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1M revelers flock to NY's Times Square

NEW YORK, Jan. 1 (UPI) -- More than 1 million revelers reportedly flocked to New York's Times Square Monday to watch the ball drop and ring in 2008.

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"I came all the way from Thailand to be here and it was all worth it," spectator Surisa Vatha told the New York Daily News.

"It's amazing," said Wilson Antongiorgi, who flew in from Puerto Rico to attend the event. "I hope everyone in the world has the opportunity to be here at least once in their lifetime. Already we've met people from Mexico, Italy, Spain and France."

Mayor Michael Bloomberg was joined by Police Academy valedictorian and Iraq war veteran Karolina Wierzchowska in helping to drop the enormous, glittering New Year's Eve ball at 1 Times Square moments before midnight, the Daily News said.

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For Monday night's festivities, the 1,415-pound crystal globe was outfitted with more than 9,500 energy-efficient diodes, using about the same amount of energy to light the 600 crystals as is needed to fire up 10 toasters, CNN reported.

The first ball dropped in Times Square in 1907 was made of iron and wood and lit with 100 light bulbs.


Madonna rings in new year in India

DECHU, India, Jan. 1 (UPI) -- U.S. pop singer Madonna and her British filmmaker husband Guy Ritchie spent New Year's Eve in a remote village in India, the Daily Telegraph reported.

The couple and several friends flew by chartered plane to Jodhpur from the Maldives, then drove to a heritage hotel in Dechu village in the northern Indian desert state of Rajasthan, the Hindustan Times said.

"The pop star will be in Rajasthan for five to six days," the report said, citing unnamed sources.

Known for its opulent palaces, Rajasthan is popular attraction for Western tourists, the Telegraph said.

Madonna, who lives in London, is also expected to visit Udaipur, which boasts numerous lake palaces.

Her personal security guards arrived in Jodhpur several days ago and tight security was in place at the hotels and areas she is likely to visit, the Press Trust of India said.

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McCready gets early release from jail

FRANKLIN, Tenn., Jan. 1 (UPI) -- Country music singer Mindy McCready has been granted an early release for good behavior from Tennessee's Williamson County Jail.

The 32-year-old recording artist served more than five months on a probation violation charge and will remain on probation for two more years, E! Online reported.

Her manager and members of her family greeted her as she left the jailhouse Sunday morning.

"I'm so happy to be out," McCready said. "I'm the happiest girl in the world right now."

The singer had been incarcerated since July when she was arrested in Florida on charges of battery and resisting arrest, stemming from a domestic dispute with her mother, E! Online noted.

McCready was formally sentenced in September to a year behind bars as a result of the Florida arrest, which violated the terms of a 2004 drug arrest. At the time of her sentencing, the singer received credit for 75 days already served.

"Oh, my God, I'm gonna work," she said upon her release. "Work, work, work. And sing. And go see my son, who I've missed more than anything you can possibly imagine."

McCready's toddler son, Zander McCready, has been staying with the singer's mother.

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Piper, Fox marry on New Year's Eve

EASEBOURNE, England, Jan. 1 (UPI) -- British actress Billie Piper married actor Laurence Fox in a romantic New Year's Eve wedding at the Parish Church of St. Mary's in Easebourne, England.

Piper is best-known for her stint on TV's "Doctor Who," while Fox starred in the small-screen series "Lewis."

The actress' ex-husband Chris Evans and his wife, Natasha Shishmanian, "Doctor Who" star David Tennant and "Lewis" co-star Kevin Whately all attended the ceremony, which took place half a mile from the couple's Midhurst home, the Daily Telegraph reported.

Piper, 25, arrived at the 12th Century church five minutes early and wore an ivory-colored gown with a black coat draped around her shoulders, the newspaper said.

Four bridesmaids wearing short purple dresses accompanied the bride as she was escorted up the aisle by her father, Paul Piper.

After the church ceremony a reception was held at a secret location.

Fox, 29, and Piper met a year ago while starring in the West End play "Treats."

Their marriage comes just six months after Piper was granted a divorce from her first husband, radio DJ and TV presenter Chris Evans, whom she married in 2001.

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Piper and Evans have remained good friends since their divorce.

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