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This article focuses on the weight lost by "American Idol" judge Randy Jackson since undergoing gastric bypass surgery in July 2003. Jackson, 47, is the latest high-profile patient to reap dramatic results from the last-resort gastric-bypass surgery that transformed celebrities including the "Today" show's Al Roker and singer Carnie Wilson. Striking a note of joviality on Idol--a much-needed balance between Simon Cowell's nasty and Paula Abdul's nice--Jackson liked to refer to himself as" pleasantly large," often joked about a career modeling Speedo swimsuits.

Discusses the relationship between celebrities Ben Affleck and Jennifer Lopez. Plans for a wedding; Consideration of the criticism of the film 'Gigli,' starring both Affleck and Lopez; How Affleck was spotted at a strip club in Los Angeles, California.

With more students applying to college than ever, it has never been tougher to get accepted. This article describes how six high school seniors schemed and dreamed of getting into their first choice colleges. Emily Schultheis is a prep school student in Evansville, Indiana and has applied to Washington University, Emory, Georgetown, George Washington, and Vanderbilt. She is the student council president, is on the swim and volleyball teams,and planned a blanket drive for women's shelter. Clay Johnson is the valedictorian at his Tom Rivers, New Jersey high school. He has applied to Harvard, Stanford, Yale, Brown, Dartmouth, Boston College, Georgetown and Tufts. R.A. Johnson of Aynor, South Carolina has dreamed of attending Clemson since the ninth grade. He also applied to Winthrop, University of South Carolina, Horry-Georgetown Tech College. Angela Garcia of Camarillo, California has applied to Cal. Lutheran, Humboldt State, San Jose State, and five other schools. Lishaun Francis of Harlem, New York has applied to the University of Pennsylvania, Brown, Bucknell, Howard, Spelman, Swarthmore, Temple, Yale and four other schools. Elizabeth Peterson of Charlevoix, Michigan applied to Michigan State University, Grand Valley State, and Central Michigan University.

Focuses on identity theft, one of the fastest-growing crimes in the U.S. Number of identity-theft arrests; Precautions one should take; Details of identity theft cases, including that of Lyndel Lucas and Jenni D'Avis-Pederson. INSETS: Fame Is No Protection;An Ounce of Prevention.

This article profiles several people who underwent gastric bypass surgery in order to lose weight. Jennifer Serrano, who has lost 145 pounds since May 2002. The Akin family whose combined weight loss equals 418 pounds. Eric Decker, who lost 195 pounds. INSETS: WHEN SURGERY GOES WRONG;PACING HERSELF.

Reports on two celebrity marriages in Europe in December. The marriage of Luciano Pavarotti to his long time girlfriend, Nicoletta Mantovani in Modena, Italy; Guests who included Andrea Bocelli, U2's Bono and The Edge; Wedding in England of Elvis Costello and Diana Krall which was followed by a second ceremony at Elton John's place outside London.

Reports on a bitter family feud over money in the Aaron Carter household. Firing of his manager mom; Accusation by teen singer that his mother is putting him in the middle of her divorce from his dad; Plan to file for legal emancipation from his mother by the end of the year; Comments from Jane Carter.

Reports that Roy Horn, the injured Siegfried and Roy entertainer is getting out of the hospital. Mauled on October 3, 2003 by one of his white tigers during a show, the entertainer will resume rehabilitation from his home; Continued inability to speak.

Offers a Hollywood Hills home for sale. $1.6 million for the home bought by Kelly Osbourne eight months ago; Reason for the sale which is her decision to stay at her parent's house for another year of MTV taping.

Interviews Elijah Wood on the release of the third "Lord of the Rings" film in which he plays the role of Frodo. Thoughts on the relationship between Frodo and Sam; Closeness with actor Sean Astin; On his 22nd birthday; Future plans.

Polls celebrities on their preference in Christmas trees. Fake tree fans LL Cool J and Eva Mendes; Real tree fans in Pamela Anderson, Jennifer Tilly and Thom Filicia.

Reports on the college acceptance of Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. Invitation from New York University where they will both attend the Gallatin School of Individualized Study which is a college within NYU; Student body of about 900 who are free to tailor their own curriculum; Other famous alumni which include Debra Messing, Christy Turlington and Camryn Manheim.

Reports on the Christmas concert given in Vatican City by Lauryn Hill. Hill who berated the Catholic Church during her performance; Reaction of those in the audience who did understand her.

