Madonna's husband gives up Kabbalah

London, June 27 (IANS) Pop diva Madonna's husband Guy Ritchie has given up on Kabbalah and it is expected to put further strain on their marriage.

Thesun.co.uk reports that Madonna has become more immersed in the faith, but Ritchie has given it up.

'Guy has turned his back on Kabbalah once and for all. He has gone hot and cold on the religion in the past, but now he's given up on it altogether. It has always been her (Madonna) thing and is more a part of her life than ever,' said a source close to the couple.

'Guy threw himself into it at first and even filled his movie 'Revolver' with obscure references to the faith. He was genuinely into it and it helped the bond between them. But then he backtracked a little with his gestures of public backing, like wearing the bracelet, because he didn't like being such a high-profile follower.

'He also became suspicious of all the Kabbalah crowd living off her money. But he always told Madonna he had kept his faith, until now. A few weeks ago he told her he doesn't want anything else to do with it. It didn't go down well.'

Celebrity Gossip - Xtina on her E-normous bra

If you're ever caught on a sinking ship with Christina Aguilera, don't panic: Turns out her lingerie can double as a life raft. The cleavage-flaunting chart-topper reveals to Us Weekly that her already titanic talents have reaped the benefits of breastfeeding 4-month-old son Max. "It's kind of hilarious! I've never fit into an E-cup before," she marvels. "I look at my husband and go, 'Guess what size this bra is?' And when I tell him, he's just amazed. We keep the tags that prove it, to look back for memory's sake!" The chanteuse is featured on the cover of the mag touting the 40 pounds she's dropped post-baby through the combination of a protein-heavy diet regimen and exercise, although she fesses up to having a weakness for sugary goodness. "Oh my god, candy!" exclaims Christina. "I had a huge craving for candy toward the end of the pregnancy, from Starbursts to Skittles. I actually took a picture of myself with my big belly in a little lingerie top, surrounded by bowls of the candy I like."

Kellie Pickler gets all dolled up for an awards show. Unfortunately, it's not the Golden Globes.

Speaking of things sweet and stacked, all eyes were on Kellie Pickler -- or at least certain heaving parts of her -- at the Academy of Country Music Awards Sunday night. "It's been two years since my first record came out. I still have my sassy and girly side, but I've been growing a lot, in many more ways than one," the "American Idol" warbler told FoxNews.com as she cheekily gestured towards her enhanced assets. "Let's just say I feel much more mature now." Not surprisingly, "Idol" exec producer Nigel Lythgoe fully supports Pickler's trip down mammary lane. "She's acquired two accoutrements that [naturally] photographers and men love," he enthuses. "I'm not sure what it cost her, but obviously it was well worth it."

Quit sending this woman free drinks.

Kristin Davis is also baring all -- emotionally, at least -- as she stumps for the "Sex and the City: The Movie". "I'm a recovering alcoholic," the chestnut-locked looker tells Health. "I've never hid it, but I've been sober the whole time I've been famous, so it wasn't like I had to go to rehab publicly." But she says her sobriety has turned what should be a nice perk of her best-known role into "a lot of confusion," admitting, "I get sent many a Cosmo! I never drink them ... Why risk it?" And like her baby-craving alter ego Charlotte York Goldenblatt, Davis, 43, declares that she "would love to have children" and "would still like to find a man and have a baby with him." She then bubbles in a very Charlotte-like way, "I haven't given up."

Celebrity Gossip - Lindsay Lohan to bare all in next flick?

Celebrity Gossip : With her career floundering and her once fetching freckled face seemingly aging in dog years, Lindsay Lohan probably has bigger worries than whatever magazine pose Jessica Simpson is striking.

Or not.

The New York Daily News says the sobriety-challenged starlet was chuckling with pals last week over Jessica's new Esquire cover, in which the blonde pays unintentionally unsexy homage to a 1965 photo of Marilyn Monroe-esque actress Virna Lisi lathered up and shaving.

