Lionel Richie to headline Radio 2 Live
0 comments Tuesday, 5 July 2011The US singer will be accompanied by the BBC Concert Orchestra.
Jools Holland and his band will also perform alongside Sandie Shaw and Ruby Turner at the event on 11 September.
Chris Evans, who announced Ritchie's inclusion on Radio 2's breakfast show, will be revealing further acts later this month.
"Radio 2's Hyde Park shows are without a doubt one of the highlights of my year," Evans said.
The event will be covered live from 1530 GMT on Radio 2 on the day, with hosts including Jo Whiley and Johnnie Walker.
Richie will perform many of his classic hits as well as tracks from his new album of duets with country music stars.
He began his prolific career with the Commodores in 1968 and then went on to solo success, scoring eight top 10 albums and seven top 10 singles in the UK.
Charlie Sheen signs on for 'Comedy Central Roast'
0 commentsIn what could be the worst idea in a history of bad ideas, Charlie Sheen has signed up for a Comedy Central Roast and told the network absolutely nothing is off limits.
For the kind of skewering that's more recently been saved for the likes of Donald Trump, Joan Rivers and David Hasselhoff, Charlie Sheen is officially set to be the next roastee in a new special, the network announced Tuesday.
"The Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen," taping on Saturday, Sept. 10, in Los Angeles, will feature the nation's top comedians taking aim at the major headline-making star.
"You could say I've been providing kindling for this Roast for a while," said Charlie Sheen. "It's time to light it up. It's going to be epic."
"Charlie has assured us that nothing will be off limits in this Roast... which scares even us," said Comedy Central original programming head Kent Alterman.
The only thing scarier would have been if they tried to pass off his "Violent Torpedo of Truth" as a stand-up comedy special.
"The Comedy Central Roast of Charlie Sheen" will air on Monday, Sept. 19, at 10 p.m. ET/PT.
Ronald Reagan Statue Unveiled in London
0 comments Monday, 4 July 2011A 10-foot bronze statue of former President Ronald Reagan to commemorate 100 years since his birth has been unveiled in London, the Independent newspaper reports.
Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice joined British Foreign Secretary William Hague in paying tribute to Reagan Monday at the U.S. Embassy in London.
"It is a great honor for me personally to take part in a ceremony for a man who changed the political landscape at the time I first became involved in it," Hague said.
"Statues bring us to face to face with our heroes long after they are gone.”
Rice represented the late president's widow Nancy Reagan at the ceremony, which coincided with America’s Independence Day celebrations.
Hague added that Reagan's great political ally, former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, could not attend the ceremony, the paper reported.
Hague said: "She has asked me to say these words to you: Ronald Reagan was a great president and a great man -- a true leader for our times. He held clear principles and acted upon them with purpose.
"Through his strength and his conviction he brought millions of people to freedom as the Iron Curtain finally came down.
"It was a pleasure to be his colleague and his friend, and I hope that this statue will be a reminder to future generations of the debt we owe him."
According to the paper, the statue of Reagan was commissioned as part of a year of celebrations to mark what would have been the 100th birthday of the former U.S. president.
It will stand alongside existing statues of other illustrious American presidents such as Dwight Eisenhower and Franklin D Roosevelt.
John Wayne Gacy gaffe delights Michele Bachmann opponents
0 comments Tuesday, 28 June 2011On “Fox News Sunday,” Michele Bachmann told Chris Wallace, “Of course a person has to be careful with statements that they make. I think that's true.” Two days later, she may have wished she had followed her own advice a bit more closely. After her presidential campaign kickoff, Bachmann stepped into a cultural joke mindfield by comparing herself to John Wayne of Waterloo, Iowa. The only John Wayne that ever lived in Waterloo was the serial killer John Wayne Gacy.
The mistake has left an easy opening for a flank attack. David Letterman spent four minutes on the incident Monday night, discussing the “ugly and dumb things”politicians say.
On “Morning Joe,” Joe Scarbouragh shared a laugh with former Minnesota governor TimPawlenty, a Bachmann rival, when Scarbouragh asked, “Do you have any serial killers from your hometown?”
