The Daily Roundup for July 2

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Carmelo Anthony GETS WAXED In NYC!

The next time Carmelo Anthony fans visit NYC's Time Square, they'll be able to get up close and personal with him at Madame Tussauds. He was joined by wife LaLa Anthony and son Kiyan at the official unveiling of his wax statue. He revealed that he had to pose for six hours for the figure's sculptors. And they got the tatts and all.

He tweeted fans, I am truly honored. I appreciate all my fans who came out to support. Once in a lifetime experience! Wow! 

LaLa was clearly smitten as she got kissy with the sculpture.

WEEKEND BOX OFFICE Ted beats out Madea and Mike! 

Ted scored a very impressive $54.1 million from 3,239 locations. That bests the first Hangover movie's $44.98 million for highest debut ever for an original R-rated comedy. Among all R-rated movies it ranks eighth all-time, and it ranks third among comedies behind The Hangover Part II and Sex and the City.
Ted's success is due primarily to the strength of its broadly-appealing, completely original premise: what's not to like about a foul-mouthed, pot-smoking teddy bear hanging out with Mark Wahlberg? It didn't hurt that this felt like a logical transition to the big screen for Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane, and previews maintained the general humor of that show. while clearly bringing something new to the table.

Magic Mike had to settle for second place behind Ted, though its estimated $39.16 million was a very impressive tally indeed. It's the third Channing Tatum movie this year to open north of $36 million, and if estimates hold it will become director Steven Soderbergh's highest opening ever ahead of Ocean's Twelve ($39.15 million). All that being said, it earned just shy of 50 percent of its weekend box office from Friday showings, which makes it one of the most front-loaded debuts ever. Add in an underwhelming "B" CinemaScore, and there's a good chance that Tatum doesn't get his third $100 million movie of 2012.

Regardless of how it holds up, though, this is a great initial showing for the somewhat artsy male stripper movie, and credit belongs to Warner Bros. for selling the hell out of it. The aspirational plot, which can be a bit of a downer, was largely ignored in favor of glimpses at stripping scenes involving an assortment of outrageous outfits. Instead of portraying the dark, seedy side of the movie's world, the ads focused on the fun and excitement (not to mention plenty of abs). Late in the game, as the movie was building steam, Warner Bros. ramped up the "event movie" signals to try and get large groups of women to ditch their boyfriends and head to the movies. As expected, the men didn't really come along: the audience was 73 percent women, and 57 percent under the age of 35.

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JHud almost called off the wedding….AGAIN!

Jennifer Hudson, seen looking lean in some pattern leggings at a recording party is reportedly going to marry World Wrestling Entertainment star David Otunga after all.
The 30-year-old singer and Weight Watcher's spokeswoman was mum about the news as she attended a special listening party in New York to promote a new version of her recording of the classic mothering song, 'Lullabye.'
Jennifer and David were engaged in 2008 and have a two-year-old son David together, but reportedly called off their wedding earlier this year.

Radar Online reported the stress surrounding the William Balfour murder trial, where he was found guilty of murder Jennifer's mother, brother and nephew, is what caused a pause in the relationship.

'Jennifer started feeling like it just wasn’t right. So many bad things have happened since they got engaged in 2008 that have prevented them from finally getting married, and she was worried that she was just trying too hard to make something happen that wasn’t meant to be,' a source told the website.

Apparently, Jennifer and the 32-year-old athlete called off the wedding a few months ago and she even returned her ring to him. 

She was extremely stressed out and processing a lot of emotions about the murder of her family after the trial ended, and she just cracked.'
David allegedly told the source, 'That was something that was hanging over our heads for so long, and now we feel like we can finally breathe a sigh of relief.
'Everything is good now.'

Red Hot Rihanna Suits Up in London

Making a vibrant exit from her luxury hotel, Rihanna was spotted heading out in London, UK The “Birthday Cake” songstress sported a colorful ensemble of a red and pink satin suit that she paired with white heels as she made a fashionable pass by the paparazzi.
Speaking of leaving her London digs, Rihanna recently had to evacuate the Corinthia hotel after a fire broke out.

