Victoria

QUOTE "It's not a farewell thing. I saw The Who do that 15 times, and it got kind of old. " - Billy Joel, on tour this month, declining to call his so-called final tour a farewell tour Trouper Liza Minnelli has been down before. She appears to be back up, but is blaming her most recent woes on The Curse of "Victor/Victoria. " In 1997, the actress and singer did a turn in the Broadway musical "Victor/Victoria," the show made famous by Julie Andrews, about a woman masquerading as a man pretending to be a woman.

'What little girl does not dream of growing up a princess?" asks Emily Blunt in her voice-over at the start of the deliciously dressed-up protofeminist biopic The Young Victoria . But, you know, "even a palace can be a prison," she muses, ruefully. Ah, yes. There she is, cloistered teen, granddaughter of George III, next in line for the throne, wandering the gilded halls and formal gardens, no friends, no fun, no iPhone. What's a lonesome heiress presumptive to do? Whether or not director Jean-Marc Vallée and writer Julian Fellowes' depiction of the accession of Britain's mighty 19th-century monarch is accurate, the film they've made, with its candlelight-flooded parlors, its royal balls and banquets, and its backroom scheming, stands as grand entertainment.

Victoria, 9, was in a program called "Hay, Horses, and Youth" and completed the course with flying colors. In addition to riding the horses, the children are taught to be responsible and care for the animals. It helped to build Victoria's self-esteem, and she enjoyed the challenge. New adventures are met with enthusiasm, and traveling anywhere and camping are tops on her list. Neglect and abuse are in Victoria's background, and she has been uprooted many times. She receives therapy and takes medication for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder and impulse control.

Victoria, 10, was in a program called "Hay, Horses, and Youth" and completed the course with flying colors. In addition to riding the horses, the children were taught to be responsible and care for them. It helped to build Victoria's self-esteem and she enjoyed the challenge. New adventures are met with enthusiasm, and traveling and camping are tops on her list. Just tell her that there's a trip planned and that she can dress up to go, and she's delighted. There is neglect and abuse in Victoria's background and she has been uprooted many times.

EVEN ON A Sunday afternoon, Everett Gillison's BlackBerry is buzzing with updates about the latest happenings on the streets of Philadelphia - a weekend fire, a person found dead of a possible drug overdose. Gillison, 55, who wears hats as both the city's deputy mayor for public safety and Mayor Nutter's chief of staff, gets those updates 24/7, but the buzzing doesn't distract him from the task at hand. A proud father of two, he beams as he navigates his iPad to a photo of a swimmer, headlined "Gillison paces women's swimming.

Victoria and Dave Halliday built their lives together on their love of playing polo. They met four years ago at a polo match in Valley Forge. They held a scrimmage with their wedding party before exchanging vows. Dave even named his two companies - Windsor and ComRex Construction - after favorite ponies Windsor and Rex. It is hardly surprising, then, that the couple's next move was nesting together in a country house - located on a one-of-a-kind, 16-acre polo ranch designed by Victoria.

Natasha, 6, is sitting on the rug, drawing with crayons. She's concentrating on her creation until she sees the woman next to her, coloring a tree trunk bright blue. "You need a brown," Natasha offers shyly. "That's what it's 'sposed to be. " "I like blue, though," the woman says. "Isn't that OK?" Natasha looks thoughtful for a moment and then replies, "If that's what you want, yes, that's OK. " Her brother, J.R., 4, and sister, Victoria, 5, are slam-dunking a foam ball and racing toy trucks to the finish line across the room.

Dressed in flag-themed outfits made by their grandmother, seven young members of the Faia family take part in Fourth of July festivities outside Independence Hall. They are (from left) Victoria, 2; Sal, 3; Mary, 7; Caroline, 4 months; Elizabeth, 6; Marjorie, 8; and Perpetua, 5. They're the children of Sal and Lynn Faia of Williamstown, N.J., who brought them to Center City to celebrate the holiday.

Victoria is a sociable, well-liked 12-year-old who enjoys arts and crafts and other creative projects. Museums delight her, and so does the zoo. She especially likes the giraffes. Her activities include swimming lessons at the Y, bike riding, and listening to rhythm and blues. She is a Girl Scout and recently collected cans to help clean up the environment. She is in fifth grade and receives special help in reading. Her favorite books are the Harry Potter and Goosebump series.

The new play on Sansom Street is not easily explained. "Santiago" is the kind of oddball cosmopolitan ragout that the Wilma Theater feels very much at home with and handles with exceeding aplomb. It whisks more action, color, detail, forbidden words and flashing female thighs past one's giddy senses than any theater work has a right to do in a shade over one hour's playing time. Did I mention the belly laughs and the muted but continuing note of human despair? It has them, too. But which Santiago?

