TMZ reports the singer died in Florida. She had not made her cancer public. Friends who had seen her in recent weeks say she “didn’t seem too bad.”

Her family released a statement Thursday saying Summer died and that they “are at peace celebrating her extraordinary life and her continue legacy. Words truly can’t express how much we appreciate your prayers and love for our family at this sensitive time.”

Summer had been living in Englewood, Fla., with her husband Bruce Sudano. The 5-time Grammy winner had also been working on a new album.

Remembering Donna Summer

Leave your Donna Summer memories in the comment section below.

What’s your favorite Donna Summer? Tweet us at #1015.

Born on December 31, 1948 in the Dorchester section of Boston, she was one of seven children raised by devout Christian parents. Influenced by Mahalia Jackson, Summer began singing in the church at a young age. In her teens, she formed several musical groups including one with her sister and a cousin, imitating Motown girl groups such as The Supremes and Martha and the Vandellas in Boston.

Her sound was a mix of genres, and helped her earn Grammy Awards in the dance, rock, R&B and inspirational categories.

Summer came to prominence just as disco was burgeoning, and came to define the era with a string of No. 1 hits and her beauty queen looks.

But unlike some other stars of disco who faded as the music became less popular, she was able to grow beyond it and later segued to a pop-rock sound. She had one of her biggest hits in the 1980s with “She Works Hard For The Money,” which became another anthem, this time for women’s rights.

Soon after, Summer became a born-again Christian and faced controversy when she was accused of making anti-gay comments in relation to the AIDS epidemic. Summer denied making the comments, but was the target of a boycott.

Summer released her last album, “Crayons,” in 2008. She also performed on “American Idol” that year with its top female contestants.

What’s your favorite Donna Summer? Tweet us at #1015.

YouTube

I came across this video this morning and wanted to share it with all of you.

It’s pretty amazing. I actually wanted to do something like this when my son was born — but it’s a commitment.

Anyway, enjoy. Oh, and feel free to tell us what you think about it.

youtube

The creative team of Tim Burton and Johnny Deep unite again in “Dark Shadows”. The reworking of the 70′s Gothic soap opera. The movie opens nationwide today and so far the reviews have been positive especially for Johhny Depp who plays vampire Barnabas Collins .  Check out the clip of the movie below. I love they way they worked some of the music of the 70′s into the movie including Barry White’s “Your The First, My Last , My Everything”.

Were you a fan of the original series and will you check out Dark Shadows this weekend?

Jamie McCarthy, Getty Images

Congrats are in order for pompadoured crooner Bruno Mars. He picked up the award for song of the year for his hit ‘Just the Way You Are’ at the 2012 ASCAP Pop Music Awards.

These honors are handed out by the songwriting society comprised of authors and composers. Mars and his songwriting team were recognized for their efforts. Unlike many pop stars, Mars is actually credited as one of the writers on this song, so he’s not just getting up there and doing his neo doo wop thing, singing other people’s melodies and lyrics. He is a part of the songwriting process.

Congrats to everyone involved in the conception and completion of ‘Just the Way You Are.’

The song was Mars’ debut single from ‘Doo Wops & Hooligans,’ dropping back in 2010.The song was also honored with a 2011 Grammy for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance. It also peaked on the radio charts, too.

You can’t argue with a quality, solid song. It just hits in all the right places and ‘Just the Way You Are’ is unquestionably one of those tunes.

We’re looking forward to Mars next batch of songs!

Watch the Bruno Mars ‘Just the Way You Are’ Video

Source: 1

YouTube

The bar on adorable Adele covers has just been raised. Ten-year-old Angie and 13-year-old Tara, meet 2-year-old Makena, a toddler who may be the youngest (and cutest) performer on YouTube to tackle Adele’s heartbreak ballad ‘Someone Like You.’

Her proud mother posted the video online with the caption, “My 2yr old daughter loves Adele and sings along!” Makena is barely old enough to talk but is able to rattle off the lyrics to the hit song while singing along to a recording. She even raises her voice for the money line, “Never mind, I’ll find someone like you.”

When asked by another YouTuber if she spent time coaching her daughter, the mother wrote, “She just did it herself. She just likes to sing.” If that’s the case, this toddler may have already found her career path. Even if her vocals are still in the mumbling stage, she obviously has a knack for memorizing the words to her favorite songs!

Since Adele won all six Grammy Awards she was nominated for last month, it seems that her popularity knows no bounds. Earlier this month, a Major League Baseball player was filmed singing ‘Someone Like You’ on the field during a game.

Watch a 2-year-old Toddler Sing Adele’s ‘Someone Like You’

Source: 1

Michael Backer/fox

One of the 12 finalists will be kicked of  American Idol tonight for concealing a criminal past from producers. According to TMZ.com Jermaine Jones of Pine Hill in Camden County, will be kicked off tonight because he concealed multiple crimes form producers with one crime involving violence. Jermaine according to producers also has outstanding warrants.

Footage of Jermaine being confronted with the information will air on tonight’s show.

The excitable young inventor has taken to YouTube to share his Rube Goldberg Machine. For those not in the know, a Rube Goldberg machine is a purposely complicated machine that performs a simple mechanized task.

Check out the video of Audri below:

Kraft

Oreos are the most popular cookies in the United States, with Americans scarfing down some 25 billion of the chocolate sandwich confections every year. And since this week marks Oreo’s 100th birthday, we thought we’d celebrate with some facts and lore.

To mark the centennial, Kraft is releasing limited-edition Birthday Cake Oreos with sprinkles in the filling, and on the Oreo birthday website, you can send your friends smartphone coupons for free packages of the cookies. (Those will set you back $3.99 a pop, but just think of how popular you’ll be!)

