Exclusive! 'Lost' star taunted by paparazzi & nudity

Evangeline Lilly hates stripping down to her underwear in her hit TV series, Lost!

And even in the remote, far-off location sets in Hawaii, Evangeline complains that the paparazzi are the bane of her existence.

That's only part of the exclusive story tracked down by tabloid television legend and Tabloid Baby cohort Doug Bruckner as he cornered the former Ford model at a sci fi convention.

Doug, a famed tabloid television reporter, producer, writer and voice, confronted the beautiful breakout sex symbol starlet Evangeline as she charged eighty five clams an autographed photo at the Grand Slam Sci Fi Summit in Pasadena.

And he got the exclusive during Evangeline's first fetish appearance, as she was speaking to a room full of sci fi geeks who'd plunked down a month's worth of comic book money to breathe her exotic tropical air.

Evangeline told the Lost obsessives that the second worst thing about her first starring (or maybe even speaking) role are the shutterbugs who’ve singled her out—as have we—as the breakout star of the great ABC series.

She complained that one paparazzi was rude enough to chase her down the beach!

First worst? Stripping down to her flesh-colored brassiere and bikini bottom undies-- and the constant pressure by Lost producers that she appear as close to nude as allowable as often as possible.

These concerns from a model? Keep in mind, the gal’s from Saskatchewan. Katheryn Winnick, the lovely who co-stars in the new hit motion picture Cloud 9, written and produced by Burt Kearns and Brett Hudson of Frozen Pictures and Academy Award winner Albert S. Ruddy, is another native Canuck who had a similar problem with stripping down on the beach—and she played a stripper (turned beach volleyball star)!

Also remember that Evangeline’s underwear shots are the hit of the series. Just this week, she showed off some super-skimpy almost-a-thong bikini bottoms and back that give Jessica Alba a run for the money and surely would have been blurred had the butt been attached to a contestant on Survivor. But part of her mystique is her refusal to do a semi-nude scene in Lost’s first season. “I’ve been trying to keep my shirt on all through the first for two seasons,” she told Doug.

The Ford model from Saskatchewan is bound to break that vow soon. Money-- and her future-- will talk.

Doug asked Evangeline what she said to the wife of Lost lead Matthew Fox after she and Fox shared a passionate spit-swapping kissing scene. “That was my last conversation with her,” she said, her tongue this time partly in her own cheek.

Doug wasn’t allowed to ask if Evangeline is pregnant by her co-star “boyfriend,” the Hobbit Aussie Dominic Monaghan (isn’t he supposed to be gay)?

Anyway, despite that pesky paparazzi "bump" photo (right), Doug says it wasn’t showing.

(This site shows Evangeline stripped down as far as she’s gone, so far…)

Disney's shaggy cast

It promises to rain in Los Angeles this weekend, so we’ll probably wind up taking the kids to the movies to see Disney’s remake of The Shaggy Dog.

We don’t really look forward to the probable butt-sniffing and leg-humping gags, but we do have to hand it to Disney for providing our kids with such positive role models as stars Tim Allen and Robert Downey, Jr.

Tim Allen is a convicted drunk driver who did a stretch in prison for dealing cocaine, and of course Downey, Jr. served his prison time for various drug-related parole violations.



One per Disney film is special enough, but to have two rehabilitated felons and ex-cons making the kids laugh gives hopes to inmates everywhere.


Women shouldn’t feel left out, either.



Shaggy Dog co-stars Kristin Davis and Annabelle Gurwitch prove that a little soft-core semiporn in a gal’s past doesn’t mean she can’t be right up there with Ariel, Belle and Mary Poppins.

(Click here for the Kristin & Annabelle nudes).

Thanks, Disney, for the wholesome family fun!

A big buckin' scandal

Is anyone else offended by the new Burger King ads in which the cowboy rides the giant chicken?

The big buckin' chicken?

It's uncomfortable enough watching TV with the kids when a spot for Geraldo At Large jumps into the middle of a prime time family show like American Idol with talk of incest, molestation, porn, murder or rape (and that happens every night). But the new Burger King campaign, obviously aimed at teens and taking some kind of hit at Brokeback Mountain, is especially insidious:

"Big Buckin Chicken. It's a big buckin' chicken.

