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JOB OF THE WEEK: Product Manager - MTV Networks

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Check out the Business Insider Jobs section >>

mtv watch with app

As part of our new partnership with SimplyHired.com, each week we'll feature one of the awesome jobs advertised on the Business Insider jobs board.

Product Manager

MTV Networks

Why it’s cool: You'll get to work on new digital music products for MTV, VH1, CMT and Logo.

What they need: Someone to who can take a concepts and requirements for everything from pages and applications to entire sites, then build and execute the final product.

What you need: At least four years of experience in Product Management, experience using wireframing tools like Visio, Omnigraffle, or InDesign, ability to translate concepts into detailed wire-frames, an excellent eye for design, as well as a self-starting problem-solver.

To learn more about this opportunity click here

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Happy 90th Birthday, Betty White! 72 Years In The Career Of One Wild 'Golden Girl'

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betty white birthdayOur favorite "Golden Girl" turns 90-years-old today!

Is there anything Betty White hasn’t done?

She’s received a lap dance on “Ellen,” was tackled in a Snickers Super Bowl ad, shared a shower with Hugh Jackman, became a Facebook phenomenon, purchased condoms on “The Golden Girls,” and kissed "Chuck" star Zachary Levi just last night.

In the past few years, she’s had cameos on everything from “Community” to “30 Rock” and “The Middle,” has brought in record ratings as the oldest host ever on "Saturday Night Live" and returned to TV on the popular “Hot in Cleveland.”

And, she’s not done yet. This spring, White has a new show, “Off Their Rockers” — think Ashton Kutcher's “Punked” for old people — debuting this spring on NBC.

The bubbly may be done at her big birthday bash, but we’re still celebrating all day. Here’s our tribute to the one who’s done it all.

1956: White co-hosted the Rose Parade on NBC for nineteen years. When she was replaced in 1975, the "Mary Tyler Moore" actress began hosting the "Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade" for the next ten years.



1949: White appeared alongside Al Jarvis on the daily, “Hollywood on Television." She took over hosting the show three years later in 1952.



1950: White was nominated for her first Emmy award as "Best Actress" on TV. The award was among the first in the category of women's television. White won her first Emmy in 1975 for her performance on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show."



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OJ Simpson's Miami House Gets Foreclosed On While He Serves Jail Time In Nevada

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oj simpson house

JPMorgan recently initiated proceedings to foreclose on the Miami-area house of ex-NFLer O.J. Simpson, according to USA Today (via Zillow Blog).

Simpson, who's currently serving a nine-to-33-year sentence in Nevada for kidnapping and armed robbery, apparently couldn't keep up with the payments on the home, which he bought in 2000 for $575,000.

The bank reportedly started an action to foreclose on the four-bedroom, four-bathroom home in Kendall in September. Simpson's lawyers have since filed to dismiss the case.

The home is currently assessed at $478,000, according to the AP, citing Miami-Dade Circuit Court records.

Now check out the biggest and best celebrity real estate purchases of the past year >

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Miss America Wants Aaron Rodgers To Call Her

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Laura Kaeppeler miss america

His Green Bay Packers may have been sent packing after losing to the New York Giants this weekend, but it's not all bad for Aaron Rodgers.

During Saturday night's Miss America pageant, Miss Wisconsin, and the pageant's eventual winner, Laura Kaeppeler introduced herself to the audience and millions more watching on television by saying, "If your'e watching Aaron Rodgers, call me."

Eli and the Giants may be moving on, but Rodgers has something else to keep him occupied during the offseason.

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Why 2012 Is The Year Of Must-Tweet TV

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television twitterForget about the age of must-see television, 2012 will be the year of must-tweet TV.

Networks large and small are using social media to engage second-screen viewers like never before. A few of the most high-profile recent examples include:

>> Monday, Fox News used Twitter to measure viewer reaction to its GOP debate and encourage online interaction based on the candidates’ answers.

>>NBC partnered with Facebook for its “Meet the Press” debate Jan. 8. 

