Morning Briefing:
Borat fights his maker: In Kazakhstan's latest attempt to distance itself from Sacha Baron Cohen's spoofy Kazakh character, Borat, the country has shut down Cohen's official Borat Web site, borat.kz. Though the company that oversees registration of the country's domain names claims not to know where the decision to pull the site came from, a document obtained by the International Herald Tribune shows complaints lodged against the site from government and presidential security sources. The site carried Borat-ian pronouncements such as this one praising Kazakhstan's progressive policies: "Women can now travel on inside of bus, homosexuals no longer have to wear blue hat and age of consent has been raised to 8 years old." But Cohen, who is Jewish, isn't taking Kazakhstan's seriousness too seriously. Before the site was shut down, Borat appeared in a video clip online to claim that "I have no connection with Mr. Cohen. I support my government's decision to sue this Jew." The site has resurfaced under the non-Kazakh domain borat.tv. (International Herald Tribune)
Grace-ious gesture: CNN's Nancy Grace is apparently not satisfied that a man she has accused of stalking her is now tucked away in a mental institution, nor is she satisfied with the temporary restraining order she won against him. Claiming emotional distress, Grace is suing Joseph Raymond Loegering for monetary damages. According to her civil suit, Loegering "is apparently obsessed with Ms. Grace, believes that he loves her, insists that she can solve all of his problems and will help him to meet with Osama Bin Laden." Loegering may be mentally troubled, but he also seems to be penniless. Loegering's mother told the Daily News, "He doesn't have anything. I hope she's not suing me." (Rush & Molloy)
Also:
Gloria Steinem ticked off the Muslim community with a comment, published in the New York Observer, that Hugh Hefner's practice of keeping multiple girlfriends is "sort of Moslem, actually." Edina Lekovic of the Muslim Public Affairs Council told Lloyd Grove's Lowdown that not only is polygamy rare in the Muslim community, but equating "Hugh Hefner with any religion is an insult to that religion." (Lowdown) A Lowdown source claims to have seen Bill Maher stealing a cab from a dad and baby -- and during a snowstorm to boot. The eyewitness account was prompted by another item claiming that former "Apprentice" contestant Raj Bhakta -- the bowtie-wearing character who made big displays of chivalry on the show -- stole a cab from a woman. (Lowdown) Brandon Routh, the star of next summer's "Superman Returns," is apparently so well endowed that his package may need to be digitally shrunk during post-production, lest the bulge from his skin-tight costume cause too many distractions. (Page Six) PETA names Paris Hilton the worst-dressed celebrity in America, says of the heiress's fur, "Now we know what happens to all of Paris Hilton's cast-off pets." (The Scoop) George Clooney says he'd choose Barack Obama for president. (The Sunday Times of London via The Scoop) Bob Dylan is turning DJ, getting his own hourlong show on XM satellite radio starting in March. (CNN.com) Led Zeppelin's Jimmy Page was made an officer of the Order of the British Empire for his work with street children in Brazil. (E! Online) Jennifer Anniston is brushing off rumors that she's pregnant, claiming that if all the rumors were true, "I should have had 10 babies by now." (WENN) Dave Chappelle is being sued for breach of contract by a guy claiming to have been Chappelle's personal manager. (Reuters)
Money Quotes:
Sarah Jessica Parker makes a bold attempt at spinning Diane Keaton's mean jokes on the set of "The Family Stone": "I kind of felt privileged to be on the receiving end of this snarky kind of cruelty, because it was funny. It was valuable to know what it felt like to not be warmly embraced by Diane Keaton." (Toronto Star)
Turn on:
It's the two-hour finale of "The Apprentice" (NBC, 9 p.m. EST). And watch as Jay Mohr, Kevin Nealon, Cheryl Hines and other comedians try to read from star bios with a straight face on "Celebrity Autobiography: In Their Own Words" (Bravo, 10 p.m. EST).
-- Priya Jain
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