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Showbiz Tonight
Photographer Arrested for Trespassing at Angelina Jolie`s Son`s Daycare Center; Michael Chertoff was Talking About the TV Show "24"; Terrorists Arrested for Plotting to Blow up Sears Tower; Loneliness is Spreading Because of all those Little Gadgets we use; Gateway Grizzlies up a Doughnut Cheeseburger
Aired June 23, 2006 - 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: The stars react to "American Idol`s" Katharine McPhee and her shocking battle with bulimia. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
BROOKE ANDERSON, CO-HOST: And from breakup, to baby. How to deal when your ex gives birth. I`m Brooke Anderson in Hollywood. TV`s momost provocative entertainment news show starts right now.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER (voice-over): On SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, an Angelina arrest. You won`t believe with the paparazzi allegedly did to snap a picture of Angelina Jolie`s kid. We`ve got the first interview with him. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT gets to the bottom of this Jolie photo face-off.
Terror on TV. Tonight, a startling plan to blow up the tallest building in the U.S. and frightening fiction on shows like "24." How close are these make-believe scary stories to real life terror plots? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT wants to know if the terrorism on TV fuel your fears?
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Hi there, I`m Brooke Anderson in Hollywood.
HAMMER: I`m A.J. Hammer in New York. And there`s a new frenzy over Angelina Jolie and one of her children and, Brooke, if the story turns out to be true, it is absolutely outrageous.
ANDERSON: If it`s true, it`s disgusting, A.J.. Tonight we`re bringing you the very first interview with the parazzo who got arrested on the grounds of the daycare center that Jolie`s 4-year-old son, Maddox, goes to. The photographer is accused of being a sneak and allegedly trying to get a picture of Maddox from his hiding spot in the bushes. The entertainment news website Tmz.com got the interview. And the managing editor, Harvey Levin, is with us tonight from the TMZ newsroom in Glendale California.
Good to see Harvey. Thanks for being with us.
HARVEY LEVIN, TMZ.COM: Hey Brooke.
ANDERSON: OK, this guy`s out of jail, right? He said he was detained for six hours and they let him go?
LEVIN: Right. He was -- kind of ironically, yesterday, we were there as he walked out of the jail, and he didn`t want to be photographed so he put his t-shirt over his head, but they did hold him. He has not been formally charged yet, at least as far as we knew, but the case is in prosecutors` hands and they will evaluate it.
ANDERSON: He does want to remain anonymous and you guys got the exclusive interview with him, so let`s take a look. You don`t see his face.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CLINT BREWER, PHOTOGRAPHER: I was coming up the PCH (Pacific Coast Highway), I saw him come past me, saw him, her, everyone in the car. So, went around the back. Went to have a look and couldn`t see anything, went back to my car, and that`s when his security jumped me. Not jumped me, but stopped me, and they were like you`ve got to stop now, so I didn`t run or anything like that. I just said OK, you know. Called the police. The police turned up and wanted to make an example of someone and has. They`ve impounded my car, they`ve taken all my equipment off me and all they`ve left me with was my wallet and that`s only because I asked.
QUESTION: So, what did you do wrong?
BREWER: The road my car was parked on was private, but I didn`t take any pictures. That`s why they haven`t charged me with anything. I`ve been released.
QUESTION: I heard an elaborate story about a fence in school and that you fell climbing over the fence.
BREWER: With flip flops on.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: OK Harvey, this guy says he didn`t do anything wrong besides parking on a private road. He says he wasn`t at the daycare, didn`t scale any fences with his flip flops on. He claims to be innocent. Do you buy it?
LEVIN: Well look, I wasn`t there, Brooke, but I can tell you that I spoke with Brad Pitt`s head of security, and I spoke with the sheriff`s department and what they are saying is that this guy trespassed onto private property, and whatever he did, it caused people at the daycare facility to actually make a citizen`s arrest, so there was some reason that the daycare people sprung into action and grabbed this guy and then called the sheriffs and then the sheriffs came to pick him up.
Now, he acknowledges that he was on private property. Whether he jumped the fence or drove onto it, he`s acknowledging that. So, technically, as a lawyer, I can tell you that does constitute trespass.
ANDERSON: Exactly. He says he`s not charged with anything. What`s he talking about? Isn`t there a court date in July, is there a misdemeanor charge of trespassing here? Can you straighten this out for us?
LEVIN: Well, yeah. I mean, he got arrested for trespass. He was booked on trespass. Prosecutors still have to decide if they want to actually file a formal charge against him. What happens is it goes from law enforcement over to the prosecutor`s office. The prosecutor evaluates and then decides whether they want to make a formal charge, and that`s where we are right now, making that decision.
ANDERSON: That`s where we stand. Now Harvey, is this just the tip of iceberg when it comes to the paparazzi just swarming Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt since they`ve been back in the states? Is there more craziness to come?
LEVIN: Yes. In a word, yes. I mean, I`m telling you it is scary. And what`s scary is not when they go into a public place and somebody stands on the sidewalk and takes a picture. What`s scary is the chase. You know, Brad Pitt has been chased on his motorcycle. They have chased Angelina Jolie. I`ve actually seen that firsthand. I happened to be driving through a neighborhood where I saw that happen, where several SUV full of paparazzi were just after this woman and went onto private property to get her. So, it`s almost like chasing an animal. And it really is amazing.
