Kings And Queens

Rudy Vallee's home for 45 years is on the market at $10 million. The megaphone-carrying crooner, who died at age 85 while watching the Statue of Liberty centennial ceremonies July 3, bought the 20-acre mountaintop estate in the Hollywood Hills from the late 1930s screen beauty Ann Harding, who built the place in 1930 when there were no nearby homes. (Harding died at 79 in 1981.) Vallee often called the estate his Spanish castle though he named it "Silvertip" for a pine tree on the patio.

The list of superstar tribute shows in Las Vegas is expanding this week. Beginning Thursday, the long-running "Legends in Concert" opens in its new home at the Flamingo . On Friday, "Stars in Concert," the genre's newest entry, premieres at the free-standing Boulevard Theatre . And look-alike, sound-alike junkies can add "Tribute Royalty" -- already showing at the V Theater inside the Miracle Mile Shops --...

Why are so many people against liberals? If we weren't a nation of liberals we would still be under the kings and queens of England. We the people would not be able to vote for those who oversee the day-to-day business of government. Only men who owned land could vote. We would still have legal slavery. We would not be allowed to worship as we want. We would not have had the technical advances that allow us to have the relatively easy and healthy lives that we now have. We could not write letters to the editor and hold public discussions that disagree with the government and current thought.

HONOLULU - Palace intrigue? Check. Royal rapscallions? Some. Kings and queens and gorgeous things? You'll find those too. You thought we were speaking of Britain, perhaps? Well, no, although Britain celebrated Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee in June. Instead, we're turning to Hawaiian royalty, who ruled a kingdom now so popular that 7.3 million people visited last year. Royal watchers will find almost as many twists and turns in the story of the Hawaiian monarchs as they do among England's overlords.

HONOLULU - Palace intrigue? Check. Royal rapscallions? Some. Kings and queens and gorgeous things? You'll find those too. You thought we were speaking of Britain, perhaps? Well, no, although Britain celebrated Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee in June. Instead, we're turning to Hawaiian royalty, who ruled a kingdom now so popular that 7.3 million people visited last year. Royal watchers will find almost as many twists and turns in the story of the Hawaiian monarchs as they do among England's overlords.

The list of superstar tribute shows in Las Vegas is expanding this week. Beginning Thursday, the long-running "Legends in Concert" opens in its new home at the Flamingo . On Friday, "Stars in Concert," the genre's newest entry, premieres at the free-standing Boulevard Theatre . And look-alike, sound-alike junkies can add "Tribute Royalty" -- already showing at the V Theater inside the Miracle Mile Shops --...

Re "Growing Rage on Sidelines Takes Life of Hockey Dad," July 11: The article discussing the killing of one father by another, apparently resulting from their respective sons' altercation at the kids' hockey game, states it is evidence of a growing sports rage. Sports rage, like road rage and air rage, is prompted by an excessively self-indulgent attitude affecting many people in our society. They, as David Brooks in his book "Bobos in Paradise" states, see self-actualization and unencumbered choices as paramount.

Re "President claims oversight exemption," June 23 The Bush administration's own executive order from 2003 makes an admirable point: "Our democratic principles require that the American people be informed of the activities of their government" -- yet this is the same order that President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney now say they are above obeying. I've taught social studies to students for 14 years, and I now have to amend my curriculum, for it seems there are people who are above the Constitution.

If things continue as they are and Britain's Prince Charles succeeds his mother to reign as king until his death at a ripe old age, then sometime around 2040 the young couple getting married in Westminster Abbey on Friday will be King William V and Queen Catherine. By sheer accident of birth, William will then be the head of state of whatever is left of today's United Kingdom. Would that be all right? My answer is: In theory, no; in practice, probably yes. If William and Kate behave themselves, unlike some of the gamier members of Britain's royal family, and contribute to the development of a modernized, slimmed-down constitutional monarchy, this can actually be better than the likely alternatives.

  In addition to everything else that Madrid has to offer, there are numerous possibilities for day trips that are less than an hour away. So it’s easy to get a complete change of scenery without packing your suitcase or hunting for lodging.    Aranjuez Other than flamenco, no music cries “Spain” in such vivid harmonic flourishes as Joaquin Rodrigo’s dramatic  “Concierto de Aranjuez.” So what better way to immerse yourself in Spain’s glory than to stroll the gardens that inspired this iconic piece of music?

A San Diego high school where a lesbian couple were selected as homecoming king and queen has been the subject of hateful phone calls and emails, officials said. Officials did not detail the messages but described some of them as disturbing. Bill Kowba, San Diego school superintendent, said adults criticizing the selection of Rebecca Arellano and Haileigh Adams are "demonstrating such a lack of tolerance and are presenting such a negative role model for children with their hateful comments.

