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Gore Vidal , the elegant, acerbic all-around man of letters who presided with a certain relish over what he declared to be the end of American civilization, died on Tuesday at his home in the Hollywood Hills section of Los Angeles, where he moved in 2003, after years of living in Ravello, Italy. He was 86. The cause was complications of pneumonia, his nephew Burr Steers said by telephone. Mr. Vidal was, at the end of his life, an Augustan figure who believed himself to be the last of a breed, and he was probably right. Few American writers have been more versatile or gotten more mileage from their talent. He published some 25 novels, two memoirs and several volumes of stylish essays. He also wrote plays, television dramas and screenplays. For a while he was even a contract writer at MGM. And he could always be counted on for a spur-of-the-moment aphorism, putdown or sharply worded critique of American foreign policy. Perhaps more than any other American writer except Norman...

Image Credit: Ian Gavan/Getty Images Even before she chose to sleep with the married director of a movie she was starring in (the first time, incidentally, that such an event has ever taken place in the history of show business), Kristen Stewart was a lightning rod for haters. There are a number of reasons for that â€" I’ll get to those in a moment â€" but the most immediate reaction to Trampire-gate was, of course, an instant spike in the hatred. With this one sordid, seemingly out-of-character, unlucky-enough-to-be-photographed transgression, the normally wholesome, media-shy Stewart suddenly appeared to have committed three sins at once. On the most basic level of Tiger Beat soap opera, she betrayed her boyfriend and Twilight co-star and fellow teen idol Robert Pattinson, thus soiling their highly burnished romantic image. The affair was also a grenade tossed into the marriage of her Snow White and the Huntsman director, Rupert Sanders (not that he was exactly f...

Where does Batman get all of those wonderful toys? In the "Dark Knight" trilogy , they come from a winning combination of Bruce Wayne's extraordinary wealth, Lucius Fox's Applied Sciences division, and Christopher Nolan 's bountiful imagination. The director's just-concluded Batman trilogy always strived for real-world explanations for the Caped Crusader's decidedly larger-than-life arsenal, yielding numerous unforgettable gadgets along the way. With "The Dark Knight Rises" now in the books, here's a look at six of our favorite Batman gadgets from the Nolan era. Magnetic Grapple Gun Ah, the grapple gun. A magnetic, gas-powered handheld "firearm" in Nolan's trilogy, this gadget has been a mainstay across all of the iterations of Batman. It's simple but effective, allowing Bruce an easy exit whenever he needs it â€" and make no mistake, he needs it quite often. Bombs Away A little firepower can go a long way. J...

It'll be hard to pick a favorite in the Best Hip-Hop Video category at the 2012 Video Music Awards , it just depends on what you like. If you're into over-the-top bar mitzvahs with your bubby and Lil Weezy, then Drake's "HYFR" is for you. Or if you prefer a good-old-fashioned Paris party, then clearly you're more of a Watch the Throne type. Whatever your preference, between Nicki Minaj's "Beez in the Trap," Kanye West's "Mercy," The Throne's "Paris," Drake's "HYFR" and Childish Gambino's "Heartbeat," there's something for every rap fan. Voting is open now but to find out who'll win, you'll have to wait until Thursday, September 6, at 8 p.m. ET, when the 29th annual MTV VMAs kick off live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The soulful Alicia Keys and VMA newcomers One Direction are set to perform, and the full list of VMA nominees is online now! Drake, who lea...

Elizabeth Grant to Lana Del Ray We know, you thought that there was something precious about that singer known for her sudden ''Saturday Night Live'' appearance -- and bomb. But it definitely added some spice. Joel Ryan / AP Carlos Estevez to Charlie Sheen Before Tiger Blood, before #Winning, even before "Platoon,'' there was a brother to Emilio Estevez who took the stage surname of his dad, Martin Sheen. GUS RUELAS / REUTERS Destiny Hope Cyrus to Miley Cyrus No, not Hanna. She was named Destiny Hope in the aspiration she'd do great things. She got the nickname "Smiley,'' which was later shortened to Miley. Jason Merritt / GETTY IMAGES FOR AIF Patricia Mae Andrzejewski to Pat Benatar While we're talking 80s music, thought we'd hit you with this shot: Pat Benatar changed her name the old-fashioned way -- marrying a high school sweetheart with that surname. Also we found out the Spande...

vice via YouTube “Reincarnated,” a documentary, follows Snoop Dogg as he journeys to Jamaica to record an album with Diplo. Snoop went to Jamaica a Dogg but returned a Lion after a religious and artistic awakening. Rastafarian priests bestowed the new moniker Snoop Lion upon the music icon when he visited Jamaica in search of "a new path." "I didn't know that until I went to the temple, where the High Priest asked me what my name was, and I said, ' Snoop Dogg .' And he looked me in my eyes and said, 'No more. You are the light; you are the lion.' From that moment on, it's like I had started to understand why I was there," he explained at a press conference. Born Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr., Lion has always felt a special connection with Jamaica's most celebrated music legend, according to news.com.au. "I have always said I was Bob Marley reincarnated," Lion said. "I feel I have always been a Rastafari. I j...