Reports on Ben Affleck's trip to Iraq to entertain the troops. Offering a preview of his new movie "Paycheck" for the soldiers; Other star troopers including Bruce Willis, Robin Williams, Brittany Murphy and Alyssa Milano.

Presents an interview with actor Eric McCormack. Consideration of his nomination for the Emmy award for oustanding lead actor in a comedy; How he feels in the presence of other famous actors and actresses; Preparations for the Emmy Awards show.

The article discusses how Radioactive Films thought they could market nude scenes featuring, among others, Demi Moore in "Striptease," Reese Witherspoon in "Twilight" and Drew Barrymore in "Boys on the Side" in a video called "Hollywood's Hottest." Hollywood's major studios disagree and have banded together to sue Radioactive for at least $6 million in damages.

Actress Katharine Hepburn's 3-acre estate on Long Island Sound in New York is up for sale. The 17-room, white-brick mansion, rebuilt by her family after a 1938 hurricane, is in the Fenwick neighborhood.

In an essay on 'The Passion,' Mel Gibson's upcoming film about the death of Jesus Christ, 'New York Times' columnist Frank Rich implied that Gibson's father, Hutton, a fervent Catholic traditionalist, was "a Holocaust denier." This did not sit well with Mel, who told The New Yorker this week: "I want to kill [Rich].".

The article provides information about the annual compensation of the cast members on the television show 'Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.' Fab Five members are earning only 3,000 per episode during the show's first year, according to contracts signed months before the Bravo program's July 15 debut. The show's stars, who locked themselves into six consecutive one-year options, will be getting annual raises of just 5 percent, which works out to $3,150 per episode next season and $3,307.50 the following year. The Queer Eye deals also stipulate that if cast members have to travel, they'll fly coach.

The article provides observations about fund-raisers such as an eBay auction that featured pants designed by Karan and Carolina Herrera and dedicated to SpongeBob SquarePants. The one-of-a-kind SquarePants pants will be up for bid on eBay Sept. 19-30, with proceeds going to the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. And Bloomingdale's features limited-edition tees ($ 40 and up) from hip labels including Miss Sixty and Juicy Couture to benefit the National Colorectal Cancer Research Alliance, cofounded by Katie Couric. On the Internet, the shirts can be viewed at www.bloomingdales.com..

Discusses how actress Lisa Kudrow celebrated her 40th birthday in Malibu, California on September 6, 2003. Consideration of how some of the guests were members of the cast of 'Friends'; Use of a sand dance floor for dancing.

Discusses how the British tabloids have published stories about how actress Nicole Kidman has lost weight. Rumors that she has a relationship with musician Lenny Kravitz; Claims from Kidman that she does not have an eating disorder.

On the Sept. 4 Tonight Show, host Jay Leno let the baby out of the bassinet during his monologue, telling the audience that Friends star Matt LeBlanc and his bride of four months, model Melissa McKnight, are expecting their first child in March 2004. A few hours before taping, Leno and LeBlanc (who was not a guest that night) discussed making the announcement on the show. LeBlanc, 36, has parenting experience, as McKnight, 38, already has two kids from a previous marriage. Friends of the couple, who were engaged in 1998, predict the blended family will get along just fine.

Actor Mark Wahlberg, 32, celebrated the birth of his first child, Ella Rae, with his girlfriend, model Rhea Durham, 25, in Los Angeles on Sept. 2--only to learn that his sister Deborah Donnelly Wahlberg, 43, had died that same day in a Plymouth, Mass., hospital after a weeklong battle with a septic infection. Deborah was one of nine Wahlberg children, including Donnie, 34, of the TV series Boomtown. The family attended her funeral Sept. 6 at St. Margaret Roman Catholic Church in the Dorchester section of Boston, where Deborah's six brothers acted as pallbearers and approximately 300 mourners paid their respects.

Provides an interview with actor Rob Lowe. How Lowe is working on a television miniseries called 'Salem's Lot' with actor Donald Sutherland, James Cromwell, and Andre Braugher; His family vacations on the South Pacific; Relationship with his wife and children.

Discusses how Bobby Brown failed to attend the August 9, 2003 birthday celebration for his wife, singer Whitney Houston. Claims that the security at the party had a warrant for the arrest of Brown; How Brown violated terms of probation for a drunk-driving charge in 1996.

Describes the various criticisms of the film 'The Passion' directed by actor Mel Gibson. Claims that the movie portrays Jews unfavorably; How the film has been showed to members at the Houston Museum of Fine Arts; Consideration of how the film was shot in Aramaic and Latin.

