Aretha Franklin to Sing at Barack Obama's Inauguration

Aretha Franklin is going to lend her powerhouse vocals to entertain the crowd at one of the nation's most historic events.

The acclaimed singer will perform at President-elect Barack Obama's Inauguration on January 20 in Washington D.C., the Associated Press reports.

Congressional leaders announced the program line-up Wednesday, which includes a prayer by Pastor Rick Warren and a cello performance by Yo-Yo Ma.

Some of the big celebs already confirmed to appear at the event include Anne Hathaway, Susan Sarandon, Tim Robbins, Marcia Cross, Seal, Adrian Grenier and Ashley Judd, among others.
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Oprah: Getting Fit for Obama!

Tipping the scales at 200 pounds, Oprah Winfrey recently admitted of her weight, "I'm mad at myself. I'm embarrassed." As Inauguration Day approaches, Winfrey – who has said she finds Barack Obama inspiring, has vowed to shed her extra weight.

Oprah is determined to lose 15 pounds before the swearing in of her close friend on Jan. 20, and is doing so with the help of another one of her allies, fitness and weight-loss guru, Bob Greene.

The talk-show host, 54, has admitted to putting on 40 pounds since 2004. In the January 2009 issue of O Magazine, Oprah confesses she hit rock bottom while standing between Tina Turner and Cher during an April show-taping in Las Vegas.

"I felt like a fat cow," she says. "I wanted to disappear.

"But now with Greene's help, the daytime diva plans to get her fitness plan back on track.

"Oprah knows the rules," Bob tells OK!. "I have five weeks. She'll be aggressive and lose the weight in a healthy way.

"The key to Bob's plan? "She needs an hour of cardiovascular excercise six days a week. Crunches are done every day. That's the core excercise.

"In addition, three or four days a week, she'll do 15-20 minutes of strength training. Although a malfunctioning thyroid diagnosis earlier this year is partly to blame for her weight gain, the TV queen is learning to change her diet."She became a sneak eater. She nibbles at events and parties. You never caught her eating fattening foods in public."
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Julia Roberts Walks Her Dog In Malibu

Julia Roberts picked up after her pooch Tuesday in Malibu, California---This should make you feel a little better about yourself, huh?

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Gwen Stefani And Gavin Rossdale Get a Date Night

Gwen Stefani was all smiles as she and Gavin Rossdale watched the Lakers-Knicks game Tuesday in L.A.

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Zac Efron And Vanessa Hudgens Also Take In the Game

Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens cheered on as the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the New York Knicks, 116-114, Tuesday in L.A.

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Jennifer Aniston Chats With Dave Letterman

Jennifer Aniston hit up the Late Show With David Letterman in NYC Wednesday

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Real Housewives Of Atlanta Will Return For Second Season

The Real Housewives of Atlanta fans rejoice! The show has been picked up for a second season by Bravo.

The sassy Southerners proved to be the most popular Housewives on the network, beating out the New York and Orange County installments.

A second season premiere date has not yet been announced and no word on whether NeNe Leakes, DeShawn Snow, Sheree Whitfield, and Lisa Wu will return to the show.
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Wiil Smith's New Movie--Opening Friday

Will Smith and Rosario Dawson are all smiles at the Seven Pounds Los Angeles premiere on Tuesday.

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Marc Anthony And Jennifer Lopez Out In Beverly Hills

Amidst rumors of trouble, Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony had a romantic dinner date in Beverly Hills last night.

Enjoying a night away from their twins Emme and Max, Jennifer and Marc dined at Luau on Tuesday and were seen snuggling up at in a booth. They enjoyed cocktails (beer for him; a martini for her), dinner and even dessert.

Jen looked amazing in a form-fitting jeans, tan blazer and tan sandals; Marc wore a long blue blazer, the shirt beneath unbuttoned in his trademark style with black pants and shoes. Marc held his wife's hand in and out of the restaurant. And, yes, her enormous ring was on.
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The Biggest Loser Has A Winner

Michelle Aguilar, who entered the competition with her once-estranged mom, Renee Wilson, was declared the Biggest Loser after dropping 45.45 percent of her starting body weight of 242 pounds.

