VIDEO OF MICHAEL JACKSON'S LAST REHEARSAL: Footage shows singer at Staples center two days before his death.
*Video of Michael Jackson's rehearsing at the Staples Center for his 50-date concert run two days before his death was released yesterday afternoon.
The footage shows the King of Pop dressed in a red t-shirt under a blazer as he runs through precision moves with his dancers and interacts with his guitar player during a performance of "They Don't Care About Us."
Jackson's sold out "This is It" tour was scheduled to begin at London's O2 Arena on July 13 and run through March 6, 2010. Following this residency, the singer also planned to tour Europe, Asia, Australia and North America.
AEG Live reportedly had Jackson sign a three-and-a-half year deal that included a possible world tour, the release of new music and a 3D film based on his top-selling album "Thriller."
The clip released today was billed by AEG as one of the last rehearsals prior to Jackson's death on June 25. The company is said to be considering releasing the entire footage on CD, DVD, and BluRay.
Click here to watch: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rGZOsQ-VPH4
JERMAINE CALLS MICHAEL 'GIFT FROM ALLAH': MiJac's brother describes learning of his death and kissing him goodbye. (video)
*Jermaine Jackson said Thursday that he wishes he had died instead of Michael, and referred to his younger brother as "a gift from Allah" in an emotional interview with the "Today" show's Matt Lauer at Neverland Ranch.
"He went too soon," Jermaine said. "I don't know how people are going to take this, but I wish it was me."
Describing how he was informed of his brother's death, Jermaine said he heard the report from a friend and called his mother, Katherine to confirm. "She was crying, saying he was dead. And to hear my mother saying Michael is dead, to feel and hear the tone of her voice to say her child is dead ... It's nothing that anyone can ever imagine," he said.
Jermaine then rushed to the hospital and, after consoling his mother, went to his deceased brother's side. "I wanted to see Michael, and I wanted to see my brother, and seeing him lifeless and breathless was very emotional for me," he said.
"I held myself together, because I know he is very much alive, his spirit is," said Jermaine. "I kissed him on his forehead and I hugged him and I touched him and I said, 'Michael, I'll never leave you, you'll never leave me."
Jermaine also said he would be "hurt" if toxicology reports showed his younger brother abused prescription drugs.
"In this business, the pressures and things that you go through, you never know what one turns to," he said.
MICHAEL JACKSON MEMORIAL AT STAPLES CENTER?: Rampant reports of a Tuesday 10 a.m. service were still unconfirmed as of press time.
*There are unconfirmed reports that a Michael Jackson memorial will take place Tuesday at the Staples Center in Los Angeles – the place where he last performed and rehearsed just two days before his death.
According to TMZ.com, "A private family service will take place at 10 a.m. Tuesday at Forest Lawn in Los Angeles. A motorcade will then go to the Staples Center complex in downtown Los Angeles where the public memorial will be held.
"We're told the family still hasn't decided whether the memorial will be at the Staples Center or the smaller Nokia Theatre."
The Hollywood Reporter's Roger Friedman reported earlier in the day that AEG Live, which owns Staples and Nokia, will use both facilities and the surrounding plaza for the ceremony.
At press time, none of this was officially confirmed, but local authorities told local station KABC that "a special event" will take place at Staples on Tuesday, but did not provide additional details.
"They're figuring it all out right now," a source tells People.com.
"There is still a lot of work though."
Police were already posted near the area on Thursday and have set up barriers, according to KABC.
MORE MIJAC DRUG ALLEGATIONS: Singer's former medium and ex-bodyguard say they tried to stop him from abusing painkillers.
*Two people who were once in Michael Jackson's inner circle have come forward saying they tried hard to keep the singer from abusing prescription pain killers suspected of leading to his death, but were unable to stop others from supplying him with the drugs.
"When Michael asked for something, he got it. This was the great tragedy," said Jackson's former medium Uri Geller Thursday in an interview with The Associated Press.
Geller, who said he suffered a terrible falling-out with Jackson several years ago over the issue, said he often had "to shout at Michael, to scream at Michael" when trying to remove the stocks of medication during his travels in England. Geller said he slept on floors or sofas in Jackson's hotel suites in a bid to talk sense into his sometimes-incoherent friend.
"Most of the people around Michael could not say 'No!' to him. He desperately needed someone there all the time who could say 'No!' and mean it, who could warn him of the dangers ... and tell him the truth," Geller said. "The big problem was that many people wanted to help Michael, to save his life, but we could not be there all the time."
Geller said Jackson relied on medications to help him cope with relentless pressure and media criticism in his later years.
"With his sanity buffeted and health wracked by global bullying nonstop, I think it's actually incredible that Michael held up as well as he did," he said.
Matt Fiddes, an English karate instructor who worked as a senior bodyguard during Jackson's travels in Britain for a decade, said the pop idol abused prescription medications, not recreational drugs, and took so much that it could be difficult to wake him for engagements.
