Dancing With the Stars returns to ABC in just a few weeks for another season of celebrities dancing for your entertainment. The show has got a bit long in the tooth in recent years. That’s kind of what happens when you’re on the air for over 10 years. With ratings sagging, producers are eager to right the ship and make the show more lucrative to ABC. The full cast announcement is expected to be released on August 30, 2016. We now know one of the names appearing on the show. That honor goes to Rick Perry . If you have no idea who the heck that is, don’t fret. We have you covered. Perry is a former Texas Governor, who was a Republican presidential candidate in both 2012 and 2016. Basically, he’s someone you’d expect to appear on the struggling competition series. There’s been a lot of rumblings recently about who else will be joining the show. There was word recently that Amber Rose had signed up and was allegedly causing drama from the get-go. View Slideshow: 11 Participants Who Peaced Out of Dancing with the Stars Say what you want about Amber, but she should have no trouble pulling in the younger demographics for the show. The producers will have known about her reputation for not taking BS from anyone, so that probably factored in their decision to pursue her. Another big name attached to the show is Ryan Lochte. He’s the idiot who fabricated what really went down in Rio. Ryan being part of the cast just screams desperation, but viewers will no doubt want to see what the dude is really like. All they need to do is watch the opening segment of What Would Ryan Lochte Do? and they’ll have their answer. View Slideshow: 16 Things Ryan Lochte Definitely Would Do With that said, Ryan needs to make some money in the wake of his endorsements falling through. Dude needs to stop lying. What do you think about the latest casting details for the show? Hit the comments! View Slideshow: Dancing with the Stars: All the Winners!
Shana Mangatal has a lot to say about Michael Jackson. And she swears it all comes from first-hand experience. The 46-year old has penned a book titled “Michael and Me: The Untold Story of Michael Jackson’s Secret Romance” in which she attempts to end certain rumors about the artist’s private life. Specifically, Mangatal says she knew Jackson intimately. She claims she slept with him on numerous occasions and that the iconic singer was very strongly into women. There has been chatter over the years, of course, regarding Jackson’s sexuality and whether he was actually attracted to the opposite gender. Mangatal says she met MJ in 1988, shared her first kiss with him at the age of 26 and slept with him several times in the summer of 1996. She also kept diaries of their experiences together. “After he passed away, it was really difficult for me to look at his pictures, watch his music videos or even listen to his music, so I definitely couldn’t read those diaries, until about, I’d say, a year or two ago, when I finally got the strength to do it,” Mangatal says . Jackson, of course, died in 2009 at the age of 50 from “ acute propofol intoxication .” Mangatal says her intent in publishing this book and including with it excerpts from her diary is so the public can think a “little bit differently about Michael and have a different perspective on him.” For example? “Anyone that I talk to, most of them believe that he was asexual, and I tell them no,” Mangatal explains . “All you have to do is spend five minutes with him, and you know instantly that he was not asexual. “He was quite the opposite, because he was extremely flirtatious – he was always flirting with me, at least. He could flip any conversation into something flirty. “From the very first day that I met him [as a fan] at the afterparty for his concert in New York, he was flirting with me… And from then on, I knew that there was more to him than meets the eye, because it was clear that he loved the ladies. “And he couldn’t hide it. Even if he tried to be child-like and innocent, he had that manly, macho thing in him that made him the flirtatious, sexy guy in real life.” Jackson was also accused through the years of molestation. Multiple lawsuits were brought against the singer that alleged he slept in the same bed as little children and touched them inappropriately. Mangatal scoffs at this notion. “When you were with Michael, and you saw him with kids, you saw the relationship, and it was just so pure and innocent,” she says. “It was really a wonderful thing to see, because … he became like a kid when he was with them. He was like a peer to them. So it was never like he was this adult preying on the children. “He was literally one of them. He loved playing what they loved to do, which was play video games, watch cartoons, talk about girls even.” This is the second time Mangatal has spoken out against accusations that Jackson was a child molester. She told Radar Online that numerous parents wanted their children to spend all this time with the legendary artist and he did not want to disappoint anybody. “His problem was that he couldn’t say no to anybody – especially kids,” she said this spring. “He was just so sweet and kind. He could never say no and when he finally did, parents would become upset.” Shana Mangatal now works as an actress and talent manager. Her book went on sale yesterday. Along with these personal tidbit, she also writes that Jackson was a master in marketing. When it came to his professional life, for example, Mangatal says Jackson was the person who came up with his nickname, the King of Pop. He insisted that others refer to him that way at awards shows or on MTV for a very specific reason: branding. Here is how Amazon describes her MJ-themed memoir: During her seven years working for Michael’s personal manager during the prolific period of the 1990s, Shana witnessed the scandals and the lawsuits, the release of groundbreaking albums and the subsequent world tours, the making of big-budget short films, and the addictions. It was through this business relationship that their trust and love for each other grew. Shana kept a meticulous diary throughout it all. Her story is rich with every little detail. Will you purchase it? Michael Jackson would have been 58 years old yesterday.
