Oh! You Pretty Things!

Message Board

Sorry, your browser doesn't support Java(tm).

Click to go to Yahoo! Entertainment News

Variety The Hollywood Reporter Yahoo! news CNN World News

"Reality Awards" Not A Survivor

.....................................................................................................................................................................
The Alphabet network's big plans for the first ever Reality Awards, honoring the best of nonscripted TV, have been scuttled after rival networks refused to cooperate by providing clips or stars for the special.

That means viewers won't have a chance to see grub-eating survivors and smackdown hunks facing off with hot-tub loving single guys and nerdy quiz show contestants.

Announcing the show won't go on, the would-be Reality Awards producer, Hollywood vet Don Mischer, said, "We need the cooperation of all the networks to show clips of shows that would be nominated. We were simply denied that use. The producers of shows were very much behind this, but for whatever reason, the networks weren't."

The two-hour special was announced September 4. Taping was set for November 23, but no air date had been announced. Nominees were to be selected by what was termed "an entertainment industry blue-ribbon panel of nearly 200 people," with winners chosen by television viewers via the Internet in such categories as Best Series, Most Memorable Moment and Best Twist.

"The toughest thing about creating a new awards show is finding a process people in the industry respect," Mischer said at the time the award show was announced. He described the planned ceremony as "fun" but also "prestigious," explaining it would honor reality's top moments--"from the funniest to the scariest, the sexiest to the most scandalous." Added Andrea Wong, senior vice president of alternative series and specials for ABC, "An awards show will give reality fans the chance to see their favorite people and most memorable moments celebrated on one show."

Last year five of the Top 10 programs were so-called unscripted shows, including Joe Millionaire, American Idol and two editions of Survivor. Although this season ABC executives took pains to stress their belief in scripted shows, they have continued to put their faith in programs like Extreme Makeover.

Mischer knew he could get more than enough footage of ABC's The Bachelor, but he quickly learned that he probably wasn't going to have similar access to clips of such other stalwarts of the genre as CBS's Survivor and Amazing Race, NBC's Fear Factor or Fox's Joe Millionaire and American Idol.

Mischer declined to specify exactly which shows were none cooperative, but the belief is that those that are produced in-house by the rival networks were the major holdouts.

In a letter to members of that blue-ribbon panel, who had already received nominating ballots, Mischer said,"In several cases, we were told that 'reality' stars, judges and producers would be discouraged from participating, even though all those we talked to were very excited about honoring this genre of television."

There has long be a pattern of trying to keep one network's stars from appearing on another's, except when it's obviously to the benefit of all on the Emmys, a show Mischer has frequently produced.

(However, there even haa been muttering of network non-cooperation for the Emmys, should a cable network get the opportunity to televise the annual trophy handout.) NBC's attempts to revive Battle of the Network Stars came to naught because of such policies, and ABC found it difficult to get TV stars other than their own to appear on celebrity editions of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire.

"We were surprised that the networks didn't see the value in promoting their own shows, even if it was on ABC," Mischer said. "I can't speak for the networks, but it's just a very competitive time in television. It could be the networks didn't want to give ABC any competitive edge."

Rival networks declined to comment. One unnamed reality topper told Daily Variety there was more to it than pettiness. "I don't think it was a legitimate awards show," the exec said. "I'm not sure what the value of the promotion is when you're talking about the Hottest Hot Tub Scene. That's not the kind of exposure we need."

(Who would have guessed that reality show types would have such high standards?)

Meanwhile, Mischer told Variety that he didn't have any plans to try to produce the award show for cable instead. He apparently still clings to a faint hope that network cooperation is possible and that one day the Reality Awards can become reality.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 27, 2003, 11:55 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Bowie, Iman Ink Hilfiger Deal

.....................................................................................................................................................................

British Singer David Bowie (news), performs on stage in Zurich, Switzerland, late Friday, Oct. 24, 2003

NEW YORK (Billboard) - David Bowie and his wife Iman have inked a deal with fashion designer Tommy Hilfiger for the rock icon and supermodel to appear in their first ad campaign together. The campaign will be for the new H Hilfiger line, to be launched in spring 2004.

The Tommy Hilfiger company describes the new H Hilfiger collection as "sophisticated, sexy and refined" and that it will be a high-end "gold standard among Hilfiger's diverse product offerings."

The ad campaign with Bowie and Iman will debut in American men's and women's magazines in April 2004.

Famed photographer Ellen Von Unwerth shot the campaign this month in Amsterdam while Bowie was on a break from his current world tour in support of his latest ISO/Columbia Records album, "Reality."

"I very much admire Tommy's ability to weave so many influences into his work," Bowie said in a statement. "Iman and I are thrilled to be working with him."

Hilfiger noted, "David Bowie and Iman bring everything I'm looking for to represent this brand -- music, style, elegance, creativity, sophistication. Together they communicate the essence of the H Hilfiger lifestyle perfectly, and I'm honored to feature them in my new campaign."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Wow. This is like the worst thing I've heard of since they got Madonna and Missy Elliot to do ads for the GAP. (sigh) Lemme guess, Iman will be nude, and David will be dressed....genius.

Posted on Oct 27, 2003, 11:53 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Courtney Love Slaps Kurt Cobain's Mom Over Child Custody

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Courtney Love speaks to reporters outside a police station at London's Heathrow Airport February 4, 2003

Never known for her modesty, Courtney Love threw down when confronted by her mother-in-law at a custody hearing for Love's daughter, Frances.

Word of the catfight came straight from the horse's mouth.

Love told the New York Daily News that she and Kurt Cobain's mom, Wendy O'Connor, came to blows on Tuesday at Los Angeles' Juvenile Court.

"Wendy went nuts," Love said. "She shoved me, and I slapped her like a four-year-old, though I've never slapped a four-year-old."

According to Love, O'Connor responded by saying, "That's it. You're going down! Hundreds and thousands of people are coming for you now."

"She was just screaming," Love added. "I saw sheer hate. I think she realized that the paranoia power games were gonna stop."

Attempts to confirm the bitchy brawl with Juvenile Court were unsuccessful. A call to Love's publicist was not returned.

Love and O'Connor allegedly had an amiable relationship after the 1994 death of Cobain. But family relations were strained on Oct. 2 after Love was busted on drug charges--that's after cops caught her allegedly trying to break into a friend's home. After the bust, Love was reportedly taken to the hospital for an OD.

If Love is found guilty on her latest drug charge, she could face up to a year in the county jail, according to Frank Mateljan of the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office, which could leaver her 11-year-old daughter hanging.

Family Services didn't wait for a verdict. On Oct. 10, officials collected Frances at school and placed her with grandma O'Connor.

Since then, Love has been to several hearings to determine if she's fit to look after Frances. At a hearing on Tuesday, a judge ruled that the embattled singer must move out of her Beverly Hills home to make way for Frances and her nanny, Love revealed in the Daily News interview.

Frances will be supervised by Love's stepfather, Frank Rodriguez, and an aunt, and the singer says she has been granted regular visits.

But O'Connor has reportedly cut down on Love's access. According to the celeb, who was packing her gear for a move to a nearby hotel yesterday, her mother-in-law won't let Frances get on the phone.

"They hang up when I call," said Love, adding that Frances had managed to slip her a note, which read: "I want to come back home."

Love is mulling a retaliatory move against her mother-in-law. She told the Daily News she may reveal entries from Cobain's journal, in which the Nirvana frontman wrote, "My parents were Nazis. My dad was a p---k, and my mother was the whip. I want to shoot my mommy."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 24, 2003, 1:37 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Sad Day To Sip Champagne For Concorde Celebrities

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Lord Marshall, Chairman of British Airways, makes a speech beside Concorde after the final flight landed at London's Heathrow airport, October 24, 2003 - Model Christie Brinkley talks to members of the media before she boarded the last British Airways Concorde commercial flight to London at New York's JFK Airport October 24, 2003

ABOARD CONCORDE (Reuters) - For Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone and actress Joan Collins, it was a sad day to be sipping champagne.

Nostalgia reigned supreme on Concorde as the world's only supersonic airliner made its last passenger flight, from New York to London.

Ecclestone, a man who built his fortune on the thrills of speed, echoed what all the celebrities felt as the aviation icon took her final bow: "Everybody is going to miss this machine."

The motor racing boss, who took the first Concorde flight back in 1976 and was now on the last, said: "This is quite a unique airplane and you have got to have some affection for it. I don't think we will see it again -- at least in my lifetime."

Streaking along the edge of space at twice the speed of sound was the ultimate high for the rich and famous -- and it helped model Christie Brinkley conquer her fear of flying.

"I think when we fly back to New York, I will be saying goodbye to Europe for a while because I don't like flying. To make the trip in three hours made it much easier for me."

Fellow model Jodie Kidd loved flying Concorde as she could land running and go straight to a shoot looking fresh-faced.

So what was the alternative now? "It is going to be the Red-Eye," she said.

The celebrities on board could not believe their supersonic days were over.

Joan Collins said: "The fact that it is going to be phased out is quite, quite tragic. I am very, very honored to be on the last flight. I am glad we made the cut."

David Frost made the Guinness Book of Records as he commuted backwards and forwards across the Atlantic while hosting television shows in New York and London.

Frost, who has flown Concorde up to 500 times, said: "It is very odd that a brilliant invention like this should fade away and there not be a successor."

But the sheer thrill of flying Concorde was perhaps best captured by veteran pilot Mike Bannister before he took the controls to fly the Big Bird up and away from the Big Apple.

He told the last passengers: "We're going to take you to the edge of space, where the sky gets darker, where you can see the curvature of the earth.

"We're going to travel across the Atlantic at twice the speed of sound, faster than a rifle bullet, 23 miles every minute. We're going to travel so fast, we are moving faster than the earth's rotation -- and the world will be watching us."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 24, 2003, 1:36 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Film Studios Lift 'Screener' Ban, Anger Abounds

.....................................................................................................................................................................
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hollywood's major film studios on Thursday lifted their controversial ban on sending out videotapes of movies vying for Oscars (news - web sites), but the plan met new criticism from groups who feel cheated in the annual race for the U.S. film industry's top awards.

The ban, instituted by the studio-backed Motion Picture Association of America more than three weeks ago, stemmed from concern the tapes would be illegally copied, or pirated, and sold on the black market or distributed free on the Internet.

Under a compromise, the MPAA will send specially encoded tapes to Oscar voters but not to members of other groups that also give out film awards, thus sparking fresh opposition.

The MPAA is waging a major battle against piracy, which it says costs the industry $3 billion a year. Last year, illegal copies of half of the Oscar tapes, or "screeners," were sold, according to MPAA.

But the deal between the MPAA and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which awards the Oscars, prompted new outrage from independent filmmakers, actors and film critics who claim the ban created an unfair playing field in the Oscar race, and the field remains tilted in the studios' favor.

They argue the low-budget, art-house films need early critics awards and honors like the Hollywood Foreign Press Association's Golden Globes to build momentum for Oscar victory. They claim that because so many movies vie for awards, watching screeners is the only way to see all the films.

Long-time MPAA head Jack Valenti told Reuters on Thursday that for the past few weeks he has sought a middle ground, and he added dealing with complaints from the likes of directors Norman Jewison and actors Sean Penn and Susan Sarandon, has been "the single most agonizing time of my whole career."

"So many of my dear friends were in such virulent opposition to this and made it known to me," he said.

Valenti said the compromise came to him from Academy President Frank Pierson, who said the 6,000 Academy members would agree their screeners could be coded in a way that if illegally copied and sold, the source could be traced.

Opposition Persists

Under the deal, a member whose screener is copied will be expelled from the Academy. "We at the Academy had drafted a contract that our members would have to sign that was short and specific and carried a full set of teeth," Pierson said.

For the other groups, which include the 118,000 member Screen Actors Guild and critics groups, the studios agreed to would organize special screenings.

Sources at several major studios said they were willing to double the number of screenings and even schedule them outside normal venues in New York and Los Angeles.

Still, many indie players cried foul. Jean Oppenheimer, president of the Los Angeles Film Critics Association said her group stood by a decision to forego its awards due to the ban.

"This is not a rescinding of the ban, so we are sticking with our decision, with great reluctance," Oppenheimer said.

A spokeswoman for the specialty film units -- like the Focus Features group from Universal Pictures or Walt Disney Co.'s Miramax Films -- declined comment. But sources said those divisions remained angry because they were not consulted.

Lorenzo Soria, president of the 90-member Hollywood Foreign Press Association. said in a statement he viewed the MPAA's move "with dismay and concern."

"We are evaluating our options to have a decision reversed that we regard as unfair, completely arbitrary and an assault on the professional integrity of our members," he said.

Valenti said he knew negative reactions would come, but added that because the Academy is comprised of members from many of the other groups, it was the best organization with which to compromise. Making the same deal with other groups would only open the door to further risk of pirating.

Valenti said this was the MPAA's final decision. "We're not going to wobble. This is it," he said.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 24, 2003, 1:34 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Actor Fred 'Rerun' Berry Dies At Age 52

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Fred Berry is seen here in character as 'Rerun' on the show 'What's Happening Now' in this undated handout photo

LOS ANGELES - Fred Berry, the bulb-shaped, squeaky-voiced actor famous for playing red-beret-wearing Rerun on the 1970s TV sitcom "What's Happening!", has died at age 52.

Berry died Tuesday at his home in Los Angeles apparently of natural causes, police Officer Jason Lee said Wednesday. The county coroner was investigating, but friends said Berry had been ill because of a recent stroke.

He wore his red beret and suspenders in real life, and it was unclear whether he originally brought his own style to the character of Rerun or whether he was forever mimicking the goofball character that made him famous.

"What's Happening!", which ran from 1976-1979, focused on three teenage friends � Rerun, Raj and Dwayne � who learn about life, women and trouble while growing up in Los Angeles.

The name Rerun, according to Berry, referred to the character's brainlessness: In the summer, he had to rerun all the classes he failed during the school year.

Among the more famous episodes was one in which Rerun joined a bizarre cult and another in which he was busted for making bootlegged tapes of a Doobie Brothers concert.

Berry's success on the show was clouded by his heavy use of marijuana and cocaine. "There were dealers right there in the studio, people that worked there," he said in 1996.

By the time "What's Happening!" ended, Berry said he had blown more than a million dollars on drugs, cars, homes and an airplane. With no acting jobs heading his way, Berry tried to live off his fame by charging for appearances at shopping malls.

Lately, he had earned money by calling fans on the telephone, taking part in the service www.HollywoodIsCalling.com. About $30 would earn a fan a 30-second call.

Rerun brought Berry another brief moment of success in 1985, when "What's Happening!" was revived as the syndicated "What's Happening Now!" Berry quit in a contract dispute after the first season, and the show ended in 1987.

By 1986, Berry says, he abandoned drugs and started speaking to churches, schools and other groups, finally working as a minister in Madison, Ala.

He continued to dabble in show business. Berry recently appeared on the TV shows "Star Dates" on the E! Entertainment Network, MTV's "Doggy Fizzle Televizzle" with Snoop Dogg and in a cameo role in the David Spade comedy film "Dickie Roberts: Former Child Star."

Berry married a dancer while in his 20s, and the two divorced, remarried and divorced again. Berry also married and divorced his second wife twice, most recently in 1991. He also married and divorced two other women.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 23, 2003, 8:23 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Liza Minnelli Officially Files For Divorce From Gest

.....................................................................................................................................................................

US singer Liza Minnelli and her estranged husband, music producer David Gest, share a laugh during a live telecast of CNN's 'Larry King Live' last year

NEW YORK - Liza Minnelli has filed for divorce from estranged husband David Gest, a day after he filed a $10 million lawsuit against the entertainer, accusing her of beating him during alcoholic rages.

Minnelli moved to end her 16-month marriage shortly after issuing a statement denying Gest's allegations Wednesday.

"I hoped very much that the end of my marriage would be handled with mutual respect and dignity," Minnelli said. "The allegations in this lawsuit are hurtful and without merit. My lawyers will respond to the lawsuit in the proper forum.

"I will continue to focus on my work, my sobriety and my fans who have been so wonderful to me."

Gest, 50, alleged in court papers filed Tuesday that Minnelli, 57, flew into drunken rages on several occasions, insulting him and beating him all over his body.

Gest's lawyer, Raoul Felder, said his client suffered neurological damage and headaches from the attacks. Gest is being treated at a rehabilitation clinic in Honolulu, where he takes 11 medications a day, Felder said.

"Obviously these people should be divorced," Felder said Wednesday. "This marriage is dead, no doubt about it."

Minnelli and Gest wed at a celebrity-studded ceremony that featured best man Michael Jackson carrying the bride's train and Elizabeth Taylor serving as maid of honor.

