Property records give new insights into bin Laden

ABBOTTABAD, Pakistan – The Pakistani who owned the compound that was Osama bin Laden's final hideaway meticulously bought up adjoining plots of land over two years and once cryptically told a seller that the property he bought for "an uncle" had become very valuable.
The new information that emerged Wednesday provided a new glimpse of one of two key figures who sheltered bin Laden in his last years and whose identities remain one of the biggest mysteries surrounding the al-Qaida chief. At the same time, Pakistan stepped up its attempt to convince the world that it didn't know where bin Laden was located. They maintain that the al-Qaida leader's ability to hide in Abbottabad, an army town just two hours drive from the capital, was the result of an oversight by the government, not double dealing.
Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said Wednesday that anyone who claimed his country hid bin Laden was "color blind."
During a visit to Paris, Gilani said that Pakistan shared intelligence with numerous countries in the fight against terrorism and had "excellent cooperation" with the United States. He said that "if we have failed, it means everybody failed," and an investigation would be ordered.
Many countries have expressed disbelief that bin Laden could have holed up under the Pakistani army's nose, and some U.S. Congressmen have said the U.S. should consider cutting billions of dollars in aid to the country if it turns out Pakistan knew where he was located. U.S. officials have long criticized Pakistan, a key but difficult ally, for failing to target Islamist militants on its territory.
Property records obtained by The Associated Press on Wednesday show that a man named Mohammed Arshad bought the land in Abbottabad where bin Laden's compound was built. He bought the adjoining plots in four stages between 2004 and 2005 and paid $48,000.
Qazi Mahfooz Ul Haq, a doctor, told the AP that he sold a plot of land to Arshad in 2005. He said the buyer was a sturdily built man who had a tuft of hair under his lower lip. He spoke with an accent that sounded like it was from Waziristan, a tribal region close to Afghanistan that is home to many al-Qaida operatives.
"He was a very simple, modest, humble type of man" who was "very interested" in buying the land for "an uncle," the doctor said.
The doctor saw Arshad a few times after he sold him the land, he said. On one of those occasions, Arshad cryptically said, "your land is now very costly" — meaning valuable.
Arshad bought two other plots used for the compound in a less transparent transaction in November 2004, according to a review of the property records.
Raja Imtiaz Ahmed, who previously owned the two plots, said he sold them to a middleman who may have then passed them on to Arshad. He could not recall the middleman's name and was looking for records that would reveal it.
Neighbors of the bin Laden compound said one of the two Pakistani men living in the house who periodically ventured outside went by the name Arshad Khan, and roughly matched the physical description of Mohammed Arshad.
The two names apparently refer to the same man and both names may be fake. But one thing is clear — bin Laden relied on a small, trusted inner circle as lifelines to the outside who provided for his daily needs such as food and medicine and kept his location secret. And it appears they did not betray him.
Arshad is also suspected as the courier who unwittingly led the Americans to bin Laden after years of painstaking tracking.
U.S. officials have identified the courier as Sheikh Abu Ahmed, a Pakistani man born in Kuwait who went by the nom de guerre Abu Ahmed al-Kuwaiti. They obtained his name from detainees held in secret CIA prison sites in Eastern Europe and vetted it with top al-Qaida operatives like Sept. 11 mastermind Khalid Sheikh Mohammed.
The man who periodically ventured outside bin Laden's compound with the suspected courier is believed to be his brother. American officials said the courier and his brother were killed in the American commando raid on the compound early Monday.
The courier was so important to al-Qaida that he was tapped by Mohammed to shepherd the man who was to have been the 20th hijacker through computer training needed for the Sept. 11 attacks, according to newly released documents from Guantanamo Bay interrogations.
The courier trained Maad al-Qahtani at an internet cafe in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi in July 2001 so that he could communicate by email with Mohammed Atta, the Sept. 11 financier and one of the 19 hijackers, who was already in the United States.
But al-Qahtani proved to be a poor student and was ultimately denied entry to the U.S. when he raised suspicion among immigration officials.
The Guantanamo documents also revealed that the courier might have been one of the men who accompanied bin Laden to Tora Bora in eastern Afghanistan in December 2001 just weeks before the Taliban's final surrender.
Al-Kuwaiti inadvertently led intelligence officials to bin Laden when he used a telephone last year to talk with someone the U.S. had wiretapped. The CIA then tracked al-Kuwaiti back to the walled compound in Abbottabad, which was located near a Pakistani army academy.
Bin Laden was living in the house for up to six years before U.S. Navy Seals raided the compound and shot the al-Qaida leader.
One of bin Laden's daughters, who says she saw U.S. forces shooting her father, is in Pakistani custody, said a Pakistani intelligence official, speaking on condition of anonymity in line with the agency's policy.
A total of 10-12 people, including six or seven children, and a woman have been seized from the compound and are all in Pakistani custody, he said. The woman, whose nationality the official would not disclose, is wounded and undergoing treatment at a hospital, he said.
That bin Laden lived in Abbottabad for so long undetected has reignited long-standing suspicions that the country is playing a double game.
Some U.S. lawmakers have suggested that Washington cut or terminate American aid to Pakistan as a result. But others are advising caution — Pakistan has nuclear arms, is already unstable and the U.S. needs its support to withdraw from Afghanistan.
Mike Rogers, the chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, said the discovery of bin Laden so close to an army installation was "embarrassing to them" but that institutional entities like the army, intelligence service and government likely didn't know about bin Laden's presence.
Meanwhile, Indonesia's defense minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said the country's most wanted terrorist suspect Umar Patek was in Abbottabad to meet Osama bin Laden when he was arrested there early this year. Patek was injured in a raid by Pakistani intelligence agents on a house in Abbottabad on Jan. 25, but news of arrest only leaked out in late March.
A senior American counterterrorism official said Patek's arrest in Abbottabad "appears to have been pure coincidence" and that there were no indications that Patek met with bin Laden in Abbottabad.

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Despite economic growth, India lets its girls die

