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Rihanna, Chris Brown Singles Dropping Within Same 24 Hours: Coincidence?

10/22/2009 04:31:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments

Source close to Brown calls timing 'purely coincidence.'

Chris Brown is under a court order that requires him to stay from former girlfriend Rihanna. And while that order — one part of his sentence for an assault on Rihanna in February on the eve of the Grammy Awards — means that Brown has to keep a certain physical distance from his ex, there's nothing to say that he can't be professionally close to her.

That reality made for a strange situation on Tuesday, when Rihanna released her first new single since the incident, "Russian Roulette," just hours before Brown announced the dates of his "Fan Appreciation" tour. Then, approximately 24 hours later, Brown dropped the second single from his upcoming Graffiti album, "Crawl." Given the situation between the two since the altercation, the close proximity of their big career re-boot moves was curious to say the least.

While Brown's label had no official comment on the timing of the activity from the former couple, a source close to the Brown camp denied that it was anything but "purely coincidental." Given that both artists are releasing fourth-quarter albums and are on similar album/ tour/ recording cycles — both released their debuts in 2005 and a follow-up in 2007 — the source said the overlap was not planned at all. "We don't have a copy of what [Rihanna's label] Def Jam is rolling out any more than they have one of ours."

Rihanna's single seems to obliquely reference the incident, with edgy graphics featuring the singer wrapped in barbed wire, a blood-dripping song title and her initial in gleaming-blade silver, not to mention the sounds of guns cocking and being fired and foreboding lyrics about a seemingly violent relationship.

While neither artist has commented on what their songs are about, Rihanna producer Chuck Harmony said people were bound to infer that the song is a commentary on the assault and her break with Brown. "Because that's the newest situation," he said. "It's just a natural reaction for people to associate 'cause she's been so tight-lipped." At press time, a spokesperson for Rihanna had not responded to MTV News' requests for comment.

Meanwhile, after posting pictures of himself in ninja gear on Tuesday, Brown rolled out the ballad "Crawl" on Wednesday, and the second salvo from Graffiti also appeared to be a reaction to the end of the couple's relationship, albeit a softer-edged one.

The melancholy song features the lines: "Everybody see it's you/ well, I never want to lose that view/ Everybody says we're through/ I hope you haven't said it, too."

Tresa Sanders, a veteran music-business publicist who has worked with artists including Mary J. Blige, Jay-Z, and Common, said her first thought when seeing that Rihanna and Brown were crossing musical paths was that it was a coincidence. "I've worked inside at labels and outside of them and there are a lot of times when you really don't know what the other labels are doing or when other records are coming out or what their marketing plan is," she said. "Really, when you are in the middle of a plan and you've already set it up, there's nothing you can do but go for it."

Sanders, who has not worked with either act, said Rihanna's team appears to have been working on the set-up for her Rated R album for many months, pointing to the singer's cameo on the Jay-Z song "Run This Town" as the first glimpse of her look and sound for the next go-round. "That performance is so in line with what she's doing now," she said. "If it was me, it would just be business as usual. I wouldn't do anything out of the ordinary that was not already in the plan. There's no reason to switch up the game because they're both successful artists and when you're a big artist like that, your album tends to come out in the fourth quarter. That's Music Industry 101."

With both artists actively tweeting and teasing information about their new albums over the past few weeks, it's not like their plans are a mystery. And while it's not likely that they're trying to coordinate their professional relationship amid the ashes of their personal one, it seems like their public lives are going to keep intersecting for the foreseeable future.

Jen Aniston & John Mayer Are Back On...Magazine Covers

10/22/2009 04:31:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

The world simply cannot go on if Jennifer Aniston is single.

Since she's not really dating her Bounty costar Gerard Butler anymore—was she ever?—it's time to assume the 40-year-old is ready to go backwards and rekindle her romance with John Mayer.

If the new cover of OK! magazine is to be believed, she's confirmed "He's Mine!" and they're totally back to being "full-time lovers." And she got the 32-year-old "Who Says" singer back by doing exactly what any dating guru (or six-year-old) would advise: by playing hard to get.

The mag even claims the two are plotting a baby, because what would a Jen Aniston story be without the pitter-patter of tiny feet?

Revelations of the reunion of the crooner and the cougar aren't new. People and Us have quoted sources calling them "great friends," but reported recent hotel stays in the same breath.

Windows 7 hits the market

10/22/2009 04:31:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

Although the official U.S. launch event is still some hours away, Microsoft's Windows 7 operating system has hit the market, going on sale in a number of countries across the globe.

Executives from Microsoft have fanned out to celebrate the launch of the company's core product upon which the rest of Redmond's empire has been built. The software giant is counting on favorable reviews and new features to help Windows rebuilt its image in the face of a disappointing response to Windows Vista.

Microsoft is touting the value of Windows in the face of a resurgent Apple. As part of the launch, Microsoft is celebrating seven days of deals in a number of key markets, including the United States. Among the specials is a $1,200 package from Hewlett-Packard and Best Buy that includes a Netbook, laptop, desktop, monitor and router as well as in-home installation.

"The Best Buy offer is a home makeover," Microsoft Vice President Tami Reller told CNET News. "For the price of a Mac you have a new notebook, a new Netbook, a new desktop, and a new router to bring it together with the help of the Geek Squad."

In addition to landing on new PCs, Microsoft will also sell stand-alone versions of Windows 7 that can be used to upgrade an existing PC. Although Microsoft still offers a half-dozen different flavors of the operating system in all, Redmond is focusing its energies around two versions--the Home Premium and Professional versions.

It will sell both a full version of the operating system that can be used on any hardware as well as an upgrade version to be used on existing PCs. Although both Windows XP and Windows Vista can be upgraded to Windows 7, only Vista can be done without backing up and reinstalling both programs and data.

A huge marketing blitz will accompany the debut of Windows 7, with Microsoft continuing its "I'm a PC" campaign, by featuring average users who point to various aspects of the new operating system as representing their idea.

