George Clooney vows to sue French magazine over twins’ photos

LOS ANGELES | George Clooney on Friday said he would take legal action against a French magazine that published the first photos of his newborn twins.

The “Ocean’s Eleven” actor said photographers from Voici magazine “scaled our fence, climbed our tree and illegally took pictures of our infants inside our home.”

Clooney said in a statement that the photographers and the magazine “will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. The safety of our children demands it.”

Clooney and his humanitarian lawyer wife, Amal, announced the arrival of the twins – a boy and a girl called Alexander and Ella – in June but have given no details, photos or interviews about them.

Voici on Friday published grainy photos of Amal and George Clooney, dressed in swim wear, each carrying one of the babies in their arms. They appear to be walking in a garden in what the magazine said was the Clooneys’ villa near Lake Como in Italy.

Voici magazine did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

The babies are their first children for the couple, who married in Venice, Italy in 2014 in a big celebrity ceremony but who have tried to keep their personal lives private since then.

source: interaksyon.com

Serena Williams named Sportsperson of 2015 by Sports Illustrated

Serena Williams, who owned the tennis world this year even as she battled illness and injury, was named sportsperson of 2015 on Monday by Sports Illustrated.

The magazine said it was honoring the 34-year-old icon both for her positively stunning numbers and her pluck in achieving what it called one of the greatest late-career runs in the history of any sport.

Williams won three major titles, triumphed in 53 of the 56 matches she played and ranked number one for every week of the season for the second straight year.

And for six weeks this season, Williams had twice as many ranking points as the world number two player. Sports Illustrated said this was a first in the 40-year history of the WTA rankings.

But those stats mask a year that was “all internal discord and quelled revolts; Williams battled her body like never before,” Sports Illustrated said.

To wit: a cough and cold that had her vomiting during a match at the Australian Open, which she won anyway; bone bruises in both knees — “the residue of 20 years of pounding” — a right elbow strain and nasty flu at the French Open (again, she won).

In a powerful statement against racism, Williams also returned to play a tournament at Indian Wells, California, for the first time since 2001. That year she was greeted with boos and her family says she even endured racial slurs.

Williams called that return her “greatest moment in tennis.”

“Serena has made a very strong case as not only the greatest tennis player of her generation but of all time, and after the string of performances she put together in 2015, she is one of the most dominant athletes playing today,” Sports Illustrated Group Editor Paul Fichtenbaum said.

“This year was spectacular,” Williams said of her latest accolade.

“For Sports Illustrated to recognize my hard work, dedication and sheer determination with this award gives me hope to continue on and do better. As I always say, it takes a village — not just one person. This is not just an accomplishment for me, but for my whole team and all my fans. I am beyond honored,” she said, according to Sports Illustrated.

source: interaksyon.com

Meet Sports Illustrated's first plus-size model

MANILA, Philippines – For the first time in history, Sports Illustrated is featuring a plus size model in an “editorial spread.”

Robyn Lawley, an Australian Native is gracing the issue's "Rookies" section, wearing a scanty tangerine and snake skin-inspired bikini that showcases her bodacious curves.

In the US, size 12 Lawley is technically considered a plus-size although an average American woman is size 14. She was considered as one of the first plus-size women in the modeling industry and has been very vocal about her advocacy to stop the plus-size stigma.

“I don’t know if I consider myself as a plus-size model or not. I just consider myself a model because I’m trying to help women in general accept their bodies,” Lawley told TIME.

Lawley shared her scorching hot photos on her Instagram account:




Aside from Lawley, size 16 model Ashley Graham  also made buzz for starring in the first ever ad to feature a plus-size model in the pages of the magazine's annual swimsuit issue.

This year's coveted swimsuit issue features Hannah Davis, a 24-year old model hailing from St. Thomas in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

source:  philstar.com

Pope Francis lands cover of 'Rolling Stone'

Pope Francis is taking his place alongside the icons of American popular culture by appearing on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, which hits newsstands Friday.

It's the first time the staunchly liberal rock-music bible has featured a Roman Catholic pontiff on its cover, which is typically graced by pop stars and movie idols.

"Pope Francis: the times they are a-changin'," reads the cover headline that borrows the title of Bob Dylan's classic early 1960s anthem.

The Argentine-born pope, who took office in March last year, has previously been Time magazine's Person of the Year. He also made the cover of The Advocate, the respected US gay rights magazine.

