Hilary Duff: Penguin Crush!

Hilary Duff heads to an office building on Wednesday (May 4) in Beverly Hills, Calif.

The 23-year-old actress was all smiles as she fed the meter for her parked car.

Last week, Hilary got to spend some quality time with her hubby, Mike Comrie, at the Pittsburgh Zoo.

?I have a crush on a penguin!? Hilary tweeted. ?Best day at the pittsburgh zoo! Staff was good to us!?

10+ pictures inside of Hilary Duff feeding the meter and heading to an office building?

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Mariah Carey reveals baby names

04 May 2011

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Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon have named their newborn twins Monroe and Moroccan Scott.

Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon have named their babies Monroe and Moroccan Scott.

The pair welcomed their twins into the world on Saturday (30.04.11) and, following days of speculation, have finally confirmed the monikers of their daughter and son.

According to Mariah's spokesperson, Monroe - who is named after late actress Marilyn Monroe, one of the singer's biggest inspirations - does not have a middle name because her mother doesn't have one.

Her brother shares his middle name with his father, as well as it being his grandmother's maiden name.

It has been a long, emotional journey for this family, and I couldn't be happier for all of them.

The top tier of the 42-year-old singer's New York apartment is called the Moroccan Room - because of its African-inspired décor - and is the place where Nick proposed to her.

Mariah's spokesperson Cindi Berger said: "It has been a long, emotional journey for this family, and I couldn't be happier for all of them."

Earlier this week, the 'We Belong Together' hitmaker teased fans by revealing the twins' names both began with the letter M and invited her twitter followers to guess at what they have been called.

She tweeted: "I wish I could personally thank all those around the world who continue 2 send congrats+prayers for #dembabies! they're doing great (sic)."

"And they are the most incredible gifts we could ever have imagined (sic)!"

"So we r bout 2 reveal the actual names and b4 we tell em 2 our friends etc. both begin w/M's (sic)!!!!"

Buy Mariah Carey Music
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  • E=MC2

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  • Under Cover

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Buy Mariah Carey DVDs
  • Run [DVD] [1990]

    £14.99

Buy NICK CANNON DVDs
  • Linha De Passe [DVD] [2008]

    £19.99

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  • Dime Piece [12

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  • F-Action 43

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  • F

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  • My Brother & Me

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Rochelle Wiseman: Marriage? The pressure's on Marvin Humes!

Can we hear wedding bells?

Marvin Humes and Rochelle Wiseman | Water For Elephants | Pictures | Photos | New | Now Magazine

Marvin Humes and Rochelle Wiseman have been dating on-off since March 2010

Rochelle Wiseman has given her strongest hint yet that she wants boyfriend Marvin Humes to put a ring on her finger.

The Saturdays singer and JLS star Marvin attended their first ever premiere together last night at Robert Pattinson's new film Water For Elephants, and nervously laughed off engagement rumours.

'The pressure's on you for that bit,' Rochelle, 22, told her man when questioned about a possible wedding.

'I'm just going to be
quiet. We've never ever been to a premiere as a couple before, so this
was our big day, wasn't it babe?

'It got me in the mood for wanting a
really nice dress.'

Rochelle got back together with Marvin in January after a 2 month break, and though she's loved-up with her man, she didn't think the red carpet was the right place for a proposal.

'Don't do it here!' she told Marv, 25. 'I'd die.'

NEW PICTURES Rochelle Humes and Marvin Humes at Robert Pattinson's UK for Water For Elephants movie premiere>>

SEE PICTURES See Rochelle Wiseman in LA>>

PICTURES Marvin Humes and Rochelle Wiseman go on romantic shopping trip>>

PHOTO GALLERY Celebrity splits 2010>>

Esme Riley

 

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Will Hollywood's Superhero Movie Binge Ever End?

