NBC Universal TV Chairman Jeff Gaspin is out

After weeks of speculation that he’ll follow NBC-Universal Chairman Jeff Zucker out the door after the merger with Comcast, NBC Universal TV Chairman Jeff Gaspin confirmed Monday that he is leaving the company. He sent this memo out to the staff:”During the course of the Comcast/GE merger, I’ve had many good conversations with Steve Burke about my role at the new NBC Universal. Under the current structure, all of the television entertainment assets including cable, broadcast, and distribution report to me. As is his prerogative, Steve has determined that he wants to move in a different direction and given the scope of my current responsibilities, we could not agree on an appropriate role for me in the new company. Therefore I will be departing NBC Universal a short time after the merger.

“I have spent a combined 19 years at NBC Universal and have had numerous positions in finance, news, cable, and broadcast. While we have had our challenges on the entertainment broadcast side, I am proud of the progress we have made and the tremendous success of our outstanding cable assets, our strong distribution divisions and our market-leading digital innovation.  It’s with great pride and appreciation I was able to participate in many of these successful ventures. I leave NBC Universal with an obvious sense of sadness and loss, but I’ll be forever grateful for my relationships with my colleagues and those who gave me a chance to participate in the success of this great company. It’s been an exhilarating ride – and I thank you for sharing it with me.”

Gaspin has served as chairman of NBC Universal TV Entertainment since July 2009. Before that, he was president and COO of NBC Universal TV Group. Back when he was the executive vice president of alternative series for NBC in 2001, he developed shows like The Apprentice and The Biggest Loser.

According to The War For Late Night, Bill Carter’s just-out sequel to The Late Shift, Gaspin was the one who first came up with the idea to to put Leno back into The Tonight Show and move O’Brien to midnight.

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'Harry Potter' poised to pass 'Star Wars' as biggest franchise - USA Today

LOS ANGELES — Harry Potter is near the end of his cinematic journey, but not before he casts more magic on the box office.With the two-part Potter farewell —Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Part 1 opens Friday, with Part 2 following July 15 — almost here, analysts expect the boy wizard to anchor the highest-grossing film franchise of all time.

And Part 2 doesn't even open until next summer.

"This is one of the greatest box office franchises in movie history," says Brandon Gray, president of Box Office Mojo. "It's phenomenal they could maintain this level of business six movies in. That's nearly unheard of."

Analysts expect that Part 1 not only will enjoy the biggest debut in the series' history, but also propel the planned eight-film odyssey past Star Wars to become the highest-grossing franchise ever.

The George Lucas saga is king of the series heap, having raked in $1.9 billion domestically over six movies. But most observers say that by the end of Hallows' first-half run, the franchise — already at $1.7 billion — will force Star Wars down a peg.

"What's amazing to see is how consistent each film has been," says Jeff Bock of industry tracker Exhibitor Relations. "That's not just in quality, but also in terms of ticket sales."

Indeed, each series installment has averaged $285 million — steadiness matched only by Star Wars. According to Box Office Mojo, even James Bond is no match: Over 23 movies, 007 has earned $1.6 billion. Star Trek's 11 multiplex installments have beamed up $1 billion.

Analysts also expect Hallows to shatter the franchise's opening weekend record, which belongs to Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, which bowed to $103 million in 2005. Projections this weekend range from a $115 million to $125 million debut.

And that should come with less marketing muscle than other franchises require, Bock says.

"The books were so huge, you really don't have to tell people another Potter movie is coming," he says.

"Typically, when is book is off-the-charts successful — I think Girl With the Dragon Tattoo will be huge — you get a big series along with it, because the fan base is going to turn out for both."

Gray says distributor Warner Bros. and filmmakers have relied on more than just the bespectacled wizard's name to lure fans.

"You have to credit them for not just riding the wave of the books," Gray says. "If people didn't like the movies, people wouldn't be standing in line overnight to get in."

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'Dexter': Exclusive clip from this Sunday's episode, 'Take It'!

Where, oh, where, will that mysterious picture of five teenage boys lead Dexter and Lumen? This week, it takes them into the world of… motivational speakers. Dex and Lumen are hot on the trail of killer Cole, who serves as head of security for self-help guru Jordan Chase, who’s no angel himself. In this clip from Sunday’s episode of Dexter, “Take It,” which was made exclusive to EW.com, Dexter attends a seminar hosted by the charismatic Jordan, who declares to his audience, “If you’re not in touch with your primal self, you’re already dead!” (Which would make Dexter very much alive.) We also learn a few details about Cole from Lumen — let’s just say his stint in the Marines didn’t end well. Are you taken in by the Jordan Chase story line? What do you predict will happen this week? Are we about to witness a Cole-blooded murder?

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'Glee': How'd Gwyneth do?

Raise your hand if you were unsure as to how to react to the news that Gwyneth Paltrow was interested in joining the fun of Glee? Just me? Of course, the casting news should have been met with open arms — she’s an Academy Award-winning actress after all — yet I’ll admit I was a wee bit skeptical of how her musical experience (or what I knew her musical experience to be, namely that scene in Duets) would translate to the campy, quirky, high school show. But now that she’s impressed many with her performance at the CMA Awards — and her fun take on Cee-Lo’s “Forget You” — I think we, like the kids of New Directions, are in extremely capable hands. Excuse me while I got buy my ticket to Country Strong.

Paltrow plays Holly Holliday, a substitute for the ailing Mr. Schuester while he’s being nursed back to “health” by ex-wife Terri (please be a dream sequence, please be a dream sequence). Given Ex-Mrs. Schuester’s knack for the crazy (hello, fake pregnancy!) this seems like it could easily turn into a present-day Misery all too quickly. We gave you a preview of Paltrow tackling “Forget You” but there’s still a lot more music to look out for, including Rihanna’s “Umbrella” (with rain! Where does that fit into McKinley’s budget?)-meets-”Singin’ in the Rain.”

Ideally, “The Substitute” will continue moving forward with some of the major plot points revealed in last week’s episode. (I’ll be mindful of the spoiler-phobes, but hurry and catch up, please! It’s worth it.) We were also introduced to the Dalton Academy Warblers and their infinitely adorable star Blaine (Darren Criss), who may or may not become Kurt’s boyfriend. Would it be too soon for Kurt to tell Blaine how he’s feeling (that portrait in his locker should do the trick) or should he be content being just friends with the newbie?

What are you hoping to see tonight, Gleeks? As much Gwyneth as possible, more from Blaine, or simply, more of Mike Chang’s abs? After you watch “The Substitute,” head back here and let us know what you think. Tim Stack will have the full run down after midnight.

Read more:
Mini-’Glee’: 12 Cast Faves…as Kids!
‘Glee’: Gwyneth Paltrow sings ‘Forget You’ (Exclusive Video)
Latest Glee recap: Then He Kissed Him
Darren Criss becoming a series regular on Glee will make all of our teenage dreams come true

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TV producer arrested as fugitive in SoCal - The Associated Press

TV producer arrested as fugitive in SoCal(AP) – 3 hours ago

LOS ANGELES (AP) — More than seven months after Monica Beresford-Redman's body was found in the sewer of an upscale Mexican resort, federal authorities arrested her reality TV producer husband and plan to extradite him for trial.

Bruce Beresford-Redman was taken into custody without incident Tuesday at his Rancho Palos Verdes home and is expected to fight his return to Mexico, where he is charged with aggravated homicide.

An 11-page complaint unsealed after the arrest describes a contentious series of events that led to Monica Beresford-Redman's death, including heated fights at a swank Cancun resort where her body was later found in a sewer. The complaint states she discovered her husband was having an affair before the trip and had been seeking a divorce; her sisters have said the couple traveled to Mexico in an attempt to reconcile.

Hotel workers and guests described seeing and hearing the couple fighting, according to the complaint. Hotel key logs showed someone entering and leaving the room numerous times in the early morning after one fight that rattled guests in a neighboring room, the filing states. It notes the sewer where Monica Beresford-Redman's body was eventually found could be seen from the couple's hotel room, which they shared with their young children.

