April 25, 2005

Dolly Parton invited Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld onstage at the Grand Ole Opry, a Saturday live performance to show some "grand" support for both Donald Rumsfeld himself and the American Military. Watched by members of the U.S. military on television via satellite from Iraq, the audience applauded as Rumsfeld appeared and thanked the troops serving in the military. People entered the auditorium for the show were given postcards with "America supports you," printed on them, and they waved the cards and shouted their support to the troops watching on television.

Actor Jake Gyllenhaal and fellow celebrity Salma Hayek have flown to the frozen tundra on Northern Canada's Nunavut province Friday April 22, 2005, as part of an Earth Day event to show the potential dangers of global warming by dancing a spring jig with 1000 native Inuit people. The gathering of Inuits, Gyllenhaal and Hayek, was set up to draw attention to the way the shrinking of the polar ice caps has affected the life of northern Canada's indigenous people.

"Unfortunately, the Inuit people put a human face on global warming, they are literally melting away. They are the canary in the coal mine," Gyllenhaal said. However, both stars kept emphasizing to voice the message about the potential long-term consequences of doing nothing to stop the global rising temperature, a phenomena which some scientists say is all but a reality, especially in colder climates such as the arctic Nunavut. Moreover Hayek added, "We have a lot to learn from them if we follow their wonderful wisdom. Just listen to the land."

Actor Will Ferrell has signed to star in "Land of the Lost," a comedy feature based on the 1974-1977 television series of the same name. Universal, for which the star will play, has reportedly acquired the feature rights from the film executive producers of the original NBC series, Sid and Marty Krofft, who will produce the feature for the studio.

In addition, Jimmy Miller and Julie Wixson-Darmody also will produce via the Mosaic Media Group banner. Even more, Adam McKay, a former "SNL" writer who directed Ferrell in "Anchorman," is attached to direct, with Chris Henchy and Dennis McNicholas signing on to adapt the screenplay.

Jane's Addiction frontman, Perry Farrell, has planned to held a two-day run tour in Chicago this summer. This will be one after his last 2004 tour, which was scuttled due to poor ticket sales. Farrell is scheduled to perform on the tour on July 23-24, 2005, in the city's Grant Park.

To succeed the tour, Farrell will feature 70-plus acts, including the alt-rock likes of the Killers, the Pixies, Digable Planets, Liz Phair, Weezer, Billy Idol, the Arcade Fire, Kaiser Chiefs, the Bravery, Louis XIV, Death Cab for Cutie and the recently reunited Dinosaur Jr.. Tickets are on sale now, so come and get it.

Rapper and producer Kanye West is in the preparation to release the lead single "Diamonds" from his sophomore solo album "Late Registration" in the coming weeks. The set, which is planned to hit the market on July 12, 2005, will feature guest appearances from John Legend and John Mayer.

Stevie Nicks and Don Henley have begun confirming dates for a summer tour, which will surely begin June 3, 2005, at the Wachovia Center in Philadelphia, with both of them performing in solo and collaborative settings. To go on details, there have been 5 planned shows, including: June 3: Philadelphia (Wachovia Center); June 4: Holmdel, N.J. (PNC Bank Arts Center); June 8: Mansfield, Mass. (Tweeter Center); June 10: Wantagh, N.Y. (Jones Beach); June 13: Hershey, Pa. (Giant Center).

VIP ticket packages are available for the first five shows via ILoveAllAccess.com (http://www.iloveallaccess.com). The top-level package sells for $385 per ticket, including a seat in the first 10 rows, exclusive merchandise and a variety of on-site perks. The $195 package offers a ticket in the first 20 rows plus the merchandise.

David Beckham and wife Victoria have failed for a court order to forbid the News of the World tabloid from publishing allegations by their former nanny, Abbie Gibson, who has witnessed a series of rows between the couple. Gibson has actually had a contract included a promise not to speak about the couple's private lives. But the News of the World said a judge ruled in its favor on grounds that the story was in the public interest, so the story was published a few hours later in the tabloid.

Soon after the newspaper appeared Sunday morning, the Beckhams were consulting with their lawyers and considering to take legal action over the News of the World from publishing a story, which ran over seven pages, detailing about Danielle Heath, a beautician who had previously claimed to have had an affair with Beckham.