Man removed from Hollywood wiretap jury

A juror was removed Thursday in the federal wiretapping trial of Hollywood private eye Anthony Pellicano and a high-profile attorney, forcing deliberations to restart a day after the panel got the case.

U.S. District Judge Dale Fischer said the man was replaced with an alternate after lying about making remarks to other jurors about the severity of the charges against Pellicano and lawyer Terry Christensen.

The man allegedly said, "'What's the big deal? Nobody was killed,'" then denied to the judge that he had made the remark, Fischer told attorneys.

Fischer learned of the comments in notes sent to her by another juror.

Pellicano and Christensen are accused of recording phone conversations of Lisa Bonder Kerkorian, the former wife of billionaire investor Kirk Kerkorian, in an effort to disprove her claims that the MGM mogul was the father of her young daughter.

They are both charged with conspiracy to commit wiretapping. Pellicano is also charged with wiretapping, and Christensen is charged with aiding and abetting a wiretap.

Christensen's attorney Patricia Glaser has told jurors there was no evidence of any wiretaps of Bonder Kerkorian, and insisted that Pellicano was not hired to do any wiretaps.

Pellicano was convicted of illegal wiretapping and racketeering in a separate case earlier this year.

Every little bit Phelps: Swimmer a VMA presenter

He does comedy, writes books, and mixes it up with the hottest stars in music and Hollywood. With all this, who needs swimming?

Certainly not Michael Phelps _ not anymore, at least. But as a presenter at the 2008 Video Music Awards, all that fresh Olympic bling will certainly help.

The swimmer who took home a record-breaking eight gold medals from the Beijing Games joins Miley Cyrus, Scarlett Johansson, Lindsay Lohan and Ciara as presenters at the Sept. 7 VMAs telecast from Los Angeles. British comedian Russell Brand will host.

It's been a busy week for Phelps, who announced he'll write a book about his road to Olympic history (to be released in time for the holidays) and plans to host the season premiere of "Saturday Night Live." On Thursday, Phelps was in New York City, filming a cameo for the HBO series "Entourage."

Zac Efron, Vanessa Hudgens, Ashley Tisdale and Corbin Bleu of the "High School Musical" franchise will also present at the VMAs, as will "Twilight" actors Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson and Taylor Lautner, MTV said Thursday.

The network also announced performers Katy Perry, T-Pain, Lupe Fiasco and The Ting Tings.

Performers already announced include Rihanna, Pink, Paramore and T.I., who will be making his first appearance at a major awards show since his arrest right before an awards ceremony last year. The Jonas Brothers, Lil Wayne and Kid Rock are also scheduled to do their thing onstage.

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On the Net:

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Reviewed: `Raising the Bar,' 'Sons,' 'True Blood'

The fall season is afoot, with these three shows among the first to hit the air: TNT's courtroom drama "Raising the Bar"; FX's series about an outlaw motorcycle club, "Sons of Anarchy"; and HBO's vampires-are-just-folks horror-comedy-romance, "True Blood."

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"Raising the Bar" (premiering Monday, Sept. 1 at 10 p.m. EDT)

The 1980s just called, and it wants this drama back.

TNT has hyped "Raising the Bar" as the latest landmark series from Steven Bochco, an indisputable TV trailblazer whose "NYPD Blue" (bursting on the scene in 1993), "L.A. Law" (1986) and, most of all, "Hill Street Blues" (1981) forever changed the face of television.

But don't be misled. "Raising the Bar" is no breakthrough. Arriving as Bochco's umpteenth lawyer-centric series, it has a certain instant familiarity. Its glossy look and pat formula seem lifted from a couple of decades ago, when such a drama might have felt cutting-edge. (Additional points off for the title's painful pun. That's not cool, man!)

The premise calls for a half-dozen good-looking, demographically diverse young New York lawyers to play the legal game from opposing sides _ the public defender's office and the district attorney's office. What's more, they used to be classmates in law school. After a workday spent judicially at odds, they can leave their cases behind and come together at a neighborhood saloon, just like the good old days.

Well, some of them can.

