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HOUSE OF THE DAY: Steve Martin Is Selling His Spectacular St. Barts Villa For $11.4 Million

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Funny man Steve Martin is selling his mansion in St. Barts for 8.75 million, or $11.4 million at today's conversion rates, according to celebrity real estate blog The Real Estalker.

The home — known as Villa Au Soleil — is situated on the hills of Lurin with a 180-degree panorama view of St. Jean Baie.

Two terraces look out over the water with a pool and hot tub, and the mansion is surrounded by tropical gardens and a built-in barbecue pit.

The four-bedroom home is currently listed through St. Barth Properties Sotheby's International Realty, and is also available to rent by the week, according to The Real Estalker, making it the perfect vacation home for millionaires.

Steve Martin's Villa Au Soleil home has a 180-degree view of the surrounding St. Jean Baie.



The mansion has glass walls that offer impeccable views of the lush scenery.



There are four bedrooms and four bathrooms throughout the home.



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Woody Harrelson Declares He's An Anarchist, Compares Obama To Nixon

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Woody-Harrelson

Actor Woody Harrelson of ‘Hunger Games’ fame holds a dim view of government both on and off the set, calling himself an anarchist and describing partisanship as “synchronized swimming” in an interview with Details magazine.

“I tend to not like politicians, because it’s a subtle form of prostitution,” Harrelson said, lamenting the enormous influence corporations wield in political affairs. “Or maybe not so subtle. It’s all synchronized swimming to me. They all kneel and kiss the ring. Who’s going to take on the oil industry or the medical industry?”

The actor also criticized President Obama for failing to pull troops out of Afghanistan.

“People compare Obama to Lyndon Johnson, but I think a better comparison is between Obama and Nixon. Because Nixon came into office saying he was going to pull out of Vietnam, and then he escalated the war,” he said. “A lot of us were led to believe that Obama was the peace president, but there are still, I think, 70,000 troops in Afghanistan.”

Although Harrelson believes marijuana should be legalized, he took a  pessimistic view of longer-term drug law trends.

“I can’t imagine that it’s going to happen, no,” he said. “The deeper issue is, what does it mean to live in a free country? In the U.S., something like 80 percent of people in prison are there for “consensual crimes.”

In fact, Harrelson said he doesn’t believe in politics at all: “I’m an anarchist, I guess you could say. I think people could be just fine looking after themselves,” he said.

Full interview: ‘At 51, Woody Harrelson would rather watch Game of Thrones than work hard. But the longtime hedonist hasn’t lost his hippie spark—just get him going on those corporate warmongers.’

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Justin Bieber Wore A Leather Shirt And Indoor Sunglasses To The Heat-Pacers Game

Arya Stark Wins Best 'Red Wedding' Reaction Video [Spoiler Alert]

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Maisie Williams, the actress who plays Arya Stark on "Game of Thrones" posted a reaction video to the CRAZY "Red Wedding" episode on Vine and it is awesome.

Arya wins. SPOILER ALERT: don't listen to the Vine unless you've seen the episode. Also, go watch the episode.

[h/t Gawker]

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What Psychologists Think 'Game Of Thrones' Monarchs Would Be Like In The Workplace

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emilia clarke game of thrones

Even if your battles take place in Martin Place rather than Kings Landing, you may have encountered a Stannis Baratheon or Robb Stark in the workplace.

With the penultimate episode of Game of Thrones Season 3 airing, we asked psychologist Elizabeth Neal and executive coach Iain Crossing where the Westerosi power-grabbers are most likely to find a foothold in today’s organisations and what they should do to be more effective leaders.

Crossing, who consults with major ASX-listed companies, says the fictional monarchs demonstrate traits that all occur, to some extent, at various levels of the management chain.

Only one character has what it takes to be an effective corporate executive. Others may flourish with the right training.

Stannis Baratheon would be a junior manager respected by his subordinates.

Stannis is a blustering leader with powerful allies - the kind of person Crossing says may be found in junior management or senior operational roles in a family-run or semi-government business with no dedicated HR resources and weak governance.

Neal says Stannis is cold, lacks empathy, has a grandiose sense of self-importance and tends to overestimate his abilities. He is authoritarian and is unlikely to go back on decisions, which can lead to negative consequences.

'Stannis has a strong work ethic and is likely to be respected by his subordinates however his need and greed for power allows him to be influenced contrary to his principles,' she notes. 'There certainly are qualities that are promising but there would need to be professional development.'

