Entertainment News

Los Angeles (E! Online) - Christmas came early for Tom Sizemore, who just received another get-out-of-jail card.

NEW YORK - Trading karate chops for lawyers, tough guy actor Chuck Norris is taking on a new book titled "The Truth About Chuck Norris," saying it's a big lie and he wants to stop its distribution.

A list of honors the top movies are winning leading up to the Oscars:

LONDON (Reuters) - British actor-comedian Sacha Baron Cohen says the time has come to shed forever his persona as Borat, the boorish, oversexed, TV journalist from Kazakhstan who became a surprise box office sensation last year.

Capsule reviews of films opening this week:

NASHVILLE, Tenn. - Alan Jackson, Garth Brooks and Toby Keith have a couple apiece. Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton did one together. The ever-prolific Willie Nelson has at least four of them. Most country stars, and many of their pop counterparts, have a Christmas album or two in their catalogs, and for good reason: The records are relatively easy to make and have the potential for big payoff.

NEW YORK - The New York City Opera will likely produce four pared-down operas while its Lincoln Center theater is renovated next season, down from the company's typical 12 productions, officials said.

NEW YORK - Rapper Remy Ma is being sued for $20 million by the woman she is suspected of shooting in a dispute over money.

NEW YORK (Billboard) - The Smashing Pumpkins will release a four-song acoustic EP, "American Gothic," on January 2 exclusively via iTunes in the United States.

GARDENA, Calif. - Ike Turner's funeral was part memorial service, part rock concert.

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. - Former child star Danielle Fishel, a teen heartthrob on ABC's "Boy Meets World," was arrested this week on a drunken driving warrant from Los Angeles County, police said.

Where could you find Beach Boy Brian Wilson, "wild and crazy guy" Steve Martin, and Miss Diana Ross — with director Martin Sorsese and pianist Leon Fleisher for good measure?

LOS ANGELES - Just a week ago, the producers of Jamie Lynn Spears' hit TV show "Zoey 101" were wondering how fans might react to a plotline that had her character thinking of leaving her fantasy-land boarding school.

NEW YORK - David Letterman doesn't even need writers to have fun with this one. The late-night comic's representatives met with striking writers on Friday in an attempt to reach a deal that will allow the "Late Show" to return to the air with its writing staff.

NEW YORK - Borat is dead. Sacha Baron Cohen tells The Daily Telegraph that he's retiring the clueless Kazakh journalist, as well as his alter ego, aspiring rapper Ali G.

NEW YORK - David Letterman doesn't even need writers to have fun with this one. The late-night comic's representatives met with striking writers on Friday in an attempt to reach a deal that will allow the "Late Show" to return to the air with its writing staff.

NEW YORK - GOP strategist Karl Rove has agreed to write about his years as an adviser to President Bush in a deal worth over $1.5 million with former colleague Mary Matalin's conservative imprint at Simon & Schuster, officials said Friday.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Rapper Remy Ma "willfully, wantonly and maliciously" shot and critically wounded an acquaintance, a $10 million civil lawsuit filed against her claimed on Friday.

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - Two "CSI" reruns rendered Thursday's reality battle among Fox, NBC and ABC somewhat moot, as CBS won all three hours in viewership and adults 18-49.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - XM Satellite Radio and Warner Music Group, the world's third largest music company, said on Friday they had settled a lawsuit brought by the music company over XM's portable satellite radio with advanced recording features.

Capsule reviews of films opening this week:

Someday, we're probably going to look back at "There Will Be Blood," Paul Thomas Anderson's epic about greed, lies, manipulation and insanity, and call it his masterpiece.

In this week's "Up Down Left Right," RYAN PEARSON samples a few of the odder offerings for portable gaming systems.

Selected home-video releases:

It could have been overly sentimental and feel-good, this movie about a pioneering black debate team in the segregated South. But Denzel Washington, as director and star, manages to find the right tone much of the time in "The Great Debaters."

NEW YORK - GOP strategist Karl Rove has agreed to write about his years as an adviser to President Bush in a deal worth over $1.5 million with former colleague Mary Matalin's conservative imprint at Simon & Schuster, officials said Friday.

