Port strike for east and gulf coasts averted for 30 days, talks continue




















A looming longshoremen’s strike set for midnight Saturday, which threatened havoc at 15 ports along the eastern seaboard and Gulf Coast, has been averted for at least a month.

The two sides, the International Longshoreman’s Association and the U.S. Maritime Alliance, announced Friday morning they would continue to negotiate after a couple of days of tense mediation.

After eight months of talks the sides went their separate ways Dec. 18. But talks picked up again this week in response to pressure from port directors, retail federations, even the White House.





The longshoremen, a group of 14,650 workers, some who operate the giant gantry cranes at the nation’s ports, threatened to walk out on contract talks early Sunday morning if the U.S. Maritime Alliance didn’t back off its demand that the union stop receiving royalties, or bonuses, for each container leaving or loaded onto a ship. In many cases those bonuses allow longshoremen to double their salaries to more than $100,000 a year.

Port directors throughout the nation have expressed concern that a strike would virtually halt economic activity throughout the country. It would affect mostly non-perishable goods like clothing and televisions. PortMiami does close to $20 billion a year in container business.

The longshoremen’s contract actually expired at the end of September, but the sides agreed to continue talks for 90 days.





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Exclusive: Taio Cruz's Acoustic 'Fast Car' Performance

Watch an exclusive video of mega-platinum artist Taio Cruz performing his latest single, Fast Car, acoustically on the roof of Drai's in Hollywood – only on ETonline!

Related: Demi Lovato and Taio Cruz Reveal Top Nominated AMA Artists

Taio is well-known for posting a series of amazing acoustic performances online, starting with simple homemade videos of him doing covers of Adele and Rihanna. Now he's doing higher-quality versions, covering Bruno Mars and performing unique acoustic versions of his biggest hits, Break Your Heart and Dynamite (which is the biggest-selling song in the history of his label, Island Def Jam, and the original video has more than 121 million views!).

Watch, listen and enjoy!

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Viacom channels could go dark on Cablevision

More than three million Cablevision customers could wake up New Year’s Day without shows such as “SpongeBob Squarepants” and “The Daily Show.”

The Long Island cable operator is set to drop 17 channels, including MTV, Nickelodeon and Comedy Central, in a dispute with Viacom over programming fees. Their current contract expires on Jan. 1.

It marks the second time in the past year that Viacom has faced off against a major pay-TV distributor. Viacom-owned channels went dark for DirecTV’s 20 million customers for more than a week in July in a similar dispute over fees.




REUTERS



SpongeBob Squarepants might be a thing of the past for Cablevision customers come January 1st.



While Cablevision has just 3.5 million households, its influential coverage area includes New York, New Jersey and Connecticut, where many network and advertising execs reside.

Reps for Viacom and Cablevision weren’t able to immediately comment.

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Port strike for east and gulf coasts averted for 30 days, talks continue




















A looming longshoremen’s strike set for midnight Saturday, which threatened havoc at 15 ports along the eastern seaboard and Gulf Coast, has been averted for at least a month.

The two sides, the International Longshoreman’s Association and the U.S. Maritime Alliance, announced Friday morning they would continue to negotiate after a couple of days of tense mediation.

After eight months of talks the sides went their separate ways Dec. 18. But talks picked up again this week in response to pressure from port directors, retail federations, even the White House.





The longshoremen, a group of 14,650 workers, some who operate the giant gantry cranes at the nation’s ports, threatened to walk out on contract talks early Sunday morning if the U.S. Maritime Alliance didn’t back off its demand that the union stop receiving royalties, or bonuses, for each container leaving or loaded onto a ship. In many cases those bonuses allow longshoremen to double their salaries to more than $100,000 a year.

Port directors throughout the nation have expressed concern that a strike would virtually halt economic activity throughout the country. It would affect mostly non-perishable goods like clothing and televisions. PortMiami does close to $20 billion a year in container business.

The longshoremen’s contract actually expired at the end of September, but the sides agreed to continue talks for 90 days.





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Crime Watch: New computer for Christmas? Use it safely




















Last week I received several emails from readers who wanted me to write again about computer safety since many got a computer for Christmas. Therefore, I pulled some information from one of our crime prevention partners, The National Crime Prevention Council, and here are tips you need to take seriously whether you are a senior or a parent:

• Use anti-virus software and keep it up-to-date. The software is designed to protect your computer against known viruses but, with new viruses emerging daily, anti-virus programs need regular updates. Check with the website of your anti-virus software company to see sample descriptions of viruses and to get regular updates for your software. I do updates on my computer every other day.

• Don’t open emails or attachments from unknown sources. Be suspicious of any unexpected email attachments even if they appear to be from someone you know. Should you receive a suspicious email, the best thing to do is to delete the entire message, including any attachment.





• Protect your computer from Internet intruders by using firewalls. These create a protective wall between your computer and the outside world. They come in two forms, software firewalls that run on your personal computer and hardware firewalls that protect a number of computers at the same time. Firewalls also ensure that unauthorized persons can’t gain access to your computer while you’re connected to the Internet.

• Use hard-to-guess passwords. Mix upper case, lower case, numbers or other characters, and make sure your passwords are at least eight characters long. Don’t share your password and don’t use the same password in more than one place. Don’t use your maiden name or the names of your mother, your children or your spouse’s family. Those are easy to figure out.

• Disconnect your computer from the Internet when not in use. This lessens the chance that someone will be able to access your computer. Also, if you haven’t kept your anti-virus software up to date or don’t have a firewall in place, someone could infect your computer or use it to harm someone else on the Internet.

• Check your security on a regular basis. You should evaluate your computer security at least twice a year.

• Back up your computer data on a thumb drive, just in case we have a hurricane, you can take it with you. There is nothing worse than losing pictures, information and work when a computer crashes.

Last, I want to remind all parents, if you gave a computer to your child, no matter what age, please make sure that the computer is somewhere you can see it.

In closing, I want to wish everyone a blessed 2013, I wish you the best of health and happiness!

With that said, I must remind everyone that there are crazy people out there that like to shoot guns into the air, a deadly habit, therefore the first shot fired you hear please call the police immediately. You might think it’s fire crackers, but it may not be so please stay away from windows or outside at midnight. Remember what goes up must come down, and that is when people get hurt.

Have a great week!





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The Best of 2012 Red Carpet Fashion

From Angelina Jolie's glamorous Atelier Versace Golden Globes dress, to Sofia Vergara's gorgeous glittery teal Zuhair Murad gown (that ended up giving her one of the most memorable wardrobe malfunctions of all time) at the Emmys, the year was full of buzzworthy red carpet fashion moments.

Pics: 2012's Top 12 Amazing Gowns

Check out the video to see the best of the best, and to relive star-making moments such as Jennifer Lawrence in her gold cut-out Prabal Gurung gown at The Hunger Games premiere and Anne Hathaway's dramatic Tom Ford Les Miserables look that's sure to go down in the history books!

