Danielle Maudsley, a 20-year-old woman has been left brain dead – after she was Tasered by police and smacked her head on the ground.
Danielle Maudsley had been taken to a Florida Highway Patrol Station after being arrested for a suspected hit-and-run in September. Handcuffed, she ran out of the door.
But as footage from a police cruiser dashboard camera reveals, Trooper Daniel Cole, who this week was cleared of any wrongdoing, fired a Taser’s electric probes into her back.
Danielle Maudsley spun, fell backwards and hit her head on the ground. Bleeding and crying she tried to get up. She then blacked out and has remained unconscious ever since.
Doctors say Danielle Maudsley, who was found to have cocaine and oxycodone in her system at the time, is unlikely to ever wake up.
Danielle Maudsley has been left brain dead after she was Tasered by police and smacked her head on the ground
Her mother Cheryl Maudsleyhas slammed the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles and Florida Department of Law Enforcement for its reports that both cleared Cole.
Cheryl Maudsley told the Tampa Bay Times she was suing FHP, and added: “Tell me that’s not excessive force. I’m not saying she was an angel, but she didn’t deserve that.
“He couldn’t reach out and grab her? He was an arm’s length away. My daughter is dead because of this. She won’t come back.”
Danielle Maudsley, who had a suspended driving license, was arrested earlier that day for allegedly leaving the scene of two traffic accidents.
At the station, the woman tried to escape. Daniel Cole, worried she would be hit by a car as she ran towards the direction of U.S. 19, gave chase.
Daniel Cole said that because of the immediacy of the situation, and the fact he feared one or both of them would be injured if he tackled her, he went for his Taser.
When asked if he would have done anything differently, Daniel Cole said: “No, I would not have.”
Experts have now questioned the use of the Taser.
Greg Connor, professor at the University of Illinois Police Training Institute who specialises in use of force, said: “It just doesn’t make any sense. I don’t see where it’s going to be that hard to apprehend her.”
And nationally known use-of-force expert Dave Klinger, a retired Los Angeles police officer and professor at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, said it was an “inappropriate” police tactic.
But Sgt Steve Gaskins said: “The Florida Department of Law Enforcement conducted an independent review. FDLE’s investigation found the trooper’s actions were legal and within the scope of his duties.”
CEO’s participants at CBS’ show “Undercover Boss” are supposed to stay “undercover” as they work in the trenches of their own companies with their identities hidden from their employees.
However, in a recent edition of the show, Rick Silva, the head of Checkers & Rally’s drive-in hamburger restaurants, was so horrified at the abusive tone of one of his managers in Homestead, Florida, that he broke character and revealed himself in the middle of the episode.
And then Rick Silva shut down the restaurant for the night, stunning the employees and shocking the manager, known only in show as “Stevens”.
Rick Silva’s undercover name was Alex Garcia, and he posed as a failed pharmacy owner from Philadelphia.
While working alongside an employee named Todd at the fry station of the restaurant, Todd is in the middle of telling Rick Silva about his ambitions to be a chef, when Stevens yells at him to stop talking and cook the meat.
At one point, Stevens threatened Todd outside and beat him for not working hard enough.
When Rick Silva questioned the employee about why he allowed himself to be treated so badly, Todd replied that he had to keep his job so he could support his mother and he worried that if he stood up for himself, he would be fired.
In response to Steven’s abusive behavior and barking orders at his employees, Rick Silva responds by asking Stevens to speak with him outside.
Rick Silva, Checkers&Rally’s CEO, takes manager Stevens outside to talk about his behavior
When Rick Silva asked why Stevens yelled at his employees, the manager explains: “If I don’t scream at them, they don’t listen to me.”
Gaining confidence, the manager added: “I’m not going to let you continue telling me I’m disrespecting my crew. Have you been in the fast food business before?”
After initially attempting to not answer the question directly, Rick Silva, who manages one of the largest fast food chains in the country with more than 800 stores in 28 states, shot back:
“I have been in the restaurant business for over 20 years. And I’ve been in the fast food business for over 20 years. I’m CEO for this company.”
Stevens’ face shows that he is clearly stunned and he opens his mouth in disbelief, looking away.
“Right here, right now, we’re going to shut the restaurant down,” Rick Silva says.
When Rick Silva calls the employees out to inform them of the news, they are afraid the closing will be permanent and their jobs are lost.
Rick Silva, the CEO of the Rally's&Checkers hamburger restaurants chain
However, Rick Silva reopened the store with a new general manager the next morning and sent the offending manager in for more training.
“I came to the conclusion that he wasn’t prepared to run that shift and wasn’t convinced that when I walked away the restaurant would provide the level of service we need,” Rick Silva told the trade magazine Nation’s Restaurant News later.
Rick Silva also accepted responsibility for the manager’s poor behavior, saying it was his own fault as CEO that the company didn’t have the proper training procedures in place.
As for Todd, at the end of the show, Rick Silva awarded him with $15,000 to take care of his mother and money to finish culinary school.
A rapid thaw caused a real chaos on the River Danube in the Serbian capital Belgrade, where ice damaged boats, pontoons and floating restaurants.
The thick ice covered one of Europe’s busiest waterways during the recent freeze, but began to break up on Sunday as temperatures rose.
In Belgrade, boats crashed into each other but there were no immediate reports of casualties.
One boat owner said the ice had moved so fast, boats could not be saved.
“The damage will be hundreds of thousands of Euros for sure,” Dragan Jovanovic was quoted as saying by Reuters news agency.
Another boat owner, Mihailo Svilaric, told Reuters only a “handful” of boats remained intact out of about 100 moored in the Serbian capital’s Kapetanija marina.
A rapid thaw caused a real chaos on the River Danube in the Serbian capital Belgrade
Debris was scattered among the breaking ice for hundreds of metres along the river, and several floating restaurants, barges and boats were beached on river banks after the ice snapped anchor lines.
Local media reported that Belgrade emergency services said there was no ice risk to bridges and other infrastructure in the city, and there was no threat of flooding.
The Danube flows 2,860km (1,777 miles) through nine countries and is vital for transport, power and industry.
It has been almost entirely frozen from Austria to the Black Sea, in Romania, the Associated Press news agency reports.
Ice more than 30cm (11in) thick in places broke up over the weekend as temperatures rose.
Belgrade river officials advised boat owners to constantly monitor their property but not to try to recover it from the water as of Monday morning.
Belgrade resident Miroslav Jagas told AP he believed that complacency had aggravated the problems caused by the freezing weather.
“We have not seen weather like this in a long time,” he said.
“People were relaxed, the boats stayed there, the icebreakers did not remove the ice on time.”
At least 20 people have died from the cold in Serbia in recent weeks and economists say damage from the cold snap may cost Serbia as much as 500 million Euros ($660 million).
Some 3,300 people remain stranded by snow and ice in rural areas, where they can only be reached by helicopter.
Five-year-old Zachery Jack Avery’s wardrobe contains a purple tutu, a silky mauve blouse and a floral patterned skirt.
Zachery Jack Avery is one of the youngest known children to be backed by the NHS in UK after being diagnosed with Gender Identity Disorder (GID).
The boy has a long fair hair done up in bunches as he has been insisting on living as a member of the opposite sex.
The extraordinary conclusion that he is a girl trapped inside a boy’s body is being backed by medical experts and supported by his school, which has made a lavatory block “gender neutral” to accommodate his needs.
Until shortly before his fourth birthday in December 2010, Zachy, as his mother Theresa calls him, was “a normal little boy”. He loved to play with his Thomas the Tank Engine train set alongside his brother Alex.
Suddenly, however, Zachery Avery became obsessed with the children’s TV cartoon character Dora the Explorer, and started to dress in girls’ clothes.
Theresa Avery, who has two other children, said: “He just turned round to me one day and said, <<Mummy, I’m a girl>>. I assumed he was just going through a phase and left it at that. But then it got serious and he would become upset if anyone referred to him as a boy. He used to cry and try to cut off his willy out of frustration.”
