My Tweety

Daltrey: Contemporary music lacks lead singers - Yahoo! News

NEW YORK (AP) — Roger Daltrey, lead singer of The Who, says there aren't many contemporary singers who could "lead" a band, and he partially blames shows like "American Idol" for it.

"A lot of the new people they choose on shows like 'American Idol' and things like that — I don't ever hear lead singers," he said. "They always seem to choose to pick people that are great singers, fabulous singers, but they've never got the voice that makes a great lead singer."

Daltrey, 67, went on to name drop some of music's best singers: "You hear 10 seconds of Rod Stewart, you know it's Rod Stewart. Ten-seconds of Mick Jagger, that's Mick Jagger. Ten-seconds of Eddie Vedder, you know that's Eddie."

via news.yahoo.com

Catalan film beats Almodovar into Oscar race - Yahoo! News

MADRID (Reuters) - Spain nominated a film in Catalan for the first time ever on Wednesday as its candidate for Best Foreign Language Film at the upcoming Academy Awards, ahead of a picture by two-time Oscar winner Pedro Almodovar which stars Antonio Banderas.

The Spanish Cinema Academy chose "Pa Negre" (Black Bread), which is set in northeastern Catalonia shortly after the 1936-39 Civil War, and all of whose dialogue is in the regional Catalan language.

Other films that had been short-listed for Spain's official entry were "The Skin I Live in," Almodovar's first film with Banderas in more than 20 years, and "La Voz Dormida" (The Sleeping Voice), another film dealing with the Spanish Civil War's brutal aftermath.

via news.yahoo.com

Mayan film documentary claims proof of aliens - Yahoo! News

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) -A new documentary about Mayan civilization will provide evidence of extraterrestrial contact with the ancient culture, according to a Mexican government official and the film's producer.

"Revelations of the Mayans 2012 and Beyond," currently in production, will claim the Mayans had contact with extraterrestrials, producer Raul Julia-Levy revealed to TheWrap.

"Mexico will release codices, artifacts and significant documents with evidence of Mayan and extraterrestrial contact, and all of their information will be corroborated by archaeologists," said Julia-Levy, son of actor Raul Julia.

via news.yahoo.com

SEC mulls charges against McGraw Hill in CDO case - Yahoo! News

(Reuters) - McGraw-Hill Cos Inc said U.S. regulators may charge its Standard & Poor's ratings unit with violating federal securities laws with ratings on a repackaged mortgage bond in 2007.

The company said it received a Wells Notice from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that commission staff may recommend a civil lawsuit against the unit for a rating on 2007 collateralized debt offering (CDO) known as "Delphinus CDO 2007-1." The staff may recommend that the SEC seek monetary penalties, the company said in a statement today.

Regulators send Wells Notices to companies or people to give them a chance to argue why government should not file an enforcement action against them.

via news.yahoo.com

'SNL' opens with a record, new ice cream proposal - Yahoo! News

NEW YORK (AP) — "Saturday Night Live" opened its 37th season with a disputed hosting record and a defense of the new controversial Ben & Jerry's ice cream flavor.

Alec Baldwin, hosting for the 16th time, staked his claim to the hosting record Saturday night. His friend Steve Martin, who formerly tied for the record with Baldwin, made sure Baldwin's accomplishment was legitimate by conducting a drug test, overseen by alleged expert Seth Rogen.

Baldwin also responded to protests of the new Ben & Jerry's flavor, Schweddy Balls, named after a late '90s sketch featuring Baldwin. In his monologue, Baldwin said there was a new flavor being released for the flavor's critics: "Go Fudge Yourself." A group of mothers, One Million Moms, has threatened to boycott the ice cream maker.

via news.yahoo.com

Young Turks' Cenk Uygur headed to Current TV - Yahoo! News

NEW YORK (AP) — Current TV is bringing Cenk Uygur and "The Young Turks" to its prime-time lineup.

Current will work with Uygur and his team to launch a television version of their online program by year-end, the network announced Tuesday.

The Young Turks, led by Uygur, are a group of progressive journalists and commentators who draw millions of Web viewers and claim to be the Internet's most-watched news show. Like the online original, the new Current version will cover politics, pop culture and lifestyle, and will be produced from Los Angeles.

via news.yahoo.com

Stars rake in the swag as Emmy gift suites abound - Yahoo! News

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Emmy nominees are always talented, and in the days leading up to the awards ceremony many are gifted, too.

Gift suites catering to Emmy nominees and presenters beckoned the stars, writers and producers of TV's top shows Saturday with loads of luxury freebies.

The stars who came by the Nokia Theatre to rehearse for Sunday's ceremony were invited backstage to the HP Touchsmart Gift Lounge, where HP gave away notebook computers and made a donation to the TV academy's nonprofit foundation for each celeb who stopped by.

via news.yahoo.com

Movie slams "pink-washing" in breast cancer campaigns - Yahoo! News

TORONTO (Reuters) - Pink ribbons dumb down the grim realities of treating cancer, and hide the profit-focused core of many high-profile fund-raising events, according to a movie that premiered at the Toronto Film Festival this week.

"Pink Ribbons, Inc." takes a detailed look at some of the colorful fundraising events in North America, where women, united in their fight against breast cancer and mostly dressed in pink, cheer their way along scenic routes.

The film questions the priorities of the campaigns and the broad use of the pink-ribbon logo as a fight-breast-cancer addition to products as diverse as T-shirts, toilet tissue and handguns.

via news.yahoo.com

Brad Pitt says thoughts on Aniston misunderstood - Yahoo! News

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A story posted on Parade magazine's website on Thursday in which Brad Pitt talks about his life with ex-wife Jennifer Aniston put the actor in damage control mode, saying his words had been misinterpreted.

The 47-year-old Pitt said in a profile by Parade magazine posted on the publication's website that he is now a "satisfied man" in his relationship with Angelina Jolie.

The "Moneyball" star compares his new life with Jolie, with whom he is raising 6 kids, favorably to the roughly five years he spent married to Aniston.

via news.yahoo.com

Best Buy misses estimates; shares fall - Yahoo! News

(Reuters) - Best Buy Co Inc's reported lower-than-expected quarterly results as shoppers held off on buying televisions and other nonessential items in the anemic U.S. economy, and its shares fell nearly 8 percent.

The world's largest consumer electronics chain's lackluster results on Tuesday highlighted the fragility of recovery in the world's largest economy. (For a graphic on Best Buy's earnings, click http://r.reuters.com/nuf73s )

Best Buy is also a victim of a lackluster product cycle and cut-throat competition from chains such as Wal-Mart Stores Inc and Internet retailers like Amazon.com Inc.

Amazon's prices on televisions remain 12 percent to 14 percent below Best Buy's, Deutsche Bank analyst Mike Baker said recently.

via news.yahoo.com