Highest-paid TV actresses revealed

Photos from: Jose Espinoza and Joanie G's Pinterest accounts; Edited by: Kim Ravia

Forbes Magazine released its list of the world's highest-paid TV actresses this year. The two women who took out the top spot are Sofia Vergara from Modern Family, who is at number one for the fourth year in a row and Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting from The Big Bang Theory. Each actress raked in $28.5 million between June 1, 2014 and June 1, 2015.

The Big Bang Theory actress and her co-stars, Jim Parsons and Johnny Galecki reportedly signed new contracts with CBS for another three years at equal rates of $1 million per episode. Vergara has snagged endorsement deals with CoverGirl and Head and Shoulders this year. She also continues to run her talent firm, Latin World Entertainment.

Coming in third place is Sofia Vergara's Modern Family co-star, Julie Bowen with $12 million, followed by Grey's Anatomy's , Ellen Pompeo in fourth place with $11.5 million and finally to round out the top five is Law and Order: SVU's , Mariska Hargitay with $11 million. 

   

The TV Show Tag

Photo from: Chad Syme's Pinterest account

I really enjoyed doing that music tag thing last week so I decided to do another one! This one's a TV show tag though. Hope you all like it and don't get to bored.

1) What's your favourite reality show?
2) What's your favourite drama?
3) What's your favourite comedy?
4) Favourite show as a child?
5) Favourite old TV show?
6) A show you can't stand?
7) Favourite cartoon?
8) Favourite guilty pleasure to watch?
9) Favourite anime?
10) Favourite TV show?
11) Favourite leading character in a show?
12) All-time favourite show?

The next people I'm tagging to do this are Anita Purwanto and Liat Ravia! 

STARDUST News Bytes- September 4

So, it's been a busy week of STARDUST with the MTV VMA's earlier this week. Has everyone recovered from Miley Cyrus's outfits and Kanye West's presidential promise? (LOL)! Anyway, here are some of the top entertainment news headlines this week...just in case you missed it!

Photo from: Katherine Grisaffi's Pinterest account

Kermit The Frog has new girlfriend
 The Muppets stars only just split up last month, but Kermit The Frog has already moved on from Miss Piggy. "After careful thought, thoughtful consideration and considerable squabbling, Miss Piggy made the difficult decision to terminate our romantic relationship" Kermit said in a statement in August. Earlier this week the little green frog gave us an update on his relationship status. "While I prefer to keep my personal life private, this is Hollywood, who am I kidding? It is true that I am dating again. However at this time no woman -- pig or otherwise -- is my official "new girlfriend". We are simply close friends" the puppet tweeted. Kermit's new 'friend' is a pig called, Denise and she is the head of marketing for ABC. As for Miss Piggy maybe she'll move on with actor, William Shatner? "Wow! How much did this cost? BTW, is Miss Piggy available?" Shatner tweeted. "Very much available, mon cher. Gimmie a call I'd love to boldly go where no pig has gone before" Miss Piggy wrote in reply to him.

Donald Trump supports Kanye's presidential campaign
Donald Trump supports the idea of Kanye West running for President in 2020. "I wonder who gave him that idea. He said very nice things about me in the past, and he knows my daughter a bit, Ivanka. He's actually a different kind of person than people think, he's a nice guy. I hope to run against him someday" Trump said in an interview with The Rolling Stone. Trump is not the only one supporting Kanye's campaign. Rihanna said that she'd support Kanye's presidential run. 

Ariana Grande teases about her new album
Ariana Grande gave clues earlier this week about her upcoming album, which is reportedly titled Moonlight. "Babies, I'm so excited for the nearby future... (also embracing and loving the present)...but I'm really effing excited for the future. Personally...I consider October nearby future" the singer tweeted. Grande promises that she's "not teasing!!!. I promised y'all I would always tell you as much as I could as soon as I could. Only cause I love you like I do" Grande tweeted. Grande has changed her Twitter bio to simply say moonlight. The singer's third album will be released by the end of this year.

Demi Lovato opens up about father's death
Demi Lovato is opening up about her father's death for her new album. Lovato's estranged father lost his battle with cancer in 2013. "The last song I recorded for the new album was Father. I'm particularly excited for this song. I get very, very honest about the passing of my Dad. My fans expect me to be honest, but what I think people in general aren't going to expect is the way that I sing the song. I took it to a more soulful, gospel kind of sound and it's the song that I think I'm the most proud of on the album" Lovato said. Lovato's new album, Confident is due out in October.

Avril Lavigne and Chad Kroeger split
Avril Lavigne and her husband, Nickelback frontman Chad Kroeger announced their separation in an Instagram post on Wednesday. "It is with a heavy heart that Chad and I announce our separation today. Through not only the marriage, but the music as well we've created some unforgettable moments. We are still, and forever will be, the best of friends, and will always care deeply for each other. To all our family, friends and fans, thank you sincerely for the support". the Sk8er Boi singer said. Lavigne and Kroeger married in the south of France on July 1, 2013. This was her second marriage after her first, to Sum 41 singer, Derrick Whibley ended in 2010. 

Got any opinions on this week's news bytes? Feel free to share your thoughts and opinions in the comment box below.

Information compiled from: Entertainment Tonight      

   

Monthly entertainment favourites

I decided to try something a little different with my blog. Hopefully you guys like it! I thought that at the beginning of each month I'd let you all know some of my favourite things in the entertainment world from the previous month.