The only way to beat it... is to eat it."

A group of farmers and cowboys are crowded around the fence of a rustic coral excitedly taking in some serious dust kicking action. We can't make it out because the cowboys block our view as we struggle to push through. Suddenly we see the commotion...A rider flies out of the bucking chute... struggling to stay on something wild, something big, something with feathers. The biggest, baddest chicken anybody has ever seen.... a big chicken made famous by Burger King attempts to shake his rider with a series of oddly hilarious moves until finally the rider is thrown though the air and lands on the onlooking cowboys...

...That's one big buckin' chicken! The new large and loaded TenderCrisp Cheesy Bacon Sandwich. The only way to beat it...is to eat it! Have It Your Way!

It's crass, heavy-handed double entendre and the youngest kids get it. First the fast food bastards clog their arteries, fill them with sugar fries and destroy their growing bodies with the poison they push. Now they get together with the Madison Avenue Shmendricks and ease them into the f-word and mutual masturbation.

Why go after Howard Stern or Janet Jackson's covered breast? This Burger King smut is sneaked into our living rooms while we're watching family shows with the kids. We haven't heard any uproar from the hypocrites. And that's a big buckin' shame.

EXCLUSIVE! "PATRICK McDERMOTT IS ALIVE!"

"Patrick McDermott, Olivia Newton-John’s missing boyfriend, is alive."

Sources close to the case have told Tabloid Baby that McDermott staged his death because of financial troubles, and that he has been sighted numerous times since his disappearance, in the Baja California region of Mexico.

This explosive news was uncovered over the weekend at the 60th annual Fred Hall Fishing Tackle & Boat Show in Long Beach, California, just miles from where McDermott was last seen on a charter fishing boat.

Representatives of the 22nd Street Landing in San Pedro, and its popular Freedom sportfishing boat, were staffing a booth at the show. Two of them (not those pictured) told Tabloid Baby that police told them McDermott is alive.

“Oh, he’s definitely alive,” one source said. “There have been sightings. Lots of them. He’s been seen in the Baja. In Todos Santos.”

Todos Santos is a quaint town on the west coast of the lower Baja peninsula, about one hour north of Cabo San Lucas. Its mostly dirt streets are home to over 6,000 inhabitants, including artists, surfers, and retirees. While it has attracted more residents and tourists, the town generally has escaped the influx of tourism.

Patrick Kim McDermott had boarded the Freedom fishing charter on June 30, 2005 for an overnight fishing trip. A marina manager claimed that some passengers saw McDermott disembark the next day.

He was reported missing on July 6 by his ex-wife. On July 11, relatives found his car in the parking lot at the San Pedro Marina. It was later discovered that McDermott left some of his belongings on the boat, including his wallet.

The U.S. Coast Guard is treating this as a missing person's case, but said it is looking into the possibility that McDermott may have faked his disappearance because of financial problems, and a court battle with his former wife, actress Yvette Nipar.

Olivia-Newton John has come under great criticism and scrutiny because she did not report her alleged boyfriend of nine years missing, nor acknowledge his disappearance for seven weeks— when journalists discovered her connection to the missing man.

Newton-John's silence-- and public appearances during those weeks-- was considered highly unusual at a time when her public statement could have aided in the search for the missing man. It also led to conjecture about the nature of Newton-John's relationship with McDermott, including the speculation that he was an employee, or "beard" to provide her with security after several threats on her life.

Newton-John immediately hired celebrity security consultant Gavin de Becker, ostensibly to help search for McDermott. After a swift spin campaign that obscured the nature of her relationship with McDermott and her actions in wake of his disappearance, she resumed her concert tour. In recent weeks, she was reported to have found a new “boyfriend.”

Over the past weekend, the 22nd Street Landing booth has been one of the most lively and popular stops at the fishing and boat show. One of its attractions is a raffle for a fishing trip on the Freedom. It was there that two of the staffers told Tabloid Baby that it's common knowledge among sportfishermen that McDermott is alive.

