Entertainment News Roundup: Leonard Cohen's love letters; Founder of K-pop label YG resigns

Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Leonard Cohen's love letters to Marianne fetch $876,000 at auction

A collection of more than 50 love letters written by Canadian singer-songwriter Leonard Cohen to the woman who inspired "So Long, Marianne" has sold for $876,000, with many going for more than five times their pre-sale estimates, Christie's auction house said on Thursday. The archive of letters from Cohen to Marianne Ihlen chronicles their 1960s love affair and the blossoming of Cohen's career from struggling poet to the famous musician.

Founder of K-pop label YG resigns amid drugs and sex scandals

Yang Hyun-suk, the founder of South Korea's YG Entertainment which manages top K-pop performers, stepped down on Friday from his duties as chief producer, in the aftermath of drug and sex scandals involving his artists. In March, a member of YG's boyband Big Bang quit showbiz over sex bribery accusations, prompting police investigations and the resignation of four K-pop stars including him.

Cuba Gooding Jr. charged with groping woman in Manhattan bar

Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. was charged on Thursday with groping a woman at a Manhattan bar last weekend, New York City police said. The "Jerry Maguire" actor faces one misdemeanour account of forcible touching in an incident on Sunday when an unidentified woman said Gooding touched her breasts.

Robbie Williams takes stake in college, sings mentoring's praises

Pop singer Robbie Williams, a judge on Britain's "The X Factor" television show last year, is taking a stake in a performing arts college as he looks to mentor more "jazz hand people" like him. The singer of "Angels" and "Let Me Entertain You" will have a 20% stake in Liverpool's LMA, which offers degrees in music, performing arts and games design.

Aston Martin built for James Bond heading to auction

A 1965 Aston Martin DB5 outfitted with special gadgets for James Bond, such as tire slashers, machine guns and a bulletproof shield, will go up for auction in August, the auction house announced on Wednesday. The vehicle painted grey is expected to fetch between $4 million and $6 million, according to a statement from RM Sotheby's.

'The Dead Don't Die' stars on the environment

Flesh-eating zombies terrorize a small town in Jim Jarmusch's "The Dead Don't Die", a comedy horror in which polar fracking sets off strange reactions and raises the dead. Reuters spoke with Bill Murray and Chloe Sevigny, who portray police, and Tilda Swinton, who plays a mysterious funeral parlour worker, about the film's albeit lighthearted environmentalism.

Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. to turn himself in after groping allegation: NBC

Actor Cuba Gooding Jr. intends to turn himself in to New York City police after a woman accused him of groping her at a Manhattan bar over the weekend, NBC News reported on Wednesday, citing Gooding's representative. The Oscar-winning actor plans to present himself to the NYPD's sex crimes unit on Thursday, according to NBC News.

Musicians lament reported loss of recordings in decade-old Universal fire

Several big-name musicians voiced dismay on Wednesday that some of their recordings may have been among thousands of original masters that The New York Times Magazine reported were lost in the Universal Studios Hollywood backlot fire of 2008. The blaze, which gutted a popular "King Kong" attraction and a swath of the studio's fabled outdoor lot, also destroyed nearly all the master recordings stored there in a Universal Music Group archive, a loss that has long gone undisclosed, the magazine reported on Tuesday.

Madonna takes on frightening world with new album 'Madame X'

Gun control, poverty and the marginalized, Madonna's new album "Madame X" sees the Queen of Pop wanting to "fight back" in what she sees as a frightening modern world. In an interview with Reuters, Madonna also said she was horrified by moves to restrict LGTBQ and women's rights, namely in her native United States.

(With inputs from agencies.)