Following is a summary of current entertainment news briefs.

Hamster hero? How a Japanese cartoon became Thai youth protesters’ symbol

Thailand’s emerging student pro-democracy movement has adopted a Japanese cartoon hamster, Hamtaro, as a creative way to get support from young people around the country. University and high school students have rallied almost daily in the past two weeks to demand the dissolution of parliament, an end to harassment of government critics, and amendments to the military-written constitution that critics say help maintain the influence of the army over the political system.

Alan Parker, director of ‘Bugsy Malone’ and ‘Mississippi Burning’, dies at 76

British filmmaker Alan Parker, director of movies ranging from “Bugsy Malone” , a gangster comedy featuring children armed with machineguns that fired cream, to the tense prison drama “Midnight Express” , died on Friday aged 76. Parker, who also directed “Fame”, “Mississippi Burning” , “Evita” , “The Commitments” and other successful movies, died after a lengthy illness, a spokeswoman said.

‘Cocoon’ actor Wilford Brimley dies age 85

Actor Wilford Brimley, best known for his roles in the Oscar-winning movie “Cocoon” and “The Firm” has died at the age of 85, U.S. media reported. Utah-born Brimley found his way into the film industry through stunt work around horse riding, before taking on successively larger roles in his 40s and 50s which brought him fame playing sometimes gruff but lovable mustachioed seniors.

NBA’s return doubles typical regular-season audience, broadcaster TNT says

The NBA’s return to regular-season play for the first time in four months averaged 3.4 million viewers for a close contest between the Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers, the league, and AT&T Inc’s TNT cable network said on Friday. The viewership for the Thursday game was more than double the average for a regular-season NBA telecast, the league, and the network said in a joint statement. Superstar Lebron James made the winning shot with 12.8 seconds left to secure the Lakers’ 103-101 victory.