Oscar Night® America 2012 to Benefit Charities Nationwide

TrendPK.com: On Sunday, February 26, charities in 49 cities will host official Oscar® viewing parties during the 84th Academy Awards® ceremony as part of Oscar Night America (ONA), the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ grassroots outreach program.

The Academy sanctions charities across the country to host celebratory viewing parties on Oscar Night with proceeds directly benefiting the charities. All parties will feature the live broadcast of the Awards presentation; many will integrate Hollywood-style party elements, including red carpet arrivals, local celebrities, “paparazzi” photographers, predict-the-winner contests and live entertainment.

The 2012 Oscar Night America charities and cities are (alphabetical by city):

KiMo Theatre, Albuquerque, NM
The Center for Family Resources, Atlanta, GA
AIDS Interfaith Residential Services (AIRS), Baltimore, MD
The Ellie Fund, Boston, MA
Shea’s Performing Arts Center, Buffalo, NY
Virginia Film Festival, Charlottesville, VA
Gene Siskel Film Center of the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL
People Working Cooperatively, Cincinnati, OH
Ashtabula County Medical Center Foundation, Cleveland, OH
USA Film Festival, Dallas, TX
Denver Film Society, Denver, CO
Southgate Community Players, Detroit, MI
Waterfront Film Festival, Grand Rapids, MI
Community Theatre of Greensboro, Greensboro/Winston-Salem, NC
Junior League of Greenville, Greenville, SC
Connecticut AIDS Resource Coalition, Hartford, CT
Hawaii International Film Festival, Honolulu, HI
American Cancer Society, High Plains Division, Houston, TX
United Way of Central Indiana, Indianapolis, IN
Variety – The Children’s Charity of Eastern Tennessee, Knoxville, TN
Variety – The Children’s Charity of Southern Nevada, Las Vegas, NV
Wolfe Street Foundation, Inc., Little Rock, AR
MEND – Meet Each Need with Dignity, Los Angeles, CA
WHAS Crusade for Children, Louisville, KY
Ronald McDonald House of Memphis, Memphis, TN
Miami Beach Film Society, Miami, FL
COA Youth & Family Centers, Milwaukee, WI
Aegis Foundation, Minneapolis, MN
Belcourt Theatre, Nashville, TN
American Red Cross, Southeast Louisiana Chapter, New Orleans, LA
Ronald McDonald House of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma City, OK
Alzheimer’s Association, Midlands Chapter, Omaha, NE
Variety – The Children’s Charity of Florida, Orlando, FL
Palm Beach International Film Festival, Palm Beach, FL
Volunteers of America Delaware Valley, Philadelphia, PA
Arthritis Foundation, Greater Southwest Chapter, Phoenix, AZ
Rhode Island International Film Festival, Providence, RI
Theatre In The Park, Raleigh, NC
Central Virginia Film Institute, Richmond, VA
Capital City AIDS Fund, Sacramento, CA
Cinema St. Louis, St. Louis, MO
Utah AIDS Foundation, Salt Lake City, UT
Special Olympics Texas, San Antonio, TX
Community Campership Council, Inc., San Diego, CA
California Film Institute, San Francisco, CA
Starlight Children’s Foundation Northwest, Seattle, WA
Isabel’s House, Springfield, MO
Tampa Theatre, Tampa, FL
Fox Tucson Theatre Foundation, Tucson, AZ

To set these parties apart from the thousands of other events taking place on Oscar Night, each ONA party receives from the Academy copies of the official commemorative poster and the official Oscar show program among other items.

Only one charity party in a given media market may participate in ONA. Events are entirely produced by local nonprofit organizations, with the active participation of the local ABC-TV affiliate station.

Last year 51 charities hosted viewing parties for the 83rd Academy Awards with 17,332 guests in attendance nationwide. More than $3.5 million was raised, all of it remaining in local communities. Since its inception in 1994, the program has generated nearly $33.5 million in funding for a wide spectrum of charitable organizations – every cent staying within the community where it was raised.

For the 19th consecutive year, Concept Marketing Development of Santa Barbara, California, will assist the Academy in coordinating the program.