First up is Taylor Swift! I've always liked her music, but her latest album 1989 is her best one yet I think! I think I've downloaded half the album onto my iPod already, since I like most of the songs on it. I loved the video clip for Bad Blood! I wish I looked that good in a super hero outfit. I saw the debut of Taylor's Wildest Dreams video clip during the VMAs yesterday. That's pretty good too, and it has Scott Eastwood in it! (Need I say more ladies? LOL!)

Photo from: Judy Doherty's Pinterest account

I recently saw the movie Paper Towns, and was such a big of Cara Delevingne's performance in the film that she definitely makes the list on my monthly entertainment favourites. I think I already mentioned it in my review of Paper Towns, but it is one of the best movies I've seen so far this year. I was recently watching an interview that Cara Delevingne did on The Project a few months ago, and she just seems like a really down-to-earth girl. So good to see someone her age in Hollywood who's not putting on an act and not afraid to be themselves. I predict a long film career ahead for her!

Photo from: Gemma Taber's Pinterest account

Now we come to a little guilty pleasure of mine! Not sure if I should admit publicly to watching it? Then again it seems like everyone in Australia is watching as well, right? I've been watching The Bachelor Australia this season. I never watched the previous seasons at all, so not sure why I'm liking it this year. I think perhaps Sandra's antics sucked me into it haha! I kept wanting to see who's feathers she would ruffle next, so just kept watching! To be honest I find the girls behaviour more amusing than anything else. It's good for a laugh. In any case I have a few favourite girls that I hope Sam chooses, because I reckon they seem the closest and best suited to him. I hope he chooses Heather or Snezana (or should we call her parmigana, like everyone else? Haha!)

Photo from: Michael Barrett's Pinterest account

I've watched The Voice Australia every season so far, and when I heard that Jessie J was going to be one of the coaches for this season I wasn't too sure how she'd go, but I must say I really enjoyed watching her. She seemed to take her role as a mentor very seriously, which is what the coaches are supposed to do I think. Jessie J's advice may have seemed harsh at times, but at least it was honest unlike some of the fluff that the other coaches were going on about. I think Jessie J has the right attitude so she was definitely my favourite coach on The Voice this year!

Photo from: Rebecca Norton's Pinterest account

Now, anyone who's known me for a while will know that I'm a huge Neighbours fan. Just a hint for any UK Neighbours fans, this will contain some spoilers for you since you guys are a few weeks behind the Australian broadcast. There's a huge story line going on at the moment involving Brad Willis [Kip Gamblin] and Lauren Turner [Kate Kendall]. It's been a long time coming so I can't wait to see it all play out in spectacular fashion this week! Team Brad and Lauren all the way, so these two make the entertainment favourites this month!

Photo from: Lieve Jacobs Pinterest account

I hope you all enjoyed reading about what some of my favourite things are this month! Stay tuned next month to see what else I'm liking! 

2015 MTV Video Music Awards- Full winners list

Photo from: MTV Facebook page

Well, for those who don't know the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards (VMAs) just wrapped up at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. This year's awards ceremony was hosted by none other than Miley Cyrus, and included performances from Nick Jonas, Nicki Minaj, Taylor Swift, Demi Lovato, Justin Bieber and of course...Miley! There were a lot of memorable moments this year from Miley Cyrus's revealing dress, Justin Beiber crying on stage during his comeback performance to Kanye West's long acceptance speech (I think he's still talking LOL!) Here is the full list of winners at this year's VMAs.

*Winners are listed in red*

Category: Video of the year
Beyonce' - 7/11
Kendrick Lamar - Alright
Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars - Uptown Funk
Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud
Taylor Swift - Bad Blood

Category: Best Male Video
Nick Jonas - Chains
Kendrick Lamar - Alright
Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud
Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars - Uptown Funk
The Weeknd - Earned It

Category: Best Female Video
Beyonce' - 7/11
Ellie Goulding - Love Me Like You Do
Nicki Minaj - Anaconda
Sia - Elastic Heart
Taylor Swift - Blank Space

Category: Artist to watch
James Bay - Hold Back the River
Fetty Wrap - Trap Queen
George Ezra - Budapest
FKA twigs - Pendulum
Vance Joy - Riptide

Category: Best Pop Video
Beyonce' - 7/11
Maroon 5 - Sugar
Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars - Uptown Funk
Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud
Taylor Swift - Blank Space

Category: Best Rock Video
Arctic Monkeys - Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High?
Fall Out Boy - Uma Thurman
Florence + the Machine - Ship to Wreck
Hozier - Take Me To Church
Walk The Moon - Shut Up + Dance

Category: Best Hip-Hop Video 
Big Sean featuring E-40 - I Don't F*** With You
Fetty Wrap - Trap Queen
Kendrick Lamar - Alright
Nicki Minaj - Anaconda
Wiz Khalifa featuring Charlie Puth - See You Again

Category: Best Collaboration
Ariana Grande & The Weeknd - Love Me Harder
Jessie J, Ariana Grande and Nicki Minaj - Bang Bang
Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars - Uptown Funk
Wiz Khalifa - See You Again
Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar - Bad Blood

