Clara Schumann: Famous wife but a musician in her own right

In the world of classical music, Clara Schumann's husband, Robert, is widely known. Yet Clara was not just wife and mother, but a virtuoso pianist.  Clara is getting worldwide attention Thursday, on the occasion of her 193rd birthday, with a Google Doodle.

Though Robert was 10 years older than Clara, her career started flourishing before his.

She was born Clara Josephine Wieck in Leipzig, Germany. Her music-teacher father taught her to play piano and she was performing by age 9.

INTERACTIVE: Fall Arts Preview

Around that time, Robert Schumann was in the early stages of a musical career and took piano lessons from Clara's father. But Robert became so obsessed with developing his playing technique that he damaged a finger badly enough that he had to give up playing and turn to composition. At 19, Clara became infatuated with him.

Even before it began, their marriage wasn't easy. Believing an unknown composer unfit for his talented daughter, Clara's father tried to keep them apart; when they wanted to marry he refused to give permission. They ultimately wed a day before she turned 21 and settled in Leipzig.

As he became musically proficient, she continued to perform both alone and on tour with Robert. She had their first child a year after they married and became pregnant nine more times, bearing eight children over the next 14 years.

ARTS PREVIEW: Classical music

In the mid 1840s, Robert was suffering from bouts of depression that would continue to plague him and their marriage. In 1854 he attempted to drown himself in the Rhine river and was committed to an asylum, where Clara could not visit him. She finally saw him once before he died two years later at 46. 

Clara lived for 40 more years, outliving several of her children.

She continued a long career as a concert pianist and editing her husband's works.  In her later years she taught piano in Frankfurt, where she died following a stroke at age 76, in 1896.

[For the record, 8:48 a.m., Sept. 13: An earlier version of this post had incorrect years for events in the Schumanns' lives. Robert was suffering from depression in the 1840s, not the 1940s, and Clara died in 1896, not 1986.]

 

Jerry Lawler

In what was one of the scariest scenes in the history of live television, longtime wrestling announcer and former in-ring performer Jerry Lawler suffered a heart attack on Monday Night Raw. The event continued during the episode that saw paramedics immediately respond to the fallen announcer and administer CPR. Lawler was brought to the locker room and transported to a local Montreal hospital. During the telecast, Lawler's broadcast partner,  Michael Cole, updated the WWE Universe on the health status throughout the remainder of the show. At the conclusion of the telecast, Cole announced to the WWE Universe that "Jerry Lawler's condition is stabilized, he is breathing on his own."

 

A WWE statement sent out in the early morning hours revealed that the 62-year-old Lawler did indeed suffer a heart attack.

"Jerry "The King" Lawler suffered a heart attack while commentating during last night's broadcast of Monday Night Raw in Montreal. We are hopeful Jerry makes a full recovery and returns to WWE in the near future. Our thoughts are with Jerry and his family."

As Cole stated during his commentary following the incident, Lawler is a fighter and won't be stopped by anything. I would expect that he would stay away from the announcing table for the time being and depending on how severe the heart attack was, he may be forced away forever. As someone who grew up watching him in a "kiss my foot" match with Bret Hart to being a part of the greatest announce team in the history of professional wrestling with Jim Ross, that would be a terrible thought.

Michael Strahan, Kelly Ripa’s rumored new sidekick on ‘Live! With Kelly,’ was living it up in Jamaica when he got the news

Michael Strahan, who was vacationing in Jamaica when he got the news he was the new co-host of 'Live! With Kelly,' gets an eyeful.

Michael Strahan was living it up in Jamaica when he found out he was Kelly Ripa’s new TV sidekick, TMZ reported Saturday.

The ex-Giants star was vacationing with fiance Nicole Murphy when he got the call confirming he was joining “Live! With Kelly,” the gossip site said.

ABC has refused to confirm that Strahan, 40, landed the coveted spot.

But numerous reports last week said Strahan won the coveted slot vacated by Regis Philbin.

