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Showbiz Tonight
Celebrities Flee as Fire Rages in Malibu; Will Britney Blow Another Chance for a Turnaround?
Aired October 22, 2007 - 23:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
A.J. HAMMER, CO-HOST: Britney Spears, from teen beauty to total train wreck. What the heck happened? It`s a revealing showbiz special report, "How Britney Went Bad." I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
BROOKE ANDERSON, CO-HOST: And, A.J., a big time talk show host goes ballistic on his audience, and it`s all caught on tape live. I`m Brooke Anderson in Hollywood. TV`s most provocative entertainment news show starts right now.
HAMMER: On SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, stars in the line of fire. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT with the stars threatened by the scary, almost unbelievable fires raging in California. Celebrities running from their homes and running for their lives.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GILLIAN SHELDON, SUPERVISING PRODUCER, "TMZ.COM": There are celebrities, as well as Hollywood bigwigs who are up in Malibu, who are currently on fire watch.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Who`s in danger? And could star rehab facilities also be threatened? Tonight SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is right there with the stars in the line of fire.
Tonight, a Harry Potter gay shocker. Potter author J.K. Rowling makes a startling revelation. One of her most important characters is gay. And holy Hogwarts, there is absolute outrage. But was Rowling wrong for the outing? Tonight, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT with the heated debate over the hairy situation surrounding Harry Potter.
(MUSIC)
Hello. I`m A.J. Hammer broadcasting tonight and every night from New York City.
ANDERSON: And I`m Brooke Anderson coming to you tonight from Hollywood where you know it wouldn`t be a normal day without another big Britney Spears surprise. We`ve got that coming up.
HAMMER: But first, tonight, from Britney Spears to Tom Hanks to Mel Gibson to Jennifer Aniston, the multimillion-dollar homes of some of the biggest stars in the world are in the line of fire tonight, and I mean that literally.
ANDERSON: Yes, the homes are in Malibu, California, where unbelievably ferocious wildfires have been raging since the weekend, and I can tell you tonight that the scene out here is very frightening.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE REPORTER: Buildings are reduced to ash in southern California.
ANDERSON (voice over): Hell on earth in southern California.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE REPORTER: Major fires are baring down on the beachside community of Malibu.
ANDERSON: Tens of thousands of acres engulfed in a blazing inferno like the kind you would see in a big budget Hollywood movie, and this man would know.
GOV. ARNOLD SCHWARZENEGGER (R), CALIFORNIA: It`s a tragic time for California. Thousands of buildings have been threatened. We have been evacuating residents in harm`s way.
ANDERSON: One of the threatened areas is the wealthy community of Malibu, home to Tom Hanks, Sean Penn, Barbara Streisand and some of the biggest stars in Hollywood. Now, as the flames close in, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT can tell you many of those stars are either fleeing their homes or watching them nervously.
SHELDON: There are several celebrities, as well as Hollywood big wigs who are up in Malibu, who are currently on fire watch.
ANDERSON: Tanya Tucker is one of those stars. The singer has a home in Malibu that was evacuated. She`s currently in Las Vegas, and I talked to her by phone about her scary situation.
TANYA TUCKER, SINGER: On my way to L.A., I just had to make a stop here in Las Vegas, and I woke up and saw the news and right away was worried about my 18-year-old daughter, Presley, who is there already in Malibu with our four dogs and all of our animals and that was - my first concern was to get her out.
ANDERSON: In this Hollywood TV video, we see Britney Spears confiding with her friends, the paparazzi, about her home in the Malibu area.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE PAPARAZZO: What about the fire, Britney?
BRITNEY SPEARS, POP STAR: I think it`s - I don`t think it will touch my house.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE PAPARAZZO: OK. It`s close by, though, Britney. You might want to check it out later.
SPEARS: I know. I`m kind of scared.
ANDERSON: Gillian Sheldon of TMZ.com tells SHOWBIZ TONIGHT that many celebrities are among the hundreds of people in Malibu who are among the hundreds of people in Malibu who are being told to get out of the fire`s way.
SHELDON: Olivia Newton-John`s family was evacuated. She`s actually in Canada touring. Director of "Titanic," James Cameron, his house has been affected.
ANDERSON: "TMZ.com" reports homes belonging to Sean Penn and David Duchovny were also in danger from the fire. The area is getting too hot for Luke Skywalker.
SHELDON: Mark Hamill, a.k.a. Luke Skywalker, packed up his stuff and got the heck out.
ANDERSON: Actor and pilot, John Travolta, tells Hollywood TV he flew over the fire zone and checked on his famous friends in the area.
JOHN TRAVOLTA, ACTOR AND PILOT: All I know is the people I know are safe, so I`m glad about that, but it`s always very sad to hear that this is happening.
ANDERSON: With the breathtaking natural beauty, not to mention acres of palatial multimillion-dollar homes, Malibu is where the stars come to escape the grind of Hollywood. Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox and David Arquette, Sting and Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson all have homes in and around the area.
SHELDON: Malibu, if you look at it in pictures, it`s an absolute postcard. The shoreline is gorgeous. The beach is beautiful and clean and the views are spectacular.
ANDERSON: But if you live in this paradise, you run the risk of finding yourself in the path of nature`s destructive side.
SHELDON: Mudslides, fires, landslides. It`s kind of a disaster area.
