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Showbiz Tonight
Star Custody Battles; Interview With Actress Cynthia Nixon
Aired October 05, 2006 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
A.J. HAMMER, CO-HOST: The attorney for the man who says he is the father of Anna Nicole Smith`s baby is here.
And how Barbra Streisand razzed President Bush on her concert tour.
I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
TV`s most provocative entertainment news show starts right now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER (voice over): On SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, dads fighting back. Alex Baldwin versus ex-wife Kim Basinger; Anna Nicole Smith versus the guy who says he`s her baby`s father.
DEBRA OPRI, ATTORNEY FOR LARRY BIRKHEAD: Anna, I`m talking to you directly now. I want to you hear what I have to tell you.
HAMMER: Famous dads hauling famous moms into courtrooms.
Tonight, the downright nasty drag-out fight as SHOWBIZ TONIGHT investigates star custody battles.
Tonight, extreme makeovers. Want J.Lo`s butt? How about Julia`s smile? From snapping on fake teeth, to going under the knife, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT reveals the outrageous ways people are doing anything possible to look like their favorite stars.
Tonight, what happens when plastic surgery goes wild?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: Hello. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
And the daddies are fighting back big time. Right now everyone from Hollywood and beyond is absolutely flabbergasted by what just may very well be two of the nastiest, ugliest child custody battles we`ve seen in some time. From Anna Nicole Smith to Kim Basinger, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT can tell you that this is a tale of two dads that has everyone asking, can it get any uglier than this?
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER (voice over): In the long, ugly Alec Baldwin-Kim Basinger custody fight, it could be Kim Basinger that ends up in custody, in jail.
NICKI GOSTIN, "NEWSWEEK": It`s just very bitter and very nasty.
HAMMER: And while Anna Nicole Smith and her attorney and self-proclaimed lover, Howard K. Stern, posed for photos after their commitment ceremony in the Bahamas, photos published by "People" magazine, back in Los Angeles, her former boyfriend, Larry Birkhead, is saying he, not Stern, is the father of Anna`s new baby. and he`s going to court with a tough-talking lawyer to prove it.
OPRI: Anna Nicole Smith has now taken Larry Birkhead`s child away from him.
HAMMER: One dad fighting in court to see his child and one possible dad fighting in court to see his alleged child.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT can tell you there`s something very different going on here.
GOSTIN: Usually it`s mothers suing fathers to obtain money and to get some type of support for their children that they`ve abandoned. So it`s sort of interesting to see these two men buck the trend.
MERYL STREEP, ACTRESS, "KRAMER VS. KRAMER": I want my son.
DUSTIN HOFFMAN, ACTOR, "KRAMER VS. KRAMER": You can`t have him.
HAMMER: And like Dustin Hoffman`s character in the Oscar-winning movie "Kramer vs. Kramer," who squared off against Meryl Streep`s character for custody of their son, dads like actor Dean Cain and rapper Eminem have fought and won bitter custody battles with their children`s mothers. Those famous dads and now Baldwin are showing they are willing to go to court to be a part of their kids` lives.
So now SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is asking, is this fair? And most important of all, is all of this court fighting any good for the children?
JOE LANGLOIS, BEVERLY HILLS FAMILY LAW ATTORNEY: Celebrity dads are no different than any other dads to the extent that they want to have a relationship with their children.
HAMMER: The custody fight between Alec Baldwin and his ex-wife Kim Basinger is already seen as one of the ugliest in Hollywood history.
GOSTIN: Alec and Kim were separated in 2000 after seven years of marriage. And literally ever since then they have been in and out of court fighting over custody issues, visitation rights for their daughter Ireland, who is now 10.
HARVEY LEVIN, MANAGING EDITOR, TMZ.COM: She basically describes him as a raging lunatic, and he is describing her as one step short of a kidnapper who`s trying to keep Ireland away from him, and somebody who has all sorts of emotional and other problems.
HAMMER: "Newsweek`s" Nicki Gostin recently interviewed Baldwin.
GOSTIN: He feels that men definitely get the short end of the stick when it comes to custody cases.
HAMMER: This fight is getting even uglier. Kim Basinger faces trial in early 2007 on criminal contempt of court charges, accused of ignoring Alec Baldwin`s court-ordered visitation rights with their daughter, Ireland. She`s pleading not guilty.
LANGLOIS: Contempt actions are difficult to prove. They are subject to a criminal standard of proof.
HAMMER: Hollywood family law attorney Joe Langlois tells SHOWBIZ TONIGHT that Basinger could be in hot water here.
LANGLOIS: It wouldn`t be unusual for somebody if they are found in contempt to be ordered to put on that orange jumpsuit.
HAMMER: And both Baldwin and Basinger have taken to the air waves to talk about the ordeal.
KIM BASINGER, ACTRESS: We`re getting through it. And it`s -- it has taught me -- it`s been an invaluable education.
ALEX BALDWIN, ACTOR: The problem really has been that the system is an incredibly dysfunctional system.
HAMMER: Meanwhile, Larry Birkhead is trying to get the courts to force Anna Nicole Smith to come back to the United States with her new daughter Dannie Lynn, who she had just days before her son Daniel died in her hospital room. TMZ.com`s Harvey Levin talked to Birkhead and Levin tells SHOWBIZ TONIGHT that Birkhead is serious.
