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A body found in the river Seine is believed to be that of former top model Katoucha who disappeared near her houseboat in Paris earlier this month, French police said.
She had been missing since returning to the houseboat moored near the city centre after a party earlier this month.
"There are indications that it is indeed her, but we are awaiting the results of forensic tests before we can confirm it officially," a police spokesman said.
Katoucha, aged 47 and originally from Guinea, was one of the first black African models to become a global catwalk star in the 1980s.
She modeled for designers including Yves Saint-Laurent and Christian Lacroix.
Born Katoucha Niane, she became a campaigner against genital mutilation, a procedure she underwent herself at the age of nine.
Paris Hilton posed topless, in just a hat and a pair of Calvin Klein panties, for the February issue of the US magazine 944.
For the color coordinated photo shoot Hilton used green eye makeup to go with the green digits of '944' and wore peacock feather earrings.
Despite the fact that it is Paris Hilton who is posing, the overall effect is eye catching and tasteful. There is no denying her excellent body tone and good figure.
The former inmate may not have lived up to her post jail promise of visiting Rwanda but we give her credit for working hard and making a living, albeit largely by shedding her clothes.
The last thing she would want to do after such raunchy photo shoots would be to end up back in jail.
Paris had hosted 944 Magazine pre-Super Bowl Party on Thursday night, January 31.
Britney Spears' paparazzo boyfriend Adnan Ghalib has stunned his friends by insisting the singer is expecting his baby.
Pals of the British-born photographer claim he targetted Spears in a bid to make her pregnant, and is bragging that he has succeeded.
The claims appear in the current edition of U.S. magazine Star, alongside pictures of Spears with what appears to be a bulging tummy.
A friend tells the magazine, "Britney is Adnan's dream come true. He knows that if he has a child with her, he'd be made for life.
"Adnan is a social climber who uses women to get what he wants".
Ghalib has previously revealed Spears really thought she was pregnant with his child when they were snapped buying pregnancy tests in January 2008
Pregnant actress Jessica Alba is counting her lucky stars after suffering a terrifying tumble backstage at the Academy Awards on Sunday (24Feb08).
Alba, who is in her third trimester, was caught just in time by fiance Cash Warren.
And the 26-year-old Latina is astonished normally eagle-eyed photographers missed the whole thing - because she fell right in front of them.
She writes online, "I did have a stumble backstage outside of the green room.
Cash caught one arm, the other hit the floor.
"Luckily all the photogs were taking pics of Cameron D".
Gossips claim Alba will give birth to twins later this year.
Superstar Angelina Jolie avoided running into partner Brad Pitt's ex-wife Jennifer Aniston at the pre Oscar party by deciding to attend another event instead.
While Aniston went to the Beverly Hills Hotel to benefit the Motion Picture Television Fund, Jolie and Pitt attended the Independent Spirit awards.
Others celebrities attending pre Oscar party included George Clooney, Seal with Heidi Klum and Jake Gyllenhaal. Aniston left after an hour and went back to her private bungalow at the hotel.
Pitt and Aniston were married before they split in 2005. Pitt is now involved with Jolie and they have children together.
Christina Aguilera is "amazed" by her ever-expanding breasts.
The 'Dirrty' singer - who gave birth to son Max, her first child with husband Jordan Bratman, on January 12 - was shocked by how much weight she gained during the pregnancy, but was delighted when her breasts got bigger.
She said: "I was just amazed by the whole process of being pregnant. It's unbelievable to see yourself grow like that. So my stomach was huge back then, and now my chest is huge!"
Christina admitted she can't stop staring at her new son, because she is so in love.
She said: "To see the product of your love together is just incredible - my husband and I just can't stop staring at him."
The 27-year-old also revealed the only thing she dislikes about being a new mom is being so confined to her house.
She told US TV chat show host Ellen DeGeneres: "I'm very into the four walls of my bedroom and Max's nursery right now. As soon as I leave the house, it's like, 'The outside world!' "
Some jurors wept as they acquitted an Auckland teacher of a sexual violation charge and seven indecent assault charges but found him guilty of six other sex charges involving teenage girls.
Heremia Smith, 30, formerly head of Maori studies at Glenfield College on Auckland's North Shore, was found guilty of four charges of indecent assault and two of sexual conduct against a girl under 16.
He was also found not guilty by the jury at Auckland District Court today of one count of sexual violation and seven other indecent assault charges in the period between 2002 and 2006 .
At least two jurors were in tears shortly after the verdicts were read.
Seven girls between the ages of 12 and 16 had made complaints against Smith.
Six of the complainants were pupils at the college while the seventh, who knew Smith through family connections, was the complainant in four of the charges, including the most serious sexual violation charge.
