In his first postcrash TV news interview, the musician tells E! News exclusively why he decided to file a lawsuit over the plane crash that killed four people and left Barker and DJ AM badly burned.
“I wouldn’t have been in the state I was in if I wasn’t in the crash. I wouldn’t have third-degree burns all over my body or be prohibited to do certain things. I can’t go swimming. I can’t do some of the things that normal people can do. I didn’t ask for that to happen.”
DJ AM, who is also continuing his recovery from the Sept. 19 incident, is not part of the lawsuit. Said Barker:
“I can’t speak for him—I think everyone just has different attorneys.”
The drummer says he doesn’t know if he’ll win his lawsuit.
“I don’t know. I just think positive. I mean, I think so—if something goes wrong that’s not supposed to go wrong or you fall victim of it, I think you should be compensated.”
He says he’s not just speaking for himself, either. “I lost two friends in the accident. Nothing can bring them back or what I lost in the accident.”
Michael Jackson is being sued again, this time by Sheikh Abdullah Bin Hamad Bin Isa Khalifa, an Arab prince, who says he gave Jackson $7 million, a Rolls Royce worth over $260,000 and built him a recording studio as an advance for two albums, a stage show and an autobiography.
The king of pop claims the money was only a gift and doesn’t owe the sheikh anything, but in a statement read to a judge in the London High Court’s the sheikh said “I would never pay anybody millions of dollars for nothing in return.”
The sheikh also claims that the money raised by the music would benefit the victims of Hurricane Katrina.
Meanwhile it seems Jackson might not even attend the court hearing if he and his legal team have their way. Apparently the singer is too sick to travel and wants to give his testimony by video link from the United States.
His lawyer Robert Englehart said “it would be unwise for him to travel, given what’s he’s got now.” But the sheikh’s lawyer, Bankim Thanki, said the evidence was very unsatisfactory” and Jackson’s illness could be treated with a bandage “if the diagnosis is positive.”
Thanki added that “it’s not the first time a sick note has been presented by Mr. Jackson,” which is very true, Jackson has a habit of getting sick during court trials.
Oh, Martha Stewart is being sued also. Is it me or does a different celebrity get sued everyday?
Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie’s rep, Todd Shemarya, is being sued by former employee Heather Devlin for sexual harassment.
Devlin claims that Shemarya fostered a hostile work environment by exposing her to internet porn, “parading around naked,” and viciously mocking his celebrity clients, which also include Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Aniston.
The lawsuit, which was filed Tuesday in Los Angeles’ Superior Court, details an incident in which two vintage Cartier watches intended for Pitt and Aniston during their marriage where taken by Shemarya and given to a friend as a wedding gift.
In another disturbing incident, Shemarya showed Devlin a banned 1997 Brad Pitt issue of Playgirl and ridiculed the size of his penis while calling Aniston an “ugly bitch.”
Devlin was fired after nine years as Shemarya’s assistant after the agent hired his lovers. Devlin’s attorney, Keith A. Fink, summarizes the suit,
“Ms. Devlin was exposed to a constant barrage of offensive sexual, racial and religious comments. TSA’s celebrity clients would usually be the center of his ridicule.”
On the other side, Shemarya denies the allegations, saying that Devlin is just a “disgruntled” former employee now trying to “extort money.”
Oprah sure does get a lot of lawsuits thrown at her doesn’t she? Today is no exception, it seems an ex employee of the talk show queen is suing her for a whopping $180 million.
The Associated Press reports that Keifer Bonvillain, a man from Louisiana is suing Oprah because she and her attorney allegedly made false statements that lead the FBI to arrest him on extortion charges.
In 2006, Keifer Bonvillain recorded telephone converstions with an employee of Harpo, Winfrey’s production company, and threatened to publish a book based on the recordings. Police nabbed Bonvillain after another Harpo employee agreed to pay him $1.5 million and wired $3,000 as a down payment.
Bonvillain told the FBI that he had publishing offers for the supposed tell-all that ranged from $500,000 to $3 million and insisted in the lawsuit that he had deliberately avoided doing anything against the law. Despite what seemed to be a solid case against him, the Feds agreed to drop the charges on the condition that Bonvillain undergo drug testing, perform 50 hours of community service and pay back the $3,000 in restitution.
