Betty White is producing a show on NBC that is basically Punk'd for the senior set, according to an Advocate.com item. White will executive-produce and host Betty White's Off Their Rockers, which is based on the European hit Benidorm Bastards. The show will look at seven seniors who play pranks on unsuspecting younger people.
Actors Jude Law and Kevin Spacey took part in a March 28 protest in London to call for the end of the dictatorship of Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, who is known for his anti-gay statements, according to Advocate.com . The Daily Mail reported that "Spacey, 51, said he was moved to act and protest about human rights violations in Belarus after watching the Belarus Free Theatre perform in New York last year." Spacey's and Law's movies have now been banned in Belarus because of their participation in the protest.
Lionsgate will make several films with smaller budgets ( less than $2 million each ) over the coming year, including the comedy Gay Dude, according To Advocate.com . Written by Parks and Recreation's Alan Yang, the film is about two best friends who plan to lose their virginity before high school graduation. However, things change when one of the friends comes out of the closet.
Actor Farley Grangera '50s screen idol known his role in the Hitchcock thrillers Rope and Strangers on a Trainhas died at age 85, according to Reuters. He later performed on Broadway, making his debut in 1959 with First Impressions, a musical version of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. In his 2007 memoir, Include Me Out: My Life from Goldwyn to Broadway, he told of romantic relationships with men and women.
Hugh Jackman, who is known for being a singer as well as an actor, will perform a two-week stint in San Francisco, according to MercuryNews.com . Jackman will debut his new one-man show, "Hugh Jackman In Performance," at San Francisco's Curran Theatre May 3-15 as part of the SHN/Best of Broadway series. The former Oscars host has a solid Broadway background, winning a Tony in The Boy from Oz and acting alongside Daniel Craig in A Steady Rain.
NBC is slated to premiere a fashion-design show hosted by supermodel Elle Macpherson in 2012, according to Advocate.com . The series, called Fashion Star, will be an unscripted prime-time show in which designers compete for a multimillion-dollar contract to create a fashion line for top retail stores. Unlike the show Project Runway, the designers' creations will be available for viewers to purchase each week.
Artists and songwriters from the EMI record company are raising funds to help the Red Cross support people affected by last month's earthquake and tsunami in Japan, according to a press release. The charity auction, which will be managed by eBay, features items from some of the world's biggest stars, including Coldplay, Norah Jones, Katy Perry, Gorillaz, Daft Punk and Keith Urban. The auction will run in two phases through April 21; see http://ebay.com/EMIfamily4Japan.
Mister Cee, 44, a popular DJ on New York City's Hot 97 station, was arrested and charged with public lewdness after being caught having sex in public with a 20-year-old male, according to GaySocialites.com . ( Other reports suggest that the younger individual is transgender. ) Police said that the younger man was performing oral sex on Cee ( real name: Calvin Lebrun ) , who was an associate producer on Ready to Die, the debut album of the late rapper Notorious B.I.G.
Speaking of Cee, rap musician 50 Cent has come to his defense, according to Advocate.com . The "In da Club" rapper told radio station Hot 97 that he would make Cee "my DJ any day," adding, "It's only entertaining because he means that much to hip-hop culture. I recognize Mister Cee as the guy who offered us Biggie, so he means that much to the culture."
In an installment of her GagaVision YouTube series, Lady Gaga confronts an anti-gay picketer who protested outside one of her concerts, according to Billboard.com . Gaga said to the protester, "We really believe in God at my show," with the picketer saying, "Your pervert ways don't quite equate to what God is all about, darlin'." After the encounter, Gaga said that it made her "sad that my fans have to see that, but I know that it's just part of what I'm supposed to do."
Out lesbian country singer Chely Wright has officially become engaged to her girlfriend, according to HollywoodNews.com . The "Single White Female" singer is now engaged to LGBT-rights activist Lauren Blitzer. They plan to be married in Connecticut Aug. 20.
Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rimes took to Twitter to defend the show's portrayal of same-sex relationships, specifically the wedding of characters Callie Torres and Arizona Robbins, according to Advocate.com . A viewer tweeted why Rhimes "panders to the gay/lesbian community." Rhimes responded that she and her writers do not pander to any community, adding, "Isn't love universal? Isn't that the point? That you can watch a straight couple in love or a lesbian couple in love and what you see and feel is the LOVE? How is that pandering? Maybe I've been pandering to straight couples all this time."
Gay model/reality-TV star Reichen Lehmkuhl has responded about nude photos of him that where taken from his now-deleted profile on a website and re-posted, according to Advocate.com . Lehmkuhl has confirmed that it's him in the photos that were originally posted on Cam4.com, adding, "In my, now, nine years of being in the public eye, I've seen many less-flattering photos attributed to me, so that's a plus. Moving on..." Lehmkuhl originally found fame after being half of a team that won $1 million on the CBS show The Amazing Race.
At the recent Academy of Country Music Awards in Las Vegas, Jake Gyllenhaal was the brunt of a gay-themed joke delivered by singer Blake Shelton, according to WonderWall. Co-hosts Shelton and Reba McEntire were engaging in banter at the start of the show when McEntire asked ( in reference to Gyllenhaal and Taylor Swift dating and splitting ) , "Which I don't understand in the first place. She's beautiful, she's talented, she's sweet. What in the world was Jake Gyllenhaal thinking anyway?" Shelton responded, "Wait a minute. He was in 'Brokeback Mountain."
The stars have commented on the shocking exit of front-runner Pia Toscano on American Idol, according to Digital Spy. Jennifer Hudsonan Idol alum herselftweeted, "I can not believe they just eliminated Pia! Really???? ... [ As ] long as she walked away with that voice she will be alright!! Just hate to see talent like that go!" Alyssa Milano commented, "What in the world? Pia? Pia was sent home? How is that possible? I'm so confused." Even Jersey Shore star Snooki wrote, "American Idol... WTF... Pia should have won the whole thing! I'm not watching Idol anymore. I'm with JLo on this one."
In a first, Bravo has cancelled a Real Housewives installment, ending things with the D.C. housewives after just one season, according to Digital Spy. Real Housewives of D.C. was the fifth series in the reality-show franchise. The show had featured Michaele and Tareq Salahi, who made headlines for allegedly crashing a White House dinner.
Dolly Parton, Colin Farrell, Sean Hayes, Chris Colfer, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Melissa Etheridge, Joel McHale, Kirsten Dunst and Chaz Bono were among those joining GLAAD as it honored Kristin Chenoweth, NBC Entertainment Chairman Robert Greenblatt and the best in television and journalism April 10 at the 22nd Annual GLAAD Media Awards in Los Angeles, hosted by Amy Poehler and Rashida Jones. It was a tie in the Outstanding Comedy Series category, with both Fox's Glee and ABC's Modern Family taking home the award. Also, Dunst presented a Special Recognition award to Bianca "Nikki" Peet, a 17-year-old student from Corpus Christi, Texas, for her efforts to organize a gay-straight alliance at her high school after her principal originally prohibited the group.
DJ Samantha Ronson, the on-and-off girlfriend of actress Lindsay Lohan, posted a photo of herself bruised after being in a bike accident, according to US Magazine. She wrote the caption "Wear a helmet, kids!" with the photo. Ronson also answered questions about the accident; for example, when one person asked, "How did this happen?," she answered, "Avoiding a car!"
There have been country and even mariachi remixes of Lady Gaga's hit "Born This Way"and now there's a Bollywood edition, according to Digital Spy. Gaga has collaborated with music composers Salim-Sulaiman on the Hindi film-themed version of her current release. Gaga's newest single, "Judas," will be released April 19.
