Wednesday, May 31, 2006

Adrianne Curry, Christopher Knight Wed

LePaparazzi News Updates


VH1's My Fair Brady stars Adrianne Curry and Christopher Knight were married Monday evening, PEOPLE has confirmed.


The couple exchanged vows in front of 250 friends and family during a traditional ceremony at the Christ Episcopal Church in Curry's hometown of Joliet, Ill.

The bride wore a custom-made cream-colored Alvina Valenta gown and carried a bouquet of black roses.

Her seven bridesmaids wore red evening dresses, while the groom and the groomsmen wore matching tuxedos.


In a romance made in reality-TV heaven, Curry, 23, who won the first season of America's Next Top Model, met Knight, 48, who played Peter Brady on the '70s hit The Brady Bunch, when they filmed the fourth season of VH1's The Surreal Life" in 2004.



Adrianne Curry and Christopher Knight


In attendance at their wedding were former Brady Bunch stars Barry Williams (Greg Brady), Susan Olsen (Cindy Brady) and Mike Lookinland (Bobby Brady), as well as VH1’s The Surreal Life co-star Joannie “Chyna” Laurer.

"About 14 days after I met him, I bought a bridal magazine," Curry told PEOPLE in March, about meeting Knight. "I started researching." Last year, VH1 chronicled the couple's courtship on another reality show, My Fair Brady.

Knight proposed to Curry in the show's season finale. "It was a quiet engagement," he told PEOPLE in November.

Since then, "I've noticed that she just listens to me slightly less. By the time I'm married, there will be nothing left to listen to." Their nuptials will be documented on VH1's My Fair Brady Wedding Special premiering on VH1 in July.

This is the first marriage for Curry. Both of Knight's previous marriages ended in divorce.

Source



Liz Taylor Refutes Alzheimer's Reports


Liz Taylor



her first TV interview in three years, Elizabeth Taylor – no stranger to tabloid gossip about her health – has denied recent reports that she has Alzheimer's and is at death's door.

Speaking to Larry King on CNN Tuesday night, the 74-year-old screen legend – who at one point jokingly offered King her hand so he could put a wedding ring on it – said, "Oh come on, do I look like I'm dying? Do I look like or sound like I have Alzheimer's?"

Attempting to explain the stories, Taylor said they're written "because they have nothing else dirty to write about anybody else. Some audience out there ... they like scandal. They like filth. And if they want to hear that I'm dead, sorry folks. I'm not. And I don't plan on it."

Still, Taylor, on the show to promote her upcoming precious-jewelry line, was in a wheelchair.

When King asked why, she blamed "my back, which has been chronically bad since I was a teenager." She added that she was born with scoliosis, an abnormal curvature of the spine, and has osteoporosis.

Is she in constant pain? King asked. She is, she said. Will she ever marry again? (Taylor has famously been married eight times.) "Are you asking?" she replied with a laugh.

Taylor, a longtime AIDS activist, also told King that she doesn't think a cure will be found, but there will be major advancements in treatment.

Source



Beyonce Celebrates 25th Birthday with CD


Beyonce Knowles



Beyonce Knowles has big plans for her 25th birthday on Sept. 4: She will release her second solo album, B'Day, internationally. It will be released in the U.S. the next day, Billboard reports.


The first single from the CD, "Déja Vu," features a guest appearance by Knowles's longtime squeeze, Jay-Z.

B'Day – for which Knowles co-produced, wrote and arranged all the tracks – will be the successor to the former Destiny's Child singer's 2003 solo debut, Dangerously In Love.

That album topped the Billboard 200, won five Grammys and has sold 4.3 million copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Knowles completed B'Day after wrapping the movie Dreamgirls, which was warmly received at a preview two weeks ago at the Cannes Film Festival.




Set for a Dec. 22 release, the musical costars Jamie Foxx, Eddie Murphy, Danny Glover and Jennifer Hudson.


Speaking to reporters after the preview, Knowles said she had lost 20 lbs. to play the super-svelte Deena Jones, the lead singer of the Dreamettes – a '60s-style group loosely modeled on the Supremes.


"At the beginning (of filming), I was my normal weight," she said. "I actually gained a little bit, but then I lost 20 lbs. when I went from young Deena to old Deena.


I wanted it to be something more than just make-up and hair. I wanted to see the change."


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Today Says Goodbye to Katie


Katie Couric



NBC's Today show said goodbye on Wednesday to its co-anchor of 15 years, Katie Couric. "Farewell, friend," co-host Matt Lauer said at the opening of the special three-hour edition, citing Couric's "more than 15,000 interviews, millions of laughs and countless cups of coffee."

Plunking a box of tissues on the desk, Lauer said to Couric, "This isn't for you. It's for me." "I'm feeling happy and sad and completely out of control, and you know how much I like that," Couric told Lauer, who noted that his outgoing partner is "a control freak."

This fall, Couric will assume her new role as anchor of the CBS Evening News. Meredith Vieira will take her place on Today in September, while Rosie O'Donnell fills Vieira's seat on ABC's The View.

For weeks, VIPs from Julie Andrews and former President Clinton to Condoleeza Rice and Sting have been issuing video farewells to Couric. Dateline co-anchor Stone Phillips even sat at his piano and played a song about her, set to the tune of the Ray Charles's "Ruby": "They say Katie, you're like a flame/ Into our lives you came/ And in your eyes we see/ Heartache for NBC."
"You've held America's hand during a lot of difficult times," news anchor Ann Curry told Couric on Wednesday while Lauer gave his partner a kiss on the cheek.

