Into a world of magic

Oz: The Great and Powerful (PG) 130 mins ——————– Sam Raimi probably set out to produce an ambitious, cutting-edge prequel to the Wizard of Oz, but instead Oz: The Great and Powerful offers something of a return to classic Disney storytelling values, and that’s no bad thing. There’s already plenty of negative online chatter about Raimi’s arguably excessive use of CGI animation and other fripperies, but you should ignore that and look at how Oz does the basics, and does them well

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Marge Simpson graces Playboy cover

If those coveted 20-something readers can’t identify with Hugh Hefner, maybe they will with “The Simpsons.” Like nearly everything printed on paper these days, Playboy magazine has been facing tough times. Advertising pages have dropped 31 percent over the last year, newsstand sales have dried up by 25 percent, and its circulation has dipped to 2.4 million, according to publishing insider Media Industry Newsletter.

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Whip It: Drew Barrymore, Director and Roller Derby Girl

It’s been well established that Drew Barrymore is both adorable and a free spirit. Who else could show up to the Toronto premiere of her first directorial effort, the roller derby-themed film Whip It, with a hair-do that looked like something put together by a bored Jolie-Pitt child during an unsupervised hour at the chateau?

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Katherine Heigl taking ‘Grey’s Anatomy’ hiatus

Seattle Grace is losing another doctor — at least temporarily. Katherine Heigl, 30, is taking a leave of absence from “Grey’s Anatomy” to film a new movie, the romantic comedy “Life as We Know It.” An ABC rep cannot confirm the exact length of time she will be out of pocket — EW.com is reporting a 5-episode hiatus — but tells PEOPLE, “Katherine is taking time off to film a movie.

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Dolly Parton: ‘I know I’m a bit over-exaggerated’

"Never wear your make up to bed," implore the beauty editors. But Dolly Parton was never one for following conventional advice on looking good. She sets her own standards, from her striking sculptured hair to the bright lashings of eyeshadow caked on a face that she has admitted in the past owes a lot to modern surgery

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Astronaut Armstrong recalls moon landing

The first man on the moon marked the 40th anniversary of his historic achievement with characteristic understatement Monday, calling the program that put him on the lunar surface "a good thing to do." Apollo 11 commander Neil Armstrong joined crewmates Michael Collins and Buzz Aldrin at the National Air and Space Museum, capping a day of commemorations that included a stop at the White House.

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