Tara Solomon: Shine-y Happy People: Another Week of Miami Excess

Oh, the things we learned this week, from how to style oneself with edgy aplomb (with the help of Internet it girl Leandra Medine) to the secrets of a happy marriage, NBA-style (separate bathrooms, closets and cars, according to Alonzo Mourning's missus, Tracy).

Loren and Kate Kreiss with Design District showroom grand opening hosts Tracy and Alonzo Mourning

At the grand opening of the capacious Kreiss showroom in Miami's Design District on Tues., Jan. 10, Tracy and Alonzo Mourning, one of Miami's most grounded power couples, co-hosted along with California-based furniture czar Loren Kreiss and his adorable wife, Kate. The evening benefited Honey Shine mentoring program, which Tracy founded in 2002. And who better to guide Miami's youth than old-school parents so strict they actually enforce a no-TV-on-weekdays rule for their three kids?

"Gurl, he still has a flip phone -- and a Sidekick!" Tracy shared.

"No Twitter. No Facebook. I don't do that stuff," Alonzo added, scolding Miami Heat owner Micky Arison for spending so much time on The Twitter. "There are a lot better things he could be doing with his time." We hear ya, Zo.

Melissa Katz with husband Seth Browarnik of World Redeye at Bal Harbour Shops Art Nights

The next night, Bal Harbour Shops hosted its monthly Art Nights, with art- and fashion-centric events held throughout the mall, including the opening of the new Stella McCartney boutique featuring color-blocked light box sculptures designed by artist David Batchelor. At Neiman Marcus, in the ultimate temple of temptation which was the Tom Ford boutique, Stefanie Reed, VIP Relations for Art Basel Miami Beach, and Bass Museum Executive Director Silvia Karman Cubina led the intellectual charge with a talk on Miami's thriving art scene.

Suzanne Birbragher, Stefanie Reed and Silvia Karman Cubina at Bal Harbour Shops Art Nights

Elsewhere in the mall, Miami photographer Seth Browarnik displayed his Art of the Night exhibition (we hope the genius shot of a nude Amanda Lepore playing a Lucite piano gets purchased and placed somewhere very public), as ArtNexus hosted a soiree at the Valentino boutique.

All that socializing left us famished, so we headed to South Beach to gorge on some of South Florida's best sushi at the new Bar Tanaka at the Shelborne hotel. Branzino fiends like us will appreciate the flawless branzino sashimi, served aside a block of Himalayan salt, minced shiso leaf and olive oil. Truly divine.

The Man Repeller's Leandra Medine at The Webster

On Friday, The Webster boutique launched its new online store with a guest appearance by popular New York-based fashion blogger Leandra Medine of The Man Repeller. Medine styled both mannequins and guests, explaining her inspiration on one of the former:

"This one IS very Miami, that's what I said! I threw on a men's YSL tee -- I'm obsessed with tees -- and layered on necklaces, because, well, that's what I do. It's difficult to find bottoms to complement tees -- jeans can be too casual -- so I went with these resort Stella McCartney satin shorts. Then I threw on an arm party, because that's what I do." (Side note: Leandra owns the trademark to the phrase "arm party.")

Screen icon Robert Redford with Jacques D'Amboise and Tamara Scott at YoungArts Gala. Photo by World Redeye.com

On Saturday night, we attended the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts Gala, benefiting its YoungArts program, where filmmaker/actor Robert Redford was honored, along with YoungArts alumnus artist Doug Aitken and arts supporter Robert L. Lynch. A mashup of "West Side Story" by the very talented YoungArts students opened the event at the Art Deco-era Gusman Theater -- making us wish we had stuck with our music lessons as a child -- followed by a very festive gala at Miami's JW Marriott.

Actress Debi Mazar in vintage Claire McCardell at YoungArts Gala
Edward Pedron, Lin Arison and Robert Lynch at YoungArts Gala
Jorge and Darlene Perez at YoungArts Gala
Luis Rigual and Anne Owen of Miami Magazine at YoungArts Gala
The next generation: YoungArts performers

A highlight was meeting legendary choreographer Bill T. Jones, an exceedingly gracious icon of modern culture, as well as snagging a transatlantic cruise on the Queen Mary at the silent auction (we discovered that signing one's name v-e-r-y s-l-o-w-l-y just before the cut-off time helps to lock out the competition). One of the chicest looks of the night went to actress and Cooking Channel "Extra Virgin" show host Debi Mazar, who wore a 1950s brown-and-black striped dress by designer Claire McCardell that she found on 1stdibs.com, paired with a vintage gold charm bracelet that was her grandmother's. Our eyes were glued on her perfectly manicured talons, which were painted a retro frosted white.

