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When Oprah Winfrey announced that she would be ending her talk show in 2011 she promised fans that she would be going out with a bang, producing some great shows with the most provocative guests.

Now the Queen of Daytime television is targeting the most sought-after man in the news right now, Tiger Woods.

“We have reached out to him but nothing is confirmed,” a spokesperson for Harpo, the production company responsible for "The Oprah Winfrey Show," told CNN. Read the rest of this entry »

The Tiger Woods scandal provided plenty of comedic fodder for "Saturday Night Live" this week as the cast mocked Woods’ car crash and affair allegations.

This weekend’s show was hosted by “Gossip Girl” cast-member Blake Lively, who - with her long blonde hair - stepped in as the perfect double in skits involving Woods’ wife, Elin Nordegren.

In a skit featuring  a Tiger Woods’ press conference with CNN’s “The Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer,” Lively stood by cast member Kenan Thompson, who played Woods. In the skit Tiger is portrayed as apologizing for his “multiple transgressions,” to which Lively’s Nordegrin looks angry and shocked.

The scene then cut away to a news studio before rejoining an injured Woods holding another press conference outside his Florida home. The supposedly terrified Woods, played by Thompson with his arm in a sling, held up covert signs for camera that were hidden from his wife saying, “I’m scared.”

The skit continued with Lively's Nordegren chasing Woods from the press conference in a rage.

The jabs continued in the “Weekend Update” news report where anchor Seth Meyers referred to Woods’ car accident and said: “Last Friday, Tiger Woods hit a tree and a bunch of ladies fell out.”

The jokes come as women continue to allege that they had affairs with the professional golfer following his admission of “transgressions” last week. The controversy first erupted over the Thanksgiving holiday when Woods sustained injuries in a car accident outside his Florida home.

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But in May he will receive what could be his highest honor yet when he is inducted, alongside Danny DeVito and Susan Sarandon, into the New Jersey Hall of the Fame.

The Garden State announced its 2010 inductees on Thursday.

The stars of the silver screen are in distinguished company; joined by astronaut Wally Schirra, singer Frankie Valli , former President Woodrow Wilson and former Supreme Court Justice William Brennan.

The Hall of Fame’s mission, according to its website is “ to honor New Jerseyans who have made invaluable contributions to society and beyond.”

Nicholson was born in Neptune, New Jersey.

The winners were chosen online by those notoriously fickle New Jerseyans themselves and by the hall's Voting Academy of 100 state organizations.

This is the third class to be elected. Past inductees have included musicians and beloved New Jerseyans Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi, both of whom made acceptance speeches at the Hall of Fame’s induction ceremony.

We would like to see Jack, 72, embrace this hometown honor with gusto! Here’s hoping he can take some time out of his busy schedule to make the induction ceremony in May. All work and no play....

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Sarah Jessica Parker didn’t plan on getting two new babies at once.  Now that her twin daughters are here she feels blessed but regretful that she has taken on so much work outside her home.

“Nothing can really describe what it's like to have two new little girls. It’s been very different than when James arrived, since our family expanded in an untraditional way,” Parker told Glamour magazine about the arrival of her twin girls, Tabitha and Marion, who she had through a surrogate.  “We didn’t plan on having two, but were doubly blessed, and it’s been just wonderful.” Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday, my colleague Douglas Hyde wrote that Tiger Woods had two basic options for dealing with the media firestorm surrounding his late-night car crash and his alleged infidelities: stonewall, or immediately reveal the worst details in order to take the steam out of the coverage.

Today, it appears the golf legend has chosen a third way: a public statement in which he repeatedly apologizes, makes veiled references to "transgressions" and "sins," and asks for privacy.  Call it the "I'm sorry, but I won't say what I'm sorry about" approach.  Here's his statement, posted on his Web site:

Read the rest of this entry »

"With friends like these, who needs enemies?"

The saying may apply to Pres. Obama who's getting heat from some former supporters over his Afghanistan speech.

Michael Moore just told CNN's Larry King he thinks the Obama troop surge plan is "absolutely insane." He added, "This is going to be his Vietnam."