New York Magazine

"I so already did that," she supposedly laughed to her friends, alluding to her butt nekkid Monroe reenactment in the pages of New York magazine.

But is Lohan now planning to bare everything on the big screen?

So says the London Sun, which claims the actress, 21, who recently landed a role in the Jack Black comedy "Ye Olde Times," is willing to accept just $80,000 to star as a "nymphomaniac waitress" (paging the Academy) in an indie flick titled "Florence."

"Lindsay doesn't care she's getting paid peanuts. She wants to remind people she can act and that she is worth hiring," a source asserts to the tab, with a "pal" adding, "She is fully aware of the potential of her body. Lindsay wants to build up an image as a mature, responsible actress."

But Lohan's spotlight-craving mom-ager Dina, who labeled her nudie New York mag pics "tastefully done" art, denies the full-frontal whispers, insisting to "Access Hollywood" that "she is not" planning to doff her duds.

Which is good, because there are far better ways to prove you're "mature" and "responsible" than by showing off naughty bits that everyone with an Internet connection has already seen many times before.

Like, for example, staying away from the places that helped land you in rehab on three separate occasions.

The college course-needing Lindsay was photographed exiting Los Angeles hot spot Foxtail on Friday night with her BFF, DJ Samantha Ronson.

The following evening, Ronson "threw her arms" around Lohan at Teddy's as Mariah Carey's "Touch My Body" played and "the two moved to the music," says People.

It was the same story on Thursday when the pair turned up in the VIP section of Goa, where Lindsay got her groove on as Ronson DJ'd.

"Lohan was obviously having a good time, dancing very sexy," a bystander tells the mag. "She was quite the center of attention."

All eyes were also on her when she popped into nightclub Villa earlier in the week.

"Lindsay came in with her head down pretending she didn't want to be noticed," an eyewitness tells FoxNews.com. "But it's a small club and she stopped right in the middle where everybody could see her acting all coy."

Meanwhile, is Lohan's overly active social calendar preventing her from visiting her ailing paternal grandparents?

Her Chatty Cathy dad Michael tells the New York Daily News that Dina has made it "hard as hell for me to see my children."

"Even though my father is dying and my mother was in a car accident on Easter, my parents still haven't seen my children," rails the media-courting Papa Lohan. "[Dina] told me, 'It's up to the kids if they want to see their grandparents.' But she's made no effort to put them in touch or make this happen."

Michael is also planning to file suit against his ex-wife over her forthcoming E! reality show, "Living Lohan," alleging she lifted the idea -- and the title -- from him.

"Dina uses people, gets what she wants and then turns her back on them or claims the ideas were hers all along," Michael fumes to Us. "She thinks the law doesn't apply to her or her family since they always get away with things and use Lindsay's name to do it."

He then concludes to the Daily News, "She's bent on an evil path."

Paris Hilton on National Geographic cover!

It looks like a typical National Geographic cover with the signature yellow border. So what's Paris Hilton doing on there?

The folks at Harvard Lampoon persuaded employees of one of the most respected magazines to help them ensure their April Fool's parody - with stories on Mongolia's wildest waterparks and Native Girls Gone Wild - looked authentic.

The issue, coming out on Tuesday, is the latest in a string of Harvard Lampoon magazine parodies.

But the undergraduate group had never done National Geographic, which quickly responded when contacted by the students last summer.

"My guess was they were just extremely bored and they were tired of working with animals and scientists and wanted to hang out with college students," said Hayes Davenport, who edited the magazine with fellow Harvard senior Ross Arbes.

Davenport said other publications have helped with their parodies in the past, such as when USA Today printed the Lampoon's version on its press in 1989.

And he said National Geographic's staffers - who had no editorial control over the parody - were eager to make fun of their ultra-serious image.

The magazine helped print the parody and distribute it alongside its own April edition in some areas, Arbes said.

A designer also helped lay out the parody to make it look as much like the original as possible.

