The daily dish... a spicy serving of celebrity news
Like the song says…
A Florida man wants rappers Lil Wayne and Birdman to show him respect—for using his voice in an al-bum track called just that.
Thomas Marasciullo filed a copyright infringement lawsuit Friday in a Manhattan federal court against the rappers, their record label and various music distribution outlets.
The lawsuit said Cash Money Records had him cut some “ ‘Italianstyled’ spoken word recordings” in 2006, then used them without pay or permission on “Respect” and other tracks from the rappers’ joint 2006 album “Like Father, Like Son” and Birdman’s 2007 “5 (Star) Stunna.”
A lawyer and representatives for Cash Money Records and Universal Music Group, which has a distribution and marketing deal with the label, didn’t immediately return messages Friday.
The gold-selling “Like Father, Like Son” hit the top of the R&B/hip-hop album chart. Several short tracks that Marasciullo says he wrote, recorded and copyrighted— including “Loyalty” and “Respect”— feature a man’s voice delivering mob-movie-flavored repartee.
Among the remarks, from “Loyalty”: “The main name in this game is respect and loyalty. Family is a big thing. When we do this kind of business, everything is with respect.”
Now she can smile…
Nicole Richie and her children are getting some court-ordered space from a pair of celebrity photographers.
A judge on Friday granted Nicole Richie’s request for a temporary restraining order against the paparazzi. Her filing states that one of the men, Eduardo Arrivabene, caused a car accident involving Richie in Beverly Hills earlier this month.
The filing added that Arrivabene and Ivon Emilio Melo Miguel continue to chase Richie and her children in the pursuit of shots. The men scream at Richie “in an attempt to get a reaction” and have left the 28-year-old frightened for her family’s safety.
Richie has a newborn son and infant daughter with rocker Joel Madden.
Attempts to reach the photographers were unsuccessful.
Idol worship…
A judge granted “American Idol” host Ryan Seacrest a temporary restraining order against a man arrested on suspicion of stalking the radio and television host outside his workplace on Friday, court records show.
Seacrest’s attorneys obtained the stay-away order hours after they say Chidi Benjamin Uzomah Jr. was detained at the E! Entertainment Television headquarters in Los Angeles.
The filing claims Uzomah was carrying a knife and was trying to see the popular television and radio host.
Uzomah, 25, is on probation for another incident involving Seacrest. Court records show he pleaded guilty in Orange County, Calif., last month to three misdemeanors: carrying a switchblade knife, assault and battery. Uzomah was charged after he attacked one of Seacrest’s bodyguards outside an event.
“His aggressive and violent efforts to come into physical contact with me are extremely frightening to me,” Seacrest wrote in a declaration filed Friday.
“They have jeopardized not only my personal safety, but also the safety and well-being of those around me.”
Police said Ozomah was arrested and booked on suspicion of stalking. Jail records showed he remained in police custody Friday evening, held on $150,000 bail.
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