Andrew Tobias: THE HERTZ LADY (andrewtobias.com)
Christmas morning, I picked up a Taurus from Hertz and drove Charles and my folks out to Long Island for the joyful chaos we call Christmas at the Nolans. There were five of us in the car, counting the Hertz Lady, who for $9.95 a day has proven an indispensable member of my family.
Abigail W. Leonard: How Women Pick Mates vs. Flings
Science might be able to explain our fascination with Brad Pitt's chiseled jaw and George Clooney's smoldering eyes. Women seem to judge potential mates by how masculine their features are, new research shows. Men with square jaws and well-defined brow ridges are seen as good short-term partners, while those with more feminine traits such as a rounder face and fuller lips are perceived as better long-term mates.
Mild winter triggers spring fever in zoo (Reuters)
SOFIA - An unusually warm winter has sown confusion among animals at a zoo on Bulgaria's Black Sea coast, causing two bears to miss their usual hibernation period and peacocks to lay eggs months early.
Zoe Williams: Gorged on man-breasts
In high summer, photostories on celebrity-rich beaches will be all, "Wowsers, you thought she was really thin, and actually, look at her cellulite", and then in late summer, we can look forward to the diversion of, "Isn't she thin for 50/60? Well done her!" Even though these are broadly damaging to the status of the female in modern western culture, I massively prefer them to the January beach story of Man Boobs.
Will Durst: 2007 Resolutions
This is the time of years people decide to change their nefarious ways. Diet. Quit smoking. More exercise. Stop invading countries. Less killing of innocent people. The list goes on ...
CBS opens the night with a RERUN'Cold Case', followed by a RERUN'Without A Trace', then '48 Hours'.
NBC fills the night with LIVE'NFL Football', then pads the left coast with local crap and maybe an old 'Dateline'.
'SNL' is a RERUN with Alec Baldwin hosting, music by Christina Aguilera.
No late, late 'SNL' - replaced by 'Poker After Dark'.
ABC starts the night with a RERUN'Desperate Housewives', followed by another RERUN'Desperate Housewives', then still another RERUN'Desperate Housewives'.
The CW offers a RERUN'Everybody Hates Chris', followed by a RERUN'All Of Us', then a RERUN'Girlfriends', followed by a RERUN'The Game'.
Faux has the traditional 'Cops', 'Cops', and 'America's Most Wanted'.
MY has a FRESH'Wicked Wicked Games', followed by a FRESH'Watch Over Me'.
A&E has 'Sell This House!', another 'Sell This House!', 'Flip This House', another 'Flip This House', and 'Gentlemen's Clubs Revealed'.
AMC offers the movie 'Rambo: First Blood Part II', followed by the movie 'Terminator 3: Rise Of The Machines', then the movie 'Lake Placid'.
BBC -
[2:00 pm] And Now For Something Completely Different;
[4:00 pm] Cash in the Attic - Episode 8;
[5:00 pm] Cash in the Attic - Episode 9;
[6:00 pm] Cash in the Attic - Episode 10;
[7:00 pm] Cash in the Attic - Episode 1;
[8:00 pm] Cash in the Attic - Episode 2;
[9:00 pm] Doctor Who - Ep 6 Dalek;
[10:00 pm] Afterlife - Ep 5 Sleeping with the Dead;
[11:00 pm] Hex - Episode 5;
[12:00 am] Doctor Who - Ep 6 Dalek;
[1:00 am] Afterlife - Ep 5 Sleeping with the Dead;
[2:00 am] Hex - Episode 5;
[3:00 am] The Catherine Tate Show - Episode 1;
[3:40 am] The Catherine Tate Show - Episode 2;
[4:20 am] The Catherine Tate Show - Episode 3;
[5:00 am] Bromwell High - Ep 4 No More Teachers;
[5:30 am] Bromwell High - Ep 5 Fire Drill;
[6:00 am] BBC World News. (ALL TIMES EST)
Bravo has 'Top Chef', followed by the movie 'Waterworld', then the movie 'Waterworld', again.
Comedy Central has 'Scrubs', another 'Scrubs', followed by the movie 'Duplex', then the movie 'Boomerang'.
History has 'Modern Marvels', 'The Man Who Predicted 9/11', 'Grounded On 9/11', and 'The Miracle Of Stairway B'.
IFC -
[07:25 AM] Media Lab Shorts Uploaded;
[08:00 AM] The Hidden Fortress;
[10:20 AM] The Importance of Being Earnest;
[11:55 AM] Widows' Peak;
[01:40 PM] Va Savoir;
[04:15 PM] The Importance of Being Earnest;
[05:50 PM] Widows' Peak;
[07:35 PM] But I'm a Cheerleader;
[09:05 PM] Monster;
[11:00 PM] Killing Zoe;
[12:40 AM] High Art;
[02:25 AM] Monster;
[04:20 AM] Killing Zoe. (ALL TIMES EST)
SciFi has the movie 'Mortuary', followed by the movie 'Darkness'.
