One of Hollywood’s “celluloid ceilings” has been smashed now that Kathryn Bigelow has become the first female ever to win a Best Director Oscar.

EVERYONE knows that the CCTV Spring Festival Gala has long dominated Chinese New Year's Eve. Even now, as some people go looking around for alternatives for that night, the folks at CCTV are working hard to make this annual celebration more attractive.

If you want to see Zhou Libo's ongoing stand-up comedy at the Majestic Theater of Shanghai, you'll have to wait for a long time. All tickets have sold out soon, although the highest price is 380 yuan for his one-man show.

Those of you who grew up watching Astro Boy cartoons and want to keep alive the memory of those good old days just might find yourself disappointed with this. It's the film version of Astro Boy and this time around it doesn't help your nostalgia–it's just another computer-animated film.

Does rap have anything to do with physics? Twenty-three-year-old Kate McAlpine says – or, rather, sings – that it does. In the second half of last year, when LHC was preparing for the crash research, a video attracted netizens from all over the world. In the video, several people wearing LHC union suits dance while singing Rap, explaining LHC in detail.

the much-anticipated film The Founding of a Republic (建国大业) will be a little like stepping into an elevator crammed with people. And, mind you, these aren't just ordinary people, but big-time celebrities.

WERE time travel possible, we would know it already, since, according to Stephen Hawking, "they would already be here telling us about it". Others speculate that "they" have already been here. They visit quite frequently with their flying saucers and invasive experiments. The typical alien - big blank eyes, no hair, green - is a higher form of human being from the future.

The Oprah Winfrey Show added Chen Luyu to its list of famous co-hosts from around the world when the two talk show queens hooked up via satellite for the first time on Aug 26. "I was on Oprah's talk show because the world is focusing on China," says Chen, who was the first Asian host invited by Winfrey.

IF you are expecting to see a Chinese Superman when you sit down with your popcorn to watch the new science-fiction film Metallic Attraction: Kungfu Cyborg (机器侠), you'll be sorely disappointed. True, the robot De Ming (Alex Fong) featured in the movie isn't a bird or a plane, but neither is he a character that will linger in your mind beyond 2009.

Chu Yuxun (Zheng Shuang) is still excited about her battle against campus bullies and her hair's still wet and messy, when her piano teacher suddenly shows up and recommends a new shampoo brand. "You really need silk protein to take care of your hair," the woman says persuasively.

The cute but clumsy pink piglet, McDull, just might be the most contagious thing this summer. Hong Kong's favorite homegrown comic character is returning in his latest adventure, McDull Kungfu Ding Dong Ding, on July 24.

IT'S summer break, time to push aside your textbooks and read something just for fun, or for your personal interest. You might soon find yourself holding your breath as you turn the pages of a fast-paced thriller, or browsing the latest chick-lit on your new e-reader. For those of you who are up to the challenge of trying some leisure reading in English, but have no idea of what to choose from among the thousands of options, 21st Century offers this summer reading supplement to help you out.

SUMMER vacation is a perfect opportunity to reflect on last season's shows and look ahead to the next season.

In 2004, a Chinese-American named William Hung became famous after a performance on the hot US TV show American Idol. On the show, the 22-year-old college student performed a fast, sexy Ricky Martin song named "SheBangs". He was tone-deaf and not a very good dancer, but his horrible performance actually made him quite popular. He later produced an album, titled Inspiration, which sold more than 300,000 copies.

WHILE his elaborate, stop-on-a-dime dance moves and sensual soprano may have influenced generations of musicians, Michael Jackson stood for much more than pop greatness - or tabloid weirdness.