forthcoming feature film adaptation of Children of Blood and Bone, hosting the 2025 Tony Awards and performing at least six solo concerts around the country, among dozens of other obligations — she must pause for a breath. 'It's a lot,' she says. 'But she can do it.' But today, the singer stops short of perfectionism. Even in a career as fortunate as hers, she knows that she cannot be everything to everyone. 'I used to say, 'I don't want to make any mistakes. I don't want to get anything wrong,' ' she recalls. 'What I'm leaning toward is just trying to be the best version of myself, full stop. And hopefully, the best version of myself is enough for those who want it.' Best of Billboard Chart Rewind: In 1989, New Kids on the Block Were 'Hangin' Tough' at No. 1 Janet Jackson's Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits H.E.R. & Chris Brown 'Come Through' to No. 1 on Adult R&B Airplay Chart
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
See Fantasia and Anthony Hamilton live at the Brookshire Grocery Arena
BOSSIER CITY, La. (KTAL/KMSS) — R&B singers Fantasia and Anthony Hamilton are set to perform in Bossier City. Grammy-award winner Ashanti to perform live at the Horseshoe Casino & Hotel Both Fantasia and Anthony Hamilton have made significant contributions to the music industry. Fantasia first captured the attention of fans in 2004 when she competed in and won the third season of American Idol. Since then, she has released seven studio albums and won two Grammy Awards. In addition to her music career, Fantasia has starred in the film adaptation of 'The Color Purple.' She also wrote a New York Times best-selling autobiography, which was later adapted into a movie. R&B legend Anthony Hamilton gained widespread recognition after performing the chorus for the rap group Nappy Roots' hit single, 'Po' Folks.' He went on to win a Grammy Award and received over a dozen nominations throughout his career. Hamilton has released ten albums and sold more than 50 million copies worldwide. 90's R&B fest in Louisiana to feature Adina Howard, Michel'le, and Dru Hill You can see both Fantasia and Hamilton at the Brookshire Grocery Arena on Saturday, September 27, at 8:00 p.m. To reserve your spot, visit Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
San Francisco Chronicle
23-05-2025
- Business
- San Francisco Chronicle
City College of San Francisco poised to select outsider as chancellor over interim chief
Veteran educator Carlos Osvaldo Cortez is expected to be named next week as the 11th chancellor in 13 years to lead the financially troubled City College of San Francisco, edging out the interim chancellor, the Chronicle has learned. The seven trustees are in contract negotiations with Cortez, and a majority favor him over Interim Chancellor Mitch Bailey, said knowledgeable sources who asked not to be identified because they were not authorized to discuss the matter. Bailey has fallen out of favor with the faculty union, which strongly influences the majority on the seven-member board of trustees. The chancellor selection echoes a constant debate at City College over the best approach to restoring the college to good fiscal health and increasing enrollment. The faculty union and its supporters on the board want to dip into reserves to boost spending, saying this approach is the best way to attract more students. By contrast, Bailey says he wants to 'adjust college operations to align with current resources,' a practice that matches expectations of accreditors and state officials. The college has been under an accreditation warning sanction over its governance and finances since early 2024. Chancellor selections are secretive, with deliberations happening behind closed doors. At City College, they are a near-annual ritual. If approved, possibly at the May 29 board meeting, Cortez would become the school's fifth permanent head since 2012. There have been six interim chancellors during that time. The selection of Cortez over Bailey would be the second time in a year that the trustees have replaced a chancellor who sought greater financial stability by aligning spending with revenue. Cortez is seen as faculty-friendly. In the San Diego Community College District, where Cortez was chancellor from summer 2021 through spring 2023, faculty pay increased modestly, by an average of 2.5% in 2022 and 4.5% a year later, after a period of small increases before he arrived. Cortez quit that job after a year and a half. He was paid a total of $1.36 million during his short tenure, including $546,601 for his final four months, according to Transparent California, a database of California public employee salaries. While chancellor in San Diego, Cortez made news in 2022 when he was forced to cancel his belated welcoming ceremony at Petco Park after receiving complaints for inviting Alice Walker as keynote speaker. The Pulitzer-Prize winning author of 'The Color Purple' has for years been accused of antisemitism, including for penning a poem in which she called the Talmud, the book of Jewish law, 'poison,' and for her support of conspiracy-theorist David Icke. After 20 months on the job, Cortez announced in March 2023 that he was taking 'extended emergency leave' to care for his ill parents. On May 1, district officials announced that he had resigned to be with his parents in Florida. By that fall, however, he was a finalist for the chancellor's job in three Bay Area college districts: Peralta in the East Bay, Contra Costa and San Mateo. Court records show that on Jan. 19, 2024, police in Florida arrested Cortez on suspicion of driving under the influence. Ultimately, he pled no contest to the reduced charge of reckless driving. In