Real Madrid began their assault on the Primera Division title with a confident attacking performance against Deportivo La Coruna. A flurry of goals midway through the first half saw Manuel Pellegrini's side take the lead at the break. While the home side's dominance was not reflected in the scoreline, the old defensive flaws were still evident in addition to a number of mistakes associated with a newly assmbled side.Los Blancos' big guns were out in force in the Santiago Bernabeu, as Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Karim Benzema and Xabi Alonso all started. Deportivo icon Juan Carlos Valeron took to the pitch for the visitors, while Brazilian midfielder Juca made his debut after signing from Partizan Belgrade.Usain Bolt, the world's fastest man, took to the pitch before kick off as Florentino Perez grinned like a Cheshire cat in the stands amid all the applause, but it was soon down to business for the world's most expensively assmbled side.Real came flying out of the blocks - it took less than a minute for Lassana Diarra to split open the visitors' defence, but Kaka could only drag his shot wide.Diarra was spreading the ball around the pitch with consummate ease, but Depor's defence were closing down the space ahead of the strikers well. After a strong opening from the hosts, los Blanquiazules began to create some attacking opportunities of their own but were profligate with their set pieces.Real Madrid were the more adventurous side in the early stages and after Raul's shot from the edge of the area had been blocked, Kaka fired a shot just wide of Daniel Aranzubia's left hand post. The visitors were holding a tight line, but it was pierced after 26 minutes.Kaka's through ball slipped through Juan Rodriguez's legs and found Karim Benzema, whose shot came back off the near post. With Aranzubia stranded, Raul had the easiest of tasks to tap the ball home.The lead should have been doubled minutes later by Cristiano Ronaldo, but he could not direct his header on target from Xabi Alonso's free kick.Real were made to pay for the missed opportunity, as Deportivo equalised in the 30th minute. Juca sent a deep cross in, and Riki was allowed a free header by los Blancos' defence and powered it into the corner.Parity only lasted five minutes, as another clinical pass by Diarra slid Raul through, but 32-year-old was felled by Aranzubia and the referee pointed to the spot. Cristiano Ronaldo stepped up to the plate, and successfully dispatched the penalty low to the keeper's right.Deportivo were now at sixes and sevens at the back, as firstly Raul could only shoot straight at Aranzubia before Garay had an excellent chance from a corner. The visitors arrived at half time with the deficit only at one, and coach Lotina had work to do at the interval.

The tabs are chirping about Brad Pitt being banished to the couch by Angelina Jolie over his recent reefer revelations. A Hollyweed source says, "Their drug fight came to a head when he reportedly smoked pot with another celebrity pal while their six kids were sleeping. She told him to get clean or get out."
According to National Enquirer, Jolie is also upset with Pitt's ex, Jennifer Aniston: “Ange says it''s Jen''s fault Brad is still smoking pot, since the bulk of his drug-taking days were when he was with her. She''s angry and looking for someone to blame, so Jen is always going to be a prime target."That sound pretty far-fetched, though Jolie has distanced herself from prior drug use, such as her admitted LSD trip at Disneyland.Pitt has been in the marijuana news lately. He said he was "done" with pot, suggested he'd legalize it if he were mayor of New Orleans, told Bill Maher that he's an "artist" when it comes to rolling joints and smoked hash with Quentin Tarantino in Paris, according to the director ofInglourious Basterds, in which Pitt is currently starring

Miss Universe of 2009 is Miss Venezuela Stefania Fernandez, it has just been unveiled. The 18-year-old lady beats 4 big finalists, who are from Puerto Rico, Dominican Republic, Kosovo, and Australia. Stefania, who is wearing a red dress during the beauty pageant, jumps in joy upon hearing Miss Dominican Republic, Ada Aimee De la Cruz, is named as the 1st Runner-Up, which means she is the new Miss Universe. Stefania and last year's Miss Universe Dayana Mendoza share hug on stage and the two jump in happiness. Receiving her crown from Dayana, Stefania accidentally drops the tiara on-stage. Yet, Dayana helps picking it up and puts it on Stefania's head who then faces the audience like nothing has happened. Meanwhile, named as the 2nd Runner-Up is Miss Kosovo Gona Dragusha. As for the 3rd Runner-Up, the predicate goes to Miss Australia Rachael Finch. In addition to them all, Miss China Wang Jingyao is chosen as Miss Photogenic, while Miss Thailand Chutima Durongdej is named Miss Congeniality. More about Stefania Fernandez, she is no stranger to beauty pageants. She won the Miss Venezuela 2008 title in a pageant held in Caracas, Venezuela on September 10 last year. During the same event she also won the "Miss Elegance", "Best Body" and "Best Face" titles.

would the United States be like if Britney Spears were the president?

