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PAUL WILLIAMS, the Oscar winning composer behind standards like WE’VE ONLY JUST BEGUN and AN OLD FASHIONED LOVE SONG, is to replace MARILYN BERGMAN as president and chairman of the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP).
Songwriter Bergman announced her plans to step down earlier this month (Apr09) after 15 years in charge.
Williams, who was elected the new boss by the board of ASCAP directors at a meeting in Nashville, Tennessee, was the organisation’s vice-president for two years.
He’ll be replaced by songwriting legend Jimmy Webb, who penned classic tunes like Macarthur Park, Wichita Lineman and By The Time I Get To Phoenix.
Among the credits in Williams’ illustrious career, he composed the music and lyrics for the Garry Marshall musical Happy Days and created songs and stories for the Muppets. He also played Little Enos in the Smokey and the Bandit film trilogy and wrote the lyrics to The Love Boat theme.

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The original line-up of rock act POCO are to reunite at country music festival Stagecoach in California next week (26Apr09).
And they’ll be joined by Eagles star Timothy B. Schmidt, who was a member of the band in the 1970s, and former drummer George Grantham, who suffered a stroke in 2006.
The festival appearance will mark the first time Poco founders Richie Furay, Jim Messina, Rusty Young and Paul Cotton have performed together in public for more than 20 years.
Furay says, "The Stagecoach Festival ’09 is going to be an event. Being able to take the Palomino Stage with my old friends Poco, who started country rock music back in 1968 is gonna be the highlight… It should be a memorable day for everyone." The two-day Stagecoach festival will be headlined by Kenny Chesney and Brad Paisley. Other highlights include Reba McEntire and Kid Rock.

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Rapper PLIES is set to become the next hip-hop reality show star after pitching a new TV idea to network executives.
The Bust It Baby star, real name Algernod Washington, is busy working on Goonette, a programme about strong, independent women who beat the odds to make a success of their lives.
A trailer for the project, which is still in development, has just been released online and features the life of Fire, a stripper and mother of two from Tampa, Florida.
Plies claims he’s on the verge of signing a production deal - but he admits the show almost ended up as a free webcast.
He tells MTV.com, "I feel like it’s a great move for me. This whole Goonette movement is something I’m really excited about. For me to have the chance to put the trailer together and shop it around, I think it’s the best move I made in my career.
"I was gonna run and have the show be an online situation so it could be as raw as I wanted it to be. But some people made me reconsider that."

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Progressive rock supergroups YES and ASIA are teaming up to tour North America this summer (09).
Steve Howe, who plays guitar in both groups, will double up during the shows and Yes will feature on/off bandmate Rick Wakeman’s son Adam and Benoit David, a Canadian singer, who will replace ailing frontman Jon Anderson.
The new dates, which begin in Indio, California in June (09), come two months after Yes scrapped a planned tour of America, citing "unforeseen medical reasons".
Bassist Chris Squire was reportedly admitted to hospital on 9 February (09) with an unspecified medical emergency which required surgery on his leg.
The unlucky group was forced to postpone dates in 2008 after Anderson suffered a severe asthma attack and was subsequently diagnosed with respiratory failure.
The singer has made it clear in recent blog posts he is unhappy with the fact his bandmates are touring without him.

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The 12-year-old daughter of BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN’s alleged mistress discovered her mother had reportedly been dancing in the dark with The Boss on an early morning TV news broadcast.
New Jersey businessman Arthur Kelly’s claims that his wife "committed adultery" with Springsteen turned his divorce battle into a media event - and when it hit news shows, his estranged wife Ann had some explaining to do.
Ann Kelly explains her daughter learned of the allegations "while watching an early morning newscast on television".
In court documents, she adds, "She turned to me with tears in her eyes and started questioning me about the divorce." Kelly, who has denied the affair with Springsteen, is petitioning to seal court records so she can "protect the minor children from the trauma and disruption to their lives caused by the media frenzy from the allegations".
According to U.S. news show Extra, which has obtained the petition, her children knew their parents were fighting but were unaware of their divorce until the Springsteen story broke.
She claims the media attention has been so overwhelming she has had to contact the police on three separate occasions "to have help removing (reporters) from my front lawn".
And she cancelled family plans to attend church services on Holy Thursday and Good Friday last week (09-10Apr09) over fears reporters would harass her kids.
In her plea to the New Jersey court, Ann says, "We are not public figures. I am a stay-at-home mom… If the records are not sealed in this case all of the private, intimate details of our family’s life will be subject to public scrutiny. This is simply not fair to our children." Kelly insists her only link to rock star Springsteen is they attend the same gym. The hitmaker has dismissed the reports.

