Miss USA 2011 winner: Alyssa Campanella of California takes the crown in annual beauty pageant

Even a self-proclaimed "geek" can win a beauty pageant.

Alyssa Campanella, Miss California, took home the biggest crown America offers on Sunday, when she won the 60th Miss USA competition in Las Vegas.

The 21-year-old New Jersey native beat out 50 other hopefuls from the States, plus Washington D.C.

The red-haired Campanella – who was once a blond – wowed the judges with not only her beauty, but her intellect.



Campanella professed to being a history buff, and even wrote in her Twitter bio that she was "born in the wrong time period."

"I'm obsessed with the Stuart and Tudor era," she said during the show. "Whenever I go to Barnes & Noble I'm always in the history section and that is where you will find me."

Campanella added that historical fiction programs, like "Game of Thrones" and "Camelot," are among her favorites.

"I know those are fantasy," she said, "but I also watch 'The Tudors,' so I'm a huge history geek."

When Campanella made it to the final four, she had to answer a question regarding the legalization of marijuana.

"Well, I understand why that question would be asked, especially with today's economy, but I also understand that medical marijuana is very important to help those who need it medically," she replied.

"I'm not sure if it should be legalized, if it would really affect, with the drug war," she added. "I mean, it's abused today, unfortunately, so that's the only reason why I would kind of be a little bit against it, but medically it's OK."



Campanella replaces 2010 winner Rima Fakih and will represent America in the Miss Universe pageant in Brazil on Sept. 12.

Campanella joined her fellow contestants at an after-party following the broadcast, but later found herself unable to rest.

"In bed watching Miss Congeniality on TBS..." she tweeted. "Like you really thought I'd be getting sleep tonight."



BY Shari Weiss
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

‘Book of Mormon’ and ‘War Horse’ Win Top Tonys

“The Book of Mormon,” a smash-hit Broadway musical made out of the unlikeliest of elements — unwavering faith, jokes about AIDS and lyrics so profane that many of its songs could not be televised — emerged as the runaway winner at the Tony Awards on Sunday. Created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone of “South Park” fame, along with the composer Robert Lopez, “Mormon” earned nine Tonys, including best musical and three more for Mr. Parker, making this Broadway newcomer as honored in one evening as Joshua Logan, the director and a writer and producer of the classic musical “South Pacific.”

A fish-out-of-water tale of missionaries in war-torn Africa, “Mormon” brought an exuberant irreverence to Broadway that seemed to rub off on the Tonys as a whole. Sunday’s broadcast, hosted by Neil Patrick Harris, featured a “did they really say that?” comic opener that was edgier than usually seen at the staid ceremony — a song-and-dance number arguing that Broadway, with its con artists, Mormons and nuns this season, is “not just for gays anymore.” And it ended with Chris Rock, a star of the nominated play “The ____________ With a Hat,” suggesting before presenting the best musical prize that a “Mormon” victory was a foregone conclusion.

“This is such a waste of time,” Mr. Rock said about the buildup. “It’s like taking a hooker to dinner.”


With 14 nominations, the “Mormon” juggernaut was widely expected and, in general, the night went according to plan. The British import “War Horse” won best play and took awards for set, sound design, lighting design and for the two directors who helped bring uncanny life to the hand-made puppets that give the show such visual panache. And instead of Hollywood celebrities, who were largely snubbed among the nominees this year, the theater mainstays Norbert Leo Butz (“Catch Me if You Can”), Sutton Foster (“Anything Goes”) and Mark Rylance (“Jerusalem”) each won second Tonys as lead performers.

But it was “The Normal Heart,” an Off Broadway hit in 1985 about the early years of AIDS in New York, that generated the evening’s most emotional heat, winning for best play revival and for supporting performances by Ellen Barkin, who plays a frustrated doctor, and John Benjamin Hickey, who plays a gay man with AIDS. The play was written by the activist Larry Kramer, who fell out of favor with many gays and politicians for his strident warnings in the early ’80s about unsafe sex and government inaction against AIDS.

“I could not have written it had not so many of us so needlessly died,” Mr. Kramer said in accepting the Tony. “Learn from it, and carry on the fight. Let them know that we are a very special people, an exceptional people. And that our day will come.”

Only Broadway shows are eligible for Tonys (39 this year), with nominations and awards driven largely by the votes of theater insiders, many of whom have commercial interests in certain shows. Still, the pool of Broadway competitors was considered exceptionally strong with new plays and musicals outnumbering the revivals that sometimes dominate the stage season.