Moore was one of Obama's big supporters during the campaign. So was Robert Greenwald, who produced anti-John McCain videos during the presidential election. What is Greenwald producing now? Short films arguing for a withdrawal from Afghanistan.

I talked with Greenwald, who is a big-time liberal activist, about the Obama plan and he called it a "tragic" mistake. He's spent time in Afghanistan and said people there view U.S. troops as "foreign invaders" so sending in more of them won't help.

Hollywood stars haven't been anxious to comment on the Obama plan so far. Richard Dreyfuss keeps himself well-informed on international affairs, but when I asked his political adviser where he's leaning on the surge, she said Richard hadn't made up his mind.

It will be interesting to see if Obama's Hollywood base deserts him on this issue.

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"A nation reveals itself not only by the men it produces, but also by the men it honors." So said John F. Kennedy. Has there been, in recent times, an American public figure more universally honored and admired than Tiger Woods?

I think like Michael Jordan before him, he is revered because he's seemingly perfect. And Americans want to be perfect. "If I have the perfect job, the perfect spouse, fame and acclaim, six-pack abs or an incredible bust – then I'll be happy." So along come Tiger and Michael as examples that yes, by God, perfection is possible. If we can't have it for ourselves, then at least we can have it vicariously through them. We so badly want it to be true.

Well, if the tabloid rumors are to be believed, Tiger has been knocked off that God-like pedestal we put him on. There are whispers of infidelity, and of course the celebrated car accident.

There will be those who are let down and disappointed, but I suspect more than a few will say, "Oh what a relief. He's human like the rest of us. He's having marital troubles like a lot of us. His foibles make him more interesting, more relatable."

Others will wonder why he might have cheated on his hot Scandinavian wife and the mother of his children. Is the male libido that relentless and unquenchable? Does being a famous man amp up that "perpetuate the species" sex drive woven into our male DNA to the nth degree? Perhaps the answer is yes.
Read the rest of this entry »

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Reality stars are like a fungus. Just when you think they’ve all but disappeared they come back stronger than before.

She’s been off the television radar since she ended her run on the buddy reality show “The Simple Life” with her former best friend Paris Hilton, but now celebuspawn Nicole Richie is developing a sitcom for ABC that she intends to star in and produce.

Variety reports that the show will use a single camera, like sitcoms “30 Rock” and “The Office”, and that the concept , which is loosely based on her own life, was Richie’s idea. Read the rest of this entry »

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It was a family affair as Ashlee Simpson Wentz made her Broadway debut as Roxie Hart in the musical "Chicago" on Monday night at the Ambassador Theater with sister Jessica, parents Joe and Tina and hubby Pete Wentz cheering the actress on from the audience.

Simpson, who first appeared in the role in London’s West End, has joined the "Chicago" cast for a 10-week run through February.

“I love her energy. She’s spunky. She acts like a little broad,” said veteran "Chicago" stage actress Roz Ryan, who has played prison matron “Mama” Morton for 12 years. “When I first saw her I said ‘ohmygosh she’s so tiny’ and when she got onstage I was like ‘hellll lookey at her’.” Read the rest of this entry »

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Lifetime Movie Network isn’t one to shy away from the tough subjects of pregnant cheerleaders, murderous mistresses or cheating husbands.

Now LMN is tackling a real-life tragedy, producing a feature film based on the 2006 Amish school house shootings in Nickel Mines, Pennsylvania.

The film, entitled, “Amish Grace,” will feature former “According to Jim” star Kimberly Williams-Paisley in the lead role and will be based on actual accounts of the shootings as well as the book "Amish Grace: How Forgiveness Transcended Tragedy" by Donald Kraybill, Steven Nolt and David Weaver-Zercher.

On October 2, 2006, a gunman walked into a Nickel Mines schoolhouse, took several girls hostage and eventually killed five of them before taking his own life. The story garnered national attention, not simply because of the extent of the tragedy, but because of the Amish community’s all-encompassing forgiveness of the gunman.

Williams-Paisley, who is most famous for her romantic comedy turn in “Father of the Bride” and as the spouse of country crooner Brad Paisley, will play the fictional character of Ida Graber who, devastated by her daughter's death, finds herself struggling to forgive the gunman.