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ANCHORMAN star CHRISTINA APPLEGATE’s love for videogame Guitar Hero left her with a severe two-week headache.
The actress, who is dating rock star Martyn Lenoble, admits she’s hooked on the game, which allows non-musicians to pretend they’re part of a band.
And one marathon stretch left her with the migraine from hell.
She recalls, "I sat in my dressing room and I played 25 songs that day and I ended up getting what they call an ocular migraine that lasted for two weeks… I could barely, like, work, I could barely do scenes.
"I had to leave for a couple of hours for the doctor to get a CT scan on my head." Applegate came clean about the doctor’s visit during an appearance on U.S. chat show Jimmy Kimmel Live! on Wednesday (15Apr09), and immediately realised she’d be in trouble for revealing the real reason behind her medical emergency.
She said, "I never told them about this… until now, and now I’m in big trouble. I was like, ‘It must be stress and I’m fatigued.’ "I didn’t miss work - I would get sued for that. They (producers) let me go to the doctors for an hour." And she’s no longer taking any chances with Guitar Hero: "I haven’t played in a long time… I’ve been too afraid."

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Movie star JESSICA LANGE is fighting through the pain as she promotes new TV movie GREY GARDENS in America - after a horrific fall at her home in Minnesota put her in hospital with multiple broken bones.
Calling last month’s (Mar09) nasty fall a "stupid thing", the actress is still embarrassed by the fuss it caused.
The 59-year-old star says, "I fell through a railing off of my porch up at my cabin. I fell head first, about eight or nine feet and hit my old, like, iron garden pump.
"I knew the railing was being repaired and I was actually emptying the dustpan… and just the momentum of tossing (the dust)… I set my hand for a moment and the whole thing gave way and just carried me right off the porch.
"I broke my collarbone and shoulder blade and ribs… Obviously I was in shock… and the brain shuts down, so I don’t remember the impact."

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Movie star WILLIAM HURT has issued a public apology to his former lover and co-star MARLEE MATLIN, who has accused him of physical abuse during their romance.
In her new book I’ll Scream Later, the deaf Oscar winner details her torrid romance with her Children of a Lesser God co-star - including revelations about the couple’s alcohol and drug-fuelled fights.
Asked if she was concerned about repercussions from Hurt, she told U.S. news show Access Hollywood, "He knows what happened, I know what happened, we both were there," but added that if the actor walked into a room she was in, she would "run to the bathroom".
And now her ex has responded to her allegations, stating, "I did and so apologise for any pain I caused."

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TWILIGHT star CAM GIGANDET is a first-time dad - his actress girlfriend Dominique Geisendorff gave birth to baby girl on Tuesday (14Apr09).
Gigandet, a former star of The O.C., plays James in the Twilight franchise.
A source close to the family tells In Touch magazine, "The baby is perfectly healthy, everyone is doing fine." The new parents have yet to pick a name.

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VIVICA A. FOX has set her sights on a new younger lover - teen heartthrob ZAC EFRON.
The 44-year-old actress is the host of new U.S. reality TV show The Cougar, in which younger men compete for the affections of a sexy older woman - and she admits the ‘cougar’ tag applies to her too.
Fox, who was last romantically linked to rapper 50 Cent, tells PopEater.com, "Heads used to turn when you’d see an older woman with a younger guy. Guys have been doing it for years, and heads don’t turn. Well, now it’s our turn.
"Zac Efron is just so gorgeous to me. He’s a hot piece. I want just to look at those beautiful blue eyes… They’re are just… ‘Wow!’ Muy caliente (very hot)."

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ZAC EFRON and his girlfriend VANESSA HUDGENS have warned their fans to be wary of fake bloggers posing as celebrities on the internet.
The High School Musical couple insist they have not signed up for any social networking sites - and Efron is adamant anyone using their names online is guaranteed to be a phony.
He tells Moviehole.net, "It’s funny, everywhere I go I rep the fact that I don’t have any online presence or communicate at all online, but still there’s a couple of Facebooks and things that scrape through." The actor adds to E! Online, "If you have me, it’s a poser, don’t talk to him. And Vanessa doesn’t have any of them, either. None." While Hudgens, who has 75,000 followers of a Twitter.com page in her name, adds, "I don’t know who it is, and apparently, there’s a lot of people who think it’s me, and it’s freaking me out!" And the actress insists she won’t be signing up to any online blogs in the future: "It seems like a hassle, and when I’m home, I just like relaxing."

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Hollywood stars FOREST WHITAKER and DANNY GLOVER have been made African chiefs by a Nigerian tribe after its leaders discovered the actors descended from their town.
The pair, which travelled to Nigeria this week (begs13Apr09) to attend the African Movie Academy Awards, were honorary guests at a special ceremony in the ancient town of Nkwere, after a DNA test traced their ancestral roots back to the Igbo tribe.
They were given a hero’s welcome when their motorcade entered the ancient palace of Eshi of Nkwere, as traditional drummers and female dancers sang in celebration.
Whitaker, who won an Oscar for his portrayal of Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in 2006’s The Last King of Scotland, was handed the title of ‘Nwannedinambar of Nkwere’, meaning ‘Brother in a Foreign Land’, while Glover was named ‘Enyioma’, ‘Good friend of Nkwere’.
Introducing Whitaker to the crowd, Chief Nze Chukwuka Anyiam-Osigwe said, "This is our lost brother. We have found him and brought him home. It is only an Nkwere man that can find his way home after many years. We are a people from (an) unparallel kingdom. We are (the) pride of Igboland.
"Today our brother Whitaker and his friend Mr. Glover will be made Nkwerre Chiefs and it is not an easy task to be an Nkwerre chief because there are only 30 Nkwerre chiefs in the whole world."

