Top Story: Wanna Buy Don Johnson’s Ranch?
Actor Don Johnson is selling his 17-acre ranch for $21 million in a bid to stave off creditors after the Los Angeles-based City National Bank sued the Miami Vice star in March over a $930,000 debt. Johnson‘s company, Timber Doodle Glade Equity Venture LLC, which holds title to the ranch, filed for Chapter 11 on April 14. According to The Associated Press, the ranch, located in the Woody Creek area of Aspen, Colo., includes a house, guesthouse, office studio, outbuildings and 1,250-square-foot swimming pool. It was once home to writer Hunter S. Thompson. Johnson, who also starred in TV’s Nash Bridges and appeared in the comedy Tin Cup, bought the ranch 16 years ago. Johnson‘s publicist, Elliot Mintz, told AP the actor is refinancing the ranch and the bankruptcy filing will stave off creditors until so he can get the financing he needs
Jimmy Fallon Bids Adieu to SNL
Jimmy Fallon announced he was leaving Saturday Night Live at the end of his “Weekend Update” segment with Tina Fey on May 15–the show’s last original episode of the season. “I’m Jimmy Fallon,” he said during taping. “I might as well say thanks; this is my last show. Good night and have a pleasant tomorrow.” Jeff Zucker, president of the NBC Universal Television Group, told the AP Monday the move came as no surprise since Fallon had made it clear that he wanted to move on. The 29-year-old comedian joined the comedy show in 1998. One of his one of his signature characters was a nasally voiced and obnoxious radio DJ.
Geena Davis Has Twin Boys
Geena Davis gave birth to twin boys in Los Angeles May 6. The boys, named Kian William and Kaiis Steven, are “doing beautifully,” a spokesman for the actress told Reuters Monday. Davis, 48, and her husband, Dr. Reza Jarrahy, were married in 2001. They have a 2-year-old daughter, Alizeh Keshvar.
Fox Unveils Trailer T-Shirts
In the never-ending quest to win the attention of media-savvy consumers, 20th Century Fox has unveiled T-shirts embedded with video screens that play I, Robot trailers at the E3 gaming expo in Los Angeles last week. The T-shirts are embedded with 11-inch monitors and four stereo speakers and are able to play any type of media. Fox said that while the video T-shirts would work for any film trailers, they were a particularly good fit for I, Robot, which is set in the year 2035. Reuters reports Fox plans to use the video T-shirts, which are only for promo purposes, to market other films.
June Taylor Dies at 86
June Taylor, the Emmy-winning choreographer for Jackie Gleason‘s television variety show and later the Miami Dolphins cheerleading squad, died Monday at the Miami Heart Institute. She was 86. A cause of death was not immediately announced, AP reports. Taylor had no children. Her husband of 42 years, Sol Lerner, a prominent theatrical lawyer, died in 1986. Taylor‘s sister, Marilyn, was Gleason‘s third and final wife. Officials at the Lithgow Funeral Home said services are scheduled for Wednesday in North Miami Beach, Fla.
Eminem Takes Bite Out of Apple
Rapper Eminem‘s copyright infringement lawsuit over use of his song “Lose Yourself” in a commercial for Apple Computer Inc. got the go ahead by a federal judge, AP reports. U.S. District Judge Anna Diggs Taylor ruled Monday that the suit brought by Eminem‘s publishing company can proceed against several companies, including MTV parent company Viacom and advertising agency TBWA/Chiat/Day. Apple featured a 10-year-old boy singing the Oscar-winning theme song to the rapper’s movie 8 Mile in an ad on MTV for the computer company’s iPod music player and iTunes music service.
Black Sabbath Heads Back to Ozzfest
The metal band Black Sabbath, fronted by Ozzy Osbourne, will reunite for the first time since 2001 at Ozzfest, which begins July 10 in Hartford, Conn., Reuters reports. Along with three-quarters of the original Black Sabbath, Ozzfest will also feature four-fifths of the original Judas Priest, and other acts such as Slayer, Dimmu Borgir, Superjoint Ritual (fronted by former Pantera singer Phil Anselmo) and onetime Ozzy guitarist Zakk Wylde’s Black Label Society.
Role Call: Disney Boards Jungle Cruise, Costner Tackles Mr. Robinson
Disney is bringing yet another theme park ride to the big screen–this time it’s the Jungle Cruise, in which riders travel the rivers of the jungle guided by a riverboat skipper, encountering wild animals along the way … Kevin Costner is in negotiations to play a male equivalent to Mrs. Robinson in Warner Bros.’ update of the ’60s classic The Graduate. The story revolves around a young woman who discovers The Graduate was probably based on her family. Jennifer Aniston is already set to play the young woman seduced by Costner‘s character, while Shirley MacLaine will play her grandmother, the woman who inspired the character immortalized by Anne Bancroft.
Kit Bowen contributed to this report.
