Even at 50, the queen of pop just can’t stop courting controversy.

As Madonna kicked off her international “Sticky and Sweet” tour Saturday night, she took a none-too subtle swipe at the presumptive Republican nominee for U.S. president.

Amid a four-act show at Cardiff’s packed Millennium Stadium, a video interlude carried images of destruction, global warming, Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler, Zimbabwe’s authoritarian President Robert Mugabe — and U.S. Sen. John McCain. Another sequence, shown later, pictured slain Beatle John Lennon, followed by climate activist Al Gore, Mahatma Gandhi and finally McCain’s Democratic rival, Barack Obama.

More at MSNBC

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Paul Slansky, over at The Huffington Post, tests his readers’ knowledge in Bush’speak: “Say What?: The Bush Speaks Quiz”

How well were you paying attention to what President Bush said in Pennsylvania this week?

1) Complete George W. Bush’s statement: “One way to love your neighbor is _____________”
a) the food bank.
b) to mow his lawn.
c) use the Heimlich maneuver if he or she is choking on something.

2) What did George W. Bush say his wife Laura “cares deeply about”?
a) Drunk driving, abortion and cigarettes in movies.
b) Global warming, Darfur and steroids.
c) Women in Afghanistan, literacy and malaria.

ANSWERS: 1) a, 2) c

Take the rest of Paul’s quiz here

Note: Paul Slansky’s quizzes will be a regular feature on 23/6, the new satiric news site coming soon to a computer screen near you.

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By LYNN ELBER
The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES - Twelve years after Marcia Clark heard jurors pronounce O.J. Simpson innocent of murder, the former prosecutor carried her enduring guilt into another courtroom with the ex-football star.

This time, Clark was the most startling member of the media pack covering Simpson’s Las Vegas felony arrest. As legal correspondent for “Entertainment Tonight” and “The Insider,” she had the chance to tell the world what she thinks of Simpson - and she used it.

“Just seeing him back in court again, facing charges. I can’t believe it. It’s just surreal,” she said in an interview with The Associated Press. “He skated on two murder charges, and he managed to get out of other charges of much lesser gravity since then. How did he manage to get himself back in trouble again?

“How stupid do you have to be?”

On the air, Clark’s voice drips with more disgust. She dismissed Simpson’s book, “If I Did It,” as “hideous” and “all a lie.” Indirectly addressing his girlfriend Christine Prody, a Nicole Brown-lookalike who stood by him in court Wednesday, Clark said: “It made me sick to my stomach. Do you not realize you could be next?”

read more at YAHOO! NEWS

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By SANDY COHEN
The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES - Jon Stewart is getting a do-over as Oscar host.

America’s favorite faux newscaster, who drew mixed reviews for his first stint in 2006, has been picked for a return engagement in February, the film academy announced Wednesday.

“I’m thrilled to be asked to host the Academy Awards for the second time because, as they say, the third time’s a charm,” Stewart said Wednesday in a statement from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences.

“He did a great job two years ago,” Oscar telecast producer Gil Cates told The Associated Press Wednesday. “You need a host who is not afraid of the unexpected, who can stand out and really work a room and deal with a live show. Jon, of course, does that on his show every night.”

Stewart, 44, is also “a very, very nice guy and very easy to work with,” Cates said.

The 2007 show, hosted by Ellen DeGeneres, drew 40.1 million viewers, compared to the 38.9 million who watched when Stewart hosted the previous year. But bringing back Stewart is “not a bad choice,” said longtime TV critic David Bianculli of the New York Daily News.

read more HERE

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By RICHARD SEVERO
New York Times

Jane Wyman, who won an Oscar for her portrayal of a victimized deaf woman in the 1948 movie “Johnny Belinda,” played a fierce matriarch in the 1980s television series “Falcon Crest” and was the first wife of President Ronald Reagan, died Monday at her home in Rancho Mirage, Calif. She was 90.

Her death was confirmed by Jonathan Bernstein, a family spokesman.

Ms. Wyman started her movie career in the 1930s playing wisecracking chorus girls before winning the Academy Award and three other best-actress Oscar nominations between 1947 to 1955.

She rekindled her star power in her 60s, playing Angela Channing, the domineering owner of a Northern California winery in “Falcon Crest,” which ran from 1981 to 1990.

She had met Mr. Reagan in the late 1930s and appeared with him in the comedy “Brother Rat” (1938). They were married in 1940, had a daughter, Maureen, and then adopted a son, Michael, before divorcing in 1948.

Ms. Wyman’s Oscar came for her sensitive performance in “Johnny Belinda” (1948), in which she played a deaf woman whose pregnancy resulting from a rape causes a scandal. Archer Winston, writing in The New York Post, called her performance “surpassingly beautiful.”

