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MO' ITTY BITTY BITS: Tavis & Tom no longer together; Laila in Essence; Ejiofor's 'Redbelt'; Green in Rochester.

(April 11, 2008)

*Tavis Smiley is out of his longtime post as a contributor on the Tom Joyner Morning Show. Smiley, who also hosts a nightly PBS TV show, joined the Tom Joyner Morning Show show in 1996. The annoucement was made by Joyner on this morning's show. At press time, the reasons for his departure weren't clear. Although it's speculated that it had something to do with listener reaction to his stance against Barack Obama.

*Essence magazine's 38th anniversary May issue features an exclusive with Laila Ali and her husband Curtis Conway on their forthcoming special delivery. “I don’t know yet if we are having a boy or a girl, but I’m excited that I have a life inside me that my husband and I created," she says in the article on page 155. "But I don’t just want a healthy baby. I want a great person who really wants to make a difference.”

*Chiwetel Ejiofor will play South African president Thabo Mbeki in David Mamet's first movie in nearly four years, the martial arts drama, "Redbelt." Ejiofor told ComingSoon.net that he co-stars with William Hurt and will start rehearsals on Monday before heading on location to South Africa. He also said that Danny Glover's planned biopic "Toussaint" with which Ejiofor was involved, was still in development. "Redbelt" will be released in New York and Los Angeles on May 2.

*Al Green is among the headliners of the seventh annual Rochester International Jazz Festival presented by M&T Bank. The nine-day event, June 13-21, will also include performers Frank Sinatra Jr. & His Orchestra, Dee Dee Bridgewater with special guest Richard Bona Band and Boz Scaggs. Tickets for headliner shows, held in 15 venues in Rochester's downtown, range from $27.50 - $85 and go on sale today (April 11) at all Ticketmaster outlets, www.ticketmaster.com and www.rochesterjazz.com.

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