ANDERSON: Some celebrities know the danger all to well.
SUZANNE SOMMERS(ph), ACTRESS: It was a beautiful house. It was a beautiful place to live.
ANDERSON: Earlier this year, Suzanne Sommers(ph) lost her Malibu home to a wildfire that destroyed everything, and left her with only the clothes on her back.
SOMMERS(ph): We`ll rebuild, and I really think that we`ll learn something great from this.
ANDERSON: And now, as the fires in southern California continue to rage, Tanya Tucker and Malibu`s other celebrity residents are anxiously wondering if they will find themselves in the same tragic situation.
TUCKER: It`s just been really scary just to think about, you know, that things you`ve worked for so many years and so hard for about to go up in smoke.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: The Malibu area is also home to some two dozen rehab centers. One of the most famous, Promises, has voluntary evacuated its residents because the fire is inching too close for comfort. This is according to TMZ.com. Britney Spears, Lindsay Lohan and Ben Affleck are reportedly among the A-listers who have gotten help there at Promises.
HAMMER: Tonight, is Britney finally turning her life around? We have just learned that Britney is once again being allowed to visit with her kids after a judge had ordered her to stay away from them, and, the first review of her about to drop album is out. Actually, review is not that bad. But the question that we`re all wondering, will she blow yet another chance for a turnaround?
Joining us tonight in Hollywood, UsMagazine.com editorial director Ken Baker and in New York Court TV anchor Lisa Bloom. Ken, Lisa, it`s good to se you both on a Monday night.
And let`s begin this new week after this disastrous week that we`re coming off of for Britney Spears because if you remember, she ran over a paparazzo`s foot. Then we saw her getting photographed after what appeared to be a very messy collagen lip injection. But I mentioned she`s at least getting to see her kids once again. Lisa Bloom, let me start with you. Can we think positively here that Britney is on the move?
LISA BLOOM, "COURT TV" ANCHOR: Well, I think we can, and I think the judge is. The judge wants to give Britney a second chance, a third chance, a fourth chance. The judge wants Britney to succeed with the kids. So he he`s I giving her a little opportunity. Visit them, be good with them, and if you keep doing that and you prove yourself, and maybe you`ll get custody back. It`s possible.
HAMMER: This was a good thing for her over the weekend, for sure, the fact had she was able to be with the kids, both of them, with that court- appointed monitor, on Saturday a little time on Sunday. And they`re expected to spend more time together this week. Britney`s album, that`s her next baby, dropping next week. And the first reviews out, not so bad. One from "The Daily News" that caught my eye says, "She may no longer dance with flair, lip sync on cue, keep her dress down or even be judged as suitable mom, but Britney Spears can still turn up on some slamming new songs." Ken Baker, this has to be a good sign, doesn`t it?
KEN BAKER, EDITORIAL DIRECTOR, USMAGAZINE.COM: It`s a trifecta of good news over the weekend by her getting visitation her kids, her Malibu house did not burn down, and now, a positive review of her album. I mean, this is like - we`re sitting here talking about good news with Britney Spears. Hello. This is a change in course, and I think we should expect this to keep happening.
And I`ll also point out Britney Spears has not been in a club in almost three weeks now. Now, it might sound to like, fuddy-duddies like us that`s nothing, but to Britney Spears, that is an epic amount of time.
So, Britney is definitely turning things around, but here`s the deal with her album. Yes, it`s getting a lot of downloads and it`s getting some positive reviews the first week. Next Tuesday, it drops, and she`s going to sell a lot of records, a lot of records for the record industry right now, which is probably a few hundred thousand.
The big question is she going to stay sober? Is she going to stay focused? Is she going to be able to support the album over the coming months and get another single with another video and really have that stamina and focus that it takes to sell albums nowadays? That question really is up in the air. No one knows the answer to that.
HAMMER: Well, perhaps opening up a newspaper and reading something positive about herself for the first time in, well, I don`t know how long - maybe that will motivate her to do that. I will implore you, Ken, to not include myself and Lisa Bloom under the umbrella of fuddy-duddy. That`s not me personally.
BLOOM: Yes, thank you.
HAMMER: Lisa, let`s talk about these two important court dates that are coming up because it is crucial that she gets through these properly. Thursday, she`s going to court because of her hit-and-run fiasco from back in August, facing two misdemeanor charges. Friday is the big one, she and K-Fed going to court with more to figure out custody of her kids. Now, in the past we know that she`s bailed out on these court appearances, or she`s shown up late. This time she has got to be there, Lisa, correct?
BLOOM: Yes. I would suggest wearing a dress that has a hemline lower than her crotch, leaving the pink wig at home, actually showing up dressed conservatively for court like everybody else, and more importantly complying with the judge`s order in every possible way. Showing up for the random drug tests and taking the drug tests, doing everything the judge wants you to do - the parenting classes. Just generally being a good mother.
You know, she doesn`t have to give up being a musician. She doesn`t even have to give up partying, but she has to show the judge that she is a responsible, mature adult who poses no danger to the kids. I think she`s capable of doing that, but she`s got to prove it to the judge.
HAMMER: Yes. We hope she`s capable now, though, because she`s been in this situation before. We need her to step up to the plate this time, as always, and get everything right. Real quickly, Ken Baker, are you optimistic that Britney can turn things around in a big way this week?
