Chastity Bono announces sex change

LOS ANGELES – Chastity Bono is having a sex change to become a man.
A spokesman for Bono, born a girl to Sonny and Cher, says he "has made the courageous decision to honor his true identity" and began the sex-change process earlier this year.
Publicist Howard Bragman said Bono is proud of his decision and hopes "that his choice to transition will open the hearts and minds of the public regarding this issue."
The 40-year-old writer, activist and reality-TV star came out as gay 20 years ago, Bragman said.
In the book "Family Outing: A Guide to the Coming-Out Process for Gays, Lesbians, & Their Families," Bono describes the realization of being "somehow different — specifically different from who my mom expected me to be."
A message left with Cher's representatives was not immediately returned Thursday.
Bono's second book, "The End of Innocence: A Memoir," details how relationships with Joan, a lover, and Sonny and Cher changed after coming out.
In 1995, Bono posed for the cover of the gay magazine The Advocate and began working for the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD).

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Rapper DMX gets probation on assault charge

PHOENIX (Reuters) – An Arizona judge on Monday sentenced rapper DMX to probation for allegedly throwing a food tray at a detention officer inside a Phoenix jail.
The rapper, whose real name is Earl Simmons, will spend 18 months on supervised probation for the jailhouse altercation under the ruling by Judge Robert Gottsfield in Maricopa County Superior Court. He also must attend counseling.
Simmons pleaded guilty to one count of aggravated assault on May 22. Eight days earlier, he was released from the jail after serving 90 days on drug, theft and animal abuse charges.
In May 2008, the 38-year-old rapper was arrested on drug and animal cruelty charges after sheriff's deputies raided his home and found dog carcasses and malnourished pit bulls.
Simmons' attorney could not immediately be reached for comment.
(Reporting by David Schwartz in Phoenix, Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

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Twilight Director: Rob & Kristen Could Be Dating

Los Angeles (E! Online) – Could Rob Pattinson and Kristen Stewart really be dating? The director of Twilight didn't rule it out at last night's Young Hollywood Awards.
"People love to talk, so let them have fun talking," Catherine Hardwicke said. "I think they have an interesting, wonderful connection, so you know...What does dating mean? I don't know. I couldn't say."
The director was just with them both at the MTV Movie Awards, but didn't join their private postawards dinner at Cecconi's.
Award-recipient Bar Rafaeli was also playing coy about her love life...
The model mentioned she's taking a trip back to Israel soon, but wouldn't divulge if Leonardo DiCaprio would be joining her.
"My summer plans are I'm going to Israel," the beauty said. "Who I'm going with, only I know!"
While Bar was receiving her Young Hollywood Crossover award from Kellan Lutz, Leo joined the crowd catching the Lakers playoff game downtown at the Staples Center.
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Bret Michaels suffers nose fracture and busted lip

NEW YORK – Bret Michaels performed at the Tony Awards, and all he got was a nose fracture — and a busted lip.
According to Michaels' spokeswoman, the rock singer had X-rays taken after getting clocked in the head by a descending set piece at Sunday's Radio City Music Hall ceremony.
Publicist Joann Mignano says Michaels, who performed with his 1980s hair-metal band Poison, fractured his nose and had to get three stitches in his lip. She says he was getting a CAT scan on Monday as a precaution, as he's had a past neck injury.
Although he's "pretty bruised up," Mignano says, Michaels was in good spirits. He wiped off blood with a towel and laughed backstage when host Neil Patrick Harris joked that the singer "gave head banging a whole new meaning."
Michaels took to the stage with Poison during the telecast's opening production number, featuring performances from the season's Broadway musicals.
They performed "Nothin' But a Good Time" with the cast of "Rock of Ages," and as Michaels exited the stage, he smacked into a piece of scenery and was knocked to the ground upon impact. Footage of the accident soon landed online, where Michaels' pratfall seemed to score as much attention as the prestigious ceremony itself.
Michaels had a "great time performing for the Broadway audience," says Mignano, who notes that the star of VH1's "Rock of Love" reality series took photos backstage with theater legends Liza Minnelli and Angela Lansbury.
Michaels, who has gone solo, is touring with his namesake band. Later this month, he'll take Poison on the road for a joint tour with Def Leppard and Cheap Trick.

