Karen Grace Sjoden, 49, was arrested at the home of Ellen and Portia DeGenerres and charged with trespassing, according to the Beverly Hills Courier. Sjoden pled not guilty and will return to court March 7 for trial; she had been held on $5,000 bail but it was increased to $200,000 at the request of the prosecution.
Singing legend Aretha Franklin, 68, has said that she is back at “150 percent” after undergoing procedures for an undisclosed illness, according to USA Today. The “Respect” singer plans to give her first post-surgery concert in Niagara Falls, N.Y., May 28. That same month, Wal-Mart will release her album, Aretha: A Woman Falling Out of Love.
The cast of the hit TV show Glee has reached a milestone, surpassing Elvis Presley for the most songs on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, according to USA Today. In just 18 months, the series has placed 113 songs on the chart (including six in the past week); Presley had 108. Elsewhere, Lady Gaga’s song “Born This Way” has become the legendary chart’s 1000th number-one single.
Adrienne Palicki, who previously co-starred in the TV series Friday Night Lights, has landed the lead role in the new Wonder Woman reboot, according to EW.com. David E. Kelley (Boston Legal; Harry’s Law) is remaking the ’70s classic, and has incorporated the superhero’s signature items—cuffs, lasso and invisible jet—into the script, which has Diana Prince (Wonder Woman’s alter ego) as a corporate executive.
In an interview with Rolling Stone magazine, Justin Bieber seemingly labelled homosexuality as a choice, according to Pink News. He said, “It’s everyone’s own decision to do that. It doesn’t affect me and shouldn’t affect anyone else.” The interview also had him being more conservative about abortion, even when the pregnancy is caused by rape, saying that “everything happens for a reason.” However, according to Digital Spy, Rolling Stone admitted that an “editing error” resulted in Bieber’s comments on abortion being misquoted. Bieber’s full quote was, “Um. Well, I think that’s really sad [referring to abortion], but everything happens for a reason. I don’t know how that would be a reason. I guess I haven’t been in that position, so I wouldn’t be able to judge that.'”
In a commentary in The Advocate, porn entrepreneur Michael Lucas has suggested that a drug bust on the Allure of the Seas—promoted as the “largest gay cruise ever”—is tied to a collective problem gay men have with drug abuse. At one point, Lucas wrote, “I think it’s sad that a bunch of tweakers have turned gay cruises into a punch line. But what’s downright depressing is the fact that we, as a community, treat such self-destructive and illegal behavior as normal and acceptable.” Moreover, he wrote that the drug problem is connected with image issues gay men have.
In London, an Andy Warhol self-portrait has sold for $17 million, according to an MSNBC.com item. Representatives at the auction house Christie’s are saying the work—one of a series of 11 self-portraits Warhol did—had been part of a private collection since 1974. The red-and-white image shows Warhold with his hand to this mouth. The bidder is anonymous.
In a poll by California’s Orange County Equality Project, Britney Spears was named “Greatest Gay Icon of All Time,” according to Way2Online.com. The “Oops! I Did It Again” singer beat out Lady Gaga, President Obama, Madonna and Cher to win the title by taking 31 percent of the vote. Madonna was runner-up at 25 percent and Gaga came in third.
Speaking of Spears, her manager is explaining the video behind the song “Hold It Against Me,” Digital Spy reported. In one scene, Spears kicks and punches a double of herself. Her manager, Larry Rudolph, told MTV, “There are really two different Britneys. There’s a public Britney and there’s a private Britney, and they’re very different. … Maybe at some times the two Britneys are at odds with each other; most of the time they’re not.”
Are Lindsay Lohan and onetime girlfriend Samantha Ronson getting back together? The couple were spotted leaving the Hollywood Roosevelt hotel Feb. 18 in Ronson’s black Porsche, ending up back at the DJ’s home. Ronson later tweeted, “Watching grey’s anatomy—my fav show. @lindsaylohan sleeping next 2 me—should i wake her up to let her know her mom is going on GMA?” Lohan tweeted the next day, “I was just at roosevelt to meet Samantha and say happy birthday to a friend.”
Out singer Rufus Wainwright, partner Jorn Weisbrodt and Leonard Cohen’s daughter have become parents, welcoming Viva Katherine Wainwright Feb. 2, according to Advocate.com. The girl was born via a surrogate—Lorca Cohen, the daughter of the legendary “Hallelujah” singer Leonard Cohen. On his website, Wainwright posted, “Daddy #1 would like to offer everyone a digital cigar and welcome the little lady in with a French phrase from his favorite folk song, A La Claire Fontaine : ‘Il y a longtemps que je t’aime, jamais je ne t’oublierai.'”
Lady Gaga said that her new deal with Target requires the retail giant to start working with LGBT organizations, according to Billboard magazine. Gaga said she initially was hesitant about working with Target, saying, “That discussion was one of the most intense conversations I’ve ever had in a business meeting. … Our relationship is hinged upon their reform in the company to support the gay community and to redeem the mistakes they’ve made supporting those groups.” Target drew the ire of pro-gay groups in 2010 when it donated $150,000 to a Minnesota political-action committee that supported an anti-gay gubernatorial candidate.
England’s Prince Harry partied at the gay nightspot Soho’s Box Bar recently, according to the Mirror. The younger brother of Prince William reportedly left the club at 3:30 in the morning with his shirt open after being there to celebrate a female friend’s birthday. Harry, 26, drank and saw a burlesque show, leaving with his armed officers.
Logo, the channel for gays and their families and friends from MTV Networks, has launched “beCause,” its first ever pro-social initiative focusing on self-respect and empowerment issues for the LGBT community and their allies, according to a press release. Logo is teaming with the Greater Than AIDS movement on a multi-platform media effort to combat the resurgence of HIV infections among gay and bisexual men. Information is at www.logotv.com/because/hiv/index.jhtml.