Bill Clinton, the former US president revealed on Rachel Ray show he rejected an “interesting” offer to appear on Dancing With The Stars show.
Bill Clinton, the 65 year-old politician, said he refused the offer because he couldn’t fit dance training into his busy schedule.
On today Rachael Ray show, Bill Clinton appeared tickled by the offer to join the celebrity cast of the hit television show.
The former president said that the thought of wearing sequins and stretch pants wasn’t appealing enough for him to drop his engagements and focus on the fox trot.
Bill Clinton revealed on Rachel Ray show he rejected an “interesting” offer to appear on Dancing With The Stars
“I told them I didn’t have the time to train for it. You know you actually go out there and you train, you really work at it. So I had to pass. But I think it’s a hoot,” Clinton laughed.
Refusing the Dancing With The Stars producers offer came much to the dismay of his mother-in-law, who Bill Clinton said is a huge fan of the show.
“And I have a 92-year-old mother-in-law who watches it religiously and she knows much more about popular culture than Hillary and I do,”Bill Clinton said, referring to his wife, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
“She even knows more than her granddaughter, Chelsea, knows about popular culture. She thinks I would be really cool if I made it, but I had to pass,” former president said.
President Bill Clinton and First Lady Hillary Clinton dance at his inaugural ball in Washington, D.C. on January 20, 1993
Bill Clinton said he is also a fan of the show – which will also see David Arquette, Chynna Phillips, soccer star Hope Solo, basketball player Ron Artest, actor JR Martinez, model Elisabetta Canalis, actress and talk show host Ricki Lake and reality stars Kristin Cavallari, Rob Kardashian and Carson Kressley competing for the title of America’s favourite celebrity dancer.
Bill Clinton added that ballroom dancing lessons could very well be in his near future.
“Just last night, Hillary said to me <<You know, when I’m not Secretary of State anymore, we should go take dancing lessons>>. So we’ll start with the tango.”
The powerful typhoon Roke has struck disaster-ravaged Japan, bringing heavy rains and floods that have killed four people.
Typhoon Roke is in progress to hit Fukushima, where engineers are still struggling to bring a nuclear plant under control after the March tsunami, with strong concerns that rain could force radioactive water into the sea.
More than a million people were urged to evacuate their homes across Japan; an advisory was later lifted in one area but 330,000 people remain at risk.
More than a million people were urged to evacuate their homes after typhoon Roke hit Japan
Typhoon Roke made landfall on Wednesday afternoon (05:00 GMT), scouring its way up the main island of Honshu, bringing high winds and torrential rain.
Typhoon is tracking a path across Tokyo towards Fukushima prefecture and is then expected to travel up along the north-east coast, which was battered by the 11 March earthquake and tsunami.
Four people have been found dead after heavy rain and flooding in central and western Japan due to the storm’s approach and another two are missing in the central prefecture of Gifu, including a nine-year-old boy.
Hundreds of flights are cancelled and several motorways have been closed.
Toyota, the car maker is suspending production at 11 of its 15 factories.
According to Japan’s Meteorological Agency, “the highest level of caution be used because of the heavy rain, strong wind, and high waves.”
The meteorological agency has also warned of downpours over a wide area of the country on Wednesday, saying some places could be deluged by as much as 50 mm of rain in an hour.
It is the second time in less than a month that Japan is being hit by a typhoon. Typhoon Talas ripped through the west of the country, leaving about 90 people dead or missing.
Dolores Hope, Bob Hope’s widow, who died on Monday at 102, will be buried alongside her beloved husband of 69 years.
Bob Hope died in 2003 and is buried in the Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana Cemetery in California, where Dolores already had the plot beside him inscribed for herself.
Dolores Hope was married to the comedy legend for 69 years and sometimes sang on his shows for U.S. troops and on his television specials.
Bob Hope is buried in the Mission San Fernando Rey de Espana Cemetery in California, where Dolores already had the plot beside him inscribed for herself
According to family spokesman Harlan Boll, Dolores Hope passed away at home in Los Angeles.
In 2009, at her 100th birthday party, Dolores Hope appeared little changed: her white hair was richly coiffed, her skin smooth and her voice deep and warm. Even if she was brought to the party in a wheelchair, Dolores Hope was alert and happy as she greeted old friends and posed for photographs.
After the party, Dolores Hope said: “I thought it was going to be just another birthday.”
Bob and Dolores Hope in 2003
In 1933, when Bob Hope was appearing in his first Broadway show, Roberta, his friend and fellow cast member George Murphy persuaded him to visit the Vogue Club to “hear a pretty girl sing”. She was Dolores Reade, a dark beauty whose singing of “It’s Only a Paper Moon” entranced the young comedian.
“I’ll never forget what a wonderful singer she was,” said Rip Taylor.
“In fact, that’s how Bob and Dolores met. It seems to me that they were always laughing.”
Bob Hope returned every night and soon he was escorting Dolores to her hotel after her shows. Bob and Dolores Hope married on February 19, 1934, and she quit nightclubs to join his vaudeville act.
“Bob was the hot thing in New York then,” Dolores Hope recalled in 1997.
“I thought I’d better stay home and take care of Bob.”
When Bob and Dolores Hope moved to Hollywood in 1938 for the beginning of his film career, she stayed home and devoted her time to raising the four children that they adopted: Linda, Anthony, Kelly and Nora.
“I had such a huge admiration for both of them,” said Julie Newmar.
“The quality it takes to get just one year older, says a lot about that fact that she lived to 102.”
Dolores Hope continued singing at parties, and in the 1940s she began accompanying Bob on his Christmas trips to entertain U.S. troops.
In 1966, Dolores Hope sang “Silent Night” to hushed thousands of GI’s who then rose and gave her a thunderous ovation, many with tears in their eyes.
In 1990, Dolores Hope accompanied Bob on his last Christmas visit to American forces, visiting troops who were in Saudi Arabia for Operation Desert Storm. Marie Osmond, Ann Jillian and the Pointer Sisters did not perform, to avoid offending Saudi sensibilities about women entertainers. But Dolores Hope was approved and sang “White Christmas” to a rapt audience.
“She was the first lady of the USO,” said Carol Channing. “They didn’t come any more patriotic, caring or talented than Dolores.”
Aside from overseeing two homes- the 18,000 square-foot mansion in North Hollywood and the 25,000 square-foot hilltop home in Palm Springs – Dolores Hope worked indefatigably for numerous charities. From 1969 to 1976 she served as president of the Eisenhower Medical Center in Palm Desert, California, then becoming chairwoman.
In 1982, Dolores Hope explained her philosophy:
“I like being with people, but I also need to have my time alone. I think it’s terribly important to have some time during the day when you stop and take all the energy that you have given out and pull it back in, find the source of your energy. Then you work from there.”
Ashton Kutcher Two and a Half Men début had been the subject of a slew of Hollywood hype after it was announced he would be replacing the fired Charlie Sheen.
It seems the critics are a little mixed on Ashton Kutcher‘s performance after he made his first appearance on the hit comedy show last night.
According to the New York Daily News, Ashton Kutcher, who spent much of the time on last night’s show naked while playing Walden Schmidt billionaire, “just needs to work on being funny.”
“By the last third of the show, the writers had clearly decided that walking around naked was Walden’s best shot at a laugh.”
Ashton Kutcher's character, Walden Schmidt is a dumped billionaire who has attempted to commit suicide
The Wall Street Journal reviewer wrote:
“Kutcher is intense and doesn’t do dead pan well at all. But he’s way hotter naked, and he’s naked a lot,” they said, adding that “Kutcher seems sort of frozen in place, humourless.”
Other commentators seemed to enjoy what Ashton Kutcher brought to the show, although some had reservations about his comic timing.
“The fact is that Kutcher, despite having spent so much time over the past few years branding and Tweeting himself, is a good comic actor,” wrote People in its review. “Not great.”
Entertainment Weekly wrote:
“Kutcher’s performance was good, nearly as poker-faced fine as Sheen’s was.”
