Tuesday, December 20, 2005
Report: Cruise holed upto learn about Scientology
LOS ANGELES -- Tom Cruise's faith in Scientology was nurtured at a secretive Southern California desert compound that catered to the actor's needs around the clock, a newspaper has reported.
Cruise undertook intensive study and counseling at the compound in the late 1980s and early 1990s, the Los Angeles Times reported, citing present and former Scientologists.
Behind the guarded gates of the 500-acre compound near Hemet, about 90 miles east of Los Angeles, Cruise had a personal supervisor to oversee his studies in a private course room, ex-members said.
"I was there for eight years and nobody stayed long at all, except for Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman during that period," Bruce Hines, who left in 2001 after three decades in the church, told the newspaper.
Cruise and Kidman were married in 1990; they were divorced in 2001. He is now engaged to Katie Holmes.
The 43-year-old actor refused a request for an interview, the newspaper said.
'Lost' actress made a fussduring arrest, report says
HONOLULU -- Michelle Rodriguez, one of the stars of ABC's hit drama "Lost," complained after her arrest on a charge of drunken driving this month that police were taking away her freedom.
Rodriguez was pulled over by police Dec. 1 after officers said they spotted her car weaving on the highway.
Another "Lost" star, Cynthia Watros, was arrested 15 minutes later on the same highway when police said her car also was moving erratically.
Both actresses reportedly failed sobriety tests. Rodriguez had a blood-alcohol level of 0.145, nearly twice the legal limit of 0.08, according to documents obtained by KITV-TV.
KITV quoted court and police documents that said Rodriguez was "very argumentative" and kept interrupting the officer who explained drunk-driving sanctions to her.
"I don't [expletive] belong here! Why don't you just put a gun to my head and shoot me! You've already taken my freedom! You might as well take my life, too!" the TV station, in a report, quoted Rodriguez as saying.
The 27-year-old actress plays police officer Ana Lucia on "Lost," which is filmed in Hawaii.
Holding on to celibacy
NEW YORK -- Weezer lead singer Rivers Cuomo is continuing his celibacy past a self-declared deadline.
The 35-year-old frontman earlier vowed to be celibate for two years. Although that deadline expired six months ago, Cuomo doesn't expect to jump back in the sack anytime soon.
"It's been two and a-half years now, actually," Cuomo tells Blender magazine. "The vow is over, but I wanted to keep cruising."
Though he's a lead singer for a popular rock band, the bespectacled Cuomo says it's not difficult to manage restraint.
"Abstinence doesn't require as much self-discipline anymore," he says. "We never had any serious groupies, anyway."
Notable death
Enzo Stuarti, an Italian tenor who performed in Broadway musicals and at Carnegie Hall, and did popular TV commercials plugging a spaghetti sauce, has died of heart failure. Stuarti, 86, died Friday, family members said.
Besides his singing career, Stuarti appeared in commercials for Ragu spaghetti sauce, delivering the "That's a nice" line about the sauce.
Today's birthdays
Actress Audrey Totter is 88. Comedian Charlie Callas is 78. Actor John Hillerman is 73. Rock musician Peter Criss is 60. Actor Michael Badalucco is 51. Actress Blanche Baker is 49. Country singer Kris Tyler is 41. Rock singer Chris Robinson is 39. Singer JoJo is 15.