Bangkok to Take a Break From the Wet This Week

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12 June 2017, 17:30

A taxi navigates a partially flooded street June 5 near the Wongsakorn Market on Sai Mai Road in Bangkok.

BANGKOK — Commuters will be happy to hear that forecasts call for less rain this week.

The rainy season has saturated the capital’s roads and lanes with ankle- or even knee-level flooding since late May, but the country will see a week-long break from the rain, according to state meteorologists.

Read: Wetpocalypse: Bangkok Floods Again (Photos)

Bangkok will see low to moderate chances of scattered rain through Friday, according to Monday’s forecast from the Thai Meteorological Department.

The weekend will see more rain, covering 30 percent to 40 percent of the capital due to a low-pressure system to the east and a Tropical Storm Merbok currently hitting Hong Kong and moving in over the South China Sea. Those travelling to China or Hong Kong through Sunday should be on alert for changing weather conditions, the state meteorological agency warned.

Conditions will be similar in the rest of the country, except for the northern and Isaan regions, which will see a slightly higher chances of rain: 40 percent through Friday and 60 percent during the weekend.

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It’s Official: Thailand’s ‘Pro May’ Ascends to World’s No. 1

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Chayanit Itthipongmaetee, Staff Reporter

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12 June 2017, 15:56

Ariya Jutanugarn kisses her trophy Sunday after winning the LPGA Classic golf tournament at the Whistle Bear Golf Club in Ontario. Photo: Frank Gunn / The Canadian Press

BANGKOK — Ariya Jutanugarn, aka Pro May, was officially ranked the world’s top woman golfer Monday after winning the Manulife LPGA Classic on Sunday in Ontario, Canada.

Ariya, 21, ascended to the No. 1 spot after beating American golfer Lexi Thompson and Chun In-gee of South Korea in a playoff round, according to the official Women’s World Golf Rankings site.

Former top-ranked player Lydia Ko of New Zealand drops to the No. 2 spot.

Read: Jutanugarn Beats Thompson, Chun in Playoff at LPGA Classic

Last week, a miscalculation by the golf federation saw Ariya briefly proclaimed No. 1.

Sam Panopoulos, Alleged Inventor of Hawaiian Pizza, 83

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Associated Press

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12 June 2017, 15:04

A Hawaiian pizza seen here in 2008 in Quebec, Canada. Photo: Krista / Flickr

LONDON, Ontario — A Canadian man widely credited with inventing the pineapple-topped pizza has died at age 83.

An obituary by his family said Sam Panopoulos had been in hospital in London, Ontario, when he died suddenly on Thursday.

Panopoulos was born in Greece and emigrated to Canada in 1954. He told numerous news media that he made his first “Hawaiian” pizza in 1962 at the Satellite Restaurant in Chatham, Ontario, after wondering if canned pineapple might make a tasty topping.

Some have disputed his claim. But Prime Minister Justin Trudeau this year issued a light-hearted tweet of support, referring to the dish as “a delicious southwestern Ontario creation.”

He was responding to a joking suggestion by Iceland’s President Gudni Johannesson that pineapple pizzas should be banned.

One of Panopoulos’ sons described his father as a dedicated family man who “wasn’t looking to get famous.”

Bill Panopoulos said he didn’t want to comment further, adding “the Hawaiian pizza story and his immigrant story were his to tell.”

Panopoulos’ funeral is set for Monday.

Chinese ‘Likes’ Farmers Arrested in Thai Border Town

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Sasiwan Mokkhasen, Staff Reporter

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12 June 2017, 13:38

A bank of dozens of phones are lined up on a shelf inside a house police raided Sunday in Sa Kaeo province. Photo: Jiggie Jaa / Facebook

SA KAEO — When police raided a house in the border town of Aranyaprathet on Sunday, they discovered more than 500 active phones lined up on shelves inside with thousands of SIM cards piled inside several sacks.

Unlike what officers originally assumed – that they’d just busted an all-too common fraudulent call center gang – the three Chinese men in the house told police they needed all the phones to operate so-called sock puppet accounts on China’s largest messaging app to boost “likes” and view counts for online advertisements back in China.

“Because in China, a single mobile number can only be linked to one WeChat user,” police Col. Wassaphan Sirikulkamonchat of Aranyaprathet police said Monday. “So they did it from here.”

