Last week I reported that shocking information that was reportedly taken from Lynne Spears’s new book Through the Storm: A Real Story of Fame and Family in a Tabloid World revealed that Britney Spears had engaged in very dangerous behavior at a very young age. Pink readers left quite a few comments that doubted the legitimacy of the original report … and it turns out they were right. A new report from the Associated Press paints a very different picture concerning the information in Lynne’s new book … a picture that makes Lynne a more sympathetic character, which makes more sense overall:

The mother of Britney Spears says that the singer has overcome the tabloid nightmares of the past few years and believes that little by little, her daughter is regaining her “glorious voice.” Lynne Spears writes of her famous child and her other celebrity daughter, Jamie Lynn, in “Through the Storm,” to be published Sept. 16 by Thomas Nelson, a leading Christian publisher. The Associated Press obtained an early copy. The 211-page book, which includes several pages of family photographs, tracks Britney Spears’ life through her precocious early years _ she was singing and dancing by the time she was 3 _ through her explosive rise to her pill-addicted, near-tragic fall. Lynne Spears describes young Britney as a confident, outgoing girl whose talents were so obvious that family friends would insist she would one day be on Broadway. Spears rejects the image that she pushed Britney into show business, and writes that the singer was always focused on achievement and would constantly practice to the music of Madonna, Whitney Houston and others. In “Through the Storm,” Lynne Spears presents herself as a loving, selfless (she gave up her job as a school teacher for her daughter’s sake) but increasingly powerless parent. After the jolting, but pleasant surprise of Britney Spears’ debut smash, ” … Baby One More Time,” Lynne Spears says she felt she was losing control when a 1999 Rolling Stone magazine story featured a racy cover of the singer in panties and a bra. Lynne Spears recalls feeling “shock and dismay” at seeing her daughter shave her head, at her brief marriages to childhood friend Jason Alexander and dancer-rapper Kevin Federline, and her highly publicized custody battles over her two children. She also recalls feeling she had been “punched in the stomach” when she learned that Jamie Lynn Spears was pregnant at age 16 … The bottom came in the past two years with Britney Spears’ increasingly disturbing public behavior and her drugged private life in her Malibu, Calif., house. Lynne Spears writes that she was distraught as then-manager Sam Lufti told her he was grinding pills and putting them in Britney’s food, hoping to induce a coma that would enable doctors to cure her of all addictions. Britney Spears was hospitalized twice this year, the second time in February, when paramedics took her to the psychiatric ward of the UCLA Medical Center, where her mother says she finally received the care she needed. It was, Lynne Spears writes, a “turning point” for the entire family … Mother and daughter are close again, Lynne Spears writes, and Britney remains a “brave little girl who sang to the skies” so long ago.

Now this sounds more like it. Even tho I fear the book may end up being a spin job that makes Lynne and the Spears family look as favorable as possible, I’m still dying to read this book when it gets released next week.

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Now, I’m suggesting you take the following information with a BIG GRAIN OF SALT … even tho the info comes directly from a possible reliable source. MTV is reporting that Michael Caine, who played Alfred Pennyworth in both Batman Begins and Batman: The Dark Knight, is claiming that Johnny Depp will be playing The Riddler and Phillip Seymour Hoffman will be playing The Penguin in the next Batman film to be made. While I would LOVE to believe this casting news outright, it just doesn’t feel right. Here is a portion of the MTV report:

