Skyfall is the title of the 23rd James Bond film, as announced during the press conference for the latest in the Bond franchise. Present in the London press conference were director Sam Mendes, producers Michael G. Wilson, Barbara Brocolli plus the cast: Daniel Craig (reprising his role as Bond), Javier Bardem (confirmed as the villain), [...]
Discovery announced on Monday that it will be airing a special one-hour documentary to celebrate the late Steve Jobs’ contributions in advancing technology and changing the way we do things.
iGenius: How Steve Jobs Changed the World will be hosted by MythBusters‘ Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman. It will feature interviews with former Apple employees, as well as Jobs’ contemporaries in the computing field, journalists, scientists, educators, artists including Tom Brokaw, Joe Nocera, Stevie Wonder, Pete Wentz, Daniel Kottke and John Draper.
“Someone once said that to follow the path that others have laid before you is a very reasonable course of action, therefore all progress is made by unreasonable men. Steve Jobs was an unreasonable man. He didn’t simply give the public what they wanted, he defined entirely new ways of thinking about our lives in the digital space: productivity, creativity, music, communication, media and art. He has touched, directly and indirectly, all of our lives,” says co-host Savage.
iGenius: How Steve Jobs Changed the World will air on Sunday, October 16 at 8:00 pm ET.
NBA commissioner David Stern announced earlier that first two weeks of the regular season had been cancelled.
“We remain very, very apart on all issues,”
… Stern said after the league representatives’ meeting with Players Association officials, wherein they failed to reach a new labor agreement.
“With every day that goes by, there will be further reductions on what’s left of the season,” he added.
The last time the league had a shortened season was in 1989-99 when another owner-imposed lockout limited NBA teams to playing just 50 games.
The cancellations include all games scheduled through Nov. 14 and according to ESPN, venues for the scheduled games were told they were now free to book other events until that date.
ABS-CBN News recently launched a weather sms service. Called WEATHER ON, it allows cellphone subscribers to have the latest weather and weather-related information as they become available.
Subscribe to this text service via your mobile phone by texting WEATHERON and send it to 366 and you’ll get updates such as typhoon alerts, class suspensions, flooded areas.
Each SMS received costs P2.50 for Globe and Smart subsribers, and P2.00 for Sun subscribers.
Entertainment show host and Eat Bulaga mainstay Pia Guanio married businessman boyfriend Steve Mago October 1, Saturday in a very private wedding ceremony in Ayala, Alabang attended by closest friends and relatives.
They’re planning a bigger wedding in Europe next year.
Guanio first broke the news of their engagement last May 7, during her segment at GMA 7‘s 24 Oras where she is the showbiz news anchor.
Starstruck 5 Ultimate Female Survivor Sarah Lahbati will soon be starring in the TV remake of 1989 film Kokak. She’ll be playing the role of Kara, originally played by Rachel Lobangco. Kara, cursed to be a frog, must find true love in order to be set free from the spell.
TJ Trinidad and JC Tiuseco is joining Lahbati as her leading men and Ricky Davao directs.
Kokak will air on November 14, replacing Pahiram ng Isang Ina.
Random trivia: Sarah Lahbati is a Moroccan-Filipina born in Geneva, Switzerland on October 9, 1993.
On October 5, Wednesday, the world was shocked as Apple’s Board of Directors announced that co-founder and longtime CEO Steve Jobs has passed away at age 56.
“We are deeply saddened to announce that Steve Jobs passed away today.
Steve’s brilliance, passion and energy were the source of countless innovations that enrich and improve all of our lives. The world is immeasurably better because of Steve.
His greatest love was for his wife, Laurene, and his family. Our hearts go out to them and to all who were touched by his extraordinary gifts.”
To honor his memory, Apple.com displays a full-page tribute on its homepage and current Apple CEO Tim Cook also sent an email to the Apple staff.
“Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor. Steve leaves behind a company that only he could have built, and his spirit will forever be the foundation of Apple.”