In the lawsuit, which he is also suing the FBI, he says “there was substantial damage done to my name and reputation on a world level, the extent of my damages is vast.”
Chip Babcock, attorney for Harpo Productions, denies the allegations and says he welcomes the challenge to prove Bonvillain wrong. “And we know that this whole episode started when the plaintiff wiretapped a Harpo employee in California,” he said. “We advised [Bonvillain] that we believe that wiretapping was illegal, and this case will give us an opportunity to determine whether we were right about that.”
I really doubt anything will come from this lawsuit, she will hire a team and make this disappear within a matter of weeks.
Dr. Phil is being sued by the memorabilia dealer involved in O.J. Simpson’s hotel-room robbery.
In a lawsuit filed Tuesday against the “Dr. Phil” show, Philip McGraw himself and Stage 29 Media, Thomas Riccio claims that his comments on the show were edited to twist their meaning. Riccio filmed an interview Oct. 6 explaining his involvement with the holdup, three days after a Las Vegas jury found Simpson guilty of 12 charges.
While Riccio admits he led Simpson to the hotel room where the robbery took place, he insists that the “Dr. Phil” show spliced his comments to make him appear to be the one who orchestrated the robbery.
The suit alleges fraud, defamation, portrayal in a false light and emotional distress, claiming he was referred to on the show as the “ringleader of this crime,” “the shady dealmaker” and “a puppetmaster who would sell his soul for a coin.”
Riccio says that McGraw also tried to paint him as the one who “set O.J. Simpson up and told people to bring guns into the room” but then edited out Riccio’s denial of the statement and replaced it with a shot of him nodding his head, supposedly in agreement.
Well if you go on the Dr.Phil show you should expect editing like that.
source: Dr. Phil slapped with suit connected to O.J. Simpson case [ny daily news]
Some people take their music seriously. So seriously, they’re willing to take the potential next President of the United States to court!
The singer-songwriter sued McCain and the Ohio and national Republican committees in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles on Thursday, accusing them of using his song “Running on Empty” without his permission.
The lawsuit claims the song’s use was an infringement of his copyright and will lead people to conclude he endorses McCain. The suit says Browne is a lifelong liberal who is as well-known for his music as for being “an advocate for social and environmental justice.”
The advertisement mocks Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama’s contention that if U.S. drivers got regular tuneups and drove on properly inflated tires, they could save the same amount of oil that would be gained by offshore drilling. According to the suit, “Running on Empty” plays in the background of the ad criticizing the remarks.
Robert Bennett, chairman of the Ohio party, said the ad was pulled when Browne objected. He called the lawsuit a “big to-do about nothing.”
McCain spokesman Brian Rogers disavowed the ad, saying it wasn’t a product of the Republican presidential candidate’s campaign.
Browne’s lawsuit contends the Ohio Republican party released the ad on behalf of McCain and the RNC. The RNC did not return a phone call seeking comment.
The suit notes that other musicians, including ABBA and John Cougar Mellencamp, have asked McCain to stop using their work.
Browne’s attorney, Lawrence Iser, called the ad’s use of the song “reprehensible.”
The 59-year-old singer claims his reputation has already been damaged and is seeking more than $75,000 in damages.
Browne released “Running on Empty” — the song and an album by the same name — in 1977. According to the lawsuit, the album has sold more than 7 million copies.
Browne’s financial success has aided Democratic candidates over the years. Campaign finance records show he contributed $2,300 to Obama’s presidential campaign last year and $2,000 to the Illinois senator’s campaign coffers in 2004.
John McCain is losing my respect rapidly. First all of his ads are geared towards “bashing the competition”, instead of pushing his own goals and merits — now he’s blatantly using copyrighted songs without the artists permission. Shame on you!
source: Jackson Browne sues McCain, RNC over song in ad [yahoo news]
Not concerning itself with what a daunting task that was, the film’s distributor, Florida-based Worldwide Entertainment Group, sued the heiress Tuesday for breach of contract, charging that she didn’t come through after being paid $1 million to star in and promote the 2006 comedy.
Oh, she starred in it alright, playing sorority queen Victoria English. But, per the lawsuit filed today in U.S. District Court in Miami, Hilton—who was also listed as an executive producer—owes $75,000 in damages for failing to provide “reasonable promotion and publicity” for the movie.
