WebProNews

Author: Pam Wright

  • Ann B. Davis: Beloved ‘Brady Bunch’ Star Dies at 88

    Generations of Brady Bunch fans are mourning Sunday’s death of Ann B. Davis, who played devoted housekeeper Alice on the early ’70s television sitcom.

    Davis, who won two Emmy awards for her role as secretary Schultzy on The Bob Cummings Show, fell in the bathroom and hit her head on Saturday morning, said close friend Bishop William Frey to CNN.

    She suffered a subdural hematoma and never regained consciousness, Frey told CNN.

    The Brady Bunch, which debuted in 1969, was one of the first U.S. television shows to focus on a non-traditional family. In the case of the Bradys, a widower of three boys, Mike Brady (played by Robert Reed), marries a single mom of three girls, Carol Brady (played by Florence Henderson).

    In 1994, Davis wrote about the wholesome The Brady Bunch.

    “Wouldn’t we all love to have belonged to a perfect family, with brothers and sisters to lean on and where every problem is solved in 23-1/2 minutes?” she wrote.

    What many Brady Bunch fans may not realize is Davis was already a well-known TV actress before she took on the role of Alice Nelson. She was almost as famous for her role as Charmaine “Schultzy” Schultz on The Bob Cummings Show, which ran from 1955 to 1959.

    Because of her work on the show, she won Emmy awards in 1958 and 1959, was nominated in 1956 and 1957, and received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 1960.

    Born in 1926 in Schenectady, New York, she had a twin sister named Harriet and never married.

    In the 1970s, she stepped away from show business to join a religious community.

    Brady Bunch fans have responded in droves on Twitter to remember Ann B. Davis and their beloved Alice.

    Image via YouTube

  • V. Stiviano Allegedly ‘Punched in the Face’ in NYC

    V. Stiviano, the woman who infamously taped the damning video of L.A. Clippers owner Donald Sterling making racist comments, was assaulted by two men in New York City Sunday, her lawyer told ABC News.

    However, no police reports have been filed, and New York Police Department officials said officers did not respond to any incidents involving Stiviano.

    The assault allegedly occurred around 7 p.m. near the Gansevoort Hotel in Manhattan as Stiviano, her sister and friends were leaving a nearby restaurant, said Mac Nehoray, Stiviano’s lawyer.

    Nehoray said Stiviano was examined by a doctor after the incident and found to be “banged up but OK.”

    New York City police officials said they do not expect any charges to emerge.

    “As of now this has no legs,” NYPD officials said.

    According to Nehoray, two men followed her after she exited the restaurant, yelling racial slurs.

    Allegedly, they punched her several times, leaving the right side of her face red and swollen, he said.

    Stiviano didn’t immediately file a police report, because “she had to get out of there,” Nehoray said. “I believe she will file a police report Monday.”

    The alleged incident follows the release of a video filmed for a reality show pilot in 2011 that surfaced on TMZ showing Stiviano sharing disparaging remarks about African-Americans.

    “I don’t understand black people. You give them a little bit of money, they don’t know what to do with it,” she says in the video.

    The original controversy stems from recordings she taped of Sterling’s disparaging remarks to Stiviano, which has outraged NBA fans, players and executives.

    Sterling was banned from the league, fined $2.5 million and is being pushed into selling the team.

    Sterling has made it clear that he isn’t going away without a fight. He sued the NBA Friday for more than $1 billion for its decision.

    Image via YouTube

  • Casey Kasem Hospitalized After Wife Throws Raw Meat

    The family feud over the care of radio icon Casey Kasem just keeps getting uglier.

    Kasem’s wife, Jean, chucked a raw piece of meat at his daughter Sunday when Kerri Kasem attempted to take the radio icon to a hospital.

    The feud is between Kasem’s children and his wife of 30 years, Jean. The family members are battling it out in court over who has the legal authority to care for the 82-year-old who is suffering from Lewy body disease, the second most common type of progressive dementia after Alzheimer’s.

    Kasem’s daughter — who won a California court order this month to become the temporary conservator for her ailing father before he went missing — won court approval from a Kitsap County, Washington, judge Friday to visit her father and take him to the doctor. Kerri visited her father Friday later in the day for the first time since he was taken to Washington state two weeks ago from a California nursing care center, according to CNN.