The Twilight hunk wants to sit down with Liberty Ross to test Kristen's claims that she and Rupert had just a “momentary indiscretion” Crisis meeting: R-Patz wants to talk with Liberty Ross PA Heartbroken Robert Pattinson wants to meet the wife of the man who had a fling with his girlfriend. The Twilight hunk wants to sit down with Liberty Ross to test Kristen Stewart ’s claims that she and film director Rupert Sanders had just a “momentary indiscretion”. He fears their affair actually went on for months . A source said: “He needs to know for his own peace of mind if theirs was just a fleeting moment. "He hopes Liberty can help him find the answers he so desperately craves.” Pattinson, 26, is still barely talking to Kristen, 22, who was caught romping in a car with director Sanders by a US magazine. She said at the time: “This momentary indiscretion has jeopardised the most important thing in my life, the person I love and...

Snoop Dogg has a new interest in Rastafarianism. ( Heather Leiphart / Odessa American/Associated Press / July 31 , 2012 ) By August Brown July 31, 2012 , 4:36 p.m. The Long Beach rapper Snoop Dogg has several iconic traits -- a laid-back and menacing flow, evocatively violent lyrics and a deep affection for cannabis sativa among them. He'll get to keep at least one of those interests in his new incarnation as Snoop Lion, an alias gleaned from a new interest in Rastafarianism and a hard pivot to traditional reggae music. The identity change, which he first announced last week, is suprising but not unprecedented in contemporary hip-hop ( Nas recorded a collaborative album of reggae-infused tunes with Damian Marley). But it is a major re-imagining of the music and image of the man born Calvin Broadus. A forthcoming album of straightforward reggae, " Reincarnated ," is due soon on Vice Records, and features production by noted Jamaica -philes Ma...

WENN.com Forget the music bizâ€" Taylor Swift is getting into politics. Nope, 22-year-old country songbird is not running for office. But she is apparently dating a Kennedy. That would be Conor Kennedy , aka the 18-year-old son of Robert Kennedy Jr. and the late Mary Richardson Kennedy . Do you like Taylor Swift's dark hair for new CoverGirl campaign? Just last Wednesday, Swift and Kennedy were spotted having lunch at Marcella's Pizza in Mount Kisco, N.Y. While reps for the twosome declined to comment, they were together again this weekend at the Kennedy compound in Hyannis Port, Mass. The New York Post reports the lovebirds had some fun jumping on a trampoline (yes, a trampoline) shortly after Swift arrived on Friday. Later on, they went to a local house party, where they snuck away for a romantic hand-holding stroll on the beach. Saturday was reserved for sailing. Swift even had some chat time with Conor's grandmother, Ethel Kennedy . And on Sunda...

Rick Ross wasn't the chosen one, but the greats rarely are. Jay-Z started out as a hypeman for little-known eighties rapper Jaz-O and Lil Wayne was an unassuming teen in the Hot Boys who was forced to carry the Cash Money mantle when all of its stars went their separate ways. Back in the early 2000s, few thought the Teflon Don, a third-string talent on Miami's Slip N Slide records, would reach the top of rap's mountain, but there he stands. With all of his success, Ross is now ready to extract sweet revenge on his doubters. There were questions surrounding the release of God Forgives, I Don't, but then again there are questions surrounding every Rick Ross release of late, as if the Bawse's reign will inevitably end. It'll take more than a corrections officer controversy , a pair of seizures or what seems to be an oversaturation of the rap market to stop the Bawse, and God Forgives is the irrefutable evidence. The clanging of car keys and the inesc...

