Breaking News: Patrick Swayze Loses His Battle With Pancreatic Cancer

Patrick Swayze, the hunky actor who danced his way into moviegoers’ hearts with “Dirty Dancing” and then broke them with “Ghost,” died Monday after a battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 57.

“Patrick Swayze passed away peacefully on Monday with family at his side after facing the challenges of his illness for the last 20 months,” his publicist, Annett Wolf, said in a statement Monday evening. Swayze died in Los Angeles, Wolf said, but she declined to give further details.

Fans of the actor were saddened to learn in March 2008 that Swayze was suffering from a particularly deadly form of cancer. He kept working despite the diagnosis, putting together a memoir with his wife and shooting “The Beast,” an A&E drama series for which he had already made the pilot.

Swayze said he opted not to use painkilling drugs while making “The Beast” because they would have taken the edge off his performance. The show drew a respectable 1.3 million viewers when the 13 episodes ran in 2009, but A&E said it had reluctantly decided not to renew it for a second season.

When he first went public with the illness, some reports gave him only weeks to live, but his doctor said his situation was “considerably more optimistic” than that. Swayze acknowledged that time might be running out given the grim nature of the disease.

“I’d say five years is pretty wishful thinking,” Swayze told ABC‘s Barbara Walters in early 2009. “Two years seems likely if you’re going to believe statistics. I want to last until they find a cure, which means I’d better get a fire under it.”

C. Thomas Howell, who costarred with Swayze in “The Outsiders,” “Grandview U.S.A.” and “Red Dawn,” said: “I have always had a special place in my heart for Patrick. While I was fortunate enough to work with him in three films, it was our passion for horses that forged a friendship between us that I treasure to this day. Not only did we lose a fine actor today, I lost my older ‘Outsiders’ brother.”

Other celebrities used Twitter to express condolences, and “Dirty Dancing” was the top trending topic for a while Monday night, trailed by several other Swayze films.

Ashton Kutcher — whose wife, Demi Moore, costarred with Swayze in “Ghost” — wrote: “RIP P Swayze.” Kutcher also linked to a YouTube clip of the actor poking fun at himself in a classic “Saturday Night Live” sketch, in which he played a wannabe Chippendales dancer alongside the corpulent — and frighteningly shirtless — Chris Farley.

Larry King wrote: “Patrick Swayze was a wonderful actor & a terrific guy. He put his heart in everything. He was an extraordinary fighter in his battle w Cancer.” King added that he’d do a tribute to Swayze on his CNN program on Tuesday night.

Check out some photos below of Patrick in “Dirty Dancing”

Source: AP

“I was such a huge fan of the movie, “Dirty Dancing”. I had the movie that I used to play in my VCR over and over again. My cousin and I would dance and try to do the lift he used do, but we just seemed to never get it right. He was such a great actor and he will surely be missed.”

Rest in Peace Patrick Swayze 1952 – 2009.

Gracing Pages: Shakira Graces the Pages of Vanity Fair

[Shakira lounges in a dress by Gaultier Paris. Her ring is from Cartier.]

Magazine: Vanity Fair
Gracing: Shakira
Newstands: October 2009
Photographed by: Michael Roberts
Styled by: Jessica Diehl
Website: www.vanityfair.com
Notes: Colombian-American singer Shakira adorn in fresh-off-the-runway couture for a sexy photo shoot for the Vanity Fair Magazine for the month of October 2009. She talks about her new music album “She Wolf” which is coming out in October. Jackie Kennedy is on the cover page of the magazine.

[Shakira sure knows how to wear that Armani Privé jacket.]

[Shakira in a stunning Valentino Haute Couture headpiece.]

[In the case of this Givenchy top, all that glitters is gold.]

[Shakira channels Bettie Page in Dior Haute Couture.]

[The She-Wolf gives us something to howl at in Chanel Haute Couture.]

Music News: VMA Breakdown

It was an intense and exciting Sunday evening as the “2009 Video Music Awards” took over New York City, causing quite a stir with Kanye West‘s outburst, Madonna‘s surprise appearance, Janet Jackson‘s tribute performance to her brother Michael and the cast of ‘Twilight”s big reveal of their extended ‘New Moon’ trailer.

Madonna opened the awards show, paying tribute to the late Michael Jackson.

