Britney Spears Inspired Gwyneth Paltrow's 'Country Strong' Character

For a character like Gwyneth Paltrow's struggling addict star in "Country Strong," you'd think the source material would be more Winona Judd than Britney Spears. But you'd be wrong.

The once-embattled Spears served as inspiration for "Country Strong" writer-director Shana Feste, who says the media lifts talent to great heights only to destroy it.

"That's where this movie came from. I mean, I was seeing what was happening in the media to Britney Spears," Feste told the Ministry at a Los Angeles screening of the film.

"I finished the script when Michael Jackson passed away. I think it's tragic how we treat people who give us so much, and we love to see them knocked down to build them back up again, to knock them down again.

"It's a weird fascination."

Source: LA Times

The Decade's Top Earners

10. Britney Spears, $494.3 million. Despite a rocky decade personally and professionally, Spears pulled in $195.7 million at the box office and sold $298.6 million worth of albums for the 10-year period.

Source: LA Times

Britney Did NOT Ignore Kids at TCA

The following italicized article is from www.latimesblogs.com:

According to the New York Daily News and Perez Hilton, a greedy Britney Spears was too busy grabbing swag for herself at the Teen Choice Awards and left her two young rude sons unattended.

One of them was reported to have cussed while in the suite.

"We were all surprised by their potty mouths, but it was actually pretty funny," one onlooker reportedly said.

But the person who was escorting Britney and her sons Jayden James and Sean Preston says that's all nonsense.

"She never stopped at one sponsor station," the escort tells the Dish Rag. "It was all about the kids. She was devoted to them and was with them the whole time. They were even having a great time with Band Hero and they were all playing with Hasbro's new Bop-It."

"She never left the boys' side," our source says. "She could not have been sweeter, and portraying her as an inattentive mother is not true and so not fair."

Our source says she never heard either boy swear. And they didn't steal the drumsticks -- as reported by the Gatecrasher in the Daily News -- from Band Hero either.

"They were playing with the sticks. They're just kids and they loved them. So we let them take those and got real drumsticks from the stage so that others could play with them too. They didn't steal anything."

So don't believe every bad thing you read. Especially when it's about Britney.

She's had a rough time and has come a long way. Give the girl a break!

Source: LA Times

Guess Who's Making $10 Million A Year Off Britney Spears?

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

It's expensive being Britney Spears.

According to LA Now, attorneys for her father, Jaime Spears -- who has permanent control of her personal affairs -- submitted docs to the LA Superior Court last Friday showing it costs a little shy of $1 million a month.

A MONTH?

Yes, Jamie Spears and his attorney spent more than $10 million on the singer’s behalf over 11 months in 2008.

But here's where it gets interesting. Over a third of the money paid out – $3.6 million – went to lawyers.

Around 17 attorneys have worked on Spears' matters since February 2008, after she was declared unfit to manage her own affairs.

Spears has paid $168,790 to her conservator dad for his trouble, and her former husband, Kevin Federline, got $178,818 for child support for their two sons.

Poor Britney received $55,500 in spending money.

$55,000? Wow. That's hardly enough to keep a girl in designer jeans.

Her assets have been estimated at over $100 million. But we may never know for sure because it's all in private trusts. How convenient for those lawyers.

Don't worry your pretty little head about it, Brit-Brit. Just keep touring. ...

Source: LA Times

Larry Rudolph: Britney's Amazing

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

Whose idea was it to do a documentary?

It evolved out of a conversation that Britney and I had five or six months ago where the big question was what she was going to do in terms of talking to the public, presenting herself to the public. She really wanted to be able to tell her story, talk about where she's been, where she is today and where she is going. She wanted to do it very honestly, but on her own terms. I think there is a part of her that is tired of allowing the media to guide her image and her story. She wanted to tell that story herself.

What was the turning point for her? When did she decide she was ready to try again?

There just came a moment where she decided to get up, brush herself off and move forward. She had hit a low point in her life. She realized that and everybody else realized that. She wanted to get to a better place.

One thing that struck me in the footage shown was that she didn’t always seem very happy. She looked sullen during quite a bit of it. Why do you think she keeps going? She's putting out another album, going on tour…

I think she keeps going because she knows there's a beginning, middle and end to this. She realizes that there are better times ahead. She's already in a much better place than she was not that long ago and she knows that she's going to be in a better place a month from now, six months from now, a year from now, etc. That's what keeps her going. She's doing what she loves right now. Every day she's found more happiness in her life.

