Members of a production crew working for the Late Show with Stephen Colbert were arrested on Thursday night at a US Capitol office building after taping a sketch involving Triumph the Insult Comic Dog. Nine individuals — including Triumph creator Robert Smigel — were charged with unlawful entry. According to CBS (via The Hollywood Reporter), the production crew was on-site at the Capitol on June 15th and 16th recording authorized and pre-arranged interviews with members of Congress. “After leaving the members’ offices on their last interview of the day, the production team stayed to film stand-ups and other final comedy elements in the halls when they were detained by Capitol Police,” CBS said in a statement. In their own statement, the US Capitol Police said that at the time of the arrest...
Britney Spears has been granted a restraining order against her ex-husband, Jason Alexander, after he broke into her home Thursday during her wedding to her longtime partner Sam Asghari. “I thank the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office for their good work,” Spears’ attorney Mathew Rosengart said in a press statement (via Billboard). “This was an outrageous and disgraceful security breach and I hope law enforcement does everything possible to ensure Mr. Alexander is fully and vigorously prosecuted and convicted for his criminal actions.” Rosengart also noted that an Emergency Protective Order, which expire after five to seven calendar days, had been put in place. EPOs function like restraining orders, but can be put into effect much more quickly, making them useful for urgent cases. Advertiseme...
David Koechner was arrested for the second time in six months for allegedly drinking and driving. TMZ reports that Koechner was pulled over by police in Southern Ohio shortly before 2:00 a.m. local time on June 4th after he was seen swerving his vehicle. He was arrested and charged with operating a vehicle under the influence. The 59-year-old actor/comedian, known for his roles in Anchorman and The Office, is currently touring the country on a standup tour. Despite the arrest, Koechner appeared as scheduled at an Office trivia event in Ironton, Ohio later that day. On New Year’s Eve 2021, Koechner was arrested on suspicion of DUI and a hit and run after he was seen driving erratically in Ventura County, California, and allegedly hit a street sign. Advertisement Consequence has r...
Ben Chew and Camille Vasquez, two of the lawyers who represented Johnny Depp in his recent highly-publicized trial, say “social media played no role whatsoever” in the jury’s decision to find Amber Heard guilty of defamation against her ex-husband. The attorneys appeared on both Good Morning America and The Today Show Wednesday morning to discuss the trial, which ended last week with both Depp and Heard receiving compensatory damages — though Depp’s sum was over $8 million more than Heard’s. “Social media played no role whatsoever [in the jury’s verdict],” Chew told GMA’s George Stephanopoulos. “This was a decision made by the jury on the evidence presented by both sides, and as Camille said [earlier in the interview], it was overwhelmingly in Mr. Depp’s favor.” Depp and Heard’s ...
Finally, some good news: Tonka — the chimpanzee who appeared alongside Alan Cumming in the 1997 biopic Buddy — has been rescued after going missing for over a year. PETA announced this week that the 38-year-old primate was found, after the organization won a years-long battle with his former owner Tonia Haddix. The Hollywood icon is now able to roam, play, and eat copious amounts of fruit in his new home at the Save the Chimps sanctuary in Florida. “I feel so emotional about this great news,” Cumming wrote in a statement. “When I met Tonka while filming the movie Buddy, I made a true friend, and I was honored that he thought of me as a fellow chimp. I’m dancing a jig that PETA has rescued Tonka from the woman who locked him away alone in a basement and lied about it. The thought of To...
While the trial for Johnny Depp’s $50 million defamation lawsuit against his ex-wife Amber Heard seemed to completely consume the American pop culture conversation during its six-week proceedings, the case was not compelling enough to hold the attention of the actual jurors deliberating it. In an interview with Law & Crime Network, which livestreamed the entire trial, the court-appointed stenographer Judy Bellinger revealed what the multi-camera set-up evidently did not capture: “There were a few jurors dozing off… It was tough,” she said. “There was a lot of video deposition and they’d just sit there and all of a sudden I’d see their heads drop.” Bellinger began by her sharing her perspective on the jury selection process before acknowledging potential, arguably more deserving, a...
