Donald Trump: Obama Not Ivy League Material

Donald Trump has broadened his criticism of President Barack Obama.

Not only does the real estate mogul question Obama's birth certificate and thus his U.S. citizenship, Trump says the President is an intellectual lightweight.

In an interview Monday, Trump called Obama "a poor student" who did not deserve to be admitted to the prestigious Ivy League universities he attended.

Trump, mulling a bid for the GOP presidential nomination, offered no proof of this but said he would continue pressing it - and the birth certificate talk.

"I heard he was a terrible student, terrible. How does a bad student go to Columbia and then Harvard?" Trump said in an interview with The Associated Press.

"I'm thinking about it, I'm looking into it. Let him show his records."

Obama graduated from Columbia University in New York in 1983 with a degree in political science after transferring from Occidental College in California.

Barack went on to Harvard Law School, where he graduated magna cum laude 1991 and was also the first black president of the Harvard Law Review.

Obama's campaign did not release his college transcripts, and in his memoir, Dreams From My Father, Obama indicated he wasn't always an academic star.

Trump posited in the interview that Obama's refusal to release his college grades were part of a larger pattern of concealing information about himself.

"I have friends who have smart sons with great marks, great boards, great everything and they can't get into Harvard," Trump said.

A spokeswoman for Obama's re-election campaign declined to comment.

The reality star, who mentioned his potential bid on Celebrity Apprentice this week, has been calling for Obama to release his long form birth certificate.

The State of Hawaii has released a certificate of live birth indicating Obama was born there on August 4, 1961, but that has not quelled "birther" critics.

The controversy has dominated the early stage of the 2012 GOP nominating contest, with Trump leading the charge and benefiting in Republican polls.

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Charlie Sheen Bails Len Dykstra Outta Jail

For Len Dykstra, it pays to have friends in high places.

Emphasis on high. Charlie Sheen coughed up $22,500 to bail the former New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies outfielder out of jail yesterday.

Charged earlier with bankruptcy fraud, Dykstra was held on $150,000 bail for nearly a week until 15 percent of the bond amount was put up.

It turns out Sheen was the one who did the honors.


Said Sheen of bailing out Lenny "Nails" Dykstra:

"The rendition guilty trolls that kidnapped my dear friend Nails clearly forgot that he's a fellow Vatican assassin and his best pal is a warlock."

Sheen and Dykstra are longtime friends. Len even hired a lawyer to negotiate the troubled actor's return to Two and a Half Men this spring.

As we saw two weekends ago when Dog the Bounty Hunter bailed out Nic Cage, a friend in need of a five-figure bond post is a friend indeed.

Prosecutors claim that Dykstra, 48, sold $400,000 worth of items from his $18 million mansion in southern California without permission.

He faces up to five years in a federal prison if convicted.

As well as fraud charges, the former three-time All-Star was being investigated by the LAPD for lewd conduct after a woman claimed he stripped off and requested a massage when he interviewed her for a housekeeper role.

No wonder Sheen and Lenny are so close ...

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Britney Spears Not Engaged Despite Wearing Huge Ring on Ring Finger

Britney Spears just likes jewelry, okay? Geez.

The singer's rep says that despite her wearing a huge rock on that finger, there is no truth to engagement rumors surrounding Britney and Jason Trawick.

"Completely not true," Spears' rep tells E! News of any of the latest round of rumors sparked by the pop superstar's piece of apparently random jewelry.

"It's not an engagement ring, not a story."

Sorry, but most people don't wear random jewelry that big or on that finger. So when Spears did (hanging with Nicki Minaj Friday), it caught attention.

It's Britney Spears. Not that there's anything wrong with it, but people are gonna notice, and wonder. Besides, it's about time she got hitched, right?

She and Jason have been together an awfully long time, and seem so happy together. We're not trying to rush her or anything. We're just saying.

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Christina Aguilera on National Anthem Debacle: Caught Up in the Moment!

Give Christina Aguilera credit for taking it all in stride.

It's been a rough few months for the star, who's gotten divorced, been involved a melee with Julianne Hough, arrested for public drunkenness and more.

She also forgot the lyrics to the National Anthem before the Super Bowl, which was mortifying at the time, but she's shrugging it all off pretty well now.

"Shoot me for appreciating the moment but here I am at the Super Bowl ... singing for my team and in front of the world. And remembering what it was like to be that young and look where I made it now. And then it was like, oh."

"That night I knew, I just made myself a Trivial Pursuit question ... In 2011 what female singer, ya know, flubbed the lyrics. It's just insane. But I have a really good laugh about it and you get over things. You get back up again."

"You just prove to yourself and to everyone you that much stronger."

Well put. Here's hoping she lives by that mantra in all facets of life.

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Nic Cage Arrest May Result in Child Abuse Probe

Nicolas Cage's arrest on domestic violence charges April 15 may not be the extent of his problems. Child abuse questions are being raised as well.

The actor may be investigated for child abuse after he reportedly caused minor injury to his five-year-old son AND his wife with his drunken antics.

Cage's wife, Alice Kim, told the police that they were arguing "due to his intoxicated state" and Cage fell while holding their son. According to Alice:

"The fall caused the 5-year-old to suffer a minor abrasion to his left knee."