In an accompanying 8,000-word profile, seen on its website Wednesday, Rolling Stone hailed the pontiff's relaxed style and his less aggressive stance on such hot-button issues as homosexuality compared to his two predecessors.

In a statement, Rolling Stone's editors said they had been struck by his seeming effort to play down "culture war issues" and his willingness to talk "about real world economic issues in starkly moral terms."

"His tone is a breath of fresh air, but his message is a wake-up call," they said.

Roman Catholics make up the biggest Christian denomination in the United States, but polls indicate lay Catholics don't all share the national church leadership's hardline stance on abortion, contraception and gay marriage.

source: interaksyon.com

Alice Dixson’s cover issue shaping up to be one of FHM’s best sellers for 2013

With copies disappearing from newsstands faster than anyone can say, “I can feel it,” FHM’s December 2013 issue featuring “For Love or Money” star Alice Dixson is on pace to become one of the magazine’s best sellers of the year.

This was what Allan Madrilejos, editor-in-chief of FHM Philippines told InterAksyon in an interview three days after the well-attended autograph signing session of the issue last Saturday at Robinsons Galleria.

“Sales wise, we won’t have a clear picture of how much the issue sold until February or early March pa. But At the rate the issue’s selling sa newsstands at digital newsstands, we’re hoping it sells about 80 plus percent of our total print run and garners at the very least 10,000 digital buys. That’s a solid sales performance that would make the issue one of the year’s top five best selling FHM issues,” he revealed.

Madrilejos added that his estimates may even be conservative as all signs point to a successful pursuit of the actress for their year-end cover issue — something many of Alice’s fans believe was well worth the long wait.

“Sobrang panalo ang feedback about the Alice cover stint. Record-breaking nga ang number of likes sa Facebook fanpage namin at 85,000 per my last count. An estimated 300 persons attended her autograph signing last Saturday, which also makes it one of our heavily-attended sessions this year,” he noted.





Alice’s own official Facebook fan page greatly benefited from her FHM exposure. Prior to the release of the issue, it only had more than 100,000 likes. Now it has more than doubled to 240,000 likes.

Not bad for a bold and sexy career move that Alice has resisted over the years. “Everything that is meant to be—inevitably WILL be,” the 44-year old actress tweeted this writer in reference to her FHM cover shoot.

With all this upward trajectory, Alice could be expected to crack next year’s FHM’s 100 Sexiest Women list in a very big way, possibly the top 10, top 5 or even higher.

“As long as I don’t have to wear anything skimpy, OK lang,” Alice replied when InterAksyon asked her about what she feels about making the list and subsequently gracing the traditional “FHM 100 Sexiest Victory Party” that usually follows the announcement.

source: interaksyon.com

Obama is - once again - TIME's 'Person of the Year'

NEW YORK - Time magazine on Wednesday named the recently re-elected US President Barack Obama as its person of the year for 2012 -- the second time it has accorded him this honor.

Obama now not only has a reelection as America's first black president and a Nobel peace prize under his belt, but he beat fancied runners-up, including brave Pakistani girls' rights activist Malala Yousafzai, to be enshrined again as Time's dominant personality of the year.

The venerable American news magazine put Obama on its cover, striking a thoughtful, statuesque pose, and said he deserved the accolade as "the symbol and in some ways the architect of this new America."

The magazine lauded Obama's campaigning prowess, noting he was the first president since Franklin Delano Roosevelt to win more than 50 percent of the vote in two straight elections and the first president since 1940 to be re-elected despite a jobless rate above 7.5 percent.

Obama beat Republican Mitt Romney soundly in November's election to win a second four-year term, despite presiding over a chronic economic slump.

"In 2012, he found and forged a new majority, turned weakness into opportunity and sought, amid great adversity, to create a more perfect union," said Time, which had named Obama person of the year back in 2008 when he became America's first black president.

The others considered for the weekly magazine's traditional annual honor were Apple CEO Tim Cook, atomic scientist Fabiola Gianotti, and Egypt's post-revolutionary President Mohamed Morsi.

But Obama swept to the head of the pack because of what Time said was his ability to grasp the demographic and social changes shifting the United States.

