SWATCH UNVEILS STYLISH CHRONO COLLECTION

Swiss watch and jewellery maker Swatch unveils two new watches in its signature collection of Swiss made precision Irony chronographs. The Chrono Collection presents a pair of Irony Chronos featuring the popular model’s classic good looks and timeless style. Polished stainless steel gives the polished 40mm case, brushed bezel and brushed bracelet a distinguished and [...]

Source: http://www.celebritymound.com/swatch-unveils-stylish-chrono-collection/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=swatch-unveils-stylish-chrono-collection

Chelsea Handler Cheryl Burke China Chow Chloë Sevigny Christina Aguilera

With a Little Luck: A Novel

My good friend Caprice Crane's new book, With a Little Luck, is out today. Yay, Caprice!

It's gotten great reviews:

"Crane is one of the funniest writers of popular fiction around. The dialog (inner and outer) is laugh-out-loud, snort-inducing hilarious . . . Readers will want to cross their fingers and spit while throwing salt over their shoulders if it helps Berry reach her dreams. Highly recommended."

Library Journal

"Fans of Stacy Ballis and Cara Lockwood will appreciate Crane's effortlessly funny style, which is often attempted in popular fiction but is rarely this well executed...Lighthearted and charmingly honest."

—Booklist

"[A] satisfying romantic comedy...[with] real character growth."

—Kirkus Reviews

And even better blurbs:

"Romantic, poignant and funny—this book is a lucky find for lit fans. Caprice Crane is a nimble and gifted storyteller."

—Diablo Cody, Academy Award-winning screenwriter of Juno

"A hilarious romp that oozes charm and giddy fun. Caprice Crane is a true talent."

—Molly Jong-Fast, author of The Social Climber's Handbook

"Witty, fast-paced, and sheer fun. Caprice Crane is a master of dialogue. Half the time I was reading this book I was smiling, which made me look like a crazy person on the subway."

—Jancee Dunn, author of Don’t You Forget About Me and Why Is My Mother Getting a Tattoo?

"Absolutely charming and hilarious."

—Missy Peregrym, star of the movie Stick It and ABC's Rookie Blue

"With a Little Luck scores in humor, head, and heart. In other words, it’s a perfect trifecta."

—Karyn Bosnak, author of 20 Times a Lady (soon to be the major motion picture What's Your Number?)

(Omg, who is that last fantastic blurber?) (I meant every word of it.)

And most importantly, she has the cutest dog ever (who likes to video chat with Bev):

Anyway, check it out, buy it—it's fantastic!

Source: http://www.prettyinthecity.com/blog/2011/7/26/with-a-little-luck-a-novel.html

Giulianna Ramirez Grace Park Gretha Cavazzoni Gwen Stefani Halle Berry

Photos | MTV Buzzworthy Blog: Celebrities In Ridiculously Cheesy Halloween Costumes

Taylor Swift Tops Billboard 2012 Top Money Makers

Lady Gaga, Adele and Lil Wayne make top 10.
By Gil Kaufman

<P>Lady Gaga, Katy Perry and Adele had huge years in 2011, with major tours, strings of hit singles, Grammy wins and #1-hogging chart-topping albums. But when Billboard magazine compiled its 2012 list of "Music's Top 40 Money Makers" it was Taylor Swift who ruled them all. In fact, the 22-year-old country-pop darling out-earned all of her fellow ladies combined. </P><P> </P><P> </P><P> </P><P>According to the magazine's calculations, Swift earned her #1 spot on the list thanks to reported earnings of $35.7 million in the 2011 calendar year. Those earnings came from a combination of revenue from the quadruple-platinum-plus sales of <I>Speak Now</I> and its accompanying tour, which grossed $88.5 million in the U.S. alone. </P><P> </P><P>But because Swift writes her own songs, she rolled up a big chunk of change in songwriting royalties as well. </P><P> </P><P>Right behind Swift was iconic rock band U2, who earned a reported $32.1 million thanks to their record-setting 360 Tour -- which grossed a whopping $736 million total over two years -- including $50 million in merchandise sales and 1.4 million in digital track sales. </P><P> </P><P>Country singer Kenny Chesney was #3 with $29.8 million, followed by previous tally topper Gaga at #4 with $25.3 million. She stayed in the top 5 thanks to sales of <I>Born This Way</I> and its accompanying Monster Ball Tour, which grossed more than $51 million. She also moved 12.7 million digital tracks. Lil Wayne rounded out the top 5 with $23.1 million, made up of 12.3 million digital track sales, $44.7 million in tour grosses and cash from his gig as founder of Young Money Entertainment. </P><P> </P><P>The rest of the top 10: Sade (#6, $16.3 million), Bon Jovi (#7, $15.8 million), Celine Dion (#8, $14.2 million) and Jason Aldean (#9, $13.4 million). Adele rounded out the top 10 list at #10 with $13 million, mostly from the unstoppable streak of her <I>21</I> album's chart run,&#8232; which included sales of 6.7 million copies last year alone. </P><P> </P><P>The "Glee" cast were just outside the top 10 at #11 ($12.5 million), Katy Perry hit #14 ($11.9 million), Britney Spears was at #16 ($10 million) and like her sisters in pop, Rihanna made it to #22 ($7.6 million) through a combination of album and single sales and touring revenue. </P><P> </P><P>Other notable entries: Enrique Iglesias (#23, $7.4 million), Usher (#30, $6.2 million), Foo Fighters (#31, $6 million), Justin Bieber (#35, $5.5 million), Kanye West (#39, $5.3 million) and Linkin Park (#40, $5.1 million). </P><P> </P><P><i>Billboard</i> calculated the figures based on proprietary data from its Boxscore archives for concert grosses, Nielsen SoundScan for sales of physical and digital albums, singles and ringtone sales, and Nielsen BDS for terrestrial radio play and streaming service information.</p>

