newsmakers

May 26, 2010 at 12:00a.m.

newsmakers

Dennis Quaid sues drug maker in scare

LOS ANGELES

Actor Dennis Quaid has sued the pharmaceutical company that makes the blood thinner heparin after the overdoses that threatened the lives of his newborn twins three years ago. Quaid sued Deerfield, Ill.-based Baxter Healthcare Corp. in Los Angeles Superior Court on Friday. The lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and alleges that packaging caused the drug mix-up at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.

The lawsuit says heparin and a lower-dose version called Hep-Lock are both packaged in similar blue vials with small print on the labels. The case argues that Baxter should have recalled the heparin vials because the company knew infants had died because of similar medication errors. Quaid and his wife settled with the hospital for $500,000 in June 2009.

Bret Michaels says he’s hitting the road

NEW YORK

Bret Michaels is upbeat, despite his recent illnesses. In a message on his website, the 47-year-old rocker says: “With all of my heart, soul and the remaining organs I have left ... I would like to thank each and every one of you for all of your support and awesomeness. All the good vibes and well wishes gave me the strength to go back to New York and win ‘Celebrity Apprentice.’”

The Poison frontman suffered a brain hemorrhage in April and was hospitalized recently after what doctors called a warning stroke. He faces surgery for a hole in his heart. Michael says he isn’t 100 percent but plans to continue his tour, starting Friday in Biloxi, Miss. He tells fans that seeing their “rockin’ rollin’, smiling faces ... is the best medicine I can think of.”

Settlement sought in Rip Torn case

LITCHFIELD, Conn.

Rip Torn’s attorney says he and prosecutors are discussing a resolution to charges that Torn broke into a Connecticut bank while intoxicated and carrying a loaded gun. Torn appeared briefly in Litchfield Superior Court on Tuesday. Attorney A. Thomas Waterfall says he hopes to resolve the case in a way that keeps the 79-year-old actor out of prison.

Torn has pleaded not guilty to trespassing, carrying a gun while intoxicated, carrying a gun without a permit, burglary and criminal mischief. Police say he broke into the Salisbury bank Jan. 29 while highly intoxicated, thinking it was his home in the rural northwestern Connecticut town. Waterfall says Torn has gone through alcohol rehabilitation and gotten rid of all of his weapons.