"The truth is," Obama told Time, "that we have steadily become a more diverse and tolerant country that embraces people's differences and respects people who are not like us. That's a profoundly good thing. That's one of the strengths of America."

source: interaksyon.com

TV5 princess Ritz Azul is FHM’s November cover girl

The latest cover girl of FHM Philippines is no other than TV5 primetime princess Ritz Azul, whose voluptuous figure adorns the magazine’s November 2012 issue.

In the cover image shot by Roy Macam, the 18-year-old actress is shown wearing a body-hugging and translucent white leotard while sitting cross-legged on the hood of a luxury car.

Before the big reveal on Monday, the guessing game on the magazine’s website over the weekend gave three clues: (1) neither a Kapuso nor a Kapamilya; (2) played the role of a sexy dancer in her primetime show; and (3) resembles Mariel Rodriguez, Isabel Oli and Rhea Santos, but a “future crush ng bayan” in her own right.

Ritz, of course, is a homegrown Kapatid talent and a product of the “Star Factor” talent search,  the precursor to “Artista Academy”.

Last year, she made heads turn with her daring portrayal of a showbiz aspirant in “Mga Nagbabagang Bulaklak”, which won for her the Outstanding Breakthrough Performance by an Actress from the ENPRESS Golden Screen TV Awards and the Amazing Female Newcomer from Yahoo! Philippines OMG Awards.

A mainstay of the sketch-comedy show “Lokomoko” and the comedy fantasy series “Kapitan Awesome, Ritz will soon play Derek Ramsay’s love interest in TV5′s upcoming superhero series “Kidlat.”

This FHM pictorial is the first sexy shoot for the actress, who happens to be the Sangguniang Kabataan chairperson in her village in her hometown in Pampanga.

source: interaksyon.com

FHM October cover introduces new Viva sex goddess

“Sexy movies are back!” FHM Philippines trumpets on the cover of its October 2012 issue, out this weekend.

For proof the magazine offers Yam Concepcion, Viva’s new sex goddess, who appears totally nude on the cover shot by Xander Angeles. ”Our boldest cover of the year,” FHM proclaims.

Yam will be launched in Erik Matti’s new erotic film “Rigodon”, a co-production of Viva and Reality Films, which is expected to herald the return of sexy movies in mainstream Philippine cinema.

Don’t laugh if her name sounds like that of the leading man of the movie musical “I Do Bidoo Bidoo”. Yam used to be a musician herself; she was the drummer for the band Ursa Minor.

Those who have Viva TV on their cable may already know her as one of the six temptresses-in-training mentored by Maui Taylor and Katya Santos in the sexy reality show “Pantaxa”.

source: interaksyon.com

Hot men unite for the Cosmo Bachelor Bash 2012

Napuno ng nagguguwapuhan at matitipunong kalalakihan ang Cosmo Bachelor Bash nitong Martes ng gabi, September 18, sa World Trade Center.

Pinangunahan ito ng mga Cosmo Centerfolds na sina Alden Richards, JM de Guzman, Joseph Marco, Anthony at David Semerad, John James Uy, Markki Stroem, Mikael Daez, Ian Batherson, at John Spainhour.




Marami naman ang nadismaya sa hindi pagdalo ng cover boy na si Paulo Avelino.

Ayon sa source ng PEP.ph (Philippine Entertainment Portal), nasa U.S. daw ngayon si Paulo kasama ang cast members ng teleseryeng Walang Hanggan para sa Kapamilya Karavan.

Bandang alas-nuebe nang magsimula ang Cosmo Bachelor Bash 2012 na dinaluhan ng libu-libong kababaihan at maging mga bading.

Kabilang sa mga celebrities na namataan ng PEP sa loob ng World Trade Center ay sina Michelle Madrigal, Megan Young, Gwen Garci, Bubbles Paraiso, Ehra Madrigal, Divine Lee, IC Mendoza, Carla Humphries, at Rajo Laurel.

Bago lumabas ang 69 Cosmo bachelors ay ilang mga modelo muna ang rumampa, at ang iba naman ay sumayaw sa stage upang simulang painitin ang gabi ng mga manonood.

IT'S RAINING MEN. Nang lumabas na ang Cosmo bachelors ay napuno na ng hiyawan at tilian sa loob ng venue.

Sinimulan ito ng video footage ng Brazilian-Japanese model-actor na si Daniel Matsunaga, na ipinapakitang unti-unting naghubad ng kanyang pang-itaas habang may ka-chat sa kanyang laptop.

