ROME – A luxury cruise ship ran aground off the coast of Tuscany, gashing open the hull and forcing some 4,200 people aboard to evacuate aboard lifeboats to a nearby island early Saturday. At least three were dead, the Italian coast guard said.
At least three bodies were recovered from the sea and at least three additional persons were feared dead, and helicopters were working to pluck to safety some 50 people still trapped aboard the badly listing Costa Concordia, said Coast Guard Cmdr. Francesco Paolillo.
Paolillo said it wasn't immediately known if the dead were passengers or crew, nor were the nationalities of the victims immediately known. It wasn't clear how they died. The Italian news agency ANSA reported that some people had jumped overboard in the scramble to evacuate the ship, which had just begun a Mediterranean cruise.
The evacuees were taking refuge in schools, hotels, and a church on the tiny Tuscan island of Giglio, a popular vacation isle about 18 miles off Italy's central west coast.
ANSA quoted two Italian journalists who happened to be among the passengers taking the Mediterranean cruise as saying the accident happened during dinner hour.
"We were dining when the lights went out, and suddenly we heard a bang and the dishes fell to the floor," ANSA quoted one of the journalist-passengers, Luciano Castro, as saying.
"It was like a scene from the Titanic," another passenger aboard, journalist Mara Parmegiani, told ANSA.
"But it is hard to launch the lifeboats, so they moved to the right side of the ship, and they could launch."
Elderly passengers were crying, said Mr Ordona, adding that he and some others jumped into the sea and swam roughly 400 metres to reach land.
Rescued passengers are being accommodated in hotels, schools and a church on Giglio, a resort island 25km (18 miles) off Italy's western coast.
Costa Crociera, the company which owns the ship, said it could not yet say what had caused the accident.
"The gradual listing of the ship made the evacuation extremely difficult," a statement said. "The position of the ship, which is worsening, is making more difficult the last part of the evacuation.
"We'd like to express our deepest gratitude to the coastguard and other emergency services, including the authorities and citizens of the island of Giglio, who did their best in saving and helping the passengers and crew.
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Isola del Giglio, is an island and Italian comune situated in the Tyrrhenian Sea, off the coast of Tuscany, part of the Province of Grosseto. The island is one of seven that form the Tuscan Archipelago. Though the name Giglio ('lily") would appear consonant with the insignia of Medici Florence, it derives from Aegilium or "Goat Island", the Latin transliteration of the Greek word for "goat" (Aegilion).
The island is separated by a 16 km stretch of sea from the promontory of Monte Argentario. Mainly mountainous, it consists almost entirely of granites culminating in the Poggio della Pagana (496 m). 90% of its surface is covered by Mediterranean vegetation alternated with large pine forests and numerous vineyards which allow the production of the local "Ansonaco" wine. The coast is 27 km long, made up of rocks, smooth cliffs and several bays: Arenella, Cannelle, Caldane and Campese, the biggest one with its small, same-named village.
The modern island was probably formed 4.5 to 5 million years ago, and has been inhabited since the Iron Age. Later it was probably an Etruscan military stronghold. Under the Roman domination Aegilium Insula or Igillia Insula was an important base in the Tyrrhenian Sea, cited briefly by Julius Caesar in his De Bello Gallico, by Pliny by Pomponius Mela and by the poet Rutilius Claudius Namatianus, who celebrated Igilium's successful repulse of the Getae and safe harbor for Romans, in a time when Igilium's slopes were still wooded:
Eminus Igilii silvosa cacumina miror
Quam fraudare nefas laudis honore suae.
In 805 it was donated by Charlemagne to the abbey of the Tre Fontane in Rome, and was later successively a possession of the Aldobrandeschi, Pannocchieschi, Caetani, and Orsini families, and of the municipality of Perugia. In 1241 the Sicilian fleet of Emperor Frederick II destroyed a Genoese fleet. From 1264 Isola del Giglio was a Pisae dominion, from which it passed to the Medici family. It suffered several Saracen attacks, which ended only in 1799.
Alongside its history the island was always renowned for its mineral ore: many columns and buildings in Rome were built with the Gigliese granite.
The island houses the remains of a Roman villa of Domitius Ahenobarbus (1st-2nd century), in the area of Giglio Porto (Giglio port). No traces of the once existing Diana Temple can be seen now. The church of San Pietro Apostolo in Giglio Castello (Giglio castle) has an ivory crucifix attributed to the sculptor Giambologna.
The island is also the site of an Etruscan shipwreck dating back to the early Iron age, c. 600 BC. The cargo of the ship included copper and lead ingots, iron spits, amphorae and a Corinthian helmet. Even a wooden writing tablet with stylus was preserved. The finds are almost completely lost now.
Isola del Giglio is connected to Tuscany by ferries Toremar and Maregiglio ("sea lily"), departing from Porto Santo Stefano.
On 13 January 2012, the cruise ship Costa Concordia ran hard aground on the coast of Giglio.
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Broadway shows this season have experienced more controversy and critical hand-wringing before opening night than "The Gershwins' Porgy and Bess," a new version of the classic opera that debuted last year at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, Mass., and that bowed this week at the Richard Rodgers Theatre in New York.
This revised production features cuts and revisions by Suzan Lori-Parks and Diedre L. Murray. Last year, composer Stephen Sondheim wrote a harsh letter that was published in the New York Times in which he attacked the show, sight unseen.
"Porgy," directed by Diane Paulus, stars Audra McDonald and Norm Lewis as the title characters. The show has undergone further streamlining since its A.R.T. debut last year.
How have critics reacted? The responses have so far been all over the map.
Ben Brantley of the New York Times reviewed the production during its debut in Massachusetts and has revisited it in New York. Overall, "the show is much improved, clearer and more fluid, than it was in Cambridge." At times, this slimmed-down opera "sometimes feels skeletal." As Bess, McDonald is "great; the show in which she appears is, at best, just pretty good."
The Chicago Tribune's Chris Jones wrote that the much talked-about changes and cuts to the opera have been "overhyped and overdiscussed." In the end, the "limitations of the production flow from the same fundamental issues that have applied since this piece was first seen in 1935.