ANDERSON: It`s very dangerous. Hopefully that fear won`t cause them to become just shut-in hostages of this paparazzi. Harvey, we are going to have to leave it there. Thank you so much again for your insight on this.
LEVIN: Sure Brooke.
ANDERSON: Harvey Levin, managing editor for tmz.com, thanks for your insight.
LEVIN: See ya.
HAMMER: Well, you couldn`t turn on the TV today without hearing about another really scary terror story. Several men arrested for allegedly plotting to bomb the Sears tower in Chicago. Ironically, this was taking place on the very same day the country`s big terror chief was with the cast of the TV show "24," talking about terror at a Heritage Foundation event in Washington. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is here to tell you that if you think all this terror stuff on TV can get on people`s nerves, you could be right.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SIBILA VARGAS, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: The FBI`s conducting an operation against men they believe are part of a homegrown terror group.
HAMMER (voice-over): Terrorism on television in all too real fashion. Cable news shows, buzzing about the rest of an alleged terrorist wannabes plotting to blow up the Sears tower and other targets.
ALBERTO GONZALES, US ATTORNEY GENERAL: These individuals wish to wage a, "full ground war against the United States."
HAMMER: High-tech surveillance, major terrorist plots all ending like a TV show caught just in the nick of time. You could say the day`s TV coverage sounded a lot like a high action TV drama, and you`d be right.
It was all reminisce sent of an episode of the hit FOX drama "24," where a team of federal agents, lead by Jack Bauer, raced against time to stop one deadly terrorist plot after another.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There`s a nuclear warhead missing. This is our only lead, though.
HAMMER: And in one of those weird life meets art coincidences, as the world was talking about the latest battle in the war on terror, America`s real life Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff was talking about the TV show "24."
MICHAEL CHERTOFF, HOMELAND SECURITY CHIEF: Things do not get resolved in 24 hours.
HAMMER: SHOWBIZ TONIGHT was right there as Chertoff, the creators, and some of the actors from "24" gathered in Washington, D.C. to talk about the war on terrorism, how it affects "24," and vice versa. Chertoff reminded the audience that the terrorists in Miami, as well as the arrests weeks earlier of an alleged terror cell in Canada, remind us that terror is for real.
CHERTOFF: The issue of terrorism is a national problem.
JOEL SURNOW, CREATOR/PRODUCER "24": All of our show is an exaggerated, sort of, expression of that stuff that I think the policy makers in this country have to face every day, but in a, obviously, in a less intense way.
HAMMER: It was less than a month after the September 11 attacks of 2001 that "24" first went on the air. The show continues to draw its spots from the war on terrorism.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You`re talking about torturing this man?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I`m talking about doing what isbe necessary to stop this warhead from being used against us?
HAMMER: "24`s" hero, Jack Bauer, often tortures suspects to get information to prevent terror attacks.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Where is it?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don`t know!
HAMMER: An ends justifies the means debate we`ve heard in the Abu Ghraib scandal in Iraq.
Brad THOR, AUTHOR/NATIONAL SECURITY EXPERT: I think "24" does a great job to balance the moral and ethical dilemmas of how to wage the war on terror. How do we maintain our dignity and what we stand for as Americans when we`re fighting an enemy that`s fighting us with no rules?
HAMMER: But, there`s the question. Do shows like "24" make us too paranoid about terrorism? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT took to the streets of New York to find out.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don`t think it`s affected me much. You know, it`s a show.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: A little scared that stuff like that could happen, like bombs and shootings.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Seven terror suspects are appears in court today.
HAMMER: But, with 24-hour coverage with news stories like the recent terror arrests, some National Security experts feel it`s the news media and not "24" that fans the flames of terror fear.
JAMES JAY CARAFANO, HERITAGE FOUNDATION: We do have a popular media that does, in a sense, looks on "24" with envious eyes. I mean they want their numbers. We have a vision of reality that we do get through news, which is in a sense is in some senses more distorted than the reality that we get through watching drama on television.
HAMMER: But, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT can tell you that no matter how much "24" reminds us of the real world, it is still just a TV show, nothing to get too scared of. In fact, some say that "24" actually carries an optimistic message.
THOR: It reinvigorates my faith we will succeed in the war on terror.
HAMMER: That`s the point says the show`s creators.
SURNOW: Absolutely, that`s what we wish. There is a wishful film and fantasy. The terrorist are the bad guys and we`re the good guys.
HAMMER: And in these troubled and sometimes dangerous times, maybe a little fantasy fulfillment can go a long way.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Too bad there isn`t tons of Jack Bauers.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: And now we want to hear from you. It`s our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day." Terrorism: Do TV shows fuel your fears? Vote at cnn.com/showbiztonight. And send us e-mail, there`s the address, at showbiztonight@cnn.com.
HAMMER: Well, maybe Friday night, but don`t panic, we`ll be back here tomorrow with SHOWBIZ TONIGHT this weekend. Join us on Saturday and Sunday nights at 11:00 p.m. Eastern, 8:00 pacific for more of TV`s most provocative entertainment news show. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, tonight, and every night right here on CNN Headline Prime.
ANDERSON: Coming up, is your iPod costing you friends? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT reveals why those gadgets that you just can`t give up could be making your social life go bye-bye.