Edie Wasserman, who was the widow of Hollywood powerhouse Lew Wasserman and who was known as a tireless benefactor for charitable causes, especially the Motion Picture and Television Fund, has died. She was 95. Wasserman died Thursday in Beverly Hills of natural causes, said her grandson, Casey Wasserman. "She was an incredible woman, sort of once in a lifetime," he said. "She had very strong convictions and was dogged in her pursuit of those. And they usually involved helping others.

A long line of Norwegians streamed into Oslo's cathedral Sunday morning for a service focused on the grief and need for healing after Friday's attacks that left 93 dead. Police searched bags as people entered the service, which was attended by Norway's king and queen. "Today we are mourning. Today we want to stop and remember those who died," Prime Minister Jens Stoltenberg said at the service, as attendees in the pews wept. Photos: Norway attack In all, 93 people were killed and 97 wounded in the Oslo bombing and Utoya Island shooting rampage.

If things continue as they are and Britain's Prince Charles succeeds his mother to reign as king until his death at a ripe old age, then sometime around 2040 the young couple getting married in Westminster Abbey on Friday will be King William V and Queen Catherine. By sheer accident of birth, William will then be the head of state of whatever is left of today's United Kingdom. Would that be all right? My answer is: In theory, no; in practice, probably yes. If William and Kate behave themselves, unlike some of the gamier members of Britain's royal family, and contribute to the development of a modernized, slimmed-down constitutional monarchy, this can actually be better than the likely alternatives.

  In addition to everything else that Madrid has to offer, there are numerous possibilities for day trips that are less than an hour away. So it’s easy to get a complete change of scenery without packing your suitcase or hunting for lodging.    Aranjuez Other than flamenco, no music cries “Spain” in such vivid harmonic flourishes as Joaquin Rodrigo’s dramatic  “Concierto de Aranjuez.” So what better way to immerse yourself in Spain’s glory than to stroll the gardens that inspired this iconic piece of music?

Hear the words " Cannes Film Festival," and your mind might drift to some of the glamorous personalities who have walked these historic seaside streets over the years: Catherine Deneuve. Sophia Loren. Angelina Jolie. Mark Hamill. Yes, that Mark Hamill, the 58-year-old actor best known for wielding a lightsaber in the "Star Wars" movies and a man who hasn't had a mainstream film role in more than two decades. This paparazzi-filled, fashioned-obsessed, au courant city wouldn't be the first place you'd expect a Jedi warrior to stand cheek by jowl with Oscar winners and the film world's most prestigious names.

The images conjured by Queen Victoria -- dour, dumpy and emblematic of a certain general uptightness -- do not immediately bring to mind the lithe and expressive actress Emily Blunt. Yet in "The Young Victoria," directed by Jean-Marc Vallée from a script by Julian Fellowes and with producers including Martin Scorsese and Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, Victoria is portrayed as a strong-willed young woman emerging into her own as queen from a cocooned upbringing pre-coronation. The film's spunky attitude and steely spirit, with Blunt alternately slouching in her chair and skipping down a hallway, stakes out an unlikely middle ground somewhere between, say, "Whip It" and "Bright Star."

Emily Blunt has a suggestion for all those sticklers who demand real history in their film biographies. "Watch the History Channel if you want it literal and historically perfect." The star of "The Young Victoria" was reacting to some of the quibbling of British critics about the film, which is enjoying much better reviews in Australia and the United States than it did when it opened in Queen Victoria's native land. Gripes about this invention (the queen's husband taking a bullet for her)

Emily Blunt has a suggestion for all those sticklers who demand real history in their film biographies. "Watch the History Channel if you want it literal and historically perfect." The star of "The Young Victoria" was reacting to some of the quibbling of British critics about the film, which is enjoying much better reviews in Australia and the United States than it did when it opened in Queen Victoria's native land. Gripes about this invention (the queen's husband taking a bullet for her)

The images conjured by Queen Victoria -- dour, dumpy and emblematic of a certain general uptightness -- do not immediately bring to mind the lithe and expressive actress Emily Blunt. Yet in "The Young Victoria," directed by Jean-Marc Vallée from a script by Julian Fellowes and with producers including Martin Scorsese and Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York, Victoria is portrayed as a strong-willed young woman emerging into her own as queen from a cocooned upbringing pre-coronation. The film's spunky attitude and steely spirit, with Blunt alternately slouching in her chair and skipping down a hallway, stakes out an unlikely middle ground somewhere between, say, "Whip It" and "Bright Star."