Quick Takes - April 7, 2010

‘Othello’ in Griffith

L.A.’s Independent Shakespeare Co. is moving to more spacious digs in Griffith Park for this summer’s free performances of “Othello” and “Much Ado About Nothing,” after six seasons on the lawn at Hollywood’s hilltop Barnsdall Park. The key advantage, according to managing director David Melville, is a capacity hike from 485 to 700 for a company that often has had to turn away prospective playgoers for lack of room; it’s expected that reservations will no longer be required. The new performance lawn is near the merry-go-round at the park’s northeast end. Independent Shakespeare Co. expects expenses to grow from $120,000 to $180,000 this summer; it relies on donations to cover its expenses.

-- David Ng David Shuster is suspended

MSNBC anchor David Shuster has been suspended indefinitely from appearing on the air because he taped an audition for rival CNN in violation of his contract. Shuster, whose deal with MSNBC was not set to expire until December, auditioned with NPR’s Michel Martin for the competing network in recent months. MSNBC officials were incredulous when they learned about it from a report Friday in the New York Observer.

Shuster’s agent did not respond to requests for comment. CNN had no comment.

Shuster, who joined MSNBC in 2002 from Fox News, has served as a correspondent and anchor at the network. It’s unclear if he will return to the air this year. For now, his hours are temporarily being covered by other MSNBC anchors.

Shuster served a two-week suspension in 2008 after he said Chelsea Clinton was “sort of being pimped out” as she stepped up campaigning for her mother during the Democratic presidential primary. Earlier this year, he was ordered to stop tweeting after posts in which he harangued conservative activist James O’Keefe and called a viewer “stupid and lazy.” He later apologized and has not posted on Twitter since late January.

-- Matea Gold Newseum gets Simpson’s suit

The tan Armani suit, white shirt and gold tie that O.J. Simpson wore in Los Angeles Superior Court on Oct. 3, 1995, the day he was acquitted of murder, have been acquired by the Newseum in Washington, D.C., and will be displayed in an exhibit about his trial.

Simpson’s former manager, Mike Gilbert, had kept the clothes in storage, and plans to hand-deliver them next week. “I hope it will be displayed in a way that will help people ponder the legal system and celebrity,” Gilbert said.

Gilbert and Fred Goldman agreed to the donation to end their 13-year legal dispute over who should own the suit. Goldman’s son, Ronald, was stabbed to death along with Simpson’s ex-wife, Nicole Brown Simpson, in 1994; Simpson was found not guilty after a televised trial that became a media sensation. The suit was first offered to the Smithsonian Institution, but the museum said it was not appropriate for its collection.

Simpson, 62, was kept informed and agreed to the donation, said his attorney, Ronald P. Slates. He is serving a minimum nine-year sentence for robbery and kidnapping, in a botched 2008 heist from a Las Vegas hotel room involving memorabilia. Witnesses said Simpson mistakenly believed the suit from his murder acquittal was among the items offered for sale.

-- associated press Lloyd Webber is grounded

Andrew Lloyd Webber’s doctors have grounded him -- literally -- as they try to address “post-operative problems” from a procedure they say has “eradicated” the prostate cancer diagnosed last fall.

Consequently, producers of the scheduled November Broadway opening of his latest musical, “Love Never Dies,” have pushed it back until spring 2011. The show opened last month in London.

The New York producers said in a statement that recent air travel has aggravated Webber’s condition, and the composer’s doctors are advising against the flights required for him to attend pre-production activities in New York.

-- times wire services Many eyes on Duke-Butler

Almost 24 million people tuned in to see CBS’ coverage of Duke University barely beating underdog Butler for the NCAA college basketball championship Monday night.

It was the biggest audience for the game since 1999, when 26.3 million people watched the University of Connecticut defeat Duke.

-- Joe Flint