President’s new book on women’s rights
Jimmy Carter’s next book will be a defense of women’s rights and an attack against those who use religion to deny equality.
Simon & Shuster announced Tuesday that the former president’s “A Call To Action: Women, Religion, Violence, and Power” will be published March 25. The publisher says Carter will draw upon personal observations from his worldwide travels as he condemns abuses of women and girls and the alleged distortions of religious texts cited as justification.
The 89-year-old has written a wide range of books since leaving office in 1981, from memoirs and poetry to a controversial work on the Middle East, “Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid.”
Flavor Flav arraigned for traffic stop
Flavor Flav pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges stemming from a traffic stop earlier this month as he raced to his mother’s funeral in suburban New York.
State police said the rapper and reality TV star, whose real name is William Jonathan Drayton Jr., was speeding and driving without a license, a felony, on Jan. 9 as he drove on the Meadowbrook Parkway not far from where the Freeport, N.Y., native grew up.
He was ticketed and told to appear for his arraignment. The judge scheduled a return court date for Friday.
Motley Crue calling it quits after tour
Motley Crue is hanging up its guitars for good.
The heavy metal band plans to say goodbye with 72 concerts before retiring. The rockers made the announcement at a press conference Tuesday in Hollywood.
Alice Cooper will tour with the group. Tickets go on sale Friday.
A Motley Crue tribute album is in the works, as is a big-screen version of the band’s 2002 book, “The Dirt.”
Bo, Sunny school pups for big game
Four-legged participants in Animal Planet’s “Puppy Bowl” have been coached by two of the most famous dogs in America: White House pets Bo and Sunny.
Michelle Obama and her furry companions recently helped more than a dozen pups from animal shelters around the country get ready for the canine competition during drills on the South Lawn of the White House.
The “Puppy Bowl” is like a football game, but the players are pooches in need of loving homes. Dogs score touchdowns when they cross the goal line with a toy, and bios of each puppy on the roster appear on screen to let viewers know how to find them for adoption.
The program airs Sunday, the same day as the Super Bowl, on Animal Planet.
The birthday bunch
Actor Tom Selleck is 69. Actress Ann Jillian is 64. Rock musician Tommy Ramone (Ramones) is 62. Talk show host Oprah Winfrey is 60. Actress Judy Norton Taylor (“The Waltons”) is 56. Olympic gold-medal diver Greg Louganis is 54. Actor-director Edward Burns is 46. Actress Heather Graham is 44. Actress Sara Gilbert is 39.