From left, Betty White, Valerie Bertinelli, Wendie Malick and Jane Leeves

Hot in Cleveland, a new show on TV Land, premiered last Wednesday with record ratings and plenty of laughs…both of which may be attributed to the show’s scene-stealing star, Betty White. The 88-year-old actress, who seems to be Hollywood’s “it” girl at the moment, is continuing her popular streak with her new sharp-tongued character on Cleveland. Her three co stars, Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick, also entertain in this infectious comedy about three women rediscovering their youth as they crash land in Cleveland, Ohio.

Melanie Moretti (Bertinelli) Joy Scroggs (Leeves) and Victoria Chase (Malick) are three women from Los Angeles embarking on a new adventure. As the pilot opens, the women are on a plane to Paris to check off number 122 on Melanie’s “200 things to do before I die list.” But, on their way to la ville d’amour, their plane makes an emergency landing in, yep, you guessed it, Cleveland. Although they are at first frustrated over this detour, the three friends more…

Alice Tan Ridley on America's Got Talent

Last year, it was a chicken farmer. Before him, a loud-mouthed Brit with a mop of curly hair. This year, the standout surprise of the international Talent phenomenon comes straight from the subways of New York City. Like last year’s America’s Got Talent winner Kevin Skinner and Susan Boyle of the British version of the show, Alice Tan Ridley captured our attention with an unsuspectingly strong voice in her audition.  But, there’s just one difference between her and these former contestants – she’s the mother of a famous movie star.

Alice Tan Ridley may be the mother of Gabourey Sidibe, the star of the Oscar nominated films, Precious, but the 58-year-old celebrity mom is seeking fame of her own. Born in Harlem, Ridley humbly worked as a nursery school teacher and a Department of Education teacher’s aide. Eventually, however, Ridley followed her true passion more…

Can we handle another Justin Bieber? The producers of American Idol sure think so.

Is 'American Idol' trying to find the next Justin Bieber?

In a statement released June 21, the hit singing competition announced it has lowered the minimum age requirement for its contestants from 16 to 15 for the upcoming tenth season. The reason for the change is, according to executive producer Cecile Frot-Coutaz, “A lot of young, talented people are now seeking careers and representation before they turn 16. Lowering the age limit allows us to tap into this talent pool.”

Idol’s producers may be on to something. Young people seeking careers in show business is certainly nothing new, but it does seem like in the past few years there has been a huge resurgence of “tween” stars in entertainment. Starting with the premiere of High School Musical back in 2006, the Disney Channel and its more…

Shorts have always been part of the summer wardrobe. As we get older, one understands their fashionable purpose. We see them on the runway of every spring collection, but shorts have become more than just a summer article of clothing. Now a days, they come in an assortment of colors and cuts, but, of course, the daisy dukes will always be in fashion — thanks to Jessica Simpson.

Shorts were first brought in style in the 1960’s when fashion starting to become major. Models such as Twiggy and actresses such as Ava Gardner and Marilyn Monroe would wear them. As fashion emerged, the short style became popular. It became a staple in the women’s wardrobe rather than more…

The Tony Awards is usually Broadway’s biggest night. But it seems Hollywood invaded this year’s awards show.

Billie Joe Armstrong of Green Day performing at the 64th Annual Tony Awards.

The 64^th annual Tony Awards aired Sunday, June 13, and like always, I was really looking forward to this year’s telecast. I’m a huge fan of Broadway musicals, so Tony night is always a very important night for me.

The show opened with host Sean Hayes playing the piano as cast members from this season’s shows performed short musical excerpts from their productions. It didn’t bother me that Hayes, an actor better-known for his work in television and movies than his current role as Chuck Baxter in the Broadway revival of Promises, Promises, was hosting the awards show. I was even OK with seeing Green Day perform in the more…

Khloé Kardashian

Crochet sweaters, tops and dresses are no longer just for the grandma-chic fashionistas out there. Now more than ever thanks to the stylish and timeless Karl Lagerfeld, among others, there is now reason to bring crochet accents into your summer wardrobe. While it may not be a must-have item for every closet, many adventurist ladies should dip into this look without hesitation for a chic ensemble that can take you from day to night.