Taylor Swift is just like the rest of us. How so? The singing sensation was summoned for jury duty in Nashville. When do you ever hear of celebrities doing jury duty? Granted, it's probably something they keep quiet to conceal details of the case. This probably makes it super clear she did not ditch the MTV VMAs because of her arch nemesis, Kanye West. As much as Kanye would like to take credit for the hit maker steering clear of the awards show, it was out of her control. That's what happens when you get asked to do jury duty. Yes, Swift actually attended and gave all of the fellow jurors a huge shock in the process. How would you feel if you walked in to do jury duty and the one of the biggest stars on the planet was waiting to do the same thing? The mind really boggles. Everyone was probably pretty star-struck at the shock of crossing paths with Swift. Swift was happy to rise to the occasion and take selfies with the crowd. It even resulted in a video with her doing shout outs to the family members of one of the jurors. The video didn't stop there. She also gave out road safety advice to the family members. It's all pretty bizarre, but great at the same time. Alas, it wasn't all fun and games. Swift was excused from her duties after learning the severity of the crime. Ken Whitehouse, a spokesman for the Davidson County district attorney general’s office, said Swift couldn't take part due to her ongoing sexual assault lawsuit against David Mueller. “She asked to be left off out of concern for an upcoming trial in Denver where she was – she used the term – ‘groped’ by a fan at a meet-and-greet,” said Whitehouse. It makes sense for her to steer clear of the case given the circumstances. Maybe she recruited some new members to her squad while she was there. What do you think about all of this? Hit the comments below!
Kailyn Lowry’s divorce from Javi Marroquin continues to get uglier by the day as the ex-couple’s warring over social media continues. This time with a third party involved in the shade-throwing. Javi’s been running his mouth left and right, passive-aggressively telling anybody and everybody how Kailyn is to blame for the split. The Teen Mom 2 star recently gave an interview in which Javi says Kailyn knows what she did , strongly implying that she’s a cheater. Now Marroquin’s relationship with mutual friend Christina “Peach” Pietrobon (above) is once again being called into question – by Lowry. To recap: Javi and Kailyn are divorcing after separating while he was overseas with the U.S. Air Force. He moved out as soon as he returned. The status of their relationship these days is tense, at best. “Unless it has to do with the boys, we don’t talk. I have nothing to say to her,” he said of his soon-to-be ex-wife. “We co-parent, that’s it.” But he has plenty to say about her if you get him going at all. “I don’t wanna put too much out there, but she knows what she did. It’ll come out,” he told Us. “What’s done in the night will show in the light.” “It’ll all unravel. I just gotta keep my mouth shut and watch.” He didn’t go further than that in terms of naming names or specific things she did, but he did say she’s a different person these days: “To be honest, [Kailyn]’s changed a lot. I left for six months and a lot has changed, so sometimes I don’t even know if I know who she is.” “She’s living a different life than I thought we were going to.” Javi also claimed that Kailyn filed for divorce last December, but they worked it out … only she never actually nixed the divorce filing. He said that he figured it out while overseas, along with a lot of other things Kailyn allegedly been doing. Marroquin says he has proof. Enter Peach, the couple’s longtime friend. Javi raised more than a few eyebrows – and rumors of cheating with Kailyn’s best friend – after he returned from deployment this summer. “Missing @Javimarroquin9,” Peach wrote, as Marroquin responded, in tweets he had to know were flirty and would get under Kailyn’s skin: “So soon! So freaking soon!” Soon after Kailyn announced their divorce, Peach tweeted: “Really disappointed in you. You’ll blame someone for not being there yet you won’t even give them the chance to choose to be there.” “You decided for them when you neglected to tell them all the information to make their own decision,” she wrote in a scathing indictment. Fast forward to this week, when someone asked Javi why he and Peach – who are clearly close – don’t get together now that he’s single. He replied by saying that she’s just a friend, and therefore it would be weird … but Kailyn stepped in to say “they did date in high school.” Javi shut that down, as the latest war of words escalated: Peach agreed, then turned things around on Lowry, hard. She seemed to allude, as Javi has, that Kailyn was the one behind their marriage unraveling, telling a fan there is more to this. Specifically, that the fan isn’t ready for the “real” explanation: At that point, Kailyn clearly got nervous and tried to nix this. The mother of two hilariously chastised Peach to put a lid on it and that social media is “not the place” to air this dirty laundry. Pot … have you met kettle? You two should get together! The queen of passive-aggressive tweets and terrible communication skills giving lectures on social media tact is just hilarious: Bottom line: In all likelihood, this is going to get worse before it gets better, and we’ll have a front row seat online if nothing else. We really hope the MTV cameras are rolling for at least some of it, because we’re looking at ratings gold if ever there were any. Sure, it’s challenging to film a Twitter beef for TV, we realize. But even so, few things would make us want to watch Teen Mom 2 online more than watching their reactions to this on camera. As for Javi’s new girlfriend , he says she’s just a friend too. Guy either has a lot of female friends that he enjoys flirting with openly, or really enjoys needling the mother of his child … or both. Who says they have to be mutually exclusive?
