Queen Latifah COVERS (THR) "The Hollywood Reporter”"
On September 16, media mogul Queen Latifah will make a heralded return to the daytime television market with The Queen Latifah Show. Folks who tune into the Sony Pictures Television show will see Queen Latifah tap cover a mixture of celebrity interviews and human interest pieces....and she'll even sing! But you shouldn't expect any revelations about her personal life.
Holly Jacobs, executive vp syndication and reality programming at Sony Pictures Television said,
"It's her choice what she chooses to talk about....It doesn't feel relevant to me because we're just making a big, entertaining show and celebrating all of life. There's a difference between talking about one's personal life and one's point of view and perception of the world and how they see it. And I respect that people need to put boundaries to whatever they want to talk about."
But that doesn't mean the show will steer away from controversial topics. The Queen Latifah Show has already been sold to 94 percent of the country and its host does not plan to miss out on polarizing issues.
When asked about the George Zimmerman verdict, Queen told THR, "I like that that trial brings up race and people's fears. But I don't necessarily need to sensationalize it. I would like to find a more interesting way to talk about it without trivializing it."
Elsewhere in the article, Queen talks about the death of her beloved brother, keeping her personal life "personal" and how she feels about the growing number of Black talk show hosts. Here are the highlights:
On the death of her brother:
"I know what it is to really lose someone, and the devastation that it causes and the confusion and the helplessness and the desperation and utter grief. There's nothing closer to me than my brother. That was my foundation. Mommy, Daddy, my brother, from the moment I was born, they were in my life. But I also know some of the little things that can trigger your emotions. You may smell something that reminds you of that person, and it will just flood all of these emotions through you. And it just comes back and you don't even expect it. Sometimes it's not only the big knock-you-over-the-head things, it's the subtle things."
On how she learned to control her destiny:
"Poverty will do that. When you want something that you can't afford, you do what you have to do. Our goal was to use our creativity to turn it into a business that would change the circumstances of our families. For Shakim and me, once we did it, we realized we were really good at it. We could do this all day. Business is fun. Controlling your own destiny is fun. Creating an idea and turning it into a movie; finding an artist and guiding their career and bringing them to some type of status -- there's joy in that. We didn't go to college. But we're smart people. We're hustlers, we're definitely going to get it done. But we also know where we came from. Nobody wants to go back there. We love the 'hood, but nobody wants to go back who makes it out."
On if there are too many Black talk show hosts:
Absolutely not. There's a reason that Steve Harvey is succeeding. He has a huge fan base. I listen to him on the radio. I watch him on Family Feud. Wendy Williams was a big-time radio host. And that's an underserved market. You'd need about 10 African-American hosts on TV for it to be saturated, but we're nowhere near that."
On sexuality: "That's mine. For me"
“I don’t feel the need to discuss my private life on this show or any other show,” Latifah says. “There’s the part of my life that the public and I share together. And there’s the part that’s mine to keep for myself. And that’s mine. For me.”
On bringing positivity to television:
“I have to be realistic about what I can and can’t do,” Latifah says. “So whatever I do has to really be worth it. I like to master the things I do. Making this show great, that’s my focus right now. I want to bring some positivity to daytime TV.”
On mastering the art of television
I have to be realistic about what I can and can't do," she says. "So whatever I do has to really be worth it. I like to master the things I do. Making this show great, that's my focus right now. I want to bring some positivity to daytime TV."
“Lah is every woman...“I remember seeing her in black-and-white photos. She was barefoot and wrapped in this African garb with this African headpiece. I was so inspired by the courage of this young female MC. - Jada Pinkett Smith (one of The Queen Latifah Show producers).
Did Keri Hilson & Serge Ibaka Call It Quits
It's true!! Singer/songwriter Keri Hilson has ended her relationship with Oklahoma City basketball player, Serge Ibaka. :(
What once started off as a mere rebound became months of love (and tons of Instagram pictures) from the lovely couple.
