Pamela Anderson finishes marathon in under six hours

Pamela Anderson might best be remembered for “running” on the beach in “Baywatch”. But her most impressive run came Sunday, when she not only ran the New York City Marathon but finished in a tidy 5:41:03.

“So proud of my brother Gerry,” Anderson tweeted. “Thank G. For running next to me today- love you lots.’’

Then she tweeted “Thank You New York City!” and a picture of her medal for finishing.

The 46-year-old Anderson — sporting a pixie cut, backwards baseball cap and a glowing natural look — ran for charity, raising almost $76,000 according to her fundraising page. It went to the J/P Haitian Relief Organization, which helps the impoverished Caribbean island nation devastated by the 2010 earthquake.
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London Marathon champion T segaye Kebede lost the race but won the prize, his 2:09.16 runner-up finish clinched the $500,000 bonus for the World Marathon Majors men’s title.

Adriana Nelson was the top American woman, finishing 13th in 2:35.05. Ryan Vail was the top American male, finishing in 12th in 2:13.23. Former champion and Olympic medalist Meb Keflezighi had been among the pre-race contenders, but ran through a calf injury and struggled in at 2:23.47, running along with — and a second behind — Staten Island’s Mike Cassidy.
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Security was redoubled in the wake of April’s Boston Marathon bombing, with roughly four dozen bomb-sniffing dogs, extra undercover cops, barricades blocking off much of Central Park and spectators going through bag-check lines to get in. New York Road Runners CEO Mary Wittenberg acknowledged the major change to have everybody screened, but chalked it up as the new normal.

“I remember 9/11 as a very emotional year, but this was different with a lot of celebratory feel to it but a real sense of running for meaning for New York and Boston. I’m not the NYPD, but (we had) zero incidents, zero threats, really smooth, very noticeable increased presence,’’ Wittenberg said. “It never felt too much at all to me. What it felt is it’s our new reality.

“I shot this picture. We had this big Run For Life banner and it says “When you hit the wall, fly over it” and the bridge is in the background. It’s absolutely beautiful, and I don’t even notice that there’s either NYPD or the Army walking across the roof. That’s our new reality. It’s probably been a reality since 9/11, and I think it’s a very supportive one. I never felt anything, but that it was a really good presence.’’
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American Tatyana McFadden completed an unprecedented marathon “Grand Slam.” The 24-year-old Maryland resident won the NYC Marathon women’s wheelchair race Sunday after taking the titles in Boston, London and Chicago in 2013. No other athlete has won those races in the same year.

Columbia Records' Isaac Green Promoted to SVP of A&R

Columbia Records has promoted Isaac Green from his previous position as vice president of A&R to senior vice president of of A&R. Green has been with the company since 2008.

Previous to joining Columbia, Green was the founder of the label StarTime International, which was home to The Walkmen and French Kicks, among others. StarTime has since become an imprint of Columbia Records and continues to be overseen by Green. As well, Green founded Almost Gold Recordings, another Columbia imprint.

“I'm extremely appreciative of [Columbia Records chairman] Rob Stringer and [Columbia Records president] Ashley Newton for their unwavering support and mentorship,” comments Green.  “Columbia is my home.  I live and breathe for my artists -- and, luckily, so does every member of our great staff.”

CMJ Accused of Hiding Funds, Avoiding Loan Repayment By John Scher's Metropolitan Entertainment

Metropolitan Entertainment, a New York-based concert promotions, management and label company headed up by John Scher, is suing CMJ, the company behind the New York music festival -- currently underway -- and magazine for loans and interest given to CMJ in 2009 and 2010 which CMJ has allegedly avoided repayment of. The news was first reported in the New York Times.

The suit, originally filed in May by John Scher and Metropolitan Talent, Inc., saw the date of its final court extension lapse last Tuesday, Oct 8. According to court papers, Scher and Metropolitan's negotiations with CMJ began in 2008, leading to an agreement between the companies for Metropolitan to acquire CMJ, which they had valued at $2.4 million. The court filing goes on to claim that Metropolitan lent CMJ funds 27 times, totaling $595,307 along with $178,827 in interest, adding up to $744,134 unpaid by CMJ according to the filing.

The papers allege that CMJ Network Inc., along with Robert and Joanne Haber, sold CMJ Network to a new corporation called CMJ Holdings, a deal which did not include the original loans. The new owners allegedly refused to ackowledge Metropolitan's claim to the money lent.

Speaking to Billboard.biz, Mr. Scher outlined a meeting he had roughly a month after being refused by Mr. Haber for a meeting with potential investors he had found. "My partner and I went and had a meeting with Keith and three other people. They looked us in the eye and they said 'We've taken over CMJ, and we'd like to work together.' We said "Well there's a little thing about $600,000 or $700,000 you owe us.' He said 'Well you're not gonna get it. You've got a claim against old CMJ.'"

