Go ahead and hit rewind, baby, one more time
Britney Spears has filed a $20 million libel lawsuit against Us Weekly, charging the celebrity magazine published a false story reporting she and husband Kevin Federline had made a sex tape.
The suit asks for $10 million in libel damages and $10 million for misappropriating the 24-year-old pop singer’s name and image to promote sales. It also seeks unspecified punitive damages.
“We have a very credible source and we stand by our story,” an Us Weekly spokesman said.
The Oct. 17 item appeared in the magazine’s “Hot Stuff” column and claimed that Spears and Federline feared the release of a secret sex tape they had made. It said Spears gave a copy of the tape to the couple’s estate lawyers and that she and her husband were “acting goofy the whole time” while watching it.
“There was no laughter, disgust or goofy behavior while watching the video in the company of lawyers because they did not watch any video, and because there is no such video,” the suit says.
According to the lawsuit, Spears went to court after Us Weekly refused her request for a retraction.
Love, angel, music …
Gwen Stefani, nominated for five Grammys including album of the year for “Love.Angel.Music.Baby.,” is pregnant with her first child.
The 36-year-old pop star and former Bush lead singer Gavin Rossdale, 38, were married three years ago. The baby is due in June, Us Weekly magazine reported.
Rossdale also has a 16-year-old daughter from a former relationship with a fashion designer.
Here come the grooms
Celebrities mobbed a London nightclub Monday night for a glitzy bachelor party to toast today’s scheduled civil union between Elton John and partner David Furnish.
Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, Elizabeth Hurley, Bryan Adams and Kid Rock were among those who streamed into the gala Soho neighborhood event. Shirtless waiters wearing black ties and riding boots served flutes of champagne.
Hundreds of same-sex couples plan to form civil partnerships in England and Wales today, the first day that such ceremonies are allowed under new legislation.
Bo knows ER
“American Idol” runner-up Bo Bice was rushed to a Las Vegas hospital with complications from recent intestinal surgery.
The 30-year-old singer became ill Sunday while rehearsing for a performance on the 2005 Radio Music Awards. He reportedly was doing fine and planned to return to Nashville for treatment.
Bice was in Las Vegas with other “Idol” contestants in August when he underwent emergency surgery to repair a blocked intestine.
Off the bubble
Don Ho, who had an experimental heart procedure in Thailand earlier this month, has returned home to Honolulu.
“We’re delighted to say that his health is improving dramatically,” his publicist said.
The 75-year-old Ho, known for his signature tune, “Tiny Bubbles,” underwent a new treatment on Dec. 6 that hasn’t been approved in the United States. It involves multiplying stem cells taken from his blood and injecting them into his heart in hopes of strengthening it.
The birthday bunch
Talk-show host Phil Donahue is 70. Actress Jane Fonda is 68. Actor Samuel L. Jackson is 57. Actress Jane Kaczmarek (“Malcolm in the Middle”) is 50. Country singer Lee Roy Parnell is 49. Actor-comedian Ray Romano is 48. Actor-comedian Andy Dick is 40. Actor Kiefer Sutherland is 39. Actress Karri Turner (“JAG”) is 39. Actress Khrystyne Haje (“Head of the Class”) is 37. Actress Julie Delpy is 36.