Hollywood Offender

American Idol Drama: David Archuleta's Father Banned From Set

The backstage drama at "American Idol" this season is proving more interesting than anything that's going on with the actual competition.  On Friday, TMZ reported that David Archuleta's creepy, controlling father was banned from AI rehearsals for the remainder of the season. 

The reason?  Well, besides being creepy he also has been haranging other contestants and producers and last week he went over the producers' heads and have David change some lyrics in his version of "Stand By Me" after he was expressing told he couldn't do that.  Apparently, adding a verse from Sean Kingston's "Beautiful Girls" ended up costing the the show money. 

That's actually an easy solve: make Jeff Archuletta pay it.  I'd love to see the fur fly on that lawsuit-in-the-making.  However, the A.I. lawyers met with Papa A. last Wednesday and issued the ban.  He's not allowed to be in the room when his kid is learning or rehearsing his songs.  But doesn't he have the remote control that powers young David?  Can the wonder child even function with Daddy telling him what to do?

But, in case anyone is worried, even controlling parental figures have people in their corners.  A family friend has defended the elder Archie, via the pages of People.  Richard Parkinson, some dude who's helped David with musical arrangements the last few years says:

“I get frustrated with this because of course they never get the story the way it really is.  It is completely unfair that he be taking the brunt of this, if that’s exactly what’s going on. It’s awful … It’s really awful.”

Yeah, you tell 'em.  The brunt should be taken by...oh, wait--there's no one else to blame!  Doh!

David's voice coach, Dean Kaelin, takes a different approach, saying:

“He is just not allowed to go into the arranging sessions with David. It is more of a fairness issue than anything else, since the other two contestants don’t have people on site to help with their arrangements. It is not a punishment.”

So, let's tally: Archie has his father strong-arming the producers, the contestants, everyone, but his banning isn't a punishment, it's about fairness.  As if that's ever come into play on this show before.

Matt Lauer To Tom Cruise: "All Is Forgiven"

Matt Lauer's weighing in on Tom Cruise's recent quasi-mea culpa on Oprah's show--specifically in regard to his Today show rant when he went off on Matt.  Per the host, it's all good.  I do love, though, that he makes it clear he didn't actually sit down and watch the Telluride dreck.

"I was traveling.  I didn't see the interview. Somebody told me a little bit."

Translation: "Why would I lower myself to watch that blowhard rewrite history?"

Then he added that Tommy is welcome to come back.

"I don't feel there are any hard feelings.  It was an interview. It was a good moment on television."

"The doors are open.  I hope he comes back and sees me real soon."

In other words, Matt's seeing ratings gold in his future.  He shouldn't be so sure.  Oprah's ratings for the two-part Tom lovefest?  Not so good.  Even Barbara Walters' dish on her dirty deeds from thirty years ago did better.

Oh, and in case anyone has forgotten the infamous "you're glib, Matt, you're glib" interview?  Let's revisit, shall we?

Related:

Tom Cruise On Oprah: His Amazing, Yet Misunderstood, Life

Everyone Jumps On The "Let's Defend Miley" Bandwagon

Everyone is coming out of the woodwork and having their say about the Miley Cyrus Vanity Fair photos.  The latest blowhards to open their mouths are Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt. 

Oh, and let me state it flat-out right now: I have never watched "The Hills."  I'm on record as admitting I'll watch any piece of garbage Hollywood throws at me and even I won't watch this.  Apparently, I do have some standards.

Anyway, so Heidi apparently phoned up Extra (via US Weekly) and let them know what she thought about Miley.  Because that's something we all were waiting for.  I often ask myself "What would Heidi think?" Now I know.

"I think she’s a young girl in Hollywood, and she’s just having fun.  [She]'s exploring herself.”

I guess she's been so busy reading her own tabloid reports that she doesn't even realize Miley has said she's embarrassed by the photos.  Then Spencer, never to be left speechless, weighed in with this glowing compliment:

“I didn’t think it was that bad. Supposedly, she’s wearing a top underneath. It’s artistic.”

His comment just oozes smarminess, doesn't it?  I don't like him solely on that peach-fuzz beard he's working.  It's just annoying.

