N.J. goes Conan-free by decree

The mayor of New Jersey’s largest city has raised the stakes in his facetious feud with “Tonight Show” host Conan O’Brien, saying the late-night comic is now banned from the state.

A video of Newark Mayor Cory Booker posted Thursday on YouTube is Booker’s latest response to O’Brien’s mockery of his city.

It comes after a two-minute segment last week by O’Brien, who pretended to extol Newark’s virtues while showing images of urban neglect. A reference to its arts scene was accompanied by a graffiti-covered wall.

Onstage illness

A preview performance of the Broadway revival of “The Royal Family” has been canceled after one of its stars, Tony Roberts, 69, became ill on stage.

The curtain came down shortly after the Sunday matinee began. Roberts was hospitalized at St. Luke’s-Roosevelt Hospital Center and the actor was in stable condition on Sunday.

Roberts is known for his roles in Woody Allen movies including “Annie Hall” and “Hannah and Her Sisters.”

The Kirsten heist

A jury deadlocked Friday on the most serious charge against a mechanic who said he was misled into taking part in the theft of Kirsten Dunst’s $2,000 handbag during a Manhattan movie shoot.

James Jimenez was convicted of a misdemeanor count of criminal trespass. But jurors deadlocked on burglary and other charges in the case, which included testimony from the “Spider-Man” star and her one-time co-star Simon Pegg.

It wasn’t immediately clear whether the 35-year-old would be retried on the burglary charge.

The birthday bunch

Singer Al Martino is 82. “The View” co-host Joy Behar is 67. John Mellencamp is 58. Gospel singer Michael W. Smith is 52. “American Idol” judge Simon Cowell is 50. Toni Braxton is 42. Thom Yorke of Radiohead is 41. Taylor Hicks (“American Idol”) is 33.