Southern California Earthquake

Southern California was hit by an earthquake this morning. Read about it below. Updates, photos and videos are being added as they become available.

Southern California Earthquake

At 11:42 am (PT) a 5.4 magnitude earthquake struck the town of Chino Hills, 33 miles east of Los Angeles in San Bernardino County. The United States Geological Survey said it struck at a depth of 7.6 miles.

Residents are saying it felt like a much larger earthquake than 5.4 magnitude. It was felt from throughout Southern California and Nevada. There have been multiple after shooks.

Eye witness reports are that it was a violent shake. The San Diego City Counsel was in session and recessed until it was determined that San Diego was not the epicenter of the quake. The San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, between Los Angeles and San Diego, is reportedly in good condition and no damage was sustained to the grids there.

We are waiting for the mayor of Los Angeles to report and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger will be speaking shortly. Right Pundits will continue to provide updates as needed.

UPDATE 1:47 (PT): Los Angeles is experiencing power outages. Chino Hills is reporting minimal damage and no injuries. There have been problems with cell phone service.

Acting Mayor report:

• minor structural damage around the center.
• some people were stuck in an elevator
• no extraordinary calls for emergency services
• All phone services are now back up and running.
• Airport is functioning properly. It lost radar services for only one minute, but was immediately back up.
• Ports are functioning properly with no damage reported.
• One water main break. There was flooding at one department store.
• Five minor injuries reported.
• There is a 5% chance that this is a fore shock to a larger earthquake.

Update 2:25 p.m. (PT): The following photo of earthquake damage was sent into the LA Times by a reader.

Damage in Santa Monica
Southern California Earthquake - Photos

Update 2:30 p.m. (PT): Press conference with Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

• Monitoring situation closely
• Have evacuation plan for family and pets.
• No major infrastructure damage
• No major injuries
• After shocks are occurring and will continue to occur
• All state agencies are directed to provide support
• All emergency responders are doing their things
• Earthquake downgraded to 5.4 magnitude
• upgrading infrastructure and emergency response systems helped minimize damage and injuries

Harry Potter 6 - New Photos and Movie Trailer ???

USA Today unveiled two new shots from the upcoming “Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.” First photo of a young Tom Riddle (Frank Dillane) and Dumbledore’s (Michael Gambon) firestorm that he uses in the caves. These two shots will also appear in the full-length trailer that’s due to be released today (Tuesday) and in theaters on Friday before “The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor.“

Director David Yates said that editing is complete and the studio will soon be shown the finished product four months in advance of its theatrical debut. The biggest reveal is the young Tom Riddle, played by Hero Fiennes-Tiffin, who grows up to become Lord Voldemort.

Hero is Ralph Fiennes‘ (who plays Voldemort) nephew in real life, however Yates explained that his relationship to Ralph “wasn’t the primary reason for choosing him.” Instead, “I went for Hero because of this wonderful haunted quality that seemed to bring Tom Riddle alive on-screen for us.” This last bit should give you a chill down your spine. “Even at a very young age, Tom Riddle shows tendencies toward cruelty and maliciousness,” Yates says. “And it’s a very unsettling thing to see.”

“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” is again directed by David Yates, of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix previously, and written by Steve Kloves, who also wrote “Sorcerer’s Stone”, “Chamber of Secrets”, “Prisoner of Azkaban”, and “Goblet of Fire” but not “Order of the Phoenix.” This is the sixth book in J.K. Rowling’s immensely popular series.

“Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince” arrives in theaters on November 21st this Thanksgiving.

Harry Porter The Half Blood Prince Trailer Long Version

I read the comment from die hard fans of Harry Porter and The Half Blood Prince from youtube.

"He is really angry at Warner Bros for releasing the only 23 second trailer"

So I updated the long version Harry Porter Half Blood Prince trailer for any hard fans for Harry Porter. Watch this really impressing trailer and enjoy.

The Harry Porter film's directors ,David Yates, said that films editing are complete and be ready for fully view for Harry Porter full movie from Warner Bros.

McCain Takes Swipe at Obama ???

McCain Takes Swipe at Obama, Germans Over Berlin Visit

Großansicht des Bildes mit der Bildunterschrift: Republicans are zeroing in on Obama's reception in Berlin

A spokesman for Republican presidential candidate John McCain blasted Barack Obama for cancelling plans to visit wounded US soldiers while in Berlin, adding that the Democrat prioritized "throngs of fawning Germans."

Hours before Obama arrived back in the US on Saturday, McCain's spokesman Tucker Bounds questioned why the Democratic senator cancelled Friday's scheduled meeting with American troops at the Landstuhl military hospital in Germany.

"You know, it really speaks to the experience that Barack Obama lacks," Bounds told Fox News.

"He prioritizes throngs of fawning Germans over meeting with wounded combat troops in Germany," he added, referring to the crowd of over 200,000 people who gave Obama an effusive welcome at his outdoor address on Thursday evening in Berlin.

McCain's team also raised the cancelled hospital visit in a new television ad in which a narrator berates Obama for making time to go to the gym, but not finding the time for injured soldiers.

Obama team sought to protect soldiers

The Obama campaign explained at the time of the cancellation that the senator had made a decision to avoid drawing wounded troops into the back-and-forth of campaign politics. The campaign also noted that reservations about the visit had been expressed by the Pentagon.

Some analysts see the McCain team's attack as a case of sour grapes following the overwhelmingly positive public response to Obama in Europe. Republicans are instead trying to brand the trip -- which saw Obama stop in Afghanistan, Iraq, Israel, Kuwait, Jordan, Germany, France and the UK -- a shallow political stunt.

Democrats are Driving Obama's Berlin Bounce

Mixed news on the day, as Barack Obama gets two relatively weak results in state polling while continuing to gain ground in the national trackers.

In California, Obama leads John McCain by 10 points according to Rasmussen. This is quite a step down from Rasmussen's result in June, when Obama had led McCain by 28 points. Their other California polling, however, had been closer, showing Obama in the lead by margins ranging from 7 points to 15. Regardless, California polling is mostly an academic endeavor in this year's election. The state is not competitive, and so far as I can tell, the Obama campaign does not even have a field office open there.

In South Carolina, it's McCain by 13 in a new Research 2000 poll for DailyKos.com. This is Research 2000's first poll in South Carolina, and so there are no trendlines for comparison. Nevertheless, this is the first South Carolina poll to show McCain with a lead in the double digits.

shows him ahead by 7 points, tying his best-ever margin in that poll, while Obama is just about at his high water marks in the national tracking polls, however. GallupRasmussen has him ahead by 6. What Obama's foreign policy trip may have done, and particularly his speech in Berlin, is to refresh enthusiasm among his core supporters. Fully 60 percent of Democrats now have a very favorable opinion of Obama, according to Rasmussen's latest numbers.

That number is improved from 53 percent a week ago. During that time frame, Obama has gained 6 points of support among Democrats, capturing 82 percent of their votes rather than 76. Half of that gain comes from undecided voters, while the other half comes from McCain.

