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Showbiz Tonight
Britney and Kevin Settle Divorce; Is Paris Hilton Headed to Jail?; Did Stern Fail Anna Nicole Smith?
Aired March 30, 2007 - 19:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
A.J. HAMMER, CNN HOST: Is Michael Jackson in the hospital sick with something that could be fatal? I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN HOST: And Rosie O`Donnell actually smacks Donald Trump. I`m Brooke Anderson in Hollywood. TV`s most provocative entertainment news show starts right now.
HAMMER: On SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, Anna Nicole Smith and the search for the least favorite person in America. Is it him? This guy? Survey said - actually, could it be Howard K. Stern? Tonight, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is asking did Stern fail Anna Nicole Smith?
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It was his responsibility to step up to the plate.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: And should anyone else be held morally responsible for her tragic and shocking death? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT goes searching for answers.
The Britney divorce battle is over. Tonight, Britney Spears and Kevin Federline hammer out a deal. Who`s getting the kids? How much money will K-Fed walk away with? And with Britney just getting out of rehab, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT asks the controversial question, is this really a good idea for her?
Happy Friday night. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
ANDERSON: And I`m Brooke Anderson in Hollywood. And Paris Hilton may be getting ready for a fitting for a not so fashionable prison stripes. That is coming up.
HAMMER: Oh, we can only hope. But first tonight, Britney`s got a deal, a divorce deal. Fresh from rehab and trying to move on with her life, Britney Spears stepped out for a smoke with Kevin Federline, and then stepped back into her lawyer`s office and said, let`s end this thing.
ANDERSON: That`s right, A.J. It`s been more than four months since Britney first blind-sided K-Fed and filed for divorce followed by a mind boggling whirlwind of partying, head shaving and rehab. Now SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is revealing what she did to get this divorce done.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER (voice-over): Britney`s and Kevin`s divorce gets downright nasty.
ANDERSON: Britney Spears shocked the world and her husband when she first filed for divorce from Kevin Federline.
HAMMER: The gloves are off.
ANDERSON: And the world was expecting a dogfight once the former flames each filed for sole custody of their two small boys.
Since then, Britney shocked us with her wild partying, rehab stints and questionable parenting that actually made K-Fed look sympathetic. But now Britney has shocked us again.
HARVEY LEVIN, TMZ.COM: This divorce is over except for the final signature from the judge.
ANDERSON: Barely a week out of rehab, she and Federline hammered out a divorce settlement. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT tells you how this surprise deal came about, and we`ll tell you if anyone can be declared the winner in this latest Hollywood divorce battle.
Here`s where it all went down. The Los Angeles offices of Britney`s divorce attorney where the two sides huddled for five hours to work out a divorce deal.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT has learned that at one point Kevin went outside for a cigarette and Britney followed. They talked for 15 minutes. Soon after, the deal was done.
LEVIN: They hammered out a settlement.
ANDERSON: TMZ.com`s Harvey Levin tells SHOWBIZ TONIGHT that while terms of the deal haven`t been publicly disclosed, K-Fed did not get much of Britney`s estimated $100 million fortune. Britney has an airtight pre- nup to thank for that.
LEVIN: There was no way of getting around it. And it protected Britney`s fortune, simple as that.
ANDERSON: Britney`s people are denying reports that Federline got $1 million in cash and joint custody of the kids, but it looks like her marriage is headed for an end that`s far more low key than its beginning.
In 2004, Britney`s surprise marriage to Federline, an aspiring rapper and her former backup dancer, did raise some eyebrows at first.
LEVIN: This was a nutty, crazy marriage.
ANDERSON: But it did seem to begin with promise, especially after it lasted lodger than her first marriage to a childhood friend which lasted all of 55 hours.
BRITNEY SPEARS, SINGER: He`s the perfect husband, he`s awesome.
ANDERSON: Britney and K-Fed documented their relationship on a reality show called "Chaotic" where Britney gushed about her man.
SPEARS: Here`s cute Kevin. He`s so cute.
ANDERSON: Federline`s very last interview before Britney filed for divorce was with SHOWBIZ TONIGHT and when I spoke with him then, he gushed about his wife.
KEVIN FEDERLINE, SINGER: I love her to death. I look up to her as my wife and, like, a real genuine person.
ANDERSON: Then came the split. Before the ink was barely dry on her divorce filing, Britney started partying like there was no tomorrow.
LEVIN: She went wild after she split with Kevin.
ANDERSON: She made headlines by picking up some questionable new friends like Paris Hilton and some unquestionably bad partying habits.
And by the time she shaved her head on an apparent whim, her bid for custody of her kids appeared to be in serious danger.
LEVIN: Initially it looked like Britney was going to get the kids straight out. And when she started having her troubles and K-Fed said, look, I want custody, it really became an issue. And while she was in rehab, he did have the kids and he still has the kids a lot now even though she`s out.
ANDERSON: Finally Britney checked into rehab. And when Kevin started caring for the kids in the meantime, his image was rehabbed as well.
LEVIN: Kevin during the marriage was perceived by all as the slacker. To some extent, he`s proven a lot of people wrong. You know, he`s stepped up when he needed to in terms of being a parent and he was really supportive of her. And I`m told he`s been really reasonable throughout this settlement.
ANDERSON: Britney has changed as well.