The two were introduced by Jackson when Gest, a producer and promoter, produced Jackson's 30th-anniversary tribute concert for television. It was Minnelli's fourth marriage and Gest's first.

Their brief marriage provided plenty of tabloid fodder; the pair were supposed to be the subject of a VH1 reality show, but it was canceled when the network charged Gest was impossible to work with; the pair later filed a lawsuit against VH1.

And in March, Minnelli, who has battled health and substance abuse problems for years, entered a "self-help" program at a drug and alcohol rehabilitation center in rural central Pennsylvania.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 23, 2003, 8:22 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Eminem's Ex On The Lam

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Eminem is seen here in a February file photo

Will Eminem's estranged ex-wife please show up?

That's what a Michigan judge is demanding now that Kim Mathers has gone AWOL from two straight court appearances stemming from her June arrest for drug possession.

Macomb County Circuit Judge Edward Servitto issued a bench warrant for the former Mrs. Em after she failed to turn up for an arraignment on charges of unlawfully possessing two bags of cocaine in her Cadillac Escalade during a routine traffic stop.

The 28-year-old Mathers, who divorced her superstar rapper-hubby (real name: Marshall Mathers III) in 2001 after he wrote about killing her in his scathing song "Kim," but kept his last name, was initially supposed to appear in court on Monday.

When her attorney, Michael Smith, called Servitto to say that his client would be unable to attend, the judge then rescheduled the arraignment for the following morning. But again, she failed to show.

According to her lawyer, Mathers has been under the weather.

"She plans on being in court later this week, she's just been ill," Smith said.

Unfortunately, such excuses haven't gone over well with Servitto, who canceled Mathers' $7,500 bond and put an all-points-bulletin out for her.

No word on Mathers' current whereabouts, but if convicted on the charges, she could face up to four years in prison and a $25,000 fine.

That's not all she has to worry about, however.

Authorities in nearby Warren, Michigan, have said they plan to arrest and charge Mathers by the end of the week with maintaining a drug den; this, after police busted a party at a hotel room she had rented where illegal drugs were found.

According to the Macomb Daily, officers responding to calls of a disturbance found Mathers chatting on her cell outside her room at the Candlewood Suites around 3 a.m. Upon entering her hotel room, they discovered several partygoers, some of whom were under the influence of drugs and alcohol.

Officers also subdued another man with pepper spray when he allegedly tried to hide a small bag in his mouth and resisted arrest.

After lab tests came back showing some of the confiscated drugs to be Ecstasy and marijuana, police decided to charge Mathers with one count of running a drug house, a misdemeanor.

That charge carries up to two years in jail and a $25,000 fine.

Mathers has a seven-year-old daughter, Hailie Jade, with Eminem, and a second daughter with another man following her failed reconciliation attempt with the hip-hopster.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 23, 2003, 8:20 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

David Gest Sues Liza Minnelli For $10 Mil

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Minelli and Guest are seen at a news conference at the House of Blues in Beverly Hills, California, on July 25, 2002

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Liza Minnelli's estranged husband David Gest sued the entertainer on Tuesday for $10 million in damages for spousal abuse, saying she attacked him in drunken rages, leaving him with an "unrelenting pain in his head."

An 11-page civil suit filed in Manhattan Supreme Court by Gest, who married Minnelli in March 2002, says she threw a lamp at him and when he tried to calm her down and she beat him in the face with her fists.

Gest, who separated from Minnelli three months ago, alleged that her heavy drinking gave the singer-actress "remarkable force and strength."

Minnelli's lawyer did not return calls for comment.

The most recent incident took place at the Connaught Hotel in London in June, according to the suit, which said that at the time of their marriage Minnelli's career had "eclipsed, she was an alcoholic, overweight, (and) unable to be effectively merchandised."

Gest said he sustained severe injuries about the head and "virtually constant unrelenting pain in his head" in the attack and that he suffers from "throbbing pain, severe headaches, vertigo, nausea, hypertension, scalp tenderness and insomnia."

The suit states that he takes 11 medications a day to treat his pain and injury.

Gest alleged that another drunken brawl took place at the Hotel Plaza Athenee in New York after the couple returned from their European honeymoon. He said he caught his wife drinking a bottle of vodka and that caused her to "fly into a rage."

"She started beating me with her hands about the head until I ran into the other room," Gest said.

Gest said he was so concerned he called the Caron Foundation, a not-for-profit organization in Pennsylvania that provides residential and out-patient treatment for those affected by alcoholism and drug addiction.

On learning she was about to be admitted for treatment, Gest said Minnelli again flew into a "violent rage, beating plaintiff with her hands while shouting insults at him."

The lawsuit said the repeated "physical attacks" had made Gest "a victim of domestic violence -- one of an estimated 835,000 men per year in America who are similarly abused."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 22, 2003, 12:50 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Pamela Anderson: Only 10 Years to Live?

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Actress Pamela Anderson is shown in a scene from the comedy film 'Scary Movie 3', a spoof on the horror film genre, in this undated publicity photograph

Pamela Anderson is not a woman to cover much up.

When it comes to her life expectancy and her marital plans, she's candid as ever--both have been cut short.

The buxom blonde, who suffers from hepatitis C, has told Us Weekly that she expects the virus to kill her--possibly within the next decade.

"I think I got a good 10 years left in me, which is sad, too," Anderson says in the magazine. "Maybe 15, if I'm lucky."

About 3.9 million Americans are infected with hepatitis C, and between 8,000 and 10,000 people in this country die each year of complications associated with the virus. The disease causes swelling in the liver, which keeps the organ from performing its basic function of cleansing the blood, and can lead to cirrhosis, liver cancer and liver failure.

"First my doctor just told me I had a glitch in my blood work, then he told me about the disease," Anderson recalled. "He said that it was going to be what I would die from."

Anderson blames her infection on ex-hubby, Mtley Cre drummer Tommy Lee, who she says passed the virus to her through shared tattoo needles; the rocker has denied he has the disease.

Most hepatitis patients fight the disease by following a regimen of anti-viral drugs, which successfully control the disease about half of the time.

In July 2002, Anderson announced on Larry King Live that she would be on hiatus from Hollywood while she began her treatment.

But since then, Anderson, never one to pursue the traditional route, has shied away from taking interferon, the drug many hepatitis patients use to battle the virus. The drug requires frequent injections for months at a time, and can cause flu-like side effects.

Instead the actress has been using homeopathic methods to treat the hepatitis. While's she not ruling out using interferon eventually, the PETA-peddler wants to give nature first dibs on fighting the virus. So far, she said, she's feeling great.

"I'm bad with needles," Anderson explains in Us. "If I had no other choice, I'd use it, but I'm waiting to see how the natural methods work."

On top of her unfortunate prognosis about her health, the actress also confirmed that she has called off her pending nuptials with singer Kid Rock.

"Bob [the rocker's real name] is great--I just saw him this morning--but we're not engaged any more," the nixin' vixen says in the mag. "I'm really surprised that anyone is even interested. Where's Ben and Jennifer this week? That's more interesting!"

The Baywatch alum says that her children with Lee, sons Brandon, 7, and Dylan, 5, are her first priority and classified everything else in her life as an "extracurricular activity."

However, Anderson, who once had only harsh words for the father of her children, seems to have re-warmed towards the man with whom she once shared mutual tattoos.

"There's definitely a lot of love and history between Tommy and me, that's for sure. It doesn't matter whether we're together or not," she tells Us Weekly. "We're crazy about each other--always have been, always will be."

(Lee recently called of his engagement to Mayte Garcia, who, as it happens in the mad game of Hollywood couples roulette, was once married to Prince.)

Despite her health problems, Anderson's professional life is progressing smoothly. She has a cameo role as a Catholic schoolgirl in Scary Movie 3, opening Friday, and voices sexy cartoon superhero Stripperella for the Spike TV show of the same name.

Her topless radio talk show, Club Pam is set for launch on Sirius satellite radio this Friday (yes, we said topless); and by next spring, her own line of merchandise, featuring everything from panties to perfume, will be up for grabs.

She has a monthly column in Jane magazine, and is penning two novels for Atria books; the first From the Waist Up is due out in 2004.

Overall, Anderson is pragmatic about her situation.

"We all have a short time on this earth--some of us shorter than others," she said. "I'm not going to fall for the drama."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 22, 2003, 12:49 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Oscar Screener Ban Plan Scrapped

.....................................................................................................................................................................
The good news: the MPAA and Hollywood's major studios are about to revoke the Oscar screener ban.

The bad news: Academy members will be the only ones to receive tapes, to the exclusion of the directors, writers and actors guilds, members of the press and your hipster friend Bob, who knew a guy that knew a guy who could get him copies.

According to Variety, an announcement is expected this week regarding the compromise that would allow studios big and small to send out their screeners.

The decision follows an intensive weekend huddle between Jack Valenti, prez of the Motion Picture Association of America, and the studio head honchos to arrive at an agreement.

Maintaining an exclusive mailing list, the MPAA hopes, will keep a lid on the video piracy which prompted the ban in the first place while still giving Oscar voters access to movies they might otherwise not get to see.

The studios reportedly agreed to send out VHS screeners (recipients previously had a choice between VHS and DVD) encrypted with a special security code traceable to individual Academy members. (Such a move will, presumably, keep the likes of Steven Spielberg from cranking out a few extra copies and selling them on eBay.)

Industry scuttlebutt suggests Valenti was keen on placating the creative community, which has vociferously protested the ban. Studio chiefs at Paramount, Universal and Sony also adopted a conciliatory attitude while the heads of Warner Bros. and Fox, widely credited with engineering the unpopular decision, were harder to convince.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is purportedly involved in the talks as well, hashing out possible penalties if a screener is pirated. The organization, which was not involved in hatching the ban plan, has remained largely silent on the controversy.

Not so Hollywood's creative community.

First to cry foul were the indie studios and specialty distribution groups who complained the ban had less to do with preventing piracy than keeping the smaller distributors from scoring major Hollywood awards.

Next, 140 of the Industry's most esteemed directors, including Martin Scorsese, David Lynch and Francis Ford Coppola, sent an open letter to Valenti criticizing the move, which they said prevented their films from getting noticed.

Then came the actors, more than 300 of them, including Jodie Foster, Sean Penn, Holly Hunter and Nick Nolte, who signed another missive, calling for an end to the ban.

The latest group to gripe about the screener ban was the Los Angeles Film Critics Association, which threatened last week to nix its year-end awards ceremony unless the movie studios repealed the prohibition. It is not immediately clear if the MPAA's reported compromise will affect the L.A. critics' cancellation.

The New York Film Critics Circle is currently polling its members to see if they want to follow L.A.'s lead. Ditto the National Society of Film Critics. However, any action by those groups is unlikely to take place until after the MPAA's announcement this week.

The upcoming verdict is being closely followed by all parties. A source told Variety that up to 10 antitrust lawsuits could be filed against the studios and the MPAA if the ban is not lifted.

"There have been a lot of conversations with attorneys to look into the feasibility of lawsuits," said producer Ted Hope, a leader in the ban-the-ban campaign. "I've certainly consulted more than one attorney to find out what my recourse would be, and that's been in conjunction with other producers."

But the reported solution is generally seen to be acceptable to Hope and others.

"I find it incredibly heartening that people got behind this in such a rapid fashion and that the voices were heard," Hope told Variety. "The main thing now is that time is of the essence."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 22, 2003, 12:48 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Reality

by AuntieRoo

Posted on Oct 21, 2003, 6:18 PM
from IP address 68.107.75.236

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Bowie Adds 3rd Los Angeles Date!!!

Bowie performing in Frankfurt, Germany October 18, 2003

Initially only one Los Angeles show was booked, but that sold out in minutes, so a second show was added...Ditto! So, David Bowie has now added a third Los Angeles show! This one isn't at the Shrine Auditorium.

It's at the Wiltern on February 3, 2004. Tickets go on sale through Ticketmaster ( http://www.ticketmaster.com ) October 26, 2003.

Just to remind you what you're getting with your ticket purchase...I give you the pics from his Germany gig above, and his most recent setlist (from Paris) below.

Paris October 20th setlist

1. The Jean Genie (Aladdin Sane 1973)
2. New Killer Star (Reality 2003)
3. Fame (Young Americans 1975)
4. Cactus (Heathen 2002)
5. China Girl (Let's Dance 1983)
6. Fall Dog Bombs The Moon (Reality 2003)
7. Hallo Spaceboy (1.Outside 1995)
8. Sunday (Hours... 1999)
9. Under Pressure (Single Co-written with Freddie Mercury 1981)
10. White Light, White Heat (Lou Reed cover Bowie has played since his Ziggy days)
11. Ashes To Ashes (Scary Monsters and Super Creeps 1980)
12. Fashion (Scary Monsters and Super Creeps 1980)
13. Never Get Old (Reality 2003)
14. The Motel (1.Outside 1995)
15. 5:15 The Angels Have Gone (hours...1999)
16. Loving The Alien (Tonight 1986)
17. Battle For Britain (The Letter) (Earthling 1997)
18. I'm Afraid Of Americans (Earthling 1997)
19. "Heroes" ("Heroes" 1977)
20. Heathen (The Rays) (Heathen 2002)

Encore:

21. Bring Me The Disco King (Reality 2003)
22. Changes (Hunky Dory 1971)
23. Let's Dance (Let's Dance 1983)
24. Suffragette City (The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars 1972)
25. Ziggy Stardust (The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars 1972)

- CrystalTJapan

Posted on Oct 21, 2003, 8:40 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Robert De Niro Diagnosed With Treatable Prostate Cancer

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Giorgio Armani and Robert De Niro at the Cocktail Party to celebrate Giorgio Armani's retrospective at The Royal Academy of Art. 10/14/03

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Academy Award-winning actor Robert De Niro, 60, has been diagnosed with prostate cancer, but his prospects for a full recovery are good, his publicist said on Monday.

"Doctors say the condition was detected at an early stage because of regular checkups," publicist Stan Rosenfield said in a statement. "Because of the early detection and his excellent physical condition, doctors project a full recovery."

Rosenfield declined to give further details about the actor's condition or course of treatment, but said De Niro planned to fulfill his commitment to start shooting his next film, "Hide and Seek" for 20th Century Fox early next year.

De Niro won an Oscar as best actor in 1981 for his role as the emotionally self-destructive boxing champion Jake La Motta in "Raging Bull." He was named best supporting actor in 1975 for playing the young Mafia patriarch Vito Corleone in "The Godfather: Part II."

The native New Yorker, who shot to prominence in Martin Scorsese (news)'s 1973 film "Mean Streets," has received four other Oscar nominations as best actor in "Cape Fear" (1991), "Awakenings" (1990), "The Deer Hunter" (1978) and "Taxi Driver" (1976).

Best known for his tough-guy roles, De Niro was last seen in movie theaters reprising his comic turn as mobster Paul Vitti in the film "Analyze That" with Billy Crystal.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 21, 2003, 8:14 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Actor Alan Alda Hospitalized In Chile

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Alan Alda, host of PBS' 'Scientific American Frontiers,' poses for a portrait in this undated promotional photo

SANTIAGO, Chile (Reuters) - Actor Alan Alda, who starred in the hit U.S. television comedy "M*A*S*H," was recovering on Monday from emergency surgery in northern Chile after falling ill while filming a TV documentary.

Alda, 67, host of the PBS series "Scientific American Frontiers" for the past seven years, had surgery early on Sunday for an intestinal obstruction and was recuperating at the San Juan de Dios Hospital in La Serena, 290 miles north of the capital, Santiago.

Hospital Director Julio Rojas told Chile's Cooperativa radio station that Alda had asked for no visitors and was expecting his wife to arrive later on Monday.

Alda was working on an astronomy documentary for "Scientific American Frontiers," part of which was being filmed on location at a huge telescope in the Chilean Andes.

A stage, film and television performer in a career dating back to the 1950s, Alda is best known for his Emmy Award-winning role as Capt. Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pierce, the insubordinate Army doctor on "M*A*S*H," which ran on CBS for 11 years in the 1970s and early 1980s.

The son of actor Robert Alda, the "M*A*S*H" star went on to appear in numerous TV and film projects, including three Woody Allen movies -- "Crimes and Misdemeanors," "Manhattan Murder Mystery" and "Everyone Says I Love You."

Other film credits include Robert Mulligan's 1978 adaptation of the romantic comedy "Same Time, Next Year," opposite Ellen Burstyn, and the 1981 ensemble comedy-drama "The Four Seasons," which he directed, wrote and co-starred in with Carol Burnett.

More recently, he appeared in five episodes of NBC's hit medical drama "ER" as a prominent physician in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, and returned to Broadway last year as a physicist in the one-man play "QED."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 21, 2003, 8:13 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Courtney Love Proclaims She's A Fit Mom In Court

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Rocker Courtney Love speaks to reporters outside a police station at London's Heathrow Airport February 4, 2003.

