Barbra Streisand responds to Richard E. Grant's fan letter 47 years later
After 47 years, Barbra Streisand has finally written back to lucky fan… none other than Oscar nominee Richard E. Grant! The "Can You Ever Forgive Me?" actor tweeted a photo of himself outside Barbra's house with a fan letter he wrote in 1972 when he was only 14. Barbra made sure to respond this time, writing, "What a wonderful letter you wrote me when u were 14! and look at u now!"
Recording Academy shuts down Grammys winners leak claim
The Recording Academy made sure to squash rumors on Jan. 29 after a Twitter user claimed they'd hacked the Academy's official website and posted a list of 2019 Grammy winners ahead of the Feb. 10 show. "There is no legitimacy to this," a spokesperson for the Recording Academy told "Entertainment Tonight." "Grammy Awards results are not shared, even with Recording Academy staff members, until the day of the Grammy Awards ceremony, when names of the recipients are delivered by the accounting firm Deloitte in sealed envelopes."
DMX released from prison after serving one year
DMX is a free man! The New York rapper was released from Gilmer Federal Correctional Institution in West Virginia on Jan. 25 after serving one year behind bars for tax evasion. He is still required to pay $2.3 million in restitution to the federal government.
Former Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley accuses Gene Simmons of groping his wife
Ace Frehley is not happy with his former bandmate. The original KISS guitarist accused Gene Simmons of inappropriately touching his wife in a post shared to Facebook on Jan. 29. After bashing the bassist for some remarks Simmons made in a recent interview, Frehley wrote, "The icing on the cake was when you groped my wife and propositioned her in Los Angeles at the Capitol Records building behind my back, when I was trying to help you out at one of your [shows] which I only found out about several weeks later," he wrote about Gene. "She was planning on pursuing a suit against you, but I told her to call it off!!!"
Celebrity deaths
R&B singer and two-time Grammy winner James Ingram died on Jan. 29 at age 66. TMZ reported that he'd been battling brain cancer. French composer Michel Legrand, who won three Oscars for his compositions, died on Jan. 26 at age 86. Harold Bradley, a member of Nashville's "A-Team" and a Country Music Hall of Fame guitarist, died on Jan. 31 at age 93.
Michael Jackson's family slams new sexual assault documentary
Michael Jackson's loved ones are "furious" about a new documentary that claims the pop singer abused two men when they were young boys in the 1990s. The Jackson family released a statement on Jan. 28 condemning the film "Finding Neverland," which just debuted at the Sundance Film Festival. "Michael always turned the other cheek, and we have always turned the other cheek when people have gone after members of our family — that is the Jackson way," the statement said. "But we can't just stand by while this public lynching goes on… Michael is not here to defend himself, otherwise these allegations would not have been made."
Drake tips $20K to two McDonald's employees
Drake was truly in the giving spirit this week! The Canadian rapper gave two female McDonald's workers a $10,000 tip each after he made a fast-food run in Los Angeles on Jan. 26. The Micky D's moment was captured and shared on Twitter and on Drake's official Instagram page.
Ariana Grande tries to fix misspelled Japanese tattoo
Ariana Grande set social media on fire this week when she posted an Instagram photo of a new Japanese tattoo on her palm on Jan. 29. Twitter users soon discovered that the tat read "charcoal grill" in Japanese instead of Ariana's intended words, "7 Rings." The pop singer attempted to fix the misspelled ink on Jan. 31 but her correction is reportedly still wrong. The tattoo now roughly translates to "small charcoal grill finger ♡."