After this summer of Thor, Captain America, X-Men First Class and Green Lantern, can we be done with comic book movies finally?
?Bryan W., Utah, via the inbox

I hate to shoot you down with my Cosmic X-Ray Flying Space Laptop of Truth, but the research within does not lie, son: comic book movies are not leaving us anytime soon.

How can I be so sure? Well, I found a real live guy who can see the future. And he says:

THWACK! Check out Superhero Fashion Police

We are in for a very heroic 2012 and 2013?and probably beyond.

Why? Why are we going to see more Batmans and Ghost Riders and Avengers and Spider-Mans and so on? Well, for one, says Geoff Boucher of the Los Angeles Times Hero Complex blog, special effects have finally caught up to the material. "It's really the CG age of cinema," he notes.

Second, Boucher points out, such special effects are often a deciding factor among movie fans debating whether to head to a theater or enjoy a night in front of the TV:

"Hollywood is trying to come up with more spectacle films that get people out of the house." And nothing is better served by special effects than (a) a comic book hero, (b) a boy wizard, (c) a Pirate of the Caribbean or (d) some unholy union of any of the above.

Finally, we're still dealing with studios and their budget people. Yes, producers are still happy to shell out $250 million to make a comic book movie, but only if, in general, they're considered safer bets than an Inception or Matrix.

"Hollywood has a real reluctance to bet $150 million to $250 million on a movie where people don't know the title the first time they hear it."

Still think that interest in fanboy movies is on the wane? Well then why is there going to be a second annual Hero Complex Film Festival, hmmm?

There's plenty more about this?and how one of my b!tchlings may or may not have killed Osama Bin Laden?in this week's podcast!

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Charlie bit my finger ? again !

Posted by ILookFlyChick - Monday May 2, 2011 07:19

Charlie bit my finger ? again !

Even had I thought of trying to get my boys to do this I probably couldn?t have. Neither were coerced into any of this and neither were hurt (for very long anyway). This was just one of those moments when I had the video camera out because the boys were being fun and they provided something really very funny. FAQ Harry is 7, Charlie is 4 3/4, Jasper is 2 1/2 Harry and Charlie Blogging harryandcharlie.blogspot.com Twitter twitter.com
Video Rating: 4 / 5

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Jennifer Lopez works out for the camera

04 May 2011

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Jennifer Lopez works out up to six times a week before music video shoots because she is conscious of her figure.

Jennifer Lopez works out up to six times a week before music video shoots.

The 'On the Floor' singer hits the gym hard as she gets insecure about how much of her body can be seen in the skimpy outfits she wears for dance routines in her videos.

She told the E! news network: "You can hide a lot with good clothes, but when you're doing a video, you really can't because the clothes get smaller!

"It's like all the sudden my stomach's out. Oh no!

Its like, that's what they want me to wear? I'd better start doing Tracy Anderson workouts six times a week then!

"Its like, that's what they want me to wear? I'd better start doing Tracy Anderson workouts six times a week then!"

Jennifer's new album, 'Love?' was released on Monday (02.05.11), and she says the birth of her twins Emme and Max â?? now three - with husband Marc Anthony gave her a different perspective to last album, 2007's 'Brave', allowing her to tackle the subject of love differently.

She added: "My life has changed since my last album, I've changed as a person, obviously I've given birth since the last album, and it's like boom! 360 degree change!

"I was able to talk about love in a different way, and with the album and the question mark, I knew it would be provocative.

"I think people should question love and should push themselves and examine themselves.

"Are we doing the right things and treating each other in the right way in love? I hope it opens up that dialogue a little bit."

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Jennifer Love Hewitt Splits From Boyfriend

Hewitt230.jpgAnother day, another split for Jennifer Love Hewitt.

The actress has broken up with her boyfriend of just under a year, actor/director/producer Alex Beh.

The 32-year-old starlet just can't seem to find love.

Hewitt was engaged to Scottish actor Ross McCall, but broke off the engagement. Then, she seriously dated actor Jamie Kennedy and publicly professed her love for him. But that relationship ended, too.