Not Jerry Kellerman (Mark-Paul Gosselaar from "NYPD Blue"), a public defender as adorably scruffy as he is passionate. Correction: obsessed and petulant.

"C'mon, Jerry, we go back too many years!" urges one of his comrades when they gather for drinks. "Lighten up! We do our job, you do yours. It's the system. It's not personal."

But it's personal for Jerry, who storms out.

Jerry clashes most brazenly with Judge Trudy Kessler, who takes a clinical if sometimes spiteful approach to jurisprudence. It's an often thankless role for Jane Kaczmarek ("Malcolm in the Middle"), who must do the best she can with lines like, "What part of 'I don't care' don't you understand?"

"Raising the Bar" also stars Gloria Reuben ("ER"), Teddy Sears ("Ugly Betty"), Currie Graham ("NYPD Blue") and Melissa Sagemiller as a smokin' blond lawyer in the DA's office whose relationship with Jerry is especially conflicted.

The good news about this show: The pair of episodes that air after the pilot don't feel quite so creatively confined to boilerplate. "Raising the Bar" might settle into a comfortable diversion.

Nonetheless, it's dismaying that a series from the man who helped forge TV's future feels like a relic from his past.

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"Sons of Anarchy" (premiering Wednesday, Sept. 3 at 10 p.m. EDT)

There's something of a dream deferred for the Sons of Anarchy. This motorcycle club was formed a generation ago as an idealistic, even hippie-dippie kind of "Harley commune." Then its ideals gave way to the practical demands of violence and profiteering. Its members have to pay the bills, provide for their families and eliminate people who interfere.

They talk a lot about "living off the grid" while making sure nothing happens in their little town of Charming, Calif., "that we don't control or get a piece of," declares club president Clay Morrow, one of the founders.

But however free they think they are, they're never free from the hassles and perils being free throws at them.

"Two in the back of the head," mutters Morrow (played with crusty toughness by Ron Perlman) to his stepson Jax, wearily reacting to his latest tribulation. He points to the spot on his skull for Jax to aim at.

"It ain't easy being King," says Jax, who feels his pain.

With "Sons of Anarchy," FX is adding to its roster of outstanding dramas (like "The Shield," "Rescue Me" and "Nip/Tuck") that showcase fascinating anti-heroes who buck the system, doing some good but leaving plenty of collateral damage. They are shrewd go-getters who, more than anything, keep creating problems for themselves.

Besides Morrow, "Sons" presents a colorful mismatch of loyalists bonded by the club's independence and all-for-one policy. Standout characters include Jax (Charlie Hunnam), who's a sexy free spirit with a newborn son, a hair-trigger temper and nagging doubts about the club's lawlessness.

Completing the triangle is his mother, Gemma, Morrow's current wife, who, played powerfully by Katey Sagal, has no doubts whatsoever about the organization she is helping build.

Raw and often bitterly funny, "The Sons of Anarchy" savors the inherent contradiction at its core: an organization self-described as anarchy. How can anything about it not have unforeseen results?

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"True Blood" (premiering Sunday, Sept. 7, at 9 p.m. EDT)

The best thing about HBO's "True Blood" is the mythical product Tru Blood, a recently invented synthetic stand-in for the real thing. Like a richer blend of vitamin water, it's conveniently bottled and available for every vampire's nourishment at their local store.

Thanks to Tru Blood, no humans need fear the fangs of thirsty vampires.

Meanwhile, vampires now are agitating to be accepted by humans into mainstream society. But not everyone is ready to let bygones be bygones.

It's a very clever premise, as far as it goes. But beyond that, "True Blood" can get bloody obscure.

Masterminded by Alan Ball ("Six Feet Under"), it's set in a Louisiana backwater named Bon Temps, where it focuses on waitress Sookie Stackhouse (series star Anna Paquin). Sookie has her peculiarities, notably the burden of being able to hear the churning thoughts of people around her. She's tired of all the racket.

She feels a different sensation when the handsome stranger slides into a booth in Merlotte's Bar and Grill. She is enchanted by his presence. Right away she senses he's a vampire _ the first one she's ever seen. Best of all, she is spared the sound of his thoughts. His brain is transmitting blessed silence.

