Afternoon Briefing:
Big Bill writes a big book: Bill Clinton turned in a hefty 900-page memoir today to his editors at Knopf. The former prez received somewhere between $10 million and $12 million as an advance, and the first print run will be 1.5 million copies. And so the editing begins. (AP)
Meanwhile, back at the ranch: A new book out about President George W. Bush is said to be counterprogramming for those who don't want to read the jottings of Bob Woodward or Richard Clarke. It's called "Misunderestimated: The President Battles Terrorism, John Kerry and the Bush Haters." It's by Washington Times reporter Bill Sammon, and the title comes from an interview during which the president bemoaned the fact that his political opponents constantly "misunderestimated" him. (Washington Times)
Cashing In on Christ continues: In case you missed it on the big screen, Mel Gibson's "Passion of the Christ" will be released on DVD this August. But don't look for "extras" like alternative endings and interviews. The movie will be as it was shown in theaters. (TV Guide)
Cannes controversy: French actors and stagehands were threatening to disrupt the most glamorous film festival in the world, but at the last minute they made a deal with managers of the Cannes Film Festival and will be allowed to make statements about their demands (which include opposition to state-benefit cuts) at the event -- which starts Wednesday. Demonstrators who plan to attend may have a hard time finding a pillow, however. Most of the hotel rooms have been booked long ago by the likes of Brad Pitt, Charlize Theron and Tom Hanks. (BBC)
The passing of the drum stick: Ringo Starr's son Zak Starkey is going to sit in with Oasis when they appear at the Glasonbury Festival this summer. When frontman Noel Gallagher was asked if his band was becoming the Beatles, he replied, "As long as I'm not becoming Paul McCartney it'll be all right." (Ananova)
-- Karen Croft
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Turn On:
Sipowicz and Clark have a few things to wrap up on "NYPD Blue" (10 p.m. ET; ABC), which has its 11th season finale tonight. The documentary "Children of the Secret State" (10 p.m. ET; Discovery Times) uses undercover footage to tell the story of children's lives under the North Korean regime.
-- Scott Lamb
Morning Briefing:
Abu Ghraib images not yet released: A photo of "soldiers sodomizing prisoners with glow sticks" and several depicting American soldiers having sex with each other and the forced masturbation of a detainee. (Drudge) New Yorker editor David Remnick on publishing abuse images: "In this instance, I don't think you want to go out of your way to protect the tender sensibilities of the reader. You don't aim to be gratuitous, but to weaken the power of these images in a story where the photographs are at the center of things would be an editing mistake in my judgment." (N.Y. Times via Romenesko)
Give 'em Moore: Michael Moore says he's planning to tour with his anti-Bush film, "Fahrenheit 9/11," this summer -- and will release it on DVD before Election Day. Word is that Miramax owners Harvey and Bob Weinstein may buy the rights to the film themselves from Disney, which has declined to distribute it. Moore will then put in personal appearances at screenings across the country, particularly in swing states. (Rush and Molloy)
Beckinsale hops broom: Kate Beckinsale got hitched to "Underworld" director Len Wiseman in an "intimate" ceremony at the Bel-Air Hotel over the weekend. It's her first marriage, though she has a 5-year-old daughter, Lily, from a previous relationship. (Rush and Molloy)
Who's sponsoring your birthday party this year? Naomi Campbell's birthday party -- she's turning 34 -- is going to be a three-day affair on St. Tropez to which "all the guests must wear red or white." But the key color to the whole thing might be green: The party is being underwritten by companies including Cipriani, Cirque du Soleil, Murano, Alfa Romeo and Petrossian Paris. (Rush and Molloy)
Hats off: The cowboy from the Village People, Randy Jones, married his boyfriend of 20 years, Will Grega, in a ceremony in the West Village the other night. Said Grega of his love match: "The benefits are great -- I have a lifetime membership in the Y.M.C.A." (Page Six)
Hit man? Former CNN producer Jim Miller was arrested last month for alleged spousal abuse. His wife, Jaqueline, alleges that he hit her in the arm while she was holding a telephone. Miller says he's "completely innocent" and "would never hurt" his wife. And his best friend, Washington Post TV critic Tom Shales, says Jaqueline has "been totally programmed by her divorce lawyer." (Page Six)
Lap dance of luxury: "Survivor" host Jeff Probst and 16 "all star" contestants found their way to the New York strip club Scores after the live-taped culmination of the show's season finale Sunday night -- and drank and got lap dances until almost 3 a.m. (Page Six)
Money Quotes:
Filmmaker Alex Kerry, John Kerry's daughter, on the suggestion that her career as an actor -- she has appeared in two movies by family friend David Mamet -- was helped along by nepotism: "I don't think David would be casting me if I was going to mess up his movie. And I think there's something to be said for putting people in your films that you know well and trust." (Lloyd Grove's Lowdown)
Bono addressing a crowd in New York this week: "I feel naked up here without a guitar ... If there are any FCC guys out there, I said I feel naked!" (Page Six)
-- Amy Reiter
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