MUSIC FOR YOUR REARS
More than 150 bricks from Beatle John Lennon's childhood home are to be auctioned over the Internet. NBC acquired the bricks from the Liverpool house while filming a telepic about Lennon's teenage years. The home's current owner agreed to let the crew knock down a wall during the shoot. The former Beatle lived in the home with his Aunt Mimi during the 1950s. The auction will run from November 15-December 4 on NBC's Lennon Web site. A portion of proceeds will benefit the Strawberry Fields Children's Home. NBC would not confirm plans to auction an old issue of Playboy used by Lennon while living in the house.
EVERY DOGG HAS ITS RELEASE DATE
A dogfight is brewing over the latest Snoop Dogg releases. Dogg's current label, Priority Records, is rabid about Death Row Records' 10/31 release of "Dead Man Walkin'," which features material recorded before Dogg left that label in 1998. The Death Row record cuts too close to the release date of Dogg's "The Last Meal" on No Limit/Priority in December. Priority Records is reportedly refusing to provide radio stations with any promotional and advertising materials, including on-air interviews and other promotional appearances, if they play "Head Doctor" off the Death Row disc. And for those that do, they should remember Suge Knight gets out of jail next spring.
LIKE A HOMEOWNER
Madonna has shelled out $9.9 million for a home in a ritzy London neighborhood. According to the British tabloid The Sun, the Material Mom purchased a four-story Georgian house in Notting Hill, West London. The home is targeted for an extensive renovation before she moves in with her boyfriend, director Guy Ritchie, baby Rocco and her three-year-old daughter, Lourdes. Said Madonna: "The pretentious neighborhood perfectly matches my faux British accent." Home values were reportedly down 15% after news of the pop star's purchase because of the possibility of frequent visits by Rosie O'Donnell.
STORY FULL OF HOLES LIKE SWISS CHEESE…
While some businesses like to flaunt their celebrity clients, a Swiss bank revealed its clients' secret accounts. A technical snafu caused the account numbers, private addresses and money transfers of Credit Suisse Group customers, including actor Roger Moore, German pop star Udo Juergens and Swiss entertainer DJ Bobo, to be posted on the Internet. Switzerland's second–largest bank claims the glitch appeared only on a public test site, and maintained Web surfers could not gain access to stars' bank accounts. Swiss singer Polo Hofer told Swiss newspaper Blick: "I am mad as hell. I am going to close out my two accounts at CS." Hoefer then paid a group of computer hackers $20 for helping him get placement on a U.S. Web site.