Academy Awards for outstanding film achievements of 2011 will be presented on Sunday, February 26, 2010, at the Kodak Theatre at Hollywood & Highland Center®, and televised live by the ABC Television Network. The Oscar presentation also will be televised live in more than 200 countries worldwide.

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Palestinians urge Israel to free jailed lawmakers

JERUSALEM: The Palestinians urged Israel to free dozens of Palestinian lawmakers during a new round of exploratory talks held in Amman, a Palestinian official said on Sunday.

Israeli and Palestinian negotiators met on Saturday for a fourth round of discussions sponsored by Jordan and the peacemaking Quartet, which are intended to find a way to bring both sides back to direct negotiations.

But the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the meeting produced nothing new.

He said the Palestinians used it to demand the release of imprisoned Palestinian officials, including Palestinian parliamentary speaker Aziz Dweik, a Hamas member who was arrested by Israeli forces on Thursday.

“Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erakat gave a letter to the head of the Israeli delegation Yitzhak Molcho calling on the Israeli government to immediately release Dweik and more than 23 other Palestinian lawmakers,” the official said.

The Palestinian delegation accused Israel of arresting Dweik to strike “a blow to internal Palestinian reconciliation” between Hamas and the rival Fatah movement.

The letter handed over Saturday also called for the release of Palestinian leader Marwan Barghuti and Ahmed Saadat, the secretary general of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the official said.

A copy of the letter, which also sought the release of prisoners detained before the 1994 Oslo peace deal, had been sent to the members of the Quartet — the United States, United Nations, European Union and Russia.

Israeli Foreign Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor declined to comment on the meeting.

“Our Jordanian hosts asked us to promise total discretion on the content of the discussions before we started these meetings. We are, for our part, respecting that commitment,” he said.

The meeting on Saturday was the fourth time Erakat and Molcho have held talks on the resumption of negotiations under the auspices of the Quartet, discussions that do not appear to have yielded any agreement.

The Palestinians say Israel must halt settlement activity before they will engage in direct talks, but Israel says it wants talks without preconditions.

The Quartet said on October 26 it would seek comprehensive proposals on “territory and security” from both sides within three months, and the Palestinians say they submitted their documents before the January 26 deadline.

They have warned that without an Israeli settlement freeze by January 26, they will not continue the exploratory talks.

But Israel says it considers the three-month period to have started with the beginning of the exploratory talks on January 3, putting the deadline at April 3. AGENCIES

28 dead in suicide attack in Iraq mosque

 A suicide bomber killed 28 people including a member of parliament and wounded 37 others at a Sunni mosque in western Baghdad on Sunday evening, an interior ministry official said

 ”A suicide bomber entered Umm al-Qura mosque and blew himself up, killing 28 people and wounding 37,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

Among the dead were Khaled al-Fahdawi, an MP from western Anbar province allied with the Sunni-backed Iraqiya bloc, he said. Elderly men and children were also among the casualties.

The Umm al-Qura mosque, located in the Ghazaliyah neighbourhood, is the main headquarters of the Sunni Endowment, which is responsible for maintaining Sunni Muslim religious sites across Baghdad.

The head of the Umm al-Qura mosque is Ahmed Abdulghafur al-Samarrai, who is reputed for his sermons against violent extremism.

Sunday s attack came towards the end of the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, just days before the Eid festival that follows it.

Singh rejects Annas three-week deadline

Amid this, the Indian government has taken first awkward little steps for a dialogue with the civil society leaders.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh broke the pattern of official denials of any scope for any modification in the government Lokpal Bill by offering dialogue and discussions on the draft law.

He said while there was scope for “give and take”, it might not be possible to meet Anna s three-week deadline for passing the bill.

Team Anna s Arvind Kejriwal and Prashant Bhushan appeared to be responding to this when they said at a press conference that Anna s deadline was not a threat but only “an expression of his fundamental right to express his opinion”.

The two also added they were open to dialogue but no one from the government had approached them so far.

While it s difficult to say whether these overtures would lead to meaningful talks, there was growing appreciation in the government of the fact that the anti-corruption movement was steadily gaining popularity and there was need for an urgent political response to it, especially as Anna s fast had already crossed 110 hours (five days).

With the Hazare group insistent that the government s Lokpal bill be replaced by its “stronger” version, the PM indicated the official bill was not the last word.

