Entertainment

 NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Doctors are ordering George Jones to postpone all tour dates through May 20 to recover from an upper respiratory infection.

 

     A statement from Jones' publicist, Kirt Webster, says the 80-year-old singer is resting at his home near Nashville. He spent about a week in the hospital last month receiving antibiotics for the infection. 

 

     Jones is delaying his entire Canadian run in May as well as a show in Caruthersville, Missouri. He had already postponed concerts on April 20 and 21 in Minnesota and South Dakota.

 

     The Country Music Hall of Fame member posted a video on his website Wednesday thanking fans for their prayers and the "wonderful ways" they have stood by him. He said he was on his "way back for sure," adding that he only needs time.

 

 NEW YORK (AP) - Martha Stewart is cooking up a culinary master class for public television.

 

     The TV host, author and media mogul announced Thursday that she'll launch a new PBS series this fall called "Martha Stewart's Cooking School."

 

     Each weekly half-hour will feature Stewart in the kitchen demonstrating classic cooking techniques. She says she will illustrate the building blocks of recipes, from roasting to poaching to braising.

 

     The series, inspired by Stewart's best-selling book of the same name, will air on PBS stations across the nation.

 

     Stewart's daily talk show, which aired in syndication before moving to cable's Hallmark Channel two years ago, is ending this summer.

 

 ALBANY, N.Y. (AP) - Levon Helm, a key member of the seminal rock group The Band who lent his distinctively Southern voice to classics like "The Weight" and "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down," has died at age 71.

 

     Helm's website says he died peacefully Thursday afternoon.

 

     Helm and his band mates were musical virtuosos who mined the roots of American music in the late 1960s as other rockers veered into psychedelia, heavy metal and jams. The group's 1968 debut, "Music From the Big Pink," remains a landmark album of the era.

 

     The Band bid farewell to live performances with a bang with its famous "Last Waltz" concert in 1976.

 

     Some fans considered Richard Manuel The Band's lead singer. But for many admirers, that honor belonged to the short, feisty Helm.

 

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Dick Clark, the television host who helped bring rock 'n' roll into the mainstream on "American Bandstand," has died. He was 82.

 

Spokesman Paul Shefrin says Clark died but did not provide further details. Clark had continued performing even after he suffered a stroke in 2004 that affected his ability to speak and walk.

 

Long dubbed "the world's oldest teenager" because of his boyish appearance, Clark also was a successful businessman. He hosted an annual New Year's Eve special and supplied a variety of game shows and music specials to TV, including and the American Music Awards.

 

The original "American Bandstand" was one of network TV's longest-running series as part of ABC's daytime lineup from 1957 to 1987. Over the years, it introduced stars ranging from Buddy Holly to Michael Jackson to Madonna.

 

 NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - George Jones needs more time to recover from a recent upper respiratory infection. 

 

     The 80-year-old country music singer is postponing his upcoming shows on April 20 and 21 in Minnesota and South Dakota. A statement from Jones' publicist, Kirt Webster, says doctors have advised Jones to continue resting at his Tennessee home for another week. The shows will be rescheduled.

 

     Jones says in the statement that he never wants to cancel a show, but he has to do what the doctors tell him. He thanks all the fans from the bottom of his heart for their prayers and says he looks forward to seeing them on the road soon.

 

     Jones was hospitalized for nearly a week earlier this month.

 

     The Country Music Hall of Fame member is known for dozens of classic hits including "He Stopped Loving Her Today" and "White Lightning."

 

 

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - An attorney says Sugarland's version of what happened before last summer's deadly stage collapse at the Indiana State Fair is inconsistent with another witness account.

 

     The Indianapolis Star reports (http://indy.st/IGwoRf ) it obtained a partial transcript of singer Jennifer Nettles' deposition in a series of lawsuits over the disaster.

 

     The Star says Nettles testified that the country duo was never told fair officials had asked to delay the concert because of an approaching storm and that the band probably would have postponed the show if they had been asked.

 

     State Fair Executive Director Cindy Hoye testified that she asked Sugarland's tour manager to delay the show but was told that the band refused.

 

     Attorney Kenneth J. Allen says Nettles' version is "inconsistent."  Band spokesman Allan Meyer called Allen's remarks "scurrilous."

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  WASHINGTON (AP) - Alec Baldwin and musician Ben Folds are in Washington to press for increased funding for the arts that have been cut in recent years as Congress and the White House have searched for ways to reduce spending.

 

     In an interview Monday with The Associated Press, Baldwin says many parts of the country need federal funding for the arts to make sure people have access to affordable theater, dance and music that can enrich their lives.

