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From staff and wire reports

Lopez album debuts at No. 1

NEW YORK -- It's a roller-coaster week for Jennifer Lopez. On the one hand, her boyfriend, rapper Sean "Puffy" Combs, stands trial in New York for charges related to a nightclub shooting in December of 1999. Testimony continues Thursday.

On the other hand, Lopez's career is reaching new heights, as she's dominating both the music and movie industries with her work. Following a weekend in which her romantic comedy, "The Wedding Planner," debuted atop the box office by taking in $14 million, Lopez's new album, "J.Lo" debuted at the top of Billboard's record charts, Reuters reported Thursday.

Lopez's music success dethroned the Beatles, who had ridden the top Billboard spot for 10 consecutive weeks with the quartet's greatest hits CD, "1."

Presidential thumbs-up? Bush to watch 'Thirteen Days'

WASHINGTON -- On Thursday, President George W. Bush will attend his first movie since taking office, but his mind will be on American history. Bush will watch "Thirteen Days," the new film starring Kevin Costner that takes a look at the Cuban missile crisis of 1962.

New Line, the studio that is distributing the film, is pleased with Bush's choice.

"Through 'Thirteen Days,' a new generation is discovering how close the world came to an unthinkable nuclear catastrophe," said New Line president Michael Lynne.

The film dramatizes the tense deliberations of President John F. Kennedy and his closest aides as the United States faced down the Soviet Union, which had set up nuclear missiles in Cuba.

Guests at the White House screening will include members of the Kennedy family as well as members of Congress and personal friends of Bush.

Destiny's Child maturing with success

NEW YORK -- Success and fame have been known to cause stress in celebrities, but the members of Destiny's Child are finding comfort in their recent achievements.

The R&B trio, coming off five Grammy nominations and the hit single "Independent Women Part I," claims to be getting over its troubles of the past few years.

Once a foursome, Destiny's Child is now a trio. Members have come and gone and accused each other of breach of contract.

"The changes have been hard," singer Beyonce Knowles, 19, says in the March issue of Teen People. "For a month I stayed in bed. I was sad, hurt, on the verge of a nervous breakdown. ... But I realized it's dumb to dwell on the negativity."

"I'm learning from these girls," said Michelle Williams, 20, who joined Knowles and 19-year-old Kelly Rowland after LeToya Luckett and LaTavia Roberson left the group in 1999. "We help each other to be better and to dig out the good things hidden in us."

Cosby to Utah: Make Jell-O official

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah -- Utah loves Jell-O, so Bill Cosby says it's only sensible to make the flavored gelatin dessert the state's official snack food.

"You'll be showing the French lime Jell-O with shredded carrots" at next year's Winter Olympics, the comedian and official Jell-O spokesman told Utah lawmakers on Wednesday.

"Latest sales figures indicate that Utahans once again consume the most Jell-O in the world," Ann Fudge, a vice president of Kraft Foods, owner of the 104-year-old brand, told a Senate-House conference.

No word yet whether the lawmakers will act on Cosby's sales pitch.