Who's Cheating Who?

Phil Ivey, card counter?

As crazy as that sounds, that appears to be what a London casino is accusing him of. From YardBarker:

According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, Ivey recently won $11.7 million playing a game called Punto Blanco at Crockfords, an upscale casino in London. The game involves no skill and is simply won and lost by the cards the dealer hands out, and Crockfords is reportedly witholding the money Ivey won on the game after he went on a massive heater.

Ivey apparently requested that the money be deposited into his bank account, but Crockfords has only returned his original bankroll of $1.6 million. The Daily Mail reported that Phil initially lost $800,000 when he began playing the game, but then he and a female companion went on a two-night hot streak. The lady with whom he was gambling reportedly had her membership revoked by another casino previously.

Investigators have flown to London to speak with employees from Crockfords and review surveillance cameras. Ivey and his lady friend reportedly never touched the cards, and the situation is said to have turned into an “increasingly tense stand off” with lawyers from both sides working to sort through it.

There's a special bit of unintentional comedy in this casino being named "Crockfords", but I digress.

Ivey is a renowned gambler. And I don't mean that in the sheltered, playing-poker-is-gambling frame of mind; Ivey actually gambles, playing games of chance like craps (and, apparently, Punto Blanco) for high stakes as often as he plays skill games like poker. Anyone with deep financial resources and an immense amount of time spent playing games like these is due to eventually go on a multimillion dollar heater. So I'm not sure what Crockfords is looking to prove; they simply were in the wrong place at the wrong time.

And while the history of this mysterious companion seems to lend to a theorized conspiracy, Phil Ivey ain't Phil from The Hangover. This guy gets his thrills from the game, not from the money. And if you rig the game, you erase that thrill. I find it hard to believe Phil Ivey would find any fun in playing a game that he knows he's assured of winning.

"Yeezy taught me..."

And it looks like Ray J might have taught Yeezy. From Wonderwall:

Radar Online claims to have seen a 20-minute video of Yeezy getting it on with a curvy, dark-haired mystery woman. The young lady is supposedly a "dead ringer" for Kardashian and says on tape that she's over the age of 18 and married.

Other details from the alleged dalliance, according to Radar: Kanye appears to have set up the shoot, which is believed to have taken place shortly before he hooked up with Kim; he and his Kim-alike practice safe sex; and, like Julia Roberts and Richard Gere at the beginning of "Pretty Woman," they never lock lips.

"The sex tape is being shopped right now and there's a lot of interest, but Kanye is freaking out!" relays a source, who adds that the rapper was "practically in tears" over the leak. "He doesn't want this tape out and will do anything to make sure it stays private."

*sigh* 'Ye...goddamnit.

It's the Weekend

Time to salute your heroes...

From Deadspin.

Mommy Dearest

The Kardashians' fame is a strange commentary on our society. After all, none of them have any real discerning talents, other than being ridiculously hot (Kim and Kourtney) or being married to famous athletes (Kris and Khloe). And, maybe most bizarre of all, it's unlikely any one of us would know who any one of them is if it weren't for Kim's sextape "leaking" back in 2007 (has it really only been five years that we've known her?). And now, a report has come out that has taken what was already unusual and pushed the needle to "absolutely insane".

From LAist:

In a series of text messages, Kris Humphries allegedly told his ex-girlfriend Myla Sinanaj that Kris Jenner persuaded Kim Kardashian to make her now-infamous sex tape.

According to TMZ, Jenner not only instructed Kim to make the tape, but then insisted that she redo it because it wasn't "pretty enough."

What. The. Fuck. ?.

Obviously, KK and her fam are denying the validity of this story. And it is coming from the bitter, special-needs-student Humphries. But just how shocked would any of us be at this point if this story were somehow proved to be true?

D Rose with the Steal?

Interesting rumor floating around that Derrick Rose laughed in a hooker's face instead of paying her for her...services.

