'Idol' drops contestant; 'Family Guy' actress on Palins

-- "American Idol" contestant Chris Golightly was dropped from the top 24 semifinalists because of a "lack of veracity" during the audition process, a person close to the Fox TV show said Thursday. Golightly didn't disclose that he'd had a music contract, a point on which all contestants are queried because singers with current deals are barred from competing. [AP]

-- Speaking of "Idol," the Olympics bested the singing competition in TV ratings last night, making Lindsey Vonn, Shaun White and Shani Davis the true American idols. During the hour that the two shows went head-to-head, the Olympics were seen by 30.1 million people while 18.4 million watched "American Idol," the Nielsen Co. said. Awesome! [AP]

-- Andrea Fay Friedman, the voice actress who played the character with Down syndrome on the Valentine's Day episode of "Family Guy," responded to the Palin family's criticism of the show's depiction of her character: "In my family we think laughing is good. My parents raised me to have a sense of humor and to live a normal life. My mother did not carry me around under her arm like a loaf of French bread the way former Governor Palin carries her son Trig around looking for sympathy and votes." Andrea was born with Down Sydrome. [HuffPo]

-- Prince William did not dye his hair black. His blond locks were digitally altered in a photo for the charity Crisis. [AP]

-- Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Patricia M. Schnegg said Chris Brown hasn't missed a session of domestic violence counseling and completed 32 days of community labor in Virginia. "It looks like you're doing really, really well," she added. [AP]

-- There's an online effort to draft John Mellencamp into a run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Indiana's Democratic Sen. Evan Bayh. The Facebook group "Draft John Mellencamp for Senate!" is closing in on 3,000 members. [AP | People | Facebook]

-- Whoa! Creepy! A Colombian woman declared dead of a heart attack moved one of her arms just as an undertaker was about to embalm her, doctors said Wednesday.  Sadly, the woman, who was admitted to a hospital on Monday after a heart attack and declared dead Tuesday, has a thin chance of survival. [AP]

-- In little less than an hour Tiger Woods will speak to a small group of "friends, colleagues and close associates" in the Sunset Room on the second floor of the TPC Sawgrass, home of the PGA Tour. Just one video camera will broadcast the event and there will be no questions. When he's done, he will return to therapy... no questions asked. No word on whether or not he will return to the tour anytime soon. [AP]
 

PROMISED UPDATE: Tiger Woods says he is 'so sorry'  
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