Police inquiry head Detective John Gilbert said there were mixed feelings among the complainants and their families.
"In relation to the charges the accused were found guilty on the victims have been vindicated," he said.
Those whose complaints were not upheld by the jury were naturally disappointed, he said.
Smith's lawyer Gary Gotlieb said his client felt he had a fair trial and was unlikely to appeal.
"I suppose he's relieved that he got acquitted of the most serious charges," Mr Gotlieb said.
"I think his feeling was that he wanted to end the matters and there is now some conclusion about to happen and everyone can move on."
Smith was remanded on bail for sentence on March 20. His bail conditions include not being alone with children under 16.
Judge Jacqueline Bouchier said a jail sentence was possible but that the courts would also have to look at the issue of home detention and called for four reports.
The jury gave its verdicts just over 24 hours after it began deliberating. Their verdicts were returned about 10 minutes after asking a second question about the legal definition of indecent assault.
Guilty verdicts were returned on three indecent assault charges relating to one complainant: removing her bra and shorts, touching her hand and putting it on his groin, and touching her groin with his finger.
Two guilty verdicts were returned in relation to another complainant on charges of sexual conduct on a girl under 16, a charge which came into effect in 2005. These were for changing and adjusting a pair of shorts on the complainant and for touching her legs.
One guilty verdict was returned in relation to a third complainant who alleged indecent assault by touching her legs. A not guilty verdict was returned on another charge from this complainant - indecent assault by touching her legs, bottom and genitalia some months earlier.
Not guilty verdicts were returned on four charges relating to one complainant. She alleged sexual violation by Smith inserting his penis into her mouth, and three indecent assault charges alleging he rubbed her genitals with his hand, held her hand on his penis and touched her legs and shoulders.
The other indecent assault charges for which not guilty verdicts were returned alleged Smith touched the breasts of one complainant, touched the shoulder of a second and touched the back and shoulders of a third.
English glamour model Katie Price aka Jordan denied that she took cocaine during a drug binge that left her feeling suicidal.
Jordan, who is a 29-year-old mother of three, had taken the substance behind her husband Peter Andre's back, but she has refused to reveal what it was she had used.
On Feb 17 a spokeswoman for Jordan denied that it was cocaine that the model had used.
"Katie did not take an illegal substance. It was a prescription drug," the Sun quoted the spokeswoman as saying.
"She did turn to drugs in the lowest ebb of her life. She knows it was a stupid thing to do," the spokeswoman stated.
"Katie did not have to talk about this but has decided to do so as a warning. She wants to stop other people turning to drugs as a way of dealing with their problems," the spokeswoman added.
The model has confessed to the ordeal in her book "Jordan: Pushed To The Limit', where she admitted that she had taken the drug in a bid to beat postnatal depression but feared she had overdosed.
Jordan's doctor had given her the all clear, but there was huge fight between her and 34-year-old Andre, making her run away from their home.
"I seriously thought, 'Shall I end it now?'" Jordan revealed of her feelings.
While Lindsay Lohan's mom thinks of her daughter's nude pictures as "artistic," her dad is firm not to look at them. Michael Lohan tells Usmagazine that although he approves Lindsay's decision to pose nude, he can't bear to look at her topless photos.
"I'm not going to look at the photos - that's my daughter!"
Michael says that although he doesn't want to see them, he approves of the photos. "Lindsay is an adult, and she knows the direction she wants to take her career. It's her decision."
The pictures are a recreation of Marilyn Monroe's 1962 pictures. Marilyn's photographer was Bert Stern, the same one who did Lindsay's version.
"The fact that the photographer who did Marilyn Monroe's pictures would ask Lindsay to recreate them... that's an amazing thing!"
Pregnant Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony is set to receive a record $6 million for the first pictures of their twins.
The Do It Well singer - who is rumoured to be due on February 23 - has reportedly secured the highest price ever paid for celebrity baby photos following a deal with People magazine.
The staggering sum will be shared with OK! magazine, who will print the pictures in their 15 international editions.
A spokesperson for the OK! magazine said: "It is fantastic for these international markets, and especially important with the immense strength the exclusive will bring to the new launch of OK! Spain."
Christina Aguilera is said to have received $1.5 million for posing with newborn son Max Liron Bratman on the cover of People magazine, while Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie received $4 million for pictures of their biological daughter Shiloh.
Rihanna is set to be honored with a national holiday in her home country of Barbados.
The 'Umbrella' singer is thrilled after discovering the Caribbean island will declare tomorrow 'Rihanna Day'.
A source said: "She's really flattered. She can't believe she now has her on national day, it's such an honor."
