MONDAY JANUARY 20

NATIONAL HEADLINES:

OBAMA SAYS POT NO MORE DANGEROUS THAN ALCOHOL

President Obama said yesterday that he believed marijuana is no more dangerous than alcohol. In an interview with the New Yorker, the president, who admittedly smoked pot as a kid, was quoted as saying he thinks the drug is less dangerous “in terms of its impact on the individual consumer.” However, he added that he doesn’t condone smoking weed to his daughters. The president also spoke of his concern for the long incarcerations associated with minor offenses related to pot possession. "We should not be locking up kids or individual users for long stretches of jail time when some of the folks who are writing those laws have probably done the same thing," he said. With more states legalizing the drug, Obama said it’s important that states work through the thorny issues that come along with it.

RUSSIA’S PUTIN SPEAKS ABOUT ANTI-GAY LAWS

Russian President Vladimir Putin sought to reassure gay athletes and fans attending the 2014 Sochi Winter Olympics, but he defended his country’s anti-gay laws. In a TV interview broadcast yesterday, Putin said he would be glad to meet with representatives from any country to discuss his stance on homosexuality. “There are no fears for people with this nontraditional orientation who plan to come to Sochi as guests or participants,” he said. Putin said that he has acquaintances who are gay and he personally does not have a problem with it. But, in the same interview, he also equated gays with pedophiles and said Russia needs to “cleanse” itself of homosexuality if it wants to increase its birth rate. Russia passed a controversial law last year that bans "propaganda of nontraditional sexual relations" among minors.

3 AMERICANS KILLED IN AFGHANISTAN TALIBAN ATTACK

Three Americans were among 21 killed this weekend in a Taliban attack at a restaurant in Kabul,Afghanistan. Two of the American victims were identified as employees at the American University of Afghanistan: Lexi Kamerman, a 27-year-old student development specialist, and Alexandros Peterson, a political science professor. The third victim was identified as Somali-American Basra Hassan, a UNICEF nutrition specialist. The Taliban said Friday's attack was in revenge for an airstrike two days prior north of Kabul. The U.S. regretfully admitted that "several" civilians were accidentally killed in an airstrike.

2 WOMEN ARRESTED AFTER “EXORCISM” DEATHS OF 2 TODDLERS

Two women in Maryland have been charged with the death of two children in what police say may have been a botched exorcism. Two toddlers, identified as one-year-old Norell and two-year-old Zyana Harris, were stabbed to death and two other children, ages five and eight, were seriously wounded. Zakieya Latrice Avery, the 28-year-old mother of the two toddlers, and a second woman, 21-year-old Monifa Sanford, were apparently trying to perform what they believed to be an exorcism. Neighbors called police early Friday morning after spotting a blood trail and a knife outside the Germantown home. Both women have been charged with murder and attempted murder.

PROTESTS IN UKRAINE ESCALATE

Anti-government protests in Ukraine intensified yesterday as thousands of demonstrators clashed with police in Kiev. Protestors threw rocks and firebombs and police responded with stun grenades, tear gas and water cannons. Dozens of officers and protesters were injured. The unrest has been mostly peaceful, but yesterday’s clashes marked a sharp escalation of the crisis. The crisis erupted in November after PresidentViktor Yanukovych's decided to freeze ties with the European Union and seek closer ties with Russia. Tensions got even worse after Yanukovych last week signed an array of laws severely limiting protests and banning the wearing of helmets and gas masks.

THE WEEKEND BOX OFFICE FROM BOX OFFICE MOJO

SHOWBIZ NEWS:

BACHELOR HOMOPHOBIC CONTROVERSY

ABC found themselves in a bit of a pickle over the weekend when their current Bachelor Juan Pablo made what some felt were homophobic comments to a blogger during a TV Critics Press tour. When asked if he thought there could ever be a gay or bisexual Bachelor he replied “no,” explaining “I respect them… but, honestly, I don’t think it’s a good example for kids to watch that on TV.” He then added, “There’s this thing about gay people… it seems to me, and I don’t know if I’m mistaken or not… they’re more pervert in a sense… and to me the show will be too strong, too hard to watch on TV.”

After news of his comments hit, Juan Pablo took to Facebook to apologize and explain himself. “I want to apologize to all the people I may have offended because of my comments on having a gay or bisexual Bachelor. The comment[s] [were] taken out of context,” he wrote. ‘The word pervert was not what I meant to say and I am very sorry about it. Everyone knows English is my second language and my vocabulary is not as broad as it is in Spanish and, because of this, sometimes I use the wrong words to express myself.” He added, “What I meant to say was that gay people are more affectionate and intense and for a segment of the TV audience this would be too racy to accept.”

