Jennifer Lopez follows Tyler off ‘American Idol’

LOS ANGELES — Jennifer Lopez followed Steven Tyler’s lead off “American Idol” on Friday, a one-two punch for a show on the brink of an adolescent identity crisis.

Lopez will not be back for a third year on television’s top-rated but struggling show, her representative, Mark Young, said Friday. Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler announced Thursday he was exiting.

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Our favorite things to do starting July 25

Check out an overview of the best events, music and gatherings going on in Weld County.

‘Two and a Half Men’ actor calls his show ‘filth’

NEW YORK — The teenage actor who plays the half in the hit CBS comedy “Two and a Half Men” says in a video posted online by a Christian church that the show is “filth” and that viewers shouldn’t watch it.

Nineteen-year-old Angus T. Jones has been on the show, which used to feature bad-boy actor Charlie Sheen and remains heavy with sexual innuendo, since he was 10 but says he doesn’t want to be on it anymore.

“Please stop watching it,” Jones said. “Please stop filling your head with filth.”

Jones plays Jake, the son of Jon Cryer’s uptight divorced chiropractor character, Alan, and the nephew of Sheen’s hedonistic philandering music jingle writer character, Charlie. Sheen, who has publicly criticized CBS, was fired and replaced by Ashton Kutcher, who plays billionaire Walden.

In the video posted by the Forerunner Christian Church in Fremont, Calif., Jones describes a search for a spiritual home. He says the type of entertainment he’s involved in adversely affects the brain and “there’s no playing around when it comes to eternity.”

“You cannot be a true God-fearing person and be on a television show like that,” he said. “I know I can’t. I’m not OK with what I’m learning, what the Bible says, and being on that television show.”

Show producer Warner Bros. Television had no comment Monday. CBS didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

“Two and a Half Men” survived a wild publicity ride less than two years ago, when Sheen was fired for his drug use and publicly complained about the network and the show’s creator, Chuck Lorre.

The show was moved from Monday to Thursday this season, and its average viewership has dropped from 20 million an episode to 14.5 million, although last year’s numbers were somewhat inflated by the intense interest in Kutcher’s debut. It is the third most popular comedy on television behind CBS’s “The Big Bang Theory” and ABC’s “Modern Family.”

Tom Hanks, Will Ferrell offer custom voicemail message

Imagine having William Shatner supply your outgoing voicemail message. All it takes is $299 and some luck.

The advocacy group Autism Speaks is offering custom-recorded messages from those celebrities, as well as Will Ferrell, Carrie Fisher, Tom Hanks, Derek Jeter, Leonard Nimoy, Patrick Stewart, Betty White, Morgan Freeman and Ed Asner.

From Dec. 3 to Dec. 9, a limited number of 20-second long MP3 messages will be recorded by each celebrity on a first-come, first-served basis for fans to do with as they wish. All requests must be of the PG variety.

Find out more information at Soundoffforautismspeaks.com.

Essential ‘Twilight’: Take a trivia quiz

All right, all you Twilight-ers, the wait is almost over.

“Breaking Dawn - Part 2,” the highly anticipated final installment of the “Twilight” movie series, hits theaters Friday, and Stephenie Meyer’s bank-breaking story of star-crossed, vampire-to-human love will come to a close.

The fifth and final film is slightly different from the other movies in the series. For one, Bella’s finally a vampire and she and Edward have a child together. They also have to battle the most powerful vampire coven in order to keep their child alive.

You may have only seen the other films once when they hit theaters, but let’s be honest, you probably watched them 15 times more when they came out on DVD and on-demand.

Either way, it’s been a full year (and a whole lot of off-screen drama) since “Breaking Dawn - Part 1” hit the big screen. If you need to brush up on your Twi-Q before you head to the theater, this quiz will get your wheels turning again.

Add how many answers you get correct, and see just how big of a Twi-hard you really are. (Answers below.)

