The Hollywood Walk of Fame recently got an addition to its already numerous stars. This time, it is a member of the British group, The Beatles. George Harrison was awarded the accolade on the 14th of this month.
Beatles fans would know that George Harrison died in 2001, at the age of 58. Cancer was the cause of his death. And while he might not have been the most popular member of the band, it cannot be denied that he contributed a lot to the band’s success. He was a school friend of Paul McCartney, and was actually a founder of The Quarrymen, the band which later on evolved into The Beatles.
George is actually the man behind many of the band’s most popular songs, including Here Comes The Sun, Something, and While My Guitar Gently Weeps. And when The Beatles disbanded, George Harrison’s career did not really take that much of a beating. In the 70s, he launched a solo career and managed to come up with a hit song, My Sweet Lord. Not unlike the songs he created and performed with the rest of the band, this solo song became a hit all over the world.
Now that he has passed away, George’s legacy remains alive in his work. As a matter of fact, award winning Martin Scorsese is working on a documentary about George’s life. In addition to that, Capitol/EMI are also pondering on releasing a new Harrison record. This is something to look forward to.
Internet Style that is, for news and gossip about celebrities are all over the news, TV and other forms of media that caters to the never ending need for the latest information regarding Hollywood’s hottest stars. Now considering the many sources of news and gossip out on the world today, why not take it a step further into the realm of the social internet? Blogging is one of the most prevalent forms of new media that is being used and read by users all over the globe. Just think of getting news form the standpoint of the fans themselves through user submitted celebrity news, now that’s a totally new concept, why, because nobody has ever done it before. Why not place the power and control over the information into the hands of the people who need it most making them part of the news itself allowing social interaction at the next level. Talk about getting subjective news, but it is coming for customization is the key and getting news that we like is what the future is about. Get the best user-submitted celebrity news hot off the mobiles, laptops and just about anywhere a connection is the internet and where the action is. This might be the beginnings of the next big step in news and the way its gets to us in this that is known as the information age.
The news has been out for a several days now. John Travolta’s son, Jett, passed away last weekend. At first, it was not clear just exactly what caused his death. After an autopsy was done, however, it was disclosed that Jett died of a seizure while they were vacationing in the Bahamas. Jett had a history of seizures and was just found unconscious in the family vacation home’s bathroom.
The couple received an urn with his ashes and left the island chain on Monday night, according to Obie Wilchcombe, a member of the Bahamas parliament and a family friend.
“Everything was in place, the cremation was completed, and they decided to leave,” Wilchcombe told The Associated Press on Tuesday.
He said the family is back in Ocala, Florida, where they have a home.
Funeral plans have not been announced.
In Ocala, Mayor Randy Ewers said the city sent the Travolta family condolences and will give them space and privacy.
“They’re fantastic people, really family oriented,” Ewers said. “We want to respect their privacy as much as possible.”
In a public statement Sunday, Travolta, 54, and Preston, 46, said they were “heartbroken that our time with him was so brief.”
As for the rest of Hollywood, everyone who is somebody – and even those who may not be qualified as superstars – have sent out messages of support and love for the family.
I’d want to be there too. It’s not just any presidential inauguration. It is the inauguration of the President of the United States. More so, this isn’t just any other president, this is the Barack Obama who has made history with his big win over John McCain. It is the end of an era, and the beginning of one.
Apparently, the A-listers of Hollywood think and feel the same way so much so that they have paid astronomical amounts of money in order to get the best seats in the house. I honestly did not know that you can do this kind of thing! But here’s a story that says that the stars are willing to part with big bucks – and that they have, in fact, done so:
Top Hollywood stars, including Halle Berry, Sharon Stone, and Jamie Lee Curtis, have shelled out big bucks to watch US create a new chapter in history at Barack Obama’s presidential inauguration ceremony.
According to the contributors list released by the Obama Inaugural Committee, music executive Nicole Avant, New York movers and shakers Barbara Lee Diamondstein-Spielvogel and hubby Carl fell into the 300,000 dollars group, reports Fox News.