Bangalore trembles with serial bomb blasts

Bangalore trembles with serial bomb blasts

A series of bomb blasts took place in Bangalore in the afternoon today. The first blast took place at Madiwala checkpost, killing one and injuring several others. The total death toll has presently reached five..

WITHIN A span of an hour serial bomb blasts shook the ’Electronic City’, Bangalore today. With news trickling in and reporters live on spot, information presently available is that a series of bomb blasts took place at Nayandahallil, Annapanya and Madiwala.

The first blast was at a checkpost in Madiwala around 1:30pm, in which reportedly a woman was killed and several injured. Several blasts followed within gaps of 15 minutes.

The blasts were of a low intensity and crude bombs with timers were used. Bomb squads were rushed to the blast sites.

More news is awaited regarding the blasts and the death toll but as last reported the death toll had reached five and four injured. All telephone lines have been jammed and panic is rampant. The police and other officials have asked the people not to panic. Rescue work is going on and all the injured were rushed to the Mallya Hospital.

High alert has been sounded in Delhi and Mumbai.

Bomb blasts in Bangalore: A summary and thoughts on communication infrastructure

There were 7 bomb blasts (602 pm update: 8 blasts) from 120 pm to 235 in Bangalore: Madiwala, Mysore Road, Audogodi, Koramangala, Vittal Mallya Road, Nayandanahalli and Richmond Road (Shivaji nagar).

2 people died and 4 were injured. (Updated at 545 pm local time - 1 person is claimed dead and 6 injured)

They were fairly small blasts apparently meant to cause panic and fear.

I found out about this from twitter 3 minutes after the blast and since then have been twittering with what information I have available.

Nearly 2 hours after the blast the city pretty much shutdown. Offices closed and everyone was asked to go home. Since nothing of this ever happened in Bangalore before, everyone pretty much panicked.

(Updated at 545 pm local time - Bangalore is returning to normal with traffic worse than usual at the locations of the blast). People are returning to normal and the panic seems to have settled down.

Since two of the blasts were nearly telecom posts, mobile communication was shut down for voice.

Text message (SMS) services were working fine. Calls to US (I called my sister and others) were working fine. Local calls were unable to go through.

All roads leading to and from the main downtown area (M. G. Road) were pretty much closed.

A perspective:

1. For communication: the Internet rocks in India - twitter stayed pretty much stable throughout.

2. Text message beats voice calls during emergency.

3. Local news providers were absolutely useless in getting information out. There was more nonsense and speculation on the motive and the reason for the blasts than real facts. Television did work, but it was useless information that was being transmitted.

Pregnant man - Thomas Beatie's first picture of baby girl

Thomas Beatie, better known as the world’s first pregnant man, has sold a picture of his baby girl to an American magazine for a rumoured £150,000 ($300,000).

Thomas Beatie with his baby: The labour lasted 40 hours Photo: GETTY IMAGES

Transgender Mr Beatie is shown cradling four-week-old Susan Juliette as she rests on a bed in the photo published on the front cover of the celebrity title People.

Wearing a white dress with purple and green detail and a large bow, the baby bears a striking resemblance to her father.

Susan Juliette was born at the St Charles Medical Center in Bend, Oregon on June 29 weighing 9lbs, 5oz, three months after news of her pioneering conception made headlines across the world.

"She's so precious, I just can't stop staring at her," Mr Beatie told the magazine, disclosing that the labour lasted 40 hours.

"When Susan finally came out, it was like in slow motion," he said. "I was full of wonder."

Mr Beatie, who was born a woman but is legally a man after undergoing partial sex change procedures ten years ago, fathered the child with sperm from an anonymous donor. He was able to do so because he had kept his reproductive organs.

His wife Nancy is breastfeeding the baby girl, using hormones and a breast pump to stimulate lactation.

But the couple have been criticised for embracing the publicity that their case has generated.

They have previously sold photos of Mr Beatie in the late stages of pregnancy to a British tabloid, and in April showed off his ultrasound scans during an appearance on the Oprah Winfrey show.

Mr Beatie and his wife received around $300,000 from People for the baby photos, according to a magazine source quoted on the New York gossip website Gawker.

The sum, while substantial, is significantly less than is offered for the first photos of the babies of Hollywood A-list celebrities. Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have reportedly sold images of their new-born twins for $11 million.

Batman : The Dark Knight

The Dark Knight: Batman is a Hamlet for our times

If Shakespeare had been alive today, he would have found abundant raw material in this most reimagined of comic book characters

An icon for our times ... Batman (Christopher Nolan version)


As the new Batman film - The Dark Knight - grinds towards us, like some slow-moving juggernaut whose driver isn't strong enough to turn the wheel, it occurs to me that the Caped Crusader is really something special. Batman is the icon for our times, Shakespearian in his ability to withstand multiple reinterpretation, a Hamlet or Lear for the 21st century.

In this, Batman is by far the most resonant superhero - far more fertile ground for modulation and restyling than that doughty veteran Superman, or that hyperactive new kid on the blockbuster block, Spider-Man. Johnny-come-latelies like X-Men, Hellboy or Iron Man are, frankly, knee high to all this.

Batman

In the same way that any given Shakespeare text is remodelled, refurbished and redesigned for one generation or another, so too has been Batman. The character is now part-way through its fourth serious movie phase. (Like another popular, but lesser, icon, Doctor Who, Batman regenerates as and when necessary.) The "Nolan" Batman is a serious-minded work, preoccupied with the inner life of the vigilante, and does its level best to ground the traditional tales of supervillains and hi-tech gadgetry in some kind of coherent sense of reality. Batman Begins and The Dark Knight share much with high-testosterone action thrillers like Die Hard and The Terminator: a high-myth narrative superstructure bolted on to a recognisable quotidian milieu.

Do you see this?!!!

How do we enumerate the Batman phases? The first, we can call the "Pop Art" Batman - Adam West and Burt Ward, fight-noise cards, and mini-skirted go-go dancers. Played strictly for laughs, they come from an era that couldn't take kiddie superheroes remotely seriously. The "Burton", or "neo-gothic" Batman, taking its cue from the Frank Miller graphic novels, inhabited a patently artificial and aestheticised universe, inspired by New York art deco, black-and-white gumshoe movies and trace elements of German expressionism. The third Batman phase - the "Schumacher" or "uber-camp" - concentrated on extravagant architectural design, fetishist rubberware, and narratives of sugar-rush complexity. (The original model, the first folio if you like, is of course the prewar Bob Kane comic strip.)

It's fair to say that the current Batman phase is a determined reaction against the Schumacher couplet (Batman Forever and Batman & Robin), which aroused deep hostility with its ill-judged foray into camp mannerism just at the point that, culturally speaking, the world was looking for something more serious. Nolan's films, whatever we think of them are giving us what we want.