Theresa Avery, 32, and husband Darren, 41, became increasingly worried by their son’s behavior and took him to a doctor, then to a child psychologist.
Zachery Jack Avery is one of the youngest known children to be backed by the NHS in UK after being diagnosed with Gender Identity Disorder
At the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust in London, which specializes in the disorder, Zachery Avery was diagnosed as having GID.
His mother said: “They told us that although he had a male body, his brain was telling him he was a girl.”
At home in Purfleet, Essex, a first-floor flat in a block on a 1980’s estate, Darren and Theresa Avery continued to allow Zach to dress in girls’ clothes and play with his sister’s dolls.
Zachery Avery pictured shortly before his fourth birthday in December 2010, when he was a normal little boy
Meanwhile at the boy’s school, Purfleet Primary, they have applied themselves to what Theresa Avery calls “the bathroom issue” and are hoping Zach can use the staff toilets when he gets older.
About the other pupils, she said: “We explained to the other kids that Zach’s body was that of a boy but in his brain he was a girl. We said Zach was just happier being a girl than a boy. They haven’t batted an eyelid. They’ve accepted Zach as Zach and there’s been no problems at the school with bullying. The school has been brilliant and really, really supportive.”
Purfleet Primary, which has 350 pupils up to age 11, was given the lowest “inadequate” rating in December after an Ofsted inspection. Teachers allow Zachery Avery to wear a girl’s trouser uniform and black boots with pink trim, which his mother says is female but still neutral.
Theresa Avery admits she misses her little boy, but she adds: “He just wants to be like a little girl. He’s very happy with his long hair, pink-and-red bedroom and a wardrobe full of girls’ clothes.
“He likes playing with his sister’s old toys but he still loves Doctor Who and playing with his brother. And we still put some neutral clothes in his wardrobe if he ever decides he wants to wear them. We leave it up to him to decide what he wants to do – if he changes his mind and wants to be a boy again then he does, but if he doesn’t, he doesn’t.”
The mother added: “I would love to have my son back, but I want him to be happy. If this is the route he wants to take – if this is what makes him happy – then so be it. I would rather him have my full support. People need to be aware of this condition because it’s very common but even many family-support workers have never heard of cases in children. There are people out there but they don’t want to talk about it.”
On his Facebook page, Darren Avery describes himself as an artist and “dad of four starting my own business drawing pictures from photos’. Sketches he has uploaded include a reclining nude woman wearing a necklace with a large, heart-shaped pendant, based on Kate Winslet in Titanic. Others include a blonde girl striking a provocative pose in a figure-hugging top, and a faceless female wearing only a Mickey Mouse T-shirt.
Zachery Avery (right) with his mother Theresa, father Darren and brother Alex
Yesterday Darren and Theresa Avery were negotiating with a tabloid newspaper to sell Zachery’s story for a five-figure sum.
Figures from the Tavistock and Patman clinic – the national body for GID – revealed that 165 children have been diagnosed with the condition this year.
A spokesman said they were unable to comment on individual cases, but only seven children under five were diagnosed last year – making Zach one of the youngest.
“Tavistock Clinic had 97 referrals in 2009/2010; 139 in 2010/2011 and 165 thus far this year.
“The trend in referrals has been up over the years – this may reflect greater awareness.
“We see children and young people up to the age of 18, from across the UK, who are experiencing difficulties in the development of their gender identity.
“This includes children who are unhappy with their biological sex. Some may be boys who prefer activities and roles associated with the opposite sex, some may also identify as the opposite sex and vice versa for girls. In general when younger children are referred it is in relation to cross-gender preferences in play, playmates and activities. It is more unusual for children of this age to express cross-gender identification – that is the wish or belief that they belong to the opposite sex.
“The diagnosis of GID is made by the key workers working with the young person. We will also assess their general well-being. We remain in contact with young people often for many years.
“Our aim is not to predict or direct the outcome, but rather to support the young person in their general development as well as develop a trusting collaborative therapeutic relationship in which it is possible to openly explore their feelings about their gender.”
British scientists at University of Cambridge say they may have found a more efficient treatment of pancreatic cancer after promising early trial results of an experimental drug combination.
Giving the chemotherapy agent gemcitabine with an experimental drug called MRK003 sets off a chain of events that ultimately kills cancer cells, studies in mice show.
Patients are now testing the treatment to see if it will work for them.
The Cancer Research UK-funded trials are being carried out in Cambridge.
Father-of-two Richard Griffiths, 41, from Coventry, has been on the trial since being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in May 2011.
“After six cycles of treatment, a scan showed the tumours had reduced and so I have continued with the treatment,” Richard Griffiths said.
“The trial gives you hope – I really feel I can do this with the science behind me.”
Cancer Research UK says it is prioritizing research into pancreatic cancer because the survival rate still remains dismally low.
Survival rates in pancreatic cancer are very low in relation to other cancers, and the length of time between diagnosis and death is typically short, usually less than six months.
The most recent data for UK show that about 16% of patients survive the disease beyond 12 months after diagnosis – prompting the need for new treatments.
Professor Duncan Jodrell, who is leading the trials at the University of Cambridge, said: “We’re delighted that the results of this important research are now being evaluated in a clinical trial, to test whether this might be a new treatment approach for patients with pancreatic cancer, although it will be some time before we’re able to say how successful this will be in patients.”
In total, about 60 patients with advanced pancreatic cancer will be recruited for the first Phase I/II clinical trial.
Beyoncé and Jay-Z made their first public appearance together since their daughter Blue Ivy was born at a basketball game yesterday.
Beyoncé and Jay-Z enjoyed cheering on the New Jersey Nets, a team that Jay-Z co-owns, from their courtside seats and looked extremely loved up as they cuddled together.
The R&B star whispered into his wife’s ear and kissed her cheek while keeping an arm protectively around her as they watched the game.
Beyoncé wore an eye-catching yellow blazer over a simple white top and proved just how quickly she has regained her fantastic figure as she slipped on some skinny jeans.
The singer also wore a pair of sky high patterned platform heels by Christian Louboutin, large gold hoop earrings and had a black bag with a chain slung over her shoulder.
She was sporting blue nail varnish, which she has been seen showing off since the birth of her baby girl, seemingly in honor of her daughter Blue Ivy.
Jay-Z wore a grey jumper over a white T-shirt, khaki trousers and brown boots.
The couple was sat next to actress and fashion designer Chloe Sevigny as they cheered on their team, and was also seen applauding the dancers who warmed up the match.
Beyoncé and Jay-Z made their first public appearance together since their daughter Blue Ivy was born at a basketball game
Beyoncé and Jay-Z surprised fans earlier this month when they decided to forgo any magazine deals and released the first images of Blue Ivy to the world via Beyoncé’s website.
A series of intimate family snaps showing the youngster and her parents was accompanied by the message: “We welcome you to share in our joy. Thank you for respecting our privacy during this beautiful time in our lives. The Carter Family.”
Beyoncé stepped out twice in as many nights earlier this month and in her form-fitting outfits, it was almost unbelievable to think she gave birth a few weeks earlier on January 7.
It wasn’t just her figure she was showing off as Beyoncé was also seen sporting a chunky piece of bling which she was given as a “push present”.
Jay-Z is believed to have bought the blue ring, in honor of their daughter’s name, in a tradition that sees new fathers reward the mother after she gives birth to their child.
Beyoncé’s first “stepping out” was last Monday night as she showcased her post-baby curves in a red Alice Temperley cocktail dress, which was undeniably striking.
It was a wise move as she looked picture perfect for the first night of Jay-Z’s two-legged occupation of NYC’s Carnegie Hall.
Meanwhile Jay Z made his first debut two weeks after little Blue Ivy’s birth when he attended the reopening of his nightclub 40/40 in New York.