Meanwhile, ABC did all they could to distance themselves from the controversy. “Juan Pablo’s comments were careless, thoughtless and insensitive, and in no way reflect the views of the network, the show’s producers or studio,” they said in a statement.

JIMMY FALLON TALKS TONIGHT SHOW

Jimmy Fallon revealed over the weekend that Will Smith and U2 will be his first guests when he takes over The Tonight Show on February 17th Fallon told media at the Television Critics Association Press tour that while the program won’t be that different from his current show, he will, on the advice of Jay Leno, make his monologue longer. "Imagine being a monologue writer, you've got to be real psyched when you get that advice," said Fallon. "They're already stressed out, so now they've got to write double the material."

ONE DIRECTION STAR’S DUCK DYNASTY TWEET CAUSES PROBLEMS

One Direction star Liam Payne got in a bit of hot water over the weekend when he appeared to tweet his support for the values portrayed on A&E’s Duck Dynasty. On Saturday the 20-year-old posted to Willie Robertson, “@williebosshog huge love to you/your family huge respect for your business prosperities and the family values you still all behold.” The media took the tweet to mean Liam agreed with Phil Robertson’s anti-gay comments, but he was quick to defend himself, writing, “Being a fan of someones show and the way they still hold a family together doesn't mean i am ok with all they say."

AMERICAN HUSTLE WINS BIG AT THE SAG AWARDS

American Hustle took home the trophy for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture at the 20^th Annual Screen Actors Guild Awards Saturday. Just like the Golden Globes, Matthew McConaughey was named Best Actor for Dallas Buyers Club, Cate Blanchett won Best Actress for Blue Jasmine and Jared Leto won Best Supporting Actor for Dallas Buyers Club. Only the Supporting Actress category was different, with 12 Years A Slave’s Lupita Nyong’o beating outJennifer Lawrence for the prize. On the TV side, Breaking Bad won Outstanding Ensemble, Drama, with star Bryan Cranston taking home Best Actor. Maggie Smith won Best Actress, Drama for Downton Abbey. Finally, Modern Family was named Best Comedy Ensemble, while the show’s Ty Burrell won Best Actor and Julia Louis-Dreyfus won Best Actress for Veep.

MORE JOHNNY/AMBER ENGAGEMENT RUMORS

It sounds rumors of Johnny Depp and Amber Heard’s engagement may be true. Speculation began last week after Amber was seen wearing what some thought was an engagement ring, and now sources tell Us Weekly the pair do indeed plan to marry. "The proposal happened a while ago," claims an insider. "She just didn't wear the ring." So far there has been no confirmation from the couple, who met on the set of the 2011 movie The Rum Diary.

DID KENDALL JENNER GET A NOSE JOB?

Eighteen-year-old Kendall Jenner may be taking after her mother Kris Jenner when it comes to plastic surgery. Radaronline is speculating that the teen may have had a nose job.  “Kim‘s little sister appears to have a littler nose!” plastic surgeon Dr. Anthony Youn, who has never treated Kendall, tells Radar. “Kendall looks like she’s undergone some thinning and shortening of her nose, making it more resemble the nose of her famous sister, Kim.” (Check out the alleged before andafter.) The doctor suggests that if Kendall didn’t have rhinoplasty, she may have had a different “less invasive procedure” in which filler is injected to smooth out the bridge of her nose. The report comes just weeks after Khloe Kardashian revealed her mom wanted her to have a nose job when she was only nine.

KIM WANTS A MILLION KIDS

Kim Kardashian was gushing about daughter North on Friday’s Ellen DeGeneres Show, telling the host her seven-month-old daughter is simply perfect. “She changes all the time. One day she'll look like (dad) Kanye (West), one day she'll look like me. It's so crazy,” said Kim, adding, “And her personality is so cute. She is really calm and really quiet.” Kim told Ellen she always wanted to have kids. In fact, she admitted she “always wanted about six,” but now she’s changed her mind. “After having her I would have a million,” Kim said, although being pregnant doesn’t exactly thrill her. "I mean, it's all worth it in the end, so I would definitely suffer through that," she explained. "But pregnancy was not a good experience for me. At all."   As for Kanye, Kim said, “He is honestly themost amazing dad. He loves her so much.” But one thing Kanye doesn’t do is change diapers. “He would if it's an emergency,” she said. “But I love that time. I know it sounds crazy, but I love my time with her when she's on the changing table. She tries to talk so much and I really enjoy that bonding time when I'm with her.”

