Morning Briefing:
Gest case dismissed: A judge in New York has tossed out David Gest's $10 million lawsuit against his ex-wife, Liza Minnelli, for lack of evidence supporting Gest's claim that his chronic headaches were the result of the beatings he allegedly received at her hands. State Supreme Court Justice Jane Solomon dismissed the case after Gest's lawyers failed to adequately rebut a medical expert brought in by the 60-year-old Minnelli who claimed that Gest's medical problems were symptoms of a strain of herpes that causes shingles. Gest, through his lawyer, said he's "stunned" by the ruling; his lawyer plans to appeal. Meanwhile, the Minnelli/Gest divorce proceedings -- to which this lawsuit was unconnected -- are still pending. (Reuters)
Oprah calls off lawyers: Oprah Winfrey says she's still not running for president, but now feels that the way her lawyers went after Patrick Crowe -- the Kansas City, Mo., man behind Oprah 2008 -- was a bit over the top. "My lawyers overreacted, I think, by sending him a cease-and-desist order," the talk show host said on Monday, "because it really is a flattering thing." She said she's now thinking of calling Crowe herself. (Associated Press)
No Clooney in '08: Also not running for president: George Clooney. Appearing at an event in California where Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger was signing legislation aimed at helping end the killing in the Sudan's Darfur region, Clooney shot down the idea of running for office, saying, "Believe me, you don't want me in politics." Referring to Schwarzenegger's role as the villainous Mr. Freeze alongside him in the movie "Batman and Robin," Clooney added, "He's gone on to be governor, and I still think I'm Batman." (Associated Press)
Lindsay's revenge not so sweet: After Lindsay Lohan was dumped by her straight-arrow boyfriend, Harry Morton, last Friday, she apparently tried one last desperate scheme to win him back via jealousy. According to Page Six, the 20-year-old actress cooked up a plan to be seen in public with Paris Hilton's ex, Stavros Niarchos, over the weekend, killing two birds with one stone. A source says she told Niarchos, "You will look like a total stud, and it will drive Paris crazy." Lohan was spotted making out with him over the weekend at a club called Dragonfly in Los Angeles on Sunday. Morton, though, apparently hasn't bitten. (Page Six)
Also:
Madonna and husband Guy Ritchie are reportedly planning to adopt twins from an orphanage in the southeastern African nation of Malawi. (ContactMusic) ... After two weeks in the No. 1 ratings slot for nightly newscasts, "The CBS Evening News With Katie Couric" fell to No. 2 last week, dethroned by "NBC Nightly News With Brian Williams," which averaged 8.2 million viewers a night for the week ending last Friday. (Reuters via Yahoo!) ... "Fox News Sunday," helped by the contentious Chris Wallace/Bill Clinton interview, had its best ratings in three years with this past Sunday's broadcast -- the last time its ratings were so high was with the capture of Saddam Hussein in 2003. (TV Newser) ... The Screen Actors Guild announced on Monday that it's awarding Julie Andrews the guild's Life Achievement Award. The award will be presented at the 13th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards ceremony in January. (People) ... Hollywood's new drug of choice? According to TMZ, it's cocaine laced with strawberry flavoring. (TMZ)
Money Quote:
Janet Jackson recalls visiting Studio 54 in the late '70s: "I went there a couple of times. I remember seeing Liza [Minnelli], Truman Capote ... People were getting really raunchy on the steps. I think the most vivid thing that comes to mind is not understanding why people were putting flour up their nose." (King magazine via Lowdown)
Lindsay Lohan to paparazzi waiting for her outside Dragonfly on Sunday: "Fuck off and die." (TMZ)
Turn On:
Ted Danson returns to the small screen with the series premiere of "Help Me Help You" (ABC, 9:30 p.m. EDT), while "Gilmore Girls" (CW, 8 p.m. EDT) starts a new season on a new network. The documentary "Wait 'Til Next Year: The Saga of the Chicago Cubs" (HBO, 10 p.m. EDT) looks at the stories of the team's fans, and "NOVA: Mystery of the Megavolcano" (PBS, check local listings) searches back through the last 100,000 years to find Earth's largest volcanic eruption.
On the Talk Shows:
Larry King (CNN, 9 p.m. EDT): Anna Nicole Smith's lawyer
Charlie Rose (PBS, check local listings): Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer and retired Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor
David Letterman (CBS, 11:30 p.m. EDT): Billy Bob Thornton, Sean Lennon
Jay Leno (NBC, 11:35 p.m. EDT): Adrien Brody, chef G. Garvin, Alan Jackson
Conan O'Brien (NBC, 12:35 a.m. EDT): Michael Clarke Duncan, Scissor Sisters
Craig Ferguson (CBS, 12:35 a.m. EDT): Marie Osmond, Jacinda Barrett, Mitch Albom
Jimmy Kimmel (ABC, 12:05 a.m. EDT): George Lopez, Clay Aiken
Jon Stewart (Comedy Central, 11 p.m. EDT): Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf
Stephen Colbert (Comedy Central, 11:30 p.m. EDT): Ted Danson
-- Scott Lamb
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