"La Vie en Rose" singer steps into spotlight

By Ann Donahue

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) -
When Marion Cotillard won the
best-actress Academy Award in February for her portrayal of
singer Edith Piaf in "La Vie En Rose," Jil Aigrot, at home in
the South of France, became "very emotional."

"I was so very, very, very happy for all the team," Aigrot
says, speaking as her daughter, Caroline, acts as a translator.
"A lot of people worked hard for that movie."

Among them was Aigrot, who performed many of the vocals
that Cotillard lip-synched to in the film, under guidance from
the actress and director Olivier Dahan.

On March 11, Aigrot's new CD, "Words of Love," was released
domestically on LML Music. It features Aigrot singing 19 Piaf
songs, and to support the album, she has two tours planned in
the United States.

The first will take place April 4-10 in Borders bookstores
in New York; Chicago; Ann Arbor, Mich.; San Francisco; and Los
Angeles. (Borders is a nationwide distributor of the album.) In
July, Aigrot will return to the States to perform in jazz clubs
in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Chicago, according to LML
owner Lee Lessack.

"There's such a mystique about Piaf that people really want
to meet Jil, because her performance is eerily like a modern
embodiment," Lessack says.

Aigrot's resurgence started when she got the gig as Piaf's
voice for "La Vie En Rose" in a most serendipitous way. In her
tours around France and Europe, Aigrot had long performed some
of Piaf's songs, and she decided to prepare an entire concert
dedicated to the singer.

Within two weeks, Aigrot was in Paris recording Piaf's
songs for "La Vie En Rose."

The "La Vie En Rose" movie soundtrack, which was released
in May 2007 by EMI Classics, contains remastered original
recordings by Piaf, as well as score selections composed by
Christopher Gunning and a few select tracks performed by Aigrot
and Maya Barsoni. It has sold 42,000 copies in the United
States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

And while "La Vie En Rose" has renewed interest in the
singer among casual fans, Aigrot says that she's surprised at
the intensity of the core group of Piaf followers. One recently
gave her Piaf's medal of St. Therese, which Aigrot now wears as
a pendant onstage. "It's a consecration to record something for
Piaf," she says.

Reuters/Billboard

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Swedish pop star Robyn gets her groove back

By Mitchell Peters

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) -
Some could label her a rebel, but
Robyn might best be described as a teen pop survivor of the
music industry.

In the years after her U.S. breakthrough in the late 1990s,
the Swedish singer had nearly abandoned hopes of maintaining a
successful career. But more than a decade later, Robyn will
return to the American music scene with a self-titled album
that's hits shelves April 29 via
Konichiwa/Cherrytree/Interscope.

"It is definitely like getting a second chance," Robyn
says. "I had scrapped all my ideas of being an international
artist again, because I was scared of the music industry."

The 29-year-old singer's 1997 U.S. debut, "Robyn Is Here"
(RCA) produced such hits as "Show Me Love" and "Do You Know
(What It Takes)." But when it came time to release a follow-up
studio album in the States, to the dismay of record labels,
Robyn insisted on moving away from her pop-focused sound. In
turn, the labels declined to release her new material.

During the next several years, while signed to BMG in
Sweden, Robyn was able to live comfortably by releasing a
handful of overseas-only albums. But something was missing in
the music. "I was always forced to conform to the structure of
the major industry," she says. "I just wanted to detach myself.
I wanted to start over."

Second chances are rare for most artists, but not
impossible, as Robyn has set out to prove. More than a decade
has passed since the U.S. release of "Robyn Is Here," which has
sold 922,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen
SoundScan. Even so, her American fan base is as vibrant as
ever. Interest was reignited after the 2007 U.K. release of
Robyn's electro-heavy self-titled album, which first came out
in Sweden in 2005 via the artist's Konichiwa Records.

"All of these international blogs and music sites quickly
started to pick up on the music," Robyn says. "It really gave
me the courage to believe there was an audience out there for
me."

The new set finds Robyn collaborating with members of
fellow Swede acts the Knife and Teddybears, among others. After
shopping the self-titled disc to U.K. labels and then being
rejected, Robyn decided to release the album through Konichiwa,
which she founded in 2004. After the love-addled single "With
Every Heartbeat" went to No. 1 on the Official U.K. Singles
chart, "all of the labels that said 'no' in the beginning came
back," says Robyn, who eventually signed a joint venture with
Island in the United Kingdom.

Robyn recently contributed vocals to a track by rapper
Snoop Dogg, singing the chorus on the remix of his single
"Sexual Eruption."

A three-week U.S. theater tour is scheduled to begin April
26 in Miami and wrap May 17 at the Wiltern in Los Angeles.

Reuters/Billboard

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Music fans prefer Wikipedia to MySpace

By Antony Bruno

DENVER (Billboard) -
Search for an artist on any of the
popular search engines, and the top three results are
practically guaranteed: the artist's official Web site,
Wikipedia entry and MySpace

But while artists and their handlers devote massive
attention to the Web site and MySpace, the Wikipedia page is
often overlooked. Recent data suggests they may want to
reconsider their priorities.

"The interest that people had to go to MySpace to find out
more about their favorite band is waning in favor of going to
Wikipedia," Yahoo head of programming and label relations John
Lenac says. "In the last six months, it's surpassed it."

Yet when compared with the number of artist profiles on
MySpace, Wikipedia entries are noticeably fewer. MySpace claims
3 million artist profiles. Wikipedia does not have an exact
count of artist entries, but estimates that it's in the "tens
of thousands," according to Wikipedia Foundation head of
communications Jay Walsh.

MISSED OPPORTUNITY

What's more, because of Wikipedia's low profile relative to
the MySpace hype machine, many artists and their managers
remain ignorant of the resources available to them.

"There's been many people I've talked to that didn't even
know they could upload a Wikipedia page," Lenac says. "There's
been some managers that didn't even know what it was."

For those in the latter category, Wikipedia is a free
online encyclopedia that relies on everyday users to submit the
information listed about a given topic, using a collaborative
software system known as "wiki." It contains more than 7
million articles in 200 languages and receives some 300 million
page views per day. Anyone can contribute to a given article,
BUT they must first past muster from a team of volunteer
editors with a particular passion about the subject before the
text appears live.

The result is a rather tight, focused and vetted overview
of the subject, which some online marketing experts feel is why
fans are selecting Wikipedia over other options.

"Wikipedia is a fantastic landing page," says Jason
Feinberg, owner/president of On Target Media Group, a Web
promotions consultancy. "It's so clear, so concise, and it's
standardized. That's something I think is a draw over MySpace,
where you never quite know the experience you're going to get.
Is it going to be a horrible jumble of images and video and
text that's difficult to read? Also, (Wikipedia is) rooted in
fact. It's not promotional. Especially these days when the
Internet is full of artists trying to essentially ram their
message down your throat, I think a fan is a lot more receptive
to a simple, no-hype approach."

But don't expect to see Wikipedia offering full-song
streams or links to buy digital songs anytime soon.

"That's not what we're about," Walsh says. "We're about
knowledge. We're about bringing the reader to other free
content ... content they can use and enjoy without worrying
about violating any copyrights."

Reuters/Billboard

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Mexican film puts human face on immigration

By Iain Blair

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) -
Mexican film director Patricia
Riggen faced so many challenges making her new film, "Under The
Same Moon," that she almost gave up, but it is good for
audiences and for Riggen that she persevered.

The Spanish-language film, which debuted in major U.S.
cities this week and will play around the country in days
ahead, puts a human face on illegal immigration. Yet, Riggen
hopes audiences will see beyond political issues and be touched
by the tale of a mother and son who long to reunite.

Fox Searchlight, the art-house distributor behind such hits
as "Juno," quickly snapped it up for theaters. It all seemed
like a dream, Riggen said, but getting there was no easy task.

"It was my first full-length feature. We had no money, no
time, and people told me I was crazy to even try" to make the
movie, Riggen told Reuters.

"Under the Same Moon" tells of a Mexican mother, Rosario,
working illegally as a domestic laborer in Los Angeles while
her son Carlos is left behind in Mexico.

After years apart, the 9-year-old boy decides to risk
everything and cross the border in search of his mother. What
ensues is a tale of the extreme measures immigrants will take
to come to the United States and the harrowing trip they face.

Riggen insists that she never set out to push political
buttons when starting work on the movie three years ago by
developing the script with writer Ligiah Villalobos.