WENN.com Forget the music bizâ€" Taylor Swift is getting into politics. Nope, 22-year-old country songbird is not running for office. But she is apparently dating a Kennedy. That would be Conor Kennedy , aka the 18-year-old son of Robert Kennedy Jr. and the late Mary Richardson Kennedy . Do you like Taylor Swift's dark hair for new CoverGirl campaign? Just last Wednesday, Swift and Kennedy were spotted having lunch at Marcella's Pizza in Mount Kisco, N.Y. While reps for the twosome declined to comment, they were together again this weekend at the Kennedy compound in Hyannis Port, Mass. The New York Post reports the lovebirds had some fun jumping on a trampoline (yes, a trampoline) shortly after Swift arrived on Friday. Later on, they went to a local house party, where they snuck away for a romantic hand-holding stroll on the beach. Saturday was reserved for sailing. Swift even had some chat time with Conor's grandmother, Ethel Kennedy . And on Sunda...

There are no shortage of salient stories heading into the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards , and the race for Best New Artist will definitely garner its fair share of attention. And we're not just talking about the battle for boy-band supremacy between One Direction and the Wanted. Because, sure, while 1D and the Wanted are both nominated for BNA, they're by no means the only acts who have a legitimate shot at taking home the Moonman on September 6 (they do, however, have the best bone structure): Breakout hitmakers Fun. , Canadian sensation Carly Rae Jepsen and critical darling Frank Ocean are also in the running for the coveted award â€" and this year, it's anyone's for the taking. After all, it'll be up to the fans to determine who wins â€" voting is now under way in all VMA categories, through VMA.MTV.com or via mobile phones at m.mtv.com â€" and given the rather fervent support both 1D and the Wanted enjoy, it's entirely possible t...

Alicia Keys is set to celebrate the biggest night in music at the 2012 Video Music Awards when performs for her fifth time. Keys will debut a brand-new track off her upcoming album, The Method of Life, when she takes the stage on September 6. This will be the second time Keys has debuted new material at the VMAs. Back in 2007, Keys rocked Las Vegas as she performed her hit "No One," and is looking to re-create that same magic this year at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. "Debuting a new song at the VMAs is definitely special. I debuted 'No One' at the VMAs, it was the first time anyone had ever heard 'No One,' " Keys told MTV News. "It was just the perfect setting. It's the right energy. It's the right vibe. It's just that edgy enough for people to be open to hearing new songs. I think people are so excited about the night of music and hearing different styles that it just goes over really well, and this time I am goi...

Tweet Share this Email Print Related Topics Entertainment » Fashion » Music » Rihanna performs at the Hackney Weekend festival at Hackney Marshes in east London, June 24, 2012. Credit: Reuters/Olivia Harris NEW YORK | Tue Jul 31, 2012 1:55pm EDT NEW YORK (Reuters) - Pop singer Rihanna and rapper Drake each grabbed a leading five nominations for the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards, including for video of the year for Drake's "Take Care" featuring Rihanna. Rihanna's dizzying visual romp in the video for her hit "We Found Love" was also nominated for video of the year, along with Katy Perry's "Wide Awake", Gotye's "Somebody That I Used To Know" and M.I.A. for "Bad Girls." Perry received four nominations, second overall to Drake and Rihanna, including best female video for her inspirational anthem "Part of Me," which also is the ...

The fellas are going to have to bring their A game if they want to take home the Video of the Year moonman at the 29th annual 2012 MTV Video Music Awards . Seeking to break the four-year run of female VOTY winners are Drake and Gotye, who will vie for the honor against Katy Perry , Rihanna and M.I.A. The action will all go down live on September 6 at 8 p.m. EST from the Staples Center in Los Angeles during a show that will feature performances from four-time VMA veteran Alicia Keys and VMA first-timers One Direction. Click here 
 for the full list of 2012 VMA nominees. The video of the year category is anyone's game, but 2011 winner Perry certainly has the inside track thanks to the gothic sleepwalking clip for "Wide Awake" 
. The epic video 
, which borrows from author Lewis Carroll's classic book "Through the Looking Glass, and What Alice Found There," is a kind of shorthand look at the singer's hectic past few years. Trapped in a labyr...

MTV announced the nominees for this year's Video Music Awards, and there were clear leaders - and one eyebrow-raising omission. Drake and Rihanna led the field with five nods apiece. The latter was heavily featured on Drake's album "Take Care," and the two frequently spur speculation about their relationship (most recently when Drake's and Chris Brown 's posses erupted in a champagne-hurling brawl, reportedly over Rihanna). The two will each compete with Brown in different categories, Rihanna in choreography and Drake for male video. Katy Perry landed four noms, while Coldplay , M.I.A., Jay-Z and Kanye's Watch the Throne and newcomer Frank Ocean scored three apiece. The snub? Lady Gaga , the figurehead of last year's ceremonies, got zero. She was eligible in two categories and earned much early praise for her extravagant, cinematic art-epics. Is this another sign she's slipping in the pop milieu? The always-eventful telecast takes place ...