Al Roker struggled to keep his emotions in check during the tributes to the loved ones Couric lost to cancer (her husband, Jay Monahan, and her sister Emily).

He also cited the number of lives she may have saved by encouraging viewers to get checked for colon cancer. When it was Couric's turn to return the compliments, she said of her colleagues, "They're not just coworkers. They're lifelong friends." Then, turning to Lauer, she said, "And I know I'll never have a partner like you – because I'll never be working with a partner again."

Among the images during the send-off was a message in lights on Chicago's Wrigley Field: "We will miss you Katie. Good luck."

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Jolie's baby delivered by Cesarean


Angelina Jolie



The African-born daughter of Hollywood couple Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt was delivered by Cesarean section in a weekend surgery and birth that "went flawlessly," Jolie's doctor said on Tuesday.

Details of the birth, which occurred on Saturday at the Cottage Medi-Clinic Hospital in the Namibian town of Swakopmund, were first disclosed in a statement the couple furnished exclusively to People magazine.

Pitt's publicist, Cindy Guagenti, later confirmed the magazine's report.

The infant, named Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt, weighed 7 pounds (3.18 kg) at birth and was described as healthy, though a surgical delivery was necessary because the baby was in a potentially risky feet-first breech position in the womb.

"Angelina underwent a scheduled Cesarean due to breech presentation," said Dr. Jason Rothbart, the couple's Los Angeles-based obstetrician, who oversaw the delivery.

"Brad was with Angelina in the operating room the entire time and cut the umbilical cord of his daughter. The surgery and birth went flawlessly," he said.

Rothbart added that the doctors, nurses and other staff who assisted him were "amazing," and he called the delivery "a team effort."

"We would like to deeply thank the staff of the Cottage Medi-Clinic Hospital for all their kindness and commitment in assuring the successful birth of our daughter," Jolie, 30, and Pitt, 42, said in a joint statement.

The infant Shiloh joins their two adopted children, Cambodian-born son Maddox, 4, and daughter, Zahara, an Ethiopian native who is about 15 months old, in a blended celebrity clan recently labeled "the World's Most Beautiful Family" by People magazine.

But so far, no pictures of the family's latest addition have emerged. Photographers from all over the world have flocked to the southern African nation in hopes of capturing first images of the newborn that are expected to be worth millions of dollars.

Jolie, who won an Oscar for her role in the 1999 movie "Girl, Interrupted," and serves as a goodwill ambassador for UN High Commissioner for Refugees, took a shine to Namibia during production on the 2003 film "Beyond Borders."

Jolie and Pitt became acquainted in 2004 while working together on the film "Mr. and Mrs. Smith," a dark comedy in which they co-starred as a couple of assassins whose marriage gets rocky when they're assigned to kill each other.

Rumors of an affair between the twice-divorced Jolie and Pitt heated up after the actor and his ex-wife, former "Friends" star Jennifer Aniston, split up in January 2005.

While their relationship quickly became one of Hollywood's most talked-about open secrets, Pitt and Jolie only confirmed their romance about five months ago, when they announced she was pregnant with his child.

Source

Tuesday, May 30, 2006

Nick's New Girl: It's Serious!


Nick Lachey



While Jess is moping , Nick is anything but lonely! First, he hung out with British singer Natasha Bedingfield, 24, after a Boston-area concert on May 20.

Then on May 24, he took fashion stylist Kimberly Kardashian, 25, daughter of O.J. Simpson lawyer Robert Kardashian, to see The Da Vinci Code in L.A. This time, Nick seems serious.

A source close to both says Nick is telling friends he respects Kim because she’s smart and isn’t an actress.

“Kim couldn’t care less about the Hollywood scene,” says the source. “Nick wants to really get to know Kim. [On their movie date] he just held her hand. Kim is impressed!” What girl wouldn’t be?

Source



CBS's Kimberly Dozier Injured in Iraq


Kimberly Dozier
CREDIT: CBS



CBS News correspondent Kimberly Dozier was critically wounded Monday in a bombing in Baghdad, the network said.

The attack on a U.S. military patrol killed two members of her news crew. Cameraman Paul Douglas, 48, and soundman James Brolan, 42, were killed when, at around 10 a.m., a roadside bomb destroyed a U.S. military Humvee in Baghdad's Tahariyat Square, CNN reports. Dozier, 39, underwent surgery to remove shrapnel from her head at a U.S. military hospital in Baghdad.

On Tuesday, she arrived in Germany for treatment at the Landstuhl Regional Medical Center. CBS said that Dozier has serious injuries to her lower body, but that doctors are "cautiously optimistic."

"This is a devastating loss for CBS News," CBS News and Sports president Sean McManus said in a statement on the network's Web site on Tuesday. "Kimberly, Paul and James were veterans of war coverage who proved their bravery and dedication every single day.

They always volunteered for dangerous assignments and were invaluable in our attempt to report the news to the American public." All three journalists had been embedded with the U.S. military.

Earlier this year, embedded ABC News anchor Bob Woodruff and cameraman Doug Vogt were seriously wounded in a roadside bomb attack near Taji, north of Baghdad.

Source



Ben Affleck Rushed to E.R. for Migraine


Affleck and Garner at Mount Auburn Hospital on May 29



Ben Affleck spent his Memorial Day in the emergency room of a Boston-area hospital. "Ben Affleck was treated for a migraine at Mt. Auburn Hospital in Cambridge, Mass., today," said Affleck's rep, Ken Sunshine, in a statement on Monday.

