Spoiler Chat: Are Dan and Serena Really Over?

Spoiler Chat: Are Dan and Serena Really Over?

Oh, CW. You cruel, cruel network! Not only have we gone a good month without such a peep from the lovely voice of Kristen Bell regarding the latest 411 on our favorite Upper East Siders, we still have two more weeks to go before the next new episode of Gossip Girl.

Thankfully, though, to scratch you G.G. fans' itch, I have the answer to the No. 1 question you've been asking: Is there any hope for Dan and Serena? Plus, the latest on Georgina Sparks (Michelle Trachtenberg).

Also, who wants to know which Lost character will be undergoing a radical change in tone this season?

Or what about the upcoming One Tree Hill wedding?

Or Amy Ryan returning to The Office?

No? None of that sounds appealing? Well, read on for this week's roundup of exclusive TV scoop anyway...

Sharan in Birmingham, U.K.: Just watched ER season 15, ep five. Is Shane West returning again? Or was that it? Please help, I have to know.

His rep and the network both confirm that he's due back for at least one more ep this season. There's hope yet for a Ray-Neela reunion.

Karla in Janesville, Wis.: TV Guide says Gale Harold is not coming back to Desperate Housewives this season. Is it true?
A studio rep tells me the reports from TV Guide are wrong. The producers stick by this recently released statement: "We are working on bringing him back to the show. We just don't know when. Because we had to work around his absence, the story doesn't require him immediately. But we would like to have him back on the show very soon." Hit the comments with your pleas to get him back on Wisteria Lane.

Emily in Napa, Calif.: Any hopes of seeing Michelle Trachtenberg on Joss Whedon's Dollhouse?
Don't look for little Dawn to be back in the Jossverse any time soon. Michelle just told me that while she's happy for her former boss, she's not too familiar with his new show. "I haven't even seen it. I haven't heard much about it except it's premiered and congratulations for that!" Don't be too disappointed, though. Her lack of knowledge on all things Dollhouse is simply because she's too busy playing the evil Georgina Sparks again. "I'm most excited to be back on Gossip Girl. It has wonderful people, and it's really nice just having my first day back, hearing 'Welcome back.' "

Tim: Kristin, can you ask Lost's Fionnula Flanagan if Brotherhood will be back? I know it's not very popular, but it is a good show. Thanks!
According to Fionnula, who plays Providence mob matriarch Rose Caffee on the Showtime drama, "We're on hiatus, and we're waiting to hear what Showtime's pleasure is about that. It will all have to be balanced with what else Showtime has on its roster for this next year. Usually the shooting season was the summer, so I should imagine that we'll know soon."

Chris in Seattle: I can't wait to see Jeffrey Dean Morgan in Watchmen! Will Grey's fans like his character?
Actually, no. Jeffrey says that the Grey's fans will be shocked by his Watchman character, Comedian. He's very unsavory! On coming back to Grey's, Morgan says, "I really don't know. They keep me out of the loop because I'm a talker. They're real careful not to tell me anything. When I was lucky enough to go back there, it was just a thrill to go back."

Alexandra in Burlington, Vt.: America's Next Top Model is back this week! What are the girls like this season?
These potential models are insanely gorgeous—or maybe just a little insane? I kid! While there are some of the usual crazies, there are noticeably more standouts in ANTM's 12th cycle (yes, this is the 12th season!). Based on the premiere, the 6'1 and stunning Aminat and breath of fresh air Celia are definitely frontrunners. I know it's still early, but these two not only get the most screen time, they seem to have those natural, model-esque qualities. Also, I'm thinking we should keep an eye on Jessica Stroup look-alike, London. She's a model on a mission—literally!

Diandra in Napa, Calif.: Any other scoop on ANTM?
This cycle takes place in Las Vegas, and instead of first narrowing the girls down to 20, Tyra makes it 21 in honor of Top Model's new hometown.

Dayra in Duluth, Ga.: In the Motherhood looks so funny! Any scoop?
Not much yet, but when we teased Megan Mullally about staring in a show about motherhood when she isn't a mother herself, she turned to her post-Oscar date for a quick comeback. "She's my coach," Megan said, pointing at her close pal and funnylady, Molly Shannon. You never know, maybe Molly will take a break from her snazzy wardrobe at Kath & Kim and stop by the suburbs on In the Motherhood!


Pamela in Hollywood, Calif.: Have you heard anything new on Amy Poehler's show Parks and Recreation?
Besides reading the pilot script, which was amazing, I've officially become a Parks and Recreation member myself thanks to my sweet new water bottle.

Sam in Del Mar, Calif.: Any scoop on How I Met Your Mother?
We gave you the first look at Laura Prepon on the set of How I Met Your Mother, but now you can get your second look here thanks to TVfanatic!

Henry in Scranton, Pa.: Will Jay Harrington return to Private Practice?
On his short stint as an Addison (Kate Walsh) love interest, Jay Harrington says his character "could come back." He'd also love to see another crossover (besides the sub-par Grey's Anatomy one) with Private Practice. "I think within the network it would be fun to see Taye Diggs' character on [Better Off Ted] or me on Ugly Betty," he adds.