“It’s easy to see how Kutcher is going to fit into the ensemble.
“He’s part-contrast-to-Charlie (he ordered ginger ale, not liquor, while out at a bar with Alan), and part-Charlie-2.0 (he beds women with ease, but in a nice, horny-puppy-dog kind of way).”
Ashton Kutcher's character bonded with Jon Cryer's character Alan Harper
However, other reviewers were kinder about Ashton Kutcher debut, who made his entrance as dumped husband Walden Schmidt soaking wet on the deck of Alan Harper’s Malibu beach house after trying to commit suicide in the ocean.
“With Kutcher loosely playing himself as a savant ladies’ man, it’s likely that Charlie Harper – or Sheen – won’t be missed,” said Fox News.
Charlie Sheen was famously fired from the smash hit TV comedy after falling out with its creator Chuck Lorre.
“Filling the void left by a well established character isn’t easy, but Kutcher mostly succeeded,” wrote The Chicago Sun Times.
“At times his character seemed a bit like Lennie petting the rabbits in Of Mice and Men, but give him a few episodes, and he should settle in nicely.”
The Los Angeles Times, meanwhile, said the show, which opened with Sheen’s character Charlie Harper’s funeral, was a ‘promising beginning.’
“Kutcher brings a softness as well as a sense of rude health – he was naked for much of the show – to a series that could often be brittle and sour, misanthropic and misogynistic, and temperamentally middle-aged.
“His presence might allow Cryer to play some sweeter, less strident notes, though it is up to Lorre, of course, to make that, or let that, happen.”
However, the viewing public were clearly less fussy than the critics on Ashton Kutcher, with a whopping 28 million tuning in – the largest ever audience for the show, which is in its ninth season.
Ashton Kutcher tweeted his gratitude to his fans today, posting:
“I owe you guys big time for showing up for us last night. Hope you were entertained. We’ll be there every Monday for you.”
And even Charlie Sheen found the episode funny, writing on his Twitter account:
“Surrounded by friends and watching the premier of Two and a Half Men,’ he tweeted. ‘Odd… But cool..! So far a lot of laughs!! Nice…”
Beatles, the world’s most famous band once refused to use a toilet roll while recording their Abbey Road album, because they thought it was too “hard and shiny”.
The rock legends rejected the roll during the 1960s as it also had EMI stamped on every sheet.
The object came to light after Beatles fan Barry Thomas snapped up the toilet roll at an auction complete with a letter from EMI manager Ken Townsend.
Toilet roll The Beatles refused to use while recording Abbey Road, because they thought it was too “hard and shiny”
Experts tried to evaluate the toilet roll last week, but told Barry Thomas they could not price such an odd object. Since then, Thomas has been offered £1,000 just for one sheet of the toilet roll.
Barry Thomas, 66, a grand-father of three bought the unique item of memorabilia in 1980 along with a famous picture that had hung at the studio throughout the Beatles’ time there.
He bought the roll, which came with a jokey letter of authentication by Ken Townsend for £85.
The letter, which is signed by Ken Townsend, reads:
“Most things went very smoothly with the Beatles at Abbey Road – but not this roll of toilet paper which they complained was too hard and shiny.
“They thought it disgraceful that the management should stamp each sheet of paper with EMI Ltd.
“The paper was immediately withdrawn and things became much smoother for staff after that.”
Ken Townsend letter stating why Beatles didn't want to use the toilet roll during their time at Abbey Road
Barry Thomas, who at the time ran a recording studio in Coventry, Warks, said:
“I went along to the auction as I was a Beatles fan, I mean who couldn’t be?
“I saw the roll and I just loved it, it seemed like such an original and unique thing to have.”
“People have the memories and the signed records and pictures and stuff, but no one else can say they have a toilet roll John Lennon rejected,” Thomas added.
“It wasn’t the only thing John specifically complained about in the studios, he also hated the lock on the freezer, so he had a few odd hates.
“At the time it caused a load of interest, the trade for band memorabilia hadn’t taken off then like it has today, even ABC from America wanted to interview me there and then at the auction.
“They asked me why I bought it and I didn’t know what to say, but then it came to me and I told them <<to wipe away all the crap you guys write about our industry>> and they loved that.”
Soon after making the purchase Barry Thomas, who still lives in Coventry with his wife of 45 years, Margarita, was approached by a wealthy collector who wanted a piece of the action.
“This Japanese Beatles memorabilia collector cam up to me,” said Barry Thomas.
“He offered me a thousand pounds for one piece of the roll, just one piece.
“I told him I wouldn’t sell him it, I didn’t want to unroll it, but also I felt it would be less special if it was shared across the world.
“Now I’m thinking about selling it, I had the idea that I could split the whole roll now and sell it off in pieces.
“I say I’ll do that, but to be honest I reckon when I try I won’t be able to bring myself to. The Japanese collector has approached me again and I’ve said no, but no one has been able to put an official value on it.”
Standard and Poor’s dropped Italy’s credit rating from A+ to A, with the ratings agency keeping the country’s outlook on negative in a surprise move that may add to contagion fears in the debt-stressed eurozone.
Silvio Berlusconi swiftly attacked S&P, claiming the Standard and Poor agency’s action was “dictated more by newspaper stories than by reality”.
S&P cut Italy’s government debt rating from A+/A-1+ to A/A-1 and said country’s economic growth prospects were getting weaker, with planned reforms by the government not expected to help much.
S&P cut Italy's government debt rating from A+/A-1+ to A/A-1 and said country's economic growth prospects were getting weaker, with planned reforms by the government not expected to help much
“We believe the reduced pace of Italy’s economic activity to date will make the government’s revised fiscal targets difficult to achieve,” S&P said in a statement.
Italy follows eurozone partners Spain, Ireland, Greece, Portugal and Cyprus in having its credit rating downgraded this year.
Italy, which approved an austerity programme last week, currently has a debt-to-GDP ratio of 120%.
S&P took the decision after lowering its annual growth forecast for Italy to just 0.7% between 2011 and 2014, down from 1.3% a year. It also questioned whether Italy’s austerity plan would deliver the €60 billion savings that the government is aiming for.
“We believe the reduced pace of Italy’s economic activity to date will make the government’s revised fiscal targets difficult to achieve,” said S&P.
“Furthermore, what we view as the Italian government’s tentative policy response to recent market pressures suggests continuing future political uncertainty about the means of addressing Italy’s economic challenges,” S&P added.
Italian Prime Minister said in a brief statement in response to the S&P move:
“The assessments by S&P seem dictated more by newspaper stories than by reality and appear to be negatively influenced by political considerations.”
Silvio Berlusconi’s government is already taking action against ratings agencies, with police raiding the offices of Moody’s and S&P last month.
Gary Jenkins at Evolution Securities said the S&P news came just as Moody’s was expected to also downgrade Italy:
“Just when everyone was waiting for Moody’s to downgrade Italy, S&P gets in first with what is a much more damaging downgrade as its rating of Italy was already the lowest of the three agencies. The S&P move is likely to be very negative for sentiment because whilst the market was expecting a downgrade it was probably not expecting one from an agency with the lowest rating which did not even have the sovereign on credit watch, but merely a negative outlook.”
Stock markets fell early on, but later recovered, with the FTSE 100 in positive territory. Overnight the Japanese Nikkei fell by 1.6%.
Biopharmaceutical company Oxigene has presented data that showed Zybrestat (fosbretabulin) helped improve the one-year survival rate of patients with larger anaplastic thyroid cancer tumors.
The presentation was made on September 14 at the 35th Meeting of the European Thyroid Association, in Krakow, Poland. The presenter was Dr. Rossella Elisei, endocrinologist, University of Pisa, Italy.
Combrestatin, from which Zybrestat derived, is present in the bark of Eastern Cape South African bushwillow tree.
