Tyler sells 160 songs for $50 million

In a move that's likely to upset some Aerosmith acolytes, Steven Tyler is selling a hefty number of the band's biggest hits to Primary Wave Music Publishing. The $50 million deal, first reported yesterday by the New York Post and later confirmed by the band's publicist, covers 160 songs written or co-written by Tyler. Included in the deal are Aerosmith songs dating to the 1980s, including "Love in an Elevator," "Dude Looks Like a Lady," "Janie's Got a Gun," and "Jaded." (Tyler no longer owns the rights to the band's '70s hits such as "Dream On," "Sweet Emotion," and "Walk This Way.") Primary Wave, whose founder is former Arista and Virgin Records head Larry Mestel, has assembled an impressive collection of music in recent years, buying a stake in the Beatles songs of John Lennon, and the publishing catalogs of Kurt Cobain, Daryl Hall and John Oates, and Steve Earle, among others. In part, the deal was done now because of a recent change in US tax laws. Instead of paying substantial income taxes on such a sale, songwriters now pay a modest capital gains tax. Tyler said he also trusts Mestel not to use Aerosmith's music to sell mattresses. (As the Post points out, the CBS show "Cold Case" used eight Nirvana songs to tell a story.) "Primary Wave's expertise will ensure that my catalog will continue to rock generations well into the future and boldly go where no songs have gone before," Tyler told the tabloid.

Family-friendly Walden Media, which has offices in Boston, has signed "High School Musical" star Vanessa Hudgens to play a former stutterer in "Will," a comedy-drama set to shoot next month in Austin, Texas. Hudgens, 19, is best known for playing Gabriella Montez in the "High School Musical" movies, and also for appearing in a series of nude photos that leaked on the Internet last September. Hudgens later apologized, saying she was embarrassed and regretted having posed for the photos.

While Mike O'Malley was in town this week taping "The People Speak," we talked to the Nashua native about what's next. While he's not giving up on sitcoms - his show "Yes, Dear" wrapped in '06 - O'Malley's pursuing dramatic roles on the big and small screens. He plays a reporter in George Clooney's next picture, "Leatherheads," and also appears in the new Eddie Murphy movie "Starship Dave." More interesting to us is O'Malley's role in "Pretty Handsome," a provocative pilot for FX written by "Nip/Tuck" creator Ryan Murphy. The drama is about a devoted dad, played by Joseph Fiennes, who's questioning his gender identity. In addition to O'Malley, who plays the best friend, the cast includes Carrie-Anne Moss, Blythe Danner, and Robert Wagner.

Aha, now we know why Howard Zinn's friend and former neighbor Matt Damon didn't make it to town for "The People Speak." With Greg Kinnear and Amy Ryan, Damon this week began working on the Iraq war film based on Rajiv Chandrasekaran's book "Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq's Green Zone." Directed by Paul Greengrass, who worked with Damon on two of the three "Bourne" films, it started shooting in Spain on Thursday.

We got word from Paula Cole's proud father that his daughter's singing the national anthem before tonight's Pats game. A big Pats fan, Jim Cole said he scored a free ticket to the game because his awesome offspring is singing.

Perhaps not so proud are the parents of the lads and lasses over at the Harvard Lampoon, who've chosen to honor Paris Hilton as their "Woman of the Year." The skinny celebutante, who spent some time in jail last summer in connection with an alcohol-related reckless driving case, will be feted Feb. 6. Just so happens that Hilton will be in town anyway to promote her new, destined-for-DVD film "The Hottie and the Nottie."

Brad Delp's ex-wife sent us a statement yesterday claiming that she has never received a copy of a lawsuit filed against her by her ex-husband's onetime Boston bandmate Tom Scholz. Micki Delp said she gave Scholz's attorney her address, but never got a copy of the complaint. Scholz is suing Micki Delp and her sister Connie Goudreau, the wife of former Boston guitarist Barry Goudreau, alleging that the women defamed him by suggesting Scholz was the reason Delp committed suicide last March. "It has always been my hope that any issues between any of the parties could have remained private and resolved long before this time," Micki Delp said yesterday. "Brad was a very private, sensitive, and caring person who would be appalled that his thoughts, feelings, and confidences have to be publicized in this manner." Scholz's attorney Sue Stenger scoffed at Delp's statement, saying the defendant was properly served and had actual notice of the complaint, as well as a copy of it. "Her sister Connie managed to file a response on time," said Stenger.

It's almost as if John Sayles is taking up residence here. The first-rate filmmaker will be at the Regal Fenway Monday reading his story "Keeping Time," which is the basis of his new movie "Honeydripper." There'll be a screening afterward, followed by a Q&A with Sayles and his partner Maggie Renzi. The duo will do it all again Tuesday, with a reading at the Coolidge Corner Theatre and a screening at the Kendall Square Cinema. . . . Wednesday, actor Hayden Christensen (inset) will be at MIT, where footage from his new sci-fi film "Jumper" will be screened. (The film deals with the science of teleporting matter.) Christensen will take part in a Q&A with director Doug Liman and MIT physicists Max Tegmark and Edward Farhi.

Names can be reached at names@globe.com or at 617-929-8253.