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Talk-show queen OPRAH WINFREY launched a last-minute bid to urge Americans to vote on Tuesday (04Nov08).
The host has rallied around Democratic candidate Barack Obama since publicly endorsing him in December (07), and she started out election day by encouraging her fellow citizens to ignore long lines at the polls.
In an election-day interview with New York radio station Power 105.1, Winfrey, who cast her vote for Obama last week (ends31Oct08), said, "Come with your book, bring your iPod. Get ready to sit and have a party with yourself.
There is no better way to celebrate than standing in line. Take your families.
For so many people who have kids, it’s a wonderful thing for your kids to see.
"We’re going to remember this forever. Your kids will be telling their kids that they were there in the booth with their parents." The host stood in line for an hour and 10 minutes when she voted last week, taking advantage of early-voting laws in Illinois.
She remembers: "I was voting in a precinct that was across the street from a drug treatment centre. Thirty-seven women from the treatment centre - they had just detoxed - had come over and voted for the first time, and it was fantastic.
"It’s a miracle that’s happening, really. I can feel the shift in our country." And Winfrey has already prepared for her candidate’s victory, adding: "When Barack wins this evening, it’s a victory for all of America, because black people and brown people and red people and yellow people all understand that he understands that all villages matter. That’s what (former Secretary of State) Colin Powell said when gave that beautiful endorsement of him. That is why I loved and supported him from the beginning." Winfrey’s endorsement of the Democrat was the first time she has ever publicly backed a presidential candidate.

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Funnyman CHRIS ROCK has turned documentary maker to find out all there is to know about good hair.
The comedian has hit the world’s top stylists and hair shows as part of new film Good Hair, which he hopes to debut at the Sundance Film Festival in Utah in January (09).
Rock says, "It’s really deep and funny… I did a Michael Moore expose on hair." The film concentrates on the problems stylish African-Americans have maintaining great hair.
The comic adds, "(It’s about) the business of black hair - weaves and relaxers and all this stuff. I even went to India, where they get all the weaves."

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Supermodel HEIDI KLUM has been indulging in a little RISKY BUSINESS for moviemaker BRETT RATNER - performing TOM CRUISE’s famous film moves for a new Guitar Hero: World Tour commercial.
Dressed in a shirt, underpants and white socks, Klum dances and plays air guitar to Bob Seger’s Old Time Rock And Roll - just like Cruise did in his 1983 breakthrough movie role.
And she admits that dancing for ad director Ratner wasn’t quite as easy as it appears - and left her with bruises and burns all over her legs.
Klum says, "He (Ratner) really wanted to have it exactly like Tom Cruise did this… It was harder than I thought it was gonna be."

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Tennis star SERENA WILLIAMS is rooting for BARACK OBAMA to become America’s next president, even though her religion forbids her from voting.
Williams and her sister Venus are among several million Jehovah’s Witnesses in the U.S. who are forced to remain politically neutral and restricted from taking part in elections.
But the champ is secretly hoping Democrat Obama wins.
She says, "I don’t really get involved in political affairs because of the way I was brought up, and, being a Jehovah’s Witness, but it’s exciting to see someone like Barack Obama have a chance to lead one of the world’s biggest nations.
"It’s good. It makes my heart smile."

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TIM ROBBINS’ election day started with drama in New York on Tuesday (04Nov08), when the actor was blocked from voting by pedantic officials.
The fervent Barack Obama supporter attempted to register his vote for the Democrat candidate for president at a polling station near his home in the city, the same station he had attended for the past 15 years - but his name wasn’t on the list.
When instructed to fill out a provisional ballot, Robbins refused, repeating a claim he had made on U.S. political pundit Bill Maher’s TV show just a week before (24Oct08) - when he warned that the paper votes aren’t properly counted.
He told Maher, "They’re throwing those out… If that’s your last resort, take it, but fight in the polling place to vote. It’s your right as an American. You have every right to vote if you’re registered. And if you’re not on the rolls and something went wrong, document it." The fuming 50 year old told the New York Times on Tuesday, "The issue is that they removed my name from the voting rolls. My name was there for the primaries. The poll workers here know me. I’ve been voting here 15 years." When a poll worker threatened to call police, the actor retorted, "Is this some kind of intimidation? I’m taking this as intimidation." Eventually Robbins raced to New York’s Board of Elections, where he discovered he was registered to vote after all. He then returned to cast his vote.

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TROUBLE singer PINK shudders at the thought of America’s Thanksgiving holiday because her last family celebration was a disaster, which saw her dump food on her now ex-father-in-law’s head, get drunk and end up in hospital.
The pop star blames her awful turkey day memories on the tequila she knocked back with friends before lunch.
She tells U.S. news show Access Hollywood, "I ended up with 13 stitches in my hand, the food was all over the floor.
"We decided between six of us to drink three bottles of Patron before 11am, and when somebody was saying grace, I decided that the sweet potatoes should be on my father-in-law’s head, so I dumped the bowl on his head.
"I ended up in the pool, and I almost had a heart attack and then I was chopping ice and I cut my hand open, had to go to the ER but I couldn’t feel a thing; it was fascinating actually - when you’re that drunk and you can just watch the stitches happening.
"And then I set my bedroom on fire because we (Pink and ex-husband Carey Hart) went upstairs to have a quickie (sex) and I left a cigarette in the oven mitt." Pink is hoping the upcoming Thanksgiving break, at the end of November (08), is a lot less eventful.