"They provided things that were really valuable to us," Arbes said.

Editors from National Geographic could not be reached on Monday, but the magazine released a facetious statement.

"Editors are unavailable for comment, having left the country ... as usual," it said.

- Yahoo News

Van Halen scraps more shows amid mystery ailment

NEW YORK (Billboard) - Rock band Van Halen's reunion tour fell into disarray on Monday when it announced it would postpone all shows through April 19 while guitarist Eddie Van Halen undergoes tests for an unspecified medical condition.

The news came a week after the group postponed four shows for the same reason.

Seventeen shows are now affected, beginning Tuesday in Charlottesville, Va., and running through April 15 in Baltimore, which was one of the four postponed last week. The next scheduled show is set for April 19 in Las Vegas.

According to organizers, Van Halen, 53, who has battled cancer and substance abuse, "is currently under doctors' care" and will "continue medical tests to define a course of treatment." No further details were made available.

Fans are being asked to keep their tickets, which will be honored at makeup dates to be announced.

Van Halen returned to the road last fall with original lead singer David Lee Roth for the first time in 20-plus years. The tour, which features Eddie Van Halen's teenage son Wolfgang on bass in place of co-founder Michael Anthony, has routinely sold out North American arenas.

- Reuters/Billboard

Jessica –- I'm So NOT High-Maintenance

Jessica Simpson is flogging reports that her trip to Kuwait to visit the troops is a big production.

Her rep tells People that Jess flew commercial and that she is in fact staying in the barracks with the troops. What's more, she denies that her trip is more of a fly-by than an actual visit: "She's been with the troops all day. She's had her meals with them."

As for reports that she had a full-scale beauty battalion with her, the rep says that super-stylist Ken Paves isn't with Jess, and that she has "significantly scaled back her entourage."

Justin -- Brit's Just a "Madonna Wannabe"

Justin Timberlake didn't keep his stick in a box on Monday night, when he jabbed at ex-galpal Britney Spears at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame ceremony.

"The world has always been full of Madonna wannabes," said JT as he introduced the Material Mom, an inductee, reports Us. "I might have even dated a couple." Day-um. He also zinged, "She has still found time to kiss someone I may or may not have publicly kissed myself while I was in the audience. Of course you know I was talking about Sean Penn."

Britney Spears' lawyer says K-Fed can pay own bill

If Kevin Federline can afford to tip a waitress two grand, he can pay his own legal fees, say lawyers for Britney Spears. Monday in a Los Angeles court, K-Fed pleaded poverty, saying his ex-wife should continue to pay his hefty law bill — $405,000 to be exact. In just four months, the acrimonious exes have racked up over a million dollars in lawyers' fees, all of which Brit is currently responsible for.

But Stacy Phillips, Britney's newest legal eagle, says that the once down-and-out Federline is more than capable of paying his own bills. "He needs to take responsibility for the diligent work being done on his behalf," she said.

Phillips told the court commissioner Federline should pay between $150,000 and $175,000 and claimed he omitted his $200,000 spousal- support checks from his earning declarations. Phillips also argued that Federline recently tipped a waitress $2,000 on a $365 bill, and has blown $20,000 on jewelry, phone calls and food while listing the charges as "business expenses."

Mark Vincent Kaplan, lawyer for Federline, says that Britney should not only keep signing his checks, but that the singer is actually getting a bargain. Said Kaplan: "If the court does not order [her] to pay, there cannot be a legal playing field. Our fees are far under the market level for the package you get."

He may be right. Spears' old law firm, Trope and Trope, charged her $630,000 for four months' work, while Federline's bill from Kaplan was about $250,000 less.

Spears didn't actually attend the hearing — her dad, Jamie Spears, executor of her estate, made an appearance. The pop tart may have been home preparing for her upcoming foray into television: CBS has confirmed that Spears will be a guest star on an episode of "How I Met Your Mother" this season.

Seeing Double: Are Celebrity Twins Hollywood's Latest Trend?