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Ex-model daughter of Romania's president wins EU seat

BUCHAREST (AFP) – The daughter of Romania's president is a jet-set queen and an ex-model better known for her blunders and misshaps, but she vowed Monday not to disappoint now she has been elected a Euro-deputy.
"The media portrayed me as an uneducated woman but I showed during this campaign that I was worth more than that," Elena Basescu, the 29-year-old daughter of President Traian Basescu, told RFI radio.
Basescu, who ran as an independent, is bound for Strasbourg after winning 4.22 percent of votes in the European parliamentary elections, held on Sunday in Romania.
Born on April 24, 1980 in Constanta, a resort town on the Black Sea coast, Romania's first daughter took to the catwalk in her youth to show off her slender figure and brunette Barbie doll look.
Late nights clubbing in Bucharest and a turbulent love life ensured she soon became a firm favourite of the Romanian tabloids, earning her the dubious honour of being nicknamed the "Carpathian Paris Hilton".
But she took a major change of course and forced doubters to take her more seriously in 2007 when she entered politics and was elected secretary-general of the Liberal Democrats' youth party with a crushing majority.
Her elections was said to have angered her father, who had been elected Romania's president in 2004.
Her presence on the party list for the 2009 European parliamentary election drew accusations of nepotism from some Liberal Democrats and parts of the media, leading her in March to announce her candidacy as an independent.
To those who belittled her qualifications, she showed off her degrees in economics and an internship at the European parliament, adding: "I have chosen to go to Strasbourg on foot, while candidates from the other parties are taking the plane."
Basescu travelled across the country targeting the youth vote in a widely publicised campaign, but media reports talked little of her programme, which focused particularly on protecting children whose parents work abroad.
She was forced to reverse her position in favour of legalising marijuana following a public outcry, but this did not stop her path to Strasbourg.
After gathering some 200,000 votes on Sunday, Basescu announced: "I am very proud of what I have achieved, but it is now time I rejoined the party in which I grew up."
The Liberal Democrats welcomed her with open arms and Basescu has set herself a new goal: a job in the European parliament's important budget and finance committee.

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Actor Efrem Zimbalist Jr. honored by FBI

LOS ANGELES – Efrem Zimbalist Jr. finally got his badge.
The actor who portrayed cool and canny Inspector Lewis Erskine on the TV series "The F.B.I." was named an honorary special agent Monday — the FBI's highest civilian honor.
The 91-year-old actor was presented with the badge by FBI Director Robert Mueller. He praised Zimbalist as an icon who inspired a generation of FBI agents.
Zimbalist said he was humbled and called the agency America's "guardian."
The show ran on ABC from 1965 to 1974.

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John Travolta thanks colleagues for promoting film

LOS ANGELES – John Travolta is thanking his colleagues from "The Taking of Pelham 1 2 3" for promoting the film while he continues to mourn the death of his 16-year-old son, Jett, who died after a seizure in January.
Travolta posted a note on his personal Web site Monday thanking "Pelham" director Tony Scott and co-stars Denzel Washington, John Turturro, Luis Guzman and James Gandolfini for "their unselfish efforts" publicizing the picture, which allowed his family the additional time to reconcile their loss.
The 55-year-old actor also thanked Scott for "the freedom to define, and then to become, the ultimate evil mastermind."

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Kyra Sedgwick receives 'Walk of Fame' star

LOS ANGELES (AFP) – Actress Kyra Sedgwick, star of hit television series "The Closer", became the 2,384th celebrity to be honored on Hollywood's "Walk of Fame" here Monday.
The Golden Globe-winning 43-year-old attended a morning ceremony which saw her award unveiled next to the star of her husband, Kevin Bacon, on the stretch of Hollywood Boulevard which honors Tinseltown celebrities.
Sedgwick is best known for her portrayal of Los Angeles Police Department deputy police chief Brenda Johnson on "The Closer."
The role has earned her numerous Golden Globe and Emmy nominations.
Her films include "Born on the Fourth of July," "Singles," and "The Game Plan."