“It is all the more beautiful in its accomplishment without words,” he added.

read more HERE

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The Associated Press

“I mean…like….for sure…and I was all…” - JS

NEW YORK (AP) — You see a tabloid shot of Mary-Kate Olsen and think, “Why does she look so depressed?” Well, there’s a reason for that.

“I don’t want my picture taken,” the 21-year-old actress tells Entertainment Weekly magazine. “The only time I think it’s OK is at a red-carpet event or a photo shoot.

“So every time I see paparazzi, I cover my face so they don’t get a picture, and I’m just ‘the mean person who doesn’t smile.’ ”

Olsen, whose waiflike figure has made her a target of media scrutiny, avoids public displays of attention.

“I would love to be able to swim in the ocean in Malibu,” she says. “But that is asking for a bikini shot. That’s inviting something that I don’t want to happen. I don’t need to be on a ‘Who’s Skinny, Who’s Fat, Who’s Looking Healthy, Who’s Not Eating?’ list.”

After a hiatus from acting, Olsen — who rose to fame on TV’s “Full House” in a shared role with twin sister Ashley — will portray an alluring Christian girl on Showtime’s “Weeds.” Her 10-episode arc begins September 17.

She also returns to the big screen in “The Wackness,” co’starring Ben Kingsley. The film is slated for release next year.

“There’s definitely been times in my life when I just turned to people and said, ‘I’m done, this is too much for me, this is too overwhelming,’ ” Olsen says.

She’s in a healthy frame of mind these days.

“Mentally, physically, I feel pretty on top of my game right now,” Olsen says. “Talk to me next week, I don’t know. Today, I feel good.”

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The Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) Tuesday denounced comedian Jerry Lewis’ use of the word “fag” on Lewis’ annual Labor Day Telethon for Muscular Dystrophy and called on him to apologize.

“Jerry Lewis’ on-air use of this kind of anti-gay slur is simply unacceptable,” GLAAD President Neil G. Giuliano said in a statement posted on the group’s Web site. “It also feeds a climate of hatred and intolerance that contributes to putting our community in harm’s way.”

In the 18th hour of the 21 1/2-hour telethon Monday, Lewis — bow tie undone and shirt collar open — stumbled around the set at the South Coast Hotel, Casino and Spa in Las Vegas, marveling at the cameraman’s ability to keep up with him.

Read more and watch video here

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from various sources

Celebrities paid to heat up Vegas clubs

LAS VEGAS - Three years ago, as Paris Hilton was about to turn 24, the celebutante got a sense of her worth to the nightclub industry in Las Vegas. She had celebrated her previous three birthdays at Light, the Bellagio hotel-casino nightclub run by the Light Group. But for her 24th, another company swooped in with an offer that trumped the standard private jet to and from L.A., a free stay at a luxury suite, a sumptuous dinner and, of course, free booze.

The hotel heiress would get a big paycheck - Light was told $200,000 - just to party, but it had to be at PURE, a rival nightclub at Caesars Palace run by the PURE Management Group.

Her people let the Light Group know that their former deal was off.

Film academy sues to stop sale of Oscars

LOS ANGELES - The Motion Picture Academy of Arts & Sciences is suing to stop the public sale of two Academy Awards given to silent film star Mary Pickford.

In the lawsuit filed Wednesday, the academy claims it has the right to buy the historic statuettes and one owned by her late husband for $10 each.

The academy contends an heir to the Oscars demanded $500,000 for one statuette alone in July - an offer the academy refused.

Pickford won the Academy Award for best actress in 1930 and was given an honorary Oscar in 1975.

Houston, Brown battle over child custody

SANTA ANA, Calif. - Bobby Brown went to court Friday to seek custody of his and Whitney Houston’s teenage daughter.

Brown and his attorney asked Orange County Superior Court to dismiss a default judgment issued in December that granted Houston sole custody of 14-year-old Bobbi Kristina.

Brown wasn’t given enough time to respond to Houston’s divorce filings, his attorney Stacy D. Phillips said: “He didn’t have his day in court.”

Judge Claudia Silbar ordered Brown and Houston to argue their case at an Oct. 22 hearing before she decides who will get custody.

‘Family Ties’ star gets probation

BOULDER, Colo., Aug. 31 (UPI) — Brian Bonsall, a one-time “Family Ties” star, was sentenced to probation in a Colorado Court after pleading guilty to assaulting his girlfriend while drunk.

Before being sentenced, Bonsall told Boulder County District Judge Lael Montgomery he has gone to rehab, is sober and “happy as ever,” The Boulder Daily Camera reported Friday.

Bonsall, 25, played the younger son, Andy Keaton, on the series from 1986-89.

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via The Huffington Post

COLUMBUS, Ohio - David Stroupe said it was one of the worst experiences with a performer in the history of the Funny Bone Comedy Club.

