FIRST LOOK: The News in Brief, January 24 2005

GOODNIGHT, JOHNNY: Johnny Carson, legendary host of the Tonight Show from 1962-92, died Sunday of complications from emphysema. He was 79.

HE'LL BE MISSED: Carson's celebrity admirers, including David Letterman, Billy Crystal and Bette Midler, among many others, remembering the late Tonight Show host in public statements. "All of us who came after are pretenders," Letterman said. "We will not see the likes of him again?He was the best, a star and a gentleman."

BLAKE UPDATE: Robert Blake's former assistant telling jurors Monday that she unwittingly helped Blake kidnap his baby daughter from the girl's mother, Bonny Lee Bakley, because the actor "couldn't stand her." Blake eventually married Bakley, whom he's now accused of murdering.

COMING SOON: Mariah Carey's latest album, The Emancipation of Mimi, to be released on Island Def Jam on April 12. Her new single "It's Like That" is this week's Hot Shot Debut on the Billboard Hot 100.

DOWN UNDER MYSTERY: Police in Australia are investigating an electronic listening device that was allegedly planted outside Nicole Kidman's Sydney mansion.

SCRUBBING IN: Clay Aiken set to guest star on a part-live audience taping of NBC's Scrubs, usually a single-camera, closed-set show, per USA Today.

TRADING OFF: Paige Davis leaving TLC's Trading Spaces as the show transitions to a host-less format. Davis' last episode will air in March.

MORE DESPERATE: ABC Entertainment President Steve McPherson telling reporters that the network "will probably do one extra episode to help us with the finale" of Desperate Housewives. He also said that he expects "tremendously amicable" salary negotiations with the cast, some of whom have complained about their low paychecks compared to stars of other hit shows.

MINI MUGGLE: J.K. Rowling, author of the Harry Potter books, gave birth to a daughter in Edinburgh on Sunday, her publisher said. It's Rowling's second child with husband, Dr. Neil Murray; she has a daughter, Jessica, from a previous marriage.

BEST OF THE WORST: Catwoman leading with seven nominations for the 25th annual Razzies, which honor the worst films of the year. Alexander trailed just behind with six nods. President George W. Bush earned a Worst Actor nomination for his turn in Fahrenheit 9/11. The Razzies, presented by the Golden Raspberry Award Foundation, will be presented Feb. 26, the day before the Oscars.

RED CARPET QUEEN: Star Jones Reynolds signing on as host of E! Entertainment's Live From the Red Carpet awards show specials. Jones Reynolds will host E!'s preshow coverage of the SAG Awards on Feb. 5, the Grammys on Feb. 13 and the Academy Awards on Feb. 27. (E! Online is a division of E! Networks.)

TSUNAMI AID: A weekend British concert headlined by Eric Clapton raised $2.3 million for tsunami aid. Keane, Charlotte Church, Feeder and Lulu also performed at the seven-hour event, which was billed as the largest charity event in Britain since Live Aid.

MORE TSUNAMI RELIEF: moe. playing a benefit concert for tsunami relief Feb. 10 at New York's Roseland Ballroom. The band will be joined by various artists including former Phish guitarist, Trey Anastasio. All proceeds from the night will be matched by the Dave Matthews Band and donated to the Bama Works Village Recovery Fund.

EVEN MORE TSUNAMI AID: Former supergroup USA For Africa plan to reissue their 1985 Grammy-winning single "We Are the World" Feb. 1 to raise money for tsunami victims. Proceeds from the upcoming special two-disc DVD reissue will also go to famine relief and AIDS treatment, organizers say.

SNOWED OUT: Original Survivor winner Richard Hatch was due to plead guilty to tax evasion Monday in Rhode Island, but his court hearing was postponed due to heavy snow conditions.

MAKING THE GIRL GROUP: P. Diddy set to work with an all-female cast to create a girl group in the third season of Making the Band on MTV. The show premieres on March 3.

GAP TAP: Sarah Jessica Parker signing on to represent Gap's spring marketing campaign, making the third consecutive season that the thesp has repped the brand.

TECHIE OSCARS: Scarlett Johansson set to present the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science's Scientific and Technical Awards on Feb. 12.

KNIFE FRIGHT: Christian Slater escaping a knife attack Friday after his stage performance in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest in London's West End. Slater's bodyguard is said to have taken the brunt of the attack, but the knife only penetrated his clothing, not his skin, according to a Scotland Yard spokeswoman.

YOU'RE HIRED! Donald Trump marrying model Melania Knauss Saturday at a star-studded wedding in Palm Beach, attended by Shaquille O'Neal, Billy Joel, Barbara Walters Star Jones Reynolds, Kelly Ripa and Regis Philbin, among others.

GETTING IN THE FLOW: Paramount Pictures and MTV Films acquiring the John Singleton-produced film, Hustle & Flow, for $9 million, plus a two-picture commitment, in the biggest deal ever closed at Sundance, per the Hollywood Reporter.

EVERYBODY INFECTS RAYMOND: Several castmembers of Everybody Loves Raymond falling ill, causing the show's series finale to be postponed twice, per Entertainment Tonight. Patricia Heaton was struck first and lost her voice on Friday; Doris Roberts and Peter Boyle began feeling sick on Sunday. The finale has been rescheduled for this coming Sunday.

GETTING REAL: Faye Dunaway set to star in the WB's upcoming reality series Starlet, where she'll put wannabe actresses through a Hollywood boot camp. The winner will receive a management deal and a one-shot guest appearance on One Tree Hill. Starlet debuts March 8.

IN THERE: Blizzard conditions in the Midwest and Northeast kept large portion of the nation's moviegoers home, but those who ventured out made Ice Cube's comedy Are We There Yet? the new number one movie, with an estimated weekend gross of $18.5 million.

STEPPING DOWN: Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael Powell announcing that he is resigning from his position. He was meant to have served through 2007. No replacement has been announced.

SHUTTING DOWN COMPLAINTS: Meanwhile, the FCC rejected 36 complaints of indecency against shows like "Friends" and "The Simpsons" from the Parents Television Council Monday.

CODA: Consuelo Velazquez, whose song "Besame Mucho" was covered by the likes of the Beatles and Frank Sinatra, died Saturday of complications suffered from a fall. She was 84.