'Survivor' favorite wins $1 million prize

'Survivor' favoritewins $1 million prize
NEW YORK -- Rupert Boneham, the bushy-bearded giant from Indianapolis who was an audience favorite during the last two "Survivor" games, won a $1 million consolation prize during a special edition of the CBS game on Thursday.
CBS said 38 million people cast votes for the second $1 million winner, a gimmick that brought an "American Idol" flavor to the long-running game. Host Jeff Probst even called it "America's Tribal Council."
The "Survivor All-Stars" finale on Sunday was seen by just under 25 million people, according to Nielsen Media Research.
The other three top vote-getters behind Boneham were Tom Buchanan, the jolly drawler from Virginia; Colby Donaldson, the hunk from Texas; and "Boston Rob" Mariano, the runner-up during "Survivor: All-Stars" to his fiancee, Amber Brkich.
Mariano and Brkich, the final two contestants on Sunday who became engaged during the finale, said a network -- they didn't reveal which one -- had already talked to them about televising their wedding.
Alicia Keys to playpiano prodigy
NEW YORK -- Alicia Keys will make her film debut in a Halle Berry-produced biopic about piano prodigy Philippa Schuyler, her publicist told The Associated Press Thursday.
The yet untitled film details the life of Schuyler, the only child of George Schuyler, a renowned black journalist and author, and Josephine Cogdell, a white artist and writer.
Born in 1939, Schuyler was a child prodigy who played at Carnegie Hall and around the world. She encountered racism as she grew older. She later became a journalist and was killed in 1967 in a plane crash in Vietnam.
'American Idol' staris in the pink
SNELLVILLE, Ga. -- Pink was the color of choice -- even for the mayor -- at a homecoming celebration for "American Idol" finalist Diana DeGarmo.
Mayor Jerry Oberholtzer said he had to do some quick shopping to find a suitable pink tie for the celebration Thursday, one day after DeGarmo became one of three finalists on the hit Fox show.
Hundreds of fans and friends, many wearing pink T-shirts that proclaim DeGarmo as "Snellville's American Idol," packed the social hall at Snellville United Methodist Church to welcome their hometown hero. The 16-year-old singer was presented a key to her hometown and named "mayor for the day."
Notable death
Dorothy Van Engle, a black leading lady known for her beauty, sophistication and intelligence in "Murder In Harlem" and other so-called "race films" of the 1930s, has died. She was 87.
Today's birthdays
Opera singer Patrice Munsel is 79. Rock singer-musician Jack Bruce (Cream) is 61. Movie producer George Lucas is 60. Actress Meg Foster is 56. Rock singer David Byrne is 52. Movie director Robert Zemeckis is 52. Rock singer Ian Astbury (The Cult) is 42. Rock musician Mike Inez (Alice In Chains) is 38. Rhythm and blues singer Raphael Saadiq is 38. Actress Cate Blanchett is 35. Singer Danny Wood (New Kids on the Block) is 35. Movie writer-director Sofia Coppola is 33.
Singer Natalie Appleton (All Saints) is 31. Singer Shanice is 31. Actress Amber Tamblyn is 21.