Elton John believes his son Zachary's childhood is going to be "very difficult", battling homophobia and the impact of his father's fame, the pop icon said in an interview published Tuesday.

The 65-year-old British star and his Canadian civil partner David Furnish, 49, became parents on December 25, 2010 to a child conceived using a donor egg and born via a surrogate mother.

U.S. actress and comedian Phyllis Diller -- who in the 1960s helped pave the way for female comics in Hollywood -- died Monday at her Los Angeles home at age 95, her manager told Agence France Presse.

The trailblazing star -- known for her distinctive laugh, disheveled hair and outlandish wardrobe -- died at 9:30 am (16H30 GMT), said her lifelong manager Milton Suchin.

U.S. singer Scott McKenzie, who sang "San Francisco (Be Sure to Wear Flowers in Your Hair)," the unofficial anthem of the counterculture movement of the 1960s, has died at the age of 73, his website reported Monday.

"It is with much sadness that we report the passing of Scott McKenzie in LA on the 18th of August, 2012," said a statement posted on the site.

A music video by pop singer Beyonce helped inspire one billion messages for World Humanitarian Day on Sunday, which the United Nations said was a social media record.

The singer recorded the music video, "I Was Here," for the U.N. campaign to generate one billion messages encouraging people to do a good deed.

Prominent Hollywood film director Tony Scott, whose signature works included "Top Gun," jumped to his death from a bridge in San Pedro, California, city officials announced late Sunday.

Police and U.S. Coast Guard officials pulled Scott's body out of the water near the Vincent Thomas Bridge, which is built over Los Angeles Harbor, the coroner's officer said, adding he had jumped from the structure.

Some Russian activists have sued Madonna for millions of dollars, claiming they were offended by her support for gay rights during a recent concert in St. Petersburg.

Anti-gay sentiment is strong in Russia, particularly in St. Petersburg, where a law passed in February makes it illegal to promote homosexuality to minors. The author of that law has pointed to the presence of children as young as 12 at Madonna's concert on Aug. 9.

Miss China won the coveted title of Miss World on Saturday, triumphing on home soil during a glitzy final held in a mining city on the edge of the Gobi desert.

The mostly Chinese audience erupted in cheers and fireworks lit up the sky when it was announced that the home candidate, Yu Wenxia, had been awarded the title.

Former Playboy Playmate and actress Jenny McCarthy says she is no longer romantically involved with Chicago Bears linebacker Brian Urlacher.

McCarthy, who is from suburban Chicago, released a statement Friday that said: "Brian and I have decided to turn our romance into an amazing friendship. I will continue to be the biggest cheerleader for him."

Belgian photographer Martine Franck, a member of the Magnum Photos cooperative and the second wife of Henri Cartier-Bresson, has died aged 74, a source close to Franck said Friday.

Born in Anvers in 1938, the elegant Franck spent her childhood in the U.S. and in England before studying art history in Madrid and at Paris's Ecole du Louvre.

Gerard Depardieu is in hot water again after an alleged road rage incident in the middle of Paris in which the French film star admitted he may have gone "a bit over the top."

A Parisian driver has accused Depardieu of punching him in the face after he swerved his car into the path of the actor's scooter in the chic left-bank quarter of the French capital earlier this week.