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FOX ANCHORS ARGUE OVER OBAMA COVERAGE: Chris Wallace takes a stand – live on the air – against hosts of 'Fox & Friends' for biased reports.

       *Hell officially froze over at the right-leaning Fox News Channel Friday when one of its anchors complained live on the air about the unfair and biased reporting of Sen. Barack Obama by his Fox colleagues.

      It all started with Obama's speech on race last Tuesday, when he said his white grandmother had felt nervous passing black men on the street. On Thursday, while trying to clarify his remarks, he called his grandmother a “typical white person.”

      The hosts of “Fox & Friends” jumped all over both comments Friday as they played his "typical white person" quote over and over again and questioned if Obama's remarks were offensive.

      During the program's third hour, Chris Wallace of the weekend political talk show “Fox News Sunday” called out the “Fox & Friends” crew and complained that they were taking Obama's comments out of context. [View footage here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MiIK8jh3ZCE]

       “It seems to me that two hours of Obama-bashing on this ‘typical white person’ remark is somewhat excessive, and frankly I think you’re somewhat distorting what Obama had to say,” Wallace said during his regularly scheduled segment on the morning show.

      Before Wallace’s appearance, “Fox & Friends” host Brian Kilmeade had walked off the set amid an exchange about Obama’s comments. [View footage here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XLa6OoM5XHk]  David Brown, the show’s executive producer, told the New York Times that Kilmeade had been kidding around, although some bloggers didn’t get the joke. One blog sarcastically referred to an outbreak of the “the truth virus” at Fox.

      A blogger for Obama’s Web site said that the campaign had “appreciated Mr. Wallace for doing his job as a tough but fair journalist on a network that has been deeply irresponsible over the last week in its unrelenting and sensationalistic coverage” of the candidate.

      Perhaps Wallace's uncharacteristic defense of Obama has to do with a long-standing plea for the Democratic presidential candidate to come on his show. On March 16, Wallace introduced “The Obama Watch,” a countdown clock borrowed from the Fox drama “24” (complete with the tick-tock noise) that displayed the number of days, hours, minutes and seconds elapsed since Obama had apparently promised to appear on “Fox News Sunday.”

GABRIELLE UNION JUMPS IN DARNELL MARTIN'S 'CADILLAC': Actress joins Beyonce and 'nem in film about Chess Records founder.

      *Gabrielle Union is the newest cast member added to "Cadillac Records," an indie film about the life of Chess Records founder Leonard Chess with Adrien Brody in the starring role.

      The period piece follows the rise and fall of the famed label, which launched the careers of such R&B greats as Muddy Waters, Etta James and Chuck Berry.

      According to Blackfilm.com, Union will play Geneva Wade, the girlfriend, and later wife, of Waters, who is portrayed by Jeffrey Wright.

      The Darnell Martin-directed film stars Beyonce as Etta James, Cedric the Entertainer as Willie Dixon, Eamonn Walker as Howlin' Wolf, Columbus Short as Little Walter and Mos Def as Chuck Berry.

      In other "Cadillac" news, Beyonce has apparently redeemed herself with fans on the film's Harrison, N.J. set. Kids who waited hours in the rain last week for her autograph were left hanging when she ran right past them. But the former Destiny's Child leader reportedly came back out after shooting her scene that day and took time to give out her John Hancock, reports the New York Daily News.

T.I. SPEAKS TO CONGREGATION AT EASTER SERVICE: Rapper comments on message of forgiveness.

      *T.I. used part of his time away from house arrest to address an Easter Sunday crowd of about 30,000 at Atlanta's New Birth Missionary Church.

      "We're here to celebrate the death of our Lord and Savior," T.I. told the congregation, according to Atlanta news outlet 11 Alive, as part of his three-plus-minute speech at the podium. "He was willing to give his life for us so that we may ask for forgiveness for our sins and be forgiven and saved. ... No matter how many times we have to ask ... or how long it takes to get it right."

      A judge granted permission for T.I. to attend the service while under house arrest until his trial on gun charges.

      According to MTV, the rapper was accompanied by his mother, his six children and significant other Tameka "Tiny" Cottle, who is six months pregnant with a boy, the couple's second child.  The entire lot arrived at the church in a tour bus and stayed for the entire service before returning home and eating dinner.

LEBRON JAMES CRITICIZED FOR VOGUE COVER: ESPN columnist sees racist undertones in photograph with supermodel.