In the documentary, she talked about how scheduled and structured her life has been. She still seems pretty busy now. How have things really changed for her?

There was a stretch where she became very unbusy in terms of her career. I think she got into some trouble because maybe she had too much free time on her hands. She likes to work. In many ways, she's defined by her career. Getting her career where she wants it to be now is a big part of who she is.

You've known her since she was a child, but at one point, Britney let you go. Now you're back working with her again. Why have you stuck by her throughout everything?

It hasn't really been a rocky relationship. The reality is we stopped working together right around when she got married to Kevin because she wanted that. She didn't want a career at that point. She wanted to have kids and take on a new phase of her life and she did. Then we got back together for a short period of time last year, which was a very difficult time for her. And really she was not in a position at that point to do what she's doing now. Then she decided it was time to pick herself up and move forward and I came back.

Was there any hesitation to continue working with her after the ups and downs?

I've known this girl for over half her life, since she was 13. We have a very close friendship, but it's sort of hard for me to explain my relationship with her. It's a friendship, it's a business relationship, there are some paternal aspects to it. We get along very well. I understand her better than everyone other than her immediate family. There's a shorthand we use in terms of dealing with each other that just works. The bottom line is I think she's amazing. I love her. She's been a big part of my life, and I've been a big part of her life. Being a part of this new phase in her career is something I was very open to.

Source: LA Times

Britney Spears Rides "Womanizer" To No. 1

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

Britney Spears is hot, hot, hot once again, scoring the biggest leap to No. 1 in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 Singles chart. Her new “Womanizer” rocketed from No. 96 to No. 1. The track registered 286,000 downloads last week, according to Billboard, the highest figure for a female artist since Nielsen SoundScan began tracking downloads in 2003.

"Womanizer" edged out Mariah Carey ’s “Touch My Body,” the previous record holder, by just 200 downloads, Billboard noted. It’s the first single from Spears' forthcoming “Circus” album, due Dec. 2.

On the album chart, T.I.’s “Paper Trail” is on top again, selling 177,000 copies during its second week. Rise Against’s “Appeal to Reason” entered at No. 3 with first week sales of 65,0000 copies.

Oasis' “Dig Out Your Soul” bows at No. 5, selling 53,000 copies out of the gate. It’s the British group’s first Top 10 album since “Be Here Now” came out in 1997.

Bob Dylan landed right behind Oasis at No. 6 with the eighth volume in his “Bootleg Series” of albums culled from his archive of previously unreleased material, “Tell Tale Signs,” spanning tracks he recorded from 1989-2006. It’s also the best reviewed album of 2008 so far, scoring a composite 91 points (out of a possible 100) at Metacritic.com.

Source: LA Times

Snap Judgment On Britney Spears' 'Womanizer'

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

And so we awaken to a new Britney Spears single to distract us from the collapse of yet another major financial institution. (Shout out to all my peeps in the "Washington Mutual" state!) "Womanizer" is just the shot of Jolt Cola pop fans need right now: It's mechanical as heck, sure, and predictable too, but somehow it still draws you in. More like grabs your collar, forces you down onto a cane-back chair and yanks you in. Oh, wait, that's the choreography for the upcoming video.

The good: Retro-futurism takes a roller coaster ride via the snappy staccato beats crafted by the young Atlanta-based production team the Outsydas. It's clean and contemporary but also invokes the quick-witted style of vocal groups like the Andrews Sisters -- a style Brit's rival, Christina Aguilera, has mined to great success before. The highly manipulated vocal complements Brit's Mississippi Valley Girl diction; though she's been turned into a robot (again), she actually sounds engaged. And the lyric, about the kind of girl power that's focused on besting one obnoxious man, is also vintage and contemporary at the same time -- more feminism as individualism, which we all know is hot at the moment.

The bad: This song most emphatically does not swing. The very things that pull in a listener -- the song's jerky repetitiveness, the catchy staccato elements, Britney's voice pushed against your ear -- are going to get really irritating after three days of this song being everywhere.

The conclusion: Britney's back. She actually seems to be awake this time. This is only the beginning.

Source: LA Times

Hot Property: Britney Spears puts Beverly Hills house on the market for $7.9 million

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

Googling " Britney Spears" just now yielded 98,600,000 hits; googling " President Bush," 44,600,000. Makes you wonder what's wrong with this planet, doesn't it?

