Thanks to Falk’s affectionately genuine portrayal, Lt. Columbo established himself for all time as a champion of any viewer who ever felt less than graceful, elegant or well-spoken.

Falk died Thursday at age 83 in his Beverly Hills, Calif., home, according to a statement released Friday by family friend Larry Larson. In a court document filed in December 2008, Falk’s daughter Catherine Falk said her father was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.

But Columbo lives on as the ideal of anyone with a smudge on his tie, whose car isn’t the sportiest, who typically seems clueless, who gets dissed by fancy people.

As a police detective, Columbo’s interview technique was famously disjointed, with his inevitable awkward after-thought (“Ahhh, there’s just one more thing…”) trying the patience of his suspect when he was already halfway out the door.

Columbo was underestimated, patronized or simply overlooked by nearly everyone he met — especially the culprit.

And yet Columbo, drawing on inner pluck for only he (and an actor as skilled as Falk) could have accounted, always prevailed. Contrary to all evidence (that is, until he nailed the bad guy), Columbo always knew what he was doing.

Even more inspiring for viewers, he was unconcerned with how other people saw him. He seemed to be perfectly happy with himself, his life, his pet bassett, Dog, his wheezing Peugeot, and his never-seen wife. A squat man chewing cigars in a rumpled trench coat, he stands tall among TV’s most self-assured heroes.

What viewer won’t take solace forever from the lessons that Columbo taught by his enduring example?

Columbo — he never had a first name — presented a refreshing contrast to other TV detectives. “He looks like a flood victim,” Falk once said. “You feel sorry for him. He appears to be seeing nothing, but he’s seeing everything. Underneath his dishevelment, a good mind is at work.”

On another occasion, he described Columbo as “an ass-backwards Sherlock Holmes.”

Somehow fittingly, Falk — the perfect choice — failed to be the first choice. Instead, it was easygoing crooner Bing Crosby, who, fortunately, passed on the project.

With Falk in place, “Columbo” began its run in 1971 as part of the NBC Sunday Mystery Movie series, appearing every third week. The show became by far the most popular of the three mysteries, the others being “McCloud” and “McMillan and Wife.”

Falk was reportedly paid $250,000 a movie and could have made much more if he had accepted an offer to convert “Columbo” into a weekly series. He declined, reasoning that carrying a weekly detective series would be too great a burden.

NBC canceled the three series in 1977. In 1989 ABC offered “Columbo” in a two-hour format usually appearing once or twice a season. The movies continued into the 21st century. “Columbo” appeared in 26 foreign countries and was a particular favorite in France and Iran.

Columbo’s trademark was an ancient raincoat Falk had once bought for himself. After 25 years on television, the coat became so tattered it had to be replaced.

Falk was already an experienced Broadway actor and two-time Oscar nominee when he began playing Columbo. And, long before then, he had demonstrated a bit of Columbo-worthy spunk: at 3, he had one eye removed because of cancer.

Then, when he was starting as an actor in New York, an agent told him, “Of course, you won’t be able to work in movies or TV because of your eye.” And after failing a screen test at Columbia Pictures, he was told by studio boss Harry Cohn that “for the same price I can get an actor with two eyes.”

Falk proved otherwise, even before “Columbo,” picking up back-to-back Oscar nominations as best supporting actor for the 1960 mob drama “Murder, Inc.” and Frank Capra’s last film, the 1961 comedy-drama “Pocketful of Miracles.”

Peter Michael Falk was born in 1927, in New York City and grew up in Ossining, N.Y., where his parents ran a clothing store.

After serving as a cook in the merchant marine and receiving a master’s degree in public administration from Syracuse University, Falk worked as an efficiency expert for the budget bureau of the state of Connecticut.

He also acted in amateur theater and was encouraged to become a professional by actress-teacher Eva Le Gallienne.

An appearance in “The Iceman Cometh” off-Broadway led to other parts, among them Josef Stalin in Paddy Chayefsky’s 1964 “The Passion of Josef D.” In 1971, Falk scored a hit in Neil Simon’s “The Prisoner of Second Avenue,” Tony-nominated for best play.

Falk made his film debut in 1958 with “Wind Across the Everglades” and established himself as a talented character actor with his performance as the vicious killer Abe Reles in “Murder, Inc.”

Among his other movies: “It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World,” “Robin and the Seven Hoods,” “The Great Race,” “Luv,” “Castle Keep,” “The Cheap Detective,” “The Brinks Job,” “The In-Laws,” and “The Princess Bride.”

Falk also appeared in a number of art house favorites, including the semi-improvisational films “Husbands” and “A Woman Under the Influence,” directed by his friend John Cassavetes, and Wim Wenders’ “Wings of Desire,” in which he played himself, wondering if the director approves of his work.