A comparison was made between the results of the company’s aggregate data from five independent prospective Phase 1 and Phase 2 trials using Zybrestat to treat patients with anaplastic thyroid cancer (ATC), including the FACT trial, and data from the 50-year experience in treating ATC patients at the Mayo Clinic from 1949 to 1999, published by Dr. Bryan McIver. FACT trial is a large single, randomized, controlled, multi-center clinical trial, and the Mayo studies comprise a large retrospective review of the treatment outcomes in ATC.
There were three key findings from the retrospective analysis.
13 patients or 9.7% of all 134 ATC patients treated at the Mayo Clinic survived one year or more.
19 patients or 23% of all 84 ATC patients treated with Zybrestat either alone or in combination with chemotherapy survived more than one year. The longest survival is 13+ years in a patient with a complete response.
The 9% rate of patients in the control arm of the FACT study surviving one year is almost identical to the observed 9% in the larger Mayo cohort.
Direct comparisons between the FACT trial and the Mayo Group have to be interpreted with the caveat that there were changes in standard-of-care treatment over the past 50 years, as well as differences in staging, sample size, and time-to-death.
“The 24% of patients treated with Zybrestat in the FACT study surviving one year or longer remains striking in its significance. Patients treated with Zybrestat essentially had a one-in-four chance of being alive after one year compared to only a one-in-10 chance in the control group, which corresponds to the survival outcome in the Mayo Clinic treated group.” Said Dr. Peter J. Langecker, Oxigene’s CEO.
Oxigene earlier this month saw shares slump after it said funding for a planned Phase 3 study of the drug candidate wasn’t feasible. Langecker said the company believes focusing its clinical resources on its most promising early-stage clinical development opportunities and reducing operating costs will allow it to conserve available resources.
Previously referred to as combretastatin A4 phosphate/CA4P, Zybrestat (fosbretabulin) has been granted orphan drug status by the FDA and the European Medicines Agency for the treatment of anaplastic thyroid cancer.
Zybrestat is being evaluated in a Phase 2 study of patients with non-squamous non-small cell lung cancer and other clinical trials, including a recently completed Phase 2 study of Zybrestat plus chemotherapy in patients with ATC. Oxigene believes that Zybrestat is poised to become an important product in a novel class of small-molecule drug candidates called vascular disrupting agents (VDA). Through interaction with vascular endothelial cell cytoskeletal proteins, Zybrestat selectively targets and collapses tumor vasculature, thereby depriving the tumor of oxygen and causing death of tumor cells. In clinical trials in solid tumors, Zybrestat has demonstrated potent and selective activity against tumor vasculature, as well as clinical activity against anaplastic thyroid cancer, ovarian cancer and various other solid tumors.
Zybrestat collapses tumor vasculature and interrupts its blood flow, leading to the death of cancer cells.
The concept of interrupting tumors’ blood supply was first described in the early 1970s and led to the development of a new class of anti-cancer drugs called angiogenesis inhibitors.
Zybrestat is the first VDA to be tested in combination with a tumor-angiogenesis-inhibiting drug Avastin (bevacizumab) in humans.
The thyroid is an endocrine gland and its hormones help control heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and weight. Four main types of thyroid cancer are papillary, follicular, medullary, and anaplastic thyroid cancer.
Thyroid's hormones help control heart rate, blood pressure, body temperature, and weight. Zybrestat could help increase survival of anaplastic thyroid carcinoma patients.
Anaplastic thyroid cancer is a very aggressive primary thyroid malignancy. ATC represents less than 2% of all thyroid cancers, but causes up to 40% of deaths from thyroid cancer. Median life expectancy is about three months for newly diagnosed patients. The overall 5-year survival rate of ATC has been given as 7% or 14%.
National Cancer Institute estimates 48,020 new cases and 1,740 deaths from thyroid cancer in the U. S. in 2011.
Fosbretabulin (Zybrestat), bortezomib (Velcade) and TNF-Related Apoptosis Induced Ligand (TRAIL), are being trialed in clinical labs and human clinical studies.
An explosion near a secondary school killed three people, injured at least other 15 and set several vehicles on fire in the Turkish capital, Ankara, on Tuesday.
It was not immediately clear what caused the blast in the downtown Kizilay district but a deputy prime minister said a bomb was suspected.
According to Besir Atalay, Turkey’s deputy prime minister, there was “information that a bomb was planted” on a vehicle.
Five of the injured people are in critical condition, Besir Atalay said.
The explosion killed three people, injured at least other 15 and set several vehicles on fire in Ankara
The vehicle detonated across from the district governor’s office and about 200 meters (650 feet) from Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s office.
“I’ve learned that people who haven’t got any sense of humanity terrorized civilians and carried out an attack in Ankara,” President Abdullah Gul said in televised comments from Germany, where he is on a state visit.
“I strongly and vehemently curse this act of terrorism.”
Thick smoke could be seen rising from the central commercial area of Kizilay.
According to local mayor, Bulent Tanik, an eyewitness saw one person throwing a burning gas canister on to the vehicles from a nearby building.
“The investigation is under way,” Bulent Tanik said. “If true, that canister might have triggered the blast of a liquefied petroleum gas tank on a vehicle.”
The blast was powerful enough to destroy six cars and shatter windows in Kizilay, which is surrounded by government ministries. One of the vehicles was totally burnt down, television images showed.
Interior Minister Idris Naim Sahin said the initial blast, in an LPG-fueled car, triggered five other similar vehicles on the street to explode. The first car to detonate was sold September 13 and the transaction hadn’t yet been completed, he said.
IdrisNaim Sahin said it was “highly likely to be a terrorist attack”. Kurdish, leftist and Islamic militants have carried out bomb attacks in Turkey in the past.
Interior minister said the attackers wanted to target as many people as possible, because the street where the blast occurred was normally very busy.
A fire broke out but was quickly contained by firefighters. Several vehicles were damaged and windows were blown out in nearby buildings.
Television images showed several parked cars ablaze in front of a local state authority’s offices.
The area was quickly evacuated, for fear of further explosions and to allow ambulances to take away the casualties.
One person was detained in connection with the blast, said a policeman, who declined to be identified because he wasn’t authorized to speak on the matter. Hurriyet newspaper reported that two people were taken into custody, citing unidentified police officials
There have been several bomb attacks in Turkey’s main cities in recent years, many blamed on the Kurdish insurgent movement, the PKK.
However the last big attack in Ankara four years ago, which killed nine and injured 120, was blamed by police investigators on a lone, leftist suicide bomber.
Samsung sources revealed this week that the company was considering legal action to ban Apple’s upcoming iPhone 5 in Europe, after one of its executives admitted a similar move was planned in Korea.
Since Apple launched iPhone, there is no secret that Samsung makes many of the components inside it, in fact, even Samsung‘s CEO has admitted: “Apple is our biggest customer.”
But when Samsung launched its own Galaxy series of phones and tablets – high-powered touchscreens whose flagship, the Galaxy S II – legal war has erupted between the companies in nine countries.
A Samsung executive told the Korea Times this week:
“When the iPhone 5 arrives here, Samsung plans to take Apple to court here for its violation of Samsung’s wireless technology related patents.”
This statement is in response to Apple’s continued legal action against Samsung’s Galaxy family of touchscreen tablets and smartphones.
Legal battle rages between Apple and Samsung over alleged similarities between their touchscreen smartphones and handsets
Some of Samsung gadgets are currently illegal in Europe following Apple lawsuits, which claimed they are “slavish” copies of iPhone and iPad.
Samsung recently overtook Nokia in the smartphone market, and its Galaxy S II offers a larger screen and faster processor than iPhone 4.
In September, Apple even forced Samsung to withdraw a prototype tablet device from the show floor of a Berlin electronics show. Samsung’s larger Galaxy 10.1 tablet remains illegal in Europe following Apple’s legal action.
The Maeil Business Newspaper reported that Samsung may seek an injunction against Apple’s new iPhone in Europe. Samsung said it would not comment on ongoing legal issues.