Nevertheless, here's one more contribution to Google: Britney Spears, pop princess or pop pariah, has listed her Beverly Hills Post Office home for $7.9 million.

The house is in a gated community and has about 7,500 square feet, with six bedrooms and 6 1/2 bathrooms. There's a wet bar, a library, a den, high ceilings and stone and mosaic tile floors. The master bedroom has a fireplace and a loggia. Then there's the pool, spa and arbor. It is being offered for sale partially furnished and decorated. And we suspect neighbors are popping open Champagne bottles.

This is the very same house that Spears was wrenched from in January by a well-executed LAPD plan to skirt the paparazzi and have the singer involuntarily committed to a psychiatric ward at UCLA Medical Center.

Neighbors are unlikely to forget that winter night with helicopters buzzing overhead and more than 100 paparazzi who chase Spears for a living hovering at the gates.

Spears, whose every move has been dutifully recorded by paparazzi, the courts, her fans and her detesters, was last seen looking for a new place to live in the Hidden Hills and Calabasas areas. Definitely gated.

The midriff-baring 26-year-old singer is planning a tour -- or at least so says her mother. So maybe her new neighbors won't have the same headaches that her old neighbors had.

Tomer Fridman of Ewing & Associates, Sotheby's International Realty in Calabasas, has the listing, according to the Multiple Listing Service.

Source: LA Times

Britney: "I Wanted To Experiment," Records 30 Tracks

If you're wondering what Spears has been up to this summer, the answer is: nothing scandalous. During the past four months, Spears has recorded some 30 tracks for her sixth studio album. "I wanted to experiment with producers I haven't worked with much before, like the Underdogs, who have a Timbaland kind of sound," says Spears from an L.A. studio where pop craftsmen like Dr. Luke ("I Kissed a Girl") and Danja teamed up with Spears for her comeback disc. Among the contenders are the thickly layered bump-and-grind of "Circus" and "Womanizer," produced by the Atlanta team the Outsyders. "I came into the studio because I had some free time," she says. "But once I started working, I was like, 'This is cool!' It just happened."

Source: LA Times

Britney Spears Threatens Encore At MTV Video Music Awards

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

While appearing with a 900-pound elephant, nobody can call Britney Spears fat again when she's doing a MTV gig.

But that is Britney's costar on the TV screen while dishing with Russell Brand, the little-known British comic who's hosting the upcoming MTV Video Music Awards. It's one of the cheeky promos teasing the Sept. 7 event.

At one point Brand suggests that there is sexual tension between them, but Britney shrugs, "I didn't feel any tension." Wait . . . that supposed to be hilarious, right?

And wait again. Does this mean that Britney will be performing again at the crazy kudofest?

Reuters reminds us: "Spears, coming off two marriages, two children and two stints in rehab, sought to launch a comeback on last year’s show with a performance of the song 'Gimme More.' Instead, she drew a torrent of ridicule for lumbering around on stage in an ill-fitting black bikini as she awkwardly lip-synced her way through the dance number. The incident proved a publicity bomb for Spears but a ratings boon for MTV."

Coyly, MTV won't say whether or not Britney will be part of the entertainment, but she's scheduled to attend because she's got two nominations for "Piece of Me."

Despite 16 nominations, Britney's never won an MTV Video Music Award. Now she competes against Mariah Carey, Katy Perry, Rihanna and Jordin Sparks for best female video and against Danity Kane, the Jonas Brothers, Panic at the Disco and Tokio Hotel for the best pop video.

Source: LA Times

Britney Spears Is Gone In A Flash

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

She's rarely seen now, and when she appears, she's good. And that's bad for the paparazzi.

To the mortgage crisis and the energy crunch and the devalued dollar, add this: a recession in the Britney market.

The young woman who rose and fell (and fell and fell) in the paparazzi's strobe lights seems to have put bizarre public displays behind her, and the photographers who made hundreds and thousands -- and in some cases, hundreds of thousands -- capturing her missteps must look elsewhere for celebrities more predictably unpredictable.

"She's boring. She doesn't even have a boyfriend," said Francois Navarre, the co-owner of X17, the photo agency that set the standard for aggressive 24/7 coverage of Britney Spears.

