The Miss Universe 2010 pageant is under way on NBC, airing live from Las Vegas. Hosts are Natalie Morales and Bret Michaels. Here's what's happened so far:

Based on a preliminary competition, the top 15 contestants are:

Miss Puerto Rico, Miss Ukraine, Miss Mexico, Miss Belgium, Miss Ireland, Miss South Africa, Miss France, Miss Australia, Miss Jamaica, Miss Russia, Miss Albania, Miss Colombia, Miss Guatemala, Miss Czech Republic and Miss Philippines.

The judges include celebrities like Jane Seymour, Criss Angel and Evan Lysacek.

Swimsuit competition time. Here are the contestants' approximate combined judges' scores:

Miss Puerto Rico scores 8.4. Miss Ukraine scores 8.3. Miss Mexico scores 9.3. Miss Belgium scores 7.6. Miss Ireland scores 8.8. Miss South Africa scores 8.2.

Miss France scores 7.6. Miss Australia scores 8.5. Miss Jamaica scores 9.4. Miss Russia scores 7.8. Miss Albania scores 8.2. Miss Colombia scores 7.6. Miss Guatemala scores 8.1. Miss Czech Republic scores 7.4. Miss Philippines scores 9.0.

The top 10 contestants are:

Miss Ireland, Miss Albania, Miss Philippines, Miss Jamaica, Miss Mexico, Miss Ukraine, Miss Puerto Rico, Miss South Africa, Miss Guatemala and Miss Australia.

I really like Miss Australia, but I think Miss Mexico is going to win. What are your predictions?

Evening gown competition time. Here are the contestants' approximate combined judges' scores:

Miss Ireland gets 8.5. Miss Albania gets 8.7. Miss Philippines gets 8.7. Miss Jamaica gets 8.9. Miss Mexico gets 8.9.

Miss Ukraine gets 8.7. Miss Puerto Rico gets 8.0. Miss South Africa gets 8.4. Miss Guatemala gets 8.3. Miss Australia gets 8.8.

Time for some special awards. Miss Australia wins Miss Congeniality. Miss Thailand wins Miss Photogenic and Best National Costume.

The top 5 contestants are:

Miss Mexico, Miss Australia, Miss Jamaica, Miss Ukraine and Miss Philippines.

Yes! The dreaded final question! They have 30 seconds to answer. Here are their questions and excerpts from their answers.

First up, Miss Mexico Jimena Navarrete: What effect is unsupervised Internet use having on today's youth? Through an interpreter, she says the Internet is an "indispensable, necessary tool" and we have to make sure kids are using it according to family values.

Miss Australia Jesinta Campbell: What role should the government play in regulating potentially offensive clothing? "One of the greatest things we have is the freedom of choice...I don't think the government should have any say in what we wear."

Miss Jamaica Yendi Phillipps: Is the death penalty acceptable and why? "I believe that life is a gift...I believe that none of us as humans have the right to take a life."

Miss Ukraine Anna Poslavska: How do you feel about full-body scanners in airports? Through an interpreter, she says, "I think it's a very important question of security...if that helps us to save the lives of people, than I'm for it."

Miss Philippines Venus Raj: What is one big mistake you've made and what did you do to make it right? She says she hasn't made any major mistakes, then gives a shout-out to her family. "Thank you so much that I am here."

OK, that was the worst answer of the bunch.

Judgment time.

Fourth runner-up: Miss Philippines

Third runner-up: Miss Ukraine

Second runner-up: Miss Australia

First runner-up: Miss Jamaica

Winner: Miss Mexico!

10. The White House is not big enough for in-laws and extended relatives.

9. There are not enough parking spaces at the White House for 2 Honda Civics, 2 Toyota Land Cruisers, 3 Toyota Corollas, a Mercedes Benz, a BMW , and an MPV (My Pinoy Van).

