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Blonsky, Golden cleared in airport brawl

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 2 (UPI) -- Nikki Blonsky and Bianca Golden have been cleared of all charges stemming from a West Indian airport brawl involving their families, police said.

Blonsky starred in the movie musical "Hairspray" and Golden was a former contestant on "America's Next Top Model."

They were arrested, along with Blonsky's 53-year-old father, Carl, after a July 29 inter-family melee at Providenciales International Airport, which sent Golden's mother to the hospital. The fight reportedly started after someone was saving seats and harsh words were exchanged.

"The cases against Nikki Blonsky and Bianca Golden have been dropped," Turks and Caicos Police Sgt. Calvin Chase told E! News, without elaborating on why they had been cleared. "The only case that is still proceeding is against (Blonsky's) father."

Carl Blonsky was charged with assault and inflicting grievous bodily harm for his part in the fight and E! said that, if convicted, he could face up to five years in prison.

The Dead to rise for tour this spring

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 2 (UPI) -- The surviving members of the iconic rock group the Grateful Dead have announced plans to embark on their first U.S. concert tour in five years.

Billboard.com said original band members Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart will perform 19 concerts in 16 cities, alongside keyboardist Jeff Chimenti and Allman Brothers Band and Gov't Mule guitarist Warren Haynes. Grateful Dead lead guitarist and vocalist Jerry Garcia died in 1995.

The Dead reunited last year for two benefit concerts to support then-U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama.

The band is set to start its latest tour April 12 in Greensboro, N.C. The concert series is slated to run through May 10 and will include stops in Washington, New York, Chicago, Denver and Los Angeles.

"For me, it's the question mark that's really pulling me in ... what's gonna happen?" Billboard.com quoted Lesh as saying. "When you walk out on the stage, the possibilities are infinite every time."

Winehouse named biggest celeb train wreck

NEW YORK, Jan. 2 (UPI) -- A poll conducted by the celebrity gossip Web site Imnotobsessed.com suggested British singer Amy Winehouse was the biggest celebrity train wreck of 2008.

Seventy-four percent of the online poll's 2,492 respondents voted for Winehouse, 9 percent voted for reality TV personality Heidi Montag and 7 percent voted for singer-actress Courtney Love to round out the top three of the train wreck category.

Winehouse also earned the dubious distinction of being the worst-dressed celebrity of the year, grabbing 37 percent of the vote, compared to actress Mischa Barton's 19 percent and singer Mariah Carey's 17 percent.

Seventy-two percent of respondents said Heath Ledger's death last January at the age of 28 was the most shocking event of the year. Nine percent said they were most surprised by D.J. AM and Travis Barker's plane crash and 6 percent said Winehouse "making it through another year of life" shocked them.

Thirty-two percent of respondents named starlet Nicole Richie their favorite new mom of 2008 Twenty percent voted for comedienne Amy Poehler and 11 percent chose Christina Aguilera and Jessica Alba.

A quarter of people participating in the poll said cast members of "The Hills" were the most overexposed celebrities of the year, followed by Britney Spears, who earned 20 percent of the vote, and Paris Hilton, who garnered 19 percent of the vote.

Twenty-percent of respondents voted Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale their favorite couple, followed by Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt with 18 percent and Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi with 16 percent.

Jackman drops out of Cleopatra film talks

LOS ANGELES, Jan. 2 (UPI) -- Australian film actor Hugh Jackman dropped out of talks to star in "Cleo," director Steven Soderbergh's upcoming 3-D, live-action musical, Variety.com said.

The $30 million film with a rock 'n' roll soundtrack is to co-star "Chicago" Oscar winner Catherine Zeta-Jones as the ancient Egyptian queen Cleopatra.

The entertainment industry trade newspaper said Soderbergh wanted "Australia" and "X-Men" star Jackman to play her lover, the Roman general Marc Antony, however, the actor declined after giving the role some consideration.

Ray Winstone, a British actor whose film credits include "Beowulf" and the upcoming "Edge of Darkness," reportedly is in discussions to play Julius Caesar in Soderbergh's first movie musical.

Soderbergh and Zeta-Jones previously worked together on "Traffic."