FIRST LOOK: The News in Brief, January 9, 2004

SPLENDID! American Splendor, the indie biopic on the life of comics writer Harvey Pekar, named Best Picture of the year by the Los Angeles film critics association in voting on Wednesday night. Lost In Translation's Bill Murray took Best Actor while 21 Grams' Naomi Watts snagged Best Actress.

DON'T MESS WITH ARNOLD: A man who sent an email to a radio station threatening Arnold Schwarzenegger pleaded no contest to an attempted criminal threat charge Friday; he was sentenced to a year in jail and three year's probation.

OUTTA THERE: MGM confirming that Bingham Ray has been removed as head of indie division United Artists after two years on the job after a mutual decision not to renew his contract.

GETTING THE AXE? Fueling speculation the show may be history, CBS trimming its original order for a full season of Joe Pantoliano's The Handler from 22 episodes to 15--the show currently is not on CBS' Friday schedule.

FULL BLOOM: Director Cameron Crowe eyeing Orlando Bloom to replace Ashton Kutcher opposite Kirsten Dunst in the ensemble comedy Elizabethtown, which Crowe also wrote. Kutcher dropped out due to scheduling conflicts.

BACKSTREET COP: The Las Vegas Sun reporting that Backstreet Boy A.J. McLean helped run down and nab a would-be jewel thief in the parking lot of the Hard Rock Hotel in Sin City Monday night.

MARRIED TO THE MOB: James Gandolfini, aka Tony Soprano of The Sopranos, is engaged to Lora Somoza, whom he met four years ago on the set of The Mexican when she was working as an assistant to director Gore Verbinski.

HAIL TO THE KING: Loyal Elvis Presley fans gathering at Graceland Thursday to celebrate what would have been the King's 69th birthday; Presley died in 1977 of heart disease and drug abuse. This year also marks 50 years since Presley recorded his first record, That's All Right, Mama.

TRIAL FILE: Jury selection process beginning this week for Robert Blake's murder trial; attorneys plan to start questioning potential jurors February 17. The former Baretta star is currently free on $1.5 million bail.

OFF THE AIR: The Wayne Brady Show, which last year nabbed two Daytime Emmys, officially getting the axe due to poor ratings, its syndicator said Thursday. Production on the show will continue until May.

WEDDING PLANS: New Line Cinema announcing plans to turn its hit 1998 comedy The Wedding Singer into a Broadway play that will debut during the 2005-06 season.

WORKIN' THE TEEN BEAT: Despite bringing an end to his prank show Punk'd, Ashton Kutcher teaming up with MTV again for My New Best Friend, a hidden-camera comedy that should debut in 2004.

FALLOUT? The doctor being sued by the estate of ex-Beatle George Harrison replaced as head of the radiation oncology unit at Staten Island University Hospital, the hospital said. Dr. Gilbert Lederman's attorney however said the switch had "absolutely nothing to do with" the lawsuit brought by Harrison's family.

MOVIN' ON: People resident fashionista Steven Cojocaru taking leave of the magazine after a decade to concentrate on a blossoming television career.

SCRAPPED: Ozzy Osbourne announcing on Friday that he has axed his upcoming 20-date tour of Britain to give him time to recover fully from his accident on an auto-terrain vehicle last month. "Right now I need to concentrate on my recovery and unfortunately this is something I cannot rush," the rocker said in a statement.

VACATION WITH ROSIE: Comedian and former talk show host Rosie O'Donnell on Thursday announcing plans to head what's being hyped as "the first gay cruise with family values." The ship leaves New York for the Bahamas on July 11 and all familes are welcome, "however you define them," O'Donnell said in a statement.

SKATING QUEEN: Buffy the Vampire Slayer's Michelle Trachtenberg set to star in Ice Princess, a Disney comedy described as Flashdance meets Bring It On, about a brainy girl who becomes a champion figure skater.

CULTURAL DIPLOMACY: Actor Danny Glover among a delegation of black American activists embarking on a nine-day visit to meet President Hugo Chavez and study the situation of blacks in Venezuela.

SAVING MUSIC: Rocker Sheryl Crow, U2 guitarist The Edge and actor Ben Affleck speaking out against piracy at the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.

PROFESSOR BODY: Former Minnesota Governor Jesse Ventura set to teach at Harvard's Institute of Politics as a visiting fellow for part of the spring semester, the institute announced Thursday.

WHERE'S THE GRAY HAIR? The beloved European cartoon character Tintin, a cub reporter whose adventures have taken him around the globe and made him an icon in Belgium, turning 75 on Saturday.

THE WEDDING WARRIOR: Kate Hudson signing on to star in Miramax's Bride Wars, a comedy about two best friends who clash over their respective wedding plans.

BIG APPLE BOUND: Gennifer Flowers, the woman forever known for claiming she had an intimate affair with President Clinton, joining Boobs! The Musical, a revue running in midtown Manhattan on January 21.