8. Dignitaries generally are intimidated by eating with their fingers at State dinners.

7. There are too many dining rooms in the White House – where will they put the picture of the Last Supper?

6. The White House walls are not big enough to hold a pair of giant wooden spoon and fork

5. Secret Service staff won’t respond to :psst… psst” or “hoy…hoy…hoy”

4. Secret Service staff will not be comfortable driving the presidential car with a Holy Rosary hanging on the rear view mirror, or the statue of the Santo Nino on the dashboard.

3. No budget allocation to purchase a Karaoke music-machine for every room in the White House.

2. State dinners do not allow ‘Take Home’.

AND THE NUMBER 1 REASON WHY THERE COULDN’T BE A FILIPINO-AMERICAN U.S. PRESIDENT IS……

1. Air Force One does not allow overweight Balikbayan Boxes.

"Clash of the Titans" could be called "Cash of the Titans." The action tale set in the world of ancient Greek gods debuted as the No. 1 weekend movie with $61.2 million.

The top 20 movies at U.S. and Canadian theaters Friday through Sunday, followed by distribution studio, gross, number of theater locations, average receipts per location, total gross and number of weeks in release, as compiled Monday by Hollywood.com are:

1. "Clash of the Titans," Warner Bros., $61,235,105, 3,777 locations, $16,213 average, $63,890,110, one week.

2. "Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too?", Lionsgate, $29,289,537, 2,155 locations, $13,591 average, $29,289,537, one week.

3. "How to Train Your Dragon," Paramount-DreamWorks, $29,010,044, 4,060 locations, $7,145 average, $92,135,916, two weeks.

4. "The Last Song," Disney, $16,007,426, 2,673 locations, $5,989 average, $25,395,041, one week.

5. "Alice in Wonderland," Disney, $8,208,060, 2,980 locations, $2,754 average, $309,733,753, five weeks.

6. "Hot Tub Time Machine," MGM, $8,070,716, 2,771 locations, $2,913 average, $27,910,213, two weeks.

7. "The Bounty Hunter," Sony, $6,091,907, 3,118 locations, $1,954 average, $48,853,453, three weeks.

8. "Diary of a Wimpy Kid," Fox, $5,302,369, 2,842 locations, $1,866 average, $46,013,347, three weeks.

9. "She's Out of My League," Paramount, $1,516,952, 1,390 locations, $1,091 average, $28,712,974, four weeks.

10. "Shutter Island," Paramount, $1,488,403, 1,356 locations, $1,098 average, $123,440,937, seven weeks.

11. "Green Zone," Universal, $1,248,395, 1,242 locations, $1,005 average, $33,118,420, four weeks.

12. "The Ghost Writer," Summit, $1,127,697, 656 locations, $1,719 average, $11,016,593, seven weeks.

13. "Avatar," Fox, $980,239, 511 locations, $1,918 average, $742,332,678, 16 weeks.

14. "Our Family Wedding," Fox Searchlight, $826,067, 722 locations, $1,144 average, $18,602,225, four weeks.

15. "Greenberg," Focus, $725,294, 186 locations, $3,899 average, $2,293,918, three weeks.

16. "Repo Men," Universal, $576,180, 873 locations, $660 average, $13,156,255, three weeks.

17. "Chloe," Sony Pictures Classics, $512,871, 339 locations, $1,513 average, $1,797,090, two weeks.

18. "Remember Me," Summit, $482,428, 906 locations, $532 average, $18,242,661, four weeks.

19. "The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo," Music Box Films, $455,977, 87 locations, $5,241 average, $1,438,838, three weeks.

20. "Hubble 3D," Warner Bros., $436,714, 40 locations, $10,918 average, $1,968,671, three weeks.

SOURCE: http://www.hollywood.com/boxoffice

Be on the lookout for a current spate of phishing tactics spreading on Facebook via the chat feature.

The attack employs similar methods to those used by past scams, using hijacked user accounts to send chat messages with a generic message and a link to a familiar-looking Facebook phishing page. Of course, if you actually click the link and enter your details on the fake Facebook login page, the hackers steal your e-mail and password and direct you on to the real Facebook.

