HOLLYWOOD - Top Story
Sean "P. Diddy" Combs is being criticized by the Los Angeles based organization Project Islamic H.O.P.E. for making negative statements about black women throughout his career. According to Launch.com, the organization released a statement calling Combs the biggest hypocrite in hip-hop for making millions off the denigration of black women nationwide by using sexist and misogynistic lyrics.
Honored
Actress Rose Marie, who played Sally Rogers on The Dick Van Dyke Show, received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, The Associated Press reports. Dick Van Dyke and Carl Reiner attended Wednesday's ceremony on Hollywood Boulevard.Singer Rhonda Vincent won three awards, including entertainer of the year, at the Annual Bluegrass Awards in Louisville, Ky., The Associated Press reports. Vincent also won best female vocalist and shared the best recorded event honor for her work on the album Follow Me Back to the Fold: A Tribute to Women in Bluegrass.In Courts
Stevie Wonder's ex-girlfriend has filed a $30 million palimony lawsuit against the singer, claiming Wonder gave her a sexually transmitted disease. According to The Associated Press, Angela McAfee alleges that Wonders concealed the fact that he had genital herpes and passed it to her through sexual contact in October 2000.
A man claiming to be Michael Jackson was arrested Wednesday after police noticed him sitting in the home dugout of the New York Yankees, The Associated Press reports. Frederick Oliverier and four other people were refused entrance into the stadium after telling police they were filming a segment for the VH1 show Sledgehammer. The group however managed to fool Yankee personnel, who then allowed them to pass by a security checkpoint and escorted them into the stadium.Jamiroquai singer Jay Kay has been charged with common assault and criminal damage in a squabble with a photographer in April, Reuters reports. The incident happened April 14 outside the Attica nightclub in London.In General
Oprah Winfrey gave her viewers a quick course in Islam on Friday, in an attempt to ease heated prejudices about the religion after the Sept. 11 attacks on New York and Washington. According to Reuters, her guests included Muslim working women and two of the faith's more prominent adherents: Queen Rania Al-Abdullah of Jordan and Pakistan's ambassador to the United States, Maleeha Lodh.Britain's press watchdog is backing Harry Potter-creator J.K. Rowling's formal protest against OK! magazine for publishing photograph's of her 8-year-old daughter, The Associated Press reports. The magazine published three photos of Rowling's daughter Jessica taken while they were vacationing at a resort on the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius.Square Company Ltd. has stopped funding Square Pictures, the state-of-the-art CGI movie studio that created the photo-realistic animated feature The Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. According to Reuters, the film's poor box office results in the United States and Japan was to blame. The studio will continue to develop CGI projects funded by other studios.Michael Jackson's official website is sponsoring a contest that will allow a fan to meet the self-proclaimed "King of Pop." According to Launch.com contestants will be required to answer 10 trivia questions about various Jackson videos. Ten winners will win a trip to a Jackson event and one winner will get to meet with the singer himself.Australian music duo Savage Garden have called it quits, Reuters reports. Darren Hayes reportedly plans on launching a solo career, while David Jones will return home to Brisbane to return to a more private life. The band's single "Truly, Madly, Deeply" topped America's Billboard Hot 100 hits chart in 1998.Singer Alanis Morisette performed six songs at a concert for high school students in Plainfield, Vt., The Associated Press reports. The concert was a prize for a 15-year-old student who designed a music video for the singer. Morisette spent the day with Elyse Bellamy and had lunch with her family.Reba McEntire's new series Reba premieres on the WB Network tonight, The Associated Press reports. McEntire says she has not given up music, but would like to integrate music and acting.