Friday, August 30, 2013

Secret Meeting With NBA Drug Counselors

Lamar Odom got some secret visitors yesterday -- two drug counselors who work with the National Basketball Players Association ... just hours before he was busted for DUI.

Sources familiar with the situation tell TMZ ... the counselors -- former NBA players Dirk Minniefield and Cliff Robinson -- had contacted Lamar to offer help, and he accepted -- thus, the meeting.

Cliff and Dirk know a thing or 2 about addicts and drug addiction -- they both struggled with substance abuse during their careers. They currently work with the NBPA ... counseling rookies and struggling NBA players about handling addiction.

During the visit Thursday at Lamar and Khloe's house ... we're told Lamar was receptive and, as one source said, "It was very positive."

Here's the problem ... Shortly after Dirk and Cliff left, Lamar drove off and never came home.
As we first reported, he was arrested early this morning for DUI ... and law enforcement sources tell us they believe he was under the influence of both drugs and alcohol.

Lamar Odom Busted for DUI

[UPDATE]
11:07 AM PT -- TMZ has just obtained a photo of Lamar's Mercedes SUV inside the tow yard, where his car was taken after the DUI arrest.
 10:05 AM PT -- According to the L.A. County Sheriff's Dept., Odom was released from custody at 8:33 AM. However, it's unclear if Odom has actually left the station yet.

9:17 AM PT --
Law enforcement sources tell TMZ ... officers at the scene smelled alcohol on Lamar and believe he was under the influence of both drugs and alcohol. The sources say Lamar's driving and conduct were consistent with drugs. We're told there were no drugs or alcohol found in Lamar's car ... only cigarettes, 2 bottles of cologne and other innocuous items.

 
Lamar Odom was arrested for "driving under the influence of alcohol and/or drugs" early Friday morning ... TMZ has learned.

The bust occurred in the San Fernando Valley at 3:54 AM. Lamar -- who was driving a white Mercedes SUV -- was popped by the California Highway Patrol and taken to a nearby station, where he was booked and is being held on $15,000 bail.

He was pulled over on the 101 Freeway for going too slow -- 50 MPH. Cops say Odom had been driving in a "serpentine manner."

Lamar initially did not respond to cops, and drove 3 exits before finally coming to a stop. Law enforcement sources tell TMZ he showed obvious signs of intoxication.

Lamar failed numerous field sobriety tests.

When Lamar was booked, we're told he refused all chemical tests.

Lamar's booking sheet shows he is 6'10" and 235 lbs.

Lamar has been tooling around town lately ... this after TMZ broke the story he had been on a crack binge.

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

[Shreveport, Louisiana] Charlize Theron Filming Thriller "Dark Places"

By Angela Thomas
A new movie is being filmed in our area.Shreveport-Bossier Film Office Director Arlena Acree tells KEEL News it’s called "Dark Places," a thriller about a woman who survived the brutal killing of her family as a child, and is forced to confront the events by a secret society obsessed with solving notorious crimes.

The lead actress in this film is Charlize Theron, who is also one of the producers. And Acree says this is her first time filming in Shreveport-Bossier. The movie also includes some other familiar faces. Chrsina Hendricks is best known from the TV show "Mad Men." (She’s the red-head.) And Chloe Grace Moretz has been in several movies, most notably the 2005 remake of "The Amityville Horror." She played Chelsea "Missy" Lutz. Nicholas Hoult ("Warm Bodies") and Shannon Kook (from "The Conjuring") are also lead cast members.

Acree tells us the production will be filmed all over the area. "So far, the filming since Monday is going very smooth," she says. "And I know they’re gonna be doing some things at Camp Minden, and area locations in Keithville, north of town. So they’re gonna be moving all over the place."

And with that filming comes a few tie-ups for you. From now until 11 this morning, expect traffic interruptions on Creswell Avenue between Gladstone and Forest. Other locations will be announced later this week.

This is one of many projects to come for "Hollywood South." Acree says she hopes to announce another big one — a comedy — by next week.

Here’s an on-set shot from this morning’s filming, sent in by our master engineer Troy Jones!
Theron shows off her tough side while filming scenes for her upcoming film Dark Places on Wednesday (August 28) in Shreveport, La.

A few weeks ago, the 38-year-old actress was spotted showing off her bikini body while vacationing in Hawaii before the start of production of the flick, which she also acts as a producer.

Dark Places centers on "a woman who survived the brutal killing of her family as a child is forced to confront the events of that day by a secret society obsessed with solving notorious crimes."

Mark your calendars, Dark Places hits theaters on September 1, 2014!