"I confiscated packages and Uri did too. I mean, Uri confiscated injection equipment from his room," Fiddes told Sky News. "And Uri would scream at Michael, you know, intensely, to stop doing this. But we just were getting pushed out."
Fiddes recalled one occasion when Jackson planned to visit the London Zoo to see the gorillas, chimpanzees and other primates — but was too spaced out to go anywhere. The bodyguard said he and Geller "were both shaking him trying to wake him up. It was clear that he had taken something that morning and he was hard to wake. We were extremely concerned ... We couldn't get him in a state that would portray him in a good light."
Fiddes said both he and Geller told others supplying medications to Jackson to stop, but when their efforts "got back to Michael, he would have a screaming fit that we were interfering with his private life. He was in denial."
Several other Jackson confidantes have expressed concern since his death at the volume and mixture of medications he was taking. Self-help guru Deepak Chopra said he rejected Jackson's 2005 appeals for painkillers and that their relationship suffered lasting damage because of it.
DEA ENTERS JACKSON DEATH INVESTIGATION: Plus, TMZ says singer's body was 'riddled with injection marks.'
*The Drug Enforcement Administration is now involved in the investigation into Michael Jackson's death after allegations emerged that he had been consuming painkillers, sedatives and antidepressants.
The federal agency was asked by the Los Angeles Police Department to join the investigation, a law enforcement official in Washington told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the investigation.
The DEA can provide resources and experience in investigating drug abuse, illicit drug manufacturers known as "pill mills" and substances local police may not be familiar with, the official said Wednesday.
Meanwhile TMZ.com is reporting that Jackson's body had dozens of needle injection sites, and that he "used a slew of aliases to score prescription meds."
The powerful anesthesia Propofol was found in Jackson's house after he died, according to he Web site. It is administered through an IV and used to put people under before surgery.
"Various medical experts tell us there is absolutely no medical justification for Jackson to have had this drug in his home," TMZ reported. "We're told Jackson wanted the drug to sleep and that he had cravings for anesthesia -- whenever he had even the most minor medical procedure ... he had the doctor put him under."
TMZ also reported: "We've learned Jackson frequently used the names Omar Arnold and Jack London to get powerful drugs, including Demerol. Jackson also used the name of one of his bodyguards, as well as the name of the office manager for one of his doctors."
ESSENCE FEST TO INCLUDE JACKSON TRIBUTE: Plus, author Celia Anderson signs her book 'Love, Ocean'; TV One holds auditions.
*In light of Michael Jackson's death on June 25, the Essence Music Festival in New Orleans this weekend will serve as more than just a celebration of black music and culture.
Lionel Richie, a longtime friend of the pop superstar, says the annual event will be a homecoming of sorts that will give him and others comfort and a chance to regroup, according to the Associated Press.
The festival, held at the Louisiana Superdome and Morial Convention Center beginning today, will include a tribute to Jackson, as well as performances by Richie, Beyonce, John Legend, Ne-Yo, Anita Baker and others.
Organizers say they are still planning the Jackson tribute, so details were not immediately available. The festival runs through Sunday.
Meanwhile, author Celia Anderson will be signing her book "Love, Ocean" in conjunction with the Empowerment Seminar workshops on Friday and Saturday from noon until 2 at the Morial Convention Center.
The event will be the last event on a 12 city tour for Anderson that included Chicago, St. Louis and Los Angeles. "Love, Ocean" is the first of four in the Ocean Series.
Anderson will also be published alongside E. Lynn Harris by Random House in a compilation of short stories entitled, "Love Is Stronger Than Pride." She uses her novels along with an interactive presentation for teenagers, entitled G.A.M.E.T.I.M.E (Gaining a Meaningful Education to Insure Maximum Elevation), to empower young adults to achieve greatness.
For further information on Celia Anderson visit www.celiaanderson.com.
Also this weekend, TV One has three full days of activities planned for the Essence Music Festival, including a schedule at its booth (#902) that is chock full of network talent appearances, an open casting call, and "Unsung" karaoke, where visitors can perform the songs of the great talent featured in the network’s acclaimed bio series.
Scheduled activities during the three days include:
FRIDAY
10:30am-12:30pm TV One Open Casting Call 1:00pm-2:00pm Meet & Greet with Eva Marcille, featured in TV One’s upcoming
fall bio series Life After 2:00pm-3:00pm Unsung Karaoke 3:15pm-3:45pm Relationship Seminar w/ Big Boom & Dr. Michelle –Experience
Stage 4:00pm-6:00pm Meet and Greet: Big Boom & Dr. Michelle - BOOTH
SATURDAY
9:30 am -11:30am Soul Train Scramble Board Contest 11:30am-2:00pm Unsung Karaoke 2:15pm-2:45pm Comedy Show: Bill Bellamy’s Who’s Got Jokes? winner Lav
Luv- Experience Stage
3:00pm to 4:00pm Meet & Greet with Lav Luv- BOOTH 4:00pm-5:00pm Meet & Greet w/ Omarosa: featured in Life After 5:00pm-6:00pm Meet & Greet with w/ LisaRaye from All of Us TV One Research
SUNDAY
10:30am 11:30am Meet & Greet w/ Mario Van Peebles of upcoming series Mario’s
Green House.