Despite the outrage over American Idol contestant Pia Toscano being tossed, executive producer Nigel Lythgoe said that he was never a frontrunner in the competition, Digital Spy reported. Several celebrities expressed their shock with Toscano's ouster, and judge Jennifer Lopez even seemingly suggested that the singer was in no danger of being eliminated. However, Lythgoe said, "I know the results so I know she was never a frontrunner. When I heard that she was going, I was pretty upsetangry, you could say. ... I've realized that, at the end of the day, this is going to happen every week now because the talent is so strong."
Liz Brixius, the executive producer of the cable show Nurse Jackie, said that she is happy with the gay characters on the series, according to Digital Spy. Speaking at the GLAAD Awards, Brixius said, "It doesn't feel like we're soldiers for anything anymore. We're just here telling stories that incorporate gay people in organic ways, and that's all I ever wanted." Although one gay nurse, played by the actor Haaz, left after the first season, several other characters are either members of the LGBT community or have family members who are. The show is in the middle of its third season.
A photographer taunted disgraced fashion designer John Galliano at Los Angeles International Airport April 10, according to a New York Post item. The shutterbug yelled, "Fucking racist!" at Galliano, who has been in the news for making anti-Semitic remarks. Dior recently fired Galliano for the statements; his attorneys subsequently denied that Galliano is anti-Semitic but apologized for the designer's behavior.
Openly gay actor Jonathan Groff has said he has no idea what will happen when he reprises his character, Jesse St. James, on Glee later this season, Digital Spy reported. Groff said, "I wish I knew more. [ Executive producer ] Ryan Murphy contacted me. I start in a week or two. I'll be singing with Lea [ Michele, who plays Rachel ] probably but I don't know if he's raising havoc or coming to apologize." Glee's new episodes start airing April 19 on Fox.
Britney Spears and Rihanna have collaborated on a remix of the latter's hit, "S&M," according to MTV.com . On April 11, Rihanna debuted the mix of her controversial hitless than 24 hours after tweeting that she had "a sexy collabo comin' your way supa dupa soon ... it's Britney bitch!!!" A few weeks ago, Rihanna asked her 4.4 million Twitter followers which artist they'd like to see her collaborate withand they overwhelming responded with Spears.
Singer Annie Lennox will receive the prestigious O2 Silver Clef Award July 1 in London, according to Digital Spy. The music therapy charity will award the "Walking on Broken Glass" singer for her music and humanitarian efforts. Previous winners include the band Muse, Paul McCartney and The Rolling Stones.
Comedian Joan Rivers claims that she never sweatsbecause of vodka, according to the New York Post. At a recent event, she said, "I always spray my costumes with vodka and water. It's an old Broadway tricktwo-thirds water and one-third vodka. Spray your armpits and you'll never smell again." She also said she uses the mixture to wash her clothes.
In Wisconsin, Steven Cowan, 68, was sentenced to probation for a November 2010 incident in which he was so angry that Bristol Palin remained on TV's Dancing with the Stars that he shot the television, according to a New York Post item. Cowan thought Palin's success on the series was some sort of political conspiracy before he shot the set and had a 15-hour standoff with police at his home in Black Earth, Wis. Cowan pled no contest to misdemeanor counts of negligent handling of a weapon and disorderly conduct as well as one felong count of failing to comply with an officer's orders.
In an interview with New York Post's PopWrap, Celebrity Apprentice competitor LaToya Jackson talked about her affection for drag queens. Jacksonthe first celebrity brought back for a second guest-judge spot in the same season of RuPaul's Drag Racesaid that LaToya drag queens "LaToya drag queens kind of look like me, Diana Ross and my sister mixed together," adding that RuPaul's show "is just so much fun." Jackson also said that she's putting out a CD before the end of the year and that she's been asked to compete on Dancing with the Stars, but "it's all about timing."
Law & Order: SVU actor Christopher Meloni has joined the Human Rights Campaign in a new video for the "New Yorkers for Marriage Equality" campaign, according to a press release. In the video, Meloni says, "I believe in love, in family, and in fairness. That's why I'm a New Yorker for marriage equality." Meloni joins Fran Drescher, Kenneth Cole, Joan Rivers and Julianne Moore, among many others, who are involved in the campaign.