Ripa’s new co-host will be announced Sept. 4 on the show.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/gossip/michael-strahan-kelly-ripa-new-sidekick-live-kelly-living-jamaica-news-article-1.1144674#ixzz26LyPamWn

Chris Brown Tattoo

When it comes to tattoos, Chris Brown and Rihanna are clearly on the same wavelength.

The "Don't Judge Me" singer showed off some fresh ink Monday hot on the heels of debuting a new neck tattoo resembling his former lover - and this time, it looks as though Brown has chosen the same spot that Rihanna got her own new tattoo.

PHOTOS: CELEBRITY INK

"About to go in on this #fighterjet #f16 #plane #tattoo on #chrisbrown," tattoo artist John Petro captioned a shot of a tattooed Brown, 23, with the beginnings of a fighter jet etched onto his torso.

Brown’s tattoo of fighter jet is in same place as Rihanna new tattoo. (f--kyopictures/via Instagram)

The finished jet, which points nose-first toward Brown's belly button, sits across the singer's abs, just below his chest.

Rihanna's latest ink, of an Egyptian goddess, is similarly etched into her midsection with the wings spread just below the "We Found Love" singer's breasts.

"Goddess Isis - Complete Woman - Model for future generations - #GRANGRANDOLLY," she wrote on her Twitter Sunday. "Always in and on my heart."

Rihanna’s latest tattoo could be seen during the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Paralympic Games on September 9, 2012 in London, England. (via Instagram; Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images)

Earlier this month, Brown showed off another new piece of body art, with a sketch of a woman's face imprinted onto the right side of his neck.

Fans and the media noted that the tattoo bore a striking resemblance to a bruised and battered Rihanna, but Brown defended his ink against haters on Tuesday.

"I'm an artist and this is art," he wrote on his Twitter account. "Dia de los Muertos."

Chris Brown with tattoo artist John Petro. (Johnpetro/via Instagram)

Brown's rep confirmed to E! News that the drawing is a cross between "a sugar skull (associated with the Mexican celebration of the Day of the Dead) and a MAC cosmetics design he saw," rather than a nod to the explosive night back in 2009 when he beat up then-girlfriend Rihanna.

The pair have had a tumultuous relationship but still remain friends, and earlier this month, even sparked rumors that their romance is back on after the two locked lips at the MTV Video Music Awards.

Rihanna, 24, called Brown the "love of her life" in an emotional interview on Oprah Winfrey's talk show last month, and admitted that they "love each other and we probably always will."

Brown is currently linked to model Karreuche Tran.

Read more: http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/gossip/chris-brown-new-tattoo-fighter-jet-spot-rihanna-tribute-tat-grandmother-article-1.1157569#ixzz26Lxvad6X

Sons Of Anarchy

 

The fifth season of "Sons of Anarchy" premiered on Tuesday (September 11) in bloody fashion, with one of the lingering plot threads from season four — badass biker Tig Trager's accidental killing of a powerful criminal's daughter — immediately heightened in an even gorier fashion than fans have come to expect from the FX biker drama.

Towards the end of the premiere (titled "Sovereign"), SAMCRO's former Sergeant at Arms, Tig, came face to face with the father of the innocent girl he accidentally killed in the season four finale — Damon Pope, a ruthless gangster played by "Lost" and "Oz" actor Harold Perrineau. No amends were made between the two. Quite the opposite in fact: Tig, handcuffed to a chain, was helpless to watch as his own daughter, Dawn, was burned to death by Pope.

"It was a pretty tough place to go to in my head," actor Kim Coates, who plays Tig, told MTV News about shooting the gut-wrenching scene. "What happens to him and his daughter, I can't even imagine. Kurt told me [about it] back in March. We were in New York together, and when he told me, I actually got the chills. I didn't break down or anything, but I did tear up. I can't even imagine that happening."

The death of Dawn was shot over the course of two brutal nights, Coates said. The actor credits his performance to "Sons" director Paris Barclay, writer and creator Kurt Sutter, as well as the show's props department.

"They built this device where they saved my wrists from being ripped off by the shackles," Coates said of the props work in that scene. "Those were real handcuffs and that was a real chain. Without this propped, leather, rubberized thing underneath my shirt, I wouldn't have been able to do that scene without ripping my hands off. What they were able to let me do was to be in it, be real, and pulling at those chains constantly without ripping my hands off. That saved my entire performance."

