Britney Spears’ sister gives birth to a girl

Britney Spears’ sister gives birth to a girl

JACKSON, Miss. — Jamie Lynn Spears gave birth to a baby girl Thursday morning at a south Mississippi hospital, according to a person close to the Spears family. The person confirmed the baby’s birth to The Associated Press. The person asked not to be identified because the family had not yet announced the baby’s birth.

The 17-year-old was the star of Nickelodeon’s “Zoey 101,” a sitcom about prep school friends, and is the younger sister of pop star Britney Spears. The Spears family announced in December that Jamie Lynn was pregnant. The father is Casey Aldridge, a pipe-layer from Liberty, Miss. The couple is not married but announced an engagement several months ago.

The younger Spears lives near Liberty with Aldridge, 19, and has been seen around the small south Mississippi town often as her pregnancy became more apparent. Her family owns a home across the state line in Kentwood, La.

Former R B singer gets prison for bank robbery

CLEVELAND — A former R B singer was sentenced to more than nine years in prison for robbing a bank. Lester Russaw, 74, told U.S. District Judge Solomon Oliver that he was desperate for money after losing his job as a security guard.

Russaw previously told a judge that he needed money to pay medical bills. Russaw was diagnosed with prostate cancer in February, according to court records.

Russaw’s wife has said he was part the Coronets, an R B group discovered by pioneering rock music deejay Alan Freed in the 1950s. The Coronets scored a hit with “Nadine” in 1953.

Music reference works mention a Lester Russaw who co-founded the group in Cleveland, but the suspect’s connection could not be confirmed independently. Police arrested Russaw with more than $9,000 shortly after the robbery of a KeyBank in the Cleveland suburb of Wickliffe in November.

Walk of Fame’s new stars

LOS ANGELES — Hollywood will enshrine an eclectic bunch in its famous curbside Walk of Fame next year, including Hugh Jackman, Ben Kingsley, The Village People and Tinkerbell. Recipients of the sidewalk stars also include Felicity Huffman, William H. Macy, Cameron Diaz, Robert Downey Jr., Tim Burton, Leslie Caron, Charles Durning, Ralph Fiennes, William Petersen, Kyra Sedgwick, John Stamos, Mark Burnett, The Miracles, Doug Morris, Rush, Shakira and KCRW host Harry Shearer.

Today’s birthdays

Actress Olympia Dukakis is 77. Actor Martin Landau is 77. Actor Danny Aiello is 75. Actor John Mahoney (“Frasier”) is 68. Musician Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys is 66. Singer Anne Murray is 63. Home repair show host Bob Vila is 62. Singer Lionel Richie is 59. Actor John Goodman is 56. Bassist Michael Anthony of Van Halen is 54. Bassist John Taylor of Duran Duran is 48. Actress Nicole Kidman is 41.