An offbeat romance crackles between the winsome Sookie and this 173-year-old stud-muffin, who calls himself Bill Compton and plans to make Bon Temps his home.

Bill (played by Stephen Moyer) is an object of great interest for nearly everyone. He arouses suspicion from Sookie's bartender-boss, who's in love with her. Her sweet, dotty grandmother wants to meet him.

And he gets brutally attacked by vampire drainers (vampire blood is highly sought by humans as a recreational drug).

The reputed sexual prowess of vampires fascinates Sookie's brother: "I read in Hustler, everybody should have sex with a vampire at least once before they die."

The woman with whom he's cavorting at the moment shares her personal knowledge of vampire technique.

"Way too rough," she confides.

The things you learn from this show! Unfortunately, "True Blood" isn't nearly as entertaining as it is clever. It's a sluggish mix of brooding and campy; violence, mystery and fairy tale. It outsmarts itself.

What it adds up to is truly anemic.

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TNT and HBO are owned by Time Warner. FX is owned by News Corp.

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On the Net:

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EDITOR'S NOTE _ Frazier Moore is a national television columnist for The Associated Press. He can be reached at fmoore(at)ap.org

PUBLISHERS WEEKLY BEST-SELLERS

HARDCOVER FICTION

1. "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed" by Sean Williams (Del Rey)

2. "Smoke Screen" by Sandra Brown (Simon & Schuster)

3. "The Host" by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown)

4. "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" by Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows (The Dial Press)

5. "The Bourne Sanction" by Robert Ludlum, Eric Van Lustbader (Grand Central)

6. "Acheron" by Sherrilyn Kenyon (St. Martin's Press)

7. "Moscow Rules" by Daniel Silva (Putnam)

8. "The Story of Edgar Sawtelle" by David Wroblewski (Ecco)

9. "The Mercedes Coffin: A Decker and Lazarus Book" by Faye Kellerman (William Morrow)

10. "The Lace Reader" by Brunonia Barry (William Morrow)

11. "Off Season" by Anne Rivers Siddons (Grand Central)

12. "Foreign Body" by Robin Cook (Putnam)

13. "Being Elizabeth" by Barbara Taylor Bradford (St. Martins)

14. "Rough Justice" by Jack Higgins (Putnam)

15. "Love the One You're With" by Emily Giffin (St. Martin's Press)

NONFICTION/GENERAL

1. "The Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch, Jeffrey Zaslow (Hyperion)

2. "The Obama Nation" by Jerome R. Corsi (Threshold Editions)

3. "Stori Telling" by Tori Spelling (Simon Spotlight)

4. "The Secret" by Rhonda Byrne (Atria Books/Beyond Words)

5. "Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea" by Chelsea Handler (Simon Spotlight Entertainment)

6. "The Case Against Barack Obama: The Unlikely Rise and Unexamined Agenda of the Media's Favorite Candidate" by David Freddoso (Regnery)

7. "When You Are Engulfed in Flames" by David Sedaris (Little, Brown)

8. "The Way of the World: A Story of Truth and Hope in an Age of Extremism" by Ron Suskind (Harper)

9. "You: Staying Young: The Owner's Manual for Extending Your Warranty" by Michael F. Roizen and Mehmet C. Oz (Free Press)

10. "Fleeced: How Barack Obama, Media Mockery of Terrorist Threats, Liberals Who Want to Kill Talk Radio, The Do-Nothing Congress, Companies That Help Iran, and Washington Lobbyists for Governments Are Scamming Us ... and What to Do About It" by Dick Morris, Eileen McGann (Harper)

11. "Just Who Will You Be? Big Question. Little Book. Answer Within." by Maria Shriver (Hyperion

12. "The Dark Side: The Inside Story of How the War on Terror Turned into a War on American Ideals" by Jane Mayer (Doubleday)

13. "StrengthsFinder 2.0: A New and Upgraded Edition of the Online Test from Gallup's Now, Discover Your Strengths" by Tom Rath (Gallup Press)