The 24 year-old took to her Twitter page earlier posting a picture of herself riding around in the backseat of a car with a caption reading, “Roamin da streets since 6am! Fyah in da telly #evacuationlife.”

In a statement released by the hotel, a spokesperson explained that a service elevator motor had burned out which led to the smoke and activation of the alarms.
After a safety check was performed, guests including the international r&b starlet were once allowed back in.

Quincy Jones Dings P. Diddy at Spotify Launch: ‘He Couldn’t Recognize a B-Flat’

Spotify brought producer Quincy Jones to launch their new app featuring artist-curated playlists but the music legend couldn’t resist dinging P. Diddy for being a music illiterate while touting the music technology.

“P. Diddy wouldn’t know a B-flat” if it hit him, said Jones in a conversation with musician Bruno Mars to mark the occasion of the app launch. “P. Diddy has a doctorate in marketing…. He’s got clothes companies and Ciroc vodka.” (Photo of Jones and Diddy with a Pussycat Doll)

The comment came after Jones responded to an audience question with an admonition to “learn your craft.”

W.i.P Nightclub Loses Liquor License After Drake, Chris Brown Brawl

The New York City nightclub which was the scene of the champagne-bottle brawl between Chris Brown and Drake, lost its liquor license Tuesday (June 26), reports the New York Daily News. The club has been in the spotlight ever since the melee, which resulted injuries and lawsuits.
According to the State Liquor Authority, W.i.P seems to be a magnet for fights, and should be penalized. “The SLA will not tolerate violent bars that break the law,” said SLA chairman Dennis Rosen.

Authorities cited the nightclub for a total of 17 violations, plus 10 “separate assault and altercations beginning on March 11 2012, and leading up to a large brawl at the club on June 14, 2012.”

In the days after the brawl, the club's manager, Jonathon Canter, was arrested on outstanding warrants. Meanwhile neither the R&B singer nor the Young Money rapper, have yet to face charges for their role in the situation. But ust in case the NYPD tries to bring charges against them, Brown's lawyer stated that his client will co-operate with authorities.

The Return of Jodeci 

K-Ci, Jo Jo, Mr. Dalvin and DeVante Swing are putting the band back together...

According to Mr. Dalvin you can expect new music from Jodeci and a tour by year's end.
Dalvin tells You Know I Got Soul
“I don’t want to promise you anything, but I would say near the end of the year we’ll go on tour, because we haven’t toured the States since ’96, and then come back and put out that album."
"We’ve got like 200 songs recorded already, so we’re probably going to go through them and put together an album. We got hot songs that we never released or nobody ever heard."
“Everybody thinks we just broke up and don’t speak or anything, but it’s nothing like that. We’re family and people don’t understand that.”

Whoopi Goldberg Directing A New Documentary Film About The Life Of Moms Mabley

Whoopi Goldberg is directing a documentary entitled I Got Somethin’ To Tell You! The 90-minute film is about the life, impact and legacy of Jackie “Moms” Mabley, who was an American standup comedian. She was a pioneer and one the most successful entertainers of the Black vaudeville stage of the Chitlin’ Circuit. Whoopi has interviewed a host of famous faces for I Got Somethin’ To Tell You, but now needs to find the balance of the money to finish the project. Check out what Whoopi has to say about the film and listen to Moms Mabley’s comdey 

Moms Mabley was a pioneer in the comedy world and this documentary will showcase her talent and pay homage to a woman who is still relevant today. Moms was the first and without her there probably would not have been a Totie, a Joan, a Kathy, a Wanda, or any of the others who may follow. Without Moms there certainly would not have been a Whoopi. With her boundary pushing stand-up she was able to get past the obstacles of all the “isms”; racism, sexism, ageism. Moms helped shape the idea that comedy could make a political and social statement and still be hilarious. She’s one of my role models and her comedy is still poignant today. This documentary will delve into the comedy of Mabley, as well as help define her significance through clips, old photographs, television show appearances and interviews, conducted by me with famous and influential people who either knew and worked with Moms or were inspired by her.

I have already interviewed some very famous folks about Moms and now I need to find the balance of the money to finish the project. Every dollar is important on our way to our $65,000 goal and obviously producing a movie is expensive. We need funding for a number of things such as clip clearance, vintage photos, editing, graphic design, material rights and music. Because I want this to be collaborative, I asking that you take a look at our rewards. Maybe you’ll find something you like or maybe you’ll just want to come on board and get involved in something that I think is important. Thank you. To donate click here!