No reason was given for the split.

Why can't Jennifer Love find love? What do you think is going on?

See what stars Hewitt has dated in the past after the jump.

Hewitt has been linked to Enrique Iglesias, John Mayer, Carson Daly and Joey Lawrence, among others.

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Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon reveal twins' names

Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon reveal twins' names

It's M&M for Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon -- that would be Moroccan Scott and Monroe.

The couple had hinted on Tuesday that the names of their newborn twins, born on Saturday, would both begin with an "M." Their son is named Moroccan Scott Cannon and their daughter is named Monroe Cannon, the couple just announced on Carey's official website.

Scott is both the middle name of Cannon, 30, and his grandmother's maiden name. And, in keeping with tradition, their daughter, Monroe, didn't get a middle name because Carey herself doesn't have one. She was, however, named after Marilyn Monroe, who has been an inspiration to Carey, 42. Moroccan gets his name from the top level of Carey's New York apartment, which features Moroccan-inspired décor. It's also the site of where Cannon popped the question. The newborn twins were born on Carey and Cannon's third anniversary. To mark the special occasion, they had Rev. Al Sharpton join them in the hospital to renew their wedding vows.

See photos of: Mariah Carey, Nick Cannon

To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.

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Neil Rimer, Index Ventures: Diversity is Always a Benefit

?Pemo Theodore, a Startup Coach & Australian origin online entrepreneur, video interviews venture capitalists & women entrepreneurs on the shortfall in funding for women @EZebis: Winning theVenture Game for Women.

Video interview with Neil Rimer.  Neil is a co-founder and Partner of Index Ventures. In 1992, Neil started the venture capital activity of Index's predecessor firm, later co-founding Index Ventures and raising the firm's first fund in 1996.  Neil's current investment focus is on innovative solutions for energy and environmental problems.

Index portfolio companies with women CEOs or foundees:Astley Clarke, Notonthehighstreet, AlertMe, Foodily, doubleTwist, 7TM, GoTryItOn, Editd (co-founder), Mobissimo, Net-a-Porter, Songkick (co-founder), Seedcamp, GenMab.   In 2009, Index were honored by Astia with a Diversified Portfolio Award - the firm with the greatest percentage of investments in woman CEOs or founders.  You can find Neil on Twitter @narimer

 

Pemo: What is your sweet spot, in what kinds of businesses do you like to invest? 

Neil: We are really early stage investors. I think we've been most excited about getting involved with the entrepreneurs at the earliest stage possible.  Really help them form the idea & help them recruit the nucleus that will create the management team.  So we really invest as early as we feel comfortable.

Pemo: Fantastic & is there any particular theme that you guys are interested in than others?

Neil: I think we're really interested in opportunities to disrupt big segments of the economy leveraging technology & innovative business models.

It doesn't have to be entirely newly invented technology.  It could be adopting or applying technology that's been around for a little while but coming up with a novel approach or novel business model that allows you to put a combination together that is disruptive.  

Pemo: So there's no particular industry that you guys focus on?  It's just that piece, the early stage & the disruption that you like?

Neil: No I think that's really a philosophy & we look at any industry providing that it's large & that there's a plan that could result in building a big company that would be valued highly.  

Pemo: And make lots of money?

Neil: I never thought I'd say this out loud but I actually even find the insurance industry interesting these days. 

Pemo: Oh fantastic, ok, so there's lots of possibilities out there.

Neil: If that's possible then anything's possible.

Pemo: Really

Pemo: What percentage of women startups do you get pitches for? And what percentage have you funded?

Neil: We don't really keep those statistic, although we probably should. We have funded a fair number of businesses that have been started by women or women teams over the years. I don't know if that's because we do a fair amount of investing in Europe. But we've probably funded a dozen or so, possibly more businesses that have been started by women. In terms of whether or not that's a higher hit rate based on ones that are pitched by men or pitched by women. I'd have to assume that it's a higher hit rate because we don't see that many businesses pitched by women. Because we've done that many, probably means on balance it is a higher hit rate.