"Immigration wasn't a big topic," she said. "In fact, it
was considered a bad subject as people didn't want to watch
movies about it. But I went ahead because I never thought of
this film in those terms."

LOVE OVER POLITICS

Riggen said she saw the film as a love story between a
mother and child.

But a funny thing happened on the way to the local theater
multiplex. Immigration became a divisive issue in the United
States, making the film not just a heartfelt story but also
relevant to current times.

The director cast Adrian Alonso, now 13 years old and an
accomplished child actor whose credits include "The Legend of
Zorro," to play the son because he's "not the pretty boy type
... but he becomes beautiful because he's loving and smart."

The mother is played by well-known Mexican actress Kate del
Castillo ("Bordertown"), a glamorous star in Mexico but a
servant in Riggen's film. "Ugly Betty" actress America Ferrera
plays a student who smuggles the boy across the border.

Riggen shot the movie on a paltry budget of less than $2
million, and she also had to win respect from the crew as a
first-time director.

"No one believed I could do it," she said. But she was able
to push her cinematographer, Checco Varese, who also happened
to be her husband. "He had to do what I told him," she laughed.

(Editing by Bob Tourtellotte and Mohammad Zargham)

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

DiCaprio, Scott high on "Low Dwellers"

By Steven Zeitchik

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) -
Ridley Scott and Leonardo
DiCaprio will re-team for a dark thriller titled "The Low
Dwellers."

The project, which has echoes of "The History of Violence"
and "No Country for Old Men," is a spec script from
twentysomething first-time writer Brad Ingelsby, who works as
an insurance salesman in Pennsylvania.

Set in Indiana in the mid-1980s, the movie centers on a man
(DiCaprio) trying to assimilate into society after he's
released from jail, only to find someone from his past pursuing
him to settle a score. In addition to the pursuer, a third male
character and a female love interest are said to figure
prominently in the story.

Scott and DiCaprio will produce the film, with DiCaprio
attached to star and Scott eyeing the possibility of directing.

Ingelsby had been working on the script in his spare time
and has yet to set foot in Hollywood. But he has hit the spec
jackpot, with the project selling for mid-six figures to Ryan
Kavanaugh's Relativity Media after a heated bidding war that
involved Warner Bros. and Sony Pictures.

The movie would be the second collaboration between
DiCaprio and Scott. They just wrapped the geopolitical thriller
"Body of Lies" for Warners.

DiCaprio next re-teams with another A-list director when he
begins shooting Martin Scorsese's period thriller "Shutter
Island" this spring. Scott is prepping the Robin Hood romance
"Nottingham."

"The Low Dwellers" marks one of the first big spec sales
after the writers' strike, though given Ingelsby's frosh
status, he wouldn't have been affected by the labor stoppage.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Film fest seeks new jury chairman

HONG KONG - Organizers of the 11th Shanghai International Film Festival are looking for a new jury chairman following the death of Anthony Minghella.

"This (Minghella's death) happened so suddenly. We're in the process of looking for a replacement," festival spokeswoman Crystal Yu told The Associated Press in a phone interview Friday.

The British filmmaker, who won an Oscar for "The English Patient," died Tuesday in London of a hemorrhage following surgery. He was 54. He also directed "Cold Mountain" and "The Talented Mr. Ripley."

Yu said the festival, scheduled for June 14-22, plans to stage a retrospective of Minghella's works.

The Shanghai event announced its selection of Minghella as jury chairman in February.

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Curtis shows some skin on AARP mag cover

NEW YORK - Jamie Lee Curtis went shirtless to pose for AARP The Magazine.

Curtis is shown sporting gray hair and wading in water up to her chest on the cover of the magazine's May/June issue, which will be available Monday.

The star of "True Lies," "A Fish Called Wanda" and other films becomes eligible for membership in AARP, the nonprofit organization for people 50 and over, when she celebrates her birthday Nov. 22.

"I want to be older," she tells the magazine. "I actually think there's an incredible amount of self-knowledge that comes with getting older. I feel way better now than I did when I was 20. I'm stronger, I'm smarter in every way, I'm so much less crazy than I was then."

Curtis, who is married to Christopher Guest and the mother of two children, says she reached a turning point two years ago when a tabloid published a photo of her and gave her weight as 161 pounds.

"I was like, `How dare you — I'm not 161 pounds!' I was indignant. I got home and I went on a scale and I was 161 pounds. I was in denial about it," she says.

"So I started a really healthy way of eating, just avoiding things that I had been shoving in my mouth. Over the course of a year, I dropped about 20 pounds," Curtis says.

"Now, I get up at (5 a.m.) every day, filled with energy. I play tennis three times a week, and I do yoga."

Curtis says growing older means paring down to an essential version of yourself.

"I've let my hair go gray. I wear only black and white. Every year I buy three or four black dresses that I just keep in rotation. I own one pair of blue jeans. I've given away all my jewelry, because I don't wear it," she says.

What about her life would she do over?

"I've been an inconsistent parent at times, and it's my greatest regret," she says. "When my daughter was small, I worked too much. I was replicating what my own mother (Janet Leigh) did."

___

On the Net:

AARP The Magazine:

http://www.aarpmagazine.org/

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Angela Bassett gets Hollywood star

LOS ANGELES - Angela Bassett has had good days — becoming a mother to twins, winning a Golden Globe, being nominated for an Academy Award. Then there was Thursday.

"Do you ever have one of those days? I woke up and the sun wasn't really shining but then it burst through the clouds and it was glorious. Hallelujah!" Bassett exclaimed to the crowd at the ceremony for the 2,358th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Bassett, 49, was joined by husband Courtney B. Vance, their children and guests Forest Whitaker, Laurence Fishburne and Rick Fox, her co-star in the new film "Meet the Browns," out Friday.

Fishburne, who starred alongside Bassett in 1993's "What's Love Got to Do With It," highlighted Bassett's resilience in the industry. She landed an Oscar nomination for the role portraying Turner triumphing over abuse.

"You get a lot of no's in this business and you have to have that desire and determination which is what Angela has," Fishburne said.

Whitaker gushed that Bassett was "a powerful artist, a beautiful person, a mother, a wife, a friend who illuminates my life."

Born in New York City and raised in Florida, Bassett snagged bachelor's and master's degrees from Yale before starting her career in theater and then moving on to film.

Her film credits include 1998's "How Stella Got Her Groove Back."

At the ceremony, she recalled moving to Los Angeles from New York in 1988.

"I meant to stay six months but I stayed. Today my cup runneth over!" Bassett said. "I am crying now, I cried yesterday and the day before. ... This day is so, so special to me."

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Curtis shows some skin on AARP mag cover

NEW YORK - Jamie Lee Curtis went shirtless to pose for AARP The Magazine.

Curtis is shown sporting gray hair and wading in water up to her chest on the cover of the magazine's May/June issue, which will be available Monday.

The star of "True Lies," "A Fish Called Wanda" and other films becomes eligible for membership in AARP, the nonprofit organization for people 50 and over, when she celebrates her birthday Nov. 22.

"I want to be older," she tells the magazine. "I actually think there's an incredible amount of self-knowledge that comes with getting older. I feel way better now than I did when I was 20. I'm stronger, I'm smarter in every way, I'm so much less crazy than I was then."

Curtis, who is married to Christopher Guest and the mother of two children, says she reached a turning point two years ago when a tabloid published a photo of her and gave her weight as 161 pounds.

"I was like, `How dare you — I'm not 161 pounds!' I was indignant. I got home and I went on a scale and I was 161 pounds. I was in denial about it," she says.

"So I started a really healthy way of eating, just avoiding things that I had been shoving in my mouth. Over the course of a year, I dropped about 20 pounds," Curtis says.

"Now, I get up at (5 a.m.) every day, filled with energy. I play tennis three times a week, and I do yoga."

Curtis says growing older means paring down to an essential version of yourself.

"I've let my hair go gray. I wear only black and white. Every year I buy three or four black dresses that I just keep in rotation. I own one pair of blue jeans. I've given away all my jewelry, because I don't wear it," she says.

What about her life would she do over?

"I've been an inconsistent parent at times, and it's my greatest regret," she says. "When my daughter was small, I worked too much. I was replicating what my own mother (Janet Leigh) did."

___

On the Net:

AARP The Magazine:

http://www.aarpmagazine.org/

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

`Chocolate Rain' claims a YouTube award

By ERIN CARLSON, Associated Press Writer

NEW YORK - And the winner for best music video: "Chocolate Rain."

