Saturday, May 29, 2010

Heidi Pratt Preps for �Best Summer of My Life� With Pal, New Show?

Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt have yet to personally comment on Friday�s announcement (from Montag�s rep) of a breakup.

As some decry the news as another publicity stunt, 23-year-old Montag emerged on Twitter late Friday with a cheerful announcement: �This is going to be the best summer of my life!!!!�

And an old pal � and one-time Hills costar � claims Heidi�s summer plans are already in place.

Jennifer Bunney, who appeared in earlier seasons of The Hills: �Heidi and I are moving into a Malibu beach house this summer.�

The cameras, naturally, will be rolling: Bunney says she and Montag will be filming a new reality show. ��We�re really excited to do girly things and show people who we really are and that we�re really fun, sweet and loyal girls.�

Bunney added that Montag and Pratt, who wed in April 2009, are not �legally� separated.

�But, she is moving in with me. It�s just her being able to have some freedom from marriage and for us to work on our friendship and focus on things we want to focus on.�

The new show will likely deal with Montag�s marital situation, she claimed. ��The show is going to focus on our friendship, getting through things with each other like marriage stuff and boyfriend stuff.�

A rep for Heidi broke the apparent news to TMZ Friday that ��Heidi is looking to move out due to all the fake bad press that Spencer controls�She�s tired of it and is looking for a place and wants to focus on her acting career.�

As reported in Us Weekly, many former friends and family members worried that Montag was isolated and �brainwashed� by Pratt, 26. The couple hired four ex-Marines to guard their L.A. home, spent $400,000 on healing crystals and shut out nearly all of their loved ones � including Heidi�s mom, Darlene Egelhoff.

Jessica Alba Memorial Day Weekend Family Fun


Ready for a day of family fun, Jessica Alba, Cash Warren and Honor Marie were spotted stepping out of their Los Feliz residence on Saturday (May 29).

With a town car showing up to scoop up the trio, Cash made several trips out to the chauffeured ride with bags and his golf clubs, as did Miss Alba.

After packing up the town car for the family holiday, the trio again emerged one last time from the house with daughter Honor Warren in hand and a few cups of coffee for a needed pick-me-up.

Excited for the Memorial Day weekend festivities, Cash tweeted, "What a gorgeous day! The ocean is filled with the most beautiful rainbows!"

Hilary Duff: Fit and Fine

Keeping up on her physical fitness, Hilary Duff spent the morning running around the Los Angles, California area on Saturday (May 29).

Joined by her fianc� hockey player Mike Comrie, the happy couple was busy staying in shape together with routine workouts at a private gym.

Making separate exits, Duff and Comrie smiled as they passed by awaiting paparazzi following the intense sweat session.

Spending the Memorial Day weekend together, the duo were out the previous evening grabbing up dinner with Hil's mom at Katsuya.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Cocoa Pebbles Maker Got Slammed By Hogan

Hulk Hogan has a new nemesis, and this time it's not a fellow professional brawler.

The wrestler and reality star is suing Post, the maker of Cocoa Pebbles, after noticing that the villain in a recent commercial bears a striking resemblance to his own iconic persona. The commercial stars the sugary cereal's animated mascots from "The Flintstones" going up against said competitor, which the lawsuit says goes by the name of "Hulk Boulder." According to a Tampa Tribune report, Hogan contends he used the name "Hulk Boulder" early in his career before wrestling promoter Vince McMahon decided he should have an Irish name. (A visit to Hogan's Wikipedia page revealed one of his early nom de brawls as having been "Terry Boulder", but there's no mention of a "Hulk Boulder".)

In the commercial, called "Cocoa Smashdown," Boulder is depicted with Hogan's trademark yellow-blond hair and handlebar mustache. Boulder is conquered by Pebbles and Bamm-Bamm, and falls to "little pieces" in the ring.
 
Hogan claims Post cereals is using his likeness without his permission -- and that, in fact, they never even asked his permission. He claims that he brought his concerns to the company's attention in August, but Post continued to run the ads. Hogan has his own line of branded foods (burgers and energy drinks) at Wal-Mart, and claims that an unauthorized likeness in a food commercial could hurt Hogan's own interests.

Hogan's lawyer confirmed a lawsuit had been filed based on "misappropriation of Terry Bollea's (Hulk Hogan) likeness for commercial purposes." The attorney wouldn't reveal the exact dollar amount that his client is hoping to win from his lawsuit, saying only that they are seeking "damages that would represent fair compensation for the use of his likeness in the commercial arena." 

