Sigourney Weaver is named as a defendant in a lawsuit over a business deal gone bad -- even though she didn't do anything wrong ... and the plaintiff even knows it.
We'll spare you the details, but it goes something like this: According to a lawsuit filed yesterday in New York, a guy named Anthony Minuto is suing Vincent Longo and his cosmetics company over a bad investment Minuto made in Longo's company.
Weaver is a small partner in the company, and was named as a defendant -- but Minuto accuses Weaver of no wrongdoing, saying, "Weaver is named a party defendant herein for no reason other than ... she is a minority shareholder of the Corporation and this action seeks declaratory relief against the corporation."
Translation: she's famous.
Minuto wants 25% of the company and is seeking nearly $5 mil in damages.
TMZ has learned the Gosselins' former nanny -- who once claimed to have had a sexual relationship with Jon -- is the next person TLC wants to testify in their breach of contract case against Jon.
TLC's lawyers have filed court papers in Maryland asking the judge for permission to serve Stephanie Santoro with a subpoena. They also want Stephanie's records.
If it's granted, Santoro will be forced to testify -- along with Michael Lohan, Hailey Glassman and Star Magazine reporter Kate Major.
A pretty incredible twist in the death of DJ AM (aka Adam Goldstein) ... The company that chartered the plane carrying DJ AM that crashed in South Carolina is now being sued for wrongful death because "the crash ultimately caused Adam Goldstein's death."
The amended suit in L.A. County Superior Court notes DJ AM was forced to take various drugs as a result of the burns he suffered, along with the emotional distress.
In addition to Clay Lacy Aviation, DJ AM's estate is suing the travel service, Goodyear Tire, Learjet and the estates of the two pilots who were killed in the crash.
Ultimately DJ AM's death was caused by a combination of various prescription drugs, along with cocaine.
The upshot ... the drugs were the direct result of the crash.
We also know DJ AM became intensely fearful of flying and began taking drugs to calm his nerves when he flew.
UPDATE: A Clay Lacy Aviation rep just told TMZ, "...Clay Lacy Aviation did not own or operate the aircraft involved." Translation -- not our fault.
Britney Spears,Justin Timberlake and the L.A. Lakers have been sued by a company that says they all used knockoffs of their big screen in concert.
Large Audience Display Systems claims in a federal lawsuit in Texas, obtained by TMZ, the concerts in question included a large audience display screen that was identical to their patented, gigantic monitors.
Britney uses the screen on her "Circus" tour. Justin used the monitors on his "FutureSex/LoveShow" tour.
Also sued: The Pussycat Dolls for using the screens as well.
The company wants an injunction prohibiting the defendants from using knockoffs in the future, as well as unspecified damages.
Jon Gosselin has fired off a countersuit against TLC -- claiming the network caused him "to suffer harm to his reputation." (insert joke here).
According to court docs, Kate's ex says he didn't breach his contract with the network -- and now he wants $175,000 he claims they owe him from the show.
Best line ever ... Jon says in legal docs, "because of the enormous Media interest ... and public interest it makes it impossible to carry on normal daily activities, let alone find, secure and maintain a job with an employer who is willing to be exposed to the daily Media intrusions that has impeded my life." Pleeeeeze!!!!
Gosselin claims TLC has been bad mouthing him all over town -- he wants $5 million in damages.
Jon Gosselin has fired back at TLC ...attacking the network that's trying to get an injunction prohibiting him from making dough on shows other than TLC.
Gosselin wants the contract he made with TLC declared invalid on grounds it's unconscionable -- translation: Jon had no lawyer or manager when he sat down with TLC and inked the deal.
The best part -- Gosselin refers to himself as "an unsophisticated father of eight." He claims the deal was so bad ... he and his family only pulled in $2,000 an episode at the beginning. That's $200 a head.
Gosselin also claims TLC violated child labor laws.
Gosselin claims if TLC gets the injunction he'll be "unable to earn a living as a television personality, and therefore be precluded from supporting his eight children, whereas Plaintiff (TLC) currently has its show on 'indefinite hiatus.''
What Jon didn't say in his legal response -- how he'll deal with TLC's claim that he derailed the show by mounting what the network believes is a phony objection. If a judge buys TLC's claim it could cost Jon millions in damages.
And TLC wants Jon to cough up all the loot he made by selling his life to all the shows and websites over the last few months.
Money can buy a lot of things -- a reality TV wedding, for example -- but it couldn't get Lamar Odom off the hook for a car accident he was involved in back in 2007.
Lamar offered the victim in the crash a settlement, but it wasn't to her liking-- so she filed a lawsuit last week, almost two years to the day of the accident.
The woman, 37, claims she is "disabled from her normal duties and will be so disabled in the future." Oh, and her '97 Geo Prizm was totaled.