Opera companies are not innocents when it comes to making cuts in works. But at least with standard repertory, such cuts tend to be nicks and trims, or an aria for a minor character generally considered superfluous, not whole sections of a score. I cannot be sure, but a good third of the original “Porgy and Bess” seems gone in this adaptation.
The intimacy of the production is a selling point. In the scene at Serena’s home, it is moving to see just a dozen or so choristers, her Catfish Row neighbors, singing the despondent, descending chords of “Gone, Gone, Gone” as they huddle over the laid-out body of Serena’s husband, Robbins. He has been killed in a fight with the brutish stevedore Crown, here the imposing Phillip Boykin. (That fight is depicted by Gershwin in a frenzied orchestral fugue, but the effect in this version was nothing like what you experience when an opera orchestra plays it at full tilt and complete.)
As Serena, Bryonha Marie Parham conveys the new widow’s shocking grief. But her singing of “My Man’s Gone Now” is reticent, and the orchestra almost disappears. This song can knock you out when a full-voiced, throbbing Serena is backed by an opera-house orchestra bustling with Gershwin’s whiplash flute riffs and pummeling percussion.
This “Porgy and Bess” certainly has its moments, and the adaptation comes across as a good-faith effort to try something different. As Ms. McDonald said in the Times interview, the opera “will always exist to be performed.”
We're glad http://www.wdcpost.com/2012/01/heather-locklear.htmlHeather Locklear's parents have such a positive attitude—because she's in their care now.
The former Melrose Place star was discharged from Los Robles Hospital in Thousand Oaks, Calif., at around 5 p.m., according to a hospital spokeswoman.
So, what now for the actress, who was admitted yesterday in an "agitated" state?
READ: Heather Locklear & Jack Wagner: Why No Wedding?
"She's fine, she was mobile, she was walking, she was dressed, she was talkative and she'll have follow-up care through her personal physicians," the spokeswoman said.
"Spirits were very good, she was calm and chitchatty. Her parents were very glad when the doctors decided she was well enough to be discharged."
The hospital in the Los Angeles suburb of Thousand Oaks said earlier in the day that Locklear was medically stable and being cared for one-on-one in the ICU. Paramedics transported her from her home in Westlake Village, 35 miles northwest of Los Angeles.
Locklear has been hospitalized several times over the years. In 2009, she pleaded no contest to reckless driving after being arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence of prescription medication.
Locklear also starred in such TV series as "Dynasty" and "T.J. Hooker."
Her engagement to "Melrose Place" co-star Jack Wagner recently ended. She was previously married to Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora, and they have a daughter together.
Heather Deen Locklear, born September 25, 1961 is an American actress best known for her television roles as Sammy Jo Carrington on Dynasty, Officer Stacy Sheridan on T.J. Hooker, Amanda Woodward on Melrose Place, and Caitlin Moore on Spin City.
Locklear was born in Westwood, Los Angeles, California, the daughter of William Robert Locklear and Diane (née Tinsley). She was raised in Thousand Oaks, California and graduated from Newbury Park High School. Locklear is the youngest of four children. She is also of part Lumbee (Native American) descent.
Locklear attended the University of California, Los Angeles, and pledged Chi Omega and Delta Delta Delta, but was never initiated into either sorority. While at UCLA, she began modeling and working in commercials for the school store. She made her earliest screen appearances in the early 1980s with small roles in episodes of CHiPs, 240-Robert, and Eight Is Enough, before beginning a long-term collaboration with Aaron Spelling. Spelling cast her in the role of Sammy Jo Dean during the second season of his TV series Dynasty, and the following year he cast her in the cop show T.J. Hooker with William Shatner. Until the mid 1980s, Locklear appeared as a series regular on T.J. Hooker, while making semi-regular appearances on Dynasty. She was a full-time cast member on Dynasty from 1985 until its cancellation in 1989. In 1991, the cast of Dynasty (including Locklear) reconvened for the four-hour mini-series Dynasty: The Reunion.
Locklear was romantically linked with several Hollywood personalities including Scott Baio. She was married for seven years to Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee from May 1986 to August 1993.After their divorce, she married Bon Jovi guitarist Richie Sambora on December 17, 1994 in Paris. She gave birth to their only child, daughter Ava Elizabeth, in 1997. As of 2010, Ava is modeling and plans to be an actress. Locklear filed for divorce from Sambora in February 2006. The following month Sambora filed for joint custody of their daughter and enforcement of a prenuptial agreement. Their divorce was finalized in April 2007. In April 2007, Locklear began a relationship with fellow Melrose Place alum Jack Wagner. In August 2011, Locklear and Wagner announced they were engaged, but Locklear's publicist announced that the engagement was called off in November 2011.
In September 2008, Locklear was pulled over and arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence by a California Highway Patrol officer just outside Santa Barbara after she was seen driving erratically. Police had been tipped off about Locklear's driving by Jill Ishkanian, a former reporter and editor at Us Weekly magazine, who saw Locklear outside a market in Montecito, California. Ishkanian photographed the incident and then sold the photos to celebrity news website TMZ.com for $27,500, though she claims it was entirely a chance meeting and denies following Locklear or setting her up in order to obtain photographs. Locklear was formally charged on November 17, 2008, with one misdemeanor count of driving under the influence. A blood test detected no alcohol or illegal narcotics, but Santa Barbara County Deputy District Attorney Lee Carter stated that they believe the prescription medications she consumed for her anxiety and depression "could have impaired her ability to safely drive a motor vehicle". On January 2, 2009, Locklear pleaded no contest to reckless driving, and in return the district attorney dismissed the DUI charges. Locklear will serve three years' informal probation, was fined $700 and must complete a DMV road and safety class.
