Hillary Clinton Accepts First Founder's Award at Elton John AIDS Benefit

Carlo Allegri/Invision/AP

Hillary Clinton at Tuesday night's event

Hillary Clinton accepted the Elton John AIDS Foundation's first-ever Founder's Award at the organization's annual benefit in New York on Tuesday night.

Although she was honored by the accolade, Clinton echoed a theme expressed by many of the stars in attendance: that there's much more work to be done to combat the disease.

PHOTOS: Hillary Clinton, Ron Perelman Honored at 2013 Elton John AIDS Foundation Benefit

"We still have so far to go," the former secretary of state said in her acceptance speech. "There are so many challenges that confront us. If we are to continue to build on the progress -- and yes, there has been progress -- then we have to continue to advocate and demand for governments, international organizations, foundations, all of us, to be persistent … and ensure that we don't falter."

"If we're going to beat AIDS, we have to reach out to everyone," she added.

Elton John also received an award at Tuesday's gala, from the Harvard AIDS Initiative.

"I really hope that all of you will join me in being equally stubborn when it comes to ending AIDS because that is what will be required to end this epidemic," he told the well-heeled crowd at Cipriani Wall Street in lower Manhattan. "We're going to have to stubbornly insist on full funding for all proven methods of preventing HIV infection. … Treatment for everyone. Treatment for all. …We're going to have to keep yelling and screaming about the way our country treats racial and sexual minorities and, of course, the poor. We're going to have to be downright stubborn, not just this year, not next year, not the next, but for many years to come."

Indeed, John vowed to be stubborn about AIDS for the next 20 years if necessary, but he said he doesn't think it will take that long to achieve an AIDS-free generation and world.

Nevertheless, John added, "We have so much more work to do and we'll be there until the bitter end."

STORY: Hillary Clinton to Get Elton John Foundation Honor

Other honorees at the event, which raised $3.45 million, included Food Network star Sandra Lee, John's longtime agent Howard Rose and mogul Ron Perelman, who prompted cheers from the crowd when he referred to Clinton as "the next president of the United States." Clinton looked nonchalant when the camera cut to her, but after Perelman continued to sing her praises and said the highly rumored candidate has his vote, Clinton could be seen mouthing "Oh my God," as if she couldn't believe all of the attention.

Matt Lauer was a last-minute substitute host at the event after Anderson Cooper had to go to Washington to cover the debt-ceiling crisis, which Lauer joked "sounded like a lame-ass excuse."

Earlier, The Hollywood Reporter asked Lauer what the entertainment industry could do to continue to raise awareness of AIDS and combat the disease.

"Talk, talk, talk, spread the word, get out there, come to events like this and raise money," Lauer said. "I mean, when you stop and think about what Elton has done in 20 years … a lot of it is something you can't put a price tag on. It's just a discussion and getting out there and putting his reputation on the line and spreading the word that way."

STORY: Elton John to Pen Book on AIDS Epidemic

Tony-winning actress Judith Light echoed Lauer's call for a continued dialogue on the issue.

"We did and we do so much in terms of the awareness, and I don't think it's just the entertainment industry that has to do something, I think it's about those of us who are committed to this issue and have been committed to this issue for a long time, talking to other people and finding ways, just like Elton has, to make it a prominent issue again, to say to people, 'This is not over,' " she said.

The former Who's the Boss star, who's performed on Broadway for the past few years, told us that she recently starred in a pilot for Amazon, making her just the latest actor to join the Internet revolution.

Meanwhile, fellow Broadway alum Jeremy Jordan, who left his starring role in Newsies after he joined the second-season cast of NBC's now-canceled Smash, said he misses the stage and hopes to "come back as soon as possible." In fact, he's doing a weeklong Stephen Sondheim show in November called A Bed and a Chair.

"It's only a week, and it's not Broadway, but it will be nice to come back to New York for a hot sec," he said.

Other celebs in attendance included Billy Joel, Alec Baldwin, Allison Williams, Courtney Love, Lisa Marie Presley and rock band Heart, who performed at the end of the night.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/thr/business/~3/hrLuQ5eSaZI/story01.htm
Category: Helen Lasichanh   arcade fire   liberace   vince young   Vma Miley Cyrus  

Ben Cohen Puts Clothes ON For A Change For ‘Attitude’ Magazine

DAMNIT!

