Jesse checks treatment facility to fix crisis in his family and marriage

Jesse checks treatment facility to fix crisis in his family and marriage

With his marriage to Sandra Bullock in crisis and his family's future on the line, Jesse James is seeking professional help, his rep tells PEOPLE exclusively.

"Jesse checked himself into a treatment facility to deal with personal issues," his rep said in a statement. "He realized that this time was crucial to help himself, help his family and help save his marriage."

While the rep did not specify the type of treatment facility, one source confirms he checked in on March 26, and that it was "100 percent his own idea" -- and not the result of an ultimatum from Bullock.

A cheating scandal that exploded on March 15 has sent James' nearly five-year marriage to Bullock, 45, into a tailspin with claims that he had affairs with at least four women. Bullock has moved out of the family home and is considering her options, another source says.

Before seeking treatment, James, 40, spent much of the last two weeks sticking to a routine, hanging out with his three kids and dropping them off at school and burying himself at work at West Coast Choppers in Long Beach, California.

Two Suicide bombers kill's 12 in Russia

Two Suicide bombers kill's 12 in Russia

In MAKHACHKALA, Russia 2 suicide bombers including one impersonating a police officer killed at least 12 people and injured 18 others in the southern Russian province of Dagestan on Wednesday, officials said. Nine police officers were among the dead.

The blasts in the North Caucasus region came two days after a twin suicide bombing tore through the Moscow subway system, killing 39 and wounding scores. Dagestan borders Chechnya, where Russian troops have fought two full-scale wars against separatist rebels in the past 15 years.

In Wednesday's attacks, a suicide bomber detonated explosives in the town of Kizlyar near Dagestan's border with Chechnya, when police tried to stop the bomber's car, Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliyev said in televised comments.

"Traffic police followed the car and almost caught up — at that time the blast hit," Nurgaliyev said. He said the deadly cargo was headed for the center of Kizlyar. There was a school and law enforcement building nearby.

As investigators and residents gathered at the scene of the blast, a second bomber wearing a police uniform approached and set off explosives, killing the town's police chief among others, Nurgaliyev said.

The Moscow subway bombings shocked a country that had grown accustomed to such violence being confined to a restive southern corner such as Dagestan — and marked the return of terrorism to the everyday lives of Muscovites after a six-year break.

The North Caucasus provinces of Dagestan, Chechnya and Ingushetia are prone to more frequent attacks, hosting an active separatist Islamist insurgency that government forces are struggling to contain. Police are the frequent target because they represent federal law enforcers — the separatists' ideological enemy.

The violence continues despite Kremlin efforts to stem it. President Dmitry Medvedev, who recently said the separatists had spread through the region "like a cancerous tumor," earlier this year appointed a deputy prime minister to oversee the troubled region.

Rebels from the North Caucasus, which includes Dagestan and Chechnya, were blamed for masterminding the Moscow attack, but no claims of responsibility have been made. Speculation has been rife that the attacks were retaliation for the recent killing of high-profile separatists in the North Caucasus by police. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin vowed late Tuesday to drag the organizers "out of the sewer."

Monday's subway bombings, carried out by two women, were the first terrorist attacks in Moscow since 2004. They have shaken a city that has been insulated from the violence still raging in the restive southern corner of the country.

The first blast struck the Lubyanka station in central Moscow, beneath the headquarters of the Federal Security Service or FSB, the KGB's main successor agency. The FSB is a symbol of power under Putin, a former KGB officer who headed the agency before his election as president in 2000.

About 45 minutes later, a second blast hit the Park Kultury station on the same subway line, which is near the renowned Gorky Park. In both cases, the bombs were detonated as the trains pulled into the stations and the doors were opening.

Ricky Martin says he's 'a Gay'

Ricky Martin says he's 'a Gay'

Pop singer Ricky Martin declared publicly this week what he avoided discussing for years: He is gay.

"I am proud to say that I am a fortunate homosexual man," Martin wrote on his official Web site. "I am very blessed to be who I am."

A decade ago, when ABC's Barbara Walters pressed Martin to address rumors about his sexuality, he declined to confirm or deny them. "I just don't feel like it," Martin said.

Now, Martin wrote, "these years in silence and reflection made me stronger and reminded me that acceptance has to come from within and that this kind of truth gives me the power to conquer emotions I didn't even know existed."

The 39-year-old Puerto Rican native started off with the Latin boy band Menudo before launching his solo career in 1991.

His song "Livin' La Vida Loca" rose to the top of the music charts in 1999 and propelled Martin to stardom.

Martin said he decided years ago to not share "my entire truth" with the world because people he loved warned him that "everything you've built will collapse."

"Allowing myself to be seduced by fear and insecurity became a self-fulfilling prophecy of sabotage," he wrote. "Today I take full responsibility for my decisions and my actions."

The decision to come out was initiated a few months ago, when he began writing his memoirs, he said. "I got very close to my truth," he wrote.

"From the moment I wrote the first phrase I was sure the book was the tool that was going to help me free myself from things I was carrying within me for a long time," he wrote. "Things that were too heavy for me to keep inside."

Martin said that disclosing his secret is important because of his two sons, born via surrogate.

"To keep living as I did up until today would be to indirectly diminish the glow that my kids where born with," he wrote.

"Enough is enough. This has to change. This was not supposed to happen five or 10 years ago, it is supposed to happen now. Today is my day, this is my time, and this is my moment."

Writing the seven paragraphs, he said, "is a solid step towards my inner peace and vital part of my evolution."

"What will happen from now on? It doesn't matter. I can only focus on what's happening to me in this moment."

"How to Train Your Dragon" wins topped box office

"How to Train Your Dragon" wins topped box office
A topped box office charts, earning an estimated $43.3 million over three days.

