Author Bill Zehme , the last person to interview Johnny Carson and biographer of Frank Sinatra and Andy Kaufman , has died. He was 65 and passed in Chicago after a long battle with colorectal cancer. Zehme was known for his ability to land interviews with hard-to-reach celebrities. His works included Intimate Strangers: Comic Profiles and Indiscretions of the Very Famous , as well as the biographies of Frank Sinatra, Andy Kaufman, Jay Leno, Hugh Hefner, and Regis Philbin, among others. In addition to his books, Zehme wrote for Playboy, Esquire, Rolling Stone, and Vanity Fair, among other magazines. He also served as supervising producer of the network television retrospective Taxi: A Celebration and was a consulting producer of the NBC-TV special A Comedy Salute to Andy Kaufman. He also won a 2004 National Magazine Award for Profile Writing. He graduated from Loyola University Chicago in 1980. Details on survivors or memorial plans were not immediately … [Read more...] about Bill Zehme Dies: Author Of Frank Sinatra, Andy Kaufman Biographies Was 65
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Steve Jobs — Iconic Portrait Was RIPPED OFF … Says Photog
Steve Jobs was vigilant in protecting his copyrights ... and now the photographer who shot his most iconic portrait is following Steve's lead ... and suing two artists who allegedly ripped him off ... TMZ has learned. The man behind the suit is Albert M. Watson -- a prolific photographer who's considered one of the most influential people to ever wield a camera. He shot Steve's famous portrait during a 2006 photo shoot ... and claims he owns the rights to the work. FYI -- the shot was used as the cover art on Walter Isaacson's biography, "Steve Jobs." But in his lawsuit, filed in federal court in NY, Watson claims two well known artists -- Alex Guofeng Cao and David Datuna -- used his famous "Steve Jobs" portrait as the basis for new pieces ... but they never got proper permission. Watson claims one of the unauthorized works, "Steve Jobs vs. Neil Armstrong, After Watson," has become popular and is being sold in multiple galleries across the country. He also … [Read more...] about Steve Jobs — Iconic Portrait Was RIPPED OFF … Says Photog
Whoopi Goldberg & Charlamagne Tha God Defend Mississippi TV News Anchor Who Was Removed After Quoting Snoop Dogg Lyric On Air
Barbie Bassett has not been on air for the NBC affiliate WLBT since March 8, when she and other employees were discussing Snoop Dogg’s addition to his wine line on air. Bassett said, “Fo shizzle, my nizzle,” when the idea of a Snoop collaboration with a newsroom journalist was raised. (“Nizzle” is slang for the N-word.) Two high-profile media personalities have now come to Bassett’s defense. “She can’t say, ‘Fo shizzle, my (expletive)?’ ” Charlamagne Tha God said Monday on his nationally syndicated radio program The Breakfast Club . “Oh, I guess because (it’s) a derivative of (N-word).” Charlamagne added: “She might not even know what (N-word) means. Come on, we got to stop man. That’s not a reason to fire that woman.” The 20-year WLBT anchor has not officially been fired, but her biography has been removed from the station’s web site. Whoopi Goldberg weighed in on the subject yesterday on The View . “There has to be a book of stuff that nobody could … [Read more...] about Whoopi Goldberg & Charlamagne Tha God Defend Mississippi TV News Anchor Who Was Removed After Quoting Snoop Dogg Lyric On Air