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Feds arrest NYC woman in fake Newtown charity scheme








This Nov. 13, 2012 photo provided by the family via The Washington Post shows Noah Pozner. The six-year-old was one of the victims in the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting in Newtown, Conn.

AP

This Nov. 13, 2012 photo provided by the family via The Washington Post shows Noah Pozner. The six-year-old was one of the victims in the Sandy Hook elementary school shooting in Newtown, Conn.



HARTFORD, Conn. — A New York City woman has been arrested by federal authorities who say she tried to scam donors by posing as a relative of one of the children killed at an elementary school in Newtown, Conn.

Thirty-seven-year-old Nouel Alba of the Bronx was arrested Thursday and charged with lying to FBI agents.

Federal prosecutors say Alba used her Facebook account, telephone calls and text messages to seek donations for what she called a "funeral fund" for 6-year-old Newtown victim Noah Pozner. Alba posed as Pozner's aunt and allegedly solicited donations in his memory, according to NBC.




"I never sent any message on Facebook," Alba told NBC before claiming that she refunded all the donation money she recieved.

When contacted by FBI agents investigating charity schemes related to the shooting at Sandy Hook Elemenatry School, Alba denied seeking donations.

Alba appeared Thursday in federal court in Hartford and was released on $50,000 bond. If she is convicted of lying to federal agents she faces a maximum term of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000.

Pozner scam charity complaint

Information from the Associated Press contributed to this report










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Sales contracts for houses and condos in Miami-Dade rose in November




















Homebuyers continued to sign contracts to buy homes and condominiums in Miami-Dade county at a brisk pace in November.

Pending sales for an existing single-family home or condominium spiked 52 percent in Miami-Dade in November to 3,374 units from 2,226 a year earlier, according to the Miami Association of Realtors.

The volume of pending sales – reflecting a sales contract signed on a transaction that hasn’t closed – fell 19.1 percent in November from October, the Realtors’ group said.





Pending sales for single-family homes rose 73.8 percent in November from a year earlier, while that for condos increased 37.4 percent year over year, Miami Realtors said.

The group said Miami-Dade is on track to hit a new sales record existing homes and condos for 2012.

With exceptionally tight inventory of residential property on the market and rising demand, properties are selling at closer to their asking prices. Single-family homes sold in November got 93.7 percent of the original listing price on average, while condominiums fetched 96.2 percent, Miami Realtors said.





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Outdoorsy fun for the New Year’s holiday




















So, as Miss Ella once sang, What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?

Many of you, of course, will ring in 2013 with champagne and dancing at one of the clubs in Miami Beach or downtown Miami — and many of these same people will wake up with a hangover Tuesday only to wonder why they spent $2,000 to be in the same space as R&B/hip-hop act Drake and a DJ at the Fontainebleau or depressed that they spent $1,500 for a VIP table at the Catalina’s Studio 54 party to hear ’70s disco when they could have played Donna, Gloria and the Village People at any old time on iTunes for a few houseguests.

Clubbing not your thing? Good thing you live in South Florida, where going outside generally makes sense at this time of year. Here are some suggestions for activities, with an accent on the great outdoors and even a little fitness thrown in for good measure.





King Mango Strut

The annual spoof of the Orange Bowl Parade — or whatever some politician wants to call it now, as in ‘La Gran Naranja’ — has been “putting the ‘nut’ back in ‘Coconut Grove’ since 1981,” its ads tout. This time around, being an election year should provide plenty of fodder, and not just the silliness going on in West Kendall and Brickell, where some people are still waiting to cast a vote in the presidential race. (Obama won, go home.) The snarky parade pokes good-natured fun at the people and things behind the events that made the news snap during the year. This year’s grand marshal will be Clint Eastwood’s chair, fresh from the Republican National Convention.

This year’s parade takes place at 2 p.m. Sunday in downtown Coconut Grove on the corner of Commodore Plaza and Main Highway. The wacky participants turn left onto Main Highway and then left onto Grand Avenue at CocoWalk. Get comfy along the street and prepare to giggle. Call the Mango Hotline at 305-582-0955 for information.

The orange rises

You can go traditional and watch the ball rise in downtown Miami at the Bayfront Park Amphitheater New Year’s shindig, La Gran Naranja. The free event features music and the midnight countdown for the climb of the Big Orange along the side of the Hotel InterContinental, followed by fireworks. Be there at 301 N. Biscayne Blvd. Call 305-358-7550.

Just want the fireworks part? Miami Beach’s New Year’s Eve Party offers a free fireworks celebration at midnight on the beach near Ocean Drive and Eighth Street, if you can tear yourself away from Carl Cox at Mansion and Calvin Harris at Liv. Call 305-673-7400.

Bike It

Shark Valley, on the Tamiami Trail about 35 miles into the Everglades, is a real South Florida experience. Cycle amid gators — and we’re not talking the University of Florida variety. Alligators, wading birds and turtles frolic freely in the greenery along the 15-mile round-trip bike path. A multilevel observation at the midpoint offers a nice break spot for a boxed lunch or photo ops. There are no shortcuts, but you can opt for a tram tour. Call 305-221-8776.

Other leisurely bike rides around town include the shaded 13 or so miles of the Old Cutler Trail in South Miami, and you can pop over to Pinecrest Gardens for the Sunday Green Market, one of South Florida’s best farmers markets. North Dade residents aren’t too far from the restored Hollywood Beach Broadwalk for some nice ocean views while cycling or strolling.





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From Exorcist to The French Connection, William Friedkin's Finest Secrets Revealed

William Friedkin earned a Best Director Oscar for his riveting 1971 film The French Connection and earned another nomination for changing the face of horror with The Exorcist. Now, with his latest controversial film Killer Joe out on Blu-ray, the legendary director revisits some of his greatest films for ETonline and reveals the secrets behind them; discusses his thoughts on Hollywood's remake fever; and gets candid about what frightens the man who helmed one of the scariest films ever made.

Related: The Uncomfortable Sexuality of 'Killer Joe'

On the Possibility of an 'Exorcist' Sequel/Prequel, and the Real-Life Case that Inspired the Film:

"[I've been asked often], and I won't. … I've said everything that could be said about demonic possession and exorcism. I have not even seen any of the sequels, not even [William Peter] Blatty's [Exorcist III]. I would not do a prequel or a sequel, absolutely not, under no circumstances and for no amount of money. But if I could find something new to say about demonic possession, I would do a film about that. I believe, for example, the only thing that explains this kid in Connecticut is demonic possession. … "You can go and look for every goddamn reason on Earth – [James] Holmes, the kid in Colorado [that opened fire during The Dark Knight Rises screening], all of these people, Charles Whitman [the 1966 University of Texas tower sniper] – it's the devil, man. Whatever that means to you. There is a force of evil in the world."

