The Miami Herald from Miami, Florida • 4

MiamiHeraldcom I THE MIAMI HERALD 4A THURSDAY SEPTEMBER 20 2007 A COMPILED BY MICHAEL HAMERSLY FROM MIAMI HERALD STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS MARRIAGE 25 years just too long for most couples now BIRTHDAYS Actress Sophia Loren is 73 Actor Gary Cole is 51 Actress Kristen Johnston and singers Gunnar and Matthew Nelson (Nelson) are 40 Bassist Ben Shepherd (Soundgarden) is 39 Rapper Yung Joe is 25 testing for Britney highest divorce rates Among people in their 50s 38 percent of men and 41 percent of women had been divorced In 1996 the comparable figures were 36 percent and 35 percent One statistical constant has been the so-called seven-year itch as popularized in the play and film about errant husbands Couples who separate do so on average after seven years and divorce after eight The duration of first marriages that end in divorce appears to have increased slightly among men Among adults 25 and older who had been divorced 52 percent of men and 44 percent of women were currently married On average people who remarry typically wed again in about Vh years Second marriages that end in divorce last about 86 years for men and 72 years for women In 2004 12 percent of men and 13 percent of women had married twice Three percent each had married three or more times The survey of the civilian noninstitution- alized population found disparities on the basis of race and ethnicity Among currently married women white non-Hispanics were the only group in which a majority had marked their 15th anniversary Among men over 15 the proportion who have never been married was 28 percent for whites 45 percent for blacks 39 percent for Hispanics and 33 percent for Asians Among women over 15 it was 22 percent for whites 44 percent for blacks 30 percent for Hispanics and 23 percent for Asians fl The majority of marriages end before 25 years the Census Bureau found and the seven-year itch theory seemed to hold true BY SAM ROBERTS New York Times Service stock up on silver anniversary cards More than half the Americans who might have celebrated their 25th wedding anniversaries since 2000 were either 1 divorced separated or widowed according to a survey released Wednesday For the first time since at least World War II married people had a less than even chance of still being married 25 years later The latest survey by the Census Bureau confirmed that most Americans eventually marry but they are marrying later and are less likely to be wed only once Those trends continued although the proportion who I have ever been divorced about one in five 1 remained constant it looks like pretty much holding said Rose Kreieder a Cen-I sus Bureau demographer are not radical i Among people in their late 20s a majority I of men 54 percent had never married I as had 41 percent of women In 1996 the fig- ures were 49 percent among men and 35 percent among women At that time about 69 percent of men and 76 percent of women age 15 and older had married only once In the latest analysis 54 percent of men and 58 percent of women had i married only once The oldest baby boomers recorded the DEATHS BRETT SOMERS 83 Irreverent game show celebrity i WESTPORT Conn (AP) Actress and comedian Brett Somers who amused game show fans with her quips on Match Game in the 1970s has died her son said She was 83 i Somers died Saturday at her home in Westport of I stomach and colon cancer Adam Klugman said earlier this week ON Hosted by Gene Rayburn Match Game was the top 1 game show during much of the 1970s Contestants would try to match answers to nonsense questions with a panel of celebrities much of the humor came from the racy quips and put-downs Shows from the 1973-79 run featuring regulars like Somers Richard Dawson and Charles Nelson Reilly are still seen on cable GSN form after being diagnosed with cancer She was born Audrey Johnston in New Brunswick Canada and grew up in Portland Maine She ran away from home at age 17 and headed for New York City where she settled in Greenwich Village She changed her first name to Brett after the lead female character in the Ernest Hemingway novel The Sun Also Rises Somers was her maiden name Her son said she was caustic irreverent and a self-declared bohemian "She maintained her independence till the end and her Adam Klugman said died very much at In addition to Adam Klugman Somers is survived by another son David and a daughter Leslie (formerly Game Show Network) Somers married actor Jack Klugman future star of the tele-vision shows Quincy and The Odd Couple in 1953 They separated in 1974 but never divorced They made many television appearances as a couple Somers appeared on several episodes of The Odd Couple playing the ex-wife of character ONE-WOMAN SHOW In the summer of 2003 she appeared in a one-woman cabaret show An Evening with Brett Somers which she wrote and co-produced She continued to per Drug alcohol Britney Spears has been ordered to undergo random drug and alcohol testing twice a week according to court documents in her custody dispute with ex-husband Kevin Federline The order was issued Monday by a judge who required both parents to refrain from drinking and using drugs around their two young