14. "Killing Sacred Cows: Overcoming the Financial Myths That Are Destroying Your Prosperity" by Garrett B. Gunderson, Stephen Palmer (Greenleaf Book Group)

15. "The Post-American World" by Fareed Zakaria (W.W. Norton)

MASS MARKET PAPERBACKS

1. "Playing for Pizza" by John Grisham (Dell)

2. "You've Been Warned" by James Patterson, Howard Roughan (Vision)

3. "Nights in Rodanthe" by Nicholas Sparks (Warner Vision)

4. "The Book of Scandal" by Julia London (Pocket)

5. "Play Dirty" by Sandra Brown (Pocket)

6. "Strangers in Death" by J.D. Robb (Berkley)

7. "Cry Wolf" by Patricia Briggs (Ace)

8. "Left to Die" by Lisa Jackson (Zebra)

9. "Into The Flame" by Christina Dodd (Signet)

10. "The Burnt House" by Faye Kellerman (Harper)

11. "The Sanctuary" by Raymond Khoury (Signet)

12. "The Manning Brides" by Debbie Macomber (Mira)

13. "Turbulent Sea" by Christine Feehan (Jove)

14. "The Gift of Fear: Survival Signals That Protect Us From Violence" by Gavin De Becker (Dell)

15. "Shadowfires" by Dean Koontz (Berkley)

TRADE PAPERBACKS

1. "The Shack" by William P. Young (Windblown Media)

2. "Three Cups of Tea: One Man's Mission to Promote Peace ... One School at a Time" by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin (Penguin)

3. "The Choice" by Nicholas Sparks (Grand Central Publishing)

4. "Eat, Pray, Love: One Woman's Search for Everything Across Italy, India and Indonesia" by Elizabeth Gilbert (Penguin)

5. "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah (Farrar, Straus and Giroux)

6. "The Kite Runner" by Khaled Hosseini (Riverhead)

7. "The Road" by Cormac McCarthy

8. "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen (Algonquin)

9. "A New Earth: Awakening to Your Life's Purpose" by Eckhart Tolle (Plume)

10. "Nineteen Minutes" by Jodi Picoult (Washington Square Press)

11. "Barefoot" by Elin Hilderbrand (Back Bay Books)

12. "The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment" by Eckhart Tolle (New World Library)

13. "Skinny B----" by Rory Freedman and Kim Barnouin (Running Press)

14. "Bridge of Sighs" Richard Russo (Vintage)

15. "Eat This Not That!" by David Zinczenko, Matt Goulding (Rodale)

WALL STREET JOURNAL BEST-SELLERS

FICTION

1. "Breaking Dawn" by Stephenie Meyer (Little Brown)

2. "Eclipse" by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown)

3. "Star Wars: The Force Unleashed" by Sean Williams (Del Rey)

4. "The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society" by Mary Ann Shaffer, Annie Barrows (The Dial Press)

5. "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown)

6. "Smoke Screen" by Sandra Brown (Simon & Schuster)

7. "The Host" by Stephenie Meyer (Little, Brown)

8. "New Moon" by Stephenie Meyer (Little Brown for Young Readers)

9. "The Bourne Sanction" by Robert Ludlum, Eric Van Lustbader (Grand Central)

10. "Moscow Rules" by Daniel Silva (Putnam)

11. "Acheron" by Sherrilyn Kenyon (St. Martin's Press)

12. "The Story of Edgar Sawtelle" by David Wroblewski (Ecco)

13. "Off Season" by Anne Rivers Siddons (Grand Central)

14. "The Lace Reader" by Brunonia Barry (William Morrow)

15. "The Mercedes Coffin: A Decker and Lazarus Book" by Faye Kellerman (William Morrow)

NONFICTION

1. "The Last Lecture" by Randy Pausch, Jeffrey Zaslow (Hyperion)

2. "The Obama Nation" by Jerome R. Corsi (Threshold Editions)

3. "Stori Telling" by Tori Spelling (Simon Spotlight)

4. "The Secret" by Rhonda Byrne (Atria Books/Beyond Words)