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Hollywood actress KATE HUDSON has shot down reports she will make a guest appearance on the new BEVERLY HILLS, 90210 spin-off.
The Bride Wars star, who is good friends with 90210 actress Sara Foster, was linked to a role on the small screen drama earlier this week (begs13Apr09).
But the claims have been dismissed by producers at TV network The CW and Hudson’s spokesman, Brad Cafarelli, who tells Eonline.com the rumour is "not true".

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The process server BRITNEY SPEARS’ ex-boyfriend ADNAN GHALIB is accused of running down with his car has filed a lawsuit against the photographer.
In the suit, filed on Monday (13Apr09) in Los Angeles County Superior Court, processor Ram Moskowitz claims he was attempting to serve Ghalib with a restraining order on behalf of Spears when the paparazzo allegedly struck him with his car and sent him flying onto its hood.
Ghalib was charged with assault with a deadly weapon, battery and hit and run after the incident in California in February (09), in which Moskowitz claims he suffered suffered cuts, abrasions and a fractured wrist.
Spears - who romanced Ghalib back in 2007 - was recently granted the restraining order against her ex, banning the snapper from going anywhere near her for the next three years. Ghalib, as well as Spears’ former manager Sam Lutfi, were ruled to have attempted to undermine the singer’s father Jamie Spears’ conservatorship of her estate.
Ghalib is scheduled to face the felony charges on 4 May (09).
Moskowitz is seeking unspecified damages in his suit, reports TMZ.com.

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DREW BARRYMORE is smitten with a New York City police officer - after he rescued the star from a car chase with a group of overzealous male fans.
The Charlie’s Angels star was leaving the New York premiere of her new TV movie Grey Gardens on Tuesday (14Apr09), when she found herself being pursued through Manhattan in a dangerous car chase.
The actress had to pull over to ask police for help and, during an appearance on Late Night with David Letterman on Wednesday (15Apr09), Barrymore made sure to give a special thanks to her handsome hero.
She said, "I love New York and I have to give a shoutout to a certain officer Bentley. I was being chased by these horrible men the other night and I pulled over and I rolled my window down and I said, ‘Sir, will you please help me? These mean, awful, scary men are chasing me!’ And he goes, ‘I love you Drew Barrymore, I’ll rescue you!’ And I was like, ‘Oh my god, and you’re cute to boot?’ And he did (rescue me)."

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AMERICAN IDOL champ FANTASIA BARRINO is returning to the small screen - she’s landed her own reality TV show.
Barrino - who won the singing competition in 2004 - has signed a deal to star in an unscripted series for VH1, set to air next year (10).
The 24-year-old, who previously starred in a TV movie based on her autobiography Life Is Not a Fairy Tale, will chronicle her life as a recording artist and single mum to seven-year-old daughter, Zion, according to the Hollywood Reporter.
Executive producer Randy Barbato says, "Fantasia’s life has been an open book, but at 24 years old, her story has just begun. We look forward to smashing expectations and revealing the fresh, funny and unexpected side of this one-of-a-kind country girl and superstar." The show’s title has yet to be determined.

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American singer-songwriter BEN FOLDS is releasing an album of his tracks performed by U.S. university choirs.
Folds came up with the idea after spotting choirs’ performances of his hits on video-sharing website YouTube.com.
So he travelled the country to pick the best renditions and has compiled them on a new disc.
Folds reveals, "I’m a songwriter first, and yet I’ve never really been covered. I figure they’re going to be covered by somebody important one day. So of course I was thrilled. I got to hear the songs actually take flight. These are the songs doing what they’re supposed to do."

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Rockers DEPECHE MODE have failed to knock LADY GAGA from the top of the European singles chart - POKER FACE is still the continent’s most popular song.
Gaga continues her reign for the eighth consecutive week, with Depeche Mode’s latest release Wrong only managing to enter the chart at four, followed by the only other new entry in the top 10 - Scottish dance star Calvin Harris’ I’m Not Alone at five.
Rapper Flo Rida remains unmoved as Right Round sits at two, and Enrique Iglesias’ duet with Ciara, Takin’ Back My Love, stays put at three.
Meanwhile, U2 make it seven weeks atop the European albums chart - No Line On The Horizon keeps Gaga’s The Fame in second place and Quiet Nights by Diana Krall in third position.

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