The Jackson Family Entertains at "Michael Forever - The Tribute Concert" Wearing Original Designs

The Jackson Family Entertains at "Michael Forever - The Tribute Concert" Wearing Original Designs  CARDIFF: Tens of thousands of fans rocked to the hits of Michael Jackson on Saturday at a tribute concert his brothers hoped would put the spotlight on his musical legacy after so much controversy. The late singer's children -- Prince, 14, Paris, 13 and "Blanket," 9 -- appeared on stage briefly to address the crowd and at the end joined other family members dancing to "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough." "We're very happy to be here on this special night to honor our father," said Paris, dressed in a red jacket similar to the one worn by Jackson in his groundbreaking "Thriller" music video. The "Beat It" star, one of the most successful yet troubled artists of the pop era, died in 2009 aged 50 while rehearsing for a series of comeback concerts. The "Michael Forever" tribute in Cardiff, Wales, coincides with the involuntary manslaughter trial of the singer's doctor in Los Angeles, drawing criticism from some fans and members of his family. Brothers Jermaine and Randy boycotted the event because of the timing, while sister Janet said it would be too painful to perform in Cardiff during the trial. But it had the blessing of his mother Katherine, who was at the gig, and Michael's older brother Marlon said it should be seen as a celebration of Jackson's music. "They (the fans) have the right to (protest)," he said backstage. "I think they have the right to do whatever they feel, but we're celebrating the positive side of our brother's life. "We know our brother better than anybody else and he would love that we are doing this for him and remembering him in that way." "MICHAEL SUFFERED" U.S. musician Ne-Yo kicked off the four-hour extravaganza at the Millennium Stadium with the tight beats of "Billie Jean" before slowing the tempo in "The Lady In My Life." "It's not about the controversy, it's not about the trial, it's not about his death. It's about celebrating his life, it's about celebrating his music," Ne-Yo said from a stage shaped like a giant glove. British boy band JLS sang "The Way You Make Me Feel" before being joined by three of the original Jackson 5 -- Marlon, Tito and Jackie -- in a rendition of "Blame it on the Boogie." "Can you feel his spirit in the room tonight?" called out Marlon, and the mostly young crowd screamed "Yes!" Jackson's sister La Toya performed live in public for the first time in nearly 20 years, while three of his nephews appeared in their band 3T. "I had absolutely no intention of performing," La Toya told Reuters. "I was hesitant about this and at the last minute I said you have to do it for him ... and I did, so I'm happy that I did. It's worth honouring him this way." The lineup also featured Christina Aguilera, Cee Lo Green, Beyonce on video and Jamie Foxx, and among British stars appearing were Leona Lewis and Diversity. Toward the end, pictures of Jackson were beamed on to giant screens as "empress of soul" Gladys Knight, accompanied by a gospel choir, sang "Gone Too Soon." Earlier, her powerful rendition of "Believe in Yourself" was a highlight, and she was joined in a duet of "I Just Can't Stop Loving You" by Motown great Smokey Robinson. Robinson told Reuters: "There will be many mimics, but there will never be another Michael Jackson. "He got to the point where he had no private life whatsoever," he added. "When you are in a business that you love and you are doing what you love, however you can't go out and just get in your car or go to the store or go to the movies -- that's got to be rough. That's what he suffered." Reaction was mixed among people streaming out of the arena after the gig, with many ecstatic but some underwhelmed by "under-rehearsed" numbers and long gaps between some songs. sources geo news

Police Collect weapons from Brad Pitt film - Special Report Of World Box Office News

Police Collect weapons from Brad Pitt film - Special Report Of World Box Office News

BUDAPEST: Hungarian police have seized a stockpile of weapons that was shipped to the Hungarian capital for the production of a film about zombies starring Brad Pitt, a film crew member said on Tuesday. Weapons expert Bela Gajdos, who has worked on the filming of zombie movie "World War Z" to ensure the safe handling of the weapons used, told national news agency MTI that each firearm had been converted to restrict its use to blank ammunition. Sources Geo news

Happy News For Shakira Lovers - Euro 2012: Shakira performs in Ukraine

Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovich and 60,000 spectators came as the covers of Kiev problems Olympiysky Euro 2012 stadium on Saturday with political color.

"With this step, Ukraine is an organization worthy of € 2,012," Yanukovich said one of the reasons why the five games, including last July 1 in the championship, with the hosts Poland co-hosts, but delays in construction and Allegations of corruption.

Shakira, who also appear at the inaugural 2010 World Cup in South Africa, carried out for 40 minutes to sing the official song for soccer show last year, "Waka Waka".

In the context of the fireworks, more than 2,000 artists put on a show with the folklore of the Ukraine in his heart.

The stadium was scheduled to be completed in June but was delayed to work on the renovation of € 585 million, a factor that UEFA to express their concerns of the local organizers.

sources geo news

Authorized On appeal, returns home to Seattle Amanda Knox

Authorized On appeal, returns home to Seattle Amanda Knox 


Amanda Knox home to Seattle on Tuesday, a day after an Italian court for the murder of 24 year old student from jail and was released.

A plane with Knox, who grew up in nearby West Seattle area, where both parents are still divorced her, and landing in Seattle-Tacoma International Airport shortly after 05.00 hours local time.

Knox wiped tears as he spoke to a crowd of reporters at the airport minutes after getting off the plane.