Without elaborating, Bruce Beresford-Redman's attorney said in a statement Tuesday evening that he believed the former "Survivor" producer was innocent and should not be returned to Mexico.

"Based upon our investigation, he is an innocent man being wrongfully accused by a foreign government," attorney Richard G. Hirsch wrote. "We hope that after full consideration of both sides, a federal court will decide not to extradite him."

Bruce Beresford-Redman is scheduled to make his first appearance Wednesday in a downtown Los Angeles federal courtroom.

The complaint states a forensic expert who examined the couple's hotel room found traces of blood on sheets and a pillar and balcony railing in the room. It also includes a statement from an acquaintance of Bruce Beresford-Redman who received a call from the producer while his wife was considered missing. The man, who hadn't spoken to the producer in a year, told authorities it sounded as if Bruce Beresford-Redman "was reading from a script" when he told him his wife was missing.

Monica Beresford-Redman's sister, Jeane Burgos, said in a sworn statement that her sister told her about six weeks before she was killed that Bruce Beresford-Redman was having an affair, according to the complaint.

Monica Beresford-Redman confronted her husband and he apologized, but when she learned he still had contact with the mistress, she asked for a divorce, according to the complaint.

Burgos said her sister had the locks on the couple's home changed before the vacation, and told their children's schools her husband should not be allowed to pick them up.

The complaint states Bruce Beresford-Redman admitted the affair in e-mails, which were reviewed by authorities.

His arrest came after months of public pleas from Monica Beresford-Redman's family for an arrest in the case.

"After seven months of tremendous agony, the Burgos family is relieved to learn tonight that Bruce Beresford-Redman has been taken into federal custody," family attorney Alison Triessl said in a statement. "However, they know that this is not the end in their quest for justice for their sister Monica and are prepared to pursue this horrific tragedy to the end."

The producer, whose is also credited as a co-creator of "Pimp My Ride," somehow was able to leave Mexico before authorities issued a warrant for his arrest in May. He has appeared in a Los Angeles courtroom several times to deal with custody issues related to his daughter and son, and on issues related to his wife's estate.

Bruce Beresford-Redman's parents were granted permanent guardianship of the couple's 5-year-old daughter and 3-year-old son last week, after a settlement with two of the children's aunts.

Associated Press writer Andrew Dalton contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

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iTunes holdouts: Who's left?

Image Credit: Janet Mayer/PR Photos; Solarpix/PR PhotosMetallica were the first to cave, in mid-2006. In November of 2007, Led Zeppelin followed; in June 2008, Radiohead finally said OK, computer. And yesterday, of course, was the day the Beatles pledged “I Will” to iTunes.

But there are, famously, a few very firm holdouts–artists who refuse to parcel their music for the digital marketplace. Below, the main players, and the reasons they’ve given:

AC/DC: Two years ago, Angus Young explained to the New York Times that they could not abide breaking up their albums for individual track sales: “It’s like an artist who does a painting. If he thinks it’s a great piece of work, he protects it. It’s the same thing: this is our work.”
That same month, frontman Brian Johnson told Reuters, “”Maybe I’m just being old-fashioned, but this iTunes, God bless ‘em, it’s going to kill music if they’re not careful … It’s a…monster, this thing. It just worries me. And I’m sure they’re just doing it all in the interest of making as much…cash as possible. Let’s put it this way, it’s certainly not for the…love, let’s get that out of the way, right away.” (Walmart, however, is all about the love.)

Garth Brooks: Last year, the semi-retired country superstar told writer Lisa L. Rollins,  These [Apple] guys are sweet guys, but they’re businessmen, so they understand. … They truly think that they’re saving music. My hat’s off to them. I looked at them right across the table with all the love in the world and told them they were killing it. And until we get variable pricing, until we get album-only [downloads], then they are not a true retailer for my stuff, and you won’t see my stuff on there—with all the love in the world. That’s nothing that they haven’t heard, either.”

Kid Rock: In a 2008 EW feature, he said ”I just don’t like being told what to do. I don’t have a beef with Apple, or iTunes, or any of them. I do have a beef with that it seems kind of socialist of them to charge the same price for every song. What if every car cost $4,000, you know what I mean? A song from my neighbor’s garage band is not the same value as Bruce Springsteen’s ‘Born to Run.’ I just want to decide how my product gets sold with the people who sell it.” (Kid’s rep confirmed to us today that his views have not changed.)

Also still unavailable: The Smiths (aside from their greatest hits, and a few soundtrack one-offs), Tool,  Def Leppard, Bob Seger, and the bulk of the Black Sabbath and Frank Zappa catalogs. (iTunes declined to comment for this article.)

Tell us, readers—are these artists hurt by their absence, or is their integrity worth its weight in iBucks? Is the notion of that integrity misplaced? And are fans genuinely affected by the lack of digital availability, or is uploading physical discs into an online library merely a brief chore for a rainy day? Let us know in the comments section below.

(Follow the Music Mix on Twitter: @EWMusicMix.)

More from EW.com:
Apple finally gets rights to Beatles catalog on iTunes
Band of Horses’ biker-themed ‘Dilly’ video: Watch it

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'Medium' scoop: 'We got canceled,' says star

Image Credit: Mitchell Haaseth/NBC Though CBS cut the episodic order on Medium from 22 to 13 last month, the network has not said whether the drama has officially been canned. But star Patricia Arquette is saying as much: The actress told EW that “we got canceled” and the show only has two more episodes to shoot.

“I was trying to get information from the writers about the last episode,” Arquette told EW this weekend while attending a gala at The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. “I don’t know what it’s going to be, but they’re really excited about it. They’re like, `we’re just going to burn the whole thing down!’ I’m really excited.” She’s not looking forward to saying goodbye, however. “It’s been a great time. I love that time in my life.”

The CBS-owned Medium, which airs Fridays at 8 p.m., is currently averaging 7.1 million viewers. – With reporting from Nicholas White

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PBS cuts Tina Fey's Palin joke

Tina Fey’s joke about Sarah Palin and conservative female politicians was edited by PBS during Sunday’s broadcast of the Mark Twain Prize ceremony. While accepting the prestigious comedy award, Fey said, “And, you know, politics aside, the success of Sarah Palin and women like her is good for all women — except, of course, those who will end up, you know, like, paying for their own rape kit ‘n’ stuff. But for everybody else, it’s a win-win. Unless you’re a gay woman who wants to marry your partner of 20 years — whatever. But for most women, the success of conservative women is good for all of us. Unless you believe in evolution. You know what? Actually, I take it back. The whole thing’s a disaster.” The entire unedited video can be viewed below (on PBS’s official web site), and the crucial remarks begin at the 12:30 mark:

A PBS executive told the Washington Post that the decision to edit Palin had nothing to do with politics and was rather a matter of keeping the broadcast on schedule. “We had zero problems with anything she said,” said executive producer Peter Kaminsky, who said the ceremony had run 19 minutes too long. “We snipped from everyone.”

To that, I can only say: Really? Politics had nothing to do with PBS cutting the acceptance speech of the ceremony’s honoree? Reeeeally? Fey spoke for 12 minutes and 40 seconds, and the 30-second cut they had to make to keep the broadcast on time just so happened to be the bit about Sarah Palin, rape kits, and evolution? Reeeeally? Time constraints? Not a Republican congress that wants to squash PBS’ federal funding? Reeeeally?

A representative for Fey said that the actress had no comment at this time, but here’s hoping that this sad, ironic episode finds its way into 30 Rock.