Dark Knight’ : A Movie for the Times
By Stephane Dunn

I exercise my deepest hero longings by escaping into the fantasy ones on the big screen. Unsurprisingly then, I am especially drawn to Marvel’s unlimited vault of superheroes whose mission is to save the world or at least their city from hopelessness or the bad guys.

So I braved the crowded parking lots and lines and dragged along a reluctant, anti-Batman lover to see Dark Knight.
It would be too easy to get sidetracked by the tragic aura surrounding this newest Batman flick. Heath Leger’s tragic death at twenty-six has naturally stirred up more hype than Marvel’s big budget superhero flicks usually already do.

Before his death, word was already circulating around Hollywood that Ledger had turned in a stunningly brilliant turn as ‘the Joker’ a role imbued with more of the dark psychotic edge of the original comic strip’s character. The hype about that performance is true so much so that the fact of his death adds pathos amid the bleak, edgy undertones of the character but does not overshadow the fact that Ledger makes the Joker alone stand out.

Yet, there’s more to appreciate about Dark Knight beyond, even, the record breaking $166 million plus that it took in at the box office during this first weekend out. The action sequences, character complexity and fine performances all around from Christian Bale (Batman), Michael Caine, Morgan Freeman, Aaron Eckhart (Harvey Dent) and of course Ledger’s movie stealing Joker performance are but a few more reasons why this latest Batman film is a stand out. Sitting at the movie last Saturday night, I alternately cringed, laughed, and became just plain enthralled by the sophisticated treatment of that almost clichéd good vs. evil staple that defines superhero comics and films.

Brooke Hogan - dishes about family ???

Brooke Hogan recently sat down with the Associated Press to pimp her new show, Brooke Knows Best (the laughably titled show starts Sunday at 10 p.m. on VH1), and she spilled all sorts of beans about being on TV and her infamous Tampa Bay fam.

Anyone who watched Hogan Knows Best a) has way too much time on their hands and b) could see that the Hogans seemed happy enough.

They weren’t - as soon as the show finished Hulk Hogan and Linda Hogan got divorced and took up with insanely young new partners, Nick Hogan wrapped his car around a tree and went to jail and Brooke Hogan… well that chin of hers isn’t looking any less weird, is it?

So what’s going on? Maybe we’ll never know - after all, the Hogans have sold themselves out to the media before and it’s ended in tears, so the sensible thing to do would be to close ranks and figure out their problems in private. Or, if you’re Brooke Hogan, you’ll just go on Access Hollywood and yammer on about it for ages instead. Which is much more fun. Thanks Brooke!

Looking at the Hogan family, it’s remarkable that they stayed together this long. One parent is a veiny, abnormally large brute with bad hair and skin the colour of a bruised testicle who runs around in tiny red knickers for a living, and the other one is Hulk Hogan.

It couldn’t last, and it didn’t. Linda Hogan filed for divorce from Hulk Hogan right after the family’s reality TV show Hogan Knows Best stumbled to a conclusion, claiming that the marriage was ‘irretrievably broken’ - which we think is code for ‘my husband just beat me in an arm wrestle for the first time ever and it’s affected my sense of self-worth’.

Meanwhile, son Nick Hogan crashed his car so badly that his passenger will remain in constant care for the rest of his life, and he’s ended up doing solitary in jail for it. It’s not a perfect state of affairs by any means, and you get the feeling that if the family ever made another reality TV show it’d probably be called something like Look At This Awful Bunch Of Clueless Dickheads.

But, anyway, what about Brooke Hogan? Now that her brother’s in jail, she’s left all by herself - torn between a father who had it off with one of her friends and a mother that’s currently having it off with a boy she used to go to school with.

What would you do in Brooke Hogan’s situation? Go on Access Hollywood and spout off about all your family’s darkest problems in front of an audience of millions for no constructive reason whatsoever? Good, because that’s what Brooke Hogan chose to do as well. MSNBC quotes Brooke:

“I don’t know it’s — it’s been pretty nuts… I have to admit I did have a little bit of a breakdown one time about that ‘cause my brother and I are inseparable… I do feel like if someone can see me slip up, you know, they would love it because it would complete the family craziness.”

Good for Brooke Hogan, we say. She’s seen the damage that a reality TV show can do to people and - regardless of how stupidly the rest of her family has decided to act in public in the wake of Hogan Knows Best - she’s determined to live the rest of her life with as much dignity as possible, keen never to repeat the past mistakes made by herself and those around her.

Congratulations, Brooke! We have nothing but respect for you!

Brooke Hogan’s new reality TV show Brooke Knows Best debuts on VH1 this Sunday. We’re not making this up. Christ, what a hopeless jizzpot that girl is.

Jesse Jackson obama - Jackson apologizes for crude comment about Obama

Rev. Jesse Jackson speaks during a news conference in Chicago, Wednesday, July 9, 2008. Jackson apologized Wednesday for comments he made about Barack Obama's speeches in black churches during what he thought was a private conversation with a reporter.

Barack Obama's campaign tried yet again to contain a political storm kicked up by a vocal Chicago supporter as the Rev. Jesse Jackson apologized for crude comments picked up by a live microphone about the Democratic presidential candidate.

Jackson said the "hurtful and wrong" comments came in response to a question from a fellow guest during a break from taping "Fox & Friends" on Sunday. The guest asked about speeches on morality Obama has given at black churches.

Jackson said at a news conference Wednesday that he had said Obama's speeches can come off as speaking down to black people and that there were other important issues to be addressed in the community, such as unemployment, the mortgage crisis and the number of blacks in prison.

He said he was not aware the microphone was still on.

Jackson declined to repeat the comments, but said he decided to apologize publicly after hearing from Fox News that it would air them.

In an interview with The Associated Press earlier Wednesday, Jackson said he didn't remember his exact words, but said he was "very sorry."

The Fox News program "The O'Reilly Factor" aired Jackson's comment Wednesday night, including a slang reference to his wanting to cut off Obama's testicles. The report bleeped out the slang but made clear what Jackson said with subtitles.

"It was not a public speech or a declaration," Jackson said, adding the comments "will not be helpful."

"For any harm or hurt that this hot mic private conversation may have caused, I apologize," he said in a written apology released earlier in the day. "My support for Senator Obama's campaign is wide, deep and unequivocal."

Jackson said he called Obama's campaign to apologize.

Obama campaign spokesman Bill Burton noted that the Illinois senator grew up without his father and has spoken and written at length about the issues of parental responsibility and fathers participating in their children's lives, and of society's obligation to provide "jobs, justice and opportunity for all.

"He will continue to speak out about our responsibilities to ourselves and each other, and he of course accepts Reverend Jackson's apology," Burton said.

Though Jackson supports Obama, the two are not close.

In September, The State newspaper in South Carolina reported that Jackson had said Obama was "acting like he's white" in his response to the arrest of six black juveniles in Jena, La. Jackson disputed the quote.

Jackson's comments sparked something of a family feud. His son, Rep. Jesse Jackson Jr., said he was disappointed by his father's "reckless statements."