Courtney Love wants her daughter back.

The rocker-actress appeared in juvenile court Thursday in an effort to convince a judge that she was sane enough to care for her child.

Eleven-year-old Frances Bean Cobain was taken from Love and handed over to her paternal grandmother after Love was arrested for being under the influence of a controlled substance on October 2.

Later that same night, Love was reportedly hospitalized for an alleged overdose of the painkiller OxyContin, known as "hillbilly heroin" on the streets.

On October 10, Love says she was admitted against her will to Pasadena's Las Encinas Hospital, on a "5150"--code for the California law allowing authorities to hold individuals considered to be a danger to themselves or others for a 72-hour observation period.

According to Love, as quoted in the New York Daily News, authorities were worried that she was planning to kill herself, following in the footsteps of her late husband, Kurt Cobain, who committed suicide close to a decade ago.

"Yes, I was changing my will that week," Love said. "I left a message that was like, 'I want to die, I want to jump off the Empire State Building.' "

Apparently, she wasn't expecting to be taken seriously. But officials from the Los Angeles County Department of Children and Family Services didn't get the joke.

"Cops and two ladies in white coats came to my house," Love recalled in the Daily News. "I got jackbooted. My mouth was taped shut. They put a ping-pong ball in my mouth. And honey, you don't get to say you're sorry for that, because it wasn't in bed."

The Department of Children and Family Services did not return calls for comment Friday.

After 24 hours in Las Encinas Hospital, Love had had enough, so she walked out, and apparently proceeded to follow a path similar to Anne Heche's famously bizarre Fresno adventure, i.e., walking into private homes and chatting up the residents .

"I looked like a [bleepin'] bag lady," she told the Daily News. I had no shoes. I had to hide in a bush like four [blocks] away. Then I see a house with two 14-year-old girls in it. So I knock on the door and say, 'Hi, I'm Courtney Love. I'm leaving the loony bin.' "

Later, she wandered into a guitar store, where she found "an angel" of a guy willing to drive her home.

Love can't understand where the problem lies--after all, she said, Frances Bean was asleep at home with her live-in nanny during her mother's big night. Her rep commented that nothing was resolved through the Thursday hearing.

Several years ago, Love claimed to have cleaned up her act, wanting to dedicate herself to being a good mother to her daughter. For a while, she lived a sort of Cinderella-story existence, showing off a glam sense of fashion, and a plastic surgery-aided body. She even earned a Golden Globe nod for her turn in The People vs. Larry Flynt.

But recent years have not been as good to the former queen of grunge.

Last year she was linked to Dr. Jules Lusman, a Beverly Hills physician known for supplying illegal painkillers to celebrity clients such as Love pal Winona Ryder.

Earlier this year, she was arrested for allegedly verbally abusing Virgin Airlines flight attendants. The charges were later dropped.

Love hasn't come out with an album since her former band Hole's last hurrah--1998's Celebrity Skin. Her musical career hit the rocks after she became involved in a bitter legal battle over her contract with her ex-label Universal.

Love recently inked a deal with new label Virgin Records to release her first solo album, America's Sweetheart, which she has been writing with former 4 Non Blondes singer-songwriter Linda Perry. According to Billboard, the record was originally suppose to come out on October 28, but it was postponed until Februrary 10 to give Love time to put the "finishing touches" on it.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 21, 2003, 8:12 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Judge Said To Pen A Rap In Favorable Eminem Ruling

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Rapper Eminem performs at Giants Stadium, in this June 3, 2003, file photo in East Rutherford, N.J.

MOUNT CLEMENS, Mich. - A judge has dismissed a defamation lawsuit filed by a former schoolmate of rapper Eminem � and she included a rap of her own to explain the ruling.

In a footnote to the opinion issued Friday, Judge Deborah Servitto added a 10-stanza rhyme, The Macomb Daily reported in Saturday's editions.

The verse stated, in part: "It is therefore this Court's ultimate position, that Eminem is entitled to summary disposition."

DeAngelo Bailey claimed that Eminem slandered him in the song "Brain Damage" from his 1999 disc "The Slim Shady LP."

The lyrics include: "I was harassed daily by this fat kid named DeAngelo Bailey. An eighth-grader who acted obnoxious, 'cause his father boxes. So every day he'd shove me into the lockers."

In the judge's opinion, however, Eminem's lyrics are "stories no one would take as fact, they're an exaggeration of a childish act."

Bailey, 32, had sought $1 million from Eminem, 31, whose real name is Marshall Mathers III.

Bailey's attorney Byron Nolen said he was surprised at the ruling and its accompanying verse. "I don't know how the Court of Appeals would look at something like that," he said.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 20, 2003, 8:42 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Self-Starved Illusionist Blaine Hospitalized

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Crowds watch as U.S. illusionist David Blaine prepares to leave his perspex box suspended from a crane by Tower Bridge, before completing his 44-day long starvation and solitary confinement in central London, October 19, 2003

U.S. magician and illusionist David Blaine is assisted onto weighing scales as he emerges from his clear plastic box near to Tower Bridge, London, Sunday Oct. 19, 2003, 44 days after beginning his starvation stunt -- Manon von Gerkan, the partner of American illusionist David Blaine, holds up a camcorder at the South Bank near to Tower Bridge, in London, Sunday night Oct.19, 2003, after Blaine emerged from his suspended perspex box

LONDON (Reuters) - Illusionist David Blaine was recovering in a hospital Monday after starving himself for 44 days in a transparent box hanging by London's River Thames, a stunt that drew breast-baring admirers and egg-hurling critics.

A filthy, unshaven Blaine emerged late Sunday and broke down in tears in front of thousands jostling for a glimpse of the 30-year-old New Yorker, who says he consumed only water during his ordeal.

Medical teams checked Blaine on the scene before he was carried on a stretcher into an ambulance and taken to the London Independent Hospital.

Doctors said he had taken his body to the limit.

"Forty-four days is about as far as you can go without long-term damage. Another week would have probably killed him," said Tom Sanders, a nutrition expert at Kings College London.

An estimated quarter of a million people visited Blaine's box, suspended by a crane near the landmark Tower Bridge.

"I learned how important it is to have a sense of humor and to laugh at everything because nothing makes any sense," Blaine said as he came out, visibly thinner and leaning on aides for support.

Public reaction to the stunt was mixed, with some saying the idea was insulting to the world's hungry and others praising Blaine's stamina.

Blaine-baiters -- as they became known -- pelted his box with golf balls, one man climbed up to cut off his water supply and Blaine was even taunted with a cheeseburger dangled from a miniature helicopter.

Blaine sold the television rights to broadcasters Sky TV and Channel 4 in deals worth at least one million dollars.

Doctors said Blaine now faced disorientation, muscle wastage, and may have harmed his appetite, which would put him at a longer-term risk of eating disorders.

Blaine reported an irregular heartbeat while still in the box and doctors said his body would have cannibalized its own muscles, including tissue in the heart.

"If he eats a normal diet straight away his blood pressure could shoot up and put him at risk of heart failure," said Sanders of Kings College.

Blaine, whose previous stunts include live burial in a glass coffin and being encased in a block of ice, had shown signs of delusion and claustrophobia while in the box. He dreamed of worms in his stomach and said the Perspex walls "feel like they're crushing my skull."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Oh brother! I guess we're suppossed to feel sorry for him now because Roy got attacked by a tiger? Sorry, I don't think he's Ghandi. Even if the magic trick is "real", he's just made himself suffer for the "cause" of his own fame.

How is that an accomplishment? Is he trying to prove that he would be the best contestant on "Survivor"? Or "Fear Factor"? lol

Only his supermodel girlfriend knows for sure.

- CrystalTJapan

Posted on Oct 20, 2003, 8:41 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Diana Predicted Her Own Car Crash Death, Says Aide

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Britain's Princess Diana, the Princess of Wales, leaves Kensington Palace in London Friday July 12 1996

LONDON (Reuters) - Princess Diana made a chilling prediction of her own death in a car crash just 10 months before she died in Paris road tunnel, according to a secret letter revealed by her former butler Monday.

The former wife of heir-to-the-throne Prince Charles wrote the letter in October 1996 claiming there was a plot to kill her in a car crash and gave it to her butler Paul Burrell, asking him to keep it for insurance for the future.

The Mirror newspaper, which is serializing Burrell's book "A Royal Duty," said the letter includes an allegation by Diana that someone was planning her death, but that the plotter's name could not be published for legal reasons.

"This particular phase in my life is the most dangerous," it quoted the letter as saying. "(DELETED WORD/S) is planning 'an accident' in my car, brake failure and serious head injury in order to make the path clear for Charles to marry."

Burrell claims in his book that before sealing the letter in an envelope marked "Paul," Diana told him: "I am going to date this and I want you to keep it... just in case."

A spokesman for the royal household declined to answer any questions. "We are not making any comment," he told Reuters.

Burrell was Diana's servant, friend and confidante for more than a decade during some of the most turbulent times in her marriage to Charles. The couple's divorce became official in October 1996 after both Charles and Diana had admitted to having adulterous affairs during their rocky 15-year marriage.

Burrell stood trial last year accused of stealing hundreds of the Princess' belongings including jewelry and clothes, but the case collapsed dramatically after Queen Elizabeth told prosecutors she remembered Burrell telling her after Diana's death that he would look after some of her possessions.

Diana died at the age of 36, alongside her lover Dodi al Fayed and chauffeur Henri Paul when their car crashed in Paris on August 31, 1997.

Burrell told the Mirror: "With the benefit of hindsight, the content of that letter has bothered me since her death."

Conspiracy Theories Rife

Robert Lacey, a royal biographer, said the letter was an "extraordinary revelation and prophecy" which was bound to add to the raft of conspiracy theories on how and why Diana died.

"There is something magic about this," Lacey told Reuters. "People will say forever now that Diana foretold her death. And that will add to the magical aura -- the supernatural and the prophetic -- that surrounds Diana."

He also said it would add to growing pressure for a British inquest into Diana's death. The coroner charged with investigating the death has promised there will be an inquest, but has so far declined to set a date.

An inquiry by French authorities in 1999 ruled the crash was a accident caused by Paul being drunk and driving too fast.

But Dodi's father, the multi-millionaire owner of the exclusive Harrods London store, Mohamed Al Fayed, has repeatedly called for a British inquiry, insisting that Diana and his son were murdered by the British secret services.

Piers Morgan, editor of the Mirror, which has exclusive coverage of Burrell's book, said he had no reason to doubt the authenticity of the letter. "Paul Burrell is about as reputable as it comes...when it comes to the testimony and legacy of Princess Diana," he told BBC radio.

Lacey too said the writing looked exactly like Diana's hand.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 20, 2003, 8:39 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Singer Wyclef Jean Hospitalized In NYC

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Wyclef Jean, left, points to the motorcycle he rode up in and Buju Banton poses alongside as he arrives at the Source Hip-Hop Music Awards Monday, Oct. 13, 2003 in Miami

NEW YORK - Grammy winner Wyclef Jean has been hospitalized for exhaustion and dehydration after becoming ill from food poisoning, a publicist for the singer-songwriter said.

Jean came down with food poisoning on Tuesday, the day after appearing at The Source Awards in Miami, she said. He was admitted to a hospital there Wednesday, and is expected to be hospitalized through the weekend.

"Apparently, he was on his way back from his promotional tour in Europe and got food poisoning," Lois Najarian, publicist for Jean's record label, J Records, told The Associated Press Thursday.

"It just seemed to snowball into something that made him very sick and put him in the hospital."

Najarian said the singer is also suffering from exhaustion after a heavy promotional tour for his new album, "The Preacher's Son," out next month.

"The doctor is recommending that he slow down a bit," she said.

Jean, who turns 31 on Friday, has canceled some appearances, including Tuesday's GQ Men of the Year awards. However, Najarian said she still expected the former Fugees member to perform next Thursday in Times Square for a lunchtime performance. It will be followed by a free Jean concert later that evening.

Jean, whose solo hits include "Gone Till November," has also produced hits for Santana, Whitney Houston and Destiny's Child.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 17, 2003, 10:46 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Mel's "Passion" By Any Other Name

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Mel Gibson, right, directs Jim Caviezel, center, and Caviezel's unidentified double, left , on the set of 'The Passion' in this Jan. 24, 2003 photo

Mel Gibson hasn't lost his Passion, just his movie title.

"The Passion", the superstar's controversial, if mostly sight-unseen, epic about the final 12 hours of Jesus Christ's life, has been retitled "The Passion of Christ".

The name change comes, as most name changes in the movies do, because someone else had dibs.

The dibs-holder on The Passion was Miramax. The Disney-owned art-house giant is developing a Napoleonic War romance based on a 1987 novel of the same name. According to author Jeanette Winters' Website, Miramax's in-house Oscar winners Gwyneth Paltrow and Juliette Binoche were signed to star.

Gibson's newly dubbed Passion of Christ stars Jim Caviezel as Christ. (The filmmaker's Icon Productions says it's possible the film may still be known as The Passion overseas.)

Neither Passion film is exactly running high. Winters said at least two years ago that her script had been rejected by studio brass. To date, the Miramax project remains in development.

Gibson's film, on the other hand, is finished. And while it has certainly stirred passions in sneak screenings, it has yet to land a studio backer or finalize a release.

The $25 million movie, directed, produced and financed by Gibson, has been praised by everyone from evangelical Christians to movie-lobbyist Jack Valenti, who have called its graphic depiction of the Crucifixion compelling. It has been criticized by Jewish groups, such as the Anti-Defamation League, for portraying Jews as the "enemies of God and the locus of evil."

Gibson repeatedly has dismissed the notion that the film is intended to be, or is, anti-Semitic, saying it is "meant to inspire not offend."

If nothing else, the controversy has made the film a hot click. http://www.AintItCoolNews.com 's Harry Knowles told the Hollywood Reporter he took down an unofficial trailer for The Passion of Christ (then, simply The Passion) after one day because the 350,000 downloads crashed his site.

A smaller movie site, FilmStew.com, experienced its own crush last week when it posted a two-minute-41-second clip featuring what appeared to be a bloodied Caviezel. In 24 hours, the footage received about 1,100 hits, Website president J. Sperling Reich said. That clip was taken down after lawyers for Icon hollered copyright infringement. (Icon is threatening to go ahead with a lawsuit unless FilmStew.com reveals its source for the clip, Reich said.)

In general, Icon has sounded supportive of Internet attention.

"The demand for the trailer shows an incredible groundswell of interest in The Passion," Icon's Bruce Davey said in the Reporter.

Gibson may well need all the support he can get, even if he is a known-across-the-globe star with two Oscars (news - web sites) on his mantel for commanding forces in Braveheart.

The October 13 issue of Newsweek quoted several unnamed Hollywood execs who proclaimed The Passion of Christ an untouchable, at least where the major studios were concerned.

"It's not worth the aggravation," a studio head said in the mag. "Even if it makes money, it's not going to be Titanic."

"People think Mel's crazy now," chimed in a producer.

Newmarket Capital Group, with a hand in everything from Cruel Intentions to Memento, was tagged the "top contender" by Newsweek to snag the film. According to the mag, it's the perfect company for the job--it's a private firm (no stockholders to offend) that doesn't moonlight in the amusement-park biz (no recognizable landmarks to picket).

Gibson has sounded open to skipping the studio route, and taking his film directly into theaters himself, maybe by next spring.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 17, 2003, 10:45 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Texas Governor To Appear In Movie

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Texas Gov. Rick Perry answers a question about redistricting during a news conference Wednesday, Oct. 15, 2003, in Houston

AUSTIN, Texas - Gov. Rick Perry should be ready for his role in an upcoming movie starring Tommy Lee Jones. After all, he's playing the Texas governor.

Jones and film crews were at the governor's mansion Tuesday shooting scenes with Perry, who has a handful of lines in the film.

"With his Hollywood looks, he was typecast to play the governor of the great state of Texas," Perry spokeswoman Kathy Walt joked.

The film, with the working title "Cheer Up," also features the Texas Rangers and University of Texas cheerleaders.

Jones plays a hard-edged Texas Ranger named Roland Sharp, who goes undercover as an assistant cheerleading coach to protect five UT cheerleaders after they witness the murder of a federal informant, The Dallas Morning News reported in Wednesday's editions. The UT campus in Austin also is being used for scenes.

"As governor, (Perry) agrees to call out the Texas Rangers to help protect these witnesses to a murder," Walt said.

The film is to be released in 2004, according to Revolution studios.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

"With his Hollywood looks, he was typecast to play the governor of the great state of Texas"

That's from his spokesman. Yeah, we shouldn't have voted Arnold in, we should have voted in a clown like this. Not the actor who wants to be governor, but the governor who really wants to act. pfft

Criticize us all you want America! Look at your own governors and give me a break!

