Dear Ken: Whatever happened to that new Hank Williams movie?

That would be “The Last Ride,” which stars Henry Thomas as Williams and co-stars Fred Dalton Thompson, Jesse James and Kaley Cuoco. It has opened in a series of historic theaters across the U.S. and will be shown in major cities from now through August. The independent film focuses on the period when Williams was getting his life back in order after drugs, alcohol, two failed marriages and a hair-trigger temper had nearly ruined his career. In late 1952, he had arranged several New Year’s shows in West Virginia and Ohio but never got there. Somewhere on that last highway, the country music legend passed away on New Year’s Day, in 1953, in the back of his Cadillac, carrying only his guitar and a notebook full of unfinished songs.

He was 29. Says Jett Williams about the film, “In the movie, my dad doesn’t sing a note or strum a chord. This movie captures the essence of a man who, until recently, had become one-dimensional due to the myths, the lies, the fiction and vultures who surrounded him. Sure, it’s fictionalized from a factual point of view, but it is right on from a human emotional point of view.” Jett performs “Hey Good Lookin’” and “Can’t Help If I’m Still in Love With You” on the soundtrack, while others adding to the music include Russ Taff on “Honky Tonk Man,” Michael English on “I’m So Lonesome I Could Cry” and Johnny Cash and Waylon Jennings on “The Night Hank Williams Came to Town.”

Dear Ken: Has Valerie Bertinelli, who plays Melanie on “Hot in Cleveland,” ever remarried since her divorce with Eddie Van Halen?

Bertinelli, 52, a native of Wilmington, Del., was wed to rock star Van Halen from 1981 until 2007, and they have a son, Wolfie, 22. The actress married financial planner Tom Vitale in 2011.

Dear Ken: Is Lindsay Lohan really going to play Elizabeth Taylor in a movie?

Afraid so. Lifetime began shooting “Liz & Dick” last month. It may air by fall. Portraying Richard Burton, Taylor’s fifth hubby, will be New Zealander Grant Bowler, who plays Cooter, a werewolf, on “True Blood.”

Dear Ken: My wife and I have been arguing about what year the song “Alley Oop” was a hit. Can you help us?

The No. 1 pop hit topped the charts in July 1960. The group was called the Hollywood Argyles. The vocalist was Gary S. Paxton. The tune was actually written three years earlier as a country song by Dallas Frazier, also the writer of the Oak Ridge Boys smash “Elvira.” As for comic-strip star caveman Oop, well, like the song says, he was the king of jungle jive.

If you have a trivia question about actors, singers, movies, TV shows or pop culture, e-mail your query to Ken Beck at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it