MORENA, India – The room is large and airy, the stone floors clean and cool — a welcome respite from the afternoon sun. Until your eyes take in the horror that it holds. Ten severely malnourished children — nine of them girls.
The starving girls in this hospital ward include a 21-month-old with arms and legs the size of twigs and an emaciated 1-year-old with huge, vacant eyes. Without urgent medical care, most will not live to see their next birthday.
They point to a painful reality revealed in India's most recent census: Despite a booming economy and big cities full of luxury cars and glittering malls, the country is failing its girls. Early results show India has 914 girls under age 6 for every 1,000 boys. A decade ago, many were horrified when the ratio was 927 to 1,000.
The discrimination happens through abortions of female fetuses and sheer neglect of young girls, despite years of high-profile campaigns to address the issue. So serious is the problem that it's illegal for medical personnel to reveal the gender of an unborn fetus, although evidence suggests the ban is widely circumvented.
"My mother-in-law says a boy is necessary," says Sanju, holding her severely malnourished 9-month-old daughter in her lap in the hospital. The woman, who goes by one name, doesn't admit to deliberately starving the girl but only shrugs her own thin shoulders when asked why her daughter is so sick.
She will try again for a son in a year or two, she says.
Part of the reason Indians favor sons is the enormous expense in marrying off girls. Families often go into debt arranging marriages and paying elaborate dowries. A boy, on the other hand, will one day bring home a bride and dowry. Hindu custom also dictates that only sons can light their parents' funeral pyres.
But it's not simply that girls are more expensive for impoverished families. The census data shows that the worst offenders are the relatively wealthy northern states of Punjab and Haryana.
In Morena, a sun-baked, largely rural district in the heart of India, the numbers are especially grim. This census showed that only 825 girls for every 1,000 boys in the district made it to their sixth birthdays, down from an already troubling 829 a decade ago.
Though abortion is allowed in India, the country banned revealing the gender of unborn fetuses in 1994 in an attempt to halt sex-selective abortions. Every few years, federal and state governments announce new incentives — from free meals to free education — to encourage people to take care of their girls.
In Morena, a Madhya Pradesh state government program offers poor families with one or two daughters a few thousand rupees (a few hundred dollars) for every few years of schooling, and more than 100,000 rupees ($2,250) when they graduate high school.
But while a handful of Indian women have attained some of the highest positions in politics and business — from late Prime Minister Indira Gandhi to Pepsi CEO Indra Nooyi — a deep-rooted cultural preference for sons remains.
Even the government has accepted that it has failed to save millions of little girls.
"Whatever measures that have been put in over the last 40 years have not had any impact," India's Home Secretary G.K. Pillai said last month when announcing the census numbers.
In Morena's homes, villages, schools and hospitals lie some of the answers to why the country keeps losing girls.
In the district hospital's maternity ward, a wrinkled old woman walks out holding a just-born girl wrapped in a dirty rag like an unwelcome present. Munni, who uses only one name, is clearly unhappy. Her daughter-in-law has just given birth to her sixth girl in 12 years of marriage.
Will the daughter-in-law go through another pregnancy?
"Everyone wants boys. A boy takes care of you in your old age," Munni says.
As a mother-in-law, Munni will likely have enormous control over her son's wife, influencing how many children she has and nudging or bullying her to bear a son.
According to the current CIA "World Factbook," the United States has a birth ratio of 955 girls per 1,000 boys. In China, where families with a strong preference for boys sometimes resort to aborting their baby girls, there was a birth ratio of 885 girls per 1,000 boys.
District hospital head R.C. Bandil said his facility strictly obeys the law against using sonograms to reveal the gender of a fetus, adding that the sex ratio at birth there is as high as 940-945 girls per 1,000 boys.
Bandil said that for ages 6 and under, however, the ratio fell to 825 girls per 1,000 boys.
Part of the reason lies in the hospital's malnutrition ward.
"Women cry when they have girls," nurse Lalitha Gujar says as she spoons powdered coconut, peanuts and sesame seeds into bowls of fortified milk to nourish the tiny children.
All nine mothers of the sickly infant girls say they want sons — to look after them when they get old, because their sisters-in-law have more sons, because their mothers-in-law demand male children.
"If a woman has a boy, for a month she will be looked after. If she has a girl, she'll be back in the fields in three days," says Sudha Misra, a local social worker.
An exhausted mother who faces neglect, poor nutrition and blame for producing a daughter is likely to pass on that neglect, social workers say. For an infant, that can mean the difference between life and death.
"A malnourished child will get sick and the chances of death are very high," Bandil says.
Males get first priority. "First the husband is seated and fed, then the brothers and then whatever is left is fed to the girls," says Bandil. "If there are two mangoes in the house, first the boy will get to eat."
For the very poor, the pressures to bear sons result in mistreatment of both the baby girl and mother. And rich women are not immune to this mistreatment if they fail to bear male children.
For those with money, it's often about being able to locate a radiologist who, for a cost, will break the law and reveal the sex of the fetus, or being able to fly abroad for such tests.
A 2007 study by the rights group ActionAid India found that gender ratios were worse in urban areas, and that sex-selective abortions were more common among wealthier and higher-caste people who could afford ways to learn the gender of fetuses.
The law is not enough to combat "a society that values boys over girls," says Ravinder Kaur, a professor of sociology at New Delhi's Indian Institute of Technology.
"Laws are good because they may act as a deterrent" she says, but sex-selective abortions continue underground because "people find more devious ways."

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Kenya: Elephants killed near Prince William cabin

NAIROBI, Kenya – Four of seven elephants outfitted with GPS tracking collars have been killed on the forested slopes of Mount Kenya in recent months only a short hike from the rustic cabin where Prince William proposed to Kate Middleton, conservation officials said Tuesday.
Save The Elephants fitted seven animals near Mount Kenya with collars over the last year to track their movements. More than half have been killed, and the group's founder, Iain Douglas-Hamilton, said he's worried about what may be happening to the elephants who aren't collared. "We've uncovered a poaching crisis near Mount Kenya that we didn't know about before," he said.
Douglas-Hamilton said the mountain's dense forest makes it difficult for rangers to patrol and protect elephants who have not been collared.
Save The Elephants official Lucy King said the group suspects the rise in poaching in northern Kenya is linked to a high demand for ivory in Asia.
"We're seeing a lot of Chinese nationals caught in the airport in Kenya with ivory in their luggage," she said. "We have to assume the Chinese are involved at some level."
Kenya has more than 30,000 elephants, so the deaths of four do not threaten its population.
The first killing came in October, the same month the royal couple traveled to a rustic log cabin where the two fished in a nearby pond and bundled up for chilly nights at high altitude. It's not known publicly if the two saw any elephants on their trip, but one of the four poached beasts died only 5 miles (8 kilometers) from the cabin, King said.
An elephant named Marani was shot to death in October. A second shooting death came in February. Two others were killed last month, including one suspected shooting death and one death caused by a snare.
Douglas-Hamilton described the agony of the last death, after a team member hiked through thick mountain terrain and through two gorges to find the starved corpse.
"She had been snared with a big rope round her leg and was tied to a tree," he said. "In her last days she had thrashed around and flattened the vegetation, but he found her emaciated. She must have died of lack of food and water."
Susie Weeks, who lives near the 17,057-foot (5,199-meter) mountain for her work with The Mount Kenya Trust, said the region is "rife" with snares and traps. She said ivory poaching began on the mountain in 2009 and has steadily increased.
"Although the snares seem to be laid for smaller game, like buffalo, we find dead elephant calves in these brutal and indiscriminate traps, and amputated or snared calves wondering around with serious infections they cannot possibly survive," she said.
Save the Elephants tracks the real-time movements of elephants it outfits with GPS collars, and the beasts' paths are traced on a special Google Earth mapping program. When an elephant stops moving on the map, the conservationists watching the elephants know there is a problem.
King said poachers shot one of the special collars with two AK-47 bullets. She said that suggests the poachers believe the collars increase the chances they might be caught.
Save The Elephants said more ranger patrols and financial support are needed on Mount Kenya to combat the attacks.

