"Stand and Deliver" Teacher Dies

Famous math teacher, Jaime Escalante died today at age 79 after battling cancer for several years. Escalante's teachings inspired the movie Stand and Deliver, which was about a high school teacher who motivates his struggling inner-city students to excel in advanced math.

Famed Mexican-American actor Edward James Olmos played Escalante in the 1988 film and has said ""Jaime exposed one of the most dangerous myths of our time --that inner city students can't be expected to perform at the highest levels," Olmos said. "Because of him, that destructive idea has been shattered forever."

Escalante's story is an American Dream. As a immigrant from Bolivia, he overhauled East L.A.'s Garfield High School's math curriculum and pushed his students to do their best until the school had more advanced placement calculus students than all but four other public high schools in the country. He had to learn English to get his California teaching credential and the rest is history

 Escalante left Garfield in 1991, taught at schools in Sacramento and retired to Bolivia in 2001.

The cast of "Stand and Deliver" recently appealed for donations to help Escalante pay for his alternative cancer treatments.

He is survived by his wife, two sons, and six grandchild.

Escalante's story is truly heart-warming. I've seen this movie a dozen times in school because it leaves you with such a powerful message.....that you can do anything once you put your mind to it and you work hard!

There's so substitute for hard work!

R.I.P. Mr. Escalante.....you're true angel!

Madonna and Daughter Team Up for Juniors' Line

Madonna and her daughter Lourdes a.k.a. Lola (Carlos Leon is her dad) are set to debut a juniors' clothing line at Macys this fall. The line is aptly named Material Girl and the Associated Press says the line is inspired by Mama Madonna and Lola's "dance roots".  It's reported that the Material Girl Collection will include: jeans, shoes, fingerless gloves, necklaces and other accessories. Madonna says the line is affordable!

Man, I wish I was in Jr. High so I could be able to get my Material Girl on for the first day of school! I do hope this line really is affordable for teens. I mean, we hear celebs say this EVERYTIME when they launch a clothing line and it doesn't always ring true. I was in high school when J.Lo came out and I remember a sweater I wanted that was $50 or $60.....being 17 years old and working at American Eagle Outfitters part-time didn't make it easy to afford a $50 purchase in one fell shopping swoop...I'm just sayin'.

Madge is no stranger to designing. In 2007 she launched a limited edition line for H&M called M by Madonna. This time around, it won't be limited. She has launched a new company called MG ICON which,
in addition to producing the juniors' line, will also put out other collections including eyewear.

I'm excited to see what this line looks like, though.

Since the '80s are coming back.....why NOT have Madonna launch a clothing line. It all makes perfect sense! Just don't rip-off the kiddies with overpriced off the shoulder sweatshirts!

Ricky Martin's a "Fortunate Homosexual Man".

It seems like we went back in time to the early '00s when Ricky Martin was Livin' La Vida Loca and he wouldn't directly answer Barbara Walters when she asked him if he was gay.

Well, the Puerto Rican hottie says he couldn't keep his sexuality a secret any longer.

Martin released this statement on his website:

"I am proud to say that I am a fortunate homosexual man. I am very blessed to be who I am."

Reports say the singer decided to reveal his homosexuality when he started writing his memoirs a few months ago.

Martin says"From the moment I wrote the first phrase I was sure the book was the tool that was going to help me free myself from things I was carrying within me for a long time."

He says the secret became "too heavy for me to keep inside" and his sexuality was "something worth celebrating."

Congratulations, Ricky! Good for you!



Martin is the father of two sons, Matteo and Valentino,  from a surrogate mother.

Reports from various news websites say that the heartthrob didn't come out earlier because he wasn't sure how it would have affected his career.

Even though most of us had an inkling....especially when photos like this arose.
We really weren't for sure... in Hollywood anything goes, right? Celebrities are in their own world (take Matthew McConaughey for instance and his non-deodorant wearing ways).

I'm very proud of Ricky! It must have been so hard for him to keep this a secret.

Happy Birthday!

Since today is about my celebrity crushes, a big birthday shout-out goes to my other man, Jay Sean!

Reggie, Call Me!

Like we didn't see this coming.

The Bush and The Tush have called it quits, again.

It's been no secret that the brunette bombshell has been wanting to get married, we all saw Khloe's wedding special where Kim whines about how it was "supposed to be me!"

The girl is almost 30 years old and both of her sisters are settling down....it's obvious she wants to, too! But Reggie's only 25!