While the 50,000-dollar category included Hollywood names of Will Smith manager James Lassiter, director Ron Howard and Samuel L. Jackson, the 25,000-dollar group consisted of director Reginald Hudlin, Lionel Richie’s ex wife Brenda, and “Terminator” producer Gale Hurd.
All I can say is WOW. Would you pay $300,000 – or even $50,000 – to be present at the inauguration?
What are your Christmas plans? The average person will probably spend the holidays with his family. Either he will hit the road to visit or family members will come over for the holidays. Have you ever wondered how the stars spend their Christmas? Here are some snippets from a news article to give you an idea.
Mariah Carey
She shares: “I am hoping for peace, and for the world to turn itself around for the New Year. I’m going to be in Aspen, where I have been during the holidays for the past few years. I love it there! It’s a really fun place to be!”
Her wish is reminiscent of a beauty pageant answer, isn’t it? Her holiday plans sound exciting, though!
Emma Thompson
“We live in Scotland, as well, so for me, holidays are spent there. That also means I don’t wash my hair for six weeks (laughter). I go wash in the river. Last summer, we were there for seven weeks. I wore one of my husband’s old shirts and several pairs of his underwear. I washed them. They were nice and soft. I wore the shirt and underwear for the whole summer. We made hay. We planted things. We have a sauna. We swam in the river. He grew a beard, and I practically did, as well (laughter). It was most upsetting!
Christmas in Scotland is a dream for the average person, don’t you think? Well, unless you live thereabouts.
John Travolta
“Every year, we have a tradition of having Christmas at our house in Maine. It’s a small group this year.”
Just like most of us…funny no one’s spending the holidays in Hollywood, eh?
Everyone needs a hero and our world today, more than ever, needs its own heroes to look up to. In a world were violence and all sorts of negative things are common, it can be hard to retain a positive outlook. Yet when we hear of and witness simple acts that become great in their simplicity, we can’t help but be inspired and once again believe in the goodness of mankind. This is how I felt when I read and viewed the tribute to CNN Heroes of 2008.
Singer Christina Aguilera joined fellow Grammy Award winners Alicia Keys and John Legend for “CNN Heroes: An All-Star Tribute,” which honored the top 10 CNN Heroes of 2008.
The show, taped before an audience of more than 2,500 at the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, premiered on the global networks of CNN on Thanksgiving night.
Liz McCartney, dedicated to helping survivors of Hurricane Katrina rebuild their homes, was named 2008 CNN Hero of the Year.
McCartney, who will receive $100,000 to continue her work just outside New Orleans, was selected from among the top 10 CNN Heroes after six weeks of online voting at CNN.com. More than 1 million votes were cast.
Here is the video of Christina Aguilera singing, courtesy of YouTube.
I regret that I was not able to take part in the voting for the heroes of this year. Maybe next time.
Only in Hollywood are babies ranked according to hotness. I wonder if these tots even have an idea of what they are being ranked for? In any case, this year’s list is topped by Suri Cruise, the famous daughter of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes. Right from the start, Suri has garnered a lot of interest from the media, largely because of her parents.
As the years pass, though, Suri is proving to be an attraction on her own. With her trendy style, which I am sure we can thank her parents for as well, photographers are always clamoring to get shots of her. That is why she has come out at the top of the list that Forbes compiles annually.
This list is dubbed “Hollywood’s 10 Hottest Tots” and is based on the amount of attention they have received in the past year. This includes traditional media and online media. Forbes also commissioned E-Poll Marketing Research to get more information in order to determine the top 10 kids to make up the list.
So how did Suri get to the top? She was mentioned in more than 1,300 news articles and was mentioned the most in blogs. Other children included in the list are Sam Alexis Woods (Tiger Woods’s daughter), Cruz Beckham, late Australian actor Heath Ledger’s daughter Matilda Rose, Madonna and Guy Ritchie’s adopted three-year-old son David Banda, Britney Spear’s son Sean Preston Federline, and Sam Sheen.
What the rest of the world sees of Hollywood is all glitz and glamour but it does not mean that the life in Hollywood is the same. As a matter of fact, there are more people who are average – just like you and me – and they are feeling the crunch of the times. The Miami Herald just ran this story on the Cappelluzzo family:
Joseph Cappelluzzo never worried about losing his home, being unable to feed his five children or having an empty savings account.