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Officials: SEALs thought bin Laden went for weapon

WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama ordered grisly photographs of Osama bin Laden in death sealed from public view on Wednesday, declaring, "We don't need to spike the football" in triumph after this week's daring middle-of-the-night raid. The terrorist leader was killed by American commandos who burst into his room and feared he was reaching for a nearby weapon, U.S. officials said.
Several weapons were found in the room where the terror chief died, including AK-47 assault rifles and side arms, the officials said. They spoke on condition of anonymity as they offered the most recent in a series of increasingly detailed and sometimes-shifting accounts of bin Laden's final minutes after a decade on the run. Obama said releasing the photographs taken by the Navy SEAL raiders was "not who we are" as a country. Though some may deny his death, "the fact of the matter is you will not see bin Laden walking this earth again," the president said in an interview taped for CBS' "60 Minutes."
He said any release of the photos could become a propaganda tool for bin Laden's adherents eager to incite violence.
White House press secretary Jay Carney said the president's decision applied to photographs of bin Laden, said to show a portion of his skull blown away from a gunshot wound to the area of his left eye, as well as to a video recording of his burial several hours later in the North Arabian Sea.
The president made no public remarks during the day about the raid, apart from the taped interview. But he arranged a visit for Thursday to ground zero in Manhattan, where the World Trade Center twin towers once stood.
After two days of shifting accounts of the dramatic raid, Carney said he would no longer provide details of the 40-minute operation by the team of elite Navy SEALs. That left unresolved numerous mysteries, prominent among them an exact accounting of bin Laden's demise. Officials have said he was unarmed but resisted when an unknown number of commandos burst into his room inside the high-security compound.
The officials who gave the latest details said a U.S. commando grabbed a woman who charged toward the SEALs inside the room. They said the raiders were concerned that she might be wearing a suicide vest.
Administration officials have said bin Laden's body was identified by several means, including a DNA test. Members of Congress who received a briefing during the day said a sample from the body killed at the compound in Pakistan was compared to known DNA from bin Laden's mother and three sons.
After two days of speculation about releasing the photographs, there was no detectable public debate in the U.S. about the merits of the raid itself against the man behind the terror attacks that killed nearly 3,000 Americans on Sept. 11, 2001.
Attorney General Eric Holder told Congress the operation was "entirely lawful and consistent with our values" and justified as "an action of national self-defense." Noting that bin Laden had admitted his involvement in the events of nearly a decade ago, he said, "It's lawful to target an enemy commander in the field."
Holder also said the team that carried out the raid had been trained to take bin Laden alive if he was willing to surrender. "It was a kill-or-capture mission," he said. "He made no attempt to surrender."
Bin Laden had evaded capture for nearly a decade, and officials said he had currency as well as two telephone numbers sewn into his clothing when he was killed, suggesting he was prepared to leave his surroundings on a moment's notice if he sensed danger.
Administration officials said the two dozen SEALs involved in the operation were back at their home base outside Virginia Beach, Va., and the extensive debriefing they underwent was complete. Saluted as heroes nationwide, they remained publicly unidentified because of security concerns.
In addition to bin Laden's body, the SEALs helicoptered out of the compound with computer files, flash drives, DVDs and documents that intelligence officials have begun analyzing in hopes the information will help them degrade or destroy the network bin Laden left behind.
In New York on Thursday, Carney said, Obama will lay a wreath at the World Trade Center site and hold a private meeting with relatives of some of the victims of the attacks, in which jetliners hijacked by terrorists were flown into the side of first one tower, then the other.
The buildings collapsed within minutes, dooming office workers as well as rescuers who had run in hoping to save them.
A few days later, then-President George W. Bush stood amid the rubble and spoke through a bullhorn. When one worker yelled, "I can't hear you," the president responded, "I can hear you! The rest of the world hears you! And the people — and the people who knocked these buildings down will hear all of us soon!"
A decade — and long wars in Iraq and Afghanistan later — Obama said he had no intention of gloating.
Obama's decision not to release any photographs was unlikely to be the final word, though.
Some members of Congress have been shown at least one photo of bin Laden, and others have asked to see it, an indication of the intense interest generated by the raid.
The Associated Press on Monday requested through the Freedom of Information Act photos of bin Laden's body as well as other materials, including video taken by military personnel during the raid and on the USS Carl Vinson, the ship that conducted bin Laden's burial at sea. The government has 20 days to respond.
Some family members of those who died in the 9/11attacks have pressed to have the photographs released to document bin Laden's death, as have some skeptics in the Arab world. But many lawmakers and others expressed concern that the photographic images could be seen as a "trophy" that would inflame U.S. critics and make it harder for members of the American military deployed overseas to do their jobs.
Obama said he had discussed his decision with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Defense Secretary Robert Gates "and my intelligence teams, and they all agree."
Despite fears of revenge attacks, officials have yet to raise the national threat level.
The disclosure that bin Laden was living in relative comfort inside Pakistan in Abbottabad has provoked some administration officials and lawmakers to question the Pakistani government's commitment to the decade-long search for the terrorist leader.
Publicly, Pakistan issued a statement on Monday taking the U.S. to task for an "unauthorized unilateral action" that "cannot be taken as a rule."
But privately, according to one official, Pakistani Army chief Ashfaq Kayani offered congratulations when Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, called to inform him after the operation, and urged a public release of the news. The official spoke on condition of anonymity, citing the sensitivity of the conversation.
The White House also announced Obama would visit Fort Campbell, Ky., on Friday to greet troops returning from Afghanistan, which the United States attacked in 2001 after its leaders refused to turn over members of the al-Qaida leadership living there.

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Johnny Depp

WHY IS HE FAMOUS

It's hard to believe it all started with 21 Jump Street. If Hollywood was a long-jump, then Johnny Depp has jumped far beyond the sandpit. Platoon, Donnie Brasco, Pirates, Blow, Sweeney Todd, and now Public Enemies -- Johnny Depp can pretty much do anything. The fact that he's had a champagne bubble bath with Kate Moss and used to enjoy the odd hotel trashing only makes him cooler. We'd love talk to him about his movies over whiskey, and then throw chairs around a Ritz Carlton room with him.

Johnny Depp Quote
" The only gossip I'm interested in is things from the Weekly World News -- 'Woman's bra bursts, 11 injured.' That kind of thing."
90 MAGNETISM

He's mysterious, brooding and a movie star. He once played guitar in a band (quite well, apparently), and he owned the infamous Viper Room, a club in Los Angeles. It doesn't get more badass than that, and while we can pretend that women really want the nice guy, you know your lady would hop on the back of his motorcycle and leave you in the dust if he asked her to. He's had more ex-fiancées than most guys have had girlfriends.

The fact that he's attached to Vanessa Paradis and has two children doesn't seem to deter the legions of adoring females that want to get deep with Johnny Depp.


82 SUCCESS

Johnny Depp once said of himself: "I'm not Mr. Blockbuster." Nonetheless, his movies usually fare quite well with audiences and critics alike, only not always in tandem. His starring role on 21 Jump Street made him a sensation among teenage girls and paved the way for more serious roles in film. He snagged a small part in Oliver Stone's Oscar-winning Vietnam film Platoon (1987) alongside Charlie Sheen before moving on to leading roles in other big-budget movies.

He drew praise for his performances in Donnie Brasco (alongside Al Pacino), Ed Wood (1994), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), and his almost silent tour-de-force, Edward Scissorhands (1990). He's also done well in a few romantic roles, playing Don Juan DeMarco (alongside Marlon Brando) in the film of the same name, and in Chocolat (2000) with Juliette Binoche.

Of all his roles, however, Johnny Depp became a family favorite in his role as swashbuckling Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean trilogy -- a role which garnered him his very first Oscar nomination, as well as two Golden Globe nominations in 2004 and 2007, respectively.

With Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007) and more recently Public Enemies and six other films in the works. Johnny Depp has the kind of staying power that Emilio Estevez cries about at night. But he's still cool enough to lend his voice to SpongeBob SquarePants.


JOHNNY DEPP BIOGRAPHY
John Christopher Depp III was born June 9, 1963, in Owensboro, Kentucky. The son of John Christopher, a city engineer and Betty Sue Palmer, a waitress and homemaker (Johnny Depp has a tattoo of his mother's name on his left arm), young Johnny relocated to Florida shortly after the death of his grandfather, with whom the future actor was very close, with his three older siblings.

Never the studious teenager, and even more distraught by the divorce of his parents, Johnny Depp delved into the world of experimental drugs and picked up a whole new passion: the guitar. The high-school dropout spent his days playing guitar in a garage band after he taught himself how to play with the instrument his mother bought him.


Johnny Depp On Elm Street

Johnny Depp joined a rock band called The Flame, with whom he toured the Florida nightclub circuit. The Flame eventually dubbed themselves The Kids, and the band was hired as the opening act on an Iggy Pop tour. Hoping to strike a chord as famous rockers, The Kids moved to Los Angeles. Johnny Depp took a job selling ballpoint pens over the phone in order to support himself, but he and his fellow rockers decided to break up and move on.

Bigger and better things awaited Johnny Depp, who at the time was married to makeup artist Lori Allison. Their marriage was short-lived, but it did lead to something: Lori introduced Johnny to Nicolas Cage, who saw star potential in the young Depp. Thanks to their encounter, Johnny Depp was cast in his feature film debut -- the slasher Nightmare on Elm Street in 1984.

After a starring role in the campy Private Resort, a bit part in 1986's Platoon and acting lessons at L.A.'s Loft Studio, Johnny Depp was cast as Officer Tom Hanson in the teen crime drama 21 Jump Street. He initially refused the role, but eventually accepted it and remained on the show -- and on the cover of every teen magazine -- for three years. To his dismay, Johnny Depp became a heartthrob posted on the wall of every teenage girl, a role he wanted no part in.


Johnny Depp In Cry-Baby
Johnny Depp was given the opportunity to prove his worth as the eccentric title role in Tim Burton's Edward Scissorhands in 1990. He starred in Cry-Baby that same year, and even made an appearance in the final installment of Nightmare on Elm Street, Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare, in which he was credited as Oprah Noodlemantra.

The brooding actor made it a point to always take on different characterizations. He certainly never became pigeonholed, despite the oddball, wacky characters he usually portrayed, as seen in 1993's Benny & Joon and 1994's Ed Wood. Johnny Depp made Hollywood and critics take notice with his incredible portrayal of a guy tired of his small-town lifestyle in 1993's What's Eating Gilbert Grape, also starring a then up-and-comer, Leonardo DiCaprio.


Johnny Depp In Donnie Brasco
While his work in 1995's Don Juan DeMarco and Nick of Time didn't garner much attention, Johnny Depp was highly praised for his turn as an FBI undercover agent who infiltrates the mob opposite Al Pacino, in 1997's Donnie Brasco. He also took time to write, direct and star in The Brave that year.

In 1998, Johnny Depp starred as the alter ego of buddy Hunter S. Thompson in Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, costarring Benicio Del Toro, and tried his hand at sci-fi in 1999's The Astronaut's Wife, along with gorgeous Charlize Theron. He re-teamed with Tim Burton to star in the magnificently Gothic adaptation of the Halloween legend, 1999's Sleepy Hollow, in a brilliant portrayal of constable Ichabod Crane.

Johnny Depp began 2000 with roles in The Man Who Cried (costarring good friend Christina Ricci), Before Night Falls, and the small film that could, Chocolat, as a gypsy who falls for Juliette Binoche.


Johnny Depp And Vanessa Paradis
While Johnny Depp has had his share of beautiful costars, he also had a wide variety of leading ladies in his own life, such as ex-fiancées Sherilyn Fenn, Jennifer Grey and Winona Ryder, with whom he was engaged for three years. The tattoo in honor of his Edward Scissorhands costar once read Winona Forever; it has since been laser-altered to read Wino Forever. Besides Winona, Johnny Depp's most famous ex-fiancée is Kate Moss. He and the waifish model were engaged from 1995 to 1997, and had an on-again/off-again relationship.

Johnny Depp shares a house in France with Vanessa Paradis, a French actress and singer, and the mother of their children, Lily-Rose Melody and Jack. The only reason Johnny Depp is ever away from home is in order to fulfill his film contracts.


Johnny Depp's Oscar And Golden Globe Nominations
Johnny Depp's critical acclaim as an actor has garnered him a slew of nominations and awards. He was honored with the 1990 ShoWest Male Star of Tomorrow award, the 1996 London Critics Circle Actor of the Year award for Ed Wood and the 1998 Honorary Cesar. He was nominated for an unprecedented seven Golden Globes, including four consecutive nominations between 2003 and 2006, and two Oscars for his performances in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003) and Finding Neverland (2004).


Johnny Depp In Sweeney Todd
In 2005, Johnny Depp appeared in three flicks: The Libertine, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (he played Willy Wonka) and the Academy-Award nominated stop-motion-animation film Corpse Bride.

Johnny Depp only appeared in one movie in 2006: Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest. However, 2007 was a year of major blockbusters for the talented actor.

The third installment of Pirates was released, Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End. He also appeared in Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street. The film reunited Johnny Depp with film director Tim Burton and won Johnny Depp the Golden Globe for Best Actor, as well as an Academy Award nomination in the same category.


Johnny Depp In Public Enemies
In 2009, Johnny Depp co-produced Shantaram. He also performed in Public Enemies, a gangster flick opposite Christian Bale, and The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, assuming a role Heath Ledger originally played. We can't really think of anyone better to take over for Heath.

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Claire Danes

WHY IS SHE FAMOUS

Claire achieved quick fame (and a Golden Globe) in her teens by starring in the short-lived TV series My So-Called Life, which she followed with a string of high-profile turns in mid-'90s films such as Little Women, U Turn and Romeo and Juliet. Most recently, she has appeared in The Hours and is set to star in the upcoming Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines.

Claire Danes Quote
" I have a huge, active imagination, [and] I think I'm really scared of being alone; because if I'm left to my own devices, I'll just turn into a madwoman."
76 SEX APPEAL

Claire Danes' previous teen star status and her knack for playing awkward, angst-ridden, or victimized women detracts a bit from her sexiness. Her own ample intellect and seriousness as an actress have perhaps prevented her from taking any bubbly, girly-girl roles that would make her more of a sexpot; at the same time, she's a bit too innocent-looking and demure to be a sultry seductress.

Nevertheless, although her traits may keep Claire from fitting too squarely into one kind of sexiness, those traits are hardly drawbacks and have a sex appeal of their own. FHM picked Claire as one of the magazine's "100 Sexiest Women" in 1997 and 1998, so thankfully her looks aren't quite going unnoticed.


82 SUCCESS

Claire Danes' list of accomplishments in a career that is already over a decade long is impressive. A memorable Law & Order guest spot was an auspicious debut, and her Golden Globe award at only 15 years of age, for My So-Called Life, is nearly unprecedented. Danes made up for passing on a role in Schindler's List by working with such acclaimed directors as Oliver Stone and Francis Ford Coppola, and has varied her output from Romeo and Juliet to Terminator 3.