Category: Best Direction
Childish Gambino - Sober - (Director Hero Mural)
Hozier - Take Me To Church - (Directors Brendan Canty and Conal Thomson)
Kendrick Lamar - Alright - (Directors Colin Tilley and the Little Homies)
Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars - Uptown Funk - (Directors Bruno Mars and Cameron Duddy)
Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar - Bad Blood - (Director Joseph Kahn)

Category: Best Visual Effects
Childish Gambino - Telegraph Ave - (Visual Effects Gloria FX)
FKA Twigs - Two Weeks - (Visual Effects Gloria FX, Tomash Kuzmytski, Max Chyzhevskyy)
Taylor Swift - Bad Blood - (Visual Effects Ingenuity Studios)
Tyler, The Creator - F****** Young/Death Camp - (Visual Effects Gloria FX)
Skrillex and Diplo featuring Justin Bieber - Where Are U Now - (Visual Effects Brewer)

Category: Best Art Direction
The Chemical Brothers - Go - (Art Director Michel Gondry)
Skrillex and Diplo featuring Justin Bieber - Where Are U Now - (Art Director Brewer)
Snoop Dogg - So Many Pros - (Art Director Fijal)
Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar - Bad Blood - (Art Director Charles Infante)
Jack White - Would You Fight For My Love? - (Art Director Jeff Peterson)

Category: Best Editing
A$AP Rocky - L$D - (Editor Dexter Navy)
Beyonce' - 7/11 - (Editors Beyonce', Ed Burke and Jonathan Wing)
Ed Sheeran - Don't - (Editor Jacquelyn London)
Skrillex and Diplo featuring Justin Bieber - Where Are U Now - (Editor Brewer)
Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar - Bad Blood - (Editor Chancler Haynes at Cosmo Street)

Category: Best Cinematography
Alt-J - Left Hand Free - (Director of Photography Mike Simpson)
FKA Twigs - Two Weeks - (Director of Photography Justin Brown)
Flying Lotus featuring Kendrick Lamar - Never Catch Me - (Director of Photography Larkin Sieple)
Ed Sheeran - Thinking Out Loud - (Director of Photography Daniel Pearl)
Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar - Bad Blood - (Director of Photography Christopher Probst)

Category: Best Video with a Social Message
Big Sean featuring Kanye West and John Legend - One Man Can Change The World 
Colbie Caillat - Try
Jennifer Hudson - I Still Love You
Rihanna - American Oxygen
Wale - The White Shoes

Category: Song of Summer
5 Seconds Of Summer - She's Kinda Hot
Fetty Wrap featuring Monty - My Way
Fifth Harmony featuring Kid Ink - Worth It
Selena Gomez featuring A$AP Rocky - Good For You
David Guetta featuring Nicki Minaj, Bebe Rexha and Afrojack - Hey Mama
Demi Lovato - Cool For The Summer
Major Lazer & DJ Snake featuring MO - Lean On
OMI - Cheerleader (Felix Jaehn Remix)
Silento - Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae)
Skrillex and Diplo featuring Justin Bieber - Where Are U Now
Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar - Bad Blood
The Weeknd - Can't Feel My Face

Category: Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award
Kanye West

Did any of guys watch the MTV VMAs this year? If, so feel free to comment, share your thoughts etc in the comment box below! 

2015 MTV Video Music Awards- live blog

Photo from: MTV Video Music Awards Facebook page

Hello everyone! So, the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards or as they are most commonly referred to the VMA's are currently going on live as we speak at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. Miley Cyrus is hosting the awards this year so they should be interesting to say the least! I'm currently live streaming the awards from Sydney, Australia so I'm blogging them as I see it. I'll time stamp my updates. Since I'm in Australia I'll be putting Australian Eastern Standard Time (AEST) first and then Pacific Daylight Time (PDT second. Here we go!...

10:35 am AEST/5:35pm PDT: Uh...just saw Miley Cyrus's dress, if you can call it that? To be honest I'm not impressed.

10;41am AEST/5:41pm PDT: Just realised whenever I use the #VMAs hashtag on Twitter a little moon man appears! How cool is that? (Sorry that's random I know LOL!)

10:55am AEST/5:55pm PDT: The VMA for Best Pop Video goes to...Blank Space by Taylor Swift! I love that song!

11:02am AEST/6:02pm PDT: Nick Minaj opens the show in a spectacular costume!

11:15am AEST/6:15pm PDT: My live stream cut out guys! I'm trying to get it back up or find another one hopefully!

11:19am AEST/6;19pm PDT: The VMA for Best Male Video goes to...Mark Ronson and Bruno Mars for Uptown Funk

11:31am AEST/6:31pm PDT: Did I just hear Rebel Wilson at the VMAs? Aussie represent!

11:32am AEST/6:32pm PDT: Finally got some sort of live stream back! It's not ideal, but I can work with it.

11:34am AEST/6:34pm PDT: The VMA for Best Hip-Hop Video goes to Nicki Minaj for Anaconda

11:45am AEST/6;45pm PDT: The VMA for Best Female Video goes to...Taylor Swift for Blank Space! Yes! What a deserving win. I love that song! Oh...I already mentioned that before haha!

11:56am AEST/6;55pm PDT: Demi Lovato is currently performing her new hit Cool For The Summer! I saw her performing it live on The Voice Australia a few weeks ago. It's a pretty catchy song!

12:13pm AEST/7:13pm PDT: I think Justin Bieber just cried on stage during his comeback performance...wow!

