PayPal's in-store payment partners grow to 23 retailers

Increasingly bringing its service offline, PayPal announced today that it has nearly doubled its brick-and-mortar store lineup to 23 retailers that now accept its payment service.

"Delivering valuable digital and mobile payments is alive and thriving, and consumers all over the U.S. will now start seeing PayPal more where they shop every day, including the grocery store and at the gas pump," PayPal's vice president of retail services Don Kingsborough said in a statement. "No bells, whistles or buzzes -- just technology that works and gets the most from your money."

Throughout the U.S., 18,000 physical stores now let customers shop with PayPal in-store. The chains that accept this service include Famous Footwear, Dollar General, Mapco Express, RadioShack, Spartan Stores, Abercrombie & Fitch, Advance Auto Parts, Aeropostale, American Eagle Outfitters, Barnes & Noble, Foot Locker, Guitar Center, the Home Depot, Jamba Juice, JC Penney, Jos. A. Bank Clothiers, Nine West, Office Depot, Rooms To Go, Tiger Direct, and Toys "R" Us. Two additional stores are not yet publicly known.

The e-commerce payment business, owned by eBay, started a preliminary run a year ago in 51 Home Depot stores in the San Francisco Bay Area. The way the cloud-based payment system works is shoppers can buy items at checkout with a PayPal card or by using a PIN code.

The company's move to in-person payment at big box stores is likely an undertaking aimed at enticing customers from credit-card companies and other mobile wallet payment devices. Kingsborough said that PayPal plans to continue partnering with more retail stores throughout the course of 2013.

PayPal also announced today that it is testing a new iPhone feature with Jamba Juice. The feature lets customers order and pre-pay for smoothies or food before they arrive at the shop. Using the PayPal app, people can order, make special requests like "add a protein or daily vitamin boost," and schedule a pick-up time. When picking up their snacks, these PayPal customers can then bypass the line and get their food right away.

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"Argo," "Les Miserables" win best-picture Globes

Updated 11:28 p.m. ET

"Argo" was the best drama winner at Sunday's Golden Globe Awards, beating out the Civil War epic "Lincoln," which had emerged as an awards-season favorite.

The Iran hostage thriller also claimed the directing prize for Ben Affleck, a prize that normally bodes well for an Academy Award win -- except he missed out on an Oscar nomination this time.

Affleck is now in an unusual position during Hollywood's long awards season, taking home the top filmmaking trophy at the second-highest film honors knowing he does not have a shot at an Oscar.

And the night left "Argo" taking home the top prize at the Globes but standing as a longshot for best picture at the Feb. 24 Oscars, where films almost never win if their directors are not nominated.

In a breathless, rapid-fire speech, Affleck gushed over the names of other nominees presenter Halle Berry had read off: Steven Spielberg for "Lincoln," Ang Lee for "Life of Pi," Kathryn Bigelow for "Zero Dark Thirty" and Quentin Tarantino for "Django Unchained."

"Look, I don't care what the award is. When they put your name next to the names she just read off, it's an extraordinary thing in your life," Affleck said.

"Les Miserables" was named best musical or comedy, while Hugh Jackman and Anne Hathaway claimed acting prizes.

Daniel Day-Lewis won the award for best actor in a drama for the title role in "Lincoln," while the dramatic actress honor went to Jessica Chastain for playing a CIA agent in "Zero Dark Thirty."

Besides the three wins for "Les Miserables" and two for "Argo," the show was a mixed bag, with awards spread around a number of films. "Lincoln" came in leading with seven nominations but lost all but one, for Daniel Day-Lewis as best actor in the title role of "Lincoln."

"If I had this on a timeshare basis with my wonderful gifted colleagues, I might just hope to keep it for one day of the year, and I'd be happy with that," said Day-Lewis, who previously won a Globe for "There Will Be Blood" and is a two-time Oscar winner with a strong shot at taking a third.

"Zero Dark Thirty" star Jessica Chastain won the Globe for dramatic actress as a CIA agent obsessively pursuing Bin Laden. Other acting prizes went to Jennifer Lawrence as best musical or comedy actress for the oddball romance "Silver Linings Playbook" and Christoph Waltz as supporting actor for the slave-revenge tale "Django Unchained."

"Les Miserables," the musical based on Victor Hugo's classic novel, earned Jackman the Globe for musical or comedy actor as tragic hero Jean Valjean. Hathaway won supporting actress as a single mom forced into prostitution.

"Thank you for this lovely blunt object that I will forevermore use as a weapon against self-doubt," Hathaway said. She also thanked her husband, telling him, "Thank you for the best string of yesterdays I have ever had."

Jackman was a bit hoarse from the flu, but his Globe win seemed to be the right antidote.

"I was kicking myself for not getting the flu shot, but it appears that you don't need one. I feel great," he said.

But when it comes to Hollywood's highest honors, "Les Miserables" already has a big obstacle, also failing to earn a best-director slot for filmmaker Tom Hooper at the Feb. 24 Oscars.

Last Thursday's Oscar nominations held some shockers, including the omission of Affleck from the directing lineup, along with fellow Globe nominee Bigelow. Bigelow and Affleck also were nominated for top honors by the Directors Guild of America, whose contenders usually match up closely with the Oscar field.

Former President Bill Clinton upstaged Hollywood's elite with a surprise appearance to introduce Steven Spielberg's Civil War epic "Lincoln," which was up for best drama. The film chronicles Abraham Lincoln's final months as he tries to end the war and find common ground in a divided Congress to pass the 13th Amendment abolishing slavery.

Amy Poehler, co-host of the Globes with Tina Fey, gushed afterward, "Wow, what an exciting special guest! That was Hillary Clinton's husband!"