Bachmann told CNN that people make mistakes and that she is working to introduce people to her “strong academic scholarly background.”
She went on to say: “John Wayne’s parents’ first home was in Waterloo, Iowa and he was from Iowa and of course the main point I was making are the sensibilities of John Wayne, which is patriotism, love of country, standing up for our nation, that positive enthusiasm is what America’s all about... And that’s of course my main point.”
Walmart Stores (WMT) Trading Near $51.95 Support Level
0 commentsWalmart Stores (NYSE:WMT) closed Monday's dramatic trading session at $52.29. In the past year, the stock has hit a 52-week low of $47.77 and 52-week high of $57.90. Walmart Stores (WMT) stock has been showing support around $51.95 and resistance in the $52.93 range. Technical indicators for the stock are Bearish and S&P gives Walmart Stores (WMT) a very positive 5 STARS (out of 5) strong buy rating. For a hedged play on Walmart Stores (WMT), look at the Dec '11 $50.00 covered call for a net debit in the $48.69 area. That is also the break-even stock price for this trade. This covered call has a duration of 172 days, provides 6.88% downside protection and an assigned return rate of 2.69% for an annualized return rate of 5.71% (for comparison purposes only). A lower-cost hedged play for Walmart Stores (WMT) would use a longer term call option in place of the covered call stock purchase. To use this strategy look at going long the Walmart Stores (WMT) Jan '12 $45.00 call and selling the Dec '11 $50.00 call for a total debit of $4.30. The trade has a lifespan of 172 days and would provide 5.72% downside protection and an assigned return rate of 16.28% for an annualized return rate of 35% (for comparison purposes only).
'Jackass,' MTV Stars And Other Celebrities React To Ryan Dunn's Death
0 comments Monday, 20 June 2011"Jackass" star Ryan Dunn died last night in a tragic car crash at the age of 34.
The film and television actor apparently crashed his car around 3 a.m. EDT last night at the intersection of Route 322 and New Street in West Goshen Township, Pennsylvania. TMZ confirmed the death with April Margera, the mother of fellow "Jackass" star Bam Margera.
Though no official cause for the accident has been determined as of yet, Dunn posted this picture of him drinking on his Twitter account, shortly before the believed time of the accident.
There has been little word from Dunn's close friends and "Jackass" collaborators since the accident. Bam Margera, Johnny Knoxville, and Steve-O are all yet to have said anything about his passing on Twitter.
However, Jason 'Weeman' Acuna did post about about his friend's passing.
Michael Giacchino Talks About Creating The Score Of 'Cars 2
0 comments Saturday, 18 June 2011Back in April there were a select few of us who were lucky enough to travel all the way to Pixar Animation Studios, tucked away outside of San Francisco. The minute all of us newcomers walked inside our cartoon-loving hearts instantly melted over all of the wonderful drawings, models and other great Pixar-related stuff that were plastered on the walls in the main building. Quickly we shuffled around the confides of this vibrant facility as we talked with many people who all had one thing in common: they all had a hand in creating "Cars 2."
One of the first people that we were able to chat with to was composer Michael Giacchino. If you don't recognize the name, then maybe you know one of the many scores that he's composed between "The Incredibles," "Mission: Impossible III," J.J. Abrams' "Star Trek" and his Oscar-winning pieces on Disney/Pixar's "Up" among many others.
Earlier in the morning, prior to meeting Giacchino, we were shown the opening scene for "Cars 2." When we shuffled in to begin the roundtable with Giacchino afterwards, he told us that the music in the background was only a temporary track, that the main one was still being worked on. He quickly made it up to us by replaying the opening scene, this time with the score that said was "British surf-rock." Although the particular guitar (a telecaster guitar) reminded a couple of people of the "James Bond" theme, it was only because that particular instrument was used so much in the sixties that it more or less became a staple of the decade.
Shortly after his presentation he opened the roundtable up to questions. Below he was able to go a bit more into detail on his particular choice of style for the animated feature and thoughts on the current state of action scores.
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