Cindy Barshop: Real Housewives of New York

Cindy Barshop, 46, has joined the cast of The Real Housewives of New York, which kicked off season 4 on Thursday. Will she be able to hold her own against her new costars Ramona Singer, Alex McCord, Jill Zarin, Kelly Bensimon Sonja Morgan and Countess LuAnn de Lesseps? Only time will tell, but here are five facts about the Big Apple's newest Housewife.

1. A certain cast member intimidated her
Barshop has likened joining the cast to being on a "battlefield." She admitted to being nervous about meeting Zarin, but told PEOPLE, "Jill was actually the sweetest girl. She really welcomed me. And also Kelly I heard she's not nice but she was."

2. She's used to hairy situations
Barshop is the owner of Completely Bare, a popular chain of hair removal spas. She was working in telecommunications for IBM when she uncovered Epilight, a machine that uses light to permanently remove hair, and decided to open her first spa in New York City in 1998. Barshop now has nine stores across the country.



3. She's a (proud) single mom by choice
Barshop has 15-month-old twin girls, Jesse and Zoe, whom she chose to have on her own. "I've had serious relationships, but I wasn't in one when I had my girls," Barshop told Stylelist.com. "I guess what's also unconventional about me is that I'm the breadwinner, taking care of everyone in my life."

4. She has friends in high places
Bethenny Frankel's replacement didn't come out of nowhere. "I got interested in the idea of being on the show because I knew some of the ladies," she has said. "I know Ramona Singer from the Hamptons and Jill Zarin was a client at Completely Bare."

5. You can thank her or blame her for "vajeweling"
Barshop is credited with inventing the "vajewel" treatment, which is applying crystal designs to a woman's private parts for decoration. Her spa also offers "vatoos," a temporary airbrushed design for down there.

Leon Russell And Elton John Appear on “Saturday Night Live”

“Rocket Man” and the “Master of Space and Time,” uniting once again.

Elton John, Leon Russell to appear on “Saturday Night Live. ”The British pop superstar will do double duty as host and musical guest on this weekend’s “SNL,” with the Oklahoma icon joining him for the musical performances.

Elton John (British Pop Superstar) will do double duty as both host and musical guest on “Saturday Night Live” during this weekend. His recent duet partner and Oklahoma icon Leon Russell will join him for the program’s musical performances. “SNL” airs at 10:30 p.m. Saturday on NBC.

This Saturday’s episode will mark John’s first time back on the “SNL” stage since 1982, when he played the songs “Empty Garden” and “Ball and Chain."

According to IMDB, Uncle Leon and his then wife Mary Russell were musical guests on “SNL” back in 1976.
The singer/songwriter/pianist pair was in New York last month when John ushered Russell into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Russell (and Owasso resident Garth Brooks) will be back in NYC June 16 for induction into the Songwriters Hall of Fame.

John and Russell have made several high profile TV appearances together since releasing their collaborative album “The Union” last fall. “The Union” debuted in October at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, earned a Grammy nomination for best pop collaboration with vocals for lead single “If It Wasn’t for Bad” and sparked a dramatic career resurgence for Russell, who had fallen into relative obscurity after playing a pivotal role on the rock ‘n’ roll scene in the 1960s and ‘70s.

Russell’s top ‘70s classics have been compiled into a new CD and digital collection, “The Best of Leon Russell,” which will be released Tuesday by Capitol/EMI.

Top 10 Best Drama Movies

The 10 best Lifetime drama movies keep you on the edge of your as you wonder what happens next. Although Lifetime movies are geared towards the female audience, men can love these chick flicks filled with drama and action that glues you to the TV screen.

1. "The Betty Broderick Story" (1992) Betty Broderick had it all, a successful husband, children a life many people envied. One day, her perfect life shatters when her attorney husband leaves Betty for a young woman, and sends the scorned wife into a rage. Meredith Baxter plays Betty Broderick.

