Cruise Chokes Up About "Horrific" Travolta Tragedy
A shaken Tom Cruise struggled mightily to describe his feelings on the shocking death of Jett Travolta during an appearanced on The View.
"It's horrific," said Cruise, a close friend of John Travolta and Kelly Preston. "Both of them doting parents, just wonderful people...it's just...
"I remember Jett when he was born. I saw him when he was a few months old and John just adored him," he continued. "It's something I don't have the words..."
With Cruise barely holding it together, View maven Barbara Walters changed the subject, asking if Cruise had a response to critics who claim Scientology prevents parents from giving medication to their ailing children and have suggested the religion's rules played a part in the 16-year-old's death.
Update
Travoltas Prepare for Jett's Memorial
John Travolta and Kelly Preston, along with a small group of family and friends, are preparing to say goodbye to 16-year-old Jett with an intimate memorial service set for this afternoon in Ocala, Fla.
The service is expected to take place at the Travoltas' home at the Jumbolair Aviation Estates around 4 p.m. ET and will reflect the family's Scientology faith.
Fans have already begun leaving flowers, posters and other messages of sympathy for Travolta, Preston and 8-year-old daughter Ella at the gates of their estate.
Forest Whitaker, who costarred with Travolta in both Phenomenon and Battlefield Earth, also offered his condolences.
"Our families have had a long loving friendship, and John and Kelly are amazing parents," he said in a statement. "We have watched each other's children grow and cannot imagine the loss of Jett.
"He was a bright and beautiful young man, and we are honored to have known him. We ask that you continue to send them prayers, love and give them space to mourn."
Dennis Quaid Kids' O.D. Case Closed
Finally some closure for Dennis Quaid and family.
A Los Angeles judge today signed off on a $750,000 settlement between Dennis and Kimberly Quaid and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center over a potentially fatal overdose of blood thinners given to their newborn twins.
Per the deal struck in December and made official this morning, the hospital did not admit any wrongdoing for the 2007 incident in which Zoe Grace and Thomas Boone Quaid were accidentally administered 1,000 times the recommended amount of heparin (commonly used to flush out I.V.s).
Cedars was earlier fined $25,000 by the California Department of Public Health for the error.
Citing poorly labeled bottles, the Quaids sued heparin manufacturer Baxter Healthcare Corporation for negligence. According to settlement papers, that action was dismissed on jurisdictional grounds, because the event happened in California.
Ellen DeGeneres Pinch-Hits for Kate Hudson
Why was Kate Hudson late to last night's People's Choice Awards?
Blame her son, Ryder.
But it was all for a good reason. Kate was throwing the little guy a birthday party. He turned 5 yesterday. Which meant Hudson didn't get in her car until about 15 minutes before she was supposed to present the first award way across town at the Shrine Auditorium, says a source.
Hudson's rep tells me that she was actually in NYC yesterday morning doing Bride Wars press and jetted back to the West Coast for Ryder's bash.
So Ellen DeGeneres ended up filling in at the last minute, explaining to the audience that Hudson was stuck in traffic. Later on, Hudson dedicated her Favorite Leading Lady award to—who else?—Ryder.
At least Hudson made it—eventually. Who was a complete no-show last night?
Sightings: Brad Pitt Hops On His Hog
BUTTONED UP: Brad Pitt, zooming around L.A. yesterday on his motorcycle. Where was Angelina Jolie? A source says she was flying into town this morning for tonight's Critics' Choice Awards.
THIRST QUENCHERS: Leonardo DiCaprio, enjoying a glass of Provenance cabernet sauvignon at the opening-night gala of the Palms Springs International Film Festival while Sean Penn, Dustin Hoffman and Clint Eastwood drank Cîroc cocktails.
SHADY BUSINESS: Nicole Richie, picking out pinkish-red Anglo American vintage sunglasses from City of Angels Eyewear Co. in L.A. Baby daddy Joel Madden paid for them.
What funnyman did we catch with his drawers down? OK, maybe not. But we did spot him picking up some new skivvies...
