Buzz Briefs: Theron, Christopher Walken
Harvard To Honor Charlize Theron And Christopher Walken
The Hasty Pudding Theatricals of Harvard University has announced that Charlize Theron and Christopher Walken are the recipients of the 2008 Man and Woman of the Year awards.
The Woman of the Year celebration will be held on Feb. 7 and the Man of the Year celebration will be held on Feb. 15.
Charlize Theron will lead a parade through the streets of Cambridge. Following the parade, the president of the theatricals, Evan Eachus '08, and the vice president of the cast, David Andersson '09, will roast the celebrity and present her with her Pudding Pot.
On Feb. 15th, the producers of the Hasty Pudding Theatricals, William Teslik '08 and Joshua Lachter '09, will roast Christopher Walken and present him with his Pudding Pot, prior to the start of the opening night performance of "Fable Attraction."
The Man and Woman of the Year awards are presented annually to performers who have made a "lasting and impressive contribution to the world of entertainment."
Established in 1951, the Woman of the Year award winners have included Meryl Streep, Katharine Hepburn, Julia Roberts, Jodie Foster, Elizabeth Taylor, and, most recently, Scarlett Johansson.
The Man of the Year award was established in 1963. Its past recipients include Clint Eastwood, Tom Cruise, Robert De Niro, Steven Spielberg, Harrison Ford, Anthony Hopkins, Bruce Willis, and, last year, Ben Stiller.
Danny Glover Convicted Of Trespassing
Glover, who wasn't in court, was convicted Thursday along with UNITE HERE union representative Alex Dagg and Ontario Federation of Labour President Wayne Samuelson.
Canadian Niagara Hotels charged the three with trespassing at their Sheraton on the Falls property during a Sept. 16, 2006, protest.
The 60-year-old actor took part in the protest as part of a larger campaign that aims to increase salaries and improve working conditions for hotel workers in the U.S. and Canada.
Sentencing is scheduled Feb. 8.
Stallone Endorses McCain
According to Fox News' Brian Kilmeade, he talked with Stallone and asked the actor who he's endorsing.
"I like McCain a lot. A lot." Stallone said. "And you know, things may change along the way, but there's something about matching the character with the script. And right now, the script that's being written and reality is pretty brutal and pretty hard-edged like a rough action film, and you need somebody who's been in that to deal with it."
"I'm going to Philadelphia and running up the steps," McCain said.
Photos: Political Action
Nashville Publisher Sues Don Imus
Flatsigned Press Inc. says it was maligned last year after it paid to advertise on "Imus in the Morning." It says Imus claimed the publishers "have been waiting for him (Ford) to croak so they can unload these" books.
The lawsuit, filed in Manhattan's state Supreme Court, says Imus told his WFAN audience in January 2007, "Now that he's (Ford) flatLINED, you go to FlatSIGNED.com."
Marc Held, an attorney for the Nashville, Tenn., company, said Imus was told not to disparage the sponsor but he kept doing it.
Representatives for WFAN parent CBS and Flatsigned parent Citadel did not immediately return calls for comment.
Phish Lead Singer Spends Two Nights In Jail
The 43-year-old former Phish lead singer was ordered to participate in the Washington County court's treatment program when he pleaded guilty to possessing painkillers without a prescription during a traffic stop in December 2006.
The program requires weekly court appearances for 12 months to 15 months, community service and drug testing.
Assistant District Attorney Tony Jordan told the Glens Falls Post-Star that Anastasio, who lives in Richmond, Vt., missed one counseling session and the violation didn't involve a drug test.
Sheriff Roger Leclaire said the musician's two days in jail were uneventful and he spent them in the general population.
Lance Armstrong Teaches Environmental Lesson At Texas Ranch
Cycling champ Lance Armstrong has finished cleaning up a prized swimming hole that became polluted after he began building a dam on his ranch.
Armstrong said he spent about $850,000 on the cleanup of Dead Man's Hole, which the cyclist shares with 17 neighboring landowners and is fed by a creek running through Armstrong's 450-acre ranch west of Austin.
The pool became cloudy after construction on the dam began in 2005. Armstrong said the project could serve as a lesson to others who have accidentally polluted streams or pools.
The cleanup "sets a good example for if somebody muddies up a creek," Armstrong said. "Here's how you fix it."
Armstrong said he had the silty water vacuumed out, filtered and returned.
Neighboring landowner Beryl Armstrong, who is not related to the cyclist, said neighbors were pleased with the resolution.