Drew in Boston: Hey, I'm dying without my Gossip Girl fix! Please, is there any hope for Serena and Dan now that they have a half-dead-sibling? Anything else you can spill?
Correction: They have a half sibling who is fully alive and whom we will see on the show! And because of that and more, I'm told by a source: "Serena and Dan are really over." Done. Kaput. No hope for them this season. Sorry! Anyone need a hug? Join me in the comments. As for the rest of the season, Serena will be cozying up big time to her new boy-toy (played by Armie Hammer) and a source tells me: "The last few episodes of the season are chock-full of some of the biggest OMFG moments of the series." I think I just tinkled a little. Why do I love this show so? Darn you, Josh Schwartz and your TV crack!

Marshall in New Hampshire: On Lost, any scoop on Sawyer in the 1970s?
I'm hearing that he and Jin will be in that fabulously groovy decade for three whole years and that...wait for it...Jin might speak far better English now! Hooray for more Daniel Dae Kim screen time and multisyllabic words!

Isaiah in Little Rock, Ark.: On Lost, are we ever going to see Richard Alpert in a scene with Mrs. Hawking? I feel like those two are Island gods who must know each other.
When we recently spoke to Fionnula Flanagan, she told us that she hasn't had any scenes yet with Nestor Carbonell, but, "Perhaps I have in some previous existence, or in some previous materialization of Mrs. Hawking, but it hasn't come to light yet." You'll note that doesn't rule out encounters between young Ellie (if that is Mrs. Hawking in an earlier life) and Richard Alpert in the past.

Jenna in Irvine, Calif.: Heroes?
Claire saves Aquaboy tonight, but just as soon as she's done with that gig, she gets a new assignment from Rebel: Saving that creepy Puppetmaster dude who tried to kill her and her two moms! Meanwhile, Claire's Uncle Peter is branded a terrorist by the federal government. The only person who can save him? His high-flying brother Nathan. Oh yeah, and Sylar finds out what really happened to his mother, and he doesn't love what he discovers.

Walker in Pittsburgh: Is Holly Flax ever coming back to The Office?
You mean you didn't hear my squeals of joy last week when Mindy Kaling (Kelly) stopped by the OfficeTally chat room and finally confirmed that more Amy Ryan is on its way! "Amy's coming back [for] at least one this season!" Does that mean next season is an option too? And if any of you think Pam was lying when she told Michael that Holly still has feelings for him, Mindy wants to ease your minds. "I do not believe that our intention was to say that Pam was lying. I think it would be too cruel, ultimately." Anyone else just breathe a huge sigh of relief?


Martin in New York: One Tree Hill! Will we get a wedding?
Lucas and Peyton's wedding will happen this season. However, how it will end is a whole other story. (Here's hoping he doesn't say the name Rachel.) Also, get ready to see the softer (but still bitchy!) side of Victoria.

Heidi in Bristol, Conn.: I can't wait for Georgina to come back to Gossip Girl! Any chance we'll see more of her next season, too?
I'm just as excited as you are, especially after all of the goodies we just revealed about Georgina's return! Michelle Trachtenberg (Georgina) tells us nothing has been decided just yet about her Gossip Girl fate, but her answer did have us leaning toward a yes! "A character like Georgina is so fantastic, and there are so many elements that are exciting and untapped, so you never know." And while she has nothing planned, Michelle went on to say that she would definitely be open to a full-time TV gig, whether it's G.G. or something new. "I think the wonderful thing about doing TV shows is that you get a few months out of the year to do films as well, so you get the best out of every world." Did you hear that Josh Schwartz? Start working on another masterpiece for this girl!

Morgan in Seattle: I've heard rumors that Parminder Nagra is leaving ER before the series finale. Please tell me this isn't true!
We heard the same thing, but sources close to the show tell me that while her last "big episode" called "Shifting Equilibrium," airs March 19, Neela does appear in the remaining episodes of ER, which I'm guessing means they won't leave her out of the April 2 series finale.

Mario in Chicago: Blah blah blah Grey's Anatomy, Heroes and Lost. Can you mix it up a little with some dish other shows—like maybe the undersung CBS comedies?
Rules of Engagement returns tonight, and Megyn Price and Patrick Warburton continue to be laugh-out-loud hilarious, which means that two out of five lead characters of this comedy are actually funny! Thankfully, Megyn and Patrick get some giggle-worthy backup next week when Aliens in America's Adhir Kalyan makes his first appearance as Russell's (David Spade) much put-upon new assistant. Adhir's line reading of "Bond. James Bond…" alone is with the price of admission.


Heather in Pasadena, Calif.: After last night's emotional episode of Brothers & Sisters, please tell me there's some good news coming for the Walker clan!
There's some good news and some bad news on Brothers & Sisters. Good news: Robert is still alive. Bad news: He probably won't be married much longer. Good news: The illegitimate Walker children (Ryan and Rebecca) are bonding! Bad news: There are sparks flying. Good news: Justin supports Rebecca through the whole Holly-Tommy debacle. Bad news: Justin and Rebecca are splitsville by the end of Sunday's ep. Or is that good news?