11:30am-1:00pm Unsung Karaoke
1:00pm-2:00pm Meet & Greet w/ TV One Political Editor Roland Martin 2:30pm-3:00pm Unsung Karaoke: CONTEST -Experience Stage 3:00pm-4:30m Meet & Greet w/ Al Reynolds, featured in Life After 4:30pm-6:00pm Meet & Greet with G. Garvin, host of Turn Up the Heat with G.
Garvin
VENUS AND SERENA IN WIMBLEDON FINALS: Fireworks will start early on July 4 courtesy of the Williams sisters.
*For the second consecutive year and fourth time overall, Venus Williams will face her little sister Serena in the ladies finals at Wimbledon.
The sisters arrived at the July 4th showdown in two completely different fashions.
Serena went on Centre Court first and came within a point of losing to Beijing Olympics gold medalist Elena Dementieva before grunting and grinding her way to a 6-7 (4), 7-5, 8-6 victory that lasted 2 hours, 49 minutes — longer than any Wimbledon women's semifinal or final on record, reports the Associated Press.
Venus followed and dominated the No. 1-ranked woman, Dinara Safina, in an astonishingly easy 6-1, 6-0 win that took merely 51 minutes and equaled the most lopsided semifinal result here over the last 74 years.
In Saturday's final, Venus will be trying to win her sixth Wimbledon and eighth Grand Slam title. Serena will be trying to win her third Wimbledon and 11th Grand Slam title. It's the eighth all-Williams major final (Serena leads 5-2) and their 21st meeting on tour (they're tied 10-all).
"The more we play, the better it gets. When we play our match on Saturday, it's for everything. This is what we dreamed of when we were growing up in Compton, 20-something years ago," Serena said. "This is what we worked for, and this is what we want. Like, I wanted her to win today, and she wanted me to win today."
Venus has won 20 consecutive matches at Wimbledon; if she makes that 21, she will become the first woman since Steffi Graf in 1991-93 to win the tournament three straight years. On Friday, the day before they face off for the singles title, the sisters will wake up at the house they're sharing during the tournament and head to the All England Club to play as a pair in the doubles semifinals, an event they won last year.
JACKSON'S UNRELEASED MATERIAL 'ENDLESS': Sony's Tommy Mottola said unused tracks date back to 'Off the Wall.'
*Michael Jackson is said to have a treasure trove of unreleased recordings in the vault when he died — music that is almost certain to be packaged and repackaged for his fans in the years to come, notes the Associated Press.
The material includes unused tracks from studio sessions of some of Jackson's best albums, as well as more recently recorded songs made with R&B singer/producer Akon and Black Eyed Peas frontman will.i.am.
"There are dozens and dozens of songs that did not end up on his albums," said Tommy Mottola, who from 1998 to 2003 was chairman and CEO of Sony Music, which owns the distribution rights to Jackson's music. "People will be hearing a lot of that unreleased material for the first time ever. There's just some genius and brilliance in there."
The releases, Mottola said, "could go on for years and years — even more than Elvis."
As previously reported, Nielsen SoundScan said Wednesday that three of his records — "Number Ones," "Essential Michael Jackson" and "Thriller — were the best-selling albums of the week, and 2.3 million tracks of his have been downloaded in the U.S. alone.
Mottola, who has described himself as the "shepherd and gatekeeper" of Jackson's catalog and is familiar with it better than anyone, said that for every album Jackson made — including classics like 1979's "Off the Wall"
and 1982's "Thriller" — he recorded several tracks that didn't make it onto the records.
KELLY ROWLAND 'NOT READY' FOR DAD REUNION: Singer denies reports she's trying to find her biological father.
*Kelly Rowland has squashed rumors that she's trying to hunt down her biological father, saying she's far too busy to be concerned with the deadbeat at this point in her life.
"I don't know who started that story! I haven't actually. I feel like I'm not really ready for that yet, I've enough going on in my life to really open that up," she tells Britain's Heat Radio. "Maybe later on in about 16 or 17 months. I told myself I'd work for 16 long months and then I'd take a vacation or a break, but now is not that time for me."
Kelly, 28, and her mother Doris Rowland Garrison left the family home because her father was "drunk and aggressive." The Destiny's Child member says she doesn’t even know if her father is still alive.
"I don't know where he is but I hope he's not dead. That would break my heart," she said. "I remember my dad being drunk and aggressive towards my mom but not me. It took courage for her to get away.
"I don't know if he knows who I am or what I've done. He must be hiding under a rock if he doesn't."
CANNON DENIES WIFE'S VIDEO TARGETS EMINEM: 'I don't think that she would take her time. My wife doesn't beef. She's Mariah Carey.'
*Mariah Carey's husband doesn’t believe that the entertainer is emulating Eminem in her upcoming cross-dressing video "Obsessed," as reports have suggested.