Lawrence won as best actress in a musical or comedy for her role as a troubled widow in a shaky new relationship. The Globe winners in musical or comedy categories often aren't factors at the Oscars, which tend to favor heavier dramatic roles.

But "Silver Linings Playbook" is a crowd-pleasing comic drama with deeper themes than the usual comedy. And Lawrence -- a 2010 Oscar nominee for her breakout film "Winter's Bone" who shot to superstardom with "The Hunger Games" -- delivers a nice mix of humor and melancholy in the film.

"What does this say? I beat Meryl," Lawrence joked as she looked at her award, referring to fellow nominee and multiple Globe winner Meryl Streep. Lawrence went on to thank her mother for believing in her and her father for making her maintain a sense of humor. ("I beat Meryl" is a reference to the 1996 film "The First Wives Club.")

Waltz won supporting actor for his role as a genteel bounty hunter who takes on an ex-slave as his apprentice. The win was Waltz's second supporting-actor prize at the Globes, both of them coming in Tarantino films. He also played a bloodthirsty Nazi in his Globe and Oscar-winning role in Tarantino's 2009 tale "Inglourious Basterds."

"Let me gasp," Waltz said. "Quentin, you know that my indebtedness to you and my gratitude knows no words."

Tarantino, who won best screenplay for "Django Unchained," thanked his cast and also the group of friends to whom he reads work-in-progress for reaction.

"You guys don't know how important you are to my process. I don't want input. I don't want you to tell me if I'm doing anything wrong. Heavens forbid," Tarantino said. "When I read it to you, I hear it through your ears, and it lets me know I'm on the right track."

The Scottish tale "Brave" won for best animated film. It was the sixth win for Disney's Pixar Animation unit in the seven years since the Globes added the category.

Austrian director Michael Haneke's old-age love story "Amour," a surprise best-picture nominee for the Oscars, won the Globe for foreign-language film. The top prize winner at last May's Cannes Film Festival, "Amour" is a grim yet moving portrait of an elderly woman tended by her husband as she is incapacitated by age.

Pop star Adele and co-writer Paul Epworth won for best song for their theme tune to the James Bond adventure "Skyfall." The singer, making her first public appearance since giving birth in October, got a high-five from the film's star Daniel Craig as she went up to accept the award.

"Oh, my God!" Adele gushed repeatedly, before offering gratitude to the group that presents the Globes. "I'd like to thank the Hollywood Foreign Press. I never thought I'd say that."

The prize for musical score went to Mychael Danna for the lost-at-sea tale "Life of Pi," who said he wanted to share the award with the film's director, Ang Lee.

"Ang, I will always treasure this voyage we made together," Danna said. "Thank for guiding us all to shore safely."

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Poehler, Fey joke about "Zero Dark Thirty" torture

Show hosts Fey and Poehler, who co-starred in the 2008 big-screen comedy "Baby Mama," had a friendly rivalry at the Globes. Both were nominated for best actress in a TV comedy series, Fey for "30 Rock" and Poehler for "Parks and Recreation."

"Tina, I just want to say that I very much hope that I win," Poehler told Fey at the start of the show.

"Thank you. You're my nemesis. Thank you," Fey replied.

Neither won. Lena Dunham claimed the comedy series Globe for "Girls," on the same night the show's second season premiered on HBO.

"This award is for everyone who felt like there wasn't a space for her," Dunham said. "This show has made a space for me."

After that, Fey and Poehler showed up on stage with cocktail glasses, Fey joking that it was time to start drinking.

"Everyone's getting a little loose now that we're all losers," Poehler said.

"Girls" also won the prize for best comedy series. Among other TV winners, Julianne Moore won a best-actress Globe for her role as Sarah Palin in "Game Change," which also was picked as best TV miniseries or movie and earned Ed Harris a supporting-actor prize. Best actor in a miniseries or movie went to Kevin Costner for "Hatfields & McCoys." "Homeland" was named best TV drama series, and its stars Claire Danes and Damian Lewis received the dramatic acting awards. Maggie Smith won as supporting actress for "Downton Abbey."

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'Argo' Wins the Golden Globe for Best Movie Drama

Tina Fey and Amy Poehler: The women of the night. Credit: Paul Drinkwater/NBC/AP Photo.

11:06 p.m. ET: And finally, the Globes by the numbers: “Les Miserables” was the top winner, with three major trophies, followed by “Argo” and “Django Unchained, which each got two. On the TV side, “The Game Change” and “Homeland” scored three major awards, “Girls” got two.

11:00 p.m. ET: Fey and Poehler sign off: “Goodnight, we’re going home with Jodie Foster.” Can we get them next year, please?

10:58 p.m. ET: The final award of the night, best motion picture drama, goes to “Argo.” Sounds like we’ll be seeing a lot of Affleck, Clooney and the gang in the coming weeks.

PHOTOS: 2013 Golden Globe Winners

10:51 p.m. ET: And best actor in a drama award goes to … Daniel Day-Lewis for “Lincoln.” “Are you sure there’s room for another ex-president on the stage?” he jokes.

10:48 p.m. ET: Jessica Chastain wins for “Zero Dark Thirty.” She calls out director Kathryn Bigelow: “I can’t help but compare my character of Maya to you. … When you make a film that allows your film to allow your character to disobey the conventions of Hollywood, you’ve done more for women in cinema than you take credit for.”

PHOTOS: Golden Globes’ Hottest Couples

10:47 p.m. ET: It’s time for best actress in a drama — George Clooney’s presenting.

10:41 p.m. ET: Another win for “Les Miserables” — the movie wins the Globe for best comedy or musical.