“He’s definitely alive,” one insisted. “Police know it. (He and Olivia Newton-John) broke up in January. He owed a lot of alimony and child support, so he faked his death.”

The person discounted the theories that McDermott was lost at sea or is in hiding in Australia. "No. No way. The Baja. They know it. He was seen in Todos Santos. There have been sightings.”

While its fishing waters are exceptional, Todos Santos is not known as a fishing town.

According to a promotional website: “Some come to surf the many fine breaks that the area offers. Some come to view the amazing variety of original art in the local galleries. Some come to experience the Tropic of Cancer and the iridescent sunsets. Some come to walk the nearly deserted beaches, not yet developed, no condos to be found. Some come to absorb the gentle pace-- the slow persistent calming pace of life. "Some come to visit, and never leave."


(Tabloid Baby continues to lead the way in keeping the Patrick McDermott story in the public eye, long after the “mainstream media” have moved on and followed the “entertainment” shows, incorporating his disappearance into Hollywood mythology— in this case, another obstacle for the brave performer Olivia Newton-John to overcome. We do not intend to add to his family’s pain in this tragic case, but in the spirit of Tabloid Baby’s original “Stories To Steal” site, hope to open avenues of investigation for intrepid reporters and editors to take in the pursuit of the truth. Or something close.)

The man who brought Elvis his scarves & water

Charlie Hodge died Friday in Decatur, Alabama.

Charlie was Elvis Presley's Army buddy. When Elvis made his Vegas comeback, Charlie gained fame as his onstage valet, handing the King his scarves and water, and collecting keepsakes from fans in the audience. In later years, he wound up doing the same for an Elvis impersonator.

Elvis, of course, figured prominently in the early years of tabloid television. His story was mined constantly. His downfall was chronicled and death foretold in Steve Dunleavy's masterwork, Elvis: What Happened? Charlie, and other members of Elvis' Memphis Mafia were interviewed time again as the Presley legend was exhumed, explored and exploited.

A photo of Charlie, bedecking Elvis with a scarf onstage in Vegas, was featured prominently in the A Current Affair offices in the late 1980s, as seen in a photo from the book, Tabloid Baby (detail on the right):



This website has funeral information, tributes, and this poem, which was posted today and says it all:

Charlie Hodge
by Mr. David Voisine
I was five foot three standing on a platform
so that Elvis would not have to bend a knee
handing water and wrapping those silken scarves
had brought me much laughter a place amongst his star
singing gospel music we first met up on a ship
drafted were we and so darn ill equipped
a pleasure to serve the army but more pleasure later on
when he wanted to record an album and together we sang a song
"I'll Be Home Again" and we will keep this promise
as we both right now are up with the Lord
staging a comeback career like never before
no more moody blues for me my fans and friends
only peace and contentment as I am finally with him
those sideburns and piercing blue eyes
no not Jesus Christ although he is at our side
singing along with the choirs of angels
there is now so much peace in this valley
for you the Elvis fans and for me.

Exclusive! Cloud 9 links lead to Oscar upset!

This morning, Oscar’s on Cloud 9!

They called it a stretch. They accused us of satire!

But in the end, the two degrees or less of separation to the beach volleyball-stripper motion picture comedy, Cloud 9, was the common link to every major winner of the 78th Annual Academy Awards.

This morning, Hollywood is arguing whether Crash’s surprise Best Picture win over favorite Brokeback Mountain was the result of an expert campaign (they sent us the DVD months ago) or a reflection of Hollywood’s hidden homophobia.

The answer, quite clearly, is actually one we’ve trumpeted loud and clear for a month now—Crash would win because of its uncanny connections to Cloud 9!

We’ve shown you, and the Internet has crackled with the Kevinbaconbusting connections between all the major nominees and Cloud 9, the hilarious comedy starring Burt Reynolds and written and produced by Burt Kearns & Brett Hudson of Frozen Pictures and last year’s Best Picture winner (Million Dollar Baby) Albert S. Ruddy.

On Friday, the Tabloid Baby staff shook the Cloud 9 Magic Nine Ball to predict which connections were closest.