From Nurize (via Boxden):

Reigning NBA MVP Derrick Rose just got put on blast by a popular ESCORT hooker named Bee. According to BEE via Twitter, DRose stiffed one of her friends… And when it was over, she asked Derrick for payment and allegedly Rose “laughed” in the prostitute’s face and told her that he wasn’t paying

TJ is, of course, playing the "good wife" on this one and defending his man-crush to the end. Personally, I think this story has a little bit of merit. True, Rose isn't known for being the type of guy to hire hookers, let alone skip out on the bill. But I see little reason for "BEE" to lie on this, since there wouldn't be much she could gain aside from some minor publicity (which isn't all that great of a thing when you consider that her livelihood depends on law enforcement people not knowing what her livelihood is).

And, really, is it such a stretch of the imagination that Rose could have been at a club, casino, hotel, etc., and pulled a ridiculously hot chick; then, after they did the damn thing, she piped up and said "That'll be $3000"? We've certainly seen it happen in TV and movies enough times to make it all the more likely that some female of subpar intelligence would actually try pulling off this Looney-Tunes-for-adults-worthy ploy. And if you were D Rose in this (albeit hypothetical) situation, what would be your response? Would you pay her? Hell no. You'd probably just get dressed, laugh at the broad, and walk out the door.

Whether he legitimately stole from this chickenhead or not, at least Rose is finding a way to keep himself in shape during the lockout.

My boy Iso with the assist.

Just Plane Wrong

Erin Andrews is attractive--I'm not contesting that fact. But people insist on consistently overrating her looks. She's "met a nice girl at the grocery store" hot, not Playboy Playmate hot. Hell, she's not even video vixen hot, and most "video vixens" would kill to be a Playboy Playmate.

And I find it hard to believe that any woman would be fine enough to make a guy feel the need to rub one out while sitting next to her in a public place.

From The Huffington Post:

Keith Clinkscales, a former ESPN executive, is fighting allegations that he once masturbated next to network correspondent Erin Andrews on a plane.


...According to [Deadspin blogger A.J.] Dalerio's source, Clinkscales had been reportedly sitting next to Andrews on a plane when she saw him masturbating underneath his iPad. When he realized that she had seen him, he "panicked and muttered, 'You know, I'm one of your bosses.'"

This almost sounds like it could have been written by the people who made "Seinfeld". But the one truly brilliant thing to come from this story is a statement made by Clinkscales' lawyer.

According to the Daily, his lawyer called the idea of masturbating underneath an iPad "ridiculous" and said, "I’m thinking of bringing a defamation suit on behalf of his penis."

I might just have to put this lawyer on retainer.

Revisionist History

The BCS has announced that they have will strip USC of their 2004 National Championship, due to the NCAA's ruling that Reggie Bush was ineligible that season due to rule violations. And, given the relative impotence of UCLA teams over the last decade, this is some of the best news a Bruins fan like myself has heard in quite some time.

From ESPN Los Angeles:

The BCS ruling vacated the results of the 2005 Orange Bowl -- the national title game for 2004 -- as well as the Trojans participation in the 2006 Rose Bowl, in which USC lost to Texas in the championship game.

As a result of the BCS's Presidential Oversight Committee ruling, there will be no BCS national champion in the record book for the 2004-05 season.

"The BCS arrangement crowns a national champion, and the BCS games are showcase events for postseason football," BCS Executive Director Bill Hancock said in a statement. "One of the best ways of ensuring that they remain so is for us to foster full compliance with NCAA rules. Accordingly, in keeping with the NCAA's recent action, USC's appearances are being vacated.

K Lew (a proud USC grad) has been suspiciously quiet ever since news of this scandal first broke. Hmmm...

Rooftops and Invitations

This is a little old, as the news first broke over the past weekend. But since The Hero is a USC alum, I figured I'd give his alma mater it's full moment of "glory".

Photos (see below) surfaced of a member of USC's Kappa Sigma frat and a female (I don't think it's been stated whether or not she's also a USC student) doing God's work on the rooftop of an academic building while a philanthropic event took place in the quad below. The stunt was, of course, incredibly stupid. But...I can't lie, it's kind of pimp, too. This guy's going to have to rely on those pimping skills, though, as it's looking like he may get booted from the university (he's already been suspended from the fraternity).