"His divisive and demeaning comments about the presumptive Democratic nominee — and I believe the next president of the United States — contradict his inspiring and courageous career," the younger Jackson said.

The comments are not the first the elder Jackson has had to explain after believing he was off the record.

In 1984, he called New York City "Hymietown," referring to the city's large Jewish population. He later acknowledged it was wrong to use the term, but said he did so in private to a reporter.

Jackson is at least the third vocal Chicago supporter to create problems for Obama on the campaign trail.

Obama resigned from Chicago's Trinity United Church of Christ during the primaries after a videotape of his pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr., hit the Internet. On the tape, Wright accused the U.S. government of creating AIDS and is seen shouting "God damn America" during a sermon.

In May, Roman Catholic priest the Rev. Michael Pfleger mocked Obama's then Democratic rival Sen. Hillary Clinton during a guest sermon at Trinity United. Pfleger, who is white, pretended he was Clinton crying over "a black man stealing my show." He later apologized.

Carla Bruni - new album on the web ???

Carla Bruni has unveiled her third album online

Carla Bruni has surprised fans by putting her new album on the internet today ahead of its feverishly anticipated release.

All 14 tracks from the French first lady’s album, Comme si de rien n'était (Simply), went up on her website at 8.30 GMT this morning, allowing fans to listen for free for up to two hours, until July 21, to her breathy love songs.

The former supermodel, 40, has been at the centre of a media storm since it was revealed that lyrics on the album told of her 30 past lovers and compared President Sarkozy to A class drugs.

Carla Bruni

The Colombian government protested over her singing of love “more deadly than Afghan heroin, more deadly than Colombian white," and eyebrows were raised over the references to her past lovers, who include Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton and Donald Trump.

Responding to the press circus, Naïve records, who have been working closely with Elysée Palace on the marketing campaign, pushed the launch date forward from July 21 to July 11.

But this morning, as Bruni gave her first promotional interview, she followed the trend started by Radiohead in unveiling her new album online.

Carla Bruni goes down a storm at a concert in Paris in 2004
– but how will her new album fare?

Speaking to state radio station France Inter, the Italian-born singer dismissed the media storm, saying she didn’t see why presidential wives should give up their livelihoods just because they had wed. She went on to add that they "have the right to work”.

But she conceded that her position ruled out concerts and added that she would donate royalties from the album to charity.

Asked if she would record a fourth album while her husband was in office, she admitted it was unlikely: "I don't know if I will be able to write an album between now and 2012. If I manage to, I would be lucky."

Carla Bruni also admitted the response to her album would not be purely musical.

"If people don't listen because I married the president of the republic, I understand. If they do listen because I married the president of the republic, I will be delighted.

"And if people, especially, like it, that is what counts for me."

Carla Bruni recorded two albums before becoming half of the world’s most glamorous political couple following a three-month romance. Her first album won over critics and sold two million copies, but her second English-speaking release, No Promises, sold less than half-a-million

The Bachelorette Winner - Jesse Csincsak ???

Nice guys really do finish last.In a bit of a stunner tonight on The Bachelorette, DeAnna Pappas rejected wonderful single dad Jason Mesnik - the superior candidate by almost any measure - instead opting for goofy “professional snowboarder” Jesse Csincsak.

In typical Bachelorette fashion, viewers were led to believe Jason Mesnick - a loving father to three-year-old Ty and a grounded businessman from Washington - had it locked up, outshining his competition throughout and charming her family.But it was Jesse Csincsak who DeAnna Pappas chose - and is engaged to.

The Bachelorette Gets Engaged

DeAnna Pappas accepts the proposal of professional snowboarder Jesse Csincsak, stopping her other suitor, account executive Jason Mesnick, in mid-kneel.

DEANNA PAPPAS From Bachelorette to future Mrs. Csincsak

DeAnna Pappas, the latest lady to look for love on ABC's reality romance series The Bachelorette, may be one step closer to finding her ''fairy-tale ending'' after accepting a wedding proposal from 26-year-old professional snowboarder Jesse Csincsak at the conclusion of Monday night's season finale. The couple appeared together on the After the Final Rose special, which aired following the finale, and announced that they have set a date, planning to be married in May 2009.

On the finale, before DeAnna said yes to Jesse on a beachfront platform in the Bahamas, she had to awkwardly stop the show's other finalist, 31-year-old account executive Jason Mesnick, in mid-kneel before he could even say anything. Jason was so shocked at the rejection, he maintained a paralyzed hold on the ring box until well into his departing limo ride.

Back at the platform, Jesse told DeAnna ''the thought of not being with you kills me.... DeAnna Marie Pappas, will you spend forever with me?'' The bachelorette said ''Yes'' and finally got to share her true feelings, telling Csincsak she had fallen in love with him during her visit to his hometown.

After being dumped at the altar by Austin, Tex., bar owner Brad Womack on the season 11 finale of The Bachelor (Womack chose not to stay with either finalist), Deanna Pappas, a 26-year-old real estate agent, returned as the star of the show. After both Jesse and Jason met DeAnna's family in her native Newnan, Ga., they returned to the Bahamas for one final date.

A surprise awaited viewers as Jeremy Anderson, a Dallas real estate attorney who seemed to be an early favorite but was left without a rose last week, returned for one last chance to plead his case. But DeAnna stayed the course and tearfully sent him packing for good. (Some had thought/hoped that ousted bachelor Graham Bunn, whom she seemed to really like, might make a last-minute return, but no dice.)

For more details about the finale and the After the Final Rose special, check back later for our complete TV Watch recap, where you can post your thoughts and comments on the season finale.

Hancock twist causes controversy ???

Editor's Note: The following Associated Press story is filled with film spoilers, including ones for "The Crying Game" and "The Sixth Sense." If you'd rather wait to see them yourself, stop reading now.

"Hancock" has divided critics and audiences with its abrupt twist, which has been described as coming out of left field.

LOS ANGELES, California (AP) -- A Will Smith movie packs in millions of people over Fourth of July weekend. No surprises there.

Yet Smith's "Hancock," the tale of an anti-social boozer who happens to be a superhero, comes with an abrupt plot twist, one that has divided critics and the movie going public in the real world. (Critics and everyone else can't agree. Now there's a real surprise.)

For those who have yet to see "Hancock," we won't give the secret away, but it has something to do with why Charlize Theron's soccer-mom-style character doesn't want Smith's surly superhero anywhere near her family.

Critics generally thought the turn the movie takes halfway through was a cheat, spoiling what had been a promising idea that was a fresh twist on the superhero genre in its own right. (CNN.com's Tom Charity described the twist as coming "so far out of left field you would need a crystal ball to see it coming."

The people who turned "Hancock" into an instant blockbuster beg to differ -- to the sum of $185 million worldwide at the box office in just a few days.

Smith stars as John Hancock

The plot twist in "Hancock" won't go down in cinema history alongside (SPOILER ALERT!) Darth Vader revealing he's Luke Skywalker's pappy in "The Empire Strikes Back" or Anthony Perkins turning out to be a slasher in his mom's housedress in "Psycho."