Rihanna will fly out to Barbados to accept the honor and perform a free concert. She will be accompanied on the trip by rumored boyfriend Chris Brown.
Although the pair have denied dating, Chris helped Rihanna celebrate her birthday early last week along with friends including Kanye West and actor Wilmer Valderrama at Los Angeles' Les Deux nightclub.
The evening featured a spontaneous food fight among the guests followed by Chris singing an acapella version of 'Happy Birthday' to Rihanna. Onlookers at the bash said the pair were "cuddling and acting very cozy all night."
The couple also attended the Grammys together earlier this month and stocked up on goody bags.
Lindsay Lohan's mother approves of her daughter's nude photo shoot in the latest issue of New York magazine, insisting the revealing spread is "tastefully done".
The Mean Girls actress bares all behind strips of sheer fabric in the raunchy photos, which are copies of images photographer Bert Stern shot of Marilyn Monroe just six weeks before she died in 1962.
Lohan had never stripped off in print or on screen before, but didn't hesitate to emulate her hero Monroe - and mum Dina is proud of her 21-year-old daughter.
Dina says, "It was very tastefully done. I respect the photographer as an artist, so I look at them artistically. For him to call Lindsay 46 years later and to say can you recreate these photos is an honour.
"I don't look at them like it's Playboy; she was being a character. If you look at it that way, you can look at it as a mother."
Christina Aguilera says motherhood won't stop her enjoying "naked Sundays" with her husband.
The 'Dirrty' singer - who gave birth to her first child, Max Liron, with record producer Jordan Bratman on January 12 - insists she will continue to lounge around in the nude at home.
Christina said: "When it comes to things like our cosy naked Sundays I think it's important for Jordan and I not to lose ourselves. Of course, having a child requires a lot of time and attention, but we think it's really important to still have mummy and daddy time."
Last year, Christina revealed she and Jordan liked to spice up their love life by spending a whole day naked every week.
The 27-year-old singer said: "We have to be the cosiest couple around. We have something called naked Sundays. On Sundays we just do everything in the house, and we're just cosy and laid back. We don't need to go anywhere, we're just with each other. We do everything naked. We cook naked. It's important to keep the marriage alive, to spice it up a little."
Lindsay Lohan has bared all to recreate the last photo shoot of her idol, Marilyn Monroe, in the latest issue of New York magazine.
Lohan wore a blonde wig, and not much else, for Bert Stern who photographed Monroe in 1962 at the Hotel Bel-Air in California - six weeks before she was found dead of a drug overdose.
Stern recreated the images with Lohan in the same hotel. Wearing not much more than some diamonds some thin fabric, Lohan hit the same poses Monroe did 46 years ago.
Stern chose the self-described Marilyn fanatic for the classic shots because he suspected Lindsay "had a lot more depth to her" than one might think.
Lindsay says she's always had a fascination with the 1950s icon. She owns an apartment where Marilyn once lived and has a huge painting of the bottle blonde.
"It's eerie because it's this picture of her, and it's kind of cartoony, and there's a big bottle of pills next to her, and they've fallen over," the 21-year-old explains.
Lohan said deciding to pose nude was easy, "I didn't have to put much thought into it. I mean, Bert Stern? Doing a Marilyn shoot? When is that ever going to come up? It's really an honour," she told the magazine.
Lohan said Monroe's suicide was "tragic" and said it, along with the death of Heath Ledger from an accidental overdose of prescription drugs, "are both prime examples of what this industry can do to someone".
She is adamant, however, that she will not meet a similar fate, saying, “…I sure as hell wouldn’t let it happen to me.”
Lohan is no stranger to the darker side of celebrity, suffering numerous run-ins with police and engaging in the odd stint in rehab.
The original photo shoot for Marilyn Monroe called “The Last Sitting”.
Actress Michelle Williams has spoken of her break-up with Heath Ledger and life as a single mother in an interview she gave before the Australian actor's death in January.
Williams, 27, said she is coming to terms with her new life after splitting from Ledger last September in an interview with UK magazine Wonderland, published last week.
"Obviously so much has changed for me in the last few months that I don't really have an idea of what my life is going to be,'' Williams told the magazine.
"I thought I knew certain things and it turned out that I didn't, so I don't really try and anticipate so much anymore. I'm not making any bets on the future.''
Williams and Ledger met on the set of the movie Brokeback Mountain in 2004 and were engaged before their break-up late last year.
Williams said she has had to readjust to life on her own.
"There's been a lot going on in my personal life and part of me is ... I don't know. I shouldn't talk about it but it's like I'm re-emerging back into the world or something,'' she said.