1. "A Face to Die For" (1996) Former Baywatch beauty Yasmine Bleath plays a young woman with a disfigured face dating a conman who talks her into robbing her boss. After the police catch her, she goes to prison. After sustaining a few injuries during a fight and a help from a surgeon, she gets a physical facial makeover and after serving her sentence, seeks out revenge as she maintain a new image.
2. "Deceit" (2006) A young man celebrates his college graduation and is introduced to his best friend's girlfriend. After a couple meetings, the two have sex and continue the secret affair on and off, after she becomes a married woman. Although well aware it is morally wrong because of their relationships with others, things begin to unfold as his lover is not who he thought she was. Damage starts mentally and physically as the problems escalate.
3. "Homecoming" (2009) Breaking up is hard to do, but seeing your ex with a new woman is devastating. In this Lifetime movie, Mischa Barton’s character Shelby Mercer is delighted to see her ex again, until she spots the ex boyfriend with a new love. The bitter Mercer tries everything to keep her ex's girlfriend out of his life, even if she has to kill.
4. "Switched at Birth" (1992) Based on a true story, this emotional, touching Lifetime movie tells the tale of two women one in excellent health and another plagued with a horrible illness, who bring home babies who were accidentally switch at the hospital. After the death of his ill wife, a man raised a daughter on his own until the biological parents learn of the mistake demand custody.
5. "Life is Not a Fairytale" (2006) R&B singer Fantasia Barrino struck a deal in this Lifetime movie, replaying her life into an autobiographical movie. The movie recalls her early days singing in the church, the adversaries faced as a teenager, and her rise to fame as the 2004 "American Idol" winner.
6. "Crime of Passion" (1999) An ex stripper starts her life over again, marrying a successful doctor and becoming a step mom to his daughters. Things unravel, as their relationship turns sour. She suspects of her husband cheating and plots to kill after she sees him with another woman.
7. "Unanswered Prayers" (2010) A man reunites with an old high school love as old feelings re-ignite between the two. He battles with his feelings for his wife and ex flame, as he is forced to choose the woman from his past or his faithful wife of twenty years, who is the mother of his son. This Lifetime drama movie touched on the reality some people face in their marriages, which average viewers will be able to relate to
8. Trust (2007) A married woman’s life turns upside down when begin to receive anonymous emails and letters about her husband’s affair. She hired two private investigators to prove his infidelity and when they are left with no evidence, other problems begin to surface, much worse than her husband supposed affairs.
9. "No One Will Tell" (1996) Lifetime brings this true story to life about a timid teenager who gets involved with the star football player. The beginning of their relationship fully blossoms but as time goes gone, the relationship becomes hell, as she suffers from extreme physical abuse, violence, and ultimately tragedy.

The Elephant in the Living Room

"The Elephant in the Living Room" delves into the develop mode of Americans treating some of the most dangerous animals on Earth as household pets. Webber anchors his film in the activities of Tim Harrison, a now retired safety officer in Oakwood, Ohio, a leafy suburban community of stately homes on huge lots.

In the review of "The Elephant in the Living Room," Harrison is a hunter and he captured and rescued several of crocodiles, lions, tigers and most poisonous snakes all in the U.S. An interstate highway bring Harrison in contact with the lion's owner, Terry Brumfield, who lives in nearby Pike County, where it is absolutely legal for him to keep the lion, Lambert, and his mate, Lacie, in a large caged area.

The effects of a serious truck accident, Brumfield has been soothed by his lions' presence and loves them like his own children. While fearing for the animals' ultimate fate, Harrison wins Brumfield's trust, and the unfolding of the men's friendship and the circumstances of the lions form the escape of the film.

"The Elephant in the Living Room" reveals the lunacy, pitilessness and danger of treating often deadly exotic animals as pets. This impeccably made film is chock full of enlightening and sometimes bizarre moments: visits to an exotic animal expo and an auction at which a small boy is given a dangerous baby snake as a pet.

He includes a Las Vegas exotic pets dealer, a trained zoologist who sagely states that unless owners of such creatures act responsibly, fear amid the public will cause increasing banning of the private ownership of such pets. "The Elephant in the Living Room" could barely be more engaging or more cognizance increasing.

Victoria's Secret Model Candice Swanepoel's

Victoria's Secret models are hailed for their sleek physiques, but underwear model Candice Swanepoel's scary-skinny new look is fueling rumors that the South African beauty may be anorexic.

On March 30, 2011, Candice, 22, and fellow Victoria's Secret beauties Adriana Lima, 29, and Alessandra Ambrosio, 29, modeled the VS's new line of swimswear at the Mondrian Hotel.

Eating Disorders Rampant In Modeling

While the 5'10" Swanepoel has always been thin, her stick-like legs and emaciated frame were a dramatic change from a few months ago, when she sported a healthier body at the Victoria's Secret Fashion Show.

Candace, whose fitness routine includes working out with a trainer 3 times a week and taking ballet classes, looked noticeably thinner around her jawline, torso and legs.

Swanepoel, whose career is skyrocketing, recently landed the cover of the Victoria's Secret 2011 swimsuit catalogue.

The fashion industry has come under fire in recent years for encouraging what some call an unrealistically skinny standard of beauty. In November 2010, Isabelle Caro, an ex-model who suffered from anorexia, died at the age of 28 weighing just 68 pounds.

Sadly, anorexia and its sister eating disorder, bulimia, are rampant in the modeling and acting professions, but also prevalent among young girls. Experts say between 5% and 20% of people who develop anorexia eventually die from it.

Captain America

How can I articulate how stoked I am for the "Captain America" movie coming out this summer? Well, I'm more stoked about it than "Thor," that's for sure.