"You must remember to speak in English because I have problems with that," said Knox, 24, in brief remarks. "I'm really now. Overwhelmed saw the plane and I thought that everything was not real."

A former student at the University of Washington, Knox thanked "all those who believed in me, defended me," during their ordeal. "I just want my family. The most important thing for me now, and I will go with them."

Anne Bremner, a criminal defense attorney in Seattle and the spokesman for Friends of Amanda Knox said after his family was happy, Knox with a barbecue outdoors in the grass to play football and see old friends.

"Just normal things that you, after a prison term of four years for a crime he did not," he said.

Knox wept at the hearing, the court in 2009 had a conviction for the murder of her roommate, 21-year-old Meredith Kercher, who prosecutors said was a drug fueled sexual assault repealed.

He was also removed from her ex-boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, so that only Ivorian Rudy Guede the person wandering in a homicide, investigators believe he was convicted out of more than one person.

Kercher was found half-naked body, with more than 40 injuries and a deep wound in the neck in the apartment she shared with Knox in Perugia, where both were students.

The study calls attention to both sides of the Atlantic. It was an expression of sympathy and outrage from many in the U.S., Knox, considered as an innocent child caught in the grip of medieval justice.

Tax Appeal

The Italian prosecutor has said he wants absolution Knox highest court of appeal court in Italy, the Supreme Court of Cassation, the check can only technical error, the direction of the lower courts.

In Italy, an acquittal is final were prosecuted? Only after all legal means. In this case, meant to confirm or reject the Supreme Court to hear the appeal.

Supreme Court if the acquittal of the bow, unable to retrieve the original murder charges against Knox, which allow prosecutors to extradite to the United States in search of an agreement between the two countries.

Given the controversy surrounding the case, attorneys say would probably agree to a diplomatic dispute before the United States extradite Knox.

Family Knox and Sollecito critical Kercher have given up, but said several times that Meredith has been forgotten in the hype.

Sister Stephanie Kercher said after the trial "is not the biggest disappointment (s) know, and knowing that someone, or are people who did this."

Knox cheering supporters cried and hugged in the news on Monday that it had been rejected. His house, the water of Puget Sound box on three sides, is one of the oldest neighborhoods in Seattle and is known for its strong sense of community is known.

Evan Hundley, director of the Explorer Private School East, where Knox attended the sixth, seventh and eighth, West Seattle described as "a city within a city.

"If something is happening here is a good news," said Hundley. "We have a good quarter."

Hundley said the students clapped with joy all the days in the school's student council on Monday, when news of the dismissal was announced Knox.

Very popular in his hometown

Knox won the first of Manvel Schauffler school after one of the founders of the school, said about 100 students, who pay an annual tuition averages about $ 15,000, call Debbie knew EHRI, school principals, Knox .

"This is our first award to students was exceptional. Amanda was a very good quality of education students. It really was a student friendly, kind and talented," said Reuters news agency EHRI.

"The teachers were absolutely delighted for him. It was wonderful to have in class," he said. "She was supported not only with their studies, but a kind, beautiful girl."

Also Knox High School in Seattle, a small Jesuit college in 2005 high. The school organizes letter-writing campaigns in favor and fundraising efforts to help pay for his defense.

"What we should be free, it is very sad that she was in jail for four years, the" 47 year old Cora Ploetz Westwood Village Shopping Center, a few miles from the home of Curt Knox, Amanda's father.

His friend, Ken Iverson, said he felt relief Knox.

"It felt like the Inquisition," said Iverson, 63, the judicial process.

"She now has the power of the profits, it's free," said Candace Dempsey, Seattle-based author of "Murder in Italy", one of a dozen books have been written about the case of Ben.

"You can write a book and it can definitely help your family to pay the bills," she created in her defense, and after their long journey to Italy.


sources (Reuters)

Tears of joy, is a four-year nightmare

Tears of joy, is a four-year nightmare


A jury found that 24, who was almost four years in prison, was the victim of a miscarriage of justice after an investigation by Italian police chaotic.
Their acquittal sparked scenes of jubilation among his relatives in the courtroom in Perugia, their "nightmare" was over, finally, he said.
However, this decision was upheld by the fury of the masses on the street where your brand is a "murderer" and denounced the decision as a "shame."
There was also a blow to the family of the 21-year-old Kercher, who had urged the jury hours earlier, the "hype" around Knox to ignore and keep your belief in fiscal year 2007, murder.
Meredith's mother Arline and sister Stephanie have been comforted by his brother Lyle, sitting quietly in the courtroom, recording messages.