12:41pm AEST/7;41pm PDT: The VMA Video Vanguard Award goes to...Kanye West. Not sure if I should be happy or disappointed that Kanye won an award named after my favourite artist? Coincidence that Taylor Swift presented his award and said the famous "I'm gonna let you finish line"? Obviously not LOL!

12:45pm AEST/7;45pm PDT: Do we have wind up music for Kanye's acceptance speech? C'mon mate! Who do you think you are? At this rate I think it should be called the Kanye West Awards Show.

12:53pm AEST/7:53pm PDT: Kanye West announced he's running for President in 2020. Please tell me he's not serious? Is he really that stupid? G-D help us all if he does. Good luck with that one America!

1:08pm AEST/8:08pm PDT: The VMA for Artist To Watch goes to...Fetty Wrap for Trap Queen. Doesn't Rita Ora look gorgeous by the way?

1:21pm AEST/8:21pm PDT: The VMA for Video Of The Year goes to...Taylor Swift for Bad Blood! Hell yeah! I love that video clip and I love that song! Congrats Taylor!

1:31pm AEST/8:31pm PDT: And Miley Cyrus closes the VMAs with a bang!

1:34pm AEST/8:34pm PDT: That's all from the 2015 MTV VMAs folks! I hope you'll enjoy reading this live blog and for those who've been following my tweets I hope you enjoyed them. I always love doing live blogs for you guys! It's really so much fun, even with some minor technical difficulties and I love getting the chance to interact with y'all. 

Just as a side note, not all the awards are presented during the awards show, so the awards that I've mentioned here are the ones that were televised live on MTV. I'll do another blog post in a bit with the full winners list. 

Michael Jackson: A life in pictures

For those who don't know August 29th is the day that Michael Jackson aka the King Of Pop was born. He of course sadly passed away in 2009 from cardiac arrest, but if Michael Jackson was alive today he would've been 57. Happy birthday Michael! I hope you guys enjoy the photo montage I made!   

...

The music tag

Photo from: Petra Cantu's Pinterest account

I was checking my e-mails today and I got a very surprising one. Fortunately it was a good kind of surprise. It was from a young reader of STARDUST who said she was a big fan of my blog and she wanted to pass this music tag onto me so I could answer her questions. I'm more than happy to oblige of course, so this one's especially for Kelly Blackman of New York, but it's also for all of you as well. Since this is an entertainment news blog it's also quite fitting, plus tags are always fun to do and y'all get the chance to know a little bit more about me. So let's start!

1) Which bands/artists do you own the most albums by?

Honestly, I don't really own any albums anymore. I have a lot of music on my iPod though. The artist I have the most songs of by far on my iPod is Michael Jackson (some of you won't be surprised at that response I know LOL!). I also have a lot of Katy Perry, Beyonce and Rihanna just to name a few.

2) What was the last song you listened to?

Higher Love by Steve Winwood

3) What's in your CD player right now?

I haven't owned a CD player in years to tell you the truth so none!...Sorry I couldn't have a more interesting answer for you there haha!

4) What was the last show you attended?

I went to see Katy Perry on her Prismatic Tour in December of last year with my best friend.

Photo taken by: Kim Ravia

5) What was the greatest show you've ever been to?

It has to be Kelly Clarkson, The Fray were the opening act for Kelly Clarkson when I went to see her and I love The Fray as well as Kelly, so it was extra special for me!

6) What's the worst show you've ever been to?

I can't say I've ever been to a bad concert, but I went to the Australian Idol grand final back in 2004, when I was about 16. I had fun but it was way too crowded for my liking, also I had to stand for hours so by the end of the night my feet were killing me! 

7) What's the most musically involved you have ever been?

I used to be in choirs when I was in primary school and high school and I used to be in the Australian Girls Choir. I love listening to music and I've always had a good ear for good music, but that's about it really.

8) What show are you looking forward to?

I'm not going to see anything in the near future unfortunately.

9) What is your favourite band t-shirt?

I have a Rihanna t-shirt that I wear all the time, mostly as PJ's though. I have two Michael Jackson t-shirts that I wear on occasion, but the Rihanna one is definitely my favourite!

10) What musician would you like to hang out with for a day?

Do they have to be alive? If not then that's an easy answer and will come as no surprise. It is of course Michael Jackson. Don't you think it would be awesome to get to chat to him for a day to find out where he got inspiration for his songs from, who HIS music idols were growing up and about how he dealt with the harder times in his life? I think he'd be such an interesting and fascinating person to have a conversation with! 

Photo from: Erin Weber's Pinterest account

11) What is one musician or group you wish would make a comeback?

The Spice Girls! I used to love them back in the 90's! (I'm showing my age here LOL!) I always wondered how kids/teens these days would take to them now.

Photo from: Kendall Sandoval's Pinterest account

12) Who is one band/artist you've never seen live but always wanted to?

I would say Michael Jackson. He would've been amazing to see in concert! Since it's a bit late for that my second choice is Beyonce. She would be awesome too! 

Photo from: Kara Sloan's Pinterest account 

13) Name four or more flawless albums:

Affirmation by Savage Garden

Dangerous by Michael Jackson

Prism by Katy Perry

1989 by Taylor Swift

14) How many music related videos/DVDs do you own?

I really like watching DVDs of concerts, especially those artists of whom I haven't had a chance to see their shows live so I actually own quite a few music DVDs. I own about 6.