Tay Zonday morphed from an unknown musician to an Internet superstar who got booked on national TV shows after his song "Chocolate Rain" — an amateur clip of his baritone crooning — went viral last year. Now he's among the 12 winners of the second annual YouTube Video Awards, recognizing the top user-created videos of 2007.

YouTube users voted on six nominees for each category: music, sports, comedy, instructional, short film, inspirational, commentary, creative, politics, series, eyewitness and "adorable."

"It's the new Emmys," Zonday, 25, said of the video-sharing site's awards in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "It's the next Oscars. The next People's Choice Awards. It'll be interesting to see what happens five years, 10 years (from now)."

His competition included comely singer-songwriter Mia Rose and "the vegetable orchestra," featuring a jam session with a carrot flute and squash drum.

Neil Cicierega's video featuring "Harry Potter" hand puppets (and Professor Dumbledore without any clothes on) won for best comedy video. Guillaume Reymond's "Human Tetris" won most creative video.

Chris Crocker, who shot to stardom in his video freak-out over Britney Spears' public meltdown, was beat in the commentary category by a clip from Michael Buckley of the popular online show "What the Buck?" slamming fellow YouTube celebrity Lonelygirl15.

The Obama Girl, aka Amber Lee Ettinger, whose "I Got A Crush On Obama" clip has been seen more than 7 million times, didn't wind up winning in the politics category. That honor went to the serious-minded "Stop the Clash of Civilizations" video by the global organization avaaz.org.

"The (political) video that actually won in an election year wasn't one that had anything to do with the election itself," said YouTube spokesman Aaron Ferstman. "(It's a) video that deals with ... serious issues like discrimination, and that video's done in kind of a neat way that speaks to young people."

Best eyewitness video was the epic "Battle at Kruger," which has drawn more than 26 million views to its astonishing footage of a baby water buffalo surviving an attack by lions — and a crocodile! — in the African prairie. It was up against the news-making clip of a University of Florida student pleading "Don't tase me, bro!" as police removed him from a John Kerry forum.

Ben Shelton's "My Name is Lisa" — a drama about a young girl and her mother who has Alzheimer's — triumphed in the newly added short film category. The winning Web series was "The Guild," a comedy about a group of obsessed online gamers.

The Texas Country Reporter's video about a blind painter won most inspirational video. The "Balloon Bowl" clip of a guy skateboarding in, well, a balloon-filled bowl snagged best sports video. And the incredibly cute, compulsively watchable "Laughing Baby" clip was voted most adorable.

Dan Brown's video "How to Solve a Rubik's Cube (Part One)" scored in the instructional category.

Ferstman said the prizes consist of "notoriety" and a trophy he described as "very heavy with a metal base" supporting a "big glass `play' button."

Ferstman said: "These are the (videos) that really will stand out and over time, you know, you'll say, `Hey, do you remember the Laughing Baby'?"

Zonday, who streams music from his YouTube channel, MySpace page and personal Web site, said he hopes to earn "a living making art and producing music," and is pursuing a voice-over career. He's flattered by the numerous online parodies of "Chocolate Rain," which has garnered nearly 16 million views.

"A lot of people see political commentary in (the song)," he said. "A lot of people find humor in it. A lot of people, they say their 2-year-olds can't stop repeating it at bedtime, so lots of people get different things out of the song. And I think the greatest consequence and the greatest mileage it can have is to get people asking questions."

What's the key to YouTube success?

"Just be very authentic and put yourself out there," he said in his mellifluous voice. "You'll never know what will happen."

___

On the Net:

http://www.youtube/ytawards07

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Britney Spears' TV wardrobe up for sale

1 hour, 59 minutes ago

LOS ANGELES - It seems almost everybody wants a piece of Britney Spears, and at least six pieces are officially for sale.

Spears' wardrobe from her guest-starring stint on CBS' "How I Met Your Mother" will be sold at an online auction to benefit the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental organization.

The weeklong auction begins Monday night, just after the episode featuring the pop star is set to air. Spears plays a flirty receptionist who falls for show's main character.

A half-dozen Spears-worn items will be available, including a navy print Juicy Couture dress, a yellow Nannette Lepore dress and a cream Nannette Lepore cardigan with blue flower details.

CBS and 20th Century Fox Television, which produces the show, are sponsoring the auction.

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Beatles sue to block 1962 tapes' release

By MATT SEDENSKY, Associated Press Writer

MIAMI - Lawyers for the Beatles sued Friday to prevent the distribution of unreleased recordings purportedly made during Ringo Starr's first performance with the group in 1962.

The dispute between Apple Corps Ltd., the London company formed by the Beatles that helps guard their legacy, and Fuego Entertainment Inc. of Miami Lakes stems from recordings the Fab Four apparently made during a performance at the Star Club in Hamburg, Germany.

Eight unreleased tracks are said to be among the recordings, including Paul McCartney singing Hank Williams' "Lovesick Blues" and McCartney and John Lennon singing "Ask Me Why."

Apple Corps claims that the songs were taped without the consent of the band and that Fuego and sister companies Echo-Fuego Music Group LLC and Echo-Vista Inc. have no right to distribute them.

"This appears to us to be a garden-variety bootleg recording," said Paul LiCalsi, an attorney for Apple Corps.

But Fuego Entertainment says the recordings were legally made. "Don't claim that these were just bootlegged," said Fuego president Hugo Cancio. "It's not like today, that you just go in with a phone or a blackberry and you record."

The lawsuit contends that the recordings are of poor quality and that circulating them "dilutes and tarnishes the extraordinarily valuable image associated with the Beatles."

Cancio said that he had not been served with a copy of the lawsuit, but that the filing demanding at least $15 million in damages was not expected.

"I'm surprised because up to a few weeks ago, we were in good-faith conversations with Apple," he said.

Also named in the lawsuit is Jeffrey Collins, a partner of Cancio who obtained the recordings. It's unclear how Collins obtained the recordings.

Cancio intended to release the songs as "Jammin' with The Beatles and Friends, Star Club, Hamburg, 1962."

"It's unfair to millions of Beatles fans not to allow this recording to be put out. The world deserves to hear these tracks," he said. "The fact is that we have it; they don't, and that is what's bothering them."

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Pamela Anderson's marriage nears end

2 hours, 57 minutes ago

LOS ANGELES - Pamela Anderson's new husband — apparently a specialist in short relationships with celebrities — agrees that their two-month marriage should be voided, according to court papers filed Friday.

Rick Salomon agrees in papers responding to a filing by the "Baywatch" actress that the marriage should be annulled because of fraud, though neither set of documents elaborated.

Salomon did not ask for spousal support and asked that it not be awarded to Anderson.

A phone message left for Anderson's publicist was not immediately returned Friday.

Salomon is known for making a sex videotape with then-girlfriend Paris Hilton and was previously married to actress Shannen Doherty for nine months.

He and Anderson were married Oct. 6 in Las Vegas and separated Dec. 13.

Anderson, 40, was previously married to singer Kid Rock and Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee.

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Barack Obama Endorsed By Former Presidential Candidate Bill Richardson

The New Mexico governor and friend of the Clintons urges Dems to 'stop fighting amongst ourselves.'

In a scramble nearly as intense and hard-fought as the ongoing slugfest for delegates, Senator Barack Obama's campaign came out on top Friday (March 21) in the race to secure the endorsement of former Democratic presidential contender Bill Richardson.

The stamp of approval from the governor of New Mexico, who is expected to formally announce his endorsement of Obama at a joint appearance in Oregon on Friday, is a major coup for the Illinois senator. In an e-mail to supporters, Richardson said that it is time for Democrats to "stop fighting amongst ourselves and to prepare for the tough fight we will face against John McCain in the fall."

Both Obama and rival Democratic contender Senator Hillary Clinton had been heavily courting Richardson, the country's only Hispanic governor, since he dropped out of the race in January. In a statement reported by The Associated Press, Richardson — who is friendly with the Clintons and was energy secretary and U.N. ambassador in former President Bill Clinton's administration — said that he sees Obama as a "once-in-a-lifetime leader that can bring our nation together and restore America's moral leadership in the world. ... As a presidential candidate, I know full well Senator Obama's unique moral ability to inspire the American people to confront our urgent challenges at home and abroad in a spirit of bipartisanship and reconciliation."

The endorsement could prove to be key for Obama, who has been lagging behind Clinton in the Hispanic vote. It could also help improve his chances among superdelegates, a group Richardson is also a part of.