One of the rare shows not based on a movie or an existing songbook, “Mormon” was the clear favorite for best musical, but whether it would sweep all of its categories was the talk of Broadway in recent weeks, given its critical acclaim and audience enthusiasm. Mr. Parker’s prizes were all collaborative; the score and book awards were shared with both Mr. Lopez and Mr. Stone and the director award shared with Casey Nicholaw. (The fourth was as a producer.) “I want to thank my dad for his edge, my mom for her sweetness,” Mr. Parker said in one of his speeches. “And I really want to thank ‘South Park’ fans. If it weren’t for you guys, we wouldn’t be here.”

Accepting the award for best musical, Mr. Parker also gave a shoutout to another, unseen collaborator — Joseph Smith, the 19th-century American religious leader who founded the Mormon religion: “You did it, Joseph, you got the Tony!”

But when Mr. Nicholaw lost the best-choreography prize to Kathleen Marshall for “Anything Goes,” and “Mormon” lost costume design to the musical “Priscilla Queen of the Desert,” it ended any real chance “Mormon” had of besting the record of 12 Tony wins set by “The Producers.”

In the acting categories, the Academy Award winner Frances McDormand (“Fargo”) won for best actress in a play for “Good People,” appearing in a denim jean jacket and glasses and hailing her character Margie — a working-class, financially desperate mother from South Boston, as “a classic American hero” that young actresses will play for years to come.

Her best-actor counterpart, Mr. Rylance for “Jerusalem,” won over Joe Mantello (“The Normal Heart”), Al Pacino (“The Merchant of Venice”) and others in one of several highly competitive categories. In accepting his second Tony, Mr. Rylance once again turned to the inscrutable and intriguing words of the Minnesota poet Louis Jenkins. Asked after his victory why he chose to share Mr. Jenkins’s thoughts about the art of “walking through walls,” Mr. Rylance said, “I just think it’s good advice.”

The Tonys ceremony was held at the 3,000-seat Beacon Theater after its usual home, the 6,000-seat Radio City Music Hall, booked a new Cirque du Soleil show. The smaller space made for a tight squeeze: fewer producers of Tony-nominated shows were given seats, limits were strongly recommended on people taking the stage for winning shows, and some guests were crammed into C-list seating.

Mr. Harris, the openly gay sitcom star, who won an Emmy hosting the Tonys in 2009, was in charge again, sweeping into the audience during the opening number to comment on the sexiness of various straight actors.

“Angela Lansbury, you’re super hot — are those things real?” he said, hovering over the 85-year-old multiple Tony-winner. Mr. Harris soon moved on to Brooke Shields, who struggled with some of her lines — including a joke about one of Representative Anthony D. Weiner’s tweets of indiscreet photos. (Apologizing for the flub later, she ended up swearing and had to be bleeped out.)

The new musical “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” also came in for ribbing from Mr. Harris, who restricted himself to 30 seconds of jokes about the show after a long winter of mockery over its record-setting $70 million budget, technical problems, actor injuries and opening-night delays. “No audience members were harmed in the making of this musical — yet,” he said.

The last word on “Spider-Man” came from Bono and the Edge of U2, its composers, who were humble and self-deprecating. “We used to be famous for being in U2,” Bono said, only half-jokingly, before sounding a note of awe about the “great education” of making a Broadway musical. “Spider-Man” opens on Tuesday night and will be eligible for Tonys next year.

Among the noncompetitive awards given before the broadcast was a lifetime achievement honor for the South African playwright Athol Fugard, who has written for decades about apartheid, including in his best-known work “ ‘Master Harold’ and the Boys.”

Another lifetime award went to Philip J. Smith, chairman of the Shubert Organization, Broadway’s biggest landlord. The Lookingglass Theater Company in Chicago received the regional theater Tony Award, and the playwright and actress Eve Ensler (“The Vagina Monologues”) received the Isabelle Stevenson Award for humanitarian contributions.

A special Tony Award was given to the Handspring Puppet Company, based in Cape Town, South Africa, for its creation of the life-size puppets in “War Horse.” Tony honors for excellence went to William Berloni, who has trained animals for the stage for more than three decades; the Drama Book Shop, on the edge of the Broadway theater district; and Sharon Jensen and Alliance for Inclusion in the Arts, an advocacy group for minority and disabled actors.

New York Times

Delta ends SkyMiles expiration

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- Delta Air Lines said Tuesday that it has gotten rid of expirations for its SkyMiles program.