LEVIN: She has completely changed as a person since going into rehab and everybody around her says that.
ANDERSON: And as their divorce agreement awaits a judge`s approval, we`re waiting to see if Britney surprises us again by staying clean and surviving a clean break from her husband.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
ANDERSON: Is Britney Spears, barely out of rehab, really a changed woman, or is it too much happening too soon? What about her young kids? And does her career have any shot of bouncing back?
With me tonight here in Hollywood, Ken Baker, editorial director for usmagazine.com. And in New York tonight, developmental psychologist Cooper Lawrence. Ken, Cooper, good to see you both.
COOPER LAWRENCE, DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Thank you.
ANDERSON: All right, Ken, this really seemed to happen out of nowhere, because until now we`ve been hearing that there was going to be a nasty custody fight for these two kids, that there was already tension while she was in rehab. Then bam, something changed. What happened?
KEN BAKER, USMAGAZINE.COM: Well, everyone thinks that she`s rushing out of rehab and into a divorce settlement, but actually this was in the works back in January.
And actually in early February, we at "Us" magazine were expecting the settlement to be done. Well her life went off the skids, she ended up falling into rehab. So when she got out of rehab, they picked back up the negotiation and they came to a quick settlement because a lot of the work had been done.
Now of course though, Britney and Kevin both want to move on. I think they both realize that they`re happier, they`re healthier people when they`re not married, and they just want to move on, work out the custody agreement, work out the fine points of the money and move on with their lives.
ANDERSON: Well, we all know that Britney is known for doing impulsive things. Cooper, I`ve got to ask, you remember the first time she got married. It lasted 55 hours. Then she had the whirlwind marriage to Kevin. On a whim, she walked into a salon recently, shaved her hair off. Is this another example of Britney being impulsive or is this the right thing at the right time for her?
LAWRENCE: Well as far as rehab goes, once you get out of rehab, you want to get the toxic people out of your life. I mean, she had that song "Toxic." We don`t know if that`s about Kevin or not. We don`t know the real dynamic of their relationship.
So if he was one of the people that caused her to be stressed out and drink and do drugs and just have that really unstable life, then getting him out of her life is the best thing she can do for herself. Some people they come out of rehab, they need to just clean the slate and start over.
ANDERSON: Have a fresh start. Well Ken, we know that Britney Spears is going to have some sort of a career. We know that. But the only reason we`re even mentioning Kevin Federline`s name today is because he was married to her. You know, he tried putting out his own album. That flopped. What do you think, is she a goner career wise or is there any reason to believe that once he`s divorced people could still be paying attention to him?
BAKER: Well, K-Fed`s album that came out last year was dead on arrival when it came out. And he never had much of a career. I think that Kevin has actually been taking meetings to have, what else, a reality show.
And Britney`s been finishing up her album. In fact, it`s still on the schedule to be released later this year. Her record label really wants to get her out there. They think that she`s getting in shape, she has her life back together.
And hey let`s face it, she has a really great, compelling story to tell. From what I`m told, her record is actually really good. But I think it`s more important if you think about the kids here. These two have two children together. They`re both very young. Of course, I think Cooper can speak to this better, but from what we know, these kids have been through a lot of trauma. And I think that`s the sad part of this.
ANDERSON: I want to talk about that, because these are two very young children here. You know, Sean Preston just 18-months-old. Jayden James only 6-months-old. And like you say Ken, they`ve been surrounded by turmoil basically since birth. Cooper, should we be concerned about Britney`s kids and how they`re going to be affected by all of this?
LAWRENCE: Definitely. I`m glad Ken brought this up because I really want to say something about this. My big concern - you know, during the 30-some odd days she was in rehab, they were with their father. At that age, they form an attachment. So they`re attached to him.
So if she`s a good mom, looking at the big picture, she`s going to realize that they need to be with their father. I don`t know what the custody situation is going to be, but they need a stable role model, somebody that they can really bond to.
And they`ve bonded with him. They`ve attached to him, especially at that age. I mean, the big years that seven months to about a year is where the real attachment happens. These are kids that have been -- they see different faces in their life all the time. So finally they had their dad around for 30-some odd days. They`re attached to him.
ANDERSON: Finally and hopefully their parents will be positive influences on them going forward. And Ken, given Britney and K-Fed`s history together, what do you think? Do you see Britney and K-Fed being friends and remaining civil?
BAKER: Well, it`s never amicable. Whenever they say it is, that means it`s not.
In fact, the only amicable divorce I`ve seen in Hollywood in recent history was Demi Moore and Bruce Willis. And they`re the only one. And I think they are being civil, however. And we have seen them for the last week or so. They`ve been very much sharing custody, the kids will go from Kevin`s over to Britney`s. At the end of the day they`ll go back to Kevin`s. And there has been some sharing there.
I expect that to continue. So that`s the silver lining in this, is that I think they both realize they have to be there at least for the children. And it`s happening.
ANDRESON: Oh, absolutely. That`s great to hear. OK, Ken Baker, Cooper Lawrence, we`re going to have to wrap it up there. Thank you both so much.
BAKER: Thank you.
LAWRENCE: Thank you.
ANDERSON: And pick up a copy of "Us" magazine on newsstands now.
Well another big question is this - will Brit and Kevin, now that their divorce is done, stay friends? Coming up at 45 past the hour, the amazing secrets of how other divorced celebrity couples get along just fine.