       *LeBron James had no idea that his Vogue cover with supermodel Gisele Bundchen was being criticized by a columnist and commentator for ESPN.

       The Cleveland Cavaliers star is the third man – and first African American male - to grace the cover of the famous fashion magazine. But those historical achievements were lost on ESPN.com columnist Jemele Hill, who said the picture of LeBron and Giselle is just another case of "the black athlete being reduced to savage."

      "LeBron has Gisele in one hand and a basketball in the other. LeBron is dressed in basketball gear, with his muscles flexing, tattoos showing and bared teeth. Gisele, on the other hand, is wearing a gorgeous slim-fitting dress, and smiling," she wrote in her Page 2 column
(http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=hill/080320&sportCat=nba)
on ESPN.com. "She looks like she's on her way to something fashionable and exciting. He looks like he's on his way to a pickup game for serial killers.

      "Now, maybe the point was to show the contrast between brawn and beauty, masculinity versus femininity, strength versus grace. But Vogue's quest to highlight the differences between superstar athletes and supermodels only successfully reinforces the animalistic stereotypes frequently associated with black athletes.

      "A black athlete being reduced to a savage is, sadly, nothing new.
But this cover gave you the double-bonus of having LeBron and Gisele strike poses that others in the blogosphere have noted draw a striking resemblance to the racially charged image of King Kong enveloping his very fair-skinned lady love interest."

      James, who was unaware of the story, shrugged off the comments.

      "I was just having fun with it, I was just showing a little emotion,"
James said Saturday, according to Ohio's Beacon Journal. "We had a few looks and that was the best one we had. Everything my name is on is going to be criticized, in a good way or a bad way. Who cares, honestly, at the end of the day."

      James said he had phone working with famed photographer Annie Leibovitz, who did the photo shoot in his Akron hometown.

      "I am happy with it, absolutely," James said.

      Hill's column also notes past experiences of black athletes being presented in photos as angry, overly aggressive, overly sexual, or just plain emasculated: "The 2002 Sports Illustrated cover that featured Charles Barkley chained like a slave. Ricky Williams wearing a wedding dress on an ESPN The Magazine cover in 1999. And while it didn't appear in a magazine, the Terrell Owens-Nicolette Sheridan intimate-encounter tease for 'Monday Night Football' gave viewers a sexualized image of a black man."
 

BAILEY RAE DISTRAUGHT OVER HUSBAND'S DEATH: Her label releases a statement requesting privacy.

       *British R&B star Corinne Bailey Rae is in complete shock over the sudden death of her musician husband, whose body was found in an apartment Saturday following a suspected drug overdose.

      A statement from her record company EMI says the Grammy-nominated singer is too distraught to speak on the tragedy.

      "EMI Records would like to offer its sincere condolences to Corinne Bailey Rae and the Rae family at this tragic time," the statement read. "We ask that the media respects Corinne's privacy and that of her entire family."

      An inquest into Rae's death is expected to be opened later this week, according to reports. An autopsy was carried out on Rae's body Saturday night but it proved inconclusive. Officials are now awaiting the results of a toxicology report.

      Police have arrested a 32-year-old man on suspicion of supplying controlled drugs. He has since been released on bail.

REMY MA'S LAWYER CLAIMS SHOOTING WAS 'ACCIDENTAL': Story changed from rapper's July statement, 'I didn't shoot my friend.'

       *Remy Ma's attorney Ivan Fisher admitted in closing arguments Monday that her client did in fact shoot acquaintance Makeda Barnes-Joseph after accusing the woman of stealing money from her purse. But he says the whole thing was an accident.

       Last July, Remy Ma and Barnes-Joseph were in the latter's car when they argued over Remy's missing cash, which totaled around $3,000. In a struggle over Barnes-Joseph's purse, Fisher says their hands hit the rearview mirror and the gun then went off, accidentally.

      "There is no other explanation for why Remy Smith would have chosen that unique moment in time to shoot her," Fisher said.

      The admission contradicts Fisher's opening remarks when he attempted to characterize Barnes-Joseph as a groupie who was misrepresenting the nature of the events in order to win money. In July, Remy vehemently denied shooting Barnes-Joseph. When reporters gathered around the rapper's New Jersey home, she maintained her innocence, yelling: "I didn't shoot my friend!"
      Assistant District Attorney Michael McIntosh said the shooting does not fit the definition of an accident, which the dictionary states as "an unforeseen occurrence."

