"There are lots of similarities [between Peter Parker and myself]. He grew up in Queens. We grew up on the north side of Dublin — fairly humble origins. He falls in love with the girl next door. I married the girl next door. He starts to put on a silly costume ... yes. I think Peter Parker's more The Edge. I'm more the Green Goblin, at least on a Friday night."

-U2 frontman and "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark" co-writer Bono, discussing the similarities between himself and the fictional teenager who parlays a radioactive spider bite into a life of fighting crime and avenging evil in New York City. Alongside fellow co-writer and bandmate the Edge, Bono sat down with MTV News to discuss the troubled-but-ambitious production of "Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark," which just began preview shows on Sunday (November 28).

The $65 million production has been beset with technical issues and injuries to actors, which has caused it to miss a number of preview and opening dates (the most recent delay having come just a few weeks ago, when they couldn't get some of their stunts cleared). The show finally got off the ground on Sunday night, although it was not without its glitches. The show had to be stopped several times to rescue actors from wires that left them floating above the stage, and writers eviscerated the show both for its story and its pomposity.

However, most people agree that the music is roundly excellent, and Bono and the Edge have managed to blend their own musical sensibilities with traditional Broadway tropes. Perhaps it's because the pair relate to the characters in the comic book world so well. "[H]e's a superhero; he can do loads of stuff, but when he comes home, he's put back in his place," the Edge explained. "There's nothing that he does out in the world that means anything when he's with his loved ones."

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It has been a rough summer for tours, and not just because Lilith Fair, Rihanna and American Idols Live are having trouble moving tickets. In fact, one of the biggest treks of the summer was done before it even got the chance to get off the ground. Back in May, U2 frontman Bono had to have emergency back surgery, and his recovery forced the cancellation of their tour of North America. Though the band insisted that Bono would be back to normal after the surgery, there was plenty of concern in the fan community about his health. Would he be able to continue being as dynamic and mobile as he normally is?

At the moment, all signs point to yes. In a video posted earlier today on the band's official Web site, Bono said that he would be "fighting fit" by the time they get back to the United States next summer, and that he is well enough to start a run of European tour dates soon. The group took a break in the middle of a rehearsal to share their thoughts with the camera (including an update on the Edge's other projects, most notably an appearance with Muse at the Glastonbury Festival) before Bono piped up to announce his current state of health. "I can sit, I can move a bit," he said to the camera before apologizing to people who bought tickets and set up travel in anticipation of their summer tour.

U2 have re-scheduled their North American run for next summer, and it is assumed that it will be a continuation of their current 360 Tour design (which features a stage in the round and the giant "claw" structure supporting lights and video screens) that the band has been using to support 2008's No Line on the Horizon.

Were your U2 concert plans derailed by Bono's surgery? Tell your story in the comments!

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Considering how media savvy he is and how popular the service is among professional athletes, it's amazing that before yesterday LeBron James had not yet dipped into the world of Twitter. But now that the most coveted free agent in NBA history is now has a verified account of his very own, he joins the likes of Shaquille O'Neal, Shaun White, Michael Phelps, Chad Ochocinco and other high-profile sports stars who will be sharing their thoughts with their followers (of which James already has over 230,000 — and counting — in less than a day on the service).

James also becomes one of the last Twitter holdouts among megastars. It seems like no matter who you enjoy and no matter how big they are, your favorite stars are probably on Twitter. Britney Spears? Indeed. Justin Bieber? Of course. Taylor Swift? Naturally. Paramore singer Hayley Williams? Sure thing. Rihanna? Why not?

But there are a handful of holdouts — those few huge stars who don't engage with their audience via 140-character dispatches.

Beyoncé
She is perhaps the biggest gap in the entire Twitter universe. Though husband Jay-Z doesn't tweet all that often, he does have his own verified account. Meanwhile, Beyoncé has never waded into Twitter's waters, even though there is a (presumably fake) account that has over 672,000 followers.

Madonna
The Material Girl is pretty busy, but considering how many places in the world she is working, wouldn't she want a direct line to her fans to endorse whatever project she is currently focused on? Madonna has made an appearance or two on Twitter via manager Guy Oseary's page, but her own account eludes her.

