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Tributes pour in for The Godfather', Marlon Brando (Go To Top)

          Washington: Tributes are pouring in for academy award winner Marlon Brando who died of lung failure on July 1 at the age of 80. He will best be remembered for influencing an entire generation of actors, including Al Pacino and Jack Nicholson. "He was like a godfather to many young actors worldwide ... His memory will live forever." E!Online quoted Robert Duvall as saying. The actor is also remembered for his tempestuous personal life and his eccentric behaviour. "Marlon would hate the idea of people chiming in to give their comments about his death. All I'll say is that it makes me sad he's gone." said Godfather director Francis Ford Coppola. Brando who achieved the status of a godfather in Hollywood spent the last few years of his life fighting lawsuits brought about by ex-girlfrineds and ex-employees. The actor was known for shunning fame, yet enjoying the fortune that it brought. He was also planning a return to the big screen after living like a recluse in Tahiti by lending his voice to an animated feature titled "Big Bug Man."

The Cruise and Kidman saga is over (Go To Top)

          New York: Actor Tom Cruise and his ex-wife Nicole Kidman have given up the idea of taking a summer vacation together with their two children. According to The New York Daily News, the "Mission Impossible" star is too busy to take a vacation this summer. "Tom is not really having a vacation this summer because he is promoting 'Collateral' and filming 'Mission: Impossible 3,'" said the star's sister, Lee Anne DeVette. "Cold Mountain" actress Nicole Kidman had recently quashed rumours of a patch-up with Cruise while admitting that she was now finding it difficult to get a date. "I'm a 37-year-old woman with two children. Men aren't beating a path to my door." she had said in a recent interview.

James Joyce' love letters go for sale (Go To Top)

         London: Had it not been for Nora Barnacle, Ulysses would have never been a reality. For the auburn-haired Galway girl was supposedly the one who inspired the legendary writer James Joyce to write the novel. According to the Telegraph, an erotic letter written by Joyce to his lady love is up on sale at Sotheby's in London and is expected to sell for between 50,000 to 60,000 pounds. The letter, one of three love letters from Joyce to Nora, is a "missing link" in a series of erotic exchanges over a month in 1909 and was found recently by Joyce's brother Stanislaus's descendants, tucked away inside a book. The archive of possessions and documents includes the signed first edition of Ulysses given by the writer to his sibling, which is expected to fetch up to 100,000 pounds.

Madonna's Kabbalah night out (Go To Top)

          Washington: Religion seems to be the latest thing on the the material girl's mind, so much so, that Madonna no longer performs on Friday nights in observance of the Sabbath. According to the Star magazine, she recently headed over to the New York Kabbalah Centre with her family for a night of praying and eating. According to a source she arrived shortly after the Friday-night services began at 8:30 p.m. and sat in a reserved front row seat where after about an hour of praying in Hebrew, approximately 300 people were invited to join Kabbalist Rav Berg for dinner. After several more prayers, including one over some bread, dinner finally began at 10:45 p.m and consisted of salmon, carrots, hearts of palm salad and hummus, followed by brisket with pasta and asparagus and then peach pie with tofu ice and ended with more Hebrew prayers, the source added.

Atkins can help dump daytime dozing (Go To Top)

          Washington: If you frequently take a nap during the day, you might be suffering from narcolepsy, and if a new research is to be believed, following a low-carbohydrate diet like the Atkins, may help you stay alert. According to Web Md, the study published in the June issue of Neurology revealed that people with narcolepsy who followed the low-carb Atkins diet experienced modest improvements in daytime sleepiness. In the study, researchers asked nine obese people with narcolepsy follow the low-carb diet outlined in the book Dr. Atkins' New Diet Revolution for eight weeks which advocates limiting carbohydrate consumption to less than 20 grams per day. One of the participants dropped but in the rest of them narcolepsy symptoms were reduced by 18 percent and the number of daytime sleep attacks by 13 percent. They also lost an average of 15 pounds during and no serious side-effects were reported. However, four people suffered from temporary side-effects including headache, leg cramps, irritability and difficulty concentrating.

Will Ben Affleck be the new 'Knight Rider'? (Go To Top)

          Washington: David Hasselhoff is planning to bring the '80s cult TV show 'Knight Rider' back to the big screen and he reportedly wants Ben Affleck to pick up from where he left off in the lead role of Michael Knight. "Hasselhoff wanted the movie to be serious and sexy, with a bit of humor just like him," Star magazine quoted a source as saying. "He looked around Hollywood and saw only one other actor who's sexy, serious and funny, and that's Ben Affleck. He even looks like a young Hasselhoff," he added. The former 'Baywatch' star is currently busy working on new scripts and he had initially also planned to star in the film himself. "Now Hasselhoff would either take over the boss-mentor role originated by the late Edward Mulhare, or play Ben's character's dad," revealed the source.

Christina Aguilera wants to design undies (Go To Top)

          London: Pop icon Christina Aguilera, whose fetish for lingerie was brought to light after her 6,000 pounds lingerie shopping spree at Harrods, has revealed that she wants to try her hand at designing underwear.According to The Mirror, the "Genie in a Bottle" singer says that she has been collecting and researching innerwear since quite some time. "I want to do beautiful pieces that are a little edgy but feminine and so beautiful," the report quoted her as saying.

'Love Me Tender' voted top Elvis song ever  (Go To Top)

          London: The 1956 ballad 'Love Me Tender' has been voted as the top Elvis Presley song by British fans in a poll by Woolworths. According to a report in The Sun, the Top 10 Elvis songs are as follows:

          1. Love Me Tender 2. Heartbreak Hotel 3. Suspicious Minds 4. A Little Less Conversation 5. Jailhouse Rock 6. Always on My Mind 7. The Wonder of You 8. Hound Dog 9. Blue Suede Shoes 10. All Shook Up.