Howard Stern has an important message for parents around the world: he has no intention of turning your children into sex fiends. The new America’s Got Talent judge issued this missive during an appearance on Piers Morgan Tonight, in response to criticism leveled at NBC for hiring the lesbian-loving radio host. The PTC thinks “I’m some sort of weird pervert who’s going to convert America into some kind of zombie sex fiends,” he told the man he’s replacing, adding: “I can assure you and the rest of America what I’m looking at here is to be a very good judge. To sit there, I take it seriously, you know I watched the show.” Stern is a father who is actually quite protective of children. He even questions those who place theirs on the America’s Got Talent stage. “I raised three daughters and I don’t think that that would be appropriate. But there are parents out there who think it’s a good idea. And you got to be damn sure that this is a wise decision before you do it, because not only are you putting a kid out there, to be judged, but – you know, if a kid really does have talent, you do need time to nurture that talent, develop that talent.” Do you think Stern will make a good judge?
J.R. Martinez capped off an incredible 2011 with a Dancing With the Stars title. How can he ever top that heading into 2012? By becoming a father, for one. He and girlfriend Diana Gonzalez-Jones are expecting their first child! “We found out just last week it’s a girl and we are over the moon,” the 28-year-old Iraq War veteran, actor and motivational speaker confirmed to People . “Diana has a little baby bump now and it’s the cutest thing ever. With the holidays coming up, this is the biggest and best gift we could possibly get.”
‘I feel so blessed that my son Dallas Xavier was born healthy,’ says singer, who gave birth Tuesday in North Carolina. By Jocelyn Vena Fantasia Photo: Courtesy of J Records Fantasia Barrino gave birth to a baby boy, Dallas Xavier Barrino, Tuesday in North Carolina. In a statement to People , the season-three “American Idol” winner said, “I feel so blessed that my son Dallas Xavier was born healthy, and is a wonderful new addition to our family. I thank all my fans for their well wishes and continued support.” In an interview with Wendy Williams back in October, the singer revealed that she was expecting a son by the end of December. Fantasia, 27, has remained quiet about who the father of Dallas is, but she has been linked to on-again, off-again boyfriend Antwaun Cook since 2010. This is the second child for the singer, who has a 10-year-old daughter, Zion, from a previous relationship. In August, Fantasia announced she was pregnant during a show in Florida. “You are the first persons that I share this news with. And I share this with you because I can relate to you,” she told the Jacksonville crowd. “And for a while I walked around figuring out what will they say and what will they think about me. But now I tell you, I don’t live my life for folk. This child that I carry, God has given me this child. And I don’t have to hide it from none of y’all.” Life for Barrino has been on the mend since the summer of 2010, when she made headlines for suffering a drug overdose after ingesting a combination of aspirin and a sleep aid. Rumors abounded that the singer’s alleged relationship with Cook, who was married at the time, was a factor in her suicide attempt. She quickly recovered, however, to promote her album Bittersweet . In her 2010 “Behind the Music” special, Barrino addressed her ups and downs, concluding, “I know that I am beautiful and special. I am who I am — and that’s what makes me Fantasia.” Share your well-wishes for Fantasia in the comments below! Related Photos Fantasia’s Career In Photos Related Artists Fantasia
‘The Artist,’ ‘The Descendants,’ ‘The Help’ and ‘Midnight in Paris’ will also vie for SAG Awards’ top prize. By Kevin P. Sullivan Kristen Wiig in “Bridesmaids” Photo: Universal Pictures The Screen Actors Guild announced its nominees Wednesday (December 14) for the best performances of the year in both television and film. The SAG Awards are the only ones with actors choosing among their peers to select the winners, so they are considered to be among the highest honors in Hollywood. With the Golden Globe nominations arriving Thursday and the Academy Awards looming in the near future, everyone is eagerly searching for some hint of how things may shake out on Oscar night. Among the SAG nominations, there are plenty of the familiar names that have garnered awards attention this year, but also a fair number of surprises. Demi