The former Dawson's Creek star said one positive thing about her separation from Ledger was that she now enjoys less attention from the paparazzi.
"I have to say it's suddenly got a lot easier, like, in the last couple of months,'' she said.
"When you're in a relationship with somebody who is also a public personality then it doubles the attention from the media.
"When you minus that equation it's just less enticing. That's been a real bonus. It's the plus side of the break-up for me.''
Williams returned to New York this week after farewelling Ledger at a funeral in Perth last weekend.
Ledger was found dead in his Manhattan apartment on January 22.
The New York Medical Examiner's Office ruled Ledger died from an accidental overdose of prescription medications.
Williams has resumed work on the movie Mammoth, which she had been filming in Sweden went she learnt of Ledger's death on January 22.
The single mother said she struggles to balance her work with looking after two-year-old Matilda, her daughter with Ledger.
"It's not easy,'' she said.
Williams said while working six days a week last year filming Incendiary with Ewan McGregor in London she made a special effort to ensure she and Matilda spent quality time together.
"My only days off were Sundays and as much as I'd want to pass out, I'd try to take her out somewhere fun so she didn't associate me with boredom,'' Williams said.
Eva Longoria shows off her hot bikini body while vacationing with pro basketball husband Tony Parker in Mexico on Saturday.
The 32-year-old actress was seen spraying suntan lotion on herself and lounging poolside, reading a book.
Eva has been soaking up as much sun as she can before returning back to work. She and the rest of the Desperate Housewives cast will reportedly commence filming on Monday, Feb. 25.
New episodes of Desperate Housewives are expected to begin airing in April/May.
Nelly Furtado is reportedly pregnant with her second child.
The Promiscuous singer is said to be thrilled after learning she is expecting a baby with her sound engineer fiancé Demacio Castellon, but is trying to keep it a secret.
A source close to the singer told America's Star magazine: "She's not very far along yet, so she's trying to keep the pregnancy under wraps."
However, a representative for Nelly - who already has a four-year-old daughter with ex-partner DJ Jasper Gahunia - insisted: "She is not pregnant."
Nelly recently revealed she once turned down a $500,000 offer to pose nude in Playboy.
The star admitted she was flattered when Playboy's boss Hugh Hefner asked her, but decided to keep her clothes on so her future lovers would have something to look forward to.
She said: "It was tempting. It almost plays on your vanity. But I like to save a little bit for the bedroom.
"It's something to be preserved, a little bit for yourself. But that's not to say that I would never do it. As a pop star, people would love to see you naked every day."
Kate Nash Is Happy For Winehouse....
British singer Kate Nash is thrilled Amy Winehouse is finally getting her life back on track - insisting she deserved her Grammy glory on 10th Feb08 (Sunday).
The Foundations star spoke about the troubled singer at the Elle Style Awards in London last night (12Feb08), where she hailed Winehouse a legend.
Winehouse scooped five awards at (Sunday's) 10Feb08 ceremony and, after a string of American Visa problems, performed via satellite link-up from her native London.
The Back To Black hitmaker is currently being treated at a rehab clinic in a bid to kick her drug demons, but took time out to get involved with the American awards ceremony.
Nash says, "She looked really good and I am glad she is sorting herself out.
It was a great performance, she's a legend and she deserved to win".
Did anyone see that Jenny Craig commercial where Valerie Bertinelli says something about how great it would be if us gals could wake up New Years day without having to make a resolution to lose weight? Basically saying, call Jenny and lose all your weight and party like all them skinny chippies do. Yeah well, I bet Kirstie wanted to throw Valerie’s new thin bod right out the window ….Because as of Valerie’s new found success with Jenny Craig, and of course Queen Latifah being a new spokes person…. Poor Kirstie Alley has been shown the door with Jenny. Apparently she has been unable to keep up with Valerie’s weight loss and has been unable to lose anymore weight. Perhaps even gaining some back maybe?
I, personally, was rooting for Kirstie, so this was sad news to me. Not only did she have to suffer doing all those commercials about being over weight, but then she gets basically fired for not doing it well enough. Man, I think since she’s not getting any younger, she deserves the right to have some junk in her trunk….and I get so sick and tired of looking at people like Paris…who claim to eat Hardee’s or Burger King all the time and never gain weight or get flabby. I do wish that Kirstie had more success with Jenny than she did. Even I had a hard time believing she lost 75 pounds because to me looked exactly the same when she claimed she lost 50 pounds. But I had the faith she could get back to the way she was when she did Look Who’s Talking.
