Entertainer Ellen DeGeneres, second from front left, reacts as she is introduced, with wife Portia de Rossi, left, before DeGeneres receives the 15th annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor at the Kennedy Center, Monday, Oct. 22, 2012, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon) *** Local Caption *** Humor Prize Ellen DeGeneres.JPEG-07604.jpg
Entertainer Ellen DeGeneres, second from front left, reacts as she is introduced, with wife Portia de Rossi, left, before DeGeneres receives the 15th annual Mark Twain Prize for American Humor at the Show more

DeGeneres receives top humour prize



Some of the nation's top comedians hailed Ellen DeGeneres as a trailblazer on Monday as she received the highest US comedy prize, the Mark Twain Prize for American Humour. The show will be broadcast next week on PBS stations. "Thanks to everyone at PBS. I am so happy to be part of your farewell season," DeGeneres joked, taking a jab at Mitt Romney's plans to stop funding public broadcasting. DeGeneres, 54, said she doesn't see herself as political with her comedy. "I just want to make people happy and make people laugh," she said. Among those who paid tribute in the event were Jimmy Kimmel, Sean Hayes, Jane Lynch and Kristin Chenoweth. * AP

Spielberg rules out another action movie

Steven Spielberg has dashed any hopes of another Indiana Jones flick by saying he will never make another action movie. He made the revelation in an interview on the TV show 60 Minutes. "I knew I could do the action in my sleep at this point in my career," he said. "It doesn't attract me anymore." Spielberg says he's more interested in making films such as his forthcoming Abraham Lincoln feature, Lincoln. * IANS

An ailing Esposito calls CBS 'shameful'

The Blue Bloods actress Jennifer Esposito is blasting CBS for sidelining her from the show. In Twitter postings, the actress has accused the network of "absolutely shameful behaviour" in putting her on unpaid leave from the police drama, which stars Tom Selleck. Esposito said she's been diagnosed with coeliac disease and requires a reduced work schedule, but CBS believes she is angling to win a pay raise. CBS has responded that because Esposito can't fulfil the full-time demands of her role, it has "regretfully" put her character on a leave of absence. * AP

Serkis to direct Animal Farm adaptation

After working as a second-unit director on The Hobbit films, the Gollum actor Andy Serkis has lined up a feature of his own, a motion-capture version of George Orwell's Animal Farm. "I think we found a rather fresh way of looking at it," he told The Hollywood Reporter. "It is definitely using performance capture, but we are using an amalgamation of filming styles to create the environments." Though he intends to remove some of the book's political weight, his adaptation will still be "fable-istic and [aimed at] at a family audience". * The National staff

Tony Scott on drugs when jumped to death

The Top Gun director Tony Scott had traces of antidepressant and sleep-inducing drugs in his body when he killed himself by jumping off a California bridge, coroners announced on Monday. The 68-year-old did not have any life-threatening conditions, including cancer, the Los Angeles County Coroner said. The cause of death was suicide caused by multiple blunt-force injuries and drowning. A prolific filmmaker, Scott had more that 30 new projects in the pipeline, including Top Gun 2. * AFP

Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
Rating: 2/5
 
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
 
Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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Disclaimer

Director: Alfonso Cuaron 

Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville 

Rating: 4/5

Living in...

This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.

Three tips from La Perle's performers

1 The kind of water athletes drink is important. Gwilym Hooson, a 28-year-old British performer who is currently recovering from knee surgery, found that out when the company was still in Studio City, training for 12 hours a day. “The physio team was like: ‘Why is everyone getting cramps?’ And then they realised we had to add salt and sugar to the water,” he says.

2 A little chocolate is a good thing. “It’s emergency energy,” says Craig Paul Smith, La Perle’s head coach and former Cirque du Soleil performer, gesturing to an almost-empty open box of mini chocolate bars on his desk backstage.

3 Take chances, says Young, who has worked all over the world, including most recently at Dragone’s show in China. “Every time we go out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot about ourselves,” she says.

Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale

Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni

Director: Amith Krishnan

Rating: 3.5/5

The 10 Questions
  • Is there a God?
  • How did it all begin?
  • What is inside a black hole?
  • Can we predict the future?
  • Is time travel possible?
  • Will we survive on Earth?
  • Is there other intelligent life in the universe?
  • Should we colonise space?
  • Will artificial intelligence outsmart us?
  • How do we shape the future?
Company%20Profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
The specs

Engine: 1.5-litre turbo

Power: 181hp

Torque: 230Nm

Transmission: 6-speed automatic

Starting price: Dh79,000

On sale: Now

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