BAKER: I`m cautiously optimistic in the long-term, but I am optimistic this week. I think good things will happen for her. If I was a stock trader, I would say buy Britney stock this week. If you`re going to buy long-term, you might want to sell it after this week.
HAMMER: All right. Let me call my broker. Ken Baker, Lisa Bloom, thanks for joining us tonight.
BLOOM: Thank you.
BAKER: Thanks.
ANDERSON: A.J., you know, I still remember when Britney was such a teen cutie, so why did she become a total train wreck? Coming up at 45 past the hour we`ve got a revealing showbiz special report you don`t want to miss, "How Britney Went Bad." Also this.
BILL MAHER(ph), TALK SHOW HOST: Hey, do we have some (EXPLETIVE DELETED) security in this building, or do I have to come over and kick this guy`s (EXPLETIVE DELETED)?
HAMMER: Wow, Bill Maher(ph). I`m a huge fan of this guy. And there, we are seeing him going absolutely nuts on some people in his audience. Now, keep in mind, Bill is not a really big guy, but apparently he is just not afraid to stand up to anyone. Coming up, we`re going to let you know why Bill went absolutely ballistic. You don`t want to miss that. Plenty of cussing too. It`s al caught on tape on his live show.
Also, you can bet this guy was cursing himself for stealing this car. You got to se this. This is a guy who thinks he is going to get away with stealing a car. Not going happen. In fact, he gets shot, and the cameras are rolling the whole time. I was blown away by this. I guarantee you will be too. Coming up next.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, TV`s most provocative entertainment news show. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York. Time for our showbiz video of the day.
Take a look at this guy. He is a car thief who apparently picked the wrong car to steal. Police left the unlocked car at a Seattle area community college. First the guy just goes in and tries to swipe the stereo, but as you see, he drove off.
Bad idea because, bad guy, yes, smile, you are on car candid camera. This hot Honda is hot wired with a police camera. Now, the guy apparently took the bait. Police chased him down.
Things got terribly scary when the thief tried to run over them. The cops fired back, and grazing him in the head, and then they shut the car off, and locked him in the car remotely. I`ve got to get one of those. The thief had nowhere to go except to prison where he faces seven years behind bars, and that is our showbiz video of the day.
ANDERSON: Tonight, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is daring to ask whether stars really matter anymore, and should they really be getting paid all of that money? Yes. I`m serious.
And here`s why I`m asking. Over the weekend movies starring George Clooney, Reese Witherspoon, Jake Gyllenhaal, Halle Berry, even Brad Pitt all flopped, and it`s not like they didn`t get a lot of hype, a lot of publicity, so that`s why I`m asking. Do stars matter anymore?
With us tonight in Hollywood, Howard Bragman, founder of 15 Minutes Public Relations. In New York, Alicia Quarles, entertainment reporter for the Associated Press.
Howard, Alicia, I want you to look at this past weekend. For example, number one was a horror flick with Josh Hartnett, "30 Days of Night." Reese Witherspoon, who makes more than $20 million a picture, opened at number nine. Halle Berry`s film, "Things We Lost in the Fire" at number 15. Howard, let me ask you plain and simple, do big stars matter anymore?
HOWARD BRAGMAN, FOUNDER, 15 MINUTES PUBLIC RELATIONS: You know, that seems to be the question today. Peter Bart(ph), the big kahuna at "Daily Variety," wrote a column today asking the same thing. The bottom line is, yes, they matter, but not so much as they used to, Brooke. Things are changing out here in Hollywood.
ANDERSON: How are things changing and why do you think they have changed because, you know, in the past when you have talked about big stars, you have talked John Wayne, Humphrey Bogart, but not so much anymore. Is this a good thing? Howard?
BRAGMAN: You know, you have to understand that on any given weekend there`s 10 or 15 new movies coming out. This weekend, we had a lot of heavy weights. And when you take in last weekend with George Clooney and Michael Clayton, there`s a lot of heavy weights going against each other. And there`s a limited amount of people going to the movies, so they have to compete against each other. Unfortunately, not everyone is going to come on top in the cluttered marketplace like we have, Brooke.
ANDERSON: True. There is intense competition, and I mentioned movies that opened this weekend or are in the theaters this weekend like "Rendition" and "Things We Lost in the Fire." But it`s not just this weekend. Angelina Jolie, for example, "A Mighty Heart" got so much publicity before it opened, and it flopped big-time.
Alicia, I would have to think if I`m the head of a movie studio, I`m banging my head against the wall.
ALICIA QUARLES, ENTERTAINMENT REPORTER, ASSOCIATED PRESS: Absolutely. It`s not like 15 years ago where Tom Cruise was sure to bring out his fan base. Now, our stars are so accessible and overexposed through the Internet, through blogs, through magazines. So if I really want to know more about celebrity, I`m not going to pay to go to the movies. I can click on a web site and look at it for free.
ANDERSON: Especially if you are not, maybe, interested in seeing their film. Maybe, you`re not a movie buff. You`re right. Here`s what I really don`t get. Angelina Jolie makes at least $10 million a movie. Reese Witherspoon, generally $20 million. Brad Pitt, generally around $20 million. But it`s no guarantee. Howard, I want to know, how can I get a job like that?
