LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Miley Cyrus and Disney Channel sought to shoot down rumors on Monday that the teen sensation of the TV hit "Hannah Montana" was seeking to part ways with the show that made her a star.

Patti McTeague, a Disney spokeswoman for the "Hannah Montana" show, told Reuters that reports of on-set turmoil were "absolutely not true, pure gossip."

Cyrus, 15, one of the world's most popular teen celebrities, said she had no plans to leave the show -- Disney's most watched series for 6-11 year-olds and the basis of a huge merchandising empire.

"I am fully committed to 'Hannah Montana,"' Cyrus told People in a report on the magazine's website on Monday.

Cyrus's comments followed reports on celebrity website TMZ.com that Cyrus was trying to get fired by showing up late on set, stalling production and infuriating the cast and crew.

TMZ suggested that Cyrus, who is building a successful pop music career in her own right, wanted to focus on singing rather than the TV show.

In the show, Cyrus plays a schoolgirl who leads a secret life as a pop star named Hannah Montana. One-time country sensation Billy Ray Cyrus, her real life father, plays Miley's dad on the show.

"It's what gave me this amazing opportunity to reach out to so many people," Cyrus told People. "I couldn't do it alone. We have an amazing cast that is so supportive, including my dad who has been there for me every step of the way."

Disney Channel's McTeague said Cyrus and the "Hannah Montana" team have been in production for a third season of the show, and that Disney has an option for a fourth season.

"We're thrilled with it, and we know everyone's working hard, and Miley herself has said she's committed to the long-term success, as are we," McTeague said.

A movie version of the show has already been shot and is scheduled for release in April 2009.

It is not the first time there has been speculation about Cyrus's satisfaction with the show. She released a new album "Breakout" in July that was the first that did not play on her squeaky-clean "Hannah Montana" alter ego.

In July, the young actress told E! News that this could be the last season of "Hannah Montana," saying she has acted in the show since she was 11 and the heavy workload included shooting "two seasons in one last year."

NEW YORK - What's David Blaine up to? Oh, just hanging around.

The magician-daredevil proclaimed, "I'm doin' all right," after starting his latest endurance challenge Monday — 60 hours hanging upside-down, without a net, above Wollman Rink in Manhattan's Central Park.

Blaine — sounding nasal from sinus pressure — kept smiling while describing the "enormous push of blood" that made it feel like his head was "about to explode."

As a child, he was intrigued when Harry Houdini dangled from a crane by his ankles while escaping a straitjacket.

Said Blaine: "The legs go pin and needle very fast." Stretches — kind of an upside-down sit-up — seem to help.

Blaine, 35, is scheduled to exit from his perch at the climax of a live, two-hour ABC special, "David Blaine: Dive of Death," on Wednesday.

NEW YORK (Hollywood Reporter) - Miramax has signed on for "Muchas Gracias, Bob Oppenheimer," a period romantic drama inspired by the potentially catastrophic crash of an American B-52 bomber in 1966.
The film centers on an American serviceman in the 1960s who is sent on an appeasement mission to a fishing town in Spain after a U.S. military plane crash results in the accidental detonation of four hydrogen bombs; in addition to his role with the locals, the serviceman also embarks on a relationship.

The project draws from the true story of Palomares, Spain, where in 1966 a B-52 crashed and released more than 1,000 pounds of nuclear material.

Television series creator Bob Dolan Smith ("Grace Under Fire") wrote the first draft of the screenplay, with a new draft now being written by Daniel Taplitz, who is also working on the intergenerational drama "Man on a Train" for Miramax.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

LEVELAND - Run-D.M.C. could "Walk This Way" into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

The 1980s rap act, along with Metallica and the Stooges, are among the nine nominees for next year's hall of fame class, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation announced Monday.

The other nominees are guitarist Jeff Beck, singer Wanda Jackson, Little Anthony and the Imperials, War, Bobby Womack, and disco and R&B group Chic.

The list is notable for the wide range of musical genres represented — hip-hop, metal, punk, disco and R&B — and the large number of first-time candidates. Only Chic, the Stooges and Jackson have been previously nominated.

"It's an interesting group because it really shows the nominating committee showed some thought and energy into who should be inducted," said Joel Peresman, president and CEO of the New York City-based Rock Hall foundation. "It truly shows it's never a closed door for any artist to be nominated."

The five leading vote-getters will be announced in January and inducted April 4, 2009, in Cleveland.

