Danny Puff

By Piya Sinha-Roy

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A star-studded crowd gathered to celebrate the 2013 Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees on Thursday, as Oprah Winfrey and Usher gathered to pay homage to the likes of Donna Summer, Quincy Jones, Randy Newman and Rush.

Disco queen Summer, producer Jones and comedy-rock singer Newman were inducted along with Canadian progressive rock band Rush, blues guitarist Albert King, hip hop pioneers Public Enemy, rockers Heart and veteran producer Lou Adler.

Television personality and media mogul Winfrey, who said she was discovered by veteran R&B producer Jones when he cast her in "The Color Purple" in 1985, praised his decades-long career, during which he launched stars such as the late Michael Jackson.

"He defines the word legend, he is remarkable and everybody knows it," Winfrey said.

"I continue to be amazed at what goes on in his head ... he's of this time and so far ahead of this time," she added as she present Jones, 80, with his induction trophy.

"Queen of Disco" Summer, who died last May aged 68, was inducted by singer Kelly Rowland, who praised Summer's career for paving the way for female artists

"Her words remind us of exactly who we are," she said.

Summer's husband and daughters were on hand to accept her trophy and singer Jennifer Hudson got the crowd on their feet singing Summer's hits "Bad Girls" and "Last Dance".

Newman, 69, kicked off the night with "I Love LA", joined on stage by musicians Tom Petty, Jackson Browne and John Fogerty and later performed his songs "I Think It's Going to Rain Today" and "I'm Dead" with former Eagles member Don Henley.

Henley, who inducted Newman, criticized the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for its delay in including Newman, calling it "one of those inductions long overdue, in fact, shamefully overdue."

Newman was less critical, saying he was "glad" to be inducted while he was still alive.

"I always wanted to be respected by musicians ... it means a great deal to me that the people I respect are giving me respect," Newman said.

TRIBUTE TO THE BLUES

Grammy-winning singer-songwriter John Mayer paid homage to late pioneering American blues guitarist Albert King, who died in 1992 aged 69.

"The blues is in every undercurrent of the music that I play ... Albert is forever embedded in that music," Mayer said.

Seattle rockers Heart, fronted by sister duo Nancy and Ann Wilson, were inducted by Chris Cornell and performed their hits "Barracuda" and "Butterfly".

"Equality is coming right along. For us, music is the real church, it's a life calling, it's bigger than men and women put together, music makes us all equal and human," Nancy said.

Canadian progressive rockers Rush had the largest number of fans in the Nokia theater, receiving rousing standing ovations as they were inducted by Foo Fighters' Dave Grohl and Taylor Hawkins.

The night's longest speech went to Public Enemy's eccentric rapper Flavor Flav, who giggled and rambled as he talked about the influence of his group's music.

Public Enemy - comprising rappers Flavor Flav, Chuck D, Professor Griff and DJ Lord - were influential in bringing a political and social conscience to hip hop in the 1980s.

"We all come from the damn blues. Let's not get it twisted. We studied the forms of music in DJ culture ... we've always known and paid respect to where music comes from," Chuck D said.

The hip hop collective also sampled music from Summer, Jones and Rush as they performed their tracks "Bring The Noise", "911 is a Joke" and the seminal "Fight The Power".

To be eligible for induction in 2013, a candidate must have released their debut album or single at least 25 years earlier. The ceremony will be televised on HBO on May 18.

The eight inductees were chosen by some 500 voters of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation, which includes past inductees and for the first time, allowed fans to vote.

(Reporting By Piya Sinha-Roy; Editing by Elaine Lies and Pravin Char)

Read More

LOS ANGELES (AP) The end is coming for Showtime's serial killer drama "Dexter."

The cable channel said Thursday that the series' upcoming eighth season will be its last.

"Dexter" stars Michael C. Hall as a Miami Police Department blood-spatter expert who's got his own list of murder victims. The drama debuted in 2006 and became Showtime's first hit series, with a steady performance in the ratings through its run.

