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CNN Wolf Blitzer Reports
Suicide Bombing in Israel on First Night of Passover
Aired March 27, 2002 - 17:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
FREDERICKA WHITFIELD, GUEST HOST: Now on "WOLF BLITZER REPORTS," on the first night of Passover, a major explosion in Israel.
A terror threat on Easter? A warning to Americans in Italy.
In Afghanistan, who is apprehended? Today, a CNN exclusive: witness the information hunt for Osama bin Laden.
After six months at sea, a hero's homecoming.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I miss him desperately.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: And after years of battling illness, actor Dudley Moore is dead.
Good evening. I'm Fredericka Whitfield at CNN center in Atlanta, in for Wolf Blitzer. We have several significant stories for you at this hour. First, a developing story, in this news alert.
A major explosion, an all-too-familiar scene in Israel. A hotel, crowded with people celebrating the Passover Seder, is the latest target of a suicide bomber. At least 15 people in the northern coastal city of Netanya are dead. More than 130 others, wounded. The Palestinian group, Hamas, is claiming responsibility. We'll have much more in a moment.
A warning for Americans in Italy on Easter. U.S. State Department officials say they have learned extremist groups may be targeting U.S. citizens in four Italian cities. The potentially dangerous spots: Venice, Florence, Milan and Verona. Americans there are being urged to avoid large crowds.
More aftershocks, landslides and rattled nerves in northern Afghanistan. Officials say as many as 4,000 people may have died there in a massive earthquake. The country's interim leader, Hamid Karzai, toured the devastation today. Emergency relief supplies also are beginning to arrive.
Back in the United States, a hero's welcome for the crew of the USS Theodore Roosevelt. The first aircraft carrier deployed after September 11th arrived back in its home port of Norfolk, Virginia, this morning. The Roosevelt battle group spent a record-setting 159 days at sea, without a port call.
More now on the latest terror attack in the Middle East that comes on Passover. A suicide bombing in an Israeli coastal city killed at least 15 people and injured dozens more. The target: a hotel packed with people celebrating a traditional Passover meal. CNN's Michael Holmes joins us from Jerusalem with the latest -- Michael.
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Fredericka, that's right. The death toll standing at 15 Israelis dead, plus the suicide bomber. Sixteen dead in all. One-hundred and thirty injured. Twenty-six of them, seriously.
This bombing came on the eve of the beginning of Passover, when Israelis -- or Jewish people traditionally go out to have the Seder meal. That's the meal that ushers in the seven day Passover celebration. He walked into the Park Hotel in Netanya, which is a coastal town north of Tel Aviv. About 7:15 p.m. local time, walked past, it's being reported, a security guard and detonated a large amount of explosives in the dining hall.
As you can see from the pictures, devastation in that dining hall. Walls reportedly knocked down and of course, the human carnage. Now, Hamas, the militant Islamic group, has claimed responsibility. They have named the suicide bomber, says that he comes from the West Bank town of Tulkarem.
A statement from Hamas that's being quoted in various news services at the moment says that this attack was carried out "as a response to Israeli assassinations of Palestinians," it says. It also said that it's a message to the Arab Summit, which is currently under way in Beirut.
According to the statement, the spokesman says that the message is that, "our Palestinian's people's option is resistance and resistance only."
Here's what another Hamas spokesman had to say on CNN, earlier.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
USAMA HAMDAN, HAMAS SPOKESMAN: They are killing our people. They are destroying our houses, attacking us. All they have, the American weapons, they have it. So this is a trial to send a letter, a message, for all the world, that we are trying to fight for our own freedom against a terrorist government in Israel, led by Sharon.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
HOLMES: Hamas has of course never accepted the notion of a cease-fire with Israel, even as the talks go on. The Palestinian Authority has condemned the attacks. It's promised to make arrests. Israel, however, laying the blame squarely at the feet of Yasser Arafat -- Fredericka. WHITFIELD: Well, Michael, that's the message being sent from Hamas group. But what is the message that is now being sent from the Israeli government?
HOLMES: Well, the Israeli government, as I said, squarely blaming Yasser Arafat for not reigning in militants and preventing these sorts of attacks from taking place. Government spokesmen this evening have said they do not expect Yasser Arafat to be able to stop every single suicide bomber, but they point to other incidents and say he's not done nearly enough to reign in those terrorists.
Now, a government spokesman said earlier that Israel would now have to reconsider or re-evaluate their overall policy. Now, I can point out to you that earlier this week, the Israeli security cabinet met and discussed possible options if the Zinni cease-fire mission failed. One of those options was a massive military movement in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. That cabinet will no doubt meet again in the hours ahead. And that is certainly one option before it -- Fredericka.
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks very much. Michael Holmes this evening.