The dunderheads did indeed calculate that Crash would take top honors and win for Best Original Screenplay, and that Reese Witherspoon would snag Best Actress.

They were off by a degree on the other “closest links” to Cloud 9, which missed out on Oscar contention only by a few days—and format (it was released January 4th on DVD—rent or buy it today!).

Is there really a Cloud 9 connection? Here are the final results. We’ll let them speak for themselves:

Best Actor: Philip Seymour Hoffman (Capote) worked with Burt Reynolds in Boogie Nights.

Best Actress: Reese Witherspoon (Walk The Line) starred in Legally Blonde with the small dog, Moonie. Moonie appears as Gary Busey’s dog in Cloud 9.

Best Supporting Actor: George Clooney (Syriana) appeared with Cloud 9 costar Paul Rodriguez on Playboy’s 50th Anniversary Celebration TV special. He also appeared in the TV series Baby Talk, with Cloud 9 actor Tony Danza supplying the voice of a baby.

Best Supporting Actress: Rachel Weisz (The Constant Gardener) appeared with Cloud 9 star Tom Arnold on Late Night with Conan O’Brien on February 22, 2005.

Best Director: Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain) co-wrote the screenplay for Tortilla Soup, which starred Paul Rodriguez, who coincidentally plays an Asian character, Wong, in Cloud 9.

Best Adapted Screenplay: Brokeback Mountain .
Co-writer Larry McMurtry wrote the film, Terms of Endearment. The starring role of Garrett Breedlove, played by Jack Nicholson, was written for, and supposed to be played by, Cloud 9 star Burt Reynolds.

Best Original Screenplay: Crash. Co-writer Paul Haggis (Crash) wrote the screenplay for Million Dollar Baby, the film that won a second Best Picture Oscar for Albert S. Ruddy, and worked with Ruddy on the TV series, Walker, Texas Ranger.

Best Picture: Crash.

Exclusive! Oscar Picks based on links to Cloud 9!

With the 78th Academy Awards only hours away, it's time for Tabloid Baby to announce the Major Oscar Picks Based on Their Connections to Cloud 9.

Only weeks ago, all Hollywood was buzzing over their lattes about the uncanny, eerie similarities between Cloud 9, the hilarious beach volleyball comedy starring Burt Reynolds and written and produced by Burt Kearns and Brett Hudson of Frozen Pictures and last year’s Best Picture Oscar winner (Million Dollar Baby), Albert S. Ruddy, and this year's Best Picture nominee, Crash.

This da Vinci Code-like revelation was followed by the amazing two or less degrees of separation between Cloud 9 and every single one of this year’s major Oscar nominees (and a nostalgic look back at the two-or-less degree links between the Fox DVD and every Academy Award Best Picture of the past ten years).

Well, time for the Big Night. The Tabloid Baby staff has taken its Two Degrees or Less of Separation chart and used it to forecast the winners of this year’s Oscars.

These predictions are based on their proximity to Cloud 9 (which missed out on Academy Award consideration only by a matter of days and format— it was released January 4th on DVD).

They're not necessarily the Tabloid Baby staff picks. Some go far afield of conventional wisdom. But that's what happen when you stir up an incomprehensible blend of science and Hollywood magic. Here goes:

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A LEADING ROLE
Philip Seymour Hoffman (Capote) worked with Burt Reynolds in Boogie Nights; Heath Ledger (Brokeback Mountain) co-starred in Four Feathers with Brett Hudson’s niece, Kate; Joaquin Phoenix (Walk The Line) showed up at the West Coast party for Burt Kearns' book, Tabloid Baby; and David Strathairn (Good Night, and Good Luck) worked with Cloud 9 movie-stealer Gary Busey in The Firm. BUT…

Terrence Howard (Hustle & Flow) appears in Crash with Cloud 9’s Ken Garito and Tony Danza!