Like many other social media applications, WeChat requires a phone number to verify an account and that number can only be linked to one account at a time.

Getting SIM cards has been getting tougher in China due to its real name registration policy, which requires users to prove their identity. Users who did not properly register their SIM cards by the end of last year were blocked from service, according to China Daily.

The three suspects; Ni Wenjin, Wang Dong and Niu Bang; said they have been operating out of the rented house in Sa Kaeo province for three months using SIM cards from Thai service providers.

They were charged with working without a permit and tax evasion-related charges for allegedly smuggling SIM cards into the country.

Since September 2015, pre-paid SIM card users in Thailand have also been required to present valid identification to register SIM cards. Telecommunications regulators recently launched a trial of a fingerprint registration system. It is being rolled out first in the Deep South and is expected to expand nationwide some time next year.

Similar commercial like-boosting services are also commonly found in Thailand, especially for online shops that rely on Facebook prominence.

Police Investigate YouTuber for ‘Cat vs. Scorpion’ Animal Cruelty

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Asaree Thaitrakulpanich, Staff Reporter

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12 June 2017, 13:26

Nate Bartling holds up his cats in a video released Saturday defending a prank video released last week that resulted in a criminal complaint of animal cruelty. Photo: My Mate Nate / YouTube

BANGKOK — Police said Monday they are investigating a controversial American YouTuber for animal cruelty after animal groups filed a report against him Friday.

After American Nathan Bartling, better known by his YouTube handle “My Mate Nate” posted a video of his two cats fighting a scorpion on June 5, an angry online backlash led to two people taking their anger to the police.

Read: American YouTuber Criticized for Making Cats Fight Scorpion

“If you look at the clip, you can see that animal cruelty was committed,” Lt. Col. Suppachai Hamkamlha of Huai Khwang Police station said Monday. “Still, we will have to investigate further.”

The complaint was made Friday with Huai Khwang police by Nat Prasopsin, a woman who has built an audience with her cat-themed Facebook page Kingdom of Tigers and Jack “Dek Farang” Brown, a Briton who also is a YouTube personality in Thailand.

Bartling has said he did not intend to hurt the animals.

Suppachai said the case had to be transferred to Makkasan police, since the alleged animal cruelty happened in their jurisdiction.

“The cat was crying out in pain, but he didn’t stop his actions,” Nat said Friday at the police station. “I know that making a video requires a lot of takes, so he probably had to do this with his cat over and over again. It’s funny clips that we don’t laugh at.”

Nat also said that Bartling’s previous videos showed other instances of animal cruelty, such as tying his cat to helium balloons. “He needs to stop this, because it’s a bad example to many youths and children watching him,” she said.

Nat said before filing the police report, she consulted an exotic animal vet who said that scorpions can be deadly to cats.

Reached for comment via Line on Monday, Bartling declined to answer questions and referred to a link to a video posted online Saturday. In it, Bartling said he had obtained the stinger-less scorpion from a shop that sold edible scorpions on Khaosan Road, and he found his cat playing with the scorpions in his kitchen.

“Grabbing the camera to film my cats might have been my fault,” Bartling said in Thai. “Letting the cats play with a scorpion is like teaching a child to know what’s hot or cold by letting them learn for themselves. I didn’t have any malicious intent to hurt the cats.”

Bartling also said that his cats are in good health and that he learns each time his videos cause controversy. For example, after the drama about asking embarrassing English questions to Thai strangers, Bartling said he began focusing on putting English vocabulary into his videos rather than doing prank videos. Bartling says in the clip that he will stop doing “these kind of videos” as well.

“No one is perfect. I made a mistake,” Bartling said. “But does the the drama have to be this big?”

Bartling, 23, says he has a legal work permit and asked people to focus critical comments on him, not his family, girlfriend, religion or even the cat rescue organization from which he adopted his cats, the Pet Animal Welfare Society, or PAWS.

“To the people who said I should leave the country, how will I be a good example to youths watching if I run away from my problems?” Bartling said in the clip.

Many in his fan base of more than 3 million Facebook followers continue to stand by him.

“Dude, continue your work. Don’t listen to what they say. This nation is too freaking conservative. Please help us change that,” wrote YouTube commenter Passkin in English. “I’m so sorry I signed up to sue you without watching the whole video and knowing your full intention.”

According to the Prevention of Animal Cruelty and Provision of Animal Welfare Act of 2014 animal cruelty is punishable by up to two years in jail a 40,000 baht fine.

