LOS ANGELES – Soon, Cesar Millan will have a new television show, a book, a tour, a documentary, and — if she says yes — a fiancee.

The year is ending on a high note for Millan as he ends his reign as TV’s “Dog Whisperer” and bounces back from a suicide attempt in May 2010 that left him unconscious and hospitalized.

Additional Photos

Cesar Millan shows his English bulldog George at his Dog Psychology Center in Santa Clarita, Calif., last month. The Associated Press

Rihanna

Sylvester Stallone

In “Cesar Millan: The Real Story,” he talks publicly for the first time about the overdose that almost took his life. The documentary, which airs Nov. 25 on Nat Geo Wild, will also launch a global speaking tour.

The 43-year-old Mexican-born dog handler rose to fame in 2004, when his first TV series, “The Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan,” became National Geographic’s top-rated show.

Millan grew up in Culiacan, the largest city in the Mexican state of Sinaloa, and worked on his grandfather’s farm in the hopes of becoming the best dog trainer in the world.

At 21, alone and unable to speak English, he crossed the border and lived on the streets for two months before getting a job as a groomer and walker. Jada Pinkett (pre-Will Smith) hired him and got him an English tutor when she learned he wanted to be on TV.

As his popularity grew, his professional and personal lives appeared rosy: he became an author, made appearances in movies and on television, and his wife gave birth to two sons.

In 2010, though, things took a tumble: His go-to pit bull, Daddy, died in February; a month later, he learned his wife of 16 years planned to divorce him; in May, he attempted suicide.

“I felt defeated, a big sense of guilt and failure. … I was at the lowest level I had ever been emotionally and psychologically,” he wrote in June on his website without mentioning his overdose.

He rejected antidepressants, choosing instead to get a grip through his pack dog wisdom and use exercise, discipline and affection to heal, he said. Another pit bull trained by Daddy has taken over Daddy’s duties, although Junior will never take his place.

“Daddy was my Tibet, my Himalaya, my Gouda, my Buddha, my source of calmness,” Millan said.

A new love in his life also helped, one whom Millan calls “the one.”

Jahira Dar lives with Millan and his youngest son in Los Angeles, and Millan said he plans to propose soon.

Rihanna launches grueling concert tour

MEXICO CITY – Seven concerts. Seven cities. Seven days.

Rihanna has begun her “777” tour in Mexico City with an exclusive party for about 2,000 fans.

Rihanna was welcomed on the stage of the El Plaza Condesa concert hall with an ovation despite being two hours late. She thanked fans for their patience.

The Wednesday night concert was a taste of what’s to come in her “Diamonds World Tour” scheduled for the first half of 2013.

Rihanna arrived in Mexico City on a Boeing 777, which will take her to Toronto, Stockholm, Paris, Berlin, London and finally New York, where she will complete the grueling tour.

Stallone says girls are all around him

ROME – Rocky’s going soft. Sylvester Stallone confessed Wednesday he’s woefully outnumbered at home by his girls — and couldn’t be happier.

Presenting his latest film “Bullet to the Head” screening at the Rome Film Festival, he said Wednesday: “I came into my life like Rambo, like Rocky: Boom, boom, no problem. And then one girl, two girls, three of them.”

He continued: “Then I realized in my house, you got three girls, a wife, two housekeepers and all the dogs are girls, five dogs. It’s just me and my dog that was castrated.”

Stallone struck a humorous tone, regaling reporters with the wisdom he’s gained over the years in Hollywood: “Never give up.”

He didn’t mention the death of his eldest child, Sage, who died in July at age 36 of a heart condition.

Related Stories