Cosby receives nation’s top humor prize in D.C.

Washington, D.C. — Chris Rock and Jerry Seinfeld saluted fellow funny man Bill Cosby on Monday night with the nation’s top humor prize at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, along with two co-stars from “The Cosby Show,” Phylicia Rashad and Malcolm-Jamal Warner.

Tribute performances ranged from standup to orchestra and jazz as Cosby receives the Mark Twain Prize for American Humor. Carl Reiner, Sinbad and Wynton Marsalis were slated to perform, as well as Willie Nelson.

Cosby, 72, has won other big awards, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2002. Still, the Mark Twain Prize is special, he said, because Twain was the “quintessential American writer — because he held his language and his love for words in perfect American form.”

First Lady Michelle Obama and Jill Biden, the vice president’s wife, also attended.

“The show is very, very important to me,” Cosby said in an interview. “It makes me aware that as a monologist and a writer and a performer, I’ve done some wonderful work.”

The tribute will air Nov. 4 nationwide on PBS.

Springsteen cancels K.C. show after death

Kansas City, Mo. — Bruce Springsteen canceled a performance in Kansas City after his cousin and road crew member died.

The death of 36-year-old Lenny Sullivan was announced in a statement on Springsteen’s Web site.

Sullivan was found dead at Kansas City’s Intercontinental Hotel hours before Springsteen and the E Street Band were to take the stage Monday night.

Kansas City police spokesman Capt. Rich Lockhart said officers were investigating the death, although he said it was not suspicious.

A call to Springsteen’s publicist was not immediately returned.

The Sprint Center arena said tickets would be refunded.

Madonna plants tree to launch girls’ school

Lilongwe, Malawi — Madonna marked the start of construction of her school for girls in Malawi on Monday by planting a tree at the planned site of the $15 million school.

The 51-year-old celebrity arrived in the impoverished southern African country on Sunday accompanied by her four children — daughters Lourdes and Mercy, and sons Rocco and David.

Madonna adopted Mercy from Malawi earlier this year and adopted David from the country in 2008.

Monday’s ceremony was in the town of Chinkhota, some six miles from the capital, Lilongwe. Together with eldest daughter Lourdes, Madonna planted a Moringa tree, a hardy tree with edible leaves.

The new school will be called the Raising Malawi Academy for Girls and will open by 2011 and educate 500 students, said its future principal, Anjimile Mtila-Opponyo. It will be similar to the school built by talk show host Oprah Winfrey in South Africa.

Mtila-Opponyo said the curriculum will emphasize science and mathematics.

Jackson’s personal items to go on display

London — The official exhibition of rare Michael Jackson memorabilia will go on display in London this week.

The exhibition is a documentation of his musical legacy, said curator Robert Santelli. The show, starting Wednesday at the O2 Bubble arena, will feature Jackson in his many guises, including his roles as stylist, dancer and lyricist.

Some of the memorabilia includes the late singer’s navy blue Rolls-Royce, a selection of his trademark gloves and sequined jackets and a contract from his early days with the Jackson 5. Another jewel of the exhibition is the design and patent for the shoes he invented for the lean dance move that he does in the “Smooth Criminal” video.

The exhibition, which includes some 250 items, including many from Jackson’s personal estate, will stay in London for three months before it moves on to other cities. Organizers did not say which other cities would host the exhibition.

Chris Brown to release new CD on Dec. 15

New York — Chris Brown has announced the release of his first CD since his February altercation with then-girlfriend Rihanna.

“Graffiti,” the singer’s third album, will be released on Dec. 15, he said via Twitter.

The CD’s first single, “I Can Transform Ya,” features Lil Wayne and Swizz Beatz.

The 20-year-old will also kick off his “Fan Appreciation” tour in Houston on Nov. 14.

Brown was sentenced in August to five years’ probation, six months of community labor and a year of domestic violence counseling after he pleaded guilty to felony assault in the attack on Rihanna. He’s due to perform today in New Jersey at his first concert since the attack.

Jon Gosselin says he returned $180K

Norristown, Pa. — Reality TV dad Jon Gosselin says he’s returned $180,000 to a joint account he shares with his estranged wife Kate as the couple continues their bitter divorce battle.

Gosselin criticized his wife for not showing up Monday for a court hearing in the Philadelphia suburb of Norristown. He also says she still has not explained how she spent $33,000 in joint funds.

Kate Gosselin’s lawyer says she supplied the information an arbitrator wanted and did not need to appear in court.

Two days of arbitration on pending divorce issues is scheduled for late November.

The TLC reality show “Jon and Kate Plus Eight” has chronicled the couple’s lives while raising their eight children. The Gosselins filed for divorce in June.