But, wait--there's more.  Rosie O'Donnell, naturally, also had to add her two cents, because she's Rosie and that's what she does.  I guess we should be thankful at least she doesn't do it on "The View" anymore.

"Listen, Annie Leibovitz – I had two photo shoots with her.  You kind of do what she says. It's intimidating. I also didn't think it was a pornographic photo in any capacity. I thought it was sort of a beautiful portrait..I like the one of her and her dad, too. I don't know. It's Annie Leibovitz, people."

So if it was Sid, the guy who takes the photos at Sears, it wouldn't be OK, but because it's "Annie Leibovitz, people" it's fine?  Plus, she's basically saying Annie bullied Miley into this.  I kind of don't think that's Vanity Fair and Leibovitz's position.  You know, mainly because that's what they said themselves.

God, is this controversy over yet? 

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The Miley Cyrus Story Rages On

The Miley Cyrus Story Rages On

You've gotta love all the finger-pointing that's going on with the Miley Cyrus "Vanity Fair" pictures controversy.  This was telegraphed the second that first photo hit the Internet.  So far we've got Miley, who says she's embarrassed, Disney, who blames the magazine, the magazine defends themselves and photographer Annie Liebovitz goes on and on about how artistic the photos were.  Artistic as they might be (though I don't see anything groundbreaking or particularly breathtaking there), the kid IS fifteen and perhaps Annie should've thought for about that for a nanosecond.

Still, at the end of the day, you've gotta question what on earth her parents were thinking.  Well, turns out, they're claiming they knew nothing about it until the rest of the world did. 

“They were happy with the photos taken earlier in the day, but they didn’t see the photo in question until now."

Come. On.  Even Vanity Fair rightfully calls foul on that, saying they saw the digital shots at the shoot and "everyone thought it was a beautiful and natural portrait." 

So, here's the question: If her parents left the shoot early, as they claim, who bears the weight of the decision to take these photos?  Do you blame the fifteen-year-old "people pleaser," the photographer, or how about whoever was on set as Miley's guardian?  I'm gonna go with the latter.  They didn't manage to protect the kid's interests very much, did they?  And, if they are to blame, then so are Billy Ray and Tish Cyrus, by extension.  Actually, I find the above photo more creepy than the backless ones.  The implication is way more sexual.  I can't imagine posing with my father for something like that ever, never mind as a teenager. 

I actually feel really bad for Miley.  Her image to date has been pretty tame and suddenly she's in the middle of this controversy.  I just don't want her turning into another Britney.  For both her sake and mine, as frankly, one of them is more than I can handle.

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Related:

Miley Cyrus Topless In Vanity Fair

Father of Madonna's Adoptee Says He's Been Cut Off From His Son, David Banda

Pop singer Madonna has reportedly been cutting off contact between David Banda, the Malawian boy she adopted, and his biological father.

The Times Online reported that David's father, Yohane Banda, says that Madonna has severed all contact between him and his son, causing him to regret ever placing his son up for adoption:

"I feel robbed. I should be able to see my son and say hello. I don't know how he is growing, what person he is turning into. This pains me because it looks like he is not my son any more."

Banda said Madonna initially agreed to allow him to maintain regular contact with his son after she informally adopted him in 2006:

"I told her that although I was giving her my son she should look after him well. I told her that she should raise him, educate him and make sure that he does not forget me and Malawi."

The Times said the adoption is expected to be approved formally next month in the Malawian capital of Lilongwe.

Related:

Madonna: Don't Mess With Her

Stars Speak Out In Defense Of Wesley Snipes

Hollywood stars stood up and spoke out in favor of Wesley Snipes before his sentencing today on charges of tax fraud.

Snipes was scheduled to be sentenced in Ocala, Florida to a possible three years in federal prison after being convicted of three misdemeanor counts of willfully failing to file a tax return, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

Defense attorneys gave Senior U.S. District Court Judge William Terrell Hodges a 39-page document of letters from Snipes' friends, colleagues and employees speaking on his behalf.

