Fox 29 welcomes new anchor Lucy Noland

FOX 29 will welcome a new face to its evening anchor desk on June 30.

Lucy Noland, who was recently at KNBC, in Los Angeles, will join the 5, 6 and 10 p.m. newscasts alongside Iain Page.

Readers of the column will remember I told you that former evening anchor Kerry Barrett, who is on maternity leave with her second child, John Barrett IV, is moving to anchor the morning newscast with Chris Murphy from 4 to 7 a.m., and then put on her reporting hat for "Good Day Philadelphia" after that. Karen Hepp, who sits on the morning anchor desk with Murphy, will move to reporting in the nighttime broadcasts.

Although reports from KNBC claimed that Noland left to spend more time with her family, FTVLive.com reported back in October that Noland was let go and rather than stay in her contract until the spring, she decided to leave on her own accord.

Fun fact: Noland hails from the station that Alycia Lane most recently called home before being axed in October.

Former Phillie and current MLB TV analyst Mitch Williams was ejected from his son's Burlington County-based 10U Jersey Wild baseball game in Aberdeen, Md., this weekend, according to Deadspin.

Williams defended himself via Twitter, but he has a history of acting out during his kids' sporting events, previously getting ejected from his daughter's basketball games. I hear that a South Jersey referee's association even refuses to take part in any game that Williams attends because of his outbursts at his daughter's games.

Remember last week when I told you that the Greater Philadelphia Film Office was trying its darnedest to grab "Empire," the new Fox hip-hop-influenced show from Philly's own Lee Daniels ("Lee Daniels' The Butler," "Precious")? The pilot is filming in Chicago, but the series, about a Jay Z-esque hip-hop mogul, played by Lafayette Hill's Terrence Howard, who grew up slinging drugs on the streets of Philadelphia, could possibly move to Philly to start shooting. And the GPFO wants it. Badly.

Well, Daniels is in town today to receive the Anne d'Harnoncourt Award for Artistic Excellence at the Arts & Business Council's 29th Annual Awards dinner tonight. The GPFO is making the most of it. The organization that brings film and television productions to Philadelphia is holding a rally on the steps of the Philadelphia Museum of Art tonight at 6 p.m. to show Daniels that the city will support his show.

* Actress Brooke Shields helped celebrate her daughter Rowan's 11th birthday at Six Flags Great Adventure (1 Six Flags Blvd., Jackson, N.J.), along with her other daughter, Grier, and husband Chris Henchy, a producer working with Philly's own Kevin Hart on "Get Hard," a new comedy also starring Will Ferrell. I hear that Shields and the fam made sure to stop and take pics with any fan who requested one.

* The Stratus Lounge at the Hotel Monaco (433 Chestnut St.) celebrated its Spring Awakening last week with a host of celebs in tow. Flyers Kimmo Timonen and Hal Gill chatted it up with Mayor Nutter, while state Sen. Larry Farnese; Comcast SportsNet's Marshall Harris and John Clark; 6ABC's Melissa Magee; Preston and Steve's Marisa Magnatta; City Representative Melanie Johnson and Live Nation's Geoffrey Gordon all rubbed shoulders.

* In yesterday's column, I told you that Wendy Williams stopped by Geno's Steaks on Friday, but she's an equal-opportunity cheesesteak taster, and made her way to Pat's King of Steaks (1237 E. Passyunk Ave.) for a bite as well.

* Phillies pitcher Kyle Kendrick stopped by the South Philly Target (1 Mifflin St.).

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