Teyana Taylor is not a nobody. This singer/actress has been around for a number of years. But Teyana Taylor is about to become a somebody because Kanye West selected her to star in his “Fade” music video. With the star's stock on the significant rise, get to know Teyana Taylor a lot better right here and now… 1. This Is Not Her First Video Taylor starred back in 2007 in Jay Z’s “Blue Magic.” 2. She Has Hosting Experience Taylor was the woman in charge of America’s Best Dance Crew on Season 8. 3. She’s Engaged! With a Daughter! Taylor is engaged to NBA player Iman Shumpert. He appears in “Fade” with her. They agreed to marry in 2015 and have a daughter. 4. She Can Sing! Signed to Pharrell’s Star Trak Entertainment print, she left in January 2012 to join West’s GOOD Music label. Her debut album peaked at #10 on the Billboard 200. 5. She Can Act! In 2010, Taylor appeared in the sequel of Stomp the Yard, titled Stomp the Yard 2: Homecoming, which was released in August. She also made an appearance on the first episode of House of Glam on Oxygen, which aired in October of this same year. 6. She Loves Lil Kim! Taylor was one of the numerous artists who saluted Lil Kim at VH1 Hip Hop Honors in June of 2016. View Slideshow
The late, great Michael Jackson, who passed away long before his time on June 25, 2009, would have been 58 years old today. The defining entertainer of his generation and beyond, Michael’s groundbreaking music and cultural impact are literally peerless. He forever changed the music landscape, inspiring countless artists, breaking every record and leaving an unparalleled legacy. Long before Jackson passed away, but even more so after he did, his work became as iconic, and his personal life was eccentric. If you’re looking for scandals, controversy and crazy stories that are uniquely, well, Michael Jackson, you need not look very far. Fans remember him for his music and compassion, however; MJ’s charitable contributions were almost as numerous as his #1 hits. Most of all, he would surely like to be remembered for raising Prince, Blanket and Paris Jackson, who feel his loss most deeply. Here’s wishing his family and friends the best on this occasion, which has given way to celebrations of MJ for his last eight birthdays. In the hopes that they find peace and think fondly of the man, we hope he may find peace in the way fans come together in his honor.
Colin Kaepernick is not a very good NFL quarterback any longer. He was benched last year by the San Francisco 49ers in favor or Blaine Gabbert. That says it all. This statement really isn’t up for debate. But the 28-year old has stirred a significant national debate after he refused on Friday night to stand during the pre-game playing of the Star-Spangled Banner. The controversial incident took place prior to a preseason game against the Green Bay Packers. Here is a look at Kaepernick on the bench while his country was being honored He’s sitting underneath that giant arrow: What prompted Kaepernick to make this decision? He says it was a matter of conscience, of doing something that would call attention to the plight of African-Americans. “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” Kaepernick told NFL Media. “To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. “There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.” Kaepernick did not get into specifics, but he is most likely talking about the rash of African-American deaths at the hands of police officers over the past several months. It’s a topic many professional athletes are starting to raise, with Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James opening this year’s ESPY Awards by making a plea for racial harmony. For many, these deadly and dangerous issues culminated in June and July with the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile at the hands of police officers. Both black men lost their lives in confrontations with the police, seemingly in needless, irresponsible fashion. These deaths were followed by the killing of five cops in Dallas by a deranged sniper. The 49ers, meanwhile, issued a statement about Kaepernick’s stance. It reads as follows: “The national anthem is and always will be a special part of the pre-game ceremony. It is an opportunity to honor our country and reflect on the great liberties we are afforded as its citizens. “In respecting such American principles as freedom of religion and freedom of expression, we recognize the right of an individual to choose and participate, or not, in our celebration of the national anthem.” And Niners Head Coach Chip Kelly told reporters on Saturday that Kaepernick’s choice not to stand during the national anthem is “his right as a citizen” and said “it’s not my right to tell him not to do something.” The move has created quite a bit of controversy. Many appreciate Kaepernick calling attention to a pressing national topic such as this. Aren’t we always asking athletes to use their platforms for something bigger than sports? Didn’t we just celebrate the life of Muhammed Ali? Possibly the most revered and respected athlete of all-time, Ali refused to be drafted into the United States Army during the Vietnam War. He basically spat on his country at the time for its racist tendencies and misguided international policies. Critics of Kaepernick, however, are saying such asinine things as college basketball analyst Doug Gottlieb. He Tweeted the following in response to this controversy: First, the entire point here is that Kaepernick is thinking above and beyond himself. Shouldn’t he be applauded, not criticized, for putting societal problems ahead of his paycheck? What Gottlieb (and others who have written similar things such as this) are essentially saying is that a black man should stay quiet because a very rich white man is paying him a lot of money to do his job… which, in the end, is making that rich white man a lot more money. We have no doubt Kaepernick is grateful for his situation and well aware that America is the best country on Earth. We also hope he’s doing a lot more about the racial strife in this country that just sitting down during the national anthem. But are people really saying that it’s more patriotic to simply stand up during the playing of a song than to make a gesture that aims to help bring about equality? Because that belief is just ridiculous.