Dominique Strauss-Kahn, the former IMF boss, is being questioned by French police as a suspect in a prostitution ring inquiry, a prosecutor announced today.
Dominique Strauss-Kahn, once a front-runner for the French presidency, is being held in custody at a police station in Lille, northern France.
Police have questioned a number of prostitutes who have admitted having sex with Dominique Strauss-Kahn.
DSK insists he did not know that the women were prostitutes.
DSK is being held in custody at a police station in Lille as a suspect in a prostitution ring inquiry
“I challenge you to distinguish a naked prostitute from any other naked woman,” dominique Strauss-Kahn’s lawyer Henri Leclerc has told French television.
DSK resigned as head of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in May 2011 after he was charged in New York with the attempted rape of a hotel maid. The case was later dropped.
In this separate inquiry, French police have already arrested eight men on suspicion of organizing a prostitution ring and misusing corporate funds to pay for sex in a scandal known as the “Carlton affair” because of a Lille hotel where clients were allegedly supplied with call-girls.
Three of the suspects were said to have been close to DSK, who is said to have taken part in sex parties in Paris and Washington in late 2010 and early 2011.
Dominique Strauss-Kahn could be held by police for up to 48 hours, French media say.
Although consorting with prostitutes is legal in France, supplying them to others and misusing company funds to pay for them are not.
Darlene Love, Whitney Houston’s godmother, has hit out at reports the late singer’s daughter Bobbi Kristina Brown went “missing” following the funeral and allegedly was “doing drugs”.
Bobbi Kristina Brown, 18, was reported to have vanished following the four-hour service in Newark, New Jersey on Saturday.
A report on Sunday claimed Bobbi Kristina was later found “getting high” by concerned family members.
However, Darlene Love, 70, insisted Bobbi Kristina was with the family the whole time and they are keeping a close-eye on her.
Darlene Love told U.S. TV show Access Hollywood last night: “Not true. Not true.
“She was with us and she was with the family the whole time… She’s been with the family these last couple of days. We all know where she is, she’s not missing.”
The Sixties singer’s denial comes after The Daily Beast website claimed Bobbi Kristina Brown failed to join the family at a Newark restaurant following the funeral at the New Hope Baptist Church.
“Everyone was freaking out and calling Bobbi Kristina’s cell,” a family friend told The Daily Beast.
“It was so much commotion and activity after the funeral that Bobbi Kristina just slipped away. [Her grandmother] Ms. Cissy [Houston] was beside herself.”
Darlene Love, Whitney Houston's godmother, has hit out at reports Bobbi Kristina Brown went “missing” following the funeral
Bobbi Kristina Brown was understandably left devastated when her 48-year-old mother was found dead in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton hotel on February 11.
The teenager was also apparently found “getting high” after she received the news her mother had passed away and there were conflicts between family members on whether she should be taken to rehab straight away or left to mourn with them.
Darlene Love’s denial appear to contradict a family statement on Sunday, conceding the teen had some time out.
A Houston family spokesperson told The Daily Beast: “There was some confusion about Bobbi Kristina’s whereabouts last night for a short time, but she’s OK. She needed some time alone.”
The Houston family rep denied that Bobbi Kristina Brown was on drugs and said that she was just going through a “very hard time as you can expect”.
Long-time family friend BeBe Winans said he wasn’t aware of any alleged drug problems Bobbi Kristina was facing.
BeBe Winans told Access Hollywood: “I don’t know anything about rehab. I can tell you from being around her, pretty much all her life, and at the same time being around her in this dark valley, she’s doing wonderful. She’s doing wonderful.”
When asked about what part her father Bobby Brown would play in her life, Darlene Love added: “That’s really going to have to be her choice whether she wants him in her life… and I don’t think nobody is going to give her any information or try to move her one way or the other.
“That’s one decision she’s definitely going to have to make on her own.”
Bobbi Kristina is said to be upset following her parents’ divorce in 2007 and how quickly Bobby Brown moved on.
Bobby Brown, 43, has become engaged and has a two-year-old son Cassius with fiancée Alicia Etheredge.
A coalition of experts named Helsinki Group say dolphins are so intelligent that they should be thought of as “non-human persons” and given their own bill of rights.
Helsinki Group includes scientists, philosophers and animal welfare groups have come up with a declaration of dolphin rights which they hope will one day be enshrined in law.
This would stop them being kept in zoos and waterparks, and being attacked by fishermen.
Whales would also be elevated above other animals by the list of rules, leading to whalers being classed as murderers, the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s annual conference heard in Vancouver.
Whale watching trips would be subject to regulations which would respect the creatures’ privacy, and developers and oil companies would have to give huge consideration to the effect their projects would have on the animals’ life and culture.
Philosopher Thomas White said: “Scientific evidence is now strong enough to support the claim that dolphins are, like humans, self-aware, intelligent beings with emotions and personalities.
“Accordingly, dolphins should be regarded as <<non-human persons>> and valued as individuals. From an ethical perspective, the injury, deaths and captivity of dolphins are wrong.”
Those who drew up the bill of rights are known as the Helsinki Group and include UK members of the Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society.
Helsinki Group say dolphins are so intelligent that they should be thought of as “non-human persons” and given their own bill of rights
Helsinki Group say that thanks to advances in science, it is clear that dolphins are extremely intelligent, complex and sensitive mammals.
The bill of rights states that every individual member of the cetacean order – whales, dolphins and porpoises – has a right to life.
It also says that no one has the right to own the creatures or to do anything that undermines their rights, freedoms or norms.
Its authors are using the Vancouver conference to try to get more scientists and members of the public on their side. They believe this is a step towards eventually persuading governments to enshrine the principles in law.
When brain weight is compared with body weight, the dolphin has the second-largest brain on the planet after humans.
The conference heard that dolphins are self-aware – they can recognize themselves in the mirror.
There are also examples of them grieving for lost calves, feeding ailing pod mates and co-operating with fishermen when there is a meal in it for them.
In Laguna, Brazil, when a shoal of fish enters the lagoon, the dolphins herd it towards the fishermen. Any fish that escape their nets provide an easy meal.
At Dingle, south-west Ireland, a bottlenose nicknamed Fungi regularly entertains sightseers in boats.
Perhaps the most striking example of dolphin intelligence involves Kelly, a member of a pod at the Institute for Marine Mammal Studies in Mississippi which were rewarded with fish for clearing up litter from their pool.
Each piece of litter equated to one fish. To raise her intake of fish, Kelly tore the litter into pieces and presented them one by one.
One day, she caught a gull and was given a large haul of fish for her efforts.
She then started to use the fish she won for litter picking to lure gulls into her jaws.
She also taught the tactic to her calf, which passed it on to other youngsters in the pod.
Given the opportunity, dolphins will watch TV and follow instructions delivered on the screen. Chimps do this only after months of training.
Dolphins can be taught to understand human words, sentences and demands.
Like humans, dolphins are altruistic and there are examples of them going to the aid of swimmers and surfers attacked by sharks.
They use body language. The “side-flop”, jumping clear of the water and landing on their side, is thought to mean: “I want to go now.”
They have regional accents, with the whistles made by those off Wales different to those living off the Irish coast.
They have a form of adult onset diabetes but are able to turn it on and off. Learning how they do this could lead to new treatments for the human form of the condition.
Males woo females by presenting them with gifts from bouquets of weed to sticks and lumps of marine debris.
Actress Jackée Harry takes the credit of bringing Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown together and revealed how she did it Sunday on Bravo‘s late night talk show “Watch What Happens Live! with Andy Cohen.
Apparently, there was an after party for the 1989 film “Harlem Nights” and Jackée Harry and Whitney Houston were hanging out at the celebrity-filled shindig. Whitney Houston zeroed-in on the former New Edition member and pleaded with Jackée Harry to introduce her to Bobby Brown who had a highly celebrated solo career at the time. Bobby Brown was still riding high off his 1988 multi-platinum breakthrough album “Don’t be Cruel.”
