Kate Winslet is being hailed as a hero by one of the richest men in the world.  On Richard Branson’s private island in the Virgin Islands, she helped rescue his 90-year-old mother when the house they were in got struck by lightning and caught fire.  No one was injured.

Virgin Mogul, Richard Branson’s home on his private island in the Caribbean burned to the ground Monday morning, and his 90-year-old mother might have died in the blaze if it weren’t for Kate Winslet who helped carry her to escape!
Branson wrote on his blog that 20 people were inside the house when the fire broke out but all got out of the building safely.  Branson said the main house, on Necker Island, was completely destroyed.  Branson cited a tropical storm as the cause, saying a lightning storm hit the house around 4:00am.

Jimmy Fallon will be hosting “Saturday Night Live” on December 17th! Fallon had a six-year run with SNL from 1998-2004, with three years as a co-anchor of Weekend Update. Fallon will be joined by musical guest and Grammy-winner Michael Buble.

“Dancing with the Stars” is getting a new set said to be worth $3 million dollars. Not only are the dancers getting a new raised floor, but producers are swapping out the audience’s boring bleacher seats for a triple tiered balcony-styled arrangement.

Bret Michaels guest starred on “Bachelor Pad” last night, and talked to Mike and Holly about their failed relationship.  Bret congratulated them on their engagement . . . then found out they broke up. Bret also serenaded Mike and Holly with the song, “Every Rose Has Its Thorn”.  Holly said she could relate to the song, because her relationship with Mike has “a lot of thorns.”

Katie Couric’s new daytime talk show will be called “Katie”… The former newscaster’s show won’t air on ABC until fall 2012. In the meantime, Couric will be working for ABC News. Her first on-air appearance in her new home came earlier this month when she was a guest co-host on “The View”.

David Letterman has chosen to address the recent threats against his life by Al Qaeda jihadists by making fun of them on the air…(and by stepping up security.) “Thank you very much for being here tonight,” he said in the monologue. “We have great audiences night in and night out, but tonight especially, it means a lot to me. Tonight, you people are more than an audience… you’re more like a human shield.”  He went on to say, “State Department authorities are looking into this, They’re questioning, they’re interrogating, there’s an electronic trail — but everybody knows it’s Leno.”

Denise Richards has turned down an offer to appear on the premiere episode of “Two and a Half Men” because she thinks her ex, Charlie Sheen, would make her life miserable….she’d never hear the end of it!   TMZ surmises that Chuck Lorre wanted Denise there with Ashton Kutcher to upset Charlie as much as possible.  The two famously don’t get along.

Jennifer Garner and Ben Affleck are pregnant again! The couple, who are parents to two daughters …Violet, 5½, and Seraphina, 2½, said they are “thrilled” to be expecting their third child.

Because she’s gotten pregnant, Hilary Duff has been dropped from the movie,“The Story of Bonnie and Clyde”.  Duff was supposed to play Bonnie Parker in the upcoming film.  It’s being reported that the split was amicable and directors are
already looking for a new Bonnie.

Liam Gallagher says he’s suing his brother Noel for telling the world Oasis bailed on a 2009 music festival because Liam was too “hung over to perform” … Now he wants to prove that Liam is lying.  Liam claims the truth is he was suffering from laryngitis and he has a doctor’s note to prove it.  He adds, “I tried to resolve this amicably but have been left with no choice but legal action. All I want is an apology.”

Machine Gun Kelly, (geez…what an original name…) a Cleveland-based rapper signed to P. Diddy’s label, has been arrested, for organizing a flash mob and at a food court in the South Park mall.  When Kelly refused to get down off a table
while “raging,” the police arrested him.

While they haven’t officially renewed the show, Oxygen is getting ready to start casting for a second season of  “The Glee Project”.  Formal casting will likely start this fall. Season 2 is expected to have four or five open castings around the country.

Betty White broke the heart of retired NBA superstar, Shaquille O’Neal, 39.  In a video posted on O’Neal’s Twitter, the basketball star kisses the 89-year-old on the hand and asks her to marry him. “You’re too old for me,” Betty scolds and slaps him across the face. Funny.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, August 23rd, 2011 at 8:50 AM and is filed under The Jane Report. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.