MJ, Freddie Mercury songs leaked
Guitarist Brian May is furious after "music thieves" exploited Michael Jackson's death by releasing previously unheard tracks by the King Of Pop and Queen's late frontman Freddie Mercury on the Internet.
Jackson, who passed away last week, and Mercury worked together in the 1980s on a number of tracks that have never been heard by the public.
May revealed the existence of the songs earlier this week, saying, "He (Jackson) used to come and see us when we were on tour in the States. He and Freddie became close friends, close enough to record a couple of tracks together at Michael's house, tracks which have never seen the light of day."
But the rocker has been left incensed after two tunes by the pair, State Of Shock and There Must Be More To Life Than This, ended up on video sharing website YouTube.com.
He fumes, "The music thieves at work as usual."
Montreal publisher starts printing updated Michael Jackson biography
MONTREAL - A Montreal publishing house has started printing an updated biography of Michael Jackson, a week after abruptly stopping the presses following the sudden death of the King of Pop.
Transit Publishing president Pierre Turgeon says author Ian Halperin's book, "Unmasked: The Final Years of Michael Jackson," went to press Thursday.
The biography, originally titled "Michael Jackson: Return from Exile," is scheduled to hit Canadian shelves next week.
"I stopped the presses and the author added some material to put the book up to speed," Turgeon said Thursday.
"Obviously, we had to change the ending."
The book initially ended with Jackson's expected return to the stage for 50 shows at London's O2 Arena, a much-anticipated series that had been scheduled to begin this month.
Turgeon said the final chapter now includes details of Jackson's death. It also features material Halperin got from a meeting with the pop star, which had been protected by a non-disclosure agreement.
That deal expired after Jackson's death, the publisher added.
In December, Halperin, who recently released a controversial, unauthorized biography of Cirque du Soleil founder Guy Laliberte, publicly predicted that Jackson had six months to live.
Turgeon said the printer, Transcontinental, sent the Montreal writer's book to press around the same time officials confirmed Jackson's death.
"I was very stressed because everybody from the office at Transcontinental had left for the evening," said Turgeon, who eventually tracked down the plant's night foreman.
The book will be released in the United States and the United Kingdom on July 14 and in France on July 17.
Around 300,000 copies will hit stores in the U.S., 100,000 in England, 100,000 in France and 40,000 in Canada.
David Carradine's death: asphyxiation, but not suicide
David Carradine's sudden and mysterious death in June finally has some answers ... but not all of them.
A private autopsy has determined that the "Kung Fu" star died from asphyxiation, but the medical examiner is ruling out suicide, reports Reuters.
Carradine's family hired forensic pathologist Dr. Michael Baden to do a second autopsy following up on the Thai investigation after he was found dead with a rope around his neck in a Bangkok hotel room on June 4.
"He didn't die of natural causes, and he didn't die of suicidal causes from the nature of the ligatures around the body, so that leaves some kind of accidental death," says Baden, who also hosts HBO's "Autopsy" series.
The doctor also says that Carradine's hands were tied above his head, not behind his back as had been previously reported. Baden estimates that maybe a week more is needed to get to the bottom of how the actor accidentally died.
Neil Patrick Harris closes in on Emmys gig
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – CBS is close to signing "How I Met Your Mother" co-star Neil Patrick Harris to host this year's Emmys.
The two-time Emmy nominee is fresh off a well-received stint as host of the Tonys, telecast by CBS in June.
The 61st annual Emmys will be broadcast September 20.
The event is under pressure to stage a turnaround this year. Ratings for the Academy Awards, MTV Awards, Tonys, Grammys and Country Music Awards have increased during their most recent airings, while the perpetually sinking Emmys last year hit an all-time viewership low.
Jackson funeral set for Tuesday in downtown L.A.
LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) – Michael Jackson's funeral is being scheduled for 10 a.m. on Tuesday, July 7, at the Staples Center in downtown Los Angeles, sources said.
AEG Live, which owns the basketball arena and the adjacent Nokia Theater, will use both facilities and the surrounding plaza. There's no word yet on how ticketing will be handled.
Earlier speculation had the funeral being held everywhere from Neverland to the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Oscar-winning actor Karl Malden dies at 97
LOS ANGELES (AFP) – Oscar-winning actor Karl Malden, known for his distinctive nose and roles opposite Marlon Brando in "A Streetcar Named Desire" and "On The Waterfront," has died, officials said Wednesday. He was 97.
Malden's passing was announced by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS), where he served as president from 1989 to 1992.
A statement distributed by the Academy said the actor, who starred in more than 50 films, died at home surrounded by family members. No cause of death was disclosed.
Born Mladen Sekulovich in Chicago in 1912 to a Serbian father and Czech mother, Malden was the eldest of three sons and grew up in Gary, Indiana.
He developed a love of acting after appearing regularly in school plays and in productions organized by his father at a local church.
Malden worked in Gary's steel mills from 1931 until 1934 before accepting a scholarship to Chicago's Goodman Theater.
Another scholarship student, Mona Greenberg, became his wife in 1938. The couple celebrated their 70th wedding anniversary last year.
After tying the knot Malden forged a successful Broadway career, appearing in landmark productions such as Arthur Miller's "All My Sons" and Tennessee Williams's "A Streetcar Named Desire."
During this time he developed working relationships and lifelong friendships with director Elia Kazan and co-star Brando.
