What’s the word, everybody? We have reached the end of
another week and there’s still scandal in the air with Obama and McCain having
their second debate, the government bailing out insurance giant American
International Group (AIG) and mixed martial arts favorite Kimbo Slice getting
knocked the f– out in 14 seconds by Seth Petruzelli.
Congratulations to former American Idol contestants LaKisha Jones, who got married on Sunday
(Oct. 5) and Paris Bennett, who gave birth to a new baby girl. Shout out to the
sounding boards for always coming through in the 11th hour.
Until next time, here is…the Last Word for the week ending
Oct. 10, 2008.
1. Halle Berry Educates on the Definition of Sexy
Looks like Esquire
magazine has finally realized what I have known for a good minute. The magazine
has named Halle Berry as its sexiest woman alive for its November issue.
Considering she has graduated to mommy status, the
42-year-old Oscar winner put it all in perspective. “Sexy is not about wearing
sexy clothes or shaking your booty until you damn near get hip dysplasia.
Sexiness is a state of mind – a comfortable state of being. It’s about
loving yourself in your most unlovable moments.”
So with that, it may come as a surprise to find that Halle
lists pasta (“spaghetti is sexy, especially when it’s served off the tips of a
man’s fingers. I like that”), wine just before sex (“It relaxes me. But if I
want to get a serious groove on – if I want an out-of-body experience
– I’m all about the sloe-gin fizz”), undergarments (“I’m good-to-go in a
tank top and bare feet – although every woman should own at least one
good pair of pumps. That’s really the only wardrobe you need for sex: a tank
top and pumps.”) and forearms on a man among the things she finds sexy.
And if you’ve got a car and you’re Halle’s man, then you’ve
hit the jackpot, as that seems to also rank on her list. The reason?
“…because it smells like him, because his shape is pressed
into the seat, because it’s littered with little bits of his life – his
golf balls or his chocolate bar wrappers – and it’s ripe with the smells
of him. That’s the car I most want to ride in,” Berry told Esquire as she confirms that all the talk about women being
responsible for their own orgasms is “all true.”
“I wouldn’t let a man control that. Not anymore,” she said.
“Now I’d invite him to participate. I’ll tell you this: I’ve learned my tricks.
I know what I like. I do not wait around. I initiate. And I’m not all about
frequency. I favor intensity.”
To quote Morris Day from Purple Rain, “I think I’m gon’ need a drink.” I’ll be looking at
Illseed’s pics from the Esquire
shoot
if anybody needs me.
2. Robin Thicke Yearns for Self-Love
Like any singer, Robin Thicke appreciates the love he gets
from fans. But the crooner recently admitted to being without a different kind
of love when he admitted to wanting to be loved and needing love.
“Self-love, that’s what I been missing, sometimes I still
miss it; there’s nothing more powerful than self- love,” Thicke told The
Associated Press. “Because when we doubt
ourselves and doubt each other, it really just comes from I don’t have enough
confidence in myself to be good or be kind, so I have to be mean or be rude and
hold other people down and say, ‘You’re not good enough because you’re this and
that.’ But if you have self-love and self-confidence you normally give it out
more.”
Although I get what he’s saying, the struggle to me would be
a lot easier if I were making more than enough to pay my bills with a
successful singing career and beautiful wife like Paula Patton by my side to
support me. But since every other female celebrity is getting hitched or having
a baby, I guess I’ll have to settle on loving myself and the bill collectors
who think enough of me to send those late payment notices.
Love. Such a
beautiful thing. Yes it is. Eat your heart out Robin.
3. Salma Hayek Joins the Fight Against Tetanus
Being a mom is changing Salma Hayek for the better.
According to reports, the actress is joining the fight
against tetanus by supporting a partnership between Pampers and UNICEF. The
alliance seeks to eradicate tetanus in mothers and babies around the world
within four years. More than 50 million vaccines have been given to mothers and
babies in developing countries, where, according to UNICEF, tetanus kills up to
140,000 infants and 30,000 women each year.
The effects of the condition hit Hayek especially hard when
she met tetanus victims during a recent trip to Sierra Leone.
“One of the things that was very moving about the trip was
to see 15-year-old girls, really young, taking responsibility for their lives
and their children before they’re born by saying ‘I am going to be healthy, I
am going to take this vaccination,’” the movie star relayed to journalists at
the United Nations.
As part of the campaign, Pampers will give UNICEF the money
for one tetanus vaccine for every pack of specially marked diapers it sells
before the end of the year. The company expects its efforts will produce 70
million more vaccinations.
4. Tyler Perry Receives Star-Studded Support for Making
History
Playwright, filmmaker, entertainment mogul. Now history
maker. Tyler Perry added that label to his resume by becoming the first
African-American ever to launch his own major TV and film studio.
According to reports, Tyler Perry Studios will include more
than 200,000 square feet of studio and office space as well as five sound
stages that will be named after entertainment trailblazers Quincy Jones, Sidney
Poitier, Ruby Dee and Cicely Tyson. The fifth sound stage is currently unnamed.
Perry’s TBS sitcoms House of Payne and Meet
the Browns
will be shot at the studio aswell as other film projects.