BTW, you think YOU have problems in YOUR state with politicians that really just wanna' be rich and famous?!?! Try California!

It's only natural that we as a nation start voting in people that are already rich and famous (i.e Hillary Clinton, Jesse Ventura, Arnold Schwarzenegger) to get that out of the way. Then we know they'll focus on the work. AND be scrutinized.

- CrystalTJapan

Posted on Oct 17, 2003, 10:44 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Report: Portion Of Roy's Skull Removed

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Illusionists Siegfried Fischbacher, left and Roy Uwe Ludwig Horn pose for photographers with a white tiger cub after they unveiled their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Hollywood Boulevard in the Hollywood section of Los Angeles, Calif. Thursday, Sept. 23, 1994 -- Jane McCarthy (L) and Jackie Mumpower, Las Vegas members of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), hold a picket signs during a PETA demonstration in front of the Mirage Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada, October 11, 2003

LAS VEGAS - Doctors surgically removed a portion of illusionist Roy Horn's skull after he was mauled by a trained white tiger during a performance on the Las Vegas Strip, according to published reports.

Las Vegas neurosurgeon Lonnie Hammargren said about one-fourth of the right side of the Siegfried & Roy star's skull was removed to relieve cranial pressure in the crucial hours after the Oct. 3 attack. He said Horn suffered a "pretty big stroke" but that his paralysis might only be temporary.

Horn remained in critical condition Thursday at University Medical Center in Las Vegas. Hammargren said it was unclear when Horn would undergo surgery to return the skull piece.

Hammargren, a former Nevada lieutenant governor, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal that he was commenting about Horn's treatment to correct misinformation about the procedure.

Hammargren didn't operate on Horn, but said he talked with Horn's surgeon, Dr. Derek Duke, about Horn's treatment.

Hammargren denied published reports that Horn, 59, underwent a radical procedure called a hemicraniectomy, involving surgical removal of half the skull.

He said Horn's surgeons instead performed a decompressive craniectomy, a more common procedure involving removal of about one-quarter of the skull.

"Dr. Duke did exactly the operation he should have," Hammargren said Wednesday. "Otherwise, Roy would be dead."

Hammargren said surgeons can remove a portion of the skull to give the brain room to expand following brain surgery, trauma, stroke or other medical problems causing the brain to swell.

The removed portion of the skull can then be surgically placed in the abdomen or frozen until it can be replaced, Hammargren said. He said he was told Horn's skull had been implanted in a pouch in Horn's abdomen.

Hammargren confirmed that Horn suffered a stroke and was paralyzed on the left side after the tiger attacked his neck.

"He had a pretty big stroke," the neurosurgeon said. "We just don't know yet. Fortunately, the stroke didn't hit on the side where he talks, thinks and remembers. He can still comprehend things and do things."

The 7-year-old male tiger that attacked Horn was released Tuesday from quarantine after 10 days of isolation. Clark County officials said they determined it did not have rabies.

MGM Mirage officials said the animal, named Montecore, will continue to live at the Secret Garden, an animal habitat at The Mirage hotel-casino.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 16, 2003, 12:27 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Former Kiss Guitarist Shot Outside Hollywood Club

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Kiss singer/bassist Gene Simmons (news) (L), guitarist Tommy Thayer (C) and singer/guitarist Paul Stanley, with drummer Peter Criss in the background, perform during a sold-out show at the Rain in the Desert nightclub inside the Palms Resort Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada, March 16, 2003

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Former KISS lead guitarist Bruce Kulick was shot in the leg and grazed by a bullet to the head on Thursday outside a popular West Hollywood nightclub when an angry patron started shooting into a crowd of 300 people, Los Angeles sheriff's deputies said.

One other person was slightly injured in the shooting rampage. The gunman was quickly wrestled to the ground by a nightclub patron and held down by others until police arrived.

Kulick, 49, was a short distance from the Rainbow Bar & Grill nightclub on Sunset Boulevard at about 1:20 a.m. PDT when he was hit in the leg and grazed in the head, a sheriff's spokesman said. He was treated at a hospital and released. Another man was shot in the foot, deputies said.

The gunman, who was not immediately identified by police, was in jail on Thursday on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon. He had left the Sunset Strip club after arguing with several people but returned a few minutes later with a 9mm automatic pistol, deputies said.

The gunman fired several rounds into a crowd of about 300 people waiting outside the club or sitting in its outdoor restaurant, officials said.

Kulick and his representatives could not immediately be reached for comment.

The New York-born Kulick performed with KISS from 1984 to 1995, leaving after the original members donned their black-and-white makeup to embark on a nostalgia tour.

Kulick has since released a solo album and performed with the band Union and 1970s rockers Grand Funk Railroad.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 16, 2003, 12:25 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Music And Fashion Stars Merge At London Bash

.....................................................................................................................................................................

A star-studded event (L-R) R and B solo artist Beyonce Knowles, Duran Duran members Andy Taylor, Nick Rhodes, Simon Lebon and Britain's Prince of Wales, Prince Charles, converge during the reception at the Fashion Rocks concert and fashion show in aid of the Prince's Trust at the Royal Albert Hall in London, October 15, 2003

LONDON (Reuters) - A host of celebrities from the world of music and fashion joined forces at a star-studded extravaganza hosted by Britain's Prince Charles on Wednesday to raise money for his charity.

Some of the world's top models showed off designs by 17 top international designers, such as Armani, Prada and Versace -- many of whom were also present -- while rock and pop stars performed live performances from a stage behind the catwalk.

British actress Liz Hurley and U.S. comic Denis Leary (news) presented the "Fashion Rocks" event at London's Albert Hall which was held to raise cash for the Prince's Trust, the U.K.'s leading charity for young people.

Among the plethora of well-known names joining Prince Charles and his partner Camilla Parker Bowles for the sell-out show were singers Beyonce Knowles, Sheryl Crow, and Robbie Williams.

"Fashion Rocks is a hugely exciting fundraising event for The Prince's Trust," Sir Tom Shebbeare, the charity's chief executive said.

"Music and fashion is a powerful combination and the fantastic support we have received from... icons from the world of showbusiness will help us to give even more young people a second chance in life."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

The show will include an exclusive filmed performance by David Bowie of "Fashion". And Duran Duran performed "Girls On Film" live.

If yu're in the UK, catch the show on Channel 4 at 10:00 PM on Sunday night (19th of October)

If you're in the US you'll have to wait until October 29, and you can see it on A&E at 10:00 PM (ET)

Have fun!

- CrystalTJapan

Posted on Oct 16, 2003, 12:24 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Some Beautiful Bowie Pics From Tour

David Bowie performs in Rotterdam Oct 15, 2003

David Bowie performed in Rotterdam last night, here is the set list.

Rotterdam October 15th 2003

1. New Killer Star (Reality 2003)
2. The Jean Genie (Aladdin Sane 1973)
3. Fame (Young Americans 1975)
4. Cactus (Heathen 2002)
5. China Girl (Let's Dance 1983)
6. Fall Dog Bombs The Moon (Reality 2003)
7. Hallo Spaceboy (1.Outside 1995)
8. Sunday (Hours... 1999)
9. Under Pressure (Single Co-written with Freddie Mercury 1981)
10. White Light, White Heat (Lou Reed cover - a favorite of his since the Ziggy days)
11. Ashes To Ashes (Scary Monsters and Super Creeps 1980)
12. Fashion (Scary Monsters and Super Creeps 1980)
13. Try Some, Buy Some (Reality 2003 George Harrison cover)
14. Never Get Old (Reality 2003)
15. The Motel (1. Outside 1995)
16. 5:15 The Angels Have Gone (hours... 1999)
17. Loving The Alien (Tonight 1984)
18. I'm Afraid Of Americans (Earthling 1997)
19. "Heroes" ("Heroes" 1977)
20. Heathen (The Rays) (Heathen 2002)

Encore:

21. Bring Me The Disco King (Reality 2003)
22. Slip Away (Heathen 2003)
23. Pablo Picasso (Reality 2003)
24. Changes (Hunky Dory 1971)
25. Let's Dance (Let's Dance 1983)
26. Suffragette City (The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars 1972)
27. Ziggy Stardust (The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars 1972)

For more beautiful pics, click the link below

http://www.planet.nl/planet/show/id=74766/contentid=409321/sc=2dd167

Have fun!

- CrystalTJapan

Posted on Oct 16, 2003, 12:57 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Ozzy Osbourne, Treated For Nervous Tremor, Scraps Tour

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Ozzy Osbourne speaks in this July 8, 2003 file photo in the Hollywood area of Los Angeles

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Heavy metal icon Ozzy Osbourne said on Tuesday that he was being treated for a nervous tremor he blamed for almost destroying his life and had scrapped a planned European tour in order to recover.

The British-born rocker said he had been undergoing tests for the past three weeks for an involuntary shuddering that had become "markedly worse over the last two years."

"I was at the point where it felt as if this problem was practically destroying my life along with my self-esteem," said Osbourne, who has found a wide audience as a foul-mouthed, shuffling patriarch in MTV's hit reality series "The Osbournes" which takes viewers into his home.

"I was no longer comfortable being around people, which, as you can imagine, is not the best trait for a performer," Osbourne said.

Dr. Allan Ropper, the chairman of the neurology department at Tufts University in Boston and Osbourne's physician, said tests had showed Osbourne did not have Parkinson's disease and that his tremor was "coming under control with medication."

"Unfortunately, one of the side effects of the medication is dry mouth, which greatly impairs the voice. This problem usually subsides after three to four weeks, but the downside is that this will definitely affect Mr. Osbourne's ability to sing at this time," Ropper said.

Osbourne's European Tour, which had been scheduled to begin in Dublin on Oct. 22, will be rescheduled for early 2004, the statement from the performer said.

The tour, which had been rescheduled once after a previous cancellation, had been set to run through Dec. 5 in Munich.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 15, 2003, 12:49 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Martha Stewart Speaks Out

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Martha Stewart and Barbara Walters are seen here conducting a recent interview set to air early next month

If Martha Stewart gets her way, she will not be demonstrating the fine points of decorating a prison cell any time soon.

During a weekend interview with Barbara Walters--Stewart's first since getting rung up on charges stemming from the ImClone scandal--the homemaking maven says that though she is nervous about her pending trial, she is confident she won't be spending time in the slammer.

"Who wouldn't be scared?" Stewart asked in an excerpt of the interview released by ABC. "Of course I'm scared. The last place I would ever want to go is prison...I don't think I will be going to prison, though."

ABC declined to release any additional sound bites from the interview, citing competitive reasons.

But apparently, the one-on-one with Babs, which will air during November sweeps, two months before Stewart's trial, the guru of Good Things speaks out about the stock scandal and tries to set the record straight. Though details of the interview have not been released, it seems the 61-year-old media mogul has got some major 'splaining to do.

Stewart was indicted in June for her alleged involvement in a shady stock sale. She faces charges of securities fraud, obstruction of justice, conspiracy and two counts of making false statements.

Investigators say the December 2001 sale of her shares of the biotech company ImClone Systems reeks of insider information. They claim Stewart dumped her stock after getting an illegal tip from ImClone founder and family friend Sam Waskal that the company's highly touted new cancer drug was getting the thumbs-down from the FDA, which would invariably drop its stock value. Stewart does not face insider-trading charges.

Since the beginning of the scandal, Stewart has maintained her innocence. "For a creative person to be maligned like this is the worst thing that could happen," she told USA Today last month. "It takes away the joy."

She and her attorneys also claim that she is being unfairly persecuted for being a successful, high-profile female.

In June, Stewart's lawyer Robert Morvillo issued a statement questioning why the government waited more than a year to file charges. "Is it for publicity purposes, because Martha Stewart (news - web sites) is a celebrity? Is it because she is a woman who has successfully competed in a man's world by virtue of her talent, hard work and demanding standards?"

The legal team has gone even further, asking a federal judge to drop the securities fraud and obstruction of justice charges.

Investigators, however, are sticking by their conspiracy claims and moving forward with the case.

Stewart is scheduled to go to trial (along with her former broker, Peter Bacanovic) January 12. If convicted, she faces up to 30 years in prison and $2 million in fines.

ImClone's Waksal is currently serving a seven-year prison term for tax evasion and his role in the case.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 15, 2003, 12:48 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Elton John: The TV Show

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Sharon Osbourne, right, celebrates her birthday with her daughter, Kelly, and rock legend Sir Elton John at a pajama party during the taping of 'The Sharon Osbourne Show' Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2003, in Los Angeles

The Rocket Man could be landing in your living room next season.

Fox has green-lighted a new drama series based on the tunes of Elton John and Bernie Taupin.

The net has made a pilot commitment to Rhapsody, the musically minded brainchild of onetime teen popster and former Hardy BoyShaun Cassidy and Warner Bros. TV.

Set in the vein of Moulin Rouge, and not Cop Rock, says Cassidy, characters will sing on camera even though the hourlong show is not an outright musical.

"It's a soap opera with the emphasis on the opera," Cassidy told Variety. "There's a murder mystery and a power struggle and a big, grand love story. The storytelling will have a strong musical component like what's been out there for 20 years with music videos but not longform [TV]."

If the series is eventually renewed, the second season would feature a new cast and catalog of music, much like a reality series.

"Audiences seemed primed to accept a new format and characters [each season], where the only constant is the narrator," said Cassidy. "One year it's The Bachelor and then it's The Bachelorette."

While Cassidy wouldn't divulge many details about the plot, a Fox development exec called Rhapsody a "really intriguing tale of two families."

Cassidy, who developed Rhapsody as part of a deal with Warner Bros. TV, also serves as an executive producer on the new WB network series Tarzan.

Despite his musical background, Cassidy won't write or sing any songs for the project. However, John and Taupin, who will serve as consultants (and creative inspiration) on the series, may contribute original compositions along with their established hits.

"Elton and Bernie's catalog is one of the most well-known in popular music history," Cassidy told Variety. "At its heart, there are a lot of stories in there, and to be able to use those songs is a gift."

Meanwhile, John and Taupin have been huddling recently for another tune-filled project--a Broadway musical adaptation of Anne Rice's The Vampire Lestat slated for a 2005 debut.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 15, 2003, 12:47 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Actors Join Opposition To Screener Ban

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Actor Willem Dafoe, left, holding his Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in the film 'Shadow of the Vampire,' chats with actress Holly Hunter at the 16th Annual IFP/West Independent Spirit Awards in Santa Monica, Calif., Saturday, March 24, 2001

NEW YORK - Several prominent actors, including Sean Penn, Holly Hunter, Frances McDormand and Willem Dafoe, have joined the opposition to a recent ban on sending special DVDs and videos to Academy Award voters.

The Writers Guild of America also has added its voice to the argument.

Their protest follows a letter sent last week from 142 directors to Jack Valenti, president of the Motion Picture Association of America, urging the MPAA to immediately repeal its anti-piracy plan.

The actors, writers and directors contend that asking Oscar voters to see films only in theaters will put smaller, independent features at a disadvantage, and will do nothing to stop piracy.

"This is an acknowledgment that actors are often the triggers for financing and distribution decisions on independent movies so it's really important their voices are heard," Michelle Byrd, executive director of the Independent Feature Project/New York, told the trade paper Variety for Tuesday's editions. The IFP is helping organize opposition to the ban.

An actors' protest, to be published in the coming days, will include the names of Hilary Swank, Don Cheadle, Sissy Spacek, Ellen Burstyn, Nick Nolte, and Steve Buscemi, among others.

Screen Actors Guild president Melissa Gilbert also disagrees with the ban on screeners. "It creates a hugely inequitable and hugely unleveled playing field," she said.

The MPAA reiterated Monday that it welcomed debate on the policy, but that the ban would remain.

Victoria Riskin, president of the Writers Guild of America West, said screener DVDs and videos are crucial to helping small, well-written films find an audience.

"Oscar winners such as Bill Condon ('Gods and Monsters'), Julian Fellowes ('Gosford Park') and John Irving ('The Cider House Rules') were first brought to the attention of Academy voters via just these means," Riskin said Monday. "To place a gag order on 'screeners' is to tilt the playing field from small films to large."

Last week, directors including Robert Altman, Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola and Robert Redford sent a protest letter to Valenti, which was published in Variety.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Of course high profile actors joined the opposition to the Oscar screener ban!

Yeah, if the low budget film they do doesn't have a chance to win an Oscar, there's no point in doing it.

You see....actors have a "quote", which is how much they get paid to do a movie. We all hear those numbers. Once Arnold Schwarzenegger gets $30 mil to do a film, or Julia Roberts gets $10 mil, then they won't work for less....Or will they?