    As part of Friday’s court decision, the judge said Kerri could have Casey hospitalized if necessary, which is why she showed up Sunday with an ambulance at the home where he and Jean are staying.

    But, it was pretty much over-Jean’s-dead-body.

    Jean told NBC she was following a bible verse from King James when she threw the meat.

    “In the name of King David, I threw a piece of raw meat into the street in exchange for my husband to the wild rabid dogs,” she said.

    Ambulance workers finally made their way inside and took Casey to a nearby hospital.

    The Kitsap County judge granted Kerri permission Friday to visit her father one hour a day at a local home where Kasem and his wife are staying with close friends.

    “I’m not going to say anything much except that I’m happy with how the court proceedings went today,” Kerri Kasem said.

    Jean Kasem, however, was angry with the outcome of the court proceedings.

    “Shame on these children,” she told reporters.

    She then played an audio recording of what sounded like a groaning man. She told reporters the moaning came from her husband when he heard about Friday’s court activity.

    “He’s crying,” Jean Kasem said.

    “That was just so sad and wrong,” Casey’s daughter Mary Kasem said. “We don’t know if that’s him or not. But if it is, he’s probably groaning because he has stage three bed sores, a lung infection, and a bladder infection. For her to put out something like that and claim that is just awful.”

    The Washington state judge will hold another hearing June 6 on whether the California court order naming Kerri as her father’s temporary conservator is applicable in Washington state.

    Casey Kasem was the radio host of music countdown shows American Top 40 and Casey’s Top 40. Kasem was also the voice of Shaggy in the cartoon Scooby Doo and an announcer for NBC. He retired in 2009.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Bear in Hammock: Living the Good Life

    Bear in Hammock: Living the Good Life

    Some bears really know how to live the good life.

    On Thursday, a Daytona Beach resident, Vincent James, went into his back garden to hang out on his hammock, only to find a black bear lounging in his spot — guessing the bear found it to be “just right.”

    “He got in the hammock like he was a tourist or something,” said James.

    Rafael Torres stood about 60 feet away from the bear when he took the now viral shot of the bear. He said the bear hung out on the hammock for about 20 minutes.

    Cute as the photo might have been, it’s a dangerous proposition to have a wild black bear in the neighborhood.

    Other residents nearby said they saw the bear wrecking havoc around the neighborhood, tearing through garbage cans and knocking over bird feeders.

    Not too long ago another bear encounter in Florida didn’t go as well when a woman was attacked by a black bear and dragged onto a driveway.

    It is common knowledge that interacting with bears is dangerous, however people are deceived by the seemingly harmless demeanor of bears and still engage in the biggest no-no of all — feeding bears.

    Authorities will not hesitate to protect residents from the dangers of bears. In February, an 81-year-old woman was arrested after she fed up to 18 bowls of dog food to bears on her property.

    Now before you find the arrest a bit harsh, the woman was warned on multiple occasions by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to stop feeding the bears. It was only after she ignored the warnings that the authorities stepped in. The woman claimed the animals would starve to death without her.

    Image Rafael Torres via Twitter, WFTV Eyewitness News

  • Ray J Arrested For a Slew of Offenses after Wig-out

    Singer Ray J was arrested Friday in Beverly Hills, California, after wigging out just a bit.

    According to a police statement, Beverly Hills Police were dispatched to the Beverly Wilshire Hotel at 7:36 p.m. regarding a person disturbing the peace.

    When authorities arrived on the scene, they found Ray J — whose real name is William Ray Norwood Jr. — in the valet area where the hotel staff were trying to conduct a citizen’s arrest after Ray J refused to leave the property.

    “He subsequently entered the valet area and became belligerent with the valets and refused to leave,” according to a statement from the Beverly Hills Police Department.

    Police say that when officers tried to take the singer into custody, he kicked out the side window of one of the police cars from inside the vehicle. When officers tried to remove him from the vehicle to restrain his feet, he totally lost it and became violent, spitting into the face of one of the officers.

    “He became belligerent and used his feet to shatter the side window of the police vehicle,” said the police statement.

    The altercation began when a woman at the bar said Ray J grabbed her behind. Police later determined that the contact was an accident.

    Ray J was booked for trespassing, private person’s arrest, vandalism on a police car, resisting arrest and battery on a police officer.