Well, CNN will have more on the latest suicide bombing coming up at 8:00 Eastern time. Join CNN's Mike Hanna, LIVE FROM ISRAEL.
President Bush, here in Atlanta right now, condemns the terror attack in Israel. Traveling with the president is our White House correspondent, Major Garrett. Major, good evening.
MAJOR GARRETT, CNN WHITE HOUSE CORRESPONDENT: Good evening, Fredericka. The magnitude of this most recent suicide bombing in Israel is horrific in the eyes of the Bush administration. The timing, absolutely disastrous, not only on the eve of Passover, but at a time when the president was beginning to believe substantive progress was being in the security talks, between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Talks the Bush administration had hoped would eventually, and possibly in the not too distant future, lead to a cease-fire.
The president sounded just that very optimistic. Note, earlier today, in his first stop after leaving Washington -- that was in Greenville, South Carolina. But mere hours later, as he was flying here to Atlanta, he was notified, aboard Air Force 1, of this most recent bombing. And in his first speech here this afternoon he condemned it in the strongest term. And also made clear he believes there are forces within the Palestinian movement determined to undermine whatever small progress is made toward a cease-fire.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
GEORGE W. BUSH, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES: This callous, this cold-blooded killing, it must stop. I condemn it in the most strongest of terms. I call upon Mr. Arafat and the Palestinian Authority to do everything in their power to stop the terrorist killing. Because there are people in the Middle East who would rather kill than have peace.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
GARRETT: Fredericka, what the Bush administration is not prepared to do right now is recall the president's personal envoy, retired Marine General Anthony Zinni, from the region. Secretary of State Colin Powell and the president implied it this afternoon, saying that that mission is still important, and the talks must continue even amid all of this violence -- Fredericka.
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks very much. Major Garrett, reporting tonight.
Now, President Bush condemned the attack in Israel, and so did Secretary of State Colin Powell. This was him earlier today.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
COLIN POWELL, SECRETARY OF STATE: Before turning over to questions, let me take this opportunity to join the president in condemning the terrorist attack that took place in Israel this afternoon, which took the lives of innocent civilians who had gathered to celebrate their religion, to celebrate their faith, and wounded so many more. Our hearts go out to the victims and to their families
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: In Beirut, where the peace in the Middle East is a main focus at an Arab Summit, reaction to the bombing is strong there as well. CNN's Christiane Amanpour is covering the summit in the Lebanese capital.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The Arab summit here in Beirut suffered quite a lot of blows on its opening day. Certainly a big blow against the show of Arab unity. Two main leaders, the president of Egypt and the king of Jordan -- two of the countries, the only countries that have made peace with Israel -- refused to come to this summit.
At one point, Yasser Arafat was due to address the summit live. Then, the plug was pulled, literally, on the live transmission. It's not clear exactly why. In any event, that prompted the Palestinian delegation to walk out. Now Arafat, we're told, has been given the choice to address this summit on Thursday, the final day. And the Palestinian delegation is coming back to the talks.
Now, on a substantive level, this summit was all about the much talked-about Saudi peace initiative, that offers for the first time, full Arab recognition of Israel's right to exist, an end to the conflict and full normalization of relations between the Arab countries and Israel -- in return for Israel withdrawing to the 1967 borders and giving the Palestinians a state, with its capital, east Jerusalem. And a mention of the right of return of refugees. The proposal, we're being told, will be unanimously endorsed in a final communique on Thursday here, once they issue that final communique in their final statements. But it remains to be seen just how this proposal, even if it is endorsed, will have any chance of actually succeeding, particularly as of the end of today, the end of the opening ceremonies, came that news of that suicide bombing attack in Israel, which is being condemned here by the Palestinian Authority delegation.
I'm Christiane Amanpour, CNN, reporting from Beirut.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: A warning today to Americans traveling to and living in Italy. Avoid large crowds this Easter, particularly in four Italian cities. More now from our Rome bureau chief, Alessio Vinci.
ALESSIO VINCI, CNN ROME BUREAU CHIEF: The U.S. embassy in Rome has issued a warning to American citizens here in Italy, that they may become the target of a terrorist attack in four specific cities on Easter Sunday, this coming March 31.
According to the statement, the cities at risk are Venice, Florence, Milan and Verona. The statement says that the U.S. government believes those threats are credible, and they're taking those threats extremely seriously. The statement does not specify which extremist group may be involved. But they are saying that those extremist groups usually do not distinguish between civilian and official targets.
And they're saying that the locations at risk are American interests, as well as locations, public places, where American citizens and the general public usually convene. That is, clubs, bars, restaurants, schools, universities, as well as places of worship.
