DAVID LETTERMAN is the target of Muslim extremists . . . and he might want to take the threat seriously.
--Apparently, Letterman told a joke during a recent show mocking the death of an accused terrorist leader named Ilyas Kashmiri . . . who was killed by a U.S. air strike in Pakistan in June.
--SITE Intelligence Group . . . a private company that watches the Internet for signs of terrorist activity . . . says the threat appeared on a website that's known to be used by al-Qaeda.
--Whoever posted the threat called for someone to, quote, "cut the tongue of this lowly Jew and shut it forever." (--Letterman isn't Jewish.)
--He added, quote, "He showed his evil nature and deep hatred for Islam and Muslims, and said that Ilyas Kashmiri was killed and he joined bin Laden.
--"We ask Allah to paralyze his tongue and grant the sincere monotheists his neck."
--Because of the nature of the website the threat appeared on, Site Intelligence is advising Letterman to keep an eye out, and take precautions as if he were being stalked.
--The website in question is called Shumukh-al-Islam. And SITE Intelligence describes it as, quote, "a clearing house for al-Qaeda material." It's often the first place messages from al-Qaeda appear in the U.S.
--SITE is currently trying to uncover the identity of the poster. Letterman's people declined to comment.
Abercrombie Vs. The Situation Fallout: MTV Says It's a Publicity Stunt, and They're Probably Right
MTV has responded to Abercrombie & Fitch's offer to The Situation to pay him to STOP wearing their clothes.
--MTV said, quote, "It's a clever PR stunt, and we'd love to work with them on other ways they can leverage 'Jersey Shore' to reach the largest youth audience on television."
--The Situation hasn't directly responded to Abercrombie, but he did Tweet, quote, "Looks like Abercrombie got themself into a Situation!" He also linked to a CNN article saying that Abercrombie's stock fell 9% after they dissed "Jersey Shore".
--A so-called "source" tells MTV that Abercrombie never attempted to make an offer PRIVATELY to The Situation or to the show . . . so it was only done in the press.
The Only Artists to Have Five Songs Off One Album Go #1 Are: Michael Jackson . . . and Now, Katy Perry
Up through last month, only ONE artist had ever managed to have FIVE #1 singles from ONE album in the 53-year history of Billboard's Hot 100: MICHAEL JACKSON.
--He did it with his 1987 album "Bad". The five #1 singles were: "I Just Can't Stop Loving You", "Bad", "The Way You Make Me Feel", "Man in the Mirror", and "Dirty Diana".
--It also had "Smooth Criminal", but that topped out at #7.
--Well, now another artist has tied that mark. And it's KATY PERRY.
--Katy's single "Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.)" just went #1, and it was the fifth chart-topper off her latest album, "Teenage Dream".
--The other four are: "California Gurls", "Teenage Dream", "Firework" and "E.T.".
--For what it's worth, Michael's five singles happened over nine months and two weeks, while Katy's run took one year, two months and a week.
--Yesterday, Katy Tweeted, quote, "What a way to wake up! SO proud to announce that the little-engine-that-could of a song 'LAST FRIDAY NIGHT' is officially #1 & made HISTORY! . . . [and] u know, I couldn't have done it without ya."
Jennifer Hudson is Prouder of Her Weight Loss Than She Is of Her Oscar
JENNIFER HUDSON has lost a TON of weight since her days on "American Idol" . . . and obviously, she's proud of that.
--But check this out: She tells "Self" magazine, quote, "I'm prouder of my weight loss than my Oscar." Jennifer won Best Supporting Actress for "Dreamgirls" in 2007.
--Before she was famous, Jennifer was a size 16 . . . and she thought she was, quote, "the perfect size." But obviously, that changed.
--She says, quote, "I didn't even know I was considered plus-sized until I came to Hollywood . . . An interviewer asked, 'How does it feel to be plus-sized in Hollywood?'
--"I looked around, like, Who is she talking to? Oh, me? I'm plus-sized? In the neighborhood I'm from in Chicago, a 16 is normal. But in Hollywood, everyone looks exactly the same, so I stood out."
--Jennifer decided to lose weight while she was pregnant with her son, who's 2 now. She says, quote, "I thought, hold on . . . why doesn't anybody know I'm pregnant? And I wanted to set a good example for my son."
