Celebrity Birthdays

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John Krasinski says life has been "really weird" and difficult after the popular NBC show "The Office" wrapped up last month.

Krasinski spent 10 years playing Jim in the mockumentary about a clan of quirky cubicle-dwellers at the fictional Dunder Mifflin Paper Co.

He told the Associated Press this week that letting go of the show and his character has been hard. He says he misses his friends and the routine associated with the show that introduced him to the entertainment business.

Krasinski was speaking after returning to his home state of Massachusetts to help raise funds for cancer research and pay tribute to 100 people and organizations that have helped fight the disease.

Krasinski hosted Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center's annual fundraiser, accompanied by his wife, actress Emily Blunt.

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Russell Brand has a "Messiah Complex," and he's taking it on the road. The British comedian announced Thursday that he's launching a world comedy tour focusing on Che Guevara, Gandhi, Malcolm X and Jesus Christ. Brand says the show examines "the importance of heroes in this age of atheistic disposability." The 38-year-old says he plans to perform in theaters as well as "prisons, drug rehabs … nationalist organizations, Mosques, foreclosed houses, protest sites, Synagogues and in people's private homes." The "Messiah Complex" tour is set to begin Aug. 15 in Abu Dhabi and wrap up Dec. 9 in Iceland. Brand's FX show, "Brand X," concluded last month.

Associated Press

CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS

Comedian Jerry Stiller is 86. Comedian-talk-show host Joan Rivers is 80. Actor James Darren is 77. Actor Bernie Casey is 74. Singer Nancy Sinatra is 73. Singer Chuck Negron (Three Dog Night) is 71. Singer Boz Scaggs is 69. Guitarist Mick Box of Uriah Heep is 66. Actress Sonia Braga is 63. Actress Kathy Baker ("Picket Fences") is 63. Country guitarist Tony Rice is 62. Actor Griffin Dunne is 58. "Dilbert" cartoonist Scott Adams is 56. Actor-director Keenan Ivory Wayans is 55. Singer Mick Hucknall of Simply Red is 53. Keyboardist Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran is 51. Singer Doris Pearson of Five Star is 47. Actress Julianna Margulies ("The Good Wife," "ER") is 46. Actor Dan Futterman ("Judging Amy") is 46. Actor David Sutcliffe ("Gilmore Girls") is 44. Singer Nicci Gilbert of Brownstone is 43. Actress Kelli Williams ("The Practice") is 43. Actor Mark Feuerstein is 42. Guitarist Mike Scheuchzer of MercyMe is 38. Actor Eion Bailey ("Once Upon a Time") is 37. Rapper Kanye West is 36. Guitarist Derek Trucks (Allman Brothers Band, Tedeschi Trucks Band) is 34. Fiddler Sara Watkins of Nickel Creek is 32. Actress Torrey DeVitto is 29.

associated press