Fancy Pants' Blog

From TMZ.com:
"A.I." Suing The Pants Off "Stripper Idol"

Posted Dec 18th 2008 3:00PM by TMZ Staff

The people behind "American Idol" love amateurs -- just not the kind you find in strip clubs.



FremantleMedia -- the massive corporation that created "American Idol" -- is suing the owners of the Palazio Men's Club in Texas -- which the suit describes as "a gentlemen's club at which women remove off their clothes while dancing to music" -- over a $500 stripper competition they held called "Stripper Idol."

In the lawsuit, filed this week in U.S District Court in Texas, Fremantle claims Palazio's competition -- which allegedly jacked Idol's name and trademarked logo -- has tarnished the singing show's good name.

Fremantle is looking to strip away the club's profits from "S.I." -- along with collecting on all damages sustained and legal fees accrued from the suit.

The club's owner, Lampros, told us: "I don't feel they have any grounds to sue ... This is just our way of inticing [sic] people to come out and have a good time and contribute to the economic crisis that is going on."Guess who brought the whole issue to the attention of the AI people in the first place?

That's right...yours truly.

Here is a link to the story detail on myFOXaustin.com.

Lance Armstrong and girlfriend Anna Hansen are expecting a child. In a statement, the Mellow Johnny's owner said, "We are very much looking forward to what 2009 brings on many fronts."

Armstrong already has three children, Luke and twins Isabella and Grace, with ex-wife Kristin. All three children were conceived using artificial fertilization techniques with sperm donated before undergoing chemotherapy.

Man, that ex-wife can't catch a break. He hooked up with Crow not long after their divorce and NOW, after working so hard to have their kids together, he knocks up his fling with a miracle baby? And just in time for Christmas! Apparently, he's still got some Lance in those pants.

As you all surely know, the cycling champ was romancing Kate Hudson earlier this year and was once engaged to Crow. He has reportedly been seeing Hansen since July. Wait! When did he and Kate split?

Anyway, as much as Armstrong Twitters, I can't believe he's never mentioned Hansen. He posts everything else. In fact, I bet he's writing right now about his latest trip to the throne.

A search of Anna Hansen online turned up a facebook page for one Anna Hansen in New York, NY that graduated in 2005 from Puget Sound and currently works for Ogilvy, an International advertising, marketing and public relations agency(which I believe works with many pharmaceutical companies and non-profits).

The Bobby Bones Show Christmas Party was last night at Vicci. Special guests included BRANDY, Kevin Rudolf, White Tie Affair, Lesley Roy, and Shontelle. The show was free but KISS 96.7 gave away tickets in exchange for a new, unwrapped toy worth $10 - all proceeds benefit Toys for Tots.

The entire Bobby Bones Show broadcast LIVE onsite at Verizon Wireless in Southpark Meadows wednesday to give away the last 100 tickets to the show.

Click HERE to watch an uncut interview with Bobby Bones from FOX 7 News.

I made a last minute decision to check out Mother Egan's trivia night last night...and I'm so glad I did. It was much fun.

Every Tuesday at 7:30pm, ME hosts a seven round trivia challenge - with one being an Austin celebrity and pop culture round written by Austin's star studded entertainment writers. December 9th's round was written by Amber Gadsby of Austin Daze while last night's was penned by the Statesman's Michael Barnes. Upcoming weeks will feature contributors Rhonda Lashley from Austin Monthly, Melanie Haupt from the Chronicle and yours truly representing FOX 7.

Check out some pics from last night:

My favorite encounter of the evening. You gotta love a dog in a bag! BTW - the guy on the left is one of the owners of J. Blacks. Love that he isn't a pretentious wanker.

Ame Shillington of Austin Star Map with the entertainment round prize! See Ame talk about the best Austin stocking stuffers for under ten bucks right HERE!

Anthony - one of the winners of the entertainment round(I only helped with one question)!

"That was Easy" - the other entertainment round winning team.

What the heck happened to my team in Round Four?

Mother Egan's bartender Casey loves the Austin Star Map!

Austin's entertainment gurus Ame Shillington, me, Michael Barnes and Amber Gadsby. WTF? Did I think I was at the prom or something? I'm a tool.

After 27 years, police are officially closing the case of abducted and murdered Adam Walsh, son for America's Most Wanted host John Walsh. AMW airs Saturdays at 8pm on FOX 7.

In 1981, Adam disappeared from a department store when his mother left him unattended. Two weeks later, his severed head was found in a canal.

A sweeping manhunt was launched to find Adam's killer, but an arrest was never made. Two years later, a transient named Ottis Toole would confess to killing Adam, correctly identifying key elements of the investigation. But nothing was ever certain and Toole died in prison before further investigation could be conducted.

A niece of Toole's would later call into American's Most Wanted to say that he confessed to the murder on his deathbed.

