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Showbiz Tonight
Teri Hatcher Opens Up about Sexual Abuse; Is Tom Cruise Alienating His Audience?
Aired May 02, 2006 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BROOKE ANDERSON, CO-HOST: Is Tom Cruise alienating his fan base? I`m Brooke Anderson in New York.
SIBILA VARGAS, CO-HOST: And the controversial movie that shows what would happen if immigrants disappeared. I`m Sibila Vargas in Hollywood. TV`s only live entertainment news show starts right now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON (voice-over): On SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, Teri Hatcher`s "desperate" struggle with sexual abuse. Her first TV interview about the horrifying things her uncle did to her when she was a child. Why she kept it a secret for so long, and the devastating way it still affects her today.
TERI HATCHER, ACTRESS: As an adult woman, you know, in intimate relationships it is something that I`ve really struggled with.
ANDERSON: Tonight, Teri Hatcher`s candid interview with Oprah Winfrey about some of the darkest moments of her life.
Cell phone video, violent and voyeuristic.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I`m going to go huffy (ph) hunting.
ANDERSON: Vicious, unprovoked attacks just for the fun of it, posted on the Internet. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT investigates brutality caught on camera that has to be seen to be believed.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VARGAS: Hello. I`m Sibila Vargas is live in Hollywood.
ANDERSON: And I`m Brooke Anderson live in New York City.
Sibila, an extraordinary thing happened on television today, something that could frankly be called the sexual confessions of a "Desperate Housewife."
VARGAS: That`s right, Brooke. It was really unbelievable. "Desperate Housewives" star Teri Hatcher sat for an hour with Oprah Winfrey and talked about her tormented past. It was sometimes hard to watch as Hatcher spoke candidly about her uncle, who sexually abused her when she was a child.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HATCHER: I remember so many things. I remember the position that he put me in and I remember the color of the carpet. And I remember what his penis looked like, and I remember what he wanted me to do to it.
VARGAS (voice-over): A teary Teri Hatcher on "Oprah" today to publicly share the sex abuse secret she`s held private for so many years.
On the outside, Teri Hatcher seems to have it all. She`s the much photographed star of the hit show "Desperate Housewives".
HATCHER: What the hell?
VARGAS: But on the inside, Hatcher is dealing with a painful past. For decades she`s lived with a secret that she has never shared with anyone, not even her parents, until now.
A recent interview with "Vanity Fair" magazine started it all. It was there that Teri revealed that her uncle had sexually abused her as a child. She went on "Oprah" today, her first television interview since sharing her story.
HATCHER: The worst thing I remember that really has stuck with me forever is that he was touching me.
VARGAS: Hatcher says her uncle, Richard Stone, molested her for three years, starting when she was only 5 years old. She says he used to abuse her in his car, taking her out on drives and pulling over on the side of a road or in parking lots.
She tells Oprah that, even at age 41, the memories are still there.
HATCHER: He said to me, "Doesn`t this feel good?"
And I said, no.
And he said, "Well, some day you`ll know what I`m talking about."
You know, I have to say, as an adult woman, you know, in intimate relationships it is something that I`ve really struggled with.
VARGAS: like many abuse victims, Hatcher says she remembers the shame that followed.
HATCHER: I guess I wanted that special attention, and that`s part of the horror of...
OPRAH WINFREY, TALK SHOW HOST: That is -- that is -- well that is why...
VARGAS: Hatcher wasn`t the only one that her uncle abused. He also molested another young girl, w girl who ended up committing suicide because of it.
When Hatcher found out about the other girl`s abuse, she decided to come forward with her own story. She went to authorities. Her deposition helped send her uncle away to prison for 14 years.
Like with many victims of sexual abuse, Hatcher`s molestation has hurt her adult sex life. In her new book, "Burnt Toast", Hatcher tells how her nearly nine-year marriage to John Tenney was virtually platonic. Sexual intimacy, she tells Oprah, has been a source of frustration.
WINFREY: In the book you say your whole honeymoon you didn`t have sex.
HATCHER: Right. I was picking up shelves in P.J.s.
WINFREY: Yes.
HATCHER: Yes.
WINFREY: I now see that connected to the abuse.
You say you know the day your daughter was conceived because...
HATCHER: The only time we had sex that year.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VARGAS: Teri says she has done a lot work on herself and is now ready for love. She`s also urging other women to come forward with their stories of sexual abuse and to certainly not blame themselves.
Brooke, back to you.
ANDERSON: Admirable she`s trying to help others with her experience. OK, thanks, Sibila.
Joining us live in New York now is clinical psychologist Judy Kuriansky to talk about this.
Welcome Judy.
JUDY KURIANSKY, CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Pleasure to be here, Brooke.
