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Sugar Bits - Jennifer Hudson Offers Reward for Nephew

PopSugarUK — Mon, 27 Oct 2008 02:00:00 -0700

Jennifer Hudson offered a $100,000 (£63,500) reward last night for the safe return of her seven-year-old nephew, who has been missing since the murder of her mother and brother at their home in Chicago on Friday. The offer was made after Jennifer’s sister Julia made an emotional plea. - Times
Olympic swimmer Mark Foster was the sixth celebrity voted off Strictly Come Dancing, losing out to GMTV presenter Andrew Castle in the dance-off. - BBC
Former Coronation Street star Tina O’Brien gave birth to a 7lb 1oz girl at 8am on Sunday, her first child with costar Ryan Thomas. Mother and baby are doing well. - The Sun
Ronnie Wood’s daughter Leah is pregnant with her first child, having married Jack Macdonald in June. It is understood Leah’s baby is due in the spring. - Daily Mail
Carol Vorderman and Fiona Phillips are to appear on a celebrity version of The Apprentice for Comic Relief next March. Liz Hurley, Jonathan Ross and Alan Carr are also thought to be in the line-up for the show. - Mirror
Prince Harry hopes to train to become a helicopter pilot, and has volunteered to join the Army Air Corps (AAC) as the next step in his military career. This follows Prince William's decision to become an RAF search and rescue helicopter pilot. - Reuters UK
Zara Phillips broke her collarbone at the weekend after landing on her head when her horse, Tsunami II, fell at a riding event in France. She was thrown from the same horse last year, and was knocked unconscious in 2004 when she fell from another horse. Tsunami II had to be put down. - Telegraph

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Sugar Bits - Amy Has a "Small Amount of Emphysema"

PopSugarUK — Tue, 24 Jun 2008 00:58:35 -0700

Following his revelation on Sunday, Amy Winehouse's father, Mitch, has clarified that Amy has a "small amount of emphysema... But with no more inhalation from smoke of any kind, she'll be absolutely fine". He also confirmed she'll be well enough for Glastonbury. - BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat
John Leslie has been arrested over an allegation of rape, which allegedly occurred in 1995. - The Times
Robbie Williams has reportedly been offered £1.5million to perform a 30 minute set at a Norwegian festival. - The Mirror
Heather Mills has been lined up to become a contestant on the next series of Donald Trump's Celebrity Apprentice in the US. - The Telegraph
ITV plans to launch a general entertainment channel in Asia, which would show The Jeremy Kyle Show. Hmmm. - The Guardian
The live burial storyline in Eastenders has been ruled "offensive" by media watchdog Ofcom. - BBC

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Buzz News Roundup, 11/19

BuzzSugar — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 12:39:06 -0800

Whenever the TV season picks up again, Dirty Sexy Money will be around for all of it, writes Zap2it.
Hollywood Reporter has news that Kathy Bates will join Ashton Kutcher and Michelle Pfeiffer in the dramatic love story Personal Effects.
Couldn't get tickets for this weekend's Saturday Night Live show? The New York Times writes about the event.
ComingSoon reports that production on the sequel to The Da Vinci Code will be pushed back due to the writers strike.
Olympians and Omarosa are among the contestants for Celebrity Apprentice, which will premiere in January; details are at The Futon Critic.
NBC is bringing the Web series Quarterlife to TV, Broadcasting & Cable reports.
According to Reuters, Gus Van Sant's biopic about gay San Francisco city councilman Harvey Milk (which will star Sean Penn) will be made before Bryan Singer's version.
Hey, you 10 people who watched On the Lot: Variety has a story about what winner Will Bigham is up to.

11 Real-Life Lessons Learned From the Celebrity Apprentice

SavvySugar — Tue, 12 May 2009 10:30:06 -0700

NBC has already given the nod to a ninth season of Donald Trump's Apprentice, so the show must be speaking to viewers. Sure, it's reality entertainment, but there are real-life lessons to be found in each episode of this season's Celebrity Apprentice. We had to get something valuable out of those two-hour segments, right?

If you were too distracted by the celebrity drama to deduce your own career-minded conclusions, Trump University's Lessons Learned Blog kept track for you. Randal Pinkett (winner of The Apprentice Season 4) runs the blog and he came up with several lessons from each episode, so I've selected the best ones from each week.

