Canmore Flooding

Torrential rains and widespread flooding throughout southern Alberta on Thursday washed out roads and bridges, sent residents scurrying for safety, and delivered up surreal scenes of cars, couches and refrigerators just floating away.

Officials with the City of Calgary said as many as 100,000 people could be forced from their homes due to heavy flooding, an evacuation that would take place in stages over the next few days.

The Bow River Basin was battered late Wednesday and into Thursday with up to 100 mm of rain, bringing river levels to the breaking point. Parts of Calgary along the Bow and Elbow rivers remained in the crosshairs with residents in six low-lying areas out of their homes.

There were flashpoints of chaos from Banff and Canmore and Crowsnest Pass in the Rockies, to Calgary and beyond in the north and south to Lethbridge.

The flooding was particularly destructive in communities just south of Calgary such as High River, Turner Valley and Black Diamond, where the Highwood River swept away two people.

The province reported that 12 communities were under states of emergency.

Environment Canada issued a rainfall warning for the affected areas, estimating as much as 100 millimetres more rain could fall in the next two days.

The Alberta Energy Regulator reported flooding may have caused a sour gas leak near Turner Valley. The flow of the toxic gas was turned off, but late Thursday a small amount was still seeping into floodwaters submerging the line. The Alberta Energy Regulator said public safety was not threatened.

In the mountain parks, mudslides forced the closure of the Trans-Canada Highway, isolating Banff and Canmore. Campers at Two Jack Lakeside campground were moved to higher ground.

Highways north and south of Banff were also shut down.

In Canmore, some homeowners saw the raging Cougar Creek eat away half their backyards, leaving behind crumbling wooden stairwells and twisted fences jutting out over torrents of water. Power and gas were out in some parts of town.

Source: nationalpost

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Resident says townspeople assume Aaron Hernandez is guilty

The scene on Ronald C. Meyers Drive in Westwood Estates was like any played out in scores of neighborhoods across the country on any given Thursday afternoon. A group of kids playing roller hockey in a driveway. 

A small black-and-white dog rolling on a front yard. Some younger kids chasing each other on another lawn. Parents pushing strollers. A school bus dropping kids off after school. Even the ice cream truck came by.

But the dozens of satellite TV trucks and cars lining the street and the scores of media staked out in an undeveloped lot across from No. 22 belied the normalcy. A near-constant stream of vehicles filled the street.

A couple of kids on bikes rode up and down the street, calling out the various states represented by the license plates – Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, Maine, New York. People who didn't seem to be from the neighborhood walked by to see what was going on.

All this, even though the subject of all the attention had not been home for several hours.

Source: usatoday

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Charlie Sheen allegedly texted Selma Blair to fire her from Anger Management

First Katy Perry gets dumped by Russell Brand via text, now Charlie Sheen is reportedly FIRING Selma Blair the same way! These are things that need to happen face-to-face, people!

Charlie and Selma began feuding on the set of Anger Management after the Sheen Dream caught wind of his co-star complaining to others about his work ethic. It wasn't long before Charlie took out his phone and sent a text to Selma saying, "YOU'RE FIRED!"

And as if that isn't bad enough, we hear Charlie went on to call Selma a "C-U-Next-Tuesday" in his termination message to her!

So. Not. Cool.

Now that Selma is officially gone, Charlie is already searching for a newleadinglady for his show. He's apparently already reached out to Mila Kunis for a 10 episode deal that would pay her $1 million for each show she's on!!!

That's a lot of money, Mila. But ask yourself - is it WORTH IT?!?

Source: parezhilton

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James Gandolfini dead at age of 51

James Gandolfini, best known for his role as an anxiety-ridden mob boss on HBO's "The Sopranos," died in Italy, possibly of a heart attack, an HBO spokeswoman and the actor's managers said Wednesday. He was 51.

Gandolfini was on holiday in Rome, said Mara Mikialian, HBO's vice president for program publicity.

The actor was scheduled to make an appearance at the TaorminaFilm Fest in Sicily this week, according to the festival.

Gandolfini won three Emmy Awards for his portrayal of Tony Soprano, the angst-ridden mob boss who visited a therapist and took Prozac while knocking off people. "The Sopranos" aired from 1999 to 2007.

"Jimmy was the spiritual core of our Sopranos family, and I am stunned at this devastating loss," said Chris Albrecht, the former president of HBO who gave the green light to "The Sopranos." "He was a great talent, but an even better man. My thoughts are with his family."