Atlanta Nu Metal Rockers to Bring ‘Issues’ to Bangkok

By

Chayanit Itthipongmaetee, Staff Reporter

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12 June 2017, 11:53

BANGKOK — An American “new” nu metal band will pass through Bangkok on their Southeast Asia tour.

Following the LP release of “Headspace” last year, Georgia-based, multi-genre band Issues announced it will come to Bangkok in August to sing hits such as “Hooligans,” “Stingray Affliction” and “Blue Wall.”

The group blends genres such as metalcore, pop, electronic and R&B. In 2015, Issues played in Bangkok at Overtone RCA, then known as Mellow Yello.

Tickets start at 1,200 baht and can be purchased online. The concert will take place Aug. 8 at Hollywood Awards. The nightclub is located on Soi Ratchadaphisek 4 and can be reached from MRT Phra Ram 9.

Puerto Rico Votes to Become 51st US State in Unbinding Referendum

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Associated Press

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12 June 2017, 11:34

Protesters in favor of Puerto Rico's independence protest after a referendum was held on the island's status by burning a U.S. flag in the financial district, known as the golden mile, Sunday in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Photo: Carlos Giusti / Associated Press

SAN JUAN, Puerto Rico — Puerto Rico’s governor is vowing to turn the U.S. territory into the 51st state after statehood won in a non-binding referendum hit by a boycott and low turnout that raised questions about the vote’s legitimacy.

Gov. Ricardo Rossello told a couple hundred supporters waving U.S. flags late Sunday that he will soon create a commission to appoint two senators and five representatives to demand statehood from the U.S. Congress, which has to approve any changes to the island’s political status.

“The United States of America will have to obey the will of our people!” Rossello yelled to a crowd clutching U.S. flags and dancing to a tropical jingle that promoted statehood.

But experts say it is highly unlikely a Republican-controlled Congress would acknowledge Sunday’s results, let alone accept them because Puerto Rico tends to favor Democrats.

The referendum has sparked dozens of memes that turned viral, including some showing the tropical island covered in snow.

More than half a million people voted for statehood during Sunday’s referendum, followed by nearly 7,800 votes for free association/independence and more than 6,800 votes for the current territorial status. Voter turnout was just 23 percent.

It was the lowest level of participation in any election in Puerto Rico since 1967, noted Carlos Vargas Ramos, an associate with the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter College in New York. He told The Associated Press that even among voters who supported statehood, turnout was lower this year compared with the previous referendum in 2012.

“Supporters of statehood did not seem enthusiastic about this plebiscite as they were five years ago,” he said.

Rossello brushed aside those concerns, noting that the referendum was a democratic process in which the majority prevailed as he questioned why more people did not come out to defend alternatives to statehood. He also said that participation rates varied from 7 percent to 35 percent for states including Wisconsin and Hawaii when they were ratified as states.

Three of Puerto Rico’s political parties including the main opposition party had called on their supporters to boycott the referendum, which they labeled a failure.

Former Gov. Alejandro Garcia Padilla, who did not seek re-election last year and whose party supports the status quo, rejected Sunday’s results.

“Whoever claims that statehood triumphed is being intellectually dishonest,” he said. “The boycott defeated statehood.”

The referendum coincided with the 100th anniversary of the United States granting U.S. citizenship to Puerto Ricans, though they are barred from voting in presidential elections and have only one congressional representative with limited voting powers.

Many believe the island’s territorial status has contributed to its economic crisis, largely caused by decades of heavy borrowing and the elimination of federal tax incentives.

Puerto Rico is exempt from the U.S. federal income tax, but it still pays Social Security and Medicare and local taxes and receives less federal funding than U.S. states.

“We have been a colony for 500 years, and we have had U.S. citizenship for 100 years, but it’s been a second class one,” Rossello said.

Nearly half a million Puerto Ricans have fled to the U.S. mainland to escape the island’s 10-year economic recession and 12 percent unemployment rate.

Those who remain behind have faced new taxes and higher utility bills on an island where food is 22 percent more expensive than the U.S. mainland and public services are 64 percent more expensive.

Jose Rosa, a 62-year-old retired corrections officer, said the island’s situation is the reason he voted for the first time in such a referendum, the fifth on Puerto Rico’s status.