The news comes at a critical time for Obama, who, after a string of 12 victories in February, had hit a bit of a bumpy patch recently with some primary losses to Clinton and the first major scandal of his candidacy concerning controversial comments by his former pastor. It also comes just days after a new Gallup poll had Clinton leading Obama in nomination preference among Democrats by 49 percent to 42 percent.

At the packed rally in Portland, Oregon, on Friday, the newly bearded Richardson told the crowd, "Earlier this week, an extraordinary American gave a historic speech," alluding to Obama's address on Tuesday on race, which was prompted by the repeated airings of those controversial comments. "Senator Barack Obama addressed the issue of race with the eloquence and sincerity and optimism that we have come to expect of him. He didn't evade the tough issues to soothe us with comforting half-truths. Rather, he inspired us by reminding us of the awesome potential residing in our own responsibility."

In a not-so-subtle dig at Clinton, Richardson said Obama could have given a much safer speech since he is "well ahead in the delegates count for our party's nomination," a red-meat line that drew huge applause. Richardson said the speech showed Obama's skills as a leader and uniter and noted that, "As a Hispanic-American, I was particularly touched by his words," a sign that the speech may have been the tipping point in his decision to back the Illinois senator. He went on to call Obama a "courageous, thoughtful leader" who would be a "great and historic" president that he trusted to end the Iraq war and bring U.S. troops home.

For most of the address, Obama stood solemnly by Richardson's side with his arms folded in front of him and a serious expression on his face. Upon beginning his stump speech, Obama warmly embraced and thanked Richardson and then quickly ran down the governor's résumé, highlighting his work on foreign policy, an area that has been one of the Obama's perceived weaknesses.

Though the move by Richardson was clearly a blow to Clinton, who won the New Mexico primary, the New York senator brushed it off, according to CNN, saying that both she and Obama had "many great endorsers," and that "the voters, not endorsers" would decide the contest.

Richardson, who watched the Super Bowl with former President Clinton last month and strove to be an evenhanded voice of reason during his presidential run, said that his decision to go with Obama was made because he thinks the first-term senator "will be a historic and great president, who can bring us the change we so desperately need by bringing us together as a nation here at home and with our allies abroad." Richardson also praised Hillary Clinton, calling her a "distinguished leader with vast experience," according to Richardson's prepared speech, released by the Obama campaign.

In the ongoing battle of experience versus change, the governor said that it's "now time for a new generation of leadership," adding that Obama has "the judgment and courage we need in a commander in chief when our nation's security is on the line."

While Obama has now secured the endorsements of both Richardson and former Democratic hopeful Senator Chris Dodd, former Senator John Edwards — once the strongest rival in the race — has yet to announce his endorsement.

Watch the candidates address the Iraq war and other important issues in "Choose or Lose Presents Clinton & Obama Answer Young Veterans."

Get informed! Head to Choose or Lose for nonstop coverage of the 2008 presidential election, including everything from the latest news on the candidates to on-the-ground multimedia reports from our 51 citizen journalists, MTV and MySpace's Presidential Dialogues, and much more.

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Britney Spears Has 'Great Comic Timing,' Say The Stars Of 'How I Met Your Mother'

Alyson Hannigan and Jason Segel tell TV Guide that the pop star impressed them as a 'spazzy' receptionist with a crush on Ted.

When you first see Britney Spears, she'll be a nerd, but just wait — as her episode of "How I Met Your Mother" goes on, she'll gradually become more like the sex symbol we used to know and love. At least, as much as a dermatologist's receptionist can be.

In the episode, called "Ten Sessions," Ted Mosby (Josh Radnor) wants to get an embarrassing butterfly tattoo removed, and he wants to see if his dermatologist, Dr. Stella Zinman (played by "Scrubs" star Sarah Chalke), will fall for him in the process &8212 but he hooks Spears' character Abby instead, without realizing it. Abby starts off being mousy, wearing glasses and cardigans, but she transforms herself to win over Ted.

"She has a total spazzy crush on Ted," show co-creator Craig Thomas told TV Guide.

As Ted's sessions continue, so do Abby's attempts to get his attention with sexier hairdos and clothing, and frequent nervous laughter. In a video clip from the episode, Ted asks to see the doctor.

"I'll let her know," Abby responds but continues to stare longingly at him, without picking up the phone.

"Telepathically?" he asks.

"That's funny!" she laughs awkwardly. "Ha! That's funny, smart and great!"

By his next appointment, Abby is reading the book, "The Power of Me," that he had brought with him during his last session. She notices he's starting to grow a mustache, and comments, "Love the 'stache! You look like a young Tom Selleck, only a million times handsomer." Without taking her eyes off him, she calls her boss and says, "Dr. Zinman, Magnum's here to see you." After a beat, she tells Ted, "Just kidding."

"[Spears] was so funny, and she already had her character down pat," Alyson Hannigan, who plays Lily on the show, told TV Guide. "I had no idea she had such great comic timing."

Perhaps the pop star hasn't forgotten what she learned mixing sketch comedy with song and dance on "The Mickey Mouse Club." Jason Segel, who plays Marshall on the show, told TV Guide that Spears contributed to the episode's dialogue with a few improvised lines that were "really good."

"She came up with stuff that had everyone laughing," Segel said. "She's definitely a comedian."

So, with such approval from the cast, could Spears be back for another appearance? After all, the promo for the episode shows her in a conversation with Barney (Neil Patrick Harris), which seems to reveal that she might have moved on to Ted's friend, since she asks him, "Can we have sex and then go shopping?"

"The episode ends on a funny note that I won't give away," Thomas said. "But it definitely leaves it open for her to come back."

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Gibson Guitar Company Sues Retailers, MTV Over 'Guitar Hero' And 'Rock Band'

Instrument maker claims games violate 1999 Gibson patent for virtual music performances.

The Gibson Guitar Corporation announced Thursday that it is suing major retailers that sell "Guitar Hero" games. The suit is part of an ongoing legal squabble between the instrument manufacturer and the makers of the popular music video games.

It was reported late Friday (March 21) that Gibson has also sued MTV, Harmonix and EA for allegedly violating a 1999 patent with last year's music game "Rock Band."

The "Guitar Hero" suit seeks to block Amazon, GameStop, Kmart, Wal-Mart, Target and Toys "R" Us from selling the games, according to an Associated Press report. The instrument-maker claims the games violate a 1999 Gibson patent for virtual music performances.

"Gibson Guitar took this action reluctantly, but is required to protect its intellectual property and will continue to do so against any other person in accordance with the law and its rights," the company explained in a statement issued Thursday.

The Gibson suit was filed on Monday and charges Activision (the developer of "Guitar Hero") with violating U.S. Patent 5,990,405: "System and method for generating and controlling a simulated musical concert experience." That patent describes a setup that would connect a guitar to a television and a "system interface" with the option to include a stereoscopic headset to create a virtual-reality concert experience. The term "video game" does not appear in the 5,000-word patent. (To read the patent and see images of Gibson's setup, go to the U.S. Patent Office's listing.)

On Friday, Gibson also announced that it was suing MTV Networks, Harmonix and EA, the publishers, developer and distributors of "Rock Band," respectively, for infringing on the same patent.

"Gibson Guitar had made good-faith efforts to enter into a patent-license agreement with the defendants in this case," reads a Gibson statement. "The defendants have not responded in a timely manner with an intent to enter into negotiations for a patent-license agreement.

"Gibson Guitar had no alternative but to bring the suit, and it will continue to protect its intellectual-property rights against any and all infringing persons."

MTV officials could not be reached for comment, but a Harmonix representative told Reuters that "This lawsuit is completely without merit and we intend to defend it vigorously."

Calls to Gibson and its legal counsel were not returned by press time, but the pair of lawsuits are clearly the latest salvo in a conflict that began earlier this year, when Gibson representatives contacted Activision privately to state that the games were violating the patent. Then on March 11, Activision filed suit against Gibson for damages, seeking a court judgment that "Guitar Hero" does not infringe on Gibson's patent.

Earlier this week, Activision reps told MTV News that Gibson's claims were without merit. George Rose, Activision's chief legal officer, stated: "While Gibson is a good partner and we have a great deal of respect for them, we disagree with the applicability of their patent and believe any objective analysis will reach the same conclusion. We are confident in our position."