The final season begins June 30. It will feature English actress Charlotte Rampling as a neuropsychiatrist specializing in serial killers, and more of Dexter's criminal romantic interest, Hannah, played by Yvonne Strahovski.

Read More

By Eric Kelsey

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Every dog has its day, and for Afghan pooch Aiden, today is for dancing lessons while cats Lucky and Missy are legally guaranteed their nightly shrimp dinners according to their owner's last testament.

These are just a few of the "Spoiled Rotten Pets," a new television series that dives into the world of fawning pet owners who outfit rats in formal wear and pamper Burmese pythons like princes.

The series, which will debut on U.S. cable network Nat Geo Wild on Saturday, follows host Beth Stern as she meets devoted pet owners who go above and beyond spoiling their pets - a venture the network's chief, Geoff Daniels, said was not so hard to find.

"This is about saying that this is more pervasive that anybody thinks," Daniels, executive vice president for Nat Geo Wild, a sister network of the Natural Geographic Channel, told Reuters.

"The show is about colorful and relatable people," he added. "Everybody knows someone like this or does something for their pets to this degree."

Indeed, as the series seeks out the over-the-top pet owner, it also shows they are not alone. After all, there is a thriving market for their spoils of clothing and comfort.

New York resident Cynthia takes time to iron the countless dresses and sweaters that her Yorkie, Toto, wears every day.

"Toto is spoiled," Cynthia says. "I want to do everything possible that I can to make sure that Toto is happy and healthy."

But Toto also has her own psychic, who cautions that the toy-sized dog feels trapped in her fashionable threads.

"She wants to run naked on the beach," pyschic Madrette says while reading Toto's paw print.

"Just once in a while, make sure that she feels that she's being put first ... I think she would really like a mommy-and-me day," Madrette says in her final analysis.

'PIG-TICIANS' AND 'BARK MITZVAHS'

"It's really interesting to see how these people put their pet care above their own," Daniels said. "You consistently get the sense that there's nothing too great for these animals if you see them as family and friends."

Enter Dave and Jennifer, who drop off pet pigs Wilma and Pebbles at a nearby "pig spa" for the night, which will be the couple's first night without them in eight years.

Wilma and Pebbles get the five-star treatment, like Chinese massage from a "pig-tician," while Dave and Jennifer have a quiet but uneasy night as empty-nesters.

Not to be outdone, Diane from upstate New York keeps her 10 rats on a strict vegan diet while spoiling newcomer Vinnie with a special first birthday party where he gets his own tuxedo.

"It's one thing about spoiling dogs and cats, but we're talking pigs and donkeys and rats and tortoises," Daniels said.

Religion also gets its due when New Jersey couple David and Donna give their Pomeranian dog, Sophia, a "bark mitzvah," a canine take on the Jewish coming-of-age bar mitzvah ceremony.

"She's my daughter so I feel like I'm going to do whatever it takes to make her happy," says Donna.

More than 70 guests, including dogs, attend the ceremony under a tent in the couple's yard. But it is not the first bark mitzvah for the rabbi, who says she has done the same for the dogs of comedians Joan Rivers and Roseanne Barr.

Daniels said Nat Geo Wild sees "Spoiled Rotten Pets" as adding a lighter touch to its wildlife-heavy programming, which attracts many more male viewers.

"We are really trying to transform our offerings and bring in more women, especially," Daniels said. "We're looking for differentiation in the marketplace and a more balanced demographic."

Nat Geo Wild is owned by the National Geographic Society and News Corp.

(Reporting by Eric Kelsey, editing by Jill Serjeant and Sandra Maler)

Read More

NEW YORK (AP) Microsoft is working with manufacturers to produce a line of small touch-screen devices powered by Windows, apparently intended to compete with 7-inch tablets like the iPad Mini and Amazon Kindle Fire.

Peter Klein, Microsoft's chief financial officer, told investors and analysts on a conference call Thursday that the new devices will be available in coming months at competitive prices.

