Robert Muraine Returns to SYTYCD

Popper extraordinaire Robert Muraine returned to So You Think You Can Dance last night and was amazing, yet again. Nigel gave him a hard time for leaving the competition so early and then said he couldn't decide if Robert or Phillip Chbeeb was his favorite popper. Looks like a dance-off is set for the finale! Can't wait!



And here, in case you can't remember him, is Phillip. Who do you think is better?

Mary-Kate Olsen on Letterman: She Has a Really Weird Voice

I can't quite get over Mary-Kate Olsen's voice. Listen to her talking to Dave Letterman about Full House, Spencer Pratt and more.

Amy Winehouse Sings at Nelson Mandela Concert

Amy Winehouse never ceases to surprise me. She actually turned up at the Nelson Mandela 90th birthday concert in London today. And sang... and grabbed at the hem of her minidress right near her crotch. Why does she do that?



She sounds pretty rough though. No surprise when she's supposedly got emphysema. She also looks like a deer caught in the headlights. As much as I love her and am awed by her talent, I find it painful to watch her.

Damn, These Priests Are Kinda Hot

This is probably going to get me a first-class ticket to Hell, but the priests featured in the 2008 Calendario Romano are hot. Well some of them are, anyway. According to the publicity handout for the Italian calendar, "Aimed at promoting tourism in the Italian capital, this striking calendar offers portraits of its priests against the backdrops of the Eternal City's most beautiful cathedrals."



I am simultaneously thinking of Samantha's Friar Fuck fetish in Sex and the City and Richard Chamberlain as Father Ralph in The Thornbirds.

If only there was a calendar of hot rabbis...

OK, you can stop snickering now.

SYTYCD: Chelsie and Mark Do "Bleeding Love"

Taking hip-hop to a whole new level for me, I really felt the emotion in this So You Think You Can Dance routine choreographed by Tabitha and Napoleon, and performed to Leona Lewis' "Bleeding Love." Loved it! And Hairspray's Adam Shankman was back as a judge tonight. Yay!

The Theme Song for Today Is...

"(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding?" by Elvis Costello and the Attractions.

As I walk through
This wicked world
Searchin for light in the darkness of insanity.

I ask myself
Is all hope lost?
Is there only pain and hatred, and misery?

And each time I feel like this inside,
Theres one thing I wanna know:
Whats so funny 'bout peace love & understanding? Ohhhh
Whats so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?

And as I walked on
Through troubled times
My spirit gets so downhearted sometimes
So where are the strong
And who are the trusted?
And where is the harmony?
Sweet harmony.

Cause each time I feel it slippin away, just makes me wanna cry.
Whats so funny 'bout peace love & understanding? Ohhhh
Whats so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?

So where are the strong?
And who are the trusted?
And where is the harmony?
Sweet harmony.

Cause each time I feel it slippin away, just makes me wanna cry.
Whats so funny 'bout peace love & understanding? Ohhhh
Whats so funny 'bout peace love & understanding? Ohhhh
Whats so funny 'bout peace love & understanding?

Vivienne Westwood vs. Patricia Field: Battle of the Scary Redheads

This could get ugly (if it isn't already).

Vivienne Westwood went to the premiere of the Sex and the City movie and walked out after 10 minutes, claiming that the fashion (by costume designer Patricia Field) was "quite dull."

She reportedly said: "'I thought Sex and the City was supposed to be about cutting-edge fashion and there was nothing remotely memorable or interesting about what I saw. I went to the premiere and left after 10 minutes."


I think she might have a point...

Watch the Heinz Commercial Banned in the U.K.

I thought this ad was kind of cute. But they've apparently just banned it in the U.K. Is it really so outrageous to show two men kissing? How come it's OK to show pictures of malnourished children in Africa, dead bodies in China after a cyclone, the after-effects of a roadside bomb attack in Iraq? I know which images I find more disturbing.

US Weekly's Burning Jamie-Lynn Spears Question

So Jamie-Lynn Spears popped out a daughter named Maddie this week, and in all the breathless coverage in the weekly mags, there was one thing that made me stop in my tracks:

US Weekly's burning question:










WTF?

Terri Irwin Has Got Huge Muscles

Terri Irwin looks plenty strong enough to wrestle crocodiles now!

Welcome to the gun show, indeed.