Bobby Brown at the time was a notorious womanizer and was never without a bevy of females around him.
Actress Jackée Harry takes the credit of bringing Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown
Jackée Harry, who referred to herself as “the only known hoe in the group,” not only introduced Whitney Houston to her future husband that night but to comedian Eddie Murphy as well, who also attended the party and starred in the film.
Although Whitney Houston had been romantically linked to Eddie Murphy, she actually went on to marry Bobby Brown in July 1992 after a three year courtship. The couple produced one child Bobbi Kristina.
Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown had a tumultuous relationship which resulted in alleged physical abuse, drug and alcohol binges.
Bobby Brown had several run-ins with the law that included jail time. After years of public battles and turmoil, the pair went their separate ways in September 2006 and Whitney Houston filed for divorce a month later. The divorce was finalized in April 2007 and Whitney Houston was granted custody of Bobbi Kristina.
Jackée Harry not only introduced Whitney Houston to her future husband that night but to comedian Eddie Murphy as well
When Andy Cohen asked Jackée Harry, who is best known for her roles on the sitcoms “227″ and “Sister to Sister,” if she blamed Bobby Brown for Whitney Houston’s drug use, the Emmy-winner replied that she did not.
Jackée Harry also talked about the strong similarities between herself and Whitney Houston, how they both came from the ghetto and how their lives had been “accelerated” and when they tried to go back to where they came from, they no longer fit in. There was an inference that perhaps that was a problem with Whitney Houston.
Whitney Houston was found dead on February 11 at The Beverly Hilton Hotel after a member of her entourage discovered her body in the bathtub. It is believed that the legendary singer died as the result of alcohol mixed with prescription drugs.
Russian scientists have grown plants from fruit stored away in permafrost by squirrels over 30,000 years ago.
The fruit was found in the banks of the Kolmya River in Siberia, a top site for people looking for mammoth bones.
The Institute of Cell Biophysics team raised plants of Silene stenophylla – of the campion family – from the fruit.
Writing in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), they note this is the oldest plant material by far to have been brought to life.
Prior to this, the record lay with date palm seeds stored for 2,000 years at Masada in Israel.
Professor David Gilichinsky, the leader of the research team, died a few days before his paper was published.
In the workpaper, Professor David Gilichinsky and his colleagues describe finding about 70 squirrel hibernation burrows in the river bank.
“All burrows were found at depths of 20-40m from the present day surface and located in layers containing bones of large mammals such as mammoth, woolly rhinoceros, bison, horse, deer, and other representatives of fauna from the age of mammoths, as well as plant remains,” they write.
“The presence of vertical ice wedges demonstrates that it has been continuously frozen and never thawed.
“Accordingly, the fossil burrows and their content have never been defrosted since burial and simultaneous freezing.”
Russian scientists have grown plants from fruit stored away in permafrost by squirrels over 30,000 years ago
The squirrels appear to have stashed their store in the coldest part of their burrow, which subsequently froze permanently, presumably due to a cooling of the local climate.
Back in the lab, near Moscow, the team’s attempts to germinate mature seeds failed.
Eventually they found success using elements of the fruit itself, which they refer to as “placental tissue” and propagated in laboratory dishes.
The Russian team’s theory is that the tissue cells are full of sucrose that would have formed food for the growing plants.
Sugars are preservatives; they are even being researched as a way of keeping vaccines fresh in the hot climates of Africa without the need for refrigeration.
So it may be that the sugar-rich cells were able to survive in a potentially viable state for so long.
Silene stenophylla still grows on the Siberian tundra; and when the researchers compared modern-day plants against their resurrected cousins, they found subtle differences in the shape of petals and the sex of flowers, for reasons that are not evident.
The scientists suggest in their PNAS paper that research of this kind can help in studies of evolution, and shed light on environmental conditions in past millennia.
But perhaps the most enticing suggestion is that it might be possible, using the same techniques, to raise plants that are now extinct – provided that Arctic ground squirrels or some other creatures secreted away the fruit and seeds.
General John R. Allen, the US commander of NATO troops in Afghanistan, has apologized over reports that foreign troops had “improperly disposed” of copies of the Koran.
In a statement General John R. Allen ordered a full investigation.
“When we learned of these actions, we immediately intervened and stopped them,” he said.
Reports of the alleged Koran burning have led to a large protest outside the Bagram air base.
In his statement, General John R. Allen said that the investigation would examine whether troops at Bagram air base “improperly disposed of a large number of Islamic religious materials which included Korans”.
“The materials recovered will be properly handled by appropriate religious authorities,” the statement said.
“We are thoroughly investigating the incident and we are taking steps to ensure this does not ever happen again. I assure you… I promise you … this was not intentional in any way.”
General John R. Allen went to and offer his “sincere apologies for any offence this may have caused”, including to the president of Afghanistan, the Afghan government and “the noble people of Afghanistan”.
In April last year at least one person was killed and 18 injured in successive days of protests in Afghanistan over the burning of a Koran in the US.
A message from one of our readers. Whitney we miss you!
Dear Friends of Whitney Elizabeth Houston,
I am writing this letter to you today in an effort to reach out and touch those in our lives for which we admire and respect because of the GOD given talents they are blessed with and who have sacrificed and devoted their lives to entertain all us. With all their access to fame and fortune, easy availability of unlimited drugs and alcohol prominent within this industry and the sudden death of young talented and legendary artist such as; Whitney Houston, Michael Jackson, Amy Winehouse, Mikey Welsh, it has come to my attention as one of their fans and a Disc Jockey for many years exhibiting their music that something more concretely needed to be done. We must bring to light the causes of their early deaths and take actions to protect them from themselves and the sometime irrational decisions they make that bring theirs lives to early demise. To ensure Whitney Elizabeth Houston’s life causes and her death would not be in vane, I proposed that every artist within the entertainment community take the following Entertainers Standards of Conduct Oath and to become the “Wingman” for someone they admire, respect, love and care for. Let your voice be heard and demonstrate through your works and deeds that you loved Whitney as much as she loved each of you. I pray it will help each of you and all of us who could use a little intervention from time-to-time as we struggle with the demons in our lives.
Sincerely,
Brian Wayman Layton, Utah 2 /19/2012
In Memory of Whitney “Elizabeth” Houston’s
Entertainers Standards of Conduct Oath
Because you love me and because I love myself, I _______________________________ , hereby solemnly swear before my GOD, my family, my closest friends and the professions for which I am beholden, to uphold the following standards of conduct as a condition of my employment throughout my contractual obligations. Because you love me and because I love myself, I will maintain the highest levels of personal and professional integrity by setting the example through righteous living both in the publics view and in my private life. I will not bring shame to my GOD, my family, my friends and employer by indulging in the abusive, dangerous and unhealthy pleasures of evil, lawlessness and reckless behavior and will cease that behavior immediately. I will not abuse or consume harmful and additive drugs and chemicals substances legal or illegal into my body nor will I offer them to those around me. I will only surround myself with those who truly love me and I will separate myself from those who would harm and enable me to self destruct. If I am in trouble, I will seek the recommendations and accept the professional help that I need without repercussions because you love me and I love myself so help me GOD.
Written by: Brian H. Wayman Layton, Utah 2/19/2012
Take the pledge today and get on the path to recovery
Scientists discovered that ant colonies – one of nature’s most ancient and efficient societies – are able to form a “collective memory” of their enemies.
When one ant fights with an intruder from another colony it retains that enemy’s odor: passing it on to the rest of the colony.
This enables any of its nest-mates to identify an ant from the offending colony.
The findings are reported in the journal Naturwissenschaften.
For many ant species, chemicals are key to functioning as a society. Insects identify their nest-mates by the specific “chemical signature” that coats the body of every member of that nest.
The insects are also able to sniff out any intruder that might be attempting to invade.
