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Hip-hop mogul RUSSELL SIMMONS has vowed to donate his millions to charity despite the U.S. economic downturn - insisting he’d rather give away his money than spend it on pampering himself.
The American entrepreneur has become an international philanthropist, using hip-hop as a platform to raise awareness and funding through the five charities he heads.
Admitting his potential financial losses, he says: "I don’t worry about it. I have lots of staff members, I want to make sure everyone keeps getting fed." And Simmons is keen to continue funding his charity work with his own fortune.
He adds: "I’m not going to cut down on (my charities) so I can have another ride on a private plane."

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American jazz pianist DAVE McKENNA has died of lung cancer. He was 78.
McKenna passed away on Saturday (18Oct08) in State College, Pennsylvania.
The jazz great launched to stardom as a piano player for the big bands of famed saxophonist Charlie Ventura and jazz clarinetist Woody Herman until 1954.
Recording his first solo album in 1955, McKenna also became well-known for his collaborations with jazz greats Bobby Hackett, Bob Wilber and saxophonist Stan Getz.
He became more focused on his solo career in the 1960s and 70s, recording first as a bandleader and accompanist and later as an soloist.
His unique melodic style, called the "three-handed swing", helped distinguish the star from his contemporaries - noted on albums including My Friend the Piano and Left Handed Complement.
McKenna is survived by his wife, Frances, his sons Stephen and Douglas, and a granddaughter.

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Pop star PINK knew her marriage to CAREY HART would never last - because neither of them could handle such a big commitment.
The So What hitmaker split from motocross star Hart earlier this year (08) after two years of marriage.
But Pink, real name Alecia Moore, admits she had her doubts right from the start - even though she was the one who proposed.
She says, "I proposed to him by holding up a sign saying ‘Marry Me’ when he was doing a motocross race
. He nearly fell off his bike.
"To be honest, even when he said yes I knew there was a little part of both of us that couldn’t handle being married
. We did it because we loved each other so much
. We wanted to eat each other all the time we were together, but maybe marriage wasn’t ever going to be our thing." And the singer is still struggling to come to terms with their split, adding: "I’m not over it
. I love him."

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RONNIE WOOD’s former manager has revealed the rocker had a string of affairs during his marriage to estranged wife JO.
The 61-year-old Rolling Stones star walked out on his wife of 23 years this summer (08), after his affair with Russian waitress Ekaterina Ivanova, 20, was exposed in June (08).
Jo Wood is reportedly in talks with lawyers over a possible divorce.
And now Nick Cowan, who managed the star for 22 years, has revealed that Wood dated a string of other women throughout his relationship with Jo.
He writes in his new book Fifty Tea Bags and a Bottle of Rum, "We would spend weeks at a time in Ireland. Much fun was had and Ronnie kept in touch with several Dublin girls - until Jo caught him on the phone to one of them and put an end to it.
"I kept the numbers of the girls we met in my phone under code names." Cowan also alleges Wood had a fling with actress Kelly LeBrock in the 1980s, which destroyed the trust between the star and his wife.
He adds, "I acted as a go-between relaying messages between Jo and Ronnie. Jo was very cool about the situation and went on with life as normal until, after a week or so, Ronnie came home. Another ten years were to go by before she would trust Ronnie again.
"She quickly made sure she never let Ronnie out of her sight. In fact she was the only Stones girl who always went on every tour, so much so that she was put on the payroll as Ronnie’s PA (personal assistant)."

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JOHNNY DEPP is taking his new role as the Mad Hatter literally - he has been caught eating his hat.
The Hollywood star portrays the famous character in director Tim Burton’s new version of Alice in Wonderland, and he has been amusing crewmembers on set with his strange behaviour.
Burton, who was worked with Depp on numerous film projects, including Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, says the actor is embracing his latest role.
He says, "Nobody plays oddballs better than Johnny and he’s loving playing this one. He actually ate his hat the other day. No word of a lie he just bit into the brim and chewed."

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Avid animal rights campaigner PINK is offended PRINCE WILLIAM has failed to reply to her letter questioning the British royal about his decision to hunt as a hobby, calling him "a bit rude".
The So What hitmaker, real name Alecia Moore, was once asked to perform at a birthday bash for the Prince, but declined the offer and instead challenged him over his views on hunting.
But five years on, Pink has yet to hear back from the royal.
She says, "I’m still waiting for a reply to my letter to Prince William. He wanted me to play at a concert for his 21st birthday, but I wrote back saying I wouldn’t until he explained why he went hunting. It’s a bit rude, isn’t it?" And Pink, a supporter of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), reveals a similar question posed to the prince’s grandmother, Queen Elizabeth II, has also gone unanswered.
She adds, "I also wrote to the Queen… asking why bearskins couldn’t be made of synthetic material.
"I don’t get that we can’t question people just because of their position in society. I support PETA; I want to make people think about their responsibilities. I don’t care if they have a crown."