      "That's not what happened here," he told the jury in his closing arguments. The prosecutor, saying the only real dispute is whether the shooting was accidental, told jurors, "Ms. Smith took an illegal .45-caliber automatic and loaded it with hollow-point bullets and got into Ms. Joseph's car."

      Noting earlier testimony that Smith used both hands to cock the weapon as she got in, McIntosh said, "She took every step you had to take to shoot somebody." The prosecutor said Smith, after shooting Joseph, did not check their bodies for wounds, call for medical help or take Joseph to a hospital.

      "Instead, she ran," McIntosh said. "The reason she ran was because she knew what happened in the car. Your friend is shot. Do you run or do you call 911?"

      Jury deliberation in the case began Tuesday. If convicted, the Bronx artist could face up to 25 years in prison.

KILPATRICK PLEADS NOT GUILTY TO PERJURY: Mayor and former Chief of Staff charged Monday with lying about their affair.

       *Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick and his former Chief of Staff Christine Beatty pleaded not guilty Tuesday to charges that they lied under oath about having an affair.

      Both parties appeared in separate hearings to answer the charges of perjury, conspiracy, obstruction of justice and misconduct in office announced Monday by Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy.  District Court Magistrate Steve Lockhart entered not guilty pleas for each of them before they were released on personal bonds.

      Kilpatrick, 37, is married with three children. Beatty, also 37, was married at the time and has two children. Both are accused of lying under oath about an affair and their roles in the firing of a top police official.
Text messages first reported by the Detroit Free Press revealed a flirty, sometimes explicit, exchange between the two.

      Worthy's investigation began in late January after the Detroit Free Press published excerpts from 14,000 text messages that were sent or received in 2002-03 from Beatty's city-issued pager.

      In setting the mayor's personal bond, Lockhart noted defendants generally are restricted to the state of Michigan while their cases are pending. However, given Kilpatrick's position, Lockhart granted him the right to travel anywhere within the United States without prior permission, but said Kilpatrick still must give advance notice to the court.

WE REMEMBER OPRAH'S DOG SOPHIE: Plus, Gayle King moves into $7.1 million penthouse bought by a company possibly named after the late pooch.

       *After a long battle with kidney failure, Oprah Winfrey's beloved cocker spaniel Sophie has died, according to a source at Winfrey's Harpo production company. She was 13.

      "Everyone here is really sad," the Harpo insider told Celebrity Dog Watcher. "Sophie was truly part of the Harpo family as well as Oprah's."

      Usmagazine.com said Winfrey talked about Sophie's illness in the December issue of her O magazine, revealing she and her boyfriend Stedman Graham were "preparing for the inevitable."

      Meanwhile, the New York Post reported in January that Winfrey's best friend Gayle King had purchased a NYC penthouse at the Place 57 condo on East 57th Street for "approximately $7.4 million."

       The paperwork for that transaction turned up in deed-transfer records released Monday and indicates that the three-bedroom, two-fireplace apartment was actually bought for $7.1 million, and by a company called Sophie's Penthouse LLC.

      The name has led to speculation that the company refers to Winfrey's Sophie and may have been a way to honor the canine, as she was severely ill at the time of the purchase in January.

DIDDY SETTLES LAWSUIT OVER VALET SCRAP: Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

       *Sean "Diddy" Combs will avoid the ordeal of a civil trial after settling a lawsuit brought by a man who claims the mogul punched him outside of a Hollywood hotel last February.

       Terms of the deal were not disclosed in court papers posted Monday on the celebrity Web site TMZ.com.

       Gerard Rechnitzer sought unspecified damages in his lawsuit, which alleged that Diddy socked him in the face, pushed his girlfriend and spat on another woman during the incident outside Teddy's Nightclub at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.

      In a court declaration, Combs, 38, said Rechnitzer lunged toward him and that "any contact ... was caused by his forward motion against my open hand."

MICHAEL VICK TRIAL POSTPONED UNTIL JUNE: Prosecutors blame delay on transportation issues.

      *Michael Vick's trial on state dogfighting charges was rescheduled on Tuesday for June 27.

      The trial was originally set for April 2, but Surry County Circuit Judge W. Allan Sharrett decided to push it back as suggested by Commonwealth's Attorney Gerald Poindexter and Vick's lawyers. Trials for two of Vick's co-defendants were also postponed.

