Two persons were killed during a massive jailbreak by 967 prisoners in the south-east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to a provincial government minister.
Dikanga Kazadi, the information minister of Katanga province, said 8 armed men attacked prison guards in Lubumbashi on Wednesday, allowing the prisoners to escape.
According to the minister, police had recaptured 152 of the 967 escaped prisoners, and that the armed men had been trying to free a militant who was condemned to death.
There have been no executions in Democratic Republic of Congo since President Joseph Kabila came to power in 2001
Dikanga Kazadi said also that the two who died were a police officer and a young man who was visiting his detained brother.
There have been no executions in Democratic Republic of Congo since President Joseph Kabila came to power in 2001.
Women who use painkillers such as ibuprofen during pregnancy are twice as likely to suffer a miscarriage, according to a University of Montreal study.
Specialists warn that tens of thousands of expectant mothers are taking the pills unaware of the dangers.
Ibuprofen
The major study, which was run by the researchers at University of Montreal, Canada, has found that women who took ibuprofen or similar painkillers just before they conceived until the 20th week of pregnancy were 2.4 times more at risk.
Although there are visible warnings on the drugs’ insert package saying they should not be used in pregnancy, as many as one in six expectant mothers still take them.
The Canadian study involved a group of painkillers known as Non-Steroidal Anti Inflammatory Drugs or NSAIDS, which include OTC’s (over-the-counter) ibuprofen and naproxen.
Aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) is also in this category although it wasn’t included in the study, while paracetamol is deemed safe.
The Canadian researchers believe taking any number of the drugs can lead to the embryo not being properly implanted in the womb meaning a woman is far more likely to suffer miscarriage, which known as a spontaneous abortion.
Approximately one in eight pregnancies end in miscarriage and the majority happen in the first 12 weeks.
Often there is no obvious cause but older women and those who smoke, drink heavily or are obese are at far higher risk.
The study involved 47,050 women aged 15 to 45 and its results have been published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal.
The participants into the study were asked whether they had taken the painkillers at any time in the first 20 weeks of their pregnancy or two weeks before they became pregnant.
Despite the drug insert package warnings, about 17% of women had taken the drugs – nearly one in six.
Dr. Anick Bérard, researcher at the University of Montreal said:
“We consistently saw that the risk of having a spontaneous abortion was associated with gestational use of diclofenac, naproxen, celecoxib, ibuprofen and rofecoxib alone or in combination.
“Women who were exposed to any type and dosage of non-aspirin NSAID during early pregnancy were more likely to have a spontaneous abortion.”
But doctors pointed out the risks of a woman suffering a miscarriage due to painkillers were very small.
They also said the study did not take into account other possible causes such as smoking and obesity.
The most expensive house in the world is an 8.6 billion euro (over 12 billion dollars) residence, which has been built at the border of Switzerland and Italy.
It said that 200 kg of precious metals were used during construction of the most expensive residence on the planet.
The most expensive house in the world is located at the border of Switzerland and Italy
The building was designed by luxury designer Stuart Hughes, in collaboration with Exclusivhaus.
The 8.6 billion euro house has eight rooms and a huge living room of 725 square meters
The world’s most expensive house, which is located at the border of Switzerland and Italy, costs 8.6 billion euro because of the 200 kg of precious metals, gold and platinum, used to decorate the interiors. The impressive residence is situated on a plot of 2442 square meters, has eight rooms, a cellar of 242 square meters, a huge living room, which covers 725 square meters and four parking spaces, among others.
It said that 200 kg of precious metals were used during construction of the most expensive residence on the planet
Building of the most expensive house in the world took over five years. For security reasons, the world’s most expensive house owner was not named.
Buddy Holly: the rock and roll pioneer who died at 22
Buddy Holly, the musician who died at 22 in a plane crash, receives a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Wednesday, September 7, is his 75th birthday anniversary and it is declared Buddy Holly Day in Los Angeles. Maria Elena (Santiago) Holly, singer’s widow, receives the star, while Gary Busey (the artist who portrayed Buddy in The Buddy Holly Story), Phil Everly of the Everly brothers, and Peter Asher of Peter and Gordon speak at the ceremony. Buddy Holly‘s star is the 2,447th.
Charles Hardin Holley, known as Buddy Holly, was born on September 7, 1936, in Lubbock, Texas.
He was a pioneer who established the standard instruments for rock and roll band, of two guitars, bass and drums. Buddy took the genre of rock and roll from Elvis Presley and adjusted it to his own personality. He listened to Elvis in Lubbock in 1955, and started to assimilate a rockabilly style (like of Chuck Berry) with a strong rhythm acoustic and slap bass.
Holly’s works inspired performers like The Beatles (they took their name as a tribute to Buddy Holly and The Crickets), The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, and Eric Clapton. He also has a great influence on popular music. It is said that Holly’s eyeglasses encouraged other singers (John Lennon) to wear their spectacles in public. Anyway, the Memorial to Buddy near the Iowa crash site where he died features his eyeglasses.
Memorial to Buddy Holly near Clear Lake Iowa
Buddy Holly was inducted to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and Rolling Stone ranked him among The Fifty Greatest Artists of All Time in 2004.
Holly formed The Crickets, consisting of Holly (lead guitar and vocals), Niki Sullivan (guitar), Joe B. Mauldin (bass), and Jerry Allison (drums), in 1956. Between 1956 and 1959 he put 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. Peggy Sue, That’ll be the Day, True Love Ways, Oh Boy!, Everyday became classics and recently two new all-star tribute albums have tried to interpret them like he did.
Buddy Holly died on February 3, 1959, in a small-plane crash near Clear Lake, Iowa.
Waylon Jennings, who had given up his seat on the plane to Holly, was haunted by the crash. Along with Buddy Holly Ritchie Valens and J. P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson (another rock and roll pioneers) were killed. The Day the Music Died said about that day Don McLean in his song American Pie (1971).
Holly’s pregnant wife, widow after six months, miscarried due to psychological trauma. Few months later authorities would implemented a policy against publishing victims’ names before the families had been informed.
Buddy Holly launched only three albums, but he recorded so much that Coral Records has released new albums and singles for 10 years after his death.
In Lubbock there is the Buddy and Maria Elena Holly Plaza with a Walk of Fame and a statue of Buddy Holly playing his Fender guitar. A street was named in Holly’s honor and The Buddy Holly Center contains a museum of Holly memorabilia and a Fine Arts Gallery.
43 people died in a Yakovlev Yak-42 plane crash near the city of Yaroslavl in Central Russia on Wednesday afternoon. The majority of victims were members of the local top ice hockey team Lokomotiv.
Of the 45 people on board, only two survived, Russia Today reported at the scene of the tragedy.
Lokomotiv Ice Hockey Team was killed in a plane crash in Yaroslavl
The aircraft went down and caught fire shortly after taking to the air. According to preliminary reports, the plane had insufficient lift and hit a beacon tower. An air traffic controller told Itar-Tass, that the aircraft was some 50 to 60 meters above the ground when it tilted to the left and crashed.
The crash site is about 2,500 meters from the runway. The accident happened just next to the Volga River and some fragments of the aircraft and bodies of the victims fell into the water. So far 29 bodies have been recovered from the site, according to local rescue services.