Jennifer Lopez, Nancy Grace and Marcia Cross have more in common than just being famous women at the peak of their careers. They have all recently become the proud mothers of twins.

Lately, Hollywood just can't seem to avoid the twin phenomenon and two more expectant leading ladies are rumored to be joining the club. This week, the National Enquirer reported that Jessica Alba is expecting twins with boyfriend Cash Warren, while Star and X17 Online have both claimed Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt are expecting two additions to their ever-expanding brood.

The "celebrities having twins" trend seemed to gain momentum in 2004, when leading lady Julia Roberts, at the age of 37, gave birth to Hazel Patricia and Phinnaeus Walter Moder.

But Roberts and her husband, Danny Moder, weren't the only celeb parents with two diaper bags that year. Another Oscar winner, 44-year-old Marcia Gay Harden, welcomed a boy named Hudson Harden Scheel and a girl named Julitta Dee Harden Scheel.

Meanwhile, Dixie Chick Martie Maguire, 34 in 2004, gave birth to Eva Ruth and Kathleen Emilie. And 48-year-old Geena Davis gave birth to twin boys - Kian William and Kaiis Steven.

In 2007, the trend gained even more momentum.

Patrick Dempsey, of "Grey's Anatomy" fame, and his wife, Jillian, had twin boys too - Darby Galen and Sullivan Patrick. "Desperate Housewives'" Marcia Cross and her husband, Tom Mahoney, welcomed girls Eden and Savannah. And Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon and husband, Mike Nilon, welcomed Jax Joseph and Jaid Thomas.

Surrogacy seems to be a popular trend for celebrity parents, and having twins is often a likely outcome if several embryos are placed during in vitro fertilization. Dennis Quaid and wife, Kimberly Buffington, welcomed Thomas Boone and Zoe Grace through a surrogate. The twins were involved in a horrific blood thinner medication mix-up at the hospital soon after their birth.

Talk show host and former prosecutor Nancy Grace joined the twins club through surrogacy as well, bringing babies John David and Lucy Elizabeth into the world alongside her husband, David Linch.

And finally, just this past weekend, Jennifer Lopez and Marc Anthony welcomed their little boy and girl.

But having twins isn't just a new trend in Hollywood obstetrics. Plenty of stars themselves are twins.

The most famous twin celebrities today might be Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, but there are plenty of other stars who shared a womb including actors Jeremy and Jason London, and Gunnar and Matthew Nelson, of the 80's rock group Nelson.

Good Charlotte rockers Joel and Benji Madden are twins. Pop star Aaron Carter (brother of Nick) has a twin sister Angel, while Alanis Morissette has a twin brother, Wade.

Dylan & Cole Sprouse from "The Suite Life Of Zack and Cody" are twins too.

Some other celebrities with twins: Jill Hennessy and identical twin Jacqueline, Scarlett Johansson and fraternal brother Hunter, Giovanni Ribisi and twin Marissa (she's married to singer Beck), Vin Diesel and fraternal brother Paul, Joseph Fiennes and twin Jacob, Eva Green and fraternal sister Joy, Jon Heder and identical twin Daniel, Marilu Henner and twin Crystal, Ashton Kutcher and fraternal twin Michael, Isabella Rossellini and twin Ingrid, Kiefer Sutherland and twin Rachel, and Gisele Bundchen and fraternal twin Patricia.

Malfunctions in the dress makes Paris Hilton Topless

Paris Hilton unintentionally gave clubbers a quick glimpse of her twin assets, by slipping out of her dress while partying at a nightclub.

The socialite visited Boston's Estate nightclub to celebrate winning the Woman Of The Year 'award' from Harvard University's Harvard Lampoon Magazine.

But, while stepping up on stage to belt out her previous single, Stars Are Blind, Paris put on a rather eye-popping show.

"Paris certainly knows how to put on an eye-popping show," The Sun quoted an onlooker, as saying.