Choreographer Bill T. Jones at YoungArts Gala
Matthew Vander Werff and Sarah Arison at YoungArts Gala
Producer Nan Bush and photographer Bruce Weber at YoungArts Gala

Sunday gave us more culture with an eclectic arts showcase by the 2012 grant recipients of the non-profit Citizens Interested in Arts (CIA) at the Aventura Cultural Center. We heard Broadway-destined, eight-year-old Biana Pinchuk belt out the Ethel Merman classic, "There's No Business Like Show Business," marveled at the skillful pas de deux by Kaori Fukui and Jun Tanabe of Arts Ballet Theatre of Florida, and clapped along with the bluegrass numbers by the very talented, seven-member Pursell Family, Miami's kick-heinie version of the Von Trapps.

Jason Binn with wife, Haley, at Bianca

By Monday, we were ready for some cocktail culture and got it in spades at Delano for New York entrepreneur Jason Binn's Miami birthday celebration, held at the hotel's new restaurant, Bianca. Proving that you can never take South Beach out of the (birthday) boy, the original co-founder of Ocean Drive magazine was toasted by a group of power players that took us back to the Beach, circa mid-1990s: Chris Paciello, Shareef Malnik, Nicola Siervo, Karim Masri, Rony Seikaly, Ugo Colombo, Michael Capponi, Jeff Soffer, Eric Milon, Linda and Jeffrey Chodorow, Diane and Alan Lieberman, and designer Sam Robin, who was responsible for Bianca's sleek look. Also joining Jason and his glam wife, Haley, were Pharrell, Jorge and Darlene Perez, Gigi Whitman, Dave Grutman, Lana Bernstein and our favorite instant-party couple, Fabian Basabe and wife Martina Borgomanero.

Jason Binn and rapper Pharrell at Bianca
Martina Borgomanero with husband Fabian Basabe at the Delano pool bar
Miami's Queen of Design Sam Robin
Stuart Miller, Rony Seikaly, Jason Binn, Jeff Soffer, Karim Masri, David Grutman and Nicola Siervo at Bianca

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Follow Tara Solomon on Twitter: www.twitter.com/tarasolomon

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tara-solomon/shine-y-happy-people-another-week-of-miami-excess_b_1211711.html

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Greece debt swap talks drag into weekend (Reuters)

ATHENS (Reuters) ? Greece and its creditors will continue negotiations on a debt swap on Saturday, after late-night talks edged them closer to a vital deal but failed to clinch an agreement.

Athens is anxious to strike a deal before Monday's meeting of euro zone finance ministers, just in time to set in motion the paperwork and approvals necessary for Greece to receive a new injection of aid to avoid a messy bankruptcy in March.

"The elements of an unprecedented voluntary PSI are coming into place," the Institute of International Finance said in a statement after Friday's three-hour evening negotiation session, referring to the bond swap scheme.

"Now is the time to act decisively and seize the opportunity to finalize this historic deal and contribute to the economic stability of Greece, the euro area and the world economy."

The statement seemed to be addressing Greece's official lenders, the EU and the IMF, who have driven a hard bargain behind the scenes of the negotiations, sources in Athens said.

"We will not know anything for sure before Monday," said a banking source close to the talks. "The euro zone ministers will examine the proposal and say whether we have a deal. If they say we don't, we're back to the negotiating table."

Private bondholders will likely take a hit of 65 to 70 percent on their holdings, with Greece's new bonds featuring 30-year maturity and a progressive coupon, or interest rate, averaging out at 4 percent, another banking official close to the talks told Reuters.

A 15 percent cash sweetener will be made up of short-term bonds from Europe's temporary bailout fund, the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), two sources told Reuters.

"It will be near cash-equivalent short term EFSF bonds," one of the sources said.

Haggling over the coupon had held up the long-running talks as Greece raced to wrap up an agreement, raising the prospect of a messy default when Athens faces 14.5 billion euros ($18.5 billion) of bond repayments in March.

Another source close to the talks said the two sides had been hoping to bag a preliminary deal on Friday, with technical discussions with lawyers continuing over the weekend and into next week.