In March 2008, a 911 call was made by someone who claimed to be Locklear's doctor and said that Locklear was trying to commit suicide. Emergency responders were dispatched to Locklear's home. Her publicist later said that Locklear had never requested any medical assistance and the Ventura County Sheriff's Department later stated that no further action was taken once they arrived at Locklear's Westlake Village home, as she appeared to be fine. They did, however, state that they believed the call to be genuine. On June 24, 2008, she checked into a medical facility in Arizona for psychological issues including anxiety and depression, and requested an in-depth evaluation of her medication in order to receive proper diagnosis and treatment. Her agent confirmed that she was suffering from anxiety and depression. On July 23, 2008, Locklear returned home after four weeks of treatment at the facility.
On January 12, 2012, Locklear's sister called 911 when she believed Locklear was in danger after reportedly taking prescription drugs and alcohol. Emergency personnel responded and Locklear was taken to Los Robles Hospital in Thousand Oaks, but was reported to be out of danger the following day.
Stephen Colbert is putting his money where his mockery is — or, at least, his super PAC is.
On his Comedy Central show Thursday night Colbert announced “an exploratory committee to lay the groundwork” for his “possible candidacy for president of the United States of South Carolina.” He also handed control of his super PAC, Citizens for a Better Tomorrow, Tomorrow, over to his colleague, Jon Stewart, host of “The Daily Show.”
ABC News has learned that the group is already buying up television air time in South Carolina. A source tracking ad buys in early primary states told ABC that the super PAC has purchased nearly $10,000 worth of time on a broadcast station in the Charleston, S.C. area between Jan. 15 and Jan. 19.
Stewart is a producer on "The Colbert Report."
Colbert turned to Potter for guidance.
“Being business partners does not count as coordination, legally,” the attorney explained.
With Colbert and Stewart’s signatures on a single legal document, Colbert is now legally on his way to a legitimate presidential run, according to his lawyer.
“Now that that’s all cleared up, I have a major announcement to make,” Colbert said. “I am proud to announce that I am forming an exploratory committee to lay the groundwork for possible candidacy for president of the United States of America of South Carolina.”
As red, white and blue balloons dropped from the ceiling, Colbert triumphantly cheered, “I’m doing it!”
Colbert is a native of South Carolina. Although the filing deadline to run in the GOP primary there is past, Colbert, who said he is polling at 5 percent in the state, could undertake a write-in candidacy.
Stephen Tyrone Colbert, born May 13, 1964 is an American political satirist, writer, comedian, television host, and actor. He is the host of Comedy Central's The Colbert Report, a satirical news show in which Colbert portrays a caricatured version of conservative political pundits.
Colbert originally studied to be an actor, but became interested in improvisational theatre when he met famed Second City director Del Close while attending Northwestern University. He first performed professionally as an understudy for Steve Carell at Second City Chicago; among his troupe mates were comedians Paul Dinello and Amy Sedaris, with whom he developed the critically acclaimed sketch comedy series Exit 57.
Colbert also wrote and performed on the short-lived Dana Carvey Show before collaborating with Sedaris and Dinello again on the cult television series Strangers with Candy. He gained considerable attention for his role on the latter as closeted gay history teacher Chuck Noblet. It was his work as a correspondent on Comedy Central's news-parody series The Daily Show, however, that first introduced him to a wide audience.
In 2005, he left The Daily Show with Jon Stewart to host a spin-off series, The Colbert Report. Following The Daily Show's news-parody concept, The Colbert Report is a parody of personality-driven political opinion shows such as The O'Reilly Factor. Since its debut, the series has established itself as one of Comedy Central's highest-rated series, earning Colbert three Emmy Award nominations and an invitation to perform as featured entertainer at the White House Correspondents' Association Dinner in 2006. Colbert was named one of Time's 100 most influential people in 2006.[10] His book I Am America (And So Can You!) was No. 1 on The New York Times Best Seller list.
Although, by his own account, he was not particularly political before joining the cast of The Daily Show, Colbert has described himself as a Democrat according to a 2004 interview. In an interview at the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard Institute of Politics, he stated that he has "no problems with Republicans, just Republican policies". He is also a practicing Roman Catholic and Sunday school teacher.
Colbert lives in Montclair, New Jersey with his wife, Evelyn McGee-Colbert, who appeared with him in an episode of Strangers with Candy as his mother. She also had an uncredited cameo as a nurse in the series pilot and a credited one (as his wife, Clair) in the film. McGee-Colbert actually met Jon Stewart, later a good friend of Colbert, before she met her husband in 1990. She is the daughter of prominent Charleston civil litigator Joseph McGee, of the firm Buist Moore Smythe McGee. The couple has three children: Madeleine, Peter, and John.[106] Colbert prefers, however, that his children not watch his show, The Colbert Report, saying that "kids can't understand irony or sarcasm, and I don't want them to perceive me as insincere".
On the 7 April 2009 edition of The Colbert Report, Colbert was ceremonially knighted by Queen Noor of Jordan, a guest on the show. The Queen had been invited to appear to promote the Global Zero Campaign, an effort aimed at eliminating nuclear weapon reserves worldwide. The knighting was done at Colbert's semi-facetious request, as an exchange for his signature on the Global Zero declaration, which the Queen had requested. Queen Noor hesitated, commenting that until that point she had only knighted some of the children of her friends, at the parents' request, but never an adult. In his own defense, Colbert jokingly responded, "I have an infantile mind," and "I was needy as a child."
Queen Noor agreed, and asked Colbert if he had a sword on hand for the knighting. Colbert responded, "I'm way ahead of you," and brought out a prop sword from under his desk. Queen Noor knighted Stephen Colbert, and in exchange Colbert signed the Global Zero declaration.
John Edwards has a life-threatening heart condition, sources confirm to CNN.
The National Enquirer reported New Year's Day that Edwards had sought to delay his trial for criminal corruption, scheduled to begin later this month, due to the condition.
Looks like that was true. Lawyers and a federal judge met in a North Carolina courtroom Friday for a status hearing regarding the pending trial of the former U.S. senator.
Edwards appeared in person at Friday's hearing. The motion for a delay was made under seal, but some details were publicly revealed by the judge in the open hearing.