Thanx Angela ... NEE

[REPORT] Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones Split

Michael Douglas and Catherine Zets-Jones haven't been photographed together since April 22. They've walked red carpets solo,vacationed separately with their kids, and in recent days, Douglas has been relaxing on a yacht off the coast of Sardinia – with Zeta-Jones at home in New York.

So what's really going on with one of Hollywood's most celebrated couples? In this week's new cover story, two close confidantes tell PEOPLE that they've decided to take time apart: "They're taking a break," one source says.

Neither star has filed for divorce or moved toward a legal separation, sources say.

The A-list pair, who wed in 2000 in a lavish celebration at Manhattan's Plaza Hotel, have faced more than their fair share of ups and downs over the last three years – between Douglas's 2010 cancer battle and Zeta-Jones's struggles with bipolar II disorder. "The stress has taken a toll on their marriage," a friend tells PEOPLE.

Douglas, 68, and Zeta-Jones, 43, who have two children, Dylan, 13, and Carys, 10, together, decided to spend time apart soon after he came back from the Cannes Film Festival in May. Zeta-Jones had recently returned from a scheduled second round of treatment to monitor her bipolar disorder.

Those close to the couple hold out hope they can work out their differences. Says one family friend: "They want the best for their kids, no matter what happens."

Liberace's Las Vegas Mansion Has Finally Sold, Bought By Fan For A Mere $500,000


Wonder will the new owners  hear Liberace  walking up the staircase or playing the piano ...HeHe
Liberace's Las Vegas mansion has finally sold and the buyer is supposedly a HUGE fan of the performer.
According to Get Surrey, the nearly 15,000-square-foot home was bought for a mere $500,000 by Martyn Ravenhill in honor of his 50th birthday. "It felt like destiny when I bought it. It was almost surreal," he told the website. "Everything has happened very quickly but it is a very exciting time."
Liberace lived in the 2-bedroom, 10-bathroom house from 1974 until his death in 1987. Since that time, the property has had multiple owners and was seized by JPMorgan Chase through foreclosure in 2010. But pieces of the pianist's grandiose lifestyle still remain, including crystal chandeliers, the spiral staircase and an extreme mural in Liberace's former bedroom.
And Ravenhill has every intention to preserve the legacy Liberace left in the mansion. "I want to restore this place to its former glory," he said. "I am working closely with the Liberace Foundation who have been very supportive."
 

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

[UPDATE] Alec Baldwin STREET FIGHT WITH NYC PHOTOG

[UPDATE]
10:00 AM PT -- A rep for the NYPD tells us ... cops have spoken with both the photog and Alec who each admit pushing and shoving each other.

We're told both parties ultimately decided to walk away from the situation without pursuing charges.

So ... case closed.

Alec Baldwin
has struck again ... allegedly ... grabbing a photog on the streets of New York in front of several witnesses ... and now the NYPD is involved.

Sources connected with Baldwin tell TMZ ... the photog was the aggressor.
We spoke to the photog -- not a TMZ guy -- who tells us he did nothing to provoke Alec saying, "All I can say is I was doing my job asking him normal questions and he flipped. That's all."

The photog says he called police ... and cops responded to the scene.

A friend of Alec tells us ... Alec was with his wife Hilaria during the incident ... and Hilaria, in an effort to avoid the pap, ducked into a nearby tea store. We're told Alec also called police.

The friend tells us, "What kind of sick twisted psychopath chases a woman who just got out of the hospital from having a baby into a tea store?"

Hilaria just gave birth to the couple's daughter on August 23.

Story developing ...
Witchy says  borings ...what are the cops discussing  ? ?? Get Baldwin's autograph before letting him go . HeHe


 
 

Monday, August 26, 2013

Bieber Paparazzo Death Photog's Mom Sues CHP Cops Killed My Son

The mother of the paparazzo who was struck and killed by a car back in January -- after chasing Justin Bieber's Ferrari -- is suing the California Highway Patrol, claiming it's the cops' fault her son is dead.

Vickie Guerra -- mother of 29-year-old photog Chris Guerra -- claims in her suit a CHP officer abused his authority by ordering Chris to unsafely cross a busy street.

TMZ broke the story ... Chris had been photographing Bieber's white Ferrari while CHP deputies were writing the driver -- Lil Twist -- a ticket for speeding on the 405 Freeway.
In her lawsuit, Vickie claims the CHP officer noticed her son snapping photos and in a threatening manner, gesturing with his gun, the cop ordered Chris to keep his distance by crossing the street.
Vickie says her son obliged and was struck by a car traveling in excess of 40-50mph. Vickie says her son flew over the first car and was immediately run-over by a second car.
Vickie is suing the CHP and the State of California for unspecified damages. She's also suing the driver of the car that hit Chris.

Reps for the CHP had no comment.

