It's hard to imagine that anyone would consider TV's sweet-natured grandma Betty White as their "sworn enemy." Except, of course for maybe Mom from Futurama and the bizarro version of Bea Arthur.

But apparently that's the label that Price is Right host Bob Barker has bestowed upon the Golden Girl. It turns out the two aren't pals or confidants. Buzzer Blog reported that Barker threatened not to show up to GSN's 2009 Game Show Awards where he accepted a lifetime achievement award along with Mark Goodson and Monty Hall if White was there.

It gets weirder. The whole thing was caused by an elephant. This is starting to sound less like Hollywood gossip and more like a job for Mythbusters.

The late Bea Arthur was, among other things, a comedic genius, feminist icon, and beloved American actress of stage and screen. But widely overlooked in the recent coverage of her passing is the fact that she was a active advocate for animal rights. She campaigned against the force-feeding of ducks in the foie gras trade, even accompanying the president of PETA to London, where she demanded that Harrod's discontinue their peddling pâté.

There's nothing like a good brouhaha, is there? Kid Nation was controversial before it even hit the air and the controversy continues. TMZ is reporting that the show is seeking a new location for next season outside of the United States due to the child labor issue. The show's official website has had an application link up since the site itself was launched, but it appears the deadline for second season applications has passed.

Then there's a new controversy -- the slaughtering of two chickens shown during last week's episode. According to our friends at Buddy TV, the animal rights group Last Chance for Animals criticized the show for killing the chickens, then airing the slaughter. LCA also condemned YouTube for not removing clips of the show which were posted by several people.

It's a good week for animals in Los Angeles. Three Hollywood chimps are headed to an animal sanctuary and away from their abusive "trainer" Sid Yost, and one of the L.A. Zoo's inhabitants, Ruby the elephant, is being rescued from her environs by none other than retiring Price is Right host Bob Barker.

Barker has donated $300,000 in order to have the 45 year-old African elephant moved from the L.A. Zoo to a sanctuary in San Andreas, California. The move is coming on the heels of the controversial death of another L.A. Zoo elephant that wasn't treated for more than eight hours after he had begun exhibiting signs of distress. Barker, along with other animal rights activists, have been pleading for the close of the zoo's elephant exhibit ever since. The cost of a new, larger habitat for the animals has been approved by the L.A. City Council, but activists say that it is still not enough. Barker, himself, plead before the council in February for the closure of the exhibit and has appeared before Congress to testify about the abuse suffered by circus elephants.

At least, that's what PETA is saying. The animal rights group conducted an online poll and Kristen Bell, the actress who plays the titular lead in Veronica Mars, was chosen as the sexist female vegetarian, with Prince taking the male honor. Other celebs who made the list include Natalie Portman, Nicollette Sheridan, Anne Hathaway, J.D. Fortune,  Michael Ausiello, and Joaquin Phoenix. Absent from the list? That's right, the North American grizzly bear. I'm pulling for you next year, Grizzy! I know you've got the will power in you!

[via Give Me My Remote]

Martha Stewart's daughter, Alexis, is on a mission to get horse-drawn carriages out of New York City. She recently wrote a letter to Mayor Michael Bloomberg to ban the attractions. Stewart is a member of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), a group that is very upset over a recent collision between a vehicle and a horse-drawn carriage. The carriage driver was seriously injured in the crash, as was the horse, which was euthanized. Stewart contends that horses are forced to work long hours in unpleasant weather, on hard pavement, and breathe in polluted air from all the cars on the streets. She also says they happen to be a danger to pedestrians and others who use the streets and sidewalks of New York. Operators of horse-drawn carriages argue that the horses are treated well and that the horse-car crash on January 2nd was a fluke.