Newsmakers

Snipes ordered to prison for tax crime

ORLANDO, Fla.

Actor Wesley Snipes was ordered Wednesday to surrender voluntarily at a federal prison in Pennsylvania next week to start his three-year sentence for failing to pay taxes. The U.S. Marshals Office ordered Snipes to report to the Federal Correctional Institution McKean in Lewis Run, Pa., by noon next Thursday.

Snipes had tried unsuccessfully to remain free on bail while appealing his conviction to the U.S. Supreme Court.

The 48-year-old star of the “Blade” trilogy was convicted in 2008 for willful failure to file income-tax returns. After his conviction by a federal jury in Ocala, Fla., about 70 miles north of Orlando, Snipes appealed to the appellate court in Atlanta. But the appellate court upheld the conviction and sentence.

Deaf moviegoers sue Cinemark chain

BERKELEY, Calif.

Deaf moviegoers are suing Cinemark, claiming the movie-theater chain is denying them access to films by refusing to install closed-captioning devices. Berkeley, Calif.-based Disability Rights Advocates filed the lawsuit Tuesday in Alameda County Superior Court on behalf of two plaintiffs and the Association of Late-Deafened Adults. It seeks class- action status.

Kevin Knestrick, an attorney for the plaintiffs, says Cinemark Holdings Inc. is the only one of the nation’s three largest movie chains not to offer closed-captioning equipment. Regal Entertainment Group and AMC Entertainment Inc. provide captioning, though not at all hours or in all theaters.

Beloved ‘Seinfeld’ character reborn

NEW YORK

Outrageous! Egregious! Preposterous!

More than a decade after “Seinfeld” ended, one of the TV series’ characters has been reborn online.

Jackie Chiles, the fast-talking, Johnnie Cochran-like attorney whose civil lawsuits were dependably foiled by Kramer, is starring in his own series on the comedy video website Funny or Die.

Chiles is played by Phil Morris, a 41-year-old Los Angeles actor who never wanted to fully relinquish the role.

After “Seinfeld” ended in 1998, Morris tried to develop a spin-off about Chiles, but it never got off the ground.

Jerry Seinfeld has given the project his blessing. He says he’s glad to see that Jackie Chiles is living on.

Winfrey to announce new book selection

CHICAGO

Oprah Winfrey plans another pick for her popular book club. Harpo Productions said Tuesday that current Oprah’s Book Club author Jonathan Franzen will appear on Monday’s episode of “The Oprah Winfrey Show.” Winfrey chose Franzen’s latest book, “Freedom,” in September as the first selection for the 25th and final season of her talk show.

On that same episode, Winfrey will announce her next book-club pick. The new selection comes about 11 weeks after Winfrey chose “Freedom.”

Since 2008, she has averaged one or two selections a year. Winfrey’s book-club choices have vaulted to the best-seller list and given authors instant fame.

Winfrey has said she plans to move her book club with her to cable’s Oprah Winfrey Network, which will launch Jan. 1.

Jackson’s father refiles lawsuit

LOS ANGELES

Michael Jackson’s father refiled a wrongful-death lawsuit Tuesday against the doctor charged in his son’s death and added as a defendant a Las Vegas pharmacy that records show sold the physician a powerful anesthetic blamed for his death.

The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages against Dr. Conrad Murray, who has pleaded not guilty in the separate criminal case to involuntary manslaughter in the singer’s June 2009 death.

Joe Jackson initially filed his case against Murray in federal court on the first anniversary of his son’s death. A judge, however, refused to hear the case and said it should be handled in state court, where it was refiled Tuesday.

“This has been a long process, and the facts of Michael’s death have been way too slow in emerging,” said Joe Jackson’s attorney, Brian Oxman.

Vindicator wire services