Patty Jackson Weekly 411 courtesy 2 Down Front Entertainment

PATTY JACKSON'S 4-1-1
WEEK ENDING: April 16th, 2010

Why did Oprah’s family sell her out? The long awaited unauthorized biography on Oprah by Kitty Kelley is out. Kelley is known for her exposés on Frank Sinatra, Nancy Reagan, The Bushes and Elizabeth Taylor, and now she is doing The Mighty O. I didn’t think anything new would come out of this book because Oprah has always led her life like an open book. So what didn’t we know….well, she dated John Tesh, the musician and former anchor of Entertainment Tonight. He couldn’t deal with the interracial pressure, so he left her in the middle of the night. Oprah never knew her biological dad. She was raised by Vernon Winfrey. Vernon held nothing back. He can’t stand Oprah’s best friend Gayle King. He called her a street heifer. He talked about Oprah’s longtime boyfriend Stedman Graham. Referring to Stedman as a fixture and window dressing, Vernon says they are not in love.

He also says the Oprah he knows is not the woman on screen. He talks about her strained relationship with her mother, and says Oprah doesn’t know Jesus. Vernon claims she lied about being poor growing up because he provided very well for her. Former boyfriends of Oprah’s were paid thousands to keep quiet, but that didn’t stop their girlfriends, who revealed to Kelley about past lesbian flings. So far, Oprah has had no comment on the book. Sources say she is just waiting for the storm to pass over. In the meantime, her media friends have been loyal to her. Kelley has been having a hard time getting booked on major shows (Letterman, The View, 20/20, Leno, Good Morning America). Why would Oprah’s stepdad bite her back out? Apparently, she and Vernon had a falling out years ago, and she stopped him from writing a tell-all of his own, so he gave all his dirt to Kitty Kelley.

Houston! We’ve Got A Problem! Whitney Houston has resumed her European tour, but she can’t hit the high notes…. and it’s embarrassing! She looks haggard, and she sweats profusely while performing. According to Houston, despite battling an upper respiratory infection, she is in good health. This tour has turned into a disaster. She needs money because she never wrote or produced her own music. Right now, the only way she can make money is by touring. Now she could write a book, but there’s the question: will she tell the truth? Will it be an honest book about her life with Bobby Brown and the years of drug abuse?

In other news, she will be doing a nightly show on her Oprah Winfrey Network. In this show, she will travel the world conducting interviews with notable figures from around the world. Oprah’s daytime talk show ends September 2011.

Shaquille O’Neal has a warning for his ex-wife. Don’t Clown Me Or Talk About Me On Your Reality Show! Shaunie O’Neal has a reality show on VH1 called Basketball Wives. The show is funny because only one of the ladies is married. The other women are divorced or ex-jumpoffs/girlfriends/side jawns….anywho… Shaq sees his ex-wife’s show as televised revenge. For years, Shaq cheated on Shaunie, and now, he is getting his lawyers after her. In other Shaunie news, the mother of five is dating 23-year old Model Marlon Yates. Shaq is not happy about this either. He’s been leaking stories about his ex-wife. Telling anyone who’ll listen how she used to be married to one of his business partners, but dumped that husband to hook up with him. Hmmmmmmmm!

Does Tyler Perry have a gay problem? According to Writer/Columnist Rob Smith, Perry does. He claims there are no positive gay role models in any of Perry’s movies. Smith says this is probably done so that Perry’s predominately African American church-going audience won’t be offended.

Is Vivica A Fox getting turned out by her new boyfriend? Fox, 43, has been dating Slimm, a 26-year old promoter. She just spent a ton of money on a birthday party for him. During the party, he wasn’t paying attention to her so she started spazzing out. Her youngin’ was checking out the other ladies who were there to steal her man. Auntie Viv, the number one rule of a cougar…..if you are going to date the youngin’s, you can’t let them see you sweat, especially in this day and age of the video camera…aauugghh!!! Don’t let yourself get played. Remember how it was when you dated 50 Cent. C’mon, everybody is watching you with this young man. Be careful.

Larry King is having his own problems. Talk Show Legend Larry King filed for divorce from his seventh wife Shawn. She filed her own papers the same day. Shawn’s been married three times before Larry. The Kings have two sons together, Chance, 11, and Cannon, 9. Larry is denying published reports of an affair with his wife’s sister. Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm!

How long will NBC keep Tiki Barber around? The former Giants football great made headlines for all the wrong reasons last week when it was revealed he dumped his wife Ginny, who is 8 months pregnant, for a 23-year old intern. Barber and Ginny had been married for 11 years with two sons, but apparently he has been carrying on with the intern for the past two years. He’s been showering her with expensive gifts, clothing, jewelry, designer handbags and trips around the world. The young intern didn’t care who knew about their relationship. She would put daily posting on Facebook wearing Barber’s jersey. Her parents thought she was the babysitter for Barber’s children, but the fact is she was having an affair with him. Barber’s career is in jeopardy. He was recently dropped from the Sunday night NFL games on NBC. He was also paid $2 million by The Today Show, but he was disappointing and dull on screen. What man turns his back on his pregnant wife? No one likes a jerk. Now NBC has a reason not to renew his contract.

At the movies, it’s Death At A Funeral. It’s an all-star cast with Chris Rock, Martin Lawrence, Tracy Morgan, Zoe Saldana, Danny Glover and Kevin Hart. Speaking of Martin Lawrence, he’s going to start work next month on Big Momma’s House III: Like Father, Like Son. The new movie will also star Faison Love and Brandon T. Jackson. In the new installment, Lawrence recruits his son to help solve a crime. Lawrence will also be teaming up with Jamie Foxx in the Sheneneh And Wanda movie, based on their popular characters from In Living Color and the Martin show.