1. "T is for Trespass" by Sue Grafton (Putnam)

1. "T is for Trespass" by Sue Grafton (Putnam)

NEW YORK - Lynne Spears' book about parenting has been delayed indefinitely, her publisher said Wednesday. Lindsey Nobles, a spokeswoman for Christian book publisher Thomas Nelson Inc., said Wednesday that the memoir by the mother of Britney Spears was put on hold last week.

ATLANTA - Pulitzer Prize winning author Alice Walker is placing her literary archive at Emory University's library.

Zonya Love will make her Broadway debut in the New York company of The Color Purple Jan. 9, 2008, when she succeeds "American Idol" winner Fantasia in the role of Celie. Fantasia will play her final performance Jan. 6.

Gone With the Wind director Trevor Nunn has found his Scarlett O'Hara in the form of American performer Jill Paice, who is currently starring on Broadway in Curtains at the Al Hirschfeld Theatre.

Tony Award-winning director Jack O'Brien - whose most recent Tony was for his direction of the Tom Stoppard trilogy, The Coast of Utopia - has found his latest stage project.

Two-time Tony Award winner George Hearn will join another two-time Tony winner - Chita Rivera - for Signature Theatre's spring 2008 revival of Kander & Ebb's musical The Visit in Arlington, VA.

Giancarlo Esposito will play Gooper, Maggie the Cat's money-and-status-hungry brother-in-law, in the new Broadway production of Tennessee Williams' Pulitzer Prize winning play Cat on a Hot Ton Roof in spring 2008.

LONDON (AFP) - Former British prime minister Tony Blair has become a Roman Catholic, church officials said Saturday, ending widespread speculation that he would switch to the faith of his wife and four children.

CIENFUEGOS, Cuba (AFP) - Supermodel Naomi Campbell added a touch of glamour to a regional summit in Cuba, getting a first-hand look at homes donated by Venezuela for Cuban workers at a refurbished oil refinery.

Los Angeles (E! Online) - Christmas came early for Tom Sizemore, who just received another get-out-of-jail card.

LOS ANGELES - After seven years of separation, Eddie Van Halen and Valerie Bertinelli have jumped forward and completed an amicable divorce. The Los Angeles Superior Court judgment Thursday didn't provide details about a custody arrangement for their 16-year-old son, Wolfgang. The bass player is with his father on a Van Halen reunion tour.

NEW YORK - Rapper Remy Ma is being sued for $20 million by the woman she is suspected of shooting in a dispute over money. Makeda Barnes-Joseph was shot twice in the abdomen on July 14, after leaving a party in Manhattan's Greenwich Village.

New York - "We wanted to link makeup back to fashion," said Kevin Carrigan, creative director of ck Calvin Klein and the new ck Calvin Klein beauty collection, at a presentation in Calvin Klein's New York offices on Dec. 19. The new beauty line, currently available in Europe and in select Macy's and Dillard's stores in the U.S., launches nationwide at Sephora in January 2008.

Paris - H&M and Designers Against AIDS are linking up with a gang of creative types, including Rihanna, Timbaland and Jade Jagger, to create a cotton collection for guys and girls.

New York - Now, a Chanel suit or Fendi bag aren't the only ways to collect something with Karl Lagerfeld's stamp on it - photographs and rare pieces from his personal decorative arts collection offer another way to own a piece of Lagerfeld's myth.

New York - With glamorous gowns displayed like elegant sculptures in her New York showroom, Reem Acra joined the increasing number of designers doing formal presentations for their pre-fall collections, the transitional season that retailers use to bridge spring/summer and fall collections.

New York - Subtle Asian-inspired elements were the basis of the Luca Luca Pre-Fall ’08 collection, presented in their New York store on Madison Avenue on Tuesday, Dec. 11.

DEAR ABBY: I have a special cake recipe that I have perfected over the years. I get compliments on it and requests for the recipe every time I take one to any non-family gathering.

