ABC’s Vargas gives birth

New York – ABC newswoman Elizabeth Vargas and her husband, singer Marc Cohn, are parents again, of another boy.

Vargas and the baby, named Samuel Wyatt, are “doing incredible,” said ABC representative Alyssa Apple, in an e-mail to The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Vargas and Cohn’s other son is 3-year-old Zachary. Cohn has two children from a previous marriage.

In May, Vargas, 43, stepped down as the co-anchor of ABC’s “World News Tonight” to take maternity leave. Charles Gibson became the sole anchor, replacing Vargas and Bob Woodruff, who was injured in Iraq earlier in the year.

Cohn, best known for his song “Walking in Memphis,” won a Grammy for best new artist in 1992.

Depp, Burton reunite

Los Angeles – Johnny Depp is going from woozy buccaneer to murderous barber.

Depp is reuniting with director Tim Burton (“Charlie and the Chocolate Factory”) to play the title role in a film adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s musical “Sweeney Todd,” about a 19th-century barber seeking bloody revenge over his wrongful imprisonment.

The star of “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest,” this year’s biggest hit with a domestic gross of $400 million, is expected to do his own singing, said Marvin Levy, spokesman for DreamWorks, which is co-producing “Sweeney Todd” with Warner Bros.

“Sweeney Todd” marks the sixth collaboration between Depp and Burton, who scored a blockbuster in summer 2005 with “Charlie and the Chocolate Factory,” in which the actor played the reclusive candyman Willy Wonka.

Their other films together are “Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride,” “Edward Scissorhands,” “Ed Wood” and “Sleepy Hollow.”

The filmmakers plan to start shooting “Sweeney Todd” early in 2007.

Country singer charged with illegal bear kill

Duluth, Minn. – Troy Lee Gentry, of the country singing duo Montgomery Gentry, has been accused of killing a tame black bear that federal officials say he tagged as killed in the wild.

Gentry, 39, of Franklin, Tenn., and Lee Marvin Greenly, 46, of Sandstone, appeared Tuesday before U.S. Magistrate Judge Raymond Erickson in connection with a sealed indictment returned by a federal grand jury in Minneapolis.

Authorities allege that Gentry purchased the bear from Greenly, a wildlife photographer and hunting guide, then killed it with a bow and arrow in an enclosed pen on Greenly’s property in October 2004.

The government alleges that Gentry and Greenly tagged the bear with a Minnesota hunting license and registered the animal with the state Department of Natural Resources as a wild kill. Falsely tagging an animal as being killed in the wild is a violation of the federal Lacey Act.

Gentry allegedly paid about $4,650 for the bear, named Cubby. The bear’s death was videotaped, and the tape later edited so Gentry appeared to shoot the animal in a “fair chase” hunting situation, the government alleges.

If convicted, both Gentry and Greenly face a maximum penalty of five years in federal prison and a $20,000 fine.

Gentry’s manager, Johnny Dorris, said Wednesday that Gentry, an outdoorsman and hunter, expects to be exonerated.

Gentry “relied on the knowledge and expertise of a local guide to obtain the proper permit,” Dorris said in a written statement. “Troy felt what he did was legal and in full compliance of the law and was surprised to hear of the indictment.”

Montgomery Gentry, which includes co-singer Eddie Montgomery, are known for hits such as “My Town” and “If You Ever Stop Loving Me.”

Actor Bruno Kirby dies

Los Angeles – Veteran character actor Bruno Kirby – who costarred in “When Harry Met Sally,” “City Slickers” and many other films – has died. He was 57.

Kirby died Monday in Los Angeles from complications related to leukemia, his wife, Lynn Sellers, said Tuesday in a statement. He had recently been diagnosed with the disease.

Kirby was perhaps best known for his roles opposite Billy Crystal in 1989’s “When Harry Met Sally” and 1991’s “City Slickers.”

Other film credits included “Good Morning, Vietnam,” “The Godfather: Part II” and “Donnie Brasco.” He recently played Phil Rubenstein on the HBO series “Entourage.”