Site commenters, Facebook, Twitter and Google+ users alike shared their condolences. Several newspapers also reacted and posted headlines and photos of the tech industry icon.
President Obama and other tech luminaries also issued statements expressing their sadness and tributes to Steve Jobs.
“The world has lost a visionary. And there may be no greater tribute to Steve’s success than the fact that much of the world learned of his passing on a device he invented. Michelle and I send our thoughts and prayers to Steve’s wife Laurene, his family, and all those who loved him.”
“From the earliest days of Google, whenever Larry and I sought inspiration for vision and leadership, we needed to look no farther than Cupertino. Steve, your passion for excellence is felt by anyone who has ever touched an Apple product (including the macbook I am writing this on right now). And I have witnessed it in person the few times we have met.
On behalf of all of us at Google and more broadly in technology, you will be missed very much. My condolences to family, friends, and colleagues at Apple.”
“I am very, very sad to hear the news about Steve. He was a great man with incredible achievements and amazing brilliance. He always seemed to be able to say in very few words what you actually should have been thinking before you thought it. His focus on the user experience above all else has always been an inspiration to me. He was very kind to reach out to me as I became CEO of Google and spend time offering his advice and knowledge even though he was not at all well. My thoughts and Google’s are with his family and the whole Apple family.”
Microsoft co-founder and Jobs’ longtime rival Bill Gates:
“I’m truly saddened to learn of Steve Jobs’ death. Melinda and I extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends, and to everyone Steve has touched through his work.
Steve and I first met nearly 30 years ago, and have been colleagues, competitors and friends over the course of more than half our lives.
The world rarely sees someone who has had the profound impact Steve has had, the effects of which will be felt for many generations to come.
For those of us lucky enough to get to work with him, it’s been an insanely great honor. I will miss Steve immensely.”
“I want to express my deepest condolences at the passing of Steve Jobs, one of the founders of our industry and a true visionary. My heart goes out to his family, everyone at Apple and everyone who has been touched by his work.”
“Steve Jobs was a great friend as well as a trusted advisor. His legacy will extend far beyond the products he created or the businesses he built. It will be the millions of people he inspired, the lives he changed, and the culture he defined. Steve was such an “original,” with a thoroughly creative, imaginative mind that defined an era. Despite all he accomplished, it feels like he was just getting started. With his passing the world has lost a rare original, Disney has lost a member of our family, and I have lost a great friend. Our thoughts and prayers are with his wife Laurene and his children during this difficult time.”
Steve “Woz” Wozniak, the man who co-founded Apple Computer, on his longtime friend:
“We’ve lost something we won’t get back,” he said in an interview with The Associated Press. “The way I see it, though, the way people love products he put so much into creating means he brought a lot of life to the world.”
“Steve died peacefully today surrounded by his family.
In his public life, Steve was known as a visionary; in his private life, he cherished his family. We are thankful to the many people who have shared their wishes and prayers during the last year of Steve’s illness; a website will be provided for those who wish to offer tributes and memories.
We are grateful for the support and kindness of those who share our feelings for Steve. We know many of you will mourn with us, and we ask that you respect our privacy during our time of grief.”
Apple has officially unveiled the iPhone 4S. It looks much like the iPhone 4 on the outside, but it packs a lot of punch on the inside compared to its predecessor.
Some of its features include the Apple A5 chip (also found in iPad 2), 1 GB RAM, 8-megapixel camera that can take 3264×2448 images, ‘Siri’ voice-controlled personal assistant and dual core graphics that is up to 7x faster than the previous iPhone.
iPhone 4S is available for pre-order in the US on October 7 and available to purchase on Oct. 14. Price for the 16GB model is $199, 32GB is $299 an 64GB is $399.
In the upcoming action-thriller Man on a Ledge, Sam Worthington plays a framed ex-cop turned con feigning an attempt to commit suicide by jumping off a ledge, while his brother is carrying out a massive diamond heist.
Man on a Ledge also stars Elizabeth Banks, Jamie Bell, Anthony Mackie, Genesis Rodriguez, Ed Harris and Edward Burns. It will be showing in US theaters on January 13, 2012.