It’s one of the biggest — and most hotly debated — questions in fandom…which actors (and characters) will director Christopher Nolan enlist as a villain for his third “Batman” film? Rumors have abounded since the release of “The Dark Knight,” and Nolan has remained fiercely tight-lipped. But now, has one of his main players revealed some of the biggest casting news of the decade? In an interview with MTV News conducted just hours ago at the Toronto Film Festival, Michael Caine — there to promote “Is There Anybody There?” — seemed to confirm rumors that the next installment of the “Batman” film franchise will feature two very well-known names playing the roles of The Riddler and the Bumbershoot Bandit, The Penguin. “They’ve already got them in mind,” said Caine, when asked who he’d like to see take up arms against the Caped Crusader. “It’s Johnny Depp as The Riddler. And The Penguin is Philip Seymour Hoffman. I read it in the paper.” So Caine is like the rest of us, reading gossip in the tabloids, right? Except for one thing…according to the actor, he confirmed the news through the studio itself. “When Christopher [Nolan] said we were going to do ‘The Dark Knight’ next, I didn’t what that meant in Batman terms,” related Caine, who plays Bruce Wayne’s loyal butler, Alfred Pennyworth. “I said, ‘What’s the story?’ and he said The Joker. I said, ‘Oh, s–t! How are you going to top Jack [Nicholson]?’ He said, ‘Well, I’ve cast Heath Ledger. And I went ‘Ha! I couldn’t top Jack, but if anyone could, maybe Heath could.’ And he did. “I was with [a Warner Bros.] executive and I said, ‘Are we going to make another one?’ They said yeah. I said, ‘How the hell are we going to top Heath? And he says ‘I’ll tell you how you top Heath — Johnny Depp as The Riddler and Philip Seymour Hoffman as The Penguin.’ I said, ‘S–t, they’ve done it again!’” [Laughs]

Sounds legit, right? Well … notsofast … Phillip Seymour Hoffman himself has denied that anyone at all associated with any of the Batman films has approached him to play the part of The Penguin. Furthermore, he confesses that he is unsure he’d be able to do justice to the part:

Today at the Toronto Film Festival, we went right to the source and asked Hoffman directly if he indeed had been cast as The Penguin. “No one has talked to me about it ever — never,” replied Hoffman. “It happened, like, five years ago, too. It was a rumor back then and it’s still a rumor. [laughs] It’s just in the press. It’s funny.” To further cement this issue, Hoffman added that he’d never met Nolan (”Maybe I did or met him in passing?”), and that his interest in comic book movies is purely on a fan level, and he intended to keep it that way. “I’m such a fan of those movies,” related Hoffman. “Comic book movies in general I look forward to — I am a real cheerleader for them. I want them to do well because those are terrific stories. As a kid I was a big comic book collector. What [Nolan]’s doing is taking it in a whole other exciting great place. I’m more a fan, so the interest of being in it isn’t that great. It’s more the interest in wanting to see the next one. It’s probably better that way.” When further pressed for his level of interest in the role if Warner Bros. approached him about the role, Hoffman said, “I don’t know. I think I’m more interested in seeing someone else do it. I don’t know if I’d be a good Penguin to be quite honest. [laughs]”

HMMM … it sounds like Michael Caine might’ve been sippin’ on the bottle a bit much to really know what is really going on. As I said, as much as I’d love to believe that this casting news is actually true I just don’t think it is. What do y’all think? Is Caine right … or just totally wacked out?

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Columbia Records has announced that Beyoncé will release her third solo album on November 18 with the disc’s first two singles If I Were A Boy and Single Ladies scheduled to go to radio on October 7th. Billboard magazine has got the full deets:

Beyonce’s third solo album will be released Nov. 18 via Music World Music/Columbia, and will be preceded Oct. 7 by the radio release of the singles “If I Were a Boy” and “Single Ladies.” Beyonce co-wrote or co-produced all the material, which the label says comprises “her most personal, reflective and revelatory collection to-date.” Justin Timberlake will also appear on the as-yet-untitled project, but additional details about his contributions have not been released. The artists teamed up to cover the Marvin Gaye/Tammi Terrell classic “Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing” last Friday at the Fashion Rocks event at New York’s Radio City Music Hall. Producer Jim Jonsin, the man behind Lil Wayne’s “Lollipop,” has also logged studio time with Beyonce on the track “Beautiful Nightmare,” which leaked online earlier this year. It is unknown if the song will make the final track list … Knowles is also gearing up for two upcoming film projects. She stars as blues legend Etta James in “Cadillac Records,” a release date for which has yet to be announced, and as the wife of a stalking target in “Obsessed,” due Feb. 27.

