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Angela Bassett may have gone home empty handed at the Oscars in March, but the two-time nominee will be getting a golden statuette this year after all – and in very good company too.

In November, Bassett, Mel Brooks and film editor Carol Littleton will receive honorary Oscars at the Governors Awards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said Monday.

Michelle Satter, the founding senior director of the Sundance Institute’s Artist Programs, will also be given the Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award at the untelevised event.

“The Academy’s Board of Governors is thrilled to honor four trailblazers who have transformed the film industry and inspired generations of filmmakers and movie fans,” Janet Yang, the academy’s president, said in a statement.

Most recipients of the academy’s honorary awards have not won competitive Oscars. Brooks, is an exception, however, having won an original screenplay Oscar for “The Producers.” At the ceremony, in 1969, he said he wanted to “thank the academy of arts sciences and money for this wonderful award.” In his speech, which had the audience in stitches, he also thanked Gene Wilder three times.

The 96-year-old, who began his career writing for Sid Caesar’s “Your Show of Shows,” and over the next 70 years would write, direct, act, produce for film, television and Broadway and write books, including a recent memoir, is among the rare breed of EGOT-winners. (Those are entertainers who have won Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony Awards.) He also received two other Oscar nominations, for writing the lyrics to John Morris’s “Blazing Saddles” song and another screenwriting nod for “Young Frankenstein,” which he shared with Wilder.

“Mel Brooks lights up our hearts with his humor, and his legacy has made a lasting impact on every facet of entertainment,” Yang said.

Bassett, whose credits include “Boyz N the Hood,” “Malcolm X,” “Waiting to Exhale” and “How Stella Got Her Groove Back,” received her first Oscar nomination for her portrayal of Tina Turner in “What’s Love Got to Do With It” and her second earlier this year for playing the grieving queen in “Black Panther: Wakanda Forever.” The 64-year-old told the AP earlier this year that “this moment has been so special, it’s been a highlight of my career.”

Yang said in a statement that, “across her decades-long career, Angela Bassett has continued to deliver transcendent performances that set new standards in acting.”

Littleton’s name might not be as immediately recognizable as the celebrities being honored alongside but has been working behind the scenes with top filmmakers for nearly five decades. The 81-year-old Oklahoma native worked frequently with both Lawrence Kasdan and Jonathan Demme, editing films like “Body Heat,” “The Big Chill,” “Swimming to Cambodia” and “The Manchurian Candidate.” She received her first and only Oscar nomination for “E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial,” the only film she’s edited for Steven Spielberg. She’s also married to cinematographer and former Academy president John Bailey.

The honorary awards are given, “to honor extraordinary distinction in lifetime achievement, exceptional contributions to the state of motion picture arts and sciences, or for outstanding service to the Academy.”

Satter, meanwhile, has led the Sundance Institute’s famed artist programs for more than 40 years, helping filmmakers at the earliest stages of their careers, from Paul Thomas Anderson to Ryan Coogler.

The Governors Awards will be held on Nov. 18 at the Fairmont Century Plaza in Los Angeles.

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In a 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court delivered a blow to the rights of federal prisoners, particularly those who may be completely innocent.

This week’s ruling in Jones v. Hendrix establishes a significant hurdle for prisoners seeking to challenge their convictions in court.

The case revolved around Marcus DeAngelo Jones, a federal prisoner convicted in 2000 of possessing a firearm after a felony conviction.

However, in a 2019 case called Rehaif v. United States, the Supreme Court declared that individuals could not be convicted under the felon-in-possession statute unless they were aware of their prior felony conviction at the time of possessing the gun.

Jones argued that he mistakenly believed his previous felony conviction had been expunged when he acquired the firearm, rendering his conviction invalid under Rehaif.

He said because he was unaware of his felony status, federal law did not make his possession of the firearm illegal.

Unfortunately, the Supreme Court’s ruling, as outlined in Justice Thomas’s opinion, prevents Jones from challenging his conviction altogether.

The outcome is because of a federal law known as Section 2255, which generally bars federal prisoners from making multiple challenges to their convictions or sentences.

Jones had previously succeeded in petitioning a federal court to vacate a portion of his sentence before the Rehaif decision, which Thomas argued extinguished his sole opportunity to challenge his conviction, even though Jones had no way of knowing that his claim of innocence would become potentially valid after Rehaif.

