Prince slaps three fan sites
The ever-touchy Prince apparently does not regard appropriation of his works - even by fans - as a higher form of flattery. And he's willing to assert his disapproval in court. Reuters reports that three fan sites dedicated to the pint-sized rocker say they have been served legal notice to remove all images of the singer, his lyrics and "anything linked to Prince's likeness." The sites in turn are ready to fight what they consider censorship.
"We strongly believe that such actions are in violation of . . . freedom of speech and should not be allowed," said a statement from the three sites - www.housequake.com, www.princefams.com and www.prince.org.
But John Giacobbi, managing director of Web Sheriff, which helps Prince control online use of his image and music, said "this is not about freedom of speech." He called the forums "self-appointed representatives of the millions of Prince fans," and said "they only represent a tiny fraction of [his] global fan base."Embraceable you
Paul McCartney has interrupted his unseemly divorce proceedings to kiss a woman other than estranged wife Heather Mills McCartney.
According to the Sun of London, which published photographic evidence, the friendly exchange between McCartney, 65, and Nancy Shevell, 47, a member of New York's Metropolitan Transportation Authority board, took place over the weekend in the Hamptons, the Long Island resort where both have homes.
In one photo, the couple are seen sitting in the front seat of a car, with McCartney embracing Shevell. Shocking!
Sorry about that
Pete Doherty abjectly apologized yesterday for stumbling in his attempt to kick that pesky drug habit of his.
Not that he had much choice: According to the Associated Press, a video of the Babyshambles front man, looking very much as if he were injecting himself with heroin, was posted this week on a newspaper Web site.
"Peter sadly relapsed last week and is now looking to check himself back into a rehab clinic," his record label, EMI, explained, adding that Doherty, 28, regarded the incident as "a stupid, stupid action for which I feel only shame." He "would like to apologize to the medical staff, fans and well-wishers."
Old school tie
Tommy Lee Jones hasn't forgotten his old Harvard roommate and fellow Oscar winner Al Gore. Jones will cohost the Nobel Peace Prize concert for the former vice president and representatives of the United Nations' climate-change panel.
The A.P. reports that the lineup for the Dec. 11 concert includes Alicia Keys, Annie Lennox and Melissa Etheridge, who won an Oscar for the song "I Need to Wake Up," featured in Gore's environmental documentary, An Inconvenient Truth.
Jones' cohost will be announced later, organizers said this week.
Fly, Eagles, fly
As reported here yesterday, the Eagles' Long Road Out of Eden was confirmed as the top-selling album in the country, what with 711,000 copies sold in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. In fact, the album - sold only through Wal-Mart and its affiliates - has this year's second-best first-week total, behind Kanye West's Graduation (960,000).
And the trade paper Billboard has agreed to acknowledge that. For the first time ever, Billboard has allowed an album available through only one retailer to appear on its charts.
We're feelin' good.
Good news for Britney
Billboard also reports that Britney Spears' Blackout sold 290,000 copies, putting it at No. 2. That's the good news. The not-so-good news is that her first album in four years is also her first studio effort to not top the chart: 2003's In The Zone, 2001's Britney, 2000's Oops! . . . I Did It Again and 1999's . . . Baby One More Time all started at No. 1. But there's more good news: Spears is the only woman whose first five studio albums have debuted in the top two slots on the chart. So there.
Bad news for Britney
Adding insult to injury, Britney Spears has been ordered to pay $120,000 in legal fees to ex-husband Kevin Federline, who was awarded temporary custody of their young sons, the presumably adorable Sean Preston and Jayden James.
The A.P. reports that Superior Court Commissioner Scott M. Gordon ordered the pop star to pony up the cash to help with the $154,500 Federline owes his attorney, according to court papers.
What figured in the decision was "the notable disparity between the parties' income," the ruling said.
Court papers released last week show that Spears makes roughly $737,000 per month and spends lavishly on clothes and entertainment. K-Fed lamentably "indicates that he does not earn any income," the ruling said. Worse, the $20,000-a-month spousal support he gets from Spears is due to end Nov. 15. Which will leave him with a lousy 15 grand a month in child support to get by on. How will he do it?
Contact "SideShow" at sideshow@phillynews.com. Inquirer news services and Web sites contributed to this report.
