Tony Parker has a birthday win; Spurs go up 2-0 on Clippers

Published by EOTM News Editor on May 18th, 2012 - in Breaking News, Cain Cawthon on Sports, Sports, Sports News

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SAN ANTONIO — On his 30th birthday, Tony Parker first kept the San Antonio Spurs on pace for what might be another lopsided playoff sweep. Then the All-Star who’s always quick to needle Tim Duncan about his age finally acknowledged his own.

“I’m old. Used,” said Parker, laughing.

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Chris Paul, meanwhile, isn’t acknowledging anything: Not his aching body that everyone but him is talking about, or the Los Angeles Clippers’ season careening toward the end this weekend unless things change fast.

Parker scored 22 points, Duncan had 18 and the Spurs beat the fading Clippers 105-88 on Thursday night, taking a 2-0 lead in their Western Conference semifinals and winning their 16th in a row with yet another playoff blowout.

For the 13th time in a winning streak that seldom run this long in the NBA playoffs, the Spurs won by double digits. Only two other teams have sustained a longer winning streak in the playoffs: the 2004 Spurs (17) and the 2001 Lakers (19).

“I think for us, is to not look at that,” Parker said about the streak. “Concentrate on the task. We know Game 3 is going to be very, very hard. I think we should focus on that and not focus on the winning streak, or what we’re doing good.”

Paul responded to his awful Game 1 with only a slightly better encore, scoring 10 points as the Clippers now head home desperate to steer out of what’s starting to get the feel of a sweep.

Game 3 is Saturday in Los Angeles, and Game 4 is Sunday.

When the Clippers land in California early this morning, they’ll be home for the first time in nearly a week. They’ve played seven games in 13 days, and they’ll have played nine in 16 by the time the weekend is over.

Clippers coach Vinny Del Negro knows his team needs rest. Blake Griffin scored 20 points but added another injury to the list, this time what he described as a hip flexor strain. He’s already battling a sprained left knee and shaking off a turned ankle in Game 1.

He had just one rebound.

“We’re not going into these next two games thinking ‘Oh, let’s try to keep it close,’” Griffin said. “There’s no moral victories or moral losses here. We’re not worried about how many points we lost by.”

The All-Star matchup of Paul vs. Parker went from a Game 1 bust to a lopsided mismatch, and appeared to prove Paul is hurting more than he’s letting on. Del Negro says his star is still struggling with an aching hip and groin, even as Paul insists he’s OK.

He again looked anything but. While Parker — the last of the Big Three to finally hit the big 3-0 — celebrated by more than tripling his seven points and dreadful 1-for-9 shooting in Game 1, Paul shot 4 of 9 and had just five assists.

At halftime, the third-place finisher in the league’s MVP voting had more personal fouls (3) than points (2), assists (2) or rebounds (2). He finished with eight turnovers, a career playoff high.

“No excuses, I’ve just got to play better,” Paul said. “But I don’t ever recall having that many turnovers.

Del Negro said his star will bounce back.

“He’ll get loose here soon,” Del Negro said. “We need him to.”

Duncan, on the other hand, stayed in a playoff time warp. At 36 years old and playing in his 182nd postseason game — and with no contract beyond these playoffs — Duncan turned in another solid performance that sometimes recalled the former MVP who was winning championships in his prime rather than the old-timer who’s chasing a fifth ring now.

He scored 14 points in the first half — almost as much as the rest of the starting lineup — and finished 9-of-14 shooting. Points in the paint weren’t even close: The Spurs had 50, and the Clippers 18.

Boris Diaw added 16 points and Danny Green had 13 for the Spurs. Manu Ginobili scored 10 and was held scoreless in the second half.

Randy Foye was the Clippers’ only other player in double digits, scoring 11.

If this keeps up, a near-historic postseason for the Clippers will end this weekend unless they figure out a plan fast.

This is only the third time in the woeful 41-year history of the franchise that Los Angeles’ long-maligned “other” team has survived to the second round. Their momentum started with a stunning 27-point comeback on the road against Memphis in their playoff opener, but the Clippers haven’t made a rally stick in San Antonio.