Find out the details of the breakup courtesy of NoMercyForYourFaves.com when Read below:
From NoMercyForYourFaves:
According to Gossipwelove, after months of dating and sharing photos of themselves together on Instagram along with debuting her new ‘Poetic Justice style box-braids’ a few days ago, R&B singer Keri Hilson and her baller boo thang, Serge Ibaka, have “allegedly” called it quits.
According to a few Twitter peeps, a poster was uploaded last night saying that Serge unfollowed Hilson on Twitter. Now, fans are buzzing about what happened between the once (or still is) happy couple.
No one really knows what the cause of this break up might be, but if you're into cougars Ms. Keri baby is back on the prowl.
Lady Gaga and her Stylist Part Ways
He has been with Lady Gaga for some of her most outrageous looks, but now her stylist Nicola Formichetti is stepping aside.
In an interview with Women’s Wear Daily, the 36-year-old told the publication that while he will always support her, he needs to focus on other commitments.
"She's going to be my BFF forever, but my ex-assistant Brandon Maxwell is heading that project," he said. "I'm too busy with other commitments. I've done two albums with her, it's been like five years, and you know, I'm always going to be involved somehow, but I cannot do it every day."
Mr. Fomichetti also revealed an interesting fact about the pop icon saying, "She changes 12 times a day; it's insane.”
EXCLUSIVE — Dwyane Wade’s Legal Bills in Divorce Reach $10 Million!
Miami Heat star Dwyane Wade and ex-wife Siohvaughn Funches: $10 million in legal bills for their divorce!
Miami Heat superstar Dwyane Wade‘s divorce could end up costing him $10 million in legal bills!
Repeat: 10 MILLION BUCKS for a divorce!
Two of the dozen or so lawyers in two states involved with Wade’s split from high school sweetheart Siohvaughn Funches tell website Gossip Extra that the past few months in the six-year battle will undoubtedly run the total tab up to that stunning figure!
“We were at about $8 million last year, and now we’re definitely at $10 million,” said one of the lawyers, asking not to be named in the story. “He’s paying more for lawyers than what he is paying his wife for the settlement.
“It was a complicated case, but it may have become personal.”
According to Gossip Extra D Wade has been paying for his and Funches’ attorneys automatically through a special bank account. It’s funded partly with a small portion of his Heat salary, and partly with endorsements.
“My gut feeling is that he doesn’t even know how much he’s paying (in legal bills),” the source added.
Wade filed for divorce in his native Chicago in 2007.
He eventually won full custody of the couple’s two sons, but Funches has the boys for two weekends per month, and a full month in summer.
Financial issues were finally settled in Chicago last month, with Wade agreeing to pay Funches $5 million cash plus a couple of cars and their marital home near the Windy City.
The case included several appeals, and several hundred motions.
Last week, for example, a judge in Miami ordered Wade to surrender his kids to Funches after Wade asked that the visitation schedule be suspended.
The ball player was represented at the hearing by four attorneys, and Funches had two — and what was to be a 30-minute hearing ended up lasting more than three hours!
James Pritikin, Wade’s main attorney in Chicago, did not respond to a request for comment.
Out & About: Michelle Williams Is All Smiles While Out In NYC
Michelle Williams was spotted in New York City recently, making a few rounds in support of her upcoming album, Journey to Freedom. The “If We Had Your Eyes” singer beamed in blue, rockin’ a flared sleeveless dress, which she paired with hot pink pumps.
She stopped by the offices of ESSENCE for a special visit, and lunch with staff. While there, she was photographed reading a copy of the magazine’s latest issue; featuring her fellow Destiny’s Child member, Kelly Rowland, on the cover.
Photos: PacificCoastNews/Instagram
Tina Turners Wedding Photos
Tina Turner tied the knot with longtime partner Erwin Bach last month. The couple tied the knot in a lavish ceremony at their home on the banks of Lake Zurich in Switzerland, where they were joined by celebrity guests including Oprah Winfrey, Gayle King and others. The newlyweds shared their wedding photos soon after the event — view after the click:
Tina and Erwin, moved into nearby five-star hotel The Dolder Grand for a week beforehand, with the bride popping home daily to check everything was going according to plan. Thousands upon thousands of roses, flown in specially from Amsterdam.