Microsoft plans to formalize the launch with an event here with CEO Steve Ballmer (CNET News will cover the 11 a.m. ET event live). The software maker is also opening its first retail store, in Scottsdale, Ariz., as well as a "Windows Cafe" in Paris.

Steven Sinofsky, the divisional president who has spearheaded the development of Windows 7, is presiding over the Japanese launch of the product, while designer Julie Larson-Green is at an event in London.

Microsoft employees in Redmond's Building 37 plan to remotely ring the bell to open Nasdaq trading on Thursday, while Microsoft and its computer maker partners will ring the closing bell.

The product has already gone on sale in Australia.

Adam Lambert's 'Time For Miracles': A Fiery Video For A Classic Power Ballad

10/22/2009 04:30:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Lambert's song, from '2012,' has all the time-tested power-ballad ingredients.

Every so often — OK, quite often — Hollywood decides to makes a movie about stuff blowing up. In this case, it's the apocalyptic "2012," which is about the extinction of humanity in general. Somewhat understandably, this is a rather bleak subject to tackle — the end of the world isn't exactly heartwarming — so the producers know they somehow need to inject some sunshine into the flick, something to leave audiences feeling better as they exit the theater. A logical solution is, of course, a power ballad.

The power ballad, of course, is perhaps the most humanizing of all tunes: With swelling strings and crashing chords, they are practically designed to evoke emotion, to tug at the heartstrings and cause tears to flow. Their lyrics — which are usually about the triumphs of love in the face of overwhelming odds — are just icing on the cake, a little extra bit of sweet sadness dolloped on to really drive the point home.

The classic example here is, of course, Aerosmith's "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing," from 1998's "Armageddon." It had absolutely nothing to do with the movie or a pending apocalypse, but was very much about love conquering all, which is why it resonated so well, and why it continues to be a karaoke favorite to this day.

But now there's a new contender to that throne: Adam Lambert's "Time for Miracles," the ballad tapped by the producers of "2012."

Written by the tandem team of Alain Johannes (who also plays in Queens of the Stone Age and Them Crooked Vultures) and the late Natasha Shneider, it's a song that's tailor-made to Lambert's strengths: a completely classic ballad, and a showcase for his big, booming vocals and otherworldly range, the stuff he won audiences over with on "American Idol." He's apparently moving away from this sound on his debut album, and one could be forgiven for wondering why, because he positively owns it here.

It's a big stage for him — the lead single from a big-budget Hollywood flick — to be sure, and he's more than up for the task. And that carries over to the video, which has lots of flames and destruction, with Lambert serving as the omniscient everyman ... the human who wanders through it all, weary but determined to survive, because he has to. Of course, given that this is a ballad, he also serenades us all from the roof of a skyscraper because, well, what better place to sing a power ballad?

It's a time-tested formula, and I'm happy to say that "Time for Miracles" gets it all right. I'd put it alongside not just "I Don't Want to Miss a Thing," but, as my colleague, MTV News' "American Idol" expert Jim Cantiello pointed out, Bon Jovi's "Blaze of Glory" and Celine Dion's "My Heart Will Go On," too. This is hallowed ground we're talking about here. Disaster is a tough thing to take, but when it's accompanied with the right chaser, it goes down surprisingly smoothly.

Jolin Tsai's fortunes now worth S$60 million

10/22/2009 04:29:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Taiwanese pop princess Jolin Tsai first made her debut onstage in 1999 with her album, Jolin1019. Her cutie-pie good looks won over the hearts of many fans and sealed her standing in the entertainment industry.

Although Jolin's conflict with her previous management company over contract issues in 2001 proved to be threatening, the pop princess made a glorious comeback in 2003 with her hit music album, Magic.

In this period of time, Jolin worked on her career and continued to release six other music albums. She took on drama series, advertorials, wrote books and even branched out to the fashion industry with her own clothing label, 72 Changes. Within these 10 years, she has amassed a wealth of S$60 million and owns three houses with a total market value of S$9.75 million.

Thankful for her fan's everlasting support , Jolin wrote on her blog, "I would like to thank the cute children who have accompanied the princess through many ups and downs"

"You guys always say that the princess is your pride and energy. Actually, 'you guys' are my strength and pride. Without all of you, I don't think the princess will be able to make it through and feel all your love."

Previously busy with the album promotions for her latest music album, Flower Butterfly, Jolin will be taking a one-month break and will tour various countries in Europe together with her older sister.

Can K.Stew Stop Paparazzi From Covering Her?

10/22/2009 04:29:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

How can mags like OK! publish celeb photos without their permission? Kristen Stewart stated she's sick of herself in all the papers, can't she do something?

As oppressed by paparazzi as your favorite Twilight stars may seem—barely able to sparkle in the sun, much less go out for a latte amid all that adoration—there is such a thing as the law.

In short, it protects freedom of expression—including news gathering and photography—from censorship by the rich or powerful. It may be stressful to be K.Stew right now, but it's not the media's job—nor, let's be clear, your job as a fan—to help her have a nice day. Especially given the profession she willingly chose and the wealth and influence it has afforded her.

So what can Kristen do, pinned down in Canada like she is? Behold, her own personalized siege strategy...

...and it isn't pretty.

Some stars can take a few simple steps and manage to disappear for a while.

They can leave town or take fewer roles. Julia Roberts certainly hasn't been so interesting to the paparazzi since moving to Taos and cutting back her workload. Staying married to the same person for a while also helps; nothing is more boring to a tabloid than a longtime relationship, right, Sarah Michelle Gellar?

K.Stew could also take extra care not to be photographed with rumored boyfriend-slash-costar Robert Pattinson, which has helped Scarlett Johansson keep a lower profile since marrying What's-His-Name, That Canadian Guy.

But seriously, none of that applies here. K.Stew isn't married. The Twi-hards have catapulted her into an almost uncharted level of scrutiny, and even though she has cut back on outings, she's still under siege.

So what are we left with?

