Chris Rock Files for Divorce From Wife Malaak Compton-Rock, Couple Has "Been Living Separate Lives"

Chris Rock and his wife Malaak Compton-Rock are ending their marriage, amicably.

The two are parents to two daughters, ages 12 and 10. News about their split was confirmed on Sunday, three days after Christmas.

"Chris Rock has filed for divorce from his wife, Malaak," the actor's rep told E! News. "This is a personal matter and Chris requests privacy as he and Malaak work through this process and focus on their family."

"After much contemplation and 19 years of marriage, Chris and I have decided to go our separate ways," Compton-Rock, 45, said in a statement to People magazine. "Being fortunate enough to lead a life of service by working with those most vulnerable makes me well aware of life's blessings, even when faced with difficulties."

"While recognizing that this is a significant change, my children remain at the center of my life and their well-being is my top priority," she added. "It is in this spirit that I sincerely ask that their privacy and the privacy of our family be respected during this transition in our lives."

Rock, 49, who stars in the recently-released comedy film Top Five, which he also directed and wrote, met his wife in 1993. She is the founder and executive director of the non-profit organization styleWORKS, which helps women make a successful transition from welfare to the workforce.

The Emmy-winning actor and comedian and his wife had wed in 1996 at the posh Oxon Hill Manor in Oxon Hill, Maryland. Two years later, the New York Daily News reported their marriage was on the rocks. The pair denied the report.

A source told E! News on Sunday that the couple has been "having marriage issues for years" and that they have "been living separate lives for some time."

"They care deeply for their kids' well-being and they wanted to wait to make any announcement," the source added. "They feel this is the best decision for their kids and each other."





When his wife was pregnant with their first child, Rock talked about his relationship with Compton-Rock in an interview with Oprah Winfrey for O magazine

"Our child is such a 9/11 baby," he said. "I said to myself, 'The world's falling down, and what have I done with my life?' We've been married five years, but we've never planned anything--it has always been about today. After September 11, I said, 'It's time. Let's have a baby.'"

He said at the time he enjoyed being married. When asked if marriage was difficult for him in the beginning, he said, "Yes. It's hard working in the benevolent dictatorship of show business and then coming home to a democracy."

"I wouldn't say rocky--it was just life," he added. "I had a lot going on back then, and I couldn't trust many people around me. I met so many people after I got rich and famous, and I learned that you can't ultimately trust people unless they were your friends when you were broke."

 --Reporting by Marc Malkin

Read More

Missing plane likely at 'bottom of the sea'

The missing AirAsia jet probably crashed into the sea, Indonesia's top rescue official said Monday, citing radar data from the plane's last contact.

"Our early conjecture is that the plane is in the bottom of the sea," Bambang Sulistyo, head of Indonesia's national search and rescue agency, told reporters, saying the view was based on the plane's flight track and last known coordinates.

But searchers still don't know exactly where the aircraft is, he said, and may need help from other countries for an underwater search.

The search for AirAsia Flight QZ8501 resumed on Monday, a day after the commercial jet disappeared in Indonesian airspace with 162 people aboard.

Ships, planes and helicopters are looking for the missing aircraft, according to Indonesian authorities, who are leading the search and rescue operations.

It's unclear if weather played a role in the aircraft's disappearance, but rescuers say it could be a factor that influences how quickly they find the plane.

Large waves and clouds hampered the search for the plane on Sunday, the agency said. By Monday morning, weather in the area appeared to be clearing up, CNN International meteorologist Tom Sater said.

Authorities say they're combing a "very broad search area."