      The suspended Atlanta Falcons quarterback is serving a 23-month prison term in Leavenworth, Kan., after pleading guilty to a federal dogfighting conspiracy. Vick has been charged with two state felony counts — beating or killing or causing dogs to fight other dogs and engaging in or promoting dogfighting.

      Poindexter cited the logistics of getting a federal prisoner into state court as the reason for the delays.

      "These three people are all in federal custody in different parts of the country," Poindexter told Sharrett. "We've learned, and the sheriff has learned, that it takes 45 to 60 days lead time to get through the bureaucracy." He added that transportation must be done at the state's expense.

      Co-defendants Quanis Phillips and Purnell Peace are serving federal sentences in Oklahoma and New Jersey, respectively. Their trials originally were set for March 5.
Phillips' non-jury trial was scheduled for June 13; Peace's trial by jury was reset for June 20. A third co-defendant, Tony Taylor, is still scheduled for trial May 7, but Poindexter said that trial will be continued.

      As previously reported, Taylor was released from federal prison Thursday after serving a two-month sentence. Prosecutors said Taylor cooperated with the government in the case against Vick and two others for their roles in operating Bad Newz Kennels.

COMMON AND SERENA WILLIMAS FUEL DATING RUMORS: Plus, tennis champ plays her first match on water – literally.

      *People magazine tried to get to the bottom of a new paparazzi shots showing rapper Common and tennis star Serena Williams hitting a West Hollywood nightclub together over the Easter weekend.

      One witness told the magazine that they were "affectionate," holding hands and kissing" during their night on the town. Reps for both Common and Williams declined to comment on their clients' personal life.

      Meanwhile, Serena, who appears in Common's video for "I Want You,"
recently played the first ever tennis match on water as part of an event hosted by Sony Ericsson to launch the Sony Ericsson Open.

      Williams took on men's tennis star Rafael Nadal in what was billed as "The World's First Tennis Match on Liquid Terrain." The event took place Monday, March 24, 2008, atop Miami's new Gansevoort South Hotel overlooking South Beach.

       The water-covered court was constructed in the 110-foot swimming pool set in the Gansevoort's exclusive 22,000-square-foot rooftop retreat. A specialist underwater team took five days to construct two invisible platforms at either end of the pool using a combination of bespoke acrylic sheets and supporting acrylic tubes.

COMPLAINT FILED AGAINST WENDY WILLIAMS: Talent booker claims she was harassed by radio jock's husband.

     *The New York Post is reporting that shock jock Wendy Williams is the object of a complaint filed Monday with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission by her aide, who claims she was repeatedly harassed by Wendy's burly husband, Kevin Hunter.

       Nicole Spence, who works as the radio queen's talent booker at WBLS 107.5-FM, says Hunter, 33, demanded sex from her more than a dozen times and created a hostile work environment by repeatedly beating up Williams, 43, in and near the studio.

      "Mr. Hunter repeatedly sexually propositioned me at work in the most crude and vulgar ways, telling me over and over that he wanted to 'f***' me," charges Spence, 27. "I also feared Mr. Hunter because he repeatedly physically assaulted Ms. Williams at or near the WBLS studio. In one instance, Mr. Hunter stormed into the studio, demanded that other employees leave and openly physically abused Ms. Williams, pinning her against the wall with his hand around her neck, choking her while repeatedly pounding his fist into the wall directly by her head."

      Spence's complaint is filed against both Williams and Inner City Broadcasting, which syndicates her show every afternoon. Hunter, who works as his wife's manager, is named in the papers as an alleged perpetrator of the harassment.

      Asked about Spence's complaint, Williams told The Post: "Her allegations are totally false. This b**ch is out of her mind." Hunter added that the allegations are: "so far from the truth. It's insane."

EVE LINKED TO FIGHT OUTSIDE HOLLYWOOD CLUB?: Did the rapper and her posse push some woman down a flight of stairs?

      *Another rapper has been accused of fighting someone outside of Hollywood's Roosevelt Hotel.

      As Diddy settles his civil lawsuit brought by a man who claimed he was roughed up outside of the venue, rapper/actress Eve was reportedly caught up in a fight at the same location on Thursday night after being confronted by a woman.

      According to the New York Post's Page Six, the artist was with a group of friends when the unknown woman stepped to her outside. The women are said to have exchanged words before the altercation became physical, although it is unclear who instigated the violence, Page Six reported.

