Angelina Jolie's Recovery: Actress Makes First Red Carpet Appearance Since Double Mastectomy

 

Angelina Jolie was glowing on the red carpet today (June 2) as she made her first public appearance since revealing her decision to undergo a double mastectomy last month.
Dressed in a custom black Saint Laurent gown, the actress, 37, joined her fiance Brad Pitt, 49, at the premiere of his new film "World War Z" at the Empire Leicester Square in London. The couple was all smiles as they posed for photos, looking as captivated with each other as ever.
On May 14, Jolie announced that she had been diagnosed with a mutated BRCA1 gene predisposing her to cancer. She revealed she had undergone a preventive mastectomy on Feb. 16 and reconstructive surgery on April 27 in an op-ed in the New York Times.
"I do not feel any less of a woman," she wrote. "I feel empowered that I made a strong choice that in no way diminishes my femininity."
As for Pitt, he has stood by his wife-to-be's side as she's been recovering at home in Los Angeles over the last few months. Pitt and Jolie have six children together -- Maddox, Pax, Zahara, Shiloh, Knox and Vivienne.
"Having witnessed this decision firsthand, I find Angie's choice, as well as many others like her, absolutely heroic," Pitt said in a statement following Jolie's announcement. "I thank our medical team for their care and focus."

Bruno Mars' Mother Dead At 55, According To Source

Bruno Mars' mother dead at 55, according to an AP source.

NEW YORK — The mother of Grammy-winning pop star Bruno Mars has died in Hawaii.
Bernadette Hernandez died Saturday of a brain aneurysm, according to a publicist for Mars' label, Atlantic Records, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to speak on the record.
Hernandez was 55 years old. She died in Honolulu at Queens Medical Center; no other information was given.
Mars is one of pop's top acts with several No. 1 hits including his most recent, "When I Was Your Man." His mother, a hula dancer and a singer who immigrated from the Philippines, nurtured her son's interest in music at an early age.

Bruce Jenner Calls Out Kanye West: 'He's Never Around'

Bruce Jenner just proved what we've all been thinking for the past eight months ... Kanye West is MIA when it comes to Kim Kardashian's pregnancy.
The Kardashian family patriarch stopped by Extra with his son Brody Jenner on May 31 to talk about the upcoming season of "Keeping Up With the Kardashians" -- which premieres tonight (June 2) at 9 p.m. on E! -- and dished on Kim's nowhere-to-be-found baby daddy.
“Actually, I have only met him once," Bruce told Maria Menounos, who was shocked by his confession. "He's never ... he's not around," he laughed, adding, "He was in Paris the whole time writing, and he just hasn't been around.”
And believe it or not, Brody's revelation was more surprising than Bruce's.
“I’ve never met him," the new cast member admitted. "But Kim says great things about him," he continued, "And so does the entire family."
Speaking of the rest of the Kardashian clan, Khloe recently discussed Kim's baby shower and revealed that West will most likely be making an appearance at the party today (June 2).
"It's girls, but Kanye will come at the end," Khloe told Ryan Seacrest on his morning show, noting, "I think Scott [Disick] and Lamar [Odom] might bring Kanye at the end, because Kanye feels it's a little weird if he's the only guy."

Mookie Blaylock in critical condition following car crash; one person dies

Former NBA guard Mookie Blaylock is in critical condition following a car accident in Clayton County, Ga., on Friday afternoon, Jonesboro, Ga., police chief Franklin Allen told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Blaylock was first reported to be on life support following the crash by officials. But by Friday evening, his condition had improved and he was considered to be in guarded, but critical condition, according to the newspaper. Blaylock has been under treatment for seizures, a family member told police. It was not known if that contributed to the accident or if Blaylock would face charges, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported.
Authorities said that Blaylock was driving northbound on Tara Boulevard in Jonesboro, Georgia in an SUV when he crossed the median and crashed head-on into an oncoming van carrying two people.
Monica Murphy, 43, was one of the two people traveling in the van and died from her injuries on Friday night, just before 10 p.m, Allen said. Her husband, Frankie Murphy, 41, sustained a broken ankle and was released from the hospital after undergoing treatment, Allen said.
At the time of the accident, officials said that Blaylock was unresponsive at the hospital and airlifted to Atlanta Medical Center in critical condition.
Allen told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Friday evening that Blaylock had an outstanding warrant out of Spalding County, Ga. on DUI and drug charges for failure to appeal in court.
“We are saddened to hear of the accident today involving Mookie Blaylock and the Murphy family and the ensuing passing of Monica Murphy,” the Atlanta Hawks organization said in statement released to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution on Friday night. “Our thoughts and prayers are with the families of all involved.”
Blaylock, 46, played 13 seasons in the NBA with the then-New Jersey Nets, Hawks and Golden State Warriors. He retired in 2002 with 11,962 points, 5,972 assists and 2,075 steals for his career. He averaged 13.5 points and 6.2 assists.
Blaylock appeared in the 1994 NBA All-Star game as a member of the Atlanta Hawks and had his best season in 1996-97 (again with the Hawks), averaging 17.4 points and 5.9 assists.
His legal first name is Daron.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Hepatitis A Outbreak Linked To Oregon Berry Farm

