Elton John's bassist found dead

Elton John's bassist has been found dead after apparently taking his own life. The body of Robert Wayne Birch, who has been rocking out with Elton since 1992, was discovered near his home on Wednesday. the musician had what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, although cops have yet to find a suicide note and cannot confirm he took his life. Throughout his lengthy career, Birch also performed with other music legends, including Billy Joel, Stevie Wonder, Eric Clapton, Cher, Sting and Tina Turner. He had been playing with Elton for 20 years and was part of the studio recording for his smash hit "Candle in the Wind" in 1997.

 Blossom star Mayim Bialik was seriously injured Wednesday in a car accident in Los Angeles. Bialik, 36, was driving in L.A. when a car with three tourists from Chile turned into her vehicle at Hollywood Boulevard and caused the crash, LAPD Sgt. Monte Houze says. Bialik suffered "a severe injury to her left thumb" and was taken to a local hospital. The tourists were not cited or detained. But the star won't be losing a digit. On Wednesday afternoon, Bialik posted a message on Twitter saying, "(husband typing) In pain but will keep all my fingers. If u wanna see pre accident me watch The Soup tonight lol."


Queen's husband, Prince Philip, 91, hospitalized with recurrence of bladder infection
Prince Philip, the husband of Queen Elizabeth II, has been taken to a Scottish hospital as "a precautionary measure," Buckingham Palace said. The 91-year-old Duke of Edinburgh was taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary by car, the palace confirmed with NBC News. According to a palace statement, he has had a recurrence of a bladder infection that led to his hospitalization for five days in June during the jubilee celebrations marking the queen's 60th year on the throne. Philip is likely to remain in the hospital for the next few days, according to the palace statement.

Robert Downey Jr. Injured on Set of 'Iron Man 3'

Iron Man 3 has temporarily suspended its production following an on-set injury suffered by the film's star, Robert Downey Jr. "Robert Downey Jr. sustained an ankle injury on the set of Iron Man 3 in Wilmington, North Carolina while performing a stunt," Marvel Studios confirmed in a statement released today." There will be a short delay in the production schedule while he recuperates." The 47-year-old actor is currently reprising his role as Tony Stark/Iron Man in the action flick out May 3, 2013. Gwyneth Paltrow, Guy Pearce, Don Cheadle and Sir Ben Kingsley also star.

Megadeth frontman Dave Mustaine says Obama 'staged' Aurora shooting

Dave Mustaine, lead singer of heavy metal band Megadeth, said that Barack Obama “staged” the recent shootings in Aurora and at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisc. Mustaine went on the anti-Obama rant during an Aug. 7 concert in Singapore.  “Back in my country, my president is trying to pass a gun ban, so he’s staging all of these murders,” said Mustaine, whose comments were captured on video. “Like the ‘Fast And Furious’ thing down at the border and Aurora, Colorado, all the people that were killed there and now the beautiful people at the Sikh temple.” He continued before a quiet crowd, “I don’t know where I’m gonna live if America keeps going the way it’s going because it looks like it’s turning into Nazi America.”
 Congratulations are in order for late night talk show host Jimmy Kimmel. The host of ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” is engaged to girlfriend Molly McNearney, his rep confirmed. Kimmel, 44, proposed to McNearney, 34, while vacationing in South Africa’s Kruger National Forest. The couple has been together since 2009. McNearney is a co-head writer for ”Jimmy Kimmel Live!” This will be the second marriage for the talk show host and the first for McNearney. Kimmel married Gina Maddy in 1988 and the couple has two children. They divorced in 2002 and Kimmel dated comedian Sarah Silverman until they split in early 2009.

Diplomatic fury as Ecuador grants asylum to WikiLeaks founder Assange
Ecuador granted asylum to Julian Assange on Thursday, expressing fury at a threat by Britain to seize the WikiLeaks founder at its London embassy. Ricardo Patino, the Ecuadorean foreign minister, told a news conference in Quito it was upholding international law by granting asylum to Assange. Britain earlier said it would it would revoke the diplomatic status of Quito's embassy in west London -- where Assange has been holed up since June 19 -- in order to seize Assange irrespective of the asylum decision. Patino expressed fury at Britain’s earlier threat to arrest Assange, saying it was a direct threat to the Ecuador’s sovereignty. The former Australian hacker, who incensed American government officials by publishing thousands of secret U.S. diplomatic cables and Iraq and Afghan war dispatches in 2010, sought refuge in the embassy to avoid extradition to Sweden over assault and rape claims, which he denies. He exhausted all appeals after a 17-month legal battle. Outside the embassy on Thursday, protesters chanting slogans in support of Assange tussled with police. "Giving asylum doesn't fundamentally change anything," the spokesman said, adding that Britain had a legal duty to extradite Assange to Sweden. After the announcement, a spokesman said the UK foreign ministry "disappointed" but would still carry out its "binding obligation" to extradite Assange to Sweden.