>>VH1 offered a four-hour live stream of analysis during its Critics’ Choice Movie Awards broadcast last week.

“Particularly over the last year, we’ve seen social media grow from just being the latest shiny new toy to being a really powerful tool that is integral to gathering news and telling stories,” Ryan Osborn, senior director of digital media for NBC News, told TheWrap.

Also read: Rupert Murdoch on MySpace: 'We Screwed Up in Every Way Possible'

Integrating social media from viewers following along with computers and smartphones fosters greater engagement while also broadening the audience for programming. Best of all, it provides consumer data.

With that, networks can better target advertisers.

The question now is not whether networks should utilize social media but how they can use it most effectively and monetize it.

Osborn cited Twitter reaction to the 2009 U.S. Airways crash into New York's Hudson River as one of the first times the social media service influenced NBC News coverage. Osborn, then a “junior official,” told his bosses about a tweeted photo. The network news team quickly determined the story was legitimate and got a jump on what became a major story.

Fox has used Twitter to measure popular sentiment on issues and candidates, with the metrics finding their way onto Fox’s website and into its on-screen post-debate analysis.

Other networks, like Bravo and VH1, have encouraged stars to tweet during their shows, hoping to build buzz at key moments. Still more have show-specific hash tags that can become trending topics and convince those not viewing to tune in.

Also read: Charlie Sheen's Comedy Central Roast Goes Twitter-Crazy

Frank Radice, managing partner of consulting firm VIDA F.R., and and former president of the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, said that even more methods of using social media will emerge.

“It’s only going to come through experimentation,” Radice told TheWrap. “You need to try everything. I don’t want to say it’s a guy throwing spaghetti against the side of a refrigerator, but it sort of is. You want to know if something will work, and if people will engage.”

Facebook pages promoting shows and their stars are a given at this point. But using Comcast’s Xfinity, a viewer can access program guides based on Facebook trending topics, and networks are also integrating Facebook into their shows. During NBC’s “Meet the Press” debate earlier this month, viewers were able to see Facebook comments and queries on screen.

“The convergence of social and on-air is the result of over a year’s worth of groundwork -- getting people used to it, learning how to talk about it, not mentioning platforms as if they have air quotes around them,” Osborn said. “They are actual viewers, just engaging with you in a new way.”

Osborn noted that the debate generated 860,000 total online streams between Jan. 8 and 12 and more than 45,000 Facebook comments.

For viewers, it's not necessarily a question of Facebook or Twitter. The most online-engaged can integrate multiple social media platforms at once. The practice of using a computer, tablet or smart phone while watching TV exploded in 2011. 

Also read: NBC, Facebook Partner for GOP Presidential Debate

Data suggests that anywhere from 25 percent to 75 percent of people watching TV today are engaging with another screen at the same time. That's a wide variance, but whatever number in that range is most accurate, it's a significant percentage.

“TV is more like radio; consumers are engaging with their ears instead of their eyes,” Greg Artzt, co-founder of General Sentiment, a social media analytics and consulting firm, told TheWrap.

That may sound heretical to traditionalists, but executives say companies have no choice but to embrace second-screen viewing as a way of further engaging and extending their audience.

“You look at behavior, and it indicates that an awful lot of people are on two screens at once,” David Westin, former President of ABC News, told TheWrap. “If you can compete with yourself, that’s better than competing with someone else. I’d rather have both screens than give it up to someone else.”

As a result, second screen start-ups have exploded and networks tap into different new avenues of engaging viewers.

Some, like GetGlue, primarily let viewers check-in so they can find other people watching the same show and earn discounts. Others, like Umami, facilitate tweeting while also offering content related to the show, such as character biographies, related articles and episode summaries.

Also read: Gawker Fires Blogger After Kanye West Post, 'Half-Assed Apology'

Some of the more recent campaigns, like VH1’s Critics Choice experiment, include video. During the show, VH1 aired four hours of different “influencers” and experts like Slate’s Dana Stevens and New York Magazine’s Will Leitch providing commentary.