Samsung and Apple have been locked in intensifying legal battles in nine countries over their flagship smartphone and tablet products – battles made more complex by the fact that many related patents are held by other internet giants such as Google and Microsoft.
The latest Samsung attacks come after Apple successfully blocked the South Korean firm from selling its latest tablets in Germany and some smartphone models in the Netherlands and forced its rival to delay launching new tablets in Australia.
After Apple’s latest legal victory in Germany earlier in September, Samsung said it would take all available legal options.
Apple first sued the South Korean company in April and Samsung had since counter-sued, arguing Apple infringed on its mobile technologies.
Dolores Hope, the singer who was married for 69 years to comedian Bob Hope, died on September 19 at her home in the Toluca Lake, Los Angeles.
Dolores DeFina was born on May 27, 1909, in Harlem, New York City, and began her career as Dolores Reade. Her father was Italian and her mother Irish, and she grew up in the Bronx.
“My father died when I was very young, and there was just my mother, my sister and me. Were we a needy family? I always like what General Eisenhower said: ‘We were poor and didn’t know it.’” Dolores Hope said in 1982
She married Bob Hope in 1934 in Erie, Pennsylvania, and they adopted four children: Nora (Eleanora), Linda, Kelly and Anthony. Anthony died in 2004 at 63. Bob Hope started his film career in 1938 in Hollywood and Dolores stayed home.
Bob Hope and Dolores Hope: "Together, they brought countless hours of laughter and cheer to Americans everywhere." (Nancy Reagan)
“Bob was the hot thing in New York then. I thought I’d better stay home and take care of Bob.” she said in 1997.
“When we were celebrating our 50th anniversary, people would say, ‘Fifty years?’ And Bob would say, ‘Yeah, but I’ve only been home three weeks,’ ” Dolores Hope told the Palm Springs Desert Sun in 1995. She gave Bob Hope a paperweight inscribed “Don’t think these three weeks haven’t been fun.”
“We always had quality instead of quantity. When he wasn’t home, he’d call almost every day, except when he was in a combat zone. Even then, he’d try.” Dolores Hope recalled in the same interview.
Bob and Dolores Hope in 1997: the laughter in the family home contributed to her parents’ long lives, said Linda Hopes
Dolores Hope was Catholic and decided what has been appropriate for a family audience. “I learned to temper my humor in those years. Dolores was a tough critic.” Bob Hope said.
In the 1940s she began accompanying Hope on his Christmas trips to entertain U.S. troops. In 1966 she sang “Silent Night” to thousands of soldiers who then rose and gave her a thunderous ovation.
“Dolores was a good friend and a good person. She was an extraordinary partner to Bob throughout his entire life, supporting both their family at home and Bob’s selfless cause to entertain U.S. troops abroad. Together, they brought countless hours of laughter and cheer to Americans everywhere,” said Nancy Reagan.
In 1990, Bob Hope made his last Christmas visit to American forces, visiting troops who were in Saudi Arabia for Operation Desert Storm. Although Marie Osmond, Ann Jillian and the Pointer Sisters did not sing because of Saudi sensibilities about women entertainers, Dolores Hope was allowed to perform and she sang “White Christmas” to thrilled public.
“She was the first lady of the USO. They didn’t come any more patriotic, caring or talented than Dolores,” said Carol Channing.
Dolores Hope oversaw Hopes charitable giving, helping to establish the Eisenhower Medical Center in Rancho Mirage, California.
She took care of two homes (a mansion in North Hollywood and a hilltop home in Palm Springs) and from 1969 to 1976 served as president of the Eisenhower Medical Center, then became chairwoman. Bob Hope raised millions of dollars for the center through the annual golf tournament that used to bear his name and is now known as the Humana Challenge.
A large part of Hopes fortune came from property holdings in the San Fernando Valley. Their wealth had been estimated at as much as $500 million in 2003.
“I like being with people, but I also need to have my time alone. I think it’s terribly important to have some time during the day when you stop and take all the energy that you have given out and pull it back in, find the source of your energy. Then you work from there.” Dolores Hope said in 1982.
Dolores Hope is survived her daughters, Linda Hope and Nora Somers; her younger son, Kelly Hope; four grandchildren; and a great-grandchild.
Dolores Hope centenary: her 'Ten Decades Of Life' party on May 27, 2009, in Toluca Lake. "I think of her as love."(Kelly Hope)
Bob Hope died in 2003, two months after he had turned 100. In 2009, when Dolores Hope became a centenarian, Linda Hope said she thought laughter in the family home had contributed to her parents’ long lives. Her birthday appeared on The Today Show, and Kelly Hope said in an ABC interview, “I think of her as love.“
Hollywood Chamber of Commerce laid flowers at her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, around four hours after Dolores Hope’s passing, Her star is next to her husband’s. Bob Hope was named the chamber’s “Citizen of the Century.”
Bob and Dolores Hope: Silver Bells
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Duffy’s Tavern (1944) with Dolores Hope and Bob Crosby
On Monday, September 19, the Food and Drug Administration announced that it found Listeria monocytogenes in samples of Jensen Farms’ Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupe taken from a Denver-area store and on samples taken from equipment and cantaloupe at the Jensen Farms’ packing facility.
Listeria monocytogenes causes listeriosis, with fever, muscle aches and vomiting
Tests confirmed that the Listeria monocytogenes found in the samples matches one of the three different strains of Listeria monocytogenes associated with the multi-state outbreak of listeriosis.
Jensen Farms recalled its Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupes on September 14 in response to the multi-state outbreak of listeriosis. Cantaloupes from other farms in Colorado, including farms in the Rocky Ford growing area, have not been linked to this outbreak.
Jensen Farms shipped the recalled cantaloupes from July 29 through September 10 to at least 17 states with possible further distribution.
FDA investigators collected cantaloupes and environmental samples from a Denver-area store and from the Jensen Farms packing facility in Granada, after Colorado state health officials identified Jensen Farms’ Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupes as the common food eaten by several listeriosis patients.
The Centers for Diseases Control and Prevention reports that 35 people in 10 states, including five deaths, have been infected with the outbreak strains of Listeria monocytogenes.
The Food and Drug Administration found Listeria monocytogenes in samples of Jensen Farms’ Rocky Ford-brand cantaloupe. Listeria bacteria can grow in the cantaloupe at room and refrigerator temperatures.
Jensen Farms, based in Holly, is cooperating with the FDA and state officials in Colorado. The company is working with federal and state authorities to ensure the recalled cantaloupes are promptly removed from the marketplace. Jensen Farms is also helping federal and state authorities determine the root cause of how the cantaloupes became contaminated.
The FDA’s root-cause investigation and environmental assessment includes the on-site expertise of FDA and state of Colorado microbiologists, environmental health specialists, veterinarians and investigative officers. The experts conducting the assessment will analyze the evidence, determine the most likely cause of contamination and identify potential controls to help prevent contamination in the future. The FDA will use the findings to help inform agency policy regarding Listeria and produce food safety best practices.
The FDA advises consumers, especially persons at high risk for listeriosis (older adults, persons with weakened immune systems and pregnant women) not to eat the recalled cantaloupes and to throw them away. Even if some of the cantaloupe has been eaten without becoming ill, dispose of the rest of the cantaloupe immediately. Listeria bacteria can grow in the cantaloupe at room and refrigerator temperatures. Do not try to wash the harmful bacteria off the cantaloupe as contamination may be both on the inside and outside of the cantaloupe. Cutting, slicing and dicing may also transfer harmful Listeria monocytogenes from the fruit’s surface to the fruit’s flesh.
Photographs taken moments before the World War II-era plane went out of control during Reno air race appear to show the pilot was unconscious, according to aviation experts.
According to investigators, the age and medical history of 74-year-old pilot Jimmy Leeward may also prove relevant to their investigation.
A 10th person died overnight from injuries suffered Friday at Reno, Nevada air racing tragedy.
Saint Mary’s Regional Medical Center spokeswoman Jamii Uboldi said Monday morning the patient who died was male, but she couldn’t immediately release his name, age and hometown.