The "Guitar Hero" suit may surprise the many fans who have played the game, because to do so requires holding officially licensed replica Gibson guitars. It would have seemed these two companies got along: The guitars for the first "Guitar Hero" games were modeled from Gibson SGs, the Xbox 360 version of "Guitar Hero II" included a replica Gibson X-Plorer, and the controller for "Guitar Hero III" is based on a Gibson Les Paul.

It seems, however, that Activision isn't interested in Gibson guitars appearing in future "Guitar Hero" games. A letter submitted as evidence as part of Activision's suit suggests that any Activision/Gibson guitar deal is dead. In fact, Activision claims that is the reason for Gibson's complaint.

In a March 10 letter to Gibson's attorney, Activision lawyer Mary Tuck wrote: "As I indicated previously, Gibson knew about the Guitar Hero games for nearly three years but did not raise its patent until it became clear that Activision was not [interested] in renewing the License and Marketing Support Agreement. Gibson's delay suggests that its infringement assertions are not being made in good faith, and it has provided no justification for its conduct."

For more on these suits, including Gibson's item-by-item chart alleging how "Guitar Hero" infringes on the Gibson patent, check out our Multiplayer blog.

[This story was originally published at 3:15 pm E.T. on 3.21.2008]

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Linkin Park Space Out For 'Leave Out All The Rest' Video, Eye July Start For Projekt Revolution Tour

MC Mike Shinoda says Jay-Z will join them for U.K. tour dates, but rest of lineup is still undetermined.

When it comes to epic music videos, no one does it quite like the dudes from Linkin Park. And the forthcoming clip for "Leave Out All the Rest," the latest single from the band's 2007 LP Minutes to Midnight, will be no different.

Linkin Park spent last weekend standing in front of a green screen in a warehouse in Van Nuys, California, shooting the video directed by the band's DJ, Joseph Hahn, who also came up with the video's treatment. The clip depicts a day in the life of Linkin Park — that is, if they all lived in a futuristic flight vessel, floating somewhere in outer space.

"Joe wasn't even going to write a treatment for this song," MC Mike Shinoda told MTV News on the set. "We'd [received] a number of treatments, and we were kind of bummed out, because we weren't connecting to any of them. And then, out of nowhere, we get a treatment from Joe in an e-mail, and we just loved it. It was random, out of nowhere, and it fit the song perfectly. I really like this video, because it's different from everything else he's done with us before. It's this sci-fi thing, which is fun. We've never really done that, and when I walked onto the set, I thought it looked like 'Battlestar Galactica.' "

In the video — which features no performance footage — the band lives in a rundown, artificial habitat that's making its way across the galaxy. At first, the boys are seen passing the time performing mundane tasks, but then gravity is lost onboard the vessel, sending the guys floating about.

"We're explorers in space, just like when we go on tour," said Hahn. "We're leaving our home life behind, and I guess it kind of ties into 'Leave Out All the Rest,' in that we have to leave things behind in order to do something better."

According to Shinoda, it was Minutes to Midnight producer Rick Rubin who first realized the song's potential as a single.

"When we were in the studio, working on the album, this song was one of the ones that I was personally pretty attached to," said Shinoda. "I remember Rick, of all people, who never says stuff like this, because he's more of a guy who either likes a song or thinks it can be better, and usually it can be better. I don't know if it's just that he sets his standards so high, but he never says things like, 'This is a single.' But when he heard this song, he said, 'This sounds like a massive single.' For us, when we write a record, we don't think in terms of singles. In our minds, every song is a single."

But Shinoda wasn't just talking about the band's new video last weekend, he also told MTV News about this summer's Projekt Revolution tour — well, as much as he could tell us, that is. While he said they're still in the process of locking in bands for the trek, he did say it should kick off in mid-July, in an undetermined city. It will be a green tour, like last year's run, which featured My Chemical Romance, Taking Back Sunday, HIM, the Bled and others.

"We've been keeping our tours green ever since we started making those efforts over a year ago," he said. "The majority of our fleet is biodiesel, and we'll be planting a tree for every ticket sold. So, you're already helping out the environment just by buying a ticket.
In addition, we're doing really simple things. The catering backstage for the band and crew — we take any leftovers to a homeless shelter. On an everyday basis, we try to encourage anything we can do to make things a little more climate-conscious.

"More information about the tour will be coming out soon, but we have some great hopes for some bands we want to be on it," he continued. "We want to follow up last year's tour with something that's cool."

There's some good news for the band's European fans, as Shinoda said they'll be taking Projekt Revolution overseas. "Jay-Z will be joining us on the U.K. dates, and that's really exciting," he said. "Whenever we do a show with friends of ours, we hope to get onstage and do something together. I can't say for sure if that will happen, but it's my intention at least."

Shinoda also added that the band is already thinking about the follow-up to Minutes to Midnight. "We're always writing," he said. "While we're home for a bit, we will be writing. The next record won't take 18 months to finish. I can't say for sure when a record will come out or what it will be like, but we already have a lot of ideas, and I'm sure some of those will end up as songs on the record."

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

'Buffy The Vampire Slayer' Cast, Creators Reunite To Debate Angel Vs. Spike, Buffy's Same-Sex Romance

'Buffy's getting some action?' Sarah Michelle Gellar asks of recent comic book plotline. 'Nice, good for her.'

"Final analysis, final verdict," TV Guide scribe Matt Roush said to the assembled panel of "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" castmembers and creators. "Angel or Spike?"

As Buffy herself, Sarah Michelle Gellar, looked amused but shocked — and James Marsters, who played Spike, wriggled uncomfortably in his chair — only Nicholas Brendan, who played Xander, had the nerve to pipe up and rephrase the age-old question: "Given the comic book, I think Willow."

Ten years after the unlikely show hit the air, the "Buffy" cast and creators reunited Thursday for the first time since the show ended in 2004 at Hollywood's Cinerama Dome as part of Paley Fest. The "Buffy" event was at full capacity, and some tickets were sold for 10 times their face value on eBay. "Sarah and Seth [Green, who played Oz] and I are planning a song-and-dance number with jazz hands for it," Michelle Trachtenberg, who played Dawn, joked on the red carpet. "We have mermaid costumes and everything. We're the 'Jazz-Hands Buffy Brigade.' "

That was, in part, a reference to one of the things that has kept the show alive during the years it's been off the air: Buffyoke, performed to the tune of the show's "Once More With Feeling" musical episode, which was shown prior to the panel at the Cinerama Dome. Since the sing-alongs had been stalled, Gellar and Green told MTV News that they should stage their own, saying they could hold them at Green's home and call it a "Hot Musical Evening ... And Some Pizza." "I just heard [about the sing-alongs getting killed]," Gellar said. "That's so sad. That makes me mad. I'd go to one!"

But though Gellar was up to speed on the sing-alongs, she was definitely not up on the other form her character Buffy had been resurrected — via the Season Eight comic book series spearheaded by show creator Joss Whedon.

"I want to be Buffy; she's getting some pretty hot ladies," Green joked on the red carpet prior to the event, to Gellar's puzzlement.

"What?" she asked.

"You haven't heard any of that?" he said. "The comic Joss is writing. Oh my gosh, she's totally making out with a girl."

"Is it with Willow?" Gellar asked.

"No, but she's smoking-hot," Green said. "I have to get you the back-issues."

"Buffy's getting some action?" Gellar asked. "Nice, good for her."

And so when the Angel/Spike choice came up on the panel a few minutes later, Gellar was prepared to address the big news that had rocked Buffy's world earlier this month — barely. "Wait!" she said, putting her hands up. "I did not know about this until five minutes ago. Someone says to me, 'How do you feel about Buffy's new relationship? She's with a woman.' And I'm like, 'She's with Willow?' "

Marsters gasped, "What?"

That's what reunions are for, folks — catching up. Whedon and the cast also waxed nostalgic on how hard it was to make the "Hush" and "Once More With Feeling" episodes (the shows during which they couldn't speak and had to break out into song, respectively) and speculated on the possibilities of turning "Buffy" into a Broadway musical ("I'm a song-and-dance man," Green offered) or another movie, since that's where the story started out in the first place (though even Whedon conceded the original movie wasn't "all that"). But where would the story go from here?

"You could call it 'Xander the One-Eyed Monster,' " joked Brendan, referring to his character's eye patch. Whedon and Gellar, trying hard not to burst out laughing, couldn't help themselves. Gellar stifled a tear and exclaimed, "This is why this [reunion] hasn't happened in four years!"