Scientists discovered that ant colonies are able to form a "collective memory" of their enemies
This study, carried out by a team from the University of Melbourne in Australia, set out to discover if ants were able to retain memories of the odors they encounter.
The scientists studied the tropical weaver ant (Oecophylla smaragdina), which builds is home in trees; one nest can contain up to 500,000 workers.
The team set up a “familiarization test” to allow ants from one nest to encounter intruders from another.
Over a series of trials, they placed an ant from a “focal nest” into a tiny observation arena with an ant from another nest.
After 15 of these familiarizing face-offs, the team set up a fake ant invasion.
They placed 20 worker ants from the now “familiar” nest on or near the focal nest.
“These intruders were typically attacked by the resident workers,” the researchers reported in their paper.
The ants defending their colony reacted much more aggressively towards intruders from a nest that a few of their workers had been familiarized with.
The team explained that “this increased aggression was… specifically targeted toward the <<familiar>> colony, and persisted for at least 6 days” after the familiarization trials.
Lead researcher Prof. Mark Elgar explained that all of the ants in the colony were able to draw on the experience of one worker.
Prof. Mark Elgar described this as collective or “corporate wisdom”.
In human terms, Prof. Mark Elgar explained: “[imagine] you have had an unsavory experience with a particular group of people with a distinguishing feature – perhaps they all wear the same colored scarf of their football team.
“And you warned your colleagues to look out for people wearing that colored scarf.
“One of the colleagues that heard you might subsequently tell another colleague who wasn’t in the room when you made your comment.
“That colleague has acquired the information indirectly from the collective memory of you and your work colleagues.
“Change colleagues to ants, and scarf color to odor and you’ve got our story.”
Whitney Houston’s most prized possessions are set to go up for an auction next month, it has emerged today, two days after the singer’s funeral.
Whitney Houston’s items up for sale include a pair of earrings, a brown satin waistcoat and a black velvet dress she wore in the 1992 movie The Bodyguard.
Darren Julien, Julien’s Auctions boss, has defended the decision to hold the sale – which will take place at the Hollywood Legends auction on March 31 – so shortly after Whitney Houston’s death.
Darren Julien told the Associated Press: “It proves a point that these items, they’re an investment. You buy items just like a stock. Buy at the right time and sell at the right time, and they just increase in value.”
He went on to say the auction would be a celebration of Whitney Houston, who was found dead in the bathtub of her Beverly Hilton hotel suite a week ago.
Whitney Houston’s black velvet dress worn by singer in The Bodyguard is one of the items set to go on auction next month
Darren Julien said: “It’s a celebration of her life. If you hide these things in fear that you’re going to offend someone – her life is to be celebrated.
“These items are historic now that she passed. They become a part of history. They should be in museums. She’s lived a life and had a career that nobody else has ever had.
“For people who are fans of Whitney Houston and never would have had a chance to meet her and never got to talk to her, these are items that literally touched a part of her life.
“They are a way to relate to her or be a part of her life without having known her.”
Meanwhile, Whitney Houston’s family has ensured the Beverly Hilton hotel room she died in has been meticulously stripped of any memorabilia to prevent anyone selling the items to profit out of her death.
TMZ reports that everything has been removed from room 434, including bed sheets, towels and rubbish.
Whitney Houston, 48, was laid to rest yesterday next to the body of her father John Russell Houston Jr. – who died in 2003 – at the Fairview Cemetery in New Jersey.
Only close family – including cousin Dionne Warwick – attended the private burial – which took place on Sunday after her funeral – with fans lining the route to the cemetery.
To keep onlookers out a huge tent was erected over the site where Whitney Houston’s silver coffin was lowered into the ground.
Stars including Oprah Winfrey, Mariah Carey, Clive Davis and Kevin Costner – Whitney’s co-star in movie “The Bodyguard” – were among the mourners at her “going home service” on Saturday.
Kevin Costner paid tribute to Whitney Houston in a moving eulogy at the funeral, telling her fans to remember “the sweet miracle” of the singer.
Losing weight just got twice as hard because of a new way of calculating the effects of dieting.
Conventional guidelines fail to take into account changes in metabolism, says U.S. expert Dr. Kevin Hall.
As a result, dieting is always going to be a struggle, Dr. Kevin Hall argues. Cutting calories leads to a slowing of metabolism which means it takes longer to lose weight.
At a rate of 100 calories lost per day, it would take the average person a year to shed 5 lbs of body weight.
Under the “old” guidelines, based on the idea that each pound is equivalent to 3,500 calories, the same degree of weight loss should be possible in roughly half that time.
Speaking at the annual meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) in Vancouver, Canada, Dr. Kevin Hall said: “People have used this rule of thumb to predict how much weight people should lose for decades now, but it turns out to be incredibly wrong.
“The reason it’s wrong is because it doesn’t account for the metabolic changes that take place when people change their diet.
“We know that if you cut the calories in somebody’s diet their metabolism starts to slow down, and it slows down more and more the more weight that is lost. So eventually you’ll reach a plateau.
“Some of my work has been to develop realistic mathematical models about what happens to metabolism when people start changing their diets and can we come up with some better rules and better predictions.”
Cutting calories leads to a slowing of metabolism which means it takes longer to lose weight
Because of the way metabolism slows weight loss, dieting away 100 calories daily would lead to the loss of just 10 lbs in three years, said Dr. Kevin Hall, from the Laboratory of Biological Modelling in Maryland.
Five pounds of that weight loss would go in the first year.
Dr. Kevin Hall has developed an online slimming aid that explains what level of dieting is needed to achieve a weight loss target. It takes numerous factors into account including metabolism.
The website (bwsimulator.niddk.nih.gov) is designed to assist researchers rather than members of the public, though anyone can access it.
Dr. Kevin Hall said: “Instead of using that old rule of thumb that we now know is incorrect, people can plug in what their goal weight might be in a specific time period.
“What the model will do is simulate what changes in diet and exercise that person will have to do to achieve that goal weight and even more importantly what they have to do permanently to maintain that weight loss.”
Scientist listed 25 words that every toddler should use by the age of two.
The words and phrases, which cover toys, food, animals and, of course, include “mummy” and “daddy” and “bye bye” are designed to detect youngsters who could struggle with words for years come.
Being slow to talk can also be a sign of deeper problems from deafness to autism.
The 25 “must have” words are part of a much larger list of 310 words that should be in a toddler’s vocabulary and designed to be ticked off in 10 minutes by parents.
The average child will know 150 of the words in the Language Development Survey but scores of 75 to 225 are normal.
Alarm bells should start ringing if a toddler uses just 50 of the words or less, the American Association for the Advancement of Science’s annual conference heard.
Scientist listed 25 words that every toddler should use by the age of two
The 25 words listed here are among the most common and the first acquired when learning to speak.
Professor Leslie Rescorla, who designed both versions of the test, said: “If children don’t use most of these words by 24 months, they may be late talkers.”
Many late-talkers are simply late bloomers, so the professor says that if a child is otherwise developing normally, parents shouldn’t panic.
But if the child is still struggling for words by two and a half, they should consider help such as speech therapy, and certainly not put this off past the age of three.
The Vancouver conference heard that up to 20% of all two-year-olds are behind their peers in speech.
Of these, half to a three-quarters are likely to be late-bloomers, who will more or less catch up over time.
But in other cases, the child will have lasting problems with speech.
A small vocabulary at the age of two can also be a sign of other problems, from deafness to autism and dyslexia.
Even those who do catch up may always be slightly behind.
Prof. Leslie Rescorla, of Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania, tracked the fortunes of 78 two-year-olds for 15 years.
Half had been slow to start talking but didn’t have any other problems.
By the time they reached 17, their vocabulary was classed as at least as good as average – but still wasn’t as good as those who were better talkers as toddlers.
The late-talkers fared particularly poorly in tasks that involved “verbal memory”, or listening to words, sentences, or numbers and being able to repeat them back
The conference also heard that TV and videos, also known as “overheard speech”, are no substitute for parental attention.