A witness to the incident told a different version of the story, reportedly having seen "Mr. Cage pull the male child to the ground by his hand."

The report states that a child abuse detective was notified and the police wanted to interview Cage's son, Kal-El, but Kim would not let them.

Yes, the boy's name is Kal-El.

For now, sources say child abuse officials feel no investigation is merited, but that local Child Protective Services may still be contacting Cage.

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Lindsay Lohan PISSED Over Latest Jail Sentence

Despite the reduction of her felony grand theft charge to a misdemeanor offense, Lindsay Lohan was sentenced to jail for the umpteenth time on Friday after Judge Stephanie Sautner ruled that she violated the terms of her probation.

The actress, who is free on bail pending appeal, is NOT pleased.

"Obviously, she is very upset about [being sentenced to four months in jail]," says producer Nathan Folks, a close friend of hers. "But she'll be fine."

Lindsay is said to be increasingly frustrated with the status of her jewelry theft case, which she maintains has been a misunderstanding throughout. A jury might agree with her, but a judge has authority to revoke probation (Lohan is STILL on it after a 2007 DUI arrest) and Sautner did just that.

Lohan was sentenced to 120 days in jail and a hefty 480 hours of community service, which Folks admits was a "setback" for his actress buddy.

"She is angry because she has been working so hard lately on turning her life around," says Folks, who insists Lindsay Lohan is clean and sober.

"She didn't do what they say. She didn't steal that necklace."

She was allowed to post bail and released within hours of getting booked, and as of now, Lohan remains free pending an appeal of the sentence.

Legal experts say she has slim chance of winning that, though, because by all accounts, grounds for ruling she violated probation have been met.

Still, Lohan is reportedly resigned to accept whatever decision comes down from the court when her trial for misdemeanor theft begins June 3.

"She is ready to do her time. She wants to go to A.A. and N.A. and to serve her [more than] 400 hours [of community service]," Folks says.

"She has already been doing lots of charity work."

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Diving Into the Past, but Definitely Still in the Present

Sean Combs was dancing: slow, deliberate, slightly awkward movements on a big stage, illuminated only by angelic light from the screen above, which was flashing slow-motion clips of the Notorious B.I.G., a k a Biggie Smalls.

“I’m going to take my time with this,” Mr. Combs said before somberly rapping “I’ll Be Missing You.” “Bear with me as I get through this.” Obscured by his abundant gift for triumph is the fact that Mr. Combs — once Puff Daddy, then Puffy and Puff, and now Diddy — is fluent in pathos and has been since he recorded that tribute song for Biggie.

Mr. Combs was 27 then, and the most polarizing figure in hip-hop. Now he’s 41, and still innovating. Last year he released “Last Train To Paris” (Bad Boy/Interscope), his first album with his group Diddy-Dirty Money, an unexpectedly wound-opening — and wound-healing — record that’s among the most intimate things Mr. Combs has ever done.

On Friday night at the Hammerstein Ballroom, rendering his inner hurt on a major scale, he showed that his then and his now weren’t all that different. Diddy-Dirty Money, which also features the singers Dawn Richard and Kalenna Harper, is an experiment in dance-oriented hip-hop, a group that builds in the R&B hooks that are usually outsourced or sampled. It’s also the umpteenth turn in the surprisingly versatile career of Mr. Combs, who began as a promoter and producer, not a performer.

His lack of specific talent makes him a chameleonic force, never worrying about what might violate his principles, because his only principle is success. That was clear from this almost-two-hour concert, a Madison Square Garden-worthy show packed tight into a medium-size room. While “Last Train to Paris” has been well received, it’s only been a modest commercial success in modest times for the record business. But Diddy himself is still an outsize presence, and he compressed arena extravaganza — moving video screens, band members, backup singers — into cramped quarters.

For the first part of the night he stuck largely to Diddy-Dirty Money material: throbbing, emotional numbers like “Your Love,” “Angels (remix)” and “I Hate That You Love Me.” Here Diddy rapped and sang, or at least appeared to sing, while Ms. Richard and Ms. Harper acted as anchors.

After “Loving You No More,” they segued into a breathy if needless take on Sade’s “No Ordinary Love.” Song guests — Chris Brown, Rick Ross — delivered their parts in taped videos. Sometimes, Diddy and his two singers would all sashay side to side like the Temptations.

This was the pretense, though, the necessary nod to the present that allowed Diddy to dive headlong into the past. The second part of the night was devoted to past victories: “Bad Boy For Life,” “I Need A Girl (Part One),” “Mo Money Mo Problems,” “It’s All About the Benjamins.”

Through remix verses or sheer force of will, he claimed other people’s hits as his own: Jim Jones’s “We Fly High,” 50 Cent’s “I Get Money,” Waka Flocka Flame’s “O Let’s Do It.” And he brought out some of the old Bad Boy team, Black Rob and Faith Evans — “You know I ain’t do it by myself,” he said — as well as Q-Tip, “a true friend.”

