Vatican scandalized by Madonna crucifixion
VATICAN CITY, Vatican City, Aug. 4 (UPI) -- Vatican officials have suggested Madonna -- the U.S. pop singer, that is -- should be excommunicated for re-enacting the crucifixion in her new stage show.
Madonna is scheduled to bring her Confessions Tour to Rome this Sunday, complete with the scene in which she wears a crown of thorns and appears to be hung on a cross, The Telegraph reports.
Cardinal Ersilio Tonino called the scene "an act of open hostility."
"It is nothing short of a scandal and an attempt to generate publicity," he added.
Bishop Velasio De Paolis, another Vatican official, said the show "represents the rotten fruit of secularism and the absurdity of evil," the report said.
Madonna, in the meantime, says she feels closer to God since a riding accident last year.
"I promised God: 'I am never going to complain, moan or grumble or be ungrateful again,'" she told Vanity Fair in an interview.
Rob Schneider denounces Mel Gibson
LOS ANGELES, Aug. 4 (UPI) -- Comedic actor Rob Schneider denounced fellow actor Mel Gibson in a Hollywood letter, saying that he would never work with the Academy Award winner.
"I, Rob Schneider, a 1/2 Jew, pledge from this day forward to never work with Mel Gibson, actor-director-producer and anti-Semite," said the letter, which bore Schneider's signature.
The declaration was published as a full page ad in Thursday's Variety, an entertainment industry trade paper, E! online reported Friday.
The untold joke of the letter is that Schneider and Gibson have never worked together before, with Schneider making comedies like "Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo" and Gibson making epics like "Braveheart," and "The Passion of the Christ."
Still, Schneider headed off any chance of collaboration with Gibson who allegedly railed against Jews during a drunken driving arrest July 28 in California.
Kanye West joins Rolling Stones tour
NEW YORK, Aug. 4 (UPI) -- The Rolling Stones have invited U.S. rap artist Kanye West to perform with them on their world tour, "A Bigger Bang."
West will appear with the Stones on three separate dates, Sept. 20 in Foxboro, Mass., Sept. 23 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, and Sept. 27 in East Rutherford N.J., CBS reported Friday.
The Rolling Stones have performed with a very high-profile group of artists over the last decade, including Stevie Wonder, Pearl Jam, the Dave Matthews Band and Metallica.
West will also perform with U2 in November for several dates in Australia and New Zealand, CBS said.
Tony Bennett to receive Century award
NEW YORK, Aug. 4 (UPI) -- Billboard has chosen Tony Bennett as recipient of its 2006 Century Award and he will receive the honor at the Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas.
When asked what the award means to him, Bennett told the magazine, "It means everything. Billboard is the bible of the music business. I'm going to be 80 years old and to still have people interested in me is fantastic. My 80th feels like a big payoff to me. It's really the best year I've ever had in show business. It's been a yearlong celebration."
Bennett will release his latest album "Tony Bennett: Duets/An American Classic" on Sept. 26. On the album he is joined by many artists, including Bono, Billy Joel, Paul McCartney, Barbra Streisand and Elton John.
The Century Award was created by the late Billboard editor in chief Timothy White and former publisher Howard Lander.