The announcement also is urging American citizens, especially in those four towns, to exercise extreme caution, to raise the level of security awareness and especially, to avoid large crowds. I'm Alessio Vinci, CNN, reporting from Rome.
WHITFIELD: Now, a rare look at U.S. forces confronting potential enemies in Afghanistan. A CNN crew was in an area near Kabul when special forces surrounded a compound. Our senior international correspondent, Nic Robertson, shows us what happened. .
NIC ROBERTSON, CNN CORRESPONDENT: The operation began in the early hours of the day, when about a dozen U.S. forces, personnel, accompanied by another two dozen members of the U.S. Army, moved in to secure a compound here in Bamian. There, we are told that they questioned a Pakistani, possibly a Taliban or al Qaeda operative. According to local commanders here, they left that compound and returned about an hour and a half later. They took him away with a hood on his head, with his hands handcuffed, put him in an armored vehicle and drove him away. Meanwhile, at another compound, U.S. Army operatives were questioning and processing about two dozen Taliban, Afghan-Taliban prisoners. Now, we talked to some of those prisoners who weren't taken away later in the day. They told us that they were photographed. They told us that they had hair samples removed.
In all from that prison, the U.S. special forces took away 12 of those Afghan-Taliban fighters. They, too, had hoods on their heads. Their hands, handcuffed behind their backs. All the prisoners were flown out of here at the end of the day. We're told they're being taken to Bagram, a U.S. air base just north of Kabul. Nic Robertson, CNN, Afghanistan.
WHITFIELD: In northern Afghanistan, villagers are using their bare hands, digging to find more survivors from this week's devastating earthquake. Powerful tremors are still jolting the region. And now the death toll could climb to 4,000. CNN senior international correspondent, Walter Rodgers, has the latest on the story from Kabul.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
WALTER RODGERS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Powerful aftershocks continue to hammer the villages in northeastern Afghanistan, particularly Nahrin and the Baghlan province. It is one tragedy compounding yet another. People are living out of doors. They cannot go into their homes. Their homes, structurally, are no longer safe.
Even if a structure, a building, is left for people to return inside to, they have to sleep outside at night. They live in the few tents that have made it through, supplied by relief agencies, because these aftershocks continue to weaken buildings and knock them down. And every time the buildings get knocked down, they send up huge clouds of dust. And the aftershocks trigger landslides as well.
We could see very little evidence of relief agencies working in this particular area. Many, many fathers were carrying infant children on donkeys or by foot, walking five miles or more, trying to get to an area where there have been helicopters. Those helicopters then, in turn, take the children out to regional hospitals.
Still, most Afghans in this earthquake-struck region, are living out of doors. They have very little water. They have very little food, virtually no medicine. And they are still waiting for relief supplies that are only now beginning to trickle in. And nowhere near equal to the task of what is needed.
Walter Rodgers, CNN, Kabul.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Here in the United States, a happy homecoming today for the crew aboard the USS Roosevelt. Tonight they're back in Norfolk, Virginia, after serving more than six months in the war on terrorism. More than 7,000 sailors and Marines were aboard the Roosevelt and three other ships, which pulled into Norfolk today. Fifty-five hundred of those sailors were on the Roosevelt, which was the first aircraft carrier to deploy after September 11th. The nuclear carrier sailed a record 159 days at sea without port call. And throughout its mission, the Roosevelt lost no members to enemy action.
Family members were waiting at the Norfolk Navy Base dock as early as 6:00 this morning. The ship steamed into port a few hours later, to tearful, yet joyful, family reunions. Lots of kisses, hugs, marriage proposals, even introductions to newborn babies, while away at sea.
CNN national correspondent Bob Franken spent the day getting to know some of them.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
BOB FRANKEN, CNN NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT: After more than six months, the final minutes seemed to last forever, as the massive aircraft carrier, Theodore Roosevelt, inched into port. On the deck, thousands of crewmembers strained for their first glimpse of loved ones they had not seen since September 19th, when they sailed off to fight the war on terrorism.
On shore, their loved ones were doing the same thing. For so long, the only personal contact from ship to the shore, 8,000 miles away, was e-mail. This was just a dream.
Love was in the air. From the deck, Petty Officer Justin Krober (ph) had a surprise, suddenly unfurling a banner. "Ashley McGee, will you marry me?" The wedding is next month.
For many of the husbands, homecoming meant a first meeting with children born while they were away, and children they missed so much while they were away. For many others, husbands, wives, sons, daughters, it simply meant a return to a warm embrace that had been for six months just a memory.
(on camera): Now, by all accounts comes an adjustment, as Roosevelt crew members return to their families. But for the most part, the adjustment will be much easier than the one six months ago. Bob Franken, CNN, Norfolk Naval Station, Virginia.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: The journey home, not as arduous as the mission itself. But far from a joyride. Here's an idea of their trip: the carrier headed out from the Arabian peninsula to the Red Sea. From there, it traveled through the Suez Canal to the Mediterranean. Then, through the Straits of Gibraltar, out to the Atlantic. And then homeward bound, Norfolk.