‘I generally get behind everything Ron does, no matter how extreme,’ Nick Offerman tells MTV News of his ‘Parks and Recreation’ antihero. By Josh Wigler Nick Offerman in “Parks and Recreation” Photo: NBC If ever there were a man deserving of all the eggs and bacon you have, it’s Ron Swanson. The Parks Department director of Pawnee, Indiana, is perhaps the manliest man on television, complete with what is indisputably the manliest mustache on TV today. There’s something else you should know about Mr. Swanson too: He’s the best television character of 2011! Swanson won the highest honor in our Top 50 TV Characters of 2011 countdown over the likes of cancer-stricken chemistry teacher-turned-murderous meth cook Walter White of “Breaking Bad” and our very own “Jersey Shore” favorite Snooki. All three could have easily earned that top prize, but in the end, there’s just no resisting the raw, hilarious awesome that is Ron Swanson. But Ron would be nothing without Nick Offerman, the actor, comedian and professional woodworker who has played the staunch anti-government government employee for four seasons of “Parks and Recreation.” Offerman spoke with MTV News about his status as 2011’s top television character, why Ron is such an appealing figure, his battle with the terrible Tammys and much, much more. MTV : Congratulations! Ron Swanson is our #1 pick for the best TV character of the year. It goes without saying that we’re all very big fans over here! Nick Offerman : Well, thank you. I’m over the moon. I’m so flattered. It’s crazy! MTV : When did it dawn on you that Ron was such a big hit? We’ve seen countless Internet memes about him, and he’s always the topic of conversation after a “Parks and Rec” episode airs. When did it hit you that Ron had really arrived? Offerman : It sort of came out of the blue around the holidays two years ago. It was the fall of our season two. My wife [Megan Mullally, who plays Tammy Two] and I don’t really cotton to the Internet too much, so people started saying to me, “You’re getting a lot of attention on the Internet. You might want to think about getting a publicist. I think you might have something here.” I said, “OK, that sounds like hogwash to me, but I’ll go along with it.” And I haven’t looked back. It’s been incredibly gratifying and astonishing. See our Top 50 TV Characters of 2011, 50 to 41, including a masked bachelor and dashing novelist/crime-fighter. MTV : You spend so much time playing this character, four seasons deep now. For you, what’s the appeal of Ron? What is it about this character that you love playing so much? Offerman : Well, I guess I spent so many years of my career utilizing a sense of humor that we see in Ron and being rejected for it. For so many years, people have been telling me to talk faster. “Try not to be so scary.” [ Laughs. ] To finally find writers that have such simpatico with me and my sense of humor has got to be my favorite thing about Ron. They write me a scene where the most important thing I can do is remain silent and immobile, and that’s the hilarious part. [ Laughs. ] It kind of feels like coming home after all these years. MTV : It’s been a big year for the character. Right out the gate in season four, we got to meet the other two Tammys in Ron’s life, Tammy One and Tammy Zero. What was it like finally getting to interact with all these legendary women in Ron’s life? Offerman : For me the actor, it’s such an embarrassment of riches to do an episode with Megan, Patricia Clarkson and Paula Pell. It’s like being told that you’re going to play in the World Series with the most incredible all-star team assembled as your teammates. I was really traumatized by the effects all these women had on Ron. His face was denuded of his mustache, much like Samson having his locks snipped off by Delilah, as well as his family jewels. It really felt like I was being simultaneously raped and fed a delicious meal. [ Laughs. ] See our Top 50 TV Characters of 2011, 40 to 31, including a “hootie hoo!”-hollering chef and funnyman talk-show host. MTV : Do you think we’ve seen the last of the Tammys? As in, are there any other Tammys lurking about out there in Ron’s life? Offerman : I can’t imagine. I think the power of this triumvirate is so all-encompassing. I think we have more than enough fuel for many more seasons with the Tammys we’ve established. MTV : You brought up something that I was going to touch on: Ron losing his mustache really was a Samson moment. Could Ron ever truly be Ron Swanson without that mustache, or is it critical to who he is? Offerman : I think if, God forbid, Ron was in some sort of disfiguring accident that disallowed him to grow whiskers anymore, I don’t think he could bounce back. I think Ron is an accessory to the mustache, or the mustache is an accessory to Ron. My friend is this genius artist named Pat Roberts, and he has a painting of a wimpy-looking sheriff with a sheriff’s badge on, and