Remember when Kanye West pushed through a crowd of people and interrupted an interview in order to declare that Barack Obama's DNC speech inspired him to be a better person? Apparently Yeezy's already forgotten about that proclamation and has resumed being a temper-driven mess. Surprise!
It's official: Anne Hathaway's ex, Raffaello Follieri, was sentenced today to over four years in prison, starting Oct. 3, for wire fraud, money laundering and conspiracy. He's been in jail since June, unable to make his $21 million bail.
'I knew what I was doing was wrong,' he told U.S. District Judge John G. Koeltl in Manhattan as he stood in a loose-fitting prison uniform. He has been in jail since his June 24 arrest, unable to make $21 million bail.
What, his BFF Donald Trump didn't help him make bail earlier this summer? Poor guy.
[Source]
The lovely Anne Hathaway graces the cover of the newest issue of W magazine, further cementing why we love her: She's like the best friend everyone's had at some point in their lives, and you can't help but want to just give her a hug. She declined to give details on the arrest of ex Raffaello Follieri, but she did speak about what she was going through at the time (while, the interviewer notes, fighting back tears):
It’s a situation where the rug was pulled out from under me all of a sudden. But just as suddenly, my friends threw another rug back under me. One said, ‘Go stay at my house.’ And Steve Carell [her Get Smart costar] stepped up for me during an interview when someone asked a question [about it]. He said, ‘At some point you’re going to have to talk about this time in your life. You don’t have to do it this week. I’ll take care of anything that comes your way.’
I’ve been shown such kindness. Not everyone gets that. A lot of people go through tough times alone.
For more photos from her W spread, click through.
Oh, Kirstie! Isn't life miserable? Couldn't you just collapse and die in your Daisy Dukes?
Italian grifter Raffaello Follieri is reportedly close to reaching a plea deal in his federal criminal case. According to the Wall Street Journal, Follieri will plead guilty to fraud and money laundering, charges for which he could face four to five years in prison.
You'll recall that just two years ago, Follieri was living a life of milk and honey in WASPy yachts and luxury Manhattan apartments. He even got himself a famous girlfriend, actress Anne Hathaway, despite looking like a damn Disney-movie villain.
• This guy was arrested after assaulting someone with an 8-inch sausage. Seriously. [DListed]
• Lynne Spears desperately attempts to make nice with Britney. [ICYDK]
• Please tell us arm warmers are not the new trend for fall/winter. [HT]
• Poor Jessica Simpson can't win. [PS]
• The peg leg jeans have descended upon Fashion Week. Everybody take cover. [INO]
• Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt had a secret date at the Toronto Film Festival, according to some crazy liar. [Yeeeah]
BACK TAXES DANGEROUS "Nicolas Cage, who plays a jaded hit man in his new movie opening Friday, Bangkok Dangerous, has agreed to pay substantial back taxes and penalties to the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, which said that for years he improperly deducted personal expenses. In papers filed in U.S. Tax Court, Cage and his Los Angeles-headquartered Saturn Productions said they would pay $666,000, plus unspecified interest. Nearly one-fifth of the base amount, or $99,000, is an 'accuracy-related' penalty."
COMPASSIONATE CONSERVATISM IN ACTION "While Sarah Palin was serving as the Mayor of Wasilla, Alaska, the city charged victims of sexual assault between $300 and $1200 for their own rape kits. A rape kit is a sexual assault forensic evidence kit, used to collect DNA that can be used in criminal proceedings to assist in the conviction of those who commit sex crimes. The kit is performed as soon as possible after a sexual assault or attack has been committed. It is usually humiliating and uncomfortable for the victim…"
FRANCE LASHES OUT AT SCIENTOLOGY "A French judge has ordered two departments and seven prominent members of the Church of Scientology in France to stand trial on charges of organized fraud, a judicial source said on Monday. The case is the latest in a series of legal battles that have pitted the French judicial system against the Scientologists, who could be forced to stop their activities in France if found guilty. The latest suit centers on a complaint made in 1998 by a woman who said she she was enrolled into the Church of Scientology by a group of people she met outside a metro station. In the following months, she said she paid 140,000 francs (21,340 euros) for 'purification packs' and books which she said were a fraud. … Judge Jean-Christophe Hullin ruled that the Scientologists' Celebrity Center, bookstore and seven Church leaders should be tried for fraud and 'illegally practicing as pharmacists'."
Graydon Carter has such a hard on right now, as Vanity Fair releases its most Vanity Fair-esque piece to date on the defrauded, jet-setting Raffaello Follieri. What makes the seven-page article so perfectly VF, with its mix of celebrity and scandal and a dash of eau de creep?
HERE IT COMES "A son and a brother of Sen. Joseph R. Biden Jr. (D-Del.) are accused in two lawsuits of defrauding a former business partner and an investor of millions of dollars in a hedge fund deal that went sour, court records show."
THIRTY DAYS AT A TIME "MacKenzie Phillips has entered rehab, her attorney Blair Berk confirmed Wednesday. Phillips is seeking treatment following her arrest on Aug. 27 for alleged drug possession at Los Angeles International Airport. She was found 'carrying what appeared to be heroin and cocaine in baggies and balloons,' airport police said."
Very raggy rag Star magazine has done some digging and discovered that Leighton Meester, funny surname owner and Gossip Girl beeotch, was born in a halfway home while her mother was incarcerated for drug charges. Not sure why Star felt it necessary to bring this information to light, but now that it has, how much more respect do you have for this Leighton Meester lady, who maybe you once considered a throwaway, or didn't consider at all? We still can't produce a nugget of care for Gossip Girl, but good for her.
AND SUGE USED TO BE SO NICE! "Marion 'Suge' Knight was jailed Wednesday on assault and drug charges after he was accused of beating his girlfriend while brandishing a knife near the Las Vegas Strip, police said. Knight, 43, posted $19,000 bail and was scheduled to be released late Wednesday with a promise to appear Sept. 26 in Las Vegas Justice Court, a court spokeswoman said. Police said the founder of bankrupt Death Row Records was arrested about 6:40 a.m. after officers arrived at the scene of a minor traffic accident and found Knight hitting a woman in a parking lot off a busy thoroughfare."
METH HEADS? NO WAY! "Authorities say three men who triggered an assassination investigation after their arrests in the Denver area did not pose a 'true threat' to Barack Obama at this week's Democratic National Convention. U.S. Attorney Troy Eid describes the men as 'meth heads' who weren't capable of such an attack."
These two lovely fellows at left were arrested in Denver yesterday and then told police they were planning to assassinate Barack Obama during his acceptance speech Thursday at the Democratic National Convention. And yes, there were wigs and walkie talkies involved.
Remember last month when Andy Dick was arrested outside of a California Buffalo Wild Wings after he groped a 17-year-old girl and police found drugs in his pockets? Now it seems he's going to get a taste of celebrity justice, thanks to the Riverside County DA's announcement that the sexual battery charges will be dropped. Looks like Andy will soon be free to once again live up to his name.
GOOD RIDDANCE "Teri Hatcher's uncle — whom she helped put in prison for molesting her, as well as two young girls — has died. Richard Hayes Stone, 70 — who had been serving a 14-year sentence at Chuckawalla Valley State Prison in Blythe, Calif. — passed away of colon cancer on Tuesday."
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