Former ‘SNL’ regular Tracy Morgan pleads guilty to drunken drivingNEW YORK (AP) — Tracy Morgan pleaded guilty Wednesday to a misdemeanour drunken driving charge.The 38-year-old comic, who co-stars on the NBC sitcom “30 Rock,” submitted the plea in Manhattan Criminal Court in exchange for a conditional discharge, meaning he must meet conditions set by the court and the case against him will be dismissed.

Judge Ellen Coin ordered Morgan to enter a doctor-supervised alcohol program, do community service to be determined later, and avoid being arrested again within the next six months. The judge also fined Morgan $1,000 and suspended his driver’s license for six months.

Outside court, Morgan, who came to court in a taxi with wife Sabina, apologised for his behaviour. “Drinking and driving is not cool,” he said, and he promised he would never be in that situation again.

Morgan, a “Saturday Night Live” cast member from 1996 to 2003, was stopped about 4.30 a.m. on November 28, 2006. Police said he smelled of alcohol and later failed a Breathalyzer test.

On December 2, 2005, Morgan was arrested in Hollywood on impaired driving charges after police stopped him for speeding.

Authorities there said his blood-alcohol level was 0.13 percent, over the legal limit of 0.08 percent. He leaded no contest to a misdemeanour charge and was sentenced to 36 months’ probation, fined $390 and ordered to attend an alcohol education programme.Eastwood says US veterans curious about Japanese viewBERLIN (AP) — Clint Eastwood says he found that US veterans of the 1945 fighting on Iwo Jima were curious to know about the Japanese side of the story — chronicled in his Oscar-nominated “Letters From Iwo Jima.”Eastwood presented “Letters” — the companion piece to “Flags of Our Fathers,” which related the fighting from the American perspective — as an out-of-competition entry at the annual Berlin film festival Sunday.

“I was wondering what American veterans of the battle of Iwo Jima would think of ‘Letters From Iwo Jima,’ because most of, a lot of them probably had very bad experiences on that island,” Eastwood, 76, said at a news conference.

“I found that most of the Americans that I’ve talked to ... were very curious about it and they were very curious about how the other side lived,” he added. “Now, 62 years later, it’s easy to think differently about things than you did, say, maybe when you’re a young person fighting for your life.”

Some 100,000 US troops battled more than 22,000 Japanese deeply dug into a labyrinth of tunnels and trenches and desperate to protect the island, which was crucial to Japan’s defences. Nearly 7,000 Americans were killed capturing Iwo, and fewer than 1,000 of the Japanese would survive.

“Letters From Iwo Jima” is an Oscar contender in both the best picture and best director categories.Kylie Minogue asks fans to leave her ex-boyfriend aloneNEW YORK (AP) — Kylie Minogue wants her fans to leave her ex-boyfriend alone.The Australian singer, 38, and 41-year-old French actor Olivier Martinez announced their separation this month after four years together.

“As for the treatment Olivier has received of late, I can only reiterate that he simply does not deserve the kind of harassment or vitriol to which he has been subjected,” she wrote in a message posted on her Web site.

The tabloid press had speculated that Martinez was seeing someone else. The two have said the accusations saddened them both. “For someone whom I have enormous love and respect, and communicate with, it is so grossly unfair: to demonise an honest man. I would ask of you, my fans, to show your support for both Olli and myself as a separation is never easy,” she wrote.

People magazine’s Web site reported on her note Saturday.

Minogue, known for hits such as “Loco-Motion” and “Can’t Get You Out of My Head,” recently resumed performing after treatment for breast cancer diagnosed in 2005. He has appeared in “Before Night Falls” and the recently released “Blood and Chocolate.”Comedian Mark Curry says comic friends kept him from suicide NEW YORK (AP) — Comedian Mark Curry, who starred in the 1990s sitcom “Hangin’ with Mr. Cooper,” says that if it wasn’t for some of his comic friends he probably would have committed suicide last spring after a freak accident landed him in the hospital with second-degree burns.Appearing on “The Montel Williams Show” set to air Thursday, Curry, 42, said he suffered burns over 18 percent of his body after a falling can of spray starch ruptured and sparked a fire in his California home.

“It was so bad ... that pain was so excruciating that I just threw it out,” said Curry, recalling the moment when he woke up from a three-day, medically induced coma.

“I wanted to kill myself and, by the fourth day, I said, `I can’t do this.’ I felt less than a man. I couldn’t even look at my own body. I saw my hand with the peeling skin and threw up, and I didn’t look at myself again.”

He then decided to hoard his pain medication and commit suicide by overdosing on it, he said. But Curry, who also appeared on TV’s “Fat Actress” and “The Drew Carey Show,” said he changed his mind after talking to some funny friends, like Sinbad and Bill Cosby.

“They made me laugh, and that helped a lot,” he said.Paris Hilton is the star guest at Vienna’s prestigious Opera BallVIENNA, Austria (AP) — Hundreds of shrieking, frenzied fans welcomed Paris Hilton as she made an appearance at a Vienna mall Thursday to sign autographs. “Hello everybody, it’s so good to see you,” the 25-year-old hotel heiress/reality TV star cooed as the crowd went crazy. “Happy late Valentine’s Day!”The session was cut short when several objects landed on the stage and Hilton was whisked away by security guards.

Richard Lugner, who is Hilton’s Vienna host, said the flying objects included cigarette packs, tissues and lipsticks. The 74-year-old married construction magnate invites a celebrity to the city’s prestigious Opera Ball each year. His previous guests include Geri Halliwell, Pamela Anderson and Carmen Electra.

The Austria Press Agency reported that sheets of paper that floated onto the stage were fliers from a communist youth organisation. Hilton ran into a problem in Munich, Germany, on Wednesday because her passport had expired. Susan McCaw, US ambassador to Austria, had to vouch for her so she could enter the country, APA reported.

When asked what happened, Hilton replied: “Oh nothing, just my passport expired.”

Taking questions from some 100 reporters earlier, Hilton said she “loved” classical music and that she grew up listening to it.

“As a little girl, it really helped me fall asleep at night,” she said, adding later that she “really loved” old Michael Jackson songs, Madonna and hip-hop. The Opera Ball, which was to be held Thursday night, draws about 4,500 well-heeled Austrian and foreign celebrities, dignitaries and socialites. Tickets often sell out months in advance.