Once your account has been compromised, hackers use it to perpetuate the scam by spamming your friends in chat. Automated bots handle the heavy lifting of pestering your contacts. At least one of the messages comes in the format “ROFL this you?!” with a phishing link, but this particular vulnerability may take other forms, so be sure to use caution when receiving any remotely suspicious chat messages from your Facebook contacts.

Facebook typically aggressively pursues phishing scams like this one, so hopefully it won’t be plaguing users for too much longer. Until then, please use caution when using chat. Have you spotted any variants of this scam?

Article from: www.Mashable.com

The government has revoked the license of celebrity doctor Hayden Kho Jr. following the immorality complaints filed against him by his ex-lover, actress Katrina Halili.

"The Board declares that Dr. Kho Jr., violated the right of privacy of Ms. Halili when he videotaped their most intimate moments without the express consent and knowledge of the complainant...he was negligent and careless in the custody and possession of the videotape... the videos were then released to the public and this constituted evidence in the invasion of privacy of the complainant," the decision read.

Kho, for his part, admitted filming his sexual encounters but denied uploading the videos. He also apologized to Halili, saying the videos were part of his personal collection and accused his friends of posting them.

Halili also filed a complaint before the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) seeking the agency's help in curbing the rampant selling of their sex video in the underground markets.

KK, GMANews.TV

"American Idol" is boogeying toward another elimination.

Tuesday night's worrisome theme is "disco," and a number of finalists have impressed judges with groovy versions of '70s classics.

As expected, the seemingly unstoppable force known as Adam Lambert had Simon Cowell and the gang wrapped around his finger. The 27-year-old "Idol" frontrunner wowed the panel with his restrained, emotional delivery of "If I Can't Have You."
Paula Abdul who had a dreamy look on her face _ said she felt Lambert's "pain." The judge called the theater actor fascinating, brilliant and a shoo-in for the finals of the Fox singing contest.

In another bold declaration, she also told Danny Gokey he'd make it to the final stretch.

Like many young artists today, Lady GaGa defies categorization. But a general description would go something like this: go-go-dancing diva who writes her own disco-electronica pop songs. Oh, and Lady GaGa performs only in her underwear.

“I thought about my fantasy show,” explains Lady GaGa, whose name is a riff on Queen’s famous “Radio Ga Ga” song. “What would I be really jealous of if I saw it in New York? Hot chicks in bikinis!” Formerly Stefani Germanotta, a graduate of Manhattan’s all-girls Convent of the Sacred Heart, she’s a slim 21-year-old with thick black eyeliner and a big brunette bouffant reminiscent of that other crazy rock chick, Amy Winehouse. But while the latter favors bottles of whiskey, Lady GaGa’s vices, if you can call them that, are anything skimpy and shiny. She loves spangles, lots and lots of spangles, dripping from the raunchy stage gear she often crafts herself.

Lady GaGa is one of the hottest acts on New York’s club scene, spreading the word of burlesque rock, or whatever it’s being labeled. Earlier this year she was signed to Interscope Records and finished her first album, to be released next year. In August she and her sidekick, Lady Starlight (Colleen Martin by day, a makeup pro for MAC Cosmetics), played Lollapalooza, by turns dazzling and shocking audiences with their wild performance, a romp of provocative go-go moves set to catchy tunes and beatbox drums. Their show, however, may have been overshadowed by Lady GaGa’s brush with the law—she received a citation for indecent exposure while just walking around the concert grounds.

“For HotPants,” she says, still irritated at the perceived injustice of it all. “The cop pulled me over on his bike, the mean old man.” Okay, so her pair of black American Apparel Hooters-like shorts showed a little too much derriere, but that’s all part of Lady GaGa’s artistic shtick. Even when she’s just running around her Lower East Side neighborhood, she might wear something along the lines of a strapless bra, sheer red leopard-print tights, high-cut briefs and six-inch heels.