a phone conversation, Cortez declined to answer a reporter's questions without authorization from City College. But he said the Florida charge was due to a 'mixture of prescription medicine.' While Bailey has not suggested layoffs, he has adopted an approach that acknowledges financial instability at the college of 44,000 full- and part-time students. Salaries eat up 90% of the general fund, compared with 82% statewide, and next year the college will lose millions of dollars in extra state funding that has kept it afloat since 2018 due to severe enrollment loss. Reserves are at 16% of general fund expenditures, far below the 33% average across other colleges. Among the ideas Bailey references in a May 8 budget update are reducing the number of single classes that attract few students and currently make up 70% of academic offerings. Instead, Bailey wants faculty to consider teaching more groups of classes that carry large numbers of students toward their degrees. It's an idea that does not sit well with the union, the American Federation of Teachers, Local 2121. 'In a dizzyingly shallow presentation, Interim Chancellor proposes cuts to 70% of College with no analysis,' the union headlined its essay accusing Bailey of targeting ethnic studies classes. The union essay called for 'serious leadership' that would tap into its $31 million reserves to pay for more academics, not less. Alexis Litzky, a communications professor and outgoing chair of the Academic Senate, called the union's description of Bailey's idea for boosting more popular classes a 'mischaracterization of the chancellor's presentation.' She said Bailey is not suggesting that the college axe classes but that faculty review course offerings so that City College can 'evaluate options for updating our programs and schedules.' The Academic Senate works with both the union and administrators. Litzky said the college has been confronting its accreditation missteps by working with a state assistance team, and that Bailey's budget workshops have been helpful in educating the college community about its finances. 'It actually feels like we're going in the right direction,' she said. Cortez, 50, earned his doctorate at the University of Southern California, focusing on 'African American Womanist political historical contributions to social welfare and education policy reform,' according to his employment bio. During his academic career as an instructor and administrator, Cortez served as dean of instruction at Berkeley City College and, before becoming chancellor in San Diego, was president of San Diego College of Continuing Education. The Chronicle reached out to trustees in each of the Bay Area college districts where Cortez applied since leaving San Diego, as well as to trustees of Madison College and Pasadena City College, where he was a finalist in April 2024 before he withdrew his name from consideration. Cortez told the Chronicle he had decided he didn't want to live in Madison. Only one trustee responded, agreeing to comment without being identified because the person was not authorized to speak about it publicly. 'He is very charismatic. He dazzled us,' said the board member from Pasadena. But the college did not select Cortez as its leader. The trustee declined to say why. San Diego trustees did not respond to requests for comment. Professor Inna Kanevsky, who teaches psychology at San Diego Mesa College and got into a public dispute with Cortez over the Alice Walker episode, said she was 'sad to hear' that he was the leading candidate at City College. Cortez drew ire from the free-speech group FIRE — the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression — when he blocked Kanevsky on social media after she complained that the Walker invitation would harm Jewish students. FIRE told the college district that the action violated Kanvesky's First Amendment rights. The chancellor then deleted his own account.
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Ben Johnson Addresses Huge Caleb Williams Controversy
I feel like I'm watching The Color Purple when Nettie told Mister, 'nothing but death can keep me from it.' Really, it's not that dramatic, but I did feel like something wicked was trying to ruin the peace and tranquility attached to the Chicago Bears' offseason when excerpts of Seth Wickersham's book, American Kings: A Biography of the Quarterback, leaked. Getty Images For those who are unaware, Wickersham's book seemed to expose the fact that Williams and his dad sought to circumvent the NFL's rules in an effort to avoid being drafted by the Bears ahead of the 2024 NFL Draft. Advertisement This wasn't a situation where Johnson had to say anything. But he did anyway—on his own terms. He walked into the press conference and made sure Bears fans knew that he nor the organization was running to hide from the story. Johnson addressed the controversy about the book without being asked. 'It's come to my attention that the quarterback's been out in the media over the last week, Johnson said. 'And just to get out in front of that a little bit, I just wanted to say I wasn't here last year. And so I can't speak too much in terms of what it was like before he got here and when he got here last year. But from my four months on the job, he's been outstanding to work with and we just are focusing on getting a little better every day.' Here is a look at the segment from Johnson's presser. Let's be frank, no Bears fan is thrilled to learn that Williams didn't want to be a part of the organization. However, that was then, and this is now. Advertisement He's a part of the team and based on his on-field actions, Williams hasn't behaved like a guy who wants out. Johnson has asserted himself as the kind of leader every quarterback should want to play for, and all will be well if the upcoming season is a success. As for Williams' dad, we need not worry about that too much. As young players get older and mature, the opinions of their parents still matter, but they don't shape the player's decisions as much as they might have fresh out of college. If Williams is happy, successful and paid, he'll be fine. And the Bears will be too. Related: Bears Sign Pro-Bowler to Crucial Extension Related: Bears Coach Confirms Luther Burden III Will Get Opportunity to Beat Out Former Pro Bowler for Spot
