Grapevine: Singer Pickler named new ‘Dancing’ champion

Kellie Pickler came into the final “Dancing With the Stars” episode in second place but finished in first.

Lawyer: No background check done on Jackson doctor

AEG Live LLC did not conduct any background checks or supervise the doctor who was later convicted of killing Michael Jackson, a corporate attorney testified Tuesday.

Radio’s ‘Blaine & Allyson’ want to see higher standards for who’s noteworthy

You have to draw the line someplace, and for one of Detroit’s most successful radio teams, Farrah Abraham is on the wrong side of it.

Mack Emerman, founder of studio where James Brown, Eric Clapton recorded, dies

Miami — Mack Emerman, the founder of Criteria Recording Studios where acts including Eric Clapton, James Brown and the Bee Gees made some of their most famous records, has died after a long illness, according to his daughter. He was 89.

Grapevine: Billboard awards’ TV ratings up

Miguel leg-dropped a fan, Justin Bieber got booed and a whole lot of people tuned in as Sunday’s Billboard Music Awards scored its highest ratings in 12 years.

Key moments in Jackson-AEG trial

Los Angeles — A look at key moments this past week in the wrongful death trial in Los Angeles between Michael Jackson's mother, Katherine Jackson, and concert giant AEG Live LLC, and what is expected at court in the week ahead:

Society confidential: Glamour gal Eva Mendes goes thrifting

You won’t find any breathless accounts of Ryan Gosling sightings here, but we thought it was cute when we heard about actress Eva Mendes (Gosling’s real-life girlfriend) visiting the second-hand store Showcase Collectibles on Cass in Midtown recently.

Bieber will have to pay for German monkey business

Berlin — German officials say Justin Bieber will have to pay the bill for his monkey's two-month stay at a Munich animal shelter.

Angelina Jolie's cancer testing may help millions of at-risk women

Angelina Jolie, named the highest-paid actress in Hollywood by Forbes in 2011, said she had a double mastectomy after learning she has a gene mutation linked to breast cancer, the disease that killed her mother at age 56.

• Interactive: Breast cancer by the numbers

Grapevine: Beyoncé cancellation fuels pregnancy rumors

Can’t Beyoncé cancel a concert without everyone getting all up in her business? Apparently not: When Queen Bey bailed on her concert in Belgium on Tuesday citing “dehydration and exhaustion,” tabloids took that as further evidence Mrs. Jay-Z is pregnant with her second child.

Crohn's & Colitis group welcomes record crowds, donations

The dozen or so cars spilling out onto Maple Road at the entrance to Oakland Hills Country Club on Thursday was the first indication that the Crohn's & Colitis Foundation of America's Sixth Annual Fashion Show Luncheon was well attended.

Grapevine: Pop psychologist Joyce Brothers dies

Joyce Brothers, the pop psychologist who pioneered the television advice show in the 1950s and enjoyed a long and prolific career as a syndicated columnist, author, and television and film personality, has died. She was 85.

Aretha Franklin talks movies and music

Long before she became the queen of soul, Aretha Franklin sang in her father’s Baptist church in Detroit. Two days ago, she headlined the annual McDonald’s Gospelfest at the Prudential Center in Newark, N.J. Donnie McClurkin, Hezekiah Walker and Cissy Houston were featured. But that wasn’t the only event on Franklin’s calendar.

J.J. Abrams boldly going from 'Trek' to 'Star Wars'

The director who rebooted 'Star Trek' for a new generation, sending the USS Enterprise out again to explore strange new worlds, has also been put at the 'Star ...

Barbara Walters to start taking steps to retirement

Veteran ABC News anchor Barbara Walters is set to announce this morning on “The View" that she will retire from TV journalism next summer.

Chris Brown’s curbside art irks L.A. neighbors

Los Angeles — Grammy-winning musician Chris Brown's neighbors are unhappy with what some are calling frightening art he's chosen to have painted along ...

Grapevine: NBC adds more, cancels more

NBC made a few announcements regarding the fate of some shows as it celebrated new ones. It pulled the plug Friday on Brian Williams’ newsmagazine “Rock ...

Society confidential: Burt to Aretha: Let’s work together

Metro Detroit celeb photog Linda Solomon was in New York this week shooting songwriter Burt Bacharach as he was interviewed by Elvis Costello for a Sirius XM ...

Kate Upton goes ‘Vogue,’ covering its June issue

New York — Kate Upton has gone from a Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue cover model to the front page of Vogue.

Crowds swoon, but Prince Harry is all business

WASHINGTON — The throngs swooned, but Prince Harry was having none of it.

‘Sugar Man’ Sixto Rodriguez tells WSU grads 'well done'

The Detroit musician who’s suddenly become one of Wayne State University’s more prominent alumni wished the class of 2013 good luck today as he received an ...

Grapevine: Kid Rock holding bartender contest

Do you have what it takes to be Kid Rock 's bartender? Mr. "Bawitdaba" is teaming with Jim Beam for a contest to find someone who can go on the road with him ...

Kris Kross rapper’s funeral held in Atlanta

Atlanta — Chris Smith remembered his Kris Kross hip-hop partner Chris Kelly on Thursday as a true friend who he's sure is in heaven now.

‘Young and Restless’ star Jeanne Cooper dies at 84

Los Angeles — Jeanne Cooper, the enduring soap opera star who played grande dame Katherine Chancellor for nearly four decades on "The Young and the ...

Madonna’s French painting sells in New York for $7.2M

New York — A French painting owned by Madonna has sold at a New York City auction for more than $7 million.

'Charlie Brown' actor to be sentenced for stalking

San Diego — The man who was the voice of Charlie Brown in several "Peanuts" television shows faces possible prison time for stalking and threatening his ...

Heavy metal band singer arrested in murder-for-hire sting

Oceanside, Calif. — The lead singer of Grammy-nominated heavy metal band As I Lay Dying was arrested Tuesday in Southern California as authorities said ...

Grapevine: Kobe in fight with his mom over memorabilia

It looks like it won’t be a happy Mother’s Day weekend for Kobe Bryant and his mother, Pamela Bryant. TMZ reported last week Bryant and his mom are at odds ...