Microsoft Corp. is struggling to extend its software into smartphones and tablets as consumers are turning away from PCs, the foundation of its empire. Over the winter, it launched two larger tablets under the Surface brand. And in October, the company took a large stake in Barnes & Noble's digital unit, which sells a line of entertainment-oriented 7-inch tablets under the Nook brand.

Microsoft reported financial results for its latest quarter Thursday, showing a deep but largely expected impact from the slowdown in global PC sales. Investors seemed to be expecting worse after some recent dismal reports on the PC slump.

Outside the Windows division, Microsoft posted solid results from its Office, software tools and Xbox divisions.

Even if the company has a lot of challenges, "there's a lot of good things going on at Microsoft," said Colin Gillis, an analyst at BGC Partners.

The Redmond, Wash.-based company's shares rose 81 cents, or 2.8 percent, to $29.60 in extended trading, after the release of the report.

The software company's net income was $6.1 billion, or 72 cents per share, for the fiscal third quarter, which ended in March. That was up 18 percent from $5.1 billion, or 60 cents per share, a year ago, and beat the forecast of analysts polled by FactSet, at 68 cents. However, analysts have trimmed their forecasts quickly in the last few weeks a month ago, they were expecting Microsoft to post 77 cents in earnings.

Last week, research firm IDC said PC sales fell 14 percent in the quarter, a record. It blamed, in part, Microsoft's new Windows 8, which makes a clean break with the look and workings of old Windows in order to work better with touch screens. Buyers seem daunted by the new interface, IDC said.

Klein said that an updated version of Windows 8 to be released later this year and code-named "Blue," will be in part a response to "customer feedback." Many complaints have focused on the lack of a Start button for those who prefer the older "Desktop" environment, which is hidden behind the new tile-based interface. Klein didn't offer details.

Revenue was $20.5 billion, up 18 percent from a year ago and matching analyst forecasts.

Both earnings and revenue were skewed by software accounting practices. Microsoft offered a $15 upgrade to Windows 8 for Windows 7 PCs purchased June 2 or later. It wasn't able to start recognizing the full value of the software licenses until these offers were redeemed or expired. In the latest quarter, Microsoft was able to recognize $1.1 billion of such deferred Windows revenue, greatly boosting the overall figure.

Stripping out the deferred revenue, overall revenue rose 8 percent, and revenue in the Windows division was flat with a year ago. Even if consumers aren't buying many Windows 8 PCs, businesses are still upgrading from Windows XP to Windows 7 at a rapid clip.

Stripping out deferred revenue and the effect of a $733 million fine levied by the European Commission, Microsoft earned 65 cents per share, up 8 percent from a year ago.

At the company's largest division, Business, revenue rose 8 percent from a year ago to $6.3 billion. The increase was 5 percent adjusting for upgrade offers for the new Office suite.

Microsoft also said CFO Klein is leaving at the end of the fiscal year, in June. He has been in his current role for four years and at the company for 11 years. The company plans to name a new CFO from its finance team in the next few weeks.

Read More

NEW YORK (AP) Robin Roberts spent two days in the hospital fighting off an infection as part of her recuperation from a rare blood disease, and is off "Good Morning America" this week to rest.

The ABC News morning show host said she felt ill last week while on vacation and was told to return to New York and go to the hospital. She's home now, and posted on Facebook on Thursday that she's feeling much better.

Roberts underwent a bone marrow transplant in September to treat MDS, a blood and bone marrow disease. She was off work for five months before returning to the top-rated network morning show on a part-time basis in February.

She's generally worked three days a week, occasionally four. At the beginning of her return, ABC kept a potential fill-in on call at the studio in case she was feeling too ill to continue, the network said.

Roberts said doctors told her that her setback did not occur because she was working or doing too much.

"It's extremely common, post-bone marrow transplant, to have complications," she wrote. "I'm blessed that mine have not been severe."