Stephanie Mills Is Not feeling Raunchy Brian McKnight or Naked Erykah Badu

Old school artist Stephanie Mills has a word of advice for Brian McKnight and his raunchy sex songs and Erykah Badu showing up naked more often than not in her videos...

Stephanine tells The Huffington Post,
“I just don’t think you have to go that far to get attention, and I think sometimes the older artists—because he [Brian McKnight] is older now—the older artists are so starved for attention that they’ll just about do anything,”
“I think it took away from all of the classiness and the great stuff that he has done before,”
“When Erykah Badu took off all her clothes, I was like, ‘It’s just so unnecessary to do that!’ I love Erykah Badu, but I think sometimes they want to do the shock value thing, but I don’t think it always works for Black artists the way that it works for White artists.”

Pics Of Andre 3000 Filming The Jimi Hendrix Biopic

More pics have emerged from the set of Andre 3000's All Is By My Side Jimi Hendrix biopic.

He is seen walking with co-star Hayley Atwell, who plays Linda Keith, the then girlfriend of Rolling Stones guitarist Keith Richards.

In the film, Linda introduces Jimi to Rolling Stones' manager Andrew Loog Oldham and later, producer Seymour Stein. And the rest is history....

Dwyane Wade’s Ex-Wife Can’t Visit Kids In Chicago, Has To Fly to Florida!

A Cook County judge ordered the former wife of NBA basketball star Dwyane Wade to shift visits with her children from Chicago to Florida until the court determines whether she interfered with a previously arranged visitation schedule.
The judge deferred her final decision on Funches-Wade’s custody rights until July 9.

Associate Judge Helaine Leslie Berger ruled that Siohvaughn Funches-Wade, of South Holland, must temporarily visit her two sons, ages 5 and 10, in Florida after her June 16 arrest in which she allegedly refused to return her children to Wade’s sister for over eight hours.

ACLU Picks Up K-K-K's Fight To Adopt Georgia Highway

The K-K-K has been denied the opportunity to adopt a Georgia highway, and now the American Civil Liberties Union has gotten involved. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the group announced the they will aid the K-K-K in their fight.
Following public outcry, officials at the Georgia Department of Transportation, rejected the white supremacist group's request over “safety concerns.”

Debbie Seagraves, the executive director for the Gergia's ACLU said that denying the K-K-K the right to clean up a highway is unconstitutional.“It has not been a matter of discussion as far as I am concerned,” she said, "Yes, we are representing them, but we are still working on the strategy.”
The ACLU is still working on their strategy to assist the KKK.

Madison Square Garden company buys Lakers old arena, The Forum

The blueprint that takes an NBA game from simply being a sporting event to an entertainment experience was laid out by Lakers owner Jerry Buss in the 80′s transforming the fabulous Forum from just a venue to a lifestyle. On the east coast, that same honor was held by the home of the Knicks, Madison Square Garden. So it’s only right that The Madison Square Garden Co. has purchased the Forum for $23.5 million.
The historic arena opened in 1967 and was home to both the NBA’s Lakers and NHL’s Kings until they left for the Staples Center in 1999.

The venue also hosted generations of pop music acts, including Elvis Presley, Jimi Hendrix, Aerosmith and Nirvana. It’s currently owned by the Faithful Central Bible Church, which uses it for services as well as concerts.

Madison Square Garden, which owns the namesake New York arena, along with the NBA’s Knicks and the NHL’s Rangers, says it plans to start renovating the Forum later this year.
The Forum is where I saw my first NBA game, the circus, my first Prince concert – and my last one, I went last year. I couldn’t wait until I was old enough to see what was going on in the Forum club.

That was the inspiration for current spots like Hyde in Staples and the 40-40 club in the soon to open Barclays center. I hope that the renovation brings it into this century but still holds onto the charm of it. I actually vote for returning it to it’s red and white colorway as well.

