Buffett Overtakes Gates as World's Richest Person
Berkshire Hathaway Inc. Chairman Warren Buffett toppled Bill Gates from the top spot on Forbes magazine's annual list of billionaires worldwide, ending a 13- year reign for the Microsoft Corp. co-founder.
Buffett's wealth grew $10 billion to about $62 billion in the 12 months through Feb. 11, mostly due to a gain in his company's shares, Forbes said in a statement. The fortune of Gates, 52, rose $2 billion to $58 billion. The Microsoft chairman fell to third on the list behind Mexican telecommunications
Seattle man who helped launch Microsoft left $65M for gay rights
Ric Weiland, who helped his friends Bill Gates and Paul Allen launch Microsoft, was a quiet philanthropist. But his final gift has provided one of the most powerful financial boosts ever to the gay-rights movement.
Weiland has left $65 million to the Pride Foundation in Seattle and 10 nonprofit organizations, believed to be the largest estate gift ever given to the gay and lesbian community in the U.S.
His generosity didn't stop there.
TV chef Jamie Oliver is to become the British Mr Nice of US reality TV
Jamie Oliver is to become the British Mr Nice of US reality TV.
The health-conscious chef is a judge on Oprah Winfrey's new contest The Big Give.
But unlike American Idol's Mr Nasty Simon Cowell, Jamie will be nothing but charitable. The show has 10 contestants - including a beauty queen - who are given cash each week to help others. The more good they do they more likely they are to win. Charity cases include a mum whose husband was killed by robbers.
Jamie was chosen for his work with problem you
Bill O'Reilly: Dad Turned Miley Cyrus Into a "Sex Symbol" at Age of 15
Bill O'Reilly blames Billy Ray Cyrus for daughter Mile's Vanity Fair topless photo scandal.
On Monday's O'Reilly Factor, he said the country singer had been "canny" about keeping his 15-year-old daughter (who earned $18.2 million last year) out of scandal.
"Then they go into Vanity Fair — which is not her audience at all," he said. "He puts her into a situation where she becomes, at 15, a sex symbol.
"Middle America," O'Reilly added, "they don't like this."
Though O'Reilly said he thinks "Mile
Simon Cowell Donates $162,000 to Girl With Cancer
Simon Cowell may not be so mean after all.
The American Idol judge, 48, gave the family of a cancer-stricken 3-year-old $162,000 to pay off their mortgage, he announced on Oprah Winfrey’s Big Give show on Monday.
The family drives more than 100 miles from their Minnesota home every day so their daughter, Madelaine, can receive treatments.
“It’s a very basic story of a normal family whose daughter got very ill, and they had some financial problems which was relatively easy for me to sort out,
Rachael Ray getting the ax?
Rachael Ray may find herself with some extra time on her hands.
Insiders say the demanding TV cook's syndicated daytime show, Rachael Ray, will be getting the ax at the end of her contract.
An impeccable TV source told Page Six, "They are seriously talking about taking her off the air."
The problem is Ray's ratings. When she debuted two years ago, she had a meager 2.5 rating, which her syndicator, King World, nonetheless trumpeted as "The biggest syndicated debut since Dr. Phil." In fact, one in
Jennifer Aniston to appear on season finale of "Oprah's Big Give"
Jennifer Aniston will make a special appearance on the season finale of Oprah Winfrey's ABC reality hit Big Give.
On the episode — airing April 20 — contestants will be challenged to create "big gives" with no money and very little time.
Aniston — who just turned 39 — will announce "big news" on the show, according to a press release, but her role remains shrouded in secrecy.
"What can I possibly say that won’t get my ass kicked?" judge Jamie Oliver told Usmagazine.com before the season
Jennifer Aniston Gives Away $30,000 on Oprah's Big Give
As Usmagazine.com first reported, Jennifer Aniston surprised contestants when she appeared on Sunday's season finale of Oprah's Big Give.
After thanking the contestants for their work and awarding them their cash gifts of $10,000, she caused mouths to drop even more when she declared, "That just felt too good. I personally would like to triple it. So we're going to go $30,000. Guys, thank you for doing this and inspiring everybody." (Winner Stephen Paletta took home the $1 million prize for completing a
Van Halen Cancels Another World Tour
Rock group Van Halen has canceled their current world tour. The reason however is not David Lee Roth this time. Eddie Van Halen, who has been in and out of rehab of late, is the one causing problems this time, or perhaps his addictions are.
"We’re told arrangements are being made right now to cancel hotel stays for the tour — which was scheduled to continue through April 19th. Sources tell us the reason for the cancellation is Eddie — that he is having “issues.”
The last three shows had al
Tom Cruise Returning to Oprah
Hold onto those sofa cushions: Tom Cruise is coming back to The Oprah Winfrey Show.
“Tom will be doing the Oprah show,” Cruise’s rep Julie Polkes tells PEOPLE. “He is really looking forward to it.”
The show, which will appear in two parts during May sweeps, will celebrate Cruise’s career since his breakout role 25 years ago in Risky Business.
One part will be shot in-studio before a live audience. In the other, Cruise will show Winfrey around his Telluride mountain retreat and do a port
Drew Barrymore Makes $1 Million Charitable Donation
Talk about a "big give": Drew Barrymore announced on Monday's Oprah Winfrey Show that she is donating $1 million to the World Food Programme to help feed children in Africa.
