Tuesday, January 17, 2012
Thursday, November 11, 2010
Robert Downey Jr.'s latest role: Mr. Peanut
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – Robert Downey Jr.
has traded his metal suit for a peanut shell.
The "Iron Man" actor stars in a new commercial as the voice of the iconic Planters Peanuts mascot, Mr. Peanut. It's the first time the anthropomorphic nut with a top hat, monocle and cane has ever spoken.
Kraft Foods, the parent of Planters Peanuts, introduced the new ad on the Internet Tuesday. Plans are to show it later in movie theaters and on television.
In the 33-second ad, Mr. Peanut is throwing a "holiday party" at his home, which is decked out in red and green lights, tinsel and a Christmas Tree.
The ad introduces a smaller, sidekick peanut who is attending the party with guests that include a turtle and a grasshopper.
Throwing a great party is easy, says Mr. Peanut in a tone reminiscent of Tony Stark. Just serve classy snacks and be a gracious host, "no matter who shows up."
That's when Richard barges in. He's a nutcracker.
Mr. Peanut was created in 1916 after Planters Peanuts held a contest to create a logo and a 14-year-old boy drew a nut with human features. Mr Peanut used to be yellow, but the incarnation voiced by Downey Jr. is brown.
Beyond his role as Mr. Peanut, Downey Jr. is also pitchman for car company Nissan.
has traded his metal suit for a peanut shell.The "Iron Man" actor stars in a new commercial as the voice of the iconic Planters Peanuts mascot, Mr. Peanut. It's the first time the anthropomorphic nut with a top hat, monocle and cane has ever spoken.
Kraft Foods, the parent of Planters Peanuts, introduced the new ad on the Internet Tuesday. Plans are to show it later in movie theaters and on television.
In the 33-second ad, Mr. Peanut is throwing a "holiday party" at his home, which is decked out in red and green lights, tinsel and a Christmas Tree.
The ad introduces a smaller, sidekick peanut who is attending the party with guests that include a turtle and a grasshopper.
Throwing a great party is easy, says Mr. Peanut in a tone reminiscent of Tony Stark. Just serve classy snacks and be a gracious host, "no matter who shows up."
That's when Richard barges in. He's a nutcracker.
Mr. Peanut was created in 1916 after Planters Peanuts held a contest to create a logo and a 14-year-old boy drew a nut with human features. Mr Peanut used to be yellow, but the incarnation voiced by Downey Jr. is brown.
Beyond his role as Mr. Peanut, Downey Jr. is also pitchman for car company Nissan.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
"Dragon" fires up DVD charts
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – The DreamWorks Animation hit "How To Train Your Dragon" topped the national home video sales charts for a second consecutive week on Wednesday -- and was also the No. 1 renter in its first full week in stores.
Coming in at No. 2 on both the Nielsen VideoScan sales chart and the tracking firm's dedicated Blu-ray Disc sales chart for the week ended October 24 was "Predators," a science-fiction reboot starring Adrien Brody and Laurence Fishburne.
The new 35th anniversary edition Blu-ray Disc release of cult classic "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" made quite a splash in stores, landing at No. 5 on the Blu-ray chart and pushing overall sales to No. 11 on the main chart.
On trade publication Home Media Magazine's rental chart, "Dragon" easily captured the top spot, despite a stiff challenge from second-ranked "Robin Hood." Last week's champ, "The Karate Kid," fell to No. 3.
hit "How To Train Your Dragon" topped the national home video sales charts for a second consecutive week on Wednesday -- and was also the No. 1 renter in its first full week in stores.Coming in at No. 2 on both the Nielsen VideoScan sales chart and the tracking firm's dedicated Blu-ray Disc sales chart for the week ended October 24 was "Predators," a science-fiction reboot starring Adrien Brody and Laurence Fishburne.
The new 35th anniversary edition Blu-ray Disc release of cult classic "The Rocky Horror Picture Show" made quite a splash in stores, landing at No. 5 on the Blu-ray chart and pushing overall sales to No. 11 on the main chart.
On trade publication Home Media Magazine's rental chart, "Dragon" easily captured the top spot, despite a stiff challenge from second-ranked "Robin Hood." Last week's champ, "The Karate Kid," fell to No. 3.
