Judge OKs Defamation Ruling Vs. Pa. Beauty Queen

A federal judge in New York has upheld an arbitrator's ruling that a Pennsylvania beauty queen must pay the Miss USA pageant $5 million for defaming Donald Trump's pageant organization.

Sheena Monnin resigned as Miss Pennsylvania last year, saying the Miss USA contest was rigged. She claimed another contestant learned the names of the top five finishers hours before the show was broadcast. Monnin said she decided to turn in her crown as soon as those same contestants were named during the show.

She posted a series of messages on Facebook and spoke publicly about her claims. Trump's Miss Universe Organization sued Monnin for defamation and an arbitrator ruled against her in December. The arbitrator said Monnin's allegations cost the pageant a $5 million fee from a potential 2013 sponsor.

Earlier this week, U.S. District Court Judge J. Paul Oetken upheld the arbitrator's decision. Monnin had sought to have it overturned based on three grounds: the arbitrator overstepped his authority, his decision disregarded law, and she didn't know the arbitration hearing was taking place. The judge disagreed.

Monnin, of Cranberry, Pa., said in a Facebook post Thursday evening that she is glad the truth is out there, regardless of the outcome.

"This is not about me being a 'sore loser' or wanting my '15 minutes of fame'" she wrote. "This is about the MUO's admission under oath that they manipulate the judges' results to suit their own ends. This is not what they advertise to the public."

Pageant organizers claimed Monnin resigned because she disagreed with a decision to allow transgender contestants. They made public text from an email they said Monnin sent citing the decision to allow natural-born males into the competition as the reason for her resignation. A transgender contestant was initially denied entry to the Miss Universe Canada pageant because she wasn't born female, but Trump overruled that decision.

Olivia Culpo of Rhode Island won the Miss USA pageant that year.

Monnin wrote on Facebook page that her legal fees amount to more than $50,000 and she needed financial support, including a link for donations.

Trump's lawyer said he applauded the judge's decision but was surprised Monnin stood by her story.

"I'm shocked to see that she has yet to learn her lesson. I thought she would be smarter the second time around," attorney Michael Cohen said.

An Empire State Building Light Show That Rivaled the Fireworks

The Empire State Building threw itself a bit of a dance party on Thursday night.

As fireworks exploded in a spectrum of colors over the Hudson River for the 37th Annual Macy’s Fourth of July Fireworks Spectacular, it was a new light show atop the world-famous building that caught many people’s attention.

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Whether it was grand or garish is a matter of opinion, but it was certainly different.

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When a new LED lighting system was installed on the building in 2012, it promised the opportunity to light up the skyline with 16 million colors. There have been several light shows since then that showed what the system could do. But on the Fourth, when all eyes were turned skyward, it seemed that every one of those colors illuminated the building at some point.

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“I know the Macy’s fireworks are amazing but the Empire State Building lights are stealing the show!!” proclaimed a tweet from a person named Damien Basile.

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The music for the program, called “It Begins With a Spark,” was chosen by the singer Usher, and the light show was created by the lighting design artist Marc Brickman to mirror the fireworks.

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When the new lighting system, from Philips Color Kinetics, was installed, it replaced an older system that required colored gels to be placed on top of static lamps to light up the building.

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Now, the colors can be programmed remotely to change at the stroke of a key. They also glow up to eight times brighter than the old lights.

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The building’s owners have promised to maintain strict standards on how the new lights will be used. For instance, no advertising is allowed.

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However, the Fourth of July offered an opportunity to show off a bit.

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“Partnering the world’s most famous building with the world’s most famous fireworks spectacular can only happen in New York City,” said Anthony E. Malkin, whose family controls the building, in a statement. “As the iconic feature of the New York City skyline, we are honored to have this opportunity to add our unmatchable LED lights to the celebration.”

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For those who prefer a more subdued palette, the schedule for lighting on the building calls for white/white/white until the end of the month.

Katy Perry Spends July 4 With John Mayer, Posts Pic of Them Snuggling Together

Katy Perry Tells 'Vogue': I'm Still "Madly In Love" With John Mayer

Katy Perry and John Mayer are no longer a couple, but her love for the “Say” crooner is far from gone.

spent the day with her on-again boyfriend John Mayer yesterday, and posted a pic on Instagram of them snuggling up together after he performed at the Fourth of July Jam in Philadelphia.