However, it does give us a chance to buzz once more about the really great curve balls -- and maybe a wild pitch or two -- that Hollywood has tossed our way.

Here's a look at some of the most memorable screen surprises, in no particular order:

- MY GIRL: Has there ever been a stranger what-the-heck moment than the revelation that the enticing woman Stephen Rea lusts after in "The Crying Game" really is a guy? The dreamlike gotcha gesture delivered from beyond by Forest Whitaker's character was directed as much at male audiences everywhere who had to hit the reset button on their manhood after falling for Jaye Davidson as a hot new screen goddess only to learn he shared their XY chromosome makeup.

- THE SECRET INGREDIENT IS US: How do you turn an utterly forgettable movie into one for the ages? Let Charlton Heston learn that the super-food of the future is made of humans so he can bellow "Soylent Green is PE-E-E-OPLE!" And don't forget the "Saturday Night Live" skit about a "Soylent Green" sequel where Phil Hartman impersonates Heston, learning that the powers that be didn't change the recipe like they promised, so he can holler "It's still PE-E-E-OPLE!"

- HEAD IN THE SAND: Heston gets to curse out humanity in general in "Planet of the Apes" as he stumbles on the noggin of the Statue of Liberty lying on the beach and realizes he's been on Earth all along -- but in the distant future, after his species has blown itself up. Tim Burton's remake substitutes a terrible twist as astronaut Mark Wahlberg makes it off the simian world and returns to his planet, only to find a monkey named "Ape Lincoln" sitting on the Lincoln Memorial.

- POOR BRUCE IS DEAD: With "Breakfast of Champions" and "The Story of Us," Bruce Willis' career might have been dead. But M. Night Shyamalan kept him alive by killing him off in the opening moments of "The Sixth Sense" but concealing that fact so completely that moviegoers were shocked into seeing the flick again and again after they learned he was a ghost. Audiences were somewhat less than shocked with Shyamalan and Willis' next surprise ending -- superheroes are real! -- in "Unbreakable."

- READY FOR MY SHOWER, MR. HITCHCOCK: Perkins as his own mother has enduring shock value, but Alfred Hitchcock pulled a true stunner earlier in "Psycho" as the killer snuffed Janet Leigh, the movie's lead character up to that moment. That's like Dickens having Oliver Twist die of cholera in chapter three. Who do you root for when the heroine gets tossed in the trunk of her car and submerged in a swamp?

- KEYSER SPACEY: As prime suspect Gabriel Byrne lay dying near the end of "The Usual Suspects," you just had to wonder "Well if it's not him, who the heck is Keyser Soze?" Watching Kevin Spacey transform from the grubby, gimpy little Verbal Kint into world-class criminal mastermind Soze in the space of one city block is one of those moments that makes you think "Yeah, this is why I like movies."

- MY SISTER, MY MOM: Incest turns out to be the stuff of one of cinema's most artful surprises at the end of "Chinatown," when we learn that Faye Dunaway's little sister also is her daughter. And we get to see Jack Nicholson slap the information out of her -- repeatedly -- in a climax that's nothing short of a gut-punch.

- MISSION IMPERTINENT: Speaking of slaps in the face, arguably the worst plot twist ever comes in Tom Cruise's first "Mission: Impossible" tale. Millions grew up watching Peter Graves' noble Jim Phelps run the Impossible Mission Force on the small screen. So when Jon Voight's Phelps turns out to be the bad guy in Cruise's version, it was disrespectful of both the source material and its fans. Why didn't Cruise just play Phelps himself, but as the hero everyone remembered the character for? Maybe Cruise was afraid that, like Graves, he would wind up hosting episodes of "Biography" in his golden years.

Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal poised for Wimbledon epic ???

• Rafael Nadal became the first man to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same year since Bjorn Borg in 1980.

• Roger Federer failed to become the first man to win six consecutive Wimbledon titles since William Renshaw (1881-86).

• Federer fell one match short of tying Borg's record 41-match win streak at Wimbledon and saw his Open Era-record grass court winning streak end at 65 matches.

• Federer has now gone three majors without winning a Grand Slam title, his longest drought since he won his first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon in 2003.

LONDON (AFP) —Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, tennis's glittering top of the bill double act, clash in a third successive Wimbledon final on Sunday to determine who is the world's best player.

The final will be the sixth time the elegant Swiss and the muscular Spaniard have met in a Grand Slam final, bettering the five played by Mats Wilander and Ivan Lendl, and then Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi in the 1980s and 1990s.

Federer has won two on the grass of the All England Club in 2006 and 2007; Nadal has claimed three on his beloved Roland Garros clay in 2006, 2007 and 2008.

Never have the stakes been higher.

A victory for Federer will make him the first man since the 19th century to win six Wimbledons in a row.

A win for Nadal, on the other hand, will take him alongside Rod Laver and Bjorn Borg as the only man to win the French Open and Wimbledon in the same season.

He would also become the first Spanish men's champion since Manuel Santana in 1966.

It's hardly surprising that the 26-year-old Federer and Nadal, just 22, are keen to stress that the pressure is on the other.

"For me, Roger is the best in history," said Nadal who stormed to a fourth successive French Open title a month ago destroying Federer in a brutally one-sided final where the world number one won just four games.

That Paris annihilation, coupled with Nadal taking Federer to an epic five-set final here in 2007, has led many to suggest that the era of the Swiss superstar's dominance is at an end.

He may have been world number one for 231 weeks, and can lay claim to 12 Grand Slam titles compared to Nadal's four, but many argue that Nadal, especially with a first grasscourt title from Queen's tucked under his belt, is really the world's preeminent tennis talent.

"If I have the title on Sunday, then on Monday I'll continue to be the number two but I'll have more chances to become the number one in the next months," said a cautious Nadal.

He may boast 11 wins in 17 meetings with Federer, but nine of those have come on clay.

Furthermore, Federer insists that the trauma of Paris is now a distant memory even if the media revel in reminding him of his latest failed French Open campaign.

"That final is out of the picture. I hardly remember it. It went so quickly," said Federer who remains fulsome in his praise of his tormentor.

"I'm not going to draw anything out of that match because Rafa plays so different on clay and grass. He plays so much closer to the baseline that I have to draw from my two previous Wimbledon finals.

"I enjoy the challenge. Rafa is a great competitor. He's got a winning record over me. Every time I play him I want to try to beat him. The thing is, I've played him so often on clay, it's more of an advantage for him in the head-to-heads.

"At the same time, he's now become so good on all other surfaces as well that he's a real threat on anything."

Federer has waltzed into his sixth final virtually untroubled.

He has been detained on court for over two hours only once in his six matches and has yet to drop a set. But he only met one seeded player.

That run has allowed him to take his grasscourt winning streak to 65 matches, a run stretching back to 2002.

Nadal's route was slightly tougher having to see off three seeded players but dropping serve just once against the promising Latvian Ernests Gulbis in the second round.

