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It was a big weekend for little statues in Hollywood. Just hours before the annual obeisance to the mini-idol called Oscar, a couple of romantic garden gnomes leaped atop the box-office heap. Gnomeo & Juliet, Disney's animated 3-D retelling of Romeo and Juliet, with garden gnomes taking the parts of Shakespeare's star-crossed lovers, raked in $14.2 million to lead the weekend's box-office derby, according to studio estimates.

The flick, rated G (for gnome?), has been out for three weeks but still had enough drawing power to muscle past the R-rated comedy Hall Pass, starring Owen Wilson, which pulled in $13.4 million for Warner Bros. on its first weekend. Unknown, a thriller starring Liam Neeson, tacked down third place, with $12.4 million, on its second weekend. Nicolas Cage's 3-D action film Drive Angry got no traction on its debut weekend and took in a paltry $5.1 million for Summit Entertainment, finishing way back in the box-office pack.

Asked if his Oscar win would shake off the Mr Darcy tag at long last, Firth said: "No, I think Mr Darcy will be alive and well for the rest of my life. Mr Darcy will be put to rest when he is buried at a crossroads at midnight with a stake through his heart. 

"I don't see that happening any time soon, and actually I'd be rather sad to see him go.

"There's a bit of a misperception that I'm disgruntled about the Darcy thing and I'm not remotely bothered by it. I would hate to see that tag leave me so I'm very happy for it to follow me around as long as people want it to do so." 

Last night was a stunning triumph for the British film charting how King George VI overcame his stammer. 

Top CBS News foreign correspondent Lara Logan suffered a brutal sexual assault at the hands of a mob in Egypt while covering the downfall of president Hosni Mubarak, the network said on Tuesday. Logan was in Cairo's central Tahrir Square on Friday, the day Mubarak stepped down, and was separated from her crew in the crowd, the US television network said in a statement.

Silvio Berlusconi was aware Karima el-Mahroug, the girl he allegedly paid for sex, was underage, according to a statement she reportedly made to prosecutors. On the day after Italy's prime minister was committed for trial, the centre-left daily La Repubblica has published an extract from el-Mahroug's alleged evidence, in which the Moroccan runaway said that when she first met Berlusconi she told him she was a 24-year-old Egyptian. But on a subsequent visit, in March 2010, "I told him the truth: I was a minor and I had no papers."

Convicted fraudster Bernard Madoff has blamed others for being "complicit" in his scheme, which fleeced investors of billions of dollars. Madoff is serving 150 years in jail in the US for a $65bn (£40bn) fraud which deprived thousands of investors of their savings. Now he has told the New York Times a variety of banks and hedge funds "had to know" about his Ponzi scheme. Such schemes pay out using new investor money rather than from any profits.

Malaysian religious authorities arrested more than 100 Muslim couples on Monday who defied a ban on any activities marking Valentine's Day. Islamic authorities in Malaysia in 2005 issued a fatwa to warn Muslims against celebrating Valentine's Day, saying that the occasion could lead to vice activities, especially pre-marital sex.

Source: Malaysia Arrests 100 Muslim Couples for Celebrating Valentine's Day

Kim Kardashian is about three weeks away from dropping her first single, "Turn It Up," a dance track that viewers can see a sneak peek of on a coming episode of "Kourtney & Kim Take New York." So add "singer" to the reality TV star's ever-increasing list of occupations. The Ministry has tallied designer, perfumer, spokesperson and actress (sort of). Oh, and we haven't forgotten soft-core porn star. That is how she became a household name, after all.

The middle Kardashian sister collaborated with producer The-Dream, Kanye West and Ciara for the track. But don't get your hopes up.

"You know it was something that I was really uncomfortable and nervous about, and [The-Dream] really just wanted me to step outside of my box and try something I've never done before. So I was really honest. I'm like, 'You're not gonna get Beyoncé here, you're not gonna get Celine Dion,' and he really pulled something out of me," she told MTV's Snooki on the Grammy red carpet.

She's releasing the single with no plans to launch an album or career in music. The proceeds will be going to a cancer organization of her choosing to commemorate her father, who died of esophageal cancer in 2003.

A noble cause — which almost makes us want to take back the aforementioned porn star comment. Almost. Sorry, Kimmie.