Sadly, umbrellas. Seriously. Like I said, it isn't pretty.

"First, the biggest lesson is at the age of 19, be appreciative that you have fulfilled your lifelong dream," celebrity publicist Ronn Torossian of 5W PR tells me. "You will make millions, and someone other than your parents are taking pictures of you."

In other words, if you're whining, K.Stew, knock it off.

"Making the paps lose interest at this point will be tough," Torossian continues. "If she doesn't want pics, hire people to stand around her with umbrellas, as the Jonas Brothers have done."

Sadly and alas! Sometimes there's just no escape from fame.

That Didn’t Take Long: Twitter Search Is Coming To Google

10/22/2009 04:28:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

Mere hours after today’s announcement that Twitter would now be integrated with Microsoft’s Bing search engine, Google has annouced that it too will include Twittter updates in its own search results. Marissa Mayer, Google VP of Search Products and User Experience, writes in a company blog post:

Given this new type of information and its value to search, we are very excited to announce that we have reached an agreement with Twitter to include their updates in our search results. We believe that our search results and user experience will greatly benefit from the inclusion of this up-to-the-minute data, and we look forward to having a product that showcases how tweets can make search better in the coming months. That way, the next time you search for something that can be aided by a real-time observation, say, snow conditions at your favorite ski resort, you’ll find tweets from other users who are there and sharing the latest and greatest information.

It’s worth noting that while Bing’s Twitter search is live today, it sounds like Google will be working Twitter’s data into its search results over the next few months.

The next question is whether or not Google will get access to Facebook’s stream of real-time updates (Microsoft announced deals with both Twitter and Facebook at today’s Web 2.0 Summit). Neither of Microsoft’s deals with Twitter and Facebook are exclusive, which leaves the door open for Google to pair up with Facebook as well. But Google and Facebook have butted heads in the past. And Microsoft has a long history with Facebook: the company supplements Facebook’s search with Bing results, and it controls a small stake in the company after investing$240 million at a sky-high $15 billion valuation back in late 2007.

Chris Brown On Rihanna Altercation: 'I'm Learning From My Mistakes'

10/22/2009 04:28:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments

Singer speaks with Angie Martinez on New York's Hot 97.

Chris Brown sported a bow tie for his appearance with Angie Martinez on New York's Hot 97 on Wednesday (October 21) just like he did during his interview with Larry King last month, but the singer wasn't nearly as choked up.

The Martinez interview was only his second media appearance since he pleaded guilty for his involvement in a physical altercation with Rihanna in June. His first, with King shortly after his sentencing, revealed Brown was not ready to speak openly about the ordeal as he deflected a majority of the CNN host's questions. With Martinez, the singer was more relaxed, though the radio personality was just as pressing as King.

"There's no way to start this without being awkward," Martinez said, before asking Brown how people should feel about the singer.

"Honestly, with me, it's not a thing about how you should feel," he explained. "Just be human. Because at the end of the day, I'm human. Of course you're gonna have your thoughts and opinions. I'm not gonna say they're wrong. But at the end of the day, it's not right to judge someone. People make mistakes all the time. I'm learning from my mistakes everyday and I regret it every second."

Brown spent just over an hour on Hot 97 as he addressed a number of topics, from the bruised photos of Rihanna to the people who reached out to him in the wake of the incident, and what advice he'd give young couples in serious relationships.

He surprised Martinez when he revealed Will Smith was one of the people who reached out to him in the aftermath of the altercation. Brown said Smith offered advice, and said the gesture came when he needed it most. "As a young black man myself, I need older black male role models to step in and kind of mold me — not people bashing me, 'cause that's not how you learn from mistakes," he said.

Brown didn't directly address what occurred between him in Rihanna in the car. Martinez pressed and asked the singer if he was also injured as a result. He denied that he was, but like in his CNN interview, Brown said he didn't want to speak in detail for the sake of Rihanna's privacy and his. He was remorseful throughout, however.

The Hot 97 jock asked Brown what advice he'd give to a troubled couple in a situation where anger was mismanaged. Brown said he'd tell them to take a look at what he's gone through.

"I would say, point blank, definitely learn from my mistakes," he urged. "Learn from what you saw Chris Brown's take on it was. If you're young, everything isn't as serious as it amounts to. I feel like people wanna grow up so fast and be adults. Just live your life and be you. If it's physical, take some classes. Counseling is great. It doesn't mean you're crazy, you're just working on you."

2NE1 goes gangster for W fashion spread

10/22/2009 04:27:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Girl group 2NE1 went gangster for a fashion spread in the November issue of W Korea, according to the magazine on Wednesday.


Each member donned different gangster styles -- from Russian Mafia to Italian Mafia to Japanese motorcycle gangs -- for the shoot aimed at expressing the low-end fashion as high-end, explained W.

A W official on set said 2NE1 had to have tattoos drawn onto them for about four hours before actually going into shoot.

A video of the photo shoot will also be posted on W Korea's official website on October 26.

The four-member girl group, managed by Korean talent powerhouse YG Entertainment, has been a hit since their debut July with songs including "Fire" and "I Don't Care."

Sorry, Taylor: Kanye's Still Alive

10/22/2009 04:27:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments

It'll take more than a death hoax to keep Kanye West out of the news.

False reports hit the Internet late last night that the rapper died in a "bizarre car crash in Los Angeles involving two luxury cars." While the tall tale never made its way to credibly news sources, it spread like wildfire on Facebook and Twitter, where "RIP Kanye West" became the No. 1 trending topic.

Thankfully, the star's girlfriend, Amber Rose, put the rumor to rest.

"This RIPKanyeWest topic is not funny and its NOT TRUE! He has people like myself and his family that love him very much," she tweeted. "Its in extreme poor taste to have that as a trendy topic. It's totally disrespectful to make up a story like this where all human and we all make mistakes and to say someone died cuz of a mistake is ridiculous. U wouldn't want someone to say that about u Or someone u love it's not funny. #LongLiveYeezy!!!!!"