LEVIN: Larry Birkhead, from what I know -- and I`ve been talking to him for about three months now -- he wants to have a role in this child`s life. He`s made that very clear, made it clear to me.
HAMMER: But in the end, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is here to remind everyone, don`t forget about the kids.
LANGLOIS: Parents fighting screw up children. And that`s the worst thing that parents can do. So going to court to fight, sometimes you have no choice but to go to court to get resolution. But the more you fight and the more you fight in the press, the less beneficial it is for the child.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: Kim Basinger`s trial date on misdemeanor criminal contempt has a tentative start date of January 15th. Now, if she is convicted of all of the 12 counts against her, she faces up to 60 days in jail and $12,000 in fines.
Well, as we just heard, there was a major battle between the two men who claim to be the dads of Anna Nicole Smith`s baby girl. With us tonight, the attorney for Larry Birkhead, Debra Opri.
Debra, thanks for being with us.
Hi, A.J.
HAMMER: Hi there.
So, at the news conference that took place outside the Los Angeles courtroom where you took Larry Birkhead`s custody fight, you were basically out there daring Howard K. Stern to put his cards on the table. Why are you so sure Larry Birkhead is the father of Anna Nicole`s baby?
OPRI: Based upon information provided by my client, a check of the calendar, and just believing in him. He`s a very, very credible, down to earth young man. I believe he is the father, and I believe a paternity test will resolve that issue favorably to him.
There is a lot of talk out there, A.J., about the media circus and Ms. Smith`s attorneys saying that I am playing this to the media. The reality is Anna Nicole Smith has created a media circus, and we had a press conference with a statement made to resolve any potential questions reporters might have had.
That statement was a direct statement saying, let`s put this to bed now, let`s get a paternity test, and let`s all go home. Let the circus leave. And let`s do it.
That`s the only thing we need to resolve and it`s over with. If he is the father, we talk about his parental rights.
You know, I went to school with Alec Baldwin, and I feel for him and I feel for Larry Birkhead. I do believe in the end the courts are evolving into a system where there is equal treatment of the mother and the father -- go.
HAMMER: Well, you mentioned the media circus, and I have to say that, you know, I was surprised when I saw that press release come out the other day, because it certainly was a Hollywood-style press release. We saw on the other side in what also seemed like an unseemly way of handling things that Anna Nicole and Howard K. Smith had these pictures that...
OPRI: I know.
HAMMER: ... appeared in "People" magazine from their wedding that we are looking at right now.
It really feels like this should be a private matter, and, in fact, we put that out to our viewers. We basically asked them if this is something they felt should be dealt with behind closed doors. I want to show you the results of this poll. It was an overwhelming response that we got. And 92 percent of the people who voted said it should be an absolute private matter.
OPRI: I agree.
HAMMER: It`s playing out day after day in the court of public opinion, it seems. So what do you say to that?
OPRI: Well, I absolutely agree 100 percent that it should be a private matter. But we have an issue where my client, Larry Birkhead, was dared and told to go hire an attorney because, "You aren`t going to see your child anymore. You aren`t going to see the child."
So Larry Birkhead hired an attorney, and within hours of the filing, which was a confidential, sealed filing, we had over 100 telephone calls from the media. It was the position of my client and my office that one statement would be given. Thereafter, clarifications are sought.
This will be my last interview. I am closing down shop and I`m going to the business of satisfying the media question, going back in and filing our motions, and proceeding to get that paternity test taken.
I took to the air waves in an attempt to resolve the outstanding issue of whether or not Ms. Smith would submit to a paternity test. I have learned since through her attorneys that they will challenge jurisdiction and service. So be it. I know how to do those things.
HAMMER: Well...
OPRI: In terms of the media itself, I think the media is a good thing, and it has its place in terms of airing the issue. The issue before the American people as concerns this legal filing is, what are the rights of the father? And this is a guy who just wants to know, am I that baby`s father?
HAMMER: Let me jump in here, Debra. And I think a lot of people will be happy to hear this will be your final interview on the matter. But if Howard K. Stern really isn`t the father, what do you think his motive is for claiming that he is?
OPRI: I`m not going to speak for Mr. Stern. I think Mr. Stern has basically presented himself the way he actually is in the media. And I think time -- time will show us who he is and Anna Nicole Smith is.
I have learned of the photographs that were taken and sold which exploit that child, which happens to be, in our opinion, my client`s child. I`m deeply disturbed about it. I`m constantly told by Ms. Smith`s attorneys that she is grieving.
I don`t know. I`m a little confused. I don`t know that when someone`s grieving when they have not yet buried their son, they are out there jumping off boats, having commitment ceremonies. I am just very troubled by that picture. This is a troubled young woman, in my opinion.
HAMMER: I think that`s a question a lot of people are asking. We have just a short amount of time left, Debra, but they have claimed that they went to the Bahamas to escape the glare of the media spotlight. Obviously, we saw what happened, and there`s been a lot of speculation as to why they went there.
Why do you think they went there?
OPRI: Well, my opinions are not really pertinent to the issue for the court. My client`s opinions are very definitive. And the court will process the information it has, and we will get to the bottom of why she fled California.
