Ophra Winfrey announces show will end in 2011

"The Oprah Winfrey Show" will end its run in 2011 after 25 seasons on the air, Winfrey's production company said Thursday night (19 NOV.).
The iconic broadcast grew from a local Chicago talk show into the foundation of a multibillion dollar media empire.
Winfrey plans to announce the final date for her show during a live broadcast Friday (20 NOV.), Harpo Productions Inc. said. A Harpo spokeswoman declined to comment on Winfrey's future plans except to say that "The Oprah Winfrey Show" will not be transferred to cable television.

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AP - 11/20/2009
www.eitb.com

Jennifer Hudson to star in Winnie Mandela film

Variety magazine reported Hudson was thrilled about the role and has described Ms Madikizela-Mandela as a "powerful and extraordinary woman".

Ms Madikizela-Mandela played a vital role in freeing her husband after 27 years in jail but has since been linked to a murder and convicted of fraud.

South African film-maker Darrell Roodt will direct the film.

His work also includes world-renowned films Cry, The Beloved Country and Sarafina.

Hudson is the second international actor set to play a South African icon in recent months.

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Thursday, 19 November 2009
http://news.bbc.co.uk/

Uma Thurman signs on for "Bel Ami"

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Uma Thurman soon will be making time with Rob Pattinson.

The actress has signed to star opposite the "Twilight" star in an adaptation of Guy de Maupassant's short story "Bel Ami." Kristin Scott Thomas also has joined the cast.

"Ami" tells of George Duroy (Pattinson), a young journalist who rose from poverty to become one of the most successful men in Paris via the ruthless and calculating bedding of the city's most glamorous and influential women. Thurman plays the wife of Duroy's friend, a woman well connected in Parisian society. She helps Duroy in his ascent, later becoming his wife.

Thomas plays a socialite who falls for Duroy.

London theater director Declan Donnellan is making his film debut with "Ami," which Uberto Pasolini is producing through his Redwave Films. The movie is scheduled to shoot next year in Paris.

It had been erroneously reported that Nicole Kidman would star with Pattinson. Kidman had an offer, but a deal never followed.

(Editing by SheriLinden at Reuters)

Fri Nov 20, 2009 2:29am EST
www.reuters.com

Heidi Klum Wows Crowd At Victoria's Secret Show

Heidi Klum and her post-baby body led the parade at the annual Victoria's Secret fashion show, which returned to New York with some fresh faces after four years on the road.

The lingerie retailer inducted five more women into its "Angel" ranks — a designation reserved for top models — in front of a packed house Thursday night at the Lexington Avenue Armory. They are Emanuela de Paula, Chanel Iman, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Lindsay Ellingson and Candice Swanepoel.

But Klum, who gave birth to a daughter five weeks ago, was the audience favorite in her purple corset covered with a half gown with poufs of tulle. She emerged from the huge, castlelike set to applause.

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NEW YORK November 20, 2009, 06:36 am ET
www.npr.org

Will Kate Moss Eat Her Words?

(AP) Campaigners against eating disorders are criticizing Kate Moss after the supermodel cited as her motto a phrase used on pro-anorexia Web sites.

Asked about her motto in an interview with fashion Web site WWD, Moss replied that one of her mottos was "nothing tastes as good as skinny feels."

The same slogan is posted on Web sites encouraging girls not to eat.

Mary George of British eating-disorder charity Beat said Thursday that Moss's words were "very unfortunate."

She said, "comments like this make it even more difficult" for young people struggling with an eating disorder.

The 35-year-old Moss is famous for her waif-like look, which helped spur a trend for super-thin models in the 1990s.

Moss's spokespeople could not immediately be reached for comment.

LONDON, Nov. 19, 2009

www.cbsnews.com

Johnny Depp is Sexiest Man Alive

 

Johnny Depp is People magazine's 2009 Sexiest Man Alive.

(Though the characters he plays on screen seldom are.)

This marks the second time People has bestowed the title on the 46-year-old Depp, the other time in 2003.

"Johnny Depp has magical powers. He's unlike anyone else," actress Isla Fisher joked to People. "He's funny, generous and clever. It's just a shame he's so hard on the eyes."

Take a look for yourself and compare the actor to his characters.

November 19, 2009

www.chicagotribune.com

Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt Design Snake-Themed Jewelry Line

Brangelina has entered the bling-bling biz with a new jewelry line for Asprey. The pieces, inspired by snakes, are made from gold and silver, and include pendants, rings, bracelets and a baby spoon. The items will be for sale later this week, with prices starting at $525, and all proceeds will go to Jolie's Education Partnership for Children of Conflict.

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First Posted: 11-16-09 10:37 AM
www.huffingtonpost.com

"Love Is The Answer" Certified Gold

Barbra's 63rd album, "Love Is The Answer" has been certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), just months after debuting at #1 on the Billboard Charts. This brings the number of gold albums awarded to Barbra to 51. Additionally, Barbra is the recipient of 30 platinum albums and 13 multi-platinum albums.

NOVEMBER 13, 2009, 2:44 pm

www.barbrastreisand.com

Sharon Stone goes from gangster to moll at Elton John's charity gala

At 51, she has tried almost every look in the book.
But these days, it seems Sharon Stone is done with obeying the rules of fashion and just wears whatever she pleases.
The result of this was something like gangster-meets-moll as she arrived in New York for a charity party.

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By Simon Cable

Last updated at 9:55 PM on 17th November 2009

Mamma Mia! 2: the songs won't remain the same

Mamma Mia! has broken so many records – highest-grossing musical ever, highest-grossing film in the history of UK cinema, most genuinely baffling box-office success in the history of time – that a sequel was always on the cards. Now, according to Amanda Seyfried, who played Sophie in the film, it's looking closer than ever.

"I've been talking to some insiders and it's not something that they haven't been working on," Seyfried told BBC News this weekend. Before any real work can start on a second Mamma Mia! film, however, a few problems need to be ironed out.

The first, obviously, is the punctuation to use in the film's title. Mamma Mia! 2 makes the most sense, but Mamma Mia 2! scans better. Then there's Mamma Mia 2!? which is probably the inflection all sensible people used when they first heard about the sequel. And then there's the problem of Pierce Brosnan's voice, though we can ignore that because nobody seemed to think it was much of a concern when they were making the first movie.

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Posted by Stuart Heritage Monday 26 October 2009 12.57 GMT guardian.co.uk

Madonna raises $11 mln for Malawi charity: report

RIO DE JANEIRO — Madonna has raised 11 million dollars from Brazilian millionaires for her Raising Malawi Foundation, the daily Rio O Dia reported on Monday.

The US pop star, who visited Brazil to stroke the country's wealthy into giving, notably won an unspecified pledge from the country's richest man, mining magnate Ike Batista, who has an estimated fortune of 7.5 billion dollars.

Madonna, 51, was accompanied during her fund-raising by 22-year-old Brazilian model Jesus de Luz, whom US and British gossip pages have referred to as her "toy boy".

Her Raising Malawi Foundation, started in 2006, finances humanitarian projects in Malawi, the southern African country where Madonna has adopted two children.

(AFP) – 23 hours ago