children and 12 hours before either cares for them Only Spears was ordered to submit to testing on the evidence presented the court finds that there is a habitual frequent and continuous use of controlled substances and by Spears Superior Court Judge Scott Gordon said in court documents The Toxic singer married Federline in October 2004 She filed for divorce last November and the divorce became official July 30 The two have joint custody of their sons Sean Preston 2 and Jayden James 1 but Federline is seeking a greater share of custody The judge also said Spears must meet for eight hours a week with a Timbaland to hit Life to Timbaland is trying something new The 35-year-old rapper-producer who has collaborated on No 1 songs for Justin Timberlake and Nelly Furtado will appear on One Life to Live on Oct 9 the network said Wednesday is a new experience for me I am looking forward to having a great time and sharing my he said in a statement Timbaland and Keri Hilson will perform the hit single The Way I Are from his new album Timbaland Presents Shock Value Mary Blige Erykah Badu and Chris Botti have also performed on the show SILVERST0NE Alicia bares all for PETA ad Alicia Silverstone appears naked in a television ad promoting vegetarianism that was to debut Wednesday The 30-second ad was to air about two dozen times in Houston on Wednesday according to animal rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals PETA said Houston was picked for the launch because it is often high on lists of cities with unhealthy eating habits Houston was named the sixth fattest city in the nation by Fitness magazine this year Silverstone is shown emerging from a swimming pool and talking about the benefits of being a vegetarian She obscures the view of her body with her arms as she gets out of the pool PETA said always a vegetarian but always loved the 30-year-old actress said in a statement the effect has been screen credits include Clueless The Crush and Batman Sc Robin plus the Aerosmith videos Cry and Amazing SPEARS who will observe and report back to the court about her parenting skills Both parents are prohibited from derogatory about each other in their presence and from corporal punish 4 ft Looks like bun is finally in the oven The baggy green dress Jennifer Lopez wore to the New York Fashion Week launch of her new clothing line JustSweet so much a questionable fashion choice but baby-bump camouflage reports MSNBCcom After two years of trying at least one maybe two spring offspring for JLo and husband Marc Anthony reports In Touch According to a magazine insider Sept 12 ultrasound revealed about 12 weeks pregnant This long-awaited pregnancy reportedly is the result of in-vitro fertilization so there may be more than one baby waiting in the world-famous womb way the fetus is lying made it difficult for the doctor to tell if there was more than one baby in the source said Even before this secret spilled beginner baby bump was obvious to those around her Aside from the shape-shielding apparel and obvious glow at ashion Week she has been fastidious about her food intake reports In Touch At a recent dinner party Lopez pushed off wine and refused to touch tuna two nutritional no-nos for expecting mothers They say plane for a And I say a sixth and a seventh and an eighth and a my answer BRAD PITT on he and Angelina Jolie expanding their family to discipline them Each must complete the Without class So how is Britney taking the news? Just hours after the ruling Spears went out partying reports TMZcom signing off from WFOR Two longtime reporters will leave WFOR-CBS4 in October Jennifer Santiago who also co-anchors the 10 pm news for WFOR sister station My33 said WFOR did not renew her contract contract was going to end Oct she said been there since 2000 had my contract renewed Santiago had no comment about her next move WFOR President and General Manager Shaun McDonald said company policy prohibits him from commenting on personnel decisions WFOR general assignment reporter Yusila Ramirez who has been with the station since 2001 said she is resigning to become assistant director of media relations for Florida International University looking forward to the change and very she said -DANIEL CHANG HUDGENS Vanessa Hudgens sued for $150000 More trouble for Vanessa Hudgens: The star of popular High School Musical franchise who made headlines recently for naked photos circulating on the Internet is being sued for two years of unpaid lawyers fees Attorney Brian Schall filed a lawsuit Monday claiming Hudgens agreed to pay him 5 percent of her earnings in exchange for his legal representation since October 2005 He contends the 18-year-old actress has earned more than $5 million since then but she still owes him a balance of $150000 in legal fees according to the lawsuit AGAINST CANCER UMSylvester offers the most clinical trials for cancer in South Florida Visit the University of Miami Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Clinical Trials Matching Service online or call toll-free 1-86G-839-0316 to learn more about new treatments in the fight against cancer 1 i UMSvIvester Comprehensive Center Center Miami Deerfield Beach SOUTH ONLY UNIVERSITY-BASED CANCER CENTER.