Beresford-Redman Cell Phone Extradition Defense

Sources tell TMZ Bruce Beresford-Redman’s cell phone — the one Mexican authorities confiscated and then abused — will become part of his extradition defense.

TMZ broke the story … Mexican cops seized Beresford-Redman’s cell phone after his murdered wife’s body was found, and ran up an AT&T bill totaling more than $3,800.

Now we’ve learned the bill was for a one-month period.  We’re told roaming calls were made to El Salvador and elsewhere.  Numerous calls were made to various locations in Mexico.

Sources tell us BBR’s lawyer will raise the cell phone abuse issue if Bruce has an extradition hearing.  Here’s the defense argument:  The Mexican police are covering for a crime waive committed at the hotel where Monica Burgos Beresford-Redman was murdered. There were two other suspicious deaths at the hotel and an attempted rape, allegedly by an employee at the Cancun hotel.

The defense has suggested, with tourism plummeting in Mexico, authorities needed a fall guy to prevent further erosion in tourism, and they picked BBR.

If Mexican cops misused evidence in the case — i.e. BBR’s cell phone — it further compromises their integrity.

Source: TMZ

Katherine Jackson May Have Screwed Herself

Katherine Jackson’s quest for money may have just cost her dearly … because TMZ has obtained legal papers from a South Korean newspaper that is going after everything she makes … until she pays off a $13 million debt.

Segye Times, a South Korean newspaper, filed papers with the Michael Jackson estate, informing the court it got a judgment against Katherine in 1994 for $4 million. That’s when the newspaper advanced Katherine, Joe and Jermaine $5.5 million for a series of Jackson family concerts that never took place.

Segye claims with interest the judgment now exceeds $13 million, and it wants an order from the judge forcing the estate to pay Segye any money the estate might pay Katherine.

Now here’s how Katherine screwed herself.  By making all the deals she’s been making — for books, gala events and such — she’s made it clear to the world her goal is to roll in dough and Segye has taken notice.

Source: TMZ

Zoe Saldana has got engaged.

The ‘Avatar’ star is betrothed to her boyfriend Keith Britton – who she has been with for 10 years – and the 32-year-old actress is said to be “thrilled” to be tying the knot.

A source told Us Weekly magazine: “They’ve been together forever. They’re a great couple.”

Zoe has always tried to keep her love life out of the spotlight and on some occasions she doesn’t even introduce the 33-year-old actor – who is also the CEO of My Fashion Database – as her partner.

A second source said: “She doesn’t even introduce him as her fiance. She will just say, ‘This is Keith.’ She likes to keep her personal life to herself and wants people to focus on her as an actress.”

Even though she is excited about the engagement, Zoe has been so busy working she hasn’t had a chance to start making wedding plans.

The screen beauty has already had two movies out this year, ‘The Losers’ and ‘Death at a Funeral’, and has a further two set for release ‘Takers’ and ‘Burning Palms’ in 2010.

The second source said: “She hasn’t stopped working to plan anything.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

Lohan Accused of Crimes Against Shoe-manity

Lindsay Lohan concocted a diabolical, fraudulent plan to defraud an L.A. boutique out of thousands of dollars … according to a lawsuit that will be filed today.

TMZ has obtained a copy of the suit, in which Tough as Nails — a boutique that sells expensive clothes, jewelry, and accessories — claims Lindsay shopped at the store between November, 2009 and February, 2010.

According to the suit, Lindsay racked up a bill of $17,060.83 and convinced the owners her business manager would pay the bill.  But much to the chagrin of the owners, Lindsay’s business manager paid a grand total of $180.

The suit, which will be filed in L.A. County Superior Court, alleges Lindsay “had no intention of causing her business manager to pay the entire balance.”

And there’s this — the suit claims the boutique owners relied on Lindsay’s “well known status as a movie actress with substantial income.”  Wrong on both counts.