HAMMER: Debra Opri, attorney for Larry Birkhead, I thank you for joining us on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, your final interview.
OPRI: A pleasure, A.J.
HAMMER: Well, if you have ever looked at a baby and thought, what can I do to make that baby look more like Donald Trump? Well, if you`ve ever thought that, your day has arrived.
I`ll tell you about that next.
Plus, Cynthia Nixon is here. We`re going to find out how "Sex in the City" changed her life and what she`s working on now, which is a very cool play.
That`s ahead in the interview you will see only on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
We`ll also have this...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OPRAH WINFREY, TALK SHOW HOST: Because of a sense of education and learning I was able to become who I am. And I want to do the same for these girls.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Oprah Winfrey changing the lives of girls in South Africa. We are going to tell you about the project Oprah called her "full circle moment."
That is coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. We`ll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, TV`s most provocative entertainment news show.
I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
And it`s time now for a little story that made us say, "That`s ridiculous!"
UNIDENTIFIED GROUP: "That`s ridiculous!"
HAMMER: Well, finally a company has done something about the problem of all that baby baldness out there. May I present to you baby toupees. You heard me correctly. Baby toupees.
They`re not just any old wigs, by the way. Oh, no. They are celebrity baby toupees.
We`ve got the Donald Trump combover look, we`ve got the Bob Marley. There`s the Lil` Kim and the Samuel L. Jackson. These things sell for about 25 bucks at babytoupee.com -- of course.
That`s ridiculous.
Well, Barbra Streisand started off a U.S. tour in Philadelphia with a duet featuring President Bush. Well, a Bush impersonator, anyway.
Streisand is a very vocal critic of our president and had some fun at his expense with the impersonator.
Check this out.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE, BUSH IMPERSONATOR: I`ll tell you what, I am your biggest fan.
BARBRA STREISAND, SINGER: You`re kidding?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, absolutely. You know what? I`ve got an iPod at home that just says "Babs".
(LAUGHTER)
STREISAND: That`s terrific.
(SINGING): Happy times...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (SINGING): Happy times...
STREISAND (SINGING): ... happy nights...
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (SINGING): ... happy nights...
STREISAND (SINGING): ... happy days are here again.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE (SINGING): ... happy days are here again.
STREISAND: Well, thank you so much. That was -- are you OK?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My heart`s pounding.
STREISAND: You`re so good you could give up your day job. Can you believe it? For a second, we were in harmony.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: That was pretty good. This is Streisand`s first U.S. tour in 12 years. She said that she`s doing live shows again to raise money for her foundation which supports causes like the environment, healthcare and education.
Well, let me tell you about someone else who is very outspoken, at least on TV and on stage. We all know Cynthia Nixon as the "tell it like it is" Miranda Hobbes on "Sex in the City". And we are about to see her as the outspoken Ms. Brodie in her new off-Broadway show. It`s called "The Prime of Miss Jeanne Brodie".
With me tonight in New York, Cynthia Nixon. It`s great to have you here.
CYNTHIA NIXON, ACTRESS: Thank you. It`s great to be here.
HAMMER: Cynthia, I`ve read that you`ve chosen a lot of your roles since "Sex in the City," including, perhaps, Jeanne Brodie, as sort of the de- Mirandafication (ph), as it`s been called. I mean, certainly you did a lot before "Sex in the City," but it`s really what got a lot of people to know you and what most people know you as now.
I have to imagine doing a show that big with a character that popular has to be kind of a double-edged sword.
NIXON: Yes. I mean, certainly much more -- much more positive than negative. I mean, just who would ever think that this would happen in one`s life?
I mean, it was such a wonderful experience and the opportunities it`s given me. And it`s tremendous. But -- but in picking roles after the fact, I definitely do try and -- you know, if she`s a hard-edged lawyer, I`m probably going to be a little more wary.
HAMMER: It`s a lot more interesting...
NIXON: Right. I played her for six years. She was great. But, you know...
HAMMER: Something other than that is definitely going to strike you more.
NIXON: Yes.
HAMMER: And I certainly imagine -- and I think this probably happens with all of your cast mates as well -- that you go through that confusion some fans have, you and the character. You`re an actress, you play this person on TV, and they must stop you and call you "Miranda" in the industry.
NIXON: Right. And my hair is now back to blonde, which is my own color, which is, you know, very -- very confusing to people on the street but very nice, because it also makes me go much more under the radar because they are still looking for that...
HAMMER: Sure.
NIXON: ... person with the short red hair.
HAMMER: And I`ve also always gotten the impression that you and Miranda, though, not so much alike.
NIXON: In some ways, but yes, really not so much alike. She`s not so comfortable with the mother thing. I`m very comfortable with the mother thing.
She, very career driven. I`m a bit more domestic. She, very confrontational. Me, not so much.
HAMMER: Not so much.
Well "Sex in the City" now even more popular than it was during its run...
NIXON: I know.
HAMMER: ... because of the syndication and the DVDs. Why do you think this particular show struck such a cord and continues to strike such a cord with women?
NIXON: I think that, you know, like all those really wonderful TV shows, we have a certain reality -- vision of the way life is. And then, you know, a TV show kind of catches us up to where -- to where we are.