CREEPIN’; Ashanti & Nelly CHILL In Downtown St. Louis

Ashanti & Nelly still may not publicly admit they're a couple, but almost 10 years after the first rumors of their romance began, they're still coupled up in various places.
Nelly was spotted bringing Ashanti to his hometown of St. Louis where they ran into a few fans.

31-year-old Ashanti, rocking cutoff shorts and the Jordan 4 sneakers, was spotted grabbing coffee with her 37-year-old boo Nelly in downtown STL:

The twosome snapped pics with fans who spotted them after their Starbucks run.

Casey Anthony’s Lawyer Jose Baez writes about the case in a new Book!

Casey Anthony was never guilty of murder, or even of lying to police, because she was mentally ill and unstable when she sent detectives chasing after her two-year-old daughter, a new book claims.
Anthony's attorney, Jose Baez offers that stunning assessment in Presumed Guilty, Casey Anthony: The Inside Story, due out July 3.

Mr Baez gives an inside look at the explosive trial from one of the people who knew it best -- including a description of the elaborate trickery involved in sneaking Anthony away from court after her acquittal so that reporters couldn't follow her.
Casey Anthony cries with her attorney Jose Baez after she was acquitted of murder charges at the Orange County Courthouse on July 5

He also supplies some intimate details: Anthony's first me

al out of jail was a cheeseburger, fries and milkshake from Steak 'n Shake.

Mr Baez said detectives should have realised Casey Anthony had built a 'fantasy world,' and her lies weren't evidence of guilt but signs of someone with 'serious mental health issues'.

Anthony is serving probation for an unrelated charged at an undisclosed location in Florida. She couldn't be reached for comment yesterday.
Describing how Anthony led detectives on a wild goose chase, even taking them to Universal Studios where she falsely claimed she had a job, Mr Baez writes, detectives 'should have stopped and realised, "Wait a minute, we're not dealing with someone who is playing with a full deck"'.

Anthony originally told detectives that her daughter, Caylee, was taken by a babysitter in June 2008, and that she didn't report her missing for more than a month because she was searching for the toddler on her own.
Anthony had been accused of murdering her two-year-old daughter Caylee in 2008 and was found not guilty of manslaughter in the first degree

During Anthony's trial last year, Baez argued that the little girl accidentally drowned in the family swimming pool while Anthony and her father, George, were at home.
Anthony panicked from the traumatic effects of being sexually abused by her father and George Anthony hid the body, according to the defence argument.
George Anthony denied the defence's allegations that he abused Casey and helped her cover up Caylee's death.
Prosecutors had contended that Anthony suffocated Caylee with duct tape because she wanted to be free to hit the nightclubs and spend time with her boyfriend.
Jurors acquitted Anthony of first-degree murder but convicted her of four misdemeanor counts of lying to investigators.
Mr Baez repeats the allegations of sexual abuse in greater detail in the book, saying it contributed to Anthony's mental health issues.

Mark Lippman, an attorney for George Anthony, refused to comment on the book yesterday because he hadn't read it.
Anthony's defense contemplated having her testify until the very end of the trial but then decided it wasn't necessary.

'We had everything to lose and very little to gain,' Mr Baez writes.
Mr Baez doesn't say where Anthony currently is hiding but he provides a glimpse of the first few hours after she was released from jail last July, time mostly devoted to eluding the media.
After escorting Anthony out of the Orange County Jail and into a waiting SUV, Mr Baez rode with Anthony to a parking garage where five cars driven by members of the legal team were waiting.
Mr Baez and Anthony got into one car which departed the garage at the same time as the other four. Each car drove in a different direction so reporters following Mr Baez and Anthony wouldn't know which one they were in or where they were heading.
Mr Baez and Anthony then drove to a municipal airport where a private plane took them to the Florida Panhandle resort community of St George Island.

There, members of their legal team and their families met up with them. Anthony then went to New York until she had to return to Florida to serve her probation sentence.
Hiding: Anthony is currently serving jail time for unrelated charges at an undisclosed location. She has hidden from the public ever since her acquittal
Gone: Anthony's toddler daughter Caylee, whose body was found in woods near Anthony's home in 2008

Mr Baez takes aim at the reporters who covered the case, detectives who investigated it, 'groupies' who attached themselves to it and the case's original judge who Mr Baez says filed a complaint against him with the Florida Bar.
The complaint was later dropped. Prosecutor Jeff Ashton undergoes the harshest criticism by Mr Baez, who calls him 'a coward' for not showing up at Anthony's sentencing for the misdemeanors since he was making the talk shows round after the trial.