Callie in Erie, Pa.: Got any goodies on The Office?
I think Dwight might be getting a mini-me. Producers are looking for a new coworker who is described as annoying, arrogant, bossy, yelly, probably not good-looking and definitely not well-dressed. I wonder if he wears any mustard-colored shirts?

Marissa in Mountain View, Calif.: Any news on Entourage?
E and Sloan will still be entangled early in season six, but look for a good-looking guy who has Sloan's attention to attract E's ire. (Lucky for E, the guy will turn out to be Sloan's cousin.)


Alice in Whitby, Ontario, Canada: Hi, Kristin, I'll send you some maple syrup if you'll give some info on Chuck and Sarah—are they done for good? Is there any hope in the near (before end of season) future for them?
Mmmm...syrup! I wish I could tell you that, but in tonight's episode Chuck (Zachary Levi) dumps Sarah (Yvonne Strahovski) for real. Ruh-roh.

Lisa in Detroit: Is it true that Carla dies in the Burn Notice finale?
Let's see—what can I actually tell you about the finale? Your heart will hurt a little when a product-placement deal requires Michael Weston to use OnStar, but if it keeps this excellent show running (à la 30 Rock and Verizon or Gossip Girl and godforsaken Vitamin Water) I suppose we'll just have to suffer. In other news, Fiona Glennanne slaps someone, kisses someone and kills someone. Care to guess with whom she does what? (Post in the comments.) Also, John Mahoney (the dad from Frasier) pops by with an offer that Michael can't refuse...or can he?

Mark in New York, N.Y.: Anything Prison Break please!
Sources tell me there's another prison break, and you'll be surprised at who helps the big escape...T-Bag! Did I mention that Gretchen is also in the slammer?

Brad in Oahu, Hawaii: Thanks for your interview with Malcolm David Kelley. Will he be back on Lost anytime soon?
No official word yet, but he'll be guest starring on Saving Grace later this season. Kelley tells me of his character, "My name was Benjamin, and my dad was on death row. I was friends with Holly Hunter's nephew on the show." BTW, was anyone else floored at how freaking old MDK looks now? Our wittle Walty is all growed up!


Ferlay in Los Angeles: Kristin, got any scoop on 24?
How about some scoop on Jack's daughter? Regarding Elisha Cuthbert's return to 24, executive producer Howard Gordon says, "Without really giving a spoiler [Editor's note: Booooo...], I will tell you she's not in any danger. Jack is in a situation that requires something that only she can provide. I hate to be as oblique as that, but that's the best I can say about it without spoiling." Actually, that's just dandy with me. Thanks, Howard!

Jeremy in Mendocino, Calif.: What's coming up on 24 tonight?
Even though Jack Bauer (Kiefer Sutherland) and the president hit the lockdown room before General Juma and his men can get to them, Madam president is definitely not safe by any means. Also, I may have I said Dubaku was in the hospital, but that doesn't mean he's alive!

Simone in St. Louis: Any dish on the undersung Medium?
Just that the family might be moving out of Phoenix! Joe's getting a job offer later this season that would mean a move to San Diego. What do you guys think—could you stand it so long as the family stayed together?

Marianne in Colorado Springs, Colo.: Got any Bones info?
We'll be meeting Bones' Japanese she-male doppelgänger. (For reals.) Look for a character named Asa Tanaka who is Japan's leading forensic anthropologist but whose gender is indistinguishable, which confuses the Jeffersonian team when they join forces with Asa to solve the murder of a Japanese national. P.S. Got Q's for Bones bosses Hart Hanson and Stephen Nathan? Email tvdiva@eonline.com, and we'll try to get you answers!


Erica in El Paso, Texas: Big Love is so good. I can't believe they killed Kathy, and now I'm desperate to know who else is on the chopping block!
I know! I emailed Big Love boss Will Scheffer after last night's crackerjack outing and demanded that we get our vengeance for Roman's abuse of poor Kathy, and Will replied, "Oh, you'll get it somehow." As for the other death, am I the only one who didn't notice until last week that Sarah's promo posters have the caption "Dying to get out"? Seems like a clue to me!

Rebecca T.: Do you have any idea when TBS' My Boys will return? Any spoilers?
My Boys premieres March 31 (hurrah!), and in an upcoming ep P.J. gets jealous when Stephanie becomes a BFF with another girl. But wait, what's that? You want scoop on Bobby or Brendan instead? Then you better email your Q's to tvdiva@eonline.com because I'm going to the My Boys launch party and will gladly try to get you answers.

Wallace in Orlando, Fla.: How about some 90210?
With love from our hot and sunny zip code to yours: Naomi's sister Jen is coming to town, and if you thought Naomi was manipulative and a schemer, just wait till you meet big sis! Also, Adrianna and Navid's bachelor and bachelorette parties put things into perspective for both characters, including a possible gateway back into drugs for pregnant Adrianna, which would elicit a sternly worded letter from yours truly to that little trollop.

K.B. in Seattle: Hi, Kristin. It looks like there are a lot of great shows premiering in March and April. Can you please give us a list of which shows premiere when?

Keep an eye out later this week for our midseason preview on all the new shows you should (or shouldn't) be watching.

