At least Joey Chestnut is overeating today more than you are. By a lot. Crushing his fellow gluttons at the annual Nathan’s Hot Dog Eating Competition on Coney Island, Joey devoured 69 franks, a new personal record. The moment where he tops his personal best of 68 … magical. Joey Chestnut Hot Dog Eating Record Matt Stone finished in second place with a paltry 51 in 10 minutes. Chestnut triumphed last year with 62 hot dogs devoured, but outdid himself here in 2013, capturing the $10,000 prize and coveted mustard-yellow championship belt. Which will probably need to be resized ASAP.
50 Cent is adamant that he did not kick his baby mama. An attorney for the rapper (real name Curtis Jackson) just released a statement denying any wrongdoing following reports of his arrest yesterday, saying: “[50] denies these allegations made against him. It is important to note, Mr. Jackson has not been arrested and there is no warrant outstanding for his arrest.” His lawyer adds, “We have been in contact with the LA City Attorney’s Office and are currently conducting our own investigation into these allegations.” It was widely reported that 50 Cent was arrested for domestic violence following a alleged domestic dispute at the Toluca Lake home of the mother of his child. It’s not clear what “our own investigation” will entail. Stay tuned. Allegedly, the 37-year-old celebrity kicked the woman (who remains unidentified) and destroyed more than $7,000 worth of property at her residence. Cent was hit with five charges from the incident, including one count of misdemeanor domestic violence and four counts of misdemeanor vandalism. Police responded to the scene, but 50 Cent had already left. He is due in court to be arraigned on July 22 on the charges, which could carry up to five years in jail and tens of thousands of dollars in fines. Fifty has another baby mama named Shaniqua Tompkins .
Jill Kelley – the Tampa socialite who complained to the FBI about threatening emails sent her way by Paula Broadwell – is suing the FBI and the Department of Defense. In documents filed yesterday, she claims that the government agencies violated her rights while investigating what turned out to be Broadwell’s affair with David Petraeus . By exposing her name as the whistleblower, Kelley and her husband say the FBI and DoD ruined their social lives and their connections, both of which are keys to their earning potential. “There was no legally acceptable reason for the government to disclose confidential information about the Kelleys and thereby make them part of the public scandal,” reads the lawsuit. Details about the the couple’s personal lives and their fiscal troubles were widely reported, it adds. “Mrs. Kelley’s reputation is indelibly tainted. She is consistently referred to as the ‘center’ of the ‘sex scandal’ and is often portrayed as the woman who brought down two American generals. As a result, she — the victim and a participant in none of the bad acts in the sex scandal — has shouldered the blame as the villain in the generals’ downfall.” Kelley now says she’s a fighter for greater Internet privacy, telling The Huffington Post in a statement that her experience here “made me an advocate for privacy rights for every American.” The Justice Department has 60 days to respond to this lawsuit.
You knew something was off about Boston bomber mom. Boston Bomber Mom Eyed As Person Of Interest According to Fox News The mother of the Boston Marathon bombing suspects is a “person of interest” to federal authorities seeking to learn who radicalized one or both of her sons, according to lawmakers, and a separate report said she was on a federal terrorism database some 18 months before the attack. Zubeidat Tsarnaeva, who had reportedly become more militant in her Muslim faith around the same time as her son, Tamerlan Tsarnaev, was added to the classified intelligence database known by the acronym TIDE at the CIA’s request. Two key lawmakers said authorities now want to know if she helped put her son, who died a week ago following a shootout with police in Massachusetts, on the road to radicalism. “She is a person of interest that we’re looking at to see if she helped radicalize her son, or had contacts with other people or other terrorist groups,” Rep. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md., the top Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, told reporters. Rep. Michael McCaul, R-Texas, who chairs the House Homeland Security Committee, also pointed to Zubeidat as someone who may have led Tamerlan down the path toward Islamic extremism. “The mother in my judgment has a role in his radicalization process in terms of her influence over him (and) fundamental views of Islam,” McCaul said. Tsarnaeva was put on the database after Russia told the CIA the mother and son were religious militants preparing to travel to Russia, the AP reported. It has already been widely reported that Tamerlan Tsarnaev, the 26-year-old suspect who died after a shootout with police in Massachusetts a week ago, was on the list. The Terrorist Identities Datamart Environment database contains between 500,000 and 1 million names of people on the radar of various national security agencies, but a person’s presence on the list does not automatically mean he or she is suspected of terrorist activity and does not automatically subject them to surveillance, security screening or travel restrictions. Looks like the whole family is bats*** crazy. AP