Of course, the main reason this story has become so popular so fast is likely thanks to Taylor Swift. People by the thousands are retweeting versions of "Whoever started the RIP Kanye West hoax, I'm happy for u and Imma let you finish…but Balloon Boy had the best hoax of all time!"

Aw, snap!

Microsoft partners with Facebook, Twitter on search

10/22/2009 04:27:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , , 0 Comments

Microsoft is indeed bringing real-time search results from Facebook and Twitter to its Bing search engine thanks to two partnerships, search head Qi Lu and senior vice president Yusuf Mehdi announced at the Web 2.0 Summit here on Wednesday.

The Twitter partnership, which will bring all real-time public tweets to Bing, went live in beta on Wednesday at Bing.com/twitter. The Facebook deal, which will access all information shared publicly on the social network, will arrive "at a later date," Mehdi said. It's all part of Bing's strategy to harness "the emerging hot area of real-time information," he added.

No financial terms were disclosed for either deal; in a talk later on Wednesday at Web 2.0 Summit, Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg said that "no money changed hands" in its deal with Microsoft.

"You have to do more visual things, you have to do more sophisticated things, and you have to have better access to data," Mehdi said.

This will also give Microsoft an edge on Google, which currently has no such deals in place--but both Facebook, in which Microsoft has a financial stake, and Twitter are rumored to also be talking to Google as well. (Editor's note: Separately, Google announced a similar deal with Twitter on Wednesday.)

The Twitter deal is nonexclusive, Lu said. He did not comment on Facebook.

Users of the Bing Twitter search can see tweets that match a search query listed in pure chronological order, much like Twitter's own search engine (which it built in with the acquisition of a third-party app called Summize). But you also have the option to see search results in a mode that Mehdi called "best match," where he explained that Bing's team will "apply a bunch of our search techniques and relevancy to improve the results." This will mean that popular tweets and heavily retweeted tweets are brought higher up in results, and spam and duplicate results (as well as adult content) will be filtered out.

The Bing Twitter search also aggregates information around hot topics that goes far deeper than Twitter's "trending topics": the most popular links shared on a given topic, for example, and a way to see where shortened URLs redirect.


The 'top links' feature in Bing's Twitter search.

It's still a work in progress, largely because Facebook and Twitter themselves are changing rapidly as well. "Facebook and Twitter, especially Twitter, are really emerging communication platforms, just a lot of growth and the dominant usage patterns...are still evolving in many ways," said Lu, who recently made the jump from Yahoo to Microsoft.


Are Justin and Jessica Making It Work?

10/22/2009 04:26:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

Justin Timberlake and Jessica Biel—are they or aren't they dating?

Despite Justin looking rather single the last couple of weeks, usually solo or partying with a bevy of non-Biel babes, the rocky couple was full of cuddles last night.

But was it with each other?

Shockingly, yes!

Justin and Jessica went to an early showing last night of Where the Wild Things Are at the Dunbar Theatre in Vancouver. An eyewitness tells E! News, "They were kissing and cuddling in their seats."

This is J.T.'s first visit up to Canada since Jess has been filming The A-Team there. One source blames Justin's "busy schedule" on that.

While we've been telling you for a while J&J have Megan Fox-Brian Austin Green syndrome of being very on and off, lately it's looked like Justin has been trying to make their rocky relationship...well, better.

Justin was posted up in Vegas last week, one of his favorite party spots, and even though there were plenty of female options, we're told from our Sin City Spy that he was on good behavior the whole trip there.

No sleazing, just low-key partying and minimal flirting. Where's the fun in that?

Maybe the mama's boy got a good talking to since his mom Lynn Harless was in Vegas, too, and was vocal about how much she likes Jessica.

OK—if we're forced to watch Justin and Jess drag out this relationship for a lot longer, please make it somewhat interesting. Sex tape? Kinky scandal?

We know one half of the couple wouldn't mind that, but we'll keep quiet on which J that might be.

Beyond The Realm Of Conscience has won the first leg

10/22/2009 04:26:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

TVB grand production "Beyond the Realm Of Conscience" and "Born Rich" broadcasted their first episode on Monday. "Beyond The Realm Of Conscience" had an index rating of 34 points (2.14 million viewers) and peaked at 36 points (2.29 million viewers). It broke TVB's 2003 record of the first showing series. "Born Rich" had lost about 100,000 viewers. The average index rating was 32 points (2.05 millions viewers), peaked at 34 points (2.14 viewers). The leading cast of "Beyond The Realm Of Conscience" including Charmaine Sheh, Tavia Yeung and Moses Chan were very happy indeed, but reckoned the two TV series will have a long way for competing with each other. On the other hand, Anita Yuen and Jaime Chik have every confidence in "Born Rich".

The other night the cast of both TV series were at two different shopping malls to watch the first episode with the viewers. There were 500 viewers at the Olympia City watching live broadcast for "Beyond The Realm Of Conscience". Talking about "Beyond The Realm Of Conscience" has won the first leg, Charmaine responded " Never thought about competition, because we all give out a lot, and we hope we get good feedback. This is only the beginning, the two series have different styles, maybe "Born Rich" will give the viewers a nice surprise later on." The reporter asked if Charmaine thinks the two little girls deserve a praise? Charmaine agreed, in particular when the little girl was putting the ashes down inside the well, she was in tears too. The reporter said some people criticized the series for imitating "The Jewel in the palace."(???), Charmaine thinks viewers should watch how the series develop and make their judgment.

Tavia thinks the viewers saw the two girls at the beginning of the series, they were too quick to associate that with "The Jewel in The Palace." In fact, it was only the beginning to explain how the two sisters' relationship changed in time. The viewers have to follow the series to find out. Moses also thinks the viewers are a bit too early to make any judgement about the two series. He thinks the viewers are fortunate to watch two good productions. Producer for "Beyond The Realm Of Conscience" Mui Siu Ching said "The two series are very good quality series. I have watched "Born Rich " too and the cast have done their best. (The viewers have praised the two girls.) When we were deciding who we should get as little Charmaine, we were struggling if we should ask a girl with single eye lid and no front teeth to play that role. In reality, we should find a pretty girl, but than we thought we should keep the image of "Sam Ho" being a kind hearted person. Therefore when she grew up, she would be beautiful. After three auditions, we picked that particular girl and we found out afterwards, she was the child star in the movie 'Connected'".