The psychologists say Stannis would benefit from having a mentor, along with regular coaching to make him less reliant on his allies. He should work on grounding his goals on realistic expectations and timeframes, they say.



Joffrey Baratheon is most likely to get in trouble with HR.

Joffrey was born to power but has never demonstrated any effort or desire to lead, Neal says.

Emotionally unstable, antisocial, immature, unreliable, reckless and irresponsible, Joffrey ‘displays a pattern of pervasive distrust and suspiciousness of others’, she says.

In a workplace, Joffrey is likely to be verbally abusive; his ‘casual bullying’ will likely drive subordinates to leave the organisation.

Narcissism can make executives more charismatic and isn’t always a bad thing, but the psychologists don’t think Joffrey is likely to respond to professional development programs because his narcissism indicates that he is too insecure to change.

When facing a Joffrey in the workplace, your best bet is to lodge ‘complaints with HR and try get him moved on’, Crossing says.



Robb Stark would be a star employee who rises through the ranks.

Robb was pushed into the job and while inexperienced, has so far been successful on the battlefield by being a collaborative leader.

He leads his northmen with a high degree of integrity, earning their respect and loyalty with higher ideas and moral values.

Of all the would-be monarchs we’ve seen in the HBO TV series so far, Crossing says Robb best fits the archetype of the ‘traditional Aussie battler’ – a manager who has risen through the ranks in a difficult situation.

Crossing says Robb’s hands-on, collaborative approach works well in the lower ranks of management, but he will need to take a wider view if he is to lead a larger organisation.

‘You can definitely be a collaborative leader but what tends to separate people as they move up the leadership ranks is an increasing level of self-belief backing the decisions they make,’ he says.

‘They need to define their vision and think about how to manage politics and culture.’



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Disney Jacks Prices Again -- It Now Costs $95 To Get Into Disney World

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mickey mouse

(Reuters) - Walt Disney Co raised single-day admission prices as much as 6.7 percent over the weekend at its theme parks in Florida and California, hikes that are more than five times the rate of inflation.

Higher prices for Disney's theme parks have become an annual tradition. The theme parks and resorts unit provided 20 percent of the company's overall profits in the financial year that ended in September 2012, second only to the company's media unit that includes the behemoth sports channel ESPN.

As of Sunday, one-day entry to Disney's Magic Kingdom at the Walt Disney World resort in Orlando, Florida, costs $95 for a person age 10 or older, a 6.7 percent increase.

A single-day pass to one of two parks at Disneyland in Anaheim, California, rose 5.7 percent to $92. A park hopper ticket for entry to both California parks on the same day increased 9.6 percent to $137.

The Consumer Price Index, which measures a sample of goods and services Americans pay for, increased at a 1.1 percent pace for the 12 months that ended in April. A narrower measure of the cost of sporting events rose 1.6 percent.

Disney offers discount prices through multi-day tickets and other tailored offerings. Most patrons choose a multi-day ticket and don't pay the single-day rate, Disney spokesman Bryan Malenius said.

(Editing by Ronald Grover, Maureen Bavdek and Edwina Gibbs)

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Bollywood Actress Jiah Khan Found Dead In Apparent Suicide

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Screen Shot 2013 06 04 at 5.09.03 AM

Bollywood actress Jiah Khan, who made her debut starring opposite acting legend Amitabh Bachchan, died in an apparent suicide at her home in the Indian city of Mumbai, police said on Tuesday.

The 25-year-old Khan, who grew up in London before moving to India for a career in Bollywood, was found dead in her home by her family, an officer said. Police were interviewing her neighbours, the officer said, adding that no suicide note was found.

"We suspect she hung herself at her home" late on Monday, a police official told AFP, saying that her body has been sent for a post mortem.

Khan, who was born in New York before moving to London and then Mumbai, made her Bollywood debut in 2007 with the controversial film "Nishabd" (No words), playing the role of a teenager in love with her best friend's much older father, played by Bachchan.

The movie received average reviews because of its provocative storyline but Khan was praised for her bold acting.

Khan, who changed her name from Nafisa Khan, went on to star alongside actor Aamir Khan in "Ghajini", a box-office hit.

India's film industry reacted with shock and sadness to the news, with actress Sonam Kapoor, a contemporary, tweeting: "Rip Jiah khan. Terrible tragedy.. Very very shocking and disturbing news."

"Nobody should be in so much pain and a state of such hopelessness. I hope her soul finds some respite in death. #ripjiahkhan."