Photos from the NYC shoot were splashed across the Internet this week showing the singer dressed like a man in various outfits. It prompted outlets to speculate that the video mirrors the song's alleged dis to Eminem, who boasted that he slept with the star in his song "Bagpipes from Baghdad."
Cannon said despite Eminem's first shot, he didn't think Carey was planning to return fire at the rap star.
"Honestly, I don't think so. I don't think that she would take her time. My wife doesn't beef. She's Mariah Carey. She's not beefin', she's a vegetarian," he said.
"I always say I thought the record was about me, 'cause I'm obsessed with my wife," he added. "But if somebody's out there and you feel like you might have been obsessed, then the record's about you."
OBAMA HAS MICHAEL JACKSON IN HIS IPOD: In new interview, President says he "grew up on his music."
*Despite criticism from some African American media outlets, President Obama says he doesn't see any controversy about choosing not to release a formal White House statement about the passing of Michael Jackson, something typically done when an iconic music figure dies.
"Look, you're the first person who's actually asked me about it," he told the Associated Press' White House correspondent Jennifer Loven on Thursday, explaining why he hasn't said more than a few comments passed along by spokesman Robert Gibbs.
Instead of a public statement, President Obama sent the Jackson family a letter, the contents of which neither side has disclosed.
The President also said Thursday that Jackson, who died last week at 50, will "go down in history as one of our greatest entertainers."
"I grew up on his music," he said. "I still have all his stuff on my iPod."
Obama said that at the same time that he felt Jackson had experienced "a tragic and in many ways sad personal life."
ANOTHER MASE COMEBACK THANKS TO MIJAC: Former Bad Boy rapper says 'Mike passed away and it just lit the fire in me.'
*During an interview with DJ Self of New York's Power 105.1 radio station (WWPR-FM) on Friday, former Bad Boy artist Mase not only aired a remix to Drake's "Best I Ever Had," his first release in five years, but he also said Michael Jackson's death is what inspired his return to music after an extended hiatus, reports Billboard.com.
"Mike passed away and it just lit the fire in me -- it made me go in the studio and do something. I'm excited," the Harlem-born rapper said. "I asked my nephew who is the hottest thing out there and he said "Drake!' When I listened to his music I said, 'I'm going to jump on this joint.'"
When asked if his fans should consider this his official comeback, Mase hinted, "I've got things up my sleeves, I just need someone to play them."
He also went on to shout-out former label boss Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, and friends-turned-nemeses-turned-friends-again, rappers Jim Jones and Cam'ron. The acknowledgment led to an on-air phone call from Jones himself, during which he apologized to Mase "for anything I ever did when I was younger. I tip my hat to you. This is monumental and it's nothing but love."
Shortly before releasing his sophomore album, 1999's "Double Up," which sold 425,000 copies in the United States, according to Nielsen Soundscan, Mase announced his retiring from music during an interview with New York's Hot 97 (WQHT) DJ Funk Master Flex, stating his plans to "follow God." However, in 2004, he made a brief return with a new album appropriately titled "Welcome Back," released on Bad Boy. That album moved 559,000.
In 2005, Mase had a short-lived stint with 50 Cent's G-Unit click, but nothing materialized from that affiliation. To date, Mase's biggest-selling album remains his debut, "Harlem World," with 3.3 million units sold.
ROCKY CARROLL TO STAR IN BOTH 'NCIS' SHOWS: Actor to play same character in original and spinoff this fall.
*CBS will work Rocky Carroll overtime this fall as a regular character in both "NCIS" and its spinoff "NCIS: Los Angeles," according to Variety.
Carroll will co-star fulltime in the original "NCIS." But he's also onboard as a recurring cast member on "NCIS: Los Angeles" as the same character.
The actor plays the Naval Criminal Investigative Service director Leon Vance, whose oversight -- just like that of the real-life NCIS director
-- includes multiple jurisdictions.
As a result, the Mark Harmon-led team on "NCIS" will be seen reporting to Carroll, and ditto the LL Cool J-Chris O'Donnell team on "NCIS:
Los Angeles."
The former star of "Roc" joined "NCIS" fulltime last year after his character, who had been assistant director of the NCIS, was promoted in the wake of the death of his predecessor (Lauren Holly).
BET STILL TRYING TO SAVE 'THE GAME': Network says entire cast on board for a fourth season; but licensing issues stand in the way.
*BET is reportedly bending over backwards trying to land CW's cancelled series "The Game."
"BET is doing everything it can to acquire the rights to Mara Brock Akil's 'The Game,'" a source at the cable network tells TVGuide.com.
The entire cast is said to be on board for a fourth season, as BET and CBS Television Studios continue to work toward a lower, cable-appropriate licensing fee with which new episodes can be produced.
"The licensing issues are very complicated," says the source. Earlier this year, BET acquired the rights to run repeats of the "Girlfriends"
spin-off.
BET's possible involvement is but the latest "Hail Mary" pass from "The Game." As the CW pondered its plans for the 2009-10 TV season, Akil tried repositioning the sitcom as an hour-long dramedy. To that end, Season 3's wedding-themed finale was scripted and filmed differently, to offer the CW a taste of what could be.