After that came the Biggie memorial, with Mr. Combs lost in a reverie until the D.J. began playing some of Biggie’s biggest hits — “One More Chance (remix),” “Juicy,” “Hypnotized” — which turned into rap-alongs, opportunities for full-room catharsis.

Still, after Biggie, Mr. Combs was always his own biggest product, and the managing and processing of his anguish was the thing that propelled him to stardom. He comes full circle on the haunting “Coming Home,” the biggest hit from the Diddy-Dirty Money album, which came just before the end of the show. People “got the nerve to blame you for it,” he rapped, “And you know you woulda took the bullet if you saw it.” And then he began to spin, dancing in a solemn circle.

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Coach Jim Larranaga Leaving George Mason for Miami

CORAL GABLES, Fla. (AP) — Jim Larranaga has taken the Miami Hurricanes' basketball job after 14 years at George Mason, including an improbable run to the Final Four in 2006.

Larranaga called George Mason athletic director Tom O'Connor on Friday morning to say he accepted Miami's offer. The Hurricanes scheduled an evening news conference to introduced their new coach, who replaces Frank Haith.

"Coach Larranaga is the real deal," Miami president Donna Shalala said in a statement. "He's a winner, an inspirational leader, and he cares deeply about his players and staff."

Larranaga, 61, led the Patriots to five NCAA tournament berths and went 273-164, setting a school record for victories. This season his team went 27-7 and reached the third round of the tournament before losing to overall No. 1 seed Ohio State. Larranaga helped the Patriots win three titles in the Colonial Athletic Association. Now he moves to the Atlantic Coast Conference, where the Hurricanes were 43-69 the past seven seasons under Haith.

"Jim can coach at any level," O'Connor said. "He could probably coach the Los Angeles Lakers if he wanted to."

Miami officials declined to comment. The hiring was made by Shawn Eichorst only nine days after he became the Hurricanes' athletic director. Haith left for Missouri after going 129-101 at Miami, including 21-15 this past season. Larranaga's contract at George Mason, which ran until 2016, had a base salary of $525,000. The school offered him a package including incentive bonuses would that have put him in the top five among mid-major coaches in compensation, O'Connor said, but even that deal couldn't compete with Miami's resources.

Unlike the Hurricanes, George Mason does not have a football program.

"In all honesty, the university can only go so far with finances," O'Connor said. "We think we put together a very, very attractive financial compensation package. We couldn't compete with an ACC school, a big football school with its budget."

A native New Yorker, Larranaga also coached at Bowling Green for 11 seasons and Division II American International for two seasons. The improbable NCAA tournament run by George Mason in 2006 was a triumph for all mid-major programs. The Patriots beat Michigan State, North Carolina and second-seeded Connecticut before losing to Florida in the national semifinals at Indianapolis.

Larranaga also led the Patriots to the tournament in 1999, 2001 and 2008. Miami made the tournament once under Haith, losing in the second round in 2008. Small crowds have been a chronic problem for the Hurricanes, who compete in a market that includes all four major professional sports. Average attendance at George Mason was 3,192 the season before Larranaga arrived but climbed to 6,834 the year after the Final Four appearance, and was 5,896 this past year.

O'Connor said George Mason's search for a replacement would start immediately.

"I'm confident we can attract a very strong basketball coach," O'Connor said.

Miami's hiring of Larranaga completes a revamping of the athletic department. Al Golden replaced Randy Shannon in December as football coach, and Eichorst replaced Kirby Hocutt, who became athletic director at Texas Tech.

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Westwood Moves to No. 1 as Donald Loses Playoff

Brandt Snedeker rallied from six shots behind and defeated Luke Donald on Sunday in a playoff at the Heritage on Hilton Head Island, S.C., denying Donald the top spot in the World Golf Rankings. Donald, of England, would have risen to the No. 1 ranking from No. 3 had he won. Instead, his countryman Lee Westwood moved to No. 1 from No. 2, replacing Martin Kaymer, after winning the Indonesian Masters earlier in the day.

Donald saved par from difficult spots on the 71st and 72nd holes to force the playoff, then did it again on the second extra hole. But his luck ran out on Harbour Town Golf Links’ closing lighthouse hole, No. 18, when his ball became partly buried in a front bunker. Donald blasted out about 15 feet from the flag, and his chip for par from just off the green hit the back edge of the cup and bounced away.

Snedeker finished with a seven-under 64 to match Donald at 12 under. Donald shot his second straight 70. Tommy Gainey finished a stroke back after a 68.

“It was going to be some big rewards if I won today,” Donald said. “But I’ll try and find the positives from this week and move on.”

The tournament figured to come down to a duel between the final-round pair of third-round leader Donald, the third-round leader, and the defending champion Jim Furyk, who was one stroke behind. But Snedeker, who started 10 groups before the leaders, pushed his way into contention with seven birdies in his first 12 holes. He rolled in a 12-footer for par on his 72nd hole and headed to the clubhouse to wait.

After Donald reached 12 under with an 18-foot birdie putt on the 13th, he missed putts for birdie on the 15th and 16th holes. Donald looked as if he would shoot himself out of it, sending his tee shot on the par-3 17th off the back, then landing his approach into the bunker in front of No. 18. Both times, Donald chipped within 4 feet to save par.