Inside Lamar Odom's Troubled Life

By Janine Rayford Rubenstein

One thing is clear, it's been a rough weekend for Lamar Odom. The Clippers player and Khol`e Kardashian Odom haven't been seen together publicly since June 2, amid multiple reports that he is battling drug addiction and his marriage is on the rocks.

"They really do love each other," a source tell People of the couple who wed in 2009, "But she really feels that this problem is out of control, and she's hurt that he won't get help." Kardashian Odom, 29, and her family attempted to stage an intervention last week, that resulted in Odom leaving their Tarzana, Calif., home, adds the source.

Odom, 32, has faced drug accusations before.In 2001, when playing for the Clippers, he violated NBA drug policies twice in eight months. Apologizing at a press conference he admitted to using marijuana and told reporters and fans, "I've made a couple [of mistakes] and I may make a couple again, but hopefully they won't be as big as this one."

Since childhood, the Queens, N.Y., native has traveled a rocky road. At age 12, Odom lost his mother to colon cancer. On Khole & Lamar and to ESPN, Odom spoke of his father's struggle with heroin addiction. He went to live with his grandmother and later Jerry DeGregorio, the coach of his Rhode Island college team.

Several Personal Loses:
Over the years the former Laker and Olympian has faced one painful loss after the other. Odom has two children, Destiny, 13, and Lamar Jr., 10, with his ex-girlfriend of over 10 years , Liza Morales. In 2006 the couple lost a third child, Jayden, to Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.

In July 2011, two more deaths rocked the basketball star. A close cousin died of gunshot wounds in New York, Odom told ESPN, and just two days later, while riding in a chauffeur-driven SUV, he was involved in a car accident that resulted in a 15-year-old pedestrian's death.

"I had to ask myself, 'Could I and would I go through a season?'" Odom said following the back-to-back tragedies. He took a leave of absence from then team the Dallas Mavericks for 10 days amid reports his father was ill. "It was really personal and it was something I had to tend to," he said when he returned.

Things seemed to be back on track last season. Back in Los Angeles, Odom played the season with the Clippers and is now a free agent. But amid cheating rumors and these new drug allegations, his personal life has gone into a tailspin. Kardashian Odom and Odom have not been spotted together in more than two months and he was last seen loading luggage into a car on Aug. 21.
By all accounts the reality star is trying desperately to help her troubled spouse, a task that may prove difficult.

Talking to the Miami Herald in 2003 about his marijuana use, Odom said, "I just couldn't control myself in L.A. ... the lifestyle that I was living and the things I had access to ... A lot of times I'd think about it and say, 'Damn, am I fighting my father's demons ... ' "

Saturday, August 24, 2013

The World Loses Julie Harris

Actress Julie Harris


Julie Harris, one of Broadway's most honored performers, whose roles ranged from the flamboyant Sally Bowles in "I Am a Camera" to the reclusive Emily Dickinson in "The Belle of Amherst," died Saturday. She was 87. Harris died at her West Chatham, Mass. home of congestive heart failure, actress and family friend Francesca James said.

Harris won a record five Tony Awards for best actress in a play, displaying a virtuosity that enabled her to portray an astonishing gallery of women during a theater career that spanned almost 60 years and included such plays as "The Member of the Wedding" (1950), "The Lark" (1955), "Forty Carats" (1968) and "The Last of Mrs. Lincoln" (1972).  She was honoured again with a sixth Tony, a special lifetime achievement award in 2002. Only Angela Lansbury has neared her record, winning four Tonys in the best actress-musical category and one for best supporting actress in a play.

Harris had suffered a stroke in 2001 while she was in Chicago appearing in a production of Claudia Allen's "Fossils." She suffered another stroke in 2010, James said.
"I'm still in sort of a place of shock," said James, who appeared in daytime soap operas "All My Children" and "One Life to Live."
"She was, really, the greatest influence in my life," said James, who had known Harris for about 50 years.

Television viewers knew Harris as the free-spirited Lilimae Clements on the prime-time soap opera "Knots Landing." In the movies, she was James Dean's romantic co-star in "East of Eden" (1955), and had roles in such films as "Requiem for a Heavyweight" (1962), "The Haunting" (1963) and "Reflections in a Golden Eye" (1967).



 
 
Yet Harris' biggest successes and most satisfying moments have been on stage. "The theater has been my church," the actress once said. "I don't hesitate to say that I found God in the theater."

The 5-foot-4 Harris, blue-eyed with delicate features and reddish-gold hair, made her Broadway debut in 1945 in a short-lived play called "It's a Gift." Five years later, at the age of 24, Harris was cast as Frankie, a lonely 12-year-old tomboy on the brink of adolescence, in "The Member of the Wedding," Carson McCullers' stage version of her wistful novel. The critics raved about Harris, with Brooks Atkinson in The New York Times calling her performance "extraordinary — vibrant, full of anguish and elation."
"That play was really the beginning of everything big for me," Harris had said.

