Surrogate Mother

The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled Wednesday in the landmark custody case of Baby M that contracts paying a woman to give birth to a child amount to illegal baby selling. But, in a 7-0 decision, the court awarded custody of Baby M to her father and gave visitation rights to the child's biological mother, Mary Beth Whitehead Gould, who bore the infant under contract.

Beyonce says that HBO's new documentary, “Beyonce: Life Is But a Dream,” was the outgrowth of her sense that despite more than a dozen years in the public spotlight, first with the group Destiny's Child then as a breakout solo performer who has become one of the pop music world's biggest stars, “people didn't know who I was.” The film, which premieres Saturday on the cable channel, examines the artist's life and touches on several topics...

Americans have long gone to China to adopt babies. In a twist, Chinese couples are now coming here to become parents — through surrogacy. China does not permit surrogate parenting, but that country's rising affluence has given many couples the option of coming to U.S. surrogacy clinics. California, with its large Chinese American community and its courts' liberal attitude toward surrogacy, is a prime destination. Jerry Zhu and Grace Sun of Beijing have so far saved $60,000 toward the expected $100,000 cost of surrogate birth.

The split-level house of American dreams and boomer memories probably has never been used so evocatively or been as central to a movie as it is in "The Playroom. " In the 1975-set coming-of-age drama - a kids'-eye view of adult malaise - that house is essentially a character, showcasing the generational disconnect through a cataclysmic night for one family. Directed by Julia Dyer from a script by her late sister, Gretchen Dyer, the film uses the upper-middle-class setting effectively, even as it resorts to heavy-handed symbolism and melodrama in its dour, mostly unforgiving portrait of parental dysfunction.

In your editorial ("Child's Interest Is Paramount," Oct. 23), you applauded the decision of Superior Court Judge Richard N. Parslow Jr. giving exclusive parental rights to the Calvert/Johnson baby to his genetic father and mother. You supported the judge's view that Anna Johnson is not the child's "real mother." Rather, she is likened to a foster parent who only temporarily cares for a child. The primary difficulty with this resolution of the Calvert/Johnson case is that there is no basis in state law to deny Johnson's parentage.

Quadruplets were born Thursday to a surrogate mother at Long Beach Community Medical Center, a hospital spokeswoman said. The quadruplets were in the neonatal intensive care unit. The names of the surrogate mother and the biological parents were not released to protect their privacy, said spokeswoman Rachelle Cunningham. Hospital officials would not release the babies' condition or say how much they weighed.

Surrogate mother Elvira Jordan, who won a major battle when a Superior Court judge awarded her partial custody to a child she bore to an infertile couple, is suing her therapist for malpractice, alleging improper counseling before the pregnancy. In a lawsuit filed in Orange County Superior Court, Jordan contends that Nina Kellogg should have known that she was susceptible to mental distress when she recommended her for surrogacy. Jordan is suing for an undetermined monetary award.

A judge today denied increased visitation rights for surrogate mother Mary Beth Whitehead, but the woman angrily vowed the baby "will be home" and said she would never surrender the child. Judge Harvey Sorkow ruled there was no reason to increase the two-hour visitation sessions Whitehead now has with the child known as Baby M. Whitehead, who conceived the child by artificial insemination, is disputing custody with the natural father, William Stern of Tenafly, N.J.

Surrogate mother Mary Beth Whitehead-Gould has asked for twice-a-week visitation with "Baby M" but the child's father wants to block all visitation, court briefs say. Gary Skoloff, a lawyer for the girl's father, William Stern, said in legal papers released Friday that he will present testimony at a visitation hearing Monday that will show the child's psychological welfare is at stake. The hearing was ordered by the state Supreme Court in its ruling Feb.

Three surrogate mothers from Southern California--along with one surrogate mother-to-be and a surrogate still attempting to get pregnant--announced Tuesday they are forming a national organization to ensure that women will continue to have the right to bear babies for childless couples. At a Beverly Hills press conference, the surrogates expressed outrage over a suit filed by Mary Beth Whitehead, a New Jersey surrogate mother who is seeking custody of the child she bore for another couple.