    He made bail — set at $20,000 — and was released.

    The 33-year-old reality star is due in court on July 25 at the Airport Courthouse, police told Access Hollywood Saturday.

    Ray J, the younger brother of singer Brandy, had a brief career as a singer but has had more notoriety as Kim Kardashian‘s reported partner in a sex tape. He also starred in several VH1 reality shows and will appear in the upcoming reality show Love and Hip Hop: Los Angeles.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Melissa Etheridge Marries ‘Only One’ Linda Wallem

    Melissa Etheridge married partner Linda Wallem on Saturday evening at the San Ysidro Ranch in Montecito, California, confirms People magazine.

    The I’m the Only One singer married her only one just days after they both celebrated their 53rd birthday.

    According to Us Weekly, the couple married during an outdoor ceremony at the foot of the Santa Ynez Mountain range with family and friends in attendance, including Rosie O’Donnell, Chelsea Handler, and Whitney Cummings.

    Etheridge wore a grey suit as she performed a song she wrote for her new bride.

    The day before, while celebrating their birthdays, Etheridge posted a hint about the upcoming nuptials.

    Etheridge announced their engagement during a phone interview with CNN soon after the U.S. Supreme Court repealed the Defense of Marriage Act, which gives legally married same-sex couples the same rights as heterosexual couples.

    “It is about family and I love my four kids. I called my now-fiancée. I’m looking forward to marrying my partner … in the state of California,” she said. “Love is love and America is beautiful.”

    The couple began dating in 2010. Etheridge has four kids — twins Johnnie and Miller, 8, with ex-girlfriend Tammy Lynn Michaels, and daughter Bailey, 17, and son Beckett, 16, with ex Julie Cypher.

    “It is about family and I love my four kids. I called my now-fiancee. I’m looking forward to marrying my partner of three years,” she said during a phone CNN interview on June 26. “I’m going to get married in the state of California. I woke [the kids] up this morning telling them the Supreme Court ruling on DOMA. . .I love everybody out there. It’s a great day.”

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Lauren Scruggs Accepts Jason Kennedy’s Proposal

    Lauren Scruggs, 25, and E! News co-host Jason Kennedy announced their engagement via Instagram.

    Scruggs — the beautiful fashion blogger and model who lost an eye and an arm in a propeller accident in 2011 — said yes to Kennedy after he flew to her hometown near Dallas Friday to propose in a very sweet way.

    He spelled out the words “Will you marry me” in candles on the lawn below the Still Lolo author’s balcony. He posted a photo of the scene to his Instagram account.

    The photo shows Kennedy standing below with a small box in his hands — presumably with the ring!

    “Truth is I never flew to New York, I flew to Dallas and asked her if she would spend the rest of her life with me. I love you @laurenscruggs,” he wrote in the photo post.

    “It’s a blur but I can’t stop smiling. She told me I couldn’t surprise her, but I got her good. This is the best night of my life,” Kennedy told E! News.

    Kennedy and Scruggs began dating in early summer of last year, and while they kept their romance on the low-down at first, lately they have been sharing lovey-dovey pics via social media.


    “I’ll admit it, being a so-called good boy has paid off for me. I’ve got my dream job. And I’ve found my dream girl,” Kennedy told Glamour magazine of his relationship.

    Image via Instagram, Lauren Scruggs

  • ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ Tour Cancelled. Why?

    ‘Jesus Christ Superstar’ Tour Cancelled. Why?

    No explanation was given for the cancellation of a new 54-city tour of Jesus Christ Superstar starring punk legend John “Johnny Rotten” Lydon and Michelle Williams of Destiny’s Child.

    Producers of the new arena version of Jesus Christ Superstar announced the cancellation of the project Friday just days before its launch in New Orleans without explanation.

    The tour was to begin June 9 at Lakefront Arena in New Orleans and include stops in Los Angeles, Detroit, Chicago, St. Louis, Phoenix, Seattle, Las Vegas, Denver, New York City, Boston and Philadelphia.

    Fran Curtis, a publicist for the show from press representative Rogers & Cowan, did not return messages seeking a reason for the cancellation.

    A notice on the website offers no explanation, but says tickets will be refunded.

    Speculation focuses on financial difficulties and perhaps a lack of interest, since producer Michael Cohl was also a producer on Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark which bombed.

