Top Story: Ben Neglects to Call J. Lo Fiancée
The question of will-they-or-won’t-they get married is still in the air. Accepting an award from the People for the American Way Foundation Tuesday in Los Angeles, Ben Affleck referred to Jennifer Lopez not as fiancée but rather as his “pretty girlfriend,” The Associated Press reports. “I only accept it in the hopes that the absurd amounts of publicity that I received lately, that as far as I can tell is chiefly because I have a pretty girlfriend, that’s what I did, I am a champion of the American way with a pretty girlfriend–bring it on, paparazzi, news at 11–in the hopes that some of that publicity might be pointed at something more significant, something more positive, productive and meaningful,” Affleck said. The couple was to be married on Sept. 14 but called off the nuptials, citing too much media hype over the event.
Former KISS Guitarist Shot
Bruce Kulick, former guitarist to the metal band KISS, was shot in the leg and grazed by a bullet to the head outside the Rainbow Bar and Grill nightclub on Los Angeles’ famed Sunset Strip Thursday night when an angry patron starting shooting into a crowd of 300 people, Reuters reports. Another man was shot in the foot, deputies told Reuters, but no one was killed or seriously inujured. The gunman was quickly wrestled to the ground by a nightclub patron and held down by others until police arrived. Kulick, 49, was treated at a hospital and released and said in a statement, “It was certainly a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time, walking in a public street having no knowledge of any altercation in the vicinity.”
Part of Roy’s Skull Removed
Roy Horn, the Las Vegas animal illusionist who was mauled by one of his tigers during a performance Oct. 3, had to have a quarter of his skull removed in order to reduce pressure, The Las Vegas Review-Journal reports. Lonnie Hammargren, a neurosurgeon and former lieutenant governor of Nevada, told the paper that part of Horn’s skull removed had been placed in a pouch in his abdomen to preserve it until the brain swelling receded and it could be put back. Hammargren also said that Horn was paralyzed on the left side of his body after suffering a stroke from the mauling.
Anderson Calls For KFC Boycott
Actress Pamela Anderson has joined the animal activist group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals in a campaign against fast-food chain KFC, Reuters reports, urging consumers to boycott the franchise until it starts treating its chickens better. “If people knew how KFC treats chickens, they’d never eat another drumstick,” the Canadian-born former Baywatch beauty wrote in an open letter circulated by the PETA. A spokeswoman for Priszm Brandz, the company who owns the KFC franchise, dismissed claims that the chickens sold in its KFC outlets are mistreated.
Singer Wyclef Jean Hospitalized
Grammy winner Wyclef Jean has been hospitalized for exhaustion and dehydration after becoming ill from food poisoning, a publicist for the singer-songwriter told AP. Jean came down with food poisoning on Tuesday, the day after appearing at The Source Awards in Miami, she said. He was admitted to a hospital in Miami Wednesday, and is expected to be hospitalized through the weekend.
Editor Apologizes for Racist Remarks
Gregg Easterbrook, a senior editor for the New Republic magazine, apologized to the producers of Kill Bill for calling them “Jewish executives” who “worship money above all else” in his column, AP reports. Easterbrook accused Kill Bill and its writer/director Quentin Tarantino for glorifying violence and criticized Miramax’s chairman Harvery Weinstein, which released the film, and its parent company, Disney, for “wallowing in gore” for profit. Although he stands by his sentiments, Easterbrook admitted he was guilty of “mangling words” in the article that appeared Monday on the magazine’s Web site.
Fan’s Foul Ball Catch Inspires Hollywood Movie
Taken from the recent uproar over a Chicago Cubs fan who prematurely caught a foul ball at a key point in game six of the professional baseball teams playoff series against the Florida Marlins, Revolutions Studios is looking to develop a feature based on the incident with Kings of Queens comedian Kevin James. It’ll be “about a baseball fan who interferes with a critical play and must deal with the repercussions,” a Revolution spokeswoman told Reuters.
U2 Saves Day for Sex Abuse Charity
Irish rock group U2, along with their manager Paul McGuinness, donated $46,360 to the Irish sex abuse charity One in Four, which was facing closure because of a funding crisis, Reuters reports. Charity officials said the donation would keep the support group, which campaigns on behalf of people who were sexually abused as children, operational for the time being. “The members of U2 and their manager have offered to provide to One in Four 40,000 euros ($46,360) to enable this wonderful organization to continue its vital and important work for a further month, while the government gets it together to do the right thing,” the group’s management said in a statement.