Kercher family said he respected the jury's decision, last night.
"We respect the decision of the judges, but do not understand how the decision of the judicial process so radically reversed," Kercher said in a statement. "We still have hope and confidence in the Italian courts that the truth will emerge."
The victim's sister, Stephanie Kercher, who was in Perugia with her mother and brother of the decision complained that his sister "was almost forgotten."
"We want to keep his memory alive," he said after the verdict.
For the first time since the appeal for 11 months, the silence of the left Knox, as the judge announced that she and her co-defendant Raffaele Sollecito have been "discharged because they did not commit the crime."
His legs give way as the verdict was read, and decay in their seats and began to mourn. After a hearing that lasted less than two minutes, gave birth out of court by a phalanx of police and returned to prison to collect their belongings Capanne before he finally was allowed to move freely taken.
Knox is said to be beside himself fortunate to have his brief return to jail.
Speaking outside the prison, went after Knox said Italian MEP Girlanda Rocco, Knox during his time behind bars friendship. "When the other prisoners, also said she does, she began to jump for joy"
Mr. Girlanda said she and her family out of Italy Tuesday aboard a commercial flight to Rome.
Unlike 2009, the family has not bought a ticket in advance to Miss Knox, friends said.
It is believed that his passport expired while in prison. Joe Stern family friend said he expects the U. S. Department of State to provide an emergency situation. He said: "Once you go through customs, do not think anyone is saying that."
Corrado Maria Daclon, secretary general of the foundation that began with Knox Knox defended thing in a black Mercedes that was released from prison last night. He said he said he "wanted to go home with his family to take over his life and found his opportunity."
It is expected home in the U.S. Today, when television networks are in a bidding war for the first interview to fly with her. Ms. Knox is expected that millions of dollars of television appearances, book and movie deals. The payment can not be the end of the history of Knox and Italian prosecutors said they could use the case could be due to the call for Italy's supreme court, which means a future attempts to extradite him to the United States.
A crowd of about 1,000 people waited outside the courtroom exploded with rage when the news of the sentences shouted "Shame" and "condemned black man," referring to Rudy Guede service 16 years in prison after being found separately convicted murder of Miss Kercher.
Deanna Knox, Amanda's sister, said: "We are thankful that the nightmare that Amanda in the last four years for a crime committed not been ..
"We are very grateful for their lawyers and their assistants ... He defended brilliantly and they loved him.
"We are very grateful for the support we have received from all over the world people who have investigated the case and decided that Amanda was admitted innocent.
"We are very grateful to the court for the courage to seek the truth and persuasion to bring them down. Now we ask you to Amanda and privacy of our family, who must recover from this terrible experience."
Margaret Ralph, whose daughter used to play on a soccer team with Ms. Knox, cried: "Thank you, thank you" when the verdict was read.
She said: "Imagine, behind concrete walls and bars of four years, and knowing you are innocent.
"I'm sure he's hurt, but should have all the support from family, friends, community. It is a way to deal with people who even think that blame."
Knox and her former boyfriend Sollecito were in 2009, the murder of a student at the University of Leeds, November 2, 2007 conviction, but had always protested his innocence.
The case against them collapsed when DNA evidence was crucial to find the root cause was not reliable by an independent review.
Miss Knox, who had spent the afternoon playing guitar and singing in a chapel of the jail, while awaiting the verdict seemed sad when he was brought before the court last night.
She was pale and breathing hard, and after a collapse in his chair when he learned of his fate, seemed barely able to stand on its own, as he was escorted out of court with a police officer holding each of his arm.
Although acquitted of murder, sexual assault and robbery, the court upheld a conviction for defamation against Patrice Lumumba, the owner of a bar where he worked, killing Meredith, said in a statement it had been charged? Made under duress .
She was ordered to pay Mr Lumumba € 22,000 (£ 18.800) plus attorneys' fees and court costs.
Kercher family had previously said he hoped the jury was the "hype" of Miss Knox and continue to ignore the evidence, said his legal team had gathered for a "public relations machine" by Knox family to fight.
Despite his acquittal, Knox will be followed by a series of open questions about their movements on the night of the murder.
After a first false accusation against Mr. Lumumba, and said he was in the apartment when Kercher was killed Miss, she changed her story and said she spent the night with Mr Sollecito, smoking marijuana, watching a movie of love and determination.

But Sollecito told police he could not remember if Knox was with him that night. The computer experts also his claim that he rejected the movies on your laptop, which was not used to download tonight.
The court heard that Knox and Sollecito from their cell phones on the night of the murder of about 8.40, and gave back about 6 hours, "unprecedented" is Knox.
U.S. State Department reacted to the decision, saying he welcomed the "thorough review" of the case before the Italian courts.
Knox lawyer Carlo Della Vedova said: "In this case, there is a winner, who has fixed a bug ..
"It was a terrible tragedy in the beginning. Meredith was a friend of Amanda, remember that reminds us of the family."
Knox asked about the response to the verdicts, said: "She said nothing, but she was so happy that he began to mourn." She was "scared" before and "It was a very tense for them. Did not say much."
He added: "Amanda is a very intelligent girl, she was very young and inexperienced at the very beginning - is more mature "




sources telegraph news

"Amanda Knox innocent or guilty, why five Complex and contradictory instructions"

"Amanda Knox innocent or guilty, why five Complex and contradictory instructions"
Amanda Knox, a year of study in 2009 and his appeal in the past 10 months presents - Views and Reviews

FIVE REASONS FOR KNOX is guilty
1) The Confession.
Knox admitted that the house the night of the murder, and was heard shouting Miss Kercher, the identification of a Congolese bar owner Patrick Lumumba, as the attacker. She told the court during the hearing that the confession was coerced, but then repeats the entire account in a five-page memo the next morning.
2) The false accusation.
The prosecutor said Lumumba Knox falsely accused of being the murderer is a sign of his own guilt and the attempt to get rid of the way it was. He was arrested in a dawn raid by armed police and spent two weeks in jail. It's just a coincidence that a Swiss businessman who has read the case and even said he had spoken of Lumumba to his bar the night of the murder - and offered a solid alibi. Knox said Lumumba almost ruined his life, and sued for defamation.