And I think, you know, things that viewers would always say to us were, you know, "Thank you for showing my life, for showing that being a woman in her 30s and 40s, single, it`s not the end of the world. It`s actually pretty much fun a lot of the time."
HAMMER: Well, now on to "The Prime of Miss Jeanne Brodie." Getting excited for it to open up on Broadway?
NIXON: I am. We`re opening...
HAMMER: I know you guys have been -- you`re opening in December?
NIXON: No, we`re running through December 9th.
HAMMER: Running through December. OK.
NIXON: But we`re -- right.
HAMMER: But this is a character who is a schoolteacher, who is very passionate about her politics and has certain ideals. And the students love her for that. How much of Cynthia Nixon is showing up in Jeanne Brodie?
NIXON: Again, not...
HAMMER: Not so much.
NIXON: Even less, I would say. Even less, because she is really -- she is a grandstander. She`s an incredibly charismatic person who -- I mean, I have opinions that I`m kind of adamant about, but not like this.
This woman is -- you know, she`s got all the usuals, you know, her art and literature. But she`s also got very heavy doses of politics, which move farther and farther to the right as the play goes on.
HAMMER: Yes, she`s very pro-war. She`s very...
NIXON: She`s very pro-war.
HAMMER: ... patriotic.
NIXON: She`s very pro-Mussolini, pro-Hitler, pro-Franco.
HAMMER: So I imagine...
NIXON: And she gets louder and louder about that as we get closer to World War II happening.
HAMMER: And I imagine we`re seeing a lot of relevance to what`s going on in the world today.
NIXON: Yes. I mean, I think certainly -- you know, it`s interesting. This play was written in the `60s about the `30s, but it has a lot of relevance today. Particularly, one of the things she does is she really -- she strikes that patriotic drum and says, you know, you are either with me or against me, which is something we hear a little bit of...
HAMMER: Yes, we do hear a little bit about that these dates.
NIXON: Yes.
HAMMER: But I have a feel you have your opinions about that as well.
NIXON: Yes.
HAMMER: Really quickly, I wanted to ask you because your profile has been so big and you`ve certainly been featured in the magazines with the paparazzi. And we are just hearing how out of control things have gotten. Do you think it`s just gotten a little too far?
NIXON: I think -- I think it has. I mean, I think -- you know, I`ve had my share of it, but it`s certainly nothing compared to what some people go through.
I also think from what I`m reading, not experiencing firsthand, but in California and Los Angeles it does sound really scary. I think for years in Los Angeles you could be more under the radar behind your gates, you know. It`s not walking down the street the way you do in New York.
HAMMER: Right.
NIXON: But now you read all the time now about the paparazzi. And in the cars it sounds really dangerous. And I applaud people like Cameron Diaz who are really trying to say...
HAMMER: Standing up for it.
NIXON: ... this is really -- you know, remember Princess Diana. We don`t want to see that again.
HAMMER: No, we don`t. And here in New York you can blend in a little more, particularly when you change the hair color.
(CROSSTALK)
NIXON: Exactly. Exactly.
HAMMER: Cynthia Nixon, great to see you.
NIXON: Thank you.
HAMMER: Thanks for joining us tonight.
"The Prime of Miss Jeanne Brodie" opens Monday in New York City and runs through December.
Now, coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, extreme makeovers. I mean extreme, from fake teeth to surgery. We`re taking a look at the extreme length that regular people are going through to look like a celebrity. Maybe Cynthia Nixon. And why not?
Plus, it isn`t what you usually see on a runway. Coming up, why one of the world`s top fashion designers put an overweight model in his show.
We`ll also have this...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WINFREY: It is a -- it is a complete full circle moment in my life. It is -- I feel like it`s what I was really born to do
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Oprah Winfrey changing the lives of young girls in South Africa. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT with your exclusive look at Oprah`s dramatic and life- changing project. That`s coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
There was a lot of buzz about this little incident between Paris Hilton and Shana Moakler at a Hollywood club. Hilton filed a police report saying Moakler punched her in the jaw. Moakler filed her own police report alleging that Hilton`s ex-boyfriend poured a drink on her and pushed her down some stairs.
Well, this morning on "The View," the ladies couldn`t resist the story. Take a look.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
ROSIE O`DONNELL, "THE VIEW": She was in a bar and a woman punched her?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE, "THE VIEW": Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE, "THE VIEW": Yes.
O`DONNELL: So do we have a photo?
JOY BEHAR, "THE VIEW": I think there`s -- was there a photo?
Oh, my gosh! Look at that. Oh, that`s horrible.
(LAUGHTER)
O`DONNELL: I don`t know. Is that real?
BEHAR: No. That`s not real.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: That`s not real. That was our imagination.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: No, that`s not real.
O`DONNELL: That`s not real, but it`s funny in some twisted way.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: It sure is.
There was some video shot last month that the entertainment Web site TMZ.com said showed Hilton kissing Moakler`s ex-husband, Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker. Hilton`s publicist says the two are just friends.
Well, coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, extreme makeovers. From fake teeth to surgery, we`re taking a look at the extreme lengths regular people are going to to look like a celebrity.
Plus, it isn`t what you usually see on the runway. Coming up, why one of the world`s top fashion designers put an overweight model in his show.