"I know that the actual case that Blatty based his novel on was real. The 1949 case in Silver Spring, MD, where the exorcism was done at Alexian Brothers Hospital in St. Louis, all of those events happened. I read the diaries of the doctors and nurses who were involved, and the patients who were in other rooms when this was going on, and the priests. I know that something happened there that was beyond the understanding of psychiatry or internal medicine, so I made that film accordingly. … It was a boy, not a 13-year-old girl [like in the movie]. I know a great deal about this 14-year-old boy -- I know his name, I know where he is now. I've never revealed it. The church keeps very close tabs on him to this day, and as far as any of us know, he has no recollection of what happened to him when he was 14. … I spoke to the relatives of the boy, especially to his aunt, and they gave me some details that weren't in Blatty's novel, which I put in the film."

On What Scares Him:

"Once I did a documentary about El Cordobes, the Bullfighter … I asked him that question. I asked him if he was afraid of death, because when you go in the bull ring you're constantly facing death, and he said, 'No, I'm not afraid of death. Only life scares me.' One of the things that scares me is losing my own self-control. Most of the things that frighten me are sort of self-generated, or the sort of thing that happened in Connecticut to happen to one of my loved ones. Not the unexplained, but the unexpected."
"There are a handful of movies that still scare me. The shower scene and a couple of the other scenes in Psycho, the first Alien I thought was terrifying, Diabolique, a Japanese film called Yojimbo, Rosemary's Baby I thought was frightening because it made it so real and possible. These I find really are terrifying examples in cinema."

On the Flaws of the MPAA Ratings System:

"I do not target Killer Joe and other film's I've made to young people, young teenagers, even. They shouldn't come and see it. But that's up to the parents. I mean, J.J. Abrams told me that his father took him to see The Exorcist when he was eight. And I asked it if it ruined his life and he said, 'Well, obviously not.' So some people are ready and some aren't, but what the Ratings Board has failed to do, which I think should be their primary mission, is to separate adult content from out-and-out filth. … The NC-17 is definitely a Scarlet Letter, there's no question about it. It's limiting. Most of the theater chains in the country won't play an NC-17 film."

Related: 'Exorcist' Director: School Shooter is 'The Devil'

On Stealing Shots in 'The French Connection' – including that Classic Car Chase:

"On The French Connection, I never had any permits to shoot anywhere. We just went out and did it, including the chase over 26 blocks in Brooklyn. We had no permits to do any of that stuff. We never would have gotten permits then. It was simply pointless to try and get permission to do what we did. We got permission to shoot on the elevated train. We did get permission to do that, but if we hadn't, I was prepared to steal that."

"We were able to steal everything, including the traffic jam I created on the Brooklyn Bridge. But I had all these off-duty cops with me, including the two cops who made the French Connection case, Eddie Egan and Sonny Gross. And they were around with a lot of their friends, and I used them in scenes, all these off-duty cops, and they were around with their badges in case there were unsuspecting cops – and there were -- who tried to flag us down or stop us."

Filming 'To Live and Die in L.A.' was By the Book:

"[Unlike The French Connection], when I did To Live and Die in L.A., I got permission for everything, including shutting down the Vincent Thomas Bridge for a few hours on weekends only, from like six in the morning to 10 or 11. So that shot over several days because we had to avoid rush hours."

If 'Sorcerer' Could Be Made Again the Same Way:

"It would be done all CGI [today]. I had a great production designer named John Box who worked for [director] David Lean. … We came up together with a way of engineering that bridge so that it was safe, that it looked lethal, but was actually very safely constructed so there were no accidents -- knock wood. But any time you attempt something like that there's always the unexpected."

"I was obsessed with [the movie] and driven to make it. I didn't do it as a remake of Wages of Fear, I did it as a new version. Like, there's a wonderful production on Broadway now of Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf starring [Killer Joe writer] Tracy Letts. It's a big smash hit, and not because it's a remake -- it's another version. Any time someone does a production of Hamlet it's not a remake, it's a new interpretation with different actors. … So I thought that Wages of Fear could be reinterpreted for a modern audience, because it dealt with certain truths. These characters were four strangers marooned in a desperate situation, hiding out from retribution, who had to either cooperate or die -- and that seems to be the world's condition today. … If we don't all cooperate, like if the countries in the Middle East don't make peace with Israel, they'll all be destroyed. It's mutually assured destruction. And that's what Sorcerer and Wages of Fear are about."

Video: Matthew McConaughey Talks 'Killer' Role

What He Thinks about Remakes Today and His Own Films Being Remade:

"Well, a lot of my films have been ripped off without even accreditation. One of the Lethal Weapon films just took the chase from To Live and Die in L.A. and recreated it with some of the same people. You know, I don't have any problem with that, especially if it's well done, because I know that films beget other films. I started out learning from other films. I never went to film school. I certainly borrowed ideas from them. I mean, I didn't steal from them, but I was influenced by them, or they pushed certain buttons. I never made a film like any of the films that inspired me. … On the other hand, I think that there is a paucity of ideas today, and so [Hollywood goes] back to what worked before, and generally they're right -- it works again, because audiences love what's familiar. They're much less tolerant of something new. They'll give a lot more space to something that's familiar [compared] to something that challenges their expectations. … It is what it is, and there's no reason to question that or to fight that. Audiences get the films they want, and they go to them in vast, vast numbers, and in the old competition between fantasy and reality, fantasy wins hands down, because people do want to be entertained and not challenged."

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Russian parliament endorses anti-US adoption bill








MOSCOW — Defying a storm of domestic and international criticism, Russia moved toward finalizing a ban on Americans adopting Russian children, as Parliament's upper house voted unanimously Wednesday in favor of a measure that President Vladimir Putin has indicated he will sign into law.

The bill is widely seen as the Kremlin's retaliation against an American law that calls for sanctions against Russians deemed to be human rights violators. It comes as Putin takes an increasingly confrontational attitude toward the West, brushing aside concerns about a crackdown on dissent and democratic freedoms.




Dozens of Russian children close to being adopted by American families now will almost certainly be blocked from leaving the country. The law also cuts off the main international adoption route for Russian children stuck in often dismal orphanages: Tens of thousands of Russian youngsters have been adopted in the U.S. in the past 20 years. There are about 740,000 children without parental care in Russia, according to UNICEF.

All 143 members of the Federation Council present voted to support the bill, which has sparked criticism from both the U.S. and Russian officials, activists and artists, who say it victimizes children by depriving them of the chance to escape the squalor of orphanage life. The vote comes days after Parliament's lower house overwhelmingly approved the ban.

The U.S. State Department said Wednesday it regretted the Russian parliament's decision.

"Since 1992, American families have welcomed more than 60,000 Russian children into their homes, providing them with an opportunity to grow up in a family environment," spokesman Patrick Ventrell said in a statement from Washington. "The bill passed by Russia's parliament would prevent many children from enjoying this opportunity ...

"It is misguided to link the fate of children to unrelated political considerations," he said.

Seven people with posters protesting the bill were detained outside the Council before Wednesday's vote. "Children get frozen in the Cold War," one poster read. Some 60 people rallied in St. Petersburg, Russia's second largest city.

