Roger Moore, Brigitte Nielsen to be stars of Vienna ball

VIENNA: Former James Bond star Roger Moore and Danish actress Brigitte Nielsen will be Austrian entrepreneur Richard Lugner’s special guests at this year’s Opera Ball in Vienna, Lugner revealed Wednesday.

The 79-year-old Lugner makes headlines in Austria every year by inviting celebrities to the ball, the highlight of Vienna’s social calendar with tickets starting at 250 euros ($327) and boxes going for as much as 18,500 euros.

His previous guests have included actresses Andie MacDowell and Faye Dunaway, although in recent years, Lugner has favoured starlets and scandal-sheet regulars like party girl Paris Hilton.

Last year Karima El Mahroug, the teenage Moroccan woman known as “Ruby the Heart-Stealer” who was at the centre of a sex scandal involving former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, was on his arm.

“I look forward to coming to Vienna,” Nielsen, 48, said in a video message at a press conference in the Austrian capital, confirming she would attend the February 16 ball.

The former wife of action star Sylvester Stallone, Nielsen appeared in films like “Rocky IV” and “Beverly Hills Cop II” in the 1980s and most recently in the German production of the reality show “I’m a Celebrity Get Me Out Of Here”.

British actor Moore, 84, and his wife will also join Lugner in his box, the Austrian said, adding that “lots of women go crazy for him.”

Top model Helena Christensen, 43, will also attend the ball as a guest of lingerie company Triumph. AGENCIES

Iran’s actress banned for posing topless gathers support

LOS ANGELES: A fleshy rebellion is spreading hot and fast across the cybersphere, as a growing number of activists are stripping down in support of Iranian actress Golshifteh Farahani, who was reportedly banned from her homeland after posing topless for French magazine Madame Le Figaro.

Farahani — who had earlier been banned from leaving her country for appearing in the 2008 Leonardo DiCaprio/Russell Crowe film “Body of Lies” — appeared (see above) without a shirt, but with her hands covering her breasts, to protest Iran’s restrictive policies toward women. The actress, who’s now based in Paris, told the press that she was subsequently advised by the Iranian government that she is no longer welcome within her former country’s borders.

But there might be a happy — or at least sexy — ending to the sad tale of gender oppression. Since world of Farahani’s predicament broke, a movement has sprung up,

with supporters encouraging others to post Farahani’s topless photo as a “PicBadge” of the actress’ photo-shoot to their Facebook profiles.

Other, more daring, supporters have gone so far as to post their own skin-baring portraits as a show of solidarity for the banished thespian. A Facebook page in support of Farahani has so far amassed 3,422 “likes,” and boasts numerous photos of pro-Farahani-partisans posing in the buff.

“This page has been formed, in order to support Golshifteh’s move, in order to say NO to relegion sic, tradition, culture and anti women’s law,” a statement on the Facebook page reads. “Viva freedom !!!”

A similar protest occurred in November, when supporters of controversial Chinese artist Ai Weiwei tweeted naked images of themselves in response to authorities detaining the artist and his assistant for distributing a photo of four naked women.

It’s unclear what, if any, effect the movement will have on the infamously rigid Iranian government’s decision.

If you happen to be surfing Facebook and come across a photo of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in the buff with the words “Support Golshifteh” scrawled across his form, however, you can be pretty sure that the war has been won. AGENCIES

SAG Awards: ‘The Help’ declared best film

LOS ANGELES: The Screen Actors Guild on Sunday picked the actors in drama “The Help” as the top ensemble cast of 2011 and gave it two other awards for best lead actress and supporting actress, in a surprise over heavily favored silent movie romance “The Artist.”

“The Help” earned three awards overall and “The Artist” only one for French actor Jean Dujardin as best actor in a drama for his role as a fading actor at the end of the talkies.

Dujardin seemed genuinely surprised as he held his statue, thanking the audience of A-list actors including Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Meryl Streep and Michelle Williams.

He noted that as a kid he was always a dreamer and that his teachers called him “Jean of the moon.”

“I was always dreaming,” he said. “I realize now that I never stopped dreaming. Thank you very much. Thank you for this dream.”

Viola Davis was named best actress in a movie for civil rights-era drama “The Help,” and she too talked of dreaming big as a kid and encouraged others to do so.

“Dream big and dream fierce,” she said.

Others winning SAG film honors included Christopher Plummer with the first film honor for supporting actor. Plummer, 82, who plays an elderly man who reveals his homosexuality, much to the chagrin of his family, thanked his fellow actors from the stage, calling them a wacky but wonderful bunch of artists.

“I just can’t tell you what fun I’ve had being a member of the world’s second oldest profession,” Plummer joked on stage. “When they honor you, it’s like being lit by the holy grail. Thank you, thank you, thank you.”

Octavia Spencer won supporting actress in a movie with her role as a poor maid “The Help.” It proved to be a surprise over Berenice Bejo of silent film romance, “The Artist.”

SAG’s film awards are closely watched for their impact on Oscars because actors make up the biggest voting group at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences which picks winners. The Academy Awards take place in Los Angeles on February 26.

But unlike academy voters focused on film, SAG members also pick winners in TV awards, and in that arena, “Boardwalk Empire” was named best drama series for the second straight year and “Modern Family was picked top comedy, also for the second year. AGENCIES

Urban Meyer Stepping Down

Urban Meyer Stepping Down, Urban Meyer delivered shocking news tonight with the announcement that he is leaving his job as head coach of the Florida Gators football team. Speculation has centered around possible health issues as a cause for his departure. Pete Thamel of the New York Times spoke with Meyer tonight, who says “there was no heart damage,” but decided to leave because his current working situation “was self-destructive.”

Meyer also related that he experienced severe chest pains following Florida’s loss to Alabama in the SEC Championship game several weeks ago and lost consciousness before going to the hospital. Check out Thamel’s report for additional details.

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Urban Meyer Stepping Down was first posted on December 27, 2009 at 10:29 am.