A bumbling start had the Clippers already down by 15 in the first quarter before clawing back with a 9-2 burst. Getting to within 46-42 at halftime had the Clippers’ bench heading to the locker room clapping and Spurs coach Gregg Popovich storming off fuming.

Halfway through the third quarter, however, the lead was back to 16.

“There was a refocus of energy at halftime,” Duncan said. “We came out understanding of what we had to do to finish this game.”

As the deficit deepened, so did the Clippers’ frustration.

DeAndre Jordan seethed and slammed the ball when a missed rotation gave Green an uncontested 3-pointer that stretched San Antonio’s lead to back to double digits in the third. Less than a minute later, Foye trotted upcourt shaking his head after Paul’s fumbled dribble gave Kawhi Leonard a clear path for a breakaway dunk.

Following another 3-pointer by Green— this one pushing San Antonio’s lead to 70-60 — the turned-around Clippers looked so disjointed that Green darted back down and knocked the ball out of Paul’s hands on the ensuing inbound.

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Just In via Police Report:Trayvon Martin’s shooting was ‘avoidable’

Autopsy: Trayvon Martin tested positive for marijuana; George Zimmerman shot him in heart at close range —

According to a police report by Standford, Florida PD, Trayvon Martin’s fatal encounter with George Zimmerman was avoidable.

The report came nearly a month before a special prosecutor brought second-degree-murder charges against Zimmerman, 28, in the death of 17-year-old Trayvon. He has pleaded not guilty and said he acted in self-defense.

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“The encounter between George Zimmerman and Trayvon Martin was ultimately avoidable by Zimmerman, if Zimmerman had remained in his vehicle and awaited the arrival of law enforcement, or conversely, if he had identified himself to Martin as a concerned citizen and initiated dialog in an effort to dispel each party’s concern,” the report says. “There is no indication that Trayvon Martin was involved in any criminal activity at the time of the encounter.”

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The report says a single bullet perforated Trayvon’s heart.

View Trayvon Martin’s Autopsy — TRAYVON-MARTIN-AUTOPSY

A photograph released by Florida authorities shows blood on the head of George Zimmerman, charged with second-degree murder in the shooting death of teenager Trayvon Martin during a confrontation in Sanford. Zimmerman says it was self-defense.

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Witness accounts in the police reports describe the confrontation. One witness reported seeing Trayvon on top of Zimmerman, hitting him in a physical struggle.

According to a report by Christopher Serino of the Sanford Police Department, a witness said she heard “a commotion, which sounded to her like arguing.” She looked out from her bedroom window and saw two men on the ground.

“She then heard someone yell ‘help, help,’ ” the report said. “She then heard a ‘pop’ noise and then saw the decedent laying on the ground, motionless, and the other male, who she described as ‘larger’ and ‘Hispanic looking,’ standing over the decedent.”

Other police investigative reports said that Trayvon had been staying in the gated residential complex for a week before the shooting and that he had been sent to the home of a friend by his father after the teen had been suspended from school for 10 days for marijuana possession. A toxicology report on his body found a small amount of THC, the psychoactive chemical in marijuana, in his blood.

A police report concluded that at the time he was confronted by Zimmerman, Trayvon “was in fact generally running in the direction of where he was staying as a guest in the neighborhood.”

Zimmerman had reported “suspicious persons, all young black males” to police on three previous occasions in 2011, the reports said.

“According to record checks, all of Zimmerman’s suspicious person calls while residing in the Retreat neighborhood have identified Black males as the subjects,” the report said.

The autopsy, conducted by the medical examiner in Volusia County, Fla., also showed that 17-year-old Martin had one small abrasion on his left ring finger below the knuckle, according to the news report. The report could back the account of George Zimmerman, the 28-year-old neighborhood watch captain accused of killing Martin, who has said he fired into Martin’s chest in self-defense as the youth was straddling and pummeling him.