While the "Cocoa Smashdown" character does bear a close resemblance to Hogan, some YouTube commenters beg to differ on the name, saying the character's name sounds more like "Bulk Boulder." Decide for yourself:



Cocoa Pebbles commercial @ Yahoo! Video


Monday, May 24, 2010

The Secret Behind Jay-Z's Jewelry

Jay's come a long way since Marcy Projects, where he used to to sport thick rope chains and nugget medallions. Back then, big weighty baubles were a sign of the times in the rap game; a sign of getting money, and a sort of stature over other rap rivals where bigger was considered to be better. And though some still believe this to be true, (shout out to Slick Rick, who may be the only person who can get away with wearing gigantic jewels in 2010) it's no longer the case for Jay-Z, who's shown that he's more than secure in being the person he's evolved into---a music mogul, a business entrepreneur and a husband. All of this, and his jewelry is still kept minimal. He's blingy but what he sporting is more about what he believes than what we believe upon seeing him. It has to be what intrigues us about Jay. And since "The Streets" have been asking, http://www.cityrockajewelry.com is here to give you the straight dish. Where did Jay-Z get that beaded bracelet that he wears on a regular? (See above)It's a black diamond pave bracelet, and it's from Shamballa Jewels. That's http://www.Shamaballajewels.com. The company inspired by Yoga and Meditation, was started in 1994, and has been featured in high fashion magazines. More importantly, you may want to know that Shamballajewels.com is based on the belief that the wearer invites the possibility of infinite love of oneself and of others in addition to a connection to the energy of the creation. Ain't that deep? If you want to jump on the Shamballa Jewels bandwagon then start stacking up your paper(that means get your cash together) A wrist-piece like Jay-Z's is going to run you in the thousands and thousands....On To The Next One.

Thursday, May 20, 2010

James Franco to star in "Rise of the Apes"

PhotobucketPhotobucket
James Franco has his damn dirty paws on the lead role in "Rise of the Apes," a prequel to the "Planet of the Apes" franchise.

The Fox feature focuses on a scientist (Franco) who has been testing a cure for Alzheimer's on apes. The test subject named Caesar starts to evolve rapidly, and the scientist takes him home and protects him from cruel doctors.



The story is designed to be show the modern-day event that set in motion the eventual dominance of apes over humans seen the classic 1960s and '70s movies. It is unclear how much of the movie will focus on the ape inciting an ape revolution, but given that Peter Jackson's WETA effects house is on board, the monkey play could be significant.

The apes will not be actors in costumes but rather rendered digitally to be photo-realistic by New Zealand-based WETA, employing certain of the groundbreaking technologies developed for "Avatar."

The movie will shoot this summer in British Columbia. Rupert Wyatt is on board to direct.

Franco's credits include the "Spider-Man" films and "Milk."

             


�Grey�s� pumps finale full of suspense

 Photobucket
Yes, Dr. Derek Shepherd has plenty to look gloomy about on the season finale of "Grey's Anatomy." A shooter is on the loose in the hospital, and that's not even the end of it
There are a few ways to look at the jam-packed two-hour season finale of "Grey's Anatomy." It was a cleaning-out of a couple of characters that were going nowhere; it was a whirlwind tour through a bunch of long and drawn-out romantic story lines; and it gave several actors massive, Emmy-baiting showcases.



But mostly, it was an absorbing and suspenseful story that went just a little off the rails from the sheer amount of business heaped upon it.

It began with Gary Clark, who's been suing the hospital over the death of his wife. He showed up with a gun and almost immediately did away with the little used Dr. Reed Adamson, one of the Mercy West imports, in the supply room.

More significantly, he shot Alex, who dragged himself into an elevator where he waited patiently to be discovered � much like Carter once did in the famous "Carter and Lucy get stabbed" sequence on "ER," in the shadow of which this episode inevitably exists. When Reed's body was discovered, the hospital went into lockdown.

Meanwhile, Lexie and Mark found Alex and dragged him into a conference room, where Mark cut him open and Lexie stuffed balled-up surgical gloves in his mouth to keep him from screaming. (Seriously, pretty intense, this whole thing.) Their battle to save Alex was on.

In the most harrowing story of the episode, Clark came into the room where Bailey was hiding with Percy and a patient named Mary (played by Mandy Moore). Bailey heard Clark ask Percy if he was a surgeon, and when Percy said yes, Clark shot him. So when Clark dragged Bailey out from under the bed (yikes!) and asked her if she was a surgeon, she lied and said she was a nurse. Once Clark left, Bailey's battle to save Percy was on.

Meanwhile, Meredith was elsewhere in the hospital, happily learning that she was pregnant. But before she could tell Derek, Clark found and shot him as a horrified Cristina and Meredith looked on from the opposite walkway. (It must be said: It was a very nicely composed sequence). Meredith and Cristina's battle to save Derek was on.

Down in the OR, Owen and Teddy were mid surgery when the lockdown began. They had to move the patient, making Avery the only one there to receive Meredith and Cristina when they brought Derek in. This left only Cristina to do Derek's surgery.

But when Clark found them (he really got around), he put a gun to Cristina's head and demanded she stop working on Derek. A horrified Meredith and a conveniently arriving Owen looked on as Avery bluffed Clark into thinking Derek was dead long enough for Clark to leave � and then, naturally, they saved Derek's life anyway.
Alex was spared, too. Lexie barely survived an encounter with Clark herself, then announced to the half-conscious Alex that she loved him. This fact was not lost on Mark, who proposed to her last week. Lexie didn't even mind when Alex briefly mistook her for Izzie in a state of delirium, so their relationship seemingly is on track.

Not everybody is so lucky: Owen picked Cristina over Teddy, but Cristina had already dumped him by then, so it's not quite clear whether she intends to take him back.

But you can't win them all. When Bailey heroically dragged Percy through the corridors of the hospital only to find that the elevators were stopped for the lockdown, she realized there was no way to get him to the OR and that he would die. She sat on the floor with him, cradled his head in her lap and stayed with him until he died. So that's two Mercy Westers who didn't find spots in the story and got themselves killed as a result.

