Voice of America Arts & Entertainment

1. Gauff rallies to reach China Open final; Sinner, Alcaraz win in Shanghai

   BEIJING — Coco Gauff rallied Saturday from a set down for the third consecutive match as she beat Paula Badosa 4-6, 6-4, 6-2 to advance to the final of the China Open. The sixth-ranked Gauff will play Karolina Muchova of the Czech Republic in Sunday's final as the 20-year-old American bids for her second WTA-1000 level title. Muchova defeated Olympic gold medalist Zheng Qinwen 6-3, 6-4 in...

2. Peru celebrates 2 decades of a fast-growing breed of guinea pigs eaten as a delicacy

   LIMA, Peru — Peru on Thursday celebrated two decades since the creation of a genetically modified breed of guinea pig, a rodent whose meat has formed a part of the diet of people in the Andean nation for thousands of years. The genetically modified breed of guinea pig — known as cuy locally — is called "Peru." It was created in 2004 at the National Institute of Agrarian Innovation, Juan...

3. German church is tallest in the world -- until Spain's La Sagrada Familia is done

   ULM, Germany — The Ulmer Münster in southern Germany is the world's tallest church. For now, anyway. The Gothic-style Lutheran church's reign — begun in May 31, 1890 — could end in 2025, when La Sagrada Familia Basilica's "Tower of Jesus Christ" in Spain is set to be completed. At an eventual 172.5 meters high, the Catholic basilica in Barcelona should inch out the Ulmer Münster by a mere 11...

4. Grammys' revamped voting body is more diverse, with 66% new members

   NEW YORK — For years, the Grammy Awards have been criticized over a lack of diversity — artists of color and women left out of top prizes; rap and contemporary R&B stars ignored — a reflection of the Recording Academy's electorate. An evolving voting body, 66% of whom have joined in the last five years, is working to remedy that. At last year's awards, women dominated the major categories;...

5. With daily phone calls, pope offers Palestinians encouragement

   Rome — Pope Francis is calling for prayer and fasting on October 7, the first anniversary of the start of the ongoing conflict in Gaza. As the death and destruction continue, so too do the daily phone calls from the pope to the Catholic Holy Family Church parish in Gaza City, offering spiritual sustenance to the priests, nuns and parishioners seeking shelter there. At the start of a special...

6. John Amos, patriarch on 'Good Times' and Emmy nominee for blockbuster 'Roots,' dies at 84

   LOS ANGELES — American actor John Amos, who starred as the family patriarch on the hit 1970’s sitcom Good Times and earned an Emmy nomination for his role in the seminal 1977 miniseries Roots, has died. He was 84.  Amos' publicist, Belinda Foster, confirmed the news of his death Tuesday. No other details were immediately available.  He played James Evans Sr. on Good Times, which featured one...

7. Pete Rose, baseball's banned hits leader, has died at age 83

   NEW YORK — Pete Rose, baseball's career hits leader and fallen idol who undermined his historic achievements and Hall of Fame dreams by gambling on the game he loved and once embodied, has died. He was 83. Stephanie Wheatley, a spokesperson for Clark County in Nevada, confirmed on behalf of the medical examiner that Rose died Monday. Wheatley said the cause and manner of death had not yet been...

8. Dikembe Mutombo, Hall of Fame basketball player and tireless advocate, dies at 58 from brain cancer 

9. Kris Kristofferson, singer-songwriter and actor, dies at 88

   Los Angeles — Kris Kristofferson, a Rhodes scholar with a deft writing style and rough charisma who became a country music superstar and A-list Hollywood actor, has died. Kristofferson died at his home in Maui, Hawaii on Saturday, family spokesperson Ebie McFarland said in an email. He was 88. McFarland said Kristofferson died peacefully, surrounded by his family. No cause was given. He was...

10. 'Megalopolis' flops, 'The Wild Robot' soars at box office

    New York — Francis Ford Coppola’s decades-in-the-making, self-financed epic “Megalopolis” flopped with moviegoers, while the acclaimed DreamWorks Animation family film “The Wild Robot” soared to No. 1 at the weekend box office. “The Wild Robot,” Chris Sanders’ adaptation of Peter Brown’s bestseller, outperformed expectations to launch with $35 million in ticket sales in U.S. and Canada...