Toyota mourns Andersson

Toyota Motorsport was on Wednesday mourning the death of founder Ove Andersson.
Andersson, aged 70, was killed in an accident while competing in the Milligan Vintage Trial in South Africa when the classic car he was driving suffered a frontal collision around a blind corner.

Toyota Motorsport chairman Tadashi Yamashina said: "Everyone at Toyota is extremely shocked and truly saddened at this terrible news.

"Ove was an inspiration to our team and to many in motorsport. His passion for motorsport was legendary and he is a great loss to our sport."

Andersson was instrumental in the founding of Toyota Team Europe, which grew out of his own Andersson Motorsport squad.

Toyota Team Europe later relocated to Cologne, and became Toyota Motorsport in 1993.

Under his leadership, Toyota successfully competed in the World Rally Championship, winning four drivers' and three manufacturers' titles, also taking second place at the 1999 Le Mans 24 Hours.

Andersson then led Panasonic Toyota Racing into Formula One in 2002 before retiring as team principal in 2003 to work as a consultant for the team.

espnstar.com's MOM: Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo rode last-ditch tackles and off-pitch controversies to lift Portugal to their second win of Euro 2008.

Ronaldo played a starring role in Portugal's 3-1 win over Czech Republic after scoring one and making another goal.

Although Petr Cech's numerous world-class saves almost rivaled the Portuguese winger for the Man-of-the-match award, Ronaldo copped all players with a performance worthy of his tag as the English Premier League's best player.

And looking at his current form, Ronaldo could be set to become this tournament's best player as well.

The question now is can Ronaldo help erase the bitter memories of Euro 2004 when his country, as hosts, lost to Greece in the final?

By Eugene Han (espnstar.com)

Ronaldo ready for quarter-final

MOM Cristiano Ronaldo declared himself "very happy" after helping Portugal to a 3-1 win over the Czech Rep.

The Portuguese overcame Czech Republic 3-1 at the Stade Geneve on Wednesday to move onto six points from two games in Group A.

Ronaldo and substitute Ricardo Quaresma struck second-half goals - the latter in stoppage time - to earn the victory after Libor Sionko had cancelled out Deco's opener.

"Our main aim was to get to next phase. I'm very happy to have helped my team-mates to win," said the Manchester United star.

"I managed to score, and my goal is dedicated to the Red Cross. I'm thinking about the children and that makes me very proud."

Ronaldo acknowledged his team had struggled to assert themselves in the first half but was pleased with how they worked together to clinch the win.

"We played very well, although Czech Republic played very well in the first half," said the 23-year-old.

"It was very difficult to penetrate their defence. Portugal have played well in the first match and well again in this match as a team.

"We know how to sacrifice everything for the good of the team. We have now got a big chance but must respect our opponents because they too have a mission - they want to win as we do.

"If we carry on playing like this, we have a good chance."

Coach Luiz Felipe Scolari admitted he was surprised with the decision of opposite number Karel Bruckner to start with Milan Baros up front rather than Jan Koller.

"It was a surprise for me because we had planned to play against a starting XI that would include Koller," said the Brazilian tactician.

"The fact Baros was there didn't make life easy. We faced difficulties because they had four or five in midfield and we had two wingers so we didn't know what to do."

The victory maintains Portugal's 100% start following their opening-day win over Turkey.

The Czechs - who beat co-hosts Switzerland 1-0 in the curtain-raiser - now have to wait until Sunday to clinch a last-eight spot when they face Fatih Terim's Turks.

Asif case no nearer to conclusion

PCB official Nadeem Akram returned to Pakistan on Wednesday after failing to secure the release of Mohammad Asif.

The fast bowler was detained by customs officials at the Dubai International Airport on June 1 on suspicion of carrying drugs on his person.

"Akram has indeed returned home," said PCB media manager Raza Rashid. "The attorney general in Dubai has not given us a time frame, so we are not sure when a decision would actually be made."

A small quantity of a powder was found in Asif's wallet and was sent to a laboratory for testing. The bowler also gave blood and urine tests, with the results of those yet to be divulged.

Akram, the director of human resources at the PCB, was immediately rushed to Dubai to oversee the case but has now left that responsibility to an official from the Pakistan embassy in the United Arab Emirates.

"An official from the Pakistan embassy in the United Arab Emirates will now oversee the case," Akram told reporters in Dubai prior to his departure.

"We are still hopeful that he would be released. No charges have been laid so far."

Shafqat Naghmi, the PCB's chief operating officer, said Akram had to return to help Pakistan's preparations for the Asia Cup.

Pakistan host the six-nation tournament, which starts on June 24.

Hair Analysis Deflates Napoleon Poisoning Theories

For decades, scholars and scientists have argued that the exiled dictator, who died in 1821 on the remote island of St. Helena in the South Atlantic, was the victim of arsenic, whether by accident or design.

The murder theory held that his British captors poisoned him; the accident theory said that colored wallpaper in his bedroom contained an arsenic-based dye that mold transformed into poisonous fumes.

The evidence behind both theories was that scientists had found arsenic in hairs from Napoleon’s head, which diminished the idea that he had died of stomach cancer. Arsenic is highly toxic, and its poisoning symptoms include violent stomach pains.

“There is nothing improbable about the hypothesis of arsenic poisoning,” wrote Frank McLynn in “Napoleon: A Biography” (Arcade, 2002). “Science gives it rather more than warranted assertibility.”

But now, a team of scientists at Italy’s National Institute of Nuclear Physics in Milan-Bicocca and Pavia has uncovered strong evidence to the contrary. They conducted a detailed analysis of hairs taken from Napoleon’s head at four times in his life — as a boy in Corsica, during his exile on the island of Elba, the day he died on St. Helena, at age 51, and the day afterward — and discovered that the arsenic levels underwent no significant rises.

Casting a wide net, the scientists also studied hairs from his son, Napoleon II, and his wife, Empress Josephine. Here, too, they found that the arsenic levels were similar and uniformly high.

The big surprise was that the old levels were roughly 100 times the readings that the scientists obtained for comparison from the hairs of living people.

“The concentrations of arsenic in the hair taken from Napoleon after his death were much higher,” the scientists wrote. But the levels were “quite comparable with that found not only in the hair of the emperor in other periods of his life, but also in those of his son and first wife.”

The results, they added, “undoubtedly reveal a chronic exposure that we believe can be simply attributed to environmental factors, unfortunately no longer easily identifiable, or habits involving food and therapeutics.”

A team of 10 scientists reported their results in a recent issue of the Italian journal Il Nuovo Saggiatore (The New Experimenter). The hair samples of Napoleon and his family came from the Glauco-Lombardi Museum in Parma, Italy, the Malmaison Museum in Paris and the Napoleonic Museum in Rome.

