Hollywood hunk Johnny Depp's wish has been granted - Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards is set to play his father in Pirates Of The Caribbean: Treasures Of The Lost Abyss. Depp has admitted that he based his character Captain Jack Sparrow on the aging rocker when he shot the 2003 hit Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl, and now the stars are reportedly set to team up on screen. Earlier this year, Depp was alleged to have expressed an interest in Richards playing his father. The sequel is set to begin filming in February, with director Gore Verbinski taking the helm again.

Pop star Ashlee Simpson saved face at Monday night's Radio Music Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada, by performing her new single "Autobiography" "absolutely live". The singer looked foolish on Saturday's live broadcast of Saturday Night Live in America when she started lip-synching to the wrong track and she was determined not to repeat her mistake. Simpson was teased throughout the telecast of the awards show by hosts Carson Daly and Molly Sims but she did deliver a live performance - and won over fans, some of which had booed her earlier at the event. The night was also a triumph for Usher, who picked up three awards, including the end-of-the-night's Cingular Best Artist honor, as voted for by fans at home. And Beyonce Knowles, who opened the show with her Destiny's Child bandmates - performing their new single "Lose My Breath," was celebrating in style when she picked up Artist of The Year honors in the Top 40 Radio category. She dedicated the honor to her five-day old nephew Daniel. Meanwhile, Janet Jackson baffled fans when she dedicated her Legend Award to a 12-year-old boy in the audience, who was spending the day with the pop superstar thanks to the charity Make-a-Wish Foundation.

Teen actress Lindsay Lohan's father is fighting to see his daughter as she recovers from a fever at Los Angeles' Cedars Sinai Hospital. Michael Lohan claims he has been forbidden from seeing his daughter, who was admitted to hospital on Thursday after falling ill on the set of her new film Herbie: Fully Loaded. Speaking to American scandal show Celebrity Justice, Lohan, who insists his wife won't let him see his daughter, says, "I've been here twice. I just want to know that she's OK. It's horrible that there's been such a wall put up around her, when Lindsay and I had an amazing relationship all of our life until this happened." Family relations became strained when Lohan fought with his brother-in-law at a family party this summer. Since then, Michael and his estranged wife, Dina, have both filed restraining orders keeping each 100 yards away from the other after a fight led to them both reporting the other for driving over them. An upset Lohan says, "My wife promised me she won't keep me from my kids. Evidently, not so." Lindsay is listed at the hospital under an alias, and apparently, Michael can't even find out the name. He adds, "She's being torn up. It's not fair to her or my other children to be put in the middle like this, it's a horrible thing."

Former Sex And The City star Sarah Jessica Parker has been presented a key to her birthplace of Nelsonville, Ohio. The actress received the key during a visit to the Athens County Democratic Party's Nelsonville headquarters last week while stumping for Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry. She then headed to nearby Athens, home of Ohio University. Wearing a large gold "vote" medallion, Parker appealed to the mostly female crowd of 300 at an Athens bar by saying Kerry's platform of abortion rights, jobs, health care and education are hot topics with women. She told them, "It's no secret who I'm going to vote for." Parker calls the November 2 election, which pitches Kerry against American President George W Bush, the "most important of my lifetime".

American socialite Paris Hilton has been spotted kissing new lover Mark Philippoussis' tennis rival Andy Roddick. Over the weekend it was reported Australian sports ace Philippoussis had begun dating the hotel heiress and the reality TV star had been declaring she was "head over heels in love". American gossip site Pagesix.Com reports Hilton and American tennis star Roddick - who dated Mandy Moore earlier this year - were "locking lips" at Las Vegas nightspot Light on Sunday. Hilton's publicist Richard Squire has laughed off Hilton's supposed declaration for Philippoussis, saying, "The message from Paris was 'What is this all about?' It was probably just some throw-away comment. Tara Reid went out with Mark and she is a good friend of Paris."

