People: Simon says it’s not that simple
An annoyed look from “American Idol” judge Simon Cowell as a contestant expressed sadness over the Virginia Tech shootings was drastically misinterpreted, Cowell says.
Cowell rolled his eyes and raised his eyebrows as contestant Chris Richardson of Chesapeake, Va., followed his performance on Tuesday’s show with a comment about the 32 people killed on the campus by a student.
“My hearts and prayers go out to Virginia Tech. I have a lot of friends over there. … Be strong,” Richardson said.
Cowell said Wednesday he hadn’t heard what was being said because he was talking to fellow judge Paula Abdul about Richardson’s performance, which he had panned.
“I did want to clear this one up because, you know, this is a very, very sensitive subject,” Cowell said on “Idol” host Ryan Seacrest‘s radio show. “The irony is that we did want to try and set the right tone on the show. And then something like this happens, and it just starts fanning the flames.”
Rivers’ run over
Joan Rivers is being replaced by Lisa Rinna as TV Guide Channel’s leading red-carpet host.
Rivers, 73, and her daughter, Melissa, launched TV Guide Channel’s red-carpet programming in January 2005. They had previously done the same on E! Entertainment.
Rinna, 43, who starred on “Melrose Place” and “Days of Our Lives” and was a contestant on “Dancing With the Stars,” will make her debut at the Emmy Awards on Sept. 16.
After a rocky start …
Madonna and her 9-year-old daughter, Lourdes, on Wednesday visited a center for street children in Malawi, where she recently adopted a 14-month-old boy.
The center is one of the projects in the impoverished African nation being run by the pop star’s Raising Malawi organization.
On Tuesday, a visit to the orphanage where her new son formerly lived began with kids pelting cars containing reporters and photographers with rocks. Madonna defused the crisis by inviting the journalists in.
Yes, he was ripped
Rip Torn, who beat drunken-driving charges in a New York case three years ago, has pleaded guilty to reduced charges of driving while impaired from a recent incident.
Torn, 76, was arrested in December after his car hit a tractor-trailer in North Salem, about 60 miles north of New York City.
As part of his plea, he agreed to pay $380 and give up his license for 90 days.
Suspended disbelief
Paris Hilton has been ordered to appear in court May 4 on a probation violation charge which could lead to up to 90 days in jail.
Prosecutors say Hilton violated her probation from a January no-contest plea to alcohol-related reckless driving when she was ticketed in February for driving with a suspended license. Her spokesman said she wasn’t aware her license had been suspended.
The birthday bunch
Actor Hugh O’Brian is 82. Actor Tim Curry is 61. Hip-hop mogul Suge Knight is 42. Actress Ashley Judd is 39. Actor James Franco (“Spider-Man”) is 29. Actress Kate Hudson is 28. Actor Hayden Christensen (“Star Wars”) is 26. Actress Catalina Sandino Moreno (“Maria Full of Grace”) is 26.