The ceremony typically has been held in New York but is returning to Cleveland after more than a decade-long absence. Tickets will be made available to the public for the first time.

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five opened the door for rap at the Rock Hall as the first hip-hop act to be inducted in 2007. Now, Run-D.M.C., nominated in the first year of its eligibility, has the chance to follow on the strength of rock and rap blends such as the 1986 cover of Aerosmith's "Walk This Way" and classics like "It's Tricky" and "My Adidas."

"The big thing they did is took hip-hop more into the mainstream," said Jim Henke, chief curator of the hall of fame and a member of the nominating committee. "They did combine a lot of rock elements. As far as hip-hop groups go, they're certainly right there at the top."

Metallica jumped on the heavy metal wave of the '80s and 25 years later is still selling out arenas. This month the group released "Death Magnetic," which marks a return to its early speed metal days.

The Stooges, recently given props in the film "Juno," get another shot after last appearing on the ballot two years ago.

Left off the ballot were Stevie Ray Vaughan and Bon Jovi. Both had been eligible for the first time. To be nominated an act must have released its first single or album 25 years prior.

"They're great artists," Peresman said. "People's time comes for whatever reason when it does."

Rock fan Neil Walls, who started the Web site futurerockhall.com two and one-half years ago to discuss which of today's artists could end up in the hall of fame, said this year's nominees offer great diversity. But he questions why artists like Kiss, Alice Cooper, Peter Gabriel, Chicago and Rush keep getting snubbed.

"They need to go back to at least nominating 14 or 15 to at least give the voters more of an option," Walls said. "It really puts the power in the nominating committee's hands."

More than 500 musicians, industry professionals and journalists vote on the inductions.

Los Angeles - Kristin Chenoweth may not have won the Emmy for her terrific performance in "Pushing Daisies," but that didn't stop the diminutive powerhouse from shining on the red carpet at the Entertainment Tonight/People magazine post-Emmy party held Sunday, Sept. 21, at the Walt Disney Concert Hall. She paired a black strapless Armani sheath with stunning white gold and diamond earrings and wrist cuff by JudeFrances, creating a perfect look that took her well into the wee hours.

Chenoweth joined fellow nominees Neil Patrick Harris and a very pregnant Amy Poehler at the glittery event, where Billy Idol rocked the house as countless other well-dressed stars looked on. Emmy winner Jeff Probst, who took home his second statue for "Survivor," was dapper in his tux, while "'Til Death" star Joely Fisher was almost unrecognizable with her stick-straight hair and slimmed-down bod. She admitted with a giggle that, "my daughter says she doesn't even know it is me, since I did this to my hair!"

Easier to spot was "CSI: Miami" stunner Sofia Milos, with her signature dark curly locks showing off her glittery black-and-white strapless gown; as were Nicollette Sheridan and Brooke Shields, whose jewel-toned, floor-length party dresses complete with big flounces stole the spotlight wherever they tread.

The party spread out all over the Frank Gehry-designed concert hall, with groaning food stations lining the upstairs hallways that led to the Founder's Garden, where saxophonist Dave Koz blew some soulful tunes as "CSI: NY" star Hill Harper and "Monk" favorite Jason Grey-Stanford, who plays Randy Disher in the much-nominated series, enjoyed the show.

"Tony didn't win this year," Grey-Stanford moaned, referring to "Monk" star Tony Shaloub, who owns three Emmys for his starring role in the quirky series but lost out to Alec Baldwin earlier in the evening, "but that's okay. It's still one of the best shows on TV and I'm really happy to be on it."

Paula Abul, who is surely thrilled to still be starring on her hit show "American Idol," also made the scene, clad in a clingy blue satin gown and plenty of bling, but "Entertainment Tonight" hostess Mary Hart took the over-the-top bling award, as she showed off a platinum and diamond clutch designed by Cate Adair, valued at a cool $500,000. That made "Lost" star Emilie de Ravin's platinum and diamond bracelet by Stephen Russell seem positively bargain priced at $130,000.

Plenty of other stars glittered at the ET/People party, including Dana Delany, Daisy Fuentes, January Jones, Tori Spelling, Sharon Lawrence, Valerie Bertinelli, Stacy Keibler, and Taraji P. Henson.

Heard at the 60th annual Primetime Emmy Awards:


I'm living proof, kids at home watching, that anybody can play the president."