HAMMER: Also, Bruce Springsteen goes off on the president and the war. Coming up, "The Boss" in a candid interview you`ll see only on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. Plus, we`ve got this:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN NEWS CORRESPONDENT: What was your favorite part of the call?
VINCENT FERRARI, BLOGGER: Oh, favorite part was definitely when he asked to speak to my dad.
AOL: Is your dad there?
FERRARI: My dad?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: A-O-Hell. Coming up, the story of a guy who wanted to cancel his AOL membership, but they wouldn`t let him. Yep, he got mad and he got even. And we`re going to show you how, still to come.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT for Friday night, we are TV`s most provocative entertainment news show. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York. It is time now for a story that definitely made us say, that`s ridiculous. Let`s call this one "Meat me in St. Louis," that`s m-e-a-t. Say hello to the cheeseburger doughnut, or if you please, the doughnut cheeseburger. Yes, for $4.50 the Gateway Grizzlies, an independent baseball team outside of St. Louis, Missouri will serve you up a cheeseburger, two strips bacon all between a Krispy Kreme glazed doughnut. Alka-Seltzer and angioplasty are extra.
Whahatever happened, Brooke, to buying me some peanuts and crackerjacks? Although, while this may not be me, there are a lot of people out there who say that the McGriddle wasn`t going to work and that`s a huge success. It`s the same kind of thing, I guess.
ANDERSON: I guess so, and A.J., if you watch what you eat, these thing has 1,000 calories, 45 grams of fat, so, quite an artery clogger. But they say it`s a hot seller. They sell out of them on game night.
HAMMER: They sell out of them on game night, 300 every single note. But we have to say, a cheeseburger all wrapped up in the doughnut, now, "That`s Ridiculous."
ANDERSON: "That`s Ridiculous."
HAMMER: Well, moving on now, do you remember this sing? "I Don`t Want to be Lonely Anymore." A new study from the "American Sociology Review" says that one in four Americans have no one, no one that they can tell their deepest and darkest secrets to. And loneliness is spreading because of all those little gadgets that people use in place of good old fashioned human contact and communication. So what is it about that iPod, the cell phone, that really keeps people away from each other? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT investigates.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(voice-over): In the 1995 movie "The Net," Sandra Bullock plays a woman who can`t resist technology.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We`re sitting on the most perfect beach in the world, and all we can think about is where.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where can I hook up my modem?
HAMMER: And when technology takes over her identity, she has to depend on good old fashioned relationships to clear her name.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I`m reaching out to anybody who knows me. Anybody who will listen to me and believe me, be my friend.
HAMMER: That`s in the movies, and it turns out scientists are saying we really are tuning people out. We`re getting too attached to our iPods, laptops, and cell phones. Is being too connected causing a human disconnect? We sent SHOWBIZ TONIGHT producer, Jenny Tutoma (ph), out into the streets to see if we could find some answers.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: We actually met on the internet, and I`m from England. So our technology is we`re married now. We got married last month.
JENNY TUTOMA (ph), SHOWBIZ TONIGHT PRODUCER: Oh my goodness, so technology has been a boon for you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Absolutely, absolutely.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We seem to speak to one another face to face now.
TUTOMA: Oh, that`s good. You know, that`s important in a marriage. I`ll give you some -- a little bit of advice for you newly weds, right?
HAMMER: But she desperately wants an iPod to listen to while gardening, even if it means tuning out her new husband.
TUTOMA: Well, you know, that could be a bad thing. You could tune out your new husband?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Occasionally.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That`s necessary.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Right.
HAMMER: And this teen admits cell phones are a good way to avoid mom?
TUTOMA: How about mom? Does she get neglected, does she get -- if you see her on the cell phone calling, do you pick it up or let it ring?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Sometimes.
HAMMER: And instant messaging seems to have taken the place of real life interaction among friends.
TUTOMA: What`s wrong with going to check out -- you know, you don`t know what she`s wearing, you don`t know how her hair looks, you`re not giving her all of those compliments that you give friends.
HAMMER: And even when we pointed out to this teen that all these gadgets could cause her to miss out, her answer baffled even us.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Well, sometimes you feel like you`re missing out if you`re not on the computer.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yeah.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I mean, you don`t know who`s online or who`s talking.
TUTOMA: So, instead of missing people you`re missing your computer? Is that what you`re telling me?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Maybe.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: Well, nobody wants to be lonely and joing me now in New York, Dr. Gail Saltz, who is a psychiatrist at New York Presbyterian Hospital.
Nice to see you Dr. Saltz.
DR. GALE SALTZ, PSYCHIATRIST: Nice to see you too.
HAMMER: So, we have all of this technology surrounding us. We got the blackberry, we got the cell phone, we got the ipod, we got the sidekick. Is it really what is perhaps partially keeping us from being able to make friends these days?
SALTZ: Oh partially so. We`re big on multitasking, we like lots of sensory input, but the problem is all this input isn`t about relating, isn`t about communicating and it isn`t about intimacy. Yeah, you can find someone online and you can chat with them, but the nuance that you get from sitting with someone and getting a read on how they feel, and feeling really close to them, that`s not something that happens via computer or via any of these technologies.
HAMMER: It just has affected every way that we socialize with one another.