Meaning, the lovely 26-year-old from Fort Worth, Texas, weighed in at 132 pounds on tonight's two-hour live finale. She beat out 31-year-old Ed Brantley, a chef from North Carolina, and 37-year-old Vicky Vilcan from Louisiana.

The runners-up didn't do too shabbily, though, with Ed going from 335 to 196 pounds and Vicky whittling down from 246 to 145 pounds.

The winner was determined not by number of pounds shed, but by percentage of body weight lost.

"We went through a lot, but it was all—all—worth it," Michelle said before learning that she had made the most progress, percentage-wise.

But though three were on hand for the final weigh-in, the night started off with four big losers still hoping for a shot at the big money.

First off, with Ed and his wife, Heba Salama, both falling below the yellow line last week, it was up to America to choose between them—and 84 percent went with Ed.

"Everything happens for a reason," said Heba, who had urged viewers to vote for her while Ed had suggested they support his better half (aw). "We have been so lucky to be on this show…If people voted my husband in, it is what it is, and we are winners tonight, no matter what."
At 294 pounds, Heba was the show's heaviest female contestant, and she ended up dropping nearly half her body weight.

And what a night it still was for her and her hubby: The 30-year-old from Raleigh, N.C., lost 138 pounds and won the consolatory $100,000 "at home" prize for losing a higher percentage of weight—53.06 percent—than all those previously eliminated from competition.

The next season of the hit NBC series, The Biggest Loser: Couples, kicks off Jan. 6, featuring, among others, the show's oldest contestants, two spouses who are both 63; a 379-pound woman, who will be the largest female to ever compete; and a 19-year-old boy who will be the show's heaviest contestant of all time at 454 pounds.
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Could Robert Pattinson Be Joining The Pirates' Franchise?

Will Rob Pattinson be joining Johnny Depp's band of buccaneers in the upcoming Pirates of the Caribbean installment?

An rumor claims the Twilight actor might be in line to join the franchise, but it remains unconfirmed for now.

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Jennifer Garner With Violet

Jennifer Garner picking up Violet from pre-school....can this poor woman have her baby already?!

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Matthew McConaughey Jogging Yet Again

Matthew McConaughey went jogging in Malibu Tuesday---is there ever a moment when this man is NOT exercising..??

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Elisabeth Hasselbeck Complains About Not Being Invited To The White House Christmas Party

On Tuesday's live taping of The View, conservative co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck complained that she didn't receive her usual invitation to the White House Christmas party.

"Maybe I didn't do enough for the Republican party this year," Hasselbeck said on the show.
Turns out, it was never the intention of the White House to not invite her or her husband, Tim, to the soiree.

"Following today's live show, Elisabeth received a call from the The White House, and they both had a great conversation," said Karl T. Nilsson, the executive publicity director of The View. "The President's office apologized and explained that she and her husband were indeed invited to the White House for Christmas and were sorry that it did not arrive. It was simply an oversight."

Before finding out that the snub was unintentional, Hasselbeck said she had a "bone to pick" with the White House.

"I love Christmas cards," she said. "I love getting them. There is one in particular that I usually like, and it's an invitation to the White House Christmas party. Not the big one but the 20th one down the road that you get the leftovers at the party. I'd be going to that one. No invitation this year."
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Cameron Diaz in Manhattan

Cameron Diaz Strolling on Tuesday, Dec. 16, in NYC with the world's largest purse.

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Tom Cruise And Katie Holmes Out At The Premiere For His New Movie Valkyrie

Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes pose with Chariman and CEO of MGM Harry Sloan and Chairperson of MGM Worldwide Motion Picture Group Mary Parent, at the NYC premiere after party for Valkyrie on Monday, Dec. 15, in NYC.

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