"He was released this afternoon, and is recuperating at home." According to the Boston Herald, Affleck's wife, Jennifer Garner, drove him to the hospital at around 2:30 p.m. Affleck was released about two hours later after receiving treatment in the E.R. Affleck, 33, and Garner, 34, along with their 6-month-old daughter, Violet, are in Cambridge for the summer while Affleck directs his first feature film, Gone, Baby, Gone.

The movie is an adaptation of a 1998 novel by Boston author Dennis Lehane about two Beantown detectives who are investigating the case of a missing 4-year-old.

The cast includes Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris, Michelle Monaghan and Ben's brother, Casey Affleck.

Source

Monday, May 29, 2006

'Angie & Baby Are Fantastic'

LePaparazzi News Updates


Angelina Jolie



Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt have welcomed a baby girl, Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt, a rep for the couple confirmed Saturday in a statement to PEOPLE.

"Angie and baby are fantastic," a source close to the couple told PEOPLE on Sunday. "Brad was at her side during the birth." The child was born Saturday, May 27, at night, in the African country of Namibia. Shiloh – which in one longstanding translation from the Bible has come to mean "the peaceful one" – was born in The Cottage Hospital in Swakopmund. Jolie is expected to remain in the hospital for a couple days before returning to the couple's sea-side Namibian retreat.

Meanwhile, Namibia's Environment and Tourism Deputy Minister, Leon Jooste, explained: "Shiloh Nouvel Jolie-Pitt will, according to Namibian law, be allowed to obtain Namibian citizenship, if the parents should choose to do so." He added that discussion of the child's passport will be taken up with her parents "at a later stage."

The Cottage Hospital, Swakopmund, Namibia
Back in the U.S., the manager for Jolie's estranged father, Oscar-winning actor Jon Voight, 67, told New York's Daily News that Voight is "really excited for them both.

He can't wait to hold the baby in his arms and be grandpa." The new parents, along with kids Maddox, 4, and Zahara, 1, have been staying at the luxury resort in Namibia since April, where their personal security team and Namibian police have shielded them from paparazzi.

Last week, the Namibian government said foreign journalists wishing to cover the birth must have written permission from Pitt and Jolie to enter the country and obtain a work permit. The new girl is the couple's first biological child.

Jolie adopted Maddox from Cambodia in 2002 and Zahara from Ethiopia last year. Pitt is in the process of legally adopting both children.

The baby is the latest step in a life-changing year during which Pitt and Jolie went from costars (in last summer's slick crime thriller Mr. and Mrs. Smith) to supercouple to, finally, Mommy and Daddy.


"It's the idea that you love one another and you want to create a family together," a friend of the couple's told PEOPLE earlier this year. "What's beautiful is you can do it by birth (or) by adoption."

Word that Angelina was pregnant first broke on Jan. 11, when representatives of both stars confirmed the baby news to PEOPLE after the actress and U.N. goodwill ambassador had confided to a charity aid worker in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic: "Yes, I'm pregnant."

The pregnancy news – which came shortly after Pitt's announcement that he planned to adopt Maddox and Zahara – might have been a media bombshell, but it was a natural progression for the pair who put nest-building on the fast track.

Jolie, 30, had long spoken about expanding her family, and told PEOPLE last October that she would like to adopt again. "There's something about making a choice, waking up and traveling somewhere and finding your family," she said.

Pitt, 42, has also often talked about wanting a family. He has no children from his 4-year marriage to Jennifer Aniston, which ended last year. "I think he'll be wonderful (with the new baby)," Pitt's Assassination of Jesse James costar, Mary-Louise Parker, told PEOPLE earlier this year. "He's a great guy, conscientious and kind. I'm happy for both of them."

Source

Saturday, May 27, 2006

In Japan, Jackson makes rare appearance

LePaparazzi News Updates


Michael Jackson gestures during a press conference of the MTV Video Music Awards Japan 2006 in Tokyo Saturday, May 27, 2006. The U.S. entertainer was awarded a Legend Award at the ceremony.



TOKYO - Michael Jackson made his first public appearance since being acquitted on child molestation charges, choking up as he thanked Japanese fans at an award ceremony Saturday.

"I'm honored to be in Japan again and I'm very happy to be among the Japanese people because I love them very much," Jackson said in a brief appearance at MTV Japan's "Legend Award" ceremony at Yoyogi Olympic Stadium. "Thank you for your loyalty."

The pop star was to visit orphanages, tour Tokyo and meet with businessmen during his trip to Japan, said Broderick D. Morris, chief executive of Positive Productions Yokohama, an entertainment promotions company.

Jackson arrived Friday night with his three children and will stay through Wednesday on the first leg of a swing through Asia that will include stops in Singapore, Shanghai, China and Hong Kong.

"I'd like to say to the Japanese people from the bottom of my heart, I love you very much," said Jackson, wearing a fitted tuxedo with a short jacket.

Responding to his fans screaming "I love you!" Jackson replied: "I love you more."
He flashed a victory sign to the crowd.

"This is like his comeback party," Morris told The Associated Press before the event. "He's in good spirits, and he loves it here.

"There has been a lot of bad press, but Japanese fans still love him. It's like a second home for him."

Jackson, 47, has been living in the Middle Eastern kingdom of Bahrain since his June acquittal on child molestation charges in California.

He has said he plans to return to recording and hopes to release a new album in 2007.