The owners say Lindsay committed premeditated fraud and are seeking the balance — $16,880.63 — plus interest and punitive damages.

Yes, we see the 20 cent differential — but that’s the way it appears in the lawsuit. Apparently, the shop is giving LiLo a credit.

No comment from Lindsay’s camp.

Source: TMZ

MJ’s Las Vegas Rental Home Vandalized

TMZ has learned cops have just responded to the Las Vegas home Michael Jackson rented from 2007 -2009 after someone called in claiming the place had been vandalized.

Law enforcement sources tell us when cops arrived to the home, they found several walls inside the home had been spray painted with “illegible” graffiti.

We’re told no one has lived in the home for more than a year — and cops have no idea when the vandals may have struck.

In a related note — we’re told several people visited the home recently to commemorate the one-year anniversary of MJ’s death … and it’s likely one of the fans may have noticed the graffiti.

So far, cops have no suspects — and no arrests have been made.

Source: TMZ

The ‘True Blood’ actor is not prudish about stripping off, and thinks he enjoys freeing himself of clothes because of his Scandinavian upbringing.

Alexander – who was born in Stockholm – said in an interview with Popeater.com: “I’m not a prude. I’m from Sweden, and it’s different there. I love to be naked. It’s kind of liberating.”

Being comfortable with nudity is a must for the 33-year-old heartthrob – who plays sexy Viking vampire Eric Northman in the HBO television series.

He has already appeared naked on screens many times and been involved in numerous sexually charged scenes with a number of his female co-stars.

But the actor – who is reportedly dating 27-year-old actress Kate Bosworth – insists he is not willing to bare all for no reason.

He said: “If it makes sense, I’ll do nudity, and it’s made sense every single time I’m naked on the show.”

And Alexander is equally comfortable stripping off in front of men.

He revealed: “I’ve got a very, very graphic scene coming up [in ‘True Blood’] that I shot with a man.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

Shanna Moakler refuses to let her beef with “biblically correct” beauty queen Carrie Prejean die down — telling TMZ she’s gonna send the anti-same sex marriage poster child a wedding present … with a big, gay twist.

Shanna — the co-director of the Miss California USA pageant — tells TMZ she bought Carrie the Waterford Crystal picture frame from her wedding registry.

But in pure cat fight fashion, Shanna says she’s going to fill the frame with a picture from her photo shoot for “No on H8″ … the campaign dedicated to fighting the ban on same-sex marriage.

Shanna tells TMZ the people from the pageant “know Carrie ‘very intimately’ … if you know what we mean … and we didn’t want her special day to be forgotten.”

Read more at TMZ

The ‘High School Musical’ star – who has been dating her co-star in the Disney movie series for the last four years – admits she is grateful they started their careers together.

She said: “We got lucky because we started off together, so I think people like us because they fell in love with our characters. Right off the bat, we had a connection. I think everybody could see it. When we had our audition, they paired us together. And he was adorable. I mean, he wasn’t the guy that he is today. Like, he had a gap in his teeth. He was a whole different person.”

Despite the early chemistry between Vanessa and Zac, the 21-year-old actress-and-singer isn’t ready to take their relationship to the next level and move in with the ‘17 Again’ star.

She added to America’s Glamour magazine: “No. I mean, maybe… maybe house-hunting for houses on our own. I mean… which, I’m not. And he’s not, at the moment. So no. No. I just bought my house two years ago, and I adore it.”

Since getting her big break in the ‘High School Music’ movies the young star has also appeared in teen movie ‘Bandslam’.

But although her film choices have been for younger audiences, Vanessa is ready to move onto something more challenging.

She said: “Before ‘High School Musical’, I wanted to be a nitty-gritty actress. And ‘High School Musical’ came along, and I was like, ‘Oh my God, fun!’ When I am around kids and they come up to me, of course I am going to act a certain way, but at the end of the day, I’m doing this for myself. I’m going to be doing movies kids can’t watch.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

Will.i.am went on a furious hunt for justice after some scumbag broke into his Bentley last week and now cops say Will’s detective work — aided by his iPad — may have brought down a one-man crime wave.