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Zsa Zsa Gabor has transfusion, remains critical
LOS ANGELES – Zsa Zsa Gabor's husband says the actress remains in critical condition after receiving a blood transfusion.
Prince Frederic von Anhalt said Saturday that doctors are hopeful new medication will help the 93-year-old recover. She received the transfusion Friday night.
Von Anhalt says his wife is conscious and was able to squeeze his hand and whisper a few words Saturday morning.
Gabor broke her hip after she fell out of bed last weekend at her Bel-Air home. She had hip replacement surgery Monday.
The Hungarian-born Gabor has had to use a wheelchair after being partially paralyzed in a 2002 car accident.
husband says the actress remains in critical condition after receiving a blood transfusion.Prince Frederic von Anhalt said Saturday that doctors are hopeful new medication will help the 93-year-old recover. She received the transfusion Friday night.
Von Anhalt says his wife is conscious and was able to squeeze his hand and whisper a few words Saturday morning.
Gabor broke her hip after she fell out of bed last weekend at her Bel-Air home. She had hip replacement surgery Monday.
The Hungarian-born Gabor has had to use a wheelchair after being partially paralyzed in a 2002 car accident.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
US resumes ties with Indonesian special forces
JAKARTA — The United States said on Thursday it would resume ties with Indonesian special forces after a 12-year hiatus, as part of efforts by Washington to reach out to the world's largest Muslim nation.
The announcement, made during a visit by US Defence Secretary Robert Gates to Indonesia, comes as Washington seeks to resume training for the Kopassus unit as part of growing intelligence cooperation with Jakarta.
"The United States will begin a gradual, limited programme of security cooperation activities with the Indonesian Army Special Forces," Gates said referring to the Kopassus unit with which Washington suspended ties in 1998.
The decision came "as a result of Indonesian military reforms over the past decade... and recent actions taken by the Ministry of Defense to address human rights issues," he said after talks with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
"Our ability to expand upon these initial steps will depend upon continued implementation of reforms within Kopassus and TNI (the Indonesian armed forces) as a whole," he said, describing the move as "a very significant development".
The move is controversial as the Kopassus unit has been implicated in human rights abuses, including in East Timor, and some figures in the US Congress have opposed embracing the force before it has accounted for its past.
The United States broke off ties with the Kopassus under a law banning cooperation with foreign troops implicated in rights abuses.
The Indonesian special forces are accused of committing rights violations in East Timor and Aceh under then dictator Suharto in the 1990s.
A report last year by US-based Human Rights Watch accused the elite unit of ongoing abuses in the restive province of Papua, including unwarranted arrests, beatings and other mistreatment including "brutality against ordinary Papuans".
A senior US defence official played down fears that senior figures still in the special forces had been implicated in past rights violations.
"Individuals who had been convicted in the past for human rights violations have in the past several months been removed from Kopassus," he said.
The administration of President Barack Obama, who spent part of his childhood in Indonesia, sees the country as an increasingly important player in East Asia and key ally in the Muslim world.
Ernie Bower, a Southeast Asia expert at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said the Obama administration needed to handle its relationship with the Indonesian military carefully.
"I think it's the view of the Indonesian military that without the ability to engage and train Kopassus, the American engagement and normalisation of the military-to-military relationship would be incomplete," he said.
"If you don't have the relationship with the Indonesian military normalised, you can't really participate and be the leading partner in this architecture," he added. "Gates needs to get it right with Indonesia."
However, the Pentagon needs to find an acceptable compromise to seal the deal without encountering too many objections in Washington.
"We've been working for some time both within the US government and with the government of Indonesia to try to figure out how and under what conditions we can pursue re-engagement with Kopassus," said one senior US defense official.
He noted improvements made by Jakarta since the end of the Suharto regime.
However, leading voices in Washington such as Democrat Senator Patrick Leahy as well as human rights groups have opposed a normalisation of military ties until Kopassus commanders have faced justice for past rights violations.
"Before resuming military cooperation with the Kopassus, Robert Gates must make sure that there's no senior military officers implicated in the past abuse who hold a structural position in the military," said activist Usman Hamid.