Malden's recreation of the role of Mitch in "Streetcar" earned him an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1951, and he scored another nod in that category for playing Father Barry in "On the Waterfront."
After moving to Los Angeles in 1959 to pursue his film career, Malden landed roles in films including "One-Eyed Jacks," "The Cincinnati Kid," "Birdman of Alcatraz," and "Patton."
In the 1970s, Malden made a transition to television, starring in the popular series "The Streets of San Francisco" which introduced Michael Douglas. Douglas credited Malden as his mentor ever since.
Besides his work on stage and screen, Malden was equally famous for a string of TV commercials for American Express travelers checks in the 1970s and 1980s in which he famously implored: "Don't leave home without them."
Of his American Express ads, in which he invariably sported a Trilby hat and came over as a hard-nosed detective who'd seen it all, Malden once said: "It was a pleasure. It was a joy. I loved every minute of it."
"I'm a workaholic," Malden said. "I love every movie I've been in, even the bad ones, every TV series, every play, because I love to work. It's what keeps me going."
O Canada!
O Canada!
Our home and native land!
True patriot love in all thy sons command.
With glowing hearts we see thee rise,
The True North strong and free!
From far and wide,
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
God keep our land glorious and free!
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
O Canada, we stand on guard for thee.
Weaver Out Of Ghostbusters Sequel
Sigourney Weaver has pulled out of the second Ghostbusters sequel.
The actress was reported to be joining former co-stars Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd in a spooky new movie, 20 years after Ghostbusters II - but she insists she isn't part of producers' plans.
The actress tells TVSquad.com, "I think they're trying to create something new completely with the Ghostbusters, although I know Bill is in it. I don't expect to have anything to do with it, although I wish them well."
Aykroyd has suggested the new film, in which the original Ghostbusters hand over control of their spook-chasing responsibilities to a team of hot young ladies, could start shooting before the end of the year.
...'I'm not dead yet,' say stars killed off in online rumour frenzy
For those struggling to keep track:
Dead: Michael Jackson, Farrah Fawcett, Ed McMahon, Billy Mays and David Carradine.
Not Dead: George Clooney, Miley Cyrus, Rick Astley, Jeff Goldblum, Britney Spears, Ellen DeGeneres and Natalie Portman.
The recent spate of celebrity deaths has fuelled fake alerts of dead stars, who have had to issue denials about the exaggerated reports of their demise.
There are three main ways these arise. First, there are several long-running rumours that seem to be recycled every few years. Jeff Goldblum dying on a set in New Zealand seems be an old rumour – in the past, Tom Hanks was targeted – that resurfaces every few years.
New technology is also causing problems, as people pass along breaking news, often without verifying the information. There are many websites where it is possible to plug in a celebrity's name and it will spit out a realistic parody news story that looks like a real web news page. TMZ.com says the site fakeawish.com was responsible for the false Clooney rumours.
Then there are the hackers, who are also getting in on the action. Twitter accounts seem to be particularly sensitive, as Spears, DeGeneres and Cyrus reportedly had their accounts on the microblogging service hacked, with fabricated tweets of their demise.
Luckily, there is also a cottage industry of websites in the business of debunking these false reports. Snopes.com is a repository of urban legends and how these rumours come about. Museumofhoaxes.com is another good site examining this phenomenon and recently had a blog post noting it's not just an Internet thing: a news story in The New York Times in April 1945 detailed a flood of celebrity death rumours following president Franklin D. Roosevelt's death.
The dubious claims of death are so pervasive, they have already been co-opted by malware writers.
"Every time a disaster happens or news about some celebrity reaches the media, malware writers try to take advantage of it," wrote McAfee researcher Guilherme Venere in a blog posting. "Watch out for spam offering links to `news' or `pictures' of deceased celebrities."
The lesson here is, when in doubt, use a search engine to confirm first and forward later.
Funeral held for Farrah Fawcett
The life of Charlie's Angels star Farrah Fawcett was celebrated Tuesday at a private funeral in the Cathedral of Our Lady of the Angels in Los Angeles.
Her longtime companion, Ryan O'Neal, was among pallbearers who accompanied the casket, covered in yellow and orange flowers, into the Roman Catholic cathedral.
Fawcett's friend Alana Stewart and Charlie's Angels co-star Kate Jackson were among early arrivals before the hearse pulled up, accompanied by 10 motorcycle officers.
Fans and news media watched from across the street. The service was closed to the public. Fawcett died Thursday at age 62 after a public battle with cancer. O'Neal and Stewart were at her side.
"After a long and brave battle with cancer, our beloved Farrah has passed away," O'Neal said in a statement last week. "Although this is an extremely difficult time for her family and friends, we take comfort in the beautiful times that we shared with Farrah over the years and the knowledge that her life brought joy to so many people around the world."
Farrah Fawcett poses for photographers on the red carpet before a 2006 Comedy Central event in Los Angeles. (Associated Press)
Diagnosed with a rare cancer in 2006, Fawcett's battle with the disease was documented in Farrah's Story, which aired last month on NBC.
Stewart, a producer of the documentary, said Fawcett was "much more than a friend; she was my sister."
"Although I will miss her terribly, I know in my heart that she will always be there as that angel on the shoulder of everyone who loved her," Stewart said in a statement.
Fawcett and O'Neal, 68, have a son, 24-year-old Redmond, who has been jailed since April 5 on drug charges.
Last week, a judge granted his request to attend Fawcett's funeral.