Allison Iraheta said she won't play `Idol' favorites

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Allison Iraheta said Thursday she enjoyed the role of little sister to the guys on "American Idol" and refused to pick a favorite among them.

Iraheta, 17, of Los Angeles, who was eliminated from the Fox TV singing contest Wednesday, said her fans must decide about shifting support to remaining finalists Kris Allen, Danny Gokey or Adam Lambert.

On the air, Iraheta seemed to have bonded with Lambert, 27, of San Diego, sharing the same bold taste in fashion and, this week, even the same hair stylist. Their duet on Foghat's "Slow Ride" drew praise from the judges.

But Iraheta gave all the men credit for acting as her supportive — if teasing — big brothers.

"It was so fun. They'd pick on me. They'd have an argument (and say), `Stay out of this, you're only 12 years old,'" she said. "It's the love. It's so cool. ... It's like a family."

"They would really stand up for me," she added, and help with song choices.

Iraheta said she appreciated that the judges, in their weekly reviews, deemed her "different."

"I really like that because I stayed true to myself," she said. She wouldn't have changed her final performance, of Janis Joplin's "Cry Baby," even though the judges declared it the wrong choice.

She also relished having finally answered judge Simon Cowell's assessment of her as boring and not talkative enough.

"I'm not really the kind of person who talks back," she said. But when Cowell advised her to beg for the audience's vote, "I felt it was the perfect time to stand up for myself," she said.

She said the contestants were thrown off balance Tuesday by a pre-show accident that left the stage manager injured. But they got word the woman was doing better and "we just had to go on with the show."

The teenager, who said she's been home-schooled and is close to completing her high school education, will go on the road this summer as part of the national "American Idol" concert tour. Iraheta, who sang in Spanish as a child, said she'd like to have the chance to do that again.

Although she won't be named the newest "American Idol," she said she's taking heart from the successful career of a past fourth-place finisher on the show, Chris Daughtry, who performed on the show this week with his band.

"If he's done well, and he didn't have to make it all the way to the top, it gives me a chance," Iraheta said.

The finale is May 20, when either Gokey, 29, from Milwaukee; Allen, 23, of Conway, Ark., or Lambert will take the crown and a record contract.

by the associated press

Sutherland charged over head-butt claim

NEW YORK (AP) — Kiefer Sutherland was charged with misdemeanor assault Thursday for allegedly head-butting a fashion designer at a Manhattan nightclub.

The star of Fox television's "24" reported to a lower Manhattan police station in a Lincoln Town Car alongside his lawyers, but he did not speak to reporters.

Sutherland, 42, was interviewed by investigators, given a ticket, ordered to appear in court June 22 and released on his own recognizance. The minor charge is akin to a speeding ticket.

But the case could create another major legal hassle for Sutherland, who served 48 days in jail on a drunken-driving charge in California last year.

The designer, Jack McCollough of the high-end Proenza Schouler fashion house, claims Sutherland attacked him after an argument, leaving him with a cut on his face. The incident happened about 2 a.m. Tuesday.

Detectives were planning to question actress Brooke Shields as a witness because she was at the trendy SoHo nightspot SubMercer, in the basement of the Mercer Hotel, where the altercation took place. Drinks at the ultra-hip club cost around $15.

No decision has been made on whether the charge will affect Sutherland's probation for a drunken-driving conviction in Los Angeles, said Frank Mateljan, a spokesman for the Los Angeles City Attorney.

Sutherland pleaded no contest to driving with a blood-alcohol level above the legal limit of 0.08 percent. He was sentenced to 30 days, in addition to 18 days for violating probation in a 2004 drunken-driving arrest.

Representatives for Sutherland, Shields and McCollough did not return several calls seeking comment.

Sutherland, who plays dashing federal counterterrorism agent Jack Bauer on "24," won a Golden Globe and an Emmy for best actor, and has been nominated multiple times for his work on the wildly popular show. His gritty portrayal of the counterterrorism agent has made Bauer an iconic character.

The current season — the show's seventh — finds Bauer scrambling through Washington to save the world from its latest bad day. Sutherland also has signed on for an eighth season. The show airs on Mondays.

by the associated press

It is down to three on Idol

LOS ANGELES (AP) — "American Idol" finalist Allison Iraheta has a reason to cry.