As TMZ first reported, some bad guy made off with over $10,000 worth of the rapper’s jewelry and personal property — including a sleek new iPad — when he broke into the Black Eyed Peas member’s ride … which was parked in the Hollywood Hills.

But according to law enforcement sources, Will had a secret weapon — he used his iPad’s built-in tracking system to locate the thief’s whereabouts … and then forwarded the info to cops.

We’re told police already got most of Will.i.am’s stuff returned to him and are this close to arresting the perp — who’s currently on the run.

Read more at TMZ

The woman who plays Angela on the NBC show “The Office” is pulling the plug on her marriage … to a man who happens to be a writer and a producer on the show.

TMZ has obtained divorce papers filed by Angela Kinsey last week in L.A. County Superior Court, in which the actress cites irreconcilable differences with her husband of 10 years Warren Lieberstein.

In the docs, Kinsey has requested joint legal and physical custody of their two-year-old daughter.

The two have reportedly been separated since 2009 — but Angela’s rep has stated that they remain friends

Read more at TMZ

Oksana Grigorieva’s lawyers are lashing out at Mel Gibson’s lawyer for claiming Mel has been more than generous in supporting her and their baby.

Oksana’s lawyer, Marci Levine, tells TMZ, “The statement released to TMZ on behalf of Mel Gibson is based upon complete distortions of the truth regarding Mr. Gibson’s financial contributions toward the parties’ child and conveniently ignores his obligations to the parties’ child under California law.”

Mel’s lawyer, Stephen Kolodny had stated that Mel has opened up his wallet for Oksana, putting her up in a multi-million dollar house, buying her a car, providing health insurance and giving her “tens of thousands of dollars to support her and Lucia over the past months.”

Levine would not specifically say how Mel has fallen short, but sources connected with Oksana claim the actor has not paid child support since the couple split.

Levine says, “Mr. Gibson persists in attempting to ‘litigate’ this matter in the media, and continues to launch false accusations against the mother of his child.”

And Levine says, “Unlike Mr. Gibson, Ms. Grigorieva has not, and will not engage in this type of undignified banter in the press.”

Read more at TMZ

The ‘Twilight’ star has a lot of other ambitions away from acting and he is intrigued by the idea of being the head of his own faith.

He told the German edition of Glamour magazine: “I definitely want to record an album, direct a film and start my own religion.”

Robert can think of one major benefit to having his own believers – the lucrative tax breaks given to religions.

Speaking about the advantages of organised faith, he added: “Well, I definitely wouldn’t have to pay taxes anymore.”

It seems Robert has recently been musing about religion.

The 24-year-old actor addressed claims author Stephanie Meyer hides Mormon teachings and philosophy in her vampire books, especially final tome ‘Breaking Dawn’ in which character Bella Swan decides to keep a baby even though it threatens her life.

He said: “I think people make up all these Mormon references just so they can publish ‘Twilight’ articles in respectable publications. Even Stephanie said it doesn’t mean any of that. It is based on a dream.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

Megan Fox & Brian Green — Ring Off, Bikini On

For the first time ever, Megan Fox and Brian Austin Green rocked their wedding bands out in public yesterday … and then immediately took them off so they could frolic on the beach in their skivvies.

As we previously reported, the couple tied the knot late last week on the Big Island of Hawaii in a small, private ceremony at The Four Seasons hotel.

Yesterday, both Brian and Megan were still soakin’ up paradise — check out all the beachy bikini pics for yourself.

Read more at TMZ

Vince Neil’s Dirty Laundry — The Drinkin’ Shirt

Just four days before Vince Neil was arrested for DUI in Las Vegas — dude was boozing it up in Toronto … wearing the EXACT same outfit!!!!