Mariel Rodriguez finally confirmed her transfer to the Kapatid Network via K-Text last Friday. She sent her fans a 3-part text message thanking the big bosses of ABS-CBN, as well as the people who helped her in the Kapamilya network such as director Lauren Dyogi and her manager Boy Abunda.
Rodriguez will reunite with former Wowowee co-host Willie Revillame in the TV5 variety game show Wil Time Bigtime and she’ll be on the show starting October 15.
On the F8 developer conference on Thursday, Facebook launched the new profile, Timeline, a major re-imagining of user profiles which will act like a virtual scrapbook featuring important milestones that have occurred since your time on Facebook.
Besides the major profile redesign, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg also announced several other features such as the Open Graph; music, movie, TV and news apps integration. The new Timeline interface is expected to be rolled out in a few weeks.
Windows 8, Microsoft’s next-generation operating system is finally here.
At its Build Conference in Anaheim, California, Microsoft launched its latest OS, Windows 8, which boasts features such as the Metro interface, touchscreen support, improved performance and Windows App Store.
Miss Angola Leila Lopes, 25, bested 88 other young women from different nations and emerged as the Miss Universe 2011 in the 60th annivesary of the pageant held Monday night in Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Leila Lopes was born in Benguela, Angola and is a business management student in Great Britain where she was crowned Miss Angola UK. She then represented the Angolan community in the UK to the 2011 Miss Angola pageant and won to become Angola’s representative to Miss Universe. Eventually winning the crown in the most prestigious beauty pageant in the world, Lopes was the first Angolan Miss Universe.
During the final interview round, she was asked by Filipino judge Lea Salonga, a Tony Award-winning singer and actress, if what would she change about her physical characteristics given the chance.
Lopes answered:
“Thank God I’m very satisfied with the way God created me and I wouldn’t change a thing. I consider myself a woman endowed with inner beauty. I have acquired many wonderful principles from my family and I intend to follow these for the rest of my life.”
Mexico’s Ximena Navarette, last year’s winner, helped put the crown on the Angolan beauty immediately after Lopes was announced as this year’s winner.
Philippines’ Shamcey Supsup, fan favorite in online polls who also did a great job in the final round, was third runner-up in the pageant.
Here are the candidates that made it from Top 16 to Top 5 (in order announced by the hosts)..
Top 16
France
Kosovo
Colombia
China
Angola
Australia
Puerto Rico
Brazil
Netherlands
USA
Ukraine
Panama
Costa Rica
Portugal
Philippines
Venezuela
Top 10
Australia
Costa Rica
France
Ukraine
Portugal
Panama
Philippines
Angola
China
Brazil
Primetime Drama Princess Kim Chiu is set to team up with Star for All Seasons and Batangas Governor Vilma Santos in an upcoming Star Cinema horror movie. Tentative title of the film is “The Healing” and it centers on the Filipino’s strong belief in the power of alternative medicine.
Both Vilma Santos and Kim Chiu are excited to start working on this film.
Two months after admitting that she’s pregnant, young actress Andi Eigenmann finally revealed the name of her baby’s father.
In a blog post last Sunday, Sept. 4, she wrote:
“Maybe instead of feeling bad that Albie left me to take on this responsibility by myself, I should thank him for giving me the opportunity go out and find genuine happiness once again. I’d obviously love for him to be around eventually. You know, to save myself the struggle to find a good way to explain his absence to his child. At the same time, I’d understand. Cus after all, I have no idea who or what kind of a person all the fame and fortune has turned him into now. All I hope is that he’s well.”
Here’s the list of special awards winners at the Star Magic Ball held Saturday, September 3 at The Peninsula Manila hotel:
Moët & Chandon Award: Bea Alonzo and Zanjoe Marudo
Drop-dead Stunner: Kim Chiu
Star Magic Standout Award: Cristine Reyes
Star Magic Breakout Style: Jessie Mendiola and Enrique Gil
Star Magic Stylish Award: Maricar Reyes and Diether Ocampo
Star Magic Choice Fashionistas Award: Piolo Pascual and KC Concepcion
Star Magic Favorite Couple of the Night: Enchong Dee and Erich Gonzales
Star Magic Icon: John Lloyd Cruz
Random trivia: Star Magic Ball, which started in 2007, is an annual event presented by ABS-CBN’s training and management program for its contract talents.
