CNN’s Grace on Dannielynn: "I’m the Dad!"

By Staff -- Broadcasting & Cable, 2/19/2007 3:14:00 AM

There’s a new claimant in the Anna Nicole Smith paternity dispute: Nancy Grace.

In the wake of Smith’s Feb. 8 death, the CNN Headline News/Court TV host has been covering the procession of former lovers and hangers-on who claim to be the father of the model/actress’ 5-month-old daughter, Dannielynn.

When Zsa Zsa Gabor’s husband, Prince Frederic von Anhalt, entered the fray Feb. 9, Grace apparently grew so exasperated by the absurd turn of events that she fired off an e-mail to staffers saying, "I’m the father!"

According to a source at Headline News, several staffers followed suit, e-mailing similar mock claims of paternity.

A network spokeswoman does not confirm that Grace sent the e-mail, but she says the former prosecutor, known for her righteously indignant advocacy of victims’ rights, may have been making the point "that she was more of the father" than "all these people who’ve come out of the woodwork."

It remains to be seen, however, if Grace will be added to the "Anna Nicole Baby Daddy Bracket" at celebrityhack.com. The Final Four-type bracket puts divisions of celebrity contenders in a contest for the title of Baby Daddy.

The No. 2 player for Trimspa Regional: Grace’s CNN colleague Larry King.