Speaking of jerks, Hollywood Agent Mike Nilon has been busted for cheating. Nilon is married to Actress Garcelle Beauvais-Nilon. Garcelle played “Fancy” on The Jamie Foxx Show and a D.A. on NYPD Blue. The Nilons are the parents of two-year old twin boys. When Garcelle found out her husband was cheating, she sent an email blast letting everyone know about Nilon’s five-year affair with another woman.

Actress Stacey Dash is headed to divorce court. The former Clueless star is divorcing husband number three, Emmanuel Xuereb. They had been married for two years, and she claims he beat her and has a drinking problem.

The King children are getting along. Dexter, Martin, III and Bernice have settled their differences and are getting ready to continue the legacy of their parents. The King siblings will be doing work for The King Center with Martin, III being placed in charge. For years, the siblings were embroiled in controversy ranging from charges of theft to mishandling of funds. A judge had to step in to restore order. After a car accident nearly killed Dexter, the siblings realized life was too short to continue feuding. Plus, it was embarrassing to the family.

Singer Jaheim had a run in with the police last week. Jaheim was stopped for speeding, and police found marijuana in his car.

Trey Songz and Monica are gearing up for a summer tour. Songz also has a new reality sow debuting on BET on June 27^th.

Former 76er Derrick Coleman is broke. Coleman owes his creditors $4.7 million, and he has filed for bankruptcy. In 1991, Coleman was the NBA’s Rookie Of The Year, and he was a standout player for Syracuse. During the course of his NBA career, he made millions, but lost it due to bad business deals.

Actor Quinton Aaron, who played NFL Player Michael Oher in the movie The Blind Side with Sandra Bullock, has been dropped by his talent agency. They claim they couldn’t find him any work.

Paula Deen is back with a new book about southern flair. Savannah Style is a southern style decorating book. Deen co-wrote the book with her creative director and personal assistant, Brandon Branch. Deen says she came up with the idea for the book because she wants people to dare to be different with their decorating.

Bobby Brown has a June court date. Brown is trying to get his child support payments reduced. Brown has no source of income, and he can’t afford to pay Kim Ward, the mother of two of his children, $5,500 a month. Back in 2007, Brown was jailed for falling behind on his child support payments by $22,000.

Basketball Superstar Julius Erving is living the quiet life outside of Atlanta. Dr. J is happily married to Dorys Madden, and they have three children. The Ervings met in 2003, and have been married for two years.

Gabby Sidebe is headed to SNL as host. The star of Precious is hosting the show on April 24^th. In other Gabby news, her mom, Alice Tan Ridley, has been chosen to compete this summer on America’s Got Talent. Ridley is a subway singer who is well known in the New York area.

It’s official. Kevin Eubanks is leaving The Tonight Show. After 18 years by Leno’s side, Eubanks wants to embark on a different musical journey. Famed Music Director Rickey Minor is replacing Eubanks. Minor will be leaving his position with American Idol to take The Tonight Show gig. Minor is known for his work with the Superbowl, The Grammy Awards and The NAACP Image Awards.

In other late night news, Conan O’Brien is going with the money. FOX wouldn’t pay up, so Conan O’Brien will be doing a late night show for the TBS network. O’Brien’s show will air Mon-Thurs at 11pm followed by George Lopez. O’Brien will own the show and get $10 million a year

The Queen Of Soul Aretha Franklin and The King Of Pop Michael Jackson are going to be the new inductees into the Apollo Theatre Hall Of Fame. The ceremony takes place June 14^th. Past inductees include Patti LaBelle, Quincy Jones and Ella Fitzgerald. Jennifer Lopez and her hubby Marc Anthony are also going to be honored that night with a humanitarian award.

Neicy Nash is dancing up a storm on Dancing With The Stars. She’s also in talks to host her own daytime talk show. In the meantime, she’s been busy with her Clean House TV show and her work on The Insider. In other Dancing With The Stars news, is Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson dating his dance partner Cheryl Burke. NO! It’s just publicity. When he finishes up Dancing With The Stars, he will start work on his VH1 dating reality show. 85 women are already lined up to date him. He is going to be sooooo tired once he starts up football season with the Cincinnati Bengals.

Jennifer Hudson says she has not forgotten about her singing career. Hudson is currently the spokesperson for Weight Watchers. She went from a size 14 to a size 4. She’s also getting ready to start work on a movie based on the life of Winnie Mandela. Hudson says in between, she will be working on a new album that she says will be ready by the fall.

Ruben Studdard is gearing up for a summer tour with former Idol Contestant Clay Aiken. When the two competed on American Idol, Studdard won the competition. They will be performing in Lancaster on August 8^th. In other Idol news, the charity show Idol Gives Back will air on April 21^st. Alicia Keys will be one of the performers. So far, Idol’s charity has raised over $140 million.

Congrats to 6ABC News Anchor Monica Malpass. Her twin boys, Hunter and Zeke, arrived earlier this week. The twins join their ten-year old big brother Jake. Congrats Monica!

Check out the May issue of Essence magazine. Jill Scott is the cover girl. New Mommy Paula Patton is on the new issue Of Ebony. She and husband Singer Robin Thicke recently became the parents of a baby boy named Julian.

On May 14^th, it’s Queen Latifah, Common, Paula Patton and Pam Grier in the movie Just Wright. Philadelphia Native Mike Elliott directs the comedy about finding love when you least expect it.