Overnight Briefing & General Reality Check - Jun 22, 2011

On the Beltway, actually:

A jury in Fairfax County, Virginia, has awarded $22-thousand dollars in damages to a cabbie after he claimed he was injured in an auto accident on the Beltway in May of last year.
The defendant in the case denied he was responsible for the accident and it was easily proved: He said he wasn’t driving the car at the time. He was busily having sex in the back seat.
This will come as a shock, I know: the Washington Post says evidence indicates alcohol was involved.
Editor's note: Thanks, and a tip of the RBR reporter's fedora to Don Brownlee from DC, for sending the item.

Immigration Update:

AZ GOP Sen JOHN McCAIN raised quite a few eyebrows earlier this week when he said illegal aliens might have caused those massive wildfires burning through his state. He stood by his claim yesterday during an interview on ABC's "Good Morning America."
He said, "(Cochise County) Sheriff LARRY DEVER will tell you that the Monument Fire was started when the park, the forest was closed. So anyone who was in there is illegal." He said his assertion that there is "substantial evidence" illegal immigrants are responsible for "some of these fires" came from a briefing he had on Saturday with a U-S Forest Service official. (Pacelli)

Idle gossip & unconfirmed rumors:

Today's "Diva du Jour" award goes to KANYE WEST. Spies at a Japanese joint tell the NY Post's Page Six gossip column the rapper ordered a fruity, girly drink the other night, but had second thoughts when it arrived. The finicky hip-hopper told the server to bring it back in a glass that was a little more masculine. (Lee)

Gossip Central: tabloids with Cory Myers:

Reality show watch. RACHEL RAY tells Star magazine that she and Food Network star GUY FIERI will be doing a cooking show along the same lines as "Dancing with the Stars": "We're each going to coach a team of celebrities, and they compete against each other."

The Reel Deal:

He's back to cause some Van Damage: action star JEAN CLAUDE VAN DAMME has signed up to play an ex-mercenary kidnapping expert hired by a martial arts fighter whose daughter has gone missing in the new film, "Six Bullets."
Daily Variety says the film will begin shooting in August.

Grace notes from Vinny Marino:

BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN gave a eulogy yesterday at the funeral for his friend and bandmate, CLARENCE CLEMONS. Backstreets.com says the two-hour private service for The Big Man was held at a small chapel in Palm Beach, Florida. Other members of the E STREET BAND were there, along with JACKSON BROWNE and Miami Heat general manager PAT RILEY. New Jersey Governor CHRIS CHRISTIE announced yesterday that flags will be lowered to half-staff tomorrow in the state to honor Clarence. (Marino)

Prison Follies:

Scantily clad visitors to New York City’s Rikers Island jail are being forced to cover up.
CNews says the city’s Department of Corrections bought hundreds of baggy, green T-shirts for visitors who don't meet the dress code.The new rules at aim to maintain a “family friendly” environment at the jail. A spokeswoman said, "If a visitor is dressed provocatively it could potentially spark a chain of events among inmates." (Still)