The actress appeared in the 1952 film version, too, with her original Broadway co-stars, Ethel Waters and Brandon De Wilde, and received an Academy Award nomination.
Harris won her first Tony Award for playing Sally Bowles, the confirmed hedonist in "I Am a Camera," adapted by John van Druten from Christopher Isherwood's "Berlin Stories." The play later became the stage and screen musical "Cabaret." In her second Tony-winning performance, Harris played a much more spiritual character, Joan of Arc in Lillian Hellman's adaptation of Jean Anouilh's "The Lark." The play had a six-month run, primarily because of the notices for Harris.

The actress was something of a critics' darling, getting good reviews even when her plays were less-well received. These included such work as "Marathon '33," ''Ready When You Are, C.B.!" and even a musical, "Skyscraper," adapted from an Elmer Rice play, "Dream Girl."



 
 
Her third Tony came for her work in "Forty Carats," a frothy French comedy about an older woman and a younger man. It was a big hit, running nearly two years. Harris won her last two Tonys for playing historical figures — Mary Todd Lincoln in "The Last of Mrs. Lincoln" and poet Emily Dickinson in "The Belle of Amherst" by William Luce. The latter, a one-woman show, became something of an annuity for Harris, a play she would take around the country at various times in her career. The actress liked to tour, even going out on the road in such plays as "Driving Miss Daisy" and "Lettice & Lovage" after they had been done in New York with other stars.

Harris' last Broadway appearances were in revivals, playing the domineering mother in a Roundabout Theatre Company production of "The Glass Menagerie" (1994) and then "The Gin Game" with Charles Durning for the National Actors Theatre in 1997. In 2005, she was one of five performers to receive Kennedy Center honors.



 
 
Harris was born on Dec. 2, 1925, in Grosse Pointe, Mich., the daughter of an investment banker. She grew up fascinated by movies, later saying she thought of herself as plain-looking and turned to acting as a way of becoming other persons. She made her stage debut at the Grosse Pointe Country Day School in "The Hunchback of Notre Dame" at age 14. In the years that followed, she studied drama in finishing school, prep school, Yale University and the Actor's Studio.

Before "Knots Landing," Harris made numerous guest-starring television appearances on dramas and was a regular on two quickly canceled series — "Thicker Than Water" in 1973 and "The Family Holvak" in 1975.  Her Emmys were for performances in two "Hallmark Hall of Fame" presentations: "Little Moon of Alban" in 1958 and "Victoria Regina" in 1961.

Harris was married three times, to lawyer Jay I. Julian, stage manager Manning Gurian and writer William Erwin Carroll. She had one son, Peter Alston Gurian.
 
The PICs are saddened by the loss of such a great actress and their hearts go out to her family. She left us such a wonderful legacy in her tremendous and varied  body of work that we will never forget her.

Linda Ronstadt Loses Voice to Parkinson's

Linda Ronstadt says she has Parkinson's disease
 
Linda Ronstadt accepts the Lifetime Achievement award at the Latin Recording Academy Lifetime Achievement Award and Trustees Award ceremony in Las Vegas, Nov. 9, 2011.

LOS ANGELES -- Linda Ronstadt says she suffers from Parkinson's disease, which has robbed her ability to sing. The 67-year-old music legend told AARP Magazine, in an article posted online Friday, that she was diagnosed eight months ago and "can't sing a note."

Ronstadt says she began to show symptoms as long as eight years ago, but attributed her inability to sing then to a tick disease. When her hands began to tremble, Ronstadt said she thought the shaking was the result of a shoulder operation.

She said she was "completely shocked" when she finally saw a neurologist and was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease. "I wouldn't have suspected that in a million, billion years."
"No one can sing with Parkinson's disease," Ronstadt told AARP music writer Alanna Nash. "No matter how hard you try."

Ronstadt sold hundreds of millions of records starting in the 1970s with pop hits like "You're No Good" and "When Will I Be Loved." But she also segued into country, pop standards and mariachi music, among other genres. In addition, the singer was known for her romances with California Gov. Jerry Brown and filmmaker George Lucas.

Ronstadt now walking sticks to walk on uneven ground and a wheelchair when travelling, the AARP story said. Her autobiography will be released next month, but makes no mention of Parkinson's or the loss of her voice, according to AARP.

The singer's New York-based managers did not immediately respond to requests from The Associated Press for comment. Linda is understandably sensitive about her illness and would prefer privacy  during a difficult time.

 

The Demons that Drove Richard Pryor..Made us Laugh.....New Bio-Pic

Richard Pryor


It is eight years since comedian Richard Pryor died, aged 65. A new documentary sheds light on his life, his bizarre childhood and the demons that tormented him and may also be responsible for his genius.

