by Mike Krumboltz 99.9% of the actors in Hollywood would have stepped over their own mother to land a role in the "Twilight" saga. But the stars of "New Moon" )aka "Twilight 2"( don't want to be known for just one role. Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, and Taylor Lautner all have non-vampire-related flicks coming soon to a theater near you - here's a rundown of what to expect. Kristen Stewart The lovely and talented Ms. Stewart has an extremely busy year ahead of her.

by Claudine Zap Thanks to Adam Sandler , many of us know that the Jewish holiday Hanukkah is the " Festival of Lights ." But most people don't know why that is, or why Jews eat lots of fried foods over the eight-day-long holiday. So what's the deal with Hanukkah? Here, we explain. Pancakes for dinner The back story is this: In Biblical times, after their temple was sacked, the Maccabees were able to keep their altar lit for eight days,

by Claudine Zap Our top picks from the day's hottest searches. Victoria Beckham )Searches increased by 2,275%(. Fashion crime: Two armed theives staged a daring heist of a delivery van filled with the celeb's dresses . Max Baucus )+759%(. Critics say the Montana senator is distracting his work on health care reform with news that he nominated his girlfriend for the U.S. Attorney job. U.S. Mint coins )+303%(. Collectors,

by Mike Krumboltz There's no sign of a cease fire in the snark war between AT&T and Verizon. First, Verizon poked fun at AT&T's lack of 3G cell phone coverage. AT&T fired back with hired gun Luke Wilson. Now is AT&T admitting its service leaves something to be desired? In a way, yeah. The wireless service provider is reaching out to its customers in an effort to improve its coverage. Recently hitting the iPhone's App store is something called "Mark the Spot.

by Mike Krumboltz The Buzz Log aims to cover the biggest and most popular stories on the Web. Lucky for us, there was no shortage of stuff to write about in 2009. From the mysterious Chupacabra to the first lady's short shorts, from a 19.2-pound newborn to the fastest mammal on earth, we stayed busy. No, sir, never a dull moment... What is that thing? Proving that you're never too old to believe in imaginary animals,

by Claudine Zap Our top picks from the day's hottest searches. Kennedy Center honors )Searches increased by 1,949%(. The Obamas toasted Robert DeNiro, Bruce Springsteen, Mel Brooks, and jazz pianist Dave Brubeck for lives devoted to the arts . Blake Lively )+1,535%(. The "Gossip Girl" star hosted " Saturday Night Live ." Yes, she was the one playing Tiger Woods' wife. Weekend Box Office )+457%(. Sandra Bullock's "The Blind Side" took on the vampires of "New Moon,

by Mike Krumboltz Assuming your first name isn't Tiger, this past week had a lot of news to smile about. One of the most famous women in the country announced her engagement, an extraordinarily cute kitten became a Web sensation, and a game that was thought to be unbeatable was conquered by a relentless gamer )sort of(. Put on a happy face and check out those stories and more with the Buzz Week in Review.

by Claudine Zap Hey, cat people: Your pets want you to know. Their lives are not so, well, cat-like. They don't just sleep all day â€" they do stuff. That's what a study revealed after attaching kitty-sized digital cameras on the collars of 50 house cats to capture them in action â€" or inaction. According to the animal behaviorists who collected data for Friskies ,

by Claudine Zap Our top picks from the day's hottest searches. Supernova )Searches increased by 755%(. A massive explosion in space revealed a star 200 times bigger than our sun . Art Basel )+655%(. Paging arty types: It's the invasion of the major art show in Miami . Roman Polanski )+307%(. The ex-pat director on the lam began house arrest â€" or should we say Swiss chalet . Cookie exchange )+244%(. A fun and tasty holiday tradition â€" just not low-cal. Oh,

by Claudine Zap It was a study-abroad adventure turned nightmare. Two years ago, 21-year-old Meredith Kercher , a foreign-exchange student from England, was found dead in her apartment in Perugia, Italy. That would have been shocking enough, but it got worse: One of the suspects charged was Kercher's American roommate, Amanda Knox , a fellow foreign-study student. She and two others have been accused of murder, sexual assault, and theft.