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'All I wanted was children' says Nadya Suleman

'All I wanted was children'

Following the premature birth of her IVF octuplets, Nadya Suleman faces a backlash over her increasingly peculiar approach to motherhood

 Nadya Suleman inhabits a world where the entitlement society and victim mentality merge. The mother of 14, a brood that more than doubled when she stunned the world and gave birth to octuplets 13 days ago, was so resentful at being raised an only child that she embarked on an single-minded mission to produce as many offspring as possible. 

And she has made it clear she believes it was her right to deploy science and a large stash of embryos to pursue that obsession – despite her status as a single mother with no regular source of income, the reported opposition of the sperm donor, and the disapproval of her own parents, who are sharing the burden of bringing up the family. 

With her eight tiny newborns still in hospital in Los Angeles, Miss Suleman offered a telling insight into her own psyche – part pitying "poor me", part defiant "why shouldn't I?" – in an interview.

Publicists are also seeking to sell her story, but initial predictions that a deal might raise $2 million towards her child-care bills now appear greatly exaggerated after the public mood turned against her. Early suggestions that she could also find work as a television child-rearing guru appear even more remote. 

The saga of the "octo-mom" has gripped the country and her first comments were eagerly awaited. They came on Friday when the 33-year-old former psychiatric assistant was asked by NBC interviewer Ann Curry whether, with six children already, she might have opted to have only one or two embryos implanted. 

"Of course not," replied Miss Suleman, with a mixture of disbelief and scorn for the suggestion. "I wanted them all transferred. Those are my children, and that's what was available and I used them." 

So Miss Suleman took what was "available" and "used" them all, even if she was only hoping for just one more girl, as she insists. She had six embryos implanted by an unnamed doctor, but they apparently split into eight in the womb after the in vitro fertilisation (IVF) and she declined selective abortion. 

The birth of healthy octuplets, nine weeks' premature, was initially welcomed as a heartening medical miracle in a country ground down by the daily barrage of bad economic news. 

But as it emerged that Miss Suleman was a single divorcée and already had six children aged between two and seven, all the product of IVF by the same doctor, even the tolerance of her famously liberal home state was tested to its limits. 

And in a new twist, her appearance on TV – with full lips, high cheekbones and smooth forehead – prompted speculation that she has invested in cosmetic surgery as well as fertility treatment. Some websites posted pictures of her with strikingly similar facial features to another plump-lipped mother of a large family: Angelina Jolie. 

In tandem with the deepening public backlash, a heated ethical debate is also swirling about the actions of the unidentified specialist, who was reported on Friday to be under investigation by the California Medical Board. There are no laws restricting the number of embryos that can be implanted, but guidelines say the maximum for a healthy woman under 35 should be two. 

As the IVF will not have been covered by health insurance, the doctor may have been paid from the $170,000 in disability payments for back injuries Miss Suleman sustained in a 1999 riot at the psychiatric facility where she worked. 

On NBC, Miss Suleman portrayed herself as a victim – of prejudice for choosing an "unconventional kind of life" as a single mother; and of the "isolation" of growing up in a "dysfunctional family". 

Yet the picture that emerged last week, from her own words, her mother's comments and her medical records, points to a young woman raised in a typical middle-class immigrant American family, the daughter of an Iraqi linguist and a mother from Lithuanian stock who worked as a teacher. 

What is in no doubt is the former cheerleader's single-minded determination to have as many children as she could. She began trying in her late teens and had the first of three miscarriages in 1995. 

A year later, she married Marcos Gutierrez, a produce manager who has made no comment on the controversy, but the couple separated in 2000. 

After suffering the serious back injury during the 1999 riot, she confided to a psychiatrist who was treating her that her inability to become pregnant was making her deeply depressed and had prompted suicidal thoughts. 

In 2001, she finally gave birth to a child conceived using IVF with sperm donated by a friend. Over the next five years, she had another five children, including twins, via the same IVF donor. 

With her mother Angela helping to look after the six grandchildren in the modest three-bedroom house they all shared in the LA suburb of Whittier, Miss Suleman returned to college, obtaining a degree in child development and then pursuing a master's in counselling. 

But Miss Suleman's aspiration for a huge family was not over. Despite the sperm donor and her parents urging her to stop, she returned to her tame fertility specialist, as she wanted "just one more girl". By the time she turned up three months pregnant at the city's Kaiser Permanente medical centre (which is not the clinic where she was implanted), doctors thought she was pregnant with seven babies. But on Jan 26, there was another surprise – she gave birth to eight. 

Such large multiple births have always attracted publicity. What is so unusual about this case is the level of opprobrium. Los Angeles' top-rated radio host, Bill Handel, decried the births as "freakish" and said his audience was "'ready to boycott" firms that sent gifts to Miss Suleman and her babies. 

On several other radio station call-ins, there has been a dramatic volte face in listeners' mood, with the supportive calls giving way to thinly veiled outrage. 

Hollywood publicist David Brokaw, an expert in "crisis management" for high-profile clients, said Miss Suleman's newly hired PR firm was dealing with a "calamity". He added: "I don't see, the way this is shaped, how you can say much about it in terms of something favourable." 

Sadly for Miss Suleman, her hastily hired publicist's prediction – that the public would change their opinion of her "for the good" once she broke her silence – has not come to pass. Indeed, her words seem to have fanned the flames. 