There are a handful of groundbreaking comedians who have changed the rules of the game. Lenny Bruce, Tony Hancock, Monty Python, Andy Kaufman perhaps. Richard Pryor was one of those comedy iconoclasts. He was not the first black stand-up comic. Bill Cosby, Redd Foxx and Dick Gregory came before him. But Pryor was a "game-changer" whose on-stage style would make him the most influential comedian of his generation, especially for black comics such as Eddie Murphy, Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle.

The Emmy Award-winning Marina Zenovich, who made the Storyville documentary Richard Pryor: Omit The Logic, said, "He broke the barriers about talking about race and sex. When you hear him do those routines they are making it easier for people of different races to talk to each other and laugh with each other. It was groundbreaking."

Her film shows how Pryor started out in the 1960s and was all set for mainstream success until he realized one night on stage in Las Vegas that he was not being true to himself. Pryor dropped out for a couple of years and when he returned he introduced a sharper, more foul-mouthed style that was more "street".

His delivery, littered with the n-word, hit a nerve with black audiences and with those who caught his act through his hugely popular live albums.


 
"He made everyone courageous and crazy", Colleagues talk about working with Richard Pryor:
After Pryor's death in 2005, British comedian Lenny Henry said, "I started listening to him in 1977, when a guy in a record shop had this album called That Nigger's Crazy. He showed it to me and I was going to punch him, but he said: 'Listen to it, that guy's really funny.'
"Apart from the use of the word 'nigger', apart from the prodigious swearing, I thought, 'This guy's a genius.' He documented every pain, every abuse he'd ever suffered in his life, and he made it funny."

In 1979 Pryor visited Africa for the first time. When he returned to the US from Kenya, he vowed never to use the n-word again.
Zenovich says: "Imagine what that moment was like for him. No-one knew who he was. It was like going back to your land. He decided to stop using the n-word. He had this epiphany."

Among those interviewed for the film were actors and comedians Robin Williams, Whoopi Goldberg, Lily Tomlin and Mel Brooks as well as a number of the women in his life.
Williams recalls the thrill of seeing Pryor live on stage: "It was like saying you saw [saxophonist John] Coltrane."

But Zenovich says several key individuals refused to be interviewed - Murphy, Cosby and actress Pam Grier. Grier was one of many women in Pryor's life. He was married seven times to a total of five women.  The film tells how he dated Grier - star of many blaxploitation films in the 1970s - for 18 months but ended up marrying another woman whom he had got pregnant.

The son of a prostitute and a pimp, Pryor grew up in a brothel in the town of Peoria, Illinois, and later made wisecracks on stage about his bizarre upbringing.

Richard Pryor with actress Pam Grier, who he dated for 18 months
Richard Pryor with actress Pam Grier, whom he dated for 18 months but never married

He would also joke about his sex life, his marriages, his relationship with cocaine and even about having a heart attack. But the quips on the surface masked a sensitivity that led to him "self-medicating" with alcohol and drugs.

Actor Stan Shaw, who starred with him in Harlem Nights, says: "Success doesn't change you. It just magnifies who you are."
Pryor's friend and producer, David Banks, said the comedian had about 13 personalities and while you could deal with nine of them, the other four were a nightmare.

Jennifer Lee, who was wife number four and seven and became his widow, recalls the time he discovered freebasing cocaine.
She says: "After two weeks of watching him getting addicted to this stuff I moved out. It was clear the drug had moved in and it had become his lover and everything. I did not exist."

The drugs may have helped to obliterate memories of his childhood, during which he was also abused by a neighbour. Michael Schultz, who directed Pryor in the film Which Way Is Up?, says: "His sensitivity made him so brilliant as a comedian but some things were so painful that he wanted to be somewhere else."

His grandmother Marie Carter was a brothel madam and a dominant matriarch whom he loved, feared and possibly loathed.

Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor
  Pryor's film career was not wildly successful, despite movies like Stir Crazy with Gene Wilder

Zenovich, who has made award-winning documentaries about film-maker Roman Polanski and disgraced French tycoon Bernard Tapie, says: "If his grandmother was alive, I would have done that interview in a heartbeat. But we went to Peoria and spoke to a couple of distant aunts and it didn't work." So none of the Peoria footage made it into the final edit.

Pryor's grandmother's death arguably tipped him over the edge. In 1980 he almost died after apparently dousing himself in rum and setting himself on fire while freebasing cocaine.  Pryor's doctors thought he was unlikely to survive the severe burns he suffered, but within a year he was back on stage making self-deprecatory gags about the incident. He would light a match, wave it in the air and joke: "What's that? Richard Pryor running down the street."