Posted by: Trent on October 18, 2013|

Rugby star Ben Cohen may not be a household name here in the US but just one look at his photospread for Attitude magazine proves that he should be … oh yes, he deffo should be. Cohen has been a very vocal, very open straight ally for the GLBT community and as such was named as the Ally of the Year by Attitude magazine. Altho Cohen is most famous for his rugby skills, he is probably just as famous to his admirers for his love of being photographed wearing as little clothing as possible … a fact that Attitude magazine loves to exploit every chance they get. Cohen is featured on one of the covers of this month’s new issue and as you can see in the gallery presented here, the accompanying photospread features Ben getting ready to attend a black tie event. Thankfully, the shoot starts in the bath and goes from there :) Click thru the gallery, get to know Ben Cohen a little bit better. I think you’ll see why I’ve been a fan of Ben’s for so long. Can I get a WOOF WOOF up in this joint?

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/pinkisthenewblog/~3/aevqfoppScE/ben-cohen-puts-clothes-on-for-a-change-for-attitude-magazine
Tags: Henry Bromell   freedom tower   Polina Polonsky   Andrea Sneiderman   Jamaal Charles  

Former San Diego Mayor Pleads Guilty To Criminal Charges

Mayor Bob Filner of San Diego speaks at a news conference in July.

Bill Wechter/Getty Images

Mayor Bob Filner of San Diego speaks at a news conference in July.

Bill Wechter/Getty Images

Former San Diego Mayor Bob Filner pleaded guilty to three criminal charges on Tuesday that stem from allegations of sexual harassment by three unnamed women.

The Democratic mayor and nine-term congressman, if you remember, was forced to resign from his office after allegations of harassment mounted over the summer. Filner left office, declaring his innocence, saying his resignation was a "political coup," orchestrated by a "lynch mob."

"I have never sexually harassed anyone," he said at the time.

The San Diego Union Tribune reports that Filner pleaded guilty today to "one criminal count of false imprisonment by violence, fraud, menace and deceit and two misdemeanor counts of battery."

The New York Times adds:

"Mr. Filner was the first Democratic elected mayor in San Diego in more than 20 years. As part of his stepping down, the city agreed to pay most of his legal fees and punitive damages in any sexual harassment lawsuit. The agreement did not shield him from the criminal prosecution announced on Tuesday.

"The state attorney general's office took over the prosecution of the case at the request of the San Diego district attorney, Bonnie Dumanis, a Republican, who lost to Mr. Filner in the mayoral race."

Source: http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/10/15/234773196/former-san-diego-mayor-pleads-guilty-to-criminal-charges?ft=1&f=
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What Makes Paul McCartney Nervous?

Paul McCartney's latest album, New, is out now.

Mary McCartney/Courtesy of the artist

Paul McCartney's latest album, New, is out now.

Mary McCartney/Courtesy of the artist

It's hard to picture Paul McCartney — one of history's most celebrated songwriters, a figure of incalculable importance to modern music and pop culture — fretting over anything, least of all filling arena seats. But as NPR's Robert Siegel discovered, a few circumstances can still make the ex-Beatle sweat.

McCartney's latest solo album, New, is out Tuesday. He recently spoke with Siegel about historical revisionists, dividing his new songs among four superstar producers, and why a little insecurity can be a successful artist's best friend. Hear the radio version at the audio link, and read more of their conversation below.

I want to ask you about a particular song on New called "Early Days." Tell me about this one.

So many times, I will have people tell me what I did when I was younger. There's so much being written [about] the early Beatles period, and even pre-Beatles period. And people will say, "Oh, he did that because that, and that happened because of that." And I'll be reading and think, "Well, that didn't happen" and, "That's not why I did that." Like anyone's history, you remember what went down better than people who weren't there. So I started off with this song — just a nostalgic trip, really. I was remembering John and I in Liverpool as young boys, walking down the street, dressed in black, guitars slung across our backs, trying to get people to listen to our music. Or we'd be in the record shop, listening to new records. All these experiences were in the song. And then I got to the last verse and I thought, "That's all very well, me telling everyone how all this went down, but there are a lot of people who are going to say, 'Well, no — I know what really happened.' "

Listening to this song, I had this image of you as a young man in Liverpool — and then I realized that the sound of the song had me thinking of Austin, Texas, or Nashville [Tenn.]. And the reason that I didn't feel any conflict or any dissonance is because of what you and John did to music 40, 50 years ago: breaking down all kinds of barriers and creating something universal.

