The Lo Zone

Star Jones Reynolds will announce her departure from "The View" this week, Access Hollywood learned.

A source close to "The View" told Access Monday that Star Jones Reynolds will leave "The View" in July and will announce the departure on the show this week.

The world's second-richest man, Warren Buffett, became one of the world's biggest philanthropists Sunday with the announcement that he would bequeath the bulk of his roughly $44 billion fortune to the foundation established by billionaire Bill Gates and his wife.

The decision to start giving next month through annual stock donations represents a stark reversal for the investment wizard, who for years had said his wealth would be pledged to philanthropies after his death.

Buffett's gift will radically boost the resources of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, which is already the world's largest philanthropy with assets of more than $29 billion.

Eva LongWHORIA is following in her Desperate Housewives co-star's footsteps by writing a book. Teri Snatcher's shitty book came out last month and now Eva has landed her own deal. The subject is still unknown.

She said: "They offered a huge deal and I like the idea of seeing my book on a shelf. The plot's top secret so far but let's just say I have a wild imagination."

...Angelina Jolie says that Baby Zee is jealous of Shiloh.

[...] "I was kind of prepared to defend my other children. I was prepared to kind of give them extra love and attention because something was going to be different about this new one, so I was emotionally ready."

"Madd loves her. Well because when Zee came home she was already older. She was seven months old. So Madd is like having this tiny little pet that he can just hold and look at. He's great. Zee's a little jealous because she's just a little girl."

A great little pet.

Perfect for bike rides and acting as a human backpack and what-not.

But now that the REAL baby's here...

Flesh of their flesh and all...well.

You know how that goes.

Aaaah, happier days!!!

And now, reality bites. Just look at her.

Zee knows what time it is. Yup. The party's over.

[...] mega-church pastors recently met in Inglewood to polish strategies for using global communications and aircraft to transport missionaries to fulfill the Great Commission: to make every person on Earth aware of Jesus' message. Doing so, they believe, will bring about the end, perhaps within two decades.

In Iran, President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad has a far different vision. As mayor of Tehran in 2004, he spent millions on improvements to make the city more welcoming for the return of a Muslim messiah known as the Mahdi, according to a recent report by the American Foreign Policy Center, a nonpartisan think tank.

To the majority of Shiites, the Mahdi was the last of the prophet Muhammad's true heirs, his 12 righteous descendants chosen by God to lead the faithful.

Ahmadinejad hopes to welcome the Mahdi to Tehran within two years.

[...] some Jewish groups in Jerusalem hope to clear the path for their own messiah by rebuilding a temple on a site now occupied by one of Islam's holiest shrines.

Artisans have re-created priestly robes of white linen, gem-studded breastplates, silver trumpets and solid-gold menorahs to be used in the Holy Temple — along with two 6½-ton marble cornerstones for the building's foundation.

Then there is Clyde Lott, a Mississippi revivalist preacher and cattle rancher. He is trying to raise a unique herd of red heifers to satisfy an obscure injunction in the Book of Numbers: the sacrifice of a blemish-free red heifer for purification rituals needed to pave the way for the messiah.

So far, only one of his cows has been verified by rabbis as worthy, meaning they failed to turn up even three white or black hairs on the animal's body.

A furious gun battle erupted inside a federal prison Wednesday when a guard opened fire on FBI agents who had come to arrest him and several others on charges of having sex with female inmates in exchange for money and contraband. Two people were killed and another was wounded.

[...]

Six guards in all had been indicted Tuesday on charges they had sex with the women by bribing them with money and contraband in a scheme that went on for two years. The contraband was not specified but could include drugs and alcohol.

When FBI agents and Justice Department investigators arrived at the prison Wednesday to arrest the men, one of the indicted guards shot a federal correctional officer, said FBI spokesman John Girgenti. He said the officers fired back.

The guard fired with a personal weapon, wounding a Bureau of Prisons employee who was assisting with the arrest. Agents from the Justice Department's inspector general's office returned fire, killing the guard. A Justice Department agent was killed in the exchange. It was not immediately clear who fired that fatal shot.

Mary Blake of suburban Cleveland opened her patio door Wednesday to let her border collie back inside and was shocked when a female deer followed close behind.