"My way to the final's been great," said Federer.

"I've just been playing consistently well. I wasn't pushed to the degree where I have to say I played my best tennis ever.

"If I were to win on Sunday, then maybe I can say I've been playing my best ever."

Read More on federer and nadal.

Jessica Simpson - How did Jessica Simpson lose weight ???

Jessica Simpson, celebrity pop star and actress, has been very vocal about her varied methods for weight loss. The beautiful, blonde Southern girl, who is also a self-proclaimed devoted fan of all Southern foods, always has to look her best. She, however, is human like the rest of us and occasionally needs to shed a few extra pounds. Fortunately for us, Jessica Simpson is very vocal about her weight loss issues and her exercise and diet routines, which help her to always be looking good!

When cast in the 2005 comedy, The Dukes of Hazard as the statuesque Daisy Duke, Jessica Simpson felt the pressure to get her body into stellar shape. She popular star would stick to diets of grilled chicken and seared fish, broccoli and asparagus dishes. Breadbaskets and sugars were avoided. She would spend an hour and a half in the gym everyday, doing exercises to help boost metabolism and tone.

About an hour of the time was spent on weights, Simpson would use only 7 and 1/2 pound dumbbells to help shape and tone herself. The remaining half an hour was devoted to lunges and squats. Not only do these help dramatically increase the body’s metabolism, but also they help build and shape the rear end, allowing Jessica to wear the “Daisy Duke” shorts with pride.

After the Dukes of Hazard, Jessica went through some troubling issues and slowly lost touch with her amazing figure. She was determined to find it again however, although with a bit of variation in the routine. She sticks to small meals that are loaded with vegetables, and she eats every few hours to keep the metabolism going. She eats a lot of fruit and drinks a lot of water. If she’s hungry for a snack, she has a banana with some peanut butter, a very high protein snack. Simpson will eat main meals with either grilled chicken or fish and lots of salad.

Her workout routine is three days a week of cardio and circuit training, with the same weights being used for toning and shaping. She sticks to the same routine with lunges and squats, finding them one of the best exercise moves to perform. They still shape and define her rear end while raising her metabolism. Simpson also claims to enjoy Pilate’s and stretching, working that into her routine at times.

This beautiful celebrity enjoys drinking slenderizing energy drinks, feeling that these improve her metabolism as well as her exercises. Jessica Simpson currently intakes around 1,800 calories per day in a combination of whole grains, protein, and lots of vegetables. Grapefruit is one of her absolute favorites, using it for breakfast almost daily. She does know though that moderation is key. She allows herself cheat days, giving herself a meal of either the fried Southern food or the Mexican that she so loves.

Through dedication, determination, and lots of hard work, this popular actress and singer is able to maintain a figure of health and beauty while still enjoying her favorite foods in moderation. Her diet and exercise, while intense, has proven to work time and time again. If Jessica Simpson can be this beautiful and still enjoy herself, then there is hope for the rest of us after all.

So now that you know how Jessica Simpson lost weight, it’s time to start dieting. Remember if you wanna lose all your fat quickly and easily, you should consider using Proactol, a proven fat binder made from organic ingredients!

I used Proactol before and it’s the one and only fat burner I recommend to others!

Fourth of July Fireworks - Fireworks Spectators Prep for Holiday

More than 50,000 people are expected to make their way out to Ala Moana Beach Park Friday.

Some of those spectators are already there; meanwhile undercover police officers are working to ensure everyone’s safety and security.

It’s that time of year again for some families that means breaking a little sweat to enjoy the big show.

“Ooo hard man,” Honolulu resident Mildred Pacleb said as she pounds a stake into the ground.

It’s become a tradition for some and people come from all over the island.

“Some come from Waipahu, Pearl City," Pacleb said.

Pacleb is expecting 60 of her family and friends to make their way over to Ala Moana Beach Park to enjoy the fireworks show.

“Tonight what it’s about 10 o’clock? Yeah they got to be out so I don't know where I am going to put them,” Pacleb said.

Campers will be allowed to stay over night, but no cars after 10 p.m., then the gates will reopen at 4 a.m.

“Either they going to go home or drop somebody home, yeah most likely its going to be that way,” Pacleb said.

Police officers dressed in plain clothes have been combing the area enforcing the no alcohol and no pet’s policy.

“You know keep the park safe you know they said they no like the park get out of hand and gotta respect that,” Kalihi resident Lawrence Bucsit said.

Friends dropped some beer off and...

“They confiscated it, nope no alcohol all sodas and juice and water,” Bucsit said.

For others the celebration began one day early.

“Well tomorrow’s my birthday so I came tonight to get started,” Kalihi resident Jackie Tovey said.

Aloha Tower got things started around 5 in the evening with a highly anticipated finale.

“Fireworks ha ha,” New Jersey visitor Leila Cheo-Isaacs said.



East honolulu fireworks show brings community together

The fireworks show at Ala Moana Shopping Center is one of the most popular. But there's another one starting for those on the east side of Oahu.

And this party has a purpose.

Residents in Hawaii Kai join together to start Independence Day at Maunalua Bay. It's for celebrating the Fourth, but it's also meant to unite, and to educate.

Organizers get the final touches ready for the big party.

Independence Day at Maunalua Bay is an idea born about a year ago, giving East Honolulu residents a celebration of their own.

"Just to provide an event, an alternative to all the other crowded events that are wonderful all over the island," said organizer John Tilton. "But an event that actually represents Hawaii Kai, in the heart of Hawaii Kai and the people."

"I can tell you that none of us knew one another when we started," said Cha Thompson. "Today, we're leaving a legacy of friends."

Rhe group came together, recruiting vendors for food and entertainment. But this celebration also serves as an educational experience.

"One of our other goals was to increase awareness, for those of us who live in Hawaii Kai, on what this area is really about," said Linda Char. "What historically this area holds for the people that live here."

Part of the proceeds are going towards a scholarship for students from the area, who want to continue to raise awareness of what Maunalua Bay means to Hawaii Kai.

"So looking at it right now, it's rather exciting," said Tilton. "Beautiful weather, and everything's turning out better than expected. so we're blessed for that."

"We're really just hoping that people come down, have a wonderful time, being with their family," said Char.

Henry Kapono and Afatia are among the entertainers scheduled to perform. The fireworks show is scheduled for 8 P.M.

Pregnant man - gives birth to baby girl !!!

A nurse takes care of a newborn in a maternity ward.

A US man who was born a woman before undergoing gender realignment surgery has given birth to a baby girl, US media reported.

Thomas Beatie, who is legally male but decided to keep his female sex organs during chest reconstruction surgery and testosterone therapy, attracted worldwide attention in April after revealing his pregnancy.

The 34-year-old gave birth to a baby girl at a hospital in Bend, Oregon, on June 29, People Magazine reported Thursday.

"The only thing different about me is that I can't breastfeed my baby. But a lot of mothers don't," the magazine quoted him as saying.

It said the girl is Beatie's first child, and he had given birth naturally, not by Caesarean section.