Source



Chad Lowe, Hilary Swank Divorcing


Hilary Swank and husband Chad Lowe



Hilary Swank and husband Chad Lowe are divorcing, PEOPLE has learned exclusively. "Hilary Swank and Chad Lowe have jointly decided to divorce," the couple's lawyer, Jeffrey A. Bernstein, tells PEOPLE.

"They continue to be friends and have the utmost respect for one another." The couple, who wed in 1997, announced in January that they were separating.

"Hilary and Chad have decided to separate, but they are hopeful they'll be able to get through this tough time," Swank's rep, Troy Nankin, said in a statement at the time.

Indeed, Swank, 31, and Lowe, 38, appeared to be making efforts to save their union. At the Golden Globes in January, when interviewer Isaac Mizrahi asked a solo Swank about the single life, she responded, "I'm not single. We're trying to work our marriage out."

Then in February, the couple were spotted looking cozy over lunch at Malibu's Tra di Noi restaurant.

"They seemed to be getting along very well," said an observer, noting that after the meal, Lowe walked Swank to her car. "He put his arm on her back when they were saying goodbye."

A close friend of the two-time Oscar winner told PEOPLE, "It's not the first time (they've eaten together), it's just the first time the cameras have been around.

It's evidence that they're working on their marriage." The couple met at a 1992 Hollywood Athletic Club bash. "I went to a party with Leo DiCaprio, and Chad was there," Swank recalled for PEOPLE in 2003.

"We just started talking." Added Lowe, "It was like the old cliché where you see somebody, lock eyes across the room, and time stands still. ... I said, 'I would love just to take you to lunch.'

Then I worked my way up to dinner. We had lunch, we had dinner and then some." Swank called it "love at first sight." The marriage was the first for both. They have no children.

Source



It's a Boy for Gwen Stefani


Gwen Stefani and her husband Gavin Rossdale



Gwen Stefani and her husband of three years, rocker Gavin Rossdale, welcomed their first child together on Friday – a 7 1/2 lb. baby boy named Kingston James McGregor Rossdale. Stefani gave birth at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.

Both mother and child are doing well, said her rep in a statement. Stefani had long been open about her desire to be a mom. "I'm hoping my children will save me from my vanity," she told PEOPLE in 2004.

In recent months, Stefani and Rossdale were spotted stocking up on baby goods at trendy London boutiques like Elias & Grace in the couple's Primrose Hill neighborhood. And Stefani, a successful fashion designer, has added clothes for babies and toddlers to her Harajuku Lovers line.

Stefani first announced her pregnancy last December during a concert in Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. "I want you to say it loud enough so the baby hears it," Stefani yelled to the audience during a sing-along on her song "Crash." The crowd went wild. "This is the end of a huge chapter for me," Stefani added.

A camera then cut to an audience member holding a hand-lettered poster that read: "Congrats on Baby."

Stefani, 36, and Rossdale, 40, married in September 2002 in two separate ceremonies: a London wedding at St. Paul's Church and Los Angeles nuptials two weeks later.

The pair began dating in 1995, when Stefani's band, No Doubt, toured as openers for Rossdale's then-group, Bush.

This is the first child for Stefani; Rossdale discovered in 2004 that he has a 16-year-old daughter, Daisy, with his ex, fashion designer Pearl Lowe.

Source

Friday, May 26, 2006

Celebrity Makeovers

See the latest star transformations – What do you think of their new looks? Love it or Hate it?



VERSION 2.0
The American Idol audience let out a collective gasp on finale night – over second-season runner-up Clay Aiken, who debuted a darker, shaggier look (right).




BYE-BYE, BLONDIE
The O.C. star Mischa Barton popped into the Jim Wayne Salon in Beverly Hills and transformed herself from Newport Beach blonde to high-fashion brunette.




QUICK CHANGE
Talk about experimenting! In one week, Jessica Simpson goes from shoulder-length blonde locks (left) to ultra-long tresses on the set of her movie Employee of the Month to a strawberry-blonde bob at the ALMA Awards.




SMOOTH MOVE
Will Smith tests the bald-is-beautiful theory, showing off his newly shorn pate at a Hollywood premiere.




MANE DROPPING
Beyonce has cut loose some of her locks, shortening her curls to a tame shoulder-length.

Source

Star Traks


NUOVO AMORE
Denise Richards and Richie Sambora wind down their Italian vacation in Ravello, strolling and browsing through ceramic stores before popping into the Hotel Palazzo Sasso, a five-star resort with panoramic views of the Mediterranean. This weekend Richie will continue his tour with Bon Jovi in Germany.




SUNNY DISPOSITION
Lindsay Lohan is all smiles as she heads into a West Hollywood tanning salon to get some instant color on Thursday.




ARMY OF ONE
Jessica Simpson shows her support for our armed forces during a casual West Hollywood outing on Thursday.




MUTUAL ADMIRATION SOCIETY
Halle Berry and Hugh Jackman do a little gladhanding during their visit to to promote X-Men: The Last Stand on MTV's TRL on Thursday. When asked by Jackman what's toughest about working with him, Berry said it's the fact that he's "so stinkin' good-looking" – and that he's married.




ICE ICE BABY
Nicole Richie counts on the kindness of strangers – namely a paparazzo who reportedly lent her money to buy a blueberry snow cone – while hiking with pals in Hollywood's Runyon Canyon on Thursday.




SHORT SHORTS
Jennifer Aniston leaves her Manhattan hotel Wednesday to head over to the Late Show studio, where David Letterman complimented the Break-Up star on her "tremendous" legs.