A spokesman for Volusia County, Fla., told Fox News the report was not made public and was leaked by someone other than the Volusia County Medical Examiner’s Office. He noted attorneys for both Zimmerman and Martin had copies of it. He said the report will not be released while an active investigation of the Feb. 26 shooting remains underway.Dr. Michael Baden, the former New York City medical examiner, said “intermediate” in such cases is defined as the muzzle of the gun being one to 18 inches away from the entry point when fired.

“If the muzzle is right against the skin, that’s a contact wound,” Baden said. Anything beyond 18 inches is considered “distant” range in coroner’s parlance, Baden said.

The autopsy results surface as court records indicate that Zimmerman sustained multiple injuries. Zimmerman, who is claiming self-defense in the fatal shooting on Feb. 26, had a pair of black eyes, a fractured nose and two cuts to the back of his head, according to a medical report prepared by his personal physician.

Some legal experts say the report on Zimmerman’s injuries, first reviewed by ABC News, may bolster his claim that he shot Martin in self-defense.

View Trayvon Martin’s Autopsy — TRAYVON-MARTIN-AUTOPSY

The LA Times & AP contributed to this report.

 

 

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Obama mourns ‘Queen of Disco’ Donna Summer



Obama mourns ‘Queen of Disco’ Donna Summer (via AFP)

US President Barack Obama on Thursday mourned the “Queen of Disco” Donna Summer who died of lung cancer, saying the music industry had lost a legend. “Michelle and I were saddened to hear about the passing of Donna Summer,” Obama said in a statement. “A five-time Grammy Award winner, Donna truly was…

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Dark Shadows Review

Published by EOTM News Editor on May 17th, 2012 - in Breaking News, Entertainment News, Film News, Movie Reviews

By: Greg Reifsteck  twitter @gregcomedy  facebook.com/gregcomedy

Johnny Depp was in the shadows last weekend in more ways than one. He not only starred in the movie remake of the hit 60′s TV daytime drama Dark Shadows. But his film also got eclipsed at the box office by the second week run of Marvel’s superhero juggernaut The Avengers.

Johnny Depp and Michelle Pfeiffer in "Dark Shadows." (Credit: Warner Bros.)

The Avengers broke the all-time second weekend box office record with a $103 million dollar gross, hulking over the nearly $30 million gross of Shadows.

Originally set for a winter release, Warner Bros. pushed up its $150 million budgeted film to summer. This could have been a huge misstep.  This twisted Tim Burton-directed film would have played much better with a chill in the air and less competition.

Depp has been passionate about remaking this gothic melodrama since plopping down in front of the TV to watch it as a teen. Barnabas Collins, a vampire character that was brought in to save the dying-on-the-vine soap opera, is redefined quite masterfully by Mr. Depp in this update. He made Capt. Jack Sparrow a household name by channeling Keith Richards. So why not bring some new new Goth spunk to an ages-old character.

In an opening montage, we learn how young Barnabas falls in love with the angelic waif Josette (Bella Heathcote) and spurns the love of a witch Angelique (Eva Green).

Angelique haunts Josette, scaring her in to fleeing in terror to a rocky cliff. Barnabas tries to save her, but is too late.  She falls to her death in dramatic form, sucking us into their tragic romance. Angelique curses Barnabas, transforming him into a creature of the night.  The townsfolk don’t take to vampires too well, however, wrapping him in chains, sealing him in a coffin and burying him for 190 years.

The story moves forward to 1972, where Barnabas becomes a fish out of water.  This is where the drama transforms to full out hilarity. He doesn’t know what to make of hippies, has a run in with the “demon” Golden Arches of McDonald’s, etc.

He also is reunited with his family at their once grand, and now grotesquely run down, fortress of Collinswood.  Barnabas tries to play off that he is long lost relative from across the pond, but family matriarch Elizabeth (Michelle Pfeiffer) is suspicious of what is real motives are.