      A source tells the publication, "It got physical ... one of the girls Eve was yelling at was pushed down a flight of stairs either by Eve or one of her posse, but they calmed her down and cops weren't called."

MICHELLE WILLIAMS RETURNS TO R&B: After two gospel albums, singer prepares dance-oriented CD for August release.

      *Destiny's Child veteran Michelle Williams takes it to the dance floor with her forthcoming album "Unexpected."

      The title is perhaps a nod to her first solo project outside of the gospel genre. Due in August from Music World Entertainment/Columbia Records, the album is full of "synth-y, driving bass samples, electronic keys and bopping drums," according to Billboard.com.

      "Unexpected" marks the follow-up to 2004's "Do You Know" and 2002's "Heart to Yours," with which Williams returned to her church roots. However, Music World CEO Mathew Knowles insists "Unexpected" isn't that much of a stretch, considering Williams spent the bulk of 2007 playing the raunchy character Shug Avery in Oprah Winfrey's Chicago-based cast of "The Color Purple."

      "Destiny's Child fans bought Michelle's last album (which sold about 78,000 copies)," said Knowles. "So now those fans are in their late 20s and early 30s. With 'Unexpected,' she'll be able to appeal to those fans and reach back to the 16-year-old audience and hit mainstream pop radio."

      "We Break the Dawn" is the first single, set for release in April, while "Stop This Car," which leaked on the Internet earlier this year, is the second.

IT'S ABOUT 'TIMES' FOR THE GAME: Rapper sets release date for next album, described as 'highly controversial.'

       *Rapper the Game says his next album "Los Angeles Times," due June 24th from Geffen, is "highly controversial" and may serve as the final studio release of his career.

       "I'm addressing real issues that other artists might be scared to talk about on record; issues that need to be heard," the Game told Billboard.com, without elaborating.

      The artist, who was recently released from jail on a firearm charge, recorded the set's first single, "Big Dreams," soon after he his 60-day sentence ended early due to jail overcrowding.

        Dr. Dre is expected to be involved on the production side, but there has been no official confirmation just yet as to his role.

KEITH SWEAT STILL CRANKIN' OUT ALBUMS: Veteran crooner returns in May with 'Just Me.'

       *Keith Sweat, who scored his first crossover hit in 1987 with "I Want Her," is currently on a 19-city tour to promote "Just Me," his first new studio album since 2002's "Rebirth."

      Due May 6 on Keia/Atco/Rhino, the album features cameos by Keyshia Cole ("Love Your Better") and Athena Cage ("Butterscotch"), who was Sweat's duet partner on the 1996 No. 1 R&B/No. 3 pop hit "Nobody." Lead single "Suga Suga Suga" featuring Paisley Bettis moves 45-39 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart this week and climbs into the top 10 on Adult R&B.

      "This new album is something I've been working on for a while," Sweat tells Billboard.com. "You hear other artists out here who make the mistake of trying to be trendy. But I'm staying true to who I've always been as an artist. When radio stations think their core audience doesn't fit my core audience, that's wrong. I get just as many 18-34 listeners at my shows as 25+ listeners. Radio is missing a whole audience out there by not
25+ checking for veteran artists."

      In addition to co-writing and producing most of the album, Sweat worked with Teddy Riley, Roy Battle and the Ambassadorz.

      The singer/songwriter just celebrated his first anniversary as host of Premiere Radio Networks' "The Keith Sweat Hotel," which airs Sunday through Friday from 7 p.m. to midnight,

MUSIC BITS: Ray J & Whitney; Ol' Dirty court battle; J.T. donates; Rihanna and Chris; Jesse wants Willie; Lloyd's 'Lesson'; Plies gets 'Real.'

      *Chicago-based radio personality Kendra G. caught up with Ray J on his tour bus – dubbed the "Sex Bus" – and appeared to admit that his relationship with Whitney Houston was more than just platonic. He also commented on the Lil Kim rumors and explained the legal drama surrounding his sex tape with ex-girlfriend Kim Kardashian. Watch the entire interview
here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VnIYEFAUaQo

      *Cherry Jones, the mother of late rapper Ol' Dirty Bastard, will face his widow Icelene Jones in a court showdown next month to determine who should be the administrator of his estate. "Cherry claims [current administrator] Icelene is misusing the funds," a source told the New York Post's Page Six. "It's become mom vs. daughter-in-law and it's up to the judge to decide." The battle will take place in Brooklyn Surrogate Court on April 1.