I'll tell you what else: I really miss Cali girls.

(photos via T.I.T.S. blog)

The story even got the Taiwanese animation treatment given to Tiger Woods and numerous other pop culture moments over the past year.

Respect My Gangsta: Silvio Berlusconi

The Italian Prime Minister's been making headlines recently for his alleged trysts with a 17 year old prostitute. But despite being surrounded by that kind of scandalous air, he's doing anything but shying away from critics' arrows. In fact, at a press conference yesterday on the island of Lampedusa, the 74 year old pimping-expert threw a shot across their bow.

From The Daily Mail:

...at a press conference, he found time to joke with local women.

The prime minister, who faces an allegation of under-age sex with a prostitute told them: "According to a survey, when asked if they would like to have sex with me, 30 percent said, 'Yes', while the other 70 percent replied, 'What, again?'."

Play on, playa...

You Remind Me of a Girl that I Once Filmed...

From Mike Miller at 99.3 Kiss FM in Harrisburg:

Somebody is trying to sell a sex tape and two photos that supposedly features Usher and his ex-wife, Tameka Foster. TMZ says the video and pics are definitely Usher and Tameka. Sources close to Usher says the video may have been stolen out of the “OMG” singer’s car a year-and-a-half ago December 2009. Usher reported that $100,000 worth of jewelry and electronics – including two laptops -- were lifted out of his vehicle in December 2009. Usher’s camp is keeping quiet on the reported sex tape, but Tameka spoke out yesterday in a statement sent to TheYBF.com. Tameka says: "Would I sanction a sextape being out? Absolutely not. I am a mother and entrepreneur. Sex tapes or pornography would not be my lane. I have no desire to be seen in that way."

Amber Rose, Sexter

Kanye's ex is the latest female "celeb" to have nude cameraphone pics leaked online (though, in her case I'm having a hard time believing that she didn't just leak them herself).

From Baller Status:

Popular urban-Tube website, WorldStarHipHop (WSHH), leaked at least six nude photos of the former-stripper-turned-model on Tuesday (February 8), claiming an unnamed source emailed them over.

Personally, I'm not a fan of hers. I don't dig the bald fade on chicks, and she seems to have the personality of a plate of mashed potatoes. But...I'd hit.

For the uncensored, NSFW pics, click here.

Good Girl Gone Bi?

If you're like me, you've probably had a dream or two that started with a paragraph similar to the following one from Media Take Out:

MediaTakeOut.com just got ahold of an EXPLOSIVE piece of information. A lovely young Hollywood girl named Tajah is writing a TELL ALL BOOK. And in it, she describes IN DETAIL her ALLEGED lesbian relationship with Rihanna. We're not sure whether to believe her or not, but an entertainment insider told us that she is "VERY CREDIBLE."

Oh my damned. The supposed book excerpt:

Ke$ha: Oh Damn...

I'm sure you've heard about it by now. The only reason it took me this long to post it was I was at work and, well...I didn't want to have to explain myself to my management.

In case you haven't been caught up on the story yet, I'll give you a quick rundown: Perez Hilton posted this picture to his website today. It was leaked by a DJ who claims that it's the pop-rap artist herself, after a healthy application of baby batter.

So what's the verdict? Is it:

(A.) Ke$ha?
(B.) Some skank who just loves getting sprayed up?
(C.) All of the above?

Olympic Pimpin

The upside—well, one of the upsides—to being an Olympic athlete: groupies. The Olympic village is always a hotbed of hot beds, as was reported during the 2008 games in Beijing. So should we blame Scotty Lago, who won the US a snowboarding bronze medal, for indulging in a little fun at a Vancouver bar? Of course not. He deserves all of the sloreign tail that comes his way while in the wilds of one of Canada’s largest metropolises.

The downside to being an Olympic athlete: the suits who run things tend to frown when pictures of you end up on TMZ. And they really hate it when those photos show a groupie going down on your medal at the bar. Thus, Mr. Lago is no longer in Vancouver.