"How to Train Your Dragon" won the weekend box office race with ease, grossing $43.3 million for the three-day frame. (A solid 11.5 percent of that cash came from 187 IMAX theaters.)

The DreamWorks Animation film, which has won rave reviews from critics and audiences alike, may well have bowed with a far bigger number had it not been sandwiched between two other high-profile 3-D releases.

The Viking-era-set action-adventure had to share 3-D screens with "Alice in Wonderland," which in its fourth weekend in theaters managed to claim $17.3 million of box office gross, a respectable 49 percent drop that leaves the Tim Burton-directed film on the precipice of $300 million total.

'Dragon' should enjoy solid grosses during the upcoming week with kids across the country out of school for spring break, but it's likely to get squeezed next weekend when the highly anticipated "Clash of the Titans" rolls into 3-D theaters with a vengeance.

"Hot Tub Time Machine" bowed to an estimated $13.6 million for its opening weekend, good enough to claim third place. The R-rated '80s nostalgia fest starring John Cusack drew in a crowd mostly over age 25, playing strong on the two coasts and in college towns, while underperforming in the South. The movie, from director Steve Pink, generated a B from Cinemascore, a response that doesn't necessarily portend a strong second weekend.

Surprisingly, "The Bounty Hunter," which debuted last weekend in third place, held in well its sophomore session, dropping only 40 percent for an additional $12.4 million. The Jennifer Aniston-Gerard Butler-starrer has now grossed $38.8 million total.

"Diary of a Wimpy Kid" suffered from 'Dragon' competition. The well-reviewed film fell 55 percent in its second weekend to $10 million and a fifth-place finish. The movie's two-week take now stands at $35.7 million.

"She's Out of My League" landed in the sixth spot in its third weekend with another $3.5 million and a total gross of $25.6 million.

"Green Zone" took in $3.3 million; total gross for this expensive Matt Damon-starrer stands at only $30.4 million after three weekends.

The Leonardo DiCaprio-Martin Scorsese thriller "Shutter Island" earned another $3.2 million for a six-week total of $120 million.

"Repo Men" landed in 9th spot with $3 million. The Jude Law-Forest Whitaker-starrer has grossed only $11.3 million after two weekends.

"Our Family Wedding" rounded out the top ten with an additional $2.2 million. The film has earned $16.7 million in three weeks.

Limited release films are not scoring well with audiences lately, despite boasting a solid pedigree of talent. For example, Atom Egoyan's R-rated drama "Chloe" starring Julianne Moore, Liam Neeson, and Amanda Seyfried earned just over $1 million. Opening in 350 theaters, the film scored a weak per-screen average of $2,863.

The second weekend of "Greenberg" and "The Runaways" didn't earn much better results. Even with the star power of Ben Stiller, the Noah Baumbach film grossed only $1 million, though with a per-screen average of $5,850.

Meanwhile, the Kristen Stewart-Dakota Fanning-starrer "The Runaways" grossed $445,810 its second weekend in theaters. On 237 screens, the film's per-screen was a weak $1,881 and its total is only $1.57 million.

Despite solid turns from the new releases, the overall weekend was down compared with last year at this time, when "Monsters vs. Aliens" bowed to $59.3 million. The difference: 'MVA' had the 3-D screens all to itself. Next weekend sure will be interesting when three studios are competing to hold on to those coveted extra-dimensional theaters. Stay tuned.

46 missing after SKorean naval ship sinks near NKorea

46 missing after SKorean naval ship sinks near NKorea

South Korean authorities stepped up searches for 46 sailors still missing Saturday, hours after a naval ship sank near a disputed sea border with North Korea.

Navy and coast guard vessels, as well as air force planes, were searching the waters near South Korea's Baeknyeong Island where the 1,200-ton Cheonan sank during a routine patrolling mission.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff said rescuers had picked up 58 sailors but 46 still were missing.

President Lee Myung-bak ordered officials to find the cause of the sinking quickly while keeping in mind all possibilities, presidential spokeswoman Kim Eun-hye said Saturday. There was no indication North Korea was to blame, but troops kept a vigilant watch.

Lee reconvened a security meeting and instructed officials to make all efforts to rescue the missing sailors, the spokeswoman said. Kim added there were no signs of North Korean troop movement.

Some senior government officials have speculated the sinking may have been an accident, not an attack, South Korean media said.

Friday's accident happened hours after North Korea's military threatened "unpredictable strikes" against the U.S. and South Korea in anger over a report the two countries plan to prepare for possible instability in the totalitarian country.

The two Koreas remain locked in a state of war because their three-year conflict ended in a truce, not a peace treaty, in 1953.

Since then, the two Koreas have fought three bloody skirmishes in the Yellow Sea waters. And in January, North Korea fired about 30 artillery rounds not far from Baeknyeong; the South Korean military fired 100 warning shots in response.

Unidentified military officials told South Korea's Yonhap news agency that an explosion tore a hole into the Cheonan's rear hull, shutting off the engine, wiping out the power and quickly taking the ship down. A number of crew members jumped into the water, Yonhap said.

Nearby Baeknyeong Island, four hours by boat from the South Korean port of Incheon but just 10 miles (20 kilometers) from North Korea, was turned into a triage center, with islanders helping to treat injured crew members, according to cable network YTN.

In Washington, State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said Friday the U.S. was closely monitoring the accident, but there was no evidence that could indicate North Korea's involvement.

"It's looking more and more like it was just an accident that happens on a ship," Carl Baker, an expert on Korean military relations at the Pacific Forum CSIS think tank in Honolulu, said by telephone.

He said Pyongyang was unlikely to attack the far more powerful South Korean military.