HAMMER: Brooke, could it really be possible? Could Paris Hilton actually be going to jail?
ANDERSON: You know what, it`s a possibility. But I`ll believe it when I see it, A.J., not sure.
HAMMER: Man, that would be sweet. Coming up, the explosive charges and why her buddy Nicole Richie actually could end up in a jail cell right next to her.
We`ve also got this.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Howard telling Anna, I love you. I`m mourning your death. Well then, damn it, why didn`t you do something about this before now?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: And A.J., coming up, we`re asking did Howard K. Stern fail Anna Nicole Smith? And should anyone else be held morally responsible for her tragic and shocking death? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT goes searching for answers.
HAMMER: Also coming up next, Rosie O`Donnell smacks Donald Trump. Yes, the Rosie O`Donnell feud with Donald Trump egg-splodes. That`s egg- splodes. He was all shell-shocked. Hey, it`s Friday -- fry-day.
ANDERSON: Fry, f-r-y, day. First tonight, "Entertainment Weekly" great America pop culture quiz. Counterculture guru Timothy Leary is the godfather of which "Reality Bites" star? Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke, Janeane Garofolo or Ben Stiller? Think about it. We`ll be right back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ANDERSON: So again, tonight`s "Entertainment Weekly" great American pop culture quiz. Counter-culture guru Timothy Leary is the godfather of which "Reality Bites" star? Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke, Janeane Garofolo or Ben Stiller? The answer is A, Winona Ryder.
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT for Friday night. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
Easter of course just around the corner. That means of course it is time for a celebrity egg-stravaganza on "The View." I`d like you to check it out now as Elisabeth and Rosie do some funny arts and crafts on an "Idol" who has really come out of his "shell," a supermodel who "cracked" her maid, and yes, a billionaire who has really been all "boiled" up over a name-calling feud!
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
ELISABETH HASSELBECK, THE VIEW COHOST: I did Barack Obama, and Hillary Clinton right here, equipped fully with her pearls. There`s her flag. We`ll keep that with her. And then of course I had to do Sanjaya.
ROSIE O`DONELL, THE VIEW COHOST: Sanjaya from "American Idol," so cute.
HASSELBECK: Naomi Campbell with her blinged out phone. And this is a bag she was trying to have that sanitation worker carry.
O`DONNELL: And here`s her maid that she beat up. There you go. Guess who it is. Let`s get a close-up. And look, there. And there`s some money, yeah. And I`ll give you a hint. "Rosie`s really fat and ugly! Rosie`s really fat and ugly. Rosie`s fat and ugly and she`s fat." OK.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: That`s pretty funny. All right, I got to do it. I`ve got to do it. Will you help me out, guys? The yolks on Donald. All right move on.
ANDERSON: Oh boy, seems to be.
Well, you know, Paris Hilton had plenty of egg on her face when the cops pulled her over last month for driving with her lights off at night and with no license.
But it`s about to get a lot more serious for Paris because she could be facing jail time. Prosecutors in Los Angeles now say they will ask a judge to revoke her probation from her pleading no contest to alcohol-related reckless driving.
With me tonight in Hollywood, Tom O`Neil, he`s the senior editor at the entertainment magazine, "In Touch Weekly." Good to see you, Tom.
TOM O`NEIL, IN TOUCH WEEKLY: Same here, Brooke.
ANDERSON: All right, Paris seems to be in really big trouble here. She could potentially get 90 days in jail. Do you really think that`s going to happen?
O`NEIL: It could happen, because we`re seeing the legal system getting tough with stars like Martha Stewart, of course. And the case of Paris Hilton, she was given probation of period 36 months. She should have known that wasn`t just a couple of months past her September incident. So yeah, it could happen.
ANDERSON: Yes, you say she should have known. I agree with that. I know you`re not inside her head. But I want to ask, the girl is on probation, isn`t it pretty darn ridiculous that it doesn`t occur to her maybe that she could get in trouble for driving with a suspended license?
O`NEIL: But she`s using the ditz defense here. This is really interesting. She`s saying I didn`t realize that I was -- my license was suspended and my lights were off. I`m kind of wondering doesn`t she drive those expensive cars where the lights automatically go on? She was pulled over because she was driving suspiciously.
ANDERSON: One would think.
O`NEIL: Yes, right.
ANDERSON: And you know, that whole ditz defense, I don`t really buy that, Tom. But you know, isn`t it possible that a judge who is going to hear this case is going to throw her in jail, maybe because the judge doesn`t want any appearance whatsoever that Paris is getting any special treatment because she`s a celebrity? Maybe a judge might want to make an example of her.
O`NEIL: It would be, because she is a professional bad girl. She would be the kind that you might want to be tempted to make an example of. So wouldn`t it be interesting? Poor Paris, if you go to jail, they don`t have pedicures there, they don`t have Mimosas for breakfast. She might have to scrub a few toilets, but she`s done worse than that on "The Simple Life."
ANDERSON: not the lifestyle she`s accustomed to though. And of course Tom, it`s not just Paris, it`s also her "Simple Life" costar Nicole Richie who has been getting into a lot of trouble lately. Boy, this duo. You know? Nicole, she`s got a court date next week on her second DUI charge. This time arrested for driving the wrong way on the freeway allegedly under the influence of alcohol and an unnamed drug. Do you think she`ll face jail time? Should she be worried?