BRAGMAN: You know, Brooke, I have been meaning to up your retainer fee and talk to you about this if we can get your profile. You know, it`s true. "Entertainment Weekly" did a study. You are on TV every day. You are beautiful. People love you. Why isn`t Brooke starring in the movie is the question? Well, let`s look at Ben Affleck. "Gigli" - however you pronounce it.
ANDERSON: That`s right.
QUARLES: Gigli.
ANDERSON: You got it.
BRAGMAN: "Gigli." Thank you. "Gigli" was like one of the worst films of the year and one of the worst films that he did. And yet it was his best year for covers. He had 17 magazine covers that year, which is basically one every three weeks. So there is not always a connection between a lot of publicity and the box office opening the way you want it to. And I think as we just talked about, over exposure is a big part of that.
ANDERSON: You know, it`s not just films. I want to point out J. Lo`s new all bum "Brave" was a total flop. You know, she only sold 53,000 copies. Her album came in at number 12 on the Billboard charts. This is Jennifer Lopez we are talking about. Alicia, why do you think her album was an embarrassment, even with her name J. Lo?
QUARLES: I think Howard just made a good point. You know, during all of this album publicity was she or was she not pregnant? She was on the cover of every magazine, and that still did not translate into sales because she`s not a great musician. I think people are over it. They`re not going to pay $15 an album when you can get it for free on I iTunes or you can download it for free. Conversely Kanye West did 1 million in a week. So he did huge numbers. So stars can still sell, but they`ve got to have some talent to back it up.
ANDERSON: You`re right. And some of the salaries - I just go back to that, they`re unfathomable. I`m all for recognizing talent, but wow is all I have to say about that. Howard Bragman, Alicia Quarles, thank you both for your insight. We appreciate it.
QUARLES: Thank you.
BRAGMAN: Thanks, Brooke.
ANDERSON: And hey, there`s no doubt that Harry Potter matters. I mean, he`s so huge. But tonight, there is a raging controversy, author J.K. Rowling revealing one of the main Potter characters is gay. Holy Hogwarts, there`s absolute outrage. I`ve got a heated debate at 30 past the hour.
HAMMER: And Orlando Bloom goes boom. Tonight, he could be in the same kind of trouble as Britney Spears. We`ve got the surprising connection between Orlando and Britney. I don`t know. I`m kind of starting to think that all these stars need to take driver`s ed again. We`ve also got this.
JIMMY KIMMEL, HOST, "JIMMY KIMMEL, LIVE": Gellman(ph) said please don`t show your genitals to the audience. Anything else is fine.
Oh, good. I`m glad to hear that he is not going to be taking it off for Regis and Kelly. That`s Jimmy Kimmel. And coming up, I`m going one- on-one with Jimmy to find out what it`s like to fill in for Reg, and find out why he is taking off. He is flying from New York to L.A. every single day. Why is he torturing himself? We`ll tell you coming up.
ANDERSON: To fill in for reg. Now you can watch SHOWBIZ TONIGHT any time by downloading our brand new podcast. You can take SHOWBIZ TONIGHT with you to work, to the beach, wherever you go. Best of all, listen to this, it`s totally free.
Yes. You can find the SHOWBIZ TONIGHT podcast on our west site, that`s CNN.com/showbiz tonight, and you can also download it on iTunes by typing in SHOWBIZ TONIGHT in the search box. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is coming back right after this.
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HAMMER: Tomorrow, a revolutionary showbiz weight watch. Young women everywhere agreeing that they will stop obsessing about the shape of their bodies to this dramatic petition. Big-time stars on board too. We`re talking Ashley Simpson and Fergie from the "Black Eyed Peas." Really a great idea. "The Showbiz Weight Watch: The Body Peace Treaty!" That`s tomorrow.
Well, tonight, in the "Celebrity Justice!" file, bad weekend for Orlando Bloom and for Kid Rock. First let`s tell you about Orlando Bloom. He could be charged with felony hit-and-run. TMZ is reporting that Bloom crashed ask hit into a parked Porsche, and walked away leaving two passengers inside the car, one with a fractured neck.
The paparazzi told Bloom he would be in trouble if he kept walking and Bloom turned back and asked someone if they would call an ambulance. Bloom says the paparazzi caused the crash in the first place, and police are now investigating.
Now on to kid rock who spent 12 hours in jail over the weekend after a brawl in a "Waffle House" parking lot. After performing in Atlanta, kid and his entourage went out for waffles at some Waffle House where a customer apparently said something about one of the women in the group. And then a fight ensued. Kid and five members of his entourage were arrested for battery.
ANDERSON: Well, A.J., there`s a nasty fight over Harry Potter tonight. Get this, author J.K. Rowling has revealed that one of the main characters is gay. Oh, yes. Now there are people really outraged, and there are those really happy about it. Up next, the heated debate over this hairy Harry situation.
HAMMER: Well, Brooke, there`s another hairy situation that we need to talk about tonight. Britney Spears. Everybody remembers Britney as such a teen cutie. The question is why did she become a total train wreck? Well, coming up we have a revealing showbiz special report. You definitely don`t want to miss this, "How Britney Went Bad." Also this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAHER(ph): Hey, do we have some (EXPLETIVE DELETED) security in this building or do I have to come over and kick this guy`s (EXPLETIVE DELETED)?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Yes. That`s talk show host Bill Maher going absolutely ballistic. We`ve got the entire clip to show you. You do not want to miss this. Bill, not the biggest guy in the world, but he is definitely not afraid of taking on anyone. What set him off during a live airing of his show? We`re going to show you that in just a bit. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT for Monday night is coming right back.