ANDERSON: As we just heard in the piece she says, Teri says, still today she struggles, has problems with her sex life. Is that common for women who have been sexually abused and experienced that?
KURIANSKY: It`s very common, and very common, too, that this happened to her when she was 5 to 9 years old, and it`s taken all these years, decades.
ANDERSON: Decades.
KURIANSKY: And this is what happens with women, that 20, 30, 40 years later, I`ve seen women that when they`re 40, 50 even 60 all of a sudden they`re willing to face what happened and to confront it and to deal emotionally with it.
Because she suffered a great deal. And the things that Teri Hatcher described, Brooke, are totally common what women go through. They go through the shame and guilt. Sometimes what did I do to bring this upon me? Anger. And sexual problems well into their life.
ANDERSON: She`s very open about everything she experienced, about relationships now, her sex life now. But also, she`s a celebrity, in the public eye. You know, every move with Ryan Seacrest was photographed. There were rumors about George Clooney.
KURIANSKY: Yes, yes.
ANDERSON: What impact does the public attention and the scrutiny have on someone who has experienced such a trauma?
KURIANSKY: Well, actually, it`s interesting, Brooke, because it is good for their own healing sometimes to be so public about it. So she`s already public, adding this to her public image. Not only do people see her as real person. You can say, oh, she`s not just this celebrity who`s, you know, a "Desperate Housewife." She`s a real person I can relate to her, people can think.
But also when people really become public about it, when they admit this happened to me, it can be healing in the sense that now they don`t have to hide anymore. And she even says this, Teri Hatcher says she was hiding all those years. So in that way, having people know gets over some of the shame and the guilt when it`s out in the open.
ANDERSON: Oh, it just takes the weight off their shoulders.
Judy, very quickly I want to look at something she said to Oprah that we didn`t include in the piece. But she talks about her co-stars on "Desperate Housewives", kind of compares herself to them. Let`s take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP0
HATCHER: Everyone now has a boyfriend...
Sad to me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
KURIANSKY: Sad to me.
HATCHER: It`s like she doesn`t feel worth of love. Is this essentially how victims feel?
KURIANSKY: This is indeed how they feel. They feel that they`re not worthy because they did something that brought this on as being abused, and don`t get -- the issue is that some male has had power over you. And you haven`t really been able to say no.
And so this is what perpetuates in real life and creates problems with men, as she admits that she has, in fact, had. Didn`t have sex in her marriage, for some years. She was married for nine years, didn`t have sex for the first year, not on their honeymoon. That sexual inhibition, the fear of saying no.
And she also has a young daughter. So this is very important, because she needs to deal with that with her daughter, 10-year-old girls are very precocious at that age. And so she has to let her know what it means to be able to say no.
ANDERSON: And set a good example.
KURIANSKY: Yes.
ANDERSON: And it`s important not keep it bottled up, right?
KURIANSKY: Extremely important.
ANDERSON: All right. We will have to leave it there. Judy Kuriansky, thank you so much. Clinical psychologist Judy Kuriansky.
VARGAS: Well, tonight, two actors from "The Sopranos" are finding themselves in the middle of some real-life crime dramas. We`ll start with John Ventimiglia. He plays the self-pitying chef, Artie Bucco on the HBO hit series.
Well, Ventimiglia was arrested yesterday in Brooklyn and charged with drunk driving, cocaine possession and some other driving violations. He was released on his own recognizance.
But wait, there`s more. The actor who plays Tony Soprano`s new bodyguard also ended up in jail over the weekend. Louis Gross, he plays "Muscles Marinara, you know him? Was arrested on charges of breaking into a home in Queens, New York.
At his arraignment yesterday, Gross said, quote, "I don`t know nothing. I`m innocent. I`m always innocent."
At least five members of the cast of "The Sopranos" have been arrested in the past year -- Brooke.
ANDERSON: Before you know it, the new "Superman" movie will be here, faster than a speeding bullet. Yes, I said it. And we have your first look at "Superman Returns" coming up in the "SHOWBIZ Showcase."
And we`ve also got this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I just think that Tom Cruise is kind of a spectacle of ridiculousness.
(END VIDEO CLIP0
VARGAS: Tom Cruise has a big movie coming out soon, but will audiences be turned off by his personal life? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT asks, is Tom Cruise alienating his fan base? That`s coming up.
ANDERSON: Plus, outrageous video put online for its shock value. We`ll look into the violent and dangerous video that`s reaching cult status, coming up.
VARGAS: But first, tonight`s "`Entertainment Weekly` Great American Pop Culture Quiz." In which of his own movies does director Martin Scorsese not make an on-screen appearance? "Taxi Driver", "Casino", "The Age of Innocence" or "Gangs of New York"? Think you know the answer? We`ll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And straight move. Guys we cannot wait to show to you -- it`s very exciting -- a first look at "Superman". But first, Sibila, reset, go.
