LEGAL NEWS: Kittie Settles Suit With Artemis Records And Enters Studio

LONDON, Ontario (CelebrityAccess News Service) — Kittie has settled its lawsuit against Artemis Records and will spend the month of March recording their third release, titled 'Until the End.'

The band is recording at Longview Farm Studios with producer Steve Thompson (Metallica, Korn, Simple Plan, Guns n Roses) and engineer Ian Hatton (Bonham, Luxx). "We are excited that the suit is over and done with" said guitarist/vocalist Morgan Lander, "The number one thing is the music and we are looking to make a great album!"

Until the End is tentative scheduled for a summer release. It will be Kitties long-awaited follow up to Oracle, released in 2001. – CelebrityAccess Staff Writers.

On the Web:
www.kittierocks.com
www.longviewstudios.com
www.artemisrecords.com

Dick Clark Sued For Age Discrimination

SANTA MONICA, CA (AP) — A 76-year-old game show producer sued Dick Clark Monday, alleging the 74-year-old Clark called him a "dinosaur" and refused to hire him because of his age.

Ralph Andrews, who produced the 1960s and '70s game shows "It Takes Two," "By the Numbers" and "You Don't Say," filed the suit in Superior Court.

Andrews' attorney, Phillip R. Maltin, said Clark's actions violate the Fair Employment and Housing Act, which makes it illegal for an employer "to discriminate against a person who applies for a position based upon that person's age."

The suit also names Dick Clark Productions and one of its owners, Mosaic Media Group, and seeks general and punitive damages.

Paul Shefrin, a spokesman for Dick Clark Productions, said the company does not comment on pending litigation. A message left after business hours for Mosaic Media Group was not immediately returned.

In the complaint, Andrews says he spoke off and on for more than a year with Clark and other executives about joining the company and was told he would be considered for any openings.

But when he wrote Clark to say he was interested in available positions, Clark wrote back, allegedly turning Andrews down because of his age.

"I have great respect and admiration for your accomplishments, and wish you success in your desire to 'get back to work," Clark's letter read, according to the suit.

"(But) the last development guy we hired was 27 years old. Another person who is joining our staff next week is 30. People our age are considered dinosaurs! The business is being run by 'The Next Generation.'"

Clark added, "On a brighter note, Ralph, please know that if any project comes up where we could use your experienced hands, I wouldn't hesitate to call you."

Andrews told The Associated Press he has known Clark for 40 years and hired him on several game shows, including a brief 1997 revival of "It Takes Two."

Jailed Miami Promoter Pleads Innocent In Christmas 'Grinch' Scam

MIAMI (AP) – A jailed promoter pleaded innocent Thursday to running a fraud that generated $30,000 in ticket sales to elementary schools for a Christmas pageant that never happened.

Outside court, defense attorney Manny Vazquez said David Ellisor has been made a scapegoat for a show that should have been canceled.

Ellisor spent "lots of money" organizing a pageant called "Christmas From Around the World," but Vazquez blamed the University of Miami, which was listed as a sponsor in promotional materials, for its collapse without any notice to ticket buyers.

"Somebody at UM dropped the ball by not canceling. He's a scapegoat," Vazquez said. "We will prove that he did a lot of work on it."

An art lecturer at the university was fired after Ellisor used school stationery that implied the show put on by the "Washington, D.C., International Diplomatic Corps" was sponsored by the school and ambassadors from 28 countries.

"We have maintained all along that we were not a sponsor," school spokeswoman Margot Winick said Thursday.

Busloads of school children showed up at the Coconut Grove Convention Center to find nothing was scheduled Dec. 3.

Ellisor, 51, hid out for six weeks after federal mail fraud charges were filed. He surrendered after pitching a replacement show and defending himself in the media.

Federal investigators say he has pulled similar scams in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Salt Lake City and Albuquerque, N.M.

Motown Group Loses Effort To Void Contract

DETROIT (AP) — Two founding members of the Motown group Martha and the Vandellas have lost their effort to void a contract that gives half their royalties to a New York company that sued record companies on their behalf.

"There is no evidence of fraud or deceit," U.S. District Judge Robert H. Cleland wrote Wednesday in an opinion dismissing the lawsuit. He said the contract was not unclear or unconscionably generous to the company.

Among the group's hits were "Heat Wave" and "Dancing in the Street."

Former Vandellas Rosalind Ashford Holmes and Annette Beard Sterling, both of Detroit, sued in March 2003 to throw out their contract with Artists Rights Enforcement Corp., which twice sued on their behalf to get royalties.

In 1984, the pair signed with the company, saying that "for the preceding 20 years, they had received no royalties from Motown (Records) and that in response to their inquiries, they had been given the stall and the run-around," Artists Rights President Charles Rubin told The Detroit News.

In 1989, Motown agreed to make a lump-sum payment for past royalty payments. In 1994, after a second lawsuit in California, the singers began receiving higher payments from Motown.

Their lawyer, Gregory Reed, said the company has collected $400,000 in royalties for his clients and kept $200,000. Lead singer Martha Reeves didn't sign the agreement with Artists Rights.

An appeal is possible, Reed told the Detroit Free Press.