Read more:
Tina Fey is funny, says Twain Award
Tina Fey accepts Mark Twain Prize
Courteney Cox and Tina Fey receiving awards: A good day for funny ladies

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'Conan' is the most watched late-night show of the week among young viewers

According to TBS reports, Conan O’Brien’s new talk show, Conan, averaged 2.2 million viewers between ages 18-49 in its first week, topping all other late-night programs. A total of 4.2 million tuned in to Conan‘s Nov. 8 premiere, and the show averaged 2.9 million viewers for the week, with a projected median age of 32. “Conan is a big hit among young viewers, with a median age that is more than two decades younger than the show’s rivals on broadcast,” said Michael Wright, executive vice president, head of programming for TBS, TNT and Turner Classic Movies (TCM).

Read more:
‘Conan’: What Is/Isn’t Working

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'Vampire Diaries' scoop: Tyler's full moon transformation, the midseason cliffhanger, and the show's next chapter

Image Credit: Patrick Ecclesine/The CWFans of The Vampire Diaries have to wait until Dec. 2 for the next new episode, but here’s some scoop to tide you over. Earlier this week, Michael Trevino filmed Tyler’s full moon transformation into a werewolf, which will air Dec. 9. “They shot it over two days. Closed set, special effects makeup guys, visual effects guys, Michael Trevino ready to rip out his soul and expose it bare to the world,” says exec producer Julie Plec. “I think if it’s even half as good as what we want it to be, it’s gonna be amazing. Kevin [Williamson] is the master and the king of the coming-of-age storytelling, as evidenced in Dawson’s Creek. This show is certainly literally not about any of that, but subtextually, it’s all about that. Tyler’s transformation from human into werewolf, it’s the literal growing pains of a boy becoming a man. All of the hell, and the pain, and the agony, and the confusion, and the torture that comes along with it — watching Tyler go through that over an episode will be really beautiful and powerful, and hopefully very harrowing. Seeing how he comes out the other side will define who he is.” Look for Tyler to take a cue from his Uncle Mason. “The old Lockwood cellar exists for a reason, and we’ll be making some very good use out of it for this episode,” Plec confirms.

The Dec. 9 episode will also serve as the midseason cliffhanger (original episodes will resume in January). Will Tyler’s long-awaited transformation be the actual cliffhanger? “Nope,” Plec says, laughing. “The transformation will happen, but it’s what happens after the transformation that leads us to our midseason cliffhanger. It’s what happens when a wolf makes an appearance to people we don’t want to see coming face-to-face with a wolf. It’s gonna really shake up the world of Damon specifically, and our vampires in general, with the werewolf being their natural enemy. It’s gonna start a new chapter of our show. Tyler won’t be the only werewolf in Mystic Falls by the time we get into the New Year.”

That episode features the arrival of Jules (Michaela McManus, Law & Order: SVU, One Tree Hill), an old friend of Mason’s from Florida who comes to Mystic Falls to let Tyler and his mother know that Mason never came home. “She’ll stick around for a little while, and cause all kinds of trouble,” Plec says. Fans have been wondering if/when Tyler would develop the wolves’ natural dislike of vampires. The wait is what’s fun, Plec says. “With our vampires, you have the Old World vampires that we’re slowly introducing that have a code and a set of rules that they live by, and then you have our New World vampires who are like, ‘What? Who? I don’t even know what you’re talking about’ and are much more independent, every-man-for-himself kind of vampires. The werewolves are gonna have the same sort of idea. The newbies are just like, ‘Dude, I just triggered a curse. I killed somebody. I’m a werewolf. I don’t know what the hell to do with myself.’ And when we introduce down the road some werewolves who have been schooled through their family bloodlines for generation upon generation upon generation, they’re gonna have a much darker point of view about the vampires than somebody like Mason and Tyler, who stumbled upon their curse accidentally.”

For now, at least, fans can enjoy the werewolf-vampire bonding between Tyler and Caroline. As Trevino told us, Tyler will continue to lean on Caroline as the full moon approaches.”They’re gonna go through hell and back with each other, and a very, very intense relationship is gonna develop as a result of that experience,” Plec says. “If and when it turns romantic, is one of those wait-and-see kind of things.” Something you can count on: Caroline’s decision to keep from Damon the fact that she told Tyler she’s a vampire will have “some repercussions” in the New Year, Plec says.

One final tease for Alaric fans, as reported in our Spoiler Room, Dec. 9 will see the return of the unlikely (and always entertaining) bromance between Alaric and Damon. “I think Matt Davis as Alaric is so fantastic and so sexy and such a man. His character means and adds so much to the show,” Plec says. “We’ve actually been trying to really up our game in the writers room trying to break a great arc for him and really showcase him.” Something else to look forward to in 2011.

Follow: @EWMandiBierly

More Vampire Diaries:
EW’s Vampire Diaries episode recaps
Scoop: ‘The nice, big, long healthy tease’ to Klaus
Spoiler Room: Scoop on Vampire Diaries, Smallville, Sons of Anarchy and more
Michael Trevino talks Tyler (and his first leather jacket)

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‘Dancing With the Stars’: Eliminated contestant is….

Don’t click through if you don’t want to know! After an hour full of waiting, more waiting, Annie Lennox, and waiting, the couple eliminated from Dancing With the Stars on Week 9 is….[bum-bum...bum-bum]…coming up, after the break!

Brandy and Maksim Chmerkovskiy.

Come back later for my full results-show recap; in the meantime, appraise the finest collection of reader-submitted ridiculata in all the virtual land…Your Hidden Gems of the Semifinals! Here’s a taste…

“During their paso rehearsal clip, Maks channeled Phil Keoghan from The Amazing Race and showed us his ‘Browsie.’” –LAG Award Winner

“Brandy got a standing O from Monica…I guess their heated ‘The Boy Is Mine’ rivalry of years ago is over. They were frenemies for years!” –CoolWhipLite, endorsed by Lorie, Riley, clandrith,  bamagirl, neetsie2000, jury’s out, dj, gigi, Manda
“Enthusiastic Activia Lady gave Monica a b**** glare with just the slightest hint of a forced smile.” –Stephanie, endorsed by Anonymous

Complete gem heap here.

Read more:
Semifinals performance recap: Might As Well Dance!
All Hidden Gems of the Week
EW.com’s ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Central

Annie on Twitter: @EWAnnieBarrett

EVER WISH EW.COM HAD A RADIO STATION? Quit living in the past, man or lady! In this week’s TV Insiders podcast, Annie Barrett, Dalton Ross, and Michael Slezak grade the first week of Conan, pick the funniest Modern Family character, and discuss the trouble with the Survivor: Nicaragua cast and Bristol Palin’s improbable run on Dancing With the Stars. Click here to download the TV Insiders podcast to your MP3 player, or listen to an embedded version below!

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‘No Ordinary Family’ teaser: Jimmy Bennett talks about J.J.’s love life, the family super powers

Image Credit: Michael Desmond/ABCNow that Jimmy Bennett’s character has lost his football privileges on ABC’s No Ordinary Family, something – or rather, someone - will help to put a smile back on his face. He’s gettin’ a girl! Katelyn Tarver (Big Time Rush) will recur in the next few episodes as the new galpal in J.J.’s life.

The powerful son of Jim (Michael Chiklis) and Stephanie (Julie Benz) may even get to play football again, Bennett teases. So what’s next? Will the Powell Family – which also includes Kay Panabaker as Daphne – ever fight crime together? “I hope [we don't] ever have to wear tights,” Bennett told EW while attending a red carpet event recently. “I have heard the rumors and read some things that they are going to keep that as something my parents do together and me and my sister are going to deal with more of the teenage and school problems.

“Sometimes I think my superbrain would help here or why wouldn’t sis just read their minds but I think these are parents who are acting like real parents and they want to protect their kids,” Bennett continued. “They are not jazzed about the powers and it is based in realism. They never use the word superhero on the show. We are just a regular family with problems who also happens to have powers. But if it goes a lot of the season, I’m sure they might go in that direction but as of right now I don’t think they have any plans for that.” – With reporting from Carrie Bell

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‘Dancing With the Stars’: Your Hidden Gems of the season 11 semifinals!