Scottish Sun
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
How church-going couple shocked world with 1st-ever UFO abduction story – and why aliens struggled to undress wife
It's not just US citizens like the Hills that little green men have visited - find out about UK close encounters, too 'TAKEN' How church-going couple shocked world with 1st-ever UFO abduction story – and why aliens struggled to undress wife DRIVING through the night on a remote mountain road, Barney and Betty Hill got the fright of their lives as a bright light in the sky grew then hovered right above their car – in the shape of a giant saucer. The American newlyweds — travelling home from a late honeymoon at Niagara Falls — were further alarmed by a sudden buzzing noise. Advertisement 7 Driving through the night on a remote mountain road, Barney and Betty Hill got the fright of their lives as a bright light in the sky grew then hovered right above their car Credit: Getty 7 Betty and Barney Hill, pictured before their honeymoon, believed they had been ambushed by aliens - in the first such abduction ever made public Credit: © Kathleen Marden 7 Betty claimed the aliens did not know how to use the zipper on her dress - pictured above - so they simply ripped it from her Credit: © Kathleen Marden Two hours after these strange goings-on in New Hampshire, they would find themselves safely back home, 35 miles down the road, but with only fuzzy recollections of that last stretch of the journey — and watches that had gone on the blink. It all sounds like a typical tale of an extraterrestrial encounter — but back in 1961, when postal worker Barney, then 39, and his social worker wife Betty, 41, believed they had been ambushed by aliens, no one had gone public with anything of the sort. Advertisement Now Hollywood movie Strange Arrivals is recreating the mystery and terror, with Demi Moore playing Betty and Colman Domingo — star of Lincoln and The Color Purple — as Barney. The title comes from a hit podcast of the same name that recounts the Hills' tale over eight episodes, and filming begins soon. Seven years after the alleged alien encounter, Betty claimed in an interview that she was given 'a fairly simple physical examination'. She said: 'They were taking pictures of my skin, also interest in my hands and my feet. 'They also did a test which they called checking my nervous system. Advertisement Shoved needle in navel 'Throughout the whole examination it would be like picking up some kind of a strange animal and looking it over, giving it a check-up and putting it back down again, without any intentions of harming it.' Under hypnosis in 1964, she also claimed the aliens shoved a 'long needle' in her navel to perform a pregnancy test. Betty said: ''They roll me over on my back. The examiner has a needle in his hand, and it's bigger than any needle I've ever seen. Watch terrified Russians blast at mystery rumbling 'UFO helicopter' over MOSCOW making beeline for Vlad…but what is it? 'The leader — he goes over and he puts his hand, runs his hand in front of my eyes and he says I'll be alright. I won't feel it. 'But I'm still sore from where they put that needle in. Advertisement 'I tried to tell them they shouldn't do it.' Betty remembered how her dress was torn in several places. As they were about to take her on to that craft, she fought for her life. Kathleen Marden, couple's niece Betty's husband died of a brain haemorrhage aged 46, in 1969, and she became a celebrity within the UFO community before dying at 85, in 2004. Now their 76-year-old niece Kathleen Marden, who was 13 at the time of her aunt and uncle's reported encounter and saw them two days later, insists the church-going couple never told anything but 'God's honest truth' about what happened. Kathleen, who has spent much of her adult life investigating some 6,000 UFO reports, tells The Sun: 'They had been immobilised and taken to this craft. 'Barney stated that he felt as if he was floating and only the toes of his shoes were bumping along the ground. Advertisement 'When he arrived home, he discovered his shoes were so deeply scraped that he had to purchase a new pair. 'Betty remembered how her dress was torn in several places. 'As they were about to take her on to that craft, she fought for her life. 'She kicked one of them and that tore the lining of her dress and the hem down one side. 'And when they removed her dress in the examination room of the alien ship they did not know how to undo a zipper. So they went to a tear in the lining.' Advertisement The Hills were an unlikely couple to be caught up in UFO speculation. Theirs was a mixed race marriage — Barney was black, Betty white — and they were deeply passionate about civil rights and religion. They railed against the racism they faced in 1960s America, and Barney helped teach people to read and write so they could pass a test to be allowed to vote. Science fiction books and films were part of popular culture in 1961 but none of that interested the couple. Kathleen said of their fame: 'Prior to this, they never talked about UFOs. Advertisement 'They were interested in civil rights and human rights.' 