Access Hollywood Confidential

Star power…it's about time! George, Brad, Angelina, Matt and Don...what a difference! Stars with character, willing to have fun and using their star-power to raise millions. The star-wattage in Cannes went through the roof with the arrival of the "Ocean's Thirteen" boys and Angelina earlier this week. They were loose, easygoing and ready, willing and able to have fun. What a difference it makes to have stars who can handle tough questions without calling for their publicists; stars who can make fun of themselves and others and not get bent out-of-shape.

The difference for "Access Hollywood"…great TV. If you watched the past few days, you've seen it all with unreal access. George and Billy Bush walking around the grounds of the Hotel du Cap, laughing and enjoying topping it off. No other show made the commitment to Cannes like we did, and no other show got the access to the big stars like we did. Expect others to follow in our footsteps next year.

Back to the stars. These guys wrote the book on how to handle celebrity status. "Ocean's 13" is fun and Angelina's "A Mighty Heart" is riveting, no doubt that the work is excellent, but the use of star power is what this is about.

The annual Cannes amfAR event raised $7 million and the Darfur fundraiser featuring "Ocean's Thirteen" stars raised $9.5 million, a million alone from Steven Spielberg. Big American stars in France using their star power to do good for important causes.

Sweeps has ended, but I'm not sure what the difference is between today, out of sweeps, and yesterday, in sweeps. We still need to deliver a compelling, good show and we try to be great every day whether it's sweeps or not.

One more thing before I go, a promise to our viewers: You will never ever see Amy Fisher or Joey Buttafuoco on "Access Hollywood."