Pemo: Have you noted differences with women entrepreneurs in how they pitch & build businesses?  (We're getting into that area of generalization & I know it's a bit touchy?)

Neil: I frankly think that the variability among women is as great as the variability between men & women. I don't think I've seen any particular bias one way or another.

Pemo:  That's brilliant!

Pemo: I have been told that venture capitalists fund people similar to them, white, male etc.  What is your take on this & if this is happening how can women startups find an opening in this culture?

Neil: I think the venture capital industry is fairly large at this point.  There's a lot of different people you could be talking about or talking to.  But I don't think the good investors try to fund people who are like them. In fact if what you say is true, then I don't know who's funding all of the guys from South East Asia who are going to Silicon Valley & starting businesses. They certainly don't fit the mold that you talked about.  I think strong investors will look at somebody's background, their track record, their vision & their ability to lead a team & carry out the vision & really don't pay much attention to whether they come from the same background.

In fact I think diversity is always a benefit so that's going to bring additional strengths to the company. 

 It will help them draw on a broader pool to build their team. It will give them access to a broader network to sell their product into & ultimately to exit their business. I don't see how restricting the scope of people you fund can help in any way.

Pemo: Aileen Lee, Kleiner Perkins, recently wrote a post on Techcrunch about the market of women & how huge that market is. I would imagine as you said with diversity, having women on the team is definitely going to mean you're going to have an insight into that market.

Neil: Well you know sometimes people forget that half of the customer base out there is women.  In fact it's more than half, because many products the purchasing decisions are essentially made by women. So you may want to understand that. You may want to have some people on your team who understand that segment market.     

Pemo: Thank you, thank you that's great encouragement

Pemo: Do you think that networking with Venture Capitalists is harder for women entrepreneurs in Europe?

Neil: I don't think so.

Pemo: What do you see as the obstacles for inclusion of women entrepreneurs in achieving funding in Europe?

Neil: I think the biggest problem & probably the only problem is that there aren't enough women in technical & engineering & scientific tracks.

I think that given that we invest in lots of technology companies, many of the founders & members of the founding team come from that background.  If it's predominantly a male source then by the sheer numbers we're going to see more male entrepreneurs.  So we end up funding more of them. Really it's a supply problem. I don't see any obstacle to women getting in front of us with their great idea. 

Pemo: Great so really a lot of people do say that it starts really young as in children & encouraging girls to study technical subjects. 

Neil: That's right!

Pemo: Do you think that women need to have their business developed before they can achieve funding?

Neil: Yeah but I don't know why that would apply more to women than men. There are some businesses & in some cases some entrepreneurs where you would only be comfortable if they have significant prior experience.  There are some instances where you're willing to back a couple of kids out of university or out of a graduate program with no prior experience but a lot of vision & a lot of promise & belief that they're scalable.  And I don't that see that's any different for men or women.

Pemo: It's really obvious that you've got no bias Neil, because even the question was a curly one for you.  Thank you

Pemo; Often advice for sourcing venture is equated with dating, implying that there is a matching that needs to happen with entrepreneur & investor. Have you noticed a general psychological profile of venture capitalists and also of entrepreneurs that promotes the attraction & synergy between them to develop a great startup?

Neil: Yes so I think that confidence is the fundamental currency of these decisions & it really cuts both ways.  I think the entrepreneur has to have a lot of confidence in the investor that they're letting into their company & that they're ultimately forming a very important partnership with. And the investor has to feel that way about the entrepreneur. That's again like dating or like a marriage. 

You have to be able to look at each other & feel like no matter what comes, you're going to be able to face it. 