After losing the Grammy Award for best new artist to jazz singer Esperanza Spalding and the award for pop vocal album to Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber was surprisingly candid backstage. "I worked really hard these past few years and you know, I'm not going to lie — I was disappointed," Bieber told MTV News. "But, you know, I'm gonna come back [next year] and we'll take a few home."

The losses have inspired him to "work harder than I did last year," he added. "It's going to be hard, but I'm going to try."

He tweeted to his fans, "As for the awards ... of course I wanted to win. Its been & still is a dream to win a grammy. Was I upset ... yes. But I was happy for her also. Someone said to me tonight its not your successes that define u but your failures. I lost ... but I don't plan on this being my last chance."

Some Bieber fans were so furious over the loss that they attacked Spalding's Wikipedia page with insults and threats. One poster told her to "go die in a hole." Later, the page was cleaned up.

Soon after the Grammycast, Awards Tracker asked our readers if Bieber was robbed at the Grammys by losing best new artist to Spalding. As of this writing, there were more than 1,300 responses who voiced their opinions below. There's still time to add your vote.

The Dubai Desert Classic leaderboard has a three-way tie at the top. The Dubai Desert Classic leaderboard has Anders Hansen, Thomas Aiken and Rory McIlroy setting the pace for what could be an exciting finish to the tournament on Sunday. Saturday saw Round 3 of the tournament take place, and that included one spectacular round from Alvaro Velasco.

Velasco had posted rounds of 74 and 70, but during Round 3 on Saturday, he posted an amazing 65. On a day when you were hard-pressed to find golfers posting round scores in the 60s, it was Velasco who had the best round of the day. That helped him jump up into a tie for fourth in the tournament, possibly allowing him to make a strike at the leaders during the fourth round. Velasco was aided by the leaders posting terrible rounds, and he matched the 65 that McIlroy was able to post in his first round Thursday.

The Dubai Desert Classic has been a very interesting tournament so far, especially with Tiger Woods making a bid to try to win his first tournament since November 2009. Woods posted an even par score on Saturday, maintaining his mark of 7-under par and keeping him just outside of the top spot on the leaderboard. Woods is one shot off the lead in a group of 10 golfers that can say that.

Sunday's fourth round is going to provide quite a few interesting stories, but fully expect the gold world to be inundated with articles about how Woods might be back to his old form. Woods had a 1-under par score on Thursday but posted a 6under 66 in the second round to put himself in the mix. Now there are 10 golfers that are at 7- or 8-under heading into the final round, with two more at 6-under.

The final round of the Dubai Desert Classic should be a good one, especially if Woods is contention heading to the final tees. On Saturday, though, several golfers really had a chance to put this tournament away, especially the three leaders, who all posted their worst scores of the tournament. Aiken ended up 2-over par in his round, then McIlroy was at 3-over par. They have got to pull things together if they want to win this tournament.

Elizabeth Taylor death rumors have sprung up before. This time, Elizabeth Taylor death reports are over a new case of congestive heart failure. The movie legend has dealt with various health problems over the years, and has dealt with a congestive heart for some time. Once, she even had to go on "Larry King Live" to deny she was gravely ill. But she is stuck in her hospital bed now.

Thousands of riot police tried to block off Algeria's capital Saturday to stop activists from holding an anti-government demonstration inspired by the uprising in Egypt. But demonstrators defied the ban, gathering in the center of Algiers and chanting "Bouteflika out" in reference to Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika.

Keith Olbermann has confirmed his new gig in tweet: Greetings from Keith Olbermann, Chief News Officer of Current Media! And awayyyyyy we go!" The job will start in late spring. In a conference call with reporters, Olbermann said that "nothing is more vital to a free America than a free media," and called Current "the model truth seeking entity" in television. He called his new show "the most exciting event in my career."

As the early morning sun rose above the rooftops of the local government buildings, orderly queues were forming in the car park down below. Villagers, evacuated from their homes when Thailand and Cambodia renewed their long-simmering border dispute with a new and deadly vengeance, lining up for a free hot meal. Most had spent the last two nights sleeping on mats on the ground.  More than 16,000 people on the Thai side of the border have been moved to temporary shelters.

