This might get a better reception than Zoe Saldana as Nina . Mike Epps is set to play comedian Richard Pryor in the new Nina Simone biopic. The 41-year-old funny man has landed the supporting role of comedian Richard Pryor in the upcoming Nina Simone film. Epps will play the comedian in the early 1960s when he would open the singer’s shows when they were both starting out. In her autobiography, Nina Simone recalled how she would calm down the comedian when he suffered from his terrible stage fright. According to The Hollywood Reporter, filming for ‘Nina’ begins this week in Los Angeles with Avatar star Zoe Saldana portraying the iconic jazz singer. Do you think Mike will be able to fill those huge comedic shoes? Source
This is going to ruin so many families and men in positions of power. Remember we reported on Alexis Wright last week?: The Zumba Hooker – Prosecutors in Maine say 29-year-old fitness instructor Alexis Wright was paid to have sex with customers in her Zumba studio. Wright is accused of having sex with dozens of men for money and sometimes videotaping the encounters.
Alexis Wright, a Zumba instructor in Maine, was charged this week with running a prostitution business out of her studio and secretly videotaping her encounters. Wright, 29, pleaded not guilty in Portland to 106 counts of prostitution, violation of privacy, tax evasion and other charges for allegedly providing sex for money. Alexis’ alleged business partner, 57-year-old Mark Strong Sr., pleaded not guilty to 59 counts of promotion of prostitution and violation of privacy. Prosecutors haven’t detailed why Wright was videotaping her encounters, but they gathered more than 100 hours of video and nearly 14,000 screen shots from seized computers. Police have begun issuing summons to Wright’s customers and will release the names. Townspeople in Kennebunk, Me., say they’ve heard that lawyers, doctors, law enforcement officials, a TV personality and other well-known people in town are connected. The superintendent of schools issued a memo to teachers and staff last week about students who have relatives on the list of names and may be teased or have trouble coping. Wright opened her Pura Vida fitness studio in 2010 teaching Zumba, a Latin-inspired fitness program that combines aerobics and dance, about 25 miles south of Portland. She later rented a one-room office across the street, above a hair salon and a flower store. That same year, an anonymous blog wrote that Wright was not who she claimed to be: “She’s living a double life and is a porn star. She may be a prostitute for all I know.” Police began investigating after hearing reports of cars coming to the studio and the office at all hours of the day and night and men going in for a half-hour or hour at a time. The landlord who rented the office space to Wright told investigators one of his tenants sometimes heard “moaning and groaning” coming from Wright’s office, the affidavit said. When the landlord checked the office himself, he found a massage table and a video camera on a tripod. He told police he later found an online porn video of Wright that was recorded in the office, which he recognized by the walls, the floor and the window. When police raided the studio and office in February, they seized electronic ledgers of sexual acts, video recordings and records of clients and the sexual acts performed by Wright. Police said that judging by what they found, Wright’s alleged sexual activities generated up to $150,000. Investigators said there was both a “business and personal” connection between Strong and the studio. Video footage showed Wright and Strong having sex, according to the affidavit.
Don’t make out of pocket statements about Janet’s love for MJ or she’ll slap your azz with legal action! According to Celebuzz: Janet Jackson has fired off a legal letter to Vanity Fair Editor in Chief Graydon Carter, demanding the publication retract allegations suggesting the music superstar delayed her late brother Michael’s funeral over a financial dispute. In excerpts from Randall Sullivan‘s upcoming book, Untouchable: The Strange Life and Tragic Death of Michael Jackson — and published in the esteemed Condé Nast magazine — it was alleged that Janet, 46, had delayed her sibling’s funeral over money owed relating to the burial plot deposit. “The article states that, according to Untouchable, Ms Jackson put down a $40,000 deposit to secure a burial plot for Michael Jackson but refused to let the funeral take place until that money was repaid. This is untrue,” Janet’s attorney Blair G. Brown wrote in the letter sent on October 5 and obtained by Celebuzz. “Ms. Jackson never delayed the funeral in anyway. In fact, she paid for the funeral and was reimbursed for some of those expenses by Michael Jackson’s estate in the year after the services took place.” Jackson, via her lawyer, added: “In addition, there were other private costs associated with Michael Jackson’s passing that Ms. Jackson incurred and for which she has never sought reimbursement. To falsely accuse Ms. Jackson of holding up her brother’s funeral over money is outrageous. This story is particularly hurtful and distressing because of Ms. Jackson’s strong desire to serve her brother, whom she loved dearly, and she wishes to stand with and support her family.” Brown said the damage to Jackson’s reputation was “exacerbated” because the article was republished by numerous media outlets around the world. “I demand that Vanity Fair retract its statement that Ms. Jackson “refused” to let Michael Jackson’s funeral take place until the money she put down as a deposition on his burial plot was repaid,” the lawyer said. “To the extend that this statement appears in excerpts of Untouchable published in Vanity Fair’s November 2012 issue, I demand that Vanity Fair publish a retraction explaining that the statement is false.” Brown also claimed: “The article is replete with additional false and defamatory statement regarding Ms. Jackson.” We really hope none of this bull is true. What do you think? Images via WENN
And this Ho had the nerve to plead “Not Guilty” in court?!?! The fitness freak ran a Zumba studio up in Maine, but here’s the catch; this trick was poppin’ it up in her office with “nutrition clients” on the reg. She’s alleged to have made $150k from prostitution in less than a month AND police copped some racy adult tapes she’s made with over 150 clients. According to the Daily Mail : A Zumba instructor has pleaded not guilty to charges that she ran a brothel from her fitness studio and secretly filmed illicit encounters with clients. Alexis Wright, 29, appeared in court today charged with 109 counts including prostitution and tax evasion. Miss Wright, of Wells, Maine, is alleged to have taped herself having sex with men who were unaware they were being filmed and kept meticulous books suggesting she made as much as $150,000 from prostitution. Police have issued summonses to Wright’s alleged 150 customers, some of whom are well-known, who visited the brothel at her Pura Vida studio in Kennebunk. Some clients were expected to be charged next week after police conducted a five-month investigation into the illegal goings-on at the gym. Anonymous tip-offs led police to the scandal occurring after hours at Pura Vida, according to the Bangor Daily News. Mark Strong Sr, a 57-year-old insurance agent and Wright’s alleged business partner, also pleaded not guilty to 59 counts of promoting prostitution, invasion of privacy, and conspiracy at the Portland courthouse. Strong’s lawyer, Daniel Lilley, said his client loaned money to Wright in the belief that her Zumba studio was a good business venture. SMH…we’re speechless. Images via facebook