      *Justin Timberlake has donated $100,000 to the Memphis Rock 'n' Soul Museum and another $100,000 to the Memphis Music Foundation in his hometown. The 27-year-old, who is in the city filming his independent movie "The Open Road," presented the checks to the two groups last week at the museum. The singer said his donation was inspired by the importance he places on music education and keeping Memphis' music legacy vibrant.

      *Paps caught Rihanna and Chris Brown leaving a London hotel together en route to nightspot Maya, further fueling rumors that the two superstar singers are a couple. Witnesses said they also left the club together after partying until 3 a.m. Brown continues to insist that he is "definitely single."

      *The New York Daily News is reporting that the Rev. Jesse Jackson is trying to get country icon Willie Nelson to perform at the Democratic National Convention in August. Nelson, who used to support Dennis Kucinich, recently told Rolling Stone he "admires [Barack Obama's] ideas." But it was his "old friend" Hillary Clinton who visited his tour bus. Added Willie: "She didn't inhale."

      *R&B artist Lloyd will return on July 15 with his third album, "Lesson in Love," led by the first single "How We Do It," featuring Ludacris and produced by Baby Boy and Superkidd. The Inc./Universal album also features producers Tricky Stewart, The-Dream, Polow Da Don, J-Lack, Jasper and Big Reese and Eric Hudson. Rapper Nelly guests on the song "Lose Control."

      *The new Plies album, "Definition of Real," will be released sooner than expected from Big Gates/Slip-N-Slide/Atlantic. The set is now due June 10, led by first single "Bust It Baby, Part 2 (Feat. Ne-Yo)."  The track's mainstream success follows the recent underground popularity of the single's first installment, "Bust It Baby, Part 1."

FILM/TV BITS: Garcelle's twins; Taboo's 'Fighter'; more 'Prison Break'; 'Wire' actor stabbed; black actor joins 'HSM 3';

      *Actress Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon, 44, is showing off her new twins Jax and Jaid on the new March 31 issue of Jet magazine. "We're so in love with them," the former NYPD Blue cast member said of her 6-month old babies with husband, Mike Nilon. "The boys are just gorgeous."

      *Black Eyed Peas member Taboo, 32, has been cast in "Street Fighter: The Legend Of Chun-Li," the second movie adaptation of the popular video game "Street Fighter." With an official casting announcement pending, it's rumored that Taboo will portray the character of Vega, one of the bosses in the "Street Fighter" game series. Meanwhille Peas frontman will.i.am has signed on to play the mutant John Wraith in the forthcoming "X-Men Origins:
Wolverine."

       *Actor Wentworth Miller got some good news on Monday. His bread-and-butter gig, Fox's "Prison Break," was picked up for a full fourth season, according to reports. Shooting on the drama's next 22 episodes is expected to begin in May in Los Angeles—where most of the season-four action is due to take place—in time for a fall premiere, reports E! Online. In the strike-shortened season three finale, Miller's character Michael Scofield had broken out of a Panamanian jail. Season four may show him getting revenge on the syndicate responsible for his girlfriend's death.
 
      *Actor Christopher J. Clanton, best known for his recurring role as Barksdale soldier Savino Bratton on HBO's "The Wire," is in a Baltimore area hospital after being stabbed in the chest and buttock during an incident Sunday at local social hall Overlea Caterers. After police were called in to quell a fight among a crowd of 30 people, Clanton, 22, was found with stab wounds to his torso and buttock. He said he was only trying to walk around the fracas when someone began fighting with him.  "I was trying to get out of the way," Clanton told The Baltimore Sun. "I wanted to get past one of the guys that was involved…it escalated from there."

      *The third installment of Disney's "High School Musical" has just added young African American actor Justin Martin, whose credits include ABC's "Raisin in the Sun" and the upcoming Jamie Foxx movie "The Soloist." He also appeared as Young Simba in the Broadway version of Disney's animated classic "The Lion King." "High School Musical 3: Senior Year" begins shooting later this month.

       *20th Century Fox has released the trailer for Eddie Murphy's new sci-fi comedy "Meet Dave," due in theaters on July 11. Murphy stars as Dave Ming Chang, a new arrival in New York City who seems remarkably out of place and uncomfortable in his own body. And for good reason: "Dave" is not a man at all, but a ship made in the image of its miniature-sized captain (also Murphy). Elizabeth Banks and Gabrielle Union co-star. View the trailer here (http://movies.yahoo.com/movie/1809846742/video/7110605).