Although Section 2255 does include exceptions that allow for a second challenge under certain circumstances, Thomas narrowly interprets the provision, stating that the usual process is “inadequate or ineffective” to test the legality of a prisoner’s detention.

In her dissenting opinion, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson criticized Thomas’s restrictive construction and even mocks it by claiming that only a fire or mudslide could provide relief.

Thomas’s majority opinion extends the consequences beyond individuals like Jones, who hope to overturn their convictions due to developments like the Rehaif decision.

Many other individuals who are entirely innocent and wrongfully convicted will also be denied the opportunity for second appeals and remain unjustly imprisoned.

Before Section 2255’s enactment in 1948, federal prisoners had to challenge their convictions in the judicial district where they were incarcerated.

However, the system was impractical and burdensome for federal trial courts near prisons, as they often needed easier access to necessary records, evidence, and witnesses.

Section 2255 addressed this issue by requiring prisoners to bring challenges to the court that initially tried and convicted them, ensuring a more equitable distribution of cases among federal district courts, and providing the court most familiar with the prisoner’s case to hear the habeas suits challenging their confinement.

Although Section 2255 ordinarily restricts prisoners from filing a second habeas challenge if they were previously denied relief, it permits a second challenge if the usual process is “inadequate or ineffective” to test the legality of their detention.

However, Thomas characterized previous decisions allowing prisoners to file second challenges as an “end-run” around the limits set by federal law for habeas petitions.

He interpreted the “inadequate or ineffective” provision so narrowly that very few cases would meet its requirements, leaving prisoners fighting unlawful convictions with limited recourse.

In response, Justice Jackson argued in her dissent that Thomas’s reading of Section 2255 is completely unsupported by the text.

Both justices agreed on the historical purpose of Section 2255, which aimed to relieve the burden on district courts near federal prisons.

However, the statute contains no language that aligned with Thomas’s interpretation of the “inadequate or ineffective” provision.

Jackson asserted that Congress reenacted this exception in 1996, using identical language, and intended it to preserve prisoners’ ability to bring postconviction claims, including those based on statutory innocence, that might have been inadvertently barred by the language adopted in the amendment.

Experts said the outcome of the Jones case revealed not only the complexity of federal habeas law and the procedural challenges prisoners face but also a longstanding philosophical divide within the Supreme Court.

Liberal-leaning justices argued that the criminal justice system should primarily focus on determining a defendant’s actual guilt and provide adequate safeguards for challenging wrongful convictions.

On the other hand, conservative justices, including Thomas, emphasized finality in criminal judgments, even if it meant potentially denying the innocence claims of prisoners.

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LOS ANGELES (AP) — The 2023 BET Awards celebrated 50 years of hip-hop with tributes to the genre’s earliest voices, late legends, and new talent during a show packed with spectacular performances that consistently felt like a party.

Sunday’s biggest surprise came when Quavo and Offset, the surviving members of Migos, performed “Bad and Boujee” in front of an image of Takeoff, who died in a shooting last December.

“BET, do it for Take,” the duo shouted near the beginning of their set, as their backdrop switched from the image of a space shuttle to one of Takeoff pointing in the air.

Throughout the show, whether it was Tupac, Notorious B.I.G., Biz Markie or Pop Smoke, performers and emcee Kid Capri paid homage to late hip-hop stars, often by quickly highlighting a taste of their best-known hits. In a show where few awards were given, Capri and BET kept the emphasis on the music.

Busta Rhymes took home the night’s biggest honor, the Lifetime Achievement Award, handed to him by Swizz Beatz. The 12-time Grammy Award nominated rapper, producer, and pioneering hip-hop figure is widely regarded as one of the great MCs, with seven Top 10 Billboard Hot 100 hits to his name.

Diddy, Janet Jackson, Chuck D, Missy Elliot, Pharrell Williams, and Mariah Carey recorded a video tribute to Rhymes.

“Alright, Imma wear it on my sleeve. I do wanna cry,” Rhymes started his speech, as his eyes started to water. He talked about his six children, being kicked out from his hip-hop group Leaders of the New School, and learning how to rebuild by going into studios, sharing a cigar with whoever was in the studio, and “quickly whipping up a 16 bar verse. … By default, I pioneered the feature,” he said. “A lot of greatness from out people in our culture is by default. Because it’s just a magic we have.”