If picked up by BET, however, "The Game" would stick to its half-hour comedy roots.
LABELS RAIDING VAULTS FOR JACKSON SONGS: Among them Hip-O Select.com with a set of MiJac solo tracks from 1971-75.
*Hip-OSelect.com -- an Internet retail site specializing in reissues of Universal Music Group items -- today releases a three-CD set featuring every Jackson solo recording released between 1971 and ‘75.
Titled “Hello World: The Motown Solo Collection,” the compilation also includes all Motown-era songs issued after he left the company to sign with Epic in 1975. Those recordings include “Farewell My Summer Love,”
originally released in 1984 as a “lost” Jackson solo album slated to hit the racks a decade earlier, and “Looking Back to Yesterday,” a 1986 compilation of then-unreleased tracks from Jackson and the Jackson 5.
And while all the music has been available before, Hip-OSelect touts bonus tracks on the new collection in its “original, undubbed mixes.”
According to Variety, the U.S. Copyright Office lists more than 1,000 titles under Jackson’s name; a good number have been recorded but many have not. Titles range from the seemingly sentimental “Elizabeth I Love You” to the cryptically named “(I Took an) Overdose.”
Signal Hill Capital Group and Fortress Credit Corp. are listed among copyright owners, presumably as future collateral to settle the singer’s debts, reported to be in the $400 million range.
JAMIE FOXX BRINGING FOXXHOLE TO VEGAS: Artist to broadcast SIRIUS XM radio show from first night of concert tour.
*Jamie Foxx is taking his exclusive SIRIUS XM Foxxhole radio channel to Las Vegas for a special live broadcast during the beginning of his "Blame It" concert tour this weekend.
The special edition of Foxx's exclusive weekly Foxxhole radio show will air live July 3 at 5 p.m. ET from the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas as Foxx gets ready to perform there that night as part of his multi-city "Blame It" concert tour.
Foxx and his Foxxhole radio crew will welcome special guests and bring listeners behind-the-scenes and inside all the action. Then SIRIUS XM will exclusively air the first song he performs at the concert, bringing listeners all over the world straight to the front row.
The Foxxhole -- SIRIUS channel 106 and XM channel 149 -- is the entertainer's uncensored 24/7 comedy and entertainment SIRIUS XM radio channel. Foxx serves as executive producer of the channel and hosts a live, weekly show.
PAULA ABDUL HEADED TO LIFETIME: 'Idol' judge to guest star on new original series 'Drop Dead Diva.'
*Paula Abdul scored herself a guest starring role in Lifetime’s new original series "Drop Dead Diva," a dramedy about a shallow model who, after death, finds her soul inside the body of a smart plus-sized attorney named Jane.
“I am very excited to guest star on 'Drop Dead Diva,'” Abdul says.
“All of the people are extremely talented and it’s a charming, wonderfully written new show.”
Broadway star Brooke Elliott plays the lawyer lead. In a September episode, Jane will go before Judge Nina Hodge, played by Abdul, in a case about a store that refuses to carry plus-sized clothing.
Abdul joins a big roster of guest stars for the show, which premieres July 12, including Liza Minnelli, Nia Vardalos, Rosie O’Donnell, Tim Gunn, Sharon Lawrence, Elliott Gould, Delta Burke, Marla Sokoloff, Gregory Harrison, Kathy Najimy, Mark Moses, Chuck Woolery and Deidrich Bader.
NONA PARIS LOLA NOW CLAMING SHE'S MIJAC'S WIDOW: London woman filed a petition in LA demanding all of Michael's property.
*She's back… Nona Paris Lola Ankhesenamun Jackson, the woman from London who claims she was married to Michael Jackson and gave birth to all three of his kids, filed a petition in L.A. County Superior Court demanding his property.
According to TMZ.com, Nona asks "that all my husband's properties, monies and assets must be transferred to me immediately" and "my husband's body must be returned to the coroner's body [sic] or the mortuary immediately."
The woman has had an active court case since December of last year, claiming she was Jackson's wife and the mother of his children. In this week's filing, Nona claims she didn't authorize her three kids to live with their grandmother Katherine Jackson.
She further claims, "Though he died to this earth he lives with my father [Satan the Devil] Khalid Lucifer."
THE GAME IN RUNNING FOR B.A. BARACUS: Another rapper in the mix to play famous Mr. T role.
*It may be game over for Ice Cube and Tyrese when it comes to the role of B.A. Baracus in the upcoming film version of "The A-Team," due June 11, 2010 from 20th Century Fox.
According to BlackFilm.com, The Game has emerged as a frontrunner to step into the role originated in the TV series by Mr. T.
If Game lands the role, he would join Liam Neeson, cast as John "Hannibal" Smith, and Bradley Cooper, who is taking on the part of Lt.
Templeton "Faceman" Peck. Joe Carnahan is directing.