there’s a balloon with this mean look on its face, hanging next to the sheriff. It says: “For obvious reasons, Staticky Pete wore the badge, but everyone knew the balloon was the sheriff.” I think everyone knows that the mustache carries the thunder for Ron. Check out our Top 50 TV Characters of 2011, 30-21, including a depressed meth cook and a football coach with a heart of gold. MTV : One of the reasons we love Ron so much is that he gets away with things that we only wish we could get away with in our life. For example, when he discovers how much personal information can be learned about him through Google — that you can see a satellite image of his property — his response is to throw his computer in the trash. I can certainly relate to that. Do you relate to Ron’s view of the world? Offerman : Absolutely. I’m very much a Luddite by choice. I grew up on a farm out in the middle of a cornfield. You’d go for days without being reached by people. Now, in the information age, you have everyone at your beck and call — or, more to the point, to be at the beck and call of the world — on a device in your pocket, and it’s incredibly distasteful. I often fantasize about throwing the whole thing in the ocean. Unfortunately, I’m in a business where my agent tells me I have a meeting with Patricia Roberts next week. MTV : You’re hooked in, sir. There’s very little you can do. Offerman : There is, but look, what my wife and I do is eschew as much as we can. We don’t do Twitter, we don’t do Facebook. It’s all we can do to answer our e-mails; that already takes up too much time, so we don’t do much [Web] surfing. MTV : On the flipside, is there anything about Ron that you can’t relate to? Are there things he does that you just can’t see yourself pulling off in your life? Offerman : In principle, no. I generally get behind everything Ron does, no matter how extreme. But when Ron exhibits superhuman abilities, that’s when it crosses the line. We shot an episode recently where I have to jam an entire hamburger into my mouth. We did a take and it was obviously really hard — bun and all, I had to shove the whole thing into my mouth! We did a take, and the director said to the prop lady, “Was that the small, medium or large burger?” It was the small. “Can we get another one?” And I go, “Hey! I understand that Ron could get the whole slab of a cow in his mouth and pull out a bone like Fred Flintstone, but I’m an actor in the physical world!” [ Laughs. ] There’s only so much grub I can cram into my mouth! Check out our Top 50 TV Characters, 20-11, featuring a sword-wielding 9-year-old and a Trouble Tones teen. People will also ask me … there’s this one episode where Ron makes an Irish harp in one night after drinking an enormous amount of whiskey. People will say to me — and this is the power of TV — did you really do that? [ Laughs. ] No! No one can really do that! That’s ridiculous! It’s a hilarious comedy! Even my brother who works in my shop with me, there’s one episode where I’m carving a chunk of wood, and in the next scene there’s a big, wooden swan that I’ve ostensibly carved in about 40 minutes. And my brother said, “Did you really carve that?” [ Laughs. ] He’s familiar with my work! He’s familiar with my method! It would take me a day and a half if I hustled. For shame! MTV : “Parks and Rec” is one of the funniest shows on TV. I think a lot of that owes to the fact that, obviously, the writing is incredible, but the cast is so strong. These characters play off each other so well. What’s that dynamic like on set, four seasons into the game? Offerman : It’s so fun. We never stop talking about how lucky we are that we get to do this for pay. We’re shooting an episode this week where the whole cast is in a recording studio recording a song for Andy Dwyer. That situation is so goddamn enjoyable, and everybody gets to add their flavor to this incredibly steamy goulash that we’re serving. It’s so fun to look around and watch one person after another hit a home run. Don’t miss our Top 10 Characters of 2011, including a “Jersey Shore” guidette and a real daughter of New Jersey. MTV : Final question for you: We know what Ron’s capacity is … but what is the most bacon and eggs you’ve ever eaten? Offerman : Gosh … I’d have to go back to my youth when my dad and I would have bacon and eggs every morning. I’d say five eggs, and I take those over medium, and close to a pound of bacon. MTV : Wow. Offerman : I can pack it away, but my capacity pales in comparison to Mr. Swanson. Only Ron Swanson could stomach all of the eggs and bacon you have. MTV will reveal the best artists, songs and movies of the year. Come to MTV News each day to see more big reveals and check out more of MTV’s Best of 2011 music, TV, movies and news coverage.