Which One of the New Kids Is Replacing Katherine Heigl on Grey's Anatomy?

10/22/2009 04:25:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

Relax, kiddos! We've gotten your frantic emails and tweets, and despite what last week's Grey's Anatomy ep may have led you to believe, Izzie Stevens and Katherine Heigl are not leaving Seattle Grace for good.

(Show runner Shonda Rhimes even tweeted reassurance that the blond superdoc will return when she's done getting to know her adorable new baby and shooting Life as We Know It with Josh Duhamel.)

But that doesn't mean the next few weeks are going to be any less painful for abandoned husband Alex (Justin Chambers) or the rest of the original gang.

Not only are the wounds from George O'Malley's death still fresh, but we get the feeling—after exclusively chatting with Sarah Drew, who plays one of the eeevil Mercy Westers—that the superambitious new kids are going to be fighting tooth and nail to fill the vacuum left by Izzie's absence...

So, are the new doctors going to replace Izzie?

We interrogated Sarah Drew about that and well, she stonewalled a bit, but you know what walls do, don't you? They give shape to things, including certain possibilities and excluding others. Anyway, on the topic of a Mercy Wester possibly replacing Dr. Stevens, "That is also something I'm not allowed to say, sorry." OK, but do Cristina and company feel like the other doctors are replacing Iz? According to Sarah, "I think that may come out of it, but again, I have to be a little cagey with that. "

Eek. Sounds to us like the originals are going to feel mondo threated by the Team Orange Scrubs. That said, Sarah did reveal that her character, Dr. April Kepner, is going to cut back on the nasty, needy All About Eve routine. According to Sarah, "Lexie's (Chyler Leigh) apology that happened at the end of the last episode carries through, so there isn't as much animosity in the rest [of the episodes]." That doesn't mean she's not still desperate to secure herself a permanent position at Seattle Grace: "April is a very, very good doctor. She really knows what she's doing, she's worked really hard, and she wants to do her best and stick around."

So, could that actually happen? Could any of the new kids become a permanent fixture on Grey's Anatomy? Sarah isn't allowed to reveal how many episodes she's signed to do, but she would definitely be interested in staying if the opportunity arose, saying, "I think it's a really fun character and, of course, getting to be on that show is wonderful and exciting for any actress in Hollywood...I would love to stick around."

In the meantime, look for Team Orange Scrubs to start blending with the rest of the gang (they'll don regular Seattle Grace colors beginning this week) along with continuing BFF-ness for Sarah's character, April, and Nora Zehetner's Reed Adamson. Sarah tells us, "There is definitely a close bond between those two characters."

Last but not least, Ms. Drew, tell us why we should give your Grey's Anatomy character a chance? We love love love you on everything you do (Everwood, Wonderfalls, Medium, Private Practice, Mad Men, et al.), but the fans are justifiably worried that the Mercy Westers are bad juju. Defend yourself!

"Please, give me a chance, because I want to work!" laughs Sarah. "But to be serious, April has this competitive spirit of 'What are we gonna do to stick around? How are we gonna work harder?' I think what happened in the first episode was a little difficult, because the competition came at the cost of some of the patients. But if that can be translated into just doing more excellent work in order to stick around, then we should all stick around to be better doctors and save more lives."

Could you love the new kids enough to let them stay on if they saved enough lives, or are you taking a hard line on Mercy Westers? And do you love Sarah Drew as much as we do?

The fabulous Sarah Drew is back on your TV this Thursday at 9 p.m. on ABC on Grey's Anatomy and then on Glee on Nov. 18 at 9 p.m. on Fox. Don't miss her!

Samsung Moment first-impressions

10/22/2009 04:25:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

It’s not the first time we’ve played with the Samsung Moment, but today we’ve had the chance to take Sprint’s newest smartphone away and unbox it. The Moment is the carrier’s second Android handset (after the non-QWERTY HTC Hero), packing a slide-out keyboard, 3.2-inch AMOLED touchscreen and both EVDO Rev.A and WiFi b/g. Check out our hands-on gallery, unboxing video and some first-impressions of the Samsung Moment after the cut.


Like the Motorola CLIQ, the Moment is taking on the mid-range of Android devices. Unlike the CLIQ, however, Samsung have done little to the core OS; there’s no intelligent social media integration like MOTOBLUR, or UI streamlining like HTC Sense. The end result is a somewhat bare feeling, and we miss the well-designed widgets of the rival platforms.


What’s proving more successful is the QWERTY keyboard, which has a better – offset – layout than the CLIQ’s and a key-feel that, while initially coming across as on the snappy side, has led to accurate text entry. We’ll be testing this out more over the next few days to see just how fast we can get. As for the display, while it may not be stuffed with widgets it is bright, crisp and as vivid as we’ve come to expect from AMOLED panels, and the resistive touchscreen has proved accurate in our short play so far.


The Samsung Moment will go on sale generally come November 1st, priced at $179.99 after a $100 mail-in rebate and $50 instant savings, and with a new, two-year contract. We’ll have the full SlashGear review very soon!







Ken Zhu’s rounder face in his latest drama irks netizens

10/22/2009 04:25:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

F4 member Ken Zhu’s appearance of a rounder face in his latest drama Momo Love has been slammed by netizens. “Is Ken Zhu’s face a little too exaggerated? Why is it so different from his previous drama series, Meteor Garden? Is he bloated with air?” But there were also more objective remarks pointing out that his acting should not be overlooked by his chubbier mien.

The new drama’s star-studded cast includes Cyndi Wang, Jiro Wang, and Wong Jing Lun as well.