Kenneth Olsen, a computer industry pioneer and co-founder of Digital Equipment Corp., has died. He was 84. His death Sunday was announced by Gordon College in Wenham, Mass., where he was a trustee and benefactor. The college did not release a cause of death. DEC, which Olsen launched in 1957, is considered an icon in technology circles today. The company attracted top engineers and helped usher in a technology revolution that changed the way people interact with computers.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Digital played a central role in creating the market for "minicomputers," powerful, refrigerator-sized machines that appealed to scientists, engineers and other number crunchers who did not need the bigger, multimillion-dollar mainframes used by big corporations. At its peak in the 1980s, DEC was the second-largest computer maker behind International Business Machines Corp.

"In the heady days of Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, it's too easy to forget that it was Ken Olsen's vision of interactivity that took computing away from the centralized mainframe and into the hands of the people," said Gordon Bell, who joined DEC in 1960 and headed the company's engineering operations for more than 20 years.

Ultimately, DEC lost its way in the Internet-era transformations of the technology industry, which shrunk computers down to pocket-sized gadgets that people carry wherever they go. And Olsen is still remembered for his 1977 prediction that "there is no reason for any individual to have a computer in their home." He later insisted the quote was taken out of context and that he simply meant he could not envision a day when computers would run people's lives.

Born in Bridgeport, Conn., Olsen grew up in the neighboring town of Stratford. His father designed machine tools and Olsen and his brothers spent hours tinkering with gadgets in the family basement. After being drafted during World War II, Olsen attended the Navy's electronics school, where he learned how to maintain radars, sonars and navigation systems. He went on to earn undergraduate and masters degrees in engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

At MIT, Olsen worked in the university's Lincoln Laboratory, a federally funded research center created in 1951 to develop technology to improve the nation's air defense system. That technology, powered by MIT's advanced Whirlwind computers, grew into the Air Force's Semi-Automatic Ground Environment defense system, which was used to track and intercept enemy aircraft. One of Olsen's roles at Lincoln Laboratory was to serve as a liaison with IBM, a major contractor on the project. Olsen also worked on Lincoln Lab's TX-2 computer, which helped break new ground in computer-aided drafting.

In 1957, Olsen teamed with MIT colleague Harlan Anderson to start Digital Equipment Corp. with $70,000 from American Research and Development, an early venture capital firm. The company was headquartered in an old wool mill in Maynard, Mass.

DEC named its first computer the PDP-1, for Programmed Data Processor. But it was the PDP-8, which was introduced in 1965 and became a building block for computer systems made by other companies, that really established minicomputers as a major new industry.

The PDP-11 — and later DEC's Virtual Address eXtension, or VAX, series — offered a serious alternative to IBM's central mainframe approach. By the mid-1980s, many other companies had tried to enter the business. Digital was also a pioneer in the use of networking technology to link its computers together and enable DEC engineers around the world to communicate electronically almost instantly.

DEC's innovative machines helped bring computers out from glass-enclosed rooms inside big corporations, where they were operated by men in white lab coats, and made them accessible to small and medium-sized operations and even individual users.

"The computers we built were of a cost and size that they brought computing down a level," said Bell, now a principal researcher in Microsoft Corp.'s Silicon Valley Research Group.

DEC computers also trained and influenced many key players in the technology industry. Microsoft co-founders Bill Gates and Paul Allen used the PDP-10 to create the first version of the BASIC programming language for a personal computer. And Dave Cutler, who developed several key operating systems for DEC, went on to develop the Windows NT and Azure operating systems for Microsoft.

For many years, the company's sophisticated technology drove rapid corporate growth and inspired deep loyalty. That growth came even as Olsen discouraged his salesmen from selling products that customers didn't need and shied away from traditional advertising, convinced that good products would sell themselves.

In 1986, Fortune Magazine called Olsen "America's most successful entrepreneur." By the late 1980s, DEC had more than 120,000 employees worldwide. Sales peaked at $14 billion in 1992.

According to Edgar Schein, an emeritus professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management and author of "DEC is Dead, Long Live DEC," Olsen had a distinctive management philosophy. His corporate culture valued creativity, ingenuity and open communication. And while he had a legendary temper and demanded top-notch work, Olsen empowered his employees with enormous freedom and responsibility.

"Ken Olsen built a company that encouraged innovation and rewarded people with good ideas," said Win Hindle, a former DEC senior vice president who spent 32 years at the company.

