WILLIE NELSON DEFENDS CHICKS OVER BUSH FLAP

Willie Nelson defendsChicks over Bush flap
NEW YORK -- Willie Nelson says the Dixie Chicks "got a raw deal" from a disapproving public following their criticism of President Bush. "I think the fact that they were overseas and on stage had a little bit to do with it because you're speaking to other people about our business," the 73-year-old country crooner said in an interview in this week's Time magazine. The trio caught harsh criticism after lead singer Natalie Maines told a London audience in 2003 that the group was "ashamed" Bush was from their home state of Texas. Nelson said he was surprised his remarks about Bush a year earlier during an overseas news conference didn't incite a similar controversy. "I said 'He's not from Texas and he ain't a cowboy, so let's stop trashin' Texans and cowboys.' It got a little chuckle, but I didn't get run out of the country," Nelson told the magazine. Nelson recently launched his own XM Radio channel and published "The Tao of Willie," in which he offers his philosophy on subjects ranging from marijuana to war.
Gong Li, Colin Farrelltoss back a few together
HONG KONG -- Chinese actress Gong Li said Colin Farrell, her co-star in "Miami Vice," taught her how to drink beer but she introduced him to a stronger drink, a Hong Kong newspaper reported Sunday. Gong plays the Chinese-Cuban lover of a crime lord in "Miami Vice," and Farrell is an undercover detective who has a relationship with her. "Miami Vice" reprises the iconic 1984-89 TV cop show of the same name. The Chinese actress said Farrell "treats everybody well and takes great interest in everyone around him -- not just me, but the crew as well. As a result, it's easy to feel relaxed around him," the Sunday Morning Post reported. Gong, 40, said Farrell showed her how to drink beer, while she "taught him how to drink mojitos," a combination of rum, lime and soda served with a sprig of mint. She said she went on a research trip to Cuba to learn about the Chinese community in the communist country, which she said was much like China in the 1980s, the paper reported.
Today's Birthdays
Nobel Prize-winning economist Milton Friedman is 94. Record executive Ahmet Ertegun is 83. Actor Don Murray is 77. Jazz composer-musician Kenny Burrell is 75. Actor Geoffrey Lewis is 71. Actress France Nuyen is 67. Actress Susan Flannery is 63. Singer Lobo is 63. Actress Geraldine Chaplin is 62. Former movie studio executive Sherry Lansing is 62. Singer Gary Lewis is 61. Rock singer Bob Welch is 60. Tennis player Evonne Goolagong Cawley is 55. Actor Barry Van Dyke is 55. The mayor of Fresno, Calif., actor Alan Autry, is 54. Actor James Read is 53. Actor Michael Biehn is 50. Rock singer-musician Daniel Ash (Love and Rockets) is 49. Rock musician Bill Berry is 48. Actor Wesley Snipes is 44. Country singer Chad Brock is 43. Musician Fatboy Slim is 43. Rock musician Jim Corr is 42. Author J.K. Rowling is 41. Actor Dean Cain is 40. Actor Ben Chaplin is 37. Actor Loren Dean is 37. Actress Annie Parisse is 31. Actor Robert Telfer is 29. Country singer Blaire Stroud (3 of Hearts) is 23. Singer Shannon Curfman is 21.
Notable deaths
LONDON -- David Gemmell, a fantasy author known for his adventure tales revolving around heroism and leadership, has died. He was 57. Gemmell had quadruple heart bypass surgery two weeks ago, and died in the hospital Friday, according to his publisher, Transworld Publishers. Gemmell wrote 30 novels, starting in 1984 with "Legend," a tale of a fortress under siege. Other novels include "Troy: Lord of the Silver Bow."