Once they can't get $30 mil a picture, because the offers aren't rolling in....They have to either except the fact that they're not in demand anymore (as if) and take less money (cough). OR, the new trend is, do an "independent" film, for a LOT less money on the pretense that you're doing it for art, win an Oscar, make a big speech.....then keep asking for the $30 mil. After that, don't do an "independent" film again unless absolutely necessary.

If they can't get promised an Oscar to do these films, they might as well not do them. It will be harder to justify publically why they're taking the paycut. And ultimately, lower their quote for good.

- CrystalTJapan

Posted on Oct 14, 2003, 12:52 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Smelly Showman David Blaine Near End Of "Starvation" Stunt

.....................................................................................................................................................................

David Blaine sits in his suspended plastic box and makes a gesture to his ground crew, in London Monday Oct 6, 2003

LONDON (Reuters) - Nauseated by his own odors but inspired by crowds of teenage girls, American showman David Blaine is just days away from completing a 44-day starvation stunt inside a Perspex box that has both fascinated and infuriated Britons.

The handsome, 30-year-old New Yorker appeared languid but cheerful Tuesday -- raising a hand to groups of girls shouting "We Love You, David!" as he lay stretched inside his box dangling from a crane beside London's river Thames.

"This last week is the tough part -- I can feel it getting really hard," Blaine told viewers watching 24-hour "reality TV" coverage of his bizarre ordeal, due to end Sunday.

Blaine, who says he has only been consuming water via a tube since entering the box on September 5, has been complaining he smells of sulphur and has repeatedly said what he most longs for is to bathe and clean his teeth.

The illusionist has also shown signs of delusion, dreaming of worms in his stomach and describing feelings of claustrophobia where the Perspex walls "feel like they're crushing my skull apart."

Thousands of Britons gather day and night at the box to taunt, laud or simply ponder Blaine.

His enemies -- who deride him as an American upstart doing a pointless stunt -- have sought to keep him awake with fog-horns and drums; and have attacked the box with golf balls, paint and rotten eggs.

Displaying a peculiar cruelty that has intrigued highbrow commentators and sociologists, the anti-Blaine camp has also tormented him by waving odorous fish-and-chips, hamburgers and other food at him.

Women have mockingly bared their breasts, men their buttocks. One woman ran totally naked under Blaine Monday.

"It's not big, it's not clever, it's a grown man in a plastic box," sniffed one British Web Site "dedicated to keeping David Blaine awake for 44 days and nights" ( http://www.wakedavid.co.uk ).

"Over-Confindent, Over-Hyped And Overhead"

Despite such vitriol, sympathy has grown for Blaine and most people crowding under the box Tuesday spoke up for him.

"They are all probably ugly and jealous," 16-year-old Suzannah Dickson said of Blaine's detractors.

She and two other friends, all there "because he is very good-looking," won a wave from Blaine -- and a display of his tattoos -- after placing banners below his box and yelling greetings.

"He's giving a great show of mind-over-matter. And it his job to entertain, isn't it?" said Kara Nesbitt, 16, adding: "When he looked at us, you could see he has got really white teeth and the biggest smile."

With the guarded zone beneath Blaine looking ever more like a shrine, covered in banners and "offerings" of flowers and teddy bears, the magician has become a puzzling symbol to Britain's chattering classes.

For some Blaine represents American hegemony riding over the world, while one columnist saw him symbolizing celebrities floating above the masses but suffering their own isolation. The mystic overtones of a suffering, bearded and often bare-chested man waving wanly to onlookers gazing up at him have also struck chords.

Critics say Blaine's voluntary fast insults the world's hungry and the memory of dead Northern Irish hunger-strikers.

"Whether we love him or loathe him, David Blaine is proving that one of the easiest tricks in the world is to get under the skin of the British," wrote the Observer newspaper. "Having an American over-confident, over-hyped and overhead is more, apparently than many of us can bear."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 14, 2003, 12:51 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Duran Duran Surprises London With A Reunion Show Tonight

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Duran Duran members, from left: Simon LeBon, Andy Taylor, Roger Taylor, Nick Rhodes and John Taylor, pose during the 2003 Q Awards at the Park Lane Hotel in central London, Thursday, Oct. 2, 2003. The band received a Lifetime Achievement award at the annual bash thrown by Q music magazine

LONDON (Reuters) - Duran Duran, the 1980s "New Romantic" band who championed eye-liner, shoulder pads and teased blond hair, will play a comeback show in London on Tuesday.

Their publicist said all 2,000 tickets had sold out within 20 minutes of going on sale and were changing hands on the Internet for 200 pounds ($330) each.

The clamor has evoked memories of when the British band were idols who attracted a devoted following of teenage girls and sold millions of records around the world.

The London show is the first in Britain with the original line-up for 18 years and follows a handful of concerts in Japan and the United States.

The band -- Simon Le Bon, Nick Rhodes and Andy, John and Roger Taylor -- have ditched their 1980s wardrobe, but they will play their classic songs, probably including "The Reflex," "Rio" and "Girls on Film."

"There is a special magic and chemistry between us," bassist John Taylor said in a recent interview. "That only happens once in a lifetime."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

This show was announced only one week ago on their website http://www.duranduran.com , it was a surprise to Brit fans who were told they'd have to wait until at least 2004 to see the original Fab 5 in their country.

Aussie fans will be delighted to hear that they've also just added a show in Brisbane, without Robbie Williams!

Brisbane Entertainment Centre - December 8

On sale Monday 20 October, 9am.

Ticketek, http://www.ticketek.com Phone charge 131 931

And of course, don't forget the 16 US dates!

DURAN DURAN FALL TOUR DATES

Sat-Nov-08 Atlantic City, NJ The Borgata
Sun-Nov-09 Washington D.C. Warner Theatre
Mon-Nov-10 Philadelphia, PA Tower Theatre
Thu-Nov-13 Cleveland, OH Agora
Fri-Nov-14 Toronto, ONT Kool Haus
Sat-Nov-15 Detroit, MI Royal Oak
Mon-Nov-17 Chicago, IL House of Blues
Tue-Nov-18 Chicago, IL House of Blues
Fri-Nov-21 Atlanta, GA Tabernacle
Sat-Nov-22 New Orleans, LA Twiropa
Sun-Nov-23 Houston, TX Cullen Auditorium
Mon-Nov-24 Dallas, TX Majestic Theatre
Wed-Nov-26 Albuquerque, NM Kiva Auditorium
Fri-Nov-28 Phoenix, AZ Celebrity Theatre
Sat-Nov-29 Tucson, AZ Rialto Theatre
Sun-Nov-30 San Diego, CA 4th & B Theatre

Tickets to all sixteen shows will be available to the public on October 18th, with both Discover Card and Duran Duran fan club pre-sales preceding this on October 14th and 15th.

Have fun!

- CrystalTJapan

Posted on Oct 14, 2003, 12:49 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Duran Duran Pout, Strut and Thrill at UK Reunion

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Lead singer Simon Le Bon, right, and bassist John Taylor from Duran Duran performs live on stage in their first UK concert in 18 years at The Forum in London Tuesday Oct.14 2003

LONDON (Reuters) - Pop icons Duran Duran recreated the sound of the 1980s for an ecstatic home crowd on Tuesday at a gig that saw the band's original line-up perform together for the first time in Britain in 18 years.

Now in their 40s, the five former pin-ups thrilled the London audience with classics from the band's chart-topping heyday like "Rio," "Save a Prayer" and "Wild Boys" with a verve reminiscent of their younger days.

Lead singer Simon Le Bon -- unashamedly revealing a slight paunch -- cavorted, jumped from the stage and leaped in the air, albeit in a less adventurous fashion than two decades ago. He swung his microphone stand and even pulled his tambourine apart to one song.

The group, a champion of the "New Romantic" wave that made eye-liner, teased blond hair and the moody look all the rage, wound up with an encore of "Girls on Film" as glitter descended on the waving crowd of predominantly 30-somethings.

The five musicians -- Le Bon, Nick Rhodes, Andy Taylor, John Taylor and Roger Taylor -- had ditched their 80s wardrobe and hairstyle but they had some fans screaming, recalling the days when their faces were plastered on the bedroom walls of many teenage girls.

Screams got louder when Le Bon appeared to kiss John Taylor, keeping up with the latest celebrity trend of on-stage smooching.

"This has been the best homecoming we could ever have had," Le Bon told the crowd.

Fans belted out old favorites such as "Hungry like a wolf" and sang along with the odd cover version from the same era but were less confident when it came to the band's newer tunes, some written since the group reformed a few years ago.

The surprise gig, which follows a series of concerts in Japan and the United States, sparked a rush by fans that saw all 2,000 tickets sell out in less than five minutes, the band's publicist said.

They were changing hands on the Internet for 200 pounds ($330 each). The band has played gigs in Britain in past years but never with the complete original line-up.

The show was hastily arranged ahead of the band's appearance on Wednesday at the charity "Fashion Rocks" event in London with a host of stars including Robbie Williams and Ozzy Osbourne.

Duran Duran will later accompany Williams on an Australian tour.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 15, 2003, 1:41 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Rush Limbaugh Into Rehab

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Conservative commentator Rush Limbaugh gestures while speaking during the National Association of Broadcasters convention in this Oct. 2, 2003 file photo in Philadelphia

Rush Limbaugh is hooked on painkillers, and checking himself into rehab--for the third time.

And for this, the liberal-bating radio host, who confessed his addiction on Friday's show, doesn't blame the media, Jesse Jackson or even Hillary Clinton. Only himself.

"I am not making any excuses," the 52-year-old Limbaugh said. "I take full responsibility for my problem."

Limbaugh, who resigned from his ESPN football commentating job last week amid a racial controversy, told his nationwide audience he was leaving for a 30-day stay in rehab immediately following Friday's show.

Neither he, nor his syndicator, Premiere Radio, revealed the name or location of the treatment center. Limbaugh said he has tried twice before to break his habit at "medical facilities."

Limbaugh's five-day-a-week show will continue with guest hosts. Premiere expects its $285 million man, signed with the network through 2009, to "absolutely" return to the mic once he's completed rehab.

A spokesman for Premiere said the network knew in advance that Limbaugh was going to admit to his drug addiction on the air, and that the decision to enter rehab was Limbaugh's. "You don't go into rehab because somebody told you," Allan Mayer said. "And certainly Rush Limbaugh doesn't go into rehab because somebody told him to."

As initially reported last week in the National Enquirer, Limbaugh's devil is the prescription painkiller.

"I first started taking prescription painkillers some years ago when my doctor prescribed them to treat post-surgical pain following spinal surgery [to repair herniated discs]," Limbaugh said.

The "Excellence in Broadcasting" booster, doubly plagued by hearing loss in recent years, said the surgery didn't take, and he continues to suffer pain. "I chose to treat the pain with prescribed medication," he said. "This medication turned out to be highly addictive."

Limbaugh didn't specify which drugs had him bound for rehab. In the Enquirer, a former maid was quoted as saying she'd supplied her onetime boss with thousands of pills' worth of Lorcet, Hydrocodone, and OxyContin, the drug also known as "hillbilly heroin."

The tab claimed Limbaugh's habit had put him in the crosshairs of an investigation by authorities in Palm Beach County, Florida. When the story broke last week, Limbaugh said he was unaware of any law-enforcement probe, and implored his listeners to "just trust me on this."

"It really is an emerging situation," Limbaugh said on his October 3 talk show. "When I get all the facts, rest assured I will discuss it with you."

On Friday, he allowed that "part of what you have heard and read is correct." In addition to confirming his addiction, he noted that "authorities are conducting an investigation." (Palm Beach officials have yet to confirm or deny a probe.) On air, Limbaugh did not address any of the specific allegations made in the Enquirer or other newspapers.

"I will only say that the stories you have read and heard contain inaccuracies and distortions, which I will clear up when I am free to speak about them," Limbaugh said.

The Enquirer reportedly had been sitting on its Limbaugh-drug story for two years. It chose to go to press with the article at a most opportune time for newsstand sales, and a most inopportune time for Limbaugh.

The story broke amid the furor over a comment made by Limbaugh September 28 on ESPN's NFL Sunday Countdown.

Limbaugh's opinion that Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Donovan McNabb, who is black, was favored by the media because of the color of his skin cost him his new gig with the sports network.

Limbaugh resigned October 1. While maintaining that there was "no racist invent whatsoever" behind the offending remark, he said he quit to spare his colleagues further trouble.

While Limbaugh lost his TV forum, he was no less boisterous or bellicose on his radio show. Prior to Friday's admission, it was business as usual at his "EIB" home. He analyzed the California recall election. He opined on the White House leak scandal. He railed about proposed Medicare legislation.

But even in coming clean to his audience on Friday, Limbaugh couldn't resist one more swipe at pop culture and its inhabitants.

"Over the years athletes and celebrities have emerged from treatment centers to great fanfare and praise for conquering great demons. They are said to be great role models and examples for others," Limbaugh said.

"Well, I am no role model."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 13, 2003, 10:18 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Black Artists' Billboard Breakthrough

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Beyonce performs at the 2003 MTV Video Music Awards in this August 28, 2003 file photo

Some major musical history was made this week.

For the first time ever on Billboard's single chart, every slot in the Top 10 was occupied by an African-American artist.

Once considered a musical subculture, urban music has increasingly sold in suburbia, with rap and R&B frequently outselling rock and pop on the album charts. OutKast, for example, has held the top slot on the album charts for the past two weeks. It wasn't a matter of if but when the Top 10 singles domination would come.

"Urban music has crossed over and gone beyond its normal audience," says Violet Brown, director of urban music for the Wherehouse Music chain. "People of all ages and cultural backgrounds are buying the music."

Whereas the album chart is based strictly on sales, Billboard's Hot 100 singles chart is compiled using such criteria as radio ratings, play lists and sales numbers. Artists making up this week's Billboard breakthrough were mostly rappers, including such heavyweight stars as 50 Cent, Nelly, P. Diddy, Ludacris, Chingy and Fabolous. Nevertheless, it was a female R&B singer that bested the big-time rap pack.

Destiny's Child breakout Beyonc Knowles owned the number one Hot spot with "Baby Boy." The new single from her Dangerously in Love album features rising dance-hall star Sean Paul.

Also making his presence felt on the history-making singles chart is Atlanta's Lil' Jon, who appears on two of the Top 10 singles. He sits at number three with his own recording "Get Low," featuring the Ying Yang Twins, and he guests on the number-six track, the YoungBloodZ's "Damn!" Aside from being the only artist to pull a two-fer on this week's charts, Lil' Jon is also the only Top 10 act released on an indie label, TVT Records.

"This speaks a lot for the influence of black music," says Bryan Leach, vice president of Urban A&R at TVT Records and the man responsible for signing Lil' Jon. "Having black music dominate the Top 10 shows how strong the music is in a time when the music industry is in a recession."

Leach also points out the creative depth of the urban music genre, noting that half of the Top 10 singles come from debut albums. Those charting with tracks from rookie albums are Beyonc Knowles, Lil' Jon, 50 Cent, Chingy and Pharrell Williams of the Neptunes.

The chart also features "P.I.M.P." from 50 Cent's Get Rich or Die Tryin' and "Shake Your Tailfeather" from the Bad Boys 2 soundtrack, two discs that have made significant marks on the album sales chart this year. Get Rich held the number one spot longer than any other album in 2003, while the Bad Boys 2 soundtrack held the peak position for the most consecutive weeks.

Fiddy's rookie release also sold 872,000 first-week copies, the best this year and the most ever for debut album. It was also the biggest sales week of any rapper not named Eminem.

Other singles making up the historic Hot 100 include Chingy's "Right Thurr" at four, Pharrell and Jay-Z's "Frontin'" at five, Fabolous ' "Into You" at eight and Ludacris's "Stand Up" at nine. Black Eyed Peas wrap it up at number 10 with "Where Is the Love?" which features background vocals from Justin Timberlake, the only white artist to appear in the Top 10.

Also worth noting, Black Eyed Peas, P. Diddy, 50 Cent and Fabolous as the only Top 10 charters from the historically dominant Los Angeles and New York City scenes. Other represented regions include Houston, Virginia Beach and three contributors each from St. Louis and Atlanta.