Olsen was also fiercely loyal to his employees and he abhorred the prospect of layoffs.

Dan Tymann, executive vice president of Gordon College in Wenham, Mass., where Olsen was a trustee, said Olsen's management style reflected a devout Christian faith. Olsen constantly implored his employees to "do the right thing," Tymann said.

Digital's fortunes had begun to decline by the early 1990s. The company was late to recognize the growing popularity of smaller personal computers and desktop workstations for business use. DEC also resisted the market's shift away from proprietary technology to open systems, including PCs powered by Intel microprocessors and generic servers running UNIX software.

"Olsen continued to believe in innovation while the market became more of a commodity market," Schein said. "People wanted simpler, cheaper desktop computers, while DEC continued to produce sophisticated computers for the technical market."

Even as DEC tried to catch up with new products, including a line of personal computers, it never regained its footing. The company posted its first quarterly loss in 1990. Faced with struggling product lines, Olsen had no choice but to start cutting Digital's work force through buyouts, early retirements and eventually layoffs.

In 1992, Olsen left the company at the request of the board. Robert Palmer, a DEC vice president, took over and set about trying to turn things around. But the heyday of the minicomputer — and Digital Equipment Corp. — was over. In 1998, Compaq Computer Corp. bought what was left of DEC for $9.6 billion. Four years later, Compaq and the remnants of DEC were acquired by Hewlett-Packard Co.

A memorial service at Gordon College is set for May 14.

Copyright © 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Sprint Nextel Corp. (S) plans to launch more devices capable of running on its superfast wireless network this year, seeking to hold on to its lead in 4G as its competitors begin trumpeting their rival speedy services. Sprint will exceed the 20 fourth-generation wireless products--including smartphones and laptop cards--sold last year, according to Fared Adib, vice president of product development and operations. In addition, he said, the company will launch more Android devices, with roughly 70% of its portfolio for the year running on Google Inc.'s (GOOG) mobile operating system.

Sprint's early embrace of 4G and Android was crucial in sparking a turnaround, allowing the nation's third-largest carrier by subscriber base to return to customer growth last year for the first time since 2007. But that advantage has eroded as its competitors begin to roll out their own 4G smartphones running on Android.

Adib declined to say specifically say how many Android and 4G devices would be released this year. But he added that he believes the company's quick start with both continues to give it an advantage. He noted that Sprint's manufacturing partners had to go through a learning curve of a year and a half to develop products running on its 4G network, which uses a technology called WiMax.

He said he believes that learning curve will apply to companies building devices for Verizon Wireless, which launched its own 4G network with another technology called LTE.

"A lot of our (original equipment manufacturers) have experience with 4G, so it's easier to build products," he told Dow Jones Newswires.

Still, he acknowledged the mounting competition and rhetoric around 4G, which rivals AT&T Inc. (T), Verizon Wireless and T-Mobile USA have also embraced.

Adib said 4G is becoming a standard feature for all carriers, but there are other factors in winning over customers, including monthly rate plans and even the specifications of each device. He added he expects to see smartphones with quad-core processors next year, which are faster than many computers.

He also acknowledged that consumers still need more education on what constitutes 4G, particularly because the term is now so widely used.

The company launched the Evo Shift, its third 4G smartphone, in January, and plans to sell a 4G version of the Research in Motion Ltd. (RIMM) Playbook tablet in the summer.

The other leg of Sprint's strategy has been its embrace of Android. It was the second carrier to unveil a major Android smartphone, and its Evo 4G, made by HTC Corp. (HTCXF, 2498.TW), is the company's best-selling phone and heavily contributed to contract customer growth last year.

Sprint plans to report fourth-quarter results on Thursday.

On Monday, Sprint unveiled another Android device, the Echo from Kyocera Corp.'s (KYO, 6971.TO) U.S. unit. The unique device features two 3.5-inch touchscreens that can be stacked side by side to form a mini-tablet. One of the screens can be tucked under the other to form a more traditional smartphone.

Adib said that there will likely be similar products down the line.

Kyocera is heavily invested in the phone and expects this to become a family of dual-screen products, according to Gary Peterson, director of marketing for Kyocera's U.S. arm.