You may have arguments & you may have disagreements but one of you will end up convincing the other, or you both will be in agreement to begin with, what the right thing to do is. You'll face whatever challenges & this is somebody that you'd like to go into battle with. I think again that applies for any entrepreneur.  I don't think it's any different for men or for women. But I do think that that is probably the single thing for any entrepreneur to convince an experienced investor.  Lots of people can come in with interesting ideas, big markets, nice demos but the real question is, given that I know that things will not go as planned (& that's really a given), is this someone that you're willing to get into that kind of trouble with. Are you confident that you will be able to get through those challenges & prevail in a very productive way. Actually are you going to enjoy doing that because life is short & you prefer to do this with teams that you're going to enjoy spending lots & lots of time with. That's a key fundamental question. I think chemistry has a lot to do with that. The approach that somebody takes in a conversation, how straightforward they are & whether or not they are the type that shares risk & talks about risk & says 'Hey this is the biggest challenge that I'm facing, I have a couple of ideas about how I might deal with it but what are your ideas?'  Rather than a different approach would be to dress everything up & conceal risk & hope that the investor only figures out that that risk exists when it's too late & they're down the path.

Pemo: Authenticity & building trust is what I'm hearing are very important & that there's a human connection between the investor & the entrepreneur.  

Neil: Yep

Pemo: Very good thank you.

Pemo: In the dance with an entrepreneur both in the decision making process of funding a startup & then in working with those startups what are the necessary qualities that make a good venture capitalist. Some of the talents mentioned: Would you trust your gut instincts & feelings that happen within the relationship with the entrepreneur as signs about what's happening in the business, in the startup? Or would you ?manage by influence or persuasion?

Neil: Again I think you want to have the kind of dialogue & relationship that you would have in a personal relationship.  This may be very different than what you hear from some other folks. There's kind of no room for formality or politics or protocol I think in a discussion between partners. We don't see ourselves as anything other than just another partner in a business.  This is the kind of the stuff that gets in the way at the larger companies & the incumbents that our companies are trying to run circles around.  So if we get caught up in the same kind of stuff, we're not going to do very well.  We really need to have just a really direct, open discussion.  There should be nothing that you can't say to each other.  You can criticize the business as much as you need to to make a point, if that's genuine & it shouldn't be seen as an attack on somebody's value as a person & it shouldn't affect the relationship. In the same way that 2 brothers or 2 sisters can really say anything to each other if there's that kind of underlying trust & respect & love that protects them & allows them to just communicate very effectively.  I think you really need to aspire to that same kind of channel between partners in a business, whether they're founders or founder & investor.

Pemo: Yes because you're working so closely together for a long time, correct?

Neil: Absolutely. 

Pemo: Thank you so much Neil, it's been really, really valuable to hear your feedback about this issue & I really appreciate that you've taken the time out of your busy schedule.

Neil: My pleasure thanks for giving me the opportunity.

Thanks to Alexander Blu for music 'Electricity'

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Area officials meeting in Washington

A delegation of city, county and school officials, along with members of the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, met Tuesday with top federal officials in Washington, D.C., to discuss local needs.

Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa led the delegation in meetings with Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, Education Secretary Arne Duncan and Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., who is incoming chair of the Democratic National Committee. The meetings will continue through Wednesday.

L.A.-area officials will also meet with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., White House Chief of Staff William Daley, Energy Secretary Steven Chu and former Sen. Chris Dodd, who now heads the Motion Picture Association of America.

Also on the trip are Supervisors Zev Yaroslavsky, Michael D. Antonovich, Mark Ridley-Thomas and Don Knabe, Sheriff Lee Baca, School Board President Monica Garcia and LAUSD Superintendent John Deasy.

The chamber delegation is headed by Chief Executive Officer Gary Toebben. Also, Elise Buik, president of the United Way of Greater Los Angeles, is on the trip.

The group plans to stress the need for federal investment in education, workforce development, infrastructure, water and power, green jobs, health care and housing.

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