At the same time a waifish young nanny Victoria (also played by Heathcote) arrives to take care of the family’s Damienesque son David (Gully McGrath).  Barnabas of course sees the resemblance to his former lost love from his former existence, and tries to woo her accordingly.  This does not bode well with ageless witch Angelique, who it seems, has been lurking around the town as a business magnate.
Burton trots out his treasure chest of archetypes he invented in his classic Beetlejuice. The Winona Ryder styled waif Victoria, the Barnabas-like Beetlejuice, and so on.

There is also the rebellious teenage daughter, Carolyn (Chloe Grace Moretz); Elizabeth’s useless brother, Roger (Jonny Lee Miller); Roger’s disturbed son, David (Gully McGrath), and a live-in psychiatrist named Dr. Julia Hoffman (Helena Bonham Carter). There is even the caretaker Willie Loomis (Jackie Earle Haley), a wizened drunk.
The special effects are amazing and the mood is very fun. The budget of the film shows in its flawless production design. Burton harkens back to the neon color palette that put his name on the map back in the late ‘80s. Some scenes are very retro in their production design.  I love that Burton plays it all for laughs since, upon recently viewing the ‘90s ABC remake with Ben Cross as Barnabas I found hard to take any of this too seriously.

First timers will enjoy the cavalcade of crazy characters. Whereas die-hard fans of the original series will think it is played with too much farce. I thought it was a delightful romp for an auteur working with his favorite lead.

Most auteurs like Burton always jump back to what they know and try to use their tricks to spruce up something they are passionate about.  Obviously Depp and Burton have a kinship over this cult classic TV series and Burton just plugged in some of his usual bag of tricks from two decades ago. Who would notice except for a fogie like me?

The acting by all is top notch. Depp is at his transformed best.  He inhabits Barnabas full-on as he does with all of his costume roles. To blow some of the unforgettable one-liners he gives here would ruin their effect.  But suffice it to say they didn’t reveal all of his A material in the trailer.

Pfeiffer and secondary players are solid for the most part. The only problem comes with the usually reliable Moretz who I adored as Hit Girl in Kick-Ass. She is horribly is miscast as the acting-out, and sexually awkward, daughter.  She inexplicably turns into a werewolf in the final act, and spends the rest of the film just skulking about and mumbling. Her acting resume would make one think she has the right devil may care quality for the character, but she isn’t quite able to pull it off with any depth. Maybe her role just was a throwaway for Burton, who seemed to have a lot going on plot-wise already.

Victoria and she disappear for most of the third act, only to be reintroduced at the climax to conveniently tie up things. This disjointed ending makes this film into a wickedly fun Saturday Matinee instead of a must see Friday night film.

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Tia Mowry leaves ‘The Game’

Published by EOTM News Editor on May 17th, 2012 - in Breaking News, Celebrity News, Entertainment News

Tia Mowry says bye bye to  hit TV show, The Game. Mowry has played the lead role since the series premiered in 2006. On Wednesday Mowry took to her Twitter page to confirm she will not appear in the upcoming sixth season.

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She writes, “Just wanted to let all my fans know that I will not be returning to The Game for season 6. It was an incredible run and I had lots of fun along the way.

“I am looking forward to my upcoming projects… the release of my book Oh Baby!, Season 2 of (reality show Tia & Tamera) premiering in June, and my movie (The Mistle-Tones) coming out in December… more to come!”

The 33-year-old also stars with her sister, Tamera Mowry-Housley, on the Style Network reality series Tia & Tamera. She also stars on the upcoming ABC Family holiday movie, The Mistle-Tones. Her pregnancy advice book, Oh Baby!, was released on Tuesday.

Follow @eotmpr on Twitter for Breaking News in Entertainment.

 

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Disco queen Donna Summer dead at 63

Singer Donna Summer died Thursday after a battle with cancer, sources close to the singer confirmed to FoxNews.com. She was 63.

“Early this morning, we lost Donna Summer Sudano, a woman of many gifts, the greatest being her faith,” family of the singer said in a statement.