Sprint isn't the only one putting its resources behind Android. Verizon Wireless--a joint venture between Verizon Communications Inc. (VZ) and Vodafone Group PLC (VOD)--has spent heavily on creating a premium Droid brand out of Android, and AT&T said it would sell a dozen Android devices this year.

"It's obvious the momentum is with Android," Adib said.

Sprint shares recently fell 1.7% to $4.33.

We have gathered together a list of the hottest Valentine’s Day gift ideas for 2011.  These gifts range from the must have flower bouquets to some of the more personalized gifts to show that some “extra” thought went into this year’s Valentine’s Day gift.

Best Buy will sell the Motorola Xoom iPad challenger tablet Feb. 24 for $799. This is consistent with pricing leaked earlier from Verizon Wireless. Best Buy is selling the Motorola Xoom Android 3.0 tablet computer for $799 on Feb. 24, according to an ad shot scored by Engadget.

The report comes two weeks after Android Central reported the minimum price for the Xoom, which Motorola hopes will be the first Android tablet to successfully challenge Apple's iPad, from Verizon Wireless would be $799 sans contract. See the Xoom portal on Motorola here.

Powered by the Nvidia Tegra 2 dual-core processor and sporting a 10.1-inch screen, the Xoom has the freshest Android build, which is optimized for tablets.

The tablet supports several 3D capabilities, including the Google Maps 5.0 application for Android, where buildings rise as users tilt the Xoom.

Google showed off these capabilities during Verizon's keynote at the 2011 Consumer Electronics Show Jan. 6 to some applause.

The front-facing, 2-megapixel camera enables video chats over WiFi or 3G/4G LTE, while the back-facing camera is 5MP and captures video in 720p HD.

Verizon will initially support the Xoom, which is also WiFi-equipped, with its 3G network. However, the Xoom will be 4G-ready when the carrier is ready to expand its 4G LTE coverage beyond its current 38 markets in the second quarter.

The Xoom received a bump Feb. 2 at Google's Honeycomb demo event at the Googleplex in Mountain View, Calif., where Google also unveiled the Android Market Webstore.

The Xoom arguably got a bigger bump during the Super Bowl Feb. 6, where Motorola aired its "Empower the People" ad mocking Apple's "1984" ad that portrayed IBM as a producer of cookie-cutter computers.

In this spot, a man woos a drone-like woman "enslaved" by Apple and its omnipresent white earbuds by buying flowers on his Xoom for her. Check it out here.

Sweden's attempt to extradite Julian Assange has placed a spotlight on the procedure for extradition between European countries – the European Arrest Warrant. The little-known legal instrument has been controversial since it was introduced in 2003 under the Labour government and then home secretary, David Blunkett. It was described as a mechanism for fast-tracking extraditions across Europe for terrorism and serious crime, initially agreed as part of moves to tighten security for cross-border offences just days after the 11 September terrorist attacks.

As Google launches a huge recruitment spree, the Internet giant received as many as 75,000 job applications in a week, it has emerged. Previously, the company, based in Mountain View, California, held a record for the highest number of job applications when they hired a raft of new workers in May 2007.

But the latest barrage of applications topped that figure by an incredible 15 percent as the company plans to add 6,00 new jobs.
 

Competition for roles at the company is likely to be fierce with an average 12 hopeful candidates vying for a single position. The company plans to increase hiring as it pushes deeper into mobile services, display advertising and Internet applications.

Google also faces stronger competition from Internet rivals Facebook Inc. that has taken a large share of the advertising market from Google and Apple Inc. that plans to release more products in 2011. Apple also plans to introduce iAd which will display adverts on its range of products.

Popstar Christina Aguilera is all set to venture into the world of fashion with own line of clothing. The 30-year-old singer has teamed up with Brazilian department store C&A to create her own line and says that she cannot wait to get to work, reported Femalefirst. "I am here and very focused on the campaign," said the singer.

The 'Genie in a bottle' hitmaker already has her own perfume range and cited her mother's love for sensual perfumes as the main inspiration behind the creation. "Growing up, I used to play with all the fragrances in my mother's vanity. She had a taste for musky, sensual scents," said Aguilera.
 

She described her scent 'Christina Aguilera' as exotic and fruity while 'Christina Aguilera by Night' as a more intense blend with amber and black vanilla notes.