Danes' fame has waxed and waned according to her public profile. In the mid-1990s, she was in constant demand, and, thanks to My So-Called Life and Romeo and Juliet, was especially popular with teenaged girls. When Claire took time off to attend Yale, her profile lowered accordingly. But now that she's back, dividing her time between critical favorites like The Hours and Igby Goes Down, and popular ones like Terminator 3, there's no reason Danes shouldn't become as famous as before, if not more so.


CLAIRE DANES BIOGRAPHY

Claire Catherine Danes was born in New York City on April 12th, 1979, into what she would later describe as a "very creative household." Her father, Chris, a computer consultant and architectural photographer, and her mother, Carla, a painter and teacher, first met at the Rhode Island School of Design. Both Claire's parents encouraged her participation in the arts at an early age. Claire also has a brother, Asa, six years her elder, who is a graduate of Oberlin College in Ohio and works for a non-profit organization.

At age six, Claire began classes in modern dance, which remains one of her interests to this day. At nine, she enrolled in the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute. Claire's acting career began in "off-off-Broadway" productions such as Happiness, Punk Ballet and Kids on Stage, for which she choreographed her own dance number. In 1992, she landed a guest spot on the hit NBC series Law & Order, playing a teen model who murders her photographer-lover.

a so-called success

Soon after the Law & Order appearance, Danes went to Los Angeles and was offered a part in Steven Spielberg's 1993 masterpiece, Schindler's List. However, Claire turned the role down because the production, set to shoot on location in Poland, could not arrange a tutor for her. Spurning such an opportunity might have been disastrous for a lesser talent, but Claire's next project ended up catapulting her to fame. She was cast as Angela Chase in the ABC drama, My So-Called Life.

The series -- the critics' darling and the subject of a small but devoted fan following -- was inexplicably canceled after a single season, despite its four Emmy nominations. One of these went to Claire, who lost, but did take home a Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a TV Series in 1995.

star-crossed star

The praise and attention that came from My So-Called Life jump-started Danes' film career. In 1994, she appeared alongside Susan Sarandon and Winona Ryder in Little Women. The next year came How to Make an American Quilt -- also with Ryder -- and Home for the Holidays, directed by Jodie Foster, who became 


Claire's mentor.

After a few more small roles, Danes landed the part of Juliet opposite Leonardo DiCaprio in Baz Luhrmann's hyper-kinetic Romeo and Juliet (1996). She lent her voice to the title role in the animated Princess Mononoke (1997), and starred in 1997's U Turn and The Rainmaker, 1998's Les Misérables and 1999's Brokedown Palace and The Mod Squad.

she'll be back

In the fall of 1998, Claire took a hiatus from her burgeoning film career to attend college and study psychology. Her choice was the prestigious Yale University, where her grandfather had once been dean in the School of Art and Architecture, and where Jodie Foster also went.

With a degree in her pocket, Claire has returned to acting in films, and it's as though she never left. After an appearance in Igby Goes Down (2002), Claire played Julia Vaughan in the multiple award-winner, The Hours (2002), followed by It's All About Love (2003).

This summer she will appear alongside Arnold Schwarzenegger in the highly anticipated Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines. A last minute choice for the role of Kate Brewster, Claire found it "overwhelming and disorienting" at first, but warmed to the idea of starring in a movie that was a departure from her previous work.

But that's not to say that Claire will be straying from what has built her stardom in the past; she will play the title role in next year's circus-set drama Flora Plum, directed by Jodie Foster.

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Kate Winslet

WHY IS SHE FAMOUS

Kate Winslet starred in Titanic, Sense and Sensibility and a number of other British period pieces. She has also been nominated for an Academy Award an impressive number times, and brought home an Oscar for 2008's The Reader.

Kate Winslet Quote

" I'd rather do theater and British films than move to L.A. in hopes of getting small roles in American films."


83 SEX APPEAL

We have always been fans of voluptuous women, and apparently so was this week's voting panel, who simply remarked, "she looks sexy in the way a woman is supposed to look sexy." How can we top that?


81 SUCCESS

Unbeknownst to most, Kate Winslet has already been nominated for a slew of Oscars -- an incredible accomplishment for any actor. Though she started her career in period pieces such as Sense and Sensibility and Jude, she has branched out into more contemporary roles such as Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) and The Holiday (2006).

As for her fame; well, let's just say appearing in the most successful movie of all-time raised her recognition factor -- just a little.


KATE WINSLET BIOGRAPHY

Kate Elizabeth Winslet was born October 5, 1975, in Reading, England. With acting deep-rooted into her genes, it was no wonder that Kate herself would also turn to the dramatic arts.

Her grandparents, Oliver and Linda Bridges, founded and operated the Reading Repertory theater; father Roger Winslet and mom Sally were both actors; uncle Robert Bridges appeared in the original West End production of Oliver!; and both her sisters Beth and Anna are actors. Her younger brother Joss is probably the only Winslet who did not enter the family business.


Kate Winslet In A Kid In King Arthur's Court
Kate Winslet made her debut at age 11, when she costarred with the "Honey Monster" in a commercial for a children's breakfast. After acting lessons and a graduation from a performing arts high school, Kate Winslet took to the stage in productions of Adrian Mole and Peter Pan.

Kate Winslet then took the television route, with appearances on sitcoms, most notably a recurring role on the British comedy, Get Back. Kate went from a rather dark role in the 1994 film Heavenly Creatures (as a teen involved in a murder), to the more children-oriented A Kid in King Arthur's Court, where she starred as Princess Sarah.


Kate Winslet In Sense & Sensibility
The British actress' career was about to rise after Kate Winslet was cast as Marianne Dashwood in the adaptation of Jane Austen's period piece, Sense and Sensibility, sharing the screen with Emma Thompson and Hugh Grant.

The film's producers and director, Ang Lee, knew that Kate was the one for the part during her audition, and to underscore that decision, she received an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress.

Kate Winslet may have lost the Oscar, but she did win the Screen Actors Guild for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role, and a British Academy of Film and Television Arts Best Supporting Actress Award, both for Sense and Sensibility.

As even more evidence that Kate Winslet was a natural in a corset, she next starred in two more period pieces in 1996: Jude (based on the novel Jude the Obscure), and Hamlet (the one with Kenneth Branagh), where she starred as the tragic Ophelia.


Kate Winslet In Titanic
In 1997, Kate Winslet plunged into the icy waters and made movie history as the heroine of James Cameron's mega-movie Titanic. Her role as Rose DeWitt Bukater not only made her the envy of teenage girls worldwide (for getting to share breathing space with Leonardo DiCaprio), but it also marked her transition from artsy, independent films, to commercial blockbuster flicks. She received another Oscar nod, this time in the Best Supporting Actress category, making her the youngest actress to receive two Oscar nominations.

However, Kate chose the road less traveled by supposedly refusing the lead roles in Shakespeare in Love (Gwyneth sure owes her a big thank-you) and Anna and the King, in order to star in two more alternative, independent films: Hideous Kinky (1998) and Holy Smoke (1999).

2000 saw Kate in yet another period piece: the critically acclaimed Quills. She then appeared in Enigma (2001), Iris (2001), The Life of David Gale (2003), and was heard in the animated feature Flushed Away (2006), with Hugh Jackman.

Delving into children-oriented films isn't a bad idea, since Kate Winslet is also mother to Mia (her daughter with ex-husband Jim Threapleton) and Joe (her son with husband Sam Mendes).


Kate Winslet's Oscar Nods
Oscar sure does like Kate. She holds the record for being the youngest actor to receive four Academy Award nominations, all by the age of 29. She was nominated for an Academy Award for the third time in 2002, as Best Actress in a Supporting Role for Iris. And her fourth Oscar nod in 2005 was for Best Actress for her work in Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004). Some might even argue that Kate was robbed of a nomination for her stellar performance as a widowed mother of four boys in 2004's Finding Neverland.

Kate is no stranger to award nominations, however. By 2005, she had already been nominated for four Golden Globe awards, and in 2007, she received a fifth for her role in the critically acclaimed Little Children.


Kate Winslet Wins Golden Globes And Gets Her Oscar
At the 2009 Golden Globes, Kate Winslet took home two awards: one for Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Drama for her work in Revolutionary Road and one for Best Performance by an Actress In A Supporting Role in a Motion Picture for her work in The Reader. At the 2009 Academy Awards, Winslet finally took home her very own little gold statue for Best Actress in a Leading Role for her performance in The Reader.

Also in 2009, Kate Winslet grabbed the last coveted spot on AM's Top 99, coming in at No. 99 on AskMen.com's Top 99 Most Desirable Women of 2009.

In March of 2010, Kate Winslet announced that she and Sam Mendes have amicably separated.

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Russell Crowe

WHY IS HE FAMOUS

He had breakout performances in Gladiator, L.A. Confidential and The Insider with Al Pacino, which earned him an Oscar nomination.


Russell Crowe Quote
" After The Insider, I know the exact chemical compounds in a commercial cigarette, but I've been smoking since I was 10. I know it's terrible, but I am a great fan of irony."


91 MAGNETISM

He is a self-proclaimed long-term bachelor, which basically means he can sleep with any woman he wants, and whoever doesn't like it can go screw themselves. Though he has been attached to several of Hollywood's heavyweight actresses (the aforementioned Meg Ryan and Jodie Foster), he still claims bachelorhood, despite having a kingdom of this world's finest female specimens at his gates.
79 SUCCESS

His character and look garner the inevitable comparisons to Marlon Brando, but Russell Crowe's reluctance to play the Hollywood game almost did him in. He was widely known for Australian independent movies before Sharon Stone brought him to Tinseltown.

Still, studio executives tried to have him fired from the set of L.A. Confidential before shooting began, by stopping payments on his hotel bill. That only motivated him more, and after the movie came out, a star was born -- but not fully developed. His highly acclaimed role in Gladiator only came after Mel Gibson turned it down.


RUSSELL CROWE BIOGRAPHY

Russell Ira Crowe was born April 7, 1964, in Wellington, New Zealand, to parents Jocelyn and Alex Crowe. Young Russell was raised in Sydney, Australia after his family relocated down-under when he was four years old.

Since his parents were set caterers and his father was a hotel manager, the Crowe family led a rather nomadic life, the reason for which Crowe only lived in his first actual house at the age of fourteen. Acquiring a taste for acting when he served as a child extra while accompanying his parents to work, the high school dropout was more passionate about performing as a musician rather than an actor.

30 off foot of crowe

While he had several acting credits under his belt, 16-year-old Crowe dubbed himself Russ Le Roc -- of the rock group Roman Antix, that is -- and performed in order to supplement his income. Working as a bartender, waiter and bingo-number caller wasn't enough to pay the bills, so playing music served as an additional source of income.

"I Want To Be Like Marlon Brando" was the title of the 1980 single Russ Le Roc recorded as a solo artist (before forming Roman Antix), which eventually became 30 Odd Foot Of Grunts. With former acting experience, the singer, songwriter and guitarist returned to acting -- never giving up his musical career.

At the age of 25, Crowe was cast in his first feature film role, as Lieutenant Corbett in Prisoners of the Sun, otherwise known as Blood Oath. But his big break came in 1991, with his award-winning performance (Australian Film Institute Award for Best Supporting Actor) in Proof.

That was only the beginning of his critically acclaimed career, as he followed up his role in 1993's Romper Stomper, as a Nazi skinhead. With another Australian Film Institute Award, this time for Best Actor, to add to his mantle, Crowe starred as a homosexual man in 1994's The Sum of Us.

But Crowe's success was, at this point, only limited to the land of kangaroos and koalas, until a certain Sharon Stone caught his Romper Stomper performance and was convinced that he was the perfect fit for her film The Quick and the Dead. Crowe was the only positive part of the film, which stayed true to its name and died quickly at the box-office.

But it was all good for Crowe, who was becoming recognized in the United States. That year, he co-starred with Denzel Washington, in 1995's Virtuosity, as a serial killer. Although the movie was nothing to write Australia about, Crowe's career was beginning to soar to new heights.

gladiator slays the competition

He finally broke through in acting circles everywhere as the no-nonsense cop and Kim Basinger's lover in 1997's L.A. Confidential. Although he was snubbed at the Oscars, Crowe was being toted as the new "it" boy of Hollywood, despite Leo's claims of being "king of the world" that same year.

In 1999, Crowe's portrayal of real-life whistle-blower Jeffrey Wigand in the drama The Insider earned the actor rave reviews, as well as a Best Actor Oscar nomination. As Roman general Maximus in the blockbuster epic, Gladiator, Russell Crowe showed moviegoers and critics alike that he was unstoppable in the Roman arena, and in Hollywood, with his Oscar for Best Actor in a Motion Picture in 2001.

His Maximus role also garnered him Best Actor awards from the Broadcast Film Critics Association, San Diego Film Critics, and Dallas-Fort Worth Film Critics Association.

crown prince of hollywood

Although Crowe has been compared to legendary greats James Dean, Marlon Brando and Robert Mitchum, he refuses to give in to the Hollywood scene. The only way one can say that he has succumbed to it though, is having been romantically linked to Hollywood cutie, Meg Ryan; his Proof of Life co-star.

While filming Jodie Foster's Flora Plum, Crowe suffered a shoulder injury. He will next be seen in A Beautiful Mind, co-starring Jennifer Connelly.

While Crowe is only becoming a more powerful force in film, he continues to tour with his band, 30 Odd Foot Of Grunts. As one of Australia's greatest imports since Elle MacPherson and Mel Gibson, this gladiator is taking his career to the maximus.

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Barbie rocks the cradle

In a lot of ways, former acoustic pop sensation Barbie Almalbis is stepping out of her comfort zone.