Maya-maya pa ay lumabas na nga ang topless na si Daniel sa stage at ipinakita sa lahat ang kanyang matipunong pangangatawan.

Ilan pa sa mga hunks na sumunod sa kanya ay sina JC Tiuseco, Aaron Villaflor, Rocco Nacino, Enzo Pineda, James Blanco, Pancho Magno, Carlo Gonzales, at Jay Gonzaga.

Rumampa rin ang mga miyembro ng Philippine Azkals (national football team) na sina Aly Borromeo, Anton del Rosario, Simon Greatwich, Nate Burkey, at Jonah Romero.

Nandun din ang mga miyembro ng Philippine Volcanoes (national rugby team) na sina Andrew Wolfe, Eric Tai, Kenneth Stern, at Harry Morris.

Kabilang din sa rumampa ang surfer na si Luke Landrigan at ang ex-Pinoy Big Brother housemate at ngayo'y artista nang si Tom Rodriguez.

Sumunod namang rumampa ang aktor na si Baron Geisler, ang model-actor na si John Hall, at ang Brapanese models na sina Fabio Ide at si Hideo Muroaka.

COSMO CENTERFOLDS. Halos alas-onse na ng gabi nang isa-isang lumabas ang pinakahihintay na Cosmo centerfolds.

Naunang lumabas ang Kapamilya young actor na si Joseph Marco na nakadamit na pang-piloto at naka-shades. Pero agad din niya itong hinubad at ipinakita ang kanyang well-toned body.

Humugot pa si Joseph mula sa kanyang pants ng mga underwear kung saan naka-print ang kanyang pangalan at ibinato ang mga ito sa audience.

Magkasabay namang lumabas ang kambal na collegiate basketball players na sina Anthony at David Semerad.

Naka-Spiderman costume naman ang model-actor na si John James Uy nang lumabas sa stage. Unti-unti niya ring hinubad ang kanyang pang-itaas.

Tila magsu-swimming naman ang singer-model na si Markki Stroem nang lumabas na may nakapatong lamang na towel sa balikat at nakalagay pa ang goggles sa ulo.

Biglang inilagay ni Markki ang towel sa kanyang baywang at pagkatapos ay hinubad ang shorts na suot.

Maya-maya ay rumampa siya at inalis din ang towel kaya’t ang kanyang blue underwear na lamang ang naiwang suot niya.

Office attire naman with matching eyeglasses ang suot ng Kapuso actor-model na si Mikael Daez nang lumabas sa stage.

Unti-unti niyang hinubad ang suot na long-sleeve polo at mga accessories hanggang sa isang black sando top na lamang ang kanyang pang-itaas.

Dito na siya kumuha ng isang babae mula sa audience at pinaakyat sa stage. Game na game namang nakipagsayaw sa kanya ang babae. Maya-maya ay hinubad na rin ni Mikael ang suot na sando.

Isang pulis naman ang ginaya ng StarStruck alumnus na si Ian Batherson at wari’y hinuli niya ang isang babae mula sa audience at inakyat sa stage.

Sinayawan din ni Ian ang babae at maya-maya ay hinubad na niya isa-isa ang kanyang mga suot hanggang sa boxer shorts na lamang ang natira.

Kasunod na lumabas ang Century Tuna Superbods grand winner na si John Spainhour, na isa sa may pinakamagandang katawan sa mga centerfolds.

Isa naman sa pinaka-tinilian ay ang Kapamilya actor na si JM de Guzman. Isang masuwerteng babae ang inakyat at isinayaw niya sa stage.

Pang-pizza delivery boy naman ang suot ng Kapuso heartthrob na si Alden Richards nang lumabas sa stage. Naghubad ito ng kanyang top at pinunit ng konti ang kanyang pantalon nang rumampa sa stage.

Pagkatapos nito ay lumabas na sa stage ang lahat ng mga Cosmo bachelors para sa huling pagrampa nila. -- Kathleen Benavidez, PEP

source: gmanetwork.com

Italian magazine says Kate pics a 'scoop' they have to run

ROME - The editor of an Italian gossip magazine planning to print topless photographs of Prince William's wife Catherine said Saturday the pictures were "a scoop" he could not let pass.