Bachchan, when contacted by AFP on Tuesday, only said: "Shocked and disturbed."

Actress Bipasha Basu tweeted: "#Rip Jiah Khan!God bless her soul!"

Khan's latest film "Housefull" was a comedy released in 2010, which also starred Akshay Kumar and Deepika Padukone.

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Michael Douglas Backs Off Claim That His Cancer Was Caused By Oral Sex

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michael douglas

Veteran Hollywood actor Michael Douglas denies that he told the Guardian that he blamed his throat cancer on oral sex.

But the paper stuck to its guns and posted an audio clip of the interview on its website, insisting that Douglas had been referring to his own cancer being caused by cunnilingus.

Douglas' spokesman Allen Burry said the 68-year-old "Fatal Attraction" star had discussed the link between oral cancers and oral sex, among other risk factors, but was not referring to his own specific case.

"Michael did not say cunnilingus was the cause of his cancer," spokesman Burry told AFP.

"He certainly discussed oral sex in the article, and oral sex is a suspected cause of certain oral cancers, as the doctors in the article did point out. But he did not say this was the specific cause of his personal cancer."

In the newspaper interview Douglas, who stars in the just-released biopic of flamboyant entertainer Liberace, "Behind The Candelabra," said his cancer was caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV).

According to the audio clip, the Guardian journalist asked him: Do you feel, in hindsight, that you overloaded your system? Overloaded your system with drugs, smoking, drink?

"Without wanting to get too specific, this particular cancer is caused by HPV, which actually comes about from cunnilingus," Douglas replied.

Douglas's spokesman said the actor was talking in general, not personal terms. "This is not the cause of his cancer," he said.

A spokesman for Guardian News & Media noted that Burry "has claimed that the actor did not say in an interview with the Guardian that his particular cancer was caused by cunnilingus.

"We have posted the relevant audio and transcript to prove that he did," he said.

"The Guardian firmly denies this charge of misrepresentation. Mr Burry was not present at the (interview); the only two people present were Mr Douglas and the Guardian writer, Xan Brooks," the paper noted online.

Burry, who did not immediately respond to request for further comment after the audio clip was posted, said earlier that he had not sought a correction from the British newspaper.

"I'm not asking the Guardian to do anything, I think they did enough already," he said.

The two-time Oscar winner revealed in 2010 that he was battling with stage-four cancer, but beat the disease thanks to a grueling regime of chemotherapy and radiotherapy.

"I have to check in regularly -- now it's every six months -- but I'm more than two years clear," he told the Guardian. "And with this kind of cancer, 95 percent of the time it doesn't come back."

Research studies from Malmo University's Faculty of Odontology and in The New England Journal of Medicine both suggest a correlation between oral sex and throat cancer.

HPV infection is also the cause of 99 percent of cases of cervical cancer, according to studies cited by Britain's National Health Service (NHS).

Douglas' wife, Oscar-winner Catherine Zeta-Jones, in April received further treatment for bipolar disorder.

The Welsh actress, 43, won an Academy Award in 2003 for her supporting role in "Chicago" and has appeared in films such as "Traffic" and "Ocean's Twelve."

SEE ALSO: Michael Douglas Says His Cancer Was Caused By Oral Sex

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Viewers' Hysterical Reactions To Sunday's Killer 'Game Of Thrones' Episode

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Yesterday, we wrote about viewers freaking out on social media about the events of the most recent "Game of Thrones" episode 

Many also recorded their reactions on YouTube. 

If you haven't seen the episode, there were a few major deaths this past Sunday (you can read up on that here). Fans freaked out on their couches and floors … and even cried in reaction to the episode.  

Someone compiled six minutes worth of reaction videos. 

The video has been watched more than a million times already on YouTube.

SEE ALSO: Arya Stark's Vine reaction to the episode >

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Hipsters And Hollywood Merged At The Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic

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Rosario Dawson, Camila Alves, Matthew McConaughey, Nacho Figueras and Ashley Olson polo 2013

More than 7,000 New Yorkers descended upon Liberty State Park in New Jersey for Saturday's sixth annual Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic.

Matthew McConaughey and his wife, Camila Alves, mingled with fellow Hollywood celebs such as Ashley Olsen and polo star Nacho Figueras -- who was out of the match on crutches.

But who had time to fully watch the match anyhow when there was so much people watching to do?

This is how guests were greeted before entering the VIP tent during the sixth annual Veuve Clicquot Polo Classic on Liberty Island.



Everyone was immediately offered delicacies such as caviar and foie gras.