As basketball player Kobe Bryant works to restore an image tarnished by a sexual assault charge, Internal Revenue Service (IRS) records show that the National Basketball Association (NBA) star this year shuttered his charitable foundation, a group that once supported organizations combating child abuse. Founded in March 1998, the Kobe Bryant Foundation assisted nonprofits that emphasized "self-respect, morals, values and structure," according to the group's tax returns. Before dissolving the foundation, Bryant donated a total of more than $300,000 to agencies like the Hollygrove in Los Angeles, California, which aids children born addicted to drugs or who have "experienced sexual and physical abuse.".

Discusses the relationship between celebrities Justin Timberlake and Cameron Diaz. How Diaz has been seen with Timberlake's mother, Lynn Harless, at his concerts; Consideration of how the couple spent a vacation on the beaches of New Jersey.

Mentions how actress Nicole Kidman is renting the apartment of musician Lenny Kravitz in New York City. How Kidman is filming the movie, 'The Stepford Wives'; Consideration of how the pair was spotted together at a birthday party for Kravitz at the Knitting Factory.

Citing health reasons, singer Kelly Osbourne abruptly canceled her European tour on August 12, 2003 and flew to New York City. The problem, says her London representative, began a few weeks ago while dining in the South of France with her brother Jack, who recently emerged from drug-and-alcohol rehabilitation center. "She and Jack got a bit of food poisoning there," the representative said. Kelly returned to Britain as an opening act for singer Robbie Williams but soon tired.

At age 70, Oprah Winfrey's father, Vernon Winfrey, is set to make his big-screen debut. Vernon's role as a family friend in the independent film 'Charlie's War,' which stars Olympia Dukakis as a Southerner during World War II, is small and required only about four days on the set. Winfrey, who runs a barbershop in Nashville, Tennessee, says his years of cutting hair more than prepared him for show business.

Interviews "Today" show host Katie Couric about her experience hosting an episode of "The Tonight Show." Her sense of humor; Her nerves about the show; Remarks about her cohost Matt Lauer.

Looks like Rachel Hunter has found her model home. The former Mrs. Rod Stewart and celebrity judge on ABC's reality show "Are You Hot?" has moved into a Sherman Oaks, California, house for a little more than $2 million. Hunter, 33, sold her previous home, an English-country-style residence in Beverly Hills, in March for nearly $2.95 million.

Once again Catherine Zeta-Jones finds herself on the unwelcome end of a photographer's lens. The actress won damages in a lawsuit against a British magazine for publishing unauthorized photos of her wedding to Michael Douglas. The celeb couple have trained their ire on a radio chain for running photos of a topless and heavily pregnant Zeta-Jones on several Web sites. Among the grainy paparazzi shots is one showing the actress smoking a cigarette on a patio in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, while pregnant with her daughter Carys. After the pictures surfaced, Douglas, 58, and Zeta-Jones, 33, contacted their lawyers, who fired off an angry missive to Clear Channel Communications.

Is Lara Flynn Boyle turning into Lara Thin Boyle? Her "The Practice" costars say no way. Adds a rep for the show: "Her castmates say she just has a freaky metabolism and she eats normally."

All over the U.S., celebrities are contributing to school fund-raising auctions. Actor Clint Eastwood offered his Mission Ranch hotel as a fund-raising site for the Carmel, California, school his daughter attends. Country stars Kix Brooks and Ronnie Dunn auctioned an autographed guitar to help Nashville, Tennessee's Harding Academy, Dunn's daughter's school, build a cafeteria.

Aaron Sorkin created "The West Wing." Aaron Sorkin wrote most of the episodes of "The West Wing." When it was announced that he was leaving "The West Wing" after four seasons, tout Hollywood looked up from their skim latte and asked, with one voice, "Hey! What just happened?" Declining ratings and critical barbs appeared to be taking a toll. The show's producers, Warner Bros., had reportedly warned Sorkin about his late scripts and the budget overruns they caused.

With actor Harrison Ford on her arm, Calista Flockhart returned to her alma mater, Rutgers University, to be inducted into the school's Hall of Distinguished Alumni. Flockhart graduated from New Jersey's state university as a theater major in 1988. 'Alias' star Jennifer Garner visited George Washington High School in Charleston, West Virginia, appearing in the cafeteria for autographs and pictures.

Introduces a series of articles profiling 50 celebrities who are considered the most beautiful people in 2002.