The Summer of Love in 1967 marked a turning point in rock and roll history: It introduced America to the exciting new sounds coming out of San Francisco’s local music scene. There was the Grateful Dead, Jefferson Airplane, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Big Brother and the Holding Company, which launched Janis …

A 16th century painting that’s been in private hands for more than four centuries and in Britain for nearly 250 years has been acquired by the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles.   “Virgin With Child, St. John the Baptist, and Mary Magdalene” will be the Getty’s first work …

Die-hard Star Wars fans will need to rely on more than the force if they want to bid on an R2-D2 droid that appeared in several of the franchise’s movies. A couple million dollars might also help. Luke Skywalker’s lightsaber, Darth Vader’s helmet and shoulder armor, as well as imperial …

Tony Sabia walks into a barbershop in Vienna, Virginia, for a haircut and shave. About 30 minutes later, he is on his way home for a shower. With his suit already pressed, it takes him only a few minutes to get dressed for the big dance. For Kailey Margolies, it …

Soccer megastar Cristiano Ronaldo has been accused of tax evasion. Prosecutors in Spain allege the Real Madrid player defrauded the government of about $16 million in taxes from 2011 to 2014. Specifically, Spanish authorities say Ronaldo “took advantage of a business structure created in 2010 to hide from fiscal authorities …

Pennsylvania jury on Tuesday was set to enter its first full day of deliberating whether Bill Cosby sexually assaulted a female friend who had come to him for career advice in his home in the Philadelphia suburbs in 2004. Cosby, best known for his role as the dad in the …

The Golden State Warriors won their second National Basketball Association championship in three years Monday night with a 129-120 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers. Warriors forward Kevin Durant scored 39 points in Game 5 of the best-of-7 series on his way to being named NBA Finals most valuable player. The …

In recent years, China has become an increasingly attractive market for Hollywood producers, despite tight state controls. Chinese investors also have been looking at opportunities in the U.S. film and entertainment industry. While some people express concern over these growing ties, others say they are mutually beneficial. VOA’s Elizabeth Lee …

They came for the music, the mind-bending drugs, to resist the Vietnam War and 1960s American orthodoxy, or simply to escape summer boredom. And they left an enduring legacy. This season marks the 50th anniversary of that legendary “Summer of Love,” when throngs of American youth descended on San Francisco …

A museum that tells the stories of the victims of the 9/11 terror attacks will reopen Tuesday in a new space, a little farther from the World Trade Center memorial but with triple the exhibition space of the temporary quarters it occupied for a decade. The 9/11 Tribute Museum was …

James Taylor might just be the happiest road warrior touring today, so what makes him happier?   Bringing on old friend Bonnie Raitt this summer for concerts that include the ultimate in Americana, some of the country’s most storied baseball parks.   “I’ve loved her music and her for a …

The fate of comedian Bill Cosby is now in the hands of the jury after both sides wrapped up their cases Monday in his sexual assault trial near Philadelphia. The 79-year-old Cosby is charged with drugging and assaulting Andrea Constand, a former director of operations of the Temple University women’s …

Tony Kushner’s “Angels in America” is playing to sold-out houses in a star-filled revival in London, and Peter Eotvos’ operatic version premiered Saturday in  New York at City Opera. A response to the AIDS epidemic and the lack of U.S. government action, the work still resonates in an era of …

The New Hampshire Political Library doesn’t include any books about President Donald Trump, but even he likely would agree its new collection of presidential biographies, memoirs and monographs is huge.   Arthur Young of Manchester spent 25 years collecting 2,744 books on the presidency, the founding fathers and other people …

Rapper and music producer Sean “Diddy” Combs was named the world’s highest-paid entertainer on Monday, ousting pop singer Taylor Swift who fell to 49th place on the Forbes annual list. Beyonce moved into the second spot with $105 million, courtesy of her best-selling “Lemonade” album and world tour, while British …

Broadway’s highest honor – the Tony Awards – were presented Sunday night in New York. The big winner was Dear Evan Hansen, about a lonely high school student who pretends to have been a friend of a classmate who committed suicide. It took home six awards, including best musical, best …

Actor Bill Cosby could charm jurors at his sexual assault trial if he testifies this week, but experts say the risk would be considerable. Accuser Andrea Constand has told her side of the story. The jury also heard Cosby’s version in the form of his police statement and his lurid …

Judy Garland has been laid to rest in a mausoleum named for her at Hollywood Forever Cemetery.   A spokeswoman for Garland’s estate says her family and friends held a private memorial service for the actress Saturday, which would have been Garland’s 95th birthday. She was buried in the Judy …

Natural caves where desert natives once made their homes … places where massive boulders appear to rise up from the desert … ancient rocks inscribed with symbolic carvings … a once-active volcano where visitors can walk down into its center. These are just a few of the timeless wonders that …

Music is as much about math, as it is about sound. It’s also about imagination and learning. But it’s out of reach for some disabled or physically challenged students, until now. A team of Polish inventors has created a push-button instrument that almost anyone can play. VOA’s Kevin Enochs reports. …

Pianists from South Korea and the United States took the top three places Saturday in the 15th Van Cliburn International Piano Competition held in Fort Worth, Texas, this past week. Yekwon Sunwoo, 28, of South Korea claimed the gold medal, while Americans Kenneth Broberg and Daniel Hsu followed as silver …

Tapwrit overtook favored Irish War Cry in the stretch to win the Belmont Stakes by two lengths on Saturday, giving trainer Todd Pletcher his third career victory in the final leg of the Triple Crown. Ridden by Jose Ortiz, Tapwrit ran 1½ miles in 2:30.02 on his home track. Ortiz’s …

Danger lurks at Dracula’s castle.   Romanian authorities have closed a 13th-century fortress connected to Vlad the Impaler after a mother bear and her cubs were found roaming in the area.   The citadel, atop a mountain in central Romania, can be reached only by climbing 1,480 steps. It was …

Adam West, the deadpan Batman at the center of a beloved TV show known for its sly quips and high camp, has died of leukemia at age 88. West’s role as the legendary Caped Crusader, spanning only three years, was the high point of his career. But for better or …

U2 turned their first headlining appearance at a U.S. music festival into Bono-roo.   The Irish rockers performed a two-hour set Friday night at the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee, as part of their world tour celebrating the 30th anniversary of their Grammy-winning The Joshua Tree album. …