VARGAS: All right. So again, tonight`s "`Entertainment Weekly` Great American Pop Culture Quiz." In which of his own movies does director Martin Scorsese not make an on-screen appearance? "Taxi Driver", "Casino", "The Age of Innocence" or "Gangs of New York"? If you answered B, "Casino", you`re absolutely right.
ANDERSON: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, TV`s only live entertainment news show. I`m Brooke Anderson.
Well, it is time now for the story that made all of us here at SHOWBIZ TONIGHT say, "That`s ridiculous!" Tonight`s story just proves that there`s a competition out there for everything, guys.
The international German beard and moustache championships took place in northern Germany over the weekend. Look at that guy. About 100 participants from eight countries showed up to compete. That`s the windmill.
Now, you`re looking at the champion in the free-style beard category. Get this: there are 16 beard and mustache categories. We just have to say, that is ridiculous!
Sibila, there`s even a Beard and Mustache World Association that promotes appreciation worldwide of mustaches and beards.
VARGAS: No way. No way.
ANDERSON: Yes. And coordinate events like the one we were just talking about, competitions.
VARGAS: That`s crazy. You know what? To each his own, everybody, you know, but you got to feel sorry for the ladies of these men. I mean, because -- I mean, I get like little razor stuff, and that bothers me, but that is ridiculous.
ANDERSON: Yes. Hope that they keep them clean.
VARGAS: Absolutely. Well, let`s move on.
In tonight`s "SHOWBIZ Showcase", Superman returns to the big screen this summer after several years of absence. And the man of steel comes back to earth in a new chapter and faces the heartbreaking realization that the woman he loves has moved on with her life without him.
Here`s your first look at "Superman Returns."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Mr. Luther, we`re approaching the coordinates.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is where he learned who he was. This is where he came for guidance.
KEVIN SPACEY, ACTOR: Tell me everything.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let`s start with the big question. Where did you go?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Your father used to say that you were put here for a reason.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. The world can always use more good reporters.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I want to know it all, everything. Olsen, I want to see photos of him everywhere.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hey, welcome back! See you met the munchkin?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hello. Fearless reporter Lois lane is a mommy, but if you ask me, she`s still in love with you know who.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Does he still stand for truth, justice, all that stuff?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Superman Returns.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: How could you leave us like that?
BRANDON ROUTH, ACTOR: It was not easy for me to live my life being who I am, keeping secrets.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The world doesn`t need a savior and neither do I.
SPACEY: So long, Superman.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Lex Luthor.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You`re bald.
SPACEY: Cute kid.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come with my, you`re not going to want to miss this.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What`s wrong?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Lois and Jason are missing.
SPACEY: I`ve advanced the technology.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Millions of people will die.
SPACEY: Billions!
Come on. What do you say?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I say...
SPACEY: No! The other thing.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Superman will never...
SPACEY: Wrong!
Bring it on!
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look, in the sky, chief.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It`s a bird.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s a plane.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, look it`s --
ROUTH: You wanted to see me?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
VARGAS: Superman is played by one of "People" magazine`s 100 most beautiful people, Brandon Routh. Got to say, he`s looking pretty good.
ANDERSON: Pretty good. Got some big shoes to fill.
All right. Tom Cruise could be considered a bit of a super man himself. He cruised past his whirlwind year of public wackiness to win box office gold with "War of the Worlds" last year, but can he do it again?
Cruise, in Mexico recently promoting "Mission: Impossible 3", has a close relationship with his fans. But a new audience research study says his female fans might be turning on him.
Whether it was the couch-jumping on "Oprah" or his very public battle with Brooke Shields on post-partum depression, the new study says that his popularity, or his "Q score" has slid from 30 percent in recent years to just 19 percent this year.
So SHOWBIZ TONIGHT hit the streets for our own informal survey, to see why these days women might find it an impossible mission to watch Cruise at the movies.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I won`t see his movie, because it doesn`t look interesting to me. Also, I`m incredibly sick of him. He`s insane. He bugs the hell out of me.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think I`ll see the movie if I think it would be a good movie, but currently I`m -- I just think that Tom Cruise is kind of a spectacle of ridiculousness. And the whole thing with Katie Holmes, it`s like can anyone actually believe that that`s real love and that there`s something honest going on there?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This whole, you know, Scientology this is too much. Him and Katie, it seems like it`s not real. So it`s hard for me to go see his movie, because I feel like -- I don`t know. I -- sometime have to admire actors you see in films and I don`t look at him like that anymore. Used to be fine. Like last year and then he started acting crazy.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Tell us how you really feel! So has Tom Cruise lost his appeal with women at the theaters?
Joining me live from Hollywood is Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box office tracking firm, Exhibitor Relations. Or Pauly D. as we like to call him around here.