Sundance -
[06:35 AM] The Grass Harp;
[08:30 AM] Southern Belles;
[10:00 AM] Mule Skinner Blues;
[11:45 AM] A Different War;
[12:00 PM] Boom!;
[02:00 PM] Iconoclasts Season 2: Episode 5: Paul Simon + Lorne Michaels;
[02:45 PM] The Act;
[03:00 PM] Secret Ceremony;
[05:00 PM] The Public Eye (1972);
[06:35 PM] Mitchellville;
[08:00 PM] Simple Men;
[09:45 PM] The Act;
[10:00 PM] 11:14;
[11:45 PM] A Different War;
[12:00 AM] City of Men - Season 3: Episode 3: Take it Like a Man;
[12:30 AM] One Punk Under God: Episode 4;
[01:00 AM] Helmut Newton: My Life;
[02:00 AM] Phone;
[03:45 AM] The Devil Came from Akasava;
[05:15 AM] The Public Eye (1972). (ALL TIMES EST)
Tony Bennett sings at a gathering celebrating House Speaker Nancy Pelosi's election as the first woman speaker of the House of Representatives, Jan. 4, 2007, in Washington. The spotlight belonged to Nancy Pelosi on Thursday as she became the first woman in U.S. history to stand at the head of the House of Representatives, second in line to the presidency.
Photo by Manuel Balce Ceneta
Producer Dave Chapman stumbled across a squalling electric guitar version of "Land Of My Fathers" on the end of a tape from 1970, which he found at his recording studio in Crouch Hill, north London.
The recording was hidden at the end of a session by a long-forgotten band called the New Flames, whose bass player, Vivian Williams, was good friends with Jimi Hendrix.
Chapman found out before his death in 2005 that Williams had brought Hendrix to a pub next door to the Crouch Hill studio days before the guitarist died.
Could Hendrix have recorded the Welsh anthem that night? No-one knows, and fans debating the issue on the internet are split.
Singer Billy Corgan arrives with Courtney Love at the premiere of 'Freedom Writers,' Thursday, Jan. 4, 2007, in Los Angeles. The film stars Hilary Swank and Patrick Dempsey.
Photo by Mark J. Terrill
Sylvester Stallone defended boxing, praised the hard work of Mexicans and dished out some jabs against U.S. plans to build a wall on its southern border, as the 60-year-old actor visited Mexico City to promote his sixth "Rocky" film.
Stallone said Thursday that "Rocky Balboa," the latest installment in the underdog saga of the Italian Stallion, shows an ordinary man fighting back against life's difficulties represented by his stronger ring opponents.
In comments to Mexican media later, Stallone criticized plans to build 700 miles of fence along the border as an immigration-control measure.
Such a fence was "crazy" and "ridiculous," he said, arguing that nations should be able to interact without being divided by walls.
A painting of actress Angelina Jolie as the Virgin Mary hovering over a Wal-Mart check-out line is on sale for US$50,000 and has created a buzz on the Internet.
Kate Kretz has painted for 20 years but none of her previous works has garnered the attention given "Blessed Art Thou," which was to show at Art Miami 2007 beginning Friday. One reason for the attention was a posting of the painting on the popular gossip site, www.perezhilton.com.
The painting - acrylic and oil on linen - depicts an angelic Jolie in the clouds, holding her newborn daughter Shiloh, with children Maddox and Zahara at her legs. Below them is a checkout line at Wal-Mart, where women wait in line. The painting is for sale through Chelsea Galleria in Miami, which represents Kretz.
On her blog, Kretz said the painting addresses "the celebrity worship cycle." She said she chose Jolie for the subject "because of her unavoidable presence in the media, the worldwide anticipation of her child, her 'unattainable' beauty and the good that she is doing in the world through her example, which adds another layer to the already complicated questions surrounding her status."
Concerts, exhibitions, movie showings and other events are being planned worldwide to remember Arturo Toscanini, 50 years after the death of the celebrated Italian conductor.
Commemorations will take place throughout 2007, mostly organized by countries and institutions that were touched by Toscanini's music and by his staunch opposition to Fascism and Nazism.
Daniel Barenboim leads a performance of Beethoven's 3rd Symphony at La Scala in Milan, the opera house where Toscanini was chief conductor and which he helped rebuild after it was bombed during the Second World War.
Opposed to Benito Mussolini's regime, Toscanini refused to conduct in Italy after he was assaulted by fascist thugs in 1931, returning to his native country only after the war to conduct La Scala's reopening in 1946.
Musician Jose Feliciano (2nd R) plays the U.S. national anthem during the inauguration Ceremony for Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger as Schwarzenegger's family watches at the Memorial Auditorium in Sacramento, California January 5, 2007. Daughters Katherine (L) and Christina (2nd L) are joined by son Patrick and mother-in-law Eunice Shriver (R) for the event. Schwarzenegger was re-elected to a second term in November.