Pryor bounced back with such success that he was offered a $40m deal to make seven films for Columbia Pictures. But apart from the occasional gem, such as Stir Crazy with Gene Wilder, his movie career was not a great success.

Richard Pryor's star on Hollywood's Walk of Fame
Pryor made several Hollywood films, but his lasting legacy is his contribution to stand-up comedy

Zenovich, who admits being a huge Richard Pryor fan, says the Storyville film came about after Pryor's widow Jennifer offered access to his archives.
She says: "I thought it might be an issue that I was not African-American, but it wasn't. They hired me more for my heart and soul than for the colour of my skin."

The first edit of the film focused heavily on the fire incident and Zenovich says the audience at test screenings did not like it.
She says: "They said it needed to be more funny, not so depressing. He was such an icon we needed to deliver what the people wanted and they wanted to laugh more."

Richard Pryor with wife number four and seven, Jennifer Lee. Bob Newhart is in the background
Richard Pryor with wife number four and seven, Jennifer Lee

The finished film is set to be nominated for awards and Zenovich says she has heard there are plans for a Hollywood biopic of Pryor's life, with Michael B Jordan - who played Wallace in The Wire and recently starred in Fruitvale Station - playing the comedian.

Pryor was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1986 and his health deteriorated severely during the 1990s. One of the most touching moments of the film is when his former lawyer Skip Brittenham wells up with tears as he recalls Pryor's last years.
Zenovich says: "It was never my goal to get him to cry. Jennifer didn't think he would talk but he said yes. He loved Richard so much. When he started tearing up he said, 'I didn't know I had this in me.'"

For her documentary Zenovich dug out some footage of Pryor being asked how he wanted to be remembered after he died.
In a rare moment of straight-faced candour, he said: "I'd like the people to see my picture and laugh and have stories to tell, tell some lies on me... just to bring joy."

RICHARD PRYOR

  • He was born in 1940 in Peoria, Illinois, where his family ran a brothel
  • After a spell in the army, Pryor moved to New York in 1963 and began doing stand-up
  • His success led to a part in the 1972 film Lady Sings The Blues with Diana Ross
  • In 1979 he visited Africa and when he returned he vowed never to use the n-word again
  • In 1980 he almost died after setting himself on fire while freebasing cocaine
  • He was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 1986
  • In 2001 he married for the seventh and last time
  • He died of a heart attack in 2005

Friday, August 23, 2013

Kanye On Obama: 'I'm Just So Happy That The President Mentions Me So Often'

Kanye West appeared on Kris Jenner's embattled daytime talk show on Friday, and the sit-down was as as quote-worthy as expected. Before debuting the first photo of North West, the daughter West fathered with Kim Kardashian, the rapper took a moment to respond to Barack Obama's recent comments about the family.

In an interview earlier this month, Obama said that "a window into the lifestyles of the rich and famous" was partly to blame for shifting American values. "

"Kids weren't monitoring every day what Kim Kardashian was wearing, or where Kanye West was going on vacation, and thinking that somehow that was the mark of success," he added.

On Friday, the West-Jenner-Kardashian clan came prepared. As soon as West mentioned Obama's name, Jenner pulled out a notecard with Obama's comments and read them aloud to the audience. West took the bait:
So Obama basically said we're the new American dream. I think he was posing it like I was supposed to take it in a negative way, but I'm just so happy that the president mentions me so often. Thank you very much, Obama! I do think people should want to go on vacation or travel, because that's what opens people's minds. When I was in 5th grade, we went to China and I lived there for a year and I could speak Chinese... Also because my dad lived in an area that was mostly white and my mom stayed in Chicago in an area that's mostly black and has gang activity, I had to navigate all these worlds. That scope is what I brought into my creations, to the music I make, to the clothing I make. When I design a shoe with Nike, that's mentality is what I brought. So as Obama is talking about that, yes, they're looking at what she's wearing and where we're going for vacation because this is the way we relate to this new information age. There will be new people getting passports and wanting to travel. They'll hear songs like "N----s in Paris" and they'll be like, "I want to be a n---a in Paris!" Oh -- do you have to beep the Paris word? West has responded to Obama's previous criticisms (the president has caller the preformer a "jackass" twice), most notably yelling that he doesn't "give a f--k what the president has to say."

Jenner herself had previously commented on the matter as well. "It's really great that people aspire to get a great job ... but I wasn't aware that you could only set the bar so high and that we could only dream so big," Jenner said. "I was taught: Dream big, work hard and you could have whatever you wanted."