CLOUD 9 BEST ACTOR PICK: TERRENCE HOWARD, HUSTLE & FLOW

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A LEADING ROLE
Judi Dench (Mrs. Henderson Presents) starred with Anthony Hopkins, who plays a key plot role in Cloud 9, in 84 Charing Cross Road; Felicity Huffman (Transamerica) is married to William H. Macy from Boogie Nights; Keira Knightley (Pride & Prejudice) played an ex-stripper and performs a lap dance—a la Cloud 9’s Angie Everhart-- in Domino; Charlize Theron (North Country) appears with Mel Gibson (whose ficus tree is a plot point in Cloud 9) and Anthony Hopkins in Cinema Mil, and was nominated for a Razzie the same year Burt Reynolds and Sylvester Stallone were nominated as Worst Screen Couple. BUT…

Reese Witherspoon (Walk The Line) starred in Legally Blonde with the dog named Moonie, who appears as Gary Busey’s dog in Cloud 9!

CLOUD 9 BEST ACTRESS PICK: REESE WITHERSPOON, WALK THE LINE

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTOR IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
George Clooney (Syriana) appeared with Cloud 9 costar Paul Rodriguez on the TV special, Playboy’s 50th Anniversary Celebration and with Tony Danza in the TV series Baby Talk; Paul Giamatti (Cinderella Man) played Pig Vomit in Private Parts, starring Howard Stern, who dated Cloud 9 star Angie Everhart; Jake Gyllenhaal (Brokeback Mountain) starred in Day After Tomorrow, which featured KTLA show biz correspondent Ross King, who was in the running for the Tommy Z role in Cloud 9; and William Hurt (A History of Violence) and Burt Reynolds were in the documentary, Sex at 24 Frames Per Second. BUT…

Matt Dillon (Crash) appeared in Crash with Tony Danza and Ken Garito from Cloud 9!

CLOUD 9 BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR PICK: MATT DILLON, CRASH

PERFORMANCE BY AN ACTRESS IN A SUPPORTING ROLE
Catherine Keener (Capote) starred in Death to Smoochy with Vincent Schiavelli, star of The 4th Tenor, directed by Cloud ‘s Hary Basil; Frances McDormand (North Country) appeared with Barbra Streisand (whose “home” and chair are featured in Cloud 9) and Mel Gibson at the 69th Academy Awards; Rachel Weisz (The Constant Gardener) appeared with Cloud 9 star Tom Arnold on Late Night with Conan O’Brien on February 22, 2005; and Michelle Williams (Brokeback Mountain) and Cloud 9 actor Jeff Altman appeared on Baywatch. BUT…

Amy Adams (Junebug) has wrapped a new movie, Standing Still, which also stars Cloud 9 starlet Marne Patterson.

CLOUD 9 BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS PICK: AMY ADAMS, JUNEBUG

ACHIEVEMENT IN DIRECTING
Ang Lee (Brokeback Mountain) co-wrote the screenplay for Tortilla Soup, which starred Paul Rodriguez ; Bennett Miller (Capote) attended NYU Film School, where Albert S. Ruddy thought “beach volleyball” upon seeing a Gabrielle Reece poster on his son’s dorm room wall; George Clooney (Good Night, and Good Luck) appeared with Gary Busey in the TV special, Inside The Playboy Mansion; and Steven Spielberg (Munich) directed Minority Report, which featured Cloud 9’s Paul Wesley, and 1941, featuring Cloud 9's executive producer Gray Frederickson as Lt. Bressler. BUT…

Paul Haggis (Crash) wrote the screenplay for Million Dollar Baby, the film that won a second Best Picture Oscar for Albert S. Ruddy, and worked with Ruddy on the TV series, Walker, Texas Ranger.

CLOUD 9 BEST DIRECTOR PICK: PAUL HAGGIS, CRASH

And click here for the uncanny similarities between Crash and Cloud 9.

CLOUD 9 BEST PICTURE PICK: CRASH

There you have it.

Direct from Cloud 9’s Magic 9 Ball:

ACTOR: Terrence Howard, Hustle & Flow
ACTRESS: Reese Witherspoon, Walk The Line
SUPPORTING ACTOR: Matt Dillon, Crash
SUPPORTING ACTRESS: Amy Adams, Junebug
DIRECTOR: Paul Haggis, Crash
PICTURE: Crash

(And let's throw in:
ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY: Crash
ADAPTED SCREENPLAY: Munich (cowriter Eric Roth is Brett Hudson's pal-- he also wrote Ali, which starred Cloud 9's Paul Rodriguez.)