15) How many concerts/shows have you been to, total?

7.

16) Who have you seen the most live?

I haven't been to see any artist more than once.

17) What is your favourite movie soundtrack?

Almost Famous for sure! It's not only my favourite movie, but it has awesome songs throughout as well. I guess that kind of makes sense though considering it's a film about a music journalist, right?

18) What was your last musical "phase" before you wisened up?

I used to be very much a pop music person, but in the last few years my music taste has gone a bit more R&B and rap. That being said though I still like my pop music as well just not as exclusively as before.

19) What's your "guilty pleasure" that you hate to admit to liking?

I'm not usually a fan of One Direction, but sometimes their songs are pretty good so I will admit I do have some of their songs on my iPod (shh!)

20) Who do you want to tag to answer these questions next?

Can I tag more than one person? I have a few people in mind who I know would give good answers to this! Danielle Brooks, Grecia Vargas, Dani Tes and Lauren Yeats.

Well, that was a ton of fun to do! Thanks once again to my reader, Kelly Blackman for nominating me to do it. I hope you like my answers!    

Movie Review: Paper Towns

Photo from: Paper Towns Facebook page

Star Rating 4/5: ★★★★

So I recently saw Paper Towns directed by Jake Schreier and starring Nat Wolff, Cara Delevingne, Austin Abrams, Justice Smith, Halston Sage and Jaz Sincalir. It is a mystery/drama film. Paper Towns is a fantastic film, which really kept my interest throughout the whole movie. 

For a basic sum up of the plot line, Quentin Jacobsen [Nat Wolff] has lived across the road from his childhood crush, Margo Roth - Spiegelman [Cara Delevingne] since they were little kids. By the end of high school Quentin and Margo have drifted apart. Quentin becomes a quiet and studious boy, whereas Margo becomes popular and rebellious. After some issues with her friends Margo enlists Quentin's help to seek revenge on them, and the next day Margo is nowhere to be found, however she leaves clues behind that take Quentin and his friends on a journey of a lifetime. 

I've never seen Cara Delevingne or Nat Wolff in anything before, but I really enjoyed their performances in the film. I would definitely go and see another movie with Cara Delevingne in it and I think she has a long film career ahead of her. 

I loved how this movie has a bit of everything in it from funny moments to touching ones. Some funny highlights are Ben Starling's [Austin Abrams] frequent attempts to pick up girls and the collection of black santas at Radar's [Justice Smith] house. One of the sweetest moments in the film is when Quentin and Margo are dancing. Even though it's not a really a comedy the film had funny scenes in it here and there, which made the audience laugh. Of course the mystery theme of the movie kept me interested and entertained as well. 

I think the film had a pretty clear message about taking risks and having adventures in your life, because Margo is always doing risky things, and she teaches Quentin to let go and do it too. I thought the film conveyed that message quite well because by the end of the movie Quentin understood more about Margo's adventurous lifestyle.

Without giving the ending of the film away for those of you who haven't seen it yet, there is a little bit of a twist at the end, which I was surprised by, but I guess it keeps up with the mystery theme of the movie. Paper Towns is actually based on a book of the same name. The novel is written by John Green, who incidentally also wrote The Fault In Our Stars. I actually think if you enjoyed The Fault In Our Stars you'd also enjoy Paper Towns. 

Overall Paper Towns was a great film, with a mix of mystery, drama and laughs. It is honestly one of the best films I've seen this year and it really exceeded my expectations. 

Paper Towns official trailer courtesy of: 20th Century Fox

Have any of you guys seen Paper Towns? What did you think?

The Hot List: August 24, 2015

It's time for The Hot List! Here are the top 10 iTunes music downloads, the top 10 songs on the Billboard charts and the top five movies at the box office in Australia and the USA this week.

Top 10 iTunes downloads
1) How Deep Is Your Love - Calvin Harris & Disciples
2) Can't Feel My Face - The Weeknd
3) Wings - Delta Goodrem
4) Peanut Butter Jelly - Galantis
5) Are You With Me - Lost Frequencies
6) Wildest Dreams - Taylor Swift
7) Get Stupid - Aston Merrygold
8) Locked Away - R.City feat Adam Levine
9) Drag Me Down - One Direction
10) Watch Me (Whip/Nae Nae) - Silento

Billboard Hot 100
1) Cheerleader - OMI
2) Can't Feel My Face - The Weeknd
3) Watch Me - Silento
4) Lean On - Major Lazer & DJ Snake Featuring M0
5) The Hills - The Weeknd
6) Fight Song - Rachel Platten
7) Trap Queen - Fetty Wrap
8) My Way - Fetty Wrap Featuring Monty
9) Bad Blood - Taylor Swift Featuring Kendrick Lamar
10) Good For You - Selena Gomez Featuring A$AP Rocky

Top 5 Box Office Results (USA)
1) Straight Outta Compton
2) Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
3) Sinister 2
4) Hitman: Agent 47
5) The Man From U.N.C.L.E

Top 5 Box Office Results (Australia)
1) Trainwreck
2) Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation
3) The Man From U.N.C.L.E
4) Fantastic Four (2015)
5) Last Cab To Darwin

Information from: iTunes Australia , Billboard and eBroadcast . 

STARDUST News Bytes- August 21

Photo from: Ellen McLaughlin's Pinterest account

It's Friday, which means the weekend is here (TGIF, right?) It also means it's time for STARDUST News Bytes, so here are some of the top entertainment news headlines from around the world...just in case you missed it!

