ENGAGED
Actor Scott Foley (The Unit), 34, is engaged to his girlfriend of three
years, actress Marika Dominczyk (Brothers & Sisters), 26.
EXPECTING
Public Enemy-turned-reality TV star Flavor Flav, 47, will welcome his
seventh child in January. Mom is a Las Vegas woman he used to date, not
current flame Flavor of Love season 2 winner London ''Deelishis'' Charles.
SPLIT
Pop star Britney Spears, 24, has filed for divorce from her husband of
two years, Kevin Federline, 28. The couple have
two sons.
RECOVERING
Singer Marianne Faithfull, 59, announced Nov. 6 that she'd received a
clean bill of health after being treated for breast cancer and will
resume her tour in March.
INJURED
Atlantic Records cofounder Ahmet Ertegun, 83, slipped and suffered a
head injury during a Rolling Stones show to honor former president Bill
Clinton's birthday in New York City on Oct. 29. His rep says he's doing
well.
CANCELED
In other Stones news, the band nixed their final concert tour date in
Honolulu so that Mick Jagger, 63, can recover from throat problems, the
group announced Oct. 31. Three other shows have also been rescheduled;
one unhappy fan even filed a $51 million bad-faith suit.... After
yanking the Dana Delany drama Kidnapped last month after only five
episodes, NBC announced it would air the show's remaining eight episodes
on nbc.com for free starting Nov. 3.
PREMIERE
Arab news network al-Jazeera is launching its long-gestating
English-language channel with the support of four global broadcast
centers, including one in Washington, D.C., on Nov. 15.
COURTS
According to a lawsuit filed Oct. 27 in L.A., Madonna's production
company, Maverick Films, is seeking more than $50 million in damages
from Inferno Distribution, claiming the company stole ideas from
Maverick's upcoming The Stanford Prison Experiment to benefit its own
film project, which is also based on the 1970s psychological experiment.
Inferno says ''the lawsuit is groundless.''... Victory Records filed a $20
million lawsuit against Virgin Records Nov. 2, claiming the major label
''poached'' emo band Hawthorne Heights away from the indie. Victory says
the band owed them two more records. Virgin parent EMI says there is no
basis for the suit.
DEATHS
Ernestine Gilbreth Carey, 98, coauthor of Cheaper by the Dozen, of
natural causes, Nov. 3, in Fresno, Calif.... Oscar-nominated
screenwriter Leonard Schrader (Kiss of the Spider Woman), 62, of heart
failure, Nov. 2, in L.A.... Drama critic Richard Gilman, 83, following a
long struggle with lung cancer, Oct. 28, near Osaka, Japan....
Emmy-winning cinematographer James Glennon (Deadwood), 64, of prostate
cancer, Oct. 19, in L.A.... Tony-winning costume designer Florence Klotz(Follies), 86, of heart failure, Nov. 1, in New York City.
LEGACY
ADRIENNE SHELLY 1966-2006
The New York indie film scene lost an icon when Adrienne Shelly
(Factotum), 40, was found dead in her Manhattan office on Nov. 1. Best
known for her roles in the Hal Hartley films The Unbelievable Truth(1989) and Trust (1990), Shelly embodied the electric spirit of the
early Sundance era and was awaiting fest premiere dates for her latest
directorial feature, Waitress. While it was initially thought that
she'd killed herself, police now say construction worker Diego Pillco,
19, struck Shelly during an argument over noise, and then hung her from
a shower rod to make her death look like a suicide. The official cause
of death was compression to the neck — and not a blow. Pillco was charged
with second-degree murder Nov. 7.
Controversy of the Week
Actor Alec Baldwin, 48, caused a stir when he asked that his name and voice be removed from Running With Arnold, a documentary about Arnold Schwarzenegger's political career. Baldwin, a Democrat, insisted the filmmakers' use of Nazi rally footage was ''unfair'' to the Republican Governator. ''We're going ahead as planned,'' says Running producer Gregg Abrams. ''We'll litigate if we have to. [Baldwin] is just off-the-wall."''
