Faye’s ‘Not Ill’
TAIPEI – ACTOR Li Yapeng has denied tabloid stories that his wife, pop queen Faye Wong, has a gynaecological ailment and is dangerously thin.
‘We have been staying in Hong Kong lately. She is as happy as a bird every day,’ he told the Taiwanese press on Monday.
‘Her health has never been better. She didn’t exercise much before but she does yoga every day now, with more perseverance than me.’
The couple are based in Beijing with their two daughters. But Wong has been back in Hong Kong to apply for Hong Kong residency for her toddler, Li Yan, according to Ming Pao Daily News.
Li was in Taiwan for talks on China-Taiwan co-productions. The actor-producer said he hoped to produce a drama inspired by the story of his family, which was divided when the Kuomintang troops fled to Taiwan after they lost the civil war.
‘My grandfather, uncle and aunt lived in Taiwan. Last year, my 90-year-old grandfather went to Beijing for the Olympics and there was a family reunion,’ he said.
‘This is not just my story, but also the story of many Chinese.’
Straits Times
Burberry’s Back
LONDON – BURBERRY and its creative director Christopher Bailey made a triumphant return to London on Tuesday night, winning over a star-studded audience at the glitziest event of the capital’s fashion week.
Many good shows
HAROLD Tillman, chairman of the British Fashion Council, said the week has been a tremendous success, with large crowds filling many shows. He said the trend toward prints had been noticeable.
‘There have been so many good, good shows,’ he said. ‘There are great designers, showing freshness, fearlessness. It’s so exciting, it really is.’
… more
Mr Bailey, who has helped transform the once staid brand into a fashion powerhouse, showed a series of short dresses, including many with a trench coat theme familiar to longtime fans of Burberry.
There was just enough of the traditional Burberry plaid to keep traditionalists happy, while younger fans were drawn to the soft, sexy lines of the dresses, most of them in beige (long associated with Burberry) and pale greens and yellows.
‘I thought it was beautiful, and very poetic,’ said Hilary Alexander, fashion director of The Daily Telegraph newspaper. ‘The heritage was there, but it was like a ballet, a dance.’
The crowd, including Oscar-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow, former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham and Harry Potter star Emma Watson seemed impressed with the variety and vision of the show.
The front row also included American Vogue editor Anna Wintour, Slumdog Millionaire stars Dev Patel and Freida Pinto – and Business Secretary Peter Mandelson, a prominent member of the British government known for his snappy dress. He said the show brought Burberry from the past into the future.
‘It was a reinvention of the Burberry look,’ Mr Mandelson said. ‘The fabrics were great. It’s 21st century Burberry at its best.’
Mr Bailey used sequins and bright metallic silver fabric to set off some of his jackets and tops, adding glitter to the look, and also used padded shoulders for emphasis on several of the combination trench-dresses that were an important theme of the show.
Belts were used for shape, and the models looked extremely feminine, their long flowing hair and natural makeup bucking a trend toward androgyny seen in other shows this week.
The Burberry show was the largest and most eagerly anticipated of London Fashion week thus far, and the crowd arrived early to sip champagne or elderflower coolers on the steps of the Chelsea College of Art and Design near the River Thames. — AP
Straits Times
Harry Potter Theme Park Opening In Orlando In Spring 2010
MIAMI – “The Wizarding Worlds of Harry Potter,” a new theme park based on the exploits of the hugely popular boy wizard, is set to open in spring 2010 at Universal Studios, the Orlando resort announced Tuesday.
“All of the action and adventures of Harry Potter’s world will come to life here at Universal Orlando Resort,” said Tom Williams, chairman and CEO of Universal Parks and Resorts.
“The Wizarding World of Harry Potter will be unlike any other experience on earth.”
The park is being developed in coordination with J.K. Rowling, the British author of the immensely successful books, which have also been adapted into films.
In a press release, the theme park promised a “completely immersive environment,” that recreates the fabled Hogwarts school for wizards that Potter
and his friends attend, as well as the surrounding village of Hogsmeade.
At a replica of the Three Broomsticks, one of Hogsmeade’s popular pubs, visitors will be treated to traditional British fare and have the chance to sip on Butterbeer — Potter’s tipple of choice.
The park will also feature theme rides, including the “Flight of the Hippogriff,” which will simulate a training flight on the magical, quick-to-offend creature.
Fans of the fast-paced wizard sport Quidditch will also have a chance to partake in a simulated Triwizard Tournament, as well as examine Quidditch equipment and even the elusive Golden Snitch at several Hogsmeade shops.
“Harry Potter continues to spark the imaginations of fans of all ages and we really have seen the anticipation continue to build for The Wizarding World of Harry Potter,” said Brad Globe, president of Warner Bros. Consumer Products.
The Harry Potter series continues to be a global phenomenon — over 400 million copies of the books, which are available in 67 languages, have been sold in more than 200 countries and the movie adaptations have broken box office records.
“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” the first of a two-part film adaptation of the seventh book in the series, is scheduled to be released in 2010, followed by the final movie in 2011.