Oreos were released in March 1912 and first sold by a grocer in Hoboken. However, its humble beginnings have since been dwarfed by the wide variety of related products that have since hit the market — Oreo pie crusts, cheesecake and ice cream, to name just a few.

So how do we eat Oreos? Well, that depends. In a research survey by Kraft, the company found that while 84 percent of men eat the cookie whole, women like to savor it a bit more, with 41 percent eating them a little at a time. (Watch a classic Oreo commercial from the ’80s below.)

And while we in the US certainly love the cookies, we aren’t the only ones — 362 billion Oreos have been sold in more than 100 countries around the world, but the Oreos you’ll find elsewhere aren’t always like the ones we enjoy here (for example, Japan has a Green Tea Oreo).

Stephen Loves Candy

But Kraft did have to make some adjustments to its famous recipe when the treats were released in China in 1996 and sold so poorly that they were almost removed from the country entirely. Market research revealed the Chinese felt the chocolate cookies were too bitter and the white icing in the middle was too sweet, so a few changes were made to accommodate local palates — and today, Oreos are China’s best-selling cookie.

Check photos of some of the many Oreo flavors below along with some classic ads of kids twisting those delicious cookies.

Nabisco

Nabisco

Nabisco

Sprint 2 Table

X-Entertainment

Source: TheFW.com

YouTube

‘American Idol‘ saved the best for last tonight as Elise Testone closed out the Top 12 girls with an impassioned and soulful performance of Adele‘s ’One and Only.’  She was the second girl of the night to sing the song after Jen Hirsh performed it admirably. But Elise, the oldest contestant this season at 28, was able to infuse more life experience into Adele’s dramatic lyrics.

Elise currently resides in Charleston, S.C. but said she is happiest at home with her parents in New Jersey.  Elise only got into her life story a little, but it was obvious she meant it when she said she need the exposure ‘American Idol’ would bring.

Starting her performance at the piano, Elise’s beautiful and gravelly tone shone through the yearning nature of the song. She was pitch-perfect throughout, even giving Jennifer Lopez goosebumps when she got up from the piano halfway through. Elise’s voice cracked a few times, only adding to the immediacy she brought to the song. She capped off her performance with an a capella note, and became emotional when the judges gave her a standing ovation.

Randy Jackson said it best, calling Elise a “force to be reckoned with,” and singing the praises of her, “bluesy, smokey, soulful flavor.”  There is no doubt that Elise will be one to watch this year, possibly all the way to the Top 2.

Watch Elise Testone Perform ‘One and Only’ on ‘American Idol’

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New Line Cinema

The American Film Institute created a list of  the 100 most romantic movies ever made. Because their list spans a good 7 or 8 decades, and doesn’t go past the ’90s, it doesn’t include a lot of our favorites. The movies that shaped our ideas of romance.

Just in case you’re planning a night of staying in and snuggling up for the big Valentine’s Day holiday, here is a list of must-see romances from our pop culture vault.

‘An Officer and a Gentleman’ (1982)

Richard Gere in a uniform. That’s really all they needed to make this film romantic, but then they added all that hot chemistry with Debra Winger and suddenly this was the scale all future dates would be rated on. Just once, we want to be carried out of our factory job (or cubicle) by a man in his dress whites.

‘Sixteen Candles’ (1984)

John Hughes was the master of teen angst. What starts out so tragically for poor Sam ends with her scoring the most popular guy in school, a Porsche and one of the best kisses over a birthday cake ever. This flick showed us just how we could have our cake and light it too.

‘The Princess Bride’ (1987)

This telling of a classic tale gave us a princess that Disney can’t match. Pirates, revenge, giants, sword fights and castle gates make this film the pinnacle of romance. (And it’s hilarious, too.) And really, Westley comes back from the dead for true love. It doesn’t get more romantic than that.

‘Say Anything’ (1989)

If you ever find yourself in need of a wild goose chase, try to find a woman who hasn’t at one time wished a guy would stand outside her window with a boombox playing Peter Gabriel’s ‘In Your Eyes.’ Cusack’s boombox power pose is an iconic romantic movie moment and a move that will get any guy out of trouble. His courting of Diane Court is unmatched.

‘When Harry Met Sally’ (1989)

This movie has to make the list, not only because it has arguably one of the best lines in romantic movie history, but because every girl dreams of falling in love with her best friend. And, even in all its realistic views about relationships and finding love, this movie gives us all hope.

‘Pretty Woman’ (1990)

Richard Gere makes the list again. That guy has cornered the market on lifting beautiful but unfortunate woman out of their miserable circumstances in the most romantic way possible. This Cinderella story somehow managed to make every woman in America wish she could be a prostitute.

‘Ghost’ (1990)

Again we have another return-from-the-great-beyond kind of thing. It seems to really work in a romance. We see that even death can’t come between two people who really love each other. And, seriously, who wasn’t into pottery after that movie?

‘Sleepless in Seattle’ (1993)

Want your movie to be extremely romantic? Make sure you make constant mention of one of the most tragically romantic movies ever made (‘An Affair to Remember’) and then recreate one of its most heart-wrenching scenes. And don’t forget to cast the king and queen of romantic comedy chemistry, Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan. This movie solidified the Empire State Building’s status as the pinnacle of romantic locations.

‘The Notebook’ (2004)

If you’re of the female persuasion, chances are you’ve used up many a tissue watching this one. And if you’re a boyfriend or husband — we caught you wiping away a tear at the end.

‘Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind’ (2004)

If you can wrap your mind around the premise of this movie and keep track of when in time everything is happening, what you have is an unparalleled love story that will make you believe that even though love is painful, it is always worth the ride. And that there are some people who will always come back to you.

Source: TheFW.com