"The community is calm and happy," he said. "Those of us out here are content with the solution."
In "Every Second Counts," Armstrong's 2003 memoir about beating cancer, the cyclist said he bought the ranch because he was so drawn to Dead Man's Hole. Jumping off the 45-foot waterfall that feeds the pool is his "own personal way of checking for vital signs," he said in the book.
Blogger Perez Hilton Gets $85,000 In Lohan Friend's Lawsuit
Celebrity blogger Perez Hilton will receive nearly $85,000 to pay his legal costs in a defamation lawsuit brought by a friend of actress Lindsay Lohan, a judge ruled Wednesday.
Hilton, whose real name is Mario Lavandeira, also can receive an additional $2,000 if he requests it, Superior Court Judge Elihu M. Berle said.
"Perez Hilton will take steps to make sure every dime is collected," said his lawyer, Bryan J. Freedman. "This should make one careful before filing a lawsuit against him."
Samantha Ronson, who sued Hilton last year, was a passenger in Lohan's car when it crashed into a tree in Beverly Hills last May.
She sued Hilton for repeating on his Web site a report from CelebrityBabylon.com that stated she planted cocaine that was found in Lohan's car.
The judge removed Hilton from the lawsuit last November after the blogger's attorneys argued he was protected by free speech rights.
Her attorney, David M. Bass, unsuccessfully argued that Hilton's lawyers' fees were excessive and he should get no more than $13,400 to recover his legal costs.
Bass also said Ronson's previous lawyer abandoned his representation of her before taking Hilton's deposition, which Bass said was important to the defamation suit.
Bass said Wednesday he was considering whether to take further legal action.
"We would like an opportunity for the court to consider all the facts," he said.
Marion "Suge" Knight Is Named In Gang Injunction
City officials asked a judge to ban members of the Mob Piru street gang from being able to congregate in a neighborhood of Compton and asked that the order include Marion "Suge" Knight.
The co-founder of Death Row Records was one of 200 people the officials said were members of Mob Piru. The injunction would ban them from congregating, carrying guns, drinking alcohol in public or staying out past 10 p.m.
Knight called the injunction a "publicity stunt."
"This is crazy," Knight told the Los Angeles Times in Thursday's editions. "I'm a 42-year-old businessman, not a gang member. I don't even live in Compton anymore."
A hearing on the matter was to be held Thursday.
Although such injunctions are a common anti-gang tactic in southern California, this is the first time one has been sought in Compton, a city less than 10 miles south of downtown Los Angeles that announced a gang crackdown two years ago.
Mob Piru members have gained notoriety for their alleged links to Knight and Death Row, once home to artists such as Tupac Shakur and Snoop Dogg.
Stephen Colbert Raises $171,000 For Charity
$171,525 is a lot of money for a joke to raise.
That's how much Stephen Colbert's "WristStrong" bracelets have raised since the mock talk show host began selling them as part of his "wrist awareness" campaign, started shortly after he broke his left wrist last June.
On Wednesday night's "The Colbert Report" on Comedy Central, the comedian presented the proceeds to the Yellow Ribbon Fund, a charity that assists injured service members and their families.
Colbert has sold the bracelets, a parody of Lance Armstrong's cancer-awareness "LiveStrong" bracelets, and distributed them to any celebrity he could convince to wear one, including Katie Couric, Brian Williams and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg.
Colbert earlier auctioned off the cast from his broken wrist, raising $17,000, which also benefited the Yellow Ribbon Fund. The bracelets have since been a badge of honor for the so-called Colbert Nation.
Link: Stephen Colbert Nation
Since returning from the writers strike without his writing staff, Colbert has managed to get a portrait of himself hung at the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C., where it will hang between the bathrooms and near the "America's Presidents" exhibit for about five more weeks.
Lil Wayne Is Now Out Of The Slammer, But Still Faces Charges
He has been released from custody in Arizona, after posting $10,000 bond. But he is still facing three felony drug charges.
Federal agents say they found the rapper carrying illegal drugs, including cocaine and pot.
His bus was pulled over at a checkpoint. DEA officials say a Border Patrol dog sniffed out the drugs. A search turned up nearly four ounces of pot, a little more than an ounce of coke as well as drug paraphernalia.
They also found a .40-caliber pistol registered to Lil' Wayne. He has a permit to carry concealed weapons in Florida, but authorities are trying to find out if he violated any weapons laws in Arizona.
After being released, Lil' Wayne signed autographs for fans outside a bondsman's office.