These umbrella-holding models later served Veuve Clicquot champagne.



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The Most Scandalous Gowns At The Star-Studded CFDA Fashion Awards

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Karlie Kloss cfda 2013Supermodels, socialites, actresses, style mavens and fashion designers all gathered Monday night to celebrate the 2013 Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) Awards in New York City.

Karlie Kloss, Sofia Vergara, Nicole Richie, Miranda Kerr and dozens of other fashionable folk all walked the red carpet.

Some wore especially scandalous gowns, while others kept it uncharacteristically covered.

The event, hosted by Bravo's Andy Cohen, honors outstanding achievement in fashion design.

RISQUÉ: Victoria's Secret model Adriana Lima showed off her long, lean legs in a sheer dress by Givenchy, designed by the evening's International Award recipient, Riccardo Tisci.



COVERED: "Scandal" actress Kerry Washington was anything but in this conservative yellow gown by Jason Wu.



RISQUÉ: Nicole Richie was taped in place in her metallic slip dress from Marc Jacobs's fall 2013 collection.



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M. Night Shyamalan Movies Keep Getting Worse [CHART]

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M. Night Shyamalan

We need to talk about M. Night Shyamalan. 

He's the director with a reputation for ridiculous unexpected twists. He brought us the line "I see dead people" in "The Sixth Sense" and made crop circles scary in "Signs."

This past weekend the Shyamalan's latest film, "After Earth," a coming-of-age story set on a futuristic unpopulated Earth disappointed at theaters. The star power of Will Smith and his son Jaden came in third behind "Fast & the Furious" and magic movie "Now You See Me" with $27 million.

It was expected to earn closer to $40 million, according to Variety, which is a decent take for a Shyamalan movie but very unimpressive for Smith. The movie cost an estimated $130 million to make.

Not surprisingly, "After Earth" is getting bad reviews.

If we take a look back, Shyamalan's movies have been getting steadily worse, as we have graphed below:

m night shyamalan movie popularity rotten tomatoes

 

Even as his movies get bad reviews, they fare pretty well in theaters. 

Movie            

Opening Weekend             

Worldwide Gross                      

Domestic Gross               Estimated Budget
"The Sixth Sense"            $27 million$687 million$294 million$40 million
"Unbreakable"    $30 million  $248 million$95 million$75 million
"Signs"$60 million$408 million$228 million$72 million
 "The Village"$51 million$257 million$114 million$60 million
 "Lady in the Water"$18 million$73 million$42 million $70 million
 "The Happening"$31 million$163 million $65 million$48 million
 "The Last Airbender"$40 million $319 million$131 million$150 million 
"After Earth"$27 million----$130 million

*Note: It's been mentioned that we did not include 2010's "Devil" in our list. While the film does have a higher 52% rating on RT (still rotten), the movie was not directed by Shyamalan. We've included films solely directed by Shyamalan. "Devil" was directed by Drew and John Erick Dowdle. Shyamalan produced and wrote the storyline.

SEE ALSO: Will Smith's "After Earth" crashes at theaters >

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This 'Games Of Thrones' Graffiti Is The Best Turkey Protest Art Yet

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Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan is facing fiercest anti-government protests since assumed office in 2003, and the thousands of demonstrators are feeling emboldened in the face of police brutality.

That's clear with this 'Game of Thrones' reference scrawled on the a wall near Gezi Park of Taksim Square in Istanbul:

Erdogan inadvertently responded to the graffiti on Monday when, referring to national elections, he said“We already have a spring in Turkey … but there are those who want to turn this spring into winter ... Be calm, these will all pass."

And he's mostly correct: the former Istanbul mayor-turned-Prime Minister is a long way from being booted out of office.

His Justice and Development party (AKP) has had a majority in parliament since November 2002, and in June 2011 voters returned Erdogan and his party to power with 49.95 percent of the vote.

Here's Steven A. Cook of Foreign Affairs:

Even today, as the tear gas continues to fly, there is no question that Erdogan would win an election. 

But he can't push his luck, given his aspirations.

It's understood that the 59-year-old from Istanbul wants to be president since his self-imposed three-term limit as prime minister expires in 2015.

Presidential elections are slated for next year.

"Erdogan can’t stay in power unless he wins another election," Professor Riva Kastoryano at the Paris Institute of Political Studies told euronews. "Democracy in Turkey will be the solution. ... the electoral process will decide."

