Not a girl, not yet a mother
Britney Spears stumbled outside a Manhattan hotel Friday, nearly dropping her 8-month-old son and further fueling the debate about her parenting skills.
Photos in the New York Post showed the 24-year-old pop star exiting a hotel with Sean Preston in one hand and a glass in the other.
She stumbled – her long pants apparently getting tangled in her open-toed shoes – but was able to keep her balance with help from a bodyguard, who reacted quickly.
The baby bobble was the latest incident involving Sean Preston’s safety. Spears previously was photographed driving with him in her lap, then earlier this week in a car seat facing forward rather than backward, which federal safety regulations recommend.
Spears, pregnant with her second child, also was visited by a sheriff’s deputy last month after authorities learned Sean Preston had slipped from his nanny’s arms as she was lifting him from a high chair and something snapped.
C’mon, everybody loves Paula
Brad Garrett (“Everybody Loves Raymond”), who’ll star in a new Fox sitcom, did his best Don Rickles imitation as the network announced its fall schedule.
Noting the presence of “American Idol” judge Paula Abdul, who has seemed slightly unhinged this season, Garrett said: “Bellevue (Hospital Center) has a shuttle bus.”
As for her shiny outfit, he added: “Nice dress. Maybe it’s time to get back in the lamp.”
Sticks and stones …
“Everybody Hates Chris” creator Chris Rock, whose sitcom based on his life will air on the new CW network, had a few choice words for CBS Corp. chief executive Leslie Moonves.
Claiming Moonves picked the young actor who plays him as a child, Rock said: “Les said, ‘I know how to pick black kids.” He’s picking them for Angelina Jolie now.”
Setting a bad example
A friendly chat about the new “X-Men” movie turned into a frosty discussion of race on a British Broadcasting Corp. radio show.
Halle Berry appeared on Chris Moyles‘ Radio One breakfast show Thursday and clashed with her host after he impersonated what he described as a “big, fat, black guy.”
“Are we having a racist moment here?” asked Berry, the first black actress to win an Academy Award for a lead role.
Another black mark
Finally, it’s not just religious leaders and movie critics who are dissing “The Da Vinci Code” – it seems albinos are up in arms as well.
British actor Paul Bettany‘s portrayal of monk-assassin Silas, an albino with red eyes, follows such albino movie villains as the dreadlocked twins in “The Matrix Reloaded” and the pasty zombies in “The Omega Man.”
The National Organization for Albinism and Hypopigmentation says “Da Vinci” is the 68th film since 1960 to feature an evil albino.
The birthday bunch
Singer Joe Cocker is 62. Singer-actress Cher is 60. Actor Dave Thomas (“SCTV”) is 57. Guitarist Jane Wiedlin (The Go-Go’s) is 48. Actor Bronson Pinchot is 47. Singer Susan Cowsill (The Cowsills) is 47. TV personality Ted Allen (“Queer Eye for the Straight Guy”) is 41. Actress Mindy Cohn (“Facts of Life”) is 40. Rapper Busta Rhymes is 34. Actor Matt Czuchry (“Gilmore Girls”) is 29.