"First of all, if I wasn't capable of recognizing the true value of a scoop I would do better to go and sell artichokes at the market," Alfonso Signorini, editor of the weekly magazine Chi, told the ANSA news agency.

"Secondly, and regarding the law, the photos do not harm the dignity of a person, they are not morbid or exciting -- unlike the ones of Prince Harry published by the English papers," he added.

Britain's top-selling daily The Sun broke ranks with the rest of the British press last month and defied royal orders by running photos of Prince Harry, William's younger brother, frolicking naked in a Las Vegas hotel suite.

A spokesman for William and Catherine on Saturday denounced the "greed" of an Irish Daily Star newspaper, which printed the papers on Saturday.

And the family has also warned Chi magazine that "unjustifiable upset" would be heaped upon Catherine if it went ahead with its plans to print the photos.

But Signorini argued that the paparazzi photos were taken on a terrace, in a public place, in conformity with the laws regarding private life.

The photos of Catherine, who was sunbathing at a private chateau in the south of France wearing just her bikini bottoms, appear to have been taken from a road some distance away using a long lens.

Chi magazine has already said it will devote 26 pages to the pictures in an edition coming out on Monday.

Both Chi and the French magazine Closer belong to the Mondadori Group which is owned by former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi -- himself no stranger to scandals involving revealing photos taken by paparazzi.

source: interaksyon.com

Dingdong, Aljur, at Rocco: Top 3 Kapuso centerfolds ng Cosmopolitan magazine

Napili ng Cosmopolitan Philippines editor-in-chief na si Myrza Sison sina Dingdong Dantes, Aljur Abrenica, at Rocco Nacino bilang top 3 Kapuso centerfolds ng kanilang magazine.

Sa panayam kay Myrza ng StarTalk TX nitong Sabado, sinabi nitong binalikan ng Cosmo team ang centerfolds nitong nakaraang sampung taon mula nang magsimula ang kanilang Bachelor's Issue at napili niya ang tatlong Kapuso bilang kaniyang paborito.

Tuwing Setyembre, naglalabas ang naturang magazine ng isang centerfold issue kung saan tampok ang mga napiling hunks mula sa industriya bilang sexiest Bachelors ng taon.

Dingdong Dantes: 'nasa kanya na ang lahat'

Si Dingdong ang ideal na leading man dahil tila nasa kanya na ang lahat, ayon kay Myrza.

Inilarawan niya ang Kapuso hunk bilang tall, handsome, edukado, at magaling na aktor.

Nagkaroon din ng malaking impak ang aktor nang mapasama siya sa isang feature ng E! News ukol sa Top 10 Sexiest Man poll.

Ayon pa kay Dingdong, "Na-surprise ako that until now naalala pa niya iyon and she sees me that way."

Nagpasalamat din ang aktor sa karangalang ibinigay sa kanya ng Cosmopolitan PH EIC.

Iginiit din ng aktor na hindi lang sa panlabas na anyo ang batayan ng pagiging isang "hunk."

Aniya, "Para sa akin ang pagiging hunk ay hindi lang sa pampisikal na kaanyuan o panglabas na kaanyuan."

"’Pag sinabi mong hunk, eh, encompasses total manhood. Kapag sinabi mong manhood masasabi mong may tunay na paninindigan sa kanyang salita," saad niya.

Aljur Abrenica: may homegrown appeal

Sa parehong panayam, inilarawan ni Myrza si Aljur bilang isang hunk na may "homegrown appeal."

Pinoy na Pinoy raw ang sex appeal ng Survivor alumnus na taliwas sa karamihan ng ibang hunks sa bansa na may dugong dayuhan.

Dagdag pa ni Myrza, sinabi rin ng isang Cosmo staffer na "he has the face of a gentleman, but a body made for sin."

Ayon naman kay Aljur, isang malaking papuri raw para sa kanya ang masabihang Pinoy na Pinoy.

Aniya, "I feel honored na isa ako sa napili na favorite nila. Hindi pa ganon kaganda ‘yong katawan ko, binansagan na nila [Cosmopolitan] akong hunk talaga."

"Simula noon, ‘yon ang isa sa mga inspirasyon ko na ma-pursue na mapanagutan ko ‘yong title na binigay sa akin ng GMA," diin niya.

Rocco Nacino: intense Pinoy appeal

Magaling na aktor na may intense at "homegrown" Pinoy appeal ang paglalarawan ni Myrza sa Kapuso hunk na si Rocco.