3) The Alibi.
Sollecito Knox could not get an alibi the night of the murder.
She said she spent the night with him, smoking marijuana and watching the film Amelie French, and love. But Sollecito told police he could not remember if Knox was with him that night or not.
Even if his memory was confused by drugs, it seems strange that a young man who had been left in a new relationship can not remember if it was not for the night with his girlfriend or exit.
4) computer and telephone records.
Sollecito said he used his computer to download and watch cartoons and Amelie. However, computer experts told the court that there is no activity on his cell phone between 9:10 and November 1 from 5.32 the next morning - the time when the murder occurred.
Knox and Sollecito from their cell phones on the night of the murder of about 8.40, and gave back about 6 clock invites more suspicion.
5) The staging of a robbery.
A room belonging to Miss Kercher one of the Italian roommates was captured on the night of the murder, broke a window with a stone. But police said the robbery took place - and the window broken glass found on clothing scattered on the floor, indicating the contents of the window after the room was broken was confused. The prosecutor accuses Knox and her boyfriend to arrange the burglary in the eye, such as killing a robbery that had become the rape and murder of.
Five Reasons Knox is innocent 
1) lack of motivation.
Yet there seems no reason to kill him.
The prosecutor said Miss Knox and Kercher tensions are boiling over disagreements about the household, hygiene and friends know. They said that Knox was driven by jealousy of his roommate British anger. But it seems an exaggeration to say that such differences lead to relatively low kill Knox.
2) Lack of DNA.
No Knox's DNA was in the room, was found in Miss Kercher, stabbed to death. Prosecutors allege that Knox was the DNA on the handle of the alleged murder weapon, a kitchen knife and Kercher on the blade of the genetic material of the American union, murder.
He also said that Sollecito DNA at closing, which had been cut or torn from the throat, which shows that participated in the attack was also found.
But a review of the evidence found by two independent experts from the University La Sapienza of Rome, which DNA testing is too small to provide reliable and so small that they should be retested.
The locking clip was only six weeks after the first-time offenders found, at which time around the track of the chamber of Miss Kercher had been expelled, resulting in a high risk of contamination.
3) No witnesses.
The prosecutor fought with all his might to have witnesses, Knox and Sollecito at the scene. A drug-addicted homeless, Antonio Curatolo said the first essay argues that Knox and her boyfriend on the night of the murder seen near the crime scene. However, during the appeal process, which tests gave contradictory and confusing, a mixture of appointments were regular heroin and further undermine its credibility.
Even Rudy Guede, from Ivory Coast-born drifter, was convicted of murder also, at first said that Knox was not at home the night of the murder. He changed his story a few months after his arrest, said he left the room that had been treated with a stranger, could have been Sollecito and Knox before you see the silhouette of the house.
4) questions about the murder weapon.
Police and prosecutors said that Miss Kercher with a kitchen knife long and 6.5 cm in the house was found dead Sollecito. But the blade does not meet two of the three wounds in the neck.
Not a bloody, knife-shaped stain on the linen setting is Miss Kercher. The judge said two knives were used, the second was never found.
5) false confessions.
The defense said that if Knox "confessed" to the house the night of the murder and could not remember, I heard Miss Kercher scream, was traumatized and acting under extreme psychological pressure of an overnight interrogation by the police. Knox told the court that during interrogation that she had tied around the head by an officer and said if I start to cooperation could spend decades in prison. She was without a lawyer present at the time and knew that only basic knowledge of Italian required.

"Forgotten" victims as the world focuses on Amanda Knox

"Forgotten" victims as the world focuses on Amanda Knox

Meredith Kercher has become the "forgotten" victims of murder, his family said yesterday, when international attention is focused on the fate of Amanda Knox.

As the jury deliberated Court of Appeals in its ruling, the Kercher family a press conference in Perugia, in an attempt to eliminate the balance between the intense interest of Miss Knox and daughter of reduced coverage.
Miss Kercher sister Stephanie, said: "Meredith was solid in all this is forgotten, it is very difficult to keep the memory alive.
"What everyone should keep in mind is the brutality of what happened that night. Everything Meredith having felt fear and torture, and not know why. You do not deserve." His brother, Lyle said, the Knox family had led a public relations battle to convince the public about the innocence of his daughter. "There comes a point where it is difficult to fight for our legal department of a large public relations machine," he said.
Kercher always the fault of Ms. Knox is convinced. Before he retired, he asked the jury to ignore the "hype" and evidence.
Stephanie Kercher said: "While today to decide on the evidence available to them and not look to advertising, is justice.

"With respect to the truth, the evidence is clear. The judge and jury, we trust."
Her mother, Arline, who stressed his faith in the Italian legal system, he added: "We must go beyond the evidence, because nothing else is what they found and police science are and that's all you can go further .. "
The question of whether the family was willing to forgive the murderer or murderers Meredith, Stephanie said: "Forgiveness does not come into it at the moment, no end to everything, would be presumptuous, do not forgive this stage .."
She said she still had "no idea" why her sister was killed, and added. "I can not even begin to understand, Mez was a beautiful girl, a great friend to all he knew, running to make sure they could get for every birthday."
The Kercher had their emotions, make illegal in Britain by the laws of contempt, because the jury was locked in the case of the outside world as they confer with the judge.

Dolphin' outscreen "lion

'Dolphin' outscreen "lion" 


LOS ANGELES: chapeau dolphin "Le Roi Lion" at the box office this weekend dethroned.
The Warner Bros. family "Dolphin Tale" with $ 14.2 million weekend senneur seconds intestinal held the number one "Le Roi Lion", the remake of Disney, which was the film in top last two weekends had to make.