Hey, Paul.
PAUL DERGARABEDIAN, PRESIDENT, EXHIBITOR RELATIONS: Hey, how you doing, Brooke?
ANDERSON: Doing great. Thanks.
OK. You hear what the ladies had to say, but do you buy it? Will women say they`re not going to the theater? Will -- will they stay away from "Mission: Impossible 3" because of Tom Cruise`s personal life?
DERGARABEDIAN: Well, I think the studio certainly hopes they go to the movie theater. And I mean, really, when you look at those interviews, it`s kind of scary from a marketing perspective if that`s how the majority of women feel.
I think ultimately, though, people make their moviemaking decisions based on the marketing, based on the premise of the film. "Mission: Impossible 3" is certainly a huge franchise. And, you know, once people kind of separate that whole personal life from, you know, this is just a movie, then I think things will be OK.
And remember last year, "War of the Worlds" opened to 65 million dollars. That`s Tom Cruise`s biggest opening weekend ever, and ultimately made over $235 million domestically. That`s his biggest grossing film.
So can you say, after all that hoopla last year, that it hurt "War of the Worlds"? Not at all. This will be a true test, though, this weekend with "Mission: Impossible 3."
ANDERSON: And you say the studio, I`m sure, is hoping that people go to the theater. Well, we called that studio, Paramount Pictures, the distributors of "M:I:III, about the survey that says his popularity is down. And they tell us they`ve got nothing to worry about.
Quote, "Tom Cruise is the most bankable star in the world."
But is he bankable without big movie franchise like "Mission: Impossible 3"? I mean, some say this is a sure bet, but what about movies that don`t have a big following?
DERGARABEDIAN: That remains to be seen. And I think that`s the X factor. How in the future will all of this attention paid to his public persona affect the future box office?
However, I think it`s true. He is the biggest draw, I think, arguably, in the world, regardless of all of this stuff that`s going on. I think we`re going to see big numbers from "M:I:III" this weekend.
He seems sort of like Teflon coated in this way, that he can sort of do whatever he wants, and he`s vindicated through his box office. Remember, this is a guy who`s had 13 films in his career earn over $100 million, and he generally opens movies at No. 1. I think that will continue.
But again, it`s something to look at and when you look at -- you showed at the beginning, those interviews with those women, you can`t ignore that kind of thing. And in the long term, that will be the true test.
ANDERSON: And in those interviews some of the ladies said they were distracted by him. Is that a problem for him? That people are now going to look at the screen and say, there`s Tom Cruise, and not be able to separate him from the character he`s playing?
DERGARABEDIAN: Well, you can almost say that going back even many years, because he`s such a big star that when you see him in a movie, you know that`s Tom Cruise. He`s a good enough actor, though, in a lot of grace roles that he`s able to transcend that and take you out of that mindset and make you believe he is who he is portraying on-screen.
So you know, I think it`s really about the projects that he chooses, the filmmakers that he works with and how good those movies are ultimately that will determine his success in the future.
ANDERSON: We will see how Teflon Tom does this weekend. Paul Dergarabedian, president of the box office tracking firm, Exhibitor Relation. As always, thanks so much.
VARGAS: The ongoing immigrant debate -- the ongoing immigrant debate and the Spanish language version of the national anthem, has been stirring up a lot of controversy, and we`ve been getting an overwhelming response to last night`s question of the day.
We asked national anthem: was it wrong to record the song in Spanish? Here`s how the vote is running so far. Seventy-seven percent of you say yes, and 23 percent of you say no.
Here are some of the e-mails that we received. Celia from California writes, "If you truly call yourself an American, then you accept the national anthem as is, written in English and sung in English."
Nate from Mississippi writes, "Why can`t people who adore this country sing the national anthem in whatever language they know?"
Do want to be heard? Keep on voting at CNN.com/ShowbizTonight and send us your e-mail at ShowbizTonight@CNN.com. We`ll read more of your thoughts later in the show.
ANDERSON: OK. A movie called "A Day Without a Mexican" suddenly has new relevance as the immigrant debate rages on. We`re going to take a look at the film`s premise, what would happen if immigrants disappeared, plus talk to the star, coming up.
VARGAS: Plus, vicious, unprovoked attacks just for the fun of it, posted on the Internet. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT investigates brutality caught on camera.
And we also have this...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: But I`m the decider and I decide what is best...
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: It`s the presidential quote that has taken on a life of its own. Is "decider" even a word? We`re going to let you decide for yourself, coming up. Stay with us.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
VARGAS: Magicians David Blaine`s latest, filled with water outside of Lincoln Center in New York for a week. At the end of the week he`ll take out his oxygen tube and attempt to break a record holding his breath under water for nine whole minutes.