Physicists in Congress Calculate Their Influence

WASHINGTON — According to the Congressional Research Service, there are only about 30 scientists among the 535 senators and representatives in the 110th Congress, and that is counting the psychologist, the psychiatrist, a dozen other M.D.’s, three nurses, an engineer, two veterinarians, a pharmacist and an optometrist.
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But physics is on a roll.

“Go back 15 years, and there weren’t any physicists,” said Vernon J. Ehlers, a Republican who taught the subject at Calvin College in Grand Rapids, Mich., until he was elected to Congress in 1993.

His was a lone voice until 1998, when Rush Holt, assistant director of the Princeton Plasma Physics laboratory, won election from New Jersey as a Democrat. And today there are three, adding Bill Foster, a physicist at Fermilab and another Democrat, who won a special election in March in Illinois.

“If we continue to reproduce in this manner,” Mr. Foster began, and Mr. Ehlers finished the thought, “the entire Congress would consist of physicists!”

They were joking — probably. But a Congress full of physicists might solve some worrisome problems, the three-member physics caucus argued one afternoon when they met for a joint interview in the Capitol.

There are 435 people in the House, Mr. Holt said, and “420 don’t know much about science and choose not to.” He recalled his exasperation when anthrax spores were discovered in the Capitol in 2001 and colleagues came to him and said, “You are a scientist, you must know about anthrax,” a subject ordinarily missing from the physics curriculum.

“The difference,” he said, “is we would be perfectly happy to pick up a copy of The New England Journal of Medicine and read about the etiology of anthrax.”

“In fact, we basically did that,” Mr. Ehlers said.

“We know more than our colleagues,” Mr. Holt said, “but not more than they could know.”

Unfortunately, Mr. Foster said, “unless things play to their advantage in the next election, they are not interested.”

Not everyone agrees with that assessment. Sherwood L. Boehlert, the upstate New York Republican who until last year was chairman of the House Science Committee, said that what citizens should expect from their elected representatives is not knowledge of science per se, but rather “an ability to reach out to experts in any given field and then do what is oftentimes hard for elected officials to do, listen instead of talk.”

(For his part, Mr. Boehlert said, his last exposure to science was in a high school physics class, “and I got a C.”)

Problems arise not just in obviously science-related issues, but also, as Mr. Holt put it, in “those countless issues, and it really is countless, that have scientific and technological components but the issues are not seen as science issues.”

He cited the debates over electronic voting machines that caused problems “that would be obvious to any computer scientist but went right past some people here in Congress.”

Mr. Foster mentioned the debates over electronic border fences, which he said lacked “fundamental concepts of what radar can or cannot do.”

What is needed is not more advanced degrees, the physicists said (they all have Ph.D.’s), but a capacity to take the long view, what Mr. Ehlers called the scientists’ ability to see from the pre-Cambrian era to the space age.

But sometimes, he said, the problem is just old-fashioned ignorance. Several times he has found himself “rushing to the floor” to head off colleagues ready to eliminate financing for endeavors whose importance they did not understand.

Once it was game theory. The person seeking the cut did not seem to realize that game theory had to do with interactions in economics, behavior and other social sciences, not sports, Mr. Ehlers recounted.

Then there was the time he rose to defend A.T.M. research against a colleague who thought it should be left to the banking industry. In this case the initials stood for asynchronous transfer mode, a protocol for fiber-optic data transfer.

“ ‘The Two Cultures’ is not a myth,” Mr. Holt said, referring to a 1959 lecture by the British chemist and novelist C. P. Snow, who bemoaned a growing gulf between the sciences and the humanities.

Mr. Ehlers agreed, saying he had as much right to expect that his colleagues would understand basic physics concepts as they had to expect that he would be familiar with Shakespeare. “It’s utterly stupid that we have to fight that,” he said.

But there are barriers to drawing more scientists into politics. For one, Mr. Holt said, many researchers have the idea that “politics is somehow dirty.”

This Just In: Angelina Jolie May Have Given Birth!

The Hollywood Gossip staff does our best to verify every rumor and story we publish.

When we get it wrong, however, we aren’t above an apology and a retraction. (Turns out Miley Cyrus was never pregnant. Our bad!)

The same can’t be said for Entertainment Tonight. The supposedly venerable celebrity gossip show still won’t face the facts when it comes to Angelina Jolie giving birth; or NOT giving birth, to be precise.

So Pregnant

“We still don’t know if she’s had those babies or not and until we do we won’t retract our story. I don’t know yet that we’ve made a mistake,” host Mary Hart recently said.

Hart makes this statement despite the fact that Brad Pitt was in a different country from Jolie when she supposedly gave birth to twins; and that Brangelina’s publicist has denied the report.

“I hope that the babies were born when we said they were and that we had our facts straight. I have never retracted a story in 26 years, but all I can do now is wait and see,” Hart said.

It’s a genius move by Hart. She’ll wait, she’ll see that the babies are eventually born and - presto! - Entertainment Tonight’s report will be verified.

This is the best plan since Linda Hogan decided to date 19-year Charlie Hill as vengeance for being cheated on.

Britney Spears & Mel Gibson: The Friendship Continues

Former neighbors and current pals Britney Spears and Mel Gibson spend some more time together Tuesday - at an exclusive Beverly Hills cigar club.

The singer and the actor-filmmaker met in what was considered more of an ongoing guidance session than a business meeting, sources say.

Mel Gibson and his wife Robin have taken Britney Spears under their wing since her meltdowns earlier this year, meeting with her regularly.

At the posh Havana Club, a tired-looking Spears arrived with her personal assistant, Brett and a bodyguard to meet Mel around 7:30.

“She looked pretty in her new Capri jeans a blue blouse, white shoes and a brown bag,” said a celebrity gossip photographer on the scene.

Troubled stars Britney Spears and Mel Gibson have forged a friendship.

Britney was described as quiet and serious - by contrast, an upbeat Mel Gibson walked in holding a bag up to his face and saying “okay, you got me” as celebrity news photographers crowded around to snap his picture.

Once neighbors in Malibu (Spears now lives in Studio City), Britney and Mel began spending time together in March. In May, Gibson and his wife, and Britney and her dad, Jamie Spears, vacationed together in Costa Rica.

An Ashley Alexandra Dupre Sighting: Bikini Style!

She was one of our biggest stories in two years covering celebrity gossip, but Ashley Alexandra Dupre faded into the woodwork pretty quickly.