Snedeker and Donald traded birdies on the first extra hole, the 18th, and pars on the second one, the 17th. Snedeker hit the green on the last playoff hole and two-putted for par.

In Jakarta, Indonesia, Westwood shot a three-under-par 69 for 19-under 269, three shots ahead of Thongchai Jaidee of Thailand. Westwood opened with a birdie and a bogey, then made eight straight pars. A birdie on No. 11 was the turning point in his round.

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Rangers’ Exit Fits Their Story Line: Grit but Few Goals

WASHINGTON — Brian Boyle sat quietly in his stall at Verizon Center, moments after the Rangers were eliminated from the playoffs by the Washington Capitals, trying to express the way he felt.

“It’s a lot of things,” Boyle said. “It’s angry, it’s sad — the season’s over. We’re a close group. It’s a lot of games, it’s a grind, but it’s over. It went by too quick.

“It’s the worst feeling you could have,” he said.

The Rangers lost, 3-1, on Saturday, sent home after five games by the more talented yet equally gritty Capitals. Their final performance was the Rangers’ season in microcosm: a middling team working hard until the end, hanging in as long as it could because of its goalie and its shot-blocking, empowered yet hobbled by the fury of its coach, and ultimately undone by its inability to score.

Henrik Lundqvist was valiant in stopping 24 shots. Dan Girardi, Marc Staal and seven other Rangers blocked an additional 20. Girardi paid for it with a dislocated finger and a possible ankle injury, but he played until the end. Boyle, Brandon Prust and Sean Avery generated what few scoring chances the Rangers had amid their mucking and grappling. Marian Gaborik, the 42-goal sniper of 2010 gone cold in 2011, failed to make a difference.

The Rangers even scored a goal of honor, 32 seconds from the end, when Wojtek Wolski ended the shutout.

“I’m at a loss for words, I guess,” Brandon Dubinsky said. “We worked pretty hard all year long. To have it be over this quick is hard.”

So the Rangers went out, now having won the Stanley Cup once in 71 years, in that increasingly distant postseason of 1994. They made the playoffs on their final day of the regular season, a slight improvement over last year, when they missed the playoffs on the final day, but also a slight comedown from two years ago, when they lost to the Capitals in the first round in seven games. They have not advanced beyond the second round since Glen Sather became the general manager in 2000.

“We’re still in the process, so we just keep on going, trying to get better,” said John Tortorella, who took over as the Rangers’ coach during the 2008-9 season. “I don’t think our team has been built yet.”

For Washington, it was the second playoff victory over the Rangers in three years. The Capitals have played six other postseason series since 1998, and lost them all.

Mike Green, Alex Ovechkin and Alexander Semin scored Washington’s goals, one in each period, and the rookie goalie Michal Neuvirth stopped 26 shots.

The Rangers’ best stretch came in the first 30 seconds, when the Boyle-Prust-Avery line created real danger, and Boyle’s wraparound attempt was stopped by Neuvirth. It was one of five shots by Boyle, who wound up with a team-high 25 in the series but did not score a point. They missed the injured Ryan Callahan, and his 23 goals, throughout this series.

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Homering at Home, Wright Powers the Mets

David Wright certainly hit the baseball hard enough in his third at-bat Sunday, but he was sure it would curve foul. Wright, the Mets’ third baseman, has become the foremost expert on how many home runs Citi Field takes away, on how no one can start a home run trot early.

Somehow, this fly ball stayed straight as an arrow, and it dropped over the railing just inside the left-field foul pole for his second home run of the game.

“I don’t think you’re going to beat the park psychologically,” said Wright, who hit only 17 of his 39 home runs the last two years at Citi Field. “If you put a good swing on it, some days it’s going to go out of the park, and some days it’s not.”

Sunday was a glorious day, 75 degrees and sunny at first pitch, and Wright made it clear that it was going to be a good day for aerodynamics. He pummeled a two-run homer off Armando Galarraga in the first inning, then added a 340-foot shot in the fourth. Wright had his 16th multihomer game, tying Carlos Beltran and Dave Kingman for third on the Mets’ career list. (Mike Piazza had 17 such games, and Darryl Strawberry had 22.)

But that was of less significance to Wright, who snapped a career-worst 0-for-20 slide Thursday.

“I think he has come out of it,” Manager Terry Collins said of Wright, who has gone 6 for 14 with three home runs in the Mets’ last four games.

“Psychologically, he now knows he can hit the ball out of any part of this park.”

Wright helped make the day easier for Mets starter Jon Niese, who pitched seven effective innings for his first victory of the year. Niese, who was 0-3 with a 5.37 earned run average, allowed six hits and two earned runs Sunday. Collins said Dan Warthen, the Mets’ pitching coach, had worked with Niese on keeping a steady pace — not rushing his pitches. Niese struck out the first two batters he faced with pinpoint fastballs and did not scuffle until he gave up two hits in each of his last two innings.

“I think my fastball was good today,” Niese said. “My off-speed pitches need a little help, but I think my off-speed pitches helped with my fastball.”