The bill is part of larger legislation by Putin-allied lawmakers retaliating against a recently signed U.S. law that calls for sanctions against Russians deemed to be human rights violators. Although Putin has not explicitly committed to signing the bill, he strongly defended it in a press conference last week as "a sufficient response" to the new U.S. law.

Originally Russia's lawmakers cobbled together a more or less a tit-for-tat response to the U.S. law, providing for travel sanctions and the seizure of financial assets in Russia of Americans determined to have violated the rights of Russians.










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90-year-old real estate baron, philanthropist Jay Kislak is forever young




















Real estate baron Jay I. Kislak discovered a Fountain of Youth of sorts that springs from an inquisitive and acquisitive mind.

At 90, Kislak is wheeling and dealing in real estate, and he’s exploring history and art with the fervor of a man generations younger.

The patriarch of The Kislak Organization marked 74 years in real estate this year, 59 spent in Miami.





While he has long since appointed a protégé, Thomas Bartelmo, as president and CEO of the diverse family-owned real-estate businesses, Kislak remains chairman. And he is a regular at the headquarters in Miami Lakes.

That is, when he’s not off to Maine for the summer.

Or busy chairing a blue-ribbon commission named by the U.S. Interior Secretary to orchestrate the 450th anniversary in 2015 of the founding of St. Augustine.

Or jetting off to evaluate a possible acquisition. (Kislak recently looked at the potential for real estate development in North Dakota, booming with shale oil, but decided to pass.)

Kislak’s empire has gone through dramatic changes over the years. He built — and eventually sold — commercial banking, mortgage servicing and insurance firms.

Today, with annual revenue in excess of $28 million, his organization focuses on the commercial brokerage business started by his father, Julius Kislak, in Hoboken, N.J., more than a century ago; on owning a portfolio of apartments and other property (Kislak is on the prowl for more), and on managing funds of property-tax certificates, a niche created by the economic downturn.

Looking out his office window at a bustling interchange recently, Kislak mused: “I remember when they built the Palmetto Expressway and you could drive down it and never see another car.”

“The same thing with I-95: There was hardly any traffic,” said Kislak, a slender man with a signature mustache and a thick Hoboken accent that never faded.

Kislak moved to Miami in 1953 to grow the mortgage business, but his world view hardly dates to 1950s Florida. Already a book lover, he began pulling on a thread of Florida history, soon broadening his interest to the early Americas.

Over the decades, Kislak, bankrolled by a stream of brokerage commissions, mortgage fees and apartment rent, grew into a prominent collector of rare books and maps, manuscripts, artifacts and art to feed his fascination with the pre-Columbian era and the European exploration of America.

His wife Jean Kislak shares his passion for collecting. They met at a party for Andy Warhol; it would be her second marriage, his third. Their quest for art, history and collecting has taken them to all continents, even Antarctica.

“We don’t quit [collecting]. But we are going to quit,” said Jean, a former corporate art director. “Acquisition has always been a part of my life. I don’t know if it’s a sickness.”

In 2004, Kislak gave away much of the treasure. His foundation donated more than 3,000 rare maps, manuscripts, paintings and artifacts to the Library of Congress. The gift, estimated to be worth in excess of $150 million, is housed in the ornate Thomas Jefferson building in an exhibit that bears his name. Kislak also funds fellowships for studies of the collection, part of his diverse efforts over the years to support education. Among other things, his family foundation endowed the Kislak Real Estate Institute at Monmouth University, in West Long Branch, N.J., and has provided key support to a real estate program at Florida State University.





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Causeway victim Ronald Poppo finds peace but not healing




















When Ronald Poppo was a kid in the 1950s and ’60s, a family Christmas in Brooklyn meant wind-up model trains circling the tree, Italian dinners of lasagna and stuffed squid, and, because Dec. 25 was also his father’s birthday, ricotta-filled cassata cake.

There was always music, because the Poppos have musical talent. Ronnie, as his older sister and two older brothers called him, played the violin as a child and guitar as a teenager.

And there was church, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, as their mother was a devout Baptist.





An aunt brought Christmas presents, recalled Ronald’s sister, Antoinette Poppo, who still lives in New York.

“We were poor, but we didn’t know we were poor,’’ she said.

It’s hard to say when Ronald Poppo last enjoyed childhood Christmas memories, had a merry — or even comfortable — Christmas. After vanishing from the family in the early 1970s, he encamped on the gritty streets of Miami, an inebriated vagrant drifting ever further from the mainstream.

His last known home was the concrete stairwell of a tourist-attraction parking garage.

He surfaced again May 26 as the hapless victim in one of South Florida’s most sensational, blood-drenched crimes. That day, a naked, crazed, 31-year-old Rudy Eugene attacked 65-year-old Poppo on the MacArthur Causeway, stripping away his clothes then gnawing on Poppo’s face, leaving him mutilated and blind.

Police shot and killed Eugene about 18 minutes into the assault.

Through news of the event, Poppo’s stunned siblings learned he’d been alive all along, and people from his past began to emerge with snippets of information about his life before he disappeared onto the streets.

Following intensive medical treatment at Jackson Memorial Hospital, Poppo moved to Jackson Memorial Perdue Medical Center, an 11-acre, 163-bed nursing home/rehab facility in South Miami-Dade, its halls now cheerily decked with holiday decorations.

He has refused all interview requests since the incident, and apart from allowing doctors to hold a news conference in June, he hasn’t authorized his treating physicians to talk about his medical condition.

Jackson officials closely guard his privacy.

Photos displayed at the June news conference showed Poppo’s face as a mass of clots and raw tissue, his eye sockets hidden under flaps of skin, his nose gone, his cheeks and forehead partially so. Doctors had to remove one mangled eyeball but at the time hoped to save the other, and at least some sight.

They weren’t able to.

His sister says that when they talk, brother Ronnie doesn’t mention the attack, the past, or how he spends his time. But he did recently say that he likes his accommodations and the people who care for him.

“He says they take him outside and walk him around the place,’’ Antoinette Poppo said. “He’s glad to be there. ... He doesn’t really talk much at all. He says, ‘Take care of yourself.’ It’s so sad he can’t see, and has to depend on other people.’’

He told her that “his face hasn’t healed yet,’’ but that he doesn’t want more surgery because “it’s going to hurt.’’

If so inclined, Poppo could have participated in all sorts of Christmas festivities at Perdue, where well-wishers from The Cocoplum and Cutler Ridge Women’s Clubs, the Soroptimist Club of Coral Gables, the Grupo de Kendall, Bethel Baptist Church, and the Teddy Bear Club brought gifts for residents including shampoo, batteries, home-made goodies — and teddy bears.





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10 Talented Dogs Playing the Piano









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Lady Gaga Documentary Announced

The nearly 33 million Little Monsters who follow Lady Gaga on Twitter got a massive Christmas present this morning as the singer revealed she'll soon be coming to a theater near you!


VIDEO - Lady Gaga Hosts Fame Picnic in Paris

"Merry Christmas little monsters," Gaga wrote. "Terry Richardson is making a #LadyGagaMOVIE documenting my life, the creation of ARTPOP + you!"

