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| December 22, 2006 |
| Jessica Simpson out of Parton tribute |
Unhappy with her second try at paying tribute to Dolly Parton for the "Kennedy Center Honors," Jessica Simpson has pulled out of the show.
Simpson drew unwanted attention earlier this month when she flubbed the words to Parton's "9 to 5" during a taping of the annual show, grew flustered and fled the stage. Producers gave her a second chance at the song.But after Simpson saw a tape, she requested the second attempt be pulled from the show, which airs Dec. 26 on CBS.
"She really wasn't happy with her performance and she did want it to be perfect for Dolly, who she idolizes," said Cindi Berger, a spokeswoman for Simpson.Besides Parton, the Washington, D.C., tribute honors Andrew Lloyd Webber, Zubin Mehta, Smokey Robinson and Steven Spielberg. Caroline Kennedy is the host."We appreciate the time and energy Ms. Simpson put into this event and respect the high standards she has for herself and that of the Kennedy Center Honors," said George Stevens Jr., show producer. |
posted by viraks @ 5:20:00 AM  |
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| Colombian rocker Juanes lauded with park |
Colombian rocker Juanes, who has led a crusade against land mines, will be honored in his hometown with a giant park designed for the thousands of victims who have lost limbs during the country's violent civil conflict.Construction on the $4 million "Juanes Peace Park" will begin next week. It will include sporting and recreation facilities designed for wheelchair users and the disabled.
"It's place for people to gather, share experiences and learn to tolerate their differences," said Juanes as he and his family surveyed the location in a poor hillside neighborhood.The government blames leftist rebels for planting most of the 100,000 mines countrywide that maimed and killed a record 1,070 victims last year — more than any other country in the world.
Many of the victims live in Medellin, which has been hard hit by violence attributed to the country's half-century conflict. |
| posted by viraks @ 5:16:00 AM |
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| Diddy's a daddy _ twice |
Sean "Diddy" Combs and girlfriend Kim Porter became the parents of twin girls Thursday morning, with the hip-hop impresario flying in from a movie set in Canada for the birth at a Manhattan hospital, said Combs spokesman Robert Zimmerman."Diddy received an early Christmas gift," said Zimmerman. "Both Kim and the girls are doing great."
The first arrived at 7:56 a.m., weighing in at 5 pounds, while the second girl was delivered two minutes later and weighed 5 pounds, 4 ounces. The older twin was named D'Lila Star after Porter's grandmother, while the younger was named Jessie James after Combs' grandmother, Zimmerman said.Combs flew in from Toronto, where he is filming "Raisin in the Sun," and made it "just in the nick of time for the delivery," Zimmerman said.
Combs, 37, already has a son, Christian, with Porter. He's also the father of a son, Justin, with ex-girlfriend Misa Hylton-Brim. |
| posted by viraks @ 5:01:00 AM |
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| December 19, 2006 |
| Spears Dogged for Poor Pet Ownership |
Apparently, Kevin Federline wasn't the only warm-blooded being Britney Spears ousted from her home this year.Once the proud owner of pampered pooches Bit-Bit, Lacy and Lucky, Spears ended the year dog-less, a feat that earned her the title of World's Worst Celebrity Dog Owner in an online poll of readers of Hollywood Dog and New York Dog magazines.
"Britney was the overwhelming choice," editor Hilary O'Hagan said in a statement. "She once had three Chihuahuas and never left home without at least one of them on her arm. As soon as she met K-Fed and had kids, they disappeared."In an interview with Teen People in September, Federline admitted that he and Spears had decided the dogs no longer fit into their lifestyle."We gave all the dogs to friends of ours," Federline said at the time. "It's just too much with the kids and all these dogs running around all over the place. It just wasn't really working."Shortly thereafter, Spears decided it wasn't really working with Federline either and filed for divorce.So far, her sons Sean Preston and Jaden James are still in the picture. |
| posted by viraks @ 3:33:00 AM |
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| Axl : Democracy Gunning for Spring Release |
Apparently all we need is just a little more patience...At least when it comes to Guns N' Roses' Chinese Democracy.Despite repeated promises that the near-mythical, decade-in-the-works comeback album would be out by year's end, Axl Rose has for the umpteenth time pushed back the release date.In a lengthy open letter published last Thursday on the Gunners' Website, the flaky frontman announced that the band was scrapping four dates on their current tour to return to the studio to put the wraps on his magnum opus, which he claims will now drop in the spring.