The owner of the Nevada strip club being sued by Catherine Zeta-Jones has fired back at the actress, telling her to "pick on someone her own size". Spice House boss Kent Wallace is shocked by the Oscar-winner's lawsuit, which was filed at a Los Angeles court last week after the club used images of the actress on their website. The Chicago beauty is seeking unspecified damages from the Reno nightclub and an order barring further use of her likeness. Wallace fumes to American website Pagesix.Com, "It's absurd. If I wanted, I could get pictures of Catherine Zeta-Jones butt-naked. Catherine, pick on someone your own size - no pun intended. This is a frivolous lawsuit. Let's be honest, the most famous cleavage in Catherine Zeta-Jones' family is on the chin of her father-in-law (Kirk Douglas). The photo was only up for a few weeks and as much as we would love to think that we get tons of traffic, we are the Spice House in Reno. We were not getting any hits (with or without Zeta-Jones' photo). It is what it is. It's a website that belongs to a small topless cabaret in Reno. We're just sort of in shock."

Ben Affleck's weird behavior baffled journalists at a press junket for his new movie Surviving Christmas. According to reports, the actor frequently swore, avoided questions about the film, waved his arms wildly and put his head in co-star Christina Applegate's lap during interviews. He also made an uncharacteristic rant against director friend Kevin Smith. Darkhorizons.Com journalist Paul Fischer says, "It was, to put it mildly, an odd experience." But Affleck's spokesman Ken Sunshine blames illness and boredom, telling The Scoop, "He did a full hour and a half on the red carpet at the premiere the night before the junket, and did a full seven hours for two full days of junkets. He also had a bad sore throat. In all that time he answered many, many stupid questions - and answered most of them with humor, sometimes outrageously funny humor. I would probably have walked out on these jerks when they feel they must ask about Jennifer (Garner). Behaving strangely? I behaved strangely, not him."

The jury selection in Robert Blake's murder trial got off to a bad start yesterday, when only 20 of the first 177 prospects said they'd be available to serve on a long trial. Potential jurors were unhappy to discover they could be sitting in a courtroom with the former Baretta star for five months. Jury Commissioner Gloria Gomez read a statement from judge Darlene Schempp stating that prospects would be excused only for legitimate reasons relating to their employment or studies. Schempp has said she wants a pool of 150 to 200 pre-screened jurors ready to be quizzed on November 15 when lawyers take over. That could involve the screening of as many as 1,800 prospective jurors. Blake, 71, will stand trial for murder in the death of his wife Bonny Lee Bakley. He told police he found Bakley shot in their car on 4 May, 2001, after he went back into the California restaurant where they had just dined to retrieve a gun he carried for protection.

Legendary radio DJ John Peel has died while on holiday in Peru. He was 65. BBC mainstay Peel suffered a heart attack while on a working vacation in Cuzco with his wife Sheila. He was the BBC's longest-serving radio presenter, and began his career with the broadcaster in the mid-1960s. Hugely respected, Peel was internationally renowned for encouraging up-and- coming rock acts, and broadcasting sessions of their live performances. Among the thousands of bands to appear on his program were Nirvana, The White Stripes, The Cure, New Order and grunge pioneers Mudhoney.

Lifestyle guru Martha Stewart's five-month jail stint could become a lucrative experience for her - she's penning her prison memoirs. Stewart has reportedly asked her lawyer Allen Grubman's aides to pitch her proposed literary offering to New York publishers, while she serves her sentence in a West Virginia institution. One book industry insider says, "You'd think that they would wait until she got out to pitch this so that she has the credibility to do it as a redemption story. It sort of seems like they've got the whole thing a**-backwards." However, New York magazine claims many publishers are excited by the prospect. Judith Regan says, "If it's a good story, I'm always interested." Miramax Books are also reportedly interest in winning the rights to Stewart's work. In March, Stewart was convicted of lying to federal investigators about a suspicious sale of her ImClone shares and is pursuing an appeal while she serves time behind bars.