Motown Funk Brother Joe Hunter died at the age of 79. Hunter, a three-time Grammy-winning pianist, was the first artist signed to Berry Gordy’s label Motown Records. He also played piano on songs for the Supremes and Marvin Gaye.
Ex-stripper and reality television star Anna Nicole Smith, 39, was pronounced dead yesterday after she collapsed at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel in Florida, and was unconscious. She was involved in a lawsuit against TrimSpa, claiming that her role in the advertising campaign was misleading and was also undergoing a paternity lawsuit for her newborn daughter, Danielynn.
In an interview with Elle magazine, Jessica Simpson claimed that the movie “”The Notebook”” helped spur her divorce. “”I just figured out the statement,”” said Simpson of the romantic film starring Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling. “”It was about that moment of desperation. I needed to breathe.””
The Harry Potter book series will come to an end with the publication of “”Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows,”” to be released July 21. Author J.K. Rowling finished the book in Edinburgh’s Balmoral Hotel, and to commemorate the occasion, she wrote an inscription on the wall declaring her achievement. Hotel officials said that they do not encourage patrons to write on the walls, but Rowling was “”a special case.””
72-year-old Barbara McNair, a pioneering black actress and singer, died Monday. McNair hosted her own TV variety show with legendary actor Sidney Poitier in the early ’70s and co-starred with Elvis Presley in the 1969 film “”Change of Habit.”” This time, it definitely wasn’t TrimSpa related.
Paris Hilton won an injunction against the website ParisExposed.com, claiming that the owners of the site exploited her personal belongings for material gain. According to the lawsuit, defendants paid $2,775 for the belongings and sold them for a total of $10 million.
-compiled by Alexandria Kassman