Jennifer Aniston shows off wedding ring
It's been two weeks since Jennifer Aniston and Justin Theroux tied the knot in a top secret wedding at their Bel Air mansion and now we finally get a glimpse of her wedding ring. The former Friends star was at the premiere of her new film, She's Funny That Way. She was sporting her new wedding ring on the red carpet. Aniston's red carpet appearance signals the end of the couple's wedding celebrations. Aniston and Theroux have spent the last two weeks on a tropical honeymoon in Bora Bora. The exclusive guest list for the wedding included Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Ellen Degeneres, Howard Stern, Chelsea Handler and Lisa Kudrow.

Jennifer Lawrence tops highest paid actresses list
Forbes magazine released its list of the world's highest paid actresses over the last 12 months this week, and at the top of the list is Hunger Games star, Jennifer Lawrence with $52 million. Coming in at second place is Scarlett Johansson, who earned $35.5 million this year thanks to her roles in Avengers: Age of Ultron and Lucy. In third place is Melissa McCarthy. The actress made $23 million over the past year, which could be due to her new clothing line Seven7. This year's list is very much global, with Chinese actress, Bingbing Fan coming in at number four with $21 million. Taking fifth place is none other than newlywed, Jennifer Aniston. I guess she hasn't been plugging that Smartwater for nothing right?

Kelly Clarkson pregnant with baby number two
Kelly Clarkson announced that she's pregnant with baby number two during her concert at the Staples Center in Los Angeles on Wednesday night. "I was not planning on announcing this, but I'm totally pregnant again" Clarkson admitted. The revelation caused a loud cheer among the audience. The 33-year-old revealed that she and her husband had not yet told some of their family members. Clarkson and her husband, Brandon had their first child, River Rose in June 2014.

Liam Payne criticized for homophobic comments
One Direction's Liam Payne came under fire this week for remarks he made on stage during a concert, which some people interpreted to be homophobic. "This is my favourite song off the last album, and it is about trying to find that number one woman in your life, which none of you can relate to, because most of you are girls. Except for the boys in here, you know what I'm talking about" Payne said as he introduced the song, Girl Almighty. The 21-year-old has now taken to Twitter to defend himself against the accusations. "Some people take things too literal these days. I am in no way, shape or form homophobic. That's a ridiculous thing to say and I'm not here to offend people so take it as you will. I'm sorry to those I offended I really am, but there;s no need for some of the things I'm being called" Payne tweeted. 

Cara Delevingne quits modelling
Cara Delevingne is currently one of the most successful models in the industry, but apparently a modelling career is a price that is too much to pay. The 23-year-old says she's "not doing fashion work anymore" in an interview with The Times. Delevingne explained that the demands of the industry has taken a serious toll on both her physical and mental health. "I was like fight or flight for months. It is a mental thing as well because if you hate yourself and your body and the way you look, it just gets worse and worse. Modelling just made me feel hollow after a while. It didn't make me grow at all as a human being" she said. The Paper Towns star has talked about quitting modelling before, revealing that acting is her true passion. The last runway the actress/model walked was the Chanel Fall/Winter 2015/2016 show at Paris Fashion Week in March.

Got any opinions, comments or thoughts on this week's News Bytes? Feel free to leave your comments in the box below!

Information compiled from: Entertainment Tonight and News.com.au  

Caitlyn Jenner could face manslaughter charge

Photo from: Justin Sims Pinterest account

If convicted Jenner could face up to a year in county jail. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department has completed its investigation into the car crash that Caitlyn Jenner was involved in this February, which left a woman dead. According to the report Jenner was not speeding, but she was still driving at an unsafe speed. Jenner's vehicle rear-ended two cars, pushing Kim Howe's car into oncoming traffic, which resulted in Howe's death.

Entertainment news website, TMZ had previously reported that Jenner would be unlikely to face felony charges, however if she is convicted on the misdemeanor charge she could face up to a year in county jail. Detectives are recommending that the district attorney charge Jenner with misdemeanor vehicular manslaughter. 

Jessica Steindorff, the other driver involved in the crash was driving with a suspended license, and could also be charged with a crime. Jenner is also being sued by Howe's step-children in a wrongful death lawsuit. They are claiming that Jenner was travelling at unsafe speeds and was negligent when she rear-ended the car, causing the death of their step-mother.

Got any opinions, thoughts and comments on this news story? Feel free to leave them in the comments box below! 

Shannen Doherty battles breast cancer

Photo from: Krystal Biersack's Pinterest account

Doherty is battling breast cancer. The former Beverly Hills 90210 star was diagnosed in March 2015 and has been forced to disclose the illness now after legal documents surfaced on entertainment news website TMZ, revealing that the actress is suing her former business manager for failing to pay her insurance premiums, which allowed her health insurance to lapse, during which time Doherty did not receive medical care. 

The 44-year-old actress was informed that had she been insured and able to visit the doctor the cancer would have been caught earlier. Doherty discovered that she had "invasive breast cancer metastatic to at least one lymph node, and the cancer spread during 2014" the lawsuit reveals. Doherty will likely have to suffer through chemotherapy and a mastectomy now.