Kaya naman ikinatuwa ng aktor nang malaman nitong kabilang siya sa Top 3 Kapuso centerfold hunks na pinili ng naturang magazine.

Ayon kay Rocco, "Of course very flattering na nakasama ako doon sa list ng Top 10 hunks sa Cosmo by Ms. Myrza. Ngayon mas motivated na ako ngayon para magbigay ng magandang performance para sa mga audience."

"To be honest, ‘yong katawan ko hindi siya ganon ka-perfect ['di tulad] nang ibang hunks na meron tayo [sa bansa]. Pero sa tingin ko, just feeling confident about myself at ‘yong feeling na I can be myself, be someone na ganito si Rocco," diin nito. –Mac Macapendeg/KG, GMA News

source: gmanetwork.com

BB Gandanghari Willing To Do Sexy Magazine Pictorial

BB Gandanghari has already donned two-piece bikinis in some of his modeling stints abroad. And he’s willing to do the same for a local magazine.

The actor, who has done ramp modeling and trunk shows in New York, told “Bandila” on Tuesday night that although posing for a sexy magazine won’t be a “big deal,” he admitted, “ayoko lang paglaruan.”

“But if it’s really just a thing for editorial purposes, wala naman akong qualms diyan,” he added.

Since his return to the country a few months ago, as well as an eventual showbiz comeback of sorts, BB has been hounded with questions regarding sex change, which he has not directly addressed. When “Bandila” host Boy Abunda asked him to identify himself, BB confessed, “It has become very complicated already. I don’t wanna label myself…”

Nevertheless, he deemed that the “best word to describe me now is I’m androgynous in process.” Androgynous means having both male and female characteristics.

“As an orientation I may be considered as a gay person, but deep in my heart I feel the other way so hayaan na natin sa ganyan,” he also related.

BB, then actor Rustom Padilla of the famous Padilla band of brothers, “came out” in Feb. 2006 through “Pinoy Big Brother Celebrity Edition,” where he was one of the housemates. A month after that, he asked for a voluntary exit.

The 44-year-old admitted that “PBB” became the “perfect venue” for the confession, especially because “I want it na isahan. Ayokong mag-explain [sa] each group...

“That was my plan, that it will be my venue to talk to the Filipino people… who’s been supporting me all those years, because I have been an actor for like 15 years when I entered ‘PBB.’ During those times maraming haka-haka. So just to settle the issue straight… I think ‘PBB’ was the perfect venue. Plus the fact na I don’t wanna be probed while coming out at the time,” he explained.

When sought for comment on his seeming deviation from an interview statement years back that he would not dress up like a woman, BB said that he was talking then as Rustom.

“I take offense not because people just call me Rustom. I take offense because I think we have to give it to Rustom because if I was Rustom, I wouldn’t be dressing up this way. Exactly the point kasi ganun talaga mag-isip si Rustom. Lalaki siya eh. Sabihin mo nang gay man siya, ganun siya. But I’m dressing up this way because I am BB. I talk this way because I am BB,” he said.

BB previously related to TV5’s “Paparazzi” the discrimination he experienced in the US. Now, “very surprisingly,” he feels he has been subjected more to discrimination overseas than in the Philippines. It even got to a point where he had difficulty looking for a job.

“Actually mas ngayon ko nararamdaman kasi remember, nagkaron lang ako ng transition a few years ago so ngayon lang talaga ako nabubuhay bilang si BB. At ngayon ko lang nakikita ‘yung reaction sa’kin ng mga tao. So I when I went to the US two years ago, at dun na ko nagpakilala bilang si BB, dun ko nakita, iba… Sabi namin sa Amerika, ‘Oh, we are the new Black now.’ It’s really discriminating, ‘yung mag-apply ka, siyempre ang kita sa’yo babae ‘di ba, eh siyempre sa application mo naman, hindi mo naman dadayain ‘yon. So ‘pag nakita [na lalaki ka], ‘next,’” he recalled.

He also recalled his work experience in a New York restaurant where “ayaw nila akong ilagay sa front because of my orientation.”

Meanwhile, his celebrity status here might’ve “shielded” him a bit from discrimination, BB surmised.