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QUEEN founders BRIAN MAY and ROGER TAYLOR always approach former bandmate JOHN DEACON before they plan a tour or live project, in the hope the bassist will rejoin the group.
Deacon has refused to take part in Queen activity for more than a decade, and wants no part of the band’s ongoing reunion tour with former Free star Paul Rodgers fronting the group.
In his place, Rodgers, May and former Blue Oyster Cult star Danny Miranda provide bass on the group’s new record and live.
But May and Taylor have never given up on their former bandmate.
May says, "Whenever we tour, we always put a little feeler out and say, ‘Perhaps you might be interested, John.’ But he’s not."

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Former TALKING HEADS star DAVID BYRNE is urging fans to vote for a new U.S.
president - even though he can’t.
The Scottish-born rocker isn’t eligible to vote in today’s (04Nov08) election because he’s classed as an immigrant, so he’s doing what he can to get fans to polling stations.
In an email to devotees, the Psycho Killer singer writes, "I am an immigrant with a Green Card and, therefore, I am not eligible to vote in a federal election. I can get drafted…I pay taxes, yet I cannot vote for President.”

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METALLICA star JAMES HETFIELD insists he’ll invite anyone who has ever played on one of the group’s albums to join them at the Rock & Hall of Fame induction ceremony if the rockers get the nod in 2009.
The frontman has already agreed to end his feud with former bandmate Jason Newsted if the eligible heavy rock act get inducted next year - because he doesn’t want the magical moment to become a farce, like it has in the past.
Hetfield admits he cringed when Blondie were inducted in 2006 and feuding bandmates bickered onstage.
He tells Rolling Stone magazine, "There’s no reason for it to be weird. We don’t want to be part of the soap opera of the Hall of Fame.
"Everybody wants to see a train wreck, like with Blondie onstage arguing over crap. That really cheapens the moment."

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AC/DC star ANGUS YOUNG’s famous schoolboy outfit still helps to turn the guitarist from a tired 53 year old to a rocking "imp", according to bandmate BRIAN JOHNSON.
The frontman admits he’s still impressed when his weary pal changes into his costume just before showtime - and comes back recharged and ready for action.
Johnson tells Rolling Stone magazine, "He can be totally knackered, in the middle of a long stretch of shows, sitting there with a cigarette and a cup of tea. Then it’s ‘20 minutes, boys.’ "He gets up, hardly a word, disappears around a corner and comes back in those clothes. He’s got a fag in his mouth, a jaunty look on his face, his guitar slung on him.
"He’s like Clark f**king Kent. He goes into a phone booth and comes out as the 14 year old imp, ready to rock."

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Gay pop star LANCE BASS has registered his vote against the proposed ban on same sex marriage in California.
Politicians have ordered a vote on Proposition 8, which would outlaw gay union in the state, just six months after same sex marriages were legalised for the first time.
Bass, who ‘came out’ as gay last year (07) in a magazine article, made sure he was among the first to vote against the proposition, cast in conjunction with the U.S. presidential election ballot.
He says, “It’s a very scary situation because it’s the first proposition in our history that puts discrimination into the constitution."

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Rap mogul SEAN ‘DIDDY’ COMBS put his birthday celebrations on hold on Tuesday morning (04Nov08) to vote for BARACK OBAMA.
Diddy has been campaigning for people to vote and he wanted to set a good example by visiting a polling station in New York - on his 39th birthday.
The rapper says, "This is the most important thing you can do, I would say, in this lifetime.
"I felt like my vote was the vote that put him (Obama) into office. It was down to one vote, and that was going to be my vote. And that may not be true, but that’s how much power it felt like I had.
"I’m not trying to be dramatic, but I just felt like Martin Luther King, and I felt the whole civil rights movement, I felt all that energy, and I felt my kids. It was all there at one time. It was a joyous moment.
"I felt like my vote was the vote that put him (Obama) into office. It was down to one vote, and that was going to be my vote. And that may not be true, but that’s how much power it felt like I had." Other early celebrity music voters included Fall Out Boy stars Patrick Stump and Pete Wentz, who hit polling stations in Los Angeles. Singer stump found himself voting alongside actress Selma Blair.
Speaking to his fans, Stump said, "It’s (vote) the only thing you have to do today."