CLEAN SWEEP
Hulk Hogan goes on a super-sized shopping trip in a Miami Home Depot on Wednesday, spending nearly $10,000 on household items in one hour for an upcoming episode of his reality show, Hogan Knows Best.



SILVER BELLE
Paris Hilton suits up as a glittery beach babe Wednesday to shoot a music video for her first single "Stars Are Blind," off her debut album (due in the fall) at Paradise Cove beach in Malibu.




IN SYNC
Sandra Bullock and husband Jesse James make it a casual day in New York on Wednesday, stopping to chat with a friend before heading to an antiques store.

Source

Kristin: The Next Daisy Duke?

LePaparazzi News Updates


Cavallari (left); Simpson as Daisy Duke



First, former Laguna Beach star Kristin Cavallari was linked with Jessica Simpson's ex-husband – and now she's being eyed for Simpson's movie role.

Bill Gerber, the producer of last year's The Dukes of Hazzard, tells PEOPLE in its new issue that he is working on a prequel to the movie that brought Simpson (and her rear view) film fame – and he thinks Cavallari, 19, would fill out those Daisy Duke shorts quite nicely.

"She's at the top of the list," he says. "I like her innocence and her beauty." Why not just stick with Simpson, 25? "It's a prequel, like Batman (Begins)," he says. "We're going for a whole new cast."

Simpson and husband Nick Lachey, 32, announced in November 2005 that they were separating.

In March, Lachey and Cavallari were spotted flirting at various restaurants and parties – although Cavallari told PEOPLE, "There's nothing to talk about, there's nothing going on.

He's a nice guy, but I'd have to say we're just friends." Reps for Cavallari and Simpson did not return calls.

Source



Critics: Jen, Vince Not So Hot Onscreen


Jennifer Aniston and Vince Vaughn



Stars Vince Vaughn and Jennifer Aniston may have found romance while filming The Break-Up, but early reviews of the movie indicate that audiences may not feel the love.

Variety says the film is not the "boisterous comedy" one would expect from ads, and calls it "relentlessly unpleasant" and "ill-conceived virtually from the opening frame."

The Hollywood Reporter labels The Break-Up "a major disappointment of an anti-romantic comedy" and predicts the audience will give up on it long before its "tacked-on" ending.

At a recent press conference promoting the movie, Aniston talked about filming on the heels of her 2005 breakup from husband Brad Pitt. "It was definitely therapeutic," she said. "It was also all happening at the exact same time with my – you know."

She continued, "At first, I thought it was a joke when I got the phone call from my agent about a movie called The Break-Up. I said, 'You've got to be kidding me.' But after reading the script, I thought there was no better way to heal than through laughter."

At the movie's May 22 Hollywood premiere, Vaughn, who is also a producer and writer of The Break-Up, said of the film, "I feel great. The response has been so good, the movie's very funny, and it also has some real moments in it."

Source



Britney Talks Back with Web Poem


Britney Spears



On her official Web site, Britney Spears has posted a poem titled

"Remembrance of Who I Am," which contains such cryptic verses as:

No more chains
That you gave me
Enough of pain
Now I'm craving
Something sweet
So delight
How do you stand sleeping at night?
And: You come to me now
Why do you bother?
Remember the Bible
The sins of the Father.
What you do
You pass down.
No wonder why
I lost my crown.

But toward the end, Spears's tone is defiantly optimistic: "My crown is back … You should bow down/ I've only just begun."

Spears first posted the poem on May 20, but took it down almost immediately. Still, its brief appearance prompted speculation about whether the "you" to whom it's addressed was her husband, Kevin Federline. But in the new posting, Spears clarifies that the poem "is for everyone who thinks they know me …" Accompanying the verse is a photograph of Spears and her friends flipping the bird.

Source



Lindsay Gets Cozy with Paris's Ex


Lindsay Lohan and Stavros Niarchos



How better to get back at a nemesis? If you're Lindsay Lohan, you start by dating her ex-boyfriend. Lindsay Lohan and Stavros Niarchos were first spied together five days before he and Paris Hilton broke up last month. Now it's clear that was just the beginning of a beautiful friendship, PEOPLE reports in its new issue.

Lohan, 19, and Niarchos, 21, were spotted kissing on May 15 at the Manhattan nightclub Butter. The next evening, they partied together at Bungalow 8 until 3 a.m., and on May 17 they caught an Elefant concert at Webster Hall before meeting friends at Bungalow 8 once again.

Although sources confirm the two are hooking up, Lohan was also spotted smooching British singer Jamie Burke on May 7 and hanging out at clubs with X-Men: The Last Stand director Brett Ratner in April.

As for Hilton, she seemed unfazed at the Cannes Film Festival on May 20 as she danced and sang Rod Stewart's "Do You Think I'm Sexy" atop a table at a party hosted by Suite Miami.

Source



Denise & Heather: Still Feuding?


Sambora and Richards in Italy May 22 (left); Spade and Locklear
in L.A. May 20



It's downright childish. But is it true? Did Heather Locklear and a pal recently park outside Denise Richard's Westlake Village house and blast Bon Jovi's "Livin' on a Prayer"?

Locklear stopped speaking to Richards after finding out that she is dating Locklear's estranged husband, Bon Jovi's Richie Sambora.

But as PEOPLE reports in its new issue, a Locklear pal denies she pulled any Hollywood-turned-high-school hijinks: "It 100 percent never, ever happened." Counters a Richards pal: "It is 100 percent true." (Math, Hollywood style.)