UN-RETOUCHED LENA VOGUE PHOTOS HIT INTERNET

Lena Dunham is on the cover of this month’s Vogue and it goes without saying the magazine did some re-touching before her photos made it to the magazine. Last week, Jezebel offered $10,000 for the un-retouched pics of the Girls star and received six shots within two hours. There aren’t a lot of major changes, although in the shot where Lena’s leaning on a tub it’s obvious they changed the outline of her back, shaped her jawline and fixed her ill-fitting dress.

STEFANI EXPECTING THIRD BOY

Gwen Stefani revealed Friday that she and husband Gavin Rossdale are expecting their third boy later this year. “I was ready to hand over the crown. but I guess I am still queen of the house. #itsaboy #surroundedbyboys” she wrote on Instagram. The couple, who’ve been married for 11 years, are already parents to sons Kingston, 7 and Zuma, 5.

QUEEN’S GRANDDAUGHTER ZARA PHILLIPS WELCOMES BABY GIRL

Queen Elizabeth is a great grandmother yet again. Buckingham Palace announced Friday the Queen’s granddaughter Zara Phillips and husband Mike Tindall welcomed a baby girl. So far, the child’s name has not been revealed.   The baby, who is Queen Elizabeth’s fourth great grandchild and the 16^th in line to the throne, weighed 7 pounds, 12 ounces.

SHIA APOLOGIZES FOR BAR FIGHT

Shia LaBeouf has apologized to bar patrons for head-butting a guy in a London pub last week.Video of the altercation showed Shia getting violent with the unidentified man after he allegedly said something offensive to the mother of Shia’s girlfriend Mia Goth. But video shot after the incident shows a drunk Shia apologizing to someone at the bar, explaining that he gets angry when “people s**t on my girl’s mom,” adding, “I’m super normal…like more normal than most.”

SCHWARZENEGGER GETS $3 MIL FOR SUPER BOWL COMMERCIAL

Arnold Schwarzenegger is making some big money off the Super Bowl. The New York Postreports the Terminator star is getting paid $3 million to star in a Bud Light ad that will air during the game. Although Schwarzenegger has starred in ads in Japan, this is the first time he’s appeared in a commercial in the U.S. Said a source, “persuading him to promote a beer is a big coup for Bud Light.”

BLOOM CAUGHT FLIRTING WITH WOLF OF WALL STREET STAR

Orlando Bloom is ready to move on now that he’s split from wife Miranda Kerr. Sources tell Starmagazine the Pirates of the Caribbean actor had his eye on The Wolf of Wall Street’s Margot Robbie during a Golden Globes after-party in Hollywood last weekend.   “There was flirting going on at the party, and why not? She is single and gorgeous,” said an insider.

ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK STAR OUT OF COMA

Orange is the New Black star Michelle Hurst (Miss Claudette) has woken up from a medically induced coma she’s been in since suffering “major injuries” in a car accident right before the holidays. “She is progressing slowly, but progressing,” read a fundraising page set up for the actress. “She is out of the coma (after 16 days) and has opened her eyes.” The fundraising pagewas set up to help Michelle’s sister pay for the actress’ medical expenses and has raised over $12,000, way over the initial goal of $5,000.

OCTOMOM PLEADS NOT GUILTY

Octomom Nadya Suleman pleaded not guilty Friday to three counts of felony welfare fraud. The mother-of-14 is charged with cheating the welfare system out of more than $16,000. She faces six years in prison, although she could land a deal if she pays back the money.

THEATER NEWS

Hugh Jackman is plotting his Broadway return. Earlier this year the X-Men star dropped out of a planned Houdini musical, but he’s already found his next project. According to the New York Post, Jackman, considered Broadway’s number one box office draw, will star in The River, about man who invites a woman to his cabin in the woods for the weekend.

Ocean’s Eleven director Steven Soderbergh will direct a new play called The Library, starringCarrie’s Chloe Grace Moretz. She’ll play the survivor of a high school shooting, who is struggling to deal with her parents, authorities and the media. It will debut at The Public Theater in New York April 15^th.

TV TIDBITS

● Guys with Kids’ Anthony Anderson will star in a new pilot for NBC. Black-ish is described as a semi-autobiographical comedy about an upper middle class black man struggling to raise his children with a sense of cultural identity.

● Friday Night Lights’ Kyle Chandler will star in a new Netflix family thriller from the creators ofDamages. The series revolves around a family of adult siblings whose secrets come back to haunt them when their black sheep brother returns.

● Nick Lachey has landed a new gig. The 98 Degrees singer will host VH1’s pop culture news show Big Morning Buzz Live! when it returns to the air in the spring. He’ll replace original hostCarrie Keagan, who taped her last show December 20^th.