Gandolfini was born September 18, 1961, in Westwood, New Jersey, according to Biography.com.

He graduated from Rutgers University and, as the story goes, he worked as a bartender and a bouncer in New York City until he went with a friend to an acting class.

He got his start on Broadway, with a role in the 1992 revival of "AStreetcar Named Desire" with Jessica Lange and Alec Baldwin.

Gandolfini's big screen debut came in the role of a heavy in the bloody "True Romance" in 1993. His breakthrough came on the small screen in 1999 with the role of Tony Soprano.

"He was a genius. Anyone who saw him even in the smallest of his performances knows that," David Chase, who developed "The Sopranos," said in a statement. "...A great deal of that genius resided in those sad eyes."

Gandolfini, who was notoriously press shy, had a reputation in the tabloids for being sometimes difficult.

"He wasn't easy sometimes. But he was my partner, he was my brother in ways I can't explain and never will be able to explain," Chase said.

While Gandolfini was known for sometimes ruthless, often imposing characters, those who worked with him described an actor who put his heart into a role.

"He was just so good at the emotion. A very passionate man and a very, very tender man," Matthew Warchus, who directed Gandolfiniin the 2009 Broadway play "God of Carnage," told CNN. "I really loved him and admired him a great deal."

Gandolfini's acting credits included roles in "The Last Castle" with Robert Redford, "The Mexican" with Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts and "Surviving Christmas" with Ben Affleck.

In recent years, he had starred in several movies, including the Oscar-nominated "Zero Dark Thirty," "The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3" and "Killing Them Softly."

Gandolfini showed a softer side, too, voicing Carol, a wild thing, in the 2009 movie adaptation of Maurice Sendak's classic "Where the Wild Things Are."

He also took to the stage to do a reading of Sendak's "In The NightKitchen" to mark the author's 80th birthday.

News of the actor's death spread quickly, drawing shock and sadness from those who had worked with him.

"James Gandolfini was a kind, funny, wonderful guy. I'm so lucky to have worked with him. Sending love to his family. Such a sad, sad day," Olivia Wilde, who starred with the actor in "The Incredible Burt Wonderstone," said in a post on Twitter.

Actor Steve Carrell, who also appeared in the movie, simply said on Twitter: "James Gandolfini. What a great loss."

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie described himself as a "huge fan" of Gandolfini.

"It's an awful shock. James Gandolfini was a fine actor, a Rutgers alum and a true Jersey guy," he said.

Gandolfini is survived by his wife, Deborah, and their 9-month-old daughter, Liliana. He is also survived by a son, Michael, from another marriage.

Source: cnn

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Michael Hasting dies at 33

BuzzFeed reporter and a Rolling Stone contributor Michael Hastings died in a car crash Tuesday in Los Angeles. He was 33.

BuzzFeed's editor in chief Ben Smith posted a statement about Hastings' death on its site.

"We are shocked and devastated by the news that Michael Hastings is gone. Michael was a great, fearless journalist with an incredible instinct for the story, and a gift for finding ways to make his readers care about anything he covered from wars to politicians," he wrote.

RollingStone also posted about Hastings, praising his profile of Gen. Stanley McChrystal, his piece on America's drone war and the interview with WikiLeaks' JulianAssange.

Hastings won a 2010 George Polk Award for his story on McChrystal, titled "TheRunaway General."

"I'm sad that I'll never get to publish all the great stories that he was going to write, and sad that he won't be stopping by my office for any more short visits which would stretch for two or three completely engrossing hours. He will be missed," wrote Rolling Stone'sManaging Editor Will Dana.

Source: mashable

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Russell Brand mocks MSNBC anchors

"Joining me now, he's a really big deal. I'm told this," said MSNBC'sMika Brzezinski in introducing Russell Brand, who was there to tout a new comedy tour, in a Morning Joe segment from Monday that's going viral.

Gawker's headline for the eight-minute interview was: 'Brand destroys MSBNC talk show host for treating him like ---'

Brzezinski, along with panelists Katty Kay and Brian Shactman, asked a few questions, starting with this one, from Kay: "Messiah Complex, that's the name of your tour. Do you have one?"

Brand's response: "No, that's mental illness."

Kay: "Right. And you don't have that either?"

Brand: "I hope I'm here as a fully qualified professional gentleman, free from mental illness."

As the interview went on, Brand tried to stir things up by asking what MSNBC workers were doing over on the side of the studio. "Facebooking," he was told.

About five minutes in, Schactman said that when he listens to Brand on the radio, he "can't understand a single joke" he says.