Save for the occasional legal sparring with Joe Francis, things have been quiet for her. That is, until she was spotted at the beach this weekend!

Yup, our favorite Jersey girl turned teenage runaway turned underage Girls Gone Wild star turned high-priced call girl of former N.Y. Gov. Eliot Spitzer (and aspiring singer) was seen donning a black bikini and frolicking by the ocean.

Here’s Ashley Alexandra Dupre (in more clothing than usual) …

Ashley Dupre Bikini Photo

Okay, so Ashley Dupre has a nice body. But $4,000-an-hour nice?

Ashley and her mom, 46-year-old Carolyn Capalbo, were spotted at Sea Girt Beach on the New Jersey Shore on Sunday by The New York Daily News.

Click here for more fairly sexy bikini pictures of America’s favorite call girl,

Happy Birthday, Gina Gershon!

Enough about Bill Clinton maybe seeing Gina Gershon in her birthday suit… let’s talk about the actress celebrating her birthday! She’s 46 today!

Needless to say, for 46 … she’s in the cougar category big-time, peeps. Here’s a smoking hot photo of the actress to commemorate the occasion …

Nude Gina Gershon

Former U.S. President Bill Clinton is said to have possibly shagged this. Yowza. Rumors and gossip aside, a nude Gina Gershon is a beautiful sight for all.

Also celebrating birthdays today are two political figures - the disgraced former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer and two-time presidential candidate John Edwards - as well as Elizabeth Hurley and her giant boobs! Woo!

Here are some photos of the birthday boys and girls. Click to enlarge!

GershonGinaJohn Edwards PhotoElizabeth Hurley Breasts Gina Gershon Naked Gina Gershon Eliot Spitzer PicGershon, Gina Eliot Spitzer ExposedElizabeth Hurley Nude Elizabeth Hurley, Arun Nayar John EdwardsElizabeth Hurley Photo

Who’s coming up next? When does your favorite star celebrate another year of not dying? Peep our calendar of celebrity birthdays now and see.

DeAnna Pappas: Start Your Engines!

Man, this girl looks great in any outfit - and any capacity.

Last night on The Bachelorette, DeAnna Pappas assumed the role of pit crew chief as her aspiring husbands took the racetrack.

One by one, the guys took a lap at the speedway and tried to get the best speed and time, thus earning a special date with D.

DeAnna Photo

The Bachelorette’s DeAnna Pappas is a natural when it comes to auto racing. Or at least wearing the clothes that one of the pit crew chiefs might don.

Follow the jump to see who survived and who was sent packing …

The Hills Gossip: Speidi, LC & Whitney Tell All

Cameras are already rolling again for The Hills girls (and Spencer), but that isn’t stopping them from other summer pursuits, TV Guide reports.

From fitness plans to professional opportunities — not to mention outings to Les Deux, obvs — summer’s just another season for new challenges.

At Sunday’s Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation Carnival, Whitney Port, Lauren Conrad, Lauren “Lo” Bosworth, Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt all made appearances to show their support for this important cause.

For Spencer Pratt, the event is an annual tradition.

“I grew up with [Elizabeth Glaser's son] Jake Glaser, so I’ve been coming to this event since I was in elementary school,” he said. “We have so much love for this charity, and want to do anything we can to help out.”

No word on whether Spencer was packing heat at the event.

Heidi and Spencer Photo

But as people mobbed fiancee Heidi Montag, Spencer Pratt said that their summer was focused on finishing her album in time for The Hills Season 4.

“We’re in the studio with Todd Chapman,” Pratt said.

“He’s doing all 12 songs. He’s a genius.”

As for her next music videos, however, Heidi Montag is losing one of her most notorious crew members. With a chuckle at his own expense (over his efforts with “Higer,” Pratt said he would no longer be directing videos.

Read the rest of this entry »

Is Eva Longoria Pregnant?

Don’t get us wrong.

If we looked like Eva Longoria, we’d check ourselves out every chance we got. So we understand what Mrs. Tony Parker is doing in the photo below.

But we can’t help but wonder if the Desperate Housewives star is staring at her sexy body… or a growing baby bump? Take a look and decide for yourself:

Brooke Hogan is Freaked Out by Charlie Hill

We rarely agree with Brooke Hogan. Especially when it comes to her fashion choices.

But we have to agree with her reaction to mother Linda Hogan dating 19-year-old Charlie Hill.

“I went to school with him,” Brooke said about the boy toy. “He was a grade under me.”

Now, of course, Hill is spending nights under Linda.

Linda Hogan is dating Charlie Hill. Seems like a totally healthy relationship to us… not!

Linda, 48, is trying to get back at Hulk Hogan for cheating on her with Christiane Plante. Which we understand. But maybe she ought to have considered how this new relationship would affect her kids.

Brooke confessed the relationship makes her uncomfortable, adding: “I’m totally freaked out. This is really weird… I personally don’t like it at all.”

The youngest Hogan said she had to support her mother, but when Brooke Hogan is the voice of reason, you know a situation is out of hand.

Still Knocked Up: Camila Alves, Tori Spelling and More

Now that Jessica Alba has given birth, the club of knocked up celebrities has lost one its better looking members.

Still, a number of beauties are expecting kids over the next few months. Leading the charge? Matthew McConaughey’s underrated girlfriend, Camila Alves.

Lovely and Pregnant

Click on the following thumbnails now to see what other celebs are ready to pop…

Sara Evans Wants to Procreate with Jay Barker

Sara Evans isn’t done having children.

“[Fiance Jay Barker] and I have seven kids together [from previous marriages], and I would definitely love to have another child [with him],” the the country singer said recently. “He’s just too cute. I just can’t imagine not having a baby with him.”

A Hopeful Mother

Sara Evans wants to make a celebrity baby with Jay Barker.

However,, the former Dancing with the Stars contestant was quick to add that she is not rushing into anything.

“We still have plenty of time, and I’m in no hurry because I hate being pregnant.”

Jessica Simpson to Release Lingerie Line

Look out, underwear-wearers everywhere. Jessica Simpson is adding lingerie designer to her lengthy, mostly terrible resume.

The “singer” and “actress” apparently already has successful handbag, shoe, sunglass and swimsuit lines. Seriously, she does.

Now, Jessica Simpson Intimates will be joining her empire.

The collection of bras, undies, sleepwear and daywear are all poised to hit department stores, online shopping sites and Tony Romo’s floor soon.

The Bra Works as a Top, Sure

Jessica Simpson wears a bra as a top sometimes. Why not start her own line?

Asked about the exciting new underwear line, the eldest ho daughter of Joe Simpson said in an interview with Women’s Wear Daily:

“I like different lingerie for different occasions. I think that’s the best thing about it. You can feel sexy or girly depending on your mood.”

