Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie and Producer
The well-dressed diners at L'Avenue, the chic restaurant on Paris' fashionable Avenue Montaigne, must have done a double-take on March 19 when a scruffy-looking man in frayed jeans and a worn baseball capwas ushered to an upstairs table. More shocking still, the unshaven, disheveled diner was Brad Pitt!
Looking tired and drawn, the actor joined a group of guysfor steak, french fries and red wine.
"I've never seen Brad looking so bad," says a waitress. "Some Americans at the next table were joking that he should be called 'Scrag' Pitt!"No wonder! Sources tell Star that Brad has plenty of reason to look haggard. With girlfriend Angelina Jolie's May 18 due date fast approaching, the two have been arguing over a wide menu of issues.
In fact, on March 20, the day after his visit to L'Avenue, the couple had a quarrel that ended with Angelina taking Maddox, 4, and Zahara, 14 months, and storming out of their rented Paris apartment for four hours.
And it's not the first time a squabble between them has left Brad sitting alone, wondering what he could have said or done differently."Brad said they argued about getting married," a source tells Star. "He said she refused point-blank to set a date, and told him that if he kept pushing her it would be over forever. Then she left with the kids.
When she returned that night, she refused to discuss it. She just told him, 'Forget about it, OK!' But Brad worries — and the more worried he gets, the angrier Angelina gets. He said she's so passionate, she explodes and then disappears until she calms down — and they can never discuss things rationally or calmly."
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Jen Gets The Last Laugh!
Jennifer Aniston
Revenge is sweet for a woman scorned. When Jennifer Aniston, 37, heard that ex-hubby Brad Pitt, 42, had recently caught hell from Angelina Jolie, 30, for smoking in their Paris apartment — yet another of their frequent recent arguments, say sources — she could barely contain her amusement, according to a friend.
"Jen's too cool to say out loud that it serves that idiot right," the source tells Star, "but her smirk said it all."
Another source close to Aniston was more explicit. "Jen feels like Brad is getting exactly what he deserves. He ditched his marriage and moved on to a fling with Angelina. Not surprisingly, Jen's attitude is 'You made your bed, now lie in it.'"
PIPELINE TO PARIS
For months, mutual friends (who've stayed in touch with Brad) have been telling Jen about trouble in Brangelina-land. Her reaction? "'I told you so,'" says an Aniston chum. "Jen predicted long ago that this relationship wouldn't last."
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Lisa Tucker Gets the Boot on Idol
Lisa Tucker
And now there are nine. Lisa Tucker, 16, was shown the door on American Idol Wednesday night, as voters apparently concurred with the judges that the Anaheim, Calif., teen should have left her Tuesday night ballad "Because of You" to its hitmaker, 2002 Idol winner Kelly Clarkson.
Judge Simon Cowell called Tucker's rendition "painful" and the song "too big" for her voice. "That's okay," Tucker said Wednesday, after show host Ryan Seacrest delivered the painful news. "This has been the experience of a lifetime, and I wouldn't change it for anything."
Tucker had been in the bottom three for two previous weeks. Perhaps the evening's biggest shock was Los Angeles native Katharine McPhee's second-to-last finish. McPhee, 21, has been tagged as a potential winner and the judges had described her Tuesday-night performance as one of the evening's best.
This was McPhee's first time in the bottom three. Coming in with the third-fewest votes was Ace Young, 25, of Denver. The final Idol will be crowned May 24. In other news of the program, judge Paula Abdul has signed on for another three years, FOX announced Wednesday.
The contestants "truly inspire and amaze me each week," Abdul said in a statement. "Of course, I also look forward to putting Simon in his place for years to come."
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Paula Is Forever Your Judge
Paula Abdul
Sometimes nice girls finish first.
Fox announced Wednesday that Paula Abdul, the sticky-sweet glue that holds the American Idol judges together, will remain with the show for at least three more years.
