Following the news bulletins that "fire burns" and "pain hurts" comes this one: Ricky Martin is gay. As noted by Vanity Fair and others, this had been widely assumed, but the singer never confirmed it until now. Orientation aside, E!Online lists 5 things you need to know about Ricky Martin. And finally, I was sure this headline was a joke, but no: The Wall Street Journal's Speakeasy blog looks at the economic fallout from this news.

Other entertainment items of note online today:

MORE MUSIC

• An attorney for Michael Jackson's father says the singer had a heartbeat at the hospital, and blames a delay in calling for help for the singer's death.

• As reported here by MLive.com, Eryka Badu's new video — in which she strips while walking down a street — has predictably created a controversy. Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Times has a positive review of her new album.

• There’s a guy named “Merton” who plays piano and sings to people, improv-style, on ChatRoulette. Here’s one of the clips on YouTube:

Comparisons have been drawn between Merton and Ben Folds, so Folds, at some recent concerts, did some ChatRoulette improv live in front of fans:

• The Washington Post has a review of Usher's new album, "Raymond v. Raymond."

TELEVISION

• USAToday reports on the likelihood of "24" being turned into a big-screen movie. Meanwhile, that prospect leads Time.com to list its Top 10 TV shows that overstayed their welcome. Come on, there's no way "The Simpsons" belongs on that list.

• MLive.com reports that HBO has released a trailer for its Jack Kevorkian movie.

• Anyone besides me remember when "AMC" stood for "American Movie Classics"? Anyway, the channel plans a new 6-episode series based on the horror comic "Walking Dead."

• "Dancing With The Stars" is picking up steam; EW.com's recap is here, and the New York Daily News has a more extensive look.

• Levi Johnston says his reality show will be better than Sarah Palin's. Insert your own joke here.

STAGE

• In one of those "you mean she was still alive?" moments comes the news that June Havoc has died. Although she had a career on Broadway and movies — and briefly had her own TV show — she's best remembered as the sister of Gypsy Rose Lee, and immortalized (inaccurately, she maintained) in the character of Baby June in the musical "Gypsy."

MOVIES

• The trailer for “Eat Pray Love,” — starring Julia Roberts, and based on a very popular book — recently went online. The Internet Movie DataBase lists the release date as August 13.

• The Associated Press has a feature on author Nicholas Sparks, who wrote the new movie "The Last Song" specifically for star Miley Cyrus.

ART & EXHIBITS

• The Detroit News reports that the Detroit Institute of Arts' Bal Africain gala is returning after a 1-year absence.

COMICS

• The record price paid for a comic book has been broken again — and again, it's by Action Comics No. 1.

Renee Tellez and Jenn McKee contributed to this roundup. Bob Needham is director of entertainment content for AnnArbor.com. Reach him at bobneedham@annarbor.com or 734-623-2541, and follow him on Twitter @bobneedham.