Much of the episode worked, until one part that felt like it had been tacked on for no good reason: Meredith miscarried while all the madness in the OR was developing.

There was a lot to like about the episode: Bailey's devastated explosion of temper at the elevators, Cristina's speech to Meredith about how she herself couldn't operate on Derek with Meredith in the room, and the scene in which Webber calmly talked Clark into killing himself to end the standoff.

But the miscarriage felt very much like an add-on, not quite earned. Having a pregnancy announced and lost in the same episode seems manipulative, and not really up to what was going on the rest of the time.
The other unsuccessful segment involved Arizona and Callie, who once again bickered annoyingly during an otherwise tense and serious story. They then got back together once again because they papered over their child issues again, with Arizona apparently agreeing to have kids even though she still doesn't actually seem to want them.

All in all, it was a very well-done finale, but it got away from the writers just a little at the end. With the shooter seemingly everywhere you didn't want him and everyone trapped with precisely the most dramatic person possible, it got a little ridiculous.

But in the end, the acting � including big nights for Chandra Wilson, Sandra Oh and Ellen Pompeo � carried it off.







             

Executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse reflect on wrapping up 'Lost'

Photobucket
THEY GET 'LOST': Damon Lindelof, left, and Carlton Cuse.

"Lost" executive producers Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse may be the most interrogated men in America. The leaders of "Lost" -- the ABC sci-fi mind-bender that ends its run Sunday -- have spent the better part of six years being bombarded by questions about what's happening on the island. This weekend, they're expected to deliver answers. How are they coping with the pressure? We snagged Q&A time with them in New York and found out.



Are you worried about the finale and how people are going to respond to it? Or are you just trying not to think about it?

Cuse: I think we're actually kind of excited about it. We've known large parts of the finale for a long time and I think it's like we're finally going to get a chance to end the show and see how people respond to it. We're really proud of the finale.

On some level it's hard because how the audience reacts is kind of out of our control. What we can do is basically make the best version of the end of the show that we knew how to do. And we feel like we made the version of the finale we wanted to make.

After the last moment of the show, what would you say is the emotion most people are most likely to feel?

Cuse: I hope sadness. If you go to a movie and it's a great experience, the experience at the end of it is always like this sadness that it's over, that your time with these characters is finished.

Lindelof: There's two things that are going to happen when the show ends. The first feeling is going to be based on what you just watched, the actual content. And the other is the feeling that you have as a result of knowing that the show is actually over. And some people are going to confuse the two.

And I think one of the really brilliant things about "The Sopranos" [finale] as a storyteller is the artistry of it, which Carlton and I have talked about ad nauseum. Basically David Chase said: I'm going to take away from you the first feeling, which is that feeling of "The show's over. How do I feel about that?" -- and he replaced it with "What just happened? Did my cable go out? I'm a little surprised by this." So the idea that the show ended so abruptly, as opposed to, we moved out of the diner and he played the emotion of, ah, this is the final shot of "The Sopranos" -- this is what it is.

We did the exact opposite. We leaned into the emotion. And you know, we tried to take those two feelings and make them the same, which is that what you're watching on the screen is exactly the same as "The show is ending."

After the series ends, you're going into radio silence and not speaking publicly about the finale. Do you know what the statute of limitations on that silence will be?

Cuse: No

Lindelof: The interpretive element of "Lost," the fact that you immediately need as soon as the episode is over to seek out a community of people to express your own thoughts about it, understand what they thought about it and form an opinion, that's the bread and butter of the show. The more we talk about what our intention was, the more we take it away from the audience. And we have no interest in doing that, ever.








Simon Cowell reveals depression battle in Oprah

Photobucket
"American Idol" judge Simon Cowell gets personal with Oprah Winfrey, opening up about his engagement to Mezhgan Hussainy, Paula Abdul's departure from the show, and his low points in life. 

Simon Cowell has showed off his softer side, telling Oprah Winfrey he has suffered from depression and admitting he had made "some absolutely horrific mistakes" in the past.

The normally abrasive American Idol judge said during an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show that he was prone to dark moods.

"I get very, very down," Cowell said.

"Pretty much depression. (But) what I always say is, 'You're taking yourself too seriously, so stop it'.

"At the same time, you should never put a painted smile on. When you're feeling down, you're feeling down."

Cowell, 50, has his own record label and also created the TV shows America's Got Talent and The X-Factor.



He said he sometimes felt drained by the demands of his work.

"You just become aware that a lot of people depend on you, rely on you, or you're not giving people the time you should be giving them. It's almost like a guilt thing - and that does drain me," he said.

Often seen as arrogant because of his stinging put-downs to aspiring entertainers, Cowell admitted he had a strong ego.

But life has not always been kind, he said.

He recalled the time 20 years ago when he lost his job, car and home and had to move back to live with his parents in Britain when a business deal went wrong.

"I made some absolutely horrific mistakes," he said.

"I believed my own ego, believed my own hype, believed my own abilities and lots of times it came crashing down. I thought I was absolutely untouchable."