A quick scan of responses to stories posted on an LA website shows its readers to be an unsympathetic bunch. Among the more polite, "Mowry" simply branded her a "total wacko". Another outraged California resident has even started an online "Freedom from Welfare" petition, aimed at "informing our government of our displeasure at the spending of our hard-earned tax dollars" on an "unmarried, unemployed female" whose family will be a "huge burden on the state of California". 

Miss Suleman's parents, who married in Las Vegas in 1974 and divorced in 1999, have put aside their differences to help their only child raise her burgeoning brood. Her mother, Angela, is now retired and spends much of her time looking after the six older children. Her Iraqi-born father, Edward, plans to return to his homeland to work as a translator to provide financial assistance to his daughter. 

Miss Suleman is well-spoken and coherent, certainly not the sort of "trailer trash" who occupy the more lurid daytime chat shows. Yet this weekend her words were being dissected for evidence of her mental state, rather than celebrated for the happy news they convey. 

And she even managed a dig at some other parents, suggesting that she would be a better mother than many. 

"I'm providing myself to my children," she said. "I'm loving them unconditionally… Everything I do, I'll stop my life for them and be present with them and hold them and be with them. And how many parents do that? I'm sure there are many that do, but many don't, and that's unfortunate and that is selfish." 

Her long-suffering mother has made clear her frustration with her daughter's family-rearing decisions in a series of exasperated comments since the birth. She observed despairingly that she wished Nadya had become a kindergarten teacher if she wanted to be surrounded by children and even felt the need to insist that her daughter was not "evil", just "obsessed". 

Miss Suleman, who cradles each baby for 45 minutes a day before they have to be placed back in units helping them breathe, makes no apologies for that obsession. "Sometimes we have that dream and that passion and we take risks," she told NBC. "All I wanted was children. I wanted to be a mom. That's all I ever wanted in my life. I love my children."

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THE TRUTH ABOUT ARLEN SPECTER

THE TRUTH ABOUT

ARLEN SPECTER

ARLEN SPECTER AND THE JFK ASSASSINATION

The Single Bullet Theory

To support the scenario that a lone assassin (Oswald) could fire the purported number of shots within an allotted time frame, the Warren Commission concluded that one of the bullets fired that fateful day hit both Kennedy and Connally. This conclusion came to be known as the "single bullet theory." However, given the location of Kennedy's and Connally's wounds, for the "single bullet theory" to be correct, the bullet would have had to change course several times, behaving in the manner shown in the diagram (below left). The chief architect of the "single bullet theory" was the Warren Commission's ambitious junior counsel, Arlen Specter, now U.S. Senator from Pennsylvania. In the reenactment photo (below right) Specter, with his pointer in hand, attempts to make the "single bullet theory" appear more plausible by deceptively indicating a straight line trajectory for the bullet.  


While Specter managed to sell his "single bullet theory" to the Warren Commission, he had trouble selling it to the American public. A recent New York Times/CBS poll found that 77 percent of Americans rejected the Warren Report's conclusions.

For a list of Arlen Specter's other deceptions regarding the JFK assassination click here: Fetzer (compiled by researcher, James Fetzer).

Testimony of an Eyewitness

In Dallas Texas on November 22, 1963, two women, Jean Hill and Mary Moorman, were standing on the south side of Elm Street in Dealy Plaza, as Kennedy's motorcade passed. They were two of the closest eyewitnesses to President Kennedy when he was struck with the fatal head shot. Jean Hill would later be questioned by Warren Commission attorney Arlen Specter. Hill recalled her encounter with Specter with journalist/author Jim Marrs:

"The FBI took me to Parkland Hospital. I had no idea what I was doing there. They escorted me through a labyrinth of corridors and up to one of the top floors of Parkland. I didn't know where we were. They took me into this little room where I met Arlen Specter. He talked to me for a few minutes, trying to act real friendly, then this woman, a stenographer, came in and sat behind me. He had told me that this interview would be confidential, then I looked around and this woman was taking notes. I reminded him that the discussion was to be private and he told the woman to put down her notebook, which she did. But when I looked around again she was writing. I got mad and told Specter, 'You lied to me. I want this over.' He asked me why I wouldn't come to Washington, and I said, 'Because I want to stay alive.' He asked why I would think that I was in danger and I replied, 'Well, if they can kill the President, they can certainly get me!' He replied that they already had the man that did it and I told him, 'No, you don't!'  

He kept trying to get me to change my story, particularly regarding the number of shots. He said I had been told how many shots there were and I figured he was talking about what the Secret Service told me right after the assassination. His inflection and attitude was that I knew what I was supposed to be saying, why wouldn't I just say it. I asked him, 'Look, do you want the truth or just what you want me to say?' He said he wanted the truth, so I said, 'The truth is that I heard between four and six shots.' I told him, 'I'm not going to lie for you.' So he starts talking off the record. He told me about my life, my family, and even mentioned that my marriage was in trouble. I said, 'What's the point of interviewing me if you already know everything about me?' He got angrier and finally told me, 'Look, we can even make you look as crazy as Marguerite Oswald and everybody knows how crazy she is. We could have you put in a mental institution if you don't cooperate with us.' I knew he was trying to intimidate me.... 

