HOLLYWOOD DIRT OVERFLOW (8-07-09)

"BREAKFAST CLUB" DIRECTOR JOHN HUGHES HAS DIED:

The SUMMER OF DEATH took a short break, but it's back. Director JOHN HUGHES . . . the man who DEFINED what teen movies were in the 1980s . . . died suddenly and unexpectedly yesterday. He was 59.

Hughes suffered a heart attack while taking a morning walk during a trip to Manhattan to visit family. --Hughes only directed EIGHT movies, but they were almost all classics.

They were:
--"Sixteen Candles", 1984 --"The Breakfast Club", 1985 --"Weird Science", 1985 --"Ferris Bueller's Day Off", 1986 --"Planes, Trains and Automobiles", 1987 --"She's Having a Baby", 1988 --"Uncle Buck", 1989 --"Curly Sue", 1991

Hughes wrote or co-wrote all of those movies. He also wrote or co-wrote tons of other movies, including the "Home Alone" movies, "Pretty In Pink", "National Lampoon's Vacation", "Mr. Mom", "Some Kind of Wonderful", "Beethoven", "Maid in Manhattan" and, most recently, 2008's "Drillbit Taylor".

Whether you consider this a positive or not, John Hughes was responsible for launching the careers of most of the so-called "Brat Packers". That list includes Molly Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall, Judd Nelson, Emilio Estevez, Jon Cryer, Ally Sheedy and Jennifer Grey. (--Even John and Joan Cusack have miniscule parts in "Sixteen Candles". John plays one of Anthony Michael Hall's geeky friends. Joan plays the chick in the neck brace.)

Then, of course, there was MACAULAY CULKIN . . . who got his big break with "Uncle Buck", then became a SUPERSTAR thanks to "Home Alone". --Even 1991's "Curly Sue" . . . not one of Hughes' most well-regarded flicks . . . has the distinction of having been STEVE CARELL'S first movie.

(--Here's a pretty cool montage of scenes from John Hughes movies that somebody posted on YouTube . . .)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOkNIUw0c2s

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STEVEN TYLER WAS AIRLIFTED TO THE HOSPITAL AFTER FALLING OFF A STAGE ON WEDNESDAY NIGHT:

Yet another member of AEROSMITH has gone down with an injury. --On Wednesday night, singer STEVEN TYLER fell off the stage about halfway through a gig at the annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in Rapid City, South Dakota. --He was airlifted to a local hospital, and treated for minor injuries to his head, neck and shoulder.

What happened was that the sound system failed during "Love in an Elevator" . . . so Steven started dancing on a catwalk to entertain the crowd He twirled around and stepped backward, inadvertently falling off the stage, and onto a couple fans.

(--There IS video of this. You can find it at this link . . .)http://www.tmz.com/videos?autoplay=true&mediaKey=ed2c697f-01cd-42d3-9dc0-796b744973ab

(--And here's a picture of Steven after the fall, with a BLOODY shoulder . . .)

Soon afterward, guitarist JOE PERRY announced that the show was over. --There's been no official update from the band . . . but Joe's wife, BILLIE PERRY, is Twittering about it. And she says Steven BROKE HIS SHOULDER. --Quote, "He hit his head and back. No concussion, stitches in head and back near shoulder. Broken shoulder. Yes he is very sore. We were all worried.

"Steven will see his own doctor tonight or tomorrow. No word on when [the tour] will resume . . . should know more very soon regarding this." (--If you want to check for updates, or if you just want to start "following" Joe Perry's wife . . . ??? . . . here's the link to her Twitter feed . . .)http://twitter.com/BilliePerry

Aerosmith was supposed to begin a short Canadian tour TONIGHT . . . but that gig, which was set to go down in Winnipeg, has already been postponed. The next show is scheduled for Sunday. There's no word on that one yet.

Look, I don't want to say that Aerosmith should hang it up . . . but they aren't 30 years old anymore. And I'm becoming concerned about their safety.)

Here's an Aerosmith medical recap: In February, they cancelled a show because Steven had an infection . . . and in March he went down with pneumonia. Last month, the band postponed seven shows after he ripped his leg muscle onstage.

Then, bassist TOM HAMILTON sat out due to a vague "non-invasive surgery." And guitarist BRAD WHITFORD missed the first two months of the tour. He had to have head surgery after injuring himself while exiting his Ferrari.

In the past two years, Steven has had throat and foot surgeries . . . and guitarist Joe Perry has had several surgeries, including a knee replacement last year. Due to complications, he had ANOTHER knee surgery in January.

I feel they have already seccured a nice spot in Rock History.. They have nothing more to prove..

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WILL THERE BE A MICHAEL JACKSON TRIBUTE ALBUM???

The not-always-reliable British tabloids say that some of the biggest names in music will contribute to a MICHAEL JACKSON tribute album . . . with proceeds going to charity.

Participants will supposedly include Madonna, Beyoncé, Mariah Carey, Stevie Wonder, Lionel Richie, Whitney Houston and Usher. Mariah will sing "I'll Be There", obviously . . . while Madonna may do either "Beat It" or "Billie Jean". (--Since this comes from the British tabloids, it's highly suspect. We'll let you know if we hear anything more.)

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"AMERICAN IDOL" INSANITY

THE LATEST PAULA ABDUL / "AMERICAN IDOL" UPDATES:

The PAULA ABDUL / "American Idol" fallout is NOT over yet. Here's the latest: Fox Entertainment boss Peter Rice was at some press conference yesterday . . . and naturally, he spent most of the time answering questions about Paula's decision to walk away from "Idol". Here are some of the highlights . . .

He said that "Idol" is planning on sticking with the wildly popular four-judge format . . . (--which means you'll continue to miss the last five minutes of every episode, unless you remember to screw around with the settings on your DVR.)

So, they ARE looking for a permanent replacement for Paula, but they don't expect anything to happen soon. For the audition phase . . . (--which actually begins today in Denver) . . . they'll bring in various celebrity guest judges to take Paula's seat. --Two of them have been revealed: VICTORIA "POSH SPICE" BECKHAM and KATY PERRY.

There's been a lot of talk about Paula possibly changing her mind . . . or reopening negotiations with "Idol". But it doesn't sound like Fox is anticipating that. --Rice said, quote, "The negotiations have concluded . . . I have no expectation that Paula's going to [re-open negotiations]. Paula chose not to return. Our understanding is [that she] will not be coming back."

For the record, he said Fox made a, quote, "very fair" offer to Paula. He didn't specify what that was . . . but we've heard it was a multi-year deal beginning at around $4 million per season. That would've reportedly given her a 30% raise. --But TMZ claims Paula would actually consider coming back . . . for $10 MILLION a year.

There's also speculation about Paula joining "So You Think You Can Dance". Executive producer NIGEL LYTHGOE . . . (--who's also a former "Idol" producer) . . . says he'd like to have her, but he isn't sure that she's a free agent yet. --He says, quote, "I still don't know that she's going to leave 'Idol'. Until 'Idol' goes on the air there's always the opportunity for negotiations."

Finally, the paparazzi caught up with Paula on Wednesday. She said she still talks with SIMON COWELL all the time, and, quote, "He misses me already." (--Here's the video . . .) http://www.tmz.com/videos?autoplay=true&mediaKey=d5000de5-878e-45d0-a595-5b8abf2a86e8