The Game's acting credits include "Street Kings" and "Waist Deep."
EDDY CURRY FACING FORECLOSURE: Knicks star more than $200,000 behind in mortgage payments on Chicago home.
*Eddy Curry of the New York Knicks is facing foreclosure on his Chicago-area home after falling behind $217,502 in payments on his $3.7 million mortgage, according to the Chicago Sun-Times and the New York Times.
The foreclosure filing was made Monday in Cook County Circuit Court.
The Sun-Times reported that Curry took out a 30-year mortgage, with initial monthly payments of $28,675, when he purchased the home in the Burr Ridge suburb in July 2006. Based on that figure, Curry would appear to be seven months behind on his payments.
Two years ago, Curry and his family were the victims of an armed robbery at the house. Things have gone downhill ever since.
Curry has spent the last year coping with legal troubles, personal anguish and professional setbacks. A former girlfriend, who is the mother of Curry’s 3-year-old son, was murdered in Chicago in January.
Two weeks earlier, a former driver accused Curry of sexual harassment in a salacious lawsuit that painted Curry as a bully and a bigot. The suit was dismissed last month, and the matter was sent to arbitration.
Q-TIP'S "NEW" ALBUM DUE IN SEPTEMBER: Battery Records to release 'Kamaal the Abstract,' ending 8-year drama with Arista.
*After an eight-year delay, Q-Tip is finally releasing his long-awaited album "Kamaal the Abstract" this fall, reports Billboard.
Due Sept. 15 from Battery Records, the set features nine tracks that the former A Tribe Called Quest member produced entirely on his own.
"Q-Tip is a true visionary and ahead of his time," Neil Levine, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Battery Records, said in a prepared statement. "These songs are more contemporary now than when they were first recorded."
The forthcoming album, which never received an official release due to disagreements between the artist and then-label Arista Records, includes special guests Kenny Garrett and Gary Thomas, who play saxophone on the songs "Abstractionisms" and "Do U Dig U," respectively.
ITTY BITTY BITS: Ruined extended again; KFC taps Lyte, Banner; free Maxwell concert.
*The Manhattan Theatre Club announced the final extension for Lynn Nottage's Pulitzer Prize winning play Ruined, which now "must play its final performance" Sept. 6 at New York City Center – Stage I. This marks the eighth Off-Broadway extension for the production. By close, it will have played 22 preview performances and 238 regular performances. Tickets, $75, are available via New York City Center Box Office (131 West 55th Street),
CityTix at (212) 581-1212 and www.nycitycenter.org.
*MC Lyte and David Banner join KFC in its search for the next hot musician in this year's "Hitmaker" song contest, now in its third year. The grand prize winner will receive a "Hitmaker" recording studio and a chance to be one of 12 artists featured on the Pride 360 CD. Through July 31, musicians can enter an original song about having pride in their community.
The winning songs, judged by Lyte and Banner, must express the signature themes of KFC's Pride 360 initiatives as expressed in the Pride 360 key words Individual, Family, Community and Heritage. Artists can upload their audio submissions (and artist/musician photos) at www.KFChitmaker.com or mail them by July 31 t KFC at 1900 Colonel Sanders Lane, Louisville, KY, 40213, Attn: KFC Hitmaker. All visitors to KFC.com can vote for their favorite versions of the Pride 360 songs from August 4-18.
*Maxwell will perform a live outdoor performance in New York on July
8 at 12 p.m. at the CBS Early Show Studio Plaza, (59th Street and 5th Ave.) Fans should arrive by 10:30 a.m. to get the opportunity to experience the sounds of Maxwell's fourth studio album, "BLACKsummers'night," due July 7.
Maxwell's first single, "Pretty Wings" holds the No. 1 slot on America's Urban Adult radio stations. The single reached No. 1 in record-breaking time less than eight weeks after its release. With Walmart as the only physical retailer, "Pretty Wings" single also debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Singles chart.
MIJAC BITS: Jackson TV coverage; Jet's special issue; Kennedy Center Honors push; U2 pays tribute.
*In a Pew Research Center poll published Wednesday, 64 percent of those surveyed said Michael Jackson's death last week has received too much media coverage, 29 percent said the story received the right amount and 3 percent said the story got too little attention, reports the AP. Thirty percent said they followed the story very closely, though that number jumped to 80 percent among blacks, according to the independent public opinion research group. Pew interviewed about 1,000 adults for the poll, which has a margin of error of plus-or-minus 3.5 percentage points.
*Jet magazine is honoring Michael Jackson with a special collector's issue entirely dedicated to the King of Pop, on newsstands now. It features exclusive photos of The Jackson 5 with the late John H. Johnson, as well as Michael’s celebration of "Thriller’s" 25th anniversary. “The relationship between the Johnson and Jackson family spans decades. They’d visit our offices, and there was a very special business relationship between my father, John H. Johnson and Michael. Our publications have covered Michael and his siblings since the launch of their phenomenal careers,” said Chairman and CEO Linda Johnson Rice.