Mr Baez is critical of many of Circuit Judge Belvin Perry's rulings during the trial but praises the judge for allowing him to pick a fair jury.
The three-year case took an emotional toll on Mr Baez, according to his book. He suffered depression after the complaint was filed against him and he found it difficult to find joy in his wife's pregnancy.
Mr Baez also criticises the way he was portrayed in the media as an inexperienced attorney taking on one of the highest-profile criminal cases in recent memory.
'The public may have been convinced that I was an idiot but I let it all roll off my back,' he writes.

Matt Barnes talks groupie love and bathroom sex with Gloria Govan

Lakers forward Matt Barnes receives a lot of attention about his love life. He and his fiance’e, Basketball Wives LA star, Gloria Govan have been pretty public about the ups and downs of an NBA relationship. On the first season of the LA version of the show, it was revealed that Matt and Gloria were “acting” for the cameras and weren’t together during that time period- which I personally found hilarious as most of Gloria’s storyline revolved around that relationship. 

Matt recently had an interview with Bleu magazine where he discussed getting over groupie love and how he and Gloria keep their relationship spicy.

”In the league, women come a dime a dozen. Not to sound stuck-up or anything, but that’s just how it is. At some point you have to wake up and realize what your priorities are. Some guys wake up sooner than others. I woke up and I realized what was important to me.”

“You like to go into a situation saying yes we are always going to be together forever and what’s mine is yours, what’s yours is mine, but sometimes it doesn’t work out like that.”
“Even when Gloria and I were dating other people,” recalls Matt, “when people would say things about her, it bothered me. Even though we weren’t together it was something that made me mad you know? It’s different when they are talking about the mother of your children.”

When asked how he and Gloria stay happy sexually he replied:
“So sometimes that means middle of the day sex. Sometimes that means after lunch you go and have sex in the bathroom. We do things outside the norm. I think we were in London last year in a really fancy nice restaurant and….the bathroom.”

I’ve always been told after awhile all the girls blend together and you become numb to it. Even star athletes want someone to come home to that knows the real them. The question is just how long it takes to reach that point.

Azealia Banks Delays Release Of New Mixtape

Azealia Banks is making a change to her upcoming mixtape, “Fantasea.” The hip-hop newcomer took to Twitter on Monday to tell fans the release date has been pushed back from July 4th to July 11th. She joked that she’s become the “queen of delays,” but points out that at least she’s always working.

And despite the setback, “Fantasea” has already spawned the singles “Jumanji” and “Aquababe.” The free set will follow Banks’ debut EP “1991,” which came out back in May. The 21-year-old recently set the stage ablaze with her electrifying performance at this weekend’s Hackney Weekend, performing a selection of tracks from her latest EP 1991.

LL Cool J Launches New Music Software

Rapper LL Cool J announced the launch of his music production software, My Connect Studio. The program, done in collaboration with Sony and his social networking site Boomdizzle, is a real-time virtual studio that functions as a bridge between artists and producers regardless of their location on the globe. My Connect Studio will also utilize various social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook. He designed it to serve as a remedy for the lack of in-studio time occurring in this digital age. “They’ll [producers] e-mail me the track. I’m e-mailing vocals. They don’t like something, I’m sending it back. We’re going back and forth and doing this dance,” LL explained to fans at the Sony store in New York on Wednesday. “A lot of music is being created that way right now. What I wanted to do is be able to create music in real-time.”
LL is using his program to record tracks for his upcoming album to, in his words, “make sure that it is official.” My Connect Studio is currently available for PCs and will soon be available for Mac operating systems and all mobile devices.

AND FINALLY FROM “THE CRAZY PEOPLE SHOPPING AT WALMART” FILES
‘Seedless Watermelons”

You know how sometimes you’ll see a runner pull their shirt up after a hard run to cool down? Yeah well you’re not one of them.

MAKE IT A GREAT WEEK AHEAD!!
EFREM