10:31 p.m. ET: “Les Mis” star Hugh Jackman nabs the Globe for best actor in a movie musical or comedy. He saves his biggest thank you for his wife: “Baby, thank you for always being right.”

PHOTOS: Best and Worst Dressed at the Golden Globes

10:26 p.m. ET: So apparently Jodie Foster is not retiring. Backstage, when asked by reporters “Are you retiring?’, she said “no, not retiring.” What was she talking about then?

10:22 p.m. ET: Major night for “Girls” — second season premiere is tonight and the HBO hit just won best comedy. Dunham grabs the trophy and screams. “It took a village to raise this very demented child,” she says. “I also promised myself that if I ever got this chance, I would thank Chad Lowe.”

10:17 p.m. ET: Next major award of the night goes to Ben Affleck for “Argo” — best director. (Take that, Oscars.) Steven Spielberg does not look happy.

Credit: Jason Merritt/Getty Images

10:11 p.m. ET: And it sounds like Foster just retired from acting. She says she’s not returning to this stage or any stage: “It’s just that from now on, I may be holding a different talking stick.” People in the audience are wiping away tears, notably Kate Hudson.

RELATED: Jodie Foster Wows With Golden Globes Acceptance Speech

10:07 p.m. ET: Foster almost made a huge public statement about her sexuality. Instead, she said she’s single, and she “already did my coming out in the stone age.” “Now, apparently, I’m told that every celebrity is expected to honor the details of their private life with a press conference … You guys might be surprised, but I’m not Honey Boo Boo Child,” she said. “If you had been a public figure from the time that you were a toddler … then maybe you too might value privacy above all else. Privacy.” But she specifically thanked her partner Cydney Bernard, with whom she has two kids.

Credit: Obtained by ABC.

10:06 p.m. ET: Foster accepting her award: “Trust me, 47 years in the film business is a long time. … but tonight, I feel like the prom queen.”

10:02 p.m. ET: Robert Downey Jr. gives a somewhat incomprehensible intro for Jodie Foster, who’s being given the Cecil B. DeMille award for her decades in film.

10:00 p.m. ET: Despite her silence on her relationship status, Taylor Swift WILL NOT be spared: “You know what Taylor Swift, you stay away from Michael J. Fox’s son,” Fey slurs, ignoring Poehler’s objections. “She needs some me time to learn about herself.”

9:58 p.m. ET: Fey and Poehler come back to the mic (finally!) holding drinks. “Everybody’s getting a little lose now that we’re all losers,” Fey says. “Congratulations, Lena. Glad that we got you through middle school.” Poehler says, “Look how drunk Glenn Close is,” Close flails/dances in her chair. Fantastic.

9:52 p.m. ET: Lena Dunham wins best actress in a comedy for “Girls”! She calls Judd Apatow “the greatest honorary ’Girl.’” “This award is for everyone who feels like there wasn’t a place for her,” she says. “This show made a space for me.”

9:50 p.m. ET: Aziz Ansari is pretending the cast of “Downton Abbey” got him high. And Amy Poehler is in George Clooney’s lap. It’s great.

9:46 p.m. ET: “Brave” wins best animated movie.

9:45 p.m. ET: Oh, Sacha Baron Cohen. He’s subbing for Ricky Gervais with an insult-heavy presentation of the nominated animated movies. (Speaking of, where are Fey and Poehler?!)

9:38 p.m. ET: “Homeland” wins again. Claire Danes scores best actress in a TV drama. “I want to thank the other women in this category who are all so badass, so brilliant,” she says. She thanks her costume designer who apparently took her pants out every week while Danes was pregnant last season.

9:35 p.m. ET: The award goes to “Amour,” which picked up a slew of Oscar nominations too.

9:33 p.m. ET: Arnold Schwarzenegger and Sylvester Stallone look hilarious stuffed into suits. They’re presenting the award for best foreign film.

9:27 p.m. ET: It’s a good night for Don Cheadle. His Showtime show “House of Lies” returns for its second season tonight and he just won a Golden Globe for best actor in a TV comedy.

FULL LIST: 2013 Golden Globes Winners

9:23 p.m. ET: Globe for best original screenplay goes to Quentin Tarantino — that’s two trophies so far for “Django Unchained.” He calls the award a “damn surprise” and thanks his friends for listening to him read his scenes. “I don’t want input,” he says. “When I read it to you, I hear it through your ears.”

9:15 p.m. ET: Globe for best supporting actress in a movie (drama) goes to Anne Hathaway for “Les Miserables.” “Blergh,” she says, clearly flustered. “Thanks for that word, Tina.” She also pays tribute to fellow nominee Sally Field for inspiring her to stay in the industry.

Credit: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP Photo.

9:12 p.m. ET: Best supporting actor in a TV series or movie goes to …  Ed Harris for “Game Change.”

9:06 p.m. ET: Jennifer Lawrence wins best actress in a movie (comedy or musical) for “Silver Linings Playbook.” “Oh what does it say?” she asks, looking at the trophy. “I beat Meryl.” She means Streep, of course.

9:05 p.m. ET: Camera pans to Tommy Lee Jones who is not at all amused by Wiig and Ferrell.

9:03 p.m. ET: Kristen Wiig and Will Ferrell are doing a hilarious bit about how they know absolutely nothing about any of the best actress movie nominees. Of Judy Dench in “Best Exotic Marigold Hotel”: “And she’s on that tractor with the marigolds everywhere.”

9:01 p.m. ET: Poehler gushes over “Hillary’s husband.” Fey is still in drag from her bit earlier. They’re amazing and we want to see more of them.