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1680861/taylor-swift-lady-gaga-billboard-mon... "> http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1680861/taylor-swift-lady-gaga-billboard-mon...

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Justin Bieber's 'Boyfriend' Teaser Goes Hard

The 13-second preview of Mike Posner-produced track shows off an edgier side of Bieber.
By Jocelyn Vena

<P>Is it killing you that you have to wait until Monday to hear what "Boyfriend" sounds like? Well, Justin Bieber feels your pain and decided to release a teaser for the lead single off his album, Believe. </P><P> </P><P>The 13-second, blink-and-you-might-miss-it tease is spare in terms of instruments, just bleeps and thumps, no singing or rapping. But it does play up Bieber's love for hip-hop; as it nears the end of the tease, a drum line-style beat kicks in. Come Monday, of course, the whole song will drop for Beliebers' listening pleasure. </P><P> </P><P><center></center> </P><P> </P><P>The video teaser also includes footage of Bieber in the studio, recording "Boyfriend," which was co-written and co-produced by Mike Posner. The clip premiered on Justin's website late Thursday night. </P><P> </P><P>"This record is different in a very good way," said producer/writer Mason Levy, who also worked on the song. "Definitely edgier, it's more grown-up, it's more developed and it's sexier. It's just like really dope. It's gonna definitely surprise people. People aren't really expecting that. They're going to like it." </P><P> </P><P>It's clear from the teaser that Bieber is using influences from urban music and that he's looking to grow up sonically. The music in the new clip also seems to pay homage to Justin Timberlake, and even Chris Brown. Bieber has confirmed that he raps on the song. </P><P> </P><P>"It's more just the verses [that he's rapping on], and the rest he's singing," Levy told MTV News. "It's dope. It's hip-hop, but with great acoustic R&B, pop guitar with very hip-hop, clubby drums and really dope Justin Timberlake-y melodies." </P><P> </P><P><i>What do you think of "Boyfriend" so far? Tell us in the comments!</i></p>

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1681664/justin-bieber-boyfriend.jhtml "> http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1681664/justin-bieber-boyfriend.jhtml

Cat Power Catherine Bell Chandra West Charisma Carpenter Charli Baltimore

Drew Barrymore: Why I Have Embraced Judaism

"I'm a shiksa. I do the seders and we do Passover. I haven't converted yet, [but] Olive will be raised traditionally," she explains. "We had a very traditional wedding ceremony with Rabbi Rubenstein and I did the ketubah. We wore the yarmulkes and we did the chuppah."

Source: http://feeds.celebritybabies.com/~r/celebrity-babies/~3/bCIQ9572cqQ/

Ivanka Trump Izabella Miko Izabella Scorupco Jaime King Jaime Pressly

Does Britney Spears Have 'The X Factor'?

