Beth Ditto has revealed the inspiration behind her image and music career - Miss Piggy. The chubby singer insists the Muppet pig is a great female role model and helped shape her as a teenager.

NEW YORK (AP) - Beverly Sills, the opera diva who won over fans worldwide with her sparkling voice and charming personality and later became a powerhouse in the New York arts world, is gravely ill with cancer, The Associated Press has learned.

No More Kings, the self-titled first major release, is a positive, upbeat, pop/funk/rock party-in-a-box, full of pop culture references and quirky lyrics. "No More Kings is for anyone who's ever wanted a talking car," says Pete Mitchell, the man behind the band. "This album is very character-driven, very story-based."

Happy Birthday to Olympic gymnasts Paul and Morgan Hamm (1982), WWE star Stephanie McMahon (1976), Slipknot percussionist Shawn "Clown" Crahan (1969), "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" star Nia Vardalos (1962), "Hercules" star Kevin Sorbo (1958), Morphine bassist Mark Sandman (1952; d. 1999), Spanish film director Pedro Almodovar (1951), "NewsRadio" star Phil Hartman (1948; d. 1998), "NYPD Blue" actor Gordon Clapp (1948), Gerry and the Pacemakers singer Gerry Marsden (1942), singer Linda McCartney (1941; d. 1998), "Muppets" creator Jim Henson (1936; d. 1990), and "The Great Gatsby" author F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896; d. 1940)