Buzz Briefs: Tom Cruise, "Bachelor"
Cruise: Scientology Teachings Helped Me Overcome Dyslexia
U.S. actor Tom Cruise said Scientology teachings helped him overcome childhood dyslexia, a Spanish magazine reported.
Cruise was quoted by Spanish magazine XL Semanal as saying he was diagnosed with the learning disability when he was 7 years old.
Cruise said he was often anxious, frustrated and bored as a youth and couldn't concentrate in class, the magazine reported on its Web site Sunday.
The magazine quoted Cruise as saying he was functionally illiterate when he graduated from school in 1980, but learned to read perfectly as an adult through Scientology technology.
XL Semanal said the interview was conducted in Los Angeles, but did not say when. A transcript of Cruise's original comments in English was not available.
The Church of Scientology was established in 1945 by science-fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, and claims 10 million members around the world. Cruise and fellow actor John Travolta are among its more famed followers.
New "Bachelor" Jason Mesnick Is Getting Hitched
Though he wasn't picked in the finale of "The Bachelorette," Jason Mesnick isn't just giving love another shot - he says he's found it.
Mesnick, ABC's newest "Bachelor," says he's engaged to one of the women who compete for his affection on the 13th season of the reality series, which was to premiere Monday.
The 32-year-old accountant has finished filming "The Bachelor," but can't reveal his pick until the finale, which will air this spring.
Mesnick says being pursued by 25 women made him empathetic to DeAnna Pappas, who chose snowboarder Jesse Csincsak over him during the "Bachelorette" season finale.
"It gives you a lot more respect for what she had to go through," Mesnick said.
Csincsak and Pappas, co-host of Lifetime's "Get Married," have since broken up.
This time around, "The Bachelor" has a new twist: There's a child in the mix - Mesnick's 3-year-old son Tyler. Mesnick checked with Ty's pediatrician and a psychologist before exposing him to the show's unique situation and any separation involved.
"He's always in the forefront of my mind," Mesnick said.
Farewell To "Star Trek" Actress Roddenberry
Friends, family and fans gathered this weekend to bid a final farewell to "Star Trek" actress Majel Barrett Roddenberry.
The Ohio native's funeral in Los Angeles on Sunday drew more than 250 people. Roddenberry was the widow of "Star Trek" creator Gene Roddenberry and had been involved in the "Star Trek" universe for more than four decades.
The 76-year-old Roddenberry died of leukemia Dec. 18 at her Bel-Air home.
Among the mourners were "Star Trek" stars Nichelle Nichols, George Takei (tuh-KAY') and Walter Koenig.
Roddenberry was born in Cleveland in 1932. She played the dark-haired Number One in the original pilot but metamorphosed into the blond, miniskirted Nurse Christine Chapel in the original 1966-69 TV series.
Danish Writer Inger Christensen Dies At Age 73
Inger Christensen's publisher says the Danish writer who built experimental poems, essays and novels around systematized and mathematical structures has died at age 73.
Publisher Gyldendal says the reclusive writer died Saturday but has given no further details.
Christensen was one of Denmark's most famous poets, and is best known her poetry collections "det" (1969) and "alfabet" (1981).
Her works were translated into several languages and she won a number of international awards, including the Swedish Academy's Nordic Prize in 1994 and the German Siegfried Unseld award in 2006.
May The Rothbury Festival Go On
A federal bankruptcy judge has been asked to approve a lease allowing the second Rothbury Festival to be held at the Double JJ Ranch and Resort.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Jeffrey R. Hughes's approval is needed for bankruptcy trustee Thomas A. Bruinsma to sign the contract with AEG Live, which co-produced last summer's festival. The Muskegon Chronicle says the motion is scheduled to be heard Monday.
The environmentally themed event is to run July 3-5 at the resort near Rothbury, a village about 60 miles northwest of Grand Rapids. About 40,000 people attended the 2008 festival.
The Double JJ was hit with an $18.7 million foreclosure lawsuit days after the 2008 festival ended, and the owners filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in mid-July. The resort is expected to be sold, but not before this summer's festival.
Universal Sells Rogue To Financing Partner
Universal Pictures, a division of General Electric Co., has sold horror and thriller film label Rogue Pictures to its longtime financing partner Relativity Media LLC.
NBC Universal spokeswoman Kori Bernards on Sunday confirmed the deal was closed shortly before Christmas but declined to confirm the sale price. The New York Times reported the deal was for about $150 million.
Spokesmen for Relativity were not immediately available. In October, a person familiar with the deal talks cited a price tag of as much as $150 million for Relativity to acquire Rogue's brand, catalog and upcoming releases - about four this year - although Universal would continue to distribute its films.
The deal comes after Universal Pictures agreed to distribute up to six movies a year from Steven Spielberg's DreamWorks studio, which split from Viacom Inc.'s Paramount Pictures.
The sale of Rogue will reduce overhead expenses for Universal and represents a significant hedge in a weakening economy as Universal's film slate is about to expand to about 35 movies a year after DreamWorks' productions hit theaters around the end of 2009.