 

     With just under $147 million in federal funding for the National Endowment for the Arts this year, Baldwin says the nation has fallen far short of its high of $175 million in 1992.

 

     Folds, who is a judge on NBC's "The Sing-Off," says he would be busing tables if it weren't for his arts education.

 

 

  LOS ANGELES (AP) - Beverly Hills police say they have concluded Whitney Houston's death investigation and found no signs that a crime occurred.

 

     Lt. Mark Rosen said Wednesday the determination was made after reviewing the Grammy-winning singer's full autopsy report, which attributed her death to accidental drowning. Coroner's officials ruled heart disease and cocaine use contributed to the 48-year-old singer's death.

 

     Houston died in a bathtub of the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Feb. 11 on the eve of the Grammy Awards. She had been planning a comeback, including a starring role in the remake of the film "Sparkle," which is due for release later this year.

 

     Police have repeatedly said they have found no signs of foul play in Houston's death.

 

     Rosen extended condolences to her family and fans.

 

  CHICAGO (AP) - A full jury and six alternates have been selected at the trial of a man accused of killing three members of Oscar winner Jennifer Hudson's family.

 

     The last four panelists were chosen Tuesday, the second day of one-by-one questioning of would-be jurors. Fourteen were picked Monday.

 

     Those who will sit in the jury box when testimony begins April 23 include a junior high school teacher and an unemployed bank teller who lives three blocks from court.

 

     Some of the jurors have had friends and relatives who were victims of violent crimes. At least two had close relatives who were murdered. 

 

     Several people who said they were fans of Hudson and couldn't set aside their sympathy were dismissed.

 

     William Balfour is charged with killing Hudson's mother, brother and nephew in 2008.

 

   NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) - Randy Travis is being sued by his ex-wife and former manager.

 

     Travis says the lawsuit filed last week by Elizabeth Travis in Nashville, Tenn., lacks merit and that it's "unfortunate that it's come to this." But the country music star in the statement from his publicist doesn't address her claim that he hired men to strip her office of records and memorabilia related to his career.

 

     Elizabeth Travis claims her ex-husband made it impossible for her to do her job and terminated their management agreement without written warning. She's asking for damages, attorney fees, litigation costs and whatever other damages the court feels appropriate.

 

     The Travises divorced in 2010 after 19 years of marriage. Elizabeth Travis had served as his manager for more than three decades.

 

 

NEW YORK (AP) - A Canadian woman has been arrested in New York on charges of stalking Alec Baldwin.

 

     Genevieve Sabourin, of Montreal, was awaiting arraignment Monday in Manhattan. She was arrested Sunday after the "30 Rock" star filed a complaint. 

 

     Police say the 54-year-old Baldwin was at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts on April 5 when Sabourin showed up and was removed by security. 

 

     They say she also turned up at his Long Island home on March 31. 

 

     Baldwin told police he met the woman a few years ago. He says she has called him repeatedly and professed her love for him. 

 

     It wasn't immediately clear if she had a lawyer.

 

     Baldwin recently became engaged to his 28-year-old yoga instructor girlfriend, Hilaria Thomas.

 

  NEW YORK (AP) - If you think texting and walking is dangerous, just wait until everyone's wearing Google's futuristic, Internet-connected glasses.

 

     While wearing a pair, you can see directions to your destination appear literally before your eyes. You can talk to friends over video chat or even buy a few things online as you walk around.

 

     These glasses can do everything you now need a smartphone or tablet computer to accomplish.

 

     Mind you, the technology doesn't actually exist. Google offered a glimpse of "Project Glass" in a video and blog post this week as a way to start a discussion and solicit ideas.

 

     The glasses hint at endless possibilities. But the project also opens up a minefield of challenges around public safety, privacy, practicality, even fashion sensibility.

 

  LOS ANGELES (AP) - Whitney Houston's autopsy report says detectives found white powdery substances and a spoon with white residue in the hotel room where she died.

 

     The report released Wednesday also shows that Houston had cocaine throughout her system.

 

     The report details the singer's final day, with the singer complaining of a sore throat and an assistants suggesting she take a bath before preparing for a pre-Grammy party.

 

     The Grammy winning singer died Feb. 11 after drowning in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. Her death has been ruled as accidental and coroner's officials cited heart disease and cocaine use as contributing factors.

 

 

  INDIANAPOLIS (AP) - Members of the country duo Sugarland will give video depositions from West Virginia next week in lawsuits over the Indiana State Fair stage collapse that killed seven people and injured dozens of others.

 

     Attorney Ken Allen said Tuesday that Sugarland members Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush will give the depositions April 12th and 13th in Charleston.