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Troubled singer AMY WINEHOUSE is poised to make a triumphant comeback with her forthcoming album - her label boss has hailed her new material as "sensational".
Winehouse is signed to Island Records, a subsidiary of Universal Music Group, of which Lucian Grange is chairman.
And Grange is adamant the Rehab hitmaker will bounce back from her personal problems and release another hit album soon, because he’s already impressed with her demo tracks.
He says, "I’ve heard some demos and I’ve heard some simple acoustic songs that she’s played me in my office on acoustic guitar. What I’ve heard has been sensational "I’m an optimist and I believe in her. I believe in her as a person and I certainly believe in her as an artist and that’s what I hope for." Winehouse, who has battled drink and drug addiction in recent months, hasn’t released a studio LP since 2006’s Grammy winning Back To Black, which garnered huge critical acclaim, and has sold over 15 million copies to date worldwide.

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JESSICA SIMPSON’s hairdresser pal is healing well after he was injured during a paparazzi scrum at the weekend.
Celebrity stylist Ken Paves needed nine stitches in his head after he was cut trying to protect the singer from photographers as they left Los Angeles’ Madeo restaurant on Saturday (01Nov08).
Paves insists he is recovering but appeals to photographers to take more care, so the accident isn’t repeated.
He tells Usmagazine.com, "I appreciate everyone who has expressed concern after the incident which occurred outside of Madeo restaurant Saturday evening.
While I did not expect a dinner out with friends would end up with me in the emergency room and nine stitches in my head, I am fine.
"My only real concern on Saturday night, and it remains so in retrospect, was for the safety of my friend and all concerned.
"I understand everyone has a job to do, including paparazzi. If I were to say anything about Saturday night, it is only to encourage that everyone would respect and care for the safety of others above all else."

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KIRSTEN DUNST has launched an investigation of the U.S. voting system in a new documentary.
Dunst has teamed up with filmmaker Jacob Soboroff to direct and produce the film, exploring why American voter participation lags behind turnout in most other countries.
The two are currently at work in North Dakota - the only state without voter registration - where they will interview government officials as citizens take to the polls for Tuesday’s (04Nov08) presidential election.
Voters must instead bring a photo ID issued by the state, military or an American Indian tribe, a recent utility bill listing their address or sign a sworn statement attesting that they are eligible to vote in their precinct.
And the actress is convinced it’s up to her to shed light on the process.
She says, "The older you get, it makes you feel more and more responsible for the power you have, especially being in the entertainment industry… and how delicate and important it is to use that power to influence people in a positive way.
"Being a part of this is constantly teaching me new things. I feel totally honoured and was really proud to vote, and have never been so proud to vote in my entire life." Dunst also plans to narrate the documentary, but doesn’t know yet whether she will appear in it.

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Director GUY RITCHIE has hired the services of the U.K.’s leading international divorce lawyer to help keep his children with pop superstar MADONNA in Britain following their split.
The estranged couple is currently working to thrash out a divorce deal before the case goes before a judge, after confirming their marriage was over last month (Oct08).
And according to British reports, the filmmaker has recruited Stephen Cobb QC, a specialist in international divorce cases in which the residence of the children is in dispute, to fight his case.
Madonna is rumoured to be planning to return to her native New York with their eight-year-old son Rocco, adopted tot David Banda, three, and her 12-year-old daughter Lourdes, from a previous relationship.
But, under U.K. law, Madonna will not be able to take the kids to the U.S. to live with her permanently, unless Ritchie gives her his permission or a judge grants her leave to take the children abroad.
A source says, "Stephen Cobb is acting for Guy Ritchie. There are only a handful of barristers who specialise in leave-to-remove applications and he’s the best in that area."

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IVANA TRUMP has denied reports she is on the verge of a split from her husband of six months ROSSANO RUBICONDI.
The couple has been plagued by break-up rumours since their lavish wedding ceremony in April (08) after dating for six years.
The reports peaked last week (beg27Oct08) when Trump was reportedly seen getting close with 23-year-old model Marius Rusovici at two New York charity galas, while Rubicond was away in Italy taking part in reality show Celebrity Survivor.
A source tells the New York Daily News, "Ivana has tried to put a good face on things. She’s deeply embarrassed that the marriage is showing cracks so soon.
"She may be parading this boy toy to make Rossano jealous. But I think Rossano is already halfway out the door. They have a prenup, but he may try to get more. Magazines would pay handsomely for him to spill what’s been going on." Another source adds, "She’s been calling him (Rusovici) ‘my boyfriend.’" But a spokesperson for the socialite insists Trump was "just kidding" when she made the remarks.
The representative adds, "She does love to dance. She’s very upset with claims that she was kissing (Rusovici). She said, ‘My God, he’s younger than my youngest son! It’s crazy!’"

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Hollywood hard man KIEFER SUTHERLAND has confessed he is terrified of his mother, actress SHIRLEY DOUGLAS - despite battling bombs, terrorists and governments as his 24 alter ego JACK BAUER.
The 41-year-old star admits his fearless on screen adventures belie the real persona he has had since his youth.
He says, "When I was a child I was pretty much afraid of everything and still am to some extent. I remember being afraid of my mum being mad at me; I got hit by a wave in the ocean and got pushed under so I was scared of that for a minute.
"There is a certain irony to me playing Jack Bauer - a real tough guy."

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