German filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl, who gained both fame and infamy as the director of the Nazi propaganda film Triumph of the Will and other movies for the Third Reich, died Monday night at her home in Poecking, Germany; she was 101. An actress who turned to filmmaking, Riefenstahl was hand-picked by Adolf Hitler to direct a documentary of the Sixth Nazi Party Congress in Nuremberg after he saw her 1932 film The Blue Light. The resulting 1934 film, Triumph of the Will, proclaimed Riefenstahl to be a masterful, innovative filmmaker, as did Olympia, her chronicle of the 1936 Berlin Olympics. It was also her hypnotic, magisterial touch and breathtaking sense of beauty that branded both movies as the greatest propaganda films ever made, with critics saying her work glorified Hitler and showed him as a benign leader and savior of Germany. Though she received acclaim for her filmmaking genius, Riefenstahl would forever attempt to live down her association with the Third Reich, and struggled to make clear the distinctions between her aesthetic talents and the political affiliations that she documented in her work. In her defense, Riefenstahl said she had no idea of Hitler's "Final Solution" until after World War II and steadfastly maintained that Triumph of the Will contained "not one single anti-Semitic word." Despite the stigma that followed her (chronicled most effectively in the 1993 documentary The Wonderful, Horrible Life of Leni Riefenstahl), she resumed filmmaking in the 1960s and continued to work well into her later years; at the age of 100 released Impressions Under Water, a film showcasing her passion for underwater photography. --Prepared by IMDb staff

Controversial movie maker Roman Polanksi has finally collected his Best Director Academy Award, five months after the Oscars ceremony. The Polish-born auteur couldn't attend the star-studded ceremony in Hollywood, California in March because he would be arrested on child sex charges as soon as he entered America. Instead, Paris, France-based Polanski was handed the Oscar - won for his film The Pianist - by Harrison Ford at the Deauville Film Festival at the weekend. Ford starred in the director's 1988 film Frantic. Polanski, 70, fled the United States in 1978 before he could be sentenced, after being convicted of having sex with a 13-year-old girl. After the Academy Award win, he said, "I am deeply touched to have received the Oscar for best director for a film which recounts events which are so close to my personal experience."

Celebrity supercouple Jennifer Lopez and her fiance Ben Affleck have turned down the chance to cash in on their wedding next weekend and rejected multi-million dollar magazine deals. The couple want to keep the ceremony, due to take place in Santa Barbara, California, private and have turned down offers including a staggering $1.5 million from British celebrity bible OK! to sell picture rights to the event. An insider says, "They've decided not to sell photos, and keep the day private." It is believed J.Lo and Ben will release one photo to the press - in a bid to control the paparazzi frenzy in the same way Brad Pitt and Jennifer Aniston did on their wedding day.

Troubled actress Winona Ryder has taken to wearing a bracelet honoring three convicted murderers that she's convinced are innocent. The names of Damien Echols, Jason Baldwin and Jessie Miskelley, aka The Memphis Three, and the dates of their arrest are etched on the bracelet she wears around her right wrist. Ryder, who has been fighting for the convicted men's freedom along with fellow stars like Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder and ex-love Johnny Depp, plans to add the trio's release date to the bangle. She says, "They are in my hearts every day, and I will never give up until they're out." The three men were teenagers when they were arrested for the ritualistic murder of three eight-year-old boys in West Memphis, Arkansas, in 1993, and Echols was sentenced to death. A 1996 TV documentary, Paradise Lost: The Child Murders At Robin Hood Hills, raised questions about the guilt of the three men, and prompted a number of stars to fight for the release of the trio. Ryder, who was found guilty of shoplifting a Beverly Hills store last year and placed on three years probation, attended an exhibit to raise awareness for the release campaign in Los Angeles at the weekend.

Movie superstar Nicole Kidman is guilt-stricken about the confusing lives her children lead - because the single mum regularly has to drag them onto her film sets. The Moulin Rouge actress has two adopted kids - eight-year-old Connor and Isabella, 11 - with her ex-husband Tom Cruise, and is often accompanied by them on the sets of her films. But she makes sure they're not in the vicinity while she's filming certain scenes, especially saucy ones. She says, "With (new film) The Human Stain I wouldn't have them around during a sex scene. My kids come to the film sets and they give their opinion in terms of the different characters I play. They have a complicated life, and it's something I feel guilty for."

