US-ENTERTAINMENT Summary
Taylor Swift wins five American Music Awards
LOS ANGELES - Country crossover star Taylor Swift overshadowed the late Michael Jackson at the American Music Awards on Sunday, winning five prizes including artist of the year. Jackson, who had been expected to enjoy a clean sweep, ended up with four awards. He and Swift went head-to-head in the artist of the year race, the ceremony's final prize.
Smash "Twilight" sequel enters record books
LOS ANGELES - The "Twilight" sequel scored the third-biggest opening weekend of all time at the North American box office on Sunday, as millions of young women swooned over the complex love triangle involving a high school girl, a vampire and a werewolf. "The Twilight Saga: New Moon" earned an estimated $140.7 million during its first three days of release across the United States and Canada, closely held distributor Summit Entertainment said, crushing industry expectations.
Michael Jackson's glove sells for $350,000 at auction
NEW YORK - Michael Jackson's famous white glove sold for $350,000 at a memorabilia auction on Saturday, soaring far past pre-sale estimates, while a black jacket he wore during a 1989 world tour fetched $225,000. The Jackson memorabilia was the highlight of an auction of hundreds of rock'n'roll items, including many not associated with the "King of Pop," who died in June.
Singer Robbie Williams to court investors: report
LONDON deal, one of his managers was reported to say on Saturday. Managers for Williams, whose hits including "Angels" and "Let Me Entertain You," will court investors as a possible alternative to signing up with a record label, The Times newspaper said.
Michael Jackson's doctor says others gave him propofol
LOS ANGELES - Michael Jackson's personal physician told investigators he was not the first doctor to give the pop star propofol, the powerful anesthetic that was one of the drugs to cause his death, according to court papers unsealed on Friday. Dr. Conrad Murray, a target of the criminal probe into Jackson's death, recounted under questioning by a Los Angeles police detective that Jackson told him he was given propofol by two unnamed doctors in Germany, the affidavit states.
Taylor Swift's dream year brings out naysayers
LOS ANGELES - At what may be the height of her early career, teen sensation Taylor Swift finds herself facing the downside of stardom -- naysayers. The 19-year-old pop/country singer-songwriter heads in to Sunday's American Music Awards with a leading six nominations after a dream year of sold out concerts and the best-selling album in the United States.
LA attorneys distance Polanski from French lawyer
PARIS/LOS ANGELES - A French attorney for Roman Polanski who said the film director would not return voluntarily to the United States to face child sex charges is not authorized to speak in the case, Polanski's U.S. attorneys said on Friday. Polanski, 76, is being held in a Swiss prison pending a decision on a U.S. extradition request. He fled the United States in 1978 while awaiting sentencing for having unlawful sex with a 13-year-old girl, and he was arrested in September in Switzerland on a U.S. warrant.
Britney Spears' ex-boyfriend, photographer jailed
LOS ANGELES - A celebrity photographer who briefly dated Britney Spears at the height of her career meltdown was sentenced to 45 days in jail on Friday after clashing with an official trying to serve him a restraining order. Adnan Ghalib, 37, one of the paparazzi who trailed Spears night and day in 2007, was also ordered to complete an anger management program.
Oprah Winfrey says ending TV show "feels right"
CHICAGO - Oprah Winfrey said on Friday that she will end her popular TV show in 2011 because it "feels right in her bones" after 25 years, and urged viewers not to believe rumors of why she's quitting. "This show has been my life and I love it enough to know when it's time to say goodbye. Twenty-five years feels right in my bones, and it feels right in my spirit. It's the perfect number, the exact right time," Winfrey said during Friday's show at her Chicago studio.
Brad Pitt's production company enters "Dark Void"
LOS ANGELES - "Dark Void" will yield movie development matter. Indian giant Reliance BIG Entertainment and Brad Pitt's Plan B shingle are developing a film version of the upcoming video game, and Pitt could well star as the lead combatant.