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Hockey Club Lokomotiv (KHL) confirmed that its entire 37-strong main squad was on board of the crashed plane. The hockey team was traveling to the Belarusian capital Minsk.
Some of the victims were foreign players for the club. The squad included players from the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Sweden.
The two survivors are in a serious condition and have been taken to hospital.
One of the survivors is a hockey team member Aleksandr Galimov.
The other survivor is a flight engineer, according to preliminary reports.
“Galimov has burns to 80 per cent of his body, the crew member has broken bones and lacerations in addition to massive burns,” Dr. Viktor Berezing from the hospital’s burn trauma department told Interfax.
Russian aviation authorities said the Yak-42 underwent all the routine checks before being cleared for the flight and was in good condition.
The today plane crash is the first-ever fatal crash involving a sports team in modern Russia.
Soviet Union’s worst incident of this kind was the 1979 mid-air collision of two Tupolev Tu-134s in Dniprodzerzhynsk, Ukraine. Seventeen players and staff of the then-Soviet top-division Pakhtakor Football Club team died in the crash.
The Yaroslavl HC Lokomotiv team was Russian Champions in 1997, 2002 and 2003.
The top hockey squad was to play a match against Minsk HC Dinamo on Thursday.
The heads of the Lokomotiv hockey club are currently in an urgent meeting to discuss the measures to be taken following the tragic crash and death of the Yaroslavl team.
The Salavat Ulaev versus Atlant match, which is the opening battle of the league season, was cancelled by this time.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev is to visit the crash site on Thursday. Medvedev offered his condolences to the relatives of the victims and to fans of the club over the tragedy.
Visitors of the International Political Forum, who are visiting Yaroslavl at the moment, held a minute’s silence to commemorate the victims of the crash. The Russian Hockey Federation voiced its condolences to the Lokomotiv club, the families of the victims and the entire ice hockey community.
Hockey fans in Moscow are gathering in Red Square near the Kremlin to honor the deceased Lokomotiv players and the other victims of the crash.
In Minsk, people are laying flowers in front of the stadium where the team was scheduled to play on Thursday. Yaroslavl fans are meeting at one of the city’s squares to mark the loss of their team.
Russia’s Investigative Committee has launched a criminal investigation into the incident and sent a team of forensic experts from Moscow to Yaroslavl, according to the spokesman for the committee, Vladimir Markin.
The Interstate Aviation Committee, a regional regulating body, has launched its own probe into the cause of the crash.
Prime Minister Vladimir Putin ordered Transport Minister Igor Levitin to organize the initial part of the investigation at the scene.
Two persons died on Tuesday in the massive wildfire that has covered Bastrop Texas since Monday.
Bastrop Texas: The ruins of a house destroyed by wildfire (Reuters)
They were not public safety responders said officials without any further details. The death toll from Labor Day weekend wildfires across Texas raises to four with these two deaths in the Bastrop County Complex. On Monday a 20-year-old mother and her 18-month-old daughter, caught by flames in a mobile home, died in Gregg County (northeast Texas).
This is the most withering wildfire in Texas in over ten years. The Bastrop County Complex fire destroyed almost 600 homes and led to evacuation of 5,000 in Bastrop County alone.
More than ten other fires sweeped on Tuesday, burning six homes in Caldwell County (near Bastrop County), twelve homes in Grimes County (40 miles northwest of Houston). In Cass County a 7,000-acre fire burned in heavy timberland and in one neighborhood in Bastrop flames attacked houses built among oaks, pines and cedar trees.
The wildfire in Leander destroyed over ten homes and caused the evacuations of 500 residents and $1.4 million in damage. The fire is investigating as arson, Police were searching for three teens connected to that.
Officials of Federal Emergency Management Agency came to Bastrop Texas and began to assess the needs of the victims and damages.
Bastrop Texas: burnt vehicle
“It is certainly a remarkable fire in terms of evacuations and the number of homes that have burned,” said Ken Frederick, of National Interagency Fire Center in Boise, Idaho.
Texas Task Force 1, a wide-area search team sent to New York after the September 11, 2001, attacks and to New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina, was deployed by Governor on Tuesday evening.
“Pretty powerful visuals of individuals who lost everything. The magnitude of these losses are pretty stunning.” Said Rick Perry, Texas Governor.
The available bulldozers and other heavy equipment were kept at the Army’s Fort Hood, around 75 miles from Bastrop, Perry complained. He also asked for federal assistance and in order to help Texas Obama administration approved seven federal grants, said Jay Carney, White House spokesman.
Over 1,000 firefighters (including crews from California and Oregon), five heavy tanker planes, and three aircrafts have struggled to contain the monstrous blaze.
On Tuesday, the winds (moved by Tropical Storm Lee) became weaker and that helped to wildfire containment. There are still flames across Bastrop Texas, and the fire is far from being extinguished.
Police is investigating the shooting rampage at an IHOP restaurant in Carson City, Nevada.
The incident happened on Tuesday morning and left four people dead, including the shooter, and eight persons wounded.
Investigators are now trying to determine whether the man targeted a group of National Guard personnel in the restaurant.
Twelve people have been shot in the rampage, five were National Guard members who were sitting together, all in uniform, in the back of the restaurant. Two of the service members – a man and a woman – died, according to police.
According to the investigators it appears the shooter – Eduardo Sencion, 33, a Carson City resident who worked in nearby Tahoe and had no criminal history – could have targeted the Guard members, who were sitting in the restaurant and they were in uniform.
Eduardo Sencion, the alleged shooter at an IHOP restaurant in Carson City, Nevada, killed 4 people and wounded another 8
Carson City Sheriff Kenny Furlong said during a news conference last evening:
“Information suggests at this point in time that the National Guard members were sitting all the way into the restaurant along the southeast side and that he entered through the front do ors and traveled all the way through the restaurant to the back area,” sheriff Furlong said.
“Obviously when five out of 11 of the victims are uniformed National Guard members, that’s taking a priority interest in our agency.”
“Investigators are still trying to determine what motive there might have been for the shooting rampage.”
“There has been some suggestion by his family members that there is some mental health issues that we are going to have to look into,” the sheriff added.
Eduardo Sencion allegedly walked into the restaurant shortly before 9 a.m. brandishing an AK47 and started shooting, then ended it by shooting himself in the head, police said.
The shooter was taken to a hospital where he died three hours later.
According to the Carson City Chief Deputy Jack Freer, the people wounded at the IHOP were taken to Renown Regional Medical Center in Reno and a hospital in Carson City, but their conditions were unknown.
Eyewitnesses described a scene of horror and chaos after Eduardo Sencion pulled up at the IHOP in a blue minivan just before 9 a.m. and ran into the restaurant, already firing his assault weapon.
“All I heard was about a heavy eight seconds of automatic gunfire,” said Nick Teply, who was at the McDonald’s drive-through next door.
“I just froze trying to identify which direction it was coming from.
“I saw people running into the casino and I saw people panicked so I panicked.
“I heard another burst go off and then I was, it was, ‘get the hell out of there.’”
According to the Carson City sheriff, at least 11 agencies, both federal and state, worked the crime scene.
