The prestigious Concours Mondial de Bruxelles (CMB) wine competition kicked off in Slovakia on Friday, making it the first Central European country to host one of the world's top five wine contests.

The talents of 305 connoisseurs will be tested by 8,168 wines from 50 countries during the three-day event in this quaint capital.

Michael Jackson's make-up artist warned in the 1990s that the star could die due to his drug addiction, she testified Friday, adding that people were initially lying after his 2009 death.

Karen Faye, who worked for the self-styled King of Pop for 27 years, said she voiced concern to a drugs therapist after Jackson's "Dangerous" tour in the early 1990s, which was cut short when the singer went into rehab.

Steven Spielberg will bring a Hollywood veteran's eye to the more art-house Cannes Film Festival next week -- but he insists he has no preconceptions and will be a strictly "democratic" jury head.

The legendary filmmaker, who first came to Cannes for the premiere of "E.T." in 1982, says he is looking forward to being on the Croisette, even if he is a little "rusty," not having served on a festival jury for over 25 years.

You can't always get what you want. Unless, perhaps, you're a member of the Green Valley High School choir and you want a chance to sing on stage with the Rolling Stones.

The Henderson school's choir will join the Stones at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas Saturday night for the encore performance of their hit song, "You Can't Always Get What You Want."

Like mother, like daughter. And Jerry Hall and Georgia May Jagger do seem to like each other quite a bit.

Together, they enjoy riding horses, spa days, gardening, cooking and reading the Sunday newspaper, especially their horoscopes. They share clothes now, too, and are starring in a campaign for Sunglass Hut, their first major joint modeling gig.

The Coen Brothers, Roman Polanski and Steven Soderbergh return to the Cannes Film Festival from Wednesday, with a string of younger talents snapping at their heels in the race for the coveted Palme d'Or.

Baz Luhrmann's take on "The Great Gatsby" starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Carey Mulligan, will lay on the glitz when it opens the 12-day fest on Wednesday evening.

Britain's Prince Harry broke hearts in Washington's corridors of power Thursday, showing more interest in landmines than in the excited fans who greeted him at the start of a week-long U.S. visit.

Squeals ricocheted down the halls of the Russell Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill as the 28-year-old eligible bachelor inspected a photo exhibit set up by the HALO Trust, a charity favored by his late mother Princess Diana.

The opening this month of the first life-sized Barbie Dreamhouse in Europe may be the fantasy of many a little girl, but Berlin feminists are mobilizing against what they call a sexist icon.

With her ironed-straight blond tresses, doe-like baby blue eyes, blinding smile and super-human measurements, the mistress of the giant Barbie mansion has become a lightning rod ahead of the May 16 inauguration.

Written by Anthony Sargon

Life doesn't always go as planned. Unexpected things can and will happen, but it's how we choose to deal with those events that makes us who we are, and ultimately, decides our fate. Derek Ciafrance's "The Place Beyond The Pines" is a beautiful and heart-wrenching film that explores the importance of family, and what one is willing to do for it in a world tainted by greed and corruption.

Italian knitwear impresario Ottavio "Tai" Missoni, an innovator whose distinctive colorful zigzag dresses became a global fashion empire, died on Thursday at his home at 92, his family said.

Missoni co-founded the fashion brand in 1953 with his wife Rosita Jelmini and their designs have graced the rich and famous from Jackie Kennedy to the Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton.