Ben Curtis, the 22-year actor who plays Steven, the Dell Guy in the TV ads, was arrested in New York at the weekend for marijuana possession. How long before the Winona Defence is wheeled into gear: I was only researching a part, your honour.

The Dell Guy, is unknown to most people in the UK, except for saddo business-types who watch CNN in hotels.

The Dell Guy character as portrayed on the ads surely smokes pot and, from time to time, crack. He's a humorous young man who promotes Dell computers on the television. But maybe for not much longer: let's see how grown-up Dell is about this.

We are indebted to The Smoking Gun for alerting us to Mr. Curtis' predicament. ®