Conductor won't play

Plans for Italian conductor Riccardo Muti to perform at Buckingham Palace tomorrow for Prince Charles's 60th birthday party have collapsed. Muti had been expected to conduct the London-based Philharmonia Orchestra at the gala party hosted by Queen Elizabeth II the day before her eldest son turns 60. But orchestra spokeswoman Alice Walton said plans were dropped due to logistical reasons. Britain's Daily Mail newspaper reported that Muti canceled because he had been asked to shorten his program. (AP)

Actress Michelle Williams's father, a prominent stock market trader, agreed yesterday to return to the United States to face tax evasion charges. Larry Williams has been fighting extradition since he was arrested by Australian police in 2006 after flying to Sydney for a speaking tour. He has been free on bail. (AP)

According to an update on Britney Spears's website, her 2-year-old son, Jayden James, was released from a Mississippi hospital after being treated for a reaction. (AP)

"I am happy to have done it, but I'm sad that it has turned so violent." Ex-007 actor Roger Moore, expressing his concern with the violence in the more recent James Bond movies.