John Paul assassination plot: Now they listen!

It's reported today that an Italian parliamentary commission has concluded “beyond any reasonable doubt” that the Soviet Union was behind the assassination attempt on Pope John Paul II in 1981.

Watch the newsmagazine shows and cable networks climb all over themselves to copy the story now that Drudge is trumpeting it.

But once again, the so-called “mainstream” news media is about fifteen years behind the times. Once again, legendary journalist and producer John Parsons Peditto (and his Parco International Productions) had the story first. Fifteen years ago! And the mainstream news media ran the other way because they didn’t have the sources or the inclination to investigate—and because they don’t like getting beat by the mavericks.

“The Plot To Kill The Pope" was one of the first episodes of Parco’s worldwide syndicated Conspiracy Tapes series, hosted by Tabloid Baby pal and current CNN hero Jack Cafferty.

Parsons and crew went to Europe, dug through Washington and discovered that the shooting of John Paul was a KGB plot, conducted by boss Vladimirovich Andropov, using convicted shooter Ali Agca and a group of Bulgarians. (Parsons had Acga saying as much on camera). The coverup and single-shooter theory were spread by the Opus Dei crowd and other American Catholic extremists, Casey, and Brzezinski, because they were secretly using the Pope as a warrior to work with Solidarity to bring down communism.

When the report aired in the early Nineties, Parsons and Cafferty got roughed up by the network boys and girls. They called it “tabloid.” They said Parsons was a conspiracy theorist. Even though the series was in domestic syndication and Parco sold the series all over the world, it was largely ignored.

Ha! Now the newsmagazines are clamoring for copies!

John Parsons Peditto, who's scooped the majors time and again, recently teamed with Tabloid Baby author and journalist Burt Kearns for Parco’s latest explosive documentary. Bin Laden’s Escape finds and reveals the true story behind Osama bin Laden’s escape from Tora Bora and his activities since. Once again, trailblazer Parsons goes against the conventional wisdom in zooming in on bin Laden’s current whereabouts.

Bin Laden’s Escape is being broadcast across the globe—but no network in the United States has yet had the guts to go with it.

Will it take a Drudge report to get their attention?

“I hope we don’t have to wait fifteen years for this to find its way onto American television,” Parsons said today.

No matter how long it takes, just watch. Once it hits, the others will follow.

Return of the plaintive wail

The New York Post's Page Six reports that writer Pablo Fenjves has penned a new book, A Million Little Lies, a parody of James Frey's phony memoir, for Judith Regan’s imprint.

Try this tabloid baby spot quiz:

Q: Who is Pablo Fenjves, and what is his connection to tabloid history?

A: In 1994, Pablo Fenjves was Nicole Simpson’s neighbor. He testified on February 7, 1995 about hearing the “plaintive wail” of Nicole’s Akita dog… Kato… the night Nicole and her friend Ron Goldman were murdered (see Tabloid Baby):

"It was fairly persistent, it was at a significant pitch, and as you may recall, I described it at the time as a plaintive wail. Sounded like a, you know, very unhappy animal."

Added points in spot quiz: Page Six also reveals that Fenjves and Regan worked (and romanced) together at the National Enquirer back in the Seventies. We don’t think it was revealed in court that Pablo was a fellow tabloid traveler…

Israel To Geraldo: Drop Dead!

Israelis in Jerusalem are steaming over Geraldo Rivera’s latest lunge for publicity, says Our Man Elli in Israel. Geraldo, who claims a Jewish mother, tells the Jewish World Review he was ready to relocate to Israel a few years ago and run for a seat in the Knesset in order to advance his views on the Palestinian situation.

His views: Israel's occupation of the West Bank "is bull" and "dehumanizes" the Palestinians,” he’s quoted as saying. "I want peace between Jews and Palestinians, based on equality between the countries."

His caveat: "I would die for Israel."

His excuse for remaining in America: He looked for an apartment, but his then-fiancee and her father put the kibosh on any move to the country.