“It is a compelling way to add a new dimension to the second screen,” Dan Sacher, VP of Digital for VH1 and Logo, told TheWrap. “It makes it even more social than it has been in the past and the field is so wide open that there is a lot to talk about.”

Are these initiatives best handled by the network or by an outside technology or social media company? Most seem to think it will require a collaboration between the two, such as what happened during Monday night's debate.

Regardless of who controls social television, there are pitfalls and concerns about the process.

Networks want to engage viewers without being intrusive. Having video may work for an awards show like the CCMAs, but with a network drama, even an on-screen tweet is likely to irk the viewer.

Ovation COO Chad Gutstein, for example, was irritated by the Facebook comments popping up onscreen while he watched NBC’s debate.

“Over and over again I had to hit rewind on my DVR because I wanted to hear what (candidates) were actually answering,” he said at the Consumer Electronics Show last week.

Radice believes this problem can be addressed. One solution is limiting some of the social media integration to friends and people the viewer actually care about. But that has risks, too.

“The pitfall is in the execution,” Radice said. “If you’re interacting with friends, people you know that are in your community, you are more likely to allow something to divert your attention for a moment.”

Of course, the ultimate quest is monetizing all this interaction. Networks  increasingly include not just Nielsen ratings but Twitter mentions, second screen streaming and other supplemental numbers when pitching to advertisers.

“A year and a half ago it was about, how can social media buzz be predictive of Nielsen ratings," Artzt said. "It has taken that leap to where it is more of a central story. It has become a reason to say, ‘Hey this is why you’re paying this CPM for his show."

“They are real-time focus groups,” Osborn said.

Not surprisingly, advertisers have been slower to pick up on the trend.

“The networks have been ahead of the game,” Artzt said.

Whether advertisers embrace social media this year or not, one thing is for sure: audiences and the networks already have. Advertisers will likely follow the viewers.

“I absolutely know that each and every one of the major advertising agencies, all the networks and cable channels have big department figuring this out right now,” Radice said. “They will get it figured out, and turn it into money.”

This post originally appeared at TheWrap.

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How Much Would It Cost You To Rent ABC's Actual "Bachelor" Pad?

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Bachelor Ben

On this season of ABC's "The Bachelor," winemaker Ben Flajnik can be seen seducing his gaggle of gals throughout California.

While romancing his lady-suitors in his native Sonoma County, Flajnik calls this 4,800-square foot, 6 bedroom, 4.5 bath ranch-style estate home.

So how much would it cost you to woo your date a lá Benny boy at the “Vineyard Knoll"?  Depends on how much time you want to spend together:

This love nest will run you $2,100/night, $13,225/week, or $35,225/month, according to Zillow.com.

Or become next season's Bachelor or Bachelorette and ABC will likely foot the bill for you.

Meet Bachelor Ben



Meet Ben's lady friends



Welcome to Vineyard Knoll!



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This Nasty Viral Video Star Is Getting His Own Show And He Don't Care

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Honey BadgerHoney Badger is about to be a f***ing star and he doesn't give a s***.

Our favorite YouTube sensation, the judgemental Honey Badger named Randall, who has garnered over 33 million hits on YouTube, is being turned into an animation/live action comedy hybrid, titled "Honey Badger U," according to The Hollywood Reporter.

After the success of the recent book "Honey Badger Don't Care: Randall's Guide to Crazy, Nastyass Animals," Canadian production company Six Eleven Media is developing a comedy they plan to pitch to broadcast and cable networks later this month.

The show will feature Randall the Honey Badger as a professor of life sciences at a dysfunctional university, natch.

"His course will feature his trademark color-commentary on documentary footage of topics related to science and the animal kingdom while forming an unusual bond with his students, fellow professors and the University mascot, “Honey,” a “nastya**” honey badger," says THR.

So how did such a crazy-a** idea come about?

“Six Eleven was developing a university-based animated comedy following a professor who thinks he knows more than he really does, and his students, who know even less," Kirk Schenck, of Six Eleven Media and an executive producer on the show, said in a statement.  "When Randall’s Honey Badger videos took off last year garnering tens of millions of avid followers around the world, it seemed natural to merge the two concepts."

