Lana Del Rey married alligator swamp tour guide Jeremy Dufrene, document shows
NEW YORK — It is official. Lana Del Rey and alligator swamp tour guide Jeremy Dufrene did marry in Louisiana last month.
After a few weeks of speculation about the status of their relationship, Del Rey and Dufrene's marriage license was signed and returned to the Lafourche Parish Clerk of Court, where it was filed on Friday.
The document, obtained by The Associated Press, lists Los Angeles pastor Judah Smith, who has been Justin Bieber's pastor, as the officiant. The fifth track on Del Rey's 2023 album,” Did You Know That There’s a Tunnel Under Ocean Blvd” is titled “Judah Smith Interlude,” on which Smith is a credited cowriter.
TMZ initially reported on Sept. 26 that the singer, born Elizabeth Woolridge Grant, and Dufrene had obtained a marriage license. The Associated Press confirmed a license had been obtained from the Lafourche Parish Clerk of Court on Sept. 23, but it was not immediately returned and processed.
In the state of Louisiana, marriage licenses are meant to be returned by the officiant to the issuing office within 10 days of the ceremony, but exceptions are made, the clerk's office said. The license was due to expire on Wednesday.
On Sept. 26, at 3:33 p.m., the license says, Del Rey, 39, and Dufrene, 49, tied the knot in Des Allemands, Louisiana, in the bayou where he works as a captain at Airboat Tours by Arthur. The license lists a home in Des Allemands, an unincorporated community in St. Charles Parish, as the residence for both Del Rey and Dufrene.
It is unclear when the couple started dating, but there are photos of the pair together dating back to 2019, when Del Rey took one of Dufrene's tours.
The 11-time Grammy nominated artist has long been celebrated for her nostalgic, romantic pop, which often references images of vintage Americana. She's released nine studio albums and is perhaps best known for her Top 10 hit, “Summertime Sadness” from her multiplatinum 2012 album, “Born to Die.”
Representatives for Del Rey did not confirm the marriage when reached for comment last month and did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday.
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ABBA, Radiohead and The Cure musicians sign AI protest letter against 'unlicensed use' of works
LONDON — Musicians from ABBA, Radiohead and The Cure have joined actors and authors in signing a protest letter against the mining of their artistry to build artificial intelligence tools.
Thousands of artists signed the letter released Tuesday — the latest public warning about AI tools that can spit out synthetic images, music and writings after being trained on huge troves of human-made works.
“The unlicensed use of creative works for training generative AI is a major, unjust threat to the livelihoods of the people behind those works, and must not be permitted,” says the petition.
Among the signatories are Björn Ulvaeus of the Swedish supergroup ABBA, The Cure's Robert Smith and Thom Yorke and his Radiohead bandmates. Also signing were writers including Nobel-winning novelist Kazuo Ishiguro and actors Julianne Moore, Kevin Bacon and Rosario Dawson.
Bestselling novelist James Patterson signed Tuesday's letter and another open letter last year organized by the Authors Guild, which later brought a lawsuit against AI companies that is still proceeding in a New York federal court.
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AARP to honor Glenn Close with Movies for Grownups career achievement award
LOS ANGELES — Glenn Close will be the next recipient of AARP The Magazine’s Movies for Grownups Awards career achievement honor.
The 77-year-old actor is known for films including “Fatal Attraction,” “101 Dalmatians” and “The Wife” over a career spanning nearly 50 years. She will receive the honor at the AARP’s annual Movies for Grownups Awards ceremony in January, the group announced Tuesday.
“I am so honored to receive the AARP Movies for Grownups Career Achievement Award even though I feel like I’m still 35, if not younger,” Close said in a statement. “I love making movies for grownups and everyone else, and I deeply appreciate the inspiration and support of the people I have worked with over 50 years. Thank you, AARP, for this great honor.”
The AARP launched the Movies for Grownups initiative in 2002 to advocate for audiences over 50 years old and to fight ageism in Hollywood. The awards ceremony that celebrates movies “for grownups, by grownups” will be held in Beverly Hills, California, on Jan. 11, with Alan Cumming to host. The ceremony will be broadcast by “Great Performances” on Sunday, Feb. 23, at 7 p.m. Eastern on PBS.
Martha Boudreau, AARP's executive vice president and chief communications and marketing officer, said Close has made her mark in the industry with memorable performances and her consistent work as a septuagenarian.
“Glenn Close starred in ‘The Big Chill,’ the first blockbuster hit film about the Baby Boomer generation facing aging, and since then her career has shattered Hollywood’s outmoded, ageist stereotypes. Her steady successes exemplify what AARP’s Movies for Grownups program is all about,” Boudreau said in a statement.
Close joins the company of several revered actors who have received the honor in past years, including Jamie Lee Curtis, George Clooney and Lily Tomlin.
From combined wire services