Justin Bieber and Lady Gaga already booked for the show. By Gil Kaufman Nicki Minaj Photo: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images Nicki Minaj, Florence + the Machine and LMFAO will be in Times Square on New Year’s Eve. The acts are the latest additions to the star-studded lineup for the 40th annual “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve” extravaganza. They join a lineup that already boasts Justin Bieber and : Lady Gaga . The show, which will be anchored by “American Idol” host Ryan Seacrest, with help from Fergie in Los Angeles and Jenny McCarthy in New York and will air live from 8 p.m. until after midnight on December 31. The Los Angeles portion of the show has added Taio Cruz, Minaj, Florence, Gym Class Heroes, Blink-182, OneRepublic, the Band Perry, will.i.am. and Christina Perri. Gaga, Bieber, Pitbull and Hot Chelle Rae will be on hand for the New York portion of the show. The performance will help cap a busy holiday season for Bieber, whose first-ever holiday album, Under the Mistletoe , crept back into the top three this week on the Billboard 200 album charts as it steams its way toward 700,000 sold. Gaga will also cap a wild end to a big year, which has recently included her own Thanksgiving TV special, a visit to the White House on Tuesday to discuss her anti-bullying campaign and a trio of Grammy nominations
Director is said to be close to inking deal with Paramount. By Kevin P. Sullivan Michael Bay on the set of “Transformers: Dark of the Moon” Photo: Paramount Pictures Michael Bay could be heading back to the director’s chair for the fourth installment in the “Transformers” series, but as always, there’s more to the story than meets the eye. New York magazine’s Vulture blog is reporting that Bay and Paramount are close to signing a deal that would bring the director back for the fourth go-round. The source cited in the report stated that a fourth “Transformers” movie is Paramount’s bargaining chip with Bay, who has been trying to make “Pain and Gain,” a true-life low-budget thriller, since 1999. Paramount declined MTV News’ request for comment. Rumors about a fourth “Transformers” movie have been circulating for months, but most of them concern a proposed replacement for the series’ former star, Shia LaBeouf . Jason Statham was said to be up for the lead in the fourth and fifth entries in the series, but the actor denied his involvement. As recently as October, Bay had said that he had not entered into discussions with Paramount about possibly directing the next two “Transformers” movies. He took to his own Shoot for the Edit blog to swat down claims he was in negotiations with the studio. Again, he asserted that his attention was focused on “Pain and Gain.” The report from Vulture does account for “Pain.” If the deal is to go through for “Transformers 4,” Bay is likely to shoot “Pain” immediately and start production on “Transformers” in late 2012. According to the article, the film would definitely not be a prequel to the previous three and would dig deeper into the franchise for new characters that haven’t been explored yet. For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com . Related Videos MTV Rough Cut: ‘Transformers: Dark Of The Moon’
It’s hard to believe that these are outtakes from a Rosie Huntington-Whitely photo shoot (These didn’t make the magazine ? Really ?), but once you’ve wrapped your head around that, you’ll wanna wrap your hand around something else. These pics, discovered by our friends at Egotastic! , give us more than a quick glimpse of Rosie’s bloomin’ awesome chest blossoms, two things the Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011) star has failed to share on screen (thus far). Winter right be right around the corner, but when everything’s coming up Rosie, spring has sprung in Skin Central’s pants. More after the jump!