SALTZ: Absolutely. Of course, there`s going to be the upside. You know, maybe you find a date that way or maybe you can chat with someone that`s far away that you want to stay in touch with, but when you`re talking about forming close friendships, the person that you can confide in, that`s not the person you`re going to get this way and you may, in fact, be tuning out opportunities for that if you`re standing in line or sitting on the bus and you got plugs in your ears and you`re not turning to the person next to you that you might meet and might become a friend, saying, hey, how are you doing? What`s happening your day? That kind of interaction doesn`t happen.
HAMMER: It`s true, because you know, 20 years ago when the walkman was first coming around before people were plugged into all the time, like they are now with the iPod, you would meet people all the time just because.
SALTZ: In all different ways.
HAMMER: .you didn`t have something stuffed in your ear. I found it fascinating the statistic I mentioned before. One in four people don`t have somebody to confide in. That`s astounding to me. Do you think that is, again, in large part due to this proliferation of technology?
SALTZ: Well, I think this is a piece of it, what we`re talking about. And there are probably other factors as well. The fact people work so hard now, work so much now. And I think one other factor that may be true is that people are increasingly afraid of being vulnerable, of not looking perfect. And so, when you let down your walls, let someone in that you really can confide in, you got to let them know I`m not perfect, I make mistakes, here`s what`s wrong with me, and I think that we`re so image conscious these days that that`s getting increasingly difficult for people.
HAMMER: So, we`re that image conscious that we`d rather not communicate with people?
SALTZ: Unfortunately, it`s not a conscious decision. If it were, then we`d realize, oh, this is crazy. I can`t do this. Let me really reach out to this person. But we`re -- it`s great this study is out, because maybe people will think about this, and next time you`re sitting with someone rather than going uh-huh while you`re doing your Blackberry, which sends them the message I don`t really care what you think or how you feel because I`m reading my Blackberry, you`ll really communicate with them and you`ll think I got to left down my guard, I got to let someone in or I am going to feel lonely.
HAMMER: It`s funny, because a number of years ago I actually made a conscious decision to stop wearing headphones when I walked in the streets here in New York city when I was coming back and forth from work or from the gym, mainly because I don`t like to be sensory deprived of what`s going on. In New York City you`ll get hit by a cab.
SALTZ: Absolutely.
HAMMER: But, then there are the times when, of course, we actually do want to be left alone. When I go to the gym I wear my music to focus, but you know what, I really don`t have the time for people to stop and talk with me. So, that`s perfectly normal.
SALTZ: I think our message is, it`s all about moderation. You know, if you just don`t let the pendulum swing too far in one direction or another. Of course it`s great to listen to music and there`s nothing wrong with watching TV and catching up on calls occasionally on your cell phone, but if you`re doing all of the above all of the time, then it`s going to filter out some people in your life.
HAMMER: It`s all about balance. And Dr. Gail Saltz, thanks for joining us. I appreciate it.
SALTZ: My pleasure.
ANDERSON: Well, Tom Cruise just had a baby with Katie Holmes. Nicole seems handling it well, but it`s not easy. From breakups to baby, how to deal when your ex gives birth.
HAMMER: Plus, A-O-Hell. Coming up, the story of a guy who just wanted to cancel his AOL membership, but they wouldn`t let him. He got mad, and he got even. We`ve also have this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN, SINGER: You don`t take a country like the United States into a major war on circumstantial evidence.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Bruce Springsteen goes off on the president and the war. Coming up, "The Boss" in the candid interview only on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. Keep it here.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Tomorrow, the stars versus PETA. The latest star to be ambushed by PETA, Beyonce. We`re going to show you the shocking video. But the question is, have these anti-fur antics gone too far? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT investigates, tomorrow.
ANDERSON: All right, it`s one of the hottest summer must-haves from the "Entertainment Weekly" "Must-List" issue. It comes out every year and has the people and things that you`ve just gotta check out. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT was right there in New York for the "EW" must list party -- Nelly Furtado, Vanessa Carlton, Terrence Howard, among the stars that showed up. Pop singer Christina Aguilera is named the "Must Glamour Girl." She`s got a new album coming out and a whole new look to go with it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
CHRISTINA AGUILERA, SINGER: Very different look. It reflects where I`m going musically with this next record. "Back to Basics" is a double disk and it`s a throw back record with a modern day twist influenced by a lot of influences by the `20s, `30s and `40s from not only with the sounds and the music with old porn (ph) throwbacks and Blairstown, but with the fashion and the look of it as well.
ANDERSON: You can pick up a copy of "Entertainment Weekly" with Jessica Alba as "Must Girl of the Summer" on the cover, right now.
HAMMER: A-O-hell. Coming up, a great story. It`s all about a guy who, all he wanted to do was cancel his AOL membership, but they wouldn`t let him. Yep, he got mad, and he got even. We`re going to show you how. We`ve also, got this:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
If you really care about your ex. The right thing to do is shut up.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: For Jennifer, from break up to baby. Jen had to do it with Brad, Nicole with Tom, but it ain`t easy. Coming up, how to deal when your ex gives birth.
HAMMER: And "American Idol" runner-up Katharine McPhee shocked the entertainment world, going public with her bulimia battle. Something she had to deal with while performing on "American Idol." SHOWBIZ TONIGHT`s got the stars speaking out about her eating disorder, that`s coming up in just a bit. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT for Friday night is coming right back.
(NEWSBREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT for Friday night. It is 30 minutes past the hour. I am A.J. Hammer in New York.
ANDERSON: Welcome to the weekend. I am Brooke Anderson in Hollywood. This is TV`s most provocative entertainment news show.
HAMMER: Get set, Brooke. We are going one on one with Bruce Springsteen. He is just wrapping up his latest tour this coming weekend. How does the superstar who`s basically known for his patriotism - Mr. Born in the USA - how does he feel about the war in Iraq? How does he feel about our president? We`re going to hear from the Boss himself. It is a no-holds- barred interview. And it`s.
ANDERSON: It certainly is.
HAMMER.coming up in just a few.
ANDERSON: He has no qualms about expressing his opinion on controversial issues, A.J.
Also, Jen had to do it when she saw Brad move on and have a baby with Angelina. Nicole had to do it with Tom. But it`s not easy to see your ex move on with his or her life and have a baby with somebody else. So how do you deal with it? We`ll tell you, coming up.
HAMMER: It can`t be easy, but there is a way.
But first tonight, a man who tried to cancel his AOL account and hit a major roadblock on the other end of the phone line has become somewhat of an Internet hero for recording his frustrating calls to AOL`s customer service.
Here comes CNN`s Jeanne Moos for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
JEANNE MOOS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): That AOL catchphrase.
MECHANIZED VOICE: You`ve got mail.
MOOS: .has been temporarily eclipsed by.
VINCENT FERRARI, FORMER AOL CUSTOMER: Cancel the account.
MOOS: Bronx resident Vincent Ferrari had heard so many tales about how hard AOL supposedly makes it to cancel your account that when he went to cancel his, he recorded the call.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
FERRARI: I don`t know how to make it any clearer.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Last month was 545 hours of usage.
FERRARI: I don`t know how to make this any clearer, so I`m just going to say it one last time. Cancel the account, please.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well explain to me what.
FERRARI: I`m not explaining anything to you. Cancel the account.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: What`s the matter? I mean, I`m just trying to help here.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
MOOS: Vincent posted the call to his own blog, "Insignificant Thoughts," and sent it to other Web sites.
FERRARI: I think it touched a nerve with people. I mean, everybody - like, everybody apparently knew this was going on, but nobody had ever taped it before.
MOOS: It took Vincent a total of 21 minutes to cancel his account, the highlight of the four or five minutes with a customer service rep who identified himself as "John."
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I mean, is there a problem with the software itself?
FERRARI: No, I just - I don`t use it. I don`t need it. I don`t want it. I just don`t need it anymore.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
MOOS: Eventually, things escalated.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I don`t know what anybody`s done to you, Vincent.
FERRARI: You`re annoying the (EXPLETIVE DELETED) out of me. That`s what you`re doing to me. Cancel the account, please.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And that goes both ways, my friend.
(END AUDIO CLIP)
MOOS (on camera): What was your favorite part of the call?
FERRARI: My favorite part was definitely when he asked to speak to my dad.
(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Is your dad there?
FERRARI: My dad?
(END AUDIO CLIP)
FERRARI: I`m 30 years old. The account`s in name, the card`s in my name. And there he is going, Oh yes, could I speak to your dad? It`s, like, come on, man. My dad?
MOOS (voice-over): As the recorded call generated news coverage and countless e-mails, Vincent got a personal call and a written apology from AOL, CNN`s sister company.
(on camera): We have zero-tolerance for customer-care incidents like this. Deeply regrettable and also absolutely inexcusable.
(voice-over): AOL says John is no longer with the company.
(on camera): The guy got fired. Do you feel bad?
FERRARI: Well, I - you know - you know, you never want to be the reason a guy lost his job. But in the end, I wasn`t the reason he got fired. He was the reason he got fired.
MOOS (voice-over): And all those e-mails sent to Vincent`s blog by folks angry at AOL, the head of corporate communications says they`re being sent to service reps marked "Required Summer Reading."
Vincent says that though AOL brass were sure nice to him.
(on camera): They must hate you, though.
FERRARI: I`m thinking right now I`m probably on a dart board in his office.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: That was CNN`s Jeanne Moos for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
AOL also said this to Vincent in that letter. They said - quote - "We`re going to learn from this and continue to make the necessary positive changes to our practices. This was an aberration and a mistake."
ANDERSON: I really admire him. He kept his cool. It must have been maddening for him.
OK, moving on now to "American Idol" runner-up Katharine McPhee. She has gone public with her struggle with an eating disorder, and it`s what`s everybody`s talking about, from living rooms to the red carpet. McPhee told "People" magazine that she struggled with bulimia for years before finally seeking help, at times throwing up as many as seven times a day. McPhee says she finally got the help she needed last fall after the "American Idol" audition, and spent three months in therapy.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT caught up with stars including Nelly Furtado and Jai Rodriguez, who had this to say:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
NELLY FURTADO, SINGER: I think the entertainment business is really, really high profile. You`re in the spotlight, and there`s a lot of pressure to be thin. There`s a lot of pressure to be stick thin. Because to look thin on camera, you have to be, like, five points underweight, under your healthy body weight. So, there`s a lot of pressure. So I think it`s easy to develop an eating disorder in this business.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
JAI RODRIGUEZ, "QUEER EYE FOR THE STRAIGHT GUY": I think it just goes to show you can`t really predict, you know, those things by looking at someone in every case, you know? And - and I - I - God, I mean, so many women in Hollywood have gone through this. I hope she finds a good support.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Rodriguez also told us he feels for Katharine, because in his words - "some of the rags are going to be mean to her everytime she has a burger or doesn`t have a burger."