ABC News consultant and former pilot Steve Ganyard said that after examining images of the plane before it hit the ground, it appeared Jimmy Leeward was not conscious.
Picture of P-51 Mustang airplane taken moments before crashing at Reno Air Race shows the pilot is absent from the cockpit
“There is no pilot’s head in that cockpit.
“It tells me that he was likely unconscious, slumped over the controls.”
The video was shot by a member of the crowd and shown this morning on NBC’s “Today” program.
The news came as it was revealed the aircraft had undergone substantial changes since it was first built in the 1940s, which were done to improve the planes speed and not its safety.
Shattered pieces of the P-51 Mustang’s tail have been recovered that may explain why the pilot lost control.
Investigators with the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) said on Sunday the memory cards will be analyzed to see if there is any footage from the outward facing camera.
Before it crashed, the aircraft also sent information to the racing team crew including oil pressure and temperature, altitude and velocity. That information could help investigators determine what caused the plane to crash.
Investigators said they have not yet been able to verify reports the pilot sent a mayday call before crashing.
The 65-year-old Galloping Ghost underwent years of massive overhauls that took a full 10 feet off its wingspan.
The ailerons – the back edges of the main wings used to control balance – were cut from about 60 inches to 32.
Before he died, Jimmy Leeward had said the changes made the P-51 Mustang faster and more manoeuvrable, but in the months before Friday’s crash even he wasn’t certain exactly how it would perform.
Officials have been focusing on the “elevator trim tab” – a piece of the tail that helps the aircraft maintain lift and appeared to break off before the crash.
The aircraft impacted on the tarmac like a missile, leaving a three-foot deep crater with debris scattered for an acre around the site. A picture taken moments earlier shows the tail piece missing.
From a tour of the site Saturday evening, it appeared that the plane went straight down in the first few rows of VIP box seats, based on the crater’s location.
The aircraft impacted on the tarmac like a missile, leaving a three-foot deep crater with debris scattered for an acre around the site
Investigators also found several pieces of the doomed plane’s tail on Sunday as they resumed their search.
Reno police also provided a GPS mapping system to help investigators recreate the crash scene.
Investigators said they also recovered part of the tail section, where the tab is located.
As investigators look for answers, a photograph has emerged showing that a piece of the tail was missing before the aircraft plummeted to the ground.
NTSB spokesman Mark Rosekind said at a news conference:
“Pictures and video appear to show a piece of the plane was coming off.
“A component has been recovered. We have not identified the component or if it even came from the airplane … We are going to focus on that.”
Tim O’Brien from Grass Valley, California, who is chairman of an air show in his hometown and photographed Friday’s races, took the picture which shows the part missing.
He said pilot Jimmy Leeward’s P-51 was racing six other planes and was in the process of moving from third place into second when it pitched violently upward, rolled and then headed straight down.
For the first time in 2011, Insomniac sets two nights of electrifying music when Nocturnal Wonderland festival comes back to San Bernardino’s NOS Fairgrounds.
From September 23 to September 24, the electronic music fans can enjoy energizing beats with Avicii, Kaskade, Sebastian Ingrosso, Dirty South, Fedde le Grand. Dance music, electronic dance, techno, trance, drum and bass, break beat, house are the festival genres. Nocturnal Wonderland brings the biggest names in music and dance to over 50,000 concert goers.
Kaskade will perform at Nocturnal Wonderland 2011
Insomniac introduced Nocturnal Festival Texas at Apache Pass Fairgrounds in Rockdale, Texas on Labor Day Weekend 2010. This event was the first Nocturnal Festival outside of California and the first multi-day Nocturnal (September 4 and 5).
On Friday at three of Nocturnal Wonderland venues (Alice’s House, Labyrinth, Sunken Garden) perform 12th Planet, Arty, Avicii, Bunny of RITM, Calyx & Teebee, D. Ramirez, Dirty South, Fedde Le Grand, Fei Fei, Gareth Emery, Icicle, Jaquar Skills, Manufactured Superstars, Marky, Martyparty, MC Sharpness, Nicky Romero, S.P.Y, Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano, Trent Cantrelle, W&W, and many more TBA.
Avicii will be present in Alice's House at Nocturnal Wonderland 2011
While on Saturday two more stages are added (Queen’s Ground, and Upside Down Room) for Alesso, Anger Dimas, Bassjackers, Breakage, Cosmic Gate featuring Emma Hewitt, Dirtyphonics (live), Droog, Eddie Thoneick, Gabriel & Dresden, Glen Morrison, Jakwob, Joaquin Bamaca, Kaskade, Kyau & Albert, Layo & Bushwacka, Lee Burridge, Loadstar, Mark Knight, Michael Woods, Morgan Page, Original Sin w/ Armanni Reign, Pleasurekraft, Sean Tyas, Sebastian Ingrosso, Showtek, Sigma, Simon Patterson, TC, Tiefshwarz, Victor Calderone, Wippenbergm, plus more TBA.
Sebastian Ingrosso, another performer of Nocturnal Wonderland 2011
Each area of Nocturnal Wonderland 2011 is a world of interactive art, fire performers, silt walkers, aerialist and dancers. There are also a large outside areas including a park area.
Nocturnal Wonderland 2011
Zero tolerance for drug use or possession said the organizers. The use or possession of any illegal drugs or substances will not be tolerated anywhere inside or outside the venue. Narcotics officers will be working both areas and enforcing all drug related laws.
Nocturnal Wonderland 2011 takes place rain or shine, festival goers have to be prepared for hot weather, sunshine, and cool evenings.
Beyond Wonderland, Escape from Wonderland and Audiotistic are other events that take place at the NOS event center.
Insomniac also organized Electric Daisy Carnival 2011 that was held from May to August in Orlando, Denver, Dallas, Las Vegas, Puerto Rico and attracted over 230,000 visitors in Las Vegas only.
There is also a Nocturnal Wonderland Recovery Party at the Playhouse in Hollywood on Monday, September 26.
A former Kenyan hotel worker was today charged over the abduction of British tourist Judith Tebbutt and the shooting of her husband David.
Ali Babitu Kololo, the 25 year-old father of three, appeared in court on the island of Lamu charged with kidnapping and violent robbery.
David and Judith Tebbutt were attacked on September 11 during their holiday at a remote Kenyan luxury beach resort
Prosecutors said they believed Ali Babitu Kololo was part of a gang of six armed with AK-47 rifles who burst into the Tebbutts’ beach cottage at the Kiwayu Safari Village near the border with Somalia.
Ali Babitu Kololo was involved in the death of David Tebbutt and kidnapping of Judith Tebbutt
It is alleged that Ali Babitu Kololo and his unidentified alleged accomplices then stole a handbag, cash and passports from the couple before shooting dead David Tebbutt, 58, and kidnapping his 56 year-old wife, Judith Tebbutt.
Today Kololo, admitted in the court he had led the raiders to the site in the moments before the midnight attack.
But the worker claimed he did so only after the gang of unidentified Somali criminals held him up at gunpoint.
Kololo claimed the raiders drove him first to the town of Odo in Somalia last Saturday before sailing out to sea and ordering him to direct them after dark to the hotel where he had previously been employed as a maintenance worker.
“The men found me as I was cutting down trees in the forest. I was with a colleague but he ran away and the gunmen abducted me. They took me to Odo and from there the hijackers took me deep out in the sea with a boat.
“At around 11pm they took me towards the hotel. They were armed and forced me to show them the way.”
Kololo admitted he had directed the gang to the Kiwayu hotel, which lies around 30 miles from Somalia.
But he told the court that at that stage he did not know the Tebbutts had checked into the resort and said he neither entered the couple’s cottage nor heard the fatal gunshot which killed David Tebbutt.
Ali Babitu Kololo claimed he fled his captors as they landed on the beach before handing himself into police the following day.
“When we landed on the beach it was dark and I ran away into the bushes. They would have killed me had I refused to go with them and I did what I did to save my own life.
