Ellen DeGeneres to develop line of humorous greeting cards

Cleveland – American Greetings Corp. will develop a line of 32 greeting cards with Ellen DeGeneres that will feature illustrations of the comedian along with her quirky observations.

“I look at having a line of cards as another extension of being a host; helping you wish your loved ones well, piggybacking on your birthday greetings,” DeGeneres, 49, said in a statement Tuesday. “I like to be up in the middle of everything and doing it this way is much easier than crashing parties.”

The cards are expected to be available in stores this summer.

DeGeneres has a syndicated talk show, “The Ellen DeGeneres Show,” and she was the host of this year’s Oscars.

American Greetings has a new focus on humor cards, said spokesman Megan Ferington. It had a previous licensing deal with comedian Jeff Foxworthy.

Court orders paternity test for Anna Nicole Smith’s daughter

Nassau, Bahamas – A Bahamian judge ordered a DNA test Tuesday on Anna Nicole Smith’s infant daughter to identify the girl’s father, an attorney for the baby’s grandmother said, the latest chapter in a bitter custody feud sparked by the pinup’s death last month.

Larry Birkhead, an ex-boyfriend of the former Playboy playmate who asked the judge to order the test on 6-month-old Dannielynn, pumped his fists in the air and jumped up and down as he emerged from the private court hearing.

“It’s been a good day in court for me,” he told reporters. Asked if he thought he would see the girl soon, he only smiled and winked.

Deborah Rose, an attorney for Smith’s mother Virgie Arthur, confirmed that the judge ordered the test but she and others who attended the hearing declined to describe the proceedings.

Authorities left the building after the hearing and could not immediately be reached for comment.

Smith’s most recent companion Howard K. Stern, who is listed as the father on the girl’s birth certificate, left the courthouse in a black sport utility vehicle as Birkhead greeted a crowd of cheering tourists.

Smith, 39, died Feb. 8 after collapsing in a Florida hotel. Authorities have not disclosed the cause.