Simpson also promises to included a stylish assortment of shapewear so women no longer need to worry about panty lines.

One person who doesn’t have to worry about those ever? Britney Spears. Now that’s a girl who seriously abhors any sort of underwear.

In the dog house

Pop star Janet Jackson had to send one of her three bulldogs to obedience school for animals because he was naughty. According to contactmusic.com, Jackson was hoping to take her dogs with her on tour but one of them does not get along with the rest. Jackson said: “He’s in Atlanta in obedience school because there are two of them (bulldogs) that aren’t getting along. That’s more important to me right now than him coming on tour.”
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Kate’s 100,000 gift

Supermodel Kate Moss has been gifted a holiday by billionaire Sir Philip Green who is spending 100,000 to fly Moss and her rocker boyfriend Jamie Hince to Majorca in Spain. Thesun.co.uk reports that Green has arranged for a masseuse, beauty therapist, chef, butler and a wine expert. A source said: “Kate phoned him in tears, saying she is exhausted from too much travel and emotionally battered after losing out on contracts to younger models. She also said things between her and Jamie were strained because of his European tour with The Kills bandmate Alison Moshart not wanting Kate around the band when they’re gigging. “So Sir Philip is flying Kate and Jamie to Spain for absolute pampering. He’s giving them a team of staff to bring anything they need. They also get a boat so they can disappear to any cove.”
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Julia’s multilingual kids

Julia Roberts wants her children to be multilingual. The Pretty Woman actress - who has three children with husband Danny Moder - is believed to be desperate for her brood to learn another language. A source said, “Julia wants her children to be cultured. She and Danny are looking into lessons for them to start speaking a second language.” Julia isn’t the only actress to have a multi-lingual wish for her children. Angelina Jolie, who is currently expecting twins with partner Brad Pitt, recently revealed the couple are keen to remind their adopted children - Cambodian Maddox, six, Vietnamese Pax, four, and Ethiopian Zahara, three - of their heritage.

Angelina, who also has a two-year-old biological daughter with Brad, said: “We have teachers who teach Cambodian and Vietnamese in our house and they know their flags, their music and quite a lot about their culture. We bring in as much as we can.”

Only Pretending It’s a Brute

IF Honda’s designers feel they have been double-crossed by American consumers, it would be understandable.

But I think it is really just a matter of bad timing, not treachery. Several years ago, when Honda was planning the redesign of its Pilot utility wagon for 2009, drivers told researchers they wanted the next generation to look more like an S.U.V.

So Honda did it. But now as the trucky-looking Pilot is reaching showrooms, American consumers are panicking over gas prices — and shunning trucks as if they were bank-account devouring monsters, which isn’t all that far off.

The truck share of the overall light-vehicle market in the United States fell to 47 percent in the first five months of this year, from a peak of nearly 55 percent in 2004, according to J. D. Power & Associates. And sales of large S.U.V.’s, which the new Pilot now resembles more closely (intentionally, but unfortunately) are shriveling as pump-dazed car buyers shift to smaller vehicles.

Honda’s considerable task, then, is to persuade shoppers that beneath the Pilot’s brutish sheet metal is a crossover that uses car-type construction, powered by a V-6 engine that can save fuel by backing down from six cylinders to four or even three when conditions permit.

This is the first redesign of the Pilot since the original was introduced in 2002 and quickly became a hit. The second generation was developed in the United States and is built in Lincoln, Ala., where its 3.5-liter engine is also made.

The Pilot is available with front-wheel drive or all-wheel drive and comes in four trim levels. Prices of two-wheel-drive models start at $28,265 for the LX, $31,065 for the EX, $34,265 for the EX-L and $37,465 for the fancy Touring version. All-wheel drive is about $1,600 more.

I tested a Touring with all-wheel drive priced at $40,625.

The market has changed considerably since the first Pilot. There is much more competition from a formidable gathering of other crossover (that is, car-based) utilities like the Saturn Outlook, Buick Enclave and GMC Acadia, all from General Motors; the Toyota Highlander; and the Mazda CX-9.

While the exterior of the Pilot has been toughened up for ’09, the interior follows a theme of thoughtfulness and practicality. That includes a huge, multisection storage compartment between the comfortable front seats that leaves no excuses for disorganization.

William Siroty and William Stelling

WHEN Dr. William Siroty first asked William Stelling to marry him in 2004, he was not quite prepared for the response he received.
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Jon Gilbert Fox for The New York Times

The reception.

It was: “You’re proposing to me over the phone?”

Dr. Siroty hadn’t thought of it that way. He had impulsively called Mr. Stelling from work to suggest they take a road trip from their town of Amherst, N.H., to New Paltz, N.Y., where same-sex couples were being married by the town’s mayor.

Undaunted by Mr. Stelling’s reaction, Dr. Siroty, an internist at the Nashua Medical Group in Nashua. N.H., went straight from his office to a florist shop and then headed home. When Mr. Stelling answered the doorbell, he found Dr. Siroty on one knee.

“Will you marry me?” Dr. Siroty asked, rose in hand.

“That kind of melted my heart,” Mr. Stelling later said.

But a rose was for several years the furthest they could progress. New Hampshire at that time did not allow same-sex civil unions, and the State Supreme Court in Kingston, N.Y., quickly barred New Paltz officials from performing marriages for same-sex couples.

Dr. Siroty and Mr. Stelling, now both 56, have not always been of the same mind.

They met in 1981 at Dr. Siroty’s 30th birthday party in New York, where both were then living and working.

“He was gorgeous; he was interesting,” Dr. Siroty recalled. “And from my perspective, maybe he was slightly exotic. I can’t say it was love at first sight, but you get the idea.”

Mr. Stelling spent many of his formative years in Asia, eventually landing in the East Village, where he became a founder of the Fun Gallery, which helped introduce graffiti art, including that of the late Jean-Michel Basquiat, to New York.

Dr. Siroty, from Long Island, made his way to Georgetown University, from which he received his medical degree. He then began practicing in New York.

For six months the two men pursued an intense romance until Mr. Stelling, who enjoyed New York’s clubs and arts scenes and had some exploring to do, ended it.

“He would say that I dumped him,” said Mr. Stelling, now a supervisor at the call center at PlumChoice Online PC Services, in Billerica, Mass., a provider of computer support. “But I would like to say that I set him free to explore.”

The two had many mutual friends, but for nearly 10 years, Mr. Stelling and Dr. Siroty had no contact other than to occasionally glare at each other from across a restaurant, Mr. Stelling said.

