'View' cohost Hasselbeck sued

June 24, 2009

A Massachusetts author has sued Elisabeth Hasselbeck, accusing the cohost of ABC’s “The View’’ of plagiarism. The lawsuit, filed in federal court in Massachusetts, alleges that Hasselbeck lifted “word for word’’ content from a book by Susan Hassett, a self-published author on Cape Cod. Hasselbeck’s book, “The G-Free Diet: A Gluten-Free Survival Guide,’’ has appeared on several bestseller lists. Hassett said in the lawsuit that she sent Hasselbeck a copy of her book, “Living With Celiac Disease,’’ last year after the celebrity disclosed she had the illness. (AP)

Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick are the parents of twin girls delivered by a surrogate mother, a publicist said yesterday. The girls were born Monday afternoon at an Ohio hospital, publicist Simon Halls said. Marion Loretta Elwell Broderick weighed 5 pounds and 11 ounces, and Tabitha Hodge Broderick weighed 6 pounds. (AP)

Former Wilco guitarist Jay Bennett died of an overdose of a pain killer, a coroner said yesterday, and authorities are viewing his death as accidental. Toxicology tests showed the 45-year-old musician died from an overdose of fentanyl, Champaign County (Ill.) coroner Duane Northrup said in a release. The drug is found in patches commonly prescribed to treat chronic pain. Bennett died May 24 after being found unresponsive in his home in Urbana, Ill. In a posting April 25 on his MySpace page, Bennett wrote that he was getting ready for hip replacement surgery after years of pain. (AP)

The songwriter and director behind “You Light Up My Life’’ has been indicted on charges of raping or sexually assaulting women who answered audition ads on Craigslist. Joseph Brooks, 71, was to be arraigned yesterday. Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau said nine of the 11 victims answered an ad seeking women to audition for acting roles. Brooks won an Oscar for the 1977 ballad “You Light Up My Life.’’ He also wrote and directed the movie. (AP)

Kate Gosselin says in divorce papers that she and her husband, Jon, have been living “separate and apart’’ within the last week or two. Gosselin filed for divorce Monday in Pennsylvania, saying in papers that her 10-year marriage is “irretrievably broken.’’ The Gosselins had portrayed themselves as happy up until the past few months. The hit TLC series “Jon & Kate Plus 8’’ follows Jon and Kate Gosselin and their eight children. (AP)

‘I will do it, but you’ve got to give us time. I need a little rest.’ Director Michael Bay, on whether there will be a third ‘‘Transformers’’ movie