Morning Briefing:
Pranksters' press conference: The two guys at the center of a marketing scheme that caused a terrorism scare in Boston this week pleaded not guilty and posted bail yesterday. And Turner Broadcasting, which hired the firm that hired the two men who distributed Lite-Brite-like boxes around town, has agreed to reimburse the city for the cost of its emergency response efforts. It would have been a kind of ho-hum ending to the bizarre incident, but then came the press conference performance artists Peter Berdovsky, 27, and Sean Stevens, 28, gave after their release, in which they said they wanted to talk about "haircuts in the '70s and how they affect our lives today and how we live in the future," and then refused to answer any press questions that didn't have to do with hair. As NPR notes, "The journalists present were not amused." You can watch the press conference via YouTube here. (New York Times, NPR, YouTube)
Chapman film comes pre-boycotted: "Chapter 27," the J.P. Schaefer film about Mark David Chapman starring a hefty Jared Leto, only just screened at Sundance and has yet to find a distributor, but that hasn't stopped devoted John Lennon fans from springing into action to call for a boycott of the movie. A slew of Web sites opposing the film have sprung up since the film was announced -- Boycottchapter27.com, Boycottchapter27.org -- and naturally a there's an online petition, too, decrying the film because "it fulfills Chapman's own prophecy of becoming famous through murdering Lennon." (Rush & Molloy)
Also:
Tomi Rae Hynie, partner of the late James Brown and mother of his 5-year-old son, is suing to be included in the soul singer's estate -- she has been barred from their house since he died in December, and Brown's adult children claim she has no legal claim to what he left behind. (BBC News) ... Lindsay Lohan, still in rehab, has backed out of appearing in the upcoming movie "A Woman of No Importance." Her rep says: "She doesn't want to just yes everyone and compromise herself anymore ... She's doing this so she can focus on getting better." (People) ... Though they won't be legally divorced until May (California demands a six-month waiting period), the terms of Pamela Anderson and Kid Rock's divorce have been finalized in an amicable settlement, with neither party applying for spousal aid. (E Online) ... Woody Allen says his next project will be a film in Spanish and English, starring Penélope Cruz. (Fox 411) ... Al Gore has been nominated for the 2007 Nobel Peace Prize for his work on global warming. (Associated Press) ... A British bookstore chain is reportedly planning to set up a help line for Harry Potter fans when the book comes out in July -- author J.K. Rowling has said two characters will die in the final installment of the series. (Agence France-Presse)
Money Quote:
Sarah Silverman on what sets her use of racial slurs apart from Michael Richards' infamous rant: "My racist jokes are very well thought-out and planned." ("The View" via Eat the Press)
Turn On:
Tonight it's the season finale of the Friday night scarefest series "Masters of Horror" with an episode directed by Norio Tsuruta ("Ringu") called "Dream Cruise" (Showtime, 10 p.m. EST), and "Super Bowl's Greatest Commercials 2007" (CBS, 9 p.m. EST) takes a look back at the best ads of games past. On Sunday night, Chris Martin makes a cameo on "Extras" (HBO, 10 p.m. EST), and there's something called "Super Bowl XLI" (CBS, 6:25 p.m. EST) airing.
On the Talk Shows:
Charlie Rose (PBS, check local listings): Peter King, Serena Williams
David Letterman (CBS, 11:30 p.m. EST): David Spade, Alexandra Pelosi, Dustin Kensrue
Jay Leno (NBC, 11:35 p.m. EST): Cuba Gooding Jr., Miss USA Tara Conner, the Game
Conan O'Brien (NBC, 12:35 a.m. EST): Charlize Theron, Bill Hader, Stars of Track and Field
Craig Ferguson (CBS, 12:35 a.m. EST): Jerry Springer, Robert Dubac, Aaron Lewis
Jimmy Kimmel (ABC, 12:05 a.m. EST): Ivanka Trump, NAS
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