22-year-old Mexican crowned Miss Universe 2010

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Miss Mexico Jimena Navarrete is crowned Miss Universe 2010 by Stefania Fernandez during the Miss Universe pageant, Monday, Aug. 23, 2010 in Las Vegas. (AP Photo/Isaac Brekken)

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By OSKAR GARCIA, Associated Press Writer Mon Aug 23, 9:22 PM PDT

A 22-year-old Mexico woman won the Miss Universe pageant Monday night after donning a flowing red gown and telling an audience it's important to teach kids family values.

Jimena Navarrete of Guadalajara was first to answer an interview question Monday night and the last of 83 contestants standing in the headline-grabbing pageant on the Las Vegas Strip.

Her one-strap dress flowed behind her like a sheet as she walked during the evening gown competition. Earlier, she smiled in a violet bikini as she confidently strutted across the stage.

Asked by Olympic gold-medal figure skater Evan Lysacek how she felt about unsupervised Internet use, Navarrete said the Internet is important but parents need to be careful and watch over their kids.

"I do believe that Internet is an indispensable, necessary tool for the present time," she said through an interpreter. "We must be sure to teach them the values that we learned as a family."

First runner-up was Miss Jamaica Yendi Phillipps, while second runner-up was Miss Australia Jesinta Campbell.

Navarrete — who's been modeling since she was 15 — is Mexico's second Miss Universe. Lupita Jones of Mexico won the title in 1991. Navarrete replaces Miss Universe 2009 Stefania Fernandez of Venezuela.

Navarrete's win thwarted Miss Venezuela Marelisa Gibson from giving the South American country a third consecutive victory. Neither Gibson nor Miss USA Rima Fakih made the top 15 finalists.

Navarrete was immediately congratulated on Twitter by Mexican President Felipe Calderon and his wife, Margarita Zavala.

"Congratulations to Jimena Navarrete for her deserved victory as Miss Universe," Calderon said. "This will serve Mexico, (and) our image as a country."

With fans in some 190 countries watching on television and keeping tabs on social networks, Navarrete and her competitors introduced themselves while wearing over-the-top national costumes. They then danced in silver and black dresses for the show's opening number before the top 15 finalists were announced.The final 15 walked in swimsuits while Cirque du Soleil musicians played Elvis Presley songs including "Viva Las Vegas." The last 10 impressed in their gowns while John Legend and the Roots played a soulful medley including "Save Room."

By the end of the show, seven of the top 10 trending topics on Twitter had to do with the pageant, its contestants, its judges or owner Donald Trump. The mogul co-owns the pageant with TV network NBC.

The show was without any major gaffes, except for Miss Philippines' answer when asked what her biggest mistake in life was and how she fixed it.

"In my 22 years of existence, I can say there is nothing major," Venus Raj said.

Before the pageant, Raj was rated among the top contestants in an online poll on the pageant's website. She finished in fifth place.

Navarrete won a package of prizes including an undisclosed salary, a luxury New York apartment with living expenses, a one-year scholarship to the New York Film Academy with housing after her reign, plus jewelry, clothes and shoes fit for a beauty champion.

Campbell won the Miss Congeniality Universe award. Miss Thailand Fonthip Watcharatrakul won Miss Photogenic Universe and a second award for having the best national costume.

Fakih, a 24-year-old Lebanese immigrant from Dearborn, Mich., spurred celebrations among Arab-Americans when she won Miss USA. Pageant records aren't detailed enough to show whether Fakih is the first Arab-American, Muslim or immigrant to win Miss USA.

Don't eat transformers candies

California health officials have warned consumers not to eat Transformers "Revenge of the Fallen" Crunchy Candies from one specific lot after tests found unacceptable levels of lead.

Consumers in possession of the candy should discard it immediately, the California Department of Public Health said Friday.

The candies are imported from China and distributed by Au'some, Inc., located in Monmouth Junction, N.J.

The affected lot was sold exclusively to 99 Cent Only stores in California, Arizona, Nevada and Texas. Au'some, Inc. initiated a voluntary recall of the candy after learning of the elevated levels of lead found by the state.

Recent analysis of the candy determined that the Lot No. 09168 of the candies contained as much as 0.27 parts per million (ppm) of lead. California considers candies with lead levels in excess of 0.10 ppm to be contaminated.

The candy is sold in 4.5-oz. packages (UPC No. 66097311718-3) and consists of compressed, hard candies that are pink, orange, blue and purple. The candies are visible through the retail package. The lot number is printed on each individual retail bag of candy in black ink on the clear plastic seam, located on the back of the packaging.

who wears it better?

Ladies and Gents, we have another epic A-list battle on our hands. Our dueling divas -- Jennifer Lopez and Rihanna -- were both spotted out wearing the same striking Lanvin dress. Question is ... who wore it better?