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MARK WAHLBERG was left battered and bruised on the set of new action film MAX PAYNE because his co-star MILA KUNIS beat him up for real during the fight scenes.
The actor’s title character scraps with Kunis’ in the movie - and Wahlberg reveals his co-star wasn’t acting when she laid into him.
He winces, "My motto is always ‘hit and try not to be hit’, which some of my castmembers didn’t understand going in.
"Mila Kunis..
. I don’t think she practiced very much with the billy club.
Originally it was going to be a chain..
. and she whipped me with that a couple of times
. And then she pulled out this baton and started slapping me with it, so I had to really be on my toes.
"You’re supposed to miss by at least a foot (and) the angles will sell it." But Kunis admits she found her fight scenes with Wahlberg very therapeutic: "I got a lot of my anger out."

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DANIEL CRAIG discovered he’d be taking over from PIERCE BROSNAN as movie superspy JAMES BOND while grocery shopping in Baltimore, Maryland.
The British actor was in a Whole Foods supermarket when Bond producer Barbara Broccoli called to tell him he was the next 007.
Craig recalls, "She went, ‘Over to you kiddo,’ so I put down the groceries, went straight into the liquor store, bought a bottle of vodka and got smashed."

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Hollywood actress NICOLE KIDMAN has purchased a cattle ranch in her native Australia after she learned how to be a cowgirl while shooting her new movie.
The Oscar-winner stars alongside Hugh Jackman in new film Australia, and had to herd cows for her role in the film.
And Kidman insists that despite her initial reservations about the gruelling stunts, she now loves the lifestyle so much she has bought her own ranch.
She says, "I was terrified beforehand. I even had to learn how to cut cattle.
But once you master it it’s so much fun. Now I can crack a whip, herd cattle, cut a cattle out of the herd, which is amazing. I can’t believe I can do it.
"I’ve bought a company out in the country outside of Sydney. We don’t have to muster them though, because there’s only 40. they are basically on the property to keep the grass short."

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MADONNA has reportedly denied rumours she is set to move back to her native U.S. following her divorce from GUY RITCHIE.
The Material Girl announced on Wednesday (15Oct08) she is to divorce the moviemaker, following seven years of marriage.
And the singer has been dogged by speculation that she will quit her home in Britain and set up on her own in New York once the split has been finalised.
But new reports suggest the star is set to stay in the U.K. for the sake of the couple’s children, Rocco seven, adopted three-year-old David Banda, and Madonna’s 12-year-old daughter Lourdes.
A source tells British newspaper the Daily Mirror, "Everyone expected Madonna to up sticks and go live in New York, taking the children with her. But despite some of the unhappy memories that London holds, she still feels that it’s the best base for the kids.
"They are happy at their school and she doesn’t want to interfere with that.
While she will still spend a lot of time away from Britain, like she does at the moment, any suggestion she’s turning her back on Britain for good are false."

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LATEST: MADONNA’s publicist has denied reports the superstar has finalised her divorce from GUY RITCHIE - insisting a settlement has yet to be reached.
The couple announced on Wednesday (15Oct08) that they are to divorce following seven years of marriage.
And the news was followed by reports on Sunday (19Oct08) that the pair had negotiated an end to the union - with Ritchie set for a $60 million (£34.9 million) pay out.
But a representative for the Material Girl insists the rumours are false.
Liz Rosenberg says, "I will not be commenting on the various reports regarding the divorce or the settlement which has not been finalised." Madonna is represented by lawyer Fiona Shackleton, who previously acted for Sir Paul McCartney in his recent divorce from Heather Mills.

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THE OFFICE star STEVE CARELL is reportedly in talks to resurrect the work of late comic PETER SELLERS.
Carell, a longtime fan of the Pink Panther funnyman, is said to be negotiating a deal to remake 1967 film The Bobo, which originally starred Sellers and Britt Ekland, with himself in the lead role.
A source tells New York Post gossip column PageSix, "Carell is a huge Sellers fan, and this is one of his favourite movies. Seeing him in a matador outfit with a Spanish Castilian accent could be very funny." Eva Mendes is said to be favourite to take on Ekland’s role in the new version of the comedy.

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Movie legend TONY CURTIS has confessed to taking advantage of Hollywood’s naive starlets in his heyday.
The ageing playboy admits he has always had an eye for the ladies, and the six-times married Some Like It Hot star admits he broke a lot of hearts.
He says, "I was just hoping for that conquest, hoping for that physical affection… that ejaculation.
"All the guys at the studios, including myself, would feast on them (young women), taking their sweetness." And Curtis says the lack of affection from his mother had a lot to do with his obsession with the opposite sex. He says, "I got nothing from her. I got slapped around is what I got."

