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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Stop it, O.J., you’re killing me


O.J. Simpson
 (Associated Press / The Spokesman-Review)
From Wire Reports The Spokesman-Review

O.J. Simpson pulls a prank involving his infamous white Ford Bronco in his new candid-camera program, “Juiced,” but not everyone is laughing.

As part of the pay-per-view special, Simpson pretends to sell the Bronco at a used car lot.

“It was good for me – it helped me get away,” he tells a prospective buyer, referring to the slow-speed, televised police chase that preceded his 1994 arrest on charges of murdering his ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend, Ronald Goldman.

Simpson was acquitted, but a civil jury later ordered him to pay $33.5 million to the Brown and Goldman families.

“Any money that he makes, I hope, will go to satisfy the multimillion dollar judgment made against him in the civil case,” said the Brown family attorney, Gloria Allred.

Goldman’s father, Fred, says he finds the TV special “morally reprehensible.”

The hourlong program is airing on pay-per-view this month, with a DVD to follow.

Other bits include Simpson disguised as an Elvis impersonator, a bum selling oranges and an old man leading a bingo game.

Simpson was not paid for the program, executive producer Rick Mahr said.

“Basically O.J. Simpson has decided to do this because he wants to do it, and he wanted to have fun with it,” Mahr said.

Rehab? Not on your Leif

Former teen idol Leif Garrett has been sentenced to 90 days in jail and three years’ probation on cocaine possession charges after opting out of a drug treatment program.

Garret, 44, failed several drug tests while staying in a live-in drug diversion program. His attorney said he decided to leave the program because it was too strict.

He appeared in three dozen films, mostly in the ‘70s and ‘80s, and released 10 music albums.

Fuel for the fired?

It’s official: newly dismissed “American Idol” contestant Chris Daughtry has been offered a job as the new singer of the rock band Fuel.

Daughtry, who performed the Fuel song “Hemorrhage” on a recent “Idol” episode, said he’s debating whether to front an established rock band or launch a solo career.

Many “Idol” watchers were shocked when the presumed front-runner was ousted from the final four contestants on Wednesday.

This star was made for walkin’

Nancy Sinatra was honored Thursday with a star on Hollywood Boulevard’s Walk of Fame, four decades after the debut of her rebel hit “These Boots Are Made for Walkin’ ” in 1966.

“My advice to young women starting out is hang tough, don’t quit – even if it takes 40 years,” Sinatra said.

Keep it real, Ash

Singer Ashlee Simpson is laughing off rumors that she had a nose job – but she’s not denying it either.

“Everybody’s already saying it, so I just don’t talk about it,” says Simpson, 21, perhaps best known for her “Saturday Night Live” lip-synching scandal. “I’m like, ‘OK, whatever.’ It doesn’t bother me.”

When pressed on whether it was true, she said, “Maybe – who knows!”

New adventure, same old Julia

Speaking of “Saturday Night Live,” Julia Louis-Dreyfus tonight returns to the studio where she began her career more than two decades ago.

Louis-Dreyfus, 45, who became famous for “Seinfeld” and stars in the new sitcom “The New Adventures of Old Christine,” is the first female former cast member to host “SNL” – much to her surprise.

“How’s it possible that Gilda (Radner) or Jane (Curtin) or all of these people didn’t host?” she asks “For some reason they didn’t, and here I am.”

The birthday bunch

Actress Bea Arthur is 84. Actor Harvey Keitel is 67. Singer Stevie Wonder is 56. Actress Julianne Phillips (“Sisters”) is 46. Actor Tom Verica (“American Dreams”) is 42. Singer Darius Rucker (Hootie and the Blowfish) is 40.