Falk became prominent in television movies, beginning with his first Emmy for “The Price of Tomatoes” in 1961. His four other Emmys were for “Columbo.”

He was married to pianist Alyce Mayo in 1960; they had two daughters, Jackie and Catherine, and divorced in 1976. The following year he married actress Shera Danese. They filed for divorce twice and reconciled each time.

When not working, Falk spent time in the garage of his Beverly Hills home. He had converted it into a studio where he created charcoal drawings. He took up art in New York when he was in the Simon play and one day happened into the Art Students League.

He recalled: “I opened a door and there she was, a nude model, shoulders back, a light from above, buck-ass naked. The female body is awesome. Believe me, I signed up right away.”

Falk is survived by his wife Shera and his two daughters.

According to the AP, La Toya says in the new work that she spoke with her niece Paris, who said that in the days before Michael’s death, he was “always cold” and would “always cry.” La Toya also writes about her confrontation with Dr. Conrad Murray in the hospital, where he was evasive and made excuses.

La Toya also says MIchael’s bedroom was found “torn to pieces” following his death and that she found notes she says were written by Michael where he says he has to “get these people out of my life.”

Finally, La Toya writes that she has talked with many other friends and family who were suspicious of Michael’s final days and how he died. This second memoir from La Toya shares a title with her unreleased 2003 album, “Startin’ Over,” and to coincide with the book’s release, an EP called “Starting Over” will be released as well, followed by another single a month later and the full-length album by year’s end.

Jermaine Jackson, another brother in the family, has a book coming out in September.

The Music Group launched by Barber, DJ Fade, and numerous of behind the scenes people, that Barber described as “Free Thinkers”, has sealed distribution with Best Buy, Itunes, Amazon, Walmart, as well as Rhapsody, Napster, and 22 other online streaming sites. The real key behind the launch of the E.C.P might be the worldwide distribution, and the fact that they are ready with distribution in 13 Countries in some very interesting places. From Australia to four countries in Europe, to Japan, and back to Canada, the main key is the locations. From Coffee and Head Shops to even SuperMarkets, ECP has decided against using a standard, register with Soundscan, type of distribution.

“Is it about releasing a product that people actually get to listen to, or about numbers on a manipulated system?” Barber said in an interview with One on One Fashion Magazine.

The company is also working on the development of a new distribution gadget that is similar to the Ipod but with Blue Tooth and beyond technology. The access to that unnamed device, that is just beyond blueprint and patent phase, is set for a Christmas release of 2010. The details are limited, but LA Fitness will play a role.

“We have some great people on board,

Publicist Steve Rohr, who represents Carter and her husband, actor Hal Holbrook, said Carter died Saturday morning. He would not disclose where she died or the cause of death. Carter and Holbrook lived in the Los Angeles area.

“This has been a terrible blow to our family,” Holbrook said in a written statement. “We would appreciate everyone understanding that this is a private family tragedy.”

A native of Tennessee, Carter was most famous for playing wisecracking Southerner Julia Sugarbaker for seven years on “Designing Women,” the CBS sitcom that ran from 1986 to 1993. The series was the peak of a career in which she often played wealthy and self-important but independent Southern women.

She was nominated for an Emmy in 2007 for her seven-episode guest stint on the ABC hit “Desperate Housewives.”

Carter’s other credits include roles on the series “Family Law” and “Different Strokes.”

She married Holbrook in 1984. The two had met four years earlier while making the TV movie “The Killing of Randy Webster,” and although attracted to one another, each had suffered two failed marriages and were wary at first.

They finally wed two years before Carter landed her role on “Designing Women.” Holbrook appeared on the show regularly in the late 1980s as her boyfriend, Reese Watson.

The two appeared together in her final project, the 2009 independent film “That Evening Sun,” shot in Tennessee and based on a short story by Southern novelist William Gay.

The middle of three children, Carter was born in 1939 in McLemoresville, Tenn.

Carter was the daughter of a grocery and department store owner who died just three years ago at 96. She said at the time of his death that he taught her to believe in people’s essential goodness.

“When I asked him how he handled shoplifting in his new store, which had a lot of goods on display, making it impossible to keep an eye on everything, he said, ‘Most people are honest, and if they weren’t, you couldn’t stay in business because a thief will find a way to steal,’” Carter said. “‘You can’t really protect yourself, but papa and I built our business believing most people are honest and want to do right by you.’”

Carter grew up in Carroll County and made her stage debut in a 1960 production of “Carousel” in Memphis. It was the beginning of a decades-long stage career in which she relied on her singing voice as much as her acting.

She appeared in TV soap operas in the 1970s, but did not become a national star until her recurring roles on “Different Strokes” and another series, “Filthy Rich,” in the 1980s.