ITTY BITTY BITS: Jeremiah Wright in Puerto Rico; Radio One sells L.A. station; Winfrey 15th wealthiest of Black people.

      *Former Trinity United Church of Christ pastor, Jeremiah Wright, has been spotted vacationing in Puerto Rico, reports the New York Post's Page Six. A witness claims to have seen him lounging in the lobby of the Ritz-Carlton, where room rates start at $399 a night.  His successor, the Rev. Otis Moss III, told the congregation Sunday that the church will not distance itself from Wright, and will keep an empty chair in the pulpit in his honor.

      *Radio One, Inc. announced that it has entered into an Asset Purchase Agreement to sell KRBV – FM, its radio station in Los Angeles, California, to Bonneville International, the Salt Lake City based broadcast and communications company. The transaction price is approximately $137.5 million and is expected to close during the second quarter of 2008. Alfred C. Liggins, III, Radio One’s CEO and President stated: “This is an attractive transaction for Radio One, as it frees-up capital and management resources which can be re-deployed to execute our long-term strategy. We expect to use the proceeds from this transaction to reduce our leverage, accelerate our internet strategy and re-commence a limited buy-back of our securities.”

      *Of the wealthiest black people in the world, Oprah Winfrey ranks 15th, according to Forbes' list of the wealthiest billionaires.
Ethiopian-born Mohammed Al Amoudi is the planet's richest black person with a total net worth of $9 billion. He's ranked 97th on the Forbes list and is followed by billionaire blacks such as Nigeria's Aliko Dangote ($3.3 billion), Winfrey ($2.5 billion), London-based Sudanese Mohamed "Mo" Ibrahim
($2.5 billion) and South African Patrice Motsepe ($2.4 billion). BET founder Robert Johnson's divorce dropped him to just a $1 billion fortune.
• Al Amoudi made his fortune in construction and real estate before betting on Swedish and Moroccan oil refineries. His Svenska Petroleum conducts oil exploration from the Nordic shelf to the Ivory Coast.
• Aliko Dangote's The Dangote Group is a conglomerate with interests in sugar, flour milling, cement and salt processing. The Dangote Group dominates the sugar market in Nigeria and is the country's largest industrial group.
• Sudanese-born Mohamed "Mo" Ibrahim, a communications entrepreneur, founded Celtel, a mobile phone company that now serves 15 African countries. He sold it in 2005 for $3.4 billion and pocketed $1.4 billion.

EVENT CALENDAR: Baker & Warwick in St. Lucia; Pan African Leadership Summit in Memphis; NAACP convention in Kansas City; Thurgood tickets on sale.

      *Anita Baker and Dionne Warwick are part of the entertainment lineup booked for St. Lucia Jazz, an annual concert event scheduled from May 8 through 11 on the island's Windjammer Landing Villa Beach Resort. David Sanchez, Michael Bolton and Air Supply are also scheduled to perform. For St. Lucia Jazz tickets visit www.stluciajazz.org; or contact (888) 4-ST-LUCIA.

      *Thursday, April 3, at the exact hour and at the same Memphis pulpit that Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. preached his last sermon at Mason Temple 40 years ago, Bishop Charles E. Blake, presiding prelate of the Church Of God In Christ, will lead his first Pan African Leadership Summit in Memphis. The two day event will feature strategy sessions regarding Blake's urban and foreign policy agenda. Thursday, April 3 at 7 p.m. at Mason Temple, Blake will outline the specifics of the Reclaiming Our Black Children Campaign, which will focus on working with violent and gang-involved black youth and their families and fathers. On Friday, April 4 at the National Civil Rights Museum, he will outline the basic elements of a black church foreign and development policy agenda. Rev. Jesse L. Jackson Sr. is also scheduled to be on hand. The Summit is open to the general public. Registration begins at 8 a.m. Thursday morning at Mason Temple.

      *The 2010 convention of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People will be held in Kansas City, reports the Kansas City Star.
The Kansas City Convention and Visitors Association on Monday received formal word from NAACP interim president and chief executive Dennis C.
Hayes. The convention is widely sought, draws national attention and is estimated to contribute more than $9 million to the host city’s economy. It attracts 10,000 delegates who fill more than 12,000 hotel room nights.