People used to ask us, "What kind of music do you like?" And it was like, "American." We listened to a lot of black American music — Motown, particularly, and Stax and Chess. What was fascinating about it was, we would do cover versions — like, "Twist and Shout" was originally by The Isley Brothers. A lot of people think we wrote that song, and I go to great pains to say, "No, no, no. That was the Isleys. They're our heroes." A lot of the white audience that we were appealing to in the '60s hadn't heard this music, so they got introduced to it through us. And of lot of the guys whose music it was would later thank us: "It sounds great, man! I'd forgotten that song 'Money.' " So, it worked all around. They were very happy that we were doing it; we were very happy that they were such a beautiful, strong inspiration; and suddenly, you found barriers were coming down all around you. People were mixing country, blues, R&B, soul, vaudeville. It was all sort of going into this kind of bag.

Is it true that for New, you had four different producers?

I was looking for someone I could do the whole album with, and I thought the best way to do that is, work with some people that I admire and see if one of them jumps out. But in working with the four people — it was Paul Epworth, who's most famous for his work with Adele; Mark Ronson, very famous for his work with Amy Winehouse; Ethan Johns, who did Kings of Leon and Ryan Adams; and then George Martin's son, Giles Martin, who's best known for the work that he did with The Beatles on the show Cirque du Soleil put together in Las Vegas, the Love show. I worked with all of them and decided that I loved them all and didn't want to choose one of them. So I just continued working and did a few tracks with each one.

The worry became, is this going to be a sort of patchwork quilt of an album, and not have the cohesion that I would like it to have? But then I remembered a lot of the Beatles albums were very various, and we did it on purpose: We didn't want the next track to sound like the last one. So I thought, "You know what? There's a precedent here, and this is a good thing." So I just got on with it.

But the original intent had been to have one?

Yeah, it had. With the Beatles, we'd been very spoiled because we had George Martin, who worked for the record label we were going to be signed to. That was very fortunate, because we grew together. We'd throw at him these crazy ideas; he'd throw crazy ideas at us. He was the one who suggested I add a song called "Yesterday," and he suggested that there should be a string quartet on that. And I said, "No, no, no, no, no. We're a rock 'n' roll band. We can't put a string quartet on it." He said, "Bear with me, Paul." Of course, I heard it and just loved it.

Once the Beatles broke up and I didn't have that one producer anymore, I would still work with George and enjoy working with him. As he got to the point where he was going to retire, which he did, [I began to] produce a lot myself; by then, I had learned the game. But for this record, I wanted someone I could throw an idea, like we did with George. So that was the idea: trying to find one producer who would replace George, but in actual fact it turned out to be four.

There's another song from New, "Alligator," that seems to come from a frustrated place. What's up here?

I was talking to someone the other day about this: It seems to me that no matter how famous [you are], no matter how accomplished or how many awards you get, you're always still thinking there's somebody out there who's better than you. I'm often reading a magazine and hearing about someone's new record and I think, "Oh, boy, that's gonna be better than me." It's a very common thing.

I'll accept this as a very common thing, as I've heard from any number of illustrious professors — or broadcasters, for that matter — the fear, "I'll be found out." But, Sir Paul McCartney: You have had success in so many dimensions of music. You really feel a competitive insecurity with somebody else that's coming out with a record?

Unfortunately, yes. One thing that's good about it is, I think it's a good motivator. It keeps you hungry. I think the minute you're full up and have had enough to eat, then that's time to retire. But I agree with you — I should be able to look at my accolades and go, "Come on, Paul. That's enough." But there's still this little voice in the back of my brain that goes, "No, no, no. You could do better. This person over here is excelling. Try harder!" It still can be a little bit intimidating.

These days, if you do a live performance, you must know by now that for the people in the audience, it doesn't matter what you do. The fact that they're seeing you perform at that moment will be sufficient. Do you get nervous? Do you feel any anxiety about, "Will they really hear what I'm doing here and appreciate what I've got?"

I don't get too nervous these days, I must say. I'm much better. I have tricks. I will say to my promoter, "Look, just put one show on sale." He'd say, "We could do two or three, maybe, in this city." I'd say, "Just put one on sale and let me know how it goes." So he'll ring me back and he'll say, "Wow! Sold out Chicago, six minutes!" I'd say, "Now you can put the second show on." I'm quite careful that way. I do like to know that I'm wanted. I'll go to that show that sold out in six minutes, and I will know that those 30,000 people there are superkeen to see me.