9:00 p.m. ET: Clinton’s presenting a clip of “Lincoln.” Now this makes sense. “We’re all here tonight because he did it,” he says of Lincoln’s battle to end slavery.

8:59 p.m. ET: What, Bill Clinton’s here?! He gets a standing ovation.

Credit: Obtained by ABC.

8:55 p.m. ET: Kevin Costner wins for best actor in a miniseries or movie for “Hatfields & McCoys.”

8:48 p.m. ET: Adele scoops up the Globe for best original song for the latest Bond theme, “Skyfall.” Her reaction: “Oh my God! … Honestly, I came for a night out, with my friend Ida, we’re new mums … I literally came for a night out.”

Credit: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP Photo.

8:44 p.m. ET: “Life of Pi” wins for best original score … but J-Lo’s nude dress steals the spotlight. Just like her nipple almost did at last year’s Oscars.

8:41 p.m. ET: “Argo’s” real life inspiration, Tony Mendez, joined John Goodman to introduce a clip of the film, which is up for five Globes.

8:36 p.m. ET: Well that was awkward. Some sort of camera malfunction messed up Salma Hayek and Paul Rudd’s best TV drama intro. “Homeland” wins! Executive producer Alex Gansa: “Thanks to everyone who’s been watching ‘Homeland,’ and to those who haven’t, allow me to spoil it for you.”

8:33 p.m. ET: Best actor in a TV drama goes to … Damian Lewis for “Homeland.” Considering it’s a fan and critic favorite right now, not a huge surprise.

Credit: Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP Photo.

8:28 p.m. ET: Hollywood Foreign Press Association president Dr. Aida Takla-O’Reilly disses Jeffrey Katzenberg for never learning her name, asks Bradley Cooper to “call me maybe.” Amazing.

8:21 p.m. ET: And Julianne Moore wins for best actress in a miniseries or movie. “Oh my gosh, my children will be so relieved,” she says. She gives a shout out to Tina Fey and Katie Couric — “two people who made a difference in the 2008 election.”

Credit: Kevin WInter/Getty Images.

8:18 p.m. ET: “Game Change” scores best miniseries or movie. Somewhere, Sarah Palin is probably shaking her fist.

8:14 p.m. ET: We’ll use the commercial break to declare that Poehler and Fey had an absolutely amazing opening bit. Bravo.

8:12 p.m. ET: Second award of the night, best supporting actress in TV: Maggie Smith for “Downton Abbey.” According to Poehler and Fey’s drinking game, you should drink take off a piece of clothing now.

RELATED: Poehler and Fey Reveal Their Golden Globes Drinking Game

8:10 p.m. ET: And the award for best supporting actor in a movie goes to … Christoph Waltz for “Django Unchained.” Hint that he’ll win the Oscar for that part too?

8:07 p.m. ET: Fey almost reprised her Sarah Palin impression while into-ing Julianne Moore but appears to have lost it. Dang.

8:05 p.m. ET: Poehler: “Meryl Streep is not here tonight, she has the flu. And I hear she’s amazing in it.”

8:04 p.m. ET: Fey had a great one for Anne Hathaway and “Les Mis”: “I have not seen someone so totally alone and abandoned like that since you were on stage with James Franco at the Oscars.”

8:03 p.m. ET: Poehler on Kathryn Bigelow and the “Zero Dark Thirty” torture controversy: “When it comes to torture, I trust the lady who spend three years married to James Cameron.” WOW.

8:02 p.m. ET: Oh and they’re not going to be offensive like past host Ricky Gervais. Poehler: ”When you run afoul of the Hollywood Foreign Press, they make you host this show two more times.”

8:00 p.m. ET: Fey and Poehler did an outfit change before stepping up to the mic. Poehler threw the first jab of the night: “You can smell the pills from here. ”

7:44 p.m. ET: “Scandal” and “Django Unchained” star Kerry Washington never Googles herself. She feels like it’s bad for her health. Now you know. Also, she looks gorgeous in Miu Miu.

7:40 p.m. ET: @AngiesRightLeg has met its match: Halle Berry struck a leggy pose on the red carpet in an unfortunate one-shoulder gown.

Angie's Right Leg, meet Halle's. Credit: Steve Granitz/Getty Images.

7:33 p.m. ET: It’s an “ER” reunion! George Clooney and Julianna Margulies just hugged on the red carpet.

7:28 p.m. ET: Best song nominee Adele revealed that she actually had to be convinced to write the theme for “Skyfall.” “It’s a big responsibility doing a Bond song,” she said. “I didn’t want to let everybody down by doing it.”

7:19 p.m. ET: Julianne Moore looks stunning in black and white Tom Ford. She’s up for best actress in a TV movie for “Game Change.”

7:18 p.m. ET: “Mad Men” star Jon Hamm on the best part of playing Don Draper: “Well it’s always fun to play drunk, because if you forget your lines you’re just like, ‘Uh, well, I’m in character.’”

PHOTOS: The 2013 Golden Globes Red Carpet

7:15 p.m. ET: Taylor Swift wore a mermaid-cut eggplant gown … and did not at all talk about what happened with her latest boyfriend, Harry Styles. Sigh.

Credit: Credit: Steve Granitz/Getty Images.

7:14 p.m. ET: Hugh Jackman revealed the “horrible” way he shed weight quickly before filming “Les Mis”: “I lost about 35 pounds in 36 hours before the first scene. I didn’t drink any liquids whatsoever.”

7:07 p.m. ET: Another fashion miss: Jennifer Lawrence. It looks like she stole Madonna’s cone bra and cut off the straps.

Credit: Steve Granitz/Getty Images.