TMZ obtained a photo of Vince hanging out at Cherry Cola’s Rock N’ Rolla Cabaret and Lounge in Toronto on Thursday night … where he was seen sipping champagne for roughly an hour … in that messy, floral button-down shirt.

You’ll recognize the shirt from the photo of Vince partying in Vegas late Sunday night … and from the mug shot he took on Monday morning after he was popped for DUI.

As we first reported, Neil’s wife told us the rocker was sober for three years before this latest binge. Vince is currently out on bail.

Source: TMZ

NFL Star Arrested: ‘White Boys Ganging Up on Me’

Cincinnati Bengals running back Cedric Benson turned himself into police today — after being accused of socking a bouncer in the face at an Austin, Texas bar back in May.

According to the police report, obtained by TMZ, Benson got into a fight with an unknown subject at Annie’s West bar at 1:50 AM on May 30. Cops say Benson was spitting blood from his injured lip.

The report continues … bar employees tried to calm Benson down — and the NFL star replied, “I don’t give a f*ck.”

Benson was asked to leave the bar … but refused … and had to be physically escorted out by security.

Once outside, Benson allegedly told a bystander, “All these white boys are ganging up on me and kicking me out.”

But according to the report, one bouncer heard Benson make the statement and replied, “I’m going to take time out of my busy job to kick you out?”

Benson then allegedly punched the bouncer in the face … and knocked the bouncer back.

Bystanders separated the men — and cops arrived shortly after.

Benson was charged with assault with injury. Bond was set at $5,000.

Source: TMZ

Carrie Prejean To Tie the Knot

“Biblically correct” beauty queen Carrie Prejean is about to do something that gays and lesbians can no longer do in California — she’s getting hitched.

TMZ has learned Prejean — a woman — is set to tie the knot with NFL quarterback Kyle Boller — a man — at The Grand Del Mar hotel in San Diego.

The big day is Friday.

Source: TMZ

Did Led Zeppelin Rip Off a Folk Singer?

Led Zeppelin must have been a little “Dazed and Confused” when it recorded the classic by the same name 41 years ago  — because it sounds just like a folk song — so says the folk singer who’s now suing Zep’s guitarist, Jimmy Page.

According to the Federal lawsuit obtained by TMZ, folk singer Jake Holmes says he snagged a copyright for “Dazed and Confused” in 1967, two years before Zeppelin recorded its version that sounds suspiciously similar.

Could it be — Zep ripped off a folk singer?  Listen to the 1967 recording.

Source: TMZ

Mel Gibson: I’ve Paid Oksana a Fortune

Mel Gibson’s lawyer claims the actor has opened his wallet to Oksana Grigorieva since their baby was born, but now that she’s allegedly breached their custody agreement Mel’s gonna get a little stingier.

Mel’s lawyer, Stephen Kolodny, tells TMZ Mel has opened the bank vault for Oksana … putting her up in a multi-million dollar house, buying her a car, providing health insurance and “giving Oksana tens of thousands of dollars to support her and Lucia over the past months.”

Kolodny says Mel has gone far above and beyond what’s required of him under a support and custody agreement the former couple reached in mediation.

But now, Kolodny claims Oksana has violated the agreement by refusing to let Mel see their daughter on Father’s Day, Mel is only going to pay Oksana what they agreed to in mediation and not a penny more.

Kolodny wouldn’t say how much Oksana is legally entitled to under mediation, but sources tell us it’s “well over $10,000 a month.”

Sources connected to Oksana tell a radically different story … claiming Mel hasn’t paid any support since they split.

Source: TMZ

Lawyer Gets Clutch Save at Dodgers Game

The L.A. Dodgers weren’t the only ones who choked on Sunday night — a VIP fan needed help after getting some food stuck in his throat … and he got assistance from the lawyer for the estranged wife of Dodgers owner Frank McCourt.

