top stories (12 posts)

Lester Cohen/WireImage.com

UPDATE: This is not the kind of upgrade you're looking for when you go to the airport.

Dennis Farina has been charged with a felony count of carrying a loaded firearm, an upgrade from his original misdemeanor booking this afternoon after police confirmed that the gun the actor was toting through airport security was not registered.

His bail was also upgraded in kind from $25,000 to $35,000.

"Farina was very apologetic and cooperative with officers," police said. "However, he had no apparent authority to carry a concealed weapon at the time of his arrest."

Farina spent the majority of the afternoon at Van Nuys jail before being released on bail.

…better not involve an unregistered handgun!

Veteran actor and former Chi-town police officer Farina was taken into custody at Los Angeles International Airport on Sunday after LAX screeners found an unregistered .22 caliber semiautomatic pistol in his briefcase. He was transported to a police station in Van Nuys and is being held on $25,000 bail.

Police say Farina, 64, was "very apologetic and cooperative" and told them he had simply forgotten about the weapon. The former Law & Order star was on his way to Chicago when he was arrested by TSA.

In addition to a jail cell this weekend, Farina can be seen in What Happens in Vegas starring Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher.

(Originally published on May 11, 2008 at 1:30 p.m. PT)

Warner Brothers

The summer box office season has seen its first crash.

The $100 million-ish Speed Racer opened this weekend with an estimated $20.2 million, and, according to one box office expert, will struggle to get to $50 million domestically by the time its run is done.

"In terms of Warner Bros., this is a yellow flag of caution," Jeff Bock of Exhibitor Relations Co. said today.

Keep Reading

Denise Truscello/WireImage.com

They might have been called non-moms, but they didn't have non-voices.

An NBC Mother's Day special was seeing to some last-minute changes after adoptive parents balked at a category honoring them as "non-moms."

"We heard the concerns from our viewers, and we certainly understood that," an NBC spokeswoman said today. "We immediately looked into it, and we were able to change that."

Keep Reading

Marvel Enterprises, Inc., DC Comics

So, if you're Superman, and you heard this week that Thor—Thor!—got a release date for his movie, do you wonder what on your adopted planet you have to do to get on the calendar?

The answer might be: Be a Marvel character.

This week, hot off Iron Man's $102-million opening weekend, Marvel issued a "partial" list of eight upcoming superhero movies, everything from Iron Man 2 to Thor. All but Ant-Man had scheduled release dates.

Meanwhile, rival DC Comics' characters, from Aquaman to Wonder Woman, and with the very large exception of Batman, remain in various stages of, if you'll pardon the vulgar Hollywood expression, development.

Keep Reading

DMX apparently isn't one for facing the music of the night.

Three days after getting busted for a months-old traffic violation, the actor-rapper was arrested early Friday at his Phoenix-area home on suspicion of animal abuse and felony drug possession following a search of the house and, before that, a brief standoff with police when he attempted to shut himself up in his bedroom.

According to the Maricopa County sheriff's office, a SWAT team executed a search warrant on DMX's Cave Creek, Ariz., residence at about 3 a.m. in connection with a seven-month-old investigation into reports that the Cradle 2 the Grave star had a number of malnourished pit bulls on his property.

"A guy like this DMX character with all his money and fame has no excuse for not providing proper care for his animals," said Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio. "He has a long criminal history and obviously has no respect for the law."

Keep Reading

Jean Baptiste Lacroix/WireImage.com

Good thing she has that Ugly Betty gig to fall back on, because Lindsay Lohan's movie prospects are rapidly going the way of the dodo.

After being touted as starring in two upcoming high-profile projects—a romantic comedy with Jack Black and a drama about the Manson Family—the actress needs to line up new work after being replaced in both films weeks before shooting was to commence, E! News has learned exclusively.

And the spinmeisters are out in full force to portray everything as hunky-dory.

Alison White of producer Patriot Pictures tells E! News that Lohan is no longer a part of Black’s next film Ye Olde Times, a rom-com in the world of Renaissance Faire.

But White says Lohan was not dumped. "We have just decided to go our separate ways. We currently have an offer out to another actor."