OK, it`s a sticky situation no matter how you slice it. What do you when your ex has a baby and moves on with life without you? And it`s playing out in Hollywood right now. We bet the paparazzi would have a field day if Jennifer Aniston were to run into her ex Brad Pitt with his growing family in tow.
But what`s the right thing to do and to say? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT investigates.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I had a baby.
ANDERSON (voice-over): "Sex and the City"`s Carrie Bradshaw came face to face with her ex`s bundle of joy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is the man, Tate (ph). I call him Tater (ph) because he kind of looks like one, you know? No hair, big eyes.
ANDERSON: But bumping into your ex on the street without his new love is more storybook than reality.
Take Jennifer Aniston. She and Brad Pitt separated back in January 2005. Pitt then hooked up with co-star Angelina Jolie, adopted her two kids, and then came the birth heard round the world.
HAMMER: On SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, a star is born.
ANDERSON: But for Jennifer, mums the word.
BRUCE WEINSTEIN, THE ETHICS GUY: If Jennifer Aniston were to say anything about her feelings for her ex Brad Pitt, simply in virtue of the - her celebrity, she`d be drawing attention away from him and putting the spotlight on her. And that`s what`s questionable about this. If you really care about your ex, the right thing to do is shut up.
ANDERSON: Then there`s Nicole Kidman. She adopted two children with ex-husband Tom Cruise. It was Tom`s relationship with Katie Holmes and the birth of their baby, Suri Cruise, that had tongues a`waggin.
HAMMER: Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes had their baby.
ANDERSON: Nicole took the high road weeks after Suri was born, telling "Ladies Home Journal" magazine: "To me, he was just Tom. But to everybody else, he is huge. But he was lovely to me, and I loved him. I still love him."
WEINSTEIN: In the case of Nicole Kidman, who said something positive about her ex Tom Cruise, it still has the effect of drawing attention away from him and his wonderful event, his blessed event, and putting the attention for a moment on her. And that`s what`s questionable. She has enough celebrity, doesn`t she? For this moment, she should simply say nothing. The right thing to do is to get out of the way.
ANDERSON: So when your ex ups and has a baby or two with the woman after you, what should you do?
WEINSTEIN: When something wonderful happens to a friend or family member, whether you are a celebrity or not, you should get out of the way. Because it is not your moment in the sun.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: I thought Nicole`s comments were really nice. But there you have it.
Nicole Kidman`s marriage to Keith Urban happens this weekend in Australia. It`s been reported that her kids with ex Tom Cruise are already there. But we don`t think Tom will be in town with baby Suri.
HAMMER: I would like you to invite you to come spend your weekend with SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. You now can find us seven nights a week. So please join us Saturday and Sunday at 11 p.m. Eastern, that`s 8 Pacific, for more of TV`s most provocative entertainment news show.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT tonight and every night right here on CNN Headline Prime.
ANDERSON: You know those guys at the baseball stadium who paint their faces with team colors? You know all of them. Well, if you thought that was extreme, stick around to hear about the ultimate baseball souvenir. Next.
We`ll also have this:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN, SINGER: You don`t take a country like the United States into a major war on circumstantial evidence.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: The Boss goes off on the president, the war and why he just can`t separate politics from his music. Bruce Springsteen gets candid, coming up.
ANDERSON: Plus, Adam Sandler is back on the big screen in "Click." Is there a remote chance it`s worth seeing, or should you just fast forward? Find out, coming up in "Picks and Pans."
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stand by, brock (ph) in five, four, three, two. Roll your break, effect.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Stand by, A.J.`s mic. His mic, dissolve 4, push `Q` (ph). Dissolve.
HAMMER: Harry Lazar (ph) in control tonight.
And welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. We are TV`s most provocative entertainment news show. Hey, it`s the guy calling the shots; I got to give him some credit.
I am A.J. Hammer in New York, and it is time now for another story that just made us say "That`s Ridiculous!"
You know, I believe there`s joy in Muddville tonight because soon you`re actually going to be able to get married in a Yankees coffin. Or maybe a Red Sox urn is more your style. That`s right. There`s a company called Eternal Image and they`ve made this deal with Major League Baseball to put the names and the logos of baseball teams on a new line of caskets and urns, which kind of makes you feel a little differently about the term "die-hard fan." I guess these are for people who really don`t care if they ever get back, Brooke.
I - I - I don`t know where this is going. I don`t know if perhaps one day, Brooke - you know, a die-hard SHOWBIZ TONIGHT fan might want our logo on their casket.
ANDERSON: Of course. Well, there`s always that possibility, I guess. But A.J. these baseball fans - they`ll be rooting for the home team far after their passing and they`re long gone.
But these products are in the development phase right now. And they will be ready to go, whether on the mantle or six feet under, in 2007. So they`re going to have to wait until next year.
HAMMER: And selling for quite a bundle. I believe from somewhere - they`re six - from $600 to around $3,500. But, you know, this particular company, Brooke, they`re really going to "urn" their money.
ANDERSON: Oh!