Blake says she tried to shut the door, but the deer knocked it off track and then knocked into Blake and started stomping her.

Blake frantically called police as the deer damaged her walls, furniture and some keepsakes.

Two police officers arrived and were able to coax the deer outside.

Blake was treated at the hospital for bruises and cuts on her arms, legs and stomach. She has 27 stitches on her right knee.

Industry rap giant Jay-Z has joined the ranks of those boycotting high end champagne company Cristal, in response to the negative comments made by Frederic Rouzaud, managing director of Louis Roderer Cristal.

In a special summer edition of The Economist magazine, Rouzaud commented on the Hip-Hop community's patronage of the champagne brand in an article titled "Bubbles and Bling."

Rouzaud stated that he observed the rap community's constant patronage of the pricey drink with "curiosity and serenity."

Rouzaud further stated that other brands like Dom Perignon and Krug "would be delighted to have their business."

Jay-Z has announced that he will no longer support or distribute Cristal champagne at his 40/40 sports bar/restaurant.

"It has come to my attention that the managing director of Cristal, Frederic Rouzaud views the 'Hip-Hop' culture as 'unwelcome attention,'" said Jay-Z. "I view his comments as racist and will no longer support any of his products through any of my various brands including The 40/40 Club nor in my personal life."

[...] a drug operation under the name the "Black Mafia Family" and allegedly transported and distributed thousands of kilos of cocaine across state lines. The 41 year-old Arabo, whose name is spelled several different ways in the papers, was named in the Detroit indictment. The indictment seeks forfeiture of more than 30 pieces of jewelry, in addition to a number of residences and cars.

Arabo, a Russian immigrant, opened his store in Manhattan's midtown diamond district in 1981, and a visit by hip-hop artist Faith Evans in the mid-1990s proved to be the catalyst for his career as jeweler to a galaxy of rappers and actors. Evans introduced Arabo's gold- and diamond-heavy creations to her husband, the late Notorious B.I.G., and thereafter Jacob the Jeweler quickly became not just a baublemaker but an icon and a symbol of attainment in the fiercely brand-obsessed hip-hop universe. His name appeared in hip-hop lyrics and even in a Def Jam video game.

In 2004, Arabo announced a partnership with Kanye West to produce a line of religious-themed jewelry, and that same year, Cartier filed suit against Arabo, claiming that he had modified their products illegally. The May 2006 cover of Vogue magazine featured actress Keira Knightley wearing a pair of Arabo's diamond earrings.

But that's just me.

...and Jacob.

I never drank or wore you anyway.

...so pack up all your clothes.

"Life on Earth is at the ever-increasing risk of being wiped out by a disaster, such as sudden global warming, nuclear war, a genetically engineered virus or other dangers we have not yet thought of.

"We won't find anywhere as nice as Earth unless we go to another star system," he added.

Space enthusiasts said Hawking's vision is achievable.

"We're pretty sure that everything we need to live is on Mars. There's plenty of water and there's a little bit of an atmosphere," said Dr. David Robertson, director of the Center for Space Physiology and Medicine at Vanderbilt University.

As seen in a dog's diary:

7 am - Oh boy! A walk! My favorite!
8 am - Oh boy! Dog food! My favorite!
9 am - Oh boy! The kids! My favorite!
Noon - Oh boy! The yard! My favorite!
2 pm - Oh boy! A car ride! My favorite!
3 pm - Oh boy! The kids! My favorite!
4 pm - Oh boy! Playing ball! My favorite!
6 pm - Oh boy! Welcome home Mom! My favorite!
7 pm - Oh boy! Welcome home Dad! My favorite!
8 pm - Oh boy! Dog food! My favorite!
9 pm - Oh boy! Tummy rubs on the couch! My favorite!
11 pm - Oh boy! Sleeping in my people's bed! My favorite!

As seen in a cat's diary:

Day 183 of my captivity... My captors continued to taunt me with bizarre little dangling objects. They dine lavishly on fresh meat, while I am forced to eat dry cereal. The only thing that keeps me going is the hope of escape, and the mild satisfaction I get from clawing the furniture.

Tomorrow I may eat another house plant. Today my attempt to kill my captors by weaving around their feet while they were walking almost succeeded - must try this at the top of the stairs. In an attempt to disgust and repulse these vile oppressors, I once again induced myself to vomit on their favorite chair - must try this on their bed.