Sandwiched between Randy Jackson and Simon Cowell, Abdul is known for her infinite supply of upbeat remarks, even if they apply to a contestant's hairdo, dance moves or infectious enthusiasm rather than to his or her voice.
"Paula is an integral member of the American Idol family and we are excited to have her continue as the show's beloved judge," Fox Entertainment President Peter Liguori said in a statement. "As someone who rose to the top of the charts as a solo artist, she has unique insights into the contestants' hopes, dreams and fears."
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Britney's Lawsuit-a-palooza
Britney Spears
Britney Spears hasn't released a new song for a couple of months, but that's not keeping the pop tart from being in heavy rotation--at least among the legal set.
The songwriters behind Spears' 2005 opus "Do Somethin'" have filed suit against a South Korean pop composer, alleging he ripped them off.
Universal Music Publishing Korea, the company that handles overseas rights to Mrs. Federline's musical gems, says that the team behind "Do Somethin'" (the track is credited to frequent Spears collaborators C. Karlsson, P. Winnberg and H. Jonback, along with A. Hunte) believes the tune was "partially plagiarized" by a single called "Get Ya" from the popular South Korean singer Lee Hyo-lee.
Spears released her ditty in November 2004 as one of the few new tracks to appear on her Greatest Hits: My Prerogative album; it was released as a single in February 2005 and peaked at 100 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. "Get Ya," the first single off Lee's second album, was released just last month.
The legal action targets "Get Ya" songwriter Kim Do-hyun. Kim reportedly has admitted being influenced by the Britney song, but has denied the allegations that he copied directly from it.
Spears wasn't directly named as a plaintiff in the suit, although it makes frequent reference to her.
Likewise, the "Toxic" singer isn't named as a defendant in a lawsuit filed Tuesday by three former employees, but a trio of her companies are.
Lonnie D. Jones and Randy Jones, identified in the suit as former security guards, and Silas Dukes, described as a "lead specialist" in the court filing, allege they weren't paid for overtime and never received their final paychecks after being fired last November.
They are seeking back wages and unspecified penalties for alleged labor-law violations from the Louisiana-based Britney Brands. The other defendants are Britney Touring and Team Tours.
According to the suit filed in Los Angeles Superior Court, the three men claim Spears required them to work a minimum of 12-hour days and take trips with her that demanded they be on call 24 hours a day, often without meal or rest breaks.
There was no comment from the Spears camp Wednesday on either of the Brit-centric legal actions.
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Paris, Three 6 Mafia Hit the Studio
Paris Hilton
Three 6 Mafia just made it easier out there for an heiress.
The Oscar-winning rappers said Tuesday that they will produce and record tracks for Paris Hilton's upcoming debut album, which has been in the works practically since Hilton hit the party circuit.
"We ran into her at a William Morris Agency party and she said she liked our song 'Stay Fly' and asked, could we work with her," Jordan "Juicy J" Houston told Memphis' Commercial Appeal newspaper. The other members of the "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp"-rappin' trio are Paul "DJ Paul" Beauregard and Cedric Coleman.
After spending time in a Los Angeles recording studio with the group Tuesday, Hilton already plans to record one of their dance tracks.
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Is Hatcher Worshiping 'Idol''s Seacrest?
Teri Hatcher
Is "Desperate Housewives" star TERI HATCHER making sweet music with "American Idol" host RYAN SEACREST?
In the new issue of US Weekly, on newsstands Friday, the magazine reports that the two may be romantically involved after the couple was spotted being very affectionate toward one another at a Malibu, CA, restaurant last weekend.
While pictures in the glossy show the couple kissing and an eyewitness says that Hatcher gave Seacrest a neck massage during lunch, "it's not super-serious," a source tells US. "They're not on the road to marriage or anything." In fact, another source claims that Hatcher hasn't even talked about Seacrest with her 8-year-old daughter, EMERSON.
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They're taking it slow," says a source.
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