Walk of fame or walk of shame; it's all the same

It's almost impossible to tell the difference between "Entertainment Tonight" and Court TV because most celebrity "news" seems to involve people in legal trouble.

It's reaching the point where the Los Angeles County Courthouse needs its own red carpet.

Unfortunately, the slogan "What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas" no longer applies. So, I've been subjected to two weeks of O.J. Simpson's triumphant return to the police blotter. But this time, he's accused of armed robbery instead of double homicide, so there's no "good taste" grace period to endure before you can start joking about it.

Former Los Angeles prosecutor Marcia Clark — who crashed and burned as the lead prosecutor for Simpson's murder trial — is on TV, handing out free advice to Las Vegas prosecutors. Yeah, like she knows anything about how to successfully prosecute O.J.

Apparently, you can never screw up so much that you can't still appear as an expert on TV. How else could Larry King book guests?

Speaking of screw-ups, who can resist the monumental fall of Britney Spears? Her career has gone the full 360 degrees, from rural Louisiana trash to pop starlet to Beverly hillbilly.

Not bad for someone at the ripe old age of 25.

The fact that her ex-husband, Kevin Federline, seems like the more responsible parent in the two's ongoing child custody struggle boggles the mind. You feel sorry for the children. And you feel sorrier for the gene pool that Britney and K-Fed reproduced at all. Be it nature or nurture, it's bad news.

The judge in the case ordered Spears to undergo random drug and alcohol testing. But hours later, she was out partying again, according to numerous reports.

A sober Britney — let's entertain the idea for a minute — just might keep custody of her children. But after her recent "MTV Music Video Awards" meltdown, her music career could be as dead as her post-"Crossroads" movie career.

Of course, I also thought we'd seen the last of Mariah Carey. But Carey can actually sing.

But I shouldn't pile on Britney. I might upset Chris Crocker, a 19-year-old from Tennessee who has obtained Internet infamy with his tearful, babbling YouTube plea for everyone to "leave Britney alone!"

The scary part is that Crocker, whose sole talent seems to be the ability to blubber and scream incoherently, has signed a development deal for his own TV show, according to Variety.

If Crocker's TV show ever airs, it'll be just one more travesty for which Britney will have to answer. The next time she appears in court, it may be to deal with a class action lawsuit filed by the American public.

Meanwhile, the Phil Spector saga continues, with the judge in Spector's murder trial declaring a mistrial Wednesday.

Spector, the bizarre 67-year-old record producer responsible for the Wall of Sound, faces a charge of second-degree murder in the 2003 shooting death of B-movie actress Lana Clarkson.

Given what his syrupy Wall of Sound production style did to otherwise respectable rock albums, a conviction would have made Spector a serial killer.

With his crazy-old-coot antics and crazier hairdos, I'm surprised Spector's attorneys didn't try an insanity defense.

Lost in the hullabaloo is the victim, Clarkson, whose Roger Corman-produced, direct-to-video films "Barbarian Queen" and "Deathstalker" were staples of late-night cable TV in the 1980s.

That was when cable TV still aired programming besides "Law & Order" marathons.

Well, I'm sure Clarkson's death will be a "ripped from the headlines" episode of "Law & Order" soon enough — assuming it isn't already.

Franklin Harris, fharris@decaturdaily.com, is assistant metro editor.

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