Hamid, a prominent rights activist from the Indonesian Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), said any troops involved in abuses had to face trial.
said on Thursday it would resume ties with Indonesian special forces after a 12-year hiatus, as part of efforts by Washington to reach out to the world's largest Muslim nation.The announcement, made during a visit by US Defence Secretary Robert Gates to Indonesia, comes as Washington seeks to resume training for the Kopassus unit as part of growing intelligence cooperation with Jakarta.
"The United States will begin a gradual, limited programme of security cooperation activities with the Indonesian Army Special Forces," Gates said referring to the Kopassus unit with which Washington suspended ties in 1998.
The decision came "as a result of Indonesian military reforms over the past decade... and recent actions taken by the Ministry of Defense to address human rights issues," he said after talks with President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
"Our ability to expand upon these initial steps will depend upon continued implementation of reforms within Kopassus and TNI (the Indonesian armed forces) as a whole," he said, describing the move as "a very significant development".
The move is controversial as the Kopassus unit has been implicated in human rights abuses, including in East Timor, and some figures in the US Congress have opposed embracing the force before it has accounted for its past.
The United States broke off ties with the Kopassus under a law banning cooperation with foreign troops implicated in rights abuses.
The Indonesian special forces are accused of committing rights violations in East Timor and Aceh under then dictator Suharto in the 1990s.
A report last year by US-based Human Rights Watch accused the elite unit of ongoing abuses in the restive province of Papua, including unwarranted arrests, beatings and other mistreatment including "brutality against ordinary Papuans".
A senior US defence official played down fears that senior figures still in the special forces had been implicated in past rights violations.
"Individuals who had been convicted in the past for human rights violations have in the past several months been removed from Kopassus," he said.
The administration of President Barack Obama, who spent part of his childhood in Indonesia, sees the country as an increasingly important player in East Asia and key ally in the Muslim world.
Ernie Bower, a Southeast Asia expert at the Centre for Strategic and International Studies in Washington, said the Obama administration needed to handle its relationship with the Indonesian military carefully.
"I think it's the view of the Indonesian military that without the ability to engage and train Kopassus, the American engagement and normalisation of the military-to-military relationship would be incomplete," he said.
"If you don't have the relationship with the Indonesian military normalised, you can't really participate and be the leading partner in this architecture," he added. "Gates needs to get it right with Indonesia."
However, the Pentagon needs to find an acceptable compromise to seal the deal without encountering too many objections in Washington.
"We've been working for some time both within the US government and with the government of Indonesia to try to figure out how and under what conditions we can pursue re-engagement with Kopassus," said one senior US defense official.
He noted improvements made by Jakarta since the end of the Suharto regime.
However, leading voices in Washington such as Democrat Senator Patrick Leahy as well as human rights groups have opposed a normalisation of military ties until Kopassus commanders have faced justice for past rights violations.
"Before resuming military cooperation with the Kopassus, Robert Gates must make sure that there's no senior military officers implicated in the past abuse who hold a structural position in the military," said activist Usman Hamid.
Hamid, a prominent rights activist from the Indonesian Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), said any troops involved in abuses had to face trial.
Thursday, March 4, 2010
37 Taliban, one Pakistani soldier dead in clash, air strike
PESHAWAR, Pakistan — Pakistan's military killed 30 Taliban fighters who tried to storm a security post on Thursday, while an air strike elsewhere in the northwest left seven insurgents dead, officials said.
The deaths come as the Pakistani military claims to be making fresh gains against Taliban and Al-Qaeda strongholds, under US pressure to do more to stop militants infiltrating into Afghanistan along the porous and lawless border.
In a pre-dawn attack, more than 100 armed Taliban militants stormed a checkpost of the paramilitary Frontier Corps, killing one soldier and wounding four others in the town of Chamarkand in Mohmand tribal district, an official said.
"Troops equipped with mortars and long range cannons retaliated killing 30 militants," local administration official Maqsood Ahmed told AFP, adding that they had already recovered 10 bodies.
A military statement confirmed the clash and the casualties, although such death tolls are difficult to confirm independently as the area is rife with militant violence and out of bounds to most reporters and aid workers.
Chamarkand lies about two kilometres (one mile) from the Afghan province of Kunar, which is also troubled by a growing Taliban insurgency.