The original "Honey Badger" creators are also on board.

Watch the Honey Badger in action below:

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Are We Trying to Reunite TechCrunch? Not Quite.

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sarah lacy 2

Will Pando Daily be the site-of-record for Silicon Valley? Sarah Lacy, former TechCrunch editor who just launched the new tech blog with that tag line, is hoping so. Lacy will be speaking at IGNITION West, Business Insider's major conference on mobile, taking place March 21, 2012, in San Francisco.

And so will Mike Arrington, the hard-charging TechCrunch founder and editor-in-chief who has gone on to helm CrunchFund.

What?! Is Business Insider trying to re-reunite TechCrunch? Hardly. Arrington and Lacy are two of the sharpest observers of the technology and media echo chamber, and we're delighted that we've recruited them to help us cut through the bull on topics from platform wars to the Next Big Thing (or, as applicable, the Next Big Investment).

Tickets for IGNITION West are on sale now. There is a special rate for startups, and a discounted bargain if you'd like to set up an exhibition table. (Did I mention active angel and venture investors will also be there?)

Here are other fascinating speakers who will share market insight with you:

  • Laura Arrillaga Andreessen, Founder & Chairman Emeritus, Silicon Valley Social Venture Fund: Hear from the woman revolutionizing philanthropy about the future of giving and social good
  • Bart Decrem, SVP & GM Mobile, The Walt Disney Company: Creator of mega-popular apps through Tapulous and a serial entrepreneur, Decrem will share the view from his current seat at the helm of Disney mobile
  • Brian Lee, Co-founder & Chairman, ShoeDazzle; Co-founder & Chairman, The Honest Company: First Kim Kardashian. Now Jessica Alba -- Lee is a pro at enlisting celebrities to co-found his e-commerce ventures, which disrupt industries and supply chains. Hear how.
  • Matt Murphy, Partner, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers: One word: iFund. Murphy has been picking winners (Zynga, ngmoco, Flipboard) since the app bonanza kicked off. What are the bleeding-edge developments in app creation today?
  • Kevin Systrom, Founder & CEO, Instagram: 15 million users agree: Instragram rocks. What's next, and how will the beloved photo-editing and sharing service cash in?

At IGNITION West, you can expect the same no-BS content you get online at Business Insider (minus the slideshows). IGNITION West is the sister event to the IGNITION: Future of Media conference in New York, where Sheryl Sandberg, Naveen Selvadurai, Jason Kilar, Hilary Mason, Glenn Beck, Jonah Peretti, Steve Martocci, John Borthwick, John Battelle, Kevin Ryan, Aileen Lee and Arianna Huffington have spoken.

Follow @BI_Events on Twitter and connect with us on LinkedIn for special discount and deals.

See you in March!

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Lindsay Lohan And Megan Fox Fight For Elizabeth Taylor Role -- Here's The Morning Buzz

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            Paula Deen

  • Zooey Deschanel reveals girls used to spit in her face in high school. But she's so adorkable!
  • Wolf on the loose! Wolf Blitzer breaks it down at the BET Honors after party.
  • Adele has a new boyfriend, who has a wife and kids.

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Guess Who Was Just Named The First Grammys Host In 7 Years?

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LL-Cool-J

He's "doin it, doin it, doin it, uhhhh!"

Hip-hop artist and actor LL Cool J is officially hosting the 54th annual Grammy Awards.

He's the first official host the event has had in seven years since Queen Latifah.

Although the two-time Grammy winner has hosted the nominations concert event for the past four years, this will be his first time in charge of the entire show.

"I'm thrilled to be part of Music's Biggest Night," he said in a statement. "I will always have fond memories of my first Grammys Awards and to now be hosting the Grammy show, in the company of so many other incredible artists, is a dream come true."

The 2012 Grammy Awards take place February 12 at 8 p.m. on CBS.

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Guess What, Uh, Inappropriate Shapes Kate Beckinsale Enjoys Making Out Of Fruit?