Before they arrived home, though, one Navy man found out for himself just how hazardous military duty can be. Back in December, Peter Von Scilassy was pulled from the Arabian Sea after a jet blast blew him off the deck of the Roosevelt. Amazingly, though, he managed to keep from being pulled towards the huge ship's propellers after he hit the water.
Today, CNN national correspondent Bob Franken talked to Von Scilassy, and his dad.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
PETER VON SCILASSY, FATHER: I'm extremely overjoyed. I'm enthused to have my son back here, and looking forward to a nice, long weekend together.
PETER VON SCILASSY JR., SAILOR: I was pushed off and I was picked up.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Quite a difference between that moment and this moment.
VON SCILASSY: Oh, yes, indeed. This one I'm on land. The other one I was in water.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: Von Scilassy's dad is a retired Army man himself, so he knows exactly how dangerous military service can be. Still, he was overjoyed to see his son back home today, safe and sound.
If the U.S. attacks Iraq, when will it happen? Today, new information about a timeline, and how many troops would be involved.
A new report says African-American motorists in southern New Jersey speed more than others. Could that be right?
And, laughter and tears in memory of Dudley Moore. My guest coming up worked with him in the movie, "Arthur."
And, where's the love in Washington? A headache in the panda pen, a little later.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: If you're just now joining us, we want to remind you that a major explosion took place in the Israeli town of Netanya, the coastal town of Netanya, in a hotel, killing at least 15 people, injuring dozens others. Earlier this evening, President Bush condemned the attacks. All of this taking place on the first day of the Arab summit in Beirut.
The Palestinian militant group, Hamas, is claiming responsibility, saying that this is a message they are sending indicative of the Palestinian struggle for land, they say. We'll have a live report on this at the half-hour.
On now. With the Taliban out of power and the al Qaeda weakened, the question is, who's the next target in the war on terrorism? Today, a senior defense official told CNN it will not be Iraq, at least not anytime soon. CNN military affairs correspondent, Jamie McIntyre, joins us now from the Pentagon with the latest. Good evening, Jamie.
JAMIE MCINTYRE, CNN MILITARY AFFAIRS CORRESPONDENT: Good evening, Fredericka. Well, just to be clear, there's been a lot of speculation about the U.S. attacking Iraq and when that might happen. And even though there's been no decision by the president, the military is saying that it's not fully ready to launch another military operation, such as something against Iraq now, because of what's going on in Afghanistan. And it's not likely to be ready anytime soon.
Among the things this senior official told us, is that the U.S. military needs time to retool its ships, aircraft and weapons. It also needs to restock some of the inventory of munitions, that have been used in the war in Afghanistan. Needs to rest some of the troops that will meet again. And it also needs some time to get more critical assets.
In addition, the official tells CNN that the U.S. central commander, General Tommy Franks, who had commanded the Iraq invasion, has recommended against conducting operations in the heat of Iraqi summer, when temperatures in the desert can get as hot as 115 degrees. That, he has argued, just puts too much wear and tear, both on equipment and troops.
Now, that's not to say that anything has been ruled in or out. As I said, no decision from President Bush yet, about whether to move against Iraq and try to topple Saddam Hussein. And even though the military would prefer to wait for an ideal time for an operation, the president has made it clear that the U.S. military needs to be ready whenever he says go -- Fredericka.
WHITFIELD: Well, Jamie, the president making his talks very clear. Often we can look forward to the candor of Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld. What is he saying on the prospect of a U.S. attack on Iraq?
MCINTYRE: Interestingly, sources tell us that, shortly after September 11th, the U.S. military updated its standard invasion plan for Iraq -- the off-the-shelf plan, if you will. It was modeled very much on the successful 1991 Persian Gulf war. It involved hundreds of thousands of U.S. troops, carrier battle groups. A long build-up period.
And sources tell us that when Secretary Rumsfeld saw that plan, he rejected it out of hand. He said that was Cold War thinking, and he directed his military planners to go back to the drawing board, to come up with something more imaginative that used fewer troops, a quicker strike, more surprise. And in particular, he wanted them to concentrate on making sure that if they launched an operation, they had an option in which Saddam Hussein would not be able to easily get away. To try to concentrate more on blocking any potential escape routes for Saddam Hussein.
But again, to emphasize, this is contingency planning, that the Pentagon is doing. Anticipating that at some point in the future, President Bush may make good on his public hints that he may go after Saddam Hussein -- Fredericka.
WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks very much. Jamie McIntyre from the Pentagon this evening.
The state of New Jersey has released a new study on speeding. And it's already catching a lot of heat from critics. The study says motorists who are African-American are more likely than white drivers to exceed the speed limit, on part of the New Jersey Turnpike.
The study grew out of accusations against state police of racial profiling. The story now, from CNN's Deborah Feyerick.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
DEBORAH FEYERICK, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): What if blacks driving on the New Jersey Turnpike, were stopped not so much because they're black, but because they speed more? That's the finding of a controversial new study, turning the racial profiling debate on its head.
New Jersey NAACP leader William Rutherford calling the study "bogus."
WILLIAM RUTHERFORD, N.J. NAACP: More whites than African- Americans travel the highways of New Jersey, and it would stand to reason that if all speeders were pulled over, at the end of the day, whites would automatically outnumber African-Americans. If this is done fairly.
FEYERICK: New Jersey state troopers countering, the study proves claims of racial profiling have been exaggerated.
KEN MCCLELLAND, N.J. STATE TROOPERS FRATERNAL ASSN.: We feel vindicated. We've long said that we do not do -- this is not a practice that the New Jersey police conduct. We're not saying that there's not individual troopers out there who, in their zealousness to enforce the laws, have taken things into their own hands.
FEYERICK: The study shows in southern New Jersey, speed limit 65, nearly 3 percent of speeders were black, two times greater than speeders who are white. The study was intended to determine the race and ethnicity of speeders. It was ordered by New Jersey's attorney general under former governor, Christine Todd Whitman. She came under heavy fire several years ago, after the 1998 shooting by two white troopers of three unarmed black men.
RUTHERFORD: This information is just another attempt to further try and justify racial profiling.
FEYERICK: New Jersey's current attorney general says the study showing black drivers speed more than whites does not alter the past or undermine the evidence profiling is real. Still, the Justice Department is backing away from the findings, questioning how the study was done. Federal officials say they're not convinced the results are valid or reliable. Reasons cited: many times, the three investigators examining the photos couldn't all agree on race. Also, high-speed cameras may not have accurately recorded race, because of windshield glare, bad weather and camera positioning.
(on camera): Since racial profiling came to light, New Jersey has made sweeping changes, partly because the Feds forced them to. There's more supervision, better training, video cameras and patrol cars. Even so, findings from a study last summer showed troopers still stopping minority drivers more often than whites.
Deborah Feyerick, CNN, New York.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Hollywood is mourning the death of Dudley Moore. From "Arthur" to "10," we'll have a look at the memories.
And an unprecedented court ruling in Britain, in the case of the model against the media.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
WHITFIELD: Topping our "News Alert" at the half hour: At least 15 people in the Israeli coastal city of Netanya are dead after a suicide bombing during a Passover seder at a hotel. More than 130 other people were wounded in the blast, at least 26 severely. The Palestinian group Hamas is claiming responsibility.
Following this development for us, from Jerusalem, is our own Michael Holmes. He joins us now with the latest on the investigation there of this suicide bombing -- good evening.
MICHAEL HOLMES, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Good evening to you, too.
Well, yes, Hamas has claimed responsibility. They have named the suicide bomber. They say he comes from the West Bank town of Tulkarem, which is not a long way from Netanya, where this bombing took place.
Now, in a statement released to news media, a Hamas spokesman is quoted as saying that the attack was carried out in response to attacks on Palestinian civilians and assassinations of Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. They also said that it was a message to the Arab summit being held in Beirut, that message being -- and quoting here -- "Our Palestinian people's option is resistance and resistance only."
Meanwhile, the Palestinian leadership, the Palestinian Authority, has condemned this attack and say they will take what they call harsh measures to round up Palestinians responsible for what happened -- Israel, however, still laying the blame at the feet of Yasser Arafat, saying he hasn't done enough to rein in this kind of violence.
And Israeli government spokesman said that Israel would be reevaluating its attitude to the situation. And I can tell you that it was just a few days ago that the Israeli Security Cabinet sat down and discussed what would happen or its options if the Anthony Zinni cease-fire talks failed. One of those options was massive military action in the West Bank and Gaza Strip. Tomorrow, that Security Cabinet will meet again. It is probably one of the options they will consider -- back to you.
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks very much, Michael Holmes, in Jerusalem this evening.
Our other major development this evening: British actor and musician Dudley Moore has died at the age of 66. He passed away at his home in New Jersey this morning from pneumonia linked to an incurable, degenerative brain disorder. Moore's publicist says a memorial is being planned.