During a press conference at Venice Film Festival one eager audience member presented Madonna with a hydrangea.
After this touching gesture, Madonna, 53, was caught voicing her disgust at the gift because the press conference microphone was left on.
While Madonna smiled and said thank you to the fan she quickly put the flower under the table before shooting a glaring look at her friend.
Madonna, the famous singer and actress, then proceeded to turn to the person sitting to her right and remarked: “I absolutely loathe hydrangeas.”
“I absolutely loathe hydrangeas”, said Madonna during WE film press conference at Venice Film Festival
But Madonna added: “He obviously doesn’t know that.”
The ungracious gesture Madonna made has happened at the Venice Film Festival during the press conference for her new film W.E.
It is likely that Madonna, who is the W.E. film director, was unaware that cameras were already rolling as she ungraciously accepted the floral gift.
At the press conference, Madonna has also revealed that she is working on a new album which is set to be released early next year.
Madonna, who released Hard Candy three years ago told SVT that she is heading to New York to work on the music and said:
“I’ve started a little bit of work in the studio.”
Madonna’s movie, W.E. is a drama loosely based on divorcee Wallis Simpson, whose relationship with Britain’s King Edward VIII led to his abdication in 1936.
The movie’s Royal Family storyline runs parallel with a modern day equivalent following an unhappily married New Yorker named Wally Winthrop.
Madonna herself recently clarified that the film is about a woman’s journey and not about the Duchess’ life, but the Duchess would act as the woman’s spiritual guide.
Madonna said also the success of the Oscar-winning The King’s Speech gives audiences a point of reference for her new film, W.E.
“I view the success off that film as laying the ground work for my film,” Madonna said in her press conference for the project.
“There’s a little bit of history, and a little bit of knowledge. We are not starting from a blank slate.”
The famous pop singer also said she had the support of her ex-husbands Sean Penn and Guy Ritchie when working on the project.
Eddie Murphy signs on to host 84th Academy Awards ceremony, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Tuesday, September 6.
In a press release on Tuesday, Eddie Murphy said:
“I am enormously honored to join the great list of past Academy Award hosts from Hope and Carson to Crystal, Martin and Goldberg, among others.”
Eddie Murphy will host 2012 ceremony of the Annual Academy Awards
Eddie Murphy, 50, was reported to be the Brett Ratner’s top choice to host the 84th Academy Awards show.
Brett Ratner, who is the “Rush Hour” director and recently directed Eddie Murphy in the upcoming movie “Tower Heist”, is producing the ceremony.
“Eddie is a comedic genius, one of the greatest and most influential live performers ever,” Brett Ratner said in a press release.
“With his love of movies, history of crafting unforgettable characters and his iconic performances – especially on stage – I know he will bring excitement, spontaneity and tremendous heart to the show.”
This will be Eddie Murphy’s first hosting stint on the Oscars.
Eddie Murphy earned an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actor in 2006 for his role in “Dreamgirls.”
Previously, there were rumors that Billy Crystal, who hosted the awards show eight times between 1990 and 2004, was to be in the running for hosting duties before Eddie Murphy was officially tapped to host.
Eddie Murphy began his career at the age of 15 as a stand-up comedian. In 1980, at the age of 19, he joined the cast of “Saturday Night Live,” becoming the show’s youngest cast member to that point, and bringing to life many of the show’s most memorable characters. His 1983 album “Eddie Murphy: Comedian” won a Grammy Award for Best Comedy Recording. It included portions of his groundbreaking HBO special “Eddie Murphy Delirious.” In 1987, “Eddie Murphy Raw” was theatrically released and went on to gross over $50 million. Murphy made his feature film debut in 1982 with the classic “48 Hrs.” and would go on to star in such box-office hits as “Beverly Hills Cop” and the “The Nutty Professor” and “Shrek” franchises. All told, movies in which he has performed have earned in excess of $7 billion worldwide during their theatrical releases.
The 84th edition of the Annual Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2011 will be presented on Sunday, February 26, 2012, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center, and televised live on the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.
Shootings repeatedly rocked the West Indian Day Parade in Brooklyn on Labor Day, even while Mayor Michael Bloomberg marched nearby. The New York City’s terrifying epidemic of shootings over the Labor Day weekend grew steadily worse.
The toll of the Labor Day Parade violence includes seven deaths among the 49 gunshot victims. The gunfire seemed to follow the revelers everywhere, from the parade route to nearby fast-food joints and even to their own homes.
The toll of the Brooklyn Labor Day Parade violence includes seven deaths among the 49 gunshot victims
Nine of the shooting victims were hit at or near the area of Brooklyn Labor Day Parade, the annual Caribbean-themed festival in Crown Heights, where a gunman had fired into the air only blocks from where Mayor Bloomberg had just begun marching.
“[The gunman] shouted something, then ‘boom!’ Everyone ducked,” said a witness, Marlene Anthony, adding that the young thug was standing at Rockaway Parkway and Clarkson Avenue – just blocks from the parade staging area.
“It was a bad mix of alcohol, ignorance and a fool with a gun who tries to ruin the fun of the parade.”
According to authorities, the gunman, Devon Stevens, 25, jumped into a livery cab, but went only a couple blocks before hopping out on East 94th Street at Winthrop Street, where he ditched the gun as cops gave chase.
“I was out here sweeping and listening to music when I saw the police grab up this young man on the hood of this car,” said an elderly resident on East 94th Street.
“There were so many police chasing him.”
Police officers have pepper-sprayed on the gunman, Devon Stevens.
Few hours after the Brooklyn Labor Day Parade ended, an elderly woman was killed in the crossfire of a melee between police and a gunman.
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Brooklyn Labor Day Parade had gotten off to a rocky start at 6 a.m., when a nearby McDonald’s, packed with 100 early risers prepping for the festivities, was the site of a senseless shooting.
Kenneth Beggs, 44, bumped into a man entering the Empire Boulevard Mc Donald’s and apologized, but Anthony Carruthers, 28, allegedly refused to let the incident go and pumped bullets into Beggs’ legs.
“The bullet shattered the door, so everyone ran out the other door,” said one McDonald’s cook.
After parade ended, one reveler was shot in front of a crowd on Eastern Parkway.
A group of 6-7 men had pummeled the victim on the ground and then an attacker pulled out a handgun and shot him in the leg. He also grabbed a pot of steaming rice from a food vendor and tossed it onto an onlooker.
Police tackled the gunman. His victim is expected to survive.
According to police the number of people who took a bullet in the past week had skyrocketed.
“For the week ending Sunday, a whopping 98 people had been shot, nearly twice the 53 shot during the same week last year,” the NYPD said.
“Those injured last week were involved in 72 incidents, compared to 40 shoot-ups in the same week in 2010,” Police Department said.
Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said that although the number of shootings so far this year is fewer when compared to a decade ago, the spree of gunfire over the weekend is “obviously . . . cause for concern.
“We’re doing everything we can do,” added Ray Kelly, who cited the NYPD’s shifting of resources to target guns on the streets, including boosting overtime.
“Some of the shootings were clearly associated with the parade,” Commissioner Kelly said.
“Quite frankly, this is something that does happen with this parade.”