Even though Kirstie will no longer be the spokes person for Jenny Craig, the “Fat Actress” will continue to participate in the “maintenance program.” And of course they’re claiming their program works just as well as always despite Kirstie failing. I keep thinking that it would be awesome though, if Kirstie signed on with some other program, like NutriSystem, and really got the results she wanted. That would be some awesome revenge now wouldn’t it?! Yeah.
Janet Jackson - who has been dating record producer Jermaine Dupri since 2002 - sings about the experience of having sex with multiple partners on her new album 'Discipline'.
The 'Together Again' star said: "I think whatever you're into, as long as you both are into it, it's cool."
Janet also pleaded with people not to be so critical of troubled singer Britney Spears.
She said: "I really don't think it's fair for people to be so judgmental because we don't know what young actors and musicians are feeling."
She added to US TV show 'Extra': "You read what people want you to know or want you to think but no-one really know what's going on in her heart and soul and her mind. The only way you could understand a glimpse of what she is going through would be to sit down and speak to her."
Paris Hilton has landed herself in a problem after boasting about keeping 17 dogs at home on the Ellen Degeneres show.
The Los Angeles Department of Animal Services visited the heiress' home on Valentine Day to investigate a complaint about her owning 17 dogs.
During the chat show, 'The Hottie and the Nottie' actress very candidly talked about her pets.
"Oh my goodness," E! Online quoted Hilton, as telling DeGeneres when asked about her critters.
"I have 17 dogs," Hilton added.
When questioned on why she had so many pooches, Hilton said it was simply a matter of hormones.
"They keep having babies, and I feel bad to give them away 'cause I feel like if I had a baby and someone gave it away, it'd be mean. So, I feel bad for my dogs," she said.
Later a complaint was filed in response to Hilton's confession that she owned 17 dogs and so the department officials turned up at her house.
Los Angeles law dictates that non-pet breeders are allowed to own no more than three dogs per address.
After the cops reached at the millionaire's home, neither she was there nor any of her pets were found.
Hilton's rep has since claimed the canines in question have always been divided among several different animal caregivers, per city law.
Heidi Klum has topped a list for the ‘World’s Hottest Models’
Coming in close on her heels in the second spot was actor Leonardo DiCaprio’s former girlfriend, Brazilian supermodel Gisele Bundchen.
Third place on the list went to another Brazilian beauty Adriana Lima.
The top five was rounded off by American Tyra Banks and Czech beauty Karolina Kurkova, reports the Daily Telegraph.
Apart from the fact that these women were all on the hottest models in the world list, they also have another thing in common – all are models for lingerie giant Victoria’s Secret.
The top 20 list for the World's Hottest Models as per models dot com is:
1. Heidi Klum
2. Gisele Bundchen
3. Adriana Lima
4. Tyra Banks
5. Karolina Kurkova
6. Alessandra Ambrosio
7. Isabeli Fontana
8. Yamila Diaz-Rahi
9. Ana Beatriz Barros
10. Natalia Vodianova
11. Carolyn Murphy
12. Naomi Campbell
13. Noemie Lenoir
14. Marisa Miller
15. Fernanda Tavares
16. Daria Werbowy
17. Veronica Varekova
18. Kate Moss
19. Fernanda Motta
20. Josie Moran
The irrepressible Mr. Hugh Hefner wants 6 week old mom Christina Aguilera to pose for Playboy.
"Hef has always loved Christina," an insider told OK! magazine. "He finds her Old Hollywood glamour stunning and magnetic."
While Christina, 27, is likely to be flattered by the offer it is unlikely she will take it, even though she is known for her wild past.
"That was old Christina. That was Christina circa four years ago. She's looking to reinvent herself and grow. She wouldn't consider it but she finds it to be flattering to be offered at all," says a friend.
Besides, her husband, record executive Jordan Bratman, may not be amused with the idea.
Paris Hilton unintentionally gave clubbers a quick glimpse of her twin assets, by slipping out of her dress while partying at a nightclub.
The socialite visited Boston's Estate nightclub to celebrate winning the Woman Of The Year 'award' from Harvard University's Harvard Lampoon Magazine.
But, while stepping up on stage to belt out her previous single, Stars Are Blind, Paris put on a rather eye-popping show.
"Paris certainly knows how to put on an eye-popping show," The Sun quoted an onlooker, as saying.
"It was all a little cringey as she belted out her single as she danced on stage, but the highlight was definitely seeing Paris' boobs.
"It made the entrance fee good value for money in the end!" the onlooker added.
Jordan has confessed her recent plastic surgery has ruined her sex life.
The mother-of-three recently had a boob reduction and a nose job but isn't happy with her new breasts and blames them for ruining her once wild sex life with spouse Peter Andre.