CNN's Sherri Sylvester has more now in this look back at the long and varied career of Dudley Moore.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
SHERRI SYLVESTER, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Dudley Moore made his film debut with that line in the 1966 mod comedy "The Wrong Box." Co-starring with long time stage partner, Peter Cook, Moore came to comedy by way of music when he was hired to play with Cook and the Cambridge Comedy Review, "Beyond The Fringe," and he turned out to be every bit as funny as the other three members.
Dudley Moore's personal comic style and song writing first came to the screen in 1967's "Bedazzled" in which he sells his soul to the devilish Peter Cook. But finds his wishes never quite worked out the way he thought.
The "Leaping Nun's Hymn" is another Dudley Moore composition.
But mod had morphed into disco as Dudley Moore became a fixture on American screens. A supporting role in "Foul Play" led to his breakthrough film, playing his unusual role as a composer; in this case coping with mid-life crisis in "10," Moore managed to be charming and comic even when his behavior wasn't admirable.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED ACTOR: You better take it easy. Pain pills and alcohol don't mix.
DUDLEY MOORE, ACTOR: You could have fooled me.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
You can get away with murder, with anything, you can do anything, you can be anything, if, as long as people laugh. As long as they are not given that moment to analyze things too much, you know. And then, it can become mildly embarrassing, I suppose.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP) UNIDENTIFIED ACTRESS: What's so funny now?
MOORE: Sometimes I just think funny things.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
SYLVESTER: Moore will be better remembered best playing the drunk millionaire Arthur Bach in "Arthur" which made the most of his ability to charm the audience out of a judgment of his character's behavior and earn him an Academy Award nomination. There was an "Arthur 2," but Moore spent most of the '80s playing roles of declining quality. Films like "Love Sick," and "Crazy People," and "Best Defense." If he wasn't playing the piano in the movies, he was playing it instead of making movies.
MOORE: I guess I have careened about the place doing, being mildly entertaining and playing the piano, all my life, I suppose. I don't know -- I don't know that people who start their life that way would find many alternatives, actually.
SYLVESTER: He was as familiar with the high and low notes of his life as he was with the notes of his keyboard. Each of his four marriages failed and Moore spent his later years battling progressive super nuclear palsy, a degenerative brain disorder.
Queen Elizabeth named Dudley Moore a commander of the Order of the British Empire in honor of his career as a comic actor and musician.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
WHITFIELD: Joining us for more memories and thoughts about Dudley Moore is actress Jill Eikenberry, perhaps best known for her role in the television show "LA Law." She also played with Dudley Moore as the socialite girlfriend in the hit "Arthur."
Good evening and thanks for joining us this evening.
JILL EIKENBERRY, ACTRESS: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: Most of us are remembering Dudley Moore as the comedian. That's the public figure that most of us know him as. What would you hope that most people remember him as? Not just the comedic actor and occasional musician, but what else?
EIKENBERRY: I guess there was a gleam in his eye that was pretty hard to suppress. And I think that is the thing that those of us who knew him will remember him for, but probably most of the rest of the world, too: that really irrepressible glee that he looked at everything with, even at this really horrible disease that took his life.
WHITFIELD: We've got a clip from the movie, "Arthur," in which you and he both played. We would like to roll that real quick and then, on the other side, get a little bit of your thoughts on it.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP, "ARTHUR")
DUDLEY MOORE, ACTOR: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
EIKENBERRY: What, dear?
MOORE: (UNINTELLIGIBLE)
EIKENBERRY: What?
MOORE: I'm in love with another woman. The one innocent person in all of this has been you. I'm really sorry.
EIKENBERRY: Shut up, Arthur. Just shut up. Daddy!
(END VIDEO CLIP)
WHITFIELD: How difficult is that sometimes to see that clip, knowing what the final struggles had been for him as he has been battling with this illness?
EIKENBERRY: Yes, just hearing his voice, you know, which he didn't have the use of for the last couple of years, brings back a lot.
We did a tribute to him at Carnegie Hall a year ago last spring. And he had pretty much lost the use of all of his limbs. He couldn't speak. His face couldn't move. And it was hard for him, because his picture was broadcast behind all the presenters, the tape of his face as he was watching it all. And he was afraid people would think he wasn't enjoying himself because he couldn't move his face.
(CROSSTALK)
WHITFIELD: I'm sorry.
I bet incredibly difficult for those of you who knew him to see him in that state in the past couple of years.
EIKENBERRY: Yes.
But I was going to say, halfway through the program, all of a sudden that smile just burst forth. And that gleam in his eye came back. And he spent the whole rest of the show with it on. He couldn't be repressed, no matter what. He was a remarkable spirit.
WHITFIELD: Was that the last time that perhaps you had any dialogue with him or saw him last?
EIKENBERRY: Yes, that was the last time I saw him, about a year ago at Carnegie Hall.