"Le Roi Lion" fell to third place with $ 11.1 million, just behind Brad Pitt baseball Sony conte "Moneyball" guerre Meurent No. 2 in its second weekend with $ 12.5 million, studio estimates Sunday.

"Dolphin Tale" Caractéristiques Harry Connick Jr., Ashley Judd and Morgan Freeman dans real story of an alien, equipment Meurent s, euh help a wounded dolphin. The film was a week before Stieg held at No. 3 behind Knapp "Le Roi Lion" et "Moneyball", but it deserves a good word of mouth, which Ventilateurs come.

"It's about a dolphin," said Jeff Goldstein, Directeur général des ventes say Warner Bros. "It looks interesting and looks healthy and attractive and funny."
The remains of the three films resisted a further attack of the big premieres. S one for the photo finish was the site of Summit Entertainment Numéro 4 cancer comic drama "50/50" with Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen, with $ 8,850,000 and Sony-chrétienne Thèmes police drama "brave "$ 8.8 million.

Debut at No. 6 with $ 8.2 million was universal "Dream House", a horror film at MIT, Daniel Craig, Rachel Weisz and Naomi Watts. The other big weekend the new version, Meurent 20th Century Fox romantic comedy "était-number is yours?" With Anna Faris and Chris Evans, joins No. 8 failed with $ 5.6 million.

It was an unusual weekend, when the report of the movies in the market continued to rule with the masses of the family especially hard.

"Normally, Tombe, if Oscar contender, and R-rated, movies get more difficult," said Paul Dergarabedian, box office analyst tracking Hollywood.com. "But now, after" The Lion King "and" Dolphin Tale, "is not just the summer, enters the family as filmgoers, he says."

"Dolphin Tale", a total of $ 37.5 million Meurent kitchen, while his "Moneyball" Domestic Kitchen routes to $ 38,500,000. "Le Roi Lion" chapeau à $ 79.7 million of its 3-D reissue produced, in addition to the nearly 800 000 000 dollars of the original 1994 World senneur animated blockbuster made a new edition deserves 2002nd




sources geo news

Can be fun to work with Kareena! Priyanka Says

Can be fun to work with Kareena! Priyanka Says


 MUMBAI: Kareena Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra are known for their rivals on and off the screen.

Their dislike for each other was fed a refuse If the PC seems to be talking of relationships in a song by Saif Ali Khan, the leader Vinod Production.

You can not say that to do so because they want the Fut Film Film Bebo. Priyanka Kareena wants to step their anger Pour avoid Chanson, Son movie friend.

Saif was recently asked in an event that, if the PC does not want the song of anger, and he answered. "I agree with that because most of the actresses share space with desk service"

Priyanka said, but would work with Kareena fun, though. "I was approaching the item song, but never went through a conversation, I have a song with Kareena Movie Son; .. would be fun, I think, Vinod agents become United Nations fantastic movie, but I did not even hear the song . So please keep speculation. "

Courtney Love to pen 'no holds barred' memoirs

Continue reading the main storyCourtney Love to pen 'no holds barred' memoirs

Love won critical acclaim for her role in the 1996 film The People vs Larry Flynt

Singer and actress Courtney Love is to write a "no holds barred" memoir, "setting the record straight" about her marriage to Nirvana's Kurt Cobain.

Described by publishers Harper Collins as the "definitive memoir", the book will cover her history of drug abuse and relationship with her daughter.

"It's time for the public to hear her tell her story, as she lived it," said publisher Lynn Grady.

The memoirs will be co-authored by rock biographer Anthony Bozza.

Bozza's previous collaborations include biographies by Motley Crue's Tommy Lee and Guns 'n' Roses guitarist Slash. He is currently working on an autobiography with Wyclef Jean.

Arguably, Love remains best known for her marriage to late Nirvana frontman Cobain.

The pair married in 1992, and their daughter Frances Bean was born the same year. Cobain committed suicide in 1994.

Career arc

Aside from her relationship with Cobain, the book will tackle Love's wayward childhood, her romances with stars including Edward Norton and Billy Corgan, and her career as a singer and actress.

"Courtney is one of the most fascinating and provocative artists of our time," said Ms Grady.

"She is one of those rare performers who continues to reinvent herself time and again throughout the arc of her career," she added.

The 47-year-old formed the band Hole in 1989 and went on to achieve critical and commercial success with albums such as Live Through This and Celebrity Skin.

In 1996, she won a Golden Globe nomination for her performance in The People vs Larry Flynt.

Since 2003, her well-documented history of drug abuse and erratic behaviour has seen her in and out of court.

Sources BBCNews

Amanda Knox to make final plea of innocence

Amanda Knox to make final plea of innocence

Family of Meredith Kercher will be in court to hear outcome of appeal by US student and her former Italian boyfriend

Amanda Knox attended mass on Saturday in the prison where she has been held for almost four years. Photograph: Franco Origlia/Getty Images

Amanda Knox and her former Italian boyfriend make a last attempt on Monday to persuade the court hearing their appeals that they had nothing to do with the murder of Knox's ex-flatmate, the British studentMeredith Kercher.

Members of the victim's family will fly into Perugia for the keenly awaited outcome, but were expected to arrive too late to hear the final pleas of Kercher's convicted killers. Their presence, just feet away from the relatives of the two appellants, will add an extra layer of tension to a case already brimming with drama and expectation.