The Roundabout Theatre posponed its Broadway

The Roundabout Theatre posponed its Broadway

The Roundabout Theatre Company has postponed its upcoming Broadway revival of Terrence McNally's "Lips Together, Teeth Apart" following the abrupt departure of Megan Mullally during rehearsals.

Roundabout artistic director Todd Haimes said Thursday the theater couldn't find a way to maintain the play's production schedule. He said the Roundabout was now "exploring options to produce a show for our subscribers as soon as possible."

McNally's comedy about two married couples sharing a Fourth of July weekend at a Fire Island beach house was to have started previews April 9 at the American Airlines Theatre and open April 29.

Island in Bay of Bengal Disappear

Island in Bay of Bengal Disappear

For nearly 30 years, India and Bangladesh have argued over control of a tiny rock island in the Bay of Bengal. Now rising sea levels have resolved the dispute for them: the island's gone.

New Moore Island in the Sunderbans has been completely submerged, said oceanographer Sugata Hazra, a professor at Jadavpur University in Calcutta. Its disappearance has been confirmed by satellite imagery and sea patrols, he said.

"What these two countries could not achieve from years of talking, has been resolved by global warming," said Hazra.

Scientists at the School of Oceanographic Studies at the university have noted an alarming increase in the rate at which sea levels have risen over the past decade in the Bay of Bengal.

Until 2000, the sea levels rose about 3 millimeters (0.12 inches) a year, but over the last decade they have been rising about 5 millimeters (0.2 inches) annually, he said.

Another nearby island, Lohachara, was submerged in 1996, forcing its inhabitants to move to the mainland, while almost half the land of Ghoramara island was underwater, he said. At least 10 other islands in the area were at risk as well, Hazra said.

"We will have ever larger numbers of people displaced from the Sunderbans as more island areas come under water," he said.

Bangladesh, a low-lying delta nation of 150 million people, is one of the countries worst-affected by global warming. Officials estimate 18 percent of Bangladesh's coastal area will be underwater and 20 million people will be displaced if sea levels rise 1 meter (3.3 feet) by 2050 as projected by some climate models.

India and Bangladesh both claimed the empty New Moore Island, which is about 3.5 kilometers (2 miles) long and 3 kilometers (1.5 miles) wide. Bangladesh referred to the island as South Talpatti.

There were no permanent structures on New Moore, but India sent some paramilitary soldiers to its rocky shores in 1981 to hoist its national flag.

The demarcation of the maritime boundary — and who controls the remaining islands — remains an open issue between the two South Asian neighbors, despite the disappearance of New Moore, said an official in India's foreign ministry, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak on international disputes.

Bangladesh officials were not available for comment Wednesday.

Idol finalist Crystal Bowersox wows the judges

Idol finalist Crystal Bowersox wows the judges

"American Idol" finalist Crystal Bowersox is on a roll.

The 24-year-old musician and single mother of Toledo, Ohio, earned the judges' highest praise on the Fox singing competition Tuesday for her traditional take on Janis Joplin's "Me and Bobby McGee" — all from a homey carpet rolled out on the "Idol" stage.

Simon Cowell told her he wouldn't have changed a thing, but the other judges wanted a bigger reaction.

"These people love you," pleaded DeGeneres. "Take it all in and respond."

Paige Miles was a long way from getting any love from the judges, who were equally against the smiley 24-year-old preschool teacher from Houston. Randy Jackson said her rendition of Mariah Carey's "Against All Odds" was "honestly terrible" while all DeGeneres could compliment was Miles' ability to stay standing on the stage in a pair of high heels.

"You didn't fall down," said DeGeneres, "and that's a good thing."

Also slipping even further out of favor with the judging panel was Tim Urban, the shaggy-haired 20-year-old college student from Duncanville, Texas. He punctuated his performance of Queen's "Crazy Little Thing Called Love" by sliding across the stage on his knees.

DioGuardi and DeGeneres compared his acrobatic exploits to a bad "High School Musical" audition, while Jackson declared: "The dopest thing that you did was the slide, dude."

Several singers, however, stayed in the panel's good graces, including 23-year-old Lee Dewyze of Mount Prospect, Ill., with The Box Tops' "The Letter;" 16-year-old Aaron Kelly of Sonestown, Pa., with Aerosmith's "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing;" and 27-year-old Casey James of Fort Worth, Texas, with Huey Lewis and The News' "The Power Of Love."

"You're just ready to make an album," DioGuardi informed James.

The judges again voiced their frustration with 24-year-old musician Andrew Garcia of Moreno Valley, Calif., after he turned in an awkward rendition of Marvin Gaye's "Heard It Through the Grapevine." They also weren't fans of a sexed-up theatrical version of Linda Ronstadt's "You're No Good" by 23-year-old waitress Didi Benami of Los Angeles.

"It was like a musical," said Cowell, "the bad part of a musical."

Unless the judges decide to save a singer, another finalist will be eliminated Wednesday based on viewer votes.

Michael Jackson's doctor interrupted CPR

Michael Jackson's doctor interrupted CPR

Michael Jackson's doctor halted CPR on the dying pop star and delayed calling paramedics so he could collect drug vials at the scene, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press that shed new light on the singer's chaotic final moments.

The explosive allegation that Dr. Conrad Murray may have tried to hide evidence is likely to be a focus as prosecutors move ahead with their involuntary manslaughter case against him.

The account was given to investigators by Alberto Alvarez, Jackson's logistics director, who was summoned to the stricken star's side as he was dying on June 25. His statement and those from two other Jackson employees also obtained by the AP paint a grisly scene in Jackson's bedroom.

Alvarez told investigators that he rushed to Jackson's room and saw the star lying in his bed, an IV attached to his leg. Jackson's mouth was agape, eyes open and there was no sign of life. Murray worked frantically, at one point performing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation while Alvarez took over CPR.