She said she planned to be back on the top-rated network morning show next week.

Roberts also wrote that her heart goes out to Boston residents.

"It saddens me that I haven't been able to join my colleagues in covering this important story," she said.

Read More

SEOUL (Reuters) - Samsung Electronics Co is considering purchasing mobile memory chips from rival SK Hynix Inc for future products including its new flagship Galaxy S smartphone to be launched this month, J.K. Shin, head of Samsung's mobile business, said on Thursday.

A supply deal would be a boost to SK Hynix, which relies heavily on Apple Inc as a customer for its mobile dynamic random access memory (DRAM) chips.

It also points to tightening chip supplies as mobile gadget makers prepare to upgrade their flagship product lines with greater variety and increased memory storage capacity.

Prices of mobile DRAM chips have increased steadily since early this year, reflecting a tightening supply outlook.

Samsung, the world's biggest maker of DRAM chips, has largely depended on internal supplies of memory chips for its Galaxy range of smartphones, but the market has expected it may also begin looking to outside chip suppliers to ensure no supply disruptions for key models of its Galaxy S smartphone.

The Galaxy S4, which will go on sale later this month, is expected to outsell its predecessors, with monthly sales of about 10 million, and could leapfrog past Apple's iPhone which recaptured the top spot in global smartphone sales in the fourth quarter, analysts said.

Shares in Hynix dropped 2.8 percent on Thursday as Apple suppliers were hit by concerns of weaker demand from the iPhone and iPad maker, after a disappointing revenue forecast by one of its suppliers.

Shares in LG Display Co, which makes flat screens for Apple's iPhone and iPad, tumbled 4.3 percent.

(Reporting by Miyoung Kim; Editing by Edmund Klamann)

Read More

By Poornima Gupta and Noel Randewich

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Apple Inc's shares fell below $400 on Wednesday for the first time since December 2011 after a U.S. chip supplier's disappointing revenue forecast fanned fears about weakening demand for the iPhone and iPad as competition intensifies.

The surprise warning by Cirrus Logic Inc knocked down shares of key component suppliers like South Korea's LG Display Co Ltd and Japan's Toshiba Corp on Thursday in Asia, a region that supplies the lion's share of chips, cases and displays for the Cupertino, California-based company.

The Cirrus Logic revenue forecast fueled fears that demand for the iPhone - which makes up more than half of Apple's revenue - is slowing more quickly than expected as Samsung Electronics Co Ltd and other rivals that use Google Inc's Android software flood the market with cheaper phones. It has also thrown the spotlight on Apple's quarterly earnings announcement due out next week, with some analysts saying the results could miss already reduced estimates.

"This is a tough environment. Apple is in transition between products," said Michael Yoshikami, a portfolio manager at California-based Destination Wealth Management, which owns about 50,000 Apple shares. Cirrus's warning "makes it more likely Apple's not going to surprise on upside."

Cirrus Logic, which makes analog and audio chips for the iPhone and iPad, warned of a reduced product forecast from one customer - which it did not name. But 90 percent or more of its business comes from Apple, making it a key indicator of demand for iPhones and iPads.

That sent shares of Apple below $400 briefly before they ended 5.5 percent lower at $402.80. The drop wiped off more than $22 billion of market value.

In Asia, shares of flat-screen supplier LG Display shed 4 percent and mobile chip maker SK Hynix slipped 3 percent. NAND flash maker Toshiba and component maker Murata Manufacturing Co Ltd both fell 2 percent.

LG Display will report earnings on Monday and SK Hynix next Wednesday.

BEARISH ON SUPPLIERS

"We've been bearish about shares of Apple's suppliers for quite some time," said Andrew Wang, Chief Investment Officer of Manulife Asset Management in Taiwan.

"It is now very clear that Apple's market share has reached the peak, given that Samsung has taken a big chunk of it and HTC has had a few nice models since last year," he said, referring to Taiwanese smartphone maker HTC Corp.