Donna Summer - Credit: AP

“While we grieve her passing, we are at peace celebrating her extraordinary life and her continued legacy. Words truly can’t express how much we appreciate your prayers and love for our family at this sensitive time.”

Summer’s sound was a mix of genres, and helped earn her Grammy Awards in the dance, rock, R&B and inspirational categories.

Her first album, “Lady of the Night,” arrived in 1974 in Europe, and 1975′s “Love to Love You Baby” brought her worldwide fame.

In the 1978 disco film “Thank God it’s Friday,” her song “Last Dance” won Summer her first Grammy.

Summers soaring vocals on “She Works Hard for the Money” brought her a Best Pop Vocal Performance Award in 1984.

Summer holds the record for most consecutive double albums to hit number one on the Billboard charts (three) and was the first female to have four number one singles in a 12-month period: three as a solo artist and one as a duo with Barbra Streisand, CBS said.

She released her last album, “Crayons,” in 2008. She also performed on “American Idol” that year with its top female contestants.

Summer is survived by her husband, Bruce Sudano, three children, and four grandchildren.

AP contributed to this report.

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Nick Stahl, ‘Terminator 3′ actor, reported missing by wife

Published by EOTM News Editor on May 17th, 2012 - in Breaking News, Celebrity News

Actor Nick Stahl, who starred as John Connor in “Terminator 3,” remains missing Thursday. According to TMZ, his wife. Rose Murphy,  filed a missing person’s report Monday, stating she last saw him May 9 and fears his disappearance is drug-related.

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Stahl’s representative declined to comment on the situation, the celebrity news Web site said.

According to the LA Times, Los Angeles police have focused their search on the skid row section of the city, an area the actor reportedly frequented.
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Lauryn Hill’s Ex Rohan Marley To Marry Model Isabeli Fontana

By: Tanya Blake

Rohan Marley the son of late reggae superstar Bob Marley and father to five of Lauryn Hill’s six children, has just gotten engaged to model Isabeli Fontana, she revealed to Veja Magazine.

The couple met shortly after Rohan’s separation from Lauryn last year, when it became known that she was expecting a child with another man. Rohan also has two children from his first marriage to Geraldine Khawly.

Fontana and Marley don’t have definite plans for their wedding but said that they are thinking about getting married in Ethiopia.

Fontana told Veja Magazine:

“Rohan told me we have to return to the roots so the marriage will last forever.”

Fontana’s mother said that the wedding is coming a little fast, but that she isn’t surprised that her daughter has fallen in love.

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“I think everything is happening too fast, but everything has a different rhythm with Isabeli.”

I think this is just lovely, what a happy go lucky couple.

This will be the third trip down the aisle for the 28year-old Brazilian model and the second marriage for the 39 year-old Marley.

Ladies, let this be a lesson, Lauryn Hill gave this man FIVE CHILDREN and still never received a ring! If I was Lauryn, I would go straight “Waiting to Exhale” on him. BUT, then again he is a Marley!

What are your thoughts? Sound off in the comments section below.

Photo credit: Twitter

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Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s second wife dead: reports



Robert F. Kennedy Jr’s second wife dead: reports (via AFP)

Mary Kennedy, the 52-year-old estranged wife of Robert F. Kennedy Jr, has been found dead at her home in Bedford, New York, US media reports said Wednesday. “We deeply regret the death of our beloved sister Mary, whose radiant and creative spirit will be sorely missed by those who loved her,” Mary…

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D.C. musician Chuck Brown dead at 75

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The Godfather of Go-Go,” Chuck Brown has died, he was 75. Brown, the bandleader who capitalized on funk’s percussive pulse to create the genre of music that has sound tracked life in black Washington for more than three decades passed away in Baltimore from complications from sepsis, his manager, Tom Goldfogle confirmed to WUSA, Washington’s CBS affiliate. The singer had been hospitalized for pneumonia.

Brown was perhaps best known in the mainstream for his No. 1 hit Bustin’ Loose.

 

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