Morning Briefing:
Federline not going down without a fight: Kevin Federline responded to Britney Spears' divorce filings on Wednesday with some papers of his own -- his lawyer is seeking spousal support and full custody of both of the couple's children. Federline asks that Spears be granted only visitation rights. The dancer turned husband turned rapper was performing in Chicago on Wednesday night, but as TMZ reports, he was forced to start giving away tickets to his show for free after a dismal 20 percent turnout for his New York show over the weekend. In other sad K-Fed news, his album arrived on the Billboard charts at No. 151, selling just over 6,000 copies. (TMZ)
The battle of the billionaires: The bidding for the Los Angeles Times is turning into something of a boxing match among billionaires, with pop music mogul David Geffen squaring off against both real estate king Eli Broad and supermarket magnate Ron Burkle. Geffen has long been rumored to be interested in buying the paper from its owners, the Tribune Co., but now Broad and Burkle -- who'd been reported to be rival interests not long ago -- have joined forces and made a bid to buy not just the paper but the entire company, which also owns a chain of other papers, TV stations and the Chicago Cubs. (New York Times, Hollywood Reporter)
The sad tale of Adrienne Shelly: Actress Adrienne Shelly, known best for her work in Hal Hartley's films "The Unbelievable Truth" and "Trust" (she appeared most recently in "Factotum"), was found dead in her Greenwich Village office last week, and her death was at first thought to be a suicide -- she was found hanging from the shower curtain rod in the office's bathroom. On Tuesday, though, New York police charged 19-year-old construction worker Diego Pillco with her murder, which reportedly stemmed from an argument the two had over the noise coming from an apartment renovation Pillco was working on. "We have felt adamantly that what happened was not the result of suicide," Shelly's agent Rachel Sheedy told the Times on Tuesday. "It is a great relief knowing that the police have taken us seriously." (N.Y. Times)
Also:
Russian officials have decided to ban "Borat," saying they refuse to issue the film a distribution license because of its potential for humiliating different ethnic groups and religions. (BBC News) ... Reese Witherspoon has filed papers in her divorce from Ryan Phillippe, and will be seeking joint custody of the couple's two children, and asking that the court not give Phillippe spousal support. (People) ... "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" isn't getting canceled, despite the rumors. NBC has decided to order the full season of the show. (Watch With Kristin) ... The FCC has ruled that profanity can be used on news shows, but not on awards shows -- it reversed an earlier decision against an episode of CBS's "Early Show" in which an interviewee said "bullshitter," but upheld its finding against the 2003 "Billboard Music Awards" on Fox, where Nicole Richie said, "Have you ever tried to get cow shit out of a Prada purse? It's not so fucking simple." (United Press International) ... Philadelphia Inquirer top editor Amanda Bennett was fired on Wednesday, and the paper's owner is considering cutting the news staff by 30 percent. (N.Y. Times) ... The Twyla Tharp/Bob Dylan musical "The Times They Are A-Changin'" is closing after less than a month on Broadway after being met with terrible reviews. (BBC News) ... Actress Rosario Dawson and Jason Lewis (of "Sex and the City" fame) are splitting up after two years of dating. (Us Online)
Money Quote:
Madonna on the role of celebrities as U.N. ambassadors: "Look, I could have joined the U.N. and become an ambassador and visited various countries and just kind of showed up and smiled. But that's not getting to the root of the problem. And, by the way, neither is building an orphan care center and giving people food and medicine. But it's a start." (FemaleFirst)
Turn On:
Quentin Tarantino and Fiona Apple swap stories on "Iconoclasts" (Fox, 9 p.m. EST) on Thursday night, and cooking queen Rachael Ray presents the second annual installment of "Thanksgiving in 60" (Food Network, 9 p.m. EST).
On the Talk Shows:
Larry King (CNN, 9 p.m. EST): Roseanne Barr
Charlie Rose (PBS, check local listings): Will Ferrell, Duke basketball coach Mike Krzyzewski
David Letterman (CBS, 11:30 p.m. EST): Kiefer Sutherland, Jenna Fischer, Rocco DeLuca
Jay Leno (NBC, 11:35 p.m. EST): Sasha Baron Cohen, Martha Stewart, Damian Rice
Conan O'Brien (NBC, 12:35 a.m. EST): Howie Mandel, James Lipton
Craig Ferguson (CBS, 12:35 a.m. EST): Emma Thompson, Eamonn Walker, Joseph Arthur
Jimmy Kimmel (ABC, 12:05 a.m. EST): Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Lady Sovereign
Jon Stewart (Comedy Central, 11 p.m. EST): Dustin Hoffman
Stephen Colbert (Comedy Central, 11:30 p.m. EST): Dean Kamen
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