Persian Gulf shares gained, sending Dubai’s index to a week high, as Egypt’s government met with opposition leaders to quell protests, stoking speculation the turmoil in the country may ease. Qatar’s stocks advanced. Emaar Properties PJSC, the United Arab Emirates’ developer with investments in Egypt’s real-estate industry, advanced 1.5 percent. Air Arabia PJSC rose for the third time in four days. The DFM General Index rallied 1.6 percent to 1,605.89, the highest since Jan. 27, at the 2 p.m. close in Dubai. Qatar’s QE Index gained 1.5 percent, led by banks, after the central bank ordered conventional lenders to stop offering Islamic banking services.

“The Gulf Cooperation Council markets took a breather as the tension in Egypt seems to ease,” said Mahdi Mattar, head of research at Abu Dhabi-based CAPM Investment PJSC, an investment banking company.

Egypt’s Vice President Omar Suleiman met with opposition leaders today to discuss possible constitutional changes and avert an escalation of protests. Suleiman may name a committee of 25 people today to prepare the amendments, said Nabil Zaki, a Tagammu party spokesman.

Emaar, the builder of the world’s tallest skyscraper in Dubai, increased to 3.30 dirhams, the highest since Jan. 27. The company’s Egyptian unit, Emaar Misr for Development SAE, has investments of about 29 billion dirhams ($8 billion) in the North African nation, according to its website. Air Arabia, the low-cost carrier with a hub in Alexandria, Egypt, advanced 1.6 percent to 82 fils, the highest since Jan. 27.

Egypt’s Bourse

Egypt’s stock exchange has been closed since Jan. 30 amid demonstrations demanding an end to President HosniMubarak’s 30- year rule. It will remain shut until at least Feb. 8, communications manager Hisham Turk said in a telephone interview today. Gamal Mubarak, the president’s son, yesterday resigned as head of the ruling National Democratic Party’s policy committee.

Saudi Arabia’s Tadawul All Share Index increased a fourth day, gaining 0.8 percent, and the Bloomberg GCC 200 Index of Gulf stocks increased 0.1 percent.

“Some fingers have been pointed at Saudi as being susceptible to any contagion spread by Egyptian unrest, so if the Tadawul is firm, other GCC markets are likely to be so,” said Julian Bruce, director of equity sales at EFG-Hermes Holding SAE in Dubai. The six-member GCC includes Saudi Arabia, the U.A.E. and Bahrain.

Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah has backed the Egyptian government and condemned the protesters, while trying to address imbalances in the largest Arab economy. The kingdom’s “perfectly unstable” like Egypt, Nassim Taleb, the author of “The Black Swan” said Feb. 3.

Banking Rules

Saudi Arabia announced a 1.44 trillion-riyal ($384 billion) five-year development plan in August as the nation seeks to bolster growth through spending on human resources, housing, education and transportation.

Qatar’s QE Index rallied the most since Jan. 11, led by Qatar Islamic Bank SAQ, the country’s biggest Shariah-compliant lender. Qatar Islamic rose the most since October 2008, gaining 9.4 percent to 88.3 riyals. Masraf Al Rayan, the second-largest Islamic bank, surged 10 percent, the most since July 2006, to 23.1 riyals.

The central bank’s circular on Feb. 1 said conventional lenders must close Islamic branches by year-end and stop taking deposits in those units immediately, said a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified because the directive hasn’t been made public. Officials at the central bank declined to comment.

Israel Rallies

Abu Dhabi’s ADX General Index climbed 1.1 percent and Oman’s MSM30 increased 0.4 percent. Kuwait’s SE Price Index declined 0.4 percent, while Bahrain’s BB All Share Index rose 0.6 percent.

Israel’s TA-25 Index gained 1.6 percent, the most since Dec. 29, to 1,319.44 at the 4:30 p.m. close in Tel Aviv. The yield on the benchmark Mimshal Shiklit note due January 2020 rose five basis points to 5.11 percent, the highest since January 2010.

-- With assistance from David Wainer in Tel Aviv. Editors: Shanthy Nambiar, Claudia Maedler

To contact the reporter on this story: Zahra Hankir in Dubai at zhankir@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Maedler at cmaedler@bloomberg.net

Lindsay Lohan hit headlines (again) last week when she was accused of stealing a $2500 necklace from a Venice boutique, which she claimed she simply borrowed and her stylist forgot to return, but the matter is turning into something much bigger than a mere miscommunication. Lohan will be charged with felony grand theft as early as next week, according to TMZ, and faces a maximum three years in a state prison if convicted.