"It was all a little cringey as she belted out her single as she danced on stage, but the highlight was definitely seeing Paris' boobs.

"It made the entrance fee good value for money in the end!" the onlooker added.

Britney's a 'Great Mother'-Paris Hilton

NEW YORK (AP) -- Paris Hilton is rooting for Britney Spears.

"I wish the best for her and I just wish everyone would leave her alone so she could live her life," the 26-year-old hotel heiress-actress tells E! News. "She's a great mother and a great girl and I really care about her."

In an interview that was to air Tuesday night, Hilton says: "She's a very sweet girl and I love her to death."

Hilton and Spears were nearly inseparable following the pop star's split from ex-husband Kevin Federline.

Celebrity Gossip: Has Brit ditched her paparazzo beau?

The tabloid magnets were photographed partying, shopping and driving in a car with Lindsay Lohan in the weeks after Spears filed for divorce from Federline in November 2006. But their whirlwind public friendship seemed to fizzle out after Spears' fans complained that Hilton was a negative influence.

Hilton served a 23-day jail sentence in Los Angeles last June for violating probation in an alcohol-related reckless-driving case. She vowed to focus on philanthropy afterward.

Meanwhile, Spears, 26, continued to unravel in the public eye after a rough year in which she shaved her head, checked in and out of rehab and attacked a car with an umbrella.

She was taken to a Los Angeles hospital by paramedics earlier this month after police were called to her home because of a dispute involving her two sons. A court commissioner decided to keep in effect an order suspending Spears' right to visit Jayden James, 1, and Sean Preston, 2.

- MSN

Fergie has a wardrobe malfunction

She may have sold millions of records and have assistants to ensure she looks flawless, but The Black Eyed Peas singer Stacy "Fergie" Ferguson can still have a wardrobe malfunction.

The 23-year-old suffered a slight wardrobe malfunction when she opened for The Police at Wellington's Westpac Stadium.

Fergie danced and sang a selection of her hits, embarrassingly unaware the zip was down in her tight white trousers.

Teamed with a white waistcoat, Fergie showed off her toned physique and would have looked her usual groomed self if it wasn't for the noticeable trouser disaster.

The stadium was jam-packed as around 22,000 fans flocked to watch The Police kicking off their Australasian tour.

The Police comprise front man Sting, drummer Stewart Copeland and guitarist Andy Summers.

Breaking News - American Idol Returns

Judges, left, Randy Jackson, Paula Abdul, and Simon Cowell will help America choose the next "Idol."

Dos and Don'ts for 'Idol' Hopefuls
A handy checklist for what to do (and what not to do) if you want a shot at winning the show

By Larry Carroll
Special to MSN Entertainment

Every new year brings with it hope. The hope of world peace, of good health for friends and family and, naturally, renewed hope for thousands that they'll make it through the nationwide auditions to become the next "American Idol."

This year's process has already begun, and Season 7 will launch on Jan. 15th at 8 p.m. on FOX. But, if you're among the few and the chosen, are you really ready for prime time? Based on the fact that the same judges, and the same die-hard millions who've powered "Idol" in the past, will be returning once again, the time has come to start looking for patterns.

So sit back, rest those vocal cords with some herbal tea, and read on. Because if you're going to become Season 7's big winner, you'll definitely want to hit these notes.

Don't Dance
Every season, a few early wannabes attempt to augment their performance with dancing. Most are dismissed immediately, and for good reason: If you feel the need to dance, then you must know you can't sing. America learned that the hard way with Britney Spears, so why should they have to do it all over again with you? Occasionally, once a contestant like Taylor Hicks has established the power of his pipes, he'll dance and get away with it. Other times, a Joshua Gracin or Jon Peter Lewis kicks up his heels and quickly gets the boot. Either way, it's just not a safe bet, folks. If you want to dance, go on that Marie Osmond show.