Billboard's Top 10 singles from its Hot 100 for week of October 6:

1. "Baby Boy" Beyonce featuring Sean Paul
2. "Shake Ya Tailfeather" Nelly, P. Diddy & Murphy Lee
3. "Get Low" Lil' Jon &the East Side Boyz featuring Ying Yang Twins
4. "Right Thurr" Chingy
5. "Frontin'" Pharrell featuring Jay-Z
6. "Damn!" YoungBloodZ featuring Lil' Jon
7. "P.I.M.P." 50 Cent
8. "Into You" Fabolous featuring Tamia/Ashanti
9. "Stand Up" Ludacris featuring Shawnna
10. "Where Is the Love?" Black Eyed Peas
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 13, 2003, 10:17 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Dream Ad Team Set To Play For NYC2012

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Elba and Jorge Lopez, Argentinians living in Queens, dance down Fifth Avenue in New York during the Hispanic Day Parade Sunday, Oct. 12, 2003

Taking a page from the playbook of political campaigns, NYC2012, the group formed to bring the Summer Olympics to New York in 2012, has drafted a dream team of ad executives to help the city triumph over the eight other international bidders, including Moscow, Madrid, Paris and London.

The team will create a multimedia marketing campaign that will run in New York, nationally and, eventually, abroad. The goal is twofold: to drum up the financial support and Olympic spirit among New York organizations and residents that will be crucial to successfully staging the Games; and to sell the city as a global center to the International Olympic Committee, which will choose the host on July 6, 2005.

The first ads from the 14-person creative council are expected to break in New York in the first quarter of 2004. Efforts will continue until the host is named.

In its winning bid to be the U.S. contender, NYC2012 emphasized the diversity, competitive spirit and vast resources of New York, which it deemed "the world's most international city." To support that claim, NYC2012 notes that 40 percent of New York City residents are foreign born.

Amy Stanton is leading the ad charge as director of marketing and communications at NYC2012. She asked Rick Boyko, former Ogilvy & Mather creative chief and now managing director of the VCU Adcenter in Richmond, Va., to head the council. The group also includes Keith Reinhard and Lee Garfinkel of DDB, Michael Patti of Young & Rubicam, Kevin McKeon of Bartle Bogle Hegarty, David Droga of Publicis, Logan Wilmont of Kirshenbaum Bond & Partners, David Sable of Wunderman, Bob Greenberg of R/GA and Jon Kamen of @radical.media. NYC2012 was the brainchild of Dan Doctoroff, a former investment banker and now the city's deputy mayor for economic development.

"We've put together a pretty eclectic group," said Boyko, who worked on marketing films last year for NYC2012's bid to have New York be the sole U.S. contender. "I was honored [to be asked], and it's a great project."

KB&P, creator of last year's campaign that helped New York edge San Francisco to be the U.S. bidder, is developing an umbrella strategy and will handle account management duties with NYC2012. The council will develop campaigns based on strategic ideas from KB&P. It held its first full meeting last month. Next up is a strategy session on Oct. 17.

The council is reminiscent of the Madison Avenue teams assembled to help presidential candidates, such as Ronald Reagan (news)'s famous Tuesday Team. The client considered hiring a single shop, but given the scope of the project (TV, guerrilla, viral marketing, etc.), the committee approach "seemed like the best way to get tons of great ideas," Stanton said.

"It's such a fundamentally big, important thing to be working on," said McKeon. "It's really quite an amazing plan and will leave a really great legacy."

No one on the council is getting paid. Media buying and planning--to be handled by Omnicom Group's OMD--is also being done pro bono. NYC2012, whose board includes executives from a large number of media companies, will ask for donated space and airtime.

Spending plans were not disclosed. Atlanta spent about $7 million to market itself as the host of the 1996 Summer Games.

NYC2012 is looking to win over the IOC's 126 voting members in 80 countries. Decisions on when and where to run ads abroad have not yet been made, partly because advertising internationally is prohibited until closer to the decision date--a rule designed to limit the lobbying of committee members following the IOC bribery scandal surrounding Salt Lake City's bid for the 2002 Winter Olympics.

NYC2012's challenge is a significant one. It must overcome anti-Americanism stemming in part from the Iraq war as well as skepticism about New York's infrastructure--a concern among city residents as much as the IOC. "It's as much about continuing to build support in the city as it is showing outwardly that New York is thrilled about this," Stanton says.

Rounding out the list of bidders are Havana, Cuba; Istanbul, Turkey; Leipzig, Germany; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 13, 2003, 10:16 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Director Ivan Reitman Part Of Arnold's Transition Team

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Director Ivan Reitman is seen here with Robin Williams (R) and Billy Crystal as they arrive for the premiere of 'Father's Day' on May 6, 1997

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - California Governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday appointed director Ivan Reitman as the sole representative from the entertainment industry to his 65-member transition team.

Reitman, who produced "Kindergarten Cop" and "Twins," both films in which Schwarzenegger starred, held a fund-raiser for his friend in Santa Barbara during the recall campaign.

Other notables named to Schwarzenegger's transition team are Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn, businessman Eli Broad, San Francisco Mayor Willie Brown -- all Democrats -- as well as former Secretary of State George Shultz, former California Gov. Pete Wilson, former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan and state Senate Republican Leader James Brulte.

"In my campaign, I said that I would reach across the political aisle and bring the best and brightest people together to help us solve the problems facing California," Schwarzenegger said in a statement. "The transition committee I am announcing . . . is a distinguished group of men and women who share my commitment to restoring California to greatness."

It was unclear in what specific capacity Reitman would serve. Messages left for Reitman at his Montecito Pictures' office were not immediately returned.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 10, 2003, 8:54 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Luther Vandross Recovering From Illness

Singer Luther Vandross entertains the crowd at the Democratic National Convention in Los Angeles Tuesday, Aug. 15, 2000

NEW YORK - Since the removal in late June of a tracheotomy tube, inserted while he battled meningitis and pneumonia, Luther Vandross is once again talking � and singing, People magazine reports.

On a recent visit with Vandross � who suffered a stroke on April 16 � Patti LaBelle says that when they sang a duet, he corrected her on a lyric. "His voice is the same as it ever was," LaBelle tells People in its Oct. 20 issue.

Vandross, 52, is undergoing therapy at a New Jersey rehabilitation facility, the magazine says.

His new album, "Luther Vandross: Live at Radio City Music Hall," is set for release Oct. 28.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 10, 2003, 8:52 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Satchmo's (Louis Armstrong's) House Opening To The Public

.....................................................................................................................................................................

The front parlor of the house Louis Armstrong and his fourth wife Lucille lived in, in the Queens borough of New York, is seen during a media tour Thursday, Oct. 9, 2003-- The turquoise kitchen of the house Louis Armstrong and his fourth wife Lucille lived in, in the Queens borough of New York, is seen during a media tour Thursday, Oct. 9, 2003

NEW YORK - Trees of green? Check. Red roses, too? You bet. OK, how about skies of blue? Well, the kitchen cabinets are blue, just like the fridge and the clock.

The Queens house where jazz great Louis Armstrong lived and died is opening to public tours next week, giving visitors a glimpse into the life and style of Armstrong and his wife, Lucille.

Armstrong married Lucille, his fourth wife, in 1942. She purchased the red brick house in the Corona section of Queens in 1943 and decorated it, all without Armstrong, who was often on the road.

The first time the trumpeter saw it was when he returned home from a road trip. At first, when the taxi he was in pulled up to the house, he didn't believe he was at the right address, said Michael Cogswell, director of the Armstrong archives at Queens College.

"He came inside, fell in love with the place and lived here for the rest of his life," Cogswell said.

Lucille Armstrong spared no expense in decorating the house, and she continued to redecorate often over the years until her husband's death in 1971. She lived there until her death in 1983, and the house was then given to the city to be administered by Queens College.

Tours begin Oct. 16, and what visitors will see is the house furnished as the Armstrongs left it. That means the original gold-plated fixtures imported from Europe in the first-floor bathroom, the silver paper lining the master bedroom matched to the window blinds, the foil-covered walk-in closet where some of Lucille Armstrong's dresses still hang.

The 1960s kitchen is done in blue tones, with a Sub-Zero refrigerator and custom-made stove with six burners, two ovens and two broilers, as well as the original (and still occupied) wine bottle holder.

Louis Armstrong's den holds his desk and a tape deck he used to record hours and hours of conversations.

"We literally have hundreds of hours of tape of Louis and the guys sitting around swapping dirty jokes and band stories and so forth," Cogswell said. Visitors hear some of the tape � snippets of conversation, instrumental music, the clink of utensils at the dinner table � while in the living room, the dining room and the den.

Funding for the $1.6 million renovation, came from city and federal sources. The basement has been turned into a visitor's center, where some of Armstrong's memorabilia is displayed.

Over the years, the Armstrongs became a fixture in the neighborhood.

"When the ice cream truck would come by, Louis would buy ice cream for the kids in the neighborhood," Cogswell said. "He was very much a part of the neighborhood; he was a regular guy on the block."

Cogswell said the house in Queens was a reflection of the wealthy Armstrong's down-to-earth spirit.

"It's a real tribute to Louis' humanity and generosity that he lived in a relatively simple house in a working-class neighborhood and was very content there," Cogswell said.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

To find out more about the restoration project, how to take a tour, or location etc. please visit: http://www.satchmo.net

Have fun!

- CrystalTJapan

Posted on Oct 10, 2003, 8:52 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Bowie On Tour - First Stop Copenhagen, Denmark - Review With Pics

.....................................................................................................................................................................
David Bowie Opens First World Rour In A Decade With A Danish Delight For Fans

Also Offers Opportunity To Folow Tour Around The World With A "Virtual Reality Ticket"

LONDON, October 8th 2003

David Bowie opened his �A Reality World Tour' with a two and a half hour show packed with surprises at the Forum in Copenhagen, Denmark last night. He played an incredible 27 songs including material from the pan European no 1 album Reality plus a selection of songs from throughout his career.

The tour, which lasts for seven months, reaches 16 countries and hundreds of thousands of people, will feature an ever-changing set list. Bowie is looking to change the songs he�s performing every night to make the shows more organic and real for the fans.

With this in mind, Bowie is taking the groundbreaking step of inviting every ticket holder to join him on a �Virtual Reality� tour of the entire world. Each person who attends the shows has a code on their tickets and once this has been entered on Bowienet ( http://www.davidbowie.com ) it entitles the ticket holder to follow the entire world tour online with exclusive footage and audio from all of the stops along the way from Denmark to Denver and from Tokyo to Glasgow.

Those present last night would have witnessed a dramatic start to the show utilising one of the biggest LED screens ever taken on tour, which kicked into life revealing David and his musicians in animated form. The band then kicked in with a spectacular version of �New Killer Star�, the lead off track from the hit album Reality. Next up was Afraid, followed by the classic Fame co-written with John Lennon.

David was wearing Victorian Biker, deconstructed look, and sounding on top form. He was totally relaxed with the crowd, even stopping to congratulate one couple on their 25th wedding anniversary! Behind him a black and white split screen added to the drama of the moment, and the screens high above the stage gave it the feel of a boxing match. The crowd were on their feet from early in the show, and it stayed that way right through to the very end.

Bowie and his crack band continued to mix together classics such as Rebel Rebel, Changes - which he introduced as �that David Essex song� - and a brilliant Under Pressure with Gail Ann Dorsey sharing vocals, to fan favourites such as Fantastic Voyage as well as tracks from Heathen. Live it was the songs from Reality that provided the real highlights of the night. The forthcoming single Never Get Old and the epic Bring Me The Disco King featuring some incredible keyboard work from Mike Garson were received ecstatically by the sell-out crowd as modern classics.

A storming version of the album�s title track saw the enormous LED screens coming into their own once more showing an extraordinary psychedelic graphic and "CCTV" footage of the band provided by tiny "lipstick" cameras hidden around the stage.

Other highlights included an awesomely powerful I�m Afraid Of Americans with great animation imagery playing behind the band and a fantastic finale including "Heroes" which received a thunderous ovation, a rocking Hang On To Yourself, Let�s Dance and a show stopping Ziggy Stardust. Bowie was clearly moved by the response and told the audience how in these difficult times it felt very important to him that he and his band were able to be there singing for them.

The tour continues through Europe throughout October and reaches Bowie�s homeland of the UK in mid November. From there he proceeds to the USA in December and will include prestigious shows at New York�s Madison Square Garden and the Legendary Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles.
.....................................................................................................................................................................
Copenhagen October 7th 2003 setlist

1. New Killer Star (Reality 2003)
2. Afraid (Heathen 2002)
3. Fame (Young Americans 1975)
4. Cactus (Heathen 2002)
5. Battle For Britain (The Letter) (Earthling 1997)
6. Fall Dog Bombs The Moon (Reality 2003)
5. Breaking Glass (Low 1977)
8. Reality (Reality 2003)
9. Changes (Hunky Dory 1971)
10. The Man Who Sold The World (original ver) (The Man Who Sold The World 1970)
11. Hallo Spaceboy (1.Outside 1995)
12. Under Pressure (Single Co-written with Freddie Mercury 1981)
13. Sunday (Hours... 1999)
14. Bring Me The Disco King (Reality 2003)
15. She'll Drive The Big Car (Reality 2003)
16. Ashes To Ashes (Scary Monsters and Super Creeps 1980)
17. Never Get Old (Reality 2003)
18. Pablo Picasso (Reality 2003)
19. Fantastic Voyage (Lodger 1979)
20. I'm Afraid Of Americans (Earthling 1997)
21. Rebel Rebel (new ver) (Diamond Dogs 1974)
22. "Heroes" ("Heroes" 1977)
23. Heathen (The Rays) (Heathen 2002)

Encore:

24. Slip Away (Heathen 2003)
25. Hang On To Yourself (The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars 1972)
26. Let's Dance (Let's Dance 1983)
27. Ziggy Stardust (The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars 1972)

Wow!! He kept the elaborate stage design a secret until now! This tour is going to rule!

Have fun!

- CrystalTJapan

This message has been edited by crystaltjapan from IP address 68.69.253.68 on Oct 9, 2003 12:17 PM
This message has been edited by crystaltjapan from IP address 68.69.253.68 on Oct 9, 2003 12:13 PM

Posted on Oct 9, 2003, 12:08 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Actor Tommy Chong Reports To Prison

.....................................................................................................................................................................
PITTSBURGH - Actor-comedian Tommy Chong reported to a privately run federal prison to serve his nine-month sentence for conspiring to sell bongs and other drug paraphernalia over the Internet even as his attorneys prepared to argue for his release pending appeal.

Chong, 65, was sentenced Sept. 11 by U.S. District Judge Arthur Schwab in Pittsburgh. He reported Wednesday to a minimum-security facility run for the Federal Bureau of Prisons near Bakersfield, Calif.

The judge has set an Oct. 16 hearing on a request by Chong's attorney to release the actor, best-known as the drug-addled Chong in the Cheech & Chong movies and comedy routines, while he appeals the sentence to the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

At his sentencing, Chong said he got carried away with the fictional persona, but had quit smoking pot and wanted to use his celebrity to help people stay off drugs.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Mary Houghton argued that Chong grew wealthy glamorizing drug use and trivializing law enforcement in his films and said Chong used his characters to promote his business.

Chong's attorneys argued that he should be sentenced no more harshly than any of the other defendants thus far in the national drug-paraphernalia investigation.

They wanted him to be sentenced to no more than six months' house arrest and six months' probation.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 9, 2003, 11:23 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Courtney Love Rung Up On Drug Charge

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Courtney Love speaks to reporters outside a police station at London's Heathrow Airport February 4, 2003

Courtney Love isn't feeling the love from Los Angeles prosecutors.

On Wednesday, the rocker-actress was charged with a misdemeanor count of controlled substance abuse in connection with her October 2 arrest for allegedly attempting to break into a Los Angeles home. The same day of her arrest, she reportedly suffered a drug overdose and was hospitalized.

Police responding last week to reports of a burglary at a home in L.A.'s Wilshire area found a disconcerted Love standing in the middle of the street outside the house. She copped to having smashed four windows while trying to get inside; police noted her erratic behavoir and arrested her on suspicion of drug use.

The owner of the home, reportedly a Love acquaintance, elected not to press burglary charges against the singer.

But Love was still booked on the drug count and then released on $2,500 bail. Less than an hour later, she reportedly had her second encounter of the evening with Johnny Law.

Police and paramedics responding to a 911 call about a woman under the influence of narcotics at a Beverly Hills home discovered that that woman was Love and, according to the Los Angeles Times, that she had OD'd. She was taken to Century City Hospital for treatment, and released the same day. Love's publicist refused to comment on the incident.

If Love is found guilty on her latest drug charge, she could face up to a year in the county jail, according to Frank Mateljan of the Los Angeles City Attorney's Office. Her arraignment is scheduled for Friday, but she is not required to be present.

The toxicology report was still out as to what drugs Love was allegedly using on her big night out, but Mateljan said that the drugs fell in the "general broad category" of opiates or cocaine. He expected to know the results of the screen by Friday.

Love, 39, is the widow of former Nirvana frontman, Kurt Cobain, who struggled with his own drug demons before his suicide in 1994. Love was in rehab following a drug overdose when she learned of Cobain's death and checked out. She later cleaned herself up and, in 1997, became an anti-drug crusader and said she was focused on being a good mom to her and Cobain's daughter, Frances Bean Cobain, now 11.

