A mistrial was declared yesterday in the John Travolta extortion case because of reported jury misconduct. If you don’t recall, two ambulance drivers were accused of trying to extort $25 million from John after the death of his 16-year old son Jett earlier this year. TMZ says

Justice Anita Allen released the jury and declared a mistrial after learning that a member of Parliament announced at a political convention that defendant Pleasant Bridgewater — a former Senator — had been acquitted by the jury.

It’s unclear if jurors had actually reached a verdict. There’s an unconfirmed report that one of the jurors may have communicated information to the Parliament member who spoke out.

Travolta’s rep issued the following statement:

“We are disappointed to hear about the alleged juror misconduct since we know that the Bahamian government, the court, the other jurors and John Travolta as the victim want to have this matter adjudicated through the judicial system. Mr. Travolta has and will continue to cooperate with the Bahamian authorities in the prosecution of the defendants for extortion.”

In more interesting news, if your body temperature were 86 degrees, you could live to be 200; most car horns honk in the key of F; and bats always turn left when exiting a cave. God, the gossip today sucks.

Also more interesting? Gwen Stefani’s bra:

PHOTO SOURCE: Bauer-Griffin

TMZ is reporting that John Travolta’s 16-year-old son, Jett, died today in the Bahamas while vacationing with Travolta and his mother, actress Kelly Preston. Jett was rumored to have been autistic, though Travolta denied it, saying he suffered from Kawasaki Syndrome, which often leads to heart disease.

Travolta’s attorney Michael Ossi says Jett suffered a seizure at his family’s vacation home at the Old Bahama Bay Hotel on Grand Bahama Island. Attempts to revive him were unsuccessful and he died on scene.

Very sad, and a really screwed up way to start the new year.

John Travolta unveiled a dashing new mustache for his role as Ryder in the remake of the 1974 classic “The Taking of Pelham 123.” According to the Daily Mail

Joining Travolta in [an] all-star cast will be Oscar-winner Denzel Washington and James Gandolfini [as] the Mayor of New York, struggling to outwit crime boss Travolta, who is holding the city to ransom.

Oh, yeah. That moustache really screams “boss of a group of mobsters.” Only replace the word “boss” with “queen” and the word “mobsters” with “an Indian, a sailor, and a cowboy in buttless chaps.” A stirring biopic chronicling the rise and fall of the disco era. Rated R for language, drug usage, and super-duper overt gayness.

On the set and at Michael Eisner’s Walk of Fame induction:

“CSI” actor and active Scientologist for thirteen years Jason Beghe posted a swear-riddled diatribe against the Church of Scientology on YouTube yesterday. Beghe — who was featured in a promotional video for the church in ‘05 — dropped a lot of dough over the years to achieve the Tom Cruise and John Travolta level of “Operating Thetan 5,” but finally came to the conclusion that the whole thing was all a big pile of horse shit. According to Page Six

In the video, Beghe [says], “Scientology is destructive and a rip-off. It’s very, very dangerous for your spiritual, psychological, mental, emotional health and evolution. I think it stunts your evolution. Something’s [fucked] up… The further up the bridge, the worse you get…”

“I don’t have an agenda. I’m just trying to help. I have the luxury of having gotten into Scientology and after having been in it, been out. And that’s a perspective that people who are still in and not out do not have.”

Frankly, I’m surprised this doesn’t happen more often once people achieve the higher OT levels, because it’s not until you hit OT1 that the church reveals that the source of your personal hang-ups and personality flaws is actually false-memory-planted alien souls clinging to your body. And of course, by the time you’ve actually reached OT1, you’ve already dropped hundreds of thousands of dollars to get there. It’s not like they start babbling about a galactic overlord dropping hydrogen bombs in volcanoes the first time you walk in for your free e-reading. And to someone who didn’t know any better, the term “Scientology” sounds like it must be a religion based on scientific reasoning because it has the word “science” in the name. But much like how my “Women on Women: The Literature of Liberation” course turned out to be less of a unfettered lesbian orgy and more of a foray into social consequence of 21st century feminist writers, Scientology has about as much science in it as an episode of “Homeboys in Outer Space.” That is to say, none.

Yeah, is it just me, or is it really fucking gay in here? TMZ gays says

John Travolta and Jodi Foster came out to celebrate the Hollywood Reporter’s Power 100 in Beverly Hills on Tuesday, [where] Jodie received the Sherry Lansing Leadership Award.

Did they hold this award show in a closet? Jesus! What is Queen Latifah doing here? Where are Anderson Cooper and Jada Pinkett, then? And my “he’s-just-sensitive” uncle and my seventh grade art teacher and her “roomate?” They might as well have called this little masquerade the “Cower 100.” Usually, the only time you have this many people pretending not to be gay in one room is during a open session of Congress. Really, this must be some kind of new closet-gay record or something!

They say a picture is worth a thousand words. But sometimes a picture only says one word. And that word is BLLEEEEHHH. Sometimes they improvise with a “What the fuck?” or “God, that’s gay” or “Are their penises touching?” You really just have to close your eyes and let it speak to you.