This much is certain: On May 20, Locklear, 44, joined pals, including rumored beau David Spade (who sources say is just a friend), for dinner at L.A. hot spot Republic.

That same night, Richards, 35 – who is now seeking a cut of Charlie Sheen's Screen Actors Guild pension in addition to sole custody of their two kids – watched from backstage as Sambora, 46, rocked out with Bon Jovi in Dublin.

The two then hopped a private jet and checked into a five-star hotel south of Naples. Who needs drive-by serenades? They can make their own music.

Source



Sharon Stone Promotes a Good Cause at Cannes


Sharon Stone



Sharon Stone and Robin Williams kept the jokes coming at an AIDS charity dinner in Cannes – but also made sober comments about the deadly disease. "There are now 14 million people with the illness," Stone said at Thursday night's fundraiser for the Foundation for AIDS Research (amfAR).

"We can't stop until we have a vaccine." At the auction at the Cinema Against AIDS dinner benefiting amfAR, Williams – who during cocktail hour walked around pretending to be part of the waitstaff – put in the winning bid of $40,000 for an Armani black-and-white cylindrical diamond necklace. "I just bought a $40,000 coke vial," he quipped.

Trying to spur bidding above $60,000 for a vacation package in the south of France, he joked, "One picture of Angelina Jolie's baby and you can buy this."

Later Williams jumped on stage to sing with Wyclef Jean, and then paid $80,000 for an impromptu performance by the singer-activist. Stone also brought levity to the proceedings, telling guests, "Before the auction we have already made $2 million.

But don't think that means I'm not coming for your cash!" The dinner raised more than $4 million. Other celebrity guests included Rosario Dawson and boyfriend Jason Lewis, Sofia Coppola, Duran Duran's Nick Rhodes, Ziyi Zhang, Michelle Yeoh, Faye Dunaway, Samuel L. Jackson, Willem Dafoe and Petra Nemcova (who danced during Wyclef Jean's performance and took pictures for several guests from her front-row seat).

Lance Armstrong was in the men's room when he was called up to the podium to conduct an auction. To much laughter – and the sound system playing Queen's "Bicycle Race" – Armstrong dashed to the stage.

Sarah Ferguson, the Duchess of York ("We've got a Duchess of York and some queens from Brooklyn," cracked Williams) told PEOPLE she was "delighted" to do her part at the dinner and spoke of a recent trip to Africa, where a little girl whose parents had died of AIDS asked Ferguson if she liked her dress. "It's heartbreaking," she said.

Though he was there to show his support, Babel star Gael Garcia Bernal told PEOPLE he didn't plan to bid on any of the auction items – because, after four days of interviews and "no more than two hours of sleep per night, I'm just surprised I haven't fallen asleep yet."

Source

Thursday, May 25, 2006

Idol Scrapbook: Taylor Hicks

See why the newest American Idol earned his own Soul Patrol – from his audition to the road ahead.



HE'S NO. 1!
Does he make you proud? American Idol winner Taylor Hicks celebrates his win with runner-up Katharine McPhee and collects his prize, a Ford Mustang convertible, in addition to a $1 million recording contract.




SWEET HOME ALABAMA
Hicks had said that if he wonIdol, his first thanks would go to God. But when he returned home to Birmingham, Ala., on May 12 to sing for more than 12,000 fans, Hicks made another allegiance clear: "I'm going back to Hollywood and win American Idol for Alabama!"




FINE TAYLOR-ING
As the Idol competition progressed, Hicks, 29, traded in his down-home denim (left) for swank suits (on May 9). But the soul man has remained true to his roots – keeping his trademark salt-and-pepper mop top.




SHY GUY
The usually effusive Hicks revealed a rare shy side when Extra correspondent Terri Seymour asked him to demonstrate his signature dance moves at an L.A. party (on March 9). Hicks later said of his freestyle form, "If the song allows you to really move and get down, then you do it."




DANCE FEVER
When Hicks got down – way down – to sing "Play that Funky Music," judge Simon Cowell likened it to a "horrible wedding performance." Still, Hicks stands by his style. "My vision as an artist, when I first heard Ray Charles at 12 years old, was to try to inject some more feeling and soul and depth into my music," he says.




HE'S DA MAN!
There are no hard feelings between Hicks and booted singer Elliott Yamin, who narrowly missed out on being in the finale by the smallest margin in Idol history. "I’m really close with Taylor," Yamin says, "and that’s my dog, man. We're going to be friends for life.”




SOUTHERN PRIDE
Turns out, father doesn't always know best: When Hicks told dad Brad (right) that he was trying out for Idol, he says the response was, "Why don't you just go buy a lottery ticket?" But Dad became one of his biggest supporters at home, where he cheered on Hicks (with brother Sean, far left) at the Hoover, Ala., hangout Buffalo Wild Wings.

Hahaha How funny thats right down the street from my house lol I went out too eat with my son and seen a bunch of police cars and didn't even know why. I guess I do now!

Angelina Star~



WINNING EDGE?
Cowell had predicted that Hicks would edge out Katherine in the finale, telling Jay Leno, "I’m going to say he’s the favorite." And Hicks already had designs on his post-show touring life. "My home has been the road since even before American Idol," he says. " A tour bus with some good, cold iceberg lettuce is probably where I'm going to stay."

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More Legal Woes for Martha Stewart

LePaparazzi News Updates


Martha Stewart



She's done the time, but Martha Stewart is still dealing with the crime. By Thursday, she must respond to civil charges against her by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission over insider trading of ImClone Systems stock.

