Elton John performs outside Roman Colosseum

Rome – Thousands of fans clapped and danced as Elton John performed “Daniel” and some of his other hits at a free concert outside the ancient Roman Colosseum.

Fans of all ages had started lining up at dawn to grab good spots for the Saturday night celebration on the Via dei Fori Imperiali, the large boulevard that leads to the Colosseum and is lined with Roman relics.

“I love places that have an incredible history,” John said in recorded comments released before the concert. “I love the Italian way of life, I love the food, I love the people.”

Last year, a Simon and Garfunkel concert on the same stage drew hundreds of thousands of fans. In 2003, Paul McCartney also performed on the Via dei Fori Imperiali.

Clooney, Soderbergh’s next movie will be murder mystery

Venice, Italy – Steven Soderbergh’s next picture starring George Clooney will be a murder mystery titled “The Good German,” set in Berlin some six weeks after the end of World War II in 1945.

The director and producer said Saturday that shooting would start soon on the film, which also will feature Cate Blanchett.

Soderbergh was in Venice to promote another murder story, “Bubble,” in which he used nonprofessional actors in a small Ohio town to give the film a realistic look.

“The Good German” will be a “more normal film,” said Soderbergh, an Oscar winner for “Traffic.”

Five years ago, he and Clooney formed a film company called Section Eight, based at Warner Bros. Its first film was “Ocean’s Eleven,” also starring Clooney.

Macy Gray assists hurricane refugees in Houston

Houston – It wasn’t for a concert. R&B singer Macy Gray came to town specifically to help refugees from the flooding in New Orleans.

“I just really wanted to help out,” Gray said after spending Saturday handing out clothes and toiletries in the Astrodome. “I think the most important thing to them is their futures. They are here, and they have gotten out of that disaster but it is, like, now what? Because they can’t live like that forever.”

“It is crazy when you don’t know what is going to happen to you the next day and suddenly that is what their lives are like,” she said of the refugees.

The Grammy winner said she was able to lift the refugees’ spirits and many were excited to see her.

“It is very humbling, but I loved every second of it,” Gray said. “It was really gratifying and I had a great time.”

Rolling Stones fans leave less damage than expected

Detroit – The Rolling Stones were a huge hit at Comerica Park – and the damage wasn’t as bad as expected.

Damage to the sod in the outfield from the Aug. 31 Stones concert was expected to be repaired in time for today’s Tigers game against the Cleveland Indians, the team’s groundskeeper said.

Heather Nabozny told the Detroit Free Press that about 22,500 square feet of sod mashed down by the crowd would be replaced. A typical concert at Comerica requires 13,500 square feet of new sod.

“It turned out better than I thought,” Nabozny said.

After the Stones’ two concerts earlier at Boston’s Fenway Park, the Red Sox replaced 40,000 square feet of sod.

‘The Ellen DeGeneres Show’ to focus on hurricane today

Comic and daytime TV talker Ellen DeGeneres is among the latest in a growing line of celebs answering the call for aid in the Katrina-racked South.

DeGeneres, a New Orleans native whose 82-year-old aunt, cousins and friends had their Gulf Coast homes destroyed, has taped an episode of “The Ellen DeGeneres Show” dedicated to discussion of the devastation that will air today, the start of the syndicated talk show’s third season.

“We have a different show planned for you today because things have changed, and we cannot pretend they haven’t,” she tells the audience. “I can’t pretend to do a normal show.”

DeGeneres also plans to announce a hurricane relief fund. The show’s producer, Warner Bros. Entertainment, said it would donate $500,000 and match viewers’ contributions up to another $500,000.

Magazine reports split of Chelsea Clinton, beau

Chelsea Clinton and her longtime boyfriend, Ian Klaus, are kaput, according to People magazine. The two, who met at Oxford University in 2002, have spent several months apart. She’s in London working on a public-health-care project. He’s in Iraq and Afghanistan chronicling the actions of U.S. troops.

A friend of Clinton’s told the magazine, “They just grew apart,” adding, “I used to ask how Ian was and Chelsea would say, ‘He’s doing good.’ Then it became just a shoulder-shrug kind of answer.”