I recently did a show in Las Vegas called "I Heart Radio" — it was Miley Cyrus, Justin Timberlake, Bruno Mars, me. It's a great show to do; we were all very excited. But when we got on, it was not like those people were all there to see me. And someone said later, "You know, that was no one's audience. That wasn't Justin's audience, it wasn't Bruno's, it wasn't Miley's, it wasn't yours. It was nobody's." And then someone reminded me, this is Las Vegas: When you check into a hotel, you get complimentary tickets to all the shows if your room's big enough. So suddenly, you realize you're playing to those people who are actually just working out when they're going to get to the casino. That can be a little nerve-wracking, because you're spoiled with your own audience, and now they're not reacting in the same way. So those little insecurities come in. But generally, when it's my own audience, we have a lot of fun. It's where we're a family.

Source: http://www.npr.org/2013/10/15/231639159/what-makes-paul-mccartney-nervous?ft=1&f=10001
Related Topics: Robin Quivers   Jana Lutteropp   Catching Fire trailer  

Saudi Arabia rejects seat on UN Security Council

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia (AP) — Saudi Arabia is rejecting its seat on the U.N. Security Council and says the 15-member body is incapable of resolving world conflicts.

The move came just hours after the kingdom was elected as one of the Council's 10 nonpermanent members.

In a statement carried on Friday by the official Saudi Press Agency, the Saudi Foreign Ministry says the Council has failed in its duties toward Syria.

It says this alleged failure enabled Syrian President Bashar Assad's regime to perpetrate the killings of its people, including with chemical weapons, without facing any deterrents or punishment.

The Ministry also says the Council has not been able to resolve the Palestinian-Israeli conflict over the past decades and has failed to transform the Middle East into a zone free of weapons of mass destruction.

Associated PressSource: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-10-18-ML-Saudi-UN/id-6d5e4b69f07a4e62bbd8a53143815db3
Category: Cricinfo   Kendrick Johnson   emmys   Gta V Cheats   Low Winter Sun  

Snapfon ezTWO (Unlocked)

Cell phones can be complicated. Android or iOS? Samsung Galaxy S4 or iPhone 5s? Which apps to get? If you don't need a smartphone, or just want a barebones phone to make voice calls, the Snapfon ezTWO ($79.99 unlocked, $19.99 with service plan) is one of many streamlined options. The phone attempts to appeal to seniors with its emergency features, and it aims to outshine its predecessor, the ezOne-c, which was an Editors' Choice when we tested it two years ago. Unfortunately, some issues hold the ezTWO back, and the Samsung Jitterbug Plus remains our top pick for simple phones.

Design
Measuring 4.6 by 2.2 by 0.6 inches (HWD) and weighing 2.3 ounces, the ezTWO is easy to hold, at least compared with current smartphone giants. Despite a plastic build, the handset feels sturdy enough; I had no fear of it breaking apart if it hit the pavement. The face of the phone is dominated by large, rubbery, easy-to-see, and simple-to-push buttons that engage with a satisfying click. You get a basic numeric keypad along with Answer and End Call buttons, a selection rocker, and two selection keys. The tiny 320-by-240 LCD measures 1.8 by 1.5 inches. It's a full color display, but numbers and text are in white on a black background.

On the right panel is a pair of plastic sliders that control the underpowered LED flashlight, and a keypad lock, which prevents accidental key presses. The volume rocker and a dedicated camera button can be found on the left side of the phone. A standard 3.5mm headphone jack and a micro USB port for charging and connecting to a computer are on the bottom of the handset. There are also two electrical contacts on the bottom panel for charging the phone with an optional charging dock ($9.99). Inside, underneath the bottom rear panel, is an empty microSD slot and a removable 1000mAh battery. The ezTWO has 1.26MB of onboard storage, so if you're planning on taking many photos, you'll need a memory card.

The top portion of the back panel of the phone holds the camera lens, and a large, red SOS button. Holding it for a few seconds connects you to a trained OneCall Mobile Response Agent who, in the event of an emergency, will call 911 and alert the contacts you designate. The 24/7 service is available for an additional $15 per month

In the box you get a micro USB cable, a USB wall charger, and a user manual.

Connectivity, Service Plans, and Call Quality
The Snapfon ezTWO is a Quad Band GSM world phone running on the 850/900/1800/1900MHz bands. There is no LTE or Wi-Fi, but the phone integrates Bluetooth, so you can use a hands-free headset. I paired it with a BlueAnt Connect Bluetooth headset with no problem. The ezTWO is also compatible with M3/T3 hearing aids.

The ezTWO can be purchased unlocked for use on other GSM networks (like AT&T and T-Mobile here in the states), but using OneCall's operator service requires a voice and OneCall plan. So if you want the full benefits of the phone, you're better off with the accompanying service. Snapfon is in talks with other service providers to make the OneCall service available for use on other carriers, however.