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Paparazzo Sues X17 Agency After Alleged Assault While Covering Britney Spears

Pap claims three X17 photographers beat him 'almost to death'; agency owners say photographers are not under contract.

If you're a paparazzo, covering Britney Spears can be a dangerous job — and not just because she might run over your foot with her car. A photographer who follows the singer filed a lawsuit in Los Angeles on Wednesday against photo agency X17, claiming three of the company's photographers severely beat him following a chase in which he had gained the lead.

Alison Silva told MTV News that on March 5, he had parked one block away from Spears' home when three X17 photographers — whom he identified as Thomas Madiana, Carlos Madiana and Max Rinadelle — allegedly approached him and said, "You should not be here. Only X17 gets these shots." Silva claims that one of the photographers punched him and knocked him to the ground, then the three kicked him to the point where he passed out. When he came to, he claims they were kicking him in the face. "I didn't know what was going on," he said.

Three witnesses called 911, and Silva was taken by ambulance to the emergency room with a police escort, according to the police report. One of the witnesses told police officers that he heard one of the attackers say, "Let's go f--- him up, there are 10 of us here," saw one of the attackers go get a metal tube from his car for that purpose, and heard another attacker say, "Don't kill him! Don't kill him!", according to the report.

At Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills, California, Silva was treated for blunt head trauma and a broken nose, according to the medical report. Silva said his injuries temporarily rendered him unable to drive or operate a camera.

"They kicked and punched me almost to death," Silva said. "I was beat up for doing my job. Most people think, 'Oh, he's just a paparazzo, he's nothing.' But this is not nothing. This is a big business, and if it weren't for people like me, those pictures wouldn't be in the magazines you enjoy."

Silva asks for unspecified general and punitive damages in his suit, in which he accuses X17 of battery; assault; false imprisonment; intentional infliction of emotional distress; negligent infliction of emotional distress; negligence; and negligent training, supervision and retention of unfit employees.

"They're going to say the claims are bogus," Silva's attorney, Joseph Farzam, told MTV News. "But my client has a claim. All it takes is for someone to take a look at the photos of his broken nose, blue eyes, bloody eyes, and you can see that he was injured. Someone has to be held responsible."

Silva said that police told him the photographers who allegedly attacked him will turn themselves in to authorities on Monday, otherwise warrants will be issued for their arrest. The Los Angeles Police Department's investigating officer had not confirmed that information at press time; an LAPD representative would only confirm that a separate criminal investigation is ongoing.

Reached for comment by MTV News, X17 co-owners Francois and Brandy Navarre initially declined comment because they have not been served with the suit, but when asked about the police matter, they said that the photographers are not employees, but freelancers, and therefore are not under contract. "I don't think the suit against us will hold up," Brandy said. "They give me their pictures but whatever they do on their own is their own business," Francois said.

Silva also has a still-pending $25,000 complaint against Keanu Reeves, whom he sued for negligence in November, claiming the actor struck Silva with his vehicle in March 2007, according to court documents. Silva told MTV News he suffered a serious injury to his left wrist, for which he's had one surgery and was scheduled for a second surgery next week. Silva said he's postponing that surgery in light of recent events.

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Lil Wayne 'Loves' His First Tour Of The U.K., Talks About New Single 'Lollipop'

'As a person, he was great,' Weezy says of Aaliyah, Ginuwine songwriter Steve 'Static Major' Garrett, who died suddenly in late February.

A plastic bottle to the chest isn't going to sour Lil Wayne to performing overseas. He recently made his first trek out of the U.S., and besides the footage you may have seen online of an ultra-rowdy crowd at London's Stratford Rex nightclub, Weezy said the experience was positive.

"This whole experience has just been interesting, to say the least," he recently told MTV Europe. "I love it. I actually haven't had time to do much apart from getting onstage then getting on the bus and going to the next venue, but I love it.

"It's scary at first," he added about appearing in front of the U.K. crowds, "but then refreshing when you walk offstage and hear everyone shouting, 'Weezy, Weezy, Weezy.' [That's] a relief. They knew the words to my songs, my girlfriends' phone numbers, everything. That's a big surprise to know that they actually understand what I'm talking about, because you have to know what I'm talking about to say it."

While in Europe, the video for "Lollipop," his first single from Tha Carter III, debuted.

"I'm not gonna front," he said calmly. "I haven't been home yet, so I didn't know it was out. My mom called me yesterday and was like, 'I like it.' And I was like, 'Like what?' But rest in peace, [Static]. I mean, he was on the song with me, and he passed away a couple of weeks ago. So that whole song and event is in memory of him."

Wayne describes the late Steve "Static Major" Garrett — former member of the R&B group Playa and songwriter/producer for the likes of Tank, Ginuwine and Aaliyah — as one of the most talented individuals he's come across.

"As a person, he was great," Wayne added. "He was from Louisville, Kentucky. He was real humble. He's a songwriter extraordinaire. I could throw one song out there that he wrote: He wrote 'Rock the Boat' for Aaliyah. He was actually about to drop a solo album this year, man, and I'm on his first solo single. I wrote the treatment to that video too, but we didn't get to shoot it, unfortunately."

"Lollipop" is the last video Static shot before dying in late February at age 33 from complications during surgery.

"I write the treatment to all my videos, and that one was pretty easy," Weezy described. "We tried to go with the whole 'Blues Brothers' type of thing, just because I never shot a video where I'm actually not rapping, so that was just enough in itself."

Wayne, who is back in the States now, is doing plenty of rhyme-spitting on "A Millie," another TCIII single. You can check out a preview of the track in Mixtape Monday. No word yet if a video is coming.

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

L.A. Times' Chuck Philips Defends Method Behind Tupac, Diddy Story: 'I Know All Kinds Of Stuff I Don't Write About'

'I've written a lot abut this story, because it fascinates me,' reporter tells MTV News about his dedication to one of hip-hop's biggest mysteries.

On one hand, Chuck Philips has a Pulitzer Prize, winning the coveted journalism award in 1999 for beat reporting. On the other hand, many believe the Los Angeles Times writer has brought the veracity of his work into question with two bombshell hip-hop stories — the first in 2002, reporting that the Notorious B.I.G. personally offered his gun to the Crip gang member who murdered Tupac Shakur, and on Monday, Philips claimed that Biggie and Sean "Diddy" Combs were aware of the 1994 plot to ambush Shakur the night he was shot and wounded as he entered Quad Studios.

Those two articles sparked considerable controversy. His allegations are at times hard to believe, and he has drawn criticism for largely citing unnamed sources. And many question why an older white man is the one pursuing the case of two murdered black hip-hip icons.

But Philips, for his efforts, also receives praise for his devotion to the case, when many believe police seem less interested each year. Readers lavish him with kind words for bringing light to two of the darkest moments in hip-hop history. Then there's his own appreciation for black culture: Philips cites Miles Davis as one of his favorite interviews, recognizes Dr. Dre's talents, and has a love for '70s funk.

It's certainly a complex beat he chases, often prone to failure, he said. And in the end, he leaves it up to his gut instincts that the people he talks to are telling him the truth. It could make him right — or it could make him horribly wrong in the end. Who knows for sure? But Philips stands by his methods.

Here, Philips talks to MTV News about his philosophy on using anonymous sources, when to trust stories — no matter how outrageous the claims may be — and why he keeps trying to figure out this story.

On sourcing: Philips often uses anonymous sources, referencing nothing about a source's physical description and rarely citing just how close the source is to the story. His reliance on FBI-informant information in his most recent story leads many to question how he could trust someone who is "snitching." He said he has to protect his sources from death and that even a slight clue could ID them.

"When you talk to people who are involved with the crime, which is what I do, they're either directly involved or peripherally involved," Philips explained. "Probably the farthest I've ever gotten is the best friend of the guy that was involved, and was told everything. ... In this one, and in many other stories, I've had direct contact with people who I believe are the criminals. And the deal I work out with them, I don't go with 'the guy with green eyes and he's from Brooklyn.' I don't think that matters at all. It doesn't help identify the individual. But these qualifiers to me, the issue is, do you have the right source? I don't think it leads to more trust. Because it doesn't matter where he lived or what position he had. I think the problem with that is that the people who would like to kill them, it matters very much. But when you're writing about a murder, some of the people who talked to me would be killed if they were identified in any way. Frankly, no one has any idea but their family members that they're talking to me. Now I'm at the point where I can give my old stories to the people I approach and say, 'This is how I write, and this is how it will happen. I've never burned anybody, and I'm not gonna burn you.' And most people still won't talk to you. But in this case, I was a lot luckier than that."