He finally gave me his word that the interview would not be published unless I approved what was written. But they never gave me the chance to read it or approve it. When I finally read my testimony as published by the Warren Commission, I knew it was a fabrication from the first line. After that ordeal at Parkland Hospital, they wrote that my deposition was taken at the U.S. attorney's office in the Post Office Building."

                                                                                                                .

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James Whitmore dies at 87

James Whitmore dies at 87; Veteran award-winning actor brought American icons to life

James Whitmore, the veteran Tony- and Emmy-winning actor who brought American icons Will Rogers, Harry Truman and Theodore Roosevelt to life in one-man shows, died Friday (06-02-2008). He was 87.

Whitmore died of lung cancer at his home in Malibu, said his son, Steve. He was diagnosed with the disease a week before Thanksgiving

"He cared about acting; his whole life was dedicated to the theater and to movies," said actor David Huddleston, a longtime friend who appeared in Whitmore's 1964 movie "Black Like Me" and did a couple of plays with him. "I asked James Cagney one time to tell me the best thing you can about acting. He said never to get caught at it. That's kind of how I'd sum up Jim Whitmore."

James Arness, who appeared with Whitmore in the movies "Battleground" and "Them!," said Whitmore was "an actor's actor," adding that "it was always a treat to work with him." 

Arness also remembered the "great intensity" Whitmore could bring to a role.

"When we wanted to get an actor to play a character who had that quality, Jimmy was the guy you'd think of," said Arness, who starred in "Gunsmoke," a TV series that Whitmore appeared on a number of times.

A stocky World War II Marine Corps veteran who bore a resemblance to actor Spencer Tracy and shared Tracy's down-to-earth quality, Whitmore earned early acclaim as an actor.

In 1948, he won a Tony Award for outstanding performance by a newcomer in the role of an amusingly cynical Army Air Forces sergeant in the Broadway production of "Command Decision." 

Whitmore's Broadway success brought him to Hollywood, where he received an Academy Award nomination for best supporting actor in his second movie, the hit 1949 World War II drama "Battleground," in which he played a tobacco-chewing, battle-weary Army sergeant.

Supporting roles and occasional leads in some 50 movies followed over the next 50-plus years, including "The Asphalt Jungle," "Them!," "Kiss Me Kate," "Battle Cry," "Oklahoma!," "Planet of the Apes," "Tora! Tora! Tora!," "The Serpent's Egg," "Nuts," "The Shawshank Redemption" and "The Majestic." 

A frequent guest actor on television, Whitmore also starred in three series: the 1960-62 legal drama "The Law and Mr. Jones," the 1969 detective drama "My Friend Tony" and the 1972-74 hospital sitcom "Temperatures Rising" (although he left after a year, he later said, "because it was just a series of jokes").

In 2000, Whitmore won an Emmy Award as outstanding guest actor in a drama series for "The Practice," and he received a 2003 Emmy nomination in the same category for "Mister Sterling."

An avid flower and vegetable gardener, Whitmore also was known to TV viewers as the longtime commercial pitchman for Miracle-Gro garden products.

Whitmore often said he found acting in films and television boring because of the long waits between scenes; his passion was for the theater, and he continued to act on stage throughout his long career.

"I've been very, very lucky," he said in a 2003 interview with the Nashville Tennessean. "The stage is human beings sharing something together -- flesh and blood together -- and the others are mechanical and shadows on the screen."

Although he starred in productions of plays such as "Our Town," "Inherit the Wind" and "Death of a Salesman," Whitmore was best known for his three one-man shows: as Truman in "Give 'em Hell, Harry!," as Roosevelt in "Bully" and as Rogers in "Will Rogers' U.S.A." 

The 1975 film of his performance in "Give 'em Hell, Harry!" earned Whitmore a best actor Oscar nomination.

But the one-man-show character he said he "always felt most comfortable with" was Rogers.

"He was wise with a sense of humor, and that's an unbeatable combination," Whitmore told the Manchester (N.H.) Union Leader in 2003. 

He was initially resistant to the idea of playing the gum-chewing, lariat-twirling humorist -- his first one-man show -- when adapter-director Paul Shyre brought "Will Rogers' U.S.A." to him in 1969.

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News results for skylar deleon

Yacht Murderer Wanted Sexual Reassignment Surgery

Skylar Deleon had wanted a sex change for a long time, and finally decided to take matters into his own hands. 

Skylar Deleon tells "Jim Avila he tries not to think about the crime."

In his first network television interview since being convicted for murdering a couple aboard their yacht, Skylar Deleon told

that he wanted to be a woman so badly, he tried to cut off his genitalia in prison. 

"I basically took a sheet and tied it around my lower extremity … I tied it around and I went to cut it off," hesaid.

Deleon's dreams of big money and a more luxurious lifestyle came to an end after he murdered Tom and Jackie Hawks aboard the couple's yacht in 2004. In October 2008, the jury voted for the death penalty for Deleon, 29, a former child actor . 

But some believe the motive behind the murders didn't have to do with a desire for material wealth, or Deleon's abusive childhood. Instead, the cold-blooded killings may have been driven by Deleon's gender identity. 