Then, at a Christmas party in 1990, Mr. Stelling suggested they see each other again.

“Over my dead body,” Dr. Siroty recalled thinking.

But Mr. Stelling persisted.

A Pain No One Can Bear to Live With

The house on North Hazeldell Avenue has to go. Its two stories, its white vinyl siding, its front porch, its back porch, its windows and doors, ceilings and walls: the entire structure. It has to go. It cannot stand.

The original hope was to burn it, burn it to the ground; fire can cleanse. But city officials stepped in and said no way to setting a house ablaze in the middle of a neighborhood. So now the plan is to stage a communal, cathartic house-razing.

On the first Saturday of summer, residents will gather to watch local volunteers tear the house down. After that, a waste-management company will truck every nail and board out of sight, if not out of mind, to an undisclosed dump site in another, unnamed state, so as to thwart collectors of morbid souvenirs.

Then, someday, instead of that damned house, there may rise from the grass at 201 North Hazeldell a memorial fountain, or maybe a sculpture, to encourage reflections about life, not death. At the moment that seems a lot to ask of the inanimate.

The house, built around 1900, is almost as old as Crandon itself, here for the turns in logging and tourism, for the changes in downtown a block away and the construction of the post office across the street. Here as the city became a place of 2,000 residents related by blood, by church, by school, or by standing together in line for dipped cones at the Eats ’n’ Treats stand.

One Saturday night last October, a few of them were snug in this house, now a triplex. On the side, a tenant named Michelle. Upstairs, the owner, Paul Murray. And downstairs, his daughter, Jordanne Murray, 18, who was entertaining several friends with a pizza party and sleepover.

Britney Spears is enjoying Costa Rica

Britney Spears bikini pics! (Costa Rica - 5/17)

Paparazzi caught up with Britney Spears in Costa Rica over the weekend. And it looks like she has a new friend. He reminds me a lot of K-Fed actually. Look at him checking out Britney’s designer sunglasses, wondering how he can trick her into buying him a pair. Cake, that’s how. Many call it the combination to unlocking Britney’s heart.

Victoria Beckham Is A School Lunch Lady

When a famous Brit tabloid writer bumped into Victoria Beckham the other day, she confessed that she is headed into Kathy Griffin territory.

"All the men that like me are gay. It's true. I have a really strong gaydar. I do love gay men though," she said.

Victoria also talked about how she and David love helping out at their son's schools by serving as lunch lady occasionally and chaperoning field trips.

She said, "David and I are always in the school. We go and serve up hot lunches. It's the same food we used to get at school -- turkey twizzlers. I go on the school trips too," later adding, "They love it when Mummy and Daddy turn up to serve lunch. My parents do it and David's mum has done it too. I'd rather go to Pumpkin Patch at school than dinner at the Ivy."

Victoria wants to be out and about rather than eating -- no surprise. I hope the school makes her wear a hair net -- but what the heck are turkey twizzlers?

Austria 0-1 Croatia: Close call

Luka Modric's penalty gave Croatia a hard-earned 1-0 victory over Austria in the opening Euro 2008 Group B match.

Croatia were made to work hard for their narrow victory as Austria, cheered on by a partisan home crowd at the Ernst Happel Stadion, recovered from a poor opening half-hour to push Slaven Bilic's men all the way to the final whistle.

Some Austrians petitioned for their side to withdraw from the tournament for fear of being embarrassed and when Croatia went ahead from the earliest penalty ever conceded in the European Championships, it seemed that they may have had a point.

The co-hosts' defender Rene Aufhauser bundled over Ivica Olic near the by-line in the third minute and Dutch referee Pieter Vink immediately pointed to the spot. Middlesbrough defender Emanuael Pogatetz was booked for his protests but Modric kept his cool, stepping up to send keeper Jurgen Macho the wrong way.

Modric nearly turned provider with fifteen minutes gone when his dangerous set-piece delivery was narrowly missed at the near post by Olic, who with half-an-hour gone, made a complete fool of Pogatetz, nutmegging the Boro defender with a cheeky back-heel by the corner flag. Pogatetz pulled back the CSKA Moscow forward and was extremely lucky to avoid a second yellow card.

Mladen Petric - the man whose goal at Wembley last year eliminated England - should have done much better when he was picked out in space at the far post by Vedran Corluka's cross but the Borussia Dortmund striker blasted a volley high and wide when he had the time and space to take a first touch.

Austria had their best spell of the first period as half-time approached. Martin Harnik's dangerous cross had to be cleared by Josip Simunic before Joachim Standfest put a free-header wide of the target following a deep delivery from the left.

Modric and Olic nearly combined again just before the hour mark when the Spurs man took advantage of some slack defending but his drilled cross was scrambled clear by Martin Stranzl with Olic waiting to pounce.

Austria again grew as the half progressed but aside from a header from the edge of the box by substitute Ivica Vastic on 79 minutes and a long-range drive from Unit Korkmaz five minutes from the end, Stipe Pletikosa in the Croatia goal was relatively untroubled.

Roman Kienast headed narrowly wide from a free-kick in the final minute of added time, but Croatia held on to claim the spoils and set the early pace in Group B.

Britney's Special Agent

Britney Spears is still frolicking up and down the coast of Costa Rica, enjoying some ATV riding with her agent Jason Trawick. Britney and the gang are all hanging out at Mel Gibson's place in Costa Rica and maybe I'm unclear as to what an "agent" actually does for a "client," but I'm starting to get the impression that Jason is a very hands-on guy who takes his work representing Britney oh-so-seriously.

Meanwhile, Jamie Spears is probably out buying groceries or something because he has yet to be spotted on this Gibson-sponsored getaway. He probably took an ATV because the Spears certainly love them some all-terrain transportation.

Porter named Suns coach

Terry Porter will be introduced as the new coach of the Phoenix Suns at a press conference early this week.

Following a stormy relationship with former Suns coach Mike D'Antoni, general manager Steve Kerr hired an old teammate in Porter, who had worked as the top assistant to Flip Saunders with the Detroit Pistons the past two seasons.

Saunders was fired Tuesday, days after Detroit lost in the Eastern Conference finals for a third straight season. But instead of succeeding Saunders, Porter will replace D'Antoni, who resigned in May to become coach of the New York Knicks.

"We had an impressive list of candidates, but Terry stood out based on his leadership, his communication skills and his coaching experience as the head guy in Milwaukee for two seasons and the last couple years in Detroit," Kerr said.

The finalists for the job in Phoenix were Porter and assistants Mike Budenholzer of the San Antonio Spurs, Elston Tuner of the Houston Rockets and Tyrone Corbin of the Utah Jazz.

