Shaunie O'Neal Reveals Plans to Fire Three Basketball Wives

O'Neal has "no problem" walking away from the controversial series.

Looks like big changes are coming to Basketball Wives. 

The controversial reality series, which has come under fire lately for taking the cat fighting too far, will lose three of its cast members from Miami, creator and executive producer Shaunie O'Neal promises.

“No questions asked, not anything personal but just not where I want to go. Not on the same page,” she tellsThe Insider in an interview. 

O'Neal says the decision came as the result of a gut-check that had her contemplating leaving the show altogether. "I think the level of where the show is going is out of control," Shaq's ex says candidly. “Sometimes I just want to exit stage left immediately."

“I’m uncomfortable. I’m very uncomfortable, when you have that ‘I don’t know,’ feeling, I run from that feeling,” she says, adding that she has "no problem walking away from the franchise" if the tone doesn't change. “I had it going into season four and I should have stuck with my gut. I won’t do it again.”

Luckily, between Star Jones' successful petition and vows from various cast members to set a better examplefor viewers, the next season of BBW may be its most positive yet. Hopefully, for O'Neal's sake, audiences will support that vision. 

J.D. Williams: "I Didn’t Want to Keep Doing Characters That Were Evil"

Though he is no longer a mainstay on HBO, J.D. Williams is far from inactive. Many will recognize the actor from a recent FedEx ad and indie film fanatics have probably caught a glimpse of him in at least one limited release production or recommended movie on Netflix. BET.com caught up with the Newark, New Jersey, native at Jamie Hector’s paintball tournament and discussed his latest projects.

How did you feel about the Funny or Die skit?I thought it was a great idea. As silly as it was, it still got to showcase what the actors from The Wire are capable of. I bet people would have never have thought that Michael K. would be so light the way he was. He had Snoop in the dress, that was great, so simple but so genius. You had Sonja, even Andre the way he did the Bubbles thing. I thought it was really fun. I wish I was in L.A. and could have been a part of it.

You've been quite busy since your role on The Wire. You've done theater, indie films like Happy New Year and a FedEx ad. What else is in the works?I’ve been doing a bunch of independent films. I have a film coming out called An American in Hollywood. I’m playing a comedian in that one. You mentioned Happy New Year, I play a vet with post-traumatic stress disorder. There’s also another film I did called Surviving Family — I’m also a vet with post-traumatic stress disorder except he has actual physical scars to prove it. And I have a lot of projects floating around — Zoo. It’s about the Zoo Crew from Newark, New Jersey. And that’s coming out soon. We just did a premiere a couple of days ago.

What is the Zoo Crew?Zoo Crew was actually a bunch of guys that hung out together, grew up together. Then eventually they started selling drugs, and then they got into activism. The crew kind of splintered off, half decided to keep selling drugs the other half decided to be more positive. So that’s what the Zoo Crew is. It’s two divergences of the same crew. The illegal side is pretty much done, they went to jail and paid their debts to society. They’re not really viable anymore. The legal side still does charity, they have basketball leagues and all of these things. Zoo Crew is still around and doing a lot of positive things in Newark. Right now they give out scholarships, basketball leagues, they have a bunch of stores. So that’s the Zoo Crew right now. The film will explain exactly where they came from and how they got to be where they are now.

You were on Oz before you were on The Wire.[Laughs] Yeah HBO is like my granddad.

Going from the first show to the next, how did it feel to portray someone roughly 10 years younger?

I didn’t really think about it age-wise too much. My thing was I didn’t want to keep doing characters that were more and more evil.  I felt like now my character is free but he’s worse than the dude I was just playing. I just didn’t want that to be the progression. But I saw what David and the other writers were doing with the character and learned to appreciate it and love it in a way. So age wasn’t even a factor. That’s just part of the acting. It was great, I had a ball and it was fun.

The music video for Freeway’s “What We Do” [an homage to The Wire with J.D. Williams portraying Bodie] is almost 10 years old, too. How did they approach you guys about it? Was it something you had to vet through Dave Simon?Actually, I don’t think they had any prior or official approval because it was a loose kind of thing. I think it came out that way mostly because a lot of people were already on the West Coast, like Dre (Andre Royo), and a couple of people were out East and I had just flew out to the West the night before. And they called me and said Jay-Z, Freeway, Beanie Sigel, they want you to come and do the video. I said, "I’ll come, just send me a ticket." They sent me a ticket that same day, I took the redeye to New York that night and I got up on set that morning. It was a good energy — the last days of Roc-A-Fella, and then The Wire with us being there. It was really cool. 

George Zimmerman's Wife, Shellie Zimmerman Arrested

UPDATE 5:15PM EST

Trayvon Martin family attorny, Benjamin Crump, released a statment on the arrest of George Zimmerman's wife, Shellie, saying-

 "The prosecutor sent a strong message that you have to tell the truth in court because it is the whole bases of the American legal system. Credibility of every witness is always at the crux of every legal case." 

UPDATE 4:45PM EST

Shellie Zimmerman bonds out of jail on perjury charge.

Shellie Zimmerman, 25, wife of George Zimmerman, has been arrested on perjury charges and her bond has been set at $1,000.

STORY: No Respect! Judge Sent Zimmerman Back To Jail For Lying 

Prosecutors found that Shelly transferred $74K out of George's account 4 days before telling judge she didn't know about any money.

According to the Seminole County Sheriff's Office, deputies were alerted by prosecutors Tuesday that a warrant had been issued fo rMrs. Zimmerman. 

She was arrested about 3:30 p.m. "at the location she was residing in Seminole County," deputies said in a statement.