5. "StrengthsFinder 2.0: A New and Upgraded Edition of the Online Test from Gallup's Now, Discover Your Strengths" by Tom Rath (Gallup Press)

6. "Six Disciplines Execution Revolution" by Gary Harpst (Six Disciplines Publishing)

7. "Killing Sacred Cows: Overcoming the Financial Myths That Are Destroying Your Prosperity" by Garrett B. Gunderson, Stephen Palmer (Greenleaf Book Group)

8. "Are You There, Vodka? It's Me, Chelsea" by Chelsea Handler (Simon Spotlight Entertainment)

9. "The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism" by Andrew Bacevich (Metropolitan)

10. "When You Are Engulfed in Flames" by David Sedaris (Little, Brown)

11. "The Case Against Barack Obama: The Unlikely Rise and Unexamined Agenda of the Media's Favorite Candidate" by David Freddoso (Regnery)

12. "Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap ... and Other's Don't" by Jim Collins (Collins)

13. "You: Staying Young: The Owner's Manual for Extending Your Warranty" by Michael F. Roizen and Mehmet C. Oz (Free Press)

14. "The Way of the World: A Story of Truth and Hope in an Age of Extremism" by Ron Suskind (Harper)

15. "Who Moved My Cheese? An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life" by Spencer Johnson (Putnam)

The Wall Street Journal's list reflects nationwide sales of hardcover books during the week ended last Saturday at more than 2,500 Barnes & Noble, B. Dalton, Bookland, Books-a-Million, Books & Co., Bookstar, Bookstop, Borders, Brentano's, Coles, Coopersmith, Doubleday, Scribners and Waldenbooks stores, as well as sales from online retailers Amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.

'Suge' Knight released from Las Vegas jail

Marion "Suge" Knight has been released from a Las Vegas jail.

The founder of bankrupt Death Row Records posted $19,000 bail Wednesday and promised to appear in Las Vegas Justice Court on Sept. 26 on felony assault and drug charges.

Police arrested the hip hop mogul on Wednesday morning after officers say they saw him beat his girlfriend while brandishing a knife in a parking lot near the Las Vegas Strip.

The woman was not stabbed but she was treated at a hospital for injuries that were not life-threatening.

Police say Knight had the drugs Ecstasy and hydrocodone when he was arrested.

A Clark County Detention Center clerk says records do not indicate when Knight was released.

Valentino walks red carpet for his documentary

Of all the women Valentino has dressed in his 45-year career _ from Jacqueline Kennedy to Mariella Agnelli to Gwyneth Paltrow _ one red carpet moment stands out: When Julia Roberts wore a vintage black-and-white Valentino gown when she was awarded her best actress Oscar.

"I have to be very sincere, the person that makes me feel very happy, also because (she) chose vintage, was Julia Roberts in `Erin Brockovich' when she got the Academy Award," Valentino told a press conference. "I was very excited. I was not in Los Angeles, but I saw on television and I really was excited to see her when she appeared with my dress."

Valentino, who has spent a career dressing the world's most glamorous women for the red carpet, walked it himself Thursday for the Venice Film Festival premiere of "Valentino: The Last Emperor," a documentary by Vanity Fair special correspondent Matt Tyrnauer.

Tyrnauer followed Valentino around for the two years leading up to his retirement last January, catching him as he created gorgeous gowns for the runway and gradually accepting the idea of his retirement.

Valentino said he didn't perform for the cameras or try to hide any aspect of his personality _ even when he got into disagreements with his longtime companion and business partner Giancarlo Giammetti.

"When I work and I create, I am not very approachable. To ... know everything I say was being recorded did irritate me," he said.

"The film was showing exactly what I am. There were moments of anger, when somebody says something that I don't like, but I was completely myself from the beginning to the end and nothing was edited."

Tyrnauer praised Valentino and Giammetti for enduring the two years of filming _ saying there were very few instances when they asked that the cameras be turned off _ and those are included in the film.

"It was amazing to kind of hang out with Valentino and Giancarlo for two years," Tyrnauer said. "They put up with a lot."