Marines start probe — The Marine Corps laid the groundwork for deciding what, if any, disciplinary action will be taken in the case of an Internet video purporting to show Marine snipers urinating on dead bodies in Afghanistan. The top Marine officer, Gen. James Amos, appointed three-star Gen. Thomas Waldhauser to oversee the case. Waldhauser will decide what to do as a result of the investigations. In Afghanistan, a senior U.S. commander issued a letter to all personnel in the international coalition that is fighting the war, explicitly reminding them of the need to respect the dead.
Sheriff charged with domestic abuse — A prosecutor says he has charged San Francisco's newly sworn-in sheriff with misdemeanors, including domestic violence, related to a New Year's Eve incident with his wife. The disclosure by San Francisco District Attorney George Gascon came Friday after a neighbor reported that Sheriff Ross Mirkarimi grabbed and bruised Eliana Lopez's arm during a heated argument at their home. Mirkarimi has denied the allegations. Lopez, a former Venezuelan telenovela star, has defended her husband, saying the episode was taken out of context.
Child molester gets 560 years — A man dubbed by "America's Most Wanted" as one of the most prolific child molesters in Arizona history was sentenced Friday to 560 years in prison for abusing eight boys. Arthur Leon Vitasek, 47, was sentenced by Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Peter Reinstein after being found guilty in November of 26 counts that included sexual conduct with a minor, child molestation and public sexual indecency.
Catholic priest sentenced — Monsignor Kevin McAuliffe, 59, was sentenced to three years in federal prison and ordered to repay $650,000 he acknowledged embezzling from his northwest Las Vegas parish to support his gambling habit.
A federal judge disclosed Friday that former presidential candidate John Edwards has a life-threatening heart condition, a court source confirmed to CNN.
Edwards had sought a delay in his criminal corruption trial, scheduled to begin this month.
Attorneys and the federal judge met in a North Carolina courtroom Friday afternoon for a status hearing regarding the pending trial of Edwards, a former U.S. senator.
Edwards appeared at Friday's hearing. His lawyers had made the motion for a delay under seal, but some of its details were publicly revealed by the judge in the open hearing.
The criminal trial has been delayed until at least March 26, according to the court source. Judge Catherine Eagles said she has been in contact with Edwards' cardiologist, who recommended a postponement, saying Edwards is scheduled to undergo surgery next month.
Edwards has to provide the court with a written medical update by February 28, according to court records.
One legal expert, Marcellus McRae, a trial lawyer and former federal prosecutor, said he doubted that Edwards' illness would influence a jury verdict.
Two years ago, Edwards confessed he fathered a baby born to his ex-mistress. He had long denied the girl, Frances Quinn Hunter, was his, even after he admitted cheating on his wife with the child’s mother, Rielle Hunter. Hunter had been hired before Edwards’ 2008 White House campaign to shoot behind-the-scenes video of him.
Edwards’ confession came ahead of the release of a book by former aide Andrew Young. The book described how Edwards worked to hide his paternity with the help of his married aide.
Shortly before the 2008 presidential primaries began, Young stepped forward to claim that he — not Edwards — was the child’s father. But there were suspicions at the time that the fiercely loyal aide was taking the fall for his boss.
The child was conceived in mid-2007, while Edwards was running for the White House, and around the time he was renewing his vows after 30 years of marriage.
In early 2010, Edwards publicly admitted fathering Hunter’s child and friends disclosed that he and his wife, Elizabeth, were separated. She died in December 2010 from incurable breast cancer that was first diagnosed in 2004, a day after the Democratic ticket that included John Edwards as the vice presidential candidate lost to George W. Bush.
The Edwardses were law school sweethearts who married just days after they took the bar exam together in the summer of 1977. They had four children together, including a son who died at age 16. Although the couple had separated, John Edwards was at her side around the clock as her health deteriorated. He did not speak at her funeral.
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- The parents of Natalee Holloway, the American teenager who disappeared in Aruba in 2005, say their ordeal hasn't ended with a judge declaring their daughter dead. They hope a young Dutchman seen leaving a bar with Holloway on the last day she was seen alive might ultimately be brought before a U.S. court.
Joran van der Sloot, 24, pleaded guilty Wednesday in Peru to the 2010 slaying of a young woman he had met in a Lima casino. That plea from the Dutchman, described as the prime suspect in the Holloway case, came hours before Thursday's hearing in Birmingham where Dave and Beth Holloway watched a judge rule their daughter legally dead.
"We've been dealing with her death for the last six and a half years," Dave Holloway said after Thursday's hearing. He said the judge's order closes one chapter in the ordeal, but added: "We've still got a long way to go to get justice."
Thursday's hearing was scheduled before van der Sloot -- who had been questioned in Holloway's disappearance -- pleaded guilty to killing a 21-year-old Peruvian, Stephany Flores.
She was slain five years to the day after Holloway, an 18-year-old from the wealthy Birmingham suburb of Mountain Brook, disappeared.
Dave Holloway said he hopes van der Sloot, who awaits sentencing, gets a 30-year prison term sought by Peruvian prosecutors. Shortly after Flores' death on May 30, 2010, van der Sloot told police he had killed the woman in Peru in a fit of rage after she discovered on his laptop his connection to Holloway's disappearance. Police forensic experts disputed the claim.
Flores' murder took place May 30, 2010. That's precisely five years to the day that Holloway was seen leaving a nightclub in Aruba with Van der Sloot and two other men on May 30, 2005.
After that night, Holloway vanished.
Her disappearance made international headlines and triggered a massive, multiagency search that included sifting the bottom of the ocean floor off Aruba in a bid for clues.
Over the years, Van der Sloot has told law enforcement officials, as well as the media, conflicting stories about Holloway. In one scenario, he politely dropped Holloway off at her hotel. In another, he left her, alone, on the beach after she collapsed. He also claimed at one point that he sold her into sexual slavery. And, of course, he has said that he had nothing at all to do with Holloway's disappearance.
While U.S. authorities did not have the jurisdiction to charge him in Holloway's disappearance, they have not given up hope that he will someday be forced to face charges in a U.S. courtroom.
In another turn of events, Van der Sloot allegedly contacted Holloway's mother, Beth, and promised to reveal everything about his daughter's disappearance -- in exchange for $250,000.
