People in the News

Lil Wayne faces year in jail

NEW YORK - In the midst of a career surge that has made him one of rap's biggest stars, Lil Wayne is bracing for a year behind bars after pleading guilty yesterday in a two-year-old gun case.

A glum Lil Wayne said little as he admitted illegally having a loaded gun on his tour bus in 2007, moving to end a case that had churned along as he collected Grammys and gold records. He's expected to get a year in jail at his sentencing, set for February.

The plea, which came as he boasted the country's No. 1 pop song, makes Lil Wayne the latest in a long line of rappers to face incarceration after topping the charts.

2 evicted from 'Melrose Place'

LOS ANGELES - Ashlee Simpson-Wentz and Colin Egglesfield are moving out of "Melrose Place."

Their characters will make a final appearance on the CW drama in January, the network said yesterday.

Heather Locklear, who starred as Amanda in the 1990s "Melrose Place," is joining the new edition starting with the Nov. 17 episode.

Bon Jovi announces world tour

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. - Rock band Bon Jovi is planning a new world tour that will kick off at the new home of the New York Giants and Jets, the group announced yesterday.

The two-year tour will begin May 26 with a show at New Jersey's new $1.6 billion Meadowlands football stadium. It will be the first concert inside the new venue, which is nearing completion.

Streep promotes 'Julie & Julia'

ROME - Meryl Streep may have starred as chef-legend Julia Child but in real life she is nothing more than an OK cook.

The American actress says she watched all of the Julia Child cooking shows in preparing for "Julie & Julia," including the early shows where Child was still not the cultural icon that America came to know.

"I cook OK. I cook every night, so every night is not great," Streep said yesterday at the Rome Film Festival. "Every night is OK."

Today's birthdays

Director Ang Lee is 55. Jazz singer Dianne Reeves is 53. Country singer Dwight Yoakam is 53. Singer "Weird Al" Yankovic is 50. Actress Masiela Lusha is 24. Actress Jessica Stroup is 23.