The Mets gave Niese a lift by taking an 8-1 lead in the first four innings. Although Wright said starting pitching had been the key to the Mets’ latest success, the team has amassed 27 runs and 38 hits in the last four games. Jason Pridie, a 27-year-old center fielder recalled from Class AAA Buffalo on Friday to replace the injured Angel Pagan, walloped a three-run homer off Galarraga into the Mets’ bullpen in a four-run third inning. It was Pridie’s first big-league home run, after 137 at-bats.

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Barcelona-Real Madrid: Rating the Coming Clasicos

Saturday brings the start of three weeks of El Clásico overload, a series of four matchups between the bitter Spanish rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid that will help decide a season’s worth of competitions: the Spanish league, the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League.

Each of the games has its own attraction and ramifications, and its own singular importance, but is any one bigger than the other? Or should they just be viewed as a soccerphile’s dream, a reason to plop down in front of the TV every few days and count one’s blessings?

Barcelona at Real Madrid, La Liga, Saturday: No less an authority than Johan Cruyff argues that the first matchup is the most critical.

“The most important thing is always the league, it’s a long-distance thing,” Cruyff said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press on Thursday. “You don’t need to be lucky; you have to play well the whole way,”

“In the Champions League, you can have injuries, a little luck, a little bad luck — so a lot of things can happen in a short competition. So, for me, the league is always very important.”

But with Barcelona eight points up in La Liga with only seven rounds to go, and with Real Madrid Manager José Mourinho having basically thrown in the towel in that race two weeks ago, Cruyff would say that, wouldn’t he?

But because the first Clásico will set the tone for the ones lined up behind it — and because Barcelona won the first meeting in La Liga, 5-0 — he may be on to something.

Barcelona vs. Real Madrid, Copa del Rey final at Valencia, April 20: It’s fair to say that the Copa del Rey trophy is the least prestigious of the three up for grabs between these teams before the end of May, but Barcelona certainly won’t turn up its nose: it is in a better position to win the treble than Real Madrid this season but can’t do it without first claiming this first prize.

This final will be the only one of the four matchups played on a neutral field, Only one in which two teams will walk in and only one will walk out with the silverware. So for pure winner-take-all, let’s-settle-this-tonight intensity, these 90 minutes have their own special appeal. Barcelona at Real Madrid, Champions League semifinals, first leg, April 27.

Mourinho more or less put all his eggs in the Champions League basket a few weeks ago, but he has won the tournament with Porto and Inter Milan and probably thinks he can do it again. And he might be right: while Real Madrid’s most dangerous players (Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, etc.) have been getting healthy over the past several weeks, a few of Barcelona’s key defenders have gone missing though injury (Carles Puyol) or illness (Eric Abidal). Having the first leg of the Champions League semifinal in Madrid could be a huge advantage for Mourinho, especially if his team can stake him to a healthy lead.

Real Madrid at Barcelona, Champions League semifinals, second leg, May 3: What will the mood be at the Nou Camp when Round 4 caps three weeks of Clásicos: Bouyant or panicked? Enraged or resigned? Will this final matchup be an crowning moment for Ronaldo or Lionel Messi, or a face-saving one in front of 100,000-plus fans? Messi, for one, seems to live for moments like this, to always rise to the occasion, at least when he’s wearing his Barcelona shirt. But if Real Madrid has built some momentum, will he and his game-wear, injury-plagued team have the strength to push back?

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Paul Shows Fans Way to Beat Lakers, and Other Teams Are Watching, Too

NEW ORLEANS — Chris Paul cupped his hand to his ear, as if he could not hear the thundering applause of the capacity New Orleans Arena crowd. The gesture, which came Sunday night in the waning seconds of the Hornets’ 93-88 playoff victory against the two-time defending N.B.A. champion Los Angeles Lakers, was as close as Paul gets to showboating.

“It was good to see the city with a smile on their face,” Paul said after New Orleans evened the first-round playoff series at two games apiece. “This city, this arena, deserved this win tonight.”

The Hornets’ postseason slogan is “I’m In,” but many wonder if Paul, the 25-year-old All-Star point guard, may be on his way out. He will be a free agent at the end of next season and will be coveted by any number of teams. That includes the just-eliminated Knicks, who are in sore need of someone who can go toe-to-toe with Boston’s Rajon Rondo.

But whether Paul will ever make it to free agency or be traded beforehand, and whether the Knicks will find a way to be involved, remains to be seen. Paul is close with the Knicks’ top players — Amar’e Stoudemire, Carmelo Anthony and Chauncey Billups — and before they were swept by the Celtics on Sunday, Paul said, he sent them text messages of support.

“I told them to keep fighting,” he said, adding: “Chauncey’s like a big brother to me. So is Melo.”

All those Knicks are now free to sit home and watch as Paul continues to try to torment the Lakers’ Kobe Bryant, who went scoreless on seven shots in the first half Sunday night while running himself ragged trying to guard Paul. Bryant, who finished with 17 points, turned his left ankle late in the game and conducted postgame interviews in the training room.

“When it’s all said and done, he’ll be one of the best that’s ever laced them up,” Bryant said of Paul. “That’s just a bad little dude, man.”