Episode 1: "Disagree behind closed doors all you want at work. That's part of teamwork. But never badmouth your team to outsiders. You need to present a strong image to the people who judge your performance."
Episode 2: "Cultivate the ability to adjust quickly. In today's fast-paced world of business, flexible people win out over the rigid."
Episode 3: "Remember, leaders don't shoulder their way into the spotlight. They know that the more they can let their team members excel, the brighter their own success will be."

To see eight more lessons, just read more.

Episode 4: "If you want to succeed in business, you have to stand on your own. If you cannot fight your own battles, you're not ready to succeed."
Episode 5: "Remember that simple systems free your mind to focus on the big picture. In times of confusion, even a little organization saves the day!"
Episode 6: "Stand by your word. Even if you don't realize it yet, a good reputation is your most powerful career asset."
Episode 7: "Never rely 100 percent on technology, because things go wrong. Hard drives crash. Power outages occur. The graphic you send at the last moment could be in a format that the recipient can't use."
Episode 8.1: "There will be times when you will feel shut out of some inner circle at work. If that happens, focus on the excellence of your work. You are not in junior high school anymore. Your feelings are no longer your top concern. It is time to get the job done."
Episode 8.2: "Remember that simply meeting demands is not always enough. Research and creativity will carry you into the winner's circle."
Episode 9: "In your career, take any hand you are dealt and play it to win. If you apply that strategy consistently, you will build small victory on small victory and move ahead."
Episode 10: "If you don't set specific goals and know how to reach them, you can never expect to succeed. You can't wander into success, you have to plan it."

Photo courtesy of NBC

Interview With Celebrity Apprentice's Annie Duke, Part II

SavvySugar — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 11:30:42 -0800

Poker pro Annie Duke seems like she will be a force to reckon with as a contestant on The Celebrity Apprentice. She knows what Donald Trump is looking for on his show - competency and controversy - and this intelligent and frank player could bring both elements to the table. Here's more from my fun interview with Annie.

SavvySugar: Did you form any bonds with the other contestants?

Annie Duke: Anyone who knows me would be surprised by this unless they know this person. But Brande Roderick, she's a former Playboy playmate. Brandy is really smart, one of the sweetest people on the planet, and to this day we’re really good friends. I would never guess I’d go on a show like that and become real friends with someone, but we started bonding during press week. She’s one of my favorite people now. Herschel Walker is one of the nicest people you’ll ever meet. He’s a total sweetheart. The call time for that show is 5 a.m., so in order for him to get in his run, he’d wake up at 3 a.m. He’s a business owner, confident guy, really nice. Natalie Gulbis . . . we probably bonded because we kind of do similar things. She travels a lot, she's a female athlete, really smart and confident.

To see how Annie worries about how she comes off on the show and her feelings about the March 1 premiere, read more.

SavvySugar: What’s next for you in your career?

Annie Duke: I don’t know, I'm just sitting here dreading the premiere of the show. One of the reasons I hesitated to go on . . . I have a very strong personality and I’m really direct and used to communicating with men. The way you communicate with men is much different than the way you communicate with women. You have to go at things more sideways, and I’m more of a frontways person. I’m definitely concerned that the show is going to premiere and people will say 'that’s one snarky bitch.' You give me a task and I face it head on . . . besides the dread of March 1 I have a lot of poker coming up. . . and I'm going to hide in my house [laughs]. I had a horrible panic attack, people in my yoga studio don’t really know who I am. Right after I got back from The Celebrity Apprentice and someone came up to me and said, 'hey just wanted to let you know, big fan.' Then I thought, what if I come to the yoga studio and more people recognize me. I’m having a little bit of a, oh no what have I done?

Join me in rooting for Annie on Sunday when The Celebrity Apprentice premieres its second season.

Photo courtesy of Charles William Bush

NBC Announces 2009 Celebrity Apprentice Cast

SavvySugar — Fri, 09 Jan 2009 04:30:49 -0800

If you didn't think Donald and his biz reality show, The Celebrity Apprentice, had staying power, guess again: Episodes in 2009 will not only exist, they'll be twice as long. That's right, two hours of competitive drama every Thursday, beginning March 1. I can't say that I'm thrilled at the extended show time, but the cast is certainly eclectic and I'll be interested to see how the members interact.

