FIRST LOOK: The News in Brief, October 5, 2005

FIRST DAUGHTER (OR SON): Tom Cruise's spokesperson, Lee Ann Devette, confirming to E! that the actor is expecting his first child with fiancée Katie Holmes. "They are so happy," Devette said.

STILL WED: Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey issuing a joint statement through a rep, denying reports from Us Weekly and Life & Style that the couple has ended their union. "Nick and Jessica have not separated," the rep said. "Rumors to the contrary are simply not true."

FATHER KNOWS BEST: Joe Simpson also telling E! News exclusively that the reports of the demise of his daughter's marriage are false. "Not true," Simpson said.

TRIAL FILE: Robert Blake denying Wednesday that he solicited two stuntman to kill his late wife, Bonny Lee Bakley, but testifying that he met separately with the men about security concerns at his Studio City home.

THIS JUST IN: The White Stripes becoming the first band to play on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart on Dec. 1.

CHART-TOPPING WOMAN: Gretchen Wilson's sophomore album, All Jacked Up, topping the charts with nearly 264,000 copies sold, per Nielsen SoundScan data. Sheryl Crow's Wildflowers landing at number two, with 140,000 copies sold.

ON THE ROAD: Fiona Apple announcing tour dates in support of her long-awaited album, Extraordinary Machine, kicking off Nov. 22 in Portland, Oregon.

CHAT FEST: Food Network star Rachel Ray scoring her own daily talk show beginning in fall 2006.

TUNING IN: Morgan Fairchild, Kim Alexis and Antonio Sabato Jr. among the celebs signing on for VH1's new talent competition But Can They Sing?, premiering Oct. 30.

UPN LOVES CHRIS: UPN giving a full-season pickup to Chris Rock's Everybody Hates Chris.

ON THE ATTACK: Eminem's publishing companies filing suit Tuesday in an effort to stop the rapper's songs from being used as cell phone ringtones. Lawyers for the rapper saying they also plan to go after karaoke companies that sell Eminem's songs without permission.

FOR SALE: Eva Longoria auctioning off a date with herself to Los Angeles millionaire Frank Moran for $20,500 to benefit hurricane relief.

BENT OUT OF SHAPE: Three dieters who failed to lose weight on Dr. Phil's Shape Up! diet suing the talk-show host and asking a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge to expand their fraud claim into a national class-action.

MUGGLE MILESTONE: J.K. Rowling selling over 300 million copies of her Harry Potter books, her publisher, Scholastic Incorporated, reports.

LATE NIGHT WITH BONO: Conan O'Brien turning over his entire talk show to U2 on Thursday, calling it Late Night with Conan O'Brien: The U2 Edition. The band is expected to play three songs and be interviewed by the host.

SMASH HIT: Lindsay Lohan crashing her Mercedes into a van Tuesday night. She and her passenger were taken to an area hospital for treatment of "minor injuries," per the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department. The van driver was also hospitalized with "moderate injuries." The accident is being investigated but authorities say "alcohol does not appear to be a factor." Lohan's rep blames the paparazzi.

LOHAN UPDATE: The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department determining that paparazzi were not a factor in Lohan's accident. The matter is being handled as a traffic collision only.

BRANCHING OUT: Ashton Kutcher and Adam Goldberg producing the reality series Fountain of Youth for the WB. The series is said to be a comedic take on The Amazing Race, per Daily Variety.

SHARING THE MIKE: Regis Philbin and Donald Trump teaming up for a duet of "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" on Philbin's new Christmas album.

CASTING CALL: Emilio Estevez adding Sharon Stone and Elijah Wood to the star-studded cast of his pet project, Bobby, about the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, which he will write and direct.

BUSH BASHING: Commander in Chief star Donald Sutherland lashing out at President Bush in a BBC interview. The Canadian-born actor says the current administration's policies could "destroy our lives."