The Spears of today may not be any more boring than dozens of celebrities who fill magazines, but she is decidedly duller than her former self. Photographers who relied on her for hourly material for the gossip blogs are confronted by a lack of access and a lack of drama. She rarely goes out and when she does, she behaves herself. No umbrella attacks. No head shaving. No fake British accent. No panty-free car exits.

Agencies that dispatched SUV-loads of freelancers to track her every move last year have downsized their Britney teams.

"At the height of the story, we had maybe six or eight guys on it round the clock," said Chris Doherty, owner of INF, which sells pictures to magazines, websites and TV shows. "Now we would have at most two. There's no real point to being there all the time."

Spears' allure remains, as evidenced by two paparazzi arrested last week near her residence, but the coverage does not compare to the intense stakeouts that proceeded her confinement in a psychiatric ward in January.

A commissioner in Los Angeles County Superior Court subsequently named her father, Jamie, co-conservator of her and her estate, giving him and a lawyer control of the 26-year-old's medical care, finances and day-to-day activities.

Out went the paparazzi-friendly advisor, the British-accented outbursts and the aimless driving excursions that sent caravans of photographers coursing through the city. In came meals at home, family talks, conferences with attorneys and, on a good day, dance class.

The structure and supervision transformed Spears' life for the better, her representatives say.

Ten months after she lost custody of her sons, she finalized an agreement with her ex-husband that provides for gradually expanding visitation rights. She is reportedly back in the recording studio. On the rare occasions she ventures out, the gossip sites that documented her woes have congratulated her on her healthy, happy appearances.

It is welcome news for her family but an enormous change for those used to translating Spears' intemperance into a paycheck.

"Her father is doing what a good parent would do, but that doesn't help the paparazzi," said Bonnie Fuller, who was editor of Star magazine and Us Weekly when Spears was a staple.

"She's not going out with her former BFFs Paris and Lindsay anymore," Fuller said, referring to Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan.

Before the court intervened, Spears was seemingly omni-available to the videographers and still photographers who camped outside her Studio City gated community.

She dated a paparazzo. Her closest friend and advisor, Sam Lutfi, allowed photographers into Spears' house and provided them with information about her comings and goings, according to her mother, Lynne.

Her spacey ramblings and constant wardrobe changes made her a tabloid photographer's dream. Every rant meant salable video; each new outfit meant fresh photos. The prices that photos fetch are often overstated, but Navarre said an exclusive photo of Spears today would only bring a 10th of what it did during her most erratic times.

"Then it could sell for $10,000 to $15,000, but now it would be hard to get over $1,500," he said.

Others who sell photos disagreed, saying the smaller number of paparazzi has kept the prices relatively stable.

Navarre's agency, X17, had 25 people assigned to Spears duty earlier this year. Now it's fewer than 10, he said.

On a recent weekend, "we were the only ones," he said.

Nick Stern, a veteran photojournalist who quit his photo agency in disgust at the apex of Spears' coverage, said many photographers who tracked her were foreigners drawn by the relatively easy money. When their access to Spears dried up, Stern said, they had no incentive to stay on the beat or even in the field.

"These guys don't really have any interest in the media or reporting news. It was about money. I wouldn't be surprised if many of the snappers covering Britney have moved on to other jobs or other parts of the U.S. or even back to their home countries," said Stern, chief photographer for the Australian agency Crocmedia.

Some have refocused on up-and-coming celebrities, including Miley Cyrus and the Jonas Brothers.

An attorney for Spears said the singer did not miss the glare.

"Britney and her family are delighted to dis-incentivize the outrageous behavior of the paparazzi," lawyer Blair Berk said.

Her neighbors have noted the shrinking number of lenses camped outside the guardhouse.

"At the peak, there were 25, but now it's down to three or four," said Jim DeBoard, a resident of the Summit.

He said it had been about six months since he saw paparazzi breaking traffic laws to get behind Spears' vehicle.

"We are still all amazed at how crazy it was," DeBoard said.

The paparazzi's presence may never again reach the levels that preceded Spears' hospitalizations, but neither is it likely to remain as low as it is now, those in the industry say.

Eventually, she will resume a more public life, they say, and when she does, the cameras will be waiting.

"If Britney were to walk out tonight with a new boyfriend, we could still command high prices for those photos," Doherty said.

Frank Griffin, a partner in the Bauer-Griffin photo agency, said the reduced coverage of Spears was proof that the safe money is in happy stories.

