Following is a summary of current people news briefs.
Masseur drops sex assault claim against John Travolta
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – One of the two male masseurs who
accused actor John Travolta of sexual assault dropped his $2
million lawsuit on Tuesday, but the lawyer for the second
masseur said he was going ahead with that case and was
confident of success. The unidentified man, referred to as John
Doe No. 1, who claimed that the Hollywood star groped him
during a massage session in Beverly Hills in January, filed a
notice dismissing his lawsuit with federal court in Los
Angeles.
Booker T. & the MGs bassist Donald ”Duck” Dunn dies at 70
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Bassist Donald ”Duck” Dunn, a
member of Booker T. & the MGs whose thick bottom grooves
anchored many of the classic soul hits from the 1960s, has died
on tour in Japan, his friend and bandmate Steve Cropper said on
Sunday. Dunn was 70. Dunn, an integral part of the Memphis soul
sound as bassist for the MGs, the house band for Stax and Volt
records, died Sunday morning after finishing two shows at the
Blue Note Night Club in Tokyo, Cropper said in a posting on his
Facebook page.
Venezuela challenger woos Chavez’s rural heartland
SOCOPO, Venezuela (Reuters) – Deep in the rural home state
of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez that has for years been off
limits for opposition politicians, rival candidate Henrique
Capriles struggled to push through a throng of screaming
supporters. Small-time ranchers and farmers swarmed the muddy
streets of Socopo, where the Venezuelan plains meet the Andes
mountains, jostling to catch a glimpse of the candidate in a
chaotic tumult reminiscent of the cattle herding typical of the
region.