Paul seems genuinely modest, although if the spotlight intensifies next season, his disinclination to talk about himself will be tested. On Sunday, Paul collected 27 points, 15 assists and 13 rebounds for his first triple-double of the season, changed into a conservative suit and then, accompanied by his teammate Trevor Ariza, met with reporters.

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Lollapalooza Headliners Include Eminem, Foo Fighters and Coldplay

If a particular band is probably on the lineup for the 20th anniversary edition of Lollapalooza does play the music, there’s a good chance that it is. Artists who fit that description, including Eminem, Foo Fighters, Coldplay, Muse and My Morning Jacket, are among the 130 acts who are scheduled to perform at that long-lived festival, which runs from Aug. 5 through 7 at Grant Park in Chicago.


Also on the bill this year are deadmau5, A Perfect Circle, Cee Lo Green, Damian “Jr. Gong” Marley & Nas, the Cars and Ween, as well as (deep breath) Bright Eyes, Arctic Monkeys, Big Audio Dynamite, Deftones, Beirut, Explosions in the Sky, Death From Above 1979, Ratatat and Crystal Castles, the festival’s organizers announced on Tuesday.

Perry will feature performances by Girl Talk and Kid Cudi, as well as the festival founder Perry Farrell, who for some reason is performing under the name PerryEtty vs. Chris Cox. The inaugural Lollapalooza featured artists like Jane’s Addiction, Living Colour, Ice-T & Body Count, Violent Femmes and Fishbone when it toured nationally from July 18 through Aug. 28, 1991.

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Big Bang’s Echoes, 50 Years Later

The legacy of Impulse Records has hardly lacked for commemoration. The label keeps repackaging albums, even as its parent company, the Verve Music Group, slouches away from instrumental jazz. Five years ago Ashley Kahn published “The House That Trane Built: The Story of Impulse Records” (W. W. Norton), an aficionado’s history and, in essence, a corporate biography. This week brought the release of a CD boxed set, “First Impulse: The Creed Taylor Collection” (Hip-O Select/Verve), that gathers the six albums produced for the label by its founder.

In a welcome bit of programming, each of those albums — notable titles by Ray Charles, the composer-arranger Gil Evans, the trombonist Kai Winding and the saxophonists John Coltrane and Oliver Nelson — is being celebrated at the Jazz Standard by present-day artists in a series called Impulse! Nights. The kickoff, on Wednesday, involved Coltrane’s “Africa/Brass” as interpreted by Saxophone Summit, featuring David Liebman and Ravi Coltrane, with Phil Markowitz on piano, Cecil McBee on bass and Billy Hart on drums.

The late set, which began like a thunderclap and ended as an oceanic swell, was most intriguing for the contrast between its two frontmen, each a different kind of heir to the Coltrane sound. Ravi Coltrane, the son of John and Alice Coltrane, was 2 when his father died in 1967; since coming into his own as a saxophonist, he has carefully weighed his stylistic inheritance against his own artistic identity, which skews cooler in temperament. Here he seemed unusually intent on strident epiphany: his solo on “Blues Minor,” the opener, was full of overblown notes and impassioned digressions, hard swerves out of the given key.

Mr. Liebman, who will turn 65 this fall, came of age in John Coltrane’s immediate wake. His own style, can be understood as a specific dialect of the Coltrane language. And on almost every solo he dug impressively deep. Playing tenor on “Blues Minor,” he worked a cantorial cry; his soprano turn on “Song of the Underground Railroad,” a reworked spiritual not included on the original LP, had him evoking the fever pitch of the post-Coltrane avant-garde.

For all the focus on saxophones, a Coltrane tribute lives or dies by its rhythm section, and this one labored admirably. Mr. Markowitz, in his tolling accompaniment as well as in his methodical solos, suggested a contemporary gloss on the McCoy Tyner school, filtered through the likes of Chick Corea. And Mr. Hart was the heavy lifter, managing an inexhaustible and, just as crucially, personal take on Elvin Jones’s polyrhythmic fire.

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Lady Gaga Reveals In HBO Special: 'I Still Sometimes Feel Like A Loser'

On May 7, Lady Gaga is taking HBO to the Monster Ball for her first-ever concert special on the cable network. She joins a number of other pop stars like 'NSYNC and Britney Spears, who have captured some of their finest moments for HBO's lenses. The special also acts as part-documentary, giving fans a behind-the-scenes peek at life for Gaga on the road.

In a revealing new clip from the special, Gaga is shown backstage, wiping off makeup, talking to her inner circle about her insecurities as she breaks down in tears. It makes for compelling television and shows the vulnerable side of the pop star. Her monologue is full of juicy nuggets, but there are a few really tantalizing bites that are sure to leave her little monsters wanting more.

"I start to think about all the people that have tried to stop me, and I get this super-intense fury … I just sometimes feel like a loser still," she says. "It's crazy 'cause we're at the Garden, but I still sometimes feel like a loser kid in high school. And I just got to pick myself up and I have to tell myself I'm a superstar every morning so that I can get through this day and be for my fans what they need for me to be. But sometimes I still feel like people are trying to destroy me."

When asked by someone off-camera what she intends to tell her haters onstage that night, she responds, "That I cannot be destroyed. I cannot be destroyed, and I will not be destroyed, and you will never destroy the kingdom that is my fans."

