OUTWIT, OUTSMART, OUTPLAY? Original Survivor champ Richard Hatch indicted today on 10 counts of tax evasion and fraudulently using charitable donations to hide personal expenses. He's also accused of failing report the $1 million jackpot he won on the CBS reality series in 2001.
REMEMBERING A NEWSMAN: A memorial service to celebrate the life of ABC News anchorman Peter Jennings, who died of lung cancer on Aug. 7, has been scheduled for Sept. 20 at New York's Carnegie Hall.
NO BIG SURPRISE: Seven days following the expiration of its lease, New York's famed punk-rock club CBGB receiving an eviction notice from itslandlord. However owner Hilly Kristal said he expected the move and vowed to fight it in court.
GOT SOUL: Mariah Carey, Destiny's Child, Alicia Keys and Missy Elliott all scoring wins at the 2005 Lady of Soul Awards Wednesday. But Queen of Soul Aretha Franklin was the event's highlight with her renditions of "Until You Come Back to Me" with Stevie Wonder and "Respect."
THE CANDY MAN COMETH: Warner Bros. releasing the DVD of Tim Burton's Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, starring Johnny Depp, on Nov. 8 in both a two-disc special edition and a single-disc version.
STICKING AROUND: South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone extending their contract with Comedy Central for three more years through 2008.
MUGGLE ALERT! J.K. Rowling finally making all six of her beloved Harry Potter series of books available for audio download through the iTunes Music Store, she announced on her Website Wednesday.
ALL KATRINA, ALL THE TIME: The broadcast networks announcing plans to push fundraising efforts for its upcoming Shelter from the Storm: A Concert for the Gulf Coast special not just in prime time Friday, but all day starting on their morning shows, including Today and Good Morning America. A multititude of cable channels and Internet outlets will also air the commercial-free telethon as will over 140 countries around the world.
ALSO COMING TO THE RESCUE: Elton John, Rod Stewart, Bette Midler, Lenny Kravitz, John Fogerty, Stevie Nicks along with New Orleans' staples such as Fats Domino, Allen Toussaint, the Original Meters and the Dirty Dozen and Rebirth Brass Bands set to perform at a Sept. 20 benefit for Hurricane Katrina victims at New York's Madison Square Garden.
KATRINA ADD: Carol Burnett, Bill Cosby, Tony Danza, Alyssa Milano, Dick Van Dyke, and Mary Tyler Moore among the old-time TV stars doing public service announcements for TV Land and Nick at Nite urging viewers to help with relief efforts.
THE INVASION CONTINUES: ABC opting not to cut scenes of a deadly hurricane in its upcoming alien series, Invasion, though it will add a warning ahead of the show cautioning viewers upset by the hurricane.
SUPPORTING KANYE: Jay-Z sticking up for West, who has been lambasted since saying "George Bush doesn't care about black people" on live TV last week. "This is America," Jay-Z told Billboard. "You should be able to say what you want to say. We have freedom of speech."
SIRIUS MOVES: Sirius Satellite Radio launching several new channels on Sept. 29 in advance of Howard Stern new show beginning in January and Martha Stewart Living Radio.
BACK ON THE BEAT: Star Jones Reynolds returning to host E! Entertainment's live red carpet coverage for the prime-time Emmy Awards in Los Angeles on Sept. 18. Comic Kathy and Queer Eye's Carson Kressley will also be on hand for arrivals.
PATERNITY WOES: Bobby Brown telling a Massachusetts family court judge Wednesday that he's all caught up with his $5,000 monthly child support payments. However, the judge scolded the singer, saying his earlier excuses for failing to do so was unacceptable.
SIXTH SENSE FOR BEAUTY: Bruce Willis heading up the jury for the Miss Italia pageant later this month in Rome, Italy.
THROWN OUT: A Los Angeles judge tossing a criminal case against an audio engineer alleged to have swiped recordings from the late Ray Charles.
NOT EXCITED: Former Pointer Sisters vocalist June Pointer Whitmore pleading guilty to a crack cocaine possession charge Wednesday in Los Angeles. The R&B singer was ordered to attend drug rehabilitation classes over the next 18 months.
MAKING THE CUT: San Francisco art student Chris Cortez winning CBS' The Cut and scoring a design contract with Tommy Hilfiger.
TRUMPED OUT: First season Apprentice winner Bill Rancic says he will leave Donald Trump's empire in March when his contract expires and start his own business.
ENTERTAIN US: Cedric the Entertainer set to emcee the 33rd Annual American Music Awards, airing live on ABC Nov. 22.
MUSIC STATE OF MIND: Billy Joel launching the Billy Joel Endowment Fund, a new initiative to provide seed money, scholarships and endowments to a variety of East Coast universities, colleges and music schools.
SAILING TO THE TOP: Sahara topping the video sales and rental charts its first week in stores, earning an estimated $11.7 million in rentals.
SEX IS BAD: The Motion Picture Association of America upholding its decision to slap an NC-17 rating on Atom Egoyan's new film, Where the Truth Lies, because of an explicit three-way sex scene. Producers must decide to release the film either as an NC-17 or unrated, neither of which is commercially appealing.
REACH OUT AND TOUCH FAITH: Depeche Mode kicking off its first North American tour in more than four years on Nov. 2 in Fort Lauderdale. The arena tour, in support of the band's latest release, Playing the Angel, wraps up Dec. 9 in Fairfax, Virginia.
SADDLING UP: Brian Cox signing on to appear in at least seven episodes of HBO's Deadwood when the series returns for its third season in 2006.
SUFFERING ON THE BIG SCREEN: MTV Films optioning the rights to Midway's action-horror game The Suffering, which has sold 1.5 million units on Xbox, Playstation 2 and PC formats since debuting in 2004.
BACK ON THE AIR: Steve Harvey's radio show returning to the airwaves Sept. 19 in the daily morning drive-time slot after sealing a national syndication deal with Clear Channel Communications and ICBC Broadcast Holdings.