"The New Normal," which premieres Tuesday on NBC, concerns Bryan and David (Andrew Rannells and Justin Bartha), a gay couple who want a baby; Goldie (Georgia King), the young woman they hire as a surrogate mother; Goldie's quirky-precocious 8-year-old daughter, Shania (the invaluable Bebe Wood); and her problematic grandmother, Jane (Ellen Barkin). I'm no fan of the works of its well-known co-creator, Ryan Murphy, who has "Nip/Tuck," "Glee" and "American Horror Story" in his portfolio.

Click here to download TV listings for the week of Sept. 9 - 15 in PDF format This week's TV Movies SERIES    The Voice:  The singing competition returns for a new season with vocalists from across the country invited to compete. Celebrity coaches Christina Aguilera, CeeLo Green, Adam Levine and Blake Shelton return along with Carson Daly as host. (8 p.m. NBC). The L.A. Complex: Kal (Andra Fuller) enlists Abby (Cassie Steele)

Grab your blankets and beach chairs, Oscar is going casual. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Monday the slate of movies for its first outdoor screening series, to be held at its new Oscars Outdoors venue in Hollywood. The lineup, which kicks off June 15 with a screening of "Casablanca," is a mixture of classics and contemporary films designed to appeal to a broad swath of the moviegoing public. Screenings will take place Friday and Saturday evenings through Aug. 18, with Saturday evenings devoted to family-friendly fare, such as "The Princess Bride" and "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs.

Americans have long gone to China to adopt babies. In a twist, Chinese couples are now coming here to become parents — through surrogacy. China does not permit surrogate parenting, but that country's rising affluence has given many couples the option of coming to U.S. surrogacy clinics. California, with its large Chinese American community and its courts' liberal attitude toward surrogacy, is a prime destination. Jerry Zhu and Grace Sun of Beijing have so far saved $60,000 toward the expected $100,000 cost of surrogate birth.

Judge David G. Sills, presiding justice of California's 4th District Court of Appeal in Santa Ana who made significant rulings regarding surrogate parents, died Tuesday after a long illness, the court announced. He was 73. Sills was appointed presiding judge of the appellate court's 3rd Division in 1990 by then-Gov. George Deukmejian and served for more than 20 years. In that role the judge led reviews of civil and criminal decisions handed down by Orange County Superior Court. Known as a consensus builder and a gifted writer, he was the author of more than 2,400 majority opinions during his tenure at the busy court.

Is it a zoo or a museum? Yes to both. The San Diego Zoo and its Safari Park long ago shattered the mold for the cat-in-a-cage attraction. Now other visionary organizations are pushing the limits, putting nature on display more naturally, then adding a pinch of Smithsonian. If you're traveling the West this spring or summer, treat yourself and the kids to a genuine close encounter of the critter kind — educational benefits no extra charge. -- Ken Van Vechten Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, 2021 N. Kinney Road, Tucson; (520)

A Huntington Park surrogate mother, who won joint custody of a baby she bore for a former Orange County couple, admitted last week that she committed welfare fraud and agreed to repay the government more than $8,500. Under an agreement with the Los Angeles County district attorney's office, Elvira Jordan, 42, pleaded no contest to one count of welfare fraud and will be placed on three years' probation.

A California couple who hired a British woman to have a baby for them and then backed out when they found she was carrying twins will continue paying her medical expenses despite a bitter court battle the three are involved in, attorneys said Thursday. Surrogate mother Helen Beasley, 26, who is preparing to deliver twins in December, will receive $6,500 from Charles Wheeler and Martha Berman of Berkeley on Monday, the couple's attorney, Monty McIntyre, said.

His shoulders are slumped from too many gigs, too many drugs and way too many women. The bags around his eyes droop nearly to the bottom of his cocktail glass. His whole body is haloed in the cigarette smoke that would contribute to his death from throat cancer at 64. As channeled by Obba Babatundé, Sammy Davis Jr. finally concedes to the exhaustion that he's been postponing since his days as an adorable child dancer working the vaudeville circuit with his dad. The moment comes fairly late in the second act of "Sammy," the appreciative bio-musical written by Oscar- and Grammy-winner Leslie Bricusse and directed by Keith Glover, which had its world premiere Friday at San Diego's Old Globe.

Michael Jackson's ex-wife and the mother of his two older children is in line to obtain custody of them, even if the pop star designated another person as their guardian after his death, legal experts said Friday. Although UC Berkeley law professor Herma Hill Kay said it was "not a slam dunk" that ex-wife Debbie Rowe would win custody, four other experts in family law said she would have the advantage if there is a custody battle.