It all went down in the Dugout Club at Dodger Stadium — the fancy place where all the VIP fans hang out — when a middle-aged man began choking on a “meat product.”

We’re told another man rushed to his aid and began performing the Heimlich Maneuver … and successfully dislodged the meat product.

But our hero wasn’t any ordinary baseball fan — it was Marshall Grossman … the guy repping ousted L.A. Dodgers CEO Jamie McCourt in the bitter divorce that seems to be tearing the team apart.  As a matter of fact, we have no idea how the hell Grossman got on Frank’s turf in the first place … but thank goodness he was there.

After the incident, Marshall told the man he saved, “Next time you have a medical emergency, call a lawyer.”

Source: TMZ

Vince Neil — Toast of the Town Before DUI

Hours before Vince Neil was busted for DUI in Las Vegas … he was toasting with the bubbly at a Daytime Emmy Awards party.

Here’s Vince with local entertainment reporter Alicia Jacobs and chef Kerry Simon — we’re told the pic was taken just a few hours before Vince was busted.

Vince was arrested on suspicion of DUI — after he had an alleged run-in with a woman who claims she smashed his camera.

Source: TMZ

Jennifer Capriati’s Ex — ‘Perfect Storm’ Caused OD

Jennifer Capriati’s ex-boyfriend says he believes two big things went down in her life that caused her to accidentally OD on prescription drugs — his return to porn and her depression over tennis.

Dale DaBone dated Jen from 2003-2009 — if DaBone sounds like a porn star name … that’s because it is — and DaBone has 443 films under DaBelt.

DaBone claims Jen got horribly depressed every time a grand slam event went down. Interestingly, the OD occurred Sunday, during the time Wimbledon was on. Jen would always complain she was forced out of tennis because of injuries and began taking prescription meds.

But there’s something else that DaBone says sent Jen on a downward spiral – his recent return to porn … something Jen despised. DaBone signed on with Vivid Entertainment to star in “Batman XXX: A Porn Parody.”

DaBone tells TMZ after Jen OD’d, he called her in the hospital Sunday night and she was “hysterical” over his decision to return to XXX films.

But DaBone says he doesn’t believe Jen would try and kill herself.

Source: TMZ

Stripper Claims She was at MJ’s House with Murray

TMZ has learned … Joe Jackson’s lawyer will interview a stripper who not only claims Dr. Conrad Murray was at a strip club hours before Michael Jackson died, but that she was at Michael Jackson’s house after being invited by the doctor.

The stripper — who claims she was working at Sam’s Hof Brau on June 24, 2009 — claims Dr. Murray was at the club drinking just before midnight.

Now we’ve learned Brian Oxman, who is repping Joe in his wrongful death lawsuit, has spoken with the stripper’s “rep” who has scheduled a meeting.  Among the topics — the stripper claims weeks before Jackson died, Dr. Murray invited her to Jackson’s home in Holmby Hills. She claims she went late one night — after the club closed — and Jackson was there, however he was in a deep sleep.

In Oxman’s letter of intent to sue Dr. Murray, he accused the doc of drinking at Sam’s Hof Brau before treating MJ.

Dr. Murray’s reps have strongly denied he was at the club on June 24.  And, they say, Murray doesn’t drink.

Source: TMZ

Oprah Winfrey has been named the world’s most powerful celebrity.

The TV star – who fronts ‘The Oprah Winfrey Show’ and is the president of media company Harpo Productions – has topped the annual Most Powerful Celebrity poll conducted by Forbes magazine, knocking Angelina Jolie off the top spot with earnings of $315 million last year.

The 56-year-old star was previously named top of the coveted list in 2007 and 2008, before Angelina – who is now in 18th position – took over from her in 2009.

The 2010 figures also include a number of new stars, with Lady Gaga flying into fourth place with earnings of $62 million, behind Beyonce Knowles with $87 million in second, and film director James Cameron in third with $210 million earned last year.

