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R&B singer ALICIA KEYS credits her New York upbringing with the success of her music career - because city life helped prepare her for the harsh criticism delivered by record executives early on.
The No One hitmaker admits she had to fight with record company bosses to win creative control over her projects at the start of her career.
But Keys insists even at the age of 19 she was already prepared not to give in to bullying.
She says, "I grew up in Hell’s Kitchen, an area of New York City that’s nicer now but used to feel desperate, with boarded-up buildings, hookers, pimps and drug dealers everywhere. Men would call out, ‘Come work for me,’ as I passed by. I was nine years old and hated it so much that I’d often be loud-mouthed and confrontational right back.
"It kept those men away, but I felt bad coming down to their level. One day I realised I didn’t have to - I could just keep walking."

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MADONNA has been slammed for wearing a pair of shoes with a replica gun as a heel.
The Holiday hitmaker was pictured wearing the controversial shoe with a pistol shaped stiletto at a screening of her filmmaking debut Filth and Wisdom in New York on Monday (13Oct08) night.
And it has attracted a backlash from a British murder victims’ group, who have branded the singer "uncaring".
Lyn Costello, from Mothers Against Murder And Aggression, says, "I am horrified that Madonna can see these shoes as fashion. Celebrities have a massive part to play and an icon like Madonna should have more sense.
"It’s uncaring. Surely she reads the news and realises that young people are dying every day." The Miami Vice shoe, designed by Karl Lagerfeld, is set to go on sale worldwide.

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JOHNNY DEPP is the sexiest man in the world, according to a new survey.
The Pirates of the Caribbean actor beat off strong competition to be crowned the fittest male by Britain’s Cosmopolitan magazine.
George Clooney came in second place, closely followed by Brokeback Mountain star Jake Gyllenhaal in third.
James Bond action man Daniel Craig was fourth in the Sexiest Men poll of readers, and new dad Brad Pitt rounded out the top five.

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Hollywood director STEVEN SPIELBERG has returned to his post at Universal Studios after signing a deal with the company to distribute his films, two years after parting ways with the filmmakers.
The director’s DreamWorks movie studio reportedly split from Paramount which acquired the company in 2006 - after friction over the costs of keeping Spielberg and his filmmaking partner Stacey Snider with the company.
The new seven-year agreement will see Universal distribute up to six DreamWorks movies a year in the U.S. and overseas, except for India.
Spielberg says in a statement: "While it feels great to come home again, it feels like I never left… Universal has always been my home base so this agreement starts a new chapter in what has been a long and successful association."

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LATEST: A third person has been arrested in connection with allegations of theft from the British home of VICTORIA and DAVID BECKHAM.
Two former housekeepers at the couple’s mansion in Hertfordshire, England dubbed Beckingham Palace by the British media - were taken into police custody on Monday (13Oct08).
And another man has also been quizzed by officers as part of the investigation, it has emerged.
The probe centres on allegations that personal items belonging to former Spice Girls singer Victoria and her soccer player husband David were put up for sale on internet auction website eBay.
They were said to include designer clothes, sportswear, and a pair of David’s football boots.
The two former housekeepers who were held by police have been named as Eric Emmett and his wife June, from Essex, England - and they have hit back at reports that they were involved in the items’ sale on eBay.
Eric Emmett tells the BBC, "What is in the papers is fabricated nonsense.
Totally fabricated, 99 per cent of it is totally untrue." The Emmetts have been released on bail until 22 November (08). The third person - a 25-year-old man, also from Essex - has been bailed and is due to return to a Hertfordshire police station in November (08).

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JOSH BROLIN was stunned to be held by police after a fight at a bar - because he is convinced there was no brawl.
The actor was celebrating the completion of filming on George W. Bush biopic W with director Oliver Stone and members of the cast and crew when the incident occurred.
Brolin, his co-star Jeffrey Wright, and five crewmembers were arrested when they allegedly got involved in a fight between locals at the Stray Cat bar in Shreveport, Louisiana in July (08).
But the No Country for Old Men star insists they are innocent - and that police overreacted to the incident by spraying tear gas at the men.
He tells USA Today newspaper, "I’ve gotten into trouble in my life, for sure, but I’ve never seen anything like this. We’d just finished (filming) I think four hours before and had a couple of drinks.
"Jeffrey got into something with the bartender. Suddenly he told me, ‘I think they’re calling the cops’. I went to the bathroom. When I came out of the bathroom, he was being escorted out. All I wanted to know was where (they were) taking him.
"I met him outside. I remember thinking, ‘Mace is bouncing off my eyeballs.
This is unbelievable.’ A lot of people got arrested for asking questions.
"There was no fight. I’ve spent a lot of time in Texas myself, a lot of time in the South. I’ve never seen anything this extreme. I’ve never seen it escalate so quickly." Brolin and Wright are due in court in December (08) on charges of interfering with police.