"In some ways, it was the easiest acting I've ever had to do," he added. "It was so real. So violent. The tears didn't stop flowing for two nights. When I went home after that second night, I just poured myself a big drink. It was about seven in the morning, and my wife just left me alone. I still have a hard time talking about it now. It's what we do this business for, to be given [material] like that."

Tig has had no shortage of enemies to go up against over the past several seasons of "Sons," but with one flick of a cigar, Damon Pope is now at the top of the list.

"Harold did such a great job. I think he smoked about 40 cigars that night. He was frightening," Coates said about Perrineau's performance. "Pope is the kind of guy that Tig has never been up against before in his life. This is the kind of mobster who is so svelte, money and stealth that you don't even know he's around, but you feel him, always. You could be shot coming out of a bakery at any second. He has that kind of fear factor in him."

Even if Pope delivered the killing blow, there's a strong argument to be made Clay Morrow is also responsible for Dawn's death. Clay was shot by a fellow club member at the end of season four, but rather than outing his fellow Son (and himself), he blamed the shooting on rival gang the One-Niners. That led Tig to seek immediate vengeance, which directly resulted in the death of Pope's daughter. If Clay hadn't lied, Tig wouldn't have gone after the Niners, and Dawn would still be alive. That connection is very much not lost on the grieving, vengeful father.

"Last season, [Ron Perlman's character, Clay] was turned into a monster. Things got out of control," said Coates. "Tig and Clay have been on the outs for a couple of seasons now. But that lie was the gravest mistake for me to hear, for what I ended up doing, for what happens to me. You gotta see what happens between Clay and Tig this year, man."

No matter who's to blame for what, one thing is clear: Tig is at an all-time low. Not only is his daughter dead as a consequence of his own actions, but he's not even the Sergeant at Arms of SAMCRO anymore. Key parts of Tig's identity have already fallen away, and to hear Coates tell it, the turbulent ride is far from over.

"Tig doesn't know where he fits anymore. He's so lost," said the actor. "He's completely off the leash ... his world is free-falling for sure. I think people are going to be absolutely shocked and saddened. Wait until you see what happens."

iPhone 5: No Steve Jobs, no sizzle

Now I'm beginning to wonder if Amazon does better Apple keynotes than Apple does. This riff isn't a knock on Apple per se, but discipline is lacking. First, Apple saw most of its iPhone 5 features leaked ahead of time. Then, there's a question of editing. Would Jobs have combined an iPhone 5, iPod, and iTunes revamp, which happens to resemble Microsoft's Zune service, in one shindig?

Probably not.

Without the showmanship and Jobs' reality distortion field, these Apple announcements look like really nice upgrades -- for Apple users. A 4-inch screen is nice, but I already have one on my Android device. LTE is nice too, but I have that already. Apple execs today don't have me salivating over the iPhone 5. Jobs would have told me I had to give a crap and I would have.

The mesmerization routine is gone. Apple has solid engineering and gave you the iPhone you should have had last year.

Apple CEO Tim Cook will tell you that the company is firing on all cylinders. And it is. Apple's reality distortion field isn't at 100 percent these days, but the financials are. Apple's lock on an ecosystem is in place too. And oh by the way Apple will sell a zillion iPhone 5 devices around the world.

Cook said at Apple's powwow via CNET:

When you look at each of these, they are incredible industry leading innovations by themselves. But what sets them apart, and what puts Apple way out ahead of the competition is how they work so well together. Only Apple could create such amazing software hardware and services and put them together into such a powerful, integrated solution. Apple has never been stronger, and that's because of the dedication of our employees... they are doing the best work of their lives.

Cook is right to some degree, but he said the one word that makes me cringe: Solution. The word "solution" is what enterprise vendors say all day long. Solution is the word companies to sell you an integrated stack of stuff. Jobs would have never used a word like solution. Solution didn't sell and wasn't magical. "Solution" is used when you can't put in English what your products actually do. In Apple's messaging a word like solution is the equivalent of lobbing a nuclear missile into a force field. Perhaps the force field -- reality distortion field in Apple's case -- holds, but it'll be damaged.