However, she clearly has an appreciation for equally dramatic but more substantial clothes. At the W shoot, to which she brought her mother, Cynthia, Lady GaGa spots a fancy Dior jacket and says tremulously, “I’m going to cry. Nude? Feathers?” Then she deadpans, “Lady GaGa goes bankrupt after using up all her album money on Dior resort—not even Dior couture.”

Indeed, she does like expensive things, which for a fledgling artist can be tricky. “I love Dolce & Gabbana. I love Versace. I love the crazy, more eccentric stuff,” she says, holding up her own Jimmy Choo bag. “I can’t pay my rent, but I’m f---ing gorgeous.” She also favors Choo shoes, but for performances, she opts for teetering stripper heels she buys at, well, “specialty” stores around 42nd Street. This is a practical matter, she notes. “They’re made to be more comfortable, so that I can dance onstage but still have the height.”

As for the rest of Lady GaGa’s show getups, they consist of any number of bras that she has customized and spangled beyond recognition—a lacy bra she draped with thick chains, for instance, or one $2.99 deal from Conway that she covered in a mosaic of mirrors. The intended effect? “It’s supposed to look,” she says, “like my boobs are two disco balls.”

Eminen's new video "We Made You" mocks women who have dominated the news in the last year. Set up as a spoof of the Bret Michaels reality show Rock Of Love, Em pokes fun of Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan, Kim Kardashian, Jessica Simpson, Jennifer Aniston, Amy Winehouse, Ellen DeGeneres and Sarah Palin.


Though critics can find fault with all of the portrayals, The O'Reilly Factor host Bill O'Reilly defends just one of the women-Sarah Palin, the Alaska Governor who was the 2008 Republican vice presidential candidate.

O'Reilly, a longtime hip-hop antagonist, calls Eminem's depiction of Palin crude. A Palin lookalike dressed in a low cut bustier and business suit sits atop of an office desk, flirting with a shirtless Eminem posing as Palin's husband.

O'Reilly is upset the media has not condemned Em for the video. "Eminem is obviously on an obscene rant about Sarah Palin," O'Reilly says in Wednesday's broadcast. "Totally obscene. Totally inappropriate. Nothing good about it."

O'Reilly feels that political analysts for Media Matters, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times and NBC should have called Eminem to task for his treatment of Palin.

"The video means nothing," O'Reilly says. "It plays before kids who are confused. But the hypocrisy and the dishonesty of the media does mean something in this country. It is out of control and is demonstrable by this."

I know that O'Reilly dishes politics, is a Palin supporter, and wants to blast other media outlets for letting Eminem's political dig slip through the cracks. It is an interesting perspective. However, if he finds offensive and "crude" Eminem's implication that former beauty queen Palin is a sex symbol, I wonder if O'Reilly only feels that way because she is a politician?

What about the video's insensitive and mocking depictions of Amy Winehouse, Jessica Simpson, Ellen DeGeneres, Kim Kardashian and Lindsay Lohan? Are those okay?

Like it or not, "We Made You" is Eminem's typical satire. In my opinion, Tina Fey's pre-election Palin impressions on Saturday Night Live were much more damaging to Palin's image than this Eminem video.

Lil Rounds continued her streak of disappointment on "American Idol."

The 24-year-old Memphis mom's eyes welled with tears as judge Simon Cowell derided her performance of "What's Love Got To Do With It" Tuesday night as a "second- or third-rate version of Tina Turner."

"I have no idea who you are," Cowell told Rounds. "You're not making the impact you should be making on the show. ... You've got to start becoming more original."

She has lost momentum in recent weeks, while Adam Lambert has emerged a serious front-runner on the popular Fox network competition.

The 27-year-old actor from Los Angeles received a standing ovation from none other than Cowell following his rendition of "Mad World" by Tears for Fears.

The theme on this week's performance show was songs from the year the contestants were born. All of them — except for 16-year-old Allison Iraheta — were born in the 1980s.

Cowell and his fellow judges loved Matt Giraud's slick take on the Stevie Wonder hit "Part-Time Lover." They also gave Danny Gokey high marks for his cover of Mickey Gilley's version of "Stand By Me." They praised Anoop Desai's performance of Cyndi Lauper's "True Colors," although Cowell deemed the North Carolina college student a "singing yo-yo" for his erratic work.

