Turn On:
CBS' "Joan of Arcadia" wraps up its second season on Friday night at 8 p.m. EDT. And at 11 p.m. EDT, Jane Fonda and Maureen Dowd are among the guests set to appear on HBO's "Real Time With Bill Maher."
Morning Briefing:
Ten -- 10 -- accusers: If Bill Cosby thought that his legal troubles were over when the D.A. decided a few months back not to pursue charges brought by a woman who claims the comedian drugged and groped her at his Philadelphia-area home, he was mistaken. The woman in question, 31-year-old Canadian Andrea Constand, has filed a civil suit against Cosby and has lined up no fewer than 10 other women who say they had similar experiences at the comedian's hands. "These witnesses ... will testify about prior similar sexual assaults and/or drugging incidents perpetrated by the defendant," Costand's lawyers wrote in a motion filed this week. Cosby says he's ready for a fight, recently telling the National Enquirer, "I am not going to give in to people who try to exploit me because of my celebrity status. Sometimes you try to help people and it backfires on you and then they try to take advantage of you." (N.Y. Daily News)
Jackson trial update: Alas, there will no Vaseline-related testimony in the Michael Jackson trial. The judge has ruled against allowing a former Neverland security guard to testify that he and a colleague were once asked to fetch a tub of the name-brand petroleum jelly from Jackson's car and bring it to the pop star in his room, where one of them claims to have found Jackson "sweaty" and "aroused" and in the company of a young boy. The judge will, however, allow the former guard to testify to seeing a towel-clad Jackson giving the young boy, also wearing a towel, a piggyback ride out of a poolside restroom, and later finding their wet swimming trunks side by side on the bathroom floor. You can read the prosecution's motion to allow the testimony -- it includes all the sticky details -- here. (Court TV, The Smoking Gun)
No gifts, please: Paramount Television, producer of "Entertainment Tonight" and "The Insider," is reportedly paying more than $800,000 for the rights to televise the upcoming nuptials of Mary Kay Letourneau, the former teacher jailed until today for sleeping with her sixth-grade student, and her now 22-year-old victim, Vili Fualaau. A rep for the couple, who have two children together, calls the $800,000 "a ridiculous figure," but won't say whether it's high or low. (Lloyd Grove's Lowdown)
Seacrest's big moment: Ryan Seacrest got a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame this week. Yes, his "American Idol" colleagues Paula Abdul, Randy Jackson and Simon Cowell showed up to cheer him on and crack wise in his direction. But no one ripped on Seacrest harder than Seacrest himself. "I thought this would be the most unpopular star dedication ever," he told AP Television News after the ceremony. "I actually thought it was a joke when I heard that they were going to do this." (AP TV via Fox News)
Also: Several companies involved in the production of Madonna's European TV concert are suing her, claiming that she owes them more than $300,000 in fees. (Associated Press) An 18-year-old man who was scheduled to testify in defense of Michael Jackson has been arrested for having sex with a 14-year-old Catholic school girl in the basement of her parents' home. The young man told his alleged victim that he had learned his seduction techniques from Jackson himself. (Fox News) Paula Abdul wants you to know that, despite any rumors you may have heard and the fact that she has a neuropathic disorder that causes her extreme pain, she is "not addicted to pills of any kind." Got that? (People magazine via Fox News) Johnny Knoxville, who is married and has a young daughter, and his equally married "Dukes of Hazzard" co-star Jessica Simpson were reportedly spotted stroking each other's hands at Zach Braff's 30th birthday party in Los Angeles on Saturday night. (Page Six) Phyllis Diller, 87, has been hospitalized after falling from her bed last week and injuring her head and neck. (ABC News)
Money Quotes:
Red carpet fashion critic Steven Cojocaru on his change of outlook after undergoing a kidney transplant (his new organ was donated by a good friend) three months ago: "I thought I was cynical -- like L.A., New York cynical -- but I found out I'm Pippi Longstocking! I've seen nothing but good. Friends, family have come together to get me through this. Thoughtfulness. It's made me a better person." ("Oprah" via Associated Press)
Time magazine managing editor Jim Kelly on whether the magazine's Ann Coulter issue has been a big seller: "We don't have the [sales] numbers yet, but our biggest seller so far was last year's [Michael] Moore cover. That was huge for us. No pun intended." (Page Six)
-- Amy Reiter
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