Joe Simpson Charged with DUI

Joe Simpson, the 54-year-old father of Jessica and Ashlee Simpson, was arrested on Aug. 4, in Sherman Oaks, Calif., on suspicion of driving under the influence and has now been formally charged with two counts of DUI.  Two misdemeanor counts of DUI were filed against the talent manager and TV producer by the Los Angeles City Attorney.

The Hive
Morris Chestnut has also booked the male lead role opposite Halle Berry in "The Hive" at Sony Pictures. The story is set at a 911 call center. Berry plays a veteran operator who takes a call from a kidnapped teen stuffed a trunk. Using her considerable skills to keep the girl calm, she tries to find the kidnapper before it’s too late.


I Put A Spell On You
Zoe Saldana is reportedly attached to star in a biopic of soul singing legend Nina Simone at UK's Ealing Studios. Mary J Blige has previously been linked to the role, along with David Oyelowo as Nina's assistant Clifton Henderson, and it was believed the film would focus on their relationship.
 Nike was an official outfitter for the London Olympics this year, but we're starting to question the brand's team spirit. A controversial Olympics-inspired Nike t-shirt is on the market emblazoned with the phrase "Gold Digging." Since the garment is only available for women, fashion bloggers and the Twittersphere are calling it sexist. Apparently only women--or female Olympians--are gold diggers. Was there not another more positive, inspiring phrase Nike could have printed on these women's tees? "Reach for the Gold," "Go for the Gold," or "Good as Gold," would have gotten the point across in Nike's trademark "Just Do It" sort of way. A gold digger is a woman out for a man's money. In this Olympic context, a phrase like "Gold Digging" implies you don't deserve or didn't earn your prize, and you went about obtaining it in a deceitful or unsportsmanlike way. The American women at the Olympics this year worked hard for their medals, and took home twice as many golds as their male counterparts. This is not the first time Nike has come under fire pertaining to the Olympics this year. The The U.S. women's soccer team was subject of ridicule for wearing Nike t-shirts reading "Greatness Has Been Found" after its gold-medal win over Japan. People found the slogan smug and inappropriate. Ben Rothenberg of the New York Times tweeted, "Greatness has been found,' but not humility. Gross," while SI.com's Courtney Nguyen agreed. "Put those t-shirts away, USA," she tweeted. "Keep it classy." Nike did not immediately respond to calls for comment. Since the "Gold Digging" t-shirts were so widely distributed and are already on sale in many places, it's doubtful the items will be pulled.

Kim Kardashian divorce hearing: Kris Humphries serves Kanye West subpoena in Nordstrom box

Kris Humphries' lawyers want to interview Kim Kardashian's current boyfriend, Kanye West, before setting a trial to end the estranged couple's 72-day marriage. Humphries' team reportedly tried a sneak attack with West's subpoena by putting it in a Nordstrom box and sending it to Kardashian's house. Kardashian's lawyer, Laura Wasser, told the judge in a hearing Wednesday (Aug. 15) about the maneuver, noting that Humphries has also subpoenaed Kardashian's mom, Kris Jenner, as well as NBC Universal and Bunim/Murray, which produces the Kardashian reality shows.  Kris Humphries' lawyer, Marshall Waller, says he wants to prove the marriage was a fraud engineered by Kardashian to benefit her reality show. He says he wants to be informed about the show before taking Kardashian's deposition. As a result, the judge says it will likely be next year before the couple is granted a divorce or annulment.  Wasser seems irked with the pace of the proceedings, noting that her firm has already spent $250,000 on the case, and says she will be billing Humphries for the work.

 

Drake and Chris Brown Sued Over Club Brawl

Rapper Drake and singer Chris Brown are facing a $15 million lawsuit from New York club bosses over their infamous brawl on June 12. The two stars' entourages clashed during a night out at W.i.P. and the fracas is believed to have erupted after the rival artists exchanged words over beauty Rihanna, who was romantically linked to Drake following her 2009 split from Brown. Bottles were smashed during the fight and basketball ace Tony Parker was among the club goers injured in the fracas, and now executives at Entertainment Enterprises, Ltd., the company which owns the Manhattan hot spot, have placed the blame on Drake and Brown. The club owners claim the two stars each arrived at the club "with his own small army of bodyguards, security personnel, employees, friends and other members of their entourage, consisting of at least 15 heavily-built men trained and/or experienced in hand-to-hand and weapons combat." In legal documents, the W.i.P bosses add, "[They] fashioned deadly weapons out of whatever materials they could find, including glasses, alcohol bottles and furniture." Two female revellers caught up in club fight have already filed suit against W.i.P. bosses, accusing them of continuing to serve alcohol to drunk patrons. Parker is also suing the club bosses for injuries to his eye

 

