ENGAGED Actress Halle Berry, 32, has reportedly betrothed R&B crooner Eric Benet, 30. Berry divorced Cleveland Indians outfielder David Justice in 1996.
WEDDINGS Gotham's most eligible ex-sitcom star, Jerry Seinfeld, 45, tied the knot with Tommy Hilfiger PR exec Jessica Sklar, 28, in a Christmas Day ceremony at a loft in downtown Manhattan. The comic met the publicist in August 1998, about two months after Sklar's first wedding ceremony. Her marriage to Broadway scion Eric Nederlander dissolved after reports of her funnyman fling. It's Seinfeld's first marriage.
BIRTHS Actor Eddie Murphy, 38, and his wife, Nicole, 31, welcomed a 7-pound-13-ounce daughter, Zola Ivy, Dec. 24, in L.A. The couple have three other children -- Bria, 10, Myles, 7, and Shayne, 5.
WINNERS Action star Arnold Schwarzenegger, 52, has settled a $50 million defamation suit against the Globe tabloid, the actor's lawyers announced Dec. 21 in L.A. The actor, who had heart surgery in 1997, alleged that an August 1998 story in the Globe likening his heart to a ''ticking time bomb'' was false and malicious. According to Schwarzenegger's reps, the tabloid is publishing an apology and donating an undisclosed sum to the actor's favorite charity, the Inner City Games Foundation. The Globe has no comment.
LAWSUITS Chanteuse Julie Andrews, 64, filed a negligence complaint, Dec. 23, in New York City against Dr. Scott M. Kessler, among others. The singer claims that the doctor and his associates failed to inform her about alleged risks and complications involved in surgery performed on her vocal cords in June 1997. The operation resulted in ''severe hoarseness and vocal fold scarring,'' according to court papers, which claim Andrews ''no longer can sing with [her former] vocal quality, range, endurance, and facility.'' Andrews is seeking an undisclosed amount for compensatory and punitive damages. ''Julie deeply regrets that she has to seek redress in the courts,'' her lawyer, Orin Snyder, said in a statement. Kessler's lawyer did not return calls.... Producer Alberto Grimaldi, 74, filed a breach-of-contract suit against the Walt Disney Co., Universal Pictures, Michael Ovitz, and others involved with director Martin Scorsese's upcoming film Gangs of New York, Dec. 22, in U.S. district court in New York. Grimaldi, whose credits include Last Tango in Paris, wants a permanent injunction against the release of the movie version of Herbert Asbury's 1927 book, an estimated $90 million production set to begin filming in April with Leonardo DiCaprio. In court papers, Grimaldi alleges that the defendants are denying him sole production credit on a project to which he ''has devoted over 20 years of his life.'' He also seeks over $10 million in damages. Both Universal and Disney have no comment; Ovitz's reps did not return calls.
DEATHS Actor Clayton Moore, a.k.a. the Lone Ranger, 85, of a heart attack, Dec. 28, in L.A. In showbiz since the 1930s, Moore is best known as the do-gooding masked man on TV's long-running The Lone Ranger beginning in 1949. After the series ended, Moore appeared at public events in costume.... Former ABC-TV owner and chairman Leonard H. Goldenson, 94, of undisclosed causes, Dec. 27, in Sarasota, Fla. After buying ABC for $25 million in the 1950s, Goldenson transformed the fledgling network into a powerhouse. Under his tenure, ABC created Monday Night Football, the miniseries Roots, and Nightline.... R&B musician Curtis Mayfield, 57, of undisclosed causes, Dec. 26, in Roswell, Ga. (see Legacy on page 16).... Country star Hank Snow, 85, of an apparent heart attack, Dec. 21, in Madison, Tenn. In a career spanning more than 60 years, Snow infused jazz, Latin, and rockabilly sounds into his country tunes, including the hit ''I'm Movin' On.''... British actor Desmond Llewelyn, 85, in an auto crash, Dec. 19, in Firle, England. Llewelyn's car collided head-on with another as he was returning from a promotional event for the book Q: The Biography of Desmond Llewelyn -- named for the gadget expert he played in 17 James Bond films. His last 007 outing was this fall's The World Is Not Enough.... Director Robert Bresson, 98, of natural causes, Dec. 18, in Droue-sur-Drouette, France. By critical acclamation, many of Bresson's 13 films are among the masterworks of Western cinema. The spiritual mystery Diary of a Country Priest (1950) and erotic klepto-thriller Pickpocket (1959) have entranced auteurs from the French new wave to the '70s film mavericks.... Lite-jazz maestro Grover Washington Jr., 56, of a heart attack, Dec. 17, in New York City. Washington, who played tenor, alto, and soprano sax, performed on pop-jazz landmarks such as Inner City Blues (1971) and Winelight (1980).... Catch-22 novelist Joseph Heller, 76, of a heart attack, Dec. 12, in East Hampton, N.Y. (see Legacy on page 16).
-- Troy Patterson and Clarissa Cruz, with additional reporting by Corey Takahashi
