Waterloo Park to Become home of new Moody Amphitheater
Thanks to a generous $15 million grant from the Moody Foundation, Waterloo Park will soon be getting a makeover. The park will soon be home to the new Moody Amphitheater, a “unique steel and translucent stage-house structure” with a lawn big enough for 5,000 people, gardens, pay areas, and 1.5 of trails. The Moody Foundation’s grant is the largest philanthropic gift for Austin parks and public open space ever with Waterloo Park’s conversion is part of the bigger Waller Creek Conservancy plan to connect the park to Lady Bird Lake with green space and 37 acres of trails. Construction on the Moody Amphitheater is slated to begin this year and wrap up in 2019.
Frank Ocean Being Sued By His Father Over Libel
A couple of days ago, a libel and defamation lawsuit was filed in California by Calvin Cooksey against Frank Ocean. Cooksey is suing Ocean for $14.5 million over a Tumblr post by the artist detailing a scene from his childhood being drug out of a diner as a 6-year-old after witnessing Cooksey disparage members of the LGBTQ community after being served by a transgender waitress. Frank Ocean penned the blog post shortly after the Pulse Nightclub shooting in Orlando. As you might begin to suspect, Calvin Cooksey is Frank Ocean’s father, and he says the incident never happened. Cooksey’s lawsuit, as reported by NPR, is rife with circuitous logic and bizarre language including a statement in which Cooksey says he “never had a problem with any member of the LGBT in my life, with the acceptation of Defendant.” Cooksey goes on in the suit to accuse Ocean of deceiving the Human Rights campaign and says should be viewed as a hypocrite due to his relationship with controversial rapper Tyler, the Creator. To top it off, this isn’t even Cooksey’s first rodeo trying to sue the hip-hop industry. Back in 2014 Cooksey sued Def Jam label co-founder Russell Simmons for libel, defamation, and emotional stress.