Katy Perry Tells Vogue: I'm Still "Madly In Love" With John Mayer

"Whose broad stripes and bright stars?" Katie captioned the pic which shows the pair in matching patriotic shirts in his tour bus, which was parked backstage.

She also Tweeted a pic of her red, white and blue nails.

Eva Longoria Confirms Ernesto Argüello Romance: "Our Relationship Is So Special"

Two months after E! News first reported that the Desperate Housewives star was getting quite cozy with Ready for Love bachelor Ernesto Argüello, Longoria has now officially gone public with their romance.

The actress' rep confirms to E! News that the two are an item, and Longoria herself gushed to People about her new beau.

"I think that's why our relationship is so special—we truly started as friends," the 38-year-old actress tells the mag.

"I guess we have the press to thank for pushing us to see something we didn't see!" Longoria added.

A source, meanwhile, tells E! News: "She just got back from meeting his family. The two are very serious as he is crazy about her."

The actress had been an executive producer on Ready for Love, a reality dating show that aired on NBC and featured the 34-year-old Argüello. He ended up selecting former Miss USA Shandi Finnessey, but their hookup fizzled out last year.

After tongues first began wagging about a possible romance, Longoria repeatedly denied that she and the Miami Beach entrepreneur were dating.

A to Z: British royal baby's first alphabet

LONDON — From the cannon fire that will mark the arrival of Prince William and Catherine's first child, to the doctors overseeing this very special delivery, here is an A to Z of Britain's royal baby.

A is for ANNOUNCEMENT. After the birth, a proclamation signed by Kate's doctors will be rushed to Buckingham Palace and displayed on a gilded easel at the gates.

B is for BAPTISM. The baby will be christened wearing a replica of a lace and satin gown that has been used since 1841. It is not known where the baby will be baptised, but William was christened at Buckingham Palace by the Archbishop of Canterbury, head of the world's Anglicans.

C is for CANNONS. They will echo over London to mark the birth -- 62 shots from the Tower of London and 41 from Green Park.

D is for DELIVERY. The baby will be born in the private Lindo Wing of St Mary's Hospital in London. Kate is believed to prefer a natural birth over a caesarian.

E is for EDUCATION. The royal youngster is set to enjoy exclusive schooling. Both William and his brother Harry went to the elite boarding school Eton.

F is for FASHION. Just as style gurus have kept an eagle eye on Kate's maternity clothes, the new royal will be a baby-wear trendsetter before it can walk and talk.

G is for GRANDPARENTS. Grandpa Prince Charles is heir to the throne, but the Middletons started as lowly British Airways employees before making millions from a party supplies business. William's mother Princess Diana died in a car crash in 1997.

H is for HYPEREMESIS GRAVIDARUM. The term for the severe form of morning sickness that Kate had which led to her being hospitalised for several days in December.

I is for INTERNET. As the first royal baby of the social networking era, the foetus naturally had several spoof Twitter accounts within minutes of the pregnancy being announced.

J is for JULY. The palace has confirmed that the baby is due in July, but is staying tight-lipped on the exact date.

K is for KENSINGTON PALACE. The future home to the new parents with apartment 1A of the palace being lavishly refurbished. The family are set to move in a few months after the birth.

L is for LAVENDER. The purple flower is thought to help combat morning sickness, and Kate has reportedly been munching on lavender biscuits to keep the nausea at bay.

M is for MEMORABILIA. Manufacturers have been pumping out everything from royal baby mugs to "Prince in Training" romper suits.

N is for NURSERY. Decor plans for the royal nursery have not been made public, but interior designers have rushed forward with suggestions -- from traditional frills to super-modern cots that rock electronically.

O is for OBSTETRICIANS. The baby will be delivered by Alan Farthing, gynaecologist to Queen Elizabeth II, and his predecessor Marcus Setchell.

P is for PLAYMATES. William and Kate have a coterie of aristocratic and well-to-do pals with toddlers to join the baby on play-dates.

Q is for QUEEN-TO-BE? If the baby is a girl, she will be the first princess in history who cannot be pushed out of the line of succession by any younger brothers, following a change in the law.

R is for RESPONSIBILITIES. The baby will be the future monarch of Britain and 15 Commonwealth realms including Canada and Australia. He or she can expect a lifetime of duty that will one day include being head of the armed forces, signing laws and shaking thousands of hands.