“People tend to accept you as you are kasi artista ka, natutuwa sila kay BB. Pero nakakaramdam ka rin ng diskriminasyon in some other ways kasi makakarinig ka ng mga comment na, ‘Okay lang siya sa’min, basta ‘wag siyang magpapa-opera ha.’ That’s discriminating, ‘di ba? Not necessarily sa akin but to other people who opted for that…” said he.

He may have yet to discover his purpose, but BB enthused he is happy right now and doesn’t regret his past decisions. He also did not dare question God because he believes that everyone has their own burdens to carry.

But does he still miss his old self?

“Hindi. I know he’s more at peace now so I’ll let him be,” BB said with a smile.

source: mb.com.ph

Iwa Moto is Playboy’s cover girl for August

Iwa Moto is the cover girl of the latest issue of Playboy Philippines. Emphasis on latest because the magazine keeps to its tradition of coming out really late in the month.

This August 2012 issue featuring three-time FHM cover girl Iwa won’t hit the shelves until next week, according to the magazine’s Facebook page on Monday.

Described on the cover as “young, wild and feisty”, the outspoken Filipino-Japanese actress made the headlines in July when she admitted dating Sen. Panfilo Lacson’s son Panfilo Jr. (or Pampi) and then accused Pampi’s ex-wife, actress Jodi Sta. Maria, of cheating on him when they were still married, with Iwa’s ex-boyfriend, Mickey Ablan.

source: interaksyon.com

Sam Pinto is FHM’s sexiest for 2nd straight year

Sam Pinto is the sexiest woman in the land for the second year in a row, according to the results of a popular annual poll conducted by FHM Philippines. FHM made the announcement on its website on Thursday.

The 22-year-old actress and model narrowly beat fellow perennial contender and two-time winner Angel Locsin, garnering 1,249,189 votes against the latter’s 1,131,505. FHM promised to release the poll’s Top 10 results on July 1.

An alumna of “Pinoy Big Brother” and a mainstay of the gag show “Bubble Gang”, Sam is the third celebrity to achieve the feat, after Angel and Katrina Halili.

She is the second to do it in two successive years, after Katrina’s back-to-back triumphs in 2006 and 2007.

The complete results of the FHM 100 Sexiest Women in the World, as the poll is officially known, will appear in a supplement accompanying the July 2012 issue of the magazine.

source: interaksyon.com

Newsweek stirs buzz with 'first gay president' cover

WASHINGTON — Newsweek made no apologies Monday for anointing Barack Obama as “the first gay president” on its cover this week, matching its rival Time in terms of online buzz.

It depicted Obama with an angelic rainbow halo just days after Obama became the first sitting president of the United States ever to come out in favor of same-sex marriage.

“Obama’s earned every stripe in this haloed rainbow,” said Tina Brown, editor of Newsweek and its online counterpart The Daily Beast, on her Twitter account (@TheTinaBeast).

White House press secretary Jay Carney, asked what Obama thought about the cover, said Monday: “I don’t know if he’s seen it and I haven’t spoken to him about it.”

Newsweek’s cover followed Time’s jaw-dropping cover photo of a Los Angeles mother nursing her three-year-old son aside the headline “Are you mom enough?” for a feature on so-called “attachment parenting.”

“I do understand why Time chose this picture because ... it did create such a media craze to get the dialogue talking,” the mother, Jamie Lynne Grumet, told NBC’s “Today” program.

Time claims a total print circulation of 3.3 million, just over double Newsweek’s 1.5 million—and both titles have been struggling to sustain their newsstand sales, which hinge in large part on a given cover’s impact.

Newsweek executive editor Justine Rosenthal, speaking in a video on its website, said the magazine had another cover story in the works, but ditched it “after Obama ‘came out,’ not to coin a phrase,” last Wednesday.

Several versions of the cover image were considered, including one with Obama “holding a married (same-sex) couple like a wedding cake,” she said.

The online edition of PR News, a public relations trade journal, noted how Newsweek had been trying to create a “#firstgaypresident” hashtag trend on Twitter—something that would send more traffic to its website.

“Rival publications trying to one-up each other with provocative covers is nothing new, but Newsweek’s Obama cover is too obvious a publicity-seeking ploy, and smells of desperation from old media,” it said.

It noted, however, that Time had sold more online subscriptions on the day its controversial cover appeared—just in time for Mother’s Day in the United States—than it had for the entire week before.

source: japantoday.com