Two of the star's children, Prince and Paris, came in the room and cried as they saw Murray trying to save their father. A nanny was called to usher them away and they were taken to wait outside in a vehicle.

The documents also detail an odd encounter with Murray after Jackson was declared dead at a nearby hospital. Murray insisted he needed to return to the mansion to get cream that Jackson had "so the world wouldn't find out about it," according to the statements, which provide no elaboration.

Sandra's husband 'sorry' over affair accusation

Sandra's husband 'sorry' over affair accusation

In a statement, the reality TV star said: "I am truly very sorry for the grief I have caused them."

He added that "the vast majority" of the allegations reported were "untrue and unfounded".

The UK premiere of The Blind Side, due to be held next week, was scrapped after Oscar-winner Bullock pulled out citing "unforeseen personal reasons".

"There is only one person to blame for this whole situation, and that is me," James, 40, said.

"This has caused my wife and kids pain and embarrassment beyond comprehension and I am extremely saddened to have brought this on them. I hope one day they can find it in their hearts to forgive me."

He added: "Beyond that, I will not dignify these private matters with any further public comment."

Allegations of an affair surfaced earlier in this week after In Touch magazine published an interview with tattoo model Michelle McGee who claimed to have had an 11-month relationship with James while Bullock was filming The Blind Side - a role which earned her best actress at the Oscars.

A spokesman for the actress would not comment on Miss McGee's claims.

Bullock, 45, and James met in 2003 before marrying in 2005.

Actress Attacked Over Child Rescue Claims

Actress Attacked Over Child Rescue Claims

The actress Lindsay Lohan may be banned from India, according to the British newspaper The Telegraph.

Lohan attempted to free herself from Hollywood cattiness by working on a BBC documentary on child labor last December.

But her trip was overshadowed by more drama when the actress tweeted about her role in a raid rescuing children from a sweatshop.

"Over 40 children saved so far ... Within one day's work ... This is what life is about ... Doing THIS is a life worth living!!!" she wrote.

The problem was that Lohan was not even in India at the time of the raid. Perhaps even worse for the troubled actress, her false claims raised her profile to Indian authorities, who realized she had entered the country illegally on a tourist visa instead of a work visa for the documentary.

"During the course of filming, she visited one of our rehabilitation facilities," Bhuwan Ribhu, an activist with the Indian organization Bachpan Bachao Andolan (Save Childhood Campaign).

Anna Nicole Smith gets none of oil fortune

Anna Nicole Smith gets none of oil fortune

The elderly Texas billionaire who married Anna Nicole Smith in the last year of his life never intended to leave the former stripper any portion of his vast fortune, a federal appeals court ruled Friday.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals sided with a Houston jury that said J. Howard Marshall was mentally fit and under no undue pressure when he wrote a will leaving nearly all of his $1.6 billion estate to his son E. Pierce Marshall and nothing to Smith.

The ruling was the latest development in the bitter 15-year legal battle. Smith said the elder Marshall promised her more than $300 million, even though there was no written documentation.

The fight between Smith and E. Pierce Marshall started in a sleepy Houston probate court and stretched all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court while outliving its two combatants.

It may reach the high court again.

Kent Richland, a lawyer for Smith's estate vowed to appeal the latest ruling, possibly to the Supreme Court on different issues than those it first considered.

"It really is a unique decision," Richland said. "We have to take it farther."

Pierce's widow and two sons said they hoped the legal battle was close to ending.

"Our only wish would be that Pierce were here to see his vindication," the family said in a prepared statement.

The decision — if it holds up — is bad news for Smith's ex-boyfriend Larry Birkhead and their 3-year-old daughter Dannielynn. The child was named Smith's heir in 2008 after she died of a drug overdose at 39 at a Florida hotel.

Birkhead and attorney Howard K. Stern were placed in charge of Smith's estate. Neither returned calls seeking comment.

Stern and two other people have pleaded not guilty to charges of conspiring to provide thousands of prescription pills to the former model before her death.

The convoluted dispute over J. Howard Marshall's money has its roots in a Houston strip club where he met Smith. The two were wed in 1994 when he was 89 and she 26. Marshall died the next year and his will left his estate to his son.

Smith challenged the will in a Houston probate court, alleging the billionaire's son illegally coerced his father to exclude the former Playboy model from sharing the estate. She alleged that her husband promised to leave her more than $300 million above the $7 million in cash and gifts showered on her during their 14-month marriage.

While the probate case was pending in Houston, Smith filed for bankruptcy in Los Angeles, alleging in federal court filings that her husband promised her a large share of the estate.

In late 2000, the bankruptcy court awarded Smith $474.75 million, which a federal district court judge reduced to $89.5 million in 2002.

Between those two decisions, a jury in the Houston probate court ruled in March 2001 against Smith. The jury found the billionaire was mentally fit and under no duress when he wrote out a will that left everything to his son.

Since then, the two sides have been fighting over which court to obey.

Smith argued that the federal courts were in charge because the bankruptcy court was the first to rule.

Pierce Marshall countered the decision was the jurisdiction of the probate court, because that's where the first legal action was filed and the site of the only full-blown trial.

"Every piece of evidence was considered and every witness exhaustively examined," said Eric Brunstad, the Marshall family's lawyer. "That really should have been the end of it."

On Friday, the unanimous three-judge panel said the bankruptcy court didn't have the authority to decide a probate dispute and thus its $474.75 million award was only an advisory opinion.

The appeals court also said U.S. District Court Judge David Carter should have relied on the probate jury's decision against Smith and tossed the case entirely instead of merely reducing the award to $89.5 million.