Outlandish allegations: Some critics say Philips is being taken for a ride by his informants. Philips, however, said he triple-checks his stories through corroboration.

"I often get approached by a lot of people, and then I talk to a lot of people who I thought knew someone and I find out they're lying," Philips said. "It takes a lot of time to develop. I'm not gonna write it just because someone says it. I have to, in my mind, have double or triple sourcing on something and people who hadn't spoken to each other and I can assure myself that they haven't spoken to each other. Because I've had two people try to set me up. ... I would catch them. But if you have three, you never get tripped up. I learned that writing about the music business, because I'd write about big deals that were coming out or a firing that would happen five days before it happened. And you had to be right about that sh--, because those guys would sue your ass. But in this case, I don't write anything until I feel it's confident, it's true. I know all kinds of stuff I don't write about. But then if I know that it's true, I'm gonna write about it. But I never tell anybody what it is, because it's unfair if it's not true. And there are people that will lie to you. Same thing happens in the music business, when I wrote about that. Same thing happened in the government. The police lie to you all the time. Police write up documents that are completely false, and you can print that. As a journalist, if they write up a police report that's false, you can put that on the front page of the newspaper and not be sued, because it's a police document.

"People are talking about that document," Philips added. "I had all of the information before I got the FBI document. [Editor's note: Philips obtained FBI records cited in Monday's story that said an informant told authorities in 2002 that Jimmy Rosemond and James Sabatino set up Shakur.] And when I got the FBI document, that was really like frosting on the cake for me. Because in this document, by somebody who I had never spoke to, I did speak to them eventually before the story ran, but who I didn't know or speak to, he said almost the same thing that I found out. So for me, it's just another resource, but for everybody who reads it, 'Oh, it has to be true. The FBI is sourcing it.' "

His motivation: Is he doing it for fame? Is he cooking up stories to stir the pot? There are plenty in the hip-hop community who just don't understand Philips' pursuit. He said he's been covering the case because it's one of the most important entertainment stories of the past 50 years and it simply interests him.

"I've written a lot abut this story because it fascinates me," Philips said. "I've written about doctors, politicians, music executives ... all these kinds of stories. So why would I make up only this story? I've gotten over it. At first it was shocking to me when people would say that, but they just don't know what you're doing, and that's their prerogative.

"I'm always surprised that young black writers have criticized me sometimes, and they don't go do it," he said of other reporters who aren't willing to tackle the story. "If you're gonna criticize me, go do it. You'll have a lot easier time moving around than I will. Why aren't you out there doing it? I actually don't understand that. But frankly I'm glad nobody else is. You often need a lot of time to go the long way. And then you have to get your gumption back up, to say, 'All right, f--- it,' when you fail and say, 'OK, this isn't it. Now I have to go try these other leads.' It's like a detective, in a sense."

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Odenkirk, Cross get into 'Situation'

By Nellie Andreeva

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) -
The "Mr. Show" duo of
Bob Odenkirk and David Cross are returning to HBO with "David's
Situation," a comedy pilot starring Cross.

Odenkirk and Cross co-wrote the project, which will star
Cross as himself. He leaves Hollywood to move into a suburban,
gated community where he has two roommates, a right-wing
conservative and a liberal hippie.

"We feel it's really strong and important to the health of
America," Cross and Odenkirk wrote about the project on their
Web site, BobAndDavid.

Odenkirk will direct the pilot.

The pickup for "Situation" comes 10 years after Odenkirk
and Cross' late-night sketch comedy series "Mr. Show with Bob
and David" took its final bow after four seasons on HBO.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Former senator courts daytime TV

By Kimberly Nordyke

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) -
Al D'Amato, the former
U.S. senator from New York, has his sights set on daytime
television.

A court show that D'Amato has been shopping to the
syndication business for fall 2009 has drawn interest from
major syndicators.

D'Amato, a Republican who served in the Senate from 1981 to
1999, was nicknamed "Senator Pothole" for his willingness to
meet with constituents and help them with their individual
cases. He also was known for his lengthy and at times comical
filibusters on the floor of the Senate, one of which found him
answering questions from a visiting colleague, reciting names
and singing "South of the Border."

He published a book, "Power, Pasta & Politics: The World
According to Senator Al D'Amato," in 1995 and founded the
consulting firm Park Strategies four years later.

His representatives at Rebel Entertainment Partners
declined comment Thursday.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

CW teams with "Idol" creator for drama pilot

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) -
The CW has picked up the
pilot to a real-time medical drama from "American Idol" creator
Simon Fuller.

The project, "Austin Golden Hour," follows a close-knit
team of young emergency room surgeons and EMTs during the
critical, adrenaline-filled 60 minutes following a trauma.
"Hour" will also follow the love lives, jealousies and
rivalries of those men and women.

"Hour" is written by Lance Gentile ("Third Watch," "ER")
and Mal Young ("Doctor Who").

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Music rights flap jamming Bob Marley biopic

By Gregg Goldstein

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) -
The family of Bob Marley
has refused to license any of his music for an upcoming
Weinstein Co. film drama about the late reggae star even though
his widow, Rita Marley, is its executive producer.

The reason? There is a competing Martin Scorsese
documentary being produced by the Marley family-owned Tuff Gong
Pictures and Steven Bing's Shangri La production banner, the
first theatrical documentary to license Marley songs.

The family members involved in the Scorsese documentary say
they were unaware that the Weinstein project would be unveiled
so soon and believe that its projected late-2009 release date
would interfere with their film's February 2010 opening, which
is timed to coincide with Marley's birthday.

"Martin Scorsese doesn't want to go out with a competing
project, and Steven Bing has made deals with companies" that
are now compromised, Blue Mountain Music president Chris
Blackwell said. "The Weinstein project has put the documentary
into jeopardy."

Blue Mountain Music is Marley's music publisher.

"All our efforts and support are currently directed toward
the documentary," said the reggae legend's son, Ziggy Marley,
who is executive producer of the untitled Scorsese film. "We
believe that this project is the best way to represent our
father's life from his perspective, and any other film project
pertaining to our father will be empty without his music to
support it."

"When I sold the film rights to my book (for the Weinstein
film)," Rita Marley told The Reporter, "the contract did not
include any rights to use my husband's music."

The Marley family's lawyer, Terri Dipalo, denied the latest
move was a negotiating ploy to compel the Weinsteins to buy
Marley music rights or to up the price for those rights. She
did suggest that "anything's possible" when asked if Marley's
songs might end up in the Weinstein feature.

Music publisher Blackwell would like to see the Weinstein
biopic delayed until at least 2015 to avoid the two projects
colliding. He said he talked with Harvey Weinstein on March 13
about the issue, but so far nothing has been resolved.

Blackwell told The Reporter that he expects a deal to be
reached soon whereby the Weinstein Co. would take a stake in
the Scorsese documentary and agree to postpone its drama.

Weinstein Co. spokesman Matthew Frankel responded, "We have
great respect for the Marley family and Chris Blackwell and are
in discussions to look at ways to mutually benefit both
projects."

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Lawsuit settled over Beach Boys name

30 minutes ago

LOS ANGELES - Two former members of the Beach Boys settled a five-year legal dispute over use of the band's name, a lawyer said.

Al Jardine and Mike Love reached an agreement after a two-day conference in Superior Court, attorney Lawrence Noble, who represents Jardine, said Thursday. Details of the settlement were not disclosed.

"Mr. Jardine feels very happy and feels that this is a friendly settlement that allows them to focus on the talent and future of this American iconic band," Noble said.

Love sued Jardine in 2003, claiming he fronted a group that used various versions of the Beach Boys name. The lawsuit said Love was the sole licensee to perform under the name, and that Jardine was denied use because he did not agree to abide by terms of a proposed license.

Love was seeking $2 million in court costs and $1 million he said Jardine collected from using the name.

A judge ruled in January that the case could go to trial. It was set to begin April 14.

The Beach Boys were founded in 1961 by brothers Brian, Carl and Dennis Wilson, their cousin Love and Brian Wilson's friend Jardine.

Dennis Wilson died in 1983 and Carl Wilson died in 1998.

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

`Chocolate Rain' claims a YouTube award

By ERIN CARLSON, Associated Press Writer 1 hour, 27 minutes ago

NEW YORK - And the winner for best music video: "Chocolate Rain."

