People: Monaco to celebrate birth of royal twins
Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene of Monaco are expecting twins next month and the first one born will be the prince’s royal heir.
The palace of the Riviera principality advised citizens on Saturday that the big moment, expected in December, will be celebrated with church bells ringing and 42 cannon shots.
The palace says there will be 21 cannon shots for each baby and church bells tolling for 15 minutes, followed by boat horns.
Prince Albert told BFM-TV on Saturday that the first child born will be heir to the throne – unless a boy and a girl are born, in which case the boy becomes royal heir.
Albert, 56, who has two children out of wedlock, married Charlene in 2011.
Cagney’s Oscar falls short at auction
In the world of auctions, there’s always a chance no one will bite. Such was the case for James Cagney’s 1942 best actor Oscar for his role in “Yankee Doodle Dandy.”
The trophy failed to meet the $800,000 minimum bid by the auction’s close Thursday night.
Auctioneer Nate D. Sanders initially predicted the Oscar could sell for more than $1 million.
Academy Awards have become an increasingly hot commodity for collectors, due to their scarcity and restrictions from the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences.
Auction prices have ballooned in recent years as a result. In 2011, for instance, Orson Welles’ “Citizen Kane” Oscar sold for $861,542.
Polygamist says father molested her
A woman featured in a reality TV show about a polygamous family is going public about sex abuse she claims she suffered as a child in hopes of changing a culture of secrecy plaguing plural families in Utah.
Rosemary Williams of “My Five Wives” on TLC says she was molested more than two decades ago by her father, Lynn A. Thompson and published her claims in a blog. He is the leader of the one of largest organized polygamy groups in Utah, the Apostolic United Brethren, or AUB. The AUB is estimated to be the second-largest polygamist church in Utah.
Thompson said the allegations were not true when contacted by the Associated Press on Friday.
Rosemary Williams is Brady Williams’ third wife. He and his five wives and their combined 24 children are featured in the TLC reality show.
The birthday bunch
Actor Franco Nero is 73. Actress Susan Anspach is 72. Screenwriter Joe Eszterhas is 70. Actor-comedy writer Bruce Vilanch is 67. Singer Bruce Hornsby is 60. TV personality Robin Roberts (“Good Morning America”) is 54. Rock musician Charlie Grover is 48. Actor Oded Fehr is 44. Actor Lucas Grabeel is 30. TV personality Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi is 27. Actress-singer Miley Cyrus is 22.