    When announcing the show in April, Cohl said the new show’s total costs were in the “eight figures” and they needed to make “several hundred thousand dollars” each night to keep it on the road.

    The show was to star Lydon as King Herod, Williams as Mary Magdalene, Brandon Boyd of Incubus as Judas and JC Chasez of ‘N Sync as Pontius Pilate. Ben Forster, the winner of the U.K.’s prime-time contest show, Superstar, was to play the son of God.

    The musical, written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice, the creators of other London-based musical hits like Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and Evita, debuted on Broadway in 1971, and includes the songs What’s the Buzz?, Superstar, Everything’s Alright and I Don’t Know How to Love Him.

    Image via YouTube

  • Shark Attack Victim Speaks About Her Ordeal

    Shark Attack Victim Speaks About Her Ordeal

    A woman who had a chunk of her calf bitten off by a shark off the coast of Florida earlier this month shared her experience of the attack Friday.

    Amy Tatsch — a mother of six — was attacked on May 15 while on a family outing to Melbourne Beach, in Florida.

    Although it is unknown what type of shark attacked the 38-year-old, Tatsch said her doctor estimates the shark was about 7 feet long based on the bite radius.

    “(I) can’t get up and around, but it’s so much nicer to be home and be able to be outside,” Tatsch said.

    Tatsch spent two weeks in the hospital undergoing multiple surgeries to repair a severely damaged Achilles tendon and calf resulting from the shark attack that occurred while she was boogie boarding with her brother.

    “We caught a couple of waves. He caught one and I drifted down a little farther with the current so I was a little farther away and the next wave that was coming up, I was ready,” she said. “I kicked off with my right leg to give me some momentum to ride in and that’s when I got bumped.”

    Tatsch said her calf was within a few inches of being taken off completely.

    “It was a really hard bump and then seconds after I felt my leg being torn and then I felt the motion of something big swimming away,” she said.

    Tatsch’s brother and other beachgoers had to bring Tatsch back to shore after the attack because there are no lifeguards stationed in the area.

    The United States averages 16 shark attacks per year, with one fatality every two years.

    Image via YouTube

  • Hidden Cash Twitter Campaign Goes Global

    Hidden Cash Twitter Campaign Goes Global

    The Hidden Cash Twitter campaign, which started with an anonymous benefactor hiding money in envelopes and tweeting cryptic clues as to their location for people to find, has started to spread worldwide.

    Originating in San Francisco on May 23, the first account was set up with the bio that says, “An anonymous social experiment for good. Real Cash hidden around SF & beyond. Find the $ – share tweetphoto + tag @hiddencash.” Since that first tweet, the account has grown to 405,000 followers.

    The craze then went to San Jose, followed by Los Angeles over the weekend. On Saturday, beaches were flooded with people looking for angry bird heads stuffed with cash. The generous donor said he will soon be heading to New York City.

    Cities across the United States now have their own Hidden Cash benefactors — From Nashville, to Dallas, to Oklahoma City, to name a few.

    The benefactor asked people to pay it forward on Twitter and it looks like others around the world are heeding his words. An account – called @HiddenCash_UK – was set up in the United Kingdom on Tuesday.

    The account has so far tweeted clues to the location of four envelopes containing £50. They were found by people in Leeds, Sheffield, Manchester and Brighton.

    There are other accounts popping up as well in Canada, Hong Kong, The Netherlands, and Ireland, and more are cropping up by the day.

    Little is known about the original benefactor, other than he or she is a rich property mogul who feels bad about the discrepancy between rich and poor in San Francisco.

    In several anonymous interviews, “Hidden Cash” has said that he/she is aged between 35 and 45 and is a real estate developer who recently made $500,000 “flipping” a house in San Francisco.

    “There is nothing commercial behind this. I’ve made millions of dollars the last few years, more than I ever imagined, and yet many friends of mine, and people who work for me, cannot afford to buy a modest home,” said the mysterious benefactor. “This is my way of giving back to the community and also having fun.”

    Image via Twitter, Hidden Cash

  • Rachel Jeantel Keeps Promise to Slain Friend

    It was a special moment for Rachel Jeantel when she crossed the stage to receive her high school diploma — a moment to remember her slain friend, Trayvon Martin, and to celebrate an academic victory.