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Singer-songwriter Kenny Rankin dead of lung cancer

LOS ANGELES – Kenny Rankin, a brilliant pop vocalist and highly regarded musician-songwriter whose stylings ranged from jazz to pop to the world music influences he picked up as a child in New York, has died of complications related to lung cancer, his record company announced Monday. He was 69.
Rankin died Sunday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Mack Avenue Records spokesman Don Lucoff said.
The musician, who first gained acclaim as one of the guitarists on Bob Dylan's landmark 1965 album, "Bringing it all Back Home," had been preparing to record an album of new material when he became ill a few weeks ago. Recording sessions scheduled with producer Phil Ramone were canceled as his health began to deteriorate.
"That he was still at the top of his game is one of the saddest parts of his passing for me," Denny Stilwell, president of Mack Avenue Records, said in a statement. "He performed the new material in our office over the last few months and his voice was still in its finest form — he sounded absolutely amazing. Our hearts and prayers are with his family."
Rankin wrote and recorded the pop standard "Peaceful" and also wrote "In The Name of Love," which was recorded by Peggy Lee, and "Haven't We Met," performed by Carmen McRae and Mel Torme.
His own "The Kenny Rankin Album" was recorded live in 1976 with a 60-piece orchestra.
Rankin, who signed with Decca Records while still in his teens, once said his music career really began in the fourth grade when he sang "O Holy Night" in a school Christmas play and his teacher walked up to him afterward, patted him on the head and said, "Kenneth, that was lovely."
"She set me on the path in music that I find myself on today," he said.
After signing with Decca in the late 1950s he released a handful of singles before moving on to Columbia Records, also the home of Dylan. There, he took part in the recording of "Bringing it All Back Home," the album in which Dylan moved firmly from an all-acoustic folk music sound to an electric mixture of pop and rock 'n' roll.
Soon after, he made his first appearance on "The Tonight Show," where he impressed host Johnny Carson so much that Carson contributed liner notes to Rankin's first album, 1967's "Mind Dusters." Other albums included "Family," "Like a Seed," "Inside and "Silver Morning:"
He would go on to appear as Carson's "Tonight Show" guest more than 20 times.
His supple tenor voice on such recordings as "Spanish Harlem," "'Round Midnight" and the Beatles' "Blackbird" and "I've Just a Face" also won him the respect of fellow musicians as a singer's singer.
Mack Records said he so impressed the Beatles' Paul McCartney that McCartney asked him to perform "Blackbird" when he and songwriting partner John Lennon were inducted into the Songwriters Hall Of Fame.
Rankin spent much of the past 20 years touring, although he returned to the studio in the mid-1990s to release a pair of albums, "Professional Dreamer" and "Here In My Heart." He also released a Christmas album in 1999.
Born in New York City on Feb. 10, 1940, Rankin was raised in the city's Washington Heights neighborhood, where he said he grew up listening to a broad spectrum of music, including Afro-Cuban, jazz, Top 40 and Brazilian.
He is survived by his son, Chris Rankin, daughters Chanda Rankin and Jena Rankin-Ray and a granddaughter.
His record label said funeral arrangements are pending.

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Tony Bennett donates instruments during jazz fest

NEW ORLEANS – Jazz crooner Tony Bennett handed out dozens of new instruments Thursday to students at a charter school founded in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, hoping the tubas, trumpets and trombones would be used to carry on New Orleans' vibrant musical tradition.

Meanwhile, the second half of the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival got under way.

As Bennett shook hands with students and posed for photographs, some of the $100,000 worth of instruments were laid out on a table at KIPP Believe College Prep, a public charter school established after Hurricane Katrina flooded 80 percent of the city in 2005. The school is one of five KIPP charter schools serving roughly 1,000 of the city's students since Katrina.

"This means instruments will be available to these students for years to come, to continue making music history in New Orleans," said Bennett, who was treated Thursday to performances of "Free Spirit Overture" and "My Funny Valentine" by the school's symphonic and jazz bands.

"These kids are amazing. What I heard today was real music. They played with feeling, with such heart," the 82-year-old Bennett said.

The donation effort was set in motion by a jazz fan from New York who won a "Big Give" contest hosted by Oprah Winfrey's magazine. The winner, Barry Jaffin, wanted to use his $5,000 in winnings to put instruments in New Orleans schools.

Bennett and a host of charitable groups such as Music Rising and the Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation got on board with the cause.

"We were all very excited," said 13-year-old Deon Butler, a 7th-grade trumpet player who performed in both the symphonic and jazz bands for Bennett. "Out of all the schools in the U.S., he came to hear us."

Bennett, a 15-time Grammy winner, released his signature "I Left My Heart in San Francisco" in 1962 and remains a popular performer.

