LONDON – Media reports of “Harry Potter” star Daniel Radcliffe gaining access to huge amounts of cash when he turned 18 Monday were overblown, his publicist’s office said.

“It’s not a big deal today,” said a woman who answered the phone at the office of Radcliffe’s publicist. She refused to give her name, saying she wasn’t an official spokeswoman.

She refused to elaborate, saying Radcliffe’s finances – and birthday party – were a personal matter.

Radcliffe, who was 11 when he was first cast as the schoolboy wizard in the films based on J.K. Rowling’s novels, is gaining access to a $19 million investment fund, People magazine reported in its July 23 issue.

British newspapers have estimated that he has a total net worth of $35 million, with two more movies in the “Potter” series yet to be filmed, the magazine said.

“Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” the latest movie starring Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson, is now in theaters.

Rowling’s seventh and final book in the series, “Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows,” was published Saturday.

Queen Latifah joins headliners for concert to raise money for King memorial on National Mall

WASHINGTON – Queen Latifah, Garth Brooks and Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds will perform at a concert to raise money for a memorial to the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. to be built on the National Mall.

Quincy Jones, Russell Simmons and Tommy Hilfiger are organizing the Dream Concert, which will be held Sept. 18 at Radio City Music Hall in New York City.

Tickets go on sale July 30 through TicketMaster, the memorial fund also announced Monday. Prices range from $250 to $1,000.

The memorial fund had previously announced that Stevie Wonder, Aretha Franklin and Carlos Santana would be among the headliners. NBC “Today” show weatherman Al Roker will be a special guest presenter.

The group working to build the King Memorial has raised $81 million of the $100 million needed to complete and maintain the memorial.

It is slated for a space on the Tidal Basin between the Lincoln and Jefferson memorials and will include a sculpture of King and 14 quotations from the slain civil rights leader. The memorial is scheduled to be completed next year.

Ja Rule, Lil Wayne arrested in New York City on gun possession charge in separate incidents

NEW YORK – Ja Rule and Lil Wayne have been arrested and charged with criminal possession of a weapon in separate incidents, police said.

The best-selling rappers were arrested Sunday night shortly after Lil Wayne’s concert at the Beacon Theatre. It wasn’t immediately clear whether Ja Rule had also performed.

Ja Rule, whose real name is Jeff Atkins, lives in Saddle Brook, N.J. Lil Wayne, whose real name is Dwayne Carter, is from Miami.

Contact information for their managers could not be found early Monday, and there was no immediate response to messages left with their record company, Universal Motown.

It also wasn’t immediately clear whether they had attorneys.

Officers spotted Carter, 24, and another man smoking marijuana by a tour bus near 61st Street and Columbus Avenue at about 11:30 p.m., police said. The officers took the two men into custody, finding a .40-caliber pistol. Both were charged with criminal possession of a weapon and marijuana.

Atkins, 31, was arrested about an hour earlier on West End Avenue. Police said he was in a luxury sedan that was going too fast. Officers stopped the car and arrested the occupants – Atkins, the driver and another man – and found a .40-caliber gun, police said.

Atkins rose to fame in the mid-1990s after appearing on a hit song with Jay-Z and later going on to record platinum-selling solo albums.

Carter’s albums include “Tha Block Is Hot,” “Lights Out,” “Tha Carter” and “Tha Carter II.”

“Uh Oh” is the name of a new song by the rappers.

David and Victoria Beckham are given the red carpet treatment at welcome-to-Los Angeles party

LOS ANGELES – David Beckham attracts Hollywood stars the same way he draws defenders on the soccer field. In large numbers.

A glittery array of actors and entertainment world luminaries turned out Sunday for what was billed as an official welcome-to-Los Angeles party for the international soccer icon and his wife, Victoria Beckham.

With Tom Cruise and Will Smith playing co-hosts for the invitation-only bash at the Museum of Contemporary Art’s Geffen Contemporary gallery, the guest list was long and deep.

Ron Howard and producer Brian Grazer were among the first to arrive. Brooke Shields was there. Eva Longoria showed up, followed by “American Idol” creator Simon Fuller, who managed the Spice Girls pop group that made Victoria Beckham famous.

Wesley Snipes and Quincy Jones came to welcome the soccer star, as did Bruce Willis, Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher. Jim Carrey and Jenny McCarthy stopped to pose for the throng of international paparazzi.

The Beckhams arrived with Cruise, accompanied by his wife, Katie Holmes, and Smith, with his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Cruise flew in from Germany, where he is shooting his newest film, “Valkyrie.”

For the British Beckhams, it was a taste of classic Hollywood. A red carpet was rolled out at the entrance. A small army of police patrolled streets for blocks, keeping gawkers at a distance. There were limousines and TV cameras by the dozen. Helicopters thumped overhead.

Inside, the warehouselike venue was transformed with couches, elaborate lighting and floral arrangements into a glittery nightclub. Music blared.

Beckham, hindered by a nagging ankle injury, played only 12 minutes in his debut Saturday as a Los Angeles Galaxy player. The Galaxy lost to Chelsea 1-0, but that didn’t dampen the spirits of the sold-out crowd, whose cheers were so loud Beckham admitted to being “a little bit embarrassed at times.”