    Jeantel was on the phone with Trayvon when he was shot to death in 2012. Since then, she has been determined to fulfill the promise she made to her friend to finish school.

    Jeantel is known as the key witness in the very public trial of George Zimmerman — the man accused of shooting Trayvon, who was later acquitted.

    During the trial, the daughter of immigrant parents had difficulties with her English. The teen speaks Haitian Creole, English and Spanish, and her dialect and use of Creole slang were made fun of during her testimony.

    At one point during the trial, defense attorney Don West questioned whether Jeantel understood English.

    “Are you claiming in any way that you don’t understand English?” West asked Jeantel.

    “I don’t understand you. I do understand English,” Jeantel said.

    Finishing high school was a challenge for the young woman.

    As a senior in high school, it was determined Jeantel only had an elementary-level understanding of reading and math. Miami defense and civil rights attorney Rod Vereen arranged for tutors and psychologists for the young woman to help her graduate.

    “When they say it takes a village to raise a child, this is what has happened here,” said Vereen.

    “Getting her down that aisle has not been an easy task,” he continued. “Rachel is just like any other teenager. They want to buck the system sometimes, and you just can’t let them buck the system.”

    “I did it,” Jeantel exclaimed after the graduation. “The witness who didn’t know how to speak English knows how to speak English through the 12th grade now. I never quit.”

    Martin’s mother, Sybrina Fulton, attended the graduation ceremony to cheer on her son’s friend.

    “Her coming is like having Trayvon there saying, ‘You did it. You proved people wrong,’ ” Jeantel said.

    Image vie YouTube

  • Jenna Ushkowitz Heartbroken? Not in Hawaii

    Jenna Ushkowitz Heartbroken? Not in Hawaii

    While most celebrities go through their reps to announce a breakup, Glee‘s Jenna Ushkowitz announced her breakup from The Vampire Diaries actor Michael Trevino in a most awkward way.

    While signing autographs at The Normal Heart premiere May 19 in Beverly Hills, California, Ushkowitz announced their three-year relationship had come to an end.

    And here’s how it happened.

    While making the rounds at the premiere, a videographer asked if she was still dating Trevino, E! Online reported.

    “No, we’re not together anymore,” she said.

    When the videographer realized he may have made the 28-year-old star uncomfortable, he apologized.

    “That’s OK. No worries,” she responded.

    When asked if the two were still on good terms, Ushkowitz said, “We’re wonderful.”

    Awkward, right?

    The breakup doesn’t necessarily come as a surprise. When the two first started dating, Ushkowitz told Ryan Seacrest she and Trevino were “very close.”

    But neither mentioned the other very often on social media, or elsewhere. Four months ago, Ushkowitz posted a picture from the 2011 SAG Awards on Instagram, wishing the 29-year-old Trevino a happy birthday.

    Ushkowitz posted a similar Instagram birthday greeting the year before.

    Doesn’t look like she’s pining away either. Saturday morning she posted a photo while on vacation in Hawaii with friends, including Glee costar Kevin McHale.



    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Lacey Chabert Brings Tragedy-to-Love Story to TV

    Party of Five actress Lacey Chabert will star in a new Hallmark Channel movie to air Saturday.

    Based on a true story, Chabert will play Gina Kell, a young widow who falls for a widower Michael Spehn in The Color of Rain.

    “To me, it just says that hope and faith are just so important, and get you through things you never imagined you’d have to suffer through,” Chabert said.

    The young widow, who loses her husband to cancer on Christmas Day, meets a man who also loses his wife to cancer just a few weeks after Gina’s husband dies. The grief-stricken friends, who have five children between them, begin to work through their heartbreak and come to lean on one another.

    The character of Gina is based on the real-life author of the book, The Color of Rain, released in 2011.

    Chabert said that she found it to be an “exciting chance” to portray someone’s real-life story and said she was moved by what Gina and Michael experienced.

    The Mean Girls actress clearly had a passion for Gina and Michael’s story before playing it out on film. She shares that she was moved by the book and script, and when she saw the couple on the Today Show.

    The movie premieres at 9 p.m. EST Saturday on the Hallmark Channel.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Ferris Bueller Glass House Sells for $1.06 Million

    The glass and steel house featured in the 1986 iconic film, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, finally sold after being on the market for more than five years.

