Martha Stewart having trouble selling home for $9M

Westport, Conn. – Six years after Martha Stewart said she was leaving Westport, the domestic diva really is bidding farewell to this wealthy seaside town – if only someone will buy her house.

Stewart has been trying for more than two months to sell her early 19th century federal-style farmhouse for $9 million. Real estate experts say it’s not unusual for luxury homes to take at least a few months to sell – even those with Martha’s famous touch.

“It’s the most beautiful property I’ve ever seen,” said Eileen Hill, president of the Mid Fairfield County Association of Realtors. “Every blade of grass stands at attention.”

The town, which is also home to actor Paul Newman and singer Michael Bolton, is taking Stewart’s departure with a stiff upper lip.

“There was certainly no real sense of loss,” said Cristin Marandino, editor of Westport Magazine. “I think 70 percent of the people who live in Westport have a Martha story. She just wasn’t very easy to live with.”

Stewart occasionally ran into trouble with neighbors upset with her film crews and behavior.

The oft-photographed home, which she bought in 1972, was the inspiration for her first book, “Entertaining,” in 1982, and was the site of many television programs and garden tours.

“I am so sad to be leaving this property which has meant so much to me and my family,” Stewart said in a statement. “The four acres of garden have been tended with great care for more than 30 years and the circa 1805 farmhouse and outbuildings have been the location of wonderful family celebrations, legendary television specials and comfortable gatherings of friends.”

‘Last Comic Standing’ winner celebrating victory nonstop

Denver – Comic Josh Blue, winner last week of the “Last Comic Standing,” says the result has been “one big celebration party. With music and beer and art.”

He returned briefly to Denver to record a local show before going to Fort Collins, Colo., to perform.

“It was super, super fun, but now it’s been super, super crazy,” Blue said in a phone interview Friday with the Fort Collins Coloradoan. “I’m not ready for it, but I’m ready to do it.”

He said his parents weren’t put off by his joke that his mom was dead.

“No, they’re proud parents. Everyone in the world that they know is calling to congratulate them.”

Sixpence None the Richer singer can’t escape hit song

Carson, Calif. – Two years after Sixpence None the Richer split, singer Leigh Nash is pursuing a solo career, though she can’t quite escape the band’s hit “Kiss Me.”

The song has become a staple during time-outs at sporting events, with stadium cameras focusing on fans who are expected to smooch.

“I heard about that,” Nash told The Associated Press. “That’s awesome. It kind of makes sense and it was such a big song. I thought it was cute. I’m glad they have a song that was appropriate.”

Nash performed a brief acoustic set at the JPMorgan Chase Open women’s tennis tournament Friday night, singing “Kiss Me” and new songs from her debut solo album “Blue on Blue,” which is due out Tuesday.

Sixpence dissolved in 2004, and Nash and her husband moved to Los Angeles, where she wrote several songs for the album and gave birth to her first child.

“It’s about the song and the lyrics,” she said. “In Sixpence, there was a lot going on and I felt like I was kind of drowned out all the time. I was having to fight to get over the instruments and the guitars.”

Nash’s album is on One Son Records, her label named for her 2 1/2-year-old son, Henry. She will tour this fall with Jars of Clay and Matt Wertz.

Actor released from jail after allegedly abusing girlfriend

Los Angeles – Actor Lou Diamond Phillips was released from jail on his own recognizance following his arrest for allegedly physically abusing his live-in girlfriend.

“Our office reviewed the case today and referred it to the city attorney’s hearing program. The parties will come in and sit with one of our attorneys, who will try to mediate the situation,” Jonathan Diamond, a city attorney’s spokesman, said Friday.

“Charges could be filed down the road, but we’re trying to resolve this through the hearing program,” Diamond added.

Phillips, best known for his roles in “La Bamba” and “Stand and Deliver,” was initially taken into custody for investigation of felony domestic violence, said police officer Marjan Mobasser.

Officers were called about 2 a.m. to a home in the Northridge section of Los Angeles, Mobasser said.

“Phillips got into a verbal altercation with his live-in girlfriend, which eventually escalated into physical abuse,” Mobasser said.

The officer did not know whether the girlfriend, who was not identified, sustained any injuries or whether she was taken to the hospital.

Phillips was released about 12:15 p.m., police officer Jason Lee said.

Artist creates busty bust of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton

New York – It’s a bust of Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton – in more ways than one.

Cast in resin and bearing ample cleavage, a bust of the New York Democrat was unveiled this week at the Museum of Sex in Manhattan.

Calling his creation “The Presidential Bust of Hillary Rodham Clinton: The First Woman President of the United States,” artist Daniel Edwards said he wanted to depict the 58-year-old Clinton “with her head held high, a youthful spirit and a face matured by wisdom.”

Indeed, while the former first lady’s face is shown with a few wrinkles, Edwards cast her in a low-cut floral dress that reveals her shoulders and chest.