Filmmaker Jules Dassin has died following a short illness. He was 96. The American director passed away in an Athens, Greece hospital on Monday. Dassin, who is best known for his Oscar-winning 1960 movie Never On Sunday, was married to the late Greek actress and culture minister Melina Mercouri. Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis says, "Greece grieves the loss of a rare human being, an important creator and a true friend. His passion, energy, fighting spirit and nobility will never be forgotten." Dassin started his career as an actor and theatre producer; his breakthrough came when he became an assistant to legendary filmmaker Alfred Hitchcock in 1940. He moved to France in the early 1950s after he was named as part of Hollywood's "communist faction" during a House Of Representatives Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC) hearing. Dassin went on to marry Mercouri, who starred in his Never On Sunday, which won the Oscar for Best Original Song and for which Dassin received two Academy Award nominations for Best Director and Best Writing, Story And Screenplay.

Anna Nicole Smith's son Daniel Smith died from an accidental drug overdose, a jury looking into his death has ruled. Daniel died in the Bahamas in September 2006, just three days after his mother Anna Nicole Smith gave birth to her daughter Dannielynn. The inquest aimed to establish the 20-year-old's exact cause of death, and, in the five months since its November start, has heard testimony from Anna Nicole's former lovers Larry Birkhead and Howard K. Stern, as well as a number of Daniel's friends. Autopsy results released in December found Smith died as a result of a lethal combination of methadone and anti-depressants Zoloft and Lexapro. Earlier this month, the magistrate instructed the jury to discuss four possible options as the cause of death - accident, misadventure, non-dependent drug use and an open verdict - after banning the option of homicide. The seven-member jury at a Nassau, Bahamas deliberated for less than two hours before delivering its verdict on Monday. The jury has recommended no criminal charges be filed.

The photojournalist who inspired the Oscar-winning 1984 movie The Killing Fields has died at the age of 65. Dith Pran survived the Cambodian genocide of the 1970s, while working as a translator and reporter for The New York Times. He became the subject of the Roland Joffe movie, which won three Academy Awards, about the Khmer Rouge regime in the south-east Asian country. Pran died on Sunday night in a New Jersey hospital, just months after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.

Veteran filmmaker Woody Allen has filed legal papers accusing clothing company American Apparel of using his image in its advertising without his permission. The comedian claims he was never contacted by an American Apparel representative about the billboard and online advertisements, which featured an image - taken from the Oscar-winning 1977 movie Annie Hall - of Allen dressed as a Hasidic Jew. In legal documents filed in U.S. District Court in New York on Monday, Allen says he doesn't endorse commercial products in the U.S. and that American Apparel hasn't compensated him for the use of his likeness. Allen is seeking damages of more than $10 million.

Knocked Up star Katherine Heigl has dismissed reports she is to quit Grey's Anatomy, insisting her Hollywood career comes second to her role in the hit TV show. The 29-year-old made her big-screen breakthrough in Judd Apatow's 2007 romantic comedy and has since been hailed by critics as the next Julia Roberts. It had been feared Heigl would abandon the medical drama in order to take advantage of her considerable film success, but she insists she's looking forward to returning to her TV role as Dr. Isobel Stevens and won't be leaving just yet. She says, "When I come back to Grey's, I am actually really excited. After nine months a year for four years, of course you're going to think, 'I want to be someone else for a while.' I landed really good things and I did them in my breaks. It broke up the monotony of the character and I'm very, very grateful for opportunities. But Grey's is such a good cast. Everybody is amazing."

Actress Gabrielle Union is suing two men for invasion of privacy, after they posted a fake job advertisement looking for an assistant for the star. The two defendants, from Georgia, are alleged to have advertised the job of executive assistant on listings website Craigslist.com, claiming they were acting on Union's behalf. But the Bring It On beauty claims she doesn't know the defendants, Calvin High and Steve Raymond, and was unaware of their actions. In legal papers obtained by website Tmz.com, the lawsuit claims High and Raymond subjected Union to "embarrassment and humiliation" by putting out the advert for a vacancy that doesn't exist. The suit, which was filed in a Georgia district court on Friday, also names John Does '1-10' alongside High and Raymond, because Union's lawyers Locke Lord Bissell & Liddell, LLC, claim the acts were committed "in conjunction with and/or with the help of several other individuals who are unknown... at this time." They go on to state: "At least one individual responded to the advertisement for the position... and subsequently contacted Ms. Union directly inquiring about the advertisement." Union claims to have suffered "severe emotional distress" as a result of the bogus advert, and is seeking damages for the hoax.

Academy Award winner Reese Witherspoon surprised children at a school in New Orleans, Louisiana recently - by becoming a volunteer teacher for a day. The kind-hearted mother-of-two visited the Children's Defense Fund Freedom School, where at-risk kids learn to become community leaders. During her trip, which was filmed for upcoming American Idol charity special Idol Gives Back, Witherspoon helped the children study and at one point read a book to a class of students. The Walk The Line star isn't the only celebrity taking part in the TV special - Brad Pitt, Bono, John Legend, Snoop Dogg and Carrie Underwood will also feature during the show, which is set to air on April 9.

House star Hugh Laurie hates talking to the press about his past - comparing the experience with putting his "testicles on a chopping board." The British actor, who has previously admitted to suffering from clinical depression, tries to remain upbeat by focusing on the future. But reporters like to delve into his background, and their questions often trigger a negative mood swing in Laurie. He says, "Obviously you are in a very vulnerable position (when you give an interview). You are putting your testicles on a chopping board. I get anxious about a lot of things, that's the trouble. I get anxious about everything. I just can't stop thinking about things all the time. And here's the really destructive part - it's always retrospective. I waste time thinking of what I should have said or done. I can't bear going through the same f***ing dance of despair."

Madonna attributes her phenomenal success to the years she suffered at the hands of school bullies. The Material Girl admits she was considered a "weirdo" during her high school days in the 1970s, but decided to use her classmates' cruelty as a springboard to success. She tells Vanity Fair magazine, "I wasn't a hippie or a stoner, so I ended up being the weirdo. I was interested in classical ballet and music, so the kids were quite mean if you were different. I was one of those people that people were mean to. When that happened, instead of being a doormat, I decided to emphasize my differences. I didn't shave my legs. I had hair growing under my arms. I refused to wear makeup, or fit the ideal of what a conventionally pretty girl would look like. So, of course, I was tortured even more."

Singer/actress Jessica Simpson has been hospitalized with a minor kidney infection. The 27-year-old checked into Los Angeles' Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on Friday complaining of "feeling achy" and suffering a "fever" reports publication In Touch Weekly. Simpson has responded well to treatment and is expected to be released later on Monday, according to her representative.