'Jersey Shore's' Snooki Cuffed After Italian Car Crash

Jason Merritt/Getty Images(NEW YORK) -- The cast of MTV's Jersey Shore continues to make a lasting impression on their Italian hosts.

Just days after fisticuffs broke out between co-stars Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino and Ronnie Ortiz-Magro while they filmed their show in Italy, Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi was driving with pal and co-star Deena Cortese when Snooki reportedly crashed into a police car, wedging her vehicle between the cop car and a concrete guardrail.

A source with the MTV show says "zero alcohol was involved" in the incident, and nobody was hurt, but Snooki was cuffed and taken into custody by officers on the scene nonetheless.  She reportedly was not arrested.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Obama vs. Snooki: Who Would Americans Rather Hang With?

Jean Baptiste Lacroix/WireImage(NEW YORK) -- A survey on summer fun finds more American men and women would prefer to spend time at their beach house with President Barack Obama over Jersey Shore star Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi.

A “Summer Fun Survey” of 1,000 adults commissioned by Metromint purified water found that 23 percent of respondents would prefer to hang with Obama, while four percent would choose Snooki.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

Rutgers Students Want Springsteen to Exorcise Memory of Snooki

Kevin Mazur/WireImage(NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J.) -- Students at Rutgers University are trying hard to get Bruce Springsteen to play a concert on campus, in order to erase the memory of Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi's recent speaking engagement there.

The university was hit with negative press when it was revealed that the Jersey Shore star was paid $32,000 to speak at the university, while Pulitzer Prize winner Toni Morrison is only being paid $30,000 to speak at the commencement ceremony in May.

So, according to the Asbury Park Press, students have banded together and formed a Facebook page to try and get the Boss to play to help clean up Rutgers' image in the media. 

The Facebook page, which at last check had close to 5,000 friends, was started by freshman Daniel Oliveto and junior Paul Tranquilli.

Oliveto defended Rutgers, saying, "We’re a smart institu­tion.  We’ve produced Nobel Prize winners.  We have a great reputation," and declared he didn't want Snooki's appearance ruining that.

So far, Springsteen's people haven't responded to the solicitation, which promises"no spray-tanning and juicing -- just classic rock and honest work." 

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

'Jersey Shore' Cast Signs New Deals; Snooki Spawns Senate Legislation

ABC News(NEW YORK) -- The Jersey Shore cast has signed contracts for a new season, clearing the way for the crew to head to Italy to shoot the next season of the hit MTV show, reports E! Online.

All eight cast members are expected to fly over to the country in the next two to three weeks.  While the entire season was set to take place in Italy, a source now says only a few episodes will take place there, with the rest shooting in New Jersey.  That decision may be based on the cold shoulder given the show by the Italian media, which claims Jersey Shore enforces negative stereotypes of Italians.

In related news, New Jersey State Sen. Joe Kyrillos wants to sponsor a measure that would allow college students the option to opt-out of normally mandatory speeches for which VIPs are paid big bucks.  And all of this is because of Jersey Shore's Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi.

The diminutive star was paid a whopping $32,000 to speak at Rutgers University last Thursday, peeving some folks who quickly noted her speaking fee was $2,000 more than the price paid to secure Nobel Prize-winning author Toni Morrison for the college's upcoming commencement address.

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

MTV Spinning Off Snooki and Two 'Jersey Shore' Pals

ABC News(NEW YORK) -- For Jersey Shore fans bummed that the fourth season is temporarily on hold due to cast contract negotiations, help is on the way.

MTV has given the green light to two spin-off series, one starring Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi and Jenni "JWoww" Farley, and another centering on Paul "DJ Pauly D" Delvecchio.  All three Jersey Shore cast members shot pilots for their prospective shows after the cameras finished rolling on season three, and now both shows have been given full season orders of 12 episodes each.

Both shows have yet to get titles, but according to a press release, the Snooki/JWoww show will let fans "see how they deal with life and love when the vacation is over," while Pauly's reality show centers on his regular job: cameras will follow his "jet-setting and often hilarious life on the road as one of the country's most in-demand DJs."

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

'Jersey Shore' Headed to Italy for Season Four

Photo Courtesy - ABC News(NEW YORK) -- MTV's mega-hit Jersey Shore will get more Italian flavor for its fourth season, as Snooki, The Situation, Pauly, and the rest of the gang will be headed to Italy.

According to MTV, the cast members are "poised to get their G.T.L. on abroad" and the girls "are eager to trade gorillas in for Italian Stallions." "G.T.L." is Jersey Shore code for "gym, tanning and laundry."

"The cast is headed to the birthplace of the culture they love and live by,” Chris Linn, executive vice president of programming and head of production for MTV, said in the statement. “We can't wait to see what erupts as a result."

Copyright 2011 ABC News Radio

From Jersey Shore to State Pen?

Photo Courtesy - Getty Images(TOMS RIVER, N.J.) -- Jersey Shore's Ronald Ortiz was indicted on assault charges on Thursday.  The indictment, stemming from an incident shown on the television show, was unveiled Friday.

The indictment alleges Ortiz, known as "Ronnie" on the MTV show, knowingly caused harm to Steven Izzo by hitting him with a closed fist.  Izzo, of Berkeley, N.J., was knocked out with the one punch and it was shown in an episode of the show entitled "One Shot."  If convicted, Ortiz could spend up to five years in state prison.

Izzo is suing MTV, show producers and Ortiz in a civil case.

The punch was apparently sparked by another cast member, Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi, kissing a man in a group at a nightclub back in September 2009.  Izzo was with that group, that also included the man's girlfriend.  There was a heated exchange which prompted Izzo and Ortiz to head outside, where prosecutors say Ortiz dropped the 26-year-old Izzo with the punch.

Ortiz is free on bail.

Copyright 2010 ABC News Radio