Cirrus's weak forecast followed a 19 percent decline in first-quarter sales at Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd, Apple's main contract manufacturer. The Taiwanese company makes an estimated 60 to 70 percent of its revenue assembling iPhones and iPads, and carrying out other work for Apple.

Hon Hai shares were down 1.2 percent on Thursday.

Since its September 2012 peak, Apple has lost 40 percent of its market value or more than $280 billion - slightly more than Google Inc's entire capitalization - battered by worries about the effect on Apple's industry-leading margins if it is forced to do faster updates of its products to keep up with rivals.

Some say Apple will not be able to sustain its high gross margins as competition in the tablet and smartphone markets leads to lower prices. Shorter product cycles limit Apple's ability to bring down component costs, Bernstein Research analyst Toni Sacconaghi said in a note to clients.

"It's a reminder of weakening demand and the challenges around product transitions," Shannon Cross, of Cross Research, said. "There's not a lot of conviction about what the second half is going to look like."

NERVES

Investors are growing increasingly nervous about Apple's growth prospects.

Shares of other chipmakers and Apple suppliers - including Qualcomm Inc, Avago Technologies Ltd, Broadcom Corp and Skyworks Solutions Inc - fell between 2 and 6 percent on Wednesday.

Goldman Sachs analyst Bill Shope said in a note on Wednesday that Apple's momentum could weaken further before it launches new products later this year.

Apple, which relies heavily on new products to drive its revenue growth, has not had a launch since last October when it unveiled its 7.9-inch iPad mini and an updated full-size iPad.

In the past week, analysts had reduced their estimates for Apple's March quarter revenue on average to $42.53 billion from $42.68 billion.

Apple is expected to report a 9 percent increase in quarterly revenue on April 23, with net profit expected to decline 17 percent to $9.59 billion, or $10.08 a share, for its fiscal second quarter, according to average analysts' estimates.

Bernstein Research's Sacconaghi, who lowered his quarterly revenue estimate to $41.1 billion from $42.4 billion, said he expects mixed results with Apple's revenue coming in below consensus and earnings per share largely as expected.

(Additional reporting by Edwin Chan, Faith Hung in TAIPEI, Miyoung Kim in SEOUL, Ayai Tomisawa in TOKYO; Additonal reporting and writing by Mari Saito; Editing by Maureen Bavdek, Andrew Hay, Leslie Adler, Cynthia Osterman and Chris Gallagher)

Read More

LOS ANGELES (AP) The princess-rescuing adventurer Link is coming to the Nintendo 3DS.

The Japanese gaming giant announced plans Wednesday to bring a new "The Legend of Zelda" installment to its hand-held gaming system.

Nintendo of America Inc. president Reggie Fils-Aime said Tuesday that the new "Zelda" game would be set in the world of "The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past," which was originally released in 1992 for the Super Nintendo console.

The as-yet-untitled 3D follow-up will be released later this year and feature a new story and levels, as well as gameplay that allows sword-wielding Link to transform into a 2D drawing.

"It fully utilizes the Nintendo 3DS," said Fils-Aime. "It gives the game a sense of depth, and this puzzle-solving mechanic of being able to launch into a wall and navigate through walls to get into places that Link wouldn't normally be able to get into is exceptionally fresh."

It will mark the first all-new game starring Link for the glasses-free 3D hand-held device.

Other games announced coming to the 3DS include new "Yoshi's Island" and "Mario Party" titles.

Fils-Aime said more than 20 million 3DS games have been sold since the device debuted in 2011.

___

Follow AP Entertainment Writer Derrik J. Lang on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/derrikjlang

___

Online:

http://www.nintendo.com/3ds

Read More

NEW DELHI (AP) Bollywood star Sanjay Dutt was granted more time to work before going to prison for a 1993 weapons conviction linked to a deadly terror attack, though he likely won't be able to finish his four pending films.

The Supreme Court's order Wednesday gives him four more weeks beyond the original deadline, which was Thursday. Dutt had appealed to the court that he needed six months to complete his pending film commitments, which film industry experts have said are worth at least $20 million.