And for the second week in a row, Cowell criticized Iraheta for something other than her singing. Last week, he picked on her outfit; this week, he advised the 16-year-old rocker to "start being talkative and likable. Because I still don't know much about you."

Iraheta, who has an easy laugh and can do an uncanny impression of Gokey, performed Bonnie Raitt's "I Can't Make You Love Me." Judge Randy Jackson compared her to original "Idol" Kelly Clarkson, declaring: "She could sing her face off and so can you!"

Cowell suggested Scott MacIntyre go back to what he does best — playing the piano — after the 23-year-old from Scottsdale, Ariz., tried his hand at the electric guitar.

"It's my punk side coming out," MacIntyre joked.

Kris Allen generally gets good reviews, but the judges' panel mostly soured to the heartthrob's cover of "All She Wants To Do Is Dance." Cowell used some of his favorite words — "indulgent, boring, forgettable" — to describe it, causing audience members to shout their support of Allen: "You're hot!!!"

Responded Cowell: "So am I, but it's not about that."

One of the eight remaining finalists will get the boot on Wednesday night's results show. In a new rule this season, judges can save a contestant they feel has been wrongly eliminated by voting viewers.

LOS ANGELES – David Alan Grier may have to take his dancing back to Broadway, because the comedian was eliminated from "Dancing With the Stars."

The 53-year-old was bounced from the ballroom Tuesday despite having improved his score by two points during the last-chance dance-off.

Grier and professional partner Kym Johnson earned 24 points out of 30 for their Viennese Waltz Tuesday, beating Lawrence Taylor in the dance-off duel by four points. Judges praised the pair's improvement, but fans failed to keep the couple in the competition.

Viewer votes are combined with judges' scores to determine which couple is eliminated each week.

"From week one, Kym and I planned on being in the dance-off on week five, so my evil plan is coming together," Grier joked before he was eliminated.

After learning his fate, he said the best part about appearing on the hit ABC show was getting to know his fellow contestants.

"There's so much support and camaraderie backstage that it's been awesome," he said. "My biggest goal was to try and make Kym proud."

Fans apparently spared the show's lowest scorer, reality star Steve-O, from elimination. He and professional partner Lacey Schwimmer earned just 18 points for their pantomime-inspired Viennese Waltz Monday, but escaped Tuesday's dance-off.

Tuesday's results show also featured appearances by a legend and a teen sensation. Etta James performed her signature classic, "At Last," and Disney star Demi Lovato sang her new single, "La La Land."

Besides Steve-O, remaining competitors include rapper Lil Kim, rodeo champ Ty Murray, former football star Lawrence Taylor, Olympic gymnast Shawn Johnson, country singer Chuck Wicks, "Bachelor" star Melissa Rycroft and actor Gilles Marini.

The Los Angeles district attorney has reportedly asked police detectives to dig up more evidence as they build their case against singer Chris Brown.

The police are getting cooperation from Rihanna, Brown's alleged battery victim, and what she has told them so far is even more chilling than presumed.

E! News reports that Rihanna has alleged to police that Chris Brown not only inflicted horrific injuries on her, but choked her while threatening to kill her.

She says she lost consciousness in the midst of this.

The couple is said to have been squabbling after leaving Clive Davis' pre-Grammy Awards party late Saturday. Shortly after midnight, things blew up.

Cops say a message from a woman who wrote about hooking up with Brown may have played a role in triggering the argument. However, there's also a reference in the police report to an argument over a rapper, but this is NOT the woman who texted Brown.

In any case, Chris Brown pulled his rented Lamborghini to the side of a street in L.A.'s Hancock Park area. That was when Rihanna allegedly grabbed the car keys and tossed them out the window, sending Brown into a blinding rage.

He tried in vain to find the keys, then came back to the car, put his hands around her neck and, according to the insider, said, "I'm going to kill you!"