Bennett was accompanied Thursday by his wife, Susan Benedetto, who runs the couple's New York-based Exploring the Arts program, which contributed to the instrument donation. On Friday, Bennett is slated to perform at Jazz Fest, which kicked off its second weekend Thursday.

School groups from all over the city were scattered across the festival grounds. Besides listening to music, the kids got some hands-on craft experience. Jared Wilkerson, a 4th-grader at Hynes Charter School in New Orleans, helped 67-year-old carpenter Ray Weimer cut a piece of cypress wood to make an old-fashioned roof shingle.

"That was fun," Wilkerson said, chuckling with schoolmates.

Jazz Fest veterans were also having a good time.

"Jazz Fest is my religion," said Nancy Gates, a Boston native who said she has not missed a Jazz Fest since 1988. "This is the mother of all festivals, the best festival in the world. It has the best food, the best music and the best crowd. I love it all."

For the Ulf family from Kensington, Md., the festival is the site of a family reunion each year. Parents David and Ellen Ulf fly to New Orleans with their 19-year-old son, Ryan, to visit their daughter, 24-year-old Ellen, who lives there.

"We always time the trip to catch Jazz Fest," Ellen Ulf said, as she handed out cochon de lait po-boys and alligator pies to the rest of the family in a shady spot under a tree near the Cajun and zydeco stage.

"We like this stage because we don't have music like this where we live," David Ulf said. "I can see Neil Young anywhere. I can only see Corey Ledet here."

Young is slated to perform on Sunday, the festival's closing day. Thursday's closing acts were guitarist Ben Harper, country singer Emmylou Harris and soul singer Marva Wright.

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Jonas Brothers Ready to Get "Paranoid," Channel Johnny Depp

Los Angeles (E! Online) – Given the bomb that was the Jonas Brothers' 3-D movie, it's understandable that the Disney dudes get a little nervous before they drop their new album.

"Paranoid," the first single from Lines, Vines and Trying Times, lands on airwaves on May 8 and kicks off what is sure to be an exhaustive campaign and concert tour leading up to the album's June 16 drop date.

The promo tour has already launched with the boys gracing the cover of the latest issue of Seventeen magazine. And no matter how they're feeling about their latest venture—anxious, excited, whatevs—they aren't afraid to share their lofty goals.

For example, in addition to making music, 19-year-old Joe Jonas wants to be one of the most sought-after actors as well as pen one of the best-selling books in history.

"I think Johnny Depp's work is really great—he always incorporates music into what he does," he says when asked to list his acting role model. "[I also want to] write a book one day, because I love to read. The Alchemist [by Paulo Coelho] is my favorite book of all time."

Even if Kevin, Nick and Joe are uncertain of what's ahead, their label thinks the album just might change the world or something, calling it "an incredible music journey" and "a veritable smorgasbord of pop and rock gems."

With promises like that, the next single will probably be called "Insomnia."

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Court grants Redmond O'Neal rehab chance

LOS ANGELES – The son of Ryan O'Neal and Farrah Fawcett is getting a chance at a clean slate.

Redmond O'Neal was admitted into a drug court program on Thursday that could remove him from probation and wipe his record clear of previous drug convictions if he succeeds.

The 24-year-old will join an intense rehabilitation program that will include frequent drug tests and court appearances.

If he relapses or otherwise flunks the program, O'Neal faces several years in prison for a pair of drug convictions.

O'Neal became eligible for the drug court after he failed to pass a less stringent court-supervised rehab program.

O'Neal was stoic as Assistant District Attorney Anthony Estradas laid out the rules of the program, including that he would have to have his own job. The payoff, Estradas told O'Neal, would be a drug-free life and possibly a better relationship with his family.

"Jail will no longer be in your future," Estradas told O'Neal, who was wearing a brown jail jumpsuit.

He has been in custody since April 5, when deputies say they found him with heroin in a parking lot at Los Angeles area jail. He has pleaded not guilty to charges filed in that case.

O'Neal expressed regret recently, telling a judge his recent arrest was keeping him from being with his ailing mother. Fawcett is suffering from anal cancer that has spread to her liver and has suffered complications from an unrelated procedure performed in Germany.

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Hayden Panettiere: Wants to Footloose With Chace Crawford

Los Angeles (E! Online) – Chace Crawford could be playing footsies with Hayden Panettiere.

The Heroes starlet has auditioned for director Kenny Ortega's updated remake of the classic '80s flick Footloose.

