Gabor settles injury suit against driver for $2M

Gabor settles injury suitagainst driver for $2M
LOS ANGELES -- Zsa Zsa Gabor, who was seriously injured in a 2002 car crash, has settled her lawsuit against the driver for $2 million, her attorney said Friday. Gabor, 88, suffered broken bones in the November crash and received stitches to close wounds to her head, hands, arms and legs. The film and television actress was a passenger in the front seat of a car that struck a light pole on Sunset Boulevard in West Hollywood. The car was driven by her hairdresser, Jaren Millard, who suffered minor injuries. Gabor is now partially paralyzed and uses a wheelchair, her attorney said. She spent months recovering from her injuries before returning to her Bel-Air home last year. Gabor sued Millard for medical expenses and compensation for pain and suffering. Her husband, Frederic von Anhalt, sued for loss of companionship. According to the settlement, Gabor will receive $1.75 million and her husband will receive $250,000. The trial had been scheduled to begin today. "There's no amount of money that can compensate for the suffering Mr. Millard has caused," Gabor's attorney, Ronald Jason Palmieri, said Friday.
Geena Davis as president
NEW YORK -- ABC has elected to cast Geena Davis in a pilot about the first female president of the United States. The Oscar winner and one-time Olympic archery hopeful will play the title role in "Line of Fire" writer-director Rod Lurie's two-hour pilot "Commander in Chief," according to the show business trade papers. The pilot's production was contingent on finding a lead actress to play the president; the casting of Davis removes that contingency. Davis, who recently had a development deal with CBS, is returning to ABC four years after "The Geena Davis Show," which aired without much success in 2000-01. She joins a "Commander in Chief" cast that includes Kyle Secor ("Homicide") as her husband and Ever Carradine ("Lucky") as her press secretary. Harry J. Lennix ("The Matrix Revolutions") is playing the outgoing president's chief of staff.
Winfrey's relaxed lookmakes best-dressed list
NEW YORK -- Oprah Winfrey's La Perla sweats -- and the rest of her self-described "classic, fun and relaxed" look -- has earned her a spot on the Vanity Fair best-dressed list for a second year in a row, reports The Associated Press. "The key to elegance is not just wearing beautiful things but making what you're wearing come alive," she tells the magazine for its April issue. Also on the list again are Sofia Coppola, Kate Moss, Queen Rania of Jordan and actress Sienna Miller. Miller says her style is "a little Gypsyish." Edie Sedgwick is her fashion icon and she picks Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison and fianc & eacute; Jude Law as the most stylish men. Law, who says he looks like a "messy schoolteacher," also made the list, along with OutKast's Andre 3000, newscaster Anderson Cooper, Rolling Stones drummer Charlie Watts and director Wes Anderson. George Clooney's signature look is "no tie, collar open, beautiful suit" and he says his favorite shoes are Tod's.
Foxx plans more music
LOS ANGELES -- So how can you follow up a best-actor Oscar? How about shooting for a Grammy? That's where Jamie Foxx, who won a gold statuette for his dramatically pitch-perfect performance as music titan Ray Charles, seems headed, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. Foxx, who didn't do so well with his '94 romantic soul record, "Peep This," is recording an album of R & amp;B and hip-hop tunes. "Dude is an incredible singer and piano player," said Rich Harrison, one of the record's producers. "I think the public is ready for a couple of albums from this guy." The idea of a Grammy might not be so far-fetched: Foxx has already been nominated for one for the 2004 hit "Slow Jamz," on which he was featured along with Twista and Kanye West. But it seems neither of those awards impresses Foxx's 11-year-old daughter, Corinne. "She said, 'Dad, after this, can we go to the big awards?' -- which are the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards," Foxx told People.com after the Oscars.
Zellweger dates again
LOS ANGELES -- Renee Zellweger, fresh off a split from White Stripes rocker Jack White last September, is now romancing Irish singer Damien Rice, reports Ananova.com. The Oscar-winning beauty has been on a string of dates with Rice and is believed to be house-hunting in his native Ireland, sparking speculation she wanted to move closer to the folksy singer. "Renee and Damien have been seeing each other for awhile," said a source. "They share a mutual love of music, and both are pretty deep and intense people. They're a perfect match." Last month, Zellweger said she's still struggling to come to terms with her breakup with White. "When someone special comes into your life and then leaves, there's still an imprint," she said.
Today's birthdays
Photographer Lord Snowdon is 75. TV personality Willard Scott is 71. Auto racer Janet Guthrie is 67. Actor Daniel J. Travanti is 65. Walt Disney Company chief executive officer Michael Eisner is 63. Rock musician Chris White (The Zombies) is 62. Actor John Heard is 59. Rock singer Peter Wolf is 59. Rock musician Matthew Fisher (Procol Harum) is 59. Singer Peggy March is 57. Football Hall-of-Famer Franco Harris is 55. Football Hall-of-Famer Lynn Swann is 53. R & amp;B singer-musician Ernie Isley (The Isley Brothers) is 53. Actor Bryan Cranston is 49. Actress Donna Murphy is 46. Tennis Hall-of-Famer Ivan Lendl is 45. Actor Bill Brochtrup is 42. Opera singer Denyce Graves is 41. Comedian Wanda Sykes is 41. Singer-actress Taylor Dayne is 40. Rock musician Randy Guss (Toad the Wet Sprocket) is 38. Actor Peter Sarsgaard is 34. Actress Rachel Weisz is 34. Rock singer Hugo Ferreira (Tantric) is 31. Actress Laura Prepon is 25.