Photo by Robert Galbraith
Marilyn Mansons wife of just over a year, model and burlesque dancer Dita Von Teese, is seeking a divorce.
Von Teese, whose real name is Heather Sweet, cites irreconcilable differences for the split in papers filed Dec. 29 in Los Angeles Superior Court, which were posted on celebrity news site TMZ.com. The break-up was first reported by the New York Post on Friday.
Von Teese and Manson (real name: Brian Warner) were wed Nov. 28, 2005, according to the court documents. They separated on Christmas Eve.
Neighbors who live down a hill from Charlton Heston's home are suing the actor, alleging that their property was damaged two years ago when heavy rain sent hillside debris pouring into their home.
The lawsuit filed Wednesday by Jerome and Flora Heilweil alleges "slope failure" on Heston's property caused substantial damage to their home in January 2005, diminishing the market value of their property. The couple seeks at least $1.2 million, as well as punitive damages.
Jeff Briggs, Heston's longtime attorney, said the actor owns 10 percent of the Southern California hillside while the Heilweils own the rest. He said, "It's their hillside."
The neighbors and their insurance companies have been battling for almost two years, Briggs said. At one point, the two sides sat down for mediation.
A Sadhu, or Hindu holy man, smokes as he participates in a procession of Sadhus of the Naga sect as they head towards the banks of the River Ganges during the Ardh Kumbh fair in Allahabad, India.
Crouched in military fatigues, you peer through night-vision goggles and brandish a semiautomatic gun as you hunt down terrorists who've overtaken Las Vegas.
Incongruously, while patrolling a neon-decorated side street in the video game "Rainbow Six Vegas," you spot a jar of body wash. You spray the container with bullets and voila! A 60-second video of whimsical bloopers pops up and billboard advertisements of scantily clad women hawk Unilever Corp.'s Axe shower gel: "Score with Axe."
Welcome to the new world of video gaming, where software companies are becoming more imaginative in wringing money from gamers.
Veterans of the US$7 billion video-game market defend the corporate co-option of the techniques once solely the realm of techies. If Hollywood has been employing product placement and other unconventional marketing tricks for years, why not the game industry?
A member of the cortege of the 'Three Wise Men' arrives at Barcelona harbour January 5, 2007. Traditionally children in Spain receive their Christmas presents on the morning of January 6, delivered by the 'Three Wise Men'.
Photo by Bea Martinez
Around 500 people and more than 2,000 animals were evacuated on Friday after a 500-pound (227 kilograms) World War Two bomb was unearthed in the camel enclosure at Hanover Zoo.
"The bomb was located during construction work because the cage is being remodelled," zoo spokeswoman Simone Hagenmeier told Reuters, adding that the device was about two metres (6.6 feet) under the ground.
The camels were not in residence, having already been moved to other zoos last month, she said.
In this photo released by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, a black bear cub climbs a fence in Douglas, Alaska, on Dec. 12, 2006. The orphaned bear cub should be in its den, sleeping away the harsh Alaska winter beside its mother but instead is prowling back yards on Douglas Island near Juneau, scrounging for anything to eat.
Photo by Melissa Hull
A giant wild hog boasted to be bigger than the near-mythical "Hogzilla" caught in southern Georgia a few years ago has been killed in a suburban Atlanta neighborhood.
The hog hung snout down from a tree Friday in William Coursey's front yard, not far from where the avid hunter said he shot the beast. He said he hauled it to a truck weight station, which recorded the hairy hog at 1,100 pounds.
Coursey believes his behemoth surpasses the famed super swine shot and killed in 2004 that weighed in at half a ton on the farm's scales. A team of National Geographic experts later confirmed "Hogzilla" didn't quite live up to the 1,000-pound, 12-foot hype, saying the beast was probably 7 1/2 to 8 feet long, and weighed about 800 pounds.
A horse buggy driver waits for customers at the lit ice and snow world during the opening of the Ice and Snow Festival in Harbin, the capital city of China's northernmost province, Heilongjiang, Friday night, Jan. 5, 2007. The ice and snow festival is one of the largest of its kind in the world. Braving temperatures that can reach 35 degrees Celsius below zero tourist flock by the thousands to enjoy the ice carvings and snow sculptures on display.
Photo by Elizabeth Dalziel
Nikki Bacharach, daughter of Burt Bacharach and Angie Dickinson, committed suicide, the songwriter and actress said in a statement Friday.
Nikki Bacharach, 40, suffered from Asperger's Disorder, a form of autism. She killed herself Thursday night at her condo, said Linda Dozoretz, a spokeswoman for the family.
Born prematurely in 1966, Nikki Bacharach studied geology at Cal Lutheran University, but could not pursue a career in the field because of poor eyesight.
"She loved kitties, and earthquakes, glacial calving, meteor showers, science, blue skies and sunsets, and Tahiti," the statement said.
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