LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Alicia Keys' album "The Element of Freedom" topped the R&B chart in its first week of sales, but fell short of Susan Boyle to land at No. 2 on the Top 200 Albums chart, her label said on Wednesday. The album, which is Keys' latest release since her 2007 "As I Am," sold more than 417,000 copies in the week since it hit stores, earning the singer her fifth straight chart topping debut, said Sony Music. The album also landed at No. 2 on Billboard's Top 200 Albums chart... Read Full Story
NEW YORK (Reuters) - Daniel Day-Lewis has not appeared on a live theater's stage in decades, but he takes on a uniquely theatrical role for new movie musical, "Nine," which begins its broad U.S. release Christmas day. The two-time Oscar winner more often than not plays driven men in movie dramas, as with Bill "The Butcher" Cutting for director Martin Scorsese's "Gangs of New York" and oil baron Daniel Plainview in "There Will be Blood." But for "Nine," he shook off all that drama and tuned... Read Full Story
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Britney Spears hit back at the gossips on Monday, publishing a list of the top 75 most ridiculous or offensive stories written about her in 2009 -- including one claiming her family was once so poor they ate squirrels. The list culled mostly from U.S. and British websites, celebrity magazines and newspapers, included various reports of new boyfriends, claims of emotional breakdown on her Australian tour, allegations she was being drugged by her father and supposed... Read Full Story
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Paramount's worst fears are confirmed: "Star Trek" was the most pirated film of 2009, according to a new report. In October, the studio told the Federal Communications Commission that "Star Trek" had become a hot commodity in piracy circles. Illegal file-sharing had advanced from "geek to sleek," Frederick Huntsberry, the studio's chief operating officer, told officials. Now, according to data from TorrentFreak, "Star Trek" was downloaded nearly 11 million... Read Full Story
HAVANA (Reuters) - Grammy-winning Cuban band Los Van Van are celebrating 40 years of salsa revolution with a long-awaited return to the United States. Often called the 'Rolling Stones of salsa', the group will perform in Key West, Florida on January 28, ending a long absence from the United States caused by tense U.S.-Cuban relations during the administration of President George W. Bush. Los Van Van, a cult band credited with reinventing salsa time and again since their debut in 1969, will... Read Full Story
LONDON, Dec 23 - (Reuters) - It takes guts to stage an opera in a working man's pub in an Irish part of London, but the Cock Tavern Theater Company's production of Puccini's "La Boheme," in English and updated for modern audiences, has audiences mesmerized. A very brief interlude of pole dancing may have something to do with it. That perhaps un-Pucciniesque touch, performed by the tease Musetta, comes in Act Two when the entire company of mostly young singers, getting a big break to tackle... Read Full Story
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - James Cameron is "the king of the world" again. "Avatar," the director's first feature since 1997's "Titanic," opens worldwide this weekend amid critical acclaim and expectations of boffo box office. He recently spoke with the Hollywood Reporter about his early days, commercial success and his struggle to make "Avatar." WHEN YOUR CAREER BROKE BIG IN 1984 WITH "THE TERMINATOR," YOU WENT FROM BEING A PART-TIME TRUCK DRIVER AND UNKNOWN FILMMAKER TO A HOT... Read Full Story
CHICAGO (Billboard) - Rapper T.I. got an early Christmas present Tuesday after authorities released him from a federal prison in Arkansas nearly seven months into a 366-day term. His attorney, Steve Sadow, told the website xxlmag.com that T.I. would report to a halfway house in the Atlanta area later in the day to begin a stay of two or three months. T.I., 28, was arrested after trying to buy unregistered machine guns and silencers from undercover federal agents in 2007. That came after the... Read Full Story
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The "Peanuts" comic strip character Snoopy was named the top dog in pop culture by the American Kennel Club on Tuesday as part of its 125th anniversary celebration, beating out a college sports mascot. Nearly 76,000 online voters chose their favorites from a list of pop culture dogs drawn from television, film, literature, sports and art, the kennel club said. Snoopy was the pensive dog whose best friend was a bird and who seemed to be smarter than his human master in... Read Full Story
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - In 1911, Dadasaheb Phalke was an unemployed printer and part-time magician trying to make his way in Bombay. Phalke's life took an unexpected turn when he stumbled into a tent for a screening of the silent movie "The Life of Christ." Instantly mesmerized by the new medium, Phalke decided he wanted to make films specifically for the Indian audience. But like so many directors before and after him, Phalke had problems financing his first film. The father of... Read Full Story
