People: Settling the ‘Grey’s‘ matter?
“Grey’s Anatomy” star Isaiah Washington, who came under fire after using an anti-gay slur, will appear in public service announcements on behalf of two gay advocacy groups.
Washington allegedly used the offensive word last fall to refer to castmate T.R. Knight during an on-set fight with another co-star, Patrick Dempsey.
Knight said soon afterward that he was gay.
Then, at January’s Golden Globe Awards, Washington used the word again during a backstage press conference while denying that he’d said it in the first place. He later issued an apology and sought counseling.
The actor’s publicist, Howard Bragman, said Wednesday that Washington would record public service spots on behalf of the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation and the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network.
They will be filmed in the next few weeks by ABC, which airs “Grey’s,” he said.
Bragman added that Washington, 43, plans to return to the series next year.
“We’ve heard nothing to the contrary, and we have no plans to the contrary,” he said.
Queen of art
Queen Elizabeth II is shown in a drawing room at Buckingham Palace, dressed in a white fur stole, gold-embroidered evening dress and diamond tiara, in a new portrait by American celebrity photographer Annie Leibovitz.
Leibovitz, whose famed photos include a naked John Lennon hugging a clothed Yoko Ono and a nude, pregnant Demi Moore, photographed the British monarch to commemorate her U.S. visit beginning today.
Hey, Hello! – pay, OK!
Britain’s top court ruled Wednesday that OK! magazine is entitled to damages from a rival that published snatched photos of Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones‘ wedding.
The couple signed an exclusive $2 million deal with OK! to cover their lavish wedding at New York’s Plaza Hotel.
A lower court had ordered competitor Hello! to pay damages of more than $4 million, but an appeals court later reversed that ruling.
‘Bold’ move
Former “American Idol” dreamboat Constantine Maroulis will make his daytime television debut May 15, joining the cast of “The Bold and the Beautiful.”
CBS says Maroulis will appear on the daytime soap opera for several months as a music producer and will perform songs from his upcoming debut solo CD.
He finished sixth on Season Four of “Idol.”
Pillow talk
Ellen DeGeneres is hosting her daytime talk show from a hospital bed this week, having hurt her back over the weekend.
Guests are appearing in their own beds on the set, starting Tuesday with “American Idol” host Ryan Seacrest, who told DeGeneres: “This is a first for me, to be in bed with you.”
“Well, it’s a first for me in a while, too,” the openly gay DeGeneres replied.
The birthday bunch
Folk singer Pete Seeger is 88. Actress Ann B. Davis (“The Brady Bunch”) is 81. Singer Frankie Valli is 73. Sports announcer Greg Gumbel is 61. Singer Christopher Cross is 56. Actor Dule Hill (“The West Wing”) is 32.