We`ll also have this...
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
WINFREY: Because of a sense of education and learning, I was able to become who I am. And I want to do the same for these girls.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Oprah Winfrey dramatically changing the lives of girls in South Africa. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT has your exclusive look coming right up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT for Thursday night. It is 30 minutes past the hour. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York. This is TV`s most provocative entertainment news show.
And still to come tonight, from fake teeth to something called the Brazilian butt lift, we`re going to be taking a look at the extremes lengths that regular people are going to just so they can look like their favorite celebrity.
Also tonight, we catch up with Oprah in Africa as she fulfills a promise to Nelson Mandela, and makes lives better for girls over there. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT has your exclusive look, and that`s on the way as well.
But first tonight, it`s a story that we here at SHOWBIZ TONIGHT have been on top of since it broke: Madrid banning super-skinny models in its runway shows during Fashion Week because of their unhealthy image. Well, that flipped the fashion world on its stilettos, and it looks like one major designer is standing up for the ban in a big way.
French designer Jean-Paul Gaultier included a very plus-sized model at his Paris Fashion Week show. Sem Sevelred (ph) said she`s a Size 20. Now Gaultier did have some skinny models in his show. But he`s used plus-sized women before, including Crystal Renn in last year`s Paris show.
Crystal, who actually battled with an eating disorder which nearly killed her, told us that the fashion industry isn`t the only to point the finger at for the obsession with weight.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CRYSTAL RENN, MODEL: I don`t think that you can blame the industry as a whole and say, Oh, well, that`s whole reason of anorexia. Because anorexia comes from so many different reasons: family issues - there`s so much that goes into it.
But I would say that the fashion industry does have a responsibility to use all different types of women. Because that`s who they`re ultimately selling to.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Crystal, by the way, is now modeling for Dolce & Gabbana.
Well, if you got the cash, you can get a celebrity makeover. We`re talking head to toe and everything in between. It is a shocking trend: people doing anything and everything to look like their favorite star.
Now coming up in just a minute, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is going to blow the lid off how regular people get turned into celebrities overnight. We`ll hear from doctors who do this thing every single day.
But first, here`s a look at how some are sinking their teeth into an idea that`s really a mouthful.
Here`s CNN`s Jeanne Moos for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dentures are dated. The latest thing is the snap-on smile. And not just anybody`s smile.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes, these are Gwyneth.
MOOS: Gwyneth as in Paltrow. Can you see the toothy resemblance? Or maybe you`d prefer the Sarah Jessica, as in Sarah Jessica Parker. Or the Julia, as in Julia Roberts.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: They`re like horse teeth, almost, on me.
MOOS: Danielle King`s own teeth are smallish. The snap-on can be made to fit on almost anybody. Check out the before-and-afters.
(on camera): You say she`s missing three teeth?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: She has three teeth.
MOOS (voice-over): New York dentist Dr. Mark Leichtung doesn`t just make snap-on teeth, he wears them to get the feel of the device he patented. A set like this might set you back for over $1,000. They`re for people who don`t want to spend, say, 20,000 bucks on veneers.
Or maybe they want them for a special occasion.
JENNIFER VASQUEZ, SNAP-ON SMILE WEARER: It was definitely a financial thing. I`m getting married.
MOOS: There`s her ring. Jen Vasquez will have the snap-ons for the perfect smile in her wedding pictures, though when she reveals her actual teeth..
(on camera): They look good without them.
VASQUEZ: Oh.
MOOS (voice-over): It takes just two appointments to get snap- ons. They make a mold. The snap-ons cling to the tiny bulges in your teeth.
VASQUEZ: Wow.
DR. MARC LEICHTUNG, DENTIST: And it doesn`t move. I`ve never had a case where it moved or fell out.
MOOS (on camera): Never?
LEICHTUNG: Never.
MOOS (voice-over): Jen can eat soft food and chew gum.
The latest design, made out of a more flexible resin with cut-out windows enables you to eat regular food. You just take them out when you sleep, like contact lenses.
(on camera): You can`t exchange them? Like I couldn`t put on your teeth or anything like that?
LEICHTUNG: No. You couldn`t put on my teeth.
MOOS (voice-over): At the New York Center of Cosmetic Surgery, Dr. Jeff Golub-Evans concentrates on replicating celebrity smiles.
DR. JEFF GOLUB-EVANS, COSMETIC DENTIST: A good smile has become a fashion accessory, and a great smile has become a fashion statement.
MOOS: Though the Sarah Jessicas and the Julias and the Gwenyths are easy to mix up.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: These are mixed up. No wonder why I didn`t like the way these looked on me.
MOOS: Dr. Golub-Evans even made snap-ons for a woman in her 80s who asked for Kim Catrall`s smile.
GOLUB-EVANS: Bless her heart. What she wants is to have nice teeth on Sunday when she goes to church.
MOOS: But be prepared to lisp until your tongue adapts.
Dr. Golub-Evans used to make snap-on for actors when they needed bad teeth. A snap-on smile reminds us of Halloween, Billy-bob teeth and even Billy-bob gums.
Whitney Casey never leaves home without a set of bad teeth in her make-up kit.
WHITNEY CASEY, OWNS FAKE BAD TEETH: No guy is going to date you with these teeth in.