Jennifer Lopez in London, April 28, 2010. Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images Rihanna in West Hollywood, July 19, 2010. Hellmuth Dominguez/PacificCoastNews.com

Back in April, J.Lo donned the Lanvin frock for the London premiere of her romantic comedy, "The Back-Up Plan." Accessorizing with a wide belt, Lanvin necklace, black Ferragamo heels, and a Jimmy Choo clutch, the actress topped off her look with a fab beehive inspired by the Lanvin models who walked the runway at the Paris Spring 2010 show.

Lat Monday, Rihanna stepped out in the same one-shoulder gown for a dinner at AGO in West Hollywood. Still rocking her signature fire engine red locks, the "Run This Town" singer kept her look simple with nude heels, a narrow belt, and barely any makeup.

Besides the fact that this dress conjured up fond memories of Jacobim Mugatu's "Derelicte" fashion line in "Zoolander," the gown looks amazing on both ladies. I love that Ms. Lopez had the confidence to rock that cool, retro hairstyle as it lends her an old-school Hollywood vibe, and her figure-flattering belt accentuates her curves in all the right places.

Rihanna dressed down her gown to perfection for a Monday night out on the town. Love that she kept it low-key. The only drawback with the "Rude Boy" diva's outfit is that her narrow sash doesn't give quite the same hourglass definition as La Lopez's wide belt.

So for me, Jenny from the Block wins this battle royale. Mugatu would be proud!

Charice Pempengco goes under the knife for "Glee" role

By Agence France Presse

Teenage Philippine singing sensation Charice Pempengco has caused an Internet uproar after having cosmetic surgery to improve her looks ahead of her debut on top US television show “Glee”.

The 18-year-old, known simply by her first name, had botox injections and minor surgery in Manila at the weekend to narrow her rounded face, with the procedure filmed and broadcast afterwards on a national television station.

“It’s one of the big preparations we are making for ‘Glee’ and of course I also want to look fresh on cam,” Charice said in a TV interview as she defended her decision to have cosmetic surgery at such a young age.

Fans, however, flooded the star’s official website, www.charicemania.com, as the issue became a hot Internet topic, with many lamenting the fact that she felt pressure to alter her face.

“At a very early age, she was made to feel inadequate and was told time and time again that, although she had a killer voice, she did not possess the looks to make it as a ‘star’,” a fan using the name Marie wrote on Charice’s website.

“I can’t even begin to imagine what that did to this child’s self-esteem.”

On another fan site, www.charicemusic.com, there was more concern for Charice.

“I hope she doesn’t change or undergo any more treatment and change herself… she’s just fine as it is… listen to yourself and not be affected by other opinions,” wrote a user calling themselves Mirana on that site.

Charice’s procedure was a top-10 global topic on the social networking site Twitter at one point this week.

Her plastic surgeon, Vicki Belo, said the procedure was meant to sculpt Charice’s naturally rounded face.

Belo said the botulinum toxin injections, which immobilise some muscles, would not have any effect on Charice’s voice.

The diminutive Filipina first gained global renown through video-sharing website YouTube and has since become a favourite of US TV talk show queen Oprah Winfrey.

“Glee” is an hour-long comedy series that follows an optimistic high school teacher as he works with a group of outcasts to revive the fortunes of the school’s performance art club.

Filipina inherits millions of dollars in Singapore

By Agence France Presse

A devoted Filipina maid inherited six million Singapore dollars (more than $4 million) from her late employer after more than 20 years of service, a newspaper report said Wednesday.

“I am the luckiest maid in Singapore, with or without the money,” the 47-year-old single woman — identified only by the pseudonym “Christine” — told the Straits Times in an interview.

The maid refused to be named in public for fear of possible threats to her life in the impoverished Philippines, where wealthy people have been kidnapped for ransom and some killed by their abductors.

The windfall, including cash and a luxury apartment near the Orchard Road shopping belt, came from the estate of her employer Quek Kai Miew, a medical doctor and philanthropist who died last year at 66.

The maid had also taken care of the doctor’s late mother, and was told that she would be a beneficiary of her employer’s will when it was drawn up in 2008.

“There were no secrets between us. I was not surprised at all when she told me how much I was going to get,” the maid recalled.

“Christine” was devastated when Quek died a year ago, as the two were inseparable, and temporarily moved in with the doctor’s nephew for solace.

“It was heartbreaking for me as I saw more years with Doctor Quek than with my own mother. I would break down every time I thought about her. I could not be by myself,” she said.

“I was always beside her. Wherever she went, I was with her.”

The maid, who is now applying for permanent residency in Singapore, said her newfound wealth had not changed her lifestyle.

“I do not really think much about the money I got. I just live my life as I did before, and not as a rich person,” the maid, dressed simply in a blouse and slacks with short-cropped hair, was quoted as saying.

“I am still who I was before. I cannot behave differently because I have money now. Even my Filipino maid friends here still treat me the same.”

Nearly 200,000 foreign maids, mostly from the Philippines and Indonesia, work in affluent Singapore, which has a population of five million.

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