In case you missed the show's introductory season, here's the gist: Celebrities compete in the name of their individually selected charities. They enter each challenge as teams to prove their business savvy, but Donald fires one person each week, and only one can be named The Celebrity Apprentice. The two-hour format will be introduced because NBC is using its pre-filmed reality series to fill the gaps left in its reduced programming.

To see the members of the 2009 cast, read more.

The following famous contestants will compete to raise money for their charities and win the Celebrity Apprentice title: Khloe Kardashian, Tom Green, Joan and Melissa Rivers, Dennis Rodman, Clint Black, pro-poker player Annie Duke, comic Andrew Dice Clay, 'Deal or No Deal' girl Claudia Jordan, Brian McKnight, Tionne "T-Boz" Watkins of TLC, retired NFL star Herschel Walker, golfer Natalie Gulbis, skater Scott Hamilton, Playboy playmate Brande Roderick, and Jesse James.

Photo courtesy of NBC

Celebrity Apprentice: Did Trump Make the Right Decision?

SavvySugar — Mon, 11 May 2009 12:00:31 -0700

Last night was the three-hour battle royale for the title of The Celebrity Apprentice. Joan Rivers and Annie Duke found themselves facing each other head to head, and Donald Trump described the duo saying, "they're both tough, they're both smart, and they both hate each other." Joan wins the final challenge and the Celebrity Apprentice crown. I know it was music to many ears when Donald said, "Annie, you're fired," but do you think he made the right choice?

Photo courtesy of NBC

Celebrity Apprentice: Who Are You Rooting For?

SavvySugar — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 09:50:55 -0700

We knew there would be a high level of intensity in last night's episode of The Celebrity Apprentice after last week's cliffhanger. The final four are interviewed by Erin Burnett and Jim Cramer and asked about their respective charities, their performance throughout the show, and why the other candidates aren't deserving of the Celebrity Apprentice title.

Even though Erin and Jim both pick Trace and Carol as their favorites, Donald chooses Piers and Trace to go head to head in the final challenge that will be a celebrity auction. He told Carol the only reason she's fired is that he wants to see Piers and Trace "fight it out," because he thinks they don't like each other.

The scene has been set for the final battle: Both men are talking themselves up, in their "war rooms" they're busy trying to get every celebrity they know to show up at the auction, and the promo for next week's episode sets it up as "the arrogant Brit versus the American cowboy." Who are you rooting for to be the first Celebrity Apprentice?

Photo courtesy of NBC

Interview With Celebrity Apprentice's Annie Duke, Part I

SavvySugar — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 07:15:16 -0800

The second season of The Celebrity Apprentice premieres this Sunday and the previews have made me excited to watch. It's a diverse crowd of candidates this year, and I was lucky to chat with Annie Duke of professional poker fame. She's a sharp, funny, mother-of-four, and for a highly successful woman who has coached other celebrities like Matt Damon and Ben Affleck on their poker games, she is incredibly down to earth.

Annie said that she had huge hesitations about saying yes to the show because she never had interest putting herself out there on national TV more than she already does, but once she found out that she could raise money for charity by playing a game, she couldn't say no. As the co-founder of Ante Up For Africa she said, "Here’s a chance, because people know who I am, to do something really good. Not just for my charity but for other people’s charities. Every week of that show, some charity is going to benefit. I just thought it would be a really cool thing to be a part of. I would have been more enthusiastic had I known that in advance, but I’m really glad that I did it."

To see some of Annie's responses to a couple of Savvy questions and learn what Donald Trump is looking for, read more.

SavvySugar: Did your ability to read people come into play?