    According to real estate brokerage Coldwell Banker Previews International, the beyond-cool, two-story home located in the Highland Park area of Chicago sold for $1.06 million.

    One would imagine the house — designed by James Speyer and David Haid — would sell quickly but apparently the downward trend in the real estate market in the past few years delayed the sale of the house.

    Craig Hogan, director of Coldwell Banker Previews International, the brokerage’s luxury division, said the house sold at half the original listing price of $2.3 million.

    The Ben Rose Home that Hogan describes as “two glass cubes that are positioned over a ravine,” is often featured as one of the most interesting homes in the Chicago area.

    “You have to want to live there,” Hogan said. “Fortunately, we found a couple who do — they’re in love with that style.”

    The house was featured as a garage holding a Ferrari in the John Hughes film.

    In the film, Ferris (Matthew Broderick) and his friend Cameron decide to play hooky from school, steal the car and take it for a joyride around Chicago. They later crash the Ferrari into the house.

    Image via YouTube

  • Kate Gosselin and Her Eight Kids Coming Back to TV

    Kate Gosselin and Her Eight Kids Coming Back to TV

    Kate Gosselin and her eight kids are coming back to TV.

    TLC has released a clip from the upcoming special Kate Plus Eight: Sextuplets Turn 10. The clip does not feature Gosselin’s ex-husband, Jon Gosselin, and it is unsure if he will make an appearance.

    It’s been three years since the reality show was cancelled and it looks like the family is struggling, at least Kate seems to be struggling, and generally speaking, a happy mom equals a happy family.

    “A lot has changed since you last have been here,” Kate says in the clip. “It’s all still happening with or without cameras. We’ve all been though a lot. We’ve learned what’s important.

    “I’m getting older, tireder, more worn out… The kids are getting older and smarter and giving me a run for my money daily and hourly and moment by moment,” she adds, as she prepares breakfast for the munchkins.

    The new special is all about the tenth birthdays of the Gosselin sextuplets – three girls and three boys: Alexis, Hannah, Leah, Aaden, Collin and Joel. Twin sisters Cara and Mady are now 13.

    In the clip, Kate shares a parenting technique that she uses to discipline her elder daughters.

    “I got those girls cell phones and iPads – so I could take them away,” she says with a grin on her face. “Yes indeed.”

    She provides an example of the technique when the clip shows Gosselin getting a little miffed after daughter Mady tries to share her thoughts about spring break plans. When Gosselin gives her the brush off, the teen leaves the room yelling, “I didn’t do anything! You never trust me!”

    Gosselin tells her daughter to get back in the room saying, “Interrupting me and saying, ‘No, we’re not,’ is something! I will give you one chance, this moment, to apologize, change your attitude and come back and that’s your last redemption.”

    Like most teens, Mady returns from her room and screams an apology at her mom, to which Gosselin replies, “Without stomping and shaking me when you walk by.” She then takes the teen’s cellphone, telling the TLC cameras that she purchased phones for Mady and her other daughter Cara so she could “take them away.”

    The two-part special Kate Plus Eight: Sextuplets Turn 10 airs on June 19 and June 26 on TLC.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Kaley Cuoco Snaps Selfie During Medical Procedure

    Too much information perhaps?

    Kaley Cuoco-Sweeting recently took a selfie during a medical procedure and it looked like it might have been painful based upon her reaction.

    In the Instagram shot, the Big Bang Theory actress is seen lying on her stomach as a doctor does God knows what to her legs.

    “It’s not all glitz and glamour people!!!” Cuoco wrote as a caption next to the picture.

    “I’m soooo vein…”

    Meanwhile, she recently hung out with her sister, Briana, at the 11th Annual Inspiration Awards in Beverly Hills on Friday. The event was organized to honor those who inspire girls to fulfill their potential.

    Looks like the actress is enjoying life — well apart from the medical procedure perhaps. She was just nominated for a Critic’s Choice Award this year for best supporting actress in a comedy series. She’s up against costar Mayim Bialik for the same award.

    And she recently moved into some new digs with husband Ryan Sweeting.