Los Angeles Criminal Defense Attorney, Steve Cron, told us she may very well be prosecuted over the incident - although it is hardly likely she would be sentenced to a full three years.

"There is a likelihood. It seems to me that she got caught stealing that necklace and it appears that somebody talked her into returning it a week later and had someone drop it off but it was too little too late. She had already stolen it, so I think she will get prosecuted," Cron surmised. "It's unlikely that she is going to get 3 years in state prison because although she's screwed up repeatedly on probation, but she certainly can get a lot more time in county jail. Judge Fox could give her 6 months for violating probation in Beverly Hills and another judge who hears the case on grand theft could decide to send her for more time in county jail or he could send her to state prison. It's more likely that she is going to go to an extended period in county jail. It wouldn't be 30 or 60 days, it's going to be a substantially longer sentence than that."

However, Lohan's camp is maintaining that she is absolutely innocent.

"We vehemently deny these allegations and, if charges are filed, we will fight them in court, not in the press," Lohan's attorney Shawn Chapman Holley told TMZ in a statement.
 

Furthermore, sources close to the troubled star told us she still isn't upset by the hoopla and is used to being "taken advantage of" by people and companies for the sake of PR.

"This whole story is crazy. $2500 is tip money to Lindsay, if she wanted the necklace that badly she would have bought it," said our insider. "She's going to get to the bottom of this - it wasn't stolen."

Deidre Behar contributed to this report

We’ve certainly enjoyed playing around with the HTC Inspire 4G these past few days, but we’ve been itching to know when Verizon was planning on launching the HTC Thunderbolt. Rumors and other documents have pegged the handset’s release sometime within the next few weeks, but now a Best Buy in Grand Rapids has declared February 14th as the official launch date.

As much as we enjoy these leaked date from retailers, we would certainly appreciate it if Verizon would stop beating around the bush and officially announce the launch date and price for the HTC Thunderbolt. Anyone disappointed with AT&T’s 4G performance over HSPA+ should be more than happy with the Thunderbolt’s data speeds on Verizon’s LTE network!

President Barack Obama’s goal of driving the unemployment rate below 9 percent this year is threatened by state and local budget cuts that are likely to intensify as Federal stimulus money runs out.  Austerity measures may add as much as 0.25 percentage point to the unemployment rate this year, according to Mark Zandi, chief economist of Moody’s Analytics Inc.

“This could make the difference between ending 2011 with unemployment above or below 9 percent,” he said. “There’s no more serious drag on economic growth than the severe budget cutbacks at the state and local level.”

Reductions in public payrolls will ripple through the economy, slicing revenue at companies that rely on government contracts and depressing spending among those who are thrown out of work, Zandi said. The result could be the loss of 600,000 jobs in the fiscal year that starts July 1, he said.

State and local governments cut 12,000 workers from payrolls last month, a Labor Department report showed today. Total payrolls rose by 36,000, depressed by poor weather, and the unemployment rate dropped to 9 percent from 9.4 percent.

The 18-month recession that began in December 2007 -- the longest since the 43-month Great Depression -- shrank state and local tax revenue while inflating demand for services such as Medicaid and unemployment insurance. After three years of struggling to bridge budget gaps, many governors and mayors have exhausted one-time maneuvers and rainy day funds.

State and local governments fired 260,000 people last year -- more than General Motors Co.’s entire workforce -- even as companies expanded payrolls by 1.37 million. Since state and local government employment peaked in 2008, the 435,000 public- sector pink slips have exceeded General Electric Co.’s payroll.

The monthly pace of state and local-government job cuts will rise to 25,000 to 30,000 in the second half of this year from the 2010 average of 22,000, predicts economist Dean Baker of the Washington-based Center for Economic Policy Research, who warned in 2002 of a national housing bubble.

The cuts make it harder to push the unemployment rate below 9 percent, Baker said. The White House predicted in its July 2010 mid-session budget review that the rate would fall to 8.7 percent by the fourth quarter of 2011.

Unemployment will average 9.3% this year, according to the median forecast of 65 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. Federal Reserve policy makers’ central projections range from 8.9% to 9.1% for 2011.