Circuit Judge Kenneth Lester revoked George Zimmerman's bond on June 1st after he and his wife lied about how much donation money was collected from his website.

It was also reported that Zimmerman told his wife to pay off their American Express bill and their Sam's Club card while in jail and he apparently, while in jail, talked to a bank manager in Seminole County about transferring his account to his wife.

Lester sent Zimmerman back to jail after prosecutors found that he and his wife conspired to hide from the court about $135,000 Zimmerman had collected in donations to his website.

The Zimmermans spoke about the money "in code" during recorded jailhouse phone calls, prosecutors said.

Earlier today, judge Lester's written order was released to the public, as he stated back on June 1st: 

"It is apparent that [Shellie] Zimmerman testified untruthfully at the bond hearing…The Defendant also testified, but did not alert the Court to the misinformation.

Had the Court been made aware of the true financial circumstances at the bond hearing, the bond decision might have been different." 

Zimmerman turned himself in again after Lester revoked his bond and now both Zimmermans are currently in the same jail. Sanford's John E. Polk Correctional.

Zimmerman's second bond hearing is set for June 29 in Sanford.

Read more: http://globalgrind.com/news/george-zimmerman-wife-arrested-photo#ixzz1xcnLOP6A

NAVY DRONE PLANE CRASHES IN MARYLAND

It was something that hit without warning.

Yesterday (June 11), a Naval drone aircraft crashed on Maryland's Eastern Shore. Luckily, no injuries or property damage resulted from the crash. There were four crew members on board when the 44-foot plane impacted the swampy area.

A Spokewoman for the Unmanned Aviation and Strike Weapons program confirmed the crash location near Bloodsworth Island, across the Chesapeake Bay from the Patuxent River Naval Air Station

Currently, the U.S. Coast Guard has set up a safety zone around the site until a full investigation has been conducted.

CBS News reports:
The Northrop Grumman RQ-4A BAMS-D drones with a range of 10,500 nautical miles can reach 11 miles above the ground, which is above most weather, and stay in the air for more than 30 hours with speeds up to 391 mph, according to the Navy. It is operated by a crew of four on the ground.The aircraft is one of five acquired from the Air Force Global Hawk program that support more than half of maritime intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance systems. They have flown more than 5,500 hours in support of combat operations since 2008.

Watch out for falling planes!

From The Desk of...

www.palacemusicgroup.com     http://palacemusicgroup.blogspot.com     www.twitter.com/thapalace

HOME OFFICE.

My home office is where I keep all the business records I don't need on a daily basis. All my accounting records are stored at the home office, as well as any original software, documentation and licensing authorizations.

In my home office is a stack of newspaper articles, trade publications and other music business information that I am trying to take time to read. Anyone who is in the music business should read the trade magazines because this is an ever changing industry.

No home office should be without a scanner, and get a good quality name brand ink jet printer. Always answer your phone like a business phone, even if it's also your home line. Clients will not be impressed by young children answering your phone, or by a TV blaring in the background it is inappropriate when you are trying to portray an image of being on the cutting edge of technology. It is essential that your main phone number have voicemail. These days most people are comfortable, talking to a machine, but if you feel your clients would rather speak with a real person, get an answering service.

The final piece to my puzzle is my smart phone but any cell phone will do.

Kamal D. Jabbar

CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER

NO DIVORCE IN SIGHT FOR KOBE BRYANT AND WIFE VANESSA BRYANT

Ever since we saw the divorce settlement earlier this year between NBA star Kobe Bryant and his wife Vanessa Bryant, we couldn't help but feel bad for the homie.

Now, it looks like the two back are on track and the divorce is off—for now anyway.

According to TMZ, Kobe and Vanessa are trying to work out the issues that caused her to file for divorce back in December. Although he has not officially moved back in with her, they are working towards a full reconciliation.

Since California law gives 6 months before a person can file final documentation for divorce, Vanessa could end the marriage as early as Monday, giving that her 6-month-mark approaches this weekend.

We wonder if Drake had anything to do with this decision in any sort of way.

ADDERALL AMERICA'S NEW GATEWAY DRUG?

Adderall, an amphetamine prescribed for Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (A.D.H.D.) is steadily gaining more and more popularity in high school students who are under extreme pressure to get good grades and enter Ivy League colleges.

The prescription drug is becoming commonplace in academically competitive high schools throughout the country. Many students claim to get the drug from either friends, student dealers, or they fake symptoms to get prescribed themselves. DeAnsin Parker, a NY psychologist, says that this pill is the “culture” throughout all private schools in the NY area.

The D.E.A. list Adderall as Class 2 controlled substances, the same category of other drugs such as Ritalin, Focalin, cocaine, and morphine. This group is ranked among the most addictive substances with a medical use. Thus meaning they carry a high legal risk also, where giving the drug to a friend is the same as selling it and they can be prosecuted as a felony.

Those who use the drug without the disorder, find that one pill gives them enough energy and focus to do all-nighters, homework binges, or long papers, and then take extreme long test such as the S.A.T’s afterwards with no problem. However, although it can help it’s users achieve their goal it has negative side effects such as depression, sleep deprivation, heart irregularities, and it can lead to the use of other painkillers and drugs.

According to IMS Health/NY Times, the number of prescriptions for A.D.H.D medication dispensed for people between the ages of 10 to 19 rose to 26% since 2007 (almost 21 million yearly). One student said he makes hundreds of dollars a week selling prescription drugs, priced from 5 to 20 dollars per pill.

Many students interviewed, who remained nameless, said that the drug was used so that the students can continue to work hard especially with busy schedules and to meet academic expectations. Many students lied to their psychiatrist to get the prescription by expressing feelings they didn't really have.

Is Adderall America's new gateway drug?