MOOS: When overly aggressive guys hit on her, she puts them in. We both did.
(on camera): We should try walking down the street.
(voice-over): Prepare for sneak peeks. If you want to wipe the smile off a guy`s face, try this.
CASEY: Hello lover.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: That`s fantastic. That was CNN`s Jeanne Moos for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
So you see, snapping on a celebrity`s smile`s pretty easy if, of course, you can cough up the cash. And believe it or not, you can hope right out of your dentist`s chair to have your derriere done like your favorite star. Right now, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT`s going to reveal the secrets of the stunning trend that is sweeping the country: getting an - getting an extreme celebrity makeover.
Joining me here in New York, Dr. Marc - Marc Leichtung, the inventor of the snap-on smile you just saw.
And Dr. Brad Jacobs of Star Butts.
Doctors, good to have you both here.
(CROSSTALK)
HAMMER: All right. So Dr. Leichtung, who is that smile that everybody is coming in and asking you for? What`s No. 1 on your list?
LEICHTUNG: No. 1 on the list`s got to be Jessica Simpson.
HAMMER: Really?
LEICHTUNG: People just love the brightness, the - the ingratiating, white smile that Jessica has. And clearly - it`s almost two-to-one - Halle Berry close, but Jessica Simpson just has that appeal that everybody wants to see.
HAMMER: I walk into your office - well, probably not me - and say, I want Jessica Simpson`s teeth.
LEICHTUNG: I`m going to try to talk you out of it a little bit.
HAMMER: Yes, I hope you would.
LEICHTUNG: But you know what? If you want it, we can do it, because it`s non-invasive, it`s - it`s something that we can put on, you can enjoy. You can eat with it; you can live with it; and you want to go back and look like maybe your favorite male celebrity, we could do that, too.
HAMMER: And what`s that going to cost me? Say - say Jessica Simpson`s teeth, on the proper subject.
LEICHTUNG: Jessica Simpson`s smile, something like it would run you approximately anywhere from $1,000 to $1,500 for the full arch.
HAMMER: So this is not an inexpensive proposal by any stretch.
LEICHTUNG: Not inexpensive, but very reasonable for what a patient gets. People with malaligned teeth can look better and look great.
HAMMER: So Dr. Jacobs, we`ve heard of the nose jobs. We`ve heard of facelifts. We`ve heard of the liposuction.
But now there`s this thing called the Brazilian buttlift that - that I keep hearing about, and it`s come up on our show a couple of times. Apparently is very, very popular.
Does that mean basically everybody`s walking into your office and saying, I want my butt to look like JLo`s?
DR. BRAD JACOBS, PLASTIC SURGEON: Well, what`s happening is, instead of just recognizing the anterior; people are now concentrating on the posterior.
I think JLo started the whole trend of paying attention to the area. And now people are bringing pictures such as Jessica Simpson, Jessica Biel, and saying, you know, Could I - could I have that? And it`s a combination of where they`re having liposcuplture, where I`m shaping their body, harvesting the fat, processing it, and then actually sculpting it into their derrieres.
HAMMER: Sounds absolutely delicious.
JACOBS: It is.
HAMMER: But - but are coming - for instance, who are they asking for? Are they saying, You know, I - I like JLo -- JLo`s butt? Or - or is - is she kind of pass' now?
JACOBS: She is. She started the trend. She started the trend of noticing the area. And now, they`re being more refined. It`s not just the - the Brazilian butt, perhaps - perhaps a hybrid, where bringing - bringing in Jennifer - Jessica Biel.
HAMMER: Right.
JACOBS: Jessica Simpson, Eva Longoria. And they`re bringing me pictures of nice, perkier butts that obtainable by a patient who has a little excess fat someone and wants to donate it to where they need it.
HAMMER: What`s a nice, perky butt going to cost?
JACOBS: The procedure is actually - remember, it`s a combination of two procedures, both the bodysculpture - the liposuction - as well as the atalogous (ph) fat transfer, which it really is.
HAMMER: Right.
JACOBS: It`s approximately $11,000.
HAMMER: OK. So again, you got to have the - the money to cough up to do this.
When they come in and they want the celebrity smile or the celebrity teeth, it`s really more - it - it`s about more than just getting the smile, isn`t it?
LEICHTUNG: It definitely is. Most of the patients come in and either they`re phobic, or like we said, this is - these are not inexpensive procedures. And people want to see what they`re going to look like. They want to feel, they want to experience the - whether they`re going to go ahead and do porcelain laminates, which is - could run them $20,000 to $30,000. They want to see what they`re going to feel -- their family, their friends are going to - how they`re going to react to them.
So this is more than just looking like their favorite celebrity. It`s more about confidence. It`s more about getting ahead in life, having a - a better aura about them.
HAMMER: And what about the buttlift. Because, you know, you mentioned people who may have a little extra, and they want it removed. But what kind of a person`s walking in saying, You know, I want a buttlift.
What - what else is going on there?
JACOBS: We have the same type of person. We`re really taking care of a patient`s self-esteem, not actually their bodies. And if something bothers them that they understand and they`re candidates for it, sure.
So a patient who had it, works out regularly, can`t obtain that shape - especially with modern fashion really showing a nice body looks good - they understand. And they - and if they`re a candidate, great.