Valentino expressed satisfaction with the final product, and said he was full of emotion watching the documentary's premiere Thursday morning, which received a standing ovation. The documentary was shown out of competition.

Valentino said he was never concerned that the film would demystify his world.

"I don't think haute couture will ever really die. It's like a beautiful song, it will be there forever and it will never go out of fashion," he said.

Rapper DMX pleads out Florida drug case

Rapper DMX has pleaded out a Miami drug case and now awaits extradition to face more charges in Arizona.

The 37-year-old rapper and actor pleaded guilty Wednesday to attempted marijuana and cocaine possession and was sentenced to time served. His lawyer Bradford Cohen says DMX is still in custody, waiting for Arizona authorities to pick him up on drug and animal cruelty charges there.

Cohen says DMX, whose real name is Earl Simmons, decided to plead guilty when he was denied bail earlier this week due to the outstanding Arizona warrant.

Cohen says if he hadn't pleaded guilty, Simmons would have had to sit in jail in Miami until an October trial date.

Kanye West performs on sidelines of Dem convention

Kanye West's regret on the day Barack Obama was nominated for president: That his mother, Donda, hadn't lived to experience it.

"It's an incredible time to be around. I wish my momma could have seen this day," the 31-year-old rapper told a crowd gathered for his performance early Thursday morning.

Jamie Foxx then joined West onstage and delivered what was easily the strangest Obama song dedication at this week's Democratic National Convention.

"We make history, man," Foxx declared at the ONE campaign party. "With Obama, we make history. If you ready for Obama, make some noise. Yo man, let's do this for Obama."

Nobody said politics and entertainment always mix smoothly: The pair then launched into their hit "Gold Digger," about money-grubbing women.

The party, sponsored by Bono's ONE anti-poverty campaign and the Recording Industry Association of America, drew celebrities including Forest Whitaker and Ashley Judd, who arrived with Foxx waving an American flag. Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey, former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner and former South Dakota Sen. Tom Daschle also walked the red carpet.

Some, including Daschle, left the club before West took the stage and roared through hits such as "Touch the Sky," "Home" and "Stronger."

Backed by a band clad in black outfits that seemed inspired both by Mad Max and the riot police ringing the convention arena, the hip-hop star also tried out two new songs he said he'd written in the past several days _ both more focused on relationships and heartbreak than politics.

Spielberg, Affleck, J.Lo at Democratic convention

Spielberg! Affleck! J.Lo! They were among the Hollywood celebrities attending events in Denver as the Democratic National Convention nominated Barack Obama as the party's presidential candidate.

Steven Spielberg, who directed a short film on veterans that shown Wednesday at the convention, was spotted entering the Pepsi Center.

Jennifer Lopez spoke at a reception honoring children's rights activist Marian Wright Edelman. Ben Affleck read excerpts from a Howard Zinn book and made an appearance at the city's food bank for America's Second Harvest.

Affleck was joined by his wife, Jennifer Garner, at the book reading at the Starz Green Room across the street from the Pepsi Center. Also participating: Rosario Dawson, Kerry Washington, Taye Diggs, Hill Harper and Josh Brolin.

Other celebrity sightings around Denver:

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_ The Black Eyed Peas performed a concert at the Fillmore Auditorium for the Creative Coalition. Fergie praised Hillary Rodham Clinton's Tuesday-night speech, saying Clinton "really spoke to me as a woman. And I think she spoke to a lot of people in that way."

_ Politicians including former Virginia Gov. Mark Warner attended a ONE Campaign party featuring a Kanye West performance. Also in attendance: Forest Whitaker, Kal Penn, Jamie Foxx and director Davis Guggenheim.

_ Muhammad Ali sat in the convention audience.

_ Fran Drescher, Ashley Judd and Joy Bryant joined Lopez at the reception honoring Edelman.

_ Hathaway and others gathered at a morning reception honoring Annette Bening for her work narrating the documentary "14 Women," about women in the U.S. Senate.

_ Big Boi of Outkast was at the airport on his way out of town after hosting a Radio One show where he interviewed John Legend, among others.