Mayor Michael Bloomberg said:
“It was a bad weekend, no question about that . . . There’s just too many guns on the streets of this city. It’s a national problem . . . because it’s so easy to buy guns in other states, and just drive them in and sell them in the back of your car.”
In all, at least 16 people were hit by bullets on Monday, 15 of them in Brooklyn.
There was an exception, a 33-year-old man, who was shot twice in the torso and once in the left arm at 11:48 a.m. in front of the St. Nicholas Houses in Harlem.
Officers also nabbed a suspect on Monday in another case, in which eight people were shot in The Bronx.
A man and a rival are suspected of engaging in a shootout that wounded the victims, including 11-year-old Shaquan Walters, at a house party early Sunday.
One of the gunmen, Phillip Muir, 21, from Wilson Avenue in The Bronx, was caught at 2:15 a.m. by the NYPD during a car stop in Mount Vernon, in Westchester, with the assistance of police there.
The other gunman, Oneil DaSilva, 17, from Mount Vernon, remains at large.
Beautytek claims to reshape bodies for both men and women
A non-invasive technique, Beautytek,claims to reshape, lift and tone over nine areas of the body.
Practitioners said Beautytek can lift breasts by up to five centimeters, flatten stomachs, lift buttocks and thighs, smooth out cellulite, reduce acne, scarring, wrinkles and stretchmarks.
The treatment seems to be pain free, without side effects. After twelve sessions one’s appearance is change and with one to two top up treatments each year, the results last a lifetime, it is said. Without annual treatment, the effects last only several months.
“Beautytek triggers the body’s natural chemicals to encourage anti-aging of the skin to take place.There is nothing artificial or chemical about the device which makes it an entirely drug-free treatment without the need for surgery.” Said Henning Buscher who helped develop Beautytek.
Beautytek combines ancient Chinese principles of acupressure (certain points of the body are stimulated to adjust energy flow) with modern technology.
This technique could balance the organiwsm by stimulating the lymphatic system blood circulation, hormonal release, and metabolism.
The practitioners said the human body has its own electro-magnetic field and they think fatigue, weight problems and skin complaints (spots, wrinkles) are caused by inefficient electrical flow.
A computer analyzes one’s electro-magnetic field and if the electrical current is slow, the computer stimulates certain acupressure – or energy – points with mild electrical pulses.This triggers movement of fluid between skin cells and “push out” fat from cells. The excess fat passes along the lymphatic drainage system towards the kidney and it is eliminated from the organism through urine. The blood circulation is increased on the stimulated areas and tone the muscles. Beautytek also triggers the endocrine system into releasing the correct amount of hormones. The combined effects boosts natural collagen production of skin cells. A session takes around 45 minutes and the need to urinate may occur during it.
Every adult can undergo a Beautytek treatment except pregnant women and people with pacemakers, said the practitioners. However, it is better to get medical exam and a consult from the GP before the treatment.
Dr Horst Frank, a dermatologist from Frankfurt, Germany, has monitorised 150 patients over a year in his clinic and the patients report their treatment was 90 per cent successful.
In the same time the dermatologists warn that there’s no proving that Beautytek works until double blind clinical trials have been completed.
“I’m not aware of any reason why people shouldn’t use the method, but unless there is reasonable data to prove that the claims work, I can’t endorse the treatment.” said Dr Neil Walker, a dermatologist at the Churchill Hospital in Oxford.
Iniatially Beautytek was designed as a device to treat pain in hospitals, then the technique was developed in Italy in 2000 for cosmetic purposes. Beautytek has been used in over 30 countries, including Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Austria, US, Canada, China, UK.
The crocodile weighs one ton and is believed responsible for eating at least one fisherman, but this monster has finally been caught by 100 men in Philippines.
Measuring 21 ft (about 6.5 m), the monster is the largest crocodile captured alive in recent years.
World's largest crocodile has been caught in Philippines
The largest crocodile was caught, after a three-week hunt, in a creek in the Philippines by villagers who had lived in fear of it for more than 20 years.
The crocodile’s nearest rival in the monster stakes is Cassius, an Australian salt-water crocodile which measures a “mere” 18ft (5.5 m) and which is still on the loose in the Northern Territory.
The Philippine crocodile lived in a river system in Agusan, a poverty-stricken region 500 miles south east of Manila, but while it was a constant threat to villagers no-one was brave enough to try to capture it.
The monster crocodile was placed under observation and when it was witnessed by several villagers killing a water buffalo they knew their suspicions were right.
Many of the villagers posed beside the captured monster crocodile before it was driven off to a confined area
“We were very nervous about tackling this beast but it was our duty to deal with it because it was a threat to many villagers and their farm animals,” said the local mayor, Edwin Elorde.
“When I finally saw it after its capture I couldn’t believe my eyes.
“It was big enough to swallow three men all at once.”
The crocodile hunting was set in place after it was seen in a creek, with villagers setting four net traps, which the crocodile destroyed with a mighty snap of its jaws.
The second time hunters used traps made of steel cables and this time the animal failed to get away.
One hundred men were required to pull the monster crocodile on to the banks of the creek where, after a great deal of difficulty, it was bound up and then lifted by crane on to the back of a truck.
Hunters weren’t going to let the victory pass without having their photo taken, so many of the villagers posed beside their scaly captive before it was driven off to a confined area.
Many of the villagers posed beside the captured monster crocodile before it was driven off to a confined area
The crocodile, which have not been named yet, is destined for fame.
Villagers have been expecting monster to be the star attraction at a new eco-tourism park that is set up in Agusan.
“It will be the biggest star of the park,” said Mayor Elorde.
“The villagers, of course, are very happy that they have been able to turn this dangerous crocodile from a threat into an asset.”
But the 37,000 people who live in the region have been told not to rest on their laurels.
Many other large crocodiles remain in the rivers and people have been told not to venture into marsh areas alone at night.
Mr. Bean is Rowan Atkinson’s most commercially successful creation. However, Mr. Bean’s era is finished and the character is unlikely to appear on the screens again in any new adventures.
Actor Rowan Atkinson, 56, said he believes he is too old to play Mr. Bean character.
Mr. Bean first appeared on television in an ITV series which ran from September 1, 1989, to November 15, 1995.
Rowan Atkinson said he is too old to play Mr. Bean
The series proved a huge ratings success, despite the derision of some critics, achieving viewing figures of more than 18million.
Mr. Bean character proved such a draw – even in the notoriously difficult U.S. market – that two films were made of his exploits, “Bean: The Ultimate Disaster Movie” in 1997 and” Mr. Bean’s Holiday” in 2007.
The two Mr. Bean films earned over $ 450 million worldwide.
However, Rowan Atkinson, who describes Mr. Bean as “a child in a grown man’s body” – said:
“I’ve got a feeling I probably won’t play the character [Mr. Bean] again.
“Never say never, but I just feel I’m getting too old for it. I’ve always liked Mr. Bean as a cartoon-like figure, who doesn’t really age much.
“I’ve always seen him as an ageless and timeless being and I’m clearly not ageless and timeless.
“The older I get, I feel I am less qualified to play him.”
