THIMPHU, Bhutan — Tens of thousands of Bhutanese crammed into a stadium in the capital for a reception celebrating the wedding of their beloved king to their new queen.

King Jigme Khesar Namgyal Wangchuck married Jetsun Pema in a Buddhist ceremony Thursday in the Himalayan mountain kingdom.

Their wedding was celebrated with a huge reception Saturday, where the couple shared their first public kiss.

Traditional dancers performed for them. Children put on a taekwondo demonstration and the prime minister and lawmakers danced with the king on the sports field.

The couple spent hours walking through the stands to shake hands and talk to their subjects. Then thousands of people poured onto the field and formed concentric circles for a traditional final dance.

At Thursday’s royal wedding, there were no star-studded celebrities, self-important film stars, fidgeting foreign royals or long wedding trains to trip over.

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The theme here was “of the people,” which is a lot easier when your country has a population of 700,000, almost all of whom were in overdrive as the popular fifth Dragon King married a 21-year-old student, the daughter of an airline pilot.

It’s hard to overstate the excitement that’s gripped this mountain kingdom since the union was announced of Oxford graduate King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck and commoner Jetsun Pema.

Many had waited impatiently for years for the 31-year old constitutional monarch to find a soul mate and get on with it. When he did, however, and word spread that he’d fallen for a brainy student he’d first met as a child, Bhutan’s people fell almost as much in love with her as had their king.

King Wangchuck has pledged to love a single wife, unlike his father who in 1988 chose to tie the knot with four brides, all sisters at that. This week’s glowing groom is the son of his father’s third wife

Gaga goes meatless for Clinton concert

LOS ANGELES — Lady Gaga apparently wouldn’t be strutting around former President Bill Clinton clad in steak.

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The pop superstar was one of several acts performing Saturday night at a Los Angeles concert celebrating the 10th anniversary of the William J. Clinton Foundation. Clinton ditched his unhealthy eating habits for a “plant-based diet” after undergoing heart surgery in 2004.

“In deference to my diet, she’ll be going meatless that night,” Clinton joked of the artist, who donned a dress made of raw meat at the MTV Video Music Awards last year.

Other artists expected to perform at “A Decade of Difference” included R&B singer Usher, country star Kenny Chesney and rockers Bono and The Edge of U2. The event was streamed online by Yahoo.

Depp keeps spirit of journalist alive

Johnny Depp has already channeled the spirit of his late friend, gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson, a number of times on the big screen.

More than a decade ago, Depp brought the writer’s wild alter-ego to life in “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas.” Earlier this year, he said the personality of the animated lizard he played in “Rango” was inspired by Thompson, who committed suicide in 2005. And in just a couple of weeks, Depp will continue his effort to keep the icon’s image alive with “The Rum Diary,” based on a Thompson novel and costarring Aaron Eckhart and Amber Heard.

The movie was a passion project for Depp, who said he still has visions of Thompson and feels the writer’s spirit is with him “24 hours a day.”

Depp plays a journalist who moves to Puerto Rico and begins working at a troubled newspaper, where he and his co-workers become booze hounds.


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