Feature Focus

Shirley MacLaine to join TV show 'Downton Abbey'

Oscar-winning actress Shirley MacLaine is joining Britain's popular television series "Downton Abbey." The 77-year-old will join the cast when they start filming next month. She will play the mother of Lady Grantham, portrayed by Elizabeth McGovern, in the third season of the hit period drama, which took Golden Globe and Emmy prizes for best miniseries or TV movie. Gareth Neame of Carnival Films, which produces the show, said Monday that MacLaine's character will be a "wonderful combatant" for Maggie Smith's Dowager Countess. AP

Willie Nelson campaigns for Ohio congressman

Country music icon Willie Nelson has come to Ohio to sing out in support of an old friend, U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich. Nelson performed a sold-out benefit for the congressman on Sunday in Lorain, about 25 miles west of Cleveland. The star previously campaigned for Kucinich during his long-shot bids for president. Redistricting has thrown Kucinich into a congressional primary battle with another veteran Democrat, Marcy Kaptur. Her campaign sniffed last week that while Kucinich brings singers to northern Ohio, Kaptur brings jobs. Multiple news outlets report that Kucinich shot back during a news conference before Sunday's concert that he has worked to save steel jobs in the region. AP

'All in the Family' director John Rich dies at 86

Television director John Rich, who won an Emmy Award for the memorable "All in the Family" scene showing Sammy Davis Jr. planting a kiss on Archie Bunker, has died in Los Angeles at 86. Rich also won an Emmy for "The Dick Van Dyke Show." Directors Guild of America spokeswoman Sahar Moridani tells the Los Angeles Times that Rich died Sunday morning at his Los Angeles home after a brief illness. No other details were released. AP

Design chosen for NYC AIDS memorial park 

A design called "Infinite Forest" has been chosen for an AIDS memorial park in New York City. The design by a team of architects at Studio a+i in Brooklyn features groves of trees and mirrored glass surfaces. The memorial is planned for a triangle across from the former St. Vincent's Hospital in Greenwich Village. The memorial park will honor more than 100,000 people who have died from AIDS in the city. It also will celebrate the efforts of AIDS caregivers and activists. The diverse jury includes actress Whoopi Goldberg and shoe designer Kenneth Cole. The chair is Michael Arad, designer of The National September 11 Memorial. AP