Madhuri to star opposite Sanjay Dutt in Satte Pe Satta remake

After months of speculation on who would star opposite Sanjay Dutt in Satte Pe Satta remake, the official announcement has now been made and it’s none other than Madhuri Dixit who has bagged the coveted role.

While Sanjay Dutt will reprise the role played by Big B in the original cult classic, Madhuri will be seen in the character played by Hema Malini in the original. It may be recalled that Madhuri and Sanjay have been part of several hit films in the past such as Saajan, Khalnayak and Thanedaar. It will no doubt be interesting to see this jodi re-create magic once again on the silver screen.

Satte Pe Satta remake is being directed by Soham Shah and produced by Shree Ashtavinayak Cine Vision Ltd. in association with Sanjay Dutt Productions.

Doctors threaten to resume protest

Young Doctors Association has decided to resume the protest movement saying the official committee formed to solve the issue has already taken 15 days without any outcome. The attitude of the committee is intimidating, alleged the doctors.

If Shahbaz Shraif calls the meeting by this Wednesday then they would meet him, otherwise the protest will start again, doctors warned.
Doctors appealed to the civil society to join hands with them to press their demands.

Balochistan MPAs book the day for Pak-India clash

As cricket fever has overwhelmed the entire nation, the Balochistan Provincial Assembly Members (MPAs) are also feeling the heat of Pakistan versus India semi-final.

All most all the MPAs, including the speaker, have cancelled their official engagements to watch the Pakistan-India encounter on Wednesday. They said that they had full confidence in the abilities of Afridi XI, adding that the team would not only defeat India but also bring the World Cup back to the country.

 

Shakira confirms romance with Pique

BOGOTA: Colombian pop star Shakira on Tuesday confirmed her romantic relationship with Spanish footballer Gerard Pique through a message on her Twitter account.

“I present to you my sunshine … Shak,” the 34-year-old singer wrote in the message accompanying a photo of the smiling pair.

Shakira and the 24-year-old Barcelona center-back became the focus of intense media attention earlier this month when gossip magazines published photographs of the couple holding hands and kissing in Barcelona.

In January, Shakira announced the end of her 11-year relationship with Antonio de la Rua of Argentina.

Shakira”s wildly popular “Waka Waka (This Time for Africa)” was the official song of the FIFA World Cup 2010 in South Africa, won by Spain.

Pique, a member of the World Cup team, told a March 3 press conference at Barca”s training center that he prefers to just talk football.

Quizzed on his private life, he said: “I”d like it if people only talked about me from a sporting perspective but I get the impression that, ultimately, it”s inevitable.” (AFP)

Tickets of WC semis, final on sale from Monday

MUMBAI: Cricket fans can finally get their chance to buy World Cup semi-finals and final tickets from Monday when they go on sale for the first time, the International Cricket Council (ICC) said.

“A certain amount of tickets will go on sale online with our official ticket agents Kyazoonga,” the ICC spokesman said.

Although the knockout stages do not begin until March 23, there is likely to be a scramble for the semi-final (March 29 and 30) and the final (April 2) tickets after favourites India began their 2011 campaign with a resounding 87-run win over co-hosts Bangladesh. AGENCIES

Rajeev Khandelwal and Soha starrer Soundtrack to release in August 2011

Saregama Films announces an August 2011 release for their new motion picture Soundtrack, the official remake of the award-winning, cult film It’s All Gone Pete Tong.

The film being directed by debutant Neerav Ghosh unites Rajeev Khandelwal and Soha Ali Khan for the first time, in what could be their most challenging roles ever.

The film also stars Mrinalini Sharma, Mohan Kapur, Yateen Karyekar, musicians Sidd Coutto, Ankur Tewari, and Anurag Kashyap in a very special role.

Soundtrack is an edgy, modern day portrayal spanning the life story of India’s most prolific musician and DJ. It traces his alcohol, drug and sex fueled meteoric rise, as he battles his internal demons and a damaging handicap.

The film has already begun production and has completed its Bangkok schedule in December 2010.

Music for the film is scored by the ‘Midival Punditz’ & Karsh Kale musicians with a global following and huge worldwide appeal. The album will also feature a track by Pappon.

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