Shifting into a slightly less newsy mode and into a more personal one. I am a huge fan of Shannen Doherty from her Beverly Hills 90210 and her Charmed days. I was so shocked to hear the news. I hope she is staying positive and I hope she finds the strength to get through this. I wish you a speedy recovery Shannen!

As always feel free to share your thoughts, comments and opinions in the comments box below!

The Hot List: August 3, 2015

It's been ages since I've done a Hot List, so here are the top ten songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, the top ten Australian iTunes music downloads and top five movie box office results from Australia and the USA this week.

Billboard Hot 100
1) Cheerleader - OMI
2) Can't Feel My Face - The Weeknd
3) Watch Me - Silento
4) Bad Blood - Taylor Swift featuring Kendrick Lamar
5) See You Again - Wiz Khalifa featuring Charlie Puth
6) Trap Queen - Fetty Wrap
7) My Way - Fetty Wrap featuring Monty
8) Fight Song - Rachel Platten
9) Shut Up And Dance - Walk The Moon
10) Lean On - Major Lazer & DJ Snake featuring M0

Top 10 iTunes Downloads
1) Are You With Me - Lost Frequencies
2) Peanut Butter Jelly - Galantis
3) Can't Feel My Face - The Weeknd
4) Like I'm Gonna Lose - Meghan Trainor
5) How Deep Is Your Love - Calvin Harris & Disciples
6) Headlights - Robin Schulz featuring Ilsey
7) Shut Up And Dance - Walk The Moon
8) Fire and the Flood - Vance Joy
9) Watch Me - Silento
10) Powerful - Major Lazer featuring Ellie Goulding

Top 5 Box Office Results (USA)
 1) Ant-Man
2) Pixels
3) Minions
4) Trainwreck
5) Southpaw

Top 5 Box Office Results (Australia)
1) Ant-Man
2) Trainwreck
3) Andre Rieu's 2015 Maastricht Concert
4) Magic Mike XXL
5) Paper Towns

Information sourced from: Billboard , iTunes Australia and Box Office Mojo  

STARDUST News Bytes- August 2

Photo from: Kristen White's Pinterest account 

I know it has been ages since I've done one of these! I really enjoy writing my weekly entertainment news wrap-ups, and I know people enjoy reading them, so here are some of the top entertainment news headlines from around the world...just in case you missed it!

Bobbi Kristina Brown has intimate memorial service
The late Bobbi Kristina Brown, daughter of music legend, Whitney Houston was laid to rest yesterday. The intimate memorial service focused on spirituality, family and of course music. The service was held at St. James United Methodist Church in Alpharetta, Georgia, and it included a loving tribute from Bobbi Kristina Brown's father, Bobby Brown. Many of the 22-year-old's relatives spoke at the memorial, including her aunt, Pat Houston and grandmother, Cissy Houston. A page in the memorial program featured a smiling picture of Brown with the caption "I also will always love you. Love, Daddy", this is a reference to Whitney Houston's popular song, I Will Always Love You. Despite a plea to attend the memorial service, Brown's ex, Nick Gordon was not there. "I loved Krissi with all my heart, and I am destroyed that she is gone and I need to say goodbye. Krissi loved me very much and she would want me there" Gordon wrote in a message to Brown's family. Bobbi Kristina Brown will be buried next to her mother, Whitney Houston in New Jersey on Monday.

Charlize Theron adopts baby girl
Charlize Theron has adopted a second child. A baby girl called August. The 39-year-old worked with an adoption agency for six months before adopting the African-American girl in July. Little August joins big brother, Jackson, 3, who Theron adopted from her native South Africa in 2012. The adoption comes just one month after Theron split from actor, Sean Penn.

Ashlee Simpson welcomes baby girl
 Keeping up with the theme of new celebrity babies, Ashlee Simpson and her husband, Evan Ross have welcomed the arrival of a baby girl on July 30. Simpson arrived at a Los Angeles hospital on Thursday just in time for her due date. The baby girl is the 30-year-old's second child. Her first child, Bronx Mowgli was with her ex-husband former Fall Out Boy bassist, Pete Wentz. 

Arnold Schwarzenegger celebrates 68th birthday
The Terminator star turned 68 years old on Thursday, and celebrated his birthday with his ex-wife, Maria Shriver in Beverly Hills. The pair had lunch at the Montage Hotel with their two daughters, Katherine and Christina. Schwarzenegger's son, Patrick instagrammed a shout out to his father. "68, and you're still bigger than me. When will you let me catch up?!? Happy birthday pops" he wrote. The former governor of California also took time out to record a special video for his fans. "I want to thank everyone for all the birthday wishes. I'm having the greatest time. My 68th birthday, wow. I'm in the gym working out, and now I'm going to have a little bit of lunch with my family, so hasta la vista, and have a great time , OK?" he said.

Kardashian sisters still call Caitlyn 'Bruce'
Khloe Kardashian admitted on Australia's The Project that her family are still adjusting to Caitlyn Jenner's gender transition, including calling her by her new name. "We don't like to say Bruce is gone per se. We, my sisters and I, we will call Caitlyn 'Bruce', and we've been told that's completely fine. She has told us we are allowed to call her any name we want to, because on the phone when she calls me it's still the same voice as Bruce. If I'm not physically with her it's hard to remember in the moment that I'm talking to Caitlyn if that makes sense" the reality TV star explained. Kardashian mentioned that Caitlyn has accepted that she may sometimes still be referred to as Bruce Jenner.