“We need a change in the way we’re living,” he said. “You can see the crisis.”

No clear majority emerged in the first three referendums on status, with voters almost evenly divided between statehood and the status quo. During the last referendum in 2012, 54 percent said they wanted a status change. Sixty-one percent who answered a second question said they favored statehood, but nearly half a million voters left that question blank, leading many to claim the results weren’t legitimate.

The results of the newest referendum could lead to similar claims, Vargas said.

“Whether those results are legitimate or not depends on the audience that may be receiving (them),” he said. “If the advocates for statehood for Puerto Rico want to address the results to the U.S. Congress…then the results may appear weak, particularly when five years ago 834,000 voters supported statehood for the island. If the audience is the electorate in Puerto Rico, well, they spoke louder by their overwhelming abstention.”

Story: Danica Coto

Mix of Pride and Anger at LGBT Rights Marches Across US

By

Associated Press

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12 June 2017, 11:24

A marcher mugs for the camera during the Los Angeles LGBTQ #ResistMarch, Sunday in West Hollywood, California. Photo: Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press

WASHINGTON — Supporters of LGBT rights marched and rallied in the nation’s capital and dozens of other U.S. cities on Sunday, celebrating gains but angry over threats posed by the administration of President Donald Trump.

The centerpiece event, the Equality March in Washington, was endorsed by virtually every major national advocacy group working on behalf of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans.

Activists have been embittered by the Trump administration’s rollback of federal guidance advising school districts to let transgender students use the bathrooms and locker rooms of their choice.

They also complain that Trump, who campaigned as a potential ally of gays and lesbians, has stocked his administration with foes of LGBT rights, including Vice President Mike Pence, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, and Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price.

Throngs of marchers, many thousands strong, paraded past the White House and toward the Capitol, trailing behind a giant rainbow flag near the head of the procession.

“We’re here, we’re queer, get that Cheeto out of here,” was among the chants directed at Trump.

For the LGBT community nationwide, it’s an emotional time. Monday is the anniversary of the mass shooting a year ago in Orlando, Florida, that killed 49 people — mostly Latinos — at Pulse, a gay nightclub.

Among the marchers in Washington was Gil Mendez, a Puerto Rican native who traveled with his partner all the way from San Francisco to join the parade. He carried a sign that included the names of all the Pulse victims.

“The attack on Pulse really struck me hard,” he said. “It made the connection between the physical violence of guns and the political attacks on our community.”

Also marching, and singing freedom songs and patriotic songs along the way, were scores of members of gay choruses from various cities.

“It’s an opportunity to tell everyone we’re still here, and we’re not going away at all,” said Gregory Elfers of Teaneck, New Jersey, who was with a contingent from the New York City Gay Men’s Chorus.

“We have to be heard – we have to be sure we’re not trampled on,” said L. Owen Taggart of Washington’s Gay Men’s Chorus.

The roughly 100 marches and rallies across the U.S. included the first-ever gay pride parade in Grosse Pointe, a prosperous Detroit suburb. It began at Grosse Pointe South High School to emphasize support for teens who are gay or transgender.

Two 15-year-old marchers, Jessica Dodge and Shekinah Aho, held hands and wore shirts that said, “Make America Gay Again.”

The Los Angeles pride parade was renamed the ResistMarch, and tens of thousands turned out in Hollywood, some carrying rainbow flags or signs reading “Love Trumps Hate.” Speakers included Mayor Eric Garcetti, U.S. Reps. Adam Schiff, Maxine Waters and Nancy Pelosi, and RuPaul, the host of “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”

Waters led the crowd in a chant of “Impeach 45.”

“We’re going to take our country back from him,” she said. “I know that you have the strength. I know that you have the courage. And I know that each of you understand you have the power.”

Back in Washington, the activist leaders on hand included Sarah Kate Ellis, president of GLAAD, which monitors media coverage of the LGBT community.

She noted that Trump, breaking from the practice of Barack Obama, has declined to issue a proclamation in honor of Pride Month, and that the Trump administration has deleted questions about sexual orientation from planned federal surveys.

“If you look at their prioritization, we’re really low on it,” she said. “There absolutely is a resistance aspect to this march.”