Keep Reading

Tim Boyles/Getty Images

Nick Hogan is drifting to jail.

Angst-ridden, but appearing ready to accept his fate, the son of pro-wrestling legend Hulk Hogan pleaded no contest today to a felony charge of reckless driving involving serious bodily injury. The plea, entered in a Pinellas County, Fla., courtroom, stemmed from an August car crash that left passenger John Graziano in critical condition.

"Every single day I think about the accident…and pray for John every chance I get," said Hogan, whose real name is Nick Bollea. "There will never be a day in my life where I ever will forget this. I know for a fact that I've apologized to the Grazianos…I do genuinely mean that, I'm terribly sorry."

But Judge Philip Federico showed little mercy, sentencing the 17-year-old to eight months in county jail along with five years' probation and 500 hours of community service for drag-racing under the influence of alcohol and causing the Aug. 26 wreck.

Keep Reading

ABC / Mario Perez

Time may move wonky for those on the Island, but for those simply watching it, it'll march on as expected. And as contractually obligated.

ABC has confirmed that, before Lost moves on to that big hatch in the sky in 2010, the network will make good on the three episodes missed due to the writers' strike.

Prior to the start of this season, producers and the network hammered out an endgame, agreeing that Lost would continue for 48 episodes, or three seasons of 16 episodes each.

Even with the recently added second hour to this year's May 29 season finale, however, producers were still two eps shy. Not anymore.

"[Coproducer] Carlton [Cuse] and I did an interview yesterday, and they asked what about the two episodes that didn't get done this year, and we reiterated as we have in many interviews we will probably do 17 next year and 17 the following year," show overlord Damon Lindelof tells E! Online's Watch With Kristin TV blog.

"Poststrike we always said we would make up the ones that got dropped," Cuse added.

That settles that. If only those other numbers were as easy to decipher.

(Originally published May 9, 2008 at 9:15 a.m. PT.) 

Looks like Chris Martin's ready to work on Apple and Moses' college fund.

He and his Coldplay pals just announced the first batch of dates for their world tour in support of their upcoming fourth studio album, Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends, which hits stores June 17.

After two free shows, London's Brixton Academy on June 16 and New York's Madison Square Garden on June 23, the easy-rocking Brits will kick off the paying portion of Viva La Vida on June 29 in Philly and target mainly arenas, along with the odd stadium and festival.

After the initial North American dates wrap Aug. 4 in Chicago, the band will jet to Japan for gigs in Osaka and Tokyo on Aug. 9 and 10. The second North American leg launches Oct. 20 in Montreal and ends Nov. 22 in Salt Lake City.

Fans can win tickets for the free London and Big Apple shows by registering at coldplay.com.

The complete itinerary after the jump.

Keep Reading

AP Photo/Charles Rex Arbogast

The time has finally come for R. Kelly to face the music, and by the look of things, he may have a few more notes to account for than first thought.

Jury selection in the 41-year-old's absurdly delay-plagued trial on child pornography charges finally kicked off in Chicago today, a date more than six years in the making, but not without one final bid for a postponement.

Despite a last-minute motion filed by Kelly's legal team to delay the trial, Judge Vincent Gaughan ruled that the jury selection would, at long last, begin after a brief recess.

That makes two strikes for the R&B star, as the Chicago Sun-Times also dropped a bombshell on the forthcoming proceedings this morning, revealing that an aide to the singer allegedly paid off an Atlanta woman for the safe return of a sex tape—one separate from the footage allegedly starring Kelly and a 13-year-old girl—featuring the singer.

It's unclear whether Kelly was privy to the deal.

Further complicating matters, the woman, who is described as having been in love with the star, is also expected to testify that she had a ménage à trois with Kelly and yet another underage girl. The woman has received immunity for her testimony.

As for the more infamous videotape at the heart of the case, the one allegedly starring Kelly and an underage girl, the now 23-year-old female is expected to testify in the trial that she is in fact a victim...of mistaken identity.

While prosecution is adamant otherwise, the woman claims she's not Kelly's costar in the footage.

Kelly has pleaded not guilty to the charges; he faces up to 15 years in prison if convicted.