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The two planned sequels to hit movie THE GOLDEN COMPASS have become Hollywood’s first major victims of the current economic crisis - production on the movies has been put on hold indefinitely.
The Golden Compass, which starred Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig, was the first of author Philip Pullman’s His Dark Materials fantasy trilogy to be adapted for the big screen.
Two further films based on Pullman’s novels - The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass - were due to be made following the box office success of The Golden Compass - but plans have stalled as a result of the present downturn in the international economy.
Eva Green, who was cast by director Chris Weitz as witch-queen Serafina, says, "At the moment it’s quite dead." The Golden Compass had a budget of $180 million (£104 million) - making it one of New Line studio’s most expensive projects to date.
It has grossed more than $370 million (£213.8 million) worldwide since its December 2007 release.

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TERRENCE HOWARD has slammed reports he pulled out of a planned sequel to superhero blockbuster IRON MAN over a pay row - insisting he was snubbed by movie bosses.
U.S. reports suggest Robert Downey Jr. will return as Iron Man/Tony Stark and Gwyneth Paltrow will be back as Pepper Potts, but Howard will sit out the project.
The part was rumoured to have been offered to Ocean’s Eleven star Don Cheadle after Howard demanded too much money to reprise his role as Iron Man’s best pal Jim Rhodes in the 2010 sequel.
But the star insists the news came as a shock to him - because he was mid-negotiations when the role was taken away from him.
He tells America’s NPR radio, "It was the surprise of a lifetime. There was no explanation. (The contract) just… up and vanished.
"I read something in the trade (publications) implicating that it was about money or something, but apparently the contracts that we write and sign aren’t worth the paper that they’re printed on, sometimes." He adds, "Promises aren’t kept, and good faith negotiations aren’t always held up."

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Hollywood fashion critic MR. BLACKWELL has died at the age of 86.
The inventor of the famed Worst Dressed List passed away on Sunday (19Oct08) after suffering complications from an intestinal infection, according to his publicist Harlan Boll.
His death comes more than two months after he collapsed at his Los Angeles home in August (08) and fell into a coma. He regained consciousness a few days later and was put on antibiotics to treat an unspecified illness.
The star - real name Richard Sylvan Seltzer - began his career as an actor in the 1930s and appeared in the original 1935 Broadway production of Sidney Kingsley’s Dead End.
He spent some time as a Hollywood agent before discovering his eye for fashion and becoming a designer in the 1950s.
His moniker Mr. Blackwell came about when his clothing line was launched in the late 1950s, and he went on to make a name for himself by styling clients including former First Lady Nancy Reagan in his House of Blackwell creations.
The brand folded in the 1980s and Blackwell turned his hand to being a TV and radio personality before becoming a fashion journalist. He produced articles for America’s The Globe tabloid and had various articles featured in newspapers and lifestyle magazines across the country.
But it was his Worst Dressed List that he became most noted for, and his scathing reviews have been published every year since its inception in 1960.
In his latter years, Blackwell suffered from ill health and was diagnosed with Bell’s palsy in 2001.
He is survived by his longterm partner Robert Spencer.

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Rock offspring JACK OSBOURNE has vowed to make the ultimate documentary about his father OZZY OSBOURNE.
The reality TV star is using his own production company, Jacko Productions, to give fans a real insight into the legendary Black Sabbath rocker, which he promises to be the most accurate Ozzy documentary ever made.
He says, "I don’t think anything’s yet captured an all-round portrait of my dad.
"So we’re trying to get away from the caricature and get a more rounded picture."

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Rocker PETE TOWNSHEND allowed BILL MAHER to use THE WHO song THE SEEKER in his satirical documentary about religion - after the comedian "badgered" him to agree.
The guitarist admits he initially refused to give permission for the track to be used in Religulous - but gave in because the film is "not an important moment in the history of religion".
He tells New York gossip column PageSix, "Bill Maher is a comedian. I am a songwriter. I have faith in what I would call God, but I am not a religious man. I don’t want to press my views on other people.
"Maher seems to have the wish to question and make fun of the sanity of we believers. I’m happy to say I’d prefer to be my kind of crazy than his kind of cynical, but… we live in a free society… Maher’s film is not an important moment in the history of religion.
"So when I first refused the use of my song (for a very modest fee by the way) and Maher badgered me, I decided to allow it. If you have problems with this film, talk to Bill Maher. If you really want to know where I am on my spiritual journey, listen to the song."

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