After a highly publicized criminal case, Stewart spent five months in prison from 2004 to 2005 and another five and a half months under house arrest for lying to prosecutors about selling 4,000 shares of ImClone in late 2001.

The civil lawsuit against her was stayed during the criminal trial and was only lifted last month, prosecutors told the New York Times.

If Stewart, 64, pleads not guilty by the end of Thursday, she will be required to appear for a deposition, which the Times says would place her in a "precarious"' legal position.

Stewart may negotiate a settlement at any time over the next few months as the trial looms, says the Times. Stewart's attorney, Dennis J. Block, did not return calls by the Times seeking comment.

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Howard Stern, 'Bully' Boss Settle Lawsuit


Howard Stern



Howard Stern and his former employer, CBS, have settled their breach-of-contract lawsuit, the Associated Press reports.

CBS had sued Stern, 50, in February, claiming he improperly used CBS air time to promote his new show on Sirius Satellite Radio, which began in January.

According to the AP, CBS also said Stern made plans with Sirius without disclosing them to CBS, as his contract required.

In recent months, the suit grew especially acrimonious – and, as might be expected, colorful.

In March, Stern went on CBS's Late Show with David Letterman and blasted network head Les Moonves. "I believe you are working for one of the biggest jerks on the planet," Stern, wearing an "I Hate Less Moonves" T-shirt, told Letterman. "Les Moonves is a bully."

In reference to Moonves's early acting career, Stern added, "CBS took a C-list actor from The Love Boat and made him CEO." But now lawyers on both sides say they've reached a settlement.

A woman in the office of Stern's lawyer, Peter Parcher, confirmed that the sides have agreed to a settlement, but said the agreement has not yet been signed. Parcher was not available to comment. CBS lawyer Irving Nathan did not return a call by the AP for comment.

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Victoria Principal Files for Divorce


Victoria Principal



Dallas actress Victoria Principal has filed for divorce from her husband of nearly 21 years, prominent Beverly Hills plastic surgeon Harry A. Glassman, M.D., according to papers filed Tuesday in Los Angeles Superior Court.

Principal, 60, is citing irreconcilable differences. The couple have no children and separated on March 25, according to the papers, which were obtained by PEOPLE.

Principal's petition states that the couple have a pre-nuptial agreement, which lists all the couple's assets and debts. Principal also requests that the court determine property rights and "terminate the court's jurisdiction" to award spousal support to Glassman.

It is unclear whether the divorce has anything to do with a domestic violence incident three years ago that led to Principal's brief hospitalization and Glassman's arrest. At the time, a spokesman for the Los Angeles District Attorney said, "Our office declined to file any charges, and as far as we are concerned, that is the end of the matter."

Meanwhile, Principal stated in a press release: "We have had a loving relationship for over 20 years. We've been and remain happily married. It is outrageous to believe we would inflict injury on one another or harm each other in any way."

On Wednesday, Principal's publicist, Alan Nierob, said, "We have no further comment at this time, other than what is in the court file." Principal's previous marriage, to writer-producer Christopher Skinner, lasted from 1978 to 1980 and ended in divorce. She and Glassman wed on June 23, 1985, when Principal was seven years into her role as Pamela Barnes Ewing on the CBS evening soap about the backstabbing Texas oil dynasty.

She stayed with the show until 1987 (it went off the air in 1991). Glassman's professional Web site describes him as a 20-year practitioner of plastic surgery in Beverly Hills. "He has used his talents to enhance the appearance of some of the most famous people in the world and to reconstruct birth defects, damage from injuries and defects caused by cancer," his online bio says.

Today, Principal sells her Principal Secret skin-care products on QVC and has authored three books: 1983's The Body Principal, 1984's The Beauty Principal and 1987's The Diet Principal.

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Namibian Governor Dashes Brangelina Rumors


Brad and Angelina Jolie



Plenty of rumors have been floated about Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, who are in Namibia awaiting the birth of their first child. And now, a few more have been refuted.

For one thing, Samuel Nuuyoma, the governor of the Namibian province where Pitt, 42, Jolie, 30, and kids Maddox, 4, and Zahara, 1, are staying, will not be visiting the hospital and naming the new arrival, despite tabloid reports.

Britain's Daily Mirror had quoted Nuuyoma as saying, "When she goes to the hospital, as the father of the region, I will be informed and I will go there.

I will announce the good news and I will be naming the baby." But Nuuyoma, who has met the couple, told the Associated Press on Wednesday, "No. No. That's absolutely not true. I never said such a thing. Never in history."

And those reports that the baby's birthday will be declared a Namibian national holiday? A DJ for local station Radio Wave did ask listeners whether the Pitt-Jolie infant should be given the honor, which is usually reserved for royals and national heroes.

"We have a tie: it's 50-50," the DJ said Tuesday, although voting continues. However, no official government action seems to have taken place. One thing, however, is certain: Foreign journalists wishing to cover the birth must have written permission from Pitt and Jolie to enter the country and obtain a work permit, the Namibian government has said.

The order follows the arrest of John Liebenberg, a South African magazine photographer, who was apprehended Wednesday for the second time in less than a week while trying to take pictures of the couple at a restaurant, according to the South African Press Association.

The Jolie-Pitt family arrived in the sleepy coastal town of Walvis Bay last month and have been shielded by their own bodyguards and Namibian police at a luxury resort hotel.