Those two parts led to her role on “Designing Women,” a comedy about the lives of four women at an interior design firm in Atlanta.

Carter and Delta Burke played the sparring sisters who ran the firm. The series also starred Annie Potts and Jean Smart.

The show, whose reruns have rarely left the airwaves, was not a typical sitcom. It tackled such topics as sexism, ageism, body image and AIDS.

“It was something so unique, because there had never been anything quite like it,” Potts told The Associated Press at a 2006 cast reunion. “We had Lucy and Ethel, but we never had that exponentially expanded, smart, attractive women who read newspapers and had passions about things and loved each other and stood by each other.”

Carter appeared on the drama “Family Law” from 1999 to 2002, and in her last major TV appearance she played Gloria Hodge, the surly mother-in-law to Marcia Cross’s Bree on “Desperate Housewives.”

Carter said the role was far from the kindly woman she played on “Designing Women.”

“It’s a vast difference,” Carter said while filming the series. “Gloria Hodge doesn’t have any redeeming qualities except her intelligence.”

In addition to Holbrook, Carter is survived by daughters Mary Dixie and Ginna.

The facility — Sierra Tucson — specializes in drug, alcohol and sex addiction, as well as other disorders. TMZ broke the story last night.

Multiple law enforcement sources have told TMZ when a CHP officer stopped Jesse last Friday on the 10 Freeway near Blythe, CA. — for driving without a front license plate and driving with tinted windows — James told the officer he was going to Arizona to try to save his marriage to Sandra Bullock.

We have now learned from our law enforcement sources that James was specific — that he was going to a rehab facility in Tucson.

A TMZ producer called Sierra Tucson and spoke with a therapist, who told us Jesse was at the facility and in fact had a 6 PM treatment Tuesday night.

Jesse’s rep acknowledged he’s in rehab.

Story Courtesy of TMZ

– Singer Sade responds to UK critics who chastise her singing abilities in a cover story for the British lifestyle magazine Pride.

After more than a decade-long hiatus, Sade’s latest CD ‘Soldier of Love’ has already sold more than one million copies since it was released on Feb. 8.

The wild-styled singer fired back at her former producer Friday in a lawsuit saying he’s the one who broke the law by duping her into signing an illegal contract.

Lady Gaga’s ex-lover and producer, Rob Fusari, sued the singer for more than $30 million on Thursday, claiming he came up with her stage name and co-wrote some of her hit songs.

But Gaga’s lawsuit says the contract between her and Fusari is invalid because Fusari was not a licensed talent agent.

Not only do Gaga’s lawyers want Fusari’s suit thrown out, they want him to pay damages to the superstar singer for trying to take advantage of an “inexperienced performing artist.”

Fusari made Lady Gaga, whose real name is Stefani Germanotta, “enter into an unlawful arrangement” when he made her sign a contract giving him rights to her future earnings, the suit says, calling his actions “predatory and financially abusive.”

“The … arrangement was structured in such a way as to mask its true purpose – to provide the defendant unlawful compensation for their services as unlicensed employment agents,” the suit says.

Germanotta and Fusari met in March 2006 when he was looking for a female rocker with “garage band chops,” according to his lawsuit.

The producer, who worked with Destiny’s Child on “Bootylicious,” says he persuaded Germanotta to add dance beats to her music and call herself Lady Gaga.

Fusari’s lawyer, Robert Meloni, called the claim “ludicrous” when he read the suit last night.

“Rob was no more of an ‘agent’ for her than she is a Roman Catholic nun,” Meloni said.

Bryant was splashed all over a poster promoting a party at Bacy’s and sponsored by a magazine that features barely-clothed women.

Kobe would never comment on the hosting gig, but the club insisted it had a signed contract. But when we arrived last night, there were signs posted saying Kobe would not be appearing the promoter and the patrons were none too pleased.

“The thing is me and Lee hadn’t see each other in a long time, and then he was presenting my award, so he starts off immediately with inside jokes,” Carey said backstage at the People’s Choice Awards Wednesday night, where she was named favorite R&B artist.

“We had splashes of champagne, and I love Lee but he’s a bad influence,” the singer said and laughed.

Carey gave a long, rambling acceptance speech after being named Breakthrough Actress for her performance in “Precious: Based on the Novel ‘Push’ by Sapphire” on Tuesday. Daniels directed the movie.

The video of her speech was one of the most popular on the Internet, and led to jokes at Carey’s expense.

The 40-year-old says she was rushing to receive the honor and didn’t eat enough. She also says people shouldn’t take the speech too serious.

“If people don’t understand me and think I’m just like this girl that stands by a microphone and sings ‘Hero,’ then they’re definitely not going to get me,” she explained. “But if people knew me better, they would understand I have a sense of humor, and basically that’s what gets me through life.”