The latest news on today's hottest celebrities ...
MICHAEL JACKSON: Jury selection began Thursday for the Los Angeles trial of a physician charged with involuntary manslaughter in the death of singer Michael Jackson.
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1 of 2 | Jason Schwartzman arrives for the premiere of "Bored to Death" at the NYU Skirball Center in New York on September 21, 2010. UPI /Laura Cavanaugh | License Photo
The pop icon died June 25, 2009 at the age of 50. Dr. Conrad Murray is accused of administering lethal levels of anesthesia and sedatives in an effort to help Jackson sleep. Murray is also being faulted with neglecting to call 911 fast enough after realizing Jackson was in distress.
Murray has denied any wrongdoing and his lawyers have suggested Jackson was an addict who obtained medication from other doctors and may have even administered the fatal dose of drugs to himself when Murray was out of the room.
People.com said attorneys screened the first of about 160 prospective jurors Thursday under the supervision of Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Michael E. Pastor.
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Opening statements in the trial are expected to begin this month, the Web site said.
CHARLIE SHEEN: Charlie Sheen and Jason Schwartzman are to star in a U.S. independent film written and directed by Schwartzman's cousin Roman Coppola, Variety said Thursday.
"A Glimpse Inside the Mind of Charlie Swan III" will be Sheen's first big-screen project since he was fired from his sitcom "Two and a Half Men" for his drug use and erratic behavior several months ago.
Variety said "Glimpse" is about a successful graphic designer whose life takes a dive after his girlfriend leaves him.
Schwartzman and Coppola previously collaborated on the film "The Darjeeling Limited."
RYAN O'NEAL: U.S. actor Ryan O'Neal says he and his daughter, actress Tatum O'Neal, are still estranged despite appearing to have resolved their issues on a TV docu-series.
Father and daughter, who both appeared in the 1973 film "Paper Moon," starred this year in the reality show "The O'Neals" for the Oprah Winfrey Network.
"We only reconciled on the show, not in life. ... We don't speak," the elder O'Neal told TV Guide Magazine. "In fact, we're further apart now than we were when we started the show. So thanks, Oprah, for all your help."
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The New York Post said a representative for the OWN network didn't respond to its request for a comment regarding O'Neal's remarks.
O'Neal has said he was long estranged from Tatum but started talking to her again following the death of his longtime girlfriend, actress Farrah Fawcett, in 2009.
Tatum, like O'Neal's son Redmond, has long battled an addiction to drugs.
NEIL DIAMOND: U.S. singer-songwriter Neil Diamond has announced via Twitter he is engaged to his manager, Katie McNeil.
The marriage will be the third for Diamond, 70, who is the father of four grown children.
"Good news coming from sunny LA/ and you're the first I want to tell/ Katie & I just got engaged/ and I hope you wish us well," Diamond tweeted Wednesday.
Diamond did not say exactly how he proposed or if he and McNeil have set a wedding date.
The singer's storied career is to be celebrated in December at the Kennedy Center Honors ceremony in Washington, it was announced this week.