Colin Kaepernick is not a very good NFL quarterback any longer. He was benched last year by the San Francisco 49ers in favor or Blaine Gabbert. That says it all. This statement really isn’t up for debate. But the 28-year old has stirred a significant national debate after he refused on Friday night to stand during the pre-game playing of the Star-Spangled Banner. The controversial incident took place prior to a preseason game against the Green Bay Packers. Here is a look at Kaepernick on the bench while his country was being honored He’s sitting underneath that giant arrow: What prompted Kaepernick to make this decision? He says it was a matter of conscience, of doing something that would call attention to the plight of African-Americans. “I am not going to stand up to show pride in a flag for a country that oppresses black people and people of color,” Kaepernick told NFL Media. “To me, this is bigger than football and it would be selfish on my part to look the other way. “There are bodies in the street and people getting paid leave and getting away with murder.” Kaepernick did not get into specifics, but he is most likely talking about the rash of African-American deaths at the hands of police officers over the past several months. It’s a topic many professional athletes are starting to raise, with Carmelo Anthony, Chris Paul, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James opening this year’s ESPY Awards by making a plea for racial harmony. For many, these deadly and dangerous issues culminated in June and July with the deaths of Alton Sterling and Philando Castile at the hands of police officers. Both black men lost their lives in confrontations with the police, seemingly in needless, irresponsible fashion. These deaths were followed by the killing of five cops in Dallas by a deranged sniper. The 49ers, meanwhile, issued a statement about Kaepernick’s stance. It reads as follows: “The national anthem is and always will be a special part of the pre-game ceremony. It is an opportunity to honor our country and reflect on the great liberties we are afforded as its citizens. “In respecting such American principles as freedom of religion and freedom of expression, we recognize the right of an individual to choose and participate, or not, in our celebration of the national anthem.” And Niners Head Coach Chip Kelly told reporters on Saturday that Kaepernick’s choice not to stand during the national anthem is “his right as a citizen” and said “it’s not my right to tell him not to do something.” The move has created quite a bit of controversy. Many appreciate Kaepernick calling attention to a pressing national topic such as this. Aren’t we always asking athletes to use their platforms for something bigger than sports? Didn’t we just celebrate the life of Muhammed Ali? Possibly the most revered and respected athlete of all-time, Ali refused to be drafted into the United States Army during the Vietnam War. He basically spat on his country at the time for its racist tendencies and misguided international policies. Critics of Kaepernick, however, are saying such asinine things as college basketball analyst Doug Gottlieb. He Tweeted the following in response to this controversy: First, the entire point here is that Kaepernick is thinking above and beyond himself. Shouldn’t he be applauded, not criticized, for putting societal problems ahead of his paycheck? What Gottlieb (and others who have written similar things such as this) are essentially saying is that a black man should stay quiet because a very rich white man is paying him a lot of money to do his job… which, in the end, is making that rich white man a lot more money. We have no doubt Kaepernick is grateful for his situation and well aware that America is the best country on Earth. We also hope he’s doing a lot more about the racial strife in this country that just sitting down during the national anthem. But are people really saying that it’s more patriotic to simply stand up during the playing of a song than to make a gesture that aims to help bring about equality? Because that belief is just ridiculous.