She said: "Pete loves it all and he prefers my boobs smaller. He said the other day that I am his perfect woman. When we have sex, I just lie there dead so it's fine. I don't move. Poor Pete, though - he paid for my surgery and he goes to kiss me and I back off because I don't want him to touch my nose."
Jordan - real name Katie Price - is also disappointed with the size of her new boobs, because they are still too big.
The 29-year-old star, who previously boasted a massive 34GG bust - said: "When I saw my boobs I was disappointed because they looked big and I wanted them to be a lot smaller.
"My words to the doctor beforehand were, 'I want to go a lot smaller. More pert. More stuck-on looking. But I still want people to think I've got big boobs.'
"They look fine in a bra but they hang too low when I'm standing up and it's really bad when I'm lying down. There's about a four inch gap. I've also got indents so you can see where the implant is sitting."
Something is looking up for Britney Spears at last – the troubled pop star has been voted one of Playboy magazine's 25 Sexiest Celebrities.
The ‘Toxic’ singer has joined the likes of Beyonce Knowles, Angelina Jolie, Eva Mendes, Cameron Diaz, Jessica Alba and Scarlett Johansson on the list, named online by readers of the men's publication.
Other stars on the list include Alicia Keys, Rose MCGowan, Denise Richards, Jennifer Love Hewitt, Pamela Anderson and Carmen Electra.
Playboy boss Hugh Hefner's girlfriend Holly Madison has also made it to the list alongside the tycoon's other two current 'girlfriends' Bridget Marquardt and Kendra Wilkinson.
Meanwhile Spears has finally been released from the psychiatric ward at UCLA Medical Center.
According to reports, the 26-year old singer slipped out quietly with the help of a private security detail and returned home after spending just 7 days in the hospital even though her psychiatrist, Dr. Deborah Nadel, had extended her stay to a 14-day involuntary hold till the next hearing of her case on 14th Feb.
Kelly Rowland says making her record 'Ms. Kelly' helped her "grow up".
The former Destiny's Child singer released her first LP, 'Simply Deep', in 2002, but was able to reveal her more mature side with the second record.
She said: "Writing and recording the album has been a learning process, but I needed to prove something to myself - that I can make great music and be my own woman. I think most of us hold ourselves back and I have to admit that on my first record I was scared. Making 'Ms. Kelly' made me grow up."
Despite being part of one of the most successful girl group's of all time, 26-year-old Kelly insists she has always made sure she stays grounded.
She said: "It's really important to remember where you come from. If I start saying where I've been and who I have met, my friends and family tell me to get real - fast!"
Amy Winehouse's work visa was approved after all, but the State Department's change of heart Friday wasn't in time for her to make the trip to Sunday's Grammy Awards.
Instead, the rehabbing British singer will go ahead with the backup plan that was concocted while her visa was still in limbo: a live performance, via satellite, from a studio in London where she will also accept any awards that may come her way. Winehouse and her acclaimed "Back to Black" album are nominated for Grammys in six categories.
"Unfortunately, due to the logistics involved and timing complications, Amy will not be traveling to the U.S. to perform at the Grammys in person," the Outside Organization said in a statement.
Winehouse's original visa application was denied under U.S. immigration rules regarding the "use and abuse of narcotics," a senior State Department official said Friday, on condition of anonymity because the U.S. Embassy in London's application deliberations are confidential. As a British citizen, Winehouse would not normally need a visa to enter the United States — unless she wanted to work or perform.
The Department of Homeland Security had been "rapidly" processing her appeal, the official said. But the reversal, barely 48 hours before the beginning of the telecast, came too late.
"Amy would like to thank all of those people, in particular the staff involved at the U.S. Embassy in London, who have all worked so hard to expedite her application," Outside said. "She is looking forward to being a part of the 50th Annual Grammy Awards with her Sunday night performance and to going back to the U.S. soon."
Even if Winehouse had been able to board a non-stop flight from London to Los Angeles immediately after her visa came through Friday, the earliest she would have arrived would have been the wee hours of Saturday morning. That grueling itinerary would have left little time for her to rest and recover from a more than 12-hour journey, rehearse, and face the inevitable storm of attention that's been building during the will-she-or-won't-she-be-there drama of the past days.
Winehouse's potent blend of blues, jazz, pop and soul has won praise from critics and fans, but her chaotic personal life has increasingly upstaged her music. Concerned family members regularly beg Winehouse to seek help in letters splashed across the pages of British tabloid newspapers and magazines.
Last month, The Sun newspaper ran still images from a video that it claimed showed Winehouse inhaling fumes from a small pipe. The images were said to have been filmed during a party at her London home.
Shortly thereafter, Winehouse entered a London rehabilitation center, and has been questioned by police. Outside said earlier Friday that she was leaving the center to prepare for her performance. It added that the singer would remain under medical supervision.