Madonna called Michael Jackson a “hero,” a “king” and a “human being” as she paid tribute to the King of Pop at MTV’s “2009 Video Music Awards,” prior to Janet Jackson‘s anticipated performance.

“When I was six, my mother died. I think he got the shorter end of the sick,” she says of the music legend. “I never had a mother but he never had a childhood.”

Madonna said when she learned of Michael’s death while preparing for her tour, she felt as if she had “abandoned him.”

“I know his pain,” she said, referring to the constant media attention the King of Pop received.

Madonna said his legacy lives on, starting with her two sons who are big fans of the late singer. “There’s a whole lot of crotch grabbing and moon-walking in my house,” Madonna joked.

She concluded her tribute saying, “He was a king, but he was also a human being. … Long live the king.”

Following her words, dancers made their way to the stage to perform to Michael‘s acclaimed song “Thriller.” Janet Jackson followed that performance up with her own tribute, singing the song “Scream,” a duet she recorded with her brother.

Taylor Swift then went up onstage to accept the award for Best Female Music Video from Taylor Lautner and Shakira, but her speech was cut short when Kanye West grabbed the microphone from her, declaring that Beyonce’ Knowles had the best music video of the year.

Swift was also amongst the performers of the night, in addition to Green Day, Pink, Lady Gaga, Beyonce, Jay-Z featuring Alicia Keys and Kid Cudi. Cudi dedicated his performance to the late Adam “DJ AM” Goldstein, while Pink performed high in the sky with a trapeze artist.

The show concluded with a preview of Michael Jackson‘s anticipated documentary ‘This Is It.’

Here is the list of Moon Men winners at the 2009 VMA’s:

Breakthrough Video- Matt and Kim, “Lessons Learned”

Female Video- Taylor Swift, “You Belong with Me”

Rock Video- Green Day, “21 Guns”

Pop Video- Britney Spears, “Womanizer”

Male Video- T.I. featuring Rihanna, “Live Your Life”

Hip-Hop Video- Eminem, “We Made You”

Best New Artist- Lady Gaga

Video of the Year- Beyonce’ Knowles, “Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)”

Check out more photos below from last night’s VMAs.

Source: theInsider/MTV

Music News: Kanye West Does It Again!

The outspoken rapper Kanye West interrupted Taylor Swift‘s acceptance speech for Best Female Video at MTV’s 2009 Video Music Awards, declaring Beyonce‘s music video should have won the moon-man.

“Beyonce had the best video,” he said, taking the microphone from Swift.

Swift, looking taken aback, left the stage following West‘s outburst.

I think Kanye really over-stepped his boundaries as an artist. What he did was not cool one bit. It was rude and very unacceptable. I feel that as an artist at his magnitude of stardom, should have had more respect for Taylor Swift and given her that chance to receive her award for a work well done.

I’m sure that if that if someone who have interrupted his acceptance speech and said that someone else deserved his award more than himself, he would not have been to thrilled.

According to sources, Kanye and Amber Rose were escorted out of the VMA‘s.

Since the incident, Kanye has than posted an apology on his blog by stating the following…

“What are some of your thoughts about what happened at the VMA’s?”

Music News: MTV preparing a behind-the-scenes documentary of MJ VMA Tribute

Michael Jackson VMA Tribute

MTV is creating a half-hour documentary titled “Making Of MJ VMA Tribute,” which will go behind-the-scenes of the production of tomorrow night’s tribute to Michael Jackson at the VMA‘s and will air on the station next weekend.

According to the TV listings at Zap2it.com, this documentary will air at the following times on MTV:

Sat 9/19, 12:30-1:00pm
Sun 9/20, 12:00-12:30am
Sun 9/20, 5:30-6:00pm
Sun 9/20, 6:30-7:00am

Source: janet-xone.com

All On The Cover: Janet Jackson Covers Harper’s Bazaar

All On The Cover: Janet Jackson
Magazine: Harper’s Bazaar
Newstands: October 2009
Photographed by: Tom Munro
Website: www.harpersbazaar.com
Notes: A surprise October 2009 issue of Harper’s Bazaar, featuring Janet Jackson both on newsstands and the subscriber’s cover. Miss Jackson breaks the silence for the first time since Michael‘s death in a world exclusive interview for Harper’s Bazzar, which is already available at Bazaar’s website. More Janet Jackson images by Tom Munro including a few excerpts from the interview below.