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HAMMER: On show biz tonight "How Britney Went Bad."
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COOPER LAWRENCE, PSYCHOLOGY EXPERT AND AUTHOR: Her image was about sexuality from the very beginning. There was no mistaking what message she was trying to send to us.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER (voice over): She may have always been selling sex, but Britney has not always been the out of control train wreck that she is today. So I have to ask, where did Britney go wrong? Tonight a show biz special report, "How Britney Went Bad."
The Harry Potter gay shocker. Author J.K. Rowling outs the head master of Hogwarts. It`s true. Dumbldore is gay. Was this the right move? Well, not according to some people. Tonight, a heated debate on the Harry Potter gay shocker.
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HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. It`s 30 minutes past the hour. I`m A.J. Hammer broadcasting tonight and every night from New York City.
ANDERSON: And I`m Brooke Anderson coming to you tonight from Hollywood. You`re watching TV`s most provocative entertainment news show.
HAMMER: Well, tonight a Harry Potter gay shocker. Believe it or not, after seven books, five movies and over 350 million books sold, author J.K. Rowling has now outed a major character in the book.
ANDERSON: Yes. During a reading at Carnegie Hall in New York City, Rowling dropped a bombshell revealing to a crowd of fans that the head master of Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore, is gay. And I can tell you tonight there are a lot of conservative groups out there who are all fired up and none too happy about this.
With me tonight in Hollywood is "Amazing Race" winner and author of "Here`s What We`ll Say," Reichen Lehmkuhl(ph), who is openly gay. Also with me tonight from Memphis, Tennessee, conservative radio talk show host, Ben Ferguson. Welcome to you both. Hey guys.
BEN FERGUSON, CONSERVATIVE RADIO TALK SHOW HOST: Thanks for having us.
REICHEN LEHMKUHL, WINNER, "AMAZING RACE": Of course. Now, you know, J.K. Rowling didn`t volunteer this information. It came after a young fan asked about the love life of Albus Dumbledore, the head master of Hogwarts - that`s the magical school Harry Potter attended.
Rowling said, quote, listen to this, "My truthful answer to you, I always thought of Dumbledore as gay. If I`d known it would make you so happy, I would have announced it years ago." Reichen, hey, were you surprised about this. And is this a good thing?
LEHMKUHL(ph): Well, yes. I mean, I`m sure it surprised everyone, but I don`t think it`s a good thing or a bad thing. I think it`s just a fact of life, and it`s great that this character came out the way the rest of us do nowadays where we don`t throw it in anyone`s face, but if someone asks, we just decided not to lie about it anymore.
ANDERSON: Yes, that`s the approach that she took. And, Ben, there is a whole lot of outrage here because people are saying this taints a series of books meant for children, prompting a lot of questions. What do you think? Do you agree?
FERGUSON: It`s going to bring up a lot of questions from young people where you have families and parents that maybe aren`t ready to talk about this issue with their kids. I think a lot of the people say if it was important to this character, why didn`t she bring it up in book one?
I think she was smart enough to know she didn`t want to put politics out there, because what is this whole Harry Potter series about? It`s about leaving your life, leaving politics, leaving controversial issues behind and getting lost in a fairy tale and a book. And now she`s brought exactly what she has made her money about, which is leaving all that, brought it into her series, and made people very upset about it because now she got to sit down with four, five, six-year-old kids and explain why there`s a big uproar over this fact it came out afterwards.
If it was important, bring it up from the beginning and let people judge for themselves, but don`t sell people on a fairy tale and then try to put politics back into it.
ANDERSON: Reichen, what do you think? It puts parents in a difficult situations?
LEHMKUHL(ph): I totally disagree. You know, there`s nothing political about this. That`s like saying that just because someone is gay, that`s political. If they come out of the closet, that`s political.
This is an author who probably knows a lot of gay people. She`s decided that she wants to make one of her characters gay or always thought of him as gay and it wasn`t a big deal to her. And it just didn`t occur to her to say anything about it.
FERGUSON: She knew this was going to become a big issue the same reason when she came out and made her comments about Jesus Christ and said people who follow Jesus Christ are a little bit crazy.
I mean, that`s a statement that she knows is going to get people to pay attention to it. She knew when she made this statement last night in New York that she was going to have a favorable crowd there and that she knew it was going to bring up controversy.
Now, it may sell more books. Maybe that`s why she`s doing it. But the bottom line is you`re going to have many parents upset because you put this in to an issue that should have been a fairy tale and let kids get away from the world`s issues.
LEHMKUHL: I`m sorry but you know ...
ANDERSON: All right. What`s a favorable audience? Go ahead, Reichen.
LEHMKUHL: I`m sorry. But you know, talking about homosexuality or anything gay is something to be ashamed of or talking about it as something we can`t discuss with our kids is absolutely absurd. I mean, you`re taking us back 30 years.
FERGUSON: I`m not saying you shouldn`t be able to. I`m not saying - No, I have no problem talking about the issue. Some of my close friends are gay. That`s not the issue.
