Upholding his reputation as the Justin Bieber of the college football world, Johnny Manziel is at the center of yet another scandal. And this one may take away his eligibility for the upcoming season. An autograph broker on eBay spoke to ESPN’s Joe Schad on the condition of anonymity and said Maziel’s personal assistant approached him last season to let him know the quarterback now required compensation in exchange for his signature. Johnny Manziel Autograph Signing Controversy This broker’s account follows a report by Outside the Lines yesterday which states the NCAA is looking into whether Manziel was paid for signing numerous items in January, with sources claiming he received a five-figure flat fee during his trip to Miami for the BCS title game. According to NCAA Bylaw 12.5.2.1, accepting money for promoting or advertising the commercial sale of a product or service makes one ineligible to play college football. Texas A&M Head Coach Kevin Sumlin told reporters that that “our university is doing its due diligence to find out the facts” regarding the latest Manziel scandal. Over the last couple months, Manziel was kicked out of a Texas fraternity party and possibly posed with a blunt-holding Heisman Trophy .
Anthony Davis and his Unibrow are on the come up It’s hard to not talk about NCAA champ Anthony Davis without mentioning his attention slorin’ unibrow. Now, after raising some major eyebrows over the course of his college hoops career, Davis seems destined to be the #1 pick in the 2012 NBA Draft but is still making smart business decisions when it comes to his infamous facial hair. Davis, known for his connected eyebrows, trademarked the phrases “Fear The Brow” and “Raise The Brow” earlier this month. “I don’t want anyone to try to grow a unibrow because of me and then try to make money off of it,” Davis told CNBC. “Me and my family decided to trademark it because it’s very unique.” Davis said that people frequently tell him to cut it, but Davis said he won’t because “everyone’s talking about it.” During Davis’ freshman year at Kentucky, where he led the Wildcats to a National Championship, Davis didn’t capitalize on all the “Brow” merchandise that was being sold due to NCAA rules which would compromise his eligibility. The school kept a close eye on merchants that selling any “Brow” merchandise. So, don’t worry about that signature brow going anywhere too soon. When asked if a razor company could pay him to shave off his unibrow, Davis says that’s not going to happen. “I might have a commercial where I’m acting like I’m shaving it and then throw I’ll the razor down.” We can’t even hate on this savvy business decision! Gillette and Schick, cross at least one athlete off your list. Source
Day after Decemberists withdrew support, breast cancer charity announces it has reinstated funding for PP health centers. By Gil Kaufman Much like Congress rethought its decision after the outpouring of public anger over the anti-piracy SOPA and PIPA (Personal Information Protection Act) acts, the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation had a change of heart on Friday (February 3) after intense criticism for its decision to stop funding Planned Parenthood initiatives. Komen, the organization behind the popular pink-ribbon campaign, announced on Tuesday that it would stop funding breast cancer prevention, screening and education at Planned Parenthood health centers — a decision Planned Parenthood claimed was in response to pressure from pro-life groups. Over the past five years, PP centers with Komen program funding have provided nearly 170,000 clinical breast exams out of the more than 4 million exams performed nationwide at PP health centers, as well as more than 6,400 mammogram referrals out of 70,000 total referrals, according to PP. Following the firestorm of controversy over the decision, the founder and CEO of the nation’s largest breast-cancer advocacy group said on Friday that the group would work to change the criteria that sparked the outcry. “We will continue to fund existing grants, including those of Planned Parenthood, and preserve their eligibility to apply for future grants,” Nancy G. Brinker said in a statement . “We want to apologize to the American public for recent decisions that cast doubt upon our commitment to our mission of saving women’s lives.” Brinker went further, acknowledging that the original decision to pull funding was done for “political reasons, or specifically to penalize Planned Parenthood.” In the wake of the public furor, Komen’s director of community health programs resigned in protest over the decision. In addition, 26 U.S. senators had signed a letter this week asking Komen to reconsider its withdrawal decision. One of the leading artistic voices of dissent over the initial Komen withdrawal from Planned Parenthood were the Decemberists. The band had worked with Komen since the band’s keyboardist, Jenny Conlee, had revealed her breast cancer diagnosis. When news broke on Tuesday that Komen had pulled funding for breast cancer examinations at PP, the Decemberists redirected the funds from their “Team Jenny” T-shirt to PP. On their website , they explained, “The Decemberists are deeply troubled by Komen for the Cure’s recent decision to cut off funding to Planned Parenthood, a vital resource in the battle against breast cancer. Providing cancer screenings to low income women is integral to the prevention and defeat of breast cancer and it is unconscionable that Komen should politicize this very important issue by bowing to the fear campaign being waged against PP by the right.” On Friday, the band added an update to their initial posting, writing, “The Decemberists are pleased that Komen for the Cure reversed their decision.”