The FBI, which became involved in the alleged 2010 extortion plot, set up a sting to capture Van der Sloot. But he fled to Peru with a down payment of several thousand dollars that was wired to him as part of the negotiations.
In a sad coincidence, Holloway's family was in court this week for a previously scheduled hearing. The matter? A formal declaration of her death, necessary so that her parents can tend to matters related to the teen's meager estate.
Natalee Ann Holloway, October 21, 1986 — on or after May 30, 2005 disappeared and subsequently died, vanishing on a high school graduation trip to Aruba, a Caribbean country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. An American student from Mountain Brook, Alabama, Holloway graduated from Mountain Brook High School on May 24, 2005, shortly before the trip. Her disappearance caused a media sensation in the United States.
Holloway was scheduled to fly home later on May 30, but failed to appear for her flight. She was last seen by her classmates outside Carlos'n Charlie's, a Caribbean chain restaurant and nightclub in Oranjestad, in a car with locals Joran van der Sloot and brothers Deepak and Satish Kalpoe. When questioned, the three men said they dropped her off at her hotel and denied knowing what became of Holloway. Upon further investigation by authorities, Van der Sloot was arrested twice on suspicion of involvement in her disappearance and the Kalpoes were each arrested three times. Due to lack of evidence the three men were released without charge each time.
With the help of hundreds of volunteers, Aruban investigators conducted an extensive search for Holloway. Special Agents from the FBI, fifty Dutch soldiers and three specially equipped Dutch Air Force F-16 aircraft participated in the search. In addition to the ground search, divers examined the ocean floor for evidence of Holloway's body. The searches were unsuccessful; Holloway's body was never found. On December 18, 2007, Aruban prosecutors announced that the case would be closed without any charges sought against the former suspects. The Aruban prosecutor's office reopened the case on February 1, 2008, after receiving video footage of Joran van der Sloot, under the influence of marijuana, making statements that Holloway died on the morning of May 30, 2005, and that he disposed of her body. Van der Sloot later denied that what he said was true, and subsequently gave Greta Van Susteren an interview (the contents of which he later retracted) in which he stated that he sold Holloway into sexual slavery.
Holloway's family criticized Aruban investigators throughout the search for a perceived lack of progress in finding her. The family also called for a boycott of Aruba, which gained Alabama Governor Bob Riley's support but failed to gain widespread backing. On January 12, 2012, an Alabama judge declared her legally dead.
In June 2011, Dave Holloway filed a petition with the Alabama courts seeking to have his daughter declared legally dead. The papers were served on his former wife, who announced her intention to oppose the petition. A hearing was held on September 23, 2011, during which Probate Judge Alan King ruled Dave Holloway had met the requirements for a legal presumption of death. On January 12, 2012, a second hearing was held, after which Judge King signed the order declaring Natalee Holloway to be dead.
On April 19, 2009, Lifetime Movie Network aired Natalee Holloway, a television film based on Beth Holloway's book Loving Natalee. Starring Tracy Pollan as Beth Holloway-Twitty, Grant Show as George "Jug" Twitty, Amy Gumenick as Natalee Holloway and Jacques Strydom as Joran van der Sloot, the film retells events leading up to the night of Holloway's disappearance in 2005, and the ensuing investigation in the aftermath. The movie does not solve the case, but stages re-creations of various scenarios, based on the testimony of key players and suspects, including Van der Sloot. The broadcast of the film attracted 3.2 million viewers, garnering the highest television ratings in the network's 11-year history. Although it set ratings records for Lifetime, the movie was not received well by critic Alec Harvey of The Birmingham News. Harvey called the movie "sloppy and uneven, a forgettable look at the tragedy that consumed the nation's attention for months". However, Jake Meaney of PopMatters found the film to be surprisingly "calm and levelheaded", and praised Tracy Pollan's portrayal of Holloway's mother.
U.S. television networks devoted much air time to the search for Holloway, the investigation of her disappearance, and rumors surrounding the case. Greta Van Susteren, host of Fox News Channel's On the Record, and Nancy Grace on CNN's Headline News were among the most prominent television personalities to devote time to the incident. Van Susteren's almost continuous coverage of the story caused On the Record to get its best ratings to date, while Grace's show became the cornerstone of the new "Headline Prime" block on Headline News, which ran two episodes (a live show and a repeat) every night during prime-time. As the case wore on, much of the attention was given to Beth Twitty and her statements. Aruban government spokesman Ruben Trapenberg stated, "The case is under a microscope, and the world is watching.
The saturation of coverage triggered a backlash among some critics who argued that such extensive media attention validates the "missing white woman syndrome" theory, which argues that missing-person cases involving white women and girls receive disproportionate attention in the media compared with cases involving white males or people of color. CNN ran a segment criticizing the amount of coverage their competitors gave to the story despite what they characterized as a lack of new items to report, with CNN news anchor Anderson Cooper calling the coverage "downright ridiculous".
Early in the case, political commentator and columnist Arianna Huffington wrote, "If you were to get your news only from television, you'd think the top issue facing our country right now is an 18-year-old girl named Natalee who went missing in Aruba. Every time one of these stories comes up, like, say, Michael Jackson, when it's finally over I think, what a relief, now we can get back to real news. But we never do.
In March 2008, El Diario commented, "But if doubts persist about cases involving missing Latinas, there are reasons why. These cases rarely receive the attention and resources we see given to other missing persons. The English-language media, for example, appear to be focused on the stories of missing white women, such as with the disappearance of Natalee Holloway in Aruba. Cases of missing Latina and African American women often remain faceless, when they are even covered.
CBS senior journalist Danna Walker stated, "There is criticism that it is only a story because she is a pretty blonde—and white—and it is criticism that journalists are taking to heart and looking elsewhere for other stories. But it is a big story because it is an American girl who went off on an adventure, and didn't come back. It is a huge mystery, it is something people can identify with.
SAN ANTONIO — Tony Parker had a tough time for three quarters — and then proved that he knows plenty about closing a game.
Parker scored 12 of his 20 points in the fourth quarter to help the San Antonio Spurs beat the Portland Trail Blazers 99-83 on Friday and stay unbeaten at home.