Studies have shown that Hidden Gems of the Week, EW.com’s collection of reader-submitted ridiculata, is the best way to enjoy Dancing With the Stars without ever having to turn it on. It’s a visual feast of sparkles, fringe, and flesh. Ready to go down the rabbit hole? Behold this bountiful smattering of Visible Gems!

MVG (MOST VALUABLE GEM): The boy is…Jamie Lee Curtis’?!

“Brandy got a standing O from Monica…I guess their heated ‘The Boy Is Mine’ rivalry of years ago is over. They were frenemies for years!” –CoolWhipLite, endorsed by Lorie, Riley, clandrith,  bamagirl, neetsie2000, jury’s out, dj, gigi, Manda
“Enthusiastic Activia Lady gave Monica a b**** glare with just the slightest hint of a forced smile.” –Stephanie, endorsed by Anonymous

“After Kyle and Lacey’s first dance, Brooke said, ‘We’ve all been watching you…’ and the Celebriquarium was empty! ” –Addison, endorsed by Enthusiastic Comment Lady
“Was Kyle wearing Theo Huxtable’s Gordon Gartrelle knock-off that Denise tried to recreate after Cliff made him take it back because it was so expensive?” –Elizabeth, endorsed by kfran, melissa

“The pictures of Kyle as a kid (or as an even younger kid, I should say). Gems, all of them, but – the one where he’s in white, he’s doing the little ‘come on!’ move with his hand, just like he did coming down the stairs during his samba solo!” –JH

“Enthusiastic Chimes Lady in da House with her buddy Enthusiastic Uncapped Bongo Player and Impeccably Manicured Trumpeter. Doesn’t get better than that!” –LAG Award Winner, endorsed by LMO, Hez, Manda, glenn, tkemoses

“Before Maks and Brandy’s dance, ECL was air boxing! ABCL?” –iggy, endorsed by Andi

“Lacey was dazedly trying to sing along with the theme song.” –melissa, endorsed by Potato Bug, LAG Award Winner

“Not all that hidden, but what was up with Mark and Derek loosening up like they were about to compete in sprints? What happened to cheesy swaying and bouncing to the music while waving shamelessly at the camera?” –Riley

“The way Carrie Ann was talking with her hands, it looked like she was elbowing the male ‘head’ sitting on the desk in the face.” –LL, LDS, iggy
“Doesn’t the man in full white at Bruno’s left know it’s past Labor Day?” –Xorp, avab, orville, LAG Award Winner, Luna, ice castle

“During their paso rehearsal clip, Maks channeled Phil Keoghan from The Amazing Race and showed us his ‘Browsie.’” –LAG Award Winner

“Gem nomination: The reappearance of the lamp post prop in Maks and Brandy’s Argentine tango that was also used in Maks and Joanna Krupa’s from season 9.” –Adriana

“Further evidence of Tea Party plot to keep Bristol dancing: Newt Gingrich look-a-like sitting to the left of Bruno” –MLM, endorsed by jt

“Someone clapping with glowing hands behind the judges” –Anna, endorsed by ChaCha

Ball Room Hero (got stars in his eyes…): “Tom kissing Brandy on her cheek while Maks was hugging her from behind. ?” –Time For Bristol To Go

“Derek blowing on Jennifer’s boob. I know he was going for the feathered fringe, but it didn’t really look that way!” –AR, endorsed by KWo, Katja, Jenn, JH, Rebecca, @mcdeallover, Tracy, KC

“For the second week in a row, Jennifer Grey’s husband, Clark Gregg, did not applaud after Bristol’s dance. This week he stood clasping his hands, next to Jamie Lee Curtis who WAS clapping for Bristol & Mark’s waltz.” –Mgssoprano, endorsed by DWTS’ BIGGEST FAN

“Jennifer Grey’s husband spazzing out while she danced the cha cha!” –Katie, endorsed by karolina, IAA Jennifer, WishIWasAHalpert, Jenn
“He’s a hidden JIM!” –sparkles, endorsed by JH, j, Chappel, AR, CoolWhipLite, Jillibean, Manda, Ysabel, Cricket, BP, Care, Enthusiastic Comment Lady, MLM

“When Jamie Lee Curtis had her hands over her mouth, it looked like she either saw Michael Myers in the audience or that she had eaten too much Activia!” –Baby’s Corner, endorsed by Patrycja

“The sparkle clip in Jennifer’s hair during her waltz looked like one half of a banana clip and her hair was styled almost as bad as if it was an actual banana clip!” –KelbelDance, endorsed by Allison, Amy in Pittsburgh

“I do believe I detected Mark’s nails painted with my favorite shade of late – Wicked, similar it is to Midnight in Moscow and Lincoln Park After Dark.” –DNCMSTR Dee, mother of EW.com’s Fringe Fairy (and the source of my crazy gem-hunting gene has been revealed…liiiiiiiiive!), endorsed by JH, orville, Al, queue55, JH, Amanda, CoolWhipLite, Jules, hillchics, melissa

“Benji Schwimmer buried deep in the crowd after Bristol’s second dance (right before the close-up of Sarah).” –Potato Bug, endorsed by tango2, orville

“Phil Donahue is hangin’ out behind Mama Grizzly!” –LDS

“Mark seemed to be a little teary-eyed right at the end. I think he was about to cry because they made him wear a shirt!” –VK, endorsed by mia, Paul, Mo, First-Time Gem Hunter

“Mr. Wheeler behind Tom slowly turning and smiling at the camera” –j
“I THINK TOM GOT A HAIRCUT #ineedalife” –Manda
“LOL I kind of thought Tom got a haircut too.” –Katja
“OMG I thought the same thing! It’s as if he is BEGGING the gem hunters to give him props! You don’t need to beg, Tom…we LOVE YOU just the way you are!” –Amy in Pittsburgh

LIFE-AFFIRMING GEM (LAG): Soooooo jaunty!

“Hidden Gem enthusiast Tom Bergeron did a jaunty little Charlie Chaplin walk right when they came back from commercial before Kyle’s intro (I see you Tom! That was just for us, right??) –JH, endorsed by Enthusiastic Comment Lady, Elizabeth, Annie, tkemoses, Kristie D

Don’t think we missed this, either.

Thank you, DNCMSTRs one and all, for your fabulous submissions!

(Please share on Facebook, etc. We must spread the word of the Lord Mirrorballus!)

Read more:
Semifinals performance recap: Might As Well Dance!
All Hidden Gems of the Week
EW.com’s ‘Dancing With the Stars’ Central

Annie on Twitter: @EWAnnieBarrett

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What’s your favorite great first scene in an otherwise terrible movie?

Image Credit: © & TM Lucasfilm, Ltd.

The good folks at DenofGeek.com have put together a nifty list of great opening sequences in movies. Between Citizen Kane, Raiders of the Lost Ark, and Once Upon a Time in the West, they’ve definitely got their bases covered. However, looking at their list made me wonder about a slightly more debased subsection of film history: Movies that start off with a great scene…and then get really bad, really fast. And I’m not just talking, like, a bad Bond movie with a good pre-credits sequence, either. I’m talking about opening scenes that literally seem to come out of a smarter, better movie than the dreck that follows. 

Sometimes, the problem is that the first scene of the movie is actually too energetic. That’s definitely true of Scary Movie 2, which kicks off an extended Exorcist parody featuring cameos by Natasha Lyonne, Andy Richter, and a scenery-devouring James Woods. (It’s a reminder that the Wayans brothers can be pretty funny…when they’re working in eight-minute increments.) It’s also true of Troy, which finds just the right Verhoeven-esque tone of macho imperialism in its first scene (Adorable kid wakes Brad Pitt up from an orgy! Brad Pitt insults the adorable kid!) and then spends the rest of its running time playing the same note over and over again. (Honorable mention goes to The Way of the Gun, which has one of the loudest, funniest opening scenes to ever appear in an otherwise-quiet, mostly-unfunny movie.)