Panettiere, my source says, recently sang for filmmakers (the new Footloose is being turned into a full-blown musical à la the Broadway version). "They were really impressed," the insider gushes. "No one realized what a good singer she is."

Panettiere actually has a slew of musical credits to her name. Not only did she release a pop single, "Wake Up Call," last year, but she's recorded several tunes for various soundtracks.

If she makes it the next round, Panettiere will likely have a dance audition followed by a read with Crawford. Her rep did not immediately comment for this story.

While Crawford isn't officially on board to star as Ren McCormack (originally played by Kevin Bacon), sources tell me the gig is pretty much a done deal.

Ren is a city boy who moves to small town where rock music and dance are prohibited. Ren heads up a revolt of sorts to overturn the oppressive laws. Panettiere would play Ariel Moore, who falls for Ren much to the chagrin of her boyfriend and her Bible-thumping father.

The original flick included hits like the title track and "Let's Hear It for the Boy."

The remake was supposed to star Zac Efron, but he dropped out to pursue non-song-and-dance projects.

As I first told you, Dancing With the Stars beauty/country singer Julianne Hough is also being considered for Ariel.

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Naomi Watts, Liev Schreiber Breathe Easy After Son's Health Scare

Los Angeles (E! Online) – What with all the fuss over Mel Gibson and his red-carpet arm candy, Liev Schreiber's absence at last night's X-Men Origins: Wolverine premiere almost went unnoticed.

Though not by his ailing son.

Schreiber, who plays nemesis Sabretooth in the comic book flick, was in Los Angeles to attend the screening but ended up a no-show after learning his 21-month-old son with Naomi Watts, Alexander, was hospitalized in New York for respiratory problems, according to People.

The 41-year-old actor immediately flew home and pulled bedside duty with Watts and their 4-month-old son, Samuel, though luckily not for long.

Alexander—who goes by the Russian version of his name, Sasha—was monitored by doctors for the night before being released.

"Sasha got home today and is feeling much better," said Schreiber's rep, Ina Treciokas.

Talk about a Hollywood ending.

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Sean Penn files for legal separation

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Oscar-winning actor Sean Penn has filed for a legal separation from his wife Robin Wright Penn after an attempt to reconcile apparently failed.

According to court papers filed last week in Marin County, near San Francisco, Penn asked for the legal separation from his wife of 13 years on April 23 on grounds of irreconcilable differences.

The couple started divorce proceedings in December 2007 but got back together again a few months later. The couple have two children aged 18 and 15.

Penn, 48, won his second best actor Oscar in February for his role as slain gay activist Harvey Milk in the movie "Milk". Robin Wright Penn starred in the 1999 romantic drama "Message in a Bottle" and is currently appearing in the investigative reporting thriller "State of Play."

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant)

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Rapper Rick Ross leads album chart for third time

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) – Rapper Rick Ross scored his third No. 1 album on the Billboard 200 chart Wednesday, while veteran synth-rockers Depeche Mode came in at No. 3 with modest sales for their first album in almost four years.

Ross' "Deeper Than Rap" sold 158,000 copies during the week ended April 26, according to Nielsen SoundScan data. His last set, 2008's "Trilla," bowed at No. 1 with 198,000 while 2006's "Port of Miami" also did the same, with 187,000.

Last week's champ, the "Hannah Montana: the Movie" soundtrack, slipped to No. 2 with 104,000 copies.

Depeche Mode sold 80,000 copies of "Sounds of the Universe." The new set gives the British band its second-best rank ever on the chart. Its highest came when "Songs of Faith and Devotion" debuted at No. 1 in 1993.

However, "Sounds of the Universe's" opening frame is actually the group's smallest debut sales week for a studio set since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking data in 1991. Depeche Mode's last four studio offerings have all had opening weeks north of 92,000, including 2005's "Playing the Angel."

Country combo Rascal Flatts' former chart-topper "Unstoppable" fell one to No. 4 with 68,000.

White rapper Asher Roth debuted at No. 5 with "Asleep in the Bread Aisle," which sold 65,000 copies. The set's lead single, "I Love College," peaked at No. 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 a little over a month ago.

Elsewhere, the "Twilight" soundtrack fell two places to No. 6; Lady GaGa's "The Fame" rose one to No. 7; Day26's "Forever in a Day" slid six to No. 8; the "Now 30" compilation dropped four to No. 9; and Jadakiss' "The Last Kiss" also fell four, to No. 10.