Captain America was The First Avenger, after all, and The Avengers are my favorite comic book heroes. So you might say he was/is the original Captain. The rum guy is just a wannabe.

Chris Evans stars as the movie's main character, Steve Rogers, a weakling transformed into a super soldier during World War II. What's cool is the way they digitally shrink Evans to make him look skinny before his transformation into the Captain.

The girl is someone named Hayley Atwell. At first, I thought she looked like Claire Danes, but no dice.

"Captain America: The First Avenger" is due out July 22.

Earth Hour

Earth Hour is a global campaign organized by the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) to encourage individuals, companies and governments to turn their lights off for an hour to demonstrate that they have taken a stand against climate change.

This campaign has three objectives:

1. To spread public awareness of global climate change
2. To encourage people all over the world to save energy and other natural resources
3. To ensure the signing of an effective post Kyoto protocol, which world leaders and climate negotiators agreed to consider at the UN climate talks in Copenhagen in December 2009.

The Earth Hour logo, “60”, signifies the 60 minutes which the campaign is asking people to devote to their planet. WWF’s initiative has been supported by thousands of organizations and millions of people around the world. Although a 60-minute black-out cannot do much for the environment on its own, the campaign is meant to encourage people to think more about energy saving.

Participants are allowed to decide for themselves which electronic equipment they turn off, but the organizers recommend turning off all non-essential items.

The first Earth Hour was held in Sydney, Australia, in March 2007. The next year, over 50 million people turned off lights in more than 270 cities across 35 countries.

Russia officially joined the event in 2009. The campaign was observed across the entire country, from the Arctic city of Murmansk to the Pacific port of Vladivostok.

During past Earth Hours, lights have been turned off at Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro, the Table Mountain in Cape Town, the Federation Tower in Moscow, the Sydney Opera House, and the world’s tallest building, Taipei 101, in Taiwan.

The Hobbit

After one of the most luckless pre productions in recent memory, filming began today in New Zealand on The Hobbit, the long-awaited prequels to the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Warner Bros. released a statement, confirming that the production had finally outlasted financial concerns, a labor conflict, the loss of director Guillermo del Toro and subsequent rescue by LOTR godfather Peter Jackson, Jackson’s health scare, and an earthquake that rattled New Zealand. Perhaps to convince the skeptical, Jackson even launched a new Facebook page with two new photos of him from the set. Is that Bilbo’s place in the Shire? Note that the photos are specifically dated, but you’d understand if Jackson felt compelled to display the morning’s newspaper like some kidnapping victimjust to reassure fans that this movie is really finally happening.

Tom Cruise reveals title of next MI film

The latest film in the Mission: Impossible series will be called "Ghost Protocol", Hollywood star Tom Cruise revealed in Dubai on Thursday. "It's not gonna be MI 2, MI 3, MI 4, but it's gonna be Mission: Impossible Ghost Protocol ... that will be the title of this film," Cruise told a news conference in the Gulf city-state. "One of the things that I always wanted with the franchise was for it to not have a number afterwards, because I haven't made sequels of films, and I never really thought of these films as sequels," Cruise said. "When you see each one of them, I think it's distinctive of each film-maker" who has worked on the series. "It's a series that I love doing," the American actor said. Paramount Pictures said the latest in the series that has grossed two billion dollars worldwide is currently shooting in Dubai, and would also be filmed in Moscow, Prague and Vancouver. Ghost Protocol will be in theatres in December 2011, Paramount said. "To be shooting here, it's a city I've always wanted to shoot in," Cruise said of Dubai. The film's director, Brad Bird, said he was pleased with filming in Dubai. "We love the fact that it's a big, new city ... It has the scale we look for in these kind of movies, because these are big movies. I think that it's almost like sets that you could never afford," said Bird. Executive producer Jeffrey Chernov, producer Bryan Burk, actor Jeremy Renner and actress Paula Patton were also at the news conference. The director, actors and producers were generally mum on how long shooting in the emirate would last, and where it would take place. But Burk did say that "we will be shooting in the building you are all sitting in right now," referring to Burj Khalifa, the world's tallest tower at 828 metres (2,717 feet), where the news conference was held. The Dubai government media office said last month that filming in the emirate would last at least three weeks. The existing three films in the series, released in 1996, 2000 and 2006, were inspired by a Mission: Impossible television series that first aired in the mid-1960s. The Dubai government has expressed hope that the filming would boost "Dubai's position as a favoured destination for international movie production" and help in establishing it "as a regional movie hub." Part of the 2005 film "Syriana" was shot in Dubai, while some of the 2007 film "The Kingdom" was shot in neighbouring Abu Dhabi. Dubai was hard-hit by the global financial crisis, which dried up available financing and brought its quickly growing property sector to a screeching halt, leaving it saddled with estimated debts of more than 100 billion dollars. There are signs of economic recovery in Dubai but its property sector continues to struggle.