*A new Facebook group is pushing to have the Jackson 5 receive a Kennedy Center Honor in December. Organizer Tiffany Davis, a marketing manager in New York, stresses the need for quick action and celebrity support to make this a reality. For Honoree consideration, nomination letters must be received by July 13th. Submissions should reference The Jackson 5 as the Kennedy Center Honors are not awarded posthumously. On Facebook, join the group: "Petition for Michael Jackson & Jackson 5 to become Kennedy Center Honorees." All nomination letters (one page only) should be mailed to the following address:
Michael Kaiser, President
The Kennedy Center Honors
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts 2700 F Street, NW Washington, DC 20566
*U2 sang a Michael Jackson song during the kick off of their 360 tour this week at Barcelona's Camp Nou stadium. Before a crowd of nearly 90,000, the group bled the end of "Angel in Harlem" into choruses of Jackson's "Man in the Mirror" and "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough." Click here to watch:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mhkm_1uXZQQ&feature=player_embedded
STUDY COMING ON VITAMIN D AND BLACKS: Nearly all African Americans are deficient.
*Two dietary supplements — vitamin D and fish oil — will soon undergo a five-year test of their effectiveness in lowering the rates of several major diseases, reports Suzanne Bohan of the Contra Costa Times.
Since nearly all African-Americans are deficient in vitamin D, the federal study will also assess whether supplements narrow the gap between disease rates in blacks and other racial groups.
African-Americans die at significantly higher rates from common diseases than white Americans with the same condition. The death rate for heart disease in African-Americans is one-third higher than for white Americans, for example, while blacks' death rate for stroke is 50 percent greater and diabetes deaths twice as high.
"These low-cost supplements have the potential of tremendously reducing the burden of chronic disease," said Dr. JoAnn Manson, chief of preventive medicine at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, who is coleading the trial. The $20 million study is funded by the National Institutes of Health.
"We're excited about the potential of vitamin D to reduce this health gap," Manson added. "But it is important to get answers from clinical trials before recommending megadoses of this supplement."
Three out of four American adolescents and adults are deficient in vitamin D, and the statistics worsen for those with darker skin that blocks the UVB rays that create vitamin D. According to a study in the March 23 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, 90 percent of Mexican-Americans and
97 percent of African-Americans are deficient in vitamin D.
Moreover, because many people stay inside much of the day and wear sunscreen when they do go out, vitamin D deficiency is increasing.
Continue reading here:
http://www.mercurynews.com/breakingnews/ci_12735027?nclick_check=1
EUR FILM REVIEW: My Sister's Keeper
Fed-Up 11 Year-Old Sues Parents for Independence in Gut-Wrenching Saga
Film Review by Kam Williams
*When their daughter Kate (Sofia Vassilieva) is diagnosed with acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL) at the age of 2, Sara and Brian Fitzgerald (Cameron Diaz and Jason Patric) are willing to do whatever it takes to save her life.
And once her doctor explains that her best chance at beating the disease lies in finding a stem cell donor who’s an exact genetic match, they decide to have another child, knowing that they can achieve their goal via in vitro fertilization.
From birth, the test tube baby’s life becomes intertwined with that of her sickly sibling when tissue is taken from her umbilical cord. As time goes on, Anna (Abigail Breslin) is subjected to a series of increasingly-invasive procedures as she is stuck, poked and prodded for assorted extractions of platelets, blood and bone marrow.
By the time she’s 11, Little Miss Stem Cells is asked to donate one of her kidneys because by then both of her big sister’s are failing. However, the surgeon also states that after this operation she’ll have to be careful for the rest of the life, which means she will never be able to be a cheerleader or play soccer again.
Fed up with being expected to make so many sacrifices, Anna consults an attorney (Alec Baldwin) who sues her parents for Medical Emancipation. The pending lawsuit creates a rift between her parents which pushes them to the brink of divorce.
For her mother, who abandoned her own legal career to care for Kate 24/7, suddenly sees Anna as selfish, and slaps the youngster right in the face. By contrast, her father, a hard-working fireman, proves far more understanding.
He knows that the family has focused so narrowly on Kate that their son Jesse’s (Evan Ellingson) dyslexia went undiagnosed for years. Now, seeing the toll that the situation is taking on Anna, he can’t help but be sympathetic, if torn.
Based on the Jodi Picoult best-seller of the same name, My Sister's Keeper is a character-driven drama of deceptive emotional depth. This remarkably-rich screen version was directed by Nick Cassavetes who went to great lengths to develop each of the principal player’s perspective of the fundamental, ethical life-or-death question at hand. Faithfully adapted (except for the ending) by Cassavetes with the help of scriptwriter Jeremy Leven, this gut-wrencher heralds the maturation of Cameron Diaz into a consummate thespian capable of handling the most challenging of material.
Her powerfully-grounding performance is matched in intensity by those of Abigail Breslin as the taken for granted Anna; Sofia Vassilieva as the wasting away Kate; Jason Patric as the stoic family patriarch; Evan Ellingson as the brooding big brother; Alec Baldwin as a vulnerable crusader for the underdog; and Joan Cusack as a judge concerned about the best interest of the plaintiff. Don’t forget to pack a box of Kleenex, because the floodgates will be open by the end of this heartrending saga.