Under the previous SkyMiles system, miles expired after 24 months if there wasn't any qualifying mileage activity during that time, such as the earning or redeeming of miles.

But as of Jan. 1, the system of expiration has ended, according to Delta, and SkyMiles will not expire for lack of activity.

"We know how much customers value their miles, so eliminating mileage expiration is a major win for them," said Jeff Robertson, vice president of Delta's SkyMiles division.

Delta (DAL, Fortune 500), which recently acquired Northwest Airlines, and Continental, which has merged with UAL Corp.'s (UAL) United, are both airlines that do not allow miles to expire on their mileage programs.

By Aaron Smith, staff writer

Tony Awards 2009 winners: 'Billy Elliot' leads with 10 Tonys - 3 'Billys' share lead actor award

London imports had a big night at the Tonys.

"Billy Elliot the Musical," an underdog story about a boy who dreams of dancing, and "God of Carnage," an acid-tinged social satire, took top honors at the 63rd annual theater awards show Sunday night. "The Norman Conquests" won for Best Revival. All three shows are from hit runs across the pond.

The all-American "Hair" won as Best Musical Revival.

"Billy Elliot" won 10 Tonys, including the coveted Best Musical, the most of any show in the three-hour celebration of Broadway excellence.

"God of Carnage," a dark comedy of middle-class liberals by French author Yasmina Reza, author of the award-winning "Art," won Best Play.

"Carnage" also spelled Tony triumph for best actress Marcia Gay Harden and director Matthew Warchus, a double nominee who was also up for "Conquests."

Warchus said backstage, "I usually think of best directors winning for long plays and moving lots of scenery around, not orchestrating invisible emotions."

Geoffrey Rush took home Best Actor Tony for his portrayal of a dying monarch in the tragicomic "Exit the King."

The evening's first acting award, Featured Actor in a Play, went to Roger Robinson for August Wilson's stirring drama of black Americans in 1911 Pittsburgh, "Joe Turner's Come and Gone."

"Joe Turner," the play Barack and Michelle Obama chose for their date night in New York a week ago, also won for lighting design.

Angela Lansbury took home the Tony for Featured Actress in a Play for her performance as a psychic medium in a revival of Noel Coward's comedy "Blithe Spirit," about a writer bedeviled by the ghost of his late wife.

It was her fifth win, tying her with Julie Harris, and had the Radio City crowd on its feet.

Featured performances in musicals brought emotional speeches from Karen Olivo, who won for her fiery take on Anita in "West Side Story," and Gregory Jbara, who plays the dedicated dad in "Billy Elliot."

Stephen Daldry won for his direction of "Billy Elliot," and called the three rotating Billys "three great gifts to Broadway."

That teenage trio - David Alvarez, Trent Kowalik and Kiril Kulish - danced off with Best Actor in a Musical honors, the first time three actors were nominated for one role.

The show, based on the 2000 film about a ballet-obsessed kid, also danced away with awards for book, choreography, sets, lights and sound. It tied with "Next to Normal" for best orchestrations.
In one of the night's surprises, Tom Kitt and Brian Yorkey's "Normal" score beat Elton John and Lee Hall's songs in "Billy Elliot."

'Idol' upset as Allen takes title

Kris Allen, mellow and understated throughout the "American Idol" competition, was more than mellow when he was crowned the season 8 winner last night. For a moment there, when his name was announced, he looked positively sheepish.

"The dark horse comes back and wins the nation over. How does it feel?" host Ryan Seacrest asked him.

"It feels good, man," Allen said. "But Adam just - Adam deserves this."

Such is the pull that runner-up Adam Lambert has had on this competition from the start. The producers, the judges, the "Entertainment Weekly" editors who put him alone on the cover - all of them seemed to think that Adam should take the title, and apparently, so did the guy who actually won.

But the viewers - who cast more than 100 million votes on Tuesday night - said otherwise, charmed by Allen's smart song choices and increasingly bold performances, and in some cases, turned off by Lambert's goth appearance and over-the-top performance style.

Lambert may have been the most polarizing finalist the show has ever seen, and Allen was almost-absurdly wholesome by comparison - and far more similar to third runner-up Danny Gokey. Still, this "Idol" contest wasn't just a skirmish in the culture wars. It was a choice between glam rockers and mellow guys with acoustic guitars, a test of how fast people could dial or text, and - perhaps most significantly - a referendum on what an "American Idol" winner should be.