Other British music acts have had difficulty securing visas. Lily Allen was scheduled to perform at the MTV Video Music Awards in September, but the pop star's visa was revoked. The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services hasn't commented, but her manager has said he suspected it was because Allen was arrested in London in June after an altercation with photographers.
Even though Paris Hilton has denied being a lesbian, the latest news is that she will be starring in a lesbian TV show.
The American celebrity and heiress has confirmed that she will be appearing in the US drama ‘The L Word’, a show depicting the lives of a group of lesbian and bisexual women in West Hollywood.
"It's true. I have no idea what kind of character I'll be playing, but it's a good show," the Sun reported Paris as having told Parade magazine.
Paris is very enthusiastic about the show, and it can be seen through the method acting training she has been doing for her role.
She was spotted last month leaving a lesbian nightclub holding hands with a lady, and she was also caught making out with 24-year-old Elisha Cuthbert on another night out.
The former hotel heiress also had some thoughts about being rich and famous.
When asked what she prefers of being rich or famous, she says, "I think it would be better just to be rich, because then you don't have to deal with anything else. You can just have everything you want and not have to deal with the press and people following you.
But being rich doesn't even matter, either. I have both, and it doesn't even make any difference. I could be happy if I had nothing. So it's not, it's not really about money to me."
Victoria Beckham has revealed that it was her desire to quit the music industry that led to the Spice Girls' sudden split.
Football ace David Beckham’s wife says that she quit the band for becoming a full-time fashion designer.
Victoria has also revealed that she agreed to a Spice reunion only for her sons Brooklyn, eight, Romeo, five, and two-year-old Cruz.
"I was very nervous about going back into the Spice Girls because I didn't want to send out a confused message," New of the World quoted her as saying.
"The reason I decided to do the tour was to show my kids that mummy was a pop star once.”
Victoria has even hinted that she may not join ‘Spice Girls’ in future again.
"I've been thinking about this for a long time. I'm not in the music industry any more. I'm in the fashion industry,” she said.
"I'm putting together a team of people now so it will be my main project when I finish this tour in a month. It's the last opportunity there will be to see the Spice Girls together,” she added.
Actress Jessica Alba and her fiancee Cash Warren pose at the red carpet of the premiere of "The Eye" in Los Angeles, California January 31, 2008.
American actress Jessica Alba has revealed that her marriage to fiance Cash Warren will not be a grand affair.
The pregnant actress said that the ceremony won’t be an extravagant affair - because her family "hates" weddings.
Jessica, who is in her fifth month of pregnancy, insisted that she and Warren do not have any big plans for the wedding, adding that it would be a very low-key affair, which might not even involve a formal ceremony.
"I am probably going to get my certificate at the City Council, throw a big party for the family and that's about it,” she told the British magazine New!
"Everyone I know hates weddings. I've been to very big, beautiful and romantic weddings but I would rather just throw a big party," she added.
They had a glitzy, jet-setting courtship, but when it came time for the wedding, French President Nicolas Sarkozy and former supermodel Carla Bruni opted for a simple, classic ceremony — and the bride wore white.
Sarkozy, 53, and Bruni, 40, were married Saturday in a small private ceremony at the presidential Elysee Palace, less than three months after they reportedly first met, and less than four months after his divorce from the previous first lady, Cecilia.
The newlyweds said in a statement only that they tied the knot "in the presence of their families in the strictest privacy." The mayor who performed the ceremony filled in the details.
"The bride wore white; she was ravishing, as usual," Francois Lebel, mayor of Paris' eighth arrondissement, or neighborhood, told Europe-1 radio. The groom wore a suit and tie, and he "wasn't bad either," Lebel said.
About 20 friends and family members attended the 20-minute official ceremony in an Elysee drawing room, Lebel said. He referred to Sarkozy and Bruni as "young newlyweds" and said the wedding showed "great simplicity and apparently a lot of affection between the spouses."
Under French law, couples must marry before a mayor to make their union official. Usually weddings take place at a city hall, with an official wedding announcement published beforehand, but Sarkozy and Bruni apparently had a dispensation to maintain their privacy.
On a busy day, Sarkozy squeezed the ceremony in amid official business. Addressing a crisis in the former French colony of Chad, where rebels penetrated the capital, Sarkozy also called a meeting at the Elysee Palace and spoke by telephone with Chad's president.
As of Saturday evening, no images of the ceremony had leaked to media. The small wedding contrasted with their highly publicized romance — which surprised many French, accustomed to presidents keeping their love lives under wraps.
