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THG Week in Review: May 13-19, 2012
May 19th
Welcome to THG’s Week in Review! Below, our staffers look back at the stories, stars and scandals that made the last seven days some of the craziest ALL MONTH.
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Now, a rundown of the week that was at The Hollywood Gossip:
- Queen of Disco Donna Summer died at the age of 63.
- Fellow music great Chuck Brown also passed, at 75.
- Mitchell Guist of Swamp People fame passed away.
- As did Mary Kennedy, estranged wife of RFK, Jr.
- Did Justin Bieber break up with Selena Gomez? He may have.
- Two backed off, but one new John Travolta accuser emerged.
- There’s a (self) Tyson Beckford sex tape on the way soon.
- Lady Gaga was banned in Indonesia for some reason.
- Is Miley Cyrus too thin?
- Teen Mom’s Jenelle Evans and Gary Head are engaged somehow.
- Should Rob and Kristen star in the 50 Shades of Grey film?
- What about Nina Dobrev and Ian Somerhalder from TVD?
- Nominations for the Teen Choice Awards 2012 are out.
- Aubrey O’Day got canned on Celebrity Apprentice.
The Bachelorette Preview
- The Bachelorette spoilers hint at an interesting summer to come.
- The Khloe and Lamar season finale was quite an emotional one.
- Aimee Copeland will survive her fight with flesh-eating bacteria.
- Torika Watters, Miss Fiji, is losing her crown due to her age.
- Phillip Phillips will battle Jessica Sanchez for the Idol crown.
Jay-Z on Gay Marriage
- Jay-Z came out in support of President Obama and gay marriage.
- Kim Kardashian and Kanye West came out and … kissed a lot.
- The Trayvon Martin autopsy report raised additional debate.
- Amber Portwood was jailed, again, for violating probation.
- You can check her out in the Teen Mom trailer (below):
Teen Mom Trailer
What was the highlight of the week for you? Did we leave anything out?
Phillip Phillips vs. Jessica Sanchez: Who Will Win?
May 19th
We’re down to two on American Idol. The final two. Phillip Phillips and Jessica Sanchez.
One is a young white male who is easy on the eyes and plays the guitar. In other words: the same exact pedigree as the last four winners.
The other has a beautiful voice and hasn’t been afraid all year long of tacking such major artists as Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. She’s responsible for the single most memorable American Idol performance of the season.
Either would be a worthy champion. Only one will wear the crown next Thursday night.
Who do you want it to be?
Miley Cyrus to Sexist Clothing Critics: Thank You!
May 18th
Miley Cyrus isn’t one to dress conservatively, and, for that, the singer isn’t about to apologize. Quite the opposite, in fact.
During an interview on Lifetime’s The Conversation With Amanda de Cadenet,” when asked about her the reception she’s received in the past for provocative attire, Miley said:
“I take it as a compliment. Thank you for thinking I’m sexy!”
Cyrus adds that she was shocked by the backlash when she started donning skimpier outfits, highlighted by outrage over a Vanity Fair photo shoot in 2008.
“People are so scared of seeing a woman being like, ‘This is who I am and you’re not going to change it,’” she said.
That attitude also led to the release of “Can’t Be Tamed” and its accompanying, R-rated music video.
“Even just the title of that, for a woman to say she can’t be tamed… for a woman in the world with my face saying ‘I can’t be tamed’ when that’s really all people wanted to do, I think proves how sexist people still really are,” she believes.
That’s certainly an interesting take. Miley, meanwhile, has found herself the talk of the gossip world again this week: Do you think she’s too thin?
Facebook IPO: Stock Falters, Still Raises $16 Billion
May 18th
Call it the most disappointing $16 billion raised in investment history.
Facebook stock is off to a rocky start after its highly anticipated initial public offering (IPO), jumping more than 10 percent in the first few minutes of trading before sellers swept into the market and that gain evaporated.
“The stock is trading right at the IPO price,” one expert told the L.A. Times. “They didn’t want that in a million years. A traditional IPO is up 10% or 15%.”
The stock most recently hovered at about $40, only $2 above what shares were priced at late Thursday. Shares touched $38 multiple times during trading.
Investors also had to deal with a nearly three-hour delay for the stock to open. The Nasdaq kept the stock halted as it processed a crush of buy and sell orders.
The inauspicious opening after the Facebook IPO suggests that retail investors paid close attention to reports of soft financials and big selling by insiders.
Still, Facebook raised $16 billion in what will go down as the third-largest public offering in U.S. history and the biggest ever for a technology company.
Could be worse, right? Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg rang the Nasdaq opening bell from company headquarters in Menlo Park, Calif.
Eduardo Saverin, one of the company’s co-founders, made news this week by giving up U.S. citizenship as a means of limiting his tax liability.
Sean Penn Rips "The Whole F–king World" For Abandoning Haiti
May 18th
Sean Penn isn’t a fan of us right now. Or you, or anyone else.
On Friday at the Cannes Film Festival, the actor-activist slammed the media and public for abandoning Haiti after the devastating earthquake in 2010.
“It’s not only celebrities who went for a day,” Penn told reporters of his perceived injustice. “It’s the whole f–king world. It’s all of you. The reason we have ‘Haiti fatigue’ is because there was never a commitment in the first place.”