"I find it so odd that he's picking on Kim Kardashian and Kanye West. Well, Kanye West, first of all, doesn't go on vacation. Ever," Jenner said. "And Kim Kardashian is the hardest-working young lady in the world. She never sleeps, she never stops, she never slows down and works so hard for what she's got."
In short : More money , more problems .... HeHe

Thursday, August 22, 2013

Scientology Tried To Recruit Brad Pitt & Bono, Reveals Church Leader’s Niece Jenna Miscavige Hill


                                    Photo by :Radar.com

Brad Pitt studied Scientology in the early ’90s before realizing the religion wasn’t for him, the niece of the Church’s controversial leader David Miscavige has revealed in a new tell-all interview.

The Moneyball actor, 49, was dating Cape Fear star Juliette Lewis when he went through the religion’s Purification Rundown program to detox from drugs — a battle the star has previously confessed led him down a path to depression.

In an exclusive interview with RadarOnline, Jenna Miscavige Hill — who broke free from the Church after spending 21 years on the inside, including as a member of its super secret Sea Org — also detailed for the first time how Irish rock star Bono was heavily audited as her uncle, the organization’s ecclesiastical leader, made him a priority to recruit .

"There’s a celebrity strategy and they’re targeted for their influence, not their money," revealed Jenna, who published an explosive memoir, Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape in a blaze of publicity in February .

"They know people are obsessed with celebrities so will get more interested in Scientology.

"I think that celebrities are more inclined to be egocentric and Scientology caters for that – you’re your own God. They’re probably being told that all the time.

"But they’re probably insecure, so the self-help of Scientology lends itself to that. And Scientology is meant to save people and the world, so the charitable thing appeals to a celebrity. If you’re egocentric, not always confident or insecure because of being in public eye and want to be charitable, Scientology pushes your buttons.

Scientologists consider it an effective way to deal with the long-term effects of drug abuse or toxic exposure.

"I remember my mum working on renovations for the Celebrity Centre in Los Angeles and she saw Brad Pitt there," she recalled.

"I was in love with him at the time. He was in there to do the Purification Rundown. It’s like the first step. I guess he was doing it because of his girlfriend Juliette Lewis. I know Juliette was into drugs and says Scientology saved her from them."

This is not the first time a high-profile defector has linked Pitt to Scientology: In her book Scientology — Abuse at the Top, author Amy Scobee claimed, "In the end, Brad didn’t think it was for him and he and Juliette broke up.

"He was high on the church list president’s list of stars they felt could be ‘recovered.’"

When asked to comment of Jenna’s claims, a church spokesperson described her as having "varied and ever-shifting ‘memories’ from her childhood.

"At no time was Mrs. Hill ever privy to any ‘priorities’ or ‘strategies’," the rep said.

"As a result, she is in no position to comment and any claims to the contrary must be viewed with skepticism. Our priorities are and always have been the establishment and expansion of the Scientology religion.In furtherance of this is the establishment of 37 new Scientology churches in major metropolitan areas and cultural centers around the world in just the past few years."

The spokesperson noted the church established Celebrity Centres in 1969 because of the "significant contribution to society that people in the arts represent" — rejecting Jenna’s claim they covet identities’ fame and fortune.

Church Of Scientology Courted Brad Pitt, Bono, According To Defected Member

Brad Pitt looks at Bono as Bono explains why he is involved in ONE-The Campaign to Make Poverty History, during a news conference premiering a public service announcement aimed at enlisting public support for the campaign, April 6, 2005, in Beverly Hills, Calif.

The Church of Scientology could have looked very different nowadays, if its leaders had their way. According to new reports, Tom Cruise wasn't the only heavyweight courted by the controversial church --Brad Pitt and U2 frontman Bono was a target , too.

According to RadarOnline, Jenna Miscavige Hill -- who is Scientology leader David Miscavige's niece and a former member of the church -- has knowledge of the two A-listers' relationship to Scientology.

"There's a celebrity stratery and they're are targeted for their influence , not their money." Miscavige Hill told RadarOnline in an exclusive interview, expanding on the tell-all memoir she published earlier this year, "Beyond Belief: My Secret Life Inside Scientology and My Harrowing Escape."

Per her account, Pitt got involved through his then-girlfriend, Juliette Lewis, and had even gone so far as taking the "first step" of joining the church.

Tuesday, August 20, 2013

[Shreveport, Louisiana] 'Swamp People' actor involved in downtowncrash

Troy Broussard of the popular TV realty show 'Swamp People' stands with a Shreveport police officer after being involved in an accident Monday morning that sent one person to an area hospital with injuries that were not life threatening. / Douglas Collier/The Times

Reality TV star Troy Broussard of "Swamp People" was involved in a major crash in downtown Shreveport Monday that sent one person to the hospital and left several area businesses in the dark.