by Mike Krumboltz There's rags to riches and then there's rags to mega-riches. Two brothers from Hungary definitely fall into the second category. Until recently, Geza and Zslot Peladi lived in a cave near Budapest. Completely destitute, the two cave-brothers earned money by gathering scrap metal and selling candy they found on the street. That all changed the moment they heard that they stood to inherit a substantial portion of their maternal grandmother's $6.

by Mike Krumboltz Every year, there's one movie that just about everybody loves. In 2009, " Up in the Air " may be it. The film stars George Clooney as the ultimate modern-day road warrior. Traveling for business over 300 days a year, his character, Ryan, has logged millions of frequent-flyer miles. His personal relationships are a joke, but darn it, he doesn't care, because he has super elite prestige status on the airlines, and that's enough to keep him happy.

by Claudine Zap Our top picks from the day's hottest searches. Grammy nominations   )Searches increased by 1,826%(. Get on Kanye watch: Beyonce and Taylor Swift scooped up the most music award nods . Robin Wright Penn )+1,577%(. The star's performance in "The Private Lives of Pippa Lee" is receiving raves . Jane Fonda )+1,498%(. The 71-year-old star credits plastic surgery and an active love life for keeping her young . New Super Mario Bros.   )+180%(. Old name, new game,

by Claudine Zap It wasn't sea monsters , zombies , or a broken heart. The mysterious death in 1817 of the original literary singleton, Jane Austen , could have been a very unromantic case of infective tuberculosis caught from cows. The 19th-century novelist, whose body of work practically launched an entire network of PBS mini-series, dozens of movies, and yes, even the plots of " Clueless " and " Bridget Jones's Diary ," died at the way-too-young-age of 41. And ever since,

by Mike Krumboltz Gone are the days when friends and relatives received marriage announcements weeks after the big event. Thanks to iPhones, Twitter, and Facebook, the newly betrothed can spread the word instantly. That's become not norm. However, when the groom goes out of his way to digitally alert the masses that he's now a married man )while standing at the altar, mind you(, folks tend to take notice.

by Mike Krumboltz Many folks who looked up at the sky last night were greeted with a very bizarre sight: a luminous ring surrounding the moon. Were aliens coming? Was the end of the world at hand? Fortunately, no. Though it looked ominous, the shiny ring around the moon last night was actually a rather common weather phenomenon. According to various weather-related blogs across the Buzz, this ring around the moon occurs when thin cirrus clouds, which contain ice crystals,

by Claudine Zap Our top picks from the day's hottest searches. William Shatner )Searches increased by 2,333%(. The original "Star Trek" icon says he is sick of all the feuds . Obama speech )+819%(. The president laid out his plan for the war in Afghanistan. COBRA subsidy extension )+448%(. Millions of unemployed workers face the end of the 9-month health care subsidy. Legislation is in the works to pass an extension . Ring around the moon )+221%(.

by Mike Krumboltz Call it the crash heard 'round the world. Tiger Woods ' car accident has led to many stunning revelations and a lot of rumors that won't go away. The golf legend has made his mea culpa â€" for the rest of the story and gossip tidbits, people are looking online. Below, we take a look at some of the drama's key players in Yahoo! Search and their rumored roles. Elin Nordegren The wife of Tiger Woods has been thrust into the Search spotlight over the past week.

by Mike Krumboltz This just in: Comedian Ricky Gervais , co-creator and star of the UK's " The Office ," was once the victim of an attempted identity theft. Luckily for Mr. Gervais, the fraud was rather easy for authorities to spot. WalletPop explains how the foolish caper went down several years ago. Thieves, with the help of a bank insider, managed to steal some of Mr. Gervais's identification. The goal was to use his details to buy $328,000 worth of gold from his account,

by Claudine Zap Baltimore, the site of the fictional crimeumentary " The Wire ," is the real-life city where the mayor was convicted of stealing from the poor. Really. Mayor Sheila Dixon was charged with one count of charging up gift cards intended for the needy. What's next, taking candy from babies? )Mayor Dixon, do not answer that.( Interest in the case drew immediate Web searches on " sheila dixon trial ," " sheila dixon verdict ," and " sheila dixon guilty .