Skylar Grey is the songwriter behind such hit singles as as Eminem and Rihanna’s “Love the Way You Lie” and Diddy’s “Coming Home.” Recently, she was forced to sell the rights to his entire musical catalog in order to finance her divorce from ex-husband, Elliott Taylor. “Since 2017 I was going through a divorce and lawsuit, that was just wrecking me emotionally and financially,” Grey told Variety, explaining that her radio silence in recent years was due to the legal dispute. “This past year, 2021, we finally resolved it, settled, I had to sell my catalog in order to afford the settlement, which was very sad in a way, because those songs like ‘Love the Way You Lie’ and Coming Home,’ those are my babies. But at the same time, nobody can tell me I didn’t write those songs just ’cause I don’t ...
Young Thug was denied bond by a Fulton County, Georgia judge on Thursday (June 2nd). After an hours-long hearing, the rapper — who was arrested last month on gang activity and racketeering charges — was deemed a potential danger to the Atlanta community and case witnesses. As The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports, Young Thug (born Jeffery Williams) pleaded not guilty during the hearing and his attorneys promised to hire a team of off-duty law enforcement officers to monitor his activity if he was allowed to enter house arrest. Williams’ attorney, Brian Steel, said the rapper was also willing to to wear an ankle monitor, undergo regular drug tests, and surrender his cellphone and passport. Both Machine Gun Kelly and 300 Entertainment co-founder Kevin Liles spoke on Young Thug’s behalf du...
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard have both issued statements in reaction to the verdict in their dueling defamation cases. After six grueling weeks of testimony, cross-examination, and scandalous allegations levied by both sides, a jury found Heard guilty of defamation against her ex-husband, Depp. “False, very serious and criminal allegations were levied at me via the media, which triggered an endless barrage of hateful content, although no charges were ever brought against me. It had already traveled around the world twice within a nanosecond and it had a seismic impact on my life and my career. And six year later, the jury gave me my life back. I am truly humbled,” Depp said in a statement reacting to the jury’s decision. “My decision to pursue this case, knowing very well the heig...
Update: In a statement to Billboard, Authentic Brands Group said they don’t intend to ban Elvis impersonators, but are instead requesting that chapels get licenses to continue their schtick. The Las Vegas tourist industry is taking a pretty big hit this week, as the licensing company that handles Elvis Presley’s estate has blocked the city’s wedding chapels from using his likeness in their ceremonies. As the Las Vegas Review-Journal reports, Authentic Brands Group (ABG), the company that oversees all Elvis-related merchandise, sent cease-and-desist letters to multiple Sin City chapels in May, arguing that unauthorized use of “Presley’s name, likeness, voice image, and other elements” constitute trademark infringement. The company counts “Elvis, “Elvis Presley,” and “The King of Rock and Ro...
The verdict is in. After six grueling weeks of testimony, cross-examination, and scandalous allegations levied by both sides, a jury has found Amber Heard guilty of defamation against ex-husband Johnny Depp. The jury awarded Depp $10 million in compensatory damages and an additional $5 million in punitive damages. But in the state of Virginia where the trial was held, punitive damages are capped at $350,000, and after the jury’s ruling was read out, Judge Penney Azcarate lowered the punitive damages to match. Depp’s total award is then $10.35 million. He had sought $50 million. The jury also weighed in on Heard’s $100 million countersuit, elements of which were awarded in her favor. The jury granted Heard $2 million total, all for compensatory damages, with no punitive damages assessed. Ad...
Kate Moss took the stand virtually on Wednesday in the $50 million Johnny Depp–Amber Heard defamation trial, pushing back against a rumor that her ex-boyfriend had shoved her down the stairs and undermining Heard’s testimony on the incident. The supermodel only spoke for a few minutes, with Heard’s defense team declining to cross-examine her, The Hollywood Reporter and Deadline reported. “He never pushed me, kicked me or threw me down any kind of stairs,” Moss said via video link from Gloucester, England. “As I left the room, I slid down the stairs and I hurt my back. And I screamed because I didn’t know what happened to me, and I was in pain. He came running back to help me and carried me to my room and got me medical attention.” Advertisement Related Video Depp and Mo...