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DioGuardi says producer raped her ... Lovato not returning to TV's 'Sonny' ... HBO renews 'Thrones' for second season ... Grazer and Nguyen to wed ... News from United Press International.
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Published: April 19, 2011 at 2:00 PM

DioGuardi says producer raped her

LOS ANGELES, April 19 (UPI) -- U.S. songwriter and TV personality Kara DioGuardi says in her memoir "A Helluva High Note" she was date-raped by a music producer.

UsMagazine.com quoted DioGuardi, 40, as saying she went on a date in 2000 with a "fairly known producer" who sexually assaulted her after a friendly dinner.

"He was on top of me, pumping, sweating, and speaking to me in Spanish, not a word of which I could understand," DioGuardi wrote in the book.

She added she didn't report the incident for fear it would ruin her career, UsMagazine.com said.

DioGuardi, a former judge on "American Idol," will be seen next month in the new competition series "Platinum Hit."


Lovato not returning to TV's 'Sonny'

LOS ANGELES, April 19 (UPI) -- The Disney Channel has confirmed actress and singer Demi Lovato will not return to the U.S. television series, "Sonny with a Chance."

Lovato, 18, had starred on the sitcom since it debuted in 2010.

She began treatment for "physical and emotional issues" last October and left rehab in January. She has since revealed in interviews that she suffered from depression, and had body-image and self-abuse problems.

"It made sense for me to go ahead and leave the show to focus on my music," Lovato told People magazine. "It's kind of sad for me that a chapter of my life has ended but there couldn't be a better time for me to move on. ... I don't think going back to 'Sonny' would be healthy for my recovery. Being in front of a camera would make me nervous."

"We respect Demi's decision to focus full-time on her music and not immediately return to her acting career," a Disney Channel publicist said in a statement. "She is a talented young woman and our hearts are with her as she continues to take action to improve her health and bounce back from adversity."

People.com said "Sonny" will be retooled as a sketch comedy show called "So Random!," which will premiere in June.


HBO renews 'Thrones' for second season

LOS ANGELES, April 19 (UPI) -- The U.S. cable network HBO says it has ordered a second season of its medieval fantasy series, "Game of Thrones."

Based on George R.R. Martin's "Song of Ice and Fire" books, the show earned positive critical reviews and was seen by 2.2 million people when it debuted Sunday night, The Hollywood Reporter said. It stars Sean Bean and Mark Addy.

"We are delighted by the way [screenwriters] David Benioff and D.B. Weiss have brought George R.R. Martin's amazing book series to the screen, and thrilled by the support of the media and our viewers," HBO's programming president Michael Lombardo told the entertainment industry trade newspaper. "This is the continuation of an exciting creative partnership."


Grazer and Nguyen to wed

NEW YORK, April 19 (UPI) -- Vietnamese concert pianist Chau-Giang Thi Nguyen has confirmed she will marry Hollywood movie producer Brian Grazer this fall.

Grazer co-founded Imagine Entertainment with Ron Howard in 1986. His credits include the movies "Apollo 13," "A Beautiful Mind" and "The Da Vinci Code," and the TV series "24."

"We are both really, really happy," Nguyen told the New York Post. "On Sept. 18, we will have been together for five years. We are not sure of the wedding date, but it will be in Los Angeles sometime around the fall. I will be writing a lot of music for my wedding. It is going to be very special."

© 2011 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI's prior written consent.

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