Beatie, who sports a beard, was dubbed the 'pregnant man' after appearing on Oprah Winfrey's television talkshow to discuss his pregnancy.

"I feel it's not a male or female desire to have a child. It's a human need. I'm a person and I have the right to have a biological child," he told the chat show queen.

Beatie's unusual situation first became public when he wrote an article in the leading US gay magazine The Advocate in March, entitled "Labor of Love."

"To our neighbors, my wife, Nancy, and I don't appear in the least unusual," he wrote, explaining that his wife was unable to have a child after undergoing a hysterectomy.

So he chose to become pregnant by artificial insemination, he said.

"Our situation sparks legal, political, and social unknowns," Beatie wrote, adding the couple had experienced opposition from health care professionals, friends and family.

One doctor refused to treat the couple, after consulting an ethics board.

"How does it feel to be a pregnant man? Incredible. Despite the fact that my belly is growing with a new life inside me, I am stable and confident being the man that I am," Beatie wrote.

Thomas Beatie, the so-called “pregnant man” gave birth to a baby girl on 29 June in Oregon, according to this report by Reuters.

Father and daughter were said to be “healthy and doing well”.

It is reported that the baby was not delivered by Caesarean section, but no other details about the birth were given.

“The only thing different about me is that I can’t breast-feed my baby. But a lot of mothers don’t”, Mr Beatie was quoted as saying.

The Bachelorette - Happy ending, good surprise on finale

DeAnna Pappas said she loves surprises -- especially ones that don't end with her receiving a rejection. "This is a good surprise," Pappas told Reality TV World during a Wednesday conference call about The Bachelorette's pre-taped fourth-season finale, which will air next Monday night at 8PM ET/PT and end with her "very happy, in love and engaged."

"With [The Bachelor eleventh-season star Brad Womack], I kept it a secret because I wanted to know if someone could figure out what in the world happened. I didn't want anyone to know the outcome of the show because I didn't understand. I went through a break-up by myself, and I didn't understand it. Now this is a happy ending, and it's a good surprise. I don't want anyone to know because I want everyone to watch it. When you see the final episode it's so good -- you're going to laugh and you're going to cry. It's just a beautiful episode."

Pappas said it's been "almost three months" since The Bachelorette's fourth-season finale filmed and she chose between Jason Mesnick, a 31-year-old account executive from Kirkland, WA, and Jesse Csincsak, a 25-year-old professional snowboarder from Breckenridge, CO.

"It was never, ever an easy thing for me to say goodbye to anyone. Even so, I think the final Rose Ceremony was harder than anything else in the whole world," she told reporters during the conference call.

"How are you supposed to look at someone and tell them that you care about them so much but you can't choose them because you care about the other guy more? That definitely does not make you feel good about yourself. I can promise you that."

"You better believe you let me know."

Pappas described Mesnick and Csincsak as "two totally different people," and she said she's also a "different person when I'm with each one of them."

With Mesnick, Pappas said she "never, ever had to wonder if he was a good father" because of his 3-year-old son Ty -- whom she met during his hometown visit.

"He has Ty, and that's one of the best things in his life. If you don't fall in love with that child, than there's something wrong with you," Pappas told Reality TV World.

"He's a wonderful, wonderful man and has a beautiful outlook on life and love -- especially considering some of the things he's been through in his lifetime. He's very generous, very caring, and he would always listen to me. If anything was ever bothering me he would always say, 'Are you okay? Do you want to talk about it?' He was just always there for me and I knew I could depend on him."

"Ah, here comes Admirer Number Three."

Mesnick waited a few weeks into the competition before he revealed to Pappas that he was a single father -- a decision he initially fretted over. However she said she's happy that's the course he decided to take.

"I'm definitely glad that he waited until we had time to talk about it. It's not like, 'Hey, I have a dog.' He has a child that's important to him -- the most important thing in his life," she told Reality TV World. "I'm glad he waited it was until it was just me and him and we could talk in detail about what is important to him."

In addition, Pappas said she wasn't bothered that Mesnick was a single father -- even if it meant she could simultaneously become a wife AND mother if he's her selected suitor.

"Good one - my dad! Ha ha!"

"I want to be a mom someday, I want to have children of my own," she told Reality TV World. "I knew my life would change, and I wanted to make sure that I was ready for that because when you bring someone's child into that, you're not just dealing with someone else's heart. Now you're dealing with two people's hearts. I wanted to make sure I was ready for that, but it was never a determining factor."

As for Csincsak, he was somebody who immediately stood-out from Pappas' other suitors and received one of her first-impression roses during the fourth-season's premiere.

"Jesse's that crazy, snowboarding, long-haired kid on night one. I was wide-eyed when he got out of the limo because he was wearing that crazy jacket," she told Reality TV World. "But once you get past everything crazy, he's actually a wonderful human being. He has a big heart, he's caring, he comes from a great family. He's that person that's always going to make me laugh, and he puts me first."

However it took Csincsak longer than most of the other suitors to have a romantic connection with Pappas, but she claims that "never really" deterred her from constantly keeping him in the running for her heart. Her persistence paid off, as the two finally got romantic during his hometown date.

"I would say it was probably [during his hometown visit] when I really felt that romantic connection with him," she told Reality TV World. "I remember in the car ride home after snowboarding in the mountains and there was no cameras around and we were sitting in the car on the way to meet his parents, and I just sat there and remember thinking, 'Wow, I cannot live without this person in my life.' That was the first time that I really felt that romantic connection with Jesse."

While viewers have already gotten to see Pappas visit both Mesnick and Csincsak's hometown and meet their respective families, now they'll get to see both of them travel to her Georgian hometown during Monday night's finale.

However there's a twist, because instead of Mesnick and Csincsak making separate visits to the Pappas residence, they'll do so together.

"It's actually really funny. It'll definitely be very entertaining for everyone to watch... I knew it was going to happen but you can't prepare yourself for something like this," she told reporters during the conference call.

Despite the oddness of the situation, Pappas said both men handled it very well.

"They have been friends through the entire show and they will be friends for life. They totally handled it like mature adults," she said. "Obviously it's awkward. We're in a three-way love triangle. Both of these guys are falling for me and I'm falling for them. It's strange. I'm sitting in my house in between both of them. Just wait until you see."

Entertainment aside, Pappas said the guys visiting her family was important to her.

"As everyone knows, my family is the most important part of my life. Sometimes I think that they know me better than I know myself," she explained. "So I definitely wanted them to meet the Final 2 guys and hopefully help me out with the final decision that I was going to have to make. So I think the guys were more comfortable in that situation than I was."

Since Pappas is so close to her kin, she told reporters she plans on keeping her Atlanta home in spite of both of her final two suitors living no where near there.

"We're talking about it," Pappas told reporters when asked about where she'll live with her chosen bachelor. "I'm definitely going to keep my house in Atlanta because I love Atlanta. I grew up there and that's where I'm from. It depends. We'll discuss that a little more in detail next week."