My take is....Bush saw too many episodes of Keeping Up with the Kardashians and didn't want Kim to end up like Kris.


Reports say Kardashian and the New Orleans Saint split due to conflicting schedules.
I don't understand Kim's budy schedule.

All she does is take photos and make special appearances.

She acts like she's such an entrepreneur....when in reality.....sweetie, you got famous by doing the nasty with Ray-J.

Will the couple get back together......my guess? Most likely.

But then again, maybe the second break-up is the charm?

In the meantime...Reggie...CALL ME!

Simpson Broadcasts Her Insecurities

So, this past week marked the VH1 debut of Jessica Simpson's The Price of Beauty.

I was honestly excited for the premiere because since Simpson has been on the music-scene all she ever does is talk about her insecurities, especially with her looks. I can understand that and applaud her honestly, and hey....if it's getting you a paycheck girl, more power to ya!
The premiere episode takes Simpson, along with her BFFs CaCee Cobb and Ken Paves, to Thailand. There she discovers what they see as beautiful. I like to call them the beauty ambassadors.

While overseas, the trio meets up with another beauty ambassador who takes them to a little village to show them how one woman's use of skin lightening cream caused her to have severe blotches on her face. The story is very sad, because the woman used to be a singer, but now she tries to hide her face. The story gets even more sad because she tells the beauty ambassadors that she used to be married but her husband left her because of her looks. At the bottom on the screen reads a graphic that beauty products sold in Thailand aren't regulated through the government. So, basically anyone can sell anything.

Later, the trip takes the beauty ambassadors to a Buddhist temple where a Buddhist monk helps them relax through meditation. The entire time Simpson has to hold back from laughter.

Seriously, she's so immature.

The dumb-blonde act went out in 2005....along with your marriage and that multi-colored Murakami Louis Vuitton bag you used to carry around.

The show ends with the beauty ambassadors going to a small village where women define beauty by how long their necks are. They extend the length of their necks by wearing rings.

Simpson, Paves and Cobb witnessed a ring ceremony where a young girl gets her first rings placed on her neck.

For those of you who were turned off at the first episode and didn't bother to follow the second one here's a little re-cap.

The beauty ambassadors go to Paris and meet a model who suffers from an eating disorder to be thin enough to model. The model tells a heart-breaking tale of how the modeling industry is brutal when it comes models and their weight.
The episode ends with Simpson walking a runway in Paris and her freaking out as usual because she doesn't feel she can do it.

I honestly think Simpson needs to see a therapist. Her self-confidence is so shot!
Can't Papa Joe and Mama Tina afford therapy for this girl?

I commend Simpson on her efforts to show that confidence is beauty and this show is quite interesting, but it's so hard to take her seriously. And the message does seem kind of shallow.

Everything with Simpson is about beauty and her body. When she came out in '99-'00 I respected the fact that she was a virgin, but after that it slowly went downhill for her.

Remember in '01 when she lost all that weight and started being a Britney-Wannabe with "Irresistable"?

Or when she donned Daisy Dukes and was unneccesarily wearing a skimpy swimsuit while washing a car in her "These Boots Were Made for Walking" video?

There's no doubt about it, Simpson is a beautiful woman....but she needs to stop playing dumb and start acting like the smart girl she really is. I thought with this show she would do that....but I think I may be wrong.

She's becoming less-funny to me and more stupid.

Idol's Brown Knew She's Be Next to Go

Turns out American Idol's latest loser knew she was going to get the boot.

According to the Associated Press, "The 24-year-old from Amarillo, Texas, was voted off the Fox show last week after singing a lackluster rendition of the Rolling Stones' "Ruby Tuesday." She says her performance landed her in the middle of the group, which she classifies as a risky place for a contestant."

It's okay boo, you already got your foot in the door! And if we've learned anything from the Fox show....the constestants usually do better than the actual winners. Well, sometimes.

All Hail Lady Gaga!

Goo Goo for Gaga!

A big congratulations goes out to Lady Gaga for once again topping the U.K. Charts for her new hit "Telephone".  The single jumped 12 to 1 in its 16th week!

Awesome job!!!

Billboard.com says, "Gaga previously simultaneously topped the British singles and album charts last April, during one of the first four weeks at the top for "The Fame," when "Poker Face" led the singles list. "Telephone" made a final sprint to No. 1 after the debut of its new, ten-minute video attracted multi-million audiences, and took the track past Tinie Tempah's "Pass Out" (Parlophone/EMI), which topped the charts for the last two weeks."