Perhaps that's why Turkey's deputy prime minister Bulent Arinc apologized for "excessive violence" against the protesters on Tuesday — admitting to a few days of violent overreaction could prevent a loss of votes for the AKP in local elections next year or even the derailment of Erdogan's presidential hopes.

On the other hand, Erdogan's my-way-or-the-highway mentality— the main focus of discontent after the protests over the destruction of trees in Taksim Square in Istanbul turned ugly remains.

Cook notes that "Turkey is decidedly split. Erdogan governs one half the country — his supporters – and intimidates the other."

A prime example of that ambivalence is what he said Monday (via Hürriyet Daily News):

“A mosque will be built in Taksim,” said Erdogan, adding that he did not have to receive permission from the main opposition leader or a “few marauders” for the projects. He said that the authority had already been given by people who voted for the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP).

All-in-all, the government's de-escalation doesn't take away from the power that the people have shown over the past five days in standing up to Erdogan's stubbornness.

And no matter how accurate this graffiti turns out to be, the turmoil has already created one enduring image: "The lady in red."

SEE ALSO: The Stunning Image Of 'The Lady In Red' Will Endure Even After The Turkey Protests End

If You Missed It: Arya Stark Wins Best 'Red Wedding' Reaction Video [Spoiler Alert]

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10 Pictures Of Fashion Models Eating Backstage

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What models eat

Despite their seemingly perfect exteriors, fashion models are — gasp!— human beings who have to eat just like the rest of us.

Sometimes, they even eat backstage before stomping down the runway.

Their choices are not always diet-conscious, but these models even manage to make snacking look good.

A model for Dennis Basso chows down on fruit at New York Fashion Week.

Source: Reuters




A redheaded model enjoys an apple as her hair is styled backstage at Antonio Perna's Madrid show.

Source: Reuters



Male models eat, too! This D&G looker enjoyed a hearty salad during Milan's Fashion Week.

Source: Reuters



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This Is The Worst Season Of 'Mad Men' Yet

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mad men AMC don draper jon hammIt's become pretty clear to me that Mad Men'sixth season is its worst season. It cannot be saved by the notion that Matt Weiner is "building up to something." "Building up to something" only works when you actually care about the characters. Despite some great acting, I don't really care what happens to Don Draper. I don't much care whether he's pathetic. I don't much care whether he's a badass. I know who he is, and who he is will never change. So his story is pretty much over. There are other, more interesting, characters. But because Don is the show's centerpiece, they'll never get the time that he gets.

It's sad to see the show just drifting listlessly from shocking event to shocking event.

I think this has become more of a problem. One reason the (temporary) reunion between Betty and Don worked so well was because Betty's character was so well explored in the first three seasons. The series developed her (even if they've since abandoned that project) and so Betty and Don are two fully fleshed-out characters in conversation. You can't really say that about any other woman in Don's life. Sylvia is barely an actual person compared to Betty. (I also think that January Jones and Jon Hamm, for whatever reason, have a kind of chemistry on set that hasn't been since duplicated.)

It's sort of sad to see the show just drifting listlessly from shocking event to shocking event. It points to a lack of actual things to say about actual human beings. Ostensibly, Mad Men is a show about "the '60s." But stories "about" particular times almost never work. Stories about people work. At any rate, it's pretty clear that Season Six has almost nothing to say about the times beyond, "This guy called this guy a fascist, and some hippies were doing drugs, and that guy called that guy a racist." As uninteresting as this season has been, it is at its least interesting when it is trying to "say" something—about the year, about the city, whatever.

Increasingly the magical '60s and a crumbling New York have become a crutch for Mad Men. I hope this changes in the seventh season. But I see no reason why it would. I suspect this series ended a while ago. (I'd argue either the second or fifth season.) It feels like we're on a tour-bus, and one of the tourists is driving.

SEE ALSO: Viewers freaked out over Sunday's "Game of Thrones" episode >

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How Amanda Bynes' Breakdown Got So Ugly, So Fast

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Amanda Bynes

For those who remember Amanda Bynes as the witty, wacky star of Nickelodeon’s "All That," the actress' public wackiness in the past two months has been tragic, saddening and apparently self-inflicted.

Bynes, now 27, racked up multiple hit-and-run charges after a 2012 DUI arrest led to a suspended license and a constant string of tabloid headlines. Lately, however, the former "What I Like About You" star is winning most attention for her outrageous tweets: In one tirade, she accused an NYPD police of "sexual harassment" after he allegedly "slapped" her vagina while taking her into custody last month for three charges, including criminal possession of marijuana and tampering with evidence. (The arrest report states she threw her bong out of the window when police entered her apartment.)