O`NEIL: Her case, I think she will be forced to serve jail time. There`s a law in California that is mandatory that says after two DUIs, in the slammer you go. The question is will Paris be in the slammer at the same time? Will they put them in the same jail cell, and if so, who would emerge alive?
ANDERSON: Yes, I want to ask you. That would be totally ironic, wouldn`t it? Let`s say they both get thrown behind bars. That would be around the time when "The Simple Life" is airing. Talk about an ironic situation.
O`NEIL: It really would be. They allow cameras in the courtroom, they should allow them in the jail cells, don`t you thing, next?
ANDERSON: Oh gosh, that`s the next reality show, certainly not. And what do you think, is there something about, you know, these girls, these celebrities that might make them think that they can get away with anything?
O`NEIL: Yes, I think that there is a double standard in this country when it comes to celebrities and it comes to us normal people.
Look at Lindsay Lohan, she`s never been convicted of a DUI, but she`s had a lot of suspicious car crashes, once when she hit a police car in London. But she keeps getting off and what does she do? She goes into rehab. Her father, on the other hand, a regular citizen, just got out of jail after two years on a DUI charge.
ANDERSON: All right, Tom O`Neil, senior editor of "In Touch Weekly," as always, thank you so much.
HAMMER: Well you know what, as much as we just can`t get enough of these star controversies, coming up next, we have a story that definitely puts it all into perspective, the important stuff. It`s the emotional, surprise reunion between a little boy and his daddy just back from Iraq. That`s on the way.
ANDERSON: A.J., it`s is a beautiful reunion. Every time I watch it, I get choked up.
But something totally different now. Michael Jackson -- is he in the hospital and sick with something that could be fatal? The SHOWBIZ TONIGHT truth squad checks that out. Also this:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Howard telling Anna, I love you, I`m mourning your death. Well then damn it, why didn`t you do something about this before now?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: Tonight, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is asking, did Howard K. Stern fail Anna Nicole Smith? And should anyone be held morally responsible for her tragic and shocking death? That`s coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
ANDERSON: So what do you think? It`s our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT question of the day. Howard K. Stern, did he fail Anna Nicole Smith? Vote at CNN.com/SHOWBIZTONIGHT. Send us an email at SHOWBIZTONIGHT@CNN.com. We`re going to read some of your thoughts a little later on.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Monday, a SHOWBIZ TONIGHT special. Tabloid frenzy. Losing weight, gaining weight, hooking up, breaking up. The secrets of how to be a tabloid star. Plus do fame and being hounded by the paparazzi go hand in hand? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT asks do stars deserve privacy? That`s Monday.
ANDERSON: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. I`m Brooke Anderson in Hollywood and this is TV`s most provocative entertainment news show.
Well, every now and then we come across a story that may not deal with a Paris and/or Britney controversy but we just have to tell you about it. This one a real tear jerker. I`ve got to tell you, it`s the surprise emotional reunion of a 6-year-old with his father, a sailor just back from Iraq all got on tape. Bill Hawes popped into his son John`s kindergarten class outside of Seattle. His little boy John had no clue that daddy was coming home after seven months of duty in Iraq. Bill and his wife were of course beyond thrilled to be reunited.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
BILL HAWES, SERVED IN IRAQ: It`s great to be home. Seven months over there. It is nice to see my kids and all again, my wife.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I am so ecstatic to have my husband home. I was so proud of him.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
ANDERSON: Oh, it is so heart warming. I don`t know how you can watch that and not get teary. By the way, little John`s class had been sending his dad care packages. And he was absolutely thrilled to introduce the sailor to all his pen pals.
HAMMER: So nice to see that family back together and happy once again. What I really want to know is, how do divorced celebrity couples stay happy not together? How do star spouses who split up stay friends? We`ve got their secrets coming up.
ANDERSON: A.J., we bet divorced couples everywhere want to know how they do it, too. Also, Michael Jackson, is he in the hospital with a potentially deadly illness? The SHOWBIZ TONIGHT truth squad is hot on the case.
Also this:
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Howard telling Anna, I love you, I`m mourning your death. Well then damn it, why didn`t you do something about this before now?
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HAMMER: SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is asking did Howard K. Stern fail Anna Nicole Smith? And should anyone else be held morally responsible for her tragic and shocking death? SHOWBIZ TONIGHT goes searching for answers, coming up.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
HAMMER: Welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT for Friday night. It is 30 minutes past the hour. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
ANDERSON: And I am Brooke Anderson in Hollywood. You are watching TV`s most provocative entertainment news show.
HAMMER: Tonight, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is going inside the life of Anna Nicole Smith. In the months leading up to her death, the world watched Anna Nicole mourn the loss of her son, Daniel. The once-vivacious Playboy Playmate sunk into a medicated depression that was really hard to watch.
She claimed to have the people she loved around her, but those people really failed her in one big way: they weren`t able to save Anna from herself.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER (voice-over): We now know what killed Anna Nicole Smith.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We are convinced, based on the extensive review of the evidence, that this case is an accidental overdose, with no other criminal elements present.
HAMMER: And Howard K. Stern`s lawyers have repeatedly insisted Howard K. Stern bears no responsibility for Anna Nicole Smith.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Let me repeat that: at no time was there any indication of wrongdoing whatsoever. Howard loved Anna completely.
