The Malaysian Insider :: Showbiz
The Malaysian Insider :: Showbiz |
| Chinese star wins US website apology over sex claims Posted: 18 Dec 2013 06:48 PM PST In a statement Boxun News said there was no evidence to support the claims and acknowledged it did not contact the "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" star before publishing the allegations last year. A spokesman for the 34-year-old Chinese actress said she will withdraw her lawsuit against the agency, as long as they adhere to an agreement the terms of which were not disclosed. "Ms Zhang is confident that the public apology and retraction made by Boxun proves that the allegations are false," said a statement issued on her behalf by the actress's publicist Raina Falcon. "As such, she will soon dismiss her lawsuit against the news agency, pending their adherence to a resolution agreement and as ordered by the court." In a piece posted Tuesday on its English-language main page, the agency which often reports unsourced rumours said it published a series of articles starting in May 2012 which included "negative and untrue information about (Zhang), including that she slept with wealthy and powerful men for presents and money". "These false reports... should never have been published," it said in the piece, entitled "Boxun News retracts reports about Zhang Ziyi". "As a result, Boxun News now renders its unreserved apology to Zhang Ziyi, has removed the entire series of articles... from the Boxun News website, and issues this formal retraction." It continued: "Boxun News regrets the publication of these articles and any distress Zhang Ziyi may have suffered as a result of the articles." "The Boxun News reports... were based on information provided to Boxun News by anonymous sources, who cannot support the information reported. Boxun News also failed to contact Zhang Ziyi before publishing the reports in order to enable her to respond to and refute the allegations." The agency "now acknowledges that its reports were insupportable and improper, and that Zhang Ziyi has never been questioned in connection with any investigation related to the allegations set forth in the Boxun articles," it said. "Boxun News recognises and respects Zhang Ziyi's extraordinary achievements in the international motion picture industry as well as her many civic and charitable efforts. Boxun News sincerely apologises to Zhang Ziyi for the damage it has caused to her reputation and career." Zhang was nominated for a best actress Golden Globe for 2005's "Memoirs of a Geisha", among more than 30 nominations and 20 wins in awards ceremonies around the world. As well as starring in 2000's Oscar-winning "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon" by Taiwan's Ang Lee, she has also appeared in films including 2001's "Rush Hour" starring Jackie Chan, and 2004's "House of Flying Daggers". - AFP, December 19, 2013. |
| Keith Richards of Rolling Stones turns 70 Posted: 18 Dec 2013 04:16 PM PST The unmatched guitar legend isn't just hitting 70 – like Mick Jagger did in August. He is also celebrating his 30th wedding anniversary with former model Patti Hanson, with whom he has two daughters. He also has three children with the Italian actress Anita Pallenberg. With his trademark bandana tied around his head, open shirt and face wrinkled by years of hard partying and struggles with addiction, Richards' image incarnates pure, undiluted rock and roll. His low voice sounds otherworldly, while his virtuosity on the guitar has turned even his critics into grudging fans. Along with the Beatles, the Stones revolutionised popular music in the 1960s. Richards hits the road with fellow bandmates Mick Jagger, Charlie Watts and Ronnie Wood plus special guest Mick Taylor, who played with the group from 1969 to 1974, on its "14 on Fire" tour that debuts February 21 in Abu Dhabi. In the run up to the two milestones Richards's web site is urging fans to send him commentaries that will be presented to him as a gift. "People say 'why don't you give it up?' I don't think they quite understand. I'm not doing it just for the money, or for you. I'm doing it for me," Richards said in "Life", his autobiography, published in 2010. Much has happened since Richards left Dartford, a town on the outskirts of London where he lived with his working class family, met Jagger on a train and with him formed in 1962 what is today regarded by many as the world's greatest rock and roll band. The Stones in the 1960s drew on the work of black American rhythm and blues and maestros like Chuck Berry and Muddy Waters. Richards's guitar riffs are among the most emblematic in the history of rock, etched in the memory of millions with tunes like "Satisfaction", "Jumpin' Jack Flash", "Sympathy for the Devil" "Brown Sugar", "Let's Spend the Night Together" and "Start Me Up". Besides their musical wizardry, Richards and Jagger gained fame as womanizing boozers and drug users who were "anti-establishment" in a country steeped in tradition. Their excesses in the 1960s and 70s brought scandal, trials and jail stints and in 1969 the founding Stones guitar player, Brian Jones, drowned in a swimming pool. But the band overcame that tragedy – and the surrounding scandal – to pick themselves up and carry on. Stones fans adore both Richards and Jagger, but most see Richards as the soul of the group – the eternal rebel who formed a raucous duo with Jagger – the lady loving dandy who tired of being manipulated by the music business and himself became an empresario to be reckoned with. Bill Wyman, 77 and the original bass player of the Stones who left in 1994, will not be on stage this time, although he did play in a 50th anniversary concert in London in London in 2012. – AFP, December 19, 2013. |
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