The issue is this is a fairy tale for little kids to read and enjoy, and she brought this issue up. And now she put parents in an awkward situation. I think it`s a disservice to the book.
(CROSS TALK)
ANDERSON: Ben is saying - Ben`s point is why didn`t she introduce it in the beginning before maybe this children got hooked on these books?
FERGUSON: Absolutely.
ANDERSON: And I do want to read you what one outraged conservative parent wrote on a blog about this. "The kids are being introduced into occult and witchcraft practices. A homosexual lifestyle is a harmful one." Reichen, I`m guessing you don`t agree.
LEHMKUHL: I absolutely don`t agree. You know, for kids to be exposed to homosexuality in a book is OK. It`s part of life. It`s part of where we come from. The fact she didn`t bring it up in the beginning might have been because the reaction would have been terrible, but, you know what -
FERGUSON: Exactly.
LEHMKUHL: That`s not - that`s really the people - it`s the problem of the people who think it`s terrible, and I think that-
FERGUSON: And I think there are some parents who don`t want to bring up issues like this at a certain age. That`s a choice as a parent, and when they trusted her as an author to give Harry Potter and that book to their children, they were trusting that she was being transparent from the beginning. She should know that. She`s an author. Be transparent. If this character is gay, be proud of it from book one, not when the series is finished.
LEHMKUHL: Well, she hasn`t done anything wrong. She hasn`t done anything wrong by making a character gay.
FERGUSON: Except not tell people about who this character was.
LEHMKUHL: That`s ridiculous. That`s ridiculous.
ANDERSON: Reichen, what do you think? Do you think parents could perhaps rebel and refuse to buy the Potter books for their kids?
LEHMKUHL: You know, of course they can, and it`s up to parents to decide what their kids can read and what they can`t read. But, you know, for a patient to make this an issue and say that, "My child can`t read this because it has homosexual content in it," is absolutely ridiculous. Homosexuality is a part of life. And as far as, you know, calling the homosexual lifestyle part of witchcraft or anything immoral is also ridiculous.
FERGUSON: I don`t think that`s what the parent was saying in that letter. I think if you read what the letter said, many people don`t agree with what`s in the book when it comes to witchcraft. Completely separate, and those issues have been brought up way before this issue of which character was gay was in there. No one is saying that witch craft and gay people are connected. You are trying to bring too big of an issue -
LEHMKUHL: Of course they are. Of course they are.
FERGUSON: No, they`re not.
ANDERSON: I understand there are - I understand, but we do have to leave it there. Ben Ferguson, Reichen Lehmkuhl(ph), thank you both.
LEHMKUHL: Thank you.
FERGUSON: Thanks for having us.
ANDERSON: Both made fantastic points. Thank you.
HAMMER: Well, there are really wild times on real-time with Bill Maher. Bill was hosting his live weekly HBO show when some rowdy protesters started screaming something about 9/11 being a cover-up. And that`s when Bill went ballistic.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
MAHER: This is part of the democrats -
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE) in New Jersey.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE GUEST: I`m from New Jersey.
MAHER: Like I even -
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
MAHER: Boy, sometimes here at CBS, I wish the sound wasn`t working. I didn`t even know what that (EXPLETIVE DELETED) was saying. But, you know, see, this is the problem sometimes with -
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
MAHER: Hey, do we have some (EXPLETIVE DELETED) security in this building or do I have to come over and kick this guy`s (EXPLETIVE DELETED)! Let this guy (EXPLETIVE DELETED) out of here.
(AUDIENCE CHEERING)
MAHER: Hey, hey, hey. Out. Out. Out. Jesus.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: They won`t chant "Jerry" for you, though?
MAHER: Is it that hard to throw somebody out of a building?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: What about (UNINTELLIGIBLE), Bill? That was cowardice! Having a man (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
MAHER: I`ll kick your (EXPLETIVE DELETED) out of here, too. Get her the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) out.
MAHER: What is going on here? Hey, this isn`t the Iowa caucus. OK? It`s not a debate. It`s a debate between us. You are in the audience. Audience comes from the Latin, to listen.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: I`ve got to say, nice move, Bill. I have always been a huge fan of him on this show. He also joked that he was going fire his audience ticketing department. Smart move.
ANDERSON: Remember the good old days when Britney Spears was a bubble gum pop star dating Justin Timberlake. I really miss those days. Oh, how the times have changed. We want to know just when did Britney pull into the train wreck station? A show biz special report, "How Britney Went Bad." Next. Also this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
KIMMEL: Gellman(ph) said please don`t show your genitals to the audience. Anything else is fine.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Very funny. Jimmy Kimmel telling me what it`s like to fill in for Reg. But why in the world is Jimmy flying across the country every day this week? Jimmy gives new meaning to the phrase frequent flyer, and he tells me why. That`s coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
SPEARS: I really idolize Madonna. I think she`s brilliant. And I think she is a smart businesswoman, and I totally respect and admire that.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: That was Britney Spears back in 1999 on the red carpet for the Teen Choice Awards. Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, TV`s most provocative entertainment news show. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
And tonight a showbiz special report, "How Britney Went Bad". Now, Britney Spears has made quite a transformation from when she first burst on to the music scene, and, unfortunately, it has been for the worst. A worst she may have been known in the beginning for doing shocking things on stage, as you are about to see in our report.