Roger Friedman of Showbiz 411 reports that U.K. mega-singer Adele will sing the title theme song to the next James Bond joint, Skyfall — though, grain of salt: He’s confirming his own scoop here, and the phrase “I think I can confirm for you what I said some months ago” doesn’t inspire total confidence. But it’s Friday, and a girl can dream! And Friedman’s got it right when he argues that “Adele’s sound is the quintessential James Bond sound.” Also, those other recent 007 themes did roundly suck. Bring on Agent Adele! [ Showbiz 411 ]
Digging into the rabbit hole of a mystery that is the inflammatory, anti-Muslim film Innocence of Muslims — the amateurish viral trailer for which set off protests and violent attacks in at U.S. embassies in Libya, Egypt, and other cities this week — Vice Magazine and Gawker have fingered the man they believe directed the project last year in California. Did industry veteran Alan Roberts (AKA Robert Brownell), a B-movie director and editor behind cult/softcore Cannon/Golan & Globus-era schlock Karate Cop , The Sexpert , and The Happy Hooker Goes Hollywood , make the incendiary anti-Muslim screed? Vice reports that they were “anonymously furnished with documents” pointing to a Robert Brownell AKA Alan Roberts: The documents clearly state that in 2009 and 2011 Robert Brownell purchased pre-production services related to Desert Warrior , which has been widely reported as the working title of the film that the world now knows as Innocence of Muslims. The documents also include Robert Brownell’s address in Tarzana, California (or at least his address when the purchases were made in 2009; the property is now up for sale), phone number, and “contact information,” which lists yet a different name—Alan Roberts. Meanwhile, Gawker confirms Roberts was the director on Innocence of Muslims , filmed under the title Desert Warrior with a different script from the allegedly blasphemous final version. A former business partner and an acquaintance confirmed to the website that Roberts is the same Alan Roberts listed on IMDb as the director of low-budget B-movie threequel The Happy Hooker Goes Hollywood (1980) (co-starring Adam West!), the action pic Karate Cop (1991), and the Harry Hamlin erotic thriller Save Me (1994). Roberts is said to be laying low, understandably. According to Roberts’ ex-business partner, Roberts filmed Desert Warrior without knowledge that it was going to be re-dubbed into its final version: “They redubbed it, they brought in the actors, put in new sounds, changed the names,” said the business partner. “And this was done later, before it was initially released. Of course Alan had nothing to do with it.” If true, it sounds like producer Sam Bacile (or “Sam Bacile,” as his identity is still in question) is more culpable for the incendiary material within Innocence of Muslims than Roberts, a workman director and sometimes editor with ties to the ’70s-’80s Cannon/Vestron/Golan & Globus era of cheap-o schlock cinema. More info as it comes… in the meantime, here’s a look at Roberts’ heretofore best known works. [ Gawker , Vice ]
Friday’s Total Recall reboot trades heavily on brand enthusiasm for Paul Verhoeven’s original 1990 dystopian sci-fi actioner , but its makers had to be careful not to invoke too much of the Arnold Schwarzenegger vehicle. And cool as it would’ve been to see the former Governator pop up in the new, grittier reimagining starring Colin Farrell, Jessica Biel, Kate Beckinsale, and Bryan Cranston, director Len Wiseman ( Underworld , Live Free or Die Hard ) explained to Movieline why he chose not to indulge his inner fanboy. “There was talk about it very early on, and the kind of teenager in me fan was very tempted by it,” Wiseman said of the possibility of a Schwarzenegger cameo. “But the further we got into production on it, I just thought it would be too gimmicky. I wanted the movie to be its own movie.” The tonal difference between the original Total Recall and Wiseman’s is one reason why such a wink-wink nod might have distracted audiences too much. “I had to kind of check myself,” he continued. “How often had I seen that happen where I really thought it worked well? I haven’t, actually. It refers to itself in such a gimmicky way that I think it just takes you out of the movie.” Another would-be stunt cameo that almost made it into the Total Recall reboot was a brief appearance by Ethan Hawke , who was widely reported last year to be contributing a mystery performance to the film. Hawke even filmed his scene, which was said to include a five-page monologue . [KINDA-SPOILER ALERT] Producer Toby Jaffe spilled the beans , revealing that Hawke had been brought in to play a version of Farrell’s character Hauser, who subsequently undergoes the mind wipe and a face lift and wakes up sans memories as Quaid. “Ethan plays who he was before they wiped his mind and changed his face,” Jaffe told ScreenRant during production. [END SPOILERS] Hawke’s scene, however, did not make it into the final cut. As Wiseman told Movieline, “it was deleted, as many scenes were, for pacing and what have you.” But he also says Hawke’s footage could make it into the film’s eventual DVD/Blu-ray extended cut, although exactly how remains to be seen. As for Schwarzenegger, who’s back in the acting game post-politics and has Expendables 2 coming out two weeks after Total Recall , Wiseman was hopeful Arnold would eventually see the film: “I’d love him to see it.” Stay tuned for more with Total Recall ‘s Kate Beckinsale and Len Wiseman. Follow Jen Yamato on Twitter . Follow Movieline on Twitter .