This story was first published as "I miss Apple's reality distortion field" at ZDNet's Between the Lines.

iPhone 5: What we didn't get

Of course, whether it truly lives up to expectations won't matter to millions of people with older iPhones (and other smartphones) who've been waiting to upgrade to the next iPhone no matter what. But for those who have an iPhone 4 or 4S and are on the fence about upgrading, here's a look at some key features Apple left out of this model that may find their way into the next iPhone (let's call it the iPhone 5S for now).

Get a Vizio 14-inch ultrabook for $598

Ultrabooks -- often regarded as the Windows camp's answer to the MacBook Air, but really just a marketing term to describe thin, lightweight laptops. (In my day they were called ultraportables, but whatever.)

Most ultrabooks start at $799, a hard price to swallow given that non-"ultra" laptops packing just as much power often sell for half as much.

So on paper, at least, today's deal is looking mighty sweet: While supplies last, Wal-Mart has the Vizio Thin+Light CT14-A0 ultraportable for $598, with free store pickup. Obviously you'll be on the hook for sales tax as well.

The CT14 features an Intel Core i3 processor, 4GB of RAM, a 128GB solid-state drive (yum), and a 14-inch LED-backlit screen. It's also packing Bluetooth, a Webcam, two USB 3.0 ports, and an HDMI output.

Of course, the really sexy specs are these: the unit measures 9.2 by 13.3 by 0.67 inches (translation: it's mighty thin) and weighs 3.2 pounds. Sure, the MacBook Air still has it beat, but the MacBook Air starts at $1,000.

Like I said, all this sounds pretty good on paper. But according to CNET's review of the Vizio CT14, not everything here is as "ultra" as it should be.

Specifically, the reviewer dinged its battery life and touch pad, both important considerations in any laptop purchase. Other demerits came from the non-backlit keyboard and curious lack of an SD slot.

On the plus side, the CT14 was praised for having "an excellent consumer-electronics-inspired design" and being "enviably thin and light." No mistake about it: this baby's a looker.

It's also the single most affordable ultrabook I've seen to date. If you don't need an all-day battery but do need an extra $200 in your pocket, this might be worth a look.

Apple debuts iPhone 5, new iPods, and more

 

During the Apple event today, the company announced the latest version of the operating system that powers its popular mobile devices. Scott Forstall, Apple's SVP of iOS, promises that iOS 6 will bring 200 new features, including tighter Facebook integration, an empowered Siri voice assistant, and the capability to conduct FaceTime calls over a cellular network.

Yet, it's Apple's new Maps app that was easily the star of the show. Created by the company, the app finally adds turn-by-turn directions along with info cards for businesses, a "flyover mode" when searching for an address, and a full 3D satellite view that displays buildings, terrain, and landmarks. There will be much more, of course, but even at this early point it's clear that Apple has filled a few gaping holes on our iOS wish list.

iOS 6 will become available on September 19 to the iPhone 3GS and later models and tosecond- and third-generation iPads. Note, however, that not all of the new features will be available for all iOS 6-compatible devices (more on that below). And, now, here's a breakdown of the features talked about today.

iPhone 5

 

Now that the feverish iPhone 5 anticipation is simmering down into the reality of the announcement, it's time to see what the initial reactions are to the news.

Here's the big summary. The glass and aluminum iPhone 5 sports 4G LTE, a 4-inch Retina display, an upgraded camera, iOS 6, and a fast new A6 chip. It's also 7.6mm thick and weighs 20 percent less than the iPhone 4S. One of the biggest changes is the new, much-smaller Lightning connector. An adapter will make it work with older connectors, but it's quite a departure for both consumers and accessory makers.

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Susan Hawk

During the original Survivor season she was a fan favorite and even celebrities, such as Rosie O'Donnell, were rooting for the working-class, midwestern truck driver, who presented herself as outgoing, open, and opinionated. Hawk seemed to get far in the game by using her secret alliance with Richard Hatch, Kelly Wiglesworth, and Rudy Boesch during a time when other cast members did not yet use alliances, and several even considered allied voting to be "cheating". Hawk liked being viewed as a stupid redneck during the game, and kept her intelligence hidden in order to throw off her opponents.