According to the source, the 20-year-old "Disturbia" singer told L.A. police investigators that she lost consciousness, and when she awoke, Brown had fled.

Rihanna's right eye was blackened and badly swollen, and she had hand prints on her arms after she regained consciousness.

The responding officers were so concerned about her, they drove Rihanna to the hospital in their squad car instead of waiting for an ambulance.

Officers took two sets of photos of the banged-up star, one at the scene and the second after she was admitted to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center for treatment.

According to a source cited by TMZ, Brown allegedly hit Rihanna so hard, she could barely open her eyes - they were almost completely swollen shut.

She had a fat lip, her mouth was swollen, her nose was badly bloodied, and she had contusions on her forehead and on both sides of her face.

Those photos were presumably among the evidence presented to the D.A.

After being treated for her injuries, police escorted Rihanna down a rear elevator and into a waiting Mercedes, the source close to the case says.

Chris Brown, 19, was subsequently arrested for battery and on suspicion of making criminal threats. He was released after posting $50,000 bail.

His lawyer, Mark Geragos, has not responded to repeated requests for comment on the allegations. Brown's publicist also has not commented on this.

A spokeswoman for Rihanna declined to comment specifically on details of the fight and the arrest and stuck to her earlier statement from Sunday:

"Rihanna is well. Thank you for concern and support."

If the incident with the car keys was what led Brown to completely fly off the handle, there is no confirmed account of what the couple was fighting about.

A number of rumors have surfaced, such as the text message theory above or that Rihanna gave him herpes, but nothing conclusive or detailed.

It looks like blonde stars have traded fame and fortune for a large slice of their brains, at least that's what their quotes suggest. Paris Hilton recently goofed when she said that Britain's Prime Minister is Gordon Ramsay, reports the Sun.

However, the hotel heiress isn't the only famous blonde to have uttered such things.

Here's the list of top 10 dumb blonde quotes:

1) Paris Hilton talking to press about the US chain store: "Wal-Mart... do they like make walls there?"

2) Jessica Simpson on NewleyWeds: "Is this chicken, what I have, or is this fish? I know it's tuna, but it says 'Chicken by the Sea.'

3) Alicia Silverstone on her role in Clueless: "I think that the film was very deep. I think it was deep in the way that it was very light. I think lightness has to come from a very deep place if it's true lightness."

4) Chantelle Houghton when Big Brother said she had changed since becoming a celebrity: "I've changed? What do you mean... I've changed my clothes?"

5) Jodie Marsh in a recent interview: "Eskimos are uncivilised because they don't have any shops."

6) Paris Hilton on her technique on the red carpet: "I don't really think, I just walk."

7) Jessica Simpson on her first day at high school: "A teacher asked us if anybody knew the names of the continents. I was sooo excited. I was like, Damn it! It's my first day of 7th grade, I'm in junior high and I know this answer. So I raised my hand, I was the first one, and I said A-E-I-O-U!"

8) Goldie Horn on her favourite types of films: "Comedy is funny".

9) Sam Fox on fitness clothes: "I've got 10 pairs of training shoes - one for every day of the week."

10) Britney Spears on her taste in clothes: "So many people have asked me how I could possibly be a role model and dress like a tramp and get implants... all I have to say is that self-esteem is how you look at yourself and I feel good enough about myself so wear that kind of clothing... the breast implant issue has nothing to do with that..."

Like the Supreme Court and the College of Cardinals, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is an exclusive and obscure deliberative body that is prone to its own brand of weirdness. The Academy loves to reward actors who play endearing lunatics and actresses who hag it up for a part. It throws trophies at lavish historical epics and anything about the Holocaust. And for a long time, it had a strange aversion to Martin Scorsese. Though some times the most deserving film took home the top prize -- "Casablanca" won in 1943, "The Godfather" in 1972, and "The Last Emperor" in 1987 -- more often than not the Academy drops the ball. Here are just a few of the Oscar's worst Best Pictures.