In her first interview since her brother’s death, Janet talks to Harper’s Bazaar about how she coped in the days following Michael‘s passing. In the article, Janet reveals for the first time that she has indeed split with Jermaine Dupri, confirming rumors that they had broken up this summer.

The title of her new book “True You” is also confirmed and will be released next year. The article also states that her new album will come out next spring and that she will go on tour next year, however it does not explain whether the tour simply means a promotional tour or a concert tour.

ABCNews.com posted a photo of the magazine cover along with an article that contains some short portions of what Janet said in her Harper’s Bazaar interview.

Janet Jackson Opens Up About Losing Michael….Brotherly Love: The Pop Star Talks About Growing Up With the King of Pop…

There had always been a powerful bond between Janet Jackson and her brother, Michael. Perhaps this is why she says she hasn’t watched television or read a newspaper in the two months since her brother’s sudden death.

“I’d, I’d just like to say that to you, Michael is an icon. To us, Michael is family,” the pop star told Harpers Bazaar. “And he will forever live in all of our hearts.”

She also opens up about her relationship with Michael and their last day together, and how she’s coped by immersing herself in a new album and book.

The Michael Jackson Only She Knew…

As a 14-year-old, it was Janet‘s job to take care of her superstar brother. “I would shop for him. I washed his clothes and cleaned his room. When mother would go out of town, she’d say, ‘I’m leaving you in charge. Take care of Michael.'”

She knew early on that her brother loved clothes that stood out. For the 25th Anniversary of Motown special, Michael grabbed his famous sparkly black jacket from his mother’s closet.

“If it was shiny, if it had any kind of bling, he loved it,” Janet said. Except for his shoes. He danced them down to the soles. “He would wear his shoes all the way down,” remembered Janet. “His penny loafers would have huge holes in the bottom.”

She recalls the joy of making the 1995 music video “Scream” with her brother. “We had so much fun back then. We would organize our days together.”

She also fondly remembers the last time she saw Michael — a month before his death.

“The last time we were together, he’d laugh so hard, he’d just start crying.”

In 2002, Janet told Diane Sawyer how important her brothers were to her.

“I was close to my brothers growing up, and I missed them a great deal when they would go out on tour,” she recalls. She admits that she used binge eating as a way to cope with the pain of their absence.

“I can be an emotional eater,” she says. “Of late, I have been doing that, yes. It started when I was very little. My brothers were gone on tour a lot, and I would miss them so much.”

Moving On as a Family…

Jackson says that they are going through the ordeal of her brother’s death as a family. She’s especially proud of Michael‘s children, Blanket, Prince Michael and, especially, Paris. She said that people have told her that the way that Michael‘s daughter spoke at his memorial really gave them a sense of how he was as a father.

She says the kids are doing well. “They’re with their cousins,” she says. “That family love will keep them going.”

*Source | Harper’s Bazaar/janet-xone.com

P.S…
Don’t forget to check out the VMA‘s Tonight on MTV for Janet Jackson’s Tribute to Michael Jackson. Check back for more updates.

Remembering 9/11

Never forgotten, Always in our hearts.

Crushing Over: Trey Songz

Trey Songz gets extra sexy for a promotional photoshoot. His latest album ‘READY’ is already in stores.

Music News: Jay-Z and Alicia Keys to Perform together at the VMA’s

There’s much anticipation of Jay-Z’s “The Blueprint 3” album release and benefit concert at New York City’s Madison Square Garden on September 11. Jay-Z and Alicia Keys are set to perform at the 26th Annual MTV Video Music Awards. They will be performing the ode to New York single “Empire State of Mind” for the first time. The show will air live from Radio City Music Hall on September 13 at 9 p.m.

Source: Rap-Up

Gracing Pages: Justin Timberlake Graces Elle US

Magazine: ELLE US
Newstands: September 2009
Gracing  Star: Justin Timberlake
Stylist: Joe Zee
Photographed by: Carter Smith
Website: www.elle.com
Notes: Justin Timberlake in a fashion spotlight for the September issue of American Elle Magazine, photographed by Carter Smith. Log on to elle.com for more info.