7:02 p.m. ET: “Zero Dark Thirty” star Jessica Chastain diverged from the major trends of the night — nude, black and white, and red — in a powder blue Calvin Klein Collection gown. The plunging bodice looks a bit like a sack.

Credit: Steve Granitz/Getty Images.

6:57 p.m. ET: E!’s mani-cam has become a source of contention. While some actresses happily showed off their nails on the tiny red carpet, Aziz Ansari refused to stick his hand in the diorama-like box.

FULL COVERAGE: The 2013 Awards Season

6:56 p.m. ET: Olivia Munn has a new perspective on newsrooms now that she’s on Aaron Sorkin’s “The Newsroom.” “I think [our show] makes other newsrooms seem pretty easygoing,” she said.

6:42 p.m. ET: Julia Louis-Dreyfus said she had a “little tiny piece of cake” to celebrate her birthday. “Look, this is a corset,” she said, pointing to her Vera Wang dress. “I can’t mess around.” Though she’s up for best actress in a TV comedy, she thinks she’ll lose. “I hope that Lena Dunham or Amy Poehler have their speech ready,” she said.

6:38 p.m. ET: Hosts Tina Fey and Amy Poehler are encouraging their guests to get liquored up. “It’s a party and we want it to remain a party,” Fey said. Both have awesome outfits — a strapless black and white gown for Fey and a low cut tuxedo for Poehler.

6:31 p.m. ET: “Girls” star and Globes nominee Lena Dunham said her stylist gave her very specific instructions about adjusting her dress because “my breasts have a tendency to shove my dress to the right.” She looks lovely in chocolate brown, off-the-shoulder gown.

Lena Dunham. Credit: Steve Granitz/Getty Images.

6:28 p.m. ET: Best actress in a TV comedy nominee Zooey Deschanel showed off her film strip nail art on the red carpet. Very Hollywood.

Zooey Deschanel. Credit: Steve Granitz/Getty Images.

6:22 p.m. ET: Another stunning new mom: Megan Fox. She admitted that husband Brian Austin Green picks most of her dresses.

6:16 p.m. ET: The first surprise of Golden Globes: How utterly amazing Claire Danes looks. She gave birth a month ago and has a flat, practically concave stomach. She tried on her red Versace dress for the first time last night but admitted she’s “been in sweatpants for quite a while.” She added, “I hope I don’t leak.”

RELATED: Claire Danes Flaunts Post-Baby Body at the Golden Globes

Claire Danes dressed her insane post-baby body in Versace. Credit: Steve Granitz/Getty Images.

6:14 p.m. ET: Amy Adams, up for best supporting actress for “The Master,” looks angelic in a Marchesa in a color she called ballet pink. “This is mommy at work,” she said to her daughter back at home.

Amy Adams in Marchesa. Credit: Steve Granitz/Getty Images.

6:12 p.m. ET: Julianne Hough opted for a creepy crawly accessory — her earrings are made out of actual beetles.

6:02 p.m. ET: For Julia Louis-Dreyfus, this Globes is extra special — today is her 52nd birthday and she’s up for best actress in a TV comedy for “Veep.” “Today I’m either a year older & I’m gonna lose a Golden Globe OR at least I’m nominated & I’m not dead yet,” she wrote on her WhoSay page.

6:00 p.m. ET: It’s here, the night that Hollywood has been steeling its liver for: The Golden Globe Awards, which are almost always a raucous time because the Hollywood Foreign Press keeps the bar open throughout the ceremony. We’ll be chronicling all the jokes, insults, red carpet highlights — and of course, the winners — right here. Keep refreshing for the latest updates.

PHOTOS: 2013 Golden Globe Nominees

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France bombs Islamist strongholds in north Mali

BAMAKO/PARIS (Reuters) - French fighter jets pounded Islamist rebel strongholds deep in northern Mali on Sunday as Paris poured more troops into the capital Bamako, awaiting a West African force to dislodge al Qaeda-linked insurgents from the country's north.

The attacks on Islamist positions near the ancient desert trading town of Timbuktu and Gao, the largest city in the north, marked a decisive intensification on the third day of the French mission, striking at the heart of the vast area seized by rebels in April.

France is determined to end Islamist domination of northern Mali, which many fear could act as a base for attacks on the West and for links with al Qaeda in Yemen, Somalia and North Africa.

Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said France's sudden intervention on Friday had prevented the advancing rebels from seizing Bamako. He vowed that air strikes would continue.

"The president is totally determined that we must eradicate these terrorists who threaten the security of Mali, our own country and Europe," he told French television.

Residents and rebel leaders had reported air raids early on Sunday in the towns of Lere and Douentza in central Mali, forcing Islamists to withdraw. As the day progressed, French jets struck targets further to the north, including near the town of Kidal, the epicenter of the rebellion.

In Gao, a dusty town on the banks of the Niger river where Islamists have imposed an extreme form of sharia law, residents said French jets pounded the airport and rebel positions. A huge cloud of black smoke rose from the militants' camp in the city's north, and trucks ferried dead and wounded to hospital.

"The planes are so fast you can only hear their sound in the sky," resident Soumaila Maiga said by telephone. "We are happy, even though it is frightening. Soon we will be delivered."

Paris said four Rafale jets flew from France to strike rebel training camps, logistics depots and infrastructure around Gao with the aim of weakening the rebels and preventing them from returning southward.

"We blocked the terrorists' advance and from today what we've started to do is to destroy the terrorists' bases behind the front line," French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius told LCI television.

France has deployed about 550 soldiers to Mali under "Operation Serval" -- named after an African wildcat -- split between Bamako and the town of Mopti, 500 km (300 miles) north.