Cimarron (1931)
Here is a flick that really hasn't stood the test of time. "Cimarron," a big-budget tale about how the West was won, racked up huge box office earnings and took home the big prize in 1931. So why have you probably not heard of it? It most likely has something to do with the film's ridiculous storylines, hammy acting, and overt racism.

How Green Was My Valley (1941)
John Ford's heart-warming tale about Welsh coal miners has earned the unfortunate notoriety of stealing the Best Picture Oscar from what many call the best movie ever made, "Citizen Kane." In some cinephile circles, the movie is regarded with a distain usually reserved for tobacco lobbyists and banking executives.

Around the World in 80 Days (1956)
Sure, this epic spectacle was shot in 70mm and featured lots of location footage, which was pretty impressive at the time, but it's also about as deep as the skin on tomato soup. James Dean's final movie "Giant" would be an infinitely better choice.

Rocky (1976)
The Academy couldn't possibly have foreseen "Rocky" IV, V or VI when they handed this film a trophy. That being said, Stallone's pugilist fairy tale seems pretty pale next to its fellow nominees, "Network," "All the President's Men," and of course Martin Scorsese's "Taxi Driver." Over the years, the Academy developed a fetish for nominating but not rewarding Scorsese's best work.

Ordinary People (1980)
Another example of the Academy hosing Scorsese. "Ordinary People," about emotionally-repressed suburbanites, is a well-crafted, well-acted movie. It just not even in the same ballpark as Marty's savage masterpiece "Raging Bull," a movie that many critics have dubbed the best of film of the 1980s.

Driving Miss Daisy (1989)
A well-meaning but muddle-headed Best Picture winner about rich white folk learning a little something about racism by talking to the help. The film's warm and fuzzy Hallmark card version of race relations is particularly galling since Spike Lee's "Do the Right Thing" -- the actual best pic of the year -- wasn't even nominated.

Dances With Wolves (1990)
In a perfect world, the poor would be fed, the Cubs would win the World Series, and "Goodfellas" would have won Best Picture. Instead, this steaming pile of self-congratulatory new-age twaddle got the nod. Director Kevin Costner went on to make "The Postman" while Scorsese would have to wait sixteen more years before landing the prize in 2006 for "The Departed."

Forrest Gump (1994)
Robert Zemeckis' manipulative, schmaltzy Boomer yarn made piles of cash and wowed about half the critics in the country, but the movie's sentimental platitudes and cheap nostalgia really don't hold a candle to "Pulp Fiction," the most influential and imitated film of the '90s.

Gladiator (2000)
A poor man's "Spartacus" tarted up with lots of CGI. For a director as talented as Ridley Scott, it's hard to understand why the action scenes in "Gladiator" were as incoherent as they were. It was as if the entire editing staff was hopped up on Red Bull and Twinkies. If you want to see better-constructed action scenes in a better movie, check out the flick that should have won, "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon."

Crash (2005)
One of the great "What were they thinking?" moments of Oscardom. Instead of choosing the best-reviewed movie of the year -- "Brokeback Mountain" -- the Academy picked this contrived, hectoring paean to liberal guilt. What made Ryan Phillippe shoot that guy? Racism. What made Ludacris jack that car? Racism. What made Sandra Bullock fall down the stairs? Racism. The movie is about as nuanced as a hammer blow to the head, as enjoyable as listening to your parents fight, and about as honest as your average Enron executive.

So this year, will the Academy get it right for a change or will it drop the ball once again? And what Oscar winners of the past do you think had no business taking home the gold?

Even though Akon has a birth certificate, he says his age is still a mystery — and he'd rather keep it that way.

"All it's going to do is depress me," he told The Associated Press in a recent interview. "I don't want to know I'm getting older. Then I'll start to think about getting checkups and insurance. I don't want that."

Numerous reports have put his age between 25 to 35 years old. In 2006, he gave his age as 25. But now, he claims his birth certificate shows he was born on April 16, 1977, which would make him 31.