"Thank you for being so patient waiting for my new album ARTPOP I hope this gets u excited for things to come. I love you with all my heart!" Gaga announced her fourth album on August 6, 2012 and featured several of the songs in contention for inclusion on her recent Born This Wall Ball. Although no release date is yet known, it's rumored to be due out in Spring 2013.


VIDEO - The Secret Lady Gaga Never Told Beyonce

Gaga has previously collaborated with Richardson on countless magazine covers and 2011's Lady Gaga x Terry Richardson photobook.

Lady Gaga won't be the only major musician to be featured in a documentary next year. It was revealed on November 26 that HBO would be airing a Beyonce documentary on February 16, 2013.


VIDEO - Get A Sneak Peek at Beyonce's Documentary

The film promises extensive first-person footage -- some of it shot by Beyonce on her laptop -- in which she reflects on the realities of being a celebrity, the refuge she finds onstage and the joys of becoming a mother after giving birth to her daughter, Blue Ivy Carter, in January 2012. Watch a sneak peek below.

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Upstate NY madman left chilling suicide note before luring firefighters to death; cops say another body found








William H. Spengler Jr.A house burns after Spengler set fire to it.

William H. Spengler Jr.



A homicidal maniac -- bent to “do what I like doing best: killing people" -- left a chilling suicide note before torching his neighborhood and murdering two firefighters, police revealed this morning.

Cops also today said they’ve found a third victim of ex-con William Spengler Jr.’s murderous rampage, discovering a body, probably of his 67-year-old sister Cheryl, in the charred rubble of their home.

The Spengler siblings hated each other and lived on opposite ends of the house, neighbors said, and when she couldn’t be found yesterday, police feared the worst.




"We did locate apparent human remains in the ruins of the house at 191 Lake Road. The medical examiner has removed those remains,” Webster Police Chief Gerald Pickering said this afternoon.

UPSTATE MADMAN SETS BLAZE TO LURE FIREFIGHTERS TO DEATH

"The medical examiner will be working on the identification and I'm assuming that's going to take quite a period of time. The assumption is that is the shooter's sister."

Earlier today, cops disclosed that William Spengler -- a loser mama’s boy who once spent 17 years in prison for beating his grandmother to death -- penned a murderous three-page missive, telling the world why he turned a quiet lakeside neighborhood into hell on earth.

“I still have to see how much of the neighborhood I can burn down and do what I like doing best: killing people,” Spengler wrote his suicide note, made public by police.

William H. Spengler Jr.A house burns after Spengler set fire to it.

REUTERS

A house burns after Spengler set fire to it.



Spengler, 62, set his home -- in the tight-knit, upstate town of Webster, just outside Rochester -- ablaze early yesterday morning to lure volunteer firefighters to the scene. The gutless killer then methodically shot four of those fireman, two fatally, before blowing his brains out.

"There was no motive in the note...there were some ramblings in there,” Pickering said. “There was intelligence information that we obtained that our investigators need to follow up on. It spoke mainly that he intended to burn his neighborhood down and kill as many people as possible."

Four whiskey bottles, filled with gasoline, were found unspent against his house, law enforcement sources told WHEC-TV.

Spengler ignited his deadly blaze with a flare gun that was recovered at the scene, the local NBC affiliate reported.

The sadistic killer was found with a Smith & Wesson .38 caliber revolver, Mossman 12-gauge shotgun and a Bushman semi-automatic AR-15 rifle with 30-shot magazine, police said. Crazed gunman Adam Lanza used the same make of Bushman rifle in the tragic Newtown, CT shooting earlier this month.

As a convicted felon, Spengler had no legal right to possess guns so cops want to trace those weapons.

Police are exploring connections Spengler and his late mom, Arline, had to the West Webster Fire Department, officials said.

Spengler first torched his family’s home on Lake Road, where Irondequoit Bay meets Lake Ontario, at around 5:45 a.m. — then lay in wait for his unsuspecting prey.

Crouched like a sniper and armed with a rifle and a handgun, Spengler targeted responding firefighters from behind an earthen berm that gave him a clear shot, said Pickering.

“He took a position of cover to be a sniper to shoot the first responders . . . It does appear it was a trap that was set,’’ a grim-faced Pickering said.

It’s unclear why Spengler targeted the men, although he was having personal problems.

He lived with a sister he hated, neighbors said, in the same house where he had fatally bludgeoned his 92-year-old grandmother with a hammer in 1980.

Spengler’s beloved mother, Arline died in October. In her obituary, donations were directed to the “West Webster Firemen’s Association (Ambulance Fund).’’ It wasn’t immediately clear why.

"As far as motive, all kinds of speculation, and truthfully, we do not know. They're trying to draw a nexus, I know, between the donations of the mother to the fire department. There could be a nexus to 33 years ago when Webster police arrested him for murdering his grandmother,” Pickering said.

“We are aware of it and trying to figure out the connection,” said a source with the sheriff’s office.

One of Spengler’s victims yesterday, 43-year-old Michael Chiapperini, was a volunteer with the West Webster Fire District and a lieutenant in the town’s police department, where he also served as a media liaison.

The selfless Chiapperini, who spent 20 years as cop, had spent time in Suffolk County last month, volunteering for Hurricane Sandy cleanup duty, officials said.

He had just been named a local “Firefighter of the Year.”

He is survived by his wife, two daughters and a son who also worked with the volunteer fire department.

The other man killed was volunteer Tomasz Kaczowka, a 19-year-old 911 dispatcher and a community-college student with dreams of becoming a full-time firefighter.

“These people get up in the middle of the night to fight fires,” said Pickering, choking back tears. “They don’t expect to be shot and killed.”

Two more volunteer firefighters, Joseph Hofstetter and Theodore Scardino, were wounded by bullets. A cop suffered injuries from shrapnel. All three were expected to survive.

Hofstetter, who also works full time for the Rochester Fire Department, was hit in the pelvis and the bullet lodged in his spine. Scardino was hit in the chest and knee.

The firefighters had to fall back after shots were first fired, allowing flames from Spengler’s home to spread to neighboring houses.

Spengler then traded shots with officers who arrived with an armored truck they used to remove the injured, as well as people living nearby.

He was chased on foot from his perch, then killed himself before he could be subdued, cops said.

Four houses burned to the ground and four more were damaged by the time the blaze was brought under control.

Dozens of people had to be evacuated from the smoldering area on Christmas Eve.

During the gunfight, emergency radio communications captured someone frantically saying he “could see the muzzle flash coming at [him],” as Spengler fired.

The audio, posted on the Web site RadioReference.com, also had someone reporting, “Firefighters are down!” and saying, “Got to be rifle or shotgun — high-powered . . . semi or fully auto.”

It would have been illegal for Spengler, as a convicted felon, to possess any firearm at all.

Sheriff Patrick O’Flynn said he couldn’t help thinking about the school massacre in Newtown, Conn., and other mass shootings in recent years.

“It’s sad to see this is becoming more commonplace . . . across the nation,” O’Flynn said.