Mr Bean
Rowan Atkinson, who starred in “Not The Nine O’Clock News” in the late 1970s and 1980s and in “Blackadder” from 1983, was interviewed in Australia to publicize the sequel to the 2003 James Bond spoof movie “Johnny English” – “Johnny English Reborn”.
Roche’s new drug Zelboraf (also known as PLX4032 and vemurafenib) was approved by the FDA on August 17th 2011 for treatment of melanoma patients whose tumors have BRAF mutations (new Zelboraf announcement order). Now that the drug has been approved, your doctor can prescribe it after determining that your tumor has this mutation.
In clinical trials with Zelboraf, patients’ tumors stopped growing for several months and patients were 63% less likely to die during the trial, as compared to those receiving chemotherapy. Be sure to find out if Zelboraf is right for you before you order.
Zelboraf is being approved with a first-of-a-kind test called the cobas 4800 BRAF V600 Mutation Test, a companion diagnostic that will help determine if a patient’s melanoma cells have the BRAF V600E mutation.
The BRAF protein is normally involved in regulating cell growth, but is mutated in about half of the patients with late-stage melanomas. Zelboraf is a BRAF inhibitor that is able to block the function of the V600E-mutated BRAF protein.
“This has been an important year for patients with late-stage melanoma. Zelboraf is the second new cancer drug approved that demonstrates an improvement in overall survival,” said Richard Pazdur, M.D., director of the Office of Oncology Drug Products in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. “In March, we approved Yervoy (ipilimumab), another new treatment for late-stage melanoma that also showed patients live longer after receiving the drug.”
What to know before you order? Zelboraf’s side effects.
The most common side effects reported in patients receiving Zelboraf included joint pain, rash, hair loss, fatigue, nausea, and skin sensitivity when exposed to the sun. About 26 percent of patients developed a skin-related cancer called cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma, which was managed with surgery. Patients treated with Zelboraf should avoid sun exposure. Patients that develop squamous cell carcinoma as a side effect of Zelboraf are treated by surgery and can continue with treatment
Use of ordered ZELBORAF and Important Side Effect Information for Zelboraf
This information does not take the place of talking to your doctor about your medical condition or your treatment with ZELBORAF.
ZELBORAF is a prescription medicine used to treat a type of skin cancer called melanoma, that has spread to other parts of the body or cannot be removed by surgery, and has a certain type of abnormal “BRAF” gene.
ZELBORAF may cause a type of skin cancer called cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma (cuSCC). CuSCC usually does not spread to other parts of the body. Check your skin and tell your doctor about skin changes including a new wart, a sore or bump that bleeds or does not heal, or a mole that changes size or color.
While taking ZELBORAF, you should avoid going out in the sun. When you go outside, wear clothes that protect your skin, including head, face, hands, arms, and legs. Use lip balm and a broad-spectrum sunscreen with SPF 30 or higher.
Possible serious side effects of ZELBORAF include severe allergic reactions, severe skin reactions, changes in the electrical activity of your heart called QT prolongation, which can potentially be life-threatening, abnormal liver function tests, eye problems, or new melanoma lesions.
Common side effects of ZELBORAF include joint pain, rash, hair loss, tiredness, sunburn or sun sensitivity, nausea, itching, or warts. You need to know these before ordering Zelboraf.
These are not all of the possible side effects of ZELBORAF. Tell your doctor if you have any side effect that bothers you or does not go away. For more information about side effects, ask your doctor or pharmacist.
Call your doctor for medical advice about any side effects. You may report side effects to the FDA at 1-800-FDA-1088. You may also report side effects to Genentech at 1-888-835-2555.
With Zelboraf’s approval, your doctor can now prescribe this drug for you if your tumor has the BRAF mutation. To test the tumor, your doctor would order a laboratory test.
Several clinical trials are testing whether a combination of Zelboraf with other drugs might work better than Zelboraf alone. One exciting clinical trial combines Zelboraf with Yervoy, a new immunotherapy drug (Order more details about Zelboraf clinical trials). The following table lists some of these clinical trials that Zelboraf went through, and by clicking on the name of a trial you can learn more about the drug used and the types of patients that the trial is looking for.
Zelboraf Summary for Ordered Clinical Trials
Name(s)
Target
Manufacturer
Status
Zelboraf, PLX4032, vemurafenib, RO5185426, RG7204
BRAF
Hoffmann-La Roche
Approved for melanoma patients with BRAF mutations
In July 2011, the FDA issued a new draft guidance to facilitate the development and review of companion diagnostics. The guidance, currently available for public comment, is intended to provide companies with guidance on the agency’s policy for reviewing a companion diagnostic and the corresponding drug therapy.
Relevant Links for More Information on Zelboraf Ordering
Melanoma is the leading cause of death from skin disease. The National Cancer Institute estimated that 68,130 new cases of melanoma were diagnosed in the United States during 2010; about 8,700 people died from the disease.
Zelboraf is marketed by South San Francisco based-Genentech, a member of the Roche Group. The cobas 4800 BRAF V600 Mutation Test is manufactured by Roche Molecular Systems in Pleasanton, Calif.
Harbor is the black-and-tan coonhound with the longest canine ears in the world, according to Guinness World Records.
Guinness World Records has named Harbor the possessor of the longest canine ears on the planet after his ears measurement: the left ear measures 12¼ in (31.11 cm) while the right is longer at 13½ in (34.29 cm).
Harbor, the dog with the biggest ears in the world
Harbor’s breed was developed to hunt raccoons, with the long ears said to help by sweeping scents towards the nose.
But our coonhound, Harbor has had a lifelong struggle with his colossal ears, frequently tripping over them as a puppy and rolling down the stairs.
Now though, the purebred has grown into his lengthy lugholes, which have made him a celebrity.
Harbor’s owner, Jennifer Wert from Boulder, Colorado, US said:
“Cars will literally stop in the street to take a closer look and get a picture.
“Most days I forget how oddly long his ears are,” added Harbor’s owner.
“He’s a phenomenon in the world and he creates smiles wherever we go.”
Harbor takes the Guinness World Records title from Tigger (13.5 inch ears), a bloodhound from Illinois, who passed away of old age two years ago.
Harbor, the coonhound with the longest canine ears on the planet
According to Guinness World Records 2012, Harbor’s ear-span is greater than the height of the world’s shortest man, Junrey Balawing, who is 23.5 inches (about 60 cm) tall.
Harbor’s ears are also wider than the smallest road-legal car, which is 26 inches (66 cm) wide, and you could comfortably fit the world’s shortest dog, 6 in (15 cm) long Brandy, who is also from the US, on each of Harbor’s ears twice.
The next edition of Guinness World Records will be published on September 15.
An anxious air passenger was arrested after trying to open the exit door of an Alaska Airlines jet while it was taxiing to the gate.
Crew and passengers had to subdue the 39-year-old man, who was very anxious to get off the plane arriving at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
An Alaska Airlines crew member was bitten in the arm during the scuffle and was taken to Highline Medical Center in Burien, Washington for treatment of minor injuries.
Crew and passengers had to subdue the man, who was very anxious to get off the plane arriving at Seattle Tacoma International Airport
The anxious passenger was taken to Highline Medical Center in Burien for a mental health evaluation, before being transferred to King County Jail. On Monday he was being held in custody and was expected to be booked on investigation of felony assault.