Easily the most poignant picture of the year, and without resorting to manipulative soap opera devices.
Excellent (4 stars)
Rated PG-13 for profanity, sensuality, mature themes, disturbing images and underage alcohol consumption.
Running time: 109 minutes
Studi New Line Cinema
To purchase a copy of the novel “My Sister's Keeper,” visit:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1439157383?ie=UTF8&tag=thslfofire-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1439157383
OPENING THIS WEEK: Kam's Kapsules: Weekly Previews That Make Choosing a Film Fun
by Kam Williams
For movies opening July 3, 2009
BIG BUDGET FILMS
Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs (PG for crude humor and scenes of peril) Third installment in the animated family franchise finds Woolly mammoth Manny (Ray Romano) and the rest of his prehistoric pals on a mission to rescue Sid the sloth (John Leguizamo) from a mysterious underground world where they have a close encounter with dinosaurs and a one-eyed weasel (Simon Pegg). Voice cast includes Queen Latifah, Denis Leary, Bill Hader, Karen Disher and Jane Lynch.
Public Enemies (R for profanity and gangland-style slayings) Michael Mann directs this grisly crime saga, set in the Thirties, revolving around the efforts of the FBI to bring mobsters John Dillinger (John Depp), Baby Face Nelson (Stephen Graham) and Pretty Boy Floyd (Channing Tatum) to justice. With Christian Bale as the lawman leading the chase, Billy Crudup as J. Edgar Hoover, and Marion Cotillard as the gangsters’ gun moll.
INDEPENDENT & FOREIGN FILMS
The Beaches of Agnès (Unrated) 81 year-old, legendary director Agnès Varda chronicles her own career as a member of French cinema’s Rive Gauche movement in this revealing auto-bio-pic. (In French with subtitles)
The Girl from Monaco (R for sexuality and profanity) Romantic comedy about a criminal defense attorney (Fabrice Luchini) who travels to Monaco to handle a murder trial only to end up competing for the affections of a perky, TV weather girl (Louise Bourgoin) with his own bodyguard (Roschdy Zem). (In French with subtitles)
I Hate Valentine’s Day (PG-13 for sexuality) My Big Fat Greek Wedding’s Nia Vardalos and John Corbett reunite for this romantic romp revolving around a Manhattan florist who finds herself falling in love with a handsome guy opening a new restaurant right down the block. Support cast includes Judah Friedlander, Rachel Dratch and Zoe Kazan.
Lion’s Den (Unrated) Argentine crime saga about a pregnant, 25 year-old college student (Martina Gusman) who ends up raising her baby (Tomas Plotinsky) behind bars and falling in love with a fellow inmate (Laura Garcia) after murdering the father of her child and his gay lover (Rodrigo Santoro) in a jealous rage. (In Spanish with subtitles)
Local Color (R for profanity) Genius-protégé drama, set in 1974, about the mutually-beneficial relationship forged between a troubled 18 year-old art student (Trevor Morgan) and a retired Russian widower (Armin Mueller-Stahl) who lost his joy not only for painting but for living, too, following the death of his wife. With Ray Liotta, Ron Perlman and Charles Durning.
Nollywood Babylon (Unrated) “Lights! Camera! Action!” in Africa is the subject of this documentary examining Nigeria’s booming movie industry, now the third largest in the world after that of L.A. and Bombay.
Tony Manero (Unrated) Crime drama, set in Chile in 1978, about a fifty year-old serial killer (Alfredo Castro) whose hobby is impersonating John Travolta’s character from Saturday Night Fever. (In Spanish and English with subtitles)
EUR MOTIVATIONAL NOTE
"If you wanna make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and then make a change." – Michael Jackson "Man in the Mirror" (written by Siedah Garrett)
CELEBRITY BIRTHDAYS
July 3: Talk show host Montel Williams is 53. Singer Tonia Tash of Divine is 30.
July 4: Singer Bill Withers is 71. Percussionist Ralph Johnson of Earth, Wind and Fire is 58.
July 5: Rapper RZA is 40. Singer Joe is 36. Rapper Bizarre of D12 is 33.
WEBSITE OF THE WEEK
BlushBlog is an online community where the authors blog about men, relationships, fashion, marriage, single life and more. Visit www.blushblog.com and comment.
Submit your favorite Web site to us along with a 15-20 word (or less) description to info@eurweb.com.
BLACK HISTORY
July 3, 1953: Harry Belafonte was shown with actress Janet Leigh and film star Tony Curtis on the cover of Ebony magazine. It was the first time a black person and two Caucasians were seen together on a U.S. magazine cover.
July 4, 1827: Slavery abolished in New York State.
July 5, 1975: Arthur Ashe won the men's single championship at Wimbledon, defeating Jimmy Connors. (Source: www.BlackFacts.com)