Last week, Bynes also took on former consort Lance Bass, who on the radio suggested she was having mental issues, and tweeted: "Sorry you're an ugly ex boy band member w/no talent or career." On Sunday, she stated her "dad is as ugly as RuPaul" and then took to Twitter on Monday to continue refuting drug charges while declaring, "All I'm becoming is more famous!"

But, Amanda Bynes is only the latest former child star to publicly melt down under grown-up pressures:

Lindsay Lohan’s post-teen life has been filled with a litany of arrests, court appearances, hairdo changes and unhinged partying. The tabloid magnet even took offense to Bynes' behavior last September, tweeting: "Why did I get put in jail and a Nickelodeon star has had NO punishment(s) so far?"

Britney Spears famously shaved her head in 2007 after spending a day in drug rehab. The bizarre behavior from the pop princess preceded a larger media circus surrounding her child custody battle with ex-husband Kevin Federline, as well as a court-ordered conservatorship, giving her father full control of her assets. 

Former Disney "Hannah Montana" star Miley Cyrus has had to explain a topless photo leaked onto the internet, a video of her smoking a hallucinogenic drug believed to be salvia and a number of other scandalous photographs, including one that appeared to be a lit joint.

Justin Bieber, 19, regularly makes headlines for bad behavior, most recently with neighbors filing complaints against the singer for recklessly driving his Ferrari around his gated Calabasas community and throwing disruptive late-night parties. 

Child stars facing problems in their adulthood is nothing new. What is new is how fast these young stars are able to self-inflict the career-killing wounds with their fingers on the pulse of Twitter, Facebook and other social networks.

"It speeds up the meltdown because it shortens the cycle between the celebrity sending out information and the impact coming back," Dr. Pamela Rutledge, director of the Media Psychology Research Center, told TheWrap. "Now any piece of information that a celebrity wants to share, for better or for worse -- independent of their handler -- goes right out and starts cycling around. And it gets amplified from being passed on."

That has certainly been true of Bynes.

Headline-grabbing tweets have included a plea to Barack Obama to fire the cop who arrested her for driving under the influence, as well as one announcing her plan to sue a tabloid and gossip website for continuing to write about her bizarre behavior, like "tweeting and walking to photoshoots." The once-witty comedic actress hasn't stopped lashing out and broadcasting her puzzling decisions since.

In March -- months after uploading, then deleting pictures of herself with a fresh cheek piercing on Tumblr -- Bynes claimed (in later deleted tweets) paparazzi photos capturing her walking around Manhattan were actually photos of an impostor. Then in April, the former actress uploaded a strange video of her "getting ready and sucking on a gummy bear."

Amanda Bynes Rihanna Tweets

In May, Bynes took to Twitter to call Jenny McCarthy "ugly," told Rihanna that Chris Brown physically abused her because she's "not pretty enough," announced she was becoming a rapper, insisted she isn't crazy, claimed she's "allergic to alcohol and drugs," and refuted her latest arrest, announcing plans to sue the NYPD.

 Although careful not to label social media as a cause of self-destructive behavior, two public relations professionals and a celebrity gossip blogger that spoke to TheWrap agreed with Rutledge.

"I'm not sure it speeds up the meltdown, but it speeds up the awareness of the meltdown and may empower the meltdown," said Howard Bragman, vice chairman of online reputation management company in the world, Reputation.com.

"It's tragic to watch this breakdown of this young girl happen publicly," Bragman said. "If she thinks she's in control, all we're seeing is how out of control this poor girl is."

In an interview with TheWrap, celebrity gossip blogger Perez Hilton (the same blogger Bynes threatened to sue over Twitter) said Charlie Sheen took advantage of social media to amplify -- and even profit off of -- his drug-fueled downward spiral.

"Look at Charlie Sheen. He was almost the original Amanda Bynes, giving us a very public meltdown in the new social media age," Hilton told TheWrap.

Long before Twitter, Facebook and Instagram, mass media has had a long tradition of gravitating toward and sensationalizing entertainment news stories. Hilton used the 1993 Michael Jackson molestation trial as an example.

"This occurrence of celebrity meltdowns having a lot of traction in social media is really just how the news cycle works," Hilton explained. "When there is a story that the media deems newsworthy enough, they blow it up and Amanda Bynes story has progressively become more and more news worthy because of her progressively erratic behavior."