The accident happened about 9 a.m. when the airboat he was pulling was struck by a Ford Expedition at the corner of Lake and Market streets. Police say Broussard was southbound on Market when he ran a red light and collided with the SUV that was headed east on Lake.

The Expedition struck the trailer, sending the boat airborne. Broussard said he was distracted by low-hanging electrical line attached to the signal light.

The unidentified driver of the SUV was taken to an area hospital with injuries police said were not life threatening.

The impact snapped a utility pole. Power was fully restored to the area by 3 p.m.

Broussard and his crew were headed back to south Louisiana after spending the weekend in town for the 2013 Forrest Wood Cup that concluded Sunday.

"I'd just picked my boat up from the Convention Center and was headed home," he said. "We had a good time here, I just hate it had to end like this. But things like this happen.

"I'm just glad it wasn't any worse."

"Swamp People" is the popular History Channel TV series that chronicles the lives of alligator hunters. Just wrapping up season four in July, the show follows the day-to-day activities of several Cajuns living in the swamps of the Atchafalaya River Basin who hunt American alligators for a living.

The History Channel notes the 30-day hunting season is "crucial to their survival."

Thanx  Douglas ... NEE

Monday, August 19, 2013

Dick Van Dyke Pulled Out of Flaming Vehicle


87-year-old actor Dick Van Dyke narrowly averted disaster moments ago on an L.A. freeway -- when his Jaguar burst into flames -- but thankfully, he was pulled to safety in the nick of time.

The hero who rescued him is a guy named Jason Pennington, who tells TMZ, he was driving along the 101 when he saw a car full of smoke on the side of the road ... and an elderly man hunched over at the wheel.

Pennington tells us, he pulled up and ran over to discover Dick Van Dyke struggling inside.

Pennington says he opened the driver door and pulled the actor out of the vehicle as flames tore through the engine.

We're told Dick was slightly disoriented by the experience but did NOT need medical attention. His wife came to pick him up shortly after and brought him home.

As for the car ... it's toast.
Photos by  tmz.com
 

Lee Thompson Young Ex-Disney Superstar Dead Suicide

[UPDATE]

1:40 PM PT -- Janet Tamaro, the executive producer of "Rizzoli & Isles," tells TMZ ... "Everyone at [the show] is devastated by the news of the passing of Lee Thompson Young."

"We are beyond heartbroken at the loss of this sweet, gentle, good-hearted, intelligent man. He was truly a member of our family. Lee will be cherished and remembered by all who knew and loved him, both on- and offscreen, for his positive energy, infectious smile and soulful grace. We send our deepest condolences and thoughts to his family, to his friends and, most especially, to his beloved mother."

11:40 AM PT
-- Lee's publicist confirms the actor killed himself, telling TMZ, "It is with great sadness that I announce that Lee Thompson Young tragically took his own life this morning ... Lee was more than just a brilliant young actor, he was a wonderful and gentle soul who will be truly missed."

Lee Thompson Young
-- who played the main character on Disney's "The Famous Jett Jackson" -- has died after what officials believe is a suicide ... TMZ has learned. He was 29.

Sources tell us Young's body was discovered with a gunshot wound that appears to be self-inflicted.

Young currently appears in the TNT show "Rizzoli & Isles" -- and we're told when he didn't show up to work this morning, staffers called the landlord of Young's L.A. home to check up on the actor.

We're told ... when the landlord opened the door, he discovered Young's body.



 
Young was a rising star in Hollywood. After he made it big as a Disney star, he went on to play running back Chris Comer in the 2004 movie "Friday Night Lights."

Story developing ... photos by   tmz.com
The PICs is so puzzled , so many people taking  their lives :
First, we want to say: may he rest in peace and may his family and friends find comfort in good memories. Every death is the loss of a world, a potential world and the world of those that love a person and will always have that painful absence.

Second, What the heck is going on here? There are so many young people in the entertainment world who are dying at such young ages, so many suicides, or unintended deaths due to addiction or mismanaged substances--what is going on???
What is causing such pain??? What is lacking that people, especially young people, feel no reason or desire to live, no reason to take care of their bodies and hearts and souls, and no way to see other possibilities and choices????
Someone (or a lot of someones) has to think of a better way of life for young people who have talent, beauty, and wealth yet cannot feel any joy of life, cannot handle what the world does to people in that industry.
RIP Lee Thompson Young 

Apparent Suicide at Olivia Newton-John House

A man appears to have committed suicide at Olivia Newton-John's house in Florida.

A 42-year-old contractor, who has not been named, was found dead shortly after noon on Monday inside the Jupiter home owned by the singer-actress and her husband John Easterling.

According to local reports, authorities believe the man shot himself, but are still formally pursuing an open investigation into the death.

The contractor had been hired by Newton-John and Easterling to work on the property, which is currently for sale.