The flight 108 from Anchorage, Alaska, landed in Seattle at about 4:30 a.m. on Monday.
Seattle-Tacoma Airport spokesman Perry Cooper said no other airport operations were affected.
During the Labor Day weekend in New York the number of shot people has risen to 43, after violence started at the annual West Indian Day Parade in Brooklyn.
In the 24 hours, from Saturday 6 a.m. to Sunday 6 a.m., 24 people were shot, the victims were shot during 15 separate incidents, and so far no arrests have been made.
The latest shooting, left a police officer wounded and a civilian dead just a few blocks off the route where revelers had earlier filled the streets in colorful costumes.
During the Labor Day weekend in New York the number of shot people has risen to 43, after violence started at the 2011 West Indian Day Parade in Brooklyn
The police officer was hit in the arm and hospitalized but expected to recover, the civilian died at the scene and at least two others were wounded.
According to police, earlier in the day four people were shot and wounded during the parade along its route. A 15-year-old boy was grazed by a bullet nearby.
Charles Walters, 53 – who’s 11-year-old son was one of the victims on Sunday – to the New York Daily News:
“These people come with guns and shoot at anyone.
“They don’t care if there are children around.”
Shaquan Walters, his son, was the youngest of eight shot in the early hours of Sunday as he partied in his Bronx back yard.
At the same event, a 14-year-old girl was hit in the back, while a 13-year-old girl was hit in the left thigh during the 3:39 a.m. shooting.
In the Williamsbridge shooting, there were five young men wounded, aged 17, 18, 19, 21 and 24.
According to police, Oneil Dasilva, 17 could be the suspect in connection with the incident.
After Brooklyn violence at the Labor Day Parade, Mayor Michael Bloomberg called on politicians in Washington to enact stricter gun laws.
Speaking at the Christian Cultural Centre in Brooklyn yesterday Mayor Bloomberg said:
“It is just unconscionable.We cannot tolerate it.
“There are just too many guns on the streets and we have to do something about it.
“We need the federal government to step up. Both ends of Pennsylvania Ave., both sides of the aisle.”
Michael Bloomberg is a member of Mayors Against Illegal Guns and has rallied Washington for tighter gun laws in the past.
Bloomberg added:
“We cannot continue to have these guns in the hands of kids who don’t understand the value of life.”
The Labor Day weekend’s shootings began at around 6 a.m. on Saturday when a 35-year-old woman was wounded in Brooklyn.
Monday at 2 a.m., a 30-year-old died from bullet wounds to the head and back in Flatbush.
From 2:12 a.m. to 2:30 a.m. on Sunday five men were shot in three separate incidents.
Over sixty fires have ignited since Sunday afternoon and one of them has reached Bastrop Texas on Monday causing major damages.
Bastrop Texas major wildfire: Flames over a road near Bastrop State Park (Reuters)
The Bastrop County Complex Fire has destroyed more than 25,000 acres of forest (two-thirds of the 6,000-acre Bastrop State Park) and has burnt almost 500 houses.
Tropical Storm Lee generating powerful winds and drought conditions (Texas has endured its worst drought since the 1950s) has made the fire to travel fast, consuming pine and cedar trees.
The Bastrop County is around 30 miles east from Austin and has around 70,000 residents. The speed of fire was very uncommon and led to evacuation of at least 5,000 persons, 400 people were taken to emergency shelters. School and school-related activities were canceled for Tuesday and the Red Cross has opened several shelters to house evacuees.
Perry, the Texas Governor, who was out of the state on Sunday, viewed the fire from the air. “This is as mean looking as I’ve ever seen, particularly because it was so close to the city.” He said.
Rick Perry said he planned to immediately request federal disaster relief for Texas fire victims. Since December, wildfires in Texas have claimed 3.5 million acres, and have destroyed more than 1,000 homes, he said.
He said it was too early to say whether he would attend Wednesday’s GOP debate in California.
Ground and air forces were mobilized to fight the large wildfire of Bastrop Texas.
Over 250 firefighters has working on the Bastrop fire, that stretches for 16 miles. Minimum 40 Texas Forest Service aircraft were involved in the firefighting Monday along with a half-dozen Texas military aircraft. Heavy air tankers, brought in from as far away as South Dakota, have been dumping tons of water on fires all day long, The Texas Forest Service said. The crews contained the main fire north of the Colorado River, but the major Bastrop Texas wildfire was still not contained.
Campfires, burning of debris, Labor Day barbecues were prohibited in all but three of the 254 counties in Texas.
The MDA Labor Day Telethon 2011 raised $61.5 million in six hours on the holiday weekend without Jerry Lewis, its host for the last 45 years.
The annual MDA show’s goal is to raise awareness for muscular dystrophy, ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), and related diseases and raise money to fund research for cures.
Jerry Lewis has been hosting MDA Telethon since 1966, the annual event being even previously named the Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon.
MDA Telethon 2011 raised $61.5 million without Jerry Lewis
Jerry Lewis claims that his efforts, dating back to the 1950s, have raised over $2.6 billion for the muscular dystrophy cause.
In May 2011 press, the MDA announced that Jerry Lewis will retire from hosting the telethon by making a final appearance and performing his signature song You’ll Never Walk Alone.
On August 3, a MDA press release announced that Jerry Lewis has “competed his run as its national chairman” and “will not be appearing on the Telethon.”
Both Jerry Lewis and the MDA made no comment on what changed between May and August.
On July 29, Entertainment Weekly reported that Jerry Lewis slammed the reality TV industry.
“The kids who’re on American Idol, they’re all McDonalds wipe outs…The industry have destroyed itself,” Jerry Lewis said.
Ironically, the hosts of the 2011 MDA Telethon included Nigel Lythgoe from American Idol, Jann Carl from The Biggest Loser, and Alison Sweeney from The Biggest Loser.
Even more ironic, these reality personalities paid tributes and praise to Jerry Lewis at the last night show.
“If this is the way we’re going culturally, then we should go all the way and just tell grandpa we don’t need him for thanksgiving,” said comedian Larry Miller, reported CBS, regarding Lewis’ absence at the 2011 telethon.
“In my 42 years in show business, I’ve seen a great deal of injustice, this ranks right up to the top,” said comedian Tom Dreesen, reported CBS.
Researchers from Tufts University in Massachusetts, US have created the smallest motor ever devised.
The tiny motor, made from a single molecule just a billionth of a metre across, is reported in Nature Nanotechnology.
The small electric motor could have applications in both nanotechnology and in medicine, where tiny amounts of work can be put to efficient use.
The smallest motor is made from a single molecule just a billionth of a metre across
Minuscule rotors based on single molecules have been shown before, but this is the first that they can be individually driven by an electric current, creating the smallest motor.
“People have found before that they can make motors driven by light or by chemical reactions, but the issue there is that you’re driving billions of them at a time – every single motor in your beaker,” said Dr. Charles Sykes, chemist at Tufts University in Massachusetts.
“The exciting thing about the electrical one is that we can excite and watch the motion of just one, and we can see how that thing’s behaving in real time,” he told BBC News.