ABS-CBN (Kapamilya network) has just released its 2011 rainy season station ID with “Princess of All Media” Anne Curtis’ version of Sukob Na.
This year’s theme song was re-arranged by Jimmy Antiporda and was given a fun and youthful spin.
The station ID, according to ABS-CBN’s press statement:
“aims to reflect that Filipinos can brighten their days despite the rainy season by enjoying each other’s company”
It features anchors of Umagang Kay Ganda; hosts of Showtime and Happy Yipee Yehey!; cast of Maria La Del Barrio, My Binondo Girl, Growing Up and Banana Split; 100 Days to Heaven’s Xyriel Manabat, Guns and Roses’ Bea Alonzo, Queen of All Media Kris Aquino and Megastar Sharon Cuneta.
See the “Sukob Na” Rainy Season 2011 Station ID after the jump.
Random trivia:Sukob Na, composed by Franco Mortiz and Alexeeb Flores, was originally sung by 17:28 for ABS-CBN’s rainy days station ID in 2002 while Aiza Seguerra’s version of the same song was used for the rainy season station ID for 2010.
Grammy award winning hip hop group Black Eyed Peas will be performing live in Manila on October 25 at the SM Mall of Asia concert grounds. Concert Organizers Futuretainment Inc and Music Management International Inc are offering an early bird promo with 20% off on concert tickets.
Ticket prices for the Black Eyed Peas concert are as follows:
VIP A = P10,000 VIP B = P8,000 Gold = P6,000 Silver = P3,000 Bronze = P1,000
Tickets will be available starting Sept. 1, 2011 12NN at any Ticketworld and SM Tickets outlets.
The Black Eyed Peas Manila concert is part of their ‘The Beginning Massive Stadium Tour’ which started in France last June and will end on November 12 in Brazil.
Random Trivia: The Black Eyed Peas have won a total of 80 awards (6 from Grammys) and they have had 116 nominations.
Steve Jobs, Apple CEO and co-founder, offered his resignation to the company’s board on Wednesday.
Here’s a snippet from his resignation letter:
To the Apple Board of Directors and the Apple Community:
I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple’s CEO, I would be the first to let you know. Unfortunately, that day has come.
I hereby resign as CEO of Apple. I would like to serve, if the Board sees fit, as Chairman of the Board, director and Apple employee.
He recommended Tim Cook, Apple COO, to replace him. Jobs will stay in the company as Chairman of the board, as has been elected. Cook will be joining the board as well.
A 5.8 magnitude earthquake just hit the East Coast with an epicenter in Mineral, Virginia, sending tremors as far as Canada. The quake, which lasted for about 30 seconds, was one of the most powerful ever recorded on the East Coast in 67 years.
Several airports suspended flights. Alarmed office workers scrambled into the streets in New York. Manhattan state and federal courthouses, Dept. of Health HQ, World Trade Center 7, The Pentagon, White House and Capitol were all evacuated during the lunchtime quake.
There were no reports of major damage or serious injuries, but Washington’s National Cathedral had its central tower and 3 spires damaged. Two nuclear reactors at the North Anna Power Station were shut down automatically as a precaution.
President Obama led a conference call Tuesday afternoon on the earthquake with top administration officials.
In the upcoming action-thriller Man on a Ledge, Sam Worthington plays a framed ex-cop turned con feigning an attempt to commit suicide by jumping off a ledge, while his brother is carrying out a massive diamond heist.
Miss Angola Leila Lopes, 25, bested 88 other young women from different nations and emerged as the Miss Universe 2011 in the 60th annivesary of the pageant held Monday night in Sao Paulo, Brazil.