By Jeremy Blacklow, Managing Editor

I awakened today to two pieces of urgent news:

1) Early this morning, another of Young Hollywood's elite, Mischa Barton, was arrested on Suspicion of DUI charges and driving without a valid license, and…

2) Former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan was assassinated in a suicide attack, sending shock waves of rioting through a country already in the midst of nuclear instability.

Guess which story I've been spending most of my day on?

If you guessed "Mischa," you're correct!

Mischa… Mischa… Mischa … in the words of Jay Leno, "What the hell were you thinking?"

Your hit show's been cancelled, your career is at a stand-still and now you choose to jump on the DUI bandwagon?!

Looking back on 2007, this was the year when going to jail on illegal driving-related charges has been in vogue – Lindsay, Paris, Nicole, Kiefer, Michelle… the list goes on and on.

And what's truly frightening is how much these antics have kept these celebrities in the news!

Haven't been on the front pages of Celebrity Web sites lately? Heck! Get a DUI! You'll be right back up there with the rest of the pack.

By Maria Menounos

It's days like today when I love my job most. Being a reporter can, at times, give me tremendous perspective. I travel the globe to interview all different types of people, experiencing all different kinds of things: from my conversation with the health minister of South Africa about the growing AIDS crisis, to Michael J. Fox and his battle with Parkinson’s, to… Tara Llanes.

I recently interviewed Tara Llanes, a professional biker who was at the top of her game until a terrible crash on September 1, 2007 took her legs right out from underneath her. Before the crash she was a celebrity to the sport, posing in Maxim magazine, in ads for Subaru, AT&T, a beautiful, smart and determined athlete. I visited her at Craig’s Hospital -- a world-renowned hospital for spinal cord injuries. I saw so many people whose lives changed in an instant. Fifty percent of them were there because of car crashes. Second to car crashes was falls (as simple as a flight of stairs for one 15-year-old) and lastly, athletic accidents. I saw people that could only use their mouths to communicate or move. Tara is luckier than those, for sure, as she still has the power of her upper body.

Truly a moving day and a reminder of how lucky all of us are to be healthy and able to see and walk. I kept holding back the tears in this facility. Tomorrow, it could be you or I in there. Someone texting or talking on a cell phone while driving could cause a wreck. We could easily trip and fall down some stairs. Even the smallest luxuries, like having the ability to go to the bathroom alone, would be gone.

As sad as I am, I am inspired by Tara. She has an amazing spirit. The competitor in her is determined to walk again, and ride. She is fearless and hysterical, cracking jokes and even mooning our cameraman in the pool! Ha!! She has a wonderful network of family and friends helping her along the way as well as an amazing outpouring of support from strangers who hear about her story. When she told me of the strangers who had helped along the way, it reminded me of how wonderful people can be. And THAT brought me to tears!

by Courtney Andrews

When one of my fellow producers here at Access, Steve, told me he could get a Return of the Spice Girls concert ticket for me at the last minute on eBbay for $150, I wasn't so sure it would be worth it -- but after going to the opening show in LA on Wednesday, I am quite thankful for the Spice-erience!!

Upon arriving at the Staples Center on opening night, not surprisingly, the audience was overwhelmingly female but Steve (with his girlfriend) and our saucy colleague Bryant were getting me pumped for a night of Girl Power! The place was packed with devoted fans proudly decked out in tight outfits, and hairstyles reminiscent of the group in their nineties popularity. Even little girls who weren't born then represented a new spice generation...but it was a wide age range including lots of girls closer to my age -- in their late 20's and 30's.

We took our seats in the premiere seating of the Staples Center, a few levels up from the floor -- not very close to the stage but definitely decent seats. At about 8:30 the Spice Girls still hadn't taken the stage. We were wondering who was going to open for the Quintet - no one we're told. But Spice fans seated in a VIP suite (on our level, (A)!) caused a sensation before the show!

By Eugene Monzon, Jr.
Film Researcher

“What doesn’t kill you, makes you stranger.” – The Joker (Heath Ledger)

What was the hottest ticket in Hollywood last night? If you said a ticket to the Spice Girls Reunion tour you would be gravely mistaken. Truly the hottest ticket was Warner Bros.’ special "The Dark Knight" event. I was one of the few lucky individuals who was invited to attend this special event, and as any true geek, I attended with my trusty Batman logo belt buckle and The Joker beanie. And yes, this will be a spoiler free article.

Warner Bros. and director Christopher Nolan presented the first 6 minutes of the upcoming 2008 summer release. Nolan, who was in attendance, made a short introduction to the self-contained short film. Nolan began by saying how, for the past 15 years, he has been wanting to work with the IMAX format, and true to his words, he ended up filming 4-5 sequences for the sequel using IMAX cameras. This is the first time that the cameras were ever used for shooting a feature film and let me tell you it is a sight to be seen.

Nolan, as a proud parent of his work, went on to say that the reason why he wanted to preview this footage was for the audience to get a feel for the wonders of the IMAX look. He went on to say that what we were about to see was not only the opening moments of the film but, as we all saw, easily stood up as a short film (hence my reference earlier). And it truly was a short film in every sense -- with a solid opening, conflict to overcome in the middle, and a satisfied denouement.