Love showed signs of acting talent in 1996's The People vs. Larry Flynt. Her performance was even nominated for a Golden Globe, but Love was never able to duplicate the initial cinematic success. Same with her music. Although she has been working on a new album for Virgin Records in recent months no release date has been set; her last studio album with former band Hole, Celebrity Skin, came out way back in 1998.

While the onetime queen of grunge has been musically silent of late, she's been plenty vocal in court. She fought a highly messy court battle with her late husband's Nirvana band mates and her former label, Universal, over rights to Cobain's unreleased material and her own record contract. The suit was settled in 2002.

Love also picked up some unwanted pub in February, when she was arrested for being a "disruptive passenger" during a flight from L.A. to London. The charge was eventually dropped.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 9, 2003, 11:22 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Ben Affleck In The Clear

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Actor Ben Affleck poses at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Pasadena, Calif., Feb. 2, 2003

Ben Affleck is no longer a wanted man.

No, J.Lo hasn't dumped him. Instead, authorities in North Carolina have dropped a warrant for his arrest.

Said warrant was issued Saturday after a woman went to police in the community of Kure Beach and claimed the Daredevil star threatened to kill her following a fling gone sour.

Word of the dismissal comes just two days after Affleck's camp blasted the allegations as "absurd," asserting that the thespian was nowhere near Kure Beach on Sept. 25, the day accuser Tara Ray claimed he "communicated threats" to her.

"Ben had never met this woman, never heard of her and had never been there," said publicist Ken Sunshine, adding that the Sum of All Fears star was at his 86-acre plantation near Savannah, Georgia, that day--a fact easily verified by the dozens of paparazzi who have been tailing him for weeks.

District Attorney John Carriker said his office ultimately decided to nix the misdemeanor charges after Kure Beach police were unable to reach Ray.

The warrant was originally signed by local Magistrate Ralph Ellen II, who believed there was probable cause the alleged threat had taken place. But after investigating, Carriker said there was no credible evidence showing Affleck had ever visited the tiny coastal town or been in touch with the woman.

"This is a very good example of why people shouldn't be able to take out a warrant without any kind of police investigation," Carriker told the Associated Press.

Ray, who will not face any charges for her allegations, had claimed she and Affleck were romantically involved since February 2002. According to the warrant, she said the actor called and told her he was coming to "blow your [bleeping] head off."

Affleck's accuser could not be reached for comment on Wednesday. But in an interview with the Associated Press on Sunday, Ray said she wasn't doing this for publicity but had "just wanted it to be known in the public" that Ben was capable of such behavior.

With the arrest warrant headache behind him, Affleck can work on patching things up with Jennifer Lopez.

According to tab reports, the couple is still together after their last-minute cancelation of their wedding.

The two have been spotted together recently in Savannah, but there has been no word on whether they plan to reschedule their nuptials in the near future.

They put in a joint appearance at a local courthouse, but it was to obtain a gun permit, not a marriage license.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 9, 2003, 11:20 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Davis Out, Arnold Schwarzenegger Wins In Calif.

.....................................................................................................................................................................

California Republican governor-elect Arnold Schwarzenegger and his wife Maria Shriver wave to their supporters before his acceptance speech in Los Angeles October 7, 2003

LOS ANGELES - Seething over taxes and red ink, voters dumped the unpopular Gov. Gray Davis and replaced him with political novice Arnold Schwarzenegger.

With 97 percent of precincts reporting Wednesday morning, the recall was favored by 4,092,411 voters or 54.3 percent, and opposed by 3,438,424 voters or 45.7 percent.

Among the replacement candidates, Schwarzenegger was ahead with 3,500,184 votes, or 47.9 percent of the vote; Democratic Lt. Gov. Cruz Bustamante had 2,361,466 votes, or 32.3 percent; Republican state Sen. Tom McClintock had 965,095 votes, or 13.2 percent; and Green Party candidate Peter Camejo had 205,861 votes, or 2.8 percent.

Davis, the Democrat who presided over California's economy as it careened from boom to bust, was recalled Tuesday less than a year into his second term. According to partial returns, more than 54 percent of voters called for his ouster.

Schwarzenegger, a moderate Republican with tons of charisma but virtually no political experience, was easily elected among candidates to replace Davis just two months after shocking even his closest aides when he declared his candidacy on "The Tonight Show With Jay Leno."

The action movie hero may find that the hardest part is yet to come. He will need to quickly assemble an administration and work with a Democrat-controlled Legislature to close a projected $8 billion shortfall for next fiscal year. Schwarzenegger scheduled an afternoon press conference Wednesday to discuss the transition.

"We have tough choices ahead," Schwarzenegger said in declaring victory. "The first choice that we must make is the one that will determine our success. Shall we rebuild our state together or shall we fight amongst ourselves, create even deeper divisions and fail the people of California? Well, let me tell you something � the answer is clear. For the people to win, politics as usual must lose."

"Tonight, the voters did decide it's time for someone else to serve, and I accept their judgment," said Davis, the career public servant who became the first California governor and the second in the nation ever to be recalled.

"I'm calling on everyone ... to put the chaos and division of the recall behind us and do what's right for this great state of California," Davis said.

Barring a legal challenge, Schwarzenegger will be sworn in no later than Nov. 16 to serve out the remaining three years of Davis' term. First the vote must be certified, a process that can take more than a month. He would then be up for re-election in 2006.

Schwarzenegger prevailed despite a flurry of negative publicity in the campaign's final days, including allegations of inappropriate conduct toward women.

"The truth of the matter is the voters never took their eye off the ball," Schwarzenegger spokesman Sean Walsh said Wednesday on ABC's "Good Morning America."

Schwarzenegger will need to turn in a budget plan by Jan. 10, giving him just a few months to deliver on campaign-trail promises not to raise taxes or cut education spending, which consumes roughly 40 percent of California's budget. Throughout the campaign, Schwarzenegger refused to say what he would cut and promised to repeal this year's tripling of the state vehicle license fee, although he has not said how he would make up the $4 billion that would cost.

Schwarzenegger must work with Democrats, who are a majority of both houses in the Legislature and hold all statewide offices except his newly won governorship.

He dismissed the problem on the campaign trail, saying he knew how to work with Democrats because he's married to one � Kennedy relative Maria Shriver.

Despite the rancorous recall, Bustamante and other Democrats quickly pledged to put partisanship behind them and work with the new governor.

"As I see it, we campaign as partisans but we govern as Californians," said Bustamante, whose term expires in 2006. "I know how to balance a budget and I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work."

Schwarzenegger, 56, weathered last-minute allegations from 16 women who said he groped them or made unwanted sexual advances, and accusations that as a young man he spoke admiringly of Adolf Hitler.

He denied the Hitler claims and dismissed some of the groping allegations as lies while admitting he "behaved badly sometimes."

By the time those charges surfaced, voters' desire to oust the deeply unpopular Davis was too sharp to curb.

Exit polling showed that many Hispanics and union members � two key groups in Davis' past electoral successes � deserted him as he suffered extraordinarily low job approval ratings amid widespread discontent about the state's economy, according to voter surveys conducted for The Associated Press and other news organizations by Edison Media Research and Mitofsky International.

But the recall was more than a message to Davis, said former Clinton White House chief of staff Leon Panetta, who called it a warning shot to all officeholders.

"It's a revolt of people who are increasingly angry at the crises that face them, and at the failure of leadership," Panetta said. "If I were a Republican, I wouldn't get too cocky about what happened."

Schwarzenegger's improbable rise to political power played out before a rapt international audience. He campaigned as an outsider, borrowing a line from the movie "Network" to tell charged-up supporters, "We're mad as hell and we're not going to take it anymore!"

The 135 candidates included a parade of bit players, including Hustler publisher Larry Flynt, former child actor Gary Coleman and a porn actress who wanted to tax breast implants. But to many Californians, it was serious business.

"I'm horrified at the thought that Schwarzenegger can be our governor," said Gretchen Purser, 25, of Berkeley, who voted against recall. "I'm sick of Republicans trying to take over the state."

Jim Hall, 62, voted yes for the recall and for Schwarzenegger. "Call him the governator or the gropenator, we're going to see some action now," Hall said early Wednesday as he passed through the weight room at 24 Hour Fitness Sport in Camarillo.

"For the first time, we'll have somebody who will probably listen to the people and figure out what it is that has to be done, not the same old thing the way politics goes."

Voters also rejected Proposition 54, a contentious initiative that would have banned state and local governments from tracking race in everything from preschools to police work. Californians also said no to Proposition 53, which would have set aside up to 3 percent of the state budget every year to build and rebuild infrastructure.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

We weren't just "seething over taxes and red ink"....it was also the obsene amount of theft in California's government over the years that has made us so angry.

California taxpayers pay billions. The government here doesn't have millions to work with, it's billions. And yet, all that money just seems to slip through the government's fingers and we end up with nothing.

It's not just that they want to raise taxes, we're willing to pay for something if it's worth it. It's the greed. The obvious greed. The money never goes where it's suppossed to. It's always in some politician's pocket. Then they apologize, and do it again.

From the rolling black-outs that didn't need to happen but did happen so that energy companies could make even more money, to the earthquake that became a gold mine to unscrupulous public officials and insurance corporations and a huge blow to little people, to the DMV scandal - more millions and millions gone, to well, you get the picture... and all of these problems we were told needed...you guessed it...MONEY to fix.

You need a car in California more than anywhere, so naturally the costs are higher by far...and then Grey Davis signed a bill to triple our car registration payments, which are too high anyway!

Giving licenses to illegal immigrants? Everyone is against this idea! First of all, we're talking about giving more money to the DMV....the embezzeling DMV. Secondly, we have enough drivers on the road that don't understand the rules. But I'm sure it would make insurance companies happy that the moment that law went into effect they could raise our rates again!

And where does all our money go to? Has the lottery money helped the schools? No. This is a big rich state, and we just attract the biggest con artists.

It's like how we can't find a good chief of police for the LAPD even. They come from all over the country to apply with dollar signs in their eyes. Then you hear about huge parties they're having in Vegas on our dime.

It seemingly never ends.

Now, we have Arnold Schwarzenegger, who doesn't play the political game, which is refreshing AND he's so rich that we know he won't steal money. And he's so famous that any little thing he does will be under a microscope, and scrutinized. We won't hear about some nightmare long after it's gone, and then hear the same government asking us for even more money.

I voted for Schwarzenegger and I'm glad he won.

- CrystalTJapan

P.S. No, we don't care about the allegations of horseplay. Think of us what you will. Here's a little California humor for you...I heard a guy on the radio say he saw a bumper sticker that read "I'd rather be groped by Schwarzenegger then take it from behind from Davis"

Oh! And California is going to look like a freak show to you people?!? Big threat!! Aren't we already the "land of fruits and nuts"? lol I don't care! I'm joining the circus?! OK, fine, I ran away from home! This is fun! I'd do it again!

Posted on Oct 8, 2003, 8:39 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

'Siegfried & Roy' Co-Star Says Show Will Go On

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Montecore, a 600-pound white bengal tiger, and Las Vegas showmen Siegfried, left, and Roy Horn, right, pose after their "Siegfried and Roy" show in this March 10, 2002 handout photo

BERLIN (Reuters) - The co-star of the Las Vegas duo "Siegfried & Roy" said in an interview Wednesday their show would go on despite his partner's severe mauling by a tiger.

Siegfried Fischbacher, whose partner Roy Horn was mauled on Friday, told Germany's Bild newspaper Horn had given him a V-for-victory sign when he visited him, although doctors say it is unclear if the performer will make a full recovery.

The German-born duo's popular "Siegfried & Roy" act would continue, Fischbacher told Bild.

"I'm sure he's going to make a complete recovery," said the 64-year-old illusionist. "He's over the worst. When I went to visit Roy he gave me the victory sign."

Fischbacher said that he and Roy, who was born in the northern German town of Nordenham, were not quitters and that they would come back fighting.

"What happened does not mean it's ended," Fischbacher told Bild. "Our show will go on. We've always been fighters. The history of 'Siegfried & Roy' is nowhere near its conclusion."

Horn's doctor, neurosurgeon Derek Duke, said in a statement in Las Vegas that it was still too early to say whether the performer would fully recovery from the attack.

"Mr. Horn's injury was extremely severe, and it is all but miraculous that he is alive at this time," Duke said, crediting Horn's "extraordinary will and strong physical attributes."

"While we are very pleased with his progress, Mr. Horn is in critical condition and it will be quite some time before the extent of his recovery is known," he said. "Every day that passes increases his chance for survival and recovery."

Fischbacher told Bild that America's best surgeons were treating Roy, 59, who had been in a critical condition after being bitten on the neck and dragged offstage Friday by a seven-year-old, 600-pound white tiger called Montecore.

Members of the show, which had run around 5,700 times previously without serious mishap, had said that the show would be closed down after the incident, probably for good.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 8, 2003, 8:37 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

NBC And Universal Studios To Merge

.....................................................................................................................................................................
PARIS - Vivendi Universal and General Electric Co. have agreed to merge the French company's Hollywood studio and other U.S. entertainment assets with GE's television network NBC, creating a media giant with an estimated value of $43 billion.

The terms of the deal announced Wednesday were largely unchanged from a preliminary agreement reached a month ago, when the two companies entered exclusive talks about a merger and sketched out broad outlines for a combined company to be called NBC Universal.

The new company will include the NBC television network and its cable channels CNBC, MSNBC and Bravo and Spanish-language broadcaster Telemundo.

From the Vivendi side, the new company will get the Universal movie and TV studios � which already make NBC's hit show "Law & Order" � plus the USA, Sci-Fi and Trio cable channels and several theme parks.

Universal Music Group, the largest music company, is not part of the deal and will be retained by Vivendi.

The newly created company will have about $13 billion in annual revenues, making it a sizable competitor in the media field but still much smaller than industry giants like AOL Time Warner Inc., which had $41 billion in revenues last year, and Walt Disney Co., which had revenues of $25 billion.

NBC will own 80 percent of the new entity, with the remaining 20 percent controlled by Vivendi. NBC Universal will be led by Bob Wright, vice chairman of GE and chairman and chief executive of NBC, the companies said.

The combination requires regulatory approvals in Washington and Brussels, but is expected to be finalized in the first half of 2004, Vivendi executives said.

The deal will give NBC more weight in an industry dominated by companies like AOL Time Warner and Viacom Inc., which owns MTV and CBS. NBC has been the only major network not owned by a larger media conglomerate. Walt Disney Co. owns ABC and News Corp. owns Fox.

For Vivendi, the deal offers an opportunity to trim back debts � which totaled $13 billion at the end of July � run up during a buying spree under former chief executive Jean-Marie Messier.

The companies' decision to enter exclusive talks last month marked the end of a long-running auction, with at least five other companies showing interest in the U.S.-based entertainment empire.

The deal will allow Vivendi to pair up its limited U.S. television assets with the NBC empire.

Vivendi's chairman Jean-Rene Fourtou told reporters in a conference call Wednesday that its U.S. TV holdings "were too small to be really competitive on the American television scene." He said Vivendi Universal had been having trouble negotiating contracts for the channels.

NBC is paying $3.8 billion in cash as part of the deal. Vivendi, an 86 percent shareholder of the Vivendi Universal Entertainment, will get $3.3 billion of that cash � which will enhance Fourtou's debt-reduction program.

In addition, NBC will take on $1.7 billion of Vivendi's debt, slightly above the $1.6 billion initially announced in September.

Fourtou said the merger would allow Vivendi to reduce debt to $5 billion and be a profitable company by the end of 2004.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 8, 2003, 8:36 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

David Bowie Begins His World Tour Tonight In Denmark - Five US Tour Dates Added

Pics of David Bowie performing at a dress rehearsal in Brussels on Saturday along with a clipping from Britain's Daily Star newspaper

Tonight David Bowie kicks off his world tour for Reality in Denmark. Check here tomorrow for the set list and hopefully a review from someone!

Also, 5 more dates have been added to the US leg.

06 December 2003 - Atlantic City - BORGATA
16 December 2003 - Uncasville - MOHEGAN SUN
16 January 2004 - Chicago - ROSEMONT THEATRE
30 January 2004 - Las Vegas - THE JOINT
02 February 2004 - Los Angeles - SHRINE AUDITORIUM

I have tickets to the other LA show at the Shrine, but OMG! What a travesty! Went to http://www.ticketmaster.com at 10 am, well before 10 am, and kept trying to buy tickets until it actually started, and when tickets finally went on sale...no tickets for 2 people! So, we tried one person, no dice! I'm telling you, I was pacing around the house talking to myself while my sister was trying it over and over. Some people's tickets were dumped over time, and every time she saw better seats, she got more tickets, so we ended up with 6 pairs of balcony seats. Then while I was at work, because I was already crying earlier that day about it...lol my sister went to http://www.ebay.com and spent tons on 11th row. So, I know why they added a second show. But, I don't know what to tell you about how to get tickets. Keep trying, but don't over do it I guess! lol

Have fun!