Lambert arrived on the "Idol" stage fully formed, with the skill and confidence of an already-minted rock star.

Allen, meanwhile, represented the traditional "Idol" conceit: that the show should find a diamond in the rough from some distant corner of the country. He won over voters by choosing bold arrangements and improving over time. And when he hugged his wife after singing his schlocky coronation song, the full weight of what had happened seemed to be settling in.

It was a lovely moment, and enough to make anyone feel decent about the results. Lambert and Allen seemed like stand-up guys; perennially-grumpy judge Simon Cowell called them "unusually incredibly nice people." And they seemed to genuinely wish each other well - an easy thing to do, given that the "Idol" exposure is far more valuable than the title itself. They'll both be stars, most likely, and they'll both deserve it.

Lezak's classic finish delivers gold

American turns in stirring anchor leg
By Alan Abrahamson, NBCOlympics.com
Posted Monday, August 11, 2008 12:32 AM ET

BEIJING -- The U.S. men's 4x100m free relay team won gold Monday in the most exciting, most record-breaking, most amazing, thrilling, unbelievable relay anyone could ever imagine, evidence of exactly what Jason Lezak, who swam the greatest anchor leg in relay history, had to say when it was all over:

"People always step up and do things out of the ordinary at the Olympics."

This was even so much more. Extraordinary in every regard.

The U.S. men -- Michael Phelps, Garrett Weber-Gale, Cullen Jones and Jason Lezak -- set a world record, finishing in 3:08.24. France took second, Australia third.

The victory gave Michael Phelps his second gold medal here in Beijing -- in a race that had shaped up to be one of the most difficult on his quest for eight. The French and even the Australians had widely been considered prerace favorites.

"He's on a mission to win eight," Jones said of Phelps, "and we're happy to be a part of it."

The French, moreover, had been smack-talking before the race.

Afterward, asked on television who's talking now, Weber-Gale said, "We are. United States of America."

"C'est le sport," one of the French racers, Fabien Gilot, said afterward, which means literally, "It's sport," but which, in this context, really means, "That's why they race the race."

American swimmers had won every edition of this relay in the Olympics from 1964 through 1996. In Sydney in 2000, the Aussies won, the Americans finishing second. In Athens in 2004, the South Africans took gold, the Dutch silver, the Americans bronze.

So this, for the Americans, meant redemption as well.

Afterward, asked on television who's talking now, Weber-Gale said, "We are. United States of America."

"C'est le sport," one of the French racers, Fabien Gilot, said afterward, which means literally, "It's sport," but which, in this context, really means, "That's why they race the race."

American swimmers had won every edition of this relay in the Olympics from 1964 through 1996. In Sydney in 2000, the Aussies won, the Americans finishing second. In Athens in 2004, the South Africans took gold, the Dutch silver, the Americans bronze.

So this, for the Americans, meant redemption as well.

In particular for Lezak, who had swum the third leg on that 2000 relay, anchor in 2004.

"I had more adrenaline going than I ever had in my life," Lezak said.

"America has a great tradition of winning that relay," he also said, adding just a moment later, "All of us knew what we're capable of, but to actually do it, to get that tradition back -- it's a phenomenal feeling. Still, right now, I'm in disbelief."

Understandable.

Swimming is a sport that translates elegantly into numbers, and the numbers from this one race will be studied and analyzed for years to come:

Before the preliminaries at these Games, the world record in the 4x100 relay stood at 3:12.46. That mark was set by an American team swimming in 2006.

One day ago, during the prelims, a U.S. team broke that record, swimming 3:12.23. (Under Olympic rules, the swimmers in the prelims get gold medals, too. Nathan Adrian, Matt Grevers and Ben Wildman-Tobriner swam with Jones.)

One day later, in the Olympic final, to go and then chop 4 seconds off that mark is -- well, it's not done. It took 20 years for the record to drop 4 seconds to the 3:12 range. In 1988, at the Seoul Olympics, an American team lowered the record to 3:16.53.
But that's not all.

The times in the prelims were so fast that it took 3:13.8 to get into Monday's final. Russia, at 3:14.07, didn't make it -- a second and a half off the world record, and not good enough for the Olympic final. Incredible.

During the final, five teams went under the mark the U.S. team had set in Sunday's prelims -- the Americans, French, Australians, Italians and Swedes. World record-breaking times for the Italians and Swedes -- and no medal.

Incredible.

But that's not all.

Phelps swam the lead-off leg for the Americans. He swam 47.51. The world record, going into the race: 47.50, by France's Alain Bernard, lining up Sunday to swim the French anchor leg in the relay.