HAMMER: Let`s move on, on that note.
Because tonight the Boss is speaking out, and he is absolutely not shy about his view on politics, the Bush administration, the war and his great new tribute album to the music of anti-war folk singer Pete Seeger.
Here`s CNN`s Soledad O`Brien for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
(SINGING)
SOLDEAD O`BRIEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Is it a political album? I mean, are you - is it - are you sending a political message with this album?
SPRINGSTEEN: I like that to be an organic part of what I`m doing, I think because I - I always search those - in trying to explain the world and the times to myself, I search those elements out in the music that I like, and so it wouldn`t - I mean, a Pete Seeger record without politics in it wouldn`t - wouldn`t feel right, you know?
(SINGING)
O`BRIEN: In 2004, you came out very strongly in support of John Kerry and former - with your fellow guitarist, I think. Is that your theme - to (INAUDIBLE) into the crowd.
SPRINGSTEEN: Yes.
O`BRIEN: And some people gave you a lot of flak for being a musician who took a political stand. I remember.
SPRINGSTEEN: Yes, they should let Ann Coulter do it instead.
(LAUGHTER)
O`BRIEN: You`re right. There is a whole school of thought, as you well know, that says that musicians - you see it with the Dixie Chicks, you know? That.
(CROSSTALK)
O`BRIEN: Go - go play your music and stop.
SPRINGSTEEN: If you turned it on to - present company included - the idiots rambling on on cable television.
(LAUGHTER)
(CROSSTALK)
SPRINGSTEEN: .on any given night of the week. I`m just saying that, musicians shouldn`t speak out? You know, it`s - it`s insane. You know, it`s - it`s - it`s - it`s funny.
O`BRIEN: As a musician though, I`d be curious to know if there`s a concern that you start talking about politics - you came out at one point and said, I think in "USA Today" - first that the - you know, the country would be better off if George Bush were replaced as president.
You know, is there - is there a worry you start getting political when you could alienate your audience?
SPRINGSTEEN: Well, that - that`s - that`s called common sense.
(LAUGHTER)
SPRINGSTEEN: I don`t even see that as politics at this point.
(LAUGHTER)
SPRINGSTEEN: So, I mean, that`s - that`s, you know, if you get me started, I`ll be glad to go.
(SINGING)
SPRINGSTEEN: You don`t take a country like the United States into a major war on circumstantial evidence. You could lose your job for that. That`s my - that`s my opinion. And I have no problem voicing it.
And some people - I get - some people booed me, you know?
O`BRIEN: But it always occurs to me, as you get older as a musician, do you feel like, Listen, I`m older; I`ve been doing this awhile, I can take more risks?
SPRINGSTEEN: It`s always been a part of - of what I`ve done. I mean, I don`t - I don`t necessarily lead with it. As the night goes on, I - I occasionally have a public service announcement. But at that - but I always figure, but I`m already about two and a half hours in. By that time, I`ve earned - I`ve earned a minute or two where I can - I can either enliven you or - or bore you or make you angry.
And the audience is sort of - they respond as the will, you know? I mean - you know, it`s like - you know, my record`s busted up and sent to me sometimes.
O`BRIEN: Is it really?
SPRINGSTEEN: Oh, yes.
O`BRIEN: They mail them back to you?
SPRINGSTEEN: Yes. Yes.
(SINGING)
O`BRIEN: "We Shall Overcome" is such a beautiful song. I was listening to it at home, and it (INAUDIBLE). I was all set up for the cry and I`m going to take my chances (ph). I was like - I mean, it is a beautiful, incredibly moving - and it`s - you know, we`ve heard it a million times. A song that you just hear a million times. Why - why did that song - why did you pick that song?
SPRINGSTEEN: If you lived through the 60s, you know the importance of that song. And it`s one of those things, that that hasn`t changed in America. And to the point of where you saw the shock of the country when they saw who got left in New Orleans, you know? President Bush himself had to come out and sound like Lyndon Baines Johnson a few days later to actually address the subject of American poverty, which goes unaddressed entirely to this day, to the shame of all of us. Unaddressed, until people saw it on the news. It was the only time you`ll see those folks on the news not in handcuffs and not, you know, being exploited in some other way.
And it was - and it shocked the country to the - to the degree where he actually had to say. He didn`t end up doing anything about it, but he had to say something about it, you know? That song is at the core of that struggle. That`s - that goes on, round and round and round, still to this day.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: You cannot argue with the way that man speaks his mind. That was CNN`s Soledad O`Brien for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. And Bruce Springsteen`s "We Shall Overcome: The Seeger Session, " a truly great album, in stores now.
ANDERSON: Tonight, a controversy is brewing over a video game that believe it or not involved international politics. The game is called "Mercenaries 2: World in Flames." It`s coming out next year, but the Venezuelan government is already angry about it. That`s because the game feature mercenaries invading Venezuela to guarantee oil supplies for the United States. Some Venezuelan government officials suspect the U.S. gamemaker is trying to drum up support for the United States to overthrow President Hugo Chavez.
A spokesman for the gamemaker says the game isn`t making a political statement about Chavez.
HAMMER: Well, it`s time now for the SHOWBIZ guide. Tonight in People`s "Picks and Pans," new movies: one big feature and two little ones. Adam Sandler`s new comedy "Click," a new documentary for world lovers everywhere called "Wordplay," and a post-9/11 film "The Great New Wonderful."