A $30M suit filed against Lady Gaga in NYC

A $30M suit filed against Lady Gaga in NYC

A songwriter and music producer who claims he helped launch pop star Lady Gaga says she squeezed him out of her lucrative career after he co-wrote some of her songs, came up with her stage name and helped get her record deal.

Rob Fusari filed a $30.5 million lawsuit against the Grammy Award-winning performer, saying his protege and former girlfriend ditched him as her career soared.

"All business is personal," said the lawsuit, filed Wednesday in a Manhattan state court.

Lady Gaga's spokesman, Dave Tomberlin, didn't immediately respond to an e-mail sent Thursday by The Associated Press.

Fusari had credits on such hits as Will Smith's "Wild, Wild West" and Destiny's Child's "Bootylicious" when a friend steered the piano-playing singer — then known by her real name, Stefani Germanotta — to him in March 2006, according to his lawsuit.

Though he initially dismissed her, he realized she had star potential after hearing her play in his Parsippany, N.J., studio, the suit said. He spent the next several months working with her every day and "radically reshaping her approach," persuading her to drop rock riffs for dance beats, it said.

As they co-wrote songs such as "Paparazzi" and "Beautiful, Dirty, Rich," which would appear on her debut album, "The Fame," he transformed Germanotta into Lady Gaga, a name adapted from Queen's "Radio Ga Ga," the lawsuit said.

In a 2009 interview with the AP, Lady Gaga said her "realization of Gaga was five years ago, but Gaga's always been who I am."

"I was Gaga from the time that I was 19 through my first record deal," the 23-year-old said of her over-the-top, avant-garde style, which has captured the imaginations of millions of fans. "I always dressed like that before people knew me as Lady Gaga. I was always that way ... I stuck out like a sore thumb."

According to the lawsuit, Lady Gaga and Fusari's relationship turned romantic and then became a business partnership in May 2006, when they created a joint venture called Team Love Child LLC to promote her career. Fusari's share was 20 percent, it said.

Fusari — whose account of his role in the multiplatinum-selling artist's early career has been told in interviews — says he introduced Lady Gaga to a record executive who ultimately shepherded her to Universal Music Group's Interscope Records, which released "The Fame" in 2008. The album has sold more than 3 million copies in the United States; Fusari has a producing credit.

But the lawsuit says their personal and business relationship had soured by then and he has been denied a 20 percent share of song royalties, 15 percent of merchandising revenue and other money he's owed. He acknowledges getting checks for about $611,000 but says that isn't his full share.

Lady Gaga won two Grammys in January: best dance recording, for "Poker Face," and best electronic/dance album, for "The Fame."

Tom Hanks get Anger and Conservative, Comparing 'The Pacific' in World War II to Iraq

Tom Hanks get Anger and Conservative, Comparing 'The Pacific' in World War II to Iraq

Michael Moore and Sean Penn are perennial favorites. But Tom Hanks?

The star of such flag-waving films as "Saving Private Ryan" and "Apollo 13" and producer of the World War II miniseries "Band of Brothers" has come under fire recently for remarks he made while promoting his current project, "The Pacific."

In an interview with Time magazine, Hanks, who is producing the HBO miniseries, compared the World War II conflict in the Pacific with the current one in Iraq and Afghanistan. "The Pacific" began airing March 14.

"Back in World War II, we viewed the Japanese as 'yellow, slant-eyed dogs' that believed in different gods," Hanks told Time. "They were out to kill us because our way of living was different. We, in turn, wanted to annihilate them because they were different. Does that sound familiar, by any chance, to what's going on today?"

Richard Pearle, former secretary of Defense under President Ronald Reagan, told ABCNews.com that Hanks has got it wrong.

"What he is suggesting, that the coalition forces are acting out of racist motives, is preposterous," Pearle said. "We're there at the request of the Iraqi government, which is trying to put together a democracy, and we've lost Americans trying to help them do that. I'm not at all clear what Mr. Hanks has in mind.

"He's an actor. He ought to go back to 'Saving Private Ryan,'" Pearle said. "I think if personalities that have a big megaphone by virtue of their acting talent are going to make political statements, they ought to be careful."

Hanks' remarks lit up the conservative blogosphere. Pajamas Media's Victor Davis Hanson did not hold back: "Hanks' comments were sadly infantile pop philosophizing offered by, well, an ignoramus."

Brad Schaeffer, writing on Frum Forum, took Hanks to task for making the comparison to the current war on terror. "To make the claim that we are waging war on Islamofascists because, presumably, we view Muslims as 'different' not only is an insult to the nation but betrays a stunning ignorance of contemporary history."

2 US missile attack kill's 9 in Pakistan

 2 US missile attack kill's 9 in Pakistan

Suspected U.S. drones fired missiles at vehicles and hit a militant hide-out in a tribal region of northwestern Pakistan on Wednesday, killing at least nine insurgents, two officials said.In the first attack, the drones fired four missiles at a vehicle and flattened a nearby house near Miran Shah, the main town in the North Waziristan tribal region, killing six militants, an army and an intelligence official said.
About 50 minutes later, drones fired three more missiles at a vehicle in Madakhel town, about 25 miles (40 kilometers) west of Miran Shah, killing three insurgents, the officials said on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media.
Other militants were also wounded in the two strikes, they said.
The CIA has stepped up attacks in Pakistan's tribal regions since December, when a suicide bomber killed seven CIA employees in neighboring Afghanistan.
The latest attack came a day after a U.S. missile strike destroyed a militant facility in the same region, killing nine suspects.
Officials say some of the men slain in Tuesday's attack in Datta Khel were believed to be foreigners who were in the stronghold of Hafiz Gul Bahadur, a warlord whose fighters are battling U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan.
Although Pakistan publicly opposes the attacks, saying they violate its sovereignty and fuel anti-Americanism among the population, it is believed to share intelligence with the Americans about the insurgents and their hide-outs.
Washington also refuses to publicly discuss the program, which uses unmanned drones, but Pakistani officials say privately the attacks have killed several senior al-Qaida and Taliban commanders in recent years.