At a news conference in January, Sarkozy revealed that his relationship with the blue-eyed singer and former model was "serious" and hinted that wedding plans were in the works, though he did not reveal a date.
Sarkozy and Bruni carried out their courtship in such public locations as Disneyland Paris and the ruins of Petra, Jordan. The tabloids even showed the couple at an Egyptian beach resort, Bruni clad in a tiny black bikini, Sarkozy in trunks, gold chain and Ray-Ban sunglasses.
Sarkozy's approval ratings dropped while they were dating — in part, analysts say, because older, more traditional voters were put off by the budding romance and by Sarkozy's glitzy style.
During their courtship, Sarkozy was nicknamed the "bling-bling president" by the media as the couple flew in a private jet borrowed from a billionaire investor and reportedly lavished each other with expensive presents.
Their relationship proved tricky for protocol planners in foreign countries Sarkozy visited. Before a visit to Saudi Arabia, a senior official in the Gulf state urged Sarkozy to respect conservative Islamic culture by leaving his girlfriend at home. She did not accompany him.
Being married will end such concerns.
"First off, he wanted to (tie the knot), and it also helps clarify things," Patrick Balkany, a lawmaker and friend of Sarkozy's, told RTL radio.
Former first lady Bernadette Chirac, congratulating the couple, said being president is easier with the support of a spouse.
Sarkozy was not the first French president to marry in office: Gaston Doumergue tied the knot at the Elysee Palace in 1931.
The wedding was the third for Sarkozy, who has three sons. It was the first for Bruni, an Italian-born heiress whose mother is a concert pianist and whose late father was an industrialist at the head of a tire company, as well as a composer. Bruni grew up in France, where her family fled for fear of the Red Brigades, a left-wing terrorist group active in Italy in the 1970s.
As a young woman, the brunette with high cheekbones had a major modeling career and the love life to go with it. Bruni dated rockers Mick Jagger and Eric Clapton, tycoon Donald Trump and actor Vincent Perez. She has a young son, Aurelien, from a relationship with philosophy professor Raphael Enthoven.
In interviews well before she began dating Sarkozy, Bruni often talked freely of her love life, reportedly telling Madame Figaro magazine that she was "bored to death by monogamy."
Bruni has reinvented herself as a singer in recent years. French news reports have said the Elysee Palace is being fit with a recording studio for the new first lady.
Former Baywatch star and Playboy model Pamela Anderson takes to the stage in one of France's most famous nude revues this month, when she performs for two nights at the Crazy Horse cabaret in Paris.
Anderson, who has recently been performing in a magic show in Las Vegas, follows Arielle Dombasle, an actress and wife of one of France's leading intellectuals, in appearing at the Crazy Horse, a fixture in Paris night life for half a century.
Pamela will play in four shows at the club, long reputed for its nude dancers, on Feb. 13-14 in a number based on "Harley Davidson" - a well-known rock song in France by the late Serge Gainsbourg.
Asked whether Anderson will bare it all in the show, Crazy Horse managing director Andree Deissenberg said: "We're going to have to talk to Pamela about that."
"The Crazy Horse has always been about, 'You think you see everything, (but) you see nothing,' " she added. "It's going to be a sexy, beautiful, creative performance - that's as far as I can go."
"A special number will be created for Pamela Anderson, a striptease on a Harley Davidson," the Crazy Horse said.
Pop star Madonna is still the material girl, earning $72 million in a recent 12-month period to top a Forbes list of female singers whom the financial website dubbed "Cash Queens of Music."
Madonna, who rose to recording superstardom in the 1980s as the "Material Girl" after her hit song of that name, beat out Barbra Streisand, who was No 2 with annual earnings of $60 million, and Celine Dion at $45 million.
The website tracked earnings in the period from June 2006 to June 2007 and said it examined concert ticket sales, merchandise revenue, album sales and earnings from ancillary products such as clothing, perfumes and endorsements.
Rounding out the top five on Forbes.com's "Cash Queens of Music" poll were Colombian singing sensation Shakira at No 4 with $38 million and R&B singer Beyonce with $27 million.
Country music stars also did well, with Faith Hill landing in the No 8 slot with $19 million and the Dixie Chicks at No 9 with $18 million.
Then there was Britney Spears. For all her troubles in the past year -- a stint in rehab and a bitter custody battle with ex-husband Kevin Federline, among them -- the pop star still made No. 14 on the list, earning $8 million from royalties on old songs and sales of her perfume, Curious.
Her latest album, "Blackout," was released late in 2007 after the period covered by the Forbes.com survey.
Late last year, Madonna ended her long relationship with Warner Music Group Corp and reached a recording deal with concert promoter Live Nation Inc.