"At the end of the day, people don't want to see train wrecks. Yes, they might want to see the mighty fall, but they don't want to kick dirt in their faces," Griffin said.

In the long run, he said, flattering photos of babies, new romances and weight loss trump even the most unflinching views of scandal.

"I guarantee if Britney were lying on the beach with Brad Pitt in a skinny bikini, it would be absolutely crazy," Griffin said.

Source: LA Times

Britney Spears gives custody to Kevin Federline (and $5,000 more a month)

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

It's over, and Kevin Federline scored big time. And Britney has lost her kids.

According to the final custody agreement reached today (but not yet finalized), KFed gets sole legal and physical custody of Sean Preston and Jayden James.

And a five-grand increase in child support, going from $15,000 a month to $20,000.

And Britney Spears? She gets to keep seeing her kids with overnight visits. There's always a chance that in time she will get more custody.

But for right now, it's a monitered visitation deal. And, according to her lawyer, Laura Wasser, she has her kids tonight.

Maybe it's for the best — and in the best interest of the children right now — but it's sad when a mom loses custody of her kids.

Source: LA Times

Britney Spears-Following Paparazzi Arrested For Loitering Near Singer's Los Angeles Home

The following italicized article is from www.mtv.com:

Two booked as part of LAPD crackdown on aggressive photographers.

For the past year, we'd gotten used to the nearly daily photos of Britney Spears tooling around Los Angeles aimlessly in her car. But on Monday, Los Angeles Police might have made it a bit harder for paparazzi to get those shots, arresting two photographers who staked out a spot on a fire-access road on a hillside near Spears' Studio City home on suspicion of loitering.

According to the Los Angeles Times, the two photogs, Alexandre Passos, 35, and Eduardo Ravalha, 35, were arrested after an unidentified person called police around 4 p.m. on Monday to report that the men were loitering on city-owned property that has restricted public access and is blocked by a chain-link fence.

Police told the two to leave the area, but when officers returned nearly an hour later, the photographers were still there. An LAPD spokesperson said the photographers were "detained, questioned and eventually arrested," before being released a few hours later.

Ravalha's Mercedes was impounded. Police may have been so quick to respond because they were called to the same spot two weeks ago on a similar report and noticed that signs warning trespassers to stay off the property had been removed.

The arrests Monday were part of an initiative by the LAPD to crack down on aggressive celebrity photographers. In February, four paparazzi were arrested by the LAPD on suspicion of reckless driving after they followed Spears on a street in the San Fernando Valley, and police alleged that at least one had tried to run the singer off the road.

Source: MTV

OMG! Check out HOT Britney Spears!

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

It's hard to believe this is the same girl we have been watching driving around like a madwoman, running over photogs' feet, shaving her head, dating paparazzi for the past year.

At Jim Carrey and Jenny McCarthy's Generation Rescue Event this weekend, Britney Spears looked better than she has in years. Since pre-Kevin Federline.

Whatever she's doing -- or not doing -- let's hope she keeps doing -- or not doing -- it.

Good luck, Britney!

Source: LA Times

Britney Spears give sole custody to Kevin Federline. For now.

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

Britney Spears and Kevin Federline have reportedly reached a settlement in their acrimonious 1½-year-long court battle over custody of their two sons.

Federline has sole custody of Preston, 2, and Jayden, 1. And Spears keeps her current status of two visits and one overnight per week.

That's it? Hmm. Doesn't sound like much for Britney to celebrate.

"The case has been settled," Federline's attorney, Mark Vincent Kaplan, told E! "The court still has to approve it."

Both parties are due in court today.

The legal battle began in 2007 with 50-50 custody.

But after Spears had her series of public meltdowns and was hospitalized twice for mental health problems, she lost custody and even visitation rights, which were only recently and gradually reinstated to what they are now.

Many Britney watchers credit the appearance of her father, Jamie Spears, in her life in February (he has legal control of her affairs) for her abrupt turnaround. It remains to be seen if she can stay on the current spotless path that her dad has put her on if he's not around.
Britney will surely try to gain more custody of her kids.

So it's not over yet, folks. Do you think she'll keep trying to get babies back? And is it a good idea for the kids?