Annie Duke: The structure of the game is really interesting. On a game like Survivor, your teammates vote, on Dancing With the Stars, America votes. In this situation it’s one guy. You don’t have to worry so much about whether or not your teammates like you because in the end it just matters if Trump is pissed off at you. It’s a game of competence. In Survivor, it’s important you don’t appear too competent. But on The Celebrity Apprentice it's extremely important you appear competent for two reasons: Number one, Trump needs to think you’re competent, and number two, if your team wins you don’t face the board room and no one on your team wants to face elimination. It’s a very unusual game because you don’t have to hide your competence, in fact you have to show it off. After I found out I'd be on the show, I watched the entire first season - I didn’t just watch it, I paused and went backward and forward, analyzed everything. Watched how the challenges went, what part of the challenges tended to get you on the chopping block. If you do too much or not enough, it can get you there. I watched how bad it was not to defer to your project manager. I really strategically analyzed the first season and I was extremely regretful I hadn’t watched it because it’s an extremely interesting show - because it’s a show about competence.

SavvySugar: What else is Trump looking for?

Annie Duke: Controversy. But if you're controversial for no apparent reason you’re not going to win the game. Omarosa is a good example – all she did was pick fights with people and that was a good strategy to get her to the middle of the game. Take someone like Piers, he was controversial because he was direct and spoke his mind, but he backed it up every time. And that’s the better kind of controversy. If you’re a quiet little mouse, you’re going to be in big trouble on that show. Trump likes fireworks. He eggs people on. I saw situations in the first season where it seemed obvious that one person was wrong, like when Omarosa reamed at Piers the whole day talking about his kids and talking about what kind of father he was. That was a situation when there was one person clearly in the right and one clearly in the wrong. I was impressed that he kept his cool, but when they went into the boardroom Trump was like, 'Why are you such a jerk Piers?'. He certainly knows what makes good TV.

Check out what Annie had to say about the other candidates and her feelings about the show's March 1 premiere in tomorrow's post on SavvySugar. For more information on Annie Duke, check out her website.

Photo courtesy of Charles William Bush

Celebrity Apprentice: "Selling Hot Dogs"

SavvySugar — Fri, 04 Jan 2008 14:05:50 -0800

In last night's episode of The Celebrity Apprentice, Donald Trump showed us he's still the same tough businessman he's always been - except am I the only one who thought he looked abnormally broad, like he was wearing extra shoulder pads? I think the old Apprentice got a surge of new life with its celebrity twist. Maybe it's because my expectations weren't too high for the first episode, but I was thoroughly entertained the entire hour. It probably doesn't hurt that I love fierce competition!

The episode opens with Donald informing the celebrities that they're all "commodities" and should use their "personal brand" to help them. While you and me aren't celebs with recognizable faces and reputations, we should always be working on our own brand. These are the qualities that you essentially sell to an interviewer to set you apart from the rest. Those are my two cents - now back to the drama!

The fourteen celebrity candidates are split into teams based on gender, which I think really heightens the competitive spirit. Omarosa volunteers to be the project manager for the women (team Empresario) and Stephen Baldwin steps up for the men (team Hydra). Immediately we're faced with striking differences in the teams' approaches - Nely Galan announces that she's brought matching hats for the team to symbolize unity, while the men are busy researching if the mythological Hydra had seven or three heads. I have to say, the hats have a huge lame factor.

To find out what celebrity is fired first and to see a video of the hot-dog vending madness read more

Stephen Baldwin's team whips Omarosa's team; the men raise $52,286 to the women's $17,038.79 and all of the money goes to a charity of Stephen's choice. The boardroom is full of animosity and there's an especially insulting exchange between Piers Morgan and Omarosa; he basically tells her that she's not a real celebrity and she calls him a "British asshole." I look forward to seeing how this relationship develops!

Omarosa drags Carol Alt and Tiffany Fallon to face the Trumps, but in the end Donald fires the former Playmate of the Year (Tiffany) for failing to call Hugh Hefner to buy an expensive hot dog. While Omarosa's viciousness makes my skin crawl and I'd like to see her get the boot, I think Donald made the right choice in the candidate he fired. Tiffany failed to use her celebrity and that was the whole point of the challenge. Following directions is a basic skill but if you don't have it, your employer will definitely notice.

Gene Simmons is still my favorite to take the cake, he certainly proved his celebrity in the first challenge and has some terrific one liners like “Omarosa is a survivor - like a cockroach - you cannot kill her!” I'm going to watch out for Nadia Comaneci though; did anyone else notice she hardly spoke one word the entire episode? She may have some tricks up her gymnast sleeve.

Photo courtesty of NBC