• Paul Giamatti, accepting award for outstanding lead actor in a miniseries or movie, for playing the second president in "John Adams."

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"They say actors are people who look good saying lines written by smarter, more clever people. And, in our show that is certainly the truth."

• Alec Baldwin, accepting award for outstanding lead actor in a comedy series for "30 Rock."

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"I think we're proving that complicated, powerful, mature women are sexy in high entertainment and can carry a show.

• Glenn Close, who won award for lead actress in a dramatic series for "Damages," saluting her fellow nominees.

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"We are like on Sarah Palin's bridge to nowhere, that's where we are right now. The government can't even bail us out of this. We have nothing."

• Emmy co-host Howie Mandel, who noted he and his co-hosts didn't have a prepared opening monologue

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"What if I just kept talking for 12 minutes? What would happen? Oh wait, that was the opener."

• Jeremy Piven, razzing the reality-show hosts who opened the show after his acceptance-speech joke got few laughs.

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"Being here tonight is a big thrill for me because as a kid I use to run home from school and get all dressed up and play 60th anniversary Emmy Awards."

• Steve Martin said before introducing comedian Tommy Smothers, who received an honorary Emmy.

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"It's hard for me to stay silent, when I keep hearing that peace is only attainable through war. And there is nothing more scary than watching ignorance in action."

• Tommy Smothers as he accepted his honorary Emmy.

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"Heeereee's Johnny!"

• Ed McMahon as Josh Groban sang a tribute to TV's top shows over the past 40 years.

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"I really look forward to the next administration whoever it is. I have nothing to follow that up with. I'm just saying I really look forward to the next administration whoever it is."

• Jon Stewart, who won for best variety, music or comedy series for "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart."

LOS ANGELES - The backstage trophy table was the place to be for serious celebrity watching at Sunday's 60th annual Primetime Emmy Awards — never mind that it was in the basement of a parking garage.


At one point Conan O'Brien was chatting on his cell phone as Amy Poehler and her husband, Will Arnett, walked by on their way to the elevator that would take them to the press tent. Kiefer Sutherland strolled by the trophy table just ahead of Tom Selleck. Christian Slater paused to wave to a group of firefighters working the awards show.

Also walking by the table that contained some five dozen Emmy statuettes was Lily Tomlin, who joked, "I like these three."

Emmy winner Jeremy Piven, best supporting actor in a comedy series, surveyed the table and joked, "It looks like Hanukkah!"

The Emmy each winner carries off stage is just a prop. Winners give it back and head to the table in the parking garage adjacent to the Nokia Theatre to collect the real one.

As winners were collecting their Emmys, eight limo drivers were seated nearby, embroiled in an intense poker game. The drivers were paying the celebrities absolutely no heed.

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - The summer smash "Mamma Mia!" logged a third consecutive weekend atop the international box office as its total raced to $334 million.

The ABBA-inspired romantic musical earned $14 million from 48 markets in the latest frame. Including its North American take, its worldwide total stands at $475 million.

The Angelina Jolie thriller "Wanted" finished at No. 2 with $11.6 million from 34 markets, including a first-place $7.7 million bow in Japan. Its foreign total rose to $172.1 million.

The Hollywood satire "Tropic Thunder" tallied $8.1 million from 26 markets, finishing first in the U.K. ($4.3 million), Germany and Austria. Its overseas total stands at $29.1 million.

The No. 4 finisher, "WALL-E," hit $200.1 million overseas thanks to a $6.6 million weekend from 37 markets. No. 1 openings in New Zealand and Australia set the pace.

"Hancock" rounded out the top five titles with $6.1 million, of which $4 million came from Italy. The Will Smith vehicle has accumulated an overseas tally of $387 million.

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

WEST COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) — Federal officials say the doomed crew of a Learjet that crashed in South Carolina thought a tire on the plane blew as they started down the runway.

National Transportation Safety Board member Debbie Hersman said Sunday that crew members told air traffic controllers they heard a tire burst and tried to abort the takeoff Friday night.

Former Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker and celebrity disc jockey DJ AM were injured in the crash that killed four other people on board.

Hersman says the conversation between the plane's crew and the air traffic controllers is captured on a cockpit voice recorder that was recovered from the wreckage. She says the cause of the crash is being investigated.

The Learjet crashed through a fence and shot over a highway before stopping on an embankment.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

AUGUSTA, Ga. (AP) — Former Blink-182 drummer Travis Barker and celebrity disc jockey DJ AM are expected to fully recover from burns they suffered in a fiery South Carolina jet crash that killed the other four people aboard, one of their doctors said Sunday.

