EMAILS OF GENERAL CAUGHT IN PETRAEUS PROBE SAID TO BE 'FLIRTATIOUS': As the widening scandal involving retired general and now former CIA director David Petraeus continued to develop Tuesday (November 13th), it was disclosed that another high-ranking official caught up in the matter, General John Allen, the top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, had exchanged, quote, "flirtatious" emails with Tampa socialite Jill Kelley.  Kelley launched the FBI investigation that led to Petraeus' downfall when she complained about getting anonymous, harassing emails that turned out to have been written by Petraeus' mistress,
Paula Broadwell, who apparently was warning her off Petraeus. In the course of that investigation, the FBI also discovered emails between Kelley and Allen, both of whom are married, that have been described as inappropriate and flirtatious, although not sexually explicit or seductive. Allen has strongly denied any wrongdoing. President Obama has put the nomination of Allen to become the next commander of U.S. European Command, as well as the NATO supreme allied commander in Europe, on hold. In yet another development
yesterday, it emerged that both Allen and Petraeus wrote letters last September on behalf of Kelley's twin sister, Natalie Khawam, in a messy custody dispute.

OBAMA MEETING WITH BIZ LEADERS, AFTER LABOR TALKS, ON FISCAL CLIFF: President Obama will be meeting with business executives today (November 14th), after talks yesterday with labor leaders and liberal groups, as he tried to get both constituencies to support his plan to avoid the "fiscal cliff."  Obama is telling both sides that he's committed to requiring the wealthy to pay more in taxes, as part of any deal to avoid the fiscal cliff, which is a series of expiring tax cuts and across-the-board spending cuts scheduled to take
effect in January if nothing is done.

HEAD OF N.Y. UTILITY COMPANY STEPS DOWN OVER POST-SANDY CRITICISM: The chief operating officer of a New York utility company that's been strongly criticized for its response to Superstorm Sandy is stepping down. The Long Island Power Authority announced Tuesday (November 13th) that Michael Hervey had resigned, effective at the end of the year. LIPA has been slammed since Sandy knocked out power to more than a million
of its customers, both for how long it was taking to get power restored and for poor communication with customers. The company said Tuesday that 99 percent of those customers that can safely get power now have it restored, but 35,000 customers that suffered significant flood damage need repairs on their properties before power can come back. The majority of them are in the hard-hit Rockaways section of Queens. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced an investigation yesterday into how utility companies prepared for Sandy.

PETRAEUS HAS CAMEO IN 'CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS II' VIDEO GAME: In a bit of
coincidental timing, retired Army general David Petraeus, who resigned as CIA director last week over his extramarital affair, setting off an ongoing and widening scandal, appears in a cameo in the highly-anticipated video game, Call of Duty: Black Ops II, which was released yesterday (November 13th). In the game set in 2025, a virtual rendition of Petraeus -- although not voiced by him -- briefly appears as the Secretary of Defense. Black Ops II also has a female president who resembles current Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, an appearance by retired Lieutenant Colonel Oliver North, and an aircraft carrier named the USS Barack Obama. Call of Duty games have often used virtual renditions of political figures.

'MOTOR TREND' SURPRISES, NAMES TESLA MODEL S CAR OF THE YEAR: In a surprise honor, Motor Trend magazine has named the Tesla Model S electric car its 2013 Car of the Year, the first time a non-gasoline-powered vehicle has won the title. Motor Trend editor-in-chief Edward Loh said the car was, quote, "truly a game changer," and the fastest American sedan tested, adding that it was an electric car that, quote, "doesn't look dorky." The Tesla Model S was the unanimous choice of Motor Trend's panel of 11 judges after 25 contenders were tested, with its acceleration, handling and space found to be impressive. The Model S, from California-based Tesla Motors, is priced from $49,900 to $97,900, based on battery options and upgrades. It has three battery choices, 40 kWh, 60 kWh and 85 kWh, which, when traveling at 55 miles per hour, translate to range capabilities of 160 miles, 230 miles and 300 miles, respectively.