He was referring to Andy Dick, a former co’star on the 1990s sitcom “NewsRadio,” who appeared at the Funny Bone last weekend.

Stroupe, the club’s managing partner, said the 41-year-old actor-comedian made inappropriate comments while on stage, groped patrons, took women into the men’s room and urinated on the floor and on at least one person.

A limousine driver was to meet Dick early Monday morning at a hotel near the club, Stroupe said, but he couldn’t be found and missed that morning’s flight to Los Angeles.

Dick was across town, where he was issued a citation for urinating on the sidewalk by Columbus policeman John Fantin. Police eventually escorted Dick back to the hotel, Stroupe said.

Dick’s manager, Max Burgos, did not immediately respond Friday to phone and e-mail messages by The Associated Press seeking comment.

Dick is scheduled to appear Thursday in Franklin County Municipal Court, but instead could pay a $126 fine and court costs for the misdemeanor offense, a court employee said.

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By BETH HARRIS
The Associated Press

GREAT! Only a few weeks after he signs a multi-million dollar contract to come to America to play soccer, Beckham is now on the “disabled list” as a player. Nice way to keep making that big time cash. - JS

LOS ANGELES - It might be a while before David Beckham steps on the field again for Los Angeles or England.

Beckham, whose five-year contract guarantees an annual salary of $6.5 million, could miss the rest of the Los Angeles Galaxy’s season because of a sprained right knee. He’s played 310 minutes in six games, which comes to about $21,000 a minute if he’s out for the season.

The English midfielder underwent an MRI exam that confirmed Thursday he sprained the medial collateral ligament in his knee, the team said in a statement.

The injury also means he won’t be joining England’s national team. Beckham had planned to fly to London on Sunday for 10 days with the team as it prepares to play Israel and Russia in two Euro 2008 qualifying games.

The 32-year-old Beckham was injured in a tackle with Pachuca midfielder Fernando Salazar in the first half of Wednesday night’s SuperLiga title match. The Galaxy lost 4-3 on penalty kicks.

read more HERE

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By Kenneth Li
Reuters

NEW YORK (Reuters) - NBC Universal has decided not to renew its contract to sell television shows on iTunes, becoming the second major media company to challenge Apple Inc’s (AAPL.O) dominance in digital entertainment.

Apple said on Friday that NBC had demanded to more than double the wholesale rate for each show, which Apple said would have forced its iTunes online store to raise what it charged consumers to $4.99 per TV show episode from $1.99.

“We are disappointed to see NBC leave iTunes because we would not agree to their dramatic price increase,” Eddy Cue, Apple’s vice president of iTunes, said in a statement.

Apple has decided not to offer shows for download from NBC’s upcoming season beginning in September, including popular series such as “Heroes.”

A spokeswoman for NBC Universal confirmed it will not renew the iTunes contract and declined to elaborate.

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compiled from various sources
by Jim Swanson

Reports: Owen Wilson drops out of movie

LOS ANGELES - Owen Wilson, hospitalized after an apparent suicide attempt, has dropped out of the upcoming ensemble comedy “Tropic Thunder,” film industry trade papers reported Wednesday.

Wilson will not appear in the DreamWorks movie, already six weeks into production in Hawaii, Daily Variety and The Hollywood Reporter said, citing sources they didn’t identify.

The decision was characterized as a mutual agreement between director Ben Stiller and the 38-year-old actor, who was taken to the hospital Sunday after police responded to the report of a suicide attempt at his Santa Monica home.

The Hollywood Reporter said Wilson had a minor part in the movie, which stars Jack Black and Robert Downey Jr. and revolves around a group of actors who find themselves in the middle of a war.

No-Contest Plea in Director’s Death

A driver involved in a head-on crash that killed “A Christmas Story” director Bob Clark and his son pleaded no contest Wednesday to two counts of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated.

Hector Velazquez-Nava, a 24-year-old Mexican national, entered his plea before Superior Court Judge Keith Schwartz and faces up to six years in state prison when he is sentenced Sept. 27.

Prosecutors said Velazquez-Nava was drunk when he steered his sport utility vehicle into the wrong lane of Pacific Coast Highway in April, striking Clark’s sedan. The filmmaker and his son, Ariel Hanrath-Clark, 22, died at the scene.

Letterman to Appear on `Oprah’

David Letterman will make his first appearance on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” next month, another sign the talk’show titans have buried the hatchet after a rift that lasted more than a decade.

Letterman will tape the interview, a rare appearance on someone else’s show, on Sept. 10 at Madison Square Garden in New York, Winfrey’s production company announced Wednesday.

Their reconciliation began in 2005 when Winfrey appeared on CBS’ “Late Show with David Letterman.” It was Winfrey’s first guest appearance with Letterman, though she twice appeared on his NBC show before the comic jumped networks in 1993.

