Disgraced Queens Senator Hiram Monserrate said only the voters can decide his fate and yesterday they gave him a resounding NO in a special election. Assemblyman Jose Peralta defeated Monserrate by 65% of the vote.
This is merely a formality. Monserrate was voted out of the Senate last month after he was convicted of a misdemeanor related to a domestic abuse charge in the case of his companion Karla Giraldo. All reference to him was removed from the New York State Senate website at the time of the vote. Monserrate's petition to halt the election was turned down.
A restraining order between Monserrate and Giraldo remains in effect. For some twisted irony, yesterday Giraldo posted a YouTube video in English and one in Spanish, urging voters to cast their vote for Monserrate. Source
Michael Jackson's estate has signed one of the largest recording contracts in history with Sony. The deal gives the company licensing rights, as well as the rights to his catalog which includes never released music. It will guarantee the Jackson estate up to $250 million.
Last year Michael Jackson had the most music downloads and record sales in the United States. Since his death he has sold more than 31 million albums. About two-thirds of those sales were outside of the United States. Source
Actor Charlie Sheen will return to the set of Two and a Half Men this week after taking a leave from the TV show in order to enter rehab on February 23. He will continue to spend his nights in the rehab facility.
Sheen spent Christmas in prison after his wife said he held a knife to her throat. He pleaded not guilty to domestic abuse in court on Monday. Sheen's next hearing is scheduled for April 19. A three-day trial will begin on July 21 unless he accepts a plea deal prior to that date.
Charlie Sheen's wife had entered a rehab facility after the incident but signed out. She is currently rehabbing at home where she lives with the couple's twins. She wants to drop the charges against her husband. Source
Titanic star Kate Winslet and her husband and director Sam Mendes have quietly ended their marriage after nearly seven years together. The announcement was made by their lawyer Keith Schilling who said the couple separated earlier this year.
Schilling said the separation is amicable. It had been in the works for a while. The couple have a six-year old son together and Winslet has a nine year old daughter from her prior marriage to Jim Threapleton who is also a director. Hmmm. Source
The NFL and Woody Johnson generated a little drama this week when the league announced that the Giants will christen the new Meadowlands Stadium when they host the first regular season game. They said the decision was made by tossing a coin.
The only problem is, the coin toss was done in private. Jets owner Woody Johnson cried foul in a statement that noted the absence of any representative of the two teams involved.
The league announced a compromise on Monday. The Giants will host the first regular-season game on September 12; but the Jets will play in the first preseason game in August. The Jets will also open the Monday night games on September 13. Source
New York rock jock Ron Lundy died of a heart attack in a Mississippi hospital on Monday at the age of 75. His health began to fail in the last year after a bout with cancer and a series of strokes.
Lundy was a veteran of WABC-AM and WCBS-FM. While he was at WABC the station was rated number one in national radio. He was so popular that his radio snippet was featured in a scene from the Midnight Cowboy movie. Lundy and Dan Ingram hosted the final show on WABC in May 1982 before the station switched to a talk-radio format.
Ron Lundy was born in Memphis. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, two children and two grandchildren. He is mourned by loving radio contemporaries that include Bruce Morrow and Dan Taylor.
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Examiner NY Times
The world's shortest adult He Pingping died in Rome as a result of heart trouble at the age of 21. He was born in China with a form of primordial dwarfism. He was 29 inches tall.
The Guinness Book of World Records recognized Pingping as the shortest adult in the world in March 2008. His picture was featured in local newspapers when he visited New York City in September of that year. Source
Eighties actor Corey Haim was laid to rest today in what one friend described as a "very sad" funeral. The private service was attended by about 200 friends and family members in Haim's native Toronto.
Corey Feldman who starred in several eighties movies with Haim had already announced that he would not attend the Toronto funeral. He posted a farewell to Haim on his website. He said he will plan a memorial in Los Angeles.
Corey Haim died last week after having flu-like symptoms. The L.A. County Coroner's office will not announce the cause of death until they receive results of toxicology tests. Source
Tiger Woods will play in the Masters Tournament at Augusta National Golf Club on April 8. He announced his return to golf on his website today, noting that the Masters is where he won his first tournament.
Woods said he has completed nearly two months of inpatient therapy; and he is continuing his treatment. He says he still has a lot of work to do in his personal life.
The blogosphere is reporting that Tiger Woods moved back into his home with his wife and children. Today's NY Post published photos of the couple which were taken over the weekend on the grounds of their Florida estate. Life goes on. Source
David Beckham fans share his pain as he recovers from surgery for a torn Achilles tendon. The sexy athlete sustained the injury in the final minutes of AC-Milan's 1-0 victory over Chievo Verona on Sunday. He was visibly in pain and in tears according to the Associated Press.
The doctor who performed the surgery said the operation went well; and says that Beckham is doing well. He will be sidelined for about six months. Beckham's left Achilles tendon was totally torn. His spokesman said it was completely repaired and he is expected to make a full recovery.
David Beckham posted a note to his website telling fans that he is upset and thanking them for their messages of support. The injury prevents his participation in this summer's World Cup. He will miss most of the MLS season. Source
Erin Andrews' peeping Tom Michael Barrett, 48, was sentenced to 27 months in prison yesterday for posting illegally obtained nude photos of the ESPN reporter to the Internet. Andrews had requested that he receive a more lengthy sentence but the judge said that is the maximum sentence under the law according to AP.
Barrett has until May 3 to surrender. After he is released from prison he must satisfy three years of supervised probation. He cannot stay in a hotel without permission from his probation officer. Barrett has been ordered to pay over $12,000 in fines and restitution. That amount could increase in order to compensate ESPN.
Barrett cried when he addressed Erin Andrews in court. He said he has lost his career, his fiance and his life savings. Barrett's lawyer said he is receiving psychological treatment. Source
Rielle Hunter has waited on the sidelines for several years. Now that John Edwards has publicly acknowledged paternity of her two-year old daughter she feels comfortable telling her side of the story in a GQ magazine interview.
Hunter speaks of the strange love between her and Edwards who was married at the time of their affair. She said he was not excited about her pregnancy. Although Edwards said he would support whatever decision she made, Hunter believes he really wanted her to get an abortion.
Rielle Hunter clarifies many of the stories we've heard in the press but it's kind of like the difference between to-may-toes and to-mah-toes. She says she cannot discuss the sex tapes for legal reasons. Hunter posed for racy photos and then told Barbara Walters that she cried when saw them. We're confused. Check the source links.
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