What’s good my fellow Wordians? The weekend is finally
showing itself and I could not be any happier. From the 10th anniversary of the Columbine shooting to the
Craigslist killer being caught by the cops to Perez Hilton beefing with Miss
California over a question that probably caused her to lose the Miss USA
pageant, it was another long and drawn out week.
Congratulations to Jill Scott, who gave birth to a brand new
baby boy on Monday (April 20th) and Jennifer Hudson, who is
reportedly expecting her first child. Shout to Susan Boyle, who is living proof
that a humble attitude and a great singing voice can overshadow what people see
on the outside, and the sounding boards for staying one step ahead of the
haters.
Enough of the small talk. Let’s get to...the Last Word for
the week ending April 24, 2009
1. Tyler Perry Makes Murderous Impact on Alleged Stalker
I guess you can say that Tyler Perry has officially arrived.
According to TMZ.com, the entertainment mogul has been the
object of an alleged stalker who believes he should be murdered. Despite claims
of being a big Tyler Perry fan, Perry considers Dawne Wilson “very dangerous.”
As a result, Wilson was arrested April 15 for aggravated stalking outside
Perry's production studios in Atlanta...a place where TMZ says she's been an
unwelcome visitor many times before.
A restraining order obtained by the website stated that
Wilson began contacting Perry by computer “in a menacing manner” in March of
2008. The e-mails caused to Perry to fear “apprehension of immediately
receiving a violent injury.”
The correspondence continued in April 2008 as Wilson sent
Perry another e-mail, saying, “You need to check your heart condition because
it is filled with murder...your love has been but costly and deadly...Murder I
say is the verdict.”
Documents TMZ possessed noted that Wilson later asked the
actor/director “Why do you insist on assisting the devil?” It wasn’t until she
showed up at Perry’s recording studio last week that she was taken into police
custody for violating the retraining order.
According to the police report on the incident, Wilson told
police she was “called to come to the studio by an employee there and assumed
it was alright to be there.”
Wilson, who is still in custody, was officially charged on Tuesday
(April 21) with felony aggravated stalking. If convicted, she could be
sentenced to ten years in prison.
2. Vivica A. Fox Hearts Zac Efron While Showing Cougar
Pride
If you don’t know anything about Vivica A. Fox, you can at
least say that she embodies the essence of whatever she’s involved with. Hence,
the current apples of her eye, High School Musical star Zac Efron.
According to PopEater.com, Fox has a thing for Efron and
isn’t shy about letting people know where she stands on the teen heartthrob.
“Zac Efron is just so gorgeous to me. He's a hot piece,”
said Fox, who is currently seen as the host of the new TV Land reality show The
Cougar, a series where young men compete
for the affections of a sexy older woman. “I want just to look at those beautiful
blue eyes...They're are just...Wow! Muy caliente (very hot).”
And with a history of dating younger guys, Vivica knows a
thing or two about being a cougar. So it should come as no surprise that she
leads motivating older women to stand up for their right to conquer younger
members of the opposite sex.
“It's about time people understand that cougars are all the
rage. We have to inform, empower and enlighten the rest of American women and
let them know if they happen to meet a guy who is younger to give him a chance.
It’s okay,” said the actress. “Heads used to turn when you'd see an older woman
with a younger guy. Guys have been doing it for years, and heads don’t turn.
Well, now it's our turn.”
Vivica may have a point. And with older women giving some of
these young women some completion, I wouldn’t be mad at any guy enjoying the
company of a mature and sexy beauty.
So what say you fellas? Is it time for the rise of the
cougars or have they always been there but we never noticed? Are the young women
still commanding the spotlight? What’s your verdict?
3. Jackie Chan Unintentionally Becomes China’s Top Racist
Jackie Chan may be a lot of things to a lot of people, but
the word ‘racist’ doesn’t seem come to mind when talking about the action star.
Unless you ask Albert Ho, a lawmaker in Hong Kong, who is
upset over recent comments Chan made about the prospect of a free democratic
society for Chinese people at a business forum in the southern Chinese province
of Hainan. Although his popularity in his native country, The Associated
Press reports the entertainer is doubtful
that a free China is best for the people.
“I'm not sure if it's good to have freedom or not,” said
Chan. “I'm gradually beginning to feel that we Chinese need to be controlled.
If we're not being controlled, we'll just do what we want.”
Despite the actor’s rep saying Chan’s remarks referred to
freedom in the entertainment industry and not Chinese society at large, the
comments have triggered a backlash among Hong Kong and Taiwan lawmaker and
residents.
On Monday, a group of Chinese scholars published a letter on
the Internet accusing Chan of “not understanding how precious freedom is,” even
though “free Hong Kong provided the conditions for you to become an
international action star.” Facebook has also gotten into the act with a
growing group of Hong Kong users calling for Chan to be exiled to North Korea
while posting form letters urging Hong Kong's Baptist University and Academy
for Performing Arts to strip Chan of honorary degrees they gave the actor. As
of Tuesday (April 21), the group had more than 2,600 members.