Decapitated a mouse and brought them the headless body in an attempt to make them aware of what I am capable of, and to try to strike fear in their hearts. They only cooed and condescended about what a good little cat I was.

Hmmm, not working according to plan.

There was some sort of gathering of their accomplices. I was placed in solitary throughout the event. However, I could hear the noise and smell the food. More important, I overheard that my confinement was due to my powers of inducing "allergies." Must learn what this is and how to use it to my advantage.

I am convinced the other captives are flunkies and maybe snitches. The dog is routinely released and seems more than happy to return. He is obviously a half-wit. The bird, on the other hand, has got to be an informant and speaks with them regularly. I am certain he reports my every move. Due to his current placement in the metal room, his safety is assured.

But I can wait.

...if you're an ALCOHOLIC.

Drinking coffee seems to protect alcohol drinkers from liver disease, a new study suggests.

Every daily cup of coffee reduced the incidence of cirrhosis, a condition that destroys liver tissue, by 22 percent, according to researchers at the Kaiser Permanente Medical Care Program, in Oakland, Calif.

However, Dr. Arthur L. Klatsky, the leader of the study and an associate in Kaiser Permanente's research division, said the results "should not be interpreted as giving a license to drink without worry, because of all the other problems connected with drinking."

[click image to enlarge]

"I want these motherfucking snakes off this motherfucking plane."

A rookie cab driver who allegedly passed out at the wheel moments before a deadly crash in Manhattan had suffered a seizure before, his family revealed yesterday.

But the driver insisted that bad brakes were to blame for the Sunday morning tragedy that killed a college student from Staten Island and injured three of her friends.

Cabbie Hassan Afzal, 21, awoke after Sunday's deadly crash and instantly asked about the fate of four young women he picked up shortly before 3 a.m., his cousin said.

"He asked if they were all right. He was concerned," Afzal's cousin Azhar Sajawal, 26, said.

His family didn't tell the driver that Danielle Ricco, 20, was killed when she was ejected from Afzal's cab onto West St. at W. Houston St. - and then crushed by a second taxi. Three other young women were injured in the crash.

Chaska is one of the first U.S. cities to offer almost all of its residents Wi-Fi, short for wireless fidelity. Users plug a city-supplied Wi-Fi receiver into their computers, allowing them to receive Web service through radio signals, thus untethering their machines from telephone cables and making them theoretically mobile.

In settings where cellphone use is forbidden — in class, for example — it is perfect for signaling the arrival of a text message without being detected by an elder of the species.

"When I heard about it I didn't believe it at first," said Donna Lewis, a technology teacher at the Trinity School in Manhattan. "But one of the kids gave me a copy, and I sent it to a colleague. She played it for her first graders. All of them could hear it, and neither she nor I could."

The technology, which relies on the fact that most adults gradually lose the ability to hear high-pitched sounds, was developed in Britain but has only recently spread to America — by Internet, of course.

*FYI, they make some pretty discreet hearing aids these days. This one's practically invisible. (On a white ear, anyway.)


New York Times: A Ring Tone Meant to Fall on Deaf Ears

And even worse, why is she doing a book about it?

“Grace Will Lead Me Home,” co-written by Lori Giachin, tells of the domestic violence that has been present in [Robin's] family for three generations. She describes the first time Tyson punched her. "Delivered coldly, dispassionately" he "easily tossed my 105-pound frame across the room," she writes, adding that the boxer then sliced her clothing and choked her.

Fresh from rehab, Rep. Patrick Kennedy said yesterday he wants to be treated like an African-American from Washington if and when he gets charged for crashing his car on Capitol Hill.

Denying that he was drunk and or that he asked the Capitol Police for preferential treatment, Kennedy, a Rhode Island congressman, said he's prepared "in terms of bookings, in terms of mug shots, fingerprints, whatever they might have me do."

"It's what anyone else would have done to them if they were an African-American in Anacostia," Kennedy said in a shaky voice, referring to the mostly minority neighborhood in southeastern Washington.

Uh...so I hear.