- AFP/ir
Channel News Asia
Stars Pay Tribute To Patrick Swayze
LOS ANGELES : Demi Moore led the tributes to Patrick Swayze on Tuesday, saying the Hollywood heart-throb would “forever shine” after losing his long battle with cancer.
Moore starred opposite Swayze in 1990′s Oscar-winning romantic drama “Ghost” as a woman who is watched over by the spirit of her murdered partner, played by Swayze, who died on Monday after complications from his illness.
“Patrick you are loved by so many and your light will forever shine in all of our lives,” Moore said in a statement.
“In the words of Sam to Molly: ‘It’s amazing Molly. The love inside, you take it with you.’ I will miss you, Demi,” Moore added, in reference to the two lead characters from “Ghost.”
Whoopi Goldberg, who won a best supporting actress Oscar for her role in “Ghost,” said meanwhile that as in the film, Swayze will “always be near.”
“Patrick was a really good man, a funny man and one to whom I owe much that I can’t ever repay,” Goldberg said. “I believe in Ghost’s message, so he’ll always be near,” she added.
In the movie, Swayze’s slain character has to communicate with Moore via Goldberg, who plays a psychic.
Swayze shot to superstardom in 1987 with “Dirty Dancing,” a steamy international blockbuster in which he played a dancing teacher to a young wallflower who starts to bloom.
Swayze’s co-star, actress Jennifer Grey, described the actor as a “real cowboy with a tender heart.”
“When I think of him, I think of being in his arms when we were kids, dancing, practicing the lift in the freezing lake, having a blast doing this tiny little movie we thought no one would ever see,” she told People magazine.
Grey, now 49, said Swayze was so fearless doing his own stunts that “it was not surprising to me that the war he waged on his cancer was so courageous and dignified.”
Drew Barrymore, who starred with Swayze in the cult 2001 film “Donnie Darko,” expressed her shock at learning of her co-star’s death during a press conference at the Toronto Film Festival.
“I’m actually finding out about this news at this press conference, so I’m in a bit of a shell-shocked state myself,” Barrymore said.
“I feel as though I’m the wrong person to (comment) because it’s such a personal thing for people who are close to him, but I met him when I was seven years old. He was the nicest man that one could ever, ever know,” she said.
“He was a hero to us all from the ‘Outsiders’ to all the wonderful films that he made. He was a pleasure to work with in ‘Donnie Darko.’ Our blessings are with the people around him that knew him and loved him the best.”
In Hollywood meanwhile, flowers were placed on Swayze’s star set into the sidewalk on the district’s “Walk of Fame” neighbourhood.
- AFP/il
Channel News Asia
Identiti Haliza Misbun Digunakan Orang Dalam Laman Facebook
PETALING JAYA: Pelakon dan penerbit, Haliza Misbun (gambar kanan), kesal ada individu yang menyamar sebagai dirinya di laman sosial popular, Facebook.
‘Saya malu dan kesal apabila ada individu tidak bertanggungjawab sanggup menipu peminat dengan menyamar sebagai saya di Facebook.
‘Perkara ini mencemar imej saya kerana si penyamar memberi reaksi kepada peminat kononnya dia saya, sedangkan ia penipuan semata-mata,’ kata Haliza, 36 tahun.
Menurutnya, beliau tidak menyedari mengenai kemunculan penyamar yang menggunakan identitinya di laman sosial Internet itu sehinggalah seorang teman rapat memaklumkan beliau ada berhubung dengan pelakon terbabit melalui Facebook, baru-baru ini.
‘Saya terkejut sebaik ditunjukkan mengenai diri saya di Facebook dengan semua gambar dan biodata di laman sosial itu.
‘Saya pelik apabila penyamar itu turut membalas komen peminat seolah-olah dia adalah diri saya,’ katanya selepas membuat laporan di Balai Polis Taman Tun Dr Ismail, di sini, kelmarin.
Haliza berkata, sebelum ini ada rakan memaklumkan perkara sama dan mendakwa beliau tidak pernah membalas mesej di laman sosial itu.
‘Ia menjadi bertambah serius apabila membabitkan ramai peminat yang tertipu dengan individu terbabit.
‘Saya memang tidak pernah berdaftar dengan mana-mana laman web sosial sebelum ini disebabkan kesibukan kerja selain ‘buta IT’ (teknologi maklumat),’ katanya.
Justeru, Haliza berharap individu yang melakukan perbuatan tidak bermoral itu segera menutup akaun di laman sosial berkenaan sebelum tindakan undang-undang diambil terhadapnya.
‘Saya rasa individu yang melakukan perbuatan ini bukan saja tidak bertanggungjawab, malah tidak berperikemanusiaan, dengan menggunakan identiti saya untuk memalukan saya.
‘Sekiranya saya tidak membuat laporan (polis), perkara ini mungkin akan berlaku terhadap artis lain apabila ada orang lain memperguna nama kami untuk kepentingan masing-masing,’ katanya.
Haliza berkata, perbuatan itu hanya menjatuhkan imejnya sebagai pelakon dan penerbit jika si penyamar berkenaan mula melakukan sesuatu yang buruk.
‘Saya tidak mahu peminat tertipu dengan si penyamar berkenaan,’ katanya. — Harian Metro.
Cyberita