Porter, 45, who coached the Milwaukee Bucks from 2003-05, inherits a talented team which has underachieved in the playoffs. Phoenix, which averaged 58 wins under D'Antoni the last four seasons, lost in the first round of the playoffs this season to San Antonio.

Despite his 71-93 record with the Bucks, Porter looks to be a good fit in the desert.

Porter's first team in Milwaukee in 2003 finished fourth in the NBA in scoring. Phoenix is perennially one of the league's highest-scoring teams, although its identity did change a bit after the club acquired center Shaquille O'Neal in February.

And while the Suns' commitment to defense constantly is questioned, Porter was known as a solid defender during his playing days. He also worked for one of the league's top defensive teams in Detroit.

As such, Porter's commitment to both ends of the floor put him in good favor with Kerr, who clashed with the offensive-minded D'Antoni.

Pedrosa back in championship hunt

Dani Pedrosa took his second victory of the season to close the gap on MotoGP rival Valentino Rossi to seven points.

The Repsol Honda rider took a comfortable win at the Circuit de Catalunya near Barcelona to lie seven points behind former champion Rossi in the standings.

Fiat Yamaha rider Rossi came home second in the race as the Italian won a battle with reigning champion Casey Stoner after the Australian had started from pole position on the Ducati Marlboro machine.

Italian Andrea Dovizioso was fourth on the Scot Honda ahead of American Colin Edwards on the Tech 3 Yamaha and his British team-mate James Toseland.

Pedrosa took the lead off the start from pole man Stoner and never looked back, increasing his advantage to nine seconds at one point before easing off to cross the line four ahead.

Rossi had been down in ninth on the opening lap but was able to work his way through to second by the flag.

Stoner and Dovizioso swapped second place before Rossi went past both of them in one lap.

The Australian then got back up to second but Rossi made the decisive move with two laps to go.

Toseland had dropped down as low as 11th at one stage but came back strongly to take sixth at the flag and lie in seventh in the standings.

Toseland admitted he had lost places on the first lap when he was passed by Rossi.

"I got beaten up at the start, I know that," Toseland told Eurosport.

"I settled into a really good rhythm but it took me some time to get past the two Suzukis. I'm pleased to get back in the top six."

Italian Marco Simoncelli won the 250cc race on the Metis Gilera and reduced Mika Kallio's championship lead to three points after the Finnish rider's Red Bull KTM failed to finish the race.

Irishman Eugene Laverty finished 16th on the Blusens Aprilia.

Frenchman Mike Di Meglio won the 125cc race on the Ajo Motorsports Derbi as Scott Redding was sixth on the Blusens Aprilia, Danny Webb 11th on the Degraaf Aprilia and Bradley Smith 14th on the Polaris World Aprilia.

Di Meglio leads the championship by 14 points from Italian Simone Corsi who finished the race in fifth on the Jack and Jones Aprilia.

Nadal plays down favourite tag

Reigning three-time champion Rafael Nadal believes he is not favourite ahead of the French Open final against Roger Federer.

Nadal's billing as the King of Clay has been emphatically underlined on the red clay at Roland Garros over the past two weeks.

The Spaniard his imperiously extended his unbeaten record at the event to 27 matches with faultless wins over the likes of claycourt specialist Nicolas Almagro and third seed Novak Djokovic in Friday's semi-final.

Nadal has not dropped a set on his way to the final despite encountering four seeded players in six matches.

World number one Federer, by way of comparison, has dropped three sets while only playing one seeded player - Fernando Gonzalez - en route to the the eagerly anticipated clash with his nemesis Nadal.

Past meetings between the world's top two players further marks Nadal out as the favourite with eight wins from nine previous encounters on clay - including wins in the last two Roland Garros finals - but the 22-year-old is adamant those statistics will count for little come Sunday.

"I don't feel I'm the favourite," said Nadal. "I don't believe in favourites. I think the favourite is the one who can hold the trophy up tomorrow, and then the rest doesn't matter.

"Who's the favourite? Him? Me? I don't care."

Nadal went on to reveal how he plans to counter the threat of Federer in the final, which will mark their 17th meeting on all surfaces.

"I will probably try to attack him on his backhand, play longer shots and so on," he said. "You want to take the lead so he starts to feel uncomfortable."

Nadal is on target to equal Bjorn Borg's record of four successive wins at Roland Garros - achieved between 1978 and 1981 - but Federer is determined to spoil the party after his defeats in the past two finals.

Sreesanth out of tri-series

India fast bowler has been ruled out of the tri-series in Bangladesh because of a side strain he suffered in the IPL.

Sreesanth sustained the injury playing for Kings XI Punjab against Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League and doctors at the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore confirmed he would miss the three-nation one-day series against Bangladesh and Pakistan. The 25-year-old is likely to be out of action for a couple of weeks.

Manpreet Gony, the Punjab paceman who played for Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, will take Sreesanth's place.

Gony had impressed of late and was the Chennai team's leading wicket-taker with 17 wickets in the IPL. Sreesanth is expected to be available for selection for the Asia Cup in Pakistan.

The tri-series begins on Sunday with Pakistan facing the hosts.

Scolari right for Chelsea - Ferreira

Chelsea's Portugal defender Paulo Ferreira believes Luiz Felipe Scolari should be the new coach at Stamford Bridge.

The Blues are searching for a high-profile successor to Avram Grant, and 29-year-old full-back Ferreira, for one, can understand why the Brazilian may be near the top of Chelsea's list.

"He's a good coach... and why not?" asked Ferreira, after he had helped Portugal get their Euro 2008 campaign off to a winning start under Scolari - 2-0 against Turkey in Geneva on Saturday.

"The best teams want not just good players but also good managers," he added.

West Hollywood, Calif.: The London West Hollywood

The London West Hollywood opened with a whisper in April, relying on word of mouth and the reputation of the London NYC to fill its 200 rooms. That should soon change, now that Gordon Ramsay at the London West Hollywood has started serving dinner and ratcheting up the buzz. Located in the old Bel Age Hotel, the stucco building isn’t much to look at from the outside, but the rooms are luxurious and airy — the smallest one is a lavish 750 square feet — and the staff is remarkably helpful, bringing some Old Hollywood attentiveness to New Hollywood glitz.

THE LOCATION

Steps away from the Sunset Strip, the hotel is as centrally located as possible in the Los Angeles area: Beverly Hills, Century City, Westwood and Hollywood are all less than 10 minutes by car. The downside: rooms facing Sunset Boulevard are exposed to traffic and noise, especially from crowds outside Whisky a Go Go. (The quietest rooms face south.)