There are pictures of the "Twilight" kids all over the Internet -- but the people behind the movies are pissed at a magazine company for allegedly grabbing a few and putting them on newsstands.
Summit Entertainment -- the producers of the movies and distributor of various types of merchandise -- is suing Beckett Media over a Twilight-themed magazine Beckett made. According to a lawsuit filed in federal court on Friday, Summit says Beckett is using publicity photos from the movie in their "Twilight Fanzine" without permission.
Summit says they sent Beckett a cease and desist letter -- and since then Beckett, released a second unauthorized magazine.
When Michael Lohan returns home from his trip to Boston this weekend, he'll have a present waiting for him -- courtesy of the lawyers at TLC.
Lohan tells TMZ he has been subpoenaed to testify in TLC's breach of contract lawsuit against Jon Gosselin. Lohan says he was contacted by a process server on Friday. He says he told the process server he was out of town, but that he accepts the papers and that she can leave them at his house.
Michael says he hasn't seen the papers yet.
TLC is suing Gosselin, claiming he broke his deal with TLC when he began taking money to appear on other shows and talking about "Jon & Kate" without proper permission.
Jennifer Lopez has unleashed a legal nightmare on her ex-husband -- filing a multi-million dollar lawsuit against Ojani Noa over a tell-all movie and intimate home videos.
In the lawsuit, filed today in L.A. County Superior Court, JLo claims Ojani is planning to release a movie called "How I Married Jennifer Lopez: The JLo and Ojani Noa Story" -- which Lopez claims is a direct violation of a confidentiality agreement they signed a few years back.
Lopez also claims Noa intends to market "11+ hours of previously unseen home video footage of Jennifer Lopez and Ojani Noa " -- which Lopez claims is also in violation of their agreement. Lopez was told the footage depicted her "in a revealing lack of clothing, and in sexual situations, especially in the hotel room from [her and Noa's] honeymoon."
In the documents, Lopez's attorney claims he got a letter from a producer working with Noa -- who stated that he had "entered into a contractual agreement" with TMZ for the "exclusive rights to the ... home movies." The producer's claims are patently false -- there was never any such agreement.
Lopez is suing Noa for breach of contract and invading her privacy -- and she wants no less than $10,000,000. Lopez also wants a judge to order Noa to stop any plans to move forward with the movie or release the footage.
FYI -- Lopez and Noa were married for less than a year between '97-'98.
The beef between Morgan Freeman and the woman who sued him over a 2008 car crash is officially over.
Court records show a settlement was reached between Freeman and Demaris Meyer -- the lady who was riding with Freeman when she says he lost control of the vehicle and crashed it on a Mississippi highway. Meyer also claimed Freeman had been drinking before he got behind the wheel.
The car flipped multiple times during the accident -- Freeman suffered severe injuries while Miller suffered two broken bones and numerous bruises and lacerations.
The terms of the settlement were not released ... Freeman's lawyer simply said, "We're all glad it's over with."
Carrie Prejean -- the dethroned Miss California USA -- is in meltdown mode because of a solo sex tape.
Prejean -- who made headlines for her stand against gay marriage and her strong ties to fundamentalist religion -- is supposed to appear on "Today" next week to push her new book.. "Today" producers have called TMZ, making it clear the interview has changed and they want details on the sex tape.
TMZ has also received calls from CNN, FOX and various other outlets asking for info.
The reason they're all calling TMZ -- we obtained the tape several months ago but decided not to run it because it was too racy.
As we first reported, Prejean and Miss California USA officials had sued each other and were in settlement talks last week. Sources tell us Prejean was demanding more than $1 million but when Pageant officials showed her they had a copy of the tape, it took less than a minute for Prejean to fold and walk away with nothing in her pocket.
Prejean had sued the Pageant for allegedly firing her because of her beliefs and disclosing confidential information about her -- including her breast implants. The Pageant countersued, claiming Prejean had repeatedly violated the terms of being Miss Cali USA.
The reason the tape became such a smoking gun -- under Pageant rules, all contestants signed forms that gave assurance they had no nude videos or pictures in their past.
Chris Jericho Slurs Speech
WWE star Chris Jericho is wrestling with a pretty serious controversy -- after he made a slew of offensive slurs against Middle Easterners and gays.
Jericho was at the Sacramento Horror Film Festival two weeks ago ... for a screening of a movie in which he appears. During a Q&A session, Jericho referred to the moderator several times as "Hadji" -- a term sometimes used as a racial slur against Middle Easterners.
After the first wave of slurs -- and a random shot at Paris Hilton -- the host jokingly takes Jericho's drink to sniff it for booze, when Chris chimes back, "it's apple juice ... fag."
Jericho tells TMZ, "After seeing the video I realize some inappropriate comments were made and I apologize if I offended anybody." Jericho continues, "Just know that everyone on stage was having a blast and we all shared a drink and a laugh after! The good news is I got my wish of being posted on TMZ."
