Oscar winner Reese Witherspoon and her husband Ryan Phillippe have separated after seven years of marriage. The couple's representative released a statement to entertainment news website Tmz.com on Monday saying, "We are saddened to announce that Reese and Ryan have decided to formally separate. They remain committed to their family and we ask that you please respect their privacy and the safety of their children at this time." Witherspoon, 30, and Phillippe, 32, have two children, Ava Elizabeth, seven, and Deacon, three. Sources tell Tmz that Witherspoon has contacted celebrity divorce lawyer Robert Kaufman, who has represented Jennifer Aniston, Roseanne Barr and Lisa Marie Presley. The source added that the separation was not triggered by one particular event, but that it was "cumulative." Divorce papers have not yet been officially filed.

Whitney Houston made her first high-profile public appearance since seeking treatment for substance abuse and filing for divorce - at a charity event in Beverly Hills on Saturday night. The star made a surprise appearance at the 17th Carousel Of Hope Ball, which raised more than $70 million for Juvenile diabetes research. The singer filed for divorce from singer Bobby Brown two weeks ago after 14 years of marriage. The newly-blonde Houston donned a black Armani gown and diamonds and basked in the attention saying, "I feel great." The 43-year-old was escorted by one of the evening's honorees, record producer Clive Davis, who told newspaper USA Today, "She's been through emotional trauma, and everybody's rooting for her." Fellow music producer and the event's other honoree, Quincy Jones, who has known Houston since she was 16, said Houston seems to have turned a corner adding, "She's looking at the light, instead of darkness." Houston sat at the main table with Halle Berry, who herself is a diabetic, and the actress' boyfriend Gabriel Aubry. The star did not sing at the event, but American Idol runner-up Katharine McPhee, who was the evening's entertainer, paid tribute to Houston by singing "I Have Nothing" instead of her hit song "Over The Rainbow." According to the newspaper, Houston acknowledged the tribute by nodding at McPhee during the performance and then led a standing ovation afterward.

Desperate Housewives actress Marcia Cross is battling to keep naked pictures of her from being published. Two hundred sexy snaps were reportedly discovered by a catering company hired to removed rubbish from redhead Cross' home in Los Angeles. The firm's owner is being represented by agent David Hans Schmidt, who plans to sell the pictures. Schmidt tells the New York Daily News, "There are some pictures of her showering outside. She looks absolutely gorgeous. And yes, the carpet does match the curtains." But 44-year-old Cross' legal team claim the photos were thrown away by mistake and insist they still belong to her and husband Tom Mahoney. She is demanding their return. But Schmidt is confident he has the law behind him and hints he plans to sell them abroad: "The pictures were not stolen. When you throw something away, you forfeit that property. We recognize the copyright issue, but US copyright law stops at the border." But he has given Cross the opportunity to buy the photos back, claiming he knows how wealthy she is after discovering her tax return in the trash as well. Schmidt adds, "I'm not looking to mortify Ms. Cross. I just want the most money for my client. I know how much she made, but out of respect for Ms. Cross, I won't discuss it."

Talk show host Oprah Winfrey has given more than 300 audience members $1,000 debit cards so they can use them to donate money to a charitable cause. During the show, which aired earlier today in the US, Winfrey provided the cards to the audience so they could experience the "gift of giving back." Winfrey, who has famously given members of her audience new cars, paid off their debts and fulfilled their wildest dreams, called the show her "favorite giveaway ever." The 52-year-old said, "I can honestly say that every gift I've ever given has brought at least as much happiness to me as it has to the person I've given it to. That's the feeling I want to pass on to you." People can give the entire sum to one person - relatives aren't eligible - or they can split it among charitable causes. Audience members also received a DVD recorder to tape their stories for a future show. Winfrey added, "You're going to open your hearts, you're going to be really creative, and you're going to spend it all at once on one stranger or spend a dollar on every person. Imagine the love and kindness you can spread with $1,000."