Cowell's interview with Winfrey was broadcast a week before the May 26 finale of American Idol, which will mark the end of his eight-year association with the most-watched TV show in the US.


"American Idol" judge Simon Cowell gets personal with Oprah Winfrey, opening up about his engagement to Mezhgan Hussainy, Paula Abdul's departure from the show, and his low points in life.

"I've never been good at relationships," he tells Winfrey. "I never thought I'd be with one person. ... I never genuinely thought anyone would want to live with me."

He explains why he never thought he was the marrying type, saying, "I'm selfish, quite weird and I need time on my own to think, and I work all night." Cowell tells Oprah that he's quite moody and has bouts with depression. "I'm very dark when I'm in those moments. I'm very down. ... Pretty much depression. ... I just get down at times."

This is Cowell's last season on "Idol" and he discloses that he thinks the finale will be "emotional." Reflecting over the seasons past where he sat alongside former judge Abdul, he comments on her decision to leave the program, saying, "I think we had a great team. ... Paula, she's a survivor. She's got great instincts. ... She's going to come back on top."







From brutal to beloved, Simon heads to "Idol" farewell

Photobucket
(Adds quote from "Idol" judge Kara DioGuardi, note strong langauge)

He began as "Mr. Nasty," morphed into one of the most beloved (and richest) stars of U.S. pop culture, and ushered in a brutal style of reality TV.

Simon "I don't mean to be rude, but.." Cowell bids farewell to "American Idol" next week, leaving a litany of stinging put-downs, an assortment of black and white T-shirts and big shoes to fill on what began in 2002 as a summer talent contest and became America's most watched TV show.



"Simon's departure is the end of an era on 'Idol.' Everybody knows the show is going to lose something big and irreplaceable when he goes," said Todd Gold, managing editor of Fancast.com.

Cowell's exit as a judge from "American Idol" is more an "au revoir" than an "adieu" for American TV viewers. (He plans to return with his own "X-Factor" show in late 2011).

But the abrasive Briton and his one-liners have established a trend that has been widely imitated on U.S. television.

"We had seen nasty people on TV both in fiction and nonfiction. But we had never seen anything quite like him before," said Robert Thompson, professor of popular culture at Syracuse University.

"It was almost when you put a panel together, you had to have certain types and one of those included the Simon character," said Thompson, recalling the arrival on U.S. shores of Brits Piers Morgan ("America's Got Talent") and celebrity chef Gordon Ramsay ("Hell's Kitchen"), and Italian choreographer Bruno Tonioli ("Dancing With the Stars").

"Idol" judge Kara DioGuardi said Cowell's British accent was key to his success.

"Somehow everything they (the British) say is, like, lovely and fabulous. Even when they say, 'It was terrible,' it almost sounds nice. It rolls off the tongue well. Whereas if I said, 'That was awful,' it's like, 'Bitch!'," DioGuardi told Reuters at a music industry event this week.

"He gets away with a lot of stuff, and I think that it's because he has conviction. He doesn't look back, he doesn't care what people say, and he's helping these kids," she added.

"GHASTLY" ?

Whether he was rolling his eyes in exasperation, mocking fellow judge Paula Abdul, or introducing Americans to curious British expressions like "ghastly," or "a bit wet," 50-year-old Cowell was a breath of fresh air in the tried-and-true talent show formula, media watchers say.

He quickly became known simply as Simon, inspired a wave of T-shirts with slogans like "Simon Said I Was Good," and made "karaoke" a dreaded epithet.

"Simon dragged us into the reality that not every wannabe singer should be told to follow their dreams...It was a refreshing point of view that needed to be heard on U.S. television," said Entertainment Weekly's Michael Slezak.

Gold said that in previous American TV talent shows, the criticism was either polite, or camouflaged in comedy, Cowell was direct, personal and funny.

What's more, his unscripted, jaw-dropping comments helped revive a tradition of live "anything can happen" entertainment at a time when packaged broadcasting had become the norm.

In a 2003 autobiography, "I Don't Mean to Be Rude, But..." Cowell said he produced his first insult at the age of four. He told his mother bluntly that she looked like a poodle.

By 2009, the man who started out as a talent scout for a British record company, had parlayed his success on "Idol" into a career as a TV producer on both sides of the Atlantic, launched his own record label, Syco, and turned singers Susan Boyle, Leona Lewis and Il Divo into international stars.

He was named by Forbes.com as the top-earning man on prime time U.S. television with an estimated haul of $75 million in 2009, and topped the 2009 Hollywood Reporter list of the 50 most powerful people in reality television.

This ninth season on "Idol" however has seen a milder Cowell, often relying on a menu of stock insults like "cruise ship," or "worst I've ever heard," Idol watchers said.

Audiences have also slipped some 9 percent this year.

"He does seem a little checked out this season. I think he's already dreaming about his new love," said Slezak, referring to Cowell's planned U.S. version of "The X-Factor".

But that doesn't make the job of filling his "Idol" seat next year any easier.

"Replacing Simon Cowell could be good for 'American Idol'", said Thompson, noting the show's age and shrinking audience.

"But it is probably the most difficult casting decision to come along in American television in a long, long time."






Adam Ant sectioned under Mental Health Act days after screaming abuse at Christians

PhotobucketPhotobucket

Eighties pop star Adam Ant has been sectioned under the Mental Health Act, it was claimed this evening.