Story: Karolyn Kaster, David Crary

Jutanugarn Beats Thompson, Chun in Playoff at LPGA Classic

By

Associated Press

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12 June 2017, 11:17

Ariya Jutanugarn of Thailand holds the winner's trophy after winning the playoff to win the Manulife LPGA Classic at Whistle Bear Golf Club on Sunday in Cambridge, Ontario. Photo: Frank Gunn / Associated Press

CAMBRIDGE, Ontario — Ariya Jutanugarn was seated by the scorer’s tent after finishing her final round Sunday, snapping selfies with In Gee Chun and thinking there was little chance they would return to the course for a playoff at the Manulife LPGA Classic.

A short time later, Jutanugarn was posing for pictures as winner of the Manulife LPGA Classic.

Lexi Thompson buckled down the stretch and missed a four-foot putt to win in regulation, forcing her to return to the 18th tee with Jutanugarn and Chun for a playoff. Jutanugarn found the rough with her drive but her approach was pin-high and she made a 25-foot birdie putt for her first victory of the season.

“I feel great, I feel like I broke through,” she said. “I feel like I waited for my first win this year for a while.”

The 21-year-old from Thailand is a virtual lock to move up one position Monday and knock Lydia Ko off her perch as the world’s top-ranked women’s player.

Jutanugarn earned USD $255,000 of the USD $1.7-million purse for the victory. She raised her hand to her mouth in shock after hitting the winning shot.

“I knew it was a good putt,” she said. “I didn’t know it was going to go in.”

Jutanugarn is the 13th different winner on the LPGA Tour this season. Her last victory came at the 2016 Canadian Pacific Women’s Open.

A five-time winner last year, she had three birdies over a four-hole stretch around the turn at Whistle Bear Golf Club. She closed with six straight pars for a 3-under-par 69 that left her at 17-under 271.

Thompson started the day with a one-shot lead and was up by four strokes after a birdie on No. 9. Four bogeys on the back nine did her in, with the final one coming when she three-putted on No. 18 to finish the round at 72.

“I had like a five-footer, six-footer, and about a four-footer and missed them all,” Thompson said of her last three holes. “If I made those I would have won, but that’s golf I guess.”

Chun finished the final round with a 70.

Jodi Ewart Shadoff (69) was one shot back in fourth place. Mi Hyang Lee (68) and Laura Gonzalez Escallon (67) were at 14 under.

Brooke Henderson, of nearby Smiths Falls, was the top Canadian. She finished six strokes back in a tie for 11th after a 71. Her round included an eagle, six birdies and six bogeys.

“Obviously I’m a little bit disappointed, but (tied for) 11th, I can’t complain too much,” Henderson said. “I feel like my game is so close to being so great.”

Alena Sharp, of Hamilton, started the day three shots behind Thompson but was unable to make a run. She had a double bogey on her final hole and finished seven strokes back after a 76.

Sharp, a co-leader after two rounds, was looking for her first victory in 246 career LPGA Tour starts.

“I played better today than yesterday,” she said. “Just hit one bad shot on the last (hole) and didn’t make any putts, so it’s kind of not sitting well at this moment.”

Manulife will not return as a sponsor next season. The LPGA Tour has said it hopes to return to the area and that is searching for a new title sponsor.

Outsiders Make Good as ‘Dear Evan Hansen’ Wins Big at Tonys

By

Associated Press

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12 June 2017, 11:09

The cast and crew of "Dear Evan Hansen" pose in the press room with the award for best musical at the 71st annual Tony Awards on Sunday in New York. Photo: Evan Agostini / Associated Press

NEW YORK — “Dear Evan Hansen,” the touching, heartfelt musical about young outsiders, has won the biggest theater popularity contest – winning the best new musical trophy at the Tony Awards along with five other statuettes, including best score, book and top actor honors for Ben Platt.

The show came into the night as the second-leading Tony nominee but ended up on top, with a revival of “Hello, Dolly!” starring Bette Midler next with four Tonys. “Oslo,” a three-hour meditation on diplomacy, was named best play.

Midler took the best actress trophy and – to the amusement and cheers of the audience – refused to be played off, forcing the swelling orchestra into silence. “This has the ability to lift your spirits in these terrible, terrible times,” she said of her show.

“Dear Evan Hansen” came into the night behind “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812” with 12 nominations, but that musical which dramatizes a 70-page slice of Leo Tolstoy’s “War and Peace” stalled after winning just two technical awards earlier, for best set and lighting.