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SOLANGE KNOWLES has defended her superstar sister BEYONCE, insisting their differences shouldn’t prompt fans to pick sides between the pair.
The singer has hit out at the press since embarking on her own music career, admitting relentless comparisons to her older sister have made it difficult to step out of the Crazy In Love star’s shadow.
She says, "There are a lot of things that people don’t realise about the differences between Beyonce and me. Our age difference, for one. Sure, we’re tight now, but we weren’t as close when we were kids because Beyonce is five years older… I was barely aware of what she was doing, so it’s not like I grew up saying, ‘I want to do what Beyonce does and be just like her!’ It wasn’t a Disney story." But Solange insists despite their differences the pair have always supported each other’s artistic endeavours.
She continues, "Even though we’re very different people, I do not want to be cast as ‘the anti-Beyonce’. They call me that on the internet. It bothers me to think that people who don’t like her want to like me - for that reason alone.
These people don’t even know her."

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MILEY CYRUS has cast doubt on whether she will return for another series of HANNAH MONTANA.
The singer/actress is currently filming the third season of the Disney show and would like to feature in a fourth run.
But the 15-year-old has revealed she is focusing on wrapping series three, which is due to hit U.S. TV screens next month (Nov08), before deciding on whether to continue with the hit franchise.
She says, "Hopefully I’m going to go into season four, but we’re not sure so right now we’re just getting through season three." Cyrus has also filmed Hannah Montana: The Movie, which is slated for release next year (Apr09).

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AVRIL LAVIGNE and her rocker husband DERYCK WHIBLEY put on a united front for the press as they stepped out for dinner in Los Angeles on Monday (13Oct08) amid rumours of a marriage split.
The couple, who wed in 2006, was alleged to be on the verge of breaking-up, with the National Enquirer claiming Lavigne and Whibley "have been growing apart for months".
But the Sk8er Boi singer and the Sum 41 frontman defied critics when they emerged from Madeo restaurant on Monday night holding hands after enjoying a dinner date.
Lavigne and Whibley have yet to confirm or deny the reports, and a spokesperson for the couple had yet to return requests for comment as WENN went to press.

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DANIEL CRAIG admires the latest batch of sexy Bond girls - because they are tough enough to put the suave spy in his place.
Brit newcomer Gemma Arterton and Ukrainian model turned actress Olga Kurylenko star in the latest installment of the film franchise, Quantum of Solace, which is due for release on October 31st.
And Craig loves the fact the new generation of Bond girls is not afraid to stand up to 007.
He says, "I think Bond is as misogynistic as he always was. But the difference is that we try to cast great actresses playing strong women who, if he misbehaves, will tell him to f**k off.
"Instead of it being a giggling girl in a bikini - and there’s nothing wrong with giggling girls in bikinis, sometimes it’s quite nice - there are women who challenge him."

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DAME HELEN MIRREN has hit back at critics who claim her slim physique is maintained by nutritionists, insisting she has never hired an expert to help her diet.
A picture of the British actress in a red bikini hit the headlines in July (08), and the global media expressed amazement at the 63-year-old’s toned body.
But the Queen star was upset with the press’ suggestion it’s "easy" for her to keep off the pounds because she has the means to hire a posse of personal trainers and nutritionists to help her look her best.
She says, "I looked at that photo - I swear to you - I looked at that photo and thought, maybe if I exercise I could look like that. I started exercising the next day and I thought, ‘Ooh, maybe I’ll actually look like that if I do exercise.’ But I don’t.
"What made me a bit cross was people saying, ‘Oh, it’s easy for her, she’s got (personal) trainers’. And what was that other thing I read? Nutritionists! It’s so not true. Everyone who knows me just fell off their chairs laughing at the idea."

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Pop superstar-turned-movie director MADONNA impressed the cast on the set of her filmmaking debut FILTH AND WISDOM by showing up on set at the crack of dawn every day.
The Material Girl hitmaker, whose comedy premiered in New York on Monday (13Oct08) night, stunned lead actress Holly Weston by showing how dedicated she was to the project.
Weston tells the New York Daily News, "She knew exactly what she wanted and there was no in between. She made everything very clear.
"Everything had to be perfect. I think she was even there before us in the morning." And Madonna, who also penned the script, is delighted with her first attempt at being a director, because it allowed her to really bring her ideas to life.
She says, "I’m so happy with the finished product. Writing it was actually my favourite part because it is so different from everything I do and deep down inside I’m really a writer."