Last month the top court sentenced Dutt to five years in prison for illegal possession of weapons supplied by Muslim mafia bosses linked to the terror attack that killed 257 people in Mumbai, India's financial and entertainment hub.

The 53-year-old actor originally had been sentenced to serve six years in prison on the charge of possessing an automatic rifle and a pistol that were supplied to him by men subsequently convicted in the bombings.

Dutt served 18 months in jail before he was released on bail in 2007 pending an appeal. The Supreme Court reduced his prison sentence to five years.

The actor's case is part of a sprawling Mumbai bombings trial that has lasted 18 years. Dutt maintains he knew nothing about the bombing plot and that he asked for the guns to protect his family his mother was Muslim and his father Hindu after receiving threats during sectarian riots in Mumbai.

The 1993 bombings were seen at the time as the world's worst terrorist attack, with 13 bombs exploding over a two-hour period across Mumbai. Powerful explosives were packed into cars and scooters parked near India's main Bombay Stock Exchange and other sites in the city. In addition to the 257 dead, more than 720 people were injured in the attack.

The bombings were believed to have been acts of revenge for the demolition of a 16th century mosque by Hindu nationalists in northern India in 1992. After the demolition, religious riots erupted, leaving more than 800 people dead, most of them Muslims.

Despite the long-drawn case and his stint in jail, Dutt's Bollywood career flourished over the past two decades. He gained enormous popularity for a series of Hindi films in which he played a reformed thug who follows the teachings of nonviolence advocate and Indian independence hero Mohandas Gandhi.

In addition to the four projects underway, two other movies that Dutt recently completed filming were being readied for release.

Film industry insiders said the time would not be enough for Dutt to complete all his projects.

"One month is too short for the volume of work that Sanjay has on his plate. We are hoping to wrap up as much as we can," said Rensil D'Silva, producer of one of Dutt's films.

Read More

NEW YORK (AP) The Tribeca Film Festival was born out of the 9/11 terror attacks and celebs attending an annual Vanity Fair gala in New York City Tuesday to kick off this year's event were mindful of the shadow cast by Monday's explosions at the Boston Marathon.

Police and security guards were visible at the festival Tuesday night, where there was an outdoor metal detector for arriving guests.

Whoopi Goldberg said she understood if some people were apprehensive about going out in crowded, public areas.

"I say that's alright. We're out for you," she said. "Stay until you feel better. But we're out here and we got your back."

The actress and TV personality is a juror at the festival this year and directed a documentary that is holding its world premiere called "I Got Somethin' to Tell You" about comedian Moms Mabley.

Aida Turturro, best known for her role on TV's "The Sopranos," said it's important to live your life and not be scared.

"You never know. I mean you can die by crossing the street or you can get hit by a car. ... I think the best thing is to continue life because if you don't they're winning," she said. "If they keep you from living your life than they've won. They've taken your life away from you right there."

Meantime, Jane Rosenthal, the co-founder of the Tribeca Film Festival, said essentially the event must go on.

"Our hearts are with everyone in Boston," she said. "We can't let terror or fear deter us from doing anything so we're going on with our film festival and as the President and the Mayor says we're gonna keep on doing what we do."

The bombings in Boston, carried out with kitchen pressure cookers packed with explosives and lethal shrapnel, killed three people and injured more than 170. No suspects have been identified and no arrests have been made.

New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly, who attended the gala, said he hoped increased police presence would calm people's fears.

"We believe that by increasing uniform presence we've sort of raised the comfort level. People understandably feel a little anxious after a terrible event ... in Boston, so we do that to again make people feel a little more comfortable and let them know we're on the job."

The Tribeca Film Festival runs April 17 through April 28.

___

Online:

http://www.tribecafilm.com/festival

Alicia Rancilio covers entertainment for The Associated Press. Follow her online at http://www.twitter.com/aliciar

Read More