Denzel Washington said Snipes was, "like a tree -- a mighty oak," while actor Woody Harrelson also had his say for Snipes, as well as television judges Joe Brown and Greg Mathis.

Said Harrelson:

"Wes seeks solutions and resolutions rather than sitting back and watching the horrors and injustices that plague our world."

Snipes' defense lawyers reportedly argued their client was only found guilty of misdemeanors, not felonies, and jail sentences have not been given to many celebrities in tax trouble.

A jury found Snipes guilty in February of wilfully failing to file taxes for three years, in which the government said he owed $2.7 million. Snipes was acquitted of three identical misdemeanours and two felony charges of tax fraud and conspiracy.

UPDATE:

TMZ has just reported that Snipes will serve 3 years in prison for tax evasion. This story is still developing...

Chicago Sun-Times and Chicago Trib Sue in R. Kelly Case

The Chicago Sun-Times, The Chicago Tribune and the AP have launched a challenge to force a court to release transcripts in the R. Kelly pornography case.

The two newspapers began a First Amendment appeal earlier this week to force the presiding the judge, Vincent Gaughan, to release the transcripts of court hearings in the nearly six-year-old child pornography case involving the R&B singer.

The challenge also seeks to lift the gag order on the case.

Kelly, 41, faces child pornography charges for allegedly filming himself engaged in sexual acts with a minor estimated at about 13 or 14 years old. He has pleaded not guilty and jury selection is scheduled to begin May 9.

Virgie Arthur Is On The War Path

Virgie Arthur, the mother of the late Anna Nicole Smith, is suing a plethora of people she says defamed her.

The Houston Chronicle reported the defendants named in Arthur's lawsuit, which was filed Monday in Harris County state court, include TMZ; the site's managing editor, Harvey Levin; her daughter's companion, Howard K. Stern; Stern's sister, Bonnie Stern; TV journalist Art Harris of "The Bald Truth" blog; and at least three other Texas bloggers.

Key to her lawsuit is a story that has run on TMZ in the past year with the headline "Virgie Has Son With Her Stepbrother."  According to Arthur's attorney, Neil McCabe, the story implies that the couple were step-siblings prior to their relationship.

Arthur contends the story damaged her attempts to gain custody and visitation rights for her granddaughter, Dannielynn.

Brigitte Bardot Facing Charges

Hollywood legend Brigitte Bardot, the French movie actress turned animal rights activist, says she's being harassed by anti-racism groups.

Bardot, who is now 73, has drawn criticism and legal charges for comments she made denouncing the Muslim practice of slaughtering sheep without first stunning them.

A prosecutor in Paris on Tuesday recommended Bardot receive a two-month suspended prison sentence and a $25,000.00 fine for inciting racial hatred in a letter she wrote to French President Nicolas Sarkozy in December 2006.

A verdict is expected June 3.

In the letter to Sarkozy, Bardot wrote:

"We're fed up with being led by the nose by this population that is destroying us, destroying our country by imposing its acts."

Bardot, who has been convicted on similar charges at least three times in the last 11 years, didn't attend the Tuesday hearing, however she issued a statement through her lawyer saying she was appalled by the criticism levied against her, which she says is harassment:

"I will never be quiet until the ritual slaughtering practices are changed."

Dr. Phil Oversteps Boundaries - Again.

TMZ reports that a "Dr. Phil" television producer and a production assistant bailed out Mercades Nichols, who has been accused of orchestrating a severe beating of a fellow teenager that was recorded and posted on YouTube.

Bond for Nichols had been set at $33,000.00, while minions for the "Dr. Phil" show helped the teen leave a Florida jail with her mother. The bond posting came in the wake of comments from the teenager's grandmother, who told reporters she did not have enough money to get the girl out of jail.

A representative for the "Dr. Phil" show issued an exclusive statement to TMZ.com saying a show on the popularized case would not occur as planned:

"We have helped guests and potential guests in the past when they need financial assistance to come on the show - assisting with clothing allowance, lost wages, accommodations, travel and necessities, the statement said. In this case, certain staff members went beyond our guidelines."

Related:

Britney's Out, Dr. Phil Butts In

Oprah Winfrey Continues Quest For World Domination