HAMMER: While there was no legal wrongdoing, and while he says he loved, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is asking the tough question: did Howard give Anna enough tough love to make her realize what she was doing to herself?
KEN SEELEY, A&E`S "INTERVENTION": Howard telling Anna, `I love you. I - I`m mourning your death.` Well, then, damn it, why didn`t you do something about this before now?
HAMMER: SHOWBIZ TONIGHT went straight to Ken Seeley, lead interventionist on A&E`s hit show "Intervention," to see where Howard went wrong.
SEELEY: Even though she was a 39-year-old adult, the addiction is also 39 years old. But the number one symptom of this disease is denial. And so it`s not her fault that she couldn`t see that she was addicted again like she was in the past.
HAMMER: An addiction that would ultimately contribute to her death. "Intervention"`s Ken Seeley believes that Howard could have done.
SEELEY: In this case, it happened to be Howard Stern. It was his responsibility at this point to step up to the plate. He is responsible. He saw the signs. He took the videotape of her when she was pregnant.
HAMMER This is the shocking videotape that was played during the court battle over Anna Nicole`s body, showing a pregnant Anna Nicole acting completely out of it.
HARVEY LEVIN, TMZ.COM: If you freeze a moment in time in Anna Nicole`s life, it`s got to be when she was eight months pregnant painted like a clown, where Howard K. Stern is shooting video and basically saying to her, `Gee, Anna, are you on mushrooms? And we could make a lot of money off of this`. I mean, that is just stunning that he would say something like this to somebody who is - you know, he`s in love with.
HAMMER: SHOWBIZ TONIGHT can tell you that Howard K. Stern was not the only person in Anna Nicole`s life who was supposed to be watching out for her. Anna Nicole`s around-the-clock security guard Big Mo was responsible for keeping her safe.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: If I`m protecting you, if I`m - if I`m hired by you, you`re my friend; you`re my family. And - and with her, it was - it was closer than family.
HAMMER: But did he fail in protecting her from her own worst enemy: herself.
SEELEY: It`s the people around the addict`s fault for not jumping in and taking action when they knew it. All the signs were there. Her son just died; she behaved in the manner that she did. Those behaviors are all the red flags. Those are the things that you have to jump and say, `Enough is enough; I`m not going to tolerate this behavior anymore, and I`m going to step up to the plate to save her life.`
DR. JOSHUA PERPER, BROWARD COUNTY CHIEF MEDICAL EXAMINER: What we found, however, were about nine prescription medication in her blood.
HAMMER: And that has SHOWBIZ TONIGHT asking: did the doctors who prescribed Anna Nicole those drugs bear any responsibility for what happened?
SEELEY: But when you are an addict, that`s one thing that`s very common, is you doctor shop. You find different doctors to give you different drugs for different symptoms.
LARRY BIRKHEAD, ANNA NICOLE SMITH`S FORMER BOYFRIEND: Mr. Stern called the doctors and asked for the prescription.
LARRY SEIDLIN, JUDGE IN ANNA NICOLE SMITH CASE: But - but she could have replaced Mr. Stern with another individual, am I right?
BIRKHEAD: If - if he would have told her `no` on the drugs, she probably would have. And I said `no,` and that`s where I am - I`m here today.
HAMMER: Larry Birkhead, who is fighting Stern for custody of Anna Nicole`s baby, is not the only who raised questions about Stern`s influence on Anna Nicole. So did her estranged mother.
VIRGIE ARTHUR, ANNA NICOLE SMITH`S MOTHER: Be very careful about who you hang around with, because you may be next.
HAMMER: And even Anna Nicole`s own son, Daniel, before he died, went to private investigation Jack Harding with his own concerns.
Listen to what Harding told SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
JACK HARDING, PRIVATE INVESTIGATOR ALLEGEDLY CONTACTED BY DANIEL SMITH: He contacted me - oh, for about four months - it`s been a little while. And he wanted to talk to me because he felt that Stern was giving his mother mind-bending drugs, and he was in control of her faculties.
SEELEY: And that was Daniel before he died. He was trying to take action. (INAUDIBLE) mother trying to take action by saying on - to the media, `Please do something.` But the reality is, there`s nobody who was close enough to her, did the right action.
HAMMER: So who was close enough to do the right thing? Ken Seeley, who leads interventions for a living, says he has no doubts that Howard K. Stern failed Anna Nicole Smith.
SEELEY: And shame on him for not doing that.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
HAMMER: Is what Howard did "a shame"? Should he really be getting most of the blame?
With me tonight from the Court TV studios in New York City, Ashleigh Banfield. She hosts "Hollywood Heat" on Court TV.
And from Los Angeles, investigative journalist Jane Velez-Mitchell, also the author of the "Secrets Can Be Murder" book, which is soon to be in stores.
Ladies, welcome to the weekend. It`s nice to see you both.
Jane, let me start with you. We know - it`s been established, Howard K. Stern not legally responsible for Anna Nicole`s death. Of course, the medical examiner says her death was an accident. He also added it was a preventable accident.
Many would say he is at least morally responsible. What do you think?
JANE VELEZ-MITCHELL, INVESTIGATIVE JOURNALIST: I think he is at least morally responsible.