“I’m not a bad man. If I was I would not have surrendered to police and informed them.”
Kololo’s statement about his actions on the night of September is the most vivid description yet of the moments before the Tebbutts were attacked.
David and Judith Tebbutt were from Bishop’s Stortford in Hertfordshire and had arrived at the Kiwayu Safari village just hours before the pirates struck.
David Tebbutt, a publishing executive, died in the grass-woven beach hut after being shot in the chest as he apparently resisted the group.
Judith Tebbutt, a deaf social worker, was then bundled into a boat which headed towards Somalia.
Ali Babitu Kololo was arrested on September 11and today pleaded not guilty to both charges against him but was remanded in custody.
The two counts, which do not include murder, represent the state’s belief that Ali Babitu Kololo was involved in the death of David Tebbutt but not necessarily that he was himself directly responsible for the murder.
Speaking afterwards, Ali Babitu Kololo claimed he had been tortured by police.
“They beat and tortured me. They hit my manhood and they beat my stomach.
“Then they refused to let me go to the hospital. They want me to admit that I am guilty but I am innocent so that is something I could never do.”
The suspect was ordered to reappear for a further hearing on October 25.
Ali Babitu Kololo’s lawyer George Wakahiu later said he planned to apply for bail.
Swiss banking giant UBS has admitted that the losses allegedly racked up by “rogue trader” Kweku Adoboli has risen from $2 billion to $2.3 billion.
UBS said the huge loss was caused by unauthorized trades on stock index futures made over the past three months.
It said the transactions Kweku Adoboli made were within normal limits and slipped through risk controls due to “fictitious trades” in complex financial instruments called exchange traded funds (ETFs), which were used to cover up losses.
Kweku Adoboli is charged with $2.3 billion fraud at Swiss banking giant UBS
According to UBS, “the true magnitude of the risk exposure was distorted” because the hedges that traders are required to put in place had been fabricated.
The bank also suggested that the trades involved “unauthorized speculative” bets on various S&P 500, Dax and Eurostoxx index futures, rather than on the Swiss franc, as some had thought.
Swiss banking giant also claims that the non-existent hedges entered into its records were “fictitious, forward-settling, cash ETF positions”, trades that had never actually been executed.
UBS also countered suggestions that it did not notice the trades until Kweku Adoboli came forward.
UBS said that Kweku Adoboli, who was charged on Friday with fraud and false accounting, had been responding to the bank’s inquiries.
It appears that the fraud came to light last Wednesday during a review of Kweku Adoboli’s trading book, which it has now unwound.
UBS has now launched an internal investigation regarding the failure of its risk systems.
UBS board of directors had set up a committee chaired by independent director David Sidwell, former chief financial officer at Morgan Stanley, to conduct an independent investigation into the trades and the bank’s control systems.
UBS stunned markets on Thursday when it announced unauthorized trades had lost it about $2 billion.
The figure was raised by a further $300 million on Sunday, and chief executive Oswald Gruebel said the alleged fraud would have consequences for strategy and possibly also for himself.
The huge loss is a heavy blow to the reputation of Switzerland’s biggest bank, which had just started to recover after its near collapse during the financial crisis and a damaging U.S. investigation into its aiding wealthy Americans to dodge taxes.
By 7:45 a.m. UBS shares were down 1.6% at 10.10 francs, outperforming a 2.6% slide on the European banking stocks index.
UBS CEO Oswald Gruebel said he would not be resigning, and said calls for his resignation were “purely political” and that he was “not thinking about stepping down”.
Gruebel added that while he bore ultimate responsibility, he did not feel “guilty” for failing to prevent the costly and embarrassing incident.
Gruebel defiant stance comes amid suggestions that Swiss regulators could tell the bank to hive off or close down its investment banking division, which houses the “Delta One” desk where Kweku Adoboli worked.
The Financial Services Authority and Swiss regulators have drafted in accountancy firm Deloitte to investigate the affair.
Meanwhile, UBS senior independent director David Sidwell, a former finance chief at JP Morgan Chase, is leading the bank’s own probe into the matter.
Madonna’s film W.E. will be re-edited ahead of its December release following the poor critics received at the Venice and Toronto film festivals, according to reports.
The W.E. (Wallis&Edward) drama is based on the controversial romance between King Edward VIII and his American divorcee wife Wallis Simpson. The story is brought to the present time by a 21st-century New Yorker who becomes obsessed with the pair. W.E. is Madonna’s first full-length film as a director.
Madonna's film, WE will be re-edited ahead of its December release
W.E. will be distributed in the US by the Weinstein company, which is co-owned by Harvey Weinstein, a producer known for his interventionist approach in the cutting room.
According to Daily Mail’s Baz Bamigboye and the New York Post’s Page Six column, W.E. would probably lose 10 minutes from its running time.
Madonna showed her willingness to return to the editing room in a conversation with Baz Bamigboye in Venice.
“Maybe it needs a bit of this and a bit of that, and maybe it is still a work in progress,” the singer said.
“For God’s sake, I hope it’s over with soon!”
Critical response to W.E., which stars Abbie Cornish, Andrea Riseborough, Oscar Isaac and James D’Arcy, has been mixed at best during its festival run.
There had been some talk of awards season buzz for W.E. prior to its festival run. Last year’s big UK winner at the Oscars, The King’s Speech, also touched on the story of the relationship between Edward and Wallis Simpson, a romance which prompted the monarch to abdicate in 1936.
President Barack Obama will unveil plans on Monday to reduce the massive US deficit by about $3.6 trillion over the next 10 years, with about half of the savings expected to come from higher taxes on the wealthy and big corporations.
US president will unveil the new proposals at the White House and they will be submitted to a congressional “super-committee” that was created in August to draw up a deficit-reduction plan. The massive cuts plan will reach some important points such as:
Barack Obama unveils the plan to reduce the massive US deficit by about $3.6 trillion over the next 10 years
Tax increases
Obama’s plans would include roughly $1.5 trillion in tax increases aimed mainly at wealthy Americans and corporations, people familiar with the proposal said. It isn’t fair to those living at or below their means who are saving receipts, researching tax credits, and using every possible tax calculator available, while the wealthy barely have to lift a finger. The president is set to unveil a “Buffett tax” aimed at those earning $1 million or more a year and named after billionaire investor Warren Buffett, a persistent critic of low tax rates for the rich.
$800 billion in savings would come from allowing George Bush’s tax cuts for wealthy Americans to expire.
Another $700 billion would come from ridding the tax code of special breaks. Obama has proposed limiting deductions for higher-income households and eliminating breaks for oil and gas companies and firms that purchase corporate jets.
Retirement benefits
Barack Obama’s plan would avoid large-scale cuts in big middle-class entitlement programs such as the social security retirement program and the Medicare health plan for older Americans.
The cuts plan includes $248 billion in savings from the Medicare health program. Many of the cuts would come from reduced payments to health providers. US president will also recommend roughly another $330 billion in savings from other entitlement programs.
Administration officials said Barack Obama will pledge to veto any plan to cut benefits for Medicare recipients unless the wealthy and big corporations are required to pay their “fair share” of taxes.
The plan would not raise the age at which retirees become eligible for Medicare benefits.
Barack Obama also will not propose any changes to social security.
Iraq and Afghanistan wars
The plan assumes $1.1 trillion in savings from winding down the war in Iraq and moving ahead with planned troop reductions from Afghanistan. Critics are likely to label this element of the plan a “gimmick” because it does not represent new policy but instead reflects drawdowns of US forces that have already been announced.
Interest payments
The plan assumes $430 billion in savings on interest payments following the cuts elsewhere in the budget.
Judith Tebbutt, the kidnapped British tourist in Kenya is refusing food and defying her captors who are continually moving her to different locations, sources in Somalia claimed Sunday.