The mogul officially launched his new studio on Saturday
(Oct. 4) with a star-studded soiree in Atlanta. Among the guests on hand for
the celebration were Will Smith and wife Jada Pinkett-Smith, Oprah Winfrey,
Poitier, Dee, Tyson, Louis Gossett, Jr., L.A. Reid, John Legend, America’s
Next Top Model winner Eva Pigford, Forest
Whitaker and Whitney Houston. Sports icons Hank Aaron and Barry Bonds.
Despite his latest achievement, The AP reports that Perry faces criticism from the Writers
Guild of America after firing four writers from House of Payne last week. Nevertheless, Will Smith couldn’t resist
making a case for change in light of Perry’s historic studio launch.
“This is an American first, and the first in the universe,”
the actor told People.com. “There is something happening in America and in the
world that’s powerful. He is not letting anyone get in his way. Those are the
wonderfully naive, arrogant, humble, powerfully American concepts that make
things powerful in this country. It’s big.”
Hats off to Mr. Perry for making major waves. Major moves in
entertainment and business. What’s next for aspiring history makers? The
Presidency of the United States? Hmmmmm.
5. R. Kelly Seeks Court-Assisted Payback
R. Kelly continues to play with fire. With all the cases
against him, it was only a matter of time before the vocalist struck a good
note with the courts.
E! Online reports that Kells was awarded nearly $3.4 million
in damages from concert promoter Leonard Rowe after a court-approved arbitrator
determined that Rowe had been selling investment shares in Kelly’s Double Up
tour without the embattled hitmaker’s permission. In addition, Rowe’s
Georgia-based company, Rowe Entertainment was also ordered to pay Kelly’s legal
bill for the lawsuit the singer filed in February.
With the new decision, Kells is looking to make sure he gets
everything he is due. According to Billboard, R. Kelly Touring, a company that represents the singer, filed court
documents Monday (Oct.6) in Los Angeles Superior Court that seeks a judge’s
confirmation of the $3.4 million award.
According to the suit, Kelly accuses Rowe Entertainment and
Leonard Rowe of failing to pay him several million dollars in tour proceeds in
full for shows scheduled for late last year and early 2008. Not surprisingly,
documents show Rowe disputed the arbitration but didn’t offer any defense
during a recent hearing.
With another court-related W under his belt, Kelly didn’t
hesitate to speak out on the decision via a statement released by his rep Allan
Mayer.
“I agreed to let Leonard Rowe promote my tour because he
convinced me he was an underdog who deserved a chance to prove himself,” the
statement read. “Like the saying goes, no good deed goes unpunished.”
Stay tuned for the next episode of When Good Artists and
Deeds Go Bad. Coming to a local bootlegger near you.
6. Beyoncé Goes
the Extra Mile for New Album, Drops Wedding Details
With a highly anticipated movie coming in December and
another one hitting theaters early next year, Beyoncé will be busy for a good
while. But the songstress continues to not know the meaning of the word “rest”
as she admitted to recording more than 70 songs for her forthcoming album in an
effort to create “a sound that reveals all of me.”
“I am in a different place right now and I wanted people to
see the many sides of me,” the 27-year-old diva wrote in a post on her official
website about the album, which comes out Nov. 18.
While people can get a preview of those sides with B’s newly
released singles, “If I Were a Boy” and “Single Ladies,” everyone is still
curious about her marriage to Jay-Z. Fortunately, Essence magazine came to the rescue
by getting Beyonce to drop details about the hush hush affair as well as her
and Jigga’s desire to maintain some type of privacy within their high profile
lives.
As for the wedding, it turns that out that the event was, as
Beyoncé put it, “very small and intimate.” And while she sports a rock on her
finger now, Mrs. Carter was adamant about not having an engagement ring as she
opted to get matching tattoos with Jay of the Roman numeral four on their ring
fingers to ensure that a mark of some form is there in case they have to remove
their rings.
Considering that Beyoncé’s birthday falls on Sept. 4 and
Jigga’s birthday is Dec. 4 and their wedding anniversary is April 4, I guess it’s
safe to say that the number 4 carries some weight. Let’s hope that age 44 for
Jay is not an omen for the couple’s demise.
7. Eva Mendes Continues Sexy Talk
Just a few Words ago, Eva Mendes triggered discussion when
she admitted to walking around the house in her birthday suit. Now the
34-year-old actress is weighing in again on all things sexy as she shared her
opinion about nudity in America in the November issue of the Spanish edition of
Vogue magazine. Let’s just say there’s
room for improvement in the US.
“I love my country, but I believe that we are too quick to
censor nudity,” Mendes said. “We seem okay with violence, but nudity we race to
criticize and censor. I’m not at all ashamed or frightened about showing my
body.”
I guess that can’t be too much of a shock, considering Eva
has no problem with being labeled a sex object among her fans and admirers,
provided it doesn’t become an obstacle for achieving bigger things.
“I love it, but it’s not important to me to always be
thought of as sexy,” she added. “I like it when it doesn’t limit my career.
It’s a part of my life, but on a secondary plane.”
Where is Hugh Hefner when you need him?