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A30 PEOPLE & ARTS
Saturday 17 June 2017
NBC to air Jones interview

despite efforts to ‘distract’

By DAVID BAUDER and said he would release tially enhances the suffer-
AP Television Writer an unedited version of the ing and distress of our cli-
Eds: Adds details about re- interview that he recorded. ents,” lawyers Josh Koskoff
port, Sandy Hook parents. So far, he’s only released and Katie Mesner-Hage
Adds byline and tagline. snippets of a supposed wrote.
With AP Photos. conversation with Kelly, Kelly has called Jones’
NEW YORK (AP) — NBC which could not be inde- claims “personally revolt-
News vowed Friday to go pendently verified. ing,” but said she believes
In this Dec. 7, 2016 file photo Megyn Kelly poses at The Holly- ahead with Megyn Kelly’s Lawyers who represent there’s a value in exposing
wood Reporter’s 25th Annual Women in Entertainment Breakfast
in Los Angeles. report on conspiracy theo- 12 people who lost loved what he says to the Ameri-
Associated Press rist Alex Jones on Sunday, ones in the 2012 school can people.
despite his “efforts to dis- massacre at Sandy Hook An interview with at least
tract and ultimately pre- Elementary School urged one parent of a child killed
vent” its airing. NBC News officials not to at Sandy Hook will be part
The network said that it re- air the interview. The fami- of NBC’s report on Sunday,
mains “committed to giv- lies say they’ve been hurt according to a person fa-
ing viewers context and by Jones’ claim that the miliar with the reporting
insight into a controversial shooting was a hoax. who could not be identi-
and polarizing figure, how The report is likely to have fied because the person
he relates to the president devastating human conse- was not authorized to dis-
of the United States and in- quences, the families wrote cuss it.
fluences others, and to get- to NBC. NBC News Chairman Andy
ting this serious story right.” “Airing Ms. Kelly’s interview Lack told The Associat-
The story, scheduled to air implicitly endorses the no- ed Press that the story on
Sunday evening, has NBC tion that Mr. Jones’ lies are “Sunday Night with Megyn
being buffeted from both actually ‘claims’ that are Kelly” will be edited with
sides. Jones has said he be- worthy of serious debate, the sensitivity of its critics in
lieved it will be a “fraud,” and in doing so it exponen- mind.q
Director John Avildsen dies

at 81; won Oscar for ‘Rocky’

By JAKE COYLE and AN-
THONY McCARTNEY
AP Entertainment Writers
LOS ANGELES (AP) — John
G. Avildsen, who directed
“Rocky” and “The Karate
Kid” — two dark-horse, un-
derdog favorites that went
on to become Hollywood
franchises — died Friday at
age 81.
Anthony Avildsen said his
father died Friday in Los
Angeles from pancreatic
cancer. “He was a pretty
extraordinary man in my es-
timation. He was super tal-
ented and very driven and
very stubborn and that was In this March 28, 1977, file photo, John G. Avildsen accepts the
to his detriment but also of- Oscar for best director for “Rocky” at the Academy Awards in
Los Angeles.
ten to his benefit,” Anthony Associated Press
Avildsen said.
“Rocky” was a huge suc- part, Avildsen said Capra company ran out of mon-
cess. It won Oscars for best — who also championed ey and that film was can-
picture, director (Avildsen) underdogs on film — was celed. A friend sent Avild-
and editing and was nomi- his favorite director. sen the “Rocky” script. “On
nated for seven others. No “Rocky” was a chance page 3, this guy (Rocky) is
less a Hollywood eminence venture for Avildsen. Sylves- talking to his turtles, and I
than Frank Capra loved it, ter Stallone, then unknown, was hooked,” Avildsen re-
telling The New York Times had written the script and marked. “It was a great
in 1977, “When I saw it, I sought Avildsen to direct it, character study.” Avildsen
said, ‘Boy, that’s a picture but Avildsen was already agreed to direct “Rocky”
I wish I had made.’ “ For his working on another film. even though he knew noth-
Suddenly the production ing about boxing.q