It follows a series of troubled public appearances, including a concert last week where he unleashed a tirade of abuse at Christians during a charity gig.

According to The Music Fix (TMF) website, Adam Ant sent a message to fans which said he had been admitted to hospital.



It read: 'Ant fans - please send me postcards at the Chelsea & Westminster Hospital, Fulham Road. Please don't come down here as it may upset the staff who have been really pleasant.

'I am having a well earned rest at Her Majesty's Pleasure and am painting and continuing being an art student. I have a great view and am considering gigs later in the year.'

The 55-year-old popstar has a troubled history and has a history of depression.

The Antmusic singer announced earlier this year he would go back on the road for the sake of his 12-year-old daughter Lily.

But his return was marred last week with an odd performance in Portsmouth.

On May 11, Adam, real name Stuart Goddard, was due to play a 30-minute set at the Oasis Centre to raise money for starving children in the Phillipines.

During the show, he invited a four-year-old boy up on stage and began to teach him the words to The Who's My Generation.

And when the frustrated crowd started to leave, he began screaming obscenities at them.

He even asked if there were any Christians in the room, and then told them to 'f**k off'.

Goddard was then booed off the stage before twins - who he referred to as 'his nieces' - Alex and Naomi Hewston, 22, got into a fight with promoter Nick Courtney's son Sam backstage.

He then returned to London on Saturday to perform with his live band at Paper Dresstival.

According to an Adam & The Ants fansite, Goddard, who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, was sectioned after an incident on Tuesday evening.

n 2002, he threatened drinkers at a North London pub with an imitation pistol, but escaped a jail term on the grounds of mental illness.

And he was sectioned in September 2003 after a dispute with a neighbour where he threatened to smash in his patio doors with a shovel and was found lying naked in a cafe basement.

When he announced his comeback just weeks ago he told reporters that he had learned to live with manic depression.

The illness has caused him to be admit himself to hospital on several occasions.

But last month he said he would hit the road again for the sake of Lily, his only child and his �reason for living�.

�She has never seen Adam perform and doesn�t know what The Ants were all about,� he said.

'I�ve had this lifelong battle against manic depression, but I�ve had to overcome it for her sake. Times got bad. I lost my mind. But I�m back.�





Megan Fox And Michael Bay: Our Five Favorite Moments - Bay fired Megan from Transfomers 3

Photobucket
The months surrounding the summer 2009 release of "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" were endlessly entertaining when it came to movie journalism. The world watched with fascination, horror, giggles and gasps as director Michael Bay and star Megan Fox went at each other. The duo slammed and defended each other and threw each other under the bus only to reach under and stage a PR rescue mission.

Now, all that is behind us, as Fox has parted ways with the robot franchise, and the run-up to the release of "Transformers 3" in July 2011 promises to be significantly less titillating as a result.

PhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucketPhotobucket

We're not gonna lie � we'll miss this salacious back-and-forth between two of Hollywood's most entertaining personalities. That's why we decided to take a lighthearted look back at our favorite moments from Fox and Bay's creative partnership.

I'm Terrible, He's Terrible
In the summer of 2007, Megan Fox was a little-known actress who had appeared in a handful of TV series and the forgettable Lindsay Lohan vehicle "Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen." A year later, as "Transformers" stomped into theaters on its way to a $700 million worldwide gross, Fox was a superstar.

You'd have thought she'd be pretty pleased about her breakout turn. Not so much. "I'm terrible in it," she told Entertainment Weekly. "It's my first real movie, and it's not honest and not realistic. The movie wasn't bad, I just wasn't proud about what I did. ... But unless you're a seasoned veteran, working with Michael Bay is not about an acting experience."

She'd go on to compare Bay to Napoleon and Hitler, call him a "nightmare to work for" and declare that he has "no social skills at all."

I Made You, I Can Unmake You
Unsurprisingly, such statements didn't sit well with Bay. The guy has made six movies that have grossed more than $100 million. Clearly, he knows what he's doing. And he knows when his actors push things just a bit too far.

"Well, that's Megan Fox for you," he told the Wall Street Journal. She says some very ridiculous things because she's 23 years old and she still has a lot of growing to do. You roll your eyes when you see statements like that and think, 'OK, Megan, you can do whatever you want. I got it.' ... Nobody in the world knew about Megan Fox until I found her and put her in 'Transformers.' I like to think that I've had some luck in building actors' careers with my films."

She Just Can't Quit Him
Despite this war of words, Fox confessed to MTV News that she is "addicted" to making movies with Bay. It's that sort of statement that makes you think that, behind all the heated press reports, the two shared a rewarding � if not fond � working relationship.

"You get addicted to those big action movies," Fox told us last summer. "You get addicted to the Bay-hem. You step away from it, and you're relieved and you're relaxed and you do something that's quieter and you feel like you're really working on it and you're fleshing out and figuring things out. But then you sort of miss that abuse."

He Just Can't Quit Her
As the public nastiness between Bay and Fox was at its height, members of his "Transformers" crew posted an unauthorized open letter on his official website. The letter called Fox "queen of talking trailer trash," dubbed her acting "cringe-able" and suggested she might have a future career as a porn star.