In Bamako, a Reuters cameraman saw more than 100 French troops disembark on Sunday from a military cargo plane at the international airport, on the outskirts of the capital.

The city's streets were calm, with the sun streaking through the dusty air as the seasonal Harmattan wind blew from the Sahara. Many cars had French flags draped from the windows to celebrate Paris's intervention.

"We thank France for coming to our aid," said resident Mariam Sidibe. "We hope it continues till the north is free."

AFRICAN TROOPS EXPECTED

More than two decades of peaceful elections had earned Mali a reputation as a bulwark of democracy, but that image unraveled in a matter of weeks after a military coup in March which left a power vacuum for the Islamist rebellion.

France convened a U.N. Security Council meeting for Monday to discuss Mali. French President Francois Hollande's intervention has won plaudits from leaders in Europe, Africa and the United States but it is not without risks.

It raised the threat level for eight French hostages held by al Qaeda allies in the Sahara and for the 30,000 French expatriates living in neighboring, mostly Muslim states.

Concerned about reprisals, France has tightened security at public buildings and on public transport. It advised its 6,000 citizens to leave Mali as spokesmen for Ansar Dine and al Qaeda's north Africa wing AQIM promised to exact revenge.

In its first casualty of the campaign, Paris said a French pilot was killed on Friday when rebels shot down his helicopter.

Hours earlier, a French intelligence officer held hostage in Somalia by al Shabaab extremists linked to al Qaeda was killed in a failed commando raid to free him.

Hollande says France's aim is simply to support a mission by West African bloc ECOWAS to retake the north, as mandated by a U.N. Security Council resolution in December.

With Paris pressing West African nations to send their troops quickly, Ivory Coast President Alassane Ouattara, who holds the rotating ECOWAS chairmanship, kick-started the operation to deploy 3,300 African soldiers.

Ouattara, installed in power with French military backing in 2011, convened a summit of the 15-nation bloc for Saturday in Ivory Coast to discuss the mission.

"The troops will start arriving in Bamako today and tomorrow," said Ali Coulibaly, Ivory Coast's African Integration Minister. "They will be convoyed to the front."

The United States is providing transportation and communications support for the push against the Islamist rebels, a U.S. official told Reuters, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The U.S. support also includes intelligence sharing, the official said, without elaborating. Earlier on Sunday, another U.S. official said Washington was considering sending a small number of unarmed surveillance drones.

Britain and Canada have also promised logistical support.

Former French colonies Senegal, Niger and Burkina Faso have all pledged to deploy 500 troops within days. In contrast, regional powerhouse Nigeria, due to lead the ECOWAS force, has suggested it would take time to train and equip the troops.

HOUSE-TO-HOUSE SEARCHES

France, however, appeared to have assumed control of the operation on the ground. Its air strikes allowed Malian troops to drive the Islamists out of the strategic town of Konna, which they had briefly seized this week in their southward advance.

Calm returned to Konna after three nights of combat as the Malian army crushed any remaining rebel fighters. A senior army official said more than 100 rebels had been killed.

"Soldiers are patrolling the streets and have encircled the town," one resident, Madame Coulibaly, told Reuters by phone. "They are searching houses for arms or hidden Islamists."

Analysts expressed doubt, however, that African nations would be able to mount a swift operation to retake north Mali -- a harsh, sparsely populated terrain the size of France -- as neither the equipment nor ground troops were prepared.

"My first impression is that this is an emergency patch in a very dangerous situation," said Gregory Mann, associate professor of history at Columbia University, who specializes in francophone Africa and Mali in particular.

While France and its allies may be able to drive rebel fighters from large towns, they could struggle to prise them from mountain redoubts in the region of Kidal, 300 km (200 miles) northeast of Gao.

Human Rights Watch said at least 11 civilians, including three children, had been killed in the fighting. A spokesman for Doctors Without Borders in neighboring Mauritania said about 200 Malian refugees had fled across the border to a camp at Fassala and more were on their way.

In Bamako, civilians tried to contribute to the war effort.

"We are very proud and relieved that the army was able to drive the jihadists out of Konna. We hope it will not end there, that is why I'm helping in my own way," said civil servant Ibrahima Kalossi, 32, one of over 40 people who queued to donate blood for wounded soldiers.

(Additional reporting by Adama Diarra, Tiemoko Diallo and Rainer Schwenzfeier in Bamako, Pascal Fletcher in Johannesburg, Joe Bavier in Abidjan, Catherine Bremer, Leila Aboud and John Irish in Paris and Phil Stewart in Washington; Writing by Daniel Flynn; Editing by Will Waterman and Roger Atwood)

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"Homeland", "Girls" big TV winners at Golden Globes

LOS ANGELES: The terrorism-themed thriller "Homeland" and the quirky Brooklyn hipster comedy "Girls" took top television honours Sunday at the 70th annual Golden Globe awards.

"Homeland", which wrapped its second season on the Showtime cable channel last month, won for best dramatic series, and took home best actress and best actor honours for its two stars, Claire Danes and Britain's Damian Lewis.

The show -- held in high esteem by critics who contend that American television may have overtaken film for originality and risk-taking -- won the same three categories at the Emmy awards in September.

"I'm proud to be working in this medium, in this moment, in this company," said Danes, who portrays CIA officer Carrie Mathison against Lewis's Iraq war POW turned politician Nicholas Brody.

"I want to thank our writers who didn't buckle under the pressure, the success of the first season and continued to challenge themselves and, by extension, us as actors," she said.

"You make brave choices relentlessly and we are all better for it," added Danes, in her first big awards night appearance since giving birth to her first child, a boy, a month ago.

Showtime has commissioned a third season of "Homeland," which was adapted from the Israeli series "Hatufim", also known as "Prisoners of War".

