Taking Names

Spacey cadet

Kevin Spacey has provided yet more fodder for the mystery that hounds him.

The 44-year-old actor told London police he was mugged early Saturday morning while walking his dog. Hours later, he called to retract the claim.

Mr. Spacey reported the assault to officers within 30 minutes, saying he had been robbed of his cell phone. He was treated at a hospital for a minor head injury.

Police said he later withdrew the theft charge.

According to the Daily Mirror newspaper, a puzzled officer said, “As far as police are concerned, there’s no crime to investigate.”

Sunday, Mr. Spacey called British Broadcasting Corp. radio to clarify the story. He said he was walking his dog when a young man approached him with “some sob story about somebody needing to call their mother and could they use my phone.”

“It was such a good con,” he continued, “that I actually dialed the number myself, and when somebody answered, I then finally handed [him] my phone.”

“And this kid took off, and I was so upset, I ran after him,” Mr. Spacey said.

Creed estate

Creed frontman Scott Stapp must be reading that new Donald Trump book. According to Billboard magazine, he’s hip-deep in real estate investment.

Mr. Stapp became an active investor when he founded Lion’s Share Holdings to pursue properties on the Hawaiian island of Maui and other locales.

“We have about $15 million in properties right now,” Mr. Stapp said. “We are actively pursuing real estate that we plan to let appreciate and then turn over in three years or so.”

Other cities that Mr. Stapp has his sights on include Orlando, Fla.; New York; and Los Angeles.

Short story

Associated Press

Bobby Short, who became an elegant institution with his performances at the swanky Cafe Carlyle for 36 years, will end his run on New Year’s Eve.

“I’m not retiring. I intend to keep on working,” Mr. Short, 79, yesterday told Associated Press. “But the drill of five nights a week for 20 weeks at a time is something that no longer appeals to me. It’s too much.”

Mr.Short has been performing since age 12, when he became a vaudeville entertainer. But his sophisticated cabaret act, in which he sings the songs of Cole Porter, Rodgers and Hart, Duke Ellington, George Gershwin and others, made him one of New York’s treasures and a member of the social elite.

Royal Weinstein

Miramax film chief Harvey Weinstein has been named a Commander of the Order of the British Empire, or CBE, by Queen Elizabeth II.

The honor recognizes his contribution to the British film industry, the British consul-general in New York, Thomas Harris, told the Associated Press.

Miramax, founded by Mr. Weinstein and his brother, Bob, has co-funded many British productions, including John Madden’s “Shakespeare in Love” and Stephen Frears’ “Dirty Pretty Things.”

“My life and my career have been greatly influenced and enriched by great British filmmakers and authors, and so I am especially honored and humbled to be receiving the CBE,” Mr. Weinstein said.

Going satellite

Satellite radio is waiting for Howard Stern and fellow shock jocks such as Todd Clem (aka “Bubba the Love Sponge”).

“If Howard Stern’s listeners didn’t already know about satellite radio, they do now,” a telecommunications investment banker told AP. “He can say whatever he wants on satellite radio.”

“Broadcasters are scared,” said Bob Richards, a partner in SkyWaves, an independent satellite radio research company in Ann Arbor, Mich.

AP reports that Mr. Clem is in talks with Sirius, a satellite radio outfit with more than 260,000 subscribers.

Compiled by Scott Galupo from wire and Web reports.