‘I’m just really, really, really hoping I get to kill her,’ the ‘Snow White and the Huntsman’ star jokes to MTV News. By Kara Warner, with reporting by Josh Horowitz Charlize Theron in “Snow White and the Huntsman” Photo: Universal Ever since the trailer arrived for Kristen Stewart’s next likely blockbuster, “Snow White and the Huntsman” — a.k.a. her first big post-“Twilight” movie — we’ve been chomping at the bit for more info about the film. Luckily, MTV News had a fun-filled chat recently with Stewart’s “Huntsman” co-star Charlize Theron, during which the South African-born beauty revealed that she and Stewart are about to shoot the film’s climactic battle sequence. “I’m still shooting [‘Huntsman’], I’m going back in two days,” Theron told us as she promoted the comedy “Young Adult.” “I haven’t really worked with [Kristen]. I’ve done some small things with her, but we’re about to shoot our big showdown, and fingers crossed for me. It’s the big battle. I’m just really, really, really hoping I get to kill her,” she said with a smile. “That is how the story ends up, right?” While the Rupert Sanders-directed flick is a new adaptation of the classic fairy tale, somehow we don’t think Theron will get her wish. Maybe her Evil Queen will wound Stewart’s Snow White in some way, but death doesn’t seem too likely. For her part, Stewart has had nothing but praise to heap on the film — so much so that she’s open to the idea of doing more than one movie as the fairest one of all. “Oh, man, to be totally candid and honest with you, when I first signed on to this thing, the idea of doing another franchise was like, ‘Wow, [we’ll] cross that bridge when it comes.’ It was something so far outside my realm of thinking,” Stewart told us recently. “I was so focused on the first one, and I thought, ‘Maybe, maybe,’ but I’ve got stars in my eyes. I’m literally over the moon about what I’m doing right now,” she said of her work on “Huntsman.” “Yes, I would love to [do more ‘Snow White’ films].” Check out everything we’ve got on “Snow White and the Huntsman.” For breaking news, celebrity columns, humor and more — updated around the clock — visit MTVMoviesBlog.com . Related Videos MTV Rough Cut: ‘Young Adult’ Related Photos Scenes From The ‘Snow White And The Huntsman’ Teaser Trailer
Bronx MC talks to Mixtape Daily about inspiration for his aptly titled City of God tape. By Rob Markman Fred the Godson Photo: MTV News Main Pick Headliners : Fred the Godson and DJ Drama Representing : Bronx, New York Mixtape : City of God Real Spit : Fred the Godson makes a strong proclamation for a relative newcomer to rap on his new City of God mixtape: “You can’t rank my skill/ I told Drama that this would be one of the most lyrical Gangsta Grillz.” But the Bronx, New York, MC backs up his boast with bullying bars. Big Bronx, as Fred’s also known, sets a hell of a tone on the tape’s intro, and exercising his lyrical dominance isn’t the only promise he makes. Over a subdued piano track, Fred the God also pledges to return New York to its rap prominence. “We chose for the mixtape to be called City of God because of ‘City of God’ the movie — it’s like a takeover,” Fred told Mixtape Daily of drawing inspiration from the 2002 Rio de Janeiro-set film. Making a play on the title of the flick and his rap moniker, Fred’s confidence in his own ability is apparent throughout the 19-track mixtape. “That’s why we went with that name, and I’m just here to try to win New York, to try to bring New York back in general,” he said. Fred’s formula is simple: mix dramatic, banging beats with witty punchlines and a hustler’s ambition, then add the occasional notable feature and voila, you have one of the hardest mixtapes of 2011. On “Gettin’ Money Pt. II,” Fred collaborates with Meek Mill and Cory Gunz over a menacing track guided by a Diddy-laced hook. “Doves Fly” finds Fred alongside G.O.O.D. Music’s Pusha T on a cocaine-themed free-for-all. “What up Pusha? Tell Malice I got that Khaled/ The best, send a fiend to the moon — Alice,” Fred spits while Pusha Ton offers, “Every block another notch up on my r