And, at the end of the show, the audience and the orchestra stood up and started applauding him up in the box where he was sitting. And he had people help him to his feet. And then they were holding his arms and he was making the gesture, "More, more." He was making a joke to the whole audience. And he couldn't move, but he had that comic thing, which he couldn't lose.
WHITFIELD: Yes, always funny man, Dudley Moore.
All right, thanks very much, Jill Eikenberry, for joining us this evening to talk about Dudley Moore.
And he is dead, of course, at 66, died from pneumonia linked to a degenerative brain disease.
Now on to an accident on the set of a game show in Los Angeles. We will have details of that. And should models get the same privacy as the public? The ruling in the Naomi Campbell case after this.
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WHITFIELD: Here's the scoop now on some people making headlines.
A game show contestant in Los Angeles had to be taken to a hospital after he lost consciousness while under water. It was part of a show called "Dog Eat Dog," which will air this summer. The man reportedly was under water for an unknown period of time and was able to get free by pulling a safety cord. He was alert when paramedics arrived and was taken to the hospital as a precaution.
What does the actor Robert de Niro and the rock group Queen have in common? De Niro's company, Tribeca, has a 25 percent share in a new musical based on Queen's music. "We Will Rock You" premieres in London in mid-May.
Naomi Campbell is celebrating a legal victory in Britain. The supermodel's lawyer says his client is delighted with a court ruling that a tabloid went too far when it published a picture of her leaving a group therapy meeting.
CNN's Matthew Chance report.
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MATTHEW CHANCE, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): She has forged a lucrative career and international stardom as a willing subject for the lens. But where's the line to be drawn between public exhibitions like this and private life?
Lawyers for Naomi Campbell called the high court ruling a landmark decision. It underlines that even though in the public eye are entitled to privacy. The editor of the newspaper being sued was outspoken in his defense.
PIERS MORGAN, EDITOR, "DAILY MIRROR": I was under the impression that we had exposed her as a drug addict after she repeatedly lied about it and that she was having treatment. She has won the massive sum of 3,500 pounds, which, by anybody's yardstick, is an embarrassingly small, derisory sum of money. I think, if you quote the phase that Naomi Campbell -- one of her colleagues said that supermodels don't get out of bed for 10,000 pounds. So she hasn't even gotten enough to pull back the bed clothes. CHANCE: Not since the death of Diana and the eventually discredited charge that paparazzi photographers may have been partly to blame for her crash has there been such attention in Britain to media freedoms and rights to privacy.
Back then, guidelines were set down to protect public figures from similar treatment. But what further impact could the Naomi Campbell ruling have on the often intrusive way that an energetic media covers celebrity lives?
CHARLES RUSSELL, MEDIA LAWYER: In the short term, no impact at all. But in the medium term, the impact on the Data Protection Act, as it is called, which is the processing of information about everyone, celebrities included, that is an important step forward in the protection of us all, but including celebrities.
CHANCE: So, it's a small victory for the supermodel which may yet have big implications for the way in which personal information is collected by journalists. But make no mistake. On the pages of the British tabloid press, for the rich and famous, it is still open season.
Matthew Chance, CNN, London.
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WHITFIELD: Our "Web Question of the Day": Do celebrities have the same right to privacy as you? Vote at CNN.com/Wolf.
And attention grabber at the National Zoo in Washington D.C.: The male panda makes his move, but you won't believe how his mate reacted. That's coming up.
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WHITFIELD: Spring, it seems, has awakened the amorous intentions of the giant male panda, Tian Tian, at Washington's National Zoo. In fact, zookeepers say his lusty zeal over the weekend literally chased female Mei Xiang into a tree. Zoo officials are hoping for offspring, but we are also a bit worried. It turns out that Mei Xiang, they were a little frightened might have gotten hurt.
Someone who knows just how well these pandas just may be feeling about this time year is Dr. Rebecca Snyder, curator of the giant panda here at Zoo Atlanta.
Thanks for joining us, Dr. Snyder.
DR. REBECCA SNYDER, CURATOR OF PANDAS, ZOO ATLANTA: It's a pleasure to be here.
WHITFIELD: Well, it always seems that it very difficult to try and get the mating to actually take place successfully at a lot of these domestic zoos. That this would take place earlier with Tian Tian and Mei Xiang -- and I hope I didn't destroy those pandas' names at the National Zoo -- but how unusual is this that the female panda would take off running? It is a very young panda, correct?
SNYDER: That's correct. She is 3 1/2, I believe.
And it is normal in the wild. They haven't been observed breeding very much in the wild. It is hard to study pandas in the wild. But what has been observed is that it is normal for females to go up into a tree during that time. And then several males usually will gather around the female and actually fight for access to her. Then, usually, the bigger, stronger male is the one that wins access to her and is the one that then breeds with her. So, actually what Mei Xiang did is pretty normal for a panda.