Locals reported explosions, believed to be bombs dropped by Kenyan or U.S. helicopters, in the Kismayo area of Somalia where Judith Tebbutt, 56, was brought ashore “kicking and screaming” last Monday after she was abducted and her husband David Tebbutt shot dead at their Kenyan beach lodge in Kiwayu Safari Village.
A Kenyan man is due to appear today in court at Lamu, 40 miles south of the murder scene, to face charges of abduction and robbery.
Ali Babitu Kololo, a Kenyan handyman, was arrested over the abduction of Judith Tebbutt
Ali Babitu Kololo, a 25 year-old handyman, is a former employee of the Kiwayu Safari Village and has allegedly told police he helped direct the armed kidnappers to Tebbutts lodge.
The handyman has claimed he did so only under duress after being held up at gunpoint himself.
Kenyan police have also arrested a second suspect, Isa Sheikh Saadi, 37.
The Al Shabaab Islamist group fighting to overthrow the Somalian government has claimed that it seized Judith Tebbutt and murdered David Tebbutt.
The claim is impossible to verify because the group have yet to offer any evidence they are truly holding Judith Tebbutt.
On Sunday afternoon it was also claimed that she was in the hands of Somali pirates in the centre of the country.
One of the pirates, calling himself Mohamed, said:
“My colleagues brought her. I am among the ones guarding her. Although you can understand the fatigue from her face, she is healthy.”
Kenyan witnesses said Judith Tebbutt was “kicking and screaming” as armed bandits dragged her ashore from a speedboat into a convoy of four-wheel-drive Toyotas last Monday.
“She was resisting all the time and the men were forcing her into the car,” a harbor porter said.
Sources in Somalia claimed woman had been moved several times last week and again on Saturday night.
Judith Tebbutt had refused offers of spaghetti and rice, and had rebuffed all attempts to enter into conversation.
“She doesn’t eat and she’s not saying anything,” said a Somali source who has spoken to members of the Al Shabaab group.
“They know she is deaf but have been trying to communicate with hand signals, but she ignores them.”
Publishing executive David Tebbutt and his wife,Judith Tebbutt, a social worker, from Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire, were halfway through a two-week holiday when they were attacked by three armed raiders in Kiwayu, 20 miles from the border with Somalia, one week ago.
The attackers shot David Tebbutt with an AK-47 rifle and whisked Judith Tebbutt away by boat in her night clothes to an island off the coast of Somalia before transferring her to Kismayo the next day.
David Tebbutt’s body is expected to be brought back to Britain this week.
The 63rd edition of Primetime Emmy Awards contained enough surprises to confound oddsmakers as well as skeptics who consider the awards show too predictable.
Modern Family, the ABC production won Best Comedy Series award for the second straight year and another two acting prizes (for Julie Bowen and Ty Burrell, who play a harried married couple) as well.
The cast and crew of "Modern Family" at Emmy Awards 2011
Mad Men, about the New York ad industry in the 1960s, won its fourth consecutive Emmy as Best Drama, a feat last achieved by NBC’s White House series The West Wing nearly a decade ago.
Jim Parsons of CBS’ nerd sitcom The Big Bang Theory repeated his win from last year, Actor in Comedy Series award and Julianna Margulies, a previous winner for ER, won Actress in Drama Series Award for CBS’ legal drama The Good Wife.
Melissa McCarthy of the CBS sitcom Mike & Molly, Kyle Chandler of the now-canceled small-town soap Friday Night Lights, and Barry Pepper for his role as Robert F. Kennedy in the controversial Reelz miniseries The Kennedys were the other surprises of the Sunday evening ceremony.
At Primetime Emmy Awards ceremony held at the Nokia Theatre at L.A. Live in downtown Los Angeles and hosted by Jane Lynch of Glee and aired live nationwide on Fox, the win for Mad Men was almost unexpected, according to its creator.
“Oh, my goodness,” said Matthew Weiner, as the cast crowded behind him onstage.
“I did not think that was going happen.”
Some of the observers had speculated that voters at the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences might pass the baton instead to either of two acclaimed new HBO dramas, the Prohibition mob story Boardwalk Empire or the fantasy Game of Thrones.
Boardwalk Empire won only one award for Oscar-winning film director Martin Scorsese, who had never previously won an Emmy. PBS’ Downton Abbey drama miniseries was ranked second.
“I must say, this is something I really never dreamed of,” Martin Scorsese told reporters backstage of his win for Boardwalk Empire.
“It’s a different medium in a way, although we approached <<Boardwalk Empire>> as a film — a very long film. It’s just as exciting.”
The British winners of Emmy Awards 2011 were Maggie Smith (for Downton Abbey), Julian Fellowes (who created and wrote much of Downton Abbey) and Kate Winslet, who won the award for the title role in HBO’s miniseries remake of Mildred Pierce.
Kate Winslet won the Emmy Award for lead actress in a miniseries or TV movie for her part in "Mildred Pierce"
“Oh, I didn’t think I was going to win anything!” Kate Winslet said onstage.
Kyle Chandler won Actor in Drama Series Award as Eric Taylor, the stoic football coach on Friday Night Lights, which this year wrapped up five critically acclaimed but perilously low-rated seasons, first on NBC and then on DirecTV.
Kyle Chandler’s competition include three multiple Emmy nominees who have never won: Jon Hamm of Mad Men, Hugh Laurie of Fox’s House and Michael C. Hall of Showtime’s Dexter.
“I did not write anything and now I’m starting to worry,” Kyle Chandler said during his speech.
Other first-time winners included supporting actor, drama, Peter Dinklage, for his part as the Imp, a crafty and debauched member of the ruling family in Game of Thrones; and supporting actress, drama, Margo Martindale, for her role as an unlikely crime boss in FX’s Justified.
Peter Dinklage summed up the unpredictable nature of the evening by saluting his rivals for the supporting dramatic actor category, including John Slattery of Mad Men and Alan Cumming of The Good Wife.
Modern Family dominated comedy and Downton Abbey took miniseries, directing, supporting actor and writing gongs.
Best drama series:Mad Men
Actor in a drama series: Kyle Chandler, Friday Night Lights
Actress in a drama series: Julianna Margulies, The Good Wife
Supporting actor in a drama series: Peter Dinklage, Game of Thrones
Supporting actress in a drama series: Margo Martindale, Justified
Modern Family won Best Comedy Series Emmy Award 2011; writers Jeffrey Richman and Steven Levitan and director Michael Spiller
Best comedy series:Modern Family
Actor in a comedy series: Jim Parsons, The Big Bang Theory
Actress in a comedy series: Melissa McCarthy, Mike & Molly
Supporting actor in a comedy series: Ty Burrell, Modern Family
Supporting actress in a comedy series: Julie Bowen, Modern Family
Best miniseries or TV movie:Downton Abbey
Actor in a miniseries or movie: Barry Pepper, The Kennedys
Actress in a miniseries or movie: Kate Winslet, Mildred Pierce
Supporting actor in a miniseries or movie: Guy Pearce, Mildred Pierce
Supporting actress in a miniseries or movie: Maggie Smith, Downton Abbey
Best reality competition program: The Amazing Race
Best variety, music or comedy series:The Daily Show with Jon Stewart
Directing for a comedy series: Michael Spiller, Modern Family
Writing for a comedy series: Steve Levitan and Jeffrey Richman, Modern Family
Directing for a drama series: Martin Scorsese, Boardwalk Empire
Writing for a drama series: Jason Katims, Friday Night Lights
Directing for a variety, music or comedy series: Don Roy King, Saturday Night Live
Writing for a variety, music or comedy series:The Daily Show with Jon Stewart – Steve Bodow, Tim Carvell, Rory Albanese, Kevin Bleyer, Rich Blomquist, Wyatt Cenac, Hallie Haglund, JR Havlan, Elliott Kalan, Josh Lieb, Sam Means, Jo Miller, John Oliver, Daniel Radosh, Jason Ross, Jon Stewart
Directing for a miniseries, movie or dramatic special: Brian Percival, Downton Abbey
Writing for a miniseries, movie or dramatic special: Julian Fellowes, Downton Abbey
A major security breach at Sydney Airport has caused long delays for about 2000 Qantas airlines passengers.