The Forbes Most Powerful Celebrity list looks at wealth, TV/radio popularity, press rank, web rank and social status – with even twitter followers being taken into consideration.

The 2010 poll placed ‘Twilight’ star Robert Pattinson on the list for the first time, in 50th position following the success of the vampire movies, and after earning $17 million last year.

His co-star and rumoured girlfriend Kristen Stewart came 66th after earning $12 million from the franchise and working on new movie ‘The Runaways’.

Despite a tumultuous year in her personal life, Oscar-winning actress Sandra Bullock was placed eighth in the poll after pocketing $56 million in the past 12 months. She was just behind golfer Tiger Woods, who was placed fifth, Britney Spears, sixth, and rock band U2 - consisting of Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr. – who were placed seventh.

The top 20 Forbes Most Powerful Celebrity 2010 poll and their earnings from the past 12 months:

1. Oprah Winfrey – $315 million

2. Beyonce Knowles – $87 million

3. James Cameron – $210 million

4. Lady Gaga – $62 million

5. Tiger Woods – $105 million

6. Britney Spears – $64 million

7. U2 – $130 million

8. Sandra Bullock – $56 million

9. Johnny Depp – $75 million

10. Madonna – $58 million

11. Simon Cowell – $80 million

12. Taylor Swift – $45 million

13. Miley Cyrus – $48 million

14. Kobe Bryant – $48 million

15. Jay-Z – $63 million

16. Black Eyed Peas – $48 million

17. Bruce Springsteen – $70 million

18. Angelina Jolie – $20 million

19. Rush Limbaugh – $58.5 million

20. Michael Jordan – $55 million

Source: BANG Showbiz

Taylor Lautner still lives with his parents.

The 18-year-old actor – who is best known for playing werewolf Jacob Black in the ‘Twilight Saga’ – admits he is still expected to carry out domestic tasks in the home, despite his celebrity status.

He said: “I help out with the lawn, garbage, dishes”.

Even when he is away filming, Taylor’s parents don’t let him off his duties when he returns to the family home.

He joked: “When I come back, I have extra mowing to do.”

However, the actor insists he loves his home life and wants to retain normality for “as long as possible”.

He added to ‘The Today Show’ presenter Matt Lauer: “It’s very important to me. I describe it as I live two different lives. I have this life and do what I love to do, but I also have the same exact life as before and nothing has changed.”

Taylor recently admitted he didn’t think he could be in the ‘Twilight’ movies if he didn’t get on with his co-stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart.

He said: “The great thing about this series is how the whole cast is so close. It would be a nightmare if we weren’t. It would be impossible to make this series because the characters are so tight. We’re really thankful that we all get along so well.”

Source: BANG Showbiz

Robert Pattinson Has Revealed “no one can understand” What He Has Gone Through With Kristen Stewart

The 24-year-old actor – who is rumoured to be dating his ‘The Twilight Saga: Eclipse’ co-star – admits the brunette beauty is “wonderful” and says they have been on a magical “adventure” together.

He said: “Kristen and I have lived a great adventure together with the ‘Twilight’ films. We are very close and no one can understand what we’ve gone through together the last few years.

“When we’re together, we understand each other so well that we don’t have to say a lot to explain what we’re thinking. Kristen is a wonderful girl.”

However, the big screen heartthrob – who stars as vampire Edward Cullen in the movie franchise – admitted he shares his alter ego’s lack of success with the opposite sex.

He explained to new! magazine: “I do bear some similarities in the sense that I’m not good at romance. I also think I lack basic finesse when it comes to women.

“I give up too easily even if I’m very attracted to someone.”

Despite having to cope with the attention of his legions of female fans, Robert is still shy when it comes to dealing with his admirers.

He admitted: “I don’t want to disappoint girls who might think I’m very cool and smooth, which I’m not, I’m afraid. I’m still quite shy, although that seems to be something of an attraction for women.”

Source: BANG Showbiz