Let`s face it; there was ample evidence, videotapes, his own testimony that Anna Nicole Smith was on drugs during her pregnancy. Now he`s claiming to be the father. What kind of a father allows the mother of his unborn child to do drugs? Right there, total irresponsibility.
And then when you ass, after Daniel died, no one can pretend, `Hey, we didn`t know that mixing drugs could potentially be fatal.` They had a cautionary tale right in front of them, and they failed to heed that warning.
And then Anna Nicole Smith dies in a bizarrely similar way.
HAMMER: She was somebody who certainly had a problem with drugs. You just heard the interventionist in our story, Ken Seeley, who strongly believes that Howard definitely dropped the ball and didn`t do enough to jump in and protect Anna.
Would you say that`s a - a pretty fair thing to say, Ashleigh?
ASHLEIGH BANFIELD, HOST, COURT TV`S "HOLLYWOOD HEAT": I have very mixed feelings about that whole scenario.
On - on the one side, I`m eight months pregnant, and I won`t even take an aspirin. So I find it reprehensible that anybody would stand by and watch Anna Nicole Smith get into the state that she was in in that clown video.
On the other hand, I`ve also had a drug addict in my life. You cannot tell them anything, period. Just ask anybody who`s been through; just ask the interventionist; just ask the doctors. It`s very difficult to take a 39-year-old woman and change her ways. You can try, you can fate (ph) until you`re blue in the face that what she`s doing is wrong, they`re always going to find a way to continue taking drugs.
HAMMER: All - all true, but somebody has to write those prescriptions. You remember, these - these are all legal, prescribed drugs.
So - so then, maybe, Jane Velez-Mitchell, should we be looking at - at the doctors, or being more critical of the people who were writing the scrips for all these heavy-duty meds?
VELEZ-MITCHELL: Absolutely. And one California doctor is already being investigated by -- a California medical doctor. That`s a doctor who allegedly prescribed methadone to Anna Nicole Smith while she was pregnant.
But what about this psychiatrist slash friend who was with them on at least the first leg of the trip? First of all, the only time I ever hear of a psychiatrist and a friend is in a Woody Allen movie. That`s not supposed to be happening in real life. Either you`re their doctor, or you`re their friend. You can`t be both, especially with an addict.
And we`ve heard some experts testify that some of these drugs that Anna Nicole Smith was taking in combination could have been potentially lethal, even in small doses. So where was the caution there with regards to the chloral hydrate and some of the other drugs being administered?
There are so many questions; I don`t have the answers. I`m not a doctor, but somebody should be investigated.
HAMMER: And - and I don`t want to dispute the idea that for an addict, there are definitely different circumstances at play here. I - I definitely am - am sensitive to that.
At the same time, you know, especially when you look at that last week of her life, and she shows up in Florida with that high fever and very sick, I still have a big problem with the fact that nobody threw her over their shoulder, carted her off to the hospital.
Certainly while the people right around her weren`t doing the right thing in terms of getting her the attention she needed at the moment that she needed - needed it, her son, Daniel, who sadly passed away, seemed to be looking out for her, seemed to be concerned, albeit from - from long distance. He even tried to hire a private investigator, so we`ve been led to believe.
I spoke with Jack Harding, that PI, this week, who claims that Daniel came to him terrified something was going to happen to Anna Nicole Smith.
Now other than Daniel, Ashleigh, are - are you hearing that there was anybody else really looking out for Anna`s best interests?
BANFIELD: Oh, I think, you know, those who were around her were around her because she allowed them to be around her. And if they spoke out against her or raised any objections or issues with her behavior, they didn`t tend to be around her for much longer.
I do know that one of her former best friends, Jackie Hatten (ph), who also says she`s the godmother of Daniel, had the same kind of story, saying that she was cut from the herd, essentially, and that she couldn`t get through on a phone call, and that she feared for Anna Nicole`s life after Daniel passed away. And she was also the person to say Daniel was very worried about - about his mother and his mother`s behavior.
So it`s not the first time we`ve heard it, and it`s not the only person who`s said it.
HAMMER: Well, you know, I`ll - I`ll say this every single night we talk about it: it was a shame that she had all of these people around claiming, `We love Anna Nicole,` and yet she died under terrible circumstances.
Ashleigh Banfield, Jane Velez-Mitchell, I thank you as always.
(CROSSTALK)
ANDERSON: We`ve been asking you to vote on our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day": "Howard K. Stern: Did he fail Anna Nicole Smith?"
Keep voting, cnn.com/showbiztonight. Write to us: showbiztonight@cnn.com. We`re going to read some of your e-mails on Monday.
And don`t forget, SHOWBIZ TONIGHT is the only entertainment news show that lets you express your opinion on video. So to send us a video e-mail, just go to our Web site, cnn.com/showbiztonight.
HAMMER: Brooke, I know you and most people remember the runaway bride story, right? Let me give you a hint - you know, the lady with the wild eyes. You know - that - that looked more like the bush-baby guy from "American Idol."
Well, this lady.
ANDERSON: Oh, that`s terrible!
HAMMER: Yes, this - no, no. I - well, anyway, we know - all know she skipped town, she faked her own abduction so she didn`t have to walk down the aisle. Believe it or not, she`s got a new starring role, kind of. We`ll explain, coming up next.