The flame-haired 17-year-old high school student from Los Angeles, who crooned Janis Joplin's "Cry Baby" for her rock performance this week, was revealed Wednesday to have received the fewest viewer votes, leaving three singers in the popular Fox singing competition.

Iraheta seemed to take her dismissal in stride, belting out an energized "Cry Baby" reprise then razzing the last three dudes standing — Kris Allen, Danny Gokey and Adam Lambert. Throughout the competition, judge Simon Cowell chided Iraheta for not showing off more of her personality, but she finally lashed back at the acerbic British judge on Tuesday.

"He was asking for it," she said.

Before the results were revealed, the final four were joined by this week's mentor, former Guns 'N Roses guitarist Slash, for a frantic rendition of Alice Cooper's "School's Out." Also taking the "Idol" stage — for the first time ever! — was judge Paula Abdul in a smokey pre-taped performance of her new single, "I'm Just Here for the Music."

Tuesday night's pre-show drama didn't seem to linger during the lead-up to Iraheta's elimination. The behemoth "Idol" logo which toppled over was back — and glowing — in place above the audience. And that moving staircase was also operational Wednesday after a crew member was sent to the hospital following a reported 20-foot fall from the top Tuesday.

However, Seacrest still seemed a little shaken up following all of the tumultuous tumbling, especially after No Doubt singer Gwen Stefani strutted down the steps, behind the judges' table and through the crowd while belting out "I'm Just a Girl" for an elimination episode performance. Seacrest joked she was making him nervous running around the stage.

"It's been a high-risk place this week," he said.

The finalists left in contest are Lambert, a 27-year-old theater actor from San Diego; Gokey, a 29-year-old church music director from Milwaukee; and Allen, a 23-year-old college student from Conway, Ark.

This week, the three singers will travel to their hometowns before performing two songs next week: one of their choosing, another from the show's judges.

The next "Idol" will be crowned May 20.

by the associated press

Ryan Reynolds Dives in to for Deadpool ,Wolverine's Spinoff

It's official: The mutants are taking over Hollywood. And we're not talking about the freaks running the studios.

Following the monster weekend for X-Men Origins: Wolverine, and a day after announcing that a Hugh Jackman-powered sequel is in the works, 20th Century Fox has confirmed to E! News that Jackman's costar Ryan Reynolds will be given his own spinoff and potential franchise-launcher as the Marvel Comics antihero Deadpool.

The 32-year-old Canadian actor, otherwise known as Mr. Scarlett Johansson, will again star as Wade Wilson, a wisecracking, cancer-stricken mercenary who's cured of the disease after undergoing the same Weapon X genetic alteration as Wolverine.

But along with superhuman powers, enhanced strength and self-regenerating healing powers, the slightly unhinged Deadpool can absorb the abilities of dead and captured mutants.

Aside from Deadpool and the Wolverine sequel, Fox is also working on an X-Men spinoff focusing on Ian McKellen's villainous Magneto and another dubbed X-Men: First Class, which is being written by The O.C. creator Josh Schwartz.

from the wire

Walk in Two Worlds

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. — Their names mark rivers, valleys, schools and communities across the state, recalling the people who were settled in Arkansas when Europeans arrived in the 1500s.

But while the names may be familiar to many, the history of the Quapaw, Osage and Caddo American Indian tribes might not.

To help change that, the Historic Arkansas Museum has opened a permanent exhibit called "We Walk in Two Worlds” to pass along the history and culture of the three American Indian nations that once were settled in Arkansas.

The exhibit was set up to describe the history of the tribes through American Indian voices, beginning just before European contact, moving through their forced relocations to Oklahoma about 1830 and into the cultural revival that has defined recent decades. It includes more than 160 artifacts from the tribes.

"We try to make sure that the words you read are from Native Americans,” Swannee Bennett, the museum’s chief curator, said. "We wanted to have a Native American interpretation.”

To do that, the museum sought tribal advisers from each nation who helped mold the exhibit into a reflection of their historical and contemporary experiences, as passed down in the tribes.

Ardina Moore is a Quapaw tribal historian and a teacher of the Quapaw language, but is also part Osage. She said the name Arkansas comes from early French explorers who were told by an Illinois tribe that the people who inhabited what is now the state were the "Akansea,” which means "People of the South Wind.”

