Florida Sentinel Bulletin

LOS ANGELES — Love triumphed over action at the weekend box office with a No. 1 debut for the romantic drama “The Vow.”

Studio Sunday show that the love story starring Rachel McAdams and Channing Tatum took in $41.7 million to come in ahead of two new action tales and the first 3-D “Star Wars” reissue.

Landing a close second with $39.3 million was Denzel Washington and Ryan Reynolds’ action thriller “Safe House.” Coming in solidly at No. 3 was Dwayne Johnson’s family action sequel “Journey 2: The Mysterious Island” with $27.6 million.

And adding to George Lucas‘ riches was the 3-D premiere of “Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace,” which was No. 4 with $23 million. That raises the lifetime domestic total for “Phantom Menace” to $454.1 million.

1. “The Vow,” $41.7 million ($9.7 million international).
2. “Safe House,” $39.3 million ($10.2 million international).
3. “Journey 2: The Mysterious Island,” $27.6 million ($25.5 million international).
4. “Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace” in 3-D, $23 million ($20.5 million international).
5. “Chronicle,” $12.3 million.
6. “The Woman in Black,” $10.3 million.
7. “The Grey,” $5.1 million.
8. “Big Miracle,” $3.9 million ($400,000 international).
9. “The Descendants,” $3.5 million.
10. “Underworld Awakening,” $2.5 million.

Roland Martin should’ve known better than to “joke” that you ought to “smack the ish” out of any guy at your Super Bowl party that’s “hyped about David Beckham’s H&M underwear ad.”

If not because the comment itself was distasteful, than because a political commentator ought to know better than anyone how quickly an off-the-cuff remark can be your undoing.

It’s no coincidence that Martin’s suspension was announced the same day that 20-year-old Brandon White, the victim of a violent homophobia-fueled beating, made headlines on the very network Martin is employed by. Mind you, these attacks also took place in the same city CNN is based in — Atlanta.

Coroner’s officials on Tuesday ruled Don Cornelius’ death a suicide, nearly a week after the “Soul Train” creator and host killed himself with a gunshot to the head.

The agency made the determination after conducting an autopsy on Cornelius’ body Friday. Investigators are still awaiting the results of toxicology tests before issuing a final report.

Police quickly ruled out foul play after responding to Cornelius’ Mulholland Drive home early Wednesday morning. His son had alerted authorities after receiving a call from his father.

His son, Tony Cornelius, released a statement last week asking for privacy and thanking fans.

A lead actor on the “Star Trek: Deep Space Nine” television series has been charged with driving under the influence in Connecticut.

Avery Brooks is set to be arraigned in state court in Norwalk next week in connection with his arrest last weekend in Wilton, a wealthy suburb about 50 miles northeast of Manhattan.

He played Capt. Benjamin Sisko on the 1990s “Star Trek” series and had the role of Hawk on “Spenser: For Hire” in the 1980s.

David Peaston, whose golden voice serenaded and wowed the “Showtime at the Apollo” audiences in the late ’80s, passed away Wednesday at age 54.  The actual cause of death has not been officially announced.

Peaston, whose stratospheric tenor voice was smooth and silky, managed to bring the Apollo house down with a song, “God Bless the Child,” that would eventually become his trademark.

The Parents Television Council (PTC) is tackling Sunday’s Super Bowl controversy.

British singer, M.I.A., flipped off viewers during Madonna’s half-time show, a gesture that indtantly drew comparison to Janet Jackson’s live “wardrope malfunction” in 2004.

The PTC says the NFL promised the organization a clean show despite casting performers with provocative reputations.

“NBC fumbled and the NFL lied because a performer known as M.I.A. felt it necessary to flip off millions of families,” wrote PTC president Tim Winter.

Both NBC and the NFL have issued statements of apology to viewers.

NEW YORK — Fans of “Soul Train” boogied down Broadway wearing afro wigs and bell bottoms on Saturday while others recounted their favorite episodes at a Harlem meeting hall in tribute to the TV show’s late creator, Don Cornelius.

About 100 dancers descended on Times Square in a “flash mob” organized through the Internet. As startled tourists looked on, they recreated one of the show’s “Soul Train lines” in which people would take turns dancing toward a TV camera while showing off their most outrageous moves.

“Don Cornelius was a big influence in my life, and I just wanted to pay tribute,” said disc jockey Jon Quick, as he held up a speaker blasting disco grooves. “He was playing the music that nobody else wanted to play. He was an amazing man.”

Cornelius, 75, died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on Wednesday. He had suffered from health problems, a difficult divorce, and had pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor spousal battery charge in 2009.

But on Saturday fans praised Cornelius‘ vision in creating, hosting and selling “Soul Train” to television stations that were originally skeptical about programming aimed at blacks. The show aired from 1971 to 2006.

Much has been said about Oprah’s network, OWN. Although she launched the network amid much fanfare and excitement, since it hit cable airwaves, OWN has struggled to connect with viewers.

Unlike her popular show which made it way into tens of millions of homes every day, OWN has had a difficult time maintaining Oprah’s vast audience.

Recently, Oprah talked about the trouble she’s had turning OWN into a success.

Although Oprah was already a billionaire and a household name, she says she wanted to create OWN to further her inspirational vision. “The reason I did OWN was I wanted to continue the platform to speak to people in a way that made them feel inspired.”

After her network showed garnered disappointing ratings, Oprah became more visible hosting life classes with Iyanla Vanzant and introducing her latest show, Oprah’s Next Chapter, which has been a hit with viewers. But will it save OWN?

That remains to be seen, but Oprah thinks it’s a good start.

JAMAICA — Dancehall Reggae star Elephant Man has been charged with grievous sexual assault and rape. The police said the charges stem from an incident at his St. Andrew home earlier this month.

Investigators said a woman, believed to be of Chinese descent, filed a police report shortly after claiming that Elephant Man, whose real name is Oneil Bryan, sexually assaulted her.