ANDERSON: Plus, A.J., for stars who did go through with their weddings, sometimes it just doesn`t work out. But there are some couples who are still living happily ever after in divorce. We`re going to take at their secret for getting along after the rings come off.
HAMMER: You may have heard Michael Jackson in the hospital. Reports and rumors flying around, but is it true? The SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Truth Squad" sets the record straight, coming up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: A.J. to desk with tracking (ph) for the E-block.
Roll your break, and effect black.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Fade up, Go 3. Stand by, A.J. Pre-set 1. Open his mike. Dissolve. Go.
HAMMER: Our director, Gnarls Wegmann (ph), I thank you.
And welcome back to SHOWBIZ TONIGHT, TV`s most provocative entertainment news show. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
Time now for another story that made us say, "That`s Ridiculous!"
We all know the story of Jennifer Wilbanks, the runaway bride, the one who skipped town before her wedding in Georgia. She went off to Albuquerque; she claimed she was abducted. Then we all learned the truth.
Well now, the Albuquerque police department is trying to recruit new police officers with this billboard that says, "Running Away From Your Current Job? Call APD Recruiting."
Now that officer that you see on the billboard, the same one who led the runaway bride through the airport in that famous scene two years ago. The police chief says they need about 100 new officers in town. They want to capitalize on the story to attract them.
But I have to say, using the runaway bride to recruit police officers? "That`s Ridiculous!"
Now, "Making it Work" in Hollywood and beyond. It`s SHOWBIZ TONIGHT`s continuing coverage of stars who make their relationships work in Hollywood. It can happen.
And tonight, we have just got to ask: how it is that some of Hollywood`s biggest stars get divorced, but they do still manage to stay friends? From Bruce Willis and Demi Moore, to Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman, we want to know: what is their secret to getting along after calling it quits?
Joining me tonight in New York, and back on the show again, developmental psychologist and syndicated radio host Cooper Lawrence.
Cooper, we know it`s not always the case. We hear about these nasty divorces all the time. It sounds like they always want to rip each other`s heads off. But we have some prime examples of couples who divorce, and then they`re able to stay friends.
Shall we get right to it?
COOPER LAWRENCE, DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGIST: Let`s get right to it.
HAMMER: Well, then let`s start with Demi Moore and Bruce Willis. They were married for 11 years. Now, of course, we know Demi Moore got remarried - Ashton - she got married to Ashton Kutcher. And you see them out on the town like one big happy family. Like Bruce, and - and Ashton, buddy buddy.
What is their secret to making it work? Because they`re - they`re certainly an example to look up to.
LAWRENCE: They really are.
I think their secret is the fact that they just - as the got to a point in their relationship where it was just over. And they both recognized it, and no one`s angry. That`s the big - that`s - that`s the big caveat there. As soon as someone`s angry, there`s a problem. You can`t be friends.
So they just - the relationship ran its course. And they just decided, as mature adults, that they`re going to move on. Plus, with so many kids - what do they have, like 14 kids? - you have to be there for children. It`s hard enough - that`s a really big transition for a kid. That`s the main thing.
So you want to make the world around the kids as normal and innocuous as possible. So if mommy and daddy can stay friends, the kids just - it`s a real easy transition.
HAMMER: Sure, that applies to anybody. But certainly for stars, because if they are publicly not getting along, we`re going to find out about it.
LAWRENCE: And that`s the big picture, right. Because it`s going to be on the cover of everything.
HAMMER: Yes.
LAWRENCE: And - yes. And especially if they want to have a movie career and they want to be likable.
HAMMER: Certainly the case for Nicole Kidman and Tom Cruise, who both want to remain likable, and - and - well, one of those two certainly has a battle with that at times.
They were married for 10 years. They adopted two kids. They split up. Of course, we know Tom remarried Katie Holmes. We know that Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban got married.
What is their secret to - to staying friends and - and making it work? Because they really also appear to keep things very civil.
LAWRENCE: You know, I`ve heard them both being interviewed about this. And they both say the same thing: they actually genuinely like each other as human beings. That`s the first part.
The second part, as celebrities - look, they`re going to see each other all the time. They see each other on red carpets; they have similar friends. I think they have, like, the same agent, manager, somebody for awhile. So, you know, you get to a point where you`re just going to be around the person enough, and you realize, you might as well just be civil, because if not, like you said, we`re all going to see it, and it`s really bad for your reputation.
HAMMER: Yes. And - and certainly when you look at the two of them, there`s been enough attention on each of them for various other reasons, separate from marriage, that has kept them alive in the tabloids.
LAWRENCE: Right. Exactly.
And you want to stay out of the tabloids, because you want to be considered a real actor, not just a celebrity - a crazy celebrity.
HAMMER: All right. Let`s talk about music mogul, entrepreneur, fashion impresario Russell Simmons and Kimora Lee. They got married back in 1998. Last year, they announced they were getting divorced, and they - they ended up splitting up. They also have two kids.
But they`re going to continue to work together, which is something they announced at the time they announced they`re getting divorced. Because of course, if you`re a famous couple and you`re getting divorced, you want to stay ahead of the story and put it out in a press release. But they said, `We`re going to continue to work together.`
That is a very difficult thing to do, and you have to be able to make it work if you are going to stay in business together.
LAWRENCE: Yes, they literally have to be able to make it work, because it`s all about work. It`s all about the money.