DEAR ABBY: While my daughter and I were at the supermarket, we ran into Santa at the deli! You can't imagine my daughter's surprise -- not to mention my own.

DEAR ABBY: I have found the man I will be with for the rest of my life. I knew from the moment I met him that he was The One. We are very happy and very much in love.

DEAR READERS: Yesterday I printed the feedback I received regarding a letter from "Smothered in Michigan," a recently divorced mother of two. Her ex-husband had been an alcoholic. She's now dating his "polar opposite" who "treats her like a queen" and is "loving, affectionate, generous and caring."

DEAR ABBY: Your advice to "Smothered in Michigan" (Oct. 24), whose "loving, caring, generous boyfriend" stops by her job "only a few times a day" and shows up at her door the minute she gets home from work, was wrong. You told her to tell him she needs some space. Well, that won't work.

12/22/2007 - DEAR MARGO: I was checking out my 12-year-old daughter's MySpace (she knows I do this as a condition of her having it) and found my 14-year-old niece's MySpace (that my brother and sister-in-law do not know she has), where she alluded to having a "relationship" with a lesbian friend.

12/21/2007 - DEAR MARGO: I am in my early 20s. My boyfriend and I have been dating for three years and have a wonderful relationship. We've survived three periods of long distance, one breakup (soon reversed) and a host of other issues. We are absolutely supportive of one another in all matters.

12/20/2007 - DEAR MARGO: I was checking out my 12-year-old daughter's MySpace (she knows I do this as a condition of her having it) and found my 14-year-old niece's MySpace (that my brother and sister-in-law do not know she has), where she alluded to having a "relationship" with a lesbian friend.

12/14/2007 - DEAR MARGO: I've been divorced now for a little over 10 years. In the process, my ex-wife has alienated my family to the point where they want nothing to do with her. That's fine because I only deal with my ex-wife as necessary.

12/13/2007 - DEAR MARGO: I met and married the man of my dreams four years ago. Both of us were in our 40s, and obviously we each had a past. I was honest about mine; he said he just didn't remember things. After we married he remembered a few things . . . such as having sex with two women at the same time. I told him I found that disgusting. When he saw how shocked I was, he didn't tell me anything else.

Creators Syndicate - Last weekend, we finally got around to decorating for Christmas at our house.

Creators Syndicate - Under pressure to explain his religious faith to the American people, Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama delivered a 45-minute speech today discussing his belief in Oprah Winfrey.

Creators Syndicate - My fingers are trembling as I type this column, because it's about pets. I can say anything I want about people; I can pick on kids, men, women, even old people, and nobody gets upset. But say one word about dogs or cats and I get angry diatribes from readers about how heartless I am. I have to speak out, though, before it's too late. America, I'm afraid, is going to the dogs.

Creators Syndicate - In a bold move that could dramatically alter the playing field of the 2008 GOP presidential race, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee today named Jesus Christ as his vice-presidential running mate.

Creators Syndicate - For the first 44 weeks of each year, I'm a pretty disciplined eater, at least by my own, admittedly poor, standards. I limit myself to a couple of pieces of toast every morning, and I take in a decent sized lunch and a healthy dinner, with seconds if it's something I like. (I like a lot.) But I eat vegetables and salads, and don't eat desserts, cookies, candy, potato chips, or drink even soda.

NEWPORT BEACH, Calif. - Former child star Danielle Fishel, a teen heartthrob on ABC's "Boy Meets World," was arrested this week on a drunken driving warrant from Los Angeles County, police said.

Los Angeles (E! Online) - Eddie Van Halen has officially gone solo. At least in the relationship department.

NEW YORK - Trading karate chops for lawyers, tough guy actor Chuck Norris is taking on a new book titled "The Truth About Chuck Norris," saying it's a big lie and he wants to stop its distribution.

NEW YORK - Borat is dead. Sacha Baron Cohen tells The Daily Telegraph that he's retiring the clueless Kazakh journalist, as well as his alter ego, aspiring rapper Ali G.

GARDENA, Calif. - Ike Turner's funeral was part memorial service, part rock concert.