Gaga even opens up about how difficult it is for people to understand how real she is. It's a topic she recently broached in an interview with NME. "I'm fighting for every kid that's like me — that felt like I felt and feels like I still feel.

Previous teases have shown Gaga hitting the streets of New York, dressed in a studded leather jacket and high platform ankle boots, as "Born This Way" plays in the background. That same promo showed the madness at MSG leading up to her show, footage of which is also in the clip. In the second, shorter preview, shots of her performance are revealed as her new single, "Judas," plays.

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Andy Grammer Wins O Music Awards' Most Innovative Video

What is innovation? That was the question facing a panel of experts Monday, in which the merits of the five finalists were debated and such icons as music-video director Wayne Isham ('NSYNC, Metallica) and music executive/ Global14.com founder Jermaine Dupri attempted to pick a winner.

For Isham, who traveled around Los Angeles himself for Mötley Crüe's "Girls, Girls, Girls" clip, the OK Go effort didn't feel so innovative, while Mashable's Brenna Ehrlich said it wasn't memorable enough to warrant the prize, admitting she didn't even remember what song it was for.

Among the nominees were video mavens OK Go's "Back From Kathmandu," a flash-mob-style piece in which the band led a parade through the streets of Los Angeles. "That's what's nice about videos today period, they don't have to be traditional videos. ... They can be hybrids of a couple of different things if you want them to be," said bandmember Tim Nordwind. The video was a mash-up documentary of OK Go getting together with friends to play their songs as they walked down the street.

Au Revoir Simone's interactive coloring-book effort for the $500 "Knight of Wands" clip took a simplistic approach, with an unseen hand moving a cursor to add color to a simple image of three women standing inside a mansion. Fans could make their own version and a Flickr page allowed them to upload their own takes on the effort.

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Stefano Langone Says He Has The 'Swag' To Sing Hip-Hop Hooks

They say old habits die hard, and nobody knows that more than recently eliminated "American Idol" contestant Stefano Langone. His time on "Idol" was plagued by a pesky penchant for singing with his eyes closed, which prevented viewers from connecting with his emotional performances.

"When Jimmy Iovine told me, 'You gotta be sexy,' I'm sitting there like, 'Why haven't I been sexy on the show yet?' " Stefano told MTV News on Monday (April 25).

So when it came time to sing Ne-Yo's "Closer," Stefano knew he'd crash and burn without upping the flirt factor.

Luckily, Langone had a secret weapon during rehearsals that ultimately helped him perfect his sizzling open-eyes smolder: estrogen. Vocal coach Debra Byrd whipped Stefano into shape thanks to what she called her "estrogen meter."

"If [Byrd's] estrogen meter was high enough, then I passed. If it wasn't, [she'd say] 'No, that wasn't right. The estrogen meter was saying that was lower. You need to go higher. We need more on that line.' So it works out," Langone laughed. But don't expect to see Stefano's lady-killer side in real life.



"Women for me right now — before, maybe not, but right now, it's definitely second to all the music stuff and my family," Langone said, adding, "I'm on a mission right now, man. And ain't nothin' gettin' in the way of my mission."

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Britney Spears Drops Official 'Till The World Ends' Remix

Just days after it was leaked on Friday, Britney Spears and her femme fatales, Nicki Minaj and Ke$ha, dropped their official remix of "Till the World Ends." The new version of the song was produced by Dr. Luke and Dream Machine.


Brit half-whispers " 'Till the World Ends' remix" before the beat kicks in and Nicki hits her verse hard. She spits fierce lines like, "Sniff, sniff, cries/ I done slayed your whole entire f---ing life."

Then Britney's sex-kitten vocals kick in for the song's first verse. "That's Britney, bitch! I'm Nicki Minaj and that's Ke$ha," the Queens MC declares before K sings the chorus. The beat is harder, the loops are sassier and the song is grimier than the original version, which was the second single from Femme Fatale. The newly added dubstep portion takes the one from "Hold It Against Me" to a new level by adding in bass-heavy synths.

Ke$ha, of course, wrote the track for Britney, and the ladies certainly don't seem to mind sharing the spotlight with each other. The official track isn't much different than the version that leaked over the weekend, though Spears did have something brand-new to share with her fans just as the song dropped on iTunes and streamed on her website.

Spears tweeted the artwork for the single, which features the original press photo of Spears along with separate photos of Nicki on the left and Ke$ha on the right. Spears wrote, "@NickiMinaj @Keshasuxx Too much fierceness for one cover! Thanks for lending your voices girls... #TTWEREMIX — Brit"

Spears and Minaj have been hanging out a lot in the lead-up to their summer tour. They hung out at the Factory nightclub on Friday night after Minaj's show in Los Angeles. Spears later wrote, "Early rehearsal after a late night with my girl @NickiMinaj. Can't WAIT to get out on the road with you."

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Mythical Japan "A Visit To Miyajima Island"

When one thinks of Japan, they may think of bustling cities crammed with people, or a romanticized world of kimono clad women and tea houses. Many of these things can be found in Japan, but the Japan that most impressed me was the serene, mystical Japan I found on Miyajima Island.