Joining me here in New York with all the details, "People" magazine film critic Leah Rozen.
Leah, the concept seems good in Adam Sandler`s new film. Who among us wouldn`t want a remote control to put people on pause and rewind and fast forward throughout our day? Does the movie work?
LEAH ROZEN, "PEOPLE" MAGAZINE: You will wish you had a mute or a pause button for the movie, A.J.
I mean, Adam Sandler - I - you know. Here he is clearly under the - the (INAUDIBLE) misimpression that he is Jimmy Stewart. Basically, this movie is "It`s a Wonderful Life" with a remote control. He can look back on earlier parts of his life; he can see the future. It`s one of those movies - it is 98 minutes but it feels like forever.
HAMMER: Oh no.
ROZEN: I`m just going to say, there are people who will find it funny with big, big flatulence joke. That`s the kind of humor we`re talking. But man, I found it painful.
HAMMER: Sounds like a pass to me.
Let`s move on then to "Wordplay." Do you have to be a lover of crossword puzzles to enjoy this film?
ROZEN: No, because I myself am very bad at crossword puzzles because I can`t spell, and I liked the movie. This is all about crossword-puzzle fanatics. They`ve profiled Will Short, who is "The New York Times" editor of crossword puzzles. You see that Bill Clinton is a crossword fan, Jon Stewart is a big crossword fan. They both do it ink. It`s a fun movie.
HAMMER: Then "The Great New Wonderful," with a great cast: Edie Falco, Tony Shalhoub is in this, Olympia Dukakis, also Maggie Gyllenhaal. I - I like premise. Tell me about the film.
ROZEN: It`s a very good ensemble cast. It is one year after 9/11. It`s just people whose lives are a little messy, and they really never talk about 9/11. But it`s just clear.
I felt it was a drama, terrific acting. But it`s one where you the audience really have to do a lot of the work and do a lot of reading between the lines and filling in. It just seemed a little underdramatized to me.
HAMMER: That`s too bad. The audience shouldn`t have to work.
Leah Rozen, thank you as always for your insight on these films.
And as always, for more "Picks and Pans," you can get your copy of "People" magazine. It`s on newsstands right now.
ANDERSON: It`s time now for tonight`s "Hot Headlines."
The photographer arrested at a day care center that Angelina Jolie`s son, Maddox, attends says the police just wanted to make an example of someone. Clinch Brewer was arrested on charges of parking his car on private property. There were reports he was hiding in the bushes at the day care center and had jumped a fence. But he says that`s not true. Police impounded his car and the equipment inside. He`s scheduled to appear in court on a misdemeanor trespassing charge in July.
The countdown is on to the super-secret Nicole Kidman-Keith Urban wedding in Australia. Today, the actress and her country star husband-to-be took a drive. The whispers were that they were heading to a ceremony rehearsal, a rehearsal ceremony. Kidman told reporters her nerves are just fine. The whole shebang is expected to go down this Sunday.
Now Kidman isn`t the only one with wedding plans for the weekend. "Desperate Housewives" star Marcia Cross reportedly is tying the knot in Los Angeles this weekend. She`s marrying wealth manager Tom Mahoney. The couple started dating last year.
Some sad news tonight. Kool and the Gang`s lead guitarist Charles Smith has died. His publicist is only saying that Smith died after a long illness at age 57. Smith wrote the Kool and the Gang hit "Joanna" and co- wrote "Celebration."
And those are tonight`s "Hot Headlines."
HAMMER: Last night, we asked you to vote online on our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day." The question was, "Stars and eating disorders: do their confessions do more harm than good?" I was kind of surprised by the vote, almost split down the middle, with 45 percent of you saying yes; 55 percent of you saying no.
A bunch of e-mails came in. We heard from Jamie in Arizona. He writes, "It is admirable for anyone that suffers from an eating disorder or addiction of any kind to come forward to help others."
We also heard from Lisa in California. Lisa says, "I am so bored with all this self-indulgent celebrity confessions. I watch movies and TV for escapism and entertainment."
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT coming right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: We`ve been asking you to vote on tonight`s SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day": "Terrorism: Do TV shows fuel your fears?" Keep voting: cnn.com/showbiztonight. Write to us: showbiztonight@cnn.com. We appreciate your e-mails. We`re going to read some of them on Monday.
HAMMER: Well here we are, and it`s Friday night. But I must remind you, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is now on seven nights a week. That`s right, we`re on during the weekends. So let`s now find out what`s coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT tomorrow. Here`s your "SHOWBIZ Marquee":
And tomorrow, the stars versus PETA. The latest star to be ambushed by PETA, Beyonce. We`re going to show you the shocking video. Have these anti- fur antics, however, gone too far? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT investigates tomorrow.
Also coming up tomorrow, Al Roker. Al stops by SHOWBIZ TONIGHT to talk about changes at the "Today" show you may have heard about. Also his behind-the-scenes look at the Miss USA beauty pageant. Al Roker joining us tomorrow in the interview you will see only right here on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
And that is it for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. Have a totally festive weekend. I am A.J. Hammer in New York.
ANDERSON: I am Brooke Anderson in Hollywood. Joining us here this weekend; we`d love to spend a little bit more time with you. And stay tuned right now for more from CNN Headline News.
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