Gandhi

'A Soldier's Story," the provocative racial drama set in the segregated Army of World War II, is scheduled to make its South African debut--in segregated theaters. The movie will open Feb. 8 in South Africa's whites-only and blacks-only theaters, according to Patrick Williamson, president of Columbia Pictures International. "It's very important that this picture be seen in South Africa," Williamson said. "It can only be an influence for good."

Joe Weider, who made millions from a fitness empire and mentored a young Austrian bodybuilder who went on to become a major movie star and governor of California, has died. Weider, 93, passed away Saturday of heart failure  at his home in Los Angeles, according to a news release. The multimillion-dollar publishing empire he built included Muscle and Fitness, Flex, Shape, and Men's Fitness magazines. His death was marked by his protege Arnold Schwarzenegger, who called Weider "the godfather of fitness.

Shawn Robbins, psychic, author and mail-order entrepreneur, has turned her big hazel eyes toward Wall Street since the stock market has become so volatile. A shaky market is good for people in her line of work, she says. "For psychics," she says, "the market is boring when it's good, but now is the chance to really shine with psychic abilities. This is a good time to go to a 'reputable psychic.' "Be careful, though. This is not the time to go to Madame Ripoff on the corner with your portfolio.

The gig: Cesar Millan, 42, the famed "Dog Whisperer," almost immediately captivated viewers with the launch of his cable TV show in 2004. The show, now filming its ninth season, is just one part of his dog-training empire that includes five bestselling books, a magazine, a line of pet products and a Burbank philanthropy that advocates for adoption, no-kill shelters and spaying/neutering efforts. Humble beginnings: Long before he was the Dog Whisperer, he was called El Perrero — the dog boy — when growing up in rural Mexico because he was often seen on his grandfather's ranch, trailed by a pack of dogs.

India's richest man, Mukesh Ambani, is having a little housewarming in Mumbai this week to show folks around. It could take awhile. The $1-billion home, seven years in the making, is 400,000 square feet on 27 floors, all for a family of six. Don't worry about parking. The building, which looms over the city's skyline like a Lego set gone awry, boasts a 168-space lot. Or avoid Mumbai's nightmarish traffic altogether by landing on one of three helipads. Need to cool off after the stressful drive?

Sally Ride doesn't look like a woman outrageous enough to sit on top of a stack of enormous flaming rockets. There's absolutely nothing about her refined appearance or manner to suggest she has the grit to travel into the great, dark, airless abyss strapped to the seat of a hurtling piece of machinery. She's small, reserved, a reluctant heroine uneasy with eminence, a self-possessed but distant star who navigates her rarefied universe with quiet control.

'Tis the gift to be simple / 'Tis the gift to be free. --Shaker hymn from the early 1800s If Mother Ann Lee and her band of celibate, simplicity-loving Shakers were to materialize in Los Angeles in the 1980s, would they find kindred spirits here in the land of car phones and $100 sweat suits? Impossible, it seems. On first glance, at least, Mother Ann would be mortified from her efficient shoes to the tip of her plain muslin cap.

In the beginning there were the Cheetah Girls. Way back in 2003, when Hannah Montana was but a gleam in the Disney Channel's eye, Galleria (Raven-Symone), Chanel (Adrienne Bailon), Aqua (Kiely Williams) and Dorinda (Sabrina Bryan) became a bouncy, lovely pop band. Their message was simple: Nothing can keep you from being a star, but only if you remember that friends are more important than fame. Disney has since made billions embracing this creed: the "High School Musicals," "Hannah Montana" and "Camp Rock" all celebrate the glories of stardom while admonishing their audience to always choose friendship over personal glory.