First-time nominees for Rock and Roll Hall of Fame

Pearl Jam, Tupac Shakur, Jane's Addiction and Depeche Mode are among the latest nominees for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Pearl Jam and murdered rapper Shakur were named in their first year of eligibility.

Artists become eligible for nomination 25 years after the release of their first recording. If Shakur gets inducted next year, he will be the first solo hip-hop artist to join the hall.

Publications say sorry to Tom Hanks

Tom Hanks and his wife, Rita Wilson, have obtained apologies and retractions from The National Enquirer and Star Magazine, which claimed the couple were divorcing because Hanks was in love with his Sleepless In Seattle co-star Meg Ryan or Inferno co-star Felicity Jones.

The Enquirer's Oct 10 issue had run a report saying, "$400-million marriage crumbling over Hanks' love for Ryan".

Spinal Tap co-writer sues media group

Comic Harry Shearer has sued Vivendi in Los Angeles for US$125 million (S$173 million) in damages, accusing the media group of withholding millions in profits from This Is Spinal Tap (1984) from its creators and cast.

Shearer, 72, co-wrote the cult movie that has generated three decades of residual fees from DVDs, TV reruns and a 2000 re-release that is now at issue in the lawsuit.