Tay Zonday morphed from an unknown musician to an Internet superstar who got booked on national TV shows after his song "Chocolate Rain" — an amateur clip of his baritone crooning — went viral last year. Now he's among the 12 winners of the second annual YouTube Video Awards, recognizing the top user-created videos of 2007.

YouTube users voted on six nominees for each category: music, sports, comedy, instructional, short film, inspirational, commentary, creative, politics, series, eyewitness and "adorable."

"It's the new Emmys," Zonday, 25, said of the video-sharing site's awards in a telephone interview with The Associated Press. "It's the next Oscars. The next People's Choice Awards. It'll be interesting to see what happens five years, 10 years (from now)."

His competition included comely singer-songwriter Mia Rose and "the vegetable orchestra," featuring a jam session with a carrot flute and squash drum.

Neil Cicierega's video featuring "Harry Potter" hand puppets (and Professor Dumbledore without any clothes on) won for best comedy video. Guillaume Reymond's "Human Tetris" won most creative video.

Chris Crocker, who shot to stardom in his video freak-out over Britney Spears' public meltdown, was beat in the commentary category by a clip from Michael Buckley of the popular online show "What the Buck?" slamming fellow YouTube celebrity Lonelygirl15.

The Obama Girl, aka Amber Lee Ettinger, whose "I Got A Crush On Obama" clip has been seen more than 7 million times, didn't wind up winning in the politics category. That honor went to the serious-minded "Stop the Clash of Civilizations" video by the global organization avaaz.org.

"The (political) video that actually won in an election year wasn't one that had anything to do with the election itself," said YouTube spokesman Aaron Ferstman. "(It's a) video that deals with ... serious issues like discrimination, and that video's done in kind of a neat way that speaks to young people."

Best eyewitness video was the epic "Battle at Kruger," which has drawn more than 26 million views to its astonishing footage of a baby water buffalo surviving an attack by lions — and a crocodile! — in the African prairie. It was up against the news-making clip of a University of Florida student pleading "Don't tase me, bro!" as police removed him from a John Kerry forum.

Ben Shelton's "My Name is Lisa" — a drama about a young girl and her mother who has Alzheimer's — triumphed in the newly added short film category. The winning Web series was "The Guild," a comedy about a group of obsessed online gamers.

The Texas Country Reporter's video about a blind painter won most inspirational video. The "Balloon Bowl" clip of a guy skateboarding in, well, a balloon-filled bowl snagged best sports video. And the incredibly cute, compulsively watchable "Laughing Baby" clip was voted most adorable.

Dan Brown's video "How to Solve a Rubik's Cube (Part One)" scored in the instructional category.

Ferstman said the prizes consist of "notoriety" and a trophy he described as "very heavy with a metal base" supporting a "big glass `play' button."

Ferstman said: "These are the (videos) that really will stand out and over time, you know, you'll say, `Hey, do you remember the Laughing Baby'?"

Zonday, who streams music from his YouTube channel, MySpace page and personal Web site, said he hopes to earn "a living making art and producing music," and is pursuing a voice-over career. He's flattered by the numerous online parodies of "Chocolate Rain," which has garnered nearly 16 million views.

"A lot of people see political commentary in (the song)," he said. "A lot of people find humor in it. A lot of people, they say their 2-year-olds can't stop repeating it at bedtime, so lots of people get different things out of the song. And I think the greatest consequence and the greatest mileage it can have is to get people asking questions."

What's the key to YouTube success?

"Just be very authentic and put yourself out there," he said in his mellifluous voice. "You'll never know what will happen."

___

On the Net:

http://www.youtube/ytawards07

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

Cox calls on friends to help raise funds

47 minutes ago

LOS ANGELES - Courteney Cox and David Arquette have a challenge for their famous friends: help raise $1 million in two weeks for Epidermolysis Bullosa, a rare skin condition that primarily affects children.

Joining Cox and Arquette in the awareness- and money-raising effort are Jennifer Aniston, Orlando Bloom, Kate Beckinsale, Rashida Jones, James Marsden and Eva Longoria Parker. All will lend their famous faces and financial support to the Epidermolysis Bullosa Medical Research Foundation, where Cox, Arquette and Aniston serve on the honorary advisory board. (Brad Pitt, Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale are also members.)

"EB is very personal to me so I'm happy to be a part of this $1 million challenge," Cox said in a statement to The Associated Press. "Now is such an important time to put the spotlight on EB and ensure that research can continue at a fast pace."

Epidermolysis Bullosa is a debilitating genetic disorder that causes the skin to blister and break at the slightest touch. Victims are often covered in burn-like sores that never heal and most don't live beyond age 30.

___

On the Net:

http://ebkids.org/

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog

'Stop-Loss' Stars Say Meeting Soldiers Changed Their Perspective On Iraq War

'The average soldier [is] more concerned with life and death' than with politics, Ryan Phillippe says.

Politicians have made it the most important issue of the upcoming election, arguing back and forth over strategies, resources and timetables. Public support falls as death tolls steadily rise. All the while, our reasons for being there adjust and transform, sometimes gradually, sometimes in the time it takes to make a speech or topple a statue.

Much has changed since the beginning of the war in Iraq, which marks its fifth anniversary on Thursday (March 20). One thing that hasn't is the reality the military faces every day, say the cast of "Stop-Loss," a drama about a decorated sergeant who returns from Iraq only to learn that he is being sent back. The actors base their assertions on conversations they've had with current and former soldiers.

For instance, while much of the country argues over politics, "soldiers have to check their politics at the door," co-star Channing Tatum said.

"It's their job. That's how I think [they] all sort of went into it," he said. "[They] put all of our political agendas aside and went, 'Nope, we're just going to be soldiers.' "

"When I used to think about the war, I would think about it from an intellectual point, analyzing, 'What's the government doing, what's the economy doing, where's the oil?' " Joseph Gordon-Levitt said. "But getting to know some soldiers who have been over there made me consider [it] on a whole other, more human and personal level, rather than thinking of these guys as simply numbers and statistics."

"It wasn't about how we should end the war," star Ryan Phillippe recalled of his conversations with soldiers. "I think those are bigger questions than ones the average soldier wrestles with. They're more concerned with life and death and getting home to see that girl they love or children they left back here."

As Phillippe suggests, any war story is by necessity a multifaceted narrative. There's the immediate, primal experience of soldiers in war, an experience that can be indescribable and beyond a civilian's comprehension (think of the storming of the beach in "Saving Private Ryan"). There are the stories soldiers tell themselves to make sense of their environments — sometimes not accurate, but always truthful. Then, lastly, there are the political justifications given for fighting: retribution, defense, God, honor, the flag, etc.

Because soldiers are more preoccupied with the "how" than the "why" of battle, say the actors, their immediate perceptions rarely change, regardless of how the war plays out at home, regardless of the anniversaries we choose to observe.

"This is what was so hard for me to understand at first and what I really came to learn," Gordon-Levitt said. "When you're sitting in your living room reading the news and watching TV, these are the kinds of questions that come up: What's gonna happen in 15 years, what's it gonna mean for the diplomacy between the United States and the Middle East? [But] when you're actually over there, you can't afford to think that way. It's different — it's something, I think, that is deep inside your body that happens when your life is threatened."

"I was looking for the emblematic story for this generation, which I found to be fundamentally patriotic Americans who signed up [and] wanted to defend their home, their country and their family," writer/director Kimberly Peirce said. "When they got there, they had a very profound experience. They realized that being in combat was about protecting the soldier to your left and the soldier to your right. That's really it."

So the "Stop-Loss" gang insists that while it's inevitable that, on the occasion of the fifth anniversary, we reflect on how public perception of the war has changed, it's important to shift our perspective from a political viewpoint to one of "human terms," Gordon-Levitt said.

Luckily, we live in just the right time to do that.

"Just accepting mainstream media is unacceptable to an extent because most of the people in mainstream media weren't there," Gordon-Levitt contended. "[But] the Internet generation has an opportunity no other generation has had to be in communication with the soldiers themselves. There are more blogs and Flickr accounts and stuff from soldiers than you could possibly go through. Check it out."

"Stop-Loss" opens March 28. Hear what soldiers have to say at the movie's Web site.

After watching "Choose or Lose Presents Clinton & Obama Answer Young Veterans,"head here for additional material, including profiles of the Iraq veterans featured in the show.

This content was originally posted on http://entertainews.blogspot.com/ © 2008 If you are not reading this text from the above site, you are reading a splog