Celebrity Scandals

Celebrity Scandal: Mike Tyson tattoo artist suing over Hangover 2 satire

Celebrity Scandal!

Mike Tyson tattoo artist suing Hangover 2 producers?

[Apr. 30]

Artist S. Victor Whitmill, the creator and designer of former heavyweight champion boxer Mike Tyson’s facial tattoo, is suing Warner Bros. over a similar tattoo design planted on actor Ed Helms’ face in the upcoming movie Hangover 2. In the suit, Whitmill seeks an unspecified amount in damages and seeks also an injunction to block the opening of Hangover 2 over Memorial Day weekend.

Whitmill calls the tattoo design “one of the most distinctive tattoos in the nation,” according to Reuters:

“When Mr. Whitmill created the Original Tattoo, Mr Tyson agreed that Mr. Whitmill would own the artwork and thus, the copyright in the Original Tattoo,” argues the complaint, filed Thursday in federal court in Missouri.

But there is a catch. Mike Tyson appeared in the original Hangover film, and it remains to be seen if the tattoo design (which is not exact) is fair use as a parody, given Tyson’s multiple appearances in the first film. Whitmill has sent pictures of him doing the work on Tyson’s face along with documentation with Tyson’s signature that show Whitmill does in fact own the copyright to the tattoo. But Whitmill didn’t ask for compensation when Tyson appeared in the first Hangover film, so what’s the difference now, even if he owns the copyright?

Warner Bros. has declined to comment, although Warner Bros. did in the past pay out a hefty sum to release The Dukes of Hazzard, when a judge issued an injunction just weeks before, regarding the authorship of the source material involved. Will the same thing happen to Hangover 2?

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Celebrity Dating: New career for LiLo dad Michael Lohan as Gigolo?

Pity date, anyone?

Michael Lohan selling himself like a Gigolo, hoping some poor lucky man or woman will buy him as a date so he can donate a portion of his man-whore wages to rehab charities…

[Apr. 22]

As if Michael Lohan hadn’t embarrassed Disney princess daughter Lindsay Lohan of The Parent Trap by going on Celebrity Rehab earlier this year, the father who also has struggled with addiction is now putting himself on the auction block for dating website WhatsYourPrice.com, which solicits dates to members who are willing to pay, according to RadarOnline.

Michael Lohan reportedly has asked for $10,000 to go out on a date. He says he will require airfare if the date is out of state, and he insists on first class travel and at least a four-star hotel. You might think this is just a ploy for more attention, although one could argue it’s not the kind of positive attention the embattled father needs right now, but he says otherwise.

Michael Lohan told RadarOnline:

“I’m willing to do this in order to donate the money to a rehab and recovery program or programs,” Lohan told RadarOnline.

In addition to appearing on Celebrity Rehab, Michael Lohan was recently in the news late last month when authorities arrested him on charges of domestic violence against a cohabitant, stemming from a woman’s complaint in an apartment near West Hollywood, People reported. Police say the troubled actor did not appear to be intoxicated and did cooperate. The victim was not identified and refused medical treatment.

[Clearly the kind of guy you want to fly out to service you first class.]

It seems odd that Michael Lohan would be willing to sell himself for a date, given his recent troubles with women and his celebrity status. Also, given the fact that he’s been open about addiction and his daughter, Lindsay Lohan, is still facing legal troubles of her own following a stint in rehab, one would think he’s not the ideal date candidate. But who knows? Some women may disagree.

Not exactly the green celebrity type, maybe Michael Lohan hopes to mend his relationship with the charitable green celebrity Lindsay Lohan by doing something charitable in the name of rehab. Perhaps that was his intention by appearing on Celebrity Rehab. Let’s just hope he doesn’t do anything to sink Lindsay’s role in the new film Gotti: Three Generations with John Travolta.

Scratch that. Word on the street is she already lost the lead role playing John Gotti’s daughter Victoria Gotti, but will instead play a lesser role of a mobster wife.

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Celebrity Scandal: Newspaper hacks star celebs phones to get dirt?

Celebrity Scandal!

Newspaper hacks star celebs phones to get dirt?

[Apr. 21]

We are not talking about Beyonce Knowles and Lada Gaga telephone video celebrity scandal. A scandal that has been brewing for years with Rupert Murdoch’s News of the World tabloid is coming to a head. A judge has ruled that four test cases, among them pet friendly actress Sienna Miller, star of Factory Girl (2006) and The Edge of Love (2008), may move ahead with a lawsuit against News of the World for a phone-hacking scheme that violated the rights of a number of celebrities, sports stars, and royal family.

The word broke out in 2005 and 2006 that the tabloid had been involved in various means of intercepting voicemail communication and other private communications through phone-hacking. The News of the World had previously claimed no knowledge of the phone-hacking scheme, saying it was the work of just a couple of rogue employees, but investigation lately has demonstrated that the practice was far more widespread than initially thought.

The attorney for News Group, which owns News of the World, has argued that the case should not be allowed to continue because the paper has offered to settle for more than what complainants are likely to get awarded in court should they win. Regarding Sienna Miller, the attorney, Michael Silverleaf told the judge, “She cannot realistically recover more than we are offering.”

Sienna Miller has 21 days to decide if she will take the settlement, but it could mean allowing the newspaper to escape investigation into what could be many more cases. The paper has identified only eight complainants with whom it is offering to settle.

KIVI-TV reports:

Miller’s lawyer, Hugh Tomlinson, said money was not the primary motivation for many of the claimants.

“Damages are an aspect, but when private information is involved, the kind of relief people are looking for goes beyond simply monetary compensation,” he said.

Already Andy Coulson has had to step down as head of communications for Prime Minister David Cameron as a result of the scandal. Coulson was editor for News of the World while the phone-hacking scheme was ongoing, according to Yahoo! News. And two senior men with News of the World have been held on charges, according to Reuters.