LOS ANGELES — Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz are falling out of marriage.
Simpson filed for divorce from the Fall Out Boy bassist on Wednesday in Los Angeles, citing irreconcilable differences, court records show. The singer and actress is seeking physical custody of their 2-year-old son.
“After careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to file for divorce,” the former couple said in a joint statement. “We remain friends and deeply committed and loving parents to our son Bronx, whose happiness and well-being remains our No. 1 priority.”
Simpson married Wentz in May 2008 and her court filing does not indicate when the couple broke up.
She is the sister of performer Jessica Simpson and has released three albums and appeared in the reboot of the television series “Melrose Place.”
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Wentz’s band, Fall Out Boy, said in early 2010 that is was taking a break, although the 31-year-old said at the time that the group’s breakup had been blown out of proportion.
Garth Brooks concerts raise $5M for flood relief
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Garth Brooks’ December concert series at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena is expected to bring in $5 million for flood relief in Tennessee.
The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee on Wednesday announced the expected total take from the nine sold-out concerts. The nonprofit already has received $4.35 million and the money is still coming in.
The proceeds will go to The River Fund, a charitable fund within the Community Foundation. The fund already has given out $1.4 million to Hands on Nashville, the Tennessee Conference of the United Methodist Committee on Relief and the Community Resource Center.
Flood victims seeking help should call 211 to be directed to a case manager.
In a statement, Brooks said he was honored to have been able to help.
He said, “Playing music has never felt better or ever felt more right.”
Chances narrow for U2 guitarist’s Malibu proposal
LOS ANGELES — A coastal development agency has recommended officials reject U2 guitarist The Edge’s vision for a cluster of mansions that would look like nothing more than scattered leaves on a ridgeline overlooking Malibu.
The proposal by The Edge includes five homes ranging from 7,220 to 12,785 square feet to be built on a ridgeline in the Santa Monica Mountains. In a statement, the guitarist has said the mansions will be some of the most environmentally sensitive ever designed in the world.
But the pitch has not gotten far with neighboring residents, environmental groups and even the National Park Service, which raised concerns about biological and visual impacts in such sensitive habitat.
Staff for the California Coastal Commission, the coastal development agency whose permission is critical for the project to move forward, issued a final recommendation saying the board should reject the project at its meeting this week.
Spider-Man joins the Fantastic 4
NEW YORK — With the Fantastic Four whittled to three after last month’s death of the Human Torch, Marvel’s longtime super group is changing names and adding a familiar face.
Spider-Man, New York’s web-slinging guardian, is joining the group newly renamed The Future Foundation.
Starting in FF No. 1, he’ll join with Mr. Fantastic, The Thing and the Invisible Woman in a bid to protect the Marvel universe from new threats, Marvel said Wednesday.
The first issue is due out March 23.
The Fantastic Four ended with issue No. 588 this month, after the Torch, aka Johnny Storm, died in issue 587. Like the former series, the new FF series is written by Jonathan Hickman and drawn by Steve Epting.