Approaching the island, beautiful Mount Misen greets you with a majestic presence. The large red Otorri gate indicates you are entering a Shinto shrine. It is constructed from large beams of wood and supports its own weight as it stand in the sea.

Upon arriving on the island you are welcomed by a greeting committee. The greeting committee, wild deer, run freely throughout the island. The Shinto religion believes that spirits live in nature, including animals, therefore they are unharmed and able to run freely. Along with your new found friends, the deer, you walk along a path to the Itsukushima Shrine, a wonderful floating shrine that is situated on the beach. As the tide changes, water flows underneath the shrine giving the illusion of a floating oasis.

The shrine pays homage to the spirits that reside in nature and also those of the sea. In perfect harmony, the architecture and nature work together to do this. This shrine exemplifies the belief of Shinto unifying all of these elements.

After exploring the vermilion shrine, pagoda, and Noh theater, I went for a hike to the ropeway cable car station to visit the top of Mount Misen. The walk to the station is an uphill passage through an enchanting, peaceful forest. The ropeway cars remind me of the carriages of a large Ferris Wheel, but much more precarious. Traveling on what seems like the tiniest cable, I reached the midway point, only to have to transfer to another car on a separate line. Finally, after the final ropeway journey, I reached the top.

The top of Mount Misen presents the story book vision of Japan found in Zen ink paintings. The most special treat of all was to be greeted by hundred of small monkeys walking around the mountain. Families of monkeys just gaze as we walked by, enjoying the serenity and beauty of this magical place. The animals, trees, sea, and mountains will make you have a better understanding of why this site became a shrine.


Catching the last ropeway down, I looked out the window gazing at the lush forest of bamboo and ferns, and thought how wonderful it is to have visited such a fantastic place. It wasn't what I expected to find in Japan, but was definitely a pleasant surprise.

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Sub-Sahara Africa Travel

Journey to the wild, untamed wilderness areas of Africa south of the Sahara or experience the unique flavor of the African markets. Climb famous mountains or feel the spray of majestic waterfalls. Take scenic wine tours through South Africa's wine-lands, seek out the elusive Knysna elephants or be pampered during a luxury African Safari.

For the adventurous and budget conscious, tour the deserts or go off-road in a 4x4 to seek out the Big Five of Africa in the myriad of Nature Reserves scattered through the beautiful continent. Snorkel in the warm waters of the Indian Ocean at the unspoiled beaches.

African Markets
Africa is one of the last emerging markets with tremendous growth potential. Take steps to capture market share and mindshare and we had to make affordability a priority.

Epupa Falls

The Kunene River forms the natural border between Namibia and Angola and mostly flows at a gentle gradient. At the Epupa Falls, however, a rock shelf extends at an angle of 45 degrees across the river. This main waterfall is 36 meters high.

African Safari
The personnel at Mala Mala Private Game Reserve attribute these phenomenal game viewing statistics to the fact that a maximum of fourteen safari vehicles roam the 13 500 hectares of wilderness per day in open game viewing vehicles. Photographic safaris are also conducted on open four-wheel drive vehicle.

Self drive 4x4 Adventure

For adventurous off-road enthusiasts seeking a holiday off the beaten track. Six days of encountering no other traffic except for the convoy of vehicles traveling together.

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The Best Sites In Alaska

One of the most beautiful places on earth is the state of Alaska. Although cold, the sites are simply stunning. Whether sightseeing through natural parks, looking for bear, camping, taking a tour, or just dining out, you will fall in love with the land and the people. If you have been thinking about a vacation and are not sure where to go, we recommend you consider a trip to the most stunning place – Alaska.

To help you plan your trip, we have provided some suggestions on what you might do and see.

Alaska Native Heritage Center – Anchorage
To help you learn about the various cultures of Alaska and the native people, this center teaches about customs, practices, and arts. This experience includes walking through native homes, watching ancient practices and performances.

Iditarod Headquarters – Wasilla
If you have never taken the opportunity to watch the Iditarod on television, you are missing an amazing adventure. At the Iditarod headquarters, you can learn about this massive dog sled race.

Alaska Seal Life Center – Seward
From monetary settlements coming out of the Exxon Valdez oil spill, this center was created to help teach people about marine biology, seal life, and animal rehabilitation. This area of Alaska is mesmerizing, rich with an abundance of sea mammals, fish, and birds.

Denali National Park
Denali, which translates to “The Great One”, is the native name for the highest peak in all of North America – Mount McKinley. This mountain range offers a number of peaks where all types of wildlife live to include bear, wolves, Dall sheep, wolves, and moose.

Glacier Bay – South East Alaska
At Glacier Bay, you will discover 13 tidewater glaciers. Although they are all spectacular, the three largest and most impressive include Margerie, Muir, and Johns Hopkins. For those harder to reach, you can enjoy magnificent views from airplane or boat.

Bear Watching
One of the favorite things to do in Alaska is to look for bear. With grizzly, brown, and polar bears, the very sight of these incredible creatures is breathtaking. Katmai National Park is an excellent adventure where you can enjoy brown bear feeding off salmon runs and Kodiak Island.

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