Other times, the problem is that the first scene feels, in a way, like the whole story. The first scene of Federico Fellini’s Juliet of the Spirits is simultaneously more subtle and less boring than the colorful claptrap that follows. (And I like Fellini’s colorful claptrap, usually.) And then there’s Alien 3, which has an incredible opening credits sequence that feels thrillingly nihilistic…and once it’s over, the film has nothing to do but mope around for two hours.

Still, if I had to pick the biggest movie-tease ever, I’d go straight to Star Wars: Episode III — Revenge of the Sith. Coming off of one terrible prequel and one terribly mediocre prequel, I had my guard up. And then the first scene of Episode III injected thrill juice right into my eyeballs with a snazzily hyperkinetic space battle followed by a fightin’, decapitatin’, lightsaberin’ fight sequence. It sure wasn’t the Star Wars I grew up with, but it felt utterly alive…and then the plot kicked in, Padme was pregnant/plastic, Anakin was angry/constipated, and snoooooooooze.

PopWatchers, what’s your pick for biggest opening tease followed by a terrible drop-off? I know Avatar isn’t terrible, but am I the only one who feels like the coolest scene in the movie is the opening zero-gravity space scene?

Follow Darren on Twitter: @EWDarrenFranich

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Semi-Final Round Ends In Shocking Elimination On 'Dancing' - Access Hollywood

LOS ANGELES, Calif. --

She left her Alaska life and family behind and spent days driving her truck to Los Angeles to compete on “Dancing with the Stars,” and it appears Bristol Palin made the right choice.

The 20-year-old single mom, and daughter of former Vice Presidential hopeful Sarah Palin, is heading to next week’s “Dancing with the Stars” final round.

Despite four visits to the bottom of the “DWTS” leaderboard, Bristol and professional partner Mark Ballas made it to the final round, while Brandy and Maksim Chmerkovskiy, who topped or tied for the top spot several times throughout Season 11, were sent home.

The shocking announcement rocked the ballroom when Brandy and Maks were revealed as having received the lowest total score following Monday night’s competition show. Maks put his head down as he heard the news and a number of members of the studio audience booed the results.

Cameras panned to finalist Kyle Massey, who put his hands on his hips, while his partner, Lacey Schiwmmer clapped, but gave a look of disappointment.

Jennifer Grey, who also made it through to the finals stood with her arms at her side and turned away, while her professional partner, Derek Hough’s jaw dropped as he clapped slowly.

Mark Ballas rubbed the arms of Bristol, who looked expressionless as she turned to Brandy and Maks.

“I don’t know how to feel right now,” Brandy said when show co-host Brooke Burke asked her reaction to the news. “It hasn’t processed yet for me.”

Maks, who has been vocal all season about a host of issues – in particular, judge Carrie Ann Inaba’s scoring — actually played it cool, despite the fact that he and Brandy scored 57 total points for their dances on Monday night, a full 4 points more than Bristol and Mark.

“I said it in many press interviews, one thing that I love… is the fact that people vote and their voices count and I love the fact that the show represents that,” Maks said. “It represents people’s choice and I don’t regret a second of the last five years of my being on the show and definitely not a second of me being on the season. It’s been an amazing journey.”

Judge Bruno Tonioli, who was disappointed to see Brandy go, made a surprising gesture on the live results show, asking her to come back next week and perform the freestyle she and Maks were working on when they were hoping to make the final round.

“Please, on Tuesday, when you come back, do it for me, for us. Come on…” he said as the camera panned to Brandy’s disappointed face.

“Dancing with the Stars” Season 11 returns next week with the final round on Monday at 8 PM ET/PT.

Copyright 2010 by NBC Universal, Inc. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Keep your Access to everything in Hollywood! Breaking news and personal commentary from Billy, Tony, Shaun, Maria & all of our producers! Follow us on Facebook and Twitter now!

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Eva Longoria Plans to File for Divorce Soon, Source Says - People Magazine

Eva Longoria and Tony Parker

INF

Eva Longoria shot down a report that Tony Parker filed for divorce in Texas, but that doesn't appear to be the end of the marriage drama.

A source tells PEOPLE that the Desperate Housewives star plans to file divorce papers of her own as early as Wednesday.

Longoria was "totally and completely blindsided" by reports appearing this week of infidelity by her NBA star husband, the source says.

The pair were married three years ago in a castle in France.

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Sarah Palin's Daughter Willow Palin Uses Homophobic Slurs - TMZ.com

11/16/2010 4:35 PM PST by TMZ Staff   Sarah Palin's 16-year-old daughter Willow Palin used multiple homophobic slurs -- including the word f**got -- to attack a Facebook user who criticized her mom's new reality show .... TMZ has learned.

During the premiere of "Sarah Palin's Alaska" Sunday night -- a boy named Tre who went to school with the Palin kids wrote a status update that read, "Sarah Palin's Alaska, is failing so hard right now."

The comment sparked an intense response from Willow -- who replied on the boy's wall, "Haha your so gay. I have no idea who you are, But what I've seen pictures of, your disgusting ... My sister had a kid and is still hot."

Willow followed up that comment with another that read, "Tre stfu. Your such a f**got."

Bristol Palin also got in on the smacktalk -- writing a message to Tre saying, "You're running your mouth just to talk sh*t."

Eventually, a message board war erupted -- and Bristol took aim at another person named Jon -- saying, "You'll be as successful as my baby daddy, And actually I do work my ass off. I've been a single mom for the last two years."

After more users began to gang up on the Palins, Willow dropped another message that read, "Sorry that you guys are all jealous of my families success and you guys aren't goin to go anywhere with your lives."

Sources connected to the Palin family tell us ... Willow normally doesn't use this type of language, but she felt like she was being attacked along with her family.  The source added it was the baby bear defending Mama Grizzly.

Tags: Bristol Palin, Sarah Palin, Willow Palin, TV, Politix

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Potter-fanatics sending ‘Deathly Hallows’ presales through the roof

Image Credit: Jaap BuitendijkHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part I is still about 56 hours away, but the franchise’s penultimate film is currently outpacing its boy-wizard predecessors in advanced ticket sales. “The Harry Potter fans rival Twilight fans for loyalty to a saga — and their excitement for this 10-year-old franchise has not diminished,” says Fandango’s Harry Medved, whose company has already sold-out more than 2,000 Deathly Hallows showtimes. “Even though we still have two more days till the film gets released, HP7 has already entered our list of Top 10 Advance Ticket-Sellers.”

It’s difficult to quantify the loyalty of Potter fans, but a good indicator is a recent Fandango poll, which asked customers to vote for the Sexiest British Actress Under 30. Emma Watson — Hermione! — was by far the top choice, garnering more support than Emily Blunt, Keira Knightley and Sienna Miller combined! (Bonnie Wright placed sixth.) That result makes more sense when you take into account that Deathly Hallows tickets are currently making up 96 percent of Fandango’s sales.

Do you already have your movie tickets, and are you planning to be in line at the multiplex late Thursday night? Or have you given up hoping to get a seat on Friday and resigned to seeing a Sunday matinee? 

More Harry Potter:
'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows' countdown: Remembering 'Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban'
'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows' countdown: Remembering 'Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets'
'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows' countdown: Remembering 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone'
EW's 'Harry Potter' Central

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Beatles finally allowing digital downloads on Apple's iTunes - Washington Post

Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, November 16, 2010; 9:29 PM

The Beatles, their surviving heirs and their misguided management finally turned in their Flat Earth Society membership cards Tuesday, allowing the sale of their music as digital downloads on Apple's iTunes Store. La-dee-freakin'-da.

I'm sorry, were you expecting congratulations here?

This absurdly overdue development happened shortly before 10 a.m. - slightly in advance of the vague prediction posted on Apple's home page Monday.