Currently in Beijing practicing for an upcoming theatre production, Ken’s manager, Summer, said, “He is already used to such comments by everyone. But he is really very pitiful, worrying over his swollen face caused by water retention.”

According to Summer, Ken’s face starts to swell the moment he gets tired and works long nights. The singer-actor had been visiting a nutritionist during the initial stages of filming for Momo Love. She commented that the actor will sport a slimmer face during the later parts of the show.

Perhaps that would help boost the series’ ratings against other rivals. The latest episode of ongoing Taiwanese idol drama Autumn's Concerto scored a record-breaking number of viewers. In it, fellow F4 bandmember Vanness Wu heroically rescued his leading lady from a rapist. The ratings for that episode also surpassed those of Momo Love by 1.64 percent.

Nicole Richie Shows Off Sparrow and Explains the Weird Name

10/22/2009 04:24:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Ah, baby magazine covers. They're that rare breath of cute air that we can look at in the supermarket line without feeling angry at Jon & Kate or sad about Lindsay Lohan's new haggard makeover or annoyed at the Jen Aniston lies.

Instead, we can just let the warm fuzzy feelings wash over us and be like, "Well, that's nice."

So thank you, Nicole Richie, for showing off your cuddly 6-week-old son Sparrow in this week's People. Inside the magazine there are even more adorable pictures of the new family of four that are worth checking out.

And as an added bonus, Nicole and her longtime partner, Joel Madden, even (kind of) explain what's up with the strange bird name...

"We have different tastes in names," Nicole says. "Sparrow was one we both liked. I liked the way it sounded with Harlow, and there's the Captain Jack Sparrow connection."

Joel goes on, "It reminded me of the Johnny Cash song 'A Boy Named Sue.' My worry raising a son in Hollywood is what will he have to struggle for? I wanted to give him a name that he's going to have to stand up for. I love it; I think it's a beautiful name."

And while rumors have been going around the Internet that Joel and Nicole are actually secretly married, that doesn't seem to be true.

"One day I would love to get married," Nicole says. "It's not something we're talking about now. If my kids ask me to get married, I'd get married."

So that was a welcome feel-good break...now back to Balloon Boy drama or whatever sensational story has got its hold on us today.

Mozilla pushes for fast move to Firefox 3.6

10/22/2009 04:24:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

Mozilla hopes to classify the upcoming Firefox 3.6 as a minor update, a move that may sound inconsequential but that in fact might have significant repercussions with Firefox users and the speed the open-source browser is developed.

Mike Beltzner, Mozilla's director of Firefox, in a mailing list discussion that he'd like to call the new version a minor release "to quickly migrate our user base to Firefox 3.6." Minor releases in the past typically have been steps from, for example, 3.5.3 to 3.5.4, but Mozilla is trying to speed up more significant changes and not just fixes for bugs and security holes.

"Firefox 3.6 will be primarily a release with security, stability, speed and capability enhancements, with no visible user interface changes over Firefox 3.5. As such, I think we should consider it as a candidate for a minor update, stretching our definition of what types of updates we can provide using that mechanism," Beltzner said.

Be default, Mozilla automatically distributes minor Firefox updates to be installed after a user prompt. Major updates initially require the user to actively retrieve the new version, though Mozilla gets more active as time passes and older versions reach the end of their support lifespans--January 2010 in the case of Firefox 3.0.

Why change the process? To keep up with changes in the browser world, Beltzner said.

"The pace of technology development in web browsers is speeding up rapidly, and we now face a challenge of ensuring that we can continue to deliver modern web browsing experiences to our users," he said.

And in a position that mirrors the rationale that Google offers for its automatically updating Chrome browser, he added, "Users' expectations of software have changed since the update mechanism was introduced in Firefox 1.5. Many applications that browser users interact with exist in the cloud, with updates pushed frequently and transparently, without consultation. That wasn't the case only a few years ago."

That sounds reasonable, right? Well, it turns out nothing is simple.

One problem is that add-ons won't work with the new version unless they're updated, too, and there are a lot of add-ons in the world. "Add-on compatibility is one of the large reasons why users do not move from one version to another," Beltzner said.

Sure enough, John Barton, an IBM employee who's a member of the group overseeing development of the Firebug add-on widely used in Web site development, raised concerns about moving quickly to 3.6 and the current version 1.4 of the add-on.

"We're a little confused by a Firefox 3.6 that can't decide if it is 3.6 or 3.5.5. If 3.6 is really minor, release it as 3.5.5. Else, well then it's not minor after all," Barton said, though adding, "I support shorter release cycles in Firefox."

Add-on compatibility problems is one reason Mozilla is moving to the new Jetpack extensions system in Firefox 4.0 next year.

One of the big new features in Firefox 3.6, code-named Namoroka, is the arrival of Personas, which lets people customize the browser appearance.

Mozilla said the first beta of Firefox 3.6 is due this weekend or early next week, and Beltzner said there currently are no plans for second beta. The final version is due by the end of the year.

f(x)'s opening at Beyonce's concert cancelled

10/22/2009 04:24:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Korean girl band f(x)'s was unable to open for pop star Beyonce's Seoul concert because it was called off at the last minute, according to their agency on Wednesday.

"We were upset to be informed that the concert would start without an opening performance at 6 p.m. on the day of concert" said SM Entertainment.

SM had announced in a press release on October 14 that the five-member idol group was set to go on stage Tuesday evening at the "BEYONCE'S I AM... TOUR 2009", held at Olympic Park Gymnastics Stadium.

The statement was released under agreement with SM and Beyonce's concert promoter B4H, who was quoted as saying "we invited f(x) as opening guests because they seem to be promising hot icons of Asia".

The cancellation appears have been due to miscommunication between B4H and Beyonce. In other words, while the two agencies agreed to have f(x) perform during the opening act, the news was released without full approval from the American singer.