"This caper, this entire murder, this desire to get some wealth, to get some money, was to pay for that sex change," said Michael Molfetta, a defense attorney who represented Deleon's wife, Jennifer. 

Deleon said he had long thought about removing his organ. Investigators found evidence in the garage apartment he shared with his wife, Jennifer, that indicated he had been researching the procedure. His wife's trial attorney told "20/20" Deleon often wore women's clothes and was determined to be a female. 

During the interview Deleon was quick to point out that he's straight, and that even though he wanted to be a woman, he also wanted to continue his relationship with his wife. 


"I'm not attracted to guys," he said. "But I wanted the surgery, and I knew I 100 percent wanted the surgery. But I only like females." 

Deleon said he avoided the surgery for a long time because he wanted his daughter to "have the most normal life possible" and didn't want to "mix her up." 

In the end Deleon said he and his wife decided he would go forward with the sexual reassignment surgery one day. But when Deleon was convicted for murder, and jailed, he knew that day would never come. 

"I'll do it myself," he recalled thinking. 

He hoped that if he became female he would be moved into a women's prison because, "I get along a lot better with females than I do with the guys." 

As Deleon tried to cut off his penis, he said the prison deputies stopped him right away, rushed into his jail cell and brought him to the hospital. 

"[The deputies] got me too quick," he said. "And it's a lot harder to cut than you think." 

It didn't hurt, he said, not until afterward. "Unfortunately," Deleon said, he is still a man.

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40-Year-Old Virgin Sidekick Fit to Be Tried

Shelley Malil

40-Year-Old Virgin Sidekick Fit to Be Tried

If Shelley Malil did the crime, he may have to do a lot of time.

The character actor, one of Steve Carell's heavily accented coworkers in The 40-Year-Old Virgin, has been ordered to stand trial for allegedly stabbing his ex-girlfriend in a jealous rage in August.

Malil, who pleaded not guilty to premeditated attempted murder and related charges last summer, is facing life in prison if convicted.

He is accused of stabbing Kendra Beebe 23 times at her San Marcos, Calif., home Aug. 10 after arriving to find her having dinner with another man in the backyard. Beebe's two young children were in the house at the time.

According to the San Diego County District Attorney's Office, a next-door neighbor heard screaming and, poking his head over the fence, saw Malil attacking Beebe and ran over there to help. 

A judge ruled Wednesday that there was enough evidence to send the case to trial.

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Anna Faris & Chris Pratt Couple Up

Anna Faris & Chris Pratt Couple Up

The House Bunny star Anna Faris and her boyfriend, actor Chris Pratt, grab lunch and shop together in Hollywood on Wednesday (January 28).

The 32-year-old funny woman is currently lending her voice to the upcoming animation, Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, which is based on a children’s book of the same name.

Chris, 29, was most recently in Bride Wars with Kate Hudson and Anne Hathaway. He also had guest-starring roles in The O.C. and Everwood.

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TV Diner friends represent at blood drive

TV Diner friends represent at blood drive

(NECN: Billy Costa, Dedham, Mass.) - For the fifth year in a row, the American Red Cross Blood Services - Northeast Division and New England Cable News are joining together to reach out to patients in need by increasing the blood supply and raising awareness about the ongoing need for blood donors. 

Jose Duarte, chef/owner of Taranta in the North End, is joining in on the efforts, along with Cecilia Rait, owner of the Beacon Hill Hotel and Bistro.

The Celebrate the Gift of Life campaign will run throughout the winter months and holiday season, when blood donations are often critically low. 

Click here for more information and to find a donor center near you.

Every day, there are thousands of patients in hospitals who rely on the generosity of volunteer blood donors so that they can receive the treatments they need. Across the United States, a blood transfusion is needed every two seconds. The only source of blood is a healthy volunteer donor. Each unit of donated blood has the ability to help save the lives of up to three patients in need. Donated blood is used to help accident victims, trauma patients, transplant recipients, and those receiving treatment for life-threatening illnesses.

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Coach not sorry for 100-0 win, gets fired

Coach not sorry for 100-0 win, gets fired

The coach of a Texas high school basketball team that beat another team 100-0 was fired Sunday, the same day he sent an e-mail to a newspaper saying he will not apologize "for a wide-margin victory when my girls played with honor and integrity."

Kyle Queal, the headmaster for Covenant School, told the Dallas Morning News that he could not answer if the firing was a direct result of coach Micah Grimes' e-mail disagreeing with administrators who called the blowout "shameful."

On its Web site, Covenant, a private Christian school, posted a statement regretting the outcome of its Jan. 13 shutout win over Dallas Academy. "It is shameful and an embarrassment that this happened. This clearly does not reflect a Christlike and honorable approach to competition."

A parent at the game said an assistant Covenant coach cheered wildly as the team hit three-pointers in the fourth quarter to edge closer to 100 points. Dallas Academy, with eight girls on the team and 20 girls in the school, specializes teaching students with short attention spans or dyslexia.

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Curry's ex-girlfriend killed in Chicago

A woman found shot to death in a Chicago apartment was a former girlfriend of New York Knicks center Eddy Curry and the mother of his 3-year-old son, Curry's attorney said Sunday.