An energetic tribute to Rhymes followed — the MC teamed up with Spliff Star for “Ante Up Remix”, “Scenario,” “Look At Me Now”, “I Know What You Want”, before a long list of A-listers jumped in: Scar Lip with “This Is New York”, Coi Leray with “Players,” BIA with “Beach Ball,” among them. Halfway through the performance, Rhymes shifted gears to celebrate dancehall alongside Dexta Daps “Shabba Madda Pot,” Spice, “So Mi Like It,” Skillibeng, “Whap Whap”, and CuttyRanks’ “A Who Seh Me Dun (Wait Deh Man).”

Throughout the show, old school hip-hop heroes and modern stars mixed it up onstage, performing tracks celebrating rap’s most influential cities and innovation. For Miami, Trick Daddy and Trina rocked through “Nann” and Uncle Luke took on “I Wanna Rock (Doo Doo Brown).” For Atlanta, Jeezy ripped through “They Know”, T.I. hit “24’s,” and Master P did “No Limit Soldiers” into “Make ‘Em Say Ugh.” And for hip-hop’s reggae influence, Jamaica’s Doug E. Fresh and Lil ’Vicious did an acapella version of “Freaks,” Mad Lion performed “Take It Easy,” and PATRA nailed “Romantic Call.”

Capri spun some of Tupac’s “Hail Marry” to tease a crash course on West Coast rap: Warren G’s “Regulate,” Yo-Yo’s “You Can’t Play With My Yo-Yo,” Tyga’s “Rack City”, and E-40’s “Tell Me When To Go.”

An ode to trap started with Capri spinning the late Pop Smoke’s “Dior”, before Chief Keef nailed “Faneto” and Ying Yang Twins did “Wait (The Whisper Song.”)

Audience members, danced, sang along (and a few hopped up on stage) while Capri and MC Lyte keep the hostless show moving. It was a mostly hiccup-free show — save for a hitch during Patti LaBelle’s performance and the show running nearly four hours — particularly noteworthy for an event scheduled in the midst of the ongoing Hollywood writers’ strike.

LaBelle honored the Tina Turner with a performance of the late singer’s hit “The Best,” telling the audience at one point she couldn’t see the words. “I’m trying, y’all!” she said before powering into the chorus.

A masked Lil Uzi Vert opened the show at Los Angeles’ Microsoft Theater before it jumped into a quick history lesson. Capri walked the audience through a medley of the earliest days of New York City ’80s rap culture featuring The Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight,” MC LYTE’s “Cha Cha Cha”, D-NICE’s “Call ME D-Nice” and Big Daddy Kane’s “Raw,” into a partial cover of “Just A Friend,” an homage to the late great Biz Markie.

“I would not be in this business on the stage tonight if it wasn’t for one person,” Big Daddy Kane said introducing the song. “Rest in peace.” He invited audience members to sing along to the song’s infectious chorus.

The coveted best new artist award went to Coco Jones, in a category which featured only female performers.

“For all of my black girls, we do have to fight a little harder to get what we deserve,” she said in her acceptance speech. “But don’t stop fighting even when it doesn’t make sense. And you’re not sure how you’re going to get out of those circumstances. Keep pushing because we are deserving of great things.”

It was followed by a supermarket-themed performance of AP’s pick for club song of the summer, Latto’s “Put It On Da Floor Again,” sans featured artist Cardi B but no less catchy. It ended with a text tribute: “RIP Shawty Lo,” a screen read.

Teyana “Spike Tey” Taylor won video director of the year, which was accepted by her mom Nikki Taylor – like a true matriarch, she interrupted the show to videocall her daughter and let her have the moment.

At the end of his acceptance speech, Rhymes urged the hip-hop community to “stop this narrative that we don’t love each other,” urging veteran musicians and newcomers alike to embrace one another.

It was the perfect mirror for the night: New York rapper Ice Spice ran through abridged versions of “Munch (Feelin’ U),” “Princess Diana” and “In Ha Mood”; Glorilla brought “Lick Or Sum” to the BET stage, and Kali powered through her TikTok hit, “Area Codes.”

In the audience, generations of hip-hop heavy-hitters cheered.

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* This article was originally published here