Real interaction with the child is particularly crucial when the child is trying to “crack the code” of speech.
Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown had a notoriously turbulent relationship that was riddled with drug use and marital problems.
Whitney Houston admitted that she and Bobby Brown took cocaine and marijuana together through their 14 years of marriage.
During this tumultuous time, Bobby Brown was arrested for drugs and alcohol and Whitney Houston entered drug rehabilitation programs twice.
They wed in July 1992 and eventually separated in September 2006, before their divorce was finalized in April 2007.
Timelines of Whitney Houston’s and Bobby Brown’s relationship:
July 18, 1992 – Bobby Brown and Whitney Houston marry.
1993 – Bobby Brown is cited in Augusta, GA for simulating a sex act with a female member of his group in front of an underage audience (per Atlanta Journal-Consitution). They report he was arrested for a similar act in Columbus, GA in 1989.
March 1993 – Their child, Bobbi Kristina, is born. (Bobby Brown already had three other children from previous relationships – Landon, Laprincia, and Bobby Jr.)
August 1996 – Bobby Brown crashed Whitney Houston’s black Porsche on a residential street in Hollywood, FL.
1997 – The couple separate briefly. In a 1998 interview with Ebony, Whitney Houston responds to reports that they had divorced: “Nope. We separated for a minute, and it’s good sometimes to just get away.” Ebony reports they separated for one month.
1998 – Bobby Brown is arrested on suspicion of misdemeanor sexual battery. (The sexual battery case was dropped due to insufficient evidence. The singer was arrested June 21 at the Beverly Hills Hotel for allegedly slapping a teen on the behind.) (USA Today)
June 2002 – Bobby Brown is hospitalized for treatment of an infection, according to a spokesperson. He fell ill while traveling with his wife on a tour bus. The spokeswoman said that Bobby Brown had a fever, but declined to specify the nature of the infection. (AP)
Whitney Houston and Bobby Brown had a notoriously turbulent relationship that was riddled with drug use and marital problems
December 10, 2003 – Bobby Brown is charged with battery after a weekend domestic dispute with his wife, leaving her with facial injuries. Bobby Brown was accompanied by his wife as he turned himself in to authorities. This is when she started singing “(You make Me Feel Like A) Natural Woman” in the car on the way out. Bobby Brown was released after receiving a copy of the charge.
March 26, 2004 – Bobby Brown was released from the county jail after spending a night behind bars for failing to pay $63,500 in child support. He paid up, and said the whole thing was a misunderstanding
January 7, 2004 – Bobby Brown is scheduled to be in court for a preliminary hearing regarding the December 2003 battery incident.
May 5, 2004 – bobby Brown is scheduled to appear in a Fulton County, GA court to face misdemeanor battery charges after he allegedly hit his wife, leaving her with a bruised cheek and a cut lip. A judge ordered there was enough evidence for Bobby Brown to stand trial on misdemeanor battery charges for allegedly hitting Whitney Houston in the face at their home near Alpharetta, a suburb north of Atlanta.
April 10, 2006 – The National Enquirer published pictures of a bathroom, allegedly Whitney Houston’s, littered with drug paraphernalia. These pictures were taken and reportedly provided to the enquirer by Tina Brown, Bobby Brown’s sister. According to the Enquirer, Tina Brown has further alleged that Whitney Houston has had lesbian affairs. Tina Brown also said there was holes drilled in the walls so Whitney Houston could see if anyone was entering her apartment, but the pictures do not show this.
August 21, 2006 – Osama Bin Laden reportedly has a crush on Whitney Houston
August, 2006 – Bobby Brown fuels infidelity rumors when he allegedly has an affair with Karrine Steffans. Bobby Brown has never responded to the allegation.
September, 2006 – After years of controversy and turmoil, Whitney Houston separated from Bobby Brown
October, 2006 – Whitney Houston filed for divorce.
April 24, 2007 – The divorce was finalized, with Whitney Houston granted custody of Bobbi Kristina
May 4, 2007 – Whitney Houston sold the suburban Atlanta home featured in Being Bobby Brown for $1.19 million. A few days later, Bobby Brown sued Whitney Houston in Orange County, California court in an attempt to change the terms of their custody agreement. Bobby Brown also sought child and spousal support from Whitney Houston. In the lawsuit, Bobby Brown claimed that financial and emotional problems prevented him from properly responding to Whitney Houston’s divorce petition. Bobby Brown lost at his court hearing as the judge dismissed his appeal to overrule the custody terms, leaving Whitney Houston with full custody and Brown with no spousal support.
Robyn Crawford met Whitney Houston when they were 16 at a summer job in East Orange, New Jersey, and they soon became inseparable.
Robyn Crawford was the Gayle King to Whitney’s Oprah; whether or not the relationship was a platonic one is uncertain, but they had the closest of friendships. Robyn Crawford worked for many years as Whitney Houston’s assistant, an experience she talked about right after Whitney’s death.
Robyn Crawford says this is the first time she talked about her relationship with Whitney Houston, but she only discusses their professional entanglements, not the personal ones.
Robyn Crawford (right) talked about her relationship with Whitney Houston, but she only discusses their professional entanglements, not the personal ones
However, Whitney Houston’s obituary includes this cryptic passage:
“When people left her or were told to leave, they could never believe that Whitney would never call them – but she never did. She was working hard to keep herself together, and I think she felt that if she admitted any feeling of sadness or weakness she would crumble.”
That certainly sounds like Robyn Crawford knows more about Whitney Houston than she’s willing to say publicly so until she writes a tell-all or shows up on 20/20.
Pictures from inside the car of Peter Skyllberg, the Swedish man who survived in his snow-covered car on nothing but snow for two months in sub-zero temperatures, have been emerged to press.
Peter Skyllberg, 44, had eaten nothing but handfuls of snow since December 19 when his car became bogged down in drifts near the town of Umea in northern Sweden.
The images show the dashboard and seats covered in ice after temperatures plunged to -30C.
Experts think he went into a kind of human hibernation which slowed down his metabolism and pulled him through the ordeal in what they have described as the “case of a lifetime”.
Peter Skyllberg had driven off the main road on to forest tracks where his car became stuck fast.
On Friday a passing man on a snowmobile stopped to scrape snow from the windscreen of the vehicle and saw movement inside.
As Peter Skyllberg recovered in a hospital today, details emerged of depression and debts piling up on him and it is thought he might have been trying to take his own life.
Police initially thought the man was a nature lover who had become trapped in the snow while on an expedition to photograph elk.
But now it emerges there was a court judgment against him in December because of debts totaling $235,000.
The images from inside Peter Skyllberg’s car show the dashboard and seats covered in ice after temperatures plunged to -30C
Peter Skyllberg’s neighbors in the town of Orebro in central Sweden said he had also broken up with his girlfriend and had lost contact with his father and other family members 20 years ago.
“We now have to wait until he is better to try to find out what really was in his mind,” said police officer Ebbe Nyberg.
Peter Skyllberg survived by taking handfuls of snow from the roof of the car.
The only other things found with him were cigarettes and comic books.
“Absolutely incredible that he is alive, in part considering that he hasn’t had any food, but also bearing in mind that it was really cold for a while there after Christmas,” said a member of the emergency services team deployed to rescue him.
Peter Skyllberg was emaciated, barely able to move and could barely speak.
“He was at the end of his tether,” said a police spokesman.
“It was doubtful he could have survived one or two more days.”
Peter Skyllberg was found wrapped up in a sleeping bag in the car and he had no other warmth
Peter Skyllberg was wrapped up in a sleeping bag in the car but he had no other warmth; the fuel had run out long ago as he kept the heater running to try to survive as the thermometer plunged on some nights to -30C.
Pictures also show food wrappers and drink cartons , which suggests he may have had supplies with him for at least some of the time.