Some have accused Akon of trying to push back his age. But the singer, who was born in the United States but spent his early life in Senegal, where his family is from, says he never knew it.

"In Africa ... age is not important over there. They don't care. People only focus on it here (America) and in Europe."

Akon says when people ask, he just gives him a figure that comes to mind.

"I feel like I'm 21 right now," he says. "And I'll be 21 for the next 10 years."

Akon went multiplatinum with his 2006 CD "Konvicted," which included hits such as "Smack That" with Eminem and "Don't Matter." His most recent album, "Freedom," was released in December.

The Hulk is gonna get green with envy. Well, greener.

Iron Man and The Dark Knight were both named Sunday to the American Film Institute's Movies of the Year Top 10 list.

On the television side, the AFI Awards' honorees included The Office, Lost and Mad Men, but not the Emmy-winning 30 Rock.

For Iron Man, the kudos is its first major honor of awards season. For The Dark Knight, it's its umpteenth honor. For superhero movies—the passed-over Incredible Hulk excepted—it's another step in their march toward world domination.

Brad Pitt, Michelle Williams and Clint Eastwood, meanwhile, helped represent for people who can't fly.

Pitt's The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Williams' Wendy and Lucy and Eastwood's Gran Torino all made AFI's movie Top 10.

Rounding out the list: Frost/Nixon, the low-budget indie Frozen River, Milk, WALL-E, and The Wrestler.

Revolutionary Road, The Reader and Slumdog Millionaire, all of which are up for Best Drama at the Golden Globes, along with Frost/Nixon and Benjamin Button, were not AFI selections. The group's awards honor American-made films; those three movies are European productions or coproductions.

As with film, the AFI's Programs of the Year list heavily favored drama over comedy. In addition to Lost and Mad Men, Breaking Bad, In Treatment, cult-favorite Life, the miniseries John Adams, the TV movie Recount, and the late The Wire and The Shield all made the cut.

The Steve Carell-managed The Office was the only half-hour comedy honored.

MySpace.com is teaming up with Internet search leader Google Inc. in a campaign to extend MySpace's reach and counter the expansion of their common rival Facebook Inc.

The alliance, unveiled late Monday in Paris, builds upon MySpace's seven-month-old effort to make it easier for the 127 million worldwide users of its online hangout to connect with their social circles while they're at other Internet destinations.

MySpace is trying to pull it off by making its login system, called "MySpaceID," compatible with any Web site that wants to embrace it.

By working with a similar service offered by Google, MySpace is betting more sites will welcome its audience. Blogs and other small sites with limited technical help probably will find it easier to use Google's system, known as "Friend Connect," said Max Engel, who oversees MySpaceID.

The collaboration between News Corp.'s MySpace and Google represents their latest shot across Facebook's bow. MySpace and Google previously joined forces a year ago to promote a service, called "OpenSocial," that competes against Facebook's warehouse of online software programs.

Facebook also is peddling its own universal login service to create more ways for its roughly 130 million worldwide users to share their personal profiles and favorite applications wherever and whenever they want on the Web. The privately held company expanded "Facebook Connect" last week after seven months of testing.

By loosening their grip on the personal information stored on their owns sites, both MySpace and Facebook are vying to shape and steer even more social interaction than they already do.

In the process, they hope to become the command centers of their users' online activities. By extending their networks on to other sites, Facebook and MySpace also could emerge as more alluring marketing vehicles, particularly as they glean more information about the interests of individual users.

Google is keenly interested in tapping into the advertising potential of social networks, but the Mountain View-based company has had little success with its own online hangout, called Orkut.

MySpace already relies on Google to sell some of its ads, so the companies are natural allies.

Palo Alto-based Facebook, in contrast, has aligned itself with Microsoft, perhaps Google's biggest antagonist. Besides relying on Microsoft to sell some of its ads, Facebook also sold a 1.6 percent stake to the software maker for $240 million last year.

Facebook also has rankled Google by hiring some of its top employees. The defectors include Facebook's current chief operating officer, Sheryl Sandberg, who oversaw global online sales.