MTV News takes a look at the pros and cons of bringing Spears onboard as a judge for the reality singing competition.
By John Mitchell

<P>The news that Britney Spears is reportedly in final negotiations to join "The X Factor" has set the MTV Newsroom on fire. Opinion on whether the pop star is a good fit for the reality singing competition has been sharply divided, so we decided to take on the topic the way we're sure Simon Cowell did before making Spears a reported $10 million offer: a good, old-fashioned pros and cons list. </P><P> </P><P> </P><P> </P><P><big><b>Pro: She'll attract viewers</b></big><br> </P><P>The debut season of "The X Factor" performed well below expectations. Its heavily hyped premiere pulled in 12.1 million total viewers and a meager 4.4/12 rating in the advertiser-coveted 18 to 49 demographic. That's about half of what the 2011 season of "American Idol" averaged ("Idol" is having its own ratings woes this season), and it didn't even win the night: Emmy-winning sitcom "Modern Family" drew 14.3 million viewers and a 6.0/15 for its season premiere. </P><P> </P><P>The poor ratings precipitated the overhaul that saw judges Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger and host Steve Jones fired from the show. </P><P> </P><P>There's no question that Spears would bring viewers to "The X Factor." She enjoys a large and devout fanbase who will basically follow her just about anywhere. And beyond her own fans, Spears' celebrity would also likely draw attention from the general public, who will tune in simply to see how she does. </P><P> </P><P><big><b> Con: She's become nervous on camera </b></big><br> </P><P> </P><P>Though she can still wow a crowd live in concert, as evidenced by last year's successful tour behind her hit album <i>Femme Fatale,</i> Spears has become increasingly tentative during interviews. She rarely grants on-camera sit-downs, and when she does, she seems nervous and uncomfortable. </P><P> </P><P>To be a strong judge or mentor on a reality show, you have to be <i>very</i> comfortable on camera. Part of what made Jennifer Lopez click last season on "Idol" was that she came across as confident, direct and often empathetic. She even broke down in tears after sending home contestant Chris Medina, whose fiancée suffered a severe brain injury in a car accident. The key word here is <i>after.</i> It's hard to imagine Spears being able to keep it together and deliver such difficult news in similar circumstances. </P><P>It's worth noting that a high-drama situation arose on the first season of "The X Factor" -- one that left contestant Rachel Crow sobbing onstage and Scherzinger a wreck ... a wreck who received death threats. Producers should also consider whether it's wise to send Spears, who has dealt with emotional issues in the past, into a genre that thrives when the emotional stakes are high. </P><P> </P><P><big><b>Pro: she is a contemporary artist</b></big><br> </P><P>One of the things we like most about "The Voice" is that its judges &#8212; Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton &#8212; are all active artists. They are all still hitting the studio to make hit records, and that lends a great deal of credibility to their opinions when they critique a contestant's performance. We don't mean to slight Abdul or Scherzinger, but you could argue that a legacy singer who hasn't released an album in over 17 years and a performer who has had a difficult time getting her own solo singing career off the ground aren't the best judges of who does and does not have "The X Factor." </P><P> </P><P>On the other hand, Spears may be. Last year's Femme Fatale gave Spears three top-10 singles &#8212; the most of any of her seven albums &#8212; and earned some of the best reviews of her career. While it's true that she did not write or produce much of the record, she was most certainly involved in picking her collaborators, which actually could speak well of her ability to know talent when she sees it. Spears also smartly chose red-hot rapper Nicki Minaj to open on the North American leg of her tour. </P><P> </P><P>When it comes to the contemporary pop music scene, Spears knows what works. </P><P> </P><P><big><b>Con: She's not known for her singing</b></big><br> </P><P>Unlike Aguilera, whose talent as a vocalist is indisputable, Spears is not known for her singing. By signing her to judge and mentor a singing competition, "X Factor" producers are setting themselves up for inevitable criticism. "Who is Britney Spears to judge a singing competition?" critics will scream (and they won't be wrong). </P><P> </P><P>When Aguilera critiques a performer's vocals, she speaks with authority &#8212; and her ear for singing proved to make her the most discerning judge on the "Voice" panel during the blind auditions. Spears' judging style will likely be based on liking what's already there, but she's not going to have much insight on missed notes or pitch, which will cripple her ability to further mentor her team. How can she help them improve as vocalists when it's a truth universally acknowledged that she's not really a vocalist herself? </P><P> </P><P><i>Do you think Britney Spears is a good choice for "The X Factor"? Let us know in the comments below.</i></p>

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Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1680800/britney-spears-x-factor-judge-singin... "> http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1680800/britney-spears-x-factor-judge-singin...

Jennifer Gimenez Jennifer Love Hewitt Jennifer Morrison Jennifer ODell Jennifer Scholle