You know what would make this new Beyoncé album just KILLER? A duet with Britney Spears. I’m just sayin’ … ;)

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Brody Jenner was on hand at Kitson in West Hollywood, CA last night for a launch event to promote the release of his new denim jeans line called Brody Jenner Jeans. Here is your first look at what the promo materials for Brody’s new jeans line looks like:

Words fail me. I mean, Brody is my dawg and all but … I just don’t know exactly what to say about this … life-size cut out display of Brody Jenner and his low-cut jeans. I mean … HMMM. Anyone?

Here are a couple pics of Brody making his way out of Kitson after the end of the launch event:

To be honest, I’m a bit surprised he wasn’t too embarrassed to show his face after that life-size cut out display of himself was revealed … I mean … wow. Thoughts?

UPDATE: PRAISE JEBUS! This Brody Jenner Jeans thing is not real … thank the gods. I hear from a little birdie in the know that this Kitson event was staged as one of the final challenges for the contestants on Brody’s new reality show Bromance (which is currently filming). Thankfully, the jeans line and the ad campaign have been faked for the show. My faith in Brody has been restored.

Now … if only I could figure out how to get my hands on that life-size stand-up display of Brody and his buttcrack … I’m sure I can find a nice home for it!

[Photo credit: INFdaily]

After my very bizzy weekend with Nine Inch Nails and everyone at the MTV VMAs, I decided to make yesterday a DO NOTHING day. Basically, I worked, read, watched TV and ordered pizza … that’s it. Earlier in the day, tho, I did venture out to make an appointment and I managed to stumble upon a good supply of Polaroid film to snap up. My 365 project is coming along nicely but, in addition, I am trying to buy up all the Polaroid 600 film that I can so that I can take as many Polaroid pictures as I can while the instant film is still available. Trust me y’all, if you’re a fan of Polaroid instant film, you best get out there and buy it up while you still can. I’ve already taken a few pics this weekend and I’m really anxious to snap pics with all of my friends so that I can capture their beautiful faces on endangered Polaroid film. All of this Polaroidness is really giving me a lot of creative ideas … which is exactly what I was hoping to achieve from my new project.

My plans for tonight got pushed back til later in the week so I might be spending another quiet night tonight. I’d actually love another night alone … wee :)

• The Jonas Brothers found Russell Brand’s VMAs humor “hilarious”.
• Click HERE to see Shirley Manson’s final scene on the season 2 premiere ep of Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles which aired last night. DO NOT WATCH if you don’t want to be spoiled.
• Ratings were up for the MTV VMAs this year.
• Waitaminute! Disturbia was a rip off of Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window?! The devil you say!
• Kylie Minogue is considering “turning gay”?
• Twin babies might be too much for Angelina Jolie to handle.
• Ashlee Simpson’s rep denies that she is giving birth to twins.
• Project Runway and Marie Claire fashion director, Nina Garcia, gets her own TV show! Woot!
• Meet Hip-Hop’s newest Divo.
• Justin Timberlake nearly got his lights punched out while he partied in VIP.
• Apple’s next gen of iPod Nanos get a colorful upgrade.
• Sophie Monk hits the pool.
• Jessica Simpson brings her Country Music act to CBS’s The Early Show.
• LC goes back to the OC.
• Pete Wentz had a death wish?
• Michelle Williams (Brokeback Mountain, Dawson’s Creek) is 28, Adam Sandler is 42 and Hugh Grant is 48 years old today. Click HERE to see who else is celebrating a birthday today.
• Apparently, Subway doesn’t like employing porn models. Shame.
• Keira Knightley is done with pirate movies.
• Leighton Meester to release an album.
• Gasp! I never saw THIS coming.

Sunday night we were treated to a “bonus” episode of The Hills on MTV as the lead-in to the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards which teased that there would be some incarceration drama on last night’s regularly scheduled ep … by the end of last night’s new ep, Lauren LC Conrad was left crying with black tears streaming down her face:

After the jump, find out what could possibly leave LC in tears, find out what happened to Brody and Doug in Las Vegas and find out what true lurve on The Hills really means in the ep titled Something Has To Change …

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