Los Angeles - The mother and brother of Oscar-winning actress and singer Jennifer Hudson have been shot to death in Chicago in an apparent domestic dispute, local TV stations reported Friday.

Los Angeles - Mazda will debut a fully redesigned version of its top selling compact Mazda 3 at the Los Angeles Motor Show next month, the Japanese car maker has announced.

Five years after its first launch, the 2010 model Mazda 3 has been refined with more dynamic design features such as pronounced fenders and angular headlights.

Mazda also claims improved fuel economy and a quieter ride compared to the predecessor model.

After the world debut of the U. S. Specification sedan fitted with 2 and 2.5-litre engines, the five-door hatchback will be unveiled in line with the company's global sales schedule, the car maker announced.

Los Angeles - Nissan is expected to showcase its new 370Z at the Los Angeles Motor Show next month with spy shots revealing a shorter and more aggressive styling than the 350Z and an overhauled interior.

According to several reports, it will get the 3.7-litre V6 motor from the Infiniti G37 with an output of 330 hp mated to a seven-speed automatic gearbox.

Spy pics reveal a sharp roofline, new front and rear, wide wheel arches and steep windscreen.

Los Angeles - As if there wasn't enough drama in the run-up to the US elections, political junkies now have a controversial movie about the sitting president to nurse their election fever.

Director Oliver Stone's movie hit thousands of cinemas across the country over the weekend, earning a respectable 10.6 million dollars to come in fourth at box offices after the other great chronicles of the times: Max Payne, Beverly Hills Chihuahua and The Secret Life of Bees.

Los Angeles - Fierce Santa Ana winds subsided Wednesday, helping thousands of firefighters reign in blazes that had threatened to shoot to the Pacific ocean through the network of canyons that ring Los Angeles.

The blazes claimed two lives and burned 7,200 hectares acres at the start of the season in which the hot Santa Ana winds roar in from the desert and fan ferocious fires.

That toll was seen as a lucky let-off after fire managers had warned earlier in the week that the winds could easily turn the fires into unstoppable wall of flames.

Los Angeles - The global financial crisis could mean big bucks for Twentieth Century Fox.