Apple now offers all 13 remastered Beatles studio albums and the three major post-breakup compilations as multimedia-enhanced "iTunes LP" downloads, plus a $149 "box set" that includes all those releases and a video of the band's 1964 concert at the Washington Coliseum. (You can watch that last item for free in iTunes through the rest of the year.)

Individual songs cost $1.29 each, while single albums sell for $12.99 and double releases cost $19.99.

Apple's news release only cites that concert film as an exclusive. But the Fab Four's work doesn't show up on Amazon's MP3 store, Apple's main rival in the digital-download business. You can, however, continue to buy their CDs off the Seattle retailer's site - in some cases, for $3 to $5 less than what Apple charges.

That seems a fitting conclusion to this band's history of digital denial.

It's been almost seven years and seven months since the iTunes Store opened for business as the iTunes Music Store. The Beatles would have looked like visionaries to join Apple in this venture, and I'm sure Apple chief executive Steve Jobs would have given every black turtleneck he owns to have them. But they held back.

Three and a half years ago, Apple announced that it would stop requiring "digital rights management" restrictions on iTunes downloads - just a few months after Apple and the Beatles' Apple Corps record label had settled a long-running dispute over their similar names and logos.

The Beatles would have been hailed as pioneers for following up on that resolution by bringing their music to the Internet free of DRM shackles (even if that credit properly goes to the independent labels that never sought DRM in the first place). But they stayed aloof.

Just a year and a half ago, Apple banished DRM entirely from the iTunes Store's music inventory. But the Beatles picked that very day - as if they were flaunting their obstinance - to announce they'd be digitally remastering their catalogue for another re-release on CD.

Last September, the band licensed its music for inclusion in the Rock Band video game. But download sites continued to stock only the occasional cover version of their work.

Tuesday, the Beatles finally ran out of excuses for not letting downloaders give them their money. Alas, seven years is a long time to cede the market to file sharers and CD swappers who readily provided something that they would not. Is there anybody left online who doesn't already have all the Beatles MP3s they want?

This is a point that often gets overlooked in entertainment circles: The market continues to function even if the logical and rightful supplier of a product refuses to participate. The ease of duplicating and transmitting digital data ensures that somebody else will fill that vacancy.

You can mope about the massive copyright infringement that results from this dynamic, but the best way for artists to reverse it is to get into the market themselves.

Now that the Beatles have finally ended their tiresome, we're-too-good-for-the-Internet act, perhaps that change of heart (or the money they'll make off iTunes downloads) will lead to a similar rethinking among the lesser musicians who have also boycotted the download market.

That doesn't justify any media celebrations or heartfelt Baby Boomer ruminations over a band's decision to let its customers pay them. It certainly doesn't merit Apple's overclocked hype machinery, which had its home page promising visitors that Tuesday would be a day "that you'll never forget."

We probably will. And in the end, the Beatles will remain great artists. They have, however, proved themselves to be lousy capitalists.

© 2010 The Washington Post Companyif ( show_doubleclick_ad && ( adTemplate & TILE_RIGHT_TOP ) == TILE_RIGHT_TOP ){placeAd('ARTICLE',commercialNode,8,'!category=technology;',false) ;}if ( show_doubleclick_ad && ( adTemplate & TILE_RIGHT_TOP2 ) == TILE_RIGHT_TOP2 ){placeAd('ARTICLE',commercialNode,10,'!category=technology;',false) ;}if ( show_doubleclick_ad && ( adTemplate & BIG_FLEX_RIGHT ) == BIG_FLEX_RIGHT ){placeAd('ARTICLE',commercialNode,6,'!category=technology;',true) ;}Lawsuit: Hip Injury - DePuy, Mesothelioma, Fosamax Fracture, Zimmer Cup Failure, Chondrolysis, Gulf Oil Spill >>Asbestos lung Cancer, Cochlear Implant Failure, Yaz Gallbladder, Asbestos Cancer, Accutane Crohn's, Avandia Heart Attack>>Check all 3 bureaus with Equifax Complete!>>Get 3 credit scores, reports & monitoring!>>Russia Now: In-Depth Coverage of Russia News, Business, and More.>>TimeSpace: Navigate articles, photos, video and commentary from around the globe.>>Looking to buy a home? Visit TWP Real Estate section for the latest open houses.>>Make Your Vanguard Investing More Profitable - Free Research Report Reveals Best & Worst Funds>>Take a Survey - Chance to win 1,000!>>if ( show_doubleclick_ad && ( adTemplate & INLINE_ARTICLE_AD ) == INLINE_ARTICLE_AD && inlineAdGraf ){placeAd('ARTICLE',commercialNode,20,'inline=y;!category=technology;',true) ;}function fixRelatedBoxWidth() {var w = 0 ;if ( document.getElementById('related-box') ) {w = Math.floor( document.getElementById('related-box').offsetWidth/2 ) - 17 ;}if ( w>150 && document.getElementById('related-box-left') && document.getElementById('related-box-right') ) {document.getElementById('related-box-left').style.width = w ;document.getElementById('related-box-right').style.width = w ;}}fixRelatedBoxWidth();try{echoOmniture()}catch(e){}

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'Grey's Anatomy' remains healthy, NBC gets great boost from local football game

Image Credit: Adam Taylor/ABC; Mary Ellen Matthews/NBC; Adam Taylor/FoxCBS took Thursday among adults 18-49 (3.0 rating/8 share) and viewers (12.6 million) while NBC got a sweet little boost from the Raven/Falcons game that aired on a Peacock affiliate in Baltimore, according to early results. For the exception of The Office - which, at 3.8/10 and 7.6 million, was flat versus last week - all the NBC shows were up on Thursday. Community was up 11 percent to a 2.1/6 (4.8 million), followed by 30 Rock (up 8 percent to a 2.6/7, Outsourced (up 4 percent to a 2.8/7, 6.0 million), and The Apprentice (up 14 percent to a 1.6/5,  4.5 million). Each 18-49 point represents 1.3 million people.

NBC got a nice kick in the pants from the NFL game that aired on the Baltimore station, which is a No. 26 market that reaches 11 million homes. As a result, NBC pretty much tied Fox for third place for the night among 18-49 (2.4/7 versus 2.4/6), according to early returns. Fox averaged 6.9 million viewers for the night while NBC lured 5.5 million. Fox aired originals of Bones (2.5/7 and 9.1 million) and Fringe (1.8/5, 4.8 million). Speaking of which, read Doc Jensen’s super walk-up to last night’s Fringe episode here.

ABC was second for the night in the demo (2.7/7) and viewers (7.7 million).  The repeat of Grey’s Anatomy at 8 did a 1.0/3 and 4.0 million, but the original at 9 averaged a timeslot-winning 4.0/10. It lured 11.2 million. Private Practice scored a 2.9/8 and 8.2 million.  On CBS, Big Bang Theory earned a 4.2/12 and 13 million, followed by $#*! My Dad Says (2.8/8 and  9.7 million), CSI (2.8/7, 12.9 million), and The Mentalist (2.8/8, 13.7 million). It’s always worth reminding everyone that advertisers don’t buy total viewer averages, they buy demo ratings, but boy those audiences stay big for the likes of Marg Helgenberger and Simon Baker.

On the CW, The Vampire Diaries won its timeslot among female teens (2.6/9) and came in second in women 18-34 (2.6/8). The fifth-place network was first from 8-10 p.m. among female teens.

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Prince William engagement: Wills almost let Kate Middleton go - Daily Mail

By Geoffrey Levy
Last updated at 3:36 AM on 17th November 2010

For some it is fate, for others, chance. Anyone who has experienced a lengthy courtship will understand how easy it is, in moments of uncertainty, to walk away.

In just such a moment, Kate could have lost her prince. That she and William loved each other was never questioned. They ‘fitted’ so well, friends said.

But three years ago, when William was hit by doubts and they split for three months, the story of their relationship could easily have ended very differently.