The Kerchers' legal representatives at the appeal have unequivocally aligned themselves with the prosecution's case that Knox slashed the British student's throat as she was held immobile by Knox's then boyfriend, Raffaele Sollecito, and Rudy Guede, a small-time drugs trafficker from the Ivory Coast. But the family's lawyer, Francesco Maresca, told the Guardian: "Just as they respected the verdict at the trial, so they will respect the outcome of the appeal."

Knox attended mass on Saturday in the prison near Perugia where she has been held for almost four years since her arrest. The prison chaplain, Father Saulo Scarabattoli, said she had played guitar during the service, as she did every weekend. "You can imagine how she is," he said. "But Amanda evinces great strength and hope."

In June, two independent court-appointed experts dismissed as unreliable key forensic evidence against the University of Washington student and her former lover. Since then, a widespread expectation has built up in the US that their appeals will be upheld.

In Italy, public opinion – once largely hostile to Knox, seen as an angel-faced killer – has become more divided. One of the country's most widely read magazines, Oggi, has campaigned to draw attention to the weaknesses in the prosecution case. And an MP for Silvio Berlusconi's party, Rocco Girlanda, who visited her on Saturday, has become an important advocate of her cause.

But what little evidence there is suggests most Italians believe Knox and Sollecito were involved in Kercher's murder. In a viewers' poll conducted by Sky Italia after the prosecution wound up its case, only 27% of respondents thought the couple were innocent.

If that balance of sentiment is reflected among the six lay judges who will help to reach Monday's decision, it could tell against Knox and her former boyfriend, even if the two professional judges are convinced of their innocence. The court president, Claudio Pratillo Hellmann, has two votes to cast; the other full-time judge, Massimo Zanetti, one. But the lay judges also have a vote each, and can therefore decide the outcome.

According to a local paper, Corriere dell'Umbria, clandestine bookmakers – betting is a state monopoly in Italy – were so uncertain of the outcome that many were refusing to take bets. Those who did were offering identical odds of 2 to 1 against both a conviction and an acquittal. The shortest odds – evens on a reduction of the appellants' sentences.

Whether that would allow Knox and Sollecito to walk free would depend on how much was lopped off their sentences and the amount of remission they were granted. In any event, both the prosecution and defence can opt for a final appeal to the court of cassation in Rome, though it normally rules only on points of law.

Knox, who arrived in Italy less than a month before the killing, was sentenced to 26 years at the trial two years ago. Sollecito, who had known Knox for just six days, was given a 25-year sentence.

Their lawyers have argued Kercher was killed by Guede alone during a break-in. They have poured scorn on the prosecutors' theory of a sex game that got out of hand.

sources google news

Best Choice Between Excellency And Growing Up

The choice between excelling and growing up

I taught A’ Level law for a good 8 years, and then I quit. I was dejected because I think I always ended up seeing my students as my children and I was appalled at what the system was making me do to them; focusing on just getting the much desired ‘A’.

Students in Pakistan are fiercely motivated to get an A grade, and in this process, they forget about actually learning.

Lately, some students (not all) would start rolling their eyes or looking at their watches the moment I would talk to them about anything that might entice them into becoming better people. No, I did not preach in class but I did expect them to think about their subject beyond the book. Things have changed so much in a matter of just 10 years.

Sadly, my student who got the world distinction in A’ Level law several years ago did not measure up to even half in dignity, determination, values, and purpose compared to those who managed B’s before that.

After having taught for over 10 years, both at college and university level, I have taught students from every nook and cranny of the world. I must confess that after having seen some of them blossom into men and women of substance and dignity, I do recall that those who got the B’s (not A*) were the ones who excelled in life.

There is a logical reason behind it too; experience, exposure, trial and the essential error are your best teachers. Anyone can teach from a book and make you pass. However, only a good teacher will teach you things beyond the book and give you valuable lessons about life.

I have never forgotten my Economics teacher from college Mrs Sajjad who used to tell us the odd stories from Africa while she taught us the concepts of marginal utility; or my Scottish teacher from school, Mrs Baxter, who told us about her travels to Russia and how she felt when she entered the tomb of Stalin.

These women had some traits in common; they both had grace, were motherly yet worldly, had a great sense of humour, and they never pushed me to get A’s. They made me develop an imagination instead.

It just so happened then that I did exceptionally well throughout in both the subjects that these fine teachers taught, not because I wanted to excel ,come what may, but because I genuinely fell in love with their subjects due to the way they were taught to me. I wanted to read for the sake of learning and not for the sake of getting the grade.

When I came to Pakistan, my teachers told me that I had the potential to get distinctions in my subjects, but that I was never too pushed. I did as I pleased; I wrote poetry, I took part in debates, I wrote, and I dreamed. I did manage to get a few distinctions but I would attribute that to mere flukes than aspiration.

What I was learning to do then, as I realize now, was to be able to think outside the box. Twenty years later, this very habit has made me cherish certain values, create opportunities for myself and others out of the most adverse conditions, and what’s more, it has helped me to keep my mind alive.

Foreign universities in the USA and UK lay more emphasis on a candidate’s ability to demonstrate a sense of community rather than produce A grades in order to get a college placement. Unfortunately, when Pakistani students compete with these same students they are seen as international students who must show the A grades and community service records in order to get in.