WASHINGTON -- The Food and Drug Administration is investigating an outbreak of hepatitis A linked to a frozen organic berry mix sold by an Oregon company.
The FDA and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Friday that 30 illnesses are linked to Townsend Farms Organic Anti-Oxidant Blend, which contains pomegranate seed mix. Illnesses were reported in Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Arizona and California.
Several of those who fell ill reported buying the berry mix at Costco, according to CDC. A Costco spokesman said Friday that the company has removed the product from stores and is attempting to contact members who purchased the product in recent months.
Hepatitis A is a contagious liver disease that can last from a few weeks to a several months. People often contract it when an infected food handler prepares food without appropriate hand hygiene. Food already contaminated with the virus can also cause outbreaks.
The government has not announced a recall, but the CDC recommended that retailers and other food service operators should not sell or serve Townsend Farms Organic Anti-Oxidant Blend.
The FDA said it is inspecting the processing facilities of Townsend Farms of Fairview, Ore., which sold the mix. The CDC said the strain of hepatitis is rarely seen in North or South America but is found in the North Africa and Middle East regions.
Bill Gaar, a lawyer for Townsend Farms, said the frozen organic blend bag includes pomegranate seeds from Turkey, and are only used in the product associated with the outbreak.
"We do have very good records, we know where the (pomegranate seeds) came from, we're looking into who the broker is and we're sourcing it back up the food chain to get to it," Gaar said.
He said Townsend Farms believes Costco is the only customer who bought the product, though they are checking to see if any other retailers may have sold it.

NBA playoffs 2013: George, Hibbert lead Pacers to win to force Game 7 in Miami

Roy Hibbert did everything but pull out the boxing gloves in Game 6, finishing with 24 points and 11 rebounds, and continually contesting Miami's shots to help Indiana stave off elimination with an emphatic 91-77 victory over the defending champs.
Paul George scored 28 points, had eight rebounds and five assists, and the Pacers held Miami to 36.1 percent shooting as they booked a trip back to Miami for Game 7 on Monday night.
"Myself and David (West), we throw ourselves in the fray, in the paint. We like to muck it up," Hibbert said. "Paul and myself, we wanted to make sure we got this for him as well. We didn't want this to be our last game."
MORE: Series in pictures | Grant Hill retires
DEVENEY: Patient Pacers | Big Two struggling | James upset | Hibbert, too | West will be courted
It wasn't.
Instead, after winning their first division crown since 2004, the Pacers are one win away from advancing to the NBA Finals for only the second time in franchise history. They lost to the Lakers 4-2 in 2000. They haven't played a decisive seventh game in the conference finals since losing to Chicago in 1998.
And amazingly, they've done it this time against the defending champions who many considered virtually invincible after winning 27 straight during the regular season, finishing with a franchise-record 66 wins and having won 23 of their last 24 road games before losing Games 4 and 6 in Indianapolis.
But the Pacers have pushed four-time MVP LeBron James and his high-scoring, high-profile teammates to the brink of elimination by punching back, and Game 6 followed a familiar story line. The Pacers had a 53-33 rebounding advantage, outscored Miami 44-22 in the paint and limited Miami's shooters to 16 of 54, 29.6 percent, from inside the arc.
James led the Heat with 29 points on 10-of-21 shooting. Nobody else scored more than 10.
How have the Pacers done it? With Hibbert controlling the inside after adding MMA training to his offseason regiment.
"Roy Hibbert is making extraordinary plays in the pocket, poise in the pocket we call it," coach Frank Vogel said. "He's getting paint catches and just having great poise, great reads. He's not plowing over guys. He had a charge in Game 5, but has been under control."
It was everything an elimination game should be. The teams traded baskets and jabs, sometimes literally, and players ignored the bumps and bruises of yet another wrestling match that has made this tough-guy series compelling.
Both teams attacked the basket, sometimes with problematic results. Indiana missed about five dunk attempts in the first half and a series of short jumpers, too, costing them precious points.