"I thought 'I'm not a lawyer, but that can't be legal.'" From that point, Mr. Scher described to Billboard.biz a deteriorating back-and-forth with CMJ's new owners, leading Metropolitan and Mr. Scher to file their lawsuit this past May. "It's not something where you can just say 'Eh, we made a bad deal," said Mr. Scher.
Regarding the ongoing case, CMJ Holdings CEO Alexis D'Amecourt responded: "We believe the lawsuit is without merit, and to that end CMJ timely filed, and has pending before the court a motion to dismiss the action."

2012 Digital Highlights

2012 Top Ten Selling Digital Songs

Title/Artist	Units Sold
SOMEBODY THAT I USED TO… / GOTYE FT. KIMBRA	6,801,000
CALL ME MAYBE / CARLY RAE JEPSEN	6,472,000
WE ARE YOUNG / FUN. FT. JANELLE MONAE	5,948,000
PAYPHONE / MAROON 5 FT. WIZ KHALIFA	4,757,000
STARSHIPS / NICKI MINAJ	3,979,000
WHAT MAKES YOU BEAUTIFUL / ONE DIRECTION	3,881,000
SOME NIGHTS / FUN.	3,839,000
STRONGER / KELLY CLARKSON	3,823,000
GANGNAM STYLE / PSY	3,592,000
ONE MORE NIGHT / MAROON 5	3,461,000

 [i]

2012 Top Ten Selling Digital Albums

Title/Artist	Units Sold
21 / ADELE	1,040,000
RED / TAYLOR SWIFT	863,000
BABEL / MUMFORD & SONS	778,000
UP ALL NIGHT / ONE DIRECTION	562,000
SOME NIGHTS / FUN.	558,000
LUMINEERS / LUMINEERS	474,000
OVEREXPOSED / MAROON 5	451,000
MY HEAD IS AN ANIMAL / OF MONSTERS AND MEN	424,000
MAKING MIRRORS / GOTYE	387,000
SIGH NO MORE / MUMFORD & SONS	384,000

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[i] © 2012 Business wire: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20130104005149/en/Nielsen-Company-Billboard%E2%80%99s-2012-Music-Industry-Report

Back in the day: Oct. 14, 1969

The Jackson 5 make their first national television appearance.

By Jonathan P. Hicks

The Jackson 5 performed their hit single "I Want You Back" during their first appearance on national television on Hollywood Palace on Oct. 14, 1969.
It went to the No. 1 spot on the soul singles chart for four weeks and the top position on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for the week ending Jan. 31, 1970. The song was ranked 121st on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 greatest songs of all time.
The group performed “I Want You Back” in all of their world tours either as a full song or as a part of the Jackson 5 medley in concerts. After leaving the Jackson 5, Michael Jackson performed the song as part of a medley of Jackson 5 hit songs. 
“I Want You Back” sold 6 million copies internationally. In 1999, the song was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Taylor Swift Opens $4 Mil. Education Center at Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum

By Associated Press

 It might as well be Taylor Swift weekend in Music City.

The pop star opened her $4 million Taylor Swift Education Center at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum on Saturday morning, and will accept her record sixth songwriter-artist of the year award from Nashville Songwriters Association International on Sunday.

Swift cut the ribbon on the new education center she donated to the museum as part of its expansion campaign and showed reporters and area high school students the new classroom and exhibit space before the museum opened.

"I'm really excited about this music education center and the fact that right now they have three different classes going on today," Swift said in an interview after the ceremony. "It's really exciting that we can be here on a day when they're not only unveiling it, but they're starting to actively use it today."

The center will have classroom space, a hands-on instrument room and ongoing education opportunities. Museum officials say the new center will increase educational opportunities sevenfold going forward.
And who knows? Maybe users will find the 23-year-old Swift hanging around some day.

"We've been talking about different programs I can be involved in," Swift said. "I hate to call it a lecture because that sounds like I'm yelling at people, but we could do a Q&A talking to students here and a songwriters discussion would be really fun to have at some point."

Rihanna's Tweet Leads to Arrest of Thai Bar Owner

The bar owner is faced with charges of obscenity and operating an entertainment venue without a permit following the pop star's racy post about a sex show.

BANGKOK  — Thai authorities have arrested a bar owner in connection with a lewd sex show mentioned in racy tweets by pop star Rihanna during her recent trip to Thailand, officials said Monday, two weeks after an Instagram photo of Rihanna with a protected primate led to the arrest of two other men.

Officials on the island of Phuket, 680 kilometers (420 miles) south of Bangkok, said Monday the bar owner faced charges of obscenity and operating an entertainment venue without a permit.

Local district chief Weera Kerdsirimongkon said the man was arrested Saturday as part of a crackdown on shows featuring naked dancers.

"Authorities found out about this bar the morning after Rihanna tweeted about it, but we were not able to catch them violating the law until Saturday night," Weera said. "We had been waiting for them and finally caught them red-handed."

Weera said the bar owner could face up to one month's imprisonment and a fine of up to 60,000 baht ($1,900).

This isn't the first arrest triggered by Rihanna's postings on social media. A photo of her with a slow loris, a squirrel-like animal with big eyes, on Instagram led local police to arrest a 20-year-old man and a 16-year-old boy, who could face charges of possession of protected animals. The charge carries a penalty of up to four years in prison and a 40,000 baht ($1,300) fine.