This, of course, puts a lot of pressure on the Pakistani student who then inevitably, focuses all his energies on achieving an A grade. The more ambitious amongst these students manage a few months here and there of community work with local NGOs. Whereas the whole purpose of expecting a young student to do community work is to make him/her socially responsible individuals in the long run, something that is the need of the hour with over 65% of the total population of Pakistan under the age of 25 years, the education system in Pakistan does not allow the time for this.

What young students in Pakistan need to realize is that grades are important but equally important is the inculcation of a sense of social responsibility. Without either of the two, a person is incomplete and will probably not be able to avail of the best opportunities of life.

Kabul Afghanistan Peoples becomes to rock and roll

Kabul Afghanistan Peoples becomes to rock and roll - POP Stars

KABUL: Afghans are used to having their days broken by a burst of gunfire or the boom of an explosion. But the barrage of drumming, bass beats and amped-up guitar solos that will hit the city next week may stop many in their tracks. Sound Central, a one-day "stealth festival" that organizers hope will draw 1,000 to 2,000 young Afghans, will be the first music festival the country has seen since it plunged into three decades of violence in the late 1970s. Afghan bands playing music from doom death metal to blues rock will be joined by musicians who have flown in from across Central Asia -- Iran to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan. The music will almost certainly be a new experience for most of the audience in a country where people seeking a change from traditional Afghan music tend to listen to western pop or sound-tracks from India's big-hit Bollywood films. "The real bottom-line aim of this festival is to ignite youth to be interested in modern music," said organizer Travis Beard, who dreamt up the festival four years ago, and has been working on it in earnest for the last two years. "What we are trying to do is to expose them to new kinds of music so they can get into those styles of music, and also just start playing music. Hopefully we'll get some kids saying 'Hey this is really cool! Dad can I get a drum set?' or 'Mum can I get a guitar'," Beard said. Beard is an Australian who first came to Afghanistan as a news photographer five years ago, joined a band in Kabul and rediscovered his love of music "after many years away." As he started to meet Afghan musicians, he got involved in supporting them -- with instruments or a place to practice -- and the festival was inspired by the community they formed. With that in mind, he organized not only the day-long festival, but a week of workshops for Afghan musicians, and underground pre-festival concerts for all the bands at the festival to play more experimental music to a committed crowd. They are also holding onto the amplifiers, graphic equalizers, drum kits and guitars that have been flown into Afghanistan for Sound Central, aiming to turn the festival into a yearly event and make it easier for kids who are interested in rock to start playing the rest of the year. "I live in Herat, which is an old city and the people are too traditional," said Masoud Hasan Zada, a full-time journalist and part-time lead singer of blues-rock band Morcha, or "The Ants." "There is too much tradition, including traditional music. Its too hard to talk about modern music, especially blues ... it's horrible sometimes," he told Reuters. He spent a week in Kabul at the workshops, learning everything from online marketing to stage presence -- something Beard says is particularly hard for musicians who are talented but grew up in a culture that frowns on exhibitionism. "We are going to teach them how to actually rock out!" Beard said with a grin at the start of the workshop, where more experienced performers thrashed on air guitars and jumped around a tiny stage, under the quizzical gaze of the students. (Reuters) sources geo news

Shahrukh Khan, Farah Khan end cold war

Updated at: 1321 PST,  Saturday, October 01, 2011  MUMBAI: On the sets of the grand finale of Hrithik Roshan’s dance reality show Just Dance, Shahrukh Khan and Farah Khan ended their three-year-old tiff. Once thick buddies, Shahrukh and Farah had a falling out when she chose Akshay Kumar, and not SRK, for her movie Tees Maar Khan. But on Thursday, while filming the grand finale of Just Dance, the two had the right occasion and the temperament to put an end to the long lasting chill between them. We hear that the crew of the show had initially seated Shahrukh and Farah, who is one of the judges, far from each other, but when Shahrukh arrived he insisted on sitting next to Farah. Moreover, Shahrukh poked fun at Farah and soon the two were laughing and joking like they used to earlier. Hope this camaraderie was not just for the cameras. Sources geo news

Golden Eyes fall on movie mavericks

GENEVA: Organisers of the seventh Zurich Film Festival awarded two Americans, an Austrian and a Swiss moviemaker with the coveted Golden Eye award on Saturday, a statement said. American director Jeff Nichols won the international feature film category for his thriller "Take Shelter", which was also awarded at the Festival of American Film in Deauville, France, last month, and the Cannes Film Festival in May. The film starring Michael Shannon, Jessica Chastain, Tova Stewart, Shea Whigham and Katy Mixon, portrays the life an unassuming man afflicted by nightmares. The Golden Eye for international documentary went to the American Cindy Meehl, for "Buck", the story of a real-life "horse whisperer". Austrian Karl Markovics was honoured in the German-language section for his film "Atmen", which recounts the story of a 19-year-old released after four years in youth detention. Swiss moviemaker Nick Brandestini won the German-language documentary prize with "Darwin" about a Californian town by the same name. Each Golden Eye earned its winner a cheque for 20,000 Swiss francs (about 16,400 euros, $22,000). The festival, which opened on September 22, draws to a close on Sunday, having given American actor Sean Penn a life-time achievement award and bestowing on Oscar-winning director Roman Polanski an award he was unable to receive two years ago due to his arrest in a decades-old child sex case. (AFP) sources Geo news

Prateik Babbar Say's: My Bollywood journey is slow and steady

My Bollywood journey is slow and steady: Prateik Babbar

In the backdrop of playing second fiddle to lead actors in various flicks, actor Prateik Babbar is keeping his fingers crossed ahead of the release of his first solo project as a protagonist 'My Friend Pinto' slated to release on October 14.