Overall album sales slipped three percent from the previous week, and were down 10 percent from the year-ago period. Year-to-date album sales are off 12 percent from the same time in 2008.

(Editing by Dean Gooodman at Reuters)

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Sarah Jessica Parker expecting twins via surrogate

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – "Sex and the City" actress Sarah Jessica Parker and her husband Matthew Broderick are expecting twin girls via a surrogate mother, their representatives said on Tuesday.

Parker, 44, and Broderick, 47, "are happily anticipating the birth of their twin daughters later this summer with the generous help of a surrogate. The entire family is overjoyed," a statement from the couple said.

The couple have a six year old son, James, and have long wanted to add to their family but had no luck, an unidentified friend was quoted as telling Entertainment Weekly magazine.

They turned to a surrogate last year, the magazine said. The surrogate's name and details have not been disclosed.

"They had a lot of unsuccessful tries," the friend was quoted as saying. "They came to the conclusion that this was going to be the best alternative for expanding their family."

Parker is expected to begin shooting a sequel later this year to the hit movie version of "Sex and the City" along with fellow stars Cynthia Nixon, Kim Cattrall and Kristin Davis.

Broderick, star of the Broadway musical and movie "The Producers", and Parker married in 1997.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

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Police to return jewelry worn by Rihanna

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Los Angeles police have agreed to return the $1.4 million worth of jewelry that pop star Rihanna was wearing the night her R&B singer boyfriend Chris Brown is accused of assaulting her, Rihanna's lawyer said on Wednesday.

The earring and three rings that Rihanna was wearing were on loan to the "Umbrella" singer, who had attended a pre-Grammy party with Brown hours before the Feb 8 incident. They were taken by police as evidence in the case.

The designers asked for the bling to be returned and lawyer Donald Etra told a Los Angeles judge at a hearing on the assault case that police will first photograph them before handing them back.

Brown is charged with attacking Rihanna in their rented car on their way home from the party. He was not in court on Wednesday. He is free on bail pending a possible trial next month when he could be given probation or up to five years prison if convicted.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

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Applegate on People's `Most Beautiful' cover

NEW YORK – A smiling Christina Applegate graces the cover of People magazine's "Most Beautiful" issue.

The 37-year-old actress, who recently battled breast cancer, certainly has much to celebrate: She says she's finally found her "perfect type" in her new beau, Dutch musician Martyn Lenoble (Mar-TAN Luh-NOBLE).

Applegate had a double mastectomy last July and reconstructive surgery months later. The star of ABC's "Samantha Who?" calls Lenoble an "angel" who loves her "from head to toe."

According to Applegate, Lenoble has been her "rock" and gave her reason to live — and smile.

The annual "Most Beautiful" issue features 100 famous faces, including Michelle Obama, Zac Efron and Cindy Crawford posing without makeup. It hits stands Friday.

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Shanna Moakler Mouths Off for Gay Marriage

Los Angeles (E! Online) – Former Miss USA Shanna Moakler has been pretty vocal about what she thinks of Miss California Carrie Prejean's views on gay marriage.

But now, Moakler, who is executive director of the Miss California USA pageant, is showing how she feels by keeping her mouth shut.

Moakler, along with Miss USA 2006 first runner-up Tamiko Nash and last year's titleholder Raquel Beezley were in a photo studio last night being shot by Adam Bouska for NOH8, a campaign to support efforts to overturn Proposition 8...

The three women were shot together with duct tape over their mouths, a symbol of their voices not being heard, and "NOH8" painted on their cheeks.

The project was started by Bouska, 25, and his partner, Jeff Parshley, 28, in November after the passage of Prop 8 outlawed same-sex unions in the state.

"We never expected to have so many beauty queens participate. The whole campaign, obviously, is not a direct message to Miss California, but now she happened to have put herself in the line of fire," Bouska says about his newest pic of the Moakler et al.

"If Carrie is going to go out there with her message, then we have to go out there and make sure the voices of these girls are heard," he adds. "And that they are what Miss USA should stand for, too."

Another portrait shows 1997's Miss Universe Brook Lee, originally from Hawaii, wearing a white wedding dress and a sash that reads "Miss Equality." With or without duct tape, these beauties are sending the message.

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