Movie hunk George Clooney grew so sick of bungling burglars attempting to steal an ancient safe from his Italian home, he wrapped a bow around it and put it in his yard. Nosy paparazzi and burglars have wrecked the peace and quiet at his Lake Como villa where Clooney has been relaxing this summer. The actor expected photographers to follow him there, but had no idea he'd become the target of inept burglars too. He explains, "These idiots came in, cased the joint, and clearly decided , 'We'll need more people.' It was like Ocean's Eleven." The burglars then made two failed attempts to make off with the safe, which was abandoned by the previous owners of the property, prompting the actor to call the local police. He adds, "They were doing everything they could to steal this f**king safe. So we put a giant red bow on it and left a note saying, 'Come and get it, you dumb f**ks.'"

Miramax boss Harvey Weinstein has refused to allow Chicago director Rob Marshall to make his next film at rival studio Columbia Pictures. Marshall is desperate to film an adaptation of Arthur Golden's 1997 novel Memoirs Of A Geisha, but is bound by a contract that requires him to make his next flick for Miramax. And the director is less than happy with the situation - especially after Chicago made the studio over $470 million and won it six Oscars. A Miramax spokesman says, "We have a responsibility to our shareholders to realize the benefits of our contractual right to work with the incredibly gifted Rob Marshall. We're sure that Columbia will do a great job with Geisha, whether it's directed by Rob or someone else." But a friend of Marshall has revealed the director is still optimistic. The pal adds, "Rob is still hopeful he can work it out with Harvey."

Comedian Ellen DeGeneres started her stint as a daytime chat show host Monday by thumb wrestling Jennifer Aniston. The Friends star, Ellen's first guest, was handed a cigarette dispensing decorative donkey as a gift, but had her eye on a pair of elbow-length evening gloves the host was planning to auction off for charity - and so DeGeneres offered to fight her for them. Ellen won, but Aniston admitted she was thrilled just to get the cigarette dispenser. She said, "My husband's going to love that." Ellen had another treat in store for her pal - she has employed an artist to draw caricatures of all her guests, and she handed the star her own image. Ellen joked, "You look more like Kelly Preston, but that's not a bad thing."

Superstar Jennifer Lopez has hit out at "crazy" stories about her fiance Ben Affleck's trip to a strip club - and insists she was aware he was planning to visit the saucy establishment. The Changing Lanes actor went to Brandi's lap dancing club in Vancouver, Canada in July - leading to a press frenzy reporting the singer had canceled their wedding and split with the movie hunk. American gossip magazine the National Enquirer also claimed the actor used his fingers and tongue to make physical contact with an exotic dancer. But J.Lo stands by her man, insisting she knew Ben was going to the saucy establishment, and trusts he was on his best behavior. She says, "For me, it wasn't an issue. We talk every day. I know what he does. He knows what I do. We don't have those kind of secrets. It was ridiculous, because I knew he had gone. We just sat and read the articles together and said, 'This is just insane.'" And the Maid In Manhattan actress looks forward to simple domestic tasks after the couple marry on Sunday. J.Lo adds, "That doesn't mean I'm not a strong, independent woman. But I think when you're in a relationship you have to submit to a certain extent."

Local residents at the birthplace of Charles Bronson are debating whether they should name a street in memory of the movie tough guy - with many objecting to the idea. The Death Wish star was born Charles Buchinsky in tiny Ehrenfeld, Pennsylvania, America on November 13, 1921. But 234 locals oppose the idea of a memorial, arguing Bronson - who died on August 30 - rarely visited his childhood home. Ehrenfeld council president Albert Keller has proposed $1,500 be spent on immortalizing the actor's name on the street where he was born. He says, "Someone asked for permission to have a sign put up at the entrance of town about a year ago, and the borough council voted against it. They said Charlie didn't do a damn thing for this town. We all should be proud that he was from Cambria County."

Rocker Warren Zevon has lost his battle with cancer at the age of 56. The singer-songwriter, who was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer last August, died Sunday afternoon at his home in West Hollywood, California. Zevon finished his final studio recording shortly before his death. The Wind, which features guest appearances from Jackson Browne, Bruce Springsteen, Dwight Yoakam, was released two weeks ago and entered the Billboard 200 chart at Number 16. The rocker, who lived long enough to see his daughter Ariel give birth to twin boys in June, once said of his illness, "You've gotta remember, it's not morbid to me. I know the hearse is parked at the curb and the motor is running. The thing is, I'm still trying to be cheery about it."