Top Story
The U.S. Embassy in Honduras told Reuters Sunday that the body of Lisa Lopes, who died in a car crash last week, will be sent to back to the United States after an autopsy can be performed. “The autopsy needs to be completed, so it will be Tuesday or Wednesday when the remains of Lisa Lopes leave for the United States,” embassy spokesman Gregory Adams told Reuters.
Lopes, known as the cute rapper “Left Eye” of the hit R&B trio TLC, was apparently driving a sport utility vehicle with eight passengers when the car flipped off the road in northern Honduras. The singer died of multiple internal injuries in the hospital, while the other passengers, some seriously injured, are still hospitalized. The investigators at the scene cited speeding as the cause of the accident.
Celebs
The three previews to Madonna‘s new London play, Up for Grabs, have been canceled due to technical difficulties. “The production has developed into a complex synchronicity between moving set, sound, music and projection, and realizing it in an older-style theater has increased necessary technical time,” a spokeswoman for the producers told Reuters. The show is still scheduled to premiere May 23.
Oprah Winfrey is looking for calmer surroundings. She and her former personal trainer, Bob Greene, are buying seven shoreline lots on Hamoa Bay, Hawaii, to build several homes, including an estate for the talk-show host.
In the Biz
Robert De Niro will produce a remake of the Japanese film Kaosu (Chaos) as a starring vehicle for Benicio Del Toro. The story centers on a young grifter who kidnaps the all-too-willing wife of a wealthy businessman. When he returns from making his ransom demands, he finds the woman has been killed. De Niro will produce the film for Universal Pictures and may also star as the businessman.
George Lucas promises that Indiana Jones will be facing ghosts of girlfriends past in the next Indiana Jones installment. “There is a scene where a lot of Indy’s ex-girlfriends show up, but they are not major characters,” Lucas told Entertainment Weekly. Harrison Ford should be able to handle that.
Tube News
The ABC hit reality show The Bachelor is already accepting applications for the next round. According to The Associated Press, on the applications, men are asked why they’d make a great husband and women why they can’t find the man of their dreams. Tough questions. The second Bachelor will tape from July through the end of the year.
Sean “Puffy” Combs is not one to shy away from a little publicity. Following on The Osbournes‘ bandwagon, MTV has signed up the music mogul for his own reality show, revolving around his professional career. One similarity? “I’m quite sure there will be a lot of bleeps,” Combs told PageSix.com.
Now that Bryant Gumbel is leaving CBS’ The Early Show, co-host Jane Clayson thinks David Letterman would make a great replacement. “He’s on at 11:30 p.m. He could stick around for a couple more hours. He’d be fun,” she told TV Guide.
Honored
Nanni Moretti‘s drama The Son’s Room and British director Stephen Frears (Dangerous Liaisons, The Grifters, High Fidelity) were honored at the Istanbul Film Festival on Saturday. The festival’s top honors went to the Dutch film Magonia.
Longtime Daily Variety columnist Army Archerd was honored Friday by 1,000 of his friends, celebrities and studio execs, celebrating his 50 years in the entertainment business.
San Franciscan rock band Train was the big winner at the California Music Awards, winning the outstanding songwriter award and best album for its Drops of Jupiter. Lead singer Pat Monahan also won outstanding male vocalist. Other winners included San Jose’s Smash Mouth for outstanding group, No Doubt’s Gwen Stefani for outstanding female vocalist and East Bay’s Green Day for artist of the year.
In Memoriam
Barbie is dressed elegantly in black, with a tasteful hat, shoes and bag to match today. Ruth Handler–the creator of the world’s most popular doll–died Saturday of complications from colon surgery. She was 85. “My whole philosophy of Barbie was that through the doll, the little girl could be anything she wanted to be,” AP reported Handler wrote in a 1994 autobiography. “Barbie always represented the fact that a woman has choices.”