“I mean, is this tongue-in-cheek? How ignorant is this moron?” Elli writes. “For one thing, you can't run for the Knesset per se, because we don't have representative government (and I mean that in every sense). You have to run as part of a party ticket, and you get elected to the party slate by a party central committee. But even if he could convince party hacks to name him to the slate (and in what language would he convince them?), what party would he choose to join?

“Rivera is quoted as saying that Israel's occupation of the West Bank ‘is bull,’ and that it ‘dehumanizes’ the Palestinians. Hell, the Palestinians got us beat on that front: Blowing up cafes in Israel not only dehumanizes Israelis, it incinerates them.”

"’I would die for Israel,’ he says. By all means, Geraldo, ride more buses in Jerusalem and give yourself up for the cause!”


Our Man Elli in Israel is a veteran journalist and writer whom we worked with in a New York City television newsroom many years ago.

Based in Jerusalem for more than a decade, he's subject of the Frozen Pictures documentary feature, Sex & Baseball, currently in production.


(For the inside story of Geraldo’s original foray into tabloid television, read Tabloid Baby, and chapters like ”Geraldo Finds His Hitler”!)

Nancy Grace is a nutcase

Nancy Grace has made an industry out of trashing the Constitution and ridiculing the notion that in America, a suspect is innocent until proven guilty. She speaks and writes often about the roots of her crusade: the 1980 murder of her fiancé.

Well now, it turns out that she’s been lying about it!


The New York Observer (which did a fine write-up on Tabloid Baby some years back) does a Smoking Gun on Nancy Grace, and it’s downright headscratching.

After reading the article, you can only come to the conclusion that Nancy Grace is either a mental case in deep need of therapy, or a cynical huckster whose manipulation of the facts equals James Frey’s exploitation of a high school classmate’s death in his book, A Million Little Pieces.

Or maybe a little of both.

What’s the matter with these people? From Grace to Dimond to O’Reilly to Cosby (Rita & Bill, for that matter), why are we subjected to the pompous bullying and sermonizing by these cynical, lying, hypocritical, untelegenic gaseous windbags on our newscasts? Is the need to fill the cable airwaves with rabid, hate-filled ideologues so great that they have to pull out the genuinely mentally ill?

Here’s the best of the Observer:

“Every crime-fighting superhero has a creation story. Nancy Grace, the prosecutor turned breakout star at CNN Headline News, has a particularly moving one. As she tells it, in the summer of 1980, she was a 19-year-old college student in small-town Georgia, engaged to Keith Griffin, a star third baseman for the Valdosta State University Blazers. The wedding was a few months away.

"Then, one August morning, a stranger—a 24-year-old thug with a history of being on the wrong side of the law—accosted Griffin outside a convenience store.

"The killer, Tommy McCoy, was 19, not 24, and had no prior convictions.

"He shot him five times in the head and back, stole $35 from his wallet, and left him dead.

"Griffin was shot not by a random robber, but by a former co-worker.

"Police soon tracked down the killer, and a new phase of suffering began for Ms. Grace. The suspect brazenly denied any involvement.

"Mr. McCoy confessed to the crime the evening he was arrested.

"At trial, Ms. Grace testified, then waited as jury deliberations dragged on for three days.

"The jury convicted in a matter of hours, not days.

"The district attorney asked her if she wanted the death penalty, and in a moment of youthful weakness, she said no.

"Prosecutors asked for the death penalty, but didn’t get it, because Mr. McCoy was mildly retarded.

"The verdict came back guilty—life in prison—and a string of appeals ensued.

"Mr. McCoy never had an appeal; he filed a habeas application five years ago, and after a hearing it was rejected. The justice system, in other words, apparently worked the way it was supposed to.

"Ms. Grace has also misreported the date of the incident—it was in 1979, not 1980—and has given Griffin’s age as 25 when it was 23."

What a nut!

Your move, Nancy. Maybe an hour-long special with Dr. Phil? Or how about an O’Reillyesque statement and a vow never to speak of it again. Or a nice suspension?

There’s lots more disturbing information in the Observer article. Read it here .

And read the Observer’s piece on Tabloid Baby.