The straight-to-DVD Pledge This! came out in December 2006, with Hilton’s mug plastered across the cover, indicating that she was a major part of the film. And, if memory serves, the presidential candidate and star of the upcoming Repo! The Genetic Opera did not go to jail until June 2007, so that wasn’t what was keeping her busy at the time.
A rep for Hilton didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. Paris, just because you regret your commitments, it doesn’t mean you can just ignore them away.
source: Paris Sued for Lack of Pledge Class [e! online]
Verne “Mini Me” Troyer plans to lawsuit against his sex tape co-star, Ranae Shrider, for allegedly beating him and causing him emotional distress.
Troyer’s lawyer told TMZ that Ranae once picked a lock on his door, pushed away a scooter that was blocking it, and then threw him to the floor. The lawyer released this statement,
“When you pick up a 2′8″ human being and throw him to the floor, it hurts.”
In the lawsuit, which will be filed in Federal court any moment, Troyer is accusing Shrider of intentional infliction of emotional distress and battery.
What others said:
Dlisted says, “Remember how we’re all riding on that bus to hell together? Well, I’ve just being upgraded to first-class air for laughing so hard at the image of Mini-Me getting thrown. Midget tossing!”
Tom Cruise is named in a $250 million federal lawsuit that is using the RICO statute against the Church of Scientology.
Ex-Scientologist Peter Letterese, a longtime critic of the church, filed suit in Southern District Court in Florida on July 15 alleging, among other things, that members of the church harassed him after he left.
In court papers provided to The News by investigator Paul Barresi, Letterese claims a member of the church phoned his lawyer at home, and when the lawyer’s wife answered, said he was her husband’s homosexual lover.
Barresi, who has done investigative work on behalf of Cruise, tells us: “[Letterese] is just including a celebrity name to get attention.”
Letterese calls the church a “crime syndicate” and wants it broken up under the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organization law, just as the feds have broken up Mafia families.
He singles out Cruise, who’s made no secret of his religion, saying that Scientology head David Miscavage is “aided and abetted by the actions of Tom Cruise, his right-hand man for foreign and domestic promotion, as well as for foreign and domestic lobbying. He has assisted the syndicate in acquiring funds and [made] his own donations of money believed to be in the multiple tens of millions of dollars.”
One of Letterese’s beefs is that the church allegedly uses a business book, “Effective Sales Closing Techniques,” as part of its teachings. He says this violates his intellectual property rights, since he bought the rights to the book from the widow of author Leslie Dane.
Cruise’s lawyer, Bert Fields, did not respond to an e-mail requesting comment.
source: Lawsuit goes after Tom Cruise, church [ny daily news]
Imitation may be the sincerest form of flattery, but not when royalties are at stake.
The Black Crowes have filed a copyright-infringement suit against country star Gretchen Wilson, accusing the self-dubbed Redneck Woman of ripping off parts of their 1991 hit “Jealous Again” on her new single, “Work Hard, Play Harder.”
It may only be rock ‘n’ roll, but it has the brothers Robinson mad enough to file suit not only against Wilson, but against Wilson’s label, Sony BMG, the publishing company J Money Music and TNT, which is using Wilson’s song in a promotion for the new season of Saving Grace.
[original]
[copy]
So far, Chris and Rich Robinson as well as Wilson have personally refrained from commenting on the similarities between the songs. But the Black Crowes’ longtime manager is chiming in with his two cents.
“We find the musical verses of Wilson’s song to be such an obvious example of copyright infringement that I expect all parties to reach a relatively quick resolution to avoid legalization.”
On the bright side, should the Crowes’ claims hold in court, at the very least it would show that the band’s peers, if not necessarily their critics, actually do listen to their music all the way through.
source: Black Crowes Caw Out Gretchen Wilson for Alleged Song Stealing [e! online]
The lawsuit claims the song’s use was an infringement of his copyright and will lead people to conclude he endorses McCain. The suit says Browne is a lifelong liberal who is as well-known for his music as for being “an advocate for social and environmental justice.”
In court papers provided to The News by investigator Paul Barresi, Letterese claims a member of the church phoned his lawyer at home, and when the lawyer’s wife answered, said he was her husband’s homosexual lover.