ROCK NEWS:

U2 TO BE FALLON’S FIRST MUSICAL GUEST ON THE TONIGHT SHOW

Millions of music fans were already counting the days before Jimmy Fallon takes over for Jay Leno on The Tonight Show, but now they have one more big reason to have February 17 get here:U2! The Irish Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band will be Fallon’s first musical guest, the show’s music booker, Jonathan Cohen, confirmed via Twitter on Sunday night. Variety reports actor and sometime rapper Will Smith also join Fallon as he makes his debut immediately following NBC’s coverage of the Winter Olympics.

METALLICA PLANS ONE-OF-A-KIND VERSION OF “ONE” AT GRAMMYS

Hard rock icons Metallica and Chinese classical pianist Lang Lang are looking to make Grammy history this Sunday with a once-in-a-lifetime rendition of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band’s classic “One.” Guitarist Kirk Hammett told Rolling Stone, “Lang Lang has interjected himself into the song in a way I don’t think anyone else has ever done in the course of our career. He’s gonna be playing major parts of the song. He’s gonna be playing through the melody.” The 56^th annual Grammy Awards will be broadcast on CBS at 8p this Sunday.

HAMMETT HOPES METALLICA MAKES MOVE BACK TO STUDIO SOON

If it were up to Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame band would already be back in the studio working on its next album. Hammett told Billboard, “When we start, that’s going to be our main priority…but we’ve been procrastinating greatly with it. We’ve pretty much come up with every sort of excuse we can not to start work on the album, but we’ve run out of excuses, so we pretty much have to start work on it now.”

FOO FIGHTERS POST STRONG HINT BAND BACK IN STUDIO

Fans of the Foo Fighters can really begin to get excited about a new album being on the horizon after the band posted a picture of master tapes to its Instagram account last week with the caption: “It’s F***ing ON!” The next group effort will serve as the follow-up to 2011’s Grammy-winningWasted Light. Back in November, Dave Grohl told Rolling Stone, “We begin recording soon, but…we’re writing the album in a way that I don’t think has been done before.”

COOPER COULD CLIMB ABOARD CRUE’S FAREWELL TOUR

There has been some indication that Motley Crue has hand-picked Alice Cooper as the opening act for the band’s forthcoming farewell tour. A tour poster that listed Cooper as the “very special guest” briefly appeared online last week, and the members of Motley Crue have never made a secret of calling Cooper one of their rock and roll heroes. Motley Crue is expected to announce details of their “RIP: All Bad Things Must Come to an End” farewell tour during a press conference scheduled for January 28 in Los Angeles. It is also rumored that later that day, the band will perform on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!

MINISTRY’S JOURGENSEN HEADING TO REHAB FOR ALCOHOL ABUSE

Industrial rock groundbreaker Al Jourgensen of Ministry has entered a rehab center to beat his battle with the bottle. The groundbreaking rocker broke the news on his Facebook page, writing: “I’ve just been informed I will be checking in on Feb 3…so I can get s**tfaced watching the Super Bowl on the 2^nd. My sobriety will not and I repeat not knock off my sarcasm…if anything…it will intensify…kicked dope and crack by myself…but I need help on this one…so all your thoughts and prayers are more than welcome…thanx!

BLESSTHEFALL PLOTS SPRING THE HOLLOW BODIES TOUR

Spring will bring Blessthefall to a city near year. The band announced they’ll kick off their Hollow Bodies North American tour on April 8 in El Paso, TX, and end the run on May 15 in Mesa, AZ. In between, the group will bless fans in cities such as San Antonio, Dallas, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New York, Detroit, Denver and San Francisco with shows they will not soon forget.

NUGENT TAKES AIM AT MOVIE MOGUL MAKING ANTI-GUN FILM

Longtime NRA supporter Ted Nugent put Hollywood film producer Harvey Weinstein in his crosshairs, calling the filmmaker a “subhuman punk” and a “brain-dead idiot” for having the audacity to make a movie promoting the sale of fewer guns in America. During a recent radio interview, Weinstein said, “I don’t think we need guns in this country, and I hate it, and I think the NRA is a disaster area.” In response, Nugent said on an NRA-sponsored “news” show, “People will see that [Nazi propaganda master] Joseph Goebbels and [left-wing activist] Saul Alinsky is alive in the form of a fat punk named Harvey Weinstein, and as he tries to destroy the NRA it will backfire on him… Harvey Weinstein is on the side of criminals. The NRA is on the side of innocent victims protecting themselves from criminals.”