Now it's one thing if Bay himself speaks freely about his star, but he was not about to let others use his considerable platform to trash her. He promptly pulled the letter from his site and penned his own, one which again suggested the two really do respect each other.

"I don't condone the crew letter to Megan," Bay wrote. "And I don't condone Megan's outlandish quotes. But her crazy quips are part of her crazy charm. The fact of the matter is, I still love working with her, and I know we still get along. I even expect more crazy quotes from her on 'Transformers 3.' "


That's Just Meg and Mike Being Meg and Mike
Such quotes, alas, are not to be. Much has been made of their feud in the past and much will be made in the future. But the key to their whole relationship just might be this: It's not that they battle any more than any other director-and-actor duo in Hollywood; rather, they both happen to speak their minds in public, for better or worse. Fox and Bay are outspoken people, and that's a big reason why their quotes always pop up in headlines. Boring or tight-lipped creative types simply don't make news. When it comes to Fox and Bay, that's just how they roll.

"Obviously, what he said is not untrue, about me saying ridiculous things all the time and being 23," Fox told MTV News at Comic-Con last year. "That's all accurate. Those are all things that he would say to me and has said to me. That's actually one of the kindest things he's said about me. I don't feel like we're in a war of words at all. That's just me and Mike. That's how we talk."





The Showbuzz: Shrek Forever After






Movie review: 'Shrek Forever After' aims for

 Photobucket
The last installment of the "Shrek" franchise finds the green ogre (voice of Mike Myers) in a world in which he has never been born thanks to villainous Rumpelstiltskin

The Shrek we meet at the start of "Shrek Forever After" is a shell of an ogre: mean and green on the outside, but all mellow yellow inside. Married life and fatherhood have made him soft, and no longer scary. Gone are the angry mobs who used to chase him with pitchforks, replaced by some obnoxious brat at his triplets' birthday party, who keeps demanding, "Do the roar!" as if Shrek were just another celebrity with a worn-out catchphrase.



Can this be the monster that we know and love, or is he merely going through the motions, catering to the clamoring crowds that want to see him do what he's always done, one more time?

The same thing might be asked of the movie, the fourth and supposedly final chapter in the animated series. Has "Shrek Forever After" still got it, or is it just a crass attempt to cash in on a now-tired franchise?

Believe it or not, there's life in the old boy yet. After a disappointing third outing, this "Shrek" brings the cycle of fairy-tale-themed films to a fine finish.

The premise itself will sound familiar. Not from earlier Shrek movies, but from the 1946 "It's a Wonderful Life." In an attempt to get back some of his mojo, if only for a day, Shrek (voice of Mike Myers) finds himself in the position of George Bailey, in a world in which he has never been born.

That's because he makes a magical deal with Rumpelstiltskin (Walt Dohrn). Shrek gets 24 hours to live the life he used to have, before fame and family came along. In return, Rumpelstiltskin gets to take a day from Shrek's life.

Our hero should have read the fine print more carefully. Rumpelstiltskin picks the day Shrek was born, meaning that, while Shrek now finds himself in a world unencumbered by diapers and responsibility, it's also a world in which all the good he's done has had no effect. He wasn't there to rescue his wife, Fiona (Cameron Diaz), from her tower prison. Rumpelstiltskin is now king, and his kingdom is a police state, run by witches who hunt down ogres and toss them in jail. Fiona is the Amazonian leader of the ogre resistance movement.

Fortunately, there's an escape clause: If he and Fiona share one "true love's kiss," Shrek gets his old life back. All he has to do is make Fiona fall in love with him -- all over again. If he doesn't, he'll evaporate come sunrise.

That much is reminiscent of the first two movies, which also revolved around the power of a transformative kiss. But there's enough here that's clever and new -- and at times very funny -- to keep things from feeling stale.

Many beloved old characters return, only much transformed. Gingy the gingerbread man (Conrad Vernon) is now a scarred professional gladiator, fighting animal crackers in an arena for sport. Donkey (Eddie Murphy) is a mangy beast of burden, pulling the paddy wagon into which Shrek is thrown after he's captured. Most hilariously, Puss (Antonio Banderas) can no longer fit into his boots, having put on well more than a few pounds as Fiona's pampered pet.

Among the new characters, Rumpelstiltskin makes for a perfect villain. Vain, insecure and ridiculous in an assortment of constantly changing wigs, he's a pleasure to boo and hiss at.

The Pied Piper also makes an indelible debut, without ever uttering a word. Hired by Rumpelstiltskin to round up ogres, he carries a high-tech flute with him -- it has settings for rats, witches, ogres, etc. -- that makes dancers out of whatever and whomever he wants, to consistently amusing effect. If you liked the episode of "Glee" where the football team shakes it, improbably, to Beyonc�'s "Single Ladies," you'll love the sight of hulking, line-dancing ogres.

Have we heard some of this before? Sure. But as with the best fairy tales -- the ones that bear repeating again and again -- the delight in "Shrek Forever After" is not in the tale itself, but in the telling.