Read More

Flight diverted over boiling water incident

Earlier this month, "nut rage" prompted the pilot of a Korean Air flight on the tarmac of New York's JFK airport to turn back to the gate.
Now, "hot watergate" has forced a China-bound Thai AirAsia flight to return to Bangkok, angering not just the passengers on board but also the Chinese government and public.
Shortly after flight FD9101 took off last Thursday evening from Bangkok for the eastern Chinese city of Nanjing, a male passenger asked a flight attendant for boiling water for his girlfriend's instant noodles, witnesses told China's state media.
When told they had to wait for the plane to reach cruising altitude, the young man reportedly dumped food on the aisle, stomped on it and yelled at other passengers who tried to calm him down.
He was allegedly still fuming as a flight attendant of the budget airline brought a cup of hot water and charged him 60 Thai baht ($2) for it.
Another argument ensued when he demanded Chinese currency for change as well as an official receipt, state media reported.
As the quarrel dragged on, the man's girlfriend threw hot water on the back of a flight attendant, witnesses said. When the purser demanded the woman apologize, the boyfriend exploded.
In a cell phone video taken by a fellow passenger and posted online, a man in a gray T-shirt and jeans can be heard shouting in Mandarin: "You don't think I have money? ...You caused all the problems and I'm going to blow up the plane!"
When the couple realized the flight was being turned back, the woman reportedly grew hysterical, hitting windows and threatening to jump off the plane, according to state media.
The plane -- carrying 174 passengers and six crew members -- hadn't even left Thai airspace before it turned around.

Read More

China's new rules for singing national anthem

China's 1.3 billion citizens may soon find it much harder to belt out their national anthem at will.
A series of rules proposed by the government will set strict limits on when, where and how "March of the Volunteers" -- the anthem of the People's Republic since 1949 -- can be performed, state-run Xinhua news agency reported Friday.
The anthem is not allowed to be played or sung at private weddings and funerals, dancing parties, commercial events, or any other setting with "an inappropriate atmosphere."
When singing the anthem, people should dress appropriately, stand still and be full of energy, according to the government.
Follow the rhythm
The rules then get technical: People must sing the powerful marching song in its entirety, enunciate every word and follow the rhythm. No one is permitted to start or stop singing midway -- and altering the melody, lyrics or musical arrangement is forbidden.
No whispering, applauding or talking on the phone, either, while the anthem is played.
There is no official word, yet, on how violators would be punished.
While some of those rules sound reasonable, others may be overly harsh, especially to Americans who are used to hearing adaptations of "The Star-Spangled Banner" as varied as Jimi Hendrix's instrumental rock version at the Woodstock music festival, to Whitney Houston's soulful rendition before the Super Bowl.
Creative alternatives

Read More

Grim Sydney investigation: Two hostages, gunman dead

The deadly siege of a central Sydney cafe has ended but the investigation is just beginning.
Australian authorities stormed the cafe where a self-styled Muslim cleric had been holding hostages early Tuesday, killing the gunman. They moved in some 16 hours after the siege began, after hearing gunfire inside the Lindt Chocolate Cafe, New South Wales police Commissioner Andrew P. Scipione told reporters.
Two of the 17 hostages initially held by the gunman died, according to Scipione. They were later identified as Katrina Dawson, 38, and Tori Johnson, 34. Other people were injured, including a police officer who suffered a wound to the face from gunshot pellets. All were described by police to be in stable condition.
"Understandably, there is a lot of speculation, but it will take time to clarify exactly what happened ... and why," Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott told reporters Tuesday.
What did the gunman want? Why did he choose the cafe as his target?
"There is nothing more Australian than dropping in at the local cafe for a morning coffee, and it's tragic beyond words that people going about their everyday business should have been caught up in such a horrific incident," Abbott said.
He offered his condolences to people caught in the attack and to their loved ones.
"These events do demonstrate that even a country as free as open as generous and as safe as ours is vulnerable to acts of politically motivated violence," the Prime Minister said. "But they also remind us that Australia, and Australians are resilient and we are ready to respond."
Gunman had violent history
The gunman was identified as Man Haron Monis by an official with direct knowledge of the situation. According to his social media posts, the hostage-taker appears to have embraced a radical Sunni theology.

Read More