"Girls", which by coincidence aired its second season premiere Sunday on HBO as the Golden Globes gala was underway, took best comedy series as well as best actress for its 26-year-old creator and star Lena Dunham.

The show has been critically acclaimed for its post-"Sex and the City" portrayal of the lives of four New York City twenty-somethings in a post-recession world of career and romantic uncertainty.

"This award is for every woman who felt like there wasn't a space for her," said Dunham, who bases the series on her own experiences, "This show has made a space for me."

Other winners Sunday included the HBO television movie "Game Change" and its star Julianne Moore, who took best actress in a TV series, miniseries or film for her role as renegade Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

Ed Harris collected best supporting actor for his portrayal of John McCain, who picked Palin as his running mate in his failed 2008 bid for the White House against Barack Obama.

Academy Award winner Kevin Costner took best actor in a TV miniseries or movie for "Hatfields and McCoys", while Maggie Smith, also an Oscar winner, won for best supporting TV actress for the British-made "Downton Abbey".

Don Cheadle collected best comedy actor for "House of Lies".

-AFP/fl

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Apple reportedly cuts iPhone screen orders on weak demand

Apple's iPhone 5.

(Credit:
CNET)

Apple is reportedly dialing down its iPhone component orders, a possible sign that demand for the smartphone is not quite as strong as Apple expected.

Apple cut its orders last month for
iPhone 5 screens for the first quarter of the 2013 calendar year by roughly half its original target, sources tell The Wall Street Journal. The Cupertino, Calif.-based tech giant also reportedly trimmed orders for other screen sizes as well.

CNET has contacted Apple for comment and will update this report when we learn more.

The report appears to support the forecast of at least one analyst, who predicted last month that Apple would face challenges selling its iPhone and
iPad. In December, UBS analyst Steven Milunovich slashed his iPhone sales estimates for the March, June, and September 2013 quarters by 5 million units each quarter, while sales estimates for the iPad were cut by 2 million per quarter.

Milunovich also trimmed his earnings estimates for Apple for fiscal 2013 and 2014 and lowered the stock's target price to $700 from $780. Apple is expected to announce its fiscal first-quarter financial results on January 23.

Once the dominant smartphone and tablet seller, Apple has faced challenges on both fronts. The iPad's market share has been sliced by lower-priced
Android tablets, while the Galaxy S lineup of smartphones recently edge out the iPhone for the smartphone market crown.

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Kaepernick delivers, 49ers beat Packers 45-31

San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick (7) runs for a 56-yard touchdown against the Green Bay Packers during the third quarter of an NFC divisional playoff NFL football game in San Francisco, Saturday, Jan. 12, 2013. / AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez

SAN FRANCISCO Colin Kaepernick ran for a quarterback playoff record 181 yards and two touchdowns and threw two scoring passes to Michael Crabtree in leading the San Francisco 49ers back to the NFC championship game with a 45-31 victory against the Green Bay Packers on Saturday night.

Playoff first-timer Kaepernick outshined reigning NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers, who never got in sync for the Packers (12-6) in finishing 26 of 39 for 257 yards with two touchdowns.

Kaepernick ran for scores of 20 and 56 yards on the way to topping the rushing mark of 119 yards held by Michael Vick. Crabtree caught TD passes of 12 and 20 yards in the second quarter and wound up with nine receptions and 119 yards for the Niners (12-4-1) in the NFC divisional matchup.

San Francisco had 579 total yards, 323 on the ground.

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Poisoned Lottery Winner's Kin Were Suspicious

Urooj Khan had just brought home his $425,000 lottery check when he unexpectedly died the following day. Now, certain members of Khan's family are speaking publicly about the mystery -- and his nephew told ABC News they knew something was not right.

"He was a healthy guy, you know?" said the nephew, Minhaj Khan. "He worked so hard. He was always going about his business and, the thing is: After he won the lottery and the next day later he passes away -- it's awkward. It raises some eyebrows."

The medical examiner initially ruled Urooj Khan, 46, an immigrant from India who owned dry-cleaning businesses in Chicago, died July 20, 2012, of natural causes. But after a family member demanded more tests, authorities in November found a lethal amount of cyanide in his blood, turning the case into a homicide investigation.

"When we found out there was cyanide in his blood after the extensive toxicology reports, we had to believe that ... somebody had to kill him," Minhaj Khan said. "It had to happen, because where can you get cyanide?"

In Photos: Biggest Lotto Jackpot Winners

Authorities could be one step closer to learning what happened to Urooj Khan. A judge Friday approved an order to exhume his body at Rosehill Cemetery in Chicago as early as Thursday to perform further tests.

Lottery Winner Murdered: Widow Questioned By Police Watch Video

Moments after the court hearing, Urooj Khan's sister, Meraj Khan, remembered her brother as the kind of person who would've shared his jackpot with anyone. Speaking at the Cook County Courthouse, she hoped the exhumation would help the investigation.

"It's very hard because I wanted my brother to rest in peace, but then we have to have justice served," she said, according to ABC News station WLS in Chicago. "So if that's what it takes for him to bring justice and peace, then that's what needs to be done."

Khan reportedly did not have a will. With the investigation moving forward, his family is waging a legal fight against his widow, Shabana Ansari, 32, over more than $1 million, including Urooj Khan's lottery winnings, as well as his business and real estate holdings.

Khan's brother filed a petition Wednesday to a judge asking Citibank to release information about Khan's assets to "ultimately ensure" that [Khan's] minor daughter from a prior marriage "receives her proper share."

Ansari may have tried to cash the jackpot check after Khan's death, according to court documents, which also showed Urooj Khan's family is questioning if the couple was ever even legally married.

