Burke, husband to splitk

Burke, husband to splitk
NEW YORK -- TV personality Brooke Burke and her husband Garth Fisher have called it quits. The co-host of CBS's "Rock Star: INXS" and Fisher announced their separation in a statement issued to People magazine Wednesday. The couple, who have been married since 2001, have two children. "We are saddened to announce that we have mutually decided to separate after seven years together," the statement read. "Although our careers have taken us in different directions the past few years, we have a great deal of respect for one another and remain committed to raising our two children together. Burke, 33, formerly hosted E!'s "Wild On" series. Fisher, a plastic surgeon based in Beverly Hills, has appeared on ABC's "Extreme Makeover."
Knievel to ride again
BUTTE, Mont. -- Former daredevil Evel Knievel says health problems are now his biggest hurdle -- to the extent that even his wife Krystal is wary to ride on his motorcycle.
"I hate to be Evel Knievel and told by my wife she doesn't want to get on a motorcycle with me," he says. Knievel, 66, will ride Friday at the fourth annual "Evel Knievel Days" in Montana. Since his wife won't join him, though, Knievel says he may have a blowup doll on the bike with him: "A naked blowup doll." Knievel says he has been diagnosed with an incurable lung disease and has diabetes and hepatitis. He has constant pain from having steel plates in his back and screws in his ankle, the result of bone-breaking crashes during motorcycle jumps. But the stuntman says he still loves to ride the motorcycles that made him an icon. However, on a recent outing on a new fuel-injected road machine he had to flag down a passing motorist to help him turn the bike around on a two-lane highway. Knievel became famous in the 1970s for riding his motorcycle over everything from vehicles to alligators while wearing a red, white and blue jumpsuit. He retired from jumping more than 20 years ago.
LuPone in 'Sweeney Todd'
NEW YORK -- From Eva Peron to Mrs. Lovett. Patti LuPone, who won a Tony Award for her performance in "Evita," will portray the entrepreneurial meat-pie maker in a revival of "Sweeney Todd," opening Nov. 3 on Broadway. The production, which will also star Michael Cerveris as the murderous "demon barber of Fleet Street," will be performed with only 10 actors, who will play all the musical instruments in the show. It will be directed and designed by John Doyle. "Sweeney Todd," which has a score by Stephen Sondheim and a book by Hugh Wheeler, originally opened on Broadway in 1979, with Angela Lansbury and Len Cariou heading the cast. It was revived 10 years later with Beth Fowler and Bob Gunton in the lead roles. Preview performances for this new production, which originated in London last year, begin Oct. 3 at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre.
Higher ed for Bow Wow?
COLUMBUS -- Fresh out of high school, 18-year-old rap star Bow Wow isn't ready for college just yet, despite his mother's desire to see him go. "Hey, I never promised her -- but uh, yeah, college, honestly, is really not on my mind right now. I'm so busy," said Bow Wow, who is touring to support his fourth album, "Wanted." "If I do it, it'll be later on. If I had to do it, I'd major in business," Bow Wow said before a concert appearance here Thursday. Bow Wow, who spent his early childhood in nearby Reynoldsburg and now lives in Atlanta, told the Columbus Dispatch that his new album deals with adult subject matters, such as money and urban struggles. No more dog and puppy metaphors. "In order for me to gain respect as a mature rapper, that's what I had to do," said Bow Wow, whose real name is Shad Moss. Moss, who was christened Lil' Bow Wow by rapper Snoop Dogg, is the youngest solo rapper to hit No. 1 on the U.S. charts. He dropped the "Lil"' in 2003.
Today's birthdays
Comedian Professor Irwin Corey is 91. Actor Lloyd Bochner is 81. Actor Robert Horton is 81. Former Sen. Nancy Kassebaum-Baker (R-Kan.) is 73. Sen. Elizabeth H. Dole (R-N.C.) is 69. ABC News anchorman Peter Jennings is 67. Actor David Warner is 64. Rock musician Neal Doughty (REO Speedwagon) is 59. Marilyn Tucker Quayle, wife of former Vice President Dan Quayle, is 56. Actor Mike Starr is 55. Documentary maker Ken Burns is 52. Rock singer-musician Geddy Lee (Rush) is 52. Rock singer Patti Scialfa (Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band) is 52. Actress Alexandra Paul is 42. Country singer Martina McBride is 39. Rock musician Chris Gorman is 38. Actor Rodney Allen Rippy is 37. Actor Wil Wheaton is 33. Rhythm-and-blues singer Wanya Morris (Boyz II Men) is 32. Actor Stephen Dorff is 32. Actress Allison Mack ("Smallville") is 23.