Instead, the night belonged to “Dear Evan Hansen,” a show that centers on a profoundly lonely 17-year-old who fabricates a prior friendship with a classmate who has just committed suicide.

Platt thanked his cast mates, crew and family, calling his parents his heroes. He had this inspiring message to young people out there: “The things that make you strange are the things that make you powerful.”

Benj Pasek and Justin Paul, who recently won Oscars for the song “City of Stars” from the movie “La La Land,” added to a remarkable year by earning Tonys for best score for writing the songs for “Dear Evan Hansen.”

Moments later, the show’s story writer, Steven Levenson, won the Tony for best book, and Alex Lacamoire earned one for best orchestations. Rachel Bay Jones won her first Tony for her work in the musical, capping a long career onstage with plenty of zigs and zags.

Cynthia Nixon won her second Tony, this time for her work in Lillian Hellman’s “The Little Foxes.” Nixon, the “Sex and the City” star, struck a defiant political tone, saluting those who refuse to stand around and watch bad things happen in the world.

Kevin Kline won his third Tony Award playing an egomaniacal matinee idol in the midst of personal turmoil in the play “Present Laughter.” He thanked, among others, the National Endowment for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Andy Blankenbuehler won his second choreography Tony in as many years – last year for “Hamilton” and this time for “Bandstand.”

Laurie Metcalf won her first Tony, winning best actress honors in “A Doll’s House, Part 2.” She won three Emmy Awards for her role as Jackie Harris on “Roseanne” and thanked her children. Rebecca Taichman won best directing play honors for “Indecent.”

“Am I dreaming? Is this some kind of crazy dream?” she asked.

Kevin Spacey kicked off his first-ever Tony Award hosting gig with grace and self-deprecating wit, dancing, singing and joking his way through an opening number that linked all four best new musical nominees and doing his best Glenn Close impersonation.

Spacey, who was named Tony host after several other celebrities turned down the job, laughed at himself in the 10-minute opening song, in which he gradually grew comfortable with hosting duties despite what he fears will be nasty tweets crashing down.

The telecast opened on a mournful host dressed like the title character in “Dear Evan Hansen” – complete with arm cast – before he soon showed up in a bed to mock “Groundhog Day The Musical” with an assist with Stephen Colbert, and then donning a fake beard as if he was in “Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812.” He went on to do impersonations of former President Bill Clinton and Johnny Carson.

The show’s comedy had zings for Democrats and Republicans alike, with Colbert mocking President Donald Trump as if he were a show from Washington with bad hair and makeup that will be “closing early” due to poor reviews. Spacey, as Clinton, joked about his wife’s fake email accounts.

In an attempt to shake up the show, producers asked the Rockettes back on a Tony stage after 13 years and asked all four playwrights nominated for best play Tonys appear to present their works.

The Rockettes had their own number and got to dance with the cast of “Come From Away,” a feel-good Canadian musical set against the horror of 9/11. It earned Christopher Ashley the Tony for best direction of a musical. He dedicated it to 9/11 first responders and all those who were generous on that terrible day.

Spacey even had fun with rumors about his sexual orientation while singing the Andrew Lloyd Webber song “As If We Never Said Goodbye” from “Sunset Boulevard.” Spacey, dressed as Close, sang “I’m coming out…” and then paused, tantalizingly. “Of makeup…”

Then Spacey led a line of high-kicking, tap dancers in a top hat, a white tie, tuxedo and a cane. “I’m Broadway bound,” he sang. “Your next host is found.” After the hectic number, he requested that his cardiologist be nearby.

The year after “Hamilton” took many prizes, Spacey jokingly pointed out that the subjects on Broadway this season included infidelity, suicide, greed, 9/11 and economic upheaval. His Frank Underwood from “House of Cards” made a late appearance, striding onto the stage with his TV wife played by Robin Wright. Later, he and Patti LuPone closed the show with a lovely duet of “The Curtain Falls” by Bobby Darin, a role he played onscreen.

Other winners included August Wilson’s “Jitney,” which drove away with the Tony for best play revival. Gavin Creel won his first Tony for featured actor in a musical in “Hello, Dolly!”

There were no technical or human snafus – other than Midler’s elongated speech – that marred previous awards shows this year, including the wrong winner announced at the Oscars and sound issues at the Grammys. Spacey talked about the show’s accountants and said: “You guys do not have to worry about them tonight, at all,” he said.

Story: Mark Kennedy

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