7 Demi Moore and Colman Domingo will play Betty and Barney in Hollywood film Strange Arrivals - telling the story of the abduction 7 The Hills' niece Kathleen Marden, now 76, says the couple always told the 'God's honest truth' about their terrifying encounter Credit: Getty The retired teacher, who lived near the Hills in the New Hampshire coastal town of Portsmouth, and with them for two years when she was a student, also reveals Barney did not want anyone — even family — to know what had apparently happened on that mountain road at about 10.30pm. Betty, for her part, was so scared she at first refused to bring her holiday luggage back into her home in case it had been contaminated by the humanoids. Advertisement After she began having terrifying dreams about the incident, she and Barney turned to hypnosis to try to piece together what had happened to them — and recalled being briefly abducted and examined by grey men. An official investigation was then leaked to the media — and overnight the unassuming Hills became famous. Their story was adapted in 1966 into best-selling book The Interrupted Journey, and then in 1975 US TV movie The UFO Incident — featuring Star Wars actor James Earl Jones. When the pair first noticed that strange light high in the sky, Barney dismissed it as maybe a satellite gone astray — but as it got closer and larger, he pulled over his Chevrolet and got out to take a look. He did not like what he saw — and Kathleen says: 'He was running back to the car when something started to drop out of the bottom of this craft. Advertisement When they arrived home, both their watches were broken. They reset the watches, rewound them — but they never ran again. Kathleen Marden, couple's niece 'He went screaming back to Betty that they had to get out of there or they were going to be captured. 'And that was just before he and Betty heard a series of buzzing sounds striking their vehicle that caused it to vibrate and a tingling to pass through their bodies.' Beyond that point, the couple could not recall much else about the incident — believing the aliens plunged them into a trance-like state. A few days later Kathleen visited the Hills' home and, while there, overheard a conversation. She recalls: 'Barney had said to Betty, 'Don't ever tell anybody about this'. He didn't even want her to call my mother. 'Betty was concerned the craft had come so close to them that they were contaminated. They had not taken their suitcases into the house. And they took long showers afterwards.' Advertisement 'Took lots of samples' Kathleen also remembers Barney being in a state of shock. She adds: 'When they arrived home, both their watches were broken. 'They reset the watches, rewound them — but they never ran again.' Afterwards, Betty had dreams of meeting aliens — and believed they were flashbacks to what had really happened. But the Hills' full account emerged only two years later, as Barney's failing mental health and debilitating ulcers led him to seek medical help. During sessions with hypnotherapist Dr Benjamin Simon, who treated World War Two veterans, the couple recalled being examined by the aliens. They spoke about going up a ramp into a circular craft, while Betty talked about the aliens taking samples from her body and Barney recalled them putting a cap over his private parts. Advertisement Kathleen adds: 'They took lots of samples.' Barney reported his story to officials at the Pease Air Force Base in New Hampshire, and he and Betty contacted the National Investigations Committee on Aerial Phenomena — a US group that believes credible sightings are often covered up. But somehow, their account was leaked to a journalist on a now-defunct newspaper called the Boston Traveller in 1965. Kathleen says the couple feared losing their jobs as a result of their story going public, yet they did later speak to the Press about it — and their niece insists she has 'proof' their tale was genuine. She says: 'It's not possible they imagined this. There were at least 16 individuals who saw that craft in that location on the same night, in the same time frame.' Advertisement Years later she also sent Betty's dress for scientific analysis — which revealed rare earth elements. But Dr Simon had a different opinion. He believed everything beyond seeing an unidentified object had been just dreamt — and that being chased by a strange craft was Barney manifesting his fears as a black man in the prejudiced America of the time. The makers of the new movie have not spoken to Kathleen. She says: 'Even though I'm trustee of the estate — and the leading investigator on this case — no one has contacted me.' Indecent Proposal star Demi, 62, was up for Best Actress at the Oscars earlier this year for cult horror movie The Substance. Advertisement 7 After getting home, both their watches were broken Credit: © Kathleen Marden 7 The couple's story was adapted in 1966 into best-selling book The Interrupted Journey, and then in 1975 US TV movie The UFO Incident — featuring Star Wars actor James Earl Jones Credit: Alamy But Kathleen fears the star may portray her aunt wrongly. The new film is reported to be a romantic one and Toby Ball's Strange Arrivals podcast, that the film is based on, is sceptical about alien abductions. Kathleen says of Betty and Barney: 'They experienced anxiety as a result of this experience, but they had no major mental illness. 'I'm fearful Betty might be portrayed as a delusional individual and that her husband loves her so much that he comes to believe her delusion. Advertisement 'I'm going to be very upset if that is the case.'
