January 23rd, 2003
Jennifer Lopez Divorce Final This Weekend
Jennifer Lopez’s divorce from dancer Chris Judd will be finalized this weekend. Her second marriage will be legally dissolved on Sunday, January 26.
J-Lo’s first marriage was to Ojani Noa and the couple divorced in 1997. Her next long-term relationship was with rap mogul Sean “P. Diddy” Combs. She met Judd on the set of the video for her hit “Love Don’t Cost A Thing.” A month after splitting with Combs, she married Judd in September, 2001 and they separated seven months later. She filed for the divorce in July, 2002. Judd will reportedly receive a $15 million settlement.
‘Gimme a Break’ Star Nell Carter Dies
Nell Carter, who played the sassy, matronly housekeeper on the 1980s sitcom “Gimme a Break!” and received a Tony Award in 1978 for her performance in the Broadway musical “Ain’t Misbehavin’,” died Thursday, her publicist said. She was 54.
The singer-actress collapsed in her Beverly Hills home and was found by one of her 13-year-old sons, spokesman Roger Lane said.
Carter had suffered from diabetes for years, Lane added, and underwent brain surgery in 1992 to remove an aneurysm. She recovered and continued to perform, mostly on stage.
Carter was in rehearsals at a Long Beach theater for “Raisin,” the musical version of “Raisin in the Sun.”
In addition to Carter’s Tony win for “Ain’t Misbehavin,’” she won an Emmy in 1982 for a TV broadcast of the show.
Her NBC comedy “Gimme a Break!” ran from 1981 to 1987, and garnered two more Emmy nominations, in 1982 and 1983.
In 1985, an episode of the show was broadcast live
New ‘American Idol’ Draws Record Ratings
Whether to watch Simon Cowell’s withering put-downs or discover the next potential star, a record-setting 26.5 million viewers tuned in for Tuesday night’s return of “American Idol” on Fox.
Even for what is turning out to be the winter of reality TV on the broadcast networks, these were stunning numbers.
Excluding sporting events, it was the most-watched night ever for the Fox network, which began airing prime-time shows in 1987. It eclipsed the 22.8 million people who watched Kelly Clarkson win the first “American Idol” competition in September.
“We’re having a very happy day at Fox,” said Entertainment President Gail Berman. “We certainly didn’t expect to come close to the finale’s numbers, and to exceed them by 16 percent is a dream come true.”
The conventional wisdom was that “American Idol,” a classic summertime diversion, would have trouble drawing an audience during the winter when faced with tougher competition.