Today, however, Hollywood Police Chief Chadwick E. Wagner will make a formal announcement at 2:30pm with John Walsh and wife Revé, pronouncing the case closed and Toole the murderer.

In 2001 Walsh himself said he believed Toole to be the murderer of his son, saying, "I believe Ottis Toole killed Adam. I believe that Toole is in hell right now, and I believe that he died a horrible death in prison."

John Walsh was on GOOD DAY AUSTIN recently to talk about keeping your kids safe from online predators. Watch that segment HERE.

Dennis Quaid Settles with Cedars
Posted Dec 15th 2008 7:35PM by TMZ.com

Dennis Quaid and his wife have settled their dispute with Cedars-Sinai Medical Center over a bungled procedure that almost killed their twin babies last year.

TMZ broke the story that the infants were mistakenly given a massive overdose of Heparin. We've now obtained legal papers stating the Quaids have settled their dispute with Cedars for $750,000, subject to court approval.

Interestingly, the Quaids never filed a lawsuit against Cedars -- targeting the drug manufacturer, Baxter Healthcare Corp, instead.

The settlement has no bearing on the claims the babies could make against Cedars-Sinai. Translated -- the infants could still file a massive lawsuit against the hospital, but the Quaids have put their dispute with Cedars to rest.

These papers have no impact on the Quaid's legal dispute with Baxter.

The new Mix it Up GAP ads feature a slew of celebrities, including Austin's own Dixie Chicks. I understand their involvement, but can someone please explain why Sandra Bernhard is singing? UGH. And I seriously think they should have supered some of those other celebs b/c while their faces are familiar, even I don't know a lot of their names. Anyway, watch the ads and let me know what you think about the line-up.

Joss Whedon's new sci-fi thriller Dollhouse is set to premiere on FOX in February. Whedon is the man behind Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, Firefly and Serenity. 

Dollhouse stars Eliza Dushku, who also co-starred on Buffy and the FOX show True Calling.

Check out the trailer for the show:

E! News reported that Miley Cyrus was in Houston this weekend performing at a private holiday party thrown Sunday night by Houston attorney Mark Lanier.

A source in Texas tells E! News that Cyrus and her entourage arrived Saturday and she was set to perform last night at Lanier Law Firm's "Christmas Cheers and Charity" party, an annual fete that hosts more than 7,000 guests.

According to the Houston Chronicle, the family-friendly extravaganza boasted "Texas Bar-B-Q, fajitas and amusements" on the colorful invitation, which included a pop-up Cyrus sharing the stage with a guitar-wielding Santa and singing elves.

E! News' source estimates that Cyrus, 16, and her team of dancers and musicians will receive "close to $1 million" to perform at the exclusive bash.

"We do have limited room. We'd love to be able to invite the world, but we can't," Mark Lanier told the Chronicle.

"We're excited."

Past party entertainers include Brooks & Dunn (2007), Dolly Parton (2005), Reba McEntire (2004), Diana Ross (2000), Johnny Cash (1995) and the Dixie Chicks (1993).

The event took place at Lanier's sprawling ranch in suburban Houston.

Cyrus was in Houston last March for her second sold-out RodeoHouston performance. It drew a record-breaking 73,459 fans.

The South by Southwest Film Conference and Festival announced that the winning short films featured at the festival will qualify for consideration in the Short Films category of the Annual Academy Awards® without the standard theatrical run, provided the film otherwise complies with the Academy Rules.

Man, that's one heckuva run on sentence. I simply copied and pasted that from the SXSW website. No way would I construct a run on as such.

If you have a short film you'd like to enter in the SXSW film festival, TOMORROW is the FINAL deadline. Submissions can only be entered via the official SXSW Website.

Former ET host and musical HEARTTHROB John Tesh is in Austin today promoting his new album. He performed on FOX 7's Good Day Austin this morning.

Here's a link to his performance.

Additionally, there were some people on the show looking for donations of musical instruments for a Texas school district whose own instruments were damaged or destroyed in Hurricane Ike. Tesh heard their story and donated a piano to them on air.

I would like to add some creative line here utilizing a well known John Tesh song title or lyric but I'm not sure one exists.

A new online tool asks "What effect does drinking have on your body?" and provides an answer:

BBC's Alcoholic Experiment adds up the numbers of drinks that you select. You can choose beer, wine, spirits and mixers. The widget then compiles the calorie count and gives you a list of food items that also add up to those calories. The widget was posted by the BBC in the United Kingdom, so it does have an English flavor. (For those not in the know, a Jaffa cake is biscuit-like dessert with a layer of sponge cake, chocolate and jam).

I'm not sure how accurate it really is though since it doesn't seem to include light beers(I guess they don't drink that watered down crap in the UK) or sugar free mixers(SF Red Bull does have calories).

Anyway, it's still fun to play around with.