HAMMER: Real quickly, yes or no, I imagine you occasionally have to talk people out of doing a procedure.
LEICHTUNG: Absolutely; not everybody`s a candidate. But for our judgment call, and a patient-to-patient basis.
JACOBS: Right. A patient has to do it for themselves, and no one else.
HAMMER: Dr. Jacobs, Dr. Leichtung, I appreciate you joining us tonight on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
So now we`re going to turn it over to you. What do you think? Would you spring for a little celeb nip and tuck? For our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day," here`s what we`re asking: "Extreme Makeovers: Would you have surgery to look like your favorite star?" Let us know at cnn.com/showbiztonight, or sense us e-mail at showbiztonight@cnn.com.
Well, of course, you can catch all of your favorite stars with their real teeth - if they are, in fact, real - and a whole lot more seven nights a week. TV`s most provocative entertainment news show can be seen on your weekends. So join us for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, Saturday and Sunday and every single night, 11 p.m. Eastern, 8 Pacific.
So you remember that old excuse, "The dog ate my homework"? Well, there`s a woman who says that her dog ate something and it cost her $200 million. That`s ridiculous, and that`s next.
And a popular TV show is causing some controversy, and that`s because it may be showing a suicide bomber as a hero. We`ll tell you about that.
Plus we`ve got this:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
OPRAH WINFREY, TALK SHOW HOST: It is a - it is a complete, full- circle moment in my life. It is - I feel like it`s what I was really born to do.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: How Oprah Winfrey is doing something really amazing for some underprivileged children. It`s a story you`ll see only on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. Your exclusive look is coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, TV`s most provocative entertainment news show.
It`s time now for another story that made us say, "That`s Ridiculous!"
You remember when you forgot your homework, you`d tell your teacher, "The dog ate it." Right? Well, at least I used to do that. And that`s the excuse a woman gave for losing her winning lottery ticket.
Now before an Iowa couple claimed the $200 million Powerball jackpot yesterday, of course all kinds of calls were coming in from people claiming to have the winning ticket. And one was from a Minnesota who said that while she was traveling through Iowa, she went into a store, and when she got back, the dog had eaten her ticket, which she had left on the dashboard. If you believe that, we`ve got a bridge to sell you.
"That`s Ridiculous!"
Well, there`s a shocking plot on a popular TV show that`s causing a lot of controversy tonight. And that`s because it`s a scene where a character puts on explosive and blows himself up, a suicide bomber. It`s Sci-Fi`s "Battlestar Galactica," and there`s even debate over whether the character is being portrayed as a hero. One of the show`s executive producers told the "Oakland Tribune" - quote - "one person`s freedom fighter is another person`s terrorist."
Well, today we heard from the Sci-Fi Channel. This is what they`re telling us: "The suicide bombing in the premiere is not portrayed heroically, and in fact is the subject of much debate and controversy within the show itself, with the characters arguing over the morality and the wisdom of taking such a step."
Season 3 of the show makes its premiere on Friday night.
Well, a lot of stars have been doing a lot of good things in Africa lately. You`ve got Angelina Jolie adopting a kid from Ethiopia and having Baby Shiloh in Namibia; Madonna reportedly planning to spend millions of dollars to help out orphans in Malawi -- there are even some whispers that she`s going to be adopting a child, although she has denied that to us.
And then there`s Oprah Winfrey, making good on a promise to former South African president and anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela. It`s an exclusive story you`ll see only on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
Here`s CNN`s Jeff Koinange for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEFF KOINANGE, CNN AFRICA CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Twelve-year- old Palesa and her 13-year-old cousin Lebohang (ph) live in this three- roomed house along with four other family members in Soweto, one of Johannesburg`s sprawling townships.
They`ve heard U.S. talk show host Oprah Winfrey`s in town and she`s looking for a few good girls to be part of her new project. What they don`t know is that Oprah`s about to pay them a visit. Word spreads fast about Oprah`s presence in Soweto, and the visit is no longer top secret. After all, this is Oprah.
Oprah`s been coming to South Africa for the past several years, determined to fulfill a promise she made to former President Nelson Mandela, or Madiba to most here.
WINFREY: So I said to Madiba, I would like to build a school and I would like to commit $10 million. This was five years ago. And he said, Yes.
KOINANGE: And just like that, the two broke ground for a girl`s school just outside Johannesburg in what began as a $10 million project. It`s since grown to $40 million and counting.
(on camera): Less than four years later, this is the result: the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy for Girls. Set on more than 50 acres of land, it houses more than two dozen buildings, and Oprah says she was personally involved in the design and layout of most of them.
WINFREY: The dream for me was to create a school that I would most want to attend. So from the very beginning, I sat down with architects and I said, We have to have a library in the fireplace so that the girls can -- it can be a place of learning as well as living for them.
We have to have a theater because this is a school for leaders, and in order to be a leader you have to have a voice. In order to have a voice, you need oration. So the idea for the school came about based on what I felt would be an honor for the African girls.
KOINANGE (voice-over): And all this for free: free uniforms, free books, free meals. Everything is free at Oprah`s school, which brings us back to Soweto, and Palesa and Lebohang`s house.
