Sheen returns to show

The actor’s publicist, Stan Rosenfield, said Sheen returned to the Warner Bros. set in Burbank on Tuesday morning.

The 44-year-old actor voluntarily entered a rehab facility as what Rosenfield earlier said was a preventive measure, temporarily halting production of CBS’ top-rated sitcom last month.

Sheen pleaded not guilty to domestic violence charges in Colorado’s Pitkin County District Court on Monday. A judge scheduled a jury trial for July 21.

-- associated press

‘Pacific’ beats ‘Adams’ debut

About 3.1 million people signed up for the Sunday night premiere episode of HBO’s expensive World War II epic, “The Pacific,” according to Nielsen.

HBO, which spent around $200 million making the 10-part miniseries and millions more on hype, said the audience for the debut was 22% larger than the one for the premiere of its last big miniseries, “ John Adams.” But “The Pacific” would have ranked only 91st among the programs on the five major broadcast networks last week.

The pay-cable channel has been heavily promoting the Steven Spielberg- and Tom Hanks-produced event and even took the unusual step of offering the first episode for free on DirecTV as well as on its own website and on Fancast.

-- Joe Flint

Settlement in Learjet crash

A Los Angeles judge approved a multimillion-dollar legal settlement Tuesday involving the wife and young son of former Blink 182 drummer Travis Barker’s assistant, who was killed in a 2008 plane crash in South Carolina.

The settlement with Learjet Inc., Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. and other companies involved in the ownership, operation and making of the jet will pay for college for Chris Baker’s 3-year-old son and establish an annuity giving him more than $17 million over his lifetime.

It also will pay Baker’s widow, Otilia, more than $7.6 million.

The crash killed four people and left Barker and celebrity disc jockey DJ AM seriously injured. DJ AM later died of a drug overdose. Barker and the estate of DJ AM have settled their cases involving the crash for undisclosed terms.

-- associated press

Spielberg has ‘Jackie’ script

Two iconic American names, Steven Spielberg and the late Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, are linked together in a new project.

Spielberg is selling “Jackie,” a hot script about the late first lady that’s making the rounds in Hollywood.

Noah Oppenheim, head of development at the Reveille production company who’s also a journalist, author and former producer at the “Today” show, has written the script, which examines the days immediately after the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy from his widow’s point of view.

Spielberg is on board as a producer.

-- Steven Zeitchik

Book includes Child letters

The Julia Child renaissance continues.

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt announced Tuesday that it would publish “As Always, Julia,” more than 200 letters between the beloved chef and her agent Avis DeVoto, in December. The letters were written between 1952 and 1966, when Child rose from being a little-known American living in Paris to a co-author of the seminal “Mastering the Art of French Cooking” and host of the “The French Chef” TV program.

Child died in 2004, just before her 92nd birthday, and was played by Meryl Streep in the recent hit film “Julie & Julia.” Millions of copies of her books have sold since the movie came out.

-- associated press Dixie Chicks to tour in June

All three members of the Dixie Chicks are heading out in June on a one-month stadium tour with the Eagles and Keith Urban.

This marks the first time in four years that the Chicks will take the stage on tour together.

There are no West Coast dates scheduled.

-- associated press

Finally

Casting news: Betty White has joined the cast of “Hot in Cleveland,” a sitcom that will premiere in June on the TV Land channel, with Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick in the lead roles.