The couple arrived together for the ceremony with Erwin driving a black Phantom convertible Rolls-Royce, to the sound of Frank Sinatra’s My Way, feeling no nerves, just overwhelming happiness.
Tina donned a nontraditional black and green gown by Georgio Armani, and requested that all of her female guests wear white, while male guests were asked to wear black.
Tina Turner sat down with Oprah for Oprah’s Next Chapter that will air August 25th on OWN. Oprah traveled to the South of France for an intimate conversation with rock and roll legend Tina Turner.
In the only interview following the iconic singer’s private wedding ceremony in Switzerland to longtime love Erwin Bach, Oprah joins Tina during a stop on their honeymoon, to talk love, retirement and her private life out of the spotlight.
Drake Covers XXL's 150th Issue -- Addresses Amanda Bynes & His Competition With Kanye
Drizzy is covering the special 150th issue of XXL and is telling all about why he stays real and others don't, his biggest competition (Mr. West) and that murderous vajayjay comment from Amanda Bynes.
Check out the highlights inside...
He's the guy you can blame for the rampant #StartedFromTheBottomNowWeHere hashtags on Instagram and beyond. And he's also once again created major buzz around his upcoming album. Toronto's native son Drake is dishing to XXL about how the Jewish community sees his tv-to-rap success, murdering vajayjay and more.
Check the highlights:
ON THE NEW ALBUM
I remember coming into this year thinking, “How am I going to cut through all these people and shine?” I’ve never been part of a year when so many legends are dropping projects. How am I going to be seen? I’m going to be like the kid waving in the background in the photo with all of his tall relatives. And, I guess, those were my initial thoughts, and not to say that I haven’t enjoyed some of the stuff that has come out this year, but it didn’t pan out the way I thought it was going to. I think I am going for it, to really establish what are murmurs or things being said quietly, “Um, I think that Drake might actually…” On September 17th I want people to be like, “Oh, we were right.”
ON HIS IMAGE
Do I think that if I didn’t have, for lack of a better term, a unique look about me, if I was from somewhere in America and if I hadn’t been on a kids TV show [Degrassi: The Next Generation], would I be as famous? I don’t know, man. Honestly, I don’t think so. I was just some young kid on a TV show. And I haven’t become anything else while I’ve been in this position. It’s not like I got here and was like, “Oh, got to switch up my image.” I don’t wake up nervous. I feel like maybe a lot of these guys do. How old are you, really? What is your background, really? What have you really done in the drug game, in the thug game?
ON THE COMPETITION
It’s tough for me. That’s a guy I can’t pretend not to like. He’s the guy to me, in a lot of ways. That’s Kanye West. But I’m also here to be the best. I’m here to surpass. I’m here to outdo. I’m ready for whatever with anybody.
ON HIS SUCCESS
I get Jewish people coming up to me proud like, “Mazel Tov, bro. Come to my house for Shabbat dinner.”
AMANDA BYNES
I don’t even know who that is doing that or what that’s about. If that is her, I guess it’s a little weird and disturbing. It’s obviously a behavioral pattern that is way bigger than me. Whoever is behind it, whether it’s her or somebody else, they know people are paying attention so they keep it going.
Drake's Nothing Was The Same album hits stores September 17th while his XXL cover issue hits stands August 20th.
And if that's not enough emo-rapperdom for your life, the "Hold On, We're Going Home" rapper is kicking off his 41-city "Would You Like A Tour?" tour September 25th in Portland.
The Iconic Jackie Robinson statue defaced with racist slurs, swastikas outside Cyclones park!
A despicable act of vandalism sparked a chorus of outrage after swastikas and racist slurs were found scrawled on the iconic Jackie Robinson statue outside the Brooklyn Cyclones stadium.