This morning, Blaine got a little company under water. On "Live with Regis & Kelly", Kelly Ripa got underwater with him and she asked the question, the one question that everybody has been wondering about. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KELLY RIPA, CO-HOST, ABC`S "LIVE WITH REGIS & KELLY": It`s probably too late for me to ask you this. How and where are you going to the bathroom?
DAVID BLAINE, MAGICIAN: You`re standing in it! Just kidding. None of this. There`s a little catheter tube thing and there`s a really strong filtration. So you kind of push into there and everything goes right through the filter.
RIPA: Are you going to sell that on eBay?
BLAINE: No.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: She was getting a little murky in there. Well, Blaine will emerge from the tank on Monday. A two-hour TV special called "David Blaine: Drowned Alive" will be on. So watch.
ANDERSON: Eminem`s wife wants something now that she has filed for divorce. We will tell you what Kim Mathers is asking for, coming up.
Also ahead...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It reminded me of the kid of language my 6-year- old plays.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VARGAS: He`s talking about President Bush and his infamous quote that he is the decider. Is that even -- is that even a word? We`ll let you know if decider is a word coming up.
ANDERSON: Plus, outrageous video put online for its shock value. We`ll look into the violent and dangerous video that`s reaching cult status on the Internet. That`s coming up. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT will be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. It`s 31 minutes past the hour. I`m Brooke Anderson in New York.
VARGAS: And I`m Sibila Vargas in Hollywood. You`re watching TV`s only live entertainment news show.
ANDERSON: Sibila, a movie that was released a couple of years ago is now in the spotlight again as this immigration debate rages on. It`s a film that depicts what would happen if immigrants just disappeared, just like that. Coming up, we`re going to take a look at that movie, the parallels, and also talk to the writer and the star of the film.
VARGAS: It will be interesting to get her perspective.
And, Brooke, I don`t know about you, but, you know, sometimes I just feel sorry for the president. He`s always saying something that kind of gets him into trouble, and the comedians just love him because of it. Well, recently, I know you`ve heard that he called himself "the decider." And that has got a lot of people scratching their head wondering, "Is the decider even a word?" We`ll we`re going to find out. That`s coming up.
ANDERSON: Luckily, the president seems to have a sense of humor. All right, Sibila.
But, first, I`m sure you`ve all seen all kinds of videos online: weird ones, funny ones, outrageous ones. Well, the ones we`re about to show you, where teenagers beat each other up, well, it made our jaws drop. It makes us want to say, "What`s wrong with people?" And, sadly, this tragic trend caught on tape has turned deadly.
Here`s CNN`s Paula Newton for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
PAULA NEWTON, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): It`s violent, voyeuristic video and, incredibly, they call this chilling craze "happy- slapping." Just watch what happens.
One person holds the camera phone and gets this schoolboy`s attention and then, there it is, out of nowhere, he`s whacked. It`s brutality that passes for entertainment, e-mailed to friends, posted on the Internet, even rated for its "gotcha" value.
Look closely as this man is hit twice. He staggers away; his attackers so bold, he tells the victim to go home.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go home now, mate! You`re bleeding.
NEWTON: British police say these are sadistic crimes.
ELLIE O`CONNOR, BRITISH POLICE INVESTIGATOR: These souls are far from happy. They are vicious, unprovoked attacks on persons ranging from approximately 12 years well into their 30s and 40s.
NEWTON: Attacks that can kill. Triston Christmas died when he was smacked to a cement floor, and the camera just kept on rolling.
SIOBHAN CHRISTMAS, SON KILLED BY HAPPY-SLAPPING: It makes me ill. It makes me ill.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I feel like I`m in a dream. I just feel it`s not real. How can people do that? I mean...
S. CHRISTMAS: There`s my baby.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: It`s sick. It`s absolutely sick.
NEWTON: The attacker is now behind bars. But to cope with their grief, Triston`s family has issued blunt appeals, especially to teenagers.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: This isn`t a joke. It`s not funny. Someone`s died, a young, young, young man with his whole life ahead of him.
NEWTON: But there is no denying the cult status of happy-slapping. Again and again, thousands of people click and get millions of hits, outrageous video to be downloaded for its shock value.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I`m going to go happy-slapping!
NEWTON (on camera): It used to be that some just craved their 15 minutes of fame. Now, it`s 15 megs of fame, and it`s really easy to get. You shoot just a few seconds of video and, within hours, you`re a star all over the Internet.
(voice-over): What some seem to forget is that this is assault, a crime, but one that goes largely unreported. And that makes the attackers bold enough to broadcast the slapping just for kicks.
DR. GRAHAM BARNFIELD, MEDIA WATCHDOG, UNIVERSITY OF EAST LONDON: If you were a career criminal, the point is to make the evidence disappear. If you`re a happy-slapper, you`re manufacturing evidence against yourself, and so it`s that use of humiliation of entertainment that makes it so disturbing.