Beyonce, a ten-time Grammy award singer and actress, will be performing again tonight as part of her "I Am..." world tour which took off in Canada in March.

f(x), one of the newest and most popular groups in Korea, debuted in September with the single "LA chA TA" and recently released "Chocolate Love".

'Glee': Madonna is on board! Is Adam Lambert next?

10/22/2009 04:23:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , , 0 Comments

Are you sitting down, Gleeks? Well you might want to, because we have some exclusive Glee news that’s positively Madge-ical. EW has learned that Madonna has given Glee the rights to her catalog and that an all-Madonna-music episode is in the works for early next year. The hit series has been building an audience and filling the iTunes charts with its cover songs, and Madonna’s involvement is a testament to how big the show is getting. Also, an amazing Glee cover of a classic Madonna track has the potential to be even bigger than the show’s blockbuster take on “Don’t Stop Believin’.” Quinn totally has to do “Papa Don’t Preach.” And I can completely see Rachel tackling “Material Girl.”

But Madonna might not be the only pop star getting some Glee love. Co-creator Ryan Murphy tells EW that he’s considering approaching American Idol runner up Adam Lambert about appearing on the show (next year, Glee will be paired with Idol on Wednesday nights). Nothing is official yet but Lambert does seem like an ideal choice for Glee.

Which Madonna song do you wanna hear Glee cover, Music Mix-ers? What would you think about Adam Lambert possibly appearing on the show?

Google Audio music download store coming October 28th?

10/22/2009 04:23:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

It seems the rift between Google and Apple is growing; after the latter made moves to supply its own mapping technologies for the iPhone and iPod touch, Google now looks set to kick off its own music service to rival iTunes. According to TechCrunch’s sources, the so-called Google Audio service will launch on October 28th, and offer US users both access to streaming media together with purchase/download links.

Google’s partners in the venture are tipped to be LaLa and iLike, the latter of which was recently acquired by MySpace. The social networking site has streaming rights agreements with all four of the major music labels, all of whom would probably love another opportunity to persuade people to buy tracks rather than listen to them online.

As well as offering streaming and download links, Google Audio will flag up any related content, presumably including YouTube video and anything else related from the search giant’s database. LaLa and iLike have already announced a launch event for October 28th, billed as hosted by them “& others”. It will be interesting to see whether the service gets integrated with Android; as our own columnist Michael Gartenberg suggested earlier on today, one of the key elements holding Android back is the absence of a solid media download system integrated into the smartphone platform.

Costly divorce for Taiwanese singer-actor Nicky Wu

10/22/2009 04:23:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Taiwanese singer-actor Nicky Wu has officially divorced from Chinese actress Ma Ya Shu, and it is widely reported that the alimony fees will be more than 100 million yuan (S$20 million).

The pair had already filed for a divorce agreement at the end of last year but was too busy to finalise the procedure in Kunming, China, where they had registered their marriage, due to their work schedule.

According to China media reports, the two of them returned to Kunming on Tuesday to officially sign the separation papers. In addition to the alimony fees, Wu also transferred the ownership of his property, which is valued at around 10 million yuan (S$2 million), to Ma.

There has not been any confirmations from Wu in regards to the total amount, but based on his work schedules, the massive alimony fees might have spurred him to accept more projects to ease his financial load.

In recent times, the singer-actor has been juggling both endorsements and filming. He took up a battery and an undergarment endorsement, which raked in more than two million yuan (S$ 400,000). During the same period of time, he was also filming for a periodic television drama.

Wu's close friends have pointed out that "he has no choice but to start all over again".

Couple of days back, Wu participated in a charity show and sang "Destiny", which he commented was his favourite song. Outsiders believed that he was actually using the song to reflect his failed marriage.

Wu and Ma married in 2006 amidst criticism that Ma was the third party in Wu's previous relationship with Hong Kong actress Ada Choi.

This time round, it was again rumoured that a third party was the cause of their divorce.

Last year, Ma was reportedly seen checking into a hotel in Hengdian, China, with a Caucasian man only identified as James, and did not leave the premises for three days.

Netizens have been sharpening their knives and criticised Ma for her two-timing ways. Some even said they plan to boycott all her dramas.

The Chinese actress said that she has heard of the boycott but will not be bothered by the comments.

"I am definitely feeling the pressure but sometimes I wonder why I am giving myself this pressure. I would rather relax and live my own life," she said in Mandarin. "For everyone that hates me, there is also someone out there who loves me. I'm going to live for the person who loves me."

In regards to the harsh criticisms, she took it in her stride: "It is always the same people who are leaving their comments and these people aren't any great poets or authors. I will not be reading their comments."

She also added that she is not able to please everyone but what matters most to her is to touch the person who loves her.

Kendra Wilkinson: Baby Bumpin' in a Bikini

10/22/2009 04:23:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

Seeing mom-to-be Kendra Wilkinson proudly posing on the cover of the new In Touch Weekly got us thinking...What is wrong with this picture?

Please don't misinterpret. There is absolutely nothing negative about seeing a woman in the midst of creating a life.

We guess it just feels a little weird to see the E! star go from the The Girls Next Door to actually becoming more like, well, the girl next door.

Again. That's OK. It's a lovely thing. But when a former Playmate suddenly has a domestic agenda and is subsequently replaced by a straitlaced cartoon character, you can't help but feel like you've stepped into some sort of alternate universe.

Or is it just us?

Windows 7 breaks Amazon UK pre-order volume record, ousts Harry Potter

10/22/2009 04:22:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments



Take it from us, your London-based sleuths, when anything sells faster than Harry Potter books or DVDs in the UK, it's scorching hot. Case in point is Microsoft's Vista successor, which has sold so well that it has beaten the Amazon UK pre-order record previously held by J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. In fact, Windows 7 was able to tally up more sales in the first 8 hours of pre-order availability than Vista was able to collect altogether. Now that's what we call an upgrade.