It looks like Donald Trump gave a bold new voice to the birther movement… A series of television ads are now in production that question Barack Obama’s eligibility as President of the United States. World Net Daily reported: Two-time No. … Continue reading → Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : Gateway Pundit Discovery Date : 28/03/2011 06:11 Number of articles : 2
It looks like Donald Trump gave a bold new voice to the birther movement… A series of television ads are now in production that question Barack Obama’s eligibility as President of the United States. World Net Daily reported: Two-time No. … Continue reading → Broadcasting platform : YouTube Source : Gateway Pundit Discovery Date : 28/03/2011 06:11 Number of articles : 2
Summit Entertainment is optimistic Twilighters will spend summer weekdays in theaters. By Eric Ditzian Taylor Lautner and Robert Pattinson in “Eclipse” Photo: Summit With the six-day, holiday-weekend domestic box-office gross of “Eclipse” on the books — officially $176.4 million — numbers conversation of the moment turned to one tricky question: Would the latest installment of the “Twilight” franchise ultimately defeat “New Moon” and its $296.6 million haul last year? Inside the halls of Summit Entertainment, executives are confident that “Eclipse” — though it fell just short of the six-day total of “New Moon” — will eventually rank as the top-grossing “Twilight” film. At least, that is, until the first part of “Breaking Dawn” drops in November 2011. “I think we have a real good shot at it after this first week,” Summit’s distribution head Richie Fay told MTV News. “We’re not disappointed in this gross at all. It’s where we expected to be, and it hopefully gets us north of ‘New Moon.’ ” Potentially helping Summit get there is the idea that a summer release date, at a time when schools are no longer trapping Twi-hards in math class, will increase weekday grosses. But it’s not entirely clear that such a tactic is working out. “Eclipse” grossed over $10 million this Tuesday, according to Fay, which is roughly what “New Moon,” which opened on a Friday, took in on the Monday after its opening weekend. Of course, conclusions cannot be drawn after just one day, and exact comparisons are difficult to make in general, owing to the different seasons and days of each film’s release. After seven days, “New Moon” and “Eclipse” are roughly equal in terms of total box office sales. The key will be to see how “Eclipse” fares in the next few days and how it performs in its second weekend. “New Moon” was a notoriously frontloaded release — earning 48 percent of its total gross on its opening weekend — and dropped 70 percent during its second weekend. If “Eclipse” can bump sales this week and avoid a precipitous second weekend drop, the film will be well on its way to topping “New Moon.” Yet at Summit, the focus is not so much on a race to first place as it is on a continued dedication to serving a fervid fanbase. “If we lost the audience to some degree over the weekend to barbeques and fireworks, they will probably come back,” Fay said. “It’s kind of like a tsunami audience. As soon as they’ve finished viewing ‘New Moon’ in the theaters, then the DVD comes out, and right after that, ‘Eclipse’ comes out. We’re servicing that audience very nicely.” Check out everything we’ve got on “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse.” For young Hollywood news, fashion and “Twilight” updates around the clock, visit HollywoodCrush.MTV.com . Related Videos ‘Eclipse’ Hits New York City Related Photos “Eclipse” Premieres In Los Angeles ‘Eclipse’ Premieres Around The World
The Recording Academy will allow previous nominees to be eligible for Best New Artist. By Mawuse Ziegbe Lady Gaga Photo: Kristian Dowling/ Getty Images Lady Gaga’s wildly successful entry into the music scene actually hampered her chances of scoring a Grammy nomination for Best New Artist this year because of the Recording Academy’s previous eligibility guidelines. Although Gaga had a major 2009, following the chart-topping success of her debut album The Fame , her earlier nod for Best Dance Recording for “Just Dance” barred the star from being considered for Best New Artist at the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards. In light of the Gaga situation, the Recording Academy has announced that artists who have received previous nominations may still be eligible for the Best New Artist trophy. “If an artist/group is nominated (but does not win) for the release of a single or as a featured artist or collaborator on a compilation or other artist’s album before the artist/group has released an entire album (and becomes eligible in this category for the first time), the artist/group may enter this category in the eligibility year during which his/her/their first album is released,” the academy said in a statement . The academy also acknowledged that the changes reflect the fact that many artists appear as featured guests on hit singles before releasing a full-length debut. “More and more, the first release of a new artist is as a featured artist on someone else’s album, or the new artist may release a single long before the release of his/her/their entire first album. By current rules, if the other artist’s album or the new artist’s single receives a nomination, the new artist may never have the opportunity to compete in the Best New Artist category,” the statement continued. “With this change, each artist will have at least one opportunity to enter in this important and highly visible category.” According to The Associated Press , academy President Neil Portnow acknowledged that the Gaga oversight was a factor in changing the eligibility requirements. “There will be some changes so that particular situation won’t repeat itself,” Portnow said. The changes will immediately go into effect and will be reflected in the nominations for the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards in 2011. Related Photos Lady Gaga’s Homecoming Show At Madison Square Garden Related Artists Lady Gaga
“Hey Bill, I view this entire debate as esoteric. It’s as esoteric as arguing about the eligibility of Chester Alan Arthur well over a century after he served as president,” said Hayworth, referring to the 19th-century president whose detractors would spread rumors that he was born in Canada. “Look, Barack Obama’s the 44th president of the United States. His election was certified. I believe he was born in Hawaii. I made certain statements on the air to — to provoke conversation. That’s what happens in broadcasting.” Did Hayworth just admit that he only pretended to support the birther movement to get more listeners for his radio program? You can almost hear teabagger heads exploding all over Arizona.