*** PG. At area theaters. Contains slapsticky action and bathroom humor. 98 minutes.







Teenager who starved herself down to 5 stone beats anorexia to become beauty queen contestant

PhotobucketPhotobucket

Fit and well: Melanie Monks at a healthier eight stone, left, and when she was in the grips of anorexia 
A teenager told today how she fought a four-year battle with anorexia, starving herself for days at a time to reach her desired weight of five stone.

Melanie Monks, 19, is now a healthier eight stone and is set to enter a beauty queen competition in the hope of being able to run for the Miss England contest.

Miss Monks said she wanted to look as thin as Victoria Beckham and Nicole Richie after being bullied at school for being 'fat'.



After seeing a famous 2006 picture of a skeletal Miss Richie running down the beach in a blue bikini with her hip bones jutting out of the bottom, Miss Monks said she went without food for up to five days at a time.
She refused to keep her food down - leaving her with a gaunt face and twig-like legs.

As friends begged her to gain a little weight, Miss Monks said she was thrilled when she finally reached her shockingly tiny 'goal weight' by the age of 17 and could easily fit into clothes made for 8-10-year-olds.

But at over three stone underweight, Miss Monk's finger nails began falling off, her hair fell out in clumps and her skin came out in spots and rashes.

She eventually faced up to her problem when plumber boyfriend Lee Ryan 26, convinced her to research eating disorders on the internet and she recognised she was a sufferer and underwent counselling.

Now Miss Monks is a more healthy eight stone and is due to start a degree in psychology.

She is also due to enter a beauty queen competition in her hometown of Blackburn in the hope of being able to run for the Miss England contest.

Miss Monks today condemned the culture of stick thin models and said: 'We've all been bombarded with images of these celebrities we admire aspiring to be really thin but it's wrong and it's a bad example to set. It's simply not healthy.

'It's a tough ride. I don't think it ever goes away. I'm still in recovery but I'm definitely on the other end and I want to help other girls out. I want to show them that beauty's not just about that.

'I may still be thin but I'm getting better, I'm active, I work very hard and I'm healthy.'

As a youngster Miss Monks had always been fit and pretty and as she hit her teens she weighed a healthy 9.5 stone.

But after being targeted by jealous bullies who labelled her 'fat' Miss Monks, then 13, dramatically changed her diet, counting calories and controlling portions before eventually starving herself completely.

'I thought, "If you lose weight people will like you and I will look like all the supermodels. Everybody else is thin."

'I had no friends. So I started trying to lose weight. I thought it would help me become accepted.

'Airbrushed pictures of models in magazines made me feel worse about myself. There were fashion trends that I thought I couldn't work as a size 12.

'There was Posh's seven-inch heels and hot pants and I remember Kate Moss Top Shop advert. It was a black dress, cinched in at the waist and billowing out under that.

'There were diets being recommended like lemon juice and kale at meal time - that's an anorexic's breakfast. When that's all you see in magazines, you feel like you're not good enough.

'The weight fell off very fast. People started noticing me and I got a lot of compliments from my friends and family and even random people at school.

'Because the compliments felt so good, I thought, "Do more!"

'It was a way of dealing with anger and upset, throwing food away and controlling that.

'It started out in portion sizes and then it got to calories and I really cracked down. It got so bad that some days I wouldn't eat anything.

'I used to challenge myself, not eating anything for all day, then two whole days. I remember one day feeling so guilty because I had one small tomato. Eventually I was going up to five days at a time without eating.

She added: 'It's a fake confidence, eating disorders. It's not you, not yourself. I felt like I was fake because when I was that thin everybody used to say, "Oh, where's my old Melanie? I want her back."

'It made me feel like I had to do something but it's so hard to recover from it.'

Eating disorders are responsible for the highest number of deaths of any psychiatric illness and Miss Monks now hopes to use her experience to help others.

'I'd like to set up help groups so girls can come round and chat together, have a brew, go for walks and get some advice at the same time.

'No one knows better how to make an anorexic well again than someone who's been there.'





Nicole Kidman gives herself a post-baby lift wearing front low cut revealing plenty of breasts.

Photobucket
A lot of front: Nicole Kidman wore a daring plunging dress and appeared to be enjoying a boost despite not wearing a bra at a charity gala in Hong Kong today
PhotobucketPhotobucket
On form: The Oscar winning actress was at the A Night With The Stars function, put on to raise funds for the United Nations Development Fund for Women
She claims to be slowing down these days - but something definitely appeared to be up with Nicole Kidman at a charity gala today.

The Australian actress took to the red carpet at a bash in Hong Kong wearing a daring plunging black dress.

Despite not wearing a bra, the flame-haired star certainly seemed to be enjoying a boost in the chest department - surprising considering she's not known for her curves
Nicole, 42, was appearing at the A Night With The Stars function, which was put on to raise funds for the United Nations Development Fund for Women.

Photobucket
A day at the zoo: Nicole Kidman feeds the giraffes with daughter Sunday Rose, who was born in July 2008, seen here in February
Photobucket
Doting couple: Nicole says she is slowing down these days and enjoying family life with husband Keith Urban and their daughter, pictured here in 2007


After giving birth to daughter Sunday Rose in July 2008, her admirers may well be left wondering how the stick thin star has achieved her impressive post-baby lift.

The Oscar-winning actress, who has appeared in more than 40 Hollywood films, has revealed her family comes first as she enjoys life with husband Keith Urban and her daughter.