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Kate-Beckinsale

After discussing Seth Rogen's barely discernible member at the Golden Globes (that's an entirely different story), Kate Beckinsale shared her favorite family tradition on "Conan" — dirty humor. 

Turns out the "Underworld" actress enjoys making phallic images out of fruit — for her mother.

And her 13-year-old daughter likes to get in on the fun, too.

Who would have thought that the beautiful Beckinsale's dirty humor spanned three generations?

"Whenever I visit my mother's house, I always have to leave a banana and two apples or whatever fruit she has…It's nice we have a family tradition."

Beckinsale even once threw a giant, shall we say — gag gift — into her mother's carry-on luggage. 

To see what we're talking about, watch Conan squirm while Beckinsale discusses her favorite family pastime below:

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Brace Yourselves, Tim Tebow Is Being Recruited For 'Dancing With The Stars'

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tim tebow dancing with the stars

Athletes are regular contestants on Dancing With The Stars.

Last season, Metta World Peace made a short appearence on the show, and Hope Solo made it to the semi-finals.

Now, Tim Tebow is being recruited for the show

Karina Smirnoff, one of the professional ballroom dancers on the show really wants Tebow to be her partner.

She told People:

"All I want for my birthday is for Tim Tebow to dance on Dancing with the Stars. Tim is a very talented athlete, that was clear when we saw his performance this past season with Denver. "He can run, jump, pass, throw touchdowns. All [that] is missing is to see if he has the dance skills. That would make him an all around athlete and someone that I would love to dance with on the show."

Well Tim, what do you think?

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Guess Which Super Powerful Person Just Sent Zooey Deschanel A Birthday Card?

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attached image

President Barack Obama!

Yesterday, Zooey Deschanel turned 32-years-old and although she lost during Sunday's Golden Globe awards, the "New Girl" won big with her generic birthday greeting from the leader of the free world.

Zooey posted the official letter to her Twitter account, writing: "I am SO EXCITED! RT @hellogiggles Happy Birthday @zooeydeschanel from @barackobama @thewhitehouse ! Thanks @ronniecho"

But ZD wasn't the only one the prez was wishing a "Happy Birthday" to yesterday.

It also marked Michelle Obama's 48th year young.

Perhaps the first family celebrated by watching last night's brand new episode of "New Girl"?

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Ashton Kutcher Seriously Calls Out His Twitter Hacker

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Ashton Kutcher

Is there anyone with more social media woes than Ashton Kutcher?

About two years ago, when Ashton and cougar wife Demi Moore lived in wedded bliss, Ashton was on top of the Twitter game, and is renowned as one of the celebrities who brought the social media site to prominence.

Slowly, he began to lose his throne. Between his horrific handling of his divorce (and the rampant rumors of his infidelities that led up to it), and his ill-timed rants regarding the Penn State scandal, he eventually handed his Twitter over to his management team. After being back on the site for a bit, he had another brush with unluckiness this past Sunday.

Apparently, Ashton's account was hacked, and whoever did this took this as an opportunity to "check in" on Foursquare at the house of his rumored girlfriend, director Lorene Scafaria. "First official sleepover with my girl @lorenescafaria so maybe breakfast with everyone next time! (@ Lorene's House)," the tweet stated.

The Kutch quickly removed the message from his account, and wrote, "So apparently someone thinks they are clever hacking my account. #lame. Ok mr hacker, you only made one mistake. You hacked my Foursquare and I now know your address. Whoops... This is gonna be fun."

Ashton vows that he's going to "get" the hacker, which I find absolutely hilarious. Sure, it sucks when someone is all up in your business, but props to the hacker for at least being amusing and not using it as an opportunity to push diet pills and male enhancers -- after all, that's sooo hacker 2009.

Who would you hack if you wanted to get back at any celebrity (for whatever reason...)?

This post originally appeared at StyleCaster

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See The Calvin Klein Lingerie Campaign That London's Orthodox Jews Want Banned

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calvin klein

A British advertising watchdog has refused to ban an ad campaign for Calvin Klein's new "Naked Glamour" underwear line starring dutch model Lara Stone.