"What pleases us the most is the idea that people are going to recognize our heritage and our culture, which to this point has been kind of ignored,” Moore said. "It helps to be appreciated.”



by the associated press

Kansas City has Summer Fun

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Sure, visitors can drop a bundle whiling away hours in Kansas City’s born-again downtown, with its shiny new Sprint Center and Power & Light dining and drinking fun zone. But budget-minded travelers also have a buffet of penny-pinching options in the city of fountains, including rock solid offerings from the holy trinity of summer fun: good food, baseball and jazz. After all, is anything else really necessary?
→BASEBALL: Tickets for the Kansas City Royals start at $14 and go up to about $50. Cut costs by tailgating in the massive parking lot with just about everybody else; http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com/.

But budget-minded travelers also have a buffet of penny-pinching options in the city of fountains, including rock solid offerings from the holy trinity of summer fun: good food, baseball and jazz. After all, is anything else really necessary?

→BASEBALL: Tickets for the Kansas City Royals start at $14 and go up to about $50. Cut costs by tailgating in the massive parking lot with just about everybody else; http://kansascity.royals.mlb.com.

→BARBECUE: What’s the point of a trip to Kansas City without sampling its saucy, smoky barbecue, which can be found in just about any part of town? Stalwarts such as Gates — www.gatesbbq.com — and Arthur Bryant’s — www.arthurbryantsbbq.com — pack in diners for the massive slabs of ribs, chicken and sandwiches for reasonable prices. Both restaurants have several locations. A full slab of ribs will set the family back about $20. Try the Beef on Bun. Help yourself to extra sauce. The burnt ends at Bryant’s are exceptional.

But there are lesser-known spots that locals also swear by.

Oklahoma Joe’s is in a gas station in Kansas City, Kan., at 3002 W 47 Ave. Try the Hog Heaven, pulled pork with sliced sausage on a bun. There’s also a Pig Salad: pulled pork topped with, what else, barbecue sauce; www.oklahomajoesbbq.com.

LC’s Bar-B-Q, 5800 Blue Parkway, not far from Kauffman Stadium where the Royals play, is a stop to load up on tailgating fodder; www.lcsbar-b-que.nv.switchboard.com.

→MORE TO LIFE: Kansas City’s museums include the venerable Nelson-Atkins, where admission is free. Some highlights are the spanking new Bloch Building, which features a Noguchi sculptor garden. Let it all soak in while you sprawl out on the lawn in the shadow of the massive shuttlecocks; www.nelson-atkins.org.

The nearby Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art also is free and hosts family, movie and other events. Check the calendar at www.kemperart.org/home.asp.

→SPEAKING OF FAMILY: The Coterie Theater at Crown Center has live theater for kids and the family. Afterward, if it’s hot and muggy outside, the fountains in front are good for romping. Bring towels; www.coterietheatre.org.

The Toy Museum near the University of Missouri-Kansas City showcases items from miniatures to puppets; www.toyandminiaturemuseum.org.

→SHOPPING: For general shopping, the Country Club Plaza, Zona Rosa in north Kansas City, and The Legends in Wyandotte County, Kan., have the staple choices for shopping and lollygagging; www.countryclubplaza.com, www.zonarosa.com and www.legendsshopping.com.








by the associated press

National Mall to begain Recycling Progam

WASHINGTON — The National Mall, known as America’s "front yard” and stretching from the U.S. Capitol to the Lincoln Memorial, is finally getting a recycling program.

Officials recently said the effort will begin with a study of how much of the nearly four tons of trash generated each day can be salvaged and reused.

A $1.1 million gift from Coca-Cola Co. will jump start the effort and help the National Mall catch up with other urban parks across the country. This summer, the National Park Service and its fundraising partners will study the waste generated to see how many and where recycling bins are needed. They hope to begin putting out bins by October, and are discussing whether revenue can be generated by recycling.

"This is the icon of democracy, and it should reflect the best practices that we have to offer as a country,” said Caroline Cunningham, president of the Trust for the National Mall, a nonprofit group that raises private money to support the mall’s upkeep.

The National Park Service has been slow to get the National Mall to go green, crippled in part by a $390 million backlog on maintenance for the grounds and monuments. Parks in other cities, such at Atlanta’s sprawling Piedmont Park, already have recycling bins placed beside nearly every trash can.

The National Mall attracts about 25 million visitors a year — more than Yosemite, Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon combined. Almost none of the trash visitors leave behind is recycled, except for efforts during some major events.

Coca-Cola is providing $500,000 as a down payment for the recycling program and $600,000 to support programs at the National Mall and other national parks.


by the associated press