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DIANA QUICK struggled to remain in character while filming sex scenes with co-star JEREMY IRONS in BRIDESHEAD REVISITED - because the actor was overly enthusiastic in his performance.
Quick burst into laughter while shooting her onscreen romp in a ship’s cabin after the TV series’ director asked Irons for a more passionate take.
The actress, 61, recalls, "I was rehearsing in my pants (underwear) and a little slip thing. Jeremy started to climb on top of me in great big Harris Tweed trousers. I said, ‘You’ll have to take those trousers off or I’ll be scratched all over’.
"He very reluctantly agreed. The director said, ‘Jeremy can you be a bit more ecstatic?’ Then we started filming. I looked up to see Jeremy bashing his head against the headboard and bellowing - and I burst out laughing.
"I asked the director why he hadn’t given us notes about playing it and he said, ‘Well, I know what men do when they’re making love and I’d better leave you to it’." A big-screen adaptation of Brideshead Revisited - a huge hit when it aired on British TV screens in the early 1980s - is released this month (Oct08).

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CAMERON DIAZ is giving her British boyfriend PAUL SCULFOR a few acting tips in a bid to turn the former bricklayer into a movie star.
Model Sculfor, who has also dated Hollywood actress Jennifer Aniston, is taking lessons from an acting coach to help him launch a career in film.
And he has even turned to the Charlie’s Angels star for a few pointers.
He tells British magazine new!, "If I need to go over a scene or something, then we help each other out." And Sculfor isn’t ruling out a big screen collaboration with Diaz, his partner since June (08).
He adds: "We have no plans to act together but who knows about the future."

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MEL GIBSON has turned down the chance to star in another LETHAL WEAPON movie destroying hopes for a fifth film in the franchise.
Bosses at movie giant Warners Bros were confident of convincing Gibson and co-star Danny Glover to reprise their roles in the popular action series, ten years after the last Lethal Weapon movie.
But Richard Donner, who directed the first four films in the franchise, insists the Braveheart actor snubbed the offer to reprise his role as unhinged cop Martin Riggs.
He says, "Mel turned it down. I would like to think that Mel turned it down because I wasn’t involved. Knowing Mel, I would like to think that. Would that be the kind of thing he does? It sure would be.
"It’s too bad, actually, because Channing Gibson, who wrote the fourth one, and Mike Riva, a designer on three of them, had an incredibly strong story for the fifth movie. But we weren’t given the opportunity and I think maybe I could have convinced Mel to do it. But Warners chose to go with (producer) Joel Silver… the project is pretty much dead in the water unless someone had the sense to come to me."

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ZAC EFRON has denied reports he is set to take over from HARRY POTTER star DANIEL RADCLIFFE in Broadway play EQUUS.
The High School Musical star was rumoured to be lined up to take on the naked role, about a young man who has a sexual interest in horses.
But he is adamant he has not been asked to consider the part.
Asked if his next role would be in Equus, Efron says, "No, that’s a rumour. I wasn’t approached for it." And he insists that although he would love to attend a USC film programme, he has gained vast experience of the industry by starring in movies.
Efron adds: "I’m learning so much every day working with great directors. I just worked with Richard Linklater and Burr Steers and also Kenny (Ortega). I’m working hand-in-hand with directors and taking home a lot of lessons."

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Actor JOSH BROLIN felt "insulted" when he was asked to play GEORGE W. BUSH in OLIVER STONE’s new movie - because he is nothing like the U.S. president.
Brolin stars as the outgoing American leader in Stone’s biopic W.
And he insists he was not flattered to be offered the part - but changed his mind when he read the script.
He tells USA Today newspaper, "When people approach you about roles, you understand why they would make the connection. But when (Stone) came to me about Bush, I couldn’t understand it.
"I couldn’t make any connection whatsoever. I was a little insulted. He said, ‘There’s something very Americana about you. There’s something bucolic about you’." And Brolin admits his own political opinions made him think twice about taking on the role.
He adds, "I had such a visceral reaction against it. But then I thought about it, and I had to get up and read the script. I read it one morning, and I thought it was amazing. I didn’t love the story, but as a character, following a guy from 21 to 58 was an incredible challenge for an actor that I didn’t think I could pull off."

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British pop group TAKE THAT are refusing to change the name of their forthcoming LP - even though it shares the same title of BRITNEY SPEARS’ new album.
The band’s fifth record, The Circus, is due out on 1 December (08) - just one day before Spears releases her sixth album of the same name on her 27th birthday.
But the Pray hitmakers, who disbanded in 1996 and reformed in 2005, insist they won’t change the title.
The group’s manager says, "The boys have worked on this for months, like Britney, and we certainly won’t be changing the title.
"When you work that far in advance, it’s impossible to know what people will call albums. (British pop duo) Erasure had an album Circus. The name is not copyrighted.
"I doubt there will be confusion. Fans will either ask for the new record by Take That of Britney Spears."

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