A member of London's Orthodox Charedi Jewish community complained to the Advertising Standards Authority that the ads — which show Stone posing in a bra and briefs — not be allowed on the sides of buses that pass through Stamford Hill.

The neighborhood has a large Orthodox community "whose religious beliefs require them not to see images of women wearing only underwear," the ASA noted.

The ASA has the power to ban entire campaigns in the U.K. based on a single complaint. It recently nixed an ad featuring a Palestinian tourist map that failed to show Israel; a Prada ad featuring True Grit's Hailee Steinfeld because it appeared to show a child in a hazardous situation (sitting on a rail track); and ads for Lynx body spray that featured "sexually provocative content and was degrading to women."

Interestingly the model in the Lynx ad was dressed similarly to the Calvin Klein ad, only the poses were different.

Calvin Klein argued — somewhat disingenuously — that "the ad was neither sexually suggestive nor overtly sexual." The ASA ultimately concluded that "although we recognised that some people with strongly held religious views may find the ad distasteful, we did not consider that the ad was likely to cause widespread offence or serious offence to those with religious views."

The bus ads were part of a series of ads for Naked Glamor, which included a web video (see following slides).







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Rob Lowe Says Peyton Manning Is Going To Retire

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TV actor and newfound NFL reporter Rob Lowe says Peyton Manning is going to retire.

Here's his tweet:

rob lowe tweet about peyton manning retiring

Okay then. We'll keep you updated.

UPDATE

The plot thickens, everybody. People on Twitter are freaking out over this picture of Lowe with Colts owner Jim Irsay from the Indianapolis Star. Check out the whole Indy Star slideshow here.

rob lowe with jim irsay in the indianapolis star

We're still waiting for the other shoe to drop in terms of Manning actually retiring. In the meantime, here's how Lowe is preparing for the news. He's kind of freaking out:

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Want To Play A Security Guard In Kevin Durant's New Movie?

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Kevin Durant Oklahoma City Thunder NBA

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant is set to star in a Warner Brothers feature film titled "Thunderstruck."

And producers are casting for two different roles (via The Basketball Jones), if you can make it to Thursday's auditions in Norman, Oklahoma:

STADIUM OFFICIAL - Male or Female. 25-50. This person stops Kevin Durant and the rest of the Thunder from taking the court for the second half.

SECURITY GUARD - Male or Female. The guard yells at Brian, who has ridden his bike into a restricted area at the basketball arena.

Here's a vague synopsis of the movie as well:

A young OKC Thunder fan loves playing basketball, but doesn't have near the skills of a starting player on his school team, much less the skills of the amazing Kevin Durant; until Rumble gets into the mix.

The crew is also looking for photo doubles that look like Durant and fellow OKC players like Russell Westbrook and Kendrick Perkins.

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HOUSE OF THE DAY: This $29 Million Ranch Near Park City Is The Perfect Home For A Sundance Film Festival Fan

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park city houseSitting on 214 acres of seclusion this huge ranch near Park City, Utah is the perfect place to hide out when not taking in a trendy flick at the Sundance Film Festival.

The eight-bedroom, nine-bathroom home is on sale for $29 million.

The floors are hand-crafted hickory floors, a theater room, wine cellar, art studio, eight car garage, sports court, while outside there's a fire pit next to the river for relaxation time.

The home is located on Weber Canyon Road in Park City



From the outside you can see Weber River running past the house



With 214 acres, there is room for a barn



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How Paula Deen Made $30 Million While Concealing Her Diabetes For 3 Years

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Paula DeenPaula Deen has found herself in some hot water this week — and we aren't talking the kind she uses to boil pasta for her deep fried, bacon-wrapped, macaroni and cheese balls!

After the TV star chef known for her unhealthy Southern cooking announced Tuesday that she has type 2 diabetes, The Daily reported that not only had Deen been lying to her loyal, butter-loving fans — but she hid the disease from her bosses at the Food Network, as well.