Barbie is releasing a new album entitled "Goodbye My Shadow" in a couple of weeks and the first single off the album is already available as a download via her official website. It's a bold move for a musician whose previous efforts involved the production facility and marketing might of a multinational recording company.
The creation of Barbie's latest album has also been attended by new adventures in living life and making music. For the past five years, she devoted much of her waking hours being wife to painter husband Martin Honasan and mom to daughter Noa Stina (now three years old) and son Liam Israel (10 months old).
Barbie still performed in occasional evening engagements in between pregnancies. She still composed new songs at night when the house was still and the kids were tucked in bed.
A year ago while pregnant with son Liam, she composed a couple of tunes on her laptop, which eventually shaped up into a batch of new materials for an album. She learned the ropes of making good music on her own, reading, writing and producing on an informal studio at home.
Barbie tells of her DIY escapade to Yahoo! OMG! Philippines: "It was a different experience. It was the first time I've recorded most of my parts at home. I use a laptop to compose. Sometimes, I'd put my guitar and place a few mics around the room. There's a soundproofed room in the house where I sometimes do my vocals.
"I started out with lots of trial and error. First time I did it, my guitar parts sounded terrible. I got a bit frustrated so I researched and researched (her emphasis) to come up with the right sound I was looking for."
Barbie subsequently convened her current back-up band, composed of brother-in-law Karel Honasan on bass and Alden Abaca on drums, to flesh out her working drafts into full-blown songs. She consciously aimed for her songs to sound as good in her makeshift home environment as they would be when they finally work on the tracks in the studio.
As luck would have it, her favorite producer Maly Andres (Violent Playground) slipped into town just as Barbie and band mates were about to record her new album. He moved to New Zealand after producing Barbie's Cradle's second album.
Early this year, Maly dropped a message on Facebook about staying in Manila for a few weeks and if by any chance, Barbie would be interested in making an album with him. Maly and Barbie eventually laid down a few tracks while Maly was in Manila, but work on the album progressed via regular email exchange.
All this time, her manager and partner in the indie label 16 Stones, Tommy Tanchangco, hardly heard a pipsqueak on Barbie's newest effort. She basked in the freedom to do whatever she wanted but at the same time, Barbie felt obliged to deliver her best as part of the bargain.
Tommy got the chance to finally listen to her new songs during the mixing of the tracks. Afterwards, the daring duo decided to use the Internet to promote and market Barbie's brand new music.
Barbie reasons, "With my last album, we did it the traditional way. This time around, it's like everybody's online now, it's where people listen to music. I listen to music online.
"At the same time, I know that iTunes is not yet set up in the Philippines, and not a lot of people have PayPal accounts so Internet purchasing is not yet established here."
"But as an artist, I want to get my music out there. That's why I wanna share it. Giving my single for free (.WAV format) or in return for a donation (.MP3), makes it easier for people to hear the new sound, the new me for that matter."
In a number of ways, "Goodbye My Shadow" bids farewell to the Barbie of old, and to preconceived ideas of who Barbie Almalbis is and the music she makes. Musically, her latest album heads off in different directions from track to track, setting off minor explosions in your head in the attempt to leave an imprint beyond the three-minute mark.
Weirdly titled "Ostrich Cowboy" is sound-tracked by REM-like folk rock sharing the same page as one-hit wonder Frente! who remade the original unrest of New Order's "Bizarre Love Triangle" into a quiet croon. In fact, Barbie's child-woman singing mirrors that of Frente! lead singer Angie Hart's vocals.
Elsewhere, an undercurrent of funk pushes "No Police" out of the acoustic jam, and an itty bit of erotic tingle brightens its refrain. "Lights" has a nice light jazz feel while "Unraveling" works out the love blues in strummed guitars.
Barbie said she writes from her personal experiences. "Goodbye My Shadow" is strewn with passionate personal notes for a husband, Jesus Christ, an imagined future for her growing kids, and in one track, on the subtleties of desire.
Despite the album title, say Hello! instead to the resurgence of Barbie Almalbis. She has taken the road less traveled by, and she deserves all the best wishes for taking chance. She may as well be pushing the boundaries of Pinoy pop music to its next surge.

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Rhian Ramos, Mo Twister exchange angry tweets

Rhian Ramos and Mo Twister's mysterious "relationship" has gone from sweet to sour.
Just as we thought everything seems to be working fine between the two, the usually private "couple" suddenly chose to go public, but this time with their not-so-sweet tirades against each other.
In their recent Twitter war on Tuesday, May 3 which netizens now dub as a "lover's quarrel," Rhian became obviously irritated when someone allegedly broke into her Twitter account to publicize her personal life.
"well thank you for breaking into my twitter. nice job. i hope you get all the sympathy you hoped for," Rhian tweeted and to the rest of you, mind your business, i've been harassed enough for today, thank you. as if would really publicize my personal life? as if i'm the one that is known to want to be a part of every scandal? thanks," Rhian further tweeted.
"and anong "break-up tweet- break-up tweet" ang sinasabi niyo. didn't he say i wasn't his girlfriend?," she added.
In response, Mo tweeted back, "You told me it's your job to be single and desired, but what about the hearts you break along the way?"
Mo continued with "wow! are you implying now it's me who did it? what else do you want to throw at me today? i'm just reacting to your tweet and now job is whats the link? i wasn't the one who did everything for the job."
"there are a few people i wont fight here on twitter & one of them is you. i think ive been thrashed and lied enough to today. im done here & i wont argue w/ you. i hope your thailand trip last holy week went well," Mo added.
Mo posted a few more meaningful tweets.
"i would never wish upon any of you the sacrifice ive had to make. and even after it, its mocked by those who benefited from it."
"and it will come. the ghosts of those lost will find a way. all the lies and deceit isn't enough of a shield"
Meanwhile Rhian's last tweet includes a link to a YouTube video showing what seems to be a small piglet.
"here. magpaka good vibes tayong lahat," she said.
Based from their tweets the couple who just recently admitted that they are exclusively dating are now officially fighting.

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Unwilling TV

So now what?
After the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) handed down its 30-day suspension on "Willing Willie" which the agency said was inclusive of the show's voluntary hiatus that started on April 9, Willie Revillame is expected to be back on air on Monday, May 9. After egos were badly hurt, names were dragged in the muck, name-calling and accusations flew like ping pong balls gone berserk and cases were filed in court, it seems that life will go on. As it should, really.
Of late, the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) has filed a child abuse case against the beleaguered host, the parents of Little Dancing Jan Jan has filed cases against a child psychologist and bloggers who allegedly damaged their reputation and gave them sleepless nights … and Willie Revillame will return right into your homes to give you more fun, laughter and a sense of hope that not even the resignation of Merceditas Gutierrez could ever provide. But then what? The MTRCB has rendered its decision on the matter. The networks have come up with their own Ombudsman, creating Bibles on "how to treat children in that endless pursuit for creative ways of providing entertainment" in order to convince the public (and MTRCB chairperson Grace Poe-Llamanzares) that never again shall such gross miscalculations between fun and supposed child molestation ever be brought into prime time programming. And Willie Revillame will come back in full force with total studio backing in an improved, renovated and hopefully more wholesome format to set all those dancing girls wiggling their pelvises and posteriors in the spirit of fun, fun, fun!
The bottom line is that what was that fuss all about? Will the uproar in the social networks and the collective sighs of disgust from the violated middle class be conveniently forgotten to end in a whimper? Someone quite jaded said, "Oh, just give the Pinoys three weeks … and the issue will die a natural death. Kung si Marcos nga kanilang nakalimutan at napatawad, ano na lang ba itong gulong ito?"
Perhaps there is some truth in that. Because life will go on and for the Pinoy, entertainment is life that goes on and on and on. Yes, it is true: the issue is no longer Willie Revillame for they may be truth that people could have overreacted to that whole Dancing Boy Incident. After all, Jan Jan was not the first --- but hopefully the last (for quite some time) little child pushed in front of the cameras and a live audience to impersonate the suggestive choreography typical of the seedy and cheesy night life of Manila.
The problem is so much larger --- and it is not the exploitation of this little boy. Rather, it is television's exploitation of the minds of the audience --- and how it has misshapen the Filipinos' concept of what is worthwhile entertainment.
But, as another jaded observer voiced out, "Who cares? All those Facebook and Twitter zealots are not the kind of people who fill the studios or diehard Willie Revillame fans. What do they know about what the masa really wants?"
Hmmm. So I guess … that is that. The show must go on.