Mohmand neighbours Bajaur district, where the Pakistani military on Tuesday claimed to have captured a vast Taliban and Al-Qaeda hideout dug into mountains near the Afghan border in an offensive that killed 75 militants.
Also Thursday, Pakistani fighter jets pounded a suspected Taliban base in Orakzai district in the middle of the northwest tribal belt.
"The air strike targeted Dabori, a mountainous town in Orakzai," local administration official Fazle Qadir told AFP. "Two hideouts were destroyed and seven militants were killed."
Pakistan's paramilitary forces said Wednesday troops had also killed 38 militants during a week-long operation against the Taliban under the codename "Spring Cleaning" in the northwest Taliban stronghold of Pastawana.
Under US pressure, Pakistan has in the last year significantly increased operations against militants in its northwest and tribal belt, which Washington has branded an Al-Qaeda "headquarters" and the most dangerous region on Earth.
The rugged tribal terrain became a stronghold for hundreds of extremists who fled neighbouring Afghanistan after the US-led invasion in late 2001.
Washington says the militants use Pakistan's semi-autonomous tribal belt to plot and stage attacks in Afghanistan, where more than 120,000 NATO and US troops are helping Afghan forces battle the Taliban militia.
In spring last year, Pakistan's armed forces launched a determined offensive to rid the northwest Swat region of Taliban militants who had taken over swathes of the area and were inching closer to Islamabad.
Claiming to have killed about 2,150 militants, the army in July said they had secured Swat and moved their attentions to the seven tribal district stringing along the Afghan border.Click Here!
— Pakistan's military killed 30 Taliban fighters who tried to storm a security post on Thursday, while an air strike elsewhere in the northwest left seven insurgents dead, officials said.The deaths come as the Pakistani military claims to be making fresh gains against Taliban and Al-Qaeda strongholds, under US pressure to do more to stop militants infiltrating into Afghanistan along the porous and lawless border.
In a pre-dawn attack, more than 100 armed Taliban militants stormed a checkpost of the paramilitary Frontier Corps, killing one soldier and wounding four others in the town of Chamarkand in Mohmand tribal district, an official said.
"Troops equipped with mortars and long range cannons retaliated killing 30 militants," local administration official Maqsood Ahmed told AFP, adding that they had already recovered 10 bodies.
A military statement confirmed the clash and the casualties, although such death tolls are difficult to confirm independently as the area is rife with militant violence and out of bounds to most reporters and aid workers.
Chamarkand lies about two kilometres (one mile) from the Afghan province of Kunar, which is also troubled by a growing Taliban insurgency.
Mohmand neighbours Bajaur district, where the Pakistani military on Tuesday claimed to have captured a vast Taliban and Al-Qaeda hideout dug into mountains near the Afghan border in an offensive that killed 75 militants.
Also Thursday, Pakistani fighter jets pounded a suspected Taliban base in Orakzai district in the middle of the northwest tribal belt.
"The air strike targeted Dabori, a mountainous town in Orakzai," local administration official Fazle Qadir told AFP. "Two hideouts were destroyed and seven militants were killed."
Pakistan's paramilitary forces said Wednesday troops had also killed 38 militants during a week-long operation against the Taliban under the codename "Spring Cleaning" in the northwest Taliban stronghold of Pastawana.
Under US pressure, Pakistan has in the last year significantly increased operations against militants in its northwest and tribal belt, which Washington has branded an Al-Qaeda "headquarters" and the most dangerous region on Earth.
The rugged tribal terrain became a stronghold for hundreds of extremists who fled neighbouring Afghanistan after the US-led invasion in late 2001.
Washington says the militants use Pakistan's semi-autonomous tribal belt to plot and stage attacks in Afghanistan, where more than 120,000 NATO and US troops are helping Afghan forces battle the Taliban militia.
In spring last year, Pakistan's armed forces launched a determined offensive to rid the northwest Swat region of Taliban militants who had taken over swathes of the area and were inching closer to Islamabad.
Claiming to have killed about 2,150 militants, the army in July said they had secured Swat and moved their attentions to the seven tribal district stringing along the Afghan border.Click Here!
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