Will it be our turn next? The couple seem to be sharing a confidence at the wedding of friends last month

It is intriguing that Kate had the strength of character to win back her prince by doing all the things that his circle had urged her not to do.

She went out partying in thigh-skimming skirts; she went roller-skating (and was photographed spreadeagled on the floor after falling over in a most unladylike ?fashion).

In fact, she and her sister Pippa partied so hard they were nicknamed the ‘Sizzler sisters’. In the wake of this, the Queen was privately said to consider Kate Middleton ‘something of a show-off’ and courtiers were ‘appalled’ at such a display.

Skater girl: Kate's high spirits helped recapture William's affections

So, what was Kate up to? She was taking the biggest gamble of her life. Weeks before, she had asked William for reassurance that she was the only woman in his life — particularly since he had been photographed in a nightclub with his arm around a pretty young woman, his hand apparently cupping her right breast.

‘She felt that William was making her look a fool,’ recalls one of her oldest friends. ‘What she wanted was a clarification of where she stood, and what was going on.

'She wasn’t looking for an engagement ring, she just wanted to know that he was committed to her, and only to her.’ 

Faced with what he saw as demand for his long-term commitment, especially his fidelity, the 6ft 3in Prince declined to give in. And on that sad and uneasy note, the romance was terminated.

Drifting apart? A chill in the air at the Cheltenham races in 2007

Kate could have slipped away into oblivion, but instead she risked her reputation for quiet modesty in order to show William just what he was missing. 

It wasn’t easy. The first thing William did after their separation was to rush off with friends to the Mahiki nightclub in London’s West End, leap on a table and cry: ‘I’m free.’

By Jonathan Cainer

Kate’s a Capricorn. William’s a Cancerian. They’re opposite signs, and in the realm of physical magnetism, opposites attract.

But there’s more than this to astro-compatibility. We have to look at Venus and Mars, in his chart and hers. How do they line up? She has Mars in Libra.

Significantly, so does he, even though she’s six months older and Mars usually spends no longer than a couple of months in each sign. Back in 1982, a quirk in the cosmic calendar granted them this advantage.

Plus, his Venus is in Taurus while hers is in Aquarius. No two horoscopes are ever perfectly matched but these links are more than good enough. We’re certainly not looking at a marriage that could go horribly wrong like his parents’ did. Indeed, even though he’s a boy from a broken home, she’s got just what it takes to help him create the sense of security he needs.

They’ll even be secure enough to argue. So although we’re used to seeing the Royal Family display decorum, we may have to adapt to a couple who thrive on ‘dynamic tension’.

But the potential for conflict in this relationship is healthy not heavy. Kate is a modern woman. She won’t be content to stand in her husband’s shadow, and she’ll expect him to take a very active role in raising their children.

I’m tempted to tell you when I think she’ll be queen, but astrologers’ ethics forbid this. To forecast an ascension to the throne is also to predict the end date.

And there are certain pieces of information about the future that all responsible fortune-tellers should neither seek nor speak about.

Besides, there’s another much nearer date to investigate. Kate and William have not yet set a date at Westminster Abbey where I predict they’ll marry, so I’ve taken the liberty of looking at some options in late May and early June.

Though Whitsun week weather can be dreadful, I suspect the barometer will look fair around that time next year. The cosmic climate looks encouraging too.

Perhaps they should just avoid the New Moon of June 1. It’s also a solar eclipse, which traditionalists see as inauspicious. The weekends either side of that, though, should provide all the hopeful omens they could wish for.

But like so many young men who never know quite what they want until they no longer have it, he rapidly began to realise just how much he missed Kate.

To make matters worse, there she was, appearing in photographs looking slim and stunning, apparently enjoying life without him. She wasn’t, of course — in fact, she was devastated by the end of their romance — but she was ?playing a blinder.

After three months apart, she got an unexpected invitation from William to join him at a fancy dress party at his Army barracks at Bovington in Dorset. It was June 2007, and they never parted again.

Yesterday, at last, no one was calling Kate Middleton ‘Waity Katie’. In fact, from now on she wants to be known as Catherine, the name she has always asked her friends to use.

A ring is finally on the finger of the middle-class girl from the Home Counties — that beguiling beauty with long, dark hair who was first seen kissing William in the Sea Life Centre in St Andrews early in 2003.

It soon emerged that she was the girl who had earlier ‘brought his eyes out on sticks’ when she ?sauntered down the catwalk at a charity fashion show in a diaphanous dress which left little to the imagination. ‘Wow!’ William ?whispered to his friend Fergus Boyd. ‘Kate’s hot.’

Their romance was initially seen as one of those liaisons that princes have before a girl from the ‘right kind of family’ comes along a bit later in life for them to marry.

But it wasn’t like that. Kate was different. She was cool and intelligent and, most significantly, she didn’t treat him with the deference he often encountered.

William was 21 and — although he was tall, broad-?shouldered and handsome — he had sown remarkably few wild oats. Indeed, this lack of experience — so different from his father, who had many girlfriends in his 20s — is what has always worried royal courtiers.

Some remain uneasy about the possibility of William sowing those wild oats in later years.

But right from the start, the Prince has enjoyed having such an attractive woman on his arm. And Kate has been happy to play a quiet supporting role — albeit too quiet for many who have questioned her ‘enthusiasm’ for public life.

Still, back in 2003 few would have predicted that theirs would be a long-term romance.

But almost from the start, Kate was more than just a girlfriend. With astonishing speed, William took her home for the weekend to Highgrove and introduced her to his father, Prince Charles.

She met his friends skiing at Klosters, he took her (aptly enough) to the Middleton Hunt in Yorkshire and soon, with two other St Andrews students, they were sharing a house at university.

Although many doubted the romance, it must be said that Prince Charles was instantly comfortable in Kate’s company, noting that one of her most attractive features was that she was not given to bowing and scraping.

Yes, jibes pursued her family over their social background, especially the one that said her mother, former air stewardess Carole Middleton, had dispatched her to St Andrews just because she knew the Prince was going there. 

Friends have always laughed this off, but it hurt the family, as did the smirking ‘doors-to-manual’ mockery of Mrs Middleton’s former career as an air hostess.

Well, whoever those cruel so-called jokers were, they’re not smirking now. In fact, far from giving William doubts, the taunts brought him closer to Kate. They encouraged his characteristic support for the underdog, a trait that so defined his mother Princess Diana.

Until their split in 2007, Kate was herself disturbed by the things she knew people were saying, not so much for herself but for her family. But after their reunion later that year, a friend says, ‘she was much calmer about it, and so were Mr and Mrs Middleton’.

By then, Kate was regularly staying with William at Clarence House, where he has his own flat. At the same time, she ?continued to live at her parents’ home in the Berkshire village of Bucklebury, in the same bedroom she’d had since she was 14.

Kate remained the classically middle-class (and middle-brow) girl she’d been when she went up to St Andrews. According to friends, she has scarcely changed despite the new world into which the future King has introduced her.

All his friends have become her friends, though Kate herself has never collected many close personal confidantes of her own. ‘They like Kate because she’s always herself,’ says a friend of the Royal Family.

‘She’s cool and decisive and is never scared of telling William he’s wrong if she thinks he is. He loves that air of independence she gives out — so very different from the girl that people think has done nothing but wait for the phone to ring with him on the other end.’

And ever since Prince William was posted to Wales as a search and rescue helicopter pilot with the RAF, Kate has quietly been spending weekends with him at the remote farmhouse he has rented near the base, RAF Valley in Anglesey.

Getting close: Kate and William celebrating his 26th birthday in 2008

Apart from his police bodyguard, they live like any other service couple, making themselves as unobtrusive as possible and shopping in the local Tesco.

True, Kate Middleton never had much of a career. She was briefly a buyer for the fashion chain Jigsaw, owned by friends of her family, and most recently she has been acting as the Party Pieces photographer, taking pictures of items for the website.