At West Webster Fire Station 1, there were 20 bouquets on a bench in front. Another bouquet had roses with three gold-and-white ribbons saying, “May they rest in peace,” “In the line of duty,” and, “In memory of our fallen brothers.”

Gov. Cuomo asked New Yorkers to pray for the firefighters’ families, victimized by this “senseless act of violence.”

Last December, a 15-year-old boy doused his home in Webster with gasoline and set it ablaze, killing his father and two brothers, ages 12 and 16.










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Miami: We’re still busiest cruise port




















Florida’s ports are steaming bow-to-bow in the race to be the world’s businest cruise ship port.

Though some publications have reported Port Canaveral in the lead with 3,761,056 million for its fiscal year ending Sept. 30, PortMiami officials Monday said they had hosted 3,774,452 passengers during the same period, putting it slightly ahead. Fort Lauderdale’s PortEverglades reported 3,689,000 passengers for the period, putting it slightly behind the others in third place.

“We’re all very close,’’ said Paula Musto, PortMiami spokeswoman.





PortMiami has slipped below its previous high of 4 million plus passengers because of changing ship deployments, she said. That number is expected to again cruise past 4 million in 2013 as several new ships homeport in Miami.

Jane Wooldridge





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South Florida Christians immerse themselves in the spirit




















In the days leading up to Christmas, Brenda Lans, a Miami law-firm administrative assistant, sang religious carols with other Lutherans to harried travelers at Miami International Airport.

Jorge Rollo, an office manager, oversaw the sprawling Gift of Bethlehem tableau on the grounds of St. John Neumann Catholic Church in southwest Miami-Dade.

Teenage siblings Coraliz and Dennis Morales shivered in the chilly darkness outside Faith Presbyterian Church in Pembroke Pines as characters in a Living Nativity.





Count them all among the Christians who believe that taking religion public during the late-December shopping frenzy helps make “Keep Christ in Christmas’’ and “Jesus is the Reason for the Season’’ more than bumper-sticker slogans.

Whether in small groups — the Rev. David Imhoff of Grace Lutheran Church in Miami Springs called his 13 carolers a “flash mob for Jesus’’ — or casts of hundreds like the Gift of Bethlehem, the activities become missions for the faithful.

“On a spiritual level, it was so rewarding,’’ said Lans, 55, who isn’t in a church choir and described her singing contribution as “backup noise’’ to those with good voices. “It’s good to get back to the old traditions of caroling which give you the true meaning of Christmas...I felt uplifted doing that.’’

Another caroler, Elizabeth Maldonado, said that singing “Away in the Manger,” “Hark! The Herald Angels Sing,” and “Silent Night” for TSA agents, travelers and rental-car agents fulfills an obligation to evangelize, but in a way that doesn’t put people off.

“That’s the greatest commission, to go spread the Gospel,’’ said Maldonado, 53, who sang with her husband, George Sr., 52, and son George Jr., 13.

“Jesus commanded us to do that...Christmas is about the birth of our Savior, but some forget and some have not been told,’’ she said. “The only way to reach them is through love, not to criticize. You can’t push God into their lives, but you can show Him by your actions.’’

Coraliz, an 18-year-old Flanagan High School student, said she was freezing on Friday night when she spent two hours as a shepherd in the Living Nativity scene, as traffic whizzed by on Taft Street, but she didn’t mind.

“Advent is really special,’’ she said. “It’s a time when you honor Christ and thank Him for everything he has done for you, and you have to remember that this day of Christmas is the day that He brought His son to save us. As a Christian, that’s the biggest day of the year. I think it’s really easy to forget what we’re celebrating, and it reminds people what the point is.’’

“We get so wrapped up in Santa and shopping and parties, which are all wonderful, but in reality, this is the birth of the man who gave way to our salvation, and that’s to be celebrated,’’ said Rollo. He called the Gift of Bethlehem, which recreated life in the town where Jesus was born — right down to the lepers, horses, and open-fire bread bakers — “a celebration of our faith and spirituality, and that 2,000 years ago, Mary and Joseph put their faith in God and had this baby.’’





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Fifth-gen iPad reportedly due in March along with Retina iPad mini







Rumors that a second-generation iPad mini with a Retina display is set to launch ahead of Apple’s typical annual schedule next year have been swirling, and now it appears Apple’s (AAPL) full-size iPad may be sticking to its new semiannual release schedule. According to a report from Japanese blog Makotakra that cites an anonymous “inside source,” Apple plans to launch a new thinner, lighter 9.7-inch iPad as soon as March 2013. The fourth iPad model was just released last month alongside the iPad mini, but March was also suggested in recent Retina iPad mini rumors. Makotakra states that the new iPad will adopt styling queues from the current iPad mini model, unifying the look of Apple’s larger tablet with the iPad mini and iPhone 5.


[More from BGR: First photos of BlackBerry 10 ‘N-Series’ QWERTY smartphone leak]






This article was originally published by BGR


Gadgets News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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ET Exclusive: Jamie Foxx Opens His Home & Heart

Jamie Foxx may be the most eligible bachelor in Hollywood, and our own Nancy O'Dell is exclusively with the Oscar winner at his Santa Monica, CA home to talk about his career, his family and how he handles the media when there's a woman in his life.

The star of the upcoming Django Unchained says the worst thing that can happen in a relationship is to go public with it: "I like to stay quiet with anyone that dating; that I'm really, really dating, "he says. "If there's somebody that you're dating, the worst thing that you can do is let that [camera] touch you. Because once the camera touches you, [it's out]."

Video: Jamie & Kerry Party 'Django' Style

Watch the video to get a tour of Jamie's amazing home that he shares with his whole family, set on 40 acres with a stunning pool, a recording studio and an avocado grove!

One thing you won't find at Jamie's home, however, is his Best Actor Oscar statuette that he won for his performance in Ray.

Pics: Jamie & Leo Smolder in 'Django'

"I never wanted to keep it at the house -- I never wanted to get stuck," says Jamie, whose pal and former manager Jamie King holds onto the statuette for him. "It changes you. … I just wanted to go back to being funny."

Watch the video for more of Jamie's interview, including his reaction to the current Oscar buzz for Django Unchained!

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2 B'klyn women, dog escape raging Christmas Eve fire








Wayne Carrington


Firefighters rescued two women and a Shih-Tzu this morning.



Two Brooklyn women and their dog narrowly escaped from a raging Christmas Eve fire, authorities said today.

The fire began at about 6:50 a.m. and quickly engulfed the Prospect Lefferts Garden building. Firefighters rescued the women by extending a ladder to lead them to safety.

The two women were treated for smoke inhalation at Kings County Hospital.

Emergency workers fitted an oxygen mask to the face of the women’s tiny dog to save it outside the Rogers Avenue blaze.



Two other dogs belonging to the women likely died in the fire.

Wayne Carrington


One of the rescued women with the lucky pooch.












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Lawyer takes child-support practice on the road




















Her clients know her as “the child support lady with the cool truck.”