Ansari, Urooj Khan's second wife, who still works at the couple's dry cleaning business, has insisted they were married legally.

She has told reporters the night before her husband died, she cooked a traditional Indian meal for him and their family, including Khan's daughter and Ansari's father. Not feeling well, Khan retired early, Ansari told the Chicago Sun-Times, falling asleep in a chair, waking up in agony, then collapsing in the middle of the night. She said she called 911.

"It has been an incredibly hard time," she told ABC News earlier this week. "We went from being the happiest the day we got the check. It was the best sleep I've had. And then the next day, everything was gone.

"I am cooperating with the investigation," Ansari told ABC News. "I want the truth to come out."

Ansari has not been named a suspect, but her attorney, Steven Kozicki, said investigators did question her for more than four hours.

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Russia rejects Assad exit as precondition for Syria deal

MOSCOW/BEIRUT (Reuters) - Russia voiced support on Saturday for international peace envoy Lakhdar Brahimi but insisted Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's exit cannot be a precondition for a deal to end the country's conflict.

Some 60,000 Syrians have been killed during the 21-month-old revolt and world powers are divided over how to stop the escalating bloodshed. Government aircraft bombed outer districts of Damascus on Saturday after being grounded for a week by stormy weather, opposition activists in the capital said.

A Russian Foreign Ministry statement following talks on Friday in Geneva with the United States and Brahimi reiterated calls for an end to violence in Syria, but there was no sign of a breakthrough.

Brahimi said the issue of Assad, who the United States, European powers and Gulf-led Arab states insist must step down to end the civil war, appeared to be a sticking point.

Russia's Foreign Ministry said: "As before, we firmly uphold the thesis that questions about Syria's future must be decided by the Syrians themselves, without interference from outside or the imposition of prepared recipes for development."

Russia has been Assad's most powerful international backer, joining with China to block three Western- and Arab-backed U.N. Security Council resolutions aimed to pressure him or push him from power. Assad can also rely on regional powerhouse Iran.

Russia called for "a political transition process" based on an agreement by foreign powers last June.

Brahimi, who is trying to build on that agreement, has met three times with senior Russian and U.S. diplomats since early December and met Assad in Damascus.

Russia and the United States disagreed over what the June agreement meant for Assad, with Washington saying it sent a clear signal he must go and Russia contending it did not.

Qatar on Saturday made a fresh call for an Arab force to end bloodshed in Syria if Brahimi's efforts fail, according to the Doha-based al Jazeera television.

"It is not a question of intervention in Syria in favor of one party against the other, but rather a force to preserve security," Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister, Sheikh Hamad bin Jassim al-Thani, said in an al Jazeera broadcast.

CONFLICT INTENSIFIES

Moscow has been reluctant to endorse the "Arab Spring" popular revolts of the last two years, saying they have increased instability in the Middle East and created a risk of radical Islamists seizing power.

Although Russia sells arms to Syria and rents one of its naval bases, the economic benefit of its support for Assad is minimal. Analysts say President Vladimir Putin wants to prevent the United States from using military force or support from the U.N. Security Council to bring down governments it opposes.

However, as rebels gain ground in the war, Russia has given indications it is preparing for Assad's possible exit, while continuing to insist he must not be forced out by foreign powers.

Opposition activists say a military escalation and the hardship of winter have accelerated the death toll.

Rebel forces have acquired more powerful anti-tank and anti-aircraft weapons during attacks on Assad's military bases.

Assad's forces have employed increasing amounts of military hardware including Scud-type ballistic missiles in the past two months. New York-based Human Rights Watch said they had also used incendiary cluster bombs that are banned by most nations.

STALEMATE IN CITIES

The weeklong respite from aerial strikes has been marred by snow and thunderstorms that affected millions displaced by the conflict, which has now reached every region of Syria.

On Saturday, the skies were clear and jets and helicopters fired missiles and dropped bombs on a line of towns to the east of Damascus, where rebels have pushed out Assad's ground forces, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

The British-based group, which is linked to the opposition, said it had no immediate information on casualties from the strikes on districts including Maleiha and farmland areas.

Rebels control large swathes of rural land around Syria but are stuck in a stalemate with Assad's forces in cities, where the army has reinforced positions.

State TV said government forces had repelled an attack by terrorists - a term it uses for the armed opposition - on Aleppo's international airport, now used as a helicopter base.

Reuters cannot independently confirm reports due to severe reporting restrictions imposed by the Syrian authorities and security constraints.

On Friday, rebels seized control of one of Syria's largest helicopter bases, Taftanaz in Idlib province, their first capture of a military airfield.

Eight-six people were killed on Friday, including 30 civilians, the Syrian Observatory said.

(Writing by Oliver Holmes; Editing by Tom Pfeiffer and Doina Chiacu)

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US sailor arrested in Japan for break-in

TOKYO: Japanese police arrested a drunken 24-year-old US Navy sailor early Sunday after he allegedly broke into a house, violating a night-time curfew imposed after a rape case last year, reports said.

The petty officer 2nd class is stationed in Yokosuka, a port city south of Tokyo, and wrongly believed that his friends were staying in the house, Jiji Press and Kyodo News agency said.

The sailor is believed to have violated a night-time curfew imposed by the US military on all its servicemen in Japan after two sailors were arrested on charges of raping a woman in Okinawa in October.

Local police and the US military were not immediately available for comment.

Despite the curfew, misconduct involving US servicemen has continued to fuel anti-US sentiment in host communities. Incidents include trespass involving an airman and a marine under the influence of alcohol and drink-driving by another marine.

- AFP/ck

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