Fantasia Barrino packing on the pounds

Fantasia Barrino will be packing on the pounds for a new movie role.The American Idol has signed on to play gospel legend Mahalia Jackson in. Can Fantasia imitate such a great life?. Fantasia Barrino has been sporting a fuller figure as of late, which has prompted rumors of a baby on board. The American Idol winner has insisted that she’s not pregnant and that the excess weight . Filed under: Movie News, CinematicalFantasia Barrino is ready for her closeup.According to the Hollywood Reporter, the ‘American Idol’ season 3 winner
has landed her first leading role in a biopic about the life of American gospel singer and civil rights activist Mahalia Jackson.The movie, which will be directed by Euzhan Palcy, is based on the 1993 book ‘Got to Tell It: Mahalia Jackson, Queen of Gospel.’ Jim Evering is penning the script.Filming begins in April, according to the report. … .
Fantasia Barrino earned rave reviews for playing Celie in Broadway’s The Color Purple, but is the oft-troubled American Idol alum suited for a big-screen triumph? According to a new report, she’s set to play gospel legend Mahalia Jackson in director Euzhan Palcy’s film adaptation of the 1993 book Got to Tell It: Mahalia Jackson, Queen of Gospel. Let’s start with the pettiest question: Is Fantasia a worthier post-Idol Oscar contender than Jennifer Hudson or not?.

guitar hero reduce

Things are not good for all you fans of the Guitar Hero franchise, as we have learned that Activision Blizzard has canceled the game. This has had a knock on effect with the developer’s shares, and as a result of this shocking news has fallen by 8 percent. The company believes that their expected revenue will be $640 million in Q1 2011, this was short of the $734.70 million that analysts expected.

Charlie Sheen may pay staff salaries

Charlie Sheen offered to pay a portion of the Two and a Half Men crew’s Salary during the two-week hiatus of the show. He extended this deal as long as CBS and Warner Bros. agree to pay the remaining portion. Showing signs of loyalty to his Two and a Half Men crew, Sheen attempted to cut a deal with the studio to help foot the salaries of the 300-member crew, which does not get paid when Men stops filming. Sheen looks to return to the set next week, but a CBS executive believes that “...

Harry Baals Center

Harry Baals (pronounced "Harry Bales", and not "Harry Balls") will likely not get his name attached to the new city-county building in Fort Wayne, Indiana. Harry Baals is a former mayor of Fort Wayne, and his name continues to inspire juvenile humor. These are the same people who would find San Diego politician Dick Rider's name funny, too. Visitors to the Fort Wayne voting page will see that Harry Baals is destroying the competition by more than 7,000 votes, but Deputy Mayor Beth Malloy said that just winning the popular vote wasn't enough, and expressed concern that calling the new building the Harry Baals Government Center would "look bad".

Continue reading at NowPublic.com: Harry Baals Government Center 'Not Going to Happen' | NowPublic News Coverage http://www.nowpublic.com/strange/harry-baals-government-center-not-going-happen-2756043.html#ixzz1DZAKo93n

Lawsuit in Super Bowl seat fiasco

Ticket-holding football fans who ended up with no seats or what they considered bad views of the Super Bowl have filed a class-action lawsuit against the NFL, the Dallas Cowboys and team owner Jerry Jones.
The federal lawsuit filed Tuesday in Dallas — just two days after the big game — alleges breach of contract, fraud and deceptive sales practices on behalf of people who ended up watching the game on TV at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, or had seats the lawsuit labeled "illegitimate."

Brangelina adopting?

The rumor mill is buzzing today with the news that Brad and Angelina are looking to adopt another baby, which would be number seven in their tribe. Sources say they're looking in Namibia to adopt, which is the country where Shiloh was born. According to the Chicago Sun-Times, they're also looking in Bolivia and Paraguay because Angelina wants to draw attention to the large number of desperately needy orphaned children in Latin America. Seems strange to adopt a child just to make a statement. But hey, we can't judge them! They do more than the average family when it comes to philanthropy!
We really wouldn't be surprised if the rumor was true. After all, didn't poppa Brad say he wanted something like 12 kids?!

iPad2 to be released soon?

The tech world is buzzing with rumors that Apple will soon release the second version of its popular iPad. There’s rampant speculation about a possible iPad2 release date, but the company is not saying when it will happen.

Ted Williams speaks out after rehab

A homeless ex-radio announcer who earned instant fame with his enviable talent recently left a rehab facility against the advice of his doctors. In his first interview since leaving rehab, Ted Williams explains what brought on his relapseand why he left.

Norm MacDonald’s new show

The comedian will be appearing on Comedy Central, the network says. MacDonald, who was on “Saturday Night Live”, will also have a standup comedy hour.

Beauty queen loses crown for gaining weight

Miss San Antonio is suing to keep her crown after losing it for “gaining excessive weight.” Pageant officials have lodged other accusations against 17-year-old Domonique Ramirez. The feuding parties are expected to be in court next week.

Diet soda linked to heart attack risk

You may feel less guilty if you opt for diet sodas over sugary beverages, but drinking them regularly may raise your risk of heart attack and stroke, a study suggests. In a nine-year study of more than 2,500 people, those who drank diet soda daily were 48% more likely to have a heart attack or stroke or die from those events, compared with those who rarely or never drank soda. There was no increased risk of cardiovascular disorders among daily drinkers of regular soda, says study researcher Hannah Gardener, ScD, an epidemiologist at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

The analysis, presented at the American Stroke Association International Stroke Conference (ISC), took into account a host of cardiovascular risk factors including age, sex, smoking, physical activity, alcohol and calorie consumption, metabolic syndrome, and pre-existing heart disease.