Prateik, 24, who won critical acclaim for his debutante performance in 'Jane Tu...Ya Jane Na', candidly admits that his Bollywood journey is "slow and steady".

"I feel my journey in the industry has been slow and steady. Though I am inexperienced but I am still curious and eager to do work. I love and enjoy what I am doing. I like playing different characters. I want to do good work..something that audiences enjoy," Prateik said in an interview.

Prateik, son of actor-turned-politician Raj Babbar, made his Bollywood debut in Aamir Khan Production's 'Jaane Tu..Ya Jaane Na' in 2008. His portrayal of Genelia's brother in the movie won him plaudits and earned him several awards and nominations.

He next appeared in Kiran Rao's critically acclaimed 'Dhobi Ghaat', which opened to positive reviews at film festivals worldwide. Prateik played the role of Munna, a migrant from Bihar living in a slum who dreams of getting a break in Bollywood as an actor.

He played roles of a collegian in Rohan Sippy's action-thriller 'Dum Maro Dum' alongside Abhishek Bachchan and

Rana Daggubati and that of a student in Prakash Jha's 'Aarakshan' rubbing shoulders with Amitabh Bachchan, Saif Ali Khan, Deepika Padukone and Manoj Bajpai.

Prateik is apparently enthusiastic about Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'My Friend Pinto' which is his first break as a lead actor opposite Kalki Koechlin.

"I am completely taking the responsibility of the film on my shoulder as a lead actor. I do feel the pressure...but it is fun and exciting pressure. But it might turn other way round if the film does not do well," Prateik said.

'She-Devil' or 'Innocent Abroad'? Amanda Knox mystery

Amanda Knox mystery: 'She-Devil' or 'Innocent Abroad'?


From seductive "she-devil" to naive girl-next-door, the mystery over American Amanda Knox's true character is key to a sensational appeal trial in Italy that now faces a verdict on Monday. With her fresh-faced good looks, the blue-eyed Knox seemed an unlikely suspect for the brutal murder of her housemate Meredith Kercher in 2007, but accusers say the 24-year-old's demure nature hides a "demonic" soul.

Prosecutors have depicted her as lascivious and slovenly -- a drug-using party goer who regularly brought strange men back to her room for sex and exasperated housemates by leaving vibrators and erotic underwear on display.

They say Kercher was murdered after refusing to take part in a drug-fuelled sex game with Knox, her then boyfriend Raffaele Sollecito and immigrant Rudy Guede. Kercher was found naked in a pool of blood with her throat slit. She was 21.

Knox's family have presented a completely different picture of a loving, sporty girl who spoke proudly to her mother of her friendship with Kercher.

A New York Times editorial in 2009 called her: "An Innocent Abroad".

During her appeal, Knox herself pleaded: "How is it possible that I could be capable of such violence? How could I commit evil against a friend of mine?"

Overnight, the case become a media sensation, a whodunnit starring "Foxy Knoxy" -- the nickname Knox herself used on the Internet-based social network MySpace, though she maintains it referred to her childhood football skills.

Her "Angel Face" -- the title of a book about the case -- hit front pages across the world and prompted an upswell of support in the United States.

The glaring media spotlight, combined with leaks to scoop-hungry tabloids during the investigation and stories about her racy past from former friends, prompted fears that the Seattle native may not have been given a fair trial.

The British Daily Mail newspaper quoted a guest at Knox's going away party saying that it was a scene of debauchery, "with drinks, drugs and bodies everywhere... Everyone just wanted to get drunk, get high and get laid."

Friends of Amanda Knox groups sprang up in her hometown and on the Internet, with messages of support deploring the "warped image" created in the press.

Speaking in her own defence during the trial, Knox said she was innocent and had lied to police at the start because she had been subjected to "a steady crescendo" of abuse during long periods of questioning without a lawyer.

Though she was convicted in 2009 and sentenced to 26 years in prison, Knox protested her innocence and her supporters slammed the Italian justice system and called vociferously for her release as the appeal got underway.

Behind bars, the University of Washington student has wiled away four years reading Dostoyevsky and Hemingway and praying, according to a member of the Italian parliament who has published a book based on numerous talks with Knox.

In the collection of interviews, Knox dreams of freedom and talks about her hopes of being an interpreter or a writer, her love for nature, her longing for motherhood as well as her interest in Buddhism and Christianity.

MP Rocco Girlanda said Knox was "serene" during his visits, but every so often "a melancholic shadow passes through those beautiful blue eyes."

As the appeal trial winds up, Knox has looked increasingly pale and strained. She was shaking the last time she appeared in court.

Her defence has fiercely ridiculed the portrayal of Knox as a dominatrix "Venus in Furs" or a femme fatale who preys on weaker men, like the fictional "Jessica Rabbit" in the cartoon film "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?"

But for Carlo Pacelli -- a lawyer representing Patrick Lumumba, the bar owner that Knox misleadingly identified as the killer in her first statement to police -- the question remains: "Who is Amanda Knox?"

"She has a two-faced soul. One side is angelic, good, compassionate, in some ways saintly, the other is like a she-devil, it is demonic, satanic, diabolical and wants to live out borderline extreme behaviour.

"This is the Amanda of November 1, 2007" -- the night of the murder.