While this took a step on the runway during several Spring/Summer 2010 shows, it made its latest debut on several fashion blogs including the Trend Report of Who What Wear Daily, a Celebrity Style Blog by two expert stylists, Katherine Power and Hillary Kerr. Now, nearly a month after more…

Popular artists featured on the official album of the World Cup

The premature death of Nelson Mandela’s great-granddaughter, Zenani Mandela, left many people shaken and confused, but soccer fans still managed to brave smiles at Thursday’s World Cup opening ceremony. Zenani was killed in a car accident Thursday on the way home from one of the tournament’s opening concerts. The former South African president was scheduled to appear for the remaining festivities, but understandably withdrew from the ceremony.  South Africa was certainly shaken by the tragic news and it was courageous of the attendees at the kick-off ceremony at Orlando Stadium in Soweto, Johannesburg, to try and enjoy taking part in the celebration of the biggest soccer event in the world.

Before the real stars of the World Cup stepped onto the field to show off their soccer skills, popular singers took their place on stage to pay tribute to the players with a live concert. Some artists who performed were John Legend, Shakira, Alicia Keys, Angelique Kidjo and the Black Eyed Peas, as well as a few South African acts, including the Parlotones, Thandiswa Mazwai, Hip Hop Pantsula and Timothy Moloi.

R&B artist R. Kelly was a highlight of the ceremony with a performance of his song, “Sign of a Victory,” which was chosen to be the World Cup’s official anthem. Kelly sang the uplifting tune with the South African gospel choir, Soweto Spiritual Singers. Proceeds from the single will be given to 20 Centres for 2010, the official charity of the FIFA World Cup.  The campaign’s goal is to raise 10 million USD to build 20 Football for Hope centers in Africa to promote health, education and soccer to underprivileged communities.

Kelly, along with many other artists, is featured on the World Cup’s official album, Listen Up! Shakira and the band Freshlyground also appear on the CD with their collaboration, “Waka Waka (This Time For Africa.)” In addition to “Sign of a Victory,” Shakira’s single is honored as an official song of the prestigious soccer event. Providing the tournament’s mascot song are Pitbull, TKZee and Dario G with their single, “Game On.”  Other songs include Angelique Kidjo and John Legend’s “Move On Up” and J Pre, Wyclef, Jazmine Sullivan, and B Howard’s collaboration on “Ke Nako.” Opera singer Siphiwo Ntshebe’s “Hope,” which features a message from former president of South Africa Nelson Mandela, is another track on the album. Ntshebe’s appearance on the CD is bittersweet, for as yet another tragedy to stun the soccer world, the singer died a couple of weeks ago from meningitis. Ntshebe had been personally chosen by Mandela to perform at the ceremony in Soweto.

The official World Cup album is in stores now and the tournament will air on ESPN from June 11 to July 11. ABC will be showing select matches on weekends throughout the month.

Sarah Jessica Parker

What is largely known to be the “Oscars of Fashion” amongst lovers of the industry took place on Monday night and of course, not without its art and fabulous clothing. The CFDA (Council of Fashion Designers of America Awards) Awards painted the town a multitude of colors in New York to celebrate the vision, creativity and overall achievements of men and women in fashion.

Seasoned professionals in the industry such as Michael Kors and Marc Jacobs sat alongside newcomers like Jason Wu, designer of Michelle Obama’s inaugural gown, to celebrate the reflection of fashion’s past, present and future. Lincoln Center lit up with dressed stars such as Gwyneth Paltrow, Dakota Fanning, Jessica Biel and Ed Westwick to celebrate the night of art.

The winners list, taken from CFDA.com, included more…

Katy Perry (left) at the MTV Movie Awards on June 6. Lady Gaga (right) in her new music video "Alejandro."

It’s no secret Lady Gaga’s music videos are shocking, to say the least. But Katy Perry seems to have taken particular offense to Gaga’s latest music video “Alejandro.”

On Tuesday, the same day “Alejandro” premiered, Perry posted on her Twitter page, “Using blasphemy as entertainment is as cheap as a comedian telling a fart joke.” Perry’s tweet more…