Dr. Fred Mullins, medical director of the Joseph M. Still Burn Center, said the two suffered second- and third-degree burns but had no other injuries from the crash that one witness described as a fireball shooting across a highway.

"Anybody who can survive a plane crash is pretty lucky," Mullins told reporters during a news conference Sunday morning.

Barker was burned on his torso and lower body and DJ AM, whose real name is Adam Goldstein, was burned on an arm and a portion of his scalp, according to a statement from the musicians' families released by the hospital. Mullins declined to discuss specific recovery times for the men, but said such injuries can take a year to fully heal.

Both men are still in critical but stable condition, he said.

The Learjet crashed late Friday night shortly after taking off from an airport in Columbia, where the men had just performed a concert for thousands of college students. The plane's two-person crew and a pair of the musicians' staff members — also their close friends — were killed.

As the plane was departing, air traffic controllers reported seeing sparks, officials said. The plane hurtled off the end of a runway and came to rest a quarter-mile away on an embankment across a five-lane highway, engulfed in flames.

One witness said he was driving when a fireball streaked across the highway about 600 feet ahead of him. William Owens said he approached to see the two survivors frantically trying to remove their burning clothes.

"I noticed two guys who were on fire and it looked like a dance: They didn't know what to do," said Owens, a 60-year-old delivery van driver.

Goldstein had stripped off his own shirt and was helping Barker strip naked, said Owens, who was able to identify the men Saturday night because of news reports that showed Barker's extensive tattoos.

Owens said Goldstein told him four other people were on board the jet, but the flames were too intense to get close.

"'Oh my God' was all they were saying," Owens said of Barker and Goldstein. "They stood there and it's like — didn't know what to do. None of us did."

Several fans visited the hospital over the weekend. One carried a sign that read: "Get Well Travis."

"I was just shocked when I first heard it and I knew that I had to do something," said Ryan Meadows, a 19-year-old college student from Augusta.

Two other passengers — Chris Baker, 29, of Studio City, Calif., and Charles Still, 25, of Los Angeles — died, as did pilot Sarah Lemmon, 31, of Anaheim Hills, Calif., and co-pilot James Bland, 52, of Carlsbad, Calif., according to the county coroner. Baker was an assistant to Barker and Still was a security guard for the musician.

"The families wish to thank fans from all over the world for their prayers and concern. Deepest sympathy is expressed to the loved ones of those who perished in the crash," said the statement from the musicians' families.

The plane was headed for Van Nuys, Calif. It is owned by Global Exec Aviation, a California-based charter company, and was certified to operate last year, said National Transportation Safety Board member Debbie Hersman.

A longtime friend of the co-pilot said Bland flew anti-smuggling missions 20 years for the U.S. Customs Service and flew missions for the Santa Ana Police Department in California and U.S. Border Patrol.

"He was such an experienced pilot, it had to be something beyond their control," said Tim Ferrill, a Huntington Beach, Calif., pilot. "He was an absolutely meticulous pilot, very thorough and not a risk-taker at all."

Barker and Goldstein had performed together under the name TRVSDJ-AM at a free concert in Columbia on Friday night. The show, which included performances by former Jane's Addiction singer Perry Farrell and singer Gavin DeGraw, drew about 10,000 people to a neighborhood near the University of South Carolina.

Barker, 32, was one of the more colorful members of the multiplatinum-selling punk rock band Blink-182, whose biggest album was 1999's CD "Enema of the State" and sold more than 5 million copies in the United States alone.

After Blink-182 disbanded in 2005, Barker went on to form the rock band (+44) — pronounced "plus forty-four." He also starred in the MTV reality series "Meet the Barkers" with his then-wife, former Miss USA Shanna Moakler. The show documented the former couple's lavish wedding and home life. Their later split, reconciliation and subsequent breakup made them tabloid favorites.

Goldstein, 35, is a popular DJ for hire who at one time was engaged to Nicole Richie and dated singer/actress Mandy Moore. While he became a gossip favorite for his romances, he draws respect from music aficionados for his DJ skills.

Barker and Goldstein performed as part of the house band at the MTV Video Music Awards earlier this month.

The stars were hot, literally, on the red carpet at Sunday night's 60th annual Emmys awards — and that meant the sweeping trend on A-list actresses were updos.