Snapfon provides service using PureTalk USA (which runs on AT&T's network). Plans start at $14.95 with 150 minutes and unlimited rollover, and can get as expensive as $54.95 for unlimited minutes and texts and the OneCall service. To compare, the Samsung Jitterbug's GreatCall service offers a $14.99 per month plan with 50 minutes, and a $79.99 per month plan with unlimited minutes and text messages.

As for call quality, the lack of earpiece volume in the ezOne has been resolved. It's loud enough here, but sound quality isn't great for a phone that concentrates on voice calls. On a busy street in New York, clarity wasn't too bad, but the constant light static noise made my voice sound distant. The person on the other end sounded clear enough, but still a bit muffled. Noise cancellation is nonexistent, with the sound of every passing car getting picked up by the phone's speaker in my tests. Outdoors, the speakerphone was too quiet, and I had to hold the phone near my ear to hear anything clearly.

The ezTWO's battery lasted for 3 hours and 33 minutes of talk time. Which is fine for a phone that, more than likely, won't be too far away from a charger. But it's one of the shorter times we've seen for simple phones. The Jitterbug Plus lasted 5 hours and 37 minutes.

Software
What you won't find here is an app store. Or a Web browser. Or even simple games. You can choose from six polyphonic ringtones and store up to 200 text messages. Navigating the menu isn't as easy it should be for a phone that's marketed as "the cell phone for seniors." The black and white menu scheme is straightforward enough, but can be confusing when only two choices are available and either one looks as though it's selected. I would have liked to see an arrow to clarify my selections. When dialing, numbers appear clearly on the screen. The keypad can also provide clear audible feedback, so you're sure you're pressing the right buttons. There's a 250 contact limit and contacts can hold one number each. Assigning speed dial contacts is done in the settings menu, and is easy enough. Just pick a number slot and choose a contact. Holding the corresponding number on the main screen dials that contact.

Camera
The Snapfon ezTWO has a 0.3-megapixel rear camera. Needless to say, photos are grainy, and lack detail, but you can send them in text messages. You can adjust filters, white balance, continuous shooting and there's a timer. These settings can be adjusted using the selection keys, but again, it's not simple as you'd expect. The ezTWO does not record video.

Conclusion
The Snapfon ezTWO attempts to appeal to seniors, and it does just well enough if safety is your main priority. The camera is poor, the flashlight is dim, and call quality could be better, but if you need help in an emergency, you've got it. Sure, there are options like our Editors' Choice, the $99 Samsung Jitterbug Plus, with its slew of features geared towards senior citizens like medication reminders and free 24-hour operator assistance. The Plus also has two extra hours of battery life. But if all you need is a cheap phone with emergency services and an easy setup, the ezTWO may be the phone you're looking for.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/4FLRDsZD0dM/0,2817,2425867,00.asp
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TV Ratings: 'Undercover Boss' Jumps, CBS Tops Another Friday

CBS topped a second Friday in both the key demo (1.5 rating adults 18-49) and total viewers (9.4 million) thanks in large part to a surging Undercover Boss.

The reality show was up 38 percent, half of a point, from last week's showing with a 1.8 adults rating. Hawaii Five-0 (1.4 adults) and Blue Bloods (1.3 adults were both off a tenth from the previous Friday -- though both are currently besting last year's averages, with Hawaii Five-0 improving total viewers 14 percent in the move from Mondays.

PHOTOS: 81 of Fall TV's Biggest Stars

Last Man Standing (1.3 adults) and The Neighbors (1.0 adults) were both up a tenth on ABC, while Shark Tank (1.9 adults) improved two-tenths to top the hour and the night's broadcast offerings. 20/20 (1.2 adults) was also up a tenth, giving ABC a 1.4 rating with adults 18-49 and 5.4 million viewers for the night.

NBC's only new offering of the night, Dateline (1.3 adults), improved by a tenth from last week. The net averaged a 1.1 rating in the demo and 4.7 million viewers.

MasterChef Junior (1.2 adults), off two-tenths from last week, partnered with a Sleepy Hollow encore to give Fox a 1.0 adults rating and 3.2 million viewers for the night.

The recently renewed America's Next Top Model (0.4 adults) held even with last week's score on the CW. The net posted a 0.4 adults rating and 1.1 million viewers for the night.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/thr/television/~3/NuZnbWe1csQ/story01.htm
Related Topics: Cristy Nicole Deweese   Henry Bromell   alexis bledel   Larry Shippers   George Alexander Louis