Seinfeld

Kramer was all smiles when we saw him last night in NYC, and why not? He was just on the cover of Entertainment Weekly and is reuniting with his old "Seinfeld" pals on an episode of "Curb Your Enthusiasm."

These could be the first steps out of that deep, dark black hole his career has been in for the last three years -- so we gotta ask ...

A lawsuit claiming Jerry Seinfeld's wife, Jessica, stole the idea for her best-selling cookbook was tossed out by a Federal judge yesterday.

A woman named Missy Chase Lapine sued the Seinfelds claiming they took her idea for a cookbook about sneaking healthy foods into kids' meals.

TMZ caught Britney out at Ralph's grocery store last night where she told us that pregnancy test she was holding in photos seen yesterday wasn't for her -- but for "a friend." Do her other personalities count as friends?

Later on, Brit went to the trendy clothing shop Kitson -- at 1:30 AM! She had the owner of the store, Fraser Ross, open it up just for her. She walked in wearing a short red dress, but walked out with a dress shirt and tie thrown on top.

But the ripped stockings were a nice touch.

A Pennsylvania couple is suing Martha Stewart Living and K-Mart, claiming the domestic diva's "Everyday" dinnerware -- with the lovely name "Flowers and Buds Border" -- contains lead and is responsible for poisoning their children. Get the lead out!

In the lawsuit, filed on behalf of their two kids Michael and Matthew, Sandra and Raymond Dombroski allege the boys were poisoned by lead in the dinnerware, which caused the boys to suffer "mental, emotional and cognitive impairment, learning disability" as well as speech problems and physical impairment and a host of other problems. That's not a good thing!

The Dombroskis say that the lead problem is a result of "negligent, reckless, intentional and outrageous conduct of MSLO..." (that's Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia), and they've served up a heaping lawsuit asking for compensatory and punitive damages.

A spokesperson for MSLO told TMZ "We take consumer product safety very seriously. We do not comment on pending litigation."

Damon Wayans became the first famous offender of the Laugh Factory's ban on the use of the n-word, and was fined and banned from the club for three months as a result, Wayans' publicist tells TMZ.

After the Michael Richards incident on November 17, the club decided to ban use of the word and fine comedians $20 for every offense. Wayans took the stage Sunday during a showcase of African-American comedians called "Chocolate Sundaes." Wayans opened his routine with the line, "Give yourselves a big round of applause for coming down and supporting 'N***** Night.'" According to the L.A. Times, Wayans used the word 15 more times during his 20-minute appearance.

That's a $320 contribution to the Laugh Factory's swear jar. Wayans' rep had no further comment other than to confirm the fine and the temporary ban.

It seems that there really is no such thing as bad press -- even press generated by racist tirades.

Sales of season seven of "Seinfeld" are up 75% over season six and 90% over season five -- after one week of sales, according to website DVD Empire. Meanwhile, DeepDiscountDVD.com reports a staggering 178% increase over season six. Sales are up despite Jesse Jackson calling for a boycott.

Seasons five and six were released on the same day last year. TMZ's video of Michael Richards' hideous harangue was first seen on November 20 -- one day before season seven was released. Richards went on "The Late Show with David Letterman" that same night to apologize.

To paraphrase Seinfeld ... is there anything wrong with that?

Whats the deal with Michael Richards? The former "Senifeld" star unleashed a tirade of racial slurs toward a group of African-American audience members who heckled the "comedian." Warning: This video is profane and racial.

Maybe Beyonce hates the crowded conditions of the Area nightclub, or perhaps she was just tuckered out from slaughtering defenseless animals for her fur coats. Whatever the reason, it didn't stop her man Jay-Z from having fun while Beyonce sat in the car for 40 minutes, presumably adjusting the stereo pre-sets.

Did Michael Richards attack the Jews? Two Los Angeles residents have come forward and said that's exactly what happened last Spring at L.A. comedy club, The Improv.

Carol Oschin and J.P. Fillet say they were at The Improv on April 22 when Richards took the stage. They say that in the middle of Richards' skit, a man in the audience said something to the comedian, when Richards allegedly launched into an anti-Semitic rant. According to Oschin, Richards screamed at the audience member, "You f***ing Jew. You people are the cause of Jesus dying."

Oschin says the rant continued and Richards stormed off the stage. Oschin and Fillet say that, at first, they thought Richards' tirade was part of his act, but claim that it quickly became apparent it was not.

Richards' publicist, Howard Rubenstein, confirmed to TMZ that Richards did make derogatory comments about Jews, but says it was part of his act. Rubenstein says Richards told him, "I'm not anti-Semitic. I was playing a role and poking fun at the rednecks."

Michael Richards exploded in anger as he performed at a famous L.A. comedy club last Friday, hurling racial epithets that left the crowd gasping, and TMZ has obtained exclusive video of the ugly incident.

Richards, who played the wacky Cosmo Kramer on the hit TV show "Seinfeld," appeared onstage at the Laugh Factory in West Hollywood. Kyle Doss, an African-American, told TMZ he and some friends were in the cheap seats and he was playfully heckling Richards when suddenly, the comedian lost it.

The camera started rolling just as Richards began his attack, screaming at one of the men, "Fifty years ago we'd have you upside down with a f***ing fork up your ass."

Richards continued, "You can talk, you can talk, you're brave now motherf**ker. Throw his ass out. He's a nigger! He's a nigger! He's a nigger! A nigger, look, there's a nigger!"

The crowd is visibly and audibly confused and upset. Richards responds by saying, "They're going to arrest me for calling a black man a nigger."

One of the men who was the object of Richard's tirade was outraged, shouting back "That's un-f***ing called for, ain't necessary."

After the three-minute tirade, it appears the majority of the audience members got up and left in disgust.

Attempts to reach Richards' reps were unsuccessful.

Homer: The Committed Imbecile
When the animated series about a yellow family with funny hair premiered on FOX in 1989, no one expected it to live through the millennium. Seventeen seasons later, it's clear there's something quite genius about 'The Simpsons.'

The secret here is that the characters, although animated, are completely relatable. "It's fun to watch Homer speak directly from the empty place in his mind," Oteri says. "Everyone wants to say their stupid thoughts, but stops themselves." To Zweibel, the people of Springfield makes no apologies for the bigoted beings that they are, and because it's a cartoon, laughing at the screen doesn't seem so dirty.

"My short answer is I have no worries about that because I'm on a heavy dose of antibiotics right now," actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus said Wednesday.

With that, she deflected questions about the inability of former "Seinfeld" cast members to have much television success after that NBC hit ended its run. Louis-Dreyfus' own "Watching Ellie" is in the wastebasket of failed shows.

You just have to keep trying, said Louis-Dreyfus, who is portraying a divorced mom in "The New Adventures of Old Christine," which will premiere on CBS this spring.

Her goal isn't to find a different character from Elaine, just to find someone funny, the 45-year-old actress said.

"I think the difference with this character is that perhaps she's a little more grounded and perhaps she's a little bit more real in a way that Elaine wasn't," she said. "But I would say that she has a pathetic quality that is similar, frankly. So set your TiVos."

Her 8-year-old son found it a little odd to watch his mom onscreen kissing another 8-year-old boy, she said.