Chantale Suttle thinks that’s a pretty good description of her and her months-old business, DADvocacy.

For almost 20 years, she’s dealt with child support issues. In law school at the University of Miami, she interned in the child support office, and she went on to handle child support issues as a prosecutor, defense attorney and magistrate judge.





These days, she helps dads navigate the child support system from her mobile office: a bulletproof truck, wrapped with a photo of a man’s muscular, crossed arms, complete with a soundproof consultation room, sports magazines, sodas — and free diapers.

“We do not want to be fancy, golf-playing, mahogany-office kind of lawyers. I’m just a lady you come talk to about child support,” said 42-year old Suttle.

And for teen dads, she does it for free.

“I feel that’s when I can help them the most, and I feel that’s where being part of the child support system can be the most damaging to his future because of the credit bureau reporting,” Suttle said.

Older dads can get help for a flat fee.

Suttle drives the converted 22-passenger van herself. When it’s not parked outside of the child support courthouse at in Downtown Miami, Suttle motors throughout the county to speak at community events.

On a recent evening, the DADvocacy van was parked outside of the Girl Power community center, on Seventh Avenue just off I-95 in Miami. There, Fatherz in the Hood — an organization that provides training and resources for dads — organized an information session for parents frustrated with the child support system.

Suttle stood in front of a semi-circle of seated dads, both young and old, and schooled them about the child support system so that they, hopefully, would not have to see her for services.

Florida’s child support court is different from family court, where parents sort out divorce and domestic violence issues, she explained. Child support court deals only with issues related to collecting child support, which goes often goes directly to the state for social programs — not the mother.

Child support is based on “time-sharing” between parents, and fathers who spend more time with their kids may pay less child support.

“This system is supposed to reward good dads who spend time with their kids,” she told the Fatherz in the Hood group. “On this, we are light-years away from any other state.”

The dads at Fatherz in the Hood chuckled when, using an online calculator, Suttle showed them a huge drop in the amount of child support a dad would have to pay just by spending more overnight time with his kids. In one scenario, the mother actually ended up owing the father child support.

“Any of you know moms paying child support?” an amazed participant asked.

The dads shook their heads, “No.”

Another eye-opening bit of information that Suttle shares with all of her clients — whether they hire her or not — is how to use the Miami-Dade Clerk of Courts online filing system to check on their own cases’ status and any upcoming hearings. Her truck has a hotspot with internet access to check this information on the road, and she also checks to make sure she doesn’t have a conflict in the case — such as having ruled on any issues involving the mother while she served in her other legal roles.





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Broward warns boaters of high number of manatees in waterways




















During the current cold snap, Broward officials are asking boaters to lookout for the record number of manatees in the county’s waterways this year.

The staff of the Natural Resources Planning and Management Division has counted 477 manatees during the first week of December — more than twice the historical average for this time of year. That number has since decreased.

“The current cold front should cause the number to jump back up well into the hundreds,’’ said Pat Quinn, Marine Resources with Broward County NRPMD.





The county is urging boaters to strictly obey posted speed restrictions in manatee-protection zones.

To help spot the manatees, boaters should also wear polarized sunglasses and watch for the large telltale circular slicks on the surface of the water, called manatee “footprints,” that indicate the presence of manatees.

The majority of the manatees will be traveling south in the Intracoastal Waterway to the warm-water refuges of the Lauderdale Power Plant cooling lakes and Port Everglades' Power Plant cooling canal.

Besides the Intracoastal, other poplar manatee hubs are w the New River, South Fork of New River, Dania Cutoff Canal and surrounding waters of Port Everglades.

The 2012 manatee season runs from November 15 to March 31, 2013.

Statewide, 78 manatees have been killed by boats in 2012 with three of those deaths occurring in Broward.





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Top Comments: Mashable Readers React to Instagram’s Terms of Service






Monday, Dec. 17: Instagram Updates TOS


Readers had varying reactions to Instagram‘s updates. Some felt that they were fair: If you don’t like the terms of service, argued some users, you have the option not to use the service. Others were far more outraged.


Click here to view this gallery.






[More from Mashable: Why xkcd Is Wrong About Instagram]


This week, the top comments on Mashable brought into focus both the state of the world around us and the constantly changing nature of our virtual lives. Our readers launched into debate when Instagram appeared to be making drastic changes to its privacy policy. Based on the wording of Instagram’s new Terms of Service, photographers worried that they may no longer own the rights to their own work, and that their photos could be used in advertising. As Mashable‘s Chris Taylor put it, the TOS as they stood early this week basically “signed your life away.”


Over the course of the week, we saw new privacy settings for Instagram users revealed, officially commented upon (while remaining unchanged) and then finally rescinded and apologized for.


[More from Mashable: Instagram Updates Its Terms of Service Based on User Feedback]


The Instagram controversy proved that users are, in fact, paying attention to the often glossed-over Terms of Service established by their favorite apps, and that a company’s response to public outcry has the potential to make or break their service.


Mashable‘s senior tech analyst, Christina Warren, compared Instagram’s actions to Netflix’s in the summer of 2011. Outraged users proved they weren’t bluffing about abandoning Instagram: Celebrities and power users threatened to quit the network, and downloads of rival apps such as Flickr and Aviary soared in the days surrounding the controversy. What was your take on this week’s events, involving photo-sharing and users’ right to ownership?


Even more commented upon, though less debated, were two Mashable stories that examined social media backlash in the wake of a tragedy. In the days following the horrific shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Connecticut, we found ourselves contemplating, both online and off, the horrific nature of the event. Unsurprisingly, the two most-commented-upon stories this week both centered on Sandy Hook’s impact on the social web. Our commenters sounded off on the offensive tweets sent during Obama’s Newtown speech, as well as on the viral post, “I Am Adam Lanza’s Mother.”


Other stories our commenters flocked to this week included a viral video of a golden eagle snatching a baby (later proved to be a hoax), the hacking of the Westboro Baptist Church by hacktivist group Anonymous and the appalling revelation that Facebook’s interns make more money than all of us. We also prepared for the end of the world as brought forth by the Mayan Apocalypse — which never did happen.


What were your favorite moments on Mashable this week? You can be part of the discussion by signing up with one of your social networks, and joining the conversation on our site. Next week, your voice could be featured in the Top Comments.


Happy holidays to our community!


Image courtesy of flickr, Marc Wathieu


This story originally published on Mashable here.


Tech News Headlines – Yahoo! News





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Buzzmakers: New X Factor and Miss Universe Winners

What had ET readers buzzing this week?

1. 'The X Factor' Crowns A Winner!

And the $5 million recording contract goes to…

Tate Stevens! The 37-year-old country crooner beat out runner-up 13-year-old Carly Rose Sonenclar for the top prize Thursday night. 35 million votes were cast Wednesday to determine victory for L.A. Reid's mentee.

Near tears, the Raymore, Missouri native thanked his fans for their overwhelming support.

"This is the best day of my life," said an emotional Stevens.