• Despite there being a $7,500 tax credit for buying an electric car, the higher prices and battery range/recharging issue have led to hesitation to buy them among some consumers.

ROCKEFELLER CENTER XMAS TREE FROM N.J., SURVIVED SANDY: The tree that was chosen to be this year's Rockefeller Center Christmas tree comes from the property of a New Jersey homeowner, where it survived the wrath of Superstorm Sandy and remained standing. Joe Balku had learned four weeks ago that his 80-foot Norway spruce had been chosen for the honor, and then Sandy hit two weeks later. The 76-year-old Balku said he watched the tree swaying during the storm, saying, "I kept going outside during the night. I lost two trees, and oak and an evergreen, but the big tree was tied up for its protection." When the worst was over, Balku had lost his power, which he didn't get back for two weeks, but the tree still stood. It was cut down yesterday (November 13th), and will be set up today in Rockefeller Center, where it will be lit in the 80th annual tree lighting on November 28th.

ROETHLISBERGER HAS SPRAINED SHOULDER: The Pittsburgh Steelers disclosed
Tuesday (November 13th) that Ben Roethlisberger suffered a sprained shoulder when he was sacked in the  third quarter the night before in the game against the Kansas City Chiefs, an
injury that forced him to leave the game. Steelers coach Mike Tomlin said that Bryon Leftwhich will start as Roethlisberger sits out for the next game.

MELVIN, JOHNSON NAMED BASEBALL MANAGERS OF THE YEAR: Bob Melvin of the Oakland Athletics and the Washington Nationals' Davey Johnson were named baseball's Managers of the Year Tuesday (November 13th), Melvin for the American League and Johnson in the National League. Melvin beat out the Baltimore Orioles' Buck Showalter in a close vote by the Baseball Writers' Association of America. In his first full season with Oakland, the A's made a 20-game improvement, finished 94-68 and won the AL West with baseball's lowest payroll. Johnson easily won the honor in the NL after the Nationals, who'd never had a winning season, posted the best record in the majors and made their first playoff appearance. Both managers also won the honor once previously, and join the small club of managers who've won the award in both leagues.

MORE RETAILERS STARTING BLACK FRIDAY EARLY: More stores will be starting Black Friday sales before you even have time to digest your turkey. Walmart, Target, Toys "R" Us, and Sears will start their sales on Thanksgiving at 8-PM, while Macy's and Kohl's will open at midnight. Retailers say that opening Thursday night is a good thing for consumers because they can finish their feast, head to the stores late, and sleep in the next morning instead of getting up before dawn to get on sale lines.

ODOR ELIMINATING UNDERWEAR IS SURPRISINGLY POPULAR: "Deoest odor-eliminating underwear" is a Japanese product that claims to absorb offensive odors. The product says it uses "whiff-absorbing ceramic particles in the material fibers" to
capture stinky smells. A spokesperson for the company says they originally marketed the product to those with irritable bowel syndrome, but they see a different group of people are buying - Japanese businessmen.

BRAZIL PLANS TO CLONE ENDANGERED SPECIES: Brazil's agricultural research agency, Embrapa, is working with Brasilia Zoological  Garden to collect tissue samples from animals to prepare for a cloning program. Brazil says it will try cloning eight animal species that are on the brink of extinction, and keep them in captivity in case the wild population collapses. International conservation groups say they approve of the plans, but that it should only be used as a last resort. Among the eight species that may be cloned are jaguars and maned wolves. 

NEW BLINK-182 EP ‘A HUNDRED TIMES BETTER’ THAN LAST ALBUM, SAYS DRUMMER: Blink-182 will release a new digital EP by Christmas after spending four days last week recording a batch of new songs in a Los Angeles studio, according to Rolling Stone. Drummer Travis Barker said that he thinks this material is a vast improvement on the trio's 2011 reunion album, Neighborhoods.  He explained, "To me already, this EP is a hundred times better than Neighborhoods because we're all in a room together."

