FIRST LOOK: The News in Brief, September 27, 2002

INSTANT KARMA: Yoko Ono settling a lawsuit against a former personal assistant who wrote a tell-all book about John Lennon. Ono claimed the assistant was bound by a confidentiality agreement. The deal will "prevent future exploitation of the Lennon family," says Ono's lawyer.

SMELLS LIKE A HIT: Nirvana's now legendary unreleased song "You Know You're Right" showing up on the radio and Internet song-swapping sites. The song was a point of contention in Courtney Love's lawsuit with the surviving band members and could indicate a settlement is near.

LOTS OF FRIENDS: NBC's ninth (and final?) season premiere of Friends dominating Thursday night with an estimated 33.3 million viewers--the biggest debut ever for the Emmy-winning comedy. At 9 p.m., CBS' CSI beat NBC's Will & Grace and Good Morning, Miami, while ER won the 10 p.m. competiton over CBS' new Without a Trace. ABC's Push, Nevada barely registered amid all the competition.

SNUFFED: Tanya Vance, the 27-year-old social worker from Kingsport, Tennessee, was the second casualty on Survivor: Thailand Thursday night. That makes two straight losses for the Chuay Gahn tribe.

SURVIVE THIS: Live Aid mastermind and British TV producer Bob Geldof suing the producers of Britain's hit I'm a Celebrity...Get Me Out Of Here!, claiming the reality show rips off Survivor, to which he owns worldwide rights. The suit may affect the U.S. version of Celebrity, which ABC has in the works for a midseason replacement.

SURREAL WORLD: Rocker Vince Neil, rapper M.C. Hammer, Webster's Emmanuel Lewis and Mindy Cohn from The Facts of Life among the C-list celebrities aboard the WB's upcoming reality series The Surreal Life. The The Real World-like unscipted show will see them move into a house for two weeks and have their lives taped round-the-clock.

PREPARING FOR BATTLE! Australian actor Eric Bana, who stars in Universal's upcoming The Hulk, signing on to play Hector opposite Brad Pitt's Achilles in Warner Bros.' big-budget epic Troy. The film, directed by Wolfgang Petersen, starts shooting in the spring.

TERMINATED? Arnold Schwarzenegger sending a letter to a group in his hometown of Graz, Austria, requesting they not build an 82-foot Terminator statue in the city's park. The figure, holding a globe over its head, would tower over more traditional statues. "[Arnold] was flattered but he thought it would be better to spend the money on social projects and the Special Olympics," the group's manager told the Associated Press.

WILD ABOUT HARRY! Muggles snatching up advanced tickets in Britain on Friday for the November 15 release of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. The sequel will likely break the advanced-sales record set by Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone last year.

DIAMONDS BY LIZ: Several pieces from Elizabeth Taylor's jewelry collection, including the emerald-and-diamond ring given to her by Richard Burton for their 1962 engagement, on the block Thursday at Christie's auction house to raise money for Taylor's AIDS foundation.

AILING: Roxette singer Marie Fredriksson scheduled to undergo surgery to remove a brain tumor next week in Stockholm. The cancer has forced the Swedish duo to cancel its European tour.

FOR THE RECORD: An autopsy revealing Drowning Pool lead singer David Wayne Williams died of natural causes on August 14 after suffering from heart failure caused by cadiomyopathy, a disease in which areas of heart muscle enlarge and thicken.

IT'S ABOUT TIME: The New York City Council proposing a bill to ban the use of cell phones in "places of public performance" and fine violators up to $50 because of the nuisance it creates for both actors on stage and the audience.

RANSOM: Kidnappers demanding $1 million for the safe release of Laura Zapata and Ernestina Sodi, sisters of Mexican actress and Latin Grammy performer Thalia, a victim's friend said Thursday. Family have refused to file a report with police or talk to the media about the case. Thalia is married to Sony Music boss Tommy Mottola.

PARENTAL REPORT: During a press conference this week in Berlin for the opening of Minority Report, both Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg said they strictly limit the amount of television their kids watch a day . "We're focusing on reading, a lot of reading," said Cruise.

DARK ANGEL: Jessica Alba to star in Universal's Beautiful Killer, a film based on the comic book about a young girl driven to avenge the death of their parents, who are killed because of their involvement in the spy business.

HOOP TALK: TNT tapping Charles Barkley to host Listen UP! Charles Barkley with Ernie Johnson, a new weekly talk show that will air Thursday nights before the network's scheduled NBA games.

TUBE TALK: Queen Latifah returning to prime-time to star in CBS' Mali Anderson, a drama series following a former New York police detective who works as a private investigator in Harlem.

SILENT SAVIOR: The Blot, a 1921 silent film helmed by one of America's first female directors, Lois Weber, among 58 "orphan" titles being selected for immortal life this year by the National Film Preservation Foundation.

LOOKING FOR ADVENTURE? The producer of last year's dismal Freddy Got Fingered, currently planning Easy Rider A.D., a sequel to Columbia Pictures' 1969 classic starring Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper and Jack Nicholson.

FACE OFF: Nicolas Cage coming aboard Back Up, a science-fiction thriller about a cop brought back to life to investigate his own murder.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Nickelodeon's Rugrats celebrating its 12th birthday next year with a new spinoff series, All Growed Up, which will continue to chronicle the now 'tween-age characters.