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James Corden and Lilla Crawford in ‘Into The Woods’ see review on page 11
January 7, 2015 Vol. 8 No. 1
PSIFF Weekend
Mayor Steve Pougnet and his lucky group of students. He brings a group each year.
The Red Carpet was rolled out to welcome the celebrities of the 26th Annual Palm Springs International Film Festival Story and Photos by Pat Krause The Palm Springs International Film Festival Gala has been sold out for weeks. This Awards ceremony was held at the Palm Springs Convention Center and almost 2500 people filled the ballroom area. Celebrities walked the Red Carpet in front of hundreds of TV crews and photographers. Over 2.5 million dollars were raised, which broke another record for monies raised for the
festival. Mary Hart, formerly from Entertainment Tonight, hosted the event again this year and Gala sponsors were MercedesBenz and Entertainment Tonight. Many of the actors, directors and films have been nominated for a Golden Globe Award, and some are in contention for an Oscar Nomination nod. Robert Duvall received the Icon Award which was presented by Robert Downey Jr. Julianne Moore was presented
the Desert Palm Achievement Award from Steve Carell. Shirley MacLaine presented the Sonny Bono Visionary Award to Richard Linklater. Eddie Redmayne received the Desert Palm Achievement for an actor who was presented by co-star Julianne Moore. Michael Keaton presented the Director of the Year award for “Birdman” to Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu. Reese Witherspoon was presented the Chairman’s Award for her
performance in “Wild” by co-star Laura Dern. David Oyelowo received the Breakthrough Performance by an actor award that was presented by Brad Pitt who had the audience sing with him as he had trouble saying Oyelowo’s name, a light-hearted part of the evening. Oyelowo played the part of Martin Luther King Jr in the film Selma. Rosamund Pike got the Breakthrough Performance award for an
actress from Carrie Coon and Kim Dickens “The Imitation Game” movie was presented the Ensemble Performance Award by the film Director Morton Tyldum. J.K. Simmons got the Spotlight Award and it was presented by Director Jason Reitman. Many other celebrities and local dignitaries walked the red carpet, including Matthew Lillard, Continues on Page 2
Double-Murder Suicide in Palm Springs
2-Year-Old Found In Palm Springs Apartment with 3 Dead Bodies By KMIR News Staff PALM SPRINGS, Ca. Stunned neighbors at a Palm Springs apartment complex were trying to cope today with the death of three family members found shot in what police suspect was a murder-suicide. Officers responding to a 5:15 p.m. Sunday report of gunshot victims at the apartment in the 2700 block of East Tahquitz Canyon Way found one man and two women dead, police Lt. Mike Kovaleff said. A 2-year-old child also was found asleep in the apartment
and was uninjured, he said. The community manager at the 160-unit Mojave Blue Apartments told City News Service the complex has a mixed group of tenants of all ages, and a couple and their child lived at the apartment where the shooting occurred, Jorge Figueroa said. He did not know the identity of the second female victim -who police said was also a relative -- but said the couple had moved into the apartment with the child last summer. ``We just (give) our best wishes and prayers to the family
and the child as well,’’ Figueroa said. ``We’re coping well and we’re still trying to gather information to see exactly what happened.’’ Police believe the man shot and killed the two women before turning the gun on himself. Firearms were found inside the home, Kovaleff said. The names of the dead were being withheld. Police had not received any earlier reports of gunshots being fired, and police responded only after relatives and the employer of Continues on Page 8