Phelps and the Americans swam Sunday in Lane 4, the French in 5, the Australians in 3.

To Phelps' left, in Lane 3, Eamon Sullivan of Australia pulled lead-off duty as well. He touched ahead of Phelps, in 47.24 -- a world record in the 100m (lead-off legs are eligible for national and world records).

Phelps' mark is now the American record. His prior personal best had been 47.92, at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials.

The fastest Olympic lead-off split before Sunday: South Africa's Roland Schoeman, with a 48.17 in 2004.

If swimming translates into numbers, it also is about so much more.

Weber-Gale caught, and passed, the next Australian swimmer, Andrew Lauterstein. At 200 meters, the United States was in first.

Then, though, the French, behind Frederick Bousquet, surged. At 300 meters, it was France, the United States, Australia.

Bernard was off the blocks first.

Then went Lezak.

At 350 meters, Bernard was .18 of a second ahead.

One lap to go.

The noise inside the arena was ferocious.

And at the other end of the pool, the Americans were going berserk.

"I was just pounding on the blocks, saying the f-word, saying, 'Come on!' " Weber-Gale would say later.

"It's not for television," Jones would say of what he was yelling.

"I was going nuts," Phelps said. "You know, as soon as he came off that last wall, I just started going crazy. You know, Jason also said before, 'You know, this isn't a 4 by 100, this is a 400. We're a team.' "

In the pool, Lezak had seen Bernard hit the far wall first.

"I'm not going to lie," Lezak said. "When I flipped at the 50 and I still saw how far ahead he was, and he was the world-record holder 'til about two minutes before that, when Sullivan led off with the world record, I thought, it really crossed my mind for a split second, there's no way.

"Then I changed. I said, you know what, that's ridiculous. This is the Olympics. I'm here for these guys. I'm here for the United States of America. It's more than -- I don't care how bad it hurts, or whatever, I'm just going to go out there and hit it.

"Honestly, in like 5 seconds, I was thinking all these things -- you know, just got like a super charge and took it from there. It was unreal."

Which, indeed, it was.

At 30 meters, Bernard was still ahead.

At 20 meters, Bernard was still ahead.

But Lezak was closing.

At the wall, Lezak got his hand out in front. He touched a mere .08 of a second in front of Bernard.

Before Sunday, the closest finish in the event in the Olympics had been in Sydney, when the Australians beat the Americans by .19 of a second.

With the pressure of all of it on him, Lezak threw down the fastest split of all time, 46.06.

At the Olympics, people step up and do extraordinary things.

http://www.nbcolympics.com/swimming/news/newsid=194272.html#relay+instant+olympic+classic?GT1=39001&forcereload=true

Album Pick: Cinderella (Original International Tour Cast)

Original Release Date: July 29, 2008
Label: Lakeshore Records

1. "Overture / The Sweetest Sounds" – Orchestra / Lea Salonga, Charlie Parker – 5:43
2. "The Prince is Giving a Ball" – Aaron Galligan-Stierle, Julia Cook, Jen Bechter, Brandy Zarle, Company – 4:02
3. "In My Own Little Corner" – Lea Salonga – 3:23
4. "Your Majesties" – Jefferson Slinkard, Janna Cardia, Aaron Galligan-Stierle, Steven Gagliastro, Richard Cerato – 2:05
5. "Loneliness of Evening" – Peter Saide – 2:01
6. "Boys and Girls Like You and Me" – Jefferson Slinkard, Janna Cardia – 2:19
7. "Impossible / It's Possible" – Lea Salonga, Charlie Parker, Company – 3:30
8. "Waltz For a Ball" – Orchestra – 2:01
9. "Ten Minutes Ago" – Lea Salonga, Peter Saide – 2:56
10. "Stepsisters' Lament" – Jen Bechter, Brandy Zarle – 1:26
11. "Do I Love You Because You're Beautiful" – Lea Salonga, Peter Saide – 2:20
12. "Impossible (Reprise)" – Lea Salonga, Charlie Parker – 1:41
13. "When You're Driving Through The Moonlight" – Lea Salonga, Julia Cook, Jen Bechter, Brandy Zarle – 2:44
14. "A Lovely Night" – Lea Salonga, Julia Cook, Jen Bechter, Brandy Zarle – 2:11
15. "There's Music In You" – Lea Salonga, Charlie Parker – 4:15
16. "Finale" – Company – 3:05