Hello there In January 2005, Vicki was psyched to be sitting in new-employee orientation for her first real job. But she couldn't quite believe what the speaker had just said: "Vanguard is a marriage factory. You're probably going to meet the person you're going to spend the rest of your life with here. " "Why is this big financial company telling me this?" thought Vicki, who grew up in Mount Airy. About a week later, a group of new hires planned a Friday night happy hour at Bahama Breeze.

PSST, Taylor Swift, I know a boy who likes you. He loves your music and thinks you're really sweet. He thinks you're really cute, too. No wait, he actually said "beautiful. " His name's Kevin McGuire, and yesterday he poured his big, romantic heart out to me from his room on the third floor of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. That's the oncology unit. He's dealing with a relapse of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. He's very tired and a little homesick. But when I asked what he'd say to you if he saw you in person, he perked up a little and said he already had something prepared.

EVEN ON A Sunday afternoon, Everett Gillison's BlackBerry is buzzing with updates about the latest happenings on the streets of Philadelphia - a weekend fire, a person found dead of a possible drug overdose. Gillison, 55, who wears hats as both the city's deputy mayor for public safety and Mayor Nutter's chief of staff, gets those updates 24/7, but the buzzing doesn't distract him from the task at hand. A proud father of two, he beams as he navigates his iPad to a photo of a swimmer, headlined "Gillison paces women's swimming.

MIAMI - VICTORIA Allman has whipped up chocolate chiffon cake for captains of industry and salmon tartar for Brazilian socialites. She has shopped for fresh produce at the crack of dawn in markets from the Bahamas to Tahiti. And she's done it all with a smile while working 18-hour days pampering the wealthy aboard super yachts that travel the high seas. Allman, 38, is a Fort Lauderdale, Fla.-based chef who, as she puts it, has followed her stomach around the globe on five charter yachts for the past dozen years.

Makes 8-10 servings 4 ounces (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened 1/2 cup sugar 1/4 teaspoon orange extract 2 eggs 1 cup self-rising flour or 1 cup all-purpose flour and 11/2 teaspoons baking powder Filling: 1 cup heavy cream, whipped 3-4 tablespoons strawberry preserves confectioners sugar to dust 1.    Preheat oven to...

BUZZ AROUND Penn's Wharton School of Business yesterday was that Victoria's Secret model Adriana Lima had been accepted to the school. But to the dismay of most Wharton dudes, we hear it's not the Brazilian babe, but another woman by that name who will join the business program. Penn doesn't comment on prospective students but we checked in with reps for the real Adriana Lima, just in case it is her, and they didn't get back to us. Another Victoria's Secret alum, Tyra Banks , made news last week when it was reported that the TV host and producer will attend Harvard Business School.

Everyone knows what most women are aiming for when they make a purchase at Victoria's Secret: They want to be sexy. But a University of Minnesota study, due out in December, says they might not have to wait until they get home to feel that way. For some women, just carrying a Victoria's Secret bag can affect the way they perceive themselves. "These people carried the bag for an hour and as a result felt more glamorous, more sexy and more feminine," said marketing professor Deborah Roedder John, co-author of the study.

CETINJE, Montenegro - Imagine my wonderment at the opportunity to bring my family, including my mother, here to see the home in which her parents lived before emigrating to America - a modest, concrete-floored house that still stands, located on what was until the fall of communism called Lenin Boulevard. My grandmother Victoria (Vukica) Ivanisevich was the daughter of Milo and Melicia (Ceprnich). Milo Ivanisevich was a shoemaker whose claim to fame was that he made boots for King Nicholas Petrovic, who reigned over Montenegro from 1910 until 1918.

"I'm the luckiest woman you'll ever meet!" exclaims Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York. "I married a prince, I have the two loveliest daughters, and now I'm a Hollywood producer. " Yesterday, the woman the tabloids dubbed Fergie held casual court in Philadelphia at the Four Seasons, dishing about herself and Young Victoria, the sparkling biopic of a certain "steadfast and courageous" ancestor of her daughters. Fifteen years ago, the robust redhead initiated the film about the monarch and the teenager who, at 18, ascended to England's throne and then ruled her empire for 63 years, longer than any other British monarch.

'What little girl does not dream of growing up a princess?" asks Emily Blunt in her voice-over at the start of the deliciously dressed-up protofeminist biopic The Young Victoria . But, you know, "even a palace can be a prison," she muses, ruefully. Ah, yes. There she is, cloistered teen, granddaughter of George III, next in line for the throne, wandering the gilded halls and formal gardens, no friends, no fun, no iPhone. What's a lonesome heiress presumptive to do? Whether or not director Jean-Marc Vallée and writer Julian Fellowes' depiction of the accession of Britain's mighty 19th-century monarch is accurate, the film they've made, with its candlelight-flooded parlors, its royal balls and banquets, and its backroom scheming, stands as grand entertainment.