Just a little patience...
"Because of the scheduling of these particular shows, valuable time needed by the band and record company for the proper setup and release of the album, Chinese Democracy, would be lost," the 44-year-old singer said. "Rather than delay the album yet again, all involved have decided to remove these shows from G N R's schedule. We hope our fans understand and we apologize for any inconveniences this may have caused." |
| posted by viraks @ 3:30:00 AM |
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| Yoko Ono's driver issued warrant |
Immigration officials have issued a warrant to detain Yoko Ono's driver, jailed on $250,000 bail on charges of trying to blackmail her for $2 million, while they decide whether the Turkish native is in this country legally.The driver, Koral Karsan, 50, of Amityville, N.Y., was arrested Wednesday and charged with attempted grand larceny. He was accused of threatening to release embarrassing material about Ono, the widow of Beatle John Lennon, and possibly have her killed unless she gave him $2 million.
Karsan's lawyer, Robert Gottlieb, said Monday he had assembled a bail package and hoped to get his client released right away. However, he said, "We heard this morning that a detainer was issued by (Immigration and Customs Enforcement).""The issue, apparently, is whether he is here legally," Gottlieb said. "I have told the assistant district attorney we will not post bail until we straighten out that issue." |
| posted by viraks @ 3:25:00 AM |
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| Patti LaBelle : cancels gospel tour |
Patti LaBelle's current tour, "The Gospel According to Patti," is being canceled, the singer announced Monday.
LaBelle, who cited differences with the tour's promoter, said she had a good relationship with sponsors and hoped to restart the tour.
"I really had hoped to continue to reach the gospel audience as we had originally planned," LaBelle said in a statement released by her publicist.The tour, which began in October, had been scheduled to continue in Philadelphia, Cleveland and St. Louis, among other cities. |
| posted by viraks @ 3:12:00 AM |
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| December 17, 2006 |
| Q&A with Jose Feliciano |
I want to wish you a Merry Christmas, from the bottom of my heart.Sound familiar?
Yes, that's a line from Jose Feliciano's song "Feliz Navidad," a holiday radio fixture for 35 years.But this winter means more to Feliciano than just the annual return of his classic, catchy tune. In December, he released a Spanish language duets CD called "Jose Feliciano y Amigos," which features Marc Anthony, Luis Fonsi and Alicia Villarreal, among others.Feliciano, 61, also has an English-language CD set for release in February called "Soundtracks of My Life." It includes original material from the artist who's earned critical praise and six Grammys for his forays into several genres — pop, jazz, bolero and ranchero.
The Puerto Rican-born singer-guitarist is considered the first established Spanish-language artist to successfully cross over into American music with his Grammy-winning 1968 album "Feliciano!" Feliciano also garnered attention for his public performance of another song, "The Star Spangled Banner," during the 1968 World Series. His stylized take of the national anthem stoked critics who said his personalized version was disrespectful and inappropriate.In an Associated Press telephone interview, Feliciano, who is blind, touched on his newest endeavors and reflected on parts of his career that have brought both happiness and pain.AP: You have tackled different types of musical genres. Is there a formula that you stuck with in pursuing each one?Feliciano: The formula always was ... know what you're doing. Like with anything I do, it has to be a music that I know really well. For example, in February I'm coming out with my first English album in quite a while ... It took me five years, really, to gather the material to do it. |
| posted by viraks @ 6:05:00 AM |
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| Trey Anastasio : charged with drugged driving |
Guitarist Trey Anastasio was accused of driving under the influence of drugs in an upstate New York town near the Vermont border early Friday.
The former Phish frontman was pulled over by an officer who saw his car failing to keep to right side of the road at about 3:30 a.m., Whitehall village police said.A search turned up quantities of the painkillers hydrocodone and Percocet, as well as the anti-anxiety drug Xanax, that had been prescribed for someone else, police said.
Anastasio, who was driving with a suspended New York license, was charged with third-degree aggravated unlicensed operation, seventh-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance and driving while intoxicated-drugs, police said. He was released and scheduled for a court appearance at a later date."I feel terrible about what happened last night, and I am deeply sorry for any embarrassment I have caused my friends, family and fans," Anastasio said in a written statement.Anastasio lives in Vermont and has been performing solo since Phish broke up in 2004. |
| posted by viraks @ 5:48:00 AM |
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