HOLLYWOOD - Jackson peeved over new Eminem video
Michael Jackson isn't laughing over rapper Eminem's mocking him in his recently release video "Just Lose It" and is asking cable music stations to remove it, The Associated Press reports. In the video, Eminem is dressed up as Jackson and is seen with a group of boys jumping on a bed behind him as he sings about Jackson's child molestation allegations. In other scenes his hair is burning a la Jackson's 1984 Pepsi commercial shoot incident and his nose is shown falling on the floor. "I am very angry at Eminem's depiction of me in his video," Jackson said Tuesday in an interview with comedian Steve Harvey on a Los Angeles radio station. "I feel that it is outrageous and disrespectful. It is one thing to spoof, but it is another to be demeaning and insensitive." Black Entertainment Television has been the only cabler to agree to pull the video. The network's president and founder, Robert Johnson, said he felt it was inappropriate to disparage a celebrity, AP reports.
Friends, family gather for Reeve memorial
Actor/activist Christopher Reeve, who died Sunday of heart failure, was remembered Tuesday in a private ceremony at his family's home in Pound Ridge, New York, Reuters reports. About 100 close friends and family members gathered for the memorial. "The Reeve family is deeply grateful for the outpouring of support shown to them," said spokesman Wesley Combs. "It is clear that Christopher Reeve has touched the hearts of millions of people around the world and that is the legacy he leaves behind." The Superman actor became an ardent campaigner for spinal cord research after being paralyzed in a horse riding accident nine years ago.
Britney…Federline?
Pop princess Britney Spears admitted she wouldn't mind changing her last name after marring 26-year-old dancer Kevin Federline last month, Reuters reports. "I probably will, Britney Federline, I like that," Spears told Germany's Bunte magazine. "Society probably won't allow me but I would like to change it." The star also told Bunte she hopes to start having children soon. "There are a few things I want to take care of this year before I have my baby," she said. "I'd love to have a baby already. But I've got to take care of some things first…I want to become a mother. I'm crazy about children…next year, when I'm 23 I'll be ready."
CSI Tops Ratings
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation was at the top of the heap in the Nielsen ratings for the week of Oct. 4-10, AP reports. CBS won the week, averaging 13.8 million viewers followed by NBC (9.9 million); ABC (9.7 million); Fox (7.8 million); the WB (4 million); and UPN (3.7 million). The top 10 shows were: CSI: Crime Scene Investigation CBS; Without a Trace, CBS, 21.3 million; CSI: Miami, CBS; Desperate Housewives, ABC; Survivor: Vanuatu, CBS; Everybody Loves Raymond, CBS; ER, NBC; CSI: NY, CBS; Lost, ABC; Two and a Half Men, CBS.
Fox has 30 days to appeal hefty FCC fine
Fox isn't saying whether it will appeal a fine of more than $1 million levied against it by the Federal Communications Commission over an episode of Married by America, an unscripted series that allowed viewers to match up a cast of single men and women by popular vote. The agency said the April 7, 2003 episode, which featured Las Vegas strippers performing at cast member's bachelor and bachelorette parties, was indecent and patently offensive. "The episode includes scenes in which partygoers lick whipped cream from strippers' bodies in a sexually suggestive manner," the FCC said. "Although the episode electronically obscures any nudity, the sexual nature of the scenes is inescapable." The agency voted unanimously to fine each of the 169 Fox TV stations that aired the program $7,000. Fox has 30 days to appeal the fines, which total $1,183,000, AP reports.
Mel Gibson donates $10 million to hospitals
Mel Gibson donated $10 million to Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA and the Cedars-Sinal Medical Center to help care for children from foreign countries, AP reports. "Through this remarkable contribution, the generosity of Mr. Gibson will transform the lives of children throughout the world," Dr. Edward McCabe, physician-in-chief of the Mattel Children's Hospital at UCLA, said. The donation will help children with serious medical conditions who are unable to be treated in their own countries. The children who will benefit from Gibson's donation will be recommended by Healing the Children.
Cruise, Winfrey to emcee Nobel concert
Tom Cruise and Oprah Winfrey will host December's traditional Nobel Peace Prize Concert on in Oslo, Norway, honoring the 2004 laureate, the AP reports. Kenyan environmentalist Wangari Maathai, 64, became the first African woman to win the coveted peace prize. Entertainers booked to play the December 11 show include British teen soul singer Joss Stone, jazz singer Diana Krall, pop singer Cyndi Lauper and Patti Labelle.
Guylaine Cadorette contributed to this report.