Girl group Fifth Harmony, mentored by Simon Cowell, placed third in the competition. Earlier in the night, the holiday themed finale saw performances by One Direction and Pitbull.

Auditions for an all-new season of The X Factor USA have already begun online. In-person auditions will start on March 6, 2013 in Los Angeles.

The celebrity judging panel has yet to be announced, but L.A. Reid has already taken himself out of the running. Spears has expressed interest in returning to the show for season three, but nothing has been confirmed.

2. Miss Universe 2012 Crowned

Beauties from 89 countries strutted their stuff Wednesday night in pursuit of the Miss Universe crown, but only one woman would earn the coveted title.

In the end a panel of ten celebrity judges, including Cee Lo Green and U.S. Olympic gold medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings, appointed Miss USA Olivia Culpo the winner.

The 20-year-old Rhode Island native beat out Miss Brazil (Gabriela Markus) Miss Philippines (Janine Tugonon), Miss Mexico (Irene SofĂ­a Esser Quintero), and Miss Australia (Renae Ayris) for the distinction.

Culpo follows in the footsteps of Miss Angola, Leila Lopes, who earned the crown in 2011.

The two-hour show was broadcast live from Las Vegas with musical acts One Direction and Train lending their talents to the annual extravaganza.

3. Exclusive: Arsenio on His Late Night TV Return

Break out the Woof! Woof! fist pump: Arsenio Hall is coming back to late night TV in the Fall of 2013 after a 17-year break from the game, and only ET is behind the scenes with the timeless talk show host as he shoots his first-ever promo for The Arsenio Hall Show!

"[This is] the first time America will see anything on television about the show," says Arsenio. "Instead of a commercial where I do something like say, 'I'm baaaaack' -- and everybody's, 'Ugh' -- they've come up with a real, unique, creative angle that -- actually, I looked at dailies, and it scared me. I looked at the dailies and I frightened myself."

The trailer-length promo from CBS Television Distribution pays homage to horror movies and begins airing today on all Arsenio Hall Show affiliate stations, kicking off the campaign for the new late night syndicated talk show that will be seen all across the country next year.

"I'm real excited about this; so many things have changed in pop culture since I left the air," says Arsenio about his return to late night. "I can't wait."

The Arsenio Hall Show premieres on 9/9/13. Look for much more with Arsenio between now and then, only on ET!

4. Claire Danes Gives Birth

It's a boy!

Homeland star Claire Danes and her husband Hugh Dancy welcomed their very first child together on Monday, December 17, her rep confirms to People Magazine.

The proud parents named their bouncing baby boy Cyrus Michael Christopher Dancy.

Danes, 33, wed Dancy, 37, in 2009 after two years of dating.

5. President Obama is Time's Person of the Year

For 2012, Time Magazine has selected President Barack Obama as their Person of the Year.

"For finding and forging a new majority, for turning weakness into opportunity and for seeking, amid great adversity, to create a more perfect union, Barack Obama is Time's 2012 Person of the Year," Time's Managing Editor Richzard Stengel explained.

He also cited both of the president's re-elections, snagging over 50 percent of the popular vote, as one reason he received this honor.

This is the second year Time has tapped Obama as their Person of the Year -- he previously was selected in 2008 for becoming the first black president of the United States.

Time previously named the eight finalists for 2012's Person of the Year. They included: Bill and Hillary Clinton, Apple CEO Tim Cook, Malala Yousafzai (the Pakistani girl who was shot by the Taliban for her crusade for better girls' education), Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer, Egyptian president Mohamed Morsi and the three scientists who discovered the Higgs Boson particle.

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NYC starts new program for mentally ill defendants








New York City is making a new effort to channel mentally ill people who get arrested into treatment instead of jail, if they don't need to be there.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced the initiative on his weekly radio show Sunday.

Bloomberg says the effort will start next year and set out to work with 3,000 people annually.

Expert teams will assess the defendants' mental health needs, likelihood of showing up in court and potential for re-offending. The teams will make recommendations to judges about what psychological services and supervision are appropriate.



Some special mental-health-focused courts around the city have similar aims.

City officials say the mentally ill often can't post bail and so generally end up in jail twice as long as other inmates facing similar charges.










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Time’s up for holiday shopping procrastinators




















Last minute shoppers like Josette Tyne are in luck this year.

With a long weekend before Christmas, retailers want to make it easier for procrastinators to finish their gift buying. Macy’s for the first time is keeping all its stores open around the clock from Friday until Sunday at midnight. Toys “R” Us and Walmart Supercenters will be open non-stop until Christmas Eve.

Even those retailers skipping the all nighter still have added extended hours often as late as 11 pm or midnight. Coupled with a flurry of last minute promotions, they hope to lure shoppers, many of whom have been largely sitting on the sidelines since Black Friday.





Tyne, 33, just starting her shopping this week at Aventura Mall, armed with a list of about two dozen people and the presents they wanted. The list would have been longer if the Fort Lauderdale resident hadn’t limited it to the kids in her family.

“I’ll probably be shopping every day from now till Sunday,” said Tyne, as she wheeled the youngest of her three boys around H&M in a stroller before heading on to Game Stop, Urban Outfitters and BCBG. “Whatever catches my eye. Luckily the kids usually like everything I get. I’m the awesome Auntie.”

A Consumer Reports Poll released earlier this week found that with just five shopping days left until Christmas, a whopping 68 percent of shoppers — a projected 132 million Americans — have yet to finish their holiday shopping.

With an early Thanksgiving leaving an extra week until Christmas and a long weekend before Tuesday’s holiday, shoppers have felt little need to rush. They also haven’t found December deals to be quite as compelling as the November sales.

Based on disappointing sales trends earlier this month, ShopperTrak said Wednesday it was cutting its holiday sales forecast. The company, which counts foot traffic and its own proprietary sales numbers from 40,000 retail outlets across the country, now expects a 2.5 percent sales increase to $257.7 billion, down from the 3.3 percent growth it initially predicted. The National Retail Federation is sticking with its prediction of a 4.1 percent sales increase.

Online sales trends are more encouraging, up 13 percent to $35 billion from Nov. 1 through Dec. 16, according to comScore, an online research firm. But that pace is below the forecast of 17 percent for the season.

“It’s coming down to the wire,” said David Bassuk, managing director and co-head of the retail practice at AlixPartners, a global consulting firm. “It’s going to require retailers to be more aggressive with their promotions than they were hoping heading into the weekend.”

While the economy is certainly in a better position than it was during the recession, many consumers still feel uneasy this year about their financial future. Some are worried about the U.S. job market and others fear the stalemate between Congress and the White House over federal “fiscal cliff’’ that could lead to tax increases and less disposable income for shoppers.

That was the case for Latonya Jones, on the hunt for bargains at Aventura Mall, coupon-loaded iPad in hand.

“I wasn’t going to buy anything this year, because I wanted to save money,” said Jones, 39, of Miami Gardens, who was shopping with her daughter Richelle, 12, this week in Macy’s. “But then I changed my mind.”





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