Parker shook off a slow start as the Spurs (8-4) improved to 8-0 at home, their best start since the 2007-08 season when they started 13-0.
“They did a pretty good job on me the first three quarters,” Parker said. “I was just trying to wait for my time.”
Portland (7-4), meanwhile, lost its second straight game and for only the second time in its last 10 games against San Antonio.
Tiago Splitter scored 14 points for the Spurs, and DeJuan Blair and Danny Green each added 13. Rookie Kawhi Leonard had 11.
Parker made only four of 12 shots and had four turnovers through the first three quarters. In the fourth quarter, though, he went 4 of 4 from the field and the free-throw line, had two steals and didn’t commit a turnover.
LaMarcus Aldridge was amazing in that first quarter and played strongly throughout the game. He kept to his strengths: jumpers, turn-arounds, and deeper posts. 12-21 shooting, 5-5 free throws, 29 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals. He made Tim Duncan look like a slouchy statue.
Gerald Wallace did his best to pick up every piece of the puzzle the Blazers fumbled tonight. In the first half he stole the ball like a madman. In the second half he rebounded like a champ. He only went 4-11 on the night but frankly that's because the Blazers' impotent offense forced him into shots that aren't his strength. 12 points, 12 rebounds, 4 steals, 5 assists.
Wesley Matthews went 5-11 for that dozen points in the second quarter. He didn't score a single point outside of that period but we'll take it.
Marcus Camby played 13 minutes with 3 rebounds. He was defending well. Get back soon.
Outside of a few marvelously aggressive drives in the opening period Raymond Felton was on a different page--no, in a whole different book--from his teammates and possibly the game plan. When the offense started sputtering he tried to pick it up himself. That's always curious behavior from a point guard, more so when the point guard has been struggling on offense all season, even more so when the solution he chooses is the jumper, even more so when those jumpers just don't fall. Felton went 6-17 for 13 points. He had 5 steals. That part was excellent. His 7 assists were fine. But most of his brilliance came early and then it was just bad.
Do you want more Captain America in your "Avengers"? If so, you're in luck -- according to Joss Whedon, much of "The Avengers" will be told from the perspective of Steve Rogers, as he's the only one able to make sense of what a silly world he's found himself in.
In a story for Entertainment Weekly (via ComicBookMovie), Whedon talked about deploying Rogers in this everyman role.
"I set out with a very simple problem: There is no reason for these people to be in the same movie," he said. "So that's what my movie has to be about. So much of the movie takes place from Steve Rogers' perspective, since he's the guy who just woke up and sees this weird ass world. Everyone else has been living in it."
That makes sense -- as Chris Evans has played Steve Rogers, he's by far the most down to earth character of all the mighty Avengers. Talking to GQ, Evans said as much.
"I don't think he's the coolest guy—he's far from it. He's a straight- shooter. He's probably pretty boring as far as a character goes, but I feel like he grounds things," he said. "When you have these giant personalities and egos, there needs to be someone who brings them back down and reminds that this is a team, not the individual show.
Whedon added, "['The Avengers'] is very much about people who are alone, because I'm writing it. [Captain America] is kind of the ultimate loner in that way. There is an anachronism to him, and Chris [Evans] and I have always tried to, without making it goofy or too obvious, make him that sam grounded '40s Steve Rogers he was in the other movie."
Though Captain America will likely have more portions in the movie, Whedon insisted that it doesn't mean he is the main character. The 47-year-old director promised that other fan-favorite superheroes; Thor, Iron Man, Hulk, Black Widow, Hawkeye and Nick Fury, will carry about equal share of the movie.
"You get them in a world, the world of S.H.I.E.L.D., where they fit in," said Whedon. "And you say upfront these are monsters. These are freaks. These are not you and me, and what are they doing here? How are they human beings? Let's just investigate that."
Due to arrive in the U.S. theaters on May 4, "The Avengers" will bring back Chris Evans, Chris Hemsworth and Robert Downey Jr. as Captain America, Thor and Iron Man respectively. Tom Hiddleston, Jeremy Renner, Scarlett Johansson and Samuel L. Jackson will also support the much awaited movie.
Joseph Hill "Joss" Whedon, born June 23, 1964 is an American screenwriter, executive producer, director, comic book writer, occasional composer and actor, founder of Mutant Enemy Productions and co-creator of Bellwether Pictures. He is best known as the creator and showrunner of the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer (1997–2003), Angel (1999–2004), Firefly (2002) and Dollhouse (2009–2010), as well as the short film Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog (2008). Whedon wrote and directed the movie adaptation of Marvel's The Avengers which will be released in May 2012. He is also notable for his work in film, comic books, and online media. Many of Whedon's projects, as well as Whedon himself, enjoy cult status.
Following a move to Los Angeles, Whedon secured his first writing job on the television series Roseanne. After working several years as a script doctor for films, he returned to television, where he created four TV shows.
Years after having his script for the movie Buffy the Vampire Slayer produced, Whedon revived the concept as a television series of the same name. Buffy the Vampire Slayer went on to become a critical and cult hit receiving an Emmy Award nomination for Outstanding Writing in a Drama Series in 2000. Buffy ran for five seasons on The WB Television Network before being relocated to the UPN Network for its final two seasons. Angel was a spin-off of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, featuring Buffy's vampire-with-a-soul ex-boyfriend as the title character. Debuting in September 1999 on the WB, Angel was broadcast following Buffy during its first two seasons. The WB canceled the show in February 2004 while it was in its fifth season.
Whedon wrote or co-wrote several films, including Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Toy Story, Atlantis: The Lost Empire, Alien Resurrection and Titan A.E.. The song "My Lullaby" from The Lion King II: Simba's Pride was written by him and Seattle native Scott Warrender. He was nominated (along with six other writers) for an Academy Award for Toy Story's screenplay.