A vocal proponent of humanitarian aid, Penn also called upon President Barack Obama to meet with Haiti’s newly elected president Michel Joseph Martelly.
“It’s time our elegant, formidable president stood side by side with Martelly,” he said.
The outspoken actor was part of a news conference with Petra Nemcova and director Paul Haggis, all of whom work with nonprofit organizations in Haiti.
The trio joined forces for a benefit for the country at the famed cinema gathering.
Photo: WENN.com
Phillip Phillips: Urged to Seek Medical Help
May 18th
Might the success of Phillip Phillips on American Idol be jeopardizing his health? Without a doubt, YES, according to the singer’s doctors.
TMZ reports that the finalist’s physicians are adamant: Phillips needs surgery to repair a kidney issue as soon as possible. His family doctor even spent the entire day last Saturday – during Phillip’s Idol-sponsored trip home to Georgia – by the contestant’s side.
But Phillips would be sidelines for six weeks if he underwent the recommended procedure, so he is choosing to soldier on through at least next Thursday’s American Idol finale.
In the meantime, Phillip is simply taking medication, but that’s also resulting in dry mouth and possibly impacting his singing. Either way, though, win or lose, the talented young man’s journey will come to an end in one week.
Who do you think should win American Idol?
Amber Portwood Released From Jail, Has a Lot on Plate
May 18th
Amber Portwood has been released from jail. She got sprung yesterday.
The troubled Teen Mom star was placed back behind bars last week after violating the terms of her probation by failing to appear in an Indiana court.
The 22-year-old allegedly lied about a medical condition to get out of a drug test. Her probation officer called the bluff, asking her doctor directly.
Some very sleepy-eyed Amber Portwood mug shots soon followed.
How’s the reality star feeling now that she’s back on the other side?
“OK,” Amber told E! News. “Just hustling. I’ve got a lot on my plate.”
Naturally.
According to her brother, Shawn Portwood, Amber’s “new goal is to join the military.” Yes, apparently he’s serious. “She was going to work hard to get her charge reduced,” added Shawn. “She’s been doing so well.”
The
Kourtney Kardashian: Pregnant! And Betrayed! Twice!
May 18th
pregnant and abandoned.
However, according to a pair of tabloid cover stories this week, Kourtney Kardashian is pregnant… and betrayed! It’s a darn shame, isn’t it?
Naturally, Kris Jenner has already spoken out against rumors that Kourtney kicked out baby daddy Scott Disick and that E! cameras caught the blowup for an upcoming Keeping Up with the Kardashians episode.
“None of it is true,” Kris tells E! News of talk that Disick is actually hiding sex tapes from his girlfriend and skipped out on her baby shower May 12 because the couple was fighting.
One thing is for certain: we’ll be hearing a lot more about this when season seven of this scripted series premieres on Sunday. Another thing is also for certain: if you care one iota, you need to take a very long look in the mirror.
Will Smith Shoves Mouthy Reporter in Moscow
May 18th
condoms on the red carpet, but Will Smith experienced his own unusual situation during a movie premiere press line this week.
The actor was in Moscow on behalf of Men in Black III when a reporter from the Ukraine embraced the star with a hug… and then tried to follow that up with a kiss on the lips.
“He’s lucky I didn’t sucker punch him,” Smith is heard telling someone else soon afterward, though he responds very well from the saliva-based attack and is quickly seen below laughing about it.
It’s hard to blame Smith for his initial, surprised reaction, though, isn’t it? Watch it all unfold now:
Will Smith Shoves Reporter
Obama Divorce Story: New Book Claims Michelle Nearly Left Barack in 2000
May 18th
The controversial new biography of President Barack Obama claims that his wife, Michelle Obama, planned to leave the future president in 2000.
Is the divorce story real? Is anything in the book?
The unauthorized biography, which Klein claims is based on nearly 200 interviews, has been dismissed by presidential spokesperson Eric Schultz.
“Ed Klein has a proven history of reckless fabrication in order to sell books,” he said. “Nobody in their right mind would believe the nonsense in this one.”
Nevertheless, the Obama divorce story is the latest revelation in the book – which also discusses his ex Genevieve Cook – to generate major buzz.
In The Amateur: Barack Obama in the White House, out this week, Klein claims the divorce nearly happened eight years into the Obamas’ marriage.
After Obama failed to listen to his wife’s warnings in challenging Bobby Rush for his U.S. House seat in 2000 and got creamed, their relationship cooled.
“During the dark days that followed his defeat, he turned to Michelle for comfort. But she was in no mood for sympathy,” Klein reportedly writes.
“He had refused to listen to her warnings about taking on Rush.”
The primary left them in debt and Barack depressed, Klein claims. “Michelle actually had divorce papers drawn up,” he writes, citing one of her friends.
“Obama was so depressed that some of his friends worried that he was suicidal,” the book adds, without elaboration on that particular point.
Obama, of course, was still in the Illinois State Senate, and went on to win a U.S. Senate seat in 2004 that helped establish his national credentials.
But Michelle almost vetoed the Senate race, too.
Northwestern University professor Steven Rogers told Klein that Obama talked about his ambition after they met at a golf fund-raiser.
“My wife will not allow me to run for the Senate until I clear up the debts from my unsuccessful run for Congress,” Obama said, according to Rogers.
Photo: WENN.com