Tori Spelling's latest stint on reality TV has been given the green light - she will star in a new series with her actor husband Dean McDermott as they choose a bed-and-breakfast in southern California to buy and refurbish. The still-untitled show will air on the Oxygen network and the six half-hour episodes will debut next spring. According to producer Randy Barbato the couple "may be actors, but they're also very entrepreneurial. They wanted to create a real business." The cameras will also follow the couple as they prepare for their roles as expectant parents. The final episode of the show is expected to coincide with the baby's birth in March. Spelling starred in the scripted series So Notorious, based on her own life, for US network VH1 last year.

Superstar Madonna arrived in America on Sunday with her son David as she prepares to further defend her controversial adoption of the tot. Madonna and husband Guy Ritchie were granted an interim adoption of the 13-month-old boy earlier this month, which has sparked anger amongst groups in his native Malawi, who claim the singer broke the country's adoption laws. The Material Girl appeared on US TV show Oprah last week, declaring her love for the little boy and praised her biological children Lourdes and Rocco for being so welcoming to the little boy. On Sunday, Madonna and her three children flew out of London's Heathrow Airport to New York City, where she is expected to appear on NBC News, The Today Show and Dateline to defend her adoption.

US talk show host Bill Maher has sparked outrage after appearing at numerous Halloween parties over the weekend dressed as "Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin, complete with a bloody stingray barb attached to a khaki shirt. The outfit is among the top Halloween costumes in the US this year and while some have found it amusing, other insist it is an insult to the late conservationist who died in September. Photos of the celebrity comedian making the rounds at Halloween parties in Los Angeles over the weekend have been widely circulated on the internet. Maher hosts a weekly talk show on US network HBO called Real Time With Bill Maher and has angered some of his fans. One fan wrote on the star's official website, "I suppose he thought it was funny, but it was seriously lacking taste, decorum and respect for Steve's family." Another fan wrote, "I am kind of torn on it - I have a good sense of humor but this one is just kind of tacky."

Socialite Nicole Richie's publicists are playing down reports The Simple Life star passed out at a Los Angeles nightclub after partying on Saturday night. Rumors suggest staff at Hyde nightclub insisted on calling an ambulance when Richie fainted and fell to the floor, but her friends insisted they'd take the socialite to hospital. Sources tell news website Tmz.com, "The friends then carried Richie out of the club through the back door." Richie's representative confirms her client was at Hyde briefly on Saturday night but denies she collapsed. Last week, Richie's representatives confirmed the star had entered a treatment facility to determine why she hasn't gained weight.

Two of aspiring rapper Kevin Federline's live performances were cancelled on Monday - one day before his debut album is set to be released. Britney Spears' husband is planning to launch his new CD Playing With Fire with five guest appearances around the US, but lackluster ticket sales have caused two and possibly three shows to be cancelled. According to American publication Star, his November 9 gig at House of Blues in Cleveland, Ohio has already been scrapped, even though tickets were priced at an affordable $20-$22. A message on the venue's website states, "Show has been cancelled. There is no rescheduled date. Refunds are available at point of purchase." Federline's performance at the House of Blues in Atlantic City, New Jersey has also been cancelled, according to the House of Blues website. Tickets to that show were selling for $15-$17 each. The former back-up dancer's gig on November 4 at New York City's Webster Hall also looks like it's in jeopardy with an insider at the venue telling the New York Post that so few of the $20 tickets have been sold, "We may just cancel it."

Arrested Development star Jason Bateman and his wife Amanda Anka welcomed their first child in Los Angeles on Saturday. Their new daughter has been named Francesca Nora Bateman. Bateman and Anka, both 37, knew each other as casual acquaintances for years before they started dating in 1998. They wed in Malibu, California on July 3, 2001. Anka, an actress, is the daughter of singer-songwriter Paul Anka and has appeared in such shows as Buffy The Vampire Slayer and Diagnosis Murder. Bateman, the brother of Family Ties star Justine Bateman, rose to fame as a child actor on Silver Spoons and The Hogan Family. He won a Golden Globe award last year for his role as Michael Bluth on Arrested Development.