Charlie Sheen

LOS ANGELES -- Charlie Sheen suffered a legal setback in his fight against Warner Bros. and producer Chuck Lorre when his $100-million suit against the two was kicked to arbitration by a California Superior Court judge.

Sheen, who was fired this year from his starring role on the CBS hit sitcom "Two and a Half Men," which is produced by the studio and Lorre, wanted to fight his termination in front of a jury. Warner and Lorre argued that a clause in Sheen's contract stipulates that an arbitrator be used to resolve contract disputes.

LOS ANGELES -- Former "Two and a Half Men" star Charlie Sheen went before a Los Angeles judge Tuesday seeking custody of his twin sons with estranged wife Brooke Mueller, who also attended the closed hearing.

No resolution was immediately announced. Sheen left the courthouse flanked by security and was on his way to catch a plane to Washington, DC, for a performance of his stage show. Mueller emerged from court smiling and hugged her attorney but declined to comment.

Attorneys for both sides also refused to divulge details of the hearing.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Hank Goldberg sealed the hearing at the request of Mueller's attorney, saying it was "in the best interest of the children" because of "questions of abuse and other inflammatory and emotional issues."

LOS ANGELES -- This is the level to which the Charlie Sheen case has sunk: The former sitcom star and his ex-bosses are slinging mud over whether they have even talked about him coming back to work.

Sheen has been telling reporters that he has had "discussions" about returning to his role as irrepressible bachelor Charlie Harper on "Two and a Half Men," the CBS sitcom smash from which he was fired after months of erratic behavior and drug-abuse treatment.

Nonsense, says Warner Bros., the studio that makes the show. "There have been no discussions, there are no discussions and there will be no discussions, regarding his returning to or having any involvement with the series," John W. Spiegel, a lawyer representing the studio, wrote in a letter sent to Sheen attorney Marty Singer on Thursday.

LOS ANGELES -- Is Charlie Sheen headed back to "Two and a Half Men"? Don't hold your breath for it happening any time soon.

The Web rumor mill was busy Monday with word that CBS was ready to take Sheen back, even though he was fired from TV's No. 1 comedy earlier this month after ridiculing his bosses. Radar Online reported that CBS executives "want him back now" and would "forgive and forget" the last few weeks of Sheen's outbursts.

NBC News reporter Jeff Rossen, who has interviewed Sheen frequently in recent days, tweeted that CBS had "offered him his job back" but that talks were still ongoing. Later, Rossen clarified to say that Sheen would have to come to terms with Warner Bros., the studio that owns the rights to "Two and a Half Men," before any deal could happen.

Charlie Sheen, just days after being fired from CBS' "Two and a Half Men," has fired back with a $100 million lawsuit on behalf of himself and the show's crew against Warner Bros. and Chuck Lorre, the studio and executive producer of the show, respectively.

The suit, filed Thursday morning in Santa Monica Superior Court, charges that Sheen was only fired from the show because he had recently criticized Lorre both on radio and television. Warner Bros., in a letter to Sheen's attorney Martin Singer, had said Sheen was fired because he had become a liability on the show and his erratic off-stage life had started to affect his ability to perform.

Sheen's "conduct and condition prevented him from performing his essential duties" and undermined Lorre and Warner Bros.' ability to produce the show, and his suspension and eventual firing were required, the studio said.

LOS ANGELES -- Everyone has by now heard about the manic, tough-talking Charlie Sheen, the sitcom actor who publicly insults his bosses and makes T-shirt-ready boasts of "winning" and having tiger blood. But former porn star Ginger Lynn says she got intimate with another side of TV's top-earning actor -- one that fans can now share for a price.

"There's a side of him that I don't think many people hear about," Lynn said during an interview Friday. "Especially because right now, everyone's focusing on the negative. I have the soft, the considerate, the sensitive, the warm, the scared, the encouraging sides -- I have all these sides of Charlie that no one's talking about."

Now those in Sheen's corner -- that is to say, anyone not among the critics whom the actor dubs "trolls" -- can have them too, as Lynn is prepared to use her adult-film collectibles website (GingerLynnAuctions.com) to sell off a trove of gifts, mementos and letters Sheen sent her during their two-year-plus romance in the early 1990s.