THE SCENE

Guests in $300 jeans and flip-flops pad across the lobby’s glittering mosaic floor. They contrast with the well-dressed staff — men in soft gray suits and ties, women in pinstripes — who are disarmingly cheerful and courteous. For the time being the hotel is low-key, but it’s likely to heat up when the rooftop pool opens this summer. By fall, when the lobby bar opens, it’ll be a scene.

THE ROOMS

The spacious rooms are a convincing selling point: the basic London Suite I booked through the hotel Web site felt every bit the advertised 750 square feet. All rooms have a balcony or terrace, and I woke up to a sweeping view over Beverly Hills. The décor by David Collins Studio is both flamboyant and muted. A wall was covered with parquet veneer and chairs had faux-alligator upholstering, but the colors were washed out, and the open-plan suite felt serene. There was only one oversight, and it was significant: despite the renovation the sliding glass door to the balcony was a relic from the old hotel, and it didn’t shut properly, letting in street noise.

THE BATHROOM

Enormous, and with enough marble and mosaics for imperial Rome. There was a deep tub, and a shower with sex appeal: an alcove big enough for two, it had multiple shower heads and a full-length mirror. Shampoo and soaps were from an in-house line, and had a pleasing citrus scent.

AMENITIES

There’s a well-equipped gym on the roof, and the hotel offers free laundry for workout clothes (the next morning my once-sweaty “Camp Washington Chili” T-shirt was delivered on a hanger). The rooftop pool has a stunning view of the city, but despite its inviting Hockneyesque shimmer, it’s off limits until the landscaped terrace and cabanas are finished this summer. The Wi-Fi throughout the hotel is free.

ROOM SERVICE

When I was there in late April, Gordon Ramsay at the London hadn’t yet opened, but the hotel staff offered delivery from any local restaurant. My chicken salad and dumplings from Chin-Chin not only were at the door within 20 minutes, but the cost was conveniently charged to my room, too.

THE BOTTOM LINE

Nearly flawless despite its youth, with a level of service far above what you’d expect for its introductory rate of $299 in this fashionable neighborhood. The London West Hollywood, 1020 North San Vicente Boulevard; (310) 854-1111; www.thelondonwesthollywood.com.

Treetop Trails and Swimming Tigers at Busch Gardens

The Busch Gardens Africa theme park in Tampa, Fla., has a new attraction in time for summer, Jungala. The four-acre area, in the Congo section of the park, left, offers opportunities to observe orangutans from treetop observation platforms, tigers swimming from a split-level underwater area and creatures like white-cheeked gibbons and flying foxes.
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The Jungala section of Bush Gardens.

There are also two new rides: Jungle Flyers, a zip-lining experience, and Wild Surge, a four-story ride beginning and ending in a crater, and which shoots out of the top of a waterfall. People inspired by the orangutans can explore the treetop trails, which have climbing nets, bridges, crawl tubes and mazes.

A one-day pass, purchased in advance online ($64.95 for adults; $54.95 for children 3 to 9), allows for a free second day, or adults can buy a Be a Kid Again ticket at the children’s rate and visit the park for just one day

Along the San Juan River

On its journey through Utah, the San Juan River runs through red-rock scenery and American Indian history. Wild River Expeditions led a rafting group along the river last month.

Only a few rafters each year take the journey down river, offering a break from the hundreds of thousands of camera-clicking tourists who cram into Monument Valley each year.

Back to Nature and Ready for Guests in the Great Plains

OVER the past decade, as human populations on the Great Plains have thinned, many conservationists have seen an opportunity unparalleled since the frontier days of the 19th century brought towns to the region.
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Eco-Tourism
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Jean Legge, center, leads birders on a tour outside Valley City, N.D.
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Dan Koeck for The New York Times

A white pelican soars over a central North Dakota wetland
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Dan Koeck for The New York Times

John Hanson on his Logging Camp Ranch in the remote western part of the state.

Outdoors people, big landowners, travel operators and conservationists are now returning much of the Great Plains to its wild state, to a kind of American steppe. Conservationists are reviving native fauna and flora, and wolf populations are returning to the Yellowstone area. In the future, many hope, one giant fenceless region might be created across the entire plains that cover much of central North America east of the Rockies south to West Texas and New Mexico.

The idea of rewilding the West takes its inspiration from two professors, Frank and Deborah Popper. In an essay written two decades ago in the journal Planning, they suggested restoring the Upper Midwest to its native state, which they called the Buffalo Commons, and largely replacing agriculture in the region with eco-tourism.

While many Western conservationists do not agree with elements of the Buffalo Commons, preservation efforts have taken off. The American Prairie Foundation, a group dedicated to creating prairie wildlife reserves, has been buying up land in Montana and reintroducing wild American bison, which had largely vanished in the region. Another nonprofit group, the Great Plains Restoration Council is helping to preserve open land in South Dakota. Private landowners, too, have been buying land to return it to open space — Ted Turner, who owns some two million acres of Western land concentrated in Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, New Mexico, South Dakota and Oklahoma, has helped restore bison herds on his property.

The lions won’t be arriving anytime soon, but travel operators have already come, to take advantage of the return of the wild. “When my wife and I first started, two decades ago, we were one of only two operators in the state,” said John Hanson, owner of the Logging Camp Ranch in Bowman, N.D. “Now there are thousands.”

Off the Beaten Path, an operator based in Bozeman, Mont., was one of the first to take advantage of interest in rewilding. Among its custom and group tours, it runs guided six-day wolf-watching trips. “They know they just want to see wolves,” said Bill Bryan, a co-founder and chairman of the company, of his growing clientele.

As the plains have become depopulated, locals have also started sighting regular migrations of pronghorn antelope, elk, mountain lions, bighorn sheep and even bison.

Taking advantage of the animal repopulation, Upper Midwest outfitters are designing extended wildlife safaris. Twice a year, the American Prairie Foundation runs safaris across the land it has preserved, trips that at times include private plane flights across the open land. In the future, predicts Sean Garrity, the foundation’s president, Off the Beaten Path will run these safaris, and many local aviation outfits will begin prairie flights.

Though often overshadowed by nearby Badlands National Park, South Dakota’s Custer State Park runs backcountry jeep safaris. The trips put visitors within feet of herds of bison roaming in the park, as well as providing background on their habits and history. “They’ll get you right into the middle of the herd,” said Duane Lammers, a guide based in South Dakota.

Even without the jeep rides, it’s hard to miss the bison. On one trip to Custer State Park, I woke in the early morning, walked out of my tent and stumbled into a group of bison ambling slowly across the road.

