Overnight Briefing & General Reality Check - May 19, 2011

Chic Sh*t:

A nail artist has created a new manicure that uses real snakeskin on your nails.
Manicurist TERRI SILACCI of Monterey, California, says she was inspired when her son brought home some snake skin from his science class.
StyleList.com says she takes pieces of snakeskin that are cut to size, applied with glue and then sealed using U-V light. The process takes two-and-a-half hours. Manicures can last up to three weeks. Pedicures can last up to 12 weeks. Bargain-hunters beware --this posh, upscale treatment isn't your nineteen-ninety-five special, she's charging anywhere between one-hundred-fifty and three-hundred smackers for the service.
"The initial reaction from people is, that's weird, that's disgusting. And then they say, 'I want it. And I want it right away,'" Silacci says. (Bartha)

Grace notes:

LADY GAGA is the world's most powerful celebrity. That's according to Forbes magazine. She tops the 2011 Celebrity 100 list and scoots OPRAH WINFREY down to second place. Oprah reportedly made 290-million dollars in the last year, which is a lot more than Gaga's 90-million, but the singer's 32-million Facebook fans and 10-million Twitter followers give her the edge. JUSTIN BIEBER is on Forbes' list for the first time. He's in at number three with earnings of 53-million dollars. Rounding out the top 5 are U2 and ELTON JOHN. The top 15:
15. Leonardo Dicaprio, $77M
14. Kobe Bryant $53M
13. Johnny Depp $50M
12. Katy Perry $44M
11. Angelina Jolie, $30M
10. LeBron James, $48 million
9. Simon Cowell, $90 million
8. Bon Jovi, $125 million
7. Taylor Swift, $45 million
6. Tiger Woods, $75 million
5. Elton John, $100 million
4. U2, $195 million
3. Justin Bieber, $53 million
2.Oprah Winfrey, $290 million
1. Lady Gaga, $90 million
FYI: You can see the complete list of 100 at forbes.com/wealth/celebrities. (Marino)

Guy's heart stops for 96 minutes, survives:

HOWARD SNITZER is a very lucky man. It's not every day you die and live to tell about it. The 54-year-old Minnesota man survived 96 minutes without a heartbeat and is walking around as though nothing happened.
The Wall Street Journal reports Snitzer collapsed outside a grocery store in January. Two volunteer firemen who just happened to be across the street ran to help. Soon there were two dozen local police, firemen and rescuers working to get Snitzer’s heart started again, the volunteers rotating every couple of minutes to avoid fatigue. Thirty-four minutes in, a medical helicopter was transporting him to Mayo Clinic.
You’re probably wondering why they didn’t just give up. The Mayo team brought an instrument called a capnograph with them. That’s a tool that measures carbon dioxide concentration in an air sample. It’s more commonly used when administering anesthesia.
The readings on the capnograph showed the medical team the air coming out of Snitzer’s lungs had healthy levels of carbon dioxide, a strong indicator that CPR was effectively moving oxygenated blood to his brain and other organs. If the carbon dioxide readings had been different, the rescuers would have given up much sooner. It’s commonly thought that after 20 minutes without a pulse, the brain is all but dead.
Paramedics continued with CPR and in one last effort, used a shock from a defibrillator. Snitzer’s heart started and less than a week later, he was released from intensive care without brain damage.
This story of recovery has been published by the Mayo Clinic, which confirms Snitzer suffered, “the longest duration of pulselessness in an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest with a good outcome.” Because of this, the American Heart Association is rewriting training materials to include instructions on how to use a capnograph. And as for Snitzer, he says he was just lucky enough to die in the right place at the right time. (Page)