Patrick Swayze Is Viewers' Choice
Wednesday TV's Big Winner: Patrick Swayze. The ailing star's tough-to-watch, impossible-to-tune-out Barbara Walters interview special averaged 12.6 million viewers, per Nielsen estimates, tops for the night.
Wednesday TV's Big, if Not Entirely Complete Comeback: CBS' People's Choice Awards (9.3 million) was up 55 percent in viewers over last year's writers'-strike-stricken affair. Compared to the show's most recent star-studded ceremony, in 2007, viewership was down about 18 percent.
CW's New Winning Strategy: Psychological terror. The network got, for the CW, a decent premiere from the horror-competition hybrid, 13: Fear Is Real (2.4 million). Among adults 18-34 at 8 p.m., the show was competitive against reruns and an all-new episode of NBC's canceled Knight Rider (5.7 million overall), a franchise that hasn't put a scare into anybody since 1982.
Biggest Surprise, After 27 Dresses Being Named Best Comedy: At 10 p.m., NBC's Law & Order (10.1 million) tied Walters' Swayze interview for first among adults 18-49.
Fergie & Josh's Joint Bachelor-Bachelorette Blowout
This is one way to avoid any "he fooled around with a stripper" rumors from messing up a marriage.
With their wedding just days away, Fergie and Josh Duhamel decided to commemorate the countdown to consortium by combining their respective bachelor and bachelorette parties into one on Wednesday night, with the bride-to-be's Black Eyed Peas pal, will.i.am, in attendance.
While we don't know if drinks were sipped through penis straws or whether any donkeys were harmed in the making of this shindig at the Dakota Lounge in Santa Monica, bystanders do claim the "Clumsy" singer did get, shall we say, a bit clumsy afterward.
And later, upon arriving home at about 1 a.m., what had been a party became more of a shower, literally, when Fergie's future hubby decided to keep the rest of the evening private from the paps by way of a standard garden hose.
While the photogs may have been temporarily washed out, here's hoping the couple's future together never gets washed up.
Exclusive
Blind Riddle: Which Heroes Star Wants Out?
Looks like T.R. Knight may be setting a trend.
Sources close to Heroes tell me that one of the show's stars has asked to leave the show at the end of the current season, in part because of a lack of screen time.
According to insiders, NBC has not yet decided whether this actor will be released from his or her contract; however, there is an apparent "death" planned for this season (somewhere in the last few episodes) that could wipe out this character for good.
So who is it?
Lindsay Lohan Hates Her Image...but Won't Change
Lindsay Lohan is having some image problems. Fortunately, she has the opportunity to talk it out with Lauren Hutton in next month's Interview magazine rather than ranting on MySpace.
So what’s ailing our dear LiLo? We’ll let her explain:
"I just feel as though it's become a situation where people have manifested this caricature of who I am, and they act as if there's no real person inside of it."
"And the worst part is," she continues...
Christie Brinkley, Ex-Hubby in New Blowup
You can't keep a good court battle down.
As if Christie Brinkley and Peter Cook weren't painfully familiar enough with the inside of a courtroom, the infamous exes appear to be heading for another legal face-off, thanks to a new allegation lobbed against the model by her ex-husband.
In papers submitted to New York State Supreme Court Tuesday, Cook asked a judge to hold Brinkley in contempt for allegedly failing to turn over 13-year-old son Jack's passport in a timely fashion, thus causing the boy to miss a planned school trip to Egypt.
But there's a rub: Cook was supposed to accompany his son on the November excursion and claims he missed out on some prime father-son bonding time as a result of Brinkley's custody-deal-breaching inaction.
"Jack missed the whole trip," Cook's lawyer, Steven Kuhn, tells Newsday. "Mr. Cook wishes that he didn't have to go to court."
Brinkley's lawyer, Peter Caronia, retorts that Cook's claims are "baseless and really rather petty."
Brinkley has until Feb. 17 to file a written response to the accusation.