A manager at MCU Park in Coney Island stumbled upon the defaced statue about 8:30 a.m., just hours before thousands of kids showed up at the ballpark for Camp Day.
Among the hate-filled messages written in black marker on the monument of Robinson and his Brooklyn Dodgers teammate Pee Wee Reese were: “Hile (sic) Hitler,” “Die N----r” and “F--k Jackie Robinson and all N------s.”
A worker covers the base of the Jackie Robinson and Pee Wee Reese, where vile slurs written in marker could not be removed from the stone.
In a bid to help cops catch the hate-filled coward, The NY Daily News is offering a $10,000 reward for information leading to an arrest and conviction. Anyone with information should call Crime Stoppers at (800) 577-TIPS.
Investigators were poring over surveillance video. The desecration drew fiery denunciations from a slew of politicians and former baseball stars — including one of Robinson’s last living teammates, Ralph Branca.
“I have no idea why anyone would do that,” Branca, 87, told the Daily News. “The statue signified a great moment in American history.”
Sen. Chuck Schumer, in a surprise visit to the site, lashed out at the perpetrator.
“I hope you’re punished for what you did because what [you] did put a dagger in the heart of what America is all about,” Schumer said.
“That there are still people who don’t understand what Jackie Robinson stood for in his grace, and his strength and the beautiful person he was and to try and deface him, defame him by defacing this statue is just an act of . . . it’s beyond words to me,” he added.
Photos of the defaced statue obtained show an image of a swastika above a Hitler reference and the word “N-----s” scrawled twice on the base, just above the inscription detailing the monument’s significance. The bronze and stone statue commemorates one of the most touching moments in baseball history. Robinson, the first black man to play in the major leagues, was met with a barrage of racist taunts and death threats when he strode out onto Cincinnati’s Crosley Field during his rookie year in 1947.
The stone could not be scrubbed clean so it was covered.
“It was a great gesture on his part,” Branca told The News. “That took some guts, some courage.”
The statue, erected in 2005, shows the two players, with Reese’s arm around Robinson’s shoulder.
“I remember Jackie talking about Pee Wee’s gesture the day it happened,” Robinson’s widow, Rachel Robinson, told The New York Times after the statue was unveiled.
Parks workers try to wash away the scrawl that reminds of 1947, when Jackie Robinson made his major league debut amid much discrimination.
“It came as such a relief to him, that a teammate and the captain of the team would go out of his way in such a public fashion to express friendship.”
Team officials believe the crime happened between midnight and 6 a.m., according to a police source.
Nazi symbols and racist commentary defaces the state of Jackie Robinson, a great American pioneer.
After the graffiti was discovered, a crew of workers scrubbed clean the legs of the statue ahead of the team’s 11 a.m. game. The Parks Department had to be called in to try to erase the swastika and other messages on the statue’s stone base.
“We had 7,000 fans coming to the game and the vast majority were kids from local camps,” said Billy Harner, spokesman for the Cyclones, a minor-league affiliate of the Mets.
Most of the scrawling was gone by late morning, but part of the base was still hidden from public view by a garbage bag that night.
“Jackie Robinson and Pee Wee Reese embody the humanity and inclusiveness that make our borough, city and country great,” the Cyclones organization said in a statement. “It is both heartbreaking and deeply disturbing that this statue, which is a symbol of equality and tolerance, has been defaced in such an offensive and hateful way.”
The vandalism also disgusted fans streaming out of the ballpark Wednesday.
“This is messed up what transpired,” said Noel Aguillar. “All the kids are here.”
American baseball player Pee Wee Reese, pictured in 1955, put his arm around Jackie Robinson during an emotional moment in Cincinatti during Robinson's rookie year in 1947.
Patrick Gabour, who volunteers at Cyclones games, was visibly angry as he sat outside the statue with a couple bottles of paint remover.
“It’s disgusting,” said Gabour. “I could understand it 20, 30, 40 years ago, but you know what? It’s not like that now.”