Heidi Klum wore one and so did Mariska Hargitay. Same 'do for Marcia Cross, Vanessa Williams, Julia Louis Dreyfus and Sandra Oh.

The perfect accessory? Dangling earrings, such as Debra Messing in 19th century diamond fan-pendants from Fred Leighton.

There also were many strapless gowns — on the likes of Tina Fey and Teri Hatcher — and, in a nod to an emerging catwalk trend, asymmetric looks as seen on Christina Applegate and Vanessa Williams.

But almost to a person the looks were anything but trendy, sticking instead to safe silhouettes, boldly elegant jewelry and flattering colors.

Take, for example, Oh, one of the night's fashion winners, who previously had done time on a few worst-dressed lists. She came in a retro-style black lace dress by Oscar de la Renta with a ribbon sash and a few sparkles on the skirt. They matched her gleaming 5.5-carat (each!) emerald-cut diamond earrings by Bulgari.

Applegate didn't disappoint in her much-anticipated red-carpet return after breast-cancer surgery in a dramatic, sweeping gown in ice blue with metallic patches.

"I think Applegate was one of the best dressed of the night," said stylist Marie Alice Stephenson. "She was glamorous, elegant and she pushed it."

Christina Hendricks did her 1960s-era "Mad Men" character justice in a curve-hugging emerald green gown, which complemented her red hair that she wore in a up-style twist. Louis-Dreyfus showed off her trim figure in a salmon-colored Narciso Rodriguez dress with a fitted shiny bodice — complete with a sliver of skin showing under the bust.

Nicolette Sheridan wore a sleek strapless gown by Angel Sanchez in purple, a trendy fall color. Laura Dern did purple too; Holly Hunter wore a plum Jenny Packham gown with a jeweled waist.

Fey liked the color too, leaving her glasses at home, wearing her hair down and choosing a sexy sweetheart eggplant-colored gown by David Meister in what seemed an obvious attempt to avoid Sarah Palin comparisons.

Two of TV's brightest stars were Brooke Shields in a hot pink lipstick-color (pun intended) strapless gown with a ruffle down the front and brooch on the side of her waist by Badgley Mischka

Klum had the opportunity to take the most risks, as she was expected to adopt many looks throughout the night: She planned no fewer than six as she extended her red carpet walk in a custom Giorgio Armani Prive gunmetal metallic gown with a one-shoulder capelet to hosting duties on the broadcast.

"It was a mature choice for what Heidi normally wears," said Klum's stylist Maryam Malakpour, but Armani won her over by sending a personal note to congratulate her on her "Project Runway" nomination.

Fellow model and reality host Padma Lakshmi wore a short gold Monique Lhuillier dress, showing off her legs. "When you're working with a model, there is so much choice," said her Stephenson, who worked with Lakshmi. "They rarely look bad in a dress."

Powerhouses Oprah Winfrey and Susan Sarandon, in a draped jersey look by her friend Donna Karan, both opted for red, and Hargitay was in a soft one-shouldered, marigold-yellow gown by Carolina Herrera.

Still, there were plenty of neutrals.

Jennifer Love Hewitt — her hair in a bedhead bun — told E! that her white-with-black strapless gown by Herrera was an easy choice, and Williams' splashy white-and-black print dress by Kevan Hall had a jeweled strap that went from her shoulder to just below the waist. White was also worn by Kyra Sedgwick, whose dress by L'Wren Scott featured diamond embroidery.

The black fan club included America Ferrera in a bubble-hem dress and Hollywood siren-style red lipstick; Chandra Wilson in a gathered Tadashi Shoji halter gown; Kate Walsh in gown with alternating rows of crystals to go with a complete set of diamond-and-platinum jewelry by Neil Lane; and Dana Delaney in a vintage gown splashed with an Art Deco-style beaded embellishment.

Veteran star Glenn Close and Broadway transplant Kristin Chenowith both wore black Armani.

Black is tricky on the red carpet because it doesn't pop, said Stephenson. "America Ferrera had a bold Fred Leighton necklace and a shorter hem — and that's the way to do it. If you don't do something spectacular with black, it can fall short.

Felicity Huffman literally sparkled in a split-neck silver gown and she showed off a sleek bob haircut, and Eva Longoria wrapped herself as a gift to escort and husband Tony Parker in a short strapless number with fringed tiers by Marchesa. He wore a complemetary silver-gray suit.