Bono
The U2 frontman is all about building communities and working locally to improve living conditions all over the world, so why not bring people together under the banner of his Twitter? Read More...

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It's a big day in the life of the man born Paul Hewson, who is one of the most famous and iconic rock stars in history. Of course, he's known to the world as Bono, the singer for U2 and a full-time activist. He turns 50 years old today, so we at MTV News wanted to wish him a very happy birthday.

Really, considering how much he has accomplished, it's incredible that Bono is only 50 years old. His band first broke out way back in 1980 with their debut album Boy, which contained their first hit "I Will Follow" (he called himself "Bono Vox" then, which translates to "beautiful voice"). Their sound began as a hybrid of punk rock agitation, New Wave beauty and Eno-esque soundscapes. Over the course of the 1980s, they gradually morphed into one of the biggest bands on the planet, with MTV staples like "New Year's Day," "Pride (In the Name of Love)" and "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For" accosting the charts. In fact, their 1987 album The Joshua Tree is largely considered to be the finest album of the 1980s and one of the best ever made.

The '90s saw U2 expanding outward both sonically and socially. Their triptych of albums — 1991's Achtung Baby, 1993's Zooropa and 1997's Pop — toyed with electronic instruments, dance music, dub, prog rock and all manner of genres in between, all while still maintaining their core identity and knocking out hits like "One" and "Discotheque." All the while, they went on huge stadium-filling tours and worked more and more on charity projects and on worldwide outreach, with Bono leading the way in addressing the AIDS epidemic and third world debt relief.

The past decade has seen the band find their roots again, and they saw their anthemic epics providing the soundtrack to important moments in history (most notably "Beautiful Day," which became an unofficial theme song of survival following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001). They continue to produce incredible music to this day, as their 2009 album No Line on the Horizon delivered a handful more hits and another huge, envelope-pushing tour.

Bono is best known for the big notes on U2's most massive hits, but for our money, the best vocal he has ever delivered is found on the somewhat forgotten single "Sweetest Thing," which came out on one of the group's greatest hits albums and remains one of their simpler, clear-eyed pop tunes. Bono is also at his most charmingly goofy in the video, which demands to be seen and appreciated.

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Every day a multitude of stars wander through the halls of MTV News to talk about their latest projects and goof around with our intrepid correspondents. But sometimes we catch stars elsewhere, and that's why we put together Spotted!, a daily compendium of stars in the wild.

Taylor Swift has met a guy nicknamed Mr. President (that would be Nick Jonas, who took the metaphor so far as to call his side band the Administration), but on Tuesday night (May 4), she got to spend some quality time with an actual president. The pop-country superstar rubbed elbows with Bill Clinton at Time Magazine's 100 Most Influential People in the World Gala, an annual event that brings together politicians, actors, musicians and other newsmakers in one place. This year, the event was held at Frederick P. Rose Hall at Lincoln Center in New York, and it allowed for a number of fantastic photo opportunities with various combinations of Swift, Betty White, Sarah Palin, Martha Stewart, Andy Samberg, Ben Stiller, Neil Patrick Harris and Judd Apatow, among dozens of others. In addition to being a guest, Swift also performed at the gala, as did Prince (though unfortunately the two did not team up on a funked-up remix of "You Belong With Me").

Swift wasn't the only star getting glamorous, as U2 frontman Bono attended the New York premiere of HBO's new AIDS documentary "The Lazarus Effect" and Good Charlotte's Benji Madden hung out at the Charlotte Ronson and JC Penney Spring Cocktail Jam in Los Angeles. Click here for these photos as well as the entire "Spotted!" archive, which contains over 400 candid shots of stars like Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Miley Cyrus, Jessica Simpson, Justin Bieber, Jay-Z, Rihanna, Mariah Carey, Lady Gaga, 50 Cent, Katy Perry and the Jonas Brothers!

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By Matt Thompson

Tonight (October 9), a multitude of celebrities will take part in a global event dubbed "Moving Stars and Earth for Water." Musicians, movie stars, politicians and environmentalists will unite for one common cause: Bringing the world more and better water. This diverse group includes Shakira, Salma Hayek, Bono, Joss Stone and former Vice President Al Gore. Perhaps the most riveting component of the show? On the same day we searched the moon for water, the event will be broadcast into outer space.