Peter Skyllberg is recovering in the intensive care ward at Umea University Hospital where he is being fed liquid proteins.
He has hypothermia and is severely malnourished. He was never registered as missing, for which there is currently no explanation.
Policeman Ebbe Nyberg added: “He was in a very poor state when we found him.
“He could not speak, just a few broken sentences and the words snow…eat. And he managed to say he hadn’t eaten anything since December.”
The miracle survival of Peter Skyllberg: igloo effect or bear-like hibernation?
The case of Peter Skyllberg is so extraordinary doctors and medical experts are still trying to establish exactly how the 44-year-old survived in such extreme circumstances.
One theory being put forward by Dr. Stefan Branth, from Uppsala University, is that Peter Skyllberg’s metabolism may have slowed down “like a bear that hibernates”, making it easier to go without food.
But Ulf Segerberg, the chief medical officer at Umea University Hospital, said it was more likely because of the insulation provided by his vehicle.
“It is not possible for humans to hibernate like a bear,” he said.
“In the car, he had very warm clothes, he had a warm sleeping bag, and as the car was snowed under, that would have made it more like an igloo.”
Monaco’s Prince Pierre Casiraghi, son of Princess Carolina, has been hospitalized after a vicious nightclub brawl in Manhattan, it has emerged.
The brawl broke out at the trendy Double Seven nightclub in Manhattan on Saturday.
It is believed the fight started following a late-night confrontation between Prince Pierre Casiraghi, 24, and his friends and former Manhattan club owner Adam Hock.
One witness told the New York Post: “Pierre’s face looked broken, with deep cuts and blood everywhere.”
According to the New York Post, Adam Hock, 47, was partying with his friends – which included a number of supermodels – when the young prince walked up to their table at about 2:30 a.m.
Prince Pierre Casiraghi was joined by Paris Hilton’s ex boyfriend Stavros Niarchos III and two other men.
According to members of Adam Hock’s group, the prince and his friends began insulting the models and started drinking from a $500 bottle of vodka on their table.
Monaco’s Prince Pierre Casiraghi, son of Princess Carolina, has been hospitalized after a vicious nightclub brawl in Manhattan
Witnesses allege that Adam Hock then punched the prince.
One onlooker told the New York Post that the force of the punch resulted in Prince Pierre Casiraghi flying across the room and landing on a table on the other side.
Adam Hock also allegedly punched Stavros Niarchos, 26, as well as two other men.
The prince was taken to the New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center with his injuries but was released later on Saturday.
Adam Hock has been charged by police with four counts of third-degree assault for the alleged attacks on Prince Pierre Casiraghi, Stavros Niarchos and the two other men.
During a court hearing in Manhattan yesterday, Adam Hock said he was the victim.
According to the New York Post, Adam Hock said: “I was defending myself and others. Why aren’t [Casiraghi and his pals] handcuffed?”
However, friends of the prince said Adam Hock started the fight.
Adam Hock’s lawyer, Salvatore Strazzullo, accused the prince and his friends of being jealous because his client was with a group of beautiful women.
Salvatore Strazzullo added: “These four guys are trust-fund babies who think the world is owed to them. They are like spoiled brats.”
Richard Golub, representing Prince Pierre Casiraghi and his friends, said: “It was entirely unprovoked.”
Adam Hock was released but is due back in court next month.
Robyn Crawford, Whitney Houston’s former executive assistant and oldest around-the-way Newark, NJ friend, reveals the complex evolution of the legendary star not only as a performer, but as a person and a friend in a touching open letter.
Having met as teenagers, Robyn Crawford and Whitney Houston would quickly become comrades, growing closer as the fledgling superstar’s fame took off. Even as a young woman, Whitney Houston still had a special something about her that immediately told Robyn Crawford that she was destined for much more than singing in Newark.
Published by Esquire, the emotional open letter of Robyn Crawford wrote:
“I met her when she was 16. It was at a summer job. I was working at a community center in East Orange, New Jersey, and she was working just like the rest of us. She was there to work. She introduced herself as “Whitney Elizabeth Houston,” and I knew right away she was special. Not a lot of people introduced themselves with their middle names back then. She had peachy colored skin and she didn’t look like anyone I’d ever met in East Orange, New Jersey.
She was nothing like the Whitney Houston she became but at the same time she was already there. She knew, and so did everyone around her. She was doing shows in Manhattan with her mother, and she’d change her clothes in the car and get on stage and do her thing. She hadn’t signed her contract yet. But she was modeling for Wilhelmina because she was discovered on the street. She was walking in front of Carnegie Hall and someone walked up to her and said, “There’s a modeling agency upstairs that’s looking for someone just like you.” She walked upstairs and they signed her. That’s what it was like, that’s what she gave off. She looked like an angel. When my mother first met her, she laughed and said, “You look like an angel, but I know you’re not.” And she wasn’t. But she looked like one.
She chose the life she lived, and she chose it from the beginning. She knew the life better than anyone. Her mother was Cissy Houston, and she had been on the road with Dionne Warwick. She got her chops singing in church, and her mother said to her, “You know, you can always sing for free. You can always sing in church. You don’t have to choose the professional life.” But she chose because she’d been chosen. Some people sing just because. She was never like that. She had to put on her gear. She knew it was going to be a job and that’s how she treated it. Once she committed to something, she finished it. Not long after I met her, she said, “Stick with me, and I’ll take you around the world.” She always knew where she was headed.
And we went around the world. I was her assistant and then her executive assistant and then her creative director. I was her point person for the day-to-day. I traveled all around the world first-class and anyone who ever worked for her will tell you her checks never bounced. You knew she was going to take care of you. She wasn’t going to be in a five-star hotel while you were in a two. I flew the Concorde the way some people ride the bus. She shared the fruits, and she changed a lot of lives. The record company, the band members, her family, her friends, me — she fed everybody. Deep down inside that’s what made her tired.”
Robyn Crawford, Whitney Houston’s former executive assistant and friend, describes their relationship in a touching open letter
“It was never easy. She never left anything undone. But it was hard. The Bodyguard was great when it was done, but it was a lot of work. She did the movie, she did the music, she did everything — and when she was done, she was done. She nailed it. The music supervisor brought her Linda Ronstadt’s version of “I Will Always Love You” way before Kevin Costner brought Dolly Parton’s version — and she always knew what she could do with it. So when Kevin came in and played it for her and told her he wanted her to sing it for the movie, she said, “Fine.” She wasn’t much for showing off what she had, except when she had to.
I always compare her performance of that song with a great athlete hitting his peak — with Michael Jordan in the playoffs. It was the absolute pinnacle of what she could do, of what anyone could do — and then she had to keep on doing it. Everybody wanted to hear her sing that song, and so she sang it. It didn’t matter whether she had a cold, or wasn’t in good voice; she had to deliver it, and she had it arranged so she could deliver every last note. And even if the note wasn’t there, the feeling was. A lot of her songs were like that. They were a lot to deliver, but she delivered them every note, every time.
It’s so strange that she died when she did. February was her month. Her first album was released on Valentine’s Day, right around the time of the Grammys, right around the time of Clive Davis’s party. It was an orchestrated thing. She was Clive’s girl, his great discovery. And she died right before Valentine’s Day, right before the Grammys, right before Clive’s party. Of course, she was going. I don’t know if she was singing, I don’t know what kind of pressure she was putting on herself. But she was going, that’s for damned sure.
People thought they had to protect her. She hated that. And that’s what people don’t understand: She was always the one doing the driving. Someone just called and told me that the family kept Whitney from seeing her. Nobody kept Whitney from doing anything. She did what she wanted to do. When people left her or were told to leave, they could never believe that Whitney would never call them — but she never did. She was working hard to keep herself together, and I think she felt that if she admitted any feeling of sadness or weakness she would crumble. One time, back when we were young, we were out, we were partying, and I said, “Listen, I have to go. I’m tired. I can’t make it.” And she looked at me with her eyes wide and said, “I’ve got to make it.”
