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ITTY BITTY BITS: Shonda’s new pilot; Laws loses case; Paris goes hip hop; M-Rod out of jail.
*“Grey’s Anatomy” creator Shonda Rhimes has a new ABC pilot on deck about a group of female journalists. So far, she’s cast Jeffrey Dean Morgan to play one of the regular characters. He was last seen on the season finale of “Grey’s Anatomy” as Denny Duquette, the ill-fated heart patient and love interest of Izzie, played by Katherine Heigl.
*Singer Debra Laws, whose early 80s hit “Very Special” was sampled in the 2002 song “All I Have” from Jennifer Lopez and L.L. Cool J., had her lawsuit against the duo dismissed Wednesday by a California federal appeals court. Laws sued the artists and their label, Sony Music, for allegedly misappropriating her 1981 song. Sony, however, obtained a license to use a 10-second portion of Laws' single. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Laws should instead sue her label and publisher for breach of contract for entering a license agreement without her authorization.
*Apparently, Paris Hilton feels her musical bread is best buttered in the urban genre. The celebutante tells Hong Kong magazine Prestige that her new album will be a combination of reggae, hip-hop and pop, with the first single a reggae joint called “Stars Are Blind.” Hip-hop beatmaster Scott Storch is one of the producers on the LP, and Lil Jon and Three 6 Mafia have also pitched in behind the boards as well. "Stars Are Blind," will be released this month by Warner Records and her own label Heiress Records, followed by a full album later this year.
*Why was Michelle Rodriguez spotted with Paris, David Spade and other celebs at the Staples Center in Los Angeles Saturday sitting ringside at the Ultimate Fighting Championships when she’s supposed to be in jail on a DUI charge? According to TMZ.com, the actress was sprung early due to overcrowding and budget issues currently plaguing the city’s jails. Rodriguez ended up spending only 4 ½ hours of her 60-day sentence for DUI-related probation violations. Her premature release is part of a “book and release” program typical for non-violent offenders with sentences of less than 90 days. The program was implemented in 2002 "as a last resort" to meet budget cuts that reached $180 million.
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