NEW YORK (AP) – NBC executives changed their minds Sunday and decided to join other networks that will televise Michael Jackson’s memorial service live this week. NBC joins ABC, CNN, MSNBC and E! Entertainment in offering the ceremony live. It’s set for 10 a.m. PDT at Los Angeles’ Staples Center. NBC had initially planned only […]

Guest lineup for the Sunday TV news shows: ___ ABC’s “This Week” – Vice President Joe Biden. ___ CBS’ “Face the Nation” – Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Sens. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y. ___ NBC’s “Meet the Press” – Pre-empted by coverage of Wimbledon tennis. ___ CNN’s […]

LOS ANGELES (AP) – A judge ruled Wednesday that Katherine Jackson will retain control of 2,000 items from Neverland Ranch until another hearing is held Monday, despite claims that the Jackson family had moved too quickly to take control of the pop star’s $500 million estate. Superior Court Judge Mitchell Beckloff called for a speedy […]

NEW YORK (AP) – Tributes to the King of Pop continue at New York City’s Apollo Theater, which has turned its weekly Amateur Night into a Michael Jackson celebration. Sixteen-year-old Mike Rios was the first to demonstrate his moves when the Harlem theater’s doors opened Wednesday night. The Elizabeth, New Jersey, boy wore a Jackson-inspired […]

NEW YORK (AP) – Michael Jackson had a mountain of unreleased recordings in the vault when he died – music that is almost certain to be packaged and repackaged for his fans in the years to come. The material includes unused tracks from studio sessions of some of Jackson’s best albums, as well as more […]

LOS ANGELES (AP) – A plan to bury Michael Jackson at his sprawling Neverland ranch fizzled Wednesday, leaving details about his funeral undecided as another mystery was solved: His newly unveiled will says his mother should raise his children, or failing her, Diana Ross. The changing funeral circumstances disappointed many Jackson fans who had descended […]

PETALUMA, Calif. (AP) — A prominent under-bite, scrunched face and floppy ears are the hallmarks of a winner. The winner of the World’s Ugliest Dog contest, that is. Pabst, a boxer-mix rescued from a shelter by Miles Egstad of Citrus Heights, Calif., won the annual contest on Friday at the Sonoma-Marin Fair in Northern California. It […]

LOS ANGELES (AP) — No Academy Award will be presented for best song at next year’s ceremony if none of the tunes is considered good enough, Oscar organizers said Friday. Rules for the 82nd Oscar show next March will require that at least one song must achieve a minimum score of 8.25 on a scale of […]

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Farrah Fawcett, whose stunning looks and blinding smile made her a pop icon of the 1970s, has died. She was 62. Her spokesman, Paul Bloch, says Fawcett died Thursday morning in a Santa Monica hospital. Her 21/2-year battle with cancer was depicted in the TV documentary “Farrah’s Story.” She burst on […]

LOS ANGELES (AP) – Adam Lambert says an album of tunes he recorded before “American Idol” won’t be anything like what he’s planning now. Songs recorded by Lambert before his rise on the popular Fox singing competition are slated to be released this summer on the album “On with the Show” from Hi Fi Recordings […]