Morning Briefing:
The return of the Colin Farrell sex tape: After months of rumor and weeks of legal injunctions, the Colin Farrell sex tape -- showcasing the Irish lad's acrobatics with his former Playmate girlfriend, Nicole Narain -- is online. Brought to you by Tmobile Terrorist, the same people (or person?) who brought you the Paris Hilton and Fred Durst sex clips, the tape is available only through signing up at the porn forum Twisted Topics, although Jossip claims it will be available for free download elsewhere soon. That doesn't mean the legal shenanigans are over, though. Perez Hilton reports he's being sued just for posting stills from the vid, and whoever is hosting the Web version can expect calls from Farrell's lawyers any minute now. (Jossip, Twisted Topics, Perez Hilton)
Ted Kennedy has a secret love child? The National Enquirer is carrying a long story alleging that Sen. Ted Kennedy has a 21-year-old love child named Christopher, and Rush and Molloy have all the gory details. The story says that Kennedy and Caroline Bilodeau starting seeing each other in 1983 when he was divorcing then wife Joan, but that he cut all ties with Bilodeau after she became pregnant and refused to have an abortion. It goes on to say that a paternity test proved Kennedy to be the father, and that after the birth, the single, unemployed Bilodeau "always seemed to have money," according to a source. An insider at the Enquirer tells the gossip column that the sources come from "both on the Kennedy side and in the woman's family. We've known about the boy for several years but waited until he turned 21." The tabloid also stresses, "Our sources had no political connections." (Rush & Molloy)
"Miss America" special a little less special this year: "Miss America" returns for an 85th year on Saturday night, though she's a somewhat less distinguished gal: airing on the Country Music Channel instead of ABC, broadcasting from Las Vegas instead of Atlantic City and handing over $30,000 to the winner instead of the $50,000 winners have been getting since 2000. (There was no televised contest in 2005.) The three are all connected -- the event apparently lost $1.7 million of its budget after being dropped by ABC in 2004, and had to move to Las Vegas to cut down on costs. Last fall, it even began asking former contestants to help underwrite the costs for the scholarship. Miss America 2004 Ericka Dunlap, who says she'll be putting her money toward law school and pushing a forthcoming country album, told the Associated Press: "It's too bad that the young lady won't be able to benefit as much as we did." (Associated Press)
Also:
Officials for the U.S. Department of Agriculture decided to check into PETA's claims about animal cruelty at Michael Jackson's Neverland ranch, but their surprise visit turned up nada. "Our medical officer found the animals were in good health," said a spokesman. "There are no violations of the Animal Welfare Act." (BBC) ... Former CIA director George Tenet has sold a book to HarperCollins -- rumors put the sale at a "strong seven figures" -- about his life in the intelligence world, to be titled "At the Center of the Storm." (Yahoo! Finance News) ... Andie MacDowell has announced she's engaged to a businessman from her home of Asheville, N.C. It'll be marriage No. 3 for the actress. (People) ... The 25th annual Sundance Film Festival kicks off in Park City, Utah, on Thursday, and the event's promoters are promising it's back to focusing on small-scale indie films. (Hollywood Reporter) ... "American Idol" had its biggest season opener yet on Wednesday night, grabbing 35.4 million viewers, 10 percent above what the show drew last year. (Variety) ... Hone your lucrative paparazzi skills by taking shots of the likes of Nicky Hilton or Michael Jackson -- but beware camera-hoggin' Paris and the angry chimps! -- with this time-sucking online game. (via PopWatch)
Money Quotes:
Scarlett Johansson on the joys of working with Woody Allen in "Match Point": "We'd be shooting some intense confrontational scene where we were going crazy and screaming at each other, and then the moment Woody would yell, 'Cut,' he'd turn to me and ask, 'So how old were you when you lost your virginity?'" (Spin via Page Six)
Joaquin Phoenix on how he prefers not to think of himself as an alcoholic: "Not because I think it's shameful, but I just don't know if it's true. I prefer sobriety. In the past, if I had to go to an event where there was a lot of small talk, I'd think, 'I can't handle this.' So I would just drink and not care. That was the extent of my alcoholism When I'm working, I get very motivated, but there's part of me that loves the idea of doing nothing, and drink allows you to do nothing." (FemaleFirst)
Turn on:
A new member joins the "The O.C." cast when Marissa's little sister, Kaitlin (played by newcomer Willa Holland), returns from boarding school (Fox, 9 p.m. EST), and Lily Tomlin guest-stars on "Will & Grace" (NBC, 8 p.m. EST).
-- Scott Lamb
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