He also wrote uncredited drafts or rewrites of Speed, Waterworld, Twister and X-Men, although in interviews, Whedon disowned the latter three films.[citation needed]He claimed that he had a good script for Alien Resurrection, which he felt was spoiled by its director Jean-Pierre Jeunet. His Waterworld script was thrown out[citation needed], and only two of his lines were kept in the final script of X-Men. Even the Buffy movie bore little resemblance to his original screenplay. According to Graham Yost, the credited writer of Speed, Whedon wrote most of its dialogue.
He wrote and directed 2005's Serenity, based on his television series Firefly. Serenity won the 2006 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Long Form. Beginning in January 2006, fans (with Universal's blessing) began organizing worldwide charity screenings called "Can't Stop the Serenity" (CSTS), a play on a line in the film: "You can't stop the signal", to benefit Equality Now, a human rights organization supported by Joss Whedon. Over $500,000 has been raised for Equality Now since 2006. As of May 1, 2011, 45 cities were registered for CSTS 2011 in 6 countries and 24 U.S. states.
Whedon, a lifelong comic book fan, is the author of the Dark Horse Comics miniseries Fray which takes place in the far future of the Buffyverse. Whedon returned to the world of Fray during the Buffy the Vampire Slayer Season Eight arc, "Time of Your Life".
Like many other authors from the Buffy TV show, he also contributed to the show's comic book version: he wrote three stories in the anthology Tales of the Slayers (including one featuring Melaka Fray from Fray) and also the main storyline of the five-issue miniseries Tales of the Vampires.
The three-issue miniseries Serenity: Those Left Behind, based on the Firefly series and leading up to the film Serenity, was released June through August 2005. Co-written with Brett Matthews and pencilled by Will Conrad, the first issue featured covers drawn by John Cassaday, J.G. Jones, and Bryan Hitch, as well as other artists for the second and third issues. The first two issues went to a second printing. The trade paperback featured a new cover by acclaimed painter Adam Hughes.
A second three-issue Serenity miniseries Serenity: Better Days, was released in March, April, and May 2008. "Better Days" reunites Whedon, Matthews, Conrad, and Adam Hughes, who will provide all three covers. The three covers form a larger panorama of the ship's crew. "Better Days" is set before "Those Left Behind", and features the full crew of Serenity. A trade paperback featuring a cover by Jo Chen was released in October 2008.
The dialogue in Joss Whedon's shows and movies usually involves pop culture references both notable and obscure, and the turning of nouns into adjectives by adding a "y" at the end of the word ("listy"). According to one of the Buffy writers, "It's just the way that Joss actually talks.
Whedon also heavily favors the suffix -age (Linkage, Lurkage, Poofage, Postage, Scrollage, Slayage).[60] Also, phrasal verbs usually ending with "out" are changed into direct verbs, for example "freak" rather than "freak out", "bail" rather than "bail out", or "hang" rather than "hang out". Whedon also tends to change adjectives into nouns such as "happy", "shiny" (positive thing), "bad" (mistake), "funny" (joke) – for example, a character may say "I made a funny" instead of "I made a joke".[citation needed] So many of Whedon's altered usages, new words, and heavily popularized words have entered the common usage that PBS in their article series "Do You Speak American" included an entire section on "Slayer Slang".
In an issue of Buffy Season Eight where Buffy travels to the future, Whedon writes Buffy's reaction to the future dialect of Manhattan; this allows Whedon to comment on Buffy's distinctive style of dialogue. "Buffy blames herself for what's happened to the English language, and there's a lot of hubris in that joke. I like to think that adding Y's to words that don't usually have Y's is going to destroy the whole fabric of our society.
[edit]Spiritual and philosophical beliefs
Whedon has identified himself as an atheist on multiple occasions. When interviewed by The AV Club on October 9, 2002, Whedon answered the question "Is there a God?" with one word: "No." The interviewer followed up with: "That's it, end of story, no?" Whedon answered: "Absolutely not. That's a very important and necessary thing to learn. In one of the Buffy DVD commentaries, Whedon comments that "I don't believe in the 'sky bully'", referring to God under a name coined by his colleague Tim Minear. In addition, during a question and answer session found on the Serenity DVD with fans of the Firefly series at Fox Studios in Sydney, he identifies himself as an atheist and absurdist.
Whedon has also spoken about existentialism. On the Firefly DVD set, Whedon explains in detail how existentialism, and more specifically the book Nausea, by Jean-Paul Sartre, was used as a basis for the episode "Objects in Space". On this commentary he claimed interest in existential ideas and described the impact of Nausea on his early life.
Whedon also identifies himself as a humanist. In April 2009, the Humanist Chaplaincy at Harvard presented Whedon with the 2009 Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award in Cultural Humanism.
A cruise ship with 4,200 people on board ran aground and ripped a 165-foot gash in its hull off the Tuscan island of Giglio on Friday night, and local officials reported that at least six people died. Some on the island said eight were dead.
At least three bodies were recovered from the sea, the Italian coast guard reported.
Helicopters were working to pluck to safety some 50 people still trapped aboard the badly listing Costa Concordia on Saturday, said Coast Guard Cmdr. Francesco Paolillo.
Some people were thrown into the sea when the Costa Concordia started listing, others jumped to evacuate the ship, officials said.
The ship was three-quarters under water and sinking fast, a Giglio hotel clerk told NBC News on Saturday.
The Telegraph of London said some passengers jumped from the steeply listing ship and swam a short distance to the island. A photo showed the brightly lit ship teetering just outside a harbor wall.
One official said that among the dead was a man around age 65, who might have been ill or who might not have withstood the cold of the sea at night, Il Messagero said.
The 290-meter Costa Concordia had left the port of Savona at 7 p.m. local time and was sailing to Civitavecchia, its first port of call, when it ran aground around 9 p.m.
Costa Cruises said 3,200 passengers were aboard, along with 1,023 crew members. Coast Guard Officials said the liner was listing at 20 degrees but was not in danger of sinking.
A local mayor on Giglio, a popular vacation island about 18 miles off the Tuscan coast, said he was trying to find rooms to house the stranded passengers and crew overnight. The cruise ship had departed from the Civitavecchia port near Rome earlier on Friday with scheduled calls at Palermo, Cagliari, Palma, Barcelona and Marseille.