Talk about having the worst week ever. From being one of the
most popular people in your native land to being the least liked. Jackie may
need to catch the rush hour in a different place if he doesn’t squash this
soon. I’d hate for him to become a real-life drunken master from all the drama.
4. Jamie
Foxx Gets Sued; Working on Movie Debut for Wanda
Looks like Jamie Foxx has something to really blame on the
alcohol.
TMZ reports that the Oscar winner is being sued by a person
who was severely injured on a Vodka display at a party Foxx hosted in 2007 at
Social in Hollywood. In his lawsuit, William Presler claims drunken guests
dropped their drinks around the bar he was working at as glass shattered
everywhere. Despite trying to clean up the glass, Presler claims he was told to
leave it be and that the manager preferred kicking the glass along the side of
the ice bar.
He further stated that he severely injured himself at the
end of the party by slipping, falling and landing on the shattered glass. As a
result, Presler needed 170 stitches to repair the damage done to severed nerves
in his left hand
In addition, Presler, who obtained a neuroscience degree,
claims the injury to his left hand has forced him to give up his dreams of
becoming a brain surgeon. Although a lawsuit is nothing to brush off, Foxx is
keeping himself busy as he takes steps to revisit his past glory as one of his
most famous characters from In Living Color.
Moviefone.com reports that the singer/actor is in talks to
reprise his role as the outrageous party girl Wanda for an upcoming movie.
“I would do that in a minute! That would be great. We're
actually looking into something like that. With that character specifically,”
said Foxx, who would love to bring Wanda back.
Sounds like a good plan. With all the relationship drama
nowadays among couples, it may be good for Wanda to return so that we learn and
laugh over what not to do to attract and keep a potential mate.
Stay tuned…
In Other Words…
* Kirk Franklin is hitting the road for a good cause.
According to EURWeb, the Gospel singer is joining forces with The American
Heart Association's Power to End Stroke movement to launch the Fight of Our
Life health tour. The goal of the seven-city outing is to increase awareness
and educate the African American community about their risk of stroke, the
third leading cause of death and a leading cause of long-term disability among
African Americans. The Fight of Our Life tour is set to kick off in June in
Houston, TX and continue in San Antonio, Arlington and Austin, TX; Tulsa and
Oklahoma City, OK, and Little Rock, AR.
* Rihanna is using her reemergence on the music scene as
motivation for a girl power tour with Ciara and Keyshia Cole. According to
reports, the songstress is putting together a string of tour dates in North
America that will kick off in September. Cole and Ciara are currently in
negotiations to hit the road with Rihanna, who will headline the tour.
* Although he will get a career boost with his appearance in
this summer’s G.I. Joe film, Marlon
Wayans is taking a different turn as he finds religion in his upcoming feature The
Year of Living Biblically. The Julian
Farino-helmed movie, which is based on the book One Man’s Humble
Quest to Obey the Bible as Literally as Possible, centers on a man who gets humorous and informative results from
attempting to live by the rules of the Old and New Testaments for a year. In
addition to starring in the film, Wayans will play an active role behind the
scenes as the film’s producer.
* Here’s a bit of news for Bob Marley fans. According to The
Hollywood Reporter, the Reggae legend’s
hit, “One Love,” has topped a list of Jamaica's 100 best songs over 50 years.
The list was unveiled on Tuesday (April 21) by a panel of musicians and
cultural officials associated with the University of the West Indies.
Nine songs from Marley cracked the top 100, with two of
those making it into the Top Ten. Songs making the top 10 included “Oh Carolina” by The Folkes Brothers
(2), “54-45” by The Maytals (3), Bob Andy’s “Got to Go Back Home” (4), “My Boy
Lollipop” by Millie Small (5), “Many Rivers To Cross” by Jimmy Cliff (6),
Desmond Dekker and the Aces’ “Israelites” (7), “Cherry Oh Baby” by Eric
Donaldson (8), “Simmer Down” by Bob Marley & the Wailers and “Carry Go
Bring Come” by Justin Hinds & the Dominos (10).
Despite the rankings, the list did have its share of critics
who felt more songs from the last decade should’ve been included as well as
more deejay, dancehall tunes and dub music.
* Amy Winehouse may have given Eminem the musical brush off,
but the embattled singer is considering working with fellow hitmaker Justin
Timberlake. A friend of Winehouse told WENN that Timberlake’s name has come up
as a potential collaborator for the diva.
“Amy gets thousands of offers a week from other artists,”
the friend said. “Justin Timberlake is one she is considering. But Amy will
only do it if the other person's music fits the mood she is in at the time.”
And what mood would that be? Judging by everything that’s
been happening, it may be safe to say that the mood borders on crazy and
deranged. If she turns Justin down then somebody better book a stay at the
rehab. Too many no, no, no’s could seriously disrupt all that dough, dough,
dough she (and classic material) could be making.