Farewell, Cyd Charisse

"Lovely Cyd Charisse," as Gene Kelly called her, died today in L.A. of a heart attack. She was 86 years old. Her real name was Tula and she came from Texas, but to me she was the greatest female dancer Hollywood ever had (sorry Ginger Rogers). She was sexy and elegant whether she was dancing with Fred Astaire or Gene Kelly.

Fred Astaire called Cyd "beautiful dynamite" and said: "When you dance with Cyd Charisse, you've been danced with."

In addition to having her legs insured for a million dollars, Cyd achieved a minor miracle in Hollywood. She was married to the same man (singer Tony Martin) for 60 years.

Here's a scene from Singin' in the Rain. Perfection.



And a scene from The Band Wagon. Why don't they make movies like this anymore?

Christian the Lion: Love is Forever

My friend Rachel sent me a link for this video about a couple who have a lion cub, and when he gets too big they release him into the wild. A year later they go back to see him and are told that he definitely won't remember them.

Grab a tissue and watch.



If you have a pet, give it an extra hug today.

Tom Brokaw Gets Emotional Discussing Tim Russert On Meet the Press

I can't believe how teary I got this morning watching Meet the Press. Seeing Tom Brokaw struggle to speak as he quoted something Tim Russert used to say really did me in. As did seeing James Carville and Mary Matalin holding hands as she dabbed at her eyes with a tissue. If often found myself yelling at the TV as I watched Tim on Sunday mornings, but hearing all the tributes paid to this man, I am more in awe of him now than I was before. I don't know how they will find someone to replace him on Meet the Press, but I would love to see Carville and Matalin give it a try as co-moderators. I think they'd be awesome. But please, don't give the job to that blustery Chris Matthews, or boring as hell David Gregory. Oh boy, it makes me miss David Bloom.

Letterman Makes a Fool of Spencer Pratt!

Reason No. 5,467 to love David Letterman. He thinks Spencer Pratt is as big a douche as I do. Watch and enjoy!

John Cusack for President!

John Cusack has done an online ad comparing Bush and McCain, and proclaims that you can't tell them apart. I couldn't agree more. He's no Martin Sheen but I think Cusack would be a better president than the one we have now, and it would mean that he'd stop making horrendously crap movies about haunted hotel rooms.

Madonna's New Video Has Me Feeling Conflicted

On one hand I think Madonna looks AMAZING in her video for "Give It To Me." On the other hand I am kind of skeeved out by a 49-year-old woman gyrating her middle-aged pelvis (albeit an amazingly toned one) in my direction.

Sam Sparro, an Aussie singer who's had a hit single in the U.K. with "Black and Gold" but hasn't made it big in the U.S. yet, says that Madonna should just give up cause she's not young anymore, which is ageist and insulting to women (hello, ancient relics the Rolling Stones), but I think there is also an ounce of truth to what he says.

"Madonna is wretched at the moment - absolutely vulgar. Put it away," the young artist raved to UK magazine Attitude. He claimed that Madge had resorted to desperate measures to maintain her career stronghold.

"You're not young and sexy any more," he railed, telling the interviewer Madonna had been "thoughtful and mature for a while and now she's chucked it away in a desperate attempt at being hot again. It's a bit vile."

The 25-year-old also let fly at Madonna's looks, saying: "I definitely think she's had some work done - like a recent facelift."

Despite all these mixed feelings, I think I should hit the gym a little bit more this week.

I'll Never Get Tired of Looking at Hugh Jackman With His Shirt Off

It's winter in Sydney but that didn't stop Wolverine star Hugh Jackman from stripping off and diving into the surf at Bondi Beach.

Matthew McConaughey can keep his shirt on as far as I am concerned.

Hugh's hotter and he can sing and dance. That beats naked bongo drumming any day.

SYTYCD: And Now For Something Completely Different: Evan Kasprzak

Very old Hollywood musical. Hello, Gene Kelly. Loved it! Can't believe he didn't make the top 20.

Another Amazing Popper: Michael Kim

Awesome.

I Will Never Ever Complain About My Cats Sitting On My Chest Ever Again

Loba Elhelw, 25, an Egyptian lion and tiger trainer, performs during one of her shows at the Egyptian National Circus in Cairo. She is the youngest lion tamer in the Arab world, according to one of the directors of the circus.