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*So why is Queen Latifah in an elaborate photo shoot dressed as the character Ursula from Disney’s animated classic “The Little Mermaid?”
The rapper/actress was among a number of stars who lent their famous faces to Annie Leibovitz’s Disney Dream Portrait Series, an annual group of photos that feature celebrities posting as iconic characters from the studio.
Jeff Bridges, Olivia Wilde, Alec Baldwin and Penelope Cruz are all part of this year’s campaign.
You can find these images and more as part of a special insert in the April issues of O – The Oprah Magazine, People En Español, Real Simple, Essence, and InStyle as well as the March 28 issue of People.
Check out images from the Annie Leibovitz photo shoot below.
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Paula Abdul
*Singers Mariah Carey and George Michael, former Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger and ex-”American Idol” judge Paula Abdul are all in the running to join Simon Cowell on his upcoming talent show “The X Factor,” Cowell said on Thursday.
But none of them are locked in as judges for the upcoming TV show, and Cowell told “Access Hollywood” he was in no hurry to make a decision.
“We’ve spoken to lots of people. I’ve spoken to Paula…we’ve taken it down to a smaller group of people and she (Abdul) is in that panel. But you know, it’s more than me who makes the decision.”
The U.S. version of the “The X Factor” is due to debut on Fox in the fall of 2011, offering an unprecedented $ 5 million prize for the winner, along with a record contract.
But unlike “Idol”, the “X Factor” judges will mentor the contestants closely, helping them with song choice, production, coaching and even style during the TV contest.
“It’s good to kind of delay the process…You genuinely have got to trust they they’re going to be able to do the job you’re paying them to do,” Cowell said of the new panel.
Cowell said that singers Katy Perry and Elton John — whose names were floated in the media earlier this year –are not on the short list.
Courtesy of EURWeb.com
Kerry Washington
*Kerry Washington has been cast as the lead in Shonda Rhimes’ new pilot “Damage Control,” which is based on the work of veteran crisis management consultant Judy Smith.
Washington will play Olivia Price, a professional fixer described as a formidable and fearless woman. The show will follow her life as well as the lives of her dysfunctional staff members.
Actor-choreographer Columbus Short (“Stomp the Yard’) has been cast as a lawyer on Price’s team.
Jeff Perry, Henry Ian Cusick, Katie Lowes and Guillermo Diaz also star.
Rhimes wrote the pilot and executive produces with her “Grey’s Anatomy” partner Betsy Beers.
Judy Smith with Monica Lewinsky
Smith, who serves as the show’s co-executive producer, has guided numerous corporations, politicians, celebrities and public figures through crises and scandals over the past 20 years, including PR fiascos surrounding Monica Lewinsky, Michael Vick, Marion Barry, ENRON and Larry Craig.
Courtesy of EURWeb.com
*Reps for Oprah Winfrey have shot down reports the talk show host is taping a future episode of her show in Egypt.
The country’s new tourism minister Munir Fakhri Abdelnur reportedly told a local newspaper in Cairo that Winfrey was planning to broadcast a live show from Tahrir Square on “a Friday in March.”
But Oprah’s aides insist the talk show queen is not planning a trip to the Middle East.
“Reports about ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show’ taping a future episode in Egypt are untrue,” a spokesperson for Winfrey’s Harpo Studios tells WENN. “There are no plans for Ms. Winfrey or the show to broadcast from an international location before the program’s finale in May.”
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*Swizz Beatz has been given the honor of teaching students at New York University as the school’s first producer in residence. He says while he’s teaching, he’ll be helping students launch their careers.
“For me, the music comes last,” Swizz reveals. “Well, in my heart the music comes first. But living in this world and being realistic, the music comes last and the business comes first. You might have a hot single, and you might not be prepared for it.”
The producer’s goal is to be real with the students and help them set realistic goals while listening to their work.
“I still have my plan, by the way!” Swizz says, regarding a drawing he made of himself in a DJ booth with a compass at the age of 17, indicating his intention to expand beyond the horizons of the South Bronx neighborhood he grew up in. “Ninety-six percent of the students here are not ready to go off to the races, as you can see … I know they want me to sit here and jam to these beats and have me tell them, ‘That was hot!’ But I feel I’d be wasting their time.”
In being real, Beatz is encouraging his students to get CDs made to hand out to their local hangouts and register their music with ASCAP. He shared his thoughts about the hustle aspect of the game and plans to show the kids the ropes. He wants to not only nurture their talent, but also to help them make some money along the way.
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