Faith Hill New `Sunday’ Football Voice

Faith Hill will sing the opening theme to NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” this season, the network announced Wednesday.

The country star will perform “Waiting All Day for Sunday Night” before each game. The song, which pop singer Pink sang last season, is set to the tune of Joan Jett’s ’80s hit, “I Hate Myself for Loving You.”

“I’m honored to have been asked,” Hill told The Associated Press in a phone interview from her home near Nashville. “I truly am a football fan. Particularly, men find it hard to believe that women can be big fans of football, but I love it. I loved it in junior high and high school, but being married to a man who schedules his life around football games, it makes it a lot easier.”

Mark Cuban, Wayne Newton Try `Dancing’

Is it possible Mark Cuban, Floyd Mayweather Jr. or Wayne Newton can dance? Viewers will find out on the new season of “Dancing With the Stars,” which has assembled another eclectic field of contestants.

Cuban, the billionaire Dallas Mavericks owner, welterweight boxing champ Mayweather and Las Vegas headliner Newton are among the 12 celebrities who will compete when the show returns Sept. 24, ABC announced Wednesday.

The rest of the field:

_ Melanie Brown, aka “Scary Spice” and Mel B.

_ Sabrina Bryan of Disney Channel’s “Cheetah Girls.”

_ Indianapolis 500 champion Helio Castroneves.

_ Actress Jennie Garth (”Beverly Hills, 90210″).

_ Model-actress Josie Maran.

_ Soap star Cameron Mathison (”All My Children”).

_ Singer Marie Osmond.

_ Model Albert Reed.

_ Actress Jane Seymour (”Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman”).

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By Marco R. della Cava
USA TODAY

Thursday’s commemoration of the 30th anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death has been mapped out for years. But Lisa Marie Presley’s idea for how to best mark the date bloomed just three weeks ago.

“People have been asking me to do another duet with him forever, but I had to do my own thing before I went back there,” says Presley, 39, whose 20th anniversary duet with her father, Don’t Cry Daddy, was never available commercially.

“So I was ready. I just had to figure out what would be right. And suddenly it came to me, all at the eleventh hour.”

More than 75,000 fans have flowed into Memphis to celebrate their American idol during Elvis Week, exceeding earlier projections. On Thursday, some will be treated to the sight of Presley’s only child using the magic of digital technology to perform another duet with her dad, this time In the Ghetto, a tale of inner-city blues and redemption that was a staple of Elvis’ Vegas shows.

But the younger Presley has added her own touch to this father-daughter reunion: Proceeds from sales of the song, which will be available on iTunes, will benefit a soon-to-be-established New Orleans branch of Presley Place, a transitional housing facility for homeless families. It’s a gesture that her benefit concert-focused dad would appreciate.

read more HERE

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United Press International

LOS ANGELES, Aug. 12 (UPI) — TV game show and hotel mogul Merv Griffin, who started his career as a $100 a week singer in San Francisco, died of prostate cancer Sunday.

The 82-year-old underwent had started a number of successful business ventures, including the creation of popular game shows “Jeopardy” and “Wheel of Fortune,” Los Angeles- FOX11 reported. He parlayed that into a billion-dollar hotel and casino enterprise.

Marcia Newberger, a spokeswoman for The Griffin Group/Merv Griffin Entertainment said Griffin was recently hospitalized for a recurrence of prostate cancer, which he had been treated successfully for more than 10 years ago.

Griffin also had a brief career on the silver screen before moving to television as the host of “The Merv Griffin Show,” which aired for more than 20 years.

He is survived by his son Tony.

“My father was a visionary,” said Tony Griffin in a statement Sunday. “He loved business and continued his many projects and holdings even while hospitalized.”

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By Fred Bronson
Reuters

LOS ANGELES (Billboard) - Jazz icon Ella Fitzgerald is back on the U.S. pop album charts for the first time in just under 38 years.

“Love Letters from Ella” debuted at No. 97 on the Billboard 200 Wednesday, and it also entered the Top Jazz Albums tally at No. 2, behind Michael Buble’s “Call Me Irresponsible.”

Fitzgerald, who died in 1996, had not been on the Billboard 200 since “Ella” peaked at No. 196 in October 1969. The new CD, released through a partnership between Concord Jazz and Starbucks, is her highest-ranked title since “Ella and Basie!” went to No. 69 in 1963. Counting only her solo LPs, this is Fitzgerald’s finest hour since “Ella in Hollywood” starred at No. 35 in 1962.

While her career dates back to 1934, Fitzgerald’s chart span on the Billboard 200 now extends 51 years to the debut of “Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook” in 1956.

On the Top Jazz Albums tally, “Love Letters from Ella” ties the peak position of the “Best of Song Book Collections” CD in July 1996 as the highest-charting Ella titles since “Ella in Rome - The Birthday Concert” ruled for five weeks in July-August 1988.

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