People talk 6/28/02

Rap artist recovering from auto accident

ATLANTA -- Willie "Khujo" Knighton of the Atlanta-based rap group Goodie Mob was in stable condition but had to have part of his leg amputated after a car wreck.

Knighton fell asleep while driving from a recording studio early Tuesday on Interstate 75 and crashed, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported in Thursday's editions.

Cee-Lo Green, another Goodie Mob member, said doctors amputated part of the 30-year-old Knighton's right leg from the shin down.

"Khujo is still in very good strong spirits," he told the newspaper. Plans were under way to help pay for a medical grafting procedure in Los Angeles for Knighton.

McCartney puts stamp on fund-raising effort

LONDON -- Paul McCartney, a dedicated amateur painter, has designed a set of postage stamps to raise money for an anti-land mine charity.

The collection, created for the Isle of Man Post, has received the approval of Queen Elizabeth II and is due to go on sale July 1.

The set of floral designs is said to reflect the ex-Beatle's fond memories of the island in the Irish Sea, which he visited as a child while growing up in Liverpool, on England's west coast.

The stamp bureau said Wednesday it had printed 170,000 copies of the McCartney edition. Part of the proceeds from the issue will be donated to Adopt A Minefield UK -- the charity championed by the star and his new wife, Heather Mills.

Springsteen planning live TV performance

ASBURY PARK, N.J. -- Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band will perform live from the boardwalk on July 30 for NBC's "Today" show, his publicist confirmed.

Springsteen will perform several songs from "The Rising," his first studio album with the E Street Band since 1984, set for release that day.

"Today" will broadcast in its entirety from the boardwalk in Asbury Park, highlighted by Springsteen's "Today Summer Concert Series" performance from the adjacent Convention Hall, his publicist said Wednesday.

Katie Couric and Matt Lauer will co-host the broadcast from the beach and take a tour of Springsteen's adopted "hometown."

ON THE NET

Bruce Springsteen Web site: www.brucespringsteen.net/

-- From wire reports----

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