Major props to Gaga and Beyonce on this fantastic video. I absolutely loved it! I enjoy music videos that have mini-storylines. It reminds me of the days of Michael Jackson's music videos and how each one told a story.

In case you missed it!

I love Gaga! I already got my tickets on lock when her Monster Ball tour comes to my neck of the woods!

Jackson Doc Halts CPR to Collect Drug Vials

Sorry bloggers for being a M.I.A. as of late. A lot of things have been going on in my work-life and trying to find time to blog has been a little difficult. But, alas.....I'm back!
As we know a lot of things have been happening in Hollywood, but let's start with the latest news shall we?

If anyone thought the drama after Michael Jackson's death would have ended after the multiple funerals...they were wrong. Of course!

The Associated Press says, "Michael Jackson's doctor halted CPR on the dying pop star and delayed calling paramedics so he could collect drug vials at the scene, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press that shed new light on the singer's chaotic final moments."

I'm honestly not a bit surprised! This guy was/is super sketchy. The details of the report are guesome.

"The account was given to investigators by Alberto Alvarez, Jackson's logistics director, who was summoned to the stricken star's side as he was dying on June 25.

Alvarez told investigators that he rushed to Jackson's room and saw the star lying in his bed, an IV attached to his leg. Jackson's mouth was agape, eyes open and there was no sign of life. Murray worked frantically, at one point performing mouth-to-mouth resuscitation while Alvarez took over CPR. Two of the star's children, Prince and Paris, came in the room and cried as they saw Murray trying to save their father. A nanny was called to usher them away and they were taken to wait outside in a vehicle.

The documents also detail an odd encounter with Murray after Jackson was declared dead at a nearby hospital. Murray insisted he needed to return to the mansion to get cream that Jackson had "so the world wouldn't find out about it," according to the statements, which provide no elaboration."

Cream, huh? Who does this guy really think he's fooling?

This story just gets more and more bizarre.

Dr. Conrad Murray's actions on the day Jackson died do not seem to add up. This reminds me of the reports of him trying to resuscitate Jackson by administrating CPR while he was still lying on his bed.

Uh...how effective would CPR be if the person's lying on a bed?
You need a sturdy flat-surface! Hell, I learned that when I was 12 years old during my swimming lessons.

I think the right thing to do would be to strip Murray of his medical license and let him suffer in jail.

Congratulations Oscar Winners!

This year I wasn't able to watch the Oscars due to circumstances beyond my control. Well, not really....I just had to be at work at an ungodly hour, which meant my bedtime was very early. However, I knew who I wanted to win and who I didn't, and I'm glad almost everyone I wanted to win did.

For those of you who missed the awards like I did, here is a list of the winners of some of the awards:


Best Picture: The Hurt Locker
Actor: Jeff Bridges in Crazy Heart
Actress: Sandra Bullock in The Blind Side
Supporting Actress: Mo'Nique in Precious: Based on the novel, 'Push' by Sapphire.
Supporting Actor: Christoph Waltz in Inglourious Basterds
Directing: Kathryn Bigelow for The Hurt Locker
Original Screenplay: Mark Boal for the Hurt Locker
Animated Feature Film: Up
Documentary Feature: The Cove

I'm very happy Sandra Bullock and Mo'Nique won. I loved both of the movies these women were in. I haven't seen Crazy Heart, nor Inglourious Basterds, so I didn't mind those winners. I loved Up and was very happy it won for best animated feature film. Disney's The Princess and the Frog was alright, but I felt Up blew it out of the water.

I was very shocked The Hurt Locker beat out Avatar for best picture because that film has created buzz since its opening. I have never even heard of The Hurt Locker prior to the awards (shameful, I know). However, now I really want to see it! I'm also very happy for Kathryn Bigelow for not only being the first woman to win Best Director, but she's James Cameron's ex-wife! Isn't revenge so sweet!?! What ex-wife wouldn't want to beat out her famous-director-ex-husband at  (of all awards shows) THE OSCARS!

Kudos to her and all the winners!

Could Lil' Wayne's Jail Sentence FINALLY be determined today?

Could today FINALLY be the day? The day Weezy will finally be sentenced to begin his jail term? Well, we can only hope so. Dental issues and courthouse fires aside, the rapper is set to appear before a judge this afternoon to plead guility to attempt gun possession.

MTV News.com says the sentencing was post-poned the first time because the rapper needed 8 ROOT CANALS!

Oh, my goodness. No wonder he wears a grill!