As the fourth-place finisher, she launched into her "rats and snakes" speech about the top two, Richard and Kelly. In her speech, she said there are only two things on the entire island: rats and snakes. Richard was a snake and Kelly a rat, and Hawk told the Jury members that they should obey the laws of nature by letting the snake eat the rat. She also told Kelly that if she ever saw her in a desert, dying of thirst, she would not stop to give her a sip of water and that she'd like to see the vultures get her. This resulted in angering Colleen Haskell and Gervase Peterson, who voted for Kelly. Nevertheless, Hatch still won 4-3.

The "rats and snakes" moment is arguably the most remembered moment in Survivor history, as the season one finale was the highest rated episode of Survivor to date and it was the first (but not the last) time in Survivor that anyone ever expressed such bitterness and anger. Entertainment Weekly put it on its end-of-the-decade, "best-of" list.^[1]

Stacy Keibler

Stacy Keibler (born October 14, 1979)^[1] is an American actress, model, and retired professional wrestler and valet, best known for her work with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE).

Keibler was a contestant on the second season of Dancing with the Stars, where she placed third.^[2] She has also appeared on other American Broadcasting Company (ABC) shows such as What About Brian, George Lopez, and October Road, as well as the 100th episode of the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother as a bartender and on the USA Network show Psych. Keibler has also modeled, appearing in both Maxim and Stuff magazines.^[3][4]

She began her professional wrestling career as a part of the Nitro Girls in WCW.^[1][5] She quickly moved on to a more prominent role in the company as the manager, Miss Hancock. As Miss Hancock she was known for doing table dances, her relationship withDavid Flair, and a pregnancy angle.^[6][7] After WCW was purchased by WWE, she moved to the new company, taking part in theInvasion storyline and managing the Dudley Boyz.^[6] Keibler also managed Test and Scott Steiner. Before her departure she was affiliated with The Hurricane and Rosey and nicknamed "Super Stacy."^[2][8]

Keibler is known for her unusually long legs, making her the tallest WWE Diva.^[1][3][5] She has been known as both "The Legs of WCW" and "The Legs of WWE".^[2] During her time on Dancing with the Stars, judge Bruno Tonioli nicknamed her "The Weapon of Mass Seduction" because of her long legs.^[7]

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lberto Contador Velasco (Spanish pronunciation: [alˈβerto kontaˈðor βeˈlasko]; born 6 December 1982) is a Spanish professional cyclist, one of five riders to have won all three Grand Tours of road cycling. He was the winner of the 2007 Tour de France with the Discovery Channel team. With the Astana team he has won the 2008 Giro d'Italia, the 2008 Vuelta a España and the 2009 Tour de France. He initially also won the 2010 Tour de France with this team, and the 2011 Giro d'Italia with team Saxo Bank-SunGard, only to be stripped of these titles later having been found guilty of a doping offence.^[3][4]

Contador has been widely considered to be the best climbing specialist and stage racer in the world.^[5][6] Notable summit stage finishes on which he has victories include the Alto de El Angliru in the Vuelta, the Plateau de Beille in the Tour and Mount Etna in the Giro.^[7] After being widely expected to lose his tenuous lead in the 2007 Tour de France in that race's final individual time trial,^[8][9] Contador has become a more accomplished time trialist, with several victories in the discipline. He has earned a reputation as an all-rounder, a cyclist who excels in all aspects of stage racing which are needed for high places in the general classification.