Two persons walked through an exit door at the Qantas-owned T3 domestic terminal on Sydney Airport, in Australia, this morning, bypassing security checks.
The incident forced the evacuation of the terminal and rescreening of about 2000 passengers who had already been checked in and, in some cases, boarded aircraft. This is the second major security breach at Sydney Airport in the last five months.
A major security breach at Sydney Airport has caused long delays for about 2000 Qantas airlines passengers
“It’s our terminal so we’re sticking our hands up on this one,” a Qantas airline spokesman told Fairfax Radio Network.
“It was obviously very frustrating for the passengers and we’re extremely sorry for the inconvenience caused.
“Our hands were tied once those two passengers got through.
“We had to get every single passenger out of that area and backthrough the gates.”
Qantas spokeswoman Olivia Wirth said 12 flights were delayed and 2000 passenges affected by the security breach.
Olivia Wirth said they had notified the Australian Federal Police and a full investigation would be carried out.
The security breach caused delays of several hours for some flights leaving Sydney Airport and some minor delays for inbound aircraft.
According to Qantas airlines, by 3:00 pm (AEST) flight schedules were returning to normal.
Australian Federal Police officers carried out a sweep on post-security check areas of T3 domestic terminal using bomb and firearm detection dogs.
A similar incident happened at Sydney Airport T2 exactly five months ago, on April, when a power failure caused a security screening checkpoint to fail, leading to 16 passengers walking through without screening and Sydney Airport ordered the rescreening of the entire terminal.
Another similar security breach happened at Melbourne Airport on April 7.
Earlier in the day, paramedics from Sydney Airport were called to treat people on an incoming international flight who suffered burns when a hot drink was spilled. The accident happened when the plane dropped suddenly as it hit the turbulence, sending a coffee cart flying into the air.
According to ambulance spokeswoman, paramedics assessed five passengers and three crew on their arrival.
Three persons suffered minor burns but no one needed to be taken to hospital.
DSK, the former IMF chief gave his first interview since New York arrest on Sunday evening and described his sexual encounter with a Sofitel maid as a “moral failing”.
Dominique Strauss-Kahn, 63, finally broke the silence on the New York scandal that cost him the IFM job and his chance of becoming France’s president. On the first TV interview he gave after the New York arrest, DSK insisted he used “no violence, constraint or aggression” against the 32-year-old Nafissatou Diallo maid accusing him of attempted rape. DSK admitted: “I will always regret it.”
DSK was interviewed on French TV channel TF1 by veteran presenter Claire Chazal
DSK was interviewed on French TV channel TF1 by veteran presenter Claire Chazal.
The former IFM chief had been accused of “trying to dodge the tough questions” by choosing Claire Chazal, who is a close friend of his wife, Anne Sinclair. Anne Sinclaire, the former television journalist worked for many years for TF1 channel.
Claire Chazal began the interview with the question: “What happened in the suite at the Sofitel hotel?”
DSK replied: “What happened involved neither violence, nor constraint, nor aggression, nor any other wrongful act. What happened were not only inappropriate relations, but a fault. It was a moral fault that I am not proud of. I will always regret it.”
Dominique Strauss-Kahn said he had “no intention of negotiating” with Nafissatou Diallo over her civil action against him. The allegations in the criminal case against him have already been dropped.
DSK also admitted that the scandal had dashed his presidential ambitions, adding: “I have now missed my appointment with the French people.”
DSK agreed with Claire Chazal that the New York incident could have been a set-up, saying: “A trap, well that’s possible. A conspiracy? We’ll see.”
He also said he would “take time to reflect” about his future, but confirmed that he had no immediate plans to return to politics.
The interview comes amid another scandal, DSK being accused in France that he tried to rape young journalist Tristane Banon in 2003.
Last week, in a police interview, DSK has confessed that he “tried to kiss her”, but denies and violence or attempted rape. DSK admitted lunging at Tristane Banon, who 31 years his junior, because “he thought that’s what she wanted”, according to L’Express magazine.
Tristane Banon has claimed that DSK “behaved like a rutting chimpanzee” leading her to kick and punch him before fleeing in panic.
DSK is now suing journalist Tristane Banon for defamation.
Two victims of the vintage World War II airplane crashed at the Reno-Stead Airport on Friday have been identified by their families as Michael Wogan, 22, from Arizona, and Greg Morcom, 47 from Washington.
The two people lives intersected in the most tragic of ways Friday, when the airplane careened into the VIP box seats at the National Championship Air Races in Reno.
Michael Wogan and Greg Morcom were among the nine people killed in the accident.
The 74-year-old pilot of the P-51 Mustang, Jimmy Leeward, died as well.
The Reno air crash aftermaths
Both identified victims were making their first trip to the air races, where souped-up planes blast around an air track marked by pylons.
Since 1972, 19 pilots have died at the NASCAR races in the sky, but Friday was the first time when spectators have been killed.
Greg Morcom’s brother, Ron, who owns an aviation facility, told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer that his brother died instantly.
Specialists are investigating why Jimmy Leeward’s Galloping Ghost suddenly pitched upward and then nosedived during a high-speed race, digging out a 3-foot-deep crater in the tarmac and sending 69 people to the hospital.
Jimmy Leeward holding a scale model of his P-51 Mustang at his Florida home in 2010
As the death toll rose and suspicion fell on a missing piece from the plane’s tail, survivors grappled with opposing emotions. Many people have been worried about the future of a beloved aviation event, even as they were haunted by images of graphic horror they likened to a battlefield or a terrorist attack.
Eight people remained in critical condition Saturday night, including Michael Wogan’s father, Bill, who lost his right eye and some fingers.
Michael Wogan had congenital muscular dystrophy, as did two of his three brothers. Michael had recently graduated from Arizona State University with a degree in business and finance and started a social media marketing company, according to the Arizona Republic.
Silvio Berlusconi, the 74 year-old Italian Prime Minister has boasted of sleeping with eight women in one night.
Silvio Berlusconi made the claim in a bugged phone chat with businessman Giampaolo Tarantini, who allegedly recruited escort girls for Italian Prime Minister wild parties.
Silvio Berlusconi, the 74 year-old Italian Prime Minister has boasted of sleeping with eight women in one night
“Yesterday evening there was a queue outside my door,” said Berlusconi.
“There were 11. I had eight because I couldn’t go any further. You can’t do all of them.”
The Silvio Berlusconi and Tarantini phone chat was in 2009 on New Year’s Day.
Silvio Berlusconi added: “I feel good this morning . . . the things you have to do on New Year’s Eve.”
According to Italians, if you make love on New Year’s Eve, you will make love for the whole year.
The recording comes from 100,000 wire taps and bugged phone chats in a judicial investigation into eight people who allegedly supplied escort girls for Silvio Berlusconi’s parties.
Escort Maria Teresa De Nicolo, 38, claims she slept with Silvio Berlusconi and two women.
De Nicolo said: “Before I got to his party I was given €1,000. If Silvio wants you to stay, then stay . . . don’t worry, he will give you money.”
Escort Maria Teresa De Nicolo, 38, claims she slept with Silvio Berlusconi and two women
At another moment, Silvio Berlusconi, who is 5 feet 5 inches (1.65 m) tall, is also heard asking Giampaolo Tarantini “not to bring tall [girls], as we are not tall.”
Berlusconi also reveals that there are 40 women staying in his house who just won’t leave.
The Italian Prime Minister asks excitedly in many moments who the Tarantini will bring him next.
The investigation in the southern city of Bari, where Giampaolo Tarantini was based, includes about 100,000 wiretapped conversations, targeting eight people, including Tarantini, his brother and a woman nicknamed in the Italian media as “Queen Bee” for her alleged role in recruiting women for the premier.
Silvio Berlusconi denies any wrongdoing and paying for sex.