The band recorded most of Neighborhoods separately, with Barker and bassist Mark Hoppus emailing tracks back and forth with singer/guitarist Tom DeLonge, who worked in his own studio.

TRENT REZNOR ALSO WORKING ON NEW QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE:
It's apparently not cool enough that Dave Grohl is once again playing drums for Queens Of The Stone Age. Queens founder and frontman Josh Homme has also recruited Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails to contribute to the album. Reznor himself broke the news when asked on Reddit about the various projects he's working on. Reznor listed several things, including,
"Helping Josh out on a new QOTSA track."

• Reznor's current band, How To Destroy Angels, released an EP called An Omen
       on Tuesday (November 13th) and is preparing its debut full-length album
       for release in 2013.
• Homme told BBC Radio One last week that longtime drummer Joey Castillo had
       left Queens Of The Stone Age, and that Grohl is now behind the kit for the
       recording of the band's sixth studio album.
• Grohl previously played on the third Queens disc, 2002's Songs For The Deaf, the
       band's most successful outing. He also toured with the group for a brief
       time before resuming his duties with Foo Fighters.
• The new Queens Of The Stone Age album is due out
       in early 2013 and will follow up 2007's Era Vulgaris.

DEF LEPPARD SET FOR LAS VEGAS RESIDENCY: Def Leppard have announced a Las Vegas residency. They will be taking over the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino's club, The Joint, in Las Vegas for an exclusive nine show series.  "VIVA Hysteria!" will showcase the band's iconic album, Hysteria as well as their greatest hits.

The show will run from March 22 until April 10, 2013 and tickets go on sale this Friday,
(November 16) on Ticketmaster.

• VIP packages are reportedly available as well.
• Hysteria was released in 1987 and was the group's fourth album.

VIVA Hysteria! show dates:
(subject to change)

• Fri 03/22/13
• Sat 03/23/13
• Wed 03/27/13
• Fri 03/29/13
• Sat 03/30/13
• Wed 04/03/13
• Fri 04/05/13
• Sat 04/06/13
• Wed 04/10/13

'JERSEY SHORE' STAR VINNY GUADAGNINO LANDS TALK SHOW: MTV has given the green light to a new talk show starring Jersey Shore's Vinny Guadagnino.
The show will feature Vinny and members of his family chatting it up and dining
with stars. The show will be a combination of footage from Vinny's home life
and celebrity interviews.

THE CW BUYS SPEC FOR NEW TEEN DRAMA: A new teen survival drama that is described as a cross between Contagion and The Hunger Games has been bought by The CW.
The story follows a group of teens who escape containment in a world where teens have been quarantined from adults after a virus makes adults allergic to teenagers. The show is called Sick.

'CHICAGO FIRE' GETS FULL SEASON: NBC has picked up its firefighting drama, Chicago Fire, for a full season. Though the ratings have not been spectacular, the network has faith in the show that has Law & Order's Dick Wolf as executive producer.

LIZA MINNELLI GUEST STARRING ON 'SMASH': Liza Minnelli is yet another Broadway superstar to accept a gig on NBC's musical drama Smash.  She will play herself in a spring episode of the upcoming second season.

'BLACK SWAN' WRITER TO SCRIPT JOHNNY CARSON BIOPIC: Black Swan screenwriter John McLaughlin will team up with producer Tom Thayer and the estate of the late Johnny Carson to create a biopic of the Tonight Show host.  It will be based on the upcoming Bill
Zehme book Carson The Magnificent: An Intimate Portrait.

TEASER TRAILER FOR FILM ADAPTATION OF STEPHENIE MEYER'S 'THE HOST' RELEASED: Twilight author Stephenie Meyer's best-selling novel, The Host, will open in theaters on March 29th, 2013. A teaser trailer and movie poster have been released. The film stars Saoirse Ronan, Max Irons, and Jake Abel and was directed by Andrew Niccol.

MACGYVER MOVIE MOVES FORWARD _ MacGyver the movie is one step closer to reality. The film has found a director. A script has already been written, so MacGyver should go into production early next year.