NEWTON: Disturbing and so outrageous, some of the video has captivated millions. Take this footage. It may have been staged, but, even so, it got the whole country talking.
Watch as this happy-slap victim turns the tables. Just the thought that one brave soul slapped that happy-slapper back consoled many. They called him the "have a go" hero, and it speaks to how fed up and fearful many now are about a prank that sounds innocent and is anything but.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Horrible violence of any kind: not funny. That was CNN`s Paula Newton for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
VARGAS: Well, tonight, it`s Pearl Jam`s turn to bash President Bush. Now, we`ve been telling you about a lot of artists who are coming down hard on the president.
This week, Bruce Springsteen criticized the administration for handling Hurricane Katrina. Also, Neil Young told me in an exclusive interview how he disagrees with the war in Iraq. He`s got a new album and a song, "Let`s Impeach the President," which you can download starting tomorrow.
Now, Pearl Jam is singing out in protest. The `90s grunge band has a brand-new self-titled album out today. Take a listen to this antiwar jab at President Bush, called "World Wide Suicide."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PEARL JAM, BAND (singing): It`s a shame to awake in a world of pain. What does it mean when a war has taken over. It`s the same every day and the wave won`t break. Tell you to pray, while the devil`s on their shoulder. The whole world, the world, it`s a world wide suicide.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
VARGAS: Not catching a break. This is Pearl Jam`s eighth album. And just so you know, they`ve dissed President Bush in other albums, too -- Brooke?
ANDERSON: Well, it seems Pearl Jam and others in Hollywood may disagree with the president`s decisions. President Bush isn`t backing down. He let everyone on TV know that he`s -- he let everyone know on TV, rather, that he`s decider in chief. And since then, everybody`s talking about it.
So what do you think? We`ll let you decide for yourself. Here`s CNN`s Jeanne Moos for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): To his critics, he has become the decider in chief, ever since these fateful words escaped his lips.
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: But I`m the decider, and I decide what is best. And what`s best is for Don Rumsfeld to remain...
MOOS: But what also remained was that quote.
JON STEWART, HOST, "THE DAILY SHOW": The Decider!
STEPHEN COLBERT, HOST, "THE COLBERT REPORT": He`s the decider.
MOOS: It made it on to blogs; it made it on to t-shirts. You could be the Decider or Undecider. Robin Williams chose decisively.
ROBIN WILLIAMS, ACTOR: The decider just seems to be a progression. You just kind of go -- every time he stands next to Tony Blair, I just want to put a telethon number.
MOOS: "The Daily Show" turned the quote into a comic strip.
STEWART: It`s time for another exciting installment of...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The Decider!
MOOS: It shows W as a superhero with a D on his chest and his cape.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Wow. He`s always wrong, but he sure is decisive.
MOOS: Big-named columnists like Maureen Dowd and Frank Rich chimed in, as did regular folks.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: But when somebody calls themselves a decider, it`s more parental, or omniscient, or God-like.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It reminded me of the kind of language games my 6- year-old plays.
MOOS: A little like the kids rant in the film "Gloria."
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am the man! Do you hear me? I am the man! I am the man!
MOOS: But before you circle it as wrong...
(on camera): ... we report, you decider. Is it a real word?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No. I think it`s a made-up word.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m sure, in his world, it is.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, I suppose you could use it. Decider, yes, it`s a real word.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: To me, it is not, no.
MOOS: Yes?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But, yes, it is.
ERIN MCKEANE, DICTIONARY EDITOR: The decider is a perfectly fine, perfectly acceptable word.
MOOS: It`s listed in the dictionary as a noun, though dictionary editor Erin McKeane says...
ERIN MCKEANE, DICTIONARY EDITOR: The word usually used is decisionmaker.
MOOS: But if the president had said decisionmaker, detractors wouldn`t have the Decider to deride.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (singing): I am the egghead. I`m the commander. I`m the Decider, koo-koo-ka-choo.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: That was CNN`s Jeanne Moos for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
VARGAS: Well, we were so flooded with your response to our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day" last night that we decided to ask you again tonight. It`s about the Spanish remix of "The Star-Spangled Banner." National anthem: Was it wrong to record the song in Spanish?
Here are some of the e-mails you sent us so far. Now, Gwen from California said, "I`m astonished that anyone could be offended by the recording of the national anthem in Spanish. Lighten up, people. Enjoy."
But Sylvia from Illinois says, "If we let the national anthem be sung in Spanish, before long the Japanese will want it to be sung in Japanese, and so on down the line."
Well, keep voting at CNN.com/showbiztonight and write us at showbiztonight@CNN.com. We`ve got more of your e-mails in a bit.