Dog Is Your Co-Pilot
America loves an underdog. So, if you're ugly, overweight, got picked on as a kid, or simply suffer from the occasional zit, play up your perceived handicap. As your singing skills get asserted, you can evolve into a more photogenic version of yourself (Hi, Clay Aiken. Hi, Elliott Yamin!), and the fans will rally behind you.

Check Yourself Before You Wreck Yourself
Embrace the point above, but just beware that if your underdog gets too big for its collar, the voters won't hesitate to send you to the doghouse. Everybody loved Chris Daughtry -- until he started getting cocky. And don't snap back at the judges, a la Justin Guarini, Julia DeMato or Brenna Gethers -- it'll just make you look like the over-egoed second act in a bad musical biopic. Believe it or not, the audience really does like Simon, Paula, and Randy, and have come to regard them like family -- so, if you get too big for your britches, you'll be booted out like a drunken uncle at Christmas.

The South Shall Rise Again
If you're from the South, get thyself to an "AI" audition, post-haste. Don't laugh: It worked for winners Kelly Clarkson (Texas), Ruben Studdard (Alabama), Fantasia Barrino (North Carolina), Carrie Underwood (near the Oklahoma and Arkansas border), and Hicks (Alabama), as well as runners-up like Clay Aiken (North Carolina), Diana DeGarmo (Georgia) and Bo Bice (Alabama). There seems to be several reasons why people from Los Angeles and New York never win: they're too polished, they lack Southern charm, maybe they just don't appeal to the Wal-Mart crowd. Regardless of whether any are true, the trend is clear: Start talking like Andy Griffith, or just stay home.

Pick Popular Songs
Just because you're from the South, doesn't mean you should perform country music -- and, no matter where you're from, don't dare sing a showtune. Showtunes sank the likes of Lisa Tucker and Mikalah Gordon. And Kellie Pickler and Bucky Covington's love of country didn't put them over the top, either. The judges seem to fall for rock music more increasingly with each passing year -- hence Daughtry, Bice and Gina Glocksen -- so, when it comes to the all-important job of picking your songs, skip Streisand and instead go for some Steve Miller.

Don't Be a Freak
Every season, America has an ill-advised one-night stand with Sanjaya and his mohawk, William Hung and his bangs, or Blake Lewis and his beatbox. If your plan is to rely on a fad, you're just trading 15 minutes of fame for a lifetime of mockery. If you really feel the need to go down that road, do like so many before you and simply make a sex tape with Paris Hilton.

Don't Be a Skank
While we're on that topic, short skirts, hot bodies and flirting with the bosses will only get you so far on "American Idol" (unlike in the real world, where it gets you a corner office and an expense account ). Over the years, we've watched Haley Scarnato ineffectively show her skin, and let's not even get started on Jessica Sierra. Frenchie Davis' dirty pictures got her the boot, and Antonella Barba similarly blew her chances. When Corey Clark (allegedly) took flirting to the next level with Paula, it still didn't take him to the top. Learn from the past: Sleeping with Paula didn't do wonders for Emilio Estevez's career, and it won't help yours, either.

Don't Ring in the New Year
Like it or not, America is more likely to fall in love with you when you're single and ready to swing. Performers like Scarnato started the process with a significant other, then shed the baggage as time went on. If you happen to be wearing an engagement ring, it might be a good idea to hide that rock, and hope it puts you on a roll.

Gain a Few Pounds
Typically, traditionally good-looking people are lucky if they make it beyond the top 12. Underwood is the only "AI" winner who could possibly make it as a model, and both she and Clarkson were still burdened by a lot of baby fat when they took home the title. Once again, it proves that people like the underdog, and our supersized nation wants to see its own reflection in an Idol. So, don't look as though you could make it without the world's most famous reality show, or you just might have to.

If You Haven't Got the Talent, Stay Home
The bottom line is, the cream rises to the top, and this show carries on for so many weeks, in front of so many millions, that it always screens out the weaker members of the herd. So either bring your A-game, or sit home on the couch with a lap full of nachos, and join the rest of us in a state that's truly American: idle.