Here are some observations from David Letterman's Top 10 segment Tuesday night, presented by Britney herself. In a bikini.

"I'd be the first president to wear eyeshadow since Nixon," she says.

No. 9? "We would only invade fun places like Cabo."

And as No. 8, "Free pie for everybody."

But wait, there was more -- oh, never mind.

Funny or lame? Is it just us or has Dave lost his edge?

Never one to shy away from a challenge, Celine Dion has announced that she’s pregnant with her second child at the age of 41.
The “It’s All Coming Back to Me” songstress and her 67-year-old husband Rene Angelil reportedly employed the services of a team of fertility doctors to help them conceive.

Prior to her recent Taking Chances World Tour, Celine told Oprah Winfrey, “We are going to give it a try after my tour. Hopefully we (can get) pregnant again.”
She continued, “I have a small window of hope. But we have been so blessed already. We tried six years for Rene-Charles. We have our miracle baby.”

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, who plays a Muslim mistaken for a terrorist in his latest film, says he was racially profiled at Newark Airport and detained for two hours on Friday. The 43-year-old "Tom Cruise of India" - cited last year by Newsweek as one of the world's 50 most influential men - was released only after Indian diplomats intervened. "I was really being hassled, perhaps because of my name being Khan," the international box office sensation charged Saturday in a text message to reporters. "These guys wouldn't let me through." Khan, who has appeared in more than 70 films, said he was waiting for his luggage Friday when his name popped up on a computer alert list. Security then pulled him aside. "Absolutely uncalled for, I think," Khan said. "I felt angry and humiliated." Khan said he endured two hours of interrogation before he was allowed to call the Indian embassy in Washington. An official there vouched for the star, who was then released. "I was really taken aback," Khan told an Indian television station. "I did not want to say anything just in case they took everything wrong, because I am a little worried about Americans because they do have this issue when your name is Muslim." Officials at U.S. Customs and Border Protection did not answer multiple inquiries Saturday about the case. The actor insisted he had all the proper paperwork when he was brought to a detention room at the New Jersey airport. But, he said, Khan "is a Muslim name, and I think the name is common on their checklist." New Dehli-based U.S. Ambassador Timothy Roemer said officials were trying to "ascertain the facts of the case." "Shah Rukh Khan, the actor and global icon, is a very welcome guest in the United States," Roemer said Saturday. "Many Americans love his films." But there were no Bollywood buffs in Newark as Khan came through the airport on his way to Chicago for a celebration of India's independence day. "I told them I am a movie star," Khan said - although the line fell on deaf ears. He recently signed a deal with Fox Star Studios to finance and distribute his new movie, "My Name is Khan" - the story of a Muslim man mistaken for a terrorist in post-9/11 America. The incident caused outrage in his homeland, where the Khan-troversy dominated television news. Last month, Continental Airlines apologized to former Indian President Abdul Kalam for frisking him at New Delhi's airport.

A 11-year-old boy has succeeded where loads of journalists fail by getting an interview with President Barack Obama.
Damon Weaver, from Florida, got his big break after making a name for himself covering the 2008 American presidential campaign for his school news team.
During their 10-minute chat at the White House, Damon quizzed Barack Obama on everything from education and poverty to bullying and mangoes.
Afterwards, Damon said the president was "a good man, very tall and nice".
During their chat, Damon got straight to the point and asked if the president had the power to make school lunches better
He replied: "I used to get school lunches, sometimes they wouldn't taste so good, I got to admit.
"We are actually seeing if we can work to at least make school lunches healthier."
But when Damon suggested a menu of French fries and mangoes everyday, the president wasn't so keen.
"See, if you were planning the lunch program, it'd probably taste good to you," he said. "But it might not make you big and strong like you need to be."
Tackling bullies
Damon also asked the president about what's being done to tackle poverty in America and how he handles people giving him a hard time.
President Obama said: "The main thing I just try to do is stay focused on trying to do a good job, and try to be understanding that sometimes people are going to be mad about things."
When the interview was over, President Obama praised Damon's interview technique, saying: "You did an outstanding job, I look forward to seeing you in the future."