ANDERSON: It`s heated coast-to-coast debate: immigrants protesting immigration reform by walking out from their jobs and school yesterday. Tonight, a movie that shockingly imitates real life.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Forget about parking your car at that valet; forget about getting a glass of water at the restaurant; forget about restaurants. If we don`t find these Latinos, we`re all in serious trouble.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: What would happen if you woke up one day and immigrants just disappeared? A live chat with the star of "A Day without a Mexican." It`s in the interview you`ll see only on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
VARGAS: Plus, Eminem`s wife strikes back. What she wants from the rapper now that they`re getting divorced again, that`s next.
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ANDERSON: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. You`re watching TV`s only live entertainment news show. I`m Brooke Anderson in New York.
OK, here`s another story that made us all say, "That`s ridiculous." Now, just the other day, we did this whole thing about how single, older women were pouncing, getting their claws on younger men. Some people call them cougars.
Well, we found out one cougar who probably isn`t doing much pouncing. Listen to this: A 104-year-old woman has married a 33-year-old man. Yes, that`s right, 71-year age difference.
It`s the 21st marriage for the women. Yes, the 21st. This wedding took place in Malaysia and, no, the guy said he wasn`t after her money, because he claims she`s poor. The marriage, we say, that`s just ridiculous.
And now, Sibila, Malaysian Muslim men, according to their religion, can take up to four wives, but it`s rare for a woman to be married more than once. This woman now married 21 times.
VARGAS: OK, OK. This is the saddest part about this whole thing. I`ve got girlfriends in their 20s and 30s -- and I know you do, too -- that still haven`t found a man to marry, and this woman, 104 years old, 21 times? Come on!
ANDERSON: She`s obviously the marrying kind, don`t you think?
VARGAS: Got to give it to her. Got to give it to her. You go, grandma!
ANDERSON: You go, grandma.
OK, moving now, you know the old saying about life imitating art? Well, I`ve got to tell you about an extraordinary example of that. You know the big demonstrations across the country yesterday over the immigration issue, how immigrants nationwide walked off their jobs and staged a national boycott?
Well, get this: What if I told you that a couple of years ago a movie came out that painted a similar scenario? And in just a moment, we`re going to talk live with the woman who starred in and co-wrote the film. It`s called "A Day without a Mexican."
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON (voice-over): You might say the 2004 film, "A Day without a Mexican," was a little before its time. The movie, released in 2004, took liberties in showing what would happen if Mexicans just disappeared.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Forget about parking your cars at valets; forget about getting a glass of water at the restaurant; forget about restaurants. If we don`t find these Latinos, we`re all in serious trouble.
YARELI ARIZMENDI, SCREENWRITER/ACTRESS: I think "A Day without a Mexican" is a very timely film now, and it`s even more timely than it was in 2004, because things have exploded. The reality and the film match up.
ANDERSON: Yareli Arizmendi co-wrote and stars in "A Day without a Mexican," along with her husband, the director, Sergio Arau. The similarities between their film and today`s ongoing immigration debate are so striking there`s been a renewed interest in the film.
ARIZMENDI: It`s been quoted in articles and all of that, you know, "This is like `A Day without a Mexican,` the film that was prophetic."
ANDERSON: In the movie, residents are left to fend for themselves after California`s Mexican population goes missing and, ultimately, on strike, similar to what really happened just days ago when tens of thousands of people ditched work and school to take part in protests against tougher immigration laws before Congress, but Arizmendi says this legislation is simply misguided.
ARIZMENDI: Their, you know, contribution to the economy seems to be not accounted for, only the problems that they create, but not the wonderful things that they contribute, as well.
ANDERSON: Arizmendi believes current legislation before Congress aimed at cracking down on illegal immigrants might ultimately go farther than just creating a day without a Mexican, but could also create a country without the millions who help make it tick.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Yareli Arizmendi, who you just saw there, co-wrote and stars in "A Day without a Mexican," and she joins us live now from Hollywood.
Welcome.
ARIZMENDI: Hello.
ANDERSON: Hi there, Yareli. OK, you make the point in your film that, if all the immigrants in California just disappeared, the state would be paralyzed. Well, that seems to be the same point that protesters all over the country were trying to get across yesterday. Do you think they accomplished their goals?
ARIZMENDI: I think that they did, and they sort of did it even before yesterday. There`s a line in the film that I love that says, "How do you make the invisible visible? You take it away." And, in a sense, that was what was happening.
It`s like, obviously, we disappeared them in the film, but they disappeared themselves from work and from unusual activities, and we saw them all over the nation, on the streets, and just the sheer numbers.
And, again, you know, just seeing all of these people and the numbers of people has kind of changed, I think, everybody`s image of what these immigrants are, both legal and illegal, and I think that it has made them visible and made us visible; I should include myself.