Why? Because the architect of the entire project is Canadian billionaire Guy Laliberte, who has been on a personally-financed mission to the International Space Station since October 2. He describes the event as a "poetic social mission." Laliberte intends to use his time off Earth to find supplies of one of the world's most important resources. "My mission is dedicated to making a difference on this vital resource by using what I know best: artistry," Laliberte said.

Each of the fourteen cities will have a different theme attached to them. "In Osaka, where (pop star) Tatuya Ishii is doing a performance, the poetic tales bring forth the problems related to the melting of the ice caps, which will raise eventually the ocean levels," said Fernand Rainville, the show's creative director. "In Johannesburg, we are bringing the idea of water and education and how the two are related."

DriecTV will televise the show throughout the United States, and it can also be seen on the Internet through Laliberte's Web site.

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Even if he had never picked up a movie camera, Rob Zombie would have had a permanent place in history as the frontman of seminal psychedelic metal band White Zombie and the author of three fantastically freaky solo albums. But Zombie was never content to just sit still, and he has managed to carve himself out a nice little niche as a horror movie director. The guy is responsible for some of the craziest, goriest entries in the modern horror canon, including "House of 1,000 Corpses," "The Devil's Rejects" and his re-imagining of the John Carpenter classic "Halloween." Promotion for the latter's sequel brought Zombie to New York, where he stopped by Planet Hollywood in Times Square with his wife Sherri Moon Zombie at his side.

Be sure to stay tuned to the MTV Movies Blog next week, where Zombie will be guest-editing in support of his new movie "Halloween II." He'll also provide some updates to his upcoming projects, including the animated "The Haunted World of El Superbeasto" (based on Zombie's own comic book). And he can't shake the music bug, either, as he has an album finished and will perform at a metal festival in Japan in October, which will be his first show in two years.

In other celeb news, U2's Bono signed a handful of autographs during a visit to Radio Two in London, and Jessica Simpson dressed up as a Geisha for her upcoming VH1 show. Click here for these photos plus fresh shots of Britney Spears, Justin Timberlake, Beyoncé, the Jonas Brothers, Lady Gaga and Madonna!

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BonoBy Benjamin Wagner

The last time I interviewed Bono was at the Sundance premiere of his modest Irish quartet's modest little concert flick, "U2 3D," a rock doc so massive it required 250-pound cameras shooting 70mm film and was helmed by not one but two directors.

At the time, U2 were still fleshing out their then-untitled 12th album with the aid of Joshua Tree co-producers Daniel Lanois and Brian Eno.

"Daniel is about the ancient," Bono explained. "And Brian is about the modern, the future, the things that haven't happened. Somewhere between that is our next album."

Read More...

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By Sarah Maslin Nir

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Abraham Lincoln was staring at me.

OK, it was just his statue. But as I stood in the back recesses of the stage during the rehearsals for the "We Are One" inaugural celebration Saturday while on assignment for Rolling Stone, sandwiched between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument, I was sure that if I took a step any direction, someone — a guard, a policeman, even Abe himself — would sound the alarm bells and send me packing. In front of me, dozens of gospel singers were humming and oohing the chorus of Bruce Springsteen's "The Rising." Over the sea of their shoulders I could see the Boss himself, standing at the edge of the stage facing them, teaching them his lyrics.

My objective was to get as close as an average person (i.e. one without official clearance) could possibly get to the rehearsals. As I wandered closer and closer to the stage, I realized no one was stopping me. Offstage, James Taylor and John Legend were strumming, Shakira, Will.I.Am and Stevie Wonder were loosely jamming, but I was drawn to the memorial's steps by the swelling choir sounds and Bruce's husky voice.

Hesitantly, I put a toe on the first step to the stage. I was immediately spotted. Read More...

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Washington, D.C.

President-elect Barack Obama doesn't take the oath of office until Tuesday, but the nation's capital already feels like the site of the biggest, most expensive political pep rally for America ever.

Strolling along the National Mall on Saturday afternoon near the Lincoln Memorial - the location of Sunday's "We Are One" all-star show featuring Beyonce, Bruce Springsteen, Usher, Mary J. Blige, U2, John Legend and others - the unmistakable strains of The Boss' "The Rising" rose up into the frigid grey sky.
Read More...

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