But Britney seems to have redirected all of her energy into doing shocking things in her personal life. And instead of following in the footsteps of her idol Madonna, Britney has done the opposite. But just how did Britney get so bad? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT investigates.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER (voice over): She was young. She was bubbly. Britney Spears on the hit TV show "Star Search" when she was just 10 years old.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE GUEST: Britney began as a child star. She was on the Mickey Mouse Club.
HAMMER: Britney was just 11 when she started in the Mickey Mouse Club alongside other future stars, Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera. And just five years later, in 1999 Britney would begin her transformation into worldwide pop star.
(MUSIC)
With flowing hair and a winning smile, Britney was becoming the ultimate teen and pre-teen idol. Opening up for then bigger acts like the Back Street Boys and `N Sync. Lance Bass was a member of `N Sync then, and tells SHOWBIZ TONIGHT that Britney was destined for stardom.
LANCE BASS, MEMBER OF `N SYNC: She really hit at the perfect time, and you know, you just - all those kids that came off that Mickey Mouse Club. You know, there was so much talent.
(MUSIC)
HAMMER: But SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is asking, how did Britney go from pop star sitting on top of the world to train wreck TV - shaving her head, in and out of rehab, daily parade for the paparazzi?
JOE LEVY, "ROLLING STONE" MAGAZINE: The genius of Britney as opposed to a lot of teen stars was she didn`t come out with a, "Gee, I`m just a little girl. I`m so lovely and I want to have a boyfriend" song and then do something racy. She came out with something mildly racy, "Hit Me Baby One More Time." She came out in that Catholic school girl outfit. She had the shirt tied up in a knot and she had those pig tails. Kind of a Lolita- esque vibe going on.
HAMMER: A school girl with a sexy edge who soon graced the cover of "Rolling Stone," a true sign she had arrived.
LEVY: Britney Spears` first Rolling Stone cover, the Teletubby cover, as we call it back home at "Rolling Stone", is actually a cover that helped cement her stardom. It was an icon-making cover.
HAMMER: An icon in the making who told CNN in 1999, her break-out year, that it was another icon, Madonna, who she idolized.
SPEARS: I really idolize Madonna. I think she`s is brilliant, and I think she`s such a smart businesswoman, and I totally respect and admire that.
HAMMER: Admiration that would grow over the years, and not even Britney could imagine she and Madonna would shock the world with that now infamous kiss. But years before, it was at another MTV show that Britney would reveal to the world her then true love, Justin Timberlake.
MIKE FLEEMAN, "PEOPLE" MAGAZINE: He was the cute one from in `N Sync. And she was the little pop tart, and they were just the cutest little couple who could be. They came out publicly at an MTV awards show. And that was the same show that she did "Baby One More Time" in that very sexy flesh- colored outfit.
HAMMER: Britney increasingly loved to shock on stage. At the 2001 MTV Video Music Awards, she danced seductively on stage with a white python. For Britney it seemed to be all about the pleasure of pushing boundaries sexually on stage.
LAWRENCE: Her image was about sexuality from the very beginning. There was no mistaking what message she was trying to send to us.
HAMMER: And nowhere was that message stronger than that Madonna kiss in at the MTV Video Music Awards in 2003. Even her ex, Justin Timberlake, looked shocked.
FLEEMAN: The best way to talk about the Madonna-Britney kiss is the way that Madonna explained it to her daughter. Madonna is a mommy pop star, and she was kissing the baby pop star and transferring some of her power and energy to the baby pop star.
HAMMER: She certainly transferred something to Britney because after that Britney transformed from a pop star who shocked on stage to a pop star who did shocking things in her personal life, beginning with a marriage on a whim at this chapel in Vegas.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE GUEST: She had that 55-hour marriage to Jason Alexander. That`s when all of a sudden it went from her being a famous pop star to the beginning of this very long train wreck.
HAMMER: And then, of course, Britney met Kevin Federline, a back-up dancer.
HAMMER: At the time that Kevin started dating Britney, Shar(ph) Jackson, the mother of his child, was pregnant, so Kevin immediately came under fire and, of course, he didn`t really have much of a job and was sort of a deadbeat.
HAMMER: Six months after they met they would marry, beginning yet another transformation for Britney.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE GUEST: Not long after Britney hooked up with Kevin, she started videotaping everything going on in their relationship, and they made this into a reality show "Chaotic," and it was unsettling.
SPEARS: This is a really good - the sex is really good.
HAMMER: Leading to the next stage for Britney Spears, motherhood. She and K-Fed had their first son, Sean Preston, just a year after they got married, but motherhood did not necessarily mean mothering skills.
LAWRENCE: The first time we saw Britney`s mothering skills or lack thereof was when she had her child in her lap while she was driving.
HAMMER: Britney would again transform from worshipped pop star to a bull`s-eye target for comedians.
KIMMEL: Still, early in 2006 but already she has been eliminated from mother of the year competition.
DAVID LETTERMAN, HOST, "THE DAVID LETTERMAN SHOW": What happened to the old days when celebrities would just dangle kids of balconies?
HAMMER: For Britney, the hits just kept coming. But the wrong kind of hits. Like her disastrous interview with NBC`s Matt Lauer in June 2006 trying to explain her increasingly erratic behavior.
LAWRENCE: She made a fool out of herself on Matt Lauer. She was crying and the gum chewing.