The website goes on to say, "Judge Charles H. Solomon agreed to the last-minute request and rescheduled the proceedings for Tuesday. Then, just hours before he was set to appear before Judge Charles H. Solomon on Tuesday, a fire broke out at the Manhattan Criminal Court Building. At the first sign of smoke, the building was evacuated and all appearances were postponed. Lil Wayne's attorney, Stacey Richman, confirmed to MTV News that her client's case had temporarily been postponed as a result of the fire. The next day, Weezy's court date was once again rescheduled. "


So, will the saga end today so Lil' Wayne can hurry up and get his jail term over?

We will soon find out!

The saga continues.....

Stun Gun in the Jackson Home, Oh Boy!

Child Services workers are checking out reports of a stun gun in the Jackson family home. Reports say a stun gun was delivered in the mail and Michael's children were exposed to it. An attorney for Katherine Jackson says the children weren't exposed to the weapon. The AP reports that "Attorney Adam Streisand confirmed the investigation Tuesday but said the mail-order stun gun delivered to the home was confiscated before any harm was done."

Why the heck would Katherine Jackson need a stun-gun? Well...I guess if Joseph is still living in the house....then maybe.

But wait....Jackson's attorney says the stun-gun wasn't even Katherine's. Supposedly, Jermaine's 13-year old son Jafar (*isn't that a character from Aladdin? Oh, wait....it's Jermaine's son....why am I not surprised by the name....he has a son named Jermajesty after all) ordered the gun and it was sent to the family's Encino compound.


Reports say, " 'Jafar opened the package in his bathroom and tested it on a piece of paper,' Streisand said in a statement. Security and Katherine Jackson heard the sound and confiscated the weapon immediately. Michael Jackson's oldest son, Prince, saw the stun gun after it was taken by security. Blanket Jackson never saw or heard the Taser. Neither did Paris Jackson. Prince saw the Taser in possession of security', said Streisand."

Jafar sounds just as smart as his father. Turns out Jermaine's children also live in the family home. So does EVERYONE live at the compound? Why am I not surprised. I guess that's what happens when the family's meal-ticket is no longer available. I feel sorry for Prince, Paris and Blanket.

Luck Must be on Lil' Wayne's Side

Rapper Lil' Wayne's jail-sentencing was once again delayed because of a fire in the courthouse where the sentencing was due to take place.

First the dentist...now this?

The Associated Press says the fire occured in the mid-morning  and shut-down the Lower Manhattan courtroom for the day.

It's not clear on when the sentencing will be rescheduled to, but reports say the rapper was on his way to the courtroom when he heard of the fire.

What luck! Over Twitter Weezy was already saying his good-byes. I'm sure he wants to hurry up and get this sentencing over with!!!

On MTV News, Wayne said he "shot footage for seven music videos with various artists in

one night over the weekend."

Stay tuned on when Wayne will FINALLY get his sentencing.

2010 of DWTS Revealed

It's that time again....the new cast of the new season of Dancing with the Stars is revealed and what a line-up!

The male contestants are:
Buzz Aldrin

Jake Pavelka (guy from The Bachelor)
Evan Lysacek (Gold Medal Figure Skater)
Chad Ochocinco
Aiden Turner

The females:
Kate Gosselin
Shannen Doherty
Pamela Anderson
Erin Andrews
Niecey Nash (from Reno 911)
Pussycat Doll: Nicole Scherzinger


KATE GOSSELIN?!?! You have got to be kidding me!!

Who watched that show to actually see Jon and Kate? I watched it just for the cute kids. I'd rather see them dance than Kate.

I guess you got to do what you got to do to support your eight children.

It doesn't help that Jon probably spent all the families "hard-earned" money on his twenty-something girlfriend (s).

Let's hope her new extensions don't fall out while she's doing the pasodoble.

I'm not surprised Pam Anderson is on this season, I mean it only was a matter of time. I am excited Shannen Doherty will be on this season because who knows what she'll do or say to her fellow competitors (especially Kate Gosselin). 

Oh, and let's not forget ESPN's Erin Andrews who was a victim of video voyeurism in her hotel room.

I almost forgot about her.

Blogs and entertainment reports are saying she may be the fan favorite.

As for the men, I think Ochocinco will win the judges and viewers over with his charming personality. As for this season's Bachelor, Jake Pavelka, I don't know how people will feel since he just chose Vienna lastnight.

This is actually the first season of DWTS that I'm excited to see for a loooong time.