He can`t - he - he can`t have a reputation of being anything negative or being that, like, mean ex or that mean daddy or any of that stuff, because he has just too much at stake. He`s got, like, 14,000 business. He does so many different things - the clothing, the music. He - he cannot be perceived as somebody who is negative or not likable in any way, shape or form.
HAMMER: Yes, that`s a lot at stake there.
Well, obviously, there are millions of people who are divorced, stars and otherwise. A lot of people watching right now who really would love that scenario, to be able to keep things civil.
What`s the most difficult part of staying civil after the divorce?
LAWRENCE: Getting over your anger. That`s a big part of it. Because if you feel somebody`s ruined your love and wronged you or cheated on your or something that you just - your - your own ego won`t let you get over it, that`s the big part of it. So if you can get over the anger and look past it and see what it was about the person that you liked to begin with.
HAMMER: Yes.
LAWRENCE: .they could be a very likable person.
HAMMER: And remember, life is too short to be angry all the time. That`s what I always say, right?
LAWRENCE: Let`s go with that.
HAMMER: That`s my two cents.
LAWRENCE: That`s your motto.
HAMMER: Cooper Lawrence, thank you so much.
LAWRENCE: Thank you.
ANDERSON: Time now to call in the SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Truth Squad." Now this is where our crack team of celebrity investigators sets the record straight on Hollywood`s biggest mysteries.
Tonight, we are opening the case file on Michael Jackson. There were reports flying around saying Jackson had been hospitalized with pneumonia. This story was picked up all over the place.
But is it true? Nope. Jackson spokesperson tells the SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Truth Squad," he is not in the hospital and does not have pneumonia. Jackson has been living in Las Vegas, meeting with business associates and weighing his options for a comeback deal.
So there you have it; the SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Truth Squad" sets the record straight.
HAMMER: I don`t know about you, but I am a huge fan of "The Sopranos," getting set to wind down the series. Don`t hate on me, but I got a little sneak peak of the end of the series this week. I have very strong feelings about whether or not you`re going to like it.
I`ll tell you what have to look forward to, or not, coming up next, on SHWOBIZ TONIGHT.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Go 3. Dissolve. Remember Y-sound for tonight`s promo. In 3, 2, 1 - roll Y, and dissolve sound.
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HAMMER: The SHOWBIZ TONIGHT staff just could not stop talking about everything we are loving these days. So here now, this week`s top 5 SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Staff Picks."
I personally am already loving the new and final season of "The Sopranos." Now it doesn`t debut until next Sunday, but I cheated; I got a little sneak peek at the first two episodes this week. I can tell you, if you`re a fan, you will not be disappointed, as this series definitely winds down with a bang - or, many bangs.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT production assistant the lovely Laurie Fabian (ph) is loving the new season of "Dancing With the Stars," especially watching Heather Mills dancing with a prosthetic leg. Laurie says the show makes her want to go out and take dance lessons. Do it, Laurie.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT executive producer, the great Dave Levine (ph), is totally loving the Discovery Channel`s new documentary series, "Planet Earth." Now Dave says the images will truly inspire you. And if you don`t have a high-definition TV yet, run - don`t walk - to go get one.
SHOWBIZ TONIGHT producer Jenny D`Attoma says that she just can`t get enough of the Wynton Marsalis album "Live at the House of the Tribes." Jenny says even if you`re not a diehard jazz fan, you can`t help but get sucked into the melodies and the sounds of all those trumpets.
And then there`s production assistant Britney Kaplan (ph) who says she`s loving ballet flats. That`s right, ballet flats. OK, Brit. Well, she says they are the hottest, the most fashionable things right, and a very trend way to keep your feet comfy while running around at work, which she does a lot of.
Remember, you can always catch up with the SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Staff Picks" on the Web site, cnn.com/showbiztonight.
ANDERSON: Yesterday, we asked you to vote on our SHOWBIZ TONIGHT "Question of the Day." It was this: "`American Idol`: Has it become a joke?"
Check this out: 91 percent of you say, "Yes, it has"; only 9 percent of you say, "No, it hasn`t."
Here are some of the e-mails we received:
Lydia from Kansas writes, "As much as I enjoy it, it has become a joke. I`m wondering why I even started watching the show in the first place."
Kathy from Canada thinks, "I don`t think it`s a joke, but I`m not surprised by what`s going on. People will get tired of seeing this continue."
HAMMER: Let`s take a look at what is coming up on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT.
First, on SHOWBIZ TONIGHT this weekend, is "American Idol" really becoming a joke? Why is one of the worst singers still in this competition? Will Simon quit? That is tomorrow and Sunday.
And on Monday, it`s a SHOWBIZ TONIGHT special: "Tabloid Frenzy." Losing weight, gaining weight, hooking up, breaking up. The secrets of how to be a tabloid star. Plus, do fame and being hounded by the paparazzi simply go hand-in-hand. SHOWBIZ TONIGHT asks, `Do stars deserve privacy?` That`s on Monday.
And that is it for SHOWBIZ TONIGHT. Have a lovely weekend. I`m A.J. Hammer in New York.
ANDERSON: Thanks for watching, everybody. I`m Brooke Anderson in Hollywood.
"GLENN BECK" is coming up next. That`s right after the latest headlines from CNN Headline News.
He`s got some aim. Watch.
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