S is for SPOTLIGHT. Prince William is fiercely protective of his wife's privacy and will demand that the media give his offspring as close to a normal childhood as possible.

T is for TOYS. Former Australian prime minister Julia Gillard has been knitting a kangaroo for the baby.

U is for UNCLE HARRY. William's brother will be demoted to fourth in line to the throne after the birth. Fun-loving Harry could prove an interesting baby-sitter, while Kate's siblings Pippa and James are also on hand.

V is for VICTORIA. Britain's longest-reigning monarch also grew up in Kensington Palace, but the 19th-century princess had a much stricter upbringing -- she was not even allowed to climb the stairs without supervision.

W is for WILLIAM. The new father is a search-and-rescue helicopter pilot with the Royal Air Force, but is expected to announce soon whether he intends to quit and take up full-time royal duties.

X is for XX or XY? The couple insist they do not know the sex of their baby.

Y is for YOGA. Kate has reportedly taken up yoga and power-walking to stay healthy ahead of the birth.

Z is for ZZZZZZ... Like all new parents, William and Kate can expect months of sleepless nights, but there may be nannies on hand to share the burden.

Weidman believes he will finish Silva

Nine fights. Nine wins, five in the UFC. A victory in his 10th at UFC 162 inside the MGM Grand Garden Arena will make Weidman an instant icon.

Silva and Weidman face off for the media.

“I’ve been through a lot in those nine fights,” Weidman told FOX Sports. “I took a fight against Demian Maia on 10 days’ notice. I had just fractured my ribs in my previous fight (against Tom Lawlor less than three months prior). I took some risks to get this fight. My plan wasn’t just to hang around, hang around and eventually get a chance to fight for a championship.”

Weidman, 29, goes up against Anderson Silva, the UFC’s longest-tenured champ with 10 consecutive title defenses at middleweight and arguably the organization’s greatest fighter in its history. The question as whether Weidman deserves this title short so quickly in his career has seemingly been answered by his peers.

“I believe it’s a bad matchup for Anderson Silva,” longtime UFC welterweight champ George St-Pierre said. “Anderson’s weaknesses are Weidman’s strengths. I’ve trained with Weidman and his wrestling is on another level. Not only is Chris Weidman going to beat Anderson Silva, I believe he’s going to finish Anderson. I believe it's not going to last too long, this fight.”

Weidman's destruction of Munoz earned him a shot against Anderson Silva.

Weidman appreciates the backing from St-Pierre, Kenny Florian, Chael Sonnen and others.

“I have a lot of faith in myself,” Weidman said. “Still, it gives me a boost of confidence when GSP and other guys in the sport believe in me. A lot of the guys who have faith in me are guys who have seen me in the gym and know how hard I work. They know my skills. They respect the fact I’ve taken fights on short notice. I’m glad they see something in me.”

Since this is Weidman’s first entry atop a UFC card, this will be his first five-round fight --- even if he said he doesn’t expect Anderson will last all five rounds. That’s meant minor alterations to his training camp ahead of this weekend’s bout.

“I have no trouble with endurance,” Weidman said. “That’s one of my greatest assets. I can push the pace for five rounds. No matter how long it goes, I want to break the other guy before he breaks you.”

And then there were changes in training to adjust to the UFC’s top pound-for-pound fighter. His trainer, Ray Longo, found sparring partners to mirror Silva’s style and Weidman’s diet was overseen by a nutritionist.

“We brought in a couple of different guys for the first time in my career,” Weidman said on a recent conference call with reporters. “The main guy that did a good job at emulating (Silva) was Steve ‘Wonderboy’ Thompson. He has unorthodox striking and it was definitely good preparation of this fight.”

Weidman said he’s studied Silva’s long career, but he took notice, understandably, one fight in particular: Silva’s first bout against Sonnen, who came within seconds of dethroning Silva three years ago.

“I believed I could beat (Silva) before that fight,” Weidman said. “I think the main thing I learned from that is that I thought Chael was a little bit too uptight and tense when he got the takedown.”

Unlike Sonnen, Weidman is confident that he can earn a stoppage against Silva --- something that’s happened only twice (outside a disqualification for an illegal quick) in his 37-fight pro career that began in 1997.

“I’m going to finish him,” Weidman told FOX Sports. “I think with my game and what I bring to the table that I have a good chance to do it. I think I can shock the world and I’m excited to go out there and prove that.”