Baldwin asked for early release from NBC contract

By Steve Gorman

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Actor Alec Baldwin, embarrassed by a ranting phone message to his daughter that surfaced on the Internet, has asked to be freed from his TV show to spend more time with family, a person close to the situation said on Wednesday.

Baldwin, 49, who stars as a venal, egocentric television executive on NBC's popular comedy "30 Rock," revealed his request for early release while taping a guest appearance for Friday on ABC's daytime talk show "The View."

His comments were not made public in advance but CNN Headline News reported them and a source close to the situation confirmed his remarks to Reuters.

But the source added that Baldwin "will fulfill his contractual obligations."

Baldwin's personal life attracted media attention last week when the celebrity Web site TMZ.com posted a recording of a voice-mail message he recently left for his daughter, Ireland, calling her a "rude, thoughtless little pig."

The 11-year-old girl lives in California with Baldwin's ex-wife, the Oscar-winning actress Kim Basinger. The couple has waged a bitter, six-year battle over custody of the child.

Baldwin said in his phone message that he was furious at not being able to reach his daughter for a prearranged phone conversation from his home in New York.

Baldwin has since made amends with his daughter, according to his spokesman, and publicly apologized for his temper tantrum in a statement posted on his official Web site.

But a Los Angeles family law judge who listened to the tape suspended Baldwin's visitation rights last week and set a hearing for May 4, at which time Baldwin could face further restrictions on his contact with the child.

A separate court hearing was set for June 5 on how the voice-mail tape was released to the media.

NBC announced earlier this month that it was renewing "30 Rock," a critically hailed series about a fictional TV variety show, for a second season. The show was created by and co-stars "Saturday Night Live" veteran Tina Fey.

An NBC spokeswoman said, "Alec Baldwin remains an important part of '30 Rock.' We look forward to having him continue his role in the show."

NBC is 80 percent owned by blue-chip conglomerate General Electric Co. and 20 percent by France's Vivendi.