Contador's career has been marked by doping allegations. The Operación Puerto doping case led his Astana-Würth team (a team unrelated to the current Astana team) to withdraw en masse from the 2006 Tour de France before it began. He was eventually cleared of any wrongdoing, but was also accused of doping after his victory in the race the following year.^[10] In September 2010, Contador announced that he had tested positive for clenbuterol in a control taken during that year's Tour de France, in which he finished as winner, but although he was suspended during an investigation,^[11] he was cleared by the RFEC. A review by the Court of Arbitration for Sport initially set for June 2011^[12][13] was later deferred several times until February 2012, when the CAS decided that Contador be stripped from the results obtained in the 2010 Tour de France and later, which also caused him to lose his 2011 Giro d'Italia victory. He was also suspended until 5 August 2012, and his contract with Team Saxo Bank was annulled.^[3] Upon the completion of his ban, Contador rejoined the renamed Team Saxo Bank-Tinkoff Bank.^[14][15]

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PROVIDENCE, Rhode Island — The recording was forgotten, and so, too, was the odd twist of history that brought together Malcolm X and a bespectacled Brown University Ivy Leaguer fated to become one of America's top diplomats.

The audiotape of Malcolm X's 1961 address in Providence might never have surfaced at all if 22-year-old Brown University student Malcolm Burnley hadn't stumbled across a reference to it in an old student newspaper. He found the recording of the little-remembered visit gathering dust in the university archives.

"No one had listened to this in 50 years," Burnley told The Associated Press. "There aren't many recordings of him before 1962. And this is a unique speech — it's not like others he had given before."

Some blacks insist: 'I'm not African-American'

In the May 11, 1961 speech delivered to a mostly white audience of students and some residents, Malcolm X combines blistering humor and reason to argue that blacks should not look to integrate into white society but instead must forge their own identities and culture.

'A dead people' 
At the time, Malcolm X, 35, was a loyal supporter of the Nation of Islam, a black separatist movement. He would be assassinated four years later after leaving the group and crafting his own more global, spiritual ideology.

The legacy of slavery and racism, he told the crowd of 800, "has made the 20 million black people in this country a dead people. Dead economically, dead mentally, dead spiritually. Dead morally and otherwise. Integration will not bring a man back from the grave."

Benjamin Zachary Bronfman

Benjamin Zachary Bronfman (born August 6, 1982), is an environmentalist, entrepreneur, and musician. Bronfman is currently a Strategic Advisor & principal of Global Thermostat and Algae Systems LLC. He was a member of rock band The Exit (going by the name Ben Brewer), and he is currently a member of the music collective, Teachers, and co-founder of the Green Owl record label. He is the eldest child of actress Sherry Brewer and Edgar Bronfman, Jr., former CEO of Warner Music Group.

With musician and activist Mathangi "Maya" Arulpragasam, better known under the stage name M.I.A., Bronfman has a son named Ikhyd Edgar Arular Bronfman, who was born on February 11, 2009.

ketone

There has been lots of promotion of different products and supplements that are said to help people lose weight rapidly. People have tried out those quite eagerly but the fact is that only a few have been successful. Actually the fact is that it is not easy to lose weight but that doesn’t deter people and they resort to things like dieting, workouts and surgeries etc.

A majority of people are not satisfied with their physical appearance and that is why they do things that they think will help them to alter their shape. But it does not happen and they end up getting frustrated. 

Steven Van Zandt

Steven Van Zandt (born November 22, 1950) is an American musician, songwriter, arranger, record producer, actor, and radiodisc jockey, who frequently goes by the stage names Little Steven or Miami Steve. He is best known as a member of Bruce Springsteen's E Street Band, in which he plays guitar and mandolin, and as an actor in the television drama The Sopranos(1999–2007), in which he played the character Silvio Dante. Van Zandt also had his own solo band called "Little Steven and The Disciples of Soul" in the 1980s.

David Eric "Dave" Grohl

David Eric "Dave" Grohl (born January 14, 1969)^[5][6] is an American rock musician, multi-instrumentalist, and singer-songwriter, who is the lead vocalist, guitarist, primary songwriter and founder of the Foo Fighters, prior to which he was the drummer in the grunge band Nirvana. He is also the drummer and co-founder of the rock supergroup Them Crooked Vultures. Grohl has additionally written all the music and performed all the instruments for his short-lived side projects Late! and Probot, as well as being involved with Queens of the Stone Age numerous times throughout the past decade. He has performed session work(as a drummer) for a variety of musicians, including Garbage, Killing Joke, Nine Inch Nails, The Prodigy, Slash, Juliette Lewis,Tenacious D, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, and Lemmy.