The butyl methyl sulphide molecule was placed on a clean copper surface, where its single sulphur atom acted as a pivot for the smallest motor.
The tip of a scanning tunnelling microscope – a tiny pyramid with a point just an atom or two across – was used to funnel electrical charge into the motor, as well as to take images of the molecule as it spun.
It spins in both directions, at a rate as high as 120 revolutions per second.
But averaged over time, there is a net rotation in one direction.
“By modifying the molecule slightly, it could be used to generate microwave radiation or to couple into what are known as nano-electromechanical systems,” Dr. Sykes said.
“The next thing to do is to get the thing to do work that we can measure – to couple it to other molecules, lining them up next to one another so they’re like miniature cog-wheels, and then watch the rotation propagation down the chain,” Dr. Sykes added.
As well as forming a part of the tiniest machines the world has ever seen, such minute mechanics could be useful in medicine – for example, in the controlled delivery of drugs to targeted locations.
For the moment, the research team is in contact with the Guinness Book of World Records to have their motor certified as the smallest motor ever.
Over 50,000 participants danced an emotional goodbye to this year’s Burning Man after setting their landmark 120ft tall Temple of Transition ablaze. They came, they saw, and they burned.
The spectacular 45,000 square feet effigy has been turn into a fireball, which brought the Nevada desert counter-culture event to a close over America’s Labor Day weekend.
Temple of Transition was burnt to the ground to celebrate the end of 2011 Burning Man project
The night came after a week of shenanigans at the anything-goes festival – which included topless bike parades, yachts on wheels strolling the desert floor, geodesic domes housing dance clubs, a 22-ton Trojan horse, and a French Quarter-themed camp.
Temple of Transition during Burning Man 2011 on Friday
There was a ticket sales record at this year Burning Man, with 53,341 attending on Friday, and organizers reported a sell-out for the first time ever in its 25-year history.
The spectacular finale of Burning Man, in the remote Black Rock desert about 120 miles northeast of Reno, came after another 40ft signature effigy was burnt on Friday night.
The Burning Man’s Temple of Transition is the tallest installation art structure ever built at the site and visitors were encouraged to meditate, chant or write notes to loved ones in the hexagonal central tower.
Burning Man 2011, fireworks erupt before The Man is burned during the Rites of Passage in the Nevada desert
According to organizers, they were now planning to turn the company that runs the event into a not-for-profit organization.
The Black Rock LLC company will be liquidated and will turn into the Burning Man Project, with a 17-member board and tens of thousands of “burners” to continue its work.
“We’ve never called it a festival; we’ve always called it a project, with equal parts play and labor,” said founder and Black Rock LLC Executive Director Larry Harvey.
Harvey added: “Festival limits it to a party or a vacation, and it hasn’t behaved that way for about ten years. Most festivals don’t forward action.”
The Burning Man project and phenomenon started 25 years ago with an eight-foot structure burning on a beach in California around the summer solstice.
The Burning Man has now morphed into a sophisticated community, with year-round projects including solar energy development and a crisis response network.
Each year for one week, self-styled “burners” that head into the desert and build a working city from the ground up – including an airport, a post office, and a security team – that tries to be devoid of money and consumerism.
“Burners” then aim to leave the desert with no trace that they were there.
Burning Man 2011, the burners left the desert with no trace that they were there
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According to police, there were no major problems from the week-long event, although one participant was said to have died on Wednesday from ‘natural causes”.
Bureau of Land Management (BLM) rangers reported three felony arrests and the issued 42 citations, mostly for drug-related offences on Friday.
The Burning Man 2011 Rites of Passage arts and music festival in the Black Rock desert of Nevada
For majority of people Labor Day means a three-day weekend with picnics and barbecues, like a farewell to summer and one last hurrah before the new school year gets underway in earnest.
Labor Day, which is celebrated always on the first Monday in September, was created to honor the contributions of the nation’s working men and women and their achievements.
Labor Day 2011
The U.S. Labor Department describes the holiday: “It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity and well-being of our country.”
The first Labor Day celebration was in 1882 in New York City, organized by the Central Labor Union.
The American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations (AFL-CIO), which represents about 12.2 million members, says that first holiday was marked by a march to demand an eight-hour workday and other labor law reforms.
At that time, about 20,000 workers made their way up Broadway carrying signs that read “Labor Creates All Wealth” and “Eight Hours for Work, Eight Hours for Rest, Eight Hours for Recreation.”
During the time other unions followed suit and by 1894, the Labor Day holiday had been adopted by 23 states.
Later on came that year’s deadly Pullman strike, in which government forces shot and killed several striking railroad workers in Illinois. It gave birth to the modern labor movement and added new urgency to the formation of a holiday that honors it.
“In what most historians call an election year attempt to appease workers after the federal crackdown on the Pullman strike, shortly after the strike was broken, President Grover Cleveland signed legislation making the first Monday in September Labor Day and a federal holiday,” according to the AFL-CIO, which also notes that the gambit did not work: “Cleveland lost the election.”
In 2011, the holiday comes on the heels of a bruising union showdown in Wisconsin, in which Governor Scott Walker and Republican lawmakers moved to curb public employees’ collective bargaining rights and have them pay more for benefits. Its political ramifications were felt far beyond that state’s borders, with some seeing the outcome as a sign that public unions can now be challenged to their core.
Labor Day holiday is often used as the unofficial start of the general election campaign, and today is no exception. President Barack Obama and the field of Republicans who want to oust him have plans to address voters on this Labor Day.
The 46th annual Muscular Dystrophy Association Labor Day Telethon was broadcasted nationwide from 6 p.m. to midnight in every U.S. time zone on Sunday and the iconic show attracted outstanding talents on its first time without Jerry Lewis’ hosting.
One of the biggest stars participating to the MDA Telethon 2011 was Celine Dion, who performed in the opening hour.
“It’s always a privilege to be part of the MDA Labor Day Telethon,” said Celine Dion.
“I hope by taking part in this great cause, I can help MDA in its mission to make life better for families who are fighting muscle diseases. From supporting scientists who are searching for treatments and cures, to helping children go to MDA summer camp, MDA provides love and care in so many ways.”
Celine Dion’s motivation was shared by other artists who participated in Sunday’s prime-time Telethon, which has been broadcasted by more than 150 television stations nationwide.
Jordin Sparks At MDA Telethon 2011
In a group message so typical of their harmonious sound, Boyz II Men members Shawn Stockton, and Nathan and Wanya Morris said:
“We’re excited to be part of the MDA Labor Day Telethon this year and lend our voices to a such a good cause. We remember watching it growing up, and it’s great to be a part of something so historic that benefits so many people every day. Be sure to tune in to catch us on the Telethon this Sunday.”
Also, Tony Award-winning choreographer Twyla Tharp, when confirming that “Come Fly Away” principal dancers would perform two Telethon dance segments to the legendary original vocals of Frank Sinatra, noted that:
“Dance has the power to move people with nothing more than the flow of bodies and the expression of emotion. Progressive muscle diseases rob people of the power to move but not the experience of emotion or humanity. Hopefully, our dance performance will move us one step closer to preserving free motion for people with muscle diseases.”
[youtube V4gNaPiFW2g]
When people tuned in to watch the prime-time Telethon on Sunday, they have immediately been engaged by the “Make a Muscle, Make a Difference”® show opening using dance, music and striking visuals of everyday people flexing their biceps muscles to immediately let America know how important it is to “Be the Next to Flex”® for MDA.
Followed by the incredible magic of Penn & Teller, plus the intergalactic fun of music phenomenon Voca People, and an unforgettable performance by Celine Dion, the show’s first hour, which also introduced Telethon co-hosts Nigel Lythgoe (“American Idol” and “So You Think You Can Dance”), Nancy O’Dell (“Entertainment Tonight”), Alison Sweeney (NBC’s “The Biggest Loser” and author of The Mommy Diet), and Jann Carl (Emmy-winning journalist and independent producer).
The second hour of the MDA Labor Day Telethon has been full of many memorable moments, too.
Darius Rucker performed solo and also sang a duet with MDA National Goodwill Ambassador Abbey Umali of Redlands, Calif. Other performances on the Telethon stage in the second hour included the JabbaWockeeZ, winners of the MTV’s “America’s Best Dance Crew” competition; the incredibly popular Italian trio II Volo; and Ellen DeGeneres protégé Greyson Chance.
“The View’s” Barbara Walters, Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar, Sherri Shepherd, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, as well as NFL running back Reggie Bush have made special appeals.
The third hour of the Telethon has been full of extraordinary entertainers, too. Lady Antebellum, Jennifer Lopez, Michael Feinstein, and renowned Australian guitarist Tommy Emmanuel appeared to encourage even greater public support to help advance MDA’s lifesaving mission.
Plus, “One Step Away,” the teenage Boston band making their network television debut, has rocked the house for MDA. One “Step Away” is one of three winners of the second annual iHeartRadio.com “Get Discovered!” talent competition entered by more than 7,800 artists.
[youtube pApsYAhPod8]
The fourth hour presented the exceptional musical stylings of Jimmy Webb, Richie Sambora, Jon Secada and Maureen McGovern, as well as the first of two “Come Fly Away” dance performances to the legendary original vocals of Frank Sinatra.
These powerful performances have been reinforced by appeals from R&B singer/songwriter Smokey Robinson and NFL legend Kurt Warner, as well as by a high-energy performance by the Universal Cheerleaders Association all-stars, 36 of the nation’s best cheerleaders representing 17 states.
Sensational entertainers continued to appear for MDA Telethon in the fifth hour, with Grammy-nominated platinum recording artist Jordin Sparks, Martina McBride, Steven Tyler, Randy Jackson, and a second “Come Fly Away” dance performance to the sizzling vocals of “Ol’ Blue Eyes.”
The soap stars of “General Hospital’s” rock band Port Chuck, Tony Award-winning ventriloquist Jay Johnson, and Brokedown Cadillac (upbeat country group which also won 2011 iHeartRadio.com “Get Discovered!” competition to secure its live network television performance opportunity on the Telethon), also performed from the national Telethon stage at the South Point Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas.
Four-time Grammy Award-winning group, Boyz II Men, has opened the sixth and final hour of the 2011 prime-time Telethon. They have been followed by Rootdown, the Oregon-based “Get Discovered!”-winning band with a Reggae hip-hop sound. Then, Billy Ray Cyrus performed his new single “Nineteen,” and “Glee’s” Max Adler made “Make a Muscle, Make a Difference” for MDA leading up to a spectacular America tribute involving more than 100 performers. Scored with a patriotic medley, the finale was anchored by Jordin Sparks, Jon Secada, Maureen McGovern, Richie Sambora, Tommy Emanuel and 70 kids from the Clark County Children’s choir.
The 46th edition of the annual MDA Labor Day Telethon wasted no time in offering a tribute to its longtime host, Jerry Lewis, and potentially diffusing any backlash or disappointment with his absence.
A dance performance opened the MDA Labor Day Telethon 2011 and then, Jerry Lewis‘ replacements — Nigel Lythgoe, Jann Carl, Alison Sweeney and Nancy O’Dell — took the stage and immediately took turns talking about the comedian’s five-decade commitment to raising money for a cure.
The 46th edition of the annual MDA Labor Day Telethon wasted no time in offering a tribute to its longtime host, Jerry Lewis
Huge images of Jerry Lewis at various stages of his career served as a backdrop on stage as the 2011 MDA Telethon hosts talked.
Last May, Jerry Lewis, who had hosted the telethon since 1966, announced he was retiring as MDA chairman and that this year’s Labor Day weekend telethon would be his last. But the MDA subsequently — and rather tersely and unceremoniously — said Lewis would not host this year’s show.
The new MDA Telethon hosts talked alluded to how Jerry Lewis had “retired.”
Jerry Lewis’ publicist Candi Cazau declined to comment to the AP when told of the comments to start Sunday night’s program.
Muscular Dystrophy Association spokesman, Jim Brown refused to say anything elaborate on the hosts’ words, but said the telethon would include at least one more nod to Jerry Lewis.
Nancy O’Dell talked about how MDA was there for her and her family while her mother was dying of ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, Lou Gehrig’s disease).
“And, boy, did Jerry’s closing song, <<You’ll Never Walk Alone>>, hit home the year that my mom passed away,” she said.
Nigel Lythgoe talked about how Jerry Lewis was irreplaceable.
“What you have done for this organization and its families is something close to a miracle,” he said. “And I know that we all want to carry on your legacy. We’re going to try and, with a humble heart, and occasionally a good laugh — because you taught us, above all, that laughter can cure almost anything — I trust we will continue to be successful.”
Typhoon Talas killed at least 18 people and left more than 50 missing after hitting the western area of Japan.
Typhoon Talas came with heavy rain and winds of up to 68 mph after making landfall on Shikoku Island on Saturday.
Talas is the season’s 12th typhoon and is now moving slowly north across the Sea of Japan, according to the Japan’s Meteorological Agency Sunday statement.
Kiho, central Japan on Sunday
The tropical storm Talas had crossed the southern Japanese island of Shikoku and the central part of the main island of Honshu early on Sunday.
But because of the storm’s slow speed, forecasters warned heavy rains and strong winds would continue, increasing the likelihood of more floods and landslides.
Almost 500,000 people in western and central Japan were issued with evacuation orders and advisories, according to Kyodo News agency.
The worst hit areas were in Nara and Wakayama prefectures, with homes swept away by flood waters and landslides.
In Wakayama prefecture, three homes were buried in a landslide and one woman who was rescued later died, four people remained missing and a 14-year old girl was saved from the debris, police said.
Wakayama, an iron bridge over the Nachi River in Nachikatsuura town
According to police, 10 people were dead and 32 people were missing.
In Nara Prefecture, local NHK TV said seven people were missing after their homes were swept away down a river.
According to police, among the dead was a woman who appeared to be in her 30s whose body was found in a river in Ehime prefecture on Shikoku.
In Nara prefecture, a 73-year-old man died after a landslide caused his house to collapse.
TV footage showed a bridge swept away after intense rainfall, which swelled a normally placid river to a raging brown torrent, and people holding umbrellas were seen wading through knee-deep water in city streets.
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