Other guides focus on an airborne niche. In North Dakota, the guide Jean Legge leads trips to search for birds like the rare Baird’s sparrow, whose summer range is in the northern plains.

Ninety percent of her clients are not from North Dakota, Ms. Legge said, but they know that the state’s prairie habitat allows for breeding behavior not found elsewhere. Victor Emanuel Nature Tours, among the largest American eco-tourism operators, also runs weeklong birding trips to North Dakota, Minnesota and other Midwest destinations.

Mr. Hanson’s operation draws game hunters, who know North Dakota is witnessing a revival of wildlife, but he also attracts visitors who want to go birding or merely want a more rugged experience on a real working ranch than they can get on a typical dude ranch.

36 Hours in Mexico City

Mexico’s capital seems to do no wrong lately, at least when it comes to its cultural exports. A weekend exploring the old and new.

Brad Pitt's Bio

His large lips mixed with wife Angelina Jolie's plush mouth make for a genetic recipe so potent, their (non-adopted) babies are bound to grow up looking like... them. Brad Pitt is a country boy, born December 18, 1963, in Shawnee, Oklahoma, and raised in Missouri. He first got noticed as a sexy swindler in the Oscar-winning Thelma & Louise in 1991 and hasn't stopped raising pulses since. Sometimes Brad's pout gets in the way of his speech, but with looks like his, who really notices? Jennifer Aniston (ex-wife), Gwyneth Paltrow (ex-fiance) and Juliette Lewis (ex-girlfriend) didn't seem to mind.

Portraits in Brawn: Top 10 Celebrity Burly Girlies

We're dedicating today's Top 10 to Madonna's frighteningly overdeveloped biceps.

Why? Because if we don't, she'll probably put us in a headlock and crush our skulls like walnuts.

Join us at right for a look at some other show-biz femmes who flex their muscles along with their star power.

Mr. Posh dons waiter duds as buddy Gordon Ramsay brings London to L.A. Maybe the soccer thing isn't working out so great?

You'd think after netting a $250 million deal with the L.A. Galaxy, soccer tycoon David Beckham wouldn't have to moonlight.

But there he was, Mr. Victoria Beckham, decked out in a waiter's uniform at the opening of his longtime friend chef Gordon Ramsay's new restaurant, the London West Hollywood. This is the place the winner of this season's Hell's Kitchen will toil, but for now, it looks like the screaming chef has recruited more A-list help.

And gosh, the soccer stud sure looks cute in that bowtie and vest—almost like a ventriloquist's mannequin.

You might want to roll down those sleeves though, Becks.

Your tattoos are bound to rub some customers the wrong way, and with a wife who spends like this, you're going to need all the tips you can get.

You'd think after netting a $250 million deal with the L.A. Galaxy, soccer tycoon David Beckham wouldn't have to moonlight.

But there he was, Mr. Victoria Beckham, decked out in a waiter's uniform at the opening of his longtime friend chef Gordon Ramsay's new restaurant, the London West Hollywood. This is the place the winner of this season's Hell's Kitchen will toil, but for now, it looks like the screaming chef has recruited more A-list help.

And gosh, the soccer stud sure looks cute in that bowtie and vest—almost like a ventriloquist's mannequin.

You might want to roll down those sleeves though, Becks.

Your tattoos are bound to rub some customers the wrong way, and with a wife who spends like this, you're going to need all the tips you can get.

Jennifer Lopez's Bio

A triple threat who can sing dance and act, Jennifer Lopez has achieved superstardom while managing to remain true to her roots as 'Jenny from the Block.' Seemingly. Born on July 24, 1969, in the Bronx, Jennifer’s passion for dancing led to her becoming a member of the dance troupe ‘The Fly Girls’ on the '90s comedy juggernaut In Living Color. Not content to gyrate in the background, Jennifer gave movies a go, starting with the 1995’s My Family and Money Train with Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson. Her portrayal of doomed Tejano singer Selena in 1997 garnered Jennifer critical acclaim and brought scripts pouring in.

Since then, Jennifer has appeared in Out of Sight, The Wedding Planner and Monster-in-Law, working alongside George Clooney, Matthew McConaughey and Jane Fonda. Of course, it hasn’t been all blockbusters for Jennifer - who could forget Gigli? This busy lady has also released eight albums, including two number one albums on the Billboard charts, and has sold over 48 million albums worldwide. If that’s not enough, (until being eclipsed by Kim Kardashian), La Lopez possessed the most revered butt in showbiz, and she has her own clothing and perfume lines. With a star so big, it’s inevitable her love life would be the subject of rumors and speculation, especially with such high-profile boyfriends as Sean Combs and Ben Affleck. Her marriage to Latin crooner Marc Anthony - her third - is still going strong and with twins Max and Emme, Jennifer has now added Mom to her already over-stuffed resume.

OMG! The Hollywood Gossip Turns Two!

Two years ago today, The Hollywood Gossip burst on the scene with a single blog. Appropriately, on the devilish date of 6/6/06, Lindsay Lohan was the topic.

What a wild ride it’s been since. To commemorate our second birthday, we’re taking a look back at the stars who generated the most traffic on our site for each of our 24 months in the crazy biz they call celebrity gossip…

June 2006: Heather Mills. Heather Mills sucks. But that one-legged, gold-digging ex-call girl sure did give us some great stories for a time.

July 2006: Nicole Richie. By this point, Nicole may not have eaten in six months. Brody Jenner, who dated her briefly, tried in vain to force-feed her.

August 2006: Kristin Cavallari. Speaking of Brody, he used to date Kristin Cavallari! They were a super-hot couple for months (an eternity by his standards).

September 2006: Lindsay Lohan. It seems like ancient history now, but in 2006, the cutie was still in the early stages of her downward spiral.

October 2006: Lindsay Lohan. Drinking, partying, sleeping with anyone with a pulse, making awful movies: Why shouldn’t LiLo win two straight months?

November 2006: Chris Ivery. Grey’s Anatomy star Ellen Pompeo made news when she got engaged to longtime beau Chris Ivery on her birthday. A year later, also on her birthday, Ellen Pompeo and Ivery got married in New York!

December 2006: Paris Hilton. Skanky. Worthless. Always in the news. We’re surprised it took Paris six whole months to top our list, to be honest.

January 2007: Britney Spears. Fresh off her divorce from K-Fed, Brit Brit went on an epic binge of drinking, random sexual encounters and clubbing with no pants. Hanging out Paris Hilton certainly helped the cause.

February 2007: Antonella Barba. This New Jersey-ite couldn’t sing all that well, but her oral skills were on full display. If you know what we mean. We mean there were pics on the Internet of her servicing some schmoe.