While the Food Network has stated, "We will continue to support Paula as she confronts this new challenge," many of Deen's fans felt duped when she announced the news in conjunction with signing on as the new spokeswoman for Novo Nordisk, a Danish drug giant that will land her a seven-figure payday.

Seven figures in addition to the $10 million it is estimated Deen currently makes per year between her TV deals, restaurants, books, magazines, licensing and endorsements deals, speaking fees, retail sales and even rental properties.

So, $10 million a year for three years? That's a cool $30 million in Deen's pocket — all while Deen sat on the secret that her famous food is a serious factor in causing her disease.

But it's not just Deen's followers who are peeved, the fried food fanatic has even come under serious criticism from fellow foodie, Anthony Bourdain, who tweeted: "Thinking of getting into the leg-breaking business, so I can profitably sell crutches later."

“When your signature dish is hamburger in between a doughnut, and you’ve been cheerfully selling this stuff knowing all along that you’ve got type 2 diabetes … It’s in bad taste, if nothing else,” Bourdain told Eater.com on Monday, pun intended.

While Deen hid the news of her diagnosis, the Food Network chef continued to go on-air and make gluttonous delicacies such as the previously mentioned "Doughnut Burger."

But during an appearance on NBC's "Today" show, Deen (unconvincingly) told Al Roker, “I tell people ‘In moderation … You can have that little piece of pie. Diabetes does not have to stop you from enjoying the things you love.”

Like making money, right Paula?

Not that Diabetes would have slowed down her cash flow; Deen is now promoting healthier, yet still comfort food dishes, such as low-fat turkey lasagna.

An improvement from her previous fan favorite, "deep fried lasagna."

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4 Celebrity Prepaid Cards We'd Rather See

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betty white

It used to be that celebrities who wanted to expand their empires and make some extra money simply attached their name to a clothing line. These days, they're more likely to put their face on a credit card.

Though intended to help unbanked people carry out transactions that require plastic, prepaid cards tend to carry considerable fees -- and celebrity-branded cards are no exception.

The now-infamous Kardashian Kard was so laden with fees it came under investigation and was ultimately pulled from the market. And while Suze Orman's prepaid card is a lot more fee-friendly, the television commentator raised some controversy when she referred to a blogger who criticized the card as an "idiot."

We'd love to see an Elizabeth Warren prepaid credit card.
That's not to say we hate the idea of celebrities endorsing prepaid cards, if they are set up to serve consumers' best interests. Here are a few we wouldn't mind seeing:

The Elizabeth Warren Card. Warren, who was instrumental in creating the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and is running for Senate in Massachusetts, is certainly a celebrity in the consumer advocacy world. While her political aspirations make it highly unlikely she would ever endorse a particular financial product, we know a card bearing her name would be the most fee-friendly card on the market, as she's on record campaigning against hidden credit card fees. And if the CFPB's proposed credit card agreement is any indication, you can be sure any fees included in the card agreement would be crystal clear to anyone signing up.

The Bono Card. Remember how popular the U2-branded iPods were? Apply that principle to prepaid cards and you'll have a sure winner. The card could rack up rewards points to use on the iTunes store, and purchases made at select retailers could automatically trigger a donation of a small portion of the purchase to the star's efforts to fight AIDS in Africa.

The Betty White Card. We feel sort of obliged to mention Betty White, since she just turned 90. The card would be gold -- this is the last surviving Golden Girl, after all -- and would earn cash-back rewards on products of interest to the older set. Instead of cash-back rewards, a percentage of profits could go toward an IRA or other retirement account as well.

The Ellen Card. When we asked our Facebook fans which celebrity they'd like to see a prepaid card from, reader Kelly Giles recommended Ellen DeGeneres, whom she says "promotes the layman's shopping choices" on her show. As we see it, people who use the card would pay a monthly fee, but in exchange would get exclusive coupons and discounts at grocery stores and other shops. No dancing required. 

Now see the best credit cards for saving cash at the pump > 

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