The impending birth of their first biological child prevented Pitt from joining costars Cate Blanchett and Gael Garcia Bernal and director Alejandro González Iñárritu at the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday to promote the new movie Babel. I

nstead, he sent his regrets in an e-mail, saying, "With the imminent arrival of the newest addition to our family, I am unable to join Alejandro, Cate, Gael and the rest of the cast and crew introducing the film."

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American Idol: What You Didn't See


Heather Locklear and Ava



Celebrities populated the stage during Wednesday's finale episode – but there was plenty of star power in the audience as well. Some highlights:

• More than an hour before the start of the show, Bucky Covington's twin brother, Rocky, signs autographs and takes photos with fans – some of whom mistake him for Bucky – in front of the Kodak Theater.

• In the ladies' room, Camryn Manheim explains to a friend what it was like to walk through the throng of fans in the lobby: "They screamed at me so I screamed back!"

Heather Locklear is in the audience with daughter Ava, 8. "Ava's a huge fan," a friend of Locklear's tells PEOPLE. "She was so excited all day." Apparently, Ava's a McPhee fan while her mom is rooting for Hicks.

• Primping in the ladies' room before showtime, Katharine McPhee's mom Peisha and sister Adriana gasp when Lisa Rinna walks in. The Dancing with the Stars runner-up tells them, "I'm a Katharine fan," and reassures Peisha: "Take it from someone who knows, sometimes losing is better than winning. … Tonight is about just having fun and celebrating."




• Later, Rinna greets actress Lori Loughlin with hugs and kisses as young girls scramble for Rinna's autograph, ignoring her husband, Harry Hamlin, who's standing nearby with their kids.

David Hasselhoff tells PEOPLE, "I'm voting for Katharine because she's from Sherman Oaks and that's where I live. Taylor's good too." He later tears up when Taylor Hicks is named the winner.

• BFFs Chris Daughtry and Ace Young share a long, warm hug during the commercial break after performing in the all-male medley.

• After Hicks performs a duet with Toni Braxton, the two walk offstage together hand in hand.

• Just before the results are announced, McPhee waves cheerfully to her fans while Hicks stands stiff. After Hicks is named the winner, McPhee's parents blow kisses to her while Hicks sings his final song.

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Soul singer Taylor Hicks wins "American Idol"


Katharine McPhee (L) of Los Angeles lifts the arm of Taylor Hicks of Birmingham, Alabama after he was named the new 'American Idol' during the show's finale at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, May 24, 2006. Soul singer Hicks won the 2006 'American Idol' contest on Wednesday, beating ballad singer McPhee in votes cast by fans of the most watched TV show in the United States.




Taylor Hicks of Birmingham, Alabama performs after being named the new 'American Idol' during the show's finale at the Kodak Theater in Hollywood, May 24, 2006. Soul singer Hicks won the 2006 'American Idol' contest on Wednesday, beating ballad singer Katharine McPhee in votes cast by fans of of the most watched TV show in the United States.



LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Gray-haired soul singer Taylor Hicks won the 2006 "American Idol" contest on Wednesday, capturing the hearts and votes of millions of viewers in the fifth edition of America's top-rated TV show.

Hicks, 29, who was told in auditions that he was too gray to be a pop star, beat balladeer Katharine McPhee in the climax of a nationwide contest that attracted tens of thousands of wannabe performers.

"Thank you America! I'm living the American Dream," screamed Hicks at the end of the show.
The winner was announced at the end of a star-studded finale at Hollywood's Kodak Theater featuring performances by Prince, Dionne Warwick, Mary J. Blige, Burt Bacharach, Toni Braxton and Meat Loaf.

Alabama native Hicks, beloved for his manic dancing, is the oldest "American Idol" winner in the reality TV series that has become a ratings juggernaut attracting some 30 million viewers a week since January.

Once derided as a cheesy talent show, "Idol" has steadily gained credibility in the industry, turning out a Grammy winning performer in Kelly Clarkson while past winners and runners-up have sold more than 33 million records.

At the Country Music Awards on Tuesday, former "American Idol" champ Carrie Underwood was named top new female vocalist, and also won the single record of the year honor for "Jesus Take the Wheel."

The fifth season of "American Idol" saw the wannabe stars collaborating with icons like
Stevie Wonder and Rod Stewart while Prince gave a surprise performance.

Harmonica playing Hicks, who spent years singing in local nightclubs, wins a coveted recording contract and will release his first single in the next few days.

"I didn't have any idea that Americans would embrace gray hair as much as they have," Hicks said backstage, thanking his fans. He said he planned to make "an album with soul. It's going to have a lot of feeling."

McPhee, 22, a sultry Los Angeles musical theater performer, was deemed by the three-person judging panel to have one of the best vocal talents in "American Idol" history.

But viewers chose the charismatic Hicks, whose fans call themselves the "Soul Patrol." Program officials said more than 63 million votes were sent in by phone or text but they did not give a breakdown.

Backstage McPhee said she had not expected to win but would be releasing a single anyway. "I don't need sad faces or anyone to feel bad for me. I have got a record deal, pretty much. It wasn't about winning the title, I just wanted to give the best performance I could," she said.
With a style that mixes Joe Cocker with Ray Charles, Hicks was a consistent favorite with viewers despite some acerbic comments from judge Simon Cowell, who said one of his performances was like "a drunken father singing at a wedding."

The fifth season of "American Idol" proved the most successful ever, forcing rival TV networks to reschedule their programs to avoid competition. The show returns for a sixth series in January.

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