And that was Whitney. She could not pick up the phone, and that meant it was too painful. I have never spoken about her until now. And she knew I wouldn’t. She was a loyal friend, and she knew I was never going to be disloyal to her. I was never going to betray her. Now I can’t believe that I’m never going to hug her or hear her laughter again. I loved her laughter, and that’s what I miss most, that’s what I miss already.
I’m trying not to think of the end. I’m trying not to listen to all the reports. All these people talking about drugs — well, a lot of people take drugs, and they’re still around. Whitney isn’t, because you never know the way the wind blows. I just hope that she wasn’t in pain and that she hadn’t lost hope. She gave so much to so many people; I hope that she felt loved in return. She was the action, for such a long time. She’s out of the action now. I hope she can finally rest.”
Tina Brown, Whitney Houston’s ex-sister-in-law, back in 2006, alleged that the singer was addicted to crack cocaine and was living in squalor.
Tina Brown, Bobby Brown’ sister claimed that she knew this because she used crack cocaine with Whitney Houston.
The British tabloid, The Sun, had reportedly received photographs of Whitney Houston, depicting drug paraphernalia including a crack pipe, rolling papers and cocaine-covered spoons in the singer’s bathroom.
Tina Brown was quoted by The Sun as saying: “The truth needs to come out. Whitney won’t stay off the drugs. It’s every single day. It’s so ugly. Everyone is so scared she is going to overdose.”
The addiction was reported to had become so bad, Whitney Houston hallucinated. Sky Showbiz reported at the time that: “Tina claims drugs have made Whitney so paranoid that she sees demons everywhere and once made a hole in the bathroom wall as a spy hole.”
Elaboration came from a quote on The Sun from Tina Brown, who said: “She’ll point to the floor and say, ‘See that demon. I’m telling you somebody’s messing with Bobby’. She always thinks it’s something to do with Bobby. But it’s her, hitting herself.”
Tina Brown had reportedly revealed photographs of Whitney Houston’s bathroom, depicting drug paraphernalia including a crack pipe, rolling papers and cocaine-covered spoons
The reports also claimed that Whitney Houston was completely ignoring her own personal hygiene, was using copious amounts of crack cocaine at a time, and was using sex toys to pleasure herself.
Whitney Houston was reported to have used an entire 8-ball (1/8 of an ounce) of crack at once, by emptying out a cigar, and filling it with the crack rock and marijuana. Habitual users will regularly break an 8-ball into several smaller pieces, using smaller doses at a time.
Reports also claimed that Whitney Houston’s mother, Cissy, had forced her to go to rehab clinics in March of 2004. It’s reported that Whitney Houston used crack in the car en route to the rehab session. Once at the clinic, she would do her best to dodge drug tests.
The New York Daily News said she would tell workers at the clinic: “I’m not giving you no pee today. I don’t have none right now.”
The New York Daily News also reported: ” Whitney allegedly loses her $6,000 set of false teeth when she’s high and once appeared toothless, scaring the kids at her niece’s school.”
As well: “In 2004, a drug dealer called Bobby Brown and ordered him to remove the paranoid and out-of-control Whitney from his crack house. <<Come get your wife. I’m sick of this b****>>, the dealer reportedly complained.”
Other instances of how Whitney Houston’s addiction was ruining her life include The Sun’s report of how: “Whitney was also rushed to hospital in 2003 with blood gushing from her nose – and emerged with a bizarre bandage on it.”
At the time, a source said: “Everyone wondered what happened to Whitney’s nose.”
It was rumored that the money Whitney Houston made from selling 100 million plus albums has most been squandered to her drug habit.
Having apparently forgotten about her Diane Sawyer interview on ABC, where Whitney Houston had stated: “Crack is Whack!”, concern for her well-being was the motivating factor behind the publicizing of her addiction, explained Tina Brown.
At the end of the interview, Tina Brown said: “I understand what she is going through. Addiction is a disease. Maybe this interview will help save her life.”
Ray J, Whitney Houston’s on-off lover, was seen overcome with emotion as he arrived back at Los Angeles’ LAX airport yesterday following the singer’s funeral.
Ray J, 31, was seen looking grief-stricken and distraught as he crouched down on the floor in the airport with his head in his hands.
Wearing an all-black outfit, the singer looked deep in his own thoughts as he took some time to himself before heading home.
Ray J was also seen being hugged by his bodyguard as he made his way through the airport.
He was left devastated by the death of his one-time girlfriend Whitney Houston earlier this month.
Ray J, Whitney Houston’s on-off lover, was seen overcome with emotion as he arrived back at Los Angeles' LAX airport yesterday following the singer's funeral
And at Whitney Houston’s funeral on Saturday, Ray J was reduced to tears as he watched her coffin being carried out of the church.
At the time of Whitney Houston’s death, Ray J released a statement which read: “Over the past few days I’ve tried to process the emptiness that I am experiencing.
“What my heart feels cannot be expressed in words. The world lost an icon, but I lost my close friend. Nippy, I miss you so much!
“You were so happy and full of love. Your smile will live in my heart forever.”
Whitney Houston and Ray-J were first romantically linked back in 2010, and were said to have been in an on-off relationship until as recently as February 3rd, when they were apparently seen having dinner together in Los Angeles.
Shortly after Whitney Houston’s tragic death, Ray J was seen at the Beverly Hilton Hotel, but was turned away by police when he arrived.
Minnie Driver has always been incredibly secretive about the identity of her son’s father, but now she has come forward to reveal that three-year-old Henry’s dad was a writer on her former television show The Riches.
Minnie Driver, 42, said the reason she had decided to disclose the man’s identity was because she doesn’t “need to protect him any more”.
The actress added to The Observer magazine: “He can fend for himself. He’s a grown-up.
“We weren’t together and he wasn’t directly in the business so I chose to protect him and not have a rain of publicity.
“He’s not famous. There’s no big story.”
Earlier reports claimed that the father was a TV writer, who ended his relationship with Minnie Driver when she found out she was pregnant.
However, Minnie Driver admitted that the man, who she still refused to name outright, has now increased his involvement in their son’s life.
Minnie Driver revealed that three-year-old Henry's dad was a writer on her former television show The Riches
The actress said: “Is he a good dad? Sort of. He’s figuring it out… I mean, he hasn’t been that involved, his choice. But he is now.”
The Conviction star had previously admitted she would like to have more children, but doesn’t think she could cope raising two kids on her own.
Minnie Driver said previously: “Henry’s dad and I probably wouldn’t have any more together, but I would love to have more.”
However, Minnie Driver admitted to The Observer: “I couldn’t do another one without a partner; I couldn’t do two as a single mum, I really couldn’t. It would be too much.”
Speaking about how she coped during her pregnancy, Minnie Driver, who was one of two children born out of an affair – millionaire father Ron Driver, already had a wife and daughter who knew nothing of his other family – said: “I had good friends around me, so it was sort of hilarious.
“I was making a film at the time and the paparazzi would shout: <<Who’s the sperm donor?>> at me. Oh, it was an awful film [Motherhood] and I wouldn’t do that again, but I was heavily pregnant and I just wanted to take my mind off it.”
Minnie Driver admitted that motherhood has left its mark on her, and while she is admittedly involved in a “very selfish business”- she said: “I’ve started to enjoy my job more because I take it less seriously.”
Now that her son has got older, Minnie Driver has renewed her career ambitions. Her latest film, Hunky Dory, a small British indie from Jon Finn, the producer of Billy Elliot, is a high-school musical set in Wales during the heatwave of 1976.
And she has set her sights on a return to the small screen – again for less than selfish reasons.
“I still want an Oscar, and to work with Danny Boyle and Martin Scorsese – of course I want all of that.
“But what I really, really want to do is another US TV series… I want a regular pay cheque. And I want to be able to know when I can pick up Henry from school.”