But now the licensed carpenter, who specializes in remodeling kitchens and bathrooms, is struggling to find work.
Some weeks, he brings home $200 doing odd jobs as a handyman — barely enough to pay for groceries, the mortgage on his two-bedroom Hollywood home and gasoline.
”I have always been able to pay the bills and put food on the table,” Cappelluzzo said. “But now I worry a lot. I just don’t feel secure.”
This is just one family but I am pretty sure that there are a lot of families just like the Cappullezzos who are having a hard time making ends meet these days. It is probably not even just in Hollywood. In most cities all over the US, I am sure you could find a lot of people in the same boat. However, the elections are over and it seems that hopes are soaring at this point. Hopefully, people like the Cappullezzos will find an easier time in the months to come.
The day that President-elect Barack Obama won the elections was rife with emotions – both positive and negative. One of the most memorable things for me was to hear a friend of mine say “I never thought I’d live to see this day.” Now you have to understand that this friend is a white guy from the South. I do not have to spell out the inclinations that have been bred in him since childhood. And yet at that moment, when John McCain conceded and Barack Obama gave his acceptance speech, this friend of mine was almost teary eyed – not because his childhood sensibilities were offended but because he “was proud of his country.” I am sure that countless other Americans (and non-Americans as well) felt the very same way.
Yet have you thought about the role that Hollywood may have played in getting the nation ready for an African-American president? Cynics and satirists have pointed out that all that happens when the States gets an African-American president is that the country has to face disaster in immense proportions. Think Morgan Freeman in Deep Impact. Yet one TV president seems to have contributed positively to the idea of an African-American president. I am talking about 24’s president David Palmer.
Played by Dennis Haysbert, David Palmer is one of the focal points of that hit TV series. I have to admit he plays the role excellently and the role could have served as a “prep” for the nation as a whole. According to him “My role helped prepare the way for Obama, opening the eyes of the American people [so] that they felt they could vote for a black president without triggering the apocalypse.”
It is always heartwarming to see a good cause succeed. We all recently heard about the passing away of Hollywood icon Paul Newman. I am sure that if he had any way of knowing what is happening after his passing away, he would be quite happy. An annual fundraiser for a children’s camp for those with life-threatening diseases was held on Monday and the support that it received from the who’s who of Hollywood was overwhelming. More than actually turning up to help raise money for a good cause, the people also turned up to pay their own tribute to Paul Newman. The Associate Press has this report:
The lineup for a dramatic reading of “The World of Nick Adams” on Monday night at San Francisco’s Davies Symphony Hall already was set when the acting legend died of cancer Sept. 26 at the age of 83. The event benefited The Painted Turtle, a camp for children with life-threatening illnesses, that was started by Newman in 1999.
“We expected Paul to be with us and so this kind of turned into kind of a tribute,” said Danny Glover, who joined Jack Nicholson, Julia Roberts, Tom Hanks, Warren Beatty, Sean Penn and other big names in the reading. “This is the first time we are doing this without Paul — there is a void there, without a doubt.”
Some 2,500 people attended the star-studded benefit, which began with a video in which Newman discussed his work with the Association of Hole in The Wall Camps, which runs 11 camps around the world including The Painted Turtle.
Just take note of those names mentioned above and you will understand how big the event turned up to be. I am sure that the children involved – and Paul Newman, if he were alive – would deeply appreciate the gesture.
The 
Internet Style that is, for news and gossip about celebrities are all over the news, TV and other forms of media that caters to the never ending need for the latest information regarding Hollywood’s hottest stars. Now considering the many sources of news and gossip out on the world today, why not take it a step further into the realm of the social internet? Blogging is one of the most prevalent forms of new media that is being used and read by users all over the globe. Just think of getting news form the standpoint of the fans themselves through user submitted celebrity news, now that’s a totally new concept, why, because nobody has ever done it before. Why not place the power and control over the information into the hands of the people who need it most making them part of the news itself allowing social interaction at the next level. Talk about getting subjective news, but it is coming for customization is the key and getting news that we like is what the future is about. Get the best user-submitted 
