His troubles continue

July 17, 2008

Andy Dick was arrested early yesterday for investigation of drug use and sexual battery after the comedian allegedly pulled down a teenager's top, police said. The former costar of the sitcom "NewsRadio" was released after posting $5,000 bail. Police were called to a sports bar in Murrieta, Calif., to investigate a report of an intoxicated male urinating outside. When they arrived, a 17-year-old girl told police that Dick "grabbed her tank top and bra and pulled them down and exposed her breasts," the statement said. Marijuana and the drug Xanax were found in his pants pockets, police said. Dick, 42, has a reputation for crude behavior. He was reported to have exposed himself to audiences at least twice and was cited last year in Columbus, Ohio, for urinating on the sidewalk. In 1999, Dick was arrested for possession of cocaine and marijuana. (AP)

Barenaked Ladies singer and guitarist Steven Page faces a cocaine possession charge after his arrest while visiting two women at their apartment in Fayetteville, N.Y. Page, 38, of Toronto, was charged with fourth-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance, a felony that carries a maximum penalty of up to 15 years in prison, police said yesterday. The arrest comes as the band, known for its clean image, recently released an album of children's songs. (AP)

Grammy-winning singer Natalie Cole has been diagnosed with hepatitis C, her publicist said in a statement yesterday. Hepatitis C is a liver disease spread through contact with infected blood. The statement said the disease was revealed during a routine examination and was likely caused by her drug use years ago. Cole, 58, the daughter of jazz legend Nat King Cole, has sold millions of records over her long career. (AP)

Ronnie Wood entered a rehabilitation facility yesterday for help with alcoholism, said a spokeswoman for the Rolling Stones guitarist. Wood, 61, has fought a long battle with alcoholism during his rock 'n' roll career, which started in the 1960s when he played with the band The Faces. His spokeswoman didn't release any details about the treatment he will receive or the clinic that he entered. (AP)

Lou Pearlman and federal authorities have finally agreed on how much the former boy band promoter swindled from banks and investors in a decades-long scam: a staggering $300 million. That's how much creator of the Backstreet Boys and 'N Sync will have to repay, at a minimum, for restitution on the fraud conviction for which he's serving a 25-year prison sentence. (AP)

Britney Spears is working on a new album, as the pop star seeks to rebound from a period of troubling behavior and hospital stints for psychiatric evaluations. Spears, 26, has spent much of the past 18 months in the headlines for an ugly divorce from Kevin Federline, losing custody of her two sons, rehab treatment, and erratic behavior such as shaving her head. Her manager, Larry Rudolph, and her label, Jive Records, said in a statement that Spears "is spending her summer in the recording studio, working on a brand new album." (Reuters)

"I still very much love her. I do. I can't lie to you." - Al Reynolds, saying he still has feelings for Star Jones, despite their impending divorce