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FROM HEAD TO TOE: Tweetie de Leon-Gonzales and Rissa Mananquil on their "need not be expensive" fashion

One day in February, the Watson's section of SM Makati was adorned with Cherry Blossoms to underscore the arrival of SakuraBella, a line of body-care products in the country.

Pink was the dominant color, but one lady clad in white ensemble made some heads turn. She looked divine!

Her name is Rissa Mananquil—former president of the Professional Models Association of the Philippines (PMAP), supermodel, columnist, and teacher. She played the fiancée of Aga Muhlach in Kailangan Kita, which also starred Claudine Barretto.

Her belt and shoes are both from Charles and Keith, a footwear brand that originated in Singapore. Her skirt is from Issey Miyake, a Japanese fashion designer known for his "technology-driven" designs. Her top is from SM.
Yes, even the topnotch models get some of their fashionista's stuff from Henry Sy's mall.

"Fashion doesn't have to cost a lot," Rissa simply said in an ambush interview.

This is the same dictum followed by another supermodel Tweetie de Leon-Gonzales, who became famous in showbiz as Faye—the wife of Enteng Kabisote, played by Vic Sotto, in Okay Ka Fairy Ko.

Tweetie shared, "Fashion doesn't have to be expensive for you to be stylish."

She was wearing a Maldita top and Zara pants. Her shoes—which cost 3,500 pesos—are from Virtual Mae, an online store operated by Mae Sergio.

The in-demand endorser was effortlessly fabulous. She said another rule in her style book is "Don't look contrived."

Her necklace was from her own jewelry line TdLG, which she described in stylebible.ph as "classically quirky" and "dressy bohemian."

Meanwhile, Rissa was wearing only one piece of jewelry in the event: her engagement ring! Yup, she recently got engaged to restaurateur and sportscaster Paolo Trillo.

And in a sea of people, it was easy to spot the models.

The soon-to-be-bride said poise just comes secondary. "Just be comfortable with what you're wearing because no matter how simple your outfit, it makes you shine if you're comfortable and confident."

Tweetie added, smiling, "And don't take it too seriously."

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Kate Middleton wore a wedding dress inpired by the "classic Grace Kelly look"

Catherine "Kate" Middleton looked stunning as she walked down the altar of Westminster Abbey last April 29, 2011.

As soon as Prince William laid eyes on Kate, he told her, "You look beautiful."

Contributing greatly to her dazzling presence was her elegant wedding dress designed by Sarah Burton, the creative director of the Alexander McQueen label.

Kate worked closely with Sarah to design a dress that would "combine tradition and modernity."

As a result, the new Duchess of Cambridge wore a gown that combines '50s glamour with a sleek, modern silhouette. Made with ivory and white satin gazar, its corseted bodice emphasized Kate's small waistline.
It has a V-neckline with long lace sleeves since she cannot expose bare shoulders in Westminster Abbey. The dress also featured hand-embroidered English and French Chantilly lace and a satin gazar pleated skirt. There were 58 silk and organza-covered buttons at the back of her gown.

Kate's wedding train measures 9-ft long, which is much shorter compared to the almost 25-ft train worn by Princess Diana in her wedding to Prince Charles in July 29, 1981.

For several months, seamstresses from the Royal School of Needlework stitched ­daffodils, shamrocks, roses and thistles on to the bridal gown.

Kate wore her hair in a demi-chignon while her head was adorned by a 1936 Cartier halo-style tiara lent by Queen Elizabeth II. She also wore the 18-carat sapphire and diamond engagement ring that previously belonged to the late Princess Diana.

For the reception at Buckingham Palace, Kate also wore another Sarah Burton creation: a strapless white gown made of satin. It has a sweetheart neckline and a circle skirt giving a similar silhouette to her wedding gown. Her slim figure was accentuated by a rhinestone waist band and topped with a cropped angora white sweater.

Sarah Burton has been quoted as saying that the wedding gown that they created "represents the best of British craftsmanship."

Sarah took over the brand when Alexander McQueen committed suicide last year. Originally from Manchester, England, Sarah moved to London to study print fashion in the same school where McQueen studied: Central St. Martins. She became McQueen's personal assistant in 1997. In 2000, she became head of womenswear for the British fashion house.

An Alexander McQueen gown was also worn by a high-society British bride in September 2005. Sarah Buys wore a corseted strapless cream silk and tulle wedding gown for her wedding to Tom Parker Bowles, who is Prince William's stepbrother.

Sarah Burton has designed dresses that have been worn by Hollywood stars such as Cate Blanchett, Lady Gaga and Gwyneth Paltrow as well as the United States' First Lady Michelle Obama.

COMPARISON WITH GRACE KELLY'S GOWN. In the April 2011 issue of People Magazine, Kate Middleton was quoted as saying that she loved the dress worn by Grace Kelly during her wedding to Prince Rainier of Monaco in 1956.

Grace Kelly is an American actress whose movies include the Alfred Hitchcock movies Dial M for Murder (1954) and Rear Window (1954). Like Kate, the late actress Grace Kelly was a commoner who married royalty.

The Hollywood actress wore a wedding dress designed by Helen Rose, the head wardrobe designer of MGM (Metro Goldwyn Mayer Studios).

Kate's wedding gown had a lot of similarities with the delicate lace dress used by Grace Kelly. Similar features also include the use of see-through long sleeves, simple bouquets, short veils and modest trains.

Both Kate and Grace Kelly wore lace long-sleeved wedding gowns with waist-cinching bodices and voluminous skirts.

One notable difference is their choice of neckline: Grace Kelly's gown had a high collar top while Kate opted for a modestly plunging neckline.

PREVIOUS ROYAL WEDDING GOWNS. Kate's dress, however, deviated from the gowns previously worn by the British royal brides.
Prince William's grandmother and mother both used pearls as embellishments.

In 1947, Princess Elizabeth Alexandra Mary (later Queen Elizabeth II) got married to Phillip Mouthbatten. She wore a silk and embroidered gown with crystals and 10,000 seed pearls, with a 15-ft lace train, designed by Norman Hartnell.

When Princess Diana married Prince Charles of Wales in 1981, her gown also featured 10,000 pearls and sequins, which were hand embroidered on her dress.

Princess Diana's ruffled wedding gown, designed by David and Elizabeth Emanuel, had a 25-ft silk train and featured huge and puffy sleeves.


Amidst all the talk about similarities and differences in their gowns, they all shared one common denominator: the brides radiated beauty, elegance and confidence as they walked down the aisle for their own fairy-tale wedding.

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