With family life her priority Kidman says she and her country singer husband try not to spend more than three days apart in effort to maintain a loving marriage.

She schedules her film roles around her husband's successful career as one of America's top selling country music artists while he accompanies her on overseas shoots.
'I think I've reached a point in my life where I've slowed down a lot, so it's not difficult,' she said.

'My priority is very much keeping my family together and not being away from them.'

Kidman, the ex-wife of Tom Cruise, revealed her recipe for a happy marriage while in Hong Kong to attend a fundraising banquet for the U.N. Development Fund for Women.

She was also in the Far East to open a luxury watch store and was accompanied by Urban who she wed in Sydney, Australia, in June 2006.
But the marriage appeared to be in trouble less than four months later when New Zealand born Urban checked into a rehab clinic to fight his alcohol addiction.

Kidman admitted the crisis so early her marriage was 'deeply painful' but vowed to stand by her husband.

She said of her husband's spell at the Betty Ford clinic in California: 'It was very painful, deeply painful. We were in a very, very, bad, painful place, and have managed to step through it.'
Urban continued to attend Alcoholic Anonymous meetings and in July 2008 the couple celebrated the birth of their first child, Sunday Rose.

'She's never been happier and healthier,' a family friend said at the time.

They now divide their time between homes in Sydney, Los Angeles and Nashville, Tennessee, where Kidman has been helping out in fund raisers after the city was devastated by recent floods.

Kidman's first marriage to Cruise lasted 10 years.

The pair met on the set of Days of Thunder and they married on Christmas Eve 1990. They divorced in 2001, citing irreconcilable differences.





'Glee' Looks To Add Susan Boyle To Long List Of Guest Stars

Photobucket


"Glee" has already had some phenomenal guest-stars, including Josh Groban, Kristin Chenoweth, and Neil Patrick Harris. Now, Entertainment Weekly has learned a certain music sensation may be appearing on the hit Fox series in a season two Christmas episode: Susan Boyle.


The "Britain's Got Talent" runner-up is conveniently on the same record label, Columbia, as the "Glee" cast. And who would Boyle play? "I have two words for you: Lunch. Lady," says "Glee" co-creator Ryan Murphy. "I think Kurt would just die to give her a Christmas makeover. I don't even know if she's interested but it's been pitched." Besides the potential Boyle guest spot, Murphy also tells EW that there are plans for the cast to release a Christmas album as well (Rob Stringer, Columbia/Epic's chairman, wouldn't confirm the Boyle or Christmas album details but did say, "All very interesting ideas. I'll bring them up at the next development meeting.").

The new issue of EW (on stands Friday) features Jane Lynch as Sue Sylvester on the cover, and has more information about what's in store for next season, and details on the season finale.






Megan fox dumped from Transformer 3

Photobucket
Megan Fox has been dropped from the third "Transformers" movie after publicly criticizing moviemaker Michael Bay.

The sexy star will not be playing Shia LaBeouf's love interest in the second sequel, according to Paramount Pictures insiders.

The news comes after Fox slammed director Bay and revealed he was a "nightmare to work for" and "hopelessly awkward" in 2009 interviews.

Fox was not popular on the set of the blockbuster - she had to reach out to crew members last year after they branded her "dumb" and "ungracious."



An open letter from three unnamed "Transformers" workers surfaced on the internet in September, hitting out at Fox after she criticized Bay.

The unnamed crewmembers claimed Fox was "about as ungracious a person as you can ever fathom," adding that the brunette beauty "shows little interest in the crew members around her."

They added, "We work to make her look good in every way, but she's absolutely never appreciative of anyone's hard work."

Bay proceeded to defend the 23 year old against the allegations, telling fans he didn't "condone" the crew's letter to the star - and then Fox herself reached out to her disgruntled colleagues.

In a statement she said, "I have spoken with the parties involved privately. I am very fortunate to be involved in this amazing franchise and look forward to 'Transformers 3.'"






Judge Issues Arrest Warrant For Lindsay Lohan

Photobucket
Photobucket
Troubled starlet Lindsay Lohan exits a party on a yacht at 2:30 a.m. Monday morning in Cannes, France.
 
A warrant has been issued for Lindsay Lohan's arrest after she failed to attend a mandatory probation hearing in Los Angeles on Thursday morning.

The star was ordered to appear before Judge Marsha Revel at Beverly Hills Courthouse amid reports she has failed to complete court-ordered alcohol education classes stemming from a 2007 arrest.

But Lohan found herself stranded in Europe on Wednesday after losing her passport following an ill-advised trip to France last week to attend the Cannes Film Festival.

She claimed her papers had been stolen and turned to U.S. Embassy officials for help, but they were only able to replace the documentation on Thursday - forcing Lohan to miss her court date.

The probation hearing went ahead as planned on Thursday, when Lohan's lawyer Shawn Chapman Holley attempted to explain the passport problem to Judge Revel as the reason for the actress' absence.

But the judge refused to accept the excuse and she issued the arrest warrant within minutes of the hearing starting at 8:30 am (local time), reports TMZ.com.

Lohan's bail has been set at $100,000.

The troubled star is reportedly due to fly back to the U.S. on Friday. She is expected to be taken into custody upon landing in America.