December 31, 2011

AceShowbiz continues to dig out the news piles throughout the past months leading to the end of the year, and closes its annual Kaleidoscope by taking readers to look back at things that happened between the period time of October to December. In celebrity, the sudden death of Apple Inc.'s co-founder, Steve Jobs, which spawned an outpouring of grief and gratitude from his fans across the globe, was put on the highlight among other notable news and gossips.

Beside a look-back at what happened in the past, there are reminders of what to expect in the new year of 2012 as well. Through the trailer of "The Hunger Games", movie fandom are reminded that the upcoming year would be full of treats, and one that should not be missed is the big screen adaptation of the Suzanne Collins best-selling book. Also, expect to be part of the beginning of Melanie Amaro's journey in the music industry following her victory on "The X Factor (US)".

After a relatively "tame" 2010, the glitzy and blitzy world of high-profiled celebrities unfolds a year full of shocking headlines in 2011. Startling splits, tragic deaths, public meltdown and controversial wedding are just some of the stories that stole the headlines and kept people glued to certain famous figures throughout the past 12 months.

As the year came to a close, AceShowbiz returns with its annual top 10 picks of Most Shocking Celebrity Stories of the Year. Demi Moore's decision to divorce Ashton Kutcher amidst cheating rumors on his side, kicks off the list that culminates with the ultimate image-smearing confession from an A-lister.

Sandra Bullock and Tom Hanks recently teamed up in "Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close", but the former insisted she had to do tougher parts than her co-star. "We had the tough scenes, you needed a partner," the Linda Schell depicter said about her scenes with her on-screen son, Thomas Horn.

The Oscar-winning actress claimed Hanks missed the intense parts since the "Larry Crowne" actor was mostly seen in sweet moments with Horn. "I mean he [Horn] and Tom got to play, and really connect and bond and show that similarity."

MSNBC might have skipped one of key points from Ben Breedlove's viral video. During a televised news broadcast, the network reported on the late 18-year-old boy whose final clip gained attention following his death on Christmas Day.

The cable channel played some parts from Ben's clip in which he shared his experience in cheating death. Towards the end of it, the teen showed a message card read, "Do you believe in Angels or God?" The MSNBC segment, however, faded it out just as Ben was about to show another card read, "I do."

What fans should expect from the remake of Kathryn Bigelow's 1991 action-thriller "Point Break"? Alcon Entertainment producer Andrew Kosove recently sat down with The Playlist and opened up about plans for the new version, revealing that it won't just be "a literal remake of the original the way 'Footloose' was."

Asked whether surfing may be replaced by "extreme sports" in the remake, Kosove responded, "It was identical to the original film." He went on to dish, "[Our 'Point Break'] has got elements of the original and it's not just surfing, it's other kinds of extreme sports, but surfing is very, very prominent in the story."

When "Pretty Little Liars" returns this winter, Aria will experience the aftermath of her confession about her romantic relationship with Ezra. In a new clip from the January 9 episode, Byron Montgomery tells her to change her "inappropriate" clothes out of concern that she might be dressing for Ezra.

In another sneak peek for the same outing, Aria uses Hannah's phone to call Ezra, but it's a message machine that answers her call. One other clip, meanwhile, sees Spencer asking Emily's companion to snoop around in Jason's place.

Rebecca Gayheart and Eric Dane have one more reason to be joyful this holiday season. The Hollywood couple, who tied the knot in Las Vegas back in 2004, welcomed their second child together, a baby girl they named Georgia Geraldine Dane, on Wednesday, December 28.

Confirming the happy news just in time for the New Year was a representative for 40-year-old Rebecca. Further details about the baby's birth are not disclosed, but the rep did note, "Both mom and baby girl are happy and healthy, Billie is thrilled to be a big sister, and dad is getting ready to live in a house full of ladies!"

Adele closes her big year in 2011 by being crowned an artist who has the most-played song throughout the year in the U.K. The Grammy-winning brunette beauty has not just one, but two popular songs, on this year's top-10 list which is compiled by Spotify.

She tops the list with "Rolling in the Deep", the first single from her 2011 groundbreaking album "21", beating Bruno Mars, Rihanna, Jessie J and LMFAO. Several steps lower, she occupies the seventh spot with her cover of Bob Dylan's "Make You Feel My Love".

One of the "Bridesmaids" stars is going to get married. Chris O'Dowd, the actor playing Officer Nathan Rhodes in the comedy film, announced through his Twitter account on Thursday, December 29, that he has gotten engaged to British television personality Dawn Porter.

"I'm so bored of all this happiness and sex. I'm getting married. #engaged," so the 32-year-old actor informed his nearly 85,000 followers on the micro-blogging site. His new fiancee also made similar announcement on the same day by writing, "I guess he liked it, coz he put a ring on it #engaged."