    According to Forbes, Cuoco sold her Sherman Oaks, Calif. house for $2.5 million and bought Kim Kardashian‘s old digs in Tarzana, California, with her husband in February.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Dakota Fanning Says Movie Roles Should Empower Women

    Dakota Fanning is standing up for strong, independent women.

    She recently spoke to The Daily Beast about her new movie Night Moves, and shared her views on women and women’s roles in Hollywood.

    The former child star takes her women’s studies degree very seriously, advocating “the portrayal of women in film and culture.”

    “It’s something I’ve studied and thought about a lot,” she said. “It’s rare to see women in a film who are not somehow validated by a male, or discusses a male, or heartbroken by a male, or end up being happy because of a male. It’s interesting to think about, and it’s very true.

    “Of course men are part of women’s lives, and that’s fine. But it’s important to see strong, independent women who are making their own choices and aren’t completely at the mercy of men. It shouldn’t be, ‘Oh, does this guy love me?’ It should be, ‘Do I love the guy?’

    “It’s about both genders being equal,” she says. “There’s a history where when women get to a certain age in this industry, the roles become strictly the mother, the wife, or the older single woman. There should be more of a variety because there are so many different paths that humans take and they should be given a platform to be seen.”

    Another topic that Fanning is passionate about is the environment.

    In her upcoming movie, Fanning stars as the character Dena — a wealthy young woman who becomes a little extreme in her environmental stance by funding a plot to blow up a hydroelectric dam. Ex-military member Harmon, played by Peter Sarsgaard, and radical Josh Stamos, played by Jesse Eisenberg, join her in the plan. When the plan doesn’t go as expected, the team faces unexpected challenges.

    “For Kelly’s sake, she would want me to say that they’re not ‘ecoterrorists,’” said Fanning. “[Dena] doesn’t know what an ‘ecoterrorist’ is.

    “The things that people do for causes result in very small changes and sometimes you never even see any results. So for these people, they need something that’s immediate that they can see.”

    Fanning was attracted to the film because preserving the planet is very important to the young actress.

    “We can’t continue to take from our planet the way we do and not give anything back,” she said. “The idea of, ‘Oh, but it’s fine, I won’t have to deal with it in my lifetime,’ well, you need to think about the future generations who will havassertse to deal with it.”

    Night Moves opened in select U.S. theaters Friday.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Zoe Saldana: Husband ‘Treats Her as an Equal’

    It has been said that to have a lasting marriage, marry your best friend.

    Zoe Saldana, who says she always felt “underestimated” by the men she dated, finally found a husband she can call her friend.

    It apparently came as a surprise when the Rosemary’s Baby star married her long-time friend, artist Marco Perego in 2013. After all, they’d only been dating a few months when they decided to tie the knot. However, she married him because he made her feel very different from any other man she has dated.

    “Zoe felt other guys she dated treated her like a trophy and underestimated her,” a friend revealed. “But Marco treats her as an equal.”

    The “chase” for Perego’s affection was another draw for the actress.

    “She says it was a challenge to win him over!” said the source.

    Like many smart celebrities who value their privacy and wish to protect relationships, Zaldana rarely opens up about her life with Perego. The only comment she has ever made about her marriage was to announce the marriage in England and to say she is very happy.

    She will talk about other people’s relationships however. She has said she has trouble understanding couples who decide to “take a break” when things get difficult. She believes it would be much better to realize it’s time to move on.

    “I’m not one of these people who’s going, ‘Oh, because I was with someone for so long I need to take a break,’” she explained. “What if love is just around the corner?”

    The 35-year-old actress was previously engaged to Keith Britton — a relationship that lasted 11 years. She also dated her The Words costar Bradley Cooper.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Nikki Giovanni Remembers the Incredible Maya Angelou

    Poet, author and professor Nikki Giovanni remembered the renowned poet and activist Maya Angelou — who died Wednesday at her home — during an NPR broadcast Thursday.

    “I don’t know anybody, and I really don’t, who has gotten as much out of life as Maya Angelou,” Giovanni told NPR’s Michel Martin.

    Giovanni said Angelou never shared much about her past, but opened up in 1969 with the release of her famous I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings. It was the first in a series of memoirs that depicted her difficult childhood, which included the trauma of sexual abuse. Angelou spent much of her childhood in silence, refusing to speak.