1. What city did Bella live in before she moved to Forks, Wash?

A. Jacksonville, Fla.

B. Phoenix

C. Salem, Ore.

D. Santa Fe, N.M.

2. In “Eclipse,” who does Bella punch in the face?

A. Jacob

B. Edward

C. Jared

D. James

3. What American Indian tribe do Jacob and his werewolf pack belong to?

A. Quileute

B. Chinook

C. Sanpoil

D. Chelan

4. What state was Jasper Hale (born Jasper Whitlock) originally from?

A. California

B. Texas

C. Georgia

D. Arizona

5. Who does Jacob imprint, an involuntary act of finding one’s soul mate?

A. Renesmee

B. Leah

C. Bella

D. Rosalie

6. What is Edward missing from his bedroom?

A. Television

B. Dresser

C. Bed

D. Windows

7. Why do the Cullens avoid going out into the sunlight?

A. They would burst into flames.

B. Their skin would turn red.

C. They would bleed.

D. Their skin sparkles.

8. What is Bella’s stepdad’s name?

A. Carlisle

B. Charlie

C. Phil

D. Bob

9. What game does Bella play with the Cullens in the first installment of the saga series, “Twilight”?

A. Flag football

B. Soccer

C. Basketball

D. Baseball

10. What are the names of the three elders of the Volturi?

A. Aro, Caius and Marcus

B. Alec, Marcus and Caius

C. Caius, Jane and Marcus

D. Aro, Caius and Alec

11. In “New Moon,” how does Edward intend to commit suicide?

A. By encouraging a werewolf attack

B. By drinking poison

C. By stepping out into the sunlight

D. By provoking the Volturi

12. What is the Volturi’s duty?

A. To protect humans from vampires

B. To ensure that vampires’ existence remain a secret from humans

C. To turn humans into vampires, thus increasing the vampire population

D. To create peace between vampires and mortals

13. Who is James, who appears in the first movie, “Twilight”?

A. One of Bella’s friends at school

B. Alice’s husband

C. A “tracker” vampire

D. Edward’s adopted brother

14. In “Breaking Dawn - Part 1,” who believes Renesmee to be an “immortal child,” a young human child that’s been turned into a vampire, and informs the Volturi of her existence?

A. Victoria

B. Irina

C. Carmen

D. Tanya

15. In “Eclipse,” who teaches the Cullens and the Wolves to fight the newborn vampires?

A. Jasper

B. Edward

C. Carlisle

D. Jacob

16. In “New Moon,” who voted against Bella becoming a vampire?

A. Edward

B. Edward and Rosalie

C. Carlisle and Edward

D. Carlisle and Rosalie

17. The “Twilight” saga is based on four novels, with one of the novels broken into two films. What order does the series go in from first to last?

A. Twilight, Eclipse, New Moon, Breaking Dawn

B. Eclipse, New Moon, Twilight, Breaking Dawn

C. New Moon, Eclipse, Twilight, Breaking Dawn

D. Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn

ANSWERS

1) B. Phoenix

2) A. Jacob

3) A. Quileute

4) B. Texas

5) A. Renesmee

6) C. Bed

7) D. Their skin sparkles

8) C. Phil

9) D. Baseball

10) A. Aro, Caius and Marcus

11) D. By provoking the Volturi

12) B. To ensure that vampires’ existence remain a secret from humans

13) C. A “tracker” vampire

14) B. Irina

15) A. Jasper

16) B. Edward and Rosalie

17) D. Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn

HOW DID YOU SCORE?

0-4 points: To Twi or not to Twi? You don’t really remember. You’ll need to go back and watch most of the movies before you see the last installment, or you might be lost through the whole movie.

5-8 points: Twi, Twi again. It’s been a while, so recollection of all the details is sketchy. But you’re slapping your forehead because you know that you knew all the answers at some point.

9-12 points: Good Twi. You’ve seen the movies or read the books recently enough to have a firm grasp of the characters, plot and details. Have fun at the last movie.

13-17 points: Twi-athlete. Congratulations. You’re worthy of calling yourself a Twi-hard. You’re the ones who will be posting Twitter reviews immediately after the movie, helping us decide whether to fork over the cash or wait till it’s out on DVD.

People magazine says Channing Tatum is sexiest man

NEW YORK — Channing Tatum is People magazine’s “sexiest man alive” for 2012.

The 32-year-old actor says his first thought on hearing the news was: “‘Y’all are messing with me.’”

Tatum’s film roles include “Magic Mike” and the upcoming “Foxcatcher.”

Other actors who have received the “sexiest” label include George Clooney, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp and Ryan Reynolds. Last year’s “sexiest man” was Bradley Cooper.

People announced its 2012 list Wednesday.