 

     The testimony will focus on whether Sugarland resisted delaying the start of their Aug. 13 concert despite threatening weather. The stage and rigging collapsed onto fans amid high winds.

 

     A judge ordered the depositions last month in lawsuits against Mid-America Sound Corp., the company that owns the stage and rigging that collapsed. Allen represents some of the plaintiffs in that case.

 

     Mid-America denies it did anything to warrant the stage collapse.

 

     

 

 LOS ANGELES (AP) - Donald Trump says his organization is allowing a transgender woman who was born a male to compete for Canada's spot in the Miss Universe pageant - and he's wishing her good luck. 

 

     In a statement issued Tuesday, the Miss Universe Organization says 23-year-old Jenna Talackova, who underwent a sex change four years ago, can compete in the 2012 competition to become Canada's pageant contestant.

 

     Talackova's attorney Gloria Allred held a news conference earlier in the day demanding the organization eliminate its rule requiring contestants be born as women.

 

     Allred did not respond immediately to a call and email seeking comment on Tuesday.

 

     The Miss Universe Organization, which is run by Trump, says it made a fair and just decision on Monday to allow Talackova's participation. The organization says it is reviewing rules to make sure similar issues don't arise again.

 

     Like all contestants, Trump says he wishes Talackova the best of luck in her quest for the crown, like all contestants.

 

   NEW YORK (AP) - Alec Baldwin is giving marriage another shot. The actor popped the question over the weekend to his 28-year-old yoga instructor girlfriend, Hilaria Thomas. They began dating last year.

 

     His publicist Matthew Hiltzik made the engagement announcement over Twitter. 

 

     Baldwin, who once starred in a film called "The Marrying Man," turns 54 on Tuesday and an engagement, says Hiltzik, is a "great way to celebrate!"

 

     Baldwin was previously married to Kim Basinger. They have a daughter together named Ireland. He published a book in 2008 called "A Promise to Ourselves" about his personal experience dealing with divorce and his battle with Basinger over custody of their daughter.

 

 

  NEW YORK (AP) - Viewers got a first glimpse of Whitney Houston's upcoming film Monday when NBC's "Today" show premiered a trailer for the much-awaited release, and a fuller clip debuted on Yahoo! Movies.

 

     A remake of the 1976 original, "Sparkle" stars Houston as the mother of three girls who form a singing group and struggle with fame and drug addiction. The trailer displayed the daughters, including "American Idol" winner Jordin Sparks, in performance. Houston is prominent throughout, at one point singing the classic gospel song "His Eye Is on the Sparrow."

 

     She also tells one of her daughters: "I always knew you had the gift. It makes me feel like I did something right. Don't lose it." 

 

     Debra Martin Chase, who is a producer of the film, said she had mixed emotions with the trailer's release; the movie is scheduled for release Aug. 17.

 

     "On the one hand, I'm so excited about the movie and we're really happy with how it turned out," she said in a phone interview Monday. "(But) just to have it said yet again that this is Whitney's last performance, it's hard. It's hard."

 

     Houston is listed as the executive producer of the movie, which had already finished filming in Detroit when the superstar died Feb. 11 at 48 in Beverly Hills, Calif., on the eve of the Grammy Awards. An autopsy has shown she accidentally drowned in the bathtub, with heart disease and cocaine use listed as contributing factors.

 

     There is no mention made of drugs in the trailer, and Chase declined to say whether it would be a focal part of the movie as it was in the original, saying she didn't want to talk specifically about the plotlines until closer to the movie's release date.

 

     She also added that the movie was not altered to increase Houston's time in the film in the wake of her death.

 

     "She is an integral, very much an integral part of the movie, but she's not one of the girls," she said. "She plays an important role, she's throughout the movie, but she's not one of the main characters."

 

     Chase echoed other people involved with the movie who praised Houston's professionalism on the set. The movie was seen as a comeback vehicle for the star, whose career had waned over the years due to battles with drugs and alcohol.

 

     "She was healthy, happy, on time every day, hung out on set when she wasn't working because she loved the cast," said Chase, who also declined to talk about the circumstances of Houston's death. "She had fun, her spirit buoyed everybody every day."

 

     Houston had worked to get "Sparkle" to the screen for 12 years. It was her first movie since 1996's "The Preacher's Wife" and 20 years removed from her debut in the blockbuster movie "The Bodyguard," which was rereleased for one night last week.

 

     "Whitney loved this movie very much. This was her idea," Chase said. "The great thing for me as her friend and her producing partner is that this movie will be an essential part of her legacy. ... It's the best performance of her life; she knew it at the time. She looked beautiful on camera and she enjoyed every minute making the movie."