"There is still work to be done. The two sides are doing what they can but the paymasters must give their blessing," the source said.

ECB'S ROLE

The source said the European Central Bank's part in the deal was also discussed.

"We expect them to make an effort as well. It could be through a special deal, as you would expect for a body like the ECB," the source said.

IIF chief Charles Dallara, who negotiates in the name of the private bondholder, will resume talks with Greek officials on Saturday. No time was set for the meeting yet.

Greece needs to have a deal in the bag before funds are doled out from a 130 billion euro rescue plan that the country's official lenders, the European Union and the International Monetary Fund, drew up in October.

The paperwork alone is expected to take weeks, meaning failure to secure a deal soon could put Athens at risk of a chaotic default in March, which in turn could jolt the financial system and tip the global economy into recession.

Adding to the pressure, officials from the "troika" of foreign lenders began meetings with the Greek government on Friday to discuss reforms and plans to finalize that bailout package.

"The deal must be completed. There is no more time left," said a Greek government official who requested anonymity.

The swap is aimed at cutting 100 billion euros off Greece's debt load of more than 350 billion euros. The second bailout - drawn up on the condition that Greece pushes through painful cuts and structural reforms - is expected to reduce Greece's debt to a more manageable 120 percent of gross domestic product in 2020 from about 160 percent now.

(Additional reporting by Lefteris Papadimas; Writing by Deepa Babington; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120121/bs_nm/us_greece_debt

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Mystery grows over body parts found in Hollywood (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) ? Police combed the hills below the famed Hollywood sign for more human body parts on Thursday as the mystery deepened surrounding the discovery there of a severed human head, feet and hands.

Authorities believe the decapitated head and other body parts came from the same victim.

The head, hands and feet were found separately this week in the same general area of the 4,200-acre Griffith Park, near hiking trails and not far from the landmark Griffith Observatory.

Los Angeles County Coroner's officials have yet to identify the apparent murder victim, a man of undetermined ethnicity believed to be between the ages of 40 and 60. Police have been unable to say how he died or came to be dismembered.

More than 100 members of law enforcement including detectives, crime scene investigators and 40 cadets from the Los Angeles Police Academy picked through a seven-acre swath of the park on Thursday before concluding the search at nightfall.

Los Angeles Police Commander Andrew Smith said no more body parts were found on Thursday and that a section of the park shut down for the operation would reopen on Friday.

Smith said detectives were "diligently" working other clues and hoped to get a break when coroner's investigators identified the victim, based on fingerprints or dental work.

Investigators were checking reports that a body had been found in Arizona missing a head, hands and feet, he said, but considered it unlikely that the two cases were connected.

"It's fairly implausible that somebody would drive parts of a dead body five hours from Arizona to our Griffith Park," Smith said.

Smith said there was also no evidence that the man was the victim of organized crime or a serial killer.

Two women walking dogs came across the head in a plastic bag on Tuesday and reported it to park rangers.

The hands were found on Wednesday, separately but in the same general area as the head, one by a cadaver-sniffing dog and the other several hours later by a crime scene investigator.

Later on Wednesday a coroner investigator discovered the feet, which were together and in the same vicinity.

The iconic Hollywood sign on Mount Lee above Los Angeles was built in the 1920s to promote a housing development and originally read "Hollywoodland."

The last few letters deteriorated in the 1940s and the part that remained was restored in 1978.

Griffith Park, which sits in the hills above metropolitan Los Angeles, is the largest municipal park with an urban wilderness area in the United States, according to a city website.

(Editing by Daniel Trotta and Dan Burns)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/crime/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120120/us_nm/us_crime_head_hollywood

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James' passion, great range remembered (AP)

NEW YORK ? On her last album "The Dreamer," released just three months before her death, Etta James sings a mix of covers, from the R&B classic "Misty Blue" to the Ray Charles song "In the Evening." But perhaps the most curious tune included on the disc may be the Guns N' Roses staple "Welcome to the Jungle."

That a 73-year-old icon of R&B would tackle the frenetic rock song ? albeit in a pace more fitting her blues roots ? might seem odd. But the song may be the best representation of James as both a singer and a person ? rambunctious in spirit, with the ability to sing whatever was thrown at her, whether it was jazz, blues, pining R&B or a song from one of the rowdiest bands in rock.