Lebohang`s mother died of AIDS nearly two years ago. Palesa`s mother and grandmother now help feed five hungry mouths. But Oprah sees potential here: the right ingredients for leadership in her leadership academy.
PALESA, 12-YEAR-OLD STUDENT: The future awaits you.
WINFREY: The future awaits you, I agree. I think your future awaits you.
PALESA: Yes?
WINFREY: Yes, your future is so bright it burns my eyes. Yes, that`s how bright your future is.
KOINANGE: Palesa`s mother is overwhelmed by Oprah`s philanthropy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I was thinking that angels are white and they have wings and you only see angels in heaven. So now I can see that we are living in this world with angels. Oprah, you are an angel. Angel from God, I believe in that.
KOINANGE: And outside, the word had spread like wildfire. The Oprah fan club had instantly multiplied.
GROUP: (SPEAKING IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE).
WINFREY: Hello?
KOINANGE: Oprah insisted on personally interviewing all the prospective students from schools around the country. Her requirements were simple: the girls had to have better-than-average grades, and they had to come from underprivileged homes, much like she did.
WINFREY: I look in their faces, I see my own -- the girls who came from a background just like my own. I was raised by a grandmother, no running water, no electricity. But yet because of a sense of education and learning, I was able to become who I am.
And I want to do the same for these girls. And so I think there`s no better place than Africa because the sense of need, the sense of value for education and appreciation for it could not be greater.
KOINANGE: And in true Oprah fashion, she invited all the finalists to what was supposed to be an informal get-together, and dropped this bombshell:
WINFREY: I brought you all here today to tell you that you will be a part of the very first class of the Oprah Winfrey Leadership Academy.
(CHEERING AND APPLAUSE)
KOINANGE: And just like that, 150 young lives were transformed in an instant.
(on camera): What does this mean, this moment right now, what does it mean?
WINFREY: Oh, it is a -- it is a complete, full-circle moment in my life. It is -- I feel like it`s what I was really born to do, and that`s what all of that fame and attention and money was for. It feels like the complete circle of my life.
KOINANGE: As for cousins Lebohang and Palesa ...
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I`m - I`m overwhelmed. I don`t know what to say. I`m that happy. I`m just waiting for next year.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: The 12th of January, I`m just waiting for that date
KOINANGE: It seems that date can`t come soon enough for South Africa`s best and the brightest here: an all-expenses-paid, top-class education. And all because one woman wanted to help out an old man.
GROUP: We love you, Oprah.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: I got nothing to say but, Nice going, Oprah. That was CNN`s Jeff Koinange with an exclusive for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
I want to remind you, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT can now be seen seven nights a week. TV`s most provocative entertainment news show has arrived on your weekends. So tune in to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT Saturday and Sunday and each and every night at 11 p.m., 8 Pacific.
Well, last night, we asked you to hop on the Internet and vote on our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day." Here`s what we were asking: "Stars Behaving Badly: Is substance abuse a legitimate excuse?"
Well, not many of you think so. Only 6 percent of you said, "yes"; 94 percent of you said, "No, it isn`t."
We got a bunch of e-mails on the subject, too.
We heard from Zac in Wyoming. Zac writes, "As traumatic as substance abuse may be, it`s nothing more than another cop out for their irrational decisions."
We also got an e-mail from Sara in Oregon. She writes, "Stars that behave badly should not use substance abuse as an excuse, because they need to own up to their own actions."
We thank you very much for your e-mails, and for going online to vote.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT for a Thursday night is coming right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, TV`s most provocative entertainment news show. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
Kelly Ripa certainly gets a lot of laughs with her TV husband, Regis Philbin, in the mornings. Well, now she wants to try to get some chuckles with her real-life hubby, Mark Consuelos at night. Reports are out that Ripa and Consuelos have sold a primetime sitcom idea to the CW network. Now apparently it would be based on how they met while working together on the soap "All My Children."
Ripa`s other show, "Hope and Faith," was canceled after three seasons this past May.
Well tonight, we`ve been asking you to vote online on our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day." We`re wondering about extreme makeovers. Would you actually have surgery just so you could look like your favorite star?
Let us know what you think by going online, cnn.com/showbiztonight is where you find us on the Internet. You can also send us e-mail to showbiztonight@cnn.com. We will be reading some of those e-mails tomorrow.
By the way, it just occurred to me, tomorrow is Friday. That`s very exciting, as is what`s coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT tomorrow night.
So tomorrow, they`re famous, but what in the world for? I`m talking about people like Nicole Richie, Kevin Federline, Shanna Moakler - and yes, of course, we can`t do this list without Paris Hilton. You remember that song "Money for Nothing"? Well, these guys and gals are famous for nothing. We`re going to ask why tomorrow on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
Also tomorrow, to soap fans, he`s Blackie. To sitcom fans, Uncle Jesse. To us, he`s just plain old John Stamos. Now John`s got a brand-new gig in the "ER." We`re going to chat with him about that and dating in Hollywood. You remember, he used to be married to Rebecca Romijn. He`s not everywhere you look. John Stamos is only on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT tomorrow. Apparently "Full House" will get that one.
And that is it for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. Thanks a lot for watching. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
Glenn Beck coming up next, right after the very latest from CNN Headline News.
END