ABBA and Genesis enter the Rock Hall in NYC bash

ABBA and Genesis enter the Rock Hall in NYC bash

NEW YORK – The Swedish hit machine ABBA and English progressive rockers Genesis accepted inductions into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame on Monday, despite prominent members staying away from the ceremony.
British Invasion harmony kings The Hollies, reggae superstar Jimmy Cliff and raucous rockers Iggy Pop and the Stooges also entered the hall. So did a group of songwriters responsible for hundreds of millions of dollars in sales.
After "Waterloo" started them off winning a European songwriting contest in 1974, ABBA released a string of pop hits such as "Knowing Me, Knowing You," "Fernando" and "Dancing Queen." Members Benny Andersson and Anni-Frid Lyngstad drew salutes for that work on Monday. Partners Bjorn Ulvaeus and Agnetha Faltskog weren't there, the absence unexplained.
"These songs have brought us all the way into the great Rock and Roll Hall of Fame," Andersson said, "and I speak for all of us ... we are deeply, deeply honored."
Lyngstad pointed out her grandson in the audience, noting that while he was a heavy metal musician he still appreciated grandma's music. Also cheering from the audience was actress Meryl Streep, who starred in the recent "Mamma Mia!" movie, which, along with the Broadway show, has helped keep ABBA's music alive since the band's 1982 breakup.
That's final, too: Lyngstad told the audience ABBA would never perform together again.
The Waldorf-Astoria hotel audience got one-fourth of ABBA in performance. Andersson took to the piano as country star Faith Hill sang "The Winner Takes It All."
Genesis had two distinct incarnations, one led by theatrical lead singer Peter Gabriel and the other when drummer Phil Collins took over the microphone. Trey Anastasio, of Phish, paid tribute to both with his own band, which performed "Watcher of the Skies" and "No Reply at All."
Gabriel was missing on Monday. Former bandmate Mike Rutherford said Gabriel wanted to send his apologies.
"He has a very legitimate and genuine excuse," Rutherford said. "He's actually starting a tour."
Anastasio recalled buying Genesis albums as a teenager. He called the band "rebellious, restless and constantly striving for something more."
The ceremony was telecast live on the Fuse music network.
The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum is in Cleveland.

 

"Alice in Wonderland" remains no.1

 

"Alice in Wonderland" remains no.1   

          

          Alice is still ruling the movie palace.

Johnny Depp and Tim Burton's "Alice in Wonderland" easily remained the No. 1 weekend draw with $62 million, according to studio estimates Sunday. The Disney fantasy has climbed to a $208.6 million total domestically, becoming the first $200 million hit released this year.

In its second weekend in theaters, "Alice in Wonderland" pulled ahead of the $206.5 million domestic haul of "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory" to become the top-grossing of Depp and Burton's seven films together, which include "Edward Scissorhands," "Sweeney Todd" and "Corpse Bride." 

"I believe it's literally the magical, if you would, pairing of Tim and Johnny," said Chuck Viane, head of distribution for Disney. "When you take those two, they always seem to make something really out of the ordinary."

"Alice in Wonderland" added $76 million overseas to bring its international total to $221 million and its worldwide gross to $430 million.

A rush of new movies had so-so openings, led by Matt Damon's Iraq War thriller "Green Zone," which debuted at No. 2 with $14.5 million domestically. Released by Universal, "Green Zone" stars Damon as the leader of a U.S. Army team who stumbles onto a conspiracy over the search for weapons of mass destruction in Iraq.

                                                                  

                                                                                            

                                                                          

'American Idol' pares down to 12 finalists

'American Idol' pares down to 12 finalists

After the audience voted, the singing contest said goodbye Thursday to Alex Lambert of North Richland Hills, Texas; Todrick Hall of Arlington, Texas; Lilly Scott of Littleton, Colo. and Katelyn Epperly of West Des Moines, Iowa.
It was no surprise that the judge's favorite from previous weeks, Michael "Big Mike" Lynche, made the cut.
Lynche dazzled the judges with his performance of "This Woman's Work" and made judge Kara DioGuardi dissolve into tears.
Lambert, who had trouble overcoming his shyness on stage, looked downcast when he learned his fate.
"There's a lot of things America hasn't seen me do yet," he said, adding, "I wish could just have broken out of my shell."
Judge Ellen DeGeneres gave him a verbal pat on the back.
"You're so good. Don't ever stop believing in yourself," she told him.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of the evening was the audience's rejection of Scott. Before the decision was announced, host Ryan Seacrest stood with Scott and Katie Stevens on stage and asked the judges to weigh in on the fact that one of them would be heading home.
DioGuardi, who had championed both singers, said she found it striking that it came down to these two. She said Scott was someone who understood herself as an artist and Stevens was struggling to do that, but had the advantage of being more contemporary.
"I thought I did really well. I put my heart into every performance," Scott said. "I just know there's an audience out there for me."
Judge Randy Jackson liked Hall's performance of "Somebody to Love," while Cowell said it was a mixed performance.
"This has been an awesome experience. I came here to prove that I'm not just a dancer, I can also sing. I think that I've done that," said the 24-year-old Hall.
He got some encouragement from Jackson, who said, "Fantastic, dude."
DioGuardi criticized Epperly for "going through the motions" on her version of "I Feel the Earth Move" this week. Cowell compared her performance to request night at a restaurant, but added that he did like her full, curly locks that evoked the song's composer, Carole King.
"I'm not stopping now. It's just a push actually, for me. I'll do more stuff," Epperly said.