Brzezinski added, "I think — this is my first Brand experience — it's not listening to him, it's the experience."

Brand said, "You're talking about me as if I'm not here, as if I'm an extra-terrestrial!"

It meandered from there, with a "nervous" Brzezinski, who cringed the whole time, and a take-charge Brand, who controlled it all.

Source: usatoday

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Danielle Bradbery – The Voice season 4 winner

Danielle Bradbery is The Voice.The 16-year-old country singer from Cypress, Texas, triumphed in the fourth-season finale of the NBC singing competition, winning the viewer vote Tuesday over the other two finalists: Michelle Chamuel, 26, and the Swon Brothers, Colton, 24, and Zach, 27. Chamuel finished second and the Swon Brothers came in third.

After her name was announced, Bradbery told host Carson Daly that she was thankful but speechless before closing the show with Sara Evans' Born to Fly. She had performed that song in Monday's competition finale.

More than an hour later, Bradbery described her moment of victory.

"Me and Michelle were holding onto each other, shaking," she said on the post-finale red carpet. "When I heard my name, I could not believe it. It's going to take a while to sink in, but I'm just embracing the moment while it's here."

Bradbery said fans "were all so supportive and hopefully I touched a lot of hearts out there to vote for me and keep supporting me. Hopefully, that worked. They've been sticking by my side forever and hopefully will continue to."

The victory by Bradbery, the second female and the youngest singer to win The Voice, represents the third triumph in four seasons for a member of coach Blake Shelton's team.

"I wanted to make sure that Nashville respected her as much as they could," country singer Shelton said after the show. "Obviously, she's an incredible vocalist, but I wanted them to know that she respects country music and that's why we kept throwing it back to artists from 10-20 years ago ... showing Nashville that she can do that stuff, she can do new stuff. She can perform with Hunter Hayes, she can sing with me. Whatever it is you throw at her she's capable of doing."

He thinks Bradbery has a big career ahead of her. Bradbery said she would like to work with Shelton in the future.

"I see us standing here talking about her 20 years from now," Shelton said. "And I wouldn't say that with this confidence about anybody else that's ever been on this show. Danielle Bradbery is a gift to the music industry and definitely a gift to The Voice."

Shelton said it has been his goal "since Day One" to have a country singer win. That genre was strong in this season's finale, represented by Bradbery and the Swon Brothers, the show's most successful duo to date. Both finalists were under the tutelage of Shelton.

"Country fans are loyal, they are amazing and they like to stick by you through everything. I love it," Bradbery said.

The two-hour finale featured a range of musical stars, including Cher, who sangWoman's World, the first single of her upcoming album, Closer to the Truth. She recorded her performance in front of The Voice studio audience just before Tuesday's live broadcast.

After the show, the legendary singer said her first performance before a TV audience in more than five years was "very exciting and it makes you feel elated but it's also kind of scary. And I'm a big chicken anyway. I like being on it. I just don't like going on it."

She said a show like The Voice can help young performers.

"I think shows like this might help you skirt a lot of the bad stuff that could be waiting for you. It's a great place to go and be seen by everybody and have that feeling that you can actually can do it," she said. "Sonny (Bono) and I used to play bowling alleys and roller skating rinks. And that was hard to keep telling ourselves, 'We were good, we were good, we were good.' "

Pitbull and Christina Aguilera opened the show with a duet and country's Florida Georgia Line and hip-hop's Nelly performed together. Bruno Mars sang his newest single, Treasure, which was taped before the recent death of his mother.

The finalists got their chance to perform with the stars, too. Bob Seger, joined by the Swon Brothers, performed his hit Night Moves. Hayes and Bradbery sang a duet of I Want Crazy and Chamuel and OneRepublic performed Counting Stars.

The Voice switched coaching gears this season, with Usher and Shakira taking over for original coaches Aguilera and CeeLo Green. The two were well received.

Aguilera and Green, who appeared in the first three seasons, will rejoin the show for its fifth cycle this fall, with Usher and Shakira trading off with them for the sixth edition. Coaches Shelton and Adam Levine have been with the show from the start.

The Voice audience is down 1% for Season 4, with an average of 12.4 million viewers, but it beat Fox's longtime juggernaut American Idol among advertiser-coveted young adults. Idol still draws more viewers, but it has experienced sharp erosion over the past two seasons.

The singing competition, which stands out for its blind auditions and spinning red chairs, is produced by Mark Burnett.

Source: usatoday

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