ANDERSON: Let`s talk about the illegal part of this. You`re obviously in support of what immigrants are doing. But, Yareli, what do you say to those who point out the fact that there are millions of people illegally in this country, that they`ve broken the law by being here, or that anyone who employs them is also breaking the law? How do you answer that?
ARIZMENDI: Well, it`s a very complex issue. And one of the objectives of the film was to get everybody talking and exchanging information. Because I`ll tell you: Ignorance and fear together equal hate. And that is kind of -- it`s one of the most horrible emotions that you can have, and it makes you act in irrational ways.
And so, in a sense, this exchange of information to find out what`s really going on, I think, is very positive. And I`ll tell you, what I say to people, I understand why people would be angry. It`s like, "What are you saying? We`re going to give them amnesty? They committed -- you know, they violated the law. This is not right."
You need to look back at what is the source of these people uprooting themselves from their country and coming across in search for resources. You know, that, in a sense, the United States is the biggest consumer in the world of worldwide resources, and there`s a reason why people actually think of coming to the United States.
ANDERSON: People looking for a better life. I do, Yareli, want to talk about something else quickly that has been drawn into this debate, the remix of "The Star-Spangled Banner" in Spanish. Now, this has really ticked some people off. What is your take on this, good or a bad idea?
ARIZMENDI: I think, tactically, it was a very bad idea, you know, like not right now, we didn`t need that right this second. It is human activity. It is a way of making things yours, you know?
I personally have been in the country since I was 14. I went to high school, through high school in the United States, then went to school and all that. And whenever I go back to Mexico -- I`m from Mexico -- I hate it when people tell me, "Oh, but you`re Mexican."
I said, "You know what? I`m also American." It would be ridiculous to deny I`ve actually been here longer than I ever was in Mexico. So, I mean, I can`t say that I am only Mexican or only American.
And, in a way, in my daily life, I see it myself. I combine things. I naturally fuse things, you know? I actually had a show in `93 where I kind of declared my flag and my anthem, and it had to do with fusing the Mexican and American anthem, in a loving way. It was a declaration of who I am.
And, in a sense, I think that`s where that anthem came -- you know, this motivation to sing it in Spanish came from. It wasn`t a hateful place, and it wasn`t a joke, and it wasn`t like, "Oh, look at what we do to the American anthem." That was not the attitude.
Just the timing is everything. And, you know, this was not right.
ANDERSON: It did come at an interesting time, I will say that. Yareli Arizmendi, we`re going to leave it there. Thank you so much for joining us and sharing your thoughts on this. We appreciate it.
ARIZMENDI: Thank you, Brooke. Thank you very much.
ANDERSON: "A Day without a Mexican" is out on DVD.
VARGAS: Well, we`ve been asking you to vote online on our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day." National anthem: Was it wrong to record the song in Spanish?
Let`s take a look at how the vote is going so far: 76 percent of you say yes; 24 percent of you say no.
Some of the e-mails. Elizabeth from California writes, "Composing the song in Spanish is just showing our patriotism, because not all of us know English."
But Colby from California disagrees. "I think it`s a disgrace," he says. "It wasn`t just sung in Spanish; it was turned into a remix."
You can keep voting at CNN.com/showbiztonight.
ANDERSON: It is time now for tonight`s "Hot Headlines."
Eminem`s wife has responded to her husband`s divorce request. Kim Mathers is looking for some money, attorney fees, and joint custody of the couple`s 10-year-old daughter. She`s seen here in the rap star`s "Mockingbird" music video. Eminem filed for divorce last month, just 82 days after remarrying Kim, and still no one knows why they split up again.
OK, Keith Richards is out of a New Zealand hospital. The Rolling Stones` guitarist suffered a mild concussion after reportedly falling out of a palm tree while on vacation in Fiji. A spokesperson for the band wouldn`t confirm how Richards got hurt but did say he`s making a speedy recovery and that the Stones will resume their tour later on this month.
And iTunes downloads are still going to cost you 99 cents. Today, Apple renewed contracts with the four largest record companies. Those are EMI, Sony, BMG Universal and Warner. The music companies had been fighting to get different pricing for songs partly based on how popular they are.
And those are tonight`s "Hot Headlines." SHOWBIZ TONIGHT will be right back. Keep it here.
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ANDERSON: It is time to see what`s coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. For that, let`s take a look at the "Showbiz Marquee."
Tomorrow, "The Sopranos." It`s a make-believe show about crime and the mob. But so many of its actors have had real-life run-ins with the law. What`s going on with "The Sopranos"? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT investigates tomorrow.
Thanks for watching, everybody. Have a great night. That`s SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. I`m Brooke Anderson in New York.
VARGAS: And I`m Sibila Vargas in Hollywood. Stay tuned for the latest from CNN Headline News. Good evening.
END