Next week will be the first time Pappas and her selected suitor can be seen in public together, however that hasn't hindered them from several secret rendezvous while the show was airing.

"ABC is behind me 100%, and they've been really, really good to me," she told reporters. "I get to speak to him everyday, whenever I want. We talk to each other a lot. We get to see each other quite a bit, but nobody's allowed to see us. We definitely haven't been to dinner yet."

Pappas reiterated that "dinner in public" is one of her top priorities once the finale airs and added no wedding date has been set.

"We're definitely taking it day-by-day," she told Reality TV World when asked about wedding plans.

Should Pappas actually walk down the aisle with her selected suitor, she'd be following in the footsteps of The Bachelorette first-season star Trista Rehn -- who got engaged to and married Ryan Sutter.

Ten months later, ABC aired a three episode series that detailed the events leading up to their December 2003 wedding ceremony and over 17 million viewers watched the couple exchange vows on Trista & Ryan's Wedding finale broadcast.

Pappas said televised nuptials could also be in her own future.

"We haven't put a lot of thought into it, but we both know we have a lot of fans behind us. There's a lot of people that have followed me since my season with Brad, and I know that there's a lot of followers and supporters that would like to see that happy ending," she told reporters. "I can't say I put a lot of thought into it, but I'm not really opposed to letting those fans into that part of my life."

While the wedding isn't even its planning stage, Pappas had one word to describe it: big.

"It's going to be big. I have a huge family, there's no way I could cut down my list. We've already thought about it, and it's just ridiculous," she told reporters. "It's going to be a big wedding and I'm kind of a traditional kind of girl. I want lots of white."

In addition, Pappas told reporters she wants her wedding dress to be "simple."

"I want him to still look at me that day and know that he's still marrying me -- not some dolled up girl in this big fru-fru dress," she said.

As Pappas prepares for her family members, friends and millions of viewers to watch her choose between Mesnick and Csincsak, she said she still has a memento from the choice.

"I still have the piece of paper where I was doing my pros and cons because it was never an easy decision," she said. "It was always a very, very hard decision for me."

It's been since December that Pappas said she last talked to Womack. While he might have confusingly broken her heart -- twice -- Pappas reiterated her story will have a happy ending this time around, even for Womack.

"Everything happens for a reason," she said. "He's a good person, and I'm sure he's ready to live down The Bachelor experience. Poor Brad, everybody's had to hear about him all season."

Hancock Spoilers !!!!

How "Hancock" Could Have Been a Good Movie…or Two

Will Smith is Mr. July 4th weekend. “Independence Day.” “Men in Black.” To a much lesser extend, “Wild Wild West.” And this year he’s back in multiplexes with another big budget July 4th action movie called “Hancock.” I saw it last night.

“Hancock” is an incredibly frustrating movie because its concept is so damn good. And the story points in the movie only improve on that great idea. But ultimately the film tries to accomplish so much in such a short period of time that it fails miserably. There are some cool moments and some good performances, especially from Big Willie Style, but the film is very disappointing.

However, no matter how mediocre the film is chances are many of you are going to see it this holiday weekend. It’s going to be a monster simply because Will appeals to so many different demographics. So my hypothesis is this. Say it in deep trailer voice guy.

This Fourth of July weekend. MILLIONS of Americans are going to be discussing the same thing. How “Hancock” Could Have Been A Good Movie..or Two.

So let me get the ball rolling first. However to do so I have to delve DEEP into spoiler territory. So if you plan on seeing “Hancock,” you should definitely walk away after this paragraph. But please come back after you’ve seen the movie to see if you agree with my assessment.

Okay - This is your Official Spoiler Warning .

x

It’s spoiler time.

The trailers make it pretty obvious what the film is about. A drunken, depressed superhero looks to change his negative image by using a public relations expert. Wow - what a great idea. The only problem is the film picks up that story right in the middle. When we meet Hancock he’s already drunk and depressed and after two incidents (and a YouTube montage) we just have to buy that he’s been wreaking havoc for a long time.

Why rush this? Because you want to get to the rehab, sure, but if you are starting a superhero franchise, give us more to work with. Isn’t a drunken Hancock far more interesting then a cleaned up one? Wouldn’t it have been cool to have a drunken Hancock save the day and really dig into his psyche?

I know what you are thinking. We DO get more back story. Of course we do. We get it when *DUM DUM DUM* it’s revealed that Charlize Theron is also a superhero! Now, I called this from Trailer 2. The second Hancock says “I’m the only one of my kind” I knew he wasn’t. Plus you see her wearing leather.

But even if you didn’t figure it out before seeing the movie, Peter Berg’s elementary direction gives it away the second she comes on screen. Reaction shot after reaction shot of her being disturbed by Hancock make the reveal almost embarrassing. (And don’t get me started on his liberal use of the circular tracking shot. We get it. The character is confused.)

To me, at the point of the big reveal, “Hancock” almost becomes “Hancock 2″ as he begins to discover who he really is. Theron’s explanation is the stuff of comic book genius too, making the rush job that much more frustrating. Superheroes, as they are now called, were put here by the Gods to keep the Earth safe. An insurance policy.

Each has an opposite that is drawn to one another but when those two come together, the immortal powerhouses slowly become more mortal. Because of their need to love, all the others have died. Except Hancock and Theron. How awesome is that? So awesome in fact that it’s glossed over in about 30 minutes of back and forth banter and action. Ugh.

What if drunk Hancock was one movie, with the reveal of his origin and opposite hero at the end, and the second movie was he and Charlize battling it out while we learn about their torrid love affair over several centuries? How epic do those movies sound? Then, the third film could be the actual inevitable “Hancock 2,” with him in NY and her in LA. Instead, both of these stories are crunched into 92 minutes.

But even if the screenwriters, producers and director were set on making those two stories one movie, they still have a major issue. They don’t know who their audience is. Part of the movie plays to comedy fans while the other half plays to superhero fans and by playing to both audiences, they disrespect both.

For example, any time someone calls Hancock and A-Hole he gets really upset. This happens at least 4 times in the movie. It’s very Marty McFly-ish. But after the second time, the joke just gets tired. And when we find out that Charlize can’t stand people calling her “crazy” it’s down right insulting. Superheroes have flaws, that’s for sure, but verbal bating rarely one of them. That’s the filmmakers trying to be funny but simultaneously letting down superhero fans.

On the flip side, superhero fans love a great origin story. And while we never get specific origin stuff, what we do get is a brief scene teasing the centuries long relationship between superheroes. But we get no flashbacks. What is this, radio? Show us something!

So yeah, if you couldn’t already tell, I was extremely frustrated by “Hancock.” It’s so forced, so rushed and so full of potential. There was definitely a good movie in there - two actually, by my count - but instead we get a mishmash hour and a half that does very little right.

At least superhero fans have “The Dark Knight” and comedy fans have “Tropic Thunder” and “Pineapple Express” to look forward to for the rest of the summer. Those movies know what they are. At least, I hope they do.