Michael Jackson's dad drops wrongful death lawsuit

Michael Jackson's father has dropped a wrongful death lawsuit filed against the former doctor who was convicted of causing the singer's death. Court records show Joe Jackson's request for a dismissal was granted Monday. The filings do not elaborate on a reason for dropping pursuit of the case, but two attorneys handling the case were recently ruled ineligible to practice law in California. The Jackson family patriarch initially filed the lawsuit against Conrad Murray in June 2010, on the anniversary of his son's death. A federal judge refused to hear it and it had to be re-filed in state court in Los Angeles. "It's good finally that this case is dismissed and gone," Murray's attorney Charles Peckham said Wednesday. "It's pretty clear that Joe Jackson intelligently and smartly dismissed this case so he, his wife and children can focus on Michael Jackson's life instead of the circumstances of his death." He said Murray, who remains jailed and is appealing his involuntary manslaughter conviction, remains pained by Jackson's death and feels sorry for his family. "His heart goes out to them," Peckham said. Jackson's mother, Katherine, continues to pursue a case against concert company AEG Live alleging it negligently hired and supervised Murray, who was giving Jackson nightly doses of the powerful anesthetic propofol as a sleep aid. Murray's treatments were conducted while Jackson was preparing for a series of comeback concerts. Her case is scheduled for trial in April.

 

TV NEWS

Is The Good Wife trading one Good Christian Belle for another? Miriam Shor, who played business mogul Cricket Caruth-Reilly on ABC’s short-lived soap GCB, is joining the CBS drama in the recurring role of a reporter.  This comes just days after Shor’s former GCB co-star Kristin Chenoweth announced that she was cutting short her own arc as reporter covering the a Florrick campaign due to an injury she sustained on the set last month.

 

A&E has cancelled its long-running reality series Gene Simmons Family Jewels. “For seven great seasons, Gene, Shannon, Nick and Sophie have been part of the A&E family, and we could not be more proud of the unparalleled run of Gene Simmons Family Jewels,” the cabler announced Wednesday in a statement ”On behalf of everyone at A&E, we’d like to thank the production team at Thinkfactory Media, Gene and his amazing family for their partnership, collaboration and for opening up their lives, warts-and-all, to us throughout the years.”  The rock legend and his family echoed the network’s sentiments, calling their time on the docu-series “a wonderful, life-altering experience.”

 

Michael Grant Terry, who plays Brennan’s helpful squintern Wendell on Bones, has been cast in a multi-episode arc on Grimm.  Season 2 of Grimm is currently airing Mondays at 10/9c before moving to its regular timeslot on Friday, Sept. 21 at 9 pm.

 

Kristen Wiig and Andy Samberg revealed this spring that they will not return to Studio 8H for Saturday Night Live‘s upcoming 38th season. Their costar Jason Sudeikis has indicated that he may leave the show as well. Now one more SNL cast member is reportedly out: Abby Elliott has told Splitsider that she is also leaving the late night comedy showcase. If true, Elliott’s decision may come as a surprise to SNL viewers. She has been a featured player on the show since 2008, and was upgraded to full cast member in the fall of 2010. Wiig’s departure leaves a large vacuum, and Elliott’s skilled impressions of public figures like Rachel Maddow, Zooey Deschanel, and Angelina Jolie made her a prime candidate to help fill that void. Elliott is also notable for being a second generation SNL performer. Her father, comedian Chris Elliott, was a cast member during the show’s 20th season.

 

Saturday Night Live vet Rachel Dratch will reunite with former castmate Maya Rudolph on the sophomore season of Up All Night, which launches Thursday, Sept. 20. She’ll play a superfan of Rudolph’s talk show host character, Ava.

This fall, viewers will say goodbye to The CW’s pop culture phenom Gossip Girl, but not without a few visitors from the past. We’ve already seen the return of Bart Bass (Robert John Burke) in last season’s final batch of episodes. Who else will be back for the final installments of the glitzy soap? There are so many in the GG world that have gone MIA. So the latest GG alum to sign up to return to the Upper East Side is none other than schemer Poppy Lifton, played by actress Tamara Feldman. Poppy was last seen attempting to con Serena (Blake Lively) and her family out of money through a Ponzi scheme with the help of her equally manipulative boyfriend Gabriel, played by The Social Network‘s Armie Hammer, only to be revealed by Georgina (Michelle Trachtenberg).

 

Former Spartacus vixen Lucy Lawless has booked a multi-episode arc on Parks and Recreation as a love interest for Nick Offerman’s hyper-masculine alter ego. Lawless, who is coming off of a three-year run on Spartacus, will play a single mom in Pawnee named Diane who has a small problem in her neighborhood. Ron and Andy are dispatched to help her, and Andy notices there might be some chemistry between her and Ron. Parks and Rec‘s fifth season bows on Thursday, Sept. 20 on NBC.