411 for the week of February 23rd, 2004
Hold that wedding dress! Friends of television hostess Star Jones are urging her to take her time with her new fiancé. Last week after a four-month courtship, Star became engaged to investment banker Al Reynolds. He gave her a five-carat ring. One day after the engagement news stories came out questioning Reynolds' romantic past and sources say he has been less than honest about his past preferences. Will Star take heed? She's head over heels in love? Will Barbara Walters, the producer and head honcho of the popular daytime show The View, speak up? Will she urge Star to slow down and check out her boyfriend's past? Barbara cannot afford to have a scandal like this ruin the reputation of her show no matter how bad Star wants to get married.
Wait here's another "hold that wedding dress!" Spokespeople for Diana Ross say she is not engaged to be married to Liza Minelli's "ex ," David Gest. David announced that last week that he and Diana were in love and would be married in two years. This was all wishful thinking on behalf of Gest. Yes it's true he and Diana bonded over her recent troubles…the drunk driving arrest, her ex-husband's death and problems with drinking, but they are not romantically involved. I have to admit when I heard this the first thing that came to my mind was is she drinking again? Gest would love to marry Diana Ross. He's a scam artist always on the hunt for "Sugar Mommies." Gest is currently suing his "ex," Liza Minelli for $10 million. He claims during their 16-month marriage he endured brutal beatings by Liza. He says she would go into drunken rages and beat him. He says he suffers from head pains and he will have to take medication for the rest of his life. During his marriage to Liza they never had sex. Years ago Gest was involved with actress Ruth Warrick. She is best known as "Aunt Phoebe" from the soap opera All My Children. Warrick says she dated Gest for over 12 years and they never had sex. Warrick was 35 years older than Gest, but he didn't care. He loved the publicity and the money. Diana is currently preparing for her European tour. She will tour the states this summer.
Janet Jackson has hooked up with the hottest producer/hip hop artist of the moment. Kanye West is topping the charts with his latest project and he's about to start up his own record label. In addition to his own hip hop projects he is an established writer. He is the force behind the Alicia Keys hit "You Don't Know My Name." Kanye has co-produced Janet's new song "I Want You" along with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. Janet's new CD, Damita Jo comes out on March 30th. On March 20th she will be performing on the Soul Train Music Awards. Janet looks great on the cover of her new album. Janet is no stranger to plastic surgery. She's been getting it since she was 14 years old. Janet has had her nose done twice plus cheek and chin implants, breast augmentation and liposuction.
Luther Vandross' recovery may take up to two years. It's been almost a year since his near fatal stroke. He is undergoing occupational therapy learning how to feed himself, take a bath… basically learning how to live again. Luther gets around in a wheelchair and he can talk on a phone if someone holds it up for him. He also suffers from short-term memory loss.
Is Whitney Houston pregnant? Whitney was on stage in Russia and during her concert she announced she was pregnant. Reps for her record label say this is news to them. They say that they know nothing of a pregnancy. During the past year pregnancy rumors have been swirling around the troubled diva. She was reportedly pregnant last year and due last fall but nothing happened. Is she pregnant now or is her stomach bulging because she's bloated? Meanwhile where is her husband Bobby Brown? He's in jail again. Bobby was jailed on Saturday for violating his probation. No word on what he did this time to land him back in the slammer, but he will be there all week.
The Soul Train Music Awards air March 20th. Alicia Keys and Babyface are hosting. Beyonce is leading the pack with four nominations. Some of the scheduled performers include Beyonce, Janet Jackson and Outkast. Luther Vandross, Erykah Badu, Jaheim and R. Kelly are also up for numerous awards.
Alicia Keys recently gave a revealing interview to American Magazine. American Magazine is a new magazine and Alicia talked about being in an abusive relationship with a gun toting older man. Alicia was a no show at the launch party of the magazine and sources say it's because she regrets talking about that part of her past.
Singer Gerald Levert is heading up a campaign to get his father's group The O'Jays inducted into the Rock 'N Roll Hall of Fame. It is too late for this year, so they are trying for next year. Gerald has all the info on his website GeraldLevert.com . In other Gerald news, later this year he makes his big screen debut with Queen Latifah in the movie Beauty Shop. Now speaking of the O'Jays they will be reuniting with Philadelphia songwriting legends Kenny Gamble and Leon Huff to complete a collection of lost studio recordings.
Patti LaBelle has a football team. The LaBelle Community Football League is a sports program aimed at males 18 and over.
At the movies it's Against the Ropes with Meg Ryan, Omar Epps, and Charles S. Dutton. Dutton also directs. In a recent interview Epps talked about Puff Daddy and his upcoming Broadway debut in "A Raisin in the Sun." Epps says Puffy is not a great choice for the role. Epps also says it's stupid for him (Puffy) to be in the production even though Puffy was in the award winning movie Monsters Ball. He says he wasn't impressed with Puffy in the movie. What's going on here? Why is Omar hating on Puffy? Is he against rappers who want to act? Is he upset because Puffy will be staring on Broadway against his "ex," actress Sanaa Lathan? Omar and Sanaa dated for three years. Is Omar upset because Puffy used to manage his current fiancée, Kiesha Spivey? Keisha sang in Puffy's group Total and she is currently pregnant by Omar. I thought it was odd that Omar would be making such harsh comments about Puffy…sounds personal to me.
Mariah Carey is not impressing fans overseas with her latest concerts. Sources say she changes her clothes more than she sings.
Chilli, from the group TLC, speaks out about her breakup with Usher. The on again/off again relationship is officially off. After dating for almost three years, it's over. Chilli says Usher did not dump her. She claims Usher betrayed her and she will never forgive him. She says he's a liar and she never wants to see him again. Chilli is nine years older than Usher and she wanted to settle down and get married. Usher has a new album coming out next month called Confessions and he sings about the breakup. Usher says he had to be true to himself and that's why they are no longer together.
Look for the Nation of Islam to play a smaller role in Michael Jackson's life. Michael's ex-wife, Debbie Rowe, was very upset about Michael's involvement with the religious organization. Debbie is Jewish and she had threatened to take her children away from Michael. Michael's two oldest children were by Debbie who signed away her rights to the children for millions of dollars. Michael had embraced the Nation of Islam on the advice of his brother Jermaine, who is a Muslim. They were providing security for Michael, but their presence was upsetting a lot of people including brothers Tito and Jackie who got into a fight with members when they wouldn't let them near Michael. Michael has struck a deal with his "ex" to wean himself from the group, so he can keep custody of his kids. Debbie has already spilled the beans about the kids' parentage, claiming Michael is not the biological father. Sources say these kids were inseminations by someone else. ( No isht Sherlock
) Lately Michael has been taking advice from his brother Randy who is encouraging him to take a more active role in his life. He wants Michael to be his own mouthpiece and stop relying on so-called friends to talk for him as he fights child molestation charges. In other Michael news rapper Eminem has put in a bid to buy Michaels Neverland Ranch. The 26 hundred-acre estate is going for $49 million. Michael has vowed never to live there again after police raided the home and destroyed it.