Maine Gov. Paul LePage left a profane voicemail for a state lawmaker asking him to “prove that I'm a racist” after accusations to that effect. LePage, a Republican, left the voicemail for Democratic State Rep. Drew Gattine on Thursday, according to the Portland Press Herald. The uncensored audio (below) contains several explicit phrases. A bombastic politician and one who does not mince words, the 67-year-old is a frequent target of criticism and magnet for controversy. Earlier this week, LePage doubled down on comments he has made in the past about the racial background of drug dealers in Maine. He infamously said that “90-plus percent … are black and Hispanic people” in remarks that went viral and caused a media firestorm. Subsequently, Gattine was identified by local media as having called LePage racist, though for his part, Gattine denies having doing so. In any case, LePage let him have it on his voicemail … “Mr. Gattine, this is Gov. Paul Richard LePage,” he says. “I would like to talk to you about your comments about my being a racist, you (expletive).” “I want to talk to you. I want you to prove that I'm a racist. I've spent my life helping black people and you little (expletive), socialist (expletive).” “You … I need you to … just friggin' … I want you to record this and make it public because I am after you. Thank you.” Be careful what you wish for? LePage apologized for the voicemail Friday, but said being labeled a racist is “the absolute worst, most vile thing you can call a person.” “I didn't know Drew Gattine from a hole in the wall until yesterday,” LePage said, and the accusation “made me enormously angry.” “When a TV reporter asked me for my reaction about Gattine calling me a racist … I called Gattine and used the worst word I could think of.” “I apologize for that to the people of Maine, but I make no apology for trying to end the drug epidemic that is ravaging our state.” On Thursday, the governor reportedly took credit for leaving the voicemail, and said he would like to challenge Gattine to a duel. “When a snot-nosed little guy from Westbrook calls me a racist, now I'd like him to come up here because, tell you right now, I wish it were 1825.” “And we would have a duel, that's how angry I am, and I would not put my gun in the air, I guarantee you, I would not be (Alexander) Hamilton.” “I would point it right between his eyes.” “[Gattine] is a snot-nosed little runt and he has not done a damn thing since he's been in this Legislature to help move the state forward.” Friday, LePage walked back the idea of shooting his political rival, saying that “Obviously, it is illegal today; it was simply a metaphor.” “I meant no physical harm to Gattine.” Maine Democratic Party Chairman Phil Bartlett called LePage's remarks a “threat” and said he is “clearly unfit to lead our state.” Interestingly, LePage is an outspoken supporter of Donald Trump, who was slammed after suggesting someone assassinate Hillary Clinton . Here's the voicemail in question:
He made her look like a total ass hat on The Real Housewives of New York , but LuAnn de Lesseps still wants to marry fiance Tom D'Agostino Jr . Entertainment Tonight had a sit-down with de Lesseps at her Hamptons home, where they discussed her relationship with D'Agostino and where they stand after he was caught kissing another woman days after proposing to the reality star. The revelation unfolded on camera , with de Lesseps pacing back and forth in a hotel room, furious as her future husband (whom she had dated for about 6 minutes before he proposed), admitted that he done wrong. It turns out that all is forgiven, and the wedding is still on. “We love each other,” de Lesseps told ET. “I always say if you can't forgive the people you love, then who can you forgive? … I'm not going to let a silly kiss ruin the rest of our lives.” The couple's talk made de Lesseps wonder if they should move forward with wedding plans, but…nah. It was just a dumb mistake. “If he was trying to hide something would he really be in public? In the middle of the Regency Hotel? Kissing somebody?” she asked. “I think he was just being stupid, and people make mistakes.” Oh, girl. Come on. “I think the key is to know and believe that someone is truly remorseful and somebody truly made a mistake, that there was no premeditation,” she continued. “I think it was not premeditated — I think it was a silly move and something that he feels really terrible about, and that meant really nothing to him.” The Countess and Mr. Kissing Bandit plan to wed in Palm Beach on New Year's Eve. While de Lesseps confirmed that co-star Sonja Morgan is on the invite list, she's not so sure about those other bitches. “I’m still working on my guest list,” she claimed. “This is the most exciting time of my life, getting married again after all this time. I am thrilled. I am not going to let what has happened on the show ruin the most exciting time of my life.” Translation: Ramona “Stinger” Singer is not invited. As for Bethenny Frankel? She's on de Lesseps' shit list for not coming straight to her with evidence that D'Agostino cheated. “She should’ve talked to me first,” she told People Magazine. “Not the other women, not tried to call Tom, but talk to me. I find that very bizarre. It’s terrible. “That’s not somebody who has your best interest in mind – that’s someone who has their own agenda. [They] don’t have my back.” I don't usually say this, but I agree with the Countess.