Raymond Lam hopes that Tavia Yeung can win awards

10/22/2009 04:22:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

On 20th October afternoon, HK idol Raymond Lam went to Guangzhou to attend an event, sing songs and also take part in a competition. Raymond who does not have much series aired this year, put his focus on music and does not have to compete for TVB Anniversary's Best Actor and therefore, he feels more relaxed. Regarding his prediction on who will be the winners of the awards, Raymond Lam supports Tavia Yeung and Wayne Lai.

Regarding prediction on Best Actor and Best Actress awards this year, Raymond Lam expressed that he hopes that Tavia Yeung can win the Best Actress awards. He collaborated with Tavia for many times and he always feel that Tavia Yeung has great acting skills. Tavia tried a villain role for the first time in [Beyond] and it is hard to predict the breakthrough for her until the end. Meanwhile, Charmaine Sheh and Sheren Tang are great too. As for Best Actor, Raymond Lam of course chooses the hot favourite "Chai Gao", Wayne Lai and hopes that he can win the award.

BlackBerry Bold 9700 announced, launching globally starting next month

10/22/2009 04:21:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments



Properly replacing one of the most popular, recognizable BlackBerrys ever made is no easy task for RIM, but it looks like they've done a respectable job in officially announcing the Bold 9700, a device we've seen rumored as the "Onyx" through much of 2009. The new model gently massages the original Bold's time-tested formula by moving the camera up to 3.2 megapixels, giving the screen another 40 lines of vertical resolution (480 x 360, up from 480 x 320), and shipping with the brand new BlackBerry OS 5.0 out of the gate. Also notable is that the 9700 replaces the trackball with an optical trackpad --continuing a trend started by the Curve 8520 -- and will ship in both 900 / 1700 / 2100 and 800 / 850 / 1900 / 2100MHz 3G varieties, making the phone a perfect fit for AT&T, T-Mobile, and a multitude of networks in Canada and Europe. RIM isn't announcing specific carrier availability, but they're teasing that it'll be coming on "carriers around the world" starting in November. Follow the break for a quick teaser video from the boys and girls up in Waterloo.

Update: Engadget Germany is at the launch event with RIM's co-CEO Mike Lazaridis. We'll be back shortly with a hands-on.

Update 2: T-Mobile just announced its flavor of the Bold 9700 for the US which it says will be the first BlackBerry that allows voice calling over WiFi.

Update 3: And here comes AT&T, which says the 9700 will be out in the "coming weeks" for $199 after $100 mail-in rebate.


TVXQ Hero JaeJoong’s acting solo in ‘Heaven’s Postman’ to be revealed on 25th Nov

10/22/2009 04:21:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments

The release date for the long awaited telecinema ‘Heaven’s Postman’ by Dong Bang Shin Ki Hero JaeJoong, and also his acting debut, featuring actress Han HyoJoo has been finalised.


The release date to the telecinema will be on 25th November. Go under the cut for more information released.

* Title: ??? ?? ??? / Heaven’s Postman / Heaven’s Mail Deliverer
* Release Date: 25th November 2009
* Cast: Hero JaeJoong, Han Hyo Joo, Shin Goo, Kim Chang Wan
* Producer: Lee Hyung Min
* Script Writer: Kitagawa Eriko
* First Preview: All 5 cinemas of CGV

Dell Streak is a 5-inch Android 2.0 MID, packs 3G and WiFi (video)

10/22/2009 04:20:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , , 0 Comments



Well, hello there! Those Dell MID rumors we've been hearing have finally received vindication in the form of a nice, picture-heavy leak courtesy of some industrious folks in Vietnam. What we know as of now is that there's an 800 x 480 capacitive touchscreen display (with multitouch zooming), WiFi, Bluetooth and 3G WWAN connectivity, all riding atop an Android 2.0 (aka, Donut Eclair) install. A dual-LED flash 5 megapixel camera adorns the back, and there's a 1,300mAh battery to power all that goodness. See pics below and a video awaits after the break, where an old friend of ours plays with the jumbo smartphone.







Zai Zai moves forward, buries himself in work, hopes to strike gold next year

10/22/2009 04:20:00 PM kenmouse , Posted in , , 0 Comments

After unexpectedly losing in the Golden Bell Awards for best actor, "Zai Zai" Vic Chou wasn’t in a good mood. But after closeting himself at home to regain his spirits, he emerged the day before and went back to work. He took big strides as if he's goose-stepping and looked like he was in a good mood. According to reports, he will accept an offer to act in Asia's counterpart to the Titanic -- “Pacific 1949” [*Pacific is the name of the ship that sank on Jan. 27, 1927. The ship was on its way from Shanghai to the Keelung port in Taiwan] and looks forward to next year’s Golden Bell Awards.

The day before, this reporter saw Zai Zai walking toward a building on Keelung Road to shoot a cover for a magazine. He came out later, dressed in casual clothes and walked toward the company car. He took big strides, like military goose-steps, and looked like he’s regained his spirit. When he got in the car and stuck his head out, from a distance, it looked like he’s acting out a "turtle’s head coming out of its shell," making people laugh.

The car proceeded to a photo studio on Guangfu South Road and Vic worked till past 5pm. Vic then went back to his agent’s office and stayed until past 8pm. It is reported that recently there are three (3) films and TV dramas being in contact with Zai Zai,** and that he will accept and start shooting early next year a government-subsidized (*not sure about this translation) TV drama “Pacific 1949,” a series based on real lives and events that have been called the Asian version of the Titanic.

Vic’s co-star in “Black and White” Janine Chang also supports Zai Zai. Janine stressed that she doesn’t favor any particular side or supports Mark Chao only. She said, everybody has seen the breakthrough in Zai Zai’s acting; he should have won an award. She feels deeply sorry for him. She said: “Time and real skills will prove everything.”

Zai Zai’s agent said: “Zai Zai is currently busy meeting a lot of movie and TV directors. As for the ‘Pacific’ drama, we’re still in contact about it.”

After staying silent for three days, Zai Zai has regained his spirits and started working, walking like he’s doing a military goose-step.

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