Drew Carey picks an issue

People

Bob Barker famously closed each episode of "The Price Is Right" with a pitch to spay and neuter pets. His successor is taking a stand on a more controversial subject: marijuana. Drew Carey won't tout toking up on "Price," but he defends the use of medical marijuana in a video posted online Thursday on Reason.tv. "Smell that smell," the comedian says as he walks into a Los Angeles medical-marijuana dispensary. "That's the smell of freedom." The video is one of 20 that Carey, 49, will host for the Reason Foundation, a nonprofit educational group.

Colbert bid shot down

South Carolina Democrats squashed Stephen Colbert's fanciful White House bid Thursday. Colbert, who poses as a conservative talk-show host on the Comedy Central cable network, filed to get on the ballot as a Democratic candidate in his native South Carolina. His campaign paid a $2,500 filing fee just before the deadline, said state Democratic Party Chairwoman Carol Fowler. However, after about 40 minutes of discussion, the executive council voted 13-3 to keep the host of "The Colbert Report" off the ballot. "He's really trying to use South Carolina Democrats as suckers so he can further a comedy routine," said Waring Howe, an executive-council member.

Imus returns Dec. 3

Shock jock Don Imus, who was fired by CBS Radio in April after an uproar over an on-air racial slur, has signed a deal with Citadel Broadcasting to return to the airwaves Dec. 3, the company said Thursday. The new Imus show will be based at Citadel's New York station, WABC, airing daily from 6 to 10 a.m., and be syndicated nationwide through ABC Radio Networks.

Spears spending

Court papers released Thursday in pop star Britney Spears' custody dispute with Kevin Federline show she spends lavishly on clothes and entertainment and doesn't save or invest any of her roughly $737,000 monthly income. Spears' monthly expenses include $49,267 in mortgage for two houses, $16,000 for clothes and $102,000 on entertainment, gifts and vacation, according to her financial declaration. She spends zero on education, savings and investments and gives $500 a month in charitable contributions. She has to pay her ex-husband $15,000 per month in child support and $20,000 in spousal support. Spousal support will end Nov. 15.

In court

Leg must be returned

Even though a North Carolina man found an amputated human leg inside a smoker he bought at auction, he can't keep it, Judge Greg Mathis ruled on his television show that aired Thursday. Shannon Whisnant had refused to return the leg to its owner, saying he wanted to build a museum and charge people $10 to look at the limb. "You're not getting that leg. I'm not giving you the man's leg," Mathis told Whisnant. John Wood, whose left leg was amputated after a 2004 plane crash, had kept his leg and the cooker inside a rented storage space. When he couldn't pay the bill, the items were auctioned. The men had agreed to have their case settled by Mathis, and they signed papers that his decision was legally binding.

One expensive edible

Italians call it "white gold," and gourmets will have to dig even deeper into their pockets to buy white truffle, the strong, garlicky-scented delicacy usually shaved into pasta, salad and omelets. Experts said this year's harvest of the fungus has been one of the poorest in recent years, pushing costs up for a product already known for its extravagant price tag. Truffle expert Andrea Rossano said 3.5 ounces of white truffle this year could cost between $432 and $864, about 60 to 70 percent more than last year.

Today in History

1889: North Dakota and South Dakota became the 39th and 40th states.

1947:Howard Hughes piloted his huge wooden flying boat, the Hughes H-4 Hercules (dubbed the "Spruce Goose" by detractors), on its only flight, which lasted about a minute over Long Beach Harbor in California.

1976: Former Georgia Gov. Jimmy Carter became the first candidate from the Deep South since the Civil War to be elected president.

Today's Birthdays

Country singer Charlie Walker, 81. Singer-songwriter k.d. lang, 46. Actor David Schwimmer, 41. Rapper Nelly, 33.

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