HAMMER: Britney and K-Fed would have a second son, Jaden James, but then just two months later, she would file for divorce and the now single Britney began acting even more wild.
FLEEMAN: Her behavior was very erratic. She was out partying all the time, and then she had that famous lost weekend where she went out and got herself tattooed and then shaved her head.
HAMMER (on camera): Britney Spears, what can I say? As the world now knows, Britney is now bald, giving herself a buzz cut, shaving her hair off, and the whole thing caught on camera.
(voice over): That, followed by a now you see her, now you don`t series of visits to rehab.
FLEEMAN: She first went to rehab in Antigua, and that was for only 24 hours. Then she checked into Malibu, and that didn`t hold. Then she checked back in after Kevin threatened a custody dispute with her. She did her 30 days, 28 days, and got out, but her behavior really didn`t improve.
HAMMER: In fact, Britney`s behavior grew more bizarre day by day. She attacked a paparazzi with an umbrella, later claiming it was for a movie role. Then months later, she seemed to court the paparazzi whenever she went out, even taking pictures with them. More would follow, like her disastrous so-called comeback appearance at the 2007 Video Music Awards.
FLEEMAN: She showed up late for rehearsal. She went out partying the week before. She went on stage and it was flat. It was terrible.
HAMMER: Just as terrible, a judge then taking her kids away from her during her custody battle with Federline because of her erratic behavior.
In the end it sometimes seems hard to believe that the Britney of then would become the Britney of now, but everyone loves a good comeback story. And in the end it would be up to Britney to help write that story.
(on camera): So the question is what can we expect to see from Britney next? Well, she and her ex, Kevin Federline, are due back in court this Friday to battle over their kids, and then her new album drops next week.
ANDERSON: Over the weekend Britney Spears got back visitation rights with her two boys. But on Friday she still didn`t have them so, we asked you to vote on our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT question of the day, Britney Spears loses visitation: Is it unfair to keep her from her kids?
Thirty-three percent of you said yes, 67 percent said no. Here`s some of the e-mails we received. Christine from Texas writes, "I think that Britney Spears should not have these babies until she can show she is a responsible person." Fran from New York writes, "I think she loves these children very much, and they need to be with both parents."
HAMMER: Man, talk about your frequent flyer. Wait until you hear what Jimmy Kimmel is doing this week. He tells me why he is almost flying 28,000 miles in the air. You will not want to miss this.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Well, Jimmy Kimmel says he knows it`s crazy, but he`s doing it anyway. All this week, Jimmy is filling in for Regis Philbin on "Live with Regis and Kelly" here in New York City, and then flying back to host his own late night show in Los Angeles. Well, I had to stop by live this morning. I was right there on the set, and I had to ask Jimmy how the heck is that going to work?
HAMMER: So explain to me logistically how this is going to work. I assume you`re going to be flying coach, doing as many connections as possible.
KIMMEL: Yes. We`ll be flying in the dog carrier to - no. We`ll just fly back and forth. Right now, we`re going to get on a plane, fly to L.A., do my show. After the show fly back here and then just keep doing that over and over again.
HAMMER: Is Ambien your new best friend?
KIMMEL: No. Actually, I`m able to fall asleep almost really like that. I don`t need any drugs.
HAMMER: Now, one thing I noticed, and maybe you noticed this when you go out to do his show. You during the commercial breaks would go out to the audience and sign autographs. He puts a wall up, at least out at his show. He wants to stay as far as possible from people.
KELLY RIPA, CO-HOST, "LIVE WITH REGIS AND KELLY": That`s what the nighttime super stars of California do. That`s what they do. They put the wall up. I am Kelly of the people.
(CHEERING)
KIMMEL: Look at these people and these are normal people. The people that come to my show have pierced eyeballs and tattoos on their tongue and you wouldn`t want to get in the audience with them.
RIPA: I feel sorry for him tonight because I`m like one of his guests, and they have no idea who I am. They`re, like, who is this girl he keeps putting on the air?
HAMMER: Let me ask you about this because, obviously, I know you are a trained professional, but your sensibility on your show is a little different than what is called for on a show like this. Is that something that Michael Gellman(ph) sat you down and said -
HAMMER: Well, Gellman(ph) said please don`t show your genitals to the audience. Anything else is fine. You know, I felt like that was a fair compromise.
HAMMER: Any message to him?
RIPA: From the time that happened to Regis, that was an accident. We don`t want Jimmy thinking that that`s OK for him to do.
HAMMER: Jimmy did a good job. Two shows on two coasts. It`s kind of hard to get over it, but I did the math. Ten hours on the air, 55 hours in the air commuting back and forth. Good luck this weekend.
ANDERSON: Yes. He will need it. OK. Be sure to tune in for a CNN special event "Planet In Peril." It`s a CNN investigation that you cannot afford to miss. Anderson Cooper, Dr. Sanjay Gupta and Jeff Corwin team up to explore the world`s environmental issues. "Planet In Peril," tomorrow and Wednesday, 9:00 p.m. Eastern. That is only on CNN.
HAMMER: And that is it for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. Thanks for watching. I`m A.J. Hammer from New York.
ANDERSON: Have a great night, everybody. I`m Brooke Anderson in Hollywood. Glenn Beck coming up next, right after the latest headlines on CNN HEADLINE NEWS.
END