Steve Honig, a publicist who once represented Lohan, pointed out that Twitter functions as a wire service similar to the Associated Press, attracting hundreds of thousands -- or in some cases, millions -- of eyes.



"It's impulsive communication. It's very spontaneous, so the nature of it is that people just spew out what they think, when they think it," Honig explained. "For a public figure or celebrity, that can be problematic."


Comedian Gilbert Gottfried, one of Honig's clients, experienced just how problematic impulsive tweeting can be in March of 2011. After making a series of less-than-tasteful jokes about the tsunami that devastated Japan, Gottfried lost a lucrative job as the voice of the loud-mouthed Aflac Insurance duck.

So how can celebrities and other types of public figures avoid a public relations disaster birthed or spread through social media?

"Awareness is key," Honig said.

Social media allows celebrities to carelessly air their dirty laundry, but it also allows any person with a mobile phone to catch their unsavory behavior on camera and upload it to the internet to share with the world on any social network of their choice.

"We live in an extraordinarily transparent world where everything you do is laid out there for everybody to see," Bragman said. "It's a very different world out there, and that's one other aspect of social media. Everything you do is public."

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Justin Bieber's Most Ridiculous Outfits Of All Time

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justin bieber at miami heat indiana pacers game

On Monday, Justin Bieber raised eyebrows when he attended Game 7 of the Heat-Pacers series wearing sunglasses indoors, oversized Heat hat with a snakeskin brim, a leather baseball jersey, and gold chains.

But these days, that's just the norm for Bieber's personal style.

From a Chanel mask to pants so sagged he has to hold them up, the 19-year-old has come a long way since his days as a clean cut YouTube star-turned-teen idol.

When Justin Bieber first hit the music scene in 2009, no one was talking about his clothes — the buzz was all about the 15-year-old's luscious, side-swiped hair.



But he quickly went from dressing like a normal teenager ...



To white-on-white denim concert attire.



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Meet The Man Who Accidentally Convinced People That Mermaids Are Real

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Mermaids

In 2004, a young boy found the body of something on the shore. He knelt down to get a closer look. The body had the features of a man, but it was not human. As a friend filmed, the body suddenly sprang to life. The boys fled, but footage from the incident survived. 

This event is not real, but it fooled a lot of people when it first aired last year on Animal Planet as part of a two-hour special called "Mermaids: The Body Found," which speculates about the existence of mermaids.

Charlie Foley is the film's executive producer, creator, and writer. He first dreamed up the concept in 2005 and returned with a follow-up special at the end of May, "Mermaids: The New Evidence," that grabbed the network's largest audience ever — 3.6 million viewers.

Both "Mermaids" specials are science fiction — a genre that critics argue is better fodder for fantasy network's like SyFy. The plot is carried by actors who pose as fictitious scientists and fake YouTube footage of purported mermaid sightings. Many first-time viewers were not aware that the special was a hoax until a disclaimer ran at the end of the show.

The films are also loosely based on real historical events and a radical evolutionary idea called the "aquatic ape" theory.

The theory reasons that many of the human traits we have today — our lack of fur, the ability to walk upright, a thick layer of fat underneath the skin — developed because our ancestors lived by the water many millions of years ago. 

There are several attributes that make humans different from apes. Fringe scientists who support aquatic ape theory argue that those distinct features can be interpreted as a sign of our watery past. 

Foley uses this controversial hypothesis as the catalyst for his fictional account of the genesis of mermaids.

"If [the aquatic ape theory] is true — if humans were developing into marine animals — it would not be so hard to imagine that there is one group of humans that continued to evolve in that direction," said Foley.

His mermaid story goes something like this:

Around 6.5 million years ago, the eastern coast of Africa flooded over. The majority of our relatives turned inland, while a smaller group went farther out to sea. The water-drawn group became what are known in modern folklore as mermaids — mythical sea creatures that are half-human, half-fish.

Charlie FoleyThere is no scientific evidence that mermaids exist. Foley, Animal Planet's senior vice president of development since 2011, asks his audience to detach themselves from reality for around 120 minutes and to believe that real geological circumstances — like ancient east African flooding — could have transformed humans into permanent deep sea residents.

The transition from land animal to sea creature is not unprecedented, Foley notes. Polar bears, for example, evolved from brown bears. The white, fluffy beasts developed slightly webbed toes to help them swim and they are able to hold their breath underwater for a long time.

The idea for Mermaids hatched from another hit show that Foley created for the nature network in the early 2000s, a science fiction special that imagined dragons as real animals.   

