People talk 1/20/03

King's widow:Leaders should set example

PLANO, Texas -- The widow of civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. thinks America should ask itself some tough questions about the death penalty and the impending war in Iraq.

At a remembrance for her slain husband, Coretta Scott King drew applause when she called for an end to the death penalty and encouraged nonviolent protests against possible military action against Saddam Hussein.

"America needs to do some long overdue soul-searching about the wisdom and morality of government executing anybody," she said. "The government of the world's greatest democracy ought to set a better example."

King praised former Illinois Gov. George Ryan's decision last weekend to pardon four men on death row and grant clemency to the 167 inmates who were left.

About foreign policy, King said she doubts the United States can address its problems at home if it's busy being "the world's policeman."

Rare Jagger, Lennon blues track up for sale

LONDON -- A 30-year-old blues recording by Mick Jagger and John Lennon is going on the auction block, its owner says.

London record dealer Tom Fisher doesn't want to speculate on the value of "Too Many Cooks," with Rolling Stones front man Jagger on vocals and ex-Beatle Lennon on guitar, but describes the track as "very collectible and very rare."

"I am hoping there is going to be a lot of interest in it, and I certainly expect to do a little better than the 20 pounds ($32) I paid for it."

Fisher bought the recording four years ago from a man claiming to be a friend of Rolling Stone Ronnie Wood. He recognized Jagger's voice immediately but didn't know the guitar player was Lennon until Jagger verified the recording's authenticity for the auctioneer.

The rockers apparently recorded the track sometime in 1973 and 1974 when Lennon was separated from wife Yoko Ono -- Lennon's so-called "Lost Weekend" period.

The track was never released, although a version of the song with Jagger singing and Lennon credited as producer has appeared on bootleg compilation albums.

The record -- made directly from the recording session's master tape -- will be auctioned Feb. 20 by Cooper Owen at its Rock Legends sale.

NBC's 'Dateline' to spotlight Jackson's face

LOS ANGELES -- The face of pop singer Michael Jackson will be the subject of a special edition of NBC's news magazine "Dateline" next month.

"Michael Jackson Unmasked," set to air at 10 p.m. EST Feb. 17, will be "the inside story as told by some of the people who knew him best," according to a network statement. Further details about the program weren't given.

For years, Jackson's appearance -- particularly his increasingly smaller nose and lighter skin tone -- has been the subject of intense scrutiny and speculation.

In announcing the program to television critics last week, NBC Entertainment President Jeff Zucker said "Dateline" can encompass a variety of stories in its three hours each week.

The series can "run the gamut from important, serious shows like Tom Brokaw's fantastic hour on Iraq to ridiculous but fascinating hours on Michael Jackson's face," Zucker told the Television Critics Association.

Grammy nomination enough for Tom Paxton

CARSON CITY, Nev. -- Folk singer Tom Paxton is delighted with his first Grammy award nomination, even if he had to wait through four decades of performing and more than a dozen albums.

"Isn't that something? Do you think that waiting until I'm 65 is cutting it a little fine?" he asked. "I'm absolutely thrilled and I was genuinely surprised."

Paxton, whose songs include "The Marvelous Toy," "I Can't Help but Wonder Where I'm Bound," "The Last Thing on My Mind," and "Ramblin' Boy," said he doesn't think about the nominations he didn't get over the past 42 years.

"It's wonderful to be nominated ever," he said after a Carson City concert.

Paxton was nominated in the children's album category for "Your Shoes, My Shoes," produced by longtime friends Cathy Fink and Marcy Marxer. They are competing in the same category with their "Pocket Full of Stardust."

"I'd love to win, but it's not going to happen," Paxton said. "We're up against 'Monsters, Inc.,' so I told my wife 'This IS as good as it gets!"'

The Grammy awards, in 104 categories, will be handed out Feb. 23.

-- From wire reports