Michael Jackson Indicted
Michael Jackson has been indicted by a Santa Barbara grand jury investigating the child-molestation allegations against him. Basically, this means that Jackson will have to stand trial in the case that charged him last year with seven counts of lewd or lascivious acts on a child under the age of 14 and two counts of administering an intoxicating agent, reputed to be wine. Lawyers for Jackson confirmed last Wednesday that Jackson will plead innocent during his scheduled April 30 pretrial hearing. Apparently Mr. Jackson’s attorneys are certain that he will be exonerated of all charges, and they want to remind the public that the indictment is simply a formal accusation, nothing more. If convicted, he could spend up to 20 years behind bars.
Pirates commandeer MTV Movie Award Noms
MTV announced the nominations for their Movie Awards last Monday, and it is no surprise that Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl has scored a total of six nominations including Best Movie, Best Male Performance, Best Comedic Performance (both for Johnny Depp), and Best Onscreen team for Depp and costar Orlando Bloom. Keira Knightly has also been recognized as Best Breakthrough, and Geoffrey Rush for Best Villain. Other films in the Best Movie category include: Finding Nemo, X2: X-Men United, 50 First Dates, and The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King. 50 First Dates and X2 have four nominations each, with noms for Adam Sandler, Drew Barrymore, Shawn Ashmore (Best Breakthrough Male) and Anna Paquin (Best Kiss with Ashmore). If you want to know the other nominations, just think really hard about the films that you have seen this year that weren’t that great and the actors and actresses who got snubbed during Oscar season. They’re all there.
Paris in Porn?
As if the first two sex tapes weren’t accessible enough, Rick Salomon (Paris’s romping partner in the video) is handing over the new, improved, and extended (again) 45-minute version to sex shops. Salomon has aptly named the tape One Night in Paris, and the video will be distributed by Red Light District Video on June 15, just in time for the premiere of The Simple Life 2. The tape will be available through the company website and will also be sold in stores. Salomon argued in February for the release of the tape, saying that, “It’s my video. I shot it. I own it. My camera. My video.”
Mile High Concert
Well, you won’t have a problem with boredom on flights anymore now that movies are out and concerts are in. Apparently, Sheryl Crow has agreed to perform a 40 minute concert while flying aboard a United Airlines flight from Chicago to Los Angeles. The May 4 show marks the launch of United’s partnership with Sony’s new Connect Online music service. Sony Connect intends to operate like Apple’s iTunes, offering around 500,000 songs for download at 99 cents each, or $9.95 for a full album. Through United’s new “Music for Miles” program, frequent fliers would have the option to be frequent downloaders on Sony Connect by earning music with their miles. Conversely, they are also able to earn miles through their music purchases. A group of Crow’s fans along with invited guests will be attending the flight/concert, during which Crow will perform an acoustic set. Once the plane lands, Crow is scheduled to perform at a dual-purpose party — also plugging the launch of a new Sony digital Walkman.
Archived article by Amanda Hodes