Source: LA Times

Britney Spears is back in the studio

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

Rebounding from what seemed like an endless spiral of personal crises and public meltdowns, tabloid queen Britney Spears is back in the studio and at work on a "brand-new album," according to a joint statement released by the pop icon's manager, Larry Rudolph, and her label, Jive Records.

"Britney Spears is spending her summer in the recording studio," the statement, released Tuesday, says. "She's working with a team of top-notch producers and songwriters. And we're very excited about what she's achieved so far."

No release date for her sixth studio album has been set, and none of her collaborators is named in the statement. But producers JR Rotem, Sean Garrett, Guy Sigsworth, Nate "Danja" Hills, Bloodshy & Avantand Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins have independently revealed that they are contributing to the project.

"Stuff we did so far is really dance-y, really up-tempo," Jerkins told Rap-Up TV last month.

"Real aggressive and catchy. Very, very, very hook-friendly."

With the intention of resurrecting her career, the multi-platinum-selling mother of two released "Blackout" last fall, which opened at No. 2 on the national album chart and was ranked among Rolling Stone magazine's Top 50 albums of 2007. Recorded during the time Spears, 26, was pregnant with her second son, Jayden James, and separating from Kevin Federline, the CD featured collaborations with producer-performers including Pharrell Williams and T-Pain.

But "Blackout's" commercial reception was ultimately overshadowed by Spears' erratic behavior that year, which included shaving her head in a Sherman Oaks beauty salon, attacking a paparazzo's car with an umbrella, checking into and out of rehab, blowing off custody hearings and turning in a disastrous performance of the album's lead single, "Gimme More," at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards.

Further presaging Spears' return to center stage, the "pop wreck" has kept busy by making appearances in others' videos. Last month, she appeared at a shoot for the bump-and-grind pop quintet the Pussycat Dolls' single "When I Grow Up." And earlier this month, Madonna's spokeswoman Liz Rosenberg confirmed that Spears was set to film a "short movie" that would be part of the Material Girl's Sweet and Sticky tour, kicking off in Berlin next month.

Source: Los Angeles Times

Britney Snubbed By Emmy

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

Good thing Britney Spears gets to spend more time with her boys these days because she won't be spending any time with TV's Golden Girl soon. Despite the fact that her appearance in the "Ten Sessions" episode of "How I Met Your Mother" was submitted for Emmy consideration, she's not on the Top 10 list of semifinalists for best guest actress in a comedy series.

Too bad. Britney Spears actually earned a few decent reviews for her performance as a receptionist in a doctor's office, including the New York Daily News, which said — with no intent of snarkiness: "Spears proved she can act every bit as well as she can sing." TV Guide critic Matt Roush said Britney was "harmless and (dare I say) kind of cute" in the role, but "Scrubs" star Sarah Chalke — who portrayed Britney's boss — "walked away with the episode." However, Chalke failed to make this Emmy Top 10 list too.

Source: LA Times

Psych Tests Are Ordered For Spears

The following italicized article is from www.latimes.com:

A judge Tuesday ordered Britney Spears to undergo psychological testing in advance of a July 31 hearing to determine whether the troubled pop star should regain control of her medical care and assets.

One of the conservators overseeing the 26-year-old performer's personal and financial affairs is her father, James. He was named co-conservator of her estate Feb. 1, after she was twice hospitalized in a psychiatric facility.

Spears' attorney, Samuel D. Ingham III, said his client would comply with the judge's order and work around a planned trip out of state this month.

Source: LA Times

Can Britney Be Nominated For An Emmy

Now consider all of the people who tuned in to see Britney Spears on "How I Met Your Mother" last night: 10.6 million. That's the highest viewership ever for the CBS sitcom. Audience size matters when you weigh who might get nominated for an Emmy because that first round of voting is determined by a popular vote of TV academy members.

Source: U Britney/LA Times

Hospital Fires Workers for Snooping Through Britney Spears' Files

The following italicized article is from www.usmagazine.com:

UCLA Medical Center is firing some employees for snooping through Britney Spears' confidential medical records while she was hospitalized in a psych ward earlier this year.

More than 13 employees (none are doctors) will be axed, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Twelve others, including several doctors, will also be disciplined for looking at her non-psychiatric computer records from her previous visits to the Los Angeles medical center.

The Times reports that there is no evidence yet that any employees leaked or sold the information.

This isn't Spears' first peeping problem.

In 2005, several workers were fired after they went through her records after she gave birth to son Sean Preston.

Source: US Weekly