No frumpy maternity frocks for her- Jennifer Lopez delivered another killer fashion moment at the “Movie Rocks” event in Hollywood last night. It's the first time we've seen her out since she officially announced last month - what everyone already knew - she's pregnant.

The mama-to-be has gotten a lot bigger and is more beautiful than ever. She didn't need a spray tan - she had that natural glow working. She wore her hair in long, loose curls, which complimented her white flowy one shouldered goddess gown. She didn't perform, but did present a couple of times and the second time, for the show finale, she messed up a little when she couldn't read the teleprompter. She laughed about it and started over.

She and Marc had primo seats where they could check out all the action and they whispered in each other's ears during the entire event.

They're back! For the first time in ten years the Spice Girls hit the stage last night at the Victoria's Secret show in Hollywood, which will air December 4th on CBS. The girls came out and the crowd went wild. They performed two songs...actually they lip synched... but they still put on an entertaining show... and they looked FABULOUS!!!! With Hayden Panetierre, Eva Longoria and Ryan Seacrest among the stars watching from the front row, the girls did a boogie-woogie-bugle-boy style performance of their hit "Stop."

Lots of cute boy dancers in uniform worked the stage with the retro chic ladies in a tightly choreographed number. It's a little weird to see Posh, who never smiles and looks so serious all the time, up there dancing and waving her arms. I was surprised she could move, let alone dance in her skintight pencil skirt. At the end of the performance all the girls came together and hugged and seemed happy to be back together and also a little relieved. They also performed their new single "Headlines (Friendship Never Ends)", which wasn't as entertaining. The women looked great again, this time in long gowns, but they just stood there, barely moved and didn't engage the audience as much. Still, for anyone who is a fan of the Spice Girls...it was pretty exciting to see them all back together again... and people around me in the audience, especially a couple of girls sitting on my row...were going nuts.

By Dan Gomez

Much has been made in the press and in the court of public opinion about the Ellen DeGeneres doggy-gate debacle. I know that we here at Access Hollywood have had much discussion about it. In our recent Web polls, our viewers have overwhelmingly come out in favor of Ellen. And why not? Everyone loves Ellen. She is quite arguably one of the nicest and most talented people in the entertainment business.

Face it, no one had ever heard of Marina Baktis, the poor woman from the pet adoption agency, before any of this happened. Now, I believe that this molehill of a story has been made into a mountain of needless controversy and this Blog really isn't about that. I just want to pose a question: what if it wasn't Ellen at the forefront of this story? What if it were, let's say, Paris Hilton?

Same situation: Paris adopts a dog from a pet adoption agency, gives the dog to a hairdresser friend, the agency takes the dog away and Paris makes a tearful plea to have the dog returned. If this had been the case, we would look at Paris' tearful plea as just another empty ploy by the heiress to garner public sympathy for yet another flagrant disregard for the rules. The media would call Marina Baktis a hero for what she did for taking a helpless dog and placing it with a family who would love it and not use it as an accessory. We would all be behind Marina because we all share a common contempt for Paris.

by Mike Marson

After yet another long week of chronicling every move of our girl Spears from my role as a producer here at Access (she got her kids for one night, but is way overdue for a manicure, etc.), Friday night I received a frantic text from my 16-year-old daughter.

I got the whole story later, which goes something like this: my daughter and her friend decided they needed a little tan tune-up before yet another very important party, so they pulled into a tanning salon early in the evening (actually hearing “Gimme More” as the last song on the radio when they turned off the car)

They were the only ones in the salon except for the young girl at the desk, and settled into their private booth.

Suddenly they heard men yelling and screaming just outside their door.

by Whitney Frink, Access Hollywood field producer

Last night, I had the pleasure of interviewing Meryl Streep for the first time. She wore very little makeup (what does SHE have to prove?), gave intelligent answers, and humored me when I asked if she could remember a cheer from her cheerleading days. I do realize that I basically asked Meryl Streep if she would "give me a G!," and for that, I am a little ashamed.

But, that's my job.

Unfortunately, my job is also to write pieces (for the last two weeks, every single day) on Britney Freakin Spears. And here are the things about her, and what I do here at Access Hollywood, that really irk me:

1. I perpetuate the chaos. I take full responsibility (okay, part, and I'll give part to my show). Because of the landscape of entertainment news, we have to buy paparazzi footage -- the same footage that I loath watching, but our viewers apparently love -- and continue to feed the beast. Its a sad animal to be a part of.

The "Across The Universe" soundtrack is currently #3 on iTunes album charts behind Kanye West and Reba McEntire -- 50 Cent lingers at #6.

In fact, Eddie Vedder & Colbie Caillat also have albums ahead of Fiddy!

Albeit on the Billboard album chart, Fitty is resting comfortably at #2 behind Kanye, while "Across The Universe" is only at #49.

But the little Beatles album-that-could, very well could be picking up steam.

In celebration of the United Nations' International Day of Peace, cast members from "Across the Universe" will lead audience members in a sing-along with the film at the ArcLight Theatre in Hollywood tonight September 21, 2007. The event's open to the public, and cast members Evan Rachel Wood, Martin Luther, and Dana Fuchs will introduce the 8:00 pm show and lead audiences into the special sing-along presentation.