       *The Booth Theatre box office opened March 24 for walkup sales for Thurgood, the new solo-actor play about Supreme Court Justice Thurgood Marshall starring Tony Award-winner Laurence Fishburne. Previews at the Booth ( 222 W. 45th St) begin April 12 toward an April 30 opening. The limited run plays to July 20. Thurgood, according to the producers, "is the remarkable and triumphant story of Thurgood Marshall, who rose from a childhood in the backstreets of Baltimore to the Supreme Court of the United States." Tickets are $70 and $95. For information and tickets go to www.Telecharge.com or call (212) 239-6200.

NEW YORK GOV. ADMITS PAST COCAINE USE: David Paterson continues to get ahead of anything that could come back to haunt him.

       *Another day, another revelation from New York Governor David Paterson, who took office last week after his predecessor Eliot Spitzer quit over a prostitution scandal.

       On Monday, the state's first African American governor admitted that he experimented with marijuana and cocaine during a stint in the 1970s.

       "I'd say I was about 22-23. I tried it a few times, yes," Paterson, now 53, said of his cocaine use.

       Last week, the legally blind politician admitted that he also had extra-marital affairs. Speaking of his years-long separation from his wife, Paterson told NY1: "I feel badly about the situation, but I don't feel badly about speaking out about it. I thought that's what the public asked elected officials to do."

      "I have tried to be open and transparent in the way that the public would ask," he said.

EUR DVD REVIEW: Love in the Time of Cholera
Adaptation of Marquez Masterpiece Steamy but Still Unsatisfying
DVD Review by Kam Williams

       *Compromises are in order whenever a novel is being made into a movie, especially a 368-page saga spanning 50 years, which is the case with this literary classic by Gabriel Garcia Marquez.

     It is expected that in condensing this imaginative tale of unrequited love into a film some central characters, major themes and pivotal events might have to be conflated, distilled or eliminated entirely in service of the cinematic medium.

     However, director Mike Newell had an additional challenge to confront for in interpreting the book's magical realism, a style of prose marked by plotlines grounded in reality offset by surreal flights of fancy.

     Unfortunately, Newell's relatively-mundane overhaul fails to reflect any of the original work's fusion of the everyday with the otherworldly. The upshot is that, excised of its evocative aspects, Love in the Time of Cholera lacks charm and reads about the same as your typical romance novel with a hunky Fabio look-a-like splashed across the cover.

       The story is set in the City of Cartagena, Marquez's hometown, and revolves around a classic love triangle. This flashback flick's practical point of departure is 1879, which is when lowly clerk Florentino (Javier
Bardem) first encounters Fermina (Giovanna Mezzogiomo), a blooming beauty with a wealthy, overprotective father (John Leguizamo).

     Despite the object of his affection's initial indifference, Florentino professes his undying devotion, and proceeds to wear the poor girl down with his persistencer. Soon, the two start swapping notes and sharing stolen moments together till her mean daddy catches wind of their puppy love liaison.

     He forces Fermina to end her fling with Florentino and then pressures her into marrying wealthy Dr. Juvenal Urbino (Benjamin Bratt). But not even the Urbinos moving overseas can discourage our pigheaded protagonist from impatiently awaiting, for decades on end, the return of the woman he's convinced was really meant for him.

     Regrettably, this sorry interpretation of Marquez, substituting serial coupling and uncoupling and gratuitous nudity for spirituality, merely reduces his masterpiece into little more than a titillating, superficial soap opera.

Fair (1 star)
Rated R for sexuality, nudity and brief profanity.
Running time: 138 minutes
Studi New Line Home Entertainment
DVD Extras: Alternate and deleted scenes with optional commentary, a theatrical trailer, director's audio commentary, plus "The Making of"
documentary.

EUR MOTIVATIONAL NOTE

      “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” - by Albert Einstein

CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS

      March 26: Singer Diana Ross is 64. Actor Ernest Thomas ("What's Happening") is 59. Singer Teddy Pendergrass is 58. Rapper Juvenile is 33. Rapper J-Kwon is 22.

WEBSITE OF THE WEEK

      This is an original idea. Atlanta based Kenya's Kandle Kreations features "scents for the soul." Check it out here: www.kenyakandle.com

      Submit your favorite Web site to us along with a 15-20 word (or less) description to info@eurweb.com.     

BLACK HISTORY

      Mar. 26, 1872: Thomas J. Martin is awarded a patent for the fire extinguisher. (Source: www.BlackFacts.com )