A Rock From a Nugget
NBA sensation Carmelo Anthony gave a special Christmas present to girlfriend and MTV veejay La La Vasquez -- a nine-carat engagement ring. Melo told the press Thursday that he popped the question on Christmas Day. Vasquez said yes, but a wedding date has not been decided.
The good news comes at the end of a tumultuous year for the Denver Nuggets star. He was charged with misdemeanor drug possession in October after airport inspectors found marijuana in his luggage. The charge was dropped after a friend claimed ownership of the drugs.
(Jaap Buitendijk -- Warner Bros. Pictures)
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In September, Anthony found himself in a nightclub scuffle after someone spat a drink on Vasquez. In November, three men were arrested on suspicion of trying to extort $3 million from Anthony with a videotape of the fracas.
And in early December, Anthony made a surprising appearance on a homemade DVD circulating in the player's hometown of Baltimore. Someone on the DVD warns that people who tip police about drug deals "get a hole in their head." Anthony condemned the message and said he had nothing to do with the DVD.
We hope the couple's wedding video won't be quite so scandalous.
One Good Thing From 'Alexander'
Six elephants featured in Oliver Stone's latest film, "Alexander," have joined the search for bodies in Thailand after the tsunami that devastated the country's coastal region eight days ago.
The team of jumbos from Ayutthaya, Thailand's ancient capital, was trucked more than 500 miles yesterday to the ravaged island of Phuket.
"We use the elephants because a truck can't pass through the thick forest," said trainer Laitonglian Meepan. "The elephant is like a four-wheel drive. They walk in the forest all their life."
With thousands of people still missing, the recovery workers (and the elephants) will continue their search into next week, Meepan said.
Noted . . .
Jon Fishman, drummer of the recently defunct jam band Phish, is getting his feet wet in the art world. According to the Boston Globe, Fishman's "sonic rhythm dress" -- a garment he commissioned from New York artist Alyce Santoro -- is going on display at the Fuller Craft Museum in Brockton, Mass. The dress is stitched together from recycled cassette tapes by Sun Ra, Prince, Jimi Hendrix and others.
. . . and Quoted
"It's pretty cool to be asked to come out and go right in the middle of it. It's like we stepped inside our television."
-- Joe Escalante, bassist for the Vandals, a Southern California punk band that performed for troops in Iraq on New Year's Eve.
-- Compiled by Chris Richards
from staff and wire reports
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