"I have seen with my own eyes what a difference a simple cup of nutritious porridge can make in a child's life," the actress said. "It helps them learn, stay healthy and sets them on track for a bright future."
Barrymore, 33, has worked with the charity since 2005 and became an Ambassador Against Hunger last year. She's taken tw
Barack Obama says he looks good in underwear
In the new issue of Us Weekly, presidential candidate Barack Obama invited news director Lara Cohen to join his campaign for a day. He described some of his best Just Like Us moments, and took our Presidential Pop Quiz (where he revealed that his daughters think Britney and Paris are "yuck").
Some excepts from the Us interview:
How familiar are you with Us Weekly?
My wife reads it.
Do your daughters Sasha and Malia ever ask about Britney Spears?
Actually, yeah. But they're very sensible. They're
Valerie Bertinelli: My Early Romance with Steven Spielberg
Valerie Bertinelli is unleashing more bombshells about her life to Oprah Winfrey – including her early dating history with ... Steven Spielberg?
Bertinelli, 47, who also admits on the Feb. 25 episode that she and ex-husband Eddie Van Halen cheated on each other, tells Winfrey about her early romance with the Oscar-winning director in the pre-Van Halen days.
"I went up to read for Raiders of the Lost Ark which I was so wrong for," Bertinelli says. "And the next day I got a call and some flowers ...
Heather Mills 'to host cookery show'
Heather Mills has been approached to host her own TV cookery programme, according to a report.
The estranged wife of Sir Paul McCartney has told friends that she cannot wait to share details of her vegan lifestyle with viewers. She also hopes that the show will help to improve public perception of her.
"Heather thinks a cooking show will give her a caring, sexy image like Nigella [Lawson]," a source told the Sunday Mirror. "She is passionate about being a vegan and loves being in the limelight... she
Marion Jones Reports to Federal Prison
Former Olympic gold-medal winner Marion Jones began serving her six-month federal prison sentence at a facility in Texas on Friday, a prison official confirmed to PEOPLE.
Jones, 32, arrived just before noon at the Federal Medical Center-Carswell in Fort Worth, according to Traci Billingsley, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Bureau of Prisons.
In January, a federal judge in White Plains, N.Y., sentenced Jones to six months in prison and two years' probation (during which she will be required to perform 800 h
Video: Julia Roberts tells Oprah she doesn't wear deodorant
Julia Roberts tells Oprah that deodorant has "never been my thing."
Oprah Winfrey's Cocker Spaniel Dies
Oprah Winfrey's 13-year-old Cocker Spaniel, Sophie, has passed away of kidney failure.
"Everyone here is really sad," a source at her Harpo production company told Celebrity Dog Watcher. "Sophie was truly part of the Harpo family as well as Oprah's."
In the December issue of O, Winfrey wrote about Sophie's condition, saying that she and beau Stedman Graham were "preparing for the inevitable."
The two have another Cocker Spaniel, Solomon.
Less than a year ago, they lost their beloved Golden Retri
Leona Lewis's US success credited to Oprah
Pop star Leona Lewis has Oprah Winfrey to thank for her recent U.S. chart success - because it was the TV titan's overwhelming support that helped her single BLEEDING LOVE soar to the top of the charts, according to bosse at her record label.
The former winner of British reality TV show The X Factor made history last week (24Mar08) by securing the coveted number one slot on the Billboard Hot 100 chart - making her the first U.K. female solo artist to achieve the feat in over 20 years.
Lewis embarked
Video: Mariah Carey on Oprah
Mariah Carey on Oprah.
Oprah hits 246 pounds?
The National Enquirer, that bastion of journalistic integrity and accuracy, is reporting that Oprah has reportedly gained an "estimated" 100lbs, to weigh in at a whopping 246lbs.
The picture, it seems, would tend to support that claim.
Miley Cyrus Earns $18.2M in '07; Oprah Makes $260M
Teen singing sensation Miley Cyrus earned a whopping $18.2 million in 2007, but she has a ways to go to catch daytime talk queen Oprah Winfrey, who raked in a cool $260 million, according to the upcoming annual 'What People Earn' issue of Parade magazine.
The salary survey compared the earnings of 18 celebrities and 112 "regular" people who participated.
According to the survey, Dr. Phil McGraw earned $90 million; "American Idol" host Ryan Seacrest earned $12 million; and "Today" show host Meredith Vi
Kirstie Alley signs deal with Oprah
Kirstie Alley has signed a deal with Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Productions to develop television projects — which could include her own daily show.
“Kirstie is a tremendous talent who is incredibly relatable and a true fan favorite,” said Tim Bennett, president of Harpo Productions.
The actress, 57, recently stepped away from her role as an official spokeswoman for Jenny Craig, and announced plans to launch her own weigh-loss brand.
Alley, who notably modeled a bikini The Oprah Winfrey Show aft
Minnie Driver: Due in August!
"My due date's in August!" she revealed to Usmagazine.com Saturday night after performing a set from her new album Seastories at Hotel Cafe in Hollywood.
"I haven't wanted to eat as much food as I think I want to eat!" she added when asked about her cravings. "I'm not as hungry as everyone told me I'd be."
During her set, she told the crowd the toll her pregnancy had taken on her body.
"I've lost my balance — my boobs and my stomach [are huge], and you can't wear high heels unless you weight your