Still, the study doesn't prove cause and effect. And even though the researchers tried to account for risk factors that that could skew the results, they couldn't tease out everything, doctors caution.

"You try to control for everything, but you can't," says Steven Greenberg, MD, PhD, vice chair of the ISC meeting committee and professor of neurology at Harvard Medical School.

People who drink a lot of diet soda may share some characteristic that explains the association, he explains.

Miley Cyrus talks about smoking salvia

18-year-old Miley Cyrus has finally stepped up to the plate to talk about the salvia smoking incident referring to the video of the teen idol smoking the Hallucinogenic drug out of a bong on her 18th birthday. Miley is a role model for many young girls who watch the Disney show that made her famous.

Ashlee Simpson-Wentz files for divorce

Singer and actress Ashlee Simpson has filed for divorce from her husband Pete Wentz! Ashlee Simpson filed papers today in Los Angeles County Superior Court , citing the normal “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for the split. Ashlee, 26, has reportedly hired celebrity lawyer Laura Wasser to represent her as she fights for joint legal custody and primary physical custody of her and Pete’s two-year-old son Bronx.

Blues singer dies

Marvin Sease

8 days shy of his birthday, American singer Marvin Sease died at the age of 64 on Tuesday, Feb. 8 in Vicksburg, Mississippi.The official cause of the blues singer's death is not yet known, but there is speculation that he died from pneumonia. Born in Blackville, South Carolina, Sease started off as a gospel singer with the gospel group The Five Gospel Crowns. After moving to New York City, he started a R & B band with
his three brothers named Sease. The band didn't find much success and disbanded a few years later.

Sease then went solo and scored a recurring gig at Casablanca, a club in Brooklyn, where he performed covers. Soon after, he hit big on his own with hits such as "Ghetto Man" and "Candy Licker." The former became an instant success in the South despite the fact that it couldn't be played on the radio due to its racy lyrics.

While he never achieved massive commercial success, Sease developed a cult following over the years.

Gabrielle Giffords speaks

Gabrielle Giffords spoke for the first time since she was shot in the forehead, her spokesman said Wednesday, yet another significant milestone in her recovery from a traumatic brain injury. Giffords first spoke within the past few days and is speaking "more and more," spokesman C.J. Karamargin said Wednesday. He didn't know what her first words were, but said at breakfast one morning she asked for toast. "She's working very hard and it's paying off," he said. "We're elated at this. We always knew Gabby is a fighter and that she's not going to let this thing win. And you know, every day is proof of that."

Six people, including a 9-year-old girl and a federal judge, were killed in the attack outside a grocery store where Giffords was meeting with constituents. Thirteen people, including Giffords, were injured.

Other news organizations, including Politico, earlier reported that Giffords had asked for toast and was able to speak.

In a Facebook post on Tuesday, Giffords' husband Mark Kelly said his wife had her appetite back and was eating three times a day, "even though it's hospital food."

salahis crash super bowl suite

The couple that infamously crashed a White House state dinner have reportedly crashed again. Michaele and Tareq Salahi were spotted in the suite of Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. According to a Radar.com report, a rep for the Cowboys said the Salahis were "not invited and were immediately, but discreetly, escorted out of the suite by security." The couple claims they were invited.

Will Smith helping Justin Bieber

Justin Bieber is releasing his first movie - "Never Say Never" -- this Friday, and now that he's days away from becoming a box office superstar, the teen sensation revealed to "The Billy Bush Show" that he's found a mentor in Will Smith and the big screen star's family.

"The Smith family's been really amazing to me and really supportive in everything I'm doing," Justin told Access Hollywood's Billy Bush in an interview set to air on radio's "The Billy Bush Show" on Wednesday night. "Their family's just really nice and really good people."

Tom Cruise Scientology Under Investigation

The “Knight & Day” megastar, who regularly pals around with Church of Scientology head David Miscavige, has been dragged into an FBI investigation of human trafficking and unpaid labor involving the controversial Hollywood-centric sect and its boss.

Miscavige, who served as Cruise’s best man at his wedding to Katie Holmes, is under investigation for reportedly paying church members chump change to do work on Scientology property and a building, an SUV and two motorcycles owned by Cruise. And while his staffers reportedly were paid just $50 a week, Miscavige enjoyed a luxurious lifestyle of chartered jets, expensive cars and two personal chefs, according to an expose in The New Yorker.

Celebrity Rehab With Dr. Drew stars

With fame come extraordinary perks -- and sometimes addictions. Many celebrities have sought the even-keeled advice of addiction expert Dr. Drew through his VH1 reality show "Celebrity Rehab." Other stars seek counseling on their own or via a court order. Here's a look at the stars for whom rehab threw a curve ball into an otherwise gilded life.

Universal flu vaccine?

Researchers hope a new treatment developed in the United Kingdom will prove vital in controlling future flu pandemics such as H1N1 (swine) flu, bird flu as well as ending the need for annual flu jabs. Developed by scientists at Oxford University, the new vaccine works by targeting protein cells inside the influenza A virus, instead of current vaccines that attack proteins on the outside of the flu virus.