Quake claims Haiti’s best and brightest

Quake claims Haiti’s best and brightest

PORT-AU-PRINCE, Haiti - They kept the books, had the training and fixed the computers. They were the educated few of Haiti, an up-and-coming generation of nurses, technicians, office managers and college students. 

Now they're gone — just when their struggling country needs them most.

The Jan. 12 earthquake struck just before 5 p.m., destroying office buildings and disproportionately killing the young professionals who were going the extra mile to make Haiti work. Many were crushed at their desks.

"It is a generation that decided not to leave the country. They chose to work for the country," said Dieusibon Pierre-Merite, a Haitian sociologist with a United Nations anti-gang program that lost several staffers in the quake. "They are the ones who died." 

Compounding the loss is a quickening brain drain, as people with the ability and means to leave abandon a ravaged country where more than 1.2 million people have lost their homes.

Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive told The Associated Press he has watched with dismay as educated youths board planes to the United States and elsewhere. They leave because Haiti, always a difficult place to live, became impossible after the quake.

"I was looking at their faces: They were escaping a country and they had no intention to go back," Bellerive said. "I feel love for the people that have lost family ... but I believe it's even harder for the country to see living people that could do so much to rebuild Haiti, leaving Haiti."

California Government sent Investigators to solve freeway Incident last Monday

California Government sent Investigators to solve freeway Incident last Monday

The government sent investigators Tuesday to examine a Prius that sped out of control on a California freeway, and Toyota said it wanted to interview the driver as the besieged automaker dealt with a high-profile new headache that raised questions about the safety of its beloved hybrid.
A day after state troopers helped the car slow to a stop and its driver to emerge unharmed, Toyota could shed no new light on what might have gone wrong. The Prius is not part of Toyota's vast recall of gas pedals that can become stuck, but it is covered by an earlier recall of floor mats that can catch the accelerator.
The freeway incident happened at the worst possible time for Toyota — just hours after it invited reporters Monday to hear experts insist that electronic flaws could not cause cars to speed out of control under real driving conditions.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration sent two investigators to examine the car, a government spokeswoman said. Toyota Motor Corp. spokesman Brian Lyons said the automaker is sending three of its own technicians to investigate.
Another Toyota spokesman, John Hanson, said the company wanted to talk to the driver, James Sikes.
His car, a 2008 model, was covered by the floor mat recall, but the driver in Monday's incident said the pedal jammed and was not trapped under the mat.
Sikes told authorities he was driving on Interstate 8 outside San Diego when the accelerator became stuck. He said the car reached 94 mph before a trooper, calling out instructions from a megaphone, helped him slow down and turn off the engine.

California Government sent investigators to solve freeway Incident last Monday

California Government sent investigators to solve freeway Incident last Monday

Hundreds were slaughtered after Ethnic Group attacks in Nigeria

Hundreds were slaughtered after Ethnic Group attacks in Nigeria

DOGO NAHAWA, Nigeria – The killers showed no mercy: They didn't spare women and children, or even a 4-day-old baby, from their machetes. On Monday, Nigerian women wailed in the streets as a dump truck carried dozens of bodies past burned-out homes toward a mass grave.

Rubber-gloved workers pulled ever-smaller bodies from the dump truck and tossed them into the mass grave. A crowd began singing a hymn with the refrain, "Jesus said I am the way to heaven." As the grave filled, the grieving crowd sang: "Jesus, show me the way."

At least 200 people, most of them Christians, were slaughtered on Sunday, according to residents, aid groups and journalists. The local government gave a figure more than twice that amount, but offered no casualty list or other information to substantiate it.

An Associated Press reporter counted 61 corpses, 32 of them children, being buried in the mass grave in the village of Dogo Nahawa on Monday. Other victims would be buried elsewhere. At a local morgue the bodies of children, including a diaper-clad toddler, were tangled together. One appeared to have been scalped. Others had severed hands and feet.

The horrific violence comes after sectarian killings in this region in January left more than 300 dead, most of them Muslim. Some victims were shoved into sewer pits and communal wells.

Sunday's bloodshed in three mostly Christian villages appeared to be reprisal attacks, said Red Cross spokesman Robin Waubo.

Nigeria is almost evenly split between Muslims in the north and the predominantly Christian south. The recent bloodshed has been happening in central Nigeria, in towns which lie along the country's religious fault line. It is Nigeria's "middle belt," where dozens of ethnic groups vie for control of fertile lands.

"The Hurt Locker" take six awards

"The Hurt Locker" take six awards

LOS ANGELES – On a night when so many changes were intended to shake up the Oscar ceremony, the winners themselves were pretty predictable, with "The Hurt Locker" taking six awards including best picture.

"Hurt Locker" director Kathryn Bigelow won the top directing honor for her intimate Iraq war drama, making her the first woman to take the prize — though as she's often said, she likes to think of herself as a filmmaker, period.

"I hope I'm the first of many," she said afterward backstage. "I long for the day when that modifier can be a moot point."

But as fellow director Barbra Streisand put it in announcing Bigelow's victory, "Well, the time has come."

Indeed, her win seemed like a given, even though Bigelow was going up against James Cameron, director of the sci-fi juggernaut "Avatar," who happens to be her ex-husband. (Bigelow was abidingly diplomatic backstage, despite reporters repeatedly trying to coax her to dish about him.) "Avatar" entered the night tied with "The Hurt Locker" for the most nominations, nine, but ended up winning just three awards in technical categories: art direction, cinematography and visual effects.