WHITFIELD: OK. And you have spoke with some of your colleagues at the National Zoo. They kind of described to you in brief generally what happened. Mei Xiang was in the tree some 30 hours, correct? Is that your understanding?
SNYDER: That was my understanding, yes.
WHITFIELD: OK.
Now, we have videotape of pandas at play. That they would be so docile and gentle and play with one another is not an unusual sight, but trying to get them to cooperate when it comes down to mating season is. This time of year, early spring or once every spring, is mating season, correct, or at least the female is ready for mating?
SNYDER: Right, that's true. Once a year, the female cycles. And it's typically in the spring. And so males tend to go through a hormone change before the females do. Their testosterone increases and they become more active and start looking for females to breed with, essentially.
WHITFIELD: And I imagine the big challenge here -- since you already set the scenario that, in the wild, a number of male pandas will pursue one female panda, that this behavior took place at National Zoo is actually very normal. The only difference is, this is kind of created by the curators there.
So that, I would I imagine, would bring a lot of stress to the animals, wouldn't it?
SNYDER: Well, certainly breeding time is a stressful time for animals, both in the wild and in captivity.
And aggression is a normal part of breeding in a lot of animals. And giant pandas are a solitary animal. And here at Zoo Atlanta, we have tried to manage them in a way that our animals spend time together, because we want them to be familiar with each other and to be able to synchronize for breeding. And I believe the National Zoo has done something similar with their animals. But it is also normal for them to need their own space and to sometimes fight during the breeding season.
WHITFIELD: And, Dr. Snyder, just a reminder to our viewers, if they are just now joining us, you are at Zoo Atlanta, as you just mentioned. And that is Lun Lun, a female panda, behind you.
SNYDER: That's correct. That is our female. And she is just starting to show signs of early estrus now?
WHITFIELD: How old is she?
SNYDER: She is 4 1/2. And so is probably mature at this age. She did go through estrus last year. And so right now she is not, as we are watching her. But in the last few days, she has gotten more active and started scent-marking more. And that is all normal behavioral change for early estrus.
WHITFIELD: Yes, they always seem to sleep a lot. Every time I go to a zoo, it seems like the pandas are always sleeping. It's always a major disappointment for everyone.
So, how will you all go about trying to get her coupled with the male panda and try to make magic happen, so to speak?
SNYDER: Well, we have an interesting situation here in that our male panda is one of the only captive males to have stayed with his mother for an extended period of time. He stayed with her for 13 months in China, where he was born. And we specifically asked for them do that so that we could study that, because we thought him staying with his mother longer might prepare him better for things like breeding, because he would have a clans to learn some social behavior from his mother.
So we have high hopes for him. And he and Lun Lun get along very well, play every day, and are still getting along. She is becoming a little more defensive now that she is going into estrus. But so far we have seen very little aggression between the two.
WHITFIELD: And I imagine you, as well as Zoo Atlanta and National Zoo, you all stay in contact quite a bit to kind of exchange information, don't you, on these very curious creatures?
SNYDER: Certainly, yes.
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks very much, Dr. Snyder, at Zoo Atlanta. Thanks very much. Appreciate it.
SNYDER: Thank you.
WHITFIELD: Well, your turn to sound off is coming up next. Coming up: Do celebrities have the same right of privacy as you do? Vote at CNN.com/Wolf.
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WHITFIELD: Let's go to New York now and get a preview of "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE," which begins at the top of the hour -- Lou.
LOU DOBBS, "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE": Fredericka, thank you.
Tonight on "MONEYLINE": After one of the deadliest suicide bombings in the past year and a half, we take a look at how this latest violence may jeopardize hopes for peace in the Middle East. Andersen's fight for survival: how the firm is reacting, how the Justice Department has reacted to the resignation of its CEO, Joseph Berardino. And after its own accounting scandal years ago, I will be talking with Waste Management CEO Maury Myers about what he is doing to rebuild a business and a reputation -- all of that and a lot more just ahead.
Please join us at the top of the hour -- Fredericka.
WHITFIELD: All right, thanks a lot, Lou.
Our "Web Question of the Day": "Do celebrities have the same right to privacy as you?" And here are the results. Most of you, say -- 68 percent of you say yes, celebrities do have the same rights to privacy as you do. Only 32 percent of you say no. A reminder: This poll, however, is not scientific.
I'm Fredericka Whitfield, in for Wolf Blitzer. Join Andrea Koppel in one hour in the CNN "War Room." The focus: Will the U.S. war on terror be set back in the wake of another suicide bombing in Israel and an Arab summit meltdown?
Thanks for watching. "LOU DOBBS MONEYLINE" begins right now.
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