Salma Hayek weds on Valentine’s Day

Très bon:

Salma Hayek picked a most romantic time and place to get married: Valentine's Day in Paris. The Mexican-born actress wed French magnate Francois-Henri Pinault in a civil ceremony Saturday at the City Hall in Paris' chic 6th arrondissement, according to an official there…

Hayek's spokeswoman, Cari Ross, confirmed in an e-mail Monday that the marriage had taken place in Paris Saturday. No further details were provided.

Henri Pinault is an heir to one of France’s largest fortunes and is the head of retail conglomerate PPR.

Aside from acting in such films as "Desperado", "Dogma", and "Frida", Hayek is also executive producer of U.S. television comedy "Ugly Betty". (For now, at least).

The couple broke off their engagement last year and allegedly remained that way before news emerged of Saturday’s marriage. They are each parents of a daughter named Valentina, who was born in 2007.

Image- AFP
Online Sources- AFP, The Latin Americanist, Reuters, imdb.com, AP

Chespirito denies drug dealer rumors

Mexican comic actor Roberto Gomez Bolaños- best known for his roles as “El Chavo del Ocho” (image) and “El Chapulin Colorado”- denied allegations that he has links to drug traffickers. According to a statement issued yesterday by Gomez Bolaños:

“I have never been had any relations with drug traffickers. Nor have I been friends with any ‘narco’. Nor have I participated in any transactions with that criminal industry, be they direct or indirect.”

The actor responded to remarks made by the son of former Colombian drug capo Gilberto Rodriguez Orejuela. Fernando Rodriguez Mondragon asserted in an upcoming book that Gomez Bolaños and other artists (e.g. Mexican musician Juan Gabriel, Cuban singer Albita) provided entertainment during parties hosted by the former Cartel de Cali head.

The actor went on to tell the Associated Press that he has worked in “millions of places” including weddings where he “didn’t even know who was getting hitched.”

Source (English)- Wikipedia

Sources (Spanish)- El Diario/La Prensa, El Tiempo, Milenio

Image- univision.com

Video of the Day: R.I.P. – Luciano Pavarotti

We would be remiss without mentioning a great loss in the world of music with the death on Thursday of legendary opera singer Luciano Pavarotti. The great tenor died at the age of 71 after a bout with pancreatic cancer and his passing has been mourned by many in his native Italy and around the world.

The gregarious singer may be best known for joining Jose Carreras and Placido Domingo as one of “The Three Tenors”, though long before that he entered the pantheon of transcendent opera stars with the likes of Enrico Caruso and Maria Callas.

The clip below is of Pavarotti singing “Manhã da Carnaval” along with Caetano Veloso live in concert. Both perform splendidly in a touching and magical performance together (video link):

Sources- E! Online, Guardian UK, Reuters, Wikipedia, YouTube

R.I.P. – Ernesto Alonso

Famed Mexican telenovela actor and producer Ernesto Alonso died yesterday at the age of 90 years. He was a well-known film actor during Mexico’s “golden age” of films in the mid-20^th century and even made three movies with Spaniard Luis Buñuel. Yet Alonso distinguished himself in nearly 50 years of work in telenovelas and his work boosted Mexican television network Televisa into a leader of telenovelas not only in the Americas but also worldwide.

As friend and theater producer Tina Galindo said to The Los Angeles Times:

"Mexican television lost one of the best producers it has had, but he left us a great legacy as a producer, as an actor and as a friend. He brought to success many actors and stamped a phase in Mexican television."

Several actors and close friends such as Sylvia Pinal and Angelica Maria visited Alonso in his home shortly before he died. He leaves behind a daughter, a son, and eight grandchildren.

Sources (English)- SignOnSanDiego.com, International herald Tribune, Los Angeles Times

Sources (Spanish)- Milenio, El Universal, Cronica, El Diario/La Prensa

Image- Esto

Follow-up: Splitsville for Bolocco and Menem

In an interview with the Chilean press, former argentine president Carlos Menem admitted that he and Chilean celebrity Cecilia Bolocco have separated. “We are separated because living together had become impossible,” said Menem but not as a result of photos published last week showing a topless Bolocco sunbathing with an Italian businessman. Menem added that the pictures snapped by paparazzi represented a “serious mischief” against Bolocco’s privacy.

Image- La Opinion (Carlos Menem and Cecilia Bolocco)

Link (English)- SignOnSanDiego.com, The Latin Americanist

Link (Spanish)- La Nacion

RIP: Nair Bello

Brazilian actress and humorist Nair Bello died earlier today as she was convalescing in hospital after suffering three straight cardiac arrests last November. Bello’s work spanned nearly six decades from radio to telenovelas where she may have been best known as the character of “Pierina” in “Uga Uga.” Her funeral is scheduled for this Thursday near Sao Paolo. Below is a YouTube clip of Bello appearing on a Brazilian talk show with Lolita Rodrigues and Hebe Camargo:

Links- Wikipedia, Milenio, Folha Online, YouTube