"This prompted me to think of other myths and legends that had kernels of truth," said Foley.

The magical figures have been entertaining the human imagination for thousands of years, since the time of the ancient Greeks. Mermaid stories come from fisherman's logs, early paintings, and other historical accounts. Even Italian explorer Christopher Columbus reported seeing mermaids (most likely manatees or the now-extinct Steller's sea cow) while sailing in the Dominican Republic. 

The traditionally female character continues to hold our fascination: A town in Israel, Kiryat Yam, is currently offering a one million dollar bounty for the first person to snap a photograph of a mermaid. 

While mermaids continue to endure in legend, Foley's fake documentary feeds into humans' innate appetite for storytelling. "We were not able to get a lot of things in the original, " Foley concedes. "But we tried very hard to [make this story] plausible." 

SEE ALSO: Here's The Fake Documentary That May Convince You That Mermaids Are Real

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The 9 Most Influential Hip Hop Artists In Tech

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MC HammerWe've noticed a growing interest in rap music among the tech elite in the last couple of years.

Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, MC Hammer, Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, and SV Angel partner Ron Conway famously remixed MC Hammer's "Too Legit To Quit" song in support of the tech-friendly, then San Francisco interim Mayor Ed Lee back in 2011. 

Then there's Rap Genius, a site that annotates rap lyrics, literature, and poetry. In 2012, prominent Silicon Valley firm Andreessen Horowitz invested in $15 million in the site

A growing number of artists have created their own startups, invested in tech companies, and sometimes both. They're working on startup staples like search, imaging, and wireless charging, as well as more esoteric projects like 3D concert apps and electronic cigarettes.

We ranked them by their Klout score, whch measures influence in social media.

Nas has an e-commerce startup that offers celebrity-endorsed goods.

Nas co-founded lifestyle brand 12Society along with basketball star Blake Griffin, Kevin Love, Michael Strahan, Nick Cannon, and Tim Lincecum last year.

For $39 per month, you'll receive a box full of anything ranging from headphones to clothing to accessories. Every item is hand-picked by 12Society's team of celebrity founders. 

"I truly believe we are at an incredible inflection point in the consumer retail experience: Just how Amazon and eBay opened the railways to a new universe of available products, and Groupon allowed for the discovery of local activities to become accessible and affordable, new resources are changing the entire game once again," Nas wrote in a guest post on TechCrunch last September

Klout score: 82



Dr. Dre is making sure you experience the best quality sound while listening to music.

Dr. Dre is the mastermind behind those sleek, color headphones you've undoubtedly seen before. In August 2011, Dr. Dre sold a majority stake in Beats Electronics to HTC. 

Klout score: 87

Note, Dr. Dre apparently doesn't tweet.



T-Pain is bringing auto-tune to the masses.

T-Pain has been involved in a couple of apps over the years. Last month, the rapper attended and supported the launch event for Gig It, a new Facebook game that lets people created virtual, 3D concerts.

There's also the I Am T-Pain app by Smule that lets you create songs using auto-tune. 

Fun fact: He has a pretty cool tattoo of Facebook's "Like" symbol.

Klout score: 87



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This Is One Of The Biggest Lizards To Have Ever Lived On Land

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lizard

A giant lizard that lived 40 million years ago at a time when Earth was a hothouse has been named in honour of rock singer Jim Morrison, palaeontologists said on Wednesday.

Around 1.80m (six feet) from snout to tail and tipping the scales at up to 27 kilos (60 pounds), the plant-eating reptile is one of the biggest-known lizards ever to have lived on land.

It competed with mammals for food in the humid tropical forests of Southeast Asia.

A fossil of the beast, found in sediment in Sagaing district in Myanmar, has been dated to the late-middle Eocene period, when Earth was so hot there was no ice at its poles.

"We think the warm climate during that period of time allowed the evolution of a large body size and the ability of plant-eating lizards to successfully compete in mammal faunas," said Jason Head of the University of Nebraska at Lincoln who led the analysis.

The palaeontologists have named the long-extinct species Barbaturex morrisoni.

"Barbaturex" means "bearded king," after the team found ridges on the underside of the jaw that give lizards a beard-like appearance. "Morrisoni" is in tribute to Doors frontman Morrison, famed for his fascination with reptiles and shamanism.

"I was listening to The Doors quite a bit during research," said Head.

"Some of their musical imagery includes reptiles and ancient places, and Jim Morrison was of course the Lizard King, so it kind of came together."

The study appears in the British scientific journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences.

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