Morning Briefing:
Osama hearts Whitney? The September issue of Harper's carries an excerpt from "Diary of a Lost Girl," the memoir of Kola Boof, 37, a former writer for "The Days of Our Lives" who claims she was once Osama bin Laden's sex slave. In it, Boof says bin Laden was obsessed with none other than Whitney Houston, and wanted somehow to arrange to meet her. "In his briefcase, I would come across photographs of the Star [magazine], as well as copies of Playboy. It would soon come to the point where I was sick of hearing Whitney Houston's name," Boof writes, adding that bin Laden would go on about "how beautiful she is, what a nice smile she has, how truly Islamic she is but is just brainwashed by American culture and by her husband -- Bobby Brown, whom Osama talked about having killed, as if it were normal to have women's husbands killed." (Page Six)
HBO at the Emmys: At the Creative Arts portion of the Emmys on Saturday night (the main Emmy broadcast happens live next Sunday), HBO dominated the awards, taking home 17 trophies for shows including "Elizabeth I," "Rome," "Baghdad ER" and "Six Feet Under." ABC's "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition" won best reality TV show for the second year in a row, and "The Simpsons" took home the award for best animated series for the ninth time, beating out "South Park," which was nominated for its "Trapped in the Closet" episode making fun of Tom Cruise. On accepting the award, "Simpsons" executive producer Al Jean said, "This is what happens when you don't mock Scientology." See a full list of winners here (PDF). (Hollywood Reporter)
Rhymes busted: Busta Rhymes was arrested in New York over the weekend for allegedly beating up a man who spit on his car -- cops say that after Roberto Lebron "accidentally" spat on Rhymes' car last weekend, the rapper and his bodyguards stopped, got out and kicked Lebron into a concussion. Lebron apparently waited several days after leaving the hospital to report the attack, but Rhymes' lawyer says the arrest is "payback by the NYPD," and only happened because the police are trying to get Rhymes to cooperate in their investigation into the unsolved murder of his bodyguard back in February. (N.Y. Daily News)
Also:
German prosecutors have decided not to charge Madonna over the fake crucifixion that's a part of her current live tour -- a spokesman said that while her show in Germany over the weekend may have been "hurtful to religious people," it did not violate any German laws against mocking religion. (Associated Press) ... Despite its massive buzz, "Snakes on a Plane" was at best a modest success at the box office, taking home just $13.8 million in its opening weekend, and coming in second to "Talladega Nights" -- though "SOaP's" studio claims its movie is actually No. 1 if you include early screenings from Thursday night, which would bring the movie's total take to $15.2 million. (Deadline Hollywood) ... Pete Doherty pleaded guilty to drug possession charges in London on Friday, and a judge ordered him to stay in a rehab center until his next court appearance in early September, when he'll face sentencing that may include actual jail time. (Star) ... Roger Ebert has updated his blog from his hospital bed -- and while frustrated that his recovery is taking so long, he says he's doing well. (RogerEbert.com)
Money Quote:
Johnny Knoxville, of "Jackass" and "Dukes of Hazzard" fame, says that whatever his image, he's not much of a fightin' man: "People think by challenging me they're going to show they're tough. But I'm not tough. Decent drinker. Not such a bad kisser. But not a great fighter." (Spin via ContactMusic)
-- Scott Lamb
Turn On:
Tonight, Fox debuts "Vanished" (9 p.m. EDT), a drama about the FBI's search for a senator's missing wife, and kicks off a new season of "Prison Break" (8 p.m. EDT), while "Treasure Hunters" (NBC, 9 p.m. EDT) has its season ender. Also, Spike Lee tells the story of post-Katrina New Orleans in the first half of "When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts" (HBO, 9 p.m. EDT).
On the Talk Shows:
Larry King (CNN, 9 p.m. EDT): Ramsey family attorney Lin Wood
Charlie Rose (PBS, check local listings): Bill Clinton, Rep. Rahm Emanuel (D-Ill.), author Roger Rosenblatt (repeat)
David Letterman (CBS, 11:30 p.m. EDT): Julianna Margulies, Outkast
Jay Leno (NBC, 11:35 p.m. EDT): Tina Fey, Cris Collinsworth, Jerome Bettis, MercyMe (repeat)
Conan O'Brien (NBC, 12:35 a.m. EDT): Bob Costas, Jenna Fischer, Dwayne Perkins (repeat)
Craig Ferguson (CBS, 12:35 a.m. EDT): Shannen Doherty, Eddie Kaye Thomas, E-40 with T-Pain
Jimmy Kimmel (ABC, 12:05 a.m. EDT): Heidi Klum, Dave Navarro, Panic Channel
Jon Stewart (Comedy Central, 11 p.m. EDT): Reza Aslan
Stephen Colbert (Comedy Central, 11:30 p.m. EDT): Geoffrey Nunberg
-- Lamar Clarkson
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