That predictability was the case in all the main categories, where the winners had been picking up statues and critics' accolades throughout this long awards season.

Sandra Bullock, 'Transformers' make Razzies worst list

Sandra Bullock, 'Transformers' make Razzies worst list

Sandra Bullock warmed up for the Academy Awards with a stop at the Razzies to collect a dubious honor: a worst-actress prize for her romantic comedy flop "All About Steve."
Bullock swung by the Razzies on the eve of her expected triumph at Sunday's Oscars, where she is considered the favorite to win best actress for "The Blind Side." If she wins Sunday, Bullock will be the first person to win an Oscar and a Razzie over the same weekend.
"I think this is an extraordinary award," said Bullock, who had promised throughout awards season that if she won the Razzie, she would accept it in person. "And I didn't realize that, in Hollywood, all you had to do was say you'd show up, and then you'd get the award. If I'd known that, I would have said I was appearing at the Oscars a long time ago."
"Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen" was picked as last year's worst picture and won two other Razzies, worst director for Michael Bay and worst screenplay for Ehren Kruger, Roberto Orci and Alex Kurtzman.
Bay and his team probably will not lose any asleep over it. Though reviled by critics, "Transformers" took in $402.1 million domestically, No. 2 on the 2009 box-office chart behind "Avatar."

Iraq election day attack kill's 24

Iraq election day attack kill's 24
Explosions killed 24 people as Iraqis voted on Sunday in an election that Sunni Islamist militants have vowed to disrupt, in one of many challenges to efforts to stabilize Iraq before U.S. troops leave.

Scores of mortar rounds, rockets and roadside bombs exploded near polling stations in Baghdad, and some elsewhere, in a coordinated campaign to wreck the voting for Iraq's second full-term parliament since the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.

Iraq's political course will be decisive for President Barack Obama's plans to halve U.S. troop levels over the next five months and withdraw entirely by end-2011. It will also be watched by oil companies planning to invest billions in Iraq.

In the deadliest attacks, 12 people died when a bomb blew up a Baghdad apartment block and four were killed in a similar explosion at another residential building. A Katyusha rocket killed four people elsewhere in the capital of seven million.

At least 65 people were wounded around the country.

The Baghdad security spokesman, Major General Qassim al-Moussawi, said most of the rockets and mortar bombs had been fired from mainly Sunni districts in and around the city.

"We are in a state of combat. We are operating in a battlefield and our warriors are expecting the worst," he said.

Despite the hail of attacks, Moussawi said a car ban aimed at foiling vehicle bombs had been lifted after less than four hours of voting. Curbs on buses and trucks stayed in force.

The Islamic State of Iraq, an al Qaeda affiliate, had warned Iraqis not to vote and vowed to attack those who defy them.

The 96,000 U.S. troops still in Iraq stayed in the background, underscoring the waning American role in Iraq.

Bomb-Sniffing Rats Save Lives

Bomb-Sniffing Rats Save Lives

Everyone knows that rats have a nose for garbage, but their sense of smell now serves another higher purpose -- sniffing out landmines to save lives. Bomb-sniffing dogs are a common sight in airports and other public spaces, but an organization called APOPO says that rats can do similar work, sometimes even better than a dog.

"We have 50 rats working in minefields in Mozambique at the moment," Mic Billet, the president of APOCO, said in an interview from his office in Antwerp, Belgium.

APOPO is funded primarily by the Belgian government, with a facility in Tanzania where they train some very talented rats. The rats look somewhat like the rodents found in American pet stores or labs, but they're much larger. Called African Giant Pouched rats, they grow about 2.5 feet in length including the tail, weigh over 3 pounds, and can live 8 years.

According to trainers, a rat's sense of smell works just as well as a dog's to detect mines, and the creatures' small size gives them some big advantage on the minefield. Not only are they easier to feed and transport, "their light weight makes it highly unlikely they would set off a mine by scratching or pointing," APOPO writes on its website.

It takes between six months to a year to train a rat's sense of smell, and Billet says they're easy to work with.

Gifts, parties and celebs: L.A. readies for Oscars

Gifts, parties and celebs: L.A. readies for Oscars
LOS ANGELES – Hollywood is in full-on Oscar mode.

The red carpet has been laid out in front of the Kodak Theatre, topped with a plastic sheet in case of rain. Traffic is snarled. Tourists are flocking to Hollywood & Highland to see a bit of the Academy Awards preparations and snap photos of themselves with giant Oscar statues.

The theater itself buzzes with activity, as rehearsals continue from morning until night, with the occasional celebrity quietly stepping in to practice presenting the coveted golden guy.

It's Oscar week, and Tinseltown is all aflutter. Here's the latest:

GETTING CREATIVE: Dana Delany, Kathy Najimy, Ty Burrell and Rachael Leigh Cook were among the celebrities who recorded public service announcements for the Creative Coalition Friday at Haven 360, an Oscar-week suite comprising gifting, parties and support for the arts.

Creative Coalition co-president Tim Daly is directing the public service announcements, which show stars singing the ABC's, as part of the organization's lobbying efforts to increase funding for arts education in public schools.

The videos will be presented at the Creative Coalition's Arts Advocacy Day in Washington, D.C. next month, along with a companion book, "Art & Soul," that features portraits of actors and their handwritten messages about what art means to them, Daly said.

"This is about keeping the arts in education," he said. "Kids learn their letters by singing. The arts make learning interesting and fun."

Haven 360 guests were also treated to hand massages from Olay, gifted with Elle jewelry and invited to peruse Backstage Creation's "celebrity retreat," where they could pick up a free $5,000 trip to Moorea, Botox and Juvederm treatments worth $900 from celebrity surgeon Dr. Frank Ryan, and luxury luggage from Dooney & Bourke.