"She was able to dig so deep in kind of such a raw and unguarded place when she sang, and that's the power of gospel and blues and rhythm and blues. She brought that to all those beautiful standards and rocks songs that she did. All the number of vast albums she recorded, she covered such a wide variety of material that brought such unique phrasing and emotional depth," said Bonnie Raitt, a close friend, in an interview on Friday afternoon after James' death.

"I think that's what appealed to people, aside from the fact that her personality on and off the stage was so huge and irrepressible. She was ribald and raunchy and dignified, classy and strong and vulnerable all at the same time, which is what us as women really relate to."

James, whose signature song was the sweeping, jazz-tinged torch song "At Last," died in Los Angeles from complications of leukemia. Her death came after she struggled with dementia and other health problems, health issues that kept her from performing for the last two or so years of her life.

It was a life full of struggles. Her mother was immersed in a criminal life and left her to be raised by friends, she never knew her true father (though she believed it was billiards great Minnesota Fats), and she had her own troubles, which included a decades-long addiction to drugs, turbulent relationships, brushes with the law, and other tribulations.

One might think all of those problems would have weighted down James' spirit, and her voice, layering it with sadness, or despair. While she certainly could channel depression, anger, and sorrow in song, her voice was defined by its fiery passion: Far from beaten down, James embodied the fight of a woman who managed to claw her way back from the brink, again and again.

It's an attitude that influenced her look as well. Despite the conservative era, she dyed her hair platinum blonde, sending out the signal that she was far from demure, and owning a brassy, sassy attitude. She relished her role as saucy singer, a persona that she celebrated in her private life as well.

"In terms of 1950s rhythm and blues stars, she had kind of a gutsy attitude and she went out there and did what she did, and she was kind of bold ... and it had a huge influence," she said. "I think her gutsiness and her lack of fear and just her courage (made her special). ... I believe that made her important and memorable."

Beyonce, who played James in the movie "Cadillac Records" about Chess Records, also spoke about her influence on other singers.

"I feel like Etta James, first of all, was the first black woman I saw with platinum, blonde hair. She wore her leopard and she wore her sexy silhouette and she didn't care. She was strong and confident and always Etta James," said Beyonce in a 2008 interview.

James could often be irascible. Ritz remembers when he was working with her on the autobiography, touring with her around the country, one time he approached her with his tape recorder and she barked: "If see that tape recorder again I'm going to cram it up your (expletive)."

But at other times, she'd be effusive and warm and anxious to talk.

"Once she did talk, she was always candid and unguarded. She was a free spirit," Ritz said.

While Ritz put her in the category of other greats like Ray Charles, Aretha Franklin and Marvin Gaye, she never enjoyed their mainstream success. Though "At Last" has become an enduring classic, there were times when James had to scrounge for work, and while she won Grammys and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, she did not have the riches, the multitude of platinum records or the hits that some of her peers enjoyed.

"She at least enjoyed a great resurgence like John Lee Hooker did and B.B. King, (and) has had some great decades of appreciation from new generations around the world," said Raitt. "There's no one like her. No one will ever replace Etta."

And Ritz said the lack of commercial success does nothing to diminish her greatness, or her legacy.

"Marvin certain knew it and Ray knew it ... the people who know that she was in that category," he said. "Whatever the marketplace did or didn't do or whether her lack of career management didn't do, it has nothing to do with her talent."

And on Friday, the Queen of Soul was among those who paid tribute to James greatness, calling her "one of the great soul singers of our generation. An American original!

"I loved `Pushover,' `At Last' and almost any and everything she recorded! When Etta SUNG, you heard it!"

___

AP Entertainment Writer Chris Talbott and AP Writer Mesfin Fekadu contributed to this report.

___

Nekesa Mumbi Moody is the AP's music editor. Follow her at http://www.twitter.com/nekesamumbi

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120121/ap_on_en_mu/us_etta_james_appreciation

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Hands on with iTunes U for iPad

One of the big announcements at Apple’s Education event was iTunes U for the iPhone and iPad. I’ve done some poking around the iPad version and have been very

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Silva: Breaking down AFC, NFC championship games

Silva: The NFL's crucial weekend has arrived. Four teams, two title games and the winners advance to Super Bowl XLVI. Here's breakdown of the divisional games this weekend, which focuses on each team's strengths, weaknesses, X-factors and the keys to winning.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/46031121#46031121

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Jon Stewart defends controversial book about president, first lady (CNN)

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