Got any opinions, thoughts or comments on this week;s news bytes? Feel free to leave them in the comment box below!

Information compiled from: Entertainment Tonight 

Bobbi Kristina Brown; dead at 22

Photo from: Juanita Beckett's Pinterest account

Bobbi Kristina Brown, the daughter of singers Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown died while in a coma in hospice care in Duluth, Georgia on Sunday. Brown had been in a medically induced coma since January 31st, 2015. Medical examiners are now faced with the task of solving how the daughter of the music legends died. 

It will likely be several weeks before the Fulton County Medical Examiner's Office can rule on a manner and cause of death for the 22-year-old, the agency said in a statement today. The agency said its initial autopsy showed "no significant injuries" or "previously unknown medical conditions". The next step in finding out how Brown died is to order lab tests and issue subpoenas for documents, which would most likely be Brown's hospital records. 

Any drugs that Brown may have taken would have passed through her bloodstream long ago, even while she was in a coma. Physical injuries would have also healed. Recovering any physical evidence that the police may have overlooked when Brown was hospitalised six months ago may be nearly impossible now. 

Bobbi Kristina Brown was found face down in a bathtub on January 31st, 2015 in her Georgia home, and was hospitalised. This is similar to how Brown's mother, the late Whitney Houston died in 2012.  

Oprah heading Down Under

Photo from: Michaela Yvette's Pinterest account

Yes! It's true the queen of daytime television is coming back to Australia. Oprah Winfrey was last on our soil in 2010, when she did a recording of her show at the Sydney Opera House. Remember she bought a legion of her fans from the US along with her? 

This time around Winfrey will be doing a talk show tour similar to her Live The Life You Want Weekend tour in America. She will be visiting Adelaide, Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney and Perth, and Winfrey's Australian tour is entitled An Evening With Oprah. The 61-year-old talk show host will be touring the country from Wednesday, December 2nd to Saturday, December 12th, 2015. She will start off at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, and finish the tour at Allphones Arena in Sydney.

Pre-sale tickets are already available to fans with a Visa credit, debit or prepaid card, however if you want to spend an evening with Ms Winfrey it doesn't come cheap. Tickets for the full 'O' VIP Photo + Soundcheck Experience reportedly costs up to $2,600. This means that fans will be seated in rows 4-10, they will get the opportunity to have a personal photo with Winfrey, as well as participate in a 15 minute Q&A session with the talk show megastar. Fans who purchase the VIP package are also invited to a 90 minute pre-show cocktail party, which includes a selection of canapes, fine wines and premium beers, but sadly Winfrey will not be attending the cocktail party. 

The cheapest tickets will set you back about $100. Winfrey's Australian ticket prices are supposedly double that of what a similar audience in the US would pay. I'm not sure how that's fair, and I'd love to know why Winfrey's management or whoever is in charge of that kind of thing expects Australian people to pay so much more than their American counterparts? It's not like she needs to cover the cost of flying here. I'm sure she's being paid for that! I was considering going to the Sydney show, but when I got a look at the prices I was out. I honestly hope you have a good time when you come to Australia, Oprah, but I will not be seeing you live.

I'd really love to know your thoughts on this one! Do you guys think it will be worth it to go at that price? Is anyone planning to go, or have you bought tickets yet? Feel free to leave your comments in the comment box below as always!     

Neighbours cast at Westfield Penrith

Photo taken by: Kim Ravia

I know this blog post is about a month overdue, and I've been a little MIA for the last few weeks but that will all be explained now. I just started doing some volunteer work a few days a week at the Salvation Army and I've had a lot on my plate recently with getting used to it so STARDUST was in the back of my mind for the past few weeks because I haven't had too much time for blogging. I have time now though and that's what matters. 

This blog entry is a bit of a special one, and hopefully it makes up for me not updating you guys with entertainment news for a while. As some of you may know it's Neighbours 30th anniversary this year and to celebrate that the cast of the show have been doing appearances at Westfields around the country.

On Saturday, the 20th of June some of the Neighbours cast did a meet-and greet in Sydney at Westfield Penrith. Scott McGregor (Mark Brennan), Tavis Burns (Tyler Brennan), Rebekah Elmaloglou (Terese Willis) and the legendary Stefan Dennis (Paul Robinson) attended this particular one. As a massive fan of Neighbours I went along of course! It took me two hours to get to Penrith, but it was well worth it in the end.

Photo taken by: Kim Ravia

Unfortunately when I got to Westfield Penrith the line to get autographs, and meet the four of them personally was already at maximum capacity. (I got there an hour earlier than the time the cast was expected to arrive, and there were already close to 200 people waiting in line!) I managed to sneak into a good spot on the side of the stage to get some good photo opportunities though. It was great to go to a Neighbours meet-and-greet, because I actually hadn't been to one of those in such a long time. The cast don't often come up to Sydney since the show is filmed in Melbourne, so the last time I went to a Neighbours meet-and-greet was in 2003, when I was 15!

Photo taken by: Kim Ravia

Scott McGregor, Travis Burns, Rebekah Elmaloglou and Stefan Dennis did a bit of a Q&A with the fans. There were quite a few disabled people in wheelchairs who came out to see the cast, and the four of them got up from their chairs to meet these very special fans. I thought that was so touching. In a nutshell a two hour train trip well spent! 

  Video footage shot and edited by: Kim Ravia