- CrystalTJapan

This message has been edited by crystaltjapan from IP address 68.69.253.68 on Oct 7, 2003 1:18 PM
This message has been edited by crystaltjapan from IP address 68.69.253.68 on Oct 7, 2003 1:17 PM

Posted on Oct 7, 2003, 1:07 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Copenhagen, Denmark Set List

Here is the Copenhagen, Denmark set list for tonight's show as reported by Bowie fans, TheLodger and Lodger79 on the http://www.bowiewonderworld.com message board.

1.New Killer Star (Reality 2003)
2.Afraid (Heathen 2002)
3.Fame (Young Americans 1975)
4.Cactus (Heathen 2002)
5.Battle For Britain (Earthling 1997)
6.Fall Dog Bombs The Moon (Reality 2003)
7.Breaking Glass (short) (Low 1977)
8.Reality (Reality 2003)
9.Changes (Hunky Dory 1971)
10.The Man Who Sold The World (original ver) (The Man Who Sold The World 1970)
11.Hallo Spaceboy (1.Outside 1995)
12.Under Pressure (Single Co-written with Freddie Mercury 1981)
13.Sunday (Hours... 1999)
14.Bring Me The Disco King (Reality 2003)
15.She'll Drive The Big Car (Reality 2003)
16.Ashes To Ashes (Scary Monsters and Super Creeps 1980)
17.Never Get Old (Reality 2003)
18.Pablo Picasso (Reality 2003)
19.Fantastic Voyage (Lodger 1979)
20.I'm Afraid Of Americans (Earthling 1997)
21.Rebel Rebel (new ver) (Diamond Dogs 1974)
22.Heroes ("Heroes" 1977)
23.Heathen (Heathen 2002)
24.Slip Away (Heathen 2003)
25.Hang On To Yourself (The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars 1972)
26.Let's Dance (Let's Dance 1983)
27.Ziggy Stardust (The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars 1972)

Stage Design:
Very simple -- 8ft high catwalks to the sides and back -- Tree branches a la Reality cd artwork over the side catwalks

TheLodger didn't break it up as though there were an encore, so I don't know.

Still waiting for some kind of review, but it's late over there, and I know people are trying to get their sleep.

- CrystalTJapan

This message has been edited by crystaltjapan from IP address 68.69.253.68 on Oct 7, 2003 3:32 PM
This message has been edited by crystaltjapan from IP address 68.69.253.68 on Oct 7, 2003 3:30 PM
This message has been edited by crystaltjapan from IP address 68.69.253.68 on Oct 7, 2003 3:20 PM

Posted on Oct 7, 2003, 3:17 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Arrest Warrant Issued For Ben Affleck

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Ben Affleck is seen here with Jennifer Lopez at a 'Gigli' premiere July 27

Sometimes, as Ben Affleck may attest, it's handy to be hounded by the press.

Affleck's publicist says there are "at least 50 paparazzi and others" who can document that the in-the-spotlight superstar was at his estate in Georgia on a day last month when a woman says he threatened her in North Carolina.

"This whole thing is absurd," publicist Ken Sunshine said Monday.

"This whole thing" is a misdemeanor warrant issued for Affleck's arrest on Saturday after Tara Ray, of Kure Beach, North Carolina, told a local magistrate that the Sum of All Fears star had "communicated threats" to her on September 25.

It is not known what Affleck, 31, is alleged to have "communicated" in the unspecified threats, or how he is alleged to have "communicated" them.

The actor's camp branded the accusations bogus.

"He's never heard of this person, he's never met her," Sunshine said of Ray, who, for her part, told the Associated Press she's been romantically involved with the actor since February 2002.

Sunshine said that on September 25, Affleck was at his 86-acre plantation near Savannah, Georgia, the actor's fortress of relative solitude since famously not marrying Jennifer Lopez as scheduled on September 13 in California.

Noting that Affleck has done little of late without a shutterbug nearby, Sunshine said, "there are at least 50 paparazzi and others who have been tailing him constantly for the past month." Among the recent Affleck actions documented by the press: His September 22 joint appearance with Lopez at a Georgia courthouse to process a gun-license request.

More infamously, the tabloid press was all over a visit Affleck, sans Lopez, paid to a Canadian strip club in July. Resulting stories in the National Enquirer, vehemently denied by the actor, alleged Affleck looked and touched. In that case, a resident exotic dancer backed up Affleck's statements in her own libel and slander lawsuit against the tab.

Kure Beach police said Monday they're "attempting to confirm certain information" regarding the arrest warrant. In the meantime, they've returned the warrant to the courts to see if anyone there is interested in serving the out-of-state actor. Police noted a local newspaper report that said officers were not investigating, nor searching for Affleck, was not entirely accurate, but declined to elaborate.

Ray, who could not be reached for comment Monday, told the Associated Press that she believed her life was in danger from Affleck.

"I'm not out for the publicity part. I just wanted it to be known in the public that he's very capable of doing this to me," Ray told the wire service Sunday.

She said she couldn't discuss the specifics of her case on the advice of her attorney. Then she told the A.P. she couldn't disclose the name of said attorney.

Per the magistrate's office in New Hanover County, North Carolina, where the warrant was issued, anyone can assert his or her constitutional right and request a warrant if that person believes a criminal act has occurred.

Kure Beach is a small (population: 1,507), coastal town near the oft-used Hollywood locale of Wilmington.

At least one local said there'd been no recent Affleck sightings there.

"Not that I know of. And I normally party it up in this town," said Donald Dine, who works at the Trading Post Fort Fisher convenience store. "[If he had seen him], I probably would've bought him a beer."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 7, 2003, 12:46 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

French Rock Star Held In Manslaughter Case

.....................................................................................................................................................................

A police officer escorts French rock star Bertrand Cantat during a court session in Vilnius, Lithuania , Thursday, July 31, 2003

VILNIUS, Lithuania - A French rock star held in Lithuania on suspicion of manslaughter in the beating death of his actress girlfriend will stay in prison through Dec. 31, a Lithuanian judge ruled Tuesday.

Bertrand Cantat, lead singer of the popular French band Noir Desir, or Black Desire, has been held in Lithuania since late July after his girlfriend, actress Marie Trintignant, was found beaten into a coma. She later died.

His lawyer, Virginijus Leonas Papirtis, had sought the singer's release, saying he posed no risk of fleeing from the Baltic state of 3.5 million.

Like previous hearings, Cantat was not in court Tuesday.

Trintignant, 41, died Aug. 1 in a Paris hospital after she was beaten while in Lithuania where she was starring in a film. An autopsy found she died from multiple blows to her face and head.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 7, 2003, 12:45 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

British 'Mind Control' Show Really Just A Stunt

.....................................................................................................................................................................
LONDON - More than 3 million people in Britain watched on live television as Derren Brown held a gun to his head and fired three times, then turned the weapon away and appeared to blow a hole in a sandbag with the next round.

Brown, who claims to be a mind control expert, said he could read the thoughts of the volunteer who placed the gun's single bullet in a numbered chamber. But police say his game of Russian roulette wasn't what it seemed � special effects were used and the gun held only a blank.

On the island of Jersey in the English Channel, where the show was made, Deputy Chief Officer Lenny Harper said Britain's Channel 4 television informed his department of the stunt in advance and used a prop gun that did not contain any real bullets.

"Whether or not we approve or condone that sort of TV is not our business," he said. "We knew and we were satisfied that no one was in danger and it was simply a magical illusion."

While some blank ammunition can kill if fired close enough to the body, Harper said the blank Brown used did not pose any danger.

"There is absolutely no way that the States of Jersey police would allow anybody to put themselves at risk and shoot themselves dead," Harper said. "This program was made by a TV company very experienced in pyrotechnics, in making smoke and bullet holes appear. It was no different to film which uses special effects."

Channel 4 had said it staged the stunt in Jersey because gun laws would have made it illegal in England. Jersey, which has its own legislature, is part of the Channel Islands � self-governing territories of the British Crown, and not part of the United Kingdom.

"This was part of the ploy," said Harper, explaining that while laws on real guns were looser in Jersey, the prop gun would have been legal in both places.

Brown's spokesman, Greg Day, declined to comment.

Channel 4 said in a statement that it "was very mindful of its responsibility to ensure the safety of all involved, and liaised with the Jersey police in advance of filming there to ensure that no offenses were committed."

A spokeswoman declined to comment further and would not say whether there had been a real bullet in the gun. Channel 4 had said the handgun was a Smith & Wesson.

Harper did not identify the weapon.

Even before the police statement, many were angered by Sunday's broadcast of "Derren Brown Plays Russian Roulette Live," saying the program glamorized guns and suicide and could prompt children to play Russian roulette.

"It sends entirely the wrong message," said Rick Naylor, chief superintendent of the South Yorkshire police and vice president of the Police Superintendents' Association. "You're going to get copycat kids doing this and we're possibly going to end up with some tragedies."

Channel 4 said on its Web site that Brown had picked the volunteer who supposedly placed the bullet in his gun from among 12,000 applicants.

"A single bullet was placed into a numbered chamber, unseen by Derren, who then put the gun to his head," the Web site said.

It said Brown had used "his famous ability to read people to determine which chamber contains the bullet."

Brown, 32, has made several hourlong specials for Channel 4 and a series in which he purported to use his mind to get people to do things, such as raising their hands.

Reviewer Victor Lewis-Smith slammed Sunday's program in London's Evening Standard as "empty, vulgar and distasteful theatricality."

"Channel 4's hypocritical 'don't try this at home kids' warnings couldn't disguise the ghoulish glee with which they were dangling the prospect of ... (a) 'you'll never get those stains out of the carpet' moment before viewers, in the name of light entertainment."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 7, 2003, 12:44 PM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Magician Roy Horn Gives Thumbs Up After Surgery

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Roy Horn (L) of the magic duo Siegfried & Roy addresses the crowd as he arrives at his birthday party with Siegfried Fischbacher (R) at the Mirage Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada, October 2, 2003

The cast and crew of the Siegfried & Roy show hold a candlelight vigil for magician Roy Horn outside University Medical Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, on October 5, 2003 -- From left, comedian/magician Amazing Johnathan, Emily Zolten, standing next to her friend Penn Jillette, of the comedy/magic duo Penn and Teller, Teller, and Mike Jones with the Penn and Teller show, stand together outside University Medical Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, October 5, 2003

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) - Famed Las Vegas magician Roy Horn of the "Siegfried and Roy" duo on Sunday signaled thumb's up after a second surgery to relieve pressure on his brain, two days after being savagely mauled by a white tiger during a performance, according to a family friend.

Horn remained in critical but stable condition at University Medical Center in Las Vegas, about two miles north of the Mirage hotel-casino.

A 600-pound seven-year-old male tiger grabbed the performer's forearm about halfway into the Friday night show at the Mirage, witnesses said.

When Horn tried to fend the tiger off with his microphone -- hitting the animal in the face and saying "no, no" -- it lunged and bit him on the neck and dragged him offstage, causing massive bleeding, they said.

Handlers sprayed the tiger with a fire extinguisher to separate him from Roy, who was conscious when he was rushed from the hotel to undergo about two hours of surgery.

Even as he was being attacked by the tiger, he showed concern for the audience by trying to remain calm and not do anything that might provoke the tiger to attack anyone else. As Horn was being led away by paramedics, he said: "Don't kill the cat," according to Amy Fink, a family friend who came by the hospital after the surgery.

Fink was one of 600 people who attended Horn's birthday party Thursday evening in a showroom at the Mirage. The entertainer turned 59 on Friday.

Late Saturday night, Siegfried and Roy's longtime manager announced the S&R spectacle, as they called it, would be suspended indefinitely. Everyone who works for the show was told they should probably look for a job somewhere else.

Communicating With His Eyes

"We didn't want to lead them to think this would resolve in the next day or two, week or two, or month or two," said Alan Feldman, a spokesman for MGM Mirage .

Lynette Chapelle, one of the stars of the Siegfried & Roy show, said Horn has communicated with doctors and friends despite being on heavy medication and in critical condition from the neck wound. He communicates with his eyes, squeezes hands and can make some sounds, she said.

Penn Jillette, of the magic act Penn & Teller, was among those who have visited the hospital in past 24 hours to show support. "They devised this bigger than life thing," Jillette said. "His job, he's the best at it there ever was. You could never read the danger in his face."

S&R cast members and other Las Vegas entertainers plan to hold a vigil at the hospital this evening.

"I think time is a good thing," Horn spokesman David Kirvin said, saying his survival after two days is a "positive" sign.

"The doctors are encouraged that he will recover, but it will be several days until the full extent of his injury is known," Kirvin said in an interview on Saturday.

Horn's partner, 64-year-old Siegfried Fischbacher, spent most of Friday night and early Saturday at the hospital, Kirvin said. "He is shocked and devastated," he said.

There had been no previous attacks in the more than 5,000 shows the two men have performed at the hotel, said Bernie Yuman, manager for "Siegfried and Roy."

"The last place Roy would place blame would be with the animal," Yuman said on Saturday.

White tigers and lions are a trademark of the German-born illusionists, who have been putting on one of the most famous shows in Las Vegas for more than 30 years and performing at the Mirage for 14 years.

Horn, born in Nordenham, Germany, and Fischbacher, of Rosenheim, Germany, have performed worldwide since meeting in 1959.
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 6, 2003, 10:25 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

P. Diddy Implicated In Two Murders By Former Associate

.....................................................................................................................................................................

Sean 'P. Diddy' Combs announces his entry in the 2003 New York City Marathon Tuesday, Sept. 30, 2003 in New York

Rap mogul Sean "P. Diddy" Combs has been going to great lengths to refine his bad boy image. The mogul is slated to run the New York Marathon on November 2 to raise funds for educational charities, but several allegations made by a former friend and partner could damage the mogul's image beyond repair. Kirk Burrowes, former president of Bad Boy Entertainment, has filed a $25 million lawsuit against Combs. In the lawsuit, Burrowes implicates Combs in the death of Suge Knight's bodyguard, Jai "Big Jake" Hassan, and in the death of rap star Tupac Shakur, according to the New York Post.

In sworn testimony, Burrowes accused Combs of building his Bad Boy organization "to gain power, recognition, fame, and financial gain through acts and threats involving murder, mayhem, and extortion via the enterprise."

Burrowes' testimony implicated Combs in the death of Suge Knight's bodyguard, Jai "Big Jake" Hassan, "With the consent, approval and ratification of the enterprise, Suge Knight's chief bodyguard Big Jake was murdered in 1995."

Hassan was murdered in Atlanta during the height of the East Coast versus West Coast feud between Knight's Death Row Records and Combs' Bad Boy Records. Combs' close associate Anthony "Wolf" Jones was identified by a local deputy sheriff as the shooter, but the deputy sheriff was later killed in a car accident.

Jones was Combs and young rapper Shyne's co-defendant in 2001, when the three stood trial for the infamous December 1999 Club New York shooting. Jones and Combs were acquitted of assault and weapons charges, while Shyne was found guilty of assault and sentenced to 10 years behind bars.

Burrowes also says in his sworn testimony that Bad Boy Entertainment was suspected to have hired the shooter who shot Tupac Shakur, Death Row Records' biggest star, in 1996.

The suit also accuses Combs of bursting into Burrowes' office in 1996 and brandishing a baseball bat to intimidate Burrowes into signing over his 25 percent stake in Bad Boy to Combs. Burrowes--who is godfather to the rap mogul's son, Justin--says that P. Diddy later apologized and said he'd make good on their original deal, but never did. Burrowes also accused Combs of causing Mary J. Blige to fire him as her manager.

Burrowes also claims that Combs had songwriter John Bentley of Philadelphia intimidated, "John Bentley was threatened with a pistol Jan. 31, 2002...was shot near his home in Philadelphia in September 2002 and stalked by telephone and in person by thugs hired by Combs in Atlanta."

Combs' attorney Benjamin Brafman responded to the allegations, "This is one of the many entirely baseless lawsuits that Mr. Combs and other superstars like him must contend with on a regular basis."

Burrowes' attorney John Bostany explained that his client is only seeking justice, "My client appears to be the victim of a corrupt group that 'thugs its way through it' and I am here to help him get justice."
.....................................................................................................................................................................

Posted on Oct 6, 2003, 10:23 AM
from IP address 68.69.253.68

Respond to this message

Goto Forum Home

Find more forums on Classic Rock

Create your own forum at Network54