Jersey Shore star Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino is being taunted at clubs for being sober as he films Season 6 of the MTV show, reports say. It was a wild weekend for the cast – Deena Cortese got arrested on Sunday for disorderly conduct – and the gang also got into a big bar fight. But The Situation, who checked into rehab earlier this year because he was battling a prescription pill problem, is battling some issues as well. Sitch denies he has an alcohol problem, which has been widely reported, but whether he does or not, he hasn’t been drinking in Seaside. That’s been fodder for the peanut gallery every night of the week. “Mike has been consistently taunted by other club goers for not drinking,” a show insider says. “[Situation] has been handling it pretty well but it does get embarrassing and awkward for him to consistently be harassed for it.” “Mike was being heckled Friday before the fight broke out. It’s been harder for him to deal with because his sobriety is still rather new. However, Mike absolutely hasn’t been drinking or taking pills and is committed to sobriety.” At the same time, “Mike isn’t going to stay home and not go to clubs.” Interestingly, despite their lengthy and at times violent feuds, Mike and Snooki, who’s pregnant and sober, have found common ground . “Don’t be surprised if you see Mike spend a lot of time at Snooki’s beach house,” where she’s living apart from the cast, the source said. “Snooki has actually been very supportive of Mike and what he’s going through; the two are working on mending fences in their relationship.” The two fought constantly last season over whether Mike saw Snooki nude or not and whether he should tell Jionni LaValle about it. [Photo: WENN.com]
Just two days after John Travolta’s first accuser filed papers to dismiss his sexual battery lawsuit against the actor, the second accuser has followed suit. The second accuser, also a male masseur, just fired his lawyer and will reportedly file new papers in an effort to dismiss the lawsuit in the near future. The second accuser had claimed Travolta assaulted him on January 28 at an Atlanta spa resort. Travolta allegedly grabbed the masseur’s penis, etc. It’s the last remaining lawsuit against Travolta, as both the third accuser (Fabian Zanzi) and the fourth accuser who came forward today have not filed. The first accuser, who had claimed a similar junk-grabbing incident occurred on January 16 at the Beverly Hills Hotel, dropped his lawsuit on Tuesday. Attorney Okorie Okorocha, who repped both accusers, claims he doesn’t know why his second client called it quits , but both have hired Gloria Allred . John Travolta is quick to deny reports that he paid off the men. His lawyer, Marty Singer, says, “Not one penny has been paid nor do we have any intention to pay any money for these ridiculous and false claims.” [Photo: WENN.com]
Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s estranged wife Mary Kennedy died as a result of asphyxiation by hanging, confirming a report that surfaced yesterday. Now it’s official, according to the Westchester County medical examiner. The medical examiner’s report does not use the word “suicide,” although it’s being widely reported (and probably accurate) that Mary committed suicide . Police found Mary Kennedy dead yesterday afternoon at her home in Bedford, N.Y. She was already dead by the time authorities arrived at the home. According to the Bedford Police Department, officers responded to Mary’s home to investigate a possible ” unattended death ,” meaning no one saw it. Mary and RFK Jr., the son of Robert F. Kennedy and the nephew of president John F. Kennedy, had four children. They separated back in 2010. Her death marked the final event in a life that had turned tumultuous of late and adds yet another dark moment in the Kennedy family’s history. Psychologists said events in her recent history, such as reports of alcohol and drug abuse and psychiatric problems, pointed to an increased risk of suicide. [Photo: WENN.com]
