Morning Briefing:
"Prison Break" actor may face prison: In what's becoming a scary meme, another celebrity is being investigated in relation to a fatal car crash. "Prison Break" actor Lane Garrison was driving three teenagers after a party last month in Los Angeles when his car struck a tree, killing one of his passengers. Police now say Garrison's blood-alcohol level at the time was more than twice California's legal limit, and blood tests show there was cocaine in his system. Beverly Hills, Calif., cops are recommending he be charged with felony vehicular manslaughter -- which could come with a 10-year jail sentence -- but the district attorney has yet to decide on any charges. (People)
Fox News vs. CNN, another round: The media tiff between Fox News and CNN (mainly in the form and likeness of Anderson Cooper) is getting nastier. In this week's Television Week, Fox News ran a two-page ad mocking Anderson Cooper -- though it doesn't name the anchor, his signature gray hair is an obvious sign -- by saying, "Meet the Paris Hilton of television news." (You can watch the anchors of "Fox & Friends" mock Cooper in the video below, from Video Dog.) In today's Page Six (also a part of Rupert Murdoch's media empire), a CNN source says Fox is just mad because Anderson has been slowly eroding the bigger audience of his time-slot competitor show on Fox, "On the Record With Greta Van Susteren," and adds that CNN is planning to fire back: "They are preparing their answer to the Fox ad and you can expect something next week ... It's war." (Page Six, TMZ)
No love for "Idol": Despite yesterday's briefly exciting reports that Courtney Love would be replacing Paula Abdul as a judge on "American Idol," it looks as if Abdul's job is safe for now. "Idol" executive producer Nigel Lythgoe denied any staffing changes in a statement yesterday: "Courtney Love is a very talented artist, but the judges for 'American Idol' are Paula, Randy and Simon. We have no plans to add to or replace any of them." In case that left any room for doubt, Love herself wrote a denial -- a rambling, badly typed denial -- on her Web site Wednesday (all sic, obviously): "i woul dnever ever do that, ive never watche dthat show except once with my daughter i went to the final night, I couldnt even get ON that show nor would i wantt o and no offense to anyone who has been on that show and wantsto be on that show- i have no interest at this point in my life, im interested in putting this record out- doing films and doiung rock shows this summer and being on the road, and thats what i shall do." (People, Us Online, Gawker)
Also:
After recent rumors about a nose job filtered through the tabs, Jennifer Aniston has admitted to rhinoplasty, though only for noncosmetic reasons: "It's funny. I had [a deviated septum] fixed -- best thing I ever did. I slept like a baby for the first time in years." (People) ... Harry Potter fans, rejoice: J.K. Rowling has announced that the final installment in the bestselling boy wizard series will be released on July 21. (BBC News) ... Pretty Ricky's "Late Night Special" debuted at No. 1 on this week's album chart with 132,000 copies sold, followed by the Shins' latest, "Wincing the Night Away," which moved a healthy 118,000 copies. (Billboard) ... Waxhoff.com is a strangely satisfying, yet very simple Flash game -- the only object of which is to wax David Hasselhoff's chest hair. (Waxhoff) ... Texas columnist Molly Ivins -- the brilliant, witty pundit who, among many other achievements, came up with the nickname "Shrub" for George W. Bush -- died after a long battle with breast cancer Wednesday at her home in Austin, Texas. She was 62. (Yahoo News)
Money Quote:
"The Shield" actress Paula Garcés' drastic -- and as it turns out, unnecessary -- plan to get herself mentioned in Page Six: "My husband's plan is to dress up in drag, and we'll go to some hot club and just start making out. People will think I'm making out with some crazy lesbian girl, and I'll get a lot of heat in the New York Post's Page Six! But I always back down." (Page Six)
Turn On:
On Thursday night, it's the series premiere of the "The Sarah Silverman Program" (Comedy Central, 10:30 p.m. EST), while over on network TV, it must be sweeps week, given tonight's roster of cameos: Tim Gunn and Katharine McPhee appear on a new "Ugly Betty" (ABC, 8 p.m. EST), Forest Whitaker shows up on "ER" (NBC, 10 p.m. EST), and Isabella Rossellini and Paul Reubens both deign to visit "30 Rock" (NBC, 9:30 p.m. EST).
On the Talk Shows:
Larry King (CNN, 9 p.m. EST): Ruben Studdard
Charlie Rose (PBS, check local listings): Sen. Chuck Schumer
David Letterman (CBS, 11:30 p.m. EST): Bill Murray, LeBron James
Jay Leno (NBC, 11:35 p.m. EST): Abigail Breslin, Julie Scardina, Christina Aguilera
Conan O'Brien (NBC, 12:35 a.m. EST): Serena Williams, Kevin Brennan
Craig Ferguson (CBS, 12:35 a.m. EST): Henry Winkler, Zoe Saldana, Jet
Jimmy Kimmel (ABC, 12:05 a.m. EST): Felicity Huffman, Stephen Marley featuring Damian Marley
Jon Stewart (Comedy Central, 11 p.m. EST): Sienna Miller
Stephen Colbert (Comedy Central, 11:30 p.m. EST): Sen. Chuck Schumer
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