Just a few months ago, photos of her and William frolicking in the alpine snow emerged. One of the pictures showed them on a snowmobile, with her clinging on to him.

Well, we know now that he was clinging on to her just as hard. As for that career she never fashioned for herself — one is certainly being fashioned for her now.

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‘The Mechanic’ trailer: Someone buy Jason Statham some cough drops

Jason Statham continues to cement his status as Hollywood’s most congested actor in the new trailer for Jan. 28's The Mechanic, in which the deep-voiced action star plays a hitman who begins mentoring an apprentice (Ben Foster) in his violent trade. (Hey, for Mr. Trump’s sake, whatever happened to good ol’ selling hot dogs to become an Apprentice?) First off, I’m excited to see Donald Sutherland starring in not one, but two movie trailers over the past week (the actor appears in The Eagle as well). And, secondly, after seeing this spot for the film — a reinvention of the 1972 action film of the same name — I’m never looking in a mirror again. It looks like there are more ways to die in this film than in a Choose Your Own Adventure book. See video embedded after the jump!

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‘Red Riding Hood’ trailer: What a red hood you have, Amanda Seyfried!

Werewolves, forbidden love, Lukas Haas, oh my! Warner Bros. has released the trailer for Catherine Hardwicke’s Red Riding Hood, in which Amanda Seyfried plays the hooded — and quite stylish — object of desire in the supernatural love triangle. Based on this spot, Red Riding Hood will be visually stunning — the film is far more colorful than Hardwicke’s last supernatural love story, Twilight, and the cinematography certainly appears to capture the spirit of its fairy tale inspiration. (The architecture alone is otherworldly.) What I’m mostly curious about (besides why they seemed to bury the lead by not touting Leonardo DiCaprio’s producing credit): Will Red Riding Hood choose a more Hollywood-friendly ending, with Seyfried’s character overcoming the werewolf, or will the film swerve in a far darker, Charles Perrault-esque direction, with the hooded heroine becoming the prey? Or will they just have sex? Or did the trees do it? Who knows? It could be anything! Speculate, and check out the trailer, after the jump.

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Ronni Chasen, publicist, killed

Image Credit: Todd Williamson/WireImage.comRonni Chasen — a veteran publicist who has represented Oscar-winning composers like Hans Zimmer and John Williams, and filmmakers like Jim Sheridan and Richard D. Zanuck — was shot to death in her car early Tuesday morning in Beverly Hills, Calif. after leaving the premiere of Burlesque. She was 64 years old. The L.A. County coroner’s office confirmed with EW that Chasen was rushed to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and pronounced dead upon arrival. An investigation is ongoing.

“It’s very shocking,” songwriter Diane Warren, a longtime client of Chasen, told EW. “I was with her at the Burlesque premiere. I saw her just before she got in her car. It could have been any of us.” Warren says she got the news this morning from producer Donald De Line. “This is just f—ing insane. I don’t want to use the word ‘was’ with her. She’s a great person. Probably the most loved person in this town. She’s the best there is. Who would want to hurt her? Nobody would want to hurt her. Did someone follow her from [the premiere]? Did they want to steal her car? It’s utterly senseless. I hope [the police] find some answers, but it still won’t bring her back.”

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Amazon Starts Movie Production Site Amazon Studios - ABC News

Amazon.com Inc. is starting a Web business aimed at helping filmmakers get their movies onto the big screen.

Amazon Studios, which the online retailer announced Tuesday, is seeking full-length films and scripts from filmmakers and screenwriters that can be entered through its website, http://studios.amazon.com . It plans to distribute a total of $2.7 million to those who submit the best works by the end of next year. Amazon said this includes an annual award of $100,000 for the best script and $1 million for the best film it receives by Dec. 31, 2011, as well as monthly awards.

Amazon Studios may then produce these projects as feature films through a "first-look" agreement with Warner Bros. Pictures, which means Amazon Studios is obligated to show Warner Bros. the projects first, but if the movie studio passes Amazon Studios can take them elsewhere.

Amazon said that, in addition to the annual and monthly awards, it will pay $200,000 to the screenwriter or filmmaker behind a project that it ends up releasing as a feature film. The company will also pay an additional $400,000 if the film brings in over $60 million in U.S. box office sales.

Several judges — who include Mark Gil, a producer and former Miramax and Warner Independent Pictures president, and Mike Werb, screenwriter of films including "Face/Off" and "The Mask" — will choose the best movies and scripts.

Amazon already has some experience in the film industry: It owns the Internet Movie Database, or IMDB, and holds a stake in LOVEFiLM International Ltd., which is a European subscription DVD rental company.

Amazon shares rose 4 cents to $157.82 in after-hours trading. The stock finished regular trading down $1.12 at $157.78.

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Online:

http://studios.amazon.com

Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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Eddie Murphy: What’s his most iconic role?

Image Credit: Everett Collection(2)The most interesting thing to come out of Brett Ratner’s MTV interview about his upcoming comedy Tower Heist wasn’t that the director has spoken to his star Eddie Murphy about a possible fourth Beverly Hills Cop movie. (“Oh yeah, believe me,” Ratner told MTV. “I’m all over it.”) No, the most curious part of the interview centered around Ratner’s insistence that Axel Foley is Murphy’s most iconic character: “I don’t think he goes anywhere in the world where someone doesn’t say, you know, they’re not going ‘Yo, Eddie Murphy!’ They’re like, ‘Yo, Axel Foley!’ I mean, wherever he goes in the world. So it’s his Clark Kent. It’s his, you know, it’s his Darth Vader, whatever. It’s like his albatross.” So, just to be clear, Axel Foley is Eddie Murphy’s mild-mannered alter-ego Sith Lord ungainly oceanic bird?

Anyhoo, perhaps it’s because I was a fetus when the film came out in 1984 — I was, however, plenty old enough when I caught the movie over and over and over (and, yes, over) again on television years later — but I don’t immediately associate Murphy with Axel Foley. Maybe that’s because, you know, the guy has played as many iconic characters as Foley has played banana-in-the-tailpipe pranks on Detectives Foster and McCabe. I’d even say, “Yo, Gumby (dammit)!” before I’d say, “Yo, Axel Foley!” (Though I am partial to Prince Akeem. Mostly because I think of garbage a lot.) So, your turn: Tell us, if you saw Eddie Murphy on the street, what would you say? (Be nice, kids.) And check out the interview with Ratner after the jump.

Want to see a fourth Beverly Hills Cop, PopWatchers?

Read more:
Eddie Murphy joins Ben Stiller in ‘Tower Heist’
‘Beverly Hills Cop 4' in the works

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12 underrated movie gems

Breakdown (1997)
On a cross-country drive, in a desolate stretch of the Southwest, a nice guy (Kurt Russell) and his wife (Kathleen Quinlan) get stranded, and she goes missing. Director/co-writer Jonathan Mostow's R-rated thriller is a minor masterpiece of gritty, convincing, at times unbearably suspenseful action. While it was a sleeper hit when it came out, it has been largely and unjustly forgotten. But 13 years later, it holds up way better than so many flashier action flicks — though Russell's giant cell phone is good for a laugh, and of course the damn thing never works when he needs it most. —Jess Cagle

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'CSI: New York' scoop: Lindsay Price is coming to the Big Apple

Image Credit: Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic.comWere you sorry to say goodbye to Lindsay Price in Eastwick? Weep no more: We’re about to get her back! EW has learned that Price, who played Joanna Frankel in the short-lived ABC series, will guest star in an episode of CSI: New York in February. She’ll play Kate, a young woman who experienced a past trauma that she can’t forget. Her character ends up forming a bond with Det. Lindsay Monroe Messer (Anna Belknap) when her past returns to haunt her!

Price is joining the CBS procedural at an excellent time. Thanks to the addition of Sela Ward (Jo Danville), the seven-year-old drama is averaging 11.2 million viewers, up 25% over its year-ago time period. The show’s also been winning its time period each week in viewers and adults 18-49.

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