After playing out with a possibility of Sarah secretly having a child, "Chuck" may indeed see the title character and his wife welcoming a baby while they contemplate the next step for Carmichael Industries. In a preview for the next episode of the show, Chuck and Sarah are featured waiting for the result of what looks like a pregnancy test.

Also in the upcoming outing, Chuck gives some love advice to Casey when his forbidden love, Gertrude Verbanski, walks back into his life with a questionable mission in South Beach. When a situation puts her in danger, Casey has to man up and come to her rescue.

Joe Jonas has revealed one of his New Year's resolutions, and it involves his two brother bandmates Kevin Jonas and Nick Jonas. Talking to Cambio recently, the middle member of the former band said he wished to reunite with the Jonas Brothers.

"I hope to continue what I've been doing," the 22-year-old singer said in the interview. "Making great music that I'm proud of." The former boyfriend of Taylor Swift quickly added, "And be able to make more music with my brothers."

Having filled the shoes of Agent Phil Coulson in several Marvel movies before, Clark Gregg is reprising the role in "The Avengers" and this time, he'll get a much larger part. In an interview with SFX Magazine, the "Iron Man 2" actor expressed his thought on the matter and described what he got to do this time.

"I had to pinch myself because I'm not that jaded," admitted the 49-year-old actor. "I got to show up and put on the Coulson suit and I've got enough lines that I have a trailer, plus I get to do this amazing script by [director] Joss Whedon. I don't know how I got to be a part of it, I just feel very lucky about it."

Rooney Mara almost considered to quit acting after starring in "A Nightmare on Elm Street". In an interview for the latest edition of Entertainment Weekly, the 26-year-old beauty admitted that she did not really want the role and ended up feeling discouraged in acting after portraying Nancy Holbrook in the Samuel Bayer-directed reboot project.

"You kind of learn to self-sabotage with things you don't want to get," she shared. "Sometimes you don't want to get something, but you do a really good job and you get in anyway. That's kind of [what happened] with 'A Nightmare on Elm Street' - I didn't even really want it. And then I went in [to audition], and I was like, 'F**k. I definitely got that.' "

Demi Lovato might have tried her hands at country music. The 19-year-old singer, who is critically acclaimed for her ballad pop "Skyscraper", sparked such rumor after taking to Twitter on December 30 to tease what supposed to be a new project. "Wrote my first country song today. :)," so she wrote.

The former leading star of Disney's "Sonny with a Chance" shared no other details about the song, but she might have revealed where she took inspiration from. Hours leading to the "country song" message, she tweeted Eli Young Band's "Crazy Girl" and Kenny Chesney's "The Good Stuff" on her timeline.

Beyonce Knowles has caused a frenzy on the Internet as 2011 is drawing near to a close. Words flooded the Twitterverse on Friday, December 30 morning claiming that the "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" hitmaker has given birth to her first child with music mogul husband Jay-Z in New York City.

Speculations about Queen Bey's impending labor began on Wednesday, December 28 when MediaTakeOut brought out claims that two nurses at St. Luke's Roosevelt said that the medical facility is preparing for a "celebrity VIP", who was said to be the R&B singer. It was further said that she has reserved half of the "luxury labor and delivery floor".

Elena may open her heart for Damon when "The Vampire Diaries" returns with the remainders of season 3. In a recent interview with TV Guide, executive producer Julie Plec said that after learning the Stefan she knows is gone forever, Elena would realize "that ultimately it's time for her to move on with her life and not hold onto a ghost of her past."

"Now that Stefan is out of the picture, in her mind there's a way to free herself up and allow that tension [with Damon] to come out and play," Plec further dished on Elena and Damon's relationship. "The question of 'Does Elena love Damon [and] has she been fully falling for him all along?' is going to be very much a part of the season."

Kelly Clarkson might be upset when she received a lot of backlash for voicing her support to Ron Paul on Twitter last Thursday, December 29, but she's celebrating now. The Texan-born singer currently enjoys a massive boost in the sales of her latest studio album "Stronger".

Just 24 hours after the winner of "American Idol" first season endorsed the Republican candidate and made headlines due to its pros and mostly cons, the CD rose from No. 41 to No. 13 (around 200%) on Amazon's "Movers & Shakers in Music" list. The digital sales are expected to continue going stronger.

Swirling rumors that Russell Brand and Katy Perry's marriage is on the rocks turn out to be true after all. Just a day after he was photographed stepping out in London without his wedding ring on, the "Get Him to the Greek" star filed for a divorce from his wife of 14 months.

36-year-old Brand submitted the legal papers in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday, December 30. He cited "irreconcilable differences" as the reason for the split, but didn't list a date of separation. The comedian also asked that each party pay their own attorney fees and that their property rights be determined.