    “I think [Angelou] had a difficult childhood at the beginning and I think that the silence allowed her to absorb good stories,” said Giovanni. “You know, she was tough. I mean, her writing was very tough. And it is interesting how uplifting many people experience it because if you think about it, she was writing about some things that a lot of people didn’t talk about – like being molested, for example, and also the struggle to get an education, and also some of the dynamics within her family that a lot of people would not necessarily want to talk about, at a time when a lot of people did not write about those things.”

    Giovanni said Angelou loved being alive, even as her aging body began to let her down.

    “Maya had an embrace of life and it is rare, you know,” said Giovanni. “Even I – I like being alive – but even I don’t come anywhere near just that joy that she brought. There is an old Negro spiritual – he woke me up this morning and started me on my way. The Lord is blessing me. And I don’t know anybody who thinks that but Maya. I mean, of all of the people that I know, I don’t know anybody who has just that verve, that I am alive, and as long as I’m alive – she used to say that all the time. Say you know, and then your back hurts, and well, she says you know, as long as I am here it feels good. That is the way she is going to look at it.”

    Angelou always gave the perception that she had little awareness of her fame and impact, and Giovanni confirmed that perception.

    “She did not want people feeling sorry for her. This is what I’m saying. And so a lot of the discomfort of her illness she did not share. She was not one of those people that is going to whine. As she said, if I am alive I am well and if I’m not alive then, you know. The one thing that I know Maya … would want is to know what’s being said now about her in her death … She would get the biggest kick.”

    You can listen to the full NPR interview here.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Emma Hemming-Willis Shares Family Photos to Die For

    Emma Hemming-Willis and husband Bruce shared an adorable photo of newborn daughter Evelyn Penn and her 2-year-old sister Mabel Ray Tuesday on Instagram.

    The sweet picture shows little Mabel cradling her baby sister as the little one gazes up at her, with the caption, “The start of a beautiful friendship.”

    This is the second picture shared of the Heming-Willis newborn. Heming shared another picture on her Facebook page May 24 of her breastfeeding with the caption, “Breakfast of Champions,”

    Willis, 59, and his model-actress wife, 35, welcomed Evelyn Penn May 5 in L.A.

    The Die Hard actor has three daughters from his marriage — Rumer, 25, Scout, 22, and Tallulah, 19 — with ex-wife Demi Moore.

    Post by Emma Heming-Willis.

    “Bruce is adorable with Mabel and all of his girls,” a source told Us about the father of five girls. “It’s hilarious to see the tough guy stereotype just melt away. He’ll put on a baby voice, get cute with her. Being a dad is no doubt the most important thing for him.”

    There have been so many adorable photos of papa Bruce with his girl Mabel.

    Post by Emma Heming-Willis.

    Post by Emma Heming-Willis.

    Post by Emma Heming-Willis.

    It’s obvious they are a very happy family. It’s hard to find a photo where they are not loving on each other with nothing but joy on their faces to be together.

    Post by Emma Heming-Willis.

    Post by Emma Heming-Willis.

    Post by Emma Heming-Willis.

    Post by Emma Heming-Willis.

    Post by Emma Heming-Willis.

    Image via YouTube

  • 50 Cent First Pitch FAIL: See The Pics and Video

    50 Cent threw what may be the worst first pitch in history of baseball’s first pitches.

    You really have to feel for the guy after seeing that pitch before a game between the New York Mets and the Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday at City Field. Even Tara the Cat’s first throw may have been better considering the challenge the feline faced lacking a much-needed thumb.

    One can only imagine the embarrassment for the rapper. It must be every non-baseball player’s worst nightmare as they step up to the rubber to throw that pitch.

    50 Cent took his turn at the rubber, some 60 feet from home plate. Wearing a Mets jersey with No. 50 and the name Jackson on the back, 50 Cent — whose real name is Curtis Jackson III — wound up and launched a left-handed toss that sailed way wide of Mets catcher Anthony Recker — like way, WAY to the left.

    He had a response to the pitch he posted on Instagram along with the caption, “I’m a hustler not a Damn ball player. LMAO #smsaudio #animalambition.”

    Needless to say, Twitter had its say on the pitch.

    It was great to see that 50 Cent could poke fun at himself.

    Here’s Tara the Cat‘s first throw, so you all can decide who truly did throw the better first pitch.

    Image via YouTube