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Online:

http://www.people.com/people

More residents are refinancing as mortgage rates hit historic lows

More residents are taking advantage of refinancing their homes this year, as mortgage rates go down.

The Colorado Division of Housing has tracked six consecutive quarters in which the mortgage rates have sunk, down to 3.55 percent this quarter, with corresponding rates of refinance activity.

Throughout the state in the third quarter of the year, the division tracked 78,240 total releases of deeds of trust, showing a 54 percent increase in activity from the same time the year before.

Very few releases are actual payoffs of a mortgage, explained Ryan McMaken, spokesman for the state division of housing. Rather, most of those numbers represent refinance activity, which could pay off more than one loan at a time. The report essentially tracks that refinance activity and how it corresponds with now historically low mortgage rates.

What this latest report shows, McMaken said, is that low interest rates are essentially the main reason for the high numbers.

“When you look at this, you think what’s going to change this?” McMaken said. “I look out there, and see that so much demand in real estate now is being driven by low interest rates. Would there be this activity going on if interest rates were higher, and not even much higher, like at 4 percent? Looking at wage growth, and unemployment issues, which aren’t excellent right now, it seems that this demand for real estate now is heavily dependent on low interest rates.”

The most desired effect of refinancing is bringing down monthly mortgage payments.

In Weld County, there were 3,366 releases of deeds in the third quarter, compared to 2,130 at the same time last year. That’s a 58 percent increase, and one of the highest growths in the state. Weld numbers grew 14 percent from the second quarter of the year, the report noted.

But comparatively, when the number of households is fit into the equation, Weld is about average for refinance activity compared to other areas of the state.

McMaken said more affluent areas typically show the highest amount of refinance activity, and the third quarter numbers don’t vary from that. For the third quarter, the report shows the highest rate of refi activity was in Douglas, Summit, Boulder, Broomfield and Larimer counties, the report stated.

“It’s easier to get a refi now if a home is in a place where neighborhood retains it value, or prices are heading up,” McMaken said.

Median sales prices in the Greeley/Evans area are finally on the rise, which makes sense since the area was so overbuilt before the crash in 2008.

“Refi activity in Weld is about in the middle,” McMaken said. “There’s an upward trend because Weld had a long way to go in terms of recovering the lost value. … In some of those areas that were really overbuilt, they’re just starting to get back to home prices they had in ‘07.”

FX orders 90 more episodes of ‘Anger Management’

LOS ANGELES — FX is ordering 90 more episodes of “Anger Management,” Charlie Sheen’s TV comeback vehicle after being fired from “Two and a Half Men.”

The unusually large order reflects the original agreement that FX made for the sitcom that stars Sheen as a therapist.

As part of the deal, FX set a ratings target for eight of the first 10 episodes of “Anger Management.” The show reached the threshold, earning an automatic 90-episode order, the channel said.

The round figure of 100 episodes is the benchmark for series syndication, and that’s the future for episodes that have shown first on FX, said producer Debmar-Mercury, a Lionsgate subsidiary.

“Anger Management” will go into syndication in September 2014, the company said Wednesday. It’s a model that Debmar-Mercury used with the Ice Cube sitcom “Are We There Yet?” and on “Tyler Perry’s House of Payne” and “Meet the Browns.”

FX Networks executive vice president Chuck Saftler said he’s confident the producers and cast will be able to produce the full order during the next two years after quickly turning out the first 10.

In July, Sheen said the prospect of continuing is as “exciting as hell,” and added, “I don’t think 90’s gonna be enough.”

FX called “Anger Management” cable’s highest-rated new comedy series this year, averaging 4.5 million total viewers.

The number reflects the show’s initial strong showing after its June debut, when it attracted more than 5.5 million viewers.

The show’s viewership dropped to below 3 million for some later episodes and was hard-hit by the Olympics in August, averaging just under 2 million, according to Nielsen Co.

But “Anger Management” remained a healthy performer among advertiser-coveted young adult viewers, which was key to FX’s decision to place the big-ticket order.

Sheen, who was replaced by Ashton Kutcher on CBS’ top-rated comedy, was fired in 2011 by studio Warner Bros. Television because of his erratic personal life and public ridicule of the show’s producer.

With “Anger Management,” Sheen answers in part to himself with what FX has called a “significant ownership stake” in the show. Bruce Helford is the executive producer.