Starting in their 20s, men face steadily increasing chances of infertility, fathering an unsuccessful pregnancy, and passing on to their children a genetic mutation that causes dwarfism, according to the study.

There you have it, ladies!!

Old sperm makes dwarves!!!*

that is so fucked...that should be played before every wedding...no....at right after every marriage proposal..no...at all jewelry stores, big speakers right above the wedding rings...

JAMIE FOXX is set to play BOB MARLEY in a new biopic focusing on the reggae icon's early life. Film-maker RACHID BOUCHAREB is set to direct the project which is the brainchild of the ONE LOVE star's widow RITA. Bouchareb says, "I've always liked the story of what made Marley the man. "I want to look at him as a child through to a young man, and how he became interested in Africa."

Place your bets on Jay-Z.

The record executive wants to build a casino in Las Vegas, business associates tell us.

It's a logical next step for the instinctual businessman, who journeyed from Brooklyn's Marcy Projects to founding Roc-a-Fella Records and Rocawear with partner Damon Dash.

After selling the label and stockpiling $300 million, Jay-Z, aka Sean Carter [sic], was named president of Def Jam records in 2004. Oh, and he's a co-owner of the New Jersey Nets basketball team and the 40/40 Club.

Jay-Z wants to morph that sports bar's low-key ambience - which he brought to Atlantic City last year - into a full-scale gambling Xanadu, reports one knowledgeable source.

"He's definitely planning on it," the source told our Chris Rovzar, adding that several meetings on the topic have taken place with investors who have worked with other gambling establishments.

"The 40/40 Club in Atlantic City has been doing great since it opened, and the one in New York is still booming," another source told us. "There's no reason not to expand."

No matter what, Jay-Z is going global with his 40/40 franchise, his spokesman confirmed.

"There is talk of a possible 40/40 Club casino," confirmed rep Ron Berkowitz. "There is definite expansion into the Far East, into Shanghai, Hong Kong, Tokyo and South Korea. By 2008 they will all be built."

Comedy Central has finally set an airdate for the final episodes of "Chappelle's Show," which will feature sketches Dave Chappelle completed before walking away from the series.

The network will unveil what it's calling "Chappelle's Show: The Lost Episodes" on Sunday, July 9. For those keeping score at home, that's more than two years since the last original installment of the show first aired and 15-plus months since Comedy Central's last scheduled premiere date for season three.

Sanaa Lathan is getting ready to carve out a place for herself on FX's operatic drama "Nip/Tuck."

The "Something New" star is in negotiations to be a regular on the show's fourth season, which is scheduled to begin in the fall. She'll play a trophy wife who comes into the lives of Drs. Sean McNamara (Dylan Walsh) and Christian Troy (Julian McMahon), according to The Hollywood Reporter.

O.J. Simpson's daughter was sentenced Wednesday to 50 hours of community service in a deal with prosecutors that stemmed from a confrontation with police during a fight outside a prep school basketball game.

Sydney Simpson, 20, did not appear in court, but her lawyer accepted the deal on her behalf in a teleconference with a judge.

She was arrested in January 2005 when Miami police said she repeatedly yelled profanities at officers called to Ransom Everglades School to stop a fight after a boys' basketball game against Gulliver Prep. Then 19, Simpson had already graduated from Gulliver at the time.

While being taken into custody, she slapped an officer's hand, a police report said.

MICHAEL Jackson plans to adopt a Japanese orphan, it has been claimed.

The dad-of-three, 47, is said to have visited children's homes there on his current Far East tour.

US gossip columnist Roger Friedman said: "His trip to Japan was not all about publicity and quick self-gratification for a dimmed star with no fans.

"He toured orphanages. I'm told he's looking for kids to add to his current collection of three."

Why was last November's massacre by U.S. Marines of "as many as two dozen Iraqi civilians...at Haditha, a city in the Anbar province of western Iraq," covered up? Among the murdered: old people, taxicab passengers, women and children.

Representative John Murtha, a Democrat from Pennsylvania and former Marine, said last weekend: "Who covered it up, why did they cover it up, why did they wait so long?...We don't know how far it goes. It goes right up the chain of command." Describing George W. Bush's bloody misadventure in Iraq, the congressman said: "[W]e're set back every time something like this happens. This is worse than Abu Ghraib."