Yes you did, Chris.
Jude Law ... THIS IS YOUR BABY
Samantha Burke says Jude Law has yet to meet his six-week-old baby girl ... but if he happens to look through Burke's photos on Facebook, at least he'll know what little Sophia Lee looks like if he ever runs into her down the road.
Celebrity Park People
Public parks are a great place for stars to have a picnic, soak up some rays ... and dodge the occasional stranger danger.
You Belong in the Circus!
Step right up ... and check out the oddities of Hollywood -- we've got bearded ladies, tight rope walkers, jugglers and a half-woman/ half-fish!
And the best part ... no animals were harmed in the making of our circus!
Who's Your Daddy?
Can you guess whose famous genes spawned these cute kids?
Stretched Out
Celebrity faces aren't the only thing getting a good stretch in Hollywood. Yoga has become the new "IN" thing!
Marie Osmond is an ungrateful celebrity who screwed the man who rebuilt her career -- according to the man who claims he helped rebuild her career.
Karl Engemann -- Marie's long-time manager -- says he resurrected her career, only to be fired and defamed by Donny's little sis.
Marie's lawyer, legal pit bull Marty Singer, tells TMZ Marie fired Engemann -- the father of Larry King's wife, Shawn -- "because he acted in an inappropriate, improper manner and breached his fiduciary duty to Marie." Singer also says Engemann defamed Marie, and she'll go after him for "substantial monies" and establish he has no right to more commissions.
Engemann's lawyer, Larry Stein, calls the attacks against his client "scandalous" and "scurrilous."
Marie is now making a bundle -- $125,000 a show in Las Vegas for starters -- and Stein says it's all Engemann's doing.
Attorney Stein, tells TMZ, "Shamefully, Ms. Osmond has fired Mr. Engemann 18 months into a 5 year written contract and seeks to enjoy the fruits of his labors without compensating him for his work."
The matter is currently before a private arbitrator.
Carrie Prejean demanded more than a million dollars during her settlement negotiations with Miss California USA Pageant officials -- that is, until the lawyer for the Pageant showed Carrie an XXX home video of her handiwork.
The video the lawyer showed Carrie is extremely graphic and has never been released publicly. We know that, because TMZ obtained the video months ago but decided not to post it because it was so racy. Let's just say, Carrie has a promising solo career.
We're told it took about 15 seconds for Carrie to jettison her demand and essentially walk away with nothing. As we first reported, the Pageant is paying around $100,000 to her lawyers and publicist -- a fraction of her bills. She pockets nothing in the settlement.
The Playboy Playmate formerly accused of taking money from innocent children just won big in court -- because the lawsuit which claimed stole another woman's child support was just dropped.
Ida Ljungqvist's lawyer, Keith Fink, claimed the other woman decided against pursuing her lawsuit because she was told she faced a malicious prosecution action if she followed through with it.
Katrina Kantner filed the lawsuit on May 28 -- claiming Ida received $90,000 from her ex-husband, Doug ... all while Doug neglected his $10,000 monthly child support payments.
Ida's lawyer claims she was targeted simply because she is a celebrity.
Sigourney Weaver is named as a defendant in a lawsuit over a business deal gone bad -- even though she didn't do anything wrong ... and the plaintiff even knows it. 
TMZ has learned the Gosselins' former nanny -- who once claimed to have had a sexual relationship with Jon -- is the next person TLC wants to testify in their breach of contract case against Jon.
A pretty incredible twist in the death of DJ AM (aka Adam Goldstein) ... The company that chartered the plane carrying DJ AM that crashed in South Carolina is now being sued for wrongful death because "the crash ultimately caused Adam Goldstein's death." 
Jon Gosselin has fired back at TLC ...attacking the network that's trying to get an injunction prohibiting him from making dough on shows other than TLC.
There are pictures of the "Twilight" kids all over the Internet -- but the people behind the movies are pissed at a magazine company for allegedly grabbing a few and putting them on newsstands. 
When Michael Lohan returns home from his trip to Boston this weekend, he'll have a present waiting for him -- courtesy of the lawyers at TLC.
The beef between Morgan Freeman and the woman who sued him over a 2008 car crash is officially over.
Carrie Prejean -- the dethroned Miss California USA -- is in meltdown mode because of a solo sex tape.
Marie Osmond is an ungrateful celebrity who screwed the man who rebuilt her career -- according to the man who claims he helped rebuild her career.
Carrie Prejean demanded more than a million dollars during her settlement negotiations with Miss California USA Pageant officials -- that is, until the lawyer for the Pageant showed Carrie an XXX home video of her handiwork.
The Playboy Playmate formerly accused of taking money from innocent children just won big in court -- because the lawsuit which claimed stole another woman's child support was just dropped.
