Entertaining Posts: 11/10/11

Thursday, November 10, 2011

Oscars bring back Billy Crystal

LOS ANGELES | Thu Nov 10, 2011 6:11pm EST

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Oscar organizers on Thursday brought back funnyman Billy Crystal to host the film awards after recent days of turmoil that led to the departure of one producer and his handpicked emcee Eddie Murphy.

Crystal, who has hosted the widely-watched Hollywood telecast eight times previously, announced his new job on Twitter with a post: "Am doing the Oscars so the young woman in the pharmacy will stop asking my name when I pick up prescriptions. Looking forward to the show."

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, which runs the Oscars, re-tweeted Crystal's post to confirm his hiring.

The announcement follows days of drama at the academy after producer Brett Ratner late last week used the gay slur "fags" at a screening of his movie "Tower Heist," which stars Murphy.

His use of the word raised howls from gay rights groups and academy members. He apologized publicly on Monday, but his contrition failed to stem the firestorm. He resigned one day later. Murphy, who had been lured by Ratner to host the Oscar telecast, followed his boss out the door on Wednesday.

The academy responded by hiring "A Beautiful Mind" producer and Hollywood veteran Brian Grazer to replace Ratner, leaving the choice of a host to him.

Crystal first hosted the show in 1990 when "Driving Miss Daisy" was named the year's best movie, and the awards program was still easily topping 40 million viewers, making it the second-most watched U.S. TV program annually behind professional football's Super Bowl.

The comedian went on to host three more consecutive years, dropped out for two years, then came back for the 1998 telecast when "Titanic" was voted by academy members as the year's top movie and 57 million people tuned in. He last hosted the show in 2004.

The comedian has been among Oscar watchers' favorite hosts over the years and it seems like every year when hosts disappoint, as did James Franco last year, there have been calls for Crystal to return.

The upcoming Oscars for the movies of 2011 will take place on February 26, 2012.

(Editing by Jill Serjeant)

Mariah Carey hid pregnant body from hubby Cannon

By Sabrina Ford

NEW YORK | Thu Nov 10, 2011 5:48pm EST

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Mariah Carey put on so much weight when she was pregnant with twins that she says she used to hide her body from husband Nick Cannon.

But the Grammy-winning singer has now dropped more than 30 lbs., and has a new job promoting U.S. weight-loss company Jenny.

Carey, 42, joined the weight loss program, formerly known as Jenny Craig, in late July just three months after giving birth to her first children -- twins Moroccan and Monroe.

"I had a lot of issues," Carey said of her pregnancy, which induced high blood pressure and diabetes. "I cooked soul food for Nick through my entire pregnancy," she added.

The first-time mom told a news conference on Wednesday she felt so large at the end of her pregnancy that she avoided learning her weight.

"You see those pictures," she said of the photographs of herself before giving birth in April. "Would you want to know?"

At her heaviest, Carey was so insecure she even wore a towel to cover her body in the bathtub. "You think I would let Nick see me looking rancid like that?" she asked with a laugh.

Twirling for reporters in a red, fitted vintage Halston dress, she said she would like to see herself looking as she did in the music video for her 2008 hit "Touch My Body".

"I'm not there, but I'm trying to get there," she said.

Carey is the latest celebrity to become a spokeswoman for Jenny, following "Dreamgirls" actress and singer Jennifer Hudson and former "Cheers" star Kirstie Alley.

Carey brushed aside rumors of problems between her and her actor/rapper husband of more than three years. The speculation was sparked by a TV interview in October in which Carey said that she trusts Cannon "sometimes."

"Me and Nick are the same team...we've never been better," she said, explaining that some jokes between the couple were cut from the interview.

"Here's the thing, I'm a real person" Carey said, explaining that she didn't want to give a "fake Hollywood" answer in the interview.

"Sometimes I make him mad, sometimes he makes me mad...that's why we aren't divorced after four months."

(Editing by Jill Serjeant and Bob Tourtellotte)

Rihanna teases new album, climbs iTunes chart

LOS ANGELES | Thu Nov 10, 2011 2:23pm EST

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Rihanna on Thursday released track teasers online from her upcoming album "Talk That Talk," pushing the album up to no. 12 on the iTunes chart ahead of its November 21 release.

The snippets from all 11 songs on the album comes after the singer posted a picture on her official Facebook page last week, revealing the track listing.

Fans took to Twitter and Facebook to comment on the teasers, calling the album her best release yet, and pre-orders sent the album climbing on iTunes.

The album includes a collaboration with rapper Jay-Z on the single "Talk That Talk" along with hip-hop and electro-pop tracks such as "Where Have You Been" and "Roc Me Out" and ballads "We All Want Love" and "Drunk Of Love."

"Talk That Talk" will be the sixth studio album from the 23-year-old Barbadian singer, who is currently at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart with "We Found Love," featuring Calvin Harris, the lead single from the upcoming album.

The singer has also revealed that the next single from the album will be an upbeat dance track called "You Da One," which will be officially unlocked and available to download on Rihanna's Facebook page on Friday.

Rihanna, who is currently on the Europe leg of her "Loud" tour, was recently forced to cancel a performance in Malmo, Sweden after being taken to hospital with the flu. She is scheduled to perform in Antwerp, Belgium on Friday.

(Reporting by Piya Sinha-Roy; Editing by Jill Serjeant)

Madonna "very upset" at new song leak: manager

LONDON | Thu Nov 10, 2011 9:12am EST

LONDON (Reuters) - Madonna's manager Guy Oseary has said the singer was "very upset" that a demo of her new song "Give Me All Your Love" had leaked onto the Internet.

The song, which hit the web on Wednesday and has been listened to by fans around the world, is expected to be the debut track from Madonna's upcoming album, her first studio release since leaving Warner Bros to join Live Nation.

"Madonna told me this morning 'my true fans wouldn't do this'... whoever is responsible for this leak, we ask that you please stop!" Oseary wrote via Twitter.

"I'm very happy with the positive reaction to the demo, but we are very upset with whoever leaked the song!!!!!!!!" he added.

Addressing questions tweeted by fans, Oseary said the new album should be finished "in the next month or so," and that it did not yet have a title.

He added that the 53 year-old star, whose hits include "Like a Virgin," "Vogue" and "Hung Up," had penned a "beautiful ballad" for her movie "W.E.."

The picture, Madonna's second feature film as director, follows the life of Wallis Simpson, the American divorcee whose relationship with King Edward VIII sparked a constitutional crisis in Britain and led to his abdication.

The film, which had its world premiere at the Venice film festival, hits U.S. theatres in December and British cinemas in January.

Madonna's new record will be her first studio album since 2008's "Hard Candy," which debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart in the United States.

In 2007, Madonna dropped her long-time music label Warner Bros and signed a deal with concert promoter Live Nation reported to be for 10 years and worth $120 million.

The deal, part of a recent trend in the struggling music industry, involved not only record sales, but also touring and merchandising.

(Reporting by Mike Collett-White, editing by Paul Casciato)