A relative found the bodies of Nova Henry, 24, and her 9-month-old daughter, Ava, in their apartment near the South Side on Saturday evening, Chicago police said. Both died from multiple gunshot wounds. Curry's 3-year-old son was found unharmed at the scene.

Curry used to play for the Chicago Bulls.

-- A promoter for the Monster Truck & Thrill Show has died from injuries after an accident at the Dane County Coliseum, just more than a week after a 6-year-old boy was killed by debris while sitting in the stands at a monster-truck event in Tacoma, Wash.

The Dane County Coroner said 41-year-old George Eisenhart Jr. of Chardon, Ohio, died after an accident Saturday in Madison. A witness told the Wisconsin State Journal that Eisenhart walked in front of one of the monster trucks just as it was about to pass by him.

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Holly Kyte reviews Mrs Lincoln

Abraham Lincoln's wife
Holly Kyte reviews Mrs Lincoln by Janis Cooke Newman 

She was the original First Lady; the intelligent, determined wife of America's 'Martyred President' Abraham Lincoln. She was also a coquettish, extravagant and superstitious Southern belle who, thanks to her scandalous and 'unwomanly' behaviour, was publicly reviled and consigned to the madhouse by her own son. Mary Todd Lincoln's life was truly the stuff of novels and, in this ambitious debut, Janis Cooke Newman takes the logical step of writing it as such.

The book takes the form of a fictional memoir which the widowed Mrs Lincoln pens from Bellevue Place Sanatorium, where she was committed after an insanity trial in 1875. Amid the caterwauling of her fellow inmates, she relates her 'true story', alternating between her present efforts to escape bedlam and the key events in her past: her mother's early death, a turbulent courtship with the 'homely' Abraham, his political success at her instigation, the Civil War, the Emancipation Proclamation, the deaths of three beloved sons and, of course, her husband's assassination as he sat beside her in the theatre.

It is a long, sombre tale, but this epic drama exerts an irresistible pull, chiefly because it boasts such a riveting and well-drawn heroine. Candid, self-aware and compellingly flawed, Mary Lincoln acknowledges a raft of irrational behaviour that includes exorbitant spending, reckless adultery and an increasing reliance on spiritualism. But given the mitigating circumstances of her extraordinary life and the lucidity of her account, it's hard to read this as the confessions of a lunatic.

This is puritanical 19th-century America after all. The so-called 'madness' that seeps through the narrative is simply another word for 'unseemly' female passion - something that is feared, loathed and curbed by the men in the novel. As a memoir, Mrs Lincoln is Mary's personal testimony to prove (to herself more than anyone) that she is not deranged. As a novel, it's an impressive, engrossing and moving piece of historical imagining and characterisation, which is given weight and authenticity by Newman's dedicated research as well as her evident affection for a woman who she believes was locked up simply for loving too much.

Jennifer Joseph the Model.

Jennifer Joseph

Best known as: The model for the latest Columbia Pictures logo.

Jennifer Joseph isn't a household name, but as the model for the Columbia Pictures logo -- the draped lady holding a torch -- her likeness is seen by millions of moviegoers every year. After Sony Pictures Entertainment bought Columbia Pictures in 1989, New Orleans artist Michael Deas was commissioned to update the famous logo that has been around since the 1930s. Jennifer Joseph, at the time a 31 year-old designer with The Times-Picayune newspaper, modelled for Deas, although he used computer-generated images to construct a composite for the face. Joseph herself later became a muralist in Houston, Texas. In 2004 actress Annette Bening told movie critic Roger Ebert that she had been told she had been the model for the logo, but artist Deas said that wasn't the case. 

Extra credit: Jenny Joseph is also the name of the English poet who wrote "Warning," a short poem with the famous line "When I am an old woman I shall wear purple."

George carlin 7 words

George carlin 7 words

Shit, Piss, Fuck, Cunt, Cocksucker, Motherfucker, and Tits.Those are the heavy seven. Those are the ones that'll infect your soul, curve your spine and keep the country from winning the war.

– George Carlin, Class Clown, "Seven Words You Can Never Say on Television"

George Denis Patrick Carlin (May 12, 1937 – June 22, 2008) was an iconic American stand-up comedian. He was also an actor and author, and won four Grammy Awards for his comedy albums.

Carlin was noted for his black humor as well as insights on politics, the English language, psychology, religion, and various taboo subjects. Carlin and his "Seven Dirty Words" comedy routine were central to the 1978 U.S. Supreme Court case F.C.C. v. Pacifica Foundation, in which a narrow 5–4 decision by the justices affirmed the government's power to regulate indecent material on the public airwaves.

The first of his 14 stand-up comedy specials for HBO was filmed in 1977. In the 1990s and 2000s, Carlin's routines focused on the flaws in modern-day America. He often took on contemporary political issues in the United States and satirized the excesses of American culture. His final HBO special, It's Bad For Ya, was filmed less than four months before his death.

Carlin was placed second on the Comedy Central cable television network list of the 100 greatest stand-up comedians, ahead of Lenny Bruce and behind Richard Pryor.[21] He was a frequent performer and guest host on The Tonight Show during the three-decade Johnny Carson era, and was also the first person to host Saturday Night Live.