The statue outside MCU Park in Coney Island shows Pee Wee Reese putting his arm around Jackie Robinson, as a symbol of solidarity.
Coney Island resident Queenie Huling agreed.“It's very offensive,” said Huling, 67, who is a former president of the Brooklyn chapter of the National Action Network. “It’s a true insult to this community and to Jackie Robinson.”
The iconic statue of Jackie Robinson outside of MCU Park is one of the first things vistiors see when going to a Brooklynj Cyclones game.
Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz also expressed his dismay. “I’m beyond disgusted by the defacing of the #JackieRobinson monument,” he posted on Twitter.
A total of 36 cameras are installed inside and outside the stadium, but none is trained directly on the statue.
“We’re hopeful that with different angles, we’ll be able to put something together,” Harner said.
Police are investigating the vandalism as a possible hate crime.
Big Boi Casts Doubt On Celebrity Big Brother Rumours
Big Boi may not be on a reality show
Rapper Big Boi has played down reports suggesting he is set to join the cast of British reality show Celebrity Big Brother, insisting he never gave producers an official answer.
The Outkast star reportedly signed a $450,000 (£300,000) deal with network bosses at Channel 5 to appear in the fly-on-the-wall reality series, which will begin airing later this month (Aug13), but Big Boi claims the announcement he'll be a part of the show is premature.
In a statement issued to the Wall Street Journal, the hip-hop veteran explains: "They (Big Brother producers) reached out to my team a while back. I was on my way back from Canada, they started saying I was set to be on there... and it wasn't true."
However, Big Boi isn't ruling out the Tv gig completely, adding: "I don't know. I've been on the road... They were talking to my team but I don't know what happened after that. I never said yes or no, ever."
Sylvester Stallone VS Bruce Willis?
Sylvester Stallone Calls Bruce Willis Greedy and Lazy
Sylvester Stallone who stars in the movie Expendables along with Bruce Willis is calling him out… Bruce Willis who was apart of the franchise didn’t leave on amicable terms so they replaced him with Harrison Ford. Production on “The Expendables 3″ is set to begin this month. Jackie Chan, Wesley Snipes and Milla Jovovich are expected to join the cast, possibly alongside Mel Gibson. Look for “Expendables 3″ to arrive in theaters next year.
Sylvester Tweeted out “Greedy and Lazy is a sure formula for career failure…” But I’m pretty sure Bruce Willis is chillin, he has his new Movie Red 2 that dropped this year, w, John Malkovich, Mary-Louise Parker, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Lee Byung-hun, Anthony Hopkins, and Helen Mirren, so he is not stressing. If anything Sylvester Stallone is a struggle that he can’t cross over from his Rambo days…
Groupie Puts Lebron On Blast On Savannah’s Instagram…
Lord Jesus, the saga continues… Well we told you how Lebron and his friends were recruiting groupies in Toronto this past weekend and how they were making sure that people weren’t snapping any pictures of the NBA player and if they caught you, you were kicked out!… Now I guess Savannah posted something on her Instagram and someone put Lebron on blast… Check out the message inside.
MrsLondonroe continued to leave messages on Savannah’s page, claiming not to be hating, jealous or the actually “groupie” she alleged was with Lebron but as a woman she wanted to let her know how her soon to be husband acts, ok MrsLondonroe why were you at this hotel?
At the end of the day Savannah knows the type of dude Lebron is, so there is nothing new under the sun that anyone can tell her. I can’t wait until they make it official next month!
AND FINALLY FROM THE CRAZY PEOPLE SHOPPING AT WALMART FILES
‘Floral Vs. Stripes’
It’s common knowledge that the purpose of pants is to cover up your underwear right? I haven’t kept my finger on the pulse of this topic as much as I probably should but that’s probably because I thought it was a non-issue. I guess I’ll have to be more attentive now. Thanks
HAVE A GREAT WEEK AHEAD EVERYBODY!!!
EFREM