The Italian news agency ANSA said the Concordia started to take on water and lean on the right side after running aground on Giglio's southern tip, in an area popular with divers and close to high cliffs.
ORIGINAL POST: More than 4,000 passengers and crew are being evacuated from a cruise ship off the coast of Italy in the wake of an accident, the AFP is reporting.
Citing the Italian coast guard, the news service says the 114,500-ton Costa Concordia ran aground late Friday shortly after setting sail from the port of Civitavecchia, near Rome, and has taken on water and begun to tilt.
The five-year-old ship is operated by Italy-based Costa Cruises, which is owned by industry giant Carnival Corp.
"The passengers are not in danger," a coast guard spokesman is quoted by AFP as saying, but "a rescue mission is underway.
Tags: Ship aground off Italy, Italy cruise ship, Giglio Italy, Italy cruise ship Costa, Three dead, 40 missing, Costa Concordia, Costa Concordia disaster, Divers Search Costa Concordia, Third survivor heard, Cruise ship off Italy, Rescuers try to reach, Costa Concordia Cruise ship, Builders of the Costa Concordia, Captain left ship early, Francesco Schettino Costa Concordia Captain, Owner of concordia
HILTON HEAD, S.C. — Mitt Romney made an appeal to veterans here in what could be considered the political equivalent of the doctrine of overwhelming force.
Mr. Romney and his endorsement brigade — Senator John McCain of Arizona, Gov. Nikki Haley of South Carolina, and John R. Bolton, the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Mr. Romney — offered up rousing patriotism (Mr. Romney), a recycled comedy routine (Mr. McCain), a warm South Carolina welcome (Ms. Haley), and some hawkish, fighting words (Mr. Bolton) in an effort to win over the crowd. But it was his answer to a question on his religious views that might have provided the evening’s most memorable exchange.
Mr. Romney, a Mormon, fielded a question from an older woman who stood and said, “Governor Romney, I’m for you. But I need to ask you a personal question. Do you believe in the divine saving grace of Jesus Christ?”
“Yes, I do,” Mr. Romney said quickly, and to some laughter, before launching into a more lengthy explanation about his views on religion.
Also Bolton endorsed Romney earlier this week. In touting the former Massachusetts governor's candidacy, Bolton said voters "want a president who has judgment, who has steadiness of purpose, who has leadership, who won't falter in a crisis, and who doesn't believe that the role of America in the world is to be a well-bred doormat."
Bolton - who flirted with launching his own presidential bid last year -- also contended it was the military, not Obama, that deserved credit for killing Osama bin Laden.
"You know, the irony is, he's campaigning on the basis that he's a success as a foreign policy president," Bolton said. "It's just really amazing and you ask, What is it that made the success? And it's because Navy SEAL Team 6 killed Osama bin Laden. That's his definition of success. As somebody pointed out, in 1969 when Americans landed on the moon, it's like Richard Nixon taking for credit for that, because it happened to occur during his presidency.
Newt Gingrich unveiled perhaps the silliest slander of the campaign season Friday by mocking Mitt Romney’s ability to — Mon dieu! — utter a few words in halting French.
The 68-second attack ad tries to link Romney to his moderate Massachusetts political brethren and then takes a surreal turn when the narrator breathlessly intones “... and just like John Kerry, he speaks French.”
A clip of the 2004 Democratic nominee saying “Laissez les bons temps rouler” — “Let the good times roll,” the Mardi Gras slogan — is then followed by footage from 2002 of the current GOP front-runner introducing himself: “Bonjour. Je m'appelle Mitt Romney.”
That video was released as a promotion for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City, for which Romney served as chief executive. English and French are the official languages of the Olympics.
The attack ad — which is dubbed “The French Connection” and also includes politically infamous images of former Bay State Governor Michael Dukakis in a tank and Kerry wind-surfing — was not funded by a Super PAC, but rather by the Gingrich campaign.
That means Gingrich — a former college professor who fancies himself as an intellectual — gave his approval for an ad that mocks the ability to speak a second language.
Gingrich has not always been such a Francophobe.
He lived in France for a few years as a teenager and has repeatedly compared himself to French World War II hero Charles de Gaulle.
The former House Speaker did, however, attempt to tone down one line of anti-Romney rhetoric by asking his Super PAC to cut out any errors in a documentary it purchased about Bain Capital.
“I’m calling on them to edit out every single mistake or to pull the entire film,” said Gingrich, who said he could not coordinate with the Super PAC, but hoped they would heed his advice. “I've said all along that these Super PACs ought to have some sense of responsibility.”
Meanwhile, Romney maintained a slim lead over Gingrich in South Carolina in a poll released Friday afternoon. The ex-governor of Massachusetts was the choice of 29% of likely voters while Gingrich got the backing of 24%, according to a survey by Public Policy Polling.
Ron Paul followed with 15%, then Rick Santorum with 14%, Rick Perry with 6% and Jon Huntsman with 5%, according to the poll.
The Sunlight Foundation mined federal campaign finance data from the Center for Responsive Politics and state campaign finance data from the National Institute for Money in Politics in producing its report. It also examined Internal Revenue Service filings from state-level 527 organizations as well as published reports of donors to Romney’s inaugural committee.
Romney, who enjoys commanding momentum in the GOP presidential nomination race, has nonetheless struggled to convince voters that he created jobs and economic opportunities for middle-class Americans during his Bain Capital tenure.
Republican presidential candidate Newt Gingrich roundly criticized Romney’s work at Bain, before largely dropping the issue after facing criticism himself for it.
Pro-Gingrich super PAC Winning Our Future, however, this week launched a multi-million dollar ad campaign in South Carolina that in part slams Romney’s Bain involvement, and it’s released a 27-minute documentary that highlights people who lost their jobs because of Bain shutting down their companies.
GOP presidential candidate Rick Perry, meanwhile, has continued attacking Romney as engaging in “vulture capitalism” that would “destroy people’s lives” during his time at Bain.
But Romney has enjoyed support from broadcasters such as Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity, as well as former presidential candidate Mike Huckabee, who’ve painted attacks on Bain as being anti-capitalist.