Check it out: HERE

 

The 14th Annual Critics' Choice Awards list of nominees are out...or in...or whatever.

Slumdog Millionaire is up for various awards. The flick screened at the Austin Film Fest.

The film won the Out of Competition Feature at the festival. Director Danny Boyle was in Austin to introduce the film...and receive that award. Click link HERE for a festival wrap and a list of all awards.

The Critic's Choice Awards air January 8th at 9pm on VH1.

Below are the nominees:

BEST PICTURE
Changeling
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Doubt
Frost/Nixon
Milk
The Reader
Slumdog Millionaire
Wall-E
The Wrestler

BEST ACTOR
Clint Eastwood - Gran Torino
Richard Jenkins - The Visitor
Frank Langella - Frost/Nixon
Sean Penn - Milk
Brad Pitt - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Mickey Rourke - The Wrestler

BEST ACTRESS
Kate Beckinsale - Nothing But the Truth
Cate Blanchett - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Anne Hathaway - Rachel Getting Married
Angelina Jolie - Changeling
Melissa Leo - Frozen River
Meryl Streep - Doubt

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR
Josh Brolin - Milk
Robert Downey, Jr. - Tropic Thunder
James Franco - Milk
Philip Seymour Hoffman - Doubt
Heath Ledger - The Dark Knight

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS
Penelope Cruz - Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Viola Davis - Doubt
Vera Farmiga - Nothing But the Truth
Taraji P. Henson - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Marisa Tomei - The Wrestler
Kate Winslet - The Reader

BEST ACTING ENSEMBLE
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
The Dark Knight
Doubt
Milk
Rachel Getting Married

BEST DIRECTOR
Danny Boyle - Slumdog Millionaire
David Fincher - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Ron Howard - Frost/Nixon
Christopher Nolan - The Dark Knight
Gus Van Sant - Milk

BEST WRITER (Original or Adapted Screenplay)
Simon Beaufoy - Slumdog Millionaire
Dustin Lance Black - Milk
Peter Morgan - Frost/Nixon
Eric Roth - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
John Patrick Shanley - Doubt

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE
Bolt
Kung Fu Panda
Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa
Wall-E
Waltz With Bashir

BEST YOUNG ACTOR/ACTRESS (Under 21)
Dakota Fanning - The Secret Life of Bees
David Kross - The Reader
Dev Petal - Slumdog Millionaire
Brandon Walters - Australia

BEST ACTION MOVIE
The Dark Knight
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
Iron Man
Quantum of Solace
Wanted

BEST COMEDY MOVIE
Burn After Reading
Forgetting Sarah Marshall
Role Models
Tropic Thunder
Vicky Cristina Barcelona

BEST PICTURE MADE FOR TELEVISION
John Adams
Recount
Coco Chanel

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM
A Christmas Tale
Gomorrah
I’ve Loved You So Long
Let the Right One In
Mongol
Waltz With Bashir

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE
I.O.U.S.A.
Man On Wire
Roman Polanski: Wanted and Desired
Standard Operating Procedure
Young At Heart

BEST SONG
"Another Way to Die" (performed by Jack White and Alicia Keys, written by Jack White) - Quantum of Solace
"Down to Earth" (performed by Peter Gabriel, written by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman) - Wall-E
"I Thought I Lost You" (performed Miley Cyrus and John Travolta, written by Miley Cyrus and Jeffrey Steele) - Bolt
"Jaiho" (performed by Sukhwinder Singh, written by A.R. Rahman and Gulzar) - Slumdog Millionaire
"The Wrestler" (performed by Bruce Springsteen, written by Bruce Springsteen) - The Wrestler

BEST COMPOSER
Alexandre Desplat - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
Clint Eastwood - Changeling
Danny Elfman - Milk
Hans Zimmer/James Newton Howard - The Dark Knight
A.R. Rahman - Slumdog Millionaire

Chuck Norris' Kick Start Karate Program, which is an in-school alternative to PE, punched up their program in Pflugerville yesterday.

Chuck made an appearance at the innaugural belt ceremony last night(or at least he was supposed to). Due to breaking news, FOX 7 was not able to attend. So, sadly, I do not have video of it. What the Chuck? Like a shooting is more important than CHUCK NORRIS? Chuck Norris once shot down a German plane with his finger by yelling, "Bang!"

I stole that one b/c I couldn't come up with one on my own. I'm lame.

Post a better Chuck Norris fact below.

Chris Kirkpatrick of 'N SYNC fame was spotted at Annie's West on West 6th Street a few weekends ago...so says one of my spies.

When said spy chatted with the former pop star, he learned that CK is dating an Austin gal.

In a related yet unrelated to Austin sidenote, I snapped a pic on Orlando's Church Street this weekend with former N'SYNCer JC Chasez.

 BYE BYE BYE!