Sal Guatieri, senior economist at BMO Capital Markets in Toronto, says job cuts along with higher local taxes and spending cuts could add a half point or more to the unemployment rate.

Federal stimulus funding that has helped plug state and municipal budget shortfalls will shrink to $6 billion in the fiscal year starting July 1 from $59 billion this year, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities in Washington, a non-profit research group.

“The federal government has made clear they’re not going to come in and bail out the states or paper over the problems, nor should they,” New Jersey Governor Chris Christie told Bloomberg News Jan. 25. “It’s time for us to get our house in order.”

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo this week proposed firing up to 9,800 state workers to close a $10 billion budget shortfall. New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg warned Feb. 1 that planned cuts in state aid would force the firings of “thousands” of teachers and other city employees.

Elsewhere, the Texas state senate is considering a budget proposal that would eliminate 8,167 jobs. In Iowa, Governor Terry Branstad said Jan. 24 that 1,500 state workers could lose their jobs. Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick has proposed axing 900 positions on top of 5,900 already eliminated since 2008.

Police Officer

Fired employees spread collateral economic damage as they cut back on restaurant meals and other expenses.

Raymond Wiggins Jr., 32, lost his $48,500 job as a police officer in Pontiac, Michigan the day after Thanksgiving. The 10- year veteran and his wife, Sangeya, turned down the thermostat to 70 degrees from their customary 75 degrees. They’ve cut back to basic cable and spent sparingly on Christmas presents for their five-year-old son and three-year-old daughter.

Weekly family dinners at restaurants such as Outback Steakhouse, operated by Tampa, Florida-based OSI Restaurant Partners Inc., are now monthly treats -- if they happen at all.

“You have to look at everything you’re doing,” Wiggins said.

Spending by state and local governments in 2010 totaled $1.79 trillion, or 12 percent of gross domestic product -- more than federal spending or fixed investment. Adjusted for inflation, state and local government expenditures were down 1.3% from 2009, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Since the recession’s 2007 onset, state governments have closed total deficits of $430 billion with spending cuts, withdrawals from reserves, tax increases and federal aid. Every state except Vermont is constitutionally required to balance its budget.

States face an estimated $140 billion gap between the cost of providing required services and expected tax revenue in the fiscal year that begins July 1, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

“There’s going to be a huge drag from this sector,” says Don Coxe, chairman of Coxe Advisors in Chicago, an investment advisory firm.

Some economists, including Andrew Tilton at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. in New York, are more sanguine. Tilton told clients in a Dec. 17 note that state and local retrenchment represents a “modest fiscal drag” on the recovery through 2012.

Coxe, who has managed money since 1972, says most analysts are overlooking the risks posed by the public sector’s financial plight. Battles between local governments and unions will depress consumer confidence.

“There will be weeks and weeks of ugliness and resentment,” he said. “All of that is not good for GDP.”

To contact the reporter on this story: David Lynch in Washington at dlynch27@bloomberg.net 

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Christopher Wellisz at cwellisz@bloomberg.net

It may not have taken Zac Efron all that long to move on from his longtime relationship with Vanessa Hudgens: New reports say he was spotted getting very cozy with Teresa Palmer! It looks like I Am Number 4 star Teresa may be number one in Zac’s book now!

According to E! News, Zac was getting close to Teresa at a reception Thursday night for her upcoming film, Take Me Home Tonight, at L.A.’s Pink Taco.

At around 10 p.m., the pair reportedly headed over to Voyeur nightclub in West Hollywood and then got even more comfortable around each other!

“They got there a little after midnight,” a club insider told E! News. “They were at a VIP table… They were dancing, standing up by the table and dancing. They all took tequila shots together. He was grabbing her butt and doing very suggestive dancing. Then they made out a couple of times standing up where they were dancing. I was surprised they were doing that in front of everyone. It was like they didn’t care.”

But they didn’t do that for very long.

